Dream Catcher

Snatchers and Grabbers are the people we meet that pretend they want to do business with us. You must identify who they are and how they operate in order to not give away your intellectual property, services, or products for free. I’ve enjoyed your feedback for my article Stop the Snatchers and Grabbers and for my free ecourse, Stop the Snatchers and Grabbers. The purpose of the free ecourse was to help you design your system so that you stop giving away products and services for free. Below are three more types of Snatchers and Grabbers.

Stop these Three Snatchers and Grabbers:

1. Late Payers: One type of Snatcher and Grabber may masquerade as a client or customer but he or she is always late paying. Therefore, they are using your product or service for free. The cost of the service or product may be so low that it is not worth your time or money to pursue in small claims court. The product or service may also not be worth your administrative time. The Snatcher and Grabber knows you do not have time to spend tied up in smalls claims court. They also may be a friend and know you will not take action to collect payment. If you find this happening to you it is time to review your collection procedures. When you do not receive payment on time it throws your business budget into a tail spin. Do not allow this to happen. Enforce your collection procedures.

2. Time Wasters: This type of Snatcher and Grabber will spend hours of your time letting you tell them about your products or services. They know you will share samples or valuable tips. Only after demanding your first available appointment and spending hours (sometimes multiple sessions) with you will they tell you that they are not ready to buy. I know one person who spent hours measuring windows only to be told the person had no intention of purchasing until nine months later. I suggest you prequalify the person before spending time with them. It is ok to ask them a series of questions. One question could be how soon they would like to begin using your product or service. I ask clients how soon they would like to get started and how many hours they would like to invest in coaching each week or month. I too have had people want to meet with me several times and share tips and resources knowing they were never going to hire me. They were snatching and grabbing and wasting my time. They were costing me revenue by tying up my time when I could have been working with paying clients.

3. Just Shopping: We all love a great bargain. But, an important lesson learned by several of you I heard from is how much information to put in your proposal. There is nothing more infuriating than spending hours with a potential client then only to have the potential client take your proposal to a competitor and receive a proposal that is lower. Again, my window treatment client offered free temporary blinds for home owners while they reviewed her proposal. Lesson learned…they got free temporary blinds and shopped around using her proposal. They went with someone who was willing to do the work cheaper. My friend who sells insurance labored over a proposal only to have the person show it to someone else and go with them. Be careful how in detail you make your proposal. You do not want the person shopping online with the manufacturer or with your competitor who will then offer the service cheaper. Do not let your competitor under bid you after you did all the hard work; take a look at how you are writing your proposals.

I recently had a conversation with several business owners on the purpose of a networking event. We all know that networking events have several purposes. But we came to the conclusion that many people attend networking events with the intent to snatch and grab free information from the other attendees.

Now, don’t get me wrong. We all love to share our expertise. But most people are at networking events with the high hopes they will meet prospective clients, people who can refer clients, or meet joint venture partners. We even go hoping to make new friends. We don’t go to networking events to be accosted or raped of our intellectual property. If you are a snatch and grabber you are being rude; so stop it.

Let me describe the snatch and grabber. The snatch and grabber has no intention of ever hiring you. He or she is there to snatch and grab free information. They will approach you each time they see you at events and ask one or two very specific questions which you will answer.  They will never invite you to lunch or coffee. Most likely they will not even return your emails. I have even had one snatch and grabber pretend at each event she had never met me before. Yet, at each event she had snatched and grabbed; that is why I remembered her so very well.  Your typical networking attendee would not think of asking such specific questions unless they had requested an appointment to meet with you and expected to pay you for your intellectual property or service.

So how do you handle the snatch and grabber? This takes you having a back bone and not giving away your knowledge for free. If clients typically pay you for the information the snatch and grabber is asking do not feel bullied to give it away for free.  It also takes you realizing that the person is a snatch and grabber and not just innocently asking a question as a way to establish rapport. After brainstorming with several business owners I realized I needed a script to follow when approached by a snatch and grabber. I have learned to say “That is a great question. Please call my office so we can make an appointment to discuss it further.” This is also a time for me to request their business card and offer mine.  After getting their card you will want to change the topic by complimenting them on their clothing or turning to another person nearby and bringing them in to a new conversation. The snatch and grabber will attempt to brow beat you into giving away your intellectual property for free. Be strong and do not give it away for free. I recently encountered a snatch and grabber on a social networking site too. So be careful snatch and grabbers have graduated from traditional networking events to social networking sites.

Business owners listen up. You must stand up to the snatch and grabber. A Realtor is not going to give you a free house so why are you giving away your information for free? A car salesman is not going to give you a free car and you won’t receive free stocks from the stock broker so stop the snatchers and grabbers in their tracks by having a script ready so you do not give away your brain for free.

Remember, networking events are NOT for snatching and grabbing. They are great ways to meet prospective clients, gather referrals and leads, make referrals and provide leads, meet joint venture partners and make great friends.

Jaynine Howard is The Debt Free Business Coach. She teaches business owners the systems and strategies needed to grow their business while remaining debt free.

