Member You - Business

Do You Really Want A Business Of Your Own?
At one time or another in every life, one decides that he or she would like to open a business. You may be tired of someone else getting rich from your efforts or maybe you want the freedom that goes with owning a business.But, is it enough just to want your own business. What does owning a business mean? What does it take to be an entrepreneur? What do you need to open a successful business? There are thousands of businesses that open one year and within a few years are closed. Everyone has been to a restaurant or store one time and when they return in a few weeks, it is no longer there and something else has taken its place. It seems as though it is a never-ending cycle.Today, I want to tell you what I believe it means to be an entrepreneur and to own a business.The most important thing that one must have is guts! Are you willing to put your life savings at risk? Everything that you have worked for in the past is now at risk. That savings account that is there as a safety net may have to catch you if you fall. You also must have a strong desire to have your own business. It is not enough just to want a business. You must live it, breathe it and sleep it. Therefore, you need to start a business that you will be happy with.Although there will be good times and bad times, you need a business that you are committed to seeing through. There may be times that you have to miss a child’s baseball game or soccer practice. And when problems ar

Purchasing: "O.K. We’ll try to get Baker down so that they’re no more than 10% above your best competitor, and of course we’ll try to get them even lower than that. If we can’t get them down, then we’ll go with your No. 2 choice." Plant: "Sounds good to me."

Scenario 3 -- Plant: This proposal from Baker is great. We’re going to save all kinds of costs and solve all kinds of problems. I know they appear a little pricey, but the cost savings are worth it." Purchasing: "Have you looked at any competitors?" Plant: "We’ve looked at two other competitors that can do the same thing Baker can. They all appear to have the same quality and would produce the same cost savings." Purchasing: "Then you don’t care which one we go with as long as we get the best price." Plant: "Yes, they’re basically the same, so go with the best price."

The buyer will almost always want you to believe that Scenario 3 is happening. But is it really? The profitability of your sale may depend on your ability to determine which scenario really is in operation.

3. Be brutally honest about the worth of your added value. If it comes down to a price negotiation, your added value is worth only what the buyer is actually willing to pay for it. Say, for example, that the only difference between you and your prime competitor is that you have a better reputation in the marketplace. Is that of value? Of course. Is it important? Absolutely. Is it worth anything? That depends on the buyer. If a one buyer says, I’m willing to pay 2% more to go with Company A because of their better reputation, then it’s worth 2% to that buyer. On the other hand, if another buyer says, I’m not willing to part with any hard, co

Incestuous Relationship Between Football and Marketing
Thousands eyes were fixed. Hearts were beating hard against the chests. Emotions was high, expectations was weighting on warrior on football field. This was a article moment for David Bekham. He has to take a direct free kick. Human wall was erected in front of football a few yards away. Opponent and helping hands were scattered around in the D-area hustling and bustling. And whistle went off.Bekham took the kick. It went high in air, cutting it at a very peculiar angle, 46 eyes on the field and thousands off the field were fixed on the rotating wonder. Ball takes a swirling loop and rest is history.Some says it was the air, some says it was the ball who did the trick. But history has given a name to this loop, “Bend it like Bekham .” Not many loop are famous like this.Marketing strategists and marketing need to learn a lot from football, game. What was the price of Bekham skill. Priceless! Similarly, Marketing general deliver and perform when emotions and expectation are touching bottom. That defines the difference and worth of these super performers from mediocre. They keep their cool , eyes fixed on target regardless of tense situation around . They do unexpected which even their intense opponent do not expect it. Performers known when the iron is red hot.Football teaches marketer the superiority of personnel, A-team playing with 10 player against 11 player will always be one down similar, a sales force superior in number to the competitor will

Imagine this scenario. You are a sales representative for Baker distributing. One of your long-time customers, Albertson Metals, operates a mill that produces high nickel alloy ingots. Each year, this mill purchases approximately $500,000 worth of MRO products such as bar conditioning wheels, flap wheels, grinding belts, cutoff wheels, steel shot and grit, and other products for the mill’s laboratories. Unfortunately, you are usually able to obtain only about 30% of this business.

During the last six months, you have been working intensively with the mill’s management to convince them of the value of developing an integrated supply arrangement with you. They have reacted positively to your ideas and you have developed a proposal that you believe fits their needs perfectly. Among other things, you will:

* manage Albertson’s inventory.

* stock all items with sufficient buffer stock to assure JIT availability.

* supply Albertson with OSHA-certified safety seminars on appropriate topics to be mutually agreed upon.

