Home Loans & Cars

I had an eye-opening exchange with my friend, Dean Loux, from Wells Fargo Bank last week. Here's the bottom line for you:

• The media is very poorly explaining what is going on with home loans today.
• If you have good credit and even a modest...and sometimes limited...down payment, you can still get a home loan easily.
• With interest rates at almost record lows, it's a great time to either build a new home or buy an  existing home. 
• This opportunity is not going to last. 

Another interesting tidbit from the auto industry:

• Car loans are also very loan and deals abound on payment plans.
• Because of the past auto stimulus, there is a shortage of used cars which has driven up the cost of used cars. 
• Great if you want to sell a used car. Bad if you want to buy a used car.
• The good news is there are some great deals on new cars. And some surprises. A leading consumer publication rated a Hyundai model as the best car under $20,000 that gets at least 35mpg. 
• "Green" [hybrid] cars are not selling as well as expected. Guess why? Regular ol' gas cars are now getting really good gas mileage. 
• Still...run the numbers as I did. It may not pay to get rid of your already-paid-for gas guzzler and get a new one. Unless the gas guzzler is in old age ready for the retirement home.  

Toll Interview is Telling

This morning's USAToday Money section featured an interview with Robert Toll, founder of Toll Bros., on of the largest home builders in the U.S.

No matter what industry you are in, the interview had implications and lessons for you.

Here's the take away from that interview:

• We know that interest rates are at historic lows but he believes that they may go up to the 7% range. 
• It's a great time to buy a house if you have decent credit and 20% down payment. You will not have any problem financing a purchase.
• "If the housing market stays stagnant, will the rest of the economy stagnate or even worsen?" His answer was, Yes, yes and yes. 
• The housing market employs probably more people than any other industry. Think about where people work that are affected by the poor housing market: finance, all building materials, building trades, furniture and decor, appliances, real estate. Everything from the people making and selling drapery and carpets to the folks making paint to the carpenters, the sewer contractor, cement plant and light switch manufacturer, sales person and distributor. 

What does it mean? My opinion:

• Business will likely remain soft for at least another year. 
• Whatever you do, whether you own a restaurant, car company, party rentals or build houses: be aggressive and smart. 
• You need to out maneuver and out market your competitors and get the business that does exist. 
• Whatever business you are in, there are customers albeit, in some cases, fewer. 
• Only spend money on what makes you money!

Different Browsers

OK, it's not a very sexy subject for sure. But it might be worth a few minutes of your time. You might consider a different 'browser.'


Microsoft Internet Explorer - This is the de facto browser with any Windows installation. It does work pretty well and the new Version 8 has better security built into it. It is bloated and not all that fast or clean as far as the screen goes.

FireFox [from Mozilla] - It's free and it faster and very easy to set up with more security than most. Plus there are lots of 'plug-ins'...if you care about tweaking it. I would not recommend Version 4.0. I would stick with, only only download, 3.6. It does not play nice with a few apps; although they'll probably fix it at some point.

Chrome [from Google] - I believe is the fastest of the bunch; has a very uncluttered screen; plays nice with most applications; and since it's from Google has lots of support and configuration options if you want to customize it a bit.

I believe that most people who would consider themselves as knowledgeable computer users are using either FireFox or Chrome simply because they are better browsers. I tend to bonce back and forth between both of them. But, I rarely...to never...use IE.

If your not stuck in a rut, look at the advantages to switching. All of your favorites and bookmarks are easily and automatically ported over so no worries there.

Oh, if you do also use an iPad, as I do, Firefox is pretty ugly there. Probably the gatekeeper, Apple, sees to that. So Safari is your best option. But, Flash doesn't work on the iPhone or iPad anyway....a real downer for sure. But that's the price you pay for the very nice iPad.

Shoes

This is a true story! I JUST got off the phone with my brother who works for VW as a regional marketing consultant. He is just getting ready to go into a dealer meeting and related this to me.

When he opened his suitcase this morning after packing and traveling yesterday, he realized that he'd mistakenly packed a pair of shoes that don't match. He said they were kind of close....but sure not the same. And, it's the only pair of shoes he brought. And, he's 200 miles from his home near Atlanta.

But it gets better. They are both left feet! So, as I am talking to him he's getting ready to go into an important meeting with two shoes on his feet that don't match and are both the left foot!

