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Out of the Frying Pan and Into the Fire
Jan 30th
It might be hard to read those little baskets on the desk, but they’re labeled “Frying Pan” and “Fire.”
I’d love to take more credit for this, but it’s based on an old co-worker’s desk. She had the traditional “In” and “Out” paper bins, but she also had one labeled “OMG!” where I’m assuming she kept items that needed to be dealt with more quickly.
I never asked her about it, but it always amused me when I’d walk by, so I decided to come up with my own take on it, and this cartoon is the result.
Out of the Frying Pan and Into the Fire
View full post on Small Business News, Tips, Advice – Small Business Trends
Conversation Fire & Charisma Secrets
Nov 16th
Low Refunds, Wickedly High 1:19 Conversions, & Solid Proof. Get Paid 70% Or $23 Per Sale Guaranteed!
Conversation Fire & Charisma Secrets
7 Steps To Sure Fire Marketing Success
Nov 3rd
7 Steps To Sure Fire Marketing Success
This content from: Duct Tape Marketing
Here’s my take on business.
Every business is simply a set of systems and marketing just happens to be the most important of these systems.
Few business owners have trouble thinking in terms of business systems for things like building their product, paying the bills, providing a service, hiring an employee – all the operations kind of things.
When it comes to marketing, however, all systems thinking comes to a halt, because “that’s a creative art,” that vexes even the most seasoned entrepreneur types.
Fact is, marketing is indeed a business system and approaching and operating it as such helps to remove any and all mystery about its function in your business and allows you to create consistent, predictable results from the operation of your marketing system.
Below are the seven elements that make the creation of your personalized marketing system a snap.
1) Commit to Strategy Before Tactics
Until you can narrowly define the exact person, business or problem that constitutes your ideal client and uncover a way to communicate a truly unique point of differentiation to said ideal client, your business will fail prey to the marketing tactic of the week syndrome.
When you have a clear sketch of who you must attract and a clear message that allows you to communicate why your product or service produces greater value than every other option, you don’t have a marketing strategy.
Do not pass go until your business possesses an authentic marketing strategy. Once you do, you then must commit to using that strategy as the filter for every marketing decision that follows – including product/service mix, pricing, identity elements, customer service and hiring. You can find more on my approach to marketing strategy here.
2) Map Your Marketing HourglassTM
The marketing funnel approach of loading lots of leads into a marketing process aimed at squeezing a few through the small end is fundamentally broken these days.
Yes, you still need to get in front of prospects, but the greatest source of lead generation these days is a happy customer. The idea behind the hourglass shape is that as you gain a customer you immediately go about intentionally turning that customer into a referral champion.
You accomplish this by mapping out all the products, services and processes required to move a prospect through the seven phases of the Marketing Hourglass: know, like, trust, try, buy, repeat and refer.
Simply take a high level look at your business today and map out all of the current and potential touchpoints opportunities your have with prospects and clients and fill the gaps with marketing driven experiences. You can find more on the Marketing Hourglass here.
3) Create a Content Road Map
The term content conjures up a great deal of frustration with business owners, mainly because it’s vague enough to be misinterpreted and cited by experts enough to create exhaustion.
The idea of content in marketing isn’t simply a generic way to refer to your need to blog, it’s a strategic approach to creating the assets your business needs to communicate strategy and facilitate lead generation and conversion.
With that description in mind, you need to view your approach to content creation much like a publisher armed with an annual table of contents, otherwise known as a list of important keyword search phrases.
Your content creation plan must be very intentional and must be installed as an ongoing practice instead of viewed as a one-time event. Your plan must include provisions for content that builds trust, content that educates, customer generated content, other people’s content and content that converts. You can find a deeper discussion of these five types of content here.
4) Build a Total Web Presence
No longer is it enough to build a Website and expect to compete these days. Prospects, even those that are looking to do business locally, turn to search engines to find every kind of business and solve every kind of problem.
Today’s marketers need to approach the Web with an eye on creating the largest presence possible in order to stand out, or merely show up, when a prospect goes hunting for a solution.
Building an online listening station, optimizing brand assets in sharing services, claiming valuable social and local network real estate, participating in ratings and review sites, and maximizing social media activity are the foundational elements of total web presence building.
This is how you begin to make your content strategy pay. This is how you begin to activate the know, like and trust elements of your Marketing Hourglass.
5) Mix and Match Your Lead Generation
Active lead generation comes about through multiple touches initiated through multiple channels.
