Tips for a Tough Economy

Our Profit-Driven Tips E-Newsletter just went out and it's got a lot of valuable information on how to generate business in a tough economy. Sticking with what's worked for you in the past and capitalizing on your existing customer database is where you'll be most effective.

The e-newsletter also talks about how you can have a positive outlook in a negative economy. It's hard to avoid the doom and gloom of the news, but your positive attitude helped bring you to this point in your business. Don't lose sight of your strengths now!

To read these articles and more, click on this link.

Surviving in a Bad Economy

A bad economy means business owners can't rely on the old ways of doing business, where the thought was, "If you build it, they will come." If you're noticing a decrease in business, don't wait until things get so bad that panic sets in and decisions are made out of fear. Instead, take a proactive approach.

The founder and owner of Business Know-How, Janet Attard, has an excellent article called, "10 Business Survival Strategies for a Bad Economy." She calls for taking a cold, hard look at your business and revising your business plan to better meet the needs of customers and prospects. To read her full article, click here.

Common Traits Among Leaders

Forbes magazine interviewed 1,600 people in the top of their game. Five common traits emerged. They had:

1) Common sense. The next time you work on a project, do a deal, make two columns with one marked "Right things done" and one marked "Wrong things done." Take the “Wrong” side and learn from your mistakes and take the "Right" side and do those actions again.

2) Expertise. When someone is looking to repair a vehicle, paint a house, or sell a house, who is the first person that comes to thir mind? Have you done business with this person? Be a person of expertise and when your product or service comes up in a conversation, your name will be one of the first mentioned.

3) Self reliance. Be a self starter. The Online Dictionary says "self-reliance" is the ability to do things and make decisions by yourself, without needing other people to help you. Some examples would be the freedom to be yourself, learn to cut your stings and stop being a puppet because dependency makes you a slave to other people.

4) Intelligence. Someone may of not done well in school, or had a low IQ . So what? When you stand in the shadows and watch this person, do they act intelligently or stupidly? Just remember, "stupid" moves you away from your goals and "intelligent" moves you closer to your goals. Common senses will go a long way.

5) Result orientation. A lot of folks are great at starting but never finish. In order to get things done, you’ve got to follow through. Always go the extra mile. As Zig Zigalr says, "the second mile is never crowded."

Wayne Bailey is a Distributor with SendOutCards. He has recognized tremendous growth in his personal and business relationships by implementing the strategies he talks about in his articles. You can email Wayne at wayne_bailey642@hotmail.com or visit: www.sendoutcards.com/waynebailey. Want to try SendOutCards for your business? Take advantage of his coupon below.

Benefits of Training & Development

Were you aware that training and development is an important factor in employee retention? The right employee training, development and education will increase productivity, knowledge, loyalty and contribution to the success of your business. It's an investment that's well worth making considering the pay-offs for everyone involved.

How much are you investing in the professional development of your employees? In 2010, it's estimated that the total training expenditures by U.S. companies was $52.8 billion. The average training expenditure per learner was $1,041, while the average number of hours of training per employee was 40. Companies that make investments in their people typically have lower employee turnover, higher customer satisfaction, and have been found to be more profitable.

Here are some other good reasons for implementing an employee training and development program:

1. Increased job satisfaction/morale among employees
2. Increased motivation
3. Increased efficiencies in processes that ultimately result in financial gain
4. Increased capacity to adopt new technologies/methods
5. Increased innovation in strategies and products
6. Enhanced company image

Simply put, the right investment in training and development, can make your business better. Click here for more information on the training and development services from Eagle Soars Consulting.

Google Alerts & Negative Reviews: How to Handle Them

If you're running a business, you should have it listed in all the local directories for Google, Yahoo, and Bing. That way when people are searching locally for what you do, they'll be able to find your business quickly.

These listings also give customers the opportunity to provide feedback on your business. If it's positive feedback, that's great! In an ideal world, we'd all like to think we can make everyone happy. Since that isn't the case, what do you do when someone gives your business a poor rating and posts it up on the web for everyone to see?

To read the rest of this article, visit our website by clicking here.