How Clean is Your Code?
John Uhri wrote an interesting post, focused primarily on a techie audience. In it he talked about the idea of routinely cleaning up your code.
While I am not a techie or coder, there is some truth in his remarks for any small business owner. Take a look at all your process and procedures. Have you allowed “process rot” unnecessary steps to creep into your day?
Can you simplify and stream line what you do? Once a quarter, step back and evaluate your time, and “clean up your process” You will be glad you did.
And taking the analogy a step further, sometimes it is easier to find the flaws in the work of others. You see odd things in their code which you miss in you own. The same is true for your business. My advice – Sit down with a friend, take a critical look at their business process and have them review yours!
Sometimes the Best Choice is Your Competitor
There are 65,000 companies with sales under $1 million in the Indy metro area. 65,000! And the reality is I can’t serve all these small businesses, as much as I would like to.
To use my time well, and do the right thing for my clients, sometimes the best thing to do is to turn the project over to a competitor. I know that sounds crazy, giving up a project in a tough economy, but when it isn’t a fit, I have learned it is better to walk away.
Seth Godin had a great post recently on this topic. He argued that passing a project to someone else better prepared to handle it will actually raise your image with that client. He said:
This is when you earn the right to be seen as a trusted advisor, not a self-interested shill. Two months or two years from now, when you interact with that person or organization again, he’ll remember that you were the one who spoke up on behalf of the competition, the one who helped us find a better fit, the clearly disinterested advisor who helped us choose between the two remaining good choices.
To make good suggestions, I work hard to get to know my competitors. I understand their weakness and their strengths so I can pick the best candidate for my client.
I am in this business for the long haul. So if I miss one sale, but in doing so, I establish my self as a trusted advisor I know it will be worth it in the long run.
Beyond Benefits, LLC. receives Starter Website from Roundpeg
Written by Amy Rowe
This was probably my favorite site to work on so far. The clean and professional look of the company really comes through with this design. With logo design by Jill Harding at Boundless Design and our unique web design, the site really came together.
Working with Deb to get the Beyond Benefits, LLC. message put together was so much fun.
Visit Beyond Benefits, LLC. and see the final outcome!
Blogging Does Not Need to Be Time Consuming
CAUTION – TODAY’S POST IS A BIT OF RANT. So if you are looking for my typical gentle advice and prodding, this may seem a bit harsh.
As I talk to clients about adding a blog to their web site, I often get the same excuse: Not Enough Time!
Well, I am tired of hearing that lame excuse. Blogging does not have to be time consuming! A short blog post, with a link to something of interest to your readers, takes just a few minutes to write. Today’s link: What’s Wrong with Short Blog Posts by Mike Sansone
Don’t have time to find information? Do you have time to read a newspaper or trade journal? Then you have time to find something worth sharing with your customers. And if you don’t… how are you staying on top of your game, keeping informed and one step ahead of your competitors?
If you don’t have time to research – a little, and blog a little ( short posts evry few days) your small business, may have a much bigger problem.
Rules of Good Logo Design
I found this terrific list of rules for good logo design. While we hope all small business owners come to us for their logo work, we can’t handle everyone. So if you decide to create your own logo, or work with another design firm consider the following advice:
- Do not use more than three colors.
- Get rid of everything that is not absolutely necessary.
- Type must be easy enough for your grandma to read.
- The logo must be recognizable.
- Create a unique shape or layout for the logo.
- Completely ignore what your parents and/or spouse think about the design.
- Confirm that the logo looks appealing to more than just three (3) individuals.
The list actually contains 45 rules, but in summary: You logo should be unique, so that over time time, as people see it, they think about you!
Small Business Profit Begins with Intelligent Pricing Strategy
What is the right price for your product or service? Most small business owners struggle with this question, because they confuse the cost of producing the product with the value it brings to the customer.
When it comes to establishing a price for your goods or services, the value of your product has absolutely nothing to do with production cost. The value is based on how much you help clients save, increase, reduce or improve. If you can quantify these benefits, then you have a foundation for establishing an appropriate price for your goods or services provided by your small business.
It is All About Value
Think about your last software purchase. You opened an attractive box which contained a CD and a small manual. There was less than $10 worth of material in the box, and yet you may have paid $300, $500 or even $1,000 for the software.
You paid a premium, well above production cost, because of the need the software fulfilled and the benefits it would provide.
Calculate Your Value
The same is true for your product or service. How much value do you deliver? Use these questions to build your value:
- How much can my product save my customer? Savings may be in time, money or effort.
- How much can my product earn for my customer? Can you help them increase their income; directly or indirectly? Does it create a foundation for future opportunities or establish valuable personal relationships?
