Do You Measure Results and Activity? How do you Plan on Being Better if You Don't.

You need to measure results in order to understand what is working and what isn't so you can funnel your resources into what works and avoid what doesn't. Do you take a shot gun approach to your advertising or are your a marksman? It is my job to help businesspeople reach their goals and I reach mine by measuring my activity everyday.

So how do you measure results? Do you count how many consumers come through your door and how many of them buy something? Do you ask consumers how they heard about you AND where they found your contact information? Do you keep records on sales, what is selling and what is sitting on the shelves?

It's not enough to just ask where they heard about you and how they found your contact information - you have to keep a written record. Think it's hard - not really just have a chart that shows where your advertising dollars have been spent. Add a tick wherever your customers say they heard about you and how they found your contact information. Your creative advertising and your directional advertising will need to be seperated to understand how each work together to drive customers into your business.

Directional Headings for your chart:
Yellow Pages Phonebook
CanPages Phonebook
Other Phonebooks
Yellow Pages Online
CanPages Online
Other Online Directories
Word of Mouth / Referal gave contact info.

Creative Headings for your chart:
TV Ads
Radio Ads
Newspaper Ads
Direct Mail
Magazines
Other publications
Word of Mouth / Referal gave me your name.

After a period of time count up the ticks and tally at the bottom of each column. What is working what isn't? Which is bringing you good return on investment, which isn't?

The only way you can make good business decisions is if you understand how your business is working and where it's not. It doesn't take much effort, just some good record keeping. What's your close rate? What's your activity levels? Are your employees productive? Where do your customers come from? What do they buy? Why do they buy? All it takes is asking the questions and ticking off a chart.

Links:

Should You Advertise?
Tracking Where Your Clients Found You is Important
Advertising - Can People Find Your Business?

The Wizard of Ads

I'm re reading the book - The Wizard of Ads by Roy H. Williams. It is a collection of small essays written by Mr. Williams on Advertising, what works and what doesn't work. Each small essay gets the brain thinking about how to have a better advertising campaign.

If you own a business and you want to know more about advertising but don't have a lot of extra time to read, this book (and it's 2 successors) would be a valuable addition to your resource library.

Want to know more about what he has to say before you invest in his books? Check out the Entrepreneurs.com articles he's written. As well you can go to his website and read the archived weekly newsletters. If you like podcasts then you can subscribe to the Wizard of Ads podcast with itunes.

If you want to grow in business then you need to let people know your story and you need to advertise it to the marketplace. To have effective ads you need to understand how ads work, you can either hire someone who knows what they are talking about or you can read up on it yourself - your choice.

Advertising Based on a Lie

Economic Woes for Some are Opportunity for Others ... Will Your Business Survive the Economic Downturn

Reading about the projected Christmas Season spending of 2.2% increase and Master Card's report of a -3% decline in spending over last year may bring fear to some business owners. To me this market slow down is an exciting time for business owners.

How can a recession be a good thing for business owners? This slow down is bringing our economy back to where it needs to be in order to be healthy. Over the past 10 years our economic growth has been unhealthy because it has caused business people to be fat and lazy resulting in poor quality products and less than acceptable service. This so called recession will clean up the economy and inspire some business people to rise and be better for the marketplace and put the less then reputable out of business.

So will you rise to the challenge? Will you become a better business person? Will your business become leaner, meaner and stronger in the world or will you shut your doors? The choice is yours and it will take work because you will need to look at how you do business and how you want to do business, find that gap and create a business you will be proud of and will survive any recession.

Links for more on this topic:

After Christmas Sales a Result of Lower Christmas Spending

Will Your Business Survive a Recession?

High Gas Prices and the Price of Bread

As a Business Owner you need to Embrase your Sale Role

Every business owner is a salesperson and needs to come to terms with this. In order to be successful as a salesperson every business owner needs to learn as much as possible about how to be a good salesperson.

A great blog on sales and marketing tips

Check out podcasts on itunes, many sales coaches have podcasts on itunes for free. Load them onto your ipods to learn as you go about sales, business and marketing.

Economic Uncertainty Causing Many to Review their Assets and Investments

I just returned from the Yukon and met some very friendly and knowledgeable business people in all different industries.

I met with two friendly, knowledgable, and down to earth people who run the Primerica office in Whitehorse Yukon. They have been in the industry long enough to fully comprehend the economic ups and downs and are extremly easy to talk to. They have no airs about them and don't act the big city part as others in their industry were. They were the same small town people their clients are.

People like variety and that's why there are so much competition in the world. You have to know your marketplace's attitudes, lifestyle, and general outlook. If your clientel is all about latest fashion and the newest gadgets then make sure you have that image. If your clientel is about small town living, friendly attitudes and a slower pace match that in your image and attitude. Don't try to be the big city hot shot in a small town or the country bumpkin on wall street.

Link:If you are in the Yukon and are looking for some financial advice contact Primerica.

Online Directories Can Bring You Customers, Traffic, and Crediability

Is your business listed in a credible directory, in print or online? Every day millions of people go to a directory to find a business or service. Don't think online directories are worth the investment? Some are and some aren't.

How many unique users do they attract on a monthly basis? This will tell you how fast their site is growing. For example, Yellow Pages claims 5 million new users a month and Canpages claims 3 million new users a month. Canpages provides more relevant searches and is constantly evolving and is affordable for advertisers. Yellow Pages provides a brand that people find credible but their site isn't as user friendly and is expensive for advertisers.

Kijiji enables businesses to list their products and services for a small fee. Kijiji is like the bargain finder or newspaper classifieds, where many will go when looking for a deal or are price motivated. Kijiji has decent google rankings and provides high organic search results for those advertising their business on it. It is not just a business directory and as a result attracts price motivated shoppers.

Regardless of the directory you choose they will provide you with quality links that will increase your sites ranking. They will provide you with exposure and many who are looking to buy right now will contact you. Don't believe me? Let's look at Canpages audited search results, they have 3 million new users a month and 7 million heading searches in the month of September 2008. Does your site get that much traffic? Would you like a piece of theirs?

As a business owner you are responsible for your advertising, promotion and marketing along with 100 other roles. How much time does it take you to obtain 10 phone calls? How much are you worth an hour? Wouldn't it be easier to invest that amount of money into programs that will bring customers to you while you concentrate on what you are good at?

Links:

Graph showing hits that Yellow Pages and Canpages received - Canpages is poised to overcome yellow pages online in the near future at the rate they increased traffic.

Advertise on Canpages.ca
India's Kijiji - Sell to customers in India
Belgium's Kijiji - sell to customers in Belgium

6 Survival Tips for Lean Times - Article from the Vancouver Province Paper

6 survival tips for lean times
Don't panic, stay strong, nurture key customers and find new ones

Fiona Walsh
Special to The Province

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Small-business owners have one question on their mind these days: How do I survive this recession? This economy is a lot tougher than the one we have enjoyed over the past few years.

Over the last two weeks I have fielded a lot of phone calls from panicked business owners, asking for advice on how to keep going in a recession.

So here are my six tips for making money in this economy:

1. Your attitude determines the dollars. If you give in to panic and think that you won't be able to survive, you are probably right. In this kind of market, your attitude will determine your survival.

What you believe about this market determines what will happen to your business. I have clients that range from sole business owners to multimillion-dollar companies, and they have clearly divided into two camps: those who whine and complain about how awful things are and those who see opportunity and go after it. One client supercharged her prospecting program over the last two weeks and has already landed three new accounts.

