Reciprocal Link Exchange A Way To Increase Website Traffic

Effective link exchange can attract larger, quality and targeted traffic for your web site. The link exchange process helps you establish innumerable fruitful links with other web sites. Thus, you can win more quality and targeted visitors from your link partners . The Reciprocal link exchange is capable of winning more traffic through your link exchange process. If you want to promote your web site on a limited budget, link exchange is the best option. Link exchange can save a lot of money that you otherwise would have spent on other means of Internet advertising. Link exchange is a very effective and inexpensive approach of gaining popularity and prosperity on the web. Link exchange your will get back link to your website & also receive new visitor from other website. Firstly more links that you exchange more change of visitor from other website follow the link.

Secondly, your website will be perceived more importantly by search engines.

More Link back to your website mean more visitor will come to your website and with more link gets in search engine. More relevant back link help in search engines optimization.

Things to be kept in mind for Reciprocal Link Exchange:

1) Only link exchange with website similar to your website theme.

2) Do not Link exchange with page that have unorganized Links

3) Do link with sites that will be of interest to your visitors

4) Don't use link farms or FFA pages. You are unlikely to get extra traffic using these methods and the search engines may penalize you.

5) Do stay organized. Use link exchange software, or a spreadsheet to keep track of the link exchanges you have requested and the contact details of the webmasters.

Improving Your Social And Business Networking

Social networking is not a new phenomenon - people have been meeting together for centuries as a way of expanding their friendships, increasing their sense of community, and establishing new business relationships. And even in the last half century neighborhood or city-based networking organizations have arisen such as the Lions, Kiwanis, and Elks clubs along with those dedicated to pure networking like Business Networking International and LeTip. But it wasn't until a website called sixdegrees was created a few years ago that online networking started to take off - sure chat rooms and listservs had existed in the pre-1995 days but there were never resources online dedicated exclusively to networking. And while sixdegrees sold off their company's assets to other online upstarts, the networking craze had begun. Depending on where you look, there are potentially hundreds of websites where one can network, separated out by interest, industry, and geography and whether the networking interest is for business or personal reasons.

For more business networking, there are 4 primary sites individuals use to expand their network and ultimately their income. The granddaddy of them all is craigslist - a San Francisco-based warehouse of local community news, classifieds, dating options, and job listings started by Craig Newmark that has content specific to the top metropolitan regions in the US. It's a popular site and useful for many things - as ebay found out when they recently purchased a 25% share. ecademy is a UK-based site created by the uber-networker Thomas Power. ecademy requires membership and is set up for pure networking, particularly on a worldwide basis. The site also enables blogging, industry-specific content and chats, and is enabled for heavy-duty networking with known and unknown associates. Ryze is a site focused on business to consumer networking and provides a venue to create a community around your business and personal interests - unfortunately, Ryze use is not regulated too well so the connections and content often related to business opportunities, MLM deals, and value-less connections. LinkedIn is the current disputed leader in the US and worldwide due to its ease of use, practical benefit, and value added features including providing a testimonial for someone you know, passing along requests for connections, job listings, and easy networking with those with similar interests.

Regardless of which site you decide to use, pick one initially and commit to a week or month of consistent participation in the community and decide how you might benefit the work or personal lives of others. As with everything else in life, you get out of it what you put into it - so think both of how you can benefit yourself and others as you participate

Advice For Writing A Strong Resume

Creating a strong, solid resume involves several steps, which, when taken together, prove fruitful for an improved resume. Simple enough in themselves, it is important to actually go through and check that all the elements needed for a strong resume appear. First of all, an aesthetically clean, grammatically correct, and clear resume is a must. This indicates a well-educated and polished individual. The resume must be well organized and focused to be considered. In other words, include only previous employments that apply to the new job which you want in most relevant order. In the process of polishing up your resume, be sure that it stays interesting to the perspective employer. Your resume should be specific to each job to which you are applying, and your resume should speak for you as to why you are the right candidate. Your resume represents you, so the impression your resume makes is the impression that you have made. With these points in mind while writing and revising your resume, you shall end with a strong, attention-grabbing resume.

