The Economic Down-Turn Can Divide A House

Be fair, attentive, and customers
will return.

According to a survey by
Reuters, the economic
down-turn divided
small business owners.

The survey points out
how small business
owners are taking less
money home, and it's
harder to get a loan.

Seventy-three percent
of the people complained
of worsened conditions.
Eight percent were happy,
and saw improvement.

There will always be a small
percentage of people who
thrive during a recession.

The focus of this post is on
how to survive the down-turn
while keeping your house,
business, intact.

First, it's necessary to
eliminate dead weight.

"What do you mean by
dead weight?" Several
asked.


Dead weight refers to the
people who give-up in
your house, business.

"Close the doors." A
partner suggested. "We can't
survive the economic down-
turn."

"Can't beat a recession."
Someone else chimed in.

"I guess, we betta sell while
we can." Another uttered.

It's best to buy-out the
dead weight, or do what is
needed to break-away from it.

Fill your mind with survival
thoughts.

Look at each product or
service you offer. Ask
yourself some questions.

Is it feasible to close a
product or service? Is
it wise to make an item
smaller, but sell it at the
regular price? Will my
customers stop buying
a smaller version? Should
production time be cut?
Should over-time be done
away with? Certain people
have to be laid off?

Ask specific questions
pertaining to your business.

Look at suppliers. Should
you turn to different suppliers?
Less costly suppliers, but maintain
a quality product or service?

The economic down-turn will
force customers to hold-on
to their money, or spend less.

You'll have to make adjustments
to keep the economic down-turn
from dividing your house, business.

Simply, take common sense
measures in an economic
down-turn. Consider the pro
and cons before any money
is sent out of the door.

In closing, careful thought
is mixed in every business
decision to survive an
economic down-turn. Don't
allow your house, business, to
be divided by fear. Get yourself
in survival business mode.

What Can Small Businesses Do To Survive

Be fair, attentive, and customers
will return.

There are steps small businesses
can take to help survive the
economic turn-down.

The time for spending on
advertising without careful
thought is over.

Concentrate your advertising
dollars where customers are
seeing your ads.

"How will I know that?" You
pondered.

Ask them.

Here's a possible scenario.
"Thank you for your order,
Mrs. Smith.

She'll respond.

After she replies, use the
opportunity to question
her.

"May I ask, where did you
see our ad?"

Make a note of it.

Put a code in your ads to
see which publications
are earning their keep.

The code is simple. The
code for Catz Newsletter is
Ctz, or any mixture of
letters you like.

Let's look at the code
using different letters.
Possible combinations
are: Ct, Ca, Cn, Cz,
or Cl.

"How would I put a code
in my ad?" You asked.

Take a look.

M. Glenn's Creative
Services
1234 Any Street
Dept. Cl
Some, State 56789-1011

The morning coffee with
bagels treat takes it place
in your past.

A better idea is to have
employees bring in coffee,
cups, napkins, sugar, and
cream. Or, ask everyone
to share in the purchase
of those items.

The person who is assigned
to buy sugar must keep it
in stock, or available.

It isn't necessary to buy
name brands.

Hold a meeting. Explain
how the economic turn-
down touched your
business. In order for
the business to survive,
everyone is required
to contribute. Unless,
it would cause a hardship.

Never force anyone to
participate. There are those
living pay-check to pay-
check. They couldn't
slice another cent away for
anything else.

The economic turn-down
hit Main Street, Wall Street,
and all streets in between.

Be mindful of the amount
of paper towels, plastic
cups, pens, and other
supplies used.

All businesses must cut-
away employees not
contributing to the
organization.

"Why?" You asked.

The survival of your business
demands it. Perhaps, when
the economic turn-down is
ended, you'll employ them
again.

The same advice is true of
out-lived its usefulness
equipment.

If your equipment is costing
more to fix than its producing,
replace it. Perhaps, a used
version works well.

An option, too, is bartering.
You exchange your services
for used equipment, or as part
payment.

"How would I do that?" You
questioned.

Train a friend's son/daughter
to co-manage, manage, your
business. It will be a learning
experience for him/her.

In return, you'll get updated
equipment, maybe used.

Set your mind into business
survival mode. You must get
beyond the economic turn-
down.

If necessary, tack the words
on your computer, office door,
mirror, desk, or company board.

The words are: cut-back, trim,
costs.

In conclusion, small businesses
can survive an economic turn-
down, and rise stronger. It
takes determination, and common
sense adjustments.

Economic Turn

Be fair, attentive, and customers
will return.

The economic turn down has
hurt main street, your street, and
mine. Still, it has taught us
how to survive it, a crisis.

"It's just been hard." You said.

Let's look at the positive side.

You learned how to prioritize.
There isn't anymore wasteful
spending. The economic turn
down requires you to figure
out how much you have,
where it's needed most,
and then use money wisely.

