Business Life Archives - Page 20 of 186

Don’t Be Afraid of Technology

May 11, 2016 by Thomas

Given all that technology has to offer your brand, why would you in turn run away from it and try to hide?

Unfortunately, there are businesses out there that do just that.

For myriad of reasons, some companies see technology as too cumbersome, too expensive, too much to try and teach their employees. As a result, they miss out on all the great things technology can offer a brand.

That said has your business embraced technology as it should. If not, are you in fact afraid of all technology has to offer?

Consultants Can Make the Difference

For some of those businesses that are afraid of technology, what if they hired consultants to implement and manage such needs?

While some brands may shy away from using consultants, many other companies see much benefit in using men and women who have extensive experience in the world of technology.

With that being the case, how can your business put I.T. consultants to work for you?

Among the ways they can assist:

General website production and upkeep – Your website should know no boundaries when it comes to promoting your brand. That said your website must always be maintained so that not only is it working as it should, but also giving visitors to the site what they need. You can opt for a provider such as Maryland I.T. services or others that are out there, searching for the one best suited to your needs and financial means. Don’t just automatically opt for the one offering the cheapest price. Then again, the most expensive one doesn’t automatically guarantee the best service. When you combine great experience with an affordable price, you typically hit the nail on the head. Speaking of upkeep a minute ago, your site’s I.T. pro or pros should review the website regularly, looking for any errors. Some of the typical gaffes can include 404 errors, pictures that do not match with the content, headline typos etc. While the occasional error may slip through from time to time, a website filled with errors is likely going to give many visitors the wrong opinion about your brand. If they feel like your site is nothing short of a joke, can you really expect them then to fully trust your products and/or services? Don’t let visitors be the ones to routinely find gaffes on your site;
Blog content – Assuming your website offers a blog, that blog is some of your best marketing means available. With the right focus on the blog, you can write and/or include guest posts that revolve around your particular industry. The number one rule here regarding content is that it must be informative and authoritative for the reader, not trying to sell something every other sentence. The content should also have a call to action, thereby leading you to potential sales at each and every opportunity. Finally, the content should be shared (see more below) as often as possible, allowing you to get it in front of as many eyes as possible;
Social promotions – If your website has been lax at promoting itself on social media, that needs to change immediately. Your presence on social networking sites can open so many different doors for your brand, so don’t hesitate to use it. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn etc. are all great tools to give your brand the social exposure it truly needs. Make sure your site has its respective social media icons in an easy to locate area, allowing those wishing to an opportunity to follow you. Yes, some business owners will lament that they have trouble truly figuring out if social media provides a good return on investment (ROI), but the overwhelming evidence shows that it does.

These are but three of the ways I.T. consultants can educate business owners on improving their technology efforts.

If you have been only a so-so player in the world of technology, perhaps it was because you didn’t have the right consultant help available?

When you stop and think about it, technology is only going to get bigger and better in the years to come.

That said don’t be afraid of it and lose out on all sorts of potential business.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Dave Thomas covers business and technology items on the web.

Why Successful People in Business Lean on Their Friends

May 10, 2016 by Rosemary

By Mindy Mackenzie

Celine Dion singing “All By Myself” is one of the great clips on YouTube of all time. [Click here for a little spine-tingling inspiration.]

But as Celine sings about how she doesn’t want to be all by herself I can’t help but think about the CEOs and executives I advise who feel exactly the same.

Being a senior business leader can be a notoriously lonely place. But all the successful people in business I know have a group of advisors they rely on and most have had this group for many, many years.

Why? Because going it alone in business is a bad proposition.

You need what I call a personal pit crew: a handful of trusted, credible people who can give you insight, advice, counsel, and painful feedback, when you need it. This is a crew committed to your success in your business and personal life. And while these folks may have started out in a more advisory capacity, they ultimately become dear and lifelong friends.

Here’s the painful truth: the more senior you get the less the people around you will tell you the truth. Messages start to get managed. All your ideas begin to get agreed with –enthusiastically. Those around you are more careful in handling you because they want or need something from you. As the parable of the nude emperor indicates, the process that resulted in him traipsing around town in his birthday suit did not occur in a day.

It is these very factors that successful people are aware of. Because they are self aware. Which gets increasingly difficult the more powerful and successful you become. Friends by their very definition are people who love you in spite of yourself. For who you are inside and out. Not just for your public personae.

There’s another aspect to why successful people in business lean on their friends: they are smart enough to know they don’t have all the answers. They know they need a fresh perspective or a challenging point of view. And they crave and value that degree of truth.

