The average consumer is confronted with over 36,000 commercial messages per day.

Decision makers face even more options. All available space is being bought up and sold as advertising space. Advertising exposure is increasing exponentially, and this naturally affects your cost of sales and therefore your margins. It now costs three times more to get just half the results you used to get. What to do?

You have two choices. You can work harder, which is tactical, short-term and comprised of reactive, daily activities. Or you can work smarter, which is strategic, based on a long-range plan and objective. Your strategy should drive your tactics, not vice-versa. Strategists understand the big picture they’re creating. They agree with Michael Gerber, who said, “If you’re not working ON your business, you’ll soon be OUT of business.” So they create strategies that minimize cost and risk and maximize efficiency.

Statistically, motorists slow down when they see a police car to avoid a speeding ticket. Did you know they speed up again within only half a mile? That’s how quickly you’re forgotten by your clients and prospects if you don’t have a strategy that will create ongoing, unique, varied exposure and value. Strategists set goals and consistently work towards them, which leverages the Reticular Activating Systems of all those involved in the process. Involving others in your planning and creating joint ventures and win/win partnerships is essential.

Large companies know this. 90% of corporate executives surveyed felt a Joint Venture with another company was “absolutely essential” to maintain their competitive edge. At least 20% of the revenues in the Fortune 500 and International 2,000 are now coming from Joint Ventures. This strategic approach works in any size business and cuts the clutter to shreds, resulting in increased margins and staff retention, reduced customer attrition, radically decreased cost of sales and risk and exponential growth.

Sales Tip
By creating and setting your Buying Criteria, then educating your customers, you become the natural, logical choice. That overcomes clutter. And remember, it’s far better to spend $100 on each of ten good prospects than to haphazardly spend $1 on each of 100 suspects.

Management Tip
The second biggest problem in sales is that salespeople don’t close. But the biggest problem is hiring the wrong people. There is a proven system for hiring sales superstars and when you get the right salespeople, closing is no longer an issue. Once you have superstars, train them consistently and the sky’s the limit.

Robin J. Elliott www.DollarMakers.com

Imagine a plumber that arrives at your house with a mousetrap, two radial tires and a tennis racket. Wrong tools. Probably won’t get pipe fixed. Or imagine you go to the dentist and he insists he does your dental work on a park bench with no tools. Scary, huh? Worse still, imagine you take your car to the shop and the mechanic refuses to use his tools because he wants to “feel the car’s pain”. Ridiculous. Yet some of us are not using tools that are readily available.

There is an abundance of affordable and even no cost tools available that we can use to be more effective in our businesses. I’m no techie, believe me, but the tools are easy to use, even for me, especially if you use professionals to help you when necessary. I recently acquired a great Video Signature to attach to my e mails. Excellent results. And how about using Skype? No cost, excellent quality VOIP. I use it regularly. And of course LinkedIn – no cost, great communication and marketing tool. Take advantage of seminars and TeleClasses, (Try FreeConferenceCall.com) E Books and the like.

Keep up to date with the latest developments. Libraries will order books for you – you don’t even have to buy them yourself. Octavio Marquez recently introduced me to Google’s amazing new mapping service. Spend time learning from youngsters – they’re up to date and cutting edge. The fellow who does my video signature is only seventeen, yet he charges far less and is much better and far more professional than his competition. He even used GotoMeeting very efficiently to add the signature to my e mail for me in two minutes! Instead of spending an hour explaining what I do, I can have someone download an entire 57 minute interview and listen online. Saves a huge amount of time. You can use a Blog (at no cost) to communicate regularly with customers, employees and suppliers.

Naturally, internet and tools can’t take the place of relationships and face-to-face communication; there should always be a balance. But let’s not lag behind in this competitive world. Save time and money and deliver more value by using the tools available.

Sales Tip:
Tricks and gadgets can’t replace good old customer service. A smile and a bunch of flowers is worth 100 e mails. A telephone call and firm handshake are always the best tools. But we should always be looking for ways to increase the value we deliver to our clients.

Management Tip:
Make sure your employees optimize their productivity through the careful use of tools. Educate them and help them to understand the importance of staying up to date on new technology. Don’t be threatened by young people who know more than you do – learn from them!

Motivational Quote:
“The foolish think the Eagle weak, and easy to bring to heel. The Eagle’s wings are silken, but its claws are made of steel.” ~ Sidney Sheldon

Contact us: Robin J. Elliott E Mail: robin@dollarmakers.com Call Toll Free in North America, Hawaii, Alaska PST: 1.866.746.0631 International Phone + 604.945.5754

I was approached by a man who had unsuccessfully been trying to sell his franchises for four years. We looked at what the market really, really wanted and then doubled the price of the franchise and added a free trip for two to Disneyworld. I sold all the franchises in four months. When we added a free television set for anyone who bought a house from us, my wife, Rika, and I sold more houses.

