For the small business professional who wants to expand their internet marketing skills and image on the net. Discover new marketing techniques, tools and strategies.
Customer Service is so important to the health and wealth in your business.
No one can make you serve customers well. That's because great service is a choice.
Harvey Mackay, tells a wonderful story about a cab driver that proved this point.
He was waiting in line for a ride at the airport. When a cab pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine. Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie, and freshly pressed black slacks, the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car to open the back passenger door for Harvey .
He handed my friend a laminated card and said: 'I'm Wally, your driver. While I'm loading your bags in the trunk I'd like you to read my mission statement.' Taken aback, Harvey read the card.
It said: Wally's Mission Statement:To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment.
This blew Harvey away. Especially when he noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside. Spotlessly clean! As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said, 'Would you like a cup of coffee? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.' My friend said jokingly, 'No, I'd prefer a soft drink.' Wally smiled and said, 'No problem. I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke, water and orange juice.'
Almost stuttering, Harvey said, 'I'll take a Diet Coke.'Handing him his drink, Wally said, 'If you'd like something to read, I have The Wall Street Journal, Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.'As they were pulling away, Wally handed my friend another laminated card, 'These are the stations I get and the music they play, if you'd like to listen to the radio.'
And as if that weren't enough, Wally told Harvey that he had the air conditioning on and asked if the temperature was comfortable for him. Then he advised Harvey of the best route to his destination for that time of day. He also let him know that he'd be happy to chat and tell him about some of the sights or, if Harvey preferred, to leave him with his own thoughts.
'Tell me, Wally,' my amazed friend asked the driver, 'have you always served customers like this?'
Wally smiled into the rear view mirror. 'No, not always. In fact, it's only been in the last two years. My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining like all the rest of the cabbies do. Then I heard the personal growth guru, Wayne Dyer, on the radio one day.
He had just written a book called You'll See It When You Believe It . Dyer said that if you get up in the morning expecting to have a bad day, you'll rarely disappoint yourself. He said, 'Stop complaining!
Differentiate yourself from your competition. Don't be a duck. Be an eagle. Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd.''
'That hit me right between the eyes,' said Wally. 'Dyer was really talking about me. I was always quacking and complaining, so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle. I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers. The cabs were dirty, the drivers were unfriendly, and the customers were unhappy. So I decided to make some changes. I put in a few at a time. When my customers responded well, I did more.'
'I take it that has paid off for you,' Harvey said. 'It sure has,' Wally replied. 'My first year as an eagle, I doubled my income from the previous year. This year I'll probably quadruple it. You were lucky to get me today. I don't sit at cabstands anymore. My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone or leave a message on my answering machine. If I can't pick them up myself, I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it and I take a piece of the action.'
Wally was phenomenal. He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab. I've probably told that story to more than fifty cab drivers over the years, and only two took the idea and ran with it. Whenever I go to their cities, I give them a call. The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks and told me all the reasons they couldn't do any of what I was suggesting.
Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice. He decided to stop quacking like ducks and start soaring like eagles.
How about you?
Smile, and the whole world smiles with you... The ball is in our hands! A man reaps what he sows. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up... let
us do good to all people.
A message from... Cindy McAsey-Marketing Strategies Coach
In the next few minutes you will discover there are people out there who build businesses without "business" in mind when they first try a product. That's how I got started in business. That's what you should want too. A business. One of the biggest mistakes I see today online is people wanting to make money but don't care about business. Here is a fact. If you take the time to build a real business the money will come. (and now sooner than later I explain below) I just felt like it was time you heard from someone else other than me.
As you read these testimonies and think about the power we have with Veretekk and the System our team uses it kind of gives ya chills to think about the possibilities. Guys our manufacturer "Shaklee" isn't some fly by night here today gone tomorrow company like we so often see online. It's the real deal and they've worked hard to earn the reputation they have. Companies don't stay in business for over 50 years and have an 80% reorder rate if they aren't doing something right!
Here are those testimonies....
Twenty years ago I was introduced to Shaklee by my friend Renee Drew, and I will be forever grateful. She asked if she could show me some products she was excited about and starting to sell. I politely became a member (for the discount) bought a few cleaners and let them sit on my shelf for a few months, because they were so different I didn't quite know what to do with them. In the mean time I read everything the company sent me, and became sold on the philosophy and felt I could trust all of the products to help keep my family healthy, and just maybe I could make some money with this.
