Volume IX, Issue {date}                               
U.S. Library of Congress ISSN: #1534-0767

A newsletter especially for B2B service industry CEOs, presidents and "C" level executives.

Published every Thursday (we’re shooting for that day)! You are on our list because you signed up for one of our programs or subscribed to this newsletter. To change your subscription, see the link at end of this email.

Please add "MoreBusiness@CoachMaria.com" to your white list or address book in your e-mail program, so that you have no trouble receiving future issues!

Received this newsletter from a friend? Sign up for your very own copy here

• A Note From Maria
• Featured Article - Financial Choices 101
• Teleseminars & Events
• Recommend Us Contest
• Who do you know at Bear, Lehman, AIG, Wells Fargo or WAMU?
• Maria Recommends & Uses
• Maria’s Birthday Gift to You
• The Marketplace

Dear {First Name},

Because of my "previous career" on Wall Street, many, many conversations in the past few months have been on the current financial disaster.
And many people have asked me what do to with their money but without the proper licenses, I don’t delve into that realm of things.

But what I can tell you is that the best thing we call can do for ourselves is to look at our fees and make sure we’re not
underpaid (most service businesses are under paid by 20-100%) Being underpaid is one of the 5 reasons why business owners have crapy clients and no life.
But Maria, we’re in an economic downturn. Well, I bet you’re under paid like my client who raised (and got) a $100 per hour increase.
Or the others I’ve worked with who are doubling their rates because they’re so under paid.
Know that people ARE paying for services they value — even in the down economy.

Another thing you can do take a look at your business expenses. Sure we get a deduction for them, but have you done review of what things are costing you vs the business the expense brings in?
I’ve viewed a few P/Ls, balance sheets and even taxes in the past few months as was able to provide clients with resources to better supplies (for example) for a lower cost. And in a few cases, we’ve changed their business model because their ROI sucked.

Up 6% are the sales at thrift type stores. And while I hate shopping, I do enjoy the thrift store.
$50 wooden shelves that look like they were in a Corporate library. Business suits with the tags still on them.
A wooden paper cutter for $10 bucks. Why not!

Get out of debt. No matter what, the goal is to not have any credit card debt. None. Nada. Nothing. And yes, it’s hard to do without. But know that others, like me are doing that, too. We need to pick and choose what we spend our money on. It makes us wiser spenders.

Get your office in order and things done. When my office looks like a hurricane hit it; which it does from time to time, it takes longer for me to do everything.
When you say you’re going to do something, and don’t you’re out of integrity. So this month I’m looking to get rid of hurricanes and bring back integrity — mine and yours.
Join us on Professional Integrity day. Check them out in the class section of this newsletter.

What are you doing to save money while purchasing quality items for you business or life. Share your ideas with your fellow business owners at
The Business Forum

It’s never too late to get your finances in order. I listen to radio host Ray Lucia often including listening to his podcasts.
He’s also offering free seminars in San Diego, Seattle, Phoenix, Baton Rouge, San Ramon and Newport Beach, Portland, Irving and Houston, as in the past he’s hosted websinars, too. You can listen to his radio shows online here radio shows online here . And he’s written two books that are available at most libraries…
Buckets of Money: How to Retire in Comfort and Safety and Ready…Set…Retire!: Financial Strategies for the Rest of Your Life

Welcome, everyone, to the Elevating Your Business Community. I look forward to getting to know you better.

Sincerely and till next time,

Maria Marsala
Chief Business Collaborator, Informational Speaker and former Wall Street trader

P.S. I’m so very pleased to be bringing you my much requested website design and SEO classes. Read more below.

Virtual Learning

Workshops, Clinic

King County

The challenge, should you choose to help me, is that by the end of this year I’ll have 3000 new terrific subscribers — just like you.
So I’m enlisting your help.

There is a fill-in field on my newsletter subscribe box called the Referred by field.
It’s called the Referred by field. You can see it here.

Now here’s where you come in. What I need from you is help rebuilding this email newsletter list with business owners who have been in business at least two years.

In order to reach my business goals, I need to reach a ton of business owners each week with my tips, articles, resources, classes and products.

When you think of expanding your business, working smarter, performance management, increased sales and productivity, I want people to think — Elevating Your Business.com

So please forward this newsletter to 10 business owners you know and encourage them to register and put your name in the Referred By area of the form.
Make sure you clearly give them your first and last name. Once they join they get their gifts — just like you received your gifts.
Also ask them to forward the newsletter to 10 people they know.

