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You must be aware of somebody in your office that is not liked by many of you. But that person is unaware of that. No body wants to tell him/her on their face about what they don’t like in that person. Are you also one such person who is not liked by some co-workers? You don’t believe that to be true at all. But why not try and make yourself more popular? Let us discuss how.

Hygiene - Body odor and mouth odor repel people. Please get yourself thoroughly checked for these and eliminate the problems forever. Look fresh at all the times with clothes that suit your personality and look neutral. Use colors that are liked by most of the people. Blue is one such color.

Communication- While talking to others, many of us have the habit of interrupting the speaker. We are in a hurry and complete the sentence for him/her. People hate that, because they want to be heard. Active listening that tells the other person that you are fully attentive to him/her will make you very popular in your work place.

Going The Extra Mile - Avoid giving any work assigned to you to others. No body likes extra load. If possible, try to share their work or give them useful hints about their work. Help reduce their burden.

Praise - Praise your co-workers for their good qualities. Don’t lie. Give genuine compliments. We all want to hear something good about us. Please do that.

Try these small suggestions and in a short time you will gain very good popularity at your work place. You will find personality tests and quizzes on the Internet that will help you learn more about your personality. Try them to get information about yourself in a fun way.

CD Mohatta writes for personality tests and quizzes, business and career tests and quizzes and love and dating quizzes

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: career , test

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If you are considering investing your hard earned money with a mortgage lead company, or you are switching lead companies because you have gone through the pain of seeing your money go down the drain, here is a good place to begin.

Before you take that leap of faith with a lead company, take a step back and reexamine exactly what it is you are looking for from a lead company.

You should be looking for the exact same thing that you would expect from any other reputable company that you deal with. And that would be good quality service.

Before you invest your money, research the company, most of the research can be done right there on their web site. Read the FAQ’s, read about their return policy, read about how they acquire their leads, etc.

Once you have read all there is to read about their company, give them a call and speak with someone in their customer service department. Ask as many questions you feel to be appropriate, and verify everything you have read with them.

You should be able to get a good read on the company from the customer service representative about what their company has to offer. And make sure their answers to your questions are matching up to what their site implies.

Lead generation will be something you definitely want to research. It is crucial for you to find out where exactly the lead companies obtain their leads from.

Do they own and operate their own sites to obtain their leads? Or are they buying their leads from other lead companies and recycling them?

Remember, as with just about everything else, the better the quality of the product, the better your chances of success with it. The same holds true for mortgage leads.

Also, consider the pricing that is involved. Make sure you compare companies, and will you be getting what you paid for? You don’t want to be spending twenty-five dollars on a lead that has already been sold five to seven times.

Check out their return policy. Is it fair? Will they refund your money if the contact information is bad? Will they return your lead if the person on the lead is not responding to your calls? Will they return your lead if the customer says something to the effect of, “ I took care of that months ago.”

There is a lot to consider, so before you invest your hard earned money, take the time to do your research.

One more thing . . .

Before investing, call the lead company to make sure someone answers the phone, if you have to leave a message, make sure they return your call. Than, e-mail them and make sure you get a response, if not move on. If they are unresponsive now, you can bet they will be unresponsive when you have an issue with the lead.

You have worked very hard for your money, so before you invest it with a lead company, make sure you do enough research where you know that whatever company you decide to go with, you will be getting the best return on your investment. Good luck.

This article may be reproduced by anyone at any time, as long as the authors name and reference links are kept in tact and active.

Jay Conners has more than fifteen years of experience in the banking and Mortgage Industry, He is the owner of http://www.jconners.com, a mortgage resource site, he is also the owner of http://www.callprospect.com, a mortgage lead company.

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: Sales, marketing, loan officer, mortgage, leads, telemarketing, skills, training, communication, sel

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I recently was “unhired” by my former employer. Unhired is a softer term than “fired” but it means the same. With no warning and an immediate departure, I found myself at home enjoying the provisions of a severance package but curious about the next steps.

Like most recently unhired people, I went through a range of emotions–shock, anger, grief, rebellion, self-reliant indignation, and so forth. Yet, after a few weeks I found myself wondering what day it was. For me, everyday was Saturday.

That’s not a bad thing. It’s great to be able to cut the grass before it gets too hot or swim on sunny days. However, there was still a problem. Not only did I not have a job, but I wasn’t making progress toward getting a job. Something had to change.

