Issue #2255
- WEALTHY: Time to give up on China ? (Andrew Gordon)
- HEALTHY: 3 ways to start losing weight (Craig Ballantyne)
- WISE: Jerry Wilson on word-of-mouth marketing
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:
- Who’s talking about you? (MaryEllen Tribby)
- What to do when the superstars you need are working for other companies (Michael Masterson)
- It’s Good to Know… about medication vending machines
- Add "eldritch" to your vocabulary
Have You Heard of "COMMONWEALTH SHARES?"
Today, Brits are among the wealthiest retirees in the world, largely thanks to a 1979 Cold War initiative my colleagues and I call "Commonwealth Shares."
As we recently discovered, you can tap into this little-known situation too – no matter where you live.
Predicting the End of the World’s Biggest Bubble
They come from different worlds. Alan Greenspan has served on company boards but he’s an academic at heart, a respected student of economics and a public servant who was the head of the Fed for 18.5 years.
Warren Buffett – the "Sage of Omaha" – got a masters degree in economics but quickly moved into the business side of investing and running companies. His annual letter to shareholders (of Berkshire Hathaway) is one of the most anticipated events in the investing world.
When Greenspan talks, people listen. When Buffett talks, people invest. They share years spent at Columbia University . Now they share the same opinion of the China market.
Here’s what Greenspan says: " When you don’t expect it, it breaks."
And here is what Buffett says: "It’s easy to be carried away in the stock market when things are going very well.”
It’s not as if these two were the first to mention a Chinese "bubble." They have plenty of company. A bubble – by definition – keeps getting bigger until it pops. If either man has an idea of when that will happen, he’s not saying. And there’s the rub.
Saying China is in a bubble is one thing. Knowing when it’s going to pop is quite another. If it’s next week, you don’t invest. If it’s next year, you do invest.
It’s true that the Chinese economy has its problems. It’s also true that the Chinese market is now very expensive, even if it is trading around 10 percent below its peak reached last year. But the fundamental truth is that the Chinese economy is growing at a double-digit clip and the development of its economy has a long way to go to get where Korea , Taiwan , and Japan were 10 years ago. It’s far too early to give up on China .
[Ed. Note: ETR's Investment Director, Andrew Gordon, is the editor of INCOME, a monthly financial advisory service that uncovers income-generating stocks that promise safety (first and foremost), along with much-higher-than-average profit potential.]
"Like it or not, people are talking about your business all the time."
Jerry Wilson
Use Your Mouth
By MaryEllen Tribby, ETR’s CEO & Publisher
I just finished a book my friend Rich Schefren recommended: Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking by Andy Sernovitz. And what I learned from this book can help you tackle the fastest-growing type of marketing.
Now I did not fall in love with this book. It has some flaws. But I applaud how it shows why customer service and marketing must go hand and hand. And how it explains that deceptive marketing is a very bad policy and that listening and talking to your customers are the best practices you can follow.
We have all heard of B-to-C (business-to-consumer) marketing. And we have all heard of B-to-B (business-to-business) marketing. We have even (more recently) heard of C-to-C (consumer-to-consumer) marketing. But what Word of Mouth Marketing explores is the new world of B-to-C-to-C marketing – business-to-consumer-to-consumer! It’s all about the second hop, the third hop, the fourth hop, and so on.
You may be thinking, "Word of mouth isn’t a new concept. It’s been going on forever. So what’s the big deal?"
What’s new is that word of mouth has evolved from anecdotal to actionable, from something that "just happens" to something you can influence. In fact, because we now have the tools and knowledge to work with it, word of mouth marketing has become the fastest-growing form of marketing.
Word of mouth is about authentic consumer conversation. That means marketers join in a conversation with their customers, participating in it but never manipulating, faking, or degrading its fundamental honesty in any way.
Mr. Sernovitz simplistically explains that there are five T’s to word of mouth marketing:
1. Talkers: Finding people who will talk about you
Talkers are any group of people who have enthusiasm and the connections to relay your message. Talkers are regular people, your best customers.
