nickzmoran

People want to lose weight, get more money, find love, climb the corporate ladder, improve their businesses and so on and so forth. They want to do those things in order to be happy. More often than not these things just don’t work — they don’t bring about happiness, even if attained.

The reason for that is quite simple; happiness should be the first goal because when we are happy everything is possible- and achievable.

Happiness first, stuff second. Happiness is the bait that catches the game. Not the other way round.

But what is happiness? Everyone seems to want it. Yet very, very few have it. It has been made into some kind of unattainable Holy Grail. An impossible quest.

Yet happiness is, or rather should be, the simplest thing of all to attain. Happiness is no more than becoming that which you are meant to be. To live and express in accordance with your true self. Whatever that may be.

But here’s the rub. For whatever reason society has decided that that simple goal just will not do.

Society has decided that happiness lies within its rigid boarders and definitions. Therefore a guy who just wants to live in shack on the beach, live off the fish he catches, the vegetables he grows and the fruit he gathers is a bum. A good for nothing who does not contribute.

That a woman who stays at home to look after the family is just a housewife. And we can’t have that by god. She needs to get out there! Fight for the cause, burn her undergarments, be tough and ugly like some of the men. Now that’s what it’s about. Hell yeah!

Society has decided that unless you have a TV in every room, his and hers cars in the garage, a house in the country, two in the city, and the latest idiotic looking label covering your tanned and muscular body, well, you’re a bit of a failure.

Never mind that a guy is happy with three squares a day, a beer, flying kites with his kids and watching his team beat the bejesus out their opponents.

Can’t have any of that! Society shouts. You gotta contribute. Contribute to what? Meaningless wars, out of control drive-bys, the maintaining of cheating, lying, thieving governments?

I’ll tell you why society and its Setup don’t want you to be truly happy; which means doing your own thing- because when you do that you no longer cower and obey.  You shed your weaknesses. And that cannot be tolerated.

As Anatole France said: “People who have no weaknesses are terrible- there is no way of taking advantage of them.”

There is only one way to find, create, and live in your own private Idaho; your own happiness … FIND OUT WHAT YOU’RE HERE FOR AND LIVE IT!

Until next time – stay great

 

I read a very disturbing story recently. It related to a convicted killer Richard Kuklinski, also known as the Iceman.  This guy has by his own admission murdered over 100 people on behalf of the mafia, and anyone else who could afford his fees.

One of his deeds in particular struck a chord. He had the victim begging, and praying for mercy; apparently the guy was religious. Feeling an unusual moment of mercy Kuklinski said to the victim, “I’ll give you 30 minutes to pray to your god. If he changes my mind, I’ll let you live.”

After 30 minutes Kuklinsky returned and disposed of the fellow. His reasoning, “God never showed up.”

I’ve seen and heard a lot in my life. And not all of it good. This story did disturb me however; it went beyond coldblooded, even for Kuklinski. Yet the story did reinforce something I’ve believed in for a long time. Wishing, praying and hoping alone, just don’t cut it.

We actually need to do things, make efforts, in order for meaningful changes to happen in life.

Based on my work as a Business and Life Coach, there are far too many folks simply refusing to make the required changes which would improve their lives and businesses.

The pushback is particularly powerful when it comes to making changes within themselves.

Yet, trying to find solutions and fixing problems outside of the self is nothing more than a case of creating diversions, whilst the original cause of the problem remains hidden and energised.  It’s akin to trying to fix ones hair by working on their reflection.

Unfortunately it seems to be a part of the human condition to point blank refuse to even consider that the problem actually lies within the individual. What’s more the majority will resent anyone who tries to point this fact out to them.

Like the substance abuser who knows the stuff is killing him, but still persists in ingesting it. So the thing just keeps spiralling deeper and deeper into the nightmare.

End result … dread, unhappiness or ruin. Or worse.

I think it was Einstein who said the definition of insanity was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.  Indeed.

Now, I do understand why people don’t want to look internally for the fix. Doing so is often painful, a little frightening and just good old hard work. By contrast wishing, praying and hoping is a cakewalk; no commitment, responsibility or effort are needed.

It’s like the people who are hooked on fortune tellers; majority don’t go to hear the truth. They go hoping to be told fame, fortune, sex, love etc. are all just around the corner.

