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Monday Morning Motivators – November 13, 2006
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Espresso business tips are designed to "caffeinate" your mind
while your java gets you going. Subscribing and Unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Table of Contents
============================================================
1. Customer Service and Holidays – Linda Fayerweather
2. Marketing Monstrosity #6 – Generic Networking - Rebecca Booth
3. Be Generous - John Meyer
4. Fine Print
============================================================
1. Customer Service and Holidays
============================================================
With Halloween behind us and the holiday season official looming ahead, we all know that customer service will make or break a business. Do an inventory now before the big rush. Get out your stop watch and help your staff have fun and find bottlenecks and speed bumps. Here are some areas to check and refine:
1. How quickly are phones answered, calls returned, and customers greeted? What is your stated standard? What is the customer’s expectation?
2. What specials are you going to have? Does everyone know about them?
3. How quickly are orders fulfilled or service provided? Is that what customers anticipate?
4. How many customers do you expect? Can you service them?
Do you see the theme? Before the holiday rush, make sure you know what to expect and how to fulfill your promise. Planning is always more fun than correcting!
Copyright 2006 Linda Fayerweather
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
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2. Marketing Monstrosity #6 – Generic Networking ? Specific Sales Leads
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Don’t get us wrong, networking is a terrific tool for everybody’s business, but it rarely generates a substantial amount of sales leads. Instead of going to functions where people “meet and greet”, think about creating relationships with others who sell to the same pool of clients as you do. Create long-lasting relationships with these people and focus on helping each other’s business by becoming referral partners. By actively meeting and discussing what types of business you want and what you’re looking for, as well as listening to your referral partner’s needs and wants, you’ll be better able to cut down on some of your networking activities.
Avoid this marketing monstrosity by:
• Co-marketing with a referral partner
• Cultivating relationships with referral partners
• Setting goals at all networking events you attend so you will meet that one person who swims in the same pond as you do.
Copyright 2006 Rebecca Booth
Marketing Goddess
Imagine That!
www.marketingsolutioneers.com
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3. Be Generous
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Be generous to those who are unable to attain what they cannot attain without the assistance of others. Go out of your way to help people who are unable to reach their goals without the help of others. There is power in numbers and with the help of others we can all reach new heights and accomplish together what could never be achieved alone and remember we all started small and scared.
Copyright 2006 John R. Meyer
District Director, BNI Ohio
http://www.bni-ohio.com
Monday, November 13, 2006
Monday, November 06, 2006
Lean Business Math
============================================================
Monday Morning Motivators – November 6, 2006
============================================================
Espresso business tips are designed to "caffeinate" your mind
while your java gets you going. Subscribing and Unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."
--Theodore Roosevelt
============================================================
Table of Contents
============================================================
1. Lean Business Math – Linda Fayerweather
2. Marketing Monstrosity #5 – Can the Target Afford You? - Rebecca Booth
3. Remember: P + C + E + R = Business Growth - John Meyer
4. Fine Print
============================================================
1. Lean Business Math
============================================================
Big Businesses know their numbers. These numbers are benchmarks or metrics and they are tracked to illuminate the path to business objectives. To start your own business math, get your business objections or goals in front of you (maybe 2007 needs a plan, too). Once you have your time sensitive goals, you will want to decide what to track. Most businesses track and compare their goals to Sales and Gross Profit as starters. Now, think about other things that impact your business. Here are my favorites from the “lean” world:
• Costumers time in a waiting queue,
• Time customers spend from first contact to sale completion, and
• Your waiting for supplies or internal work.
Time is the only resource we can never make and waiting is waste! Spotlighting wasted time is a first step in Lean Business Math.
Copyright 2006 Linda Fayerweather
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
============================================================
2. Marketing Monstrosity #5 – Can the Target Afford You?
============================================================
What’s worse than not having a target market or having a target market that’s too narrow? Why having a target market of those who can’t afford you! When was the last time you assessed affordability when it comes to marketing your business? Go back into your historical archives. Look at who’s hiring you. Look at how big that company is, as well as what their revenues and employee ratios are. Do you see a commonality between customers? Can you lump them into A, B and C groups needing different things but having some similarities? Look at the types of projects you want to sell. Who’s buying those? The worst client you could have is that guy who’s “giving their business one last shot by hiring you.”
