Banking on your bank?

Don’t waste your time!

     The economy continues to hemorrhage.  Oh no, that’s just not true, I heard that it’s not true on the news today:  The federal government says “we’re seeing many signs of things turning around.”

     I can’t imagine  what’s in some one’s line of sight that would prompt THAT statement. Also in today’s news, Microsoft just laid off another 800 employees. You connect the dots.

     The point is that when the going gets tough,  the average hard-working business leader thinks: The BANK. The BANK will bail us out. The BANK will lend us what we need. The BANK is the answer.

     One leading national bank  says they’ll even give loans to illegal aliens. Another says it will help customers who need help. Don’t you believe either one of them, or any of the other sleazy branding line enticements being offered out there in medialand. 

     You cannot depend on The BANK.  Period. Banks are tripping over themselves trying to outdo hospitals and the US Postal Service in the stupidity and low trust departments.

     Banks are at least 50 years behind reality  and –just like the hospitals and US Postal Service– think that slick, clever slogans, spiels, and marketing devices coming from empty suits and empty heads are going to make up the difference, the decades of incompetence.

     Credit unions offer a bit more comfort,  because they answer to their “members” not a board of directors and stockholders (but can also be a bit more risky for businesses because loan percentages, for example, can end up being higher than credit card rates if you’re not careful and alert).

     You think BANK  because the BANK has convinced you that it is your good neighbor, that because it’s been doing business in your town for a zillion generations, that it’s honorable and will loan you the money you need when you need it for a ridiculously low rate because they’re your neighbor.

     Good Luck!  A lot of businesses are failing because they naively trusted The BANK would support them in hard times. Reality Check: The BANK supports itself in hard times.

     What else is there?  Investors. Great, but guess what? Today’s investors want immediate gratification ROI and enough proof and collateral to guarantee it. Not much help if you don’t already have the money you need! 

     “Angel” investors  are getting tainted with skepticism, and are also requiring more than you probably have cause if you had it you wouldn’t be looking for it! Hmmmm. Barter. Right. Well, barter is great up to a point, but it rarely if ever produces money. Stockpiled merchandise and services have increasingly marginal value. 

     So, that leaves (ta-ta-ta-ta-tah-tah!):  SALES. Innovative, value-added products and services = SALES. SALES ALWAYS BEAT The BANK. How to boost sales now must be your number one (and perhaps only) priority. There is no greater or more important issue for you or your business to be dealing with right now, unless of course you own or run The BANK. 

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Is “bigger” always better?

   If you haven’t visited Twitter,  you’ve probably no idea how extensive the ego destruction can be if your postings (“Tweets”) haven’t attracted 37,416,298 “Followers” in the last 24 hours.

     Oh, and there are at least 64 gazillion  other Twitterers out there who have the magic formula that will turn you into an overnight Most Highly Followed and Esteemed Twitterer sensation. Probably make you the hero of your whole office or neighborhood even!

     It makes me think about  how wasteful media advertising is if you’re not interested in attracting the entire world to your doorstep. I mean, let’s assume you’re selling Swiss Screw Precision Parts that are used in rocket ships. Should you run a series of network TV commercials on ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN? (Insert sounds of regurgitation here.)

     How about full page ads  for your grass-cutting service in one of those idiotic national newspapers for bar graph fanatics? Gee, a direct mail campaign combined with Twitter and Facebook postings could put your hand-crafted pottery pieces on the map, don’t you think?

     Tell you what:  if you have that kind of money to throw away (and stupidity level to match), call me first. I’ll get you some great deals.

     If your target market  is comprised of specific individuals or specific industries or specific geographic areas, don’t waste a penny on advertising that goes to other people in other places.

     Yes, this includes refusing to do business  with the sleazy phonebook companies that go to great lengths to fragment the markets you want to reach so you’ll have to buy space in two or three or more books that slice up your market and, in the process, add another dozen markets you don’t need or care about.

     “Phone book ads  are a necessary evil” I’ve heard so many people complain over the years, especially professional services. The truth? They ARE evil, but they are NOT necessary.

     Your parents taught you  that where there’s a will, there’s a way, right? So when did you forget that? There are other ways to reach the prospects and customers you want without having to sell your sister and your dog (other jokes there that I’ll pass on!) just to pay for reaching people who cannot or would not be your customers anyway. 

