February 2nd, 2010 Administrator
Strictly limited to only (4) four business owners - from different industries!!!!!
Marketing 101– Learn multiple strategies to make your business perform better. Learn the 3 laws of marketing. Learn how to create effective marketing material. Maximize your message and stay within your marketing budget!
Mar 6th from 10am-Noon
AND
Mar 27th from 10 am-Noon
$129
Sales 101– Close more sales and build stronger relationships quicker. Learn how you may be turning off 75% of your market! Incorporate the power of behavior analysis to increase rapport and “speak the prospect’s language.” Stop pushing products and start selling solutions! All attendees will receive a DISC Analysis, and Interpretation ($149.00 Value), as part of the course.
April 10th from 10:00 am—Noon
AND
April 17rd from 10:00 am - Noon
$199.
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December 29th, 2009 Administrator
We have relocated to downtown Troy. The new location offers increased work area for employees and a conference room. The new location should be more convenient for clients.
The new location is 21 S. Plum St. in Troy. The phone and fax numbers have changed. The new phone number is 937-726-1211 and the fax is 866-472-1481.
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December 4th, 2009 Administrator
This article was originally written in 2007 but it is applicable every year…
2009 is coming to a close. It is time to evaluate your victories, your challenges, your failures, and determine what can be done better and what needs to be different.
Take a moment and think back over the year. Imagine for a moment- last year your business was a bunny farm. All your open projects, or daily tasks, were really bunnies. Pretend your job was to harvest bunnies (to become part of the Easter Bunny Patrol Team). Ask yourself…now be honest, how many bunnies would you have at the end of the year?
Now, look at a typical day this past year. Were you tired at the end of the day? Did you spend the day chasing brown bunnies, then white bunnies, then black? Only to end the day completely exhausted, with no bunnies or just a few scrawny ones that really should have been left for harvest on a future day?
Or, did you end the day satisfied and content with several large bunnies that would be the envy of your competition? Did you set the task for the day to harvest brown bunnies and focus your energy on the task? Did you determine “What Matters Most” was brown bunnies and you only set out to acquire brown bunnies. Sure, there was a white bunny that ran across your path. You stood strong and said, “I will not lose my focus today. I will not devote my energy to chasing a project that is not beneficial for today’s goals.”
As you set the stage for 2010 what are you going to do next year that will make the year different? Making a list of goals and tasks may not be enough. You need to stay focused and devoted to your tasks. Frequently, business owners exhaust themselves and their employees by continually changing directions. They are always busy but they are not producing results. So think about your projects and your business and apply the bunny principle to make 2010 better.
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December 4th, 2009 Administrator
Do you have trouble keeping up with administrative work? Is it hard to get your paperwork done? Would you like to have more systems in place but struggle with making all the procedures formal and presentable? Would you like to have an email account that reflects your business rather than a hotmail account?
A virtual assistant may be the answer for you. Start working on your business creating systems to take your business to the next level and leave the boring administrative work to us. Our services include typing, spreadsheet creation, email account creation, procedure and policy creation, just about anything!
Why not give us a call and see if we can free up some time for you.
Call 937-552-2503 and start enjoying the benefits of a virtual assistant.
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December 4th, 2009 Administrator
Have you overlooked a step in your business process? Do you offer many products or services and have a tendency to overlook them when you are selling? Do you have a series of steps required to complete a customer’s order?
The answer maybe a checklist. If you are not used to using a checklist then it may seem foreign at first. However, many of my clients have increased their sales by incorporating checklists into their sales process. This is a guaranteed way of ensuring the prospect is completely aware of your products or services.
Your customer service can reach extraordinary levels if you use a checklist to ensure all of the necessary steps are completed. Be sure and leave a copy for your customer; it will increase their confidence in your product or service.
A checklist can help you with long processes and systems. If you are interrupted you can use the checklist to keep track of where you were.
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December 4th, 2009 Administrator
All of us would like to have more clients or customers. Many times we overlook our best advertising avenues- our existing customer base.
If you provide a product or service you have a great opportunity to pass along discounts and additional services to your customer base when you provide the initial service or issue the invoice.
For example, pass on a sheet of special pricing for your customers. Do not forget referrals There is no better salesperson than a satisfied customer promoting your product or service. Be sure and motivate your referral group by offering an incentive. Your service, profession, and geographical service area will determine the types of offers you may consider.
The point is to make sure you are using your existing customer base as a marketing method. You may be surprised at the return on your investment.
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August 28th, 2009 Administrator
After several recordings KBZNZ talk radio has asked me to be a recurrent guest to discuss management and small business challenges. I will be on at least twice a month two to three time a day.
There are great discussions from great experts from around the world. You can listen anytime on your computer. Check them out at:
http://www.kbznz.com
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August 25th, 2009 Administrator
Do You Plan Your Business Like Your Vacation?
Do you want to have an exciting vacation? Try this method- Get in your vehicle right now. Do not pack. Do not check your maintenance record or verify you have a full tank of gas. Pull out of the drive and go any direction until you find a car to follow. Follow them until you get bored of following them or you need gas. Stop for gas or a bite to eat or pick a different car to follow. Just go with the flow and enjoy the ride. When will you get home? Where will you sleep? Who cares you are on vacation.
To some people the preceding vacation may sound like fun. However, I do not know many people that would actually enjoy such a vacation. The majority of people I know plan their vacations or at least have some general direction, time period, or goal associated with a vacation. Unfortunately, many business owners put more planning into their vacations than business planning. As a matter of fact, many people have no goals or plans associated with their life.
Okay, you caught me. I am trying to trick you into developing some goals.
