Word Marketing Blog

Do Not Toast My Bagel

2012-01-10T10:27:44-06:00

This morning I treated myself to a bagel with lox from one of my favorite places in town. When I got to work an unwrapped my breakfast, the bagel was toasted. Now this may seem like a small thing, but I happen to hate hard bread. Not to mention that now the cream cheese, lox and tomato squirm all over with each bite and make a complete mess.

The establishment likely does not have any idea how much this toasted bagel messed up my breakfast. It's not like getting my order wrong or giving me sub-quality food. But to me, that's exactly what it was.

So I started to wonder how many of these "minor" inconveniences we impose unknowingly on our customers every day? For instance, have you ever been in a hurry and waiting in line only to feel there is no sense of urgency on the part of the associate? Or perhaps the person helping you has a rotten personality?

If we have not contemplated what we want our customer's ideal experience to be, we are often oblivious to the experience we are actually delivering. And even if we have meticulously mapped out the ideal experience, but failed to train our associate to master the delivery, we still fail miserably.

Remember that your brand is whatever your customer says it is. What are you doing to make sure you take every opportunity to influence their perception positively?

Brands Can Be Really Simple

2011-10-07T13:33:48-05:00

Steve Jobs, back in the day, telling us how simple brands really need to be.

In rememberance of Steve Jobs 1955-2011, founder of Apple Computer

2011-10-06T06:59:32-05:00

"Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify and vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as crazy, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."

Developing A Leadership Culture

2011-10-06T06:09:45-05:00

Noted management guru Peter Drucker said "Unless commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes...but no plans and no actions."

Your culture is the most powerful factor in your organization, and at most places, the least understood, least discussed and least planned for factor. Culture is the determining factor on how people in the organization respond to new ideas, creativity and enthusiasm. Culture embodies the sense of pride or discouragement in the environment of the organization.

Groups of management can not figure out why all their highly developed strategies and plans always seem to fall flat or fail. The fact is, if you don't have a good culture and enabling systems in place to embrace and support those strategies, the culture will devour them every time.

Healthy culture is like oxygen, it keeps everything alive, vibrant and breathing. Toxic culture is like carbon monoxide, you don't see it or smell it, but it will kill you.

Extremely healthy cultures are pipelines of leadership development. These environments have been created with the thought that the organization is as healthy as the rising pool of leaders, so they look to discover them, employ resources to develop them and then put them in positions and roles in which they are passionate. They challenge them to grow and excel, and by this, they help push and propel the organization. All organizations reach the height of their potential based on the leadership talent and ability of all leaders, not just the top tier.

Developing people as leaders, not necessarily as managers, is key to developing a strong culture. Developing leaders requires we are developing them as people. Training people typically involves some sort of task-oriented hard skill. Developing people is a more difficult proposition, it requires us to focus on the softer-skill side of leadership. A lot of the toxic-oriented cultures have highly-trained people. They know how to do their jobs very well, but the culture is terrible. In my seminar sessions, I have a segment pointing out the differences of leaders and managers, the contrast of which is very large. Both are important, both are needed, but culture is usually determined by the level of skill in the leader category, not the manager catagory.

You can also partially evaluate a culture by what it rewards. Most organizations reward someone for stepping in a performing a task, but they don't even think of developing them as a leader. Another common trap is that managers think of sending a person off to a "boot camp" for leaders, which is fine for the individual, but when they come back inside the toxic culture, all they learned will melt like a snow cone in the summer sun, because the environment of the toxic culture will kill it. The reward was not in getting to go to a seminar, the reward would have been in how they could contribute once they returned, but the toxic culture inside the organization is not there to sustain life and new ideas, only to kill it.

Some thoughts to consider:

Does your organization have a leadership pipeline?
What does it look like in the context of your organization?
How do you identify and develop rising leaders?
What kinds of resources such as money, time, systems are devoted and assigned to develop people?
When times are tough and budgets are tight, what happens to your leadership development plans? (This is a real revealing element of what may exist as a culture inside the organization)

Fear Forward

2011-04-25T08:09:00-05:00

"What motivated me towards success? I was afraid failure would mean I wouldn't be able to pay my rent."

Last month I had the pleasure of seeing Duff Goldman speak at the University of MIssouri. Now most would not imagine the Food Network celeb as an eloquent or profound speaker, but I was quite impressed with what Chef Duff had to say.

He spoke about how his career was never limited by, but instead motivate by, fear. How every time he needed to make a big leap, he focused on what would happen if he didn't try, as opposed to what would happen if he tried and failed. I found this approach both enlightening and invigorating.

I once heard another speaker say that what allowed him the courage to make leaps in his career was that he was never afraid to go back to eating peanut butter and jelly. This logic helped me greatly when I had to make the decision of whether to leave my position at an established company, or take a chance with a brand new company which would allow me to be one of the "architects". Five years later, I'm glad I was not afraid to lose.

When is the last time you let your fear hold you back? How can you reassess that fear to allow it to power you forward instead? Within all of us it the power to control our own destiny. Those who succeed have foud a way t overcome fear and take that control. What will your rewards look like on the other side?