Recently, I attended a seminar in Atlanta – along with about 2,500 other people. Jim, the very first person I met, asked me what I did. When I told him I run an affiliate company for Agora, he said, "Oh, I know them. The only publication I read is Early to Rise." We spoke at length about how ETR has helped him grow his business, how he has told friends and industry colleagues about ETR, and how many of those folks are now ETR fans.
Jim is a great example of a talker for ETR.
You just don’t find talkers… you cultivate them. People talk about you for two reasons: They either had a very good experience with your company or they had a very bad experience. Either way, by responding to their comments you can turn them into big marketers for your company. Here’s how to do it:
- Acknowledge your mistakes. Charlie Byrne recently wrote about a major screw-up we made last year and how we did not try to sweep it under the rug. Instead, we not only apologized to the 144 customers it affected, we corrected the problem and thanked them for staying with us. Since then, we have heard from several of those people. They not only thanked us for correcting our mistake, they told us that they have since recommended ETR to several people they know.
- Acknowledge compliments. Many people think that if someone pays you a compliment, a response is not necessary. This could not be further from the truth. That person took the first step by making a comment. Now you need to seize the opportunity to turn her into a talker. You do this by replying to your customers’ letters, e-mails, and forum postings.
- Acknowledge your fans. Sometimes you can turn a person into a talker just by talking to them first. Look for signs of extreme enthusiasm. Look for customers who frequently attend the events you sponsor or know the names of your employees or wear your logo.
For example, while visiting my husband’s family in Long Island last summer, I saw a man on the beach with an Early to Rise hat on. I was so excited, I went over to him and introduced myself. Noticing the confusion on his face, I said, "I run ETR… as in the hat you have on." Well, he told me it was his buddy’s hat, and he just liked the color.
I apologized for bothering him, and went back to building sandcastles with my kid. An hour later, a different man came up to me and told me it was his hat… and that he has been reading ETR for years.
"Steve" and I talked for a while about his Internet business. And when I got back to the office, I asked Sharika Kellogg (ETR’s Customer Service Manager) to look up his address – and I sent him a personal note and a new hat. I’m pretty sure Steve is now a talker.
2. Topics: Giving people a reason to talk
All word of mouth starts with creating a message that spreads. In other words, with a good, clear idea that’s easy to repeat.
Whenever we hire a new team member, we stress Michael Masterson’s Ready, Fire, Aim philosophy. We write about Ready, Fire, Aim in ETR and speak about it at the events we sponsor, so all of our customers can benefit from it. And, in fact, last April, when we were reviewing videos of the attendees who were coming to Michael Masterson’s business-building retreat, video after video showed them repeating this mantra.
The reason Ready, Fire, Aim works is because it is short and sweet. It was developed around a single idea that is easy to repeat. And it’s a concept that not only resonates with entrepreneurs but has been proven to work time after time.
Good topics are organic. They are based on the exceptional qualities that make your products stand out. They flow naturally from the products’ attributes, without needing to be pushed by marketing.
3. Tools: Helping the message spread faster and further
Non info-publishing, info-marketing companies have been doing this for years. Dining establishments spread the word by handing out 2 for 1 coupons. Cosmetics companies give away free samples. Apartment complexes offer one month’s free rent. Phone companies give you a $50 credit for referring a friend. And so on.
But with the Internet, it has never been faster, easier, or cheaper. Just think about it. How many times have you read something online and forwarded it to not just one or two friends, colleagues, or relatives but five or 10? And that’s without any marketing push. If you have a "Forward to a Friend" or "Tell a Friend" button at the bottom of your e-mailed publication, you’re adding exponential marketing power to it.
At Early to Rise , we are big fans of forums and message boards. We have the Speak Out forum for all of our subscribers. And immediately after an ETR event (like our fall Bootcamp or our July Internet marketing conference), we post an attendees-only password-protected forum. This encourages likeminded people to share ideas, problems, and solutions. Plus, it allows us to "listen in on" and participate in their conversations.
We love to find out what our customers are saying, because it helps us better understand their needs. If you ask me, any company that believes in their products and employees will have forums. Forums not only facilitate communication, they increase accountability.