Slowly I "changed brands" and became totally sold when my baby at the time had gotten repeat ear infections. I started looking at his diet and crushing up garlic and giving him infant toddler vitamins. His health greatly improved and he didn't have to have the surgery they wanted to do. With my next child I decided I would take only Shaklee vitamins as my prenatal care. Everything the company said was true and my belief grew and grew.
I couldn't help but tell people about the results. So just as you share the tip of a great restaurant...I started to build a Shaklee business, by sharing with family and friends and my friends friends. It grew like new branches and leaves on a tree. Some people that have been introduced to Shaklee through seeds I've planted and I've never even met them!
In the last 20 years Shaklee has paid us over $200,000. Because these are products people love they naturally re-order. During that time I can say I only actively worked about two years. Last year I started sharing again and keeping in better contact with current customers. Because of that extra effort and actively doing a few more presentations my income grew nearly $6,000 in one year. I find this exciting in this economy. What else could I do that I can be in the driver's seat to determine how much I will be paid, based on how much I want to do...........and still pays me when I don't do anything, or can't due to family obligations. Shaklee is our retirement plan, our tax reduction plan and our hope for a healthy and prosperous future. Kelli Abrahamian, Shaklee Director
Here is another testimonial....
I was introduced to Shaklee nearly 19 years ago. My oldest child was about a year old and he will be 20 in May!!! I was very young and, honestly, broke.....so the cleaning products appealed to me. It was great to be able to save money and not have to have any of those toxic chemicals in my house!!! :)
I worked the business for a short time then thinking that it would be great to have a little extra income for my family. However, I began having more babies and my focus changed to my family.
Over the years, I have been through a lot of changes. I have sold several different things over the years but have come full circle to Shaklee. There is just nothing that compares!!! A little over a year ago, Ross (my handsome husband) and I, decided that we would like to work the business and get a check coming in........pay for our products, maybe give us a little extra money for the retirement years. After working for a short period of time, we realized that there is far more potential in this business than just a few hundred extra/month! We began to dream bigger...
We have 8 children, the youngest being just 7 years old. This is the first year that she is in school full time. I have worked with kids for nearly 20 years and when she entered school this past September, I realized it is time for a change.
We have worked harder since then... around the kids' schedules. This June, I am pleased to say that I will be able to close my daycare and go FT Shaklee! :)
Our reasons are different now. We love helping people!!! We have many personal testimonies related to our fabulous Shaklee products!
We find that after both putting in about 50hrs./week, we don't have the time left for one another that we would like. We want our time back!!! BEFORE we are too old to really enjoy life. We want to travel the world and take time to enjoy the people in our lives. It is our goal to retire Ross from his cooperate job in just 5 years. We need to make Key for that to happen and I fully believe that is possible.
Honestly, if we can do it working 50 hrs/week EACH and having 8 children, anyone can!!!! Colleen Reichenberger (& Ross)
One thing for sure there are many many more testimonials just like these. Did you notice how long they have been with the same company? Think about it.... most businesses don't fail, people quit. One thing I know for sure if you have the right company (one that has stood the test of time) and you hang in there you WILL succeed. That's what I've done and it's working. I don't generally pay to much attention to percentages, but when I saw my business increase 56% in 2008. I knew I had a system that's working for us.
As a side note... Shaklee just introduced weekly pay for gold ambassador bonuses. Here is one quick scenario to get ya thinking... sponsor only 2 GOLD Ambassadors with Mission PAKs. You'll earn $300! Sponsor 4 you'll $600. That's cash on your table next week not next month. Yes you can make quick cash, but what we teach on our team is much more than that. We teach how to build a real business... like I said earlier the money will come.
You might think this message is a little one sided about my primary company and your right. I do have a strong passion for why I do what I do. Did you know you can be part of our Veretekk Platinum Control team and stay with your main company? Ya can and it's working great. Gosh I can't imagine being in business without the support of Veretekk. Just the social networking and training alone make it worth the time to get a fre.e silver system if you don't already have one.
To your Success on the Net,
Cindy
Barefoot in the Garden 888.272.6701 www.cindymcasey.com My Life's Purpose is Others' Success
May Good Fortune Be With You. May Your Guiding Light Be Strong.
