Poland Hotels Booking

It’s tough out there, particularly because of layoffs and our sluggish economy. So what’s a small business entrepreneur trying to make a living to do? Try these low-cost pricing strategies to keep sales moving.

TACTIC #1 — Never simply slash your prices, unless you’re trying to empty obsolete inventory. Instead, try repackaging your prices so they’re more affordable in the short-run so more prospects can afford them. For example, rather than pricing your service for the year, “Our monthly newsletter is only $39 for the year.” Instead, try “Our monthly newsletter is only $3.25 per month.” If you accept credit cards, it’s very easy to set up reoccurring monthly charges that are billed to your subscribers without having to intervene every month beyond the initial account set up. The upside to offering your subscription on a monthly basis is that you can now market a $3.25 headline versus a more expensive $39 headline, i.e. you’re able to offer services at a more affordable rate without slashing prices.

ANOTHER EXAMPLE
Here’s another example. Just last night I was on the phone with a potential marketing client. As a small business owner she’s trying to get some marketing help and is on a tight budget. My standard hourly consulting fee is $225, which is not always appealing to some businesses. However, in trying to work within her budget I suggested that my services could be more affordable for her if she allowed me to help her through email instead of face-to-face or on the phone. Let’s face it, when you’re on the phone with a client it takes longer to accomplish what you’re doing since you’re not only answering their questions, but you’re building a relationship and talking about unrelated topics. It’s difficult not to. In fact, you should! No matter what type of consultant you are, building a successful business is not about the initial sale, it’s about establishing a long-term relationship with customers. One-off sales don’t lend themselves to growing a profitable business; rather, deep customer relationships do! However, since I was able to establish a trustworthy and comfortable relationship with my prospect on the phone, she thought my marketing services through email would be a win-win. Did I slash my prices? No, instead I found a more efficient way to offer my services, whereby I could offer them in less time and therefore, my client will pay less money. This strategy could work for business coaches, fitness experts or personal chefs, when the latter prepares meals in her home rather than in a client’s home.

TACTIC #2 — Create tightly niched product or service offerings. For example, if you’re operating a personal concierge service, rather than just offer errand services at $25 an hour, try prepackaging specific errands with associated lower pricing. Why? Because you can offer a more aggressive price when isolating your fee to one particular service. If your customer challenges your reduced price as compared to your higher hourly fee, your response is simply, “I’m able to offer this lower packaged price because of economies of scale. While I’m out delivering your bundles to the Post Office, I’m also delivering packages for five other customers.” Ultimately, your customers will never know how many other customers you’re delivering for that day; however, the key is not to simply slash your pricing because you believe that reducing your prices will bring you more business. The key is to provide consistent and professional pricing practices.

P.S…Yes, business is slow for many entrepreneurs right now; however, be cautious with your pricing methods. Don’t simply slash prices; instead incorporate long-term and short-term strategies that are always complementary to each other. If you offer a product for $15 today, then again at $35 six months from now, you must have your reasons in place, otherwise you’ll aggravate your customers.

About the author:
Sharron Senter

Copying contracts from the Internet is a bit like wearing your old cousin’s hand-me-down dresses . . . in order to walk into abee’s nest (an incongruous image, I know): yes, you’re “covered,” but the style is outdated and they usually don’t fit you well. Plus, they won’t provide you with the protection you need for your particular purpose.

Most small businesses can’t afford the Versace of contracts, and, frankly, it’s often not necessary. Sometimes, Kmart will do nicely. However, when you download something for free, it’s usually worth what you paid for it. Internet contracts need to be mended and altered to make sure they truly fit how you want to do business. But if you have limited experience in making clothing, you risk having the garment unravel at the seams if you try to do it yourself.

In the interest of saving money, you may have downloaded a
freebie contract from the Internet. But it’s often what you don’t know - and what’s not included in the document — that can hurt you. Internet contracts can be helpful resources for identifying issues for you to think about, but are usually not well thought out, nor are they tailored to the needs of your particular business. If an agreement is not drafted in your favor, it may not give you the flexibility and protection that you really need from your business relationships.

For example, I know of business owners who have formed limited liability companies (LLCs) and have downloaded their ownership agreements from the Internet. When “Jemma” got hers from a freebie Internet site, it looked long enough and comprehensive enough, so she and her co-owner (neither of whom are lawyers) signed it. Four months later, Jemma wanted to move to a different state to accommodate her husband’s career path; plus, Jemma learned that she was pregnant. So the time was right to transition to her new stage of life. But her LLC agreement only allowed her to leave the business (1) if she had died (which she hadn’t) or (2) as long as her co-owner agreed (which she didn’t). In short, Jemma’s agreement had no meaningful “exit strategy.” And Jemma did not know that these were among the issues she needed to focus on in creating and signing such an agreement. There were a whole host of things that the LLC agreement did not include, such as how to deal with the client base that each owner brought to the business, how to place a dollar value on the intellectual property that each owner contributed, and how to leave the business should life changes (other than Jemma’s death) arise. Jemma’s agreement didn’t cover any of these issues. In the face of an irate business partner and an insufficient agreement, Jemma found herself staring down the barrels of (1) a lengthy and expensive lawsuit to dissolve the business or (2) a less expensive (but more costly than it needed to have been) way to extricate herself from her business partner.

Similar things can happen with even the simplest of contracts
with your customers. Download from the Internet all you like, but recognize that the document you copy (1) may not reflect the most recent changes in the law (how will you know? - ask a lawyer!); (2) may contain provisions that are harmful to your business (or omit ones that could help you), and (3) may not properly reflect how you want to do business with your customers. Internet contracts may raise some of the important issues, without a doubt. But they don’t necessarily deal with the specific issues of your situation. In short, when downloading from the Internet: “one size fits all” usually means that “one size fits none.”

