It’s still a good time to sell.

Posted by tricia under Articles

It’s still a good time to sell.

If you’re wondering wither you should put your house on the market now or wait till the spring, I would say absolutely now is the time.  The houses that are sitting on the market, are either not prepared to show, or over priced.   The secret is to make sure you have your home prepared for the market so that it stands out from others.  You can do this by hiring a Professional Home Stager to do a home consultation, giving you the tools to prepare your home by yourself, or have a Professional Home Stager to come in and do it for you. People lose money by not preparing their homes, if you need more information about this please don’t hesitate to send me an email..

Competition Bureau Settlement With CREA Is Much-A-Do About Nothing

Posted by tricia under Articles

Competition Bureau Settlement With CREA Is Much-A-Do About Nothing

On September 30, 2010, reports broke of a settlement between the Canadian
Real Estate Association (CREA) and the Competition Bureau and with it my
blackberry started to ring off the hook. Realtors asking what’s next,
clients confused about misleading reports of what is to be, confusion was
the best way to sum it up. Unassuming consumers breathed a sigh of relief
and rejoiced at the Competition Watchdog’s announcement that the world is
now a better place. “This agreement is welcome news for Canadians”, said
Melanie Aitken, Commissioner of Competition. “If ratified, the agreement
will ensure that consumers have the ability to choose which services they
want from a real estate agent when selling their home, and to pay for only
those services. It also provides much-needed flexibility for real estate
agents by ensuring that they have the ability to offer the variety of
services and prices that meet the needs of consumers.” Aitken went on to
say “Since challenging CREA’s rules, the Bureau’s goal has always been to
achieve a long-term solution that would strengthen competition in the
residential real estate brokerage services market. This resolution, if
ratified by CREA’s membership, achieves this goal.”

As discussed in my previous blogs, competition in the real estate brokerage
services market has never been an issue. A realtor is free to charge any
amount, can provide as many or as little services as their client wishes,
and can charge a flat fee or a percentage of the final negotiated price.
There are many different business models operating throughout our great
country. Models that offer discount pricing for inferior service, and high
end models that offer full-services for slightly higher prices. So after
all this work, time, and money wasted, it is reported that Canadians NOW
have flexibility? You’re kidding me right? Did our taxes just go to fund
this make-work project?

As a real estate professional, one must laugh at the commissioner’s lack of
knowledge on this subject. According to her press release, Realtors may now
provide a-la-carte services. Now? Realtors could and would provide
a-la-carte services since the introduction of organized real estate. What’s
even more comical is the idea that a-la-carte pricing will benefit the
consumer. Sure, if the consumer just selects to be on the MLS and nothing
more, this may be a monetary savings albeit not a significant one in the
end. You see, a listing placed on the MLS by a Realtor who is under contract
to the seller assures the seller of the Realtor’s fiduciary duties. The
fees are also tied to an important aspect of the service called THE SALE of
the home. A Realtor is not paid for the listing until the sale has been
completed. As a flat rate service, the fee is due and payable at the time
the listing has been posted on the MLS. This is a welcome change? What
are we now, lawyers? Realtors provide a service, we do not charge for time.
By misleading the consumer and giving them advice to select services without
educating them as to the features and benefits of each service is absurd.
Shame on the Competition Bureau and CREA for not looking at the consumers’
best interest. There should have been detailed lists of services that are
offered by Real Estate Professionals, their features and benefits to allow
consumers to make the right choice. At that time, and only after that,
consumers could and should be able to choose the services they require. The
old adage, “You get what you pay for” is certainly applicable here. But
what are consumers paying for? How can the issue be relevant if all the
pieces of the puzzle are not disclosed. Great, you save money by paying to
post a listing, but what else is involved in selling a home? How does it
affect the sale price? How is the consumer protected? The MLS is one small
tool in selling a home. It is not the be all and end all of the sale.

