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Finding a reliable drop ship supplier is actually one of the most important steps in launching a drop ship business. Essentially, it requires certain research. Where can you start from? I guess the best way is to start with the research of your industry niche. One more area to learn more about is drop ship services as such. Once you get familiar with these spheres, you’ll find it easier to select a reliable company to establish reciprocal relationship with.

Your next step should be coming up with the type of goods you expect a drop ship supplier to provide. You should also pay attention to the services offered by the supplier and make sure they meet your requirements.

Then, browse the Web for some helpful reviews, for your to get a basic idea of several drop ship suppliers you consider. Be sure to look through special comparison charts that will provide you with some personalized idea of what those companies are. After combining the information from charts and online reviews, you’ll be able to judge about this or that company on the basis of other people’s individual experience of dealing with it.

Your next step would be examining the websites of each supplier. There, you’ll get an idea of their services, products, and prices, customer support, history and working experience, learn more about their payment system, read testimonials, etc.

While examining suppliers’ websites, pay attention to the simplicity and convenience of navigation. This aspect is important for you to quickly find the necessary products once you start your drop ship business. Note the suppliers’ shipping fees, monthly or yearly fees, and average prices on goods. Checking and comparing such aspects will help you decide which drop ship supplier is the most attractive choice. All in all, your primary considerations should be the prices on products and service fees, both of which should be as low as possible.

Narrowing Your Choice

As a result of your research, you should be able to come up with one drop ship supplier. If that company offers an opportunity of a free trial, it would be icing on the cake. But even if they don’t, it’s very likely that you’ll still feel comfortable with that supplier due to their policy and service fees.

One more useful tip is that you check what goods from the supplier tend to sell especially well. This will help you decide on the products to sell. By the way, don’t forget to research prices charged on goods by your competitors. At the start of your business, you should try to set prices that will be lower than those charged by your competitors. Thus you’ll be able to draw more customers. In fact, setting affordable prices when you are starting with a drop ship business is quite simple, since you don’t have to get your initial investment get paid off as soon as possible.

Hopefully, you’ll be able to come up with the choice of reputable drop ship supplier and launch your successful online business!

Dropshipping offers a the little guy the opportunity to get ahead on the internet by offering top products, even name brand products without having to invest thousands of dollars of inventory, shipping products, or manufacturing.

Dropshipping is the opportunity for a home based business, using the internet and even ebay.com, this article will give you 7 basic steps to finding dropship and wholesale sources and starting your own home dropship business from the internet.

1. Step 1, finding your niche. You’ve probably heard of this phrase if you’ve studied internet marketing at all. A niche is a specialty or subject that you will focus on when deciding what products to offer your customers.

Choose something you know alot about as you may have a better idea of the pricing and value of products that you are familiar with. You may also know what your customers are willing to pay for products and what the customers look for in different products.

2. Find Dropship suppliers. This may take some time and research on your own. If you’re very lucky you may find a local wholesale supplier willing to dropship products for you to your customers. Another choice is to consult a dropship wholesale directory like the one at: http://www.freewebsuccess.info/dropship-wholesale to find the type of products you want to offer within your niche.

3. List items on Ebay.com. This is an important shep even if you want to sell items via a website only. Because ebay.com is a great low cost place to find out what the demand for a product is and how high a price customers are willing to pay for an item.

Consider this your cheapest market research tool. Learning how high a price customers are willing to pay for your product will help you set your prices.

You could use ebay.com to sell products monthly as well and email customers about your website should you choose to build one.

4. Build your e-commerce website. If you need help with this you may want to learn html on your own rather than hire a webmaster for thousands of dollars. There are plenty of free information websites that will teach you about html. Just google html.

5. Build a list of contacts/customers. The real value of a customer can be drastically increased if they become a repeat customer. Think about it, the most expensive part of your business will be getting new customers, so you might as well get as much value out of each one as possible.

You do this by getting the customer to subscribe to your newsletter, or to give you their email address so you can tell them about new produts or specials. Offering them something of value for free many times will convince them to subscribe.

