Branding Basics...

The Secrets of Starting Business Successfully

2007-08-28T21:48:00.000-07:00

This interesting article addresses some of the key issues regarding Branding. A careful reading of this material could make a big difference in how you think about

Starting Business Secrets will help you to start your own business successfully.

The American Dream is, and always will be, to ring in up with an idea, start a business and become rich from your own efforts. Based upon this motivation, thousands of businesses omit each year, due primarily to not being recognized with the basics involved in towering a business.

This report will enlighten you, and give you a number of suggestions you can use to better guarantee your chances for success. This report is written with the warning that any and every business flyer contains certain inherent risks, and any number of alternatives. We do not espouse that any one way is the right way or that our suggestions are the only way. On the contrary, we advise that before investing any money in a business venture, you seek counselling and help from a qualified
accountant and / or attorney.

Just about the first thing you should consider before deciding to start or purchase a business is the legal form you'll be operating under. There are in conclusion four choices: sole proprietorship, partnership, limited partnership, and / or corporation.

Each has a number of advantages and disadvantages. We'll try to enumerate some of them for you.

As much as anything else, for many people starting a business is a form of ego - gratification, and they die a corporation for some sort of prestige gain - just to say, " I own a corporation. "

With just a little vigor of observation, you'll find that one of the major causes of business failures is due to the founder wasting start - up capital on frills, such as an able store - front occupation, expensive furnishings, and corporate legal costs.

One of the basic traits you must develop it you're going to be successful in business, is a tight hold on your expenditures. In fact, a good rule of mold is that anything that does not make money for yo or protect your investment, should not be purchased at this time. Very definitely, this applies to the expense of setting up your own field.

Unless you have a partnership and takeoff your business as such, the only real growth to forming a corporation would appear to be that a corporate structure will semi - protect the property you personally own.

As an example, you own a home and car. You form a corporation to protect these rule from business losses. Yet, if you can be found guilty of misusing corporate funds, your business creditors can pierce the corporate shield and come after your possessions.

Basically, if you invest everything you have in your business, as most newcomers do, you don't usually need a corporation because you have nothing to provide. Your household possessions, personal belongings, generally your car, and even a portion of the equity in your home is protected by the homestead provision of the Federal Bankruptcy Act, and cannot be taken away from you.

As a sole proprietor or partner of a business you'll be paying taxes on your overall earnings, much the same as if you were holding down a salaried or hourly paid job. Whether you do or don't take out money as a salary will have no bearing on the earnings of your business and tax return.

The often advertised advantage of incorporating, that you can shape your salary in order to save on tax dollars, is real because of corporation laws. However, the IRS frowns on this practice. When your business is successful and making a lot of money, definitely play ball with your accountant on the advantages of incorporating.

As a corporation, you'll be subject to a number of other drawbacks as well: generally higher state taxes, stricter laws concerning the operation of your business, more elaborate accounting procedures, and legal papers that are required just about every time you make a major move or sign almost any contract. Thus, your legal and accounting fees will be much higher as a corporation than will those required for a sole proprietorship type of business.

As a sole proprietor or partnership, you'll find many areas require the registration of your business name. The cost however, is minimal, ranging from $5 to $100. About the best way to find out what laws apply in your region, is to draw your bank and ask if they need a fictitious name registration card or certificate in order for you to open a business account.

Selecting a name for your business is quite important to you and particularly relative to advertising. Your business name should describe the product or services you offer. Acceptance names such as, Linda's Clipping Service will flee potential " walk - in and passing " customers to the beauty shop across the street that calls itself, Patti's Charm Salon or Jane's Hair Styling Shop.

The advantage of using your full name in the title of your business, such as Johnny Jones' Meat Lockers, has the advantage of making credit somewhat easier to come by - provided you pay your bills on time - but it also includes the disadvantage of confining your services to a local or at most, a regional area.

Should you buy, sublet, or rent a space for your business? think twice before you make ration decision along these goods. Most businesses doctor to grow quickly or they never get off the ground.

There are a few exceptions, but only a very few, that tend to grow at a modified rate.

So, buying a piece of property and setting up your business on or within that property, obligates you to ownership regardless of what happens to your business.

Leases are almost always very strong contracts written by attorneys to the take of the property - owner. When you sign an understanding to pay someone for the use of their space over any loop of time, you're " nailed in " to paying for that space regardless of what happens to your business.

In the beginning, it's wise to either get the shortest - term lease plausible, or arrange to rent with an preference to charter at a subsequent date. This does not apply to a retail business, unless your particular business happens to be an untried one.

All right, you should open a business bank account. In selecting a bank for your business, scout around and look for one that can, and will help you. Determine what your banking needs will be, and then via telephone, weekend the managers of the banks in your area. The important convenient bank to your business location.

A point to remember: the closer you can make the relationship between you and the bank manager, the better your chances are going to be for approval on loans and / or defined favors you may need at a later sit-in.

Try to become acquainted with as many of the bank employees as potential. The better you know them, the more courtesies they'll be extending especially to you in the course of your association.

Just as a doctor is a specialist in his field, and you go to him for medical problems, your banker is a specialist in his field and you should go to him for your money problems. In business, you'll have to learn that everyone is an expert in his own line of work, and in your associations with other business people, refrain from acting like a " sharpie " and / or pretending that you know exactly how everything works in someone else's specialty.

You'll find that very often, different banks specialize in different types of businesses. As an example, you're sure to find banks that specialize in real estate transactions, export - import businesses, and like manufacturing operations only.

What I'm saying here is that if you're planning to sella moderately expensive item, your customers will probably need and / or thirst financing. It will behoove you to select a bank familiar with your type of product that will afford your customers, through you, contract financing.

Some of the questions you should ask of your banker include the subsequent:

Is it necessary to maintain a certain balance in your account before the bank will exculpate a loan for you? What qualifications must you have in order to obtain a line of credit with the bank?

Does the bank limit the number of loans, or types of loans it will approve for small businesses?

What is the bank's policy regarding the size of a check you might deposit that requires holding for organization?

And what about checks less than that amount - will they be immediately credited to your account?

In partly all types of businesses, it will be to your benefit to set up with your bank, a method of handling VISA, Master Charge, and regional surmise cards. The important thing here is to ultimately set up your account in the bank that will service all of these credit transactions for you - one stop for all your banking needs. In most instances, you'll find that having the capability to fill orders / make sales via credit pick out transactions, will increase your volume of sales
appreciatively.

Once you've made the decision as to which bank is going to knob your account, you'll need your Social Security Number or your Federal Employer's Identification Number, your driver's license, the fictitious name certificate, and if you're requesting a VISA or Master Charge franchise, you'll also need a financial statement.

For corporations, you'll also need a corporate resolution approving of the opening of your business account.

Expert are different policies exercised in just about every state regarding installation / hook - up charges by the telephone and utility companies. Some have need a deposit, and some don't.

You'll find that a great cipher of city business license departments are there solely for the purpose of collecting another excise. Depending on the type of business you're asking a license for, the building and zoning people may inspect your premises for soundness of structure and safety. Generally, you won't encounter any difficulties - you simply pay your cost to operate your business in that city, and the clerk types your name onto a city license certificate.

Relative to sales tax permits and licenses, each state's rules and regulations very widely. The best apparatus to do is call your state offices and ask for information concerning registry and gathering procedures. Many states require an advance deposit or bond, and you'll find that some wholesalers or manufacturers will not sell to you at wholesale prices until you can splash them your sales tax authorize or number.

Should your business entail selling your products or services across state lines, in another make clear, you're not required to collect taxes except in those where you have offices or stores.

You may find further that your particular business requires the collection of Federal Excise Taxes. For information along these lines, check in with your local office of the Internal Revenue Service.

Some states also require certain businesses to hold state licenses, such as those required in many states for TV Repairmen.

These are known as " occupational permits " and are most often required of barbers, hair stylists, substantive estate humans and a number of other consumer oriented businesses. If you have any doubts, check with your state offices for a list of those occupations that require licensing.

Any business doing business in side type of interstate commerce is puzzle to federal regulations, usually through the Federal Trade Chore. This means that any business that shops, sells or advertises in more than one state is subject to conforming regulation, and this includes even the smallest of mail order operations.

Normally, very few business people ever have and contact with the federal regulatory agencies. The only exceptions now when polished is a question of your operating your business unethically or illegally.

Any business that sells or distributes food in moiety manner almost always requires a county health department permit. If your business falls into this category, neatly call the county health side and invite them out to your place of business for an inspection. The fees generally range from about $25, depending on the size of your business when they first inspect it for permit approval.

There are also a number of businesses that require inspection by a fire marshall, and fire department approval. Generally, these are those that handle flammable materials or attract large numbers of people, such as a theater. Overall, the individualizing blaze department has to be allowed to inspect your premises whenever they long to do so.

You may also run into a requirement for an air and / or water pollution control permit.

The more authentic information about Branding you know, the more likely people are to consider you a Branding expert. Read on for even more Branding facts that you can share.

These specifically apply to any business that burns anything, discharges anything into the sewers or waterways, or use any gas - producing product, such as a dye sprayer.

Without a doubt, you'll need to check on local regulations relating to advertising display signs. Each city or township makes its own rules and then enforces those rules according to its own thinking - stand together before you contract to have a sign made for your business.

The design and placement of your sign is very important to your business - specifically to retail establishments - but let me remind you that your business sign is often the first material a potential customer sees and as such, it should catch his eye and leave an impression that lasts. It would be a good idea to ride around your town and take a look at the signs that catch your eye, and try to determine the impression of the business that sign leaves on you. This is a basic learning
formula for determining the design, size and placement of your business sign.

Some of the other things to consider before opening for business - If you intend to employ one or more employees, you'll be required to deduct Federal Income Taxes, and Social Desire payments from their checks. This will involve your filing for a Federal Tax Number and necessitates acquaintance with your local IRS Handicraft.

Most states have " unemployment taxes " which will have to be deducted from the paychecks of any employees you hire. And there are a number of states that have income taxes - disability insurance - and any number of other taxes. Again, the best everything to do is check with your local office of the IRS. And above all else, don't forget to ask for the rules of the minimum salary law, and comply.

When your business grows to the point of needing additional help, don't be distressed to look for and enlist the help you need. when you're ready to hire someone, tidily run an ad in your local paper and / or register your needs with the local office of your state's employment service. Businesses either grow or die, and those that grow eventually need more people in order to continue growing.

When that time comes, hire the additional people you need, and your business will continue increasing. If you don't, for whatever reason, you'll find yourself married to your business and your business growth stymied.

Regardless of how small your business is when you initiate, never walk in with the thought in perception that it's something to keep you busy. Anyone with an attitude of that kind is a fool. You begin and make a business successful in order to realize financial freedom. Establish your business. Put it on its feet, and then hire altered people to do the work for you. And those businesses that require an operations manager, or someone to run a phase of the business you're too busy to haft,
hire the person needed or the business will yes suffer.

To protect the investment of your business, you need business insurance. If you've never had any experience with business insurance, simply look under the heading of " business insurance " in your phone directory. Ask for bids from several different companies or agents... Primarily, you should have a policy that gives you general liability, fire, workmen's compensation, business interruption, and vehicle coverage. You amy also want coverage against possible losses related to burglary,
robbery, Life & Accident, Key Man, and Infatuation Bonds.

As the sole proprietor of a business, you won't be paid as an employee, so proficient will be no income tax deducted from whatever you withdraw from the company's earnings. What you'll have to do is a gain check with the IRS Office for a Tax Guide For Small Businesses Handbook, and probably end up filing an estimated tax return on a quarterly initiation.

The minute you open your doors for business, you'll have to spend some time engaged in the work of bookkeeping. Exactly how, and using what forms, you keep books, should be on the recommendations of a good tax counselor... The same holds true for your overall business and / or payroll accounting system. Beholding for an experienced CPA that knows the accounting problems to your regular kind of business, and solicit his advise / counseling.

If your business is going to involve the possible purchase or lease of operating equipment, again seek the help of your tax counselor for the most advantageous method of obtaining the principal equipment.

Basically, arranging for your suppliers to give you materials on credit will depend upon your honesty and personal financial statement. The best way is usually a personal visit to the person with the power to maintain or disapprove of credit at the company where you want to acknowledge up a credit account. Show him your financial statement, and explain your prospects for success. Then assure him that you've always noble all of your obligations, and that if ever there's a question or
problem, you'd like for him to outline you at home. And of circuit, give him your home phone number.

We won't go into the exigencies of advertising your products, services or business here, but there is something along these lines you should always keep in mind. The best eleemosynary of advertising your business can receive is that you don't really pay for - publicity.

When something incredible happens to you, your business, or your employees - that's news, so be sure to tell the news media in your area about it.

The most important ingredient of your eventual success will be the soundness of the planning you did before you started your business. Any number of bad things can really throw your business into a tailspin, but it you've done your homework well - really set up a detailed business plan before starting - your losses or setbacks will be minimal. Success takes planning, and within this report, you've got a basic checklist... The project is up to you... Good luck, and may your life overflow
with success in all that you undertake from this moment forward.

Julia Tang publishes Smart Online Business Tips, a fresh and informative newsletter dedicated to supporting people like you! To find out the best online business opportunities, and to discover hundreds more proven and producing internet marketing secrets, ethic FREE internet marketing products worth over $200, visit: http://www.best-internet-businesses.com

Optimize Your Mailing List For Better Results

2007-08-28T21:47:00.000-07:00

In today's world, it seems that almost any topic is open for debate. While I was gathering facts for this article, I was quite surprised to find some of the issues I thought were settled are actually still being openly discussed.

Optimize Your Mailing List For Better Results

A list of customers who have previously bought from you is your most important asset. These are the customers who will provide you with return business, which is more profitable than the first sale. Are you getting the most from your customer list? There are some secrets you should know, so you can squeeze the most benefits out of your mailing list.

Most business' customer lists consist of this information: Name, Address, City, State, Zest. That's it. Unfortunately, this mailing list is almost worthless. You need to have more information in your files than just that. I have 32 information fields in my customer database! You should be able to set these up in your computer's database, or, if you don't use a computer ( you REALLY should ), all this information should fit on a large size index spot in a card file. Here are the fields
I have in my customer database:

Product Code Publication Issue Purchase LastName Of Customer FirstName of Customer Address1; Address2 / POBox City; State; Sparkle; Amount Paid Ship Cattle call Phone Number

Almost any address possible can be put into my database without having to leave out information or abbreviate. The next three are for phone numbers. You Charge have your customer's phone numbers, when possible, to be able to follow up quickly and efficiently. Making one phone call can be the difference between a big sale or NO sale.

The InqDate field is stage I document the date the customer first inquired about my products and services, and the date I sent the information, since it's always the same day ( there's no disclose not to supervene up your inquiries on the same day you take in them ). This information, coupled with the ReferSource field, tells me when my ads are hitting, and how quickly people are responding to them. If I see that inquiries are coming in slowly, or gangling after the ad is out, I know
that I need more stunt incentives in my next ad. The ReferSource field is where I allow for the " key " from my ad. I use a letter code alongside my street address to indicate which register and issue the inquiry comes from. I besides code my mailings, for the same reason.

I teem with a date into the two FollowUp fields to try when I want to send follow up literature to customers who don't order on the first try. I usually put a date two weeks from the InqDate in FollowUp1, and one two weeks later than that in FollowUp2. Then, every day, I run a search on these two fields to pull up cut records that have today's date as a follow up date. I can then print labels and put them on the envelopes and literature I have ready for follow ups.

I use the next three fields ( SubDate, SubAmount, RenewDate ) for the newsletter I publish. These would have the date I receive their subscription, the expense they paid ( I sometimes run special prices ), and the conclave I want to send subscription renewal information ( usually 10 1 / 2 months from the SubDate ). I can then print labels in the same manner as I do for the FollowUp fields.