Now in Ms. Aitken’s Wonderful World Of Real Estate, a Realtor may charge a
flat fee to post a property on the MLS and provide no other services. The
seller may choose to conduct the rest of the sale on their own by marketing
the property, preparing property for sale, advertising, booking
appointments, conducting background checks on visitors, verifying employment
of Realtors, confirming appointments, arranging showings, securing their
premises, following up with visitors and agents, monitoring market
conditions and competition, drafting offers, negotiating sale terms,
negotiating commission with selling agent, scheduling inspections,
renegotiating based on home inspection findings, arrange bank appraisals and
negotiate with bank in case of discrepancies, confirming financial
worthiness of the purchaser, drafting and negotiating fulfillment of
condition documents, arranging additional purchaser visits, ensuring buyers
are prepared to close, coordinating closings, and finally post closing
arrangements. Just paying to post the listing on the MLS is fine and dandy,
however the flat fee for the MLS posting is collected up front with no
additional liability for the Realtor so how is selecting just the MLS
posting a benefit to the consumer? The seller’s identity and contact
information is now available on the internet, and with more and more fraud
artists using the internet as their “industry tool”, the seller is wide-open
to fraudulent activities against them. Does the Competition Bureau overrule
the Privacy Commission? Realtors have to abide by Privacy Laws, so you are
protected when you use a Realtor, not so much when the changes suggested by
the Competition Bureau kick in.

Of course, as the seller you can select a number of the above services and
pay a flat rate for each. Think of visiting your favourite restaurant.
Each restaurant allows you to order complete meals for a set price, or you
may choose to order a-la-carte should you choose not to have a complete
meal. In the end, if you choose two or three a-la-carte items, you’re
surely going to pay more for your meal than you would have with the “combo”.
Now take this back to Real Estate, by ordering the “combo” you’re
guaranteeing that you will not pay unless your home sells, you can still
select what you want and don’t want. Not only that, you are also getting a
qualified professional to guide you through the process and negotiate the
best deal on your behalf. By taking the “combo” or even ordering a set of
a-la-carte items, you are also transferring the liability from yourself to
your “agent”. Realtors are insured against Errors and Omissions and cannot
trade in Real Estate unless they can show proof of insurance. Fraudsters
and con-artists are exempt from this rule and won’t have insurance, they
will however be actively seeking out properties as soon as they are able to.

Does the consumer really want to go on their own and take on the liability
and leave themselves open to lawsuits, criminal activities and fraud? Your
lawyer will obviously be there to protect you and most will do it for free
since they are your friends. Or, actually, they won’t they don’t work for
free, at least I don’t think they will. A lawyer charges by the minute. So
what you may save in terms of dollars spent on a Realtor, you’ll surely
spend through the legal process of protecting yourself against lawsuits that
will be brought against you. Legal fees are set to go through the roof if
people choose to take on the liability on their own. Can you imagine the
retainers that lawyers would have to charge? As grow-house operators start
to sell their own properties, fraud artists and con artists start
capitalizing on identity theft and sell homes they don’t own, buying and
selling real estate will get very scary, and lawyers will be raking in the
money you thought you were saving. Realtors are trained in Real Estate Law
and provide much of the documents that will keep your legal fees to a
minimum. By the way, did you know you cannot sell your home without a
lawyer? Why hasn’t this aspect of the anti-competitiveness been brought
forward yet? Did you know that when you go to a lawyer, they have to charge
certain fees and registration fees? I wonder if you can tell them you just
want to pay a flat fee for the title registration and conduct the rest of
the process yourself. Could it really be that hard to figure out the
adjustments? How about trying to tell the bank to transfer the mortgage
funds directly into your bank account so you can deal directly with the
seller/buyer. Since Realtor are highly qualified to trade in Real Estate,
how about eliminating the lawyer’s role in trading Real Estate and saving
the consumer some money? So the MLS is anti-competitive but the Land
Registry isn’t? Hmm. If it looks like discrimination, smells like
discrimination, and walks like discrimination, whatever could it be? Another report from Canoe.ca/money mentioned that a group of advertisers,
which the media misleadingly reported to be “brokers”, launched a new
property selling network that will compete against the MLS. This is great
news. Since Realtors were not allowed to advertise their listings on sites
such as For Sale By Owner, Property Guys and ByTheOwner.com, the allowance
for private sellers to advertise on MLS should also be extended to Realtors
advertising on the aforementioned Private Sales sites. Also, sites like
Kijiji that now charge Realtors for their listings should be deemed
anti-competitive for their two-tiered system, and Realtors should be able to
advertise for free as everyone else. More great news!! Now our clients
will have a greater reach and be able to market their properties to a wider
audience – all for the same low price as they are paying now. This is part
of the deal right? The deal doesn’t discriminate just against Realtors does
it? I’m sure the Competition Bureau addressed this nonsense and made this
part of the Agreement, am I correct? I hope they did. CREA has always stated that they do not discriminate against any of the vast
business models trading in Real Estate. A quick glance of the MLS will
prove this is true with the differences in fees being charged to sellers,
varying commissions being paid to co-operating brokers, and wide range of
services that are included/excluded. Discount brokerages already exist and
run successful operations throughout the country. Consumers have always had
a choice as to what they spend, who they use, and what services they
require. The entire “investigation” has just been a waste of tax payers’
dollars and time. The only thing this has accomplished is that newspapers
had content to write about, an average lawyer became a household name, and
awareness about our Competition Bureau was heightened. From a Realtor’s
perspective, our roles have been questioned, reputations tarnished, however
the value of a Realtor has never been greater! Real Estate is still the
greatest investment Canadians have, and only a handful will take it upon
themselves to gamble with their life savings. Let’s hope this goes away now
and we can get back to protecting the integrity of the MLS, and continue to
lead our nation to economic stability through a strong real estate market.

