When my mom finally decided to take that top job as a Divisional Head, I knew I was in trouble. Her office hours stretched way beyond my school hours. And anyway, I was privy to the many discussions my parents had about ‘Honey, what do we do with the kids?’ Well, finally they struck gold - an educational after school program. Won’t that be just grand? Children are learning new things while parents are happily earning the dollars!

And so, we went directly to another class after our school. The brochure said that they would be ‘using fun activities and innovative teaching methods to fill the gap in your child’s understanding’. I suppose they meant that the teacher would write down the homework and we were to copy it. At least, this is what happened most of the time. Of course, we didn’t tell our parents. How would that help? They’d simply get smart and shift us to a class that would actually make us solve our homework.

I hated the classes. Mostly, I was bored to tears or falling asleep. After so many hours at school who’d want to spend the entire afternoon with the same books? But, as a kid, one had little choice in these matters. Especially when your parents were cleverly telling you that mom’s salary will help get us that new TV or that video game. Lose some, win some!

Then, one day, my sister decided to rock the proverbial boat. She decided she had enough of studying and refused to go to the after school program. That’s when my parents began to smell something stale. Shortly after that, they put us in a better program (yes, another educational one). This was bigger, brighter and somehow more fun. We had some interesting games, and a COMPUTER too. Each of us got a chance to do something on the PC (this, when PCs were just beginning to be widely available). We somehow managed to blaze through our homework, most of which had to be done by us. Then it was time to have fun. We had a little bit of everything. Acting classes, speech, games and of course painting.

Those hours we spent splashing color on pages and laughing at silly jokes were really the highlight of an otherwise boring day. Ironically, I began looking forward to my after school program.

Now, so many years afterward, when I have to take up a career and leave my own daughter alone till I get back, I know how important these after school programs have become. Talk about history repeating itself! I just hope I’d
get her into a good one, and yes, it’s going to be educational too. And, of course, I hope she will be able to confide in me her true thoughts about her after school program.

And why not find time to have a shared hobby with your child. Face painting is quite easy to learn and great fun. And think how useful it will be come Halloween or at birthday parties etc. Find out more
childrens face painting ideas
simple face painting designs
simple face painting

Windscreen Wiper Blades are a key safety component of your vehicle. They contribute substantially to the Active Safety of your vehicle. They are also the fastest wearing consumable on your vehicle, and as with so many other things, the quality of performance, level of safety and working life depend on the quality of the Windscreen Wiper Blades you buy, and the way you maintain them throughout their working life.

The length of a Windscreen Wiper Blades life depends on two major factors.

Firstly, a Windscreen Wiper Blades life can be expressed by the number of wipes it can be expected to perform. A cheap unsophisticated rubber Windscreen Wiper can be expected to last for as little as 100,000 cycles. A cycle being one wipe in each direction up and down. A premium brand rubber Windscreen Wiper with twin or multiple edge technology can be expected to endure up to 500,000 cycles. High Quality rubber Windscreen Wiper Blades with ptfe or other coatings can increase the life expectancy up to 600,000 cycles. However the best Windscreen Wiper Blades for life are those with a high quality OEM specification Frame and a 100% Silicone Blade. These are on average OK for at least 1,500,000 cycles.

There’s not a lot you can do to limit the wear due to usage of a Windscreen Wiper Blade, except keep the windscreen and Windscreen Wiper Blades clean, and use a quality Screen Wash. However the bad and good news is that wear due to normal use is not the only factor affecting a rubber Windscreen Wipers life.

Right from the minute you install them, rubber Windscreen Wiper Blades are attacked by a combination of Ultra Violet Light, Ozone and Atmospheric Pollution. Even your screen wash, particularly in winter contains industrial alcohols, powerful detergents and solvents which all attack the rubber, causing it to harden, degrade, become rigid and crack.

On top of those problems rubber Windscreen Wiper Blades lose their flexibility as temperatures descend. This causes them to crack, and you’ll no doubt have experienced the situation on cold dark freezing mornings when your wipers can’t bend to follow the shape of your windscreen, so they leave big areas unwiped, just when you most need the ultimate performance.

Finally, rubber Windscreen Wiper Blades, especially those over a few weeks old present a great surface for ice to adhere to, so causing the Windscreen Wiper to become frozen to the windscreen so that it pulls itself to shreds if the unwary driver unconsciously starts the wipers before checking that the Windscreen Wiper Blades are free.