Why do they have conventions in Las Vegas instead of some unknown, small town? Because people want to play. They want an excuse to buy toys and have fun. Instead of thinking about what YOU want all the time, think about what your prospects want. Instead of hidden costs, try obvious perks. Trips, toys and trinkets are proven to work, especially when there’s a choice. People don’t want points or money or discounts as much as they want toys.

A man wants to buy a PDA. His wife says he should rather pay down some debt or buy a new refrigerator. He is then offered the opportunity to attend one of two seminars – one is for $800 and the other one costs $1500 but includes a “free” PDA. Guess which seminar he will attend. Some people need to justify toys and fun and when you give them the opportunity to do so, they’ll grab it.
Try adding a digital camera to your product or service and increase the cost of the product or service by the price of the camera, and see what happens. Give your customers an excuse to have fun.

“Belinda, I know sales are down and I need to clean the garage out, but you know I have to attend that sales convention in Vegas and the river rafting “team building” will really help our sales.”
“Bob, I know the kids are sick and you’re busy, but you’re just going to have to play Mom for a week while I take my sales team down to Hawaii for our convention. I need to train them up to increase sales and the spa treatments will help us bond.”

Free gifts also work really well. My friend buys a Mercedes from the same dealership every time because they always send his wife a huge bunch of yellow roses. Get creative and think about giving people a great excuse to buy from you.

As a business owner, you’re probably inundated with advertising offers and salespeople who want your money to advertise on billboards , radio and television, in newspapers and magazines. These salespeople promise massive exposure and hint at lucrative results and return on your investment. But you’re concerned about the risk. A lot of advertising simply won’t work for you.
The good news is that there is an alternative.

The advertisers have space available and it costs them very little. That’s why they’re trying to sell it. Here’s what I did. (I always talk with the Decision Maker, not the salesperson, who only wants a commission). I was approached by a well-known national business magazine to advertise my marketing seminars.

Robin: “Tell me honestly: for me to advertise in your magazine, I will need to sign up at least 50 people per seminar, per city. Then I will make a profit and be able to pay for your adverts. I know you can’t guarantee anything, but, if you were me, would you go ahead with this advertising?”
Magazine: “Oh, yes, no question about it, Robin – I would write out a check right now.”
Robin: “What I’d like to do is to pay you DOUBLE for this advertisement. You’re being honest with me, right?”
Magazine: “Of course, but why pay me double what I’m asking?”
Robin: “You place the adverts, people respond to you (so you have full control) and you send me the replies. When they pay and sign up for the seminars, I will pay you $X per sign-up. That way, if I reach the target which you have assured me is a very reasonable expectation, you get paid double. When can we start?”

You will have worked out the numbers and calculated how much you could comfortably afford to pay them per sale. They assured you that they would take the advertising investment risk if they were you, so it is logical that they should take the risk themselves. After all, they do mean what they say, don’t they?

This is called Contingency Advertising. Pay for results, not promises. Remove the risk – let the advertiser take the risk. Naturally, not every advertiser will do this, but it’s a numbers game. Ask enough advertisers and you’ll get a few takers. I have done this numerous times. When the ads didn’t work, I walked away with free exposure. When they did work, we all did well.

www.DollarMakers.com

Two business owners met in a pub in Seattle in late January of this year. We’ll call them Barry and Bob to protect their identity. I had met with Bob to discuss increasing sales in his office furniture business and given him an idea to use. He had identified Barry as a potential Joint Venture partner for this marketing system and arranged a meeting.

Bob’s offer went something like this: “Barry, we both sell good office furniture and we both offer great service. You’re not to far away from where I am based, as you know, and I have an idea to run by you. What is your average closing ratio? In other words, out of every ten people you pitch, how many buy from you?” Bob replied that he sold about two in ten.
“So, Barry, what do you do with the other eight prospects? It cost you good marketing money to find them, and they all have an urgent need for office furniture, and they can afford it, or you wouldn’t be talking with them. If they leave your store, they’re going to buy somewhere else, right?”