If you are interested in discussing the value of a Realtor, and/or would
like more information on the features and benefits of the services we offer,
please do not hesitate to contact me. My focus is on educating my clients
with options available to them and assisting them to maximize their return
on their Real Estate Portfolios while protecting the integrity of our
country’s Real Estate systems. You can always email me at
teamkhan@asifkhan.ca. Regards,

Asif

DreamTeam (1)

Asif Khan, Realtor

Re/Max All-Stars Realty Inc.

Benifits of using Ontario Ozone, when selling your home.

Posted by tricia under Articles

BENEFITS OF USING ONTARIO OZONE SERVICES:

Permanently removes or controls unpleasant odours.

Oxidizes dangerous contaminants.

Provides simple and economical odour control tech­nology.

Removes smoke & smoke odours from cigarettes and fires.

Reduces bacterial growth on meat and vegetables.

Kills mould, bacteria, viruses and algae, dust mites.

Penetrate and deodorize impossible-to-reach areas.

WHAT IS ONTARIO OZONIZATION?

Ozonation of a room is not air-conditioning. Ozone does not affect the temperature or humidity. In fact, it accomplishes something that the usual air-condi­tioning system does not do ~ it reduces, by oxidiza­tion, common odours of organic origin, thus assisting in making the re-circulated air purer and more pleas­ant to breathe.

Properly used and tested commercial Ozone tech­niques have been proven both harmless and highly effective with proper care.

Common Odours Eliminated with Ontario Ozone

Kitchen smells, ethnic cooking (i.e. frying and baking), pet odours, ripe or rotten foods, rotting and decaying substances, sewer odours, alcohol beverages (bars, lounges, etc), aged books, auto exhaust, all organic waste, bacteria, bathroom odours, body odours, burned food, burned hair, carbon monoxide, cigarette smoke, diesel fumes, fish odours, hospital odours, methyl mercaptan (pet urine), mildew, mould, oils and greases, most organic chemicals, paint fumes, smoke, stale or stuffy rooms or buildings.

Homes up to 1500sqft $450.00

Apartments up to 1000sqft $350.00

Each additional 500sqft (Home or Apartment) $50.00

Garage (1 or 2 spaces) $200.00

Attics/Crawl spaces to 2000sqft $200.00

Cars and trucks $100.00

Privately owned cars and trucks $70.00

Hotel – Motel rooms $125.00 (Quantity Discount)

Sports Lockers, Locker rooms (Call for Pricing) Quantity Discount

Hockey or any sports equipment bag $30.00

Tel (416)477-2752 HelpMeOO@OntarioOzone.com www.OntarioOzone.com

(Warning) Moving Companies

Posted by tricia under Articles

Some comments made by angry clients, because of these moving companies.