Even in a recession, people are still doing business. The opportunities are always there, but you won't see them if you close your eyes and hide away.

2. Do more. Now is not the time to shrink into the background. Get busy doing more marketing and promotion. Sit down and identify opportunities. Take advantage of low-cost online marketing tools like blogging, Facebook and Twitter if they are a good way to reach your target market.

Do a co-promotion with another company to attract new customers. Get out and do more networking, more prospecting. The more people you get in front of, the better chance you have of making sales.

One cleaning service I know is offering their services as part of a buyer's package with a real-estate agent and it's working -- they sold three properties this month.

3. Protect your key customer accounts. Many businesses do not spend enough time thinking about the quality of relationships they have with key customers.

Do you know why they buy from you? Are there things they would like you to improve? Do you thank them for doing business with you? Improving those relationships will make you less vulnerable to poaching from the competition.

Put a plan in place for each of your key customers, focusing on how you can build a stronger partnership. One of my clients, a health product wholesaler, put a distributor sales-rep training program into place and in less than one year on the market, has become a top-selling product.

4. Follow up on every lead. Many small business owners hate selling and they make excuses for not following up on leads when they come in. They treat it as something optional that they do when they have a "spare moment."

They think up all the reasons the sale won't go through before they even follow up. That kind of negative thinking is costing you money and opportunity. Some of my biggest deals came from following up on long shots. I teach all my clients to never assume. You won't know which lead will turn into a sale until you do the follow-up.

5. Prospect! Prospect! Prospect! The more prospects you have in your sales funnel, the more sales you will close. This is a fundamental law of business. To keep sales coming in, you have to keep uncovering new opportunities and new customers on a regular basis.

Successful business owners are always focused on finding new prospects. Sit down and build yourself a list of potential customers that would benefit from buying from you, then start working that list every day. You can't just sit there and hope that they come through your door.

6. Ask for referrals. Lots of people won't ask for referrals because they think they are being pushy or they might hear no. That's ridiculous. Asking for referrals should be an automatic part of your sales process.

Yes, you will hear no sometimes. But many times, if you ask in the right way, you will get great introductions to solid prospects. And that kind of endorsement from happy customers is the best kind of marketing you can have!

Don't be content to listen to the doom and gloom; don't panic. Instead, get serious about your sales and marketing activities. Look for opportunities and act on them.

Fiona Walsh is a Vancouver-based business coach with worldwide clients. She can be reached at fiona@fmwalsh.com.
© The Vancouver Province 2008

Should you Cut Back on Advertising During a Slow Economy?

Ever Had a Bad Day and Just Don't Care about Your Prospect?

Today was one of those days! After dialing for 2 straight days and not booking any appointments and listening to lame excuse and misinformed businessness people I just didn't care anymore. I didn't care if they succeeded or not, I didn't care if their business went under. I just didn't care if they found another customer or not. If this happens to you after talking with prospect after prospect or client's that think they know more about your business then you do - It's time to take a break.

Your frustration, demotivation, and not caring will come across in your voice, your mannerisms, and your interaction. You can try your best to cover it up, be cheerful, use positive words the whole 9 yards, but if you don't care about the prospects needs, they will know it.

So what can you do? That was the million dollar question today at the office. When you are at the end of the line and you just feel you can't get one more sale, or one more project done, it's time for fun and rest.

1. Stay home and watch the funniest movie you can find
2. Go to the spa and relax
3. Go out with friends and be as silly as possible - Alchol may be needed.
4. Curl up in your favorite chair, turn off the phones and read a good book.

What other ideas do you have to turn around the sales blues or funk? What do you do when you are near the end and need just one more heroic push to make it over the finish line but you just can't seem to?

Cold calling is a hard way to make a buck and trying to educate business people who think they know what your business is about is even more frustrating. The only way cold calling works, or any telephone type sale or customer service call works is if you are smiling, cheerful, understanding, sympathetic, and genuine. If you just don't care about the prospect then you'll be working harder and harder and harder and getting no where fast. You need an attitude adjustment at this point in time, so go have fun, relax, and get a new outlook on life. Then try again tomorrow.

It's All in How You Look at It - Being Opptomistic About the Present Economy.

If you have been reading my opinions on the economy for the last 6 months, you will know that I believe that we are in for a long slow down. Does this mean that it's time to shut the doors? NO NO and NO. It means that you have to be smart in order to stay in business and make money. This is when the cream of the crop will rise and those who do shoddy work will loose money.

Jeffery Gitomer is a sales Guru - if you haven't read his books, start. He has a very interesting website filled with tips and advice on selling your product or service to the marketplace. Before you say, I'm not a salesperson..... if you are a business owner, you are a salesperson. You sell your products, services and yourself to the marketplace everyday in order to grow and make money.

Anyway, the point I am trying to make is his take on the doom and gloom being hyped by the media, after all if it bleeds it leads. As I read his words, it brought home positive thinking and finding the silver liner to survive this downturn.

For example, when you hear the negative statistic on the news that home sales are down 33%, it actually means that FIVE MILLION homes will be sold this year. The only unanswered question is: Who will get that business? The media portrays gloom when actually there's still PLENTY of opportunity - just not as much as before

To read his full article on surviving the downturn in the market and being better at getting customers, check out his website: www.gitomer.com

Lots of companies prospered and some great big brand names started during times of recession and even during the Great Depression. Don't Believe ME?

To begin, not all was doom and gloom during the Great Depression. It was a time when those who knew what they were doing made great economic strides, and the very nature of the Depression was an economic boon for them. It was a time when several companies benefited from aggressive marketing while their rivals cut back. A good example of that would be Kellogg besting C.W. Post during that time. Consumers didn't stop spending during the Depression; most just looked for better deals, and the companies providing those better deals came out stronger after the Depression ended. When spending picked up, consumer loyalty to those companies remained.

Generally speaking, those companies that not only survived but also thrived during the Great Depression were those that continued to act as though there were nothing wrong and that the public had money to spend. In other words, they advertised. These are industries that didn't wait for public demand for their products to rise. They created that demand even during the most difficult of times.

What mattered is making a plan, being smart and NOT cutting back on the items that provide your customers more information about you, your service, your business, and your story. Keep advertising, just be smart about where you put your advertising dollars. Keep networking, just be smart about which luncheons you will pay a fee to attend. Keep contacting customers and the marketplace via blogs, websites, and newsletters along with writing articles for periodicals.

Your business can survive an economic down turn, whether it is a recession or heaven forbid a depression. You may not see as much cash flow as you did in the past, but you will see enough if you work hard and smart to attract customers to your business. By not advertising you are telling the marketplace that you can't afford to advertise, you are probably going to be out of business soon. Remember: Out of Sight - Out of Mind.

How do Customers Find Your Business? Really I Want to Know How You Attract Customers!

If you are not advertising or marketing your business how are customers finding you? Some small business people I talk to tell me they do not need to advertise or market their business because they are a one person business. If this is the case how do customers find out about their services or their products?

As a small business owner how do you find customers?

Can Your Business Survive a Recession? Work Smarter, Harder and Leaner

Back in June when I wrote that I thought many industries were already in recession and the US economy as a whole was on its way to a recession many were in disagreement. With the stock markets taking a hit and banks going into receivership I think we are already way beyond recession and now heading for a larger economic downturn then most would say. I don't even want to use the word depression but when you look at the historic reasons for the depression you can't help but see parallels. Banks going under, stock market values falling, people loosing their homes and jobs.

