Home Based Business – Offline Marketing Strategies

The Internet has become the largest medium of communication; and has presented a lot of business opportunities.

Keywords:

marketing strategies, home based business, internet marketing, affiliate marketing

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The Internet has become the largest medium of communication; and has presented a lot of business opportunities. Online home based business owners tend to limit themselves to online marketing methods. Nevertheless, there is a huge potential to promote your home based business through some cost effective offline marketing strategies. So what are the most effective offline marketing strategies for your home based business?

1. Word of mouth in your circle of influence
Word of mouth is one of the best free advertising channels. We all have people we interact with on a daily basis, and these are potential customers. Make a list of all the people you know or interact with and how can you best tell them about your internet business. Be passionate about your internet business and always be prepared to tell someone about it when an opportunity to do so presents itself!

2. Mail-out newsletters and flyers
Mail-out newsletter or flyers can be effective if you target it to a specific 'group'. You could create one to distribute to local day care centers just as an example - and in your newsletter or flyer, highlight the benefits of an online business to the targeted group, for example earning money at home for stay at home moms or dads. Posting your home based business URL on bulletin boards can also be effective.

3. Use and give away free branded ‘stuff’
You can promote your business by having your URL on all your stationery, all written communication and other items you can give away for free. If you want to get a lot of people to know about your home based business, you will need to come up with some creative ways of promoting your URL. You can be limited only by your imagination. Have your business cards with your home based business URL. Give them out to people you meet, leave them about where you can, such as in your local coffee shop.

4. Newspapers and magazines
Local newspapers are good for advertising your online business. Most local papers have ‘home business opportunities’ section, so you run a regular classified advert. In addition, contact your local newspaper or business-oriented magazine and let the business editor know you have a new business and web site and what you offer. Local newspapers are frequently interested in featuring local business people and their accomplishments. This is free advertising and should always be used. You can also contact your local magazine and offer to write a monthly or weekly guest column for them, and include your ‘author bio’ and home based business URL.

5. Joint ventures with offline business
You can get into a joint venture partnership with an offline business which sells a complementary product or service to your home based business. If you can identify a partner that best fit your business, this is an important offline marketing strategy that can help you succeed in your home based business by enabling you to reach potential customers that you could not reach before. As an example, if you have a website selling fitness/health products or tips, you could prepare a leaflet and make a deal with an offline local fitness/health shop where they giveaway your leaflet to their shoppers with each purchase.

The offline marketing strategies outlined above can help you grow your home based business. I have used these strategies alot and they work well. So what are you waiting for? Get out there and promote your business offline!!

Exit Strategies for Businesses

While you may not wish to think of the end of a business venture just as you are about to begin, you can be assured that investors will. This is why you must have a sound exit strategy to show them before they will be willing to put money into your business.

Keywords:

business exit strategy, business plan, exit strategy

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Many investors are only interested in investing money into an enterprise for a limited amount of time. They want to know when they will get their money back and what sort of return they will be receiving at that time. Both issues are closely linked. Therefore, when preparing your business plan, to pitch to potential investors, you will need to make sure that you have outlined your long term plans and a sound exit strategy.

In order to do this properly you will have to ask yourself a few questions about your own personal plans regarding the business. Do you wish to stay involved in this business in the long run, or are you more interested in getting it off the ground and letting someone else take over then? These are the kinds of questions you should deal with in your exit strategy.

You will also want to know a little about the investors you are pitching to and what their expectations are regarding the future of the investment:

• If you are dealing with venture capitalists you have to be aware that they are looking for a high return. They will generally be expecting the business to go public at the end of the period or make some other high profit move. The period they are willing to invest is about three to seven years so you will need some sort of high return exit strategy at the end of that period. However, you should not opt for going public unless you are confident that it is a realistic goal for your company. Public offerings are very rare for small businesses and the investors you are speaking to will be all too aware of that fact.
• If you are considering an angel investor then again they will be looking for a high return but will not be overly concerned with the type of exit strategy under consideration, as long as it seems sound. They will be less sophisticated than the venture capitalists or institutional investors you may deal with and are more likely to be involved because of a personal relationship to you or the business.

There are a number of exit strategies you can consider:

• The most basic exit strategy would be to simply bleed the business dry. This can be done by giving yourself a huge salary or other remuneration, regardless of the performance of the business. While it is not appropriate in most cases, there is no doubt that it can get a lot of your investment back out of the company in a short time.
• Another simple option is liquidation. Simply close the doors and wait for the company to be wound up. All debts will be paid off, and then whatever is left over will be clear to the shareholders.

While these two options above are quite practical and effective, they are professionally frowned upon and you may wish to propose a more sophisticated exit strategy if you wish to impress potential investors.