Language is indispensable to us and we use it constantly, but grammar, spelling, and writing style have taken a back seat for the majority of us thanks to computer technology which corrects for us. All too often though, these corrections leave much to be desired. In other words, it is still up to the writer to ensure that what he has written is well written. Any blatant spelling or grammar errors jump out at the reader, and your strengths and talents take a far back seat to the minor spelling mistakes. Revisions must be done on resumes, and the first revision should check for correct grammar and spelling. Many executives find that typos and grammar mistakes are the most common oversights writers make on their resumes ( http://www.jobweb.com/resources/Library/Interviews__Resumes/Typos__Grammati_270_1.htm ). Having someone else proofread is wise, as it is always easier to see others' mistakes rather than our own. Resume builder websites specializing in optimizing and improving resumes are also a great idea to help you avoid the pitfalls of resume writing. These specialists will view your resume objectively and will notice mistakes, both of grammar and good resume form.

Clarity and conciseness are also important in the resume. The fewer unnecessary words and the more direct your phrases are, the easier it is to read through your resume. Keep in mind that resumes are not read, they are merely read through. They are glanced at, or at best skimmed, so the clearer and more concise you are in expressing yourself, the larger portion of your resume will be noticed. One page resumes are preferred as they are concise and help you focus. This focus forces you to choose and include only your most important jobs and achievements.

When writing a resume, never lose focus. Remember the point of the resume: the key to securing interviews. Thus, make sure that every point included in your resume indicates to the resume reader why you are the one who should get the interview and, eventually, the job. Don't include extras in your resume. If they have nothing to do with the skills and talents you will need for the job you want, they do not belong on the resume. Again, keep in mind that resumes are only skimmed over, and so should contain only that information which applies. If you have a life experience that is so unique and interesting that you have to put it on your resume, tie a skill learned from it with the job you hope for. The unique activity will be noticed, and the fact that you learned from it in a way that will help you at future jobs will be viewed as a plus.




In keeping organized and focused, state your work experience in relevant order. Hopefully, and most likely, your most recent work experience is most relevant to your future job. If you are fresh out of college, you will likely want to prioritize your education, as presumably you will not have a meaty employment section at this point. On the other hand, if your college graduation is an old, fond memory at this point, start your resume with work experience.

Following the above tips will help keep the attention of your prospective employer. Keeping the interest of those reading your resume is vital, since these are the people who will be contacting you for an interview. Clearly indicating your career goals is a wise choice. It is an immediate indicator if yours are compatible with and conducive to the company you are applying to. The use of words indicating action, initiative, and energy is an intelligent move. Such words will help you focus on what you have done personally, and make your resume specific and unique.

It is wise to have a template resume from which you format specific ones for each job that you apply to. This way, you will never have a generic resume, which will naturally impress potential employers. When you take the time to personalize your resume, you show that you want the job more than others who are not willing to input this time and energy into theirs. A specific resume will wax the interest of the resume reader, and give rise to questions they will want to ask upon meeting you. In other words, the reader will want to interview you. There are resume builder services that you can utilize on the web to help ensure your resume is polished and professional. Shop around to find one that best suits your needs.

Investing time into your resume will lead to an investment of time by those reading it. The resume is the first impression you make on a potential employer, so use it to your advantage, and compose it carefully to separate yourself from other applicants. While it is important to use a standard resume format, it is not important, and even discouraged, to base your resume on the 'standard'. The only result will be an average resume, and you want anything but. So focus your resume on your personal achievements and goals in a well-written, organized, focused, and interesting presentation. Once you send out this well-prepared resume, make sure your phone stays on as those phone calls start coming in

How to do business in China

It is not surprising at all when many foreign investors complained when they do business in China. Many wondered why their years of experience in the business world could not be applied in China immediately. Doing business is about building mutual trust and benefit amidst establishing relationship with people. If you do not understand your counterpart well, it will be quite difficult to establish good cooperation with him/her. An old Chinese saying goes: know yourself and your enemy well and you can fight a hundred battles without any fear of defeat. This greatly emphasized the importance of knowing and understanding your counterpart.

Modern economic model differ greatly from the traditional one, whereby people in the past 'fight' till the last man standing. Today, people seek to achieve a "win-win" situation, and pursue long-term trade cooperation under a fair and healthy competition environment. Understanding factors such as China's history, humanity and culture will be the key to investors' success in China. As Western thinking and China's traditional values do differ, encountering the culture differences is therefore inevitable, thus a better understanding of the cultural differences is necessary when doing business in China:

1. Learn how to handle Guanxi (relationship)

In China, Guanxi (relationship) is a complicated field. Establishing relationship with others does not mainly deal with achieving own self-interests or personal goals. A special feature of doing business in China will be that Guanxi (relationship) in China will have to include relationship with the government body, investors, partners and even relationship with your own staff. China government plays a large role in administrating the investment in China. This is because China is a socialist state; the economy is still largely controlled and managed by the government, so when doing business in China, it is important for foreign investors to learn to coordinate with the China government. At the same time, seeking a suitable local partner may be a shortcut and helping hand in developing your business in China market.

