I like to think that I am an informed consumer who balances budget and quality, trying to get the most “bang for my buck.” Recently, I came across the web site for an organization called Co-op America, that gave me pause. Now, I must start this writing with full disclosure that I am the driver of an SUV, I don’t do a good job of recycling, and it seems that with a family of four, we still have a bag of trash to discard at least every two days.

The point being, I have a long way to go in terms of amending my personal habits to the good of the earth and her inhabitants. My family does understand that God provided us the land from which we live, so we are driven to have respect for it and take the best care of it we possbily can. I have a tendency to think all people are good unless they prove otherwise, but I have made a new commitment to making sure that my money supports those businesses that make the right choices—responsibly producing products that minimize the impact on our planet, and not sacrificing human rights. This would be a difficult task to research on an ongoing basis, but Co-op America makes it easy by maintaining watchdog programs in order to promote ethical consumerism. 

To provide an example of some of the things that they promote, I’m recapping an article from Co-op America’s Fall 2003 newsletter, Co-op America Quarterly about ethical consumerism, called 20 Ways to Use Your Money for a Better World. Although the text was written several years ago, its message still rings true.

1) Live Simply

Living sustainably means living lightly on the Earth with simple, joyful elegance. It means reclaiming what’s important to you in your personal life—relationships, meaningful work, a sense of community, and a healthy planet. It means valuing thrift over waste, the spiritual over the material, quality time with friends and family over quantities of expensive possessions.

2) Get What You Need Without Money

Getting what you need without cash can help to enrich your quality of life while helping to steer society to sustainability. Consider the difference between having your neighbor mow your lawn and then watching her children one afternoon as a thank-you, in contrast to leaving a check for a professional who landscapes your yard while you’re at work. There’s a personal connection in the former money-less scenario that’s somewhat lacking in the latter.

3) Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

When you’re about to throw something in the trash, consider other alternatives first. Used goods such as bicycles and eyeglasses are collected by charities and can be reused by others. Household items including leftover paint, old carpet, and used ceiling tiles can often be recycled by manufacturers.

4) Buy Green

If America’s 100 million households began to shift just ten percent of their purchasing to green businesses, that would add up to $170 billion a year—enormous social change capital. Working together, we can steer the economy from its destructive path to one that works for people and the planet by simply shifting our purchases to responsible businesses.

5) Buy Fair Trade

Fair trade is a powerful economic strategy that provides an alternative to sweatshops and other forms of worker exploitation. Fair trade helps farmers and artisans around the world earn a fair price for their labor, work toward self-determination, and invest in the long-term sustainability of their environment and communities.

6) Go Organic and Local with Your Food

Organic food is better for your health, tastes better, and protects the environment from toxic chemicals. Emphasizing locally produced organic food can make your purchases even more Earth-friendly by reducing the resources consumed by transportation, cutting down on the waste associated with excessive packaging, and supporting local farmers.

7) Know What Your Purchases are Funding

The most fundamental way to let your consumer dollars work for social and environmental change is to be very critical about which companies you support and which you intentionally avoid. Such a strategy of supporting companies because of their environmentally or socially responsible policies is known as a “buycott.” Together with a boycott strategy of avoiding companies with irresponsible policies, “buycotts” can help you channel your resources to companies that endorse your values, while sending a message to companies with business practices you don’t support.

8) Stop Sweatshops & Child Labor

Make purchases from green and socially responsible businesses that respect workers and the environment. Several organizations put labels on products to show they were not made in sweatshops. When making purchases, look for union or fair trade labels. If you’re buying a hand-woven carpet, look for the RUGMARK label.

9) Be WoodWise

Preserving the world’s forests is vital—forests help curb climate change by absorbing carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas. They provide critical habitat for songbirds and other animal species, as well as breeding areas for medicinal plants. They are home to many of the world’s indigenous peoples, and they are places of beauty and recreation for all to enjoy. 

