In Conclusion

* The Dow Jones Utilities Average This long-term lead indicator shows the condition of sensitive income and interest stocks.

* TRIN (Trading Index) This indicator tracks the volume of rising and declining issues.
When you have a bull market, TRIN falls from above 1.20 to below .70 during one trading day. When the market is bearish, TRIN goes from below .70 to above 1.20. If TRIN registers 1.00, this means there is an even relationship between declining and advancing stocks.
Ask the Investor Relations Officer When all else fails, you can ask a company's investor relations officer (IRS) for information about a corporation's status. Before you turn to this source, do your homework and see if your questions cannot be answered in some other way. When you call the IRS, have a written set of questions in front of you that you want specifically answered.
It is the company's right to not answer any of your questions. In fact, the IRS is limited to information like the company's future plans, media announcements, or figures which have already been made public. But the IRS can discuss pertinent information, such as labor relations and competitors, which may influence the actions of your stock.
As you can see, you are not limited to information given to you by your stock broker. The more you learn about corporations and the stock market, the more wise you will be with your money. If possible, take a couple of investment courses at your local college. If not, read all the information you can find on the subject. It's your money. You are the one who can take care of it like no one else.

SAVE MONEY (AND MAKE BIG MONEY) WITH FREE INVESTMENT HELP PART 3

* Accounts payable you can spot potential cash problems in a company by investigating the accounts payable section of the financial statement. If the company pays its bills on time in one lump sum, it is in good financial condition. If you notice that bill payments are getting stretched out, the company might be having cash flow problems.
Investment Newsletters
Another source for information is an investment newsletter. There are dozens of them on the market today, and the trick is to find the one that best deals with your interests and needs.
No investment newsletter is going to be 100 percent, or even 75 percent accurate on its choices. You need to view a newsletter as a springboard for your own investment ideas and research. Avoid newsletters full of hype and adjectives like "Stupendous" or "once in a lifetime chance." Try to locate a newsletter that is full of restraint, and explains its choices in a logical manner. It also helps if the newsletter you choose has a consistent record of picking the good stocks.
Before taking any investment newsletter, decide if you are a long term investor-willing to take a loss at times and in the investment for the long haul-or short term investor in need of immediate information for today's stock market. There are newsletters available for both kinds of investors.
On the surface, newsletters can seem expensive, with a $45 to a whopping $7,000 per year subscription price, but compared to what you would pay for a money manager, you can end up saving in the long run. Whether you use a broker or not, remember that the information in these newsletters is up-to-the-minute in many cases. If you act on it too late, it can cost you.
Here are some of the best investing newsletters:
Astro Geometrics Journal $282 per year for 12 issues to subscribe, call: 312-559-5500
Astro Investor $45 per year for 12 issues to subscribe, call: 317-357-6855
Crawford Perspectives $250 per year for 12 issues to subscribe, call: 212-535-6202
Cash in on Chaos $250 per year for 12 issues to subscribe, call: 303-452-5566
Market Systems $366 per year for 12 issues to subscribe, call: 818-509-1133
Be Your Own Broker If you enjoy investing in government securities, you can cut out the broker's price by buying you own Treasury notes and bonds directly from the Federal Reserve Bank.

Simply write a letter to the Bank or one of its branches, stating the securities to be bought, and the name under which any notes or bonds will be registered. Enclose a check for the face value of the securities ($10,000 minimum for bills, $5,000 for short-term notes, and $1,000 for bonds). Make sure your letter is postmarked by midnight the day before the next securities auction. The government will send you a receipt along with a refund for the discount determined at the auction.
Do Your Own Forecasting through Technical Analysis Technical analysis is the fine art of predicting the major trends of a particular stock by studying its price pattern. It can work very much in your favor, because the price of stocks is set by what others think it is worth, not by what it is actually worth. Since stockholders tend to stay in love with a stock for a period of time, you may be able to cash in on this without using any inside information or top research analysts.
The technical analysis of price patterns can show you how big of a move to expect from a particular stock, but it can also get you into trouble if you become too impatient and buy or sell before the signal for it actually happens. The result can be disastrous for you.
One way to tell when the market is ripe for a breakthrough is to watch the Dow. If you see, interest rates are peaking and heading down, a large number of stocks hitting the new high list, volumes in excess of 60 million shares a day, and strong moves in the transportation and utility averages. This is the time to put your knowledge to work for you.
Watch Other Indicators besides the Dow although trends on the Dow Jones Industrial Average are reliable sources of market information, it is not the only method for predicting market movements. Some of the other indicators to use in conjunction with the Dow are:

*The Quotron Change This indicator is especially effective if you have mutual funds, because funds track more closely to
Quotron than to the Dow. Quotron lets you know what the market is doing in broad term, on both the New York and American Stock Exchanges.

* The Over-the-Counter Composite Index This index shows the cumulative performance of over-the-counter issues. If you see it outpacing the Dow, get ready for a bull market. If the index is weaker than the Dow, plan for a bear market.

* The Dow Jones Transportation Average This indicator tracks intermediate trends between bull and bear markets.