Simple fact of the matter is there comes a time when everyone serious about living the right life must wake up and make a decision; go into their core; their inner self or things will not improve. Regardless the amount of outer manoeuvring, polishing or expert advice.

Having the right life is not only possible, it’s a birth right. But the individual needs to do their own exploring and digging; almost literally no one can do it for them. If someone could we’d all be on the happy cloud already.

Someone can guide, suggest, and even help motivate … but the individual work is up to the individual.

The bottom line is if you want your business to prosper, your kids to love you, your partner to engage with you, your friends to respect you, your dog to come when you call it … whatever.  There’s only one way; start looking within yourself.  Start searching your core.

The only way out is by going in.

Until next time – stay great.

I have often talked about happiness being tied in with everything we do. If we’re happy with whatever we are doing, that thing will never seem a chore. Today I came across a newsletter article written by a bloke whose work I enjoy.

This piece in particular stuck a chord so I will repost it here in its entirety. I sincerely trust you enjoy it too.

The man’s name is John Forde. He is a master copywriter in my view.

Happy reading.

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“To know how to do something well is to enjoy it.”

- Pearl S. Buck

First of all, you might be asking…

What the heck does an article on something so fluffy as “happiness” have with writin’ copy?

And I could answer, dear reader, “everything.”

After all, as our old pal Aristotle used to repeat between bites of souvlaki, happiness is pretty much the end goal of everything you and I do.

Hence, heretofore… I could make you read ANYTHING over the next five minutes and still pretend this is my case.

Or I could just say, look, here’s the deal… this is my e-letter and I write what I like.

This is *probably* closer to the truth.

Still, I do think that I’ve got a way to land this vessel where we want it to land, if you’ll give me the chance.

So here we go, this week’s article…

THE “THREE F’S” OF HAPPINESS

Let’s first define terms.

What exactly IS “happiness?”

I’m sure, in your travels, you’ve come across lots of different ways to define it.

Among heavy thinkers, there has been no shortage of varying ideas either.

Likewise, there’ve been plenty of smart people who never think about it and even think that doing so is a big fat waste of time.

And, when it comes to, say, self-help books about how to hug yourself daily while you whisper self- affirmations to a mirror, I can’t say I completely disagree.

Most conversations about “how to be happy” are, in my opinion, self-indulgent and misguided.

In fact, up until recently, I tended to side with our man Aristotle again.

(Forgive the academia, but I used to have a night job as a philosopher — so sometimes I can barely help myself (literally).)

The word Aristotle used was “eudaimonia,” which is less about how you feel and more about how you act.
That is, you get happy by acting in an excellent and pleasing way.

In other words, make progress. As best you can, in every way you can. That’s happiness.

If I left you with just that, I’m confident I’d have given you more than your money’s worth.
But I recently came across a nice summary of another Greek’s idea about happiness.

I’m sure you’ve guessed, I’m talking about that good ol’ other life o’ the party, Epicurus.

DO say you know Epicurus, yes?

“Epi” to his friends (I’m just guessing) was the original “pain vs. pleasure” dude. That is, he was with Aristotle on happiness being the highest pursuit.

But in his mind, we are or should be more like children, wanting to feel good and avoiding most of what makes us feel badly.

In particular, he had “three F’s” (my term) that could he said could tip any scale toward joy.

No, dear reader, not “food, females, and fine wine” or “Finnish folk fables.”

Though it’s true that Epicurus sounded like a guy who knew how to have a good time, what grabbed me was the more elevated nature of his “F’s,” which I’ll now share.

Ready?

EPICUREAN “F” #1: Friends

Never, said Epicurus, dine alone. And he didn’t. Every night, he packed his table with buddies.

Here’s what I like about this little piece of advice, other than the company at meals. In this e-letter, we talk a lot about career and success. We talk technique and process. We talk numbers.

But never forget, it’s the people that matter.

Before you think I’ve gone all soft and squishy, this revelation has career implications too. If, for instance, you ever succeed as a freelancer, your ongoing relationships with your clients will be one of your greatest assets.

That means, don’t live your whole career in your inbox. Make phone calls. Meet face-to-face when you can. And cultivate a connection beyond pure business, where you can.

