Davinci Virtual

A common question that I receive from small business owners is “how can I market my business the most the effectively?” The answer to that question, is that unfortunately there is no standard answer.  Instead, you must learn what will work for your business & industry, and what your target audience responds to.  Although there is not set formula, here are a few tips to help you along your journey.

• Know your audience.  This may seem like a no-brainer, but you will be surprised home many of my clients think they know their customers, only to find out they were wrong.  Knowing your audience means more than knowing what target demographic you are going after.  It means understanding who your market is, how they work, why they purchase, etc. 

• Don’t underestimate the power of the barter.  Partnering with the small business bureau in your area could open up a whole range of opportunities for your business, including a barter system, where you exchange services with other members of the organization.  This is a great way to spread the word about your business.

• Don’t be afraid to try some unusual marketing techniques.  Trying to understand what marketing techniques will work for your business means that you should be open to new methods.  Don’t be afraid of expanding your business to the web, or turning to social media.  It’s using unconventional techniques that  will get you noticed by consumers.

As you begin to incorporate these tips into your strategy, think about some other lessons you have learned, and tell me what worked (or didn’t work) for you!

Last week I wrote about leadership book by David Cottrell, called “Monday Morning Mentoring,” a guide to developing leadership skills, and effectively managing teams/groups. I imparted several key leadership learnings in that blog post, with the promise to finish up the lesson this week, and reveal with the “real” secret to leadership truly is.  Today, along with the big secret, I want to share with you one more leadership lessons from Tony.

Lesson 3: “Tough Learning”

In this lesson, Jeff comes to Tony with some unsettling news.  The annual corporate surveys were distributed for his company last week, and the feedback he received from his team members was less than stellar - and even more importantly - came as a total surprise to Jeff.  After speaking with Tony for several hours, Jeff learned that along with the feedback holding some room for improvement with Jeff, there were also a lot of great points that showed Jeff’s strengths, that Jeff had overlooked because he was so upset about the negative points.  Tony showed Jeff that he had to look at feedback as an opportunity to learn and grow, and that getting defensive and not accepting what others felt about him only made the situation worse.  In the end, Jeff needed to understand that criticism should be used as a learning tool to better one’s self and their team.

The Big Secret

Along with the three I have shared with you, there are many more important lessons in Cottrell’s book that  should definitely be read and understood in order to grow into an effective leader.  At the end of the book, Tony finally imparts the secret of leadership to Jeff (actually there are two secrets).  1.) Until you learn to accept total responsibility, no matter what, you will not be able to set up a plan to achieve your goals.  2.) Success is the result of making better choices and recovering quickly from poor choices.

All in all - the key here is responsibility.  Take responsibility for your actions (good or bad) and when a bad decision occurs, take a deep breath, and then develop an action plan.  Don’t play the blame game, or pass along the mess to someone else.  It is only through experience (both positive & negative experiences) can you become a successful leader.  The process worked for Jeff…and when I implemented the lessons in the book, it worked for me as well.  Hopefully these little tidbits of information can help you!

Building business in challenging economic times is absolutely possible. The critical issue is a willingness to evaluate your products and services with absolute objectivity and a new knowledge of the marketplace.

Let’s start with evaluating your products and services. If you have been in your current position, or are the owner of your own company, it can be easy to slip into status quo mode. Making the same products and providing the same services is part of how a company maintains stability and focus on their mission. But difficult times require creative, out of the box thinking.

Now is a great time to reach out to your customers for product development and improvement ideas. Look for low hanging fruit, ideas that could be implemented with little effort for great results. Also, keep an eye open for patterns, which might indicate market changes or trends. While you’re asking for their feedback, take the time to let them know how valuable they are to your business.

Next, scan the marketplace, take a look at competitors and new, successful businesses. What direction are they taking? Evaluate their ideas and compare them to your customers’ suggestions. Create a list of minor and major changes that your company could make in response to market shifts. Gather your staff or supporters around for a brainstorming session and see what arises. Be open to new information and ideas.