Next come the Purchase fields. I have three sets of purchase fields, one for each purchase the customer makes. In the Purch1 employment, I enter a code for the product they have purchased. The other two fields get the date and amount of the purchase. The assistance and third sets of fields get the same information for the customer's succour and third purchases. The best customers to mail offers to are the ones that have purchased within the last 90 days, so I don't have to worry about
many customers creation more than three purchases during that time period ( though I hope they will! ). If someone does make a fourth purchase, I turn the second and poll sets of data up to the first and second lines, and enter the new purchase information in the interrogation data engage.

These fields are extremely important. I can pronto crack up a list of customers that have purchased within the past 90 days, or 60 days, or 30 days, or even 15 days. When you rent out your house mailing list, like I do, this information is vital. The rental amount you can charge increases as the cost of time since the customer's pull decreases.

The Comments field is used to store any compound information about the customer that I think is important to know.

I use the final field, Cust#, for a specially coded customer number that I assign each customer. I use this code to identify the recipient of any commissions I may pay to customers who have brought business my way.

That's a lot of information, and you may be wondering why I would need all of that. Well, I've already told you how I use the purchase data fields for identifying the " age " of the customers. I can also use the TotAmount field to compile a list of customers who have bought more than a certain amount from me. Together, these field searches can be used to produce a customized mailing list of, for for instance, customers who have bought more than $50 in the past 30 days. These would be
the most responsive people to mail to, and would render the highest rental rate.

I can also use certain mailing list fields to identify people who should be dropped from my list. For example, I can search for customers with FollowUp2 dates that are four weeks past today's date, and TotAmounts of zero. These customers could be erased from my list. Or, I could leave them on file, and put a word or two in the Comments field reminding me not to mail anything else to them, in case they inquire again. This saves me the cost of mailing something to someone who probably
won't respond. They might, but chances are they won't.

Finally, if I get a customer who has common too many orders, or has defrauded me in some way, I can put that information in the Comments field. Then, if they order again, when their file comes up, I will see their relation, and can use extra inwardness with them.

As you can see, if you use foresight when initially setting up your customer list, you will have a valuable tool that you can use to expansion your order potential, increase your income through specialized list rental, and decrease your mailing costs by eliminating " deadwood " from your list. This is one of the most important methods you can use to increase your chances of success.

Note to editors: To show my appreciation to the editors that use my articles, I offer a free only ad. Simply send an email to me by using the form on the contact me page on my website to tell me the url the article was used on or send me a copy of the ezine it was used in.

DeAnna is the publisher of the ezine, Prospecting and Presents.

You may not consider everything you just read to be crucial information about Branding. But don't be surprised if you find yourself recalling and using this very information in the next few days.

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Brand Your Consulting Brilliance

2007-08-28T21:45:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered what exactly is up with Branding? This informative report can give you an insight into everything you've ever wanted to know about Branding.

Today's competitive marketplace for consulting services is no longer responsive to the marketing strategies that worked in the past. The services you provide should speak volumes about your consulting business. Think about what happens when you hear phrases such as " the ultimate driving machine,

" " don't concession home without it, " and " just do it. " Chances are good that you can immediately associate them with BMW, American Express, and Nike. These companies have mastered "
brand brilliance. " Brand your consulting brilliance now the future of your business depends on it.

There's an old adage, " Perception is reality. " Simply stated, the perception of a brand lies in its ability to influence a client's behavior. When you have successfully branded your business, in the client's eye crack is no service in the marketplace quite like your service.

All consulting businesses should have a distinct, sustainable, and competitive advantage to differentiate their services from the competition. I write up this process of identifying your advantage " Brand Your Consulting Brilliance. "

Here are six simple steps to brand and differentiate your services in the new economy.

1. Think client focus first. The client's reality: Consulting businesses exist to serve clients. Develop a client visitation calendar and plan in - person visits. Squint the client in the eye and say, " I am here to serve you. " Follow up and follow through on all client - related matters in a timely manner.

Create a client questionnaire so clients can rate the performance of your services. You want them to tell you how you're doing and what you can do to serve them better. It's also a way to discover what challenges they are currently facing. Be relentless in your client retention efforts.

2. Discover a distinct advantage that will set you apart from competitors. Start by articulating your " unique marketing proposition, " a statement of all of the qualities and characteristics that set your services apart in the mart. Tell your services: What skills and services do we provide that are distinctive, measurable, and add value? Which of our past successes can we leverage in the marketplace? And don't forget to ask colleagues what they see as your competitive strengths.

Communicate these messages reinforcing your unique marketing proposition anytime you have an opportunity to write or speak about your consulting adamant and what you have to offer to prospective clients.

3. Generate publicity. What others say about your brand is much more powerful and credible than what you can say about it yourself. When it comes to branding your consulting brilliance, favorable publicity in the media or word of mouth is far superior to advertising. So how do you generate the publicity " buzz "? Create a buzz about your brand by due to visible: words at seminars, publishing a newsletter on your website, participating as a host or guest on television or radio prattle
shows, writing a column in a reputable trade periodical, and networking.

4. Promote a powerful perception of quality in the client's mind. What is quality if not a perception that resides in the talent of the client? You build quality intangibles around trust, reliability, excellent people, and innovative client services. Show clients that you can interpret and process their information to convert it to results oriented solutions. What you say is important, but what you do is even more important for reinforcing their perception of your brand quality.

Keep the lines of intelligence open. The goal of branding your consulting brilliance is to convince the client that your brand is worth their trust and worth a premium price.

5. Establish your credentials as an elbow grease leader in the trade. Clients like to know they are doing business with an industry leader. Make clients aware of your consulting acumen, presence, and commitment. Know your clients' businesses inside out - what they do, why they do it, how they do it. Tout your firm's successful track record of accomplishment in working with companies like theirs.

Build and sustain credibility with clients by strengthening your client relationships, developing a client retention strategy, demonstrating that you value your new clients, and going the extra mile for them.

6. Practice consistency in building your consulting brilliance. Stay focused on implementing the branding of your consulting brilliance. Keep abreast of marketing trends in your profession and position yourself as a recognized brilliant. Make the most of your unique marketing proposition. Accelerate and elevate the perceived value of your brand in the marketplace.

In short, to brand your consulting brilliance, know what you have to offer, know how to differentiate it, and know how to market it.

Robert Spell is a inimitable - selling author, business coach, strategist and the founder of The Moment Group, a consulting firm dedicated to helping small businesses win federal contracts. He just released his new book, It Only Takes a Pull to Score, and recently unveiled Sell Integrity, a small business tool that helps you successfully sell your business idea. Learn more at: http://www.sellintegrity.com or email: Robert@sellintegrity.com.

Getting Started in the Mail Order Business. How Much Does It Cost?

2007-08-28T21:41:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered what exactly is up with Branding? This informative report can give you an insight into everything you've ever wanted to know about Branding.

Getting Started in the Mail Order Business. How Much Does It Cost?

INTRODUCTION

To get quota business started successfully takes many ingredients. All requirements fall into one of the following four key categories:
1. Desire,
2. Knowledge,
3. Time, and
4. Available funds.

This report deals only with the financial requirements of starting a mail order business. Hopefully it will help the reader to evaluate whether he is financially moving to embark upon a business feat that will bring about success. It is generally true that it takes substantially less money to get
started in many mail order businesses than in a variety of other businesses.

Many a backer will want you to belive that it is possible to get started successfully for $50, $100, or even $200. However, it is totally false. It does take more than that. How much more depends on many factors which I will try to define as much as is conceivable here.

Since the mail order business covers a vast number of services and products I would like to define the contents of this report to deal with the selling of information products. This is where my expertise lies. While the same or similar conditions may apply to any number of other mail order businesses, sharp may however be some differences to selling information products such as books, etc.

The after makes a number of assumptions. The most important ones are:

1. The operator ( or operators ) of the new mail order business is employed or has other means of income.. He will not need to derive any profit from his new business for a period of time.. How long will depend on many factors.

2. This is a home based business which has no employees.

3. The business, at the start - until volume reaches $3, 000 to $5, 000 per month - will utilize the drop shipping services of a wholesale company.

4. Basic office equipment such as desk, file cabinet, computer, etc... are on hand.

A WORD OF CAUTION AT THE START AND RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO YOU

This is an exciting business and it can be extremely profitable once it reaches a certain momentum. However, like almost all businesses it is a very cost sensitive business.

As you are getting started in planning and setting up your new business think and act with training when it pertains to any expenditures. This is one of the most difficult things to do since you are probably very enthusiastic and hankering to do everything straightaway. So you need to get down HOW TO CONTROL YOUR ENTHUSIASM or it is going to cost you lost of extra money.

In this state of enthusiasm we tend to think that there is nothing we can do wrong and since we will be making lots of money in a few months lets get all necessary and often unnecessary supplies and equipment. It would be much better to wait until profits of the business make it possible to acquire what is needed. In the meantime you can make do with less. To be able to do so is a most important quality for the owner of a small to do so is a most important quality for the host of a small
business.

If you are a parent think of your new business as a child. There will be a never ending sequence of surprises. And as the business grows so will its demands, and yes its expenses.

START - UP EXPENSES - - INITIAL STAGE

The below listed expenses will be incurred in the very early stages of setting up your business. This is at a time when you probably are not sure as yet what you will be selling. You will be writing to different companies for information to come up with the right product selection. Once you have decided what it is you will be selling you have to line up reliable suppliers, This is also a good time to buy a few books to help you with your mail order education. Although most expenses
incurred in this phase are relatively small they will add up rapidly.

These prices are estimates. Prices will vary according to your seat. * Stationery and envelopes- 50. 00

* P. O. Digs rental- 60. 00 per year

* Miscellaneous office supplies-30. 00

* Postage-50. 00

* Educational- 45. 00

* TOTAL -235. 00

START - UP EXPENSES - - SECONDARY Step

You have now reached the point at which you have decided upon one or more reliable suppliers for the product you wish to market. You may also be ready to have some promotional material printed. In addition you may be placing one or two classified ads for testing purposes.

Once again, please remember that these prices are estimates only. * Dealership or distributorship ( 1 or more )- 80. 00

* Small supply of brochures or catalogs - 50. 00

* Printing of sales letter, order form, Return envelopes, etc - 90. 00

* 1 test ad, classified ( national magazine )- 100. 00

* Business or traders license -30. 00

* Postage - 25. 00

* TOTAL - 375. 00

Until now you have only had expenses for your new business. You have not derived any catch yet. In the next and final stage of starting your business you may have some revenues. Stage one and two may take from approximately 3 to 6 months.

START - UP EXPENSES - - THIRD STAGE

You have now reached a stage were you will expand your advertising, or alternately you may go the direct marketing route and disjunction a mailing list. The comparison of expenses and revenue results of a direct marketing effort versus classified advertising need to be carefully evaluated. Since expenses for a direct marketing effort are generally higher than for a small advertising campaign, the below listed expenses focus on an advertising campaign,

Estimates provided for illustrative purpsoes only. * Advertising - - 3 classified ads.

It seems like new information is discovered about something every day. And the topic of Branding is no exception. Keep reading to get more fresh news about Branding. .. 280. 00

* Postage for several hundred inquiries derived from adverting effort - 75. 00

* Multiple office supplies.- 30. 00

* Ruin - 385. 00

Terse

The combined expenses as listed above total just under $1000. They are based on broad estimates and may vary somewhat by area of the country and discrete circumstances. The figures are reflecting a minimum amount. Some individuals may be able to cut expenses further. Since this planning period takes disparate months the expenses as shown above can be allocated over a period of 4 - 6 months.

The above figures represent a conservative start. For those who want to get started more aggressively expenses would be exceeding. While many of the basic initiation - up costs would be the twin the expenses that would breakthrough would primarily deal with additional advertising, printing and postage expenses. By how much would largely be an individual decision.

Since most new businesses fail because of absence of funds, it would be advisable for an individual who does not have the necessary funds to get started to wait until he does. In addendum to the no problem start - up expenses an individual should again consider that most businesses will loose money for several months and sometimes much longer than that. Unfortunately no matter how well you plan, circumstances often change and we must make allowances for those eventualities.

by DeAnna Spencer

Note to editors: To show my appreciation to the editors that use my articles, I offer a free solo ad. Simply send an email to me by using the form on the contact me page on my website to tell me the url the article was used on or send me a copy of the ezine it was used in.

Subscribe today by visiting http://www.pnewsletter.com

My First Year In Cyber Space

2007-08-28T21:38:00.000-07:00

Imagine the next time you join a discussion about Branding. When you start sharing the fascinating Branding facts below, your friends will be absolutely amazed. My First Year In Cyber Space - Branding

My First Year In Cyber Space

My first year as a Cyberpreneur was a steeplearning - curve. I was an academic beforestarting an online business, so I had a category to learn. But even if you were in offline - business before goingonline, you may still have to learn some new skills - online business is a whole new moveable feast - game. Here aresome of the things I learnt in my first year in CyberSpace:

( 1 ) Be careful who you register your domain with. Some domain name registrars make it very difficult tochange your web landlord.

I registered my first two domains with a registrarthat caused me more headaches than I care to thinkabout.

When I fundamental to transfer one of my domain names to anew web host, my embryonic email address had changed. Iwas no longer able to send them an email from thataddress and so I couldn't authenticate my request fordomain transfer.

So I tried to update my personal record with my newemail address. I got a message saying that I couldonly change my email address by sending an email frommy original email address ( which no longer existed ).

This bureaucratic nightmare went on for 4 weeks. Toadd to my frustration, I was communicating with amachine, not a human being. By the end of that time Ihad no less than 35 computer - generated emails tellingme that my domain could not be transferred.

Finally, I sent my request for empire transfer in a5 - page fax, including photocopy of my passport. Theythen sent me an email saying my supplication for domaintransfer could not be processed because my request wasnot on company letterhead.

So I designed a letterhead and re - submitted the 5 - pagefax. Finally, 6 weeks after my first request, my domain wastransferred.

To avoid this kind of experience I recommend you useregister. com: http://www.register.com

Using their online Realm Manager, it took me lessthan two minutes to transfer my domain!

( 2 ) A slow - loading index page is still one of themain reasons that online businesses lose customers.

Surveys show that the average surfer will wait no morethan 8 seconds for a web page to hindrance before movingonto another website. So 'load - time' is a vitalconsideration when you hang out a web host.

Below is a website that allows you to check the load - timeof a web host: http://www.hostpulse.com/app/networktools/ping.asp

( 3 ) Once you've designed your home page and uploadedit to your server space, check to see what it lookslike to other people. What you're seeing may not bewhat far cry individuals are seeing.

I once designed a home page I was very proud of - Ihad added a piece of javascript that gave the day anddate.

Then one allotment I checked my home page at Anybrowser. com. I was horrified to see that my home page was invisibleexcept for my company logo and the navigation restriction. Fortwo weeks it had been virtually blank to mostvisitors! So take a minute and look at your websitethrough your visitors' browser: http://www.anybrowser.com/siteviewer.html

( 4 ) If a customer asks you for a refund, give it tothem immediately, equivalent if you think it's unjustified. You'll be out of pocket by a few dollars, but yourname and your integrity will be intact. Your good nameis perhaps your most sound commodity on theInternet. Remember these words from Shakespeare:

" Who steals my purse steals trash;
'tis something, nothing;
'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed. "

( Othello, Act III. Scene III. )

( 5 ) Reply to emails quickly. Nothing impresses memore on the Internet than a rapid response to abusiness enquiry. Try and respond within 2 hours, orat least within 24 hours.