• Another option could be selling to a friendly buyer. While you may have come to the end of your relationship with the business, there may be many people who would be saddened to see it end and may well be willing to step in to take over. This might include passing it on to another member of the family, or selling it to employees or customers. There are many businesses where this will be a realistic option, however it is difficult to predict it at the beginning of the venture.
• Another option is acquisition. This is when a rival firm, usually one wishing to expand, agrees to buy you out. You can negotiate the price and terms with the buyer and there is a good chance that both of you can come up with a very attractive price. You will get a good price because together with your assets, the buyer will be willing to pay for good will, market share, client contacts etc. This means you can get a very good price for the business.
• The IPOs that we previously talked about are the final option. These are potentially the most lucrative of all, but when reality kicks in, they might not seem like the dream you thought they were. In reality, a minuscule percent of companies manage to make it through an IPO. The process costs millions, includes lawyers, analysts, publicity agents and a lot of other costly professionals. The odds are against you ever making it. And if you do, you will probably be left with only a fraction share of the company you used to own.

Customer Service Strategies on eBay

Customer service is important on eBay. Buyers rate their satisfaction with sellers, and your rating can make a difference on whether potential customers are willing to buy from you.

Keywords:

start home business, e-commerce,eBay,customer service

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Copyright © Michael Hehn, Online-Profit-4-You

Customer service is important on eBay. Buyers rate their satisfaction with sellers, and your rating can make a difference on whether potential customers are willing to buy from you.

Customer service strategies on eBay start by providing an accurate product description. Displaying clear pictures and describing any imperfection shows the buyer what to expect. It's much better for customer satisfaction if the buyer receives a product in better shape than he expected than if you oversell and disappoint your customer.

Customer service strategies on eBay include acknowledgement of the winning bid and prompt shipping information. Use an automated response to let the buyer know you have received his bid. Acknowledgement payment quickly. Ship immediately, and inform the customer when the product is shipped. Customer service strategies include providing a tracking link to the product whenever possible.

Some eBay sellers offer free shipping as a customer service strategy. If you charge for shipping, don't charge much above shipping costs. Customers notice the postage cost and will likely complain if the shipping and handling is several dollars over. They understand the cost of materials, but they don't want to pay for your time to package the product.

Customer service stategies on eBay include a return policy. It is worth it to accept returns any time a customer asks. You can probably resell the item, and receiving a good rating is worth the cost and hassle.

Customer service strategies on eBay are not any different than traditional online stores. Make sure the product is as good as you say it is, don't inflate shipping and handling, ship quickly, and have a liberal return policy. This is the way to achieve high customer service ratings.

Covered Patios and Home Improvement as Investment Strategies

In a down-market, home maintenance and improvement is an important investment strategy. Spend the time to find a good contractor to help you.

Keywords:

Pergolas, Replacement windows, Covered patios, Hardi Plank siding, Sunrooms, Exterior painting, Decks

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If you are a homeowner, you know how important the real estate market has become to the financial well-being and security of you and your family. Your home may well be your biggest investment, and like any other investment, it needs to be managed and protected. Unfortunately, home repairs are often put off due to costs or the inability to find a good contractor. The same goes for home improvements. The addition of, say, a covered patio may be put off when it could add to the value and enjoyment of your home.

Don't fall into the trap of neglecting home repairs and home improvements just because the real estate market is down. If you are selling, prospective buyers will be extra-critical and choose homes that are well-maintained and cared for. And in downtimes, attractive extras like sunrooms, decks, or pergolas are even more important when buyers have a large selection of homes to pick from.

Repainting a home is a great way to improve its appearance and give it what real estate agents call "curb appeal." Exterior painting isn't difficult and many homeowners do it themselves, but it can be a big and messy job. A good contractor can make things a lot easier by suggesting the proper paint for your home, showing various combinations of colors and carefully selected accent colors, preparing the exterior, and then do the painting quickly and competently. Expert preparation includes power-washing and may include repairing wood, Masonite or Hardie plank siding and trim. This will guard against paint blistering, peeling or flaking later.

Windows are another area of the home that's often neglected. Most homes today have dual pane windows for extra insulation and sound proofing. Unfortunately, the seals on older dual pane windows are often leaky, resulting in condensation and residue between the panes. Leaking seals defeat the purpose of dual pane windows, and the glass becomes dull and ugly. Replacement windows quickly fix this problem. I held off doing mine because I feared it was a big, expensive construction job. Then I learned that windows can often be replaced without ripping out the frames, and found a good contractor who did the work. If you think of replacing windows, also inquire about shatterproof, tinted, tempered and colored glass.

If you have a covered patio or any other structure that attaches to your home, be sure to have a contractor check for dry rot, leaks, cracks and other damage. These things are usually easy to fix, but they can really add up to costly damage unless taken care of. Water leaks, especially, can lead to catastrophic damage. Cracks and holes may provide access for pests, so it's better to tend to that quickly.

Taking care of one's home is good business and a good investment. Whether it's creating additional curb appeal with shiny new paint or an inviting covered patio if you intend to sell your home, or simply keeping your property in good condition so that you won't incur needless repair costs later on, proactive home maintenance makes sense. Many homeowners shy away from those tasks due to costs and the challenge of finding a good, reliable contractor. Don't give up - they are out there and you'll be glad once you find a good one.