The big difference is the governments willingness to inject cash into the market sooner rather than later which will hopefully keep things from getting worse. The economy was being supported by borrowed money for so long it shouldn't be a surprise that it ran out.

As a business owner what can you do to survive this economic downturn?

Simple answer be smart about credit and spending. Longer answer:

1. Don't plan to expand in the next year, if your business plan called for expansion right now, revamp it and create a maintenance plan for the next 2 years at least.

2. Don't borrow right now. Get your inventory levels under control with systems that enable you to have more just in time deliveries and less overhead. Figure out a system that will enable you to turn over inventory more efficiently and cost effective. If possible negotiate longer payment terms then you currently have with suppliers.

3. Bring in more "must have" items, by this I mean necessity consumable items that people have to buy that are similar to what you offer consumers now. Keep luxury items at a minimum.

4. Advertise, but don't be stupid about it. You still need to get your story out into the market place and let people know that you are still in business. If you stop advertising your present customers may think you are no longer in business or worse, that you are going out of business. Advertising is an investment not a cost. Make sure you advertise where your customers see you and in the most affordable manner.

If you have a full colour ad in Yellow Pages you may want to cut back to a black and white ad that is the same size or look to their competition for more affordable advertising: Canpages being their number one national competitor.

Look at going to community newsletters for affordable advertising rather than the big ads in the newspaper. Community newsletters are relevant to their readers, are delivered to consumers homes, and is much more affordable then newspapers.

Instead of independent direct mail fliers that get thrown into the round file, advertise with direct mail catalogs like UPTOWN which provide recipients with articles and relevant information. These magazine's will stay in a home longer than your independent flier and cost you a lot less.

Know where your customers hear about you and find your contact information and then focus on those areas of advertising first.

5. Network, Network, Network....... Attend as many networking functions as you can without breaking the bank because this is affordable word of mouth advertising at its best. Don't go in expecting to make a sale right then or to sell everyone on your business. Go with the expectation of meeting new people and finding new services and business that you want to use.

Have a good 30 second commercial that will spark interest in your business and how you can help their business or personal lives. Don't go in spouting how great your product is and then leave and never return, networking takes an investment of time and interpersonal skills.

6. Merge your resources with another business. Cooperative marketing or cooperative advertising will help both businesses cut costs but at the same time provide both with exposure to the marketplace. Partner with a business that is a complement to yours and not your competitor. Put a plan in place together and write out the responsibilities and expenses of both parties. This will act as a contract for both of you to understand expectations and responsibilities.

7. Hire Professional Advisers. Professional advisers can help you look at the problems you face in a different creative way to ensure that you will come out ahead in the long run. Ask people who they use, google them, read their blogs or articles, and contact them to make an appointment to discuss your business.

Surviving a market downturn, especially one as ugly as this one could be will take planning and commitment on your part. If you continue to run your business in a reactive way instead of proactive you may find yourself in a huge hole that you can't get out of. If you want to be a successful business person, you have to foresee any circumstance and have a plan of action for the long run. By planning, working hard, being smart, and understanding your customer base you will come out of any recession ahead of the game.

Other entries on this topic:

Is the US going into a Recession?

Should you Cut Back on Advertising During a Recession?

Advertising Can People Find Your Business?

Consumers are Spending Less

Economy Slow? Should You Cut Back on Advertising Costs to Compensate?

Things may not be as rosy today as they were a couple of years ago for your business, but should you cut back on your advertising budget to cut down on the overhead? At first it may be tempting to cut your advertising budget when your cash flow is lower, however this could be the first step in a downward spiral.

The only purpose of advertising is to bring your message to the marketplace to entice them to use your product or service. If you stop advertising how is the marketplace going to know your story?

Advertising during a sluggish economy clearly creates a competitive advantage, according to the study, with a majority of executives agreeing that seeing a company advertise during slower times makes them feel more positive about the company’s commitment to its products and services. But perhaps most important is staying at the top of buyers’ minds when purchase decisions are made.

What business people need to do during a weaker economy is to get lean and use advertising intelligently. By tracking where your customers hear about you AND find your contact information you can plan a lean quality advertising campaign.

Where would you go to find businesses or services you need?
Where would you go to find out who your competition is?
When would the marketplace need your product or service?
Where would your potential prospect be when they looked for your product or service?

There are lots of affordable methods of advertising, both in creative and directional mediums.

Is your marketplace in a certain area of your city? Check out local community newsletters and their rates. This medium is relevant to those that receive it and targeted to a geographical target area. In Calgary Flexys provides community newsletters with amazing rates for advertisers.

Phonebooks are distributed to geographical areas and kept in homes, vehicles and businesses for a year for use whenever they need a product or service. In Calgary the Canpages being the 2nd largest phonebook in Canada they provide great rates and good coverage.

Online there are lots of options, both free and affordable. kijiji, craigslist, canpages.ca, and bargain finder.

Regardless of the medium, the Yankelovich/Harris concludes that advertising during all economic times is critical to the future success of companies. The bottom line is clear: If a company is not communicating with customers when they enter the market, then that company will not be considered in the buying decision. That fundamental truth does not change, regardless of the economy.

Business people need to remember that advertising is not a cost but an investment. Unlike their electric bill, their advertising costs will cover it's cost and bring in a profit. If business people want to stay in business they need to change their attitude towards the cost of advertising because without it they cannot grow their business or replace those that leave.

Links:
Do Ads Work?
6 Survival Tips for Lean Times
Advertising Can People Find Your Business?
Is the Cost of Living Effecting Your Business?

Home Based Business - Mobile Cold Laser and Microbrasion Skin Treatments in Calgary Alberta

Balanced Beauty is able to offer their clients something other laser centers can't - the convenience of in home laser treatments. Their mobile cold laser system provides a safe and comfortable alternative to help heal skin afflictions from acne to wrinkles. Looking younger with clear skin is one of many benefits of Balanced Beauty's mobile cold laser and microbrasion services.

Indy has built a business that has brought her the freedom of a home based business and provided for her and her son. She trains others who want to become cold laser technicians and has big dreams for her business. She travels around Calgary and surrounding area bringing her equipment to those who want the time saving convenience of in home cold laser treatments.

Working Long Hours - A Week 'til The Phone Book Goes to Print

This week is what my office calls Open Season and all leads are now open to anyone to call, which means I get to make a lot more cold calls everyday. I've been hung up on, yelled at and yet, I've met some interesting small business people who want to expand their client base. Even though I make appointments doesn't mean someone will be there when I get there. I get stood up all the time, most re book but with the price of gas and the traffic it can wear on you.

With the book close just a week away I have literally 1000s of numbers to call and hopefully I will meet with 3-4 business people a day. I don't have time to rebook appointments because there are business people out there who want to advertise in the phone book but don't know how affordable it is. These are the types of business people I'm hoping to find during this last kick at the bucket.

Cold calling and being stood up aside, outside sales is a fun career, how much you get out of it depends solely on how much you put in. So far I've been putting in 10-13 hour days and I'm getting very disorganized because there isn't time to ensure I stay caught up on paperwork. My numbers are now reflecting my hard work and my kids are showing signs of rebellion.

I do like the flexability and the freedom it provides you, it's like running your own business, but you have someone to ensure you make quotas so you stay profitable. However, It is a grind because every morning you start at 0 trying to make as many calls and book as many appointments as you can. It's easy to get frustrated and want to quit but that's when you truly fail.

