Power2Negotiate, Reed Sawyer: Angel Elizabeth Hall is a hero of mine. Why...

Power2Negotiate, Reed Sawyer:





Angel Elizabeth Hall is a hero of mine. Why...: "Angel Elizabeth Hall is a hero of mine. Why is Angel Elizabeth Hall a hero? Because she has no fear. She always is honest, has inte..."

Power2Negotiate, Reed Sawyer: Find a job or create a job

Power2Negotiate, Reed Sawyer: Find a job or create a job: " In the past, if you were out of work, you looked to employers to hire you for a job. Those days are gone. With the 'Kill Granny' bill i..."

Find a job or create a job

  

In the past, if you were out of work, you looked to employers to hire you for a job.  Those days are gone.  With the "Kill Granny" bill in place, putting more restrictions on employers, and creating a sense of uncertainty and fear (that is well deserved, as the White House makes it more difficult every day for employers to stay in business), it is time for a new solution.

Find or create your own job.  In the brilliant movie, "Robots" with Robin Williams, the Mel Brooks character says, "Find a need...fill a need."  

There has never been a better time to create your own business.  

Why?

Because business owners, and customers, still have needs.  Instead of keeping employees, that would be underutilized, they have a need for a small company that is lean and efficient to provide those services.  They will still pay for the services, but it saves them money, because they don't have to pay benefits, and worry about the overhead of an employee to perform those services.

In other words, the needs to have services performed remains...but there is no one to fulfill that service...except you.

How do you get started?  

Let's take a look at your resources:

Do you have a lot of money?  No?  Perhaps you want to broker services, rather than doing them yourself.  (Example:  If you find a great artist, that does exceptionally well at his art, but doesn't have time to market, ask if he would like more business.  Then find clients that need artwork done.  Negotiate (ahead of time) for how you will be paid.  I typically advise 10 to 20% commission is acceptable.  Get a signed agreement with the service provider that they will pay you for all deals that you bring them, and then negotiate with the prospect, on the artists letterhead, for the business.  

What are your costs?  Time and effort.  What risks do you have?  None, because the artist is solely responsible for the quality of their work.  (Having someone sign a non-circumvention agreement is nice, but if they won't honor their contracts, they will fight you with a NCA). 

Let's look at it from the artists viewpoint:  The hardest thing in the world is to bring in new business.  If you can create a revenue stream, they will love you.  I would, of course, have the payment go through me, and cut a check to the artist when the job is complete.  

When you do this, you control the money flow.  You can also view yourself as a business services broker, and use the services of several artists, rather than just one.  (This also gives you leverage in a negotiation, so that the artist doesn't circumvent you, and negotiate directly with the customer.)

What other things can  you do with no money?  Besides brokering services, you can use your talents, such as web site creation, as a sub contractor, or a contractor to a customer.  If you can combine your technical skills with finding customers, you can have a stable of other service providers that look to you for jobs, and  you take a small commission for each deal.

If you do this, you don't need a lot of money to get started.  Please get all county and state licenses and permits before starting, because you want to  make sure that you are legally able to receive checks.  Also, make sure to start a business checking account, so that you can receive checks for your business.

Reed Sawyer, Director of Information Services

It is possible to start your own small business, even if you have no skills, capital, or connections, all you have to do is ask enough people what their needs are...and then fill those needs.

Angel Hall is the most beautiful woman in the world

Angel Hall

Angel Hall

Angel Hall

Angel Hall

Angel Hall

Angel Hall is a public speaker/saleswoman/spokesmodel that has a unique outlook on life. Angel Hall has risen from obscurity to become one of the best salespeople in Central Florida. Angel Hall is also a mother, and she works hard every day to create a loving environment for her children.

What is Angel Hall like as a friend? She is always fun, honest, and giving. Angel Hall makes everyone around her a better person.

Angel Hall is not perfect. She does, however, have a great heart, and works to be the best person that she can.

Angel Hall

Angel Hall

Angel Hall

Angel Hall

Angel Hall

Angel Hall is also a very smart business person. She has invented an automotive package that will appeal directly to women that are independent, and own their own cars. Angel Hall has said that she doesn't want to have to wait on a man to fix her car if she can do it herself.

If you are looking to hire a public speaker that has a motivating and encouraging message to all young girls, then you should consider Angel Hall.

I have known Angel Hall for years, and have been her business partner in a television production.  Her common sense insights and inventive suggestions helped to create a great business model that worked.

Angel Hall is the most beautiful, charming, and fun person in the world.

Angel Elizabeth Hall is a hero of mine. Why is Angel Elizabeth Hall a hero? Because she has no fear. She always is honest, has integrity, and will never stop working to accomplish what she needs to do for her kids.

Recently, she wanted to help her foster sister change her look by dying her hair. Angel didn't know how to do the color job, but she wasn't afraid. She researched, talked with experts, and did a great job. There is nothing that Angel Elizabeth Hall can't do.






Angel Elizabeth Hall is also one of the smartest people that I know. I always trust her opinion, and respect her ideas.

She also is the best salesperson that I know, and could sell anything.

She always cares about her kids, and she is a great mom. I am thankful that I have known her in my life.

Brainstorm Capital Group

What is Brainstorm Capital Group? Brainstorm Capital Group is a boutique venture capital firm that combines investors with inventors...and Brainstorm Capital Group provides the marketing and business expertise to change ideas to cash.

How does Brainstorm Capital Group do this? Every other Thursday night we host a free megamind teleconference that is overflowing with ideas. We have money men, idea men, and business men that are interested in taking their idea, and making a business.

However, not all people want to start a business, or have the expertise necessary to translate a great idea into a great business. This is where Brainstorm Capital Group comes in.

We are serial entrepreneurs. We know how to start a small business, market it, and sell products, without using traditional marketing means. What does this mean to you? If you are an inventor, we are able to bring your product to market at lower costs, which means higher profits for all.

