interview: Author Alison Silbert

Today I would like to welcome Alison Silbert, author of Boost Your Revenues by Turning People Away for an interview about her book. The book has a very great insights to raise your income apart of other difficulties. Without further ado, I welcome you Alison Silbert. Don't forget to leave some love ;p

D: What inspired you to write the book?

AS: A colleague had suggested I put commonly asked questions into a book that I could hand out to prospective clients. It seemed like a good idea, so I went ahead and wrote the outline, then found potential book publishers (two of which showed interest in the outline). I completed the copy of the book, resubmitted the full manuscript to the same two publishers outlining the pre-qualifying process I had already completed, and signed a deal.

D: How do you determine your ideal client?

AS: “I” determine my ideal client by asking myself “who do I want to help?”, “what characteristics are included in my definition of an ideal client?”, and “what are the top 3 problems my ideal client has that I can solve quickly and easily for him/her?”

D: How important is choosing the right business?

AS: Imperative. If you are marketing to the wrong business you are wasting time, energy and money.

DS: What advice can you give other entrepreneurs feeling overwhelmed by the business, especially when a lot of things are going wrong at the same time?

AS: Have faith. Regardless of your beliefs, things have a way of working themselves out. There are numerous experts available, at various different price points, who are more than willing to assist you in generating the results you want.

D: What other advice can you give women entrepreneurs?

AS: Keep doing what you love.

D: The title of your book, what does it mean?

AS: Simply this: in spite of what most people use a website for (a glorified brochure available for everyone to see), it is possible to write website copy that builds ideal prospects’ trust in you and your business, and leads them to take some step towards starting the sales cycle for you.

D: Tell us about “Boost Your Revenues by Turning People Away”.

AS: “Boost Your Revenues by Turning People Away” is a compilation of all kinds of experiences I have had with clients over the past 10 years woven between many useful tidbits of information about how to get a website created and optimized so that it speaks only to your ideal client, rolled into one small book you can reference at a moment’s notice. Jam packed with useful tips on how to clarify the definition of your ideal client,three easy ways to put a website together and where to get the tools, and simple things you can do to increase your search engine ranking, this book is a must-have for any entrepreneur – seasoned or brand new. This book is also ideal for college/university graduates who want a leading-edge in a competitive job market.

D: How does this book benefit the reader?

AS: This book walks the reader through three distinct phases of creating a website. Phase 1: Clarifying who you want the website to speak to (i.e. clarifying who your ideal client is) and what message you want to convey through the website (i.e., what do you want your readers to know? What do you want your ideal prospects to do from your website?). Phase 2: Three simple ways to construct the website (choosing a professional, using a content manager and using a template). And Phase 3: Simple things that an average business person can do to increase the likelihood that the website will be seen by its ideal visitors (the business’s ideal clients).

D: Who is your intended audience?

AS: Anyone interested in learning for himself/herself how to put together an effective website that starts the sales cycle for them.

About the Author

Alison Silbert is the author of “Winning Websites” published in 2007, and “Boost Your Revenues by Turning People Away” published in January 2011. Alison's company Passionate Web Creations and Ideal Visitor Inc provides clients with a wide variety of business building, marketing services and web development services. She has helped clients of all sizes, including entrepreneurs, just starting businesses and fully operational corporate structures. Her clients have included such Canadian Universities as University of Toronto and University of Calgary.

Alison Silbert is among the prestigious ranks of Stanford Who's Who as a result of her exceptional professional career. Stanford Who's Who empowers executives, professionals and entrepreneurs around the world. During her collegiate career, she earned a Bachelor's degree in Computer Programming from Humber College of Applied Arts and Technology. She has also studied Business Management and Marketing.

When not running her business, she is a mentor, coach, and teacher, supporting individuals in living their dream of having a successful online business. She has taught database courses at the University of Toronto. She lives in Mississauga with her husband, 2 children and a loyal sheltie named Cocoa.

Buy the book at: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Website

muslim women reformers:inspiring voices against oppression by ida lichter

Title: Muslim Women Reformers : Inspiring Voices Against Oppression
Author: Ida Lichter
Pages: 513
Series: Non-fiction
Published: May 26th, 2009
Rating: 4.5/5
Source: Receive for review
Buy at: Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

Summary :

In a world where the strident demands of Islamic extremists capture the media’s attention, the courageous protests of Muslim reformers barely receive any notice. These include a surprising number of women who are prepared to challenge institutionalized persecution, risking derision, arrest, physical harm, and even death.

In this inspiring compilation of Muslim women’s stories from around the world, the voices of these long-oppressed women ring loud and clear as they question ideology and culture, patriarchal and religious beliefs, and demand the social and political rights women lack in many Muslim countries. The reformers speak out with passion, humanity, and sometimes humor in these compact and often poignant biographies, bringing alive the harsh realities for women in many parts of the world.