I have found that as long as I'm not comparing my luck to other's luck and I put my head down and work I can keep the green eyed monster at bay. Some reps will get more breaks from management and some will get more help but persevering despite that is an accomplishment in itself.

A Billboard to Remember - Creative Billboard Made You Look

Billboards are very expensive and yet can you remember all the billboards you saw today on your daily commute? Creative Ads have to be interesting and different to make an impact. I saw this billboard and had to take a second, third and forth look. What makes it so cool is I couldn't figure out what the guy was doing because he wasn't moving.

He is putting up a simple black and white message nothing more right? Well he never moved because he's not real, he's a mannequin dressed up as a worker setting up a billboard.

Should You Cut Back on Advertising During a Slow Economy?

Home Based Business - A Mobile Esthetician in Calgary Alberta

I met with a wonderful home based business woman today that has a mobile esthetician service in Calgary Alberta. She provides her clients with in home service for enhanced nails, manicures, pedicures, waxing, and eyebrow extensions.

She has organized her Honda to be a spa on wheels for individuals and groups who want a spa experience in the convenience of their homes. Spa parties are lots of fun for a girls night and she has partnered with mobile massage therapy businesses to provide a full spa event.

This business has enabled her to be home with her 3 year old and gives her freedom to work outside the home. Her schedule is hers to book and she has large goals for this venture. She teaches other women who want to be estheticians and they work with her until they are able to strike out on their own as a Charismatic Carolyn Mobile Esthetician business.

She may be small now but with her passion and ideas the sky's the limit.

To find a business in Canada.
Home Based Business Ideas

Links:
Do You Measure Advertising?
How is Your Business Special?
Can Your Business Survive a Recession?
6 Tips for Businesses to Survive a Recession.

Tracking Where Your Clients Find You is Just as Important as Tracking Where the Heard about You

Tracking where clients hear about your business is common practice for many business owners who want to manage their limited resources more effectively. What many forget to track is where the customer found their contact information. Isn't that the same thing? No it's not. They may have heard about your company or service from a friend, an advertisement or an article but they got your contact information from somewhere else.

Creative advertising is the type that raises awareness and is very expensive. If you want to be top of mind in your customer and prospects mind then you need to continually get your name in front of them one way or another. Newsletters, magazine advertising, community newsletter advertising, direct mail, TV and Radio are all ways of getting your brand in front of the marketplace.

You will need to ensure a few things are present in all your creative advertising:
1. Picture - Images of your Product being used should and invoke the viewer to desire it
2. Creativity - Must stand out and make the viewer to want to pay attention
3. Slogan - Must be catchy and memorable
4. Participation - It needs to inspire the viewer to participate
5. Brand - This is your Logo, Image and marketplace's perception of your product
6. Location - Where can they go for more information or to try it out.

Creative Ads are located in mediums that are not kept, they are located in places people are looking for something else, mostly entertainment. The purpose is repetitive images to keep your product in the minds of the marketplace, whether they want it or not at that moment.

Why does McDonalds and Coke, both leaders in their industries, spend millions of dollars on advertising? To keep their products in the minds of the consumer so when the consumer is thirsty or hungry they will first think Coke or McDonalds. Coke is Cola and McDonald's is fast food. Be the product of your industry through creative advertising.

By asking your customers where they heard about your product you can allocate funds in a focused and cost effective way gaining the most return on your investment. Think you're too small for creative advertising - you're not, you just need to figure out where your customers are and find the most cost effective way to get your image there.

Directional advertisements are on kijiji, newspaper classifieds, and the phonebook. These ads are very different from creative ads because the information in the ad must be different. Consumers are looking at directional ads because they are looking to buy something and need to know particulars about the item and business. The desire to buy and awareness has already been met, now its time to choose where to find the item they want.

Directional ads need to have the following information:

1. Reliability - What makes your business credible and reliable?
2. Approved Brands - What brand names do you sell? Brands have already paid for the Creative Advertising and awareness, now you have to let the consumer know where to go.
3. Special Features - What features does your business provide that consumers may be looking for? Warranties, Financing, Convenience, Delivery.
4. Compelling Reason to call you for what they want, what makes you different from the competition? Why should they call you instead of the other guy?
5. Picture or Illustration of the product or service provided. Pictures get noticed and are worth a thousand words even in directional ads. In creative you are trying to gain interest by showing the product in use or it's benefit, in directional you need to show the product the consumer will be looking for.
6. Location and Contact information.

Creative ads and directional ads work together by creating awareness and desire for a product and then providing the consumer information when they need it. For example, if you have a billboard ad that has made a consumer aware of your product, when it comes time to buy it the consumer is not going to drive to your billboard, they look in directories.

This is why it is important to ask both where they heard about your business and where they found your contact information. In some cases the answer will be the same, other times they will be very different. Make sure you are listed where the consumer will look when they need you.

Check out more creative ads.
Search for a Business or Service in Canada

Should You Cut Back on Advertising During a Down Economy?
Will the Increase in Cost of Living Effect Your Business?

Edie's Framing and Design - A Picture Framing Home Based Business

Part of my wonderful job is meeting new business people and talking to them about their business then figuring out the best way to get new customers. I met with Edie Nellison, a professional picture framer, who has built a quality professional picture framing business in her home.

She showed me some beautiful pieces of needlework that she has framed and some gorgeous fall coloured Canadian Maple Leaves she framed for a client. Clients looking for high quality framing of their special artwork, pictures, and memorabilia call on her. Due to a lower overhead she is able to offer her services for less than a retail picture frame outlet.

Her website shows off lots of her wonderful work.

One of the reasons I want to introduce this home based business to you is to help you find ideas for a home based business for yourself. Do you have a home based business idea you'd like to share in the comments?



Find a Business in Canada

Cold Calling - A Lesson on Saying NO Nicely - Check the Anger at the Door

A large part of my job is cold calling, and today I did learn a valuable lesson when it comes to answering a cold call.

I have a stack of business cards from women who run home based businesses, most of which utilize their residential number for business. Presently, I work for a phonebook that offers any type of business a free listing. If a business uses a residential number, a cell phone or is new then their business will not be listed and part of my job is to find these businesses and offer them a free listing. The other part is to discuss advertising and if it makes sense for their business design an ad for them.

So yes, I am calling hoping for a sale but at the same time I am not a pushy sales person, hence the large number of incomplete sales on my desk.

Anyway, the lesson I learned - One card I called on had one phone number on it and I called that number and received a very angry response. Many times I call and have the phone hung up in my ear and I dial again, but every once in awhile I get a response that gets me pissed off, today was one of those days.

Lesson: 1. Receiving cold calls is very aggravating and most people don't want to receive sales calls - so have your number where customers go to find it, ie the phone book.

Lesson 2. Always be pleasant on the phone, the person who is calling to sell you something may be a future customer. I threw out her card after the call with no intention of ever calling again, whether I need her services or not.

Lesson 3. You may not want to listen to a sales call, but they may have something you need or could help your business. Figure out what the call is about first.

Lesson 4. If you don't want someone calling your cell number for a sales call, don't put that number on your business card or any advertising. Or at the very least make sure you have a different number listed as a main number on your business card and as a cold caller, don't call secondary numbers if a main number is provided (which in this case there was only one number).

Lesson 5. Even in a city, the business world is a small place and you may run into the person who called you at a networking meeting and not know it. The person who called you will know you and already have an opinion about you and how you do business.

