Articles Of Incorporation Explained

Articles Of Incorporation Explained
When the owners of a business decide to incorporate their
company, as part of the incorporation process they are
required to produce a legal document called it's "Articles
Of Incorporation". A company's Articles effectively define
the framework or rules within which the business will
operate from a legal perspective. A business can not
become an incorporated legal entity until it's Articles of
Incorporation have been filed.

Typical articles of incorporation contain information on
the name of the incorporator, whether or not the company is
a stock or non stock organisation, and if it is a stock
organisation, the number and type of authorised shares the
corporation may issue.

Also required is the address of the company's registered
office, the names of the board of directors and the
accounting period the business will use for reporting
purposes.

The company's articles will also outline the general
activities of the organisation. Your articles will also
state the full name of your new corporation.

You can choose whether to use the words "Incorporated",
"Limited" or "Corporation", or you can legally use
abbreviations such as "Inc", "Ltd" or "Corp".

Finally, the Articles of Incorporation for your company
should include any by-laws or state rules that will apply
to the officers of the company, and also to it's employees.

If you're looking to incorporate your business, articles of
association are one of the mandatory documents that must be
filed as part of the incorporation process.

Depending on the complexity of your organisation's
structure and activities, you can either hire a lawyer or
incorporation specialist to produce your articles, or you
can prepare them yourself and file them online using an
online incorporation service.

Obviously the latter option is usually more cost effective.
If you're not familiar with the format and contents of
legal documents, it's probably advisable to hire an expert
as it's imperative that you get your Articles of
Incorporation correct as they will determine how your newly
incorporated company operates.

If you get them wrong, you may delay the incorporation
process or incur additional costs correcting the errors.

If however you feel comfortable in the preparation of your
own documents, you will find lot's or sample articles of
incorporation online, that you can use to create your own.

Your local library should also have example documents for
you to use. Whichever sample articles you choose to use,
you must ensure that the document is complete and complies
with the legal requirements of the state you are to
incorporate in.

Each State has different requirements and by-laws that you
must comply with. Each separate article included in your
document should be clear and concisely worded.

To ensure your document is suitable for filing, you should
ideally pay a flat fee to a local attorney to have it
checked for accuracy and completeness. This will avoid
delays in the incorporation process further down the line.

Once you are sure that your Articles of Incorporation are
ready for filing, you will need to obtain the relevant form
from the secretary of state for the state you are
incorporating in.

These days, the secretary of state's website will usually
have forms which you can download.

Once filed, your articles of incorporation document
effectively creates your new corporation as a separate
legal entity.

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The Author, Richard Taylor is the webmaster at
Incorporate-My-Business.com. His site provides lots of
information on all aspects becoming incorporated, including
all the pros and cons, sources of online services and
downloadable forms. Visit his site at:
http://www.incorporate-my-business.com

Why Networking Could Be Your Biggest Lead Generating Tool

Why Networking Could Be Your Biggest Lead Generating Tool
The more people you know, the more referrals and repeat
business you will get. In turn, this will lead to more
money that you will earn in sales. What are you doing to
network to meet new people?

I hope you are not saying "been there, done that, don't
want to do that anymore", because in this day and age of
relationship building and consultative selling. This is
the best way to achieve increasing your business (both new
and referral business).

If you have all the business you need and you are doing
your database marketing efficiently, you do not need this
advice. However, most of you are probably not in that
position. Besides, your customers are only getting older,
or they are also networking, so it is likely that they are
meeting new people. Therefore, they may be meeting someone
who can handle their business instead of you.

What can you do to avoid this? First, you should be
checking your local area chamber of commerce (or other
professional organizations) calendar of events at the
beginning of each month for places, meetings and
opportunities where you will be able to network.

Where is your target market 'hanging out'? Are they
stay-at-home moms, who spend a large majority of their time
doing things with their children's school events or sports?
Do those places have meetings? Are they homeowners who
might attend home shows or community meetings? Are they
all realtors? Are you attending their monthly association
meetings?

