3 Proven Methods For Turning Away Customers and Losing Money

Are you your own worst marketing enemy? Hey, I'm sure you wouldn't intentionally turn customers away... but we all make mistakes. In the following article you'll find some tried and true ways to lose sales and kiss your profits goodbye!

1. Distract Them You know what I'm talking about. You've been to Web pages where there were a TON of clickable links. You start clicking away, get 10 screens open... and yeah, you forget which is the original site and why the heck you were there in the first place! This one is especially true for Internet marketers. Let me ask you... how many clickable links are on your Web page? Don't send your customers to other places before you've made a sale. Once a prospect heads out for greener pastures, they'll probably never find their way back.

2. Give Them An Unpleasant Surprise You've probably made a purchase, got set to write the check and discovered extra fees that you weren't counting on paying. No one even mentioned them until you were sitting there with pen in hand. Maybe it was that vacation package you've been dreaming about for a while. You're left with a choice... grin and bear it, or walk off without the vacation. Nothing leaves a bad taste in a customer's mouth like last minute add ons to the price they pay. Yeah, sometimes they go ahead and go through with the purchase, but next time they'll think twice before they trust you to give them the real scoop on the price... if they ever return. Be up front! Are you planning to charge shipping? Don't wait until they've already made the purchase. Let them know right up front. When they already know it's part of the deal, they won't have a problem with the fees.

3. Confuse Them Eenie meenie minie moe... Have you ever been there... which item is the better buy and the right one for you? It could be that you walked out without making up your mind, thinking you'd return later. But now for the biggie...Did you make it back? Customers who leave without making the purchase are at high risk for changing their minds about making the purchase at all. That's why it's important to keep the decision as simple as possible. Make it a "yes" or "no" choice and you've effectively guaranteed they walk out with the item in a bag. The marketing place is competitive enough without making things tough on the customer. These three keys to sending customers away, are keys you'll want to watch out for. Don't make the mistake of wiping out your own profits.

3 Secrets to Knocking Out Big Competitors

Nobody likes a bully… especially small business marketers. If you’ve ever felt like the little guy taking punches from a heavyweight champion, you know what I’m talking about. Big business has donned its gloves, and is waiting to put small business down for the count. I’ve got good news! Sometimes the little guy wins. Heck, it isn’t easy and sometimes it’s a close call, but little guys do win and when they do… victory is sweet! What can you do when you’re being threatened by the bully down the street?

1. Take a careful look at the Competition Every business has its strengths and weaknesses. You need to be aware of both… your competitors strong points, and the places where room for improvement is quite obvious.

2. Be Flexible Don’t expect your competitor to broadcast his next move so that you can be prepared to block it. You’ve got to think a step ahead, and be ready to outsmart his next maneuver.

3. Use a little Judo You don’t have to be big and brawny to successfully use Judo. Why? It’s an art that uses your opponent’s momentum to trip him up. So what if you don’t have thousands of dollars to invest in a campaign. When you’re competition has invested his tens of thousands in one, you’ll be able to make a quick about turn and counteract quickly with a smaller campaign of your own. He’ll either forfeit his investment or continue through, but loose steam. I’m going to let you in on a little secret about your competitors that might encourage you. Although big businesses often have a wide variety of products filling their shelves, they often don’t have depth.

Think about it this way. You may run to your local department store and find everything ranging from make-up to camping equipment. The problem with that? …chances are they don’t have an extremely wide assortment of their products. This means that if you’re an avid outdoorsman, you probably wouldn’t be satisfied choosing between two cheap brands of tents when there is an amazing variety on the market. An outdoor related store could get one over on the big department store by offering the widest variety of fewer products in a focused field.

Another asset about being the small guy, is that it’s easier to make a quick turn. Hey, how many managers do you have to get okays from to make a quick decision? Think of the weeks it takes for a local department store to send a request from a customer for a certain product to the regional or national management? Yeah, too long! As a small business, you can have a new product on your shelves within a week. If I were a customer wanting a new tent, I’d prefer to not wait until summer was half over to get it. There are a lot of benefits to being the small guy. Don’t take bullying lying down. You have what it takes to get the best end of the stick and come out a winner.

3 Popular Niche Marketing Misconceptions

Specializing in Niche Markets has never been as crucial as it is today. Long gone are the days when you can target general, broad markets and make money from them. To make money in today's Internet Marketing environment, one must specialize in well defined niche topics. Lets examine a few misconceptions when it comes to niche marketing.

Misconception #1: You do not have to be an expert in the Niche field you choose! Everyone says you should only choose a Niche that you are an expert in...nonsense! The Internet is so impersonal that you can easily appear as an expert and not know anything about that particular niche topic. The key is to appear as an expert. How? You can outsource, build niche sites with no interaction such as blogs, purchase resale rights to an ebook in a particular niche. You see, you can choose to profit from any niche you like.

Misconception #2: Choose one niche market and stick with it. Not true! Once you establish yourself in one niche and develop a profitable system, choose another one and run with it. You can even choose a pen name if you like, it's common practice to do so. Niche marketing is a numbers game. Once you find a profitable niche put it on auto-pilot and choose another niche market to get into.

Misconception #3: The best way to make money in the niche game is to promote niche products as an affiliate. Wrong again! Sure, becoming an affiliate and promoting niche products can be very profitable, but if you are doing this, you're not maximizing your income. You need to promote your own landing or squeeze page where you collect the e-mail address of the visitor, and then sending him or her to the niche product you are promoting. You should also send out an e-mail course with informative information pertaining to that particular niche market to gain the visitors trust. Since your subscriber now trusts you, you can recommend products in that niche again and again, knowing your recommendation holds a lot of weight. Those are three popular misconceptions when it comes to niche marketing. Follow the tips above, and you will be more likely to succeed. Remember, it is important to find a profitable niche, set it up so it is on auto-pilot, then move on to the next niche. Not all niche markets will be a slam dunk, so don't get discouraged. Even if one out of ten become really profitable, sit down and smile, you've hit the jackpot.

2 Sure-Fire Methods Proven To Convert More Customers

If you're a marketer your number one concern is customers. You've probably read and heard a million and one ideas about how to build relationships, retain customers, create a list of potential customers, and inspire consmer loyalty. But the tough question is, "How do I convert prospects into customers?" There are a lot of people out there who see your ads, think about them, and maybe even say, "I ought to..." They're just waiting to be convinced to to do something about it. There is something you can do to get them moving!

1. Improve Your Offer No on can pass up the deal that's "too good to resist." Think about it... how often do your customers want your product, but just want something else a little more? That leaves you with a long list of "almost sales" that have the potential to be converted into real sales and profit. Sweeten the deal. Make the offer so good they can't resist it. Now, I'm in no way suggesting that you drop your prices to sweeten the deal. You can just as easily load it up with bonuses to increase the perceived value without cutting away at your profit. Bonuses motivate sales, maybe even more than cut prices. Don't let them lollygag. Yeah, get them into the store pronto with a deadline. They may have to put a competitors purchase on hold to get your deal, but hey... what's wrong with that?