You learned how to budget.
It means you learned to manage
yourself, life better. The
results are life is less
stressful, and more meaningful.

There are countless ailments
involved with being stressed
out.

Less money to spend stops
you from eating out, or not
as often. Simply, cut-out
spending on anything that
isn't necessary to live
life, or sustain life.

You learned discipline. It
points to the fact that you
learned to say "no" to wasting.

Perhaps, you are sharing living
arrangements due to the economic
turn down. It's possible you're
closer to family, because you
opened your living space to
them. Enjoy time with them
that you couldn't otherwise.

If the arrangement didn't turn
out well, you were willing to
help. Yes, learn from that
too.

"What is there to learn?"
You asked.

Rules are required. Did you
set any? Boundaries have to
be respected.

Look at what happened, and
figure out how to improve
the situation. Or, just give
the person space. The person
could have a change of attitude
after thinking his/her situation
through.

Use your new skill. Teach
others how to use money
wiser.

Start with a friend, neighbor.
Advertise your service by
word-of-mouth.

Word-of-mouth advertising
spreads like wild-fire. It can
provide better coverage than
a paid ad. Later, when funds
allow, place ads.

"How will I teach?" You
questioned.

Explain what you learned
from the economic turn
down. Walk through it
step by step.

Buy an item used often in bulk.
Advise how doing so will save
money, for example. Try the
store brand, and stop using
name brands. Make a list
before shopping. Stick to it.

Give for instances in your
life before you learned from
the economic turn down.

Ask questions, get people
involved with telling about
their habits prior to the
economic turn down.

Everyone will laugh, enjoy
your class.

Ask for feed-back. Feed-back
helps you. You'll learn
what people want to know.

Turn ideas upside down, inside
out, and side-ways. Get as much
use as possible out of it.

You taught a class at home.
Take the focus of the class
to someone's house who didn't,
for whatever reason, attend.
Ask your new client to invite
his/her friends.

It's possible you'll get a bigger
customer base.

In closing, scoop-up what you
have learned from the economic
turn down, and profit from it.

How To Make Money

Be fair, attentive, and customers
will return.

Let's face it, we are in hard
economic times. Still, some
are making money, and
starting their own businesses.
It requires determination,
and thinking out of the
box.

"What do you mean?" You
asked.

You can make money taking
surveys. Link to someone else's
product, and the list goes on.

Is it right for you? Will you
make money? Is it something
that would motivate you to
go the extra mile, even
introduce family to?

If the answer is yes,
great!

If you responded with a no
answer, keep reading.

Are you making cookies at home,
and people are buying them?
Maybe, you write greetings, and
others are interested. You take
care of a child. People are
coming to you for advice, and
want to pay you for listening.
All you're doing is giving your
opinion. You have started a
business.

"I don't understand." You said.

The cookies you are baking can
become a bigger business.
Ask the people who are buying
your product to tell others.
Place flyers at places you
frequent.

Do some research about your
area, and see if it's feasible
to start a bakery.

If not, continue to make
money by selling cookies.

People are asking you to
write greetings in time of
a death, graduation, anniversary,
other occasions. This is the
time to start your business.

Take it further. Check-out the
greeting card section at
stores. What cards are most
like yours? Get names and
addresses. Write the greeting
card company for guidelines.

You take care of a child.
Look into caring for more
children. You have started
your business. Take it to
the next level.

You're making money at
home. It is something you
take pleasure in doing.

Family members can join
you in your business. It
saves money. Although, they
will want to share in the
profits, or get paid.

Put everything in writing.
List what family members
or anyone else contribute,
and is promised in return.

Memories fade. Avoid
confusion by recording
every move made in the
business.

Don't be afraid to go the
extra step with a hobby,
or an activity you're doing
already. In an economic
downturn, make money
at what you like to do, are
doing. In reality, you have
started a business.

Better Business Bureau Issues Acai Berry Warning

Be fair, attentive, and customers
will return.

I've tried it in capsule form.
I didn't see any noticeable
difference. I decided to not
re-purchase.

I didn't use the trial order
method.

The following was reported by
Maria M. Perotin, Star Telegram.

Lose weight! Prevent cancer!
Fight Alzheimer’s disease with
acai berries! It worked for your
favorite celebrity!

Never heard of acai? With just a
quick search on the Internet, you
can read countless pitches for the
dark Brazilian berry.

There’s so much buzz, in fact, that
the Better Business Bureau at Fort
Worth this week issued a warning to
consumers.

Makers of acai supplements have
reeled in thousands of consumers
nationwide with "free" trial offers,
only to follow up with month after
month of unwanted credit card charges,
said John Riggins, chief executive
of the Fort Worth bureau.

One Arlington-based company —
FXSupplements.com — has drawn 139
complaints from consumers since November.