Make sure you avoid this marketing monstrosity by:
• Knowing what types of businesses can afford you
• Identifying those businesses which have long-term potential for new and repeat sales.
Copyright 2006 Rebecca Booth
Marketing Goddess
Imagine That!
www.marketingsolutioneers.com
===========================================================
3. Remember: P + C + E + R = Business Growth
===========================================================
The four essentials to being a successful networker are participation, communication, education, and reciprocating. You need to put into action all four of these areas to get a full return on your investment in a networking organization. By participating, communicating, educating and reciprocating you will be remembered and that is the key!
Copyright 2006 John R. Meyer
District Director, BNI Ohio
http://www.bni-ohio.com
Monday Morning Motivators – November 6, 2006
============================================================
Espresso business tips are designed to "caffeinate" your mind
while your java gets you going. Subscribing and Unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."
--Theodore Roosevelt
============================================================
Table of Contents
============================================================
1. Lean Business Math – Linda Fayerweather
2. Marketing Monstrosity #5 – Can the Target Afford You? - Rebecca Booth
3. Remember: P + C + E + R = Business Growth - John Meyer
4. Fine Print
============================================================
1. Lean Business Math
============================================================
Big Businesses know their numbers. These numbers are benchmarks or metrics and they are tracked to illuminate the path to business objectives. To start your own business math, get your business objections or goals in front of you (maybe 2007 needs a plan, too). Once you have your time sensitive goals, you will want to decide what to track. Most businesses track and compare their goals to Sales and Gross Profit as starters. Now, think about other things that impact your business. Here are my favorites from the “lean” world:
• Costumers time in a waiting queue,
• Time customers spend from first contact to sale completion, and
• Your waiting for supplies or internal work.
Time is the only resource we can never make and waiting is waste! Spotlighting wasted time is a first step in Lean Business Math.
Copyright 2006 Linda Fayerweather
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
============================================================
2. Marketing Monstrosity #5 – Can the Target Afford You?
============================================================
What’s worse than not having a target market or having a target market that’s too narrow? Why having a target market of those who can’t afford you! When was the last time you assessed affordability when it comes to marketing your business? Go back into your historical archives. Look at who’s hiring you. Look at how big that company is, as well as what their revenues and employee ratios are. Do you see a commonality between customers? Can you lump them into A, B and C groups needing different things but having some similarities? Look at the types of projects you want to sell. Who’s buying those? The worst client you could have is that guy who’s “giving their business one last shot by hiring you.”
Make sure you avoid this marketing monstrosity by:
• Knowing what types of businesses can afford you
• Identifying those businesses which have long-term potential for new and repeat sales.
Copyright 2006 Rebecca Booth
Marketing Goddess
Imagine That!
www.marketingsolutioneers.com
===========================================================
3. Remember: P + C + E + R = Business Growth
===========================================================
The four essentials to being a successful networker are participation, communication, education, and reciprocating. You need to put into action all four of these areas to get a full return on your investment in a networking organization. By participating, communicating, educating and reciprocating you will be remembered and that is the key!
Copyright 2006 John R. Meyer
District Director, BNI Ohio
http://www.bni-ohio.com
Monday, October 30, 2006
Non-Value-Added is always Muda
============================================================
Monday Morning Motivators – October 30, 2006
============================================================
Espresso business tips are designed to "caffeinate" your mind
while your java
gets you going. Subscribing and Unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
"Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.”
-- Colin Powell
============================================================
Table of Contents
============================================================
1. Non-Value-Added is not Always Waste – Linda Fayerweather
2. Marketing Monstrosity #4 – Targeting the Unreachable - Rebecca Booth
3. Flexibility Beyond the Gym
- John Meyer
4. Fine Print
============================================================
1. Non-Value-Added is not Always Waste
============================================================
Lean is about eliminating waste or the errors and inefficiencies that impact costs, quality, customer satisfaction, and delays. All activities within a value stream must be in one of the following three categories:
• Value-added. Adding value or worth to the product or service.
• Non-value-added. Work that may not directly add value to the customer and is currently required for business or regulatory reasons.
• Waste. Non-value-creating work that can be eliminated immediately.
This is not as simple as it seems. At first glance, all support and administrative activities may appear to be non value-added. The challenge becomes deciding the difference between the non-value-added work and waste.
