Customer, do you feel like a number?

I am sure that everyone at some point in time has felt like a number instead of a client, patient or customer.  Have you walked into a doctor’s office with an appointment time, only to wait for 2 hours or more to see the doctor.  Upon seeing the doctor, the exam and diagnosis lasts 5 minutes and then the doctor is on to the next patient.  Or better yet, you make an appointment with the doctor and end up seeing the nurse practioner. (no offense to nurse practioners).

How about walking into a store, you are either accosted by a pushy sales person or completely ignored.  I will be searching for something in the stores and no one will be around to help me.  If I do happen to find someone, they usually act like I am asking them to climb Mt. Olympus.

Or have you ever decided to buy a service or product and then try to get help after the sale?  You are told, call this 800 number and after multipe menus and many minutes, you still cant find the answer.

It is frustrating!  I have experienced all of these situations, but I have also encountered some wonderful doctors, dentists, stores, and sales people.  What makes these people stand out in my eyes?  They genuinely care about me, my needs and my happiness.  They go out of their way to help me and follow up with me afterwards.  If I had oral surgery, they not only call to check on me,  but also send a get well card too.  The car salesman not only delivers my car to my driveway, she sends cookies and a card thanking me for my business.  My dentist sends a card and movie passes for sending him new patients.  The vet sends me a card reminding me of my pet’s health needs and appointments.  In addition, they send the pet birthday cards and sorry for the loss of your pet cards.  The realtor who sold us our home sent a card and home depot gift card to congratulate us on our new home. 

When someone cares enough to go out of their way to choose a card, express their sentiments, put a stamp on it and mail it, I know they have gone above and beyond service.  They have show they care about me as a customer, client and patient.  They have shown they want my continued business and care.

SendOutCards is a system that will aid any business or individual  in their efforts to create these personal relationships.  If you are interested in learning about the features and benefits of the system, Please contact me and I will set up a FREE gift account for you to test drive the system.

Debbie

deb77@tampabay.rr.com

Smile, I Like You

Do you often find yourself thinking about someone, wishing you could reach out and let them know that you appreciate them?

I went to the grocery store the other day and ran into an old client who was navigating the aisles in her electric wheel chair.  We stopped for a few minutes to talk and I found out that she had been very ill and depressed.  Upon arriving home, I immediately sat down to create a card to let her know that I care and would be there to help her in any way.  A few days later, she called to tell me that she received the card and realized that she was not alone and had a friend that cared.  It meant the world to her!

I have another friend who emailed me and told me that she felt so down, problems at work and at home.  The emails went back and forth all day.  (she could not talk on the phone as she was at work).  Towards the end of the day, I created an “Angel” card for her, letting her know that I had been assigned to be her guardian angel as long as she needed support and love.  (Angels have special meaning to her).  Needless to say, she called me in tears upon receiving the card, and thanked me for caring so much!

I could continue with examples of times that a simple card and heartfelt message could generate such  loving, supportative and caring feelings!  I am sure all of us encounter times when we wish we could find some way to reach out to those that need our understanding and support.  Running to Hallmark or American Greetings stores take time, effort and money.  Sendoutcards has been a blessing to me personally.  I have been able to send out my thoughts and feelings to many people without leaving my home. 

In addition, I am a personal trainer/rehab specialist.  I constantly work with clients/patients who not only have medical problems (and fitness needs), but also have real life situations where a “positive attitude” card can go a long way in lifting their spirits.When you can help someone feel better emotionally, their outlook in life becomes more positive!

So, reach out and make someone’s day as Clint Eastwood would say.  Send love, comfort, friendship, blessings, prayers, good-luck, courage, smiles, and any sentiment that you want to express.

Contact me for a free gift account to test drive the sendoutcards greeting card/marketing system.

Debbie Smesko

deb77@tampabay.rr.com

Give to others without any expectations

The more you reach out to develop greater personal relationships, the more positive reinforcement you will receive.  Continue to give without any expectations of receiving anything back.  Make someone feel special with a kind word or deed.  Remember always to thank someone for referrals, business, help with projects and problems and so on.  More importantly, when you think about someone, let them know that through a phone call or better yet, a card that expresses your feelings.  I have kept every written card or letter that my husband and children have ever given me.  I have also kept all the cards and their messages that my clients have given me over the years.  I pull them out when I am having a bad day.  Reading them lifts my spirits and reminds me how much I have helped others.  All of us need to be reminded once in a while that what we do, makes a difference in others lives!!!

