Be Happy to Hear From Your Prospects
When I called my health insurance company the other day, to my delight, I had no trouble getting through to a human being right away. But when I told the guy what I wanted, he said, “That information is on the website.” “Can’t you just tell me what I want…
READ MOREThoughts on Paying for College
I was a screw-up in high school, and so my college choices were very limited. As I remember, it was either the local two-year community college or the college of Vietnam. I chose the community school. My entire college costs, including tuition at $400 per semester, were covered by the…
READ MOREMillions in Internet Sales in 5 Easy Steps
I imagine a time when I’ll be telling my grandchildren about the Good Ole Days of Internet marketing. When we could just blast an offer – almost any offer – to our customer file (or even ice-cold prospect names), then sit back and watch an avalanche of orders come pouring…
READ MOREWorking With Your Spouse
There was a good piece in The Wall Street Journal recently about the “risky business” of working with your mate. It begins with the story of a man who was forced to fire his wife at home, during dinner. Part of the problem, the article said, “was that the wife…
READ MOREGive Your Customer One More Reason to Buy
Has this ever happened when you were thinking about making a purchase through direct mail? You’re on the verge of buying, but you aren’t quite convinced. You need something to give you that final push to spend your money. What’s holding you back? Maybe you’re concerned that the product isn’t…
READ MOREPicking “Ugly” Can Give You Beautiful Returns
So far, I’ve made eight picks for subscribers of my Skeptical Advisor newsletter (beginning with the first issue in May 2005). If you had acted on my first three recommendations, you would have had a return of 19.3% on two of them and a loss of 5.6% on the other…
READ MOREWomen in Business: Glass Ceiling? What Glass Ceiling?
There has been a good deal written about the difference between men and women in the workplace. Men are said to be more decisive, more logical, and better able to make tough decisions. Women are said to be more intuitive, more communicative, and more compassionate. Popular books like Men Are From…
READ MORESalting the Record
The form of the real estate brokerage business may have changed since the advent of nationwide brokerage firms, but the substance has not. Human nature is the same today as it was when Century 21 first came on the scene back in 1974. Indeed, the same as it was in…
READ MOREEscaping Debt But Not the Guilt
Picked up the phone in my above-garage office – something I almost never do. (My time there is meant to be devoted to writing fiction.) A lady on the line first asked for K and then for K’s husband. She told me we were past-due on a cable bill. “But…
READ MOREInside the Information Marketing Business, Part 1:
There have never been greater opportunities in the field of Information Marketing – for everyone from very experienced, successful entrepreneurs to rank beginners. As something of a “father” of the industry, I’ve been invited to contribute a series of articles about these opportunities to Early to Rise. And I thought…
READ MOREGet MORE Than Your Money’s Worth From Your Copywriter
Although I’m generally known as a copywriter, I recently put every aspect of a new client’s company under the microscope for him. My client’s business was growing nicely, but not anywhere near as quickly as it should have been. Response to his new customer promotions was lackluster … he had…
READ MOREBubble Market Refugees
As a financial editor, I learned to look at stocks like a business. The numbers have to make sense. The price you’re paying has to have some reasonable relationship to the company you’re buying – its sales and earnings. That’s why, before the crash of 2000, I recommended that investors…
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