Influence Others Exposed

Women, even very beautiful women, like to be approached by a confident and interesting man.

This is a little secret that those of the female persuasion keep from us guys. Are you surprised? It is true that confident and interesting are much more important than looks to ladies of all ages, too.

That holds true for Internet Dating, as well as, dating in your brick and mortar world.

If you have joined an Online Dating service, you will find that there a lot more men than women and that the men are much more likely to browse profiles and make initial contacts than women.

Yes, it is a womans world, still. It is traditional for men to make the first move. It always has been and it always will be. Some things never change. That is why your profile and picture are so important.

Remember, confident and interesting, does not translate to cocky and self-centered.

It is important that your profile lets people know that you have friends you care about and that you are passionately interested in a variety of things, not JUST sports.

Another thing about that all important profile, please do not start it with, I am the guy your mama warned you about.

You will have just shot yourself in the foot with that line. Another one to never use is, I could be the man of your dreams.

The lady HOPES you are but she will be the judge of that, so do not insult her intelligence. Remember to exude confidence and be interesting and you will find that lady you have been looking for or she will find you.

Do you not think it would be nice to have the ladies contacting you instead of you having to do everything? If you write a great profile that stands out in the crowd, that will happen.

Dating success is actually spelled A-B-C.

Getting back to basics can work wonders in dating relationships. So head back to school and go over the ABC of dating.

A is for agreeable and appearance. You need not agree with everything your date says. But act in an agreeable manner.

Bummer, but gruff, loud comments and sounds (like farts and burping) can scare some women off fast.

So can unkind, rude, obnoxious, drunk, sexist, racial and mean comments. So act like a gentleman and keep the focus light and easy. And when dating in person and not online, have a neat appearance.

No need for formal attire, but wear clean clothes without rips in them.

B is for body language. Keep the eyes where they need to be, gents. No lewd stares or even quick glances at cleavage, regardless of whether or not the looks are directed at your date or other people. And keep communications open with your arms relaxed, i.e. not crossed and closed.

C is for communications and YES, you need to do this. Unfortunately women do not drop out of trees into your arms or most do not. So you need to get out there, online or off, find them, email, chat, phone or somehow communicate with them.

So back to the basics, gents. And then forward into battle of the sexes!

Women In Film and Television, Florida, conduct a Board Meeting
August 1 in Orlando addressing skills development, networking
events and industry resources particularly as it regards
Florida’s global entertainment industry. The New York premiere
and party for Marcos Siega’s ‘Pretty Persuasion’ is on August 2
at the Clearview Chelsea West in New York City. The 2005
University Film and Video Association (UFVA) Conference at
Columbia College in Chicago offers a selection of screenings,
readings, discussions, installations, demonstrations and the
Thursday night boat cruise picnic, among its special events,
from August 2 to 6. Billboard Magazine’s R & B Hip Hop
Conference and Awards, now in its sixth year, positions itself
as the primary function for music professionals involved with
Hip Hop, and happens this year from August 3 to 5 in Atlanta.

The Sixth Annual Latin Alternative Music Conference will be in
New York City from August 3 to 6 and features industry panels
and artist showcases at venues throughout the city. “How to
Negotiate” is a workshop lead by author of “Negotiating For
Dummies,” Michael Donaldson, taking place August 4 in Chicago.
At the Independent Producers Conference, running August 4 to 7
in Provo, join other independent producers, directors, and
writers for an intensive weekend dedicated to exploring issues
unique to producing independent films. The Anime Festival
Orlando celebrates Japanese animation and pop culture with over
250 hours of screening and over 40 panels, events and contests
during its run from August 5 to 7. Comedy Expert Steve Kaplan,
who created the HBO Workspace, the HBO New Writers Program,
speaks at the free Alameda Writers Group Meeting on August 6 in
Glendale. Leslie Berger leads an August 7 session titled “Actors
and Comics Targeted Marketing and Networking Workshop” in Los
Angeles.

“Hollywood Inside and Out” is a dialogue with Robert J. Dowling,
editor-in-chief and publisher of The Hollywood Reporter, and Los
Angeles Times columnist Joel Stein, to be held August 9 in Los
Angeles. For three non-consecutive evenings, August 9, 16, 23,
Women In Film and Television, Toronto, lead the class through an
in-depth study of the lifecycle of an animated writing project.
During an August 9 session at Ripley-Grier Studios in New York
City, the Associate Director of “One Life To Live” reviews
audition skills, monologue selection, effective cold reading
using many of the attending actors in the audience. For August 9
and 10 Music 2.0 assembles industry leaders to analyze trends
and developments affecting the business of digital music,
including music’s growing portability, digital distribution,
piracy and other contemporary issues affected by new technology
at its summit in Foster City. The 47th annual NARM opening
August 10 will bestow the Harry Chapin Memorial Humanitarian
Award to singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt during the Opening
Session and Annual Meeting in San Diego. Story elements most
important to the five groups of people writers pitch to will be
presented in August 15 AFI session, “The Movie Pitch: How to
Sell to Hollywood,” in Hollywood. Multimedia extravaganza
Ignite! features new talents in art, film, performance art and
fashion for an August 17 event in Hollywood, “A Night of Monte
Carlo Carnivale Decadence From IGNITE!” The Sacramento Film and
Music Festival has a special screening for music videos called
the “Sac Music Seen” in addition to its programmed film and
musical showcases, taking place August 17 to 21.

Tahoe/Reno International Film Festival screening at various Lake
Tahoe screening locations from August 24 to 28, focuses on
independent features and shorts as well as animation. Maui
Writers Retreat in Wailea Alanui Beach Resort is a 6-day
intensive on how to shape and present a saleable manuscript
starting August 26. MIFED, The International Film and Multimedia
Market, takes place this year in Milan starting August 28, and
will be connected to IBTS-Crossmedia Marketplace. International
Recording Media Association 8th Annual DVD Entertainment
Conference and Showcase is a Conference, exhibition and awards
program serving the needs of entertainment media professionals
for 2 days in Hollywood, opening August 30. IndieGate.com Third
Independent Music Conference focuses on legal issues, digital
rights, digital distribution, hearing and voice protection,
performance and rehearsal education, business planning, and many
other modern day music industry concerns for a week of meetings
beginning August 31 in Philadelphia.