2. How to prevail over competition

China, at the moment, can be said to be a big, open market, and the ability to prevail over competition is a very important issue today. Investors should fully realize and maximize one's advantages. Some investors are afraid that the China's imitation products will hurt the sale of their products. Even though this symptom is worrying, however in a free and competitive market, it will always be one that has the superior quality that will not be afraid of competition and will prevail eventually. China market is constantly undergoing standardization, and the China government has vowed to protect the quality of the market. <




The Vice-Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation had previously stated in his speech that being a member of the World Trade Organization, China government will continuously rectify and standardize the economic structure of the market, and will persistently crack down illegal acts of producing counterfeit products. Technology level in China is still relatively lagging behind, thus foreign investors should fully make use of their advantages in technology and expertise to produce high-quality products and services. One should not be over worried about the negative impact brought about by new counterfeited products. Continuous development of one's technology and emphasizing on innovation will be the key to success.

3. Route for Investment

There are three options to take when make investments in China, mainly: wholly foreign-owned enterprise, Chinese-foreign cooperative enterprise and Sino-foreign joint venture. Which option to take will have to depend on factors such as the investors' investment direction, investment environment, and the amount of investment to be undertaken. Generally speaking, wholly foreign-owned enterprise require examination and approval from many government bodies and this process can be quite hassle and time-consuming. Government procedures for establishing Chinese-foreign joint venture and contractual joint ventures will be even more and the process will require even more from more government bodies. Thus Sino-foreign joint venture appears to be the ideal investment option as less governmental procedures and authorization time will be required. Possibility of encountering hiccups will be smaller.

Advantages of a Multilingual Website

You are a business owner and your have your website in English. It does pretty well and your online business goes pretty smoothly. You are satisfied with results, but you really want to grow your company and expand it internationally. Yet, your website is still in English. Why? Why not to change it?

This article tries to explain advantages that multilingual websites have over conventional single language.

First of all, English is not a predominant language in the Internet any more. As the Internet grows, the more people from developing countries such as China, India, Russia and Brazil gain steady access to the web. They browse websites, look up for information, and, of course, make purchases, lots of purchases! They prefer to browse websites in their own language such as Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Japanese, Korean, Russian, Hindi and so on. Variety of languages is huge. If you can deliver your website in all of those languages. This means you will be able to sell much more to those new customers. There are plenty of ways to receive online payments to US bank accounts from foreign countries, and, therefore, merchants' opportunities for sales are big. Great buying audience is a first advantage of having a website in several major languages.

Second of all, if your website is translated to many languages, it receives not just many new orders, but it enjoys a bigger flow of traffic. Your website will receive more visitors per day, per week, per month. This is also great. If you know how to put this traffic to work, then you will probably use AdSense ads more efficiently and will receive more CTR and will increase overall dollar amount per day. More traffic means more clicks. Similarly, more clicks means more AdSense revenue. This is a second advantage of a multilingual website.

Third of all, Multilanguage website brings credibility to a company. Since professional language services are not cheap, having a website professionally translated to many languages brings respect to its owners. I am not talking about a cheap free machine translation of a website. I am talking about a professional human approach to translation when each sentence is conveyed to the foreign language correctly, when each image or button is translated well. All errors may hurt reputation of a company. Poorly done, machine translation may erode a company's reputation completely. But thorough human approach to translation of a website may help to avoid such pitfalls and problems. Thus, credibility that can be established by a website that is translated to many major languages. Multilingual website brings credibility and respect to its owners. This is the third advantage of having a website translated to foreign languages.




Contemporary Internet shifts toward globalization. This word has strongly gotten to our vocabulary. There are new people coming to the web each day. Internet grows and matures. New laws are being implemented and old ones get challenged. English is no longer a number one language on the web and it will never be. English is even challenged here domestically in the United States of America where it gets a lot of competition from Spanish, Chinese and Russian. The future language will become a mix of languages and having your website translated to most of them will secure your small business in the long run and will ensures its steady source of income. Website translation is not an expense, it is an investment, probably the most cost-efficient you will ever make.

If you feel convinced about your website translation and would like to find out more about this, please visit our website for more information. www.translation-services-usa.com

Translation Services USA is your reliable language partner for all your language needs.

Tips For Purchasing Chinese Products

As you may know, the huge Chinese manufacturing market is full of companies that offer customers with all sorts of products. But only a few of them have online stores which you can directly buy products without having to move an inch.

