Time & Money

Search Folders In Outlook

Debbie — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 21:00:35 +0000

What are search folders in Outlook?

Think of a Search Folder as a virtual folder. You set a criteria – all emails with a word, name or email address in it for example and it will gather and virtually show you all your emails meeting that criteria Search folders even includes deleted and sent items. They are permanent (well at least until you delete them) and they grows in size and content as time passes and more emails meet your search criteria.

You might not think Search Folders are particularly exciting, but when you understand they help you see different groupings of your emails without changing their folder location (your organisation of them) in any way, you’ll be delighted with the concept. For example, if you wanted to see all the emails from the sports committee you’re on or messages from a co-worker in one place, without moving them, you could use a Search Folder to do this.

You’ll find your main Search Folder by looking under your Sent fold. It initially contains three default Search Folders: For Follow Up, Large Mail, and Unread Mail. Large mail is excellent for helping you to quickly find all the large files within Outlook itself in case you go over mailbox limits.

Debbie Mayo-Smith (CSP; BSc Hons Econ) is an International Speaker, best selling author and expert in showing how you can free up time, earn more and lower costs by better using the tools at your fingertips.
For a free quick tip newsletter, vast collection of 'how to' articles and other resources to help you work smarter come to www.debbiespeaks.co.nz

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Five Simple Marketing Ideas For The New Year

Debbie — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 21:00:02 +0000

1. Start doing press releases.

You can make a press release up about almost everything. Extra learning you’ve taken on, certificates and awards, new customers, sponsorship taken in the community. Try to spread the word – be a better marketer!

2. Start writing articles and submit them to industry periodicals and publications your target market reads.

Articles or comments, quotes by you in articles, work so much more effectively than advertising. If you write an article produced in your target market’s periodicals, you’re almost endorsed as an expert – and how many new eyeballs does your name come across to?

3. Use Email Signatures cleverly.

Signatures on emails are a great way to market yourself to different clients and your different products and services. Your email software package should have a Wizard that walks you through creating it. In Outlook it is the tools menu > options > mail format > signatures.

4. Start doing Thank-you notes, cards and emails.

You know the recommendation that you should always send out thank-you notes and cards. But what if you see a lot of prospective new clients in a week? Or you’re just too busy? Why not do a mix of thank-you notes and emails?

5. Direct Your Audience in what action you want them to take?

Plan ahead. Sure, you might want people to click through to your website and order something then and there. But is there anything else? Do you want them perhaps to give you more information? Do you want them to pass the email on to a friend? Do you want them to sign up for regular emails? So if this book is prompting you towards your first email campaign, stop. Go for a walk. Think. Really think. What actions do you really want your readers to take?

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Making Business Friends

Debbie — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 21:00:09 +0000

When does one and one equal much, much more than two? When you develop the synergy of working with other likeminded businesses. Call it developing working alliances; strategic partnerships; networking; joint marketing. Call it what you want – but I can’t stress the importance of it enough.

Take a look at what you do and find a non-competitive partner whose services or products have an affinity with, or complement yours. Meet like-minded people with big email lists. Both of you can win by getting your names in front of a whole new audience. This would not only ring-fence both sets of clients from other competition, it also adds value and service to them. Not to mention the potential to significantly increase your income earning abilitly from this new alliance.

Thinking inside the square: • Financial services = Fire/general + Risk + Investments + Accounting • Marketing = Advertising + Printer + Web development + Direct Marketing Companies + Copywriters • Gifts = Flowers + Chocolates • Computers = Hardware + Software + Consultants Do think outside the square: • Think about your kids’ school. Many of the parents will be professionals. • Real estate agents – think of their contacts for insurance, architects, investors, etc. • Probus clubs • Clubs (RSA’s). Bowls. Tennis clubs. A language school. A local university with night classes. Speciality clothing stores. Sports clubs.

