Become a Millionare Selling Custom T Shirts

The American dream is to strike it rich as a self made millionaire. While in theory this is a fantastic idea, the truth is that there are few industries left where people can start from scratch and make themselves a millionaire through nothing but their own perseverance and skills. Furthering this dilemma is the fact that a lot of those jobs require a very high level of education and more importantly the years spent obtaining that education. I’ll let you in on a secret, I have a bachelor’s degree, and although I do not down play the importance of education for the vast majority of people (especially my children, who already think they know everything), I did not need that degree. I could just as easily started doing what I do now with nothing more than a GED. The wholesale T-Shirt industry is truly a way where a hardworking, motivated, and personable individual can make hundreds of thousands of dollars every year.

How? I started out selling T-Shirts as a part time job to supplement what can only be considered a dismal income. I was actually turned on to the idea from a good friend of mine who makes as much as I do now. All it took to start from scratch was a small amount of money; remember at this point I was living from paycheck to paycheck. I used this money to buy some business cards and register the name of my company. I then sat down and started calling local businesses in the phonebook. A few of these companies went on to be my first customers and many of them continue to do business with me to this day.

With a base of customers, I needed suppliers. I needed suppliers, textile manufactures. This wasn’t hard. They’re in business to sell you their clothing, and they make high quality products. From there it was a matter of getting a contract screen printer to do the printing for me.

That is the long and short of how my business began. I bought t-shirts and paid a contract printer to do the screen printing. I then sold this product to my costumers. I came to think of myself as adding value to the t-shirts and bringing buyers and sellers together; all the while I was making more than I would have thought possible years earlier. I needed very little cash because I didn’t buy anything until my customers had committed to buying the custom t-shirts. If they wanted to pay with credit card it worked even better because I knew I already had the money. There was never very much risk and the potential for reward was fantastic.

Eventually my company was making enough money and taking enough time that I left my previous job as a trader to do it full time. I hired a secretary as soon as I could financially justify it and this freed up my time to seek and meet with customers. My company allowed me to make enough to grow the business and still never worry about my financial situation. The most beautiful thing about doing it the way I did in terms of growth is that I never felt like I was risking anything I couldn’t afford to lose.

About fifteen years after I started I got to a point where I was making enough money to try another expansion. I decided I would move into the screen printing myself. I currently own my own screen printing equipment and have a full time staff to do the contract printing for others that I used to have done for my own customers. I currently am in the process of setting up other companies that do what I started to do. I sell these companies to other ambition individuals and work as their screen printer. They go and get the customers for themselves, and I offer advice and the contract screen printing. We set up the new companies with their own website that offers pricing and quotes built in to it. We do the screen printing at special prices because of the special nature of the relationship that we have with these companies. Our websites allow the companies to decide what price they want to sell the shirts. This relationship benefits everyone because they don’t need to go thru the hoops of finding the printer and setting up the company and website, and it generates business for our company too.

This is where I currently am in my own business. I have attempted to show you the evolution of my business. I have made more than enough money to live comfortably, help put my children thru college, and save for retirement. The best part is how much I enjoy my job. I have woken up every day for the past ten years and known that I am my own boss. My destiny is my own hand and I answer to no one. I firmly believe getting into this industry was one of the best choices I ever made. Think about that all of this the next time that you wake up dreading going to work or the next time your boss is any four letter word you’d like.

Best price endowment selling process and the future of TEPs

The traded endowment market exists because over 100,000 people each year decide to sell endowment policy or surrender endowment.

Most endowment life insurance policies were originally taken out for 25 years, but the majority of policyholders never wait until maturity for cashing in endowment and surrender them. In many cases, the endowment policy surrender values offered by insurance companies are less than the market value. In addition, investors are keen to buy traded endowment policies as part of their investment portfolios. The market exists because there are people willing to endowment cash in and people wanting to buy them for investment purposes.

In 2003, the government estimated that about eight in ten of the endowment policies then in force were unlikely to pay off the mortgages they were taken out for. Since then, nearly 70% of those facing a shortfall have re-mortgaged, sought financial advice or applied for compensation. However, about 700,000 people had still done nothing about their endowment shortfall. The general rule is that, people must complain within three years of receiving their first "red letter" - outlining a likely shortfall - from their insurance company or lender. Under industry rules, insurers are allowed to ignore complaints made after the time bar comes into play. Specialists say that, ‘2013 will be the peak year for endowments reaching maturity’. Nevertheless, endowment life insurance policyholders now can imagine the future awaiting them and selling endowment policies on time is the best option ahead.