Take the results of your market research and brainstorming and evaluate it with a critical eye. Be flexible and responsive in order to create opportunities for company growth. Think twice before making large changes with high risk. If, after thorough research and planning, that kind of change makes sense, embrace it and move forward. The key to your success is in flexible thinking and nimble responses…now is the time for objectivity and excellent market analysis.

Part II of this series will explore building your customer base in niche markets.

With the economy in turmoil, and an increasing number of corporations cutting back, the unemployment rate keeps on rising.  Do you have a plan in place should the cutbacks affect you?  The reality is, one of people’s biggest problems today, is that they are saving less and less, leaving many vulnerable and economically unprepared.

The first step in becoming economically sound, is to start saving NOW.  If you do not have a minimum of three month’s living expenses stocked away into savings account, this is where you need to begin.  There are many different ways to start to save, here are a few tips to help you begin:

1.) Every month, separate your income into three categories: Expenses, Paying off debt, and Savings.  Once your expenses are paid, spend 40% of the remaining income on paying off your credit cards and other debt, and place the remaining 60% in to a savings account.

2.) Once your credit cards are payed down, stop using them!  Pay with cash, check or debit card to keep the interest monster at bay.

3.) Save money while you are with your friends by changing that night out on the town, to a fun night in, where everyone brings something to share.

4.) Have your paycheck automatically pull out a percentage for your 401k.

5.) When making large purchases, research the options thoroughly to seek out the best price.

6.) Get out there and network!  Building your own network has obvious career benefits, so don’t let opportunity pass you by, get your name out there.

Hopefully these tips will help you to start to save your way to a successful future.

I am very excited!  One of my favorite business authors, David Allen, is coming out with his third book, “Making It All Work,” a book that takes his popular “Getting Things Done” model to the next level.  This new book focuses on helping people who fall victim to common organizational “syndromes,” such as the micro-manager, or the person who just does what is necessary to slide by, by offering a full-fledged road map for processing life and work in tandem.

Fast Company calls David “one of the most influential thinkers on productivity,” for his innovative steps to help us excel in dealing with our daily commitments, the unexpected, and the information overload that threatens to drown us.   This new book addresses the following key points:

• How to figure out where you are in life and what you need to succeed
• How to be your own consultant and the CEO of your life
• How to Move from hope to trust in decision-making
• When not to set goals
• Harnessing intuition,spontaneity, and serendipity
• And lastly, why life is like business and business is like life.

David’s last book, “Getting Things Done” has become a international hit, with his system being implemented in many Fortune 500 companies today.  I am excited to read this new book, and once I am finished I will come back to give you all a summary of what has been learned.

As the end of the year draws closer, I find myself preparing for 2009 (getting organized, cleaning up my files, setting all my travel dates and accommodations for the first quarter of next year, etc.)  What I am realizing, is that I am going to be on the road quite a bit from January to March, visiting clients and speaking at various conferences and events.  I am going to running non-stop for three months, and one of the problems this causes is I will be struggling to not fall behind in my basic business admin duties (i.e. payroll, taxes, benefits or insurance, paying bills, etc).

To solve this problem, I am contemplating hiring on a “Virtual” Assistant to help manage my administrative load.  A Virtual assistant is just what the name applies, they assist small businesses by offering many of the administrative services of a larger company, including:

• Creative services
• Managerial services
• Technical services
• Business services
• Office/Administrative services
• Personal support services

One of the things that I find the most helpful, is that by using a virtual assistant, I can provide their services to my clients anywhere in the world.  It can really come in handy!

Have you ever used a virtual assistant?  Share your success stories by sending me a comment!

One of the best methods to gain visibility and recognition in your particular market or industry is to become a “thought leader,” described by Wikipedia as: “A futurist or person who is recognized among their peers and mentors for innovative ideas and demonstrates the confidence to promote or share those ideas as actionable distilled insights.”  Becoming a thought leader is not easy, despite the term being used so openly nowadays.  Here are a few pointers to help get you started…

The first step in this process, is develop a method of communicating with your public.  Blogs and Microblogs (i.e. twitter) are great mediums to spark communication, but be careful, you must be 100% transparent in your messaging, or you will push readers away.