6. Upsell your contacts. This is easy, use the list of customers you have gathered to offer specials, deals, or inform them of new products. Or simply send them tips and information about the niche you have chosen.

7. Expand your product base. If you add new products to your current items customers are more likely to return to the website to see a new item. Especially if it’s a hot new item just coming out on the market, so keep your eyes open for new product development within your niche.

So many people these days are keen to start a home based internet business to either earn a second income or to start a business as something to fall back on in the event of them losing their jobs. Knowing just how to get started seems to be the problem for many.

Those looking for guidance on how to start a home based internet business ask many and varied questions, such as: How do I actually get started? What do I need? What are the basic requirements? Where should I look? What should I search for?

This article discusses three important basic requirements for starting a home based internet business.

1. Your Own Website and Domain Name When considering starting a home based internet business it is really important that you register your own domain name and get your own website. Did I hear you say why? Because that is the only way you will have total control over your own internet business.

You need to be in a position where you can choose the design of your website, choose what programs or services you want to promote, optimize your site with your chosen keywords for the search engines and are free to make any changes to your website.

A good reliable hosting company is the first thing to look for, so here are some important features to look out for:

* It is not advisable to go for the cheapest hosting company you can find. * Find out how long they have been in business and if they have a good track record. * Establish if they are offering you enough space to allow for the growth of your business in the future. * Is the support good, quick and friendly? * If you have any special requirements be sure to check out the features offered.

As a domain name gives you your own unique home on the internet do spend time thinking about it before registering it. Use words that relate to the theme of your internet business and keep it short so it is easy to remember.

2. An Autoresponder is your Silent Salesman

An autoresponder works for you 24/7. As you will have worked hard at driving targeted traffic to your website, you need to have a way to be able to communicate with your website visitors in the future. By offering your visitors the opportunity to subscribe to your free newsletter that will be delivered automatically by your autoresponder, will be the way to capture their email addresses and build your opt-in list.

Therefore a reliable autoresponder is important. It is a good idea that your subscribers are required to confirm their subscription to your newsletter by clicking on a confirmation link as this will help protect you from spam complaints.

When searching for an autoresponder here are some important features to look out for:

* You need instant reliable delivery * Unlimited message length * Unlimited message changes * Powerful personalization features * Smart tracking features * A password protected online control panel * A built-in anti-spam filter * Database access to manage your subscribers * Powerful mailing list management features * Automatic cleaning of your mailing list with hard bounces being removed automatically * Support by email, phone and a forum.

3. Products You need to have high quality, in demand products to sell on your website. You could consider starting off by joining reputable free affiliate programs and sell other people’s products for a profit just by placing adverts, banners and links on your website.

Do a search for affiliate programs that pay generous commissions for top quality products that are in high demand. Simply by providing the link to the product from your site, you will earn a generous commission every time a sale is made.

4. Finding what you need You may be wondering how to find these basic requirements for starting a home based internet business now that you know what you need,

It really is not difficult you just need to have time to do the research. Start off by doing a search on your favorite search engine using words such as:

* Web hosting * Domain names * Autoresponders * Affiliate Programs

Go the first page of the results returned to you and look at each company to see if they offer what you looking for and make a note of those that interest you so that you can return to them later on.

Go through your short list and investigate them more thoroughly. Search on the internet for forums related to each topic and ask questions about the companies and programs you have an interest in. This way you will get good feedback on how the companies perform from those that have actually had experience with them.

You should now be in a position to make a final choice from your short list of the hosting company you plan to use, where to register the domain name you have chosen the autoresponder to install and the products you have chosen to market and you are ready to build a website and start a home based internet business.

