California Miramar University

Video – Flexible MBA for Working Professionals – Hybrid MBA in San Diego

Gregg explains why she was glad to find CMU. Flexible Programs. Instructors from the real world with a lot of industry experience.
Advice?  Don’t put it off.  ”My MBA has given me added skills for my toolkit that have made me a more valuable employee.” Gregg describes how it helped her grow professionally in ways she could not imagine.

Click here to watch the 45 second video!

The value of an MBA cannot be overstated in today’s economy. According to The National Association of Colleges and Employers, the average first-year MBA graduate made between $50,000/year and $75,000/year right out of school. And that number rose to $90,000 for those in the workforce for a few years.

As a military serviceman or woman or a military spouse, there are a lot of reasons – including daily service and/or family responsibilities – that make getting an MBA seem impossible. However, with the prevalence of online MBA programs like the one we offer here at California Miramar University, those excuses are disappearing. In our world today, an online business degree doesn’t carry a negative stigma, especially when you’re talking about accredited online MBA programs like the one here at CalMU.

Some of the reasons why online MBA programs make sense for military personnel and military spouses:

Take Classes Wherever, Whenever– Ideal for a life on the go and a life full of responsibilities, you can earn an online business degree by taking classes on your schedule, not ours.

Maintain Responsibilities – You can still manage home and family responsibilities while studying to get MBA degree. You make it fit your busy life instead of sacrificing time with the kids or your spouse.

Cut Down Expenses – Gone are expenses such as gas, food, parking and school attire that are necessary when traveling to a college. There aren’t many extra expenses involved with sitting down at your computer.

Affordable Tuition – Thanks to programs such as Army College Tuition Assistance Program, the Montgomery GI Bill, the Department of Defense (DoD) Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts and National Guard Tuition Assistance, there are ways out there to fit each and every member of the military and their family. Here at CalMU, we offer Military Tuition Assistance educational benefits for our servicemen and women.

Instead of putting off your education another year for the same old reasons (time, responsibilities, money), realize that there are opportunities available to earn your online business degree through online MBA programs like the ones we offer. Take a look at the admissions policies, academic standards and much more at our website.

This year employers expect to hire 17.4% new MBAs, up from 11.7% in 2011 according to the Graduate Management Admission Council’s (GMAC) 2012 Survey of Corporate Recruiters. And are overwhelmingly interested in hiring MBA candidates that have recently graduated and are ready to put their new degree to use. Because many graduates of online MBA programs and Hybrid MBA programs have gained work experience during business school, they have had the benefit of applying their studies to their jobs and now have the confidence to really advance their careers.

MBA programs give you an advantage in both your personal and career development. You learn invaluable leadership skills as you fulfill course requirements, like group projects and presentations, which are meant to mimic real business situations. A second strong advantage to a traditional, hybrid or online business degree is the business connections and relationships you form with classmates and professors. Alumni networks from business schools help you build your career by offering services that aid in relocating if necessary, or give advice on a corporation’s strengths when you are on the job market or looking to change positions.

With an online MBA, however, you will likely be recruited while still in school at a salary that averages $90,000 per annum upon graduation, depending on location. With students who chose a specialty, job offer opportunities are slightly higher, as are those in manufacturing. Further, if you are interested in pursuing a career in either the services or products sector you may earn an impressive 75% higher salary than your fellow graduates.

If you are still working full-time, then the online MBA programs or Hybrid MBA programs are definitely great options that allow you to take advantage of the freedom they entail. The costs overall are less than traditional MBA programs; but the important aspects of MBA training, like group work, are included via online technologies like video chatting and/or conference calls. You will keep in close contact with professors and classmates, ensuring that you continue to reap all of the benefits of traditional programs, while gaining the valuable work experience to really propel yourself into the upper echelon of whatever career path you embark on.

