There’s no argument with the professor about the need for cash infusions in the early days of a new or expanding business. Last year there were nearly 1 million business start-ups in the United States. An incredible 50% of them opened their doors with $10,000 or less in capital.

The professor should have included in his curriculum another proven method of financing entrepreneurial startups — the use of Boomerang Dollars. Unknown to the professor and many others, are the many ways Boomerang can assist a fledgling operator.

A new owner who’s able to provide needed products and services to Boomerang’s Business Partners can often borrow Boomerang Dollars against future sales. He then can immediately use those dollars to make necessary improvements or selected renovations, purchase a myriad of needed merchandise, acquire valuable advertising, or even finance a gala grand opening promotion.

Maximum cash flow is retained because financing charges and interest on a Boomerang loan is payable in Boomerang Dollars earned at the business owners margin. Boomerang provides another key benefit of increasing cash flow by paying for many expenses with Boomerang Dollars thereby freeing up cash to pay for the hard, fixed, operational costs such as salaries, utilities, phone bills, as well as suppliers.

Thanks to Boomerang, cash at this critical time can be used to build the new enterprise rather than paying the banker. The Boomerang flight path is complete when the new owner happily opens their door to their next new customer ushered in by Boomerang to incrementally help them pay off their loan with the purchase of their goods and services.

1. Look on the bright side: The downside of rejection is obvious, but if you put some thought into it you will find that even the dark cloud of rejection has a silver lining. Think of each client having a set number of “no” responses and figure that with each rejection you’re one step closer to a “yes”. Rejection is often a temporary condition. Also, imagine that each rejection actually makes you stronger and more immune to subsequent rejections. Remind yourself of famous salespeople you know and how many hundreds or thousands of rejections they have had to endure on their path to success. When you get rejected, you’re not alone.

2. Take a lesson: There’s a lesson to be found in every rejection. Maybe you didn’t match your client’s needs to your product’s benefits, or maybe you made your prospect uneasy by showing your own nervousness. Don’t get rejected in vein –learn something from the experience that will help you to avoid getting turned down in the future. Analyze your presentation and try to replay your prospect’s expressions and reactions to what you said to find out where you might have gone wrong. When you pinpoint a mistake, remind yourself not to repeat it on future sales calls. If you learn just one new lesson with each appointment or even each day, you’ll establish a pattern of ongoing improvements that will help boost your sales and your confidence.

3. Don’t expect perfection: No one can reasonably expect to close on every call –or even every other call. In selling, as in life, you win some and you lose some. The more calls you make, ultimately the more you will win. Optimism will help you to succeed, but don’t expect to close on every call. Make each call prepared and positive, but don’t underestimate the number of “no” responses you’re likely to hear before you reach a yes. If you can get the sale, don’t settle for less, but if you leave a call empty handed be satisfied if you can at least learn something from it. When you make mistakes, forgive yourself. Mistakes are great learning experiences, but to benefit from them you must keep moving forward.

4. Get to the root of rejection: Don’t take your prospect’s first no for an answer. Prospects often object to and reject salespeople because they’re afraid to make a bad decision, or for other reasons that don’t have to stand in the way of the sale. When a client objects to what you’re offering, probe to uncover the reasons behind it by asking, ” May I ask why you feel that way?” Changing your client’s mind may be as simple as sharing some specific information about your client’s products or testimonials from others that you know have used the specific product and have been happy. When you satisfy the objection, try a trial close -if your prospect objects again, repeat the probing strategy until you’ve answered all objections. It’s all part of why being a salesperson is such a challenging career choice. Be invigorated by it.

5. Give yourself a pep talk: When rejection starts to eat away at your self-esteem and confidence, stop it cold with positive self-improvement talk. As soon as a doubt or negative thought enters your mind, replace it with a positive one such as, “I’m a great salesperson” and “After they hear what I have to say, they’ll want to buy from me!” Remind yourself constantly that persistence is the key to success and that rejection may not be pleasant but you won’t let it stop you.

6. Thoughts are things: In many ways, success is a state of mind. When a prospect stubbornly refuses to buy, you have to stubbornly refuse to let it get to you. Maintaining a positive attitude regardless of the circumstances will drive you to move on to the next prospect when the last one turned you down. Even if rejection never gets easy to take, it never has to stand in your way. Believe you can do it and you will.

–Andy Culver

The key to long term success is to not let the highs of your success get too high and to not let the lows of your failures get too low. Hey, it ain’t easy but that’s why they call it work, right?