“You’re right, Bob. What do you suggest, Bob?”
“I suggest that you say to everyone who doesn’t buy from you, ‘I’m so sorry I couldn’t help you today. I know you’re serious about getting some office furniture right away, and I hate to waste your valuable time, so I’m going to call a good friend of mine who offers equally good products and service to what I do, and ask him to meet with you and see if he can help you.’ Then you call me and set up an appointment with your prospect. I’ll do the same for you. That way, Barry, we each get to see 18 prospects instead of 10! I see your pre-sold prospects and you see mine!”

Since they instituted this simple, yet effective system, both Barry and Bob have seen significant increases in their sales figures, at absolutely no cost or risk. Try it in your business; work WITH your “competition”, and make more money!

www.DollarMakers.com

I heard a story on the radio recently about two interesting men. One was the king and was extremely obese. He ate continually and was so fat that he couldn’t even get through a door. He was deposed by the second man, who had a room built around the former king, with normal windows and a door that wasn’t locked. He told the large man that he could leave anytime he wished, but at the same time he supplied him with four huge meals every day. Of course, the fatty couldn’t resist the food, so he never escaped his own prison.

In our world today of “Sugar and Spice and Everything Thrice”, self-discipline and frugality are seldom found. We complicate our lives, create prisons of debt and illness and miss out on the finer things of life. My wife Rika, and I were walking along the beach at Indian Arm on a lovely summer day when we saw some kids lying on a huge blanket, playing with their hand-held Game Boy computer games. They could have been talking, swimming, boating, fishing, playing ball or just enjoying nature’s incredible beauty. The Game Boys captivated them.

My prison guard could be television, food, drugs… but it is my own choice to be in jail. Simplify, cut back and get back to basics, lean and mean, sober and clean. Anything that you think you NEED, controls you and imprisons you. Set yourself free and use your resources to create a happy, healthy and contributing lifestyle. Take stock of your choices and project the consequences. Enough small choices lead to great consequences. Enough spider webs can be as strong as steel cables. We always have a choice, and it’s never too late to change. Try this: Set a goal to get up 20 minutes earlier every day and exercise, read a self development book, pray, meditate, or just take a brisk walk. In a few weeks you will see a difference. Create success habits.

Norman Lear said, “Life is made up of small pleasures. Happiness is made up of those tiny successes. The big ones come too infrequently. And if you don’t collect all these tiny successes, the big ones don’t really mean anything.”

Join the Eagles: www.DollarMakersJVForum.com

“The height of your accomplishments will equal the depth of your convictions.” – William Scolavino.

One thing that we associate with Eagles is vision. Bible says, “Without a vision, the people perish”. The one thing that makes the difference between a mediocre life and magnificent achievement, is vision. Patanjali, a second century B.C. philosopher, said, “When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bounds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties, and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.”

Visionaries of the world, unite! John Lennon said, “You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.” I say, lead me to the dreamers. There is no place in a visionary’s life for limitations, excuses and half measures. She is inspired and alive, unshackled by the status quo. He rises like a phoenix from every setback, more excited and motivated than ever before, stronger, more determined, more focused. Read the story of Conrad Hilton, who said himself of his goal to acquire the Waldorf, “The year 1931 [the Great Depression] was a presumptuous, an outrageous time to dream”!

It’s never too late to get a vision for your life, to start believing again, to start living. Mix with people who are sold out to their visions, who have the courage to take the road less traveled, and you will find yourself amongst giants. If we believe, we will achieve. But you can’t have a dream come true, if you don’t have a dream. Start dreaming. Take off the judge’s robes and set your imagination free – be true to your inner self, because, take it from me, dreams DO come true.

www.DollarMakers.com

One of my wise mentors told me about the time he needed the advice and assistance of a well-known business expert. This expert charged very high fees and produced amazing results.

He was well known and very busy. My mentor was convinced that he could never afford the fees required, however he is a highly motivated and courageous entrepreneur, so he approached the business expert with the following proposal, which I think may be of value to you, should you wish to use it.

“I can’t afford your consulting fee, but I have a way to pay you even more. I have a solid business and, in return for your consulting, connection to your contacts and training of my salespeople and employees, I will happily pay you a generous percentage of my increased profits. I will pay you every single week, and my books will be open to you. You can spend as much or as little time as you like working on my business, as I am paying only for results. It is easy to track sales and results in my business so you are not at risk. Yes or no?”

Well, the business expert took a good look at the business, made a few adjustments to the tracking process and then accepted my mentor’s proposal. Sales skyrocketed and both my mentor and the expert made serious money. Eventually, the business expert accepted shares in the business. Remember: Everything is for sale. Everyone has his or her price. Everything is negotiable. It’s not always about money. The best words to use are, “What will it take?” And, it’s easier than you think. If you don’t ask, you won’t get. I once heard of a man who owned a car dealership, who gave a business guru a car in return for his services!

