Are You A Great Contractor or Simply A Good Contractor?

Are You A Great Contractor or Simply A Good Contractor?
Why do some contractors do extremely well in their
construction businesses and some barely "limp along" year
after year, never really achieving greatness in their
business? The majority of times the answer is very simple;
they are great technicians at their trade, but they are not
willing to reach for greatness in their management
techniques. A great technician at a trade will always have
a good job; a great technician AND a great manager will
have an exciting and profitable business.

Good contractors keep accurate records and manage cash
flow. Great contractors review data with experience and
insight in order to better understand their firms'
performance and identify areas for improvement.

Computers are great at tabulating numbers. They've made it
possible for contractors to keep track of far more
information than earlier generations would ever have
thought possible. Today job costing, estimating, and
accounting can be done with an amazing degree of accuracy
and detail.

But managing your company's finances goes beyond simply
keeping track of income and expenses and making sure that
more money comes in than goes out. Good judgment must be
exercised, and decisions must be made every day. That
requires an understanding of financial statements and the
ability to use that information to make better decisions,
both short and long-term.

For example, compare day-to-day productivity with long-term
productivity. When you include call-backs and reworks in
performance, you might find it better to budget additional
hours upfront to get the job done right the first time.

Also, along this line, how many times have you started into
a job and realized that you had bid the job much lower than
you should have bid to make a profit, but after realizing
your error, jumped into the job on "all fours", took the
"bull by the horns" and managed to squeak out a meager
profit? After getting by with the skin on your teeth, you
vowed never to get yourself into that situation again only
to find yourself there sometime in the future.

The majority of time that this happens is because after
having the initial problem and carefully managing the job
and working our way through our mistakes to make a small
profit, we had to jump right into the next job and we never
took the time to truly analyze our estimating shortcomings,
and as a result we never saw the next train wreck coming.

We have all heard the saying, "Insanity is doing something
the same way over and over again and expecting different
results." I am afraid that many of us think that is exactly
what the "other guy" is doing when in reality our not
"closing the back door" of our estimates and tracking
historical data against bid estimates is exactly that!

Forecasting is another key activity. It might be considered
planning for future financial management. While no one can
predict the company's future with certainty, it's important
to make some thoughtful estimates from time to time. Those
'best guesses,' such as whether to buy or lease equipment
or improve your internal computer software tools, can be
factored into decisions made each day.

Great contractors understand the cause-and-effect
relationships of their successes and their failures, and
that "pinching pennies" today often leads to expensive
corrections tomorrow. By actively managing the company's
financial affairs rather than just keeping good books,
contractors can build and maintain a strong foundation for
future prosperity for both the company and its employees.

----------------------------------------------------
Phillip P Gilliam has been helping professionals in
construction estimating software, marketing, finance and
business management for over 37 years. Phil has a wife and
three daughters and resides in Florida. He attended WSU in
Dayton, Ohio and obtained a CmfgE in Robotics. He presently
is the CEO and President of Discover Software Inc.
http://www.easyestimating.com

Why your Business Brand Shouldn't Be An Exact Mirror Image Of You

Why your Business Brand Shouldn't Be An Exact Mirror Image Of You
"Mirror, Mirror on the wall... Who's The Fairest One Of
All?" The wicked witch uses this line to ask her magic
mirror about her beauty, and time and time again, the
mirror always says, "Why, you are, of course!" Then, one
day, the mirror answers "There is one fairer than you—and
her skin is white as snow." This simple truth sends the
witch on a rampage. She disguises herself, poisons poor
Snow White, and puts her into a magical coma.

This tale of jealousy and deception cautions children
everywhere that nothing good can come of vanity. But if you
ask the average small business owner what differentiates
their business from the competition, one of the first
answers you'll hear is "Why, I do. I'm the best at this in
the land!"—or some variation on that refrain.

Vanity is not the "fairest one of all."

Vanity, even when backed by your business acumen or
experience, is never pretty. And it's not universally
attractive to customers—unless they've worked with you in
the past or know you socially. The fact that it's you
running your business probably won't mean much to the
average new customer.

Customers and prospects are more concerned about their
needs, their businesses, and their situations than they are
about how good you are. What they want to know is how
you're going to help them. And if you're a one-person
business, they're likely to be more concerned about the
fact that you're the only one there rather than being
thrilled about your experience.

And this is where a brand steps in.

Your business brand's job is to take your one-person
business and make it seem established and stable—rather
than fly-by-night and risky to work with.

A brand should also make your business seem more
"businesslike"— and that means credible, dependable, and
customer-focused. A business brand can help you position
your business as helpful, concerned about clients, and
capable of delivering.

Finally, a brand allows you to speak about and present your
business as a separate entity—instead of constantly talking
about your, you can talk about your business. In other
words, a brand helps to take the spotlight off the
entrepreneur and give the business a personality of its
own. This allows you to do a bit more "crowing" about your
business, without seeming as if you are bragging about
yourself.

Keys to separating your business brand from you.

1. Think about how big you want your business to eventually
be. If you're planning to stay a one-person business, then
your business's brand can probably be closer to your own
personality than if you're planning to grow your business
and eventually hire employees. If you are planning to hire
people, make sure that your employees will be able to
demonstrate the brand characteristics you choose.

2. Look at other businesses in your industry and how they
present their brands. This can help point you in the right
direction for your brand and also help you make sure your
brand will stand out. Look at the things they talk about
and how they talk about their businesses.

See which business's materials and brands you're most drawn
to and the lessons or suggestions you can pull from their
materials and repurpose for your own. Just don't copy them
exactly, or your brand won't be unique. Look at the
pictures they use and the words they describe their
businesses with—both elements contribute to your brand.

3. Figure out which of your personality traits are most
valuable to your business. The best way to do this is to
think about your target audience and the reassurance it
needs to go from being interested in doing business with
you to making the committment.

Some of these traits are likely to be those expected of any
business worth working with—fair pricing, good service, and
the list goes on and on. So you also need to think about
the factors that differentiate you from your competition.
You also want to focus on factors that make you appealing
to the people you want to hire you.

This is a pretty tall order, but try out your brand on your
target audience and see what resonates with them before
"carving it into stone"—which, in the case of your brand,
means before you print any marketing materials. Test your
ideas out with temporary materials or by incorporating them
into an elevator pitch at your next networking event. At
the very least, call up some of your best clients and run
your ideas by them.

4. Consider creating a logo as the face of your business.
If you use a photo of yourself as the primary graphic for
your business, it suggests you're always going to take
personal care of all client accounts—which isn't a message
you should send if you're planning to grow your business or
hire subcontractors or assistants. Using a photo also
brings in the vanity aspect again. "Look at me, I'm here to
do business with you." may not be the best message to send.

If you keep these 4 steps in mind and create a brand that
leaves you and your vanity out of the picture, your
business won't come across as a wicked witch. Instead,
you'll create a brand that will make your business "the
fairest one of all" to your best clients and help you live
happily ever after.

----------------------------------------------------
Erin Ferree is a brand identity designer who creates big
visibility for small businesses. As the owner of elf
design, Erin is passionate about helping her clients stand
out in front of their competition and attract more clients.
Her "Define Your Difference Branding Workbook" will help
you with your brand definition - the most important step in
the logo design process.
http://www.elf-design.com/products-define.html

Why giving clients more choices means they'll never buy.

Why giving clients more choices means they'll never buy.
You're really wanting to be thoughtful and accommodating.
You want to make your clients and customers comfortable, so
they can have things the way they like it.

So you start making up offers, each with different options
and flavors. Eventually you have a menu of ten options.

And no one's buying. Is it your marketing? Or your menu?

A child with no ice cream.

Hot summer day. Cool ice cream shop. An eager child. The
sign says '37 flavors.'

What happens next? That's right- you sit there while this
little cherub thinks, and wonders, and decides, and goes
back and forth wondering which flavor of ice cream to get.

Either that, or he just ignores all the many flavors and
gets the old-standby: chocolate, with sprinkles.

What are choices? Choices are where we express power. By
making a choice, you're expressing how you'd like things to
be. This requires a certain confidence and clarity.

Add to this problem the fact that most of us in Western
culture have had our imagination squashed out of us. In
school, in jobs, we're taught to regurgitate what we're
told, to maneuver through multiple-choice tests, and to
pick our path from limited options.

This may seem like a bad thing, and it can certainly be
painful if someone is limiting your options in an
artificial manner. But the truth is that your clients like
limits.

Huh? That's nutty- they don't want limits, they want to get
past the limits of the problem they are facing.

Well, sure, that's true. They do want to solve their
problem and keep moving. But, when faced with a problem, a
problem they can't solve, do you think they are feeling
much clarity or confidence in their heart?

Probably not. And yet, what are the two main qualities that
are needed to make a choice? Clarity and confidence.

Hmmm... do you see the same problem I see?

Limiting choices creates more safety. Don't give your
clients a menu of ten different options, even if they are
similar to one another. As Henry Ford said, "They can have
the Model T in any color they want, as long as it's black."

Ol' Henry set that up to keep his costs down in the
assembly line factories he had. However, this principle
applies even more strongly to businesses in the limitless
choice world of seventy million Google results.