1. Service Businesses: Things you do for others; repairs, cleaning, child care, etc.

2. Products You Sell to Others; Business cards, names, shoes (715-723-1871).

3. Products You Can Make and Sell to Others: handicrafts, ceramics, jewelry.

4. Advertising Representative: sell ad space in publications of others, charge % fee.

5. Alternations, Sewing, Cleaning: Sewing, cleaning, anything to do with clothing and what people wear.

6. Auto Work: Repairs, cleaning, polishing, tune-ups, etc.

7. Baking: Cakes, cookies, candies, etc.

8. Baking, Cooking Classes: Teach people what you know about baking, cooking, etc.

9. Bookkeeping, Accounting: Help others keep their books, accounting (800-223-4542)

10. Broker Services: Offer products and services of others to YOUR customers as a broker.

11. Business Consultant: Help others in running their businesses, guidance,, etc.

12. Business Skills Class: Teach others how to run a business, how to make and save money.

13. Childbirth Classes: teach new parents all they need to know, what to do and how.

14. Closeout and Odd Lot Items:Locate items that are not moving, buy at a discount.

15. Computer Services:Secretarial; services, typing, resumes, reports, manuscripts, etc.

16. Computer Training: Teach people what you know about computers.

17. Craft Instruction: Teach people what you know about craft-making.

18. Dancing Lessons: Aerobic classes;popular dances, teach in your home, etc.

19. Dealerships:Sell programs and plans of others, sell their products, etc.

20. Discount Printing:Contact small printers offer their services to others.

21. Distribution of Flyers, Circulars: Do it by mail for clients, charge a fee.

22. Editing,Advisor:Read manuscripts,reports. Edit them, re-word sections before publications.

23. Equipment Repair:Take in all kinds of appliances and equipment. Service and repair them.

24. Financial Services: Take in all kinds of appliances and equipment. Service and repair them.

25. Freelance Writing:Articles, Dramas, Poems,etc.

26. Garden Goods for Sale: Sell corn,potatoes,flowers,melons, etc.

27. Ghost Writing:Sell your ‘way with words’ to others; help them to get it in print!

28. Gift Ideas, Wrapping:People need help in these areas and will pay for that help.

29. Hair Salon: Washing, Cutting, Styling, Coloring, Perms, etc.

30. Hair and Beauty Classes: Teach make-up techniques, hair styling;cutting,cutting, etc.

31. Hobby, Gift Ideas:There are thousands of different items you can sell.

32. How-to and Money-Making Books/Plans.

33. Import/Export:Learn from the pros;; give it a try; buy low there, sell high here!

34. Issue Your Own Publication or Newsletter: Charge ad rates, Subscriptions, etc.

35. List People for a Fee: Offer to list their name as wanting something, charge a fee; etc.

36. Laundry Service: Washing, Ironing, folding, etc.

37. Locator Service: Locate Jobs, Bargains, sources, discounts, buyers, etc.

Mail Forwarding Service: Offer to forward mail, receive it at you address for others.

39. Mailing List Service: Compile and sell your customer names; rent and sell their names.

40. Mailorder Classes: teach people how to make money; save money; get rich’ etc.

41. Multi-Level Opportunities: It’s possible to make money this way, if you get enough people.

Parties in Your Home: Help others plan and hold them, charge a fee, be a clown, etc.

