One of the best ways to set up your business is to notice what you like and don’t like in other businesses – same industry, different industry, it doesn’t matter. Look at what others are doing and pick and choose what does/doesn’t work for you. Here’s a quick peek at some of the things that came up for me in the last week and which created an “absolutely NOT” for my business: Hearing someone refer to people who invest … [Read more...]
When creating your “action list”, “success list”, “to do list” – whatever you happen to call it – do you differentiate between things you want/need to do and things you’ve committed to? There’s a very real difference, one which if you don’t pay attention, could affect your business in the long term. Items on your “to do” list: These are things which you’ve chosen (or feel the need) to do: writing a blog post, … [Read more...]
While out an about picking up some last minute items for Easter dinner, the owner of a boutique bakery came up to me and said "Is that your car?" "It is", I replied. And here's how the rest of the conversation went: "So you know about marketing?" "Absolutely, I'm a consultant and show small businesses like yours how to connect with your customers and prospective customers so they stay longer and invest more with you." "I know now's … [Read more...]
When sending “thank you” or “connection” cards to clients, colleagues and vendors, I prefer to use cards with personality, something different than my standard letterhead and something other than the “same old, same old”. I usually try to get cards which are produced locally or from local artists as I like to share pieces of New England through the cards. One of my Get It Done Right Community members, Ellene … [Read more...]
If you're a coach or consultant, as I am, there are two ways to manage your business: proactively and reactively. Proactive is more than engaging with people on social media or networking/having a call. Being proactive means you're creating and using your information, your content to get the word out more and generate revenue outside the standard one-on-one relationship and clients. Being proactive means you're consistently producing … [Read more...]
You're a business owner. Whether you serve consumers or other businesses, you may wish to send a direct mail campaign without knowing the full name and mailing address. Enter the US Postal Service® with Every Door Direct Mail®, a service which allows you to select the neighborhoods to target and POOF! your mail gets delivered with the rest of that day's mail. It's a great way to saturate an area and be sure your message gets there -- … [Read more...]
We all hear -- and goodness I've said -- that "Good is good enough" and that's often the case. After all, I'd rather something be "good and done" than "perfect and incomplete". Yesterday I received a postcard from a local business consultant. It's a decent card, nothing to write home about and has a few typos, but it gets the job done, except for one fatal flaw: The website URL goes to a "this page is coming soon" page from … [Read more...]
While out and about yesterday, I stopped in a local drycleaner which also sells locally-made soap. I picked up a bar of peppermint for myself and thought of some friends who would also love a bar. . .then I looked at it: The bag was standing upright, wide open to allow me to smell the soap, but that also resulted in one end being dusty. My immediate thought was that this had become too much effort for a quick "she'd like that" as I … [Read more...]
Have you ever heard of a Magic Bullet? They're awesome little blender/chopper things and I can't imagine life without mine when it comes to preparing my smoothies. A few weeks ago, and after years of almost-daily use, it died. Kaput. Using my new one this morning, I walked away for a minute and came back to find that my smoothie was now ice cream. You see, I've had the other for so long, it was so familiar, that I never realized when … [Read more...]
Can you imagine the power of one word to change everything? One simple tweak to change your mindset and results? Sounds incredible doesn't it? What if we took the below: "Can I bring in an extra $1000 this month?" "I need to eat healthier." "Can I maximize social media without living 'out there'?" and added "How"? What would the effect be? "How can I bring in an extra $1000 this month?" "How can I eat healthier?" "How can I … [Read more...]
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