Developing Your Passion and Purpose to Create Profit

Goodbye Twitter

2009-07-31T06:38:21-07:00

I hit the delete account button and it was over.

Yes, I twittered. Monday through Friday, I twittered business facts that were helpful hints to most readers, or so I was told. No, I don't care to share where I am and what life story is unraveling.

I got great professional feedback.

Life was good.

And then I noticed an interesting fact. Twitter followers don't seem to follow a chosen few. In fact if you were to observe protocol, you follow who follows you. So my wonderful readers (who I wasn't following only because I didn't make the time to find out more), became inundated with feed and weren't able to read my helpful hints.

So Monday through Friday I was religiously texting, (often when I would rather be doing something else from my list).......and what was really happening?

Perhaps twitter will be tweaked to really impact more than the chosen few businesses it has powerfully effected. I do know that it is a great tool for lunch catering carts. But for my business? Other than providing a new idea, (albeit it important and a "feel good" thing to do), in my day to day accomplishment of objectives and goals, it took away from other more important activities-even if for a minute or two.

....and so I hit the delete account button and it was over.

They Just Aren't Spending

2009-07-25T08:05:54-07:00

Oh, really........try substituting these words, "I just can't them to buy what I'm selling".

This sentence enables you to take responsibility for the fact that you can't get them to buy, which hopefully, enables you to shift your thinking into a more proactive approach by asking yourself why "they" don't see value in your offering. Trust me, "they" are buying, just not your product!

Maybe I'm simply an "empowerist"; however, I've found that with every client I've worked with over the last 7 months, was able to successfully shift their positioning to become more "sale"able.

Is it easy? No! This is a challenging period for many companies. But what is happening is that the companies that were supported through out of control spending, are now seeing that they have to work a little harder to get the attention of the buyer. And if you still aren't focusing your efforts on the perceived value of the business you're in, you are definitely in for a rocky road. Selling starts with the "no".

People...businesses....your customers, buy what they want based on what they value at the moment. This is even more true when they are limited with their spending, and a majority of us are limited at the moment, but not everyone. And now more than ever, those companies that are legitimately challenged because of the cost of their product, need to be reaching the spenders-which means strategically reaching those targets. Marketing, PR, and selling strategies are the building blocks of your positioning. If you're not spending time in these areas while you're laying low, I guarantee you won't rebound as quickly as you are thinking!

Think Alliance

2009-07-19T09:06:26-07:00

As part of your continuing growth strategy, how much time and energy do you invest in thinking "alliance"?It just makes sense that the more you can duplicate your marketing and prospecting, lead generation increases, and in essence, you have added to your sales force! Especially during more challenging economic states, thinking in terms of who can increase your visibility AND strengthen the size of your offering just stengthens the potential for greater revenue.

Consider what other companies (not competitors) are calling on or servicing your customers? Can you combine your offerings and offer your prospects an incentive for working with both of your organizations?

Is there an an opportunity to cross market? Or produce marketing materials with shared costs?

Brainstorm PR events that initiate an identifiable relationship within your community.

Can your websites link?

When alliances are formed that benefit both organizations it becomes a win-win-win proposition that can strengthen sustainability during economic lows and provide over the top advantages when spending is high-and when created successfully, add very little costs to your budget!

Forgetting Who You May Be Talking To

2009-06-30T14:25:38-07:00

I called a restaurant recently for one of my clients. In the middle of my explanation for the call, the decision maker (owner perhaps) forgot that I enjoy going out to eat. He didn't realize that I was currently making a decision about what restaurant to choose to host an event that would cater to over 50 people. Imagine that, an event in the HEAT OF THE SUMMER IN ARIZONA. At that particular moment when he was talking AT me, he was making a point that even at three in the afternoon, it was a restaurant, and didn't cater to solicitation. He emphatically hung up the phone!

Interesting....

How many of us forget that EVERYONE that contacts us, even if they may not be an immediate customer, will have friends and family that may be customers. And being treated in such an indignant and rude manner can lay the ground work for bad PR. Competition is too tough, why support a business who's branding personality is so lack!

No, I'll take my business elsewhere, and I will relay this experience to my friends and associates in the area. And if it weren't for the recent upheaval over bloggers being sued over defamation issues, I would tell you, as well!

Do You REALLY Know Web 2.0?