In many ways cold calling is annoying not only for the person receiving the call, but also for the ones making the call. You never know how the person who called could help your business, so find out first then say no.

If I Were a Store I'd Be Chapters

If I could be any store, I'd be Chapters because it has everything I love. Gifts, Stationary, Books and Coffee. Shopping is a past time and a very expensive one for many consumers and lucrative for vendors. What is it about some stores that get constant traffic and others that go out of business? In my opinion it is a lack of consumer experience, lack of marketing, and lack of advertising.

My boss told me that not advertising is like winking at a beautiful girl in the dark and he's right. Although you may have a message or an intention if you don't communicate it properly then the intended receiver will never receive the message.

One of the biggest mistakes small businesses make is believing that all they need to do is hang their shingle and they will come, or if they build it they will come. The second biggest mistake is spending money on the wrong advertising or marketing.

I'm always harping on business plans, got to have a plan in place that you review regularly and is flexible enough to change when needed. The most important part of that plan in my opinion is the marketing plan or how you intent to entice customers into your store.

This is why I would be a Chapters if I could be a store because they know how to entice someone into their doors, keep them there for a long period of time and inspire them to come back. A small company can compete with a Chapters if they are different and utilize many of the same ideas as Chapters. A store should have unique trendy merchandise, should evoke a feeling of belonging or comfort, should harness the concept of shopping as a past time and above all market and advertise what makes them different.

So if you could be a store what store would you be, don't forget to add why?

Do you own a Gift Store or Sell T-Shirts and Have the Same Stuff as Everyone Else?

I had some time to window shop while in Edmonton. I wanted to buy some unique stationary and journals. What I found though was every gift store on Whyte Avenue sold similar if not the exact same merchandise. The result of going to the exact same trade show in Edmonton to buy new products. The only thing differential about them was the decor. They all carried something the same as another store just down the way. In today's world of Internet shopping there is lots of unique gift items out there and wholesalers willing to sell it to businesses.

If you purchase items in bulk from sites like Cafepress and Zazzle you will get bulk discounts. At cafepress you get 35% off if you purchase 15 of the same product. Zazzle discounts after one purchase and it doesn't have to be the same item.

Then there are wholesalers who have websites that provide you with great prices on a variety of items.

The point I'm trying to make is, you need to look outside of local buying trade shows and salespeople to bring in unique items people can't get just anywhere. Another great source of unique products would be local artists or etsy.com for one of a kind items.

When stocking the shelves you need items people will buy and will turn over on a regular basis, however, you need unique items as well - take 10 000 villages for instance. This is a wonderful store because every time you go in there is something different, so people go back to find other unique items.

New Job -- Lots of Stress - NO SLEEP

Ok I finally got a great position in an industry I'm extremely passionate about, advertising! I've been through 2 weeks of training and my first day cold calling a list of 60 was able to book 6 appointments and sold an ad on my first day in the field....... so now can I sleep???

I've been so stressed about having to go through training and make minimum quotas in sales that I've had lots of sleepless night and have not been eating right. Why do I do this to myself? I always overbook myself, stress myself out wanting to be the best and I make myself sick.

It's not the work that stresses me out but the reviews of performance, getting scripts approved, and hitting sales quotas that has me up at night. This is the first job where I have a comprehensive training course and consistent performance reviews. I could hear the word 'no' over and over, in fact in my line of work I hear 'no' everyday and it doesn't phase me..... but not approve a script I've written out or have a critism of my way of doing things and I'm in knots.

I realize in two weeks these sleepless nights are going to be a bad memory but until then.... pass the nytol.

Advertising - Can People Find Your Business?

I have learned a lot more about the different types of advertising lately and how all businesses that want to grow their business and protect their market share use advertising. Advertising can be expensive, most small businesses can't afford to make a professional quality TV commercial. Finding ways to utilize affordable advertising for a full advertising program that works. Then you need to measure and track where your leads are coming from.

Creative advertising is the type that you see on TV and all around you. This method is where the seller is looking to entice buyers to buy their product. It is the in your face ads that keep businesses top of mind in their customers minds. Affordable creative advertising would be, fliers, direct mail, neighbourhood newsletters, banner ads, pop up ads and affiliate programs.

Directional advertising is the type that you find in phone books. This method is where the buyer is looking for a product, service or business. It is where people who are ready to buy go to find what they are looking for. This is the more affordable advertising method, in many cases it is free. Places to advertise is kijiji, craigslist, newspaper classifieds, auto trader, and the phonebook. Believe it or not independent phone directories can have free listing options and affordable advertising.

Then comes the tracking of calls and there are lots of different ways to do this. Make an error in the design that people may call to tell you about. Place a coupon on a flier or ad that is unique to that ad. Place a code in the ad and ask those who call for the code in the ad. Just ask the customer where they found your phone number, address, or information on your product or service. Keeping track of what advertising is working for you will help you spend your advertising dollars and time wisely.

As a business owner you need to advertise in one way or other to protect your market, present and image, present information on your product or service and most importantly make a profit. You may be busy but 15% of people move in any given year, this means you will loose clients and there are new potential clients coming into your area. People are lazy and if they can find you easily and quickly you won't loose customers that lost your number and their referrals will find you easily. Every business has to advertise, including yours.

Should you Cut Back on Advertising During a Slow Economy?

Sailing to Hawaii on Plastic bottles for the Ocean - How to create and spread your business' story.

There is a blog all about someone doing something to raise awareness and help clean up the ocean called junkraft. What he is doing is amazing and utilizing the blog sphere he has created awareness and continues to collect messages to help clean up the ocean.

He has taken on a cause and created a story to tell in order to spread his message: there is too much plastic garbage in the ocean.

What does this have to do with your business? Just like the Junk Raft has a story your business has a story - What is your business' story? What creative stunt can you do to create a larger story that people will get excited about and pass around? Is it your service? Your product? or maybe the reason you're in business? Blog about your business' story and marketing campaigns. Write about how your business fits into the lives of your target market.

It doesn't always have to be something as unique as sailing across the Pacific Ocean on a raft that is kept afloat with plastic bottles. What interests your target market? What do they spend the bulk of their time looking at online? Don't know? Ask your customers or those close to you to help you analyse your target market and create methods of measuring their habits and interests. Create a marketing strategy from this information that will include your businesses story.

If your target audience is young, create a funny YTube video. If your target market are parents create a blog based on parenting, children, or time management and how your business addresses parenting issues. If your target market is retired then look to health, vacation, or retirement issues like occupying time or feeling productive. How does your business fit into your target markets lives - that's the story.

Check out the blog about the raft - if you are interested in the environment or the future of the planet you will find it interesting.

The "Go Green" Trend and Your Business

You want to work from home and aren't sure what you want to do? Take a look at Earth Friendly Businesses and study environmental issues to come up with a new idea to help the environment and help you stay home with your children.

David Suzuki has spent his career trying to change the way people interact with the world around them. He has a wealth of knowledge that you can mine to find some gems that will help you develop a "green" business. Grab a pen, a notebook and check out David Suzuki's website to learn more about how people can improve their impact on the world around them.

Check out what other mothers have come up with to make money from home:

Bare Organics - Organic personal care products and natural fibers
Feel the Bee - Homemade natural person scents
Kai Kids - Eco Friendly products for mother and baby
Pure Know How - An Environmental Resource

When reading what about what others are doing take notes about the information AND your thoughts and feelings at the time. Go back over your notes to see if you have any ideas or if you are passionate about anything you read.