* provide 24 hour emergency delivery.

* invoice biweekly for items drawn from consignment.

You have submitted your proposal at a price that you believe fairly compensates you for your high level of service and for the special features included.

A week later you call the plant and are told, "We got your proposal and it’s excellent. However, we have to refer anything of this magnitude to Corporate Purchasing." You call the Purchasing Department and speak to the buyer responsible for this contract. He says, "You’ve submitted an excellent proposal, and obviously you have done your homework. Unfortunately, we have something of an embarrassment of riches here. Two of your competitors also submitted excellent proposals. You should be aware that your pricing is extremely high compared to your competitors. As a result, at this time your proposal really is not competitive."

You explain to the buyer how you’ve worked with the plant for the last six months to develop this proposal. You discuss at length your excellent service record and how you have gone the extra mile to meet the plant’s needs. The buyer acknowledges this but says, "Your competitors also have excellent service records but are willing to meet our needs at a much lower cost."

Did you see this coming? You worked hard to meet your customer’s needs. You solved problems with your customer. You anticipated a win/win for everybody. Your goal was to avoid a price negotiation by differentiating yourself and focusing on your services and your added value to the customer. Now, at the last minute, price rears its ugly head. In fact, the purchasing agent says that price is the determining factor.

What do you do now? What should you have done throughout the sales process to prepare for the possibility of a serious price negotiation?

In our sales negotiation training programs we stress four key steps that will greatly improve your chances of making that sale while successfully negotiating to maintain your margins.

1. Be prepared for a price negotiation but don’t lead with your wallet.

2. Think like the buyer.

3. Be brutally honest with yourself as to what your added value is really worth.

4. Be aware that the negotiation starts when you say hello.

Let’s look at each step.

1. Be prepared for a price negotiation but don’t lead with your wallet. As buying organizations have become more sophisticated, many realize that the key factor is not price but total cost. Therefore, it is sometimes possible to avoid price negotiations if the customer sees enough value. We know of one manufacturer who was approached by an automobile company to take over production of certain parts because their current supplier was not meeting expectations. The manufacturer called in its machine tool distributor with whom they had had a very good relationship. They said to the machine tool distributor, "We promised the automobile manufacturer that we could do it. Now it’s up to you to make it happen. We’re not here to negotiate the price — just make it work." The distributor sold $10 million worth of machine tools at list price, including a full turnkey operation and the placement of a full time technician at the manufacturer’s location.

There’s a lesson to be learned: If you think there is a possibility that you can make the sale based on your added value and services, try to leave price out of the discussion. Don’t start with price concessions or discounts but focus on the added value.

On the other hand, with today’s ferocious pressures to reduce costs, buyers never forget that price is an important component of cost. Usually, buyers will want to have the best of both worlds. They want you to solve their problems, add value, reduce their costs, and in addition, give them a better price, which further reduces their costs. Don’t be surprised, don’t be shocked, and don’t be hurt. That’s just the way the game is often played. As you start the process, you need to move forward in such a way that while you don’t invite a price negotiation, if there is one, you’re prepared.

2.Think like the buyer. To negotiate effectively, take up residence in the buyer’s mind. Say to yourself, what might actually be going on vs. what they’re telling me? What they say may be the least important information. What they say to each other and what they’re thinking is the key.

Let’s go back to Albertson. We could imagine three different scenarios.

Scenario 1 -- Plant: "This proposal from Baker is great. We’re going to save all kinds of costs and solve all kinds of problems. I know they appear a little pricey, but the cost savings are worth it." Purchasing: "Have you looked at any competitors?" Plant: "We’ve looked at two who say they can do it and have offered a much lower price, but their services really aren’t there and we don’t believe they can produce the cost savings." Purchasing: "Would you mind if I use the fact that you got two competitive lower cost quotes to try to bring Baker’s price down?" Plant: "No problem, as long as you promise that we will get a contract with Baker without losing any of the services and added value they have promised us." Purchasing: "You have my guarantee."

Scenario 2 -- Plant: "This proposal from Baker is great. We’re going to save all kinds of costs and solve all kinds of problems. I know they appear a little pricey, but the cost savings are worth it." Purchasing: "Have you looked at any competitors?" Plant: "We’ve looked at two other competitors. They’re almost as good as Baker and they are cheaper." Purchasing: "How much more do you think Baker is worth than the best of the two competitors?" Plant: "We think they’re worth about 10% more." Purchasing: "O.K. We’ll try to get Baker down so that they’re no more than 10% above your best competitor, and of course we’ll try to get them even lower than that. If we can’t get them down, then we’ll go with your No. 2 choice." Plant: "Sounds good to me."

