How to Increase Commissions in Commission Only Sales: 5 Eye-Opening Keys to a Secure Sales Career

Allen Foster, 39, followed his dad, John, into a lucrative career in insurance.

"He raised three kids on commission-only income, had total independence and control over his time, made a darn good living...I wanted that for my family too," shares Allen.

In 1996, John was able to retire on his renewal commissions-something unheard of for most career producers today.

New regulations have not only cut into commission payouts, but corporate politics, ever-changing commission-structures and rising quotas have led sales professionals to change firms and product lines more often than their predecessors-consequently losing their client base and vested potential in the process.

"To say things have changed since my dad's days of selling insurance would be an understatement," says Allen. "Companies aren't loyal to their agents anymore, and in turn, agents aren't loyal to their company. Since 1999 I've been with three different agencies-and that's less than most guys! It sounds unbelievable now, but in his entire 27 years, my dad was with two companies!" Allen laughs in disbelief.

And the time flexibility he remembers his dad having?

"Almost non-existent," Allen states matter-of-factly. "When I'm not dealing with corporate politics to hold on to my territory, in mandated continuing education classes, and keeping up on the ever-changing rules and regs of the industry, my time is spent trying to meet with an existing or potential client."

Technology and the internet has led to prospects rarely answering their phones, calls rolling to voicemail, and sales needing eight to twelve contacts.

Add in legislative and regulatory changes in the mortgage, real estate, health insurance and annuity markets, and sales professionals in every industry have been facing an up-hill battle for some time.

And in the midst of all this turmoil, what are sales professionals told to do?

Work harder.

Which is exactly what most commission-only producers do when the going gets tough.

Commission sales has always attracted a unique breed of sales professional. They are driven, competitive, confident, "think-outside-the-box" people who desire to control their own destiny. Many have backgrounds in competitive sports or the military, and tend to be initiative-taking leaders.

But in today's downright harsh sales environment, even the go-getters are struggling.

"Like my dad, I'm really good at what I do. As the proverbial saying goes, I could 'sell ice to an Eskimo' if I wanted to. But to make a decent living in the 'old school' way just doesn't cut it anymore. And I've come to terms with the fact that there's no way I'll see retirement renewals on any of the insurance business I write today. It's tough..."

Ron Agypt, vice president of broker sales at Aflac, echoes Allen's sentiment. "[Commissioned] agents are definitely feeling the squeeze...insurance companies have already started paying flat fees instead of commissions, and they are getting pressure from clients who are really saying to them 'We need more for less.'"

While some commission-only sales careers, like travel agents, have gone the way of the Dodo, others are forced to completely re-evaluate how they do business and get paid.

In Idaho, for example, where insurers began paying flat fees a few years ago, one agent told the Wall Street Journal that he initially suffered a 20 percent drop in income...

Fortunately, due to his "out-of-the-box" thinking, he was able to eventually make this up by diversifying his product portfolio.

In addition to selling his "traditional insurance" services, he partnered with a company to sell voluntary, non-traditional add-on products to his existing clients; this move also enabled him to expand his client base into other business industries that had previously been too small for his line of services and not worth his effort.

To make up the lost income most commission sales professionals are used to generating, says Alan Katz, once president of both the National and the California Associations of Health Underwriters, will require that they "take a horizontal approach to change: diversifying your product portfolio so you are selling more products to the same client."

And by no means does this relate just to health insurance.

In the annuity industry, the low interest rate environment has made business much less profitable for issuers; new regulation has increased costs leading to consolidation. Because fewer companies are competing, products are less competitive in terms of rates, commissions and innovative features.

The overall resounding message is clear: Instead of just embracing the masochistic opinion to work harder for the same or less amount of money, commission-only sales professionals must start evaluating portfolio-expanding services that enable them to offer value to their clients, and be adequately compensated for doing so- regardless of the economy, political decisions, or corporate politics.

Let's examine 5 key distinctions independent commission sales professionals should look for when partnering with a voluntary benefits company to fill the gap in their commissions:

1. Small Business Niche Market - With insurance brokers across the United States being told that, due to health reform, their small-group commissions will drop by 15 percent starting in 2011, many small group producers are moving to mid-sized companies, and mid-sized producers are moving to larger groups.

Instead of running with the herd, the smart move is to evaluate how this deserted market can now open up opportunity for producers to:

• take advantage of less competition

• offer voluntary, niche-focused benefits to smaller market segments

• fill their commission gap

Working with a company and sales support team that focuses on the small business niche can offer huge potential to commission-only producers.

2. Add-On or Door-Opener Product Line - There may be some commission sales professionals who decide to leave insurance sales altogether-but most won't. And the truth of the matter is that most other commission-only sales professions (real estate, mortgage, advertising, merchant, etc.) aren't faring much better...

Even though implementation of health care reform is three years away (2014), the reality is that many of those painful compensation changes are already being implemented. Attractive, motivating commissions are going by the wayside and being replaced with flat fee payouts.

For commission sales producers, this means the time is now to start looking for additional services to leverage. Look for services that can:

a) Be added-on to existing client's benefits to enhance service value and, in turn, increase up-front and renewal commissions

b) Serve as an appealing door opener to help commission sales professionals get invited in to previously closed sales opportunities

3. Flexible Work Environment - In today's tech-savvy business marketplace, there is little reason why trainings and meetings can't be done via webinar, email, or iPhone. A sales team that demonstrates this work flexibility is key to a vibrant, commission-only sales future.

