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By Knight Kiplinger

The Kiplinger Washington Editors

Oct. 10, 2008

Stock Market Panic:
What Happens Next?

A heart-stopping, gut-wrenching stock market plunge is classic panic. It'll end eventually, but the economy will still need to work through a recession. This week's Kiplinger Letter looks at how we see the economy and government moves to shore up credit markets unfolding in the months ahead.

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: Real Estate, Financial Services, Health Care Policy, Election 2008, Business Costs and Airlines & Travel.

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About a year ago I started a golf accessory online business . I would like to know how I can best market the site to get more visibility from customers as well as differentiating myself from other golf online store.

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Create Effective Sales Leads

Finding and nurturing solid leads for new business involve far more than making cold calls and knocking on doors from a list.

Worth Reading: The Quick Take from Kiplinger

August 2008

fuelNet Monthly

fuelNet Monthly is a marketing newsletter published by The Pohly Co. consulting firm and is a monthly contributor to Kiplinger Recommends.

One of the ways businesses should try to cope with a weak economy is to step up sales efforts. But don't bother just making more cold calls by working off a purchased list, the Yellow Pages or trade association listings.

Instead, take the time that would be wasted from being turned down repeatedly to make sure prospective leads are well researched, match up well to your products and services and meet other criteria you map out in advance of crafting a lead list, Mark Sneider, managing director of the Cincinnati-based lead generation firm Reardon Smith Whittaker, tells the marketing newsletter fuelNet Monthly

In an article entitled ”Five Tactics for Building a Better Sales Lead Pipeline,” Sneider explains that keeping up with the industries of your customers and potential customers -- and your own competitors -- is crucial to keeping and expanding your business. If a vendor is having trouble fulfilling promises to a client, for instance, you could offer to jump in on an emergency basis. Offer tips to potential clients during sales calls and share industry news and developments with them. "The best long-term partner is one who goes beyond the task at hand and brings new thinking and new ways of doing things for your client," Sneider says. And you can buy yourself some goodwill. "If you can add value for your clients, they will be more forgiving when things aren’t going just right," he adds.

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