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Archives
June 21, 2010
UPS Shows You How to Save Money... How to Make More
When Customers Spend Less... How to Identify Your Success-
making Strengths... Customer Service Is the Backbone of Info
Marketing Businesses...
and More.
UPS Shows You How to Save Money
By Adrian Newman, Founder of e-Wealth Daily
Now, I'm not going to give you a sales pitch for ways to save
money when you ship packages using the United Parcel
Service, better known as UPS.
What I am about to show you is how UPS has spent years
perfecting a money-saving solution for managing the high costs
that come from keeping their immense fleet of delivery trucks
on the road.
You could even say they are cutting corners just to save a few
extra bucks.
However, those "few extra bucks" are actually somewhere in
the ballpark of millions of dollars in continuous savings for the
company.
How are they doing it?
Each and every UPS driver is given a daily delivery route that
has them making right turns almost 90% of the time.
Think about it. Making left turns is a hassle. You have to wait
for oncoming traffic and, during busy travel times, you could
be sitting in the left turn lane for minutes at a time waiting for
your turn to come up.
And while you're waiting in traffic, you're also wasting time
and gas.
But in the right turn lanes, you rarely have to wait as long as in
the left turn lane. You can turn right on red lights (in most
places, with the exception of New York City) and you don't
have to worry about oncoming traffic holding you up.
In fact, UPS has even measured their savings in miles,
estimating that their right-turn routes have saved them
28,541,472 million travel miles in one year, and about three
million gallons of fuel.
All because someone noticed that making right turns saves
time and money.
When it comes to saving money while running your business, it
is important to consider everything that you and your
employees do on a daily basis.
You could probably identify a few redundant processes that
you may be able to streamline for greater efficiency in your
company.
But be sure to consider all the consequences of changing any of
your company's procedures. The UPS example shows you that
a seemingly insignificant change could save you a lot of money without having to compromise your employees or interrupt
service to your customers.
How to Make More When Customers Spend Less
By John Hurd, Chief Wealth Researcher
A national poll is reporting that people are spending less each
month and don't plan to start spending more in the near future.
News like this may strike fear into the hearts of a few
entrepreneurs. When the average consumer starts to pinch
pennies, some businesses are going to suffer. However, for
those with a little business savvy, or guidance from someone
who has it, there may not be too much to worry about.
You see, although consumers may be lowering the amount they
intend to spend, they are still going to be out there buying
items they need, and some they absolutely want to have.
It all depends on what these items are and exactly how the
individuals have decided to cut their own personal spending.
Some people may cut out their morning coffee and donut to
save a few bucks, while others may opt for the 40-inch HDTV
instead of the mammoth 50-inch model and save themselves a
few hundred dollars.
When it comes to your own business pursuits, take stock of
how your customers are cutting back and weigh the possible
consequences this may result in.
What you want to evaluate is the perceived value of your
products or service to determine how much your customers
may cut back in spending with you.
If you are targeting a specific niche that has few options, it is
possible that their spending may not change. This is because a
niche product has a high perceived value, since it is difficult to
substitute for a less expensive or completely alternative option.
On the flip side, if you are offering something where there is a
lot of competition and a multitude of alternatives, you may
want to consider focusing your effort on giving your customers
very good reasons to continue doing business with you.
Whether it is by having a special sale or making a unique offer,
it's better to take a small cut from your sales over losing them
completely.
One final point for today: just because people are saying they
intend to spend less money, it doesn't mean this is what is
going to happen. Needs can change, and other influences could
see that spending goes up. The important thing to remember is
that you want to be as aware of potential changes as you can
be. When you're aware, you're also able to prepare. So have an
action plan you can use anytime you see a change, such as this
one, coming your way.
How to Identify Your Success-making Strengths
By Michael Newman, Self-made Millionaire
Sometimes, it's easy to overlook your own strengths. I find this
is true more often than not, and many times it can be the reason
so many entrepreneurs fail to reach their potential.
Here's what I mean: everyone has a certain skill, or skills, that
they can apply and confidently excel at. Many, however, get
comfortable with limiting the focus of those skills and fail to
branch out and apply them in other areas. Along with comfort,
there is often a lack of consideration or confidence that's
missing.
The thing is, your peers and associates may recognize these
skills. They may ask you to do something, suggest you try
applying your skills in a new way or come to you when they
need a certain task that has to be completed. Even if it's not
something that you would generally consider your specialty,
clearly these people have noticed that your skills reach beyond the limits you may have set for yourself.
Sometimes, it can be hard to recognize your own strengths.
Most of us are pretty humble and like to think we're average
even if we excel at certain things. After all, when something
comes naturally, it's hard to think you're that special. But the
truth is that people notice performance and can often recognize
your skills better than you can.
If you're approached to try something new by a person you
respect and who you feel can recognize talent, give it a try. Be
confident knowing that you've been approached by someone
who knows what they want and feels you're capable of
accomplishing it for them. Remember, the more you limit
yourself, the harder it will be to reach your full potential. Turn
off your tunnel vision and see all the different places where
you can excel!
Customer Service Is the Backbone of Info Marketing
Businesses
By James Burt, Online Marketing Expert
Information marketing is in some ways much like any
customer service job. At least part of your business is making
sure your customers are happy with your product and providing
ways to keep them coming back. You may be tucked in your
home office, pounding out info all day. But you are still
interacting with the public. These people are warm-blooded
humans who are forking out hard-earned cash for what you
have stored in your brain. It's good to go the extra mile for
them, as they are the ones paying your rent. Obviously, there
are a lot of avenues to do this, but here are some that are very
exclusive to info marketers:
-- Keep office hours: As an info marketing professional, you
are at home a lot. It's a great job, as you can work in casual
attire and go and get a coffee whenever you see fit. But some
people get carried away in this position, taking extended breaks
and not being close to their computer, phone, or other
communication devices in emergency situations. In the event
of a client complaint or query, it's good to be close by to help
rectify whatever situation might arise. It's good then to keep
office hours to attend to your clients at a moment's notice.
Usually it's best to be around either right in the morning or
early to late afternoon, as that is when the queries arise. You
can cheat a bit by getting a "BlackBerry" to text/e-mail/call
your clients back even if you decide to not be in the physical
office.
-- Show signs of appreciation: This doesn't mean you have to
kiss up your clients all of the time. Actually, if you did that,
you might actually lose clients, as they might feel you're acting
strange. But it is good every so often to send out a token of
appreciation to your clients for their continued patronage,
especially long-standing clients. This can come in many forms
-- a discount on an info product, some gift coupons, a
Christmas premium. Anything that can show that you truly
appreciate their service will make them feel respected and
proud to be a part of your business.
-- Offer a discount or special service rate: I have known some
professionals who keep clients because at one time they gave
them some "help," either financially or with their own skills.
For instance, one client was doing a copywriting course and
needed someone to edit her project. An info marketer who she
had dealt with for years offered it at a flat fee that was more
than generous. Another info marketer offered to loan out some
content to help get traffic to a friend's web site for a small
profit percentage. These situations were helpful and everyone
wound up benefiting in the end.
-- Make recommendations/give advice: This is where you
might want to show your professional colors a bit. Once in a
blue moon, you might get a client wanting a suggestion for
something. It could be where to get a specific info-related
service, how to hire a professional for a particular task, or even
how to start their own information marketing business. Using
your own experience(s), you can direct them to get the help
they need. This helps everyone on so many levels -- your
clients get free advice, you can recommend associates for a job,
and you can gain prestige for being a helpful professional to
everybody. Sometimes people need a hand, and if you can
provide that, it's usually in your best interest to do so.
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