Twiddling your thumbs and waiting for some business to come in? Why not use this downtime to set yourself up for greater success in the new year? Here are my 10 picks, but you don`t have to do them all. Even doing just one will get you another rung higher on your business ladder. 1. Evaluate your vi...

A well structured press release in an excellent way of receiving free publicity for very little effort and cost. It is simply the process of writing a newsworthy story about your company, products or services in a reasonably standard format, and then distributing it in the correct way to relevant me...

This number one complaint keeps many a professional from expanding their business through a book. As a book-writing coach, the Number One Question I get is, "How can I find time to write?" Here`s encouragement and how to`s to get your book finished.

1. Write a short book for your first effor...

Fuji digital cameras entered the market in the late 90`s. Started in Japan in 1934, Fuji has always tried to stay ahead of the pack. The history of this company is rather interesting so let us take a look at it. Started in a small Japanese in the foothills of Mt. Fuji, the Fuji Film Co. Ltd was foun...

As I waited for an answer to my VCR inquiry from a stereo company, the recording stated a ?customer care? representative would be available shortly. At that moment, I realized it?s finally catching on everywhere. With aging baby boomers, world events and additional pressures in today?s society; it i...

So its 12:30 Pm and there you are at the computer trying to refresh the email inbox page. The big test is tomorrow and your Professor still hasn?t replied back, but why? Contrary to popular belief, that your Professor wants you to fail, the problem could stem from the fact that your email never reac...

Today, I made a special trip to an art supply store, one at which I have a ?membership,? enabling me to get 10% off its prices, everyday. After wading through a sea of traffic, I found a parking space, entered the store, and quickly picked up two canvasses. I asked the clerk, ?Are these on sale?? ?Y...

An important question to answer when creating or revising a Web site is "What are the goals of this site?" because the answer will drive your site design and marketing decisions. In Part 1 (http://www.webmarketingarticles.com/CustomerDecision.htm), I took a look at understanding your site visitors` ...

Some of the most successful package introductions have come from people who knew nothing about package design. How can that make sense? Designers are creative. They get paid to design packaging, which may or may not necessarily be what the customer wants or needs. Good designers keep up with the lat...

To budget, to have a budget and to be on a budget is not a bad thing; in fact, it?s just about the best financial situation you can find yourself in. A budget is a valuable financial management tool which will enable you to pay your monthly expenses, save a certain percentage of your income and cont...

<< Part 2 of 2 >> When many of my clients first come to me for coaching, they share that one of their biggest challenges is getting enough visitors to their site. Attracting traffic isn`t a cut and dry process ? there isn`t one perfect way to do it. But there are many ways that, when used collaborat...

I feel the most effective way to get people to link to your web site is by offering web masters the option of giving away your free stuff. In exchange, they link to your web site. Why would other web masters want to do this? They may want give away a freebie to draw traffic to their web site. ...

There are a few software directory software programs in the marketplace. Some are great, some are good, and some stink to high heaven, for the writer and for the website owners. In an ideal world, all article management software would be easy-to-use for the webmaster. Also in an ideal world, the sub...

Imagine how much your sales and profits would increase if each of your customers come back just one more time a week or a month.  You would boost your sales by 50%.  Getting your existing customer base to visit more often is easier than you think.  This is because, unlike a prospective customer who ...

The Problem No matter how good your product or service is, if you are not receiving targeted visitors to your site or if your web site is not well ranked by the Search engines you will not sell much. A solid, reciprocal linking strategy, properly executed will deliver both targeted visitors and im...

With the rising cost of books, tuition and housing, it`s no wonder that college students are looking for ways to cash in on anything that can lighten their financial load. It isn`t easy trying to balance an exciting social life, education and your finances at any age ? not to mention in your teens a...

Every time my firm conducts communication skills training, we know someone is going to object. ?That doesn`t work. Everybody`s heard of active listening. You can`t use that stuff anymore.? And we have to admit, there`s a lot of truth in that. Everyone has heard of active listening. And it doesn`t ...