2009-06-20T15:47:20-07:00

Are you offering tools that enable connections, allow for sharing information or collaboration on projects online, enhance consumer participation on product development or even your service?

It's not about talking at your readers, it's inviting consumers to join in and share; not only with you, but with each other. And it sure beats focus groups.

How about adding wikis that enable your users to add and edit content? Or answering FAQs. Just make it user easy!

Give your consumers a reason to participate. They will if they can choose their own topics and talk to each other. It's about relinquishing control! Course, you'll need a moderator.

And what about listening and joining the conversations outside of your site? Just STOP SELLING and start engaging.

Learn and experiment.

Great, you have your blog, maybe you twitter; the next step? Let go, create, and join in.

These may help:

Harnessing the Power of the Oh-So-Social Web

By Josh Bernoff and Charlene Li (Spring 2008)   http://sloanreview.mit.edu/smr/issue/2008/spring/01/

Enterprise 2.0: The Dawn of Emergent Collaboration

By Andrew P. McAfee (Spring 2006)   http://sloanreview.mit.edu/smr/issue/2006/spring/06/

Beyond Enterprise 2.0

By Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee (Spring 2007)  http://sloanreview.mit.edu/smr/issue/2007/spring/16/

Systems Marketing for the Information Age

By John G. Singer (Fall 2006)   http://sloanreview.mit.edu/smr/issue/2006/fall/18/

How to Market to Generation M(obile)

By Fareena Sultan and Andrew J. Rohm (Summer 2008)   http://sloanreview.mit.edu/smr/issue/2008/summer/12/

A Sign that a Trend is Losing Affect?

2009-05-16T07:54:36-07:00

A Sign a Trend is Losing Affect?

It's started with the New York Times, "Return of the White Papers". How many of you are breathing a sigh of relief? "Maybe I won't have to start a blog after all!!" Could it be that blogs are losing their marketing affect? Did they have much of one?

In my PR calls, I see a lot of requests for success stories, I don't seem to read many! How many of these social media marketing tools are actually bringing in revenue, or are they just taking your time and draining some of your resources? Maybe they're making you feel better that perhaps, just maybe, you'll get a new customer out of this!

The New York Times article suggested white papers. I second the suggestion, not that I have any at this point in time.

The fact is, we all have beliefs as to the importance of our business, and if we can support our quality, purpose and value, all the better. Maybe it doesn't take a weekly input of time to update your blog to gain the same affect--reader trust.

Course, a blog on your site is google friendly. So why not update your site with customer endorsements and comments from your raving fans. Put it on your homepage!!

I'm not sure how much "blogs" have caught on, I'm still explaining the purpose. And I admit, I don't fully utilize my blog for EXTREME affect. But I'll also admit that there are gaps in time with my blog entries. Have a lost potential business?

How will I ever know? I do know that my business comes from person to person introductions and referrals.

And I'm still busy...blog or not!

Is Wal-Mart Killing Your Business?

2009-04-09T07:35:46-07:00

Is Wal-Mart Killing Your Business?

This is a recent article in Inc. Magazine. The author positions your hope of competing as a downward struggling if you think you are going to attract a Wal-Mart customer. This is true, in bad times or GOOD. Price wars are never in any companies best interest, only the consumers!

The suggestion in the article focuses on carrying different products, the items the consumer can't find in Wal-Mart. For some business, easier said than done! Less of the article focused on what a business can do if you have branded yourself as a Wal-Mart product competitor. It's unreasonable to think that a business owner is going to shelve the current inventory and invest in new product lines.

So what is the answer, or at least, reasonable suggestions. Work your way into the equation by focusing on the consumer. The advantage a smaller business has is that they are nicely sized so that change can be almost instantaneous. You can make changes almost immediately without a bureaucratic mess.

Gather you team and ask these questions:

How have buyer habits changed as a result of the economy, and what is it that the consumer now wants that they didn't need or think about before?
Why would a consumer drive to our store to buy from us?
What can we do to motivate every buyer to come back?
How are we different, unique?
What is it that we can do that is better than any of our competitors?
How can we increase our visibility and generate greater awareness that we are here and have a great consumer offering?
What can we do to attract organic PR--instill public interest?

Yes, the consumer has changed, and yes, this does create opportunity. A business needs to think and strategize right now. It's critical to survival.

