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Archive for September, 2006

Disconnected? Get involved!

Sep 30

Posted by Robert Gerrish in Health and Safety Dept, Human Resource Management, People!, Personal Development, Starting out in business, The Board Room | No Comments

Disconnected? Get involved!

Ironically for a number of novice soloists the very thing that appeals – the vision of working alone – becomes a major reason to quit.

Working solo doesn’t suit everyone. Without planned habits and behaviours, isolation and loneliness is extremely destructive.

The trick is to engage in ‘purposeful participation’.

If you’re running a business, you’re clearly participating at some level. We’re talking, though, about purposeful participation, the ‘purpose’ in this context is to avoid the incidence of you becoming isolated or cut-off from the rest of the world.

To keep isolation at bay we must feel connected; we need to foster the habits and behaviours of a purposeful participant.

The onset of isolation is rarely heralded. One day you’re chuffing along nicely supported by throngs of unseen supporters and advocates, the next you’re seemingly invisible and alone.

Here are 4 tips to keep you connected:

1. Build meaningful relationships

Take a look at what you’re doing to foster business relationships that have meaning and a strong sense of connection.

If you’ve got it right, a customer conversation will bring the same joy as speaking with a good friend. You will enjoy a feeling that lasts.

Too often we ignore the ‘relate’ aspect of relationships as the emphasis is on sales outcomes. Look instead at building relationship as a means of furthering a sense of connection.

Hmmm. Reckon this depth of relationship may just impact on sales as well? Now there’s a thought.

2. View your neighbourhood as a bustling office

Next, look at how you relate to those around you – the people with whom you regularly come into contact.

Isolation rarely impacts those working in a busy, populated office. Why? Because all they need to do to maintain a sense of connection (without even realising it) is breeze through a workstation or two, collecting smiles and nods along the way.

So consider your acquaintances as your co-workers – whether suppliers, neighbours, corner shop owners, couriers, or the postie.

Relate more with everyone you meet and you cannot help but feel connected.

3. Start talking to people

While email has hugely expanded communication, it has also, sadly, diluted the essential element of voice dialogue. You remember speech, don’t you?

Talking with others is pivotal to the demise of isolation. Before you whizz off another email, make sure you’re not missing an opportunity to connect with a fellow human being.

4. Challenge established actions

Finally, give some of your habitual actions a going over. For example, how do you travel around? Could you move by another means, one that would help you connect more? Think, too, about what you read. Are you learning anything new from your reading? When is the last time you read a teenager’s magazine or tried to understand alternative music/lifestyles?

Remember, every time you take a proactive step towards getting involved, you’re taking one step back from falling into the isolation trap.

How To Target Left Handed Buyers of Blue, 4 Door Fords

Sep 29

Posted by Michael Crooks in Innovation and Creativity, Starting out in business, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | No Comments

How do you target a market as specific as left handed buyers of blue four door Fords? Pretty much the same way you target – mothers to be, pink toilet owners, and those who have a bobble-head on their dash.

First ask yourself, “Who has access to those I want to reach?” the answer is the opportunity I call, ‘Reciprocal Partnership Marketing’ (RPM). RPM is a powerfulmarketing concept. It allows you to literally, and effectively, put your message into the hands of your prospects.

Here’s an example of how:

Mr & Mrs Baker buy a $1000 necklace from Rolling Gold Jewelry Store. Aftr completing the transaction, the clerk hands a package to the Bakers and says, “Rolling Gold Jewelry and Jim’s Insurance want you to have this jewelry cleaning cloth as our gift.” Inside the package is a jewelry cleaning cloth bearing the logos and phone numbers of the jewelry store AND the insurance agent. A card explains the importance of ‘protecting your investment’ by keeping it clean. The card also points out under what circumstances a jewelry insurance policy might be beneficial to ‘further protect your investment’. The card carries both the logos and contact information of both the jewelry store and the insurance agent.

The insurance agent reciprocates by referring peole to the jewelry store for appraisals in advance of writing insurance jewelry riders. In addition, upon completing an insurance sale, the agent gives the client a nice document / policy holder, again bearing the logos and phone numbers of the agent AND the jewelry store. Inside, a card reinforces the value of annual insurance check ups. The card further points out that nothing ‘insures’ (creative license, the correct word is – ensures) fond memories of annual events such as anniversaries and birthdays … like fine jewelry.

The concept works across a broad spectrum.

A clothing store that wants to target women for a Friday sale partners with an appropriate nightclub (bar) that features a Thursday Ladies’ Night. Specially imprinted cocktail napkins, a cople of drawings for dual-logoed prizes and a few posters could drive sales for the clothing store’s Friday event. Of course, the clothing store hypes next Thursday’s ladies’ night for the nightclub by handing out the nightclubs promotional item, other promotional info, and displaying posters.

And the targets I mentioned earlier? To target mothers to be, partner with an OB-GYN. Pink toilet owners – partner with a plumber. hose who have bobble-heads on their dash boards – partner with an instant oil change firm. And if you really want to target left-hande buyers of blue Fords. It’s as simple as partnering with someone who sells Fords.

Who has access to those YOU want to target?

The power of Reciprocal Partnership Marketing can be as simple as passing out each others literature. However, through creative thought and the right promotional products and approach, you can really drive up the RPM’s on the ‘ole sales meter.

5 Ideas for Writing Effective Sales Letters

Sep 29

Posted by Alexandria Brown in Starting out in business, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 1 Comment

Sales letters, sent via e-mail or snail mail, are an effective and inexpensive way to get your message out. Even if your letter goes out to thousands of people, it can give the feel of a personal communication — IF you write it in a direct and conversational tone.

To get your creative juices flowing, here are five tried and true formulas that can work for either e-mail or printed letters.

1. Tell a story — from either your point of view or a customer’s.

Example: ‘”When I started my own business, I was very nervous about keeping my books. I’m not a numbers person and wanted nothing to do with it! Then I purchased ‘EZ-BOOKS’ software. Instantly, all my accounting “dirty work” disappeared. I gained instant peace of mind, and now I can focus on my real job — finding and keeping customers!”

Copy written in a story format has great appeal. By telling a short story that relates to the reader’s situation, you create empathy with her. People are also familiar with stories and enjoy hearing them (they appear daily in newspapers, magazines, TV, etc.). If your letter happens to be a long one, you can draw out your story for added suspense, saving the outcome for the end. (People WILL read long copy… IF they are really interested in it.)

2. Ask questions.

Example: “Have you ever stared at yourself in the mirror and wanted to cry? If we told you we have a product guaranteed to help you drop pounds fast, would you be interested? And what if we told you this product sells for less than $30?”

Basic psychology dictates that when you ask a question, the reader feels compelled to answer it. You’re involving them immediately in the issue at hand. Many effective sales letters ask a series of questions that are all likely answered with a “yes” from the reader.

3. Offer something for free.

My Own Example: “Would you like a complimentary copy of our FREE report, “The 3 Simple Secrets to Publishing an Ezine That Makes You Money?” Then just go to http://www.boostbizezine.com/ and you can download it instantly.”

Think of three free things you could offer right now. A free e-mail or printed newsletter. A helpful article, report, brochure, or booklet. A complimentary consultation or a discount on a first visit.

4. Point out a fear or problem the reader may have.

Example: “You may feel safe in your own home, but did you know that burglaries are on the rise in your neighborhood? This may be the ideal time to install that home security system you’ve been thinking about.”

This method may seem sly, but the advertising industry has been doing this to us for years. Remember how Listerine convinced all of us we have “halitosis”? (It’s the clinical term for bad breath, but it sounds like the plague!) Direct marketers call this “pushing the ouch button”. This method isn’t appropriate for all topics, but you’d be surprised at how many situations you can use it in.

5. Mention someone the reader knows.

Example: “Your friend *Jenny Smith* told us you could use a little ‘R&R.’ That’s why we’re inviting you to the grand opening of our new ‘Bath and Beauty’ Web store, featuring home spa products to help you relax.”

If you operate a referral program, this is an extremely effective way to reach out and touch your prospects. I wrote a letter using this format for a prominent day spa in New York City, and it generated quite a bit of attention. Why? The reader immediately sees the name of someone she knows — the letter makes an instant, personal connection.

(TIP: Ask your clients for the names of a few people who may be interested in your products/services, offering them an incentive if those people respond. These types of referral programs — or “affiliate programs”, as they’re called online — take some time to generate, but they’re well worth it!)

One Final Note:

Remember that your number-one goal is to “hook” your reader right away! We’re all bombarded with tons of e-mail and snail mail every day, so you have a limited amount of time to grab our attention.

Your best bet is to keep your e-mail sales letters within one or two computer screens, and your snail-mail letters to one or two pages.

© 2002-2005 Alexandria K. Brown

Come on baby, light my Firefox

Sep 28

Posted by Sam Leader in Innovation and Creativity, The Operations Dept | 6 Comments

Ask soloists which web browser they use and most of them will answer “Whatever’s preloaded onto my PC.” Typically, this is either Internet Explorer (IE) for Windows users or Safari for those with Macs.

Knowledge of alternative browsers was thin on the ground until late 2004, when Mozilla’s Firefox muscled its way onto the scene. Soon it was obvious this new player was a breath of fresh air for users…and a chill wind for its competitors.
Firefox is ‘open source’ which basically means it’s been developed by users, for users. Its slogan is ‘taking back the web’ and with 64 million downloads since its launch in November 2004, it seems to be doing just that.

Curious as to what all the fuss was about, I made the free download a week ago. I can honestly say after about a day of surfing, I was completely won over. As at the start of every romance, I’m discovering new reasons to love Firefox every day.

So what’s so great about it? Let me count the ways.

1. Tabbed browsing

This enables you to have multiple URLs open in the same browser. You navigate by ‘tabbing’ from one screen to another. Once you use this you realise how annoying managing multiple windows in other browsers is.

2. Bookmark Toolbar

Particularly handy for fans of bookmarking, this toolbar allows you to display your ‘favourites’ horizontally under the title bar. This means you can keep bookmarks on display without having to sacrifice a fifth (or so) of your browser window. While Safari users will be familiar with this tool, it’s not available in IE.

3. Integrated search bar

This lives in the top right of the browser and while it’s defaulted to Google, you can also search other popular sites by choosing from a drop down list which you can customise. My list includes IMDB, eBay, Dictionary.com and Amazon.