Simply put, the Doctor of Business Administration is the driving force behind growth and change in the dynamic world of business administration theory and practice. DBAs contribute to the body of professional knowledge and to the development of actual business practice by putting business theory to work on practical business problems. Students working on their Doctor of Business Administration study a wealth of advanced, practical and theoretical knowledge and literature in their field, and utilize sophisticated research methods and problem solving skills to complete their assignments. Many students prepare for DBA courses with online MBA programs.

Online MBA students may be wondering whether to go for a PhD in Business Administration or a Doctor of Business Administration when the time comes, and although the difference between the two is subtle, it is where the importance of a DBA really shows. PhDs typically only work in the field of academia, focusing on teaching and researching theory; DBAs, on the other hand, take this theory into their own personal practices and consulting jobs to actively shape the way business works. They keep their fingers on the pulse of new and emerging strategic management techniques, market research and both local and global financial theory, and then use this broad scope of knowledge to improve every aspect of the business world. The efficiency and innovativeness of the industry rely on these bright and pioneering professionals.

One of the reasons Doctors of Business Administration are so successful is the flexibility and range of opportunities that their training offers. DBAs can be found making a difference on all levels of business, from office management to foreign relations. Due to their strong academic background, DBAs can also be found influencing the academic world as some of the most prestigious professors at schools like the Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan School of Management, and Stanford University.

A Doctor of Business Administration needs many attributes to succeed: focus, passion and tenacity, to name a few. But for the committed, a wide world of satisfying praxis and a chance to make a difference awaits.

Sitting under the warm San Diego summer sun, there’s nothing more refreshing than enjoying the sweet taste of delicious fruit. That said, and because we have been recognizing many environmentally conscious companies lately, this week’s CalMU Small Business Spotlight Award goes to Sundia Corporation. Do you remember the last time you ate a fruit cup, the ideal snack because it’s healthy and already peeled so you can get right to devouring it? Well, that was probably made by Sundia.

The company was founded in 2004 by Bradford Oberwager, a well-known name in the corporate world. By emphasizing the importance of leading a healthy life and backing this up through its promotion of fruits and veggies, they have become a hit not just in California, but all around the world. They are the fastest growing company that sells produce in all of North America and have sold over 25 million cups in the US Canada to date.

However the fruit cup is not actually what they started with. They were originally focused on watermelons, wanting to be the first watermelon brand in the U.S. Through tenacity and hard work they were able to establish relationships with 4 of the top 5 suppliers and, as a result, are now responsible for 35% of the watermelons shipped in the country.

Now the fruit cups come into play. In 2007 they introduced their True Fruit fruit cups to both get healthy snacks into the hands of consumers and help people get their full servings of fruit everyday. Next time you go to the grocery store, take a look in the produce section; I’m sure you’ll find a delicious fruit cup to snack on while not feeling guilty about eating junk food.

Because their fruit cups were such a hit, they expanded their product line to include both organic and light options, the latter of which contains fruit in water and artificial sweetener instead of fruit insyrup. Both products have redefined the industry and have helped Sundia leave a global footprint on the industry (although not a carbon footprint, as they stress sustainability and are carbon neutral). Today they are more successful than ever and have acquired the license to sell Sunkist and Jamba Juice fruit cups to show it.

Ranked the 6th Most Promising Company by Forbes and the 2nd Fastest Growing Food & Beverage Company in the U.S. by Inc.com, they witnessed a 363% 3-year growth rate from 2007 to 2010, increasing their revenue from $2.2 million to $10.3 million. With a team of only 13, they have stayed true to their entrepreneurial roots and are still intent on putting the consumer at the center of their operations.

Thank you Sundia Corporation for providing us with delicious and nutritious snacks to satisfy our hunger pains, and thank you for teaching students in our online MBA programs and Hybrid MBA programs what it takes to create and grow a successful business: the desire, from the very beginning, to be a national leader.

Guest speaker Megan Ahn discusses strategies that will help you conduct better interviews to really put you in the driver’s seat, which is vital for building the best team possible for your business. In the second part of the lesson she discusses how to create the ultimately resume that will deliver in terms of creating interest and getting interviews. And in the last part, the business expert touches on some secrets for hiring managers to attract the most qualified applicants out there.

