Do the WAYS

we do business

determine

the results we get?

ATTITUDES

Do you and your partners, associates, and advisers ALL demonstrate positive upbeat attitudes in practically everything you say and do? When it’s time to swallow hard, eat crow, and bite the bullet (heck of a name for a restaurant!), do you and those around you own up, face the music, take it on the chin, take some deep breaths, and then step forward, onward, and upward? 

Are high-trust responsive attitudes standard fare in all your business dealings? Do you practice and foster “OPEN MINDS OPEN DOORS” attitudes? Are you listening?

CUSTOMER SERVICE

Can you honestly say there are no exceptions ever to: the customer is always right, the customer is always right, the customer is always right? (Even when it’s a customer who has overstepped bounds, or someone you don’t particularly like?) Do you and your people try to make EVERY customer deliriously delighted. Are you invested in cultivating repeat sales with a present moment focus? Are you listening?

EMPLOYEES

Are you taking the time and trouble to get to know your people well enough to make the most of their strengths (or are you constantly trying to shore up their weaknesses)? Have you frequently matched employee need levels against Maslow’s Hierarchy (Google or Bing it if you’ve forgotten it) to most effectively motivate productive performances? Do you practice leadership by teaching by example? Are you listening?

INVESTORS, LENDERS, AND REFERRERS

Is your level of transparency what you would want it to be if you were investing in you, or referring others to your business? Are you keeping these key connections inside your inner loop? Are you tapping them as resources and regularly soliciting their input. Have you recruited them into unpaid Advisory Board positions? Are you listening?

VENDORS AND SUPPLIERS

Do you treat these resource people and companies like partners? Can you extend and generate better terms for exchanging and referring and bartering products and services? Do you keep them competitive with an ongoing bid process, and constantly review their performances while keeping open-minded to other options? Do they know where they stand with you? Are you listening?

POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

Are you running a U.S.Marine Drill Instructors Academy, or a hospice, or something in between? Is the way you run your business in keeping with the industry or profession you’re part of? Is it too much in keeping that it doesn’t stand out? Do your policies and procedures squelch innovative thinking and doing, or enhance it? How lawyer-crazed tight are your policy interpretations? 

EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING

Are you constantly making room for top talent, and cultivating it. Are you providing enough of the right kinds of training. Are you aware of how importantly regarded expanded opportunities and responsibilities are to most people? Did you know that young people are positively more attracted to being praised than they are to sex, drugs, and alcohol? 

COMMUNITY RELATIONS

Are you and your business being good citizens in the various (professional, industry, geographic, neighborhood)communities that patronize your business and support your existence?

GOD AND COUNTRY

When you put God and country first on your business agenda, all the other pieces will fit together because both God and your country will know about your allegiance, your commitment, and where your heart is. As we sow, so shall we reap. 

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302.933.0116 or Hal@BusinessWorks.US

“The price of freedom is eternal vigilance!”   [Thomas Jefferson]

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone! 

Retail settings make it easy to

cherry-pick examples . . . but

the dynamics are the same in

every business and profession.

This really happened less than 24 hours ago

in a well-known U.S. resort town:

Checker at major-name crafts store cash register rings up $9.99 for a roll of artist’s tape (similar to masking tape, but pulls apart easier and leaves no surface marks (even on paper or cardboard) when it’s removed.

Customer: “Excuse me, but that price should be $6.99. It says $6.99 on the shelf.”

Checker: “Sorry, it’s $9.99!” (She takes the twenty-dollar bill on the counter, puts it in the register, slaps down a ten-dollar bill and a penny, throws the tape in a bag and quickly moves to start ringing up the next customer.)

Customer (to the checker): “Listen, I just told you that the price sign says that this tape is $6.99, not $9.99 and I want my $3 back. On top of everything else, even $6.99 is a rip-off, and if I didn’t need it now, I’d never pay that price, let alone $9.99. If it’s $9.99, why does it say $6.99 on the shelf?” (The checker nods and turns back to wait on the next customer)

Customer (now becoming annoyed and louder): “Excuse me, but I just told you that I want my $3 back, and all you can do is nod at me? Please call the store manager.”

Checker: “You’ll have to wait, Sir; I’ve started the next customer here!”

Customer: “Listen to me: Call the store manager NOW!”

Checker (on loudspeaker system): “Manager to register six!” (three minutes later, the manager shows up)

Manager (to checker): “What’s up?”

