Crisis Management

The Internet may have opened worlds for businesses and consumers, but it has also created a public relations nightmare for businesses. Forums, opinion Web sites, blogs, and anything that is publishable can smear a company's name in moments.

Remember, "Yours Is a Very Bad Hotel" presentation that described one customer's bad experience with a hotel chain? Hotels are run by humans. Humans make mistakes. It's how you handle the mistakes that can make the difference in customer service. Since the hotel's employees didn't try to help the customer overcome a bad situation, the customer lashed back and bloggers blogged it.

If the hotel is on top of its game, it would unleash its crisis management (also known as reputation management) team to salvage its reputation while it can. It's possible for a company to overcome bad PR and come out ahead as in the case of PG&E (California's Pacific Gas and Electric company).

Another strategy is to use Internet monitoring to monitor online articles regarding a company's activities to prepare for negative publicity. Some go further and monitor chat rooms, newsgroups, and online discussion forums.

It's like the story of the town gossip who spread false stories about its people. One day, he felt terrible and went to the chaplain [Rabbi, pastor, priest, or other — take your pick] to ask for forgiveness. The chaplain said,"I will forgive you, but you must do something first."

"Take a feather pillow, cut it open, and scatter the feathers to the winds." The man thought this was a strange request, but it was a simple enough task, and he did it gladly. When he returned to tell the chaplain that he had done it, the chaplain said, "Now, go and gather the feathers. Because you can no more make amends for the damage your words have done than you can recollect the feathers."

The same can happen to a company without a crisis management plan in place. It's possible to survive the crisis and thrive as PG&E did. Don't expect Worldcom to pull out of its Enron-like mess. Fraud is not excusable. And Martha Stewart? She has hired a public relations strategist firm in an effort to do damage control. It'll be worth watching to see what happens in her case and how the PR firm attempts to save her reputation. Did you know there is a recall on one of her products? Adds fuel to the fire, doesn't it?

Meryl K. Evans is the Content Maven behind meryl's notes, eNewsletter Journal, and The Remediator Security Digest. She is also a PC Today columnist and a tour guide at InformIT. She is geared to tackle your editing, writing, content, and process needs. The native Texan resides in Plano, Texas, a heartbeat north of Dallas, and doesn't wear a 10-gallon hat or cowboy boots.

Increase Business Profits - Ten Ways

How do you increase business profits? Answer the following questions carefully, and you'll have a good start.

1. Can you increase the average sale? A restaurant with 25% profit margins might make 50% on additional sales to existing customers (less labor to bag one large order than two smaller ones). Asking "What would you like to drink with that?" works, and it's just a start.

2. What's the least expensive way to get a customer? Before you spend another thousand dollars advertising to get new customers, could you get as much business by spending a few hours contacting previous or existing customers?

3. What low risk ideas can you try? I once sent a letter to several visiting basketball teams, inviting them to visit our restaurant, and giving the coach a free meal as an incentive. The cost? Two dollars. The pay off was two busloads of customers. At that rate, you could increase your business profits even if nine out of ten ideas fail.

4. Have you tested prices? I knew a store that sold a product for a $1.05, that cost them $1.00. At a price of $1.20, it is doubtful that they'd lose half their sales, but if they did, they'd still make twice the profit. Some things even sell better at a higher price. Test.

5. Can you measure your advertising results? How do you know that you're not spending more for a customer than they're worth? Coupons, customer surveys and other methods of measurement are a must.

6. How do you know your customers are satisfied? The worst restaurant meal we ever ate went down without a comment, but we never returned to that restaurant. Maybe the owner should be talking to the customers.

7. Can you enhance the percieved value of your product? Years ago, I sold walking sticks for $10 at flea markets, and $20 at craft shows. Sometimes location alone can enhance the percieved value of a product. What else can you do?

8. What are similar businesses doing? See what your successful competitors are doing. Can you do the same?

9. What other products can you sell? There's a reason stores have candy and magazines near the checkout. Extra sales are a great way to increase business profits.

10. Can you use your customers as salesmen? Word of mouth is a start, but what other ways can you get your customers to bring their friends to you?

These were culled from a longer list. I call it "stolen business ideas," because I can't credit the original authors. I took them where I found them over the years, with grattitude, but without notes.

