Month: December 2009

Stop Chasing People!

Post author By Pamela Swift
Post date December 18, 2009

Article Contributed by Cody “the Retire Before 25 Guy” Miller
If you’re like most young entrepreneurs, if you’re like me, you’ve chased some people around before. You like what you have to offer and you believe in working for yourself, so naturally you want others, especially family and friends to feel the same way.
Well, stop.
Amateurs “sell”, Pros “sort”. Amateurs try and convince people of why they ought to purchase their products, invest in their company or start up with them, while professionals walk right by.
Why do pros sort? Sorting is much easier than selling. I don’t have to convince anyone of anything. I simply share the information with them if they’re “open for more information”. Practice that phrase, “Are you open for more information?” If they are, give them some, not too much but just enough to satisfy them. If they aren’t interested, Rejoice! You’re one person closer to someone who is interested. Move on and stop bugging the same people time and time again.
Some of you know exactly what I’m talking about, you’ve stalked people around like Godzilla, you’re the person they pretend not to be home for! Knock it off! Most of the people you’re trying to convince to do something wouldn’t be any good as an entrepreneur (or they wouldn’t enjoy your product) anyway. So leave them alone and start looking for people who are interested.
The reality is, out there, somewhere, there is someone who is looking for exactly what you have to offer. Your job is to find them and give them more information. That is, if they are open for more information.
Marketing is a numbers game. Expose as many people as possible to your business and sooner or later someone will be interested – it’s the law of averages and it works, every time. It’s all a matter of “sooner or later”. Just keep going, keep working, keep promoting and keep believing.
Everyone has a number. This is not a magic number but a very practical number. You see, everyone has an exact number of people that they need to talk to in order to reach their income goals. For you it may be 1,000 people, for some it may be 1,000,000. It all depends on how big you dream and… chance. Yep, dumb luck. No one knows what their number is until after the fact. So keep count and let me know what your number is once you’ve achieved your dreams.
About the Author
Cody blogs at RetireBefore25.com, a site that provides tips, resources and ideas for aspiring young entrepreneurs. Cody may also be reached at:cody@retirebefore25.com

Sales & Marketing

Article Marketers – Stop Insulting Your Targeted Audience When You Write & Submit Articles Online

Post author By Pamela Swift
Post date December 17, 2009

Article Contributed by Eric Gruber

When you write articles, if you don’t keep your audience in mind then you are insulting them. Let me show you an example (unrelated to article marketing) of what happens if you don’t keep your targeted audience in mind.
Recently my girlfriend, Kristina Jaramillo, attended one of the worst bridal showers ever. I’ve never heard of a bridal shower where more than 75% of the guests left insulted, have you?
Here’s one of the reasons for the total disaster…
The bridesmaids thought it would be funny to put on a clothesline the different types of underwear to represent the different phases of life and marriage ending with Depends. Now this would have been a perfect gag for a bachelorette party, where all the guests would have been in their 20’s and 30’s. But not a bridal shower, where at least 75% of the guests were ages 55 to 75.
The bridesmaids totally forgot who their target audience was.
Out of respect for the bride, the guests did not leave, even though they were disgruntled. However, if you write articles or website content that’s not geared for your targeted audience, people will leave.
Keep reading this article below to find out if you’re insulting your targeted audience – without even realizing it.
3 Mistakes Most Article Marketers Make That Insult Their Audience
If you’re making any of the mistakes, then you are insulting publishers, prospects and readers alike.
Mistake #1: Failure to identify your audience.
I search the Internet all time for articles that can help me build my different online businesses. There are many times that I won’t open an article because I don’t know if it’s for me. And, because my time is valuable, I don’t want to waste it on an article that isn’t for me. That’s a slap in my face. So identify your audience in the title, in the introduction and in the bio box.
Mistake #2: Failure to use examples that resonate with your targeted audience.
Let’s say you write a sales article titled, “How to Double Your Sales in the Next 60 Days.” And, let’s say you use examples from the financial services sector to reinforce your points. Then, you target an online publication that’s specifically for IT sales professionals. And, although your tips, tools, information, systems and products may work for a broad variety of industries, if you don’t tweak your article examples, to show that you understand my industry – you lose instant credibility. It’s an insult to think that you can connect with me, even though you don’t show me that you have experience with my particular industry.
Mistake #3: Giving the wrong level of information to the wrong audience
One of my article marketing clients is a career coach who would love to get more 100K+ executive clients. The problem is that every article he writes has basic information that recent college graduates need – not executives who have been through the job searching process many times. If he wants to attract higher-level clients, then he has to stop insulting their intelligence and start writing articles with information that resonate with that specific audience. When you write, you have to keep your audience in mind and write to their needs, wants and desires.
That’s why it’s important that you write a variety of articles. To get started, check out my FREE Instant Article Writing Templates at http://www.TryMyFreeArticleTemplates.com
About the Author
Article Marketing Expert Eric Gruber teaches experts, authors, small business owners, entrepreneurs, speakers and internet marketers who want more publicity, prospects and profits how to write articles that persuade and motivate prospects to take immediate action. Now, you can get 3 of his favorite instant article writing templates that will help you write your articles in 30 minutes or less at: http://www.TryMyFreeArticleTemplates.com

