Give First; Expect Nothing in Return

In a recent article published in Forbes, titled “Today’s ‘G’ Generation: Replacing Greed With Generosity”, Scott Davis explores the anti-greed sentiment so evident in the Occupy Wall Street movement. The apparent cause for this cultural shift can be attributed to a number of high profile cases of corporate greed and world disasters in the last decade including 911, Hurricane Katrina and the earthquakes in Haiti and Japan. The article credits the concept of“Generation G”, which stands for generosity, to one of the world’s leading consumer trend firms. When times are toughest, people place a high value on caring, empathy and generosity.

The vast majority of Americans have lost faith in big companies, the senior leadership of those companies and advertisers. Each year, three quarters of the employees in large companies report violations of laws and company standards. And, that’s just private industry. The media is full of stories about the latest scandal surrounding one of our politicians.

As our members know, our philosophy at MainStreetChamber is to give first and expect nothing in return. Make no mistake this is not just some flowery slogan promoting altruistic behavior, philanthropy or the practice of selflessly serving clients, employees and society. According to research, ego is a central motive for entrepreneurs. In fact, giving first without expecting anything in return may be one of the most self-serving things an entrepreneur can do.  But, before I expand on why this approach works, allow me to provide some background on the most significant factors that contribute to entrepreneurial success.

Click HERE for entire Blog

By State Director –Minnesota, Mike Clough

_____________________________

Using Barter to Help a Business Succeed

Bartering is certainly a thrifty way to snag the products and services your young business needs. But what if the product you bring to the table is wildAlaskasalmon, halibut and lingcod? How do you find a web designer who's willing to take payment in fish?

This was the issue faced by Mack Chaffin, co-owner with his wife, Diane, of The Elfish Company, a fish distributor. Although he does a decent business selling fish through his website, at farmers markets and to a handful of restaurants and grocery stores, Chaffin wants to expand.

But marketing requires capital that the Dewey, Ariz.-based businessman doesn't have. So at the end of 2011, when he discovered The Barter Group, a trade exchange of 450 small businesses in Greater Phoenix, he leapt at the chance to join. We cast a line to Chaffin to find out more.

Click HERE for entire article
                                   _______________________________________

MainStreetChamber is announcing a NEW Program for our members. Our new state-of-the-art corporate facility has launched an In-House Call Center program capitalizing on our founder’s extensive experience running very successful call centers.

 So if you want to GROW-YOUR-SALES with GUARANTEED APPOINTMENTS with area business owners and at a SUBSTANTIAL DISCOUNT. Then, please email us ASAP with your interest as we will only accept ONE CLIENT-PER INDUSTRY TYPE in each local market!

                                                                                            PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS:
* Appointments are 100% Guaranteed –(Any appointments that do not take place for ANY

reason are replaced FREE of charge.) 

* Call Center will contact businesses based on select SIC codes, City or Zip Codes or other information as requested by client. 

* MainStreetChamber members will receive special discounts 

This will be the program that propels your business/sales to a new level in 2012

Reply to info@relationcreation.com with your interest or click HERE & we will have our Account Executive get back with you ASAP.

Thank you for your continued support

_____________________________

How’s Your ‘Escalator’ Speech?

By Phil Stella

Regular Connections readers may recall that I write (and rant) a lot about Elevator Speeches — the simple answer to the often-asked question, “What do you?” Sometimes maligned and often done poorly, Elevator Speeches are still a fact of life when you network.

But here’s a clever spin on that concept. My colleague, veteran marketing expert Larry Mattes, of M A Marketing Communications, is the self-proclaimed originator of the “Escalator Speech” concept. 

Here’s how it works: Assume you’re going down an escalator as someone passes by you going up on the other one. You only have a few seconds to communicate. So, your Escalator Speech is an even more concise version of your Elevator Speech. 

Mine is “I empower business leaders to communicate confidently.” Short, simple, and likely to generate some questions when the other person turns around and follows me back down. 

Crafting something that concise is a lot of work, I admit. But it’s well worth the time and effort if you want to make the Varsity Networking Team.

Thanks for the great idea, Larry. I’ll attribute it to you the next four or fives times I make reference to it. Then, I’ll forget where I first heard it and eventually claim it as mine. 

Phil Stella runs Effective Training & Communication Inc., where he empowers business leaders who want to communicate – and network – confidently. He regularly contributes to Cleveland Business Connects magazine and is a COSE MindSpring Networking Expert and popular speaker on the topic. He can be reached at 440.449.0356 and phil@communicate-confidently.com .

       _______________________________________________

Have you ever wondered why so many businesses fail?  Why do most business owners struggle to…just get by? Is it lack of funding?  Is it the economy? Is it lack of planning?

The so called experts may have you believe those things but, as a business consultant for nearly 20 years, I can tell you…those are not the right answers. Would you love to find out how you can rise above challenging times and not worry about your financial stability again? If you can tell me exactly what you want out of your business and your personal life, I can tell you exactly how to get it.  Those who know what to look for and have the right awareness,  will find that great opportunities rise out of challenging times and any challenge can be transformed when we know how to ask a new set of questions and shift our perceptions and then our actions.

Print Our Member Certificate 
and customize it with Your Company Name 

Download & Print the Badge of Credibility needed in today's Business World 

Click HERE for

Click HERE for 

Program Overview

 CLICK HERE FOR

JANUARY

SPECIAL OFFERS

_________________

With In-House Financing, 
You Create Sales & Customer Satisfaction

We Know You Want 

More Business

We Know You Want

More Customers

We Will Give You

FREE Advertising

We Will Give You

FREE Promotion

Become A

VIP Business Discount Provider