Updates!!

We may not be able to send out email blasts to remind you to check out the incredible content here at Kirk Uncorked. Thus, we would humbly suggest that you bookmark the page right now, AND sign up for email updates to your right. I won't use that email for any other purpose, and when I send out an email, it will clearly show it is from Kirk Uncorked.

Now may I suggest that you look down the right hand column of this page. There you will see 144 articles on subjects ranging from Credit and Collection to How to Start Your own Blog and why. Whenever you are faced with a question about how to proceed in your business, or looking for new ideas of how to build or improve your sales, just come here and look through the list.

We at CaliforniaSprings.com have been so busy that I haven't had time to add anything for a couple of weeks. I will be hitting the keys again soon. So there will always be new articles of inspiration and encouragment. But don't forget to look through the archive, too.

Houston Chronical Review of New Book

In case you don't get the Houston Chronical, I thought you might like to check out what they thought of my new book. I promise. I didn't pay this guy to say this.

Complex topics, digested easily

By STEVE POWERS
For The Chronicle

IN recent years it has become startlingly clear that while many of the biggest companies are constantly paring payrolls, the number of small companies is rising significantly.

But this statistic hides a lot of painful setbacks. Unfortunately, statistics on businesses with 10 or fewer workers show that 65 percent of them fail within the first five years.

With that in mind, Randy Kirk has revised his 13-year-old book to more reflect how the business world has changed. In 1993, he wrote "When Friday Isn't Payday". With this new guide, he has revised and updated the book to better reflect new information, tax laws and the growing importance of electronic commerce.

Kirk seemingly covers every aspect of operating a small business. The 300-plus pages are packed with lots of charts, lists and anecdotes about establishing and running a small business.

The book is divided into five stages of small business development, from the beginning to the process of growing and on into the future. The stages are titled: Before You Begin, Opening the Doors, The First Three Years, Managing Yourself and

Others and Managing Your Assets.

Each of these sections has subtopics that cover crucial aspects of successfully running a small business.

In section two, a subsection offers a comprehensive look at preparing a business plan.

It's obvious that Kirk has done his homework and has experience with running a business.

This book could serve as a textbook for how to run a small business.

Motley Fool

Tom and David Gardner are co-founders of the Motley Fool, which since 1993 has grown from a personal finance Web site into a media company with a syndicated newspaper column, radio shows and books.

"The Motley Fool's Money After 40" is their latest foray. This book addresses the 75 million Americans between 40 and 65 who are contemplating how they'll fare during retirement.

The authors have divided the topic into three sections: Having Enough, Having More Than Enough and Having It All.

Having Enough addresses the subject of organizing finances in order to preserve what one already has and how to calculate what is needed.

Having More Than Enough goes deeper, tackling Social Security and touching on estate planning, caring for elderly parents and teaching a child to be financially independent.

In Having It All, the authors take the whole concept a step further, showing the reader how to live a healthy, productive life, one with hobbies, adventures and another career.

The authors cover many subjects but never dwell on any of them at mind-numbing length. They hit the highlights and quickly move on, making it easy to comprehend.

...

"Running a 21st Century Small Business"

By Randy W. Kirk Warner Business Books, $14.95.

Getting PR

We in this industry are a biased bunch. We believe that promotional products are the smartest way to increase business, create loyalty, reward behavior, etc. And were it any other way, this blogger would be the first to chastise you.

However, if we believe in our own stuff to the exclusion of all else, that would be a mistake also. Promotional products represent a very fine element among many in what should in most cases be an integrated campaign strategy. And so it is for your business as well. You need to be totally educated and in tune with all the other elements that might go into your customer's overall plan. This will help you to better position yourself with the client and better advise him as to appropriate specialty items to use.

In addition, you need to advertise and promote yourself. One of the most cost effective and least utilized methods of promotion is the PR campaign. For our purposes today, I'm going to limit the scope of this post to how you, as a salesman or owner in the promotional products business might use PR to increase your visibility, and thus your sales.

First, lets discuss the types of PR you might be able to use. I would break these down into three types. First, there are the people in the news releases. When someone is hired, promoted, or even leaves for a better position, there is an opportunity to run a release. These are unlikely to be picked up by even a local paper unless there is a professional photo, so be sure to include one.

Make every effort to find a personal interest angle to improve the chances of getting some ink. Is the person active in local charities or other organizations? Have they had some kind of major impact on the community or in the industry? Do they have a rsume of note? Or, are they related to someone who meets one of those criteria.

The second kind of PR that is likely to get printed is where you, your company, or one of your employees is getting recognized for something. This could be an award, a position in a service club or charity, or an invitation to speak or write. Once again, pictures are very important. The best pictures are those that show the local talent receiving the recognition in some kind of ceremony.

The third, though by no means last, PR effort that can pay dividends is an announcement of a new product, a move, a grand opening or other event, or a substantial change in the way you are going to do business in the future (e.g. merger, acquisition, line addition, reorganization.)

On another day, I'll give the details of how to write up the release, who to send it to, and methods for increasing the likelihood of publication. We'll also touch on the internet as a tool for PR.

Short Idea For Your Consideration

There are only three ways to increase your sales volume:

1. More customers to sell the items you already carry

2. Sell more of what you sell to your existing customers

3. Sell something else to new or existing customers

If you will take 10 minutes to study that list, you might find that this is the most important post you've ever read, here or anywhere.

The Rude Salesman - What is Rudest Thing of All

Time for a major admission. When I was younger, I used to use 4-letter words. I suspect there were also some words with 5 letters or so that were just a vulger as the 4 letter kind. I also used those kinds of words in some sales settings or when dealing with salesmen I managed (I used "salesmen" on purpose. I never swore in front of women.)

Somewhere along the line I asked myself: "Will I make one more friend or sale because of my language use. Moreover, might I actually lose friends or sales due to my choice of words. I decided that day to end the use of any and all vulgar words in all settings.

Now, the other day I read this article.

The Rudest Thing You Can Do at Work

The rudest thing you can do at work is to use profanity.
That's the word from a Harris Interactive survey of 2,318 employed adults conducted for Randstad USA, a leading workforce solutions company, about behaviors that interfere with work performance. Fully 91 percent of those surveyed cited profane language as the rudest workplace behavior.
Top 9 office etiquette pet peeves:
Using profanity: 91 percent
Being spoken to in a condescending tone: 44 percent
Public reprimand: 37 percent
Micromanaging: 34 percent
Loud talkers: 32 percent
Cell phones ringing at work: 30 percent
Using speakerphones in public areas: 22 percent
Personal conversations in the workplace: 11 percent
Using PDAs during meetings: 9 percent

Swearing at work--even if it seems like everyone else is doing it, too--can leave a bad impression, according to James O'Connor, founder of Cuss Control. Not only that, but it makes you unpleasant to be around and can endanger your relationships as people lose respect for you. Most of all, it shows you don't have control and could even lead some to think you have a bad attitude or a lack of character. "Swearing is complaining, and it can be infectious," O'Connor told Training magazine. "It also reflects on an individual's lack of maturity and inability to cope with daily aggravations."

To help you stop swearing, devise a new list of tension-releasing words. For example, instead of saying you're "pissed off," try one of these: angry, mad, livid, fuming, irate, furious, enraged, incensed, upset, infuriated, spitting mad, disappointed or frustrated.

Nice to know I made a wise choice. Sorry to think how many I offended before I figured it out.