Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Grouchy Dances In The New Year

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Sunday, December 28, 2008

It's A Grouchyful Life

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Sunday, December 21, 2008

Are You On The Right Index?

by Tammy de Leeuw
"GrouchyMarketing Lady"


How To Stop Wasting Time

Complaining

About An Empty Appointment

Book And Get Off Your Can

And DO SOMETHING

ABOUT IT!


Learn 3 Secrets to Generating


An Abundance of Qualified


Leads At The Mavericks

Webinar on December 30th



Most of you probably don't know the name GARY HALBERT...

But regardless of whether or not you know the his name, I feel confident in saying that you have been influenced by him at some point in your lives.

You see Halbert, who died in 2007, was one of the most prolific and successful ad copywriters in history. Were I to show you some of his work, it would be immediately recognizable to you. You might even say, "Hey, I bought one of those!"

Beyond his gifts as a copywriter, Gary Halbert had a knack for getting to the essence of what makes people tick. In his own inimitable style, Halbert gave us his take on what makes winners and losers in life.

As we get ready to enter 2009, you and I both need to make some critical decisions. We need to ask ourselves "Where do I fit on the "Halbert Index'? And we need to be honest. Time and opportunity race by and they don't even notice you.

Gary used to ask: "Know how to make God laugh?" And his response: "Talk to him about the future."

Here is the Halbert Index. Be sure you are on the winner side when 2009 rolls around.

WINNERS: To be at the top of the Index you must be as follows:


(1) You must have a life, and

(2) You must have a sense of humor, and

(3) You must have intelligence and be an independent thinker, and

(4) You must be a generous and giving person but... at the same time...

(5) You must refuse to take shit from anyone who doesn't have a gun to your head, and

(6) You must be willing to take chances and cheerfully accept losses, and

(7) You must have the capacity and courage for true intimacy with your loved ones, friends... and sometimes... even your associates and strangers, and

(8) You must be wealthy always in your mind... and therefore... very often... in your pocket, and

(9) You must be honest and have integrity not defined by laws but rather, by the inner-core of your being, and finally

(10) You must have a relationship with a higher power (nicknamed "God") that does not necessarily include and/or often transcends any association with an organized religion.


On the bottom of the scale are LOSERS: They too, have some common characteristics:


(1) They are generally spectators instead of players, and

(2) They are usually critics who revel in grading people with whom they can't compete, and

(3) Sometimes, they have financial wealth (most often they don't) but they are

always poor in their minds, and

(4) They get their pseudo self-esteem from the grades given to them by others

and have no innate "sense of being" nor a core of natural integrity, and

(5) They think they have a sense of humor but they don't, since they can only

laugh at jokes made at the expense of others and they always fail to see the

ludicrousness of much of their own endeavors, and

(6) They often have intelligence in a technical way but almost no ability

whatsoever for true independent and innovative thought, and

(7) They lack courage and will study and "rehearse" endlessly but, will avoid

at all costs ever letting the curtain come up... unless... someone else has agreed

to star in the play, and

(8) They don't understand true morality. Therefore, they are much more

concerned with what's legal rather than with what's right, and

(9) They will be as obnoxious and abusive as possible to those under them

but, will kiss ass like crazy to curry favor with their superiors, and finally

(10) Many of them will have college degrees but will never recognize these degrees

as the silly jokes they are... and... they are unable to grasp the vital fact

all true education is self education.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

The Power of "Let's Do Lunch"

by David Frey
_________________________________


In his book, "Never Eat Alone" Keith Ferrazi talks about
the power of having lunch with influential people.

He tells the story of how he was once considering a job offer from a big consulting firm.

Before he accepted the offer he requested to speak with the "top man" in the company.

The meeting was eventually arranged.

Keith had lunch with the CEO of the company at a little restaurant in New York city.

_____________________________________________________

The CEO Eventually Asked Ferrazi If He was Intending to Join the Firm.
_____________________________________________________


Ferrazi responded, "I'll join the firm if you agree to have a private lunch with me once a year at this time, in this restaurant."

The CEO was taken back and impressed at the same time.

He had never had that type of request.

He agreed, and for years, Ferrazi and the CEO met at that restaurant around the same time.

Ferrazi quickly became one of the most influential people in the firm, in part, because of his relationship with the CEO.