There is rarely one dependable way to generate all of the leads a business might require to meet objectives. It’s the careful blending of advertising, public relations and systematic referral generation that creates the repetition, credibility and control needed to get a prospect motivated enough to pick up the phone or schedule an appointment.
The key to making this blended approach work, however, is the commitment to valuable, education-based content distribution. Advertising that promotes content gets viewed, a referral made by way of content gets action, and PR generated by way of content gets shared.
6) Orchestrate a Lead Conversion Process
If you’ve followed the steps outlined so far in this system, your prospects aren’t really sold so much as they become ready to buy. In order to continue the experience your marketing has promised to date you must also give intentional marketing driven consideration to the steps in your lead conversion process.
What is your systematic response when a prospect requests more information? What is your systematic method for communicating how you deliver value? What is your plan to nurture leads in your hourglass? How will you orient a new customer? What is your plan for measuring the results a customer actually received?
A fully developed lead conversion process doesn’t consider a sale complete until the customer receives the expected result.
7) Live by the Calendar
The basic premise behind the notion of a system is continuous operation. You can’t build a marketing system and hope to be done at some point.
There are elements that you may build and use continuously, but the fact is that operating your marketing system must become habit.
You must map out a year’s worth of projects, campaigns and processes and break each month into a theme, each project into weekly action steps and each day into right marketing activity.
By creating a marketing vision that is scheduled and calendared you create the framework that allows everyone in the organization to participate and see in very tangible ways the path that the organization, and perhaps more specifically the marketing system, is intended to trod.
View full post on Small Business Marketing Blog from Duct Tape Marketing
Can’t watch your parade if the house is on fire
Sep 19th
People are in pain. Often of their own making, they tell themselves a story that obsesses/distracts and compels them. “I’ll never get a movie gig again,” “I can’t believe they didn’t like what I offered,” “My job is in jeopardy,” “Money’s too tight to buy all the things I want…” “Does my butt look fat in these shorts?”
You can jump up and down and sing and dance and launch fireworks, but if the consumer’s story of pain is vivid enough, you will be ignored. When the house is on fire, all your audience wants is a hose.
View full post on Seth’s Blog
Managing Staff in a Tough Economy: Who Do You Fire, Who Gets That Raise?
Jul 24th
We’re in business, so we don’t get to sit the tough seasons out and come back when it’s all better. Despite the economy, the small business owner still has serious management issues to address. We can tackle them head on, grow our businesses and ourselves–or we can ignore them, but that could eventually put us out of business. Success is the goal, and the better the team, the better the business.
Here are three suggestions to help you take care of your team, so that they can take care of your clients.
1. Focus on the little steps and everyday strategies.
Your team is no good if you can’t keep them focused. And you can’t keep them focused if you can’t keep yourself on track. Have you ever tried to build a business with your eyes glued to the television? It doesn’t work. In the same vein, jumping from one task to the next without focus and an ongoing sense of completion is just as unproductive. You’re busy, but so is a cat when he’s chasing his tail.
In “It’s All About the First Downs,” Diane Helbig gives some great tips to help you grow your business in “baby steps.” Instead of focusing on that big, amazing, and sometimes overwhelming plan, she has you shift your focus to the little steps. If we address the day-to-day details consistently, then we will eventually arrive at our big goals.
Diane says, “I’ve been confronted with people who are having trouble focusing.” She believes the “root cause is…an inability to see a big idea in small pieces.” I like what she says, because I believe your company’s future rests in your ability to manage the details of the dream, the day-to-day elements. In fact, the more focus you have on the daily strategies of your company, the more focus you can expect from your team.
Making the shift from the big idea to a daily grind that will get you where you want to be isn’t always easy. But Diane’s advice will get you started.
As you focus your team—and reap the benefits from it—you’ll probably want to find a way to reward them.
2. Try a new kind of raise: performance-based pay rewards.
You can’t grow your business without your team. So how do you take care of them if you are in a situation where you have just enough cash flowing to keep the doors open? Anita Campbell discusses performance-based raises in “Should You Pay for Employee Performance?”
You can’t give raises with money that you don’t have. So, if they make it, then you pay it. Anita explains, “A good pay-for-performance plan will focus on the aspects of employee performance that increase sales and profits. As a result, there will be more money available to pay employees for their performance.”
In the article, Anita tells you the type of employees that are most likely to appreciate this plan, as well as suggestions on how to implement pay-for-performance, including the advisors that can help you set it up.
