FARUKI

Do different age groups have different personality types? A new study asks the question, and offers some surprising answers, as Talent Q founder Roger Holdsworth explains.

Age-related stereotypes abound in our society. From the portrait of selfish, feckless youth in TV shows like Skins through to the grumpy, conservative vision of old age provided by Victor Meldrew in One Foot in the Grave.

But do these crude caricatures hold up to serious scrutiny? Or - to put it another way - do different generations have specific characteristics that we should be aware of as HR professionals?

At Talent Q, we compared nearly 4,000 people across three generations - Generation Y (with an average age of 22), Generation X (average of 35) and the Baby Boomers (average of 55) to see if there were any clear trends.

The results challenged stereotypes, but also posed some interesting questions for the future.

First, we found that those in their early 20s had higher ethical standards, showed greater attention to detail and were more socially adept than older generations. All of which goes against popular perceptions of modern youth.

But surprising, the younger generation also proved to be less adaptable to variety and change, less likely to be good decision-makers, and less able to cope with a fast pace of work. Generation Ys were also generally less organised, less keen on planning their workload and less efficient than other generations.

Should we be worried by this? Well yes, possibly.

A shifting economy means adaptability, efficiency and dynamism are key traits for a modern workforce. One study suggests that Generation Y is likely to have an average of 14 different jobs by the time they turn 35, so it is a little concerning - not to mention perverse - that the younger generations seem less well disposed to change than their elders.

The 20-somethings we studied also tended to be less resilient, less confident at negotiation and decision-making, less influential in a leadership capacity and less able or willing to follow the rules - all of which tallies with bosses’ complaints in annual CBI surveys.

But there were positives to draw upon too. Our research explodes the myth that younger people tend to be surlier and more selfish than previous generations. In fact, the Generation Ys were found to be more socially aware and more in tune with other’s behaviour than their elders.

They also generally showed a stronger ethical code, which bodes well as business flexes to meet important challenges like climate change and corporate social responsibility: these agendas, it would seem, are in safe hands for the future.

So what then of the ‘Baby Boomers’? Can we put some of their caricatures to the sword too?

Well certainly, the idea that older generations are conservative and ’set in their ways’ can be challenged quite strongly.

The 50 and 60-somethings we surveyed were more likely to adopt new techniques and more likely to favour radical ideas than the younger generations - proof that “you can teach an old dog new tricks.”

But interestingly, the same generation were also found to be less ambitious, less competitive and less likely to fit in with different types of people.

The difference in ambition and competitiveness may be explained by the ageing process - with older people easing down as they approach retirement.

But the social dimension suggests one abiding stereotype may have a grain of truth to it. Our findings do appear to bear out the ‘grumpy old man’ tag. Statistically at least, older generations are less socially adept than younger people - so Victor Meldrew, it would seem, continues to flourish in our society!

Of course, these conclusions are interesting, sometimes quite amusing. But they come with a big health warning - and that is that they remain massive generalisations. The differences we did record - while statistically significant - remained small, suggesting that there is actually more similarity between generations than many pundits might have you believe.

So the bottom line is simple, if a bit dull: there simply are no short-cuts. All stereotypes are inevitably flawed. They exist, as someone wisely wrote, “to save a biased person the trouble of learning.”

That’s a lesson we should all remember before we make a snap judgement based on person’s age. More often than not, you will be wrong.

People that are new to affiliate marketing have to face hard decisions. There are thousands of programs available, and choosing which ones to promote can be difficult. There are thousands of affiliate programs out there. However, it is better to be selective upfront; promoting the wrong type of affiliate programs can cause you to waste a lot of time and miss out on commissions. Here are some tips to help you choose which affiliate programs are right for you:

Keep Your Target Market in Mind

Keeping in mind who your consumer is and what type of products there interested in will help you to focus on an affiliate program that will promote these products that of are interest to your customers and will in turn be of the greatest benefit to you.

You Must Believe in the Product

It doesn’t matter the fame or fortune of a product, if it is something you would not use or would not recommend to your friends or to your family you should not promote it. If you are unsure about the product don’t go forward with it. You want to always promote products that you believe in.

Know What You Are Getting Paid For

When choosing a program you need to know what your pay will be based on. Some programs pay a percentage of actual sales. Others pay for any leads they get from you. It may seem easier to bring in leads than to actually sell a product. However, since the commission on a sale is often much higher than the commission on a lead it may be a better idea to go with sales commission. That way you are able to make more money by only motivating a few people to act rather than having to motivate several hundred people to visit the site and try it out.

Is Rate of Commission all that Matters?

When you are trying to choose an affiliate program don’t focus to much on the big numbers. Sometimes 50% commission sounds great. But if the product you are promoting is only $20 you’ve only made ten bucks. It would be much better to get a 20% commission on a $100 product. So it is important to crunch the numbers before deciding.

Imagine over the years your debts have somehow piled up to an unmanageable level. And now amongst unpaid bills and dealing with angry creditors, you feel the only solution for you is to get some help to clean up the mess. That is all well and good, but where exactly do you go to find this help?

Now imagine this: tired of the growing debts and with no way out you decide to consult a ‘professional’. You go to a credit counsellor and let that person try to help you out of your debts only to find that they have put you in more trouble than you already were in when you started.

Needless to say, over the years because of changes in lifestyles and spending habits, many individuals have found themselves in a situation where they are too deep in debt. Unfortunately, at the same time there has also been an increase in the number of abusive practitioners who pose as credit counsellors only to make the situation much worse than it was in the beginning.

