Direct Mail

The 3 M’s of successful mail marketing:

The Market – the number of people who need or desire the product or service enough to be willing to make a purchase.

The Message – The words and images and special offers used to get attention and get customers to take action now.

The Mailing List – The people who receive a mailing and how closely these people match up to the types of people who are known to have a need or desire for the product or service.

To get good results from a mailing, you need to send a compelling message to a carefully selected list of people who need or desire your product or service AND have the means to acquire it now.

Voice Mail

You can increase the likelihood of your voice mail being returned by remembering these basic tips:

• Speak slowly and clearly.
• Give your name, company name and complete phone number at the beginning of the message.
• Briefly and slowly explain the reason for your call. Voice mail is not the place to launch into a lengthy sales pitch or long, detailed explanation of a problem you are having.
• Ask for a callback.
• Leave an alternate method of contacting you such as email or evening phone number.
• Repeat your name and phone number slowly at the end of the message so the recipient can write it down to return your call.

*Carol’s Confident Comment: “A thing does not go wrong because of some perverse fate. It is more than likely that you lack the proper approach.” - Norman Vincent Peale

Selling yourself to new clients

Sales is a lot like dating and the secret is paying attention to the details – just like you would on a first date.

Some tips for attracting-and keeping-new clients!!

• Desperation is NOT attractive. Approach prospects as if you didn’t need their business – but would like it.

• Make them know you want them. Be interested but not too interested and if the match doesn’t fit, you must be willing to walk away.

• Confidence is key. Prospects want to work with people who are confident – please don’t be arrogant!

• Listen more than you talk. Ask questions.

• Image is everything. You wouldn’t leave for a hot date without looking your best, so don’t show potential clients a less-than professional appearance.

• Go where the people are. You can’t find prospects by sitting at home.

• Nobody likes a whiner. Let clients vent, but don’t expect them to listen to why you had a bad day.

• Always call. Call them the next day to follow up on previous conversation.

*****If you would like to receive additional tips on how to attract AND keep clients, call for an appointment today!*****

Saying “YES” when we mean “NO”

People-pleaser’s often say “yes” quickly without thinking it through. Use these guidelines before taking on a commitment in the future.

• Think about any commitments for at least 24 hours prior to agreeing. Try this verbiage – “that sounds really good, but I need to check my schedule before I can commit. I will call you tomorrow to let you know if I can help.”

• Help in areas that match your core values instead of trying to help at EVERYTHING.

• When you agree, clearly outline the level of your commitment, “Yes, I could help with that for 2 hours per week.”

******If you are always saying “yes” and are over-committed and find that you don’t have time to run your business, call for an appointment and learn how to effectively say “no”.

February 15, 2008 – Don’t give up

When you think you should give up on your business idea or the business itself, think about these people who overcame serious handicaps!!

*Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred playing his own compositions instead of improving his technique. His teacher called him hopeless.

*Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor for lack of ideas. Walt Disney also went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.

*Inventor Thomas Edison’s teachers said he was too stupid to learn anything. When Edison invented the light bulb, he tried over 2,000 experiments. A young reporter asked him how it felt to fail so many times. He said, “I never failed once. I invented the light bulb. It just happened to be a 2,000-step process.”

*Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women, was encouraged to find work as a servant or seamstress by her family.

******Before you give up on your dream or business, call for an appointment and get some direction.

Use your energy cycles.

We all have times in our day when we feel productive and other times when we feel sluggish. Use these highs and lows to your advantage. Get complex and mentally challenging tasks done during your energy highs. During the lows, take care of low priority, routine or non-challenging tasks.

Carol’s Confident Comment – “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot” – Michael Althsuler

Organizing your Desk

1. Start at the beginning. Remove everything from your desktop. Put back only the necessities and keep large clean space for current projects. What are the necessities? Phone, notepad, calendar, step-file organizer — keep the cutesy items in sight but off your desk.

2. Place your phone on the left side of your desk if you are right handed and on the right if you are left handed.

3. Keep a spiral notebook by the phone for messages. Start with the date each day. By doing this, you will have reference info when you need it.

4. Keep or delete? If you use something every day, leave it in your desk. If you use something once a week, you should be able to reach it from your chair. If you use something once a month, keep it in your office or work area. If you use something less than once a month, keep it elsewhere.

5. Keep your office supplies in one drawer. Keep only the supplies you use frequently in your desk. Do you really need 25 pens and 15 packages of salt?

6. Look around - End each day (or at least each week) by tidying up your desk and returning everything to its place (Yes, everything should have a place).

***Quote for the month: “Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs.” - Henry Ford***

“With personal coaching, I assist you in making more money, saving more time and networking more effectively.” Carol Birkey, Personal Business Coach and Mompreneur

“Your Time – Manage it or Lose it”

Be like a coach in a game that’s tied with two minutes left: manage the clock.

1. Plan your time – Starting your day with no plan is like packing a suitcase without knowing where you are going.

1. Take 15 – At the very end or very beginning of each day, take 15 minutes to consider the things you must or want to do during the coming day.

1. Know Thyself – Are you a morning person? Afternoon? Evening? When are you at your best? Plan your most demanding tasks for that time and you’ll get better results.

1. Beware the Time Bandits – Neighbors, friends or colleagues who drop in unexpectedly during work hours may be bored or lonely and looking for company. It’s your time, be tactful but firm.

1. Schedule your “ME” time – You must have “ME” time to do things just for you. Relax and recharge

 

***Quote: “The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” – Michael Althsuler***

 

“With personal coaching, I assist you in making more money, saving more time and networking more effectively.”

http://www.Carolbirkey.com
Personal Business Coach/Office Support

Definition of a Mompreneur: Stay-at-home mothers who create home-based business.

I started my home-based secretarial business in 1984 after a divorce with no money and 2 small children to raise. The business was started out of fear: fear that I would have to put my children in daycare, which I could not afford. Fear that I would lose my home and fear that I would not be successful. The fear of failing my children and myself, propelled me to start my own home-based business. more…