If all 500 of you do this, I’m going to get my birthday wish and even more!

Now what’s in it for you? Well, heck, you already have benefited from my tips, classes and products, you want more?

Of course you do.

The person with the most referrers will receive a one hour Power Hour Consultation or $250 to go shopping through my new shopping cart.
You can view the shopping cart here.

There will be 1 prize given each month over the next three months. So there will be three winners, each to be announced during the first week of the month.

Remember to tell your business buddies to put your name in the Referred By area so you get the credit.
Refer everyone you think would enjoy expanding their business.

And thank you in advance for your support.

Choose the Right CPA (Accountant or Tax Advisor) for Your Business

by Maria Marsala

Summary: What do you look for in a CPA? Start right here…

Certified Professional Accountants (CPAs) are more than just individuals who do your yearly taxes.
They can advise you on a long list of other services, which may include
advice on your accounting system, financial, retirement, estate
and tax planning. CPAs are part of a business owner’s professional
team along with a banker and lawyer.
Here are some suggestions on choosing the right one for you and your business.

• Ask for recommendations
  Your local Chamber of Commerce will tell you the names of CPAs who
  are members. Also, when you attend any type of meeting, or meet other
  business owners, ask for CPA recommendations from them. Or if that doesn’t work for you start your research at a Accounting organization website
• Use the 60% rule
  Pick a CPA who has 60% of his or her business
  coming from business owners such as yourself. A CPA is more apt to keep up
  with the laws specific to clients they deal with most often. If your business is
  incorporated, make sure that the person specializes in corporate
  accounting, including financial statements and audits.
• Interview CPAs
  Ask what type of services they do for their clients, how long they’ve
  been in business full time, and for references. Don’t forget
  to ask to see their license. Ask them about the benefits of choosing
  them over another CPA.
• Rates
  Ask about their rates and what those rates include. If they have
  a rate chart, all the better. Also, ask what their hourly rate is
  and what the cost would be to answer questions during the year.
• Ask about record keeping
  Ask what computer program they prefer you use for your record keeping
  and why they prefer that program. Many times, if you use the program
  they suggest, it can save you some money because they can use your
  data files. Some even have programs they’ll set up especially for
  you.
• Bring your records to the interview
  Bring a copy of last year’s tax return when you interview
  a CPA. This way your prospective CPA can give you educated estimates
  as to what their services will cost you.
• How to file
  If you want to save some money, ask how they want your paper files.
  If you bring your files to them in shoe boxes - hey, many folks do -
  you will pay to have all that material organized and deciphered!
  You can save money if
  you separate the information the way the CPA suggests.
• Corporation vs. individual
  Are you interested in hiring a corporation of CPAs or a CPA that
  has his or her own business? If you opt for the corporation, find out
  if you’ll be dealing with one particular person, or will it be whoever
  answers the phone when you call. It’s best to build a relationship with one person.
• When do they work?
  What are their hours of operation? Make sure that you can call them
  at hours that are convenient for you.
• Making a decision
  Interview at least three CPAs. Don’t rush this decision. Make sure you
  have the best CPA and bookkeeper for you and your business. Build long term relationships with both.

©2008 Maria Marsala, the founder of Elevating Your Business, is a business strategist, speaker, author and former Wall Street trader.
Since 1998, Maria has helped service sector CEOs, presidents, professionals and management teams struggling with the problems of quickly expanding businesses by helping them to
streamlining and automating their planning, operations and marketing processes. The results?
Many have doubled their sales, they have more free time, and enjoy a higher quality life. Would you like to be next? Learn more and receive a free business building audio
at
ElevatingYourBusiness.com

Need a speaker for your next event? Contact Maria today!

I am donating 20 hours to folks at those companies who want some coaching, advice or brainstorming.

This week I worked with a VP. He sent me his resume, which I critiqued, and give him tips and resources to help him get as he said a lot closer to landing another job. He left the call with about 8 ways to market himself, a bunch of resources for databases he can tap into and happy homework to do.

For those of you who don’t know… my first "go" into working with executives happened on Wall Street when I was one. I helped many women secretaries get jobs on trading desks or in management. And then I mentored them while they built their careers including helping them get paid what they were worth at raise or bonus time.

Feel free to send this note to your friends who have lost or are in the process of loosing their financial services jobs due to the current crisis.

I use this program and so do my clients. I have it set up so that every day new files are backed up. It’s like having an insurance policy on your important documents.

Well, my shopping cart is working and it’s time for the birthday specials of the month.
Yes, they’re good until 10/31/08.