Now, I know that it is impossible to force an employer to give me a job; I can’t even force them to look at my resume! All I can do is apply, check back, and wait. That routine leads to a sense of frustration!

I decided that the only person who could hire me was me! So, I applied for the job and got it… I’d be real worried if I didn’t get that job! I hired me to do some things the other me wasn’t doing. In effect, I fired the “waiting for my ship to come in” me and hired the “go kill something and drag it home” me.

That led me to a new routine… a routine I’d advise any job seeker to consider. Here’s the plan:

1. Get up! I started by setting my clock to force myself to get up at the same time every morning. This put my mind in the “going to work” mode.

2. Get going! I’m one of those guys who needs a cup of coffee and a shower to get my brain functioning. In addition, I exercise every other morning. So, even though I have no specific appointments, I still go through the routine–coffee, exercise, shower–to get my mind moving toward doing something creative.

3. Get busy! Whether it is writing articles, updating my web site, or looking through the online job listings, I make it my point to get about accomplishing a task. The afternoon break is deserved only after I have accomplished something that day.

4. Get creative! Your next employment might not look like your last one–and that might be a good thing! Too many people limit their futures by the boundaries of their pasts. In my situation, I have discovered my future might be a myriad of adjunct teaching responsibilities, speaking engagements, freelance writing, and entrepreneurial activities. That’s a lot different than my corner office overlooking downtown! The cool thing is that my new experience puts me in the driver’s seat!

5. Get out! You, your spouse, your family, and your pets deserve to venture outside the privacy fence and into the world beyond. All work and no play makes everyone miserable. So make it a part of your routine to exercise some spontaneity. People who lock themselves into their rooms often suffer symptoms of depression and other problems.

6. Get determined! Waiting for someone else to rescue you from your perilous state is stressful. Take charge and use your creative energies to begin marketing your talents to the most likely customers. Who knows, you might discover that your new employer actually is staring you in the mirror!

Being laid-off, fired, unhired, released, or negatively employed is traumatic. The key to survival often is a person’s motivation to turn a negative into a positive. Chances are your future will be brighter than you imagine!

Dr. Terry Hadaway is an author, motivational speaker, university professor, and conference leader who is recognized as a leading authority on elearning, decision-making, and adult education. Visit http://www.thinkingboxmedia.com for more information.

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: fired, laid, off, stress, job, employment, new, resume, career, employee, employer

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Your Slogan is the “Headline” for Your Business

Tell people in a short phrase or sentence what you want them to know or remember about your business. The best ones conjure up a strong mental image, that will be forever linked with you in their memories. A little wit, humor, insight, unusual (yet relevant) spin goes a long way toward making it stick.

If you don’t stand out during the famous first impression, (or in a later contact) there won’t be anything for them to recall later. They’ll draw a blank – which means they don’t feel any connection to you at all. So few businesses have a good slogan (also called a tag line), yet it’s an easy way to distinguish yourself from the rest.

Finding the Phrase that Defines the Enterprise Isn’t Easy – But is Worth it

Choose one that people will easily relate to and remember. Don’t make it too long or complicated. And avoid the bland phrase that’s not unique to your business. Saying, “We aim to please” could apply to any type of business, and really doesn’t aim very high.

Imagine a much more potent a phrase like, “On-time Delivery or It’s Half Price.” That certainly sets you apart from the competition! People will notice, and they’ll hold you to it. You can be sure they won’t forget it. Your next challenge would be to live up to it.

A printer’s card showing camels in a row and stating, “We take the humps out of problems,” emphasized its service orientation. Notice the words and image reinforce each other. That’s filed in the brain as an image, rather than information. Such amusing impressions are much more likely to be recalled than XYZ Printers.

The Slogan is Your Verbal Logo – Weave the Words and Images Together

A tagline can be as important as your logo, since it delivers your most direct message. It should send a reassuring message that attracts precisely those customers you can best serve. Weave it into your image (via color or font) so they appear as a unit. It’s more powerful and likely to be remembered that way.

Once you adopt one, use it constantly. Put the phrase everywhere the business name or logo appears.

