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Randy Elgin
10999 IH10W; Ste 175
San Antonio, TX 78230
(210) 232-2310
How to Survive the Recession
...Stronger Than Before
As bad as it is out there, it's important to recognize that this is a time of tremendous opportunity.
Get my free report, "How to Survive the Recession ...Stronger than Before" by replying to this email or by calling the number above.
Quick Quiz
Each month I’ll give you a new question.
Just reply to this email for the answer.
What is the only radio station in the U.S. whose call letters match its town's name?
Worth Reading
Selections from the best articles seen online this month.
7 Lessons from a Marketing Genius
From 800ceoread
A recent article from Carmine Gallo details seven points about what makes Mr. Jobs such an incredible marketer; words we can certainly all learn from.
Read more
The Master List of New Windows 7 Shortcuts
From Lifehacker
Windows 7 adds loads of great shortcuts for switching between apps, moving windows around your screen, moving them to another monitor altogether and much more.
Read more
Embracing Lifetime Value
From Seth Godin's Blog
Instead of comparing what you invest to the benefit you receive from the first bill, the first visit or the first transaction, it's important to not only recognize but embrace the true lifetime value of one more customer.
Read more
BOOK REVIEW
Upstarts, by Donna Fenn
The subtitle of this book, "How GenY Entrepreneurs Are Rocking the World of Business and 8 Ways You Can Profit from Their Success," says it all.
For in this book you will find case studies about interesting businesses started by people under 30 - and often a lot younger than that.
Fenn pulls out several threads that characterize the Upstarts, as she calls them: They collaborate easily and frequently, they use technology to make things easier - and make their businesses different, and they build companies that have an integrated social mission.
There's something reassuring and yet disconcerting about the entrepreneurs in this book. Reassuring, because a lot of what they're doing has big, obvious benefits to society; disconcerting, because these people seem to be the only ones who really understand today's business world.
Read this book for some interesting ideas for your own business.
Wisdom
Quotes by...Henry Ford
"Failure is the opportunity to begin again, more intelligently."
"It has been my observation that most people get ahead during the time that others waste time."
"If money is your hope for independence, you will never have it. The only real security that a man will have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience and ability."
"A market is never saturated with a good product, but it is very quickly saturated with a bad one."
"You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do."
"If there is any one secret of success, it lies in the ability to get the other person's point of view and see things from that person's angle as well as from your own."
"I am looking for a lot of men who have an infinite capacity to not know what can't be done."
"If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right."
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REAL ESTATE
Your Property Portfolio When Times Get Tough There's a growing misconception that businesses can save property assets through bankruptcy.
High-profile financial restructurings for companies like General Motors have fed this growing myth.
The reality is that bankruptcy is a tool to allow companies that are no longer financially viable to dissolve themselves while other companies that have continued financial viability have the opportunity to restructure in order to facilitate their operations.
When a business falls upon hard times and can no longer shoulder the burden of its financial obligations, the Chapter 7 or Chapter 11 section of the United States Bankruptcy Code is there to assist.
Chapter 7 is for businesses that are planning to cease operations. Chapter 11 is for businesses that wish to continue operating but need to restructure debt in order to find a viable solution.
Chapter 11 is the section that has led some people to believe they can save property assets from the harsh reality of financial obligations.
In reality, though, this is just not the case.
The Chapter 11 process begins with filing a petition with the bankruptcy court. This may be voluntary or it can be driven by creditors in an involuntary filing.
During the initial filing, the commercial entity must provide a list of all assets, an income schedule, and a list of contracts and leases. This will give the courts a full accounting of the financial viability of the business. Chapter 11 has no financial limitations, and a filing can be made under the section regardless of the amount of debt involved.
Under Chapter 11, secured creditors are paid first. For instance, bank loans that were lent against company assets are paid before any other debts. This means that if the secured debt of the company is greater than its ability to repay the outstanding financial balances, these institutions have the right to foreclose and liquidate any property assets that the debt was secured against. Unsecured creditors are next in line, followed by stockholders.
Although Chapter 11 allows the debtor to have a greater element of control during the bankruptcy process, there is still a substantial risk of foreclosure.
Bankruptcy proceedings are obviously fraught with risk and potential pitfalls.
Re-establishing credit afterward can be cumbersome, and financial roadblocks are put in place as a result.