You can lessen all of these life shortening or life ending problems by:-

Keeping your windscreen and Windscreen Wiper Blades clean, to avoid the build up of abrasive dirt and grit which also harbours many of the pollutants which attack the rubber.
Avoiding parking facing bright summer sunlight for prolonged periods.

Using non solvent screenwash additives, but this won’t be possible in sub zero weather, because you’ll need an anti-freeze additive.

If you are fortunate enough to have Silicone Windscreen Wipers, you’ll not only have the longest life expectancy by far, you’ll be happy to know that Silicone Windscreen Wipers are not affected by Ozone, Ultraviolet light, pollution, strong detergents and most solvents. They also operate smoothly from -60°C right up to +200°C.

Though the term “hypermiling” is a new word, the concepts it is based on are not at all new. We have just never had a specific name for it until now.

However, with gas prices soaring to the extortion levels, people (out of necessity) have started to pay more attention to how much fuel they are using.

And thus the word “hypermiling” has been born. The term “hypermiling” (originally coined by Wayne Gerdes) in simple terms means getting the best gas mileage out of the fuel you have.

Before the word “hypermiling” was born, “hypermiling” was just referred too as sensible fuel economy, or common-sense driving practice.

But today, getting the most for your money (by squeezing out the maximum mileage per gallon of gas) has become a specialized field, with the name “hypermiling.”

A lot of “controversy” has been built up around the subject of hypermiling. Some claim it is dangerous or state that it causes accidents, etc. These statements are about as intelligent as the statement that driving is dangerous or causes car crashes.

Of course, if there were no cars on the road, there would be no car accidents. That is about the level of logic we are using when we say that hypermiling is dangerous or controversial.

Before the subject of Hypermiling came about, we would have heard about “safe and unsafe driving practices.” These days, in the interest of controversy, we no longer hear about “unsafe driving practices,” but about hypermiling. I guess monkey learned a new trick.

Lets take a look at what hypermiling is, and what a few of the hypermiling techniques are:

First of all, a common hypermiling practice is to plan one’s trips a little more carefully, so as to avoid unnecessary driving. That’s common sense, I would say. But it’s not something we were too careful about when fuel was cheap.

Another favorite hypermiling technique is staying within the speed-limit, since driving at higher speeds wastes fuel. Avoiding excessive idling of ones engine is also a key hypermiling tactic, as you are getting zero miles per gallon when you are standing still. What is interesting about this last point is that, for years now, we have had cars whose engines switch to “hibernate mode” after standing still for a few seconds, in order to avoid wasting fuel. “Hibernating” here means that the engine “switches off” and starts up again the moment you hit the gas peddle with your foot.

Making sure that your tires are inflated properly (not under-inflated and not over-inflated) according to manufacturer’s instructions, is also a hypermiling technique. That might sound like a minor detail to some, but if you have ever ridden a bicycle with tires that were under-inflated you will have a good idea how much extra energy it takes, as compared to riding with correctly inflated tires.

Well, the same goes for a car. Under-inflated tires make your engine work harder and consume more fuel. Try riding a bicycle with badly inflated tires sometime, and you will get a good idea of what I am talking about. A car handles better with correct tire pressure, which also gives you a lot more control when you are driving (and is thus safer).

I could go on and on, and could detail many other points of hypermiling. But I think the above examples serve to show you that we are really just talking about common sense. (More gas saving tips can also be found at Hypermiling Techniques.)

The only real truth in all this controversy is that there are safe drivers and there are unsafe drivers. But that’s not new. And this fact did not arrive with the subject of hypermiling. It will not go away with the subject of hypermiling either.

Some people are smart and some are less so. That’s nothing new and it’s not something we didn’t already know.

I guess it’s those people who are “less so,” who feel they need to create a “controversy” around a subject such as hypermiling. Maybe it makes them feel clever.

The fact is, hypermiling consists of safe and sensible ways to improve gas mileage. Just as one could drive unsafely in the interest of better gas mileage, one could also be a maniac gas-guzzler who speeds around turns, slams on his brakes, and pays high gas prices as a result.

Real hypermiling techniques involve safe and sensible driving habits.

Regardless, hypermiling simply consists of a set of techniques and driving practices which are used to get better gas mileage, using common sense and safe driving practices.

A simple E-Book which teaches hypermiling techniques, which anyone can learn and instantly apply in order to save money on gas immediately, can be found at Hypermiling and Other Gas Saving Secrets.