If you are an investor, Brainstorm Capital Group is able to bring the products to market at a lower cost so that your investment is safer, and the profits are more likely to happen.

It is all about keeping costs low, and having the maximum amount of sales. Why not choose Brainstorm Capital Group to get your ideas converted to cash? No one does it better than Brainstorm Capital Group.

Starting your business with NO MONEY

A lot of people have ideas about having their own business, but they are discouraged because they think that they have no money. What they don't realize, is that they are entirely mistaken. They just have a different kind of capital.

Jeff Reibman, an outstanding sales manager, wanted to start a vacation club membership company. In doing the research, he discovered that he could do it, if he cut corners, for about $10,000. Unfortunately, he didn't have $10,000. What he did have, however, was a contact manager with people that he had made rich. He contacted one of these, pitched the idea, with a marketing concept that was unique, and got an offer of not just $10,000, but $15,000 to start the company.

What did he do?

1) He established a business plan, on the back of an Alehouse napkin.
2) He established a marketing approach that was viable.
3) He had done the research to discover the costs, and he had all of the information that he needed to know what the ROI and profit would be, based upon certain assumptions.
4) He made contact with people that he had already made rich, and shared the plan with them.

It was step #4 that was his "capital". He had already established a trust with these people, and they knew that they could depend upon him in the future, because he had already made money for them in the past.

My family had an RV park. It was filled during the winter time, but the summer months were slow. The only way that we could survive was to expand to enough sites so that our winter business would hold us over through the summer. We created the plans, established the costs, got the permits, and were ready to move forward except for one small thing. We didn't have the money.

What did we do? We went conventional and had three banks come out to the headquarters and give us bids. After we had selected a bank and gotten the money, my dad said, "I wonder if we could do that in a different way?"

We had retirees that stayed with us all year, paying 6 months of full rent, and when they were gone, six months of on site storage. We sent out a letter asking them if they would like to get a return on their money of 8% (bank rates were also 8%) by paying their full year rental up front, and we would give them a discount. We had so many campers send us their full year rent, that we were able to pay off the bank loan in two months, and we used that alternative financing technique for each expansion after that.

What untapped capital do you have? Do you have receivables? Do you have goodwill that you have established over time? Do you have skill sets that are valuable? Do you have a marketing idea? What assets do you have that you can covert to capital?

What if you have NO cash, NO skill sets, and NO goodwill established over several years? Can you be a broker?

Let's say that you want to be a print broker. You go to a print shop that does good work and negotiate to get discounts for work that you bring in. Then you start calling and knocking on doors. If you go out and hustle, you can find businesses that need work done, and if you can close the sale, you can write it up, take it to the printer, have the work done, and get paid by the customer. Your profit is the difference between what the printer charges, and what the customer paid. (Negotiating is critical in this process.)

The margins might be slim at the start, but as you start doing more volume, and establish a "book of business" your profits will rise.

What other businesses can you broker?

Don't let capital stop you from being a capitalist. Use your imagination and hard work to create your own capital.

Time management cheats

Every person has 24 hours in each day. We all have the same amount of time, however, some people are much more productive than others. How do they do it? Are there any time management "cheats" that can help you accomplish more that you did before?

Of course there are.

1) Make a list.
One of the best ways to get things done, is to know what you want to do. The old Franklin Covey system is what I use. Each night, just before you go to bed, have a notebook and jot down the things that you want to do the next day. Then, while you are sleeping, your subconscious can be thinking of this, instead of dreaming about baseball. In the morning, BEFORE YOU GET OUT OF BED, write down your list, by priority. Then start attacking that list. If you can accomplish most of the items on the list first, then the rest of the day will be easy.

2) What do you do first? Franklin Covey has four categories.

Urgent AND Important
Urgent but not important
Not urgent but important
Not urgent and not important

Use these four categories, and diligently strive to fit each item that you need to do into one of these four categories. Obviously, there will be some items that you might not be able to complete in one day, so do chunks of them on one day, and have the remainder move to following days.

3) Cross them off your list as you complete them. My Aunt Betty used to always celebrate after she had accomplished something on her list. (Maybe it was a drink of water, a treat, or sitting down and taking a break, it didn't have to be big.)

If you reward yourself after you accomplish each task, it will be seen as a positive accomplishment, and you will want to do more. If you don't celebrate, it will be seen as a chore, and you will avoid doing it. Celebrate!

4) CITO: If you have a business where you are making appointment, always strive for CITO, come in to the office. If you have a queue of people that are waiting in your lobby, and you take care of them one after another, that beats going to THEIR home or office and waiting for them. If someone no shows, you can work on your previous clients work while waiting for your next client to arrive. You should always have backup items on your list. If you have a gap in your schedule, work on that list. (Remember #1 and #2? This is where you can work on the urgent but not important, or the important but not urgent. Or even the not important, not urgent items.)

5) Schedule half hour meetings, instead of one hour meetings. If you have a half hour meeting, you will launch into the meeting quickly, and waste a lot less time. If you absolutely have to extend the meeting, you may do so, as long as it doesn't inconvenience anyone else.

Always be respectful of other people's time. (If you schedule half hour meetings by saying, "I have an opening between 3:00 and 3:30, I am then booked the rest of the day. If you want to meet, please be punctual, as I am very interested in your situation, and I want to make sure that we resolve it. If you show up after 3:30, of course I will not be available.)

If your client shows up late, reschedule, do NOT bump someone that showed up on time to see someone that didn't. If they complain that they drove a great distance, explain that you had an opening; they missed it.

You can reschedule, but you shouldn't bump people that showed up on time for someone that didn't. Be polite, but firm. If they are late, they just learned a lesson. If you accomodate them, they will be late again.