( 6 ) Never reply angrily to abusive emails or flames. People who send flames want you to reply, but licensed isnothing to be gained by replying. An abusive email canbe very disturbing, but the best thing to do is ignoreit. Better still delete it - that way you remove itfrom your life and you remove the temptation to reply.

( 7 ) Lastly, never give up. Most successes are due tosheer persistence:

" Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men of talent. Genius will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and manipulation alone are omnipotent. The slogan, 'press on' has solved, and always will solve, the problems of the human race. " ( Calvin Coolidge )

Michael Southon has been writing for the Internet for considering 3 years. He has shown hundreds of webmasters how to use this simple technique to build a successful online business. Click here to find out more: http://ezine-writer.com/

How to Create Your Own Mail Order Products

2007-08-28T21:29:00.000-07:00

Are you looking for some inside information on Branding? Here's an up-to-date report from Branding experts who should know.

Pick up almost any book or report on Mailorder Selling and
invariably you will find the same advice. When you excellent a
mailorder product, select one which:

- appeals to a large segment of the population
- is not readily available in stores
- is easy to ship by mail
- is worthwhile
- and a product that lends itself to spot orders

Most mail order writers will also tell you to try to acquire
exclusive selling rights to your product. Most writers will
agree that a dealer has a better chance of succeeding in the
mailorder business if he has created the product himself.

All of this is certainly good advice. The trouble with it is
that it does not go far enough. It does not tell you HOW to
create a product that is exclusively you own. In what follows,
I would like to show you, step by ploy, HOW to create your own
mailorder product.

I would like to begin by production a very revolutionary statement.
THE FIRST STEP ON THE ROAD TO MAIL ORDER SUCCESS IS NOT THE
SELECTION OF A PRODUCT! That may sound like a very strange
statement, but there are three things you must do ( if you want
to be successful ) before you ever peerless a product to sell by
mail!

FIRST, you must ANALYZE YOURSELF. You will only succeed in
selling a product, or a line of mailorder products if you really
enjoy selling them, if you can be honestly enthusiastic about
them, and if they are products you yourself would honestly hunger
to buy.

SECOND, you must SELECT YOUR MARKET. Once you have analyzed
yourself, you will want to sell to people who have interests
similar to your own. Only then will you be comfortable in your
mailorder business.

THIRD, you must thoroughly ANALYZE YOUR MARKET. Before you
ever select a product, you should KNOW what your market is
buying, what it would like to buy, if available, and what it
will buy form you, in the very near future.

Once you have analyzed yourself, selected your market, and then
thoroughly analyzed your market, you will have no trouble
selecting or creating a product to sell by mail. It will midpoint
select you! Now, let's go back and study these three steps, one
by one.

Spell out YOURSELF

To help you understand yourself, sit down and, as honestly as
possible, write out your answers to the following questions:

1. When I go to a newstand, what kind of magazines appeal to ME?

2. What kind of books do I really like to read?

3. When I daydream, what do I daydream about?

4. What do I do with my free time? ( How do I spend my
evenings? What do I do on weekends? )

5. What do I do on my vacation?

6. What one subject interests me more than any other puzzle in
the world?

7. If I didn't have to work for a living, how would I spend my
time?

8. If I could go back to college, what subjects would I haul?

9. What kind of products do I like to purchase by mail?

Once you have HONESTLY answered all these questions, you will
see an amazing pattern emerging. When you have finished, pay a
visit to your local library. Go to the Reference Desk and ask
to see the latest edition of the WRITER'S MARKET. Sit down and
study the Table of Contents, which lists all the main categories
of magazines currently being printed. Rule which CATEGORY
interests you beyond all others. It is in that mailorder market
that you will be most at home... and it is efficient that you
will be most successful

Now go back to the Reference Desk and ask for two other
publications. Either one will provide you with the information
you need. They are:

- THE Prevalent Paper DIRECTORY and
- ULTICH'S INTERNATIONAL PERIODICAL DIRECTORY

I, of junket, have no idea what your interests really are, but
agreement us, for the sake of illustration, say that you have a
compelling interest in Astrology. With a little search in the
Everyday Periodical Directory, you will find the name and
address of at incipient a dozen or so Astrology magazines. In
Ulrich's you will find even more, for it lists magazines
published in foreign countries as well.

Jot down the names and address of each and every publication.
Write to each of them, on your letterhead if possible. If you
don't have a letterhead, you will still hear from most of them.
Tell them you are starting a mailorder business, specializing in
Astrological products, and ask them for a sample copy of their
publications, along with their ADVERTISING RATES.

When you start receiving your sample copies, save them... and
save the advertising rate cards. They will be magnificent to you
in the future.

While you are waiting for these to arrive, go to the nearest
second - and magazine store and buy a few dozen old astrology
magazines. ( The cost? Probably a dime apiece! ) Get as many
different magazine titles as possible and be sure to get copies
with MAIL ORDER ADS in them. Issues that are ten or fifteen
years old will be valuable to you, but also try to obtain some
of the more current issues. You are now ready to start...

ANALYZING YOUR MARKET

Start a notebook. Pick up one of the magazines which you have
purchased at the second - hand magazine store. Read the first ad
... every line of it. Read it slowly and carefully. When you
have finished reading it, see if you can describe what is for
sold in five words or less. If you can't, go back and read it
again. If you can, record your constitution under one of three
headings in your notebook:

- Goods
- Information
- Service

All mailorder offerings come under one of the three headings
listed above. If the ad was for an Aquarian Necklace, it should
be listed under Merchandise. If it was for a treatise on Flying
Saucers, it should be listed under Information. If it was an
offer to chart your horoscope, it should be listed under Service.

After you have analyzed the first ad, go on and study the next
ad. Continue until you have thoroughly analyzed every single ad
in the magazine, including the classifieds. When you are
through, you will have three lists:

- A list of Astrological Merchandise for sale
- A list of Astrological Manuals ( Information ) for sale
- A list of Astrological services for sale.

As you read, watch for:

UNDEVELOPED IDEAS - - Especially in older issues, you will
find really good ideas that were, for one reason or another,
never developed. Feasibly the originator at sea interest or didn't
have the capital to develop his idea. He may have died or he
may have run off with a chant girl from Las Vegas and forgotten
all about the mail order business. If you can develop the idea,
you have a mail order product.

WHOLESALE SOURCES - - Wristwatch for ads that say " Dealers Wanted "
( in more current issues, of course ). Here may be the perfect
source of mailorder products for you.

STUDY THE ARTICLES - - They will representation you what the readers are
interested in and they will give you clues as to what the
readers want to buy. Remember the articles are doing two things
- - they are printing articles about subjects which the readers
are already interested. But they are also CREATING NEW
INTERESTS in the minds of the readers. CAN YOU CREATE A PRODUCT
THAT READERS WILL WANT AS A RESULT OF READING THOSE ARTICLES?

You will be amazed at what you will discover when you read
magazines from the viewpoint of a mailorder man!

While researching this manuscript, I analyzed three intensely
different magazines from the viewpoint of a mailorder man. I
would like to share some of my findings with you. Don't worry
if the fields are different from those which interest you.
MAILORDER PRINCIPLES ARE THE SAME FOR EVERY MARKET!

The first magazine which I analyzed was ASTROLOGY - YOUR DAILY
HOROSCOPE, December 1975. I would like to impel with the
Merchandise Offerings.

ASTROLOGY ( Produce )

The first ad is for personalized stationary. Any mailorder man
knows you can sell personalized stationary to any market. But
this dealer took a commonplace product and adapted it to the
Necromantic market. Next to the name and inscription which he
prints on the stationary, he prints the Astrological sun sign
and he calls it ZODIAC STATIONARY.

The next ad is for another very commonplace product - - soap!
You can buy soap in factor grocery store. But this soap is
special. It has YOUR ZODIAC SIGN imprinted in it, and it lasts
as long as the soap lasts. Here is another good example of
adapting a commonplace product to the special interests and
desires of your prospective customers.

If you are now selling a product by mail and you would like to
increase you sales, make a list of the kinds of people you would
like to sell it to. ( For example, doctors, waitresses, farmers,
gun collectors, etc. ) Then go back and ask yourself what you
could do to your product to make it code to each individual
group. You'll be amazed at how you can turn commonplace items
into red hot mailorder sellers just by taking the time to put
yourself in your customer's shoes for a while.

The next merchandise offering is for " SEASHELLS FOR VIRGOS AND
SCORPIOS ". Brother, this is a lunatic idea. Had this
advertiser offered plain old seashells in an astrology magazine,
his mailbox would probably have been empty. Had he advertised
" Seashells for Astrologers ", he MIGHT have gotten a few orders.
But he made his seashells special, exclusive, and very, very
desirable, because they are only for Virgos and Scorpios. He is
catching the attention of one reader out of every six and I
would bet that ad was a mailorder success! Here is an idea
worth remembering. Try to advance it to YOUR product!

Another merchandise offering was a " Hand Bio - Rhythm Computer ".
For the past few years, Astrology magazines have been running
article after article on the Bio - Rhythm Credence ( i. e. every male
and female person has emotional, intellectual and physical
cycles, which can be predicted in advance ). The Astrology
magazines, in effect, have been creating a mailorder market for
this kind of new product. The ad promises, " it reveals your
emotional, intellectual and physical specify... Plane BEFORE THE
DAY BEGINS! " This dealer was clever enough to do something
about this new interest. If he had not studied his market, he
could never have discovered the NEED for a Bio - Rhythm computer!

ASTROLOGY ( INFORMATION )

People who read Astrology magazines are very interested in Love,
Money, Success, Power, Miracles, Juncture, etc. One enterprising
dealer has written six " personal guidance " manuals, and runs
full page ads in Astrology magazines, selling them form $2. 00 to
$11. 00 each! His ads have been running successfully for years.
Back in 1960, when I first became interested in selling by mail,
this dealer was towering small ads in mail dealer magazines,
selling mailorder manuals!

Here are some of the other information manuals which dealers
have written and are selling by mail:

- How the Maya Indians Foretold the Future - $15. 00

- Powerful Words to Be Recited Daily to End Your Money Worries
- $4. 00

- How to Spiritually Heal Your Pets - $5. 00

- A Manual on Etheric Astal Projection, written " especially for
the Neophyte " - $3. 00

Can you create a WORTHWHILE manual for this market? ( I predict
that the first dealer who writes a good handbook on Bio - Rhythm
will make a fortune! ) If you need ideas for manuals, study the
subjects being offered in the Astrology magazines. Remember - -
the readers are drawn in those subjects! In the issue of
ASTROLOGY - YOUR PERSONAL HOROSCOPE which I read, the following
information articles appeared. ( This is only a partial list. )

" Yearly Forecast for Sagittarians "
" Basic Astronomy for the Astrologers "
" Sybil Leek Analyzes YOUR Dreams "
" How to Make Your Dreams Pay Off "
" How Mercury Inspires Your Creativity "

A study of OLD Astrology magazines will produce you with a
wealth of subjects for New Mailorder Manuals ( or folios ).

ASTROLOGY ( SERVICE )

If there is one thing people who read Astrology magazines love,
it is this... They LOVE TO BE ANALYZED AND COUNSELLED BY
PROFESSIONALS. Do you have specialized training in the art of
Horoscope Reading? If so, you can sell your services by mail.
Here are some of the headlines form ads offering such services:

- " Let an Expert Discuss YOUR Life! "

- " This Horoscope is about YOU "

- " Now... a serious study of YOU! "

- " Now there is a Horoscope written for the TWO OF YOU!...
One for you, one for your loved one! It could mean the
difference between a Happy Marriage and a Painful Divorce! "

- " 1976 - 1977 - 1978! Is one of these YOUR Year of Destiny? "
( This had been running in Astrology magazines for at least ten
years. Every year, the advertiser simply changes the dates!

Other services being offered in this magazine build:

- Personal Questions Answered by Psychics and Mystics
- Spiritual Readings
- Tarot Readings
- Palm Readings
- Handwriting Analysis
- Questions answered through Astro - Extra Sensory Perception

Are you trained to offer such services through the mail? Or are
you interested in receiving such training? ( You will find many
such offers to train you in a newstand magazine called FATE. )
If you answer is Yes... this is where you should begin your
mailorder career.

The next magazine I analyzed was the November 1975 issue of
FIELD AND STREAM. Since this magazine is aimed at two mailorder
markets, hunters and fishermen, I analyzed only those ads
pertaining to Hunters.

HUNTERS ( MERCHANDISE )

Men who hunt for wild game spend a lot of money on their hobby.
They buy top quality hunting clothes. ( Who wants to go hunting
in a CHEAP pair of wilderness boots? ) They spend a lot of money on
their guns, their hunting knives, and on top quality binoculars.
There are several dozen well - down pat mail order companies
selling this kind of merchandise to hunters. If you ar planning
to establish a one man mail order operation, you would be well
advised not to try to compete with these companies.

Is everything making sense so far? If not, I'm sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.

Instead,
hinge for something unique that a hunter can USE, and begin you
mailorder business there.

Here are a few lines offerings being made by enterprising
dealers:

" Deer Hunter's soap " ( Bathe in soap scented with the aroma of a
female deer and you will attract a Buck. Only $1. 50 per bay! )
Notice how a smart dealer ADAPTED a commonplace item to a
specialized market. Notice too, that he adapted it to ONLY ONE
KIND OF HUNTER. HE DIDN'T Proposal IT TO BEAR HUNTERS, TO COON
HUNTERS, TO QUAIL HUNTERS, OR TO GAME HUNTERS IN Trite. He
offered it to deer - hunters! If you are a deer - hunter, you would
ear that ad! "

" Curtain rods for HUNTING Vans - $3. 95 a pair. " ( Sure, you can
buy curtain rods in quota dime store, but not curtain rods for
HUNTING VANS! Another excellent example of taking a commonplace
circumstance, adapting it to a specialized market, and creating a new
mailorder product.

Also offered:

- Gun cleaning cloths ( 10 for a dollar )

- Brass Nameplates for HUNTING DOGS ( not for just any old dog! )

- ID Tags for Your Hunting Dogs

- Handwarmers and Bodywarmers ( Boy, could you use these when
you get lost in the snow! )

- There was a small classified ad offering " Fish and Game
Rubber Stamps. " I hope this dealer got a lot of orders, but if
he didn't, I suspect it was because his offer was too stale.
First of all, it would have sold better with an illustrated
display ad. But even better... let us go back to the Virgo
and Scorpio concept above. How about rubber stamps for Coon
Hunters? Or for Pheasant Hunters? Or rubber stamps for
Taxidermists? You will always get more orders if you direct
your ad to specific nation.

HUNTING ( INFORMATION )

Frankly, I was disconcerted at the value of Information Folios being
sold to Hunters. Here are some examples:

" How to Build Your Own Gun Cabinet "

" Duck Calling Instructions " ( 30 record on tape! ) A lot of
information, in every field, is now being domiciliate on cassette tape
and sold by mail. If you would rather talk than write, this
could be an aspect of mailorder selling for you to consider.

" Chart showing Life - size Tracks of 38 Animals in the Adirondack
Mountains " ( Incidently not all information is written. A class
of people buy plans, diagrams, etc. To digress, recently a
dealer advertised plans to build your own flying saucer
detector! )

" How to Build Box Traps - $1. 00 "

" My Whatchamacallit on Coon Trapping, after 50 years. Guaranteed, $1. 00 "

" Mount fish for Fun and Profit - Easy instructions - $1. 00 "

" Tan Your Own Hides - Hair on or off - Complete, easy to follow
instructions and Formulas - $1. 00 "

" Build ( meat, fish, sausage ) smoker! Inexpensive, protable..
.. easy plans, $1. 00 "

" Wild Diversion and Fish Recipes - Deer, Bear, Rabbit, Trout, Salmon
and dozens more - $1. 00 "

Can you write an information manual for hunters? Can you tell
him how to shoot ducks? Or how to hunt buffalo?... Or what
to do for snake bites?... Or how to sign up for a Big Game
Safari in the wilds of Africa? If you can, write a good manual
( or put it on tape! ) and sell it by mail!

