December 2004

What's New At The International Association of Home Business Entrepreneurs?

Posted by johndilbeck on Monday, December 27 2004 at 11:06 AM

Time is running out for the special IAHBE Toolbox offer!

IAHBE Members can save 25% off regular price for a limited time...If you haven't had a chance yet to check out this the new Suite of home-business tools, don't put it off any longer. The toolbox will still be offered via the IAHBE Website, but this special pricing won't last long. Login Now and sign up for your free, NO OBLIGATION 30-day test drive!

http://www.iahbe.org

Not an IAHBE member? Check out how you can benefit from an IAHBE membership, save up to 67% off top SFI products, AND collect over $1,000 in free business tools and specials!

SFI affiliates, go here for more information:

https://www.sfimg.com/AffiliateStore/Department.sfi?id=36

If you aren't an SFI affiliate, go here for more information:

http://DetailsNow.com/IAHBE

Each Friday, the IAHBE is updated with numerous new articles, reports, seminars, bonuses, and more. Here's some of the latest content you'll find at http://www.iahbe.org:

* Exclusive Report: Canadian Tips--"Home-Based Business Basics For Toronto, Ontario"

*Special E-Book: International Tips--"How To Start And Operate Your Own Profitable Import/Export Business At Home," Courtesy, Foreign Trade Online

* Expert Report: "The Secret Strategy Of Classified Ads That Pull In Millions Upon Millions of Dollars-And It's So Easy to Do!" by Ken Varga

* Exclusive IAHBE Spotlight installment: Desktop Publishers

* Exclusive Book Review: "Why Aren't You Your Own Boss?," by Paul and Sarah Edwards & Peter Economy

* Quick Tips Of The Week

*December Book Of The Month: "17 Lies That Are Holding You Back & the Truth That Will Set You Free," by Steve Chandler--This book lists the lies that most of us tell ourselves to prevent us from being everything we could be. However, as author Steve Chandler points out, you DO have ALL the power you need to free yourself. Discover these and other truths and how to recover them and use them to change your life. Get your free copy today! The list price for this very special book is $15.95, but as an IAHBE member, you get this book free! Login for access details.

*December Magazine Of The Month--Included With Your Membership!: FORBES Magazine--FORBES covers global business stories with insight, solid sourcing, and zeal. No merger, new ad campaign, or lawsuit goes unnoticed and stories always focus on the movers who are shaking things up. The U.S. price for FORBES is $129.74 for a one-year subscription. Your IAHBE membership fee this month includes a one-year subscription! You pay only a nominal IAHBE processing fee of $2 if you are a U.S. resident and $19 for residents of all other countries. Login for access details.

To access these and more IAHBE articles, interviews, software, and business resources, log in at:

http://www.iahbe.org

Not an IAHBE member? Check out how you can benefit from an IAHBE membership, save up to 67% off top SFI products, AND collect over $1,000 in free business tools and specials!

SFI affiliates, go here for more information:

https://www.sfimg.com/AffiliateStore/Department.sfi?id=36

If you aren't an SFI affiliate, go here for more information:

http://DetailsNow.com/IAHBE

Not an SFI affiliate? Learn how you can join my SFI sales team, today.

SFI Affiliates: Reading Assignment For The Week

Posted by johndilbeck on Monday, December 27 2004 at 11:04 AM

While enjoying your holiday weekend, don't forget to take a few moments between sips of eggnog and check out the following informative, business-building articles at the new Special Reports section of the Affiliate Resource Center:

1. Exclusive SFI Reports: SFI's New T-Net System...



2. Must-Read Reports: Network Building Tips...



To view these and other reports, articles, and helpful tips and hints, go here:

http://www.sfimg.com/Training/SpecialReports.sfi

Not an SFI affiliate? Learn how you can join my SFI sales team, today.

Did You Know?

Posted by johndilbeck on Monday, December 27 2004 at 11:02 AM

Effective January 1st, you can add EXTRA DIGITS to your commission check through the power of SFI's Dynamic Compression feature. An element of SFI's new T-Net plan, this potentially lucrative income bonus allows you to earn commissions BEYOND the 12 levels of your network--infinitely deep! What's more, the Dynamic Compression feature also means that if one of your personally sponsored affiliates becomes inactive, ALL of their customers (and the commissions that go with them) become yours!!

For more information about the new T-Net system and its Dynamic Compression feature, check out:

http://www.sfimg.com/TNet

Not an SFI affiliate? Learn how you can join my SFI sales team, today.