The growing rigidity of the traditional sales environment goes against the very nature of who an independent commission sales professional is. Give them reasonable goals, motivation, effective tools, and let them go! Sales is a results-driven activity. To maximize those results requires a work environment that is as flexible as possible.

4. Innovative Training - This does not mean training on how to sell. Independent sales professionals know how to sell. Innovative training involves providing relevant, up-to-date insights on how to communicate more effectively with your niche market. This could relate to using social media, CRM, email, or other proven prospecting and nurturing strategies that move way beyond old, worn-out tactics.

Training that is cutting-edge enhances already well-established sales skills, saves time, and leverages the expertise of like-minded sales professionals. Innovative training helps producers not only connect with quality prospects, but helps drive more sales and generate increased revenue.

5. Renewal Commissions - For most independent sales professionals, renewal income is like Santa Claus-it existed in one form or another long, long ago, but now, the concept of it has been hyped-up, twisted, corrupted and devalued.

It's true that for most commission-only producers, their company's commission structure, turn-over policies, increasing policy rates, and fickle client base has made renewal payouts impossible.

But the reality is that, "Yes, Virginia, renewal income really does exist." And with commissions in almost every field of sales being significantly reduced, independent sales professionals must think in regards to short- and long-term financial rewards and partner with a company that does too.

Alex Gardner is National Marketing Director at http://UnitedSalesPros.com where he's collaborated for 10+ years with a nationwide group of active, top-producing, commission-only sales enthusiasts who earn their living making sales.

United Sales Pros provides a platform for independent, commission-based sales professionals in any industry to access cutting-edge, relevant, valuable, and applicable resources to help them advance in their sales career.

We invite you to take full advantage of the fresh ideas that are shared on http://UnitedSalesPros.com, offer your own commentary and insights, and to suggest topics you'd like to see addressed related to commission-based sales.

Could You Improve Your Insurance Sales Watching a Guy Selling Cookware at a County Fair?

Even though there are big differences between selling products and selling a service when someone does a superior job of selling there are lessons to be learned. When you watch a top producer selling anything there are tremendous lessons to be learned from the obvious to the subtle nuances.

At the end of each summer there's a local county fair that's one of the better ones in the nation. This year my husband and I went, and while there my husband purchased a collection of cookware for me that was so obscenely expensive that many people have purchased cars for less. So, how did this guy selling cookware sell my husband on such an expensive totally impulsive and unnecessary sale? It wasn't like I didn't already have cookware, it wasn't like we left for the fair that morning thinking we needed to find cookware, and it certainly wasn't like either of us even knew cookware could cost that much money. Read and learn.

It had been a long morning at the fair when I noticed this guy had some kind of cooking demonstration going on that involved chairs for the audience, so we happened to sit down in his audience. One thing you noticed immediately beyond the fact that the guy was just likable was that he wasn't just demonstrating his cookware he was actually teaching people about cooking, nutrition, and healthy eating. And he was doing it in a way that had the audience spell bound. This guy had a group of about 50 people completely focused on him and what he was saying. Why? All ears and eyes were trained on him because he was providing added value beyond what they expected.

He disqualified non-buyers from the start, but he did so in a way that wasn't insulting. He told the audience often, and with no shame that his cookware was very expensive. All throughout his demonstration he was preparing the future buyers and the non-buyers alike.

He focused on what he knew the people in his audience wanted. His focus was on fast, easy, and healthy cooking made simple in both preparation and cleanup. He had one of the future buyers sold within about 10 minutes of the start of his sales demonstration. In fact, this guy was so enthusiastic I thought he was a plant until I verified for myself that he wasn't.

He focused on the real decision maker. Few women would spend that kind of money on cookware without involving the husband, and this guy focused on selling the cookware to the husband and left it to the husband to close the wife. Nearly everyone in his audience was forty plus, and it's at that point that most people start to have a reality check about their health. My husband is extremely health conscious, and evidently so were a lot of other people in the audience. Now of the fifty or so people in the audience about a dozen were kids. Many were couples, so there were probably about a dozen real decisions makers at most. Yet at the end of his demonstration the cookware guy had sold three very expensive cookware collections. Perhaps you can take a lesson from the cookware guy to improve your career sales training, and it may not hurt to use the free sales skill analysis below to do a spot check to see how your skills measure up.

Ready to get unstuck? Increase your Insurance Sales [http://omaha-business-coach.com/sales.html], check this out.

Could you sell more with a few Time Management Tips?

Exploding Insurance Sales Messages You Can Write

WRITING INSURANCE SALES MAILERS THAT SMASH THE MOLD

Face it, just because someone can sell insurance policies, it does not mean they can write. You do not have to hire an outside writer it you follow the tricks and tips that produce extraordinary results. YOU CAN easily transform your direct sales mailer to one of the best insurance sales mailers pulling in maximum response.

In fact, how would you like to know how your response results will weigh in BEFORE your sales message is sent out? Consider that a decent business to business person letter scores a 1% response. Will your sales message score this high, or will you receive more sales leads or less sales leads than average? Score your insurance sales message with these professional recommendations. Afterwards, have another associate also score your present sales piece. Remember that rewriting your sales message after the preliminary scoring could move your newly revised postcard or letter right into the winners circle.

1. Up to 75 points. The insurance mailing list you are using. Provide yourself 45 points if you use a list of prospects just meeting one common criteria, like all being licensed insurance agents. Give yourself 55 points if over half the people on the mailing list were removed because they didn't meet the standards of a good prospect. With insurance agents that would mean they were too captive or too new. Raise up your score to 65 if another desirable feature existed, like your refined list only contained independent and semi-independent agents. Award 75 points if your direct mailing sales piece comes from a list of agents who already responded at least once to selling a product similar to yours.

