This is not a post directed at entrepreneurs, but since entrepreneurs are in fact people - most of them anyway - it might be of interest...who knows. Besides, I think I may be the only person who reads my posts, as I am of course fascinated by my insights. :-)
Sometimes - without warning, and often against my will - I do a complete 180 and surprise myself by abandoning (or at least questioning) long-held beliefs. This isn't something I plan, mind you...for no reason at all, sometimes it just hits me that something that I am passionately opposed to or in favor of; have loudly protested or supported; have argued for or against, may not be quite so black and white after all. This used to irritate me, as changing these beliefs is paramount to shouting, "hey! I was wrong!" I have come to welcome these moments, though, as I believe they may just represent personal growth.
It is easy to look at a situation from your point of view...it takes courage and determination to consider - really consider - something from an opposing viewpoint. I try to make it a point to look at both sides of an equation...oftentimes I fail miserably. I have strong political views, for example, which comes as no surprise to those who know me. However, I do try - and again, sometimes fail - to step back and consider that my view may either be wrong, or at least complicated in its "rightness" (how's that for failing to fully commit to any "wrongness" on my part). I do not expect to radically change my political views, by the way, though I find myself trying to be more open to dialogue when the occasion presents itself. But, I digress.
Tonight I sat down for the first time in five months to spend an hour reading a magazine. Fortune came in the mail today, and I was excited to see that it was the issue that contained a roundup of "The 50 Most Powerful Women in America." (There was also an international version.) I read this section and marveled at the accomplishments of these remarkable women, devoted a little time to feeling inadequate and inferior, and then pondered how I, too, can make a difference. Then it hit me.
Here I am feeling all proud and puffed up to be a member of this exalted club - women! - when it dawned on me that I had just read and enjoyed an entire section of a national magazine devoted to successful women. Had it been an article about successful men, would I have paid as much attention or spent as much time on it? Doubtful. I would have scanned it, picked out the few I thought were interesting or particularly cute and read their profiles. How is this different from African Americans enjoying a full month devoted to Black History every February?
It has always really gnawed at me that we have to even bring up race when we discuss history...why can't we learn about our forefathers and admire them not for their race but for their accomplishments? Isn't this a continuation of the "separate but equal" policy that civil rights icons fought - and sometimes died - for? Why must we devote so much media time and attention to "The greatest black athlete who ever lived" or "Great African American authors of the 20th century?" Why must there be separate entertainment channels on tv devoted exclusively to African Americans, or any other race for that matter?
Then it hit me. I just read an article - a series of articles, really - about women who have made a difference, and it made me proud. Why? Because I am a woman. We like to read about, hear about, and see that people LIKE US can do it - whatever "it" may mean to each of us. Kids in the black community want to read about and be proud of the African American leaders who have made history. Women want to have a tv channel that is devoted to them - Lifetime even has a tagline that proudly proclaims it's "Television for Women."
And that carries over into politics as well. It still amazes me that anyone who freely admitted they voted for Barack Obama because he has black skin would 1)make a choice on that alone and 2)admit that they had made a choice on that alone. But now I think I understand it a little more. Don't get me wrong - many people of all races voted for Barack Obama, and for reasons totally unrelated to race. But to those who say they voted for him because they wanted to see a black president in their lifetime, I say this: I apologize for judging you. You see, even though I look at the issues and try to educate myself before I make political decisions, I find myself realizing that I have on several occasions commented that I would like to see a woman president in my lifetime!
We all want to see people LIKE US become successful...blaze trails...do something that makes the world sit up and take notice. And that's ok. It's human instinct, and while it may not be a reason to make a critical decision, that instinct will kick in when you least expect it - and whether you want it to or not. Who's to say that one day down the road I won't find myself pulling a lever for a candidate for president because she is - well, a "she."
Maybe I don't know everything just yet. Maybe, just maybe, I have a few more things to learn - or perhaps to realize and acknowledge not about others but about myself.
Of course, now that I've brought up the whole presidential thing I must let you know that I still do not plan to vote for Barack Obama in 2012, and I hope that those who do will do so because they have carefully considered his stance on issues of importance to them. I for one am in Herman Cain's camp right now. But if a strong conservative-minded woman were to suddenly appear on the radar screen... :-)
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Win the war, not the battle...