Steve Gillman has been studying every aspect of money for thirty years. You can find more interesting and useful information on his website; http://www.EverythingAboutMoney.info

Advertising Campaigns That Get Results

"Advertising doesn't work." I hear it from my clients all the time. One client was about to file for bankruptcy because she wasn't getting a good response to her radio ads, and the cost was killing her. But she knew her target market was listening; she knew she needed to get her name out there to generate more business. What should she do?

Owners of small businesses and professionals like yourself realize that to take your business to the next level, you need to get your products and services in front of a larger audience. You want to generate more leads, get more prospects to contact you and buy from you. Advertising is essential but how do you get more out of your advertising dollars?

Have you been disappointed by your advertising campaigns?

I felt the same way about my family's VCR. I paid good money for it (though probably not nearly as much as most people pay for advertising) and as far as I was concerned I could never get it to work the way I wanted it to. I spent way too much time fiddling with it and I still couldn't get it to record a TV show or a movie reliably when I was away. After a while I stopped trying to use its record function.

Sound familiar?

Compared to programming a VCR, creating a successful advertising campaign is simple. Note the operative word here is "successful". It's easy to put together an advertising campaign, but creating one that helps you make more than you spend should be the objective. The following seven elements are what separate a successful advertising campaign from one that just costs you money.

Elements of A Successful Advertising Campaign

1. Choose the media that will reach your target market. It sounds obvious, but make sure your target audience will see and/or hear your ad. Select a publication or radio or cable station that your target audience reads or tunes to. If you're advertising on the web, your keyword selection is critical here.

2. Write ad copy that your prospects will want to read. Your prospects' primary interest is in what your product or service will do for them, not what it actually is. Which would you be more likely to read, a headline that reads, "Accounting Services" or one that reads, "How to Avoid Overpaying Your Taxes"?

3. Have others establish your credibility. If space allows, include testimonials in your ad verifying the outstanding results your products and services generate.

4. Motivate prospects to contact you Include a limited-time offer or something for free — a report, appraisal or bonus product — to prompt your prospects to take action.

5. Tell prospects what you want them to do and how to do it. This is your "call to action". Tell them to call you, visit your web site, send you an email, fill in the reply card, etc.

6. Follow up your offer with the information prospects need to make a purchase. Too many people make the mistake at this point in the sales process of launching into a s.ales pitch. Whether your prospect is on the phone with you or is visiting your web site, help them clarify the problem or concern they have and detail the solution you provide. Then remind them what action you want them to take.

7. Continue to educate your prospects and clients. Stay in touch with likely prospects by contacting them at least every month. Get the conversation going by discussing a common problem. Give your prospects a quick tip they can use and, of course, mention the solutions you provide.

A successful advertising campaign will include all seven of the above elements, not just one or two. When you put all these elements in place, your advertising will generate more leads and sales and you’ll see a good return on your advertising dollars.

By the way, the client who came to me on the verge of bankruptcy is now back on solid financial ground. Once she understood how to write her advertising copy and manage her advertising campaigns, her radio advertising started to bring in a steady stream of new business.

2005 © In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved.

The author, Charlie Cook, helps service professionals, small business owners and marketing professionals attract more clients and be more successful. Sign up to receive the Free Marketing Strategy eBook, '7 Steps to get more clients and grow your business' at http://www.marketingforsuccess.com

How To Uncover Your Passion For Ultimate Success - Part 2!

My belief is that when you do something you really enjoy doing and you find a way to help others while doing it, making money is just a natural end result.

However, if you are not yet as confident of the above beliefs as I am, you can always check to see if there's a demand for the subject you chose in part one before you go any further.

Just go to www.yahoo.com and do a search for whatever it is you've decided to do. Let's say that we decided to sell recipes and cookbooks. In which case, we would run a search for words such as: recipes, recipe book, cookbook, cooking, etc. If you don't find any sites dealing with recipes and cooking and you'd rather not take a chance pursuing that, you can move on to the next choice on your list. If you do find many sites about them, you have established that people are in fact interested in recipes and cookbooks.

The reason I picked Yahoo to search on is this: getting a good listing on Yahoo is not easy. It can also get very expensive. That means, if there are companies who have gone through the trouble of getting good listings on Yahoo, they have probably done so for very good reasons. In other words, there is money to be made with recipes and cookbooks.

You can also run a search on www.amazon.com for recipe books and/or even step into your local Barnes & Noble bookstore to check out their front shelves.