ETR gets an "A" for forum usage. But, right now, we get a "C" for "Forward to a Friend."
I’d been asking our corporate Web guys for a "Forward to a Friend" tool for months. Like everything else, it’s had to go on a long list of things we want. But I finally got so fed up with waiting, I asked some internal team members to test the "Forward to a Friend" option (without our corporate Web guys) on our sister publication, Total Health Breakthroughs. As a result, you can expect to see this feature in ETR soon.
4. Taking Part: Joining the conversation
Once you have reached out to real people and encouraged them to talk, there is no turning back. You must join the conversation. You must reply to e-mails, accept comments on your blog, participate in the discussion board, answer the phone.
Joining the conversation is even more powerful when it is public. For years, we have been publishing readers’ comments and questions in ETR. We understand that if one of our readers is struggling and takes the time to ask for help, we need to (1) acknowledge that and (2) share our advice with others who may be in the same situation.
Again, if your customers are complimenting you, thank them. If customers are saying negative things, find out why and fix the problem.
There is no better focus group than your customers. Yes, you will get crazies every once in a while – and you may need to hire outside resources to communicate with them on your company’s behalf. But, at the same time, you are earning the respect and recommendations of your customers and building long-term lasting relationships with them… as long as you are helpful, truthful, thankful, and nice.
5. Tracking: Measuring and understanding what people are saying
Because of the popularity of blogs and online communities, people are writing down nearly every thought they have about your company. And because these B-to-C-to-C conversations are written down, they are easy to find and easy to track. You can find every comment about you and your company moments after it is written. And monitoring that online communication allows you to understand what your customers really think about you, your marketing, and your products.
There are wonderful online tools – such as Google Alert and Technorati – that can help you monitor your word of mouth. They are at your fingertips, and they are instant and free.
Start right now. Don’t make any marketing decisions without considering the potential for word of mouth. Ad agencies, media executives, and reporters no longer control the message. Real consumers with real communication power have added their voices to the mix. And their voices are drowning out traditional media. A single consumer voice, in the end, has a huge impact on your company’s future.
Word of mouth will become more and more important to our business at ETR as the Internet continues to expand. But I am still a firm believer in the importance of direct-response marketing. The best thing you can do for your company is to successfully incorporate multiple methods into your overall marketing strategy. You’ll maximize your efforts, build your customer base, and reap the profits.
[Ed. Note: You can meet all your marketing objectives - and achieve all your personal, social, financial, and business goals - with the help of ETR's Total Success Achievement Program. Learn more by clicking here.]
How Many Automatic Income Streams Can YOU Handle?
The Internet has now come of age as the most incredible marketing tool in history.
Think about it for a moment… It’s possible to spend no more than a fiver, write a couple of basic ads, and have instant access to over millions of potential customers all in a matter of minutes!
This has created a real “sink or swim” situation. Those who master Internet secrets will profit massively. Those who don’t are simply doomed to sit on the sidelines and watch others make the real money.
Jim Sheridan’s plan banked him $187,296 in one day. The great news is – you can copy Jim’s plan exactly. The program is called Instant Internet Income and I guarantee it does exactly what it says it does.
Take a look at how Jim brought in over $187,000 in a single day!
- Patrick Coffey
Creating Your Own Superstars
Your goal should be to have only two kinds of employees: stars and superstars . Stars are workers who show up on time, ready to get going and enthusiastically put in a full day of work for you, always putting your customers’ interests first. Superstars have all the good qualities of stars, but they also possess the rare ability to create corporate growth.
Everyone who is answering your phones, configuring your data, making your products, handling customer problems, and processing and fulfilling orders should be a star employee. And everyone who is managing all those stars should be a star, too.
The growth side of your business should be manned by superstars, for only superstars are capable of creating and marketing innovative ideas. You also need superstars to create and manage your profits.
You won’t find many stars and superstars in the job market. That’s because they are already working happily for other people. You might be able to poach a few, but for the most part you will have to create your own. The way to create stars and superstars is by hiring their untrained counterparts: very good and great people.
