Friday, March 28, 2008

What's New On Your Blog


JIMMY AND TRAVIS SAY:
GET GRAVITATIONAL MARKETING
TODAY!


NEW FAN ONLINE STORE NOW OPEN!

FAN is proud to announce the creation of a an Amazon.com store with life and business-enhancing items selected with agents, advisors, brokers, and salespeople in mind.

Our little store helps support the ongoing effort to give readers drops of pure water as they navigate the marketing financial services wasteland.

By reading, you reap the benefits of learning from others' successes and mistakes, you take steps toward becoming a recognized authority, and you began your journey toward becoming influential.

In addition to books, you can also subscribe to ED SLOTT's IRA advisor newsletter, get decent deals on a new laptop, buy music and music downloads, and much more!

If you are going to buy stuff anyway- why not check out the FAN Bookplace first and see what we have found for you.

FUN AND USEFUL STUFF

Get some FAN freebies for your entertainment and enlightenment:

Love celebrity gossip? (oh come on, you know you do) Check out Dotspotter:
http://www.dotspotter.com/

Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller- MINI Slideshow: THE REAL LAW OF ATTRACTION
7 minutes of insight on practical, low-cost ways to attract more business.


Grouchy Old Marketing Lady Presents: NOTHING WORKS!
http://cdn2.goldmail.com/BP/1387A0B123/?GMID=nh5za70bdonz

Lots of free, helpful articles here at:
www.caterinar.com


Stay tuned for more and have a great weekend!

"Grouchy" Tammy de Leeuw

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Don't Forget Your VIP Service


By Caterina Rando
www.caterinar.com

Any business that does not give customers VIP service will be out of business before they realize it.


One of my clients went to buy a new car from a local dealer she knew personally through the business community. She called ahead to explain what she wanted but, when she got there he kept her waiting.


He did not have the make she requested, and suggested she check back with him tomorrow. She did, and did again the following day, and the day after that. Three days later he told her he could get the model she wanted in six weeks, but only if she chose a different color.


She contacted another dealership. Within an hour, they had located the car she wanted in the color she wanted. They even offered to pick it up for her and they offered her a better price, with better financing, with a friendly customer service attitude and the efficiency she was looking for.


The second car dealership got her business because it was responsive to her needs, the staff treated her with respect, and made her priority their priority.


Customers today expect a quick response, personal accommodation for their particular situation, and a little something extra in appreciation for their business. In essence they want youto make their life easier.

Are you doing that for your clients? Look at your business. Here are some ideas to attract more business with less effort, by making things easier for your clients and prospective clients.


Be Persistent


Surprising to many, most business people appreciate persistence. It shows them that their potential business is important to you and gives them the sense that you will respond quickly to their needs.


Do It For Them


Always ask your clients what you can do for them. Doing more than is expected makes their life easier. Use the phone, the fax, and email as often as possible. Go to their office to make appointments more convenient for them. Offer to call and order lunch.


If they tell you they are swamped, have everything picked up and delivered. Make them, not just their business, your priority.

Use Urgency to Your Advantage


When someone tells you they need something quickly, make them feel good, don't make them feel guilty. Often, when people call with an immediate need, they are made to feel that their request is an inconvenience, that any help they might receive is a big favor and a burden.


The truth of today's marketplace is that everyone wants everything yesterday. Keep and beat the time frames your clients request to keep them coming back time after time, singing your praises.

Discover Their Other Needs and Help Fill Them


One of the things my coaching and corporate clients appreciate is the large network I have cultivated because I can draw resources to fill all their needs. I have made referrals for a graphic designer, an accountant, a therapist, an image consultant, a computer programmer.


Find out what your clients need by asking simple questions that can make a significant difference. "What else are you looking for right now?" "What else do you need?" "Anything else I can help you with?" "What else can I do to make your life easier?" Ask and you shall know the answers.