The above events are only a sampling of what is listed. Many of
the events above have a submission process for indie and/or
performing artists to take part in. Complete details are on the
“Media, Entertainment and Performing Arts Industry News and
Events” page at http://www.actors
checklist.com/news.html.

The above events are only a sampling of what is listed. Many of
the events above have a submission process for indie and/or
performing artists to take part in. Complete details are on the
“Media, Entertainment and Performing Arts Industry News and
Events” page at http://www.actorschecklist.com/news.html

I’m going to share with you what I believe are some of the key components of sound closing psychology. One of the most crucial of these components is conscientious and undeviating attention to getting your prospects to open up and reveal their psychology, if you will. What’s really going on in their minds? This psychological technique is absolutely fundamental to a successful close.

What is one of the most obvious ways to get inside your prospects’ minds? It is actually a twofold process:

a) Don’t talk too much; and

b) Ask lots of questions so they are the ones doing all the talking.

When we ask lots of questions, particularly if they are open-ended (the most effective type), we experience several positive byproducts. First, our prospects have the opportunity to tell us exactly what their needs are. That is, they can inform us of what they are looking for and why. In sales, using questions to acquire this kind of information is often called “uncovering the hot button.” How can you solve your prospects’ problems if you don’t know what their “hot buttons” are? This is key information if you are to turn your prospects into long-term raving fans.

Second, keeping your own mouth closed avoids the fatal but common error of jabbering away about all of a product’s perks and pluses. The truth is, most people only have one or two key reasons for buying, and the more you talk, the more you diffuse the transaction’s energy. The more you talk, the more wind you also take out of your sales. Your prospects really just wanted to come get a good deal; they didn’t come to hear your discourse on the whole product line. They may listen politely, but as you monopolize the conversation, spouting off about all kinds of sparkles and pizzazz that have nothing to do with their “hot button,” their minds begin wandering to where they’re going to go next. Then, the sale is lost before you’ve even asked for it. Just remember, talk little, and when you do, keep it simple. Information overload is just going to overwhelm and confuse your prospects, and as the old sales adage goes, “A confused mind says â??NO’!”

The third reason for asking open-ended questions is that it gives you better control over the conversation and where it’s heading. As soon as your prospects are the ones grilling you, the tables have turned. You lost control. Consider the following question/answer scenarios and you’ll see clearly that the individual asking the questions has control, while, perhaps surprisingly, the one doing all the talking does not have control: an employer interviewing for a job opening, a doctor preparing to diagnose a patient and an attorney questioning a witness. Note that in each of these examples, the individual asking the questions is in some sort of authoritative and/or advisory role. It is not so different when someone comes to you looking for a particular product or service to fit her/his needs. When you are the “interviewer,” you will glean all the information you need to best guide your prospects while still maintaining control over the course the conversation takes, including, most importantly, the sought-after final conclusion where they’ll enthusiastically buy from you.

The fourth reason for asking open-ended questions of your prospects is that as you let them express their feelings and concerns, it is clearly communicated, albeit in an unspoken manner, that you are sincerely interested in themâ??always a very important selling technique. Your prospects want to feel that you have their best interest at heart and that you are mindful of their needs. Genuine interest will explode your ability to develop a relationship of trust and solidifying rapport.

The fifth reason for using questions in your selling strategy is that in discussing the issues that are important to your prospects, they are drawn more proactively into the conversation and thus become emotionally involved. Consider the fact that every purchasing action under any circumstance is an attempt to improve or enhance the current status of a person, place or situation. Why do I consider an emotionally engaged prospect a positive, even necessary, thing? Emotions drive actions; they are the catalysts to closed deals. This is not to say that logic doesn’t play a part in the persuasion process as well, because it most certainly does. Emotions, however, provide the initial ignition. They incite action. Meanwhile, logic is the tinder that continues to burn after the initial energy and excitement end. It keeps the commitment intact because there is still something concrete to point to. Some buying personalities will be more logically inclined, but as a general rule, an emotionally engaged individual is much more compelled to purchase. This is not a statement of one’s intellectual prowess or lack thereof; it is simply a statement of human nature. In a nutshell, all buying decisions are emotional, while logic rationalizes the purchasing decision.

There are specific Feng Shui techniques that you can use to improve your relationship with others (romance included).

But what is Feng Shui? It is an ancient Chinese metaphysical discipline that studies how the environment affects a personâ??s luck in life particularly in the areas of wealth, health and relationship.

There are many schools of Feng Shui and they each have their special techniques to improve relationship luck. I will share with you a very simple but potent formula that can help you to improve the quality of your relationships with others.

This formula is taken from a system known as the Eight Mansions or Eight House which is more than 1200 years old. This system works on the belief that all of us have favorable and unfavorable directions that are influence by the prevailing directional energies that were present when we were born. These favorable and unfavorable directions affect us throughout our life and our fate can be improved if we sit or sleep in harmony with these directions.

Are you ready to take the plunge? The first thing that you need to do is to determine your â??Kuaâ?? or â??Guaâ?? number. This number can be computed using your date of birth and sex. To make the process of determining your â??Kuaâ?? number easier, you can simply refer to a â??Kua Chartâ?? that you can find easily on the net. Read your â??Kuaâ?? number off the chart. Take note that it depends on your sex.

There are altogether 8 numbers that range from 1 to 4 and 6 to 9. Find out of â??relationshipâ?? direction by referring to the list below.

If your Kua is 1, your â??relationshipâ?? direction is south.

If your Kua is 2, your â??relationshipâ?? direction is north-west.

If your Kua is 3, your â??relationshipâ?? direction is south-east.

If your Kua is 4, your â??relationshipâ?? direction is east.