Of the many misconceptions about marketing, perhaps the biggest is that there's a simple magic formula that will bring customers to your door if you'll just throw enough money at it. Take this path and you might just market your way into bankruptcy - or at the very least waste precious time, money and other resources.
When you set up shop as an entrepreneur, know that there will be no shortage of people who tell you that they know a surefire way to get the word out about your new venture. Some of these folks may be friends, acquaintances or family members who mean well but are unfamiliar with your product or service and its market niche. Some may be slick salesmen who show up at the very moment you're lamenting the lack of traffic in your location to tell you that their media vehicle is exactly what you need to get customers lined up at your door. Don't let either of these groups - however well intentioned - convince you to make a knee-jerk reaction and invest precious resources before you have carefully researched your options and put together a plan.
Truth is, there is no one-size-fits-all marketing plan for your company. What works for the guy who owns the title pawn shop down the street won't likely work for your upscale women's clothing boutique. The title pawn shop will most likely be strategically located in an area where all it may need is a large sign promising quick cash for car titles. The women's clothing boutique will need a more sophisticated and targeted approach to reach its intended audience. In that same vein, magnetic business cards are a great idea for the local pizza delivery guys, but won't likely put money in the pockets of the local dry cleaners - unless, of course, they also offer home delivery or pickup.
There are three main components to devising a marketing plan:
When you set up shop as an entrepreneur, know that there will be no shortage of people who tell you that they know a surefire way to get the word out about your new venture. Some of these folks may be friends, acquaintances or family members who mean well but are unfamiliar with your product or service and its market niche. Some may be slick salesmen who show up at the very moment you're lamenting the lack of traffic in your location to tell you that their media vehicle is exactly what you need to get customers lined up at your door. Don't let either of these groups - however well intentioned - convince you to make a knee-jerk reaction and invest precious resources before you have carefully researched your options and put together a plan.
Truth is, there is no one-size-fits-all marketing plan for your company. What works for the guy who owns the title pawn shop down the street won't likely work for your upscale women's clothing boutique. The title pawn shop will most likely be strategically located in an area where all it may need is a large sign promising quick cash for car titles. The women's clothing boutique will need a more sophisticated and targeted approach to reach its intended audience. In that same vein, magnetic business cards are a great idea for the local pizza delivery guys, but won't likely put money in the pockets of the local dry cleaners - unless, of course, they also offer home delivery or pickup.
There are three main components to devising a marketing plan:
- Know your product. I know, that sounds ridiculous - you KNOW what you're selling, right? You may know that you're selling purple widgets, but that's not enough - far from it. You need to know everything there is to know about your product or service - how people use it; what benefits they derive from it; where else they can get it if not from you...the list goes on. This is the foundation on which your marketing plan - and your very business - is built. Much more on this in later posts. Suffice it to say for now that just knowing the name and general features of the product or service you sell is not enough - not even close.
- Determine exactly what your marketing budget is before you make ANY decisions about how to spend it. Making even small marketing or advertising expenditures is a bad idea without knowing how much you have to spend - it can add up quickly. It's akin to buying your Christmas gifts without determining beforehand how much you have to spend...even if you only spend $25 here and $30 there, soon you may discover you've spent way more than you can afford to and you've only purchased half the gifts you intended to buy. [Wise entrepreneurs may choose to spend 5-10% of their gross sales on marketing and advertising their first year, with the dollar amount staying the same for the second and third years but being a smaller percentage of sales. For example, a company forecasting $100,000 in first year sales may decide to spend $10,000 on marketing and advertising during that period. The second year, they may stick to the $10,000 dollar amount, but that amount may then be only 7.5% of their gross sales since hopefully their sales have increased due to the first year's marketing efforts.]
- Before you spend the first dollar of your marketing budget, you must know your target audience. Money spent to reach prospects before you know exactly to whom you are selling might just as well be thrown out the window. Carefully consider who you want to reach with your message before determining how to reach them. A magazine ad that can be had for 90% off the regular price may sound enticing, but if that magazine doesn't reach your target audience it doesn't matter what you paid for it - you paid too much. Find out what your customers read, where they shop, where they live, etc - you need not invest a lot of money to accomplish this...I will be posting later this week about how to get this information without making costly market research investments to do so.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
The customer is not always right...
One of the things that drove me absolutely crazy about my last job (with a well-known Fortune 500 company) was their insistence that the customer is always right. Many companies view this as gospel truth. As an entrepreneur, I know that you can provide great customer service and make customers happy without adhering to this rule.