Never bend your rules for people that don't obey them. (If you have a gap in your schedule in an hour, explain that you are booked, but you have an opening at 5:30 to 6:00. would they like to reschedule for that time, but you have another appointment at 6, so please be punctual.

6) Establish rapport quickly, and then ask this question, "Can you tell me a little bit about your situation?" I also use, "I don't know if I can help you, but I know how to find out. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

You can also explain the process. "Let me tell you about how we work here. I will ask you a few questions to determine exactly what your situation is. Some of these are going to seem to be personal, but I need this information to help determine how to help you. Is that ok?"

By asking permission before you ask personal questions, and waiting for a positive answer, you will find that most people will be more than happy to answer any question that you have, if you give them a reason for the question first, and ask if it's ok.

7) Use open ended questions and closed ended questions. Open ended questions, such as, "Can you tell me a little bit about your situation" gather large amounts of information. It is free flowing and unstructured.

You must then clarify with a closed ended question, such as, "So you are looking to buy a house and need a mortgage?" By alternating open ended and closed ended questions you can guide the client through an interview quickly and painlessly. By listening, and writing notes, you can use intense listening skills to quickly establish the goal, and arrive at solutions.

8) Always clarify. "So, if I'm understanding you, what you want to do is...." If you know where they want to go, it is much easier to help them get there. If you are misunderstanding them, make sure that you clarify and find out exactly what their needs are, so that you aren't wasting their time.

9) If action is to be taken, make sure that you both agree on an action plan. Delegate who will do which actions, what needs to be done before that action is taken, and the expected results. You have just completed a tentative purchase order, which you can now fulfill. If they need to bring more money, or to pay for the service, spell out their responsibilities at this time, so that you can move forward. DON'T make them guess, tell them what you are proposing, and the cost. If you do this skillfully, they will not feel that they have been sold, but that you have discovered their needs, and you are a valued professional.

10) Make your goodbyes into future appointments. At the end of your session, shake their hand, and schedule an appointment for the next step. At that time, certain things will have been accomplished by both sides.

11) NEXT! After you are finished, walk them out, and greet your next clients. Do not chat for half an hour. They are busy (you have given them a list of the things that they need to do, and you have items that you have to accomplish as well.) Now you can greet your next clients.

If you have time (make sure that you do by structuring the appointment correctly), write down a proposal for how you are going to solve that clients needs, what steps you will need to take, and the timeline to accomplish them, before you greet your next client. If you only have a half hour for each client, allow yourself 5 minutes to accomplish this task. Do this while their meeting is still fresh on your mind, and you know exactly what their problem is. It will be easier now than at any other time.

12) Schedule your decompression time. If you want to just relax, schedule it. If you are married, have scheduled time with your spouse to make her feel loved and cherished. Don't let anyone violate that scheduled time. If you make her feel loved and cherished, you will find that it will be returned. If you make her feel that she is less valuable than a client, she will be upset. Make her feel cherished. If someone calls, allow the call to go to voicemail.

13) Schedule your day in half hour blocks, and keep track of your schedule. I was a mentor with a company, and our day was scheduled in half hour blocks. I followed that schedule religiously, and was able to accomplish more than I ever had before, because I used that tool to help be more productive. Use the tools that you have to be a dynamic and productive time management professional.

14) Be flexible, but use your tools wisely. Situations change, but don't abandon your schedule just because of a change. It should serve you, not be your master.

If you are a rigorous time management expert, and use all of the tools available to you, you will discover that you will have a drastic increase in your productivity, as well as your available time, that you can use as you wish. Don't waste time, you only have a fixed amount, it is up to you how you will use it.

Risks and rewards

Risk and Reward
By Reed Sawyer

Every transaction involves risk and reward. If you sign up for a new cellphone, you are taking the risk that: A) the cell phone will work. B) The network will be reliable, and C) that your information won’t be stolen by someone else because the network is insecure. Why do you buy? Because you believe that the risks are outweighed by the rewards. If you didn’t believe that, you would never buy a product.
Since the fear of pain is always greater than the desire for gain, eliminating risks or minimizing risks is a more effective sales tool than emphasizing rewards. In other words, you must acknowledge the risks, address them, and minimize them before you tell about the benefits.
How do we do that?
1) Realize that there are always subconscious fears that lurk underneath the surface in a sales presentation. If you can bring those out, and eliminate them by giving information and asking questions, you can remove the risks.
a) You can’t tell someone that there are no risks. Instead, bring out the most commonly perceived risks and ask questions to impart information and the client will remove those risks. (If I tell you something, it might be a lie. If you tell me, it is always the truth, according to you. Let them be the truth teller here and have them eliminate the risks by answering your questions.)

Here is an example: By using a vacation club membership, you can save multiple thousands of dollars over the course of your membership. What are the perceived risks? It might be out of business in a year. State that it has had the same address and phone number for the last 30 years, and ask the client if they feel comfortable with a business that has kept the same phone number and address for 30 years? Is that an indication that they are stable? Does that indicate that they will be around for a long time, if they have been around for a long time already?

By giving a factual statement, and then asking the client to interpret that, you are having them validate the truth. If they say that they feel very comfortable with the fact that it has had the same address and phone number for 30 years, you have eliminated that nagging doubt. After all, they said it, so it must be true.