It will serve you, yes, but more importantly… you’ll enjoy your work more. Some of the people I’ve known longest, respect most, and enjoy talking to often are people I’ve worked with — both long-distance and in the same office — for years.

Which brings us to…

EPICUREAN “F” #2: ‘Filosophy’

Okay, okay. Yes I know I’m abusing the spelling of philosophy here. I had to fit this #2 in here somehow.

What Epicurus was saying here was simply that you’ll live better if you take some time now and again to slow down and reflect on the big things in life.

That must have been easy back in the days of sitting around and eating grapes while philosophers gave commercial-free speeches.

These days, not so much. Not with the iPods, iPads, HBO and ESPN, Netflix, and so on. We are, somebody said recently somewhere, distracting ourselves to death.

And it’s a slow death, marked by the steady building of an uncertain angst where your active mind is supposed to live. We’ve been tuned out so long, many of us have forgotten how to tune back in.

Here’s where I see this connecting with copywriting. Ogilvy once said that curiosity was,
by far, his favorite indicator of a ‘creative’ worth hiring. And I believe it’s only by stopping to sift through the details of life that we sharpen this appetite for observation and, perhaps more importantly, processing of what we see.

When we vegetate through life, it goes in one sensory input and out somewhere else, unnoticed.

 

Yet somehow, by knowing how to stop and think, we build new energy to drive forward.

Or so it seems to me.

And last…

EPICUREAN “F” #3: Freedom

Okay, my flag-waving co-Americans. No fist-pumping here. I’m not taking a political position here.

In fact, it’s sad for me to say, but the large majority of people I know in the “land of the free” are among the most enslaved I know, at least in Epicurean terms.

Before anybody takes issue with that, consider: what Epicurus meant by this, long before today’s most pandering politicians were even a spark in the cosmic mind of the Universe, was the freedom of self-sufficiency. And along with this, freedom of fear for the future.

Tell me, how many people do you know right now who can say they don’t fear the future? Not many, I’m sure.

On the flip side, how many do you know stuck with credit card debt, a mortgage, student loans, a lost job or a job they’re afraid of losing?

Too many.

Here’s what I want you to take away from this third idea: the “freedom” you seek, in this case, is liberation from those fears.

And how to find it?

A re-evaluation of what you need versus what you have is a place to start. Angst over the
unnecessary is a great affliction of our age.

Likewise, it wouldn’t hurt to separate the things you do need to fear from the things you don’t. The unknown is NOT, contrary to popular believe, always your enemy.

But those ideas alone won’t warm your stewpot, so let’s try this. When you’re looking to get out of a dark hole, you’ve got a choice, dig or climb.

You’ve heard it said elsewhere, but if there’s one silver-lining to a stagnant economy like we’re in now, it’s that it buys you time to learn how to ”climb” smarter.

That is, you can learn now the skills you didn’t have before… but that could pay off when things pick up again.

Obviously, I’ve got a career bias, but the way I see it… the skill that’s going to pay off for the most people in the widest variety of situations, is figuring out how to sell an idea. Persuasion. You can parlay that skill into any number of situations, maybe sooner than you imagine.

There are, of course, many ways to do that. Some you see as courses or other info products, sold right here in this e-letter. If you can afford that, I recommend it. If not, there’s the library.
There’s self-study of the other ads out there. There’s the vast, rich wilds of the World Wide Web.
It’s all at your fingertips, with only excuses blocking your way.

I am lucky. I’ve already found the “freedom” a good income can bring, with seven figures in the bank and all the new work I can handle. I can work from anywhere, travel anywhere, and even choose when I’ll to the work I do. And indeed, I’m hugely thankful for all of that.

But I have a dirty confession: it *did* take some doing. I did have to buckle down and study. I did slog my way through a few less than ideal projects. And I did make mistakes, of which I’m sure I’ll make more in days and years ahead.

What I’m saying is, this last of “Epi’s” super-secret happiness triggers may be the most elusive. But make no mistake, it’s a worthy end prize. And there’s joy, just in the trying.

 

Business meetings are a necessary evil. There really is no way around them. At least not yet. Maybe when we learn as a race to communicate telepathically it’ll be different but for the foreseeable future we’re stuck with them.