How to avoid this pitfall: ideally, by working with an attorney
who really understands the legal issues that small businesses
face. Although some entrepreneurs may try to economize with a do-it-yourself approach, they often end up costing themselves more because they are not trained, as attorneys are, to spot the issues and problems that can harm them. Taking the time to find a lawyer who meets your needs is one of the best investments you will ever make in the growth of your business. Find out more about how to hire and work with attorneys - and keep your costs down - by listening to the free audio class available through http://www.WiseCounselPress.com. With the help of your lawyer, you can start to make the smart decisions that will protect your company and save you money!

About the author:
Nina L. Kaufman

A good salesman is born that way; it is not a learned behavior. End of story. Go solve another mystery. This one is over.

Crack any sales help book and you’ll find all of the traits the author says a good salesman must have. He must be an early riser, well-organized, diligent, a great communicator, well-dressed, punctual, tactician, statistician, creative, bold, a great listener, a great talker, assertive, convincing, analytical, and maybe mystical. He must be a planner, a time conservationist, and posses the ability and desire to always win. His presentation has to be polished, his words impeccable.

WRONG!

A real salesman has the innate ability to make people like him and listen to his ideas. You can’t learn it in any book or sales course. You’ve got it or you don’t. It’s magnetism, plain and simple. People buy from people they like not because of a superior product, killer service, and never price.

If you really like people and enjoy the game of getting them to see your point of view, you’re a natural born salesman and will do well, very well. In fact, you’ll be in the top income percentage of all professions.

If you spend all of your time trying to “learn” sales techniques, you’ll look forced and unnatural. Look for work that better suits your temperament. A true salesman is born, not made.

About the author:
Brian Grinonneau

How would you like to get paid to go shopping? That’s
right! Get paid to shop for clothes, eat in restaurants,
watch movies, play golf, travel, and so on.

You can have your cake and eat it too! Enjoy the best of
both worlds. Make money and have fun at the same time as
a mystery shopper.

What is a Mystery Shopper?

Sometimes known as a secret shopper, a mystery shopper
looks like any other customer but is working undercover
to perform market research or other tests on business
establishments.

For example, a mystery shopper may check on the quality
of service and products at a particular fast food outlet.

Were the staff friendly, courteous and helpful? Were the
washrooms clean? Was the food hot and tasty? Did the staff
attempt to upsell? Was the order filled accurately and
quickly?

Why the Need for Mystery Shoppers?

Companies are concerned about the quality of your
shopping experience. If there is a problem, they
would like to know about it so that they can take
corrective action and keep you as a customer.

For this reason, businesses hire mystery shoppers
to check on their locations and report the results.

As well, comparison shopping can reveal pricing and
service differences of the competition.

Mystery shoppers sometimes uncover safety or security
concerns and other helpful information.

How To Make Money as a Mystery Shopper

You can make money as a freelance mystery shopper.
Contact market research companies and other businesses
to obtain clients.

As an independent contractor, you will invoice clients
your fees for services rendered. As well, you will
be reimbursed for any direct expenses incurred (such
as the cost of store purchases).

It is also possible to run your own market research
company and subcontract out the work. You would
need to get business clients who are willing to pay
for these secret shopping assignments. Then, find
suitable people who are willing to perform those
assignments for you.

Variety is the Spice of Mystery Shopping

Your assignments as a mystery shopper can be varied
and interesting.

One time you may eat in a fast food restaurant. Another
time you may be asked to see how long it takes to get
service from a company by telephone.

Perhaps you may be asked to shop at a website to
check out its user friendliness. Still another
assignment may require you to rate the helpfulness
of store staff.

So, if you would like to have fun while making money,
consider becoming a mystery shopper.
J. Stephen Pope, President of Pope Consulting Inc.,
has been helping clients to earn maximum business profits
for over twenty-five years.

To learn more about mystery shopping, visit
http://www.yenommarketinginc.com/mystery-shopper.html

For profitable Work at Home Small Business Ideas, visit
http://www.yenommarketinginc.com/

About the author:
J. Stephen Pope

It’s time to thin the ranks and fire some customers. That’s right, can ‘em, send them packing and tell them their business isn’t welcome here anymore. Sound crazy? It’s crazy if you don’t!

Why would anyone fire a customer? Simple. It’s costing you too much time and money to keep them around. This is obviously not an exercise where you send termination notices to valued clients. This is an exercise to get rid of the dead wood.

As you scan your list, there will be a certain type of customer that deserves the ax. Here is the profile: They always quibble over price and once they’ve stripped your profit margin, will pay slow, real slow. This customer is never happy with your service no matter what you do. They can’t be pleased. This soon-to-be-ex client never refers any new business to you and try as you might you cannot establish a working relationship. They have no loyalty to you and will jump as soon as they get a better deal from someone else. They call and complain often threatening to take their business elsewhere. Let them go.

In today’s marketplace where superior customer service sets apart the winners from the losers, discussion about shedding customers isn’t always popular. Running your business isn’t a popularity contest, it’s about doing what’s best for the future. Fire some of your customers. Your business will be better and so will you.

About the author:
Brian Grinonneau

When you are on the lookout for superior information relating to brokers, it will be tricky sorting out the best information from ill-equiped brokers submissions and help so it is important to know ways of moderating the information offered to you.

VR Business Brokers: Dallas Brokerage Dealer
Texas Business Brokerage, Mergers & Acquisitions, Business Valuation, and Consulting services for small businesses and mid-market companies.

Here’s several guidelines that we believe you should use when you’re searching for information regarding brokers. Hold in mind any recommendation we may offer is only pertinent to internet based information concerning brokers. We don’t really offer any direction or assistance for researching in ‘real world’ situations.

Daniels Trading: Brokerage Dealers
Select group of futures and options brokers provides multiple trade execution services, proprietary advice, client support, research, and education.

A good hint to track when you’re presented with information and suggestions on a brokers website would be to confirm the sites ownership. This could reveal the people behind the website brokers credibility The easiest way to work out who is at the back of the brokers site is to look for the ‘about’ page.

All highly regarded sites providing information about brokers, will almost certainly provide an ‘about’ webpage which will list the owner’s details. The details should let you know some indication concerning the owner’s requisite knowledge. You can then make a judgement about the vendor’s education and practical knowledge, to offer help regarding brokers.