4. Security

Firefox is more secure than its competitors and ensures no Spyware headaches. Smarter than the average browser, it alerts you every time you head into a secure environment (i.e. one requiring usernames and passwords) by turning the title bar’s background yellow.

5. Live bookmarks or RSS (Really Simple Syndication)

I’d heard a lot about RSS but, ironically, didn’t understand it. Thanks to Firefox, I now get what it’s about. Basically it’s a way of viewing fresh content from your favourite website without having to navigate through its homepage. When Firefox detects a site with RSS an orange logo appears in the URL bar. Have a play and soon you’ll understand RSS too.

6. Find

Ctrl F for what must be the world’s most intuitive ‘search within a page’ facility.

Having blown sunshine at Firefox it’s necessary to highlight the one downside – some sites won’t load because they have been designed with just IE in mind. However, with millions now choosing Firefox for their default browser, site owners will have no choice but to address this disparity.

I wholeheartedly agree with Forbes magazine’s assessment that “Firefox is better than Explorer by leaps and bounds. I don’t miss Explorer one iota. Give Firefox a day’s worth of Web surfing, and you won’t either.”

So take my advice and download today!

Try another way…

Sep 27

Posted by Steve Gray in Innovation and Creativity, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 6 Comments

Tried selling by walking in the door and telling them what you have? Lots of us have, here’s a thought though, try selling by not selling. Oh yeah you say how would that work?

Let me give you an example, two artist friends of mine want to be represented by an art gallery, so on a recent “gallery crawl” we discussed tactics while driving from one gallery to the other. I put forward that what people are doing is the same old, same old. Walk in the door and pester, or email and pester. Result… zero.

So we tried a little experiment, I call it the “Research Method” walk in and have the usual “hi how are you” chat, then walk up and start a conversation that is a bit more in depth, perhaps it’s about a particular art work… then let the questions flow further (flatter them a bit with, this is such a nice space) and get into the meat in the sandwich (stuff about how they hire new artists.) the information they share is amazing!

Then maybe ask what puts them off new artists… (this discovers what annoys them, then you know not to do that) All the while you are building rapport (learn to fake that and you’ve got it made!) Before long they are asking you what you have to offer and the relationship is now on a different footing altogether. Note; now they are asking you, not you offering.

The idea could work well in a range of industries I am sure. Go on make a few comments about this topic using the comments link at the bottom, I want to hear if you have an ideas on selling that could use this approach. Or tell us if you have used a similar method before.

Oh the artists… I hope they do well in the future, but we had a great time learning that day. The conversation on the way home was brilliant, discussing how things went and what worked better.

P.S. The other thing we noted was the three of us together gave a more rounded and interested front to the discussion and the gallery owners were more than willing to chat to us. At first they possibly thought we were art investors rather than artists.

Crucial questions for start ups

Sep 27

Posted by Robert Gerrish in Planning, Risk Management, Starting out in business, The Board Room | No Comments

New solo ventures require plenty of planning. Here are five questions that all aspiring soloist’s need to consider.

1. Have I done the right amount of research?

The excitement of starting a new business can cause new soloists to be too hasty. Often driven by the mistaken belief that some imaginary boat will be missed if the business isn’t started NOW, this haste can result in the cutting of corners, particularly in the area of research.

You need to research potential markets, the activities of competitors, the mechanics of the business, financial projections and methods of marketing.

However, too much research can signal and fuel procrastination. Many prospective business owners remain just that – prospective – rendered motionless under the weight and anxieties caused by research excess.

Do your best to strike a happy medium between these extremes.

2. Have I been realistic about the pitfalls?

If you’re starting up a new business, you’ll know there are risks involved. It’s really important, though, you draw the distinction between risk and irresponsibility. In a nutshell, risk is not usually terminal. Sure the business itself might fail, but the possibility of loss will have been foreseen and personal disaster will generally have been avoided. Irresponsibility on the other hand generally indicates that pitfalls have been blatantly ignored.

When risks takers don’t pull it off, it’s onto the next. When the irresponsible fail, it’s lose everything and head back to employment.

3. Am I cut out to working on my own?

Working for yourself sounds like bliss and to many it is. To others, however, it’s lonely, isolating and downright destructive.

Before starting out on your own, take a good look at your strengths and weaknesses. Ask yourself these questions as a starter:

  • In what way may my behaviours sabotage my business?
  • Am I a good problem solver?
  • Will I interact with enough people during the week?
  • Can I strike the balance between freedom and discipline?

The answers will help reveal your readiness to go it alone.

4. Can I handle administrative tasks AND develop my business?

‘How did I get here?’ is a far too common complaint of the soloist. Just a few months into the business and the optimism of the pre-launch period has been replaced with mountains of paperwork and endless action lists. At this point, days can go by when nothing gets done.

This can be due to insufficient thought being given to the mechanics of the business, i.e. a lack of procedures. Formulate procedures beforehand and you’ll find it easier to keep control of your business once you’re up and running.

5. Do I have sufficient financial reserves?

Commonly, start-ups are under funded with insufficient reserves to survive the development period. Here we see the new owner opting for the “she’ll be right” seat of the pants approach to business – not a sensible strategy.

Of course occasionally we hear of an under-capitalised business that launches and succeeds effortlessly. But ever wondered why it’s so newsworthy?

Imagine trying to promote, market and network your business when you’re anxious about whether you’ll meet the next rent payment. Not only is it very personally draining, it becomes very apparent to others that you’re in difficulty.

It’s a harsh reality, but few want to give custom to a business that appears to be failing. Make sure you have the funds to ride out the storm.

In conclusion, much is spoken of the high percentage of solo businesses that fail. Don’t let yours become a statistic. Do your preparation and get ready for the best journey of your life!

Give Good Meetings

Sep 27

Posted by Tony Alessandra in Human Resource Management, Planning, The Board Room | No Comments

Meetings are not supposed to be, as one office critic said, “a practical alternative to working.” In fact, if you plan the time and space, meetings can be productive as well as a means of promoting relationships.

Time. Meetings have been described as “a place where you keep the minutes and lose the hours.” To avoid this, it’s always wise to have an agenda and a time limit. Tell everyone when you expect the meeting to end. That will help everyone stay on track and get everything done.

Space. Try to hold meetings in an attractive location so participants will feel comfortable and important. If they enjoy their surroundings, they will probably have a more positive attitude toward the discussion. A neutral location avoids the territorial problems of meeting on someone else’s turf. Movable seating allows participants to establish their own semi-fixed territories and spatial arrangements.

Meetings do not have to waste people’s time; if planned and executed correctly, they can be a useful and constructive activity.

You cannot be serious!

Sep 27

Posted by Sam Leader in Human Resource Management, The Board Room | No Comments

Judging by a recent poll, credibility is a big issue for solo businesses. Over two-thirds of respondents were concerned that their business was not being taken seriously by others.There’s no doubt cynical attitudes abound in the wider business community.

When you think about it, those who view soloism using a traditional work paradigm are bound to struggle with the concept. It’s easier for them to talk in patronising terms like ‘how’s your little businesses?’ or ‘Are you still just working from home?’ than it is for them to appreciate our integrity, autonomy and earning potential.

I suppose they think a regular job in the Cube Farm is the way forward.

What a cheek. Why should ‘their’ (wider business community’s) be ‘our’ (soloist) way?

In reality, solo businesses have not so much rewritten the work rulebook as razed it to the ground. Furthermore, there are almost as many ways of working as there are solo businesses.

For me, soloism is a lifestyle choice. My business is not a stepping stone to ‘better’ things, but a way of work uniquely crafted to fit and finance the way I live. As a result, work is not a Monday to Friday, 9 to 5 endeavour. Instead, my weekdays are a joyous mix of family, friends and office time. Ditto my weekends, actually.

But before you worry that mine is a slacker approach which gives the solo movement a bad name, let me assure you, I can turn on the professionalism when I need to.

For example, I want to go to the beach at 10am on a Wednesday. Do I divert calls to my mobile? No. I have a message that says “I will respond to your call within two hours.” I am aware that clients don’t want to hear seagulls and pounding surf while talking business.

And return the calls within two hours I do, without explanation or apology.

“What if it’s urgent?” you ask. This won’t happen. Because I am not a thrive-under-pressure type, I won’t take on work if deadlines are too tight. Also I don’t believe in being always available, even if it is during so-called work hours. Clients know this, i.e. their expectations are set and boundaries are in place.

Plenty of outsiders, as well as more earnest solo business types, would frown on me popping off to the beach during the day. They would despair of me working propped up in bed, in my tracky daks, sans lipstick. I can empathise with that view, particularly when so many in the solo community struggle with credibility issues.

But, I argue, does my unconventional style mean the work I do for my clients is cack-handed? Hardly. Does it make me incompetent or stupid? No.

Besides, I’ve tried the whole ‘dress smart so you’ll feel more professional’ bit and ended up feeling like an alien in my own skin. It didn’t work…for me.

However, I’ve found a work style that does and I honour it. I love my work, but I also love my friends and family and recognise the time needed to keep these relationships healthy. And if I lavish time on them in the week, that’s my choice. Happy Sam = happy clients.

Whether you’re a serious soloist driven by money and prestige or an idler seeking the path to an easy life, surely finding what works for you has got to be central to any soloist’s definition of success.

What the BLOG???

Sep 25

Posted by Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero in Innovation and Creativity, Starting out in business, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 1 Comment

Blogs Are the NEW Secret Weapon for Reaching Your Tarket. Just like you, I hate being marketed to. Every day we’re bombarded with over 3,500 marketing messages. And frankly I’m sick of it! But blogs are different. Blogs are a two-way conversation between blogger and bloggee (plus all the readers in between). Through commenting and cross-linking, you can share feedback. You can
build your network. You can become, dare I say it, an Internet celebrity!

See blogs add humanity and instantaneous expression to the web. Like ezines, blogs are a way for your customer to get to know you.