     It’s one thing when the economy is booming  (let’s see, that was…uh…) and it’s a great thing to spread your name and message everywhere, with cost not a factor. It is, however, quite another mindset that’s needed when the economy is as bad as it is and VALUE needs to dictate expense.

     You don’t need to cave in to making media people rich with money that should be staying in your pocket because you are too lazy to look for other options. There ARE other options. You WILL find them when you put your mind to it. Or not.

     There’s always that one-time special deal package  — discounted from $1,297,000 to $1, 215,000 — to sponsor a major national show in 14 states even though you only provide service to three counties in one state, but it’s “such a deal!” 

     With advertising, bigger is not always better … and the bigger the impact, the bigger the bill.     

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HOW you show what you show

can win or lose sales!

     No, one picture is NOT worth a thousand words.  Absolutely nothing sells better than the right words. But, the right words need a visual payoff, and that all comes down to HOW you show your wares, people, services, vision and ideas… websites, ads, news releases, promotional materials, videos and commercials.

     When your advertising spokesperson  is saying or doing one thing and whatever’s in the background is saying or doing something different, you lose sales. A professional service video produced in a trashy, cluttered office leaves viewers believing the business is trashy and cluttered no matter what is said.

     When a news release  is accompanied by a (yawn!) yearbook-looking head shot photo of the person featured, and the contact person sending it is even fortunate enough to have the editor actually give it print space, readers will yawn and turn the page.

     When a news release  is accompanied by an action-based candid-looking photo, it will get inted more often and it will gain reader attention more often. HOW you show what you show in a news release attachment must be as “newsworthy” as the text of the release.

     Remember you’re not paying  for this space so give the editor something to get excited about or laugh at or learn from or be mesmerized by.

     Websites? I’ve seen an awful lot of websites with photos of things that have little if anything to do with the text. If your photos and illustrations are not providing a payoff, a punchline, to what the words say, fold up your site and go home.

     The world is smarter today.  You no longer need to spell out every tiny detail of what the benefits are to customers and clients, but you sure as hell better make sure that you’re not leaving out the essentials. Leave out enough to not bore people, but include enough to make sure you get your message in their faces quickly and without prompting puzzled looks.

     Photos need captions.  Captions need to include exact names and exact titles and exact descriptions. People will read them or not, but photos should NEVER go unexplained. Don’t assume others will get your message because it’s a spectacular graphic. They won’t.

     Trade shows?  Determine your single (yes, SINGLE) mission ahead of time and stick to it. You are either there to sell or to get leads or to attract investors or to strut your stuff to the industry r whatever, but NEVER more than one of those objectives, or you might as well throw the booth rental money out the window!

     Once you’ve defined what you’re doing  there, make sure your display shows what you want others to understand about what their benefits are for doing business with you! The right words will do the deed, but your visual experiences must serve as the cornerstone to your message, and must strongly reinforce what you say. Always and everywhere.            

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Call it whatever you want…

     Call it an incubator,  a co-op, a strategic alliance, shared platforms, networking, whatever you want . . . the bottom line is that the long-term business success effects of this sucky economy and dollar devaluation are going to be measured in terms of how much you can be both a leader AND a team player!

     The US Army teaches  that — among other things — to be a great leader requires also being a great teammate and follower. You can lead your business straight over the cliff by ignoring all other businesses around you and “going for broke,” if you choose a path of arrogance.

     The major difference  between arrogance and self-sufficiency and independence is that the first of these is an attitude. Combining forces with other businesses doesn’t render you helpless. If it does, you’ve selected the wrong business to work with, or you have an attitude problem.

     Combining forces with other businesses  should put your business — and the others — in a position of strength. It means that one business picks up where the other leaves off to the mutual benefit of all involved. Money can be involved, but it doesn’t always have to be. Ego is almost always involved; don’t let it be. Self-importance loses wars, and crushes business ventures!

     A Two-Way WIN-WIN:  I work with a bright young business that specializes in Internet marketing (website design and services, email and SEO programs, etc.). We combined website development interests because that firm’s strengths were tech-driven and mine were content-driven. We share responsibilities on work generated and produce a better, more complete product by focusing on what we do best.