43. Pet Care: Training, Grooming, Boarding. Pets inn, (800-248-PETS)

44. Phone and Answering Machine: Telephone Soliciting; Answering.

45. Photo Studio in Your Home: If you like photography; have camera; dark room, etc.

46. Piano & Music Instruction: Teach pupils in your home; teach what you know.

47. Plant Care; Rental: Take in plants, care for them. Gardener’s Supply, (802-863-4798)

48. Publicity Service: Help others get the publicity they need, news releases.

49. Publish a Cook Book: Get help from cooks; offer to list their recipes. Charge per book.

50. Reminder Service: Remind people about important dates, events, using cards, phone, etc.

51. Rental Service: If you got it, rent it!. A backyard, a patio, shrubs, tools.

52. Reading, Reviewer: People are too busy to read all they need to; charge them for summary.

53. Researcher: Charge a fee to research a subject; charge for a written report.

54. Scholarship Assistance: Help students get financing. School Services (609-727-1700).

55. Self-Improvement Classes: Teach people what you know about losing weight; etc.

56. Sell By Mail Order: Ad specialties; Booklets; Reports, etc.

57. Sharpening Service: Take in saws, knives to be sharpened, etc.

58. Speaking, Reading, Recording: Sell your talents as speaker, reader, on tapes for the blind.

59. Start a Club: Sell Memberships in it; Charge monthly dues, issue a newsletter, etc.

60. Tapes - Videos: Buy in lots; sell; re-buy; resell.

61. Teach Various Subjects: Classes can be on How to do something, How to stop smoking, etc.

62. Tutoring: In_home Teaching; help students to catch-up[; improve skills, etc.

63. Used whatever Store: Have used items for sale, take in; sell, re-buy, re-sell.

Wedding Planner: Help young couples to plan theirs; what to order, when, etc.

65. Weight Loss Classes: How to lose weight; exercise; Diet, weight loss (313-553-2626).

66. Wholesalers; Sources of Supply: Publishers: Get their names, contact them for info.

67. Woodworking: Carpentry; Antique rebuilding; Repairs.

68. Write and Sell Books and Reports: Type up, copy and sell your own; sell works of others.

69. Yard, garage Sales: Sell what you no longer need or want; people will buy your junk!

Marketing is the part of business that no one seems to like. Perhaps that’s because it’s confusing and made to be even more confusing when you begin to read books on marketing and its applications to the business world. So, are there any secrets that actually work and that you can actually apply to your online business? The answer is yes. There are three home based business marketing secrets that you can keep in mind as you begin this adventure into running your own business - and as you become a success.

Less is More

One of the things that marketing professionals don’t tell you is that you really don’t need to do as much as you think you do. By simply adopting a strategy of telling as many people as you can, treating each customer with respect, and then repeating this cycle, that’s going to bring in a lot of new business. Word of mouth advertising may not get as much press as it once did, but it certainly still works when it comes to smaller home based businesses.

You also want to keep in mind that these marketing secrets don’t require a lot of time or a lot of money in order to be effective. Something as simple as adding your website address to your emails is just as effective as running a commercial on TV and a lot less expensive to implement. Think about smaller ways to spread the word instead of bigger ways. Target only the customers that have already shown interest in what you have to sell and you’re certain to market for success.

More is Less

You also want to remember that a customer on the internet these days is accustomed to seeing a lot of advertisements, so they know when they are being ’sold’ something. Instead of focusing your messages on sales exclusively, try bringing the customer information they can use - informational articles, etc.

When you put too many advertisements in outgoing emails or you simply push your company too much, you will turn off prospective customers. Even if they are interested in what you have to say, the more you talk to them about the same things, the more they’re going to wonder what the ‘catch’ is and why they should buy from you at all.

Recognize that your customers are smart and that they WILL respond to you, even if you don’t tell them about every sale or every feature for your products. You just don’t have to beat them over the head with what you want to sell them.

Use Your Home Based Appeal to Bring People to You

By adding a personalized touch to your marketing strategies, you will begin to pull in more customers, almost without trying. So often, online businesses forget that it’s their placement and location that allows them to be unique. Instead of downplaying the fact that you work from home, make sure that your customers know it. Show them pictures of your office and pictures of yourself to make the experience more personal. This is a marketing strategy that works no matter what you are selling. Since people aren’t meeting you in person, the personalization will do the ‘talking’ for you, making a customer more comfortable with you.

Try adding a blog to your website that will introduce the kind of person you are and what you are capable of helping a customer with. Or you might want to include a video of yourself talking about your product or a personal story that relates to your product. The internet can be such an impersonal place, so try to connect with your customer more.

Almost everyone needs or wants more money coming in, and with this desire most would like to start some sort of extra income producing project. The trouble is, not many of these people seem able to fit ‘a second job’ into their time schedules.

It’s true that most people are busy, but extra time for some sort of home-based extra income producing project can almost always be found. It may mean giving up or changing a few of your favorite pastimes–such as having a couple of beers with the guys or watching TV–but if you score big with your extra income project, you will have all the time you want for doing whatever you what to do.