While we're on the subject of 'doing what you love,' let me take this opportunity to share something else of importance.

Most new marketers tend to start by selling marketing products. And while there is still money to be made in marketing products, it's not like it used to be. These days, the competition in the marketing field is fierce and I don't see it letting up anytime soon.

You will have a much easier time succeeding with non-marketing products. In other words, "niche marketing" - doing what you love, what you enjoy, what you have a passion for.

Let me also point out that I've made more money with special-interest 'niche' products than with all of my other marketing products combined! And I have quite a few marketing products out there. I hope that gives you some idea of the importance of pursuing a market that you have a love, passion or interest for, instead of going after something that seems to be making other people money.

If you absolutely love marketing and showing others how to market, then by all means sell marketing products. Otherwise, stick with what you enjoy and love, and become the king (or queen) of that niche!

Discover how to turn your hobby, special interest, or expertise into a niche market worth over $12,000 a month in your spare time. Visit: http://www.asuccesfullhomebusiness4u.com/nichemarketing.html.

How To Uncover Your Passion For Ultimate Success - Part 1!

Once you have prepared your body and mind for success, it's time for the next step and to choose the right target to shoot for. The more clear you are on what you're shooting for, the better your chances will be of hitting the mark.

I would lock myself in my room and take the phone off the hook...or even better, find a place away from your normal environment, a quiet peaceful place, preferably around nature - in the woods or a nice park, etc.

Once I'm there, I would take a few moments to relax and soak it all in. Get your mind to a calm, comfortable, relaxed state. Then, I would start by making a list of all the things I enjoy doing, all of my interests and hobbies, all of my passions. Since we're starting from scratch, we might as well pick a subject/business that we would enjoy doing, right?

I would spend at least a good few hours on really getting this information out of myself. Think of what your ideal jobs or careers are. What have you enjoyed doing in the past? What did you enjoy a lot as a kid? What are the things that really make you come alive? Add everything to the list. Don't worry about how you're going to make money doing those things yet. Just put together as thorough a list as you can.

See...you want to do what you enjoy, what you love.

Pick the kind of lifestyle you want first - then build the business around that!

Only after your list is done, should you think of turning those hobbies/interests/passions into a business. Pick the top 5 choices out of your list and think of how you can help others by doing them. For example, if you really enjoy cooking and that was one of your top 5 choices, you can now start thinking of ways to turn that into a business.

You could, for example, share your recipes with others, teach them to cook like you, or you could even cook for them. Personally, I love selling information. So, I would probably decide to sell an informational product, say a book of recipes, a 'learn-to-cook' type of manual, or something along those lines.

My belief is that when you do something you really enjoy doing and you find a way to help others while doing it, making money is just a natural end result.

(Feel free to use this article online and in your email newsletters as long as you leave it intact and do not alter it in anyway. The by-line and resource box must remain in the article all links must be active hyperlinks.)

Discover how to turn your hobby, special interest, or expertise into a niche market worth over $12,000 a month in your spare time. Visit: http://www.asuccesfullhomebusiness4u.com/nichemarketing.html.

Making Money By Outsourcing

So you are thinking to yourself "how can I expand my operation, do more business and make more money?". If you are thinking this right now and are in the web design or webhosting fields then Outsourcing might be for you. Now this is not to say that other companies or businesses can't do outsourcing work. The reasons I give web design and webhosting as examples is they are sort of related. You can't have a site up without hosting in return you really don't need hosting unless you have a site up.

Now you may be thinking what steps do you need to get started on expanding via outsourcing. Well the very first thing for you to do is to see if you have a good clients base where you are:

-Unable to keep up with the work.

-Unable to do the work yourself(in the case you run a website that gets alot of request but have no knowledge in website design).

-Can do website and graphic works but you have no clue about programming.

Anyone of these situations can leave you looking to outsource your business. Especially when you design websites but can not code them in anything but html(which your clients might need it coded in php and mysql). Not being able to offer your clients a complete solution may cause them to go another developer. Which in turn can cause you to lose projects in the $X,XXX range.

Now that you have decided to turn to outsourcing, you need to find a reliable team of developers. Whether they are website designers, programmers or both. You will need to know that they can do the work, are reliable and trustworthy. Make sure when you do this search that you follow these simple rules and check on some things. Such as:

-Make sure you can contact them multiple ways and that they will contact you back in a reasonable amount of time.