     A Three-Way WIN-WIN-WIN:  A local liquor store and area deli have combined forces at a local fire department to raise money for an area charity by paying the fire department space rental and soliciting donations for admission to a “Giant Wine & Cheese Tasting Festival” that includes vendor donations of wine and cheese from a couple of dozen manufacturers and distributors who supply the two stores. Actually, if you think about it, this is like a 30-Way WIN situation.

     Can your business share  a workspace? A receptionist? A display area? A parking lot? A truck or delivery service? A database? Utilities? Cleaning services? Expertise? Research? Resources? Sales teams? Payroll services? Meeting rooms? Advertising media expenses? THINK about it!

     The next chapter in American business  will revolve around ways to economize even more than you are right now. The challenge will be to make the most of every resource, including those of neighboring or allied businesses. OPEN MINDS OPEN DOORS.   

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Dear FTC: C’mon in. I dare you!

A www.NEWSMAX.COM headline today reads:

“OBAMA’S FTC MOVES TO REGULATE BLOGGERS”

     The story reports  how I (blogger) will be required as of 12/1/09, to disclose all the “computers, toys and trips to Disneyland” (cited as examples) that I’ve received in exchange for blog post endorsements because such arrangements are a “conflict of interest.”

     I thought I had enough  computers. I am too much of a realist to be interested in Disneyland. But: Gee, free toys! Now that’s a cool idea.

     Why does the FTC’s focus  remind me of the infamous captain we’ve called into play a few times? You know, the one who busies himself arranging deck chairs while the ship sinks? With all the major federal trade violations taking place every day, don’t these people have anything better to do than worry about such drivel?

     I’m sorry to disappoint you, “Mr. Obama’s FTC people”  but — BESIDES being appalled at the audacity you evidence by leveling your taxpayer-financed sites at bloggers instead of simply prohibiting advertisers from pursuing those bribery practices that may result in harmful consumption or use (some of which certainly should not be condoned)— BESIDES that:

Do you think for one minute  that American businesses are blind to the fact that your blanket overstepping of bounds serves to fan the out-of-control wildfires of the Consumer Federation of America?

     As a long-term business owner/consultant/author and educator,  responsible by the way, for the first consumer education mobile unit in the United States, and for initiating numerous consumer-benefit companies and programs, I can assure you that the CFA is a radical organization with political underpinnings that is waaaay over the top!

     Some (perhaps CFA?) will jump for joy  at having your implied endorsement to spread the notion of “unethical bloggers.” Could it be possible that something like a desperate smear attempt might be fostered to undermine Internet credibility and reduce embarrassing blogger attacks on sadly misguided administration decisions?

     This is of course particularly convenient timing  as well, as we continue to stand witness to the long-deserved, self-imposed collapse of traditional mainstream media!

     I hate to have to own up to  the fact that I have never engaged in the kinds of underhanded, conflict-of-interest shenanigans that ineffective FTC leadership has chosen to decry, and I’m quite certain that neither have the vast majority of bloggers.

     To be sure though, Dear FTC’ers,  you are cordially invited to examine my blog archives in detail. You might actually learn something.

     You will find only  good, sensible business and personal development advice and ideas… plus occasional (warranted) attacks on your “higher authority” for passing along, promoting and endorsing NON-sensible business and personal growth and development advice… and many bad ideas! Sorry, but it’s true!

     This is not to suggest  that there are not unethical bloggers out there. Y’know, there are also unethical judges, government officials, and religious leaders. Maybe FTC’ers should turn their agency’s venim in those directions and stop being Mr. O’s puppets.

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Call 302.933.0116

That’s 302.933.0116

Call 302.933.0116 Now!

     What makes three mentions  of a phone number work better in your broadcast commercial than just one or two, or five or ten? We all know — or perhaps we’ve forgotten — that REPETITION SELLS. Uh, what’s that? Repetition sells. Repetition sells. Repetition sells! (There we go again: 3)!

    If you’re a real estate professional,  it’s LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION, right? Writers live to REVISE, REVISE, REVISE. Scientists EXPERIMENT, EXPERIMENT, EXPERIMENT. From piano teachers to football coaches, the word is PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.