Is there any good movers out there that can be trusted?

DO NOT USE GREATER TORONTO MOVERS THEY ARE THEY BIGGEST RIP OFF ARTIST…SEND THIS TO ALL YOU CLIENTS. THEY RIPPED ME OFF AND HELD MY STUFF FOR RANSOME! THEY ARE A BUNCH OF THEIVES….

I am at the police station now. My things were suppose to go into storage but the storage company doent know anything about it.

City Line Movers are another one! Stole from my clients. Beat the heck out of the furniture and over charged!

FYI…….GTA movers are also known as LMS moving and also Logan Moving and Storage… they are apparently run by the same crooked person

OMG>>>More Info…. CMS movers… DESI Movers …City Hawk Movers are also apparently all affiliated …. phone numbers to AVOID 905 789-6170……Logan@ 416-8393693 …Nancy Hadisunjo@ 416-9944694…. they have been called thieves, ripoff artists ,rude and Abusive… to get your belonging back you must negation with the god father

I have used Frances Movers for about 10 moves, office/home and relatives. Had one bad move, rest were very good, reasonable and Frances is a decent guy. Moving again this Saturday and am using Frances again. Been using them for about 12 years, more or less. Had 5 moves in past year,

I haved used Francis movers alot they are honest movers and hard working bunch.

Girl raises thousands for Gulf birds

Posted by tricia under Articles

Girl raises thousands for Gulf birds

‘It’s really crazy how many people want my drawings’

Olivia Bouler doesn’t have time for anything else these days except to draw and paint. But that’s OK for the artistic fifth-grader, because everything she does is for the birds.

The Islip, N.Y., girl, who turns 11 on Friday, has raised an estimated $80,000 by sending her sketches and paintings of birds to people who donate to organizations helping with relief efforts in the Gulf of Mexico spill disaster.

“I do some in the mornings and some in the afternoons, and weekends are really the time for me get cracking at them,” Olivia told msnbc.com on Thursday in a telephone interview as she and her parents were headed to the Gulf for a visit.

Olivia came up with the idea to help birds in the Gulf four days after the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded on April 20, killing 11 workers and triggering the nation’s worst oil spill. Olivia’s father’s family grew up in Alabama, and she has spent vacations in the Gulf.

“Olivia heard about the oil spill and she immediately thought of the birds. She’s a bird lover. She knew they were nesting and she knew the spill would bring an incredible change to their habitat,” said her mother, Nadine Bouler.

So Olivia wrote to the National Audubon Society, saying she would like to help by doing drawings and giving the wildlife conservation group any money she raised. She signed it, a bit precociously, “Olivia Bouler, 11 years old and willing to help.”

Thus was born Olivia’s “Save the Gulf” campaign. In addition to purchasing one of Olivia’s drawings, the Audubon Society collaborated with Olivia’s family to create a fundraising program whereby Olivia sends one of her original paintings to anyone who donates to any of several organizations helping wildlife in the Gulf.

AOL got on board, giving Olivia her own artist’s gallery on its site and donating $25,000 to Audubon in her name. Appearances on local and national TV followed, and her “Save the Gulf: Olivia’s Bird Illustrations” page on Facebook has now attracted more than 10,000 fans.

Olivia creates her artwork with heavy stock paper, Ebony pencil and watercolors. She has sent out about 150 original illustrations so far and has capped the number at 500, after which contributors will receive limited edition prints, says her mother.

The Audubon Society is overseeing the donation process.

According to wildlife officials, hundreds of pelicans, gulls, sandwich terns and other birds in the Gulf have been have been collected alive with visible oil; more than 100 oiled birds have been found dead. The numbers are expected to rise dramatically as oil blankets the sea, marshlands and the coastline.