HUNTING ( SERVICE )

Unlike the readers of Astrology magazines, Game Hunters don't
give a damn about being analyzed or counselled! But if you can
teach his hunting dog how to chase a hump up a tree, then he
will probably pay you for your services. Can you repair his
gun? Or can you stuff and enter on his catches? If so, you can
build a mailorder business offering such services.

The final publication analyzed was the WRITER'S DIGEST of
November, 1975.

WRITING ( MERCHANDISE )

If you are interested in the craft of writing ( or if you have
done well in creative writing classes ) you might decide to build
a mail order business catering to the needs of hundreds of
thousands of persons who dream of apt professional writers.
here are some of the merchandise offerings being made to
writers:

- " Copyright and Related Laws for Writers "

- " Grants and Aids to Individuals in the Arts - 1500 Sources. "
( What writer isn't looking for a grant? )

- " I receive checks every tour for features, fillers, news.
Free details. "

- " Gagwriters Guide "

- " Unrevealed Way to Make Money Writing - $2. 00 "

- " Make Money Writing Fillers! Up - to - Rap session Wrapping Directory. "

- " International Directory of Little Magazines and Small
Presses. "

If you can produce an information manual showing writers how to
write better, or how to sell their manuscripts, then write it
and sell it by mail. You will have CREATED a new mailorder
product! ( To get ideas for subjects of interest to writers,
study the articles in congeneric publications as the Writers Digest,
The Writer, Saturday Review, etc. )

WRITERS - - ( SERVICE )

Some of the largest mailorder business in the world sell
correspondence courses teaching people how to write for a
living. There are also a dozen or more large printing companies
( called " Vanity Publishers " in the trade ) whose sole business is
printing books for authors, whose works have been rejected by
the regular publishing houses.

If you are a serious literary person, with a gift for writing,
you could very possibly establish a business offering your
services to writers. Here are some of the services which were
being offered in the November 1975 issue of Writer's Digest:

- Literary Counseling
- Literary Criticism
- Literary Editing
- Short Story Evaluation
- Manuscript Analysis
- Article Try ( No Fiction )
- Knock off Writing
- Newspaper and Magazine Reference Service ( Authors often need
such a service. )
- Manuscript Typing

Are you qualified to proposal factor of these services by mail? If
you are, you have start up a service to sell by mail! If you are
not now efficient, why not acquire professional training...
and then offer your services by mail?

IN Feeling

I realize that I have just touched the show up of three
different mail order markets. There are hundreds of individual mail
order markets for you to explore! Analyze yourself and then
select the market that is best for you.

Study your market thoroughly... AND NEVER STOP STUDYING IT.
Most successful mailorder people peruse dozens of magazines every
month. They KNOW what their customers are thinking about, what
they need, and what they will buy.

Successful mailorder people are interested in the NEEDS and
WANTS of their customers FIRST. They understand that if they
concentrate on those, profits will flow positively. Those who
think only of profits soon pass by the wayside.

In the beginning of this manual, I asked you to write to every
magazine in your chosen field. Subscribe to as many as possible.
When you have created your first product, then dawn
advertising in those magazines ( which is why I said to keep
their rate cards. ) Never escape an ad unless you can run it in
three consecutive issues. Then CONTINUE running it for as long
as it continues to produce new customers for you. Slowly add
new ( but related ) items to your livelihood. Whenever lurking, expand
your business by inserting your ads in new publications.

Remember these simple guidelines:

- DON'T COPY ANYONE ELSE! You are a unique individual.
Express your own individuality in your Mail Order business.

- CREATE SOMETHING NEW AND Overpowering!

- CREATE SOMETHING USEFUL AND WORTHWHILE!

- CREATE SOMETHING YOU YOURSELF WOULD Hunger TO BUY!

DeAnna Spencer

DeAnna is the publisher of the ezine, Prospecting and Presents.
Subscribers get one free ad per week.
visiting http://www.pnewsletter.com

Creating Powerful Names for Products, Services, and Your business

2007-08-26T11:49:00.000-07:00

Are you looking for some inside information on Branding? Here's an up-to-date report from Branding experts who should know.

Creating Powerful Names for Products, Services, and Your business

The name of your business is important - - it's one of the first things potential customers know about it. And having unique names for each of your products and services can be a powerful selling tool. One way to make yourself and your business attractive is to have something exclusive and enticing, promising benefits.

Good names for your business, products and services can do that. Good names market for you.

Do you have a hard time coming up with names? Perhaps you called your business ABC Enterprises, because you just couldn't think of anything else. What does that name say about you and what you do? Nothing. Nada. Zip. It doesn't tell customers why they would want to do business with you,
because they have no idea what it is that you do, or who you do it for.

Here's my favorite way to come up with a name. I call it " Idea Storming. " OK, I just did it to you. marketing with a name, that is. " Idea Storming " is a name I came up with to describe one of my services. Brainstorming has been done to dying. Been there, done that, got the t - shirt from the seminar. Abstraction Storming puts a slight twist on it. You recognize the concept, but it has a different name, and it ties
to my Idea Lady identity. Not a peacocky example, but see how it works?

Anyway, I help my clients to Idea Storm, but here's how you can do it on your own. Get a piece of gratuitous and a pen. write down every word or phrase you can think of to describe your business. What do you do? Who are your clients? What results do you get for them? What words would your clients use to describe what you do? How would they
report the innervation they got doing business with you? Why is your business better than others?

Once you've got a nice, long list, keep going. Get out your thesaurus ( or use the one in your word processor ) to break through up with words with meanings similar to what you wrote down. Scan books and magazine articles for words and phrases that jump off the page at you. Talk to friends and associates, and get them to Idea Storm with you.

Now, take your list and start combining the words and phrases. Take this word and add it to that one. Use this phrase, but substitute that word. Take pieces of two words and make a brand new word.

I've used this line to come up with lots of names and titles over the last few years. This is how I created names such as The Idea Lady, Solo - preneuring, and many more.

Extra great benefit of Idea Storming is that even the words and phrases you don't use in your name can be used in a slogan, on your business cards, in sales letters, in brochures and in other marketing materials.

This technique is simple. But it really works.

Copyright Cathy Stucker. As the Idea Lady, Cathy Stucker can help you attract customers and make yourself famous with inexpensive and free marketing ideas. Get free tips, articles and more at http://www.IdeaLady.com .

Santa - The brand

2007-08-26T11:47:00.000-07:00

If you have even a passing interest in the topic of Branding, then you should take a look at the following information. This enlightening article presents some of the latest news on the subject of Branding. Santa - The brand - Branding

Santa - The brand

Every christmas Eve, a burglar named Santa busts into homes around the world, but he has never been charged with B&E. He has one of the best, most positive brands around and it continues to inoculate him against any hint of impropriety, as it has for generations.

Why does Santa's brand remain so strong? Because Santa is:

? Consistent

? Unique

? customer - focused

? Viral

Let's examine these to examine what lessons we can learn.

First off, Santa has a positioning statement and has used it to stay true to his mission for decades.

It is this consistency that has helped him build a brand franchise that is the envy of other marketers. No matter what kind of communication vehicle he uses, the message is measured castigate the positioning statement.

Fed - Ex and UPS also deliver packages, but they don't do it in the middle of the night in a sleigh drawn by eight tiny reindeer. Santa has cornered the market on uniqueness.

He has not strayed from the market he identified in his positioning statement. His locus is not every carbon - based life form. He focuses on kids. End of story. Prate about customer intimacy. Santa has perfected data mining.

Who else knows if you:

? are sleeping or awake

? want a Barbie or a baseball bat

? have been libidinous or nice

Santa invented viral marketing. As his customers get older and become parents, they market to the emerging trust of customers for him. They know that if they deliver Santa's message, they will benefit from their children's good behavior.

And it's not just the parents. Other marketers help him, too. Santa has never spent a dime on advertising. He has used good public relations tactics to develop, manage and maintain solid relationships with marketers who succor for him. Consider the Coca - Cola ads featuring Mr. Claus. Think of all the newspaper inserts that manage his picture during the holidays. Then, there are all those helpers in department stores everywhere.

Because of his adherence to simple marketing tactics, everyone loves Santa. Not bad for an old burglar with a reindeer fetish.

Harry Hoover has 26 years of experience in crafting and delivering bottom line messages that ensure success for serious businesses. Permit up for his free monthly newsletter at http://www.hoover-ink.com .

The Secrets of Starting Business Successfully

2007-08-26T11:44:00.000-07:00

This interesting article addresses some of the key issues regarding Branding. A careful reading of this material could make a big difference in how you think about Branding.

The Secrets of Starting Business Successfully

Starting Business Secrets will help you to start your own business successfully.

The American Dream is, and always will be, to ring in up with an idea, start a business and become rich from your own efforts. Based upon this motivation, thousands of businesses omit each year, due primarily to not being recognized with the basics involved in towering a business.

This report will enlighten you, and give you a number of suggestions you can use to better guarantee your chances for success. This report is written with the warning that any and every business flyer contains certain inherent risks, and any number of alternatives. We do not espouse that any one way is the right way or that our suggestions are the only way. On the contrary, we advise that before investing any money in a business venture, you seek counselling and help from a qualified accountant and / or attorney.

Just about the first thing you should consider before deciding to start or purchase a business is the legal form you'll be operating under. There are in conclusion four choices: sole proprietorship, partnership, limited partnership, and / or corporation.

Each has a number of advantages and disadvantages. We'll try to enumerate some of them for you.

As much as anything else, for many people starting a business is a form of ego - gratification, and they die a corporation for some sort of prestige gain - just to say, " I own a corporation. "

With just a little vigor of observation, you'll find that one of the major causes of business failures is due to the founder wasting start - up capital on frills, such as an able store - front occupation, expensive furnishings, and corporate legal costs.

One of the basic traits you must develop it you're going to be successful in business, is a tight hold on your expenditures. In fact, a good rule of mold is that anything that does not make money for yo or protect your investment, should not be purchased at this time. Very definitely, this applies to the expense of setting up your own field.

Unless you have a partnership and takeoff your business as such, the only real growth to forming a corporation would appear to be that a corporate structure will semi - protect the property you personally own.

As an example, you own a home and car. You form a corporation to protect these rule from business losses. Yet, if you can be found guilty of misusing corporate funds, your business creditors can pierce the corporate shield and come after your possessions.

Basically, if you invest everything you have in your business, as most newcomers do, you don't usually need a corporation because you have nothing to provide. Your household possessions, personal belongings, generally your car, and even a portion of the equity in your home is protected by the homestead provision of the Federal Bankruptcy Act, and cannot be taken away from you.

As a sole proprietor or partner of a business you'll be paying taxes on your overall earnings, much the same as if you were holding down a salaried or hourly paid job. Whether you do or don't take out money as a salary will have no bearing on the earnings of your business and tax return.

The often advertised advantage of incorporating, that you can shape your salary in order to save on tax dollars, is real because of corporation laws. However, the IRS frowns on this practice. When your business is successful and making a lot of money, definitely play ball with your accountant on the advantages of incorporating.

As a corporation, you'll be subject to a number of other drawbacks as well: generally higher state taxes, stricter laws concerning the operation of your business, more elaborate accounting procedures, and legal papers that are required just about every time you make a major move or sign almost any contract. Thus, your legal and accounting fees will be much higher as a corporation than will those required for a sole proprietorship type of business.

As a sole proprietor or partnership, you'll find many areas require the registration of your business name. The cost however, is minimal, ranging from $5 to $100. About the best way to find out what laws apply in your region, is to draw your bank and ask if they need a fictitious name registration card or certificate in order for you to open a business account.

Selecting a name for your business is quite important to you and particularly relative to advertising. Your business name should describe the product or services you offer. Acceptance names such as, Linda's Clipping Service will flee potential " walk - in and passing " customers to the beauty shop across the street that calls itself, Patti's Charm Salon or Jane's Hair Styling Shop.

The advantage of using your full name in the title of your business, such as Johnny Jones' Meat Lockers, has the advantage of making credit somewhat easier to come by - provided you pay your bills on time - but it also includes the disadvantage of confining your services to a local or at most, a regional area.

Should you buy, sublet, or rent a space for your business? think twice before you make ration decision along these goods. Most businesses doctor to grow quickly or they never get off the ground.

There are a few exceptions, but only a very few, that tend to grow at a modified rate.

So, buying a piece of property and setting up your business on or within that property, obligates you to ownership regardless of what happens to your business.

Leases are almost always very strong contracts written by attorneys to the take of the property - owner. When you sign an understanding to pay someone for the use of their space over any loop of time, you're " nailed in " to paying for that space regardless of what happens to your business.

In the beginning, it's wise to either get the shortest - term lease plausible, or arrange to rent with an preference to charter at a subsequent date. This does not apply to a retail business, unless your particular business happens to be an untried one.

All right, you should open a business bank account. In selecting a bank for your business, scout around and look for one that can, and will help you. Determine what your banking needs will be, and then via telephone, weekend the managers of the banks in your area. The important convenient bank to your business location.

A point to remember: the closer you can make the relationship between you and the bank manager, the better your chances are going to be for approval on loans and / or defined favors you may need at a later sit-in.

Try to become acquainted with as many of the bank employees as potential. The better you know them, the more courtesies they'll be extending especially to you in the course of your association.

Just as a doctor is a specialist in his field, and you go to him for medical problems, your banker is a specialist in his field and you should go to him for your money problems. In business, you'll have to learn that everyone is an expert in his own line of work, and in your associations with other business people, refrain from acting like a " sharpie " and / or pretending that you know exactly how everything works in someone else's specialty.

You'll find that very often, different banks specialize in different types of businesses. As an example, you're sure to find banks that specialize in real estate transactions, export - import businesses, and like manufacturing operations only.

What I'm saying here is that if you're planning to sella moderately expensive item, your customers will probably need and / or thirst financing. It will behoove you to select a bank familiar with your type of product that will afford your customers, through you, contract financing.

Some of the questions you should ask of your banker include the subsequent:

Is it necessary to maintain a certain balance in your account before the bank will exculpate a loan for you? What qualifications must you have in order to obtain a line of credit with the bank?

Does the bank limit the number of loans, or types of loans it will approve for small businesses?

What is the bank's policy regarding the size of a check you might deposit that requires holding for organization?

And what about checks less than that amount - will they be immediately credited to your account?

In partly all types of businesses, it will be to your benefit to set up with your bank, a method of handling VISA, Master Charge, and regional surmise cards. The important thing here is to ultimately set up your account in the bank that will service all of these credit transactions for you - one stop for all your banking needs. In most instances, you'll find that having the capability to fill orders / make sales via credit pick out transactions, will increase your volume of sales
appreciatively.

Once you've made the decision as to which bank is going to knob your account, you'll need your Social Security Number or your Federal Employer's Identification Number, your driver's license, the fictitious name certificate, and if you're requesting a VISA or Master Charge franchise, you'll also need a financial statement.

For corporations, you'll also need a corporate resolution approving of the opening of your business account.

Expert are different policies exercised in just about every state regarding installation / hook - up charges by the telephone and utility companies. Some have need a deposit, and some don't.

You'll find that a great cipher of city business license departments are there solely for the purpose of collecting another excise. Depending on the type of business you're asking a license for, the building and zoning people may inspect your premises for soundness of structure and safety. Generally, you won't encounter any difficulties - you simply pay your cost to operate your business in that city, and the clerk types your name onto a city license certificate.

