Regarding large bureaucracies, Mother Theresa once said, “So many signatures for such a small heart.” The same could be said for the U.S. banks embroiled in the foreclosure scandal. Haven’t they learned anything since 2008’s financial cataclysm? Read more...

On an Internet community, a senior-market newbie requested feedback on a prospecting technique . . . sending marketing letters to the relatives of recently deceased people. (“Uh-oh,” I thought.) The agent had tried sending 100 letters to people mentioned in a newspaper obituary, but didn’t get any responses. Given the time investment required, the agent was wondering whether anyone else had achieved success with such letters. Read more...

All marketplaces have slimy competitors. They acquire prospects in dubious ways, spread lies about competitors, misrepresent products, and bully prospects to buy. In the short term, they may have an advantage. But over the long term, their scummy tactics almost always backfire.  Read more...

"Mistakes." Now that’s a word that not only describes the Madoff mess (sayonara, Bernie!), but also the recent history of our economy and industry. But the question now is, have all the guilty parties—from the Wall St. titans to the corner mortgage brokers to the Washington politicians to the overly ambitious homebuyers—learned enough from the past to not repeat their mistakes in the future? Read more...

Your ultimate nightmare: despite your best efforts to sell the right product, your client is now unhappy about how things turned out. In the good old days, the person might scream at you and then badmouth you to 10 other people. Today, the person may also post his complaint on the Internet, where it will be seen by prospects who are Googling before doing business with you. Complaint from Hell, meet marketing fiasco! Read more...

Ah, complaints! Years ago, clients might file complaints with a state or federal regulator. You’d be called to account, but if you weren’t at fault, hopefully the regulator would dismiss it. If you were, you’d either make good or enter mediation (or court). Read more...