SAVE MONEY (AND MAKE BIG MONEY) WITH FREE INVESTMENT HELP PART 2

Since no one wants your money to increase faster than you do, why not take responsibility of your own future and educate yourself on investing?
Small Stockholders Can Profit Even if you don't own a great deal of stock in a company, you can occasionally make a 10 percent profit from them. Once in a while, a company offers to buy the stock of its small investors at a 10 percent profit just to save money on having to serve small stockholders. If you are offered such a deal, study the market, see where the stock is going, and then perhaps take the premium and roll it over into another kind of stock.
The nice thing about this kind of transaction is you can deal directly with the company, instead of paying an extra fee to your stockbroker for transacting the business.
Become Your Own Securities Analyst
You don't have to be a big-time investor to do the same kind of investigating top security analysts do. A security analyst gleans information from the financial statements of major companies around the world. As a smaller, individual stockholder, there is nothing to keep you from taking advantage of this source of public information.
Some of the important information located on financial statements include:

* Deviations and inconsistencies look for any areas where the company broke away from trends or otherwise acted unusual.
Especially compare the information presented in stockholders reports with the material filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC). These sources might be able to show you places where taxes were deferred, depletion allowances, and different tax credits.

* Inventory figures these figures are the company's heart and soul. They can tell you whether the raw materials on hand match the finished products being shipped out, and whether work in progress is keeping up with production.

* Accounts receivable these can show you a company's policy on handling allowances for doubtful accounts. If the ratio to receivables is down, the company is manufacturing false earnings. If it is up, they might be heading into trouble. An accounts receivable can also let you compare this year's receivables' activity to previous years.

SAVE MONEY (AND MAKE BIG MONEY) WITH FREE INVESTMENT HELP 1

In today's wild business climate of corporate downsizing, hostile takeovers, rising and falling interest rates, and a stock market ever on an inexplicable spiral, you really need the help of an expensive brokerage house to help you make sense of it all, right? Not so fast! Here are some things you should consider before handing over your money to the hands of strangers.
Most brokerage houses are honest businesses, but many are not above playing fast and loose with your funds. Do a lot of people lose money when they hire a brokerage firm that handles their money? Yes, and a lot more often than you think.
Furthermore, think about this: that piece of paper full of fine print you sign when you give your money into their care basically ties your hands. Once you sign, they have the power to control your money. If you don't like what they do, you may have to accept the decision of an arbitrator, unless you take your complaint to a federal district court, or insert language into the original contract which protects your rights. Either way, the hassle can be enormous, and costly.
Brokerage firms offer advice on how to invest your money, but sometimes you can run into serious trouble with a stockbroker if you are not paying attention. Stockbrokers have many ways of getting extra money from you. The most common problem is negligence, whereby the stockbroker fails to comply with an order. Another problem arises from a situation called "churning." When a stockbroker churns your account, he advises you to make a transaction which creates commissions for him instead of profits for you. Finally, and in conjunction with churning, a stockbroker can misrepresent an investment, with his own interests in mind instead of yours.
Despite the big bucks spent by brokerage firms designed to convince you that you need them, the truth is that you don't. All it takes is a bit of homework, and an ability to take advantage of free or cheap information available to you in any library or on any bookshelf.
There is nothing wrong with using a reputable brokerage firm to handle your market transactions, but don't be dazzled by the purported "knowledge" of your assigned stockbroker. They're not much smarter than you, and they'll charge you a hefty price for their services.
Several ways exist for you to cash in on markets and funds, and a number of free or reasonably-priced information sources are available to help you along the way.

15 AMAZING WAYS TO SUPER CHARGE YOUR BUSINESS SUCCESS

11. TELL THEM EVERYTHING YOU KNOW. Spill the beans, so to speak. Since today's customers want information, knowledge and helpful ideas, do everything you can to share everything you know. This is the only way to become a valued resource to your customers. When people use your ideas, they will buy what you sell.
12. BE GENEROUS. No one wants to do business with firms operating on a one-way street. Buy a new car and the dealer hands you a 20-cent plastic key holder! It sends a message that this dealer doesn't under-stand his customers. You may forget the car, but you will never forget the lousy key ring! Another auto dealer delivers the new car to your office. What a difference. This dealer sends a powerful message--our customers are important.
13. MAKE PROSPECT IDENTIFICATION YOUR MISSION. The single most important daily activity in any business is prospect identification. By making prospecting a continuing process, companies produce a steady flow of new sales leads. They never
stop asking, "Who do we want to do business with if we have the chance?" Then make sure all prospects are entered into a database so they can be cultivated over a period of time.
14. SCRUTINIZE YOUR CORPORATE IDENTITY. Yes, how a company presents itself makes a difference. Is the logo appropriate? Is it dated? Does it communicate the right message and the correct image? Is the president the only one who understands it? What about the company colors? Are they reminiscent of the late '50s? Do the letterhead, mailing labels and business cards convey a strong, positive message? Or, are they dull and ordinary looking? If you don't think this is important, your competitors will be thrilled. Corporate identity is the face you put on your company.
15. WRITE CUSTOMER-CENTERED LETTERS. Most business letters have cold, impersonal words. "As per our conversation..."
"Pursuant to our agreement..." When was the last time you heard anyone talk this way at lunch (other than perhaps a lawyer)?
Yet, give the same executives a pen and they become stilted. There is no reason why business letters should not be warm, friendly, conversational, interesting--and customer-centered. Write as if you were the one reading it. Should a letter end at the bottom of the first page? Yes, if that's what it takes to tell the story? But it may take two, four or six pages. A letter should be as long as necessary and always interesting to the reader.

