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Making Money on the Internet is a Weird and Wonderful Game

In case you hadn't realised already, making money on the internet is a weird and wonderful game...

Despite the plethora of information available on specific methods and procedures that can

allow you to achieve a solid income online, so many people still struggle, many never

making any money online at all.

The reasons for this are many and varied but we're going to look at just a few today.

1. This is the biggest and least acknowledged of them all: Mental Influences - Most people

don't make the money they want because they have mental barriers that prevent them from

acquiring it.

Perhaps they think subconciously that if they have more money, they'll have to spend more money, or that they'll have less time to spend with their families or theyll become greedy or that they won't know what to do with the money or they will get robbed or some other outlandish negative consequence will arise.

These negative belief barriers must be broken down before someone can have the things that they conciously want be abundant in their life. Where you are is where you want to be, so the saying goes. If you've been trying a long time without making any decent money online, the 'inside' might be the first place to look.

2. Lack of a solid method - While there are a lot of ebooks and courses available on how to achieve the outcome of online income, many of them talk theory and fluff while only a few lay out a plan in exact step by step fashion. Either that or they, give you instructions but leave out just ONE vital step that makes it so difficult to complete the process.

3. Competing with the big guys! If you're getting started, its almost impossible to make money by competing against people who are twenty times more experienced than you. If you are just getting started and trying to sell internet marketing products, as an affiliate, as a product creator, using seo, using ppc, whatever the method, entering a market where everyone else is better than you is going to ensure you fail. Even entering other markets is futile, dog training, acne, pregnancy... they seem like niche markets but they are nothing of the sort.

People who succeed know how to effectively target niche markets and penetrate tiny but profitable crevices of the world wide web to find the easy money. That may just be one of the best pieces of advice a new online marketer could receive.

The point is, despite the loads of crap out there, despite the million ebooks, courses, memberships and reports on how to make money online with so little success, it CAN be done. With a combination of the right mindset and the right approace, anything, including making a truck load of cash while working from home in your undies can become a reality.

Hot Air Balloons are good for Business and a great day out

One of the best ways to advertise your business is to use a Hot Air Balloon and is considered to be one of the fastest new forms of advertising.

A hot Air Balloon becomes a very mobile Billboard and can travel and is viewed over many miles by thousands of people.

Hot Air Balloons can provide a very dramatic and lasting impression on the consumer especially at Hot Air Balloon festivals as many are photographed and reported some are videoed and can be available on you tube and other internet video sites.

Specially designed Hot Air Balloons that have a funny shape or have a much known recognisable shape can be the most stunning advertising concepts. I was recently at a Hot Air Balloon show in Bristol UK and there was a vast array of different special shaped Hot Air Balloons.

It was great to see some shaped like Beer cans and others shaped like bottles of fizzy pop these forms of advertising can bring a big impact they can be seen over such a wide range of area and have a very lasting impression on the consumers.

A Hot Air Balloon travelling over a busy city centre is likely to catch the attention of over 90% of the people in the city this is a great medium and has chance of raising your company’s awareness providing a lasting with consumers that people remember long after the event has passed.

Having a Hot Air Balloon made for advertising, is not as expensive as people imagine compared to large TV ad champagne. It has a longer and more effective publicity as it can be flown most days in summer and brought and flown at Hot Air Balloon festivals.

Good photographs of your Hot air Balloon are very good for promotional pictures in your company’s literature and can enhance your marketing strategy. There are many forms of advertising and most cost serious money but sometimes you have to consider that using a Hot Air Balloon could be a cost effective method for your companies needs.

At most Hot air Balloon festivals most of the Hot air Balloons have now got advertising slogans on them or are shaped like a product. As these Hot Air Balloons drift across the sky producing and awe inspiring spectacle that emblazes your company logo in the sky.

Hot air Balloons are the original way man has learnt to fly and ever since the first Hot Air Balloons took to the sky they have always managed to stir something within us to look up into the sky and wonder.

A Hot Air Balloon ride is a excellent day out and well worth looking into but remember that safety is very important within this industry and what goes up will come down and having flown in a Hot Air Balloon then it does come down quite often with a bump even with the most experienced pilots.

