Believe it or not, having the option to say no, and even better giving this option to your employees, is one of the quickest ways to a lot of yes in your business. 

Popular opinion is that you always, always, always want to be able to say yes to your customers.  The problem with that thinking is that it draws in a lot of customers who maybe shouldn’t really be your customers – or at least should be so on better terms.  Terms you can actually live with.

You have all heard the stories of companies that say yes all the time – even to customers who are just plain ridiculous.  And in all these stories, it works out in the end.  Nordstroms gets a big article in the Wall Street Journal for giving some lady a refund on her snow tires.  The lady is happy, the company is happy with the press.  People who shop at Nordies feel better about paying too much because they are doing so with a great company.  See?  Everybody wins.

How about the other stories though?  The ones that (more…)

The economy’s been down for so long many, many local businesses are now looking for that silver bullet that is going to finally pull them up and out and back to the promised land.  In 2010, it seems the pull is towards social media – primarily Facebook and Twitter.

And the rush in this direction, combined with how short handed many small businesses are, has resulted in a lack of attention to other advertising methods.  There may even be a short term benefit, exacerbating the problem.

Head down this path, though, and your brand will suffer in the long term.  Think about the brands that you are most loyal to for a moment.  Do they reach out to you beyond your Twitter account.  Without knowing you or the company you are currently thinking of, I know the answer is “yes.”

While the jet-setting lifestyle in this article may not be relatable for you, the underlying principals should be.  The whole article is a good read, but since you are busy, here is the high point: (more…)

There’s a huge trick available to you to ensure that your advertising – both online and in traditional media – is more successful in 2010 than it has been in some time.  The trick is… to stop looking for tricks!  I know, I just blew your mind right?

It’s true though.  Consumers (and search engines for that matter) have reached a point where they are sophisticated enough to see through your tricks.  So they way to leap back ahead of your competition as we slog up and out of the recession is to get back to the basics.

Which, in a way, makes me sad.  You can count on me to be interested in every new trend to come along – at least to look anyway.  When somebody builds a better mousetrap – particularly if this gizmo makes my business run smoother – you can bet I want to be there to jump on the bandwagon.

So feel free to join me in my mourning, and then let’s move on to the mood swing that accompanies the feeling of finding something “new” to work with - the stuff we knew we should have been doing all along. (more…)