“I really wanted to help the birds and I’m really lucky Audubon found out,” Olivia says

It takes Olivia between 15 and 30 minutes to do a drawing. Between that and media queries, there isn’t much time for anything else.

“It’s really crazy how many people want my drawings,” Olivia says.

“I really don’t mind the publicity. I don’t say I love it. I don’t crave it but I don’t say I hate it either.” At school, she says, “some kids are jealous and some kids are like,’ Can I have your autograph?’”

Adds her mother, “She knows it’s for a good cause. She didn’t get into this to be a celebrity. She just wanted to raise some money and awareness.”

Olivia’s interest in birds transcends the Gulf. “I want to be an ornithologist,” she says matter-of-factly.

Refurbished Computers for $14

Posted by tricia under Articles

It is through donations from private individuals, municipalities and corporations that make this program possible. Our sponsors donate surplus and obsolete computers and peripherals, which in the hands of needy children and the learning disabled, become a valuable asset in their development. Some systems have also been donated to seniors, to assist them in emergency and family contact.

Because we are a Microsoft Authorised Refurbisher, under the Community Mar program, we are able to supply Windows and Office products on the computers, for a minimal sum of $14.00 each, a license cost that we have to recover. Linux systems are provided free of

Making a Difference

Posted by tricia under Articles

Showing off A Home 2 Show

Posted by tricia under Articles

Customize a scrapbooking design

Pre-Paid Power

Posted by tricia under Articles

Company Spotlight

June 2009

Pre-Paid POWER

Pre-Paid Legal Services’ innovative products and progressive marketing methods have propelled the company’s growth.

It’s a novel concept in the United States: Pay a monthly fee and you’ll get toll-free access to a law firm that answers your legal questions, reviews your documents, prepares your will and provides advice on legal matters. This unique service is provided by Pre-Paid Legal Services Inc., founded in 1972 by Harland Stonecipher and based in Ada, Okla., Stonecipher’s hometown.

While pre-paid legal services are a relatively new phenomenon in the United States—with Pre-Paid Legal Services being an early pioneer—legal- service plans have been available in Europe for more than 100 years. The $4 billion legal-plan industry has existed in Europe since 1907.

Like many great accomplishments, Stonecipher’s achievement sprang from adversity. One morning in 1969, Stonecipher was driving through Central Oklahoma, on his way to a business meeting. At the time, he was an insurance salesman. A car suddenly made a quick turn in front of Stonecipher’s vehicle. Stonecipher was hurtled into the backseat of his car and suffered back injuries. The woman driving the other car was injured as well.

Despite the fact that a highway patrolman ticketed the woman, she initiated a lawsuit against Stonecipher, alleging the accident was his fault. “I faced thousands of dollars in legal costs stemming from an accident in which I was blameless. I was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he says.

Although Stonecipher won the lawsuit, he spent thousands of dollars on attorney fees. It was at that moment that Stonecipher decided such vulnerability—the potential for financial devastation and the loss of personal freedom at the hands of a convoluted legal system—was simply unacceptable. The idea of a company that offered pre-paid legal service plans occurred to Stonecipher.

“My wife, Shirley, and I were pioneers in an entirely new field,” Stonecipher says. “It was something that had never been done before here in the United States.”

In the early days of the company’s formation, Stonecipher took inspiration from McDonald’s Founder Ray Kroc. The formula driving both McDonald’s and Pre-Paid Legal Services springs from the same concept: Combine the purchasing power of many customers, each willing to pay a relatively small unit price, and create on their behalf a system that consistently and efficiently delivers a quality product.

Today, Pre-Paid Legal Services is a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange (PPD), and it boasts annual sales of $464.48 million and more than 800 staff members. Pre-Paid Legal Services Inc. has the largest toll-free, direct-access law firm in the world. This is achieved by a network of Provider Law Firms located throughout the United States and Canada.

“The difference that Pre-Paid Legal brings to the table is when a member calls to speak with a lawyer, the firm has already been paid,” Stonecipher says. “Their job is to deliver service. I’ve learned that life is about serving others. The more service you provide—the more you can help others—the more successful you will be.”

