But my area of expertise is in the automotive service field...I haven't been posting my URL but I will now...I appreciate all the responses I have received here and I believe I am going with Paulette's suggestion...I have written booklets pertaining to automotive service and could use them as a basis for a teleconference...Since I am a much better 'teacher' than a salesman, I believe this will work for me and could well work into something I could do on a regular basis...Thanks for your forum!....Rooster

Hi Rooster,

> Since you have few assets that you can sell
> or invest, it seems like in this case you
> would be very reliant on your talents and
> knowledge.

> What do people buy? My view is that people
> buy things which they think will make them
> happier.... That means if they are
> miserable, they will buy things which they
> feel will make them less miserable. If they
> are already happy, then people buy things
> which they feel will make them even happier.
> People want to move further along on the
> unhappiness -> happiness scale, and are
> willing to spend money to do so....

> I think every business is really like this.
> People pay to go to a mechanic, because
> having a car that works makes them less
> unhappy. People pay to get their lawn mowed
> because they value their free time - having
> their lawn mowed for them makes them
> happier, and they can spend more time with
> their family. People buy music CDs because
> they imagine that listening to a particular
> kind of music will increase their happiness.
> People buy healthy vegetables because they
> feel that being healthy will make them
> happier than being unhealthy. I think most,
> if not all, businesses are like this -
> people buy their products or services
> because they feel that they will make them
> either less unhappy, or will make they even
> more happy. :)

> So, what can you offer that will help make
> people happier? That of course does depend
> on what you have already, in terms of
> talents, knowledge and knowhow, and what
> assets you have access to....

> Like Michael said, I think the first step is
> to assess what you have that you can draw
> on. Then, the next step is how can you use
> these things you have acess to in order to
> help make people happier?

> Once you have a list of these - then you
> have to figure out what you can charge for
> your product or service. After all, the
> bottom line here is to make a profit. It's
> good to give charity, but we all need to
> make a profit and survive too, whether we
> make our profit from our job or from a
> business....

> The final element here is competition in the
> area you plan to sell your product or
> service. If one person is selling doodads
> for $20 each, it's hard for someone to open
> up next door and sell identical doodads for
> $40 each. Competition in the area where you
> are doing your business can limit your
> profits, because it can limit how high
> people are willing to pay - they will
> compare your item with the competition if
> they can. So it's good to distinguish your
> product from the product of the local
> competition where possible.

> I would also suggest to try to make your
> offer unique in some way - give it a
> "twist" of some kind if necessary.
> This distinguishes your product or service
> from the competition, which often means that
> you can charge a higher rate.

> Anyhow, that's how I would go about it....

> Since you are on a very short time limit (30
> days), you will have to take that into
> account too...

> I know it may sound "vague"
> Rooster, but the reason why is that the
> specific answer here is different for each
> person, because each one of us has different
> talents and assets. Since there is no time
> to learn new skills and there's not much
> money to buy new equipment etc., it limits
> you to what you can do already....

> If you have money you can spend, then your
> options increase! That's because you can
> either buy stuff to resell, or you can buy
> equipment which you can use to help build a
> business.

> I hope that helps!

> - Dien Rice