Client Bait and Switch

2011-03-23T07:50:00-05:00

I read an article recently that talked about our tendency to treat prospects differently than we do clients. It's kind of like a new relationship - what my Mom always called "Love's rose-colored glasses."

When we first meet someone, we tend to put all our best qualities forward and hide those things that (although we later refuse to admit) we fear may be a deal breaker. Later int he relationship, a level of comfort develops that allows our more negative habits to resurface, compounded by the fact that some of the more positive habits we demonstrated in the beginning fade. I call it the relationship Bait and Switch.

It's the same with our business, There is often a way we treat longtime clients that differs from how we treat prospective clients, and it's really not genuine or fair.

The ideal lies somewhere in the middle. When you meet a prospective client, there is no reason to perpetuate an image that is not really you, or does not fairly represent your company. On the same note, you should treat all current customers with the same enthusiastic, eager-to-succeed service that your portray to prospects. It's important to remember that new companies are introducing themselves to your customers every day. Complacency on your part is the surest way to allow a competitor to demonstrate more care for your client than you.

Resist the urge to over-sell yourself in a new relationship, and fight the complacency that comes with an old one. Not only will you build more value into those relationship for greater longevity, but you will likely build more value in you.

Losing Customers the Easy Way

2011-02-16T09:18:59-06:00

When will business owners understand that the slightest break in Internal Marketing ultimately results in lost customers?

My friend Marty and his son Carson recently visited a national hardware store in town. They needed some rock salt and stopped at the store that was in the path of that day's errands. A happy coincidence for the store. That they will likely not make that choice again, not so happy for the store.

After purchasing the rock salt the register, Marty and Carson were directed to the opposite end of the store to retrieve their purchase. As everyone knows, these stores are huge - and walking from one end to the other is no jaunty stroll. But the two were not in a hurry and willingly made the journey.

Upon arrival, they were told the store was actually out of rock salt. Internal Marketing Breakdown #1: non-communication between departments.

Marty was given the option of a refund, to which he agreed, He was then directed back to the other end of the store to process this refund. Internal Marketing Breakdown #2: understanding/executing ideal customer service.

It's a story I've heard over and over again. Business owners are complaining that sales are down, yet employees have no understanding of, or worse yet no buy in to, delivering the ideal brand experience to the customer. And 99% of the time it will be the employee, not the business owner, who solely provides the customer experience.

The number one best investment a company can make to increase revenue is Internal marketing. Companies who aren't doing it are losing money each and every day. When will you start investing in yourself to ensure that customers continue to do business with you?

Leadership Grows in Columbia

2011-01-24T10:26:37-06:00

This past weekend I had the pleasure of attending the 2011 Leadership Columbia kick-off retreat. Despite the heavy snowfall causing a last minute relocation, the weekend was very successful.

I met some great leaders this weekend. I was impressed with my classmates who were excited about growing their own leadership skills, learning more about Columbia and discovering how they could apply their specific gifts and talents to make Columbia a better place for us all.

The sessions were lead by my boss, Tony Richards, who masterfully directed us through some self-assessments and brought to light the strengths and weaknesses within each of our own personalities. I think what I enjoyed most was the exploration of different personality traits that made each of us uniquely human. It was refreshing to feel that it was "okay to be me" and "okay to be you."

One of the most significant things I learned this weekend was that each of us has gold inside. Developing that gold doesn't necessarily mean changing who we are. Instead, we must first be aware of our personality traits and then learn to adapt them to the situation - turning up the qualities that may be too low and turning down the qualities that may be too high, respectively.

The insight provided this weekend will no doubt foster a continual self-awareness in all of us that will help us to become better leaders. This training will also help us recognize the traits in others which will allow us not only to be more tolerant but more importantly, to better understand one another and consequently improve our relationships. We will also be more equipped to inspire others to become the leaders they, too, want to become.

NY2011

2011-01-10T06:00:00-06:00

It's time for transition. What are you doing with the 365 days you're gifted in 2011?

I've decided I'm going to spend more time focusing on the things that make me happy, and less time worrying about the things that don't.

In 2011, I will embrace hings that matter, let go of things that do not, and use my discernment to know the difference.

In 2011, I will realize that people who try to make my life unpleasant are driven by the disappointments of their own.

In 2011, I will learn to forgive sooner than later.

In 2011, I will work hard at never taking any of it for granted.

I wish you happiness, love, health and prosperity in 2011. Remember that the year will be what you make of it, rather than what comes your way.

Thankful Reflection

2010-11-15T10:27:51-06:00

The year is winding down, and as we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, many take time to reflect on the things they are thankful for. What things can you be thankful for regarding your business?

If you have had a challenging year, it can be difficult to remember the positive occurrences or elements of your year. But strong leaders always view adversity as an opportunity for success. Perhaps you have less competition in your industry than in years past? Or maybe a tighter economy has led to changes that have made your company more efficient?

Whatever the case, it's important to note that good business leaders always look into the mirror rather than out of a window. The view that you present is the one that colors the view of your entire company. As you reflect upon the past year and start to plan for the next, dig deep to uncover every opportunity for growth. You'll likely find an abundance of things for which to be thankful.