-Get samples of their work.

-Ask for references.

-Get their rates.

-Find out their years of experience.

-Make sure they are willing to sign a contract.

-Find out how much work they can handle, what languages they program in, as well as their team size.

-It is all right to give them a deposit but limit it to 25-50% and don't pay anymore until the project is complete. If you want to break it down into milestones you can, but do it in either 10% or 20% increments. Make sure the milestones are set out in the contract.

These things will protect you.

The next thing you are going to want to do before taking on any projects is start with a test project. This will allow you to try out your new team as well as see what type of markup on projects you will get. This will definitely show you what problems if any you might face with the new team. It will also show you if there is a significant enough markup for you to make it worth your time to outsource.

The final step you are going to need to do is to put in place a fluent system to monitor clients, emails and your team. This will definitely help when updates are needed to be done. A project management system will allow your clients and your team to talk to each other without revealing any personnel contact information. Which will save you from having your clients stolen from you. Also make sure you monitor all contact so that you can be sure you can trust who you are doing business with.

Just remember to take outsourcing one step at a time.

Anthony Jewell has over 6 Years experience in the Web & Graphics World. You can visit my business at http://www.logo2d.com

Why Keeping Your Business and Time Organized Will Help You Be Succesful

In any business the old saying "Time is Money" is very true. For every minute that is waisted could mean the loss of revenue or another potential client. This is seen for every business including a one or two man operation. Since the duties of the company will be either put on you totally or split between partners. Keeping your time organized will not only free you up to focus on other business related issues, which will allow you take care of more each and every day. It will also help lead you to success.

Whether you have 5 minutes or 5 hours you need to treat every minute precious. Some businesses work so efficient that it seems they can get 10 hours done in half the time. While other businesses waiste their time and are always trying to play catch up. Every time they get caught up on the work from yesterday, tomorrow they will have to get caught up on the work they had to skip from today. Which usually gets them into a catch 22 , which not only makes you or your employees have to work harder and longer hours to get everything in order. Your clients will also feel the delays that come along with this and may decide to opt-out for a business who can run their business right.

Keeping your company organized will allow you to stay on track when it comes to day to day operations. This is key for any business who has to meet deadlines and deliver products to clients. Organizing day to day operations will allow you to group activities that need to be addressed together. So if you need to pick up paper, ink for the printer and envelopes, you should be able to do this in one shot. So instead of making three trips during the week, do them all in one shot. This will not only save you time on having to go out to the store for the things you need, it will also allow you to stay in a steady progress without having to leave what you are doing to run out.

To organize yourself is actually very easy. Make a list of your day to day operations so that you can see what you need to do during the week. This will help create an outline of what you will need to do for your business and will give you a time table to run your business by. Make each day represent something for your company such as: Mondays - Go To The Store : Tuesday - Send Out Mail ect... Making a time table and tracking your time will help your business run more efficient and effective!

Anthony Jewell has over 6 Years experience in the Web & Graphics World. You can visit my business at http://www.logo2d.com

©Copyright 2005 Logo2D.com : Feel free to use this article freely but please keep in the copyright

How Starting A Part Time Internet Business Can Yield A Full Time Income

Most people spend their day traveling from home to work and back home again slogging really hard at their offices. The reason why you remain as poor as you are is that the boss takes a slice of the profits by leveraging on your work done for them. Now before you get bitter, why not start your own internet business part time and turn the tables on society and become the boss of your own business for once. This article explains how starting an internet business in your part time can allow you to make money online.

Leverage on the internet

When I market anything online, this is seen by everyone in the English speaking world online. Can you imagine the reach of online advertising today? Google the largest search engine company now became big because of advertising. By starting an internet business, you too can take part in this new global market and make money from it.

In addition, making money on the internet means that you can make money while you sleep. That’s why some internet marketers make massive amounts of money online but all this wealth is well hidden from the Forbes and Tattler International Magazines.

Leverage on systems

When people first started to market they did telemarketing and sales was dependent on the person making the phone calls and the training they did. This limits the amount of sales to the number of people who pick up calls. Today with the advent of the internet and marketing systems, I can have literally hundreds of people visiting my website and when they signup to learn more, I can leverage on automated systems to followup with them and encourage them to make a purchase.