2. Up to 20 points. Only 10 points if your sales message headline mentions basically only your agency or company introducing a new product. "ABC company announces a brand new product". 15 points if your headline shouts out to the client how your product benefits them. 20 points, if it does the above in such an electrifying way it knocks their socks off. This is achieved with emotional adjectives, verbs, and power phrases injected.

3. Up to 5 points. 0 points if your sales messages takes a full line to (1) mention your company rating, or (2) your previous bio of achievements in sales and awards, or (3) the company all expense trip, or (4) an award for reaching a certain amount of production. SUBTRACT 5 points for each of the above over one. Chock up an extra 5 points if all are avoided.

4. Up to 15 points. 15 points when your sales message describes 3 key benefits the prospect will receive by using your products. 10 points for 2., and 5 for 1. Subtract 3 points for each additional benefit listed. or missed. If you can clearly identify an emotion(s) with your key points like fear, greed, happiness, security. You get 3 more points and a pat on the back.

5. Up to 6 points. 6 points if your sales message mentioned a limited time to reply, or a that a limited number of responses would be accepted. Minus 3 points if it failed to do so.

6. Up to 4 points. 4 points for offering something Free, without obligation, just for responding. and talking to you. ($10 gas certificate, sales video, sales book, etc). Minus 2 points if you missed the opportunity to get more leads.

7. Up to 4 points. 4 points for letting the prospect know why your are choosing to mail to him. "Out of 30,000 agents in your state, "We are sending this message to 3,000 like you, that have a history of selling annuity products." Lose 1 point if you miss it.

8. Up to 5 points. I point for each item listed on your sales message. Telephone number, email address, office state location, website url address, and cell phone number. Add 5 Bonus Points, if your telephone number is a toll free one.

9. Up to 10 points. 0 points for "Call 555-555-5555". 10 points for inducing a positive response. "Our phones are personally answered up to 6:00 P.M. Mountain time by a live person do call right now". "If you call before 5:00 P.M. ask to speak directly to Dave Richards, our Chief Marketing Officer." "Relaxing with a tall cool one, go to our website page at ### to receive a full page of details about this fantastic product". "Call right now while the 4 top level openings are available."

10. Up to 6 points. Full 6 points if you add a P.S. to your sales message. After the headline, this is the most often read next. It should in 1 line summarize your best benefit. Zero points for no P.S.

11. Up to 6 points. Make your postcard or letter stand out. Unusual. Use a color envelope, a 6" by 9" over-sized postage (with super low bulk rate postage) or a short message on the address side. 0 points for cheap and plain.

12. Up to 6 points. 1 point for each action or stimulating adjective phrase, or verb that you inject. Your sales piece should be exciting to read. "breathtaking, remarkable, conquer, just like superman, write your own check, captivate, closely guarded secrets, action and results, tantalizing, etc. 0 points for missing out.

Now score your sales message. A sales message with 100 points would likely mean a 1% return. The lowest you could get would be 50 points meaning your response rate opportunity is 0.5%. This is under the national average, yet similar to many common insurance messages. Of the hundreds and hundred of sales message pieces we have seen the average is about 90, and most of that is because of good list selection. 170 is the ultimate score. On a 10,000 piece mailing that means 70 more responses! If you got 40 to take your offer, with a $600 profit after marketing expense you would net $24,000 more.

Consistently sending out a 140 to 170 point sales message to your prospects could put you in a higher tax bracket.

Well published author, Don Yerke likes to concentrate on what you don't know or what no one else dares to print. Tell it like it is. The website address is [http://www.agentsinsurancemarketing.com]. Get your FREE "Think and Grow Rich" Ebook by Napoleon Hill.

Find Senior Citizens Insurance Pros For Life & Medical Insurance Plan Sales

Senior Citizens insurance pros cannot be compared to life insurance sales agents. It is not the senior life insurance and senior health insurance sales, that make them different. These senior citizens insurance pros are hard to find because of completely contrasting sales methods. Here's why.

Except for the initial state licensing process, most common links are structured differently between senior citizens insurance pros and regular life and health agents and brokers.

Knowing the difference is difficult for some of the best insurance marketing brokerage and recruiting managers to distinguish.Few of these people have clues on what makes the senior market pro unique. These agents insurance marketers are pursuing are hidden deep among a licensing list loaded with far off the radar range agents. It is only by uncovering the substantial dissimilarities can senior life and senior heath insurance sales brokers be found. Using this guide, is a map to making this mission successful.

Here are 15 general characteristics which make the senior citizens insurance market sales pros unique:

1. They are likely to live not in big cities, but in farther out metropolitan suburbs and especially rural areas, lake areas, and near retirement havens.

2. Their bulk of prospects and clients likewise are located primarily in outer suburbs, rural areas, plus retirement communities.

3. It is very unusual for this style of agent or brokers to belong to any or the local or national insurance associations.

4. Few of these pros show interest in subscribing to or reading insurance trade magazine articles. so advertising in them to attract these senior citizen insurance sellers would be a waste.

5. They don't normally answer the phone. The recorder in on, as they are out working or relaxing.

6. The work vehicle they drive is more likely to be a pickup than a Cadillac.

7. Instead of appointments 10 miles away, many are in a very far off in a distant town, often crossing state boundaries. They often stay overnight in motels while they cover a geographic area.