Business success strategies – 5 Things I Did Right in 2005

All in all, I'm pretty happy with how 2005 turned out. My business is taking off. I've built a solid foundation to support even more growth (which I forecast for 2006) and I've even managed to take some time off.

I'd like other entrepreneurs and business owners to feel as good about their business as I do about mine, so I thought I'd take a moment to share 5 things I attribute to my successful 2005.

Keywords:

business strategies, growing a business, business success, business success strategies, marketing, copywriting, creativity

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All in all, I'm pretty happy with how 2005 turned out. My business is taking off. I've built a solid foundation to support even more growth (which I forecast for 2006) and I've even managed to take some time off.

I'd like other entrepreneurs and business owners to feel as good about their business as I do about mine, so I thought I'd take a moment to share 5 things I attribute to my successful 2005.

1. Attended seminars. This one is HUGE. Nothing beats getting out of your office and away from your computer and actually meeting people face to face. I've come away from these events with clients, joint venture partners, and more. (And that doesn't even include the great information I absorbed and was able to put to use in both my business and my clients' businesses.) If you only put one of my 5 tips to use, this would be the one to do -- that's how valuable I've discovered attending seminars to be.

2. Hired a coach. Again, this was another tough decision to make, but I'm really glad I did. It's difficult to see your business objectively, so having a neutral observer on your team is extremely valuable. Coaches help you get out of your own way (and believe me, that's a biggie for us entrepreneurs.) They can help you with both your inner game (your habits and mindset) and your outer game (your skills and business structure).

3. Started systemizing my business. Unless you want to be chained to your business night and day, you have got to start systemizing your business. Yes, all businesses should have systems in place, even if you don't have anyone else working for you and you primarily sell services. The best part is when you do have systems in place, your business suddenly starts running a lot more efficiently and effectively (and you can start sleeping better at night and relaxing on vacation).

4. Outsourced. For all you control freaks out there, this one is for you. If you don't start hiring some help, I guarantee you'll never be able to grow your business because you'll be constantly doing tasks you have no business doing. Do yourself a favor and get some help...NOW. I've just hired a project manager/director of client services, plus I have 2 backup writers and 2 virtual assistants. Building a team has been a big stress reliever for me.

5. Focused on my inner game. Shifting my mindset away from "freelancer" to "business owner" was another big piece of the puzzle. As soon as I made that shift, all the other four techniques fell into place because it suddenly made them easier to do.

It's tough to change your inner game on your own -- hiring a coach is probably the fastest way to do this. But there are some good resources out there if you want to begin dabbling in it first. Do a search and see what comes up, I started my journey with free ezines and articles.

Creativity Exercise -- Make 2006 the best year ever

Go back and reread my list. Now get out a piece of paper and start brainstorming ways you can integrate my tips into your business. Which one do you think will bring the quickest results? Which one will be more difficult for you to start doing? Which is the one you SHOULD be doing?

Have fun with this exercise, really play around and see what comes up. Don't censor yourself, just write down the answers that bubble up even if it doesn't seem right. You might discover something important about yourself and your business that might be the key to launching you forward faster than you ever dreamed possible.

Dealing with Difficult People: 27 Secrets & Strategies You Can Apply Today

27 easy, proven strategies for dealing with difficult people. Guaranteed to work if you look at the part you can control - you! Discover simple tips for how to deal with gossips, whiners, know-it-alls, exploders and more. Whether it's dealing with a difficult boss, dealing with a difficult co-worker or difficult spouse. And, might you be the difficult person?! Oh my!

Keywords:

Dealing with difficult people, difficult people, communication, conflict resolution, communication skills, managing employees, how to deal with difficult people, dealing with difficult boss, difficult co-worker

Article Body:

Copyright 2006 Colleen Kettenhofen

“No one can get your goat if they don’t know where it’s tied up.” Zig Ziglar

1. Listen more effectively. Listening is the number one tool in communication, especially when dealing with difficult people.

2. Step back and analyze the situation from an outside perspective. When we are less emotionally involved and “cool our jets,” the answers come for how to effectively deal with them. Whether dealing with a difficult boss, dealing with a difficult co-worker, or spouse.

3. Ignoring often doesn’t work. The tension becomes so thick you can cut it with a knife.

4. Choose your battles. There are times when you have to “let it go.” Know when to speak up and when to pick your battles.

5. Criticize in person, praise in public. Never publicly criticize someone as you will look like the bad guy and the difficult person will only become more upset.

6. Maintain respect for them – even if you disagree or dislike them. At least acknowledge what they say. Think about how you would want to be treated.

7. Seek first to understand then to be understood, especially when dealing with difficult people.

8. People often won’t care what you think unless they think you care. At least attempt to see it from their perspective.

9. Maintain high expectations and standards if you are managing this employee. If you don’t do this you will be seen as enabling their unacceptable behavior.

