10 Steps to a More Effective Complaint Letter - SavingAdvice.com Blog

I should do this instead of running to the BBB website after sending a quick e-mail. But BBB gets results. FAST.
www.savingadvice.com/blog/2008/08/24/102260_10-...

No matter how careful you are about your spending, there is still a chance
the product or service you receive will not live up to your expectations.
However, having your problem resolved is not always as simple as contacting
customer service, a salesperson or even a manager. These people are not always
authorized to give you what you are asking for, whether it is a replacement,
refund or discount.

If your initial attempts to have your problem resolved fail, take it to
another level. Your tool – The Complaint Letter. Getting your complaint in
writing creates a record of your communication and can be a clear and effective
way to state your problem.

I recently disputed charges billed to me by my doctor, but I was denied
a discount. Since I felt my complaints were valid, I wasn’t taking no for an
answer. I found the name of the clinic’s CEO on the website, searched for her
email address online, and sent her a complaint letter. The result was a 50%
discount.

Not all complaint letters are created equal – implement these elements
into your letter to get results.
Determine who your complaint should
be directed
It is best to address it to a specific person that is in
a position to make decisions. Start by visiting the company’s website and look
for a corporate or contact page. They may have a specific department to handle
complaints. With local or regional companies, upper management and owners will
be more accessible. However, these contacts are not always listed. You can try
calling and asking specifically who the owner, president or CEO of a company is.
If you get lucky, ask how to spell their name and the best physical address or
email address to reach them. Also, remember that Chris is not always a man and
Robin is not always a woman. I prefer email. It is faster, and I believe more
reliable.
You can also search online for contact names and information.
Searching for “company name” and “president” may turn up a LinkedIn account or
news article. Business directory sites, such as www.hoovers.com, will provide some company
information for free. If you get a name, try to track down the company email
structure, such as jdoe@companywebsite.com or john.doe@companywebsite.com,
etc.
I sent my letter to the CEO, but she forwarded it to the medical
director. I figured the CEO wouldn’t be the one to actually address my
complaint, but I assumed she would get me in touch with the right
person.
Before you begin, remember to remain polite
Don’t
write an angry letter or threaten the person that has the potential to help you.
Don’t badmouth the company, it’s employees or products. If you were treated
badly or were given a defective product, they will want to know about it and
rectify the situation. Threats and name-calling are not incentives to help
you.
Briefly state the intent of the letter
Be sure to
provide any relevant information, such as the model and serial number of the
product in question, date and location the service was provided and customer
account number, if applicable.
Detail the problem and why you are not
satisfied
Tell them how their service or product failed to live up to your
expectations. In my case, I had additional expenses, lost time and physical
scarring. I felt that more could have been done on their part to prevent
this.
Give a brief history of who you have spoken to
With
this history, include why your early attempts to resolve the problem, if any,
were not adequate. If you have gotten to this point, you have probably already
spoken with someone. Do you recall who you spoke with and on what date? Describe
how they did or did not help you, but don’t vilify them.
State
specifically what you would like done
Do you want your money back or
the product replaced? If a service was performed, would you like it done over?
If you are asking for a discount, it may be better to have them come up with a
number first. They may offer more than you were expecting, which is what
happened to me.
Give them a deadline for responding
Give
a deadline, but be reasonable. At least one week, but no more than two. Let them
know what further action you will take if they fail to respond, such as
contacting the Better Business Bureau. Thank them for taking the time to help
you.
Give them ways to reach you
Provide your phone
number, mailing address and email.
Include
documentation
Be sure to include copies or scanned attachments of
any documentation, receipts or pictures. Make sure they are copies and not the
originals.
CC any other relevant parties
If you are able
to get more than one contact, send it to all of them, but make sure they know
this is happening. Be careful not to go over someone’s head that would rather
solve your problem than have their supervisor find out about it.
If you get
to the right person and follow these steps, they will likely be open to meeting
your request. In the event that this doesn’t work, additional steps can be taken
on your part. Contact state or local consumer, regulatory or licensing agencies.
The Better Business Bureau and even the media can help you. Small claims court
may be a potential last resort.

Suze Orman's Free Money Book

http://www.oprah.com/article/oprahshow/20081119_tows_bookdownload

Do Children Really Cause Financial Burdens?

source:

www.thesimpledollar.com/2009/01/06/do-children-...