Leverage on other people’s time

The combination of the internet, mlms and two tier affiliate programs has brought with it the unprecedented ability to make massive amounts of money by leveraging on the power of a downline or affiliate program. These basically allow you to make money whenever your affiliate or downline sells your product for you. Once you have an established system and your downline follows your success, you can then notice that the more you work, the more people follow you and the more money you make. Massive I would say as the more sales people in your team, the more money you will make.

In conclusion, the internet represents a large market for internet marketers and those intending on starting an internet business. Only if you have the determination, zeal, the right program and the right system will you be able to make money online. An internet business therefore represents the best way today to make money from your home even while you are sleeping.

Copyright © 2005-2006 Joel Teo the Coolest Guy On The Planet

Joel Teo is the successful owner of several successful internet business ventures. Click here to learn how you can start your own successful internet business today. http://www.massive-profits-online.com

The Number 1 Secret of Success

Do you know what one of the key secrets of success is - what makes people successful in business, sport or any other aspect of their lives? Let me come back to that in a minute.

Ever since I discovered that I wasn't invincible and that my body would fall apart over time, I've been a member of a gym. I've attended regularly over the past fifteen years and my body deterioration is almost being kept in check.

However I've always noticed a lot of new faces at the gym, some of which seem to disappear over a short period of time. Most gyms and health clubs have a high turnover of members or "churn" as the marketing people like to call it. One club I know of loses around fifty members a month and has to work hard to sign up that number just for the business to stand still.

It's not that these gyms offer a poor service, on the contrary - it's because the members - "give up."

New members join to lose weight or to get fit. They then torture themselves on the rowing machines and all the other instruments of agony. If, after a few weeks of sweat and pain, they don't see any visible result - they give up.

You're probably away ahead of me on this; because the key secret of success that I mentioned earlier is this - NEVER EVER GIVE UP. This is what separates the winners from the losers in business, in sport and in life - this is what success is all about.

If you have a mountain to climb either literally or figuratively and you reach an obstacle - don't give up. Find another way round - even go back a short distance and come at the situation from another direction.

Whatever it is you're trying to achieve, whatever success you want - never give up! Make mistakes - fall down - get up - fall down - but get up and try again.

So there you have it - If you want success remember what Winston Churchill once said - "Never - Never - Never give up!"

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Discover how you can generate more business without having to cold call!
Alan Fairweather -"The Motivation Doctor" - is the author of "How to get More Sales Without Selling" To receive your free newsletter and free ebooks, visit: http://www.howtogetmoresales.com

Managing Risks - How to Avoid Accidents?

One of the best techniques of preventing accidents at a large project site is to let the contractor supervisors ponder over the jobs to be done and then putting them down in writing.

It's a common fact that workers coming together in a large construction project have different levels of experience and training. The key persons for preventing accidents are the supervisors.

By getting the supervisors to put their work steps and procedures in writing, safety personnel can use this method to reduce incidents of workers taking shortcuts in safety.

The way to do this is to have a form for the supervisors to fill. This is called the site incident prevention plan or SIPP. It's just a form that informs the safety officers their work plan. A good description of the work plan will include the following:

1. A sequence of work that starts with informing the project manager or supervisor before starting work. The work will then have a description of the potential hazard if this was not carried out. Having made aware of the potential hazard, the person writing the work plan will also write down the countermeasures that he will take to eliminate the hazard. An example of this control measure will be seeking approval from the safety officer and conducting tool box meeting with the workers before starting work.

2. The next sequence will most likely be mobilization of tools and materials to the work site. The potential hazard could be personal injury or messing up of the work area. To reduce the hazard, the supervisor may require his workers to wear safety gears like helmet and safety shoes.

3. The job itself will also be stated in the work plan. Depending on the location, the potential hazard could be personal injury, falling from height, or possibly causing a fire. So the supervisor will have to state all the control measures that he will have to take. An example could be for the workers to wear safety personal protective equipment, in this case, safety harness to prevent falling from heights. Applying for hot work permit could be another control measure.

The hot work permit itself is a separate form to be filled. This is applicable for hot work that can possibly cause a fire at the site. The hot work permit may require the applicant to make ready fire extinguishers, remove combustibles, use torches and burning equipment that are in good working order, etc...

There may be other control measures to be taken. It depends on the job. One control measure might require that workers do not step on the existing piping. Another control measure might be to erect barricades...

