Hirst

You have your corporate ID package, a website and are doing search engine advertising using ReachLocal.com. You have an excellent PR program in place that includes an nTarget.com-based email newsletter, guest speaking and media relations. And, you are working feverishly to retain the customers you have. You are, right?

Then, it is time to ramp up the marketing noise with advertising. From Professor Hoover's Advertising 101 file, here are a few things you need to ask before you launch that ad campaign.

What can I tell prospects that would interest them? Consumers don't care that you are the largest or the best. That's budget-wasting chest-thumping on the advertiser's part. In fact, most of them aren't even paying attention to advertising about your type of business at all. You've got to give the prospect a reason to care. Tell him what is in it for him. Let's say you are the most knowledgeable Realtor in your market. Big whoop! How does that help me? Now, if you use your expertise to sell my house fast and at a premium price, I'm suddenly very interested. Select the message first before you even think about the medium.

Who are my prospects? Do you really know who you are trying to reach? You may need to know where they live, their financial situation, their media habits, and their purchase habits. Do they have children? What kind of car do they drive? The more you know, the easier it is to develop an effective message and to select a medium to reach them.

Can I make the message relevant and compelling? I hate ads because most of them are so bad. They often are so vague that you don't know why the company bothered. In trying to reach everyone, they reach no one. That's what I call the all carbon-based life forms approach. Or maybe the ad tried to pack in too much information and too many features. Be direct, concise, relevant and truthful, and then you might reach someone with an ad.

What's my desired result? Some businesses need store traffic now and aren't that worried about tomorrow, some need to build relationships for the long haul, and some need to bolster their reputation. Driving traffic can be done relatively inexpensively and immediately. The other two take discipline, consistency, time and money. Be clear about what you are trying to accomplish and whether you have the resources to achieve your goals.

Can I deliver? The worst thing that can happen is that your advertising works too well and you aren't able to deliver on your promise. Or, you did the unthinkable and lied about your product or service and are not really able to deliver the benefit you promised.

So, there you have it. Be relevant, impactful, original and truthful if you want your ads to work.

Harry Hoover is a partner in My Creative Team. He has 30 years of experience in crafting and delivering bottom line messages that ensure success for serious businesses like Bank of Commerce, The Bray Law Firm, Brent Dees Financial Planning, CruisingTheICW.com, Duke Energy, Focus Four, Levolor, North Carolina Tourism, TeamHeidi, Ty Boyd Executive Learning Systems, VELUX, and Verbatim.

Cheap, Bargain, Real Estate; Good Deals, Below Market, Low Priced properties are available if you know how to buy them.

By Jody Hudson - Realtor since 1972.

How to FIND and BUY: Cheap Bargain Real Estate, Good Deals, Below Market, Low Priced and Less Expensive; homes, lots, land, businesses, and condominiums. They are everywhere and easy to find. Here is how to find and buy them from anyone, anywhere.

This article lays out the steps: How to find and buy a Bargain, A Good Deal, in real estate; that is; how to get it real cheap! Yes, there are ways!

Nearly every call or e-mail that I get is asking me to find the buyer a bargain. We all feel that way when we are buying as well. All of us want a good deal. We all want to get cheap real estate. And we can all do it.

There is a bit of a challenge however. Every single buyer that I've ever had in my thirty two years of selling real estate has wanted to sell the property they have for more than it is worth. Herein lays our challenge as Realtors -- and of course for you as purchasers.

To get those HOT deals in real estate there are at least three things you must do:

1. First of all as a buyer you must be able and willing to act faster than any other buyer.

2. Second you must be able to know a bargain when you see one. This takes experience and education in the specific market . Any assumptions made from other markets, about the subject-inteded market, will sentence you to certain failure...

3. Third you must BUY it. That is write a deposit check and write a contract that will win over the other contracts that may be presented at about the same time as yours.

This group of three steps, sounds simple, but only about one buyer in each ten year period is willing to do these three things in order to get the cheap property they have asked us to find for them! I have several people, and so do most Realtors, that are the most; ready, willing and able and we call them first! If you want to be one of the ones called you must be MORE ready, willing and able!

Recently, August 2002 the waterfront home next to ours was listed for sale for $249,000 and it was worth at the time about $350,000. Kate and I called each of our family members, our wonderful neighbors on the other side (one of whom is a local builder and the other a mortgage broker) and some of our best clients and a best friend of ours, a builder and investor, who had already said he liked the fine home. (Note that property is now worth about $800,000 Sept. 2004).