The secret is, these are the same questions that an owner should be asking even in great times! What does this economic environment really challenge a business owner with? The very real threat is that if you don't consider your consumer, branding and positioning right now, you won't have to next year--chances are, you may not be around to even think about it!

Hats Off to Sigma!

2009-04-05T11:20:55-07:00

Hats Off to Sigma!

What a great organization to work for, and personally-I'll gladly be a customer. To me, they are the depiction of a healthy and engaging internal culture that exemplifies honoring and caring for the members of their team.

Instead of laying off employees, everyone took a cut and shortened their work week to 35 hours. Yes, I suppose at home it meant tightening budgets; professionally, it stated loudly the value and objective of working together to deal with their business realities.

Think of the broad impact if more organizations had made this decision. I realize that not all can, but for those that could, AND take a proactive step by considering the assistance of a specialty consultant that focuses on action plans that address changing consumer values--do you think that we would be experiencing the depth of this economic backlash?

Sigma, I'm a customer!!

Are You Protected Through Your LLC?

2009-03-30T08:31:41-07:00

Are You Protected Through Your LLC?

I recently met with Warner Lewis III, who is the founder of Life Planning Group LLC, a financial planning organization that holds expertise in providing planning solutions for every stage of life-personal, financial, business and estate planning. And I was surprised to learn that just because you have an llc behind your business title and may have hired an attorney to take care of all the legalities, you may not be protected if you don't follow the rules. And believe me, there are rules!

I've asked Warner to put together an outline to help all of us who haven't been completely informed and may not be following the ground rules that are necessary for an entitlement of protection.

**********

The Truth About

Limited Liability Companies

Warner Lewis

Life Planning Group, LLC

Planning for All Stages of Life

Many advisors prefer to form Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) over other forms of incorporation due to a common misperception that LLCs are subject to less stringent administrative compliance requirements. This is simply not true.

One can easily form an LLC by filing and publishing Articles of Organization. However, formalities must be carefully adhered to in order to realize the full benefits of an LLC, and the failure to comply can cause the asset protection benefits of an LLC to evaporate.

When Articles of Organization are filed and published, an LLC is created in name only ~ an empty ‘shell’ that has no specific substance or purpose. An organizational meeting is required to mark the launch the LLC, to identify its Members and Managers and establish procedures and mechanisms that will govern the company in compliance with the rules.

An Operating Agreement defines the rights and duties of the Members and Managers. Share certificates indicate each Member’s ownership interest, and the stock ledger tracks share certificates that are issued and surrendered.

The rules require written consent to validate actions taken on behalf of the LLC in the form of meeting minutes and resolutions. Actions taken without proper authority are null and void, causing one to be held personally liable for Company debts and liabilities.

Sole-owners often feel that holding board meetings by themselves is stupid. But the rules apply to single-member LLCs and Fortune 500 companies alike. In order to enjoy all the protections and benefits an LLC has to offer, detailed records must be kept along with physical share certificates, stock ledgers ~ even a corporate seal.

In the event of a lawsuit, corporate records undergo intense scrutiny, and if they don’t comply with the rules, the entity is treated as a sole proprietorship, not a corporation. Without good records, it becomes easier to prove that actions taken on behalf of the LLC were not properly authorized, which causes the shareholders to become personally liable for the actions and liabilities of the LLC. An LLC is of no value if it cannot separate corporate assets from personal assets.

Meeting minutes and board resolutions serve as ‘permission slips’ to undertake actions of the LLC. The ‘corporate veil’ can easily be pierced by cutting corners. Consult with a knowledgeable, competent professional to help you achieve and maintain compliance. You’ll be glad you did!

http://lifeplangroup.net

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Soft Economy Hard Sell

2009-03-10T07:47:24-07:00

Soft Economy Hard Sell

No surprises that when consumers and business owners are having to watch every dime, your presentations should include a straight line to the dollars and (sense) value attributed to your product. Forbes magazine took the time to remind us of that, but using the example of Land Rover?

Value...Land Rover...Value...Land Rover.....why not buy a fleet of Land Rovers for your chief staff? I'm hard pressed to justify buying a Land Rover this month if I've had to lay off my frontline personnel that are probably living paycheck to paycheck and BRANDING my business to my consumers. Hm......