8. Unsolicited faxes from recruiters go directly to file 13.

9. "Appointments" often mean driving up and knocking unannounced on the senior citizen's door. The senior is often home, and usually willing to talk.

10. Emails sent out by recruiters trying to save recruiting money are considered spam. Plus anyone that tells you they have a great email list of agents, especial senior life and senior health producers is a liar. No such list exits to even a 10% degree of successfully reaching the destination and being read.

11. You won't catch them selling with portable computers or lugging briefcases. A folder/binder just large enough to carry a large yellow notepad and government and product brochures are sufficient.

12. These agents are not known for working evenings, during snowstorms, or conducting business more than 4 days a week. Most of the professionals are independent already and would frown at reporting in constantly at an office location.

13. No two-part presentations are given, unless it is to deliver a policy or write more business.

14. Compared to other agents and brokers, they are 3 times as loyal to the firm or company that recruited them. That is, if they are treated right. Meaning like the professional they are.

15. For many, their income and renewals double that of the regular agent, and rival that of highly educated financial planners.

By senior market pro, we mean agents actively selling long term care insurance also known as ltc, Medicare supplements, Medicare Advantage, supplemental health, other senior health insurance, or senior life insurance also known as burial coverage. A number have discovered the value of also making annuity sales.

Well published author, Don Yerke likes to concentrate on what you don't know or what no one else dares to print. Tell it like it is.

Watch for his new paperback book debuting on Amazon early this summer. It is loaded with great insurance marketing and recruiting information.

Come and get your FREE "Think and Grow Rich" Ebook by Napoleon Hill instantly. The website address is [http://www.agentsinsurancemarketing.com]

Insurance Brokerage Marketing Sales Tip - Target Market the Absolutely Best Brokers

Rarely is insurance brokerage marketing sales tips or advice given. Target market the best brokerage brokers only is a sales advice tip. Exposing how to use brokerage marketing for targeting these insurance brokers is detailed here. Not just tips, but the actually steps that insurance brokerage marketing firms must take to ensure targeting the best brokers in this market are properly followed.

About 1,000,000 health and life agents do not broker. Of the remainder, around 480,000 could be considered brokers. Too many insurance brokerage operations focus their sales marketing on any agent, as they do not investigate the few sources that can inform them who the brokers are. The rare firms that can do this sorting are titled insurance mailing list compilers. They have researched and individually put together a listing derived from a multitude of sources. The problems exists for you the marketer in wanting to target market exclusively the best brokers. Well you can, and you will see how.

In compiling the vast agent and broker data market information, a major concern goes far beyond normal. By normal, we refer to the multitude of sources that can provide you name, address, and some phone numbers on the combination of agents and brokers. These by themselves are initially cheap sources that will financially bite you when it comes to getting results. Look at the following information to see how this is costly and not wise.

Say you are a state, regional, or national insurance brokerage marketing firm looking to recruit the best brokers for your new annuity product. The normal list broker or list informs you that there are 28,500 agents and sales brokers in the target state. The researched list compiler determines there are 8,200 annuity brokers. Your budget will allow enough money to target only 4,000 to 5,000 brokers and of course, a smart sales tip would be that these are the best annuity brokers for your product.

Now you can target market the best brokers only.

If fact you will see how you have two different optional ways to do this. If your insurance list compiler has a long experienced background with records going back many years, this feat can be accomplished. The list compiler may know what companies this broker is appointed with. Along with this comes a skill in matching companies' appointments only when possible to an insurance company specializing in selling certain product like annuities. Additionally by scanning through the broker files it can be determined often how many carriers they represent selling a certain product.

Look at an insurance brokerage marketing sales project, like the one mentioned above. Of 8,200 annuity brokers, only 4,000 to 5,000 are wanted, and only the best of the best. Only an insurance list compiler with the proper programming and skills could manage this challenge honestly and efficiently. You will be given sales tips on requesting either of two options, both of which we will look at.

Option 1 - Company Representation

There may be say 10 hot annuity insurance competitors and you want to target market the brokers that are appointed with those carriers. Usually for ethical reasons, a minimum of five insurers are required. An internal program is then run selecting out only those people representing one of the 10 providers requested. Then it makes sure each agent name is only shown once, as it is possible to represent more than one company. Result = 4,023 annuity producers. Mission accomplished.

Option 2 - The Responders

Imagine if you were promoting a $19.99 TV product, and your target list was only of people who had bought a similar product at least three times. Envision how many more sales you would get targeting them, than by just mailing to the general public. Take this concept and now apply it to limited amount of the annuity brokers requested above. The insurance list compiler does a little internal magic. First, the annuity brokers in the state are separated from all the other broker and agent names. Next, a selection is done to only pick out those currently representing three or more annuity carriers. It is the same concept as the list of people deciding to purchase a similar product they bought three times before. Result = 4,985 best of the best annuity responders. Mission accomplished.

Final comments & sales tips

To insurance brokerage marketing sales, a list of top quality similar product producers should be compared to willing, ready, and able insurance leads for agents. If you want to be the best, work just with the best.

Well published author, Don Yerke likes to concentrate on what you don't know or what no one else dares to print. Tell it like it is.

Watch for his new paperback book debuting on Amazon this summer. It is loaded with great insurance marketing, brokerage, sales, and recruiting information.

Come and get your FREE "Think and Grow Rich" Ebook by Napoleon Hill instantly.

The website address is [http://www.agentsinsurancemarketing.com]

Save more than 60% Visit the website to get a package of Ebooks at under $1.99 each.