About the author:
Tom Brown

What is factoring?

Accounts receivable financing, also known as factoring, is a powerful financial tool that has fueled the growth and success of a number of companies.

Factoring enables companies to capitalize on their unpaid receivables by selling them to a factoring company for immediate payment. With factoring, companies

immediately get paid for their invoiced work from the factoring finance company, while the factoring company waits to be paid by the customers. Factoring

strengthens a business’ cash position by shortening the time to get invoices paid to 48 hours and providing the needed funds to meet current expenses and

target new opportunities.

Factoring Benefits

As opposed to loans and lines of credit that require that the client have tangible assets and strong financials, factoring relies more heavily on the

financial strength of the clients’ customer. This is a critical feature,since many new and small businesses do not meet the financial criteria of traditional

lending institutions. However, many small businesses have a roster of financially strong customers that can be leveraged. Factoring empowers businesses to

capitalize on their customer list, and provides them with a tool to transform outstanding receivables into immediate cash, without generating debt. Since

Factoring is not a loan, it is an ideal financial product for the following:

o New and emerging businesses including small and home businesses, consultants and solo-preneurs.
o Businesses with financially strong customers
o Businesses that are preparing to grow significantly
o Business with intangible assets (e.g. consultants)
o Businesses that do not want to take a loan

An additional benefit of factoring is that the factor usually assumes part of the clients’ credit risk for the customer. This means that if the customer

becomes financially insolvent due to bankruptcy and does not pay the invoice, the factor will assume the loss. This is a critical service for small companies

who may not be able to afford the bankruptcy of a customer.

Costs

The costs of a factoring transaction - also known as the discount - vary based on a number of variables such as the financial strength of the customer and

the amount being factored. Generally, the discount is a percentage of the invoice’s face value that increases with time until the invoice gets paid. Small

businesses, those that have between $20,000 and $300,000 in yearly revenues, can expect to pay a discount rate of about 2% for every ten (10) days that the

invoice remains unpaid. Businesses with factorable revenues in excess of $300,000 can expect lower discount rates.

Factoring at Work: Business Services and Products, Inc. Case Study

Business Services and Products, Inc. (BSP, Inc.) is a small fictional company, which provides business consulting and equipment to local companies. It has

$300,000 of annual revenues and during the past year BSP Inc. has enjoyed significant sales growth. Although most business owners would be very happy to

manage such a company, Jane Sullivan, BSP Inc’s president, is very worried about her company’s financial position.

Most of BSP Inc.’s customers are large companies with a good reputation for always paying their invoices. However they always take between 30 to 45 days to

pay them. BSP Inc., however, needs to pay their employees every two weeks and their vendors every four weeks. This discrepancy between the time that

customers pay their bills and the time BSP Inc. needs to pay their employees and vendors has created cash flow problems in the past. Furthermore, these cash

flow problems have already caused Jane to delay payroll twice this year and have placed her trade (vendor) credit in jeopardy multiple times. This has also

caused her to pass on a number of significant business opportunities because she was unsure of the company’s financial ability to hire and pay for additional

staffers. Unfortunately, BSP Inc. did not have a large enough financial cushion in the bank to afford paying employees while waiting for 45 days new clients

to pay their invoices.

The following table provides an overview of BSP, Inc’s current financial position.

Business Services and Products, Inc (without financing)

Yearly sales: $300,000
Lost new sales opportunities: Unknown
Total Sales: $300,000

Variable Costs (60% of Sales): $180,000
Fixed Costs (Rent, phones, etc): $20,000
Total Costs: $200,000

Profit (Sales - Costs): $100,000

Although the company’s prospects appear great, Jane may have to stall her company’s growth until she builds a large enough cash cushion at the bank to

finance her company’s growth. After careful consideration, Jane decided that a factoring line of working capital could help strengthen her company’s

financial position. Furthermore, factoring her invoices would enable BSP Inc. to take on new customers and continue growing, knowing that she could

capitalize on her slow paying customers. BSP Inc.’s financing agreement will provide the company with an advance of 70% of her invoiced services. This means

that the company can get 70% of the face value of the factored invoices within 24 to 48 hours of submitting them to the factor. The remaining 30% of the

funds, less the factoring fees, will be quickly rebated as soon as the customer pays their invoice.This line of working capital strengthened the company’s

financial position and bank account, enabling Jane to pay for new employees to service new contracts. Jane also decided to use the extra capital to pay her

vendors early, obtaining quick payment discounts and helping to reduce the cost of factoring.

BSP Inc. customers pay their invoices within 30 days of receipt. The discount (factoring fee) for these invoices is 6%. Every time an invoice is paid, the

factor rebates BSP Inc. the remaining 30% that was not advanced less the factoring fee. This means that once the transaction is completed, the factor rebates

24% (30% - 6%) to BSP Inc. Thanks to the factoring line of working capital, Jane was also to secure an additional $120,000 worth of business, bringing her

annual revenues to $420,000.

The following table shows BSP Inc.’s financial position a year after using factoring.

Business Services and Products (with factoring)

Existing Sales: $300,000
New Sales: $120,000 (factored)
Total Sales: $420,000

Variable Costs (60% of Sales): $252,000
Fixed Costs (Rent, phones, etc.): $20,000
Cost of Factoring (6% of $120,000): $7,200
Total Costs: $279,200

Net Profit (Sales - Costs): $140,800

As can be seen from the above table, factoring helped BSP Inc. increase profits substantially from $100,000 to $140,800 - a 40% increase. It placed BSP Inc.

on a more stable financial footing, priming it for growth. Furthermore, the cost impact of factoring on the bottom line was minimal, as it was easily

absorbed by the additional business, showing that factoring was paid for directly by the growth.

Are you planning to start your own small business? Are you beginning an online business or turning an offline brick and mortar business into an online business as well? What do you need to know to get started on the right foot from the get-go? You need to know that it is very important that you take the proper steps to do it right the first time. This can save you thousands of dollars and years of frustration.