FX offers customers a free trial but
then quickly starts imposing charges
of about $80 a month, sometimes before
consumers have even received their
first bottle of Acai Maxx in the
mail, Riggins said.

"The people getting burned on this
really badly are the ones getting
charged over and over and over,"
Riggins said. "They can’t get the
company to pick up the phone or
answer an e-mail."

On Tuesday, the toll-free phone
number that’s listed on FX’s Web
site was disconnected.

An employee who answered a
separate phone number for Acai
Maxx billing inquiries said the
company wouldn’t comment except
to written questions sent by
mail to its Arlington address.

Riggins also raised concerns about
some acai sellers’ claims about the
products’ benefits and about implied
endorsements from Oprah Winfrey and
other celebrities who haven’t
actually suggested the berry is
a cure-all.

"The actual abilities of the
product are unknown right now,
really," he said. "Some really
far-reaching claims are just
unsubstantiated."

Touted among the latest weight-loss
crazes, acai is available in pills,
powders, fruit smoothies and even
as frozen pulp.

Amy Goodson, a dietitian at Texas
Health Harris Methodist Hospital
Fort Worth, said acai is the latest
in a string of exotic "super fruits"
that are marketed as if they have
unique abilities.

In fact, many fruits — even the humble
banana — are chock-full of many of
the same vitamins, minerals and
antioxidants.

"Do I think that this is a healthy
fruit? Sure," Goodson said. "Is it
going to cure every disease and
keep you from getting a disease?
By no means."

Nicole Chase, a dietitian at Plaza
Medical Center of Fort Worth, said
people can consume all the nutrients
they need by eating a variety of
healthy foods, without adding any
expensive supplements.

Her weight-loss advice: Eat small meals,
with lots of fiber, fruits and
vegetables. Avoid foods that are fried
or smothered in sauces. And get regular
exercise.

Goodson also cautioned against fad diets.

"If it just pops out and it’s on the front
of every magazine, probably be leery of
that," she said. "At the end of the day,
it’s eating well and exercising, which is
not usually what people technically want
to hear."

http://www.star-telegram.com/855/story/1127053.html

How To Survive A Recession

Be fair, attentive, and customers
will return.

The first step to survive a
recession is attitude. The
thought of I will survive
should play-over in your
mind.

Write the words down on paper.
Place them on your night-stand,
computer, clock, and where you
can easily see the words. Look
at them when the recession
knocks on your business door.

Customers are the life-line of
your business. You'd like to
keep all of your customers,
but the survival of your business
stops you.

People who have problems paying,
let them go. They will sink you,
and your business. Don't let a
customer's over-do balance go
anywhere near thirty days. You
can't afford it if your business
is to survive the recession. It
is impossible to have customers
sixty, ninety, days due, and
survive. Your business will be
engulfed by the recession.

Pay attention to your costs. I'm
referring to every cent you are
spending on paper clips, for
example. Paper clips can be used
over and over. Don't throw them
away after one use. Look at the
amount of paper cups, paper
towels, used. Do you need to
buy paper cups? Cut back where
you can. You'll be amazed at how
cutting back adds up to big savings.

There is an aspect of your business
that shouldn't be cut during a
recession.

"You just said cut back." A few
reminded me.

Yes, I did. During a recession,
people buy. In order for them
to know about your product or
service, advertising is a must.
Keep your ad going. Only,
advertise where people are
seeing it.

"How do I know where people are
seeing my ad?"

Ask them.

If possible, advertise more.
Remember, customers are the life-
line of a business, recession or
not. The survival of your business
depends on people, customers.

Keep employees aware of your
business circumstances, their
jobs. They will appreciate it,
and work harder.

In closing, survive a recession
by keeping a positive attitude,
let problem customers go, be
mindful of costs, advertise, and
advise employees of the business
situation, their jobs.

How To Handle A Customer Problem

Be fair, attentive, and customers
will return.

It's not always easy to handle a
customer problem, but it's a part
of during business. This is the
time to show patience, understanding.

It's extremely important to listen.

"What if they get irate?" You
asked.

Let a customer vent.
Face it, in this economic
down-turn, he or she can
take their business
elsewhere.

Don't allow yourself to get
into a word battle. You're
there to resolve the
customer's problem, and
have he/she spread nice
comments about you,
your business.
It's called free advertising.

Let customers say
what they have to.

Don't give excuses.
Apologize. Be professional.
Start working on the problem,
immediately.

Explain what the customer
can expect. If necessary,
pull in someone else to help
resolve the problem.

If at any moment you feel
the need to be confrontational,
stop. Tell the customer
you'd like to find out what
happened, etc. Take a few
moments to relax, took a
deep breath.

Be sure to let the customer
know you'll going to work on
the problem. Make the
customer resolution a priority.

Make sure a problem exists.
Or, is it something the customer
misunderstood. Your results
must be explained to the
customer.