I was recently browsing a comment thread on Lifehacker when one particular comment stood out to me:
Having kids is one of the most expensive poverty-inducing things you can do right now. - kalibar
I understand completely where kalibar is coming from with this comment. Many estimates with regards to the cost of raising a child put that figure at $200,000-$250,000 per child over their lifetime - and that’s a serious chunk of change.
When I read these estimates, however, and I look at our own spending, something doesn’t quite add up. To put it simply, we’re not spending that much, even during these expensive years of the child’s life.
Let’s break down what we’re spending right now on our children.
For 2008, our biggest expense by far for our children was child care while we were working. Combined, we spent about $11,000 on child care for the two children this year. After that, costs went down quickly - we estimate that all other expenses combined (food, health care, toys, clothing, and so on) were roughly $7,000 for both children combined. Add onto that $1,200 per child put away for their college education (and I’ll ignore the tax benefits of this, as we don’t have to pay state taxes on contributions) and you have a total of $20,400 spent on both children this year - or $10,200 per child.
So, if those costs continued as they are over the next eighteen years, we would spend $183,600 per child during their childhood - not too far from those estimates.
But that $183,600 total is extremely naive.
Let’s look at several elements that will save us money during our children’s lives.
First, $6,000 of that $10,200 is tax deductible. It’s our child care tax credit, and it knocks roughly $1,800 (assuming a 30% overall tax rate) off of our total tax bill - or $900 per child. So, boom, we’re quickly down to $9,300 per child.
Second, we now have two more deductions on our tax returns. At $3,750 a pop, our two children shave $7,500 off of our taxable income. Assuming that same 30% tax rate, we quickly shave $2,250 off of our tax bill, so we’re down to $7,050 per child.
Third, the mere presence of the children changes our entertainment structure. Instead of going out to the golf course with the guys, I’m much more content to toss the whiffle ball around in the back yard with my son. Instead of going out to the movies three times a week with my wife (as was once the case), we stay home, watch movies in the family room, and play with our kids while doing it. Instead of eating out all the time, we put our daughter in a high chair, cook a meal at home, and serve her some of that delicious home-cooked food.
In short, both our entertainment and food budgets went way down upon the birth of our children. We knew this change would happen - it was part of our decision-making process when it came to deciding whether to have children. We knew that many of the trivial aspects of our life would change. We chose to give up most of our social opportunities and entertainment opportunities in exchange for being able to raise children in an enriching environment.
How much did this actually save us? This is something that’s very difficult for me to estimate, as I didn’t actually do any sort of budgeting or number-crunching during the year prior to our having children. However, based on what I can estimate from that year, we cut our entertainment and food spending (from 2004 to 2008) by $6,500 a year. That’s a drop of $3,250 per child, bringing our per-child expenses down to $3,800 per child.
So, let’s use that for the first five years of the child’s life - $3,800 per kid. After that, we lose almost all of the child care costs - but we also lose our $900 tax deduction - a total reduction in cost of $4,200. What’s that? During the sixth year, our total child cost is actually a gain of $400!
Obviously, as the child grows, we’ll begin to accrue more non-child-care expenses for them: education costs, growing entertainment costs, and so on. I’ll actually increase our expense per child at $500 per year after age six.
So, for the first five years, we spend $3,800 a year. At year six, we actually gain $400. Each year after that, we spend $500 more per child than the year before, culminating with an overall after-tax and after-savings cost of $5,600 during their eighteenth year.
What does that total up to? $52,800.
Now, you might quibble with my “back of the envelope” calculations described above and inflate some of the costs. You might even be able to double my estimated expenses by skewing the numbers around.
That doesn’t change the underlying point, however. Children aren’t the enormous expense that they’re made out to be. I’m not claiming that they’re not expensive - not at all. Instead, I’m saying that the quoted expenses bandied about - $200,000 to $250,000 over the child’s lifetime - looks only at expenses. It does not look at some of the savings that will come your way naturally during the child-rearing process, nor does it take into account the tax benefits of children.
What’s the take-home lesson here? Don’t be scared into not having children - or delaying having children for years - by the huge costs bandied about. Those costs only look at the “expense” part of the equation and don’t include the many ways that you actually save money once a child enters your life. For example, a single child, merely by existing, will save you thousands and thousands of dollars on your tax bill over their life.
So, do children cause financial burdens? Yes, they do - you’re going to be spending money on them. However, that expense is not as large as one might think at first glance, and when you consider the advantages of having children when you’re younger rather than when you’re older (if nothing else, you have much more energy to share with them), you shouldn’t choose to delay children without looking at the larger picture.

5 Ways to Take Advantage of the Financial Crisis

www.marieclaire.com/life/career/successful/fina...


