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About
Robert
Middleton
Helping Independent Professionals Make a Bigger
Contribution
So
who is this Action Plan Marketing
Guy?
 I've
been self employed most of my working life.
Helping people market their businesses didn't come
as an academic calling, but as a strategy for
survival. In 1984 I started to teach what I'd
learned to small businesses to help them survive as
well. In the past 20 years I've had some great
success stories. But it didn't start out very
easily for me.
When I
started to market and sell myself over 20 years ago
I was terrible at it. I really had no clue.
When people asked what I did I said I was a "a
small business consultant." What the heck does that
mean? It took me a very long time to learn the
language of marketing. The upside of my long
learning curve is that I've gone through every
single obstacle, frustration and struggle my
clients have experienced. I've been there and I
have real empathy for what they're going
through.
Action
Plan Marketing - The early days - SF late
1980s
When I
finally cracked the marketing code I realized that
it wasn't really all that hard after all. I've
always tried to stick to one key principle:
emphasize practical strategies and tactics that
people can actually use to attract new clients. I
also do my best to practice what I preach. My
marketing efforts now bring me all the business I
can handle. My goal is to show you how you can do
that as well (without spending a fortune or going
nuts in the process.)
I'm
always working to stretch the limits of my
knowledge and abilities. For instance, I still
read business, marketing and selling books
voraciously. I'm a graduate of marketing guru Jay
Abraham's 2-year "Ultimate Live Marketing Research
Laboratory," and attend other leading-edge
marketing seminars and workshops. I give talks on
marketing to several professional groups each year
and am part of the faculty at Ken McCarthy's
"System Seminar" on Internet marketing. I offer a
comprehensive marketing membership program called
The
Action Plan Marketing Club.
I like to share my knowledge, and I make it a
practice to give away whatever I can.
One of
my key values is making a contribution (vs. making
a killing) in business. Everyone wants to make
a difference. That's why you went into business in
the first place. But as your business progresses,
you might have found that it was a struggle. When
you turn your attention to making a contribution,
then marketing becomes easier. You don't have to
focus on selling your services, but communicating
the value you offer. It's a big shift in
perception.
What if
you could be a great marketer of your services?
What if you could double, triple or quintuple your
business and your income in only a few short years?
I've done it and my success depends not only on my
ability to market and sell my services but to break
through my self-imposed limitations. There's no
reason you can't do the same. I hope I can help you
do so.
My
business used to be working with clients
one-on-one. Then for several years I worked
with clients in group programs held by
teleconference. Now Action Plan Marketing primarily
offers Marketing
Tools
on this web site. I now lead a group of highly
qualified Action
Plan Marketing Coaches
who work with clients individually and in groups.
If you'd like to explore working with a marketing
coach, click
on this page.
I hope you
find the site a valuable resource for becoming a
better marketer, for growing your business and for
realizing your full potential.
The next
place to go is Marketing
Tools
or the Free
Stuff
section.
The Action Plan Marketing office, looking out
on the San Lorenzo River in the Santa Cruz
Mountains south of San Francisco.
P.S. -
Are you into Jazz? I'm a serious addict, which
seems to be an incurable disease. Here's
a listing of my top recommended Jazz
albums
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