6 Worrying Health Myths

Health myths have been with us for centuries, maybe even for thousands of years, and some of them may even contain elements of truth.

But the age of the Internet has given new life, not only to popular and common beliefs about causes, cures and treatments, but it has also spawned a new generation of reports that at best can be unproven or misleading, at worst downright dangerous.

In this area, there's often a narrow line between fact, conjecture and falsehood. The "jury is still out" on some claims.

This jumble of opinions is particularly the case in the debate about prevention and treatment of serious diseases.

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©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.

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Millions Lost in Latest Romance Scams

Online romance scams are costing lovelorn Americans a fortune -- and wrecking lives in the process.

In some cases, victims have lost their entire savings, and even their homes.

Despite the fact that these scams get widespread publicity, they're on the rise.

According to IC3, the Internet Crime Complaint Center, dating scams, or sweetheart scams as they're sometimes called, account for more than 10% of all online financial frauds.

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WHEN YOUR MARKETING NEEDS HELP

Everyone needs a little help from time to time, and that's certainly true about marketing and sales. Most self-employed professionals are not experts at marketing, and when they are, it's often difficult to be an expert on your own behalf. Here are five signs that maybe your marketing and selling needs some help.

1. You don't know what to do. Maybe you have too many options in front of you, and don't know which one to pick. Or perhaps you feel like you don't know enough to make the right choices. Or you're new in business, and don't have a clue where to start.
   
2. You don't know how to do something (or don't want to do it). You may not be an expert at building websites or writing copy or having sales conversations. Or you may know exactly how to set up a blog or lay out a postcard, but you'd rather not spend your time that way.
   
3. What you're doing isn't working. You've been marketing or selling in a particular way for some time, but you're not seeing the results you want. Or it seems like something has changed, and your old ways of marketing aren't working like they used to.
   
4. You're not getting it done. You may know exactly what to do and how to do it. But it's just not happening, or not happening fast enough. Perhaps you have challenges with time management or your inner critic. Or you just need another pair of hands.
   
5. It feels like a struggle. No matter what your situation is, if marketing and selling always feels like you're struggling, you could probably benefit from some advice, perspective, or hands-on assistance.
   

If it seems like it might be time for you to find some marketing help, here are five ways to get the help you need.

1. Hire a pro. Professionals exist for any area of marketing and selling you might need help with. They can advise you, coach you, or do work on your behalf. If you fear you can't afford professional help, consider this. If a few hours of help could bring you more business quickly, wouldn't that be worth paying for? Professional help might not be as expensive as you think. Check out services like oDesk, Fiverr, or Google Helpouts to find affordable experts. (And see our special Google Helpouts offer.)
2. Take a class. It's easier than ever to learn any skills you might need to get better at selling or marketing. If you can't find the type of class you need in your local area (or don't have the time to get to one), you can take a class on your phone or computer. For local classes, look at Meetup, a nearby university, or local entrepreneurship center (like the U.S. Small Business Administration). For virtual classes, see Marketing Profs University, or UniversalClass, and by all means consider the Get Clients Now! program.
3. Ask a friend. You may already know people who have all the answers you need, or can provide you with the perspective and support to overcome obstacles. Don't be afraid to ask friends and colleagues for help. If you feel you're imposing, offer something in return. Barter arrangements can often make qualified help affordable for both parties. Consider joining a mastermind group, success team, or action group where you can get ongoing help from your peers. Find a group via The Success Alliance, a local entrepreneurship center, or the Get Clients Now! Reader Community.
4. Watch a video. You can learn an amazing number of skills and techniques at your own pace by watching YouTube videos. Just search for any area of marketing or sales where you're having trouble, and set aside an hour or so to watch. Start with the recent Get Clients Now! video on How to Manage Your Sales Pipeline.
   
5. Read a book. Of course, I hope you'll start your learning about marketing and sales by reading my book Get Clients Now! But there are many other great titles available to help you, including David Newman's Do It! Marketing, Jill Konrath's SNAP Selling, and Bob Burg's Endless Referrals.

So don't put off for another minute getting the marketing and sales help you need. The success of your business may depend on it.
Copyright © 2014, C.J. Hayden

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When a Robocall is Not (Quite) a Robocall

Despite the outlawing of automated telesales "robocalls," many of us continue to receive them for one simple reason -- crooks don't care about the law.

Fortunately, even if we answer the call, most of us realize what's happening and are wise enough to hang up.

Now an interesting variation has cropped up: pre-recorded statements and answers to questions, apparently controlled by a real human.

