Hello all,
Over the next few days, I'll be sharing 3 great articles and testimonials respectively, on the need to effectively follow up with your prospects and clients. We live in an age where everything is only a 'google-click' away. People are inundated with too much information every single second. We are also living busier and more hectic lives. In this overcrowded market space, it is important to set your self apart from the crowd and one of the easiest ways to do this is by properly following up with people. The key principles to an effective follow up is anchored on old fashioned values of Respect and Sincerity.
Here's the first article in this series on effective follow up, by the phenomenal Ali Brown.
Remain abundantly blessed!
Juno
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Your Fortune is in the Follow Up!
By Ali Brown April 26, 2010
Most business owners are good at pitching clients or reaching out to new customers. It’s the follow-up where they fall down. Why? Because they figure, “if they wanted my product, they’d finish the transaction,” or they worry that, “if I bug them too much, I’ll come off as needy.” Here’s the thing: while you’re worrying about bugging a prospective customer or telling yourself that maybe “they’re just not that into me,” someone else is following up and sealing the deal!
“No” is just a little bump on the road to “yes.”
When someone expresses interest in your business, but they aren’t quite ready to sign on the dotted line, they can often be persuaded with a polite follow up. Say you were trying to convince a local business to purchase advertising on your website. They might say, “this sounds like a good opportunity, but I’ve already used up my marketing dollars for this quarter.” By following up before the beginning of the next quarter, you could get on your contacts’ radar and get her business while she’s in the planning stages.
Here are some other follow-up methods to consider:
Ask if they’d like to be added to your ezine. Creating an email newsletter is a great way to keep in contact with prospects and update them on new promotions or offerings. Since nobody likes getting spam, ask their permission first and include useful content in your ezine so it’s not a pure sales message. Once people expect timely and insightful information from you, they’ll become more likely to open your emails and conduct business with you.
Send useful links. If you know the prospect pretty well, you could email her sporadically when you find articles that might be useful for her business or see networking events she might like to attend. That way you’re keeping the lines of communication open without pressuring her.
Send a holiday card. The holidays are a great time to reconnect with prospects and spread seasonal cheer. But if you’re afraid your holiday card might get lost in the shuffle or you simply don’t have time to coordinate another mailing, then consider sending a card at other times of the year, perhaps a mid-summer greeting or a Labor Day card (as people return from vacation, this can be a good time to snag new business). That way you’ll become more memorable and have an excuse to connect with people outside of the regular holiday season.
Hold an event. Consider hosting a symposium on a timely topic or a free seminar on an issue that will interest potential customers. Invite prospects who were on the fence and use the opportunity to also bring in new prospects.
Follow up is key in any business, but you can also be creative and have a little fun with your strategies. The bottom line? Be persistent, but always be polite.
© 2010 Ali International
Self-made millionaire entrepreneur and Inc. 500-ranked CEO Ali Brown teaches women around the world how to start and grow profitable businesses that make a positive impact. Get her FREE weekly articles and advice at www.AliBrown.com
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Friday, September 3, 2010
Outrageously overpriced products (....Sendoutcards to the rescue)!
I just came across the article below written by Amy Bell and thought I'd share it with all of you. I couldn't agree more with the list, in fact I have some other items that should also be on that list! Of particular interest to me was # 2 (Greeting cards). I wish I had Ms Bell's email address so I could write her and share the antidote to overly priced greeting cards and one of Network Marketing's best kept secret: the magic of Sendoutcards
A tool that allows you to send on-demand, customized, quality greeting cards (in your own handwriting, with personalised pictures if you so desire) at $.62cents(yes, you heard that right just 62 cents a card!) when you purchase at wholesale or $0.98cents for retail plus postage. If you wish to pay for both the card and postage (which covers USA, Canada and Australia), you can get it for a mere $2.00! Now that's pure value. Note: You even have the option of adding gifts and gift cards...think American Express, Starbucks, Top restaurants...., also the wholesale cards may be mailed to any part of the world!
I hope you enjoy the article.
Outrageously overpriced products
by Amy Bell, Investopedia
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Unless you're filthy rich, you've probably noticed that movie theatre popcorn costs an arm and a leg. Still, for some unknown reason, countless consumers shell out the big bucks for this greasy flick-food.
Of course, movie theater snacks aren't the only budget busters. Just think about the exorbitant cost of greeting cards, printer ink and bottled water. The sky-high price tags on those products are enough to send today's cash-strapped consumers spiraling into debt. Yet, we continue to cough up the cash for these absurdly expensive items.
Here are six outrageously overpriced products that consumers can't seem to live without.