Finally, at the end of the day, the friends and advisors who have known and supported your journey the longest are also your biggest cheering squad. They know from whence you came and are proud of all you have accomplished and their part in being able to help you get there.

They have observed firsthand the growth and evolution. They know the struggles, insecurities, fears, failures and flops. They are truly your pit crew.

Like all successful business leaders, you need an external group of people committed to your success in your work and your life.

Here’s how to put your personal pit crew together:

Have the right mindset by being willing to lower your guard, be vulnerable and ask for help.
Identify people you trust and whom you respect and admire for their competence and character.
Invest the time necessary to cultivate deep, lasting, open relationships. Reciprocate the support and remember to express gratitude.

There is no need for you to be all by yourself in business any more!

About the Author:

Mindy Mackenzie is an accomplished corporate executive, a highly acclaimed speaker, and CEO advisor. Before starting her advisory practice, Mindy served as Chief Performance Officer of Beam, Inc., where she earned the nickname of the “Velvet Hammer.” She was revered for being the truth teller amongst the executive team by exhibiting a bold combination of honesty and empathy. Her impressive career also includes five years at Campbell Soup Co, where she lived and worked overseas, and nine years at Wal-Mart, where she advanced through various Senior Leadership HR and Organizational Development roles. An expert on truth telling in the workplace, her expertise includes leadership and organizational effectiveness, transformational change, culture, and strategy. Mindy is the author of The Courage Solution: The Power of Truth Telling with Your Boss, Peers, and Team (Greenleaf Book Group, May 3rd 2016). For further information please visit http://mindymackenzie.com/.

Make Your Case of Being Innocent

May 6, 2016 by Thomas

Having an allegation levied against you can mean a number of different things.

For the business owner, he or she can see their business dealings take a significant hit when someone has accused them of a serious crime.

One such crime is sexual assault.

Even when the allegations prove false, a man (sometimes the same charge could be tied to a woman) and his business can take years or maybe never to recover from the suspicions.

Was he really guilty and just got away with it? Could he be brought up on a similar charge down the road?

If you’ve been charged with such a serious crime, how will you go about making your case that you are truly innocent?

Stating the Facts to Clear Your Name

When a charge as serious as sexual assault is thrown at an individual, he must do all possible to fight it, especially if he runs a business and risks losing a solid business reputation in the process.

For starters, trying to clear your name begins with providing as much evidence as possible to what the prosecution is alleging.

If you can prove without a shadow of a doubt you were not where the alleged victim claims you were, use any and all evidence (witness statements, video surveillance, receipts from a business etc.).

The goal as in any case of this magnitude is to plant seeds of doubt on the story the prosecution is putting forth. If you can do that, there may not be enough evidence for your case to even go to trial.

The Business of Staying in Business

While your personal reputation is undoubtedly on the line, business owners charged with such crimes must also think about their brands, along with how the public relations fallout from such charges could hurt their companies.

The first thing you want to do is be as sure as possible that your brand remains viable and does not suffer in the public eye.

While competitors should always take the high ground in such cases, you might find one or more that will try and exploit your situation, seeking to take some sales away from you.

For those business owners who do not have a public relations firm either representing them or an in-house team or person dedicated to the company’s PR, it is imperative that the business be presented in the best possible light.

Secondly, assure customers that the business will continue functioning normally, even if you are away from running things for the time being. Nervous customers are never a good matter for a business, so do your best to promise them that things will be alright, with the brand continuing to operate as it has before.

Another area of concern is how your employees will take the news of such charges.

Given how serious allegations of sexual assault are, you may have some workers with questions, concerns etc. Those concerns and questions can be about you personally, but also how this matter may or may not impact their jobs with your business.

Whether you do it in-person or have your second in command speak to them, do your best to assure all of the staff that this matter will be resolved, along with the fact that no one is being let go at this time. While that could change down the road depending on whether or not there is a guilty plea or verdict, your staff wants to know now how the case could have a positive or negative impact on their professional lives.

Lastly, never paint the alleged victim in a bad light.

Even if you are 100 percent innocent (hopefully this is the case), sexual assault in and of itself is a serious charge to throw at someone.

It is important that the victim or victims are not shamed or verbally abused by you or anyone representing you, including your employees.

Take the high road as much as possible, all the while still vigorously defending yourself and proclaiming your innocence.

Avoiding a sexual assault charge can be done, especially when you demonstrate that you are innocent and have nothing to hide.

When all is said and done, will you make your case of being innocent?

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Dave Thomas covers business topics on the web.

Is Your Online Marketing Connecting with Consumers?