Consider going to the places where your target market is;
you can find out about any group and what is available
online. If you cannot find something, call us, we can help
you. This is your wake up call; GET NETWORKING!

Now while you are out networking, remember to ask some
important questions; this process will help you break the
ice.

Asking questions is a HUGE, but important step! Whenever
you are nervous or not sure what to say to break the ice,
ask a question. When they answer the question, follow it
up with another question, and so on and so on ....until you
know their whole life story.

Why should you do this? Because it not only builds trust
with the person you are speaking to, but when they walk
away they think you are the greatest, they like you, they
want to do business with you, and they want other people to
know you too (e.g., a good referral source). It really
does work.

Have you ever been to a mixer or an event where one guy or
gal works the room so fast by just basically throwing their
card in your hand no matter what? You do not know their
name, what they do, or why they are there. Where do we put
such cards when we get back to the office? IN THE CIRCULAR
FILE. They are impersonal and do not even try to get to
know us. They just want us to have their card in hopes
that we will call them for business. Similarly, some
circulate around the room asking for everyone else's cards
and then do a mass phone solicitation the next day.

I do not want to do business with people like that do you?
I want to do business with people that genuinely want to
know how I am doing, how my business is doing, or how my
dog is doing. I network to build long lasting
relationships with people like me who I respect and admire
and. You should strive to be this type of person because
it will get you far in business, and in life.

Let us try to be better networkers, listeners and
truehearted professionals. If we do, the world just might
be a better place and we will all gain more business in the
end.

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© 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 !

The History of Jaeger Lecoultre Watches

The History of Jaeger Lecoultre Watches
A brilliant inventor and self-taught watchmaker,
Antoine-LeCoultre founded his first workshop in 1833,
following the invention of a machine to produce watchmaking
pinions. Ever since, the Manufacture Jaeger-Lecoultre has
developed constantly around the founder's original
workshops.

Surprisingly enough, it was neither a physicist nor an
engineer who first measured the micron; it was Antoine
LeCoultre, in 1844. He had created watch components that
were so perfect no tool could actually detect their degree
of inaccuracy. He followed that up by inventing the world's
most accurate instrument: the Millionometer, which served
as a benchmark for over half a century.

In 1847, LeCoultre created a revolutionary system that was
to do away with the need for keys to rewind and set
watches. His simple and brilliant solution was a pushbutton
that activated a lever to switch from one function to
another. It was the first keyless winding mechanism, and
the first reliable system that eliminated the need for keys
to wind or set a watch.

In 1866, when Swiss watchmaking was still structured around
small home-run workshops, Antoine LeCoultre and his son
Elie decided to bring together under one rood the many
skills involved in making watches, and installed a
steam-driven machine to operate their new tools. LeCoultre
& Cie thus became the first Manufacture in the
Vallée de Joux.

It was in 1903 when the Parisian Edmond Jaeger set Swiss
watchmakers the challenge of producing ultra-thin calibres.
It would lead to the Calibre 145, the world's thinnest
mechanical movement, measuring no more than 1.38 mm, and
the friendship of Antoine LeCoultre's grandson,
Jacques-Devid LeCoultre. These two men would give a rise to
a range of horological wonders, and eventually the birth of
the Jaeger-LeCoultre brand in 1937.

In the year 1908, the Manufacture created its first
rectangular-shaped calibre in response to the challenge
created to miniaturize watches to wear on the wrist. By the
"Roaring 20s" (1920s), very small ladies' wristwatches were
all the rage, but extreme miniaturization always led to a
loss of reliability and precision. The Duoplan brilliantly
solved this problem by arranging its parts on split levels.
It would lead to the world's smallest movement, Calibre
101. Outdoing the Calibre 145, Jaeger-Lecoultre
miniaturized the Duoplan caliber to the extreme, weighing
in at barely one gram and comprising of 74 parts. Its
record is still unmatched to this date.