# 1.Movie theatre popcorn
At the grocery store, microwave popcorn runs about $3 per box, and each box includes three 3.5 ounce bags. So why on earth would consumers even consider paying a whopping $6 for a single medium-sized bag of popcorn in the movie theatre? No one knows exactly why - but for some bizarre reason, movie-goers continue to drain their wallets to crunch on a bag full of those greasy little nuggets during their favorite film.
After considering that movie theatres purchase popcorn in bulk, the average markup of movie theater popcorn is a whopping 1,275 per cent! At that steep price, you'd think those buttery bags were laced with gold.
# 2.Greeting cards
Since when does a folded up piece of paper cost $2.99? Since someone slaps a precious kitty picture and a cleverly written message on it and then stamps the back of it with a well-known logo. That's right - we're talking about those pricey greeting cards. Many consumers spend hours poring over the neatly arranged stacks in the greeting card aisle, searching for the perfect message for their sister's birthday, their parent's anniversary or "Just Because."
The average greeting card costs between $2 and $4, and we consumers don't seem to think twice about paying that precipitous price. The markup is between 100 and 200 per cent - which is not quite as shocking as movie theatre popcorn, but it adds up quickly. When you consider how many of those paper jewels you buy each year, it's enough to send you running for the construction paper and markers. After all, it only costs a few cents to create a home-made card.
# 3.College textbooks
As if college kids (and their parents) aren't financially drained enough, there's yet another inflated price they face: college textbooks. College students pay an average of $900 a year on textbooks and other supplies.
College textbook prices have skyrocketed by 186 per cent since 1986, and these expensive volumes of knowledge now account for 26 per cent of the overall cost of college. Unfortunately, broke college students are required to purchase these costly books for their classes. At least they can try to sell their books back to local book store at the end of the semester - for a few measly bucks.
# 4. Bottled water
You've probably heard that "Evian" is simply "naive" spelled backwards. OK, so the well-known company probably did not choose their name for that reason - but many people believe that consumers who buy bottled water are certainly naive. After all, water is one of the most abundant resources in the world and is available for free from countless water fountains and sinks across the nation. Yet, many consumers are still willing to pay $3 a bottle for it.
In 2009, the U.S. Congress revealed that about 45 per cent of bottled water comes from municipal taps - and then the bottled water company may or may not do some additional filtering before pouring it in their logo-stamped bottles. Still, Americans continue to buy more than 500 million bottles every week, making it the second most popular purchased drink.
# 4. Printer ink
You may be able to buy a surprisingly affordable printer at your local office supply store, but don't start celebrating just yet. The printer companies make their biggest bucks on ink.
Over the life of your printer, you'll probably pay more than 500 per cent of the total price of the printer itself on ink refill cartridges. At $30, a 42ml cartridge of black printer ink comes out to 71 cents per ml. On the other hand, the Red Cross charges $200 for 500 ml of blood, which comes out to about 40 cents per ml.
# 5. Brand-name fashions
How much did you pay for those True Religion jeans, that Burberry scarf and those towering Louboutin stilettos? Probably a small fortune. But it was worth every penny, right? Not so much. When it comes to designer clothes, it's pretty obvious that you are paying for the label.
As a matter of fact, brand-name clothes are often marked up by 500 to 1,000 per cent. Yet, fashion-conscious consumers continue to drain their bank accounts and pile up massive amounts of debt to stay on the cutting edge of couture.
Broke consumers are saying no
The recession has hit many households hard, and thousands of broke consumers are passing on these and other overpriced products. So, does that mean the inflated prices of these items will eventually fall? Only time will tell. In the meantime, you may want to check your bank account before you hit the movie theatre snack bar.
(Source: Amy Bell, Investopedia)
Remain abundantly blessed!
Juno
www.junomarketing.org
A tool that allows you to send on-demand, customized, quality greeting cards (in your own handwriting, with personalised pictures if you so desire) at $.62cents(yes, you heard that right just 62 cents a card!) when you purchase at wholesale or $0.98cents for retail plus postage. If you wish to pay for both the card and postage (which covers USA, Canada and Australia), you can get it for a mere $2.00! Now that's pure value. Note: You even have the option of adding gifts and gift cards...think American Express, Starbucks, Top restaurants...., also the wholesale cards may be mailed to any part of the world!
I hope you enjoy the article.
Outrageously overpriced products
by Amy Bell, Investopedia
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Unless you're filthy rich, you've probably noticed that movie theatre popcorn costs an arm and a leg. Still, for some unknown reason, countless consumers shell out the big bucks for this greasy flick-food.