2) Ask if there are any other concerns? If you do this in a sympathetic manner, they will not feel that you are using high pressure tactics, but that you are trying to help them be an informed consumer. If there are no other concerns, try a trial close. “Are there any other concerns that would stop you from taking action today?” Then…shut up and listen. If you keep talking they will use your talking to stall. If you shut up, they will answer, hopefully with another objection. If they don’t have any objections, you will then need to discern if they are ready to proceed, or if your benefits are large enough to overcome their buying process objection (no one wants to be sold, but everyone wants to buy.)
3) If they raise an objection, simply do the backtrack, conditional close technique. Use their exact words of their objection, (“the price is too high”) and phrase it in the form of a question, “So, the price is too high? Assuming we can deal with that, are there any other objections?” Since most people have a processorial objection to any closing, they might have just thrown out an objection without thinking of it. By using their exact words, in the form of a question, they are hearing their own voice raise the objection. If it sounds silly to them, you can just go past it and move on. You haven’t lowered the price, you have handled the objection. If price really is the objection, raise the benefits, do not lower the price. This is a conditional close opportunity, and you can move forward with it.

By getting the risks taken care of first, you eliminate that fear, and allow the benefits to be larger than the costs. If you don’t manage the risks, they will be unsettling and cause a lost sale.

Risk reversal:
Risk reversal is taking the risk out of the equation for the buyer, so that there is NO risk to him, and all of the risk is assumed by you.

Example: "You must experience 100% satisfaction with this mattress, or we will give you back your money, and give you $20 for your trouble."

Why would you do a risk reversal, (Get Jay Abraham's book, "Getting Everything you can out of all you've got" for more information)? To completely remove the risk from the buyer so that there is no reason for them to not purchase.

Are there other risk reversal techniques?

What about: "If you are not satisfied within the first two weeks, return this item to the store for a full refund."

"You will experience a 20% improvement in your sex life after trying these pills, or you can return the unused portion and get all of your money back."

"This will be the best listening experience you have ever had in a portable sound system, or you can return it within 30 days and get a complete refund."

What you are doing is letting the buyer know that they don't have anything to lose. They have no risk. Now, if you have a great product, you will always have some people that return it, no matter how great the product is; however, since your volume will be increased so much, it is worth it for the small returns that you will have.

If you have a terrible product, and you know that it will make people unhappy, a risk reversal technique is a terrible idea, because people will demand their money back, and/or put you out of business.

Risks and rewards

Risk and Reward
By Reed Sawyer
Every transaction involves risk and reward. If you sign up for a new cellphone, you are taking the risk that: A) the cell phone will work. B) The network will be reliable, and C) that your information won’t be stolen by someone else because the network is insecure. Why do you buy? Because you believe that the risks are outweighed by the rewards. If you didn’t believe that, you would never buy a product.
Since the fear of pain is always greater than the desire for gain, eliminating risks or minimizing risks is a more effective sales tool than emphasizing rewards. In other words, you must acknowledge the risks, address them, and minimize them before you tell about the benefits.
How do we do that?
1) Realize that there are always subconscious fears that lurk underneath the surface in a sales presentation. If you can bring those out, and eliminate them by giving information and asking questions, you can remove the risks.
a) You can’t tell someone that there are no risks. Instead, bring out the most commonly perceived risks and ask questions to impart information and the client will remove those risks. (If I tell you something, it might be a lie. If you tell me, it is always the truth, according to you. Let them be the truth teller here and have them eliminate the risks by answering your questions.)

Here is an example: By using a vacation club membership, you can save multiple thousands of dollars over the course of your membership. What are the perceived risks? It might be out of business in a year. State that it has had the same address and phone number for the last 30 years, and ask the client if they feel comfortable with a business that has kept the same phone number and address for 30 years? Is that an indication that they are stable? Does that indicate that they will be around for a long time, if they have been around for a long time already?

By giving a factual statement, and then asking the client to interpret that, you are having them validate the truth. If they say that they feel very comfortable with the fact that it has had the same address and phone number for 30 years, you have eliminated that nagging doubt. After all, they said it, so it must be true.

2) Ask if there are any other concerns? If you do this in a sympathetic manner, they will not feel that you are using high pressure tactics, but that you are trying to help them be an informed consumer. If there are no other concerns, try a trial close. “Are there any other concerns that would stop you from taking action today?” Then…shut up and listen. If you keep talking they will use your talking to stall. If you shut up, they will answer, hopefully with another objection. If they don’t have any objections, you will then need to discern if they are ready to proceed, or if your benefits are large enough to overcome their buying process objection (no one wants to be sold, but everyone wants to buy.)
3) If they raise an objection, simply do the backtrack, conditional close technique. Use their exact words of their objection, (“the price is too high”) and phrase it in the form of a question, “So, the price is too high? Assuming we can deal with that, are there any other objections?” Since most people have a processorial objection to any closing, they might have just thrown out an objection without thinking of it. By using their exact words, in the form of a question, they are hearing their own voice raise the objection. If it sounds silly to them, you can just go past it and move on. You haven’t lowered the price, you have handled the objection. If price really is the objection, raise the benefits, do not lower the price. This is a conditional close opportunity, and you can move forward with it.

By getting the risks taken care of first, you eliminate that fear, and allow the benefits to be larger than the costs. If you don’t manage the risks, they will be unsettling and cause a lost sale.

How do you price your business for sale?

A lot of business owners have no idea what their business is worth. As a former business broker, I ran into the gamut of people that were ignorant of their business value.

The answer, of course, is that a business is worth what a willing and able buyer will pay a willing and able seller.

However, there are some objective factors to consider. If you are a small business (under $1 million in sales per year) the typical way to consider pricing is using Sellers Discretionary Earnings (SDE). SDE is defined as your net profit PLUS your salary. The value is between 1 to 3 times SDE.

Why the variation? If you have an established business with a large number of buyers that use your services or products regularly, you have a fairly stable business. If you have a company that has a limited number of customers, and your product is based on ever changing technology...you could be obsolete in a month.

Larger businesses, up to $30,000,000 in annual sales, use a different method. They look at Earning before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA. In those cases, the selling price is typically three to five times EBITDA.