See also Hypermiling and Gas Saving Tips

Crude oil has one of the most complex and variable pricing mechanisms in the commodities market, and for that matter in the entire market. The gas price is affected by a host of different factors, and it can be extremely difficult to determine which of the variables is actually making the difference at any given point in time. As you have no doubt seen recently, the crude oil markets have been extremely volatile and many have found themselves with insane profits, or miserable losses.

In highly efficient capital markets with an inelastic demand coupled with a constrained supply, markets will adjust backwards to the old prices within a few days or a week at the most. The only difference between now and before is the extra $0.47 or so would now be going to oil producers, oil suppliers, refiners, and the owners of the gas stations. But this potentially small gain in the commodity could mean major profits for any investor that is holding a Gas Stock.

World crude oil supply is somewhere between 84-85 million barrels per day while world crude demand is somewhere between 86-87 million barrels per day. The most recent numbers show that through April the United States was using 19.96 million barrels of crude oil per day, or somewhere between 23-24% of all daily demand. The United States only produces roughly 30% of the crude oil it uses domestically, which means we are importing roughly 14 million barrels per day. It’s easy to see how at the current prices of ~$130 per barrel this can add up very quickly. Until some portion of demand is completely destroyed to balance out supply and demand, don’t expect a relief in the gas price and don’t expect this argument to go away.

The interference of politicians is not something new in the marketplace, despite the fact that energy markets are in turmoil, the politicians simply will not stop playing their games. Don’t believe for a second that once oil makes a short term pull back that the politicians will not take credit for the slight correction in prices that was in fact beyond their control because there is no doubt that they will. It will be much more humorous to see the look on their faces and hear their bumbling excuses when crude breaks $200 a barrel and gasoline is over $6.00 a gallon. Yet even if things start to correct slightly over the coming months, these issues are a matter of national security. If we go to war in the future with a country who has control of the Crude Oil Drilling, they could effectively shut down the United States without firing one bullet or using one soldier. Our “Strategic Petroleum Reserve” only has about ~700 million barrels, and including current online production, that would last us just 50 short days. The government should have never stopped filling the SPR as it has placed our country at extra risk.

If the gasoline tax proposed in politics became permanent the plan would be much better suited because it would help the refiners and gas station owners boost their profit margins. As ridiculous as that may sound to you, that is exactly what needs to happen. Contrary to popular believe, the refiners and gasoline station owners are actually getting killed because they are at the mercy of the commodity spot market prices (the value where open fiscal markets trade physical goods) since they do not actually produce the good. They only act as the throughput and output, not the input. In the oil business they call this middlestream and downstream. Believe it or not, many gas stations are closing around America because they simply can’t keep up with the pricing increases. The %KEYWORDCAP2& has gone up substantially more than gasoline over the past half-decade, and it has come to a point where many of the gas stations and refiners are actually losing money every time they sell you gasoline. The reason for this is not because the producers of oil are over-charging for their product[spin], it is because they are trying to raise prices more gradually as to not completely shock the [spin]American consumer.

We are so reliant on offshore drilling to run our economy that it is important not to underestimate the elasticity of demand in this case. Those investors who are able to cut through the noise and analyze the facts will be rewarded with great returns in the long run.

You may be among those unlucky women who are anxious about the breast shape, size and growth . Many consider them unlucky because their breasts are saggy ones or are in no proportion with the other parts of the body. The troubles that women have with their breasts are common feelings of women throughout history and on every continent around the world today. This sagginess or flattering may be due to the pregnancy or the aging process. But the concerns of breast augmentation surgery may brings many side effects .

At first you may consider the option to go for the surgical breast enhancement procedure . Not only is there a huge amount of money to consider this option , but there are also excessive risks that you really must sift through. The risks associated with this methods cannot be foreseen and hence no remedial procedures could be applied at first. The first short-term concern is the long hard road of several weeks going through the pain of healing and 24/7 around the clock life interruptions during the weeks of healing .

The surgical breast enhancement option requires long term curing steps. Even years after having the breast implants, related problems of numb areas of the breasts may happen. One or both breasts implants shifting or leaking over period, scar tissue problems that will often cause tightness, hardness, and breast size disproportion of one or even sometimes both breasts, and the risks of infections are high enough to think twice about any persistent procedure. Infections can even occur in the middle of curing phase and can some times prove fatal too.