Purchasing products online offers you many advantages. If you buy products directly from the manufacturer's website you will save a few dollars each. Why is that? It is pretty simple. Let's take an example of purchasing a card reader from a Chinese manufacturer. If you go to your local shop which sells this type of product you will have to pay extra for the product because you will be given not the manufacturer price instead you will have to pay for the manufacturer price + additional money the shop imposes on the buyer.

Without the additional cost the shop imposes, these kinds of shops wouldn't be existed for a day because this is the only way they make a living, the additional money you have to pay for is called "trade markup". Purchasing a card reader right from the manufacturer will save the buyer from paying the additional sum of money that the shops impose.

If you do want to purchase a product directly from the manufacturer, you have to know that reliable companies which deal with these issues have a very low shipping cost. Serious companies have a developed infrastructure of transportation so that your ordered product will arrive in time. Buying online will save you the trouble of going to every shop in town or worst in other towns to find the desired products, by clicking with mouse buttons you will order the exact product you desire, safe and fast.




Just like any other regular store, the online stores are updated daily with a wide range of products, from antennas to vintage telephones. Also on online shops you can find full-detailed brochures about the products you are thinking of buying and also, a very useful thing, comments by other people who bought these products. From the reactions of other people you will find out if the company which sells the product is serious or not.

These kinds of online shops are growing every day so the competition is very strong; regular customers benefit from this because the shops must put the effort in order to attract customers selling their products at low prices, promotions and other similar strategically methods. Some of the shops which sell Chinese manufactured products have a technical support team whom you can ask questions about the products to, with no extra cost.

The most evolved Chinese manufacturers offer full warranty for their products and also Money Back Service. You can trust these manufacturers as they offer quality products without any hidden scams. Although many people say that Chinese products are poorly built and of average quality, it isn't entirely true because if you know where to look for the best among the pool, you can purchase very good products at extremely low prices.

All in all, purchasing online directly from Chinese manufacturers has many advantages: low costs, fast shipping, full warranty, Money Back Service, good quality products, prior purchase free customer service.

What's A Quick Breakdown Of Jobs In The Music Industry?

There's a lot more to the music industry than standing up on stage and singing your heart out. A love of music is a key ingredient in all jobs in the music industry - but we all show our love in different ways. Not all jobs in the music industry are about performing. If you're interested in making music a part of your working life, there are interesting jobs in the music industry that make use of the skills that you have.

What sort of jobs can you find in the music industry? Everyone knows about musicians and performers, or course, but there's an entire industry devoted to supporting, producing, teaching, publicizing and supporting performers. If you're looking for jobs in the music industry, here are just some of the careers you might consider.

Music Teacher

A music teacher may work in a public or private school, have a job with a social agency that offers enrichment, or give private lessons. According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, 3 in 10 music teachers are self-employed, and many music teachers only teach part time. There were about 253,000 music teacher jobs in 2004, but that number is expected to grow faster than jobs in other industries as baby boomers continue to embrace lifelong learning. The median salary for a music teacher is $14.85 per hour.

Music Ministry

A music minister is far more than the Church organist. Under the direction of a senior clergyman, a music minister may organize the choir, participate in planning of musical events for a church, encourage attendance in church and help parishioners develop and present their own musical worship and praise. The American Guild of Organists offers salary guidelines for Music Ministers that range from $31,000 for a minister with a Service Playing Certificate to $67,000 for a music minister with a Doctorate in Sacred Organ Music.

A&R Scouts, Coordinators and Administrators



If you have a good ear for music and a good grasp of what people like to hear, you could find a career in the A&R (Artists & Repertoire) area. Among the most fun jobs in the music industry, A&R scouts and other professionals actively seek out talent for record labels and production companies. A&R scouts visit clubs and concerts, listen to demo tapes and watch videos to find new talent, and are often responsible for finding songs for existing talent to perform.

Music Therapist

Do you believe in the healing power of music? Music therapists work either independently or in nursing homes, schools and other institutions to use music as an aid to healing, bring enjoyment to patients at varying stages of recovery, relieve pain and provide emotional comfort to patients with various physical and emotional illnesses. For a musician who wants to feel good about his or her work, it could be among the most rewarding of jobs in the music industry.

Songwriter

From freelance to staff songwriting positions, there are many jobs in the music industry for songwriters. You may work alone to write and produce your own songs, work as a staff writer for a record or publishing company, write jingles and ads for the radio or television advertisements, perform your own work in front of an audience or never sing a note. You may write just the words, please, concentrate on the composition of instrumental pieces or write both.

