The Advantages of Running an Ethical Business
Issue #1979
- WEALTHY: Want to be a millionaire? (Andrew Gordon)
- HEALTHY: Is this the reason you can’t lose weight? (Jon Herring)
- WISE: Shakespeare on honesty
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:
- The wrong customers for the right product (Michael Masterson)
- Feedback Friday: ETR readers address the censorship question
- It’s Good to Know… about driving on the left
- Add "wonky" to your vocabulary
He’d Have Called Them Crazy – Or Worse!
With the Internet, it’s now possible to spend no more than a few dollars, write a couple of very basic ads, and have instant access to millions of potential customers all in a matter of minutes.
If anyone had told Jim Sheridan he could bank thousands in just 24 hours. . . without any product of his own. . . without spending a penny on getting it or promoting it, he’d have justifiably said they were nuts.
But Jim made a decision that he would overcome his skeptical nature and give it a go. Boy, is he glad he did! That one deal alone 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 $175,000 in a single day!
- Patrick Coffey
Asia: Your Fast Track to HNWI Status
By Andrew M. Gordon
A million dollars may not be what it used to be, but becoming a millionaire still has advantages – like financial freedom and the opportunity to live as you please. Nothing to sneeze at. And your chances of becoming a millionaire are higher now than ever before.
According to a Merrill Lynch and Capgemini World Wealth Report, the number of high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) worldwide reached 8.7 million in 2005. That’s a 6.5 percent jump from 2004.
An HNWI is someone who has net financial assets (excluding primary residences and consumables) of at least U.S. $1 million. To increase your chances of reaching that millionaire mark, consider looking overseas for business and investment opportunities – particularly in the Asia Pacific region, where the twin drivers of market capitalization and GDP (gross domestic product) are helping to grow the numbers of HNWIs. (Both domestic and foreign investors saw big gains. And in South Korea, to give you just one example, the number of millionaires rose 21.3 percent in 2005.)
Asian customers love American stuff. "Made in America" flies off the shelves. But the most important selling that American companies do in Asia isn’t to their customers but to their potential partners.
Selling and doing business is very top-down in Asia. (When I launched a global business there, I worked with retired generals, the sons and daughters of active generals, powerful politicians, and their closest relatives.) People with market muscle won’t partner with you because they like you, they’ll only partner with you if they think they can make a million bucks by doing so. If you can convince them of that, you’ve taken the most important step to making a million bucks yourself.
The growth of millionaire legions proves that the goal of a seven-figure net worth is no longer so lofty or unreachable – for both investors and business owners. How long will it take you to join their ranks?
[Ed. Note: Andrew Gordon is Editor, Chief Analyst, and Head of Research for The Wealth Advantage, ETR's investment research and advisory service. Get on the fast track to millionaire status with Andrew as he scours the investment landscape each month for companies that promise massive hidden value and a huge upside for growth.]
"Honesty is the best policy. If I lose mine honor, I lose myself."
William Shakespeare
The Advantages of Running an Ethical Business
By Michael Masterson
I recently got a letter from a small-business owner and "avid reader of Early To Rise" who is struggling with an ethical question.
This woman, whom I’ll call "Renee" to protect her identity, is successfully selling investment software to customers, but she has discovered that 85 percent of them are trading accounts of $10,000 or less. She says that she knows from previous experience as a broker that it is very difficult to make money with such a small capital base. She wants to know how she can continue to sell the software, knowing that most of her customers "are not going to have a profitable experience because they are starting off too small."
I am very grateful for Renee’s question. It’s a question all businesspeople face in one way or another some time during their working life.
The answer is easy. Selling bad products to your customers (or good products to customers that can’t take advantage of them) is a very bad idea.
It may seem like a smart thing to do – if, that is, you have no scruples. But if you have a conscience, the shame of what you are doing will take its toll on you. And the expense of that toll will be far greater than whatever monetary compensation the business is likely to bring you.
And even if you don’t have a conscience, it is still not a good idea to sell products and services that can’t help your customers. In the long run, you will end up working harder and harder to make the same amount of money (whatever it is), because your customer base will be constantly slipping away – like sand running through a sieve.
There is, indeed, a sucker born every minute – but most suckers get wise after being cheated. And they will pay you back by badmouthing you to everyone they can, including regulators that have the power to put you out of business.
