Author: k

Driving While Looking In The Rearview Mirror

I find it amusing that weeks after
the decision has been made,
the talking heads are still discussing
whether or not the financial bailout
should have happened.

A useless exercise.

As a businessleader,
you are paid to make decisions.

If it is a good decision,
you tuck that knowledge away for later
and move forward.

If it is a bad decision
(and you will make bad decisions,
that is a guarantee),
you take action to recover from it,
tuck that knowledge away for later,
and move forward.

There is no undo button
once a decision has been made and implemented
(even partially).
Keep looking forward.

The Downgrade Blues

Standing behind a well dressed lady
in a busier than usual McDonald’s,
I heard her say
that she hated eating there
but her husband told her
they had to save money.

When she got to the counter,
she treated the employee horribly.
Everything was a special order
and nothing was ‘right.’

No one likes to downgrade.

If you’re supplying the downgraded product,
realize that many of your customers
will be unhappy about the switch.

Treat your employees extra well
so they are able to pass that caring
onto these customers.

Keeping The Ideal Customer In Mind

You see it on
Flip That House
all the time.

A flipper,
instead of thinking of
what her ideal buyer wants,
uses her personal tastes
with the house.
When the house gets put up for sale,
these personal tastes
decrease, rather than increase,
the price.

That is why I like to recruit
people as similar as possible
to my ideal customer
as sounding boards.
I’ll ask them ‘would you like this?’
If they say ‘yes,’
I go ahead.
If they say ‘no,’
I don’t.

It takes most of the guesswork out of decisions.

Aligning Goals

Last week on
Say Yes To The Dress,
a bride came in
with her team.
Her goal was to find a dress
that would make her feel beautiful.

One of her team members
was her mother.
Her mother was quite open
about hating
her daughter’s taste
(in everything).
Her goal was to force her
to dress the way SHE wanted.

Their goals were not aligned.
Every dress the daughter felt beautiful in,
the mother ripped apart.
Finally, the daughter had to ‘fire’ the mom
as an advisor.

It doesn’t matter how talented a team member
or even how much she loves you,
if your goals are not aligned,
she shouldn’t be on your team.

Care In Copy

One of the tricks
great writers use
is to write for a specific person.
This extends to writing copy.

In Michael Masterson’s
Seven Years To Seven Figures,
he explains…

“…think of someone you know and truly care for
– some who could truly benefit from
the product you’re offering
– and let them in on this wonderful knowledge
you have about this product
that can change his or her life.
If you truly care for the person
you’re writing to,
it will come through in your copy.”

Feeling Rich

With the economic troubles dominating the news,
consumers are being told to
pinch pennies
and cut indulgences.

People don’t like to cut their indulgences.
It makes them feel poor.

That disconnect creates an opportunity
for the smart marketer.

How?

Treat your best customers.

This could be as inexpensive
as sending them a piece of rich chocolate
or organizing a wine and cheese information night.

Make them feel rich.

No Need To Be Perfect

I’ve never launched a perfect product.
Never.
I’ve launched very successful products
but none of them were perfect.
Some of them were far from perfect.

You don’t need a perfect product
to be successful.
What you absolutely need,
however,
is A product,
something prospects can buy.

So take your ‘good enough’ product
(good enough meaning
satisfying prospects’ needs
better than the competition)
and launch.

You can fine tune it
as awareness builds
and sales pour in.

Putting The Project First

I’m winding down a system implementation.
Although the client is very happy,
I refuse to take any credit.
My response is
‘I’m simply an extra pair of hands.
??? led the project.’

Why?

Because in order for
the system implementation
to continue its success,
it can’t be viewed as ‘my’ project.
It has to be owned by
a member of the executive team.

If that executive gets the credit
for this successful launch,
he will continue
to nurture the project.

If you are a project manager,
the project,
not your ego,
comes first.

When Prospects Ask About Price

I have a specific information product I want produced.
I went to one small independent developer
and asked for a quote.
I got a two liner back
with a number larger than I desired.
End of discussion with that developer.

If he had asked what I was trying to accomplish
or had been in anyway interested
in me and what I was doing,
I would have seriously considered
paying the price.

That’s the point
Grant Cardon makes in
Selling Is The Secret To Success.
It isn’t about price.
It is never about price.
It is about having the right solution
to the prospect’s problem.

If you find yourself
haggling on price,
you haven’t convinced the prospect
you have that right solution.

Luck Vs Probability Of Success

I believe luck has a place in success
but I also believe luck can be
‘helped.’

In Creating Wealth,
Robert G. Allen says
“I would rather look upon luck
as a low or high probability of success.
And you can always work
on increasing your probability of success.
If you don’t have the right skills,
you can learn them.
If you aren’t trying hard enough,
you can try harder.
In this way,
you can increase the probability
that luck will smile on you.”

I’ve been looking for someone
to partner with me on a project.
Last week,
I was asked for insight on
a new product
requiring the same skills to develop.

Was it luck?
Yes
but luck helped by years of blogging,
years of helping others,
years of working my a$$ off.