Anita says, “When handled properly, a pay-for-performance program can motivate employees,” and that can move your business forward. Just keep in mind that your team needs to know the rules of engagement and it’s up to management to make that clear upfront and document it.
When it comes to performance, some people just don’t live up to it, and tough decisions have to be made. That brings us to point number three.
3. Fire what doesn’t work; hire what does.
In high school, college and the rest of life we try out for sports, audition for plays, interview for jobs, etc. We have to qualify for what we want, and the older we get, the higher the standards. We aren’t babies anymore—so we’re also long past being rewarded for being cute and cuddly. Everyone can’t or won’t perform at the level that your company needs and requires, and you have to do something about it.
In “3 Things to Consider When Hiring and Firing,” John Mariotti gives some well-balanced advice on firing team members without disrespecting them or breaking their will. He says, “Firing people is no fun at all—at least it shouldn’t be—but it is necessary.” John also advises us to “Always remember that it takes two errors to create a failed employee:
- an employee who doesn’t perform in the job, and
- the supervisor who put them in a position to fail.”
I try to remember that making the tough decisions can set us up to succeed where others fail.
Managing Staff in a Tough Economy: Who Do You Fire, Who Gets That Raise?
View full post on Small Business News, Tips, Advice – Small Business Trends
Master Resale Rights Ebook Fire Sale! – Mega Ebook
May 5th
Cash-In On The Information age With 10 Hot Products Complete With Master Resell Rights. Start Your Own Online Business, Sell Your Own Products, Or Even Start Your Own Membership site.
Master Resale Rights Ebook Fire Sale! – Mega Ebook
Boulder Fire: Reverse 911-Like System Fails for Those Without Antiquated Phones
Sep 9th
Image: Andrew-Hyde/Flickr
Note: Although some quotes in this article refer to the system used in Boulder as “reverse 911,” Boulder County uses a different system that operates in a similar way. We are not referring to the EADS system that is actually named Reverse 911.
I woke up yesterday to a massive plume of smoke stretching across the sky and littering ash in my front yard. I soon found out that the so-called Fourmile Fire, a 3,500-acre brushfire, was wreaking havoc 10 miles from my home. Here’s more current news on the blaze, which authorities say is still out of control.
Like many residents here, I glued myself to the Boulder police and fire scanner throughout the day. Much of the discussion there yesterday had to do with evacuations, but rescuers seemed confused about who had evacuated, who hadn’t, and what areas were completely evacuated. It later came out that the county’s reverse 911 system had failed.
Boulder’s system, designed by a company called Everbridge, pulls information from a GIS telephone and address database to automatically notify people within a specific geographical area of an event, evacuation, or emergency mobilization. Boulder County used the system to warn residents that a massive forest fire was headed their way, and they needed to evacuate.
But instead of receiving an evacuation call, a number of residents learned that they had to leave from neighbors or, hearing the fire nearby, figured it out themselves.
Last I heard, Boulder County doesn’t know why the system failed. But, according to some comments I read on Boulder’s Daily Camera, the system has a few intrinsic flaws.
“The problem with the reverse 911 is that some people opt out of it and then say that they didn’t get a call. It happens all the time. Also, people change their phone numbers and then fail to update the 911 system…again, happens all the time. Most of the reasons for failure are, in fact, an issue with the people themselves…with landlines down, and people living in areas where there is little to no cell coverage, 911 fails are inevitable.” This comes from commenter Teledude.
Commenter mti001, who lives at the base of Sugarloaf Mountain, an evac area, writes:
“…right after the power went out the phone rang. I answered it and the message was “this is a 911 reverse call press 1 for the message” WTF!! The key pad doesn’t work without power! I’m surprised it didn’t say “press 1 for english”! Who ever developed the software didn’t take into account that todays phones need power to operate the key pad. The message should have told us what was going on without pressing 1.”
“Something similar happened to me yesterday when the power went off.” writes Brainchild, another commenter. “The POTS (plain old telephone system) is supposed to supply its own power. But most new phones have wall warts (AC or DC adapters) so that as many as possible can be sold and plugged into a home’s jacks, without affecting how much power is sucked out of the POTS lines during ringing or whatever.”
Phones designed with AC adapters can be built lighter, smaller, and become less hot during use. So they’re great for the companies who sell them and most of the consumers who buy them. Apparently they also suck in emergency situations like the Boulder fire, where residents live away from cell phone reception and need land lines.