Transcript of the Video (until 4:13)

Remember how I talked about show up on time? Well, if you’re going to interview somebody you never know when that person walks through the door if that could be the person you want to hire because you’re interviewing a bunch of people. If it is the person that you want to hire– let’s say you interview people and this person is out of this world – you have the ability to be in control of who you’re going to attract, and do the best you can. So be prepared for the person when you’re going to interview them.

Make sure that you’ve read their resume and that you’re pretty clear about their background, and that you’re ready and prepared for them when they come in because you want to make the best impression you can on every candidate. If the candidate comes in and they’re not prepared; it’s not somebody that you think has the skill sets you’re looking for – you have control of wrapping up that interview pretty quickly and getting them on their merry way.

But if it’s a candidate that is phenomenal, you’re going to be so happy that when they came in you made a great first impression. You welcomed them, you were prepared, you read the resume, you had good questions to ask them; because when you’re looking at attracting the top talent, the top talent gets multiple offers. They do. I don’t care what kind of market it is out there; things will get competitive. And when companies are looking to hire and ramp up, they are looking for that phenomenal talent. And you want to try to attract it – you better give them the best first impression you can. You have no down side.

The worst case scenario is you wrap up early and you send them on their way if they’re not great. The best case scenario is you’ve made a fabulous first impression, and maybe they get multiple offers and they don’t take your job offer, but you know what they had great experience when they showed up at your company. So let’s say their job doesn’t come back and they call you 6 months later and say, “Gosh, I interviewed with you and I don’t know, I made the wrong choice.” You may get that top talent back as well. So think about being prepared when they come to meet with you.

This is one of the biggest mistakes people make when they go to hire somebody: they said they like them first. [Laughter] You know, they come in and they chat with them; they just chat, and they don’t focus on, “I need to have this accomplished, I need to put together a team and one of the people on the team needs to do this for me.”Know what you need to have accomplished when you’re hiring. Know that you are looking for someone who’s going to be enthusiastic, passionate, has the skill sets to do what you need to have accomplished.

If that’s being a janitor, figure out: does this person really want to be a janitor? Are they going to be here on time? Are they going to do a great job? If this is somebody who is going to manage your recruiting department, do they want to manage people and recruit for you? Think about what you need to have accomplished. If it’s a salesperson, are they going to make the numbers? Have they ever made numbers before? Have they ever brought business in before? You really want to focus on what it is that you need to have accomplished so that when you interview the person, you are spending time talking to them and finding out: do they have the skill set that I need to have this job done? I don’t need to have him be my best friend, and I don’t need to have him be my next-door neighbor. But if I need somebody to come in there and make sure that the restrooms are clean and the doors are locked, I need to have that done. If I need a salesperson who’s going to bring in business and is going to be ethical and loyal and attract the clientele; I need to focus on somebody who’s already done that and has that skill set and wants t do it.

That’s the other big thing when you interview. Resumes are historic documents. When you interview real live people, they have stories, they have new MBAs, they have passions, they have new careers, and they have things going on inside of their minds that are not on that piece of paper. So when you get to know them and you’re looking for putting together that team, you are learning about what passion they have, what do they have to offer what can I maybe do for them that might enable them to reach their goals and I’ll still get the best candidate over here to get what I need to have done. So think about: where are they today?

One of the things we’re most proud of is truly being a world-class educational institution. With our partnership with Vietnam National University’s Center for Systems Development, we are able to offer our online MBA programs to our wonderful students halfway across the globe. This is also one of the biggest benefits of accredited online MBA programs: a global campus that fosters the sharing of ideas and strengthening of partnerships that transcends national borders.

We have may students studying in our online MBA programs in both Vietnam and Kenya, and we are extremely humbled to be able to work with all of these bright minds. In this video, Ms. Virginia E. Palmer, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Hanoi, welcomes our 6th cohort in the country and shares the importance of forming educational partnerships and strengthening diplomatic ties.