2. Follow Up How would you like to increase your sales by more than 50 percent? Yeah, it sounds good! There's really a very simple tactic that you can implement... follow ups. Chances are, prospective customers aren't going to buy your product the first time they see or hear about it. Maybe it'll be the third or fourth, but they have to hear from you that third or fourth time before they actually become a customer. Do you have a follow up system in place? Simply contact the "almost customer" every month with a new offer, or give them more information about the product they are showing interest in. It doesn't have to be an intricate process. Keeping the contact there goes a long way toward building trust... the key to finding life-long customers. Internet Marketers experience a high number of customers who browse their site, then click away. You can't follow up without some form of contact information. A great way to gather the info you need is to offer a free ebook or informative report that consumers will find of interest. Once they've given you the information to email them the product, you have what you need to keep in contact, and work on converting them into loyal customers. Personalize as much as possible. If you can get the firstname of your customer... great! Personalized messages have greater appeal than "addressed to occupant" messages.

3 Reasons Why Adsense Is Essential For Content Sites

The concept is really simple, if you think about it. The publisher or the webmaster inserts a java script into a certain website. Each time the page is accessed, the java script will pull advertisements from the Adsense program. The ads that are targeted should therefore be related to the content that is contained on the web page serving the ad. If a visitor clicks on an advertisement, the webmaster serving the ad earns a portion of the money that the advertiser is paying the search engine for the click.


The search engine is the one handling all the tracking and payments, providing an easy way for webmasters to display content-sensitive and targeted ads without having the hassle to solicit advertisers, collect funds, monitor the clicks and statistics which could be a time-consuming task in itself. It seems that there is never a shortage of advertisers in the program from which the search engine pulls the Adsense ads. Also webmasters are less concerned by the lack of information search engines are providing and are more focused in making cash from these search engines.


The first reason why Adsense is essential for content sites is because it already has come a long way in understanding the needs of publishers and webmasters. Together with its continuous progression is the appearance of more advanced system that allows full ad customization. Webmasters are given the chance to choose from many different types of text ad formats to better complement their website and fit their webpage layout.


The different formatting enables the site owners the possibility of more click through from visitors who may or may not be aware of what they are clicking on. It can also appeal to the people visiting thus make them take that next step of looking up what it is all about. This way the people behind the Adsense will get their content read and making profit in the process.


The second reason is the ability of the Adsense publishers to track not only how their sites are progressing but also the earnings based on the webmaster-defined channels. The recent improvements in the search engines gives webmasters the capability to monitor how their ads are performing using customizable reports that has the capacity to detail page impressions, clicks and click-through rates. Webmasters and publishers can now track specific ad formats, colours and pages within a website. Trends are also easily spotted.


With the real-time reporting at hand, the effectiveness of the changes made will be assessed quickly. There would be time to sort out the contents that people are making the most clicks on. The ever-changing demands would be met while generating cash for the webmasters and publishers. The more flexible tools are also allowing webmasters to group web pages by URL, domain, ad type or category, which will provide them some accurate insight on which pages, ads and domains are performing best.


The last and final reason is that the advertisers have realized the benefits associated having their ads served on targeted websites. Thus increasing the possibility that a prospective web surfer will have an interest in their product and services. All because of the content and its constant maintenance. As opposed to those who are no using Adsense in their sites, they are given the option of having other people do their content for them, giving them the benefit of having successful and money-generating web sites.


Adsense is all about targeted content, the more targeted your content is, the more target the search engines’ ads will be. There are some web masters and publishers who are focused more on their site contents and how best to maintain them rather than the cash that the ads will generate for them. This is the part where the effectiveness is working its best.


There was a time when people were not yet aware of the money to be achieved from advertisements. The cash generated only came into existence when the webmasters and publishers realized how they can make Adsense be that generator. In those days, the content were the most important factors that is taken quite seriously. It still is. With the allure of money, of course.

3 High-Impact Fixes For Your Marketing Woes

How many times has your competitor gotten one over on you? The feeling of being left behind just eats away, until you do something about. The problem is that we often feel that we've got to come up with some grand plan in order to get our business skyrocketing again. Don't be fooled! Getting back on top of the market isn't as tough as it seems with these high-impact, easy-to-use fixes. 1. The Magic Number - 1 Implement a "advertise 1 item at a time" motto for your advertising strategy. Does that mean you can't SELL more than one item at a time? No... but wait until AFTER the sale. When a customer sees more than one of a product offered at unbelievably low prices, he's confused. Which one is the better deal? Which one does he prefer? These questions encourage procrastination - one of marketing's greatest thieves. Instead, offer the consumer a product that compliments his purchase in a nearby display... or even at the register. You'll make extra profits instead of losing a sale. 2. Outsmart Your Competitors Your competition is looking for you in all of the usual places. Don't go there. Quietly look for new methods of advertising and new markets to target. Niche markets provide the perfect sneak tactic for reaching new clients. Here's they key... sub-divide your current market into smaller, more specific niche markets. Familiarize yourself with the needs and concerns of the niche, then present yourself as the pro in their corner. Leave your competition in the dust with the intensity of new prospects that will come your way. Modernize an old marketing technique that still carries a wallop - postcards. Yeah, these small, inexpensive marketing tools still carry a personal message that is quick and easy to read, but with new high-impact colors and designs that capture the attention of readers. Your competition won't even know that you're using them! 3. Encourage Communication Communication is crucial to understanding your consumers. Encourage questions before the sale, during the sale and after the sale. Make it easy and comfortable. Provide convenient contact information on all of your sales materials, including Websites. If you find yourself overloaded with questions, create a frequently asked question page where clients can get the answers they need without claiming as much of your time. Confused customers, tough competitors and communication mishaps won't steal profits from your account when you fix things up with the 3 quick tips.