Internet Income Course #35 -- "More On Link Building" Now Online

Posted by johndilbeck on Monday, December 27 2004 at 10:59 AM

The latest installment of SFI's exclusive, popular Internet Income Course is now available. Join course author, George Little, as he discusses several methods you can use to obtain in-bound links to your site.Check it out at:

https://www.sfimg.com/Training/Lesson35.sfi

Speaking of George Little, don't forget that "Internet Income" Volume 1 is now in the SFI Affiliate Store. In his latest book, George shares his vast knowledge of Internet Marketing to empower hard-working men and women who strive to achieve success and independence. Take this book with you wherever you go for easy reference to well-researched information and proven strategies designed to get your business off and running.

Some of the strategies included in Internet Income Volume 1 are:



Order your hard copy of "Internet Income" and begin your climb up the SFI Leader Board at:

https://www.sfimg.com/AffiliateStore/Item.sfi?id=750

Not an SFI affiliate? Learn how you can join my SFI sales team, today.

Site Build It! - Buy-1-Get-1 Free Sale until Midnight Dec. 25. Get two websites for the price of one!

Posted by johndilbeck on Sunday, December 19 2004 at 6:45 AM

I've been telling you for a long time how much I like Site Build It! and how much the tools included with this outstanding website design, hosting, and promotion service have helped me earn more with my sites.

From now until midnight on Christmas Day, you can buy one SBI account and get a second one free. That's an outstanding bargain and I just wish I had the time and energy to take advantage of it.

If you are looking for a way to build a site that attracts targeted visitors instead of sitting there and growing cobwebs, this is your opportunity.

You can get both sites for the price of one -- or you can keep one and give it to a friend, relative, or colleague to help them build their business, too.

I host my Act On Your Dream! site using Site Build It! and I couldn't be happier. I haven't had the time to build that site to where I want it, but that will be one of my major priorities in January and February.

I can tell you, however, that I've been using the tools that are included with an SBI site to help me on all my other websites, even though they are hosted on other services.

If I were starting all over from scratch and if I were only going to build a few websites, there is no doubt in my mind that I'd use Site Build It! to do it.

If you want to build your business and promote it online, don't pass up this opportunity! If you wait just one second after midnight on December 26, you'll miss the special sale. Don't delay.

Following Up on the SFI Big Announcement

Posted by johndilbeck on Sunday, December 5 2004 at 4:12 PM

On December 1, 2004, Gery Carson made a major announcement about the SFI Marketing Group's compensation plan for 2005.

I'll be posting more thoughts about SFI and the changes in the compensation plan on my SFI Blog.

News of Big Changes to the SFI Marketing Group Compensation Plan in 2005

Posted by johndilbeck on Sunday, December 5 2004 at 3:52 PM

Following is the announcement from Gery Carson, CEO of SFI Marketing Group:

12/1/04

Dear SFI Affiliate,

During the first eleven months of this year, SFI has made an abundance of improvements and enhancements. These include:



Obviously, we are working very hard to make SFI the best it can be. That is why, on January 1st, I'm very pleased to announce that we will also be introducing a brand new improved compensation plan.

We had several key objectives in redesigning the compensation plan:


  1. Provide a strong incentive to become MIQ
  2. Provide a strong incentive to retain MIQ status (reduce attrition)
  3. Provide significant earnings opportunity, both front-end and back-end, on personal referrals
  4. Provide a platform that encourages and rewards strong, synergistic (teamworking) relationships between uplines and downlines
  5. Increase the percentage of Standing Orders
  6. Provide a strong incentive to take immediate and daily action
  7. Show exciting income potential in an easy-to-understand way
  8. Provide an upfront "show me the money" component to clearly demonstrate SFI is real to new affiliates
  9. Provide the opportunity for new affiliates to realistically earn income monthly to establish SFI's potential
  10. Provide a strong incentive to continually advance in rank
  11. Provide a strong incentive to develop leaders in ones team
  12. Provide a strong incentive to build a large sales team
  13. Provide a robust retail sales program
  14. Provide the "big money" opportunity that heavy hitters are looking for


It was a major challenge to achieve all of these objectives and we went through many, many drafts since we began the redesign work in the Summer. You might also like to know that we worked with over 20 of SFI's top leaders in designing the new plan.

In announcing the new plan today, I'm thrilled to say that not only did we MEET all of our objectives, but I believe we clearly EXCEEDED them with some truly powerful and unique features.

If you're ready to check it out, here's the URL with all the details:

http://www.sfimg.com/TNet

(If you're not an SFI affiliate, you can join here and get access to that information.)

