Imagine being invited to an outdoor party at a beautiful mansion. Hundreds of guests are in attendance from all walks of life; each with their own story to tell from their own real life experiences. You and they all get to know each other and during the course of the evening, . . . → Read More: Social Media and Friendship Marketing for Profit]]>

Imagine being invited to an outdoor party at a beautiful mansion. Hundreds of guests are in attendance from all walks of life; each with their own story to tell from their own real life experiences. You and they all get to know each other and during the course of the evening, little private groups form because of common interests. You kind of mingle around listening to what everyone in these groups have to say. Some of the talk is of no interest to you, so you mosey on down to another group to hear what’s going on there. Again, nothing that piques your interest. Finally, you enter a conversation with a group that is talking about something that not only interests you; you actually have first-hand knowledge of the topic of discussion. In fact the group hears what you have to say and determine that you are an expert on the subject and now all eyes are on you.

So, being the expert, you begin to share your knowledge and experience and everyone is totally focused on what you have to say. When the conversation ends and the crowd begins to mingle again into other groups, a few from your group corner you and ask you more questions. You give more answers and you can’t seem to get away because these people are thirsty for what you have to tell them. So you invite them into a private room at the mansion where you can speak in private without any distractions or interruptions. When you are done, you recognize that you now have a new circle of friends that share common interests and goals. You invite them to your place where you can continue that friendship based on this mutual connection.

Now, what does this story have to do with marketing? Well, it’s an illustration of how business really works today. The art of sales has changed. It has evolved from a business to business relationship to a friendship to friendship to business relationship. When you go to a party, you are there to have fun, to mingle, to chat, to talk about things that interest you. Talking shop does occur from time to time, but the reason for being at the party is not to talk business. In fact, most people generally want to talk about anything but business. However, because business is such an integral part of our existence, we can’t help but talk about what we do for a living.

When we introduce ourselves to someone new, our chit chat will almost always include harmless and non intrusive subject matter like the weather, where we are from, what we like to do in our spare time and what we do for a living. Once the ice has been broken and we are on a more personal basis, we then move into more weighty discussions like people, politics, religion, finance, and current events.  If you are not careful, and you open up a conversation that could be considered over the top or offensive, just like in an online chat room or email correspondence, you could be figuratively red flagged and banned from the conversation. How does this happen? The group immediately breaks apart and guests avoid you like the plague.

You’ve seen it happen. Some self absorbed, egotistical moron shows up and thinks that he is the main attraction. It’s not a good way to form a friendship or a business relationship. No, today, forming friendships and business relationships requires care and subtlety; especially in business. I have found that the art of sales has changed so dramatically in recent years, that if you are not careful, you could chase away business easier than you think. I believe that in today’s business, clients want to be friends before they will buy.

Much of this new phenomenon I believe is due in part to the way we communicate with each other in this new age. We don’t visit with each other face to face nearly as much as we did in the past. Business handshakes have been replaced with text messages laden with colon and parenthesis smiley faces. Business cards and brochures no longer can compete with the power and influence of a 15 second sound bite or a 30 second video. In fact, if you are not considered first a friend and if you cannot convey a business presentation in 30 seconds or less, you have pretty much lost the opportunity for a sale.

So the question remains. How does one run a successful business when all of the rules have changed and it is so hard to make a sale? The answer is, it really isn’t hard if you know how to play by the new rules. True, selling products or services the old way is yesterday’s news. Today, it is still possible to corner your market, but not until you have formed the right relationship. What I am talking about is the new art of friendship marketing and sales.

Take a look at the most popular websites on the Internet; Facebook, WordPress, Twitter. These are all social networks that billions of people flock to every day. This fact has not been lost on the most successful businesses in the world. Every fortune 500 business has a presence on all of the major social media networks. Why? Because their marketing staffs have not lost sight of the fact that consumers want to first be the business’ friend before becoming their customer.

So what are these companies now doing? They are becoming friends and then becoming a trusted advisor and then becoming the facilitator (not salesman) of the products and services that people really want and need. It’s interesting. People still have the same wants and needs. They still have the desire to go out and buy what they have always bought in the past. They are just going about it differently. Consumers want to be wined and dined. They want friends. They want freebies. Free trials, free memberships, free information.

Once all of their social needs have been met, then they are ready to buy FROM THEIR NEW FRIEND! Think of it. Today would you go out and buy a music CD having never heard the entire track of music. No way! You do like everyone these days. You get on the Internet, listen to the free clips of each song. You determine that the CD is worthy of your purchase and you either go to the store and buy the CD, or better yet, you instantaneously download the CD from the music producer’s webpage. I would even venture to guess that you wouldn’t even buy the CD in the first place if your musician didn’t first become your friend on Facebook or Youtube and gave you some free samples.

In conclusion, the key here is that if you are looking to get wealthy, no matter what the product or service is that you choose to market, you need to know the new rules of the game. You need to understand the new art of friendship marketing and sales. So let’s summarize.