Since its founding, the Manufacture has created and
produced over 1,000 different calibres in many varieties.
Over 200 patented inventions have contributed to the
progress of Swiss watchmaking in the field of movements, as
well as that of cases, bracelets, dials, and watch
functions.

----------------------------------------------------
Browse to watchesonnet (http://www.watchesonnet.com ) to
find 15 styles of Jaeger LeCoultre watches
http://www.watchesonnet.com/Jaeger-Lecoultre.html )

The Laws of Sales Success

The Laws of Sales Success
Sales professionals must create magnetic appeal to increase
closing efficiency. Our present global environment creates
numerous obstacles that polarize sales efforts, form the
proliferation of the Internet to advanced media.
Ironically, with the intrigue of technological miracles the
foundation of sales success exists upon 10 principles.
Since the beginning of trade, selling has not changed, nor
have these laws. These principles as they have for
centuries are the laws that attract numerous clients and
create successful selling professionals.

The Law of Preparation

The best selling professionals are always prepared. First,
preparation begins with grooming and clothing. Like many, I
am repulsed by numerous organizations that partake in
casual clothing. To be successful one need look successful.
A selling professional cannot attend an appointment in a T-
Shirt and jeans. To be successful you need to dress
successfully. Statistics for this article with over 1000
representatives illustrate that those dresses
professionally closed 87% more business than those that
didn't.

Productive professionals attract more clients when they
read information and eventually convert this to client
knowledge. The knowledge output provides client value in
terms of competitiveness, productivity and even
profitability. Value stems from reading newspapers, trade
publications and conducting research. When clients
determine from the value professionals provide they are
more apt to conduct business and moreover, use them
repeatidly.

The Law of Selling Methodology

ES Research Group reveals that 90% of all sales training
programs conducted for corporations result only in a 90-120
day increase in sales productivity and, as a result, fewer
than 20% of companies realize any sustainable productivity
gain that lasts beyond 12 months. In the United States
alone over four billion dollars is spent per year on
training selling professionals with two thirds of that
money ear marked for one day training.

To be competitive, selling professionals must be
competitive. It appears that taking the time to develop a
training program does in fact pay tangible returns. More
importantly is providing selling professionals with a
methodology they adhere to and more importantly create
attraction. The true competitive professional employs a
methodology that stems from start to completion.

The Law of Value Proposition

One of the best assets for every selling professional is a
value statement. Be mindful, this is not an elevator
speech. This pithy statement ends the stereotype and
focuses all attention completely on the prospective client.
A value proposition is solutions based with all benefits
focused on the consumer. Moreover, it denotes brand. A
value proposition is nothing more than a benefit statement
that offers to the client to improve their condition.
Customer value propositions have become one of the most
widely used terms in business markets. In 2006 the Harvard
Business Review "Customer Value Propositions in Business
Markets" discussed how corporations use them in the
branding process. Value propositions are a powerful
marketing tool that are powerful and help gravitate the
buyer to your direction. These simple statements enable
selling professionals to articulate their company's
position into useful terminology that engages the
prospective client.

The Law of Referrals

Proper attraction involves referral acquisition.
Professionals abhor asking for referrals! Business is
driven by the ability to ask for new business. If clients
are happy with your work they will willingly provide others
that can need to receive your value. There is a story of an
insurance professional that would visit clients and not
leave without three new referrals. Even if the client
provided one or two, the agent would not leave until he
received three or more. Needless to say, the agent retired
an extremely wealthy individual.

The Law of the Decision Maker

Sales attraction is discovering the true economic buyer.
67% of selling professionals spend too much time with those
that cannot make a decision. Sellers are often duped into
the process because they do not ask the proper questions.
Good detective work means asking the difficult questions.
Detectives enjoy seeing the discomfort of others as they
squirm to reply. Selling professionals must be intelligent
enough to know about the organization, the competition to
conduct and intellectual conversation. Research has found
that the title never denotes the economic buyer. 87% of
respondents in a research survey stipulated they
underestimated the decision maker by virtue of title.