There is also the issue of owner expertise. If you have a unique skill set or knowledge base that takes years to acquire, your business is limited to buyers that have your same knowledge and skills. You can train a key employee to learn your skills, and have them be included in the purchase. The downside, of course, is that if they acquire the skills, and they are entrepreneurial, they might decide to open their own business, or take the skills that you paid to teach them, and go to a competitor.

These are options for selling your business if it is profitable. What if your company is NOT profitable?

If you have assets, you can do an asset sale. You can sell the assets for pennies on the dollar. If you are purchasing assets, you can purchase the assets in an equity purchase, for pennies on the dollar, and do a firesale of the assets that you don't want, and keep the ones that you do want. It was done in the 80's for corporations and acquired a bad reputation, but it is a perfectly valid manner of increasing your wealth.

If your company has business assets, can you "partner" with another company that is having financial difficulty, to save your business, and theirs?

Example: If you collect your customers name and phone numbers, and have a good relationship with them, can you send a mailer to them offering bundled discounts on your business, as well as the services of another business? Can you sell your mailing list to another company? Can you do a Point of sale referral to other businesses so that every purchase includes a coupon to another company? Can you sell these services to another company to increase your volume and/or keep your company afloat? (It must be a compatible business.)

If your company has unused assets, can they be sold for cash, trade, or services to cut your expenses and raise revenue? (Do you own an empty warehouse that you are not using, or need in the near future?) Can you sell it, or lease it to another business?

Don't trust their books! As a business broker, I discovered that some sellers were lying cheats. They had one set of books for the IRS, one set of books for themselves, and another set of books for their partners. Obviously, I would not trust a thing that these people said. If you are selling a business, you should have accurate and honest records. It is too great of a liability for you to fudge the books. I always told my sellers that I don't care WHAT they actually made, the only books that we would use would be the ones that they shared with the IRS.

If you are thinking of selling your business in the near future, proper record keeping and honest accounting are a pre-requisite, and your accounting system must be easily accessible to potential buyers (after they have signed a non-disclosure agreement).

In summary; if you are wanting to sell, you must show profits, or be prepared to take a huge loss. The more open and transparent your accounting system, the more money you will receive, and the more transferable your business, the easier it will be to sell.

Selling your business

Selling your business By Reed Sawyer If you are trying to sell your business, the first question to ask is; "Why?" If you have a profitable business, you are not selling it because it is not making money, so you must be selling it for another reason. Why?

If your time is so limited that you feel that you are going crazy, let me offer a different alternative. Hire an employee that can take care of some of the things that you do, so that you can spend some quality time doing something else.

I used to own a dry cleaner. I worked half days (from 7am until 7pm). I hired a part time employee to run the store for a few hours each day, and found that the extra time gave me a lot of stress relief. Can you train your employees so that you can take off early one or two days a week?

The second question is always; Is it profitable?

Profit is having more money than expenses. One of the ways to increase profits is by cutting expenses. If you have a 20% profit margin; (For every dollar that you bring in, you keep 20 cents, after all expenses), then for every dollar that you save, you have achieved the same effect as increasing revenue five fold. Since your selling price is based upon a multiple of your profit (or your gross revenues) a $1 savings in expenses could be worth up to $100 in sales price. Is that enough incentive to be a cost cutter?

How can you cut costs as a small business owner?

1) Printing costs: You need to print things, but your corporate culture should explain to your employees that they should think twice before printing, and that excessive printing cuts profits, and you are monitoring their printing. Any flagrant misuse of the printer for non-business functions will not be tolerated.
2) Vastly reduce printing costs. If you are using inkjet printers, research Continuous Ink Supply systems. For less than $100 you can get a CIS system that will allow you to reduce your color photo printing costs greatly. Instead of spending $50 for a thimbleful of ink, you can spend $8 for a large bottle. It takes a little more work, but it is definitely worth it. (I reduced my costs for large photos from about a dollar a page, to less than 2 cents.) Sometimes you have to invest to greatly reduce savings.
3) Coffee costs. It is possible to cut or eliminate coffee costs. How? By removing the coffee maker and/or having people pay for their own coffee by donating a couple of bucks a day for gourmet coffee. (Again, this is an area that is grossly abused in most companies. I don't provide coffee. If they want it, they can buy their own.
4) Smokers: Do you really want them? One of the biggest productivity wasters is having smokers wander off of their job for five minutes an hour for a smoking break. It is unhealthy, it is unproductive, and they are demonstrating that they make poor choices. If you institute a policy of no smokers, you will greatly increase your profitability. It is NOT discrimination to discriminate against smoking. Also, your health insurance costs will go down immensely.
5) Cell phone use. If your employees are on your payroll, they are NOT paid to answer their cell phones. If they answer their phones on company time, they are stealing from you. If they answer their phones while they are talking to a customer, and make that customer angry enough to leave, they are sabotaging your business. Insist that cell phone use be eliminated at work, and that a ringing cell phone is grounds for a disciplinary action, and that answering one, without express approval for medical emergencies, is grounds for termination. You aren't running a club, you are running a business.
6) Productivity: Prune your payroll regularly of the people that waste your time and money. If they don't contribute enough each and every day to double the cost of their salary, expenses, and benefits, you have to analyze if you want to pay for their services.
7) Outsource: If you have a need for specific services on a regular basis, but not a full time basis...consider outsourcing. You don't need to have a graphics department if you are a regular business, you just need to be able to hire a company that does graphics at a great price. Outsourcing will seem expensive, at first, but a close analysis will probably reveal that it is more profitable to hire the best at reasonable prices, than to have low skill people that are accountable to you. (Also, if you are working with a company, you can give them specs, and have them fill it.)
8) Come in from the monorails: When I was putting myself through school at Disney World, they had the trainers do an exercise that was so simple that it was brilliant. Come in from the monorails. This meant that our training supervisor had us look at things the same way that our guests did. We drove out to the monorails, and came in as a regular guest did. We discovered, by looking with fresh eyes, that we saw things that we didn't see each day.
Take the time to put on your fresh eyes and see things as a new customer does. Is your sign clean and spelled correctly? (You would be amazed at how many times a million dollar business has incorrect spelling on their marquee.) Is your entry area clean? Does it look professional? Can you see yourself, as a customer, being impressed? If not, why not? What can you do to improve for free or cheaply to make it look professional.