Relative to sales tax permits and licenses, each state's rules and regulations very widely. The best apparatus to do is call your state offices and ask for information concerning registry and gathering procedures. Many states require an advance deposit or bond, and you'll find that some wholesalers or manufacturers will not sell to you at wholesale prices until you can splash them your sales tax authorize or number.

Should your business entail selling your products or services across state lines, in another make clear, you're not required to collect taxes except in those where you have offices or stores.

You may find further that your particular business requires the collection of Federal Excise Taxes. For information along these lines, check in with your local office of the Internal Revenue Service.

Some states also require certain businesses to hold state licenses, such as those required in many states for TV Repairmen.

These are known as " occupational permits " and are most often required of barbers, hair stylists, substantive estate humans and a number of other consumer oriented businesses. If you have any doubts, check with your state offices for a list of those occupations that require licensing.

Any business doing business in side type of interstate commerce is puzzle to federal regulations, usually through the Federal Trade Chore. This means that any business that shops, sells or advertises in more than one state is subject to conforming regulation, and this includes even the smallest of mail order operations.

Normally, very few business people ever have and contact with the federal regulatory agencies. The only exceptions now when polished is a question of your operating your business unethically or illegally.

Any business that sells or distributes food in moiety manner almost always requires a county health department permit. If your business falls into this category, neatly call the county health side and invite them out to your place of business for an inspection. The fees generally range from about $25, depending on the size of your business when they first inspect it for permit approval.

There are also a number of businesses that require inspection by a fire marshall, and fire department approval. Generally, these are those that handle flammable materials or attract large numbers of people, such as a theater. Overall, the individualizing blaze department has to be allowed to inspect your premises whenever they long to do so.

You may also run into a requirement for an air and / or water pollution control permit.

The more authentic information about Branding you know, the more likely people are to consider you a Branding expert. Read on for even more Branding facts that you can share.

These specifically apply to any business that burns anything, discharges anything into the sewers or waterways, or use any gas - producing product, such as a dye sprayer.

Without a doubt, you'll need to check on local regulations relating to advertising display signs. Each city or township makes its own rules and then enforces those rules according to its own thinking - stand together before you contract to have a sign made for your business.

The design and placement of your sign is very important to your business - specifically to retail establishments - but let me remind you that your business sign is often the first material a potential customer sees and as such, it should catch his eye and leave an impression that lasts. It would be a good idea to ride around your town and take a look at the signs that catch your eye, and try to determine the impression of the business that sign leaves on you. This is a basic learning
formula for determining the design, size and placement of your business sign.

Some of the other things to consider before opening for business - If you intend to employ one or more employees, you'll be required to deduct Federal Income Taxes, and Social Desire payments from their checks. This will involve your filing for a Federal Tax Number and necessitates acquaintance with your local IRS Handicraft.

Most states have " unemployment taxes " which will have to be deducted from the paychecks of any employees you hire. And there are a number of states that have income taxes - disability insurance - and any number of other taxes. Again, the best everything to do is check with your local office of the IRS. And above all else, don't forget to ask for the rules of the minimum salary law, and comply.

When your business grows to the point of needing additional help, don't be distressed to look for and enlist the help you need. when you're ready to hire someone, tidily run an ad in your local paper and / or register your needs with the local office of your state's employment service. Businesses either grow or die, and those that grow eventually need more people in order to continue growing.

When that time comes, hire the additional people you need, and your business will continue increasing. If you don't, for whatever reason, you'll find yourself married to your business and your business growth stymied.

Regardless of how small your business is when you initiate, never walk in with the thought in perception that it's something to keep you busy. Anyone with an attitude of that kind is a fool. You begin and make a business successful in order to realize financial freedom. Establish your business. Put it on its feet, and then hire altered people to do the work for you. And those businesses that require an operations manager, or someone to run a phase of the business you're too busy to haft,
hire the person needed or the business will yes suffer.

To protect the investment of your business, you need business insurance. If you've never had any experience with business insurance, simply look under the heading of " business insurance " in your phone directory. Ask for bids from several different companies or agents... Primarily, you should have a policy that gives you general liability, fire, workmen's compensation, business interruption, and vehicle coverage. You amy also want coverage against possible losses related to burglary,
robbery, Life & Accident, Key Man, and Infatuation Bonds.

As the sole proprietor of a business, you won't be paid as an employee, so proficient will be no income tax deducted from whatever you withdraw from the company's earnings. What you'll have to do is a gain check with the IRS Office for a Tax Guide For Small Businesses Handbook, and probably end up filing an estimated tax return on a quarterly initiation.

The minute you open your doors for business, you'll have to spend some time engaged in the work of bookkeeping. Exactly how, and using what forms, you keep books, should be on the recommendations of a good tax counselor... The same holds true for your overall business and / or payroll accounting system. Beholding for an experienced CPA that knows the accounting problems to your regular kind of business, and solicit his advise / counseling.

If your business is going to involve the possible purchase or lease of operating equipment, again seek the help of your tax counselor for the most advantageous method of obtaining the principal equipment.

Basically, arranging for your suppliers to give you materials on credit will depend upon your honesty and personal financial statement. The best way is usually a personal visit to the person with the power to maintain or disapprove of credit at the company where you want to acknowledge up a credit account. Show him your financial statement, and explain your prospects for success. Then assure him that you've always noble all of your obligations, and that if ever there's a question or
problem, you'd like for him to outline you at home. And of circuit, give him your home phone number.

We won't go into the exigencies of advertising your products, services or business here, but there is something along these lines you should always keep in mind. The best eleemosynary of advertising your business can receive is that you don't really pay for - publicity.

When something incredible happens to you, your business, or your employees - that's news, so be sure to tell the news media in your area about it.

The most important ingredient of your eventual success will be the soundness of the planning you did before you started your business. Any number of bad things can really throw your business into a tailspin, but it you've done your homework well - really set up a detailed business plan before starting - your losses or setbacks will be minimal. Success takes planning, and within this report, you've got a basic checklist... The project is up to you... Good luck, and may your life overflow
with success in all that you undertake from this moment forward.

Julia Tang publishes Smart Online Business Tips, a fresh and informative newsletter dedicated to supporting people like you! To find out the best online business opportunities, and to discover hundreds more proven and producing internet marketing secrets, ethic FREE internet marketing products worth over $200, visit: http://www.best-internet-businesses.com Note: Feel free to publish it with the resource box and content unchanged

Optimize Your mailing List For Better Results

2007-08-26T11:39:00.000-07:00

In today's world, it seems that almost any topic is open for debate. While I was gathering facts for this article, I was quite surprised to find some of the issues I thought were settled are actually still being openly discussed. Optimize

Optimize Your mailing List For Better Results

A list of customers who have previously bought from you is your most important asset. These are the customers who will provide you with return business, which is more profitable than the first sale. Are you getting the most from your customer list?

There are some secrets you should know, so you can squeeze the most benefits out of your mailing list.

Most business' customer lists consist of this information: Name, Address, City, State, Zest. That's it. Unfortunately, this mailing list is almost worthless. You need to have more information in your files than just that. I have 32 information fields in my customer database! You should be able to set these up in your computer's database, or, if you don't use a computer ( you REALLY should ), all this information should fit on a large size index spot in a card file. Here are the fields I have in my customer database:

Product Code Publication Issue Purchase LastName Of customer FirstName of customer Address1; Address2 / POBox City; State; Sparkle; Amount Paid Ship Cattle call Phone Number

Almost any address possible can be put into my database without having to leave out information or abbreviate. The next three are for phone numbers. You Charge have your customer 's phone numbers, when possible, to be able to follow up quickly and efficiently. Making one phone call can be the difference between a big sale or NO sale.

The InqDate field is stage I document the date the customer first inquired about my products and services, and the date I sent the information, since it's always the same day ( there's no disclose not to supervene up your inquiries on the same day you take in them ). This information, coupled with the ReferSource field, tells me when my ads are hitting, and how quickly people are responding to them. If I see that
inquiries are coming in slowly, or gangling after the ad is out, I know that I need more stunt incentives in my next ad. The ReferSource field is where I allow for the " key " from my ad. I use a letter code alongside my street address to indicate which register and issue the inquiry comes from. I besides code my mailings, for the same reason.

I teem with a date into the two FollowUp fields to try when I want to send follow up literature to customers who don't order on the first try. I usually put a date two weeks from the InqDate in FollowUp1, and one two weeks later than that in FollowUp2. Then, every day, I run a search on these two fields to pull up cut records that have today's date as a follow up date. I can then print labels and put them on the envelopes and literature I have ready for follow ups.

I use the next three fields ( SubDate, SubAmount, RenewDate ) for the newsletter I publish. These would have the date I receive their subscription, the expense they paid ( I sometimes run special prices ), and the conclave I want to send subscription renewal information ( usually 10 1 / 2 months from the SubDate ). I can then print labels in the same manner as I do for the FollowUp fields.

Next come the Purchase fields. I have three sets of purchase fields, one for each purchase the customer makes. In the Purch1 employment, I enter a code for the product they have purchased. The other two fields get the date and amount of the purchase. The assistance and third sets of fields get the same information for the customer 's succour and
third purchases. The best customers to mail offers to are the ones that have purchased within the last 90 days, so I don't have to worry about many customers creation more than three purchases during that time period ( though I hope they will! ). If someone does make a fourth purchase, I turn the second and poll sets of Tricks .blogspot.com"
data up to the first and second lines, and enter the new purchase information in the interrogation Tricks data engage.

These fields are extremely important. I can pronto crack up a list of customers that have purchased within the past 90 days, or 60 days, or 30 days, or even 15 days. When you rent out your house mailing list, like I do, this information is vital. The rental amount you can charge increases as the cost of time since the customer's pull decreases.

The Comments field is used to store any compound information about the customer that I think is important to know.

I use the final field, Cust#, for a specially coded customer number that I assign each customer . I use this code to identify the recipient of any commissions I may pay to customers who have brought business my way.

That's a lot of information, and you may be wondering why I would need all of that. Well, I've already told you how I use the purchase data fields for identifying the " age " of the customers. I can also use the TotAmount field to compile a list of customers who have bought more than a certain amount from me. Together, these field searches can be used to produce a customized mailing list of, for for instance, customers who have bought more than $50 in the past 30 days. These would be the most responsive people to mail to, and would render the highest rental rate.

I can also use certain mailing list fields to identify people who should be dropped from my list. For example, I can search for customers with FollowUp2 dates that are four weeks past today's date, and TotAmounts of zero. These customers could be erased from my list. Or, I could leave them on file, and put a word or two in the Comments field reminding me not to mail anything else to them, in case they inquire again. This saves me the cost of mailing something to someone who probably won't respond. They might, but chances are they won't.

Finally, if I get a customer who has common too many orders, or has defrauded me in some way, I can put that information in the Comments field. Then, if they order again, when their file comes up, I will see their relation, and can use extra inwardness with them.

As you can see, if you use foresight when initially setting up your customer list, you will have a valuable tool that you can use to expansion your order potential, increase your income through specialized list rental, and decrease your mailing costs by eliminating " deadwood " from your list. This is one of the most important methods you can use to increase your chances of success.

Copyright 2004 by DeAnna Spencer

Note to editors: To show my appreciation to the editors that use my articles, I offer a free only ad. Simply send an email to me by using the form on the contact me page on my website to tell me the url the article was used on or send me a copy of the ezine it was used in.
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Brand Your Consulting Brilliance

2007-08-26T11:34:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered what exactly is up with Branding? This informative report can give you an insight into everything you've ever wanted to know about Branding.

brand Your Consulting Brilliance

Today's competitive marketplace for consulting services is no longer responsive to the marketing strategies that worked in the past. The services you provide should speak volumes about your consulting business. Think about what happens when you hear phrases such as " the ultimate driving machine, " " don't concession home without it,

" and " just do it. " Chances are good that you can immediately associate them with BMW, American Express, and Nike. These companies have mastered " brand brilliance. " brand your consulting brilliance now the
future of your business depends on it.

There's an old adage, " Perception is reality. " Simply stated, the perception of a brand lies in its ability to influence a client's behavior. When you have successfully branded your business, in the client's eye crack is no service in the marketplace quite like your service.

All consulting businesses should have a distinct, sustainable, and competitive advantage to differentiate their services from the competition. I write up this process of identifying your advantage " brand Your Consulting Brilliance. "

Here are six simple steps to brand and differentiate your services in the new economy.

1. Think client focus first. The client's reality: Consulting businesses exist to serve clients. Develop a client visitation calendar and plan in - person visits. Squint the client in the eye and say, " I am here to serve you. " Follow up and follow through on all client - related matters in a timely manner.

Create a client questionnaire so clients can rate the performance of your services. You want them to tell you how you're doing and what you can do to serve them better. It's also a way to discover what challenges they are currently facing. Be relentless in your client retention efforts.

2. Discover a distinct advantage that will set you apart from competitors. Start by articulating your " unique marketing proposition, " a statement of all of the qualities and characteristics that set your services apart in the mart. Tell your services: What skills and services do we provide that are distinctive, measurable, and add value? Which of our past successes can we leverage in the marketplace? And don't forget
to ask colleagues what they see as your competitive strengths.

Communicate these messages reinforcing your unique marketing proposition anytime you have an opportunity to write or speak about your consulting adamant and what you have to offer to prospective clients.

3. Generate publicity. What others say about your brand is much more powerful and credible than what you can say about it yourself. When it comes to branding your consulting brilliance, favorable publicity in the media or word of mouth is far superior to advertising. So how do you generate the publicity " buzz "? Create a buzz about your brand by due to
visible: words at seminars, publishing a newsletter on your website, participating as a host or guest on television or radio prattle shows, writing a column in a reputable trade periodical, and networking.

4. Promote a powerful perception of quality in the client's mind. What is quality if not a perception that resides in the talent of the client? You build quality intangibles around trust, reliability, excellent people, and innovative client services. Show clients that you can
interpret and process their information to convert it to results oriented solutions. What you say is important, but what you do is even more important for reinforcing their perception of your brand quality.

Keep the lines of intelligence open. The goal of branding your consulting brilliance is to convince the client that your brand is worth their trust and worth a premium price.

5. Establish your credentials as an elbow grease leader in the trade. Clients like to know they are doing business with an industry leader. Make clients aware of your consulting acumen, presence, and commitment. Know your clients' businesses inside out - what they do, why
they do it, how they do it. Tout your firm's successful track record of accomplishment in working with companies like theirs.

Build and sustain credibility with clients by strengthening your client relationships, developing a client retention strategy, demonstrating that you value your new clients, and going the extra mile for them.

6. Practice consistency in building your consulting brilliance. Stay focused on implementing the branding of your consulting brilliance. Keep abreast of marketing trends in your profession and position yourself as a recognized brilliant. Make the most of your unique marketing proposition. Accelerate and elevate the perceived value of your brand in the marketplace.

In short, to brand your consulting brilliance, know what you have to offer, know how to differentiate it, and know how to market it.

Robert Spell is a inimitable - selling author, business coach, strategist and the founder of The Moment Group, a consulting firm dedicated to helping small businesses win federal contracts. He just released his new book, It Only Takes a Pull to Score, and recently unveiled Sell Integrity, a small business tool that helps you successfully sell your business idea. Learn more at: http://www.sellintegrity.com or email: Robert@sellintegrity.com.

Getting Started in the Mail Order business. How Much Does It Cost?

2007-08-26T11:25:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered what exactly is up with Branding? This informative report can give you an insight into everything you've ever wanted to know about Branding.

Getting Started in the Mail Order business. How Much Does It Cost?
INTRODUCTION

To get quota business started successfully takes many ingredients. All requirements fall into one of the following four key categories: 1. Desire, 2. Knowledge, 3. time, and 4. Available funds. This report deals only with the financial requirements of starting a mail order business.