Once you have a communication medium set up, your next step is to begin writing.  Write about what inspires you.  Write about new, innovative technologies in your market.  Develop white papers, or guides, to pass along to your audience.

Spread the word about your writing.  One of the great things about social media is the abundance of tolls at your disposal.  Push your content out to Social Networks, Bookmarking Sites, and even other bloggers by commenting on their posts.

Now that you have been writing for a few months (that’s right, this will not happen overnight), begin applying for speaking engagements to get your name out there.  Start small (local) and work up to the big leagues (national).

Lastly, remember, this will take significant time and effort.  You won’t see an overnight shift.  You must be willing to work hard to achieve the results you want to see.

Many successful people in business share similar traits, such as organizational skills, that help them succeed and grow their business, but what really sets these people apart from everyone else?  I am about to tell you!  Here are my thoughts on what makes successful people successful.

1. Networking capabilities.  Successful people understand the importance of networking, and while not everyone may enjoy it, they understand it is a necessary evil, and have made a significant effort to constantly improve their skills in this arena.
2.  Adaptability. Being able to find creative and innovative ways to grow your business is critical if you want to succeed in today’s world.
3. Acceptance of Change.  Those who are afraid of change, or fight it, never see the other side of the door.  You have to be willing to embrace change, and learn to grow from it to succeed.
4. Hunger for Knowledge.  Innovators are always educating themselves on the latest trends, applications, or strategies out in today’s world.  Stay on top of your game!
5. Lastly, Enjoy Life (outside of work).  In my experience, those who love life away from their jobs, are usually much more driven and productive in their work.  Having something you love at home to return to at the end of the day will help motivate you to improve and grow, and growth is the key to your success!

We have all experienced it.  The worst customer you could imagine.  They are rude and almost uncontrollable, and make even the nicest business owner think that sometimes the customer is not always right.  Along my business’ growth, I have dealt with many “bad customers,” and hopefully you can learn something from my experiences.  Here are a few tips to help:

• Accept that the customer is not always right.  This is a hard concept for some to grasp, but you must be able to understand that some customers are not right for your business and you must let them go, especially if your business is suffering because of it.
• Pick out the “bad seeds” from your good customers.  Identify who your problem customers are.  This will help you understand who your customers are, and who truly appreciates your services.
• Once you understand who your bad customers are…Fire them.  Keeping bad customers just to maintain revenue is not beneficial to the company in the long run.  By getting rid of your “bad seeds,” you will be making room to plant the “good” ones.
• Target the right customers.  This may sound like a no-brainer, and I am sure no one intentionally targets the “wrong” customers, but it is important to fully understand who your ideal customer is, and then form a plan of action to specifically target them.
• Finally, Don’t be afraid to ask your customers what they want.  Today’s consumers are bursting at the seams to tell companies what they want.  All companies have to do is ask.

Like many businesses around the country, I have a hard time keeping everything organized around the holiday season.  Maybe it is the time of year, maybe it is the rush of the holidays, but this season is always hectic for me.  Last year, to help me stay on track, I employed an assistant to come in during the holiday months to help out.  Several of my colleagues have employed similar techniques, some even work with a virtual assistant to keep things lined up and organized while they are on the road.  Whether you decide to bring on some extra help or not, here are a few helpful hints to help you stay on track.

1. Set a list of priorities that you want to accomplish by the end of the year. Categorize each task as a level 1, 2, 0r 3 priority.  (1 = most important, 3 = least important)  This will help you understand where your need to spend your time.
2. Help your team stay motivated.  Productivity usually drops around the holiday season.  Help combat this problem by motivating your employees to stay focused.  Develop a holiday reward system to help keep your employees’ morale high.
3. Create a list of bills that have to be paid in December of 2008 and January of 2009.  This will help you remeber critical payment dates, that could be forgotten, and help forecast expenses for the begining of the new year.
4. Lastly, keep in touch with your customers.  Just like you, your customers are running a little crazy during this time of the year.  Now is the perfect time to reach out to them remind them how your products/services can help them through these crazy months, and make their life just a little bit easier.