Basic Negotiating Tips

We all negotiate in our personal and professional lives. We negotiate when we go to a garage sale, or when we want to do something different at work, or when we are dealing with members of the public.

Sometimes its easy to negotiate, but other times, when we have a great deal at stake or we are upset, the task can be intimidating or difficult.

Trying To Win At All Costs

If you "win" there must be a loser, and that can create more difficulty down the road. The best perspective in negotiation is to try to find a solution where both parties "win". Try not to view negotiation as a contest that must be won.

Becoming Emotional

It's normal to become emotional during negotiation that is important. However, as we get more emotional, we are less able to channel our negotiating behaviour in constructive ways. It is important to maintain control.

Not Trying To Understand The Other Person

Since we are trying to find a solution acceptable to both parties, we need to understand the other person's needs, and wants with respect to the issue. If we don't know what the person needs or wants, we will be unable to negotiate properly. Often, when we take the time to find out about the other person, we discover that there is no significant disagreement.

Focusing On Personalities, Not Issues

Particularly with people we don't like much, we have a tendency to get off track by focusing on how difficult or obnoxious the person seems. Once this happens, effective negotiation is impossible. It is important to stick to the issues, and put aside our degree of like or dislike for the individual.

Solicit The Other's Perspective

In a negotiating situation use questions to find out what the other person's concerns and needs might be. You might try:
What do you need from me on this?
What are your concerns about what I am suggesting / asking?

When you hear the other person express their needs or concerns, use listening responses to make sure you heard correctly.
For example: So, you are saying that you are worried that you will get lost in the shuffle and we will forget about you...Is that right?
I

f I have this right, you want to make sure that the phones are covered over lunch?
State Your Needs
The other person needs to know what you need. It is important to state not only what you need but why you need it. Often disagreement may exist regarding the method for solving an issue, but not about the overall goal.
For example:
I would like an hour on Tuesday to go to the doctor. I want to make sure I am healthy so I can contribute better to the organization.
Prepare Options Beforehand Before entering into a negotiating session, prepare some options that you can suggest if your preferred solution is not acceptable. Anticipate why the other person may resist your suggestion, and be prepared to counter with an alternative.

Don't Argue

Negotiating is about finding solutions...Arguing is about trying to prove the other person wrong. We know that when negotiating turns into each party trying to prove the other one wrong, no progress gets made. Don't waste time arguing. If you disagree with something state your disagreement in a gentle but assertive way. Don't demean the other person or get into a power struggle.

Consider Timing

There are good times to negotiate and bad times. Bad times include those situations where there is:
. a high degree of anger on either side
. preoccupation with something else
. a high level of stress
. tiredness on one side or the other
Time negotiations to avoid these times. If they arise during negotiations a time-out/rest period is in order, or perhaps rescheduling to a better time.

Source:www.work911.com

Blogging’s a Low-Cost, High Return Marketing Tool

TO its true believers at small businesses, it is a low-cost, high-return tool that can handle marketing and public relations, raise the company profile and build the brand.

That tool is blogging, though small businesses with blogs are still a distinct minority. A recent American Express survey found that only 5 percent of businesses with fewer than 100 employees have blogs. Other experts put the number slightly higher.

But while blogs may be useful to many more small businesses, even blogging experts do not recommend it for the majority. Guy Kawasaki, a serial entrepreneur, managing partner of Garage Technology Ventures and a prolific blogger, put it this way: “If you’re a clothing manufacturer or a restaurant, blogging is probably not as high on your list as making good food or good clothes.”

Blogging requires a large time commitment and some writing skills, which not every small business has on hand.

But some companies are suited to blogging. The most obvious candidates, said Aliza Sherman Risdahl, author of “The Everything Blogging Book” are consultants.

“They are experts in their fields and are in the business of telling people what to do.”
For other companies, Ms. Risdahl said, it can be challenging to find a legitimate reason for blogging unless the sector served has a steep learning curve (like wine), a lifestyle associated with certain products or service (like camping gear or pet products) or a social mission (like improving the environment or donating a portion of revenues to charity)

Even in those niches, Ms. Risdahl said that companies need to focus on a strategy for their blogging and figure out if they have enough to say. “As a consultant, blogging clearly helps you get hired,” she said. “If you are selling a product, you have to be much more creative because people don’t want to read a commercial.”

Sarah E. Endline, chief executive of sweetriot, which makes organic chocolate snacks, said she started blogging a few months before starting her company in 2005 to give people a behind-the-scenes look at the business. The kind of transparency is a popular reason for blogging, particularly for companies that want to be identified as mission-oriented or socially responsible.
A typical post on sweetriot’s blog described the arrival of the company’s first cacao shipment from South America and how Ms. Endline met the truck on Labor Day weekend after it passed through customs at Kennedy International Airport.