He says that fortunately his pants are kind of long. But, I am laughing and wondering what anyone will think if they notice. Pity? Sympathy [this poor guy must have as club foot or some deformity]? Will they try and hold back the snickers?

I assure you that I am  going to be much more careful in my packing and business meeting preparation from now on.

On a serious note, I always carry two different formats of any digital presentation on two different storage devices plus paper copies plus the presentation stored out on the web at You Send It or on Google docs.

I am still chuckling about the shoes. So check yours today too.

Who's Cheaper?

I bet you see the same ads I do for Geico, Allstate, Progressive, Nationwide, Farmers and others who say that you can save $400 --- or whatever--- by switching to us.

How can they all say that? How can they be right? What happens when you call up?

Frankly, I don't know what happens when you call up. But one thing I do know: None of them are the least expensive for good coverage. My personal experience is that I have gotten the best coverage for the best price from a company who is large but does not run those kinds of braggadocio.

But, that kind of marketing obviously works. I don't like it, however; and I do not encourage it. Whatever kind of business you are in, it's likely there are the same kind of boasters running the same kinds of ads who are really selling less for more.

Another example is eye glasses. A recent report showed that the companies advertising glasses at bargain prices actually don't have bargain prices at all once you get to their store. In fact, your local optometrist or ophthalmologist probably has the best combination and price and service.

I think the lesson is that your marketing should be honest and emphasize your core values....the benefits of your products or services. It can be funny, eye-catching or thought provoking, just make it honest.

Everybody has the same problem

One of my tennis buddies is the service department manager for a large GM dealership. He picks up my Denali and brings it back whenever I need service. It's a pretty sweet deal.

So last night when he brought it back we were chatting in the driveway for a few minutes. Terry says, "I am advertising oil changes for $18.95 and beating the big chain oil change stores big-time and they charge $39.95 like it's a great deal."

So I asked him, "So what's the problem besides not making any money on it? Are you getting lots of new customers?"

He said, "No! My problem is that even though I am mailing post cards and running ads, people still don't know that I have this great deal."

It's an "ah ha moment" isn't it? You have a great product or great service but unless people know about it, so what? Effective marketing is the key.

Is the stuff on your computer important?

Well now, that might seem like a dumb question. But, here's why I ask. If it is, what kind of insurance do you have on your computer data?

You have insurance on your house, your car, your health, maybe even your pet. And, then there's your boat, your gun collection, your jewelry and your next vacation.

What about the home and vacation photos, home movies, business documents, emails [except if you use something like Gmail, Hotmail or Yahoo exclusively], medical information, Quicken checkbook, perhaps your will, family history or music?

I have been involved in the technology business since 1986. And, I think I've seen it all as far as computer disasters. Friends, family and business associates still contact me often with their computer problems. 

While I have never had a house fire or had my car stolen, I still have insurance. Same goes with the documents, video and pictures on my computer. For decades, I've used either a 2nd computer on my home network or more recently a large 250gb external drive for backup of everything on my computer.

However, I am now moving to online backup such as Mozy or Carbonite. Both programs are good. Both cost about the same. There are some very small differences for those with special needs.

Here's the best deal that I see for Carbonite. It's less than $60.00 a year. Sure, budgets are tight and times might be tough. But, honestly, I can not afford to risk losing the data on my computer. I have almost 100 gigabites of stuff accumulated over many years plus invaluable business data and my music.

So my advice is get either Carbonite or Mozy or religiously back up to an external drive.

Or, there is one more option. That is to store all your photos out on Picasa and all your documents [word processing, spreadsheet and presentation] out in Google docs....which is also a great service that is free. Not quite as simple a solution, but it does work.

Just promise me that you'll do something.

Entrepreneur magazine

Entrepreneur magazine [and website] has long been one of my favorite places for inspiration, ideas, business intelligence and thought provoking sales and marketing tips. Their website is loaded with good stuff, too.

Better yet, the print magazine is free on your iPad....or your iPhone. Although I think reading a book or anything else much more than a page or so is silly on an iPhone...or any smart phone for that matter.

Another great source for any small business person is Success Magazine. Some of it is available online too.

Check them out. I think learning new stuff using it to adapt should be you goal every week.