Efficient time management boils down to planning what you’re going to do, and then doing it without backtracking. Start by making a list of the things you want to do tomorrow, each evening before you go to bed. Schedule your trips to the store or wherever to coincide with the other things you have to do, and with your trips to or from work. Organize your trips to take care of as many things as possible while you’re out of the house. take stock of the time you spend on the telephone—and eliminate all that isn’t necessary.

Whatever chores you have to do at home, set aside a specific time to do them, and a specific amount of time to devote to them. For instances, just one hour a day devoted to yard work would probably make your property the envy of all your neighbors. Don’t try to do a week’s work in one big flurry. Whether it’s painting your house, fixing leaky faucets, or mowing your lawn and trimming your shrubs, do a part of it, or one particular job each day, and you’ll be amazed at your progress.

Take care of all your mail the day, you receive it. Don’t let those bills and letters pile up on you. If you’re unable to pay a bill immediately, file it in a special place that’s visible, and note on the envelope the date you intend to pay it. Answer your letters the same day you get them.

Once you start listing and planning what to do, and then carry out your plans, you’ll find plenty of ‘extra time’ for handling virtually any kind of home-based income producing project. People in general may not like routines or schedules, but without some sort of plan as to what is supposed to be done, the world would be mired in mass confusion. Laws, ordinances and regulations are for the purpose of guiding people. We live according to an accepted plan or way of life, and the better we can organize ourselves, the more productive and happy we become.

The secret of all financially successful people is simply that they are organized and do not waste time. Think about it. Review your own activities, and then see if you can’t find a couple of extra hours in each day for more constructive accomplishments.

When you begin planning, and then when you really become involved in an extra income producing endeavor, you should work it exactly as you have organized your regular day-to-day activities—on a time basis. Do what has to be done immediately. Don’t try to get done in a hour something that’s realistically going to take a week. Plan out on paper what you have to do–what you want to do–and when you are going to do it. Then get right on each project without procrastination.

Finally, and above all else, when you’re organizing your time and your business, be sure to set aside some time for relaxation. Be sure to schedule time when you and your spouse can be together. You must not involve yourself to an extent that you exclude other people–particularly your loved ones–from your life.

Taking stock of the time you waste each day, and from there, reorganizing your activities is what it’s all about. It’s a matter of becoming more efficient in the use of your time. It’s really easy to do, and you will not only accomplish a lot more, you will also find greater fulfillment in your life.

Budgets and personal finances are not most people’s favorite topics, and certainly not one of mine. Even bank executives have problems in this area, but if you’re an entrepreneur so do you. You’re concentrating so much time on your business, your personal checkbook takes a back seat. Then one day you are met with the startling fact that you’re not saving enough for lean times and you panic.

Well, just apply your professional talents to the situation and become your own personal CFO. By using your CFO eyes on the situation, it somehow tempers the pain of dealing with your own money. To get started, here are 5 rules for treating your personal finances like a business:

1. Be Your Own Board of Directors. To make good decisions, you must know what you’re trying to achieve. In business, Board of Directors write mission statements to keep the company on track with goals. At home, it’s up to you to define your mission and make sure you’re fulfilling it by writing down your goals. Not just your financial goals either, but your “life” goals.

2. Know Your Operating Costs. Do you know what you spend every month on average? Businesses do because they base their budgets on historic spending patterns. Most people, however, don’t know what it costs to keep their lives running. You can make out detailed budgets, but find out at the end of the month that you haven’t stuck to it. So instead of doing a budget that dictates how much to spend, do a “cash flow statement” that records how much you actually spend each month broken into several categories.

3. Know Your Net Worth. Companies measure progress toward goals through balance sheets which list their assets and liabilities. Your net worth is your balance sheet where you list everything that you own. That means your checking and savings accounts, investments, car, house, etc. minus everything you owe. Track your net worth quarterly to make sure you’re moving toward your personal goals. Without this step, you might not see the impact of your money decisions until it’s too late.