So just what are the skills that you need to learn to be able to supercharge your online business? How do you turn your investment into a money making venture for you? You should know that to truly be successful, you can’t fall prey to those so-called “get rich quick” schemes. You need to have an actual product that people want, a solid plan for marketing as well as a plan for residual and passive income. You need to have the skills as well as the right mid-set to make your business soar!

Learning the Skills

Many people get a great idea for a small business or an online business but they are not able to carry it out successfully because they do not take the time to learn the proper skills. There are different things you need to learn and things you need to be prepared for before you can expect to be successful with your online business.

You need to learn everything you can about online marketing. Even if you have run a business before offline, it is much different with internet marketing. You need to learn the skills to be able to do this properly. You need effective internet marketing strategies. You need to understand your buyer. Your customer or potential customer is the most important part of your business. You need to know how to bring that customer in. You need to make them see why they need your product or service. You need to please the customer so that they will return, tell their friends and more.

You need to know how to generate free online traffic and how to bring more people into your website. You need to have a cutting edge look for your site as well as an ease of use for the customer or they will not want to come back to you, or even to use your site at all. You need to have the best resources as well as be able to get first page ranking in search engines so that people find your page.

Have the Right Mind-Set

Another thing that separates the successful online businesses from those that flop is that you need to have the right mind-set. When you first go into the business, you need to be ready to make money and you need to take it with the right kind of attitude.

You need to think success to be successful. Your state of mind is more important to the success of your business than you might think. In fact, it can play a huge role in whether you are successful or not. You also need to recognize that your customers are important to your success as a business and you must always show this.

Get Ready to Make Money!

If you follow the advice above and take all the proper steps to super charge your small business online, you will notice the cash flow begin to increase. You will be amazed at the traffic your site will receive and the money you will make if you do it correctly. If you go into the business prepared, with the right mindset and by taking advantage of all the tools that are there to help you, you will see a huge success!

About the author:
Monique Hawkins

Would you like to know how a car wash chain with only 12 locations has cleaned over 33,373,975 cars and has an annual revenue of over $40 Million (that is not a misprint) using little to no paid advertising?

Well, sit forward because I’m about to tell you. The company name is “Car Spa” and here’s how I discovered their brutally effective referral strategy. I often go to Taco Bell to have lunch and read a book. I noticed a little flyer next to their cash register.

A few days later I stopped in with my family to get a frozen yogurt and right next to the cash register was the same flyer.

The next day, I took my family to our favorite buffet restaurant and low and behold, there was a stack of Car Spa flyers.

I then started asking the people at these locations what the deal was with the Car Spa flyer that they had next to their cash register and they all said that some old guy comes around every week and replinishes their stack.

I asked them, “Do you have some type of reciprocal arrangement with Car Spa?” They all said, “No…they asked if they could put their flyers there as a gift to our guests and we said sure.”

Here’s a copy of the referral flyer that Car Spa uses to drive traffic.
http://www.marketingbestpractices.com/temp/car_spa.pdf

Pretty simple. Notice the 48 hour guarantee.

______________________________

They’re All Over the Place!
______________________________

Before you knew it, I started noticing their little discount flyers ALL OVER THE PLACE.

The copy center I use had a stack of Car Spa flyers.

The barber I use had a stack of Car Spa flyers.

The oil and lube place I use had a stack of Car Spa flyers.

The local handicraft shop my wife goes to had a stack of Car Spa flyers.

My son’s dentist had a stack of Car Spa flyers in his office.

My local chiropractor friend had a stack of Car Spa flyers in his office.

An apartment complex office I visited had a stack of Car Spa flyers.

Everywhere I went, I saw a stack of Car Spa flyers. It was amazing. The have these little “referral lead generation magnets” all over the place.

______________________________

So I Finally Visited Car Spa
______________________________

And it wasn’t any surprise that they were so busy that it took about 15 minutes of waiting just to get my car into their car wash.

I then went inside their office to wait for my car and noticed that they did NOT have one flyer from another business inside their office.

They were able to get all those other businesses in the area to send them referrals without having to do one reciprocal referral arrangement. And they did it simply by asking the business owners. That’s all.

Car Spa probably gets 100 times the amount of referrals of any other business in the area as a direct result of this simple referral tactic.

If you have a brick and mortar business, what’s stopping you from doing the same thing? All it takes is a couple of hours a day and a handful or referral flyers to pass out.

David Frey

Success with any small business relies totally on you. It’s up to you to put in the hours, do your homework, come up with new customers and deal with any problems. And if that’s not enough, here’s something else, something big. Doing this will mean the difference between your success or failure at working from home for yourself.

Believing in yourself will allow you to create a profitable home-based business. You will no longer feel shy about making business contacts (also known as networking). You will be able to get past any pre-conceived limitations you have regarding how much money you can earn or how successful you can become. This can be a big stumbling block for some people.

Having self-confidence will allow you to take calculated risks. A small business owner that does not take risks will never achieve much. Others will notice your confidence, and will be drawn to you for advice, joint business ventures, articles, products and more. You will be able to see ‘the big picture’, tapping into a never ending source of motivation and ideas.

You will have a much happier life all around. Positivity will follow you always, where ever you go, whatever you do. You will even be able to bounce back from failures and major obstacles more easily than you would have before. And what you learn from your failures will make your more successful, sooner.

So how can YOU begin to believe in yourself. First, set small goals and reach them, one by one. Start with a ‘to do’ list. Your confidence will grow when you see that you are slowly scratching off each task from your list. Then set larger goals and reach those. Now you’re rolling, and it’s time for you to set even higher goals, and then do what you have to do to achieve them.

Another great way to build your confidence is to read “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill. If you don’t start to believe in your abilities after that, there’s not much more advice I can give you. This book is the ultimate ‘believe in yourself’ guide for any aspiring business owner or entrepreneur. It’s the real deal. You can find it anywhere for under $10US.