However, unlike ezines, blogs help you with search engine rankings. Did you hear me? I said, unlike ezines, blogs help you with search engine rankings. That’s a big one.
Entrepreneur Magazine, Business Week, even the FCC (Federal Trade Commission) all believe blogs are here to stay. Just last month, Michael Powell, chairman of the FCC, started one. His initial post drew over 30,000 readers. A Microsoft spokesperson says Bill Gates is considering starting a blog. And filmmaker Michael Moore built a blog to promote his controversial new movie, Fahrenheit 9/11.

But who has time to read a blog anyway? Exactly! The job of a blog is to cut through the information overload and deliver searchable, relevant and current content. BlogAds.com recently conducted a survey of over 17,000 blog readers. Here’s what they report:

  • Blog readers are older and more affluent. 61% of blog readers are over 30, and 75% make more than $45,000 a year.
  • Blog readers are more cyber-active. 54% of their news consumption is online. 21% are themselves bloggers and 46% describe themselves as opinion makers.
  • Blog readers are media-mavens. 21% subscribe to the New Yorker magazine, 15% to the Economist, 15% to Newsweek and 14% to the Atlantic Monthly.
  • Whether on the left or right, blog readers have traits in common that often are absent in today’s public spaces: passion and initiative.
  • Blog readers have apathy towards traditional news sources. 82% say that television is worthless. 55% percent say the same about print newspapers. 54% say the same about print magazines.
  • Meanwhile, 86% say that blogs are either useful or extremely useful as sources of news or opinion. 80% say they read blogs for news they can’t find elsewhere. 78% read because the perspective is better. 66% value the faster news. 61% say that blogs are more honest.
  • Blog readers appear united in their dissatisfaction with conventional media and their rabid love of blogs.

Don’t you want to be a blogger too? How about looking at some samples of the good, the bad and the bizarre?

Model citizen blogs: http:/ /www.marketingsecrets.com/blog/ – John Reese’s blog. Hey, the guy just made $1,080,496.37 online in a single day. Here’s a good rule of thumb. If Reese is doing it, you should be too.

http://www.talkbiz.net/ramblings/weblog.php – Copywriter Paul Myers keeps us up-to-date on SPAM and other Internet marketing nightmares.

http://ww w.thinkbigrevolution.com/ – Michael Port’s weekly calls to inspire those who aspire now have an online connecting point. Designed by Andy Wibbels.

Loser Blog (for now): http://www.red-hot- copy.com/blog.htm – my blog today. Check it out now, then check it out in 5 weeks after Andy helps me out (see end of article).

Bizarro Blog: Jeff Bridges’ site is considered a “blog.” It’s hand-written! (Yes, really). http://www.jeffbridges.com

I’ve been dipping my toe into the blogging pool since earlier this year. Now I’ve decided it’s time to really learn how to do this stuff with an expert who will take me by the hand through the scary forest of the blog-world. I’m going back to school! Through another client, I met blogging guru, Andy Wibbels. Sure, he has a funny name, but he is adorable! And his writing style has me rolling on the floor. Well Andy is a self- professed geek. And Andy knows blogs. He holds a 5 week class to get you up and running with a blog. He says it’s easy and I trust him. Wanna be in a class together? Read more about it here. www.easybakeweblogs.com

The 7 Point Ultimate Biz Start Up Guide

Sep 25

Posted by Steve Gray in Starting out in business | 4 Comments

I was delighted when a good friend recently introduced me to John, a young man that wanted to get started in business. My friend said to John “Steve knows a bit about the business game, chat to him about it…” John told me about his ideas and I shared some with him. I then realised that there are lots of resources on business but just where do you start!
I said to John when I got started I wanted to get into it as soon s I could but was frustrated by red tape and finances. I was so excited, but then when the dream became reality PIF! it turned out so differently!
So after years of working with business people (starting out and experienced) I wanted to put together the ULTIMATE guide to getting started in business. So here are my 7 points to getitng started. For those in business, let me know what you think… For those starting out, try these tips to get a solid start on business.

  1. Idea – Okay, to get started you need an idea but ask yourself, is it unique, is it something people need or want? Is it something you can discuss with others to see if they think its viable? If so, do it so you can be sure its going to be a useful thing to do, just because you think its a good ideas does not mean it is in reality.
  2. Is there a gap? – Is there room for one more of what you are offering? If so what makes you so sure your version of it will set you apart from the rest so people will pay for what you are offering.
  3. Courage and commitment – Do you really have what it takes to be so committed to the business? It requires a great deal of strength and determination. If you are hiring staff you will need to be good at people skills and have the courage to take them on and the commitment to provide their wages.
  4. Explore the risk – Do your sums! If you want to earn $60k from your business you have to know how much you have to turnover to get that, and yes turnover is very different from what you will take home! Also work out how you will finance it, and no the bank does not lend new businesses money (rarely anyway). You will need enough money to get through to the break even point and start really earning money.
  5. Get advice – Accountants are just one way to get advice on business, ask people who are in business, what would they do if they were starting out again? Check out internet resources, government support services for businesses, business courses so you will have a reasonable idea of what you are getting into. Ask questions LOTS OF QUESTIONS! Really know what you are getting into.
  6. Sustainability – Is your idea for a business something that will last? Example if your idea was to create a dust cover for a mobile phone built in the early 90′s then it will have become useless in no time. It needs to be adaptable to changing market forces. Set up solid plans for success,  you would not build a house without plans, so don’t build a business without one either.
  7. Get passionate! – You will create a product or service and then sell it… If people want to buy it they want to get it from someone with confidence and professionalism not a foolish amateur. Kow yo product, know your customers and give 110%. Let them know you are starting out and that you are personally going to provide the back up, people love that. You don’t need to be over the top to be passionate, but let them know you mean business.

So thats the list… The ultimate aim would be to know that someone used the list and thrived. For the guys already in business, what are your thoughts on the list?

Cheers

Applying Artistic Genius

Sep 24

Posted by Tony Alessandra in Innovation and Creativity, People!, Personal Development | 1 Comment

For your own life, the example of Disney as artistic genius is especially relevant. While it is possible that you may patent thousands of inventions or become president of the United States, the odds are against it, but on a smaller scale, the tools of artistic genius are always available to you.

Walt Disney was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1901. His home life and childhood were far from the idealized turn-of-the-century landscape he would later create at Disneyland. His father in particular was a difficult man emotionally, and an unsuccessful one financially. Walt found a couple of different ways to escape from this environment. First, he escaped into art, taking classes and drawing whenever he could. Second, he enlisted in the Red Cross ambulance service during the First World War, because at the age of 16 he was too young to join the regular army.

After the war, Disney went to Kansas City, and began a career as a commercial artist. There he discovered animation, and the all the possibilities it offered for creating an alternate world. At first, this world was constructed out of pure imagination. Later, it would be projected onto movie screens and television — and ultimately it would become physical reality at Disneyland and Disney World. It would become the basis for a multi-billion dollar entertainment empire.

Walt Disney had nothing like a classical artist’s gifts, such as Leonardo’s abilities. There were thousands of people who could draw better than Walt Disney could — and when he entered the new field of animation, there were many people who were better at that as well. When we look back on it today, it is easy to think that Mickey Mouse was some sort of breakthrough creation that was destined to revolutionize the world. However, there were other cartoon characters that were already very popular, and that were just as charming and creative as the Mouse. For example, what was wrong with Felix the Cat? Why is he forgotten today? Why wasn’t there a television show called the Felix the Cat Club instead of the Mickey Mouse Club?

One big difference, perhaps the big difference, was that behind Mickey Mouse there was a personality whose genius was to take this very little mouse and to make it extremely large. To take something that at first had no substance — no reality — and to give it material being on a scale that kept getting larger and larger.

What does it take to use those tools? It is simply a matter of taking the vision that is in your mind and moving it into the world in some tangible form. It is taking your vision one step beyond just talking about how you will write it, record it, or film it “when you get time.” Taking that step is the essence of artistic genius. Don’t worry about whether your creation will be seen by one person, or a million people, or just by you alone. Focusing on those things — like saying you “don’t have the time” — is just an unconscious way to avoid actually doing anything. The important thing is to separate yourself from the many, many people who tell me they have something they want to say, but who never get around to saying it.

Call me when your dog gets too tall!

Sep 24

Posted by Michael Crooks in Innovation and Creativity, Starting out in business, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | No Comments

My friend Ken, the toy poodle breeder, called the other day asking about imprinted pens to give away at dog shows to promote his kennel. From previous conversations I remembered something about height restrictions. “Ken, isn’t there a rule that when a toypoodle gets to a certain height, you can’t show it any more?” I asked.

“Sure”, he replied, “Ten inches, then they have to get another dog.”

“So give poodle owners a ruler imprinted with your kennel name. ‘Breeder of Champion Poodles’, phone number and a line that says, ‘Call me when your dog gets too tall.’ ”

“Now that’s a great idea!” he exclaimed.

Developing great ideas to promote your business isn’t that hard. it simply takes a subtle shift in mindset and an understanding of what you really want to accomplish. The shift in mindset comes when you understand the difference between a giveaway and a promotion.

A giveaway is a one way street. A business gives away some cheap “doo-dad” thinking it will create goodwill and effectively promote their business, mindless of the fact that the item is irrelevant to their business. The recipient takes the item hame and; 1) Puts it in a drawer, 2) Gives it to the kids, 3) Throws it away. With a giveaway you cannot measure your return on investment. You gain practically nothing meaningful, certainly nothing you can actively follow up on. And as far as building business? Few will say, “Wow! They have given me a cheap piece of junk wih their name on it! I’ve really got to do business with them.”

 A promotion is a two-way street. You determine what you want your prospect / customer to do, then you figure out a way to get them to do it. Trade shows are a good example.

Most companies “give away” something cheap to everyone who stops or walks by. As a business owner / marketer, you don’t care about everyone – at least you shouldn’t. you should only care about those who are interested in your product or sevice, and can afford to pay for it. Being a smart promotional marketer, you offer something of value to those who will fill out a short “need assessment” sheet. This is how you qualify your prospects and obtain meaningful, actionable data. A financial planner who is giving away pens to everyone, would be better to offer an imprinted booklet about ‘Managing Your Finances’ to those who fill out the form. Sure the booklet costs more than the pens, BUT, the financial planner obtains information to effectively follow up on. The return on investment is measurable andthe prospect has a meaningful item that is relevant to their interest.