The traditional credit counselling agencies were small and local services whose main function was to lend a hand to consumers with guidance and education about budgeting and how to manage their debts. Each case is studied individually and depending on the individual consumer’s situation they will be directed towards debt management, or at the worst case, filing for bankruptcy.

However, there has been a shift in the nature of these small agencies. For a start, a lot of them are not small anymore. Nor are they local. The trend in credit counselling agencies finds organizations that operate at a national level and adopt aggressive marketing strategies to break through to the public. It is not unusual to see these credit counselling agencies selling their pitch by advertising through television, magazines, radio and the internet.

When going to a credit counselling agency keep in mind that most genuine agencies of this kind offer their services at a minimal fee. This fee that is charges is usually just enough to cover their expenses, thus they make the grade at a ‘non profit’ business. It might only be natural for consumers to drop their guards when they are met with the word ‘non-profit’. But one has to be aware of the fact that not all these organization have your best interest in mind.

Experts suggest that people who are looking for assistance from credit counsellors should be cautious with the choices they make. It is important to understand the fee structure and look into the structure more deeply if they operate on the basis of percentages and commissions.

You should understand points such as who pays the commissions, you or the credit card company. Also be sure to check out if the agency gets a kickback from the credit card company from the outstanding amount when it repaid, since that is something that is likely to have an effect on the way the agency works with you.

The most cost effective way for publicizing your product now, is the method of iBuzz Pro ( iBuzzPro ) voice broadcasting. Among all the methods available, this is one method, which has proved to be the most effective over the time.

Before we talk anymore about iBuzz Pro voice broadcasting let us first throw some light on the validity of the aspect of publicizing your product. As said before, publicity is the lifeline of any business venture, be it network marketing, home based business, multi level marketing, consumer good production or any other form. The basic idea behind advertisement is to publicize your products or your business opportunities, to let the people know about your venture.

Now that we have stated the importance of the attracting customers, let us discuss the ways in which we can do so. As we know, a large part of our entrepreneurial success depends on our ability to publicize our product in a given amount of time, which more the number of people we can approach, the more are our chances of getting more leads. Therefore, the only way of sustaining and flourishing your business is to keep an ever-increasing influx of customers.

However, it is easier said than done. However, it might sound very simple, but often reaching out to people effectively is quite difficult. As it is not enough if we only notify people of our products, we also have to ensure that most of the people we approach, turn into real customers, and give us some business.

However to merely abide by the law of averages is not enough. Today if you want to be successful, then you will have to reach out to people effectively, so that you get maximum positive leads per advertisement. People often write post cards and letters to individual customers, but that takes a lot of time and is also very expensive, as the initiator has to bear many postal charges. Some of the more tech savvy types make websites, and uses the pay-per-click method, to generate higher sales, but again they also meet with substandard amount of sales.

Therefore, there is a need for fast and cost-effective way of advertisement, which will also generate prompt and positive response. Here comes the role of iBuzz Pro Voice Broadcasting. This method almost acts as recruiter of prospects. Voice Broadcasting, literally means that you can speak to your customers personally. In this system, you need to record a script, whose length is generally 30 to 40 seconds. The script should tell the customer all the details that he or she needs to know about your product.

Generally, these voice messages are only 30 to 40 seconds long, and are followed by toll free number, which is given to the customer, where they can call if they are interested. As you have to pay on a per minute basis, you might want to keep your messages short and simple, otherwise you run the risk of boring the customer, who has every liberty to disconnect the call for which you are paying. Using a female voice to put forward the message is a good idea, as it attracts more attention.

For this facility you only have to pay a small amount as the installation charge of the software, and from then onwards you only need to pay for the calls that you make, so you do not have incur repetitive rental charges. Concisely this method of advertisement can send your sales sky rocketing, if you can exploit the ibuzz pro opportunity prudently.

Even those working in small businesses are finding that they need to travel more frequently as the internet opens up a wider range of markets. However, anyone who has spent a great deal of their time traveling for their business will tell you just how tiring it can be. Business travel tips are useful to regular travelers by ensuring certain routines are carried out every time they travel to reduce the possibility of wasted trips.

Unfortunately, personal baggage goes missing from time to time and even if you are fortunate enough to have it returned, it may be too late for your meeting. An easy remedy to this is to pack as much as possible that you absolutely must have for you meeting, in your hand luggage.

This type of forward thinking means that you will not be caught out nor will you have a wasted trip. Regular travelers know that the main business travel tip when packing is to keep things simple by only including exactly what you need for the journey and that way you won’t go far wrong if luggage goes missing.

To keep this simple just work out how many days you will be at your destination and pack accordingly, remembering to pack a few items of casual wear plus just enough pieces of footwear to last; this would be one pair for work and another pair for play. This will leave room for toiletries, any other extra business materials you’ll need, and so on.

A way to save space and possibly take a smaller bag plus reduce any creases is to roll clothing up which takes up less room and a business travel tip well worth noting. Dark clothing are very useful for traveling business people as it hides stains and dirt very well, so if you get sweaty or spill a coffee on the flight it won’t be too noticeable.

If you are delayed for any reason then knowing you can freshen up prior to the meeting without the need for a shower can be a lifesaver, this is where those travel wipes come in very useful. If you are only away for a couple of days make sure your cell phone and any other electronic equipment are fully charged so you can continue working at your convenience.

Many business travelers now use the traveling time to do as much work as possible which then allows them some personal time to themselves after work which in turn reduces stress. Simply planning ahead for these eventualities mean you will be ready for your business travel journey, no matter what.

Business travel does not have to be all work and by using the business travel tips shown here, there should be time for rest and relaxation too.