Share Innovative Information


Stay abreast of what is going on in the industries your clients care about. Whenever you become aware of a new product, service, or an idea that might make a difference for your clients, let them know.


This tells them you are thinking about them, and that you care and want to make their life easier.


To attract clients who want to give you business, create great word of mouth. It is still the world's most valuable and most sought after marketing tool.


The easiest way to create great word of mouth for your business is to make things easier for your clients. Amaze them so that they tell everyone about you. Do these things and watch your business grow.


Caterina Rando, MA, MCC coaches entrepreneurs and direct sellers to be innovative in their thinking and action in order to succeed with ease. She is a sought after speaker, master certified coach and author of the national best-seller Learn to Power Think.


Caterina is also the Success Center Director for the Direct Selling Women’s Alliance and contributing author to the soon to be released book Build it Big-101 Secrets of Top Direct Selling Experts. Caterina can be reached by email at cpr@caterinar.com.

Visit her website at http://www.caterinar.com".

*ATTENTION; If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, you won't want to miss Caterina's next live presentation.

Innovate, Initiate, Accelerate:
How to Consistently Attract Clients With Ease Through Value-Added Marketing

A Live Half-Day Seminar
with Caterina Rando
, MA, MCC

Saturday, April 26th,
Emeryville, CA

Seminar Investment:
$79 with advance registration, $99 at the door
Register Now

If anyone is going to be the expert in your field have it be you. This interactive program provides tested and proven expert strategies on how to attract clients with ease by positioning yourself as an expert.


During this course we will cover how to:

* Begin to see yourself as an expert

* Learn the five strategies you can begin to use today to increase your business revenue

* Use your website to provide value-added content that establishes you as an expert and gets you clients

* Use these four innovative marketing objectives to consistently pump up your prospect pipeline

* Pick the ideal market to target so that you are the “go to resource” for anyone in that industry

* Identify your expert factors that easily attract new clients

* Implement simple stesp to cultivate strategic alliances and bring already sold referrals to your business

* Learn how to start your affiliate program to build your client base fast

* Find out what the most lucrative information product is and how you can create one in a weekend

* Learn one strategy you can use tomorrow that will immediately increase the percentage of prospects that become clients

If you want to attract clients with ease, register now for this live, in-person program.

Innovate, Initiate, Accelerate
Saturday, April 26th
9:00am-12:30pm
Courtyard by Marriott
5555 Shellmound Street
Emeryville, CA

Seminar Investment:
$79 with advance registration, $99 at the door


Register Now - Space is limited and filling up fast!

Questions or to register by phone call 415 668-4535 or email cat@attractclientswithease.com


Tuesday, March 25, 2008

How A Small Business Can Double The Effectiveness Of Their Marketing Instantly


by Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller
Gravitational Marketing


Chase Positive Feedback

I have to tell you this amazing story.


So, I made a mistake with some credit card transactions I was doing and I had to call the credit card company to remedy the problem.


If you use credit cards (and I’m sure most of you do) you know that calling a credit card company is a freakin’ nightmare.


The ridiculous phone maze to keep callers from actually talking to a live person, the prompts that take you no where, the Fort Knox like security (which is probably a good thing but after all the other stuff still makes you mad).


I had to do some pretty crazy flip flop of balances… I had a made a payment to the wrong card. I have a both a Visa and a MasterCard issued from the same bank –one in my name and the
other in my wife’s.


I made the payment to the wrong one and now was going to try and flip the balances.


I was ready to be annoyed.


BUT… I was pleasantly surprised. The people I talked to were fantastic. So much so that I told the lady that helped me (Mary Ann was her name) how great she was and how easy she made my transaction. I also told her about the hassles I normally have and how surprised I was that I didn’t have to deal with that.


What Mary Ann said next was blew me away!


Mary Ann said, “I wish my boss were here to hear you say that!” I was floored by that statement.


Most people aren’t swift enough to realize something valuable to their career is being said.