The endowment policy selling process starts when the owner contacts with the TEP brokers. The details are forwarded to the trader who will endeavor to beat the current endowment surrender value. This service is completely free of charge and there is no obligation if you log on to www.bestpriceendowment.com.

Every offer made by Best Price, to sell your endowments, will be higher than the current endowment surrender value offered by the respective life office. If you decide to accept the offer, you simply need to complete the acceptance form and return it to them.

After receiving your offer acceptance letter, they approach the life office to clarify the policy details. The endowment policy buyer then looks to place the policy into a portfolio with other policies. There can be anywhere between 5 and 300 policies in a single portfolio. As soon as the endowment policy is reserved into a portfolio, they will look to complete the sale as soon as possible. The Endowment selling process is as simple and secured as that if you contact an F.S.A (Financial Services Authority) authorized and regulated organisation like Integrity Financial Solutions Ltd.

For further details or selling endowment, one may contact Integrity Financial Services. Phone: 08701 287 330/1/3
Fax: 08701 287 334/5
Email: enq@ukintegrity.co.uk
Address: Silvester House
Silvester Road
Waterlooville, Hampshire
PO8 8TD

7 Ways to Stop "Selling" & Start Building Relationships

Sometimes we can all use a friendly reminder to keep us from backsliding into old ways of thinking about selling that lead us down the wrong path with potential clients.

New Thinking = New Results

Maybe it's time to take a different approach. Maybe we need to seriously analyze our sales thinking so we can identify why we're not making more sales. Take a look at the table below and thinkabout your current selling mindset. How would your selling behaviors change if you changed your sales thinking?

Traditional Sales Mindset Vs Unlock The Game™ Mindset

1. Always deliver a strong sales pitch. Vs Stop the sales pitch -- and start a conversation.

2. Your central objective is always to close the sale. Vs Your central goal is always to discover whether you and your potential client are a good fit.

3. When you lose a sale, it's usually at the end of the sales process. Vs When you lose a sale, it's usually right at the beginning of the sales process.

4. Rejection is a normal part of selling. Vs Sales pressure is the only cause of rejection. Rejection should never happen.

5. Keep chasing every potential client until you get a yes or a no. Vs Never chase a potential client -- you'll only trigger more sales pressure.

6. When a prospect offers objections, challenge and/or counter them. Vs When a potential client offers objections, uncover the truth behind them.

7. If a potential client challenges the value of your product or service, you must defend yourself and explain the value. Vs Never defend yourself or what you have to offer -- it only creates more sales pressure.

Let's take a closer look at these central Unlock The Game™ concepts so you can begin to open up your current sales thinking and become more effective in your selling activities:

1) Stop the sales pitch -- and start a conversation.

When you call someone, avoid making a mini-presentation about yourself, your company, and what you have to offer. Start with an opening conversational phrase that focuses on a specific problem that your product or service solves. If you don't know what this is, ask your current customers why they purchased your solution. One example of an opening phrase might be, "I'm just calling to see if you'd be open to some different ideas related to lowering the risk of any computer downtime you may be having in your company?" Notice that you are not pitching your solution with this opening phrase.

2) Your central goal is always to discover whether you and your potential client are a good fit.

Let go of trying to "close the sale" or "get the appointment"-- and you will discover that you don't have to take responsibility for moving the sales process forward. If you simply focus your conversation on problems that you can help potential clients solve, and if you don't jump the gun by trying to move the sales process forward, you will find that potential clients will actually bring you into their buying process.

3) When you lose a sale, it's usually right at the beginning of the sales process.

If you believe that you lose sales because you make a mistake at the end of the process, take a look back at how you began the relationship. Did you start with a presentation? Did you use traditional sales language like, "We have a solution that I believe you really need" or "Others in your industry have bought our solution, so you should consider it as well"?