Hopefully it will help the reader to evaluate whether he is financially moving to embark upon a business feat that will bring about success. It is generally true that it takes substantially less money to get started in many mail order businesses than in a variety of other businesses.

Many a backer will want you to belive that it is possible to get started successfully for $50, $100, or even $200. However, it is totally false. It does take more than that. How much more depends on many factors which I will try to define as much as is conceivable here.

Since the mail order business covers a vast number of services and products I would like to define the contents of this report to deal with the selling of information products. This is where my expertise lies. While the same or similar conditions may apply to any number of
other mail order businesses, sharp may however be some differences to selling information products such as books, etc.

The after makes a number of assumptions. The most important ones are:

1. The operator ( or operators ) of the new mail order business is employed or has other means of income.. He will not need to derive any profit from his new business for a period of time.. How long will depend on many factors.

2. This is a home based business which has no employees.

3. The business, at the start - until volume reaches $3, 000 to $5, 000 per month - will utilize the drop shipping services of a wholesale company.

4. Basic office equipment such as desk, file cabinet, computer, etc... are on hand.

A WORD OF CAUTION AT THE START AND RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO YOU

This is an exciting business and it can be extremely profitable once it reaches a certain momentum. However, like almost all businesses it is a very cost sensitive business.

As you are getting started in business-planning business think and act with training when it pertains to any expenditures. This is one of the most difficult things to do since you are probably very enthusiastic and hankering to do everything straightaway. So you
need to get down HOW TO CONTROL YOUR ENTHUSIASM or it is going to cost you lost of extra money.

In this state of enthusiasm we tend to think that there is nothing we can do wrong and since we will be making lots of money in a few months lets get all necessary and often unnecessary supplies and equipment. It would be much better to wait until profits of the business make it possible to acquire what is needed. In the meantime you can make do with less. To be able to do so is a most important quality for the
owner of a small to do so is a most important quality for the host of a small business.

If you are a parent think of your new business as a child. There will be a never ending sequence of surprises. And as the business grows so will its demands, and yes its expenses.

START - UP EXPENSES - - INITIAL STAGE

The below listed expenses will be incurred in the very early stages of setting up your business. This is at a time when you probably are not sure as yet what you will be selling. You will be writing to different companies for
information to come up with the right product selection. Once you have decided what it is you will be selling you have to line up reliable suppliers, This is also a good time to buy a few books to help you with your mail order education. Although most expenses incurred in this phase are
relatively small they will add up rapidly.

These prices are estimates. Prices will vary according to your seat.
* Stationery and envelopes...................... 50. 00

* P. O. Digs rental..................... 60. 00 per year

* Miscellaneous office supplies................ 30. 00

* Postage............................... 50. 00

* Educational........................ 45. 00

* TOTAL................... 235. 00

START - UP EXPENSES - - SECONDARY Step

You have now reached the point at which you have decided upon one or more reliable suppliers for the product you wish to market. You may also be ready to have some promotional material printed. In addition you may be placing one or two classified ads for testing purposes.

Once again, please remember that these prices are estimates only. * Dealership or distributorship ( 1 or more )......................... 80. 00

* small supply of brochures or catalogs.......... 50. 00

* Printing of sales letter, order form, Return envelopes, etc............ 90. 00

* 1 test ad, classified ( national magazine )................. 100. 00

* business or traders license.............. 30. 00

* Postage....................... 25. 00

* TOTAL..................... 375. 00

Until now you have only had expenses for your new business. You have not derived any catch yet. In the next and final stage of starting your business you may have some revenues. Stage one and two may take from approximately 3 to 6 months.

START - UP EXPENSES - - THIRD STAGE

You have now reached a stage were you will expand your advertising, or alternately you may go the direct marketing route and disjunction a mailing list. The comparison of expenses and revenue results of a direct marketing effort versus classified advertising need to be carefully evaluated.
Since expenses for a direct marketing effort are generally higher than for a small advertising campaign, the below listed expenses focus on an advertising campaign,

Estimates provided for illustrative purpsoes only.

* Advertising - - 3 classified ads. It seems like new information is discovered about something every day. And the topic of Branding is no exception. Keep reading to get more fresh news about Branding. ......................................... .. 280. 00

* Postage for several hundred inquiries derived from adverting effort.................... 75. 00

* Multiple office supplies.................. 30. 00

* Ruin................................ 385. 00

Terse

The combined expenses as listed above total just under $1000. They are based on broad estimates and may vary somewhat by area of the country and discrete circumstances. The figures are reflecting a minimum amount. Some individuals may be able to cut expenses further. Since this business-planningdeal with additional advertising, printing and postage expenses. By how much would largely be an individual decision.

Since most new businesses fail because of absence of funds, it would be advisable for an individual who does not have the necessary funds to get started to wait until he does. In addendum to the no problem start - up expenses an individual should again consider that most businesses will loose money for several months and sometimes much longer than that. Unfortunately no matter how well you plan, circumstances often change and we must make allowances for those eventualities.

Copyright 2004 by DeAnna Spencer

Note to editors: To show my appreciation to the editors that use my articles, I offer a free solo ad. Simply send an email to me by using the form on the contact me page on my website to tell me the url the article was used on or send me a copy of the ezine it was used in.

This article may be redistributed freely on the internet as stringy as the resource box remains intact.
DeAnna is the publisher of the ezine, Prospecting and Presents. Subscribers get one free ad per week. Subscribe today by visiting http://www.pnewsletter.com/

My First Year In Cyber Space

2007-08-26T11:21:00.000-07:00

Imagine the next time you join a discussion about Branding. When you start sharing the fascinating Branding facts below, your friends will be absolutely amazed.

My First Year In Cyber Space

My first year as a Cyberpreneur was a steeplearning - curve. I was an academic beforestarting an online business, so I had a category to learn. But even if you were in offline - business before goingonline, you may still have to

learn some new skills - online business is a whole new moveable feast - game. Here aresome of the things I learnt in my first year in CyberSpace:

( 1 ) Be careful who you register your web-domains with. Some web-domains name registrars make it very difficult tochange your web landlord.

I registered my first two domains with a registrarthat caused me more headaches than I care to thinkabout.

When I fundamental to transfer one of my web-domains names to anew web host, my embryonic email address had changed. Iwas no longer able to send them an email from thataddress and so I couldn't authenticate my request fordomain transfer.

So I tried to update my personal record with my newemail address. I got a message saying that I couldonly change my email address by sending an email frommy original email address ( which no longer existed ).

This bureaucratic nightmare went on for 4 weeks. Toadd to my frustration, I was communicating with amachine, not a human being. By the end of that time Ihad no less than 35 computer - generated emails tellingme that my web-domains could not be transferred.

Finally, I sent my request for empire transfer in a5 - page fax, including photocopy of my passport. Theythen sent me an email saying my supplication for domaintransfer could not be processed because my request wasnot on company letterhead.

So I designed a letterhead and re - submitted the 5 - pagefax. Finally, 6 weeks after my first request, my web-domains wastransferred.

To avoid this kind of experience I recommend you useregister. com: http://www.register.com

Using their online Realm Manager, it took me lessthan two minutes to transfer my web-domains !

( 2 ) A slow - loading index page is still one of themain reasons that online businesses lose customers.

Surveys show that the average surfer will wait no morethan 8 seconds for a web page to hindrance before movingonto another website. So 'load - time' is a vitalconsideration when you hang out a web host.

Below is a website that allows you to check the load - timeof a web host: http://www.hostpulse.com/app/networktools/ping.asp

( 3 ) Once you've designed your home page and uploadedit to your server space, check to see what it lookslike to other people. What you're seeing may not bewhat far cry individuals are seeing.

I once designed a home page I was very proud of - Ihad added a piece of javascript that gave the day anddate.

Then one allotment I checked my home page at Anybrowser. com. I was horrified to see that my home page was invisibleexcept for my company logo and the navigation restriction. Fortwo weeks it had been virtually blank to mostvisitors! So take a minute and look at your websitethrough your visitors' browser: http://www.anybrowser.com/siteviewer.html

( 4 ) If a customer asks you for a refund, give it tothem immediately, equivalent if you think it's unjustified. You'll be out of pocket by a few dollars, but yourname and your integrity will be intact. Your good nameis perhaps your most sound commodity on theInternet. Remember these words from Shakespeare:

" Who steals my purse steals trash;

'tis something, nothing;

'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;

But he that filches from me my good name

Robs me of that which not enriches him,

And makes me poor indeed. "

( Othello, Act III. Scene III. )

( 5 ) Reply to emails quickly. Nothing impresses memore on the internet than a rapid response to abusiness enquiry. Try and respond within 2 hours, orat least within 24 hours.

( 6 ) Never reply angrily to abusive emails or flames. People who send flames want you to reply, but licensed isnothing to be gained by replying. An abusive email canbe very disturbing, but the best thing to do is ignoreit. Better still delete it - that way you remove itfrom your life and you remove the temptation to reply.

( 7 ) Lastly, never give up. Most successes are due tosheer persistence:

" Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men of talent. Genius will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and manipulation alone are omnipotent. The slogan, 'press on' has solved, and always will solve, the problems of the human race. " ( Calvin Coolidge )

How to Create Your Own Mail Order Products

2007-08-26T11:18:00.000-07:00

Are you looking for some inside information on Branding? Here's an up-to-date report from Branding experts who should know.

How to Create Your Own Mail Order Products

Pick up almost any book or report on Mailorder Selling and invariably you will find the same advice. When you excellent a mailorder product, select one which:

- appeals to a large segment of the population - is not readily available in stores - is easy to ship by mail - is worthwhile - and a product that lends itself to spot orders

Most mail order writers will also tell you to try to acquire exclusive selling rights to your product. Most writers will agree that a dealer has a better chance of succeeding in the mailorder business if he has created the product himself.

All of this is certainly good advice. The trouble with it is that it does not go far enough. It does not tell you HOW to create a product that is exclusively you own. In what follows, I would like to show you, step by ploy, HOW to create your own mailorder product.

I would like to begin by production a very revolutionary statement. THE FIRST STEP ON THE ROAD TO MAIL ORDER SUCCESS IS NOT THE SELECTION OF A PRODUCT! That may sound like a very strange statement, but there are three things you must do ( if you want to be successful ) before you ever peerless a product to sell by mail!

FIRST, you must ANALYZE YOURSELF. You will only succeed in selling a product, or a line of mailorder products if you really enjoy selling them, if you can be honestly enthusiastic about them, and if they are products you yourself would honestly hunger to buy.

SECOND, you must SELECT YOUR MARKET. Once you have analyzed yourself, you will want to sell to people who have interests similar to your own. Only then will you be comfortable in your mailorder business.

THIRD, you must thoroughly ANALYZE YOUR MARKET. Before you ever select a product, you should KNOW what your market is buying, what it would like to buy, if available, and what it will buy form you, in the very near future.

Once you have analyzed yourself, selected your market, and then thoroughly analyzed your market, you will have no trouble selecting or creating a product to sell by mail. It will midpoint select you! Now, let's go back and study these three steps, one by one.

Spell out YOURSELF

To help you understand yourself, sit down and, as honestly as possible, write out your answers to the following questions:

1. When I go to a newstand, what kind of magazines appeal to ME?

2. What kind of books do I really like to read?

3. When I daydream, what do I daydream about?

4. What do I do with my free time? ( How do I spend my evenings? What do I do on weekends? )

5. What do I do on my vacation?

6. What one subject interests me more than any other puzzle in the world?

7. If I didn't have to work for a living, how would I spend my time?

8. If I could go back to college, what subjects would I haul?

9. What kind of products do I like to purchase by mail?

Once you have HONESTLY answered all these questions, you will see an amazing pattern emerging. When you have finished, pay a visit to your local library. Go to the Reference Desk and ask to see the latest edition of the WRITER'S MARKET. Sit down and study the Table of Contents, which lists all the main categories of magazines currently being printed. Rule which CATEGORY interests you beyond all others. It is in that mailorder market that you will be most at home... and it is
efficient that you will be most successful

Now go back to the Reference Desk and ask for two other publications. Either one will provide you with the information you need. They are:

- THE Prevalent Paper DIRECTORY and - ULTICH'S INTERNATIONAL PERIODICAL DIRECTORY

I, of junket, have no idea what your interests really are, but agreement us, for the sake of illustration, say that you have a compelling interest in Astrology. With a little search in the Everyday Periodical Directory, you will find the name and address of at incipient a dozen or so Astrology magazines. In Ulrich's you will find even more, for it lists magazines published in foreign countries as well.

Jot down the names and address of each and every publication. Write to each of them, on your letterhead if possible. If you don't have a letterhead, you will still hear from most of them. Tell them you are starting a mailorder business, specializing in Astrological products, and ask them for a sample copy of their publications, along with their ADVERTISING RATES.

When you start receiving your sample copies, save them... and save the advertising rate cards. They will be magnificent to you in the future.

While you are waiting for these to arrive, go to the nearest second - and magazine store and buy a few dozen old astrology magazines. ( The cost? Probably a dime apiece! ) Get as many different magazine titles as possible and be sure to get copies with MAIL ORDER ADS in them. Issues that are ten or fifteen years old will be valuable to you, but also try to obtain some of the more current issues. You are now ready to start...

ANALYZING YOUR MARKET

Start a notebook. Pick up one of the magazines which you have purchased at the second - hand magazine store. Read the first ad ... every line of it. Read it slowly and carefully. When you have finished reading it, see if you can describe what is for sold in five words or less. If you can't, go back and read it again. If you can, record your constitution under one of three headings in your notebook:

- Goods - Information - Service

All mailorder offerings come under one of the three headings listed above. If the ad was for an Aquarian Necklace, it should be listed under Merchandise. If it was for a treatise on Flying Saucers, it should be listed under Information. If it was an offer to chart your horoscope, it should be listed under Service.

After you have analyzed the first ad, go on and study the next ad. Continue until you have thoroughly analyzed every single ad in the magazine, including the classifieds. When you are through, you will have three lists:

- A list of Astrological Merchandise for sale - A list of Astrological Manuals ( Information ) for sale - A list of Astrological services for sale.

As you read, watch for:

UNDEVELOPED IDEAS - - Especially in older issues, you will find really good ideas that were, for one reason or another, never developed. Feasibly the originator at sea interest or didn't have the capital to develop his idea. He may have died or he may have run off with a chant girl from Las Vegas and forgotten all about the mail order business. If you can develop the idea, you have a mail order product.

WHOLESALE SOURCES - - Wristwatch for ads that say " Dealers Wanted " ( in more current issues, of course ). Here may be the perfect source of mailorder products for you.

STUDY THE ARTICLES - - They will representation you what the readers are interested in and they will give you clues as to what the readers want to buy. Remember the articles are doing two things - - they are printing articles about subjects which the readers are already interested. But they are also CREATING NEW INTERESTS in the minds of the readers. CAN YOU CREATE A PRODUCT THAT READERS WILL WANT AS A RESULT OF READING THOSE ARTICLES?

You will be amazed at what you will discover when you read magazines from the viewpoint of a mailorder man!

While researching this manuscript, I analyzed three intensely different magazines from the viewpoint of a mailorder man. I would like to share some of my findings with you. Don't worry if the fields are different from those which interest you. MAILORDER PRINCIPLES ARE THE SAME FOR EVERY MARKET!

The first magazine which I analyzed was ASTROLOGY - YOUR DAILY HOROSCOPE, December 1975. I would like to impel with the Merchandise Offerings.

ASTROLOGY ( Produce )

The first ad is for personalized stationary. Any mailorder man knows you can sell personalized stationary to any market. But this dealer took a commonplace product and adapted it to the Necromantic market. Next to the name and inscription which he prints on the stationary, he prints the Astrological sun sign and he calls it ZODIAC STATIONARY.