At this Fortune 500 company, the corporate folks had a hard and steadfast rule: no matter what, if the customer disagrees with you, he's right. Should said customer file a complaint with the corporate office - even if the store manager had a surveillance video that would prove beyond any doubt that the customer was blatantly lying - the local manager would be forced to contact the customer, apologize, and make things right in the customer's eyes.
This policy is bad on so many levels...for one thing, it absolutely destroys employee morale. Employees know that no matter what the situation might be, if a customer complains the employee will be tried and convicted without the opportunity to explain or defend himself. Enforcing this policy also teaches customers that if they wish to receive a product or service without paying for it, they can do so by placing a phone call to the corporate office and filing a false complaint. I witnessed numerous instances where customers did just that...every time they came in the door they would find fault with something or someone and file a complaint, with the result being that whatever product or service they had contracted for would be free.
Many small business owners believe that in order to provide good customer service and build their businesses they must also adhere to this rule. I believe that we as entrepreneurs must be willing to lose a customer in the short run in order to succeed - and maintain our sanity - in the long run.
Employees should be taught to do everything in their power to provide good customer service, even if it means being on the receiving end of a scathing lecture about some perceived slight. Employees should always remain polite and professional, even in situations where they believe the customer is in the wrong. Situations like these can often be defused right there at the front counter without ever involving a manager or owner. An employee who listens and is empathetic - "I'm sorry you feel that we ignored you when you walked in; I know how frustrating that can be" - can be your best first defense against an unhappy customer. If that fails, the employee should then involve the manager or owner, which for most small businesses is one and the same. Never should an employee be rude or short with a customer, or make the determination that there's nothing we can do to satisfy the customer. That is - and always will be - the manager or owner's decision to make.
One of the things I like most about being a small business owner is the knowledge that, since I do not have to answer to some higher authority, I can decide that a customer may just not be the right fit for us. I would rather lose a customer who consistently makes unreasonable demands or who is abusive to employees than continue dealing with him or her. In addition, I expect customers to respect me, my employees, and our property.
Let me give you an example of a customer who was not the right fit for us. Shortly after we opened, we had a customer who had been to another art studio in our area where customers were encouraged to sign their names on the studio wall. This customer approached me and asked if we had a wall somewhere that customers could sign. I explained to her - politely and with a smile - that I had also been to that studio, but that we had made the decision not to allow this practice in our studio. She turned and walked away, obviously annoyed. Now, this was a grown woman who walked off in a huff because she was not allowed to paint her name on my freshly painted walls. I assumed that she would eventually just come to grips with the fact that she would not be allowed to paint "Sonja was here!" for the entire world to see. (We should be so lucky as to have the entire world breaking down our door to take classes from us!) I was wrong.
Shortly after this exchange with Sonja - and yes, that is her real name! - our class ended and customers filed out of the studio. Much to my surprise (and extreme irritation), as I rounded the corner to begin cleaning up I saw that Sonja had boldly signed her name in white paint on our black wall. Now, if you know anything about paint colors, you know that white pretty much covers anything, and is in fact the hardest color to paint over. So, on a black wall, white is going to be darned difficult to get rid of. In fact, four months later, after several coatsof paint and even a little sanding you can still see where Sonja painted her name on our wall.
Since our studio was so new, I was probably angrier than I should have been. But I felt violated...it was like someone had walked into my house and signed their name on my living room wall. My first instinct was to look Sonja up and go over to her house to return the favor. Instead, I made the decision that Sonja's business is not worth it to me. She is no longer welcome in our studio. If she signs up for a class, she will be notified that because she defaced our wall she is now persona non grata at our studio. At the moment I came to the conclusion that Sonja would not be allowed back in our studio, I realized something very important: that as a small business owner, there will be customers who either cannot be satisfied or who are just more trouble than their business is worth. And on those occasions, it is my right to let them know that it's just not a good fit for us - that they might be better served somewhere else. What a liberating thought! As a business owner I can "fire" a customer!
While I continue to do everything in my power to ensure that everyone who walks through our door has an awesome customer experience with us, I do so with the knowledge that we cannot please everyone, and that's ok. There will be customers who are - to put it simply - just more trouble than they're worth. Does that mean that we take the easy way out and become resigned to losing unhappy or troublesome customers? Absolutely not. However, it does make it much easier knowing that, if our best efforts - and I do mean BEST efforts - fail and the relationship cannot be salvaged, we'll be ok. Losing a customer is never a good thing, and you don't ever want it to happen. But in business, as in life, sometimes it's just not worth the cost.