When you use traditional sales language, potential clients can't help but label you with the negative stereotype of "salesperson." This makes it almost impossible for them to relate to you from a position of trust. And if trust isn't established at the outset, honest communication about the problems they're trying to solve, and how you might be able to help them, becomes impossible too.

4) Sales pressure is the only cause of rejection. Rejection should never happen.

Rejection happens for only one reason: Something you said, as subtle as it might have been, triggered a defensive reaction from your potential client. Yes, something you said. To eliminate rejection, simply shift your mindset so that you give up the hidden agenda of hoping to make a sale. Instead, everything you say and do should stem from the basic mindset that you are there to help potential clients. This makes you able to ask, "Would you be open to talking about issues you might be having affecting your business?"

5) Never chase a potential client--you'll only trigger more sales pressure.

"Chasing" potential clients has always been considered normal and necessary, but it's rooted in the macho selling image that, "If you don't keep chasing, it means you're giving up -- and that means you're a failure." This is dead wrong! Instead of chasing potential clients, tell them that you would like to avoid anything that resembles the old cat-and-mouse chasing game by scheduling a time for your next chat.

6) When a potential client offers objections, uncover the truth behind them.

Most traditional sales programs spend a lot of time focusing on "overcoming objections." These tactics only put more sales pressure on potential clients and also fail to explore or understand the truth behind what the potential client is saying. When you hear, "We don't have the budget," "Send me information," or "Call me in a few months," do you think you're hearing the truth, or do you suspect that these are polite evasions designed to end the conversation?

Rather than trying to counter objections, you can uncover the truth by replying, "That's not a problem" -- no matter what clients are "objecting" to -- and then using gentle, dignified language that invites them to reveal the truth about their situation.

7) Never defend yourself or what you have to offer -- it only creates more sales pressure.

When a potential client says, "Why should I choose you over your competition?," your first, instinctive reaction is probably to start defending your product or service because you want to convince them to buy. But what do you think goes through your potential client's mind at that point?

Something like, "This 'salesperson' is trying to sell me on why what they have to offer is better, but I hate feeling as if I'm being sold." Rather than defending yourself, try suggesting that you aren't going to try to convince them of anything because that would only create sales pressure. Instead, ask them about the key problems that they are trying to solve, and then explore how your product or service might solve those problems --without ever trying to persuade.. Let potential clients feel that they can choose you without feeling "sold."

You too can improve your sales effectiveness if you are open minded and willing to try a new and more natural selling approach.

Advance Your Career by Selling Yourself

Often when it comes to our career we are some of the worst salesman of our abilities and skills. We sell ourselves short in our abilities come review time, or accept less than we are worth out of fear that they will find someone else. Instead of building ourselves up and selling ourselves for maximum value we accept what is given to us and end up doing twice the work for half the pay.

One of the most important places you can ever sell yourself is during the interview process for a new job. It is during this process that you should make an effort to build up yourself and sell your skills to the potential employer by making them feel that if they hire anyone else but you they are going to be losing out on an amazing talent. Here are a few tips you can use during your next interview to make the interviewer think WOW!

Dress for success. Clothes make the man (or woman) and you should dress as if you were interviewing for the CEO position.

Research the company and know the background of it. During the interview show that you have done your homework by asking questions or making comments about a recent press release or company announcement.

Ask questions. Most interviewees just answer the questions they are presented and never speak up. Show the interviewer you are truly interested in the company and the job by asking questions relating to the company, your potential job and company culture.

Bring samples of your work. Whether you are an artist or a computer programmer bring a sample portfolio of your past work and share it with the interviewer. Remember, a picture (or document) can speak a million words.

Be ahead of schedule. Remember the golden rule; it is better to be 3 hours early than 3 minutes late. No one is going to hire someone who can't make it to the interview on time.

Follow-up. Don't sit around waiting for a letter or a call. Send a follow-up letter immediately expressing your interest in the job and if you haven't heard back within a week pick up the phone and call. What do you have to lose?

A Simple Sales Strategy: Define What Selling Is!

How do you define selling? A lot of people think of selling as persuading/convincing people to buy things they may or may not want or need. To some, selling is all about closing a deal. Thinking of selling like this is not very empowering to you. Frankly, if you have this perspective on selling, it's no wonder if you hate it. I would too!