Checker (pointing with her thumb): “He says this tape is $6.99, but it’s $9.99 on the scanner!”

Customer (interrupting their exchange): “You’re the manager?” (Manager nods) “I picked this tape off the shelf and the shelf had a sign on it that the price is $6.99. Now your checker who, besides being rude, took my money and charged me $9.99. If this tape is $9.99, then your sign is wrong and I don’t want it for $9.99. Either I pay what the sign says or I want my money back.”

Manager: “Gimme the tape; I’ll go check it out!” (Then to checker: “I’ll be right back, but don’t ring anybody else up ’til we get this straight!” The line of now disgruntled customers grows and no one is around to handle the other registers. The checker hums, stares out the front window, and drums her fingers on the register. The manager walks to the shelf in question, which is all the way to the back of the store, and returns four minutes later to a huffing-puffing crowd of customers waiting not so patiently in line.)

Manager (speaking only to the checker): “He’s wrong! The price is $9.99 the way you had it!”

Customer: “Excuse me! First of all, would you please speak with meand not the checker? I am starting to get very annoyed here. The sign back there said $6.99 not $9.99 and I either want this tape for $6.99 or my money back. If I can’t get either, you can be sure of having a major problem for false advertising.”

Manager: “Sir, the tape you purchased is $9.99. It, and a few others, must have been put on the $6.99 shelf by mistake. There are $6.99 tapes back there.”

Customer: Great! I’ll go get one of those. I suggest you not hold up this line any longer.”

Manager: “Sir, that’s our decision, and we’ll wait for you to get back here.

Checker (after customer returns with a $6.99 tape): “We have to start this all over again, so give me back the $10.01 and I’ll give you back your $20 and then I’ll have to get the manager back here to approve the initial over-ring before…”

Customer (turning to walk out): “Screw it!”

Funny? Maybe if you’re reading it. Not funny if you’re the customer, or someone who’s waiting in line. Not only should the checker be fired on the spot, or at least put on probation, the manager needs a “straighten up and fly right!” warning (and both obviously need training). Every customer is always right all of the time, no exceptions, ever!

You own a business, and don’t agree? Bite the bullet and move on, or sell the business. By ALWAYS following the customer is right guideline ALL of the time, you will lose something sometimes, but the reputation you gain will more than compensate for the losses. People do business with businesses that consistently demonstrate respect and authenticity, that do what they say they will do.  

Surely, you know what SHOULD have happened in the incident described. Of course the checker and the manager were both at fault, but what could they have done differently? What would you have had them do? How would you have fixed the problem? How would you prevent it from happening again? Is YOUR business the next example?

Every dissatisfied customer tells ten other people about his or her bad experience, and each of those ten tell ten others. Can you afford 100 negative impressions? (And of course each of those hundred tell…)

~~~~~~~~~~~~

www.TheWriterWorks.com  

302.933.0116 or Hal@BusinessWorks.US  

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You,

 “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance!” [Thomas Jefferson] 

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

Do All Web Designers, Editors,

SEO “Experts,” Digital

Managers, and Webmasters 

Own Stock in Optical and

Eye Surgery Centers?

Speaking of Eyes, here are a few I’s for you — just in case you’re looking for good “I” words to characterize the work performance sections of your resumes (which I hope for your short-term well-being that you have up-to-date!).

Let me not beat around the bush.

Here’s my Top 20 List of Words to describe the efforts(?) of those of you who appear to be part of the vast sea of non-communicative business (and especially BIG -time Corporate) websites:  

Irksome. Irritating. Infuriating. Insulting. Invidious. Inconvenient. Incompetent. Irrational. Insolent. Inapt. Impudent. Immature. Insouciant. Inflammatory. Incorrigible. Implacable. Inconceivable. Idiotic . . . Ignoramus Internet Imbeciles!

And that’s just the I’s.

I dare you to tell me the last website you visited that was physically readable. It’s bad enough you’ve butchered the English language and that you remain out-of-control-convinced that all of humanity speaks only via txtmsg language, now we all read your proudly-designed sites, and need glasses.

Do you really think that:

type this size

. . . is for normal, healthy eyes? And then you have the audacity (we’ll leave the I’s behind for awhile; I like “audacity”) to do the damn type in gray, and Italicized, no less?

like this

What are you all nut cases?

Did you ever consider that site visitors become prospects and prospects become customers and customers’ purchases of the products and services promoted on the site are what pay for your existence?

(Oh, and please don’t start telling me about ways to adjust my screen size to accomodate your lack of customer service and marketing savvy!)

Sometimes, I might expect to see some brand new business attempting –with, obviously, the communication expertise and guidance of one of you– to spout its message with a touch of class that no doubt came from having once visited a high-priced attorney’s office where everything is gray, including the invoices. But I’ve come to expect better from long-established enterprises.

Or, well maybe I’ll give you the benefit of doubt, maybe it’s just that if you use .6 and .7 font sizes, you figure you can get more stuff on a page and jam it into little corners so you can design Internet castles in the air with all that leftover space. And, shoot!, if you make it gray and hard to read, nobody can criticize your attempts at copy content without having to visit their ophthalmologists, right?

What touched off this avalanche? Check around a few corporate giant sites, especially pages with unimportant junk — you know, things that just don’t mean anything, like instructions, or policies, or payment terms. I have.

In fact, I’ll return to the A words for long enough to say that it is beyond ANNOYING to find evidence of work done by people who really should know better (and who are typically commanding huge fees) that fails 100% to communicate. And somewhere up there is a boss who clearly hasn’t a clue about how to be a leader, who has let droves of techie superstars commandeer their own marketing programs.  

So, in case you’re still reading this (and with apologies for catching up the more honorable among you in my wrath), I have this to say to you:

Don’t give up your day job!