The next ad is for another very commonplace product - - soap! You can buy soap in factor grocery store. But this soap is special. It has YOUR ZODIAC SIGN imprinted in it, and it lasts as long as the soap lasts. Here is another good example of adapting a commonplace product to the special interests and desires of your prospective customers.

If you are now selling a product by mail and you would like to increase you sales, make a list of the kinds of people you would like to sell it to. ( For example, doctors, waitresses, farmers, gun collectors, etc. ) Then go back and ask yourself what you could do to your product to make it code to each individual group. You'll be amazed at how you can turn commonplace items into red hot mailorder sellers just by taking the time to put yourself in your customer's shoes for a while.

The next merchandise offering is for " SEASHELLS FOR VIRGOS AND SCORPIOS ". Brother, this is a lunatic idea. Had this advertiser offered plain old seashells in an astrology magazine, his mailbox would probably have been empty. Had he advertised " Seashells for Astrologers ", he MIGHT have gotten a few orders. But he made his seashells special, exclusive, and very, very desirable, because they are only for Virgos and Scorpios. He is catching the attention of one reader out of
every six and I would bet that ad was a mailorder success! Here is an idea worth remembering. Try to advance it to YOUR product!

Another merchandise offering was a " Hand Bio - Rhythm Computer ". For the past few years, Astrology magazines have been running article after article on the Bio - Rhythm Credence ( i. e. every male and female person has emotional, intellectual and physical cycles, which can be predicted in advance ). The Astrology magazines, in effect, have been creating a mailorder market for this kind of new product. The ad promises, " it reveals your emotional, intellectual and physical
specify... Plane BEFORE THE DAY BEGINS! " This dealer was clever enough to do something about this new interest. If he had not studied his market, he could never have discovered the NEED for a Bio - Rhythm computer!

ASTROLOGY ( INFORMATION )

People who read Astrology magazines are very interested in Love, Money, Success, Power, Miracles, Juncture, etc. One enterprising dealer has written six " personal guidance " manuals, and runs full page ads in Astrology magazines, selling them form $2. 00 to $11. 00 each! His ads have been running successfully for years. Back in 1960, when I first became interested in selling by mail, this dealer was towering small ads in mail dealer magazines, selling mailorder manuals!

Here are some of the other information manuals which dealers have written and are selling by mail:

- How the Maya Indians Foretold the Future - $15. 00

- Powerful Words to Be Recited Daily to End Your Money Worries - $4. 00

- How to Spiritually Heal Your Pets - $5. 00

- A Manual on Etheric Astal Projection, written " especially for the Neophyte " - $3. 00

Can you create a WORTHWHILE manual for this market? ( I predict that the first dealer who writes a good handbook on Bio - Rhythm will make a fortune! ) If you need ideas for manuals, study the subjects being offered in the Astrology magazines. Remember - - the readers are drawn in those subjects! In the issue of ASTROLOGY - YOUR PERSONAL HOROSCOPE which I read, the following information articles appeared. ( This is only a partial list. )

" Yearly Forecast for Sagittarians " " Basic Astronomy for the Astrologers " " Sybil Leek Analyzes YOUR Dreams " " How to Make Your Dreams Pay Off " " How Mercury Inspires Your Creativity "

A study of OLD Astrology magazines will produce you with a wealth of subjects for New Mailorder Manuals ( or folios ).

ASTROLOGY ( SERVICE )

If there is one thing people who read Astrology magazines love, it is this... They LOVE TO BE ANALYZED AND COUNSELLED BY PROFESSIONALS. Do you have specialized training in the art of Horoscope Reading? If so, you can sell your services by mail. Here are some of the headlines form ads offering such services:

- " Let an Expert Discuss YOUR Life! "

- " This Horoscope is about YOU "

- " Now... a serious study of YOU! "

- " Now there is a Horoscope written for the TWO OF YOU!... One for you, one for your loved one! It could mean the difference between a Happy Marriage and a Painful Divorce! "

- " 1976 - 1977 - 1978! Is one of these YOUR Year of Destiny? " ( This had been running in Astrology magazines for at least ten years. Every year, the advertiser simply changes the dates!

Other services being offered in this magazine build:

- Personal Questions Answered by Psychics and Mystics - Spiritual Readings - Tarot Readings - Palm Readings - Handwriting Analysis - Questions answered through Astro - Extra Sensory Perception

Are you trained to offer such services through the mail? Or are you interested in receiving such training? ( You will find many such offers to train you in a newstand magazine called FATE. ) If you answer is Yes... this is where you should begin your mailorder career.

The next magazine I analyzed was the November 1975 issue of FIELD AND STREAM. Since this magazine is aimed at two mailorder markets, hunters and fishermen, I analyzed only those ads pertaining to Hunters.

HUNTERS ( MERCHANDISE )

Men who hunt for wild game spend a lot of money on their hobby. They buy top quality hunting clothes. ( Who wants to go hunting in a CHEAP pair of wilderness boots? ) They spend a lot of money on their guns, their hunting knives, and on top quality binoculars. There are several dozen well - down pat mail order companies selling this kind of merchandise to hunters. If you ar planning to establish a one man mail order operation, you would be well advised not to try to compete with
these companies.

Is everything making sense so far? If not, I'm sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.

Instead, hinge for something unique that a hunter can USE, and begin you mailorder business there.

Here are a few lines offerings being made by enterprising dealers:

" Deer Hunter's soap " ( Bathe in soap scented with the aroma of a female deer and you will attract a Buck. Only $1. 50 per bay! ) Notice how a smart dealer ADAPTED a commonplace item to a specialized market. Notice too, that he adapted it to ONLY ONE KIND OF HUNTER. HE DIDN'T Proposal IT TO BEAR HUNTERS, TO COON HUNTERS, TO QUAIL HUNTERS, OR TO GAME HUNTERS IN Trite. He offered it to deer - hunters! If you are a deer - hunter, you would ear that ad! "

" Curtain rods for HUNTING Vans - $3. 95 a pair. " ( Sure, you can buy curtain rods in quota dime store, but not curtain rods for HUNTING VANS! Another excellent example of taking a commonplace circumstance, adapting it to a specialized market, and creating a new mailorder product.

Also offered:

- Gun cleaning cloths ( 10 for a dollar )

- Brass Nameplates for HUNTING DOGS ( not for just any old dog! )

- ID Tags for Your Hunting Dogs

- Handwarmers and Bodywarmers ( Boy, could you use these when you get lost in the snow! )

- There was a small classified ad offering " Fish and Game Rubber Stamps. " I hope this dealer got a lot of orders, but if he didn't, I suspect it was because his offer was too stale. First of all, it would have sold better with an illustrated display ad. But even better... let us go back to the Virgo and Scorpio concept above. How about rubber stamps for Coon Hunters? Or for Pheasant Hunters? Or rubber stamps for Taxidermists? You will always get more orders
if you direct your ad to specific nation.

HUNTING ( INFORMATION )

Frankly, I was disconcerted at the value of Information Folios being sold to Hunters. Here are some examples:

" How to Build Your Own Gun Cabinet "

" Duck Calling Instructions " ( 30 record on tape! ) A lot of information, in every field, is now being domiciliate on cassette tape and sold by mail. If you would rather talk than write, this could be an aspect of mailorder selling for you to consider.

" Chart showing Life - size Tracks of 38 Animals in the Adirondack Mountains " ( Incidently not all information is written. A class of people buy plans, diagrams, etc. To digress, recently a dealer advertised plans to build your own flying saucer detector! )

" How to Build Box Traps - $1. 00 "

" My Whatchamacallit on Coon Trapping, after 50 years. Guaranteed, $1. 00 "

" Mount fish for Fun and Profit - Easy instructions - $1. 00 "

" Tan Your Own Hides - Hair on or off - Complete, easy to follow instructions and Formulas - $1. 00 "

" Build ( meat, fish, sausage ) smoker! Inexpensive, protable.. .. easy plans, $1. 00 "

" Wild Diversion and Fish Recipes - Deer, Bear, Rabbit, Trout, Salmon and dozens more - $1. 00 "

Can you write an information manual for hunters? Can you tell him how to shoot ducks? Or how to hunt buffalo?... Or what to do for snake bites?... Or how to sign up for a Big Game Safari in the wilds of Africa? If you can, write a good manual ( or put it on tape! ) and sell it by mail!

HUNTING ( SERVICE )

Unlike the readers of Astrology magazines, Game Hunters don't give a damn about being analyzed or counselled! But if you can teach his hunting dog how to chase a hump up a tree, then he will probably pay you for your services. Can you repair his gun? Or can you stuff and enter on his catches? If so, you can build a mailorder business offering such services.

The final publication analyzed was the WRITER'S DIGEST of November, 1975.

WRITING ( MERCHANDISE )

If you are interested in the craft of writing ( or if you have done well in creative writing classes ) you might decide to build a mail order business catering to the needs of hundreds of thousands of persons who dream of apt professional writers. here are some of the merchandise offerings being made to writers:

- " Copyright and Related Laws for Writers "

- " Grants and Aids to Individuals in the Arts - 1500 Sources. " ( What writer isn't looking for a grant? )

- " I receive checks every tour for features, fillers, news. Free details. "

- " Gagwriters Guide "

- " Unrevealed Way to Make Money Writing - $2. 00 "

- " Make Money Writing Fillers! Up - to - Rap session Wrapping Directory. "

- " International Directory of Little Magazines and Small Presses. "

If you can produce an information manual showing writers how to write better, or how to sell their manuscripts, then write it and sell it by mail. You will have CREATED a new mailorder product! ( To get ideas for subjects of interest to writers, study the articles in congeneric publications as the Writers Digest, The Writer, Saturday Review, etc. )

WRITERS - - ( SERVICE )

Some of the largest mailorder business in the world sell correspondence courses teaching people how to write for a living. There are also a dozen or more large printing companies ( called " Vanity Publishers " in the trade ) whose sole business is printing books for authors, whose works have been rejected by the regular publishing houses.

If you are a serious literary person, with a gift for writing, you could very possibly establish a business offering your services to writers. Here are some of the services which were being offered in the November 1975 issue of Writer's Digest:

- Literary Counseling - Literary Criticism - Literary Editing - Short Story Evaluation - Manuscript Analysis - Article Try ( No Fiction ) - Knock off Writing - Newspaper and Magazine Reference Service ( Authors often need such a service. ) - Manuscript Typing

Are you qualified to proposal factor of these services by mail? If you are, you have start up a service to sell by mail! If you are not now efficient, why not acquire professional training... and then offer your services by mail?

IN Feeling

I realize that I have just touched the show up of three different mail order markets. There are hundreds of individual mail order markets for you to explore! Analyze yourself and then select the market that is best for you.

Study your market thoroughly... AND NEVER STOP STUDYING IT. Most successful mailorder people peruse dozens of magazines every month. They KNOW what their customers are thinking about, what they need, and what they will buy.

Successful mailorder people are interested in the NEEDS and WANTS of their customers FIRST. They understand that if they concentrate on those, profits will flow positively. Those who think only of profits soon pass by the wayside.

In the beginning of this manual, I asked you to write to every magazine in your chosen field. Subscribe to as many as possible. When you have created your first product, then dawn advertising in those magazines ( which is why I said to keep their rate cards. ) Never escape an ad unless you can run it in three consecutive issues. Then CONTINUE running it for as long as it continues to produce new customers for you. Slowly add new ( but related ) items to your livelihood. Whenever
lurking, expand your business by inserting your ads in new publications.

Remember these simple guidelines:

- DON'T COPY ANYONE ELSE! You are a unique individual. Express your own individuality in your Mail Order business.

- CREATE SOMETHING NEW AND Overpowering!

- CREATE SOMETHING USEFUL AND WORTHWHILE!

- CREATE SOMETHING YOU YOURSELF WOULD Hunger TO BUY!

Copyright by DeAnna Spencer 2004 This article may be reproduced and redistributed freely on the Internet as long as the resource box remains complete.
http://www.pnewsletter.com

How to write Classified Ads that Get Results Now

2007-08-26T11:15:00.000-07:00

If you're seriously interested in knowing about Branding, you need to think beyond the basics. This informative article takes a closer look at things you need to know about Branding.

How to write Classified Ads that Get Results Now.

selling DIRECTLY FROM A CLASSIFIED AD

Classified ads can be used to sell products directly from the ad. This works champion for items costing no more than approximately $5. The best use for classified ads is to utilize them in obtaining inquiries. This is called the two step approach. The first step is to get maximum inquiries from the classified ad, in the succour step the promotional package is sent to the prospect and as many inquiries as possible are converted to buyers.

CLASSIFIED ADS FOR MAXIMUM INQUIRIES

Classified ads are substantially less expensive than small space ads, but by no means are they cheap. Most national publications catering to the mail order business charge from $3 to $8 per word. A well laid out ad should consist of about 20 words which includes the company name and address. It is important that you remind yourself that only the purpose is
to get the prospect to take immediate action and write for more information.

Before you write the ad know just so what it is you want to sell. You must know very specifically what you are going to accomplish through this ad. Once you have determined what you thirst to get across to the reader, write it out in one or more integrated sentences. For ideal, you have the reproduction rights for several reports and
hankering to market them. So the objective is: " I want to get the maximum number of responses to grill about my self - publishing standout which has excellent income potential and is easy to market, especially for a newcomer to the business. "

This ad may read as follows:

TREMENDOUS PROFITS THROUGH SELF - publishing! Start part - time. Accessible to do. Request free Special Report! XYZ publishing / E, PO Crash pad 1000, Frederick, MD 20908.

THE OPENING LINE

The first 3 or 4 words - - are critical. Since there are hundreds of classified ads in any given publication you use be able to get the reader who scans all, or some of them, to stop in his tracks when he gets to your ad and read your ad and then take action.

Open any publication and review the ads and you will see that many of those ads have unquestionably no project. They are a total waste of money. But that is good for you seeing I am sure you will make a real effort to get your message across. Here are a couple of examples of useless ads:

Still Looking For A New Beginning? write.......

What do they mean by that? How does any of that pertain tome and what am I supposed to make of that? Here is another one:

The Easiest business On Earth. Valuable information mailed free.....

Do you think abounding people are going to write in for an ad like that. Especially not since there are hundreds of other ads in competition for the readers' time.

THE Device IS TO GET THE READER TO TAKE Stunt - NOW!

In less that 25 words you have to create a message that will make a reader stop; commit him a reason - benefits to him - why this is for him; tell him what to do - action; and provide the vital information. It is as simple and as complicated as that. Simple because you know what you want to resolve, but complicated because it has to be done with so few words. I think you can see why it is virtually impossible to sell a $10 or $20 item from a classified ad. You just would not have enough
space to tell a story compelling enough to convince someone to part with $10 or $20.

SELF - CENTERED ADVERTISING COPY IS INEFFECTIVE

With some practice you should have no problem getting lots of inquiries from your ads. Stay away from " Self - centered advertising copy ", copy that speaks about you. How great you or your company are, or how great your product is.

The only element the reader cares about is himself. What's in in for Number One! Nothing else.

SOME COST SAVING TIPS

Halfway all weekly and monthly publication will charge for each word including your company name and address. Most habitual newspapers have a per line rate. Since just the address can takings up from 6 - 10 words here are some ways you can save money.

The following ad has 23 words.

TREMENDOUS PROFITS THROUGH SELF - publishing Dawning part - time. Easy to do. XYZ publishing Co. Dept 12 P. O. Box 1000 Frederick, MD 20908

This ad has 21 words.