By limiting choice for your clients, they only have to
muster up enough confidence and clarity to do one thing-
hire you, instead of having to wend their way through all
37 flavors of your offers.

It works. But isn't it kinda boring to just have one or two
offers? What happens to the creativity in your business?
And how do you handle different types of clients?

Hold on to your ice cream cone. I've got some ideas for you.

Keys to Dishing out the Options.

• Limit the recommended intro offers.

If you have one or two specific offers where you recommend
beginners start, that's the place to send'em. Foundational
offerings that cover the basics, and begin to walk them
into your world.

• Create a gazillion offers, but understand the sequence.

If you have a hundred offers, that's great. But then
organize them in some kind of a sequence, at least for the
first few. Understand how one of your offers links to the
next links to the next.

Now, your clients' progress won't always be linear, and so
you don't have to put all one hundred offers in sequence.
There will come a point where, through the help they've
received from you and elsewhere, that they regain some of
their lost confidence and clarity, which will give them
greater decision-making ability.

Plus, after they've done the first two or three offers,
they'll have more familiarity with what you do, and how you
do it, so it will be easier to choose from many offers.

• For custom consulting, still limit your offers.

When you are quoting out a custom consulting project to
someone, you still don't want to overwhelm them with
options. The same lack of clarity and confidence applies to
these decision-makers, no matter how sharply they're
dressed.

By setting one or two options in front of them, you're
showing your own expertise and confidence, and that is one
more bit of trust they will have in you.

Although it's tempting to want to create a groaning board
table full of all kinds of delicious offers, it will lose
you clients. Instead, limit their choices, and watch them
happily walk out with your chocolate ice cream cone.

----------------------------------------------------
Mark Silver is the author of Unveiling the Heart of Your
Business: How Money, Marketing and Sales can Deepen Your
Heart, Heal the World, and Still Add to Your Bottom Line.
He has helped hundreds of small business owners around the
globe succeed in business without lousing their hearts. Get
three free chapters of the book online:
http://www.heartofbusiness.com

Gross Weight? Tare Weight? Wait! Which Weight?

Gross Weight? Tare Weight? Wait! Which Weight?
Gross Weight

A basic tenet of shipping is that freight is rated on its
gross weight. Gross weight is simply the weight of the
product and its packaging. For example, the glass vase,
packing peanuts, carton, sealing tape and label combine to
make the gross weight.

Even when you attach your freight to skids or pallets for
ease of handling, pallet weight (which can be considerable
as anyone who has tossed them around a dock will testify)
must be included in the gross weight.

Net Weight

The weight of the product itself without packaging. (The
vase by itself.) Net weight is rarely a factor in shipping
unless a carton is overpacked and splits open. (Check the
seal on the bottom of a standard shipping carton for the
maximum weight the carton will hold safely.)

Tare Weight

Tare weight is the weight of an empty vehicle or container.
Normally not something that a shipper is concerned with but
it's a term everyone should know.

Volumetric Weight - Air freight

International airfreight shipments are usually rated per
pound or per kilogram. However, what the airlines are
really selling is space aboard the aircraft. Therefore,
they have a volumetric equivalent for shippers of
lightweight articles. Consider how much space 100 kgs of
ping pong balls would consume vs. 100 kgs of anvils.
International air shipments are figured on both the actual
gross weight and volumetric weight and rated at the higher
of the two. To determine volumetric weight for air:

Multiply length x width x height in inches and divide by
366. The result is the volumetric in kilograms.

Example: 20" x 20" x40" = 16,000 cu. inches

Divided by 366 = 43.7 (round up to 44 kilograms)

If the gross weight of the shipment is 35 kilograms, it
would be rated on the volumetric 44 kilograms. If the
actual gross weight is 50 kilograms, it would be rated at
50 kgs.

Weight/Measure ' Sea Freight

Many sea freight shipments are rated on a Full
Containerload (FCL) basis. However, Less-than-Containerload
(LCL) and the occasional FCL shipment are rated on a metric
"Weight/Measure" in most trades. This formula is based on 1
cubic meter (35.3147 cubic feet) versus 1,000 kilograms
(2,204.6 pounds), whichever yields the greater revenue to
the carrier. Let me save you some time. Unless your
shipment is extremely dense, it's going to go on Measure.
I've shipped tractor parts that went on Measure. Weight
basis shipments are rare.

Trucking Density Rates

Motor carriers also sell space on their trailer, even
though the rates are on a weight basis. Domestic LTL
(less-than-truckload) rates are usually charged per one
hundred pounds ("cwt"). However, think of those ping pong
balls again. Many trucking rates factor in density. Plastic
items and commodities of a similar nature have tiered rates
that are based upon the density of the product. The tariff
may read something along the lines of:

Plastic Items NOIBN (not otherwise indexed by number)
Density under 10 pounds per cubic foot

Rate $10.00/ cwt.

Plastic Items NOIBN Density 10 to 20 pounds per cubic foot,
Rate $8.50/ cwt

The difference between motor carrier density rates versus
air or sea volumetric rates is that the motor carrier
density rates apply only to select commodities. They're
universal in air and sea shipments.

GROSS MEASUREMENT

For air and sea freight, the LxWxH measurements are
stretched to the farthest point. For example, an automobile
length would stretch bumper tip to bumper tip. Therefore
it's advisable, whenever possible, to "square off" the
package. Say you're shipping a stove with a chimney
attachment. Remove the chimney before shipping and lay it
flat alongside or inside the stove. If you are shipping an
automobile, remove the radio antenna.

----------------------------------------------------
http://Howtoshipanything.com is and online resource
dedicated to help you ship both domestically and
internationally. W.E. Reinka, an international shipping
consultant, may be reached at
http://www.howtoshipanything.com/w-e-reinka/

Call Center Assessment Test

Call Center Assessment Test
An assessment program is an essential tool that would help
improve and organization. It is designed to identify the
areas that need special attention. An expert or a
professional in the field of assessment is employed to do
the job. Call Center Assessment providers provide experts
who have call center leadership background and understand
fully the operation of the industry. He is expected to
identify the specific areas that need attention and provide
the organization with an expert solution.

Call center assessment could be likened to an executive
medical checkup where early detection of any sign of health
problem could be addressed and further problem could be
prevented. So call centers health is assessed so that early
detection of minor inefficiencies could be addressed and
corrected. To effectively assess the call center's
performance, each area in the operation is specified and
reviewed and these are the following:

- Review the call center structure if and whether it
supports the vision and mission of the company
- Customer Relations. The customer satisfaction is assessed
through survey forms or customer feedbacks.
- Employer ' employee relationships. Satisfied customers
are result of good service and good service are result of
satisfied employee. The satisfaction levels of employees
are gauged.
- Quality assurance and performance. Quality assurance
forms and reports are analyzed and study how quality data
is applied. The analysis is made to improve the performance
level.
- Effective coaching and supervision. Observe if coaching
sessions are effective.
- Training. Analyze and identify the ways to improve the
efficiency of the training program.
- Hiring and Staffing. Analyze how hiring are conducted
and identify the areas which needed improvement.
- Staff Utilization. It should answer the question of
having the right person on the right position all the time.
- Work Order Management. These would lead to the study of
workforce management processes such as:

1. Forecasting methodology
2. Staffing and scheduling
3. Real time management practices
4. Effective workforce management team.

- Process and Information Management. Observe and analyze
call ' handling.
- Service Level Management & KPI's. Key Service Indicators
of KPI's shows that the SLM is properly functioning. The
weak areas must be improved.
- Call Management. The call routing is observed in the
following stages Site by site routing rules Menu choices
Prioritization of queue Transfer volumes and protocols
Skills-based routing rules Technology

- Security Management. Assess the scope of security and
disaster recovery (or business continuity) plan and the
ability to meet objectives during a crisis.
- Interaction Management. Analyze how effective customer
interaction is managed
- Web Self Service. Assess how effective this e- support.
- Contact Center Management. It is the central point of
contact with customers. Contact center applications are
tools that will help improve the critical first impression.
Customers should be given access options and alternatives,
streamlining customer transactions and creating a system
that would facilitate easy follow ups.
- Analysis And Reporting. How effective is the reporting
system? Is the system providing the needed data for
analysis?
- Technical. Is the system current and up to date? Is the
system running smoothly and operating at the peak
performance?

The final presentation includes recommendations and risks
and input on suggested action plan. All of these is a
result of several days of assessment work which is done
with in the work area. Assessment identifies and at the
same time recommends solution to the problems found.

----------------------------------------------------
Now as your call center up and running you will need to
assess its' performance and efficiency with the contact
center assessment tool at http://www.steptocallcenter.com

Calculating the Right Strategic Alliance for Your Company

Calculating the Right Strategic Alliance for Your Company
A strategic alliance can significantly open your market
opportunities, connecting you with a desired audience.
Forming a strategic alliance should begin with taking an
honest look the many aspects that make up your business -
and making sure the other partner fits those elements well.
Finding the right strategic alliance is crucial. The
concept of two minds being better than one can work, but
make sure to take a look at the following:

Vision: Assess what the company wants to become. Then,
based on current practices, compare the vision with the
company's potential to achieve its vision. With that
information, you will have a clear idea about what the
company needs to achieve that vision. Core Values:
Determine the organization's values. Ask what it cares
about and who will it benefit. These answers will play a
key role in choosing your alliance, as you'll want to find
a company with beliefs comparable to your own. Evaluation:

Evaluate your strengths and be objective about your
weaknesses. Determine where you succeed and where you are
challenged. Your time is most valuably spent doing what you
do best. If you spend more time doing things you struggle
with, you are losing money. Find an affiliate company who
succeeds where you struggle. Chances are an alliance with
them will also come with added value to your own clients
and would give you time back to do what you do best.

