Season’s Greetings Highly Valued Customer!
Dear [$firstname $lastname], Has it been a year already? Here at Acme Inc. it seems like just yesterday we were bothering the one person in our office who knows how to do a mail merge to get our holiday cards printed out and in the mail! We all want to thank you for the relationship we have been able to build together in 2014, except for those of you who we haven’t seen at all. And if that’s you, you can be sure that as soon as the person doing the mail merge is finished, we’re going to get her working on our new CRM software – so you should be hearing from us again…soon! In any case, we wish you, your families and everyone on your team a wonderful holiday season and a prosperous 2015! Sincerely, [$accountrep($lastname)] • • • Hopefully you never send out a holiday card as bad as what I’ve created above, but I’m exaggerating for a reason: messing up the “niceties” can be worse than doing nothing. For instance, over the years I’ve had my name messed up so many ways – and how hard is it to spell Susan?! No, I’m kidding. It’s Solovic that takes the abuse. I’ve seen everything from Solovick to Solovitz. There are some things you must get right, and a person’s name is at the top of the list. We live our entire lives with our names, they are our most “personal” piece of property. Be certain you get it right, and that includes whether or not a person goes by a shortened version of their first name. If your biggest client is Bob Smith and you call him Robert in your greeting card, you have immediately eliminated any personal message you were trying to express. (I am never Sue, by the way.) Here are some more guidelines: Don’t use a greeting card to push sales. You may seem like you’re being a really great company by also offering 15 percent off, but don’t fall into that trap. If you want to offer a holiday special, do it under separate cover. Make your card reflect your company. Does your company have a personality? Try to express that. If nothing else, a photo card of your staff can be a good call. Cards pulled off the sale table at Walgreens don’t cut it. Include lower level employees. Don’t over look receptionists, assistants and associates. These are the people your employees deal with on a daily basis. They do a lot of the hard work; show them the respect they deserve. Don’t be late; in fact, be early. See if you’re like me: I always remember the first business holiday greeting card I get each year. It’s hard to notice those that arrive accompanied by 20 others in the mail each day throughout the last week before Christmas. Tackle your holiday card project like you should be doing everything else in your business: Do it right or don’t do it at...
read moreTo Swag or Not to Swag – That Is the Question
Sometimes I feel like I should be listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for attending the most seminars and conferences, especially when it’s the end of the day or of the event and I’m toting around a bag of “swag.” I hear that the swag bag they give participants in the Oscar awards show is really something to behold. However, for your garden variety business event, often the swag is of little to no use. I think it’s worthwhile to consider why you might want to invest in swag. And once we really understand why, it leads to a discussion of what kinds of items make good swag. The motivation Let me start by stating the obvious: In business you hand out a freebie hoping that somehow it leads to a sale someday. However, let’s unpack that just a little. In all good and lasting business relationships, there is a level of interpersonal connection. With swag, you’re hoping to begin to establish, or reaffirm, that personal connection. Consider this parallel example: When someone does you a favor, you experience personal gratitude and somewhere in your brain a balance sheet pops up and you make a note that you “owe” this person a good turn. In my example, the two people, over the years, engage in helping one another out. Frankly, that’s the ideal picture of an ongoing business relationship. By their continued engagement, both parties benefit. Thoughtfully selected and valuable swag – although not always “valuable” in the monetary sense –can prime the pump of that relationship. But just as importantly, poorly selected and worthless swag can short circuit that relationship. With those observations, let’s look at some guidelines. Good swag, bad swag Consider who should receive your swag. If your budget is limited it is far wiser to present your most important prospects with some valuable swag rather than give everyone a ball point pen. As I said earlier, your swag may go existing customers with the hope of strengthening your relationships even more. In that case, you should know the recipients well enough to select some great swag. Gourmet food items are never wasted. I end up leaving a large percentage of the swag I receive in my hotel rooms. But during busy conferences, when you’re on your feet all day, a delicious treat is always appreciated. Avoid cheap items and items that are too heavy or big to carry easily. You may think that by handing out the biggest stuffed animal at the conference that you’re setting yourself apart from the crowd. Well, that’s true, but not in a good way. Books relevant to a person’s business make excellent swag. However, a puff piece book about the athlete or celebrity you hired to sit at your booth for three hours is a waste of your money. Anything that communicates value is a smart choice. Some items that don’t cost a lot of money nonetheless evoke the feeling of value. Moleskines, for example. They are merely small notebooks, but they are well made and send a far different message than a cheap spiral bound notepad, although in virtually every way they perform the same function. One year my company gave away slim, folding, lint brushes. They were a big hit because you could easily carry...
read moreDid Small Business Saturday Make a Big Impact?