If your Kua is 6, your â??relationshipâ?? direction is south-west.

If your Kua is 7, your â??relationshipâ?? direction is north-east.

If your Kua is 8, your â??relationshipâ?? direction is west.

If your Kua is 9, your â??relationshipâ?? direction is north.

Let me illustrate with a couple of examples. If you are a male born on 1st July 1957, your â??Kuaâ?? number is 7 and your â??relationshipâ?? direction is north east. If you are a female born on the 15th March 1977, your â??Kua Numberâ?? is 1 and your â??relationshipâ?? direction is south.

How to apply the formula? To improve your relationship luck, you should re-arrange your table, chair and bed to face your â??relationshipâ?? direction.

Letâ??s say that your â??relationshipâ?? direction is north. Re-arrange your table and chair, if necessary, so that you are facing north when seated. Your back would then face south. This is quite straight forward.

The sleeping direction is a bit different. It is not the direction that you face while lying in bed. Instead the direction is taken from the crown of your head. If your â??relationshipâ?? direction is north, then you should sleep in a north-south axis with the crown of your head pointed at north and the base of your feet pointed south.

Did I tell you it is simple? If you have tried everything and are not getting the desired results, why not give it a try? Then wait a few months and see if it works for you!

Itâ??s been one of those days; Ben has made several calls today with mixed results. One has really got him pondering what he is doing wrong. A customer decided to go with a competitor whose salesman has a questionable reputation. The competitive sales person promises a great deal, most of which he and his company rarely delivers. The product quality is ok yet not equal to Benâ??s equipment.

Ben had questioned the customer about the purchase decision only to get a vague answer about feeling better about the other company despite the known reputation and pricing was not the issue.

As Ben pulls up to the coffee shop to take a break and clear his mind, he sees a salesperson from a different company, Susan, she is also taking a break and they sit down together for coffee. Ben tells his story about the lost sale and how he doesnâ??t understand what he did wrong or missed. Susan indicates she might have some insight as she knows the customer and some of his connections.

â??You see Ben, this customer knows John at BBC and he thinks this other sales person walks on water, even though BBC has had problems with him and his promises. I bet John told your customer to trust this guy even though your customer knew about the problems BBC had been having.â? Says Susan.

â??That doesnâ??t make sense!â? retorts Ben.

â??Youâ??re rightâ? says Susan, â??It is not logical, but you have to understand most people do not realize how preconditioning affects their decisions.â?

(For those of you not in sales, hang on, this applies to all communications.)

â??Now you got me at a disadvantage, what is this preconditioning youâ??re talking about?â? asks Ben.

â??I was just reading an article by Dr. Kevin Hogan; heâ??s the guy that studies why people make choices and why some are not logical.â? â??In this article Dr. Hogan sites a recent test to see how preconditioning affects our choices. It goes like this:â?

Test subjects were asked to trust a total stranger in the experiment. All of them were given a written description of their intended partnerâ??s behavior of which some indicated great trustworthiness and others being not so trustworthy. They were also told that their partners actual behavior might not fit the description they were given. In short, they might be described as an angle yet act like a complete Jerk or vise versa.

Now all of us have some built in radar that tends to pickup on such behaviors in others and of course there is the logic side of a choice as well. What happened is that even though the partnerâ??s behavior was angle like and trustworthy, if the description was negative so was the trust. The same for the partner that acted like a jerk and showed no signs or trustworthiness but had a good written description was trusted most of the time!

What it showed is people tend to believe the information they get ahead of time rather than the new information they see for themselves. This is called preconditioning and the media, gossip and other sources do this to us everyday! As Dr. Hogan puts it, â??Labels prime thinking!â?

â??Ok, so you think my customer was preconditioned by his friend John and didnâ??t take into consideration the logic of what I could provide?â? asks Ben.

â??Most likely that is what happened. That is the power of opinion and recommendation, it preconditions ones thinking and can override what we see as logic or good common sense!â? explains Susan.

â??So how do you deal with this preconditioning when you run in to it?â? ask Ben.

â??First of all I approach every communications with the idea that I do not know enough about this person or situation. I always ask additional questions to help me understand what and how they are thinking today. I always hold of f on the logic until I get a good understanding of how they see the situation and the players that are involved. This gives me a good insight into their current beliefs and views. Then I can create strategies on how to align with those beliefs or work on changing them.â? She replies.

â??Huh? What is it you just said?â? ask Ben with a puzzled look.

â??Itâ??s this way Ben, â??people see what they want to seeâ?. If a person has a certain view point, belief or reference that is how they will see the situation even with new or different information being provided. Itâ??s one of the 10 Laws of Persuasion. Just look at some of the candidates on the American Idol try outs. Do you think some of them see what they want to see or hear in this case? So our job is to try and understand why they see the situation the way they do and then figure out how to fit our solution to that view or change the view!â? Susan explains with more intensity.

â??Alright, so if I understand this, what I should have done is focused more on understanding how my customer was thinking rather than selling my facts and benefits to him?â? Ben asks with anticipation.

â??Absolutely!â? says Susan. â??I rarely talk facts and benefits anymore. If I can understand the other persons view and basis for that view point it enables me to present ideas in a way that they readily accept and I am not pushing something down their throat!â?

Ben sighs and asks, â??How do you know what to listen and look for?â?

â??Itâ??s this way,â? explains Susan, â??If you are focused only on your product you will only hear ideas that relate to your product. If you listen for ideas that tell you someoneâ??s beliefs and views youâ??ll hear them. Itâ??s all about what youâ??re focused on, the customerâ??s situation or your product sale!â?

â??Great, so I focus on views and beliefs and uncover some, then what?â? is Benâ??s question.

â??I call them â??follow-up questionsâ? and they can be any short question that gets the other person talking more about that belief or view. The question â??whyâ? is used in every encounter I have. Some others are â??tell me moreâ?, â??how did that happenâ?, â??what caused thatâ? and about fifty other variations.

