THE SIP REVIEW    March 2009
In This Issue
Featured Article
FEAR NOT
MAKE A PLAN
EbwayDev News!
Ebway Development
It's true that in today's Internet age, if you want to be in business you should probably have a website. However, does your website help or hurt?

Did you know that no matter how your website looks on the outside, it could be terribly wrong on the inside and Google or other Search Engines could actually be penalizing your site and restricting it's performance because the site wasn't built properly. 

There are actual Web Standards that are set forth today by the "W3C.org" - in fact, less than 1% of the website online today are actually built  to work and function correctly.  It's so much more than good looks and fast loading pages! Today there are so many "Quick or Free" web building tools that the web is littered with poor quality websites.

Don't get lost in the crowd! Your site is your online showroom where you have just a couple seconds to convince the person viewing your website that you're the company to call. With only seconds to spare, every business owner should always consult with a professional design team before building any website, no matter how small!

WE CAN HELP!

For a free website evaluation, simply click on the link below and an EbwayDev designer will perform a complete review of your website and give you the information you need to help the site become more successful.

FREE EVALUATION! - CLICK HERE!
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It's On My Heart...
Greetings!
                                                                                                               
At least one writer has stated that the word FEAR is an acronym for False Events Appearing Real.  Not sure who first said that, but it bears repeating today.  OK, I am sure you are thinking "dude (or whatever phrase you would use to indicate irritation), these are real events, not false events".  I realize that we are in a pickle, to quote George Clooney in O Brother Where Art Though, and the economy is stopped, not just slowed down.

FEAR NOT
No, I'm referring to the thoughts that surface claiming we are finished as a country.  Our very foundations are shot, we are on the brink of total collapse.  It is just a matter of time before we will all be living on the street, business as we know it will have all shut down.  There is no safe harbor, start filling your water jugs, move into the basement.  It is hard not hear gloom and doom.  Every day we see another list of businesses going out of business, layoffs and stores closing.  The evening news is now the evening session for depression.  We worry about things we absolutely have no control over, that is not a healthy thing to do. 

Carl Jung once said you can't change anything unless you accept it.  Consider your business today.  When fear comes to mind, you have just a few seconds to counter it with positive thoughts before your entire mind is involved in worrying about it.  I am not saying you act as if nothing is wrong, just don't dwell on the negative things and get all worked up.  When a negative thought comes to mind, challenge it, replace it with a positive one.  Fast.  If we begin to concentrate on the worst that can happen, our blood pressure rises, pulse rate increases, adrenaline starts pumping, we get physically worn down.  
So we must quickly think of positive actions we can take to improve business today.  Dwell on one positive thing instead of a negative thought.  Put together a list of positive things you can do to change your business in a positive way, and then start to work on them as soon as possible.      

Our pastor just had a great sermon, titled Fear Not.  I am not going to get preachy, but it has some excellent points for us today in light of the current economic and business conditions.  He started by saying that the phrase Fear Not is found a bunch in the Bible, about 30 times depending on the version you are reading.  He started with the angels visiting the shepards, what did they say?  Fear Not.  That message continues across chapter after chapter, here is one verse to live by.

 Psalm 112: 5-7  A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely he shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.

A great message: we need to guide our affairs (business) with discretion.  If we do what is right, we need not be worried by bad news (evil tidings).  We also cannot be stupid.  We must work hard to be sure we have done everything possible on our part to succeed today, even in these tough times.   

So here are a couple of ideas for the following days.  Don't get worked up by the bad news.  My mom just recently learned she has lost over $30,000 in her retirement money (and she is retired, for sure!) because she had that much in Shearson bonds.  Not much of a chance to recover, OK, no chance.  She took that information pretty well, in fact, after thinking about it for a while, she said "not anything I can do, so let's go shopping!"  Sort of a joke, but that is what we ended up doing.

PUT A PLAN TOGETHER
Put together a plan to change your company and business this year I just read a quote from Darwin (you remember him, the evolution of the species guy).  He said "  It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change."
Charles Darwin (1809 - 1882)

So plan on doing things differently this year, if you have not already done that. Zig Zigler says the definition of insanity is doing the same thing time after time and expecting to get different results.  We sometimes think that if we just do it better today, we will improve results. 

Here is my thinking.  If we want good results, we must have excellent effort.  Excellent results, we need superb effort.  Superb results needs outstanding effort.  Get my drift.  The competition for the consumer's dollars is greater today than ever.  The average consumer is caught by unemployment, rising costs, reduced investment dollars, all the things that make it tough for him or her to commit to a purchase.  These are not your father's times, to paraphrase an old "Olds" commercial.

Start that Maintenance Agreement Program, go to Flat Rate, put together a retail pricing guide along with your testimonial letters in a nifty binder called a Bring and Brag Book.  Now.  Today.  Join a networking group, hire a salesperson, work on the business instead of in the business.  All the things you said you want to do, or should do: do them.  

We must look at jobs differently, more thoroughly, and it is essential to get an emotional connection.  That is how business is done today, emotionally. 

Thanks for listening, we'll talk later.   brothers

Sincerely,

Jim Hinshaw
President - SIP INC.
Ph: (602) 369-8097
Em: [email protected]

www.SipTraining.com
SALES IMPROVEMENT PROFESSIONALS INC.
1281 E. Magnolia #D-145 Fort Collins, Co. 80524
Phone: (970) 635-5675 / [email protected]
www.SipTraining.com