The Law of Value

There is a wonderful detective show in syndication on
television entitled "Monk". The analytical detective works
vehemently to resolve the case quickly. He eludes numerous
hurdles yet in the end as the cliché states, "he always
gets his man". The same must hold true for selling
professionals. True selling professionals endeavor to
resolve client issues before the client understands the
issue. In a recent interview with over 10,000 clients,
they indicate their desire for sales professionals that can
speak client language, understand the core issues and get
to the heart of the matter expediently. Ask clients
provocative questions that get them thinking about legacy,
expectations and strategic direction.

The Law of Networking

Truly the best professionals constantly network. Selling
professionals by nature require constant engagement with
others to comprehend business trends and meet new
opportunities. Admittedly, there exist a plethora of
networking associations and organizations, choose those
close to your location and aligned with your business.
Review your local paper for functions that interest you and
attend as a guest, but go! If you do not attend, your
competitors are.

The Law of Desire

Successful professionals love challenges, are exceptional
at overcoming adversity and love what they represent. They
are never shy or non-conversant, and you can sense their
spirit and their passion when they speak. There is a South
African word called unbutu, meaning "from the spirit."
Successful professionals have an aura of spirit, of love,
of passion, of commitment in everything and anything that
they do. The more you can create unbutu in your sales
presentations and your sales, the more energetic and
inspirational you can be to your clients. The passion for
assisting others is the fuel that bounds from failure to
fortune.

The Law of Faith

There is no better nourishment and attraction then faith.
Faith is a component of both passion and love. Faith is the
ability to disavow the norms and continue. Thomas Edison
did not believe he failed he had faith to succeed. If Henry
Ford, and Andrew Carnegie did not have faith our American
business system would not be the supreme power it is. And
if Abraham Lincoln did not have faith, African Americans
would not be free and his name would not be associated with
America's greatest president. In fact, faith was so
imperative for Lincoln because his successes did not arrive
until after his 40th birthday. Faith is one of the largest
key components to the laws of selling attraction.

The Law of Success

I recall a young man that had limited athletic ability. He
was reared in a dysfunctional home and loathed by family
and friends. After much discovery he found an outlet in
track and field. After years of searching he found a tool
that displaced the discontent in his life. With much
practice he got better and began to appreciate the sport.
His success brought about future success. He visualized
future success. Within months he became the captain of his
team and a four-time school record holder. He also enrolled
and graduated from a prominent university. Professionals
have to breathe it, become it and yearn for it. Success
does not come easy. The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King jr.
stated, "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't
see the whole staircase." Take the ladder of success one
step at a time by seeing each step, living each step and
appreciating each step.

These laws are simply a roadmap to creative success. These
laws function similar to a GPS system. They become
guideposts to recognize and live by. Our spontaneous world
leaves little time to reflect, we must act quickly. The
best professionals absorb, collate materials and create
action. To live by these laws, do not procrastinate, act
quickly, your next sale might depend on how you fight or
side with the laws!

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Drew Stevens PhD assists organizations to dramatically
accelerate business growth. He is the author of seven books
including Split Second Selling and Split Second Customer
Service and Little Book of Hope. Dr. Drew is a thought
leader on sales and customer service issues. He can be
reached at http://www.gettingtothefinishline.com . Obtain a
FREE White Paper on Sales Effectivenes - !0 Rules for
Selling Success. Email Drew at
info@gettingtothefinishline.com

Entrepreneurial Woman: Are You Really Ready to Begin?

Entrepreneurial Woman: Are You Really Ready to Begin?
Getting prepared to run your enterprise entity is a huge
step indeed. If you are to be successful, you must answer
one very essential question before you take one, single
step: Are you ready to begin?

