Hope you had a great month of January to set the tone for the New Year...


I came into 2011 with my new little boy being born. And just in time for the Super Bowl this Sunday. He's ready! Football in hand already. Thats my boy!

Nicolas Andrew Cass born December 27th. A projected 3rd round draft pick in the 2033 NFL draft.

Just kidding.

Boy oh boy does life take on a whole new look and feel when you have a child. I'm sure you know exactly what I mean if you have children of your own. It certainly makes you look at everything differently. All good though. He's doing great.


Ok, now on to some important business...

What I'm about to share with you this week is something you will not hear too many other places in regards to household incomes in the US. It's not at all what you think. However, it's VERY important that you read this with extreme focus. You'll see what I mean in a moment.

Not sure if you watch the news much but if you do you surely hear a LOT about how "no one has any money anymore" because the recession has wiped out every single person on earth. Yep, it's ALL gone. The money has flat out disappeared. Not one person has even a dime to pay their bills with....

Not.

In fact, not even close. Check this out...

I pulled some numbers that would make the mainstream news networks and local newspapers squirm. Why? Because these kind of numbers don't increase viewership or sell more newspapers.

It's the "$100,000.00+ Household Income" numbers - the number of families in the US that have total income of $100,000.00 or more. Now, of course that's no one. I mean, come on... no one has any money, right? The recession has affected every single man, woman and child, and every single business from California to Florida. In fact, no one is even in business anymore last I heard on the news.

Ok, I'm done...   ;)

The number of households in the US with $100,000.00+ in annual income in 2009 was 23.9 million. The number of households in the US with $100,000.00+ in annual income in 2010 was 24.5 million. These numbers came in at the end of 2010 from Career Builder / Research Report.

That's a BIG jump to the upside, especially during a severe financial crisis. And one worth really,  really, really understanding. There are certain, specific dynamics at play here you NEED to be aware of  if; a) you want to get to $100,000+ and/or; b) if you want to market and sell to the $100,000+ crowd.

So what's going on here?

Simply put, the "middle class" is melting away. And nowadays, with the cost of living skyrocketing and inflation creeping up, anything less than $100,000.00 is actually considered "middle class." It wasn't always this way. $100,000.00 used to be considered rich to many in the US.  A major career milestone. No more. Not even close. In fact, $100,000.00 per year are now many families expenses alone.

Now, let me be clear here... The middle class is not going away, it's melting away. Soon it will be gone forever. But it won't disappear. It will linger. But it will NOT be the dominant driving force of the US economy that it once was. Some will hang around, sadly, right in the middle. But, ultimately one of two things will happen. And this is what no one likes to talk about. And its critical you understand this....

Those in the middle class will either; a) move up; or b) move down.

Simply a choice. The key word here being "move." One needs to actually, deliberately, and consciously, "move" up or they'll be forced down by the current economic forces in play. Not a good scenario for those who like to hang around waiting (which is a LOT of people lately). By the way, the word waiting ought to be removed from your vocabulary all together.

Anyway, the reason I bring this to your attention today is because right now in your business you may be buying into the "no one has any money" propaganda being slung by the news networks. And if you are, there's no doubt it will end up crippling your marketing and sales efforts. You'll end up waiting for the right time to invest in your business, the right time to market, the right time to talk to a prospect, etc. Not good. And really not good now that you know the number of US households with an income of $100,000.00+ is on the rise!

The BIG lesson here...

Just because the number of $100,000.00+ households is on the rise does NOT mean they are spending like they once did. Not even close actually. In fact, they're watching their spending like a hawk. What they aren't spending money on is unnecessary "commodity" based products and services that they can get anywhere and where 'price matters.' What they are spending it on is "premium" based products and services that they cannot get anywhere and that carry huge, hidden value.

I hope, now that you know $100,000.00+ households are on the rise, not declining, you are a bit more optimistic as we move deeper into 2011. This is very encouraging information to say the least. The key now is to take advantage of this information.

If you're not in the $100,000.00+ household income level yet, work your tail off to get there because it's happening all around you, regardless of what you may be hearing on the news. Don't ever forget that. If you're already in the $100,000.00+ household income level, give me a call or send me an email and I'll show you how to get to the $500,000.00+ income level. It's not as hard as you think once you crack $100,000.00.


Best,

Andrew J. Cass