â??So let me get this straight. I should be focusing on the situation and peoples views rather than my product. I should ask more open questions to get more of that information and then use the â??follow-upâ? questions to get at the beliefs and views?â? queries Ben.

â??You got it!â? replies Susan

â??Great, so when do I use my logic or facts and benefits then?â? inquires Ben.

â??Once you have a good understanding of the views and beliefs, the facts and benefits can be used to show how your solution fits their current view or belief. Or they can be used to reinforce the new view or belief you have switched them to.â? Replies Susan.

â??You mentioned changing their view or belief several times, how is this done?â? ask Ben.

â??Oh my time is flying, I really want to fill you in, but I have an appointment to get to. This guy Harlan Goerger has written several articles on the concept of beliefs and how you might work with them. Check out his web site at www.BusArconline.com and review his articles for that answer.â? Says Susan as she quickly departs.

Ben is left think over his day and the calls he had made. He had to agree that they were very product focused rather than situation focused. His next call was going to be different!

Want more of this and other subjects about communications, sales, management, coaching and teams? Drop Harlan a line at Harlan@BusArc.com

That Harvard will eliminate Early Decision got so much play in the news recently tells us how important a college education is to Americans. And it was good news which Americans recognized, that a great university took this step to level the playing field. (If you missed the news: “Harvard University, breaking with a major trend in college admissions, plans to eliminate its early admissions program next year, with university officials arguing that such programs put low-income and minority applicants at a distinct disadvantage in the competition to get into selective universities.”)

But those of us who’ve worked for years in secondary schools and watched the way the college admission process tortures kids and their families, want a more fundamental correction than the elimination of a process that in itself signals what’s wrong, that, though there are a great many good colleges and universities to choose from, too many kids want to go to too few of them, and too often for the wrong reason.

Ask ambitious students in public and private secondary schools across the nation to name the fifteen to twenty best colleges or universities and all their lists will be remarkably alike. Now ask them why these particular schools are on the list and others are not and the answers will frequently be not in terms of education but in self-perpetuating terms of competition: “we know these schools are great because they are hard to get into, which is why so many people like us want to get into them”, a conception which in turn makes them harder to get into which makes them greater, and on and on. “If I get into one of the schools on that list, I’ll feel good about myself. If I don’t, I won’t and will have to settle for a lesser school.”

To be sure, the schools on that list are excellent, but what do we mean by “best”? How much wiser to start with a longer, more inclusive list of excellent schools and then ask what kind of experience do I want in college? Small classes, or lectures by famous teachers? Professors as teachers or T.A’s? Do I know what I want to major in and if so, which schools have strong departments in that major? Urban or rural? Big school or small? Single sex for women? Far away from home and family influence so I can discover who I really am, and will I like the weather there? Or close to home and my family? Religious or secular? Will I get some guidance or will I be on my own? Is this a party school? Can I be a varsity athlete there, or is it too big-time for me?

How do I want to live: off campus and commute, or in a traditional college community? Diverse enough to stretch me or will most of the students be like me? And then, of course, when these and any other pertinent questions are answered: how much can my parents and I afford, how much financial aid do I need?

When choosing a college or university to which to apply becomes for more families a matter of seeking a match, rather than winning a race, we’ll begin to wonder why we ever needed Early Admissions.

Everyone Has An Agenda

When we watch our favorite television programs like ‘CSI’ or ‘House’, we knowingly and even gladly allow ourselves to be manipulated. When we watch the evening news we are also being manipulated, knowingly or not, by the selection and presentation of stories that have been filtered through a series of network agendas ranging from the benign time constraints of a thirty-minute broadcast to the more suspicious dictates of network and sponsor interests.

Websites are vehicles for communicating content to an audience as well, and like your favorite television show, or evening news, that communication is not neutral; it comes with an agenda and that agenda should be yours.

If your website designer is not developing your site within a framework created to communicate your marketing information, then you are not getting the website you need. If your website designer is merely a technical programmer and not a communicator then you have picked the wrong supplier.

Whether you are selling an idea, a product, or a service doesn’t matter; what matters is you are trying to convince your audience that what you have to offer will benefit them in some way. You are manipulating your presentation to your advantage. That does not mean that you should be dishonest or deceitful, but rather just skilled in getting your message across.

To manipulate, as defined, in part by wordreference.com, means to ‘control or influence skillfully, usually to one’s advantage’. Like it or not that’s the job of a professional website designer: to skillfully influence an audience to the website owner’s advantage.

Defining An Appropriate Website Agenda

In order for your website to be an affective marketing communication vehicle it should be build around an agenda that accomplishes the following tasks:

1. Attract interest

2. Focus attention

3. Convey attitude

4. Enhance understanding

5. Generate confidence

6. Stimulate desire

7. Motivate action

Attract Interest

If you check your website logs and find that people are leaving your site as fast as they are arriving, then you have an problem. All that time and effort you spent on optimizing your site for the search engines to attract visitors is wasted if those visitors don’t stay long enough to get your marketing message. Visitors will leave your site within seconds if your splash page is confusing or irrelevant to their needs. Your initial contact with your audience must capture their attention by quickly establishing that you are the source of the information, products, or services they are looking for.

Focus Attention

Once you’ve established that your site has the information your audience wants, you must make it easy for people to find it. Information, products, and services must be organized for quick access and easy navigation between options and alternatives.

Visitors are focused on finding what they came for; once they have found it, they will be more receptive to paying attention to the items that you want to direct them to; this is what Jared Spool of User Interface Engineering calls the ’seducible moment’, the moment when visitors are ready to focus on your pitch.

Enhance Understanding

Rather than designing the presentation of your information for search engine robots, design it for human understanding. People absorb more information; have better comprehension; and retain more of what you want them to when information is presented by a real person.

If you want to see the future of the Web visit Wyeth’s menopause related website at http://www.knowmenopause.com. This site provides visitors with the option of going to a text-based version that is index-able by search engines and where visitors can print-out the material; and a multimedia version that features video presentations by doctors discussing the medical issues, and interviews with ordinary women discussing their personal experiences.