Building Your Ideal Practice: Freedom to Be Creative with What is Inside You
So many people tell me that they could never do anything other than meet with clients.They could not imagine having any products to offer others.Well, as Henry Ford has said "Whether you believe you can or believe you can't, you are right."A powerful working definition of creativityHere is a powerful working definition of creativity that I require all of my members and mentees to adopt:"Creativity is simply looking at something that has always been there and seeing something that has never been seen before."Think on that one for a little while. Creativity is simply looking at something that has always been there and seeing something that has never been seen before.Be careful of arguing for your limitationsAuthor Richard Bach has said "Argue for your limitations, and sure enough, they are yours."What this means for us is to not limit ourselves in how many ways we can successfully build our practices.You may have heard me say this before -"If you can write a 7 item grocery list, you can write an article." And then an article can become a free report, an e-course, an e-book, a presentation, a CD and/or DVD series, etc.We have opportunity to work once and get paid, get paid, get paid, get paid..................And if that is not something worth celebrating, I don't know what is!

mbarrassment of riches here. Two of your competitors also submitted excellent proposals. You should be aware that your pricing is extremely high compared to your competitors. As a result, at this time your proposal really is not competitive."

What do you do now? What should you have done throughout the sales process to prepare for the possibility of a serious price negotiation?

In our sales negotiation training programs we stress four key steps that will greatly improve your chances of making that sale while successfully negotiating to maintain your margins.

1. Be prepared for a price negotiation but don’t lead with your wallet.

2. Think like the buyer.

3. Be brutally honest with yourself as to what your added value is really worth.

4. Be aware that the negotiation starts when you say hello.

Let’s look at each step.

Let’s go back to Albertson. We could imagine three different scenarios.

Home Business Remedies To Fit Your Busy Schedule
If you are pressed for time but still want to start your own home business, there are several possible solutions. Earning an Internet income doesn't have to be stressful - it can actually be fun. If your dream is to work at home while enjoying a lucrative Internet income, read below for some home business remedies to fit your busy schedule and financial needs.Home Business ScheduleEven with a home business you should set a certain time aside each day to work on your business. Do your best to stick with a work schedule just as you would at any other job. If you plan to work eight hours per day, let this be the limit. Don't neglect your family and personal hobbies. You'll need some time away from your desk and/or computer to relax and clear your thoughts. Also, remember to exercise. Working on a computer all day can be detrimental to your physical health if you neglect daily exercise.If working a part-time schedule, keep on track with your business and lifestyle by setting aside a few hours or one whole day each week to work. You might work at another full-time job while building your home business, so keep a healthy balance between the two and don't over-work yourself.Save Time with an Internet Marketing GroupWhen working within a limited time frame, you won't have much time to promote your home business. Working with an Internet marketing group will help relieve much of this burden. An Internet marketing group will market the

tiation but don’t lead with your wallet. As buying organizations have become more sophisticated, many realize that the key factor is not price but total cost. Therefore, it is sometimes possible to avoid price negotiations if the customer sees enough value. We know of one manufacturer who was approached by an automobile company to take over production of certain parts because their current supplier was not meeting expectations. The manufacturer called in its machine tool distributor with whom they had had a very good relationship. They said to the machine tool distributor, "We promised the automobile manufacturer that we could do it. Now it’s up to you to make it happen. We’re not here to negotiate the price — just make it work." The distributor sold $10 million worth of machine tools at list price, including a full turnkey operation and the placement of a full time technician at the manufacturer’s location.

Let’s go back to Albertson. We could imagine three different scenarios.

Business Process Management;Company Policy
I would acknowledge the author of this tale I am about to tell about company policy if only I know who wrote it. It is one of those stories that you see handed out at training courses or published on the internet without a hint of who the author was.The story begins...."Start with a cage containing five monkeys. Inside the cage, hang a banana on a string and place a set of stairs under it.Before long, a monkey will go to the stairs and start to climb towards the banana.As soon as he touches the stairs, spray all of the monkeys with cold water.After a while, another monkey makes an attempt with the same result; all the monkeys are sprayed with cold water.Pretty soon, when another monkey tries to climb the stairs, the other monkeys will try to prevent it.Now, turn off the cold water. Remove one monkey from the cage and replace it with a new one. The new monkey sees the banana and wants to climb the stairs.To his surprise and horror, all of the other monkeys attack him.After another attempt and attack, he knows that if he tries to climb the stairs, he will be assaulted.Next, remove another of the original five monkeys and replace it with a new one. The newcomer goes to the stairs and is attacked. The previous newcomer takes part in the punishment with enthusiasm.Again, replace a third original monkey with a new one. The new one makes it to the stairs and is attacked as well.Two of the four monkeys

you don’t invite a price negotiation, if there is one, you’re prepared.