When you realize that you really CAN achieve anything that your mind can conceive, you have learned to believe in yourself and your ability to make things happen.

As long as you don’t give up, you will get what you want.

Not long ago I made a trip over to the local Radio Shack to purchase an electronic plug for my cassette recorder.

As I paid for my item the retail clerk asked me for my name, address, telephone number, birth date, and even my email address (something every retailer should be asking for today!).

Although I felt a twinge of discomfort giving out my personal information, I went ahead and gave it to him and went on my way.

Driving home I reflected on Radio Shack’s checkout process and was reminded of the power of information gathering at the point of sale.

I had just given Radio Shack three ways to contact me, not to mention, information on what I had purchased. In the hands of a skilled marketer, this information is powerful.

_____________________

Database Marketing
_____________________

The recent economic slowdown has brought increased competition to small businesses. And with that, retailers across North America have described their sales as “flat.” Small businesses should be looking for low cost, high impact marketing activities to drive prospects to their business.

One of the most effective and cost-efficient ways to add profits to the bottom line is the use of database marketing, which uses information collected at the point-of-sale.

Using personal data, purchasing data, and contact information from a customer database, a spa and pool retailer can make offers to customers for complimentary products and services and engage in loyalty marketing activities.

Database marketing has four key elements, (1) gathering customer data, (2) building a customer database, (3) creating targeted offers for specific customer groups, and (4) tracking results to improve responses.

________________________________

Step 1: Gather customer data.
________________________________

The easiest way to begin this process is to develop a simple form for customers and salespeople to fill out every time a customer purchases a product or service. Include personal information such as names of spouses, children, profession, and birthdays, as well as, product information such as manufacturer, make, and model.

__________________________________________________

Step 2: Build a database to store your customer information.
__________________________________________________

Start simple using off-the-shelf software such as Microsoft Access. Later on you can begin to modify the database to either include different types of information or to print special reports.

_______________________________________________________

Step 3: Start sending offers and personal messages to your customers.
_______________________________________________________

Don’t wait until you have a large mailing list. Begin sending notes to customers right away thanking them for their purchase, to celebrate birthdays, share holiday messages, and inviting them to come in and take advantage of special offers.

There is an old saying that goes, “Business goes where business is invited, and stays where it is appreciated.” A personalized invitation to drop by the store to take advantage of a specific incentive is sometimes all that is needed to keep your customers coming back into the store.

Instituting a program of personal, hand-signed notes that coincide with birthdays or special events addressed to the customer’s significant other that offer gift ideas, can have surprising results.

_____________________________________________________

Step 4: Track the results of your database marketing efforts.
_____________________________________________________

By knowing who you sent offers to and who responded will help you identify your best customers, allow you to more effectively allocate your marketing dollars, and help you tweak your marketing pieces to get higher response rates.

________________________________

What Information Do I Collect?
________________________________

It’s important to determine in advance the type of information to collect. To do this, make a list of common special offers you might be presenting to your customer.

For instance, if you sold a product in the health industry and many of your customers have lower back problems you could joint venture with other businesses to develop special promotions on products that help to relieve lower back pain.

To capture the fact that your customer experiences lower back pain, simply place a check box on your form that says, “Do you experience lower back pain?”

If your customer has small children, consider presenting follow-up offers for products targeted for small children.

Imagine being a consumer and receiving a letter from your business with an enclosed birthday card for little Joey who just turned eight years old and a discount offer for a basketball hoop or other relevant products. You think to yourself, “What a great gift. Joey would love that!” This is the power of database marketing.

________________________________________________

Collecting Accurate and Consistent Information
________________________________________________

Database marketing all starts at the point of sale. Without accurate, complete, and consistent data this type of pinpoint target marketing can’t be done.

To ensure that your information is accurate and consistent, help your customers fill out the data collection form and review each information form for completeness.

You might experience a hesitancy from your customer to give out all their personal information, similar to how I felt at Radio Shack.

However, after explaining that the information will only be used to send out special offers during important events, is completely confidential, and will not be shared with anybody else, you’ll find that most of your customers won’t have any problem giving out their personal information.

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Cost Effective Loyal Customers
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Marketing to your current customers is one of the most effective and cost-efficient strategies you can do to reduce your marketing costs, enhance your customer / retailer relationships, and produce long-term loyal customers who, over a period of months or years, become your biggest source of referrals.

About the author:
David Frey

If you’re looking for that promotion or pay rise then you’ll need to be noticed by your employer, so here’s a few tips to help you stand out from the crowd:

Have a Friendly & Positive attitude towards Everyone you come into contact

Provide Service and treat Everyone as your customer

Be Professional at all times

Always look for extra work, especially when others are ducking for cover to avoid it

Watch what your colleagues are doing, copy from the ones who are receiving praise for their efforts but learn to do it better than them, while avoiding doing what your “lazier or negative” colleagues are doing

Be a Thinker and offer suggestion on how to do things better and more efficiently

Plan and follow your plan

Don’t Procrastinate, do what needs to be done NOW!!

Think ahead, when ask to do A & B, do C as well

Anticipate the next question and provide the answer before you’re asked

Dress and Act as if you were already in the position you want to reach

Go to lunch with successful people and learn from them

Don’t be afraid to ask questions and ask for help

Avoid Office Politics

Be an Individual while being a team player

Learn everything about your company and products

Follow these tips and you won’t need to ask for a promotion or extra money, it will happen automatically.

About the author:
Garry Munro

Another powerful reason for making the switch from using
the unlimited autoresponders that come free with your web
hosting account to paying a monthly fee for an autoresponder
service is tracking capability.

The autoresponders that come with your web host don’t have
built-in tracking capabilities. Tracking customer response
with a paid autoresponder service can lead to more effective
advertising campaigns.

Is anyone reading your newsletter? How many visits are
you getting to your websites from your newsletter and
autoresponders? Without the tracking capabilities of an
autoresponder service, you’ll never know.