Operations

Launch a Successful Telemarketing Campaign for the Holidays

Post author By Pamela Swift
Post date December 17, 2009

The holidays are a great time of the year to promote your product, find new business partners and fine tune your strategies. With peak shopping months online and offline along with the promise of the new year, companies are finding ways to reach new customers and gain partners. One way to do this is by launching a telemarketing campaign. Here are some guidelines to help get you started the right way:
· With a new year beginning most businesses are going to be reviewing the previous year and critiquing their performance and figuring out what they want to change. Take advantage of this time of year to do the same thing and decide what new companies you would like to potentially work with and schedule a call. By scheduling an appointment with them in December, you’ll be on their books on the first of the year.
· If you operate a non-profit, the holidays are the perfect time to benefit from the giving spirit. People are in the mood for charity and some businesses have to give funds to charities. The same is true for colleges and universities. College and Universities can staff their call centers with current or former students so the recipient feels a connection when answering the phone.
· If you have an ecommerce store or a boutique shop, don’t just advertise on your site and via signs. Promote! Call your past customers to tell them about your deals. Send an email to them with concise and to-the-point specials. Let customers know of the great deals you are offering in more ways than one, but make sure to keep your message simple. People tend to be busier during the holidays, so don’t take more time than needed. Be sure your telemarketing staff is happy and in the holiday spirit. Most telemarketing companies offer lead generation services too. To connect with them, Resource Nation offers a service that is free and easy to use.
· Often companies are not as aggressive during the holiday season since they assume most other businesses will just tell them to call back after the new year has begun. While this may generally be true, there is still plenty to gain by getting your name out there. If a company tells you to call back after the 1st of the year, have the staff at the telemarketing company set up appointments for an exact time and day. This way you already have calls set up in advance while most of your competition is starting from scratch after the holidays.
· Tell your telemarketing provider to think of fun and creative ways to get your message out for the holidays. Consumers are going to be stressed and tired, so be sure to take this into account with each call that is made. You need to make people feel like you are taking some of the burden off of their shoulders instead of adding to it, so be sure to let them know early in the call how you can help them find great deals with little work.

Resource Nation provides free tools, tips, and purchasing advice for business owners and entrepreneurs in over 100 business categories ranging from phone systems to credit card processing. Whether it’s connecting businesses with local and national pre-screened vendors, or offering easy service comparisons on a VoIP service, Resource Nation empowers business decision makers by providing the information they need to make smart choices.