Recognizing financial problems before any inevitable outcome occurs is paramount to protecting the monetary stability and long-term growth of any business.
Property is an asset that can be liquidated and turned into immediate capital that can facilitate corporate growth and reduce debt.
There are some instances in which bankruptcy is a foregone conclusion and there is no alternative.
However, a prudent commercial investor can see the potential rewards from reducing debt by liquidating property assets prior to financial oblivion.
By being an aggressive advocate of financial stability, the obvious choice is clear: Reduce debt through property liquidation.
SALES
Nurturing Your Customers Is Key to More Sales
 Every customer wants to feel he or she is getting the right kind and amount of attention, but customers are diverse and unpredictable, so it's no easy task.
Some buy quickly and some take their time.
Some like a high-touch approach while others prefer a laid-back experience.
The process of building and sustaining relationships that support qualified prospects until they become sales-ready is known as lead nurturing.
It involves keeping alive and well your brand, your products and service offerings, a positive image of your company, and a good sense about the ultimate purchase experience, all without becoming a nuisance.
A good lead-nurturing plan calls for a multi-touch strategy.
Typically this involves a combination of telemarketing, email, direct mail and face-to-face contact.
Phone calls are a way to gauge a prospect's readiness.
Use an invitation to a trade show, a special sale or a new product offering as occasions for periodic calls. Email marketing is a good tool for lead nurturing.
Prospects who are researching solutions may be nudged along with news about new site content or new developments related to your industry.
Direct mail is an appropriate way to invite prospects to seminars or to issue annual reports, newsletters or article reprints.
It's important to address the reality of pipeline diversity with a variety of lead-nurturing techniques.
If creating a custom sales experience for every prospect seems like a lot of effort, it is.
But the results make it worthwhile, as evidence suggests that prospects who are nurtured are more likely to become loyal, long-term clients than are prospects who purchased but were not nurtured.
Picture by D. Sharon Pruitt.
MARKETING
Tips to Make Online and Offline Marketing Go Hand in Hand
 Most businesses today - whether run by solopreneurs or large multinationals - use both online and traditional offline marketing strategies.
Traditional channels include television, direct mail, newspapers, Yellow Pages, magazines, billboards and radio.
Online channels range from optimized websites and pay-per-click advertising to podcasts, blogs and social media marketing, andvarious email strategies and techniques.
Online marketing tactics should work in sync with traditional marketing programs, otherwise you're wasting your marketing budget.
Here are some tips for optimal channel integration:
- Make sure that your brand, logo and message are consistent across all channels.
- Coordinate online and offline campaigns, events and promotions.
- Use cross-channel references in all touches.
- Ensure that questions, requests and orders from all channels are addressed quickly.
- Integrate the language of online channels into all offline messages.
- Offline efforts drive customers to your website by emphasizing keywords and key phrases from your search engine optimization campaigns.
- Recognize that online tools and techniques are constantly evolving.
- Know your customers and mirror their channel preferences.
- Be agile and flexible in responding to customer needs.
A customer's experience should be seamless across all channels. Good cross-communication will facilitate this process, result in better customer satisfaction and maximize your marketing investment. Making channel integration a priority will help you achieve optimum results.
Picture credit.
REAL ESTATE
Why Wise Property Investors Combine Appraisal Methods
Commercial appraisals are an important pricing tool for both buyers and sellers.
An in-depth appraisal can be done in a variety of ways or can be combined to provide a more comprehensive report. Investment properties are best suited to using a combination of appraisal approaches to ensure that those properties are priced suitably for the local real estate marketplace.
The Direct Comparison Approach: This is the most widely used method and dominates the residential marketplace, but it also has a substantial value with commercial appraisals. It involves comparing similar properties that are listed for sale as well as those that have recently sold. Adjustments need to be considered for variables such as location, style, size and building features when using this appraisal method.
The Cost Approach: This method arrives at a value by identifying a site and establishing the replacement cost for improvements to the property in question. This is a particularly useful appraisal system when considering properties in slow real estate markets that have limited sales activity to compare against.
The Income Approach: This method is most commonly associated with income-producing properties. The valuation is based on income capitalization. This process provides an estimate of value of investment based on a cash-flow analysis.
Whether buying or selling, investors can glean valuable information through these approaches.
Combining the appraisal methods paints an elaborate picture about the future viability of any investment.
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