Bob noticed a leak coming from his toilet. "I can fix that," he said, "and I'll save a ton of money doing it myself." He went the hardware store, bought some parts, and fixed the leak--or so he thought. He didn't know water was still leaking under the floor.

Sally needed a haircut. With an important presentation coming up, she didn't have time to go to the beauty parlor. "I'll just cut it myself," she said. So she took a little off all over; then, to even it out, a little more off this side, then that side...by the time she was finished, it was much shorter than she'd planned.

Jeff and his sister Jennifer were on their way to a party in another town when they heard a strange racket coming from under the hood of their pickup truck. "I can deal with that," said Jeff. "Here, you pull on this while I tweak that." They did, then headed off into the night.

Bob ended up with expensive repairs to the sub floor that he could've avoided if he'd called a plumber in the first place. Sally had the ultimate bad hair day--just in time for her important presentation. Jeff and Jennifer became stranded on a dark road far from home.

What do all these people have in common? They tried to fix a problem themselves when they really needed the services of a professional. They ended up with problems far more serious and expensive to fix than their original problems. They suffered embarrassment, wasted time, and inconvenience.

Then a company called Modern Widgets thoroughly researched and developed a new product, Super Widget. They'd done their market research and were sure there was a demand for their product. When it was time to launch it, they held a meeting.

"I'll do a website," said Joe. "I'm a pretty geeky guy."

"I'll write a sales letter," said Marie. "I majored in Creative Writing in college."

"I'll send out some e-mails," said Yuki. "I like to do e-mail."

"I'll make a brochure," said Hector. "I'm not a bad artist."

So they did. How did their cobbled-together marketing program do, you ask?

It bombed. You see, Joe, Marie, Yuki, and Hector made exactly the same mistake as Bob, Sally, Jeff, and Jennifer. They thought they knew what they were doing--but they didn't.

If you're offering a product or service, you need a professional marketing program to reach your audience and make them buy. Even the best product or service is only as good for your bottom line as your marketing plan. Choose a professional marketing writer--before you waste time and money, before you suffer embarrassment and inconvenience.