I’m wondering if Shakespeare wrote “Much Ado About Nothing” with Small Business Saturday in mind. Yes, the Bard was a genius, but I doubt that even he could have anticipated the American Express promotion back in 1598. For the week leading up to Small Business Saturday, virtually every story written about “small business” was about Small Business Saturday. And although I’m sure there were exceptions, I think most local merchants share the opinion of restaurant owner Nick Bari who told Bloomberg Businessweek, “I don’t think it’s going to be a big deal one way or another. It’s more of a gesture than anything else.” Or, as Shakespeare would say, “Much Ado About Nothing.” All the world’s a stage But there may be another parallel between the Shakespeare comedy and Small Business Saturday. Mistaken and hidden identities are major elements of the play and they play a big role in Small Business Saturday too. While it is disguised to look like a local small business movement, it’s just as much a promotion for American Express. Further, much of our core of small businesses can’t participate. Although most merchants can get the promotional materials after going through an application process, much of the heart of American small businesses can’t participate, such as home-based businesses and many ecommerce sites. When the hoopla dies down If your business seemed to benefit from the event this year, that’s great. Further, I’ve written about and promoted other local shopping movements on these pages. I think they are especially admirable when they are done at the local level. The “cash mob” movement comes to mind. But there is a reality that local merchants need to understand and embrace: For continued success, they can’t depend on the good will of local shoppers, they have to offer unique selling points that give them an advantage over the national chains. When events such as Small Business Saturday introduce a new shopper or diner to your establishment, it’s a good thing. However, you need to be ready to show these folks why they should come back. If Small Business Saturday merely moves some sales volume from one day to another, then it’s really not accomplishing anything of merit. Purchase considerations It is very true that local merchants keep more money in their communities and are pillars of support for local charities and improvement projects, but unfortunately those are attributes most consumers fail to weigh when they are making a purchase decision. The perceived value needs to be more directly associated with the product, price and shopping experience. Fortunately, there are many successful local small business merchants who are doing it right. They will continue to be successful whether or not they participate in an event such as Small Business Saturday. Is that you? If it is, how about sharing some of the strategies that have enabled you to have success despite competition from some bigger...
read moreHow Non-Retailers Can Make Holiday Sales
Does your business lack an obvious tie-in to the holiday season? Perhaps you’re B2B or you offer a service that doesn’t lend itself to being a stocking stuffer. Don’t let yourself get depressed watching retailers cash in on this seasonal sales “hook” with their Black Fridays and door busters; there are ways for you to take advantage of this time of the year as well. Remember the great scene at the end of When Harry Met Sally? It’s New Year’s Eve and they both realize that they need to make changes in their lives so they can spend the rest of their days together. December is not only a time of gift giving; for businesses it’s also a time to look forward to the next year and get very serious about taking steps that will lead to growth. How can your business fit into the “improvement” plans for other businesses and perhaps even individuals as they look to their futures? Here are some ideas to get you thinking: Educate. Organize various educational outreach events for the first months of 2015 and start promoting them as 2014 winds down. These could be seminars held at your place of business, or a local community room or convention center. Maybe 2015 is when you conduct your first webinar. If so, commit to it now and get the promotional machinery going. Offer a free trial or discounted introductory period. As your customers are looking toward next year, this year’s taxes are on their minds…as well as what they have spent on Christmas gifts. They desperately want discounts in January and February. Use that overwhelming desire to save money to introduce prospects to your product or service. Start the year with some discounting strategy or trial period that gets people on board. Re-energize old contacts. Use holiday cards or personal visits as a way to re-establish relationships with customers and clients who have fallen off your radar screen. Just like Harry re-established his love for Sally on New Year’s Eve, your business can use this time of the year to make contact with people you haven’t heard from in a while. Dropping in personally bearing a gift is never a bad strategy. Partner with a retail outlet. Does your product or service somehow relate to a segment of the retail market? For example, if you are a budding personal chef or personal trainer, find a locally owned health food store where you can hold a “clinic” or perform short demonstrations. Shoppers enjoy this added “buzz” during the holiday shopping season and you can be handing out literature with your contact information on it. Let me give you one general idea to consider as you search for ways to leverage this final sales month of the year. Mentally put yourself in your client or customer’s position. Envision what they will need the most as 2015 gets underway. Find a way to pitch your ability to meet that need to your customers...
read moreLet’s Give Little Entrepreneurs Some Big Help
I see a lot of lists along the lines of “7 Must-Have Traits For a Successful Entrepreneur.” I’ve even seen lists that have as many as 50 personal attributes delineated that are required if you want to be an entrepreneur. But today I just want to look at a few and put a slightly different spin on them. Some of the traits that often appear on these lists are: Inquisitiveness. Fearlessness. Prone to getting into trouble. Won’t take no for an answer. If I look at that list without any headline above it, it sounds to me like it’s describing kids and that brings us around to what I’m thinking about today: How do we encourage more entrepreneurism in our youth? Nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit Frankly, while most of us would agree that a large percentage of children have those attributes, many adults – including both parents and teachers – relate to kids in ways that suppress and eventually eliminate those traits from our youth. Unfortunately, surviving in an institutional setting, like schools, can wring these qualities right out of people. However, it needn’t be that way. If we can collectively recognize that the best strategy to lift our society as a whole is to create more opportunities for everyone, we should begin to value those qualities that contribute to making successful entrepreneurs, including those I listed above. After all, when an entrepreneur is successful it opens up areas in which many individuals can flourish. I can write about this, people can give TED talks on the subject and Entrepreneur Magazine can publish articles on the topic, but one organization has been working directly in this area for many years: Junior Achievement. I want to give them the thanks and recognition they deserve, talk a little about the organization and encourage you to do some follow-up. Junior Achievement’s mission is “to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy,” and I think we can all agree that meeting this goal is more important today than it has ever been. JA has been helping introduce and train young people for almost 100 years and it works with kids of all ages – kindergarten through high school. Working in the classroom JA has some 213,000 volunteers who go into schools and teach “workforce readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy through experiential, hands-on programs.” They learn to start businesses, invest in the stock market and manage their finances. I know students and teachers who have worked with JA and they have nothing but praise for the program. Are your schools connected with your local JA? If not, do some lobbying and get the program going. Also, consider how you might volunteer with JA. The program is all about practical, real-world, knowledge and skills. You might be the ideal person to deliver that to some eager students in your community, One might say that this shouldn’t be left to what is mostly a volunteer organization. I disagree. I think bringing in real entrepreneurs and experienced business professionals is the best way to really get children educated and excited about creating opportunities through commerce. And with major backers such as AT&T, Microsoft, CapitalOne and others, I think many or our best business leaders believe this is a great program as well. Image: Vintage...
read more