Produce Hefty Sales Results With These No-Cost Promo Tools

We're in a darn tough economy. Add to that the fact that writing generally is not the most lucrative of professions even in better times. So it's little wonder that the average author finds the cost and the challenge of promoting his/her book daunting.

Long months of writing. Days of intense anticipation. And at last this new gem rolls off the press. What should be time for glee often turns into somewhat of a horror with the sudden realization that the challenge is yours, not your publishers. Your plans to hire a PR firm are dashed when you see the fees they expect. You flounder when you realize you are there alone with no one to help you.

While this is particularly true for novice authors-and there are thousands of them coming out of POD houses-more experienced writers discover the old days of subsidized book tours and fancy launch parties are relics of the past. Publishers today expect YOU, the author, to pay the bill and do the work necessary to make the public aware of your masterpiece.

There is no question a quality PR firm, and there are several in our industry, can jump start your book on the path to success. But you likely don't have the thousands of dollars to retain them. Don't despair. There are ways to promote your book and build sales without breaking what little budget is available.

Writing articles on the Internet, much as I am doing right now, bears great fruit, but costs you nothing. Syndicators like EzineArticles and isnare are free to use. Yet they place your article in front of up to 40 or 50,000 readers. You add an appealing Resource Box at the end of your piece touting your book and giving full information on where to find it. You'll see your numbers grow quickly.

Reach out for quality book reviewers. Readers always pay more heed to favorable comments from an objective third party than they do to your pitch or that of your publisher. Cherry pick those you think are right from Amazon's Top 1,000 Reviewers. Head to Jim Cox's Midwest Book Review on the Internet for great advice and highly respected reviewers. Try Dan Poynter's ParaPubnewsletter for more possibilities. And you won't have to spend a penny.

Carefully dip your toe into social networking. Try Facebook because it has such a huge membership, Twitter because of its current popularity and if you have the time, LinkedIn particularly if your book deals with business or professional issues. Schedule a limited amount of time each week to keep your site updated and active, but don't let the fun of participation steal hours from your basic routine---writing.

Never overlook the incredible reach of broadcast. Radio talk shows are the activity of choice. There are many of them that deal with a wide variety of subjects, many of which will be related to the topic of your book, whether fiction or nonfiction. If your home area has a local TV station, go for it. National television is tough to crack, but it becomes a lot easier if you have a track record of regionals and lots of talk radio.

Getting booked on the air costs nothing. But it will take some effort on your part to reach and convince producers of your worth as an interviewee. There are companies that can help to place you on air. Steve Harrison's Bradley Communications, Annie Jennings PR, Rick Frischman's Planned TV Arts and Francine Silverman, author of "Talk Radio Wants You."

With the exception of broadcast, most of what I have introduced you to can be accomplished online. But don't ever forget the value of print publications. Whether you are seeking reviews from a newspaper or magazine or want to place an article, the exposure will benefit you tremendously.

Newspaper book sections have shrunk or disappeared completely. But think of the value of a review in a section of the paper that relates to your subject. Perhaps it's business or food, sports or finance, travel or the arts. Possibilities abound. The situation is similar for magazines. They are published in every imaginable field. Use directories like "Writer's Digest," published in on and offline versions or "The Wooden Horse" which I think is the best of the online directories.

There certainly are many other low cost or free promotional possibilities, but space does not allow me to cover them all. Use your imagination. Study what other authors are doing on the Web and off.

Most of all, make sure you have an active, interesting website crammed full of worthy information. (Post every article you write on your site,) Give the visitor an easy pathway to learn more about your book and hopefully to buy from a sales page on your site.

With these simple techniques and a strong website to act as a base to send material from and to receive responses, you will catapult your book to unexpectedly strong sales. But always remember: while it may take no money, it will take effort. Without real participation, no promotional program will succeed. Good luck!

Charles Jacobs is an author, book coach and writing instructor. His latest book, "The Writer Within You," has been named a BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR seven times. It has won gold and bronze medals. The book can be purchased at http://www.retireandwrite.com.

How to Produce Big B2B Marketing and Sales Results With a Small Budget

Many small- to medium-sized businesses fail due to a lack of an effective marketing and sales program. Entrepreneurs may be very good at their core business, but know very little about marketing. Certain people suffer from the theory espoused by Ralph Waldo Emerson, "If you build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door." They are innocently caught up in a love for their own products or services and believe the world will indeed beat a path to their door when prospects hear about the fantastic new product. This attitude is wrong, dangerous, and not in line with the practices of successful B2B marketers. In fact, more often than not, superior marketing beats a superior product.

Another reason for failure is that an effective marketing campaign is hard work. Since marketing is probably not what motivated the entrepreneur to open his or her business, it receives less priority than product development and other tasks. Marketing also often comes up short when scarce funds are allocated. Sadly, there are start-up companies that spend tens of thousands of dollars on furniture and equipment, while complaining that there is nothing left for marketing.

New companies also make a mistake by hiring expensive advertising agencies that are incapable of cost-effective, low-budget marketing. Or they hire marketing and sales talent from big companies, and these people are often clueless about how to get results on a limited budget. So if you are in a small company, be careful about hiring the hotshot from a big company to come solve your problems. It often doesn't work. This is not to say that everyone from a big company is incapable of being effective with a smaller budget-some are great no matter the company size.

Small to medium businesses and start-ups face two major obstacles not shared by larger, entrenched companies. First, if you happen to be a small fish in a large pond, you will be confronted by competitors with much larger advertising and marketing budgets. Second, you may have to spend a larger percentage of your revenues on marketing than older, established organizations.