Very good people turn into stars, and great people turn into superstars, as long as you provide them with the training and mentoring they deserve.
[Ed. Note: The above is an excerpt from Michael Masterson's brand-new book, Ready, Fire, Aim: Zero to $100 Million in No Time Flat , published with permission of John Wiley & Sons. In the book - which has already hit #1 on Amazon's list of best-selling books - Michael shows how veteran and rookie entrepreneurs alike can take their businesses to the next level. You'll learn how to identify and solve the problems that crop up during each stage of a company's growth... and how to take advantage of profit opportunities along the way. Order your copy of Ready, Fire, Aim now.]
Praise for Ready, Fire, Aim : "I’m buying a copy for every one of my managers."
"I read Ready, Fire, Aim cover to cover without stopping. I am buying a copy for every one of my managers."
- Julia Guth, Director
The Oxford Club
[Ed. Note: You can have the chance to pick the brains of MaryEllen Tribby and Michael Masterson over lunch. (And get a free trip to Florida!) Click here to learn how.]
Boomers’ Body Fat About to Boom
Losing weight doesn’t get any easier with age. But if America ’s baby boomers don’t start shedding pounds, they will be the most overweight senior citizens in history.
Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health looked at the data and then peered into their crystal balls to forecast the future. They concluded that if current trends continue, the prevalence of obesity in 2010 will reach 35 percent, 36 percent, 33 percent, and 55 percent among white men, white women, black men, and black women, respectively.
There will be 9.3 million more obese adults between the ages of 20 to 74 in 2010 than there were in 2000, with 8.3 million over 50 years of age. You can avoid becoming one of them by eating properly and exercising regularly.
Here are three tips to help you get started losing fat right now…
1. Write out three short-term goals, focusing on actions you can control. One, for example, could be to go to the gym three times per week.
2. Eliminate all liquid calories from your diet. This can lead to fast and permanent weight loss.
3. Start exercising with a friend. Having this social support system will help you stick to your program.
[Ed. Note: Fitness expert Craig Ballantyne is the creator of the Turbulence Training for Fat Loss system. For a free online source of information, motivation, and social support to help you improve your health, lose weight, and get fit, sign up for ETR's free natural health e-letter.]
It’s Good to Know: Medication Vending Machines
Trips to the pharmacist could become a thing of the past, thanks to one U.S. company. InstyMeds has created medication vending machines that hold 100 common prescription drugs. Their goal is to place these machines in doctors’ offices, clinics, and other healthcare facilities. Doctors will be able to transmit prescriptions electronically to the vending machines. To retrieve their meds, patients will enter a code and some personal information on a touch screen, and swipe a credit card or insert cash. The machine also sends the appropriate information to the patient’s insurance company. InstyMeds says several safeguards are in place to prevent the wrong medication from being dispensed.
(Source: Springwise)
Are You Ready for a Thrilling, Positive Change In Your Life?
This may be the life-changing opportunity you’ve been waiting for. If you continue doing everything the same way, you’re going to get the same results. You must make a change TODAY to see a change in 2008.
I’d like to show you how to dramatically increase the chances of making all your dreams – whatever they may be – come true in 2008.
- Charlie Byrne
Word to the Wise: Eldritch
"Eldritch" (EL-drich) means strange or unearthly. The word is believed to be derived from a Middle English word meaning "fairyland."
Example (as used by Thom Stark in an issue of Boardwatch ): " In the eldritch light of evening in Nevada ’s Black Rock Desert , the eye plays tricks on the brain."
[Ed. Note: Become a more persuasive writer and speaker ... build your self-confidence and intellect ... increase your attractiveness to others ... just by spending 10 VERY enjoyable minutes a day with ETR's new Words to the Wise CD Library.]
Michael Masterson
Copyright ETR, LLC, 2007
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Is it true that negative word of mouth is spread twenty times more than positive because an un-happy customer needs to vent their displeasure?
I’m always amazed when customer service reps
choose to be right and tick off the customer.