Of course, movie theater snacks aren't the only budget busters. Just think about the exorbitant cost of greeting cards, printer ink and bottled water. The sky-high price tags on those products are enough to send today's cash-strapped consumers spiraling into debt. Yet, we continue to cough up the cash for these absurdly expensive items.
Here are six outrageously overpriced products that consumers can't seem to live without.
# 1.Movie theatre popcorn
At the grocery store, microwave popcorn runs about $3 per box, and each box includes three 3.5 ounce bags. So why on earth would consumers even consider paying a whopping $6 for a single medium-sized bag of popcorn in the movie theatre? No one knows exactly why - but for some bizarre reason, movie-goers continue to drain their wallets to crunch on a bag full of those greasy little nuggets during their favorite film.
After considering that movie theatres purchase popcorn in bulk, the average markup of movie theater popcorn is a whopping 1,275 per cent! At that steep price, you'd think those buttery bags were laced with gold.
# 2.Greeting cards
Since when does a folded up piece of paper cost $2.99? Since someone slaps a precious kitty picture and a cleverly written message on it and then stamps the back of it with a well-known logo. That's right - we're talking about those pricey greeting cards. Many consumers spend hours poring over the neatly arranged stacks in the greeting card aisle, searching for the perfect message for their sister's birthday, their parent's anniversary or "Just Because."
The average greeting card costs between $2 and $4, and we consumers don't seem to think twice about paying that precipitous price. The markup is between 100 and 200 per cent - which is not quite as shocking as movie theatre popcorn, but it adds up quickly. When you consider how many of those paper jewels you buy each year, it's enough to send you running for the construction paper and markers. After all, it only costs a few cents to create a home-made card.
# 3.College textbooks
As if college kids (and their parents) aren't financially drained enough, there's yet another inflated price they face: college textbooks. College students pay an average of $900 a year on textbooks and other supplies.
College textbook prices have skyrocketed by 186 per cent since 1986, and these expensive volumes of knowledge now account for 26 per cent of the overall cost of college. Unfortunately, broke college students are required to purchase these costly books for their classes. At least they can try to sell their books back to local book store at the end of the semester - for a few measly bucks.
# 4. Bottled water
You've probably heard that "Evian" is simply "naive" spelled backwards. OK, so the well-known company probably did not choose their name for that reason - but many people believe that consumers who buy bottled water are certainly naive. After all, water is one of the most abundant resources in the world and is available for free from countless water fountains and sinks across the nation. Yet, many consumers are still willing to pay $3 a bottle for it.
In 2009, the U.S. Congress revealed that about 45 per cent of bottled water comes from municipal taps - and then the bottled water company may or may not do some additional filtering before pouring it in their logo-stamped bottles. Still, Americans continue to buy more than 500 million bottles every week, making it the second most popular purchased drink.
# 4. Printer ink
You may be able to buy a surprisingly affordable printer at your local office supply store, but don't start celebrating just yet. The printer companies make their biggest bucks on ink.
Over the life of your printer, you'll probably pay more than 500 per cent of the total price of the printer itself on ink refill cartridges. At $30, a 42ml cartridge of black printer ink comes out to 71 cents per ml. On the other hand, the Red Cross charges $200 for 500 ml of blood, which comes out to about 40 cents per ml.
# 5. Brand-name fashions
How much did you pay for those True Religion jeans, that Burberry scarf and those towering Louboutin stilettos? Probably a small fortune. But it was worth every penny, right? Not so much. When it comes to designer clothes, it's pretty obvious that you are paying for the label.
As a matter of fact, brand-name clothes are often marked up by 500 to 1,000 per cent. Yet, fashion-conscious consumers continue to drain their bank accounts and pile up massive amounts of debt to stay on the cutting edge of couture.
Broke consumers are saying no
The recession has hit many households hard, and thousands of broke consumers are passing on these and other overpriced products. So, does that mean the inflated prices of these items will eventually fall? Only time will tell. In the meantime, you may want to check your bank account before you hit the movie theatre snack bar.
(Source: Amy Bell, Investopedia)
Remain abundantly blessed!
Juno
www.junomarketing.org
Why SendOutCards???
" I learned to say thank you when people were unkind. Thank you doesn't mean agreement. It means that the message has been heard and that you appreciate having the information."
-Kathy Ireland, Model-Entrepreneur
Why Send Out Cards? (Source: http://followupfairy.com)
Send out cards is a great way to send an occasional card (with a gift if you choose too) or many cards. There's no membership fee or sign on requirement. Just select the card and gift you want and then buy your card (with points) and pay your normal USPS postage cost and your card is sent off and tracked. This is great for the postally challenged, I personally hate physically mailing things.