3 Reasons Why The Copy You Hate Will Bring Profits You Love

Every copywriter's nightmare. We write beautiful copy for a client, who takes one look and says, "You can't be serious! This is too sales-y...or too simple...or too different..." And I'm reminded of the days, many years ago, when I volunteered as a Pet Adoption Counselor with the San Francisco SPCA. Looking back, I must have been training for what I do now. I had lots of enthusiasm. People often teased, “You’re selling cats!” Sure enough, many visitors went up with a crate holding a furry bundle of joy. Our Volunteer Coordinator kept reminding us, “Don’t judge the visitors. You’re not going home with this person. The adopter who drives you crazy may be the best thing that ever happened to a dog.” True. And copy works the same way. We don’t judge our friends the way their dogs and cats do. And we don’t read our copy like our own customers. I tell my own clients, “You may not like this copy. But you’re not the target market, even if you think you resemble your clients.” Here are 3 reasons why. 1. Customers live on a different planet. If you hang around the Internet, you develop a unique lifestyle. For instance, some of my best friends are people I’ve never met. We exchange emails and phone calls for years. My favorite web designer is an American living in Brazil. And you hear the same promises over and over. “Bring traffic to your website.” “Attract all the clients you can handle.” But if you’re targeting ordinary people (i.e., those who have actually met their best friends in person), many of our ho-hum phrases will seem fresh and exciting. “Hype-free marketing? I like that,” purred an earth-dwelling prospect recently. “That’s a whole new way of looking at marketing.” Your world may not be the Internet. Maybe you live fitness, coaching, cooking, or finance. But chances are your familiar phrases will seem fresh and exciting to your target market. 2. Customers want to be sold. They know you’re not putting up websites and creating brochures so you’ll feel good and collect gold stars for your Permanent Records. And if they want your service, they’re looking for reasons to say “yes.” Think of all those Madison Avenue ads with the theme, “You deserve it.” Or, “You’re worth it.” They’re giving us permission to spend our money. As long as you’re tasteful and – drum roll – meeting their real needs, your customers will actually appreciate learning about what you offer. Recently I was pitching my services to “Frank,” a prospective client who sells fitness services. Hesitantly, I referred him to a website I’d written for “Tom” – a financial professional who was terrified we were selling way too hard. Frank was impressed. “This isn’t the least bit pushy. It’s so warm and friendly! Tom sounds like such a nice guy.” We’re still talking. But when Frank sees his own fitness site, I bet he says, “Um – do you think we’re selling too hard?” 3. Customers don’t want to stop and think. Some words and phrases slow us down. For some good examples, pick up your college textbooks and maybe a couple of academic journals. You’ll see words like “moreover,” “counterintuitive,” “although,” and more. (I know. I wrote many.) How did you read your college textbooks? I bet you read slowly, made marginal notes and hung on tight to your yellow highlighter pen. Alas, website visitors don’t study our copy the same way. We have to help them create highlights and move along fast. Which gets read more: (a) “Although you can work very hard, you may not see results for a long time.” (b) “But you can work really hard and wait forever for results.” Bottom Line: Expect surprises when you unveil your copy to your clients, especially if you’re new to marketing yourself and your own products. When I first wrote the title Your 21-Day Extreme Career Makeover, I cringed: Was my site becoming the virtual equivalent of a used car lot? But my target market – professionals and senior executives – started buying. And the rest, as they say, is history

3 Reasons Postcards Are The Best Way To Advertise

When I say postcard, maybe you think of the old fashioned, jagged edged dull pieces of card stock. Think again! Today's postcards are vibrant, high-impact creations with clip art so real that it'll jump off the page at you. And the best thing about them... 1. They're Short and Personal Let's face it, people just don't have time to sort through a lot of advertisements and junk mail. If the truth be known, they immediately identify ads and pitch them into the trash without ever slitting the envelope. Postcards get read! It's already open, and the message is "in your face" without exerting any effort to absorb it. Even if the reader isn't trying to read it, he'll get the impact of the short message before he tosses it. Personal messages have a greater appeal than mass mailings. Postcards keep the old time charm of a personal greeting while implement new high tech marketing strategies... a combination for success. 2. They're Easy And Cost Effective Hey even the postage for a postcard is cheaper! Go to your printer and have them print you up several thousand for 7 or 8 cents apiece. Not too bad! For about 30 cents you have a cutting edge, high impact marketing tool ready to be put to use. You don't even have to bother with putting them in the mail. Many print warehouses will take care of it for you. Hey, what could be easier? 3. They Keep Your Marketing Strategy Hidden From Competitors Do you get tired of spending countless hours agonizing over new marketing strategies, only the have your competitors jump right in and ape your campaign? Yeah, it's pretty frustrating, but hard to do anything about. Everything you do is right in front of them shouting "Copy Me." Postcards are private interactions with the individuals who read them. It's a one-on-one campaign that lets you keep the results quiet from prying eyes. Heck, they won't even know what you're doing, much less how to copy it. There's another sneak tactic that I haven't mentioned yet... using postcards to direct traffic to your Website. That's right! Most of us think we need to use Internet marketing tools to drive up our Internet sales. NOT SO! That's what everyone else is doing, but think about it. A postcard with your slogan and visible information that directs the reader to your Website... yeah, let's hope the competition doesn't catch on for quite a while! There's not another marketing campaign that can guarantee 100 percent readership! It just makes sense that when more people read your ad, it will be more effective. Use postcards to market and count on a high response rate!

3 Innovative Ways To Build An Optin Email List That Stands Above The Crowd

With so many optin email lists out there, your really need to come up with a hook to attractive subscribers. It needs to have something special or different. It could be something you offer inside every newsletter issue, like interviews with experts. Or the hook could be a unique incentive that website vistors can take advantage of immediately when they sign up. Here are 3 ideas you can use for your own sites, or use as inspiration to get you thinking a little outside of the box: -- Build an Optin Email List by Creating a Private Members Only Site or Section -- Create a private web site and have people sign up to get free, immediate access. For example, you could say, "Subscribe to our free e-zine and get free access to our private membership web site!" You can choose to have them receive a username and password every time they want to login, or you can just provide a link to the site in your welcome email. Your private members only site can be as big or as small as you want. Some of the things you can include inside are: reports, software, articles, ebooks, etc. Inside the site, you can advertise your affiliate programs, as well. And you can follow-up to let them know about updates, new products they might be interested in, the latest news in your industry, etc. -- Build an Optin Email List By Giving Subscribers a Free, Tangible Gift -- Instead of offering a free ebook (or a whole package of them) like most everybody else, promise to give your visitors something they can hold in their hands if they give you their contact information. For example, you could say "Subscribe today and get our new report mailed to you via First Class." You could print out your report on standard 8 x 11 sheets of paper, fold it up, put it inside an envelope, and mail it off. Or you can offer a tips booklet and mail it to new subscribers. Or you can create your own CD full of information targeted toward your market and mail that. Or if you have a wholesale supply of a product of interest to your subscribers, then you can send one to each new subscriber. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination. Follow-up possibilities include: articles (your own or written by others), tips you pick up, news in your niche, reviews of products or other interested, related websites, etc. -- Build an Optin Email List Through a Contest or Sweepstakes -- Hold a free contest or sweepstakes at your website where they must give their contact information, including their email address, to enter. Make the prize something that your niche market will be interested in. Otherwise, they'll never want to enter. If you already have an ezine up and running, you could offer free automatic entry for new subscribers. For example, you could say, "Subscribe to our free newsletter and get automatic entry into our contest." You'll also want to retroactively include current subscribers. You can announce the winner(s) at the end, as well as send any new contest announcements or product announcements. Or you can make this an ongoing contest, where you give away the same thing to one (or more) lucky people every month. That way you'll entice many subscribers to stay on your list. You can find niche products to give away through wholesalers or dropshippers. Or you can create it yourself. One of my favorite ways to do this is create a CD-Rom with a guide or report (or sometimes several) that my niche market will find interesting. Once again, you can follow-up with tips, articles, news, new product announcements, or just an announcement of each monthly winner(s). Hopefully, now I've inspired you to take some action or encouraged ideas of your own with these tips. Any idea, the more popular it gets, requires you to think outside the box every now and then in order to be effective. Building an optin email list is no different. And with newsletters and ezines saturating the Internet day by day, you need to offer something a little different to make them want to sign up to yours. Or you'll just end up getting left behind.