1.       You must first become a friend of the person you are trying to sell to. How do you do this? Introduce yourself at the party. The location of the party may be Facebook, YouTube, WordPress, Twitter or any host of other social networks. When you are live, not virtual, like in real, physical locations, do the same. Then chat. Talk about the weather, your family, what you did on your summer vacation, your favorite baseball team. And very casually and carefully mention what you do for a living. When someone asks you a question, answer the question but try to avoid turning the conversation into an infomercial. And then wait to see where the conversation goes. If your audience wants to know more, here’s what you can do:

2.       Give away some freebies. If they want more info on your business or service, tell them that you will send them a free sample or some free information. No big deal. And end it there. Don’t talk too much. Don’t press the issue. And certainly avoid becoming a Me Monster. Be humble. Be informative. Be a friend. Act like it’s no big deal if your new friends buy anything from you or not. You are just trying to be helpful. You are just trying to be a friend. Then do this. This will really freak out your friends. Act like you have someplace else to go and say, “Sorry, I’ll be right back. Maybe we can talk more about this later.” And then walk away! Leave them hanging. Leave them wanting for more! See how fast they track you down and literally beg you, demand you for more details about what you do and what you can provide for them.

3.       When your friend is demanding to be a potential customer, don’t make a sale! Invite them to your place where you can get more comfortable so you can wine and dine them. This location may be your social site. Your website, your Facebook, an actual location like your home, your office or a fun social meeting place. There you can answer final questions, provide your friends with everything they need to feel comfortable about your friendship and the purchase they are about to make.

4.       After the sale, don’t lose sight of the fact that these new customers were first and always will be your friends. Good friendships require continuous nurturing and contact. Stay in touch. Emails. Phone calls. Text messages. And yes, even real letters with stamps on them. Let them always know how important their friendship means to you. In your communications, don’t forget to always give them free stuff; samples, information, tips. And don’t hesitate to casually let them know of companion or follow up products and services that you have that would make their life easier, more enjoyable and your friendships more lasting.

The new art of Friendship Marketing can give you a whole new perspective on how to enjoy the good life more fully by expanding your circle of friends,  watching your business grow and discovering a more satisfying business relationship with these new friends.

This marketing tip was brought to you by the Creative Wealth Builder Club (CWBC) at www.CreClub.com.

Let’s KISS!  (Keep It Simple Students)

When evaluating what you are really trying to do, do you sometimes get confused? Does some of this LFC mortgage settlement and Ultimate Mortgage Relief principle reduction stuff seem to go over your head? Let me just say this. Don’t over evaluate. Keep it simple in your . . . → Read More: Mortgage Reduction – Relief – Removal? Confused? What’s Best for You?]]>

Let’s KISS!  (Keep It Simple Students)

When evaluating what you are really trying to do, do you sometimes get confused? Does some of this LFC mortgage settlement and Ultimate Mortgage Relief principle reduction stuff seem to go over your head? Let me just say this. Don’t over evaluate. Keep it simple in your mind as to what you are trying to accomplish. What ARE you trying to do?

Well, you are challenging the “real party of interest” claim being made by the alleged lender using the LFC administrative process. Or, you are admitting and recognizing that the lender is in fact a “real party of interest”. You will then seek a remedy to cure your over-encumbrance and high monthly payments by allowing some private investors representing Ultimate Mortgage Relief to buy your property’s first mortgage note from the lender. This you do get a better payment and a reduced balance on what you owe. It’s just that simple.

It’s not rocket science. You either want the lender to prove status or you are okay with their claim to status regarding your mortgage. So, what do you see on the buffet table that pleases the eye? If you draw the conclusion that you are being ripped off by the lender and you want to do something about it, notify the lender to “proof up or get out”. When they refuse to accept your authority, take charge, take command, take action and take control using the step by step mortgage removal process. Then back it up with proper enforcement through court judgments and a quiet title action and/or negative averment.

If you feel like the lender is in the right, but you are a victim of economic circumstances and your property is grossly undervalued and your mortgage amount and monthly payments are too high but want to keep the property, use the Ultimate Mortgage Relief offer to get you back to financial stability. How easy is that? Now, consider this. If you can successfully implement either of these steps on one house, just think how much money you can make if you can “partner up” with 100 homeowners that need to do the same thing?

So, here’s what you need to do. Read up. Follow the plan step by step; either LFC or UMR. Don’t give up. Don’t get stressed out just because you don’t have all of the answers right at this moment. Keep moving forward. See it through to the very end. In the end, you will either have a property that is free and clear of mortgages, or you will have a property with a manageable mortgage at fair market value and a monthly payment you can handle or you will stand pat and keep making payments on your existing loan or you will lose your house to foreclosure and you will do nothing about it. Your choice.

Read More Here

Mortgage Reduction Video

On the surface it sounds good to attempt to rate banks for their willingness to short sale a mortgage, when a buyer is facing foreclosure.  You would most likely be obtaining very subjective, not objective data.

The major problem with …