Cheap giveaways have their place when donating to “goody bags” or as prizes for contests or token thank you gifts. However, when your goal is to promote your business, secure qualified leads or increase traffic – effective beats cheap!

Precise numbers are much more believable than rounded numbers

Sep 24

Posted by Wayne Berry in People!, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 2 Comments

“The words we use in a sales presentation all carry weight. Some weigh more than others. Some are more believable than others. Knowing the words to use can increase your credibility dramatically.”  

Wayne Berry

For example…

If you’ve got around 50 happy clients using the particular product or service, don’t tell your prospect, “I have around 50 happy clients using this system”.

Instead give them a precise number.

“We have 53 clients currently using this system!”

The reasearch on this shows that your client is now far more likely to believe you, and your credibility will be much higher than if you than if you had simply said 50.

Similarly, if you are quoting a price.

A price of say $4,873 will “seem” more non-negotiable, than a price of $4,800 or $5,000. That is to say, you are less likely to be asked for a discount if you say the price is $4,873 rather than $4,800 or $5,000.

The reason for this is obvious enough. A price of $4,873 has obviously been calculated from a precise formula, using actual costs etc. (or so it will seem.) Hence it is less likely to be regarded by your cleint as a “flexible price”.

It’s important to always tell the truth.

When I offer my CD programmes from the platform at seminars, I tell my audience that we have a Money Back Guarantee, so they can return any programme that they purchase, if they are not totally happy with it.

I then ask them, “How many programmes do you think we’ve ever had returned?”.

Because people rarely expect a sales person to tell them the truth anyway, they give me the answer they think I want to hear. They always say the same thing. They always say “None”!

However, this is simply not true, so I tell them this is not true!

It is inconceivable that we’ve not had any returns in 14 years, so I always tell them the truth. I say, “No that’s not true, we’ve actually had 11 programmes returned over the last 14 years and we’ve made 11refunds”.

Notice that I use exact numbers again.

I used exact numbers for both the number of programmes returned and the number of years.

By the way, that’s 11 out of 12,658 audio programmes that we’ve produced and sold since October 22nd 1991. That’s a pretty good record and we are proud of it. By the way those figures are accurate because I’ve just looked them up on our computer system, so I can be precise.

Notice too the numbers I always use under my signature in this and every newsletter.

Go on, have a look.

Also notice that some of the most effective advertising you’ll ever see that quotes figures uses this technique.

In the USA one of the most popular brands of soap is Ivory Soap. Decades ago, Ivory set themselves apart from their competition and grabbed a large share of the market by claiming that “Ivory Soap is 99 and 44/100ths percent pure”.

They could just as easily claimed that “Ivory Soap is 100% pure”.

However they chose not to

The truth is, Ivory Soap isn’t 100% pure. Anything manufactured in bulk can’t be 100% pure or perfect and when we make a claim that something is 100%, people say to themselves;

“Oh really? I’m not that stupid. That can’t be entirely true and you know it too!”

And when a prospect feels this way, you lose points on your credibility scale with them.

Lose enough points, and as your credibility goes down, you become less believable even when you are telling the whole truth, and nothing but the truth!

From now on, be as precise as you can be and see what happens.
Have a great week, make it a great week!

Faux Guarantees, Guaranteed! Or your Money Back!

Sep 24

Posted by Michael Crooks in Innovation and Creativity, Starting out in business, The Customer Service Dept, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 3 Comments

I hadn’t come unglued for quite some time and, I suppose, I was due. Cause when the guy in the TV ad said, “Satisfaction guaranteed. Or your money back!” … I lost it.

“If my satisfaction is guaranteed,” I shouted, “then what’s with the “or” part. A guarantee is supposed to be an absolute. It’s supposed to be without fail. There should be nothing like “or your money back” after a guarantee. All the “or” does is tell people that the guarantee really isn’t a guarantee. It weakens the whole premise of a guarantee. It waters down the very thing you’re attempting to lure your customers with!”

At this point, I realized that my sudden outburst had scared the bejesus out of the cat who plowed through the popcorn bowl on his way out of the room at Mach I. As my wife and two kids retrieved popcorn from all parts of the room, it was strongly suggested that I give the subject of guarantees some additional thought … in another room.

Fine. Here’s my admittedly philosophical thinking. Time was, a guarantee was a solemn edict that meant something. Today, it’s almost a cliche’. Let’s say you’re guaranteeing “On-time” delivery. The very nano-second your delivery is late, the guarantee is null and void — proving that your guarantee really wasn’t a guarantee. That makes you a liar.

Part of the problem with guarantees is with the wording and the fact that people are attempting to guarantee that which they have no control over.

When developing a guarantee, think in terms of what you control. I can guarantee I’ll give you your money back, ie; “If you’re not satisfied, I’ll give you your money back… guaranteed.” In this case
I’m guaranteeing I’ll give the money back. I’m not, however, guaranteeing your satisfaction.

See the difference in the way the next two are written:
1) On time delivery guaranteed – or your money back.
2) On time delivery or your money back – guaranteed.

The first one guarantees on time delivery, as though I have control over mother nature, mechanical failure and a million other things that can prevent a delivery from taking place on time and ruin my reputation. With the second, I’m guaranteeing your money back. The first may ultimately prove to be an empty promise, which discredits me and gives my client or customer no reason to believe in my “faux guarantee” in the future. The second has teeth. It’s strong. It sounds good. But most importantly, I’m guaranteeing what I will do.

If you offer a guarantee, or are in the process of developing one, read it carefully to determine exactly what it is that you’re guaranteeing. Ask yourself, “Do I have control over what I’m guaranteeing?”

You see, I can’t guarantee my family uninterrupted tv time, because apparently, I can’t control myself. And I can’t guarantee they’ll let me back in, even if I make more popcorn. But, I can offer them this, “If you let me back in, I’ll make more popcorn. Guaranteed!

You’re a genius and you don’t even know it

Sep 22

Posted by Tony Alessandra in Innovation and Creativity, People!, Personal Development | No Comments

You’re a genius and you don’t even know it
Paul MacCready is a writer and inventor who has carefully studied genius and the ways people understand that concept. MacCready has evolved several categories of what genius seems to mean, but the most important category for you is the one in which you belong – read on!

Types of geniuses are:

1) “Everyone agrees” geniuses: the great icons of civilization, including Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, and Shakespeare. These are geniuses elected by unanimous consent.

2) Officially designated geniuses: people who have won Nobel Prizes or other highly-respected awards. Whether or not we understand what they’ve accomplished, we think of them as geniuses based on their recognition by people who are supposed to know one when they see one.

3) Prodigies or savants: people who haven’t yet gained national or international prominence, but who have done something so remarkable that they seem to be in a different realm from ordinary mortals. Some of these are young prodigies – students who have won national science contests or gotten perfect scores on standardized tests.

The first three are quite legitimate, but the fourth category is really the most important – because it includes you, and everyone else. It’s based on the idea that we all have the potential for achievements that are wrongly considered possible for only a few.

There’s plenty of evidence for everyday genius. After all, the physical and mental challenges of learning to walk and talk are more difficult than anything we face later in life – yet the vast majority of human beings meet these challenges successfully. True, it’s been argued that these primary skills are hardwired into our genetic makeup. But there are many things that the genetic argument can’t account for. In the 17th and 18th centuries, for example, it was expected that every member of the educated class would be able to read and speak several different languages, write poetry, play a musical instrument, and know much of the Bible by heart. These people routinely displayed abilities that today would be considered truly amazing – and perhaps even evidence of genius. But in those days what we call genius was just the fulfillment of society’s expectations.

When we speak of everybody being a genius in this sense, it doesn’t mean everyone has to get 800s on the SATs or play the violin or create beautiful oil paintings. Those are other ways of looking at the concept of genius, which are revealed in the origin of the word itself. A researcher by the name of Thomas Armstrong has done some excellent work on this. He points out that the word genius is closely related to the word genesis, which comes from Greek and Latin words meaning “beget”, “be born”, or “come into being.” It’s also related to the word genial, meaning “festive” or “jovial.” In the Middle East, the term has been linked to the word jinni, or genie, the magical power that lay dormant and hidden in Aladdin’s lamp until a secret method released it.

Combining all these roots leads to a very powerful and beautiful definition of genius. It means “giving birth to your joy.” In this sense, genius is a word for an individual’s hidden potential. It also includes the process of discovering that potential and transforming it into action. But the first step is belief – certainty that you have greater capabilities than you thought, and a responsibility to develop them and put them to use. So put your capabilities to use today, and join the ranks of geniuses everywhere!

Here’s to more personal insight.

Why Are You Doing Everything Yourself?

Sep 21

Posted by Alexandria Brown in Innovation and Creativity, People!, Risk Management, The Board Room | 5 Comments

When I coach my entrepreneur clients, one problem I often see is that they’re not taking enough time to market and grow their business. It’s not that they don’t understand the value of those efforts, or they don’t want to make the time. It’s that they’re simply trying to do too much by themselves. They’re so busy running their business that they’re not working ON their business.

Are You Spending All Your Time on the Little Stuff?

Owning your own business requires wearing a lot of hats. But it seems that when many people leave their jobs to “go solo,” they think they must work completely solo as well. They insist on doing everything themselves — even tasks they know darn well they’re not good at.

They try in vain to design their own Web sites and brochures, write their own sales copy, process their own orders, manage their own mailing list, personally respond to every customer call and e-mail, ship their own products, and more. Pretty soon they’re running around like that proverbial headless chicken.

What eventually happens is their love for their work— the reason they started their own business in the first place— drowns in a flood of administrative trivia. Suddenly one morning they wake up feeling burnt out and without that positive, creative energy they used to have.

When this happened to me a few years ago, I was lucky to learn about virtual assistants (VAs). VAs are freelancers who take care of all that “busy work” for entrepreneurs like us. Because VAs are independent themselves, they work on an as-needed basis from their own homes or offices, saving you the cost and hassle of hiring a regular office assistant.
I now have two VAs — Liz, who lives in Boston, and June, who lives in Georgia. And I can’t live without them!

What Could YOU Delegate to a VA?