The fortunes have turned up to these anxious women because now there are many natural enlargement steps. One can easily choose from these alternatives and is sure to get a encouraging end result. Not only are they safer, cheaper and painless, but also these breast enhancement tablets, chewing gums and creams will give you permanent durable results. You will start to see astounding outcome within a few weeks to a few months, if you use this on regular basis. It is a sure fact that your breast will become fuller, firmer, plumper, and even up to a cup size larger! There isn’t any simpler way to go than the safer all natural herbal breast enhancement alternatives such as zoft breast enhancement gum , especially when compared to an persistent surgery, since the results all are naturally motivated .

E-commerce web design today need be compatible with a variety of mobile devices such as laptops, mobile phones, iPods etc. E-commerce Web Design Made Affordable Providing companies with the best professional ecommerce web design solution, at an affordable price, is our goal. As Internet E-Commerce Web Design and networking professionals, we will create a vibrant on-line representation of your company, meticulously geared toward your targeted audience. Our E-Commerce Web design packages enable you to stay involved during the design process you get to communicate directly with your E-commerce Web designer.

As a leader in the development of web-based business solutions, we’ll help you navigate the unpredictable and often uncharted information highway. Whether you need an informational web site, an e-commerce system, or custom development, we will put the internet to work for you. Whether you need a straight-forward informational site, custom software development or an e-commerce system, eDesignerz.com can help you maximize your on-line presence. One major requirement in the development of the web site was to create a tool for their customers. As experts in complex corporate / enterprise web development and sophisticated portal site development, we build robust, flexible, scalable and effective web applications.

Your businesses website deserves sophisticated & engaging interface design with search engine friendly content, website code that displays consistently on all major browsers, convenient content management tools, customer, order, inventory, & performance visibility, mastery of niche community marketing techniques, secure server architecture. Web design is our leading service, providing businesses nationwide with a professional web based image and online business solution. We’ve set up web site businesses selling a huge variety of products and services. Our focus is on helping small to medium size businesses launch or enhance their internet presence. We now also offer hourly consulting services to small businesses to simply lead them in the right direction when hiring a web design company. We specialize in turning ideas into online businesses that help you sell more or generate new sources of profit.

SEO services from eDesignerz.com will help increase your overall visibility with the development of a sound search engine optimization strategy. E-commerce Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Search engine optimization for an e-commerce website is a must have. With proper SEO on your web site– Ranking up there with the big boys can place more of those ONE BILLION internet users on your front door step. By using search engine optimization (SEO), and other website marketing techniques, we will develop an effective online marketing strategy for the success of your company website.

E-Commerce Web Design from eDesignerz.com are your ecommerce website design and usability experts, and we have the portfolio to prove it. The goals with our E-commerce web design packages include: usability, visual impact, consumer trust, consumer loyalty and consumer remembrance. Contact us for a website design quote on e-Commerce Web Design Packages.

Alcohol abuse is defined as a pattern of drinking that results in one or more of the following situations in a twelve-month period of time:

· Experiencing recurring alcohol-related legal problems. Illustrations include getting arrested for drunk driving, for damaging another person’s property, or for physically hurting another individual while under the influence of alcohol.

· Failure to attend to meaningful responsibilities at school, work, or home.

· Continued drinking in spite of ongoing alcohol-related relationship difficulties.

· Drinking in situations that can result in physical injury. Illustrations include operating machinery or driving a vehicle.

alcohol abuse facts

Stated in a different way, alcohol abuse is defined as a destructive pattern of alcohol use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress. The alcohol-related distress or impairment may be evident via repeated occurrences of problems at work, school, or home, alcohol-related relationship problems, or repeated legal or health problems due to irresponsible drinking.

By and large, Habitually moderate drinking is not interconnected with health risks and can even help to prevent certain forms of heart disease.

Excessive drinking, nevertheless, has immediate outcomes that can increase the risk of many dangerous health conditions.

Excessive alcohol use, either in the form of heavy drinking (i.e., drinking more than one drink per day on average for women and more than two drinks per day on average for men) or binge drinking (i.e., drinking four or more drinks during one sitting for women or five or more drinks in one sitting for men) can lead to increased risk of health problems such as liver disease, unintentional accidents or injuries, or alcohol dependence.

alcohol related health issues

After a period of abusive drinking, a combination of factors, mainly withdrawal and dehydration may result is a hangover. Hangovers are frequently accompanied and identified by vomiting, headaches, and nausea. Hangovers, however, may be avoided or their affects significantly diminished if the individual drinks at least a pint of water after a heavy drinking session.

Many people drink a small or moderate amount of alcohol in order to relax and augment their social activities. Drinking alcohol in this manner is not harmful for most adults. When individuals experience alcohol-related problems in any aspect of their lives, including their health, relationships, employment, school, or their finances, it may be pointed out, these people have a drinking problem.