Generate Confidence

Since the Web is a remote environment, it is important to create confidence in your company and the products and services you provide. The easiest thing you can do to create this confidence is to provide visitors with not just email addresses but phone numbers, physical locations, and contact names. It never fails to amaze me how many websites fail to provide this kind of information. If you don’t provide proper contact information, it looks like you have something to hide.

As mentioned in ‘enhancing understanding’, relating to people with people is critical in building confidence. The Wyeth knowmenopause.com site does a brilliant job of providing expert video advice from qualified professionals as well as video commentary from average people relating their personal experience with the subject matter. And you don’t have to be a multinational pharmaceutical company to do this. Every business has access to expertise and knowledge. If you stop pitching and start informing, you may find you’re further ahead.

Convey Attitude

Every business has a personality that is conveyed to clients through their experiences with that company. If you are relying on your website as your main point of customer and prospect interaction, then your website has to present an attitude that is appropriate for your audience. This attitude can be conveyed through the graphics, copy, and multimedia presentation of the information, products and services you provide. When it comes to ‘attitude’ the medium is very much the message and since the Web is such a impersonal environment, it is important to design your presentation so that it delivers the attitude and personality that your audience will relate to.

Stimulate Desire

The desire to buy a particular product or service is based on more than functional utility; after all, nobody really needs a Rolex or a Lexus. People buy much of what they buy based on emotional and psychological desire rather than functional need. Functionality often comes into play merely as a justification for the purchase. Part of your website’s job is to create the emotional and psychological desire for the product in question.

Motivate Action

Your website should also be designed to motivate people to action but don’t construct your site to limit that action to a sale or nothing. Too many sites are obviously designed to get you to buy something with little or no attention to enhancing understanding or generating confidence. This ‘all or nothing’ approach is severely anti-productive and conveys an impression that you can’t be trusted. Customers need to have confidence in you and your offering and sometimes they need some reassurance that you are legitimate.

What you want to do is get website visitors to do something, anything that demonstrates some interest. That demonstration of interest could be a phone call to ask a question, signing up for an e-newsletter, requesting a catalog, responding to a survey, poll, or promotion – anything that displays they have some interest in what you are offering. If you can motivate your audience to action, even if that action is not directly sales related, you are on your way to building a relationship with that prospect.

Communication: Turning Content Into a Memorable Experience

In order to achieve your marketing goals you need to know how to manipulate, or if you prefer, ’seduce’ your audience to your advantage using the seven tools of website persuasion.

Position

Web-pages are usually made-up of similar types of information. Standard page elements include:

i. Header information – such as logo, company name, address, and basic contact information;

ii. Navigation elements – so visitors can find what they need;

iii. Content – such as text, graphics, audio, and video;

iv. Sidebar information – that might include additional information or links that relate to the content or advertisements, and;

v. Footer information – that might contain further contact or copyright information.

The positioning of these elements is critical to the comprehension and retention of your information and marketing message. Various usability studies carried out in the USA and Great Britain have tracked the eye movement of website visitors. These studies help the designer place the various page layout elements on the screen to produce the maximum effect.

Most studies are fairly consistent with their eye movement tracking results:

i. Middle-Center: Visitors first focus on the center of the page searching for content that is anticipated;

ii. Top-Left: Eyes then move to the top left corner where a logo or company name is expected;

iii. Down Left-hand side: Eyes then move down the left-hand side of the screen where navigation is commonly placed;

iv. Top-Middle to Right: Eyes then move back to the top of the screen and move from the center to the right scanning for further navigation elements or additional company identification information;

v. Middle-Center: Eyes then move back to the middle of the screen scanning for relevant content;

vi. Right-hand side: Eyes then move to the right side of the screen looking for additional information or sidebars;

vii. Middle-Center to bottom: Finally eyes go back to the center and down the page towards the footer scanning for additional content.

It should be noted that these studies also suggest that website visitors will quickly determine where any advertisements are located and then proceed to ignore or avoid them when moving on to other pages of that website.

Size

The size of the various elements will obviously draw attention to, or away from particular information. Logos, graphics, headers, and body-text should all be balanced and proportionate, and the use and amount of white space is as important to readability and comprehension as any of the other elements.

Color

The use of color is another obvious feature that draws attention to particular information; color also conveys personality, mood, and image. Blue, silver, and green are calming colors that convey a cool if somewhat remote image. Reds tend to convey a sense of excitement and boldness, while yellows are bright and friendly. Browns and beiges are earthy, warm and rich, while black, white and gray convey a sense of sophistication.

Of course these are all generalizations and colors can be mixed and matched to provide a variety of moods and personalities. What’s important is that a color palette is chosen with care, not only to convey personality but also to direct and focus attention on particular key elements.

Shape

The shape of elements is another way to draw attention to particular information or content. Traditional computer monitors with their 4:3 ratio and the new more extreme 16:9 ratio monitors create particular challenges when trying to present substantial information above the virtual fold, by that we mean the visible area that does not require scrolling. Sometimes vertical scrolling can’t be avoided, but if you have a lot to say, think about adding an audio or video option that only requires the click of a button to present your information with no scrolling required.

Sound

Web-audio is the most cost-effective multimedia-format for delivering large amounts of complex information or instructions to website visitors. Web-audio not only delivers the information in a meaningful, compelling, entertaining, and memorable way, but it also helps establish a corporate personality and image.

Movement

Movement will also help attract and direct attention to certain aspects of your website. By far the best way to incorporate some action on your site is with Web-video that uses a Web-host to present information or direct visitors to where they want to go.

Style

The visual style of your site not only directs attention and focus but it also helps establish your personality and how it relates to your target audience. Styles range from conservative to funky to downright bizarre but what really matters is the style you choose tells visitors who you are and what you’re all about. Your website style will help create the attitude aspect of your website presentation.

Conclusion

Designing a website is more than programming and search engine optimization; it is how you communicate to your future customers – a job that is too important to leave to someone who doesn’t understand how to use the Web and it’s full arsenal of presentation elements to communicate your marketing message.