These are just a small sampling of the kinds of jobs you might find in the music industry. For more information, you can take a look at the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook. A career in the music industry can offer far more than a weekly salary. If you enjoy music, can write, play or perform music, or just know music inside out, then you may find your career niche in one of the many jobs in the music industry.

Tips on creating professional quality brochures

Creating a brochure is something anyone can do now with the many brochure making software available on the Internet. Those who do not have the time or the inclination of making their own brochures can always hire one of the many online and offline printers who will print brochures for you at a price. However, it is the tips to create a professional quality brochure that has to be kept in mind when making a brochure.

The first and best thing to do before creating a brochure is to collect and study brochures found around you. Find out what it is that sets one design to be more appealing than another is. By carefully studying the other designs, you can very well develop your sense of good design to create a good-looking brochure. Once you have got an idea of what the brochure should look like, you have to decide which group of people you are catering your information to. Choose a font that best expresses the voice you desire, like perhaps a professional, humorous or casual one, and still manage to keep your message clear. It is not advisable to use more than two fonts in the brochure, as in doing so; you distract the reader from your message. Instead, to get your message through, you could vary the font size of individual parts of the design according to its importance in the brochure. It is of no use underlining matter for prominence as it only causes clutter and makes the text harder to read.

Next comes the part of placing the right information in the respective pages of the brochure. Decide which information is necessary, and arrange this information in order of its importance. The clearer you are about the order of importance in the brochure, the better the brochure will be. To get the best placing for your matter, it is better to make sketches and move the matter around till you get the best layout. If you have to use boxes and bars in the brochure, use them sparingly as although they work well for directing one’s attention and separating busy areas, too many of them makes your brochure look cluttered and confusing. You could try other options for grouping and separating like making the more important information being larger, bolder or brighter than other information.

Make sure to promote your company in the brochure, as this is the main aim of a brochure! People are always more comfortable dealing with a known entity. So if you promote you and your company with it’s credentials and credibility, the customer feels more comfortable dealing with you. Make sure you include such information in the brochure that speaks for you when you are not there. Don’t forget to stick to general terms of quality and leadership when promoting the products of your company instead, state what it is that you have and no one else has. This is bound to increase sales to your company. When promoting service and warranty in the brochure, make sure that it also relates to reliability, as people need reliable and loyal services when dealing with a company. You could also consider including testimonials or client lists in your brochure. You will be surprised at the wonders good references make! There is no point on including cliches and trendy jargon in your brochure, as not everyone can understand this jargon. The prospective of the brochure is lost if not everyone can understand whatever it is that you print in the brochure.




Try to keep some negative space in the brochure to create a relationship between the contents and the page and bring specific information into focus. Having some empty or white space in the brochure affects the overall tone of lightness and heaviness of the brochure. Whatever design or layout you choose for the brochure, it is always better to keep the brochure as simple as possible. Place only the necessary ingredients for communicating your message in the brochure. If you feel like placing graphic elements in the brochure for ornamental reasons, first ask yourself if they help in directing the reader’s attention or only serves as a distraction.

There are hundreds of paper colors available for using on the brochure. However, the most effective brochures are usually done in only one or two colors. Sometimes, black and white brochures prove to be more dramatic than colored brochures. Remember that the cost of printing has to be taken into consideration when choosing colors for the brochure. The more colors there are, the more expensive will be the printing costs. Paper too comes in a wide range of colors, sizes and textures. You could also consider using recycled paper which adds an interesting flair to your brochure design and also reduces the impact we make on our natural resources. However, recycled paper is more expensive than regular paper, and could make the printing of your brochure more expensive.

After completing the layout and choosing the font and paper for the brochure, it is important to proofread your brochure. Proofread it several times before having it printed, as once printed, it is impossible to fix an error not spot. Reading lines backwards is a good idea for checking errors. Once all this is done, stand back and look critically at the overall layout of the brochure. If needed, you could also get someone else to look at the layout to give his or her views on it. If everyone, including you, is happy that this is a great brochure, then go ahead and print it!

How to Double Your Sales Appointments in Half the Time

In Part 3, How To Double your Sales Appointments in Half the Time, we reviewed and remedied the first 3 sales prospecting errors that start us down the 'Slippery Slope' to low Sales prospecting conversation ratios.

So let's continue to address the final 3 sales prospecting errors, discuss some proven solutions that will head us toward our worthy goal of spending Less time to achieve more targeted 'Top-down' sales appointments.

Sales Prospecting Error #4

We fail to develop an effective Call to Action; strategic words and phrases that create a positive 'visual' reference to the Prospect of what happens during the initial appointment and how long it takes.