In search engine optimization, "off page" factors have become more and more important as they relate to rankings. In particular, solid link popularity can literally make or break a site with the search engines. Before we go any further, what is "link popularity"? In very simplistic terms, link popul...

When you hear the word ?marketing? what comes to mind? More business or wasted money? If your experience with marketing or advertising has been less than positive your cynicism may be well founded. Yet, have you ever noticed a competitor with a mediocre product and a healthy business? The difference...

Sure, as tactics usually presented to business, non-profit and association managers, special events, brochures and news releases are fine. But they`re not the high-octane PR firepower you need to deliver growth results like new proposals for strategic alliances and joint ventures; accelerating p...

My experience in sales and marketing tells me that 25% of the general population cannot be sold anything. If it`s not their idea, it`s not a good idea. This group buys things, but they are not sold things. Conversely, 20% of the people will buy most anything that makes sense, especially if it`s "dis...

Business people often spend time and money trying to find new ways to stand out from the crowd or craving recognition and exposure for their organisation and its achievements. Communicating with your customers and stakeholders has become more demanding, complex and pressure-driven. The media however...

Just like the late, great Rodney Dangerfield, the "humble" cover letter gets no respect. Job-seekers spend so much time and energy on their resumes they`ve got nothing left to offer their poor, neglected cover letters. Big, BIG mistake! It is the well-written cover letter not the resume that can sin...

Do you hang up on telemarketers? 9 times out of 10 I do.

Why do we do this? I hang-up because I am afraid that they are going to waste my time.

Telemarketing is a tough job. Most of the people who do it aren`t given enough training to excel at it. Companies take the sink or swim atti...

Mediation is an alternative to litigation when disputes arise. Mediation is also known as arbitration. Mediation does not offer any guaranteed or specific results. Mediation is only a means of coming to a decision about a running dispute, keeping the interests of all parties or people in dispute. So...

The Entrepreneurial Dilemma Most entrepreneurs hate the thought of having to work at a regular job ever again, especially if they`ve already been in business for awhile. But what do you do when you`ve run out of start-up money and you`re still not profitable yet? Or what happens when some major cha...

Complete Article with Resource Box at end: Need more business? Who doesnt? Thankfully, new business is pretty easy to get, but you do have to do something to get it. Usually something you aren`t currently doing. Here are 25 ways you can bring in more business, and if you do things ri...

With the recent corporate scandals of Enron and WorldCom, the popularity and necessity of executive background checks has greatly increased. In order to protect themselves from potential disasters later on, many companies are now requiring extensive investigation on prospective executives to verify ...

So you spent good money on an ad, put it in a magazine or newspaper, and waited patiently for phone calls that didn`t materialize. You`re upset: you feel that you`ve wasted money and time, and now you`re convinced that advertising doesn`t work. Advertising does work. Every day. So before you kick aw...

When preparing for an interview, you need to know your skills, experiences and achievements, and how to answer interview questions. Your Skills Become an expert about yourself. Before you wrote your resume, you probably prepared a list of skills, experiences and achievements. If n...

Let?s be realistic nobody really wants to be labeled a failure when it comes to sales, unfortunately many business minded people are just that when it comes to selling their product or service. I have gathered a few tips I?d like to share that can prevent you from succeeding in sales and ultimatel...

I want to share an experience I had in common as a child with Dr. Wayne Dyer, author of the bestselling book, The Power of Intention. I`ll bet many of you had similar experiences too. As a little girl, I would always find money in the streets, pennies, quarters, dimes and sometimes large bills. I...

Writing articles for submission and distribution on the internet is one of the most effective ways of driving free traffic to your site, raising your profile and credibility with your potential customers and giving your website a boost in the search engine rankings. There really is no down side to t...