Many business owners miss this too when a customer give feedback that is extremely valuable to their business success.


I told Mary Ann that if she wanted to have her boss call me I would tell her in person. So then Mary Ann did it again! She amazed me again. You have to realize how unbelievable this really is. No one does this – especially employees.


Here’s what she does next…


Mary Ann asks me, “Would please tell my boss that on her voice mail?” I agreed and she immediately transferred me to the voice mail where I left a glowing testimonial.


The moral of the story here is that you need to be aggressive in the collection of positive feedback. You need to amass a stockpile of praise from customers, employees, employers, civic leaders and whom ever you can find.


You need to be a rabid collector of these juicy bits of joy. People live vicariously through the thoughts, words and actions of others.


Having this preponderance of proof that you are as good as you claim to be is more powerful then anything you can ever say.


Travis and I see this mistake made by business owners more than any other. Most small business owners just don’t “get” the power of collecting testimonials and using them in their advertising and marketing. It is a must.


Marketing Guru Dan Kennedy said, “You don’t have a product until you have testimonials.”


He’s absolutely right. Yes, it is difficult and time consuming to collect them. But there are many ways you can make it easier on yourself. You have to make it a priority and teach your entire staff to recognize and prompt opportunities to capture testimonials, success stories and praise.


Testimonial Collection Made Easy


One way we have found to make collecting the words of others easy is using a service that allows people to leave voice testimonials via the telephone and then you are able to both use those on your website (which is extremely powerful) with just a click of a button or you can transcribe them and use them in print.


A system like this gives you the ability to collect powerful testimonials in the voice of your customer. Using this technique we have seen clients increase business by at least 25%.


One way to do this is by using a system like Audio Generator.


There’s power in the details.


Details in testimonials is key. The more you can provide the more believable they will be. Don’t chicken out on testimonials by just putting the first name of the person who gave it or just their city. Give all you can. Even take a picture if you can. These tips will make you testimonials 10x more powerful.


If you aren’t using testimonials now in your marketing your only getting 50% of the business you could be. If you aren’t a business owner you can still significantly increase you pay, job opportunities and career options by using this simple little technique.


Your Mission Should You Choose To Accept It…


Start collecting and using testimonials now!


Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller are authors and marketing experts who specialize in attracting customers and creating E.S.P. businesses –enjoyable, simple and prosperous.


As co-authors of, Gravitational Marketing: The Science of Attracting Customers,” Vee and Miller turned the traditional sales and marketing process on its head, by creating Gravitational Marketing, a powerful system that shows business owners, entrepreneurs and sales professionals how to naturally attract a steady stream of qualified prospects who pay, stay and refer without hard-sell tactics or manual sales labor like door knocking, cold calling or begging for business.


Get TONS of free gifts when you purchase the newly-released GRAVITATIONAL MARKETING BOOK TODAy!

http://www.GravitationalMarketing.com

Pre-Order your copy of their new book, Gravitational Marketing: The Science Of Attracting Customers right now at Amazon.com


Sunday, March 23, 2008

Webinar Tuesday- Don't Forget To Register!

Seminars DO NOT WORK! At least not if you don't do them correctly..
WINNING THE SEMINAR WAR author Doug Dickson is the CEO (Chief Energizing Officer) of one of the country's most succcessful direct mail companies- SEMINAR DIRECT.


For over 17 years he has been helping financial advisors learn how to avoid common mistakes and leverage their seminars into powerful, wealth-building tools.
Join Doug as he teaches agents and advisors insider tricks and tips which will help them avoid costly mistakes and get the most out of every presentation.


1. Anyone who is about to throw in the towel on seminar marketing.
2. Those who are considering doing seminars for the first time.
3. Those who do seminars regularly, but want to increase their attendance rate.