“It’s a good idea to have at least one jack in the house setup with an old-school trimline phone that will work whether you have power or not,” writes NoBoBears. Moabite, another commenter, agrees: “I live in the foothills, and this is PRECISELY why I have a $10 cheapo phone plugged into one of my wall jacks. If your power is out, your landline is useless unless you have an old style phone.”
In other words, if you live somewhere without cell phone reception, there’s a chance your county’s reverse 911 won’t work at all unless you have an old phone that doesn’t use an AC adapter. Not exactly savvy for a system that costs upwards of $22,000 per year.
It’s also a good reminder that it pays to be independently prepared and use your head, rather than assuming other people will come get you in time.
View full post on Business Pundit
Brett Greene: Boulder Fire Stokes Community Through Social Media
Sep 9th
| Tragedies are never easy to weather, but hopefully the prominent role social media has taken in our lives will be one additional… |
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View full post on Home Wealth Project Riot!
Boulder Fire: Reverse 911 Fails for Those Without Antiquated Phones
Sep 7th
Image: Andrew-Hyde/Flickr
I woke up yesterday to a massive plume of smoke stretching across the sky and littering ash in my front yard. I soon found out that the so-called Fourmile Fire, a 3,500-acre brushfire, was wreaking havoc 10 miles from my home. Here’s more current news on the blaze, which authorities say is still out of control.
Like many residents here, I glued myself to the Boulder police and fire scanner throughout the day. Much of the discussion there yesterday had to do with evacuations, but rescuers seemed confused about who had evacuated, who hadn’t, and what areas were completely evacuated. It later came out that the county’s Reverse 911 system had failed.
Reverse 911, developed by a subsidiary of US defense company EADS, pulls information from a GIS telephone and address database to automatically notify people within a specific geographical area of an event, evacuation, or emergency mobilization. Boulder County used Reverse 911 to warn residents that a massive forest fire was headed their way, and they needed to evacuate.
But instead of receiving an evacuation call from Reverse 911, a number of residents learned that they had to leave from neighbors or, hearing the fire nearby, figured it out themselves.
Last I heard, Boulder County doesn’t know why the system failed. But, according to some comments I read on Boulder’s Daily Camera, the system has a few intrinsic flaws.
“The problem with the reverse 911 is that some people opt out of it and then say that they didn’t get a call. It happens all the time. Also, people change their phone numbers and then fail to update the 911 system…again, happens all the time. Most of the reasons for failure are, in fact, an issue with the people themselves…with landlines down, and people living in areas where there is little to no cell coverage, 911 fails are inevitable.” This comes from commenter Teledude.
Commenter mti001, who lives at the base of Sugarloaf Mountain, an evac area, writes:
“…right after the power went out the phone rang. I answered it and the message was “this is a 911 reverse call press 1 for the message” WTF!! The key pad doesn’t work without power! I’m surprised it didn’t say “press 1 for english”! Who ever developed the software didn’t take into account that todays phones need power to operate the key pad. The message should have told us what was going on without pressing 1.”
“Something similar happened to me yesterday when the power went off.” writes Brainchild, another commenter. “The POTS (plain old telephone system) is supposed to supply its own power. But most new phones have wall warts (AC or DC adapters) so that as many as possible can be sold and plugged into a home’s jacks, without affecting how much power is sucked out of the POTS lines during ringing or whatever.”
Phones designed with AC adapters can be built lighter, smaller, and become less hot during use. So they’re great for the companies who sell them and most of the consumers who buy them. Apparently they also suck in emergency situations like the Boulder fire, where residents live away from cell phone reception and need land lines.
“It’s a good idea to have at least one jack in the house setup with an old-school trimline phone that will work whether you have power or not,” writes NoBoBears. Moabite, another commenter, agrees: “I live in the foothills, and this is PRECISELY why I have a $10 cheapo phone plugged into one of my wall jacks. If your power is out, your landline is useless unless you have an old style phone.”
In other words, if you live somewhere without cell phone reception, there’s a chance Reverse 911 won’t work at all unless you have an old phone that doesn’t use an AC adapter. Not exactly savvy for a system that costs upwards of $22,000 per year.
It’s also a good reminder that it pays to be independently prepared and use your head, rather than assuming other people will come get you in time.
View full post on Business Pundit
Well, here’s a horrible idea for revolutionizing TV news: Fire the anchor and make it more like the web
Aug 10th
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View full post on Home Wealth Project Riot!