2 Little Words That Work Marketing Magic

In his classic best-seller, How To Win Friends And Influence People, Dale Carnegie's second chapter is entitled The Big Secret of Dealing With People. The secret is summed up in this principle: Give honest and sincere appreciation. Carnegie said there is only one way to get anybody to do anything -- by making the person want to do it. How can you encourage customers to say good things about you and give you referrals? By giving them what they and all human beings crave: honest and sincere appreciation. The Two Magic Words The big secret of dealing with people (or customers) is often overlooked or forgotten. It's simply saying "thank you" consistently, personally and, above all, sincerely. These two words work marketing magic because customers want to feel important. Saying "thank you" is an act of kindness, besides. But don't say "thank you" for the sake of flattery. It must be sincere. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, "You can never say anything but what you are." "Thank You" Promotes Referrals The uncertainty of referrals can be disconcerting. Can you control them? No. Can you influence them? Absolutely. First you must provide a valuable product or service for customers. (You're already doing this, right?) But perhaps you can make an even bigger difference in their minds by your continued interest after you've delivered the product or service. Each customer has a different level of satisfaction with your products and services. However, all customers to whom you say "thank you" are satisfied that they're important to you. This can determine whether you'll continue a relationship with them and get referrals. "Thank You" as Direct Mail or E-mail If you've never used direct mail and are considering it, start a thank-you correspondence program. If you've used direct mail or e-mail but haven't sent thank-you letters or e-mails, start now. The thank-you letter or e-mail to your customers is targeted (you know them, they know you), personal and effective. It's guaranteed to receive a positive response. Furthermore, it's a pleasant surprise if it's snail mail. They see your envelope. They think, this must be something for me to review, to sign, or worse a bill. Surprise! They're appreciated; they're important. And you're the one telling them so. Write a thank-you letter or e-mail at every opportunity. But don't send one with an invoice or other correspondence. Always send it separately. Writing the Thank-You Letter or E-mail The thought behind a thank-you letter or e-mail may seem simple, but writing one can be tricky. Here are 9 tips for writing a winning thank-you letter or e-mail: 1. Keep it brief. A half dozen lines (or fewer) are sufficient. 2. Make it sincere. This is crucial. If you aren't careful, it can sound awkward, even when you're trying to be sincere. 3. Start with "thank you." Dear Ms. Johnson (or first name, if appropriate): Thank you for ... 4. Make the tone warm, but professional. Be friendly, but keep it businesslike. 5. Reinforce a positive. Jog their memory of a positive aspect of the relationship. 6. Offer your continued support. If I can help, please call ... 7. End with "thank you." Thanks again for ... 8. Use an appropriate closing. Sincerely, Best regards. 9. No ulterior motive. Make it a pure "thank you," otherwise sincerity is jeopardized. Remember: Saying "thank you" is part of building strong customer relationships over time. Use these two magic words consistently and watch your repeat business and referrals grow. (c) 2005 Neil Sagebiel

3 Powerful Tactics That Motivate Customers To Buy

Wooing customers is a little bit like dating. No, you can't present the engagement ring on your first date! There's a two-way relationship that grows one step at a time before it leads to the church doors. You can't rush it... you can't skip it... if you're looking for the satisfaction of a life-long commitment. Getting to know your date, or getting to know your customer takes a little time and effort. The personality, likes and dislikes of each date are different, but customers share some commonalities that you, the marketer, can grab onto. Give them what they want, and they'll become the loyal, life-time customers that make your business prosper. 1. Forget About Selling... Put The Emphasis On Buying People like to think that all of their buying decisions were reached due to their own great ideas and skillful shopping. Hey, no one is fond of a pushy salesman. A salesman who "HELPS" them discover the best buy for their buck on the other hand, is a hero. Really, when a person walks into your place of business, they are most likely thinking of making a purchase before they get there. You don't have to persuade them to buy. You can take it easy, and simply help them decide what the best purchase is. Keep your focus on the customer and his needs. Think... what benefits would he be most interested in? What is the price range he can afford? Basically, keep in mind that you are there to serve his needs, not persuade him. Ah, the pressure's off! 2. Make Purchasing A "Sure Bet" Buying is a "risky" business. The higher the price tag reads, the higher the risks are! Yep, a customer is just looking for a product that satisfies the needs he purchased it for. The question they ask themselves is... "Is it worth it?" Hey, it's a legitimate question. The world is full of scams where you spend your hard earned cash and end up with trash that doesn't last and that you can't get serviced. A few tough lessons, leave customers wary about off-the-cuff purchases. They want something they can trust. A money back guarantee alleviates a great amount of concern in the mind of the consumer. There's peace in knowing that if the product doesn't live up to its claims, they aren't stuck footing the bill for a piece of junk. Customer testimonials also clearly tell "would be" buyers that you really do deliver customer satisfaction. No one can say it better than a satisfied customer, but don't carelessly use testimonials. You need a method to your madness. Pick clear and specific testimonials to use, and include as much about the customer as you possible can to lend credence to his testimony. 3. Let Them Know That It's As Quick and Easy As 1, 2, 3 Simplicy... ah, it makes life so much easier. Yeah, your harried customers are busy and tired. They don't want to mess around. Most of the time, they just want to make the purchase and head home. Convenience stores testify to the fact that quick and easy often overrides a better price! Make the buying process as simple as you possibly can. Remember that not everyone prefers the same method. The more options you have available, the more customers you will please. When you're planning your marketing campaign, don't forget to point out the quick, fast, and easy benefits of your product. Remember that value isn't everything. It's pretty easy to charm your customers when you know what they like! Keep these 3 tactics in mind as you go about the daunting task of growing your business and expanding your customer list... and watch your profits go through the roof.