History: Evaluate when the company started, its major
successes and failures. Make sure your understanding of
their history is detailed and complete.

Real Issues: Now it's time to start thinking about the real
issues the company has. Make bullet points of everything
that is happening internally and externally. Include
economic conditions, legislation, and public perception.

Goals: The company's goals should be not be to make money,
but to provide a tangible benefit to someone or something.
Making money is a symptom of filling a need. Strategic
alliances could enhance the benefit to your clients, which
will equally greater profits.

Key Publics: This may be the most important aspect to
consider when shopping for an affiliate. Pick at least ten
of your key publics and prioritize them. Define their
importance: who they are and why they are important. When
two companies have mutual publics, they have a common goal.

Message Statement: Consider the perception your public will
have about your company. Now ask yourselves what are the
top three things you want to be known for. Forming an
alliance can create or re-enforce the essential message you
want your clients to hear. Sending the desired message is
invaluable and many companies have used alliances as a
creative marketing tool ultimately getting the attention
they desire.

When considering forming a strategic alliance, there are
many issues to consider. Once you've collected all the
data, analyzed the company's current situation in
comparison to where they are going and ultimately where
they want to be, you may find an alliance a great vehicle
to get you there.

----------------------------------------------------
Christian Fea is CEO of Synertegic, Inc. A strategic
Collaboration Marketing consulting firm. He empowers
business owners to discover and implement Integration,
Alliance, and Joint Ventures marketing tactics to solve
specific business challenges. He demonstrates how to create
your own Collaboration Marketing Strategy to increase your
sales, conversation rates, and repeat business.
Contact: christian@christianfea.com
http://www.christianfea.com

Are You Ready for a Work From Home Business?

Are You Ready for a Work From Home Business?
Working from home is a great way to save money, save on
taxes, and get a home based business off the ground.
However, it takes a lot of commitment to actually work when
you have a home based business simply because there are so
many other things that need to be done around the house. As
a result, you need to figure out how to create an
environment that will work for a home based business. You
may not know how to make it work at first, but if you
implement the following tips then you will find you can
avoid a lot of mistakes and downtime.

Tip #1 Create an Office

Whether you change your guest room into an office or
transform the garage you need a workspace. This is the area
where you "go" to work each and every day. You will keep
all of your business related items in this area. You might
revolt against the idea of creating an office in your home
at first because your idea of a home based business is one
where you can work wherever you want. In addition, while
this does sound great it really is not feasible. You will
waste a lot of time looking for items that you left
somewhere in the house. You will be disorganized and you
will simply find that your home based business is not
growing as you hoped it would. However, if you create an
office where you have all your office related items and
information and you work in this area on a daily basis you
will find it works better for you. Give it a try and you
will certainly embrace it!

Tip #2 You are at Work

When you have a home based business you will find there is
no end to the favors people need during the day. Your
family and friends will call you first when they need a
favor because they are at work and cannot leave, but you
can. Or, at least that is how it is in their minds. Before
long you will find yourself picking up prescriptions,
taking people to doctor's appointments, getting the oil
changed, and hanging out at someone's house waiting for the
cable guy. It is hard to say no to people, but in order for
your home based business to succeed you msut learn to say
no and make others realize you may be at home but you are
working and unavailable.

Tip #3 Business Hours

You probably like the idea of working from home because you
can create your own work hours. Many people think they will
work less with their home based business, but this is
rarely the case. In fact, most people end up working more
because they can never get away from work. As a result, it
is important for your personal relationships and life in
general to set some business hours and try to follow them.

These are just a few suggestions to help you with your home
based business. It is not easy to work from home and it
takes a great deal of work and commitment to find a
schedule that works. However, if you implement these
suggestions you will find they do work very well and will
save you a lot of headaches in the future.

----------------------------------------------------
If you read this article in full then you know that you are
partially interested in a work from home business
opportunity. To learn more about the home based business
industry and many other home business opportunities, please
visit our website at http://www.homebasedbusinesst.com to
learn more how you can start today with a work at home job!

How to Survive In Corporate American With Dreadlocks

How to Survive In Corporate American With Dreadlocks
Dreadlocks in the business world attract much attention.
Co-worker, managers, and others may not understand or have
misconceived beliefs about the unique hairstyle. This, in
turn, could cause communication problems, avoidance, and
misunderstanding against the person with dreadlocks. By
proving yourself a hardworking and positive contribution to
the company helps others recognize your contributions and
not judge your hairstyle.

Here are tips to help you survive any job or career with
dreadlocks:

- Believe in yourself. Regardless of what happens during
the workday, keep confidence in yourself strong. Those who
hired you believe in your skills to help the company or
department meet goals. Stay focused on that purpose.

- Be professional and dedicated. "Professionalism is
knowing how to do it, when to do it, and doing it," quotes
Frank Tyger. In essence, this means doing what the company
hired you to do at the best of your abilities. Make a
habit of creating to-do lists everyday and complete many
tasks as possible.

- Build strong working relationships with coworkers. Be
friendly with everyone in the company and be a part of the
team. Have a positive attitude to be more approachable and
easy to work with.

- Have good work ethics. Work long hours and extra time
when the job or task needs it. And don't complain when you
have to work beyond your standard hours. Take pride in
your work and leave a statement of success in every task
you complete.

- Be on time. Get to work on time, or better, five to ten
minutes before. Punctuality is important to managers and
co-workers. It shows your respect for others who depend on
the work you do.

- Know your company. Take time to learn about your
company, its culture, long and short-term goals, and your
responsibilities to help reach those goals. Visit the
company's website often, attend all meetings, and ask
questions that will give you a better understanding of your
role in the company.

- Dress well. Make sure your clothes are clean,
winkle-free, and fashionable according to the office dress
codes. Shine your shoes and groom your dreadlocks. Men
should wear long dreadlocks in a ponytail behind the head.
Women are more flexible. A loctician or image consultant
can help you create a professional business hairstyle with
dreadlocks.

- Underpromise and overdeliver. Never take on more than
you can handle and research your tasks thoroughly. It's
always better to wow your co-workers and boss by doing more
than to apologize for not delivering on time.

- Improve your skills continuously. Keep current on the
changes in your industry and upgrade your skills match your
industry's standards. Sign up for online courses, use
computer based training (CBT) CDs, and attend seminars
about your job or career.

- Stay positive no matter what. Keep track of what you say
to you and others. Always try to end all conversations on a
positive note. Never say you cannot perform a task, but
rather, you will find a way to resolve the issue.

- Work gossip-free. Do not gossip with co-workers and keep
your life personal. Walk away, change the subject, or state
you don't like talking about others when someone tries to
gossip with you. If gossipers talk to you about others,
they also talk about you to others. Most managers know who
the gossipers are. Be careful.

- Learn the art of listening. You have two ears and one
mouth, try to listen more than you speak. When someone
approach you for help, advice, inspiration, or anything
work related, always give them your full attention with eye
to eye contact. If you can't fully attend to the person at
the minute for any reason, it is better to reschedule the
conversation.

- Limit alcohol consumption at company events. Drinking
alcohol creates alter egos you may not want co-workers to
know about. Also, drunken people make statements about
dreadlocks, play with your hair, or ask silly questions
making you feel uncomfortable.

- Expect some people to dislike your dreadlocks. Do not
worry about their thoughts of you or your life. As the
motivator Les Brown says "What others think of you is none
of your spiritual business." Remember, you are on a mission
to be the best you can be.

- Stay motivated for success. Take spiritual time everyday
to appreciate who your are and the gifts you have to offer.
Decorate your office with positive pictures, posters,
books, and quotations. Develop an attitude of gratitude
for your job.

Start today on making yourself more valuable to your
company with your dreadlock hairstyle. Leave a mark of
excellence in everything you do. When co-workers and
managers see your dreadlocks, they will also see a person
dedicated to the success of the company, their job, and the
team.

----------------------------------------------------
Jeffery Bradley is the author of "Don't Worry Be Nappy! How
to Grow Dreadlocks and Still Get Everything You Want".
Visit http://www.howtogrowdreadlocks.com

for more
information of living successfully with dreadlocks.

Ready to add another market?

Ready to add another market?
So, you think you're ready to go after another market?

Are you sure?

My question to you FIRST is:

Have you mastered the list of contacts and prospects you've
got already? Are you keeping in touch with them a couple
times a month either in their mailbox, their inbox or in
their face? Do they all know and think of you all the time?

If not - I would suggest you rethink this??? But, hey,
that's just me.

I believe it's important to set up easy to follow, easily
maintainable, logical and effective marketing systems in
your business. This doesn't matter if you're large or
small but without systems you could be running-a-muck!

Then, once you have these set systems in place for
mailings, emailing, networking, advertising, publicity,
speaking, tradeshows, etc. AND THEY ARE PRODUCING RESULTS
THAT YOU WANT. (the important key)

Then, and only then should you add on another market,
industry, target audience, group of prospects - you get the
picture.