Financial Advisor Netzone is happy to welcome Doug Dickson. We hope you will join us for this fresh look at the mechanics of seminars with one of the industry's leaders. https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/185059444

System Requirements PC-based attendees Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista Macintosh®-based attendees Required: Mac OS® X 10.3.9 (Panther®) or newer

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Customize Your Stay in Touch Message

an email from Mark Satterfield
Gentle Rain Marketing


I spoke about this in today's (Inner Circle) webinar,
but wanted to give you an opportunity to get in on
it as well.

One of the major problems with about staying in touch is
determining what exactly to communicate and finding the
time to sit down and write the message.

Thus I'm offering a pilot program in which I write a
customized email for you that you can send out to your clients
and prospects. This is part of larger service that I will
eventually roll out, but I want to test part of it with a
small number of people.

The service is $695 per month if you're not an inner circle
member, and $495 if you are. (Which naturally makes joining
the Inner Circle a good deal above and beyond the monthly webinar
that is packed with great information. You can join here
:
http://www.gentlerainmarketing.com/cmd.php?af=727063

9 of the 12 spots have already been snapped up by the inner circle
members who were on today's call, so if this of interest you need
to let me know quickly.

I'm telling you the investment up front so that if it is
beyond your budget you don't need to respond.

If you are interested email me with some good times for
us to talk for a few minutes. If I don't respond to the
email it simply means that the last 3 spots have been taken.

But in fairness to everyone...only reply if this is something
you are seriously interested in and can afford.


Mark Satterfield
Gentle Rain Marketing Inc.
720 Rio Grande Drive
Alpharetta, GA 30022

mark@GentleRainMarketing.com
770-643-8566

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Beware of Best Business Practices



by Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller
Gravitational Marketing


Success doesn't happen by accident. It has nothing to do with luck.
It's not a magic pill someone swallows or a wand someone waves which
immediately manifests a revolutionary change in status and bank balance.
Success requires strategic planning, action and commitment.

Success also takes an additional ingredient most people overlook;
the ability to thumb your nose at conventional wisdom and so-called
“best practices” about achieving success.

You’ve heard the lines; "It’s luck" or, "You have to be in the right
place at the right time" or, "It's all about who you know" and the
big one, "It's about how hard you work." Those lines just aren't true.

These statements make up much of the conventional wisdom about what
it takes to become a success. However, conventional wisdom is not
always the best wisdom, and can frequently be detrimental if followed.
The term “conventional,” by definition, should send up a red flag.

According to www.dictionary.com it means, "Conforming or adhering
to accepted standards," and in another definition, "Ordinary rather
than different or original." Accepted standard? Ordinary?
Do those sound like the building blocks of success to you?

No one would describe an ultra successful person by those definitions,
because the über successful don't conform
and they aren't ordinary.

In fact they are the complete opposite. From the minute people are born,
they start to conform and follow the herd. They do what everyone else is
doing, the way everyone else is doing it. They are taught to stand
in line and work to "fit in."

They follow the masses and all get the same results ... Average results.

Extraordinary results come from doing something different …

from challenging the status quo and shaking things up. So what can you do to
get on a path to innovation, extraordinary progress and extreme success?

Here are five things the ultra successful do differently that you can implement now.

Exploit Your Uniqueness:

The ultra successful companies and entrepreneurs
know what makes them different and use it to their full advantage.
Most businesses try to be all things to all people, trying to please everyone.

They are afraid that being polar will alienate their market. The truth is, real
success comes from being “for” a specific group of people and “not for” others.
Specialization and customization win the day, garner more attention
and ultimately attract the most success.

Every consumer believes his or her situation or problem is somehow different
and unique, and they believe there’s a custom solution needed to fix it.

They don't want a one-size fits all, “canned” solution, rather a customized solution
from an expert person or company that specializes in helping people in their
circumstances, understands exactly what they are going through and can relate
directly to them.

Ask Better Questions:

Many people think the super successful have all the answers. That may be true,
but they didn't get them from divine intervention or random guessing.