Outsourcing of jobs to offshore companies has been a hot-button issue since the 1960s when the United States began losing automotive manufacturing jobs to Japan. In recent years, the outsourcing of technical jobs has revived the debate which became one of the top issues in the 2004 presidential campaign. However, actual facts and statistics about the effect of outsourcing on the American economy are hard to come by. Rhetoric, not facts, dominate the discussion of whether outsourcing has an effect on the economy.

There is a serious dichotomy between the beliefs of average Americans and those of economists and other experts. For example, a Zogby International Poll showed that 71% of Americans believe that outsourcing hurts the economy but when the Wall Street Journal asked the same question of economists, only 15% felt that outsourcing had a negative effect.

Opinions on outsourcing tend to be divided by economic status rather than political persuasion. For example, some Republicans in the House and Senate believe that outsourcing has a terrible effect on the economy and that legislation should be enacted to stop it. However, conservative think tanks like the Heritage Foundation and Republicans with ties to big business believe that the threat of outsourcing has been over exaggerated.

Liberals are also divided about outsourcing. The Democratic party has traditionally been the party of labor in the United States but it was a Democratic president, Bill Clinton, who shepherded the North American Free Trade Agreement through Congress, a treaty which most experts agree facilitated the current outsourcing trend.

For every argument for outsourcing, there is another argument against it. For example, the Heritage Foundation argues that despite outsourcing more Americans are employed than ever before and that jobs continue to be created to compensate for those lost overseas. Anti-outsourcing advocates point out that gross wages are dropping because the jobs that are being created are low-level service sector jobs, not high-tech jobs to replace the ones that are being lost.

The Heritage Foundation, citing the Organization for International Investment also argues that for every job outsourced, another is “insourced” to the United States from another country, often at a higher rate of pay than the job lost. Anti-outsourcing advocates say that those numbers can’t be accurately verified.

What is clear is that until the federal government conducts accurate research into the effects of outsourcing on the United States economy, there will be no definitive answer one way or the other.

