Archive for Communications
What’s all the chatter?
Posted by: | CommentsOne of my favorite things about Twitter are the chat groups. On any given night, you can join dozens, or even hundreds, of other Twitterers in a lively discussion about a specific topic. Not only can you learn from others in the field, but you can establish yourself as a leader and expert while gaining new followers.
How does a Twitter chat work? The moderator of the group will post questions for everyone to tweet about during specific time. Everyone who participates in the chat tags their posts with the hashtag name of the group (i.e. #socialmedia). You can search for the group name and read all of the posts associated with the chat. You can even go back and read the transcripts of the chats if you miss it.
Here is a list of some of my favorite chat groups, along with the time they “meet.”
#4change: monthly discussion of using social media for social change (second Thursday of each month from 5-7 p.m. EST)
#blogchat: bettering your blog (every Sunday from 9-10 p.m. EST)
#brandchat: discussion between experts, strategists and those interested in learning more about personal branding and managing their personal brand (every Wednesday from 11 a.m.-12 p.m. EST)
Six tips to creating a business that means something
Posted by: | CommentsStop a minute and think about the impact you have on your clients and the industry you serve. Are you presenting yourself as a leader in your field, full of great ideas and providing valuable resources to everyone who comes your way? Are you making a difference in the lives of the people you meet, either online or in person?
Sure, the goal of every business is to make money- we have bills to pay after all, but what if our goal was to make a difference in the lives of every person we meet, no matter if they are clients or not? What if we made such strong connections with those we “talk” to that they would miss us if we were gone?
Shouldn’t that be our ultimate goal?
Here are some tips to create a business of value and appreciation.
1. Be generous with your knowledge. Sharing real solutions to the problems facing your niche market is more than just a great marketing tool, it shows you care enough about your clients’ success that you are willing to help them for free. While some people may take advantage of your generosity, many will be impressed at your efforts and will remember your kindness when they are ready to hire someone.
Leadership and Speaking for Us
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Lately there is the beginning of a groundswell to stop women in leadership from speaking for all of us. About time!
Whether we truly agree or not, when Sarah Palin, Dr. Laura Schlesinger, Ann Coulter, Whoopie Goldberg, Angelina Jolie, and the like state their perspectives, it is our responsibility to align with or dispute in our own words.
More women are in positions of power, albeit, there are way more to come in this decade. Our voices are required. We need to speak out and create the dialogue model that is inherent in our basic personalities. We know how to listen, then ask questions, to collaborate, the make sure all parties are heard and respected.
I dropped the ball several years ago when I was listening to Laura Schlesinger on the radio as I was driving from here to there. I got so annoyed I started to backtalk to the radio, no one else in the car, and the radio and Laura didn’t hear or care what I was saying.
In a nutshell: a caller was getting married and was having a tough time pleasing her mother who wanted less people, she wanted more, mother wanted yellow she wanted deep purple, mother wanted, she wanted.
Who is telling your story?
Posted by: | CommentsWhether you realize it or not, you are telling a story about your business in every thing you do. Question is, does that story accurately reflect who you are, what you do and the clients you serve?
Every page on your website, every sales letter, every elevator speech, even every tweet you send – all of these communications tell the world about your values, attitudes and personality. It is up to you to put forth consistent, accurate and positive messages that reinforce your business story.
So, how do you take control of your story and make it one that you can consistently utilize to brand your business and galvanize your message?
First, pull out all of your marketing tools- anything that a client or potential client sees. Print off your website and any other online tools you use to reach your audience. Take a look at what you are saying and answer the following questions.
Why do clients really leave you? It may not be what you think…
Posted by: | CommentsBlog from Maribeth Kuzmeski of Red Zone Marketing
When a client is upset with you…when your spouse is angry at you…when your teenager is ranting about some way you’ve wronged her again… it very often is not what it appears to be. Yet, in our attempt to minimize conflict, we immediately react to the outburst and attempt to fix the problem they describe. But often, the outburst is just the surface wound, there is much more beneath the surface that needs to be tended to first if we ever expect to properly repair the problem.
People get upset. We are not perfect, and sometimes our emotions take hold. These are facts of life.
But what I have learned from analyzing specific negative interactions between financial advisors and their clients is that a lot of the time, if not most of the time, when a client gets irrationally upset, the problem isn’t really the problem they are reacting to. It’s the series of things that lead up to it.