Through providing needed services, Pre-Paid Legal has achieved success. By the end of 2008, Pre-Paid Legal had more than 1.55 million members in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Canadian provinces of Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta and Manitoba.

One of the best measures of Pre-Paid Legal’s economic success is membership revenue per share, which has grown nearly 17 percent each year during the last 10 years.

Pioneering Products

Pre-Paid Legal’s Life Events Legal Plan (referred to as a “membership”) includes preventive legal services, motor vehicle legal defense services, trial defense services, IRS audit services and a 25 percent discount on legal services not specifically covered by the membership plan. Additionally, in 44 states, members may opt to add a Legal Shield rider, which provides 24-hour access to toll-free attorney assistance if the member is arrested or detained.

Capitalizing on the rise of identity theft, Pre-Paid Legal offers an Identity Theft Shield plan, which provides benefits such as a credit report and instructional guide, a credit score and instructional guide, and ID-theft restoration services. Identity Theft Shield benefits are provided by Kroll Background America Inc., a subsidiary of Kroll Inc. Pre-Paid Legal’s relationship with Kroll is one example of its ability to embrace cooperative partnerships with other companies.

In 1973, Pre-Paid Legal introduced a group plan, designed for the large-group, employee-benefit market. Associates sell employee group memberships to school systems, governmental entities and businesses. Available in 36 states, this plan provides all the benefits of the Life Events Legal Plan, as well as mortgage document preparation, and assistance with uncontested legal situations such as adoptions, name changes, separations and divorces. Additional benefits include the preparation of healthcare power of attorney and living wills or directives to physicians.

Employee group plans, which are administered on a payroll-deduction basis, enable associates to reach more members with each sales presentation. And helping the company’s associates attain success is where Stonecipher’s passion lies.

“If there has been any key to my success, it’s realizing that—when it comes to our sales associates—I’ve got to find a way to serve them better,” Stonecipher says. “My goal every day is to find a way to make it better for them so they can become more successful and they can earn more money. As a result, our company grows.”

Stonecipher says he will never tire of hearing success stories from Pre-Paid Legal associates and members. “Right now, somewhere in North America, Pre-Paid Legal is helping save someone’s home, helping stave off the damage of identity theft, or helping prepare a will,” he says. “They are doing things that are really important to the average person.

“Having a law firm on your side is such an empowering feeling because you get what is rightfully yours—and that is equal justice under the law,” Stonecipher adds.

Provider Presence

What makes Pre-Paid Legal so effective is that its members have direct, toll-free access to their Provider Law Firm rather than having to call for a referral.

Pre-Paid Legal has a network of independent Provider Law Firms under contract, including 2,483 lawyers and support staff members. The firms are paid a fixed fee on a per capita basis to provide services to plan members. The average tenure of Pre-Paid Legal’s Provider Law Firms is more than 10 years.

Approximately 96 percent of Pre-Paid Legal’s Provider Law Firms are connected to the company via high-speed digital links, providing real-time monitoring capability. This online connection allows Pre-Paid Legal to pull reports of each law firm’s activity and performance.

Additionally, Pre-Paid Legal regularly conducts random surveys of members who have used the services of a Provider Law Firm. Members in each state are surveyed every 60 days, and the results are compiled and provided to the Provider Law Firms. Each month, Provider Law Firms are presented with a comprehensive report of ratings related to Pre-Paid Legal’s online monitoring, member assistance requests, member survey evaluations, telephone reports and other information.

“Pre-Paid Legal takes the guesswork out of selecting quality, yet affordable, legal counsel,” says Mark Brown, who was recently appointed the company’s Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. “Provider Law Firms are selected after careful scrutiny. To be selected by Pre-Paid Legal, a law firm’s attorneys must handle the life events for which average people need counsel. They must take these issues seriously and treat Pre-Paid Legal members with courtesy, providing excellent customer service.”