10. Strive for greater communication. Often, it’s not that there isn’t enough communication, it’s that it’s bad communication. So work on improving your conflict resolution skills. If you are a manager, consider training everyone in conflict resolution. One of the main reasons teams fail is because some of the people on the team don’t like each other, or aren’t skilled in handling conflict.

11. Invest in communication skills courses and conflict resolution skills courses to improve the part you can control – you.

12. Don’t lose emotional control. Antagonists and “passive-aggressives” will often try to push your buttons.

13. Avoid being around difficult people when they’re in a bad mood. If they’re always in a bad mood, try being around them when they are in a “better” mood!

14. Accept, change or reject. Know that ultimately you only have three choices.
1) Accept the situation knowing it won’t change.
2) Attempt to change your relationship with them by changing how you react.
3) If it’s really affecting your well being, it may be time to “reject” the situation and move on.

15. Avoid "but." No “but’s” allowed! For example, don’t follow giving them positive reinforcement with, “But on the other hand…” The word “but” only negates everything positive you just said.

16. Non-verbally position yourself at their eye level. For example, if they are sitting when you talk with them, sit. If they are standing, stand. Converse at their level.

17. Avoid the word “need” when possible and use “want” instead. Saying politely and tactfully, “John, I want to have the project in to me by noon so that we’ll meet our deadline. “Want” is more assertive as long as it’s in the right tone.

18. Watch your tone of voice. Avoid an autocratic or sarcastic tone. The Latin root of the word “sarcasm” is “sarco” meaning tearing of the flesh!

19. In face-to-face communication, words account for 7% of what people notice and believe about you. Tone is 38% and body language 55%. So a full 93% is tone and body language.

20. Give sincere positive reinforcement when they do something well. Show genuine appreciation. Often difficult people are difficult because they feel unappreciated.

21. Avoid absolutes such as, “You always” and “You never.” It puts difficult people further on the defensive.

22. Don’t take it personally. Often they’re difficult because of something going on with them.

23. Watch your mental state. Don’t let them drag you down. A little of that can be normal but don’t allow it to go on.

24. Remember the person who constantly angers you, or constantly intimidates you, controls you.

25. Mutually agree to move on. Agree to disagree. If this isn’t possible, at least “move on” in your own mind.

26. Attempt to understand what’s driving that difficult behavior. Get at the root cause, even if you only try to figure it out in your own mind.

27. E + R = 0. Event + Reaction = Outcome. You can’t control the event, but you can control the outcome based on how you react or respond. Be careful how you respond.

For example, there’s the story of the couple who were divorcing. A neighbor said to the wife, “Do you think you’d ever get back together?” She replied, “No, because we have said things to each other that are so horrible, that even after apologizing they could never be taken back. There's no way we’d get back together.” The moral of the story…be careful what you say. Once those words are out they’re hard to take back.

“The disease of me often results in the defeat of us.” Pat Riley of NBA fame

Career Strategies with Hypnosis: How Hypnosis Can Boost Your Confidence and Improve Your Career

Clinical Hypnotherapist Steve G. Jones discusses how hypnosis and hypnotherapy can give you more ambition, motivation, and confidence to succeed at work.

Keywords:

hypnosis, self hypnosis

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Copyright 2006 Steve G. Jones

Competition in any given field of work can be fierce, but some people are finding a competitive edge down a much less traditional road. They are using hypnosis and hypnotherapy to give them more ambition, motivation, and confidence to succeed at work.

There are many different stages that one goes through during the course of their career. Sometimes people jump from one job to another in search of work that is satisfying and fulfills their personal goals. At other times, people may find themselves in an industry they love, but they just don’t have what it takes to progress. It is these same types of people that can benefit the most from hypnosis as a career strategy.

Aside from having the right kind of training and skills, there are other obstacles --internal ones -- that keep many from doing what they love. These include shyness, lack of confidence, low ambition, fear of rejection, low energy, lack of concentration or focus, fear of public speaking and lack of sales skills.

All of these “conditions” or phobias have to do with a feeling or impression. It is a mental image people have of themselves, that is often unfounded. Hypnosis is especially effective in changing these thought patterns that interfere with career advancement. For example, when someone has no ambition, it is often because he or she doesn’t understand or see the reward of going after something important that will benefit them. Hypnosis addresses negative feelings, fears and suppressed, preconceived ideas and replaces them with positive reinforcement.

Past newsletter articles have talked about the hypnosis process that leads one through the steps to change. It all starts with a relaxation process called induction. Next the relaxed feeling is increased in the deepening stage. The script is now ready to be introduced. This is the heart of hypnosis and where the negative thoughts are replaced with positive thoughts that will lead to action. An amnesia stage is next and it allows the hypnotized person to forget on a conscious level what they were told so that the subconscious mind can embrace the message without analytical interference. Finally, the trance is terminated and the hypnosis session ends.