Why?

Because if you keep adding new markets or new groups to
target without effective follow up marketing systems to
keep in touch with them - you've completely wasted your
time and money on developing those new leads.

Many small business owners do this every day. They keep
reaching for that new business, new lead, new way to get
their name out there, new networking group and new
advertising medium to generate the new business. But you
know what? 9 times out of 10 they forget to do their
consistent, effective, relationship building, ongoing
marketing and follow up.

Sound familiar by chance?

If and when you've done all this with everyone and anyone
you know and who's on your list and you are still doing it
consistently (because it's 10 times easier to get repeat or
referral business than it is new business)...

Then, you can start marketing to a new market. Ok? Sound
like a plan? Believe me; you will thank me if you set all
this up ahead of time. Otherwise you'll go marketing to a
new market, get a ton of leads and not have time to even
follow up on them much less the ones you already have.

Relationship Marketing is the easiest and most effective
type of marketing out there - ask anyone in the industry.
For small business owners and entrepreneurs this is a must
if you want to succeed.

So, please don't try to sell your products and services to
everyone just because they breathe air, niche it out to
where you can have a specific message to your unique target
audience so when they see your message - they say "Hey,
that's for me!"

Now, if you are ready to take on another market....you can
try:

- Choosing another business industry type

For example, if you already target attorneys and insurance
agents, would it make sense then to add on commercial
brokers and mortgage consultants or some other industry
type?

- Adding another zip code or area

For example if you primarily concentrate your business in
one geographical area, network in that area and serve other
business owners B2B in that area, then you might simply
take on another area, their networking events and those
same business types in that area. This is what I do when I
join another chamber - I take on all kinds of networking in
that area to be very visible; but I don' t add another
chamber until I've become totally top of mind with the ones
I'm in (and assuming I had more time to network!).

- Duplicate something you're already doing but for a
different market

For example, if you run a workshop or have a coaching
program of some kind specifically targeted to say spa
owners; is it possible to duplicate that process/program
for massage therapists, chiropractors, dentists, etc.?

- Adding online marketing to reach the masses - (or you can
still localize your online searches as well)

This might require packaging your expertise in such a way
that you could sell it online in Ebooks, Teleclasses,
coaching programs, etc.

----------------------------------------------------
© Copyright 2008 K.Sawa Marketing
Katrina Sawa is an Award-Winning Relationship Marketing
Coach who's helped hundreds of small business owners take
dramatic steps in their businesses to get them to the next
level in business, revenues and life. She offers one-on-one
coaching, group coaching and do-it-yourself marketing
planning products. Go online now to get started with her
Free Report and Free Audio at
http://www.jumpstartyourmarketing.com !

How to avoid being trapped in a niche.

How to avoid being trapped in a niche.
Bang! Bang! Bang! The hammer comes down again and again,
nailing those wooden planks in place. Finally, it's done:
you're trapped. No windows, and the only door nailed shut.

Those business gurus told you to pick a niche, and so you
did. And now you're stuck there, for the rest of your days.
G'bye creativity. G'bye freedom. G'bye.

Does a niche really give your creativity a death sentence?
Well, sure, a -niche- can kill your creativity. But, you
might've mis-heard. 'Cause it's not a niche you're wanting,
it's a problem.

A niche is a "specialized but profitable corner of the
market." For instance, providing valves for industrial
manufacturing is a niche. A niche is also an ecological
term: "A position or role taken by a kind of organism
within its community."

The thing about a business niche is that the ecology of the
market can change, and your niche can go away. Not to
mention feeling stuck just pumping out those valves (so to
speak.)

The difference between a niche and a problem. A niche is
aimed at something that exists, a physical manifestation of
the market. A problem is something that continues to exist,
even when the market changes.

For instance, if you are in the bookkeeping business, you
can feel stuck and bored. And, beyond that, if some
fancy-dancy computer program comes out that makes it easy
to keep one's books, you suddenly lose business.

However, if you are in the business of solving a problem:
"Helping small businesses have a healthy relationship with
their cashflow" suddenly, all kinds of creativity comes in.
You've gone beyond data entry, to working in a creative
capacity, and you can start teaching, consulting and doing
all kinds of things.

You could even, if you were of the mind, bring in the
healing arts, to help support business owners around their
emotional issues with money. Plus the bookkeeping.

Now you are no longer in a niche, you are no longer hemmed
by a lack of creativity. Suddenly your horizons are much
further off.

Pretty cool, eh?

The problem is only a doorway. Notice how slyly our
bookkeeper friend went from data entry, to healing arts? If
you do the same thing, you don't need to limit yourself to
any particular issue. Except at the doorway.

The doorway your clients walk through will be the problem
you identify. Once they are in the door, who knows what
you'll be working on? If our bookkeeper friend likes to
support people with family issues, I'm going to guarantee
(after having taught 20+ iterations of our Heart of Money
course) that those family issues will be available to be
worked on.

Are you getting the difference? Please don't feel you need
to be stuck in just doing one thing for the rest of your
natural born days. Your clients, your business, and your
heart need your creativity in order to thrive.

You don't have to have a niche, however you must have a
problem to focus on, so that people know how and if they
should enter your business.

Who let the dogs out? Now you're free. You can let your
creativity, impulses, and guidance take you anywhere you're
led. You can learn Reiki, how to play the fiddle, plus
managerial AND financial accounting. You can learn whatever
you need to learn in order to be of service to your clients.

If your clients need it, you can bring it in, without
worrying about breaking your niche. Just don't abandon that
doorway. Because without a clear problem, your business
becomes invisible. And then you might as well nail up some
boards.

So... how can you tell you've got a good problem? Let's
take a look at some pointers, eh?

Keys to Freedom from Niche Tyranny.

• A good problem is an area you're interested in.

I happen to like small business, and small business owners.
I stay engaged, interested, curious and learning. It keeps
my creativity alive simply because I enjoy it.

Do you enjoy/curious about/impassioned by...?

- chronic illness?
- physical ability?
- parenting?
- love relationships?

Where do you have enough interest, that you naturally bring
your curiosity and desire to learn?

• Can you name four to six ways to approach the problem?

If there are many different ways to get at the problem,
then you know you aren't marrying a single modality, and
aren't getting stuck in a niche.

For instance, with parenting, I can think of five
modalities off the top of my head that can help:

- psychological counseling
- nonviolent communication training
- spiritual healing (Sufi, Reiki, or otherwise)
- Systemic constellation from Bert Hellinger
- The Work of Byron Katie

When you can begin to see many different ways of
approaching the issue, then you're free to extend that list
as far as you like, engaging your creativity as much as you
care to.

• Don't be tempted to widen the doorway (too much.)

Heart of Business would get mighty sloppy-looking indeed,
if we started marketing ourselves to deal with relationship
problems, physical healing, family issues, etc, etc. We
don't stray away from our doorway. When you walk in our
doorway, you can be clear what you will find: business
help, from the heart.

The creativity and expansion is inside the business, where
you stretch out the breadth of what you offer and can work
with, without widening the doorway.

The only reason a business exists is to help people solve
some problem. Don't think you have to stay inside the
narrow confines of a niche. Let your creativity and heart
help you choose a problem to solve, and then let your
creativity go hog-wild.

----------------------------------------------------
Mark Silver is the author of Unveiling the Heart of Your
Business: How Money, Marketing and Sales can Deepen Your
Heart, Heal the World, and Still Add to Your Bottom Line.
He has helped hundreds of small business owners around the
globe succeed in business without lousing their hearts. Get
three free chapters of the book online:
http://www.heartofbusiness.com

How Your Business Should Act Like A Snowflake

How Your Business Should Act Like A Snowflake
If someone walked up to you and said "you should make your
business more like a snowflake" you'd probably think they
were a little crazy. Do they think your business should be
made from ice crystals? Be cold or melty? Fall from the
sky? None of these seem like desirable business attributes.

But, there's one thing that each and every snowflake has
that a small business should strive for—uniqueness. When
the ice crystals that make up a snowflake all get together,
they always assemble themselves in a new and different
formation. Snowflakes always have a unique structure and a
unique appearance.

Just like snowflakes, your business will have several
different types of uniqueness. On the surface, you'll want
your brand and marketing materials to look unique, so that
when all of your materials go out, they can stand out from
your competitions'.

Your business will have underlying structural elements that
make you different. This will include how your business is
put together, how you run your business, the products and
services you offer, and all those sorts of business
considerations that show up in your business plan.

But your business has one other type of uniqueness that
snowflakes don't

And that's personality. This kind of uniqueness is a bit
tricky for small businesses. The challenge is separating
the personality of the business from the personality of the
entrepreneur running the business.

Why bother with this distinction? It can help your business
appear more professional, by establishing you as a business
instead of just a freelancer. Positioning yourself as a
company instead of just an individual can also help you
command more respect and higher rates.

If you're planning to grow your company by hiring more
people to work for you, then using your business uniqueness
instead of your personal uniqueness will make you look less
like a consultancy and more like a company. Positioning
your business in that way from the beginning can help you
to wean your clients from expecting to work with you
personally. This can be invaluable as you add on staff.