10) Choose Least-Toxic Products

By using nontoxic and less-toxic alternatives to everyday products like paint, household cleaners, and personal care products, we keep our homes and communities cleaner while creating demand for products and services that don’t harm human health or the environment.

11) Commit to Green Energy

Americans consume a lot of energy. With only five percent of the world’s population, we use 25 percent of the world’s energy, and about 90 percent of that comes from fossil fuels and potentially. dangerous nuclear energy, according to the US Department of Energy (DOE).

12) Rethink Your Transportation

To curb global warming and keep our air toxin-free, it’s important that we use our economic power to choose the most environmentally responsible travel options available, such as car-pooling, walking, biking, using public transportation, or buying vehicles that use alternative power source.

13) Improve Your Community

Instead of watching TV, play games with friends and family, organize a book club, host a dinner party, or take long walks. Rediscover your city or town by finding a new restaurant, historical site, or street fair to visit in every corner of your area. Frequent locally owned stores and restaurants to meet others in your community and to keep more of your dollars in the local economy. Organize public activities, such as parades, picnics, street fairs, or film shows.

14) Invest Responsibly

If you invest money, you can shift your investments to support the values you hold most dear—from human rights to environmental sustainability to diversity and equality—while earning returns competitive with conventional investments. All you have to do is become a socially responsible investor.

15) Invest in Communities

If every socially responsible investor put just one percent of his/her savings and investments into community investing, it would triple the amount of capital available to low-income areas that need it most. You can achieve the 1% (or more) in Community goal by simply doing your banking with a community development bank or credit union.

16) Join Shareholder Actions

If you are an investor, take advantage of your shareholder rights. When you receive proxy ballots in the mail, vote them conscientiously and send them back. A little-known fact is that every time you return a blank proxy ballot, your vote is automatically cast with management’s position. If you are unsure of an issue, it is best to simply abstain.

17) Give Generously

If you can afford to do so, give generously to your favorite local and national nonprofits and charities. They’ll make your money go a long way toward amplifying your voice and efforts for a more just and sustainable world. And you’ll make sure they stay strong during this recession and beyond. 

18) Foster Peace

Peace is more than just a lovely abstraction; it’s a real goal that each of us can actively work toward in our everyday lives. Fostering peace begins with striving toward a more just world where no one feels exploited and everyone can count on justice, safety, freedom, and having enough—a global society with far less stimulus for violence.

19) Use Your Voice

Using your voice isn’t limited to issues of local concern. People have also been speaking their minds on national and international issues. Make your views heard on issues that are important to you. Oppose legislation that would hurt communities or the environment; speak out as a consumer or shareholder about a company’s social and environmental practices; demand responsibility from corporations; and participate in letter-writing and call-in campaigns for peace, justice, and sustainability.

20) Educate Others

If we are to change our economy to one that is socially just and environmentally sustainable, where people and the planet come first, working together is crucial. Talk to others about social justice and environmental sustainability, and listen with compassion. Share resources with friends, coworkers, family, and fellow members of your house of worship. The more people who get involved with efforts to build a just and sustainable world, the closer we will get to making it a reality.

Due to space limitations, I’ve had to drastically cut the text, so I encourage you to draw your own conclusions from the full text. If you see something there that piques your interest, be sure to tell someone you know—I have! In addition to some common sense advice, I find it refreshing to know that banded together, each one of us can make a difference in this world. How about you?

This article used with permission from 400 Edition, Inc. It is unlawful to use this article or any portion of it without the expressed permission of its author. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Advertising is a complex topic. This is evident by the huge number of companies in business merely to provide advertising services provided to those organizations unable to successfully navigate the maze of messages, markets, and mediums on their own.  The advertising industry itself is a multi-billion  dollar operation in the United States, and contains many media-specific areas of expertise. Already sounds complicated and expensive, eh?

