October 10, 2007

Generate Moneymaking Ideas While Working for Others...
Making the Perfect Telephone Pitch to Land Clients; Part 2...
The Value of Trust... Tips for a Well-Oiled Money Machine...
and More.

** Generate Moneymaking Ideas While Working for Others
By Adrian Newman, Founder of e-Wealth Daily

Coming up with a business idea that suits both your expertise and your interests can be difficult to do. Most of the time, people have to sacrifice one of the two in order to settle on a business that will work for them.

While you're thinking about the perfect business idea, you probably are still at a job within another company, right? Well, why not use that time to your advantage? You can generate great business opportunities while working for others at the same time by utilizing the information that you get every day.

Confused? Allow me to clarify what I mean by this. You're an expert at the job you do. It would be great if you could take that expertise and utilize it for your own business. However, starting a business that is identical to the company you currently work for is not the best idea, simply for competitive reasons.

To succeed with a business, your approach needs to be unique and innovative. You need to come up with a business idea that is different from all the other business ideas that are out there. You don't have to reinvent the wheel — you just have to improve upon it.

In other words, determine what your company cannot or does not do, and then go out and do it yourself. You know what you can do, you know what they can do, and you know what they're not doing. Use this information to form the basis of a business opportunity.

You have to be able to spot opportunities at every corner and you have eight hours every day to brainstorm. Of course, don't forget to get your regular work completed. I wouldn't want you to get fired because you spent your work time daydreaming about starting your own business!

Think about it: You know the industry well, you have developed business relationships with people from other companies, such as suppliers and customers, and you know what it takes to make the place run successfully.

I'm not saying that you should take their ideas and create your own company, but rather take the ideas they're not using and create a business opportunity that will work for you. I am not suggesting that you take confidential information from your company, but rather that you simply use what you know for your own benefit.

If you know that there is a service that your company could be performing, but can't for one reason or another, consider how you could do it and how profitable it might be.

Ask yourself a number of questions. Is it something that is feasible for a small business to do? What are the reasons behind your current company not selling this product or performing this service? Do you have the expertise to do this on your own?

Maybe you have a ton of ideas that will help your current employer expand on his/her business, but you have trouble being heard or your ideas fall on deaf ears. Well, why not keep those ideas to yourself?

There's no reason why you can't use the expertise that you have gained working for others and put it into a business venture of your own. Remember that you need to keep your eyes and ears open in order to be able to spot good business opportunities. Don't count anything out until you've thought about all the possibilities.

In my last article, I talked about the importance of using the telephone to get what you want, be it a job, a new customer, or anything else. Well, I want to continue my discussion on the telephone as a great form of communication in today's article.

Have you ever heard the acronym "A.I.D.A?" It stands for "Attention, Interest, Desire, Action." It's the time-tested, four- step process that is a part of every successful advertisement. I use this same approach on the phone.

To catch my prospect's interest, build his desire, and take action, here's my complete opening pitch: "Good morning, Mr. Smith. I'm Doug D'Anna, and we've never met. The reason I'm calling is to first introduce myself, and second to give you an idea that could increase the results of your newsletter promotion by 20%.

As you'll learn, it's very similar to those I've developed for Personal Finance, Forbes, and Prevention, which generated millions of dollars in subscriptions. I know that it will work for your publication, and if you'll give me a few minutes, I can explain how."

Of course, this was not the first pitch I ever developed. I came up with this over time through trial and error. Today, I still continue to use this simple introduction. Not everyone is going to be delighted that I called, but my whole goal is to leave the other person with the impression that I have his/her best interest at stake. Basically, I'm offering them value for the time they spend with me on the phone without asking for a dime.

When you try this approach, I can guarantee that a lot of people will be genuinely interested in what you have to say because you will have piqued their curiosity. Others may give you a difficult time. You should let these people know that you are genuinely interested in helping them.

If they are receptive, then they're yours! You have overcome the critical obstacle in using the phone to get what you want. You have opened up their minds. Your next step is to find out the information you need or to define any problems that you may have. Acquire as much information as you can and decide what action you can implement in order to secure a relationship with them. Get right down to the who, what, where, when, why and how of their goals and objectives.

Be sure to provide any requested advice or information accurately and responsively. Offer assistance or follow-up and let your contact form a positive impression of you and what you have to offer — because it is in his/her best interests. Get them to commit to a future communication at their earliest convenience and encourage them to give you feedback.

Asking questions will increase the likelihood of you connecting with the other person. However, keep these techniques in mind as well:

Don't ask too many questions. Bombarding a person from the get-go with too many questions will put him/her on the defensive. Keep the level to what is pertinent in the current situation. Take it easy on the "why" questions, as they will make you seem invasive.

