Monday, October 05, 2009
Broaden your bank account by narrowing your marketing message
By Mike Lake
It’s one of the most unintuitive things to do in marketing, and one that’s seldom done well. Most business try to be something to everyone. Acme Electronics: “TVs, computers, appliances, lighting, and a whole lot more”. Most small businesses think that the wider their message, the more customers will buy from them. But look at Acme Electronics. What’s their message? It could be, “We sell lots of stuff related to electricity.” Not very powerful is it?
What could they possible use as a compelling headline to an ad or for the banner of their web site? A company like this would probably rely on the old, “20% off this weekend only.” Now they’re a commodity that no one remembers except for a minute or two while they read the ad. But nothing sticks to the mind of their audience, and nothing differentiates them from every other store with a discount message.
Take a look at your web site, or better yet, have someone outside your business look at your web site. Ask them what stands out as your specialty. If they say something like “You sell cars.” or “You sell hot tubs.”, you’re too broad. Ask them to review your latest ad.
You can sell a wide variety of things or offer a wide variety of services. We’re talking about a focus on your message. Consider Zappos.com. They started out
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Saturday, July 01, 2006
Wishy-Washy Mishy Statements
By Christine Regan Lake
One of the most misunderstood and undervalued tools in business is the mission statement. The core problem with many of today’s mission statements is that there is a total disconnect between the mission statement and the day-to-day running of the business.
Writing It and Not Living It
I see many businesses that take the time to craft a painstakingly detailed mission statement and then hang it in a beautiful frame in the lobby and promote it on their website and of course include it in the company handbook and that’s it. There is no systematic application of that mission statement with respect to the way in which the company runs their business.
What people fail to realize, is that a mission statement is only as powerful as the actions taken to execute the values espoused in that statement and the consistency with which the company continually lives those values. If a company and its leaders do not live that mission statement, then neither will the employees. If the leader does not consciously live that mission statement and incorporate it into every action or decision that is made in the company, then it becomes impotent
and has no power what so ever.
A great company that exemplifies this is Ben and Jerry’s. See their mission statement and the corresponding initiatives that have evolved from that mission statement.
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Sunday, July 03, 2005
The Theory of Ant-ology…
By Christine Regan Lake
So, what in God’s name is Antology and what could it possibly have to do with business? Well, Antology is the name of my new business theory. Having become recently obsessed with the who/what/when/where/why and how of ants due to a recent infestation that we had in our home, I was shocked at what I began to understand of these amazing insects.
What I have come to learn and respect about these unique creatures is their tremendous adaptability. No matter what the scenario ants will do whatever is necessary to ensure survival of the colony. Some ants during an attack from an enemy will actually implode, spraying a toxic substance upon the enemy and thereby sacrificing its life in protection of the colony.
Just to give you some interesting factoids:
• Ants can carry 20-50 times their own body weight depending upon the type of ant
• Ants are the most socially complex animals know to exist and operate on a caste system that has a precise division of duties amongst the colony
• Army Ant raids are highly organized and executed in a systematic order rotating 123 degrees after every raid to ensure that they are invading a territory that will be full of prey
• Army ants are experts in the art of war with the ability to traverse great distances with thousands of ants and attack prey many times larger than themselves
• Successful colonies can live up to 100 years
As I commonly do with anything that I learn, I immediately began trying to draw parallels to business. I kept asking myself, how could this be useful in business? I could not stop thinking about how strong, agile and competitive, a company could be, if it could somehow learn how to embrace what I have termed Antology.
How large could you grow your business if you could align every single person to a single vision and have your work force screaming along making productivity and profitability gains from 20 to 50%?
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Saturday, July 02, 2005
Reaping Retirement Rewards
Learn how to stash $44k in your 401(k) this year!
By Christine Regan Lake
Yes, you read that correctly, $44k in your 401(k) plan in one year. Sounds great doesn’t it; well it gets even better, for husband and wife business partners this means you could save a combined $88,000 per year in total!
Many people assume that the maximum they can save in a 401(k) retirement plan is $15,000. It is true that this is the 2006 maximum for employee deferrals (plus an extra $5,000 for those age 50 or older.) As many of you may know, 401(k) plans are most often used by owners to attract and retain talent, since it allows employees a way to save their own money through a 401(k) deferral. Some employers decide to add a match in order to be more attractive to employees.
However, in most plan designs, owners are treated as just another employee with respect to what they can save for themselves. Owners need to know that that there are ways to give themselves the maximum savings amount allowed, without having to also give it to every employee.
How is this possible? What about those discrimination tests that must be passed in order to maintain the tax qualified status of the plan? What about those laws that say you can’t favor the highly paid employees?
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Friday, July 01, 2005
Master Artisan & Expert Technician
By Christine Regan Lake
The key to business success in the current marketplace is to embrace the concept of being both a Master Artisan, as well as an Expert Technician.
If you think back to the gilded age of this country’s growth you can see many examples of Master Artisan’s work. Take a walk through any historical home and see lots of examples; a hand carved mahogany fireplace, hand painted murals or hand blown glass collectibles. In the gilded age, a sophisticated buyer might wait months for a finished piece from a well known craftsmen.
Today, however, being an artist is not enough. That is because today, there is nothing like the power of NOW. In today’s market, you must be both a creative genius and master technician – meaning that you can deliver exceptional work in a fast turnaround time.
Given that time and convenience are major factors that directly influence a buyer in their purchasing decisions, it is important that whatever your chosen field of endeavor may be – that you truly are both a master artisan and expert technician.
For example, you can have an incredibly creative web designer that people are dying to have build their website, but if that designer is working from a Gilded Age mentality: “It’s a work of art and it will be done when it is done” they won’t have many customers. Both B2B and B2C customers have lofty ambitions when hiring a vendor for any reason. In general, they want a work of art, at a discount price and delivered within a few hours or days.
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