Let’s look at the process using the fear of rejection scenario. Once the person has gone through the induction and deepening stages of hypnosis the script would then instruct them that they have a great deal to contribute to the workplace and the that the opportunities are there for them to seize. If they are passed by for the promotion or new job, it is okay. A better opportunity is waiting. If you do not try for the new job you will never know what might have been and may regret missing the opportunity. This kind of dialog gives encouragement about trying and the message that even if rejection happens, it is not the end of the world. The essential part is to try.

Hypnotherapy or self-hypnosis are both effective in implementing new ideas about career advancement. The significant aspect is that these mental obstacles to success can be overcome through hypnosis.

Hiring the Best - Interviewing Strategies that WORK!

Hiring continues to be key to a company’s success. Hiring the right staff – with the skills AND characteristics required for success – requires behavioral event interviewing. This article provides insights into effective interviewing and hiring.

Keywords:

management, boss, manager, supervisor, hiring, interviewing, behavioral-based, resume, candidate

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In today’s competitive environment, hiring has increasingly become a key link in establishing and maintaining your company’s edge. By attracting and hiring the best people, your company can move quickly and grow steadily. On the flip side, however, poor hires cost you precious time, money, and opportunity. Poor hiring could cost you your company.

Unfortunately, hiring candidates who can do what they say they can do is getting tougher. A whole industry has sprung up in the past ten years helping job seekers land a job — sometimes at all costs. You can’t afford to hire someone who can’t do the job, do it with minimal direction, or do it quickly. Fortunately, there are techniques that you can use to ensure that the candidate you select can do the job. We will examine four techniques here — demonstrations, simulations, problem solving, and testing — and introduce a powerful interviewing technique — High Performance Interviewing — that we will cover in more detail in the next issue of Performance News.

Demonstrations

Ideally, the best way to see if a candidate is able to do the job is to have them actually do the job. To have them, in other words, demonstrate their ability to do the work. Sales representatives can sell something; software engineers can code something; machine operators can operate a machine; secretaries can answer phones or type a memo; etc.

Simulation

Sometimes demonstrations are not possible or appropriate. The next best thing to a demonstration is a simulation. A simulation is like a demonstration except that the situation is not real. In sales or customer service, for example, you can role play an angry customer and have the candidate respond to your anger. Another example of a simulation is having a telesales representative call you (the “customer”) to sell you something. Or, if you’re interviewing for a training position, you could have the candidate teach you something.

Problem Solving

Sometimes demonstrations and simulations are not feasible. Then problem solving might provide you with confidence in the person’s ability. Problem solving is a technique many interviewers use to see how adept the candidate is in addressing real or hypothetical problems and challenges. It is one step removed from simulation because in problem solving the candidate describes what s/he would do rather than simulating what s/he would do. A cautionary note: problem solving by itself may only indicate what a person SAYS s/he will do in a given situation, not how they actually will or did behave. Still, problem solving is a good way to check a critical skill.

Test

Tests are also sometimes helpful as part of the hiring process. Psychological tests provide a way for some companies to identify key characteristics in an individual. Other ways of testing include asking specific knowledge questions such as “What commands might you use to initiate a subroutine?” or “What are the advantages and disadvantages of common network protocols?”

Interview

However, sometimes demonstrations, simulations, problem solving, or testing might not be feasible; at the very least they -- by themselves -- are inadequate. Interviewing is required. Effective interviewing requires that you have sharp probing and listening skills to get the candidate to describe or explain relevant experiences from which you can draw highly predictive information. We call this type of interviewing High Performance Interviewing.

Can we maximize the traditional method of hiring candidates — the interview — to hire more effectively? The answer is, “YES!”

Many interviews result in a mutual exchange of meaningless information and a “gut feeling.” The process we call High Performance Interviewing (HPI) helps you gather meaningful, predictive information and substantiates your “gut feeling.”
HPI is based on the premise that past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior. HPI is designed to extract highly predictive, accurate target data from candidates. Target data is:

• Behavioral: The data must be about what the candidate did, said, thought, or felt. We do not consider what the person “was responsible for” as target data since it doesn’t tell what the person actually did. The data must be about the candidate. We do not consider “we” data target data since we don’t know what the candidate did.

• Volunteered by the candidate: Target data comes from the candidate’s memory, not the interviewer’s suggestions or prompting.

• About a specific past situation: Focused on what actually happened, not on what might have happened, or what generally happens. Having the candidate state what they would do in specific scenarios may point out problem solving and quick thinking but may not predict what the person actually has done in similar situations. Only data based on past situations is considered target data.

Step 1: General Opening Statement or Question

Begin gathering target data with general opening questions or statements. The purpose of this step is to get the candidate to talk about what we want them to talk about. Here are examples of general openings. (The phrases in parentheses are examples of specific skills I might be looking for in a candidate.):

• “I’m looking for (examples of when you managed multiple priorities).”

• “I’d like to hear more about (your experiences in delegating).”

• “I’d like to find out how (you respond to autonomy and little direction).”

• “Can you think of a time when (you had a difficult deadline to meet)?”

• “Do you recall an instance where (you were aware that another member of the team was not pulling his or her own weight)?”

• “Is there an example of (a challenge you faced in coding a new module)?”