3 Foolproof Ways To Soar Through A Recession

Winners are ALWAYS looking for ways to grow their business. They trust their company, trust their customers to come through for them, and realize that a financial crunch offers advantages that aren't available during better economic times. 1. Get More For Your Advertising Bucks When the economy makes a turn for the worse, it just makes sense that your advertising will give less of a return than during and economic boon. Sure there's a lot less money being spent, but you don't have to have to watch your profit margin plummet! Think about it... advertisers are feeling the recession just as much as you are, and are more desperate for clients. It's the perfect atmosphere to negotiate your way to lower costs - even if you are already getting a good price. Every advertising penny you can save, is that much more profit you'll earn on the products. Have you thought about getting free publicity? Local newspapers are always looking for something of local interest. Make the news! Publicity is free, but a wonderful way to get your business in front of potential clients. Do your advertisements really need to be as big as they are? We tend to think the big is better, but the facts are that short ads with 11 words or less often generate higher response than large ads. Give it a try, and trim some costs right off your advertising bill. 2. Take Advantage Of Big Ticket Sales Not all of your customers suffer during recession. Remember that there are always people who are thriving financially, so don't be afraid to make big ticket sales offers. Additionally, when money is tight, people who place a lot of stock in your product will value it even more. Think about ways to create products similar to yours, but with much higher prices. Internet marketers often create members only sites and sell their products at much higher prices. Hey, they'll obviously make fewer sales, but the people who really value the product will buy. Each sale will net an immensely higher profit. Think about it like this... even though the sales are fewer, the actual profit may be even greater than when it was sold at a lower price. 3. Maximize The Customers You Have Your customers already know that you have great products and provide satisfactory service. They trust you to come through for them. Think about it... it's much easier to make sales to someone you already have a relationship with. Use every opportunity to increase your sales volume within the customer audience you already have. Do you have a product that goes with the one they are purchasing? Offer it to them at the register. It's a proven and effective method for increasing sales. You may be shocked at the additional sales you can generate from those who are already buying from you.

3 Plans to Expand You Business That You Don't Want to Miss Out On!

1. Find Your Niche Chances are, you already have a target audience that you are marketing your products to. Let's face it, you're probably looking for ways to increase your market audience and profit...or you probably wouldn't be reading this article. Here's the real facts... you don't have to find a wider audience to increase you sales. Have you noticed similar characteristics that groups within your target audience have in common? Maybe you have a group of businessmen, a group of young mothers, and a group of retirees that frequently make purchases. That is just the set-up I'm talking about. Pay attention to the individual characteristics of each group, and divide your advertising into similar segments, or niches. Focus on the specific needs of the group in the advertising products you put out. General advertisements are not as effective as more specific ads. Hey, we all sit up and pay attention to someone who recognizes our specific needs and desires! 2. Create A Unique Selling Point Why should someone buy from you and not your competitor? I hate to deal a blow to your ego, but it really has nothing to do with you , your product, or your service. Yeah, its a little self-centered, but customers are attracted by offers that point out the things that benefit THEM. If you want to stand out from the crowd, create a unique selling proposition that stresses the benefits the customers will receive from doing business with you. Will they get faster service? Go ahead and dramatize it, but keep the customer at the focus..."Get free overnight delivery!" Hey, it tells the customer...you get quick service and a discount on shipping. Two definite benefits in one statement. Don't go out on a limb to create new products and services to get attention. Just, add a special benefit to the ones you already have... maybe it's quicker service. The most effective things to emphasize are benefits that your competition cannot or is not willing to give. 3. Offer Your Way To Greater Profits How many times have you began manhunting? Sure, as a marketer you scrounge and search for brand new or ancient methods of drawing brand new faces to your place of business. The fact of the matter is that you don't have to find new customers for your sales to grow. No, in fact you can take the current business you have and send your profits to the moon with one easy technique... make an offer. Greet every sale with an offer of an item that is related to the purchase. The offered product doesn't even have to be yours. The Internet is wonderful for affiliate marketers who can make great profits selling the material of others. Making your business grow doesn't have to be a stressful, backbreaking or frantic process. Simply implement these three strategies, and watch it boom!

3 Effective Tactics Every Business Should Implement

Do you remember your first day as a business owner? You were probably just like the rest of us... pretty darned happy and bit on the proud side. Yeah, back then we thought we could conquer the world. Now we're too busy conquering our own little corner of the world to pay a lot of attention to the rest of the world... unless it's to learn a few tips from successful marketers just like us who have made it big. Tips just like these... that will apply to every market - regardless of the product or service - are a great motivators to try something new. Yeah, you never know when the next idea will be worth a million dollars! 1. Create a Special Offer A special offer is exactly that... an offer that is special. Normally, customers would not be able to purchase this product or combination of products, and once the products are gone... sorry! You don't have to go out and order a bunch of new products to put together a special offer. It don't take a whole lot... just use what you've got. Grab a few items that are related, group them together, discount the price, and your customers will be excited to be getting a good deal. Think about it from your standpoint... you've sold three or four items rather than one. Yeah, combination offers are winning deals for everyone! 2. Address the Small Customer Groups Niche markets are everywhere, right under your nose! Within the customer audience that you serve right now are groups of people who share common traits. Think about it... maybe you have a group who speaks Spanish, a group of teens, and a group of middle class family men and women. Evaluate these classes of people, and discover the unique needs and desires they share. That will set you up to customize your advertising campaign directly to them. It's not hard to take your current ads, and make a few changes to adjust to the niches. They'll be impressed that you understand THEM, and the increase in your profits will be the best thanks you can get. 3. Set Up a Winning Referral Program Successful marketers develop the ability to turn their customers into advocates. Often, they don't even have to directly ask customers to refer them to others. Their willingness to go the extra wins customer loyalty and support. Naturally, satisfied customers refer their friends and family to the place that will take good care of them. Quality service and is the first step toward referrals, but you can easily take it one step further. Studies show that every satisfied customer tells three people about you. What would happen with a little incentive added to the picture? Yeah, a lot more. Give customers who refer friends a thank you - whether it's a discount, special gift item, or a simple thank you card - and watch the referrals spiral! You can get two birds with one stone by implimenting customer surveys. A few quick questions about what the customer does and doesn't like about your product, followed by a request for the names and addresses of friends and family who would benefit from the product, and you're all set to go with the contact information of a prospective customer!

3 Must-Have Strategies to Stay on the Cutting Edge

1. Explore New Advertising Methods The first sign that you might need to explore new marketing strategies, is a sharp decline in the effectiveness of your advertisment campaign. Yeah, you shell out a lot of hard earned cash to advertise, and the public turns its nose up! Don't wait until your profits are plunging to start hunting for new marketing strategies. Keep searching for the pot of gold. The whirlwind of change that continuously sweeps through the marketplace offers great opportunity for discovering new advertising mediums. Be on the lookout for one that will set you up for brand new heights of success. Here's the rule of thumb for advertising: Keep 80 percent of your advertising budget invested in the "tried and true" methods that bring in a steady flow of profit, and invest 20 percent into the exploration of new ways to get your message to potential customers.

2. Be On The Lookout For New Markets Be alert! Diversification is the key to staying on the cutting edge of an everchanging marketplace. You'll be insulating yourself against the effects of these changes by continuously changing as well. And hey... you never know when a brand new market will translate into millions of dollars in sales! You don't have to go out on a limb to reach new markets. There are marketing niches within the market you are currently dealing with. Think of it like this...your market can be subdivided into several narrowly defined markets. A Multi Level Marketing company may notice that many of its prospects are stay-at-home moms and retirees. Hey a few advertisments directed at the right people...two additional Web pages targeting stay-at-home moms and retirees linked to their home page...and they've effectively customized their markets and are likely to see a 20 percent increase in sales.

