Experts in Trade Show Booth

Trade Shows and Expos are great ways to reach a targeted audience and meet prospect's managers and executives face to face. Many times you will get to talk to people you can't even get on the phone or by email. This is why you need to have your absolute best staff in the booth when they arrive. You may only have one to three minutes to present your offer and try to set up future meetings. If one of your lower staff doesn't have the correct answers the prospect may just walk on and you have lost the opportunity.

It is best to use a person in your booth who knows all about your industry, products (old and new). Even if you have to hire someone you know to just work the show for you. The knowledge and confidence they will bring to your booth will be well worth any cost and returns in future orders. If you are spending the high cost of having a booth in a trade show, don't skimp on the staff who are there to present your brand and secure new customers and clients.

Barry is a speaker, author and business consultant. www.idealetter.com

FEAR Plus or Minus

In business, fear comes into play many times and it needs to be dealt with sooner rather than later. But all fear is not bad and may make you rethink a decision or an investment. Negative fear will also hold you back from getting closer to the goals you have set for yourself and business. It can stop you from reaching outside of your comfort zones where the real opportunities are waiting. Fear can make you procrastinate about a decision that you already know has a good chance of working. But what if it fails? Yes that can happen and has happened to all of us on our road to success. Once a solid decision is made, move forward aggressivelly and don't worry about failure because it may never happen.

Positive fear can make you do more research, analysis and study before you make a big decision. It can calculate the possibility of success with what you want to do and whether you should do it now. It will never be a 100% sure win answer but positive fear will give you the confidence to move forward. Once you have made that decision don't look back and give all your effort to that decision succeeding. Fear gives you the chance to make the correct decisions and then moves aside so you can accomplish the task at hand. Don't be afraid of either fear, just use it to your advantage in business and in life.

Barry is an expert speaker on The Customer Experience, Building and Keeping Business Relationships and Marketing on a Tight Budget. More at www.idealetter.com

Business Speaker & Trainer

I am always interested in speaking and training engagements anywhere safe in the world. My topics are The Customer Experience, Building Business Relationships, Marketing and Sales Ideas, Social Media & Networking for Profit, Making Better Presentations and others. I will add value to your event or meeting with usuable content, relevant stories and some humor. 

I will offer to do 2 presentations at no additional fees if time permitting. I may also be available to travel on short notice or if another speaker or presenter cancels. For a limited time my speaking fee includes airfare to the city of the event or meeting (100% in North America, 50% international). For more information, more topics, short video stories, photos, bio and reasonable fee can be found at www.idealetter.com. Please contact me to schedule your event or meeting and lock in the date now. 

Little Known February Holidays

These are real but little known holidays in February that you can use in your business for fun and profit,

 1 Serpent Day
 3 National Men's Grooming Day
 6 Pay a Compliment Day
 7 Charles Dickens Day
 8 Kite flying Day
 8 Boy Scout Day
 9 Toothache Day
 10 Umbrella Day
 11 White T-Shirt Day
 11 National Inventor's Day
 12 Darwin Day
 13 Use a Different Day
 14 Ferris Wheel Day
 15 National Gum Drop Day
 16 Do a Grouch a Favor Day
 17 Champion Crab Races Day
 18 National Battery Day
 19 National Chocolate Mint Day
 20 Harry Potter Day
 21 National Sticky Bun Day
 22 Be Humble Day
 24 National Tortilla Chips Day
 26 National Pistachio Day
 27 Intl Polar Bear Day
 28 Public Sleeping Day

 Have a great February !

Gift Cards Buy & Sell

We all know how popular gift cards are especially during the holiday season. They allow the receiver the chance to select what they want as a gift without having to exchange something they don't really like or does not fit. Gift cards also help the retailers and businesses by giving them a short term loan at no interest and possibly attracting a new customer who would not come on their own. Many are not always redeemed in full which is an extra benefit for the issuer. But sometimes people get a card they don't want, can't use or move from the area where the business is located. Now there is a way to cash in or exchange those unwanted cards safely and without taking too much of a loss. Here are a few sites (there are others) that are popular for gift cards exchanges, buying and selling.
                   * cardpool.com
                   * cardhub.com
                   * giftcardgranny.com
                   * giftcards.com
                   * junkcard.com
These are websites where you can sell your cards for less than face value and receive cash or others cards that you want. Each site may have different rules so check before you do a transaction. It is also a great place to buy gift cards for places you really like at possibly less than face value. You may be able to find cards available for regional businesses near you that are more discounted because they are not widely sought. Buying from a reputable site will assure the card is valid and should have some guarantee if it's not. It's just another way to save money and not lose money without making the gift giver feel bad.

