How I Got An Unsolicited Product Review/Endorsement From A Small Business Powerhouse

My wife, my daughter, assorted friends, and even some friendly aliens (not those kind of aliens!) frequently ask me why I'm always on the computer.

I'm on the computer a lot, these days. But why?

Well for one, that's where business happens. I used to concentrate only in my local area, but that was starting to fail, big time. So, I changed things around a little.

In December of last year, I wrote about how my franchise consulting business had changed. Please read it, and stop back.

Well, it's changed again. I think that's what makes being an always-learning entrepreneur, fun. (Challenging, too)

I'm transitioning my franchise consulting-brokering business into more of a franchise advisory business. What that means is that I'm no longer focusing on the brokering of franchises. Now, I still have relationships with several franchisors, and I'll disclose those relationships with anyone who's decided to get some real-life, and actionable advice from me.

I also do franchise social media marketing and content development for a select number of franchisors, and those are disclosed, too.

I'll share more of what I'm doing as a franchise advisor, in the near future.

I Didn't Ask For a Product Review

Well, not from someone like Tim Berry. Oh..you mean that you don't know who Tim Berry is?

Tim Berry is the author of *Business Plan Pro® and Marketing Plan Pro®. He is a Stanford MBA, author of three books on business planning with spreadsheets (published in the mid-1980s by Hayden Books, McGraw-Hill Microtext and Dow Jones-Irwin) and a former wire service news and business magazine foreign correspondent.

Today, Tim dedicates most of his time to blogging, teaching, and evangelizing for business planning. His popular blog, Planning Startups Stories, is read by thousands.

Basically, Tim's name is synonymous with creating business plans.

So, when I read this mini-review of the franchise information products that I've developed over at Franchise Online University.com, I was floored. Here's what Tim wrote;

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A gentle tip from The Franchise King®:
Do not buy a franchise until you know EXACTLY how to do thorough research.
Learn how here

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"If you’re at all interested in buying into a franchise business, I think you’d definitely want to become familiar with Joel Libava, his Franchise King Blog, and his new e-book called How to Carefully Select a Franchise to Buy."

Then Tim mentioned where he read about my eBook

"I just read a good review by TJ McCue, founder of SalesRescueTeam.com, someone I’ve come to know and like from a relationship that started on Twitter. That’s on Small Business Trends, one of the best small-business blogs. TJ does a good review and includes a good video summary from Joel."

He Likes Me!

Tim wrote that "I know and like Joel Libava and TJ McCue, both of them, and I respect their work. And regarding franchises, Joel is the king there; he really does know the territory."

So, how did that happen?

I spend 10+ hours a day online. I network. I give and take. I point out great resources. I help folks find what they need to find. I get to know the best of the best in small business, and social media. I'm visible.

I've talked with Tim on the phone. (We'll be shaking hands, soon) I've shared some of my ideas with him. I've helped spread his ideas around.

It's taken years, not months, to get to the point that I'm at. (And I'm not even close to my goals, yet) Heck, I'm not that close to my monetization goals. I'm still learning. I have faith that what I'm doing now…which is causing some short-term pain, will be good, long term.

It's great to get unsolicited reviews, compliments, and the like. It's even ok with me if I'm criticized. It gives me a chance to improve what I'm doing.

Thanks, Tim.

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