She wrote about climbing aboard to inspect the goods and then praised the owner of Gateway trucking company, who helped her sort through the boxes so that she could examine the product.

For companies in the technology sector, having a blog is pretty much expected. Still, Tony Stubblebine, the founder and chief executive of CrowdVine, a company that builds social networks for conferences, said that one of his main reasons for blogging is to show that his business model is different from the typical technology start-up.

“Everyone in Silicon Valley is focused on venture capital funding and having an exit strategy,” he said. “Because I’m not focused on raising money, I can focus on my customers, since they aren’t a stepping stone to some acquisition or I.P.O.”

He added: “I’m trying to create a community of help for small Internet businesses like mine. My blogging philosophy is like the open source model in software. It’s sort of a hippie concept. If I can help other people, it’s personally rewarding. And those people will likely pay it back in some ways.”

Many small business bloggers achieve their goals even if only a handful or a few hundred people read their blogs. But some companies aim much higher.

Denali Flavors, an ice cream manufacturing company in Michigan that licenses its flavors to other stores, for example, is a small company with a limited ad budget. It decided to use a series of blogs to build brand awareness for Moose Tracks, its most popular flavor of ice cream.

John Nardini, who runs marketing for Denali and is responsible for the company’s blogs, said he has experimented over the last few years with different types of blogs to see which would generate the most traffic. One blog followed a Denali-sponsored bicycle team that was raising money for an orphanage in Latvia. Another tracked the whereabouts of a Moose character that would show up at famous landmarks around the country.

But by far the most successful blog, in terms of traffic, turned out to be Free Money Finance, a blog that has nothing to do with Denali’s business. Mr. Nardini’s plan was to create a blog with so much traffic that it could serve as an independent media outlet owned by Denali Flavors, where the company could be the sole sponsor and advertiser.

He chose personal finance because it is a popular search category on the Web and because he knew he would not tire of posting about it. And post he does, about five times each weekday.
He uses free tools like Google Analytics and Site Meter to understand how people are finding the site and which key words are working. Free Money Finance receives about 4,500 visits a day and each visitor views about two pages, which means they see two ads for Moose Tracks ice cream. The effort costs about $400 a year, excluding Mr. Nardini’s salary.

The site also accepts advertising, which earns the company about $30,000 to $40,000 a year, all of which Denali donates to charity. “We run ads because it legitimizes the site; it’s really not about the money,” Mr. Nardini said. “We’re hoping people will go into Pathmark, see the Moose Tracks logo and say, ‘Hey, I just saw that on the Web site I go to every day.’ ”

Is Marketing and Advertising the Same Thing?

Advertising is one of the most important components of a marketing strategy and also the most expensive. Advertising constitutes sending the message to the public about your company, product or services. It also constitutes ‘behind the scenes' work, like the process of involving a formation of various strategies and coming up with a right one to target the viewers. This strategizing consists of planning things like placing ads, deciding what media outlet to use, what time, frequency etc. The advertisements are generally placed via mediums like television, snail mail, newspapers, internet, emails, radio, magazines, mobile messaging, flyers, billboards etc. The most popular is of course television, although advertising on internet is becoming increasingly popular too. The easiest way to differentiate advertising from marketing is to consider marketing as if it were a whole cake. If you cut the cake in pieces, advertising would be one of the pieces of that cake. The other pieces of that cake are market research of the product, product designing, media planning, PR, product pricing, customer satisfaction, customer support, sales and many more. All these components or pieces of cake should work independently but collectively in achieving the bigger goal i.e. sell product and build the company's reputation in the marketplace. Marketing is a marathon process involving many tasks that involve hours, sometimes days of research. The research part of marketing takes the longest time to complete, as it involves thoroughly understanding the behavior of people towards a product. Designing the product and developing advertising strategy is also a time consuming process. The only components that take less time are executing the advertisements and sales. Marketing can also be perceived as a medium between consumers and the company. Many companies often make the mistake of confusing advertising with marketing. They try to appear to be as big as companies like Coke and Pepsi in advertising but they simply ignore the work that goes behind that. A classical example of this is to take a look at the company logo. Many business owners are so hysterical about the logo of their company in their advertisements that they think that it will simply bring in huge sales. But what makes a logo work is none other than the reputation of the company. The logo must have a feeling attached to it and should truly reflect the company's values. We should also remember that some companies spend fortunes on advertising, which a new start up business just can't normally do. Rather than spending unnecessary money on branding your product, one should invest money and time in communicating to the consumers to address the expectations. After building up a reputation and growing a company, you can begin to think up these lavish ideas. Educating the consumers also helps, as it will give them an understanding that you know what your doing and you are the best at what you are doing. Smart marketers are aggressive in approach rather than passive. They provoke reader's minds by prompting them to do something, rather than just making them knowledgeable of the product. Smart marketers also bring home the names, addresses and contact numbers of people who are really interested in hiring your company by employing aggressive marketing. Thus, having a good marketing campaign speaks a lot about a company and their products. Advertising gives that finishing touch to the hard work completed by marketers successfully selling a product.