Having lunch with people is one of the easiest, fastest,and most convenient ways of meeting new people and establishing long term relationships of trust.

_____________________________________________________

Here's How to Use the Power of Having Lunch to Get 50 Referrals In 50 Days.
_____________________________________________________


Here's a step-by-step plan generating 50 referrals in 50 days.

____________________________

STEP 1 - Create Your List.
____________________________

Create a list of the top 100 most influential people in your local area that you would like to get to know...and that could be a good referral source for you.

Make sure you write down their name and mailing address.

_____________________________________________

STEP 2 - Create a "Let's Do Lunch" card.
_____________________________________________

Create a greeting card that introduces who you are and let them know that you'd like to have lunch with them just to get to know them a little better.

Include a professional photo of yourself and let them know what you do.

Make sure that you tell them that you simply want to know a little bit more about THEIR business and how you can refer people to THEIR business.

Let the recipient know you are asking them to go to lunch because you know that they are an influential person in the community and have a great reputation.

Include your phone number and ask them to give you a ring to set up a good time. You might also include your email address in the card.

Here's a good example of a "Let's Do Lunch" card.


http://www.TheReferralNewsletter.com/a/lets-do-lunch.jpg

(copy and paste the link into your browser)

________________________________________________________

STEP 3 - Send you "Let's Do Lunch" Card to your list.
________________________________________________________


Now it's time to send your "Let's Do Lunch" card out to your list of 100 influential people.

Send the card out in 20 person increments.

_________________________________________________________

STEP 4 - Wait for your phone to ring...because it will!
_________________________________________________________


Once you start sending your cards out, the phone will start ringing and you can start setting up your lunch appointments.

When you go to lunch, make sure that the conversation is mostly about them and not you. (remember, you asked for lunch to learn about them and their business.)

___________________________________________

STEP 5 - Keep sending out the same card.
___________________________________________


Once you send your "Let's Do Lunch" card out to your list of 100 people, keep sending it out.

Just because people didn't respond the first time, doesn't mean that they don't want to have lunch with you, it just means that the timing isn't right.

After time, you'll find that over 50% of the people you continue to send your card to will call you up to set up a lunch.

___________________________________________________________

How to Completely Automate the "Let's Do Lunch" Strategy
___________________________________________________________


By using SendOutCards.com you can automate the entire card sending process.

SendOutCards.com is a online service that will allow you to create stunning (physical) greeting cards and automatically send them out with the push of a button.

With SendOutCards.com, all you need to do is...

1. Import your list of 100 contacts

2. Create your card

3. Set up a campaign for the card to go out as many times
as you want it to, when you want it to...and then...

4. PUSH A BUTTON.

For a demo of how SendOutCards.com works go to www.socreview.com/grouchymarketinglady.

Friday, December 12, 2008

Adapt Or Die!

I found this nifty little U-tube offering from our friend DUNCAN MCPHERSON of Pareto Platform. (www.partetoplatform.com) Enjoy!- td

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Uh Oh... California Latest State To Restrict Use of Senior Designations

by Tammy de Leeuw
Financial Advisor Netzone



Assembly Bill 2150, effective January 1, 2009, is the latest in a spate of laws enacted by states to halt the use of any senior designations by agents, brokers, and other financial professionals. (except, of course, those of which Mother State approves.

In typical mountains from molehills fashion, California is leading the nation in enacting more useless legislation to combat the non-problems of the world.

The last thing we need here in California is more legislation. How about a little less nannying and a little more solvency?

Consumers need to exercise discretion, common sense and vigilance when dealing with their money and rely a bit less on politicians to take care of them.

Here's a little snippet of the latest Nanny Law:

On September 26, 2008, Assembly Bill 2150 (Berg, Chapter 327, Statutes of 2008) was signed into law and will take effect on January 1, 2009. This new law, which adds Section 787.1 to the California Insurance Code (CIC), prohibits insurance agents and brokers from using a “senior designation” unless the designation has been approved by the California Department of Insurance (CDI).

A senior designation is defined as any degree, title, credential, certificate, certification, accreditation, or approval, that expresses or implies that a broker or agent possesses expertise, training, competence, honesty, or reliability with regard to advising seniors in particular on finance, insurance, or risk management.

