By Deborah Sweeney

The e-newsletter. Sometimes you open it and read a couple of articles inside, other times you delete it without a second glance. More often than not, you’re choosing the latter of the two options and usually it’s for the same reasons. The subject header wasn’t engaging. You’ve read a couple of issues in the past and the content was so-so. Maybe the design isn’t all that good either or the font could be hard to read. It could even be for a reason as simple as arriving into your inbox too early in the morning on a Monday.

There’s nothing as disappointing as logging into your Constant Contact account (or any other newsletter template service that you use) and seeing that hardly anyone subscribed on your mailing list opened the letter that you put a lot of time into. But while you might have put plenty of time into your email newsletter, you probably missed out on rubbing a little extra effort into the following areas. Brush up on your creativity and showcase what your company does best by focusing on the following must-haves to guarantee solid newsletter reads and opens. (more…)

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your entrepreneurial journey.

I live in Dallas, Texas with my husband JB and my three children Eli 11, Katja 13, and Alex 19.  I do what most busy moms do; balance a busy work life with busy kid schedules.  After a successful 20 year career in corporate direct sales, I decided to make a bold move and launch my own company. Needless to say, this was not an easy decision; it took a lot of prayer and a lot of courage to answer a call I felt I had within me.  I longed for a way to be independent and not reliant on someone else for my future.  I was also ready to find a way where I would stop sacrificing time with my family.

My journey started as a vision to empower women as entrepreneurs and to bring to life an exclusive product line.  The concept was that both the business opportunity and the products had to offer up something more, something different. I wanted to create a boutique of products that made the connection between beauty and health inside and out. Imagining it was easy!  Creating, testing, molding and launching were the difficult task. Mía Mariu opened the virtual doors for business in May of 2008.

What did you do before launching your own business?

Prior to launching my business I had a very successful corporate career with two of the best known direct sales companies in the industry Mary Kay Cosmetics and Home Interiors & Gifts Inc. (more…)

By Liz Krause

Running a home business is not an easy task, but add in working with your spouse and you’ve just added a layer of complexity which can either help grow, stunt or even decimate your business. Although many couples couldn’t conceive of successfully working with a spouse, there are quite a few who do. The ability to work together is not a natural God given talent to select couples, but rather a skill which they have learned in order to successfully work side by side in a way that is productive and practical.

It’s business, not personal…or is it?

Have you ever used this line before, and if so, was it helpful? The truth of the matter is that indeed, things are said or done in the name of business and shouldn’t be taken personally. Stating that someone needs to proof their grammar a bit better with their emails to clients is not code for being a terrible communicator and failure. (more…)

By Rick Magennis

So you want to be a blogger, now what? Before you embark on your blogging journey, prepare yourself for good days and bad days. You may write the best blog of your life and no one takes time to comment. One day you will reach hundreds of people, and the next your statistics are in the toilet. There is much about blogging that no one has ever told you.

I’m here to spill the beans.

Blogging is Time Consuming.

Oh yes, time consuming indeed. Successful blogs stay true to their niche, and they put up quality posts on a regular basis. In the beginning your brain will be booming with ideas, and you will be eager to post and experiment with your blog. (more…)

By Christy Schutz

The other day I took my morning commute (about 50 feet) to my home office, opened the door, and almost turned around and went back to my bedroom. The thought of crawling back into my cozy bed and pulling the covers over my face seemed WAY more appealing than tackling the stacks of papers, mail, folders, and stuff that was strewn across my desk. Let me clarify right now that I am not a neat freak. I enjoy organization, but can function in a little bit of clutter. But, my home office looked like “who did it and ran” and I knew I was going to have to take some time organizing and straightening if I hoped to be able to think straight and be productive.

My experience reminded me of something. It has been awhile since I’ve done some shopping for my home office. Surely we all NEED a few new accessories and/or nifty tools in order to really jump-start our productivity levels, right? Spruce up your office with some of these fresh finds: (more…)