They get the answers from asking better questions of yourself, your business,
your industry, your employees, co-workers, customers, peers and family.

Average people tend to shy away from asking the tough questions because
they fear the answers they might get. The successful people face new challenges
head-on, ask the tough questions and tackle them regardless of the answers.

Read:

The ultra successful realize a need to continue educating themselves.

School’s never out for the pro. According to the Jenkins Group, 80 percent of U.S. families did not buy or read a book last year, and 42 percent of college graduates never, ever read another book after school.

Successful people devour information, read books constantly, listen to tapes,
audio programs and attend seminars on a regular basis. They are addicted
to information, positive thinking and improvement. Jim Rohn, world-famous
motivational speaker, philosopher and entrepreneur, sums this point up brilliantly,
saying, “Poor people have big TVs, rich people have big libraries.”

Take Risks:

Risk tolerance is a success trait hard to ignore. Super successful people
understand that with risk comes reward and they are willing to take chances.

But they aren't stupid, hedging their bets with high quality information and research.

They put the work and time necessary to plan for and research the viability of a
risky decision. It's still a risk, but a calculated one.

The hyper-success minded also understand with every failure comes
a learning experience. They know how to gain valuable information from
their mistakes and failures, analyzing situations and extracting as many lessons
as possible from disasters. They synthesize this information and create better
plans for moving forward.

Fight:

The average person tries to avoid confrontation at all costs. People hate to
cause trouble, make a scene or get in someone’s face, even to the point of missing out on something they are entitled to.

They’re happier practicing avoidance than strength. The overachievers
– on the other hand – don’t follow that thinking. They engage in battle to get
what they want, deserve or are passionate about, and are not afraid to hurt feelings
by being open, honest and blunt about their passions.

Leverage Time:

We all have the same amount of time in a day. Some people just do more with it than
others. The “Trumps” of the world know the value of time, and how to leverage it to get more accomplished.

The average person thinks about time as a renewable resource, not a precious raw
material to success. They measure their success in terms of money collected per hour or per year, and think of time as something you exchange for money; an even swap.

This thinking delivers standard returns and mediocre wages.

The successful know how to leverage time and stop trading it for dollars.

They don't buy into a tit-for-tat mentality when it comes to the exchanging
of time for money; rather they create systems that work for eternity.
They seek out and get involved in opportunities that deliver returns for long periods of time.

When you follow the crowd and do what everyone thinks is right – for instance, “best practices” – you're going to duplicate their results. Those results are typically mediocre and average at best. The norm isn't extraordinary. If it were, most people would be wealthy, happy and have mind-blowing experiences on a daily basis.

Instead, a normal day usually consists of frustration from businesses
and people who are just getting by, limping along and trying to keep it together.
That's what conventional thinking and “best practices” deliver.

Travis Miller and Jimmy Vee are authors and marketing experts who
specialize in attracting customers and creating E.S.P. businesses – enjoyable, simple and prosperous.

As co-authors of, “Gravitational Marketing: The Science of Attracting Customers,”
Miller and Vee turn the traditional sales and marketing process on its head,
creating a powerful concept that shows business owners, entrepreneurs and
sales professionals how to naturally attract a steady stream of qualified prospects
who pay, stay and refer.

Get their Ultimate Free Gift— $549.00 worth of free business building tools
— by visiting http://www.gravitationalmarketing.com/go?p=tdeleeuw&w=book .

Thursday, March 13, 2008

DOES YOUR GENIE HAVE UNLIMITED WISHES?!



by Sid Walker

Selling Without Wrestling


I decided to update my brain on the latest material out on the

Law of Attraction this year and it has been interesting. I have

heard it all before so I was interested to see what would stand

out for me this time.

As I review the CDs, DVDs, books, etc., that are available;

I am struck by a couple of things.


First, that our ability to create what

we want in our lives is much more powerful than we

realize and that our ability to manifest what we want in our lives is as much

the result of our mental focus as our hard work.