During next week, keep a log of all your activities. Then sit down and review it. Decide which activities are truly ones that only you can do and which you can delegate.
For example, here are some of the tasks I delegate to my VAs:

  • Responding to customer e-mails and phone calls re. downloading my e-book.
  • Scheduling business and personal appointments and interviews.
  • Bookkeeping: invoicing customers, receiving and paying bills, reconciling bank statements, tracking expenses and tax records, working with my accountant. (This was my favorite to delegate — I despise this stuff!)
  • Internet research and fact checking
  • Planning my travel for speaking engagements and seminars
  • Maintaining my e-zine and customer mailing lists
  • Managing my e-zine ad sales
  • Handling registrations for my teleclasses/workshops
  • Maintaining my Web site (copy edits, additions)
  • Creating sales reports
  • Shipping customer orders
  • Submitting my articles to other publishers and article sites
  • Placing ads in publications and at Web sites.
  • Formatting e-books and creating PDF files
  • Designing PowerPoint presentations

And I don’t stop there. Liz and June have also been happy to help me with personal stuff like researching vacations, purchasing client gifts, and reminding me of birthdays and other important dates. Thanks to these two amazing gals, I save my time and energy only for my “genius work.”

Worried You Don’t Have the Budget?

The good news is you’re not hiring your VA full time. A VA only charges you for the hours she actually works. Although VA rates may be more than you’d pay an administrative employee (usually $30-50 per hour), you don’t have the added expenses of employee benefits, office space, and equipment. You’re also getting someone who has years of experience, who loves what she does, who already has her own desk, chair, computer, software, fax, phone, stapler, and pens, and who’s ready to leap in and start work as soon as you are.

Keep in mind that having a VA will IMMENSELY free up your time to focus on the stuff that matters: marketing and growing your business, developing bold new product ideas and income streams, and servicing your larger clients. You’ll think much bigger and will have much more creative energy.

Look for a VA That Matches Your Needs

If you’re looking for a long-term partner who is committed to helping you succeed (and I was), look for someone who’s graduated from a VA training program such as AssistU (www.AssistU.com). That’s where I found both Liz and June, and I highly recommend it. Another resource is the International Virtual Assistants Association. (www.ivaa.org)
Don’t wait until it’s too late! Most of my clients put off hiring a VA until they “hit the wall.” Things like overdue bills, a messy office, late projects, and unreturned phone calls add up until their business almost collapses.

Take action NOW and at least learn more about getting some help. It will be a big relief, I promise!

A winning image starts with a good self-image

Sep 21

Posted by Tony Alessandra in People!, Personal Development | No Comments

I have a teacup poodle named Vito. Vito is the size of a toaster, but every time I take him for a walk, he never fails to pick a fight with some dog ten times his size. It’s become clear to me that Vito has an image problem – he’s a little dog who thinks he’s a lot bigger than he really is. (Blame me for naming him Vito!)

Many of us, like Vito, carry around a self-image that doesn’t really jive with the facts. And that can be devastating to our careers. After all, how we look in our mind’s eye really determines how successful we can be in dealing with other people. For example, if you have an overly negative self-image – you feel that you’re too tall, or overweight, or unattractive in some way – you’ll lack confidence, and others will easily catch on. On the other hand, if you have an overly positive image of yourself – you think you look terrific, when in fact you’re a sloppy dresser who’s badly in need of a haircut – you’ll be blinded by a false sense of confidence and make decisions, actions, or statements about yourself that might lead people to question your professionalism…and even your sanity.

In either case, analysis by yourself – and perhaps by those closest to you – is needed, because your image is important. Luckily, it’s also something you can easily change! To find out how others see you, get some photographs or videotapes taken of yourself when you feel you’re looking your best. Ask for close-ups and study them carefully. What do you see that you like, or don’t like?

Then ask your best friends for their candid opinions on how you look, how you carry yourself, how you come across verbally, and what your car or house or briefcase or other material goods say about you. Promise you won’t take offense – and don’t! Then ask them to tell you about your image in terms of knowledge and enthusiasm as well as sincerity and integrity.

Now you can use your own and others’ candid analyses to change aspects of your image that give off the wrong impression, and walk with your head held high!

Here’s to more personal insight.

Six steps to newsletter success

Sep 19

Posted by Sam Leader in The Marketing Dept | 1 Comment

A newsletter is a piece of correspondence containing (hopefully) interesting insights into your business, which is distributed to your contacts via email on a regular basis. It is a simple and effective way of establishing yourself as an expert and building your list of contacts.To start, all you need is a working email, a bit of brain power and a handful of interested parties to send it to.

Follow these six steps to help you get you make the most of this powerful marketing tool:

1. Make the commitment

Good newsletters require time and energy to put together, so ensure you have the necessary resources to get yours going. Nothing says ‘flake’ like an irregular newsletter or one that runs out of puff after a couple of issues.

2. Keep your newsletters short and sweet

Few people want to spend longer than 5 minutes reading an newsletters, so keep it brief and to the point. Focus on one topic per edition and limit the word count to a maximum of 1,000 per issue. Keep to a set structure each time, e.g. overview (100 words), article (600), bullet points of article’s key points (150), sign off, including a summary of your business and contact information (150).

3. Use ‘you’ not ‘we’ language

Compare:

“Before we ran our management training course for Widgetmasters, they were really struggling with staff retention”

With:

“If staff retention is an issue for you, as it is for many medium-sized businesses, the answer could be in better trained management.”

The first reads like an overblown advert while the second reads like the start of an informative article. So use case studies (i.e. your experience) in an illustrative, rather than literal way, as this is far more reader-friendly.

4. Share your insights

Those cautious about giving away too much information will end up with a far less readable newsletter than those who freely share their knowledge. Yes, you may teach your competitors a trick or two, but it’s preferable to being an unknown expert with valuable information laying dormant.

5. Encourage new subscribers

For your newsletter to boost your credibility, you need to build subscriber numbers. Good articles are at the heart of any successful newsletter, but there are also practical steps you can take to increase your readership, like asking your existing readers to forward the newsletter to their network. Ensure there’s plenty of upfront information to enlighten those receiving it for the first time. For example, running a slogan at the start helps clarify who you are and what the newsletter’s about.

6. Respect your readers’ privacy

This can easily be covered off via a one-sentence statement expressing that details will not be shared with any third parties. Obviously spamming a loyal readership is a no go – you may get away with the odd survey, but bombard their inbox and you’ll lose readers faster than you can say ‘unsubscribe’.

One final word of encouragement: don’t worry if you only have a few email addresses to begin with. The Flying Solo ezine started with fewer than 20 and, five years later, is distributed to over 11,500 subscribers.

Five benefits of being a specialist

Sep 19

Posted by Robert Gerrish in Innovation and Creativity, People!, Starting out in business, The Board Room | No Comments

1. Specialists have opinionsAs you become immersed in your area of speciality, so you develop strong opinions. These opinions may be about a particular area within the scope of your work or they may be about the circles within which you operate.

For example, if you’re a retailer, your opinion may be about the products you sell, issues concerning the people you sell to, or issues to do with being a retailer.

The point is, opinions matter. People value your opinions – your customers, your contacts, your network, the media. Speak up about your views and before too long you will be approached for opinion.

Ponder for a moment: Your customers, your contacts, your network, the media… all approaching you for your opinion. How does it feel?

2. As an aid to generating referral

In simple terms, for referrals to be generated, people need to know what you do and who you do it for.

By establishing yourself as a specialist in a given field, you make it easier for acquaintances, friends, fans and advocates to talk about you.

Got trouble with your feet? Need work on your gums? Want to get more clients? Who you gonna call?

3. Helps maintain focus

Focus is fabulous. Henry David Thoreau had it right all along. So if you’d like to “meet with a success unexpected in common hours” you’ll give it your attention. By becoming a specialist, focus moves from being an optional extra to standard equipment. You simply have no choice.

4. Specialists command a premium

Recently in a crisp little surgery with art on the walls and James Taylor playing on the stereo a very nice man in white Birkenstock sandals spent 40 mins prodding around in my mouth. It cost me $500.

I am not complaining, I’m merely illustrating a point: If you dedicate yourself to your area of speciality and over time, truly become a specialist, you can charge a premium for your work.

5. You’ll open a door to serial-specialism

Once you have tasted the benefits of becoming a specialist, you’re likely to see opportunities for more. A good place to start is to look at your current client base and search for specialised commonalities in the work you do.

A valuable exercise can be to ask the question of clients: What do you get from working with me that you did not anticipate at the outset?

How to win friends in five seconds

Sep 19

Posted by Tony Alessandra in People!, Personal Development | 1 Comment

We accomplish much more when we learn to focus on others
There’s an old story of a young lady who was taken to dinner one evening by William Gladstone, and the following evening by Benjamin Disraeli, both eminent British statesmen in the late nineteenth century. “When I left the dining room after sitting next to Mr. Gladstone, I thought he was the cleverest man in England,” she said. “But after sitting next to Mr. Disraeli, I thought I was the cleverest woman in England.”

Disraeli obviously had a knack for making the other person the center of his universe, if only for the evening. If you practice attentiveness to others, you’ll find it does wonders for both of you. They’ll enjoy it; you’ll enjoy it. And together you’ll accomplish much more.

Make a conscious effort to think of others’ wants and needs before your own. Start training your mind not to focus automatically on what separates you from the other person. Rather, figure out what unites you, and how you can build upon that base. Soon such empathy will become a habit – a very good habit that will improve all your relationships immeasurably!

Here’s to personal insight

Wealth…

Sep 19

Posted by Steve Gray in Starting out in business, The Board Room | No Comments

Is this a taboo subject? Is it wrong to be wealthy? Is a business purely profit based or can it add to society in other ways as well?

For too long I was ignorant of wealth and all that it conjures up. I also got success mixed up with it and before long found myself secretly wanting it yet outwardly hiding my ignorance.

In a discussion with a mentor I value highly, I was told briefly to remember that you can do more with money than you can without it. Fair comment I thought and from that day on my perspective was altered.

For some wealth is an elusive thing, one step forward, two steps back. Things can feel like they are never going to get ahead. Others find it works better as a passive device having small investments develop into bigger ones.

Another viewpoint.
In the book Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki, he points out some of the differences between the mind sets of those that have money work for them and those that just seem to spend. He then gives an interesting account of how people view assets, either as devices that give a return on investment or as items that a person or business owns.

Finding out more.
In this day and age there are numerous options for finding out how you can develop wealth. For some the effort can not be justified, yet for others they discover that they have just been marking time to this point.