3. Invest In New Products or Services Have you noticed a continuously progressing slump in the sales and profits of a product or service you currently offer? It's no sweat if you have other products and services to fill the gap. Keep a sharp eye out for new products and services that complement what you already have to offer. A bridal shop owner may have a humming business that sells gowns and veils, but what about tuxedos? Wouldn't it be easier for the wedding party to get everything in one place? Tuxedos aren't just for weddings...proms and parties call for bow ties and tails as well. The potential is expansive. Yeah, you don't have to be intimidated by clever competition and new technology when you stay on the edge, and make changes with it. Try these 3 strategies to keep you sales numbers vibrant and climbing!

3 Marketing Tactics That Will Send Your Sales Through The Roof

When the tide comes in, all boats in the harbor go up... the tough part is figuring out how to bring the tide in. Booming economies come and go and bring surges of profit increases, then ebb to leave behind shortages and tough times. Regardless, there are some business that just seem to weather the tough times with grace, not really affected by recessions. It's almost as though they have a secret source... maybe they do... customers. Hey, customers always buy... in the good times and in the bad times. They still have needs and still make purchases. When you understand their needs and wants, you have the keys to keeping your business afloat when others are grounded. Implement these three tactics successful marketers use, and you're set for success. 1. Just One Customers can be like a two year old in a candy store... they want it all. Yeah, sometimes it's hard to make up your mind about what you really do want when everything looks so good. That's why it pays to promote one product over the others. It spells out loud and clear... I'M THE BEST DEAL. That will be the deciding factor in most cases. 2. Make Them Feel Good Customers buy because they want to enjoy the benefits of the purchase. A lady might buy a dress because she wants to feel sexy, or a man will buy a saw because he finds pleasure in creating things. Emotions are the key element that drives purchases. Use word pictures to stir up the emotions that will instigate the sale. Let them "feel" the benefits, and they'll be more apt to head for the cash register. Put them where you want them. Selling a riding mower? ... the birds are singing, Easter lilies are blooming and kids are flying kites in the wind... spring has arrived. Yep, it's time to get out that mower and fuel it up for the summer ahead. How many springs have come and gone since you promised yourself a riding mower? ... It's not hard to paint mental pictures that whet their appetite for the product you are advertising. 3. Make Contact Following up with a customer who didn't buy can be the determining factor between and "almost sale" and a satisfied, loyal customer. Simply contact them afterwards and let them know the product is still available or offer them further information they may find valuable. Internet marketers can offer free newsletters or reports that consumers find useful and marketers find profitable. Not only do you keep your product in front of the customer on a regular basis, you get email information to stay in contact. Both parties win!

3 Must-See Keys For Expanding Your Business

1. Team Up No one knows your market like you! What are the main characteristics of your target audience? Find someone else out there who isn't a competitor, but who reaches the same class of customers that you do. Team up with them to do joint promotions! We all know that two is better than one. The dramatic end results will be an effective and cost-cutting advertising venture the nets both of you a nice profit. I once dealt with a veterinarian who promoted a local dog groomer... who in turn promoted the local veterinarian. Yeah, it's kind of a "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" set up, but hey it works for both parties. Think about it... customers are going to feel that the dog groomer is in the know about who the best vet in town is, as well as trust the vet to know who is the best dog groomer in the area. Sure, it's a win, win situation for both the groomer and the vet.

2. Dig Out New Niche Markets Niche markets are everywhere, right under your nose! Within the customer audience that you serve right now are groups of people who share common traits. Think about it... maybe you have a goup who speaks Spanish, a group of teens, and a group of middle class family men and women. Evaluate these classes of people, and discover the unique needs and desires they share. That will set you up to customize your advertising campaign directly to them. It's not hard to take your current ads, and make a few changes to adjust to the niches. They'll be impressed that you understand THEM, and the increase in your profits will be the best thanks you can get.

3. Hop On The Latest Trends Get in on the first floor of the latest trend... before your competition becomes aware of it. Be a leader in the industry! Hey, Internet marketing is still profitable all around, but businesses who jumped on the band wagon early in the game got the best proceeds for their insight. We're not talking about dropping everything and making a mad dash! Wise marketers add to their already profitable businesses when they see the "new and coming" techniques. Keep the customers you already have on board, and add to your existing products and services. You can quickly and easily strengthen you business and push out the competition by adding new layers to your existing business, teaming up for joint promotions, and discovering new markets to reach.

3 Steps to Creating A Knockout Corporate Logo For Dum Dums

A corporate looking logo can effectively make you look far more important than you actually are. By adopting this simple 1,2,3 step guide we can turn your existing crummy logo into a world beating effort - garaunteed to impress the ladieees.

Step 1 - Choose a dull font such as helvetica In the world of high flying executives and corporate back slapping deals done upon yachts etc. the one thing almost all self-made millionaires will agree on is that you must give the impression that your company is a straightlaced solemn outfit. Standard fontfaces such as helvetica or times will signify your ability to fit in with suits without ruffling too many feathers and will be looked favourably upon by those all important investors looking to harvest some of their cash in your business.

Step 2 - Choose a dull colour such as grey Battleship grey - has there ever been a colour more appropriate for the deadening nature of high corporate investiture? No, not by my reckoning at any rate. But surely a grey logo among a sea of other bland logos is just going to get lost isn't it? Hmmm, I've got to hand it to you, you're right but do you know what - if we add a smidgin of royal blue somewhere within our hypothetical logo we achieve the type of chin stroking brilliance that committee members and associate directors can spend literally minutes debating before abstaining to the golf course and soho massage parlours.

Step 3 - Choose a dull symbol such as a circle Right this is where our creative minds get to have some fun. Do we put the grey/blue circle before the words or after? Above or below? Whatever you choose to do make sure it doesn't involve anything too clever or inspiring. Remember our aim here is to look 'corporate' and sensible not like some kind of fun loving chimps, you gets me. Right the logo should be just about complete and ready to enter the exhilarating world of corporate high life. To celebrate why not throw a lavish party inviting your corporate buddies like Dave and Steve from down the pub? To summarise, what we want to achieve is an air of 'dullness' yet reliability. Choose a dull font, keep the colour palette strictly dull- nothing too interesting and if you must add a quirky symbol of some sort make sure it keeps well within the dull spectrum of ideas i.e. a circle or square. Corporate Logo Design is not rocket science but if you want to give off the right impression you've got to go with the flow. Right now where did I leave that bowl of cocaine I'm off to a corporate party. Toodle pip.

3 Reasons Why Every Business Needs A Newsletter

There are many benefits you and your business can reap from publishing your own newsletter.

1. Keeping In Touch -- Your customers and clients are the lifeblood of your business. What better way to stay in touch with your existing customers than through a newsletter? A newsletter allows you to add personal touches to your relationship and celebrate milestones, both your own and your client's. In addition to furthering your relationship with your clients, a newsletter can also allow you to introduce new products, offer special sales or discounts to your existing client base, and encourage referrals.