You can also purchase blocks of points that are held in your account until you use them. Points are purchase in $10 min amounts with each point = $.49. A post card is 1 point, regular card is 2 points and trifold card is 3 points. So you can see the cards are VERY affordable and much cheaper than anything you were to try and mail yourself. You can choose from THOUSANDS of card templates as well as make your own from scratch.
You can easily send beautiful postcards, cards and trifolds to anyone in the world with one click of a mouse.
Imagine the possibilities!!!
* batch mailing all your clients in a few seconds
* sending all your family a cute holiday card with your picture on it
* only paying 49 cents for a post card or 98 cents for a card! (plus regular postage)
* importing your spreadsheet or .csv files and not having to do any more data entry
* having the sendoutcards contact management system remind you of birthdays and anniversaries or any date you set in the system
* setting dates in advance to auto send cards – this is great for reorder reminders, special dates or even just a quarterly contact
* being able to add notes to your contacts file (a very useful FREE sales database)
* being able to connect children, spouses and other family members together
* being able to connect large groups with one click batch mailing
* auto insertion of the recipients names in batch mailing
* adding your logos or photos of choice inside or on the front
* creating a saved card campaign to send and resend anytime you'd like (generic thank you for ordering card, welcome to my team card, I appreciate your referral, here's a coupon...)
* add gifts or gift cards to any card being mailed
* mail to any local or international location and receive free tracking and insurance/ delivery guarantee
* mail cards while abroad and still only pay USA rates since its mailed from the USA ( you can still upload a picture of you on that fancy South American beach in a tini bikini if you'd like :)
Wholesale member benefits:
* Uploading your own handwriting font
* Able to add photos to cards
* reduced card point cost (just 31 cents per point)
* ability to earn an extra $income through referrals
and much more just ask!
This service is very versatile and is less expensive than printing and mailing yourself, using vista print and most other mailing services. You click to send and my company prints, stuffs, stamps, and mails for you!
(Source: http://followupfairy.com)
Remain abundantly blessed!
Juno
www.junomarketing.org
P.S Test drive this amazing service, www.sendaheartfeltcard.com (Click on 2)
-Kathy Ireland, Model-Entrepreneur
Why Send Out Cards? (Source: http://followupfairy.com)
Send out cards is a great way to send an occasional card (with a gift if you choose too) or many cards. There's no membership fee or sign on requirement. Just select the card and gift you want and then buy your card (with points) and pay your normal USPS postage cost and your card is sent off and tracked. This is great for the postally challenged, I personally hate physically mailing things.
You can also purchase blocks of points that are held in your account until you use them. Points are purchase in $10 min amounts with each point = $.49. A post card is 1 point, regular card is 2 points and trifold card is 3 points. So you can see the cards are VERY affordable and much cheaper than anything you were to try and mail yourself. You can choose from THOUSANDS of card templates as well as make your own from scratch.
You can easily send beautiful postcards, cards and trifolds to anyone in the world with one click of a mouse.
Imagine the possibilities!!!
* batch mailing all your clients in a few seconds
* sending all your family a cute holiday card with your picture on it
* only paying 49 cents for a post card or 98 cents for a card! (plus regular postage)
* importing your spreadsheet or .csv files and not having to do any more data entry
* having the sendoutcards contact management system remind you of birthdays and anniversaries or any date you set in the system
* setting dates in advance to auto send cards – this is great for reorder reminders, special dates or even just a quarterly contact
* being able to add notes to your contacts file (a very useful FREE sales database)
* being able to connect children, spouses and other family members together
* being able to connect large groups with one click batch mailing
* auto insertion of the recipients names in batch mailing
* adding your logos or photos of choice inside or on the front
* creating a saved card campaign to send and resend anytime you'd like (generic thank you for ordering card, welcome to my team card, I appreciate your referral, here's a coupon...)
* add gifts or gift cards to any card being mailed
* mail to any local or international location and receive free tracking and insurance/ delivery guarantee
* mail cards while abroad and still only pay USA rates since its mailed from the USA ( you can still upload a picture of you on that fancy South American beach in a tini bikini if you'd like :)
Wholesale member benefits:
* Uploading your own handwriting font
* Able to add photos to cards
* reduced card point cost (just 31 cents per point)
* ability to earn an extra $income through referrals
and much more just ask!
This service is very versatile and is less expensive than printing and mailing yourself, using vista print and most other mailing services. You click to send and my company prints, stuffs, stamps, and mails for you!
(Source: http://followupfairy.com)
Remain abundantly blessed!
Juno
www.junomarketing.org
P.S Test drive this amazing service, www.sendaheartfeltcard.com (Click on 2)
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