However, with paid autoresponder services, you receive
these essential tracking capabilities. You can track all
the clicks made from your newsletters and autoresponders.

Sometimes, you can even run split tests to see which ads
or offers appeal to your subscribers. For example, one half
of your list could receive an offer at one price and the
other half could receive a different price offer. You can
measure the response as an aid in determining your product’s
price. You could run other split tests in order to make other
marketing decisions.

So, by paying a modest monthly fee, you can have unlimited,
autoresponders working hard at tracking responses for you.
Yes, a paid autoresponder service can help increase profits
by helping you determine the effectiveness of your
communications.

You’ve been dreaming about what it would be like to start your own small business. It has been on your mind since you were in school, and there are times, especially on Monday mornings, that you daydream about it. But, you’re not really sure what it would look like. You don’t have the first clue how to get started, and of course, you’re afraid that you would put your heart and soul into it, only to fail and look like a fool. You barely even talk about it out loud, because you don’t want family and friends to laugh at you.

But, anything is possible! The only limitations we have are the ones we put on ourselves! With planning and learning the steps, and doing your homework, if this is something you really want to do, you can do it, AND succeed greatly at it, too!

I’m not saying it’s easy! Nothing worth having is. I have had to learn a great deal; about myself, about business, about my clients and potential clients. And it never ends, because my interests and passions change with the years. But, how exciting!

When my daughter started kindergarten, I returned to school. It took me five years to get through school, but I had a vision: I wanted to help people become healthy and fit in the privacy of their own homes. After school, I didn’t have that plan fully in place, even in my mind, but after six years of working in a hospital, I was ready. I opened MEG Fitness in June, 1996. It’s been an incredible ride! I’ll never look back at my life with regrets that I didn’t pursue my dream. I really have learned that the only limits are those I impose on myself, too! So, I continue to dream bigger and allow my vision to become more grand. Why not? What’s the worst that can happen?

That’s what you have to ask yourself. If you never try, will you be happier? If you never try, how will you know if you could have done it? Consider some of the well-known names in sports, such as Michael Jordan, the basketball player; he has thrown more MISSED shots than those that have made their mark. What if he had not taken the chance to see what was possible for himself?

Okay, so now you’re ready to take the next step! First, in order to help you focus, I recommend that people start working on their business plan. The Small Business Association has invaluable resources on their website (www.sba.gov). This was the route I took. A year before I quit the hospital, I started working on my business plan. It helped me determine exactly who I was, what I offered, why, who my ideal client was, who my target market was (at that time), who my competition was, where I would offer my services, how I would offer them, and so on. As I coach other health professionals who want this dream, I now use a 3-page business plan for clients who don’t plan to look for outside funding. Regardless of the type of business plan, it will help answer many hard questions for you.

There are resources specific to most specific fields, too, including other professionals who help others get started. Do your research to see who you can contact for support and to ask questions of as you progress. Once you have your business plan in place, it’s not time to celebrate, yet! How are you going to accomplish the goals you have come up with in that plan? You next need a marketing plan. Now, although the marketing plan is also part of a business plan, it’s really just the intro! The marketing plan will become your template, your schedule, and will spell out the actions you will take to make those goals reality. If you use it seriously, it will be your day-to-day guide to making your dreams come true!

About the author:
Marjorie Geiser

Moving into a new job always involves some degree of uncertainty. You should do your best to find out all you can about a prospective employer, starting right from the pre-interview stage.

Here are some things to look out for. If one or more of these warning signs are present, you need to be doubly careful about joining that organization.

1. The company is in the midst of mergers and acquisitions, or there is a major reorganization taking place, staff cutbacks are on the anvil or some other major flux is occurring.

2. The company you are considering is not undergoing problems like those described above, but many other companies in that industry are. That could be an indication that trouble may spread to your prospective employer sooner or later.

3. The person who will be your boss has a bad reputation. This is something you should find out about from your network.

4. Your prospective boss has joined the organization very recently and his or her reputation is generally not known.

5. You asked to meet with and speak to your new colleagues and this request was refused. What are they afraid the existing employees will say to a prospective new hire?

6. This is a non-profit organization that has had funding problems several times before. In such cases, think twice before taking up a position.

7. They told you a story about the company or about your career prospects that sounded too good to be true. When something sounds that way, it usually is.

8. The company is a small business that is not very profitable and does not seem to have access to strong funding sources. It’s very easy for small businesses to go bankrupt if they’re mismanaged to any degree.

9. The position you are being offered has high turnover. This is usually a bad sign.

10. The interviewers keep saying that they want you to hit the ground running from day one. This may imply that they don’t have the means to provide enough support for your role. This could be a problem particularly if you’re used to working for large organizations that do provide lots of support.

11. The whole interviewing process was done in a big hurry or in a disorganized manner, leaving you in doubt whether they really had a chance to know you.

The presence of a warning sign from the list above does not necessarily mean you have to write off that organization as an employer. It does mean that you must get all additional information you need. Read the article at http://www.interview-secrets.net/questions-to-ask-at-an-interview.html to find out useful questions to ask interviewers.

Perhaps you could get an opinion from a trusted friend who is familiar with the industry and company. You need to do some serious thinking before you make a decision either way.

Ann Wilson

If you run a home business, you know that budgets can be pretty tight. Saving money wherever possible can be the difference between the business that succeeds and the one that fails. This article represents a broad survey of things you can do, from consolidating your student loans to getting small business deals on supplies, that will help you spend less each month.

Next Time You’re Online, Buy Something

Billions of dollars are spent each year online. Rather than suggest that you hurry and move your business online, I’d like to suggest that you add some of your dollars and cents to those billions already spent. Companies who move operations online reduce their overhead costs and often pass on those savings to you. Computers, airplane tickets, even student loan consolidation, can be purchased or arranged online. It has been my experience that I can find almost everything I want online for less than I can find it anywhere else. Next time you’re thinking about biting the bullet and making that big purchase, spend a little time shopping around online and see if you can’t save a few dollars.