We thought we would give you a peek into how we educate our sales team by sharing a small section of the Boomerang Sales Training Manual. Please enjoy and remember that often times people are more impressed by the height of your enthusiasm than the depth of your knowledge.

Dealing With Disappointment

Disappointment is inevitable in all of our lives, but grasping how to deal with it is an acquired talent. We can learn a lot from our disappointments and shift this to positive reinforcement toward creating and enjoying greater achievements. Here are some tips to help to resolve your minor disappointments:

Learn and grow from each disappointment. Always make a point to resolve your disappointments. Hostile temperaments and negativity result from unresolved frustrations.

Create a balanced lifestyle. In the barter business, it’s important to be sure to work hard and play hard. Although this sounds simple enough, finding the time to do so is a different story. It is important to your sales successes that you create a balance between work, family, and play.

Create reasonable percentages of winning. You cannot possibly close 100 percent of the deals that you present, no matter how much you would like to. In reality, set a percentage of what you feel your chances are to close individual sales (0 percent being the lowest probability and 100 percent being the highest.) If you set your sights on a 100 percent chance to close each sale, your probability for disappointment is inevitable. It is better to set realistic percentages for each presentation and accomplish your goal.

Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket. Super sales people continually work to keep their pipelines full of new opportunities. Therefore, if one deal does not tran­spire, you still have many more possibilities that will help you to achieve your goals.

Keep ego separate from losing. Just because you lost out on one sale, does not mean you have lost your ability to sell. No loss can turn you into a loser without your consent.

Be the Master of Your Fate

Choosing to be successful is choosing to be responsible for your actions. Sales people who take responsibility for their mistakes learn from them. They soar right through them on their way to the top. Stay in command of your own success by following these easy suggestions:

• Garbage In = Garbage Out. Don’t wait for your ship to come in, rather take charge and make your dreams come true. Improve your attitude and sales knowledge. Attend seminars on self-improvement, motivation, and sales. Keep learning!
• No Negatives. If you fall short of your goals, get to the root of the problem without pointing fingers or making excuses. Only by finding out why something happened will you be able to fix what went wrong. Make it a habit to try to look for the best in other people and situations.
• You are who you hang around. Associate with winners! Learn from other super salespeople. Their attitudes and beliefs are bound to rub off on you in a positive way. Take note of their work habits -observe the language they use, their posture, mannerisms, and reactions -and work to incorporate what you can into your own approach to prospects and customers.
• Control Emotions. Deal with or get rid of your anger and irritation. Identify the cause and deal with it -then go on to what’s important to achieve. You are in control. If you are a worrier, try not to fear what you cannot control. What you dwell on, you do well on.
• Set Goals. What would you like to have achieved in your sales career, relationships and lifestyle in the next five years? Write these achievements down and review them often. Once you have a clear vision of your future, list the action items needed to attain your goals. Assign reasonable deadlines to each and post pictures of your goals in prominent places around your office and home to keep you aware of the goals you have set.
• Take Action. Your time is precious. The longer you wait to take action to achieve your goals, the longer it will take to achieve your dreams. Make the most of your time by being the absolute best that you can be every day.

Keep Your Sanity and Raise Your New Account Sales

Keeping yourself focused and motivated with a moderate level of stress is just what the doctor ordered. The time to be concerned is when stress gets out of hand and you lose focus on your goals and objectives. It is at this point that you need to take steps to return yourself to a productive frame of mind.

Here are some common sense guidelines to incorporate into your mindset, lifestyle, and work habits to help stress work for you!

• Look on the bright side. By looking for the good in a seemingly bad situation, you can change for the better the way that you perceive your situation. Look at the opportunities presented and don’t dwell on whether or not you succeed 100 percent of the time. Remember that failure is part of the growth process. We learn from our mistakes and they become the keys to our sales success.
• Constantly Grow. Make a habit of daily self-improvement. By continually expanding your knowledge base, you will not only thrive in future changes for improvement, but you will also add value to your organization.
• Set Priorities. Establish short-, medium-, and long-term goals for yourself and your family. Once you develop your list of items to accomplish, outline the steps it will take to help you to attain them. List the actions needed to reach each step and make those activities your priority.
• Plan and Use Time Wisely. If you don’t use and adhere to your daily planner, someone else’s priorities will become yours. The result will be that the tasks you didn’t complete will become unnecessary stress factors. Every Sunday evening set aside 30 minutes for a weekly planning session. Find out what goals you need to accomplish during the next week to give yourself a feeling of success. Make a note of these goals, and then make room for them in your daily planner. Organize your days so that you waste less time making transitions between them.
• Manage Your Surroundings. Identify stress in your surroundings, both at the office and at home. Associate with positive people and surround yourself with motivational messages in your office and car.
• Stop and Smell The Roses. Making personal time for yourself and your family is essential to proper balance in your life. Schedule personal time so that you are sure to take a break from your work routine. Include activities that help you to exercise, relax, and unwind. By taking a few regular minutes daily, you will become more productive during the remainder of the week. Take your own stand against stress and you will likely find yourself selling and enjoying more sales.