For those of you who are working in a customer service industry, the quality of that customer service itself is the most important aspect of the job. People respond positively to good customer service. IF you are a business owner then you know how the saying goes, it?s easier to keep a customer, as...

You`re at a job interview. You`re doing great, answering questions left and right. You`re enthusiastic, upbeat, confident. Then they ask, "Why did you leave your last job?" An image of your former boss, red-faced and screaming, pops your head. He was such a jerk! You desperately want to vent your fr...

Can we actually learn a marketing lesson from reality TV? In the case of Donald Trump?s ?The Apprentice? I?d say we can. Advertising and marketing are creative disciplines. That`s one reason I love working in marketing. Finding creative solutions that help clients sell their products and services ...

Marketing Ideas Without Action Get You Nowhere You want to grow your small business, but how do you do that? Many of the small businesses I work with are not really sure what works best, or how, or where to get started. We`re all familiar with the term Marketing, but what in the heck is it re...

I admit it: success went to my head. For years, I didn?t really have to hustle that much for business because my best-selling books did it for me. Out of hundreds of thousands of readers, a statistical few would always come through, and purchase seminars, audios, videos, and consulting from me. But ...

The ability to connect with people is essential to success in any business. Professional networking events present opportunities to interact with others on a personal level and to develop profitable relationships. These occasions are critical for anyone who wants to grow a business or promote a ca...

You have heard that there is extra money on the table marketing products related to yours. You have also heard that your direct competitors product is off the table. How unfortunate. Wouldn`t it be nice to be able to profit from the hard work, expertise and quality of your competitions product?...

Have you ever dealt with bad renters? Late payments? Stains on the carpet? Calls late at night about a stopped toilet? Sometimes being a Landlord is not a fun game, especially when you have a nice home and bad tenants. Have you taken advantage of the recent low interest rates and refinanced your h...

There is a difference between being comfortable and being in apathy. It is very comfortable to have a smooth running organization when you have a team that knows what to do and does it. It is comfortable to have this group take care of your company and make it expand, and all you have to do is tak...

Have you heard the story of the monkey trap? It`s said to be true, and goes like this: In tropical countries, hunters used to capture monkeys with a simple but effective trap. They placed a banana or something sweet inside a basket, and anchored the basket to something solid. A hole in the top of ...

Six Sigma doesn`t improve the customer experience. It may seem that Six Sigma turns the focus away from the customer because it is driven by data. In so many companies, quality improvement is driven by the latest customer complaint, or some manager`s latest issue. This may seem like you are being re...

Are you sending e-mails to prospects instead of calling them? Is e-mail your selling medium of choice because it lets you avoid the rejection that you dread when you make real cold calls? Do you wait and wait for return e-mails from prospects that will give you the green light to move the sale...

In the 1980s it was the fashion for businesses to be diverse and to offer a variety of service. This strategy was found to be wanting in the 1990s when many businesses decided to stick to the core businesses they know best and to dispose of non-core businesses. Hence one of the basis fundamental ru...

Managing stress is not easy if you don`t have the right people in your business or team. One of the biggest challenges any business owner or manager has is hiring the right people. I`ve recently discovered a simple, inexpensive yet very effective way which will help you get it right. This week...

Hasn?t time flown? Already we?re into the last quarter of the year and isn?t it perfect timing to clear out the cobwebs of winter and prepare yourself for the next few months of sun, sand, surf or is it work, work, work? You know it`s time to take action when: You have difficulty finding things ...

There are a variety of reasons and excuses behind poor sales lead management because the $10 to $2000 companies spend to generate each business to business inquiry largely go to waste. I call them Barriers To Sales success. Here are six of the most common which plague businesses today. 1.SENIOR M...

I still wonder why some people can make only $100-$300 per month from their own ezine. Personally, I strongly believe that anyone who have more than 1,000 subscribers in his ezine should make at least $1,000 a month. However, what I have said is possible for the one who want to make serious money ...