As you read through this short tale of 2 horses, picture in your mind the deep compassion the guide horse has....
2 Horses: A lesson on compassion
There is a field, with two horses in it.
From a distance, each horse looks like any other horse.
But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will
notice something quite amazing. Looking into the eyes
of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner
has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a
good home for him .
This alone is amazing.
If you stand nearby and listen, you will hear the
sound of a bell. Looking around for the source of
the sound, you will see that it comes from the
smaller horse in the field.
Attached to the horse's halter is a small bell.
It lets the blind friend know where the other
horse is, so he can follow.
As you stand and watch these two horses, you'll see
that the horse with the bell is always checking on the
blind horse, and that the blind horse will listen for
the bell and then slowly walk to where the other
horse is, trusting that he will not be led astray.
When the horse with the bell returns to the shelter
of the barn each evening, it stops occasionally and
looks back, making sure that the blind friend isn't
too far behind to hear the bell.
Like the owners of these two horses, We are not
thrown away just because we are not perfect or
because we have problems or challenges.
We watched over and attract others into our
lives to help us when we are in need.
Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by
the little ringing bell of those placed in
our lives.
Other times we are the guide horse, helping others
to find their way....
Good friends are like that... you may not always
see them, but you know they are always there.
Please listen for my bell and I'll listen for yours.
And remember...be kinder than necessary-everyone
you meet is fighting some kind of battle.
Live simply, Love generously, Be Compassionate, Be alert to help those in need.
Now let me ask you do you have that same kind of compassion for your business and other business associates? If you find compassion is lacking it's time to sit down and focus on what is really important and exactly why you what you do in the first place.
Excellent Video by Steve Jobs CEO of Apple Computer.
A great quote from the video: You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
If you take 10 to 30 seconds a day and read the message below until it becomes a part of every day. It will get your mindset right to build and succeed in what ever you set out to do in life.
I believe and have for many, many years that we win with inspired people not with long "to do lists" or with systems. This doesn't mean systems and "to do lists" aren't important and useful, far from it. But if there is a secret to business or life it is that inspired people are those who will work hard, build strong and deep, and build themselves a future that is very difficult to describe.
Read the following and sit back and think about it.
Life is too short to wake up in the morning with regrets.
So love the people who treat you right,
Forget the ones who don't,
And believe that everything happens for a reason.
If you get a chance,
Take it.
If it changes your life,
Let it.
Nobody said that it'd be easy,
They just promised it would be worth it.
This is an excellent article explaining how business blogging works. I've been blogging for my business for 5 years now. I've shown many new business start ups the power of blogging. Some will take a hold of blogging and love it, and some will struggle with it. I've even had folks hire someone else to do their blogging for them. I gotta tell ya I wouldn't still be blogging after 5 years if it didn't work as a marketing strategy.
I'll second their statement about only blogging when you have something good to say. Google and all the other SE's love good fresh content. That's exactly what a good business blogger will accomplish with a little determined focused effort.
In answer to the question at the end of the article "about offering services on your blog." What I've been doing for 5 years now is offer the option for my readers to dig deeper and find the services and products I offer.
It's their choice if they decide to click on the "Secret" links embedded into my copy or sidebar. I also invite text messages and phone calls to readers who have questions.
With blogs your using pull techniques vs push (email)l second your statement about only blogging when you have something good to say. Google and all the other SE's love good fresh content. That's exactly what a good business blogger will accomplish with a little determined focused effort.
As with any online marketing strategy don't put your eggs all in one basket. If you do your setting yourself up with a very fragile marketing plan. You should always have multiple marketing strategies and multiple income streams. I could go on and on about income streams, but if you look at the business models of some of the top business people you will see they don't keep their eggs all in one basket and neither should you.
Topic: Online Training: Learning to use your New Web Conference Room
Presenter: Cindy McAsey- an internet marketing strategy trainer and consultant, hosting many online trainings weekly. Learn more about Cindy at www.cindymcasey.com. Private consulting services available.
Description: We will be going through the basic steps to learning how to use your new web conferencing room
At this online training, you will learn: * How to Communicate using Web Conferencing * How to use your conferencing rooms as a production studio for online web presentations * How to use the new white board feature and upload power point presentations
Who should attend this web conference: * People who want to start hosting web conferences * People who want to participate in web conferences
Prerequisite: Willingness to learn the basic features of the conference room.