So what perspective can you take about selling that will make it enjoyable, exciting and something you look forward to? Sounds like a bit of a tall order doesn't it? Read on.

Hopefully by now, you have made the list of all the problems that you can solve for your target market. You're going to be surprised how long that list grows over time. So really, if you look at your list and you think about it, you are a master problem solver. What you're really doing is helping people. Correct?

So try on this perspective about what selling is: Selling is helping people. Selling is serving. Selling is a process of identifying and solving people's problems.

See, feel and know that selling is serving. This will cause a big shift for you. With this perspective, you will really become passionate about wanting to help people. Find this passion and let it shine through.

It is your purpose, your moral obligation, to have as many sales conversations with people as you can so you can help as many people as possible. If you're not having these types of sales conversations, you are holding back the gift you have to offer the world. You owe it to people to be there for them with your expertise and wisdom.

Next time you're talking to a potential client, think about how you can help them, how you can serve them. Forget about trying to sell them something. If what you have to offer does solve their problems, and you facilitate the conversation using the strategies we are covering, people will sell themselves and will subsequently buy from you.

If you have a perspective on selling which is one of service and helping people, how do you think the people you're talking to will feel? Think about this: people hate to be sold. The minute they feel they're being sold, they often want to get away - fast. Don't you? On the other hand, if they feel you are sincerely trying to help them solve their problems, they will relax and open up to you.

If you have a perspective on selling which is one of service and helping people, how do you think you will feel? Does energized, excited, relaxed, and natural come to mind?

This perspective is simple but powerful and very attract-tive to clients.

(c) 2005, Tessa Stowe, Sales Conversation. You are welcome to "reprint" this article online as long as it remains complete and unaltered (including the "about the author" info at the end) and all links are made live.

Art Marketing Tips - Launch a successful business selling your art or crafts

Define your goals and get organized - What are your goals as an artist? Do you hope and dream to one day have your artwork displayed in a museum or do you just want to sell enough of your art to make a good living? Defining your goals is an important first step toward your success as an artist. Realize your long-term goal and then set reasonable and attainable short-term goals.

Build your confidence - You need to believe in yourself and your artwork. If not, your marketing efforts will be less effective as the fear of rejection will hold you back. You have to learn to take risks. No one is going to come knocking at your studio door. Get out there and meet new people, network with other artists, open a booth at an art show, etc.

Get in a business mentality – If you want to be successful with your art business, then you will have to learn how to juggle more than one task. This means learning how to become successful as a businessperson. The artists that are most successful have learned how to enjoy both creating and marketing their art.

Art fairs – Art fairs open up great doors of opportunity for artists. They enable artists to market directly to the public without the need of an agent. The public loves art fairs. They usually come to these art fairs with the intention to purchase something, which creates more opportunity for an artist to make a sale and get recognized. You can find a wealth of information about art fairs online. One such place is http://www.sunshineartist.com/. Sunshine Artist is a great magazine that provides detailed information about art fairs and festivals. Check it out!

Follow up – You must get into the habit of following up with anyone who has shown interest or has appreciated your art. That person who saw your painting in the doctors office, or the person who took your business card at your last art show are leads who can possibly turn into paying customers. They may also be able to help you in other ways you never thought possible. It’s important therefore to keep in touch with everyone. Create a mailing list and ask your contacts if they would like to be added. You can send out mailers whenever you create a new piece, or to notify your contacts of upcoming exhibits or art fairs you will be attending.

Customer service – You must go above and beyond your customer’s expectations if you want to set yourself apart from the competition. Make sure you treat your customers and leads with the utmost professionalism. Answer all inquiries promptly. Send out thank you notes and instructions for preserving and caring for the art with all of your orders. Customer service is important to all businesses, and your art business should be no exception.

Artist agents - You are your own best agent. No one knows your art better then you, and no one can express yourself and your art better than you can. An agent generally deals with more than one artist at a time so their focus is not on you and your art alone. Agents usually charge a lot of money as well. By the time it’s all said and done, the artist doesn’t make very much on the sale. It’s better to learn the ropes yourself and learn how to reach your buyers directly.