Business Ideas

Massive Growth: How Will You Handle It? Part 1

Post author By Pamela Swift
Post date December 16, 2009

Article by Michele DeKinder-Smith
Are you prepared for explosive growth? What will you do when it happens?
Does every entrepreneur seek growth opportunities? Growth can mean more customers, more income, or more opportunities to explore new ideas. Although exciting, growth also brings its challenges, and can spiral out of control if it’s not handled properly, causing a setback as big as the potential expansion. Our research shows that the five types of female entrepreneurs have very different attitudes toward business growth (some want it, some don’t!) and each will respond to growth opportunities differently. This article will examine the attitudes and reactions of Jane Dough, Merry Jane, and Go Jane Go.
Jane Dough
She is an entrepreneur who enjoys running her business and makes good money. She is comfortable and determined in buying and selling, which may be why she’s five times more likely than the average female business owner to hit the million dollar mark. Jane Dough is clear in her priorities and may be intentionally and actively growing an asset-based or legacy business. It is estimated that 18% of women fall in the category of Jane Dough.
Because Jane Dough is business-minded and pragmatic, she probably has a plan in place for handling growth. In fact, business growth is something she’s striving for, with most Jane Doughs saying they want to grow significantly within the next couple of years. As a result, she has no doubt delegated individual tasks to specific team members, putting her team and her business in an ideal position to take advantage of the appropriate opportunities that come her way. She has a system – and it’s in place and ready to roll.
Although Jane Dough’s systematic approach is one of her many strengths, there is a flip side to high levels of delegation. Sometimes Jane Dough relies too much on the system. She moves quickly to fuel her business growth, so she may not always be in touch with what’s happening within every functional area. When large opportunities come knocking while Jane Dough is distracted, weaker parts of the system can break down.
The solution: When massive growth arrives – and it will – a Jane Dough entrepreneur should gather her team for a quick check-in, making sure everyone and every system is aligned and ready to do its part in creating success. In doing so, she’ll make sure resources are allocated appropriately and can create plans to strengthen any weak spots.
Merry Jane
She tends to be “building a business on the side”—in addition to a day-job, or a focus on family or other pursuits. She doesn’t have a high personal income from her business, but she also tends to be working less than 40 hours a week, and she loves the freedom her business affords her.
Because Merry Jane’s focus is more on time freedom than on “big money,” major growth opportunities can be a daunting proposition. While many women in this group dream of a day when they land the mega-customer, Merry Jane does not. Although many know they are capable of building a much larger business, now is not the time. During interviews, when asked what they would do if faced with the chance to take on a big new account, most quickly came to the conclusion that unless they could manage the account in their own way and time, they would let the opportunity pass them buy rather than disrupt their lives.
However, many Merry Janes admit they would like their business to be more profitable, wanting more money without much additional work. Therefore, when faced with a growth opportunity, Merry Jane can consider several options:
* She can hire someone to take over some of the more mundane, day-to-day business chores, like bookkeeping and responding to customer e-mails, freeing more of her time to pursue the new business without taking up more time?
* She can pursue the new opportunity at higher rates, therefore increasing her profit. This may mean letting go of less profitable customers or delegating their care to someone else.
* Or, she can stand firm, turning the immediate opportunity down, knowing that at some point in the future, she may have more time available for new customers.
Whatever she decides, Merry Jane should stay true to the reasons she loves her business now so that she doesn’t add undue stress and time-pressure to her already busy life.
Go Jane Go
She is passionate about her work, and has no problem marketing and selling herself, so she has plenty of clients—but she’s struggling to keep up with demand. She may be a classic overachiever, taking on volunteer opportunities as well, because she’s eager to make an impact on the world and may really struggle saying “no”. Because she wants to “say yes” to so many people, she may even be in denial about how many hours she actually works during the course of a week. As a result, she may be running herself ragged and feeling guilty about neglecting herself and possibly others who are important to her.
Overall, most Go Jane Go women don’t seek out growth opportunities because they are already fairly busy. However, when an opportunity crosses their path, they will feel compelled to “make it work somehow.” Go Jane Go truly wants to help those who need her products or services, so it is difficult for her to turn them away. And because she’s excellent at multi-tasking, this Jane may underestimate the time that will be required or may justify sacrificing personal time in order to help someone else.
This is why Go Jane Go must be careful not to overwork herself. When faced with a growth opportunity, Go Jane Go will want to think critically about the amount of work she already has scheduled and either “say no,” attempt to postpone the project, or delegate some or all of the work. If she is not willing to do so, she will eventually face serious burn out – so it’s very important that this Jane be realistic about her available time and energy for new opportunities.
While every female entrepreneur dreams of growth, when it really comes, it can seem like a huge challenge – and though it may be, handling it the right way can create a huge payoff.
About the Author
Michele DeKinder-Smith is the founder of Jane out of the Box, an online resource dedicated to the women entrepreneur community. Discover more incredibly useful information for running a small business by taking the FREE Jane Types Assessment at Jane out of the Box. Offering networking and marketing opportunities, key resources and mentorship from successful women in business, Jane Out of the Box is online at www.janeoutofthebox.com

Operations

Restaurant Delivery Service Business: Keys to Improve Your Growing Business

Post author By Pamela Swift
Post date December 15, 2009

Article Contributed by Joe McVoy
As with any other venture, you would also need to improve upon your Restaurant Delivery Service business in order to ensure a continuing success. Simply resting on your laurels would get you nowhere, and competitors might come and lessen the profits that you gain. By improving your delivery business, you would be able to ensure that your service would not fall by the wayside as the months go by.
1. Increase your service hours.
One way to improve your restaurant delivery service business would be to try and increase your service hours. If you had been previously content with serving lunch or afternoon meals, then perhaps you can now also try and deliver breakfast items to your clients. By doing this, not only would you be able to give your business a chance to earn more profits through the previously untapped morning sales, but also raise awareness in your clients that you are now catering to more of their needs.
2. Expand your menu.
Another improvement that you can make is by expanding the menu that you have. Perhaps you can try contacting other restaurants in order to add more products to your menu. Doing this helps your business by adding variety to the food that you offer. This would help avoid your clients getting tired of the “same old food” that they get from your delivery service.
3. Check your service.
Also, improvements to your restaurant delivery service business do not have to mean adding services. It could also mean that you would just raise the quality of the service that you already provide. Maybe you can find ways to improve delivery time, or find methods to ensure that the food that you deliver would come as “fresh off the kitchen” as possible.
4. Deliver your own food products
Another way to expand and improve your business is to maybe include your very own food products on the menu. This can be a very good way, if you have your own restaurant, to promote your products and get two stream of profits at the same time.
5. Create a system that can work even when you are not there.
There is a saying that if you can leave your work on its own, it is a business; and if you can not leave it, you have a job. In improving your restaurant delivery service business, you need to set up a system that can be repeated over and over again, even when you are not there. Good thing about this business is that you do not have to manage it closely. All you need to do is a comprehensive business plan or strategy to make sure that your food delivery service business will operate even when you are on a holiday or vacation.
These are merely suggestions. Remember that improving on your restaurant delivery service business can come in many forms. You would just have to find the best one that matches the ideals of your service business.
For more information on how to ensure the success of your restaurant delivery service business, get your free report at http://www.dine-in-delivery.com/dine-in-delivery-free-report/.
Dine-in Delivery provides you with a proven system and solid years of experience to help you set up your own restaurant delivery service business.
About the Author:
Joe McVoy is the VP for Marketing of Dine-In Delivery Inc. For more information about starting your own food delivery service business, visit www.Dine-In-Delivery.com.