The Business Case for Building Flexible Work Cultures- Series Part II
Posted by: | CommentsIn the Part I of this series we talked about the opportunity to support our need for flexible work cultures with a solid business case. We outlined the fact that the majority of our employees require flexibility at some point in their careers. Research increasingly points to flexibility as one of the most important career considerations of staff, emerging leaders and even our seasoned leaders. If we do not offer this flexibility in our organizations we will lose productivity in our top talent pool and we may lose this top talent completely to our competitors. In addition to flexibility as a requirement for top talent, consider the possibility that flexibility can actually improve your organizational results.
We also outlined four key business strategies that can be supported by flexibility in the organization. These are:
1-Employee Attraction and Retention
2-Improved Productivity
3- Improved Customer Service and Satisfaction
4- Effective Operational Management
This second posting will cover the first two strategies. Why are these strategies key to a business case for building a flexible work culture?…….or said another way…… How will flexible work cultures actually help to accomplish these business strategies?
Employee Attraction & Retention
Leadership and the Art of Asking
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How often do you ask for what you want? Better yet, do you get what you ask for? In our WELL Program (Women Executive Leadership Lessons) we have a module on the power and importance of asking for what you want. It usually brings up lots of memories of being a “good girl” as a kid, or of hearing parents say “it’s not polite to ask, just wait till you are given“.
Most women are hesitant, you can translate that to compliant; to be pleasers rather than truth tellers. In “Don’t Bring It to Work” more women than men claim the pleaser pattern, and for good reason.
It is a pattern handed from generation to generation, mother to daughter. In the past women learned that to speak out could mean abandonment; in some societies, even death. So, we learned to preserve relationships by being quiet and accepting what we were given.
Even the changes since Betty Freidan’s groundbreaking “The Feminine Mystique” have only taken us so far. There is still reticence in speaking out for what we want. Those of us who do speak out are seen as adversarial, nasty, angry individuals who are grabbers by nature.
The Business Case for Building a Flexible Work Culture- Series Part I
Posted by: | CommentsWhy do organizations offer flexibility? Business - Business- Business. Successful accomplishment of business strategy is the primary reason for building a flexible work culture.
The majority of our employees require flexibility at some point in their careers. Research increasingly points to flexibility as one of the most important career considerations of staff, emerging leaders and even our seasoned leaders. If we do not offer this flexibility in our organizations we will lose productivity in our top talent pool and we may lose this top talent completely to our competitors. In addition to flexibility as a requirement for top talent, consider the possibility that flexibility can actually improve your organizational results.
There are many definitions of flexibility. For the purposes of this discussion we are talking about any type of flexibility that allows team members to depart from the standard schedule of an early morning start time to an early evening departure, with all hours served as face time, either at a client/customer site or at the office location. There are many articles and books written regarding the types of flexible work arrangements available. This posting will not focus on the mechanics of the arrangements but the business case behind them.
Leadership Lessons in the Blink of an Eye
Posted by: | CommentsWhen you think of leaders who have made a difference who comes to mind?
In our Total Leadership Connections program we spend time discussing this and over the years several themes have emerged. Many are the same for all leadership programs around the world. Jesus, Buddha, Moses, Mohammed, Gandhi, Mandela, MLK, JFK, FDR are on most lists.
When it gets more personal folks mention a parent, sibling, teacher, business mentor. Last week I was in Manhattan and took the subway to speed my trip. Some noisy kids took me back to a story about my mother I would like to share; it’s leadership in action.
Rebecca, or Reba (she thought that was more modern) stood 5’1″ tall; a wisp of a woman with a feisty no nonsense manner. I was to pick her up from her suburban apartment and drive her to a doctor in center city Philadelphia. At 78 she had been in good health, except….. That was the reason for the appointment.
I had an emergency meeting and my mother decided to take the circuitous bus ride into town. That’s the back story. The leadership story is about to unfold.
Generic Answers Lead to Lost Opportunities
Posted by: | CommentsIf you find yourself constantly resorting to generic answers when people ask you questions about yourself – it’s time to rethink your approach. We can so often drift through our day, not even seeing the opportunities in the conversations with others. From the simplest Hey, how are you? to the more complex questions you are asked throughout your work day – how often do you take time to answer the questions fully?
Many try to get by answering in as few words as possible, but in a world where relationships are a key to success, I’m not sure this approach is really helping.
A critical question we so often shy away from giving a powerful answer to, one that can open doors to a world of opportunity, is: What do you do?
I have heard even the most seasoned professionals use the old standard, black and white description of their business. As an example: “I am a financial advisor.” Although you are concisely stating exactly what you do for the person that asked, you are also opening the door for all of the stereotypes and preconceived notions they associate with that title or profession. For many, you would be tossed into the broad category of salesmen and forgotten in their minds. Simply said – the real benefits are being left open to hope (I sure hope they know what a financial advisor does). But in order for action, they must WANT what you have (and it’s your job to make them want it).