Its September and before you know it, the holidays will be here.  Get a head start on holiday cards.  I can show you a system that will allow you to create and edit holiday cards now, personally address hundreds of cards for you and send them out on your choice date in the future.  All of this for pennies a card.  Include pictures, presents, gift cards with them.  Ask me for a free gift account now.  Start now to make a difference in someone’s life.

 

Debbie Smesko
dsmesko@yahoo.com
www.sendoutcards.com/54653
http://twitter.com/Debbietrainer
http://www.linkedin.com/in/debbiefrancesmesko
(813) 335-5491

Mixing business with Manners

I love seeing someone smile and knowing that they are happy.  As a personal trainer and rehab specialist  of 20 years, I have learned that the key to success is to treat my clients with respect and an honest caring attitude.  If you try to find the good in people instead of dwelling in their flaws, you will create a positive outlook and atmosphere.  Negativity begets negativity and takes up more of our time and energy.  On the other hand, surrounding yourself with positive, intelligent, and highly motivated people will not only help you to continue to grow and learn, but will also aid you in finding success.

 

The same type of thinking should apply to all businesses.  If we let our clients, customers, and patients know that we do care about them and their needs, we will develop greater personal relationships with them.  Personal relationships translates to  more profit on the bottom line, but more importantly, it makes us feel good because we care about our clients and the products and services that benefit them.

 

I have a business called sendoutcards that provides that tool you need to create those personal relationships.  I use it for both business and personal purposes.  I would love to share it with you.  Ask me for a free gift account.

 

I am here to learn and also to share any knowledge that I have concerning fitness, networking, and the development of business relationships.

Is the glass half empty or full?

Do you look at the glass half filled or empty.  We are hit every day with bad news on the TV, Radio, Newspaper, Magazines, and friends and family.  It is hard to be positive at times, but with support of like-minded people, we can overcome negativity.  I have been a personal trainer and rehabilitation specialist for over 24 years.  Not only do I motivate people physically, I have to keep their morale and mental outlook positive and filled with energy.

If you are down and out, please feel free to contact me!  I would love to lend support and a comforting shoulder!

Debbie

 

Exercise Guidelines

New clients often come in and say “I read a magazine article that says all I have to do is exercise three times a week for 20 minutes”, is this correct?  My answer to them is “What are your exercise goals?”  When you start any program, you should have goals already in mind and preferably in writing.  However, here are some general guidelines:

To improve cardiovascular fitness:

3 to 5 times per week of non-stop cardio training (running, walking , elliptical and so on) for a minimum of 30 minutes in your heart rate range. ( the heart rate range is a very important component of this guideline).

To improve strength and endurance:

2 to 3 times per week with at least 48 hour recovery time between sessions, exercising all the major muscles of the body.  Do at 12 to 15 repetitions in each set and perform a minimum of one set of exercises per muscle, preferably 2 sets for each.  This guideline is for the beginning exerciser.

Weight Loss:

6 to 7 days a week for at least 90 minutes.  This can be broken up during the day.  Just remember, it takes 3500 calories of “real calorie burning” to lose a pound of fat.  All machines tend to overestimate the calories you burn and holding on or leaning on the machine just reduces “real” calories burned.

If you have a medical problem, please contact me and I will give you the appropriate guidelines for your particular situation.

Here is to your fitness and good health,

Debbie Smesko

 

 

 

Promptings

We all have intuitions to do what is right, to be a positive person, to do good deeds, care for others’ feelings and make your actions follow your words.  The key is learning how to recognize what your intuition is prompting you to do.    “SendOutCards provides you with an opportunity to send out positive thoughts, feelings,words and deeds”.  Start every day by sending out to give.  You will create positive energy that will enable you to accomplish anything.

A SendOutCards greeting card is not only more personalized and convenient to send than a traditional card, but is one-third the price of a national name-brand company’s greeting card.  Greeting cards show that someone thought about you enough to select a card, purchase it, write a note, buy a stamp and drop it in the mail.  It demonstrates thoughtfulness that someone stopped and took the time to send you such a greeting.  Contrast that to getting a text message from your co-worker: Happy b-day!  Or consider an obvious bulk-mail postcard from a pest control service advertising a sale after you have just paid full price for the spring treatment.  Neither of these will make you feel very valued.  But there is a feeling of comfort, even in a business message, if someone shows they know you and have invested thought into what you might want or need to hear.

Some of the unique things we offer include:

·         An extensive Card Catalog with both Business and Personal greeting cards

·         The ability to create Custom Cards, write in your own Personal Handwriting Fonts, Add Pictures, and Store and Edit Pictures with PicturePLUS

·         The ability to insert Gifts

·         A Calendar and Reminder System to manage contact information and special occasions

·         An Online Contact Manager to help you organize and add contact information

 

 

Please contact me for a free gift account to test drive the sendoutcards greeting card and marketing system.