 In its most basic context, to advertise means to promote, or make something generally and publicly known. Sounds simple, but a business owner needs to know what message should be promoted, and what part of “public” is the right market for their trade. Most business owners I know (including the partners at Ivy League Images, Inc.) are focused on the result of advertising. There must be a pay-off for the investment, and we all want solid, empirical evidence. Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet—it’s a process that takes some time, must be very closely evaluated, and could change tomorrow! Poorly planned or a complete lack of advertising is a huge reason that many businesses fail. 

Choose a Message

The message is what provides information to the marketplace, sets you apart from your competition, and tries to influence potential customers. The message should be indicative of a business’ entire operation, but can also be product-specific, too. Determining what aspect of your business sets you apart from your competition is a good starting point for your message. If you are consistently less expensive, price could be key to your message. If you have a high standard for quality, lead with it. In order to know what separates you, it is important to know what your competition is doing. 

Messages can be a call to action, like the Nike message “Just Do It.” Of course, I’ve always wondered if that translates to “doing” the what’s depicted in the ad, or plunking down my $120.00 for the tennis shoes. 

Know Your Market

If your only avenue of sales is a single, brick and mortar shop, and there is significant competition without a lot of differentiation in your geographical area, you may have a very limited market. If you offer something very unique, or niche, the whole world may be your market. It can be a mistake to assume geographical limits when none exist.

A simple way to know your market is to survey your current customers. Surveying can be as easy as having a guest book near your register. You might ask for an address (so you’ll understand your geographic reach) and how they heard about your business.

Your local Chamber of Commerce can provide demographic information on the residents of your area, and the U.S. Census Bureau has general, overall statistical data. If you have a niche market, such as selling hunting gear, local agencies can provide data on number and types of permits. After you’ve exhausted the free/cheap methods of gaining market information, there are also fee-based reports available for just about everything!

Diversify Advertising Mediums

Some of the most common forums for advertising are print (newspapers and magazines), radio, TV, billboards, and the Internet. Once you’ve determined your general market, chose those forums that, at a minimum, cover your market. Your business may benefit by advertising through venues that slightly exceed your current market. This can actually expand your market, just by promoting to new geographic areas.

Many small businesses make the mistake of only advertising in their local paper. This indicates two grave assumptions: your market is based geographically; everyone in the area reads that newspaper.

The best approach is to create a combination of mediums. It is better to have smaller ads in a greater number of print mediums, than one large ad in only one medium, and better still to include radio spots, rather than just print.

Frequency

One of the foundation concepts in advertising is frequency. Typically in print advertising, a potential customer must see your ad three times before they consider your business a legitimate source. The advertising marketplace is competitive enough to find reasonable pricing, but know what is reasonable; you must research them as a whole. 

How Much Should I Spend?

So now that you have chosen an advertising message, knowing your market,and diversifying advertising mediums. These concepts are the what, who, and where of advertising, but I know that one of the burning questions is, “How much should we spend on advertising?” For those regular readers out there, you’ll recognize the standard response—”It depends.”

Advertising can be the best investment for or the biggest drain on your business. Don’t confuse our advertising budget with your marketing budget. Be sure to set aside funding for public elations (PR) efforts, collateral (brochures, business cards, etc.), and events. Statistically, ell-orchestrated PR is seven times more effective than advertising. And well-orchestrated PR is certainly not free, but that’s a different article!

The one global truth in advertising spending is that if you don’t create a budget and closely track your results, you’ll never know that mysterious "just right amount". The balance is finding the point between what you can afford (even if it hurts a little sometimes) and what is effective.The key to fi nding this point is sales. Hopefully, each year, your business constructs written financial goals, including what you expect to generate in revenue and what you will have to spend to generate that revenue. It is important to be realistic about these goals.

One of the best ways to be realistic about projected revenues and expenses is to review your organization’s historical data. If revenue typically grows by 6% each year, it is reasonable to expect them to grow by 6% next year. It is not reasonable to expect them to grow by 15%,unless you have a specific plan for accomplishing that goal, such as increasing your market reach, product line, or other concrete actions.

Where Should I Advertise?