Hot Air Balloons are great fun and gliding over the countryside silently looking down at the ground from an unusual angle often seeing familiar objects from a very different angle makes you realise how special a Hot Air Balloon flight can be.

The Post-Modern Metaphysical Implications of Digital Printing on Screen Printing

If one were to make the bold assertion that the printing industry is dead and that our own thrift and drive towards perfection has killed it, than one must first consider what it means to be a dead industry.  For an industry to be dead, it must have been superseded by a newer and higher form of production.   The spinning wheel killed the hand weaving of yonder, and that was in turn done in by the invention of mechanical spinning wheels and so on and so forth.  The point is that although those industries try to carry on, they ultimately failed as our human spirit pushed off the shackles of conformity, tradition, and ignorance and reached forward out of the cave and into the light.

Many make the claim that this is what is happening to the screen printing industry of today.  I aim to demonstrate that although perhaps traditional screen printing won’t be done for ever, digital technology is not the revolution that makes traditional screen printing obsolete.  The fact of the matter is that digital printing is in its infancy and not going to overtake screen printing anytime soon.

The reasons for this edifying line of thought is that it choice brings along with it variety.  In existential way, our valuing choice and independence has given rise to the prodigious amount of variety that exists and has made this choice the ultimate good.  If everything is relative and nothing absolute, then the choices that arise give rise themselves to variety, the new ultimate good.  This ability to choose for ourselves ensures that screen printing isn’t going anywhere.  Because screen printing is still very cost efficient on order of twenty or more t-shirts, people will still choose to print in the traditional manner.  People shall still purchase them because they are of good quality and produced at a good price.

This revolution will not come because digital printing does not allow for the exponential increase in production sometimes associated with an increase in technology.  Once again our free will guarantees that screen printing is not leaving yet because people still save money on the t-shirts.  This extra money is often, although not necessarily correctly, linked to an increase in happiness which is the ultimate drive for the individual.  Thus one can see that the myriad of choices for printers helps in an economical way to give consumer choice and value which ultimately leads to their increased happiness all deriving from the ability to choose to use screen printers over digital printers.  Thus choosing a traditional screen printer will make you happier and is the obvious choice for large orders of t-shirts.

Need Help On That College Tuition?

Parents nowadays are amazed or even flabbergasted at the high cost of college tuition fees.

The average cost at a private college or university in the US is about $21,235 per year, and about $5,491 per year at four-year public universities. In 2006, public college tuition jumped 10.5 percent. (egad!) And when you add in room and board, the cost of attending a private college is $29,026 per year on average, and $12,127 at four-year public universities. According to msnbc, published prices are up 35 percent in five years — the largest increase of any five-year period in the 30 years covered the report.

Taking inflation and the rising cost of living into account, monetary help is needed much more than ever. So before sending your teen out to the big school, make sure you're prepared, at the most, financially. It’s never too early to research on available support, and that’s where a site like eLearningYellowPages.com can help. They have a list of scholarship matching services where you or your child can apply online and get a head start on that tuition aid. There are informative and useful articles regarding how to find financial aid including grants and scholarships via the Internet, and how to avoid potential scams.

There are also available resources which can be used for any type of educational opportunity, including GED courses, Certificate Programs, Undergraduate & Graduate School, Online or Distance Learning Programs, Home-Based Study, Continuing Education and Career Training.Secure your children’s education and secure their future now.

How to Make Your Cold Calling Effective – 4 Examples of effective dialogue in cold calling!

How can we make cold calls "work" when we’re talking to someone we haven’t met, about something they may not need? Well, it’s really simple. First we look at how to relate to them rather than hoping they’ll relate to us and our solution.

When we approach cold calling with a question about what their needs are, potential clients respond much more readily to the idea of talking with us.

To help you with this, here are a few examples of dialogues within four very different industries.

Example: Staffing

In the staffing or recruiting industry, the goal is to call a company and identify whether they need help finding new staff.

The old cold calling approach is, "Hi. My name is... I’m with XYZ Staffing Company, and we offer these services. I’m just calling to..." And by that time, the person pretty much says, "We’re not interested," right?