Given the reality of this situation, you need to squeeze as much efficiency as possible out of every dollar. Be assured that you can do a lot on a limited budget, and expensive does not always mean better. I've often used limited-budget strategies to beat the big players and you can do the same. And the lessons you learn by doing it the frugal way will serve you well, no matter how successful you become, or how far your marketing budget expands. Here are a collection of small budget strategies and tactics you can use to beat the big guys:

Small Budget Website Strategies:

1. Don't overbuild your Website. There are ways to create an impressive site using less-complex open source or template approaches.

2. If possible, have an easy-to-remember Website address that relates to what your company does.

3. List your Web address (URL) on all of your corporate materials.

4. Make sure your Website is optimized for organic search terms. This is a low-cost strategy that will make you much easier to find.

5. Try narrowly focused low-cost pay per click search terms.

6. Give some information away for free to increase your Website stickiness.

7. Create many links with other sites to increase your search engine visibility.

8. Refresh your content often. Do not let the site go stale.

Small Budget Social Media Strategies:

1. Start your own blog and comment on other blogs.

2. Always list your Web address on your blog postings and any electronic communication.

3. Leverage LinkedIn and other networking sites.

4. Use Twitter to find relevant posts and prospects.

5. Be controversial (but not too controversial) to attract attention.

6. Choose a niche where you can be an expert.

7. Write articles and get them published in online media.

8. Focus on one or two social media outlets. This concentrated attention will bring more attention than throwing your efforts at five or six outlets.

Small Budget Email Strategies:

1. Work hard to build your email prospect file of opt-in names. This will be a gold mine of low-cost leads and sales.

2. Include a promotional message and your Website address as part of your standard email signature.

3. Provide links to valuable information in your emails, not just product pitches.

4. Make your emails interesting and/or unusual.

5. Run your email copy through a spam detection tool like EmailExam, Acxiom Digital, or Lyris ContentChecker to ensure your emails will not be caught in the spam filters.

6. Have an easy opt-out process. You do not want to keep sending emails to people who want to be removed from your list.

Small Budget Direct Marketing Strategies:

1. Target your lists more effectively by using demographics, psychographics, and some of the other list segmenting tools available. The object is to mail fewer packages and achieve greater response.

2. Test your mailing and telemarketing in small quantities before committing large sums to full-blown programs. Equally important, use the information you learn on every program to make the next work better.

3. Try a postcard mailer. The production costs are low, the first-class postage is less expensive than letter mail, and they pull very well. You can drive prospects to a Web form or toll-free telephone number.

4. Cut back on four-color process direct mail packages. Unless you sell food, magazines, resort properties, or other products requiring excellent graphic reproduction, you can probably pull as much response using two-color printing.

5. Consider mailing with third-class postage instead of first-class. Depending on whether you presort the file, this will save you a great amount of money, and most prospects will not notice the difference. The exception is with time-sensitive offers, since third-class mail can take a week longer to arrive than first-class.

6. If you mail to large numbers on a national basis, or send highly concentrated mailings into local or regional areas, use postal pre-sorting to lower postage costs.

More Cost-Cutting Ideas:

1. If you are a small company (a flea), find a big company (a dog) to partner with. This will make it much easier for you to sell to bigger companies.

2. Read the chapter on public relations carefully and begin carrying out its advice. PR is a low-effort, high-reward vehicle that is often under-utilized by small-budget marketers.

3. Be persistent. Remember the eight times rule: You don't have to spend a lot of money on each communication, but you must repeat your message up to eight times to gain prospect awareness.

4. Write handwritten personal notes to prospects and customers. They are cheap but make a big impact.

5. Ask for referrals. They are much easier to sell, at lower cost.

6. Utilize experts. An expert's advice will cost you something in the short term, but can save you money and aggravation in the long term.

7. List your primary products and services on your stationery and business card, or anything else you give to potential buyers.

8. Since consistency is vital for those with small budgets, make sure every one of your marketing efforts supports and reinforces your unique selling proposition (USP).

9. Sharpen your bargaining skills. Media outlets are hungry for business and many have unsold inventory. Use this to your advantage by negotiating aggressively.

One other important principle to practice is leverage. Try to create content once and use it in multiple marketing scenarios. This is less expensive and time-consuming, and the consistency of message is important.

For more information, please visit Fusion Marketing Partners or Get the Book.

RV Sales Numbers Show Steady Increase

RV sales numbers show a steady increase since January of 2010. It seems as if the recession is slowly receding. High-ticket items aren't selling in record numbers, but people are purchasing new and used RVs again. Summer is usually a high point in sales for RV dealers.

The travel trailer has taken in the industry by storm as many are looking for a cheaper alternative to RV travel, but more protection than a traditional tent. Those in their early twenties and thirties are driving the trend towards lightweight environmentally friendly vehicles.

While the younger generation is driving numbers up as far as travel trailers, baby boomers are pushing sales of higher ticket RVs such as Fifth Wheels and Class A RVs. As record numbers of the population are retiring, baby boomers are hitting the road in their new RVs and campers.

Also picking up interest this year are park model RVs. Park models basically provide many of the conveniences of home but offer the same access to the outdoors as an RV. A lot of families are using park models for trips when they don't have an RV, or want a little extra comfort and convenience on the road. The companies producing these models are growing as steadily as parks are purchasing them.

So where is everybody going? Yellowstone just announced record numbers for June visitation with over 700,000 visitors in one month. July is generally the busiest time of year for National Parks. The fee-free weekend incentives helped renew many a campers' love of their National Parks.