Click to view product information and other recycle designs on shirts, coffee mugs, cloth grocery bags, gift items and more.

Not all Phone Books are Created Equal - A Green Phone Book?

Prepare for the latest Interview Assessment Tests - Master Jin Jin's IQ Challenge

I have taken a lot of different assessment tests over the years during interview processess and the latest one can be prepared for. With practice you won't be stressed when you sit in front of a computer and take the assessment test. It is a timed 50 question test that assess your natural skills.

I was shocked as I took the test how similar the questions were to the IQ game I play on my kids nintendo DS, Master Jin Jin's IQ Challenge. This game is a wonderful practice tool and will help you assess your natural skills on your own.

This game with other brain challenge games are a fun daily exercise for you brain and skills.

New e-zine for mothers and online directory for those who work at home

Are you looking for an ezine dedicated to crafts, raising children, and being a mom?

Do you have a website or blog that is dedicated to the theme of mothers? Check out the new mother's ezine, send me your link and I'll add it to the link screen of the ezine. If you have a graphic I'll need it as well.

Do you work from home and are looking for free promotion on an online directory? email me your contact info, a write up on your company and I'll add it to the online directory.

Becoming a Pro at Finding Work - Home Based Business Opportunity for YOU???

I'm becoming a pro at finding opportunities and applying for work. It is so time consuming and a full time job. Recruiters work to find candidates for opportunities and I need someone who works to find opportunities for the candidate. If I had any cash I'd find someone to hire. If you already have a job and you are wanting a new one hiring someone to find you the best opportunities may be the way to go.

So if you are looking to start a home based business, this might be one for you. Do you have good research skills? Are you intuitive and analytical? Do you have strong interpersonal skills and confidence to call and talk to anyone?

Where would you advertise? Online is free or at least cheap, job board forums, blogs, and advertising sites like kijiji. Networking is a wonderful way to find clients by word of mouth. Classified Ads in Newspapers would put you in front of your target audience but can be expensive.

You would need to decide if you were going to be a niche player or a generalist. It may be easiest to find opportunities and candidates in the industry you were working in.

It would have to be organized and set up as a service for candidates and paid for by candidates, NOT companies. Recruiting agencies concentrate on the companies what I'm proposing to you is a company that concentrated on the candidate.

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Kicked Down Again thanks to Credit Report - How to Keep Going and Going Like the Energizer Bunny

If you've been following these posts then you know I've had lots of set back recently in both business and job search. Staying positive and not giving up have become harder but I keep getting back up, I must love eating dust. This time my credit report is the cause of my not being offered a position. Although I've never declared bankruptcy or ever been arrested because of late payments I've been denied a position I would have been perfect for.

Let this be a lesson for you as well, keep your credit rating good, you never know what you'll loose because of a bad credit rating. It doesn't take much to have bad credit, just a few late payments is all it takes to knock a hundred points off your rating and the only thing that can fix it is time.

Here's some things I've learned about credit rating and how to keep a good one:

1. Order your report from Equifax or other credit rating company. Are there any discrepancies? Any errors? I found one, too late for the job but good for the future.

2. Do you have late payments with any company? Make sure you aren't late again for the next 6-12 months - this will help you to create a better rating.

3. Don't apply for any credit -- any credit rating search or denial of loan will hurt your rating.

4. Close all accounts that you don't use, keep your credit amount lean and request reduction in limits on all credit you keep.

5. Use your credit regularly, just make sure you pay regularly too.

6. Protect your SIN and your other personal information to ensure you don't become a victim of identity theft that will destroy your credit.

7. Don't use any agency that claims to fix your rating for a fee -- it's a scam, the only way to correct your credit rating is time!!!!!! Be a responsible borrower for a year.

8. Have a plan to get out of debt and to get your payments made on time. Know your dates and minimum amounts, this is where I got screwed up. If possible make your payments automatic from your bank account and if you can't see if they will accept post dated cheques, I've been hit here too because they've either misplaced the cheques or I didn't record when the last cheque would be cashed.

It is getting harder to keep up the search for work, it's getting harder to be positive and optimistic about my chances. However, I can't give up because if I do I'll never get a job or get ahead. I want a career and the only way to get one is to keep going and find one, while at the same time building on my skills and knowledge.

Work from Home - Lots of Options Available but is it for YOU???

Working from home is a dream situation to many individuals but is it for you? You see the pictures of moms with their babies on their laps in front of computers and you think, ya that's what I want. But is it all it's made out to be? Working from home is a commitment and you have to be self motivated, if you aren't guess what - you won't succeed.

There are lots of work at home options out there, some good, some not. So how do you find the one that will work for you? First you have to know yourself, your passions and talents. Be honest with yourself don't idealize what you want to be, be realistic about your skills, habits, and motivations. Second, once you know what your about find a company that will match who you are. If you choose a company that doesn't match you - guess what, you won't succeed. There are more things to consider check out my article on choosing a direct sales or network marketing company, these are the two most important though.

Want to know more about network marketing companies or multi level networking companies?Reviews Articles on various multi level marketing or direct sales companies

When you work from home you have all sorts of distractions, especially if you have young children. You have to be able to compartmentalize your life and your children have to be able to understand that when you are in your office working not to disturb you unless it is an emergency. Your spouse or partner will have to be very supportive and helpful during the time you have set aside as work time. If you don't take your work at home situation seriously, your family won't so make sure you draw the boundaries right away.

When you work from home the condition of your home could be a distraction if you want to make sure it's clean before your start working. If you can't ignore the pile of laundry during scheduled work time then you won't be able to succeed. You need to ensure that you have planned out your time and you do what needs to be done in it's allotted time. If you keep putting work off to clean the house or do laundry you will never get to work and will fail.

A side effect of working from home is working all the time, it's hard to keep work at work when your home is your work. If your personal home phone is also your business phone you could find yourself answering business calls 24/7. Many people who work from home find they love the flexibility but they also end up working more hours a week then if they had an outside office.

Working from home is a wonderful experience, one I've been fortunate to hold in the past. My husband has freedom and spends more time with the kids, but at times he works all the time and misses out on the kids activities because he can't keep to work hours. He doesn't have to commute further than a few feet but his clients demand on calling any time to book an appointment and show up late in the day to pay their bill. My husband has a successful business but he feels he never gets time off and we have to leave the house to leave the work stress behind. When deciding if you should work from home you need to take the good and bad into consideration before you make a decision.

Looking for Work - Recruiting Agencies or Head Hunters

I've met with my fair share of head hunters or recruitment agencies over the years, most have interviewed me to work for them instead of offering me options. I am disillusioned by head hunters and have yet to be impressed by the service they provide. That said, they are a useful resource when looking for work because they have plenty of opportunities to fill with quality candidates. Trick is finding the one you can work with and trust.

They are looking for the perfect candidate to put forth to the company and when they find them they are hoping for a quick hire and a paycheque. Anyone would right? If that was how you got paid wouldn't you want it to be an easy match? Thing is when it isn't a match and either you don't get offered the job or you turn down the job some head hunters write you off, especially if you've made a taboo mistake during the interview process. Don't forget that their reputation is riding on your performance.

Companies pay a lot of money to recruitment agencies when a match is found and they aren't willing to take a chance on anything less than a perfect match for that reason. So if you are going into an interview set up via a head hunter make sure you are over prepared: Study the company, press your suit, get a hair cut, leave the cell phone at home and know the answers before you arrive preferably early.