Transcript of the Video

[Applause] Dr. Phạm Quang Hưng, Dr. Dominic Mwenja, Ministry of Education and Training Officials, distinguished guests and students, especially students, it’s my honor this evening to attend your opening ceremony. I want to offer very sincere congratulations as the sixth cohort of MBA students begin their studies here in Vietnam National University’s Center for Systems Development. I must say this is a beautiful facility as well; it’s not like anything I sat in when I went to school.

I would like to begin by offering very sincere congratulations to the talented students who gained admission to this program. I would like to congratulate you Dr. Mwenja and Dr. Hưng for designing this very innovative and important program. The launching of this sixth cohort of the MBA program is quite an achievement. The program has already trained hundreds of students and contributed greatly for Vietnam’s economic development. Last year, the United States was the largest investor in Vietnam, something we’re very proud of. We will remain Vietnam’s closest economic partner, and to keep that positive growth going, Vietnam will need even more business leaders who understand how to operate in an increasingly global business environment. So that means all of you, and I know there will be American companies lined up outside your door when you graduate.

As many of you know the Embassy and the National College have made education and encouraged bilateral, economic and education ties a priority. We believe that educational exchange is not only an effective method to gain new knowledge, but also to bring our two countries closer together. Today’s occasion comes at an important time for the United States and Vietnam as well, as we get ready to celebrate the 15th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. It took a long time to get to the point where we have formal diplomatic relations, but before we did, the educational exchanges and people-to-people exchanges really laid the foundation for our growing friendship. So with that experience, I know that your experience and these kinds of exchanges will build an even more important foundation for our two countries as we move forward in the future.

With Vietnam National University and the Ministry of Education and Training and the Embassy working together on these partnerships, I am confident that we’ll go from strength to strength. In the past few years, the number of Vietnamese students studying in the United States has nearly tripled. No I have to advertise; that’s in part because institutions like California Miramar are world-class educational institutions and you get a world-class education in the United States.

And in addition to sort of those high educational standards, I think students who study in American style programs learn very important critical thinking and innovation skills. So I hope the number of Vietnamese students studying in the United States continues to grow, but I also know that it’s not practical for everybody who wants that kind of high standard of education to go all the way to the United States. I know that many of you business students have families and employers who will be very happy that you are able to continue that kind of high standard program here in Vietnam. I think it’s also important to acknowledge that students with the [inaudible] standard C English pass participate really fully in programs like this and make great contributions to the business and the MBA programs as they go along.

There is one additional advantage that this program offers that I’d like to highlight: that is that Dr. Mwenja has secured the rights to a number of business textbooks that will be translated into Vietnamese to support the classes that’ll be starting soon. I can imagine how difficult it would be to study these complex and evolving topics in a foreign language. So I think having those Vietnamese texts will be enormously helpful. This project ensures that Vietnamese and American students are doing the same kinds of knowledge transfers and receiving the same skills and expertise to make them successful.

Before I conclude, I would like to offer one big challenge to all of you. It’s designed to make you successful business managers. Often the measure of that success will be your company’s bottomline. But as you pursue that very important bottomline, I hope you will remember the important contributions that your companies can make as they pursue corporate social responsibility. I hope you can take the lessons you learn in this MBA program to build stronger, more ethical companies that make a great contribution to your society and your economy. So I again offer my very sincere congratulations as you begin this exciting program. Thank you VNU, thank you California Miramar, and good luck to all of you as you pursue this exciting course of studying. Thank you very much. [Applause]

Video Transcription by GMR Transcription

Are you considering pursuing a Masters in Business Administration? Have you considered the advantages of earning an online business degree? There are many good reasons to move forward with your dreams, not least of which is that you can earn an average of 50% more than you are earning today with your bachelor’s degree. That is the average, and it can certainly increase from there.

Many companies consider an MBA to be an essential minimum requirement for entry-level management positions. Your dream may actually be a necessity if you want to move forward in your career. Job prospects for MBAs have increased 24% in the U.S., and 36% worldwide. And in 2011 the average salary for a person who had earned an MBA was $92,000. In some major cities that figure even increases to $102,869.