–Andy Culver

I write Entrepreneur.com’s Young Entrepreneur column because I believe there are far too few resources directly addressing the nonacademic trials and tribulations young entrepreneurs face along their journey. Whenever possible, I encourage up-and-comers and established entrepreneurs to mentor the next generation of dream-seekers; for it is this insight and insider education that will provide the foundation for the entrepreneurs of tomorrow. With that, here are 10 pieces of advice that I wish someone had given to me before I launched my first venture.

1. Focus. Focus. Focus.
   Many first-time entrepreneurs feel the need to jump at every “opportunity” they come across. Opportunities are often wolves in sheep’s clothing. Avoid getting side-tracked. Juggling multiple ventures will spread you thin and limit both your effectiveness and productivity. Do one thing perfectly, not 10 things poorly. If you feel the need to jump onto another project, that might mean something about your original concept.
2. Know what you do. Do what you know.
   Don’t start a business simply because it seems sexy or boasts large hypothetical profit margins and returns. Do what you love. Businesses built around your strengths and talents will have a greater chance of success. It’s not only important to create a profitable business, it’s also important that you’re happy managing and growing it day in and day out. If your heart isn’t in it, you will not be successful.
3. Say it in 30 seconds or don’t say it at all.
   From a chance encounter with an investor to a curious customer, always be ready to pitch your business. State your mission, service and goals in a clear and concise manner. Fit the pitch to the person. Less is always more.
4. Know what you know, what you don’t know and who knows what you don’t.
   No one knows everything, so don’t come off as a know-it-all. Surround yourself with advisors and mentors who will nurture you to become a better leader and businessman. Find successful, knowledgeable individuals with whom you share common interests and mutual business goals that see value in working with you for the long-term.
5. Act like a startup.
   Forget about fancy offices, fast cars and fat expense accounts. Your wallet is your company’s life-blood. Practice and perfect the art of being frugal. Watch every dollar and triple-check every expense. Maintain a low overhead and manage your cash flow effectively.
6. Learn under fire.
   No business book or business plan can predict the future or fully prepare you to become a successful entrepreneur. There is no such thing as the perfect plan. There is no perfect road or one less traveled. Never jump right into a new business without any thought or planning, but don’t spend months or years waiting to execute. You will become a well-rounded entrepreneur when tested under fire. The most important thing you can do is learn from your mistakes–and never make the same mistake twice.
7. No one will give you money.
   There, I said it. No one will invest in you. If you need large sums of capital to launch your venture, go back to the drawing board. Find a starting point instead of an end point. Scale down pricey plans and grandiose expenditures. Simplify the idea until it’s manageable as an early stage venture. Find ways to prove your business model on a shoestring budget. Demonstrate your worth before seeking investment. If your concept is successful, your chances of raising capital from investors will dramatically improve.
8. Be healthy.
   No, I’m not your mother. However, I promise that you will be much more productive when you take better care of yourself. Entrepreneurship is a lifestyle, not a 9-to-5 profession. Working to the point of exhaustion will burn you out and make you less productive. Don’t make excuses. Eat right, exercise and find time for yourself.
9. Don’t fall victim to your own B.S.
   Don’t talk the talk unless you can walk the walk. Impress with action not conversation. Endorse your business enthusiastically, yet tastefully. Avoid exaggerating truths and touting far reaching goals as certainties. In short, put up or shut up.
10. Know when to call it quits.
    Contrary to popular belief, a smart captain does not go down with the ship. Don’t go on a fool’s errand for the sake of ego. Know when it’s time to walk away. If your idea doesn’t pan out, reflect on what went wrong and the mistakes that were made. Assess what you would have done differently. Determine how you will utilize these hard-learned lessons to better yourself and your future entrepreneurial endeavors. Failure is inevitable, but a true entrepreneur will prevail over adversity.