Develop your Call to Action communication as a visual block of time in which a 'Step-by-step' process occurs with the objective of having your 'Top-down' prospect inform you they perceive enough of a potential benefit to take the next step in your evaluation process.

How long does it take to run your 1st appointment in your current sales process; 30, 45, 60 minutes? I'd estimate in the small to medium size B-to-B arena the average 1st appointment timeline is about 35 minutes. That is to re-cap why you are there, to inquire about their current state of the union, to overview your solution offering and to gain commitment for the next step in your sales process.

But if you ask a business person with fiscal authority for more than 15 minutes of their time initially, your closing ratios on a sales prospecting call will go down dramatically.

I don't know the scientific reason why, but I do understand the logical explanation. These business people are busy. It's that simple. Every minute of the day is accountable to moving closer to their business objective. There is 'No room in the Inn' for distractions that are not in line with their business objectives.
Especially the idea of "Meeting with some stranger that is only interested in selling me something that I don't need just so they can make a living".
Because in their minds, if they knew something was broken, they'd already have gone in and fixed it.

Ultimately your key objective for the 1st appointment is to 'Gain Commitment to Take the Next Step' in your sales process, whether that step is a diagnostic survey, a demo, a site visit or a proposal. But when your sales prospecting methodology is a 'Top-down' approach, these C-level prospect contacts do not get into the nitty-gritty of your evaluation process. They won't walk you through the office opening up closet doors to evaluate telephone systems or help you pull current service invoices from file drawers. They want to understand what's in it for them from a financial aspect, what your diagnostic process looks like in order to see if the solution fits and what timelines there are to see the results. And they don't like major change.

But if your 15-minute Call to Action communication is effective, they will delegate these tasks to a lower level to effectively conduct the evaluation to qualify if your solution offering will help them with their business challenges. By them delegating down, it will help you minimize any service bias within the organization with non-decision makers. And that lowers sales cycles and increases sales closing ratios.

In summary, frame up your Call to Action under the theme of 'The Business Reason to Meet' and visually communicate the steps in your diagnostic process, the potential benefits (Along Economic terms in line with Business challenges) and what they will get in return for the time invested in the 15-minute face-to-face appointment.


Sales Prospecting Error #5

We don't support our 'Call to Action' with 3rd party valuators parallel to the Prospects business objectives; valuators like business statistics, appointment performance ratios, ROI figures and relevant success stories.

Here's a hard-knock lesson on sales prospecting conversations and one you need to put to memory



A targeted Business prospect does not care what you think. I repeat; they do not care what you think or what you personally want. After all, they don't know you yet…and that's fair. That's the reality of the moment. After they get to know you, they will respect you're personal perspective on what you feel is good for them, but not now. It's too soon. Got It?

Here's my point. How many times have you heard someone talking to a prospect and communicating the words, "Here's what I'd like to do", or "I think you should have me come in to meet and …", or "In my experience, here's what I've seen."
Get my point? We already realize we are perfect strangers to this target prospect, so why should we reference what WE think or what WE have found to work. It's not valid data. So here's the golden rule:

Avoid 1st Party references when communicating on a sales prospecting call.

Replace 1st Party references with 3rd Party Valuators.
When you communicate the 'Business Reason to Meet', back it up with real numbers; business data like your own conversion ratios of helping prospects become clients or your overall company's ratios. What about condensed case studies of current customers that hold the same title of responsibility in the same industry? Or how about accumulating business ROI statistics in relevant modules in line with prospect business issues and challenges?

3rd party references to support the 'Business Reason to Meet' should be specific and applicable to your Prospect's world, and not visually project a one-sided salesperson view or a marketing brochure.


Sales Prospecting Error #6

We fail to document all possible Objections and develop Powerful communication templates to negotiate 3rd Solutions.

"There are only a finite amount of scenarios in any selling process and if you identify, train to and measure each and every one, you are on your way to excellence."
That statement I coined some years back is especially true in a sales prospecting conversation.

It means there are only a finite number of objections you encounter over the telephone when attempting to set a 1st appointment with your Target contact.
Statements like, "Send me some information", and "I don't handle that…so and so does".
Or what about the popular, "I'm happy with my current Vendor" and 'I'm under a Contract"?

Identify all of them and develop Powerful communications templates in line with each one.

Perception is Reality.
Your target sales prospects initially will put you into a 'Perception bucket' you do not belong in and you can't afford to be in. They want to fit you into a past experience, good or bad. It's up to you to differentiate yourself from the very beginning when directly responding to concerns and objections spoken, unspoken, or implied.