4. The last item in the SIPP could be housekeeping after the completion of the work. The potential hazard could be fire or tripping hazard. The control measure - cleaning up, removal of debris from the site and sweeping the floor after work completion.

In this work plan, the supervisor will indicate his name, the location of his work, the company name, and the work to be done. Depending on the complexity of the form, he might include a site map with the location of his work clearly marked out.

When supervisors make the effort to submit this SIPP work plan one day before the execution of the work, they are able to control the work hazards to prevent accidents. It all happens when thoughts are put into writing.

Many years of working experience in Marine, Facilities, Construction has given the author material for writing e-books and articles related to engineering, and management. Subscribe to facworld ezine

More information at Marine Engineer and M & E Engineer

Double Your Income Automatically

It is a common known fact that it is far cheaper to keep an existing customer then it is to acquire a new customer. With this fact in mind you need to do everything possible to keep your existing customers happy and find complimentary products to offer your existing customers.

If you are a Mortgage professional why not offer your clients mortgage life insurance as well? Many of today's home buyers depend on the income of both spouses to pay the Mortgage. By offering Mortgage life insurance you are helping to fill a need, You have already built up their trust by getting their mortgage business why not offer them Life Insurance as well.

If you are a Real Estate agent most of your customers already trust you with the biggest investment they will ever make their houses. Why not offer them investment products? Many real estate agents are the ones chasing down the lenders and pushing those Mortgages thru. In many states it is perfectly legal to earn a commission on a home sale or purchase and the Mortgage that goes with it as long as you file the proper disclosures.

We have a business here in town that offers to help new homeowners get set up with Phone service, Cable or Satellite TV Service, High Speed Internet, Alarm service and trash service. Many of these companies will pay you either a one time commission or better yet a monthly residual for referring them clients. Why not offer to help your Home Buying Clients a service by giving them a packet with information about the different Phone Companies, Cable and Satellite companies, Alarm companies and then offer to help them with the leg work after they decide which ones. Some will pick the ones you get commissions on others won't. By allowing them to choose among all the alternatives you stand to make a small commission every now and then and at the same time provide your clients with an added service they can't get elsewhere.

About the Author
Mike Makler Offers Financial Services (Mortgages,Life Insurance, Annuity) in Florissant Missouri which is in North St. Louis County Missouri Just Across the Bridge from St. Charles Missouri

Call Mike at 314 398-5547

Visit Mike's Web Page:
http://ewguru.com/finance

For Missouri Specific Insurance and Loan Questions:
http://ewguru.com/Mo-Finance

Get Mike's Newsletter Here
http://ewguru.com/fin-news

Copyright © 2005-2006 Mike Makler

10 Sure-Fire Steps to take the Fear out of Public Speaking

Do you "feel the fear" when asked to do some Public Speaking?

Public Speaking is still one of our greatest fears and it turns grown men and women into nervous wrecks. The mere thought of it turns our tongue to cotton wool, causes our internal plumbing to act up and turns our knees to jelly.

Well, there's no need for all of this because help is at hand. All you need to remember are your P's and Q's. Let's start with the P's

Preparation -

When you sit down to write what you're going to say, bear in mind who you'll be speaking to. Will they understand what you're talking about; will they understand the technical stuff and the jargon? If in doubt remember the old saying - "Keep It Simple Stupid".

Make sure that what you say has a beginning, middle and an end. Think of some anecdotes that help reinforce your story. People think visually so paint verbal pictures for your audience. And always remember, people want to know what's in it for them - so make sure you tell them!

Place -

Have a look at the venue before the event if you can. It's not always possible, however, even if you get there half an hour before, you can check out where you'll be speaking.

Stand at the point where you will deliver from, imagine where the audience will be and check that they can see and hear you. You may even wish to place a glass of water where you'll be able to find it.

Personal Preparation -

Before any Public Speaking event, think about what you are going to wear; when in doubt dress up rather than down. You can always take things off for a more casual look. Men could remove their jacket and their tie. Women could remove items of jewellery.

Part of your personal preparation should include some mouth and breathing exercises. Practise saying some tongue twisters to give your speaking muscles a good work out. Take a deep breath and expand your diaphragm. Then breathe out, counting at the same time; try and get up to fifty and not pass out.

As part of your personal preparation, write your own introduction. Write out exactly what you want someone to say about you, large font, double-spaced and ask the person introducing you to read it. Believe me they won't object and will probably be pleased and impressed.