State your slogan aloud at every opportunity. Have everyone who works with the enterprise say it in every business contact, sale, or telephone greeting. And practice saying it with emphasis and enthusiasm – not just another “have a nice day” substitute. Ugh!

The up-beat repetition of the words reinforces the message you want people to recall about your enterprise – with an emotional charge as well. And it helps for you to take the words to heart as business policies and decisions are made. For example, people would note the irony of a slogan promising good customer services, when they’ve just been treated poorly.

Kinds of Tag Lines - Statement of purpose, philosophy, or mission statement - Motto or slogan - Pledge - Policy - Guarantee - Jingle - Pun, joke, or play on words - Relevant quote or aphorism - or a takeoff on one

Defining Your Business Slogan is a Rite of Passage

Finding your unique and powerful slogan isn’t easy. It’s hard to distill a business philosophy or personality into a single phrase. But it is incredibly potent when it hits the mark. The public notices those businesses that have pulled it off in a positive way.

Very few operations have bothered to find an effective slogan, and it seldom happens until other aspects of the business “jell.” That’s the true importance of the effort to find yours.

Businesses that have all their parts working together communicate to the public in a way that other enterprises don’t. And one of they things they communicate: “We have our act together.” You can bet that customers prefer to do business with those that do.

Copyright 2005 Off the Page

Dr. Lynella Grant Consultant and Author - Promote yourself, business, website, or book with online articles http://www.promotewitharticles.com Free how-to. Or let me write and submit your articles online for you. No learning curves (719) 359-5575

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: slogan, tagline, unique business identity

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Have you ever looked at your to-do list and just wanted to run away? Sometimes, procrastination gets the best of us self-employed people. It seems that everything is priority and we tend to put some things on the back burner. The thing is, if the items on your to-do list have to do with marketing and Client Attraction, then you don’t want to ignore them (if you do, you may not have clients in 6 months).

Procrastination creeps its ugly head in my business every now and then. Personally, I think it’s more overwhelm than procrastination and the list can be so overwhelming that I tend to go in avoidance/denial mode, preferring to just not deal with it. (Has that ever happened to you too?)

Realistically, you can’t ignore having to market yourself, so you sometimes just have to bite the bullet and do what it takes. Here’s my personal action checklist to take me from procrastination to massive action:

1. Prioritize: Your list may be a mile long or just a half page long. Either way, the best way to get into action is to sort out what your return on investment is going to be for each item on your list (financially, time-wise, resource-wise) and then sort them by the one that will reap the most benefits (i.e., clients and revenue) from the littlest output on your part. You’ll start with that one.
2. What’s getting in the way? Sometimes, I find that procrastination is more about something getting in the way than anything else. It could be that you don’t have every piece of the puzzle to be able to move forward into accomplishing something. It could be that you don’t know how to do ONE aspect of it. It could also be that this is a SHOULD and isn’t absolutely necessary to your success. Whatever’s holding you back, just get clear on it.
3. How long will it REALLY take: I’ve found that often, I delay on a marketing task (or any task, for that matter) because I anticipate it taking a lot longer than it really will. To get past this, look at a task and ask yourself how long it will realistically take to get done. Then, take out the to-do list and write down the time it will take you to accomplish it next to each item (15 minutes, 2 hours, etc.)
4. Schedule it: Look at your calendar and find time slots that correspond to the time allotment for each task you did above and schedule them, as if they were client appointments that you were unable to cancel.
5. Just do it: Once you’ve got the “task appointments” scheduled in your book, just do them. You’ll power through them like you’ve never done before. It’s actually pretty cool.

Your Assignment: When marketing yourself, take notice of when you start slipping into procrastination mode (it happens to most everyone, trust me). Prioritize the tasks on your list to focus on the ones that will get you the highest return on investment, notice what’s getting in the way or what piece is missing, and solve the issue accordingly, establish how long it will take to get done, and then schedule in your calendar. You’ll have no excuse not to do it.

Remember, there’s never a point at which you can say (about marketing) “I’m successful now, I might as well take a nap.” Notice the very successful entrepreneurs you look up to. They never stop marketing. In fact, they’re always adding new things to their existing marketing plans. Do the same. Get past your procrastination and into Client Attraction. ALWAYS BE MARKETING and you’ll always have clients.