I understand Renee’s temptation to come up with a rationale to keep selling her software programs. They are well designed. The advertising isn’t false. And she isn’t holding a gun to her customers’ heads … they are choosing to buy from her.
The only problem is that the wrong kind of customer is buying the programs. In fact, most of the buyers are the wrong kind.
I have several clients in the investment advisory business, and I know that it is impossible (as well as impractical) to screen every customer and weed out those who, for whatever reason, are not suited for a particular service that you sell. Nevertheless, you have to make an effort.
Renee has to tell her buyers, before she accepts their money, that her program will not work for them unless they are prepared to have a minimum of X number of dollars in their accounts. She has to disclose the risks, all the risks, in plain English and standard-size type. And she has to offer, and honor, a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee.
If she does all that and then, upon auditing her customer base, discovers that a significant portion of them are still under-funding their accounts, she will have to start screening them on the phone. If her program is expensive – as I imagine it is – she will be able to afford to do that.
No matter what you’re selling, if you determine that you’re attracting the wrong kind of customers for your product, change your product into something that would be suitable for the customers you are attracting. If you don’t think you know how to do that, you don’t know enough about your business to be successful on a long-term basis.
[Ed. Note: Learn how you can be part of an exclusive group of 25 to 50 ambitious businesspeople that Michael will be leading through an elite 5-day program that can help you dramatically increase the profitability of your business here.]
“Would you rather go to the driving range, get a massage, or have a cocktail?”
Perhaps not every conversation you have will be about wealth building while you’re at the famous Miami Doral Golf Resort & Spa.
But you can place money on the fact that your time there while attending the 2007 Real Estate Wealth Builders Summit will leave your head exploding with ideas to efficiently grow your real estate wealth. You’ll be getting practical “how to” advice from a dozen of the nation’s leading real estate entrepreneurs, each with specific expertise in…
- Commercial Real Estate
- Apartment House Investing
- Identifying Deep-Value Markets
- Tax Avoidance Strategies
- Private Money Lending
- International Real Estate
- Foreclosure Investing
- And much, much more…
Redeem your ETR registration fee discount now – and get ready to enjoy this exclusive retreat.
The "Fat-Makes-You-Fat" Myth Is Only Half Right
By Jon Herring
Some fats will increase your risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease and cause you to gain weight. But healthy fats can not only improve your cardiovascular health and reduce your risk of cancer, but even help you lose weight.
Many processed foods and conventionally raised meats contain high levels of omega-6 fatty acids. While essential in small amounts, too much of these fats can raise your risk of disease and increase the accumulation of fat on your body. Omega-3 fatty acids – found in fatty fish, fish oil, walnuts, hemp seed, and flax seed oil – have the opposite effect.
The Journal of Nutrition published one study where rats that ate diets supplemented with DHA, one of the omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil, had a decrease in body fat mass. Other laboratory studies indicate the reasons for this result. For one thing, DHA prevents undifferentiated cells from becoming preadipocytes (precursors to fat cells). Plus, it inhibits the fat storage capacity of adipocytes (the cells that store fat).
So, not only does DHA decrease the total number of fat cells, it also diminishes the fat-storage ability of existing fat cells.
If you eat a lot of processed food and conventionally raised meats, you are probably consuming far too many omega-6 fats and too few omega-3s. If you are carrying too much fat on your body, that is probably at least part of your problem.
The best source (by far) of DHA is fish oil. NOT flax seed oil. The brand I recommend is Carlson’s Lemon Flavored. You can find it online or at most health food stores.
Feedback Friday: Addressing the Censorship Question
Should the postings on a forum or blog be censored? Michael recently tackled this issue in his article "The Censorship Question" – and many ETR readers wrote in to comment on it. Here’s a sampling…
"I’m of the opinion blog comments should be left uncensored – especially corporate blogs. Forums are a bit different though.
"I think the posting policy on private and public forums should be roughly outlined by the forum owner, but made concrete by way of community polls. Ultimately, the forum community should decided what is and isn’t acceptable. While you own the forum, you are still at the mercy of the folks who frequent it. If they stop coming, or the forum is dominated by just a few dominant personalities, your wonderful market research tool becomes useless.