     Adventurers  EXPLORE, EXPLORE, EXPLORE. Insurance claims people ADJUST, ADJUST, ADJUST. Corporate R&D people and direct mail experts TEST, TEST, TEST (and many kids undoubtedly think that’s also their least favorite teacher’s motto)!

     Politicians and Little League parents  seem universally to think that WIN, WIN, WIN is what life is all about. How many BUSINESS things come in three’s? Why triplicate copies? One for you, one for the customer, and one for who knows what? Many Caribbean resorts process 3 receipts for a bottle of beer! 

     Therapy group shrinks  use triads to process stuff. Olympic stars do triple flips. Fat guys order triple scoop cones. And there’s nothing like a base-clearing triple for excitement. The triple crown. A hat trick. 3-D. 3 tenors. Triple chocolate (Mmmmm).

     Three.  Is it that we can we only count that far these days? Or is America becoming a nation of shameless stutterers?

     Have Wii and WiFi and Twitter and Spaceface (I know, I know, I’m being sarcastic again) put us all into such a fast-track lifestyle that there’s simply no longer any time available for 4, 5, and 6? Or, AHA! It must be the attention span thing. We just don’t have it anymore.

     I mean who could  read a whole book now, when — instead — it’s possible to read eleven gazillion 140-character stories with the same number of eyeball numbing hours in front of your Twitter monitor? Why limit yourself, yes? 

     So, okay, we’ve narrowed it down.  3 works because we don’t want two (or is it we don’t want “three”) pay attention two (pay attention “three”) 4, and 2 doesn’t reach out and grab us by the belt buckle! So what’s a poor business owner two (ah, “three”) do?

     Shucks!  You mean it’s supposed to be to and not two? Well, three still stays three and not “Twee” unless you’re Elmer Fudd . . . now there’s a dateline incrimination!

     Start by realizing that repetition of thoughts and repetition of actions sell as well as repetition of the words we use,  and that there’s a thin line of acceptance (tolerance? Perhaps threelerance?) between 3 and 4.     

# # # 

When you quote a price,

do you quote a schedule?

     When you tell a story,  do you use a timeline?

     You’re in sales, right?  Of course you are! You own or run a business or professional practice or company department? Then you’re in sales. You work at the top crossbeam of a new skyscraper construction site? You’re in sales.

     You work inside an underground  storage container or facility? You’re in sales? You don’t work at all? You’re in sales. And since now that you’ve found out that you are in fact in sales, it’s important to know how important it is for you to make maximum use of a timeline.

     Why? Funny you should ask. You knew I had the answer, right?  Okay, here it comes. Because a timeline helps make your sales points quicker and simpler. It helps your prospects, customers, bosses, parents (and anyone you need to influence) to understand your frame of reference more clearly and more readily.

     When you propose a fee for providing a service,  for example, you must be prepared to give a target date for completion. In some cases, you can hedge it a bit by estimating 60-90 days or 1-2 hours or 9-10 months, but be quick to support the reason for not being more specific. Specific is best. Always.

     Why? (You knew that was coming, right?)  Here’s why:  For a goal to be a goal instead of just a meaningless “wish,” it needs to be specific, realistic, flexible and have a due date. (And, yes, it must be all four of those things or it is fantasy and fantasy doesn’t get things done!)

     To promise something by a specific date  gives you credibility and a certain amount of accompanying trust, which of course you need to fulfill on or notify the payer as far in advance as possible of the need to extend the time period… and why.

     You would be amazed  at how many people don’t automatically build a timeline into their planning, sales pitch, agenda, project, program, meeting, advertisement, work schedule, new product or service launch, construction or revitalization effort, financial review, or story.

     As a writer,  I find the inclusion of a timeline related to job completion to be essential, but I also find that including a timeline reference inside the actual writing –whether it’s a commissioned book or a brochure, advertisement or website– has value in and of itself.

     Part of the credibility and fascination  of the “story” or “sales pitch” will often actually evolve directly from an integrated timeline. Juxtaposing historic events alongside a biographical story, for example, or as part of “what happened when” in the “About Us” webpage, or as a schedule of events in an ad or brochure can give your presentation the teeth it needs to attract attention and create interest! 

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I, Me, My, We, and Our

Lose To You and Your!