Need help knowing where to really get the most value from your marketing efforts? You can get lots of help (with tons of assignments and worksheets, scripts, and templates, etc.) in the Client Attraction Home Study System™. It includes lots of crucial stuff to help you fill your practice really quickly. You can get your copy at http://www.profcs.com/app/adtrack.asp?AdID=143338.

© 2006 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Expert, is founder of the Client Attraction System™, the proven step-by-step program to help you attract more clients, in record time and consistently. To learn more about Fabienne’s Client Attraction Home Study System™, sign up for her FREE client attraction tips and no-charge teleclasses on attracting more clients, visit http://www.ClientAttraction.com.

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: client attraction system, attract new clients, attracting new clients, potential new clients

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Are you wondering what LOHAS stands for? Don’t feel bad if you aren’t familiar with it yet. If you’re living in the SF Bay Area, you understand it more than you may know. LOHAS is a convenient marketing buzzword that stands for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability. Simply put, it refers to the $227 billion dollar consumer market of people who want more consciousness in their day-to-day lives and are spending their money accordingly. This large subculture is detailed in the book, The Cultural Creatives by Paul Ray and Sherry Ruth Anderson. If you’re actively building a business in the alternative health, spa, or personal development fields, you’re probably in this demographic yourself, but either way, chances are good that a hefty percentage of your income comes from LOHAS consumers. This is not just a trend, but a massive change in the way that we all do business.

The LOHAS Journal first coined the phrase, and attributes 5 key values to this group of people:

• Sustainable Economy
• Healthy Living
• Alternative Healthcare
• Personal Development
• Ecological Lifestyles

In my opinion, the most important aspect of conducting business in this new marketplace is authenticity. People are so burnt out on hype and manipulation. The old-style marketing machine is still grinding away, but LOHAS consumers are demanding change. When more conscious consumers become conscious business owners, capitalism as we know it will change.

If you’re already a business owner that has an inspired vision and wants to make a difference, this is your time! The new economy is much more about quality instead of “empty quantity”. By bringing more of your authentic values and passion into your work, you will not only feel more fulfilled, but you will be on the leading edge of this new age of conscious commerce.

Whether you’ve been in business for awhile or are just starting out, it’s a good idea to reevaluate your practices to see if they fit with your values, especially as your business grows and changes:

• Are you performing services the way you want to serve, or simply like you were trained?
• Does your work environment inspire you to be creative?
• Are you still procrastinating on making time for eating right and working out, even though you’re in a health business yourself?
• Would it really be that inconvenient to start recycling your office paper?

By making even small changes in the way your business runs, so that everything you do is aligned with your values, you’ll feel happier and healthier at work. Show your customers that you care about them and the environment, and they will also feel great about your work. Mahatma Gandhi said, “You must be the change you want to see in the world”. That’s exactly what you need to do to create a successful business within the LOHAS community.

10 Ways to Turn Off the LOHAS “Conscious Consumer”

• Using synthetic perfumes & detergents in your products or services
• Wasting paper by sending multi-page offers by mail
• Double-bagging or using too much packing materials
• Playing music with harsh language or aggressive beats
• Getting annoyed when they ask about ingredients
• Tell them what to do, instead of asking them what they want
• Rushing them to a close or not being willing to discuss their needs
• Not being willing to send them elsewhere, if they ask for a referral
• Outsourcing employment to socially irresponsible or unjust countries
• Marketing your products/services as “natural,” when they aren’t.

Jaya Schillinger “The Turnaround Queen” at http://www.InspirationInc.com is a certified life coach & small business consultant with over 20 years of business ownership & management experience in the fields of personal development, health, and beauty.

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: LOHAS,Marketing,social consciousness,alternative health,spa management,personal development

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“Advertising doesn’t work.” I hear it from my clients all the time. One client was about to file for bankruptcy because she wasn’t getting a good response to her radio ads, and the cost was killing her. But she knew her target market was listening; she knew she needed to get her name out there to generate more business. What should she do?

Owners of small businesses and professionals like yourself realize that to take your business to the next level, you need to get your products and services in front of a larger audience. You want to generate more leads, get more prospects to contact you and buy from you. Advertising is essential but how do you get more out of your advertising dollars?

Have you been disappointed by your advertising campaigns?