By surveying a wide range of Muslim reformers, not only in the Middle East but also in Europe and North America, Lichter uncovers some significant emerging trends. For example, she notes that the majority of Muslim feminists would like to see reform contained within Islam. Many criticize their patriarchal culture for suppressing egalitarian views that they believe the Koran expresses and so they advocate a reinterpretation of the holy text. Some demand changes to discriminatory Sharia-based laws. Others campaign openly for political and educational reforms.

Complete with a glossary and a list of helpful Web sites, this vibrant anthology makes use of reliable translations from original languages to demonstrate the groundswell of grassroots change that promises eventually to bring even the most conservative sectors of Islam into the twenty-first century.

My Opinion:

As a Muslim woman, the book really opened my eyes about loads of thing that happening around across the globe of Muslim country, focusing on women. Most of the researches were collected from past, likely since e few decades before, till present. I must say Muslim women at this moment achieved so many things, likely equal to men (well, almost), they struggles a lot sometimes quite horrific to me. The book was sectioned and organized by country, start up with a little introduction of issues they were going through, then introducing the women reformers behind it. The women activists struggled with a lot of different issues like human rights, justice, education, healthcare, discrimination etc. Each of them showed great courage to stand up and fight even though facing death and severe discrimination. Even though I thought Malaysia is a very overwhelming Muslim country, it's shocking to see we're included in this. But when I read it, I think that is not really a big issues since I know who the reformers were, and for me, when it comes to religion there's some part that you can't turn against it. Personally, the book were focusing on why they were reformed; because of gender, and not because of religion. I strongly believe women in different country are facing the exact same thing towards this kind of discrimination; education, jobs, healthcare, human rights, justice, etc regardless of religion. However, it's very interesting to know when there's a book focusing Muslin women on this. Lichter only compiling what she has researched and stating the facts with a lot of references, in case the readers want to check on it in details of what is going on from it. The book is easy to understand, very brief, while it is not an introduction about Muslim and Islam. I really recommend the book to Muslim readers, for us to know is the women reformers and activists that committed their lives to escape from the struggle we were facing.

About the Author:

Ida Lichter, is a clinical and research psychiatrist and contributor to The Huffington Post. Living in London for over 12 years focused her interest on the large Muslim populations in the UK and Europe and brought her closer to the eye of the storm in the Middle East. She lives in Sydney, Australia.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy from Lisa Roe from Online Publicist for an exchange of fair review. Receiving a copy in no way will ever reflected my review and these are my honest review.

the imperfect enjoyment by dewan w.gibson

Title: The Imperfect Enjoyment
Author: Dewan W.Gibson
Pages: 176 (pdf)
Series: No
Published: December 16th, 2008
Rating: 4/5
Source: Provided by the publisher
Get your copy: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Indiebound

Summary (Goodreads):

When college instructor Dewan Gibson leaves the Midwest for California, he expects to find a world of breast implants, beer and beaches. Instead he enters a secret and ill-fated romance with a Middle Eastern undergraduate. In this vivid and humorous memoir, Gibson describes his attempts to overcome his forbidden love affair by jumping into an office fling gone wrong (Tijuana Mornings), traveling across the world to Denmark in hopes of meeting "Ms. Booty Mama" (Arhus Ain't for Lovers) and musing over the interracial relationships between his African-American uncles and "rural white women that wore 1980's big bangs and resembled Guns N' Roses groupies" (Too Much Tupac). Toeing the line between stable adulthood and post-college debauchery, Gibson presents a comically honest look at the frailty of modern relationships. Poignant, witty and at times downright hilarious--The Imperfect Enjoyment is a story of toxic relationships and the search for a second chance at love that enlightens and amuses as very few books do.

My Two Cents:

This is totally an entertaining read, aside of very much of sex talk and stuff, and totally different from what I've ever read. The author was likely in a quest to find the perfect enjoyment in a relationship when at some point he thought that some imperfection in relationship will turn out okay and enjoyable just good. But what I'm quite off is that, he was like finding more sex than love, well, I don't know. So, maybe it was because he was finding the relation perfection. The fact that the book is interesting is actually enough to get my attention to finish reading it. I think the author nailed it and not trying too much to tell his story. Even though I like the book enough to recommend to everyone to read this, I'm kind of really don't like his attitude, because when he already in a relationship with a woman, despite all the prejudice he have from her family, he find enjoyment in something else that you can guess what a normalman would do. So typical yet so true. The book has a lot of dirty side of a man, how fragile a man could be when it's about love and also loads of funny moments that happened to him. It's fun, regardless of age and sex issues.

About the Author:

Dewan Gibson is a humorist and author of The Imperfect Enjoyment. His work has appeared in Defenestration Magazine, the International Journal of Intercultural Relations and Hobo Pancakes, among other publications. Prior to pursuing a writing career he earned a master’s degree in intercultural communication and taught at San Diego State University. Dewan is currently conducting health disparities research and writing a nonfiction humor book about working in a community clinic.

Visit him at: Website | Facebook | Twitter

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy from the publisher for an exchange of fair review. Receiving a copy in no way will ever reflected my review and these are my honest review.