Consolidate Student Loans and Get Your House in Order

Chances are good that you’ve been out of school for a while, but don’t skip this paragraph. If you consolidate student loans or other financial obligations, you will typically save a great deal of money each month on your monthly payments. Running a home business often blurs the line between personal expenses and business operating costs – do yourself a favor and make sure you have your personal financial affairs taken care of before you find yourself overwhelmed with past obligations. The government might not have cared about your credit score when they gave you those student loans, but banks looking to give business loans are a whole different story. Making sure everything is taken care will keep financial doors open that, once they’re closed, are very difficult to reopen.

Score One for the Little Guy

Believe it not, most people want small businesses to succeed. There are a lot of people willing to give you a break on prices because you own a home business, but you might need to ask about it. Office supply retailers and computer distributors sometimes offer discount prices to registered small business owners. The savings are not always monumental, but even the smallest savings multiplied over a year or two start to add up to pretty substantial amounts. Shop around to see if the suppliers you use are willing to offer you a discount on supplies or equipment.

Do Without…For a While

I’m probably not the only person that drove a car that was older than I was during college, or who ate Ramen noodles more than once almost everyday. Don’t forget the lessons you learned while you were a poor college student – the same ability to make do with what you have can save you a lot of money in the long run. I had just graduated from college and I wanted to get a new computer to replace the older, though fully functional one I was using. This was before I took my own advice to consolidate student loans, so money was still pretty tight. I wanted to kick myself when I saw that the price on the computer I bought dropped $300 in three months. Some expenses are necessary and unavoidable. For everything else, look to see if you can manage with what you have for a while longer.

Don’t Do It Alone

Nobody likes data entry – it’s time consuming, boring, and time consuming. If you find yourself spending too much of your day punching numbers into spreadsheets, consider hiring someone or outsourcing it to another company. If you think that you can’t afford the part-time salary, do an inventory of your time and see if what you would pay someone is worth the amount of time you’ll be able to invest into the meatier matters of your business.

I know I’m risking sounding like your father giving you a lecture about money, but remember that a penny saved is a penny earned. A successful business minimizes costs while maximizing profits.

About the author:
Nick Smith

While at the Pacific Ocean the other day, penning this article, I watched a homeless man dig inside a garbage can and ferret out a thrown away bag of fast food. Of course, I felt moved to give him a small token, but it made me reflect. What if he had attended The Small Business Success Summit? Perhaps his life would have been different. He could have learned from Ted Nicholas, known as the 4 billion dollar man, (www.TedNicholas.com) and Joel Christopher, (www.JoelChristopher.com) called The Master List Builder (www.masterlistbuilder.com), how to start a business from scratch. Instead of giving him a fish, he could have been given a fishing rod.

No doubt about it, this conference, held on 10-10-03 to 10-12-03 at the Airport Marriot in the sparkling San Francisco Bay area, headed by Superstar Speakers, Ted Nicholas and Joel Christopher, delivered what the two men promised. Not only was the Conference taped on video, it was broadcasted live to the world on the Internet.

The Summit was considered a success by all the attendees, as well as by the people who watched the event globally. Promoted as “The impossible-to-fail small business success system that will build the Million Dollar Empire you have always dreamed of,” it met the intended objectives and more. The three-day conference provided life-transforming information, and hands on, experiential exercises. This groundbreaking, history-making event of the new millennium was the best seminar we ever attended.

In addition to many technical and inside secrets as to how to make your words sell, one of the main themes Ted Nicholas emphasized was this: integrity always remains in style. In light of the many big business scandals, Nicholas’s philosophies were truly refreshing. To give you an insight into this great man’s longstanding success, here are just a few of the business principles of which he spoke.

1. Make all your dealings win/win. Do not take advantage of other businesses when their chips are down.
2. If you unwittingly under charge for a job, in the name of keeping a good business ethic, eat the loss. Don’t try to mark up the price after agreeing on a lower price.
3. Keep your word, at all costs, to build trust with your customers.
4. You can build a great business without being a workaholic. He addressed the need for balance in the areas of health, spirituality, and relationships.
5. Finally, use magic words when it comes to getting people to buy your products or do business with you.

From Joel Christopher, who proudly tells you of his Filipino heritage and, in spite of the language barrier, the success he has had in the United States, we saw up close:

1. How you can make $31,000 Swiss dollars in 24 hours on the Internet.
2. How to build your online business with offline marketing.
3. The secret method he used that has helped him to create joint ventures with many of the top leaders in the internet marketing field.
4. The secrets of how he tripled his opt-in list in 99 days.
5. The autohumanization factor that makes a difference in all relationship capital.

In the end, we left the seminar exhausted, but exhilarated about the possibilities we now face and the tools we had been given to grow our small businesses into million dollar empires. With this in mind, I want to be one of the caring people with an abundance who will be able to help with the world’s homeless and hunger problem.

American small business is again in transition. Many employees, now working from home, are no longer tied to a geographic office and the woes of commuting. This is a relatively new phenomenon with hints of explosive sector growth in the days ahead. As this turbulent economy has forced downsizing, offshore restructuring and closures in large companies, many new entrepreneurs have been born. These are people, who instead of tirelessly attempting to find new employment and possibly enduring the same fate as previously experienced, are now starting small businesses and enjoying the benefits and perils of self-employment.

There’s an old story telling of an Admiral’s decision to fight a battle against overwhelming odds. It seems that he was approaching the coast of an enemy land, with a larger naval force closing in from behind and a great army approaching from the land ahead. He prayed and then addressed his men. He announced that their battle weary forces would land on the beach ahead, dig in and prepare for the upcoming battle. There was no turning back and no other alternative. He ordered their ships burned after they landed. Their only choice was to fight to win or perish. They defeated their enemy because he eliminated any other escape route. They were fixed on the goal of survival and none other.