For those that are reconsidering vacations south to the Gulf Coast, there are websites that are keeping up-to-the-minute information on contaminated areas and oil-free zones. Before canceling your beach trip, contact the resort. Some places are giving a full refund if oil contaminates their beaches before or during your visit. There are still many incredible beach destinations to visit.

If the warm weather is pushing you to cooler climates, the mountains offer refuge from overwhelming heat waves. Snow is still apparent at higher elevations and wildflowers are blanketing fields and valleys. Places like Rocky Mountain National Park and Glacier National Park offer great mountain camping and cool evening air.

No matter your style of vehicle or destination, there is summer adventure awaiting you. The RVing industry has held strong for 100 years. Celebrate the centennial year of RVing by hitting the road and exploring with your new RV, Fifth Wheel Toy Hauler, Travel Trailer, Pop-up Camper or more.

Looking to save BIG on a BIG selection of new and pre-owned RVs [http://rvsales.beaudryrv.com/class-c]? Beaudry RV has just what you need! Check out Beaudry's HUGE selection of motor homes, trailers, 5th wheels and RVs today!

Dialing for Dollars: Memorable Phone Numbers Can Boost Sales for Small Businesses

Like most car dealerships, Maroone Honda of Hollywood, Fla., wanted to drive more business to its showroom floor. So the dealer added a catchy, easy-to-remember phone number to its ongoing print and radio ad campaign. Maroone was soon flooded with a thousand additional phone calls from prospective buyers each month and enough additional sales to make it one of the nation's top 10 Honda sellers.

"The reason we got this number is simple: If someone in the South Florida area wants a Honda, all they need to know or remember to call is 1 800 NEW HONDA," says general manager Bobby Yoxall. The company added the vanity number three years ago. "Other (local) dealers are just ticked off because they didn't think of it first," Yoxall says.

Easy-to-remember, toll-free numbers such as Maroone's are a "cash register" for businesses, especially "vanity numbers" using a word associated with the company or its service, says Judith Oppenheimer, an industry analyst and president of ICB Toll-Free Consultancy in New York. But with the pool of toll-free 800 numbers all but drained, and buying and selling phone numbers illegal, snagging a memorable number can be an exercise in futility. There are a few tricks that can help small businesses find a magic number, despite the competition.

Ringing the Cash Register

Vanity numbers such as 800-FLOWERS and 800 CALL ATT are known to generate a minimum of 40 percent more calls than non-memorable numbers, says Oppenheimer, who believes the average is much higher.

The pool of 800 numbers available to companies is fairly small at any given time. Telephone carriers have attempted to accommodate growing demand by introducing other toll-free prefixes. But those prefixes - 888, 877, 866 - typically produce less traffic. "Some will tell you that 877 and 866 are fine. They're not," Oppenheimer says.

Few studies have been done, but plenty of anecdotal evidence supports that claim. Oppenheimer points to a client that included its toll-free 877 number in a series of radio ads. It also owned the 800 version of the same number, but didn't include it in the ad. But the 800 number received more than twice the number of calls as the 877 number.

Why? Consumers tend to remember vanity numbers as "800," no matter what the prefix. "It's not whether you know that 888 or 877 are toll-free prefixes," Oppenheimer says. "It's whether those numbers have been branded in your mind in a way that gets you to respond." So when a company uses an 888 or other toll-free, non-800 prefix, many of its calls - perhaps 40 percent - end up going to whomever owns the 800 version of the number, which may very well be a competitor, she says.

There are other reasons to hold out for an 800 prefix. "Across the board, when people call a vanity number, they are raising their hand to buy," says Oppenheimer. "They are not tire kickers. When you're dialing a word, there's a different mind set and behavioral process." People are ready to buy at that point, she asserts.

Yoxall won't reveal how many more cars he's selling with the number. But the dealership has moved from the list of the nation's top 20 Honda dealers into the top 10 during the past three years. Yoxall attributes much of that success to adding an easy-to-remember phone number.

Shared Use

In 1997, the Federal Communications Commission ruled that buying and selling phone numbers is illegal and reinforced its edict last December. The thinking, in part, is that phone numbers themselves shouldn't be profit-generating commodities bought and sold on the open market. But while snagging your own 800 number may be next to impossible, sharing one is a much more likely, affordable and legal alternative.

Next page: Pick a number, any number.

Here's how it works: Companies typically receive a listing of all the phone numbers that dial their 800 number. If most of their business is done in a limited region, they may agree to share their number with another company outside their region. The phone company configures things so that incoming calls are detected by area code and routed to the proper company.

It's the same technology used by big players like Pizza Hut to route customers to the nearest store when they call 800 PIZZA HUT. So the recycling outfit in New Jersey, which receives mostly local calls, can share with the surf shop in Los Angeles that sells on the West Coast and the boot maker in Dallas, all of whom need the same digits to spell out their vanity number.

Maroone Honda shares its number with Honda dealers in other parts of Florida that don't compete for the same buyers. How much should a company pay for the luxury? The price can be very reasonable, Oppenheimer says. "You could pay anywhere from about $40 to $200 per month," she says. "Or the company that owns the number might charge by the minute or $1 per call." They'll typically charge a little more than they pay per call, on top of a monthly fee.

Small businesses can start their quest by contacting a company specializing in making these number-sharing matches, such as Dial800 and Response Marketing, which set up the arrangement and then allow customers to track the number of calls, peak traffic times and other data online. Or simply call the number you want and bargain with the current owner, Oppenheimer says.