Strategic Marketing or Marketing in Aviation
Effective marketing depends upon effective marketing system employed by an industry or separate companies. Marketing as an activity is carried out in a variety of contexts. The most obvious context is of course the sale of goods and services to end-users. Marketing can be described as one of the functional areas of a business, distinct from finance and operations (McDonald, Christopher, 2003). Marketing can also be thought of as one of the activities that, along with product design, manufacturing, and transportation logistics.
In general, aviation industry is one of the profitable industries today which is characterized by of rapid technological and marketing changes. Nevertheless, the present situation requires cooperation between airlines and airports which should help them to market their services effectively to their clients.
Marketing strategies include a wide variety of techniques aimed to deliver customer satisfaction and safety. New product and services development, technological changes mark the main strategic activities in this market segment. Technology, being a universal factor that crosses national and cultural boundaries, plays the crucial role in aviation and aerospace industry. It should be mentioned that technology is truly “stateless”; there are no cultural boundaries limiting its applica¬tion. Once aviation technology is developed, it soon becomes available virtually every¬where in the world.
In regional markets such as Europe, the increasing overlap of advertising across national boundaries and the mobility of consumers have created opportunities for aviation and airlines marketers to pursue pan-European product positioning. For instance, in 1970s the jet airplane revolutionized communication by making it pos¬sible for people to travel around the world in less than 48 hours. Tourism enables people from many countries to see and experience the newest products being sold abroad. One essential characteristic of the effective global aviation business is face-to-face communication among employees and between the company and its customers. Without modern jet travel, such communication would be difficult to accomplish (Bellis, 2001).
New transportation technology significantly reduces the level of prices. The costs associ¬ated with physical distributionboth in terms of money and timehave been greatly reduced as well. The per-unit cost of shipping automobiles from Japan and Korea to the United States by specially designed auto-transport ships is less than the cost of overland shipping from Detroit to either U.S. coast. Another key innovation has been increased utilization of 20- and 40-foot metal containers that can be trans¬ferred from trucks to railroad cars to ships.
Another technological innovation, which helps to improve marketing activities is the Internet and World Wide Web. Airlines and aviation can be called boundaryless or global industries, and for this reason Internet and Intranet services has become a driven force for them.
Today’s information technology allows airline alliance partners to sell seats on each other’s flights, thereby helping travelers get from point to point more easily while boosting revenues for companies such as United Airlines and Lufthansa. Meanwhile, the cost of international telephone calls has fallen dra¬matically over the past several decades. That fact, plus the advent of new communi¬cation technologies such as e-mail, fax, and video teleconferencing, means that man¬agers, executives, and customers can link up electronically from virtually any part of the world without traveling at all.
When a company establishes a site on the Internet, it automatically becomes global, at least in terms of its potential to reach global customers with information. At present, Internet usage is heaviest in the United States. Even as that situation changes, however, many constraints must still be overcome before Internet merchandise purchase transactions can become borderless (Joines, Scherer, Scheufele, 2003).
Marketing departments in aviation and airline industry work closely with R&D departments to ensure that the products which are developed are those which cater for the changing needs of target customers and different needs of varying customer segments. In recent years, high failure rates in the introduction of new products have led departments to be very risk averse, with most ‘new’ products emerging being merely extensions of exist¬ing product lines and not truly new and innovative offerings.
The marketer’s role in aviation and airline new product development is therefore about providing a link between the market and the design department, with customers and R&D technicians both being involved in the process. It also requires involving senior management, as changes in customer demand and purchasing patterns may have serious implications for future busi¬ness objectives and directions.
The main marketing strategy in aerospace and aviation industries is to design a product that consumers did not explicitly request. The challenge of course is to get out in front of consumers; to extrapolate and infer future customer needs. Yet traditional forms of marketing research seldom seem to provide the insight necessary to engage in creative marketing. The basic aerospace initiative include:
“Re-invigorate basic and applied research in aeronautics and aviation.
Develop aviation/aerospace technologies that will significantly lower noise, emissions and fuel consumption.
Address the cost, frequency and reliability of entering space, and increase its economic viability.
Fund revolutionary, not just evolutionary, changes to the air transportation system to obtain greater capacity, safety, traffic flow and automation” (U.S. Aviation and Aerospace Industries, 2003).
It is easy to see the rationale for presenting the marketing department as the linchpin in the new product devel¬opment process. They are the conduit of information between the market, and the firm and the various departments involved in the new product development process. Taking on a pivotal role means broader involvement of various stakeholders which can be further facilitated by project teams which bring members of all groups together at the same time to discuss and attempt to solve mutual problems. “Infrastructure and air traffic management issues will be a new topic to address both on behalf of aerospace manufacturers and service providers and the SBAC airports segment” (UK aircraft and aerospace industry, 2005).
The above apparently suggests that new product development is purely finding out what customers want and then delivering it. It is possible to suggest, however, that cus¬tomers do not always know what they want, or at least cannot articulate it in concrete terms.
David Kiley expresses an interesting idea supposing that Airlines “are not marketing even if they think they are”. He explains that “consumers are, for the most part, choosing based on where their frequent flyer miles are (that they collect through their jobs) and price. The typical leisure traveler these days is checking online via Orbitz, Expedia or one of the other services for prices and schedules. When the selection of options comes up from United, Northwest, Delta, American, Air France, Virgin Atlantic–how many people are choosing based on how they feel about the airline?” (Kiley, n.d.). On the other hand, it is difficult to deny the role of advertising in airline marketing which has a great influence on consumers preferences and choice.
Today, customer service in airlines relies on reputation and trustworthiness and this no less true in the new forms of system-service. In fields such as package delivery and money management, consumers are seeking indications that their risks will be minimised or eliminated. For these kinds of consumer acts, customer service plays an essential role in assuaging the fears of consumers by projecting an image of trustworthiness and expertise (Johnson, Scholes, 1998).
The Choice of Press issues is based on readership. It refers to the total number of people who probably will read the publication. For example trade and technical publications are often read by people other than the purchaser at the purchaser’s place of work. Sunday newspapers and colour supplements are invariably passed around the family for reading. Therefore, readership figures may be several times larger than circulation figures and help to tell us how many people may read the publication. The readership profiles usually indicate the demographic characteristics of the readership, such as age, sex, income and, in particular, socio-economic grading of readers, quintessential to the effective targeting of a company’s advertising. For instance, “Delta has recently kicked off a new campaign, themed “Good Goes Around.” American has been running sentimental TV ads with the slogan, “We Know Why You Fly.” (Kiley).
For maximum penetration it may help to select primary (first choice) media that interlock or cross support each other. If deeper penetration into the same target market, for example, is required, then vertical advertising in the media that reach the same target market will be sought. For example, advertising on commercial television may be linked with advertising in the magazine that provides the program schedules for viewers, or local radio advertising in a particular area may be accompanied by direct mail or press advertising. “The airline industry has literally fought for deregulation that has made each company nothing more than a commodity” (Kiley).
Without new qualitative service airlines companies will not be capable to achieve the overall objectives, that is why the main objective of a company is to maintain the level of service quality and develop strategies to improve its services. Service concepts are based on understanding the unique environment in which a particular firm operates. Usually, airline companies find specific marketing strategies and then translate them into a detailed plan of action which foresee an efficient marketing effort. Implementing a customer oriented strategy is more important than any other techniques. It also means impressing upon the entire staff the importance of customer service because a satisfied customer is the best marketing tool available.
All customers have some expectation of the quality of services which have to be provided. Present day situation is marked by two factors specification, which is to do with the ‘design quality’ of service, and conformity, which is to do with the ‘process’ quality which is achieved are of particular importance to customers. Ultimately they are the two factors which deter¬mine the quality levels provided by a companies to their customers. These two factors however are themselves determined by other factors.