15 AMAZING WAYS TO SUPER CHARGE YOUR BUSINESS SUCCESS

6. MAKE YOUR OFFERS OUTSTANDING. Customers are cautious. They don't like being put on the spot; they don't want to make a mistake. This is why offers are essential. "Try it for 30 days...free." "We won't deposit your credit card slip for a month."
"Your satisfaction is guaranteed." "Take the car for the weekend and drive it all you want." The goal is to overcome the customer's reluctance.
7. BE IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME. "Why didn't I think of you last week when we bought the new..." Some salespeople simply shrug off such comments. "Oh, well. I can't be in the right place every time." Wrong. Being in front of the customer is today's assignment. Developing a consistent program for staying in front of customers regularly is the challenge. A mix of seminars, newsletters, bulletins, fact sheets, special events and informative articles will keep you in the customers' minds.
8. NAME YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE. One of the best ways to differentiate your products or services from all the rest is to give them distinctive names. A building contractor with expertise in remodeling during off-hours calls himself the "stealth" remodeled. A fuel oil dealer doesn't talk about service--he emphasizes "Comfort Care Service." The idea is to imbue ordinary ideas with new meaning thereby separating your company from your competitors. Make sure, however, that the name appeals to your customers and not just to you.
9. BE RELENTLESS. PERSISTENCE IS POWER IN MARKETING AND SALES. Far too many firms fail in their efforts because they don't follow through long enough to produce proper results. Marketing momentum comes from a consistent effort. Once you start a newsletter, issue it on schedule. It takes time for customers to comprehend what you are doing and for prospects to get acquainted--and comfortable--with a business.
10. GET RID OF THE SELF-SERVING NONSENSE. Most company publications, ads, letters, brochures, and other sales materials are filled with words; photographs and information that do nothing more than toot the company's horn. No one cares that the business says it is the "best," "oldest" or the "biggest." Pictures of the staff are only interesting to the staff. A better approach is to ask prospects what they want to know about your company. We doubt anyone will be anxious to see pictures of the CEO, chairman of the board or the executive vice president.

15 AMAZING WAYS TO SUPER CHARGE YOUR BUSINESS SUCCESS

We decided it would be fun to interview 10 of the smartest marketing gurus we know, including 7 multi-millionaires, about the best ways to increase customer and cash flow for just about any business.
What we got were a variety of fresh, innovative ideas -- and once you read them, you will know that they came from a group of folks who have already made it big in businesses of their own.
The following are the "15 Best" ideas for super charging your business, no matter what kind of business you are in.
1. "SAME-OLD" IS OUT -- Getting attention with something new is in. To get new business, you must strive to be innovative and dramatic. For example, an insurance agency, offered "the biggest steak dinner in town" if it couldn't save any person money on their car insurance. This challenge was enough to make the telephone start ringing off the hook for days at a time. The customer flow was "absolutely crazy" for days. The bottom line: dozens of new insurance buyers and tons of new cash flow -- and all they had to do was fork out the cost for a half dozen steak dinners!
2. TIGHT TARGET MARKETING. The big job in marketing and sales is getting to the right people inside another company. Addressing mail to "Facilities Manager" or printing a "routing slip" on the outside of the envelope is ineffective. Hitting the target is the challenge. Scoring a bull's eye means making contact with the right individuals and is the only way to make the sale. Taking time to be highly targeted in business communication is essential.
3. BE MORE CREATIVE. Pushing direct-mail pieces out the door or sending the newsletter to the mail room isn't doing the job.
Ask yourself: "Will anyone be intrigued enough to read the mailer--before tossing it in the wastebasket?" Ask the same question about the company newsletter. A highly creative approach is necessary to be different and distinctive. Creativity costs money. But, if more people read the ad, take time with the newsletter or decide that the offer in a mailer makes sense, you have accomplished the goal.
4. FOCUS ON WHAT CUSTOMERS CARE ABOUT. After listening to the admissions director talk about what should be shown in the school's new recruiting video, the marketing consultant asked, "Is this what parents and prospective students are interested in knowing?" Suddenly, everyone became less confident. Someone suggested asking the student tour guides what questions the visiting parents and kids asked? Whether creating an ad, a brochure, or a sales presentation, knowing what the customer wants needs and expects is what works.
5. TELL CUSTOMERS HOW TO THINK ABOUT YOUR COMPANY. We come to conclusions by making comparisons. If you don't let customers and prospects know why it is in their best interests to do business with you or buy your product, they won't. The rating of life insurance companies makes an impact on customers. The J.D. Powers' customer-satisfaction survey on cars and personal computer manufacturers influences buying behavior. Wise companies spend time and effort consciously influencing the way they are perceived by customers, prospects, bankers and stockholders.