'Systemize' your Sales Prospecting System into individual Components and Elements and 'Practice before you Preach'.

You're only as good as the intellectual capital you share throughout your sales organization. That will keep you ahead of the competition.

Understand the 6 errors that have been discussed in this article series and decide to do the opposite. Develop best practices and business communication paths parallel to each possible scenario. Because best practices are techniques that through experience and measurement more often than not lead to the desired result.

Then invest in the technology to bundle it up into a learning system that you can become certified to, adopt it and adapt it over time.

We understand why Professional athletes practice prior to the event. Professional sales people need to do the same.
Because if you can double the amount of targeted sales appointments and spend half the time achieving it, it will save you a bunch of valuable time, make you more money and get you the recognition you deserve.
And that's a worthy cause indeed.

Did you know that it's ok to have and make money?

Written by Chris Cobb

This week, I'm going to provide you with some excellent online business tips that will help any business, and also I'll tell you a story about an e-mail that I received this week.

Firstly, on New Year's Eve I met a friend of a friend... We were allowed by our respective partners to talk business for an hour over dinner! In all seriousness, we'd spoken before, but this was the first time that we'd met in person so we had our excuses...

Anyway, he has a similar background to myself - he's a normal person just like you and me... But, he decided one day that the office and a 9-5 job just wasn't what he wanted to do for the rest of his working life. The result of this decision was that he refinanced his house and set-up his very own landscape gardening business in his local area.

He told me that one day it just hit him - out of the blue. He realised that he only had one shot at this life and he hated what he was doing at the time... and he wanted to make more money… And I could certainly relate to that!

His business has been going for over one year now, but he did confess that 2006 was going to be a make or break year for him in terms of purely finance... And as we talked more it became obvious to me that for the immediate future he needed to target very specific 'contracts' that would bring his business a residual income for the entire year or perhaps longer.

In the past, he'd been dropping a simple leaflet through doors, or letters to the bigger clients - and we talked about what the leaflets and letters contained. They were good in content, but I suggested that he needed to stand out from his competition by offering something in addition to the service that everyone was offering. i.e to maintain your garden for £x every month.

So, with my marketing hat firmly on and in place, I suggested that he offer something free - as an additional bonus for winning the contract. Something that would encourage the potential client to become a paying client...

I told him that he needed to focus on his customer - what do they want from a landscape gardener? What are they really looking for? It's not primarily cost, but something to make you stand out from the competition.

He told me that potential clients were often unsure as to the quality of the job or whether gardeners could be trusted. Well, this was it... this was the 'clincher' that I was looking for...

He's since added a few testimonial quotes to his sales letter and is now offering a 'first month free' service to all maintenance contracts signed in January. Of course, he's adjusted the price to accommodate this free month, but the importance is winning the contract in the first place... And I understand from speaking to him this week that he's already arranged two meetings with potential clients for next week.




You see, marketing and sales is all about knowing what your market wants. If you can offer them what they want at a reasonable price and make yourself stand out from the competition, then you'll be successful. To target your market, you can then use leaflets, direct mail, internet marketing, e-mail marketing or even a telephone call.

My tip for this week is, therefore, to get inside the head of your customer and then ask yourself (as the customer) "what do I really want?" Once you master this, the rest will be simple.

Moving on...

I received an e-mail that upset me this week - it was from someone that isn't a customer of mine questioning how to set-up an online business. I always try to help everyone that I come into contact with, so I responded to a series of questions from this person in an attempt to help them get started... The response to my final e-mail amazed me!

It read something along the lines of "it's alright for you - you do this for a living"...

Well, what do you say to that?!

Believe it or not, I wasn't born with my home-based online business in a box - ready to open and start making money whenever I felt like it. There was a time when I knew nothing about the internet, nothing about marketing techniques and even general business knowledge let alone an online business!

So to say something so defeatest just amazed me. To me, it's like saying that becoming a self-made millionaire just isn't possible...

Sure, people have done it, but that doesn't mean that I can do it?!!

So much of where you are and what you do is in your mind, which is why I want to make the following statement regarding the rich and successful amongst us:

Everyone has the right to become wealthy and experience financial freedom. Those that do… believe that "it's ok to make and have money..."

And if you think about this statement for just a moment and consider all the negativity associated with having or making money, then it becomes very clear as to what this means.

At a young age, we're taught that "money is the root of all evil" and "money can't buy you love/friends". We also see our parents using credit and spending everything they have, so we copy them...