Power Hour or Business Check UP - Half Price!

Sign up for a 60-minute Power Hour between October 1st and October 31st and you’ll be entered into a drawing to receive a refund of every penny you invested in the session!

Good or great? One person will receive their investment back!

Learn more and use coupon code HALF at http://www.coachmaria.com/arppro/cart/mod_Products_List.php?start=4&catid=1

View more discounts and coupons here

DING DONG — AVON Calling with FREE Shipping In the USA
It’s not your grandmother’s company any longer. Now you can purchase holiday items, jewelry, clothing and more.
View a catalog now http://www.YourAvon.com/mmarsala

Have more than one website?
You may be paying way too much for hosting. Check out the packages offered at Host Gator
http://http://secure.hostgator.com/cgi-bin/affiliates/clickthru.cgi?id=06872784

Paid Advertising Disclaimer:
Elevating Your Business does not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any of the
recommendations or advertisements above or the quality of any products, information, or other materials displayed, purchased, or obtained by you as a result of an offer in connection with any advertisement.
Doing your own due diligence is important before purchasing any product.

©1998-2008 Maria Marsala and ElevatingYourBusiness.com

Elevating Your Business
National Office
19906 Hamilton CT NE Suite A
Poulsbo, WA 98370
USA

Tele: 360-271-8418 or 425-440-9659

Volume IX, Issue {date}                               
U.S. Library of Congress ISSN: #1534-0767

A newsletter especially for B2B service industry CEOs, presidents and "C" level executives.

Don’t miss this month’s F.R..EE teleclass. Click here, it’s happening today, Thursday!

Published every Thursday (we’ll shoot for that day)! You are on our list because you signed up for one of our programs or subscribed to this newsletter. To change your subscription, see the link at end of this email.

Please add "MoreBusiness@CoachMaria.com" to your white list or address book in your e-mail program, so that you have no trouble receiving future issues!

Received this newsletter from a friend? Sign up for your very own copy here

• A Note From Maria
• Featured Article - Benefits vs. Features
• Recommend Us Contest
• Maria’s Birthday Gift to You
• Maria Recommends & Uses
• The Marketplace

Dear {First Name},

There is nothing worse than a business owner who doesn’t appreciate another business owner’s time. How rude!

Case in point. I have 15 people on an email list who requested information for a class I teach. Each person has told me, more than a few times over the past year, that they want to be kept on the list and take the course. But each time the course is taught, I call them or email them - and they aren’t attending. So this week I removed everyone from the list except for the 1 person who was ready to give me money this week.

Or this week I got an email from someone who requested that I call them, and I have — left messages for them just about every week since August 12! I was looking to get the name of the organization they knew that was looking for a speaker. The email I got back talked about not affording my services and that they wanted to come to listen to me speak at other events. HUH?

So I’ve been thinking… what could I possibly be doing to attract these rude people to me? The answer came to me… I’ve been saying that I have to move on,
but haven’t been taking enough risks to do just that. So as long as I’m still doing some of the old stuff, I will attract people who seem rude to me.

It’s not easy moving on. I agree. But it’s time I did and its started this week big time.

This mailing list has gone through many changes in the past few months, and that’s being done to move on. A list that was a few thousand subscribers strong a few months ago now has less than 500 people on it. And that’s okay! I removed almost everyone who hasn’t opened any edition in more than two months.

So now I’m here to ask for your help. I figure you’re here because you value what I produce, that you’ve used my tips and resources to grow your business. So now I’d like your help.
So please read the Recommend Us Contest area of this newsletter and let’s get this newsletter back to 5000 again, but this time with the best business owners and executives around the globe!

Don’t miss this month’s F.R..EE teleclass. Click here, it’s happening today, Thursday!

Welcome, everyone, to the Elevating Your Business Community. I look forward to getting to know you better.

Sincerely and till next time,

Maria Marsala
Chief Business Collaborator, Informational Speaker and former Wall Street trader

The challenge, should you choose to help me, is that by the end of this year I’ll have 3000 new terrific subscribers — just like you.
So I’m enlisting your help.

There is a fill-in field on my newsletter subscribe box called the Referred by field.
It’s called the Referred by field. You can see it here.

Now here’s where you come in. What I need from you is help rebuilding this email newsletter list with business owners who have been in business at least two years.

In order to reach my business goals, I need to reach a ton of business owners each week with my tips, articles, resources, classes and products.