~~~~~~~~

www.TheWriterWorks.com  

302.933.0116 or Hal@BusinessWorks.US

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You.

 “The price of freedom is eternal vigilance!” [Thomas Jefferson]

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

Are you playing

with yourself?

. . . business is

a team sport!

     Don’t you just love it when a word older than the Civil War makes a comeback and ends up on top of the heap? Collaboration. It’s the hot new buzz word in business. Who knew? It’s strategic alliance, cooperation, shared interests, communication, interaction, productivity, and teamwork all rolled into one.

     Whoa! And it’s not a legal, structured entity so there are no lawyers involved. What could offer greater promise for success?

     Did you think that just because you run your own business, you no longer need to worry about or deal with anyone else? Did you think “Solopreneuring” would or should render you independent? Did you think when you hung out your solo practitioner shingle, you could function completely on your own?

     No more. Maybe small business hasn’t yet caught up with the giant union-based companies feeding on bailout tax dollars, or the Silicon Valley techies housed in converted warehouses with coed bathrooms, and elevated bunkbeds hovering over their computer workstations. But small businesses ARE collaborative.

     Successful small business owners recognize they cannot withstand today’s economic forces with their incessant coastal flooding and gale warnings simply by hunkering down and having an inflatable lifeboat ready.

     Doctors (including those who directly compete) can no longer exist without other doctors’ referrals. Downtown business membership organizations (including many directly competitive retailers) work together to stimulate customer foot traffic. Online and offline services are sharing services with other online and offline services.

     Many compatible and/or competitive businesses are partnering up for centralized buying services in order to exercise greater clout in winning product and service quantity and shipping discounts. Many others share creative development talents. There are even collaboration website resources like http://www.collaboratingentrepreneur.com for small business owners (which is well worth a visit).

     Business employee alumni associations are cropping up with collaborative applications designed to capitalize on the life and career paths of former (retired or moved on) employees who have maintained loyalty and/or contact since leaving. New revenue streams and solidified client sales have evolved from these collaborations.

A FREE, do-it-yourself, 2-page Business Employee Alumni Association

How-To Guide is available via email to me at the address below.  

     The point is that if you’re playing with yourself (pardon the double entendre), you are living in the dark ages, and you need to come up for air, look around, and see how you can help yourself (and others) by combining forces, interests, and financial pursuits. No contracts, no lawyers, and no money required. Go for it!

Comment below or direct to Hal@BUSINESSWORKS.US Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You! Make it a GREAT Day! Get blog emails FREE via RSS feed OR $1 mo Amazon Kindle. Gr8 Gift 4 GRANDPARENTS: http://bit.ly/3nDlGF

“Even if you’re on the right track,

you’ll get run over

if you just sit there.”

–WILL ROGERS 

     Well, isn’t that nice? We just lost all the lawyers who regularly visit this site (probably at least 3!) when they saw that this was going to be an encouragement-to-act presentation.