"I really enjoyed this particular article in ETR. I think the articles where your staff’s personal opinions are shared – at the risk of offending – give your e-zine some much needed spice. Keep up the good work."
- S.M.
Houston, TX
"I’d bet even Michael would censor a nut case who declares his taste for child porn and recommends a few websites to view it. Everyone has a line beyond which he/she will not go, even in the name of free expression … at least, I hope so. Freedom requires responsibility, particularly since there are people out there who assume no accountability for their actions."
- Bud Palmer
Milwaukee, WI
"Offensive language, slander, and the other sins-of-ill-will really have no place in open communication media. Just the same, we are led to believe that some guidelines need be in place to prevent the oppression of individuals by those who would otherwise stand to profit from demeaning another. But where do you draw the line? Is speaking out about war demeaning toward the current administration? Is getting news from Iraq a terrorist activity? Is outing a CIA agent inappropriate?
"Our best protection is knowledge and developing the skills of discretion. It is not suppression. Don’t leave it to the Government (that faceless group of bureaucrats without accountability) who will privatize it at the expense of everyone. It simply does not work out in the best interest of all – at least not in real life."
- Mike Samu
Denver, CO
"Censorship is a sticky subject indeed! On one hand, the Constitution guarantees Freedom of Speech. Then, on the other hand, forum directors want their forums to be interesting and/or educational without being offensive to anyone. The majority of people understand this, but there are always a few who insist on deviating. Should they be censored?
"Right or wrong, if a forum can reveal or provide truth and provoke thought either to seek the truth or some other improvement, then so be it. The ‘chaff’ will always be there. I’d much rather have access to the ‘wheat.’"
- Marc R. Williams
Lapine, AL
"Moderators rock! I subscribe to a professional photographer’s newsgroup (via e-mail) because the moderators keep the discussion tightly focused on professional photography. They insert warnings about posts that head off into political issues, Mac vs. PC rants, etc. This keeps the group ‘on target’ and keeps my interest. If they allowed it to run off course, I’d stop subscribing and stop posting. Why waste my time?"
- Charles Waugh
Boring, OR
"All views, even if they are racist, obscene, political, unpopular, or offensive, should be allowed. Allowing the expression of all viewpoints invites a healthy commentary and, contrary to popular logic, promotes tolerance. Political Correctness forces people to pretend that we live in a perfect world with a perfect set of rules that govern everyone’s thoughts and behavior."
- Alison Woods
Portland, OR
"Communication of ideas is important and must exist among people. But one can and must take responsibility for their own communication. Therefore, there should be guidelines.
"Re: what should or should not be censored, I find this rule from a famous American philosopher, L.R. Hubbard, to be very useful: ‘Cause only those things which others are able to experience easily.’ An editor can use this rule as a guide in establishing what should or should not be said. Any individual having something to say can also follow this rule. It puts the responsibility onto the individual who is doing the communicating."
- C. J. Bruce
Sunland, CA
It’s Good to Know: About Driving on the Left
About 34 percent of the world population, in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Japan, Indonesia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands (among many other places), drive on the left side of the road.
(Source: Wikipedia)
How Much Money Can YOU Make By Copying This "Mistake"?
How did Vicki Smith accidentally ‘hotwire’ the Internet and turn it into the goose that laid the golden egg?
Well, imagine a huge fortress with steep, heavily defended walls and a great big, drawbridge to get through. Inside that fortress is the huge pile of wealth there is to be made on the Internet. Now imagine trying to scale those walls with no equipment and never having done anything like it before. That is what many people try to do…
But what did Vicki do? By mistake, she got ‘lost’ and wandered around the back of that fortress and found a ‘hidden’ door which lead straight in. A solid gold door which opened up a gateway to riches…
It’s an opportunity which really does work, that anyone can follow and put into practice quickly in just an hour of your spare time from home.
Read about Vicki’s good fortune…
- Patrick Coffey
Word to the Wise: Wonky
"Wonky" (WONG-kee) is a British slang word used to describe something that feels out of place or awry.
Example (as used by Julie Bosman in The New York Times): "Publishers say that …’The Daily Show’ and its spin-off, ‘The Colbert Report,’ which has on similarly wonky authors,… have become the most reliable venues for promoting weighty books whose authors would otherwise end up on… CBS looking like they showed up at the wrong party."
[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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