Recruiters and Head Hunters have lots of positions they need to fill with highly qualified and good quality candidates. Remember, they are focused on the companies needs not on the candidates needs so don't go in expecting them to find you a position. You need to do your homework and continue to search job boards, newspapers, and websites for opportunities. You will be in the recruiters database but unless you are in constant contact with them you will not be a top of mind candidate.

Choose an agency that has the image you want to portray to the marketplace. If you are looking for labour blue collar jobs register with an agency that specializes in these types of jobs. If you are looking for a professional office position steer away from industrial recruitment agencies and towards agencies that specialize in your industry.

That's the great thing about agencies, there are so many different types. Whether you choose a general bit of everything agency or a niche agency focused on one industry make sure you work with the recruiter. Keep in contact, give feedback about the interviews you go on, call to see if there are any other opportunities, and make sure you know what you want before you meet with them. You don't have to be a star with an amazing resume to use head hunter services, there are plenty that will help you.

I've met only 2 head hunters that I think are really good to work with:

Nancy @ Tag Recruitment Group in Calgary
Paul @ Holloway Schultz in Toronto

Do you know any head hunters that are really good to work with? If so please pass on their names as it isn't easy to find the good ones if you are a candidate.

Unemployed and Looking for Work takes 3 Ps - Patience, Perseverance, and Prayer

The waiting, the interview game, the searching, no wonder I wanted to buy a career for myself. I want to get going on a career so bad I can taste it. Finding a new position that fits what I want and what a company wants is stressful, anyone who has looked for work knows the rejection, the anticipation, the effort, the stress.

So what can you do while you wait for the right job offer to come along. First off, why do you have time to do anything else? Looking for work is a full time job in itself. If you do have time though, read books and periodicals that pertain to the job and industry you want a career in. You may even find a job, you will impress during your interviews and you will feel like you are doing something productive. Patience does not come easy, but without it you'll make reactive decisions and not proactive. Take it from someone who knows, lack of patience means bad rushed decisions. If you feel productive you'll be able to weather out the storm.

Rejection is hard to take, even for the most confident person. You've found a position you want really bad but you didn't interview well or someone was just more suited for the position and you don't receive an offer. I've been there, you've been there, everyone has been there - You are not on your own. The thing is if you give up after too many nos you'll never get anywhere in life because life is full of nos. If you want to work or want a career you have to keep going, regardless of how many times you've been kicked down. Without perseverance you'll always be unemployed and down.

Looking for work can be a lonely occupation, especially if those around you are stressed about you being out of work. It's hard to stay positive have patience and persevere when you feel like your alone in the world. Prayer will help you talk out your feelings, failures, and make you feel like you're not on your own. You will need someone or something to listen to you so you can get perspective on your situation.

A couple years ago my life was great, I was content with what I had and excited because I was going back to work outside the home and start a career. I was reading Philip Yancey's book "The Bible Jesus Read" at the time and the first chapter was on the book of Job and my study of the Book of Job ended up being a warning about the future.


I've been kicked down so many times and have had so much go wrong that my closest friend keeps commenting that she doesn't know how I get out of bed in the morning. I'll let you in on a secret -- I try really really hard not to feel sorry for myself or expect others to feel sorry for me. I keep a positive outlook by focusing on the positive aspects of my life and not the negative. It's all about perspective and staying positive even when things don't go my way. Family has asked how I keep going and really, what else am I supposed to do? I am determined to have a successful career and do something with my life and in order to do that I have to keep going and persevere over every no, every rejection and be patient waiting for the right offer.

The don'ts of an interview

My Love Hate Relationship with Wal Mart and Why You Need Wal Mart in Your Portfolio

I must confess I do shop at Wal-Mart, it is a love hate relationship though. I hate shopping at Wal-Mart and every time I'm in Wal-Mart I get grumpy but the cheaper prices keep me coming back for things like cleaning supplies and milk.

Wal-Mart is one of those stores you go into for 7 items and come out with 27 items and spent at least $200.00. The lower prices and roll backs tempt shoppers to impulse buy. How can anyone save money if they keep buying stuff they don't really need because they got a good deal? Or are consumers really saving money by shopping at Wal-Mart?



By shopping at Wal-Mart consumers support low wage local jobs and the Chinese economy. Where we live you can't afford to live on the Province's minimum wage and as a result the bulk of the employees are immigrants from China and India, most of which work 2-3 jobs to give their kids a better life.

Supporting small business will make an economic change in local communities, thing is if you are struggling to make ends meet Wal-Mart prices become your only option. Until I find work I feed my family on $150.00 per week, not an easy task, but attainable thanks to Wal-Mart's prices.

With more and more families finding it harder to make ends meet they will turn to shopping at Wal-Mart, even if they didn't before. This is the reason you need to add Wal-Mart to your investment portfolio, it is an anti-cyclical stock. What that means is, when the economy is doing bad and retailer stocks are falling, Wal Marts sales will be rising and it's stocks will rise as a result.

Fortune reported:

Wal-Mart has perhaps made the greatest strides with customers, who are clamoring for bargains during these days of rising gas and food prices.

The company said Thursday that sales of U.S. stores open at least a year rose 4.4%, one of the retailer's strongest showings in months and one that blew away analyst estimates. The performance is especially remarkable coming at a time when most retailers are struggling.

Wal-Mart is trying to change it's image by providing employees with more benefits and creating a more pleasant shopping experience. They hope that this will keep shoppers coming back even when things get better. However, if consumers continue to demand low price items from China will things get better?



** I am not a financial planner and any investment decisions should only be made with the advise of a trusted advisor.

My Job Search seems to be Going Really Well

Looking for a position to re jump start my career has been a full time job but the work seems to be paying off. In a real short time I have received a lot of interest and have 3 interviews a day. The amount of interest in my resume is good for my self esteem and I hope to be working before the end of June.

Sending out resumes, re writing my resume and cover cover letter and fielding calls is time consuming. Jobs are not always posted on job boards or in the paper and searching out all the websites of good companies to work for takes some effort. Researching the company before an interview by reading their website information and googling the company for non corporate information takes time. Answering questions and being prepared to answer any question that comes at you takes practice. Add to the equation, kids and lack of money and it becomes a stressful experience. One I hope to not have to do again for a very long time.

A Nation in Denial? Is the US Economy in Recession?

The media and the government continue to deny that the US economy is in recession. The Jobless rate is increasing and their is a crisis in housing, financial and Credit markets. With Fuel and food costs rising on top of all the other problems in the economy can the economy stabilize? Is there enough cash injection left to grow the economy or are the majority of people tapped out?

From the Associated Press:

And, there’s been a lot of talk about whether the economy is on the brink of, or fallen into, its first recession since 2001. That determination, made by a panel of academics, is usually made well after the fact

.

Airlines Cut Jobs

The squeeze, a byproduct of record oil prices that are pushing airlines toward financial disaster, accelerated Wednesday when United Airlines announced plans to take 70 more jets out of service and cut domestic capacity by 17 to 18 percent in 2008-09. Its discount unit Ted will be shut down and 1,100 additional jobs eliminated, with more to follow.

That came two weeks after a similar move by AMR Corp.'s American Airlines, the only U.S. carrier larger than United, which said it would slash domestic capacity 11 to 12 percent after the peak summer travel season. American already has begun eliminating flights, as have No. 3 Delta Air Lines Inc. and others.