These problems can range from mild to severe and depend on how rapidly the body metabolizes alcohol, how much and how quickly the alcohol was consumed, how long the individual has been drinking, if the individual drank on an empty stomach, and the person’s weight.

alcohol therapy

Engaging in irresponsible drinking negatively affects the central nervous system as well as the functioning of the brain. In fact, irresponsible drinking can cause Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, which is a form of permanent brain damage that is largely correlated with an alcohol-related thiamine deficiency.

Excessive drinking also affects coordination, thinking, and perception. Additionally, irresponsible drinking increases aggression, reduces inhibitions, and impairs judgment. Finally, individuals who drink in a hazardous manner are more likely than others to engage in high risk, irresponsible, or violent behavior.

It needs to be emphasized that alcohol abuse differs from alcohol dependency in that it does not necessarily include a loss of control, physical dependence, or an extremely strong compulsion or craving for alcohol. Furthermore, alcohol abuse is less likely than alcohol dependency to include tolerance (the need for increasing amounts of alcohol to get a “buzz” or to get “high”). Both conditions, however, can lead to a disaster concerning all aspects of an individual’s life.

Not surprisingly, alcohol abuse is a key cause and trigger in domestic violence. This is based on the fact that individuals who engage in irresponsible drinking habitually exhibit inferior decision-making skills, are easily frustrated, manifest poor impulse control, and frequently resort to violence as a solution to their troubles.

Excessive drinking can cause serious complications that require immediate medical care. Treatment for alcohol abuse often involves detoxification, rehydration, and counseling. In severe cases, alcohol abuse requires inpatient rehab in an alcohol rehab center or in a rehab hospital. Alcohol abuse rehab may include doctor-prescribed drugs, support, behavior therapy, education, and counseling. And after the inpatient part of rehab is done, outpatient rehab is commonly scheduled.

For some, purchasing a new external hard drive is a fairly simple process. They go to an electronics store , look at a USB hard drive that looks to be reasonably priced and make the purchase. Quite often, the packaging is not given a full read as they walk to the checkout . While this may work for some people, there are others who prefer to know exactly what they are buying purchasing, making their needs are matched by what they have decided to buy. While there are many things that should be considered when purchasing a portable harddrive or any other type of personal storage device, there are basically five things to consider when doing your initial research.

External Hard Drive Space

How much space does an external hard drive have? The price variation with a portable hard drive is directly in proportion to the actually storage capacity of the hard drive. Some external hard drives have a large amount of space (some now include over 1 terabytes [TB]), while others are manufactured and priced to a market that is fine with smaller capacity drives, say 100 megabytes (MG) in size.

Speed

The speed of an external hard drive is important in the fact that the quicker the drive, the better performance. This performance may show itself when you are trying to copy files to the external hard drive, and also may be obvious when trying to simply run files that now reside on the portable hard drive device. understanding speed and knowing exactly what the limitations are allows you to make a purchase you will be happy with.

Budget

Budget and cost is something that should be reviewed prior when purchasing an external hard drive. Different portable hard drive devices have a wide range of prices, this means you may be spending more, or less, than you planned . Depending on storage capacity, you can expect to spend as little as $10 up to over $500. By setting your budget and the price of the product you are considering, you know where you stand, and what manufacturer and capacity might work for you.

Connection

Connection speed is another important aspect of buying an external hard drive. Knowing exactly what your computer can handle , and what connection is needed, will help you to choose the right external USB hard drivefor you. While most drives are compatible with all types of computers, it is always important to be sure first.

Size

The actual physical dimensions of the USB drive is an important consideration for those who are looking to buy an external hard drive. Some people do not want a big drive if they have a small workstation, while this may not be as much of an issue for others. The size of the actual drive itself may change with storage capacity, but is usually about the same. In the end, it is all about finding the manufacturer that sells a drive that is the right size for you, your storage needs, is visually appealing , and performs well. For many, drive size is a significant issue. For others, an external hard drive, big or small, will do what you need it to do.

While this may seem like a lot of research points for a basic functioning external hard drive, it is all part of the purchase research list. Trying to find the perfect external hard drive is not only about knowing what you need, but also understanding what each product has to offer. By taking a little bit of time to do some homework, you will begin to understand better which one will make sense to buy and suit your computing needs.

