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If
you can't read this, select
here.
 Dear
Friends and Colleagues,
Wow!
This has been one of the craziest months of my life!
Adjusting to life as a parent has been...well...an
adjustment. Whoever said newborns sleep 15-20 hours per
day is a terrible, terrible liar...or has never met THIS
baby. He's a true joy and a blessing, though, and he makes
up for long nights by looking very cute the next morning.
Adding
to the craziness is the fact that this has been one of the
busiest professional months we've ever had! Over 500 of
you participated in the Practical Pricing for Profit
teleconference, the new Marketing & Advertising Boot Camp
begins today (Tuesday) AND I'm starting a new, once-a-month
Coaching Group for SU Demos interested in earning the Hawaii
trip (see below)!
Enjoy
this month's newsletter, and, as always, if I can ever be of any assistance, please feel free to
get in touch!
Warmest
regards,
John
John
Sanpietro
Certified
Personal
& Professional Development Coach
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Want
To Go To Hawaii?
Need
Some Help?
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For
SU Demos who would like to earn the incentive trip to
Hawaii, but would like some assistance and
accountability, I'm happy to announce the formation
of the "Aloha Hawaii!
Coaching Group."
The
focus of the Aloha Hawaii!
Group is to help you earn the trip to
Hawaii without sacrificing your profit, spending your
own money or devaluing yourself and your business!
The
Aloha Hawaii! Group will meet on the second Monday of
every month for twelve months, starting July
9th.
On
the calls, you'll learn how to decide what level of
qualification to shoot for and how to develop a
realistic Plan of Action to get you there, including
built-in buffers so you still qualify even if
a particular downline or hostess you were depending on
didn't come through.
In
addition to the monthly conference calls, Aloha
Hawaii! Group members
will also receive:
-
Access
to recordings of all calls
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Access
to the password-protected Aloha Hawaii! Group
Blog, which will contain additional information,
resources and articles to help you
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Access
to SIMB forms to help you set up your Plan of
Action and keep you accountable!
Perhaps
the best part of all is the price - $14.95/month
for twelve months! Group discounts are also
available.
For
more information, use the link below:
Aloha
Hawaii! Coaching Group Info
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Unprofitable
Idea of the Month -
Rubber
Bucks
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To
help counter the glut of bad ideas out there, I'm happy
to present a new feature - The Unprofitable Idea of
the Month.
Each
month, we'll look at an idea posted on a board or sent
to you in an e-mail and examine why it doesn't make
sense from a profitability perspective.
This
month, we'll look at... Rubber Bucks!
Here's
how it basically works - you sell your retiring
inventory to your customers at full price and then offer
them a gift certificate in that dollar amount which they
can apply to the new catalog. For example - buy
one of my retiring sets at $19.95 and get a $19.95 gift
certificate you can use to purchase something out of the
new catalog.
Why
is this a bad idea? Because in the example above, you
actually lose $13.95!
zIf
you buy a $19.95 stamp set at a 30% discount, you end up
spending $13.95 on the set. When you factor in tax
and shipping, your total cost is about
$19.95.
So,
when you sell that set at full price later on, you're
basically getting your money back. If you stopped
right here, it would be a good idea!
However,
by giving your customer a $19.95 gift certificate, its
going to cost you $13.95 of your own money when they
cash it in. Since you didn't really make any money
by selling them your retired set (you just broke even),
that $13.95 comes right out of your pocket!
Remember,
just because you spent the money a long time ago,
doesn't mean you didn't spend the money!
Think
you have a bad idea of the month? Send it to john@stampingismybusiness.com.
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How
Easy Are You?
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In
the old days, before scrapbooking became so popular and
everyone jumped on the bandwagon, you were the only game
in town. In other words, if someone wanted to
purchase supplies or take a class, they had to do it on
your terms.
Well,
times have changed. The craft has gotten so
popular that I can purchase scrapbooking supplies in my
local supermarket! In other words, you're not the
only game in town anymore.
At
a time like this, it's important to remember two things
about your customers - they're lazy and they
have no loyalty. They're going to follow the
path of least resistance. So, if its easier for
them to buy from someone else than it is to buy from
you, that's what they're going to do!
To
make sure you're the easiest option for your customers,
try and do the following:
1.
Make phone calls
Don't
wait for your customers to call you. They
won't. Reach out to them to find out if they need
anything or have any questions.
2.
Use the PayPal option in your Constant
Contact
newsletter
Nothing
could be easier for your customers than to be able to
register or pay for a class or product by clicking a
button right in your newsletter. Constant Contact
gives you that option with the PayPal link. Use
it!
3.
Consider classes sometimes instead of workshops
Workshops
are important, but they also require a big commitment
from your hostess. Consider offering classes, as
well. That way, people who don't want to make that
big commitment can still participate in your business.
4.
Give away the catalog
How
many catalogs have you bought from other companies in
the last six months? Rather than telling your
customer that they have to pay you for the privilege of
buying from you (which is what you're doing when you
sell them the catalog), or purchase product before
they can receive the catalog, just give it to
them. Nothing could be easier.
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Last
Chance Offers!
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Now
Booking 2008 Live Presentations!
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 "John
is the BEST business speaker in our profession!"
- Glenda Travelstead
"This
was a make-or-break weekend for me. I was going to
come and see you and decide whether to stick with it or
drop out. After seeing you, I've decided to stick
with it!"
- KD, Ontario, Canada
2007
dates are booked! We are now
booking dates for the 2008 (and the first half is
starting to fill up).