After falling asleep in them, getting too excited in them, being bored to tears in them and, on occasion losing my cool in them- I figure I may as well write a little about them.

Before I outline the seven ways to better meeting productivity, let me highlight the one thing I feel stronger about than most others – lateness.

To me, being late for a meeting– assuming there was no major calamity en route to it- is unforgivable. It shows ignorance, and a huge disrespect for the other attendees.

If you have a person who is perpetually late, pull them aside and tell them to get their act together. If they still persist, broaden their employment opportunities.

And while I’m at it I’ll mention another bugbear; not turning the mobile/cell off during meetings. I’ve seen people actually answering text messages and emails, during meetings. No excuse for that. If the meeting is that uninteresting and lame … don’t have it. And if a person thinks their text message is more interesting — ask them to leave the room. That kind of behaviour is just pig-ignorant.

Now for the seven ways I believe make meetings more productive.

1. Start on time.

Warn everyone that you will be starting on time and do it. I remember going through a period when I used to lock the room and any latecomers were not allowed in. Worked like a charm. Week three everyone turned up on time and continued doing so.

2. Assign time-keeping and minutes responsibilities.

Time keeping is not something generally practiced. It is however an excellent tool if you have people on the team that like to drone on. And of course it’s required in order for timely finishing.

3. Keep to the agenda.

The key reason for having a meeting is that you need to do something as a group that you cannot do alone. People however have a tendency to run off on tangents. Keep it on topic or you’ll end up with more questions than answers.

4. Praise in public, criticise in private.

Never criticise anyone in public. There’s a time and a place for that; in private. Also, don’t criticise what might sound like a dumb idea. Doing that will scare people off and some potentially great ideas will be missed.

5. Allow interruptions for emergency purposes only.
Allow participants to have their say without being argued with or interrupted. Have feedback time allocated if necessary.

6. Restate conclusions and assignments to ensure agreement.

Make sure everyone understands and agrees as to what has been decided and their part in what may need to be done moving forward.

7. End on time.

Unless it’s a matter of life and death- end on time. Every time. If the attendees have been undisciplined in the past they may get a shock the first time you do it and there may be a task or two carried over, however, they will soon get the message.

One of the golden rules in life and business is; if you say something- follow through. People will soon get the message.
Until next time- Stay great …

 

 

It’s a strange world we live in

Back in the day — when I worked for a boss, and he encouraged me to do more, I remember receiving an email announcing several ladies being promoted.

I quickly shot off what I thought was a terribly witty response to the writer; a HR guy, who was also a friend. It was only when my inbox started to fill up that I realised I’d hit the “Reply All” button, and my little witticism had not only gone to my friend but to all our offices around the country.

Surprising too that what I thought was droll, clever and witty, some thought a touch sexist.

It all ended well, because really, there was no ill will or any real sexism in my remark, but, as that old 60’s song says “It’s a strange, strange world we live in master Jack.”

And my dear reader it pays to be careful with these things. Particularly in business.

I was thinking about that incident when preparing a communication presentation recently and it prompted me to write this article. As a reminder if nothing else.

Email etiquette

In his online writing course, Writing to Get Things Done Stan Berry offers email writing tips well worth considering.

Firstly keep the emails short and sweet. Avoid rambling as you type one idea after another. Be clear in your thinking.

Make the organisation visually apparent
Avoid presenting one paragraph after another with no clear visual connection tying them together.   Instead, make the organization of your emails apparent to your readers.

Here are two simple, yet powerful, ways to do this:

• Organize a list of key points under a forecasting sentence in a bullet point paragraph format.

• Use headings to forecast the content of your paragraphs.

Write like an educated professional
Avoid thinking that good writing rules don’t apply to emails. Follow standard English rules for grammar.

Remember. Few readers notice good grammar. All readers notice bad grammar. It knocks readers off message and makes the writer look uneducated and careless.

• AVOID ALL CAPS.  Readers will think you’re yelling. Or that you’re just lazy.
• Avoid the use of smileys. ☺/  Reserve these for fun between friends and family.
• Avoid text-messaging language: BTW,IMHO, J/K, LOL, BAK, MTFBWY, etc. These are great shortcuts in texting and should be reserved for texting.