Let’s go back to Albertson. We could imagine three different scenarios.

How To Create A Word-Of-Mouth Referral Network
The most effective sales team you'll ever find is enthusiastic customers. The reason is simple enough: Customers aren't paid to praise. When a customer becomes a passionate believer in your brand, it means you truly earned it. Whenever they buy your product or service, customers feel like special club members.But a repeat customer alone doesn't create a sales team. The trick is to transform that dedicated buyer into a promoter who spreads the word and converts friends, family and associates into customers, too. By building great word-of-mouth, you nurture an all-volunteer sales force that generates leads, boosts sales and leverages marketing dollars. Here are three basic ways to persuade people to talk up your business story. As you develop the customer sales force, you'll find other options suited to your business.1. Set Up a Referral ProgramThe easiest starting point is to ask customers who are already fans to recommend you. First, let them know you're creating a referral program by sending out a letter or a postcard that explains how much you value their business and that your continued quality depends on their referrals. You'll get a better response if you include an incentive - say, a discount on the next order or a gift for every referral sent your way.To keep building advocates, send your referral program letter to every new customer within a few days of his first purchase. You might also ask for written testimonials about yo

For each sale where you have one or more potential competitors, you need to do a value-added analysis in order to figure out the most the buyer would pay you vs. your competitor. Let’s make up a simple example where you have just one competitor, Company A, and let’s assume there are just four different components of value: service, reputation, delivery, and problem solving ability.

Based on your knowledge of the customer and the competition, you believe the customer thinks that you have a better reputation, provide better service and have better problem solving capabilities, but that your competitor is a little better on delivery. Furthermore, although your customer likes your reputation, they won’t pay more for it. They like your service and feel that’s worth up to 2% more. They believe that your problem solving capability has helped them overcome significant difficulties and that that’s worth 4% more. On the other hand, you have had some delivery problems. While not fatal problems, the customer would be willing to pay your competitor up to 2% more for their better delivery.

Your value-added analysis would look like this:

Value Added Item Vs. Company "A" and The Most Your Customer Would Pay Extra for That Added Value

Reputation 		0%; 
 Service 		2%; 
 Problem Solving 	4%; 
 Delivery 		(-2%)

Under this scenario, your customer would be willing to pay you up to 4% more than your competitor. Of course your customer will often say, as our Albertson purchasing agent did, "You guys are all the same. You all provide good quality except your delivery isn’t very good. You’ve got to get much more competitive with your pricing." If you’ve done the value-added analysis and it’s accurate or reasonably accurate, you can see behind the purchasing agent’s mask to what is really going on.

4.The negotiation starts when you say hello. At this point you may be saying, "Everything you say is true but if I’m the Baker sales representative talking to the Albertson purchasing agent and he says to me, ‘Your competitors are lower and you have got to cut your price,’ what do I do now? That purchasing agent isn’t going to tell me their real scenario, what they said to each other, or what they really think our added value is worth vs. our competitors."

Correct. If the first time you thought that there might be a price negotiation was when you were talking to the Albertson purchasing agent, it’s too late. You don’t have the information you need, and it’s going to be difficult to get it.

And that takes us back to our first point. Be prepared for a price negotiation while you try to avoid one. The negotiation starts when you say hello. The time to start finding out who potential competitors might be, how your customer views them vs. you, the problems they’ve had with competitors, whether anybody can do as good a job as you can, etc., etc., is from the very beginning of your discussions with your customer.

Have as many contacts with your customer and with as many people in your customer’s shop as possible. Ask direct questions, indirect questions, feel people out gently, and try to get a picture of their whole situation.

Prepare vigorously for a price negotiation, and at the same time do everything that you can to avoid one.

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If you can’t concisely and immediately articulate who you are and what you’re all about, one of two things will happen...

Selecting a business broker or an M&A firm to represent your company for sale can be a confusing and difficult process. This article exposes some of the pitfalls to avoid in the process.

Car Rental Agencies need visitors and travelers to come and rent cars, but they also know that some of their business is local and therefore they need to be involved in the community and work with other businesses to refer them clientele. Companies like Car Lots, Auto Service Garages, Insurance Companies and Tow Companies too.

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