When next you tell yourself that you can’t afford something, think again. There is always a way when you think out of the box. We don’t have money problems; we have thinking problems.

Visit www.DollarMakers.com for more information on Joint Ventures.

I am constantly amazed at man’s immense capacity for self deception, his ability to argue for his own limitations and the way in which he desperately seeks evidence to support his faith in his own imminent defeat. It’s called “pessimism, wrapped in cynicism, boiled in defeatism and covered with a thick sauce of hopelessness, served with a generous side of laziness.”

There are only two ways to approach life – positive and proactive or negative and reactive. I recently read this advice to school leavers: “Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they’ll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. This doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to anything in real life!” Winners expect to win. They don’t accept defeat. They refuse to retreat. When losers fall down, they name, blame, complain and shame. When winners fall down, they bounce right back up again.

I was horse riding with my son and daughter many years ago and my daughter fell off her horse. She hit the dirt very hard and I got a real fright. Without any hesitation and without my prompting, she got right back up on that horse and rode on. In a roller skating championship, she was the only one to fall, and again she got right back up as though nothing had happened, and skated forth. She was the only one to fall, yet she won first place! That is the sign of a true winner. My son started all over again with nothing, in a brand new country with a young family and made a great success of his life. Winners don’t stay on the mat for long. They don’t say, “I think I can…” - they KNOW they can.

Winners may fail, and they sometimes do, just like everyone else does, but they never lose. Winners demand the best of themselves. They set their own high standards. They are self motivated, they believe in themselves and they create the reality they want. Readers will have one of two responses to this article. Winners will be inspired. Losers will unsubscribe and send me nasty email. I have news for you. You can break the mirror, but you’ll still be ugly. Winning or losing is a matter of choice, not chance. We can change from winners to losers or vice versa any time, instantly. It’s never too late to soar with the Eagles. Join the DollarMakers Joint Venture Forum.

*(Momentum – from soundtrack for the film Magnolia – music by Aimee Mann - Sent in by Member Victoria Frodsham)

Robin J. Elliott robin@dollarmakers.com Call Toll Free1.866.746.0631 Pacific Time
Robin J. Elliott has been officially included in the International Who’s Who of Entrepreneurs in 2002 and has been nominated as a candidate for inclusion in the 2004-2005 edition of the International Who’s Who of Professionals.

Last night, Jos told me that when African elephants stand along the bank of a river to drink water, they instinctively adopt a very considerate and practical approach. Those who stand upstream wait until last to drink. Those furthest downstream first drink, then wash themselves in the river, so that the mud doesn’t affect the other elephants. Then the next one drinks, and so on, one by one, upstream. In this way, everyone gets clean, clear water to drink and bathe in. Teamwork makes the dream work.

Then Jos told me about deer on steep mountain trails here in British Columbia. Evidently, when a deer is about to pass another on a narrow, slippery and treacherous trail, the deer at the highest point stops and waits until the other deer has passed. This is to avoid slipping and pushing the other deer over the edge. Some small minded, egotistical business owners seem to relish the prospect of pushing their competition “over the edge”, as it were! Smart entrepreneurs, on the other hand, realize that their competition can be their strongest allies.

Did you know that 20% of the revenues of large, Fortune 500 and International 2,000 companies come from Joint Ventures? And that a massive 50% of those Joint Ventures are with their competition? Amazing, but true. The best entrepreneurs create powerful, win/win strategic alliances and share resources, distribution and access. Wal-Mart established themselves in Mexico in a fraction of the normal time by joint venturing with an existing Mexican company. I once grew my revenues in one of the profit centers in my business from $4,000 to $20,000 in four days using a joint venture. It would have taken me four years on my own!

Together, we can do amazing things. We don’t have money problems; we have thinking problems. Everything you need is already available when you create synergistic relationships, in any area of life – not only business. Unity is strength. United we stand, divided we fall. The key to success is linking up with the right people. We started the DollarMakers Joint Venture Forum to link successful professional entrepreneurs, and it works magnificently. By being very selective and educating ourselves, we team up to reach our goals and create value, just like elephants and deer.

Robin J. Elliott robin@dollarmakers.com Call Toll Free1.866.746.0631 Pacific Time
Robin J. Elliott has been officially included in the International Who’s Who of Entrepreneurs in 2002 and has been nominated as a candidate for inclusion in the 2004-2005 edition of the International Who’s Who of Professionals.