Goals:
A goal setting study sponsored by the Ford Foundation found that:
23% of the populations has NO IDEA what they want from life & as a result they float around aimlessly.
67% of the population has a general idea of what they want but they don’t have any plans for how to get it.
Only 10% of the population has specific well-defined goals but even then, 7 out of 10 of those people reach their goals only half (50%) of the time.
The top 3% of the people in the study achieved their goals 89% of the time.
What was the difference? They found that of all the possible variables, the only difference between the top performers and the rest was that the top 3% WROTE DOWN THEIR GOALS.
So take some time and plan your life, your business, and write down some goals. Think back to the beginning of this article; if you thought to yourself, “Who has time for a vacation?” then you need to create a goal to go on a vacation. Write it down and start achieving your goals.
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August 25th, 2009 Administrator
What is Your Sales Season?
Soon the leaves will be falling as another seasonal change is upon us. Yes, September is right around the corner indicating your local department store will have the inflatable snowman and the animated Santa Clause obnoxiously welcoming you before the first snow flake has even considered falling. Many of my friends complain about department stores getting started on the Holiday season months before the event. Admittedly, I share this frustration.
Honestly, seasonal changes affect marketing efforts throughout the year; the obnoxious ones stick out more than the others. There is a lot to be learned from evaluating seasonal marketing. Department stores are pushing school supplies now instead of January. Allergy medicine can be found in the center aisle in the warm months but not in February. Snow blowers will soon be on sale but they are not to be found in June.
Retailers and manufacturers have studied the seasons and determined the ebb and flow of the sales process and they are making sure they are putting their marketing dollars to work for them. This may be an obvious point, but are using the fundamental concept to help your business?
Start Measuring:
First, you should be tracking your sales on some system that allows you to look at previous months and years so you can see a trend. I personally use QuickBooks and the majority of my clients also use the program. Depending on the size of your company a spreadsheet program may get the job done. The important point is to use a system not your recollection to determine trends. Also, make sure you are measuring sales instead of profit or cash flow. Profit will fluctuate based on sales and expense, and cash flow will fluctuate depending on terms and actual payments received. If you do not have a significant amount of data from previous experience you should do some research on your industry and see what the typical trends are.
You should also be measuring your marketing expense and return. You may be amazed at what you are paying to get one customer from some of your marketing efforts. Obviously, you want to duplicate the successful strategies and eliminate the non-performers.
Determine the Seasons:
After you determine your big months and your slow months you need to eliminate the variables. Did a piece of equipment break? Did your top salesperson leave? Were you going through a personal crisis? Did you offer a special in your marketing efforts?
Analyzing your sales and marketing data will help you to identify the seasons. It will take some time and some energy but most likely you will see some trends over the years and months. You might consider bringing in other employees or advisors to help you wade through the data and make sure you are looking at it from an objectionable vantage point.
Develop a Plan:
After you determine the trends and seasons you need to develop a plan. This will be different for every business. The goal is to optimize your marketing efforts and increase your profits. Here are some examples:
Constant marketing dollars and definite seasons:
This example company has a definite season and they are really slow in the winter. However, they have been spending the same amount of money on marketing every month. They may consider reducing their marketing expense in the winter and increasing it during the other seasons. Or, they may evaluate why the winter is slow and develop a marketing message that overcomes the winter objection. Regardless, they may want to develop a system to increase cash reserves before the winter season to prepare them for the slow time.
Definite season and no need for product in off season:
This example company has a definite season and they have no way of increasing the demand during the off season. Is there a complimentary product or service they can offer? Can they take advantage of the slow time and conduct employee training or strategic planning.
Year long product with a sales season for some reason:
This example company may be one many of you can relate to. This company provides a service or product that can be used all year. However, for some reason they actually see a trend after the analysis. They should explore the reasons why. Ask the question why until they arrive at some strong reasons. What can be done? Is it because their customers are facing Holiday bills? Are they on vacation?
Summary:
Most likely your product or service has a season. The objective is to understand it and control as much as possible. Prepare for what you can prepare for and optimize the areas that can be improved. This is not a onetime process. You should be continually reviewing this information so you make wise decisions.
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April 24th, 2009 Administrator
I imagine you are as excited as I am to see the warmer weather. I love being outdoors and I have been anxiously waiting to run, bike, plant flowers, and even mow. My attitude about mowing will change around July, but for now it excites me.
The arrival of warmer weather also means the end of the year is closer. Soon we will be preparing for the end of the year and reviewing our yearly goals. Snow will be falling and some of us will be wondering where the year went as we drink a cup of coffee and review our list of last year’s goals that is becoming next year’s goals. No, I am not trying to be pessimistic. But the reality is 33% of the year is over, and only 66% of the year remains.
It is time to take inventory of your life and your business. What did you list as your short-term goals and long-term goals. Take a moment and ask yourself, “What have I done in the last 24 hours, or last 7 days to help me realize my goals?”
Far too often we create goals and then wait for them to magically come true. After another year passes by and yet another unfulfilled goal dies quietly in the night we become disheartened. It does not have to be that way.
Take a moment and look at your list of open goals. Look deep inside yourself and determine why you have this goal. Next, ask yourself, “Do I really value this goal?” Unless you personally value the goal you will not work on it. Pleasing others will not provide the long-term fuel needed to create the burning desire in your heart to make lifelong change.
After developing your list of valued goals develop a plan to work toward them every day. Look at the list everyday and ask yourself what you can do to make your goal a reality. Ask someone in your life to hold you accountable. Share your goal and ask them to follow-up with you in the future.
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