I felt the same way about my family’s VCR. I paid good money for it (though probably not nearly as much as most people pay for advertising) and as far as I was concerned I could never get it to work the way I wanted it to. I spent way too much time fiddling with it and I still couldn’t get it to record a TV show or a movie reliably when I was away. After a while I stopped trying to use its record function.

Sound familiar?

Compared to programming a VCR, creating a successful advertising campaign is simple. Note the operative word here is “successful”. It’s easy to put together an advertising campaign, but creating one that helps you make more than you spend should be the objective. The following seven elements are what separate a successful advertising campaign from one that just costs you money.

Elements of A Successful Advertising Campaign

1. Choose the media that will reach your target market. It sounds obvious, but make sure your target audience will see and/or hear your ad. Select a publication or radio or cable station that your target audience reads or tunes to. If you’re advertising on the web, your keyword selection is critical here.

2. Write ad copy that your prospects will want to read.
Your prospects’ primary interest is in what your product or service will do for them, not what it actually is. Which would you be more likely to read, a headline that reads, “Accounting Services” or one that reads, “How to Avoid Overpaying Your Taxes”?

3. Have others establish your credibility.
If space allows, include testimonials in your ad verifying the outstanding results your products and services generate.

4. Motivate prospects to contact you
Include a limited-time offer or something for free — a report, appraisal or bonus product — to prompt your prospects to take action.

5. Tell prospects what you want them to do and how to do it.
This is your “call to action”. Tell them to call you, visit your web site, send you an email, fill in the reply card, etc.

6. Follow up your offer with the information prospects need to make a purchase. Too many people make the mistake at this point in the sales process of launching into a s.ales pitch. Whether your prospect is on the phone with you or is visiting your web site, help them clarify the problem or concern they have and detail the solution you provide. Then remind them what action you want them to take.

7. Continue to educate your prospects and clients.
Stay in touch with likely prospects by contacting them at least every month. Get the conversation going by discussing a common problem. Give your prospects a quick tip they can use and, of course, mention the solutions you provide.

A successful advertising campaign will include all seven of the above elements, not just one or two. When you put all these elements in place, your advertising will generate more leads and sales and you’ll see a good return on your advertising dollars.

By the way, the client who came to me on the verge of bankruptcy is now back on solid financial ground. Once she understood how to write her advertising copy and manage her advertising campaigns, her radio advertising started to bring in a steady stream of new business.

2005 © In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved.

The author, Charlie Cook, helps service professionals, small business owners and marketing professionals attract more clients and be more successful. Sign up to receive the Free Marketing Strategy eBook, ‘7 Steps to get more clients and grow your business’ at http://www.marketingforsuccess.com

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: marketing, sales, small business, clients

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Franchising companies must address consistency of the products they use both in the operation of the franchise and those are items which they sell. The franchising company must address these issues in the original franchise agreements that each franchisee signs. If some franchisees by their paper napkins from one company and another franchisee trying to save money buys their paper napkins from another company to save money; there might be a problem with the quality from one of the companies that the napkins are bought from. This can cause customer complaints, quality control issues and presents a problem for all franchisees of the franchising system.

To prevent this from happening in my company I added a clause to our franchise agreements to address the issue of approved vendors, quality control issues and consistency. Below is a copy of that clause in our franchise agreements;

4.6 Non-Proprietary Equipment and Supplies

Franchisee will have the right to purchase equipment and supply items, other than Proprietary Products, for use in providing Services, from any responsible source; provided, however, that Franchisor reserves the right to approve suppliers, equipment and supply items. Independent suppliers will be approved by Franchisor if their products meet the reasonable quality standards established by Franchisor. In order to obtain approval of any such proposed alternative equipment or supply item, Franchisee will provide Franchisor with documentation from a source independent of Franchisee or the proposed supplier which demonstrates, to the reasonable satisfaction of Franchisor, that the proposed alternative equipment or supply item performs as well as the item to re replaced.

Nothwithstanding such documentation, Franchisor will have the right to test further any such proposed equipment or supply item and Franchisor will be reimbursed by Franchisee for the costs of testing such items. In addition, Franchisor reserves the right at any time to require substitution of newly developed Proprietary Products for non-proprietary items, which would then be sold to Franchisee in accordance with Section 4.6. The sale by Franchisor, if offered, of nonproprietary equipment and supplies to Franchisee shall include a commercially reasonable markup.