• Avoid using coloured type, freaky styles and sizes, coloured backgrounds and unnecessary logos and graphics. These distract readers from your message.
• Do a Final Revision. Avoid firing off your email as soon as you’re finished typing.  Take a minute to add some finishing touches.
• Engage your reader with a forecasting subject line that describes the topic of your email.
• Include a friendly salutation or greeting, such as “Good morning Kate,” if appropriate.
• Check that you have a professional, positive tone that encourages cooperation.
• Proofread each sentence carefully, even after doing spelling and grammar checks. As we all know from experience, a spelling check will miss the error of using to when we mean too.

Forward with care

• Avoid automatically relaying email from others. Respect the privacy of the messages you receive.

• Consider confidentiality before you forward, and use the “Reply to All” function with care.

• Ask permission before forwarding someone’s private email on to others.

• Consider attaching only the last email in a chain of emails and deleting prior emails.

Make it media ready

• Avoid thinking that just because you respect the privacy of others, they will return the favour.

• Avoid putting things in your email that you wouldn’t want anyone to see.

• Your  email could end up on the desk of your boss, on the front page of a national newspaper or in a court of law. And in

such cases, you want to look your best.

ALWAYS keep it professional

• Finally, avoid taking people to task via email. Conflict is almost always better addressed face-to-face or over the phone.

• Be aware that every email you send becomes a written record of your performance.

• Your email reflects on those you represent; your work group, your department and your company.

By consistently following basic email etiquette, you demonstrate your professionalism and communication skills.

Your readers will appreciate the effort.

 

Until next time- Stay great …

 

Mana

Part of the New Zealand Maori belief is what they call Mana. Mana is a concept of or quality that resides in people. It has commonly been interpreted as “the stuff of which magic is formed,” as well as the substance of which souls are made. Some say in English it is defined as authority, control and influence. It is a strength inside of oneself that makes it possible to believe and achieve that which you believe in; a strength of character you could call it.

Without Mana you could never truly believe or hold onto something that you build because you have no Mana. No true character.

Mana can come from three different sources they say:

• Mana that people give to you.
• Mana that comes from your whakapapa(family)

what you have inherited.

• Mana that comes from you — who you are and

how you treat people.

So what does that mean to us in business? Simply this. In the Maori culture hosting family and friends is considered extremely important. Welcoming, hosting, feeding and extending heartfelt goodwill is what it’s all about. So when the guests return to their homes they speak highly of your treatment of them. Thereby enhancing your Mana.

In business we call that word of mouth. Family inherited Mana means passing down things such as manners, strength of character, honesty and honour. Translated to business it is this- how can you gain customers if they cannot believe in you or trust you?

And finally the Mana that people give you. Is it not the mark of ultimate respect and trust in business when customers give us their money in exchange for our products and services? And for that they deserve nothing less than our MANA.

There’s a lot to be said for ancient customs, traditions, values and just good old fashioned class.

Until next time, stay great …

 

Dear reader, I have the flu. Got it good too.

I know the blokes reading this will understand. Secret men’s business and all that.

But I can just hear some of the ladies reading mumble something like, “man-up Nancy, and get on with it.” Oh why are people so unkind.

Why am I telling you this?

Well apart from being a sharing type individual, I had an experience at my local Chemist (Drug Store for all my American friends), while buying relief for this plague I’m suffering, which got me thinking.

Can service people sometimes overdo it with the niceness and light? My view has for a long time been that, yes, they can.

For example, as I approached the counter at my Chemist, I was greeted by a nice young man who greeted me very politely. He looked at my runny eyes and nose and asked what he could do for me. I told him I wanted Codral Cold & Flu tablets.

After that the conversation went something like this:

“Have you used Codral before?”

“Yes.”

“Are you taking other medication?”

“No.”

“Sore throat?”

“No.”

“Cough?”

“No.”

“Would you like a cheaper brand?”

“No.”

“It’s just as effective, and saves you money?”

“No.”

“Your driver’s licence please?”

At this point I was just about ready to shove the smiley sign hanging above his head where the sun don’t shine.

But I know he was only following the rules which say everyone buying Codral’s could be a crystal-meth manufacturer and identification is required. That’s the law. So fair enough.