After you've taken a look, be sure to continue reading on as I have lots of other exciting information and news to share with you today.

We'll start with this excerpt from "Choosing The Best Network Marketing Company":



"What you want is a compensation plan that shifts some money upfront so the new person can see a check in their first few weeks. By giving the new people that taste of success, you lock them in, and they'll stay involved and keep working long enough for the 'back-end' residual-type income to kick in.

The point is, almost every type of compensation plan can ultimately deliver a monster income on a big downline, but first you've got to have a product line capable of attracting and sustaining that kind of growth. AND, you've got to have a means for new people coming in to get a taste of the potential income, or you'll be losing people as fast as you can bring new people in to replace them. In short, if you've got top products and an upfront bonus in your compensation plan, everything will take care of itself --it becomes self-perpetuating. If you don't have both of these crucial elements, however, your business is going to be a losing proposition --one big, frustrating Catch-22."



If you've reviewed the new comp plan, we've obviously taken the above advice to heart.

For starters, SFI's new "Team Network" system will force significant growth under thousands of new affiliates, giving them that critical taste of success, while simultaneously demonstrating tremendous future potential.

To help "prime the pump" even further, we have also earmarked 4% of CV companywide towards a first month guaranteed commission check. This component of the new plan means that all new MIQs, starting in January, will get a commission check their first month (we'll send it, regardless of amount). Then, the T-Net structure will help ensure the checks keep coming.

And with the Business Builders Bonuses, new affiliates can create significant commission checks right out of the chute!

And these are just SOME of the powerful components of T-Net. When you grasp the entire picture and understand how all the new dynamics work together, I'm betting you will be as excited as I and many top SFI leaders are about this new plan.

Now let's look at some other powerful features...

NEW EMAIL NOTIFICATIONS SYSTEM
If you know how now or can learn how to generate a steady stream of affiliate registrations, the new email notifications system could be HUGE for you! Starting January 1st, we will begin plugging in new affiliates under you in your personal T-Net network as they sign up (placed in the next available open slot). Starting the next day, for 29 days, they will then begin receiving a daily "Network Growth" recap email of all the new affiliates that have been placed under them.

The email will explain that these new affiliates have been placed under them and they can be earning 6% on each, plus have the opportunity to earn on everything these affiliates go on to do, etc. To lock in this benefit, the affiliate receiving the recap simply needs to upgrade (become MIQ) within 30 days of their sign-up date (which we of course let them know in the recap). If they fail to upgrade by their 30-day deadline, they lose their spot in the network and everything below rolls up.

If you skimmed the last two paragraphs, go back and read it again, as this is one of the truly MAJOR new components of the SFI system. Because the 2x12 network is so narrow, substantial growth will naturally flow down level after level.

With the combination of your own efforts, PLUS the efforts of your upline, PLUS the efforts of your downline, a large percentage of your affiliates could be receiving these exciting notifications. Over a month's time, the number of affiliates placed under them could be VERY substantial. Indeed, many of our top leaders have been known to bring in literally HUNDREDS of new affiliates a DAY!

Are the affiliates above all this activity going to want to lose their position and lose all this potential income? Of course not! New affiliates will now have a HUGE incentive to become MIQ and remain MIQ.

NEW BUILT-IN COMPANYWIDE AD CO-OP
An all-new company-sponsored ad co-op will go into affect in January. Up to 12 free shares will be included in the benefits of the rank of Platinum Team Leader. Bronze Team Leaders will receive one free share, Silver two free shares, and Gold four free shares. In other words, by simply referring 2 MIQs (the basic qualifications for Bronze Team Leader), you would receive one free share in the ad co-op and up to 12 free shares in advancing to Platinum. You receive these free shares automatically every month that you are qualified at that rank and all affiliates generated for you by the ad co-op of course flow into your network, increasing momentum and growth for all.

NEW RETAIL PROGRAM
SFI has always endeavored to have a strong retail program. As of January 1st, our strongest retail program yet will be in place. Starting January 1st, when you make a sale to a NON-affiliate, it will be considered a retail sale and you will earn a straight 40% (of CV) commission. It DOUBLES to 80% if you have at least 10 total SVP for the month. Special note: We have eliminated the old comp plan's "initial sale" and "subsequent sale" labels. In other words, with the new plan, a sale is a sale. Period. Whether the customer is buying for the first time or the 50th time from you, you're going to earn 40% (80% if your total personal SVP for the month is 10 or more).

Bottom line: If you want to focus on personal retail sales, we now have a very robust compensation plan that pays you up to 80% of our CV (Commission Volume) on every product you sell.