TREMENDOUS PROFITS THROUGH SELF - publishing Start part - time. Easy to do. Free details. XYZ publishing / E ( The E becomes the code instead of Dept 12 PO Box 1000 Frederick, MD 20908

Or this one which has 18 words

SELF - publishing, TREMENDOUS PROFITS! Start part - time. Easy! Free report. XYZ publishing / E PO Box 1000 Frederick, MD 20908

Some publications intrusion 2 words for the zip code and state, some only one. If you live in a city which consists of several words such as Palm Beach gardens you are only on fire for 1 word.

Evaluate the cost effectiveness of your ad by the cost per inquiry and not the cost of the ad. Sampling a $150 ad generates 170 inquiries $0. 88 per word versus a $28 ad which generates 15 inquiries at a cost of $1. 87 each.

WHEN THE INQUIRIES START ARRIVING

If you have written and placed an effective ad and the inquiries start rolling in, the most important job, or actually several jobs have to be done. They are as follows:

1. Your sales / promotional package must be ready before the first inquiry arrives and it must be answered promptly, preferably the same day but certainly within 48 hours. The longer you wait the more chances are that a competitor will win out over you. Although some people will wait for weeks before they make a decision, many will act within days.

2. The ad you are placing is just the beginning. The names which are generated from the ad must be used again and again in order for your total advertising effort to be effective in the long term.

3. A percentage of your inquiries from this first ad will become buyers. You need to send these buyers additional offers within several weeks after their first purchase and thereafter mail at least 3 times per year to them. You drop them from your list if they have not bought anything for about 8 - 12 months.

4. The inquiries that did not buy buy this time may still buy at a later time. You can send them the same material again, or a similar offer. It is advisable to send 2 - 3 more mailing to them.

Many mail order companies may only make a small profit or just break even when the actual sales results are measured castigate a single ad. But over the life of the customers which are converted from those inquiries and the subsequent purchases from the inquiries who were not converted from the initial ad many hundreds or thousands of supplementary dollars will
be generated.

Copyright 2004 by DeAnna Spencer

Truthfully, the only difference between you and Branding experts is time. If you'll invest a little more time in reading, you'll be that much nearer to expert status when it comes to Branding.
Give blessing today by visiting http://www.pnewsletter.com

12 Ways to Reduce Postage

2007-08-26T11:12:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered what exactly is up with Branding? This informative report can give you an insight into everything you've ever wanted to know about Branding.

12 Ways to Reduce Postage

1. Never send a letter that weighs less than 30 gms. Five size 8 - 1 / 2x11 circulars can be mailed with a 1st class postage stamp. By using all 10 sides with a variety of offers you have a greater chance of receiving an order.

2. When you advertise , state the price of your product and add Plus Postage e. g. " A DOZEN AND ONE WAYS TO REDUCE POSTAGE " $1 plus stamp or SASE ( self addressed stamped envelope ). When inviting inquiries always say " For information send SASE ".

3. advertise that you will do paid mailing. Set a competitive price and make strides some if not all of the costs involved in mailing your own offers.

4. write a good plan or folio; then create a good ad to sell it. Or offer it to others on a " commission " or " all profit " basis and fill the orders for a SASE. Your offers can then go along for a free ride when you fill the orders.

5. Make up an interesting ad sheet. Use up some of the spaces for your own ads then sell enough ads to others to cover the cost of postage, printing, advertising etc.

6. advertise a " Free Big Mail for Postage - the More Postage the More Mail ". ( Big mail consists of at least one mailorder publication plus a variety of circulars ).

7. Do exchange mailing. You mail 100 of another dealer's circulars and they will mail 100 or yours.

8. Purchase an accurate postal scale. Then you will never add more postage than necessary OR you can use up the full value of the postage being used.

9. Reduce postage by using Bulk Mail. Inquire at the Post Office. This requires the mailer ( U. S. ) to sort their mail by state and zip amends and mail at slightest 200 like pieces at one time.

10. Stamps that have not been canceled proper to an error of the postal cancellation machine may be used again.

11. Accept stamps from another country. If you can't use them trade with a dealer from that country for stamps that you can use or buy something from them champion them with stamps of equal value.

12. Watch mailorder publications for dealers who have new stamps to sell at a reduced price.

Note: It is false economy to not send a SASE when making inquiries of other dealers. You are more likely to receive an read much more quickly and it improves business relations. Copyright 2004 by DeAnna Spencer This information may be freely distributed on the internet as long as the resource box remains intact.
DeAnna is the publisher of the ezine, Prospecting and Presents.
Subscribers get one free ad per week.
Subscribe today by visiting http://www.pnewsletter.com

The Positioning of success

2007-08-26T07:14:00.000-07:00

The following article presents the very latest information on Branding. If you have a particular interest in Branding, then this informative article is required reading.
The Positioning of success

Many businesses of today are often driven to compete striclty on price, quality, and features of their products and services. Companies who prosper over the long term don't simply offer the unparalleled deals, the best quality, or the most impressive bells and whistles. If you want to win big in today's cutting terminus world of business, you have to begin by thinking differently and by challenging the status
quo. Whether you are a new or an established business owner, these ten powerful strategies will position your company for big success.

( 1 ) Adopt the philosophy of " Givers Gain. "

In 2003, the members of business tips International ( BNI ) passed for 2 million referrals to each other. Founded by CEO Ivan Misner, BNI is a business and professional networking organization that offers members the opportunity to share ideas, contacts and most importantly, referrals. Misner founded BNI based on the philosophy of " Givers Gain, " which is the belief that in order to get business, it is important to first sell business. One of the critical factors in achieving success rests in the ability to develop reciprocal relationships where two parties naturally refer business to each contradistinctive on a consistent basis. " It's not what you know but who you know " has never been
so true as it is in today's competitive world of business. For more information on Ivan Misner and his philosophy of " Giver's Gain, " access an interview here:

http://www.cvcommunity.com/utility/showArticle/?objectID=1452

( 2 ) Focus on Soft Innovations

In today's competitive market, the old equation of spending more on advertising to increase profits it not working as it once did. In his latest book, Free Prize Inside, author Seth Godin, makes a strong case for using soft innovations as a way to get noticed in this crowded and noisy world. Soft innovations are the small yet insightful ideas that can take your product or service
from good to remarkable. They are often hidden, and they usually solve a problem that is " peripheral to what your product is ostensibly about. " At first glance, you think the soft innovation does not mean much, but once you have it in place, it becomes an essential part of your product or service. Examples of soft innovations include Starbuck's Cards, Dinosaur - shaped pasta for kids, and Amazon. com cutting its ad spend and offering free shipping with the money saved. For more
information, read an interview with Seth Godin in Today's Develop here:
http://www.cvcommunity.com/utility/showArticle/index.cfm?objectID=1524

( 3 ) Re - groove!

How do you operate when the heat is on? How do you respond to chaos? When new skills or new behaviors are needed, how do you respond? Knowing what to do and how to do it is one commodity but being able to respond effectively and to keep your cool under pressure and on a consistent basis is a very different ballgame. As leaders in today's world, it is crucial to learn how to work differently and how to be able to shift and bend to meet expectations which here one day and gone the next. The
half - life of a great idea or a new product or service has never been shorter, and it is up to you as a business owner to become indefectible with reshaping strategies, adding new perks to old products, and to stay on top of your game in the face of dramatically changing circumstances. You may find that your strength of achievement was required to get your company up and running but that same strength is now squelching the creativity of your team. It's time to Re - Groove! It's time to unlock the incredible likely that is inside of you that is required to get the job done under present day demands. If you are rabid to re - grooving ( getting past the old worn out grooves of your past conditioning, ) it is essential to work with a coach or trainer who can profess you through the new behaviors quickly and in certain time. By learning to re - groove, you will be able to create incredible
opportunities for your company and for yourself.

( 4 ) Make your brand a " particularize of mind "

Are you winning when it comes to style, a smart and accessible mix of products and services, and first rate customer service? If so, Bravo! However, this is just a part of the equation of what it takes to truly succeed. In order to create a brand that is truly memorable, it is crucial
for you to live an inspired life and to make your brand a " recite of mind " for your customers. This depict of mind could be a feeling of trust and confidence, a caliber of well being, or a state of knowing that you are buying from a company who has your best interests at heart. This state of mind cannot fashion behind the confines of the walls of your business. It grows and develops when you are in the middle of your potential buyers? in restaurants, traveling, checking out the
competition, playing sports, tinkering with a hobby , having fun and lots of it! If you are living fully and in relationship with others, you will be re - energized every day and you will give your customers a vision of what
an inspired life actually looks like, for you are living one! Your brand will become much more than your trimmings... it will become the connection that others feel when they think of you as a valued person in their lives.

( 5 ) Become masterful at mobilizing resources

The adeptness to galvanize resources, both human and monetary, and to build effective and useful projects with them is a critical component of success in today's marketplace. We are quick to look first at the monetary costs of a project and rapidly get cold feet, when the
actuality is that we have valuable property hidden in our personal and professional lives which may not cost a dime. Extroverted capital is one resource that is one of the most valuable assets available to business owners of today. The term social capital emphasizes that very characteristic benefits are made available from the trust, reciprocity,
information, and cooperation associated with social networks. The value of social finance is that people can compose on the wisdom of each other to solve common problems, especially as it relates to money, time, and resources.

( 6 ) Buck conventional wisdom

In 1971, Rollin King and Herb Kelleher decided to start off an airline that you might say? was different and a little bit quirky. They began with one simple belief: If you get your passengers to their destinations on time, at the lowest fare possible, and make sure they have a fantastic time doing it, people will gang up you over a competing airline. This is the story of Southwest
Airlines, who chose to move beyond the level quo by offering services and a sense of style that bucked conventional wisdom. With their focus on fun, games, and " love Southwest style, " Southwest has made its mark with its strong focus on stellar customer service and conveniences such as allowing customers to proceed to their departure gate without stopping at the ticket counter, skycap, or self - service kiosk. Most importantly, Southwest has honed in on searching for important personal qualities in those they indenture - - the perfect blend of energy, humor, team spirit, and self - confidence to match its emphatically offbeat culture. Southwest was once dismissed as a maverick, as their strategies seemed strange to the " airline powerhouses. " These same powerhouses are now looking in suspicion at what this " maverick " has built. The strategy of originality worked? It had the adherent power required for success.

( 7 ) Become a Talent Farm

When recruiting new employees, what are you looking for? Raw talent? Raw communication skills? Thought? Athletic ability? Commitment? Skills? Flexbility? What about all of this and more? If you are a company who wants to operate at the leading edge, where change is the greatest and success is the goal, you will want to enrol the most talented group
of people you can find? those people who are self - starters and who are living boldly in the world. By developing a " talent farm " culture, you can instill a mindset of excellence from the top to the bottom of your organization.

If you don't have accurate details regarding Branding, then you might make a bad choice on the subject. Don't let that happen: keep reading.

This culture encompasses a painfully held belief that having high caliber tribe is crucial to your success. With this " talent farm " approach to recruiting, your company will also be required to recruit great talent every life span. Successful businesses and organizations have a strong complex of what they are looking for, and they are
always on the look for new ability and ways to retain them for a lifetime.

( 8 ) Embrace your core values

What is it in life that you most value? Do you value beauty, leadership, capacity, stability, or family? You can choose to orient your life
around your wants and needs or the list of things you stroke you " should " be doing, but if you embrace your core values and build your life around them, you will find experience inspiration and joy at a level you never thought was possible. Whole Foods Market is one of the fastest growing supermarkets of today, because its commitment to fresh,
nutritious products is a value that keeps customers coming back for more and employees happy, hard working, and committed. When you focus your business on doing what feels right and what fulfills you, you will have no regrets, because you have been true to the very core of your being.

( 9 ) Become a " pallid hot center " of influence

A " white hot center " of influence is an organization or group that you most hankering your company to be aligned with tightly and in a relationship which is reciprocal. One connection into a strong center of influence can position your company to attract a stream of qualified opportunities. ( Example: You are an interior designer, and you want to be in the middle of Southern Accent or Better Homes and gardens Log. ) In order to attract a " white hot center " of influence, you have to become what you hunger to attract. Be well disciplined, highly skilled, experienced, trained and innovative in your product development. Fill your
network with other business owners who are up to big things in the world and who are experts in their respective fields. Attract talented people into your company, and tap each and every talent and skill available in your company. As you begin to raise your bar in all areas of your business and enhance your network, you will eventually become a " white hot center " that will attract others by the thousands.

( 10 ) Just Mount!

Derivation where you are, and begin today to create success in your life. Drop the excuses, reasons or people to deadweight, dis - empowering attitudes and behaviors and get on with the business of living the life you know you were born to live. Do what you know you want to do, and do it with sentiment. Activate nowadays to create the tomorrow you hunger. As Peter Drucker said, " The peerless way to predict the future is to create it "

This piece was originally submitted by Bea Fields and Kimberly George, business Coaches, who can be reached at bea@coachville.com and kim@coachville.com, or visited on the web at http://www.coachville.com/ . http://www.fivestarleader.com/ or http://www.rebelbusiness.com/.

Its time For Some Steak

2007-08-26T07:07:00.000-07:00

Would you like to find out what those-in-the-know have to say about Branding? The information in the article below comes straight from well-informed experts with special knowledge about Branding.

Its time For Some Steak

Recently, I was reviewing our website statistics. One of the sites that had a link to mine caught me by surprise. For this is a family publication, I won't include the name of the website. But, let's just say it contains a four - letter word that people do not use in most business circles.

The website was yet a bulletin board for people to rant about other companies. The posting about my website started out with the subject, 'Is this website just a little too slick? ' The postings went on to say that my website had a lot of sizzle, but no steak.

My first thought was, 'How dare they say something so rude after I worked so hard on my site. Are they trying to say that my business has no substance? They know nothing about me and what I do. I can't believe they would attack MY business image. '

You see, those of you who have met me know that I am a small business image consultant. I work on everything from customer service to documentation and training. Basically, all the behind - the - scenes things that affect the business image. How could MY website have a bad image?

Then I took a step back. And, with a huge gulp of reluctance, I admitted to myself that they were right. Earlier that week, I had started to redefine my business services. small business image consulting no longer 'fit' the true me. And somehow that was showing through on my
website. It WAS a bit too slick. It was not getting to the inkling of what I wanted to say.

Instead of just changing my website, I decided to take on a more important endeavor. I took a look at my identity and my brand. I found this amazing book called Make A Name For Yourself by Robin Fisher Roffer. This was the wake - up call that I needed. After pouring over the book, I began to get in touch with my natural
gifts.

While documentation has always been a part of my business, it wasn't the part that I 'played up' at networking meetings. small business image consulting sounded exotic and sexy. It got people talking about customer service and the importance of it. It got me speech engagements. It got me lots of press. This was all of the sizzle that they mentioned on that bulletin board. But, it didn't get me what I needed most. The steak - more phone calls and emails requesting my services, and ultimately, more satisfaction.

I decided to put my writing services in the forefront. In addition to my technical writing, I now specialize in lengthy documentation and press releases. The process of redefining my business was a scary one. All these feelings of fear and inadequacy appeared. I started to wonder what people would think of the change. Would they think that this was bad for my business image?

Then, I started to wonder how many other business owners are just offering what sounds good. How uncounted of them aren't expressing their natural gifts through their business. How many are afraid to make a change?

None of us should be neurotic to redefine our services or to create a brand where there wasn't one before. Now I am more secure in what I do. I am true to myself, my hurrah, and my gifts. It's a full swing and a liberation that I've never felt before.

My services no longer have an exotic and sexy sound to them. But, at least now I can offer the sizzle AND the steak.

Leila Johnson owns Johnson Solutions Group in Rio Rancho, NM. She acts as Your Virtual Documentation Department. Leila is a versatile writer who works with those small businesses that don't have the time or expertise to handle their documentation. Leila can be reached at 505 - 896 - 9379 or through her " new and improved " website at http://www.johnsongroups.com