How To Be Unique

Here's a simple plan that can help you overcome the
uniqueness challenge:

1. Create a business and brand plan

A lot of small businesses skip this step because it seems
pretty elementary. But the process of writing down things
like your business structure, product and service
offerings, competition, mission, vision, experience and
marketing plans can help you unearth elements of your own
uniqueness.

A business plan that's created for these purposes doesn't
have to be "official sounding", or particularly long. All
it has to do is to record your basic plans.

2. Identify your uniqueness

What is unique about you? That's actually one of the most
difficult questions for anyone to answer. The reason why
it's so hard to tell what's unique about you is that you
typically do whatever it is that makes you unique
naturally—and constantly. You do your unique behavior or
skill so often, and so effortlessly, that you probably
don't even notice you're doing it.

So if you don't know that you're doing something that makes
you special, how do you figure out what that is? You can
look at your competition to see if there's anything that's
central to the way you do business that they're leaving
out. Or ask clients who have worked with you what made the
experience unique. You could also try writing down
everything that you do, or creating a case study of a
client project, and have a friend or colleague look over
your notes. Something may jump out at them that you don't
even notice.

3. Separate your business's uniqueness from the business
owner

This step has different challenges depending on your plans
for your company's growth. If you want to keep your company
the same size and just grow the business in terms of
revenue and success, then the challenge is separating out
just enough of your own personality, and still leaving some
unique traits for the business. The trick is to avoid going
overboard when separating your self from the business. This
can make your business' personality too professional and
sterile.

If you want to eventually build a company that's bigger
than yourself, plan your brand to work for the growing
company. The challenge here is creating a personality for
your business that your employees will be able to
embody—and then hiring employees based not only on their
qualifications but also on their ability to match that
personality.

How do you do this step? I recommend noting your
personality in social situations, and comparing it with
your personality in business situations. If you're shy in
social situations, it might also help to note your
personality when you're interacting with your spouse or
children. Then see which of these traits you could
comfortably and professionally bring to your business.

For example, say you really enjoy story time with your
children. It could be business-appropriate to explain your
services in a more story-like manner. That would infuse
your sales process with personality and help to bring
beneficial personality to your clients.

4. Brand your business to show that uniqueness

Many businesses have a lot of personality, but they design
their brands to look "professional" instead of showing off
makes them special. The other extreme is when companies
design graphics that are either too complicated or too
unique—so they don't have any meaning to the client or
prospect looking at them.

Make the most of your graphics by defining your unique
brand, then using common shapes and symbols to communicate
your brand message. If you're a financial advisor who
focuses on helping clients do all the fun things they want
to do in their lives, then a bright color palette and
energetic shapes like starbursts may be appropriate. But if
you're focusing on helping people who don't understand
investing to make sound decisions, then circular,
trust-building shapes and a more traditional color palette
of navy and gold may be more appropriate.

Taking these 4 steps to show your business' unique design,
structure and personality will help your business avoid
looking too coldly professional. They'll help you to show
your prospects and clients what a unique snowflake you
really are, and your business will shine.

----------------------------------------------------
Erin Ferree is a brand identity designer who creates big
visibility for small businesses. As the owner of elf
design, Erin is passionate about helping her clients stand
out in front of their competition and attract more clients.
Her "Define Your Difference Branding Workbook" will help
you with your brand definition - the most important step in
the logo design process.
http://www.elf-design.com/products-define.html

In Adding Value to Your Business Model, One Thing Leads to Another

In Adding Value to Your Business Model, One Thing Leads to Another
As you consider the type of value you want to add to your
business model, you should also think in terms of what the
longer-term consequences are. Otherwise, you may create
short-term solutions that offer limited benefits.

For example, adding new variations on a fad toy, like a
hula hoop, will extend its life. Yet, at some point, the
fad will be over no matter what you do. The rewards of
offering those variations will not continue to expand into
the future.

By comparison, other improvements may have a geometric
effect over time, especially in rapidly growing markets.
For instance, EMC decided in the mid-1990s to make sure
that all of its storage products and software would work
with any server platform or operating system at no extra
charge. This change made it easier for a customer to
attach EMC's storage to their existing servers, and made it
less likely that EMC would lose a customer account in the
future after a new server vendor made a temporary or even
permanent inroad.

During the period when most other electronic storage was
not so flexible, EMC rapidly gained market share while
charging higher prices for its products, as its customers
highly valued this flexibility.

The most far-sighted companies consider how having a
benefit for customers in one area can be used to create an
important benefit in yet another area. For instance,
Paychex began as a company that provided reliable, low-cost
payroll services for small companies.

Paychex's leaders began to realize that many other services
that small companies need depend on having accurate payroll
records. Whoever is providing those records can do the best
job also in those other areas, saving customers lots of
time, money, aggravation, and government fines.

As a result, Paychex offers a whole range of
record-development and record-keeping services related to
employees that are built from the payroll database that was
its initial product line. Many of the company's customers
buy all of Paychex's services because of the accuracy and
time-saving benefits that its integrated systems provide.

Ultimately, the most valuable benefits are those which are
built on knowledge that cannot be duplicated in any other
way. For example, Ecolab began in the business of providing
cleaning chemicals for manufacturers, institutions,
restaurants, and other service providers.

For restaurants, Ecolab learned that it was more important
to restaurants to keep good relations with the health
inspectors than it was to simply have good cleaning
supplies. As a result, Ecolab expanded its offerings to
include the chemicals to sanitize everything in a
restaurant.

With its knowledge of the chemicals, Ecolab also added ways
to improve and maintain the equipment to make better use of
the chemicals. Later, the firm also defined itself as being
in the pest elimination, janitorial, floor care, water
treatment, and management advice businesses.

In each area, Ecolab carefully measures its customer's
experiences to locate what the best practices are.
Combining the expertise from these perspectives and many
customers that Ecolab has developed in each of these areas,
the company can show a customer how to save lots of money,
get better results, while paying normal prices for its
chemicals and services.

The cost reduction benefits are often a large multiple of
what Ecolab's products and services cost. Compare that
happy situation to the alternative of the immediate and
long-term costs of a restaurant's harmed reputation due to
having a facility closed down because of a health problem.
Imagine how much worse this problem is for the large
restaurant chains.

No local provider of any one of these services can hope to
provide a more effective combination of solutions than
Ecolab does. No new entrant can hope to gain the knowledge
that Ecolab has to create valuable, custom solutions at
regular prices.

As a result Ecolab is often the first choice of restaurant
chains. The added exposure to similar activities in other
end use markets (such as food manufacturing, as a similar
space for restaurants) provides even more chances to learn
and create customer benefits.

Having seen how well this expanded business model applies
to restaurants, Ecolab has duplicated this knowledge-based
benefit-development process for other types of customers.
Hospitals were an early and natural extension of this
concept.

As you can see, Ecolab is beginning to develop many of the
characteristics of an ideal business model.

Copyright 2008 Donald W. Mitchell, All Rights Reserved

----------------------------------------------------
Donald Mitchell is chairman of Mitchell and Company, a
strategy and financial consulting firm in Weston, MA. He is
coauthor of seven books including Adventures of an
Optimist, The 2,000 Percent Solution, and The Ultimate
Competitive Advantage. You can find free tips for
accomplishing 20 times more by registering at:
====> http://www.2000percentsolution.com .

Scripophily Signatures - Real or Not?

Scripophily Signatures - Real or Not?
How can you determine if the signatures on a collectible
stock certificate are authentic autographs?

First, there's good news. Scripophily (the collecting of
antique stock certificates and bonds) does not generally
have the rampant forgery or mechanized signature issues of
some other collectible fields (e.g., signed sports
collectibles).

The question to be answered is whether the signature was
hand signed rather printed or stamped. An expensive paper
and ink chemical analysis is seldom needed. The following
can help in determining originality:

1. The older the document is, the more likely it was hand
signed. In fact, in the 1800's, a personal and artful
signature was the norm.

2. Certificates normally have multiple signatures
(President, Secretary, Transfer Agent, owner, witness,
etc.). The signatures and any notations should be in
different handwriting for each person and, often, different
colorations and applications of ink or pencil.

3. Research the document using books and dealers' or
hobbyist's websites (such as coxrail.com for railroads).
You may find authentication comments or images you can
compare with your document.

4. If you have more than one certificate or image for
comparison, look for small variations ' that's good. If
the signatures would match exactly if overlaid, they're
probably reproduced.

5. Since older certificates are often on thinner paper, an
original signature may appear darker than the printed
portions of the certificate when it is viewed from the back.

6. Sometimes a pen signature will have left a very slight
depression in the paper which can be seen from the front or
back when held at an angle to a light.

7. If the placement of the signature is contrary to the
layout of the print, e.g., it covers part of the design
instead of being perfectly placed, that may indicate
originality (though not always).

8. Early signature ink sometimes "bled" slightly out into
the paper from the written lines. You may be able to see
this with a magnifier.

A couple of important final points to remember: Firstly, it
is possible to prove an autograph is not authentic, but it
is impossible it prove it is authentic. Every statement of
authenticity about a signature (be it Marilyn Monroe,
Michael Jordan or George Washington) is a statement of
informed (we hope) opinion.