By Hannah Geller

Karin Catt
1. Budget Wisely"Live within your means," says senior financial adviser James E. Law of Law, Chemtob, and Associates. "Why carry around credit card debt from a dinner you had four years ago that you can't even remember?" Let the current atmosphere of fear and frugality inspire you to get your finances in order. Set a budget for yourself and stick to it. Some tips for doing so? To begin with, make sure you have a cash reserve, health, and life insurance. Once that's taken care of, "pay yourself first," says Law. Meaning, when you divide up your paycheck, treat the funds you set aside for a long-term goal like another bill you have to pay each month. Once you have some money saved up, be it $100 or $100,000, there are all kinds of smart ways to spend it now.

2. Take Stock"Now is a great time to invest," says Law. "Although the market's not going to go up right away," buying stocks or mutual funds now, when they are less expensive, is like "buying a dress from Banana Republic for $50 instead of $100" — the less you spend initially, the less risk is involved, and the greater returns could be. If, and only if, you have extra cash, consider putting your money into stocks, bonds, or even your office's 401(k). Get advice from a professional financial planner like Law, or check out Websites like Yahoo's Motley Fool to start learning about the market.

3. Deals on Wheels "Automakers are hurting," says Joanne Helperin, senior features editor of the auto information site Edmunds.com. "They are desperate to make a sale and will do anything to get you financed." It's harder to get a loan now than it was six months ago, but if you figure out how to pay, it's easy to get an excellent bargain.The first step to getting financed, says Helperin, is to be prepared. Check how much the car's selling for on edmunds.com, autotrader.com, or kbb.com. That way, you'll know if the price you're being offered is fair or negotiable. You should also learn your credit score, which is free and easy to check at experian.com. The number's not set in stone: Pay off bills and consolidate debt to improve your score before you visit the dealer.Next, head to the bank or credit union to get preapproved for financing. At this point you're the equivalent of a cash buyer, and car dealers will be falling all over themselves to get your business. A recent New York Times article mentioned $15,000 discounts on GMC Yukons, $14,000 off 2008 Ford pickups, and $12,000 off Jeeps this month. Additionally, several automakers, like Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and BMW, are offering historically low interest rates. These companies will scramble to beat your preapproved finance rates. When selecting a car, look out for gas guzzlers, warns Helperin. Although gas prices are low today, who knows what they'll be tomorrow, given the volatility of the market. Check out Edmunds's "true cost to own" feature, which calculates how expensive a car really is, taking into account fuel costs, maintenance, insurance premiums, and loan interest.

4. Get Real (Estate) National housing prices fell 2.1 percent in September alone, according to Integrated Assets Management. And for the first time in years, the number of Manhattan apartments up for sale is steadily increasing, while the number of buyers is steadily decreasing. Getting a loan may not be easy, but if you have the money, it's a smart time to spend it on real estate.Prudential Douglas Elliman real estate agent Vickey Barron thinks the current market presents good opportunities for buyers, and not just because of the bargains. The whole experience of buying an apartment is suddenly more pleasant and less cutthroat. Because the market is less competitive, "people have time to digest and take a deep breath," says Barron. "They don't have to act as quickly, and have more time to figure out" what they're looking for. "Buyers are real buyers, and sellers are real sellers," observes Barron. "An open house may no longer draw 35 people, but you know that the five or six people there are really interested. And no one's putting their house on the market just to test the waters" — they're really looking for a purchaser.

5. Vacate"Hotels that never would have entertained the idea of offering a discount last year are offering incredible bargains," said Michelle Finkelstein, VP of sales at high-end travel planner Our Personal Guest. Many people have been canceling their travel plans due to the economy, which means last-minute vacancies and great buys for the people who fill them (you). "Hotels, even at the superluxury level, are offering deals — complimentary upgrades, amenities such as spa treatments or dinners, and, more commonly, extra nights for free." At ultra-luxe resort Ile de France on St. Barts island, you can stay five nights for the price of three, or seven nights for the price of four. And Royal Hideaway Playacar in the Riviera Maya, Mexico, will refund $500 of your plane fare.