A word, phrase, acronym, or logo constitutes a senior designation if it contains the word "senior,"
"Medicare," "Medi-Cal," "retire," "mature," "gerontology," or "elder," or any variation or synonym of one of these words within several words of the word "certified," "chartered," "registered," "adviser," "specialist," "consultant," "agent," "broker," "insurance," "planner," "professional," "enrolled," "accredited," "analyst," or "fellow," or any variation or synonym of one of these words. A word, phrase,acronym, or logo may also constitute a senior designation even if it does not contain one of these words.

Use of Senior Designations

Section 787.1 of the CIC establishes several conditions for agents and brokers when using senior
designations. The use of a senior designation means utilizing a word, phrase, acronym, or logo, in any oral or written communication from which a sale of insurance to a senior may directly or indirectly result, that states or suggests, alone or in context, that a broker or agent holds a senior designation.

A broker or agent may not use a senior designation in a manner that misleads a person as to the
significance of the senior designation. In addition, a broker or agent may not use a senior designation unless:

(1) The broker or agent has been granted the right to use the designation by the organization that issues the designation and the broker or agent is currently authorized by the organization to
use the designation;

(2) The designation has been approved by the commissioner for use by brokers and agents
in the sale of insurance to seniors; and Insurers, Agents, Brokers and Other Interested
Parties New Law Regulating Use of Senior Designations

(3) The broker or agent has been licensed for at least four years to sell the types of insurance
with which the designation is used.

Exemptions from Requirements

An advanced academic degree, such as a Ph.D., M.B.A., or M.S., may be used without meeting these requirements if the degree was awarded by an institution of higher education that has been accredited by an organization that is on the United States Department of Education's list entitled "Accrediting Agencies
Recognized for Title IV Purposes."

However, no general exemption exists for a job title. Therefore, an agent may not use a title such as
“Senior Insurance Advisor,” even if the word “senior” refers to seniority within a producer organization,
rather than to senior citizens.
?????? HUH?

Wow! I am so glad I have the State of California watching out for me.

Monday, December 8, 2008

Better Than A Beer Bong



by Tammy de Leeuw
Financial Advisor Netzone
Mischief Making Maven At Large


Hello All!

Sorry I left the hamster wheel up for so long but this has been a hectic week for me. In addition to doing things to try and make a living, I also moved out of my luxurious (not!) digs near the railroad tracks in glorious downtown Antioch, aka "Rivertown."

While I am sad to lose my office, I truly will not miss the "Oh, my GAWD!"- steep, creaky staircase, the no-insulation at all walls, and the sounds and vibrations of the Burlington, Northern and Santa Fe as it shrieked past my window. It was a place fit for Bob Cratchett and you can almost imagine me bent over my candle for warmth in the winter and fanning myself with a newspaper on hot summer days.

It is amazing just how much stuff one can accumulate in only 18 months. I found all sorts of interesting and nostalgic items. I hope to pass them on to you in one form or another over the next few months.

Presenting- The Official Grouchy Marketing Lady Website

It is definitely not finished, but it IS LIVE. At your request, I have put together a fully-functional website which I hope you will find interesting and informative. In the coming weeks, look for lots more content and free stuff. Don't forget to sign up for my e-zine.

Find it at: www.grouchymarketinglady.com.

Virtual Marketing Assistant Program

A while back, I told you about a pilot program I put together to help small business people develop marketing strategies that make sense for their particular situation.

I talked to a lot of advisors and found that many of them wanted to try different kinds of marketing but were afraid to invest the time and money because they felt they just didn't have time to properly implement anything. They (and rightfully so) believe that their time is best spent giving their clients A-class service and not fretting over a direct mail piece or choosing cards to send or gifts, etc.

A lot of you are in what I call the "cusp." You can't really afford a full time assistant or a high-priced "consultant", but you can't make any progress in your marketing on your own. So, things just seem to stay static, and static IS NOT GOOD in business.

That is why I have now opened a few slots for my Virtual Marketing Assistant program. If you feel as if you need additional assistance in formulating and following a marketing plan, call me to set up a time to discuss it. I am already working with a couple of advisors and it is starting to pay off for them. Call the 24 hour hotline:Slide 23
1-888-471-9461