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Five permission email tips for marketing

admin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 09:00:59 +0000

1. Only email those who have asked. It’s the law

If someone hands you their business card, don’t assume you can just add them to your email list. Ask first – the best time to mention it is when you get the card in your hand. Say something like: ‘I’ve got a great online newsletter, would you like to get a free subscription? You can leave it if it doesn’t appeal.’ Nine out of ten times you’ll get an affirmative answer.

2. Always honour their requests to opt-out.

Make it a simple process. Since people often have multiple email addresses, include on your email the address you have sent it to. This can eliminate a lot of angst on their side and frustration on yours.

3. Allow your customers and prospects to give you their preferences.

Information: how much and how often do they want it? For example, if you’re doing a daily email – cater to those who might prefer to have only some of the information. This makes it more relevant for them instead of having to scan through the entire email.

4. Do not sell or rent your lists.

Your email list can be your goldmine, one of the most valuable assets of your business. Don’t ruin it by selling or renting your email list.

5. Give and take.

You don’t think people give you their email addresses out of the goodness of their hearts do you? They do it in exchange for something of value to them. A gift, Information. Education. White paper.Chance to win. Be creative, but truly add value.

6. Respond to customer email inquiries promptly.

Why is it that once someone hits that send key on their computer, they expect an immediate reply? They expect that someone is sitting at a computer ready to read and respond to their email. Have an email policy and enforce it. Ensure that you have a 24-hour turnaround if at all possible.

If you liked this tip please sahre it with your friends and colleagues.

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Persistence pays heaps

admin — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 09:00:34 +0000

Let me tell you about Wayne McCarthy, a top real estate agent with Barfoot and Thompson in Auckland. Wayne worked with a couple from England for two years house hunting in Auckland during the summers. Several months into year three they bought a home online from England from another agent & company. For most, the contact would have ended then and there. However Wayne continued to stay in touch with them with a regular, five monthly “good day, how are you, need a tradesman or anything let me know” email. Yes, Even though they weren’t clients. He never mentioned in any of the emails “Do I have a house for you, told of an open house or suggested they might want an investment property. He simply sent them a can I help you email.

Five years pass
Wayne gets a call from the English couple. “Wayne, we are not coming to New Zealand as often as we would have liked. Please sell the house for us.” “Of course,” Wayne replies “but what about the agent you bought your home from?” “We never heard from him again. You’ve been loyal so we’ve called you”.

What’s the point?

Persistence – 5 years
Continued though business was lost
System
Relationship building – NOT BUGGING

Your System
To build a similar reminder system for yourself – why not create a recurring Task in Outlook (To Do in Lotus Notes) to remind yourself to call, visit, follow up on important clients and prospects?

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Focus your pleasure and profit

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 09:00:07 +0000

It was a business changing moment when I overhead one of my young triplets Matthew say to a friend “oh that’s my mom. She’s always on the computer” That innocent comment was like a hot knife slicing butter, slashing my heart. How right that little boy was. It kick started a -examination of my business. Being self employed I was able to analyse each type of work I took in, rate it by how personally pleasurable and profitable an activity it was. By 10am the next morning I had a whole new focus of only accepting and developing business that was the most profitable and pleasurable to do.

How do you apply this principal to your business (and personal life)?

What are your activities now?
Write down all the things you do. Then score each by how passionate you are and how pleasurable an activity it is. Next rate the income production activities by how profitable they are. Pleasurable/ passionate has to be part of the equation as life isn’t about money alone. For example a self employed mother would find a better use of her time marketing for new business as opposed to cooking dinner. But if cooking gives her pleasure, it’s an activity that stays.

Focus Your Marketing
It’s easy for small businesses or the self employed to make changes swiftly. What about retailers for example?

Rob Bruce, owner of Blenheim Furniture2go has a marvelous attitude. “In the current market we’re not selling so many $2000 lounge suites, but $4,000 ones are moving. We look at sales, and tweak our focus. Beds vs. lounge suites. Targeting the catalogue mail drop to certain neighbourhoods.

Alliances for work you turn away
You always want to be helpful so try to build alliances with other companies in your industries that are happy to take on that work. You might even be clever and negotiate a little clip of the ticket.