When you think of expanding your business, working smarter, performance management, increased sales and productivity, I want people to think — Elevating Your Business.com

So please forward this newsletter to 10 business owners you know and encourage them to register and put your name in the Referred By area of the form.
Make sure you clearly give them your first and last name. Once they join they get their gifts — just like you received your gifts.
Also ask them to forward the newsletter to 10 people they know.

If all 500 of you do this, I’m going to get my birthday wish and even more!

Now what’s in it for you? Well, heck, you already have benefited from my tips, classes and products, you want more?

Of course you do.

The person with the most referrers will receive a one hour Power Hour Consultation or $250 to go shopping through my new shopping cart.
You can view the shopping cart here.

There will be 1 prize given each month over the next three months. So there will be three winners, each to be announced during the first week of the month.

Remember to tell your business buddies to put your name in the Referred By area so you get the credit.
Refer everyone you think would enjoy expanding their business.

And thank you in advance for your support.

Copywriting 101
The difference between "features" and "benefits"

When a client hires me to write something - a direct mail letter, a brochure, a
proposal - I ask them to fill out a questionnaire about their company. Of all the
questions, what seems to “stump” people the most is the difference between
“features” - what your company offers - and “benefits” - why someone would want
to buy what your company offers!

A “feature” is something you offer, a “benefit” is what your clients get if they hire
you. Guess which one has the biggest impact on your clients? Benefits can be
tangible or intangible. Example: Goodyear doesn’t sell “tires,” they’re selling safe
transportation for those you love.

Here’s another example: Let’s say I sell widgets. If someone asks me what makes
my widgets better than my competitors, I’d probably answer by listing the features
of my widgets:

• My widgets are the best produced widgets.
• We use only the finest ingredients in our widgets.
• My employees take great pride in the making of our widgets.

Does my potential customer care about any of that? Well, not exactly. Here’s what
probably matters to the customer:

• How much does it cost?
• Will it work properly?
• What if it doesn’t?
• How many available colors are there?
• How long will these widgets last?

Now, I’m a good widget business owner, and I know the answer to all those
questions, too; it’s just not the first thing I think of when I’m talking about my
business.

But it can be! The “trick,” as it were, is to change your focus to concentrate on
answering the questions that matter to your customer. Meeting the needs of your
customers, both spoken and unspoken is the hallmark of good customer service.
Oh, and it’s good for business, too!

©2008 Karen Kanakanui and WordsAreUs, a marketing communications company
specializing in the art of voice persuasion - using copywriting and audio to move your leads
along, convert sales, and increase ROI. To receive a free copy
of Mashed-up Marketing, a newsletter with tips on improving your business writing and
using audio to maximize your business message visit http://www.WordsAreUs.com

I use this program and so do my clients. I have it set up so that every day new files are backed up. It’s like having an insurance policy on your important documents.

Well, my shopping cart is working and it’s time for the birthday specials of the month.
Yes, they’re good until 10/31/08.

Power Hour or Business Check UP - Half Price!

Sign up for a 60-minute Power Hour between October 1st and October 31st and you’ll be entered into a drawing to receive a refund of every penny you invested in the session!

Good or great? One person will receive their investment back!

Learn more and use coupon code HALF at http://www.coachmaria.com/arppro/cart/mod_Products_List.php?start=4&catid=1

View more discounts and coupons here

DING DONG — AVON Calling with FREE Shipping In the USA
It’s not your grandmother’s company any longer. Now you can purchase holiday items, jewelry, clothing and more.
View a catalog now http://www.YourAvon.com/mmarsala

Have more than one website?
You may be paying way too much for hosting. Check out the packages offered at Host Gator
http://http://secure.hostgator.com/cgi-bin/affiliates/clickthru.cgi?id=06872784

"How A Newbie Built A Great Web Site In Just 2 Days" FREE
By Dianne Reuby. Visit the Newbie’s Club and download your free copy now.
http://http://www.newbieclub.com/?mariasplace

Been thinking about starting a membership site?
We’ve got the program to help get up an running.
http://http://www.membergate.com/index.cfm?affID=06872784

Paid Advertising Disclaimer:
Elevating Your Business does not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any of the
recommendations or advertisements above or the quality of any products, information, or other materials displayed, purchased, or obtained by you as a result of an offer in connection with any advertisement.
Doing your own due diligence is important before purchasing any product.

©1998-2008 Maria Marsala and ElevatingYourBusiness.com

Elevating Your Business
National Office
19906 Hamilton CT NE Suite A
Poulsbo, WA 98370
USA

Tele: 360-271-8418 or 425-440-9659