Step 2: Get Deeper

The next step in gathering target data is to get deeper in those areas important to the job. Questions that help you get deeper include:

• “How did it start?”

• “What were the key points in the situation?”

• “What were the results?”

• “What happened first/then/next?”

• “What did you do/say/feel/think?”

• “How did you prepare/follow-up?”

• “What do you believe was the most important event/decision/activity during that time?”

Here are several guidelines for getting deeper:

• Ask what the candidate did, said, felt, thought.

• Separate the candidate’s actions from others’ actions.

• Ask “who”, “what”, “when”, “where”, and “how”.

What is your role throughout this questioning? Take notes to help you guide the conversation. Listen. Ask for clarity when necessary. Remember, we cannot assess a candidate’s qualifications if WE do all the talking!

What You Don’t Do

It is important that you as interviewer don’t:

• Ask leading questions: Leading questions give you exactly what you want to hear. And they typically result in inaccurate data.

• Accept generalizations: Generalizations don’t tell you what the candidate did. Target data must be specific.

• Accept collectivisms: Collectivisms are the use of we, the group, my team, etc. They don’t tell us what this individual -- the candidate -- did. Again, target data must be specific.

• Assess the candidate before hearing all: Prejudging a candidate before the data is heard is a serious mistake. The brain can easily “find” data to support its prejudgment. Therefore, stick to the script; write down what you hear as the interviewer. The time for assessment comes later.

How To Get Back On Track

Because HPI is a dialogue, it is sometimes easy for the candidate to digress. It is your responsibility as interviewer to pull the candidate’s discussion into more relevant and appropriate direction. Here are some pithy phrases that will rein in or focus the digresser:

• “If I was there, what would I see?”

• “You said there were meetings. Could you tell me about one?”

• “Can you give me the details?”

• “Let’s backtrack a bit.”

• “Who do you mean by ‘we’?”

When you’ve gathered an appropriate amount of data for a particular skill, repeat the HPI technique until you are satisfied with the results. Then close the interview.


Terence R. Traut is the president of Entelechy, Inc., a company that helps organizations unlock the potential of their people through customized training programs in the areas of sales, management, customer service, and training. Terence can be reached at 603-424-1237 or ttraut@unlockit.com. Check out Entelechy's website at www.unlockit.com.

Freelance strategies in the translation business

One of the main challenges for freelance translators is to find suitable clients, and once they have found them, one of their main concerns is how to retain them. As a freelancer you may well find that working for translation agencies rather than for private clients offers both peace of mind and a more reliable flow of orders.

Keywords:

translations business, translation agency, freelance translator, Translation Dutch English, translation English Dutch

Article Body:

Freelance strategies in the translation business

Working for an agency or for private clients?

One of the main challenges for freelance translators is to find suitable clients, and once they have found them, one of their main concerns is how to retain them. As a freelancer you may well find that working for translation agencies rather than for private clients offers both peace of mind and a more reliable flow of orders.

As a professional freelancer you are doubtlessly well aware of the many benefits of freelance work. Most of these will be associated with themes such as independence, freedom and - if you are lucky - considerable revenues. However, you may also have discovered a number of serious downsides to this kind of work. The one cited perhaps the most frequently is the ongoing pressure to attract clients. Although we know of no research to verify it, there is a law in the translation business which states that a freelance translator who has no work, is not a good translator. The opposite is also true: a good translator will never be at a loss for work. Even so, your order portfolio as a freelancer will also depend, at least in part, on your commercial skills in attracting clients, offering your services to potential clients, and building up networks. Once you have found enough clients for a sustainable business, moreover, you may find it difficult to balance your capacity with their needs.

In view of these considerations, it might be a good idea to offer your services to translation agencies as well. The rates they offer may not be as high as those of private clients (understandably, as the agency will need to safeguard its own profit margin and deduct a suitable amount from the client’s payment before passing it on to you), but once you are well established in their files you may find their constant flow of orders a great relief compared with the situation in which you have to attract business yourself.

In fact, working for a translation agency offers a range of significant advantages. One has to do with capacity. When you work directly for a large private client, capacity is clearly a limiting factor, as you will not be able to take up all their translation requests - especially as you have other clients to tend to as well. Of course you would not have any more capacity when working for an agency, but the agency itself would. By spreading translation work over different translators, agencies can obviously absorb far more work from individual clients, which makes it possible to develop a more or less exclusive relationship with them and for you to gain specific experience of their organization and terminology without necessarily having to do all their translations. This suggests that, overall, not only your capacity but also your professionalism will benefit from working for agencies. Freelancers will usually not be able to benefit from the type of feedback supplied by colleagues and quality supervisors at an agency. There are also advantages for the client, as companies that hand out translation orders to different freelancers will not benefit from any coordinated effort to safeguard consistency in style and terminology that an agency can offer.