You should now take a closer look at the available advertising mediums. Some of your favorites may be knocked out of the game merely because of cost. If you’re a small business, it is unlikely that a TV spot during the Super Bowl will be in your near future. Local networks, however, may be a viable option, especially with the number of cable channels in existence.Get quotes from all viable mediums that have the ability to meet your target market. It will help you establish a norm for comparing costs.When you are receiving quotes, be sure to get pricing for all sizes and frequencies. Most single instance print and aired advertising comes at a premium in order to incent the advertiser to sign long-term agreements.

Be sure to ask potential advertising mediums about their reach and results. Some have been around long enough to have great data on what your results could be. No one can truly promise specific results, but you certainly have a better shot when you can match a medium to your optimum market.Once you have determined your revenue goal and have answered the basic what, who, and there questions listed above, you have most of what you need to construct an advertising budget. As a rule of thumb, small to mid-sized companies allocate from 3-5% of their revenue to their advertising budget. Larger companies tend to allocate a greater percentage (some up to 20%), especially where there is tremendous competition. To get to that just right amount will take several years of the budget/execute/analyze process.

If you are a new business, with no history upon which to draw, check into industry statistics through your local Chamber of Commerce, Small Business Administration, or other business related networking groups that exist. Advertising is critical to new businesses, even if you seem to be starting with a healthy word of mouth pipeline. 

When Should I Advertise?

When you spend advertising dollars is just as important as how much. After you have developed a basic dollar figure, and have a better understanding of advertising costs, review the timing of sales trends from the past. Compare that to advertising expenditures you made during that same period, in order to determine the results of past advertising. If past advertising efforts have been based upon a rocket science approach like who had the most attractive salesperson, throw that history out the window and start fresh. There can be a slight lag between real sales results and advertising effort, which is worth keeping in mind while creating an advertising calendar. Consider that previous time frames of low sales figures might be the best time to advertise in the coming year.

Now you should be equipped with how much you have to spend, what the advertising will really cost, and an idea of your optimum advertising periods. Some simple math should help you determine your monthly expenditures for advertising. If you come up short, it is best to remove a source of advertising, rather than forego advertising for a few months. As mentioned last month, frequency is one of the basic keys to advertising. It is better to run 3 months of 30-second radio spots than 1 month of 60-second spots; or 4 quarter-page ads over four months, than 1 full-page ad for a single instance. Don’t plan to run out of budget before you run out of time.

If you know that your business will move to a new location, launch a new product, or any other major changes, be sure to pad that time frame with more advertising dollars.If your business handles physical products, or is part of a franchise, consider sharing the burden of your advertising. Many manufacturers offer co-op, or a financial subsidy, when you present their logos or products in your advertisements. If your franchisor doesn’t offer co-op, consider grouping together with other franchise holders in your area to share the burden of advertising in mediums that reach your markets. 

Since you never know what kind of excellent opportunities might crop up from time to time,it is a good idea to put aside up to 5% of your advertising budget for discretionary funds. This fund would allow you to make unplanned purchases within reason. Be very stingy with these funds, as you can always spend them, but never get them back!

Now you get to do the fun part—execute your advertising plan. You’ll fi nd that the plan you’ve created will help take a lot of the headache out of advertising.

This article used with permission from 400 Edition, Inc. It is unlawful to use this article or any portion of it without the expressed permission of its author. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

I was going over Google Analytics with one of our clients the other day and noticed that the traffic they were getting from Google search had dropped by about half over the past year. Their site was still the same, but wasn't coming up on the first page on certain key search terms any more. What was wrong? What was wrong was that their site was the same, and the competition's had changed. A good analogy comes from Alice's adventures through the looking-glass where...

Alice first meets the Red Queen. In the middle of the conversation the Queen grabs Alice's hand and they run as fast as they can for a long time but never move. After they stop under the same tree where they started, part of the dialog goes as:

 

'Well, in our country,' said Alice, still panting a little, 'you'd generally get to somewhere else — if you ran very fast for a long time, as we've been doing.'