April 29, 2016 by Thomas

No matter the product or service you are marketing, connecting with consumers is always your top priority.

In today’s challenging economic conditions, connecting with consumers is as important as ever.

Face it; many consumers have myriad of choices of where to buy their goods and services from, so your marketing efforts need to stand out from the pack, especially when pitching the public via the Internet.

With that in mind, are your online marketing efforts truly connecting with today’s consumers?

Use the Internet to Make a Connection

In order for your online marketing efforts to hit a home run with consumers, you need to cover all your bases.

These would include:

Email marketing – Although some marketers have pulled away from email marketing to some degree or another, countless others still rely on it to state their cases to consumers. If you’re using email marketing, keep the messages short and sweet. Keep in mind that consumers are typically bombarded with pitches from marketers and businesses on a daily basis, so don’t add to the frustration they sometimes feel by getting yet more marketing messages in their in-boxes. Also make sure your pitches come across as informative and worthwhile, not just looking for a sale and nothing else. Lastly, leave a positive but not over-bearing call to action to end your message;
Mobile marketing – More and more marketers are putting their time and efforts behind mobile marketing. With this version of marketing having exploded in the last few years, mobile marketing is a great means to reach consumers in an instant. Whether you are marketing real estate, legal services, vehicle maintenance products and services, home furnishings, children’s products, or hundreds of others goods and/or services, mobile is where it is at today. Mobile marketing gives you a great opportunity to reach shoppers when they are in the decision making process. You should also use your mobile opportunities to offer consumers discounts and rewards programs, both of which are likely to encourage them to make a purchase or two. Just like with email marketing or any other form of marketing, don’t be over-bearing when it comes to trying to make a sale;
Social marketing – Marketers who shy away from social media are leaving themselves without one of the best means with which to reach consumers. Your social efforts should be concentrated on the major players in this market, among which include Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn etc. Keep in mind that you may not be even marketing a product or service per se, but instead an invitation to attend a seminar, conference, open house etc. LinkedIn is a great venue to do just that given the countless professionals using the site on a daily basis. Also be sure to regularly engage consumers on your social media sites. Unfortunately, some marketers pay little or no attention to their social venues, thereby missing out on great opportunities to market their brands. You, on the other hand, should not be one of those marketers. When consumers come to one of your social venues with a question about a product or service, engage with them as soon as possible. Your ultimate goal should be to send them away satisfied with your time and efforts, leaving them with the idea of doing business with you. Lastly, always stay positive on social media. The last thing you want to do is to get into a negative conversation on a social venue, a conversation that could ultimately end up hurting your brand;
Being a good listener – You might stop and ask, why is being a good listener part of my marketing needs? Simply put, those businesses doing too much talking and not enough listening are typically the ones struggling to make inroads with consumers. With millions and millions of consumers flooding the Internet, take a few moments to step back and hear what they are saying. What do they need? What do they like and don’t like about your industry? How can you be their go-to brand? These are but a few of the questions you should be mulling over and having answers for. As great as your marketing campaigns may be, it is listening to the consumer that ultimately wins you the prize, most notably their business.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Dave Thomas covers marketing topics on the web.

Your Business Success Depends on Protecting Your Assets

April 27, 2016 by Thomas

Is there anything truly worrying you about your business?

Some business owners fret over not being able to maintain a regular revenue stream.

Others, meantime, worry that their customer service initiatives will not always please some of their clientele. Still others have concerns over hiring the right talent (for those companies that are more than one person shows).

With those factors in mind, what (if anything) has you concerned about your brand moving forward?

Maintaining a Safe Business Identity

In order to keep your business humming along, it is imperative that you never take for granted how even one episode of identity theft can throw your company for a loop.

Stop for a minute and think about how potentially devastating it would be if an identity theft thief got his or her hands on your personal financial information. Imagine all the damage they could do in such a short amount of time.

Now turn that imagination to your business dealings.

If you think an identity theft thief can’t bring your brand to its knees, think again.

If customers see their data stolen and feel like your reactionary time and/or actions are less than acceptable, your business could suffer greatly.

With that being the case, are you making sure your business data (specifically that of your clients) is safe and sound at all times?

If you’ve been a little lax at times, you need to close those loopholes as soon as possible.

There are a number of ways to do this, so don’t feel like it can’t be done.

To start with, make sure you’re operating with a sound Internet server.

For the company providing you with a server, how thoroughly did you vet them when deciding to choose them as your provider?

Your server provider must be operating with a zero tolerance rule for allowing online mishaps to occur. If the server you are working off of is susceptible to being compromised, your company’s data (both personal and that of your customers) can be compromised too.