Whatever you decide, take some of these points into consideration.
How much money will you need to retire? How much will you actually have? If there is a big difference between the two what can you do about it?

In business there are many organisations that when the owner retires, the business folds and all is forgotten, then there are those that create an asset that can be passed on to others to reap their own rewards. In time will your business be an asset or a thing you fold up and forget?

Business, what for?
Perhaps you can begin to consider why you got into business in the first place? And for what reason/s. Was it to be your own boss? To be responsible for your own actions? Or to perhaps enjoy the benefits of providing society with the opportunities to employ others? I wonder. Was it to make a profit, or to provide a service or product to others.

Hopefully it was both. These we call the purpose and function of a business, if it does not provide either, you will not be in business for long. Without customers we are lost, with them we can prosper and look forward to a strong future in business.

Wealth is an interesting subject, there are those that brag of it, those that wish they had it, and those who quietly get on with developing more of it.

Wealth can benefit many or a few. In business I would like the think that many business people are still in the business of considering the welfare of others they employ, despite the scourge of downsizing that we have seen in the past few years.

Imagine if an organisation that spends Millions on getting rid of people were to create a brand new section of their business, put together a hand selected team of individuals and set them to work creating a fresh growth area for the business. This is surely far healthier than getting rid of valuable staff.

So wealth can be many things to many people, what is it to you?

Closing the sale – It’s Highly Overrated!

Sep 18

Posted by Wayne Berry in The Customer Service Dept, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | No Comments

When I first got into selling I was told that to be successful I would have to learn how to CLOSE the sale. Indeed in that company, there was an elite group called “THE CLOSERS”.

This was a small band of highly experienced, highly regarded sales people, whom I was told, knew the “secrets” of closing the sale. Their powers were mystical and their fame legendary.

I was in awe of them, and occasionally had an opportunity to accompany one of them on a sales call to observe up close the magic they could work.

Mostly this involved asking confronting questions, bamboozling the prospect with clever answers to their objections, and then using silence to apply pressure.

I couldn’t believe the audacity of these manoeuvres.

I remember sitting in silence one day for at least 5 minutes waiting for one prospect to respond to a particularly confronting close. 5 minutes sitting in silence is a very long time. Try it sometime and you’ll see what I mean.

It was embarrassing… and it worked!

I just couldn’t see myself being that high pressure. I thought to myself, “I’m not going to make it if I have to do that”.

The truth is, high pressure, tricky closing techniques used to work, and to some extent they still do.

This is one of the reasons that many sales people and sales managers still believe that the most important phase of the sales process is closing the sale. Frankly I disagree.

Almost every week sales people tell me that if I could show them how to close, then they will immediately become more successful.

Some Sales Managers invite me to speak at their Sales Conferences and tell me that what their sales people need, is to be shown more effective ways of closing the sale.

Mistakenly they believe this will provide the much-needed “magic wand” for immediate success.

30+ years in sales and training sales people have taught me…

The 5 SECRETS to closing the sale

I’ll share these with you in a future article,

In the mean time have a great week – make it a great week.

Towards Excellence in Business

Sep 17

Posted by Steve Gray in Innovation and Creativity, People!, Risk Management, Starting out in business, The Board Room | No Comments

Many people who know me in business circles know that I am an avid fan of Tom Peters, Tom is a business guru to many and his books and speeches cause people to think in very positive ways. If you want to check out any of his work go for “Re-imagine” a great book and a challenging read loaded with great material.

I recently checked out one of his slides (check out his website for free downloads www.tompeters.com) and came across this gem on excellence.

Tom Peters Principles on Excellence:

Enthusiasm. Emotion. Excellence. Energy. Excitement. Service. Growth. Creativity. Imagination. Vitality. Joy. Surprise. Independence. Spirit. Community. Limitless human potential. Diversity. Profit. Innovation. Design. Quality. Entrepreneurialism. Wow.

Tom is big on positive language (no joke!) and its effect on organisations and the ways they design themselves.

I ask you, what sort of organisation would you prefer to work for? one that focuses on Tom’s principles or one that ambles along developing the opposite due to no plan of attack… I know where my vote lies!

In a world of conflicting views, turmoil and challenge, there are people starting businesses daily, people striving to make their business better, daily. The thought is a really simple one, focus on getting great results, go for excellence, go for gold.

Imagine you want to get from point a to b, so you pull out a roadmap, then you look at where you are at, and set a plan in place… How long? which route? What vehicle? how much? Its the plan that makes the difference. Set in place a plan that is based on excellence and you will have a far more rewarding journey than if you have a plan that hopes for the best.

In heading from a to b, ask yourself would I prefer to travel in a luxury vehicle or a wreck? would I prefer to know if I turn left or right when I get to the freeway to head in the right direction? (it makes sense to know where you are going, and how to get there.)

Often there is a low understanding of business principles when people start out in business, for many they have taken a wage and now are hoping to make a fortune in business, or do things better or cheaper. For many the road to success will seem to be littered with the rusting hulks of road carnage and bad memories of pain and loss.

To ease the pain and loss, set out with excellence in mind, and make sure you know where you are going.

It’s one thing to be in a luxury vehicle and quite another to be on the right road!

Are you “Shop blind” ?

Sep 16

Posted by Bren Ryan in Health and Safety Dept, People!, Starting out in business, The Board Room, The Customer Service Dept | 4 Comments

I once worked as a store manager for a fast food chicken chain, (WOW, I was young then).

I learned lots of fantastic rules for good business there, but probably the most important was to always walk in the front Read the rest of this entry »

3 Tips on Leadership for Sales Managers

Sep 15

Posted by Wayne Berry in People!, The Board Room, The Marketing Dept | No Comments

If you are a Sales Manager or run your own company with sales people, then you are in a leadership role.

I find that a great many sales managers however do not really understand what leadership is all about.

Let’s face it, leading a sales team to success is perhaps one of the most challenging leadership roles of all. Sales people are often fiercely independent and like to do their own thing.
So how can we as Sales Managers ensure that we are good leaders?

I cover this in considerable detail in our Sales Managers Bootcamp and in other Sales Manager Workshops – but here are 3 quick tips on leadership that I hope you will find useful.

1. Who you are speaks a lot louder than what you say.

Superior leaders lead from the front. They walk the talk. They lead by example. So if you want your people to be enthusiastics, then you’d better be enthusiastic. If you want them to be on time, keep their promises to customers, have integrity etc – then you had better display those qualities yourself and demonstrate them every day in everything you do. You see, your sales team will always be a reflection of you. Top Gun sales teams are lead by Top Gun Sales Managers. Poor sales teams are lead (or should I say not lead) by poor Sales Managers.

2. As leaders we are responsible for creating a winning culture within our team.

Every team has a culture – some a good culture, some a bad culture. As leaders we are responsible for creating the culture we want. Is that going to be a superior customer service culture where your people partner with customers to create win / win? Or an “all buyers are liars” culture where customers are to treated as “the enemy”. Get the deal at all costs. Promise anything – deliver as little as you can. When you find this attitude across a sales team, you can bet that it’s a reflection of the attitude of it’s leader. Leaders create the culture.

3. All superior leaders, Top Gun leaders, have superior standards of excellence.

They have uncompromising values.

They set the standards in their organisation high and make it very clear to all of their people what is expected of them. They have clearly defined and well documented performance standards for all of the vital functions of their businesses and they make sure that their people know what these mandatory, minimum standards of performance are.

They don’t tell their people “you need to prospect more”. What does that really mean anyway?

No – they have worked out with their team and have gained commitment from each member of their team as to the exact number of new prospecting calls that they need to do per week and per month to be on target are – (ie. the minimum acceptable standard).

Similarly they have set minimum standards around;
* number of customer visits
* number of new client meetings
* number of presentations etc

Then they inspect what they expect.

In other words they follow through with their people to make sure these standards are being met.

These are just a few quick tips on leadership and the good thing about leadership is that it involves skills and strategies that can all be learned. We can all become better leaders and the rewards are there for great leaders.

I hope you’ll decide to keep growing as a leader – as Ray Kroc the founding CEO of McDonalds once said, “When you are green you grow, when you are ripe you rot!”

Have a great week. Make it a great week!

Are You Asking the Right Questions So Your Prospects Sell Themselves?

Sep 15

Posted by Wayne Berry in People!, The Marketing Dept | 1 Comment

The ability to ask questions is at the very heart of consultative selling and today’s most successful sales people are consultative sales people.

They use questions to understand their client’s needs and they also use questions to motivate their prospects to buy.

And some have developed the powerful skill of asking questions in such a way that their prospects sell themselves.

Time does not allow me to give you a full explanation and example of what I mean here but I would like to share with you 3 Magic Questions that you might like to start using with your prospects.

Magic Question Number 1

“Mr Prospect – what do you currently have (or use or do)?”

It amazes me the number of sales people who fail to find out what their prospect currently has before they make their recommendation. Absolutely insane!

And after you ask this question, it is then important to listen without interruption and after your prospect responds, draw them out with…

• “How long have you had that?”
• “Why did you select that one?

Truly seek to understand them.

Magic Question Number 2

“Mr Prospect, what do you like most about what you currently have (or use or do)?”

Again after you ask a question listen without interruption. Again you might like to draw them out with further questions like…

  • “How do you mean?”
  • “Why is that important to you?”

Magic Question Number 3

This one is vital.

“Mr Prospect if you were to ever replace or update what you currently have, (or use) what would you want to change or improve?”

Again listen carefully and perhaps draw them out more with…

  • “How do you mean?”
  • “Why is that important to you?”

Now the reason I call these the three “Magic” questions is because in three questions you will reveal:

1. What they have or use now
2. Why they like what they have or use now
3. What extra benefits they would like to have if only they could

If you know these three things, you can now put together a recommendation that incorporates all of the good things they now like, plus all of the extra things they would like to have to improve on their current situation. They’ve actually begun to sell themselves because they are speaking in terms of features and benefits that are important to them, not you and the words are coming from them, not you.

Have a great week. Make it a great week!