In summary, the easiest way to get a business ready to sell is by increasing profitability by decreasing expenses. It is going to be hard, but if every dollar saved increases your sales price by up to $100, it is worth it to cut costs vigorously.

Micro expressions: Your face doesn't lie.

In the recent television series, "Lie to me", Dr. Cal Lightman uses the reading of "micro expressions" to determine if a person is telling the truth, or lying.

The expression for "disgust" is: The nose is wrinkling, and the upper lip is raised.

The theory is that micro expressions are universal, and, once you learn them, you can determine the emotion that a person is feeling, at that moment. A micro expression will appear on a persons face for a fraction of a second, and, if you are watching closely, you can observe that expression and know exactly what that person is feeling at that moment.

What does this mean to you? If you become adept at reading micro expressions, you will KNOW what a person is feeling, and you can use this information to help them in a sales transaction, win a poker game, or avoid a fight.

The expression for sadness is: Drooping upper eyelids, losing focus in eyes, and a slight pulling down of lip corners.

The expression for happiness is: Crows feet wrinkles, pushed up cheeks, and movement from muscle that orbits the eye.

The expression for fear is: Eyebrows raised and pulled together, raised upper eyelids, tensed lower eyelids, and lips slightly stretched horizontally, back to their ears.

The expression for surprise is: Eyebrows raised, mouth open, and eyes widened.

The expression for Anger is: Eyebrows down and together, eyes glare, and a narrowing of the lips.

The expression of contempt is: the lip corner is tightened, and raised on only one side of the face.

Do you need to know all of these micro expressions to become a good salesperson? Absolutely not, but they are another tool in your toolbelt that will help you determine a person's true feelings, because if you are trying to help solve a clients needs, one of the first things that you have to do is get beyond the facade and discover the problem.

Lying by a client is one of the first methods used to mask their hidden emotions, because they don't trust you. Once you start to ask questions, and discover their concerns the facade will come tumbling down, and, if you are truly concerned with their well being, you can help the client achieve their desired results more quickly.

This is not a "hard science", and results vary, but micro expressions are a window to the soul that most people have not learned to conceal, and it could greatly assist you in your quest to solve their problems.

Using criteria words to establish rapport

People like people...like themselves. One of the ways to establish rapport, almost instantly, with buyers is to be just like them. Since it is impossible to metamorphasize into that person physically, we can't be "just like them"...or can we?

If you use criteria words, you will sound just like the buyer, which is as close as we can get without plastic surgery.

What are criteria words? A criteria word is a unique word that the subject uses periodically, that "define" them. They might use it often, or seldom, but when they do, it is a unique word or usage of words that is part of their internal vocabulary.

For instance, a jock might use the word, "blitz" in their conversation. They are using it to describe an all out pass rush, or a promotion that goes all out. If they use that word, you can use it too, in the same context that they use it, and the buyers will have a physiological reaction. They will think, "You are just like me!" Their eyes will dilate, they will nod, their cheeks might flush...and they will accept you as an equal.

When this happens, you will have lowered the pyschological self defense barriers, for about 20 seconds. You can impart a message, or statement during this time and there will be no filtering...it will be viewed as a factual statement.

How does this help you?

While you are talking to the client, you want to be listening, intently, for their criteria words. When you hear one, memorize it. (Unfortunately, unless you are on the phone, you can't jot this down on a note.) Once you have three or four criteria words memorized, you can start making statements that will be accepted as factual.

Example: Criteria words are: Hip, crazy.
Buyer example: We went to this really hip little place in the valley that had crazy art on the wall.

You follow with: This restaurant is a hip place that has crazy good food. You will enjoy it.

Analysis: They used "hip" as an adjective for good. They used "crazy" in the same manner. By using both criteria words in the same context, you have just used THEIR words to make a positive statement, and they will believe it.

If you start small, and start building towards larger statements of fact they will "own" the statement, and it will be true. After all, if they "said it" it must be true. Right?

Caution: Practice makes perfect, and never use this technique for evil, only for good purposes, and to make a sale.

Don't be a commodity

What exactly is a commodity business? A commodity is a fungible product that can be bought or sold, and is done so at the lowest possible price.

In a perfect market (such as the stock market), a commodity is bought and sold daily, and it makes no difference who provides that commodity, they are all deemed to be equally valuable. (Think crude oil, orange juice, pork bellies, corn, etc...)

Isn't that what you want? To have your goods and services sold? Yes, but the second part of that equation is what kills you; at the lowest possible price.

How do you avoid being a commodity? One of the ways to avoid being a commodity is to be unique. Upscale romantic restaurants offer fine dining, at prices that are multiples of a basic fast food experience. Why? Because they have created a unique ambience, experience, and culture that allows diners to know that they are getting more than a hamburger and fries...they are getting an experience. When the romantic restaurant rose above being just a food purveyor, and became an entertainment/experience purveyor...they stopped being a commodity.

Vangie Berry used to say, "The best are always free. The value of their service more than pays for their fee." If you want to NOT be a commodity, one of the options is to be the best at your profession.

Think of attorneys. There are thousands of attorneys that are scrambling to pay their bills, and then there are attorneys that have people lining up to hire them, at exorbitant fees. Why? Because, in law, second place means that you lost. They can afford to charge huge fees because their clients reasonably expect them to win. In law, winning is everything. So they can charge the fees that they want, while other attorneys are giving away their services.