We explained that the home was going on the market in a few hours and that they must act fast. Our neighbors on the other side, the most knowledgeable of the bunch wanted to make an offer of $180,000 saying they thought that was all the property was worth. They knew better or at least should have and they should have bought it. They just "hoped" they could get it for less and that they didn't have to move fast. The offer they made was ignored and wasted our time. They did however get another property in a few days, for a lot more money, that was worth a lot less, as a result of improved alertness and awareness after loosing the one next to us.

Our savvy investor friend put in a couple of offers below the asking price with several contingencies. Meanwhile we are telling everyone to write a contract for full price with no contingencies and calling on both our phones as fast as we could call. None of our best friends or family would pay attention. They were ALL too greedy. They knew the property was far under-priced but wanted it for even less... Lesson: when it's a good deal - ACT instead of getting more greedy and losing the deal totally.

Then our lovely new neighbors came and saw the property. They also were knowledgeable about similar properties, and had lost several properties they liked by moving slow, writing unreasonable contracts and not paying attention to real values.

This time they did it correctly. In fact they wrote a contract on the spot, with no contingencies, and for MORE than full price so that if anyone did offer full price they would still have the best chance. They paid $5,000 more than the full price on the spot, told the sellers they could have settlement any time they wanted it and before they even heard back from the sellers they arranged for a mortgage of MORE than they needed and asked for the money to be immediately available. They did not ask for a home inspection, a survey, or for the sellers to fix anything. The home is 30 years old and has not had one bit of maintenance. There was a burst hot water tank, a roof that needs replacing and a few HUGE cracks in the foundation. All these problems cost them about $15,000.

They have, as I write this, owned the property for several months and worked on it every weekend, before they could take a break and enjoy it. They love it. If they were to fix all of the things that need fixing, paint the trim and freshen up the yard and landscaping; we could get $900,000 to $950,000 for this home for them in a few months on the market. And, city sewer will be here in a few years, at that point the property will instantly go up another $200,000 and all the people we called knew about the pending sewer too.

The buyers didn't find out about the sewer coming to town until after they had contracted to purchase the property. The sewer is still not in -- WOW. They are glad they did the One, Two, Three to make it happen!

By doing the three things listed above the purchasers of the home next to us have made the wisest purchasing decision thus far in their lives and have one of the best bargains that have been available in the last several years. The sellers are happy too as they just wanted to sell it as fast as they possibly could, due to a sudden and dangerous illness of one of the owners.

I'm writing this article to serve you the reader. But you must know it is self serving as well. Much of our time as Real Estate Agents is spent trying to successfully educate our buyers and sellers. If they would take our advice they could be far, far, more successful in selling or buying. The articles I write here http://www.kate-jody.com/essays/index.html are those advices that I give my customers and clients - if they ask. Most don't and when they do, very few take the advice. Just like in every other profession, we the professionals do what we can to help those who come to us but it's up to them to take the advice.

Bargain homes are always available - but hard to sell. They are homes that are in need of some repair or cosmetic improvement or that are in an area of transition. We have several on the market right now and they are hard to sell. Someone with vision will eventually purchase them, fix them up and perhaps sell them at a huge profit - often to someone who says they want a bargain but won't do what it takes to get a bargain. Funny isn't it, and this sort of thing happens all the time. It has consistently happened in my 35 years in the real estate business and being a licensed Realtor since 1972. Just know this, if you want a fixer-upper, so does everyone else, but you need to be very, very, educated and able to spend the time and money to renovate the property effectively and affordably. And, you need to do One, Two, Three!

If you want a bargain; educate yourself and be ready to DO -- One, Two, and Three. We'll try to help you.

By Jody Hudson Copyright 2002-2004 www.Kate-Jody.com

Jody Hudson: MrJodyHudson@earthlink.net

Jody Hudson was raised as a farmer in Delaware. In 1969 he and his father began "planting houses instead of crops" on the land. It was far more profitable. In 1972 he got a real estate licencse. In a few years he became the youngest real estate broker in Delaware history. In 1982 he was selected by Who's Who in American Real Estate as it's youngest member at the time. He has created about 40 residential communities and sold real estate in Delaware and across he nation. He has written several valuable articles http://www.kate-jody.com/essays/index.htmlfor you. Enjoy!

Sending a thank you note should be an easy task. Yet, when it comes to putting pen to paper, we all seem to struggle with a major case of writers block from time to time especially when we have a large stack to write! While writers block may be a good excuse for not penning the next great American novel, it wont hold any weight as a reason for not writing those all important thank-you notes!