There are many ways of marketing affiliate programs but one of the best is the use of web templates purely for the product or service involved. Selling other companies products online using affiliate marketing is a fantastic way to make sales and earn money. It can be done just by simply creating a simple web page with the information people are looking for. This is an ideal way to earn money for new internet business entrepreneurs especially when they have no product of their own.

You can here find nice web design for your affiliate web page.

Obviously, the first task is to decide on a product that you can sell and there are many ways in which you can find a product. However the tedious part that must be carried out: reading the terms and conditions, you fail to do this at your own peril. The reason for this is simple, you are not working for free so if you do not want to fall foul of silly terms that could stop you earning, you will do this. There are many companies that will only trade with certain countries so will not pay affiliates if they live there.

Although many affiliate programs pay better than 50 percent, some are much lower than this and unless there is good turnover it may not be worth signing up for small percentages; If you have never researched affiliate marketing before you can try to free web resources to find products and they are: google.com/trends/hottrends and Clickbank.com where you can also sign up for the programs using their own payment gateway. Steer clear of any affiliate programs that request money for membership, this is not normal and it might be the way they earn an income. Although you can find programs almost anywhere you look, those that use Paypal or Clickbank for their payments are he best to use and registering with both does not cost anything. Remember this is the early part of your affiliate marketing venture so you do not need (or want) to experiment unnecessarily; there will be plenty of time to do that when you are more established.

The biggest problem when you are new at marketing affiliate products is finding good online help; care must be taken because it is easy to get information overload but there are sites and ebooks to help you. Do not concern yourself about the number of urls you see in ebooks, some but not all, have affiliate links for the author; you are unde no obligation to buy anything. Many resources exist to help people earn an income online, some free and some paid but at the start it is advisable to use those without cost until you have actually earned something. This is a way for a trust to be built up between the developer or writer and you as the consumer.

Remember that affiliate marketing does not have to rely only on online advertising methods, others exist. The purpose behind this is to direct traffic to your website where a certain percentage of people will place an order. Just about every affiliate marketer needs to know what advertising methods driving traffic to their site is working so they use tracking techniques and then drop the methods that are not working. There is a great deal of money to be made with affiliate marketing because you are not restricted to just one product or company. While the Internet is full of information to help you, you are warned that some of it may be incorrect and out of date.

Unlike virtually any other marketing tool, cold calling lets companies change courses at almost any time.

In today’s ever-changing business environment, this flexibility is critical.

Companies new to cold calling must watch early results closely.

Testing, assessing, and refining the program from the onset are critical first steps. These actions can result in a long term program that produces a predictable stream of sales opportunities.

Veteran cold callers also must work. Constant attention is needed to keep the program sharp. Here’s a recommendation: continue with the program that works, but apply a portion of your tele-prospecting investment towards testing new approaches that may surpass your existing model. When you find one that is more effective, replace your existing program, but continue to test new approaches.

It’s easy to test and change cold calling campaigns. Unlike print ads, radio spots, billboards, or most other marketing vehicles, cold calling programs make testing and applying those results to the program easy.

Here are some of the items that every program should assess:

1) The offer. Do you want to set a sales appointment? Do you want to invite people to a webinar? Do you simply want to collect email addresses for a campaign? Are you offering a free assessment, or a free trial? Do you need an incentive to enhance your “call to action?”

2) The list. Are the decision makers and the companies on your list the best prospects?

3) Talking points. Do your callers have the conversation points to highlight the key aspects of your program? Is there something compelling that needs to be added? Are the talking points too complicated or long?

4) Your calling team. How well do they represent you? How effective are they in talking to decision makers? Can they ask for the appointment?

5) Your ability to close the leads. This is the part that comes after a cold calling lead is identified. Can you cost effectively convert that lead into a sale? Do you have the people and processes in place? Are you getting qualified leads?

Case Studies

Here are short examples of savvy VSA clients who tested, assessed and refined their programs.

1) A software company implemented a program which successfully produced leads. However, the company was unprepared to convert the leads to sales. Now, this company plans a product-specific website, marketing materials and the right expertise to make sales calls. A second cold calling initiative is scheduled.

2) An online marketing company completed a program that produced poor results. The company has changed its offer to simplify steps prospective companies must take to enroll. A second campaign has been launched.

3) A commercial roofing company implemented a program and generated desired results. Later, the company realized the prospective clients were not a good fit. The company has implemented a second campaign targeting a different prospect list.

If you are planning a cold calling program, please call us to talk about the factors that can make or break your campaign. We’d like to know what marketing tools have worked for you in the past and show you how we can add to that success. We are happy to help.