4. Forecast Money Decisions Results. When a business makes important decisions, they use a process called “scenario planning”. They look at the possible outcomes of one choice compare to another. You can use the same process to make smart money decisions. For any choice, pick two options, and then look at what each answer would do to your cash flow and net worth. Remember, there are no “good” or “bad” choices - only choices that put you closer or farther from your goals.

5. Track Progress by Annual Reports. Just as companies assess their progress in their annual reports, you need to review your list of priorities every year. Have you accomplished any goals? Have your spending patterns changed? Did you spend less than you earned? Did you save as much as you planned?

You need to treat your money like you treat your business. Give it the time it deserves, because in the end the time you spend is really an investment in yourself and your dreams.

Since you have become a small business person whether you are the Massage therapist or Sheepshearer, there is really a lot more pressure on you to be organized, not less. While a certain amount of spontaneity is beneficial and expected of small business, some structure and planning is needed if you will attempt to compete with what bigger corporations offer. You should really visualize the scope of your business and write it down. This can give you a significant idea of what your obstacles are, your current status, what your 10 year plan is, and how close you are to realizing them.

The most important thing is to remember to get every detail down on paper. This gives you a starting point, and something definite to alter if things need to be changed later on. The planning document can guarantee that you, your employees, and your investors are all together in their thinking.

The initial step in your business plan is a description of your business. This includes what you do, what services you provide and what products you will produce. In a word, this will verbalize the scope of your business. While this can be enlarged later, you’ll realize that writing down of your limits and terms is incredibly helpful for future development. This is also a good spot to include what kind of end game you have. While they can be general goals that you want to stick to, you should follow it up with some rough gross and net income figures that you are want to achieve.

The next part of your small business plan should consider the market, both where it stands and where you will fit in. Why do people need your service and how will your business or service will change the market? How are you going to get some buzz going about your services and will you have different types of customers that will be affected by various parts of your business? This part of your business plan essentially “proves” your business has a right to exist and gives evidence for why it should be something to put your time and energy into, so take some extra time here.

Financial capitol is going to be the next thing that you tackle. Include general expenses, contingency fees, licensing fees if necessary and anything else you can think of that will make you put out money. Because virtually all bankers will want to study your business plan primarily for this area, this is of utmost importance for you to work on. If you are a bit new to this, look at small business plans from similar successful businesses to see the best way to do this. Put down an accurate view of your current business status, but don’t forget to look to the future.

For the final step, think about management. Who is running things, and what are their responsibilities? This is a prime method to maintain your organization and verbalize responsibilities. Like any other part of the plan, this section can be altered, but the important thing to do is to have it there in the first place.

Take some time to be confident that your business plan is up to snuff, and you will discover that your business will start becoming profitable much faster.

If you seeking to launch drop ship business, you have a number of things to be concerned about, and one of your primary considerations must be the choice of a good drop ship supplier. Things would have been much simpler if it were not for enterprising guys who pretending to be real dropshippers but turning out to be scammers. We’ll try to advise you on a few ways to find real dropshippers and tell you about their characteristic features.

Using Search Engines

Let’s start with the ways you can find drop ship suppliers. You can start with searching one of the leading search engines and look through the delivered results. A good idea is to decide on the type of products to sell first - thus you’ll be able to narrow your search to wholesalers dealing with that category of goods.

Check Dropshippers Directories

Another option is to search with the help of special drop ship directories. Though most likely you’ll have to pay some fee for their service, you can take advantage of dropshippers listings arranged in a convenient and comprehensive way and it will save you lots of time.

Searching for the Product

One more useful idea is to look for the goods you’ve decided to sell. When you find a dealer offering those goods, check whether they provide drop ship opportunites. Even if you don’t see corresponding information on their website, it will not hurt to call them to find it out

You see that the keys to finding a reliable drop ship supplier are thorough research and decision on a product to sell. Finding a good dropshipper can be done from the comfort of your own home, without any expenses on your part - you just should be more attentive and patient.

We’ve all had friends in our circle who were known as “Mary & John”, and when “John” split “Mary” was alone. Mary was the “odd” number at the dinner party and we were all concerned about her. Well, today it seems that the union of Customer & Service have had a breakup. Service has split and Customer is on his/her own.