In fact, the quality and credibility of the legal services Pre-Paid Legal provides are evidenced by the former state attorneys general who work with the company. Mike Moore, former Mississippi attorney general; Mike Turpen, former Oklahoma attorney general; Grant Woods, former Arizona attorney general; and Andrew Miller, former Virginia attorney general, have all spent years keeping the public safe and continue that mission through their work with Pre-Paid Legal. “Across the country, hardworking men and women have access to the justice system and quality legal representation they otherwise could not afford,” Woods says. “We wouldn’t be involved unless we believed Pre-Paid Legal was a good company.”

Jim Merritt, of Merritt, Flebotte, Wilson, Webb and Caruso PLLC, has been a Provider Lawyer since 1999. His first Pre-Paid Legal case reminded him why he became an attorney. “It occurred to me that Pre-Paid was all about balancing the scales of justice,” Merritt says. “Since I have been with Pre-Paid, on every level—from professional to personal, from faith in my profession to faith in my God—I could not be happier.”

According to Stonecipher, many lawyers tell him that if they had to practice law the way they did prior to Pre-Paid Legal, they wouldn’t practice law. “Most lawyers go to law school for the right reason—to help people,” he adds. “When they get out, unfortunately, they find they can’t help most of the people they wanted to help—working-class people with real-life problems—because they’re stuck having to represent some large corporation or some wealthy individuals. Their relationship with Pre-Paid Legal allows them to reconnect with these types of people.”

Progressive Programs

The pivotal moment in Pre-Paid Legal’s marketing history was when Stonecipher discovered the direct selling model. At the time, Pre-Paid Legal was marketing its products through a traditional commission-based system, which resulted in slow, incremental growth. Stonecipher wanted to provide equal justice under the law to the masses—and he found a way to do that through network marketing.

Stonecipher says the success of Pre-Paid Legal’s business opportunity is due to the products’ uniqueness. While there are many direct selling companies marketing the same types of products, Pre-Paid Legal is the only direct seller of pre-paid legal-service plans in North America.

“When people are introduced to the product and understand the power of it, not only do they want to become members, they want to become associates,” Stonecipher says. Today, Pre-Paid Legal has more than 425,000 associates.

Pre-Paid Legal continually reviews its compensation plan to ensure that financial incentives encourage the company’s goals and growth. Commissions are paid only when a membership is sold. No commissions are paid based solely on recruitment.

During Pre-Paid Legal’s initial training, new associates have access to a variety of tools—DVDs, CDs, printed materials and online training—that convey the many benefits of the company’s products and business opportunity and provide personal development.

The quarterly Advanced Product Training shows independent associates how to sell personal plan memberships. But the granddaddy of trainings is the Pre-Paid Legal national conference—held twice yearly. These valuable, inspirational, in-person events give associates the chance to learn from top field leaders, share their success stories and supercharge their attitudes.

While Pre-Paid Legal has achieved much success since its inception, “the best is still to come,” Stonecipher says.

“Our company is based on the power of the free enterprise system, where anybody—no matter how old they are or what level of education they completed, no matter what their background or what they have done in the past—can have success if they’re willing to work hard enough,” Stonecipher says. “To me, that’s what being a premier company is all about—positively impacting the lives of people.“

Stonecipher says that although Pre-Paid Legal has gained much ground, the company has barely made a dent in the market. “Pre-Paid Legal is still in its embryonic stages,” he says. “The company will be growing long after I’m gone because the market is so vast. We haven’t even scratched the surface. We haven’t even scratched the scratch.”

Markham Homeshow

Posted by tricia under Articles

My experience at the Markham Homeshow.  I was helping out one of my great realtors at one of the booths it was a great experience, especially having so many people come through.  The elderley came through on the Friday, and the Young couples with children were there on the Sunday.

We had the constuction man dressed up at our booth, giving out balloons to the kids, and taking pictures.  Not to forget the chocolate eggs, yummy.

There was a lot of traffic, and some fabulous booths.  If anyone is planning on doing any kind of renovation on their home, it truly is the place to be.

This upcoming weekend is the Newmarket Homeshow, so if you missed out in Markham, head up to the Newmarket Magna Centre and enjoy the show..

See you there!