— — —- —- — —

Every franchise company is well advised to maintain a strong approved vendor list of quality products that will be used in the operation of the franchise. The franchise company needs to address this issue in the franchise agreements and seek expert legal advice from a franchise attorney who is a specialist with experience in the franchising field. I hope you will consider this in 2006.

Lance Winslow

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: Franchising Vendors, Consistency, Quality Controls Addressed

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What is OPGI?

There’s another term for it, but I prefer OPGI for three reasons:

1. Nobody’s ever heard of it and it arouses curiosity,

2. I think it’s more complimentary to the people involved,

3. It’s less likely to turn people off than “swipe” file.

So what DOES OGPI stand for?

It stands for Other People’s Good Ideas.

Let me ask you a blunt question. Just how creative are you? Do you believe that you can write exciting, order pulling ads off the top of your head? Sure you can, but are there other people doing it more effectively than you could? Really, just how good are you at that sort of stuff?

(Aside here: If you are really great at it, have I got a deal for you! Now back to the rest of us.)

I’M WILLING TO TELL YOU THAT I’M NOT THAT GOOD AT IT!

Most of us are not that great at creating effective ads and ad copy. Simple fact. Even if we have the basic talent, there’s going to be a lot of trial and error before we get it right.

Whenever we want to learn a new technique or skill, we go to the experts. We read books, we watch professionals at work, we listen to the instructions of those who have been there…done that. We do this all in order to acquire the basics and refine our skills as they develop. This works in the world of business as well.

By the way, did you ever see a fast food company establish a new location? Shortly after, there were several other fast food facilities there as well, weren’t there? They saw what the first one did and learned from their research, didn’t they? It’s a lot easier to plan something if you can see who’s being successful and how they are doing it.

That’s what you need to do. That’s why you are going to learn from your competition (and others) and not just read books on marketing. A book can give you some great generic tips and ideas on product, location, presentation, etc. but what is going to show you what actually works? Simple question, simple answer. What’s working for others is what will probably work for you.

To use Other People’s Good Ideas, you first want to establish a “swipe file”. This will be a collection of advertisements, letters, and other marketing material that appears to be successful, eye catching, or of other value to you in preparing your own ads and copy material. Now, you are not going to use someone else’s material word for word, but if a technique, headline, or turn of phrase is working for someone else, surely there is some way to adapt it to your needs.

If something stands out or catches your attention, you want to keep a copy of it and see if you can use a variation of it in your own marketing. Something a little less obvious is the ad that doesn’t seem to that great, but keeps running week after week, or month after month. It will usually only keep running like that if it is helping someone make money! You may have to study the ad carefully, maybe even order the materials offered, or acquire a sample of the product in order to determine the effectiveness of the ad.

Maybe it’s the guarantee, the service after the sale, the quality of the product. Maybe it’s the backend.

In marketing, companies often lead with a freebie or inexpensive item in order to elicit inquiries. Once the marketer establishes a relationship with the customer, he or she begins to present other products to the customer. This will be the backend, or the actual product the marketer wants to sell.

For example; I could offer a free network marketing report, such as this one, which cost me nothing to acquire, since I wrote it myself. When someone requests the report, I can include an offer for a collection of my network marketing reports for a small fee…barely enough to cover my mailing and advertising costs…maybe even at less than my cost. If the customer is willing to part with cash to order these reports and trusts me enough to believe that I will fulfill my end of the bargain, it is time for me to present my backend (no, not that backend)…the product or service on which I really hope to make money.

That’s an overview of the backend, and that is where the money is made in direct marketing. Ads requesting up-front payment for products or services don’t do very well overall, but once trust is established you can start asking for money. If you don’t believe me, just order my report on the two-step marketing process. It’s only a dollar!

I’m just kidding. It’s free, and there will be a link to it at the bottom of this report.

There are two other areas in which OPGI’s can help us.

First, the products other people offer may be important to us. Sometimes people new to marketing see a large group of people marketing the same or similar products and conclude that the market is saturated. Let’s take a fresh look at this. All this activity may very well indicate a hot market or product. If a lot of other people are selling something, it may very well be because they are successful doing it!

