Archive for 'operations'
Small Business Lessons from the Crossing Guard
July 21st, 2006 by John Herman, under marketing, operations, sales, small business. No Comments
While out running errands the other day, I found myself stopped at a crosswalk. The crossing guard was leading young schoolchildren across the quiet street in a very organized fashion. I thought to myself, “What will the children do when they have to cross a busy street by themselves?” Hopefully they will learn by following the crossing guard’s system. I often work with small businesses that need help crossing busy streets. They had no trouble in the beginning, when traffic was light. But now that their business has grown, the traffic is much heavier and the street much busier. Many could use a crossing guard to help them safely cross. However, most business owners don’t have a crossing guard and they have to cross on their own. Don’t worry, if you remember the lessons of the crossing guard: Stop, Look, Listen, Think, and Walk….Don’t Run; you’ll be able to safely cross the street no matter how heavy the traffic.
Stop
You wouldn’t just run across the street would you? No, you’d stop first! Stop and take some time to evaluate your business. Where is it going? Up until now, you’ve run your business all by yourself. Now you need to add more staff, develop a plan and a budget. There seems to be thousands of options. Stop and take some time to think about it – don’t make snap decisions!
Look
Would you cross the street without looking? No, you’d look both ways! Take stock of your business. Look at what you’ve done in the past and what you’re doing now. Look at what works and what doesn’t? Look at what your competitors are doing and what seems to be working for them? Look at ways to incorporate some of those ideas into your business.
Listen
Would you cross the street if you heard a siren? No, you’d listen to see what was happening! Talk to your clients and listen to what they say. Talk to your staff (if you have any) and listen to their ideas. Talk to your vendors and listen to their perspective. You can learn a great deal from people who experience your service or product on different levels.
Think
Once you’ve stopped, looked both ways, and listened, then it’s time to think about when and how to cross the street. The same is true for your business. Take some time to think about it. Develop some plans and then evaluate which plan will work best. Determine what would be involved, when it will happen and what you need to make it happen. Intuition can be your best guide. Often, if it looks too good to be true, it is. Make sure the plan is a realistic one you can follow.
Walk…Don’t Run
Would you run across the street if there wasn’t enough time to walk? No, you’d stop and make sure you had enough time to cross the street safely! The same is true as you implement your plan – make sure you don’t rush it. Remember plans change. Make sure you don’t lock yourself into anything and always reevaluate as you go along. Rushing into something can be costly and you may back yourself into a corner. You might really get hurt.
It may seem overwhelming, but you can do it. When you were a kid, it was overwhelming to cross a busy street for the first time, but you did it. As a business owner it can be overwhelming as your business grows, but if you follow these “lessons from the crossing guard”, you’ll be taking steps to ensure your business succeeds, safely. We call those Succeeding Steps!
How To Beat the Wal-Marts
July 3rd, 2006 by John Herman, under marketing, operations, small business. No Comments
John Jantsch from Duct Dape Marketing talks about what he tells merchants when they freak out because a new Wal-Mart is coming to town.
To beat a giant, you’ve got to offer something they don’t (that’s the secret to competing with anyone really.) Wal-Mart does low price, what do you do. I hope it’s not low price. Rainy Day Books, an independent bookseller, hosts almost weekly author events and often sells out theaters for authors who agree to speak sign books for books sales only. If you buy a book, they drop you a note when a similar book shows up.
To beat a giant, you’ve to take advantage of their weaknesses - don’t be afraid to point them out. I saw a sign in a local hardware store that said “Our prices are higher than Wal-Mart because we take care of our employees.” Pretty bold, but perhaps an effective way to make a point.
To beat a giant, you’ve got to provide better information and community. I know a woman’s clothing retailer that puts on monthly events unrelated to clothing and packs her store with clients who come to learn and network.
Business is a tough game, but the bottom line is that there are plenty of people out there (like me) that will pay a premium for place that knows my name, caters to my needs, adds value through information sharing and community and isn’t shy about providing and then charging for value.
Ten Smart Moves to Improve your Business
June 28th, 2006 by John Herman, under operations, small business. No Comments
Derek Featherstone offers his Top Ten moves to improve your business.
1. Start a blog
2. Get good help
3. Write with a twist
4. Unplug your fax machine
5. Stay as small as you logically can
6. Stay under the radar
7. Just turn email off
8. Raise prices every year
9. Know when to throw in the towel
10. Get office space
Read the whole article for explanations on some of the crazier suggestions and get your bonus and most useful tip!
A Marketing Lesson from the Dixie Chicks
June 27th, 2006 by John Herman, under operations, small business. No Comments
The Dixie Chicks narrowed their target market and are now making the music they’ve wanted to make all along. Too many businesses get caught up in the chase of going after the money, the big account, without stopping to focus only on clients that value what you bring to the table, that push you to do your best work, that view your work with them as a business partnership.
Life is too short to feel trapped, to dread going to work, to have clients that suck the life right out of you. There are so many incredible people and businesses out there waiting to find and experience your unique talent. Find them, push them, help them, be true to yourself and don’t look back.
Work for Yourself First
June 23rd, 2006 by John Herman, under getting things done, operations, small business. No Comments
Everyone has heard the investment tip of “Pay yourself first.” A great piece of advice that will help you force yourself to put money back.
Achieve-IT! Blog brings this idea to your small business. What if you work for yourself first?
“The reason this habit is so important is if we are not careful, other people will put us to work on their goals. They will have us doing stuff which may never contribute to our own goals
Work for you first
The way you win big achievements is through daily perseverance. You can’t go from minimum-wage to a million dollars in just one days effort. You can’t turn around a pending divorce by giving your spouse one day of love. You can’t get your PhD. in microbiology by only studying for one day. No, it’s persistence that leads to the big win. Days, weeks and sometimes years of dedication on a daily basis are what leads to success. So each day you miss is a setback.
How many days pass where we go to sleep exhausted, after a day packed with work - work unrelated to our goals? That’s sad isn’t it?
A day consumed with reaching other people’s goals is a form of neglect of your own goals.”
Working for you first means taking more control out of the hands of other people and gaining it back for you. Likewise the smart investor knows he has bill to pay, he has stuff to buy. But on payday, every payday, he takes a portion of his check first and puts it into investments. That way, he takes care of others wants and desires only after his are. A wise goal setter will do the same with his time. He’ll take his limited time and work for himself first.