Poise and Posture -

Whenever you're called to speak, stand up or walk to the front quickly and purposefully. Pull yourself up to your full height, stand tall and look like you own the place. Before you start to speak, pause, look round your audience and smile. You may even have to wait until the applause dies down. Remember, you want the audience to like you, so look likeable.

Pretend -

I'm suggesting you pretend you're not nervous because no doubt you will be. Nervousness is vital for speaking in public, it boosts your adrenaline, which makes your mind sharper and gives you energy.

The trick is to keep your nerves to yourself. On no account tell your audience your nervous; you'll only scare the living daylights out of them if they think you're going to faint.

Some tricks for dealing with nerves are:

Before you're called to speak, get lots of oxygen into your system, run on the spot and wave your arms about like a lunatic. It burns off the stress chemicals.

Speak to members of your audience as they come in or at some time before you stand up. That tricks your brain into thinking you're talking to some friends.

Have a glass of water handy for that dry mouth. One word of warning - do not drink alcohol. It might give you Dutch courage but your audience will end up thinking you're speaking Dutch.

The Presentation -

Right from the start your delivery needs to grab their attention.

Don't start by saying - "Good morning, my name is Fred Smith and I'm from Smith Associates." Even if your name is Smith, it's a real boring way to start a presentation. Far better to start with some interesting facts or an anecdote that's relevant to your presentation.

Look at the audience as individuals; it grabs their attention if they think you're talking to them personally.

Talk louder than you would normally do, it keeps the people in the front row awake and makes sure those at the back get the message. Funnily enough, it's also good for your nerves.

PowerPoint -

And for those of you who haven't heard of it, it's a software programme that's used to design stunning graphics and text for projection onto a screen.

As a professional speaker, I'm not that struck on PowerPoint. I feel that too many speakers rely on it and it takes over the presentation. After all, you're the important factor here. If an audience is going to accept what you say then they need to see the whites of your eyes. There needs to be a big focus on you, not on the technology.

Use PowerPoint if you want but keep it to a minimum and make sure you're not just the person pushing the buttons. Why not get a bit clever at using the faithful old Flip Chart, lots of professionals do.

Passion -

This is what stops the audience in their tracks. This is what makes them want to employ you or to accept what you're proposing. Couple this with some energy, enthusiasm and emotion and you have the makings of a great public speaker.

Give your presentation a bit of oomph and don't start telling me - "I'm not that kind of person." There's no need to go over the top but you're doing a presentation to move people to action, not having a cosy little chat in your front room.

That's the P's finished, so let's look at the Q's.

Questions -

Decide when you're going to take them and tell people at the start. In a short speech it's best to take questions at the end. If you take them as you go then you may get waylaid and your timing will get knocked out.

Never - never - never finish with questions; far better to ask for questions five or ten minutes before the end. Deal with the questions and then summarise for a strong finish. Too many presentations finish on questions and the whole thing goes a bit flat.

When you're asked a question, repeat it to the whole audience and thank the questioner. It keeps everyone involved, it gives you time to think and it makes you look so clever and in control.

Quit - Quit when you're ahead. Stick to the agreed time; if you're asked to speak for twenty minutes, speak for nineteen and the audience will love you for it. Remember, quality is not quantity.

One of the most famous speeches ever - "The Gettysburg Address", by President Lincoln, was just over two minutes long.

Right, that's my cue to quit when I'm ahead. Now that you're armed with this information you too can minimise your fear of Public Speaking.

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Alan Fairweather - "The Motivation Doctor" -is the author of "How to get More Sales Without Selling" To receive your newsletter and free ebooks, visit: http://www.howtogetmoresales.com

Business Planning for College Students and First-Time Entrepreneurs

More and more students, both in undergraduate and graduate institutions, are deciding to launch their own ventures upon graduation rather than taking the traditional route of working for another firm. Likewise, more and more individuals are leaving their jobs to fulfill their entrepreneurial dreams.

While these ventures may ultimately be very successful (e.g., Google and Microsoft were both launched by students), they face certain challenges in their business plans and capital raising processes. The foremost challenge is overcoming the lack of experience of the management team. A classis chicken-and-egg problem presents itself – the management team has no past company successes to point to, and can’t prove itself unless given the opportunity to launch the business. While this problem is nearly always the case for graduating students, it also presents itself to many entrepreneurs, particularly those who are launching their first ventures.