Secondly, see where ads are being placed. In terms of types of products and services, there isn’t much new under the sun. There may be a new weight loss product, but weight loss products have been around for a long time. If people selling a certain product or opportunity are not advertising in an established publication or at an established site, it is probably because it has already been tried and didn’t work. Don’t reinvent the wheel. If exercise equipment is not being advertised in a quilting magazine, there may be a reason! If fourteen ads offering power saws are found month after month in a woodworking magazine, there may be a reason.

Of course, if you have the insight to establish a link that has not been seen before, that is great. For example, I marketed weight loss meals that required no refrigeration and could be prepared several different ways. I marketed to truckers who not only tend to have a problem finding healthy meals on the road, but who are constantly searching for less expensive ways to eat while over the road. (I know because I was one once.) I made the point to them that using my meals, they can eat for a day for about the same amount that one truck stop meal would cost…plus they eat a healthier, balanced diet and are less likely to gain weight while over the road.

Anyway, if you are selling drill bits, ask yourself, “Where are drill bits being sold?” Is it in cooking magazines or in woodworking magazines? Look thru a magazine for computer games. How many ads for weight loss products do you see? Now look thru a health magazine. Did you find some weight loss products? If you did, ask yourself why that company chose to buy that expensive ad in that magazine. The same steps apply to the internet. Just look at web sites instead of magazines.

By the way, if the ad looks great, add it to your “swipe” file.

The way to be successful is to copy what successful people are doing.

The author is retired from the Army after 21 years of service, has worked as an accountant, optical lab manager, restaurant manager, and instructor. He has been a member of Mensa for several years, and has written and published poetry, essays, and articles on various subjects for the last 40 years. He has been an active internet marketer since 2000, and now makes his living online. To read about the two step method with classified ads mentioned in the article, please visit Using Classified Ads Effectively. He offers the opportunity for a complete education in internet marketing at xtramoney4me.net/marketingtips.

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: business, marketing, internet, internet marketing, network marketing, direct marketing

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In 1957, a perspicacious young journalist from
Pennsylvania named Vance Packard wrote a book called
The Hidden Persuaders. It was meant to explain to the
public at large why they buy the products they do and to warn
them about the psychological aspects of consumer appeal
that lie beneath the levels of consciousness. A red car, for
example, has hidden stimuli, for red is a color that makes
people angry. If you think I’m nuts, (I am, but not about this),
check with some insurance companies. I was
dumbfounded to learn that the collision rate was slightly
higher for a red car! Packard’s premise was mind-boggling
and insightful for its day. Even he, however, under-estimated
the full extent to which modern advertising has penetrated
our psyches.

The next time you need a “kleenex” or “xerox” stop and think
for a moment. Don’t you really mean a tissue or a copy of a
piece of paper? And when someone walking in front of you
“shakes like Jell-O,” do you realize that you have created a
metaphor using a brand name in vain? I myself used Q-tips
for years before I realized they were really cotton swabs
incognito, and that by any other name they cost at least
$1.50 less per box! How and why did these brands become
synonyms for the things that are so much a part of our every
day lives? Sometimes I feel like that little kid in the movie,
Invaders From Mars, who was the only one his block who
didn’t have a strange little mark at the base of his neck
which meant he wasn’t “one of them.” Who is “they”
anyway? And worse, how did “they” get from our necks to
our brains and become a part of us?

The answer to these and other not so penetrating questions
lies in the arrogance of the media. Their influence is like a
giant, intimidating shadow that sneaks into our brains when
we sleep and tells us which products to buy. Lets look at
how this works. My child needs aspirin. Am I going to buy
some generic brand that I have never heard of or am I going
to get the product whose name has been shoved into my
memory so consistently that when I think of aspirin only that
brand comes to mind? This is true even if the contents in
both of the bottles are exactly the same. I want the very best
for my sick child that my hard earned money can buy and
how could something that costs less be the answer?

Well, the very best product is not necessarily the one you
have heard the most about. That may just be the brand
produced by advertisers who can afford to saturate the
media with Saran promises and DiGiorno delivery. There
are other makers of blue jeans besides Levis and other
tampons besides Tampax, but who ever thinks about them
when the others has been so indelibly implanted (like that
little black mark at the base of the neck) into our
consciousness?