She is a retired Unites States Marine, doctoral candidate, psychologist and business owner. Jaynine resides in Jacksonville, North Carlina with her husband and blue pit Miss Savanna.

You can learn more about Coach Jaynine by joining her each Monday for The Coach is in or by downloading her free ecourse http://networkingdetox.com/

Are you ready to turn your dreams into reality?

How many trade magazines do you read each week? Have you ever stopped to wonder what makes the authors of the articles any different from you? Do they still work in your industry? Do they know the needs of your particular niche? Do you see the authors as the experts in your field or business arena?

People are buying differently right now. They are only buying what they need or what truly inspires them. This buying trend will probably continue for quite some time. Article writing is a free tool that will help you build a relationship with your readers so that they will buy from you when they are ready to make a purchase.

Article writing or article marketing has six key benefits for the business owner.

1.  Develop your expertise. When you sit down to write an article you want it to be factual. No sales pitch. Article writing is a great way to show your readers what you know and what makes you the expert in your niche. As you develop loyal readers they will see you as the expert and you will be the expert in your industry that they call when they need your services.

2. Establish your credibility. As you write your articles and share your knowledge you will develop your credibility. Your readers will resonate with you because you are factual and you are sharing with them. You are not selling them anything. You are sharing and building trust. Just as your readers see you as the expert they will see the information you share as credible. They will see you as someone they trust and believe in.

3.  Increase your visibility. Article writing allows you to speak directing to your niche. If you were to put an advertisement in a newspaper you would not be able to guarantee that the readers are in your niche. When you get your articles published in magazines or journals that are industry specific you have an audience that wants to read what you are writing. As you increase your visibility and credibility in the community you will become known as the expert. This will increase traffic to your blog, website and business.

4.  Focused on your niche. Your niche is very important to keep in mind when writing. Your niche will resonate with what you write. Think about what they want to know. Do they want to know the latest trends, how to save money, or why to do something? I cannot stress enough that you must know your niche. When you know your intended reading audience you will also know where to submit your articles for publication.

5.  It is FREE. Article writing is free. It does take a few minutes of your time but because you are writing about topics that are near and dear to your heart it will only take about 20 minutes to write an article. This is less time than it takes to design an advertisement.

6. Grow your business. When you implement steps one thru five above your business will grow while remaining debt free.

Article writing/article marketing has been the number one resource I have used to grow my business while remaining debt free. It is free. But the greatest benefit to article writing is that it truly aids in establishing you as the expert in your community. It provides you a means to establish your credibility while increasing your visibility. When you are visible and seen as credible you will be the expert in your niche. Article writing is a great free resource to use to drive traffic to your blog, website, or store.

Business owners now is the time to add article writing to your list of skills so that you can increase your visibility and credibility be seen as the expert and grow your business while remaining debt free.

Jaynine Howard is the Debt Free Business Coach. She teaches business owners the strategies needed to grow their business while remaining debt free.

Jaynine is a retired United States Marine, psychologist and business owner residing in Jacksonville, North Carolina. She is the host of the Dynamic Business Owners Coaching Club and the upcoming Writers Bootcamp.

You can receive her free ecourse Networking Detox by visiting http://networkingdetox.com/

Have you noticed you are getting less emails today than you were a year ago? This is because business owners have begun using social networking to promote their business. However, they are forgetting that Social networking is about being social or they were never taught the correct way to use social networking for growing and promoting their business.

As the Debt Free Business Coach one of the many tools I teach business owners to use correctly to promote their business for free is social networking. Facebook allows you to have a personal page, group and a fan page. Many business owners use the personal page for personal use and the fan page to promote their business by SPAMMING their fans. This is a very big NO NO. Facebook will shut you down for spamming as will other social networking sites.

I even see people SPAMMING offering to teach social media or do it for your business.

So, let’s review the basics so that you can begin to grow your business by using your Facebook Fan Page correctly.

What is SPAM?

SPAM is the repeated unwanted message that promotes a product or an event. If all you are doing with your fan page is sending promotional announcements that is SPAM. If all you is posting status updates with links to your website that is SPAM.

What is Social Networking?

Social networking is about being social. You must take time to engage in real conversation with your followers.  Social networking sites are also not the place to post negative comments or engage in rude behavior.  Think of it as one big expo or cocktail party where you do not know many of the people. You want to be on your best behavior. As Coach Jaynine always says “If you can’t type something nice don’t type anything at all”.

How to use your fan page to promote your business without SPAMMING your fans:

1.  Engage in real conversation.

2.  Share tips related to your industry or business that will provide value to your fans.

3.  Post photos of business events or activities.

4.  Share web links that will provide value to your fans.

5.  Answer frequently asked questions.

6.  Conduct a poll or survey.

7.  Ask questions to find out what your customers are thinking or what they want from your business.

8.  Conduct a contest. But be sure you are following the new rules for conducting a contest on Facebook.

9.   Share YouTube videos related to your industry or YouTube testimonials from your customers or clients.

10. Use it to promote your upcoming events only after completing at least three non promotional posts.

Remember, social networking is about being social. You will increase your fan page followers by compound friending.  Just as word of mouth referrals can help your business or hurt your business in the online world compound friending can help your business grow. SPAM will hurt your business.  You run the risk of not only losing fans but losing the opportunity to grow your business and promote your business using the free of the internet.