Copyright 2006 Linda Fayerweather
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
============================================================
2. Marketing Monstrosity #4 – Targeting a Market You Can’t Reach
============================================================
A lot of financial advisors fall prey to not “thinking outside the box” when it comes time to create a target market. The vast majority only wants to get referrals from doctors, lawyers and CPAs. In the Toledo marketplace alone, there are over 3600 financial services people, but only 1437 doctors, lawyers and CPAs. So they’re trying to reach a market that they can’t reach because there’s too much competition. One financial advisor in town is ubersmart when it comes to target markets. Her market: employers who are willing to have her visit with their employees to talk about saving for retirement.
Avoid this marketing monstrosity by:
• Knowing how much competition you have in the marketplace.
• Identify characteristics of potential buyers by creating a detailed customer profile. What do these people have in common? What are their needs, wants, desires?
Copyright 2006 Rebecca Booth
Marketing Goddess
Imagine That!
www.marketingsolutioneers.com
===========================================================
3. Flexibility Beyond the Gym
===========================================================
Being flexible and adaptable are essential elements for survival and progress.
Never close your mind to learning new ideas and methods of doing something. Just because you have always done something one way, doesn't necessarily mean that it is the best way. Once you have named your limitations, they are now yours! If you remain open-minded and flexible to others suggestions, you will grow and prosper through their knowledge.
Copyright 2006 John R. Meyer
District Director, BNI Ohio
http://www.bni-ohio.com
Monday Morning Motivators – October 30, 2006
============================================================
Espresso business tips are designed to "caffeinate" your mind
while your java
gets you going. Subscribing and Unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
"Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier.”
-- Colin Powell
============================================================
Table of Contents
============================================================
1. Non-Value-Added is not Always Waste – Linda Fayerweather
2. Marketing Monstrosity #4 – Targeting the Unreachable - Rebecca Booth
3. Flexibility Beyond the Gym
- John Meyer
4. Fine Print
============================================================
1. Non-Value-Added is not Always Waste
============================================================
Lean is about eliminating waste or the errors and inefficiencies that impact costs, quality, customer satisfaction, and delays. All activities within a value stream must be in one of the following three categories:
• Value-added. Adding value or worth to the product or service.
• Non-value-added. Work that may not directly add value to the customer and is currently required for business or regulatory reasons.
• Waste. Non-value-creating work that can be eliminated immediately.
This is not as simple as it seems. At first glance, all support and administrative activities may appear to be non value-added. The challenge becomes deciding the difference between the non-value-added work and waste.
Copyright 2006 Linda Fayerweather
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
============================================================
2. Marketing Monstrosity #4 – Targeting a Market You Can’t Reach
============================================================
A lot of financial advisors fall prey to not “thinking outside the box” when it comes time to create a target market. The vast majority only wants to get referrals from doctors, lawyers and CPAs. In the Toledo marketplace alone, there are over 3600 financial services people, but only 1437 doctors, lawyers and CPAs. So they’re trying to reach a market that they can’t reach because there’s too much competition. One financial advisor in town is ubersmart when it comes to target markets. Her market: employers who are willing to have her visit with their employees to talk about saving for retirement.
Avoid this marketing monstrosity by:
• Knowing how much competition you have in the marketplace.
• Identify characteristics of potential buyers by creating a detailed customer profile. What do these people have in common? What are their needs, wants, desires?
Copyright 2006 Rebecca Booth
Marketing Goddess
Imagine That!
www.marketingsolutioneers.com
===========================================================
3. Flexibility Beyond the Gym
===========================================================
Being flexible and adaptable are essential elements for survival and progress.
Never close your mind to learning new ideas and methods of doing something. Just because you have always done something one way, doesn't necessarily mean that it is the best way. Once you have named your limitations, they are now yours! If you remain open-minded and flexible to others suggestions, you will grow and prosper through their knowledge.
Copyright 2006 John R. Meyer
District Director, BNI Ohio
http://www.bni-ohio.com
Monday, October 23, 2006
Got Data? Not Much!