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©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.

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HOW TO TALK ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS

To get clients, you need to talk about your business -- online, in writing, in groups, and one-to-one. But for many self employed professionals, there's a missing piece to acting on this advice. How, exactly, do you talk about it?

What do you say to make clients want to hire you? What words do you use? Who are the people you say these things to? Read on for some answers to these questions.

1. Speak directly to your ideal client.

Whether you are conversing with someone you meet or writing copy for your website, one of the biggest mistakes you can make in marketing is to address too broad an audience. When you try to please everyone with your marketing message, instead of attracting more people, you're likely to attract less.

Look at this through the client's eyes. If you're a psychotherapist who needs a website, would you rather work with a web designer who specializes in designing sites for therapists, counselors, and coaches, or a designer who says she builds sites for any small business?

Targeting your message to the type of client you MOST want to attract allows you to use language specific to their unique problems and goals. You'll be more likely to land exactly those clients you prefer to work with. And, you'll be able to screen out clients who aren't a good fit. Don't be afraid you'll scare off people who don't want what you're offering. That's a good thing.

2. Talk about benefits and results.

Instead of beginning by telling prospective clients about your skills, background, and the technical details of how you do your work, start by explaining what specific benefits they will get from working with you, and what results you can produce for them.

Let's say you are a management consultant who helps teams communicate better. The majority of clients are not so interested in hearing that you are a Certified Management Consultant who has been trained in Nonviolent Communication, and that you use an approach of deepening consciousness to spark transformation. These are factors you might discuss once you are engaged in a sales conversation.

But to gain a prospect's interest in the first place, you must tell them you can help their employees work more productively, reduce workplace conflicts, and build more cohesive teams. These are concrete benefits and results that will get a client's attention.

3. Describe problems you can solve.

One of the best ways to express exactly how you can help a client is to describe some of the problems you solve for them. If you're a landscape architect in California, you could talk about how you help clients choose plants that will do well under both drought and high rainfall conditions. Or as a speaking coach, explain how you assist clients to lose their fear of speaking in public.

A powerful way to accomplish this is to describe the work you did for a similar client with a brief story. What problems did that client come to you with? What did you do for the client to help solve those problems? And as a result of your work, what did the client obtain or achieve?

4. Talk to referral sources as well as prospects.

Yes, you should interact with people in your target market, but also with potential referral sources. In some cases, your prospective client and a referral source may see a problem from different perspectives, so they may need slightly different messages.

For example, as a professional organizer, you might tell a realtor, "Your clients need me as soon as they start thinking about selling their home, so I can help them clear their clutter. This will remove an obstacle to them deciding to work with you, and get their house ready to be put on the market more quickly."

5. Position yourself as a unique solution, not a generic commodity.

Your clients may encounter dozens of professionals in your field to choose from. They might find hundreds of websites in your category, many of which may have a higher rank than yours. To get potential clients to find and choose you instead of the competition, you must be special.

You can declare your specialness in a variety of ways. Define a specialized target market so your audience knows you understand their problems and goals. Or focus on a particular set of issues you have the unique expertise to address. Or develop a proprietary approach that makes you stand out. Any of these avenues (or all of them at once) will lead clients to select you instead of others in your profession.

In my book Get Clients Now!, I define marketing as "telling people what you do, over and over." True enough, but you also need to tell them effectively. Otherwise, your words may just fall on deaf ears.

Copyright © 2014, C.J. Hayden

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Are You Helping Crooks with Burglary in Mind?

You might have seen an email circulating recently warning of a sneaky new burglary trick that starts with the loss of your wallet.

According to the story, a woman had her wallet stolen from her purse, which she had foolishly placed and left unattended in a grocery cart.

She reported it to security at the store. Later, when she got home, she received a call saying the wallet had been found and that she should come collect it immediately.

What she didn't know was that the caller was actually the thief who'd found her contact details in the wallet, phoned her to get her out of her home, and then, while she was out, burglarized her home.

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©Copyright Audri and Jim Lanford. All rights reserved.

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VIN Switching: Identity Theft for Autos

It's not just us humans that are identity theft targets -- it happens to autos too, only then it's called VIN switching.

VIN is your unique Vehicle Identification Number, etched on labels that are supposed to be permanently fixed to the body and other parts of your car.

It's the only, mostly reliable, way of being able to accurately trace a vehicle's history and help to confirm title ownership.

It's totally illegal to change a VIN -- even for restorers who might be building a car from numerous different parts.

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