Scott Gerber is the founder of Sizzle It!, a New York-based sizzle reel production company specializing in promotional videos for PR and marketing professionals, and the Young Entrepreneur Council. He is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, columnist, public speaker and author of Never Get a “Real” Job: How To Dump Your Boss, Build a Business and Not Go Broke (Wiley, 2010).

We will never stop working for you to make Boomerang better, more efficient, and an ever growing useful tool for you and your business.

For any company, (especially start ups) there’s a fine line of balancing working in your business and working on your business. With many of the kinks and growing pains worked out as we progress closer to our fourth year in business, here’s what we’ve been dwelling on:

Member Spotlight!

Periodically we will interview and write about different members in the exchange. This is a great chance for us to hear your stories of success and learn about your companies.

Updated Member Directory!

Advertise your company just like you would online, in a newspaper or in the yellow pages. A graphic rich template will allow you to upload pictures to your posting in the Boomerang Directory.

New Trading Software!

• A customizable home page where you can follow your favorite Boomerang Members products and services on the Trading Floor.
• A robust Member Management System that turns your requests into trades faster.
• An intuitive and powerful search engine for finding Members, products, and services.
• An easier way to browse the Member Directory and Trading Floor.
• Buyers as well as sellers are now able to post trade transactions.
• Submit your Trade Purchase Requests to Boomerang online.
• An improved line of communication between Members and their brokers.

Thank you!

If you ever need something, before you spend your hard earned cash, remember to think Boomerang! If we don’t have it, let us know what you need and we’ll do everything we can to help you get it. That’s our job, to help you earn and save more of your money.

From the entire staff here at Boomerang…

Thank You and Happy Trading!

Good luck. Your neighbor just bought one of those grills, but he already gave the old one to his kid. Someone down the street has an extra grill, but he doesn’t have a lawn. Just trees, flower beds, and mulch. A neighbor on the next block would love to have your mower, but the only thing she has to trade are three buckets of paint—pink paint. You hate pink.

You’ve just run into this form of barter’s key problem. For a direct trade to work, it requires a coincidence of need, sometimes called a double coincidence of need by economists who embrace redundancy over simple English.

Even if you find someone who has what you need or desire, if the other person isn’t interested in anything you have, no deal. It’s possible to put together a three-way trade but that quickly becomes complicated.

This is why you join Boomerang! Let our proven system save you time, effort and money. Trade your products and services for Trade Dollars and let your dedicated Boomerang Trade Specialist help you earn and spend with little effort. Click Here to watch our short video to demonstrate how our system will benefit your business.

–Direct Trade theoretical example and excerpts are from the book The Complete Idiots Guide to Barter & Trade Exchanges by Jerry Howell with Tom Chmielewski

As required by the IRS, if you are a sole proprietor, you will have a 1099-B form for each and every transaction completed through our barter exchange. Corporations and LLCs receive one aggregate 1099-B for the year.

Once you receive your 1099-B, PLEASE  REPLY TO OUR E-MAIL, because under IRS rules, WE MUST SEND YOUR COPY BY REGULAR US MAIL if we don’t hear back from you.

So please reply, and help us save paper and envelopes. Just write “we printed it”. Thanks for consenting to allow us to send your 1099-B by e-Mail. We really appreciate it.

Happy Trading!

Business to business trade is over a 20 billion dollar industry and is thriving given the current economic environment.  The US Department of Commerce estimates that over 65% of Fortune 500 companies engaged in some form of barter in 2011.

How does the Boomerang system work?

Boomerang is a membership of like minded business owners and professionals who choose to do business with one another whenever possible.  When a member purchases a good or service from another member, their online Boomerang bank account is debited the full retail amount of that good or service.  Conversely, when a member makes a sale, their Boomerang bank account is credited the full retail amount.

Who do we trade with?

Our membership consists of 350+ local business and 5,000+ nationwide businesses and professionals that sell thousands of products and services.  Members may shop online or contact their dedicated Boomerang Trade Specialist to help facilitate their trading needs.

Should I watch your video?

Yes!  We are very proud of our video and think that it clearly demonstrates how Boomerang works and the benefits we provide our members.

Almost 1/3 of all small businesses in the US use some form of bartering.

65% of corporations listed on the NYSE are involved in bartering.

Barter accounts for 30% of the world’s total business (U.S. Department of Commerce).

65% of fortune 500 companies engage in barter in one form or another.

The Swiss barter industry (a population of 7 million) currently outperforms barter in the entire North American trade sector. (Swiss Barter System WIR)

Information provided by The International Reciprocal Trade Association (IRTA) reports, NATE (National Association of Trade Exchanges), WIR, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.