Debbie

deb77@tampabay.rr.com

Customer/Client/Patient Retention

Whether you are an executive, a Rainbow Vacuum Saleperson, a Dentist, a Public Speaker, a Loan Officer or a Hairdresser, SendOutCards can boost your revenues, customer loyalty, retention and provide you with endless referrals.

FACT: People are more likely to use you if they remember you. People are more likely to remember you if you remember them and you make them feel important.

FACT: E-mails get deleted. Cards with Photos in them get saved and displayed

FACT: Customers that know you appreciate them will pay more for your product or service AND they will remain loyal

FACT: Customers will refer people to you when your name is the 1st to come to mind when a Friend, Relative or Associate is looking for someone in your field.

FACT: A well maintained Network of only 100 people can lead to millions of dollars in business over time. Each person can connect you to over 250 people . . . that’s 25,000 potential connections (if they like you and trust you,
you will get referrals)

FACT: You can completely differentiate yourself from your competition by following a simple inexpensive plan that takes less than 5 minutes per day.

Today, I needed an alarm person. If someone from an alarm company had been sending me 2 personal cards per year, I would have called them. . .
On Monday, I need a Jeep Service Repair Person . . . If someone from a shop had been sending me 2 personal cards per year, I would call them. . .

Do you get the picture? No one does this. Probably 1 out of 250 business people send cards expressing appreciation for their customers’ business. Just by sending one thank you card, you put yourself in the top 250 in your field. Put your picture in it and you are now in the top 1/2 of 1% of all business people. There are obviously other things that impact who gets the business . . . but it takes more than just being good. There are lots of good service providers. You must be REMEMBERED and you must EXPRESS APPRECIATION on an ongoing basis . . . IN A PERSONAL WAY!

Building Successful Relationships

As a business professional, you should ask yourself: “What business am I in?”. The answer is quite simple: if your business has anything to do with people – and ALL businesses do – you are in the business of building relationships. “Some people think that if they sell things, they are in the business of selling. They aren’t. They are in the business of building relationships – because that’s how you sell things. Those in management are also in the business of building relationships, because that’s how you get things done.

Letting your business relationships get a little personal doesn’t mean you need to tell your client personal things about yourself or ask them personal questions. But if you give them a little more – mentioning your weekend plans, asking how their sick sister-in-law is doing, remembering birthdays – you can create a multi-dimensional relationship by which you can accomplish a number of things:

• Create loyalty and trust that overlaps into work situations
• Give clients more reason to refer you because they feel they really know who you are
• Get to know each other better which makes working together easier and more efficient
• Become more approachable and be able to avoid miscommunication
• Show that you’re human, just like they are

“Short handwritten cards yield long results. In sales, never underestimate the importance of the personal gesture, and right at the top of the list of effective personal gestures sits the handwritten card. Always send memorable cards and personal notes when you are reminded of a person.” – Harvey MacKay, Swim With the Sharks

I can show you a way to develop these personal relationships with your clients, customers, and patients.  The system is inexpensive, saves time, simple to learn and best of all, FUN!  Contact me for a free gift account to test drive the system.

Debbie

Creating more personal relationships

We live in a society where we think we have to be doing something every minute, that our children have to be in an activity every day and that we live by list of “to-do” things.  We get into  routines and ruts that  lead us to forget the simple little things in life. There are times that we dont see the pain in someone’s eyes or the dejected look a child gives when you tell them you dont have time to play.  Have you ever had a moment when you think back to a high school or college friend and wish you had time to say?  Have you forgotten an important birthday, anniversary, life event?  Has a holiday ever crept up on you where there is no time to send out holiday cards, valentines cards, mothers’ and fathers’ day cards?

Do you own a business?  Do you thank customers for their business and their referrals?  Do you take the time to create more personal relationships with your customers.  Creating more personal relationships leads to longer lasting business and profits.  I know I dont feel like being just a “number” in a doctor’s, dentiist, vet’s office.    I want to know that my patronage does make a difference.  There is so much competition out there, that you want to have an edge up and creating personal relationships will help tremendously!

If only we had a tool for our personal and business lives to help us.  I can help you in all of these respects.  Please contact me because I   would love to show you how to improve your ability to reach out to make a difference in others lives.

Here is to making a positive difference in others’ lives,

Debbie

deb77@tampabay.rr.com