Ask your questions one at a time and wait for the other person to provide you with complete answers before you proceed. Questions within questions tend to confuse people, so avoid them.

My favorite kinds of questions get my prospect to tell me about the problems that he/she faces. I want to know what's working in his/her marketing campaign — and what isn't. And then I go on to ask questions that will allow him/her to paint a picture in his/her own mind of the outcome that he/she would like to receive.

Your only job, once you've opened up their minds to your message, is to listen to what they are saying and not rush to some prearranged pitch that focuses on your product. You need to really listen to their problems and tailor what you're selling (or yourself, for that matter) as the solution to their needs.

** The Value of Trust
By John Hurd, Chief Wealth Researcher

Now, here’s something you don’t hear every day.

A grocery store chain in Norway has recently adopted a rather unconventional new policy on everything they sell in their stores... unconventional for a grocery store that is.

You see, it seems that competition in Norway is pretty fierce among grocery stores. Their customers are comparison-shopping and are lured to which ever store offers the best discounts that day. And this means that customers don’t seem to be sticking to a single store when their grocery list needs topping up.

You already know how important it is to have a customer base of loyal return shoppers to be in a position for financial success. But when faced with overwhelming price competition, what can you do to ensure your loyal customers stay loyal to you?

Well, this chain of grocery stores has adopted a no-questions-asked refund policy on everything they sell. That’s right; you can return everything you buy in their store for a full refund if you are at all unsatisfied.

Fruits, vegetables, meats, canned food, cleaning products and even dog food can be returned either in part or just the wrapper and if you say you are unsatisfied, you get your money back.

Now, this certainly isn’t a brand new way to do business. But, for a grocery store, this is a pretty unique policy.

Just think, you and I may have completely different ideas of what a bad apple looks and tastes like. I know I can look past the odd bruise or strange mark... but to someone else that could be completely unacceptable. And to get a refund, you don’t need to return the bruised apple, just bring in your receipt and you get your money back.

To this grocery chain, the reasons why a product is deemed unacceptable seem to be fairly unimportant. They are more concerned with the overall experience their customers have in their stores.

And this can help to build a level of trust and develop an ongoing relationship with their customers. Competing on price alone is a race to the bottom that will only mean less service for customers who expect a little more than just a huge discount on their grocery list.

Whether or not this new policy will work to the benefit of this grocery chain is still to be seen. However, attempting to build a relationship with their customers rather than playing ping-pong with their prices could prove to be the little difference that truly sets them apart from the competition.

** Tips for a Well-Oiled Money Machine
By Michael Newman, the "Money Finder"

When doing business — no matter how it seems — you will rarely be conducting it entirely on your own. Often times, there will be a number of players involved who will help determine your success.

The players involved can be customers, family, other businesses or employees of yours. Regardless of who they are, you must make sure of one thing: they are all on the same page.

You must make sure that when you head up a project, everyone involved knows the direction it’s taking, and how each of their roles will affect the outcome. If the people involved are disjointed, it could be a recipe for disaster.

The key to ensuring the team involved will run like a well-oiled machine is communication. Without communication, people will be left to their own devices and ideas, and can end up being counter-productive to the project.

To improve communication, make sure you clearly articulate your ideas to everyone — outline the plan and explain how it affects everyone involved and what their role is. When people all have common expectations and goals, it is much easier to work cohesively towards achieving them.

Your well-oiled machine will need to have structure, because if it doesn’t, the wheels may begin to fall off. Structure your project by letting your team know how each individual action affects the next, so, by sticking to your specific task, you are actually indirectly helping the others around you.

My father-in-law owned a successful painting company. Part of his job was painting new homes and he knew that his ability to do his job would depend on how others performed. Also, he knew that he had to do his job in a specific time in order for other people to effectively do their job. If he and the other contractors didn’t talk and lay out a structured schedule, the house would never get finished. He had to co-ordinate his work with the people doing the flooring, windows, and other contracting work so they could all effectively do their jobs to have the house ready for the owners by the time they wanted to move in.

Along with laying out a structured plan and keeping open lines of communication amongst your team, you’ve also got to be open to new ideas and be willing step up to the plate when called upon. Although you may be in control of a particular project, times can arise when you are required to change your course of action from time to time. Listening to your colleagues, co-workers and customers can help to formulate new ways of approaching different tasks is essential to success.

For instance, if five or six other individuals involved in the project are voicing an opinion to do something in an alternate way, consider what they are saying, and don’t rule out changing your plan of attack. Being able to take considerations and step up to the plate when needed is a key component of making your machine run without a hitch.

Being aware of your surroundings and how the pieces of a project fall into place could keep your project free of surprises and offer a smooth ride to success. When bumps in the road do arise, having everyone on board with a common goal could make them much easier to flatten and for you to get back on track.