The other side to that coin is that familiarity can and often
does breed contempt. The media today seems to believe as
PT Barnum did; “there’s a sucker born every minute.” The
only difference is that their influence is far more widespread
and millions and millions of suckers comprise their
sideshow. Unfortunately, that includes me and everyone I
know, even though the old adage that you can’t “fool all of
the people all of the time” is still floating around somewhere
(probably in a pool of the most effective detergent.)

The unmitigated pomposity of the media is a travesty of
human intelligence. It is as if they say to us whether we want
to hear it or not: You will buy our product because we made
it and because you used to buy our products. It has nothing
to do with whether or not our products are better than any
others on the market. Ours is better because we have the
money to say that it is- over and over and over again. Then
our buys become emotional and not conscious. Theirs is a
most subtle brainwash; a mental encounter of the forty-sixth
kind. It is this presumption which bothers me the most and
yet I and everyone I know keep falling into the vortex of
polyunsaturated pledges and half told truths.

In my home state of Pennsylvania it is legal to substitute
prescriptions with lower costing generics as long as the
ingredients and dosage are comparable. Time and again, I
have paid for pills and secretly wondered how effective they
could be because I don’t know the brand name and if they
don’t cost as much as I paid before, how could they possibly
be as good? Wake up and smell the coffee, whatever brand
you like. Scotch tape isn’t from Scotland and any other brand
will seal any package just as well. Brillo is not the only soap
pad in the world and cowboys do wear other brands of
jeans besides Levis. (Maybe their horses don’t, but they do.)
Search for others that work just as well and you will find that
they are also a lot cheaper. I should not have to pay for
someone’s advertising costs and that’s exactly what we are
all doing when we fall prey to the prestige of name brands.

Don’t get me wrong. I do believe one gets what one pays for
in most areas of life, especially professional services of any
kind. I am not parsimonious or even frugal by any
standards. But what’s true is true. An item is not necessarily
better because it is cheaper. Conversely, a familiar and/or
more expensive item is not necessarily better either! There
has to be a balance between cost and quality and that’s
what missing today. Some standards never change and
that’s why brand names backed by a solid reputation should
never be ignored. For example, if I were going to buy a new
television, I would look for a name with a history and
credibility such as GE, RCA, Sharp or Sony. Between those
examples however, it is an advertising contest to the death
as to which is better, and my decision would have to hinge
on other factors. I would probably choose the brand I bought
before or the brand my father had or one that a friend or
colleague recommended. That’s a far cry from purchasing
something because the name sounds “familiar.”

Sales in generic products are rising, as the public is
becoming more and more discerning and sophisticated.
Awareness has crept into the Wall Street market as well. On
The Motley Fool (A program of stock recommendations) a
pharmaceutical company that waits for the patents on brand
name products to run out so that it can purchase generic
ones was recently highlighted as a good investment.
Although some might argue that this company awaits profit
somewhat like an alligator hiding patiently in a leafy glade,
others consider the move a simple case of hungry free
enterprise. In either case, sales do reflect a trend and a
change in consumer awareness.

In the end you may get what you pay for in reference to some
things but not others. In this case, the whole isn’t even
equal to even some of its parts. (Like my brain.) The
contradiction is not as black and white as being pregnant,
for example, which is either a state of being or it isn’t. Gray
is an individual color, and each of us must decide what
works and what doesn’t.

But if you should awake tomorrow morning with a little black
mark on the base of your neck, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
It’s too late to run to Mr. Packard as he no longer lives in the
world of breathing consumers. Just know that the time has
come to either join the others with their little black marks or
fight them and create your own little black mark. Consider
changing the color, name or configuration on yours. Be sure
you don’t call me though, whatever you do. I’m having
enough trouble living with mine!

Biography:

Marjorie Dorfman is a freelance writer and former teacher
originally from Brooklyn, New York. She now lives in
Doylestown, PA with four cats who keep her on her toes at
all times. Originally a writer of ghostly and horror fiction, she
has branched out into the world of humorous non fiction
writing in the last five years. She maintains seven web sites
covering a wide variety of topics and writes feature articles
for several local newspapers. The author of a book entitled:
A Taste of Funny, her website, Eat, Drink And Really Be
Merry (http://www.ingestandimbibe.com) features many well
researched and humorous articles on the subject of food
and drink.

Keywords assigned to this article by MoneyMoz: Vance Packard, The Hidden Persuaders, consumer, advertising, media, consumer awareness