He then did the two finger keyboard dance, and went about entering my licence details into his computer. And finally, I got the medicine and was on my way to the checkout where a beaming young lady welcomed me.

If you’ve ever been crook as a dog and had someone happily smiling at you- you’ll know how I felt just about then.

She asked how I was paying.

I looked at the fifty in my hand and was about to say; “well, let’s set up an escrow account and the amount required will be released upon such time as specific conditions have been met.”

But I didn’t, I just waved the fifty dollar bill in front of her.

Hear beaming smile switched to high beam and she eagerly asked whether I needed a bag to carry the medicine in?

“No thanks.”

And then, like one of those girlie movies, mercifully, it was over. I was out of there.

I’ve brought property answering fewer questions. Well not really, but you get what I mean.

Now what did those two people do wrong?

Nothing really. They were clearly following instructions and had been trained.

However, there is one aspect to customer service that is often overlooked; reading the customer.

By that I mean strive to treat each customer as an individual. Behaving and sounding like a robot turns people off.

For example when you get a customer who clearly isn’t the chatty type, depart from the script.

Most certainly be polite. Most certainly be courteous, but don’t irritate the person. Give them what they want as quickly and as efficiently as possible and get them on their way.

Also observe.

If a customer is holding money in their hand, there is no need to ask; “cash or card?”

My suggestion to my clients is build around these basic steps:

1.  Pleasant Welcome

2.  Listen carefully and take the order

3.  Fill the order quickly and efficiently

4.  Present the order to the customer

5.  Take payment

6.  Offer a pleasant farewell.

Excellent customer service boils down to these three things: OBSERVATION – EFFICIENCY – FREINDLINESS.

 

Until next time- Stay great …

 

This week’s article is a little different.

Sometimes we can lose perspective amongst all the hoopla and the daily challenges of life and business. Some days it’s a challenge to just get out of bed. I know the feeling … some mornings my dog Lester walks me.

So when I came across a little inspirational clip it reminded me how important it was to maintain perspective and what the important things in life and success were.

Now, I realise that putting a definition on success is not easy. It’s personal and means different things to different people.

There are however a number of traits successful people share. I trust you’ll find the information below as uplifting and inspiring as I did.

Believe in yourself – The only thing that stands between a person and what they want from life is often the will to try it and the faith that it’s possible. Rich DeVos

Integrity – If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters. Alan K. Simpson
Positive attitude – There is little difference in people. But that little difference makes a big difference. The LITTLE difference is attitude. The  BIG difference is whether it’s positive or negative. W Clement Stone.

Dreams – The key to happiness is having dreams; the key to success is making them come through. James L. Allan

Getting started – You don’t have to be great to get started. But you have to get started to be great.  Les Brown

Listen for opportunity – The reason so many people never get anywhere in life is because when opportunity knocks, they are out in the backyard looking for four-leaf clovers. Walter P. Chrysler

Never give up  – We can have anything we want. If we stick with it long enough. Helen Keller

You become what you think about – You are today where your thoughts brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you. James L. Allan

Be prepared – By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. Benjamin Franklin

Spread sunshine to others – Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves. James M. Barrie

Fail forward – Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. It is delay, not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead-end street. William A. Ward

And finally, successful people give more than they take. So, keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry.

 

Until next time- Stay great …

 

 

The more I speak to business people these days the more uncertainty and worry I detect. Business people are genuinely concerned with the goings on economically and what the future holds.

But is the uncertainty warranted?

Since the government that’s generating and foisting most of this uncertainty onto business and making life more and more difficult by the day doesn’t seem to know what its doing … there’s good reason to be concerned.

Unfortunately, based on low- and getting lower- consumer confidence, ever rising costs, and the fact the government doesn’t seem to be heading for enlightenment any time soon, things may just get worse before they get better.

So … as I see it business has two options; wait and see how things pan out and hope for the best, or start looking at the organisation critically and making adjustments right now!

A critical business analysis is an excellent first step.

Even if you believe you are operating a very tight ship, do the critical analysis. You may surprise yourself, and possibly save yourself considerable heartburn down the track.

Review all your supplier agreements. Revaluate them and compare what is available in the market.

When times are good spending can become a little blasé. Track it on weekly, even daily bases. Know where every cent is going.