Are Company Financial Transactions Protected?

Another of area concentration needs to be on the transmission of sensitive customer data, especially financial transactions.

Whether you operate an online store or need a customer’s financial details for other reasons, make sure such transmissions are securely protected. If the information is exposed for even the least amount of time, it can end up in the wrong hands.

Just as you would use a site such as www.lifelock.org to monitor your identity, making sure it is properly being used, the same holds true for all of your business data.

Speaking of exposed data, it is also important that your employees handle customer data (and business financials etc. for that matter) in a professional and protective manner.

Only those employees that truly need to handle such data (accounting, customer call centers etc.) should he having access to it.

Unfortunately, there have been too many stories of business owners discovering that it was actually one or more of their own (including departing workers) employees caught stealing sensitive data.

One way to nip this problem in the bud is laying out the consequences of such actions the day they are hired.

All employees should know under no uncertain circumstances that your business does not for an instance tolerate identity theft amongst its workers. Anyone caught and proven to be guilty of of such crimes could not only lose their job, but also face criminal action by law enforcement.

It is also critical that your business reacts quickly and decisively to any identity theft breaches of your brand, thereby preventing a major hit against your long-term business success.

While you may lose some business due to such attacks, some customers will be more likely to stay with you if they see you are reacting in a professional and prompt manner, this opposed to being unable to handle the matter and/or looking slow to react.

Given the perils identity theft can cause to your brand, preventing it from happening in the first place is always your best line of defense.

When you take such crimes seriously, you stand to be better prepared against them.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Dave Thomas covers business topics on the web.

Will Your Restaurant Eat up More Profits?

April 22, 2016 by Thomas

In the restaurant business, image and appearance are both as important as the food one serves.

Yes, the food is what patrons come to eateries for, but if the appearance of the restaurant and/or the image of the food or customer service are bad, restaurant owners won’t be eating up very many profits.

That said how would you rate your eatery when it comes to image and appearance?

Don’t Let the Wrong Image or Appearance Sink You

When you have your own eatery, the image and appearance you give off can mean the difference between packed houses day after day or lots of empty tables.

So that those tables are filled as much as possible, make sure you are:

Selling your brand – It might seem rather easy to want to sell your brand, but it should be done with more than just a little thought behind it. For instance, you want to know what the demographics are for your customers. Do you service mostly adults? Are your customers primarily families? Do many of your customers like a drink or two with dinner? Are you typically busiest during the breakfast, lunch or dinner hours? Do you get a sizable amount of business during the work week or primarily on the weekends? These are just a few of the tidbits you want to know as a restaurant owner. There’s no sense in trying to market your brand to families if you primarily just have adults only stopping by. On the reverse side, if kids are a major part of your customer base, you need to have meals that appeal to them;
Keeping your look fresh – Even the best food in the world will sometimes get overlooked if your restaurant’s interior/exterior appears too drab for patrons. Yes, it costs money to renovate your eatery, but it can be (and oftentimes is) the best investment you will make. Whether it is the need for new indoor tables/booths and chairs, seeking online restaurant patio furniture, improved lighting, better flooring etc., make sure you do the investing and purchasing sooner rather than later. In holding off on such needs, you actually may end up spending more money over time, something that can prove costly down the road. Another means to keep your look fresh is making sure the walls have a welcoming look to them. Pictures of paintings of happy people or enjoyable locations will dress up a restaurant faster than most anything else. One especially good tactic to use is showing through artwork and pictures the history of your eatery. If it has been around for decades, not to mention has been visited by celebrities and other notables, displaying their pictures (perhaps they’re autographed too) on the walls is a nice feature;
Presenting a positive image – Face it; some customers will come to your eatery and leave with a bad taste in their mouths. Whether it is the food, the service, perhaps even the décor, you’re not going to please everyone that walks in the door. With that being the case, it is how you react to such an experience that can sway customers one way or the other. Showing concern for why they did not enjoy their experience allows you to perhaps get them back for a second try. Maybe you will even lower the prices or give them some other form of incentive to give you one more shot. If you simply write-off the experience as a bad one without any remorse, you are likely to never see those patrons again. If you think that isn’t such a big deal, it will become an even bigger deal when they tell their family, friends, and even co-workers about the experience. Show your cause for concern and listen to what they have to say in order to increase the odds of having a second chance to woo them.

In order to eat up more profits, your restaurant must always be looking to keep its image and appearance up to date.

While the food is of course the main dish, your restaurant’s image and appearance are more than just casual appetizers.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Dave Thomas covers business topics on the web.