Another true advantage of translation agencies is that they will enable you to specialize in particular areas of preference. With private clients this is far more difficult to achieve, as the pool of clients to pick from would obviously be much smaller compared with those in a larger agency's files. For example, a successful translation agency that specializes in tax law will probably have all the major tax firms on its files, which means that by working for that agency you would be introduced to a broad spectrum of practitioners in your field of specialization.

If there is one disadvantage to working for translation agencies it must be the word rates that they offer, which are usually lower, considerably lower even, than those a trusted freelancer would receive in a direct relationship with a private client. This is obviously not unreasonable, as the agency has its own overhead, provides added value services that both the client and the freelancer will benefit from (terminology management, layout and editing tasks) and, most importantly, provides you with work without any need on your part to attract clients. And don’t forget that while the rate per word may be lower, the constant flow of orders that reliable freelances tend to receive from the agencies they work for should more than make up for that in terms of sustained and sometimes even more or less predictable income levels.

One further drawback of working for an agency is that it will not be considered ethical for you to establish direct contact with their clients with the purpose of working for them directly. To the more entrepreneurial of freelancers, this means that the more they work for agencies, the smaller the number of interesting companies they would still be able to work for independently.

To sum up, as a freelancer you basically have two options when it comes to attracting orders: working for private companies directly and working for them indirectly through translation agencies. Either option brings benefits and disadvantages, especially as regards pay and professional development. Private clients tend to be more lucrative, but you will have to attract them, convince them of your qualities, and retain them while the chances are that your capacity will not be sufficient to fill all their orders. On the other hand, translation agencies usually offer lower rates, but they take all the marketing off your hands and will offer you as much work as you want once you have established yourself as a reliable supplier. In addition, you will be able to benefit from coordinated feedback from the client, the agency’s experts and fellow freelancers alike. The preference for either option depends on your commercial appetite, and your need for security and feedback from peers.

Garage Sale Pricing - Strategies For Easily Pricing Garage Sale Items To Sell

How to price garage sale items is always a source of concern. If your pricing is too high, then the stuff won't sell, pricing that is low means poor profits. What you want is a nice balance so that you will get the most money for your garage sale items, and leave you with a cleaner house too.

The purpose of this article is to give you a couple of quick ideas that will help you determine good garage sale pricing levels so your items will sell and produce the best possible ...

Keywords:

garage sales, garage sale tips,garge sale advertising

Article Body:

How to price garage sale items is always a source of concern. If your pricing is too high, then the stuff won't sell, pricing that is low means poor profits. What you want is a nice balance so that you will get the most money for your garage sale items, and leave you with a cleaner house too.

The purpose of this article is to give you a couple of quick ideas that will help you determine good garage sale pricing levels so your items will sell and produce the best possible profits.

The biggest challenge you will need to face is the challenge of 'pricing from the heart'. Some items are useless to you, but useful (valuable) to others. And of course some things that you value may be absolutely worthless to anyone else on the planet.

The easiest garage sale pricing tip we can give is to use color-coding. Choose several different coloured stickers (or tags) and then give each colour a price. At the sale, in plain view, post a large sign with the price scale for each colour of sticker you use. Then, simply mark all of your items with coloured stickers. This is one of the fastest and easiest garage sale pricing techniques around.

Be sure to have a smaller version of the price key at the cashier's table – this garage sale pricing tip will make your life much easier. The color-coded method as a garage sale pricing tip works really well if you are having a two-day garage sale and you advertise that you will be reducing prices on the second day. Then, instead of changing the price on every single item, you can simply post a new sign or make changes on the one you have up already.

Pricing the stuff you want to sell at your garage sale does not need to be a stressful event. Just think about how much you'd be willing to pay for that item if it were used and had no special meaning to you. If you do that, you'll be in the right ballpark and will have much better success at selling all your stuff.

Healthcare Recruiting: Strategies that Works

Recruiting enough people, and the right people, is an ongoing challenge in healthcare as the case of nursing shortage is growing. The demand for healthcare recruiting and staffing is high for healthcare agencies are vulnerable in needs of nurses and other medical personnel. There are strategies used by healthcare recruiter to acquire stability of their business.

Keywords:

medical recruiting, healthcare, how to start a nursing agency, nurse staffing software

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Establishing healthcare agencies needs you to look for beneficial factor that could contribute for the success of your business.

? Open Competition.

Nursing shortage is an advantage reason why healthcare agencies instituted. As the demand for nurses are growing the supply must also be escalated that is why there are numerous healthcare agencies recruiting good nursing employee at the same time increasing job employment.

With the command of a competent and consistent recruiter, a promoting strategy can draw away poorly treated high-caliber talent from local competitors. One reason why there is a tight competition is to admit that is not ethics but rather the extreme campaign for talent. Competition for talent is visibly arises. Focus on active candidates rather than employed with top-performing passive candidates.

Healthcare agencies look for the factor of open competition whereas they utilize various strategies to hire and recruit. Employee referral program is one weapon of choice with tight supervision of a managed employer brand. Healthcare agencies apply the number-one recruiting approach that is to make an effective local advertisement.