     Unless by some miracle,  you’ve managed to uncover an exception, I believe it’s safe to say that You and Your win 100% of the time!

    So howcum  the vast majority (MUCH more than 50%) of small business advertising and marketing consistently takes the loser position of emphasizing I, Me, My, We, and Our? 

     The answer no doubt  has to do with the fact that entrepreneurs tend to be more self-centered than corporate types, and may lack certain psychological-impact-of-word-usage awarenesses. That tendency is not necessarily a bad thing, it simply is.

     Most entrepreneurs  probably skipped through, over, or around English, creative writing, and psychology coursework in school as they marched to different drummers on paths less traveled to innovate and create and pursue their business ideas. 

     The only problem  with this is that when small businesses beat their chests and tell everyone how great they are and why they’re better than their competition: NOBODY CARES!

     Let’s put the fact that you own  and/or operate or manage a business off to the side burner for a minute, and examine this paradox from your own personal perspective. Surely, YOU purchase products and services for yourself and your family and your business because you believe there are benefits in what you choose for yourself and your family and your business.

     So why would you think  that what you have to sell would be any different? Why would you think that others would spend their money on your products or services for any reason other than that they believe them to offer,have, or promise a benefit to them?

Customers really don’t

                                          

care about how great

                                             

you think you are! 

                                                                                          

     So why does the wording you use  in your brochure, on your website, and in yours ads and commercials emphasize your reputation, your company history, your mission and vision statements? Credibility can be worded to be a benefit instead of a boast. Why does what you say focus on ANYthing besides what the benefits are?

     Cars, parts, appliances, homes, vegetables,  personal and professional services, healthcare, boots, lightbulbs, newspapers, cruise ships, circus acts, roofing and flooring, ice cream, software, fish, septic systems (which may require upgrading if you eat too much ice cream and fish together!)

     Nobody gives a flying frog  about the features of any of these, or any products or services, except tp be able to tick off a bullet list to impress friends, justify expense, or appease parents or bosses. Customers ONLY care about what’s in it for them (to purchase your offerings). What specific benefits will someone gain by buying your product or service?

     This all translates to  removing I, Me, My, We, and Our from your marketing, advertising, sales, PR, and promotional language. Replace them (and the emphasis) with You and Your. Watch your sales rise.

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Hal@Businessworks.US     302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open   Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

Perceptions Sell and

Perceptions UNsell!

What you perceive is what you believe… and what you believe is FACT, even when it’s not!

     It makes a big difference  how you, for example, define a traffic jam depending on your frame of reference. If you’re from LA, the Bronx, the DC Beltway, or Gumboro in Southern Delaware, the New Jersey Pine Barrens, or Rangeley in NW Maine, what you perceive can vary from endless seas of hornblowing standstill cars, to a pickup truck and two motorcycles waiting for a freight train.

     Perception is selective  and varies every minute of every day. You walk into a party and immediately scope the gathering to find a hot-looking member of the opposite sex who’s serving up inviting looking eyes because you are single and on the hunt. The next party-goer enters and immediately seeks the bar, looking to unwind with a free drink. The artist who comes in the door looks past all the people, and the bar, to find the wall where her painting is hung. And so it goes.

     Selective perception  is also what customers exercise when they are sizing up a product, service, showroom, salesperson, commercial, ad, brochure, warranty, or website. You are using selective perception right this minute by having read this far into this blog post. 

     So a good part of the challenge  for your marketing is to capture prospects’ perceptions and imaginations by properly setting the stage. This — as with any stage — is accomplished with colors, props, backdrops, lighting, spatial arrangements, sounds, and often smells and touch… activating the five senses.

     And isn’t channeling selective perception  what the bombardment of opinion forms, attitude surveys, customer questionnaires, R&D studies, media ratings, and focus groups are all about? In order to make a sale, we need to understand what makes our customers tick.

     This is accomplished  most thoroughly and most rapidly by first finding out and figuring out what makes each of us, as business owners and managers, and entrepreneurs, tick! Once you have a better idea of what turns on your attention, your desires, your interests, and prompts you to action, you’ll have a better idea of how to ignite your customers.

Why does that matter?

Because perceptions sell, and perceptions UNsell! 

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FREE blog subscription: Posts RSS Feed

Hal@Businessworks.US  302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!