At this Fortune 500 company, the corporate folks had a hard and steadfast rule: no matter what, if the customer disagrees with you, he's right. Should said customer file a complaint with the corporate office - even if the store manager had a surveillance video that would prove beyond any doubt that the customer was blatantly lying - the local manager would be forced to contact the customer, apologize, and make things right in the customer's eyes.
This policy is bad on so many levels...for one thing, it absolutely destroys employee morale. Employees know that no matter what the situation might be, if a customer complains the employee will be tried and convicted without the opportunity to explain or defend himself. Enforcing this policy also teaches customers that if they wish to receive a product or service without paying for it, they can do so by placing a phone call to the corporate office and filing a false complaint. I witnessed numerous instances where customers did just that...every time they came in the door they would find fault with something or someone and file a complaint, with the result being that whatever product or service they had contracted for would be free.
Many small business owners believe that in order to provide good customer service and build their businesses they must also adhere to this rule. I believe that we as entrepreneurs must be willing to lose a customer in the short run in order to succeed - and maintain our sanity - in the long run.
Employees should be taught to do everything in their power to provide good customer service, even if it means being on the receiving end of a scathing lecture about some perceived slight. Employees should always remain polite and professional, even in situations where they believe the customer is in the wrong. Situations like these can often be defused right there at the front counter without ever involving a manager or owner. An employee who listens and is empathetic - "I'm sorry you feel that we ignored you when you walked in; I know how frustrating that can be" - can be your best first defense against an unhappy customer. If that fails, the employee should then involve the manager or owner, which for most small businesses is one and the same. Never should an employee be rude or short with a customer, or make the determination that there's nothing we can do to satisfy the customer. That is - and always will be - the manager or owner's decision to make.
One of the things I like most about being a small business owner is the knowledge that, since I do not have to answer to some higher authority, I can decide that a customer may just not be the right fit for us. I would rather lose a customer who consistently makes unreasonable demands or who is abusive to employees than continue dealing with him or her. In addition, I expect customers to respect me, my employees, and our property.
Let me give you an example of a customer who was not the right fit for us. Shortly after we opened, we had a customer who had been to another art studio in our area where customers were encouraged to sign their names on the studio wall. This customer approached me and asked if we had a wall somewhere that customers could sign. I explained to her - politely and with a smile - that I had also been to that studio, but that we had made the decision not to allow this practice in our studio. She turned and walked away, obviously annoyed. Now, this was a grown woman who walked off in a huff because she was not allowed to paint her name on my freshly painted walls. I assumed that she would eventually just come to grips with the fact that she would not be allowed to paint "Sonja was here!" for the entire world to see. (We should be so lucky as to have the entire world breaking down our door to take classes from us!) I was wrong.
Shortly after this exchange with Sonja - and yes, that is her real name! - our class ended and customers filed out of the studio. Much to my surprise (and extreme irritation), as I rounded the corner to begin cleaning up I saw that Sonja had boldly signed her name in white paint on our black wall. Now, if you know anything about paint colors, you know that white pretty much covers anything, and is in fact the hardest color to paint over. So, on a black wall, white is going to be darned difficult to get rid of. In fact, four months later, after several coatsof paint and even a little sanding you can still see where Sonja painted her name on our wall.
Since our studio was so new, I was probably angrier than I should have been. But I felt violated...it was like someone had walked into my house and signed their name on my living room wall. My first instinct was to look Sonja up and go over to her house to return the favor. Instead, I made the decision that Sonja's business is not worth it to me. She is no longer welcome in our studio. If she signs up for a class, she will be notified that because she defaced our wall she is now persona non grata at our studio. At the moment I came to the conclusion that Sonja would not be allowed back in our studio, I realized something very important: that as a small business owner, there will be customers who either cannot be satisfied or who are just more trouble than their business is worth. And on those occasions, it is my right to let them know that it's just not a good fit for us - that they might be better served somewhere else. What a liberating thought! As a business owner I can "fire" a customer!