What are some ways that you can "de-commoditize" your business? One technique, that has been shown to be profitable, is to offer excellent client service. One of the ways to do that is to find out EXACTLY what the client needs, by asking them open ended and closed ended questions to probe and discover needs that the client might not have realized. I have included a link to a video that explains this in detail. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HX-ePkaFTOg

Years ago, at the height of the mortgage refinance boom, I was working for a lender in Colorado. I complained to my boss that we had too much competition. He rebuked me and stated, "If you give the client service that is better than anyone else, you have no competition".

How do you do that? By asking a series of open ended, and closed ended questions to discover exactly what the client needs, and giving them a unique solution. When you do that, they will refuse to go to anyone else.

In summary, if you want to avoid being a commodity, be special, be unique, and give such great service that the client will refuse to go anywhere else.

Performance

Dr. Pete Lorins stated that Performance = Motivation X Ability X Opportunity.
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Here is a link to his article. In it he describes the best ways to maximize performance. http://brainstormcapital.blogspot.com/2011/05/performance-motivation-x-ability-x.html

It is not just enough to have ability. The world is full of failed geniuses. It is not just enough to have motivation. There are millions of people that are starving right now, but have no idea how to take their motivation and make millions from it.

The biggest challenge is the opportunity.

Let's define opportunity. Opportunity is having a great idea, and the capacity to transform that idea into reality. It is the second part of that equation that stops most people.

What would happen if you could take your motivation, ability, and opportunity and combine them in a manner to make your baby idea grow into a profitable business? You would have success.

Brainstorm Capital Group is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs, and potential entrepreneurs turn dreams into reality.

How do we do that?

A business needs several things to get started and succeed.

It needs Capital. Without capital, no business has the money to begin operations, let alone create the product necessary to sell. Fortunately, in this internet age, it is possible to sell products/services with little money by making use of the available resources and maximizing their effect. (This takes expertise).

It needs Expertise. I used to work for a business process outsource provider that had the knowledge and skill sets to take other people's ideas, maximize them, and create a new business model. It benefited all parties, because it used expertise to take a raw idea and monetize it. Expertise is needed to start a business, structure it, create products, and market them. Most individuals do not have this expertise, which is where an operation like Brainstorm Capital Group is needed.

It needs a venture. If you have a vague idea, but no firm grasp on how you will produce the product/service, or market it, you have a dream, not a venture.

Brainstorm Capital Group is the bridge builder to put the inventor, investor, and the expertise together to create a new business, or help an existing business thrive.

If you are interested, listen in to one of our new telinars/teleconferences coming soon. Please contact Dr. Pete Lorins at (407) 272-0873 for more information.

Bin-:Laden's death

A lot of good people are conflicted with the news of Osama Bin-Laden's death. They rejoice that no more innocent people will be killed, but they do not rejoice at the death of anyone.

Each of us has a social contract with the rest of the world.

1) Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
2) Protect women and children.
3) Don't lie, cheat, or steal.
4) Love others with no conditions.
5) Make the world a better place.

There are sick people that delight in inflicting pain on others. They are outside the standard deviation of normal behavior, and are called deviants. Some of these sick and twisted people do not like to think of themselves as cancers, so they attempt to justify their deviant behavior. Osama Bin-Laden not only despised civilization, he also despised his own people, and would kill anyone that didn't agree with him completely, or show "proper" respect to him. (He would kill Muslims with equal vigor as Christians and apostates.)

By killing innocent women and children, and recruiting others to kill innocents, he removed himself from the social contract and became, in effect, a pirate; a terrorist, and a cancer. There is no possibility of rehabilitation, remorse, or contrition. He had to go.

When a person that has removed himself from the social contract is killed, their death should not be treated with dignity, but should be a warning to those that might follow him. "This is your end, if you follow this path."

In the old days, pirates would be beheaded, and have their heads put on a pike, left at the city gates, to act as a warning to prevent further piracy.

The British, at the turn of the 20th Century in Palestine, would dip their bullets in pigs blood, and bury terrorists in pig carcasses, and ADVERTISE that fact, to act as a deterrent to potential terrorists that they would not be treated as martyrs, but would be banished from paradise forever.

Let's use every psychological weapon that we have to stop the spread of terrorism, and prevent innocent women and children from being killed by these madmen.

What are some of the ways to do that?

1) Use an aggressive education program to transmit native language information about Islam to affected countries. The truth shall set the ignorant free.
2) Use an aggressive education program to let foreign governments know that we take a stand against terrorism, and that "they are either with us...or against us."
3) Treat all terrorists with contempt, and use bullets dipped in pig fat, and bury dead terrorists in pig carcasses, and ADVERTISE that fact, to discourage other muslims from committing acts of terrorism.
4) If we are in a war with Islamofascists, treat it as a war, and suspend "racial profiling" protection in airports, bus stops, and any public gathering. If they are Muslim, they are suspects.
5) Do not give terrorists/pirates the privilege of a civil trial. Try them in a military tribunal, behead them, put their head on a pike, and place it at the city gates. It will serve as an advertisement to prevent other terrorists from becoming terrorists.

If a person chooses to violate the social contract, they lose their rights to be treated as a human being.

I wish that we didn't have to do this, but we must protect women and children from being killed.

The NFL lockout

The NFL is in a lockout with the players. The most contentious issue seems to be that the owners want to increase the number of games to 18, while the players oppose this idea.

What are the advantages, and disadvantages, to the football audience of 18 games?

Advantages: There would be two more games of football.

If this starts earlier in the year (August) then there will be Southern teams that will have an advantage with the summer heat. There is also the issue of player safety. (Yes, players have died in practice in the heat.)

If the games roll into January/February, then we will have Northern teams that will have an advantage with the cold weather. Also, there is nothing fun about watching a game played in freezing weather, snow, and mud. Unless the games are going to be played indoors, it appears that there is no discernible advantage to the fan of playing an extra two games.