Top 7 Leadership Mistakes

Leadership and management skills are something that rarely come naturally for most people. But if you follow some basic rules and are willing to learn how to work with people you will have things running much more smoothly in the workplace in no time.Here's a list of some the things you should NOT be doing.

Neglecting workers

Your workers ARE your business and they have to be treated that way. Failing to send this message to workers can be a financial and productivity drag for any business. Our workers are people with feelings and emotions and have to be told in many ways how important they are to

the company.

Not being able to handle criticism

Just because you're in a leadership position does not mean that you suddenly become immune to making the wrong decisions. As a leader you have to listen to constructive criticism and make the changes necessary. If a worker cares enough to share criticism, the least you can do is listen.

Unable to delegate responsibilities

This is often a problem for small business owner / managers. We have to trust that our workers can do the things we have done for so long. If they really can't do the job because a particular skill is needed, then get them the training required or hire someone that can. A big part of leadership and management is about making sure that things run smoothly and efficiently, and that does not mean running from job to job doing everything ourselves!

Knowing everything

Many of the world's greatest leaders are people of average intelligence that don't know all there is to know in their industry. They understand that they can't possibly know everything and they hire people that do know everything! The success of any business is in the hands of its workers and the leading managers and entrepreneurs of the world all strive to hire the best in their field.

Procrastination

Putting something off till tomorrow that should be done today! Often procrastination is a result of having no plan or list of priorities. Look into time management and goal setting for more ideas on how to overcome procrastination.

Lack of focus

Obviously there will be things come up during the day that require immediate action that will distract us from our work, but we have to have a clear set of priorities to follow. Doing a little bit of everything gets nothing finished, causing stress and feelings of being overwhelmed.

Afraid to change

The ability to change in business is essential. Changes in technology, the way we deal with people, the way we present the business, and in every other aspect of running and operating the company. Holding on to old ways of doing things just because they've always been done that way is a sure way to lose business. If any aspect of the business can be improved then there has to be change, even if this means getting rid of a poor performing worker or product range that is no longer profitable.

As a manager or leader you have to treat your business like a garden. Continue to water, fertilize and weed your garden and it will continue to reap a quality harvest year after yea

By Kristine Geimure in http://www.woopidoo.com/

The Do's and Don'ts on How to Ask for a Pay Raise

Asking for a pay rise can be a stressful and worrying prospect. However more and more we are forced to go beyond the boundaries of company reviews and request more money as individual bargaining becomes more commonplace. Here is a simple list of Do's and Don't to help you get that raise!

DO

1. Arrange your meeting in advance.

It is a good idea to prepare your boss for the meeting rather than just marching into their office because you have had enough and want that pay rise now! If you place the meeting to link in with something like the completion of a project especially one you were involved in heavily it may produce better results.

2. Do your homework well in advance.

Before you meet you should have a clear record of your achievements with your company that you can quote from to prove your worth. Do not go overboard with this however, keep it simple and concise and if possible provide testimonials from happy customers or managers within your company.

3. Think about your demands from the boss's point of view.

Why do you deserve this pay rise? Why would your boss give you this pay rise? Your boss must be convinced of the merit of giving away more money to you so you must ask what factors would influence his or her decision. Have you brought financial benefits to your company or helped your department in significant ways with new ideas or procedures?

4. Explain how a pay rise will help the company.

When a company considers giving you more money they must not only be convinced of your past merits but what benefits you will bring to the company in the future. You should be able to explain what you will do for the company over the next year or two that will make their investment in you worthwhile. However do not over commit yourself with unreasonable boasts you cannot fulfill.

5. Investigate salaries.

Try to find out what people in comparable positions in the firm or at rival companies earn. Look at job ads in newspapers or on the internet. Trade magazines frequently carry out salary surveys.

6. Be open-minded.

Pay is only one part of a package your company offers you. Sometimes your boss may refuse you a pay rise for a variety of reasons but may be well disposed to giving further benefits such as medical cover, life insurance, extra bonuses, share options and many more. Sometimes these benefits may be worth more in the long run than a simple pay rise!

DON'T

1. Expect too much.

Rates of pay may be on the increase but most companies deal with pay rises and promotions in a standard way of annual pay reviews. If you want your case to be treated as special and outside of the normal review you must be sure your reasons are very good.