Get your own unique website - The Internet has become a huge platform for selling goods and services. More and more people are going online then ever before and artists are taking advantage of this amazing opportunity. If you want to expand your business and reach more people on a worldwide scale, you should definitely consider getting your own website. You can market and sell your artwork directly online with your own website. Your website is also a great way to organize and showcase your art to interested galleries and the people you meet in public.

Aikido and The Art of Selling

What's your first instinct? Most of us will do one of two things. We’ll either try to step away, or we’ll raise our arms to deflect him and fight back, which can result in harm to you or to your attacker.

But if you were trained in Aikido, the Japanese martial art that focuses on diverting an attacker’s energy, you could quickly diffuse the situation by immobilizing him without harming him in any way.

In essence, you’re diffusing the energy that he’s using to try and attack you in a way that takes the conflict out of the situation.

Unlock The Game and the philosophy behind Aikido have many similarities.

Traditional cold calling and selling are designed to focus only on the "close" by presenting -- or in too many cases, "pushing" -- your solution onto prospects, sometimes even when they’re not interested.

But if you focus only on your goal of making the sale before having a discussion about the problems that you can help your prospects solve, something happens.

They start feeling that you’re "attacking" them. After all, you’re a stranger to them, and when you start talking about yourself and your solution rather than about them and their specific issues, you immediately trigger their suspicion and cause them to start "pushing back."

This pushback is the resistance or energy that Unlock The Game teaches you to diffuse. Then both of you can quickly "get on the same page" and open a natural dialogue that will let you determine whether it makes sense for you to work together.

Let's look at two real selling scenarios -- cold calling and "get-you-off-the-phone" objections:

Scenario 1: Cold Calling

Suppose you’re at your desk and you receive a call from someone who says "Hi, my name is Jack Johnson, I'm with XYZ Company, and we’re a full-solution provider of..." Is your first reaction to welcome and be open to his call? Or do your mental defenses immediately kick in and you shut down against this stranger "salesperson"?

Probably the latter, especially if you sense that the caller is focused on his interests and not yours.

That’s why this old-school cold calling approach triggers the resistance and negative energy that prospects immediately throw your way.

The Unlock The Game way to make a successful cold call -- "successful" being defined as not triggering rejection -- is by beginning your call with, "Hi, my name is Jack, maybe you can help me out for a moment?" That simple question is a very natural way of beginning a conversation with a stranger.

But you can't just read this word for word, like a script. It won’t work. That would be like an Aikido instructor teaching a first-time student the physical movements before he or she has learned the philosophy necessary to carry them out.

The same applies here. First you need to integrate a new Mindset that changes the goal of your call from making the sale, or getting an appointment, to engaging the person in a natural two-way dialogue.

To do this, your voice has to be low-key. You have to avoid communicating any hint of typical "salesperson" enthusiasm, or any sense that you’re trying to direct the conversation to an end goal. Once you integrate the Mindset, all this kicks in naturally.

So, if you want to succeed in prospecting and cold calling, become aware of how you might be triggering the resistance or energy that instinctively causes prospects to push back against you.

Scenario 2: "Get-you-off-the-phone" objections

Here’s another example. Forget the idea of "overcoming objections." Doing that only triggers more resistance from prospects that’s very difficult to diffuse.

Think about it for a moment. When prospects give a reason why they don’t want to proceed --when they "put up resistance" -- you’ve been trained to "overcome" their objections rather than to diffuse their resistance by acknowledging that what they’re telling you is their truth.

By applying the Unlock The Game Mindset™ and skills, you diffuse that resistance and remove the conflict from the situation, just as in Aikido.

Here’s the Unlock The Game™ process for dealing with objections:

1. Diffuse the objection with "That's not a problem... (Pause)"

2. Acknowledge the truth of their objection (see the sample language below).

3. Reopen the conversation with "Would you be open to..."

For example, suppose a prospect says, "We already have a vendor." The path of diffusing and reengaging would go like this:

1. "That's not a problem...(Pause)"

2. "I wasn't calling to replace the vendor you’re currently using." Here, you’re addressing their suspicion that your only focus is on making the sale and on ripping out their relationship with their current vendor. You’re simply asking whether they would be open to different ideas that might help them solve a problem. This diffuses the tension.