============================================================
Monday Morning Motivators – October 23, 2006 ============================================================
Espresso business tips are designed to "caffeinate" your mind while your java gets you going. Subscribing and Unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
"Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can.” -- Paul Tournier
============================================================
Table of Contents ============================================================
1. Got Data? Not Much. – Linda Fayerweather
2. Marketing Monstrosity #3 – Not Targeting a Niche - Rebecca Booth
3. Become a Great Storyteller - John Meyer
4. Fine Print
============================================================
1. Got Data? Not Much.
============================================================
What data do you collect on your administrative processes? If you are like many companies limited data, if any, is collected on those internal processes. For support and administrative operations, determining what data to include depends on what questions you’re trying to answer about your value stream and how you define the “product” produced by these operations.
For example, if your goal is to reduce days waiting for receivables, it would be helpful to define “invoices” as the product and identify the
• Total number of invoices issued,
• Cycle time and queue time for processing, and
• Total cycle time including collection.
From this information, you can determine where bottlenecks most likely occur and eliminate areas of waste in your “future state” process.
Copyright 2006 Linda Fayerweather
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
============================================================
2. Marketing Monstrosity #3 – Not Targeting a Niche Market ============================================================
If your target market is “everybody,” then your target market is really “nobody!”
Most small businesses want to sell their products to any person on the street.
The truly successful entrepreneur knows that they won’t lose money by niche-ing down. Instead, clients outside the target market are perceived as being “icing on the cake.”
You can avoid this marketing monstrosity by:
• Looking at a niche as being inclusive versus exclusive. Think of it as that cake.
• Spending the majority of your marketing dollars trying to get your niche market to recognize you, versus having you spend money willy-nilly in all sorts of publications to market to “everybody.”
• Remembering customers outside your niche are “icing on that cake.”
• Thinking specifically to receive more!
Copyright 2006 Rebecca Booth
Marketing GoddessImagine That!
http://www.marketingsolutioneers.com/
===========================================================
3. Become a Great Storyteller
===========================================================
One sure fire way to help people remember who you are and what kind of business you are looking for is to be a great storyteller. People will remember how you helped others if you tell powerful stories about the situation or circumstances. What was the problem the person had? How did you help them? What were the results?
Copyright 2006 John R. Meyer
District Director, BNI Ohio
http://www.bni-ohio.com/
Monday Morning Motivators – October 23, 2006 ============================================================
Espresso business tips are designed to "caffeinate" your mind while your java gets you going. Subscribing and Unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
"Sooner or later, those who win are those who think they can.” -- Paul Tournier
============================================================
Table of Contents ============================================================
1. Got Data? Not Much. – Linda Fayerweather
2. Marketing Monstrosity #3 – Not Targeting a Niche - Rebecca Booth
3. Become a Great Storyteller - John Meyer
4. Fine Print
============================================================
1. Got Data? Not Much.
============================================================
What data do you collect on your administrative processes? If you are like many companies limited data, if any, is collected on those internal processes. For support and administrative operations, determining what data to include depends on what questions you’re trying to answer about your value stream and how you define the “product” produced by these operations.
For example, if your goal is to reduce days waiting for receivables, it would be helpful to define “invoices” as the product and identify the
• Total number of invoices issued,
• Cycle time and queue time for processing, and
• Total cycle time including collection.
From this information, you can determine where bottlenecks most likely occur and eliminate areas of waste in your “future state” process.
Copyright 2006 Linda Fayerweather
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
============================================================
2. Marketing Monstrosity #3 – Not Targeting a Niche Market ============================================================
If your target market is “everybody,” then your target market is really “nobody!”
Most small businesses want to sell their products to any person on the street.
The truly successful entrepreneur knows that they won’t lose money by niche-ing down. Instead, clients outside the target market are perceived as being “icing on the cake.”
You can avoid this marketing monstrosity by:
• Looking at a niche as being inclusive versus exclusive. Think of it as that cake.
• Spending the majority of your marketing dollars trying to get your niche market to recognize you, versus having you spend money willy-nilly in all sorts of publications to market to “everybody.”
• Remembering customers outside your niche are “icing on that cake.”
• Thinking specifically to receive more!
Copyright 2006 Rebecca Booth
Marketing GoddessImagine That!
http://www.marketingsolutioneers.com/
===========================================================
3. Become a Great Storyteller
===========================================================
One sure fire way to help people remember who you are and what kind of business you are looking for is to be a great storyteller. People will remember how you helped others if you tell powerful stories about the situation or circumstances. What was the problem the person had? How did you help them? What were the results?
Copyright 2006 John R. Meyer
District Director, BNI Ohio
http://www.bni-ohio.com/
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