     Lawyers are, after all, heavily invested in maintaining the status quo, in creating and fostering delay. Trying to get an attorney to read about the need to take action steps is like trying to get a chiropractor with back pain to visit an orthopaedic surgeon (or vice versa!).

     Will Rogers was the right voice for entrepreneurs. Nothing speaks louder than action. And odds are almost universally that when in doubt, some action is always better than no action. The important thing is to stay flexible as you act… whether it’s on the football field, the factory floor, your website or in the middle of a customer sales pitch.

     Taking action — as in business decision making, customer service, sales pipeline pursuits, marketing, value-adding to products and services, opening new revenue channels, strategic planning, stimulating productivity. and designing innovative management approaches — is the true mark of leadership.

     Nothing is gained in business by waiting. Not any more. Not in today’s lightning-paced world of communication, not in this economy.

     Does moving forward before you have all the information you think you need, make you feel nervous and prompt you to worry about outcomes? Okay, truth: You are not alone (A) and as Henry David Thoreau once said, “All we ever have is limited knowledge” (B), so use what you know to determine and update and act.

     Short of a life or death decision (which, thankfully, not many of us are called on to make very often), if your action turns out to be wrong: Stop the train at the next station. Get down onto the platform. Brush yourself off. Collect feedback. Listen. Get your bearings. Get onto the next train. Just keep moving.   

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 LOOKING FOR LEADERSHIP? See Hal’s 12/30 Guest Blog Post at TBD Consulting’s Jonena Relth’s HIGHLY-RECOMMENDED site http://bit.ly/XhN1h

 WONDERING WHEN NO is Better Than MAYBE? See Hal’s 1/6 Guest Blog Post in BonMot Communications’ Angelique Rewer’s FREE HIGHLY-RECOMMENDED e-zine www.thecorporatecommunicator.net 

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Read My Ears!

     Like a lot of communication practices, it seems most of ustend to slack off, get careless, and periodically get to a point of not listening carefully. Y’hear? It’s normal for our minds to drift off every few minutes when we’re listening to someone else… attention peaks and valleys vary with each individual. [The average American’s attention span has been reported as 12 minutes!]

     If I were, for example, reading this aloud to you, and included a sentence that mentioned the word “football,” as in the size of my 100-pound Golden Retriever on the day I brought her home, your mind might zoom away to the touchdown you scored in high school, or the Superbowl game that cost you $87,934.56 per seat, or the neighbor’s kid’s football you just leather-pancaked as you backed out of the driveway.

     Okay, you say. You’re guilty, you say. Now what? you say.

     Maybe it’s a good time to take personal inventory in how you come across to others. Why now? When business is “off” you certainly want to make the most of your potential to succeed, to make additional sales, to make efforts more productive… all of that starts (and often ends) with maximizing communication skills.

     One of the best and most immediately productive tools available to get started with is http://halalpiar.com/2009/05/4-steps-in-one-minute-zero-stress/ because it relaxes your muscles and makes your brain more alert—the perfect combination for receiving and delivering effective communication.     

     Next, it makes sense to do a little survey of those who share the inner business circle of your life. To keep things abstract and impersonal (i.e., not threatening), you can, for example, ask each person privately what musical instrument she or he most identify you with in the ways you come across to others.

     Ask for clarification, but do NOT criticize any one’s response. Say thank you and smile and walk away, then study the list you get back. What does it tell you about yourself?

     You, for instance, may think of yourself as a versatile keyboard able to perform almost any type of musical message, and someone may tell you you remind him or her of cymbals, crashing into discussions with a finalizing punctuation point of percussion, or a flighty little piccolo that dances around issues while brightening everyone’s day, but not addressing real needs or solving problems. If this exercise doesn’t bear fruit, replace musical instrument with animal.

     Once you have a better sense of what others perceive as less than optimal, focus on ways you can change that/those assessment(s) for the better. Take a quick visit to http://halalpiar.com/2009/05/hearing-is-not-listening/ and then initiate a plan of action for yourself with daily and weekly goals geared to disciplining yourself to come across better by listening more attentively, more actively, more responsively. Remember when you can respond instead of react, you can never over-react! 

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Input welcome anytime: Hal@TheWriterWorks.com (”Businessworks” in the subject line) or comment below. Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals, good night and God bless you! halalpiar  # # # 

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