All
SIMB presentations are designed to inform, motivate and
inspire your downline or group to define their goals and
build their business.
Unlike
many other speakers, however, SIMB presentations are designed
exclusively for stamping professionals - not the
entire direct sales industry. John understands the
unique challenges stamping business owners face,
and is able to address them specifically.
We
also understand the financial difficulties stamping
business owners face and have priced these presentations
accordingly.
John
will share concrete steps everyone can take to make
their business a success - whether they just want a
self-supporting hobby, or a full-fledged stamping
business!
If
you would like more information about booking John for an appearance in
front of your group, send
us an e-mail, or select
here for more information.
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Sample
of the Month
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Submitted
by:
Lainy
Abbott
Stamp
Sets: Sketches, Simple Circles
C/S:
Sahara Sand, Black, Very Vanilla, Handsome Hunter
Accessories:
X-Acto Knife, Plastic Screen, Large Brad Eyelets,
Wire Variations:
Use Cool Cat peering out the screen door and a Lady
Bug on the front.
Congratulations
to Lainy, who wins a $10 SIMB Gift Certificate! As
part of our efforts to continually improve, I'm happy to
announce the NEW & IMPROVED SAMPLES SECTION.
Utilizing blog technology, the new samples section
features a search function which allows you to look up
samples by a particular stamp set or theme. You
can also click on each sample for an even larger
version. In total, WE
NOW HAVE OVER 500 SAMPLES and are adding more and more
every day. Use
this link to view the new
Samples Section. We
are now looking for
Summer
and
4th
of July
samples!
If
you would like to submit a sample to be considered for
Sample of the Month and the Samples Section, just send
me a scan via e-mail, or mail your sample to: John
Sanpietro, Stamping Is My Business!, 36 Fir Street, Jay,
NY 12941. Please
include your name, e-mail address, phone number and all
materials used to make your sample.
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Book of the Month
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 The
4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the
New Rich
by
Timothy
Ferriss
I
don't normally recommend books like this one, as I find
they tend to promise more than they deliver. To
some extent, this book suffers from the same problem.
However,
I do like several of the outsourcing ideas Ferriss puts
in the book. For so many stamping business owners
struggling with time management, the answers you're
looking for could be in this book.
Select
here for more information from Amazon.com.
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Stamping
Business Q&A
What
Is "Return On Investment" and How Do I Track
It?
Most
stamping business owners don't realize it, but 'return
on investment,' or ROI is one of the key factors in
running an efficiently profitable stamping business.
Lots
of stamping business owners make money, but most
stamping business owners don't make enough money for the
time they're putting into the business. In other
words, they're 'inefficiently profitable.'
ROI
is simply the amount of money you're making for the
investment of money AND time you're putting into
something.
To
keep track of ROI, you need to keep track of two things
- how much you're money you're spending on that
something AND how much time you're spending on it.
Remember to include ALL of the time you're putting in,
including traveling and marketing.
To
calculate your financial ROI, you simply subtract your
total expenses from the amount of money you made.
This gives you your ROI in the form of net profit or
loss.
If
you've made a net profit, divide that number by the
number of hours you spent to get the hourly rate you
were paid - your ROI of time.
If
either of these numbers aren't satisfactory, make
adjustments for the next time. Keep making changes
until you end up with ROI numbers you're happy with.
(If
there's a question you'd like answered, or a topic you'd
like me to cover, feel free
to
send
me an e-mail)
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Testimonials... |
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Thanks
for opening my eyes to how much better it can be as a business demo who
actually makes money. I also know exactly how much money I have made
because I track it everyday... I also offered a class where I made $20
profit per customer. Thanks again for all you have done for us stamping
business owners!
-
JH, Colorado
I
am very excited about the layout and format of your book
and feel it is exactly what I need... I feel the outline in your
book will be so helpful to me to know how to set goals and to achieve
them.
-
KC, Florida
I
want to thank you for helping me to change the focus of what I do.
Without your coaching
I would still be buying lots of stuff, and sending out simple emails that
may have never been read. It is like a whole new world is
opening up to me.
-
DB, Idaho
"This
was a make-or-break weekend for me. I was going to
come and see you and decide whether to stick with it or
drop out. After seeing you, I've decided to stick
with it!"
-
KD, Ontario
I feel I have learned a lot from the
Practical
Pricing call and am ready to jump head-on into my business without
giving away the farm :)
-
BR
Thank you so much we as stamping business owners love that you came into
our life. You give me a boost of energy and confidence.
-
KK
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Quick
Links...
Order
the Electronic Version of "Stamping Is My Business!"
Order
the Printed Version of "Stamping Is My
Business!"
Order
one of the SIMB Training CDs
Join the Stamping Business
Coaching Group
Find out how to book John to speak live to YOUR group
Learn
more about the SIMB Referral Program Sign
up for 1-on-1 Coaching
Sign
up for an @StampingIsMyBusiness.com e-mail address
Order
the "Stamping Is My Business!" Tote Bag Stamping
Is My Business! Homepage
E-mail
Me
Past Newsletters
May,
2007
April,
2007
March,
2007 February,
2007 January,
2007
December,
2006
November,
2006
October,
2006
September,
2006 August,
2006
July,
2006
June,
2006
May,
2006
April,
2006 March,
2006
February,
2006 January,
2006
December,
2005
NEWSLETTER
ARCHIVE
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Companies I Use
People
always ask me what companies I use to run my home-based
business. The links below are all companies I work with
and recommend:
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