- What intangible benefits might customers realize, and is it possible to quantify these benefits? Will your product improve their abilities, confidence, appearance or peace of mind?
Focus on the Benefits
Customers buy the benefits, the solutions to their problems. If you can associate a dollar value with specific benefits, you have a powerful message to include in your marketing material and a solid foundation to charge a premium price for your product.
Find your Focus
Twenty years ago I went to work for Lennox Industries, ( the HVAC, not the China company). And as I sat in meeting after meeting with groups of engineers, I found myself saying the same things over and over again.
“Even if people don’t buy furnaces the same way they buy toothpaste, basic rules of marketing still apply!”
After all these years, I still believe that is true; Marketing Basics apply whether you are selling a product or a service, consumer or B-to-B, durable or non durable, on or off-line. So I am not surprised swhen I read columns by social media experts listing rules of “Using Social Media as a Marketing Tool” which look an awful lot like rules for any good marketing.
I found this list on Traffikd and if you have lost your marketing text book, print this post, put it on your wall and refer to it often. Not just for the social media portion of your plan, but for every element of your marketing plan.
1 – Identify a Goal or Purpose.
2 – Assess What You Have Available
3 – Define Your Target Audience.
4 – Target Specific Social Media Sites
5 – Develop Targeted Content
6 – Be Consistently Active
7 – Develop a Plan for Conversion
8 – Evaluate the Results
9 – Make Adjustments to Improve
Borrowed Credibility for Small Business
Hazel Walker (The Queen of Networking) and I are friends. We share a common perspective on business, networking and relationships. And a common love of a good Martini!
We are usually on the same page when it comes to networking strategies, and recently I read something she wrote, and thought, I couldn’t have said it better myself. So here is an excerpt from her post.
We loan our credibility to others regularly when we make a connection for others or pass a referral to them. Each time we make a connection or a referral we are allowing others to borrow our credibility. Unfortunately many times that credibility is brought back, nicked and scratched.
I think this really speaks to why some people are reluctant to give referrals. They are concerned about the condition of their credibility, they don’t TRUST you to handle it with care. For small business owners there is no silver bullet, no way to rush trust. You have to earn it over time!
To read the rest of Hazels original post go to SmallerIndiana
I Choose
I always enjoy reading Seth Godin’s blog. Sometimes funny, sometimes, serious, and frequently thought provoking. One of his recent posts entitled Be Careful Who You Work For hit home when he said:
How many job offers with good pay have you turned down in your lifetime? How many clients? Compare that to how many times you’ve been rejected. That’s totally out of whack. Great marketing involves having a great product, and not every job (or every client) is worth your time or attention or love.
I wish I had read this post earlier this year. but maybe I wouldn’t have appreciated it till I went through this experience.
We starting working with client this past spring, our single biggest at that time. While I was excited about the revenue, there was this nagging feeling, we were not a great fit. A feeling I initially ignored as I deposited the retainer check in the bank.
The problem: they wouldn’t listen to us. Everything we recommended, they changed and changed, and changed, till the end product did not even resemble something we thought was a good idea. They nagged, and bullied, and monopolized our time. When the phone rang, everyone in the building tensed, hoping it wasn’t them.
When I wasnt’ worrying about “That Client” I was nursing the emotional health of my team. The whole process was exhausting, and three months into the relationship we parted ways.
And while I missed the retainer check, I, along with my entire team, began to have fun again. It took a few months to recover, but today, I can honestly say, we have great clients, everyone of them are worth both our attention, and love.
We will grow, perhaps more slowly because we will be selective, but we will enjoy the growth!
More Small Business Survival Strategies
Joanne Black wrote a good post, with tips on what small business owners can do in a lagging economy. While very little of her content was new, I enjoyed the post because of her tone, and passion as she wrote. Her posts described Eight “Killer Steps” to Attracting New Business in a Lagging Economy. I picked three of my favorites. If you want the rest of the list you will need to read her orignal post.
1. Broaden Your Perspective. - What business are you in? Redefine and reinvent yourself. Determine how you can create a leap in demand for your products and services. Build new alliances and consider alternate distribution channels.
This does not mean losing focus on your niche, but simply looking for new ways to serve existing customers
2. Be Nimble and Innovative. - You’ll never have all the facts. Go ahead; make quick decisions. Be fearless and make those tough choices. Create new uses for your products.
I firmly believe the worst decision you can make is not to make one. Even when you move in the wrong direction, you learn something as you retrace your steps.
7. Don’t Cut Prices. Increase Value. There’s a lot of chatter about cutting prices in a lagging economy. Many small business owners think by cutting prices, you’re cutting your profits even further. Instead, consider how to “get in and get started.” Divide your offering into smaller chunks, get results and create traction. Or, give more value.