I am equally amazed at the power of the intellect to take away our natural

ability to create simply by our thoughts. I love the idea that whatever we

sincerely desire is immediately on its way to us.


I love the idea that absolutely everyone is going to get whatever they

ask for because we live in an unlimited Universe. But there is the catch.


You get what you ask for

to the degree that you don't have any thoughts that are

in opposition to what you have asked for.

Now this sounds simple enough. If I need more money,

I ask for more money. Or whatever it is you want more

or less of. What I have realized for myself is that I have had

a lot more thoughts that were in opposition to my request from

the Universe than I was aware of.

The intellectual part of my brain is very adept at keeping track

of all the things that need to be fixed in my life. I can tell you

very quickly what I don't like and what I don't want.

This all sounded ok to me until I started to look at the impact

that this way of thinking was having on my ability to attract

what I have asked for.

By thinking that I need money, even though totally logical,

I am sending the wrong message out into the others. If I think

that I need money, what I get back is a need for money

(no matter how much I make)!


It is much more effective to consistently envision the money you want

flowing into your life or into your bank accounts than thinking about

how much money you need to make everything work. A small

difference maybe but huge in terms of what happens to our ability

to pull in the money or whatever else we want to attract.

Here is a mental focus for the rest of March

(which is really the beginning of the new year in ancient calendars).

Think only good thoughts about the things you want.


Give as little attention as possible to your list of all the

things that are wrong or that need to be fixed. Also,

when you start to feel the slightest negative emotion,

think only good thoughts about the things you want!

This approach is embarrassingly simple. But since it has been

working for me and my coaching clients, I wanted to share it with

you. Let me know what happens.

Have a prosperous March,


Toll-free: 877-985-3297

www.SellingWithoutWrestling.com (Free Training Preview)
www.SellingWithoutWrestling.com/info (Detailed Training Description)

Sales Performance Coach to Financial Advisors

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

How Often Do I Stay In Touch?

by Mark Satterfield
Gentle Rain Marketing

One question that comes up a lot is, HOW OFTEN to
stay in contact with
your prospective clients? There are a number of factors
that go into
the determination, but here's an important one.

The readiness of your prospect to buy.

For example, if you're in a business with a long lead time between
when people first "raise their hands" and when they ultimately
decide to contract for services, you'd be best served by adopting
a 20 to 30-day stay in touch sequence. (Although some may find
this hard to believe,this would be considered a rather
conservative schedule).

Alternatively is a service such as mine. When people are looking for
marketing solutions they tend to be looking for something they can
implement right now.

There is likely to be a significant event (usually a
slow down in their business) that causes them to finally
get serious about putting in place a system for getting
more new clients.

So they tend to look at a lot of options and usually make decisions
about what to do within 60 days (or decide to do nothing which also
impacts the stay in touch strategy!)

Thus for businesses such as mine, it is a good strategy to
be in touch very frequently during that crucial first 60 days.

But what if some of your clients have immediate needs
and other don't?

Does the strategy for how often to be in touch shift over time?

Does varying the method by which you stay in touch
make a difference?

Are some methods more effective than others?

To what extent should telemarketing play a role?

What's the best way to automate much of the process?

What works better, HTML newsletters or text emails?

How can you keep content fresh and interesting without
spending too much time developing the messages?

When does it start to pay off?

Yes, there are a lot of questions about staying in touch.
And I'm going to do my very best to answer these
(and others that my Inner Circle members have been sending in)
during my next Inner Circle program on
March 20th at NOON EST.

Not a member yet? You can sign up here
http://www.GentleRainInnerCircle.com

For those of us who offer high value services it's important
to keep in mind that the "sale" isn't made with our lead generation
materials.

Nor is it made by our website. The key to converting large percentages
of prospects into clients is a function of WHAT WE SAY and HOW
FREQUENTLY we're in touch.