If all else fails, a local vanity number might be appropriate. If you have a pizzeria in New York and most of your business comes from the 212 area code, (212) JOES PIZZA could be a profitable phone number.

Another option for some businesses might include snagging a number with easy-to-remember digits, such as 654-4321. The most obvious easy-to-recall numbers are likely taken, but they're worth asking for, Oppenheimer says. It's in the phone carriers' best interest to make business clients happy.

Hide Your Cards

In either case, don't tip your hand, Oppenheimer says. Phone companies have been known to reserve such numbers for larger corporations with huge advertising budgets. They know the number will likely generate more traffic and thus, bigger profits for the phone carrier itself. Revealing the actual vanity number, whether local or not, may tip the phone company off that this is a good number for another business.

"Never ask them for a vanity number. Tell them the actual number you want (using numeric digits)," Oppenheimer says. And if AT&T says it doesn't have the number, go to MCI, Sprint or other carriers, including wireless and cable telephone providers.

What's considered a good number? The vanity number should reflect the company's brand name, if it's well known, or otherwise, the product or service itself. And numbers of more than seven digits after the 800 prefix won't work from cell phones.

By Lisa Plendl

Lisa Plendl is a highly seasoned freelance writer for small business, technology marketing writer and journalist. She writes marketing articles, web content, brochures, white papers, solution sheets and other promotional copy that drives traffic and gets results.

http://Business Technology Writer

The 4 Biggest National Sales Meeting Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Unfortunately, though, it's just as likely that they'll spend a lot of money, waste a week's worth of time, and frustrate their sales staff. That's because planning an effective national sales meeting is harder than simply renting a conference room and reading off a handful of memos. To create real results, you need an event with information and inspiration... something that leaves attendees feeling excited to go out and meet new customers, not bored and wishing they could go home.

For that reason, and because I've been to enough sales meetings to see what works, here are a few of the most common pitfalls, along with the best ways to steer clear of them:

#1. Being unfocused:

I often advise salespeople to avoid what I call "the dump truck routine." Even if you're not familiar with my term, you've likely seen it in action; it's when the producer starts throwing facts and features at prospects, one after another, in the hopes that they'll eventually say something that will trigger a buying decision.

You could probably already guess that this technique doesn't help sell much of anything. But what you need to realize is that it isn't only commissioned salespeople that make the mistake. Lots of managers and executives routinely overload their sales staff with new ideas, mistakenly thinking that giving dozens of concepts and suggestions is going to increase the likelihood that they'll come away with something useful.

In reality, it usually accomplishes the opposite. At best, throwing too much at your sales team is going to leave them confused; at worst, it will cause them to tune out everything they hear. When planning your sales meeting, pick no more than two or three key themes that need to be taught or addressed, and then structure your materials and sessions around those. It might be tempting to try to focus on more, but you'll only end up watering down the final result.

#2. Missing the big picture:

Does your sales team have a system that they use and practice? Are they generating new leads consistently, qualifying potential buyers, and negotiating good margins with their customers? If the answer to any of these questions is "no," then you probably don't need to teach them sophisticated closes or worry about fine-tuning their database skills - you need to concentrate on the basics.

I've seen countless numbers of organizations spend big money on complicated lead tracking systems when their producers don't know how to ask for an order, or burn several working days on obscure motivational tactics even though their sales staff can't give an effective presentation. These mistakes are easy to spot in hindsight, but it's easy to miss the forest for the trees when you're anxious to try out a new tool or technique. If you're serious about making a real difference in your future sales figures, make sure you're giving your team the right tools to succeed, not the ones that look best on a program sheet.

#3. Taking the meeting too seriously... or not seriously enough:

Salespeople, by their very nature, tend to be social animals. Often, the national sales meeting isn't just a chance to pick up some new ideas, but also to see some familiar faces and catch up with old friends. Add in the fact that some might have had to travel a long way to arrive onsite, or cram a week's worth of work into a few days to take the time away, and it's easy to see how too many (or too intensive) sessions can have the wrong effect.

On the other hand, your national sales meeting should have real business value. It's not enough to pass out some literature, say a few inspirational things, and then send everyone off to a steak dinner. As important it is to show your appreciation to your sales team, take care not to send the wrong message by treating the event like a field day. Recognize and reward achievements, but do it in a way that encourages future sales.

#4. Failing to elicit feedback:

Your national sales meeting should not be a one-way communication. Since you've gotten everyone together, take the opportunity to find out what your company could be doing to better support the sales team. Do they need new or different tools, better communication from another department, or to pass along common client requests and complaints? A sales meeting is the perfect forum, not only because they can voice their concerns face-to-face, but also because the thoughts or impressions of one person might spur and idea or solution from another.

Drawing feedback from your sales team doesn't even have to be a formal affair. In fact, using anonymous questionnaires or other written methods can sometimes yield more honest answers since it gives your employees the chance to express themselves without having to make things public.

Key Sales Management Point:

With a little bit of focus and good planning, your national sales meeting can spur your staff to reach higher than ever before. Keep these tips in mind and you'll be sure to come up with an event that's as profitable as it is productive.

Carl Henry is a management consultant. He specializes in helping companies in the selection of top sales and customer service talent. Carl is also a Certified Speaking Professional and the author of several books and articles related to sales, sales management, and customer service. He conducts seminar and webinar for clients worldwide.

Get your mini e-Book (free download) 18 pages. "Are You Recovery Ready" at http://www.carlhenryblog.com

You can contact Carl at 704-847-7390
chenry@carlhenry.com
http://www.carlhenry.com