Disadvantages: There would be two more games of football.

Football is a violent game, and after a lengthy season, the human body breaks down, and runs out of gas. If we had two more games, the skill players would be so beat up that injuries would limit their contributions, and we would be playing with backup players. This would not just be for the guys that touch the ball, we would also have backup players that would have to step in for the offensive and defensive linemen. In other words, everyone would be hurting and need to have lesser skilled players that could step in.

This means that we would have a lesser quality product to cheer. (Yes, there are always injuries, but why devise a system that guarantees a worse product?)

In summary:

I love football, but quality football games require quality players, and a longer season means that injuries would force teams to use more replacement players, and we would end up with a less exciting game.

Let's not do this, please.

Direct response advertising

Are you a business owner? Do you have direct response advertising? If not...why not?

What is "Direct response advertising"? It is taking action right now, in direct response to your advertisement/pitch.

When you are making your pitch, you are asking for a buying response...right then. If they want to think about it, inquire about the objections (if you are doing this in person), and close. A "think about it" translates to "no".

If you are running an advertisement, you must ask for a response right now, create urgency, or they won't buy. (Use "Free widgets for the first 10 callers", "Today only", or "While supplies last" to create a sense of urgency and get those phones ringing.)

The alternative is to place "awareness" ads. These ads create an awareness of your company that might help to build credibility, but they don't generate sales by themselves. You must use alternative sales methods to generate sales when you are using "awareness ads". (Examples of these would be having a sales staff, or retail location.)

An example of a bad advertisement strategy is to follow the "Coke Zero" approach, which shows their bumbling brand managers that can't tell the difference between Coke and Coke Zero. Not only does this not create a sense of urgency, it also leaves the impression that there is no discernible difference in taste between Coke and imitations.

Be careful on how you spend your advertising dollars. Always ask for a response...right now.

Branding your business

In the days of the old west, cattle were branded with a red hot piece of iron to let other ranchers know which cattle belonged to which ranch. A seasoned rancher could, at a glance, read the brand.

We have now become more sophisticated, and less excited about brand awareness, but it is still important. If a customer sees your meme/logo, and hears your product name 7 times, they are more likely to buy.

However, this is just a door opener. Your ads MUST seek action NOW. If you are trying to build brand awareness, it doesn't always translate into sales.

A good example and a bad example. Coca Cola used to produce magical ads, in days gone by. "Have a Coke and a smile" is an example of a great tagline. You instantly associate drinking a Coke with smiling. Since everyone wants to smile, everyone should want to buy a Coke.

However, they have now started to try to advertise to idiots with their "Coke Zero" ads. These advertisements use two bumbling idiots, that are supposed to be brand managers that are so stupid that they can't tell the difference between Coke and Coke Zero. What is the message? Coke is for idiots.

When you create an ad, do a mockup, and ask ten people, "What does this mean to you?" If their answer doesn't involve some method of "I want to buy that...NOW!" then it's not a good ad.

You want to create urgency, value, and a solution within each ad, so that the buyer will want to buy now, and buy your product.

Do not ask an employee (that is dependent upon their livelihood on not upsetting you) to give you an objective opinion. Instead, ask random people their opinion, and make it simple to do so.

"Just doing a marketing test...what does this ad say to you?"

Keep it simple, make it fun, and make it imperative that they buy now, and your ad will be successful. (Track it, and make sure that it pulls results.)

Force of will

An entrepreneur must have the "Force of Will" to succeed. That means doing what other people won't, waking up when others are sleeping, working when others are partying, and treading that fine line between having the customer like us...and asking for the sale.

When you do what others won't, you will get the rewards that others don't.

I am reminded of the scene in "The Usual Suspects" when Kevin Spacey is talking about Keyser Soze. He was talking about when Soze's enemies invaded his home, and held his wife and kids captive. They thought that they could force Keyser to bow to their wishes. But they didn't understand "Force of Will". Keyser killed his wife, kids, and all but one of the invaders, leaving one to go back and tell his boss that they must leave or he would hunt them down and kill them, their families, their neighbors, and everyone that knew them back to three generations. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgkBpWc8ngI

I'm not saying that is a correct methodology for conflict resolution, but our "Force of Will" should be as strong (if not as violent), as this.

Are you tired? Keep on working. Are you discouraged? Keep on selling? Would it be easier to stop? Don't. Never give up. Never stop. Never take the easy way out, if the hard way is the only way to accomplish your task.

When you do that, you will begin to realize that being an entrepreneur is more than just opening a store...it is changing your life into something totally different.

Are you ready for the challenge?

BE LIMITLESS! :-)
In life you can only ever be scared, when you believe in limits.

You can only ever feel lonely, when you stop doing things.

...You can only ever become bored, when you no longer follow your heart.

And you can only ever get overwhelmed, when you think the illusions are real.

Whew! Who knew it could be so easy to get back on track?
~The Universe

What exactly IS a Brainstorm Capital Group teleconference? It is a chance for a Subject Matter Expert (S.M.E.) to share their expertise with entrepreneurs and business owners.

Why is this better than just sitting down with your accountant or lawyer? Because there will be other business owners there, they will have questions that you might not think of, and the answers might just relate to you. Also, because you are having a teleconference with other entrepreneurs, the energy will be pulsing, and you will learn things that you could not possibly learn in a one on one with your information professional. (Also, it's free, did I mention that before?)

If you are a Subject Matter Expert, why wouldn't you want to shine in front of a group of high powered entrepreneurs. You might just pick up new clients, and the experience will boost your resume and credibility.

So, if you are a business owner, this is a great opportunity to pick someone elses' brain and learn from the best.

If you are a Subject Matter Expert (S.M.E.), this is a great opportunity to take your profession to the next level.