While I continue to do everything in my power to ensure that everyone who walks through our door has an awesome customer experience with us, I do so with the knowledge that we cannot please everyone, and that's ok. There will be customers who are - to put it simply - just more trouble than they're worth. Does that mean that we take the easy way out and become resigned to losing unhappy or troublesome customers? Absolutely not. However, it does make it much easier knowing that, if our best efforts - and I do mean BEST efforts - fail and the relationship cannot be salvaged, we'll be ok. Losing a customer is never a good thing, and you don't ever want it to happen. But in business, as in life, sometimes it's just not worth the cost.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Well, first of all...I think that I am probably the only one who really cares what I think.
And to tell you the truth, sometimes even I don't care. But I digress (as I often do).
I need a forum where I can pass out advice - much of it unwanted, unappreciated, and not at all relevant - because once I hit 40, I realized that I now know everything! Ok, so maybe not, but I am finally at the age where I am willing to listen and learn from the mistakes of others, whereas to this point I have not been. So I was thinking...maybe there are folks out there who can learn from my mistakes, and my experiences. And believe me, I have made a lot of mistakes, and I seem to have a lot of interesting (and often just plain weird, stupid, and unbelievable) experiences.
Now that I am a small business owner (actually, I only own half - the half that doesn't have to deal with the money issues) those mistakes and experiences are coming at me at an alarming rate. As a result, much of this blog will be about business issues. Sometimes it may sound like just plain old venting. Sometimes it may sound like that because it IS just plain old venting. But maybe - just maybe! - someone will learn something (anything) that might just make their lives a little easier, or prosperous, or more interesting. And when I say interesting, I mean in a good way...not in a "Holy crap! Why did I listen to her?" way.
So read this, don't read this...share it if it helps you in any way, warn others to avoid it if it does the opposite. And for those of you out there who are younger and less seasoned than I, just know that I too was sure that I knew everything at your age (doesn't matter what age, if it's before 40 I thought that). But I didn't. And now I do (I'm only half-kidding). And I am willing to let you learn from my mistakes and experiences...to be a cautionary tale, if nothing else.
If you don't listen to me, find someone else who's older and wiser to learn from. You'll recognize us older and wiser folks...we're the ones with gray hair. (We try to cover it, but if you look really close, we're easy to spot.)
Feel free to comment, to do your own venting, and definitely feel free to disagree with me or with anyone else who might comment. But do so respectfully. Disagree agreeably, if you will. We don't all have to get along on this great planet. But we do have to respect the opinions of others. One day you might just look back and realize that some of those "others" knew what they were talking about. Happens to me every day.
I need a forum where I can pass out advice - much of it unwanted, unappreciated, and not at all relevant - because once I hit 40, I realized that I now know everything! Ok, so maybe not, but I am finally at the age where I am willing to listen and learn from the mistakes of others, whereas to this point I have not been. So I was thinking...maybe there are folks out there who can learn from my mistakes, and my experiences. And believe me, I have made a lot of mistakes, and I seem to have a lot of interesting (and often just plain weird, stupid, and unbelievable) experiences.
Now that I am a small business owner (actually, I only own half - the half that doesn't have to deal with the money issues) those mistakes and experiences are coming at me at an alarming rate. As a result, much of this blog will be about business issues. Sometimes it may sound like just plain old venting. Sometimes it may sound like that because it IS just plain old venting. But maybe - just maybe! - someone will learn something (anything) that might just make their lives a little easier, or prosperous, or more interesting. And when I say interesting, I mean in a good way...not in a "Holy crap! Why did I listen to her?" way.
So read this, don't read this...share it if it helps you in any way, warn others to avoid it if it does the opposite. And for those of you out there who are younger and less seasoned than I, just know that I too was sure that I knew everything at your age (doesn't matter what age, if it's before 40 I thought that). But I didn't. And now I do (I'm only half-kidding). And I am willing to let you learn from my mistakes and experiences...to be a cautionary tale, if nothing else.
If you don't listen to me, find someone else who's older and wiser to learn from. You'll recognize us older and wiser folks...we're the ones with gray hair. (We try to cover it, but if you look really close, we're easy to spot.)
Feel free to comment, to do your own venting, and definitely feel free to disagree with me or with anyone else who might comment. But do so respectfully. Disagree agreeably, if you will. We don't all have to get along on this great planet. But we do have to respect the opinions of others. One day you might just look back and realize that some of those "others" knew what they were talking about. Happens to me every day.
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