Barry is a speaker at conventions, conferences, trade shows and company meetings.  www.idealetter.com

Restaurant Story - Bad Publicity

Sales... is Like a Doctor

I doesn't matter whether you own a business or work for a big corporation, we are all in a sales related position. We must promote our business, company, department or group to have an ongoing profitable existence. If it is not showing a profit or completing a task needed it will not excel and take all the people involved with it. Even if you are just getting a paycheck that money has to come from somewhere and you are involved, either directly or indirectly. So the more you know and practice sales techiniques the better you can help and improve your company or business.

Think about how a doctor works, every situation is different, just like business. He/She doesn't start prescribing medicine or activities as soon as you meet in their office. They ask questions and they stop talking so you can answer and tell them why you are there. They may take routine tests, blood samples and examine areas of your body that will give them a better knowledge of how to suggest treatment that will work best for your current situation. A doctor is trained to find out what the problem is and then determine how to make it better or solve it.

Every potential customer or client is unique and needs to be handled with individual care and empathy. Just like the doctor, you need to find out what is ailing them, their business pain and problem they need solved before any solution can be offered. Do the exploratory surgery needed to see what the core of the problem is so you can begin to offer the best ways to make it better or ease some of the pain. If you don't find the underlying cause of the problem you may be prescribing apples when they need oranges to solve it. That's why the best sales and customer service people listen much more than they talk. Listen for the business need or pain then you can begin to solve it. The professionals learn and practice this every day.

Barry is a speaker on the Customer Experience and Marketing.  www.idealetter.com

Pawn Stars - Did You Know?

1. "Pawn Stars" is the no. 2 most-watched reality show in North America. ("Jersey Shore" holds the top spot.)

2. The guys can't actually work the counter anymore because of privacy laws. Since they've become celebrities, people are constantly taking pictures of them, compromising the privacy of whoever's at the pawn counter. "Now I'll meet a guy in the hallway," said Corey.

3. PBS did a documentary on Rick and the shop in 2001. "I've always been a media whore," Rick said, laughing. When business spiked after the special aired, Rick started to shop the idea of a TV show around. HBO expressed interest early on and even developed a pilot, but their focus was on the more depressing side of the pawn business, which wasn't the angle Rick wanted to pursue.

4. Corey and Chumlee have personal assistants now. "I do a lot of desert racing. My assistant empties out the septic tank of the trailer when I go! It's a little weird asking somebody to do that for you," said Corey with a laugh.

5. Chumlee's done a lot of dumb things on camera, but his dumbest move of all time (according to Corey) happened before the show's inception. After someone came in to pawn a stand-up bass, Chumlee leaned it against a shelf and walked away. The bass fell and shattered into pieces. Chumlee put the pieces into a box, and put the pawn number on the box. When the man came to pick it up, he opened the box and saw his bass in pieces. "He started freaking out," Corey recalled. "He pawned it for $700, and it wound up costing us $20,000 because it turned out to be rare." Chumlee, for his part, can't explain his actions. "I don't know what I was thinking," he said.

6. Rick has always been a serial entrepreneur. At one point, he even bought a Quizno's franchise that Corey and Chumlee ran together.

7. Corey's brother Adam used to work at the shop, too -- but you're probably not going to see him on the show anytime soon. "Most likely not. He's a plumber now," Corey said. Is Adam envious of Corey's newfound fame? "I think there has to be some type of jealousy," Corey mused.

8. The most dangerous thing Chumlee has ever tested? One of the blunderbusses. "A flame shot out, and I did get burned up my arm," Chumlee recalled.

9. "Pawn Stars" was originally set to be called "Pawning History," until someone at the production company threw out its current name.

10. "Pawn Stars" has become an international phenomenon, airing in dozens of countries around the world, from Singapore to Serbia. Fun fact: In Germany, the show is called "Die Drei vom Pfandhaus" ("The Three of the Pawnshop").

11. Chumlee has pretty awesome taste in TV shows: He doesn't miss "Boardwalk Empire," "Sons of Anarchy" or "Breaking Bad." Rick, on the other hand, would rather be reading. "Television is so mind-numbing to me," he said.

12. Jon Bon Jovi once requested to meet the guys. "We went to his meet n' greet to meet his kids because they wanted a picture with us," said Chumlee. "He gave us front row tickets. That was pretty cool. When does Bon Jovi personally invite you to his show?"