To overcome this challenge, these ventures must represent themselves as having a great team by attracting a stellar management team and/or advisors. By attracting a quality management team, even if the team will not start until after financing, it gives investors that confidence that the plan will be properly executed. It also proves that the entrepreneurs have the ability to “sell” others on their vision. The management team need not be complete before seeking capital, since additional members will most likely be added after capital is raised. For instance, shortly after Google raised capital from Sequoia Capital and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Omid Kordestani left Netscape to accept a position as vice president of business development and sales, and Urs Hölzle was hired away from UC Santa Barbara as vice president of engineering.

Attracting high-quality advisors builds great credibility since if respected individuals are willing to risk their reputations by taking an advisory position, the venture must have some merit. Advisors can also help with the execution of the business and sometimes will also provide the needed capital. In Google’s case, when no major portal was interested in partnering with or funding the company, Larry Page and Sergey Brin were able to convince Andy Bechtolsheim, one of the founders of Sun Microsystems, to become an advisor and investor. Bechtolsheim contributed the initial $100,000 to the company.

Even if the venture is able to attract quality management teams and advisors, it will always be at a disadvantage versus other ventures headed by entrepreneurs who have “been there, done that” successfully in the past. To compensate for this, these ventures must really know their customers, know their market and know their competition. By possessing an in depth knowledge of the external factors that will effect the company’s success, the entrepreneurs can both create a solid business strategy and convince investors that an opportunity really exists. If the opportunity truly exists, then investors know that even if the venture is initially mismanaged, then they can hire additional managers later to put it back on course.

In summary, when students or first time entrepreneurs, begin developing their business strategies and plans, they must compensate for the management deficiencies they possess versus established entrepreneurs. By doing this and showing a comprehensive knowledge of their market, these ventures can level the capital raising playing field. Fortunately, these ventures can point to a long list of other successful companies which were launched by students and/or first time entrepreneurs, most notably Google and Microsoft.

As President of Growthink Business Plans, Dave Lavinsky has helped the company become one of the premier business plan development firms. Since its inception, Growthink has developed over 200 business plans. Growthink clients have collectively raised over $750 million in financing, launched numerous new product and service lines and gained competitive advantage and market share.

Four Steps to Entrepreneurship

As more and more people start or consider starting their own business, it is important that they understand the core steps that are required to launch successful ventures. These steps include spotting, assessing, selecting and executing upon opportunities.

Spotting Opportunities

The first step to entrepreneurship is identifying opportunities. The entrepreneur must be able to spot an unmet need. Oftentimes this need is seen through an inefficiency in the market – something that doesn’t work quite the way the entrepreneur would like it to. As a result, the entrepreneur figures out a potential solution and the opportunity is born.

Assessing Opportunities

Many entrepreneurs keep a journal that details the myriad opportunities they come across each day. While it takes a creative skill set to identify opportunities, it takes an analytical skill set to assess them. Each opportunity should be assessed to, among others, determine its likelihood of success and the financial and human resources required to execute upon it.

Selecting Opportunities

One of the biggest risks in selecting the wrong opportunity is opportunity cost; that is, the cost of having to forego another opportunity which may have been wildly successful. Entrepreneurs should assess their potential opportunities and come to a firm decision regarding which one to execute upon. Once selected, the entrepreneur cannot second guess themselves. To do so would lessen their focus and drive towards the selected opportunity, both of which are critical in achieving success.

Executing Upon Opportunities

Execution, or the ability to generate the most value out of an opportunity, requires a unique combination of creativity, passion, persistence, focus, responsibility, intelligence, planning and energy. The entrepreneur needs to know what tasks must be accomplished and be the main driver in seeing that these tasks are completed in an appropriate manner.

Understanding the four steps to entrepreneurship enables entrepreneurs to better understand the path that they are embarking upon. It is a path filled with potential pitfalls, but also filled with tremendous excitement, satisfaction and potential to build enormous value.

Since its inception, Growthink Professional Business Plans has developed over 200 business plans. Growthink clients have collectively raised over $750 million in financing, launched numerous new product and service lines and gained competitive advantage and market share. Growthink has become the firm of choice for venture capital firms, angel investors, corporations and entrepreneurs in the know. For more information please visit http://www.growthink.com or visit our venture capital placement site at GTS Venture Capital.