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Focus your pleasure and profit

admin — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 09:00:07 +0000

How do you apply this principal to your business (and personal life)?

Focus Your Marketing
It’s easy for small businesses or the self employed to make changes swiftly. What about retailers for example?

If you like this tip please share it with your friends and colleagues.

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Four business relationship builders

admin — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 09:00:47 +0000

1. Lunch your VIPs
While speaking to a group of AXA insurance advisers, I asked, ‘What do you do to stay in touch with your clients?’ One told me he regularly takes his top clients out to lunch. Never once during the lunch does he bring up business. Yet, he said, ‘Universally, they will.

They will either tell me of a need they have or give me a very good referral.’ When was the last time you took a client out to lunch?

2. Make them feel famous
When you see articles, interviews or items of note in the press about your clients, cut them out, laminate them and then send it to your client. It’s likely if you see it in a magazine you can get the PDF for them too. This is something your customers won’t do for themselves and they’ll really love it.

3. Remove effort
Your customers expect more and more now – giving a cup of coffee is mainstream and expected. Look to save effort, improve their experience of doing business with you. For example try to save a customer having to get their kids out of the car, putting baby into the pram and so on, by encouraging them to ring from their parked car. Then you or a staff member go out to them – a bit like a drive through. This removes a lot of the extra effort for your customer, and quite frankly – do you know anyone doing this?

4. That old fashioned thank you note
Regardless of how much or little your customers spend, consider writing a thank-you note for every single one of them.

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Software tips and costly blunders

admin — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 09:00:23 +0000

Duplicate letters or emails, misspellings, incorrect email addresses can make you look silly, plus they’re wasteful. Before you start your next mass communication, here are a few utterly superb tricks that you can use to eliminate waste and a red face.

First, copy the list you’re going to use into Excel if not there already. Why? Because is not just for numbers. You can work database magic, Enmasse!

Problem: First and last names in one column, you can’t personalise.
Solution: Under the data menu, Text to columns will split it apart. Tell Excel what to look for – comma, space.

Problem: Double or triple last names
Solution: Need to use those Van de Geens split into three columns by text to columns? Concatenate will put many columns into one.

Problem: Duplicates
Solution: The exact function will show you where. Simply sort by one column – example email addresses. Use exact to compare. It will return a true for the duplicates. Office 2007 has a new remove duplicates function.

Problem: Mixed upper and lower case
Solution: The function Proper will turn everything to proper tense, meaning first letter of each word capitalized, the remaining lower case.

Problem: Extra spaces between names so your text to columns doesn’t work
Solution: The function Trim gets rid of all spaces in excess of one between items.

With the exception of Text to columns, the functions listed are found under Insert function or the fx icon. After using a function, you have one last step. You see Excel still sees the results as functions (you’ll see the end result). To work with the new data simply highlight the column, copy and paste special. Under paste special select value. This removes the function and replaces it with the new proper format of your text, the last names combined from concatenate.

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VIP Book

admin — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 09:00:45 +0000

You have no business if you have no customers. And to customers it’s often the little, inexpensive things that matter most. It therefore makes infinite sense that if you operate in a competitive market, you can improve your bottom line by implementing good, customer focused processes and service.

Here’s an example. I lost the advice battle with three of our six children when we last ordered Domino’s Pizza. I suggested they not order thin crusts. When we got them home, opened the lids, sure enough they were a little too crispy you might say. I telephoned the store, asked for the manager so I could complain about the pizzas. I expected an argument. Instead they didn’t quibble: ‘We’ll put you down in our VIP book for four complimentary pizzas, just tell us you’re in our VIP book the next time you call or come in.’

You could have knocked me down with a feather when one day later a letter arrived with another apology from the general manager, a promise of five (not four) free pizzas and, to the kids’ delight, a coupon for free garlic bread and Coke.

This is an idea to steal. You can name anything VIP to make your customers feel special. It’s corny, yes, but it does work. Doesn’t a VIP book sound much better than a customer complaint book?

If you like this tip please share it with your friends and colleagues.

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