Specification in the airline industry is determined as a result of an organization’s pol¬icy, which in turn resulted from decisions on its market policy, and consideration of the market or customer needs and requirements, and the activ¬ities of competitors. This is the process of designing quality into the service (Ennew, Reed, Binks, 1993). For instance, “Airlines are scrambling to fill seats and make their customers happy, that’s clear. British Airways just this week signed a deal with the Worldwide Travel Exchange (WWTE) hotel-booking arm of Expedia inc company Travelscape, enabling the airline’s passengers to book rooms at more than 40,000 hotel properties” (Cox, 2002).
Proof of customer contact improvement includes measuring customer satisfaction, establishing new performance standards, and thereby gaining greater control over, and routinisation of, professional service work. At the same time, quality improvement through self-directed project teams has evolved into a practice whereby task forces adopt goals and use methods that are centrally determined. In this manner, ’success’ is evaluated by others through institutionally defined performance improvement measures (Mascarenhas, Kesavan, Bernacchi, 2004).
Today, a wide range of Web services are adopted by airlines and aviation to contact with the customers and to ensure customer satisfaction. It is not a unique and a new form of service but still it is one of the most beneficial areas for attracting a new customers and providing new services for target customers. For instance, “Travelocity provides Internet and wireless reservations information for more than 700 airlines, but it doesn’t have special marketing relationships with all of them. It did sign a similar deal with Continental in January and has deals with British Airways, JetBlue and America West, among other airlines” (Cox, 2002).
For airlines companies, Internet rationalizes the expensive and cumber¬some proposition of large-scale customer service. Second, the system serves to reduce at least the appearance of risk associated with time-space distanciation and the opacity of the expert system.
In only a short time, online finance has become immensely popular around the world. This might have something to do with the fact that in climates of risk, especially those involving investments, many customers prefer a ‘hands-on’ approach. Indeed, online services and trading has several advantages for customers. The main, it is available around the clock. There are, of course, risks for customers associated with online trading (Mascarenhas, et al, 2004).
In aviation this approach includes maintenance of high standards which is a key factor in effective customer contact. The purpose of maintenance is to attempt to maximize the performance of service by ensuring that it performs regularly and efficiently. Service, however complex or simple, however cheap or expensive, is liable to breakdown. The effective operation of any system is dependent on the maintenance of all parts of the system, e.g. buildings, services. Indeed, company welfare or personnel practice is designed partly as a maintenance activity, e.g. training and retraining to maintain the availability of appropriate skills, facilities to maintain human capacity, counselling to maintain interest and motivation (Joines et al, 2003).
The audiences may be geographically dispersed in time, but they share common interests that are perhaps difficult to serve profitably though other international media. The online airlines sites (www.bluejet.net.tc or www.britishairways.com) thrive because they offer their participants the following: a forum for exchange of common interests; a sense of place with codes of behaviour; a meeting place for specialists; the development of stimulating dialogues leading to relationships based on trust; encouragement for active participation by more than an exclusive few.
“Customers can book on-line at www.CanJet.com through CanJet’s Reservations Sales Centre” (Cox, 2002). Service, however complex or simple, however cheap or expensive, is liable to breakdown. Another alternative is to deliver ads via third-party ad-server companies which can serve ad messages simultaneously to multiple Web sites, measure results, produce consolidated reports, report on the success of the entire campaign, and analyze these results immediately, enabling advertisers to quickly assess the ongoing effectiveness of the campaign.
In traditional markets, dual distribution systems are not uncommon; there are numerous examples of companies using more than one channel of distribution to sell to different groups of customers. However, the process of managing multiple distribution systems can be both tricky and risky. While electronic commerce is creating new opportunities for differential pricing, it can also make such pricing strategies more difficult when it is used to provide customers with better information about their choices. Indeed, customer ignorance -about prices, features and relative product performance - has traditionally been a source of profit for companies. The relationship marketing process involves an iterative cycle of knowledge acquisition, customer differentiation and customization of the entire marketing mix. This process is sometimes referred to as a learning relationship (Johnson, Scholes, 1998). A learning relationship between a customer and an airline comapny gets smarter and smarter with each individual interaction, defining in ever more detail the customer’s own individual needs and tastes.
“The leadership position of the U.S. aviation and aerospace industries is being eroded by foreign competitors who benefit from extensive government subsidies” (U.S. Aviation and Aerospace Industries, 2003). In aerospace services is creating new flexibility for consumers and for business, government markets. And innovation is also occurring through experimentation with new approaches to market development in emerging markets There appears to be a mismatch between the technology incorporation cycle and the technology introduction cycle. Just when the customer feels comfortable with a given technology that they have acquired, a new version comes along making the earlier one obsolete.
A problem with aerospace industry is that although there are only a few major companies, these companies have a majority of the control over the market, requiring an extremely unique spin off of this already established product to have a chance at success. There are many innovative products that enter the sector every year. A talented company management could definitely add these product to the list if they are willing to work hard, think outside of the box, and put their heart into their company (UK aircraft and aerospace industry, 2005)
Competitive pressures have prompted many airlines and aerospace companies to involve marketers in design, manufacturing, and other value-related decisions from the start. This approach is known in some circles as boundaryless marketing. Rather than linking marketing sequentially with other activities, the goal is to eliminate the communication barriers between marketing and other functional area’s. Properly implemented, boundaryless marketing ensures that a marketing orientation perme¬ates all value-creating activities in a company (McDonald, Christopher, 2003).
A partnership marketing strategy is the quickest and cheap¬est ways to develop a global strategy in aviation. It allow share control over assigned tasks, a situation that cre¬ates management challenges. Partnership in aviation is attractive because high product development costs in the face of resource constraints may force a company to seek partners and the technology requirements of many contemporary products mean that an individual company may lack the skills, capital, or know-how to go it alone (UK aircraft and aerospace industry, 2005).
It is possible to conclude that aerospace and airline industries mature, fragmentation is overcome and the industry tends to become a consolidated industry dominated by a small number of large companies. Although industries begin by being fragmented, battles for market share and cre¬ative attempts to overcome local or niche market boundaries often result in a few com¬panies’ obtaining increasingly larger market shares. When product standards become established for minimum quality and features, competition shifts to a greater emphasis on cost and service. Slower growth combined with overcapacity and knowledgeable buyers put a premium on a firm’s ability to achieve cost leadership or differentiation along the dimensions most desired by the market.
The increasing opportunities of the Internet offer another area of strength for airlines marketing stretagy. Customers want more help with the Internet, airlines in a better position to give it to them. In the traditional brand relationships, communication flows between the marketer and the consumer. The key to airlines successful relationship marketing program is information. The better information that a company can propose to a particular customer, the more value that firm will potentially be able to provide that customer.
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You have probably never thought of an Audio Book as a tool for self help, motivation and growth. But the truth is, audiobooks are excellent resources of all kinds of information.

A self help audio book may be an inspirational story about someone who survived a life altering event. Maybe you have challenges in your career and need the motivation to be strong and see it through. Audio books can provide wonderful insight for anyone needing personal encouragement.

Audio books are the perfect medium for weight loss and other health issues such as cigarette smoking. For the person trying to lose weight, an audio book can be the absolute most positive tool you have. For instance, if you are following the South Beach Diet, you can download the audio book version and listen to Dr Agaston narrate through the program, step by step. Then listen while you exercise, drive or do house chores.

Perhaps you have a job where you earn your salary based on sales commissions. You may benefit immensely from a very popular download by Zig Ziglar. This man can motivate a snail. This download provides vital strategies for specific closes, hundred of sales questions, and dozens of persuasion procedures to help everyone sell their ideas, products or themselves.

Of course these are just a couple of examples of self help audiobooks, a browse through an online audio book store will provide you with thousands of self help titles to choose from.

The convenience of audiobooks make them terrific for on the go people. You can listen to any audio book on your iPod, MP3 player or even on a CD for portable convenience.

Self help audio books can provide the information to enrich and enhance lives. All that is needed is the eagerness to improve and the willingness to open your mind to grow.