Talk to your employees. Let them know what you’re doing, and why you’re doing it. Then solicit, and listen to, any suggestions they may have. Often when it comes to knowing the nitty-gritty of a business there’s no one better than a good employee to let you know the score. Not to mention of course that some of the best ideas come from employees … for those who care to listen that is.

I often hear businesses owners saying they don’t see their accountant until it’s tax time.

Not good enough.

Your accountant and financial advisors are there to suggest and advise and should be used accordingly.

And for all you accountants and financial advisors reading this … what an opportunity for you to take the lead and not only further help your clients but improve your own business in the process by taking the initiative.

Don’t stop marketing your business. Yes review costs verses returns. Yes become more frugal. Yes become more results oriented. Just don’t stop doing it. People still need to know what you do, where you are, and why they should choose you ahead of their existing suppliers.

Also think of it this way. Most of your competitors will panic and stop marketing at the first sign of financial hard times. What a great opportunity for you.

Now for the most important point of all — talk to your customers. And LISTEN – really listen to what they are saying. Then become part of the solution to their issues and concerns.

When you provide people with what they want, they will see you as more than just a vendor.

Until next time- Stay great

 

There are Business Owners who love marketing, others who despise it and the majority who see it as a necessary evil.

No matter how you see it, the reality is — you need to do it. It’s as simple as that.

Way back in 1956, in a New York Tribune article a profound truth was uttered: Doing business without marketing is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing, but nobody else does.

David Ogilvy who started off selling stoves to nuns, drunks and everyone else in between and ended up the doyen of advertising put it this way; In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative original thinker unless you can also sell what you create.”

Let me tell you about three guiding marketing principals I rely on and use with my clients:

Always be marketing

Keep it simple and affordable

Test and measure every marketing effort without fail

When I say always be marketing I mean it literally. Always be doing something to get, and keep, your business visible; standing out from the pack.

It’s said that we are bombarded by more than 2500 marketing messages a day. That’s akin to marketing version of carpet bombing. How does your business fare amongst that noise and clutter?

If you’re like most SME’s it’s tough. Damn tough. But take heart. There are many simple and relatively inexpensive things you can do to promote and market your enterprise.

First and foremost it’s about activity. Get out and about. Talk to people. Give them your business card. You never know who you’re talking to and what will come of it.

Establish an online presence. But do it properly. Do it effectively.

In his Will your site turn visitors into customers? How to quickly tell article, website design maestro, and a good mate, D Bnonn Tennant, talks about the qualities a good webpage should possess. I think every small- and not so small- business owner should read it.

Just having a website up, sitting there like a shy lad at a high school dance will cost you money. You’d really be better off without one.

Get involved in the community. At McDonald’s for example one of the most powerful marketing methods is community involvement. Every store is encouraged to do what they call “LSM,” (Local Store Marketing).

McDonald’s owner operators get on the local Councils, Chambers of Commerce, Lions Clubs, Little Athletics, and so on.

It’s a relatively cheap and efficient way of letting people know who you are and what you’re about. Such involvement works because it builds goodwill and trust.

As the good Mr Ogilvy put it, The more prospects you talk to, the more sales you expose yourself to, the more orders you will get. Amen to that.

Keeping it simple and affordable means just that. There’s very little use in running slick and clever advertising campaigns which do no more than impress copywriters and other ad-men.

Always keep in mind — the idea of all marketing is to sell product and service. Why else would you do it?

Since we’re not here to fool each other, here’s the reality of it. Sometimes getting to the two or three marketing winners; the two or three things that will work for your product or service, perhaps a dozen different, intelligently researched, possibilities may need to be tried.

For example you may decide to try an e-mail marketing campaign. Great. But instead of spending 10K right off the bat, buy a smaller list and test your market; test the copy, the open rate, the click-through rate, the complaint rate, quality of responses; and of course the sales.

Do it small to start. See how it works. If something doesn’t work on a smaller scale, it isn’t going to work on a large scale.

Seriously, if you don’t test and measure you truly are doing yourself and your business an enormous disservice. And quite possibly throwing money down the proverbial gurgler.

Doing these three things upfront will save you volumes of time and money overall. Indeed when it comes to SME’s it could mean the difference between smooth sailing or the Davey Jones locker.

Until next time – stay great