? Best Management Practice

Benchmark the very best retention programs, both within and outside of healthcare, and then develop your own. It should identify the designated person who is at risk of leaving and develop a program to rapidly share internal best practices in the area of retention

Healthcare agencies must build their name as a good place to work with the image of excellence. You can conduct a research of best management practices for people programs and create utilization of the acquired paramount management program to spread the word in local and industry publications. In addition, it is essential to get on both local and national best-place-to-work lists to further enhance your image.

Some healthcare agencies management uses metrics for gauging excellent performance. With the extensive use of metrics recruiting and retention program is possible. Integrate great metrics into everything you do in talent management. With strategic metrics you can identify what works and what does not work.

Develop management practice resolving unqualified employees. Remember that bad employee creates bad performance. You should develop a bad manager identification program and then either fix or replace poor managers before they drive double-digit turnover. In addition, tie their pay to their performance as managers.

You should not quantify the impacts of bad management. Managers at all levels fail to pay attention to recruiting and retention primarily because they underestimate the financial damage that lacking performance in these two areas can cause.

? Eliminate or Even Cast Out Weak Strategic Recruiting Plans.

Less than half of the healthcares recruiting departments have a recruiting plan that is actually used to make resource allocations in recruiting. There must be a clear outlined strategy for a recruiting department to be successful. Coherent implementation of the strategy will aware the recruiting department to allocate time and budget to attain the corporate goals.

Dental Marketing Strategies For 2006

When discussing dental marketing, it is important that we get the following fundamentals out in the open before we get to the actual strategies and tactics we use to grow a dental practice.

Keywords:

dental marketing

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When discussing dental marketing, it is important that we get the following fundamentals out in the open before we get to the actual strategies and tactics we use to grow a dental practice.


The Cost to Acquire a New Patient
The Lifetime Value of a Patient
New Patients versus Existing Patients
Marketing Leverage
Practice Equity

Let’s start with number 1 and work our way to number 5. Hopefully by that time the beginning of dental marketing will all come together and you’ll have a firm understanding of how all of these things will affect your practice and, more importantly, your personal and financial wellbeing.

1. Cost to acquire a new patient

The first thing to consider when thinking about dental marketing is the cost to acquire a new patient. This is simply how much you pay for each new patient who comes into your practice. This cost can easily be calculated by dividing the amount you spend on dental marketing each month by the number of new patients you see a month. For example, if you spend $3,000 on advertising and marketing and get 25 new patients from that investment your cost per new patient is $120 ($3,000 / 25 = $120). That may seem like a lot of money, or it may not. Before you draw any conclusions on the figure let’s discuss #2.

2. Lifetime value of a patient

The lifetime value of a patient is what your average patient will be worth to you, in dollars, over the lifetime of them being your patient. In the dental industry the average lifetime value of a patient is about $22,000. If you didn’t already know that, you’re probably in a bit of shock right now. Now that you know how much the average patient is worth to you, here’s the question: is it worth $120 to get that patient in the door? What about $240? What about $480? Now, we’re getting a bit excessive, but we’re trying to make a point. If that patient will turn into $22,000 over the years, it’s important to look at every dollar you spend on dental marketing and advertising as an investment rather than an expense and do whatever it takes to get the person in the door and keep them around.

Now that we understand the cost of acquiring a new patient and each patient’s lifetime value, we need to get a major misconception cleared up, which leads us to our next point.

3. New patients versus existing patients

Many dental marketing companies will talk about how many new patients they can drive into your practice. New patients are exactly what you need and the Avandant program drives in a ton of them, but that’s not where the real money is made in dentistry. Allow us to explain. When a new patient comes in, they’re probably responding to an advertisement with some kind of offer. The amount of money they’ll spend on their initial visit is not going to be that much since they’re probably just going to receive an x-ray, exam and cleaning or maybe some minor treatment. Now, we all know that the real money in dentistry is made from treatment plan fulfillment and long-term patients who return time and time again.

Here’s what most dentists fail to understand…when a new patient comes into your office they’re simply “checking you out.” They want to meet you and your staff, see if you’re gentle, have sterile equipment, and more or less get an overall feel for your practice. Just because they come in once, doesn’t mean they’re committing a lifetime of dental work to you. Even if they like you, they still might not come back. Don’t worry about why they don’t, it’s just human nature. They might get an appealing offer from another dentist, they might move, they might not have the time. Whatever the reason, a lot of them won’t come back unless you employ the right retention and reactivation strategy.

A patient is only worth $22,000 if you have them over several years, they accept a treatment plan and they refer other patients. They’re only worth an average of $800 in the first year you have them. This is why focusing exclusively on new patients will cost you a lot of money. You should focus on acquiring and keeping patients in order to build a solid practice. We’ve met plenty of dentists who have patients going out the back door as fast as they have new ones coming in the front. While this is quite common, it is very costly. Dentists should work towards having a productive and profitable practice while decreasing their marketing budget and new patient flow over time. This is a realistic objective when you have a good retention and reactivation strategy in place.