Why earn a degree online? Online MBA programs have many advantages. The most obvious benefit is the flexibility. Leaving a job is not necessary with accredited online MBA programs, and more often than not schooling can work around life events. While brick and mortar schools do offer night and weekend classes, it is still not nearly as flexible as working on your own computer at home. The need for commuting to school is eliminated and thereby so are gas expenses and the need to buy a new wardrobe for class.

Another major benefit of earning an online MBA is that you can search nationwide for a program from any location; there are no geographic limits when exploring online MBA programs. You can find online programs that fit your needs and match your budget requirements. When thinking about this, also consider the savings in transportation, childcare, parking, and even sometimes, housing.

There are other reasons besides financial for earning an online business degree. An MBA is a great way to change careers. It can be a very valuable means of moving into a management position, and is also extremely useful for entrepreneurs – often investors will look for an MBA when considering companies.

Carefully research accredited online MBA programs and choose the one that is right for you and your outlook and prospects will soar. And as one of the top 10 MBA programs in San Diego as rated by the San Diego Business Journal, with very affordable tuition, you should definitely consider us here at California Miramar University and let us know if you have any questions.

Business professionals who earn an MBA are often amazed at the lucrative opportunities open to them. Both classroom and online MBA programs have gained significant popularity, and graduates gain noticeable credibility in the business world. One of the main advantages of this credential is its flexibility. Professionals with an MBA are able to tailor their skill sets to a variety of industries. Despite the lure of the highest-paying job offer, the most successful graduates are those who enter fields that interest them the most, realizing that passion is something money can’t buy.

Graduates of accredited online MBA programs usually complete their degrees while working full time in their fields of choice. This situation can be advantageous because they already bring in a foundation of experience. Some MBA students find that their true passions are in a different career area than they originally thought. Making a switch to this new field is potentially one of the best decisions because it leads to working with much more productivity and motivation.

People who are excited and passionate about their particular fields look forward to beginning their work each day. They feel they have an opportunity and not an obligation to perform their best and to keep learning. An employee with this much dedication is a valuable asset for any business owner. Traditional or online business degree recipients can also move quickly through the ranks of management and serve as a mentor for other employees down the road.

Enthusiasm and passion can also be very beneficial for MBA graduates who are aspiring entrepreneurs. Starting a company from the ground up normally involves hard work, long hours and at least a few setbacks. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, new businesses are a key factors in economic growth. Educated entrepreneurs who follow their hearts enjoy these challenges and view initial failures as learning opportunities rather than negative results.

Entering a career field for enjoyment rather than for purely the money is one of the most intelligent moves for MBA recipients. It is what we spend most of our lives doing after all. This vested interest in the industry of choice is a definite strength to be exploited. One of these advanced degree programs can teach MBA candidates the technicalities, but it is up to each individual to bring the passion and enthusiasm that will propel them to success in their careers.

Many people have business ideas, but few actually turn those ideas into a successful business. In order to turn your business idea into a reality, there are several steps that you’ll need to complete. Once you complete these steps, you’ll be able to enjoy the fruits of your labor and watch your idea grow into a successful business.

Do Some Research

One of the most important parts of the process is doing some research on your business idea. Once you come up with an idea, you’ll need to find out if anyone else has already done the same thing in the past. For example, if you have an idea for a new product, check to see if someone else is already selling it. If you want to open a business in your area, check to see if there are any direct competitors in the region.

One of the most important things to remember is to be unique. When you are filling the needs of people (potential customers) and doing/offering something that someone else isn’t, you will ultimately stand out and be able to corner a segment, or hopefully myriad segments, of your niche.

However, there will inevitably be others who have similar products and/or services as you, so to simply put it, you need to do yours better. There are a ton of Mexican eateries around San Diego, but why do I end up going back to the same three or four? Because they hands down make some of the most mouth-watering food on the planet, and also because they have certain dishes that nobody else does.

