What is a guarantee? The dictionary defines the word guarantee as the following:

guar·an·tee n.

1. Something that assures a particular outcome or condition: Lack of interest is a guarantee of failure.

2. A promise or an assurance, especially one given in writing, that attests to the quality or durability of a product or service.

3. A pledge that something will be performed in a specified manner.

4. A guarantee by which one person assumes responsibility for paying another's debts or fulfilling another's responsibilities.

5. A guarantee for the execution, completion, or existence of something.

If you are selling products or services on the Internet, it is important that you offer a guarantee. There is a growing distrust with small companies that do business on the Internet. This has been created by a lot of scam artists who have ripped off individuals, never to be heard from again. This small population of dishonest individuals have hurt the honest small businesses that are trying to establish themselves on the Internet.

Small business have to fight back to gain the lost respect and credibility in order to survive on the Internet. Guarantees are a way to once again secure that honest reputation.

For example, for my new book "EZ Money With Ezines", I guarantee that if the reader is not satisfied, they may return my material for a full refund for up to one full year. I even go one step further by guaranteeing an additional $25 for just giving my book an honest try! You can view the entire guarantee by going to:

www.freecoolcash.com/ezmoney.html

This guarantee has been a powerful marketing tool in helping me sell this book. I obviously could not have made this guarantee unless I knew without a doubt that the readers of my book would be making money if they followed my directions.

Some businesses are skeptical to use a guarantee like this because they believe that too many people will rip them off and they will just end up losing money. Nothing could be further from the truth! By stressing such a guarantee, you build credibility and the orders that you will receive because of this guarantee will far outweigh the costs of the people who will try to rip you off.

You do not necessarily have to guarantee the product or service, you could simply guarantee the manner in which you do business. For example, you could guarantee that if a customer's email is not returned within 24 hours, they will receive a $5 coupon towards any future purchases. This will add credibility to the way your company does business.

Look at what your competitors are guaranteeing. If they are guaranteeing a full refund within 90 days, top that by extending your guarantee to a full year and watch your competitor's customers start doing business with you!

Do not make any guarantees that you cannot fulfill. Only make realistic guarantees that you can live up to. You should prominently display your guarantee on your web site and in your sales literature. This will be the real force behind you getting a sale or not.