I hope you will join me for this webinar. I think you will find it to
be an extremely valuable program.

Best Regards,
Mark

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Defying Gravity With Travis and Jimmy



by Tammy de Leeuw


As you can imagine, I read tons of books on financial issues, sales, marketing, advertising, and public relations. Most of these books, unfortunately, rely on corporate-level strategies which are just too time-consuming and costly for the average business owner.

So, when I happened upon Jimmy Vee and Travis Miller's new"Gravitational Marketing" book, I couldn't help thinking, "Great, yet another marketing book with a cutsie title and the same old tired observations inside."

Was I ever wrong!

Jim and Travis don't just point out everything that is wrong with modern marketing methods, they offer practical ways to CORRECT these mistakes. Using the timeless wisdom of the great marketers of the past, Jim and Travis dispel the common myths which keep small businesses from fully harnessing the power of branding. And, they do it in a fun, entertaining way.

As they point out in the book:

"When someone sets out to buy your product or service they have a thousand other
options. Why in the world would they choose you?

If you’re thinking about starting a business, if you already own a business or if you’re
working in a career as a sales professional you may have asked yourself this question.
Maybe not.

Whatever the case, ask yourself now. Why would someone choose you?
Perhaps we should begin with a discussion of why people buy in the first place.

Have you ever thought about that? Why do people buy from you? Why do people
buy anything? The truth is most companies ignore the basic principles that cause
people to buy. They’re pushing a rope uphill.

Over the years we’ve been engrained with the wrong ideas. Most companies are just
sheep in the flock trying to imitate what they see on television. If you can erase
these hardwired concepts from your brain, your job will be much easier.

By digging beneath the surface, finding what truly motivates your customers and
exploiting the information, the task of marketing will be like sailing with the
wind instead of into it. …"

Can A Book REALLY Help?

Travis and Miller discuss ideas such as developing what they call your "Gravitational Positioning Statement," "attracting through personal effort," "attracting through the mail," and many others.

Has any of this been said before? Of course, but that is the point. Travis and Miller believes no one has been listening to the "old school," marketing gurus , preferring instead to throw themselves into trendy methods that are far less effective and way more costly than they should
be.

There is tons of actionable advice in this book, and a lot of amusing stories as well. If you have any interest at all in marketing and advertising, I advise you to go to their website and order it.

While you are there, take advantage of the freebies they offer. I think you are going to like what you read.

Friday, March 7, 2008

Correction to TJ Walker Webinar And The Rule of 2.5



"Time Zone Challenged Tammy" sent a reminder email out for the March 12th Webinar with TJ Walker" which gave the WRONG TIME for the East Coast.

Thanks to all you East Coast folks who apprised me of the fact that, when it is 11AM here in California, it is, in fact 2pm on the East Coast. Many apologies for that mistake. Register at:

https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/207845109

RE: Yesterday's article on how much more money retirees will need for medical expenses.

"I'm Not Larry" commented that he senses a marketing ploy to pave the way for some NEW IMPROVED GETS YOU MORE SOLVENT THAN THE LEADING BRAND product.

Sadly, INL, I too smell a product pitch lurking in the in the disinformation darkness. A similar thing occurs when you hear something such as "government studies find potato chip grease causes blindness in mice" UH OH: (red light flashing off and on) More laws are on the way!

Sure enough media picks it up the story and posts it all over the place like obedient little serfs. Then, a few months later, rumblings begin on Capital Hill that there "oughta be a law against that!" Laws, of course, being the products (byproducts?) of politicians.

Yes, INL, the media is often used in the most heinous and manipulative ways- to incite fear, loathing, and a buying frenzy.

HOWEVER, from personal experience I can safely say. "No matter how much money you think you have for your retirement- IT ISN'T ENOUGH.

I like to apply the rule of 2.5 to all of my life.