2. Hook In New Customers -- Unless they have an immediate need or came to you through a powerful referral, most potential customers won't buy right away. Often they will shop around and compare which means you will likely never see them again. However if you have a free newsletter that offers interested clients the opportunity to learn more about you, your business, and your products for free and they can also learn more about your interaction with your existing customers. A newsletter can be a very simple strategy to turn a one-time visitor into a lifetime customer.

3. Establish Your Expertise -- No one knows more about your business than you do which makes you an expert. Likely the construction of your own business has further left you with a great deal of expertise in your field. Share your nuggets of knowledge through your newsletter to deepen your relationship with your existing customers and convince potential customers that you are the answer to their problems. Now that I have convinced you that you need to publish your own newsletter, I want to go over a few questions that budding editors and publishers always ask. What exactly is an electronic newsletter? Just like their paper counterparts, electronic newsletters deliver written messages usually relating to a common theme or topic. The main difference is that an electronic newsletter transcends paper and ink and most likely only ever exists on a computer screen. Some electronic newsletter are delivered only via email while others are delivered only on the web. Most are delivered in some combination of the two.

Most of my ezines and newsletters are delivered via email but also available immediately via web page (or rather blog page) and RSS feed. You can choose the method is most suited to you and your audience. How do you publish an electronic newsletter? It is much easier to start publication of your own electronic newsletter than it is to start up a print publication. You simply need to decide on a topic, name your publication and start writing. It is easy to find an audience (beyond your own customer base if you choose) through the various ezine and newsletter directories around the internet as well as going directly to the source, for example discussion boards for people interested in your topic. You will need to determine a delivery method, which means most likely setting up your own web site or page on your existing web site; creating an archive for your issues once they are created, which could mean setting up a blog; and tracking your readers, which likely means setting up a mailing or autoresponder service. However you can use free tools to do any of these things.

3 Quick And Easy Ways To Build A Profitable Opt In List

You finally realize that you need a good opt-in list. After reading countless articles and sought expert advices and have read many success stories of people creating a small fortune with opt-in lists you finally decide to have one of your own. Then it happens, you think you have known everything there is to know about opt-in lists and have followed their advices to the T and you still weren’t able to make a profit. In fact, you may be losing money. You maybe hiring writers to help you out, or there are some expenses incurred, even if you have a big list, but only a very small percentage actually buys from you, your still losing profit. You’ll realize that after a few months when you see your statistics and sales figures. So what could have gone wrong? Why have others succeeded where you have failed? The most common mistake is that you dived straight right in. You chose a topic where you think could be quite popular and would earn you money. This just not the case. Just because you wrote people from the list doesn’t mean they are going to buy instantly. Here I will offer more advice, for those who have started an opt-in list and have failed, you can rejuvenate your failed venture. For those who are starting, here are three quick and easy ways to build a profitable opt-in list. 1) Get your customers to trust you and your products first. Just launching your opt-in list would not make you an expert and a believable seller. Put many articles first before you start an opt-in list. Write about the topic you know and have started and used for your site. Try to put forums first to gain knowledge about your customers about their wants and needs and target those wants and needs. Join forums from other sites as well. Provide expert advices and recommendations. When you feel that people trust you already, you will be able to start your own opt-in list. You can build a base as well with other forum users. You can ask them to join your list. Friends are always good customers. Put up a link to your site so that they may be able to see what you're business is all about. The certain truth is, the money will only come in when the consumers and subscribers believe and trust in you. They want a product or service that could be a good exchange for their money. People are not going to buy something out of your recommendation if they don’t know you. 2) Find a product or service that people want and need. Although it may not be your forte, if you provide a service and product that you have researched and learned about well, you can carry it on forward. Invest your time, effort and money that you could sell as well as the buyers or subscribers of your opt-in list can use. While it is true that it is best to sell something that you have interest in, there are not many people who have the same interest as you if you decide to sell something that is not entirely popular or profitable. Do your research well and you would see the profits come in. Also provide your subscribers with promotional material that they could actually use and spread around. 3) Make friends with other opt-in list users. This is basically beneficial especially if it is someone who has already launched a successful opt-in list. These are people that have the experience in this venture and experience is still the best teacher. While there are many articles available for you in the internet to use, there is nothing like getting a first hand account from someone you trust. Experienced opt-in list users will be able to tell you what to do and what not to do because they have gone through it. While different situations occur for different people, the general concept can still be very helpful. There are many things to avoid and these people will be able to tell you which ones. Building a profitable opt-in list don’t just happen overnight. There are many preparations and effort to do. Opt-in lists are built from scratch, as your list grows, you should also maintain the quality of your list. Keep it organized and manageable. Get or hire help if need be, just make sure that your subscribers are happy and satisfied and they will be willing to buy from you.

2 Step Marketing

Do it Right. I receive postcards all the time. The other day I received a postcard trying to sell me a copy machine. It had tiny, tiny lettering slathered all over the front and a large portion of the back of the card. It was extremely hard to read, so hard in fact that I threw it away. Several days later I received a postcard with 32 words on it telling me that I could get complete information on unrestricted long distance telephone service for 5.5 cents a minute with no additional monthly fee by calling the 800 number on the card. I did call. I got the information, had my questions answered and ordered my long distance service changed. The company who offered me the long distance service was using a time tested 2 step selling process: Step 1. Generate a lead - Get me to call their 800 number. Step 2. Provide the requested information - Provided to me on the phone by one of their sales representatives, who was able to answer my questions and make me feel confident that I could save quite a bit of money on my long distance bill and that the service would be as good or better. What's So Good About 2 Steps? It is much easier to create interest (a lead) than it is to get a person through an entire buying process (a sale). You aren't getting the prospect or existing customer to part with any money just yet. You can use postcards to inexpensively promote to your target prospects and customers and generate leads (inquiries about your products and services) to then be followed up on and converted to sales. This 2 step process also helps you to create a list of people who were interested enough in what you offered to contact you. You can then recontact the one's who you didn't complete a sale with when they first inquired, preferably until they do buy from you. IMPORTANT: Be sure to get the information you will need to recontact the people who responded to your postcard offering. Repetitive follow-ups with the people who contacted you will result in increased sales. Make it a company policy to follow up with those people who contacted you about your products and services. The Most Effective Use of Postcards: The purpose of your postcard's message is to generate a sufficient level of interest in the mind of your prospect to get him/her to contact you to ask you about your offer. You are generating interest, not collecting their money (not yet anyway). That is what the 2 step marketing process is about. Generating interested prospects and customers who contact you for more information. Your message needs 3 parts to be most effective: 1. A clear statement of the biggest benefit of your product or service (in the long distance example, it was cost savings). 2. A good reason for them to contact you NOW. 3. A simple, easy way for them to respond (an 800 number for example). Your message should be short and to the point. Short messages on postcards produce more leads than long ones. For example: Call 800-555-1212 for Your Copy of Our Free Report: What 99% of Business Owners Don't Know and Will Never Find Out About Using Postcards to Explode Their Profits Offer ends 5-5-01 (Print a date 3 weeks from your mailing date to create some urgency) Lots of people will respond to find out what they might not know. Don't forget, they responded, which is least some interest in the information you have created a curiosity about. This method works and is sure to produce a large number of inquiries if sent to your proper market. This 2 Step Marketing Process Works. Use the tips you have read here to create your next postcard's message and see what happens. You will generate a bunch of leads from people who are truly interested in your products and services.