After doing thorough research of the market and evaluating how your business fills the needs of your prospective customers, and after tailoring your idea to ensure that it’s unique and will truly makes peoples’ jaws drop, it’s time to strategize.

Create a Business Plan

The next part of the process involves creating a business plan, which is a document that outlines your strategy and what makes your business unique. It should include financial projections, sales projections and other information about your business. The purpose of creating a business plan is so that you’ll have written ‘evidence’ that youcan show to potential investors or business lenders to convince (sales term for ‘prove’)them to fork over the money you need to build the business.

You may also want to include some information about yourself in the business plan itself to show your level of credibility. For example, if you recently participated in one of our accredited online MBA programs, include that on your resume in the business plan so that investors will see that you know what you’re doing.

Seek Out Funding

After a business plan has been created, you’ll need to pursue some kind of funding. If you have enough of your own money to move on, you can skip this step. Otherwise, you’ll need to apply for business loans or find investors to get on board.

Legal Issues

Set up a legal entity for your business such as a corporation or LLC. You may need to get a patent or copyright for a product that you plan on selling. Consult with a lawyer to make sure that you do everything according to state and federal law.

Get Started

At this point, you can successfully turn your idea into a reality. While this is just an overview of cultivating a business idea and countless other tasks are involved, it is meant for motivation to get your creative juices flowing! (Especially for students in our Hybrid MBA and online MBA programs!)

The recession has been hard on America. People from all walks of life have been hit hard with income losses, job layoffs, job cutbacks, retirement account losses and an uncertain future economy. Businesses have been forced to reconsider their strategies and redefine their objectives. Everyday Americans have been taking stock of their lives and reconsidering career choices and business ideas.

This aside, something good has come out of all this uncertainty. We are resourceful people and many of us are beginning to think differently about our long-range goals and how we can achieve those goals. We’ve stepped out of our comfort zones and started thinking with vision and passion. Business professionals, small business owners and entrepreneurs are taking their businesses and careers in new directions and thinking outside the box. We are certainly a determined set of folks.

For some of us, business ideas seem to flow effortlessly. Steve Jobs made it look so easy. For some, business ideas come with a vision, time, networking and lots of hard work. But one thing is for certain: we must be forward-thinkers and visionaries and take action.

Action. What a powerful word. It takes action to achieve results. It takes action to make the dream come true. Taking action is the difference between a forward-thinker and a dreamer.
Let’s take a look at Kickstarter.com. Kickstarter.com is the crowd-funding phenomenon helping small start-up companies raise capital to fund their business ideas and projects. Their most successful project is Pebble. Pebble is a small start-up from Palo Alto, California, with a great idea and no capital. The geniuses at Pebble put their e-paper watch on Kickstarter.com and raised over $11 million in less than 60 days to fund their passion. Both Kickstarter and Pebble took a dream and turned it into action and are making a gigantic difference.

Online MBA programs can help you to achieve your dreams and help you realize your potential. Investing in your future through our accredited online MBA programs makes it easy for you to Rethink. Retool. Redesign.

This week’s CalMU Small Business Spotlight is on San Diego’s own Square Peg Packaging and Printing. They are a great example of recognizing an industry deficiency, creating a business idea to fill in the gaps and then cultivating that idea with a very unique business model and enthusiastic vision of prodigious proportions. This is why we have chosen to highlight them this week, and why they are a good case study for students in and graduates of our Hybrid MBA and online MBA programs and our Leadership programs.

BUSINESS MODEL

Their name sums up their services quite well. Square Peg designs, manages (via supply chain), and distributes packaging materials for myriad businesses. Basically, they’re all about branding, and they do a very good job in their specialty. But what makes them stand out from other companies who do the same thing?

First, they recognized that businesses were wasting time, money and brand continuity by going to multiple vendors for their printing and packaging needs. By creating a business model and hiring innovative minds that specialize in both aspects however, they were able to include all services under their umbrella and enables companies to get everything done from the same people. This not only ensures that the business’ vision and message is consistent throughout all of their products, but it also saves businesses money because they are only going to one vendor instead of two or more, makes businesses money because their brand identity is uniform throughout and thereby stronger/more recognizable, and enables businesses to focus more on their operations and ultimately generate more revenue.