Thank you writing can be an easy task, if you divide it up into six short steps. Before you start, make sure to select stationery you like. The stationery should be a texture and weight you enjoy writing on. You can give your thank you notes a stylish touch with personalized stationery with your name or monogram printed on them. Also, make sure to have your address book and postage stamps on hand.

Ready to write? The six steps are listed below. Beneath the six steps are two example thank you notes to follow that use the six steps.

Step 1-- Write your greeting.
Step 2 -- Express you thanks.
Step 3 -- Let the recipient know how you will use their gift.
Step 4 -- Refer to the past and the future.
Step 5 -- Express your thanks again.
Step 6 -- Write your salutation.

Example 1

Dear Aunt Kim (step 1),

Thank you so much for the beautiful sweater you gave me for my birthday. (Step 2). I cant wait to wear it to school! I love that shade of blue! (Step 3). Thanks so much for celebrating my birthday with me. I look forward to seeing you again soon! (Step 4) Thanks again! (Step 5)

Love,

Kristine (Step 6)

Example 2

Dear Linda (step 1),

Thank you so much for the beautiful baby shower. (Step 2). I had such a wonderful time. Everything was amazing the decorations, the food, the favors! I cant wait to enjoy all of the wonderful gifts I received with our new baby! (Step 3). Thank you for being such a great friend! I cant wait until you can meet our new little one only three more weeks! (Step 4) Thank you again! (Step 5)

Your Friend,

Kristine (Step 6)

To sum it all upmake sure to pick stationery you love; keep your address book and postage on hand; and, follow the six steps above. You will have your thank you notes written in no time!

This article was written by Kristine M. Lewis, owner of http://www.dreampressonline.com Dream Press provides stationery and gifts personalized just for you! Products include stationery, favors, labels, calling cards and more! Kristine resides in Michigan with her boyfriend and adorable 5-years-old son - Ben.

Weddings are the most romantic occasions. So, giving your guests romantic wedding favors would be a fitting way to say thank you and also to revive the spirit and energies of the day. Since weddings are a celebration of love and the matters of the heart, choosing wedding favors that follow this theme will speak of sweet romance. It is easy to pick candles and heart shaped chocolates, but there is so much to choose from so, here we shall try and compile some of to most popular romantic favors.

Heart shaped candles in bright red and hot pink are something that is definitely a part of classic romantic settings. Scented candles that are infused with the aromas of love like lavender, patchouli and rose will perfume the memories of your guests when they light these candles. You can also compile a gift basket with various heart shaped goodies like heart shaped candles, wine glass charms, etc.

Chocolate definitely says LOVE like nothing else and gifting your guests with romantic wedding favors cannot exclude the prime offering of love. Chocolate in various shapes and flavors can make for romantic favors and, if you find nothing else, even packing Hersheys Kisses into little spoons with a small tag for your guests that says A spoonful of love and kisses from is just the cutest. In fact, even candy packed into charming heart shaped candy tins and decorated with ribbons and little silk posies are adorable wedding favors that stand for sweet romance.

With chocolates done, can we leave out roses from weddings? Rose shaped favor soaps, rose shaped candles, rose petal potpourri, rose shaped chocolates, and crystal roses make wonderfully romantic wedding favors. The traditional tower of love and weddings can be found in all its glory across various romantic wedding favors.

Wine wedding favors are sophisticated and you can gift your guests various wine accessories if you dont want to give away wine bottles by themselves. Heart shaped wine bottle stoppers and corkscrew set favors are perfect along with merlot wine glass candle favors.

If you know wine is not something to be appreciated by your guests, even aromatic and flavorful herbal teas would work for you. Heart shaped tea infusers are the perfect accompaniment to a hot brew on a cool evening. You can also add quaint little bottles filled with heart shaped sugar cubes that are available in soft pastel romantic colors with silver scoops.

You have candles, roses, and wine and now the only thing to complete the picture perfect romantic evening is music. You can easily get some of your favorite songs on a CD and use personalized CD labels to give to each of your wedding guests for their listening pleasure. In fact, you can also gift them a chocolate CD that looks just like the real thing. Music wedding favors also include personalized guitar picks and music lover favors that include musical note chocolates.

Finally, there are many shops online where you can easily find romantic favors of this kind with similar motifs. Look around and you will definitely find wedding favors filled with the romance of your hearts desire.

L Hayes is a wedding professional and owner of Wedding Favors Emporium. They carry an extensive line of unique wedding favors. They offer many popular gift ideas such as place card holders, candle wedding favors, and bridesmaid gifts. For more information about wine wedding favors, wedding planning, or wedding reception ideas, visit their website.