How to Build Trust and Credibility

Sep 15

Posted by Wayne Berry in The Marketing Dept | No Comments

Use the Power of the Printed Word…
When you are talking with a prospect and you want to boost your credibility, where ever possible back up what you say by showing them something in writing. Research clearly shows that people are far more likely to believe what they see in writing, more than what they simply hear. It boosts your credibility and is incredibly powerful.

So how can you use this?

1. When presenting the investment details, show them these details in writing.

Use a letter, or a proposal, or even show them your price list. When it’s in writing (particularly when it’s an odd amount eg. $3,756 it will seem more credible and less “negotiable” than a figure seemingly plucked out of the air. (Particularly if it’s an even amount eg. $3,800)

2. When you make a claim about how good your product or service is, back this up by written specifications, which prove your claim, or a written comparison between you and your competitors.

Or use newspaper or magazine articles, which reinforce what you’ve just told them. Use testimonial letters from your happy customers.

3. Use a presentation binder when speaking with a prospect.

Maybe you were given a presentation binder when you joined your company. Companies often create these for their sales people because they work. However in my experience they seem to be only used by new sales people.

They work well and soon the new sales person gains confidence. Then they stop using the presentation binder… and their results slide.

You don’t have to stick rigidly to the order of a presentation binder. Get to know it and use it as a tool. Our research shows they add considerably to your credibility.

4. If you are presenting to a group of people, use flip charts, coloured pens, photographs, diagrams and illustrations to reinforce the points you are making.

I personally prefer the “low tech” flip charts to a computer generated “PowerPoint” presentation. It allows you to be flexible and you can flip back and forth from chart to chart easily. You can also put them up on the wall as your presentation progresses.

So when ever possible, combine the written word and illustrations, with the spoken word to put power and credibility into all of your presentations.

Try it this week and see what happens.

Have a great week. Make it a great week!

How to be an overnight success!

Sep 15

Posted by Bren Ryan in People!, Starting out in business, The Board Room | No Comments

I love talking to successful people.

It might be an entrepreneur I read about in a magazine, a biography, someone I saw speak, the top sales person in a large company, or someone I just heard of.If its someone I admire I usually try to talk to them and ask questions about how they “did it”. The great majority of these people are happy to talk about what they did wrong, right, well, mediocre, and what they would do differently.

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Customer Focussed?

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in The Customer Service Dept | No Comments

Try this quick quiz, and ask yourself how you fair in the customer focus stakes.

  • Do you have a clear understanding about your customer’s wants and needs?
  • Does your staff share this understanding?
  • Do you have clear service standards that are written and easy to implement?
  • Do you know what your competitors are offering your customers?
  • Do you have a customer complaints system that is easily and effectively used?
  • Do you have a quality control system on products that your staff agree to, and can implement with ease?
  • Do you have an innovative way of building the relationship with your customers so they feel special?
  • Do you have the potential to be better at customer service?

This quick quiz often catches people out, and often they say, but we are just a small business, my response, is sure you are, but your competitors may not be, therefore think and act like a bigger business.

If you are truthful with your responses to the quiz, there are probably some areas, which could be improved. In order for your business to sustain pressure from your competitors, each of these basic areas should be addressed totally and honestly. Quality service may be an obvious thing to some business operators, yet they fail to retain a customer-focussed approach at all times.

Here are a few statements and points to consider…

  • Do you know that most customers buy items to fulfil a need or provide a solution of some kind, they do not buy on price alone, yet most people sell that way?
  • Do you say to customers “Can you help them?” instead ask them, “Can I assist you?” (People only want help when they are in major difficulty, assistance is much softer.)
  • Do you know what motivates you and your team to provide effective service?
  • Did you know that there are only two types of customers, internal (your staff) and external (the paying customers). The internal ones require your attention just as much as the external ones.
  • All businesses want to provide great service and most think they do, yet reality tells us great service is often in short supply.

Shared vision.
Getting your team to share in a vision of providing excellent customer service is often easily achieved when they realise that their job depends on turnover and profits and that this comes from happy customers. If they really value, and are interested in doing a great job they will soon share your vision. Also remember that people are often lead by example and not by words alone so prove to them that you can also do as you say.

I spent some time with an organisation that had just put on a new recruit, getting used to the role of receptionist took a while as they were still unsure of some of the staff. Interestingly a number of calls were taken that were handled poorly, even a few that were lost in the system and disappeared completely!

The work I was doing related to marketing and in particular the service delivery of the business. When asked for some ideas, they were shocked to think that a customers first contact may well be with someone who did not really understand a great deal about the business or who did what! Yet it was an efficient measure at the time that quickly filled a hole for the expanding business. The longer-term effect may leave a little to be desired.

Efficiency V’s effectiveness.
Efficiency does not always mean effective and this company soon learnt the lesson the hard way when complaints filtered through from regular clients. Getting really focussed on providing great service is an important step in ensuring your customers get what they want, providing a solution to their initial problem in a way that keeps them coming back for more.

Now, ask yourself, are you really customer focussed, and what can you and or your team do about it?

Job descriptions and your staff.

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in Health and Safety Dept, People!, Risk Management, The Board Room | No Comments

Want an employee to do a job? Make sure the job description is up to scratch. If there is none, create one. If one exists, review it.

Some organisations get the past staff member to write it and hope for the best. I suggest that the whole process could become a great collaboration of the staff and management to describe the role adequately without scaring the applicant with too many tasks for the role.

A job description should outline the role in a way that ensures clarity of communication. It can include various things, just as there are many versions of an Indian curry, so to are there job descriptions.

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Systems and procedures, what do you have?

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in Risk Management, The Board Room, The Operations Dept | No Comments

Try selling a business as an asset after twenty years of operation only to find it had no value, buyers come and look but fail to put in any reasonable bid.

Your years of blood sweat and tears turn sour, your ‘nest egg’ lookslike it is failing to live up to what you wanted. So what happened? The business is still trading okay and the staff seem willing to keep it going without you at the helm. So why no buyers?

Simple, the buyers have no real way of knowing exactly how your business works. What they need is an effective way of being sure they are getting a viable business where they can get reproducible results when you are not there.

The problem can be overcome by recording many of the things you take for granted. The suppliers, the marketing strategies, how things operate (machinery) etc. This way they can walk in and know they can do it too because the ‘instructions’ are there. Simple isn’t it.

What if?
For others the systems and procedures they develop are useful to ensure the business can still run if a staff member is out of action for an extended period. The fill in person can turn to the ‘instruction manual’ for guidance when things are difficult or they need more clarification.

I suggest that these types of procedure and system development devices be kept as simple as possible, as there is nothing worse than creating a procedures manual that is never used, or worse still is out of date. The simplicity is vital so that any person that needs to know how to do something can find the information easy to follow.

Recruitment made easy

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in People!, The Board Room | 1 Comment

Far too many businesses I consult with find this area of the business difficult, how to sort the applications, getting the interviews happening, the final selection along with the induction of a new staff member.

How then does a business ensure that this process can be refined to ensure a system can be developed and put in place that allows flexibility of approach while retaining integrity.

These days many opt for an employment agency to do the sifting of the candidates, in time they send a small team of applicants for the final interview with you. Some accept that this is an expense for the business and others loathe to spend the money.

In the competitive area of recruitment there are the government funded organisations providing free services to anyone that wants it. What is the difference between the two systems. At first glance none, both are aiming to get staff into your business that are suitable for your needs.

The professional service you pay for can easily implement filtering services that could include psychological testing measures that can allow for closer matching of the prospective employee to your team needs, not just based on a skill level.

If you feel that you just want to place and advert in a paper, place a sign in the window, or chat to the next staff prospect that comes through the door then do so, however I ask that you keep a few things in mind in doing so.

  • Your time is precious, make sure you can adequately handle the ˜onslaught” of replies an advert can bring, have time to sort them and a good job description at hand.
  • Plan the type you want well in advance, so the person you choose is not selected at a time of great pressure in the workplace.
  • Set out the interview questions to ensure you are able to compare one applicant fairly with the others.
  • Know what you want, aim for the right person to fill that role. Consider the ideal skills you are after if the ˜ideal” candidate came along.
  • Consider the cost of having a new employee, how long will it take for them to learn new systems, ideas and the physical placement of items in your business before they can bring a return to the business.
  • What will happen if an incorrect decision is made, or the new employee bails out after a short space of time?

All of these questions should be addressed as there can come a time when you search for an employee and you can find the process to be an expensive one if all the right processes are not put effectively in motion.

Aim to have an effective business and plan to get the employee development happening in the best way possible. If you are able to get the right person for the business you will soon be looking at a great asset. This is where a lot of business managers can get in to difficulty, they often see employees as liabilities. Imagine how you would feel if people thought the same way about you, a liability rather than an asset.

Remember the recruitment process does not stop there. It continues on for as long as your business grows. It also continues in the way that you develop your staff to explore their full potential.

One employer I worked with some time ago mentioned a staff member that he felt was a dead loss, in time he slowly picked up and managed to make headway in being more competent in the role, however they still found limited skill levels. Near the end of his tether the employer chatted to the employee and noted an interesting thing. He said “So you have worked on this particular machine for some time now, what do you think?” an unusual reply came, as he had meant the question as a social note in passing. “The machine is useless, it really does the job badly, no matter how hard I try. But I think it can be improved with a few modifications.”

In the next few minutes the employee pointed out various modifications to the machine and clearly explained how to go about it. The employer did not know the employee had ˜tinkering skills” and was soon engrossed in the discussion, hearing the how’s and the why for’s of the possible modifications.

In the next few days they set about working together to alter the machine and soon bumped up production. This took a great deal of stress out of the role of the employee and other people on the production line. The saving per year in costs soon added up to many thousands of dollars.

When asked by the employer why it took so long for him to point out how to improve things, the employee replied “Up until now you have not asked.”

The process of discovery is an intricate and complex one where staff can be under utilised, facilities wasted and business fails to make use of its full potential. If you are intending to recruit, do so at your own peril, or if you are doing it right, do so with great interest, for who knows what opportunities might just be around the corner!

The Seasons of Business

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in Innovation and Creativity, Risk Management, The Board Room, The Operations Dept | No Comments

Just as there are the seasons of nature, there are also seasons of business. Many will surely attest to this when they read the information, and may not have thought of business in these terms before. In time it can become very useful to view business from this stand point so that you can keep a simplistic view of what is taking place rather than getting bogged down in details.