OTHER FEATURES OF T-NET
Here are some other features of the T-NET plan that you may not have realized or that are not yet documented elsewhere:

1. You can earn from every income stream without any group volume requirements.

2. You can earn over $10,000/mo. with JUST TWO personally sponsored MIQ affiliates.

3. You can earn infinitely deep into your organization on all personally-sponsored MIQ affiliates.

4. There will be monthly compression of the network for maximum payout. This means that should someone drop out, the next affiliate below that spot moves up to fill the gap. This ensures maximization of the number of affiliates in your payline and a constant clearing of the "dead wood" in your organization which allows your best people to rise to the top.

5. OVER THREE TIMES as many affiliates will be receiving commission checks as there are today. That's thousands of more people every month with proof that SFI is the real deal, and we believe this will pay huge dividends.

6. If one of your personally-referred affiliates sponsors someone, then downgrades, the commissions of that "orphaned" affiliate can now roll-up to you.

=================== IMPORTANT ===================

With the exception of brand new affiliates joining SFI after December 1st, to be part of the T-Net Network when we compile it on January 1st, you MUST BE MIQ on December 31, 2004. We will do our best to make sure everyone gets this important message. However, you can really help yourself by doing everything you can during December to help as many of your non-MIQ affiliates get upgraded so that they start the new year with the best possible position in the new T-Net network.

Of course, not only that, but for all your personally-sponsored affiliates who upgrade via a standard 10 SVP/20 CV personal purchase in December, you'll earn a Seller's Commission of $16 for each one.

To help you reach as many of your affiliates as possible, we've set up a special co-op postcard mailing. For just 29 cents apiece, we'll send out a full-color postcard via first-class mail to all of your personally-sponsored affiliates (USA-resident s only). If you don't wish to mail to ALL, you can mail to your top 25, top 100, top 500, or whatever number you want. We will use a "Power Rating" formula which weighs the number of referrals, months they've been MIQ, etc. to determine who your top affiliates are. You can get more information and/or order your postcard mailing at:

[URL deleted -- This is for affiliates who have sponsored other affiliates, only.]

Note!! The DEADLINE to order your postcards is Monday, December 6th.

================================================

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
To keep the length of this announcement letter down, we've set up a separate Webpage of over 30 important questions and answers about the new comp plan. We STRONGLY urge you to go to this Q&A Webpage and review this information:

https://www.sfimg.com/Reference/TNetFAQ.sfi

(If you're not an SFI affiliate, you can join here and get access to that information.)

JANUARY 1ST SNEAK PEEKS & CLOSING THOUGHTS
In addition to a powerful, new compensation plan, an incredible new email notification system, and a company-sponsored ad co-op, here are some of the other major items coming to SFI in January:



When all of these new programs, products, and enhancements are in place in January, we believe SFI will take another huge leap forward. Indeed, the SYNERGY of everything combined and working together will be extremely powerful.

There will be lots of additional information coming out in the following days and weeks as we edge closer to January 1st. We are also planning conference calls, etc. to get everyone fully up to speed and ready to hit the ground running in January.

In the meantime, if you want to start boosting your commission check right now, you need to get started immediately on a gameplan for contacting your affiliates. Remember, they must be MIQ on December 31st, 2004 to secure the best possible position in T-Net. After December 31st this opportunity for them will be gone forever.

I hope you are as excited as I am. 2005 is going to be a breakout year for SFI and I'm going to do everything I can to make it be YOUR best year ever, too.

Gery Carson

SFI Founder & President

ShopForT1 News

Posted by johndilbeck on Sunday, December 5 2004 at 3:43 PM

Your opportunities with ShopForT1 continue to increase on a regular basis, as more and more Cognigen agents are seeing that T1 (and larger circuit) sales have closed and they are seeing the commissions. You are encouraged to take the time to understand what you have to offer here, since ShopForT1 is one of the absolute best deals around today.

You find a need for bandwidth, the lead is entered into the system, and a technical professional closes the sale for you! It just doesn't get any better than that!

With the advent and ever-increasing demand for VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol, or broadband phone) services for businesses, ShopForT1 is aligned with both Broadvox and Packet8 to provide a bundled solution for customers. This can be a tremendous cost savings for businesses, since a data-only T1 is typically less expensive than an integrated T1 line (combining data and voice circuits). The ShopForT1 closers understand this and are explaining it to customers as a cost-effective option on a regular basis.