Second, they don’t just stop there. They also offer business analysis consulting that includes industry research, sales strategy, marketing plan (like establishing an online presence and everything involved in branding), and product positioning in the market. But Square Peg doesn’t just stop there like most consultants; they will also execute everything – and very successfully – if their clients wants them to. So not only do they offer a unique service in the industry; they’ve also gone five steps beyond and have incorporated business analysis, strategy and execution as services as well.

BUSINESS GROWTH

This innovative approach to printing and packaging has done wonders for their success over the past 5 years. When they were founded in 2007, they were a smaller operation and pulled in a revenue of $122,030, according to Inc.com. However, as they increased their scope and expanded their services, their revenue did the same. Just 3 years later in 2010, they pulled in $7.4 million, a whopping 5986% 3-year growth that earned them the #34 spot on Inc.’s 500 Fastest Growing Private Companies in the US. Now that is impressive.

So now you see why we were very impressed with Square Peg Packaging and Printing and decided to award them with the CalMU Small Business Spotlight. They are a great example for students in our Hybrid MBA and online MBA programs and Leadership programs to find what’s missing, develop a unique strategy to fill the void, and then go the extra mile to set your businesses up as the one-stop destination for everything in your niche.

As part of our accredited online MBA programs, we have teamed up with Internet Marketing super strategist Dan Hollings and offer Mobile Marketing courses based on his webinars. A highly sought after marketing consultant, Dan’s extensive knowledge and expertise in helping businesses transition online has helped us develop this new social media course and truly encapsulates our quest to be one of the most innovative and diverse online business schools around.

In this video, Mr. Hollings explains the steps you need to go through before building your mobile website. Very important for all types of businesses – especially as research shows that more people will be accessing the Internet from mobile devices than desktops by the end of this year – he recognizes that not everyone is the most technologically savvy and gives advice that even people with little familiarity can easily digest.

We’re very excited and honored to be collaborating with someone as remarkable as Dan Hollings and know that this encapsulates just how beneficial our online business degree is.

Transcript of the Video

Okay, let’s build your mobile site. How exciting! You’re going to love this. This is an stuff; it’s kind of fun, too. There’s a couple of things that we need to do before we built our site, and it’s this pre-site building phase that’s going to make it really easy for you to built your site.

The worst thing that you can do in building a website – and this really applies whether it’s Internet or mobile – but the worst thing that you can do is just jump into a builder and let the builder guide you. Because every time it asks for something you go, “Oh My God” ‘cause it’ll say, you know, write a paragraph about yourself; what’s your address?; what’s your product?; you can put a picture here – and you’re thinking, “Oh God I got to go get Dan.” It’s just like, it just drives you nuts.

If you prepare upfront the material that you will enter into your builder, then the building process goes like a snap, it’s really cool and fun, and it won’t take you but about a half hour to get this thing up and running.

Here’s what you need to do in order to built a mobile site that’s going to be of interest to a person that’s on the go. You have to determine what are your mobile magnets. What are the things that would attract a person, cause them to want to go to your mobile page or your mobile site. You’ve got to figure that part out. If you don’t have something that’s of interest to that mobile person, there isn’t a reason to build a site. You just got to figure that part out first.

Mobile coupons are hugely popular, hugely popular. So that’s a real easy thing to do. In other words you’re thinking, “Well nothing I do, Dan, is mobile. I mean like, I’m a landscaper.” Well actually there’s a ton of things that landscapers could do that would interest their customers on the mobile phone, but at the top of the list is going to be a mobile coupon. In other words: opt in to our list and we’ll give you a discount on our service or a discount on our product and you don’t have to go do anything special; it’s not like you have to actually make a coupon or get a designer or go to a coupon site. Really all you do is you send them a text message that says’ Show us this text messaging and get 10% of your next, you know, whatever’.

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