If I go into a grocery store with a list and estimate the cost at $55.00, I simply increase that amount 2.5 times. If I am putting together an e-zine and say I will work on it 2 hours, I increase the time by 2.5. Waiting for a commuter train? Again, 2.5.
"Honey, I'm going to be a half hour late.. No, wait, make that 1.5 hours."

INL- do you think this would make sense in the world of retirement planning?

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Eye Opening Fidelity Study: You Need a LOT More Than You Thought To Retire

This sobering report is something you should keep nearby to show your clients who THINK they have enough... td


Retiree couple needs $225K for medical

By EILEEN ALT POWELL,

AP Business WriterWed Mar 5, 10:11 AM ET

A couple retiring this year will need about $225,000 in savings to cover medical costs in retirement, according to a study released Wednesday by Fidelity Investments.

The figure, calculated for a couple age 65, is up 4.7 percent from the $215,000 estimate for 2007, the Boston-based financial services company said.

And it is similar to other projections for health care costs in retirement — daunting figures given that longer life spans also are requiring workers to increase retirement nest eggs.

A separate study released last month by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College estimated that an individual needs to go into retirement with some $102,000 earmarked just for health care coverage, while a couple needs about $206,000.

Given current levels of retirement savings, the center said, six in 10 older workers are "at risk" of being unable to maintain their standard of living in retirement.

The Fidelity study, which has been conducted annually since 2002, assumes workers do not have employer-sponsored retiree health care coverage. It includes expenses associated with Medicare premium payments as well as co-payments and deductibles, plus out-of-pocket prescription drug costs.

"With health care costs continuing to outpace wage increases and companies trimming retiree health benefits, financing health care has to be central to retirement planning," Brad Kimler, executive vice president of Fidelity's benefits consulting group, said in a statement accompanying the report.

Fidelity's first study in 2002 found that a couple needed $160,000 in savings to fund medical costs in retirement, and that total has risen an average of 5.8 percent a year.

The study blamed the rising health care costs this year on higher unit costs, for example the cost of a doctor's visit; higher utilization rates for health care services; rising costs associated with new technologies; and increased incidence of some chronic conditions, like diabetes.

___



Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Heads Up Blokes- It's Keith for Louis Vuitton


Well, I guess Keith had to choose the only
company with more bags than he has...
Senior marketing ploy?

(sorry to divert from the more important financial issues, but this is just too weird to ignore. Since I am in advertising and marketing, I am understandably intrigued...)

Keith Richards for Louis Vuitton (yeah, man, but can ya snort it?)

04-03-2008 11:36

Keith Richards is the latest face of Louis Vuitton and appears in their new ad campaign.

The Rolling Stones rocker has been snapped by Annie Liebovitz for the French fashion house's new campaign which will be seen around the world from April.

"The good thing about Keith is, he's big just about everywhere," said Antoine Arnault, Vuitton's head of communications.


Monday, March 3, 2008

March Madness Even Confuses ME!

There are so many FAN-sponsored events taking place in March that I think I might have confused folks. Below is the finalized agenda for the four webinars I will be sponsoring. There is a teleconference preview as well. Sorry for any confusion.





She's as mad as a March hare, I tell you!


How to Become the Recognized Expert in Your Field.-Building Your Insurance & Financial Advisor Brand-With Mark Satterfield

Wednesday, March 5th NOON Pacific, 2PM Central, 3PM Eastern
Registration Link:
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/929077592

Six Ways To "Get Slightly Famous" With Steven Van Yoder
Tuesday, March 11th 1PM Pacific, 3PM Central, 4PM Eastern
Registration Link:
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/598558679

Attention-Grabbing Financial Presentations- The Story Behind The Numbers

Wednesday, March 12, 2008 11Am Pacific, 1PM Central, 2PM Eastern
Registration Link: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/207845109

Seminar Mistakes That Cost You Money- And How To Avoid Them- with Doug Dickson

Tuesday, March 25th 10:00AM, 12Noon Central, 1PM Eastern
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/185059444