Archive for Strategy
Recession-Inspired Smart Changes to Your Business
Posted by: | CommentsI just want to be done hearing about – and living – this recession. All of the analogies, comparisons, sound bites, and talk. Most of the firms I know are getting down to business, marketing and focusing on their target market of prospects. But it is true that the recession is still here and there continues to be stories of businesses folding or becoming unrecognizable in terms of staff, clients and success. One of the most successful individuals I had the privilege to know was a top financial advisor for many years – one of the best in the nation. But the recession has been exceptionally hard on him. It causes a few conclusions and lessons: 1. Success is fleeting. 2. Change is necessary. 3. Testing new ideas is a critical task so that time/money is not wasted. 4. Having the right staff in place is critical in moving forward.
Ultimately, today we have to get more quantitative. If what we are doing is not getting tangible RESULTS, we have to make a change. Firms that have come through are doing a few things differently and better than ever before. Here are some of their smart and simple activities:
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.
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.
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
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.
3 Simple Ways to get RESULTS at your next event
Posted by: | CommentsEvent marketing is hardly a sure thing for attracting new referrals and new business. You may be able to get the crowds through the door, but what are they there for? Even with its challenges, however, event marketing is still one of the best ways to gather potentially interested individuals for a specific purpose – the scheduled event. But there are three simple things that may significantly improve the results of your next event.
1. Compelling invite. A compelling, What’s in it for me? (the reader) invitation. The benefits need to shout out to the reader and must answer the question, “Why should I attend?” and “Why should I care?”
2. Personal touch. A campaign of phone calls should be, when possible, incorporated to personally invite guests to your event. Let them know why they may want to attend and why this event should matter to them. These calls will increase your attendance, sometimes dramatically, beyond just a mailed invite. And, if your event is a bring-a-friend/referral type event, this can be effectively clarified in the phone call to invite. Without the calls, events today are likely to have much lighter attendance than in the past.
Top 5 Reasons to Embrace a Job Loss
Posted by: | CommentsWith unemployment wavering at 9%, layoffs are likely to continue throughout 2010. Bleak, dismal and discouraging are words the half empty use to describe the current state of the economy, while the half full see this as a new challenge to overcome or a welcome opportunity to make a long awaited change.
Having polled a number of experienced professionals in recent months both gainfully employed and unemployed due to being laid off, I have come to the conclusion that the unemployed seem to be in a better place.
Top 5 Reasons to Embrace a Lay-off
#1 You will no longer be stretched so thin at work that you have lost sight of what your position responsibilities entail.
#2 You can start over with a clean slate after a short hiatus which you likely needed. Let’s be honest…tough times produce compiled challenges in the workplace that can become a pressure cooker. Even the best supervisor, leader, or CEO eventually starts to “crack” when sales slide.
#3 If your environment was dysfunctional, you now have a pressure free opportunity to find something better suited for you.