Jaynine Howard, is the owner of Dream Catcher Business & Life Coaching. She is a retired United States Marine, psychologist, and business owner.

She has been using social networking for over two years to grow her business without SPAMMING. As the Debt Free Business Coach she is a firm believer that you can grow a profitable business when you have  employing the necessary systems and strategies in place so that you are scene as the expert.

She invites to sign up for her free ecourse Networking Detox at http://networkingdetox.com/

As a business owner do you attend networking events? Do you have piles of business cards sitting on your desk that you don’t have room to file on your rolodex? When was the last time you purged cards from your rolodex?

A business card represents money. It can represent someone who will become a client or who is currently a client. It may represent someone who can refer your business to someone else. It can also represent someone that you seek out for guidance or masterminding.

I suggest you have two rolodexes. One for current hot leads, referrals, clients, or people you want to keep at your finger tips. The other rolodex will contain the cards of people you want to stay in contact with but you do not see or talk too often. It can contain the cards of other business owners that you may later want to refer someone to.

Look through our current rolodex. When was the last time to you spoke to the people? If you have never spoken to the person or can’t remember when you met them move them to second rolodex. Use a pencil to make any notes on the rolodex card that you may later forget.

When you get home from your next networking event I want you to make a copy of all the cards. Sort the cards according to prospective clients, joint venture partners, or prospective friends. Annotate these categories on the sheet of paper with your photocopied cards. Keep this paper handy at your desk for easy reference. Once you file a card you will often forget the contact. Out of sight out of mind. This sheet of paper will ensure you follow up with the business owner. If the person does not fit one of those categories file the card on the second rolodex.

When you have two rolodexes you will ensure that you do not lose a business card. Time is money. When you waste time looking for a card you are wasting your ability to focus on revenue producing activities. When you lose a card you lose the ability to close a sale.

No one wants to lose money. Go buy yourself a second rolodex today and begin your new system for keeping business cards so that you do not lose money by losing a business contact.

Learn more about Networking by signing up for my FREE ecourse Networking Detox: My 5 Secrets to Networking Success.

Listen up business owners, when you live in a mid to small town you must be cognizant of what you wear when you leave the house at all times. You never know if the person in line behind you at the local grocery store will be your next client or customer.

It only takes a person 15 seconds to form an opinion of you based upon your appearance. Admit you do the same thing when you see someone. It is human nature. Our first opinion of someone isn’t always justified but often times we never give someone a second change nor do they give us a second chance.

If you are attending a networking event or business function the below items are three musts to ensure you are presenting a professional appearance and not turning off prospective clients or customers.

1. Proper supporting garments. Early in my military career when female Marines were inspected a ruler was run down the back to find out who was wearing a bra or not. No matter how perky the “girls” are, you need to wear a bra. Nothing ruins your professional image faster than the “girls” telling the world they are cold.  You will also want to ensure you have on a slip if you are wearing a white skirt. If you have on white slacks ensure you have on the appropriate colored under garment.  Don’t let your lack of appropriate supporting garments ruin your chance at business success.

2. Closed toe shoes or a pedicure that is perfect. In North Carolina, we tend to wear flip-flops and sandals all year round. Most business dress codes will state you must wear closed toed shoes. This is for health and safety reasons. If you are lucky enough to be able to wear sandals or open toed shoes ensure that you have a fresh pedicure. Nothing ruins your professional appearance quicker than rough cracked heels or chipped toe nail polish.

3. Appropriate clothing. You will want to ensure you are clean and wearing business casual at a minimum. Blue jeans are probably not appropriate for the event.  Leave the dirty worn out clothing home along with the lawn mowing sneakers.  It is also not a time to dress cute or sexy. It is time to show respect to the person you are meeting by dressing appropriately for your industry. In order to be seen as the expert you must look like the expert. Your clients are spending money with you because they believe in you and your abilities. Nothing ruins your reputation faster than showing up for a session or event dressed inappropriately.

In order to be taken seriously you must present a business persona when attending networking events, ribbon cuttings, or client sessions. This requires ensuring you are wearing proper supporting garments, closed toe shoes or have a pedicure, and industry appropriate clothing. When you adopt the three tips above you will see people approach you at networking events or other events. People will be drawn to you by your professional appearance. They will want to learn more about you and your business. This will result in more leads, which will aid you in growing your business. Networking takes time and money. Let your appearance help you in your networking efforts not kill you and your efforts.

Jaynine Howard is the debt free business coach, who teaches business owners how to grow their business and increase their profits while remaining debt free.

She resides in Jacksonville, North Carolina and is the author of Coach Jaynine’s Business Boot Camp and the upcoming Coach Jaynine’s Profit Center Blue Print http://www.profitcenterblueprint.com/.

To get your free e-course Networking Detox: My 5 Secrets to Networking Success visit http://www.networkingdetox.com , email jaynine@coachjaynine.com or telephone 910-539-2810.