Spring
A great time of new growth, the winter thaw clears and the buds begin to bloom, the fields are prepared and before long seeds are sown to begin the fresh crops for the season. For some the bulbs were planted in autumn and these will now grow in the warm spring sunlight, rejoicing the end of winter. Spring can be a special time, however if you are not careful the weeds can take over before you know it.

In business this can be a great time, when hard work starts to pay off and early seeds sown begin to show promise. If you are new to business this can be the initial phase if your planning is right. For some the spring is a fleeting time lasting only long enough for the few seeds sown to germinate and give a quick crop. The farmer knows that you have to keep some of the crop for seeds to plant in the next season. And if the weeds come up, what method will you use to keep them at bay? Remember that weeds take over when no maintenance is done in the garden.

Weeds in a business can be many things, it can be staffing problems, people wanting payment for the ‘seeds’ earlier than expected or those pesky customers who never seem to be happy!

Summer
Harvest time, the seeds have grown and the plants reach maturity, before ling the results of the harvest will either delight or annoy. At this point there is no turning back you can not plant more seeds until the next spring.

Just as in business when your stocks are ready for the Christmas rush, you only get one chance at it. You hope that the euphoria surrounding the hustle and bustle of this time of year is enough to spur great sales to the customers, and that your marketing for the post Christmas sales does the trick. In time the seasoned business person knows the seasons and plans accordingly.

By mid summer, if you have a problem with weeds either your methods to solve the problems have worked or the weeds have grown and are choking you out.

Autumn
A time to clear the last of the summer heat and the days begin to cool, before long the bulbs that have to be put into the soil for springs arrival.

The astute business person reaps the harvests rewards and puts some into investments to build a passive income base. Autumn is the time to do just that. During this time the business person is readying the business for the long winter period, where growth virtually stops and planning to improve systems is in full swing.

Winter
Cold days and rainy nights, ice and snow. Food is hard to come by for the animals, they either hibernate or work harder to forage for a feed.

Without hesitation the business person is ready to work their way through the winter, the summer harvest hopefully was good enough to sustain them through this quiet time when little activity takes place. The wise person ensures that their funds have been budgeted effectively and will last the distance.

Planning begins and before long the business has a renewed direction for getting things going for the next round of seasons. The plan explores options, involves contingency plans and allows for growth in some way.

An inspiration
E James Rohn the great American business speaker and writer, expresses thoughts about business and life in these terms and has experienced great success using this method. After all, nature is a great survivor in all the turmoil of the world, it adapts and works with the situation to even things out.

James Rohn built a life of abundance from a meagre beginning. He follows the seasons and recognises the changes. Before long he knew when lean times were ahead and when to plan ahead. I trust that you can also profit from the experience and watch your business grow.

For some of us the seasons will come and go in quick succession throughout the year, sometimes happening much faster that the seasons of nature. Some have also told me they can see seasons come and go each week.

May the seasons treat you well as you move forward to achieve your goals.

Uh oh, they sacked our boss!

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in People!, Risk Management, The Board Room | No Comments

Can you begin to imagine the fear that the staff felt when they found out their boss was sacked by an incoming executive committee. They wanted a change and the staff got a rude shock!

A step forward
The staff had closely monitored the progress of their leader as he worked his way through the system, spending a great deal of time fostering a positive environment for all to be a part of. In time the team were delighted to have him take on the top job. The executive committee at that time saw his efforts over the years and when the last person moved on the move up was an easy decision.
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Communication who cares?

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in People!, The Board Room, The Customer Service Dept | No Comments

I care that’s who! Far too often I am called in to work with an organisation that manages to get itself into a spot of trouble, in time the analysis often shows they were asking for trouble by not fostering effective communication among the staff at all levels.

Flatten it out.
There are books that explain the idea of flattened management, a style of management that has been proven to work in many different situations, yet consistently businesses seem to ignore it completely and opt for older outdated management techniques. Flattened management puts everyone on the same level. I know some of you would find that rather confronting to say the least, yet this is one way of getting everyone to take part in powerful quality development options.

By having people working with the same end in mind (to profitably serve the customers) then the various tasks of being involved in the business all become important. So the idea of developing effective communication with all becomes vital.

Example
Picture the situation where a small argument over a production line activity is left to simmer for a few days, both parties resume discussions but both have now distorted the facts in their heads and are both aiming to save face. Very hostile indeed. It probably should have been sorted out at the time.

If the team had decided that a discussion should take place to resolve the issue then all ego’s should be put aside and the discussion begins. The discussion should not focus on fear of failure, or sacking for making waves. It should be an open and honest chat to negotiate the outcome required

Respect
The communication situation needs to be addressed at all levels and in time all staff will develop a greater respect for each other and have a stronger understanding of the individuals they are working with, despite their title and position.

Options
How does a small business find the time to have a formal meeting and discuss various issues of relevance to the organisation. For some the issues are discussed while they work, for others however they are working so hard they do not get to even take a break together.

Although a daunting task for some managers it is important that you consider having input from all areas of the business so each member can feel as though they are part of a team, not just a group of individuals working together sharing a common space.

If you are running a business, and want to develop your team communication, there are many ways of doing it. If you allow an employee to be confident and straight shooting in their approach to you about the business make sure of one thing, that you listen.

Also avoid justifying why a thing is that way, blaming other people for a problem and lastly denial of a problem is not going to do much good either. Let your ego down for the term of the meeting and carefully consider all comments made.

If an organisation can embrace these principles then a great opportunity arises to have a learning organisation develop from the basic level of business you may now be working with. It may be that your teams need to develop communication, leadership and negotiation skills to handle these communication challenges and the changes that flattened management can bring.

Explore all that this can do for your business. Experience shows that a team that learns together can have excellent spin off effects to their motivation to do business.

All this and more from more effective communication development. I like that!

The customers are revolting!

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in People!, The Board Room, The Customer Service Dept | No Comments

No they don’t smell that way, they are simply revolting due to the poor service they receive in many businesses, not all, just some.

They vote with their feet with only a small percentage actually complaining about the level of service received. These people walk out due to a range of annoying things that happen while shopping, both at a retail level and also at a business to business level.
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It’s not luck, its good management!

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in Risk Management, Starting out in business, The Board Room | No Comments

Have you ever heard someone say they know someone who is lucky in business? I have, on many occasions and have wondered if they realise what they are saying. If it was just luck then why are there so many courses available to develop business skills in a wide range of areas.

For some they may be fortunate enough to enter a business that has great growth prospects. An example here would be mobile phone sales, where many businesses have opened, some of which are riding on the wave of interest Australians have in mobile communications and despite some seemingly providing poor service still thrive.
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When is a team not a team?

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in People!, The Board Room | No Comments

When is a team not a team?
Precisely at the point when they fall back into old habits that were pre team… This can happen at any time and may only be for a day or three. However if your organisation is going through a crucial time at that point then you might expect standards to fade.
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Over analysis leads to paralysis, so can no analysis!

Sep 10

Posted by Steve Gray in Risk Management, The Board Room | No Comments

Someone in the business asks for a report and the effort that goes into it would keep and household lit for three weeks. The reams of paper and sleepless nights culminate in a great report that was needed a the time, however does every word in the hefty document work to serve its purpose? Could a shorter report have done? Or have you ever asked for a two page report and got a 20 page one!

In the mean time the staff member putting the report together could have probably been engaged in more useful tasks and not ‘bogged down’ making what is most probably a useless item. If the report puts together a plan of action that is not adopted then it has been a real waste all round.

Often reports can table loads of information in a manner that shows thorough research and diligence from the reporter, yet the analysis has given rise to paralysis in the department where the reporter has come from.

Opposites attract
However the opposite can be true. No report or a very short one can may also lead the organisation astray. Getting information and utilising it to your advantage can make the difference between a great future for the business or see it fail due to misinformed owners that can not act due to a lack of appropriate information and how to act on it. At both ends of the scale problems can obviously arise, how the business handles these dilemmas are obviously important.

Examples
Many small businesses have little idea of who entered their business, what they wanted and fail to see how the information could be of value. In other words “why should I give myself more work to do than necessary?”

A simple checklist used by a growing number of businesses can be easily filled out and give invaluable information to the proprietor. The list has columns and rows, the rows across the page separate the day in tho hourly sections. The columns have a word or short statement at the top. These can include phone enquiries – counter enquiries – sales reps – sales – and age groups.

The sales person in the shop can then put a mark for each when they occur, at the end of the day the marks can be tallied. The weather and other details can also be recorded on the page with other relevant details ie public holidays, etc. (this can be a useful thing when referring back to a month that was usually quite busy but this year lower sales may ahve been casued by challenging weather conditions.)

Armed with this information and done consistently, the business can analyse the rough age group of the customers as well as the busy times of the day and days of the week when things happened. Imagine being able to plan your marketing around this simple information gathering exercise, so that your quiet days can be made busier and times for staff to take breaks can be predicted with greater accuracy.

Other reports that can be of value are of course the financials like cash flow reports, these can assist you in knowing more about how your business is performing on a very important level.

Use your sense
I am often amazed how many businesses are getting no information to work with and therefore analyse their situation to see how healthy their businesses are. I am also amazed at those that spend forever in analysis mode unable to make real sense of the reports and therefore the information they have.

Common sense is not that common, however if you can manage to strike a balance with your information gathering your business should be able to profit from the experience. Paralysis, especially long term can be a debilitating experience for any business. Make it your duty to find ways of keeping your business moving in a positive direction.

Retaining Customers

Sep 9

Posted by Steve Gray in People!, The Customer Service Dept, The Marketing Dept | No Comments

Studies have shown that the top two issues affecting customer’s decisions to return to a store are personal recognition and then service. What this reinforces is the fact that all of us, regard ourselves as the most important person in the world, and rightfully so.

Service Awards Results.
This was clearly shown at recent Customer Service Awards in a major city. The small business winner was a hairdressing salon who provides a cup of tea or coffee, just the way you like it, as soon as you arrive (they have your preference on file, so they make it immediately, without needing to ask what you would like), they have your favourite magazines in front of your chair, and a fabulous money back guarantee. They also provide an umbrella on rainy days and do multiple follow-up phone calls to make sure everything is OK. Their clients are delighted with the results and tell many others about what they get.

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