2. Approach your boss at the wrong time.

Make sure you do not approach your boss just before a stressful meeting or after your company issues a profit warning. The mood your boss is in and the constraints and pressures he is under will affect things greatly.

3. Expect your boss to offer you a pay rise as a matter of course.

If you do not advertise your worth to the company in some way your achievements will hardly be recognized. Make sure your supervisors and managers know who you are and what good work you do. Do not go too far though as boasting will not earn you too many friends.

4. Plead on emotional grounds or get confrontational.

Just because you have a baby on the way or are buying a new house does not mean the boss will grant you more money. You still have to prove you deserve the promotion. Companies exist to make money and are not charities.

5. Threaten to walk out if you are turned down.

You are not indispensable no matter what you think. This also shows a lack of commitment to your company and will not go down well. If you do not get your raise now try to set a date to review your pay in the future as another option.

Be confident and Good luck!

from:ezinearticles.com

Your Greatest Asset

Your greatest asset is your own customer list. These people have already purchased something from you in the past. If you've delivered as satisfactory product, they are very likely to buy from you again.


The easiest sale you'll ever make is to an already established customer of yours. They already trust you. They feel comfortable in dealing with you. You've delivered what you said you would so a certain degree of trust has already been established. Your customers are probably quite confident that you wouldn't sell them something that wasn't in their best interest.

The high road to increased profits always takes the route of established customers. There's always an expense associated with finding a new customer. Regardless of the marketing method used there's always an investment required in establishing a customer whether in terms of real dollars or human capital. Once you have a customer, any subsequent sale is made without the cost of locating that customer. The cost or finding a new customer is proportionally much higher than the cost of retaining an existing customer.

Keys To Success

The secret of capitalizing on your customer base is to continually feed them with new products and services you know they'll want. This is no time to diversify into completely new areas. Everything that you make available to your customer list must be compatible with what made those people customers to begin with.

Whatever subsequent products and services you offer must be related in some way. Think of your customers as belonging to a specific group. They're gardeners or small business owners or health enthusiasts. Whatever you offer must fit that product niche.

Always be on the lookout for new things you think your customers would gladly pay for. And give customers first crack at any of these new products and services. If you can offer a discount, that's even better. By letting them in on new products and services, you're giving them priority customer status, an added value of doing business with your firm.

Be careful not to overdo it. You don't want to annoy anyone, least of all your customers. Allow enough time and space between customer contacts. How much time you allow between mailings or calls depends on the nature of your business.

Examples

When a clothing store receives a shipment of new designs, they should first notify all previous customers who've purchased in the same price range. All the store has to do is contact these customers by phone or by mailing invitations to a special event where this new line is unveiled. Suggest to customers how additional new outfits can be created by mixing and matching and you've provided an extra service that will help retain customers.

This approach would seem natural for a wholesaler who relies on distributors or retailers to act as re-sellers. By showing your new merchandise and suggesting ways to move more of it, you're providing a valuable service while keeping in touch with your customers.

A self-published author of book on camping tips, should come up with natural additions to his product line to sell to buyers of his book. Things like maps of parks, local facilities, lists of "must-see sites" or specialty camping equipment, could all be add-ons made available to the author's buyers.

One final note; in order to start making more sales and build your business empire – you must become an avid student of lead generation and marketing strategy – the high-payoff items necessary for you to magnetically attact new clients to skyrocket your profits.

By John Hoer from: www.articlecity.com

Affordable and Effective Promotional Products

Promotional products do not have to be expensive in order to be effective. There are many different types of affordable items available which are ideal for companies wishing to convey their message to a wide audience on a limited budget.

Low cost promotional products are frequently used as giveaways at events, such as trade shows, conferences, sporting events or fundraising events, where they can be handed out in large numbers to promote a company and to raise brand awareness.

Examples include pens, pencils, keyrings, mugs, coasters, badges, bookmarks, lanyards, confectionery, umbrellas and stress relief balls.

Pens are one of the best-selling promotional products, with a range of styles starting at under £1 each. Another highly effective yet affordable promotional product is the mug, which is available in a wide choice of styles, colours and materials even at the lower end of the price spectrum. Umbrellas are widely recognised as one of the most popular promotional products - appreciated for their practicality - with unit prices starting below £5.

All of these can be easily personalised by overprinting with a company name, logo or campaign slogan. Even when sourcing budget promotional products it is important to remember, however, that low unit costs should not mean a compromise on product quality.

Most people enjoy receiving something for free, especially if it is fun or useful. Inexpensive promotional products do not necessarily have to be boring as there is an extensive range of attention-grabbing items available to choose from. In fact, the least expensive marketing promotions are sometimes the most effective.