Simon S. Tam's Blog, page 18

Do Graduate Schools’ Political Leanings Concern You?

I recently did an interview with US News: Education. The article was released today, Graduate Schools’ Political Leanings Concern Some Students. The report that “Simon Tam, an MBA student atMarylhurst Universityin Oregon, says it’s important for applicants to consider all aspects of a prospective school’s culture. “It can be a more enjoyable experience to find an environment that believes in similar values and principles as well as attracts like-minded students to their program,” he says.That...

Goodbye, Zig

Zig Ziglar died this morning at the age of 86.

He was a tremendous teacher, writer, and speaker. He was an inspiration to many and his influence continues to shine – not only uponmarketersand sales people but professional speakers, teachers, pastors, public servants, managers, parents, and those who have a dream to reach.

Thank you, Zig, for benig a part of helping me reach me dreams. May you rest in peace. I’ll see you at the top.

The Best Form of Revenge Is…

Rejection. It can sting. Whether a potential employer or current supervisor that doesn’t give you the opportunity to shine, the reality is that sooner or later, you’re going to face rejection. How you deal with that rejection can ultimately determine your success.

I once heard that the best form of revenge is success. In other words, prove the naysayers wrong by not only succeeding, but doing something so well that they regret not giving you the chance in the first place. There are countless e...

What the Newest Facebook Hoax Tells Us About Users

The newest Facebook hoax to make the rounds started picking up some serious steam yesterday. You might have seen some of your friends post a message along the lines of: “In response to the new Facebook guidelines, I hereby declare that my copyright is attached to all of my personal details, illustrations, comics, paintings…” Well, no surprise but it is just a hoax.

First of all, posting anything of this sort on a personal profile will not negate the legal agreement that all users signed when c...

Measuring ROI (Return on Investment)

Traditional marketing mediums like television, print advertising, billboards, etc. provide very little in terms ofdata to measure your return on investment.

Though 10,000 cars might drive by a sign each day, how many pay attention? How many care? And even if it results in a new customer, how is that measured? Just because a tv or radio station broadcasts to 3 million residents, how many are listening at the exact moment your ad is on?

With most online marketing, you can see how many people clic...

5 Things You Can Learn From Your Day Job for Any Career

Last week, I posted an article on my Music Marketing blog called “5 Things You Can Learn From Your Day Job in Your MusicCareer.” After thinking about it some more, I realized that it could apply to any type of career. These are basic skills that entrepreneurs should be picking up as learning experienced from any job. I’ve posted it below. Here’s to taking more steps to creating your dream job!

Martin Atkins, touring artist and author of the book Tour:Smart, recently did aninterview with CD Bab...

Why “Post Your Twitter or Facebook Page” Discussions Don’t Work in Linkedin Groups

Do you used Linkedin? If so, Linkedin Groups is a great feature to network and get to know professionals in industries beyond your current circle. It’s also a great way to promote your own professional skills, whether those are in music, marketing, movie making, or anything else.

As a member of nearly two dozen Linkedin Groups, I almost always see the same top post in every group: a callout for members to post their social media sites in a discussion group and to encourage those individuals to...

How to Get More Followers on Facebook

During aconsulting sessionearlier this week, I was asked “How do you get more fans on Facebook?”

I began by talking about the usual techniques:advertising the Facebook page, better cross-promoting with other sites, increasing engagement, etc. However, the more that I thought about the question, the more I realized it was the wrong question. Many artists are constantly looking for ways to increase the number of followers on their Facebook or Twitter. They evenbuy fake followers to do so. But th...

How to Pitch Your Brand

If you were presented with the opportunity to pitch your brand/product/service directly in front of your dream customer audience, what would you say? If there was a venture capitalist looking to invest in a company, how would you convince them to choose you?

Being able to pitch your brand is one of the most important marketing steps that you can take. If you are an author or artist, you need to sell yourself. If you are representing an organization, you should know how to sell your company – q...

What Would You Write in 500 Words?

I was blessed to have been selected as a “luminary” on the site,inspiremetoday.com, which has hosted inspirational words of wisdom from the likes of Seth Godin, Sir Richard Branson,Guy Laliberte, and many others. I hope you’ll take a moment to check out the piece I wrote and share it with others.

What I wrote today was simply birthed out of the prompt provided, the same prompt that every writer bases their piece off of: “If I could share 500 words of wisdom to summarize what I’ve learned so fa...