The carriers that are represented by ShopForT1 are also noticing the tremendous success, and are continually amazed at the number of orders that are closed. As a result of this, these carriers are regularly offering very generous spiffs, bonuses, and increased commissions to compensate ShopForT1 (and you, the agent) for this continued success.

Is there really an opportunity here? You bet!

Consider that within the United States there are well over a MILLION T1 lines being used. This is a substantial market for you to go after. Now, consider that if a T1 line has been in place for more than 2 years, it is very likely that the customer is paying much more than he should be for it. If that T1 line has been in place for more than 3 years, it is almost certain that the customer is paying more than he needs to for that service. Even "techno-savvy" customers sometimes find it difficult to understand how ShopForT1 can offer such low prices from top-tier carriers. One ShopForT1 closer tells the story that one customer didn't believe the prices he was being quoted by the closer over the phone, so he asked the closer to print the quote and get it notarized, and then fax it to him!

How can ShopForT1 offer such prices from these top-tier carriers?

The name of the game is VOLUME. Based on the volume of business that ShopForT1 provides to all of our carriers every month, those carriers guarantee the best prices possible. That's why the closers don't hesitate to tell the customer which carriers are being quoted, because the guarantee is that the customer cannot go to that same carrier directly and get a better price on the same service.

For you, the agent, ShopForT1 can represent a gold mine. Consider that you don't need to close the sale -- the sale is closed for you by a professional technical consultant at no cost to you or the customer. Also consider that a T1 line or larger circuit is almost always sold on a 1, 2, or 3 year contract. This means that you have a guaranteed commission every month from that customer for the life of the contract, and may ALSO get a one-time bonus or spiff from it.

It just doesn't get any better than this.

Well, we have said that before and it still continues to get better and better, with more tools being added regularly. Don't miss the boat on this tremendous opportunity.

Packet8 Broadband Phone Service (VoIP) Launches to Tremendous Demand

Posted by johndilbeck on Sunday, December 5 2004 at 3:40 PM

Cognigen agents now have the opportunity to market Packet8, 8x8's broadband phone service for both business and residential subscribers. Using high-speed connections to make voice and video calls over the Internet, Broadband Phone (a.k.a. VoIP or Voice over Internet Protocol) is one of the biggest growth industries around, and Packet8 is ranked as one of the top three services available.

Packet8 is an affordable and easy-to-use broadband telephone and videophone service. Designed with both residential and business customers in mind, Packet8 allows anyone with broadband (high-speed) Internet access to use their regular phone to make UNLIMITED calls to anywhere in the U.S. and Canada for as little as $19.95 per month. Business plans start at $34.95. Packet8 subscribers with videophones can make video calls for as little as $29.95 per month. All Packet8 subscribers get world wide UNLIMITED calling to other Packet8 subscribers at no extra charge.

Search It! Adds Five New Searches for RSS and Blogs, and Four for Specialty Hubs and Directories

Posted by johndilbeck on Sunday, December 5 2004 at 3:25 PM

Ken Evoy's free Internet search utility has just gotten better, if you have any interest in RSS, XML, and blogs or for specialty hubs and directories.

Search It!, which does NOT involve downloading anything to your computer, is a utility that makes it easier to find information relating to business and ecommerce on the Internet. By using a multi-step process (usually three steps, but sometimes four), it will build the searches for you and go to the appropriate search engine, directory, or content site to find the information in which you are interested.

One item you'll see in the Step 1 dropdown box is "Reference Library for Content." By selecting that, Search It! will automatically populate the Step 2 box with appropriate choices. There is a link to get help for using the tool once you have selected your choices for Step 1 and Step 2.

The new searches listed in the Reference Library for Content choice in Step 1 are:

Yahoo! RSS Domain Search

Feedster Blog/RSS Search

Syndic8.com RSS Search

Google RSS Content Search

Yahoo! RSS Content Search


It's taken me years to learn how to search for some of these things and where to go to find them, and Ken has just given you that power for free.

Not only that, but he just added four more searches related to hubs and directories. Select "Specialty Hubs and Directories" in Step 1, and you'll see the following new searches in Step 2:

Google Wide

Google Tight

Yahoo! Wide

Yahoo! Tight


The help link below Step 1 and Step 2 gives information on how to use these new searches.

I use Search It! just about every day. It's easy to use. Leave the small window open in the top-left corner of your screen so it will be available when you want to find something of interest. The more I use it, the better I like it.

I was surprised to see that I have several sites listed in the top 10 for both the Yahoo! Wide and Tight searches for the following keywords: Step 3 = "Murphy NC" and Step 4 = "travel". It looks like the work I've been doing for the last several months is starting to pay off.