That is the same attitude we as entrepreneurs must take. We can not afford to be denied. We must grow and prosper or our business will surely perish. We must constantly be looking for ways to cost-effectively market our business and increase sales. We must control costs and have sufficient cash flow for daily operations. Each of us must be persistent, relentless and vigilant. As CEO, we are the manufacturer, the sales team, the marketing department, legal office, accounting office, human resources manager, IT manager, the webmaster and so on. We can’t afford to be all these positions. Our job is to sell! We must locate cost effective resources to help us grow and protect our investment in our business.

The growth of the internet has changed our marketplace as well. Years ago, a small business owner decided upon a geographic chunk of the market and set up shop. Today, that shop is typically located in an office at the entrepreneur’s home. The marketplace is now the world. The costs of marketing products and communicating worldwide are so low that almost anyone can take part in this revolution. Sophisticated voice mail, cell phones, email and effective ecommerce web sites now provide the illusion of size and grandeur for even the smallest home-based business. The end customer typically has no idea whether their supplier is local or across the world. He may be dressed in a shirt and tie or in his pajamas! All that typically matters is that the exchange of product and services is successfully made for a profit.

It is critically important for the small, home-based entrepreneur to be aware of resources available to her as she makes this great leap. Too many people leap prematurely into business only to fail because of poor planning and insufficient financial resources. Do not get caught in this trap. Don’t quit your day job until you have enough cash on hand to pay the bills for at least a year into your new venture. Become aware of and develop the resources available to you. You want everything possible going for you as you make this leap of faith into the entrepreneurial world.

Here in South Carolina, we have the outstanding Women’s Business Center (http://www.scwbc.org), a division of the SCMEP, South Carolina Manufacturers Extension Partnership (http://www.scmep.org), one of the best kept secrets available to businesses at all levels in our State. Other States have similar programs modeled after ours. These are incredible resources, partially funded by the State and private resources, available at little to no cost to entrepreneurs, with the purpose of aiding the successful growth of small business. Some additional national resources are:

http://www.national business.org
http://www.nase.org
http://www.gosmallbiz.com
http://www.empoweringbiz.com
http://www.nfib.org
http://www.qualitybusinessdirectory.com

There are also numerous magazines devoted to small business, home-based business, marketing, sales, accounting, etc… Get tuned in to these and other resources available to you. Read your industry publications to stay abreast of competition and other facets of your business interests.

A single legal issue, FACTA problem, accounting error or marketing miscue can put you out of business. In the case of FACTA, insufficient security or poor record-keeping these days could find you legally responsible for a single employee’s identity fraud issue, which may end up being very costly. A single lawsuit or vendor dispute can shut you down. Many entrepreneurs are ignorant, ill-prepared and under-schooled with regard to these and other issues. Do not get caught in the deadly ignorance trap.

There is more opportunity available today than ever before for the wise entrepreneur. Get all you ducks in a row before you make the fateful leap into the new world marketplace. Be smart, learn all you can as quickly as possible and take action on your ideas. Like the Admiral, be determined to win in the face of what may appear to be overwhelming adversity.

About the author:
Daniel Sitter

You’re SOOOO Close to More Business - It’s Scary!

Many small business owners are longing for more prospects right now. They are contemplating giving up because they don’t have potential for more income or they’re pondering the plunge of launching their business for the first time. Either way – you are soooooooo close to more business – it’s scary.

Finding prospects for your product and or service is not as hard as most people make it out to be. In most cases you don’t need to unload your income on advertising avenues that are nothing more than bottomless pits. You can usually find them right under your nose and more likely than not you can uncover them without the use of money. All you need is time and hard work.

Here are a few suggestions to help you find some prospects right now:

Quit Cold Calling

Whether you cold call on the phone or face-to-face why not try contacting people that already know, like and trust you. The people that know, like and trust you will; read your emails, take your phone calls, read the mail you send them, return your calls, etc. Most of us overlook contacting friends and family from the past, the far past. Look here first.

Be pinpoint specific and ask for referrals now

If you’ve ever asked for a referral, you’ve probably got the response, “Not right off the top of my head.” as an answer to your request. Last year I asked a client for a referral like this; “Who’s your courier company?” I got the answer, and B-A-M a new client. Be specific when you ask for a referral. Ask for; a neighbor’s name, best friend, who works across the hall, etc. Pick up the phone, call a customer and be specific when you ask for a referral. It works.

Introduce yourself locally

Old-school marketing at it’s best. Now don’t confuse this with cold calling. Take a handful of business cards and introduce yourself to local businesses, just let them know what your business is – nothing else. It’s no different than meeting someone at your child’s soccer game. You simply exchange cards. It’s strange, but when you go “introducing” and not “selling”, people defenses are dropped and you just might find a prospect or two.

If you have a small business, distributorship or are a sales associate, try these 3 tips right now and see if you don’t find a few more prospects.

About the author:
Scott Rauber

If you’re in a business relationship with anyone – a client, vendor, or customer – how important is that relationship to you? Do you value the relationship? Do you want to nurture it?

A business relationship, like any relationship, is a two-way street. The expectations of both parties needs be clear and easily understandable. Applying the Golden Rule is also a good idea: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” That is a very powerful statement, and one I try to practice in my daily life, both in business and personal matters.

Good communication is key for any business relationship to grow and thrive. Even when conflicts surface (and they will), keeping the lines of communication open at all times is extremely important. Meet conflicts head-on, no matter how frightening they may seem at the time. The sooner the issues are out on the table and dealt with, the sooner you can get back on track and back to business-as-usual.

Another thing to keep in mind is letting people know you appreciate them. Thank you notes, cards and e-mails are always a good idea, and they never go out of style. People love to be appreciated. If you are receiving great business from someone, always be sure to let them know. You will feel better for it, and so will they.

Another great idea is to reach out and “touch” your clients and customers on a regular basis by sending them monthly newsletters. This is a wonderful way to keep in touch, both to let them know you are thinking about them, and to remind them about you as well.

Remember, you get out of a great relationship what you put into it. Value those you do business with. Nurture the relationships, so they are always growing and prospering. Keep this up and you will always have a garden full of healthy, happy business contacts.

About the author:
Cynthia Morse