The only way to be 100% sure is if you personally watched
the person sign your item and then kept the item in your
possession. That seldom is an option and never is for
antique items. Secondly, because of the first point, you
should always purchase collectible items from reputable
dealers who offer a reasonable return policy. You should
be happy with what you acquire.

Whether you even care about the signature is completely up
to you, of course, but it can be one of the research paths
that lead to a sense of discovery as you explore the
historical background and personal stories behind your
latest stock certificate acquisition.

----------------------------------------------------
Larry Crain is a collector, author and dealer in
Scripophily (the collecting of antique stock certificates).
Visit http://www.realstockcertificates.com/ for images,
values, more articles and research tools for old stock
certificates. Visit
http://www.realstockhistories.blogspot.com/ to research old
company and industry historical information.

Hidden Profits

Hidden Profits
Do You Want To Know Where The Hidden Profits Are In Your
Business?

You really do have hidden profits in your business and all
of us are trying to find out where. To get you headed in
the right direction I want to relay a story to you that I
found very interesting and deals directly to this point. It
deals with your observations of your surroundings.

Are Keeping Informed About Your Industry?

I subscribe to dozens of publications, newsletters and
ezines to find that edge that many businesses are missing
today; especially in your business in 2008. I was reading
an article by Travis Miller and Jimmy Vee and I want to
share some of their article with you. It began like this:

How Do Others See You?

More than 300 years ago a young mathematician was resting
under an apple tree when he got "beaned" on the head by a
falling apple. It is this instance that is believed to give
Sir Isaac Newton an inspiration to formulate his theory of
Universal Gravitation.

But that story is an exaggeration cartoon of the actual
facts. The true story, as presented by John Conduitt,
Newton's assistant, portrays a far less amazing and
dramatic event. The truth is believed to be more like...

"While Newton was pensively meandering in a garden his
thoughts about the power of gravity (which brought an apple
from the tree to the ground) were not limited only to
bringing an object to the ground. The effects, Newton
realized, extended much further than usually thought."

Therefore, the inspiration every one believes to be the
catalyst of Newton's success was not a freak accident or an
unduplicatable process. It was really just a small
observance in a totally unrelated field.

Are You Asking The Right Questions?

Newton's success was dependent upon his ability to see
things that were going on around him and apply them to his
field of study. His success didn't come from a single or
turnkey action but by his ability to observe and ask better
questions.

Now, before you can ask better questions you must see
things differently. Have you observed any changes in the
way people are responding to your ads or what questions
your customers are asking when they come into your
business? What concerns have your customers brought to your
staff and are you able to address those concerns
satisfactorily?

How Often Do You Hear Yourself Saying, "I'm not doing as
good as I would like to, but I know things will change
soon."

If you're like most business owners, you're sitting under a
tree waiting for an apple that may never fall. You're a
professional, you believe that attracting new customers,
convincing them to buy and getting them to eagerly refer
others is something that comes easily because you've been
in this business for some time. You believe that because
when you opened your doors, got the word out about
providing excellent service and quality products your
customers would keep coming.

The most frustrating part is when you see someone else,
maybe a competitor, someone with less experience or less
skill, just open their doors and unexplainably, Ignite
Their Business To The Next Level during a time when a
recession is looming, higher gas prices and a shrinking
dollar value.

Why Do Other People Get What You Deserve?

Does the other guy know something you don't?

The truth is, the more you get rooted and educated by the
common thinking of your industry herd the less chance you
have of ever succeeding.

Attracting new customers and clients is actually an easy
duplicatable and scientific process. In fact, with a little
observing and the right tools you can have high quality
prospects coming to you instead of you busting your butt
and wasting your money trying to find them.

The Hidden Profits Buried In Your Business...

Just like Newton and Gravity there is a hidden wealth of
profits, breakthroughs in marketing and cash buried in your
business that you are missing out on. Partly because you
don't see them and you are possibly too close to your
industry and to your business. You have a lot of yourself
invested and you don't have the tools to see things
objectively and ask the right questions.

Learn how you can get the tools that could help you ask
better questions, create a process that can be done over
and over and produce quality customers that look for you
and happily pay for what you are selling.

----------------------------------------------------
Hal Hoadley has been creating direct mail marketing events
for multi-million dollar companies for 24 years. His
marketing skills have produced million dollar sales in
various markets through out the United States. Recently,
Hal has put together a marketing plan that is guaranteed to
get attention. He calls it "The Ultimate No BS Marketing
Plan".
http://www.lahpromotions.com

Strategic Alliances: Make Them Work

Strategic Alliances: Make Them Work
The simplest definition of a strategic alliance is: the
joining of forces and resources, for a specified or
indefinite period, to achieve a common bjective. Partners
can share resources such as products, distribution
channels, services, customer lists, knowledge and expertise.

In terms of marketing, strategic alliances offer several
advantages:

- expand their email/customer email lists

- provide more and different products and services to their
clients

- split expenses (if any)

- low-cost way to expand the reach, awareness and
credibility of your company

- increase your professional contacts, knowledge and
experience

To make sure the strategic partnership works to everyone's
benefit, below are some questions to consider as you go
through the different stages of setting up and operating a
strategic alliance.

1. Develop/Outline Strategy

* Feasibility:

- Are there companies out there that would be a good fit?

- Is your company in a position to be able to offer
something to a partner?

* Objectives:

- What outcomes do you want to achieve with the alliance?

- How does a strategic alliance move you closer to your
company and marketing goals?

* Issues:

- Are there any potential problems with partnering, in
general, or with a specific company?

- Does your company have the resources to successfully
create and carry out an alliance?

2. Partner assessment

* Reputation:

- How great is your potential partner's reputation?

- Do they have credibility, offer value, have good client
relations and customer support, and so on?

* Business Model:

- Does the prospective partner have compatible business
goals, philosophies, ethics and values with your company?

- Do they have similar goals and objectives of the
strategic alliance?

* Customer Base:

- Would their customer base be interested in your product
or service, and vice-versa?

- Do each of your customer/prospect lists enhance and build
on each other?

* Resources:

- Are there any resource capability gaps that need to be
addressed?

- Are they in a position to successfully run a strategic
alliance with you?

* Price Point:

- Are your prices compatible with each other?

- How will the prices set by the alliance be viewed by each
company's respective customers - positively?

3. Contract negotiations

- Are each partner's contributions, commitments and
rewards clearly outlined?

- Is any proprietary information protected?

- Are the termination clauses and penalties for poor
performance stated and agreed upon?

4. Operations

- How are you measuring and rewarding the alliance
performance of each partner?

- How are you evaluating the effectiveness of the alliance
and the meeting of each partner's stated objectives?

- How are you allocating and tracking resources devoted to
the alliance?

- What mechanisms are in place for adjusting priorities,
resources, direction as required?

Strategic partnerships can move your company up to the next
level of profitability and success, or waste your time,
money and resources. By being as thorough as possible, you
can work to ensure that your company reaps all the numerous
rewards afforded by strategic alliances.

----------------------------------------------------
Jody Gabourie, The Small Business Marketing Coach, delivers
simple, innovative and powerful marketing strategies to
help business owners find and keep their most profitable
clients. To learn more about how she can help you take your
business to the next level, and to sign up for her FREE
special report, ezine and articles, visit her site at
http://www.JodyGabourieMarketingCoach.com

3 Ways to Tell if You Need More Than One Resume

3 Ways to Tell if You Need More Than One Resume
You've probably heard that employers expect to see an exact
match to their skills on your resume, and that you should
be tailoring your resume to each job. But, you might
think—if I do that, I'll be writing forever!

Relax ' there's a point to customizing your resume to meet
the needs of employers. In The Career Champion newsletter,
I regularly cover the fact that a resume needs to deliver a
clear message in order to be effective. However, this
doesn't mean that every resume you send must be a
completely different version.

If you're unsure of the actual breaking point between one
resume and another, here are 3 ways to tell if you'll need
an encore version:

1) Your skills aren't focused on one main career goal.

My clients often find that they can target one particular
job type by showing strengths for that role. If they wish
to pursue a similar position, I recommend that they change
a few words here and there.

However, if they focus on an entirely DIFFERENT job type,
that's another matter. It's hard to convince employers of
your business development skills, for example, if your
resume is centered around your expertise in operations
management.

By the same token, if you see yourself with a "fallback"
option of sales management, but you'd really rather be a
strong individual sales performer, it's best to divide
these goals into two resumes to clarify things for
employers.

2) Your credentials are SO broad that your resume goes on
forever.

If your resume gives hiring authorities too much to read
(especially if there's too many interesting facts that
don't add up to one message), then it's time to narrow your
focus.

Proving your fitness for a particular job is a matter of
tuning the text around WHY you're qualified, and then
backing up your story with achievements and other examples.

3) Tweaking your resume for each job application requires a
major rewrite.

If you can't reasonably dedicate your qualifications
profile or summary to one suite of skills, then you should
separate out your career goals—and your resume
versions.

This may involve extra effort on your part, including
additional keyword research and a different presentation,
but the end results will be worth it.

Remember, recruiters have enough resumes to read without
getting confused by what you want to do! Zeroing in on your
specific, measurable credentials allows you to quickly
convey why you are qualified, eliminates the potential for
confusion, and gets your resume noticed much faster.