With this new cold calling approach, the idea is to think about the problem you’re solving. The problem you’re solving is helping them find good people.

So I would start the conversation with, "Maybe you can help me out for a second?" And they usually say, "How can I help you?"

I reply, "I’m just calling to see if your company is still looking at finding good, quality employees to hire?"

The response to that is likely to be, "Well sure. Who’s this?" This is a normal response which we want to be ready for. I would simply say, "My name is Ari and I’m with XYZ Staffing Company and we help companies identify and find good people. I’m just calling to see if your company is in a situation now where you’re looking to hire and find new people."

Example: Software

Let’s say you’re in the software industry, and that you sell software to improve the productivity of an organization. What you want to do is focus on the problem that you solve specifically.

What most software salespeople do in cold calling is say, "Hi, we sell software to help improve productivity." But that doesn’t really identify the problem it solves. You have to focus specifically on an issue.

So, for instance, the software might solve a problem with lost paper-based documents. That’s a very specific issue.

In this case, I might call and say, "I’m just calling to see if your company is having issues with lost paperwork because of manual paper-based filing systems."

See how specific that is? It’s very directed to the problem in their world. This is in contrast to, "I want to see if your company is looking to buy some software or looking to improve productivity," or something similar.

Example: Advertising

Advertising is a very good example. Typically, what most advertising sales folks start with is an introduction. They talk about their advertising product or services that they offer.

But with our problem solving approach, the question becomes, "What does advertising solve for people?" The first thought usually is that it gets people leads.

It gets more branding.

Let’s go deeper than that. What do leads do for companies? Leads provide sales, right? So if I sell advertising, I might call and say, "Maybe you can help me out for a second. I’m just calling to see if your company is open to new ideas of generating leads for your business."

From this place, the discussion unfolds around their world, and not your advertising.

That’s the real shift in making cold calling relevant to their world.

Example: Collections

Another example is the collections industry. Typically, collection agencies call companies to see if they can be hired to collect invoices that are unpaid. They usually talk about their services as opposed to making their cold calling focus on the problem.

The client is looking to bring in more revenue from invoices that aren’t paid. So an approach might be, "Maybe you can help me out for a second?" The reply is once again, "Sure, how can I help you?"

"I’m just calling to see if your company is still having issues with unpaid invoices." And the response probably will be, "Well, yeah, we are. Who’s this?"

You can then respond in a very relaxed tone, "This is John. I’m with XYZ Collection Agency. I’m just calling to see if you’d be open to some new ideas on how to better solve that problem."

These are some examples of how to make your cold calling relevant to the other person and his or her needs. Practice this, and you’ll find that your cold calling conversations become more relaxed. You’ll no longer have to shift into an artificial "salesperson" role.

Ebooks As Powerful Marketing Tools

Ebooks are part of the new frontier of cyberspace.

They are an entirely new medium for sharing marketing

information, ideas, techniques, and expert knowledge.

Each day the number of people accessing the Internet

grows, causing the exposure of your ebook to increase

incrementally. It's obvious why electronic

self-publishing has become so popular so quickly.

The publishing industry, I hope, does not intend to

forever banish the printed word to the dustbin of

history. Books in print have their own special

qualities and merits, and the world would be

diminished by their disappearance.

Having said that, let's look at what makes ebooks so

important and so unique. Ebooks have certain abilities

and qualities that other mediums do not possess.

For example, ebooks are fairly easy to produce, and

their production cost is inexpensive. Just think about

it: you don't need a publisher, an agent, a printing

press, offset film, ink, paper, or even a distributor.

You just need a great concept, the ability to write it

or to hire a writer, and the right software.

Additionally, ebooks are easily and rapidly

distributed online. They are also easily updated; they

do not require a second print run. All you need is to

go into your original creation and modify the text or

graphics. Because of this flexibility, ebooks can

change and grow as fast as you can type.

Ebooks are also immediately obtainable. You don't have

to go to a bookstore or search through endless titles

at an online bookstore. All you have to do is download

it from a website, and presto! It's on your computer,

ready to be read.