3. "Would you be open to some different ideas that you might not be using now?" After the tension is dissolved, this lets you reopen the conversation in a natural way because they clearly understand that your goal is to help them. Then, if things are a match between you, you can decide where to go from there.

Keep in mind that this process will work only if you fully integrate the Mindset so it feels as natural to you as breathing.

In short, if you’re using any form of traditional selling, you could be triggering a resistance every time you communicate with your prospect.

But if you learn this new Mindset, along with words and phrases that remove any conflict or tension from the relationship, you’ll have taken your first steps toward your black belt in unlocking the cold calling game!

Tip on Selling Your Own Home

Selling your own home is never easy, and the difficulties ran more than just missing an agent. There are those memories and sense of belongings to get over, for one. You want to make sure the house you’ve lived in moves to the best buyer possible – and you want to make sure they’re willing to pay what it’s worth. Do you really think you can do this? A lot of people managed to sell their own home quickly. Here are some tips that might help:

· Make sure you have every legal issues covered before you even think about handing your house over. Does your state law require you to give property disclosures to potential buyers? It’s always a good idea to invest in a good attorney to help you.

· An attorney also come in handy for helping you make the contract form. Selling your own home requires a contract that would both protect you and the buyer – think about the buyer deposit and the local estate laws.

· A useful but normally disregarded tip in selling your own home is make sure you pick out the best picture to put in the advertisements. Like humans, not all houses are “photogenic”, so pick out the best angle that still represents what your house has to offer.

· Something the agents have and you don’t is experience, especially in observing buyers. The large amount of potential buyers coming to your house should not convince you that everyone can finance for a house. If you’re selling a house on your own, more buyers will come in hope of a more flexible negotiation – check them all. Ask if they’re able to buy your house immediately, or do they need to sell their own house first.

· Cleaning and preparing your house for home showings is only a part of your effort. Some potential buyers love to do drive-bys, and rely on that first impression. Make sure your lawn and the front part of your house is well maintained. If your curb appeal is low, clients are reluctant to see what’s inside.

These tips on selling your own home came from people who managed to sell their house successfully. There’s a lot to consider before you take every next step, so take your time. And remember, it’s useless to do the selling on your own if the revenue taken from not hiring an agent is spent heavily on fixing your own mistakes!

STEPS TO SELLING YOUR HOME

Selling your private property is something private as well. It requires courage and confidence. Here are some steps that will help you to sell your home:

1. Look at your home condition. This is the first step that will make you easier to get a buyer. Buyer or consumers always need a first impression. The physics of your home, inside or outside, is very important to make them contact you for the price. So, make sure you have a property that is clean, neat, and well-cared. Who want to buy a home with filthy condition? Repair the leakages and re-paint the walls will make your home even nicer and attractive.

2. Price your home. How much do you want to worth your home? Of course it depends on your home physics and external supports. External supports mean the neighborhood and public access. The more accessible and nicer neighborhood will definitely in demand and can be considered plus points for your home. Also in pricing your home, it is important to look at the market. How does the market say? Market can be a good step point to set your home price. As an additional tip, always open for negotiation! People like to bargain.

3. Advertise your home. Advertisement is always effective in getting consumers. Many ways to advertise your home:

a. Advertise your home on the newspaper. It requires extra budget, but it is worth lots of people to read your advertisement.

b. Put an announcement board or banner in front of your home. This will make everybody who crosses the street to know your sale and perhaps tell it to their relatives. The bigger the banner is the better.

c. Print lots of brochures or leaflets and disseminate it in public places. And do not make the information narrative; just a few pointers that has your home picture and contact number on it.

d. Tell your friends and relatives. This could be the easiest way to advertise your home. I personally do not prefer friend/relative-related consumers, but as long as they can give you a good price, why not? And also, friends and relatives are usually kind enough to help us to look for buyers. That’s what friends are for, right?

4. Use a broker service. Broker service will help you to market your home even better since they have lists of potential buyers. They are definitely the expert to help you in negotiating with buyers and basically arranging your home sale (from the first step). You can call them as the middleman. If you do not want to waste your time, you could just contact few brokers and ask for their services. The consequence is you have to share a certain percentage of your home selling price with them. So, if you do need to sell your home very soon, I would recommend this strategy.

Good luck in selling your home!