----------------------------------------------------
A unique resume authority, Laura Smith-Proulx is the
Executive Director of An Expert Resume
(http://www.anexpertresume.com), a career services company
that caters to technical, sales, and organizational
leaders, from managers poised for growth to senior-level
executives.
Laura has achieved a 98% success rate for thousands of
clients through skilled writing/editing, insightful career
coaching, and positive motivation.

Business Success Is All About Sales

Business Success Is All About Sales
Do you want to Up Your Bottom Line?

The world market is heating up. Competitors are appearing
out of nowhere and expectations are high, especially from
the top. In today's market both the business owner and
seasoned professional salesperson have to be producing at
their absolute best to stay up with the industry leaders.

Business people must also be sales professionals who today
have to be pro-active, highly energetic, entrepreneurial,
self-driven and really concerned about efficiency and the
bottom line. He or she needs to be honest, sensitive, a
master problem solver and above all, a personal marketing
genius with a win/win philosophy. Only having all these
qualities can the business people have the slight edge to
win in today's fast growing economy.

The profession of being a salesperson is no different than
any other profession. All business professionals go through
years of training and continuous learning. The main
difference of the sales profession though, and one that you
must learn to deal with, is the changing times and how no
one likes the same old traditional approaches.

Traditional sales training has taught us many sales
techniques and how to handle objections, but not how to
stay in control of the buying process or creating and
maintaining long term relationships. In order for
salespeople to be successful, they must maintain control
over the sales process, while the customer believes they
are in control.

To do that, they must have a step-by-step sales results
system to follow. This is the main reason behind why
salespeople succeed. Buyer's have a system and that is why
they have been in control, and salespeople are being
rejected.

All business professionals benefit from a sales system or
sales process because it is vital to always be focussed and
goal-orientated in order to achieve bottom line results.
Most businesses are customer focussed and service driven
and usually, no matter what your profession, you have
something to sell whether it be a product, a service or an
idea. Everyone needs sales if they want to survive. Without
sales, there's no business to talk about.

The Bottom Line! Sales people need to follow a proven Sales
Results System, or sales process. Businesses today cannot
succeed without sales. Without sales there are no
transactions. Without transactions there is no revenue.
Without revenue, there is no business, no jobs, no bottom
line. Sales is the bottom line!

----------------------------------------------------
Bob Urichuck is an International Speaker, Trainer and
Best-Selling Author. Learn personally from Bob in the areas
of Sales, Motivation, Leadership and Team Skills. Bob
presents a series of great ideas and strategies with
combination of facts, humor, and practical concept in a
high-energy and self-discovery process that you can apply
right away to achieve results. Subscribe to Bob's Free
Newsletter, worth $297, visit http://www.BobU.com Now!

Home Based Business For Moms with Little Children

Home Based Business For Moms with Little Children
The Internet has brought a whole lot of benefits to users
worldwide. Apart from being a very useful tool for
communication around the world it has also created a large
market place comprised of the millions of users worldwide.
Like any other market place the Internet has also created
job and business opportunities for all those willing and
having the necessary skills. For men and women alike the
Internet has made doing business easier and even possible
from the comfort of your home.

This work at home feature of home Internet businesses has
made it very attractive to women with little children.
Little children evidently need more constant attention
during their early and formative years. They fall ill a bit
more often, need regular feeding and washing, and need a
bit of play space. None of this would be able to be
accommodated in a regular office or business place. With
the different home based Internet businesses available moms
no longer have to lose income because they are pregnant or
have children to take care of.

The truth is that there are quite a number of Internet home
based business to choose from and final choice would be
dependant on the educational level, skills and interest the
mom has. Among the popular options are freelance writing,
data entry, affiliate marketing, and surveys. Other popular
work at home jobs would include Blogging, Forex and online
merchandising.

Freelance writing is a simple work at home Internet
business that is especially fitting for women with
children. As a freelance writer she gets to schedule her
own working time, work load, and family time. A freelance
writer is paid to develop content for different online
companies. All she has to do is accept writing jobs on the
Internet, research and write based on specifications. Data
entry is related to freelance writing but suitable for
individuals who may lack creative writing skills. There are
a number of data entry agents you can join and you will get
access to companies in need of data entry specialists. This
type of job usually requires just a computer and an
Internet connection and allows moms a bit of freedom to
schedule work time.

Affiliate marketing can be quite profitable for those
skilled and experienced in it. It is the perfect job for
the mom at home with children. It requires more skills than
effort. An affiliate marketer becomes an affiliate of a
company and helps them market their products. She gets a
portion of the sales as commission for each sale generated
by her. When you consider that the Internet has millions of
users online everyday, you can then begin to understand the
potentials open to an affiliate marketer with the right
products and with proper knowledge of online marketing
techniques.

Taking surveys is a simple and easy work at home
opportunity that is available as well. Survey takers spend
little time (usually 5-15 minutes) filling out a survey and
then get paid for it. Surveys are however location
sensitive as women in some locations might not get enough
paid surveys to sustain the practice. However for moms or
people that are able to find steady work doing this it can
be an ideal home job.

This is just the tip of the iceberg with how you can make
money working from home on the Internet. Care should also
be taken not to fall victim to many fraud programs on the
Internet promising lucrative business opportunities for a
fee. Most programs that ask you to pay first are
fraudulent. Be careful as you seek the ideal home-based
Internet business for you.

----------------------------------------------------
http://www.Trade4net.com
http://www.Trade4Net.com/blog/
http://www.Trade4net.com/wpblog
http://www.ioannismitrou.blogspot.com

Giving Advice vs. Giving Information is Costing You Clients

Giving Advice vs. Giving Information is Costing You Clients
I once asked the members of our program calls, how much
time they were spending with prospects to close a sale. A
few members, who were service providers, knew exactly how
long it took them to convert a prospect into a paying
client. While others, sadly, said they often spent 30
minutes with a prospect at a networking meeting, than an
hour or two meeting face-to-face with THE SAME prospect
(while giving advice), and than another 30 to 60 minutes
over the phone (still giving advice) to THE SAME prospect.
So, that is 30 minutes at a networking meeting, 1 or 2
hours face-to-face, and 1 more hour over the phone. 3
½ hours giving advice to one prospect. No wonder
they no longer needed your help. Not good.

You see, I used to be guilty of giving away advice for
FREE. And, I discovered most self-employed service
professionals give so much advice away, that their
prospects have enough information to solve their problem on
their own. These professionals are using outdated marketing
and sales techniques to convert a prospect, into a paying
client, and it's frustrating them. That why professionals
who use newer systems and communication leverage
techniques, can totally transform their business to become
more efficient and effective. They end up working smarter,
not harder.

You must know the difference between giving information and
giving advice. When you give advice, you are giving tactics
that can be converted into action. That's why those who
participate in our Client Communication Success Programs
receive our advice such as, "Here's what you say, here's
what you do, here's when to do it, here's why you need to
do it that way." Giving advice that is specific is
incredibly empowering to a client. But, advice also
empowers prospects not to purchase your services, since
you've helped them solve their issue without paying you.

Now, giving information is inconclusive. When you give
information to a prospect, you're giving them puzzle pieces
of a picture to focus on. Most of the time prospects don't
even know they're out of focus, until you focus the picture
for them. Giving them information helps them put the puzzle
pieces together, on their own terms. So they take the first
puzzle piece, then add that to the next puzzle piece, and
go on and on. Finally, they see part of the picture, and
realize that they need your advice to stay motivated to
continue. That's what leading prospects into paying clients
is all about.

Let's face it the marketplace has changed. You can't use
the same marketing and sales communication strategies year
after year. Therefore you want to target your information
towards the 20% of the local or global population that are
already PRE-QUALIFIED and eager to buy from you. So, I
recommend that you:

1. Start watching how successful business owners
communicate information to prospects, and model your
communication after what feels natural to you. Notice how
long it takes them to reach their point. (They make their
point quickly. Hint. Hint)

2. Go to your local library, and check out DVD's from top
earning American professionals. If you are targeting a
foreign born professional, seek out videos of sales
professionals from that culture. Watch what they wear, how
they stand, and their facial expressions. They're confident
about what they sell, and they know how to sell information
to that culture.

And, I know it may be hard to believe, but I assure you,
when you change the way you communicate ADVICE to clients,
and INFORMATION to prospects your business will grow. It
has worked for me, and we've done it for our clients too.

----------------------------------------------------
Kim Schott, your Global Client Communication Mentor, is the
author of the Keys to Client Communication System™,
the step-by-step, paint by numbers client communication
program help self-employed service professionals to attract
more clients in less time. To receive your weekly how-to
articles on consistently attracting more local and global
clients in less time, visit
http://www.SchottCulturalConsulting.com

Call Center Performance Appraisals

Call Center Performance Appraisals
Encouragement is the key to performance. Reward is even
greater source of encouragement when it's beyond just
words. Call Centers have over the years developed a
performance appraisal system that's including all the
components of good communication. Nowhere else does
appraisals matter so much as much in call centre business,
as its all about customer experience which sells and is at
CSR discretion, he can make it most memorable or the worst
at the same time. Technology has turned the way in the
favor of Call centers and has reduced the hassle of
managers and supervisors who had to listen to live calls to
evaluate the performance of CSR, now with advanced software
recording option; the calls can be replayed for evaluation
of the quality and customer satisfaction.