Ebooks are interactive. This is one of the most unique

and specific qualities that ebooks offer. You can add

surveys that need to be filled out, order forms for

customers to purchase your products or goods, sound

and video that draw your reader into the virtual world

of your ebook, even direct links to relevant sites

that will expand your ebook outward. The potential is

virtually limitless.

Ebooks have a particular kind of permanence that other

mediums do not possess. Television shows and radio

shows air once, and then may rerun a few times. Ebooks

remain on your computer for as long as your choose,

and they can be read and reread whenever you choose

to. They can even be printed out and stored on the

shelves of your traditional home library.

Another wonderful quality is that ebooks have no

barriers in terms of publishing. You don't need to go

through the endless process of submitting your

manuscript over and over again, and then once you land

an agent, having the agent submit your manuscript over

and over again. Nor do you have to shell out thousands

of dollars for printing a self-published book. All

ebooks require is a writer and appropriate software.

Figure out your market, write your book, post it on

your website, and with the right business savvy, your

audience will come to you.

Finally, you have creative control over your ebook.

You don?t have to compromise with an editor or the

publishing trends of the time. You don't have to

haggle with a designer or wait for copyedited galleys

to arrive by snail mail. You are in complete control

of the design and the text.

How to Use ebooks for Marketing and Promotion

There are innumerable ways to use ebooks to promote

your business and drive quality traffic to your

website. Once posted on your site, you can turn them

into a daily course, which brings your customer back

to read the next chapter. You can use them as a free

gift for making a purchase or for filling out a

survey. Put your ebook on a disc, and you will have an

innovative brochure. Blow your competition away by

inserting the disc into your sales packages.

The most effective marketing products are those that

are unique. Copyright your ebook, and immediately, you

have a powerful tool that you, and you alone, can

offer to the public. People will have to visit your

site to acquire your ebook, which increases the flow

of quality traffic and the potential of sales and

affiliate contacts.

Make sure that you keep your ebook current. Update it

frequently as the market and trends change. Add new

advice and techniques to show your prospects how your

goods or services can enrich their lives. By

constantly keeping abreast of new trends and

techniques, you can continue to see profits from your

ebook for years after your original creation.

Another phenomenal advantage of ebooks is that you can

test their marketing potential without putting out

hardly any cash at all. You can even produce an ebook

one copy at a time, each time you receive an order,

eliminating the need for storage and inventory. By

this method, you can gauge the saleablity of your

ebook, and make adjustments as necessary until the

orders start pouring in. Ebooks allow you to learn

about your market and customer habits and motivation

over a period of time, without risking your precious

financial resources. They also provide you with an

invaluable way to gather marketing information, which

you can use in many different facets of your business.

Use your ebook to discover what the specific goals and

problems are in your specific industry. Then figure

out how to solve these problems, and publish an ebook

with this invaluable information. This will increase

the value of your business, upgrade your reputation,

and get you known as an expert in your field.

You can extend the value of single ebook by breaking

the book down into chapters for a serial course, into

special reports available on your website, or into

audio or visual tapes. Ebooks can be broken down into

several different promotional materials by excepting

some of the articles and using them to promote your

product. You can include a catalog in your ebook to

promote all the products or services you sell. You can

include a thank-you note for reading your book and an

invitation to download a trial version of your

product. Or you can include a form for your audience

to contact you for further information or with

questions, thereby building your business

relationships and your mailing list.

Using ebooks in this manner helps to cut the cost of

individually producing separate promotional materials.

You can use a single ebook to entice new prospects and

to sell new products to your current customers.

No other medium has this kind of flexibility and

ability for expansion. Think of your ebook like a

spider spinning a beautiful and intricate web. Now go

and create that web, and see how many customers and

prospects you can catch!

What You Need To Know About Globalization

If we were to go out on the streets in any major city and ask people to explain what globalization is and how it affects people in a “Jay Leno” type manner we would probably arrive with many different answers. Why is this? Why are their so many different definitions of globalization and why are there so many different opinions on the topic? In this essay we will look at the definition of globalization including the pros and cons of this concept. To First tackle these questions let us take a look at the definition of globalization.

There are many types of globalization, which give us the ability to describe it in many different fashions. We could look at cultural globalization for example, which explains and discusses the movement of a culture and cultural values around the globe and ways in which they build upon one another and meld together, or we could take a look at communication and how it changes across the globe. Though, for the sake of this article, we are going to focus on Economic globalization described by Bhagwati in his book “In Defense of globalization.” According to Bhagwati, “Economic globalization constitutes integration of national economies into the international economy through trade, direct foreign investment (by corporations and multinationals), short-term capital flows, international flows of workers and humanity generally, and flows of technology…” Now that we have a brief understanding of what economic globalization is, let us look at some controversies revolving around globalization and identify positive areas of globalization and other areas that need fixing.

When was the last time that you turned on your television or opened the news paper and read some article regarding globalization and outsourcing or globalization having to do with an increase in poverty? It seems that this is a hot-topic among the media today driven by rallying youths, banners waving, and non-government organization (NGO’s) voicing their opinion. Is all this anti-globalization justified? According to Bhagwati, it seems that we have two types of people leading this anti-globalization movement: “stake-wielders” and “stake-asserters.” Stake-wielding people are people who feel that they are at war with globalization and are usually wild extremist waving posters and shouting out arguments that they most likely don’t understand themselves. Now stake-asserting people are different in that they use reasoned dialogue to argue their points and generally try to inform and educate people on globalization issues rather than protesting. So what are some of the issues that these people spend all their time voicing concern over?

One very common discussion is whether or not globalization increases the poverty level and the gap between the wealthy and the poor. One argument that we could take regarding this issue would be to argue that through globalization we are able to slowly increase free trade and thus the movement of goods and services across boarders more easily. We would then have gains from trade that will enhances the growth of the economy which will in turn provide more jobs and lower the unemployment rate bringing countries out of poverty. The best way to do this according to Bhagwati is to have “an increase in the size of the pie.” This is done not by an economy simply producing more of what they specialize in but rather by increasing the gains they make through the process of international trade. In his article, “Fixing Globalization – A Review Essay,” Joel J. Toppen argues that globalization is still very much up for debate and that our real focus should be directed towards the poor. Though globalization may not be specifically directed toward the poor, we can defiantly argue that it helps to elevate people out of poverty. So what are some other issues regarding globalization that people strongly advocate against? Does globalization actually solve these issues or does it need fixing?

Let us take a look at an issue that is constantly seen in the news, this would be the issue of outsourcing. When Nike first started outsourcing jobs overseas people were outraged. They were giving away American job just to make a few extra bucks and people were simply not happy about it. So how is this form of globalization even possibly a good thing? An argument that would support this aspect of globalization would be that by shipping jobs overseas countries in our economy are able to better maximize profits and thus help to grow our economy. Well this sounds all well and good but how long is it going to be until we see some of these gains in our economy? Are we not taking advantage of people overseas by paying them next to nothing? If one of us went to work one day and found out that our job was lost to outsourcing we can be sure that we wouldn’t be content with someone telling us that it was going to benefit the economy as and whole and eventually increase the standard of living. No. We would be miserable because we were now out of a job and among the unemployed; a person doesn’t live off of future gains. Now when deciding whether or not we are taking advantage of those “less fortunate” overseas by paying them so little we need to look at real wages.

Though it seems that we are taking advantage of people overseas and forcing them into sweatshop labor we are in fact increasing their real wage. Due to this increase in real wage the price of labor increases and we see a shift from longer hours of leisure to longer hours at work. This explains why people work so long at their jobs overseas. They want to work. Though this may explain that we are not taking advantage of people, we still see a loss of American jobs. Though we are seeing a loss in jobs, Bhagwati claims that we have “…actually raised the real wages of the workers.” He claims that the lower jobs are being outsourced and we are creating better jobs through and increase in education and technology. So is a part of globalization that needs fixing. If so, how do we do this?

If globalization causes an increase in real wage overseas and an eventual increase in the economy through the sacrifice of American jobs, how is it that we can stop the loss of these jobs and still maintain the benefits from globalization? This clearly needs some kind of fixing. One way that we could help with the loss of jobs would be to compensate those that lost their jobs from a clear from of outsourcing until they are able to get back on their feet. This is already done through programs provided by the U.S. government though it is often hard to make a clear distinction when it comes to the manner in which a job is lost.

Along with benefits form globalization there are also other areas that need fixing. A problem that we can see clearly results from globalization is the problem of illegal immigration from poor countries to rich countries. Through globalization, it has become easier and more beneficial for people living in a poor country to move to a country with a stronger economy. This is especially true when looking at the movement of people from Mexico to the United States. So why don’t we just open up our boarders and make it legal? If we were to simply open up the boarders between the U.S. and Mexico our economy would be obliterated. There would be a huge rush from into the U.S. by people waiting along the boarders. This huge rush of people would suck our economy dry, leaving us in a far worse condition. We are therefore presented with the problem of what to do with preventing illegal immigration. It used to be that most of our illegal immigration from Mexico came for people crossing the Rio Grande though it now comes from a different form. Bhagwati says that 50 percent of illegal immigrants now come form legal means such as visas. They enter the country legal and stay illegally. We know that it is impossible to eliminate illegal immigration so what do we do about it? He explains that to fix this problem “governments in the developed countries must turn to policies that will integrate migrants into their new homes in ways that will minimize the social costs and maximize the economic benefit.” This is a problem that will not only result between Mexico and the U.S. but also other countries as well.

Now we are going to take another look at an area of globalization that needs improvement. This problem is the ease at which capital flows can move in and out of an economy. It has been increasingly easier and easier to invest in foreign economies due fallen barriers broken down by pressure from institutions such as the IMF and OECD. According to Stiglitz, “The most adverse effects have arisen from the liberalization of financial and capital markets-which has posed risk to developing counties without commensurate rewards.” As globalization continues to occur it has become easier to invest in foreign economies through decreased barriers and instant transfers via the Internet. This can could potentially cause overwhelming problems because “as investor sentiment changes, the money is pulled out, leaving in its wake economic devastation.” So how do we fix this problem that arises form globalization? There clearly needs to be some type of barrier when it comes to capital flows. “[Capital-market liberalization] illustrates what can go wrong with globalization. Even economists like Jagdish Bhagwati, strong advocates of free trade, see the folly in liberalizing capital markets.” It is clear that we need to have some type of resistance to the ease at which capital may flow in and out of a country.

In this article we have looked at the definition of globalization, areas of globalization that are sound as well as areas that could use some improvement. From this we are better able to understand the complexity of the issue and hopefully gain some insight that will help us to live in a way that will help better our world.

Alternative Investors Eye Private Companies

Q: Entrex has brought public market standards and disciplines to the private market. I understand the value of this to the alternative investment community, but what is the value to me as the owner of a private company?

- Craig Rutkai, business owner, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

A: It's the question I get more than any other. To answer, let's start with what Entrex is.

In broad strokes, Entrex is a brand-new market for the alternative investment community. It takes the compliance standards and reporting structures that have long been a part of the public investing market and applies them to private companies.

Until Entrex, there was no way to compare apples to apples and no way of knowing what you were getting yourself into when investing in a private company. Entrex has brought transparency to the process of private investing, giving the alternative investment community a new place to put their money.

So how does this benefit you and others like you? In a word: capital.

Today, roughly 80 percent of private companies receive their funding within a 50-mile radius of their home office. Essentially this means friends and family, country club colleagues, regionally focused venture capitalists and fellow businesspeople. To say these avenues for pursuing capital are limiting would be something of an understatement.

But alternative investors are chomping at the bit to invest in private companies. They simply require the means to do so - an entity willing to do the due diligence so that they may find, research, track, manage and trade their investments. Entrex is that entity.

Whether you're looking for capital, interested in being acquired or simply want to see how your business is valued for shareholders on a quarterly basis, Entrex can help. It brings private business owners' need for liquidity and the alternative investment market's need for fresh investment opportunities together in one place.

The revolution is beginning. You can be a part of it.

We Fear To Sell …..And How You Can Overcome It” (Part II)

In the first article we looked at how many first time (and experienced!) sales people can be held back from achieving success because of the fears they may have on getting out there and selling.

In the previous article I highlighted 6 main selling-related fears: failure; image or self belief; rejection; lack of product knowledge; criticism; presentation. Each of theses fears on their own can cause a breakdown in the sales process and prevent you from confidently tackling another prospect.

In this article I will look at how you can address these fears head-on; what you can do to face your fears and banish them for life!

Fear of Failure

Undoubtedly the biggest fear most people in selling, and business have is the fear of failure. There is nothing more demoralising than a continual lack of success! Fear of failure has been ingrained from school – remember all those tests when the results were read out for all the class to hear? If you had a poor result, you never felt like trying again! But, don’t be like Homer Simpson when he tried to consol his son Bart who had failed in his bid to be class president,

“You tried and you failed. The lesson is … never try.”

So, what can you do to conquer your fear of failure? The bottom line is that you need a rock solid positive attitude. You must have an inner voice which is continually pushing you onto the next prospect and saying, “Come on, let’s find the one who’s going to say yes!”

Failure has to be seen as a learning opportunity. In every failure, there is a nugget of information, which next time, can point you in the direction of better success. James Dyson, the inventor of the revolutionary vacuum cleaner, summed up the need for a positive attitude, when he said, “Success is made up of 99% failure. You galvanise yourself and you keep going as a full optimist.”

Image Fear

Not everyone has boundless self-confidence. When you start out in business, there is sometimes a nagging doubt that you may have bitten off more than you can chew. This inner doubt chips away at your self confidence and soon you have a poor self image, which reflects in your sales pitch. To be a successful salesperson you have to have a strong self image.

To improve the image you have of yourself, follow these steps:

Write down the qualities which you believe a successful salesperson should possess. Try and limit the list to 4 or 5 key qualities

Find a quiet spot and relax your body and mind with deep and steady breathing

Once you are totally relaxed recite the strong, self image qualities you identified earlier

Imagine or visualise yourself possessing each of these qualities. See in your minds eye how you look, now that you have these qualities. See how successful you are, how you look, and the car you are driving, where you are living

Repeat to yourself that you are assuming each of these qualities and becoming a better person with each day that passes

Repeat this exercise first thing in the morning and last thing at night and you’ll soon find your self image and confidence levels increasing!

Fear of Rejection

Closely linked with the fear of failure is the fear of rejection. Hearing the response “No” is not a great motivator! The main way to deal with rejection is just to accept that it happens. Try and re-frame any rejection you get by saying to yourself that it’s the customer who loses out, not you. Walk away with a smug smile on your face and remind yourself that you are one step closer to someone who will say “Yes”.

Product Knowledge Fear

A lack of in depth knowledge about your product or service quickly finds its way to making for a poor presentation. There is only one solution … and that’s to get learning! Absorb yourself in the product. Understand all the features and benefits, so that you can confidently talk about all aspects of your offering. Banishing this fear is one of the easy ones to put right.

Criticism

No one likes to be criticised, especially if you have tried your hardest. Unless you are very thick-skinned, harsh criticism can knock you back. If you carry out the exercises on improving your self-image, your ability to take criticism will also improve. Decide to view criticism more as feedback than a direct attack on you. There is usually some element of truth in the majority of critical comments and it’s important that you take the opportunity to learn and change.

Presentation Fears

You may know all the features and benefits of your product but, like an actor, you suffer from stage fright! The presentation fear can be down to a lack of structure around your sales process. Write a basic outline on how you wish a perfect sales pitch to go. Prepare a script for the key parts of the presentation and rehearse, rehearse, rehearse!

Why not ask someone to help you role play a sales presentation? This will give you the opportunity to make all the mistakes you want but in a risk-free environment! You should also visit your local Business Link office and see what courses they are running on sales skills. Look out for books and tapes on effective selling. All of these actions will assist in improving your confidence and result in a more professional sales presentation.

Selling does not have to be a fearful experience! If you have the right attitude, a strong self belief, a full understanding of your product and plenty of practice, then you will have nothing to fear. So, take a look at each of these fears and put a plan in place to tackle them today!