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A few autumn pix. |
Dear
Friends and Colleagues,
The leaves are falling. The
nights are getting colder. And there's snow on the
mountain peaks (at least where I live).
All sure signs that Fall is here!
It also means that the holiday season is in
full swing. If you haven't figured out what you're going
to be doing with your holiday promotions yet AND if you haven't
let your customers know, you are officially behind.
Spend a little time this week
getting all of your holiday ducks in a row and take advantage of
the most profitable quarter of the year!
Hope you enjoy this month's newsletter, as
well as the Fall pictures of John (Can't really call him a
baby anymore. Believe it or not, he's 17-months old!
I don't know where the time goes).
As always, if I can ever be of service,
please don't hesitate to get in touch.
Warmest
regards,
John
Sanpietro
Certified
Professional Development Coach
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In
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Top Ten Guidelines for
Entrepreneurs |
Inc. Magazine's, Norm Brodsky, says the best entrepreneurs
he knows run their businesses using the following
guidelines.
I'm going to list them here, and then, over the
next week or two, go into each of them in detail on the
SIMB
Blog:
- Numbers run a business. If you don't know
how to read them, you're flying blind.
- A sale isn't a sale until you collect.
- When your short-term liabilities exceed your
short-term assets, you're bankrupt.
- Forget about shortcuts. Run a business as
if its forever.
- Cash is hard to get and easy to spend. Make it
before you spend it.
- You have no friends in business. Only
associates.
- Don't focus on the top line. Gross margin
is the most important number on the income statement.
- Identify your true competitors, and treat
them with respect.
- Culture drives a company. In the long run,
the boss' most important job is to define and enforce
it.
- The life plan has to come before the
business plan.
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Bad Idea of the Month:
Doing Something Just
Because You Heard About It at a Company Event |
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After every big company event, I get a list of the ideas
that were shared at that event. Unfortunately, it
seems there are as many bad ideas promoted as there are
good ones.
Often, a stamping business owner
will hear a presentation about an idea, and, assuming
that it must be a good idea because it was promoted at a
company event, do it themselves.
The problem is, not every idea
presented at these events are good ones for your
individual business. They may not fit with what
you're doing (or are able to do) right now. They may
not align with your priorities and goals. And, in
some cases, they may just be bad ideas.
Rather than blindly copy an idea,
run it through your own personal filter to see if it
meets YOUR needs. Ask yourself the following
questions:
1. Do I have the time to do
this?
2. Do I have the inclination
to do this?
3. When you crunch the numbers (and
you have to crunch the numbers), can you afford
to do this?
4. Will this idea increase your
profit (not just your sales)?
If the idea doesn't meet ALL of
these criteria (and a surprising number of them don't),
then this is NOT a good idea for you.
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Christmas Is Coming...
and so is
The Annual SIMB
Christmas Sale! |
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Christmas is a great time to give
your downline the tools they need to build their
business!
Be on the lookout in the next
couple of weeks for the annual SIMB Christmas Sale!
You'll enjoy great discounts on all
products and even bigger discounts on large orders.
That announcement will be coming
soon!
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Card of the Month
The "We've Moved!"
Contest Winner is... |
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Congratulations to Jen Clendineng! She wins
the "We've Moved" Card Contest announced two months ago.
Jen wins a complimentary Boot Camp membership!
Here's the card recipe:
Paper - Chocolate Chip, Kiwi Kiss, Baja Breeze,
Whisper White, Acetate
Ink - Close to Cocoa, Kiwi Kiss, Baja Breeze,
Pink Pirouette inks. Really Rust, Creamy Caramel,
Going Gray and Basic Black Stampin' Write Markers
Stamps - Loads of Love, Loads of Love
Accessories, Neighborhood Jumbo Wheel
Accessories - Craft Knife, Word Window Punch,
Round Tab Punch, Blender Pen, Scalloped Edge Punch
Jen's card, as well as some of the other cards we
received will be featured on the
SIMB
Blog, and, ultimately, added to the
Samples Section. We
are now looking for
Holiday
and
Seasonal
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!, 43 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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Now Booking 2009 Live
Presentations! |
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 "John
is the BEST business speaker in our profession!"
- Glenda Travelstead
The 2008 calendar is full! We are now booking live presentation dates for
2009.
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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Book of the Month |
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 The
Knack - How Street-Smart Entrepreneurs Learn to Handles
Whatever Comes Up
by
Norm Brodsky and Bo Burlingham
What is "The Knack?" It's the mindset... the
mentality... that helps entrepreneurs deal with all of
the problems that occur in their business.
As you probably know, nobody and
nothing can ever completely prepare you for all of the
challenges you're going to face as a business owner.
"The Knack" is the thing that allows you to deal with
those unforeseen challenges.
Brodsky and Burlingham
illustrate this through stories and anecdotes
about entrepreneurs who were able to use "The Knack" to
survive.
Select
here for more information from Amazon.com.
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Stamping
Business Q&A
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Is The Current
Economic Situation Going To Hurt My Business? |
I don't think it will.
In fact, I think there are a lot of opportunities in the
current economic climate to grow your business like
never before!
Without question, people are more
focused on money right now. And, they're looking
for ways to hedge their bets and make a little more of
it.
It just so happens, you have a
great business opportunity with low startup costs, low
overhead and tremendous profit potential. It's an
opportunity that allows people to take advantage of an
incredibly popular hobby that Americans and Canadians
are spending billions of dollars a year on.
Of course, if you're not talking
about the business opportunity, then nobody will know
about it. So, get out there and talk about it.
I bet you find people are more
receptive to it now than ever before!
(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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I have read your
book and it is inspiring, you lay out an
incredible business plan. I have never really thought of a business
plan the way you suggest. I think that if I do everything the way you
have it planned out, I will be on the right track to a prosperous
business.
- BS,
Illinois
Thank you for your experience, time, and expertise. It's
a pleasure to do business with you. You are the real deal and THAT is
refreshing to know.
- CS,
Wisconsin
I really value your advice and have found it
extremely valuable in running my SU business. I just got back from my
first Incentive trip last month, and am hoping to qualify for next
year's, so I must be doing something right! And I believe that you have
contributed to my success.
- LH,
Australia
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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
August, 2008
July, 2008
June, 2008
May, 2008
April, 2008
March, 2008
February,
2008
January, 2008
December, 2007
November, 2007 October,
2007
September,
2007
July,
2007
June,
2007
May,
2007
April,
2007
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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