The 4 Worst Energy Zappers in Your Life

From:
http://www.thechangeblog.com/energy-zappers/

When I was 20 I caught the Epstein Barr virus which eventually resulted in debilitating chronic fatigue. At the height of my war with chronic fatigue it was like my life was over. I slept 17 hours a day and barely left my room during the rest of the time. It took a long time and a lot off effort and fantastic support for me to finally become well again.
I only tell you this because I want you to know that I have extensive personal experience with the phenomena of fatigue in terms of experimenting and listening to my body. My practical experience has taught me what makes fatigue worse and what helps overcome fatigue. Today I’m going to share with you what I’ve learned so that you can avoid certain key energy zappers and, I hope, improve the quality of your life.
1. Processed Foods
If you’re eating processed foods you’re contributing to the toxicity of your body. Consider why we have certain physiological detoxification processes maintained by organs such as the liver. When our physiology was formed there were none of the man-made additives and chemicals in food that our ancestral humans consumed.Up until about one hundred years ago the liver only had to deal with organic substances. Today, if you’re eating processed foods your liver is being overwhelmed by synthetic and organic chemicals it must process. According to the book Food Allergies and Food Intolerance, if you’re eating what passes for the average diet and drinking unfiltered tap water you are exposing yourself to at least 200 synthetic chemicals and chemical cocktails every single day.
All the extra work your liver and kidneys are doing requires a lot of energy.
2. Caffeine
If you’re anything like most people in the western world you consume some form of caffeine. Caffeine is something we reach for when we feel we need more “energy”. Unfortunately caffeine does NOT give you energy. What caffeine does do is stimulate your nervous system. Stimulation is a very different animal to energy.
By using caffeine as a stimulant you’re actually wearing your body out. When you consume caffeine your body releases a hormone called Cortisol. What you should know about Cortisol is that it is a stress hormone. Think fight or flight.
It is the Cortisol in your blood that keeps you awake and pepped up after consuming caffeine. Cortisol suppresses white blood cells, natural killer cells, and other features of the body’s immune system as well as increasing blood pressure. If you’re already stressed and you’re consuming things like caffeine you’re probably well on your way to adrenal fatigue.
3. Sugar
Here sugar includes refined and processed simple carbohydrates. That means white bread, white rice, pasta, and so forth. This sort of food spikes your blood sugar as effectively as sugar itself does. As always after a big spike in blood sugar levels comes a big crash.
When the body’s blood sugar level crashes below a healthy equilibrium you feel tired and fatigued. You’ll also feel highly unmotivated, become irritated and snap at your loved ones, all because you ate something high in sugar or a highly refined carbohydrate. For your reference the different names sugar parades under include lactose, sucrose, glucose, maltodextrose, maltose, dextrose, fructose, corn syrup, honey and maple syrup.
We all know (at least I hope so!) that refined sugar is bad for us. What you may not be aware of is that sugar is actually an anti-nutrient. What that means is when you consume refined sugar and carbohydrates there are no vitamins and minerals in that food. So in order to digest and process these things your body is required to draw from its own vitamin and mineral stores. That is never going to be good for your energy levels, nor your long-term health and wellbeing.
4. Toxic People
We’ve covered a lot of ground that has focused on the things we consume that are energy zappers. So I thought we’d finish with something a little different. Toxic people are people who are always negative, down on themselves and easily disturbed by any minor event that doesn’t go their way. You know who they are. They’re the complainers. The people who always criticize but never back that up with helpful solutions, the ultimate pessimists.
If you’re around such people for very long you’ll start to entrain to their energy level. You’ll enter into their headspace and essentially get dragged down, both emotionally and in terms of energy. To counteract this you will want to limit the amount of time you spend in the company of this type of person.
Sometimes, such as in a work environment, it is impossible to be free of toxic people. So in that case you will want to guard against spending your valuable energy complaining about these people to others and even to yourself. Once you leave work make sure you don’t bring it home with you.
Conclusion
Please give us your thoughts on the energy zappers presented here by leaving a comment. Also feel free to tell us about other top energy zappers that you have experienced, and what you were able to do about it.

Life Lessons#1: Develop Multiple Income Streams

This is a guest post by Beverly Davis, Founder of SundayCosmetics.com
I’m a home-based entrepreneur with a clear vision of stable, multiple income streams. It sounds savvy, but the truth is, I learned from sudden unemployment. I’ll never again rely on one employer (or client) as my only source of income. It is my mission to share my personal revelation with anyone who wants to succeed financially.
I’ve always heard “live beneath your means, don’t spend all you make, don’t use credit cards. Pay your tithes, give offerings” Good advice. Teachings should also include suggestions for increasing income with examples of people who did. It opens up creative thinking. Times have changed. Today, most companies are quick to downsize, cut pay and lay off employees. It’s ruthless.
After two consecutive jobs working in a toxic work environment, I couldn’t take it anymore. I reached my limit. I had spent a almost 25 years working hard to succeed with no financial security to show for it. It was a disguised blessing.
In October 2007, with a small savings and a new mortgage, I launched out to work for myself. Friends, family and colleagues laughed. They expected me to fail and some were bold enough to tell me. I immediately let them go. I cleaned my life of all negative people and kept my faith in God. I struggled intensely, but I made it.
In this economic recession, there are people surviving and thriving because they had a Plan B. When their company cut their pay or laid them off, they were able to still take care of themselves and their families. They didn’t end up starving or living in a homeless shelter.
The only way to recession proof our income is to have more than one source.

Source:

Life Lessons#1: Develop Multiple Income Streams

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