Don't answer this question simply on the basis of your
"eagerness." While you may be overwhelmingly ecstatic
about your decision to start a business, that cannot be the
indicator you use in determining the success factor. Do you
know what the "success factor" really is? Why, it's Y-O-U.
It's you! The Success Factor has nothing to do with
capital, networking, legalese, or anything else. Of
course, you might think that it does, but the reality is
that all of those things are just a fraction of the overall
conduction and development of your company. Nothing will
gel for you correctly without your express involvement.

So contrary to what many may think, money, or your capital
isn't the bottom line as we so often say. The bottom line
is really you. Your earning potential is all up to you and
no one else. How well you network, or relate to others and
your connections in the world are all results of what YOU
do. The very operation of your day-to-day business
activities are all an extension of you. Try this
experiment. Imagine being at a business conference in your
field of expertise, or the area of business you'd like to
be involved with. Keep in mind, you're viewing this as a
motion picture experience. Now remove yourself from the
action. What happens? There's a whole lot of networking
happening, and speakers saying things to get people
motivated, but something is definitely wrong with the
picture.

The problem is, you are watching everything happen. You are
not a part of the action, not even in the slightest. You
are simply being a spectator.

Is this what you want?

You want to be in the thick of it. You crave the
experience of excitement, and the buzz of accomplishment.
You are the catalyst to making it all happen. So what does
this mean?

It's time for a reality check. Starting a new business is
going to require a completely different mind set; a
brand-new set of skills is needed, many of which you may be
unfamiliar with. There is nothing wrong with this, only
that you now need to develop yourself into the kind of
entrepreneur you long to be. It isn't done simply by
wanting it intensely or having the money to do it. If it
was that easy, more people would be successful business
owners. The place you must begin, before you actually open
the doors of your enterprise to the public, is to do
research on yourself. That's it; you've got to work on you
as it will greatly increase the odds in your favor of being
victorious in your quest for entrepreneurship.

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Aunice Reed is a Professional Success Coach/MNLP for Women.
http://www.myunlimitedsuccess.com

Too Busy With Your Business? Start Outsourcing

Too Busy With Your Business? Start Outsourcing
As an entrepreneur, it is important to have continuous
growth in your business in order to be successful. One of
the ways that can help your business grow is outsourcing.

Outsourcing is when you choose certain business activities
that you currently handle and then deciding to use an
outside business source to handle the activity instead.
This simple definition can bring peace of mind to an
overloaded entrepreneur.

Case in point, as a web designer, clients may expect you to
have the ability to create or install everything that
revolves around the Internet. However, your skill set may
not include some of your client needs such as creating an
online shopping cart. So it would be good to find a
business associate that you trust and outsource the online
shopping cart to them.

However, make sure when you choose an outsourcing business
partner that you keep the following things in mind:

1. Choose someone that you can trust not to steal your
clients away.
2. Choose someone who has the same business ethics as you.
3. Make sure that this person has the skills to complete
specific tasks before outsourcing to them.
4. Ask for client samples and references so that you can
get feedback from their clients regarding their work habits.
5. Make sure to have a contract that includes a non-compete
clause in it.

The list above is just a running start on some of the
things that you need to keep in mind when outsourcing.
After you have determined whom you will outsource projects
to, make sure to have a service level agreement (SLA) with
them too.

The SLA should fully explain your expectation of the type
of service they will provide to your clients along with
time frames for completing the projects. The SLA should be
put in place the same time as the outsourcing contract.

Finally, you should make sure that you have a process in
place for handling your outsourcing project. For instance,
you need to include the following in your outsourcing to do
list.

1. Client name
2. Outsourcing project details
3. Time line
4. Special requirements

There are other things that you may need to add to this
list but the list above are the basic items that need to be
included in your outsourcing to do list.

Now that you have a template for outsourcing projects, you
can start planning for adding more clients to your
business. Do not be afraid of outsourcing but embrace it
and learn how it will free you up to do more with your
business to grow it.

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Ken Troyer is a very passionate online entrepreneur and has
a very high level of integrity. Ken has been involved in
online business coaching since 2005...and has developed
several successful websites since then. You can read more
about Ken over at his main website: http://kentroyer.com