Today, let me tell you a story that many of you will find humorous but is all too common. I can tell you this without fear of our local editor getting sued because it’s about me, but business owners take note that you don’t fit the profile of company “X”.

Four weeks ago I decided that I needed another green recycling can from my trash pickup company. We’ll call them Brown Keg Trash Pickup, an anonymous company in the interest of avoiding litigation. I called their Customer Service number, and as an environmentally conscious citizen requested my extra recycle can. The cheerful voice on the other end of the line chirped, “Of course, we’ll have one delivered in 48 hours.” After giving her all the pertinent location information, I hung up the phone with the satisfied feeling of a good citizen.

I arrived home about 5 p.m. the next day and I was happy to see another green can at the mouth of my driveway. When I looked again, I noticed that I had another green can - but it was without a lid. I quickly dialed my cheerful telephone voice at Brown Keg Company thanking her graciously for the rapid service and then told her about the missing lid. Just as cheerfully as the first time, she told me to leave it at the end of my driveway after my usual trash pickup and they would replace the entire unit since they didn’t have extra lids. I agreed, and after hanging up the phone I pondered their plight of having lidless cans but no extra lids. I conjured up all sorts of scenarios that explained where all the lids to the lidless cans went, and sympathized with their predicament.

Well, 3 days went by and there sat my poor, green, lidless can at my driveway’s mouth and a replacement never arrived. Feeling empathy for this green plastic waif, I returned it to the side of it’s brother that had a lid. I called my cheerful Customer Service voice again, and reiterated the plight of my poor lidless can and after a chuckle she assured me a complete unit would be forthcoming. I found it necessary to make use of my lidless friend, and put it out the next pickup day filled to the brim. Fortunately, it wasn’t windy and all the contents remained inside it. That was 2 weeks ago, and life being what it is other more important tasks have occupied me until this morning when facing another pickup day I thought of my lidless friend.

Once more I picked up the phone and called my trash pickup company, and this time I listened to a litany of choices of buttons I could punch and chose my cheerful Customer Service button again. I was transferred, listened to a brief melody when there was a “click” and I expected my cheerful voice to chirp “hello”. The next thing I heard was another click, silence, and then the dreaded dial tone that means you’ve been disconnected. Not being one of the “fainthearted”, I simply redialed my number. Again there was the litany of button choices, my choice and the music, and just when I began to feel that all was right with the world I heard - “click”, “dial tone” and nothing.

This was not the morning for the phone to be playing games with me, so I made one more determined effort and REDIALED! “NASA, we have lift-off !” I once more heard the litany of button choices, but this time I outfoxed that monotonous voice and punched “0″. I asked for the Manager of Customer Service, I was given her name and was transferred. What greeted my eager ear was, “You’ve reached the voicemail of ……., please leave your name and number and she’ll return your call.”

So here we sit - my lidless, green can and I facing another pick-up day. This eager-to-serve plastic green waif must bravely face another dutiful day half-clothed.

You must admit that is an amusing story, and one that far too many of us have lived through, but what a sad commentary it is about our business community. Doesn’t it make you wonder if our language has changed so drastically that what we interpret “Customer Service” to mean - is not what today’s business owners mean. It makes me wonder when the marriage of Customer and Service broke-up, leaving us all the lonely ones.

Entrepreneurs and business owners take note! If you’re going to have a number for your customers to access your Customer Service, please follow these rules.

* Have the phone manned by an employee that can hear thunder and see lightening. * Give that employee training in helping the caller and not shuffling the problem to another desk. * Have an overseer, who can also hear thunder and see lightening, check that all incoming complaints were handled appropriately.

After learning how to find your customers and what they want; after getting them committed to doing business with YOU; and after wooing them to keep them as your customers - WHY WOULD YOU LET “SERVICE” DIVORCE “CUSTOMER?”

If your customers aren’t getting the service they require from you - your competitor will be only too happy to help them!