What determines a recession?

A period of general economic decline; specifically, a decline in GDP for two or more consecutive quarters.

From an article on About.com:

They [BCDC] define a recession as the time when business activity has reached its peak and starts to fall until the time when business activity bottoms out. When the business activity starts to rise again it is called an expansionary period. By this definition, the average recession lasts about a year.

An economy cannot continue to go up and up forever it is a cycle of expansion peaks contraction and vallys. A smart business owner will plan for all the stages of the economic cycle and understand economic indicators to help develop their plan of action.

Will things get better? From the same Associated Press article:

Fed officials and the Bush administration are hoping that the Fed’s powerful doses of rate reductions and the government’s $168 billion stimulus package, including tax rebates for people and tax breaks for businesses, will pull the economy out of its deep funk in the second half of this year.

Even if that happens, the unemployment rate is expected to climb to 6 percent or higher early next year. Employers won’t want to ramp up hiring until they feel more sure that an economic recovery has strong legs.

I think the US is on the road to a recession for how long or how deep I do not know. Right now many sectors are in recession and if your business is in this sector you need to take action and create a plan to survive it.

Should You Cut Back on Advertising During a Slow Economy?

Cost of Living is Increasing, Consumers are Cutting Back, Is Your Business Effected?

Cost of living is getting high thanks to the higher cost of feul, wheat, and corn. These are staples and necessesities for families and they have to cover the cost of these items, which means they have less for luxeries. Some businesses are finding it harder to cover costs and meet their liabilities.

Restaurants are declaring Chapter 11.

People are getting dog food from food banks and looking for discount vets because they can't afford their animals.

Toyota and Ford are reporting lower sales.

GM is closing 4 plants and considering cancelling production of the Hummer.

Jobless Rate Increases - 49 000 jobs cut nationwide.

So if the big guys are having trouble how can the smaller guy survive? Here are some ideas:

1. Get your financing and books under control to ensure you won't have a cash flow emergency.

2. Find another use for your product and service to increase your target market. Ask yourself, what other ways can my product or service be utilized? Get creative and brain storm with friends and family.

3. Add other products and services to your business, preferrably ones with high margins. Make sure that the new products complement your presents products. You don't want to go out and find a new target market, you want to offer your present target market more.

4. Reduce your inventories to hold less items that don't sell very well. Can you downsize your lease space? Perhaps sublet a piece of your footprint to a complimentary business but not a direct competitor? For example Postal Outlets in Drug Stores. If you have extra storage space you could warehouse items for anther company to help pay the rent.

5. Talk to your suppliers about offering drop shipping or custom order only items instead of inventoring it and having to be out of pocket.

Where can you cut costs? Where can you expand your market share? The goal here is to make it through a recession period with your business entact, which means cutting back and cutting expenses. Finding creative cost effective ways to save money and increase sales takes planning. Take time to plan and brainstorm with trusted mentors, consultants, advisors and friends. Try not to get so bogged down in the day to day you forget to plan for tomorrow.

Looking for Employment in Calgary and Trying to Overcome Disappointment

For those of you following these posts I have a little confession to make, financing for the business I was hoping to buy fell through. Not only that, I am in a position now where I must re evaluate what I want and what my family needs. The reason for purchasing the business never changed, I was buying myself a career that I could turn into a wonderful lifestyle.

Now I am looking for work, not an easy task even in Calgary. The one thing I learned from the experience of purchasing the business was patience and now I need patience more than ever because if I had purchased the business I would have had 2 paycheques by now.

Overcoming the disappointment of loosing the position the business would have given me has not been easy. Then starting over to build a career I want knowing I almost had the career I wanted is not easy to wait for. I am preparing myself to take a position lower on the career latter with my eyes set on the prize. The last month I was creating business plans, financial statements and marketing plans, this month I will need to create a career plan. I'm looking forward to it!

I left my position at as a sales associate for a financial planner in 2003 to stay home with my daughter who needed me. During this time I volunteered, ran a childcare business, prospected for my husband's automotive repair business, and read more books than I can count to increase my knowledge. Still I find it hard to enter the workforce. A couple years ago my former boss offered me my position back at a lower salary and I decided that I wanted to work in a different industry and at a different professional level. Recently he again asked me to come and interview for a marketing / business development position and although I would rather work within a corporation that has a future for advancement I may have no other choice.

The past 3 years have not helped the situation. Positions I took ended up to be a bad match. One I was laid off from after 3 months and another I left after 9 months. The last year of upheaval has not helped either. First we moved to the Okanagan, next my husband got an offer to move to Ponoka and fly so we moved back to Calgary. I decided to stay home for a few reasons, 1. I was a single parent because my husband lived in Ponoka. 2. My daughter's kindergarten was 8-10:30 then my son was off at 2:30. Daycare would have been around the $1,100.00 mark. 3. We thought we were moving to Red Deer for my husband's job and I didn't want to start a career just to quit again. 4. Tried to purchase a business that would enable me to have a career in B2B sales / marketing / and business development. During this time I developed Carennedy Solutions, learned about website development, learned about internet marketing, and read books on marketing, sales, economics, and business. So I stayed busy, tried to increase my skills and my knowledge, still finding a position in a corporation has not been easy because I don't have a job and because I've been out of the workforce.

Carennedy Solutions, my pet project, is my attempt to help women who want to work from home market themselves and provide them with training. I don't make money doing it, it is an educational tool for those that use it and myself. I've been able to increase my skills and meet some really strong women who want to succeed. If I could teach them anything though, it would be to keep their eye on their career in the long run. I've advised them to create business plans and marketing plans, now I want to encourage them to also create written career plans to help them understand what skills they need to be acquiring during their time at home.

Overcoming disappointment and trying to move on has been hard. I'll admit I need to start making money and more than selling my designs online has brought in. My natural optimism and positive attitude help me to keep looking and applying. I hang on to the hope that I will be able to find a position that will lead to the career I've always wanted and try to get fit at the same time.

Musicians like Beverly Mahood Change the Promotion and Marketing of their Latest CDs

Beverly Mahood and other musicians like her are utilizing social networking sites like facebook and myspace to promote their CD releases. The Academy of Country Music changed the voting for Entertainer of the Year from the academy to fans votes. To make it easy for fans to vote for Entertianer of the Year the votes were collected via an internet poll. Kenny Chesney made the comment that, "But I don't think it's right that they picked the one award that means the most, that all the artists sacrifice the most for." He said they changed the category "into a sweepstakes to see who can push people's buttons the hardest on the Internet. I don't think that's right, really" The award has now become a prize for the nominee that can market themselves best on the internet and appeal to the age demographic that lives online. I should note that he made this comment after winning the award.



Utilizing the internet to promote yourself and your business is cost effective, in most cases free, and depending on your target audience effective. Social networking sites like facebook and myspace enable businesses to create pages and advertisements that will show up on their targeted audience's pages. Even if you feel that you don't have the time to play around with these sites, you do need to take advantage of their low cost advertising and create an online presence for your business.

Online polls, forums and comments are a very cost effective way to gain a better understanding of your audience. However, you need to understand the demographics of those that use the internet regularly and those that rarely log on. Which is your target audience? Will you find them online or offline? Kenny Chesney's comment about fans voting for their favorite entertainer has more to do with the age of fans then it does internet marketing. If an entertainers fans are older the chance they will know about voting and will actually vote decreases. Although you need an online presence understand your target audience and ensure they will find you on and offline.