My parents retired BEFORE they'd paid off their mortgage, so not only did I have absolutely no advantages than the 'normal' person... I saw that working all your life was NOT the way to go.

If you take only this from this online business message, it should be that any business can be improved with the correct and most cost-effective marketing. And in order to succeed you need to start thinking like the rich - it's ok to make money... and lots of money at that.

Best wishes,
Chris Cobb

How to Protect Children from Advertising?

Wealth of imagination engenders wealth of opportunities. Traditional ways of site promotion are well known and are widely applied. Here we will talk about the methods that are usually left off screen. They include both expansion of standard opportunities and totally independent methods. A direct link saying nothing in the guest book can be an effective tool. Of course it is better if you write something – for example, you may praise a site where the book is located or on the contrary you are free criticizing it severely. And as if by the way you may mention that you know a site providing information on the same topic but more informative and interesting. You should choose the sites with as many hits as possible.

It guarantees that your ad will be read by many people. Origins are again in fashion. Most free mail servers attach their or somebody else's paid ads to the bottom of your letter. Try posting your ads on notice boards – they must be brief, informative, and natural and the main thing excite interest. But there is one disadvantage here – moderators and site administrators can't stand flamers and spammers and they will refer you to this group. So, your ad will have a restricted time of location there. The above methods are easy in implementation. The following methods are more complicated but far more efficient as well. You can place one line java script on the necessary page. It will give you an opportunity imperceptibly to download another site in the area of one pixel. Due to this trick less popular sites obtain traffic from their more popular competitors. You should install different meters on them.<




Your site has a section with interesting miscellany, music archives, and program archives and so on. You can insert html-page with description, help or a new portion of anecdotes into program archive. You can add frame elements tot his page and due to them some part of description will be down loaded from your web resource. There is a great variety of options to choose from when promoting your site. You don't like standard ones – turn on your imagination. It is up to you. But take into account the subject matter of the site. It would be odd to see the ad of tire covers on the women's site. Just don't overdo it. Advertising becomes boring very fast and thus it does not enjoy success. Make a quality your first priority.

How to find a Website Designer

This is the fourth of eight articles about website design. Our discussion will deal with some of the issues which need to be considered when developing a new online presence. You may have already thought of some of these, but perhaps there are probably things which you haven't even considered.
In the last article, we discussed domain name registration.

This week, we are going to start our search for a webmaster, aka "web designer." Unless you are an accomplished programmer, you are going to have to spend some money at this point.

For example, is the server you are thinking about Linux/Apache or Windows based? Will it support dynamic pages, or only static, and if they do support dynamic will they support both PHP as well as ASP? Or do they stick to one flavor of dynamic. If these terms mean nothing to you, you are going to need the services of a webmaster, and now is the time to bring one on board, either as a contractor, or as an employee.

Web designers tend to specialize, so don't feel like you need to get someone who is versed in every aspect of website design.

If you just want a basic HTML site then just about anyone with web design experience should be able to help, but please don't call cousin Sam who just took an intro course and the community college. You want someone who knows something about business as well as websites, for you are building a business website. If you are not going to take orders online, then a static site, primarily for image purposes, is a good way to start.

But if you need a dynamic database driven site, you will need someone who understands PHP and MySQL. One who does ASP and Microsoft SQL may not be able to help, or perhaps they can.

There are many choices you can make here, but if cost is a major factor, stick with PHP, MySQL and some form of Linux. You may not know what they are, but when I say that they are free to use, it may give you good reason to think that way. And, believe it or not, there are A LOT of folks supporting these products for the good of the world, without pay. In my opinion, MySQL rivals any database system in the world for almost any use, and it is totally free for you to use. This is one time, my friend, that you get a lot more than you pay for!<




The Yellow Pages are a good place to look for a designer. The size of the ad may give you an idea of experience and cost. A shop with many programmers is going to be more expensive, but may save money in the long run. In any case, get several estimates.

A web designer should be able to build a mock ups, or rough demo, for you early on to give you an idea of what the site may look like. They can put together some basic pages, add images and some generic text to give you a feel for the site. Do not expect to see a final site before you fork over some cash.

There are generally two ways to pay for a project like this, either a flat fee or by the hour. If you know precisely what you want, then go for a flat fee. If you do that, however, do not expect to make a lot of changes or additions that you expect to be done at no cost. You do not want to make your webmaster unhappy.

For most of us, an hourly based time and materials contract is best. The designer can give you ball-park estimates and tell you what it will cost per hour for anything else. And there will be changes, trust me.
Next time, we will talk about hosting your new site.