A contact center should first offer quality training to the
staff and then expect high performance appraisal, otherwise
all the activity is useless. Whether you listen to live
calls or recorded streaming, you should have well-defined
standards for evaluation of scores and it should be
pre-agreed with CSR, this way you can be in better position
to motivate and advocate the CSR to improve his
performance. Avoid such digital recording vendors who
consider the length of call as a parameter of quality call,
set your own professional parameters to evaluate the
quality of call.

One of the best possible made evaluations models includes
all the ingredients of good communication. The appraisals
is made on the basis of one of the basic elements of good
communication and it is expected from CSR to demonstrate
these good practices to get good results towards the end
for themselves and for the company. The honesty level of
the CSR can make real difference and in case the CSR is
lagging short of words to depict his honest support,
customer experience won't me very appreciable. Next to
honesty, performance is evaluated on the basis of the
attention that CSR invest in his overall attendance. His
reply will reflect his presence and if he is giving hundred
percent, favorable comments will be added out of the
overall experience. Interest level is also among the
factors that are considered during performance evaluation.
Furthermore, duplication should be avoided and CSR should
not ask anything twice, this creates really unpleasant
impression on the caller. Refraining from making
experienced based assumptions is really very important;
otherwise the call will not be converted into prospect.

Sense of responsibility, control of CSR on the call,
friendliness and professionalism are some other
determinants of a quality customer service call on the part
of CSR. Many other factors need to be considered seriously
when making call evaluation, other than just call handling
and call quality. No one learns communication skills by
birth and for the stuff that has not been able to enter
main-stream careers, it's even further a less realistic
expectation. Training and skill development of s can yield
considerable results towards the end.

----------------------------------------------------
Call Center Management never been easier with
http://www.steptocallcenter.com

How to Overcome Sales Objections

How to Overcome Sales Objections
In sales, objections are great! Yes that's right,
objections are at the heart of an adrenaline surge for any
professional sales person. You see when someone raises an
objection to you, what it really means is that potential
customer is possibly interested in what you have to off but
you haven't addressed all their questions yet!

If this happens welcome it with open arms! It is a signal
that you need to go back and find out exactly what they
want, get their questions answered and get the order
signed. They are already listening to you.

If you need to clarify what has been covered so far ask
them,'You told me that. (state what they have told you so
far).. Is that right?' If you get a no find out the correct
answer, if yes, move on as it was not an objection but a
smoke screen to delay placing the order.

Remember price is never the issue, cost or their budget may
be, but showing value is vital to getting a sale. If you
can show your prospect how your product or service will add
value, solve a problem or make their life better in ways
they expressed as potential issues for them to you, you can
get the order.

Another area key to closing the sale is that you have built
the right rapport, simply put, if someone doesn't know,
like and trust you, you will never get the order from them
no matter how much value you show them!

A key area when fact finding is to establish your clients
budget and show them the value of your product and services
with the benefits and uniqueness to them. No point wasting
your time or theirs if they have a budget of say $100 and
your product is $1000. If that is the case move on and find
a new customer.

Possible phrases that crop up as objections. I want to
think it over, I want to check with more suppliers ,Your
price is too high, I have to speak with my partner, I'm
happy with my current supplier ,We've spent our annual
budget, Get back to me in 6 months

Remember most of these phrases are delay tactics, they give
the buyer more thinking time, or they are just excuses in
the main! They usually arise when either you haven't
qualified the prospect sufficiently, you haven't
established enough rapport so they like and trust what you
are telling them is credible. Maybe you haven't established
a need from them yet or worse still your presentation is
weak and needs attention, your belief in what you're
promoting may not be convincing enough.

For future reference, identify all possible objections
write them down and have an answer ready to address them.
Ask yourself, what might people say to get out of
committing to your offering?

A final point- there is power in the word No - No is good,
no sometimes means no not now, every no is closer to the
next yes, don't take no's personally this is business, It
usually takes around 7 no's before sale is made. Each no
moves you closer to the sale.

----------------------------------------------------
Would you like more options to improve your sales
conversion rate? Jacqui Tillyard offers a range of coaching
solutions to help you achieve business success. Is it time
you realised what potential you might have? Visit
http://www.jacquitillyard.co.uk

Discover FREE simple steps
to fast forward your business. Jacqui Tillyard-NLP Rapid
Result Expert, Realising Your True Potential Today.
http://www.jacquitillyard.co.uk

jacqui@jacquitillyard.co.uk

2 Crucial And 1 Major Tip To Balanced Self Employment

2 Crucial And 1 Major Tip To Balanced Self Employment
A man of substance needed his prized stallion groomed. He
hired a man who lived around horse stables all his life.
This man groomed the horse daily for hours. Problem was he
stole a bit of the horse's hay everyday and sold it.

One day, feeling hungry, wasted and looking unhealthy the
horse had taken enough. He neighed loudly to the grooming
thief, "hey look, groom me less and feed me more everyday."

In this story, the horse is only asking for balance. You
must seek a healthy balance when tackling the ups and downs
associated with owning you own business. Self employment
definitely brings self fulfillment and personal
satisfaction. But headaches are also bound up in that
package. Below are a few quick self employment positives.

1. Financial independence.

2. No bosses. (Always a great positive)

3. No wage limits.

4. The freedom to be innovative.

This article contains three practical strategies for
maintaining this needed balance if success is to be
realized.

Moonlighting (Crucial)

Everyone knows what moonlighting is, but just in case I'm
wrong, moonlighting is simply taking on a second job. It's
usually a night job hence the term moonlighting. Economic
pressure is what forces most people to moonlight. When
starting your own business, initially it may not be
possible to pay yourself a wage. But turning yourself into
a workaholic to secure that elusive wage will hamper your
health in the long run. When you are in a position to
resign from your regular job, do so with dignity and
appreciation for your former employer. Never burn bridges!

Patience Needed (Crucial)

Initially you may be required to make difficult sacrifices
to gain momentum. Be patient. Things will come together
with time. Rome wasn't built in a day. You may even
experience abysmal returns. Returns that bring much
discouragement; but hold on, be patient. You may have to
go into the barn and dig into the hay you have stored away.
Don't be afraid to use your savings. It won't always be
doom and gloom. Setbacks are setups for a comeback. Repeat
that to yourself over and over. Maintain a mindset of
success and you will succeed.

The Canaries In The Coalmine (Major)

Believe me when I tell you, you need your wife! She's like
the canary in the coalmine; the first to spot the signs of
danger. Pay attention to her when she tells you that you
need to strike a balance between work and home. Owning
your own business doesn't give you the right to immerse
yourself into your business to the detriment of your
family. Quite the contrary; your family should still come
first. Maintain your passion for your business while at the
same time satisfying the needs of your family.

Entrepreneurs of today must employ up to date management
techniques in order to position their business for success.
They must be prudent when breaking away from former
employers, remain patient in the face of difficult
challenges and be able to strike a reasonable balance
between work and home life.

----------------------------------------------------
To get more powerful tips on successful self employment,
grab my FREE Power-Packed "Really Really Short Report" from
here:

http://pinurl.com/7v1

Starting a Web Hosting Company with Master Reseller Hosting

Starting a Web Hosting Company with Master Reseller Hosting
The idea of starting a web hosting company has at least
touched most internet entrepreneurs. This business type
offers potentially high residual margins with most of the
business being fully automated. More than 20,000 domains
are registered each day with millions already online. Each
website on the internet needs web hosting and the growth of
this industry is endless and not slowing.

Starting a web hosting company is similar to beginning any
business. A smart entrepreneur will research and devise a
business plan and budget. This makes sure you have goals
to reach and will be able to afford it. Skipping this step
in business development has been proven to be one of the
number one reasons most small businesses fail.

When researching your expenses you will be compelled to
know that there is a service designed exactly for your web
hosting needs. This service is called master reseller
hosting. This amazing service will allow you to resell web
hosting accounts as well as resell WHM reseller accounts.
Basically, you can support someone setting up a regular
website or you can support someone interested in starting a
web hosting company like yourself. Even better news is the
fact that this can be done at a very reasonable monthly
rate because the servers are generally shared with other
resellers. A managed dedicated server able to support your
needs will run anywhere from $150 - $400 per month. Master
reseller hosting accounts can be purchased at a small
fraction of this.

The hardest people to satisfy are the ones that you provide
a service to. Generally, web hosting cliental are smarter
than the average citizen which makes them far easier to
manage but problems are bound to still arise. The best way
to keep your clients happy is simple to an extent with an
online business. Here are some general guidelines to
follow: - Respond to all communications at acceptable time
periods.

- Treat new and existing customers with professionalism and
respect.

- Ensure the greatest quality possible in all aspects of
business.

Once your website is online and you are ready to start
doing business you will want to look into marketing your
site. When it comes to internet marketing it is important
to be a smart shopper. There are many websites that sell
useless traffic and other sites that make promises they
can't keep nor even intend to. Be smart with your budget
and understand that a business will take time to build.

----------------------------------------------------
Sign up for a WHM master reseller hosting account at
http://www.hosty.net . Article Written and distributed by
Steve Cancel at Secure Link - http://www.slwebmarketing.com
.