3 Reasons You Should Attend Seminars

If you have never gone to an online marketing seminar, you're missing out. I know what you're thinking... "Seminars are expensive." That's true. They are. Some of 'em cost over $5,000. Even the lower-priced parties are around $2,000. "It's a pain in the butt to attend." Again, that's fair. In order to go, you have to get on a plane and fly somewhere. And you have to take time from your work and family to do it. But, there are at least 3 reasons that attending seminars should be on your priority list (even if you DON'T plan to do a major product launch).

1. You Are Surrounded By Like-minded People. Scoff if you want. But, I'm telling you, there's huge POWER in being around folks who are driven to the same goal as you are. To this day, my friends and family don't really get what I do. They nod their heads and smile, but I can tell their eyes are glazing over. Well, picture being at a party with a few hundred people who not only know what you do... they do it, too! You'll be amazed at how inspiring that can be.

2. You Meet People Who Inspire And Drive You. I know it sounds flighty. But, when you're downing drinks with someone and sharing strategies back and forth about what's working, your mind ignites. You find yourself wishing you'd brought your laptop so you can start taking action that moment! And here's something better... you exchange phone numbers (yep, remember that thing you used to use before becoming a recluse?) and follow up with each other. That's accountability, baby and it can drive you to major success.

3. You Remove Yourself From The Daily Routine. Ever wake up and have trouble getting your engine started? (I'm not talking about your car here.) And if you ever DO get the thing to turn over, you can't seem to get any speed? It happens to me all the time. I'll wake up and the day will pass without my having done one truly productive thing! It stinks. I'll tell you why it happens to me... I get bored of my routine! Now, don't get me wrong. Routines are good. In fact, they're CRITICAL to your success. Humans need routine. But, it's JUST as important to get OUT of your routine. And going to a seminar does that for you. It makes you leave your boring daily routine behind. Going to a seminar can give your brain (and motivation) the jump-start it needs. Last Thoughts I'm not trying to sell you on a seminar here. I'm only trying to get you to think about going to one. There are a lot of benefits to going. Benefits that aren't always clear until you're there, in the hallways, in the bars, at lunch... talking with folks who are doing EXACTLY what you are doing. It's empowering. It's inspiring. And chances are, one you attend a seminar, you'll be excited to go to another.

3 Perfectly Effective Ways to Lose Customers

1. Let Them Procrastinate Yeah, procrastination has stolen millions of dollars from the pockets of business men and women just like yourself. The longer it works on the customer, the less likely they will be to open their wallet and hand over the dinero they've been hording there. Here's how it works… First, the customer leaves your store without making the purchase. Second, time causes the desire for the product to fade, and distracts them from making their way back. Finally, your "almost customer" totally forgets about making the purchase, and you can kiss potential profits good-bye. Don't let it happen to you! Make deals so irresistible they just can't say no, and set an expiration date. Yes, put a little press on them to buy TODAY! Reward them for complying, and make sure they forfeit the deal if they don't. Don't be victimized by "almost sales" that could be turned into REAL profits!

2. Stay Off The Top Of Their Priority List Hey, sometimes we need to be reminded of exactly what is and what isn't important in life. Where we spend our money indicates its level of importance. Are your customers telling you that your product isn't significant to them? Put them where you want them to be with a dramatic word picture that evokes the emotions that drive purchases. Let me say it this way… If you're trying to sell them a home business… let them feel the freedom of being their own boss, and setting their own schedule. Are you selling water skis? Get them on the water in the hot summer sun with the wind blowing their hair and water spraying around them. Let them FEEL the importance of the decision. You CAN motivate buyers to put a high priority on your product!

3. Don't Build Trust Do your customers feel confident that your company will provide the services that it says it will? How many times have you raised an eyebrow at an offer that makes big promises? Yeah, if you don't already know they are a reputable company, you're likely to take claims with a grain of salt. Unconditional guarantees give credence to your desire to please customers. Testimonials are evidence that you have a proven track record. Put some facts in front of your "almost customers." Let them know a little bit about you and your staff. It's always easier to trust a person, than a business. Internet customers are at especially high risks for feeling a legitimate amount of distrust. After all, anyone can make grand claims, but who is responsible for upholding them? A personal photo, a little information, and a phone number where a contact can be reached go a long ways toward building trust on the Web. How many "almost customers" have slipped through your fingers? You can effectively turn them into loyal customers who regularly frequent your place of business with the business savvy insights we've talked about in this article.

3 Foolproof Ways To Outsmart Your Competition

Let's face it...competition is here to stay. There will always be someone waiting in the wings to woo your customers away from you and into their realm. Yeah, you're always going to have to be on the lookout for new ways to outdo the competition, but there are 3 ways you can minimize the impact they have on your business.

1. Implement Unconventional Marketing Strategies Standing out from the crowd is sometimes hard to do with so many businesses mimicking the marketing campaigns of their competitors. Sure, we all want to be successful, and when we see others using a method and prospering there's an urge to jump on the band wagon and enjoy the same success. Rather than joining the pack, look for ways to advertise that no one else is using. Internet marketing is a good example. Most Internet marketers use ...you guessed it the Internet to market their products. Why not get high impact postcards printed and use them to direct people to your Website? Hey, no one else is doing it!

2. Discover Hidden Markets Your competitors are missing out on something! Dig around until you discover what it is, and get a corner on that market niche. Once you've discovered your secret gold mine, revise your sales copy, and Website to address the specific market you've uncovered. If you're a Multi Level Marketing representative you might want to consider the following niches. " Employees: The freedom that comes with being your own boss is a dream that many employees hope for, but never experience. Go ahead...let them know that dreams do come true...there's an opportunity to be their own boss waiting just for them. " Stay-at-home Moms: Most stay at home Moms are sacrificing finances for the well-being of their children. They would jump at the chance to raise their children and make a little money too. " Retirees: What does the future hold for someone looking at retirement? It could be that there is a lot of spark, and dreams still pulsing inside...and now...they'll have the time to invest their long time dreams!

3. Become the Expert We all respect the opinions and insight of someone who really knows a subject inside and out. Yeah, take the time to research, get to know all of the ins and outs of your product...then emphasize it in your marketing campaign. True knowledge can't be aped. Consumers will know who the expert is. You don't have to put all of your eggs in one basket to zero in on one product, but you can emphasize your expertise in one area. Remember that people often expect to pay more for expert advice! You may want to raise your price a little bit, get testimonials, and find another expert to endorse you. You don't have to let the competition get one over on you when you position yourself for success!