13. Since the show debuted, Rick gets shooed away from a lot of garage sales and swap meets because people are worried about his shrewd negotiating skills. "Last year I stopped by a yard sale and asked a lady about a painting," he said. "She recognized who I was and took it away and said, 'It's not for sale!' [Laughs.]

From Huffpost-TV

Pop Up Stores

You may have heard this term which was started to encourage new businesses and would-be retail stores to see if they can survive, grow and attract business before they jump in with both feet. Many cities are even sponsoring this new idea which they hope will pay off for both the city and the business to increase sales tax, traffic to shrinking store areas and promote small business. This is a great idea and long needed in the retail industry that has been losing to online sales. If this can work for you it's well worth giving it a try because the risk in minimal and the rewards are great. This can be done any time of the year not just the holiday season.

In my city, Colorado Springs, this past holiday season the city had a program for pop up stores in the downtown district to fill in vacant retail space and give shoppers a chance to visit new and upcoming businesses. It also made the area look full and more appealing during the holiday season. Their program allowed new retail stores to test the market by committing to 10-12 weeks in a retail space but no long term contract. They would occupy it the beginning of November and make a decision to stay or leave in early January. The advantage for the new or growing business was that they paid only one third of the normal rent per month, the city group paid one third and the building owner absorbed the other third.

This is a win-win-win situation where everyone comes out ahead. The previously empty space generated rent when there was none, the city collected sales tax for any sales there and the business owner got to see if their  store could make money and survive with all the retail expenses. If the owner didn't feel it would last during other times of the year, they could walk away with no additional cost. Some of these programs can vary from 2 months, 3 months up to 6 months. And the building owner may even extend it or gradually raise rent as sales grow. Check with your city hall or talk to owners of vacant retail space to see if it can work for you. The risk is low to see if your ideas and products will work in a retail store.

Barry is a marketing, customer experience and business relationship speaker and consultant who has owned many businesses. www.idealetter.com

Business Plan in 30 Minutes

If you are starting a new business or applying for a loan or adding an investor you will want to write a business plan in advance. A business plan is simply the answers to 9 or 10 questions to be sure you are ready to go ahead. The answers will guide you on your way to success and entice anyone else to be a lender or investor with comfort. This is what your business is all about and why it should be successful.  I am not going to list the questions here again but you can find them in an earlier post in this blog or in Chapter 1 of my book "The Smart Guide to Starting Your Own Business", available everywhere.

If you can't answer all the questions honestly and easily, the plan is not complete and you should wait to move ahead. Without the full answers your chance for success will be diminished greatly. Even if you are stuck on one question you may be able to get or develop the answer quickly and move on. But if you are sure of the parts in the business plan and know what you are going to do and why, the plan should take 30 minutes or less to write down. A business plan is the foundation of any enterprise but it can be changed, modified or improved at any time. So get that business plan down on paper and see if you are missing anything the go and make $millions!

Barry is a speaker on marketing & customer service and consultant to new and existing businesses. www.idealetter.com

Smile It's Free !

One of the best marketing tools (and cheapest) that you have is right in front of your face... your smile. It should be used on a regular basis to make customers & clients relax and enjoy doing business with you. Even when things don't go as expected, a smile can make it easier to resolve. Your sincere smile can show a customer that you really care and want to serve them well. It's an international gesture that everyone in any language knows.

Everyone in your business should practice and use their smile all the time. For some it's just natural and others have to work at it but using a smile can make a big difference. When everyone is smiling a little more loyalty will be created with customers who will feel better giving you repeat business. The power of a smile can help close many sales and make employees feel better doing their job.

Barry is a business and convention speaker.  www.idealetter.com

Should You Expand?

If you decide that you need to expand your business to stay ahead of competition or to take advantage of a rapidly growing industry, consider these questions first.

 *Can you actually profit from expansion and how long will it take?
 *What will you do with additional profits?
 *Is the industry growth just a fad or will it continue as a trend?
 *What are the long term projections?
 *How long will it take to start profiting from your expansion?
 *How quickly can you meet the increased demand?
 *Will bigger companies react to your expansion?
 *Will you need more office, warehouse or production space?
 *Will you need more trained employees?
 *Will you have fast distribution ability?
 *Do you have to purchase or lease more equipment?
 *Do you have the financial ability to finance the expansion?
 *Will you have to borrow to expand?
 *Will additional interest paid eat up profits?
 *Can you afford new employee pay & benefits until profits increase?
 *Will new demand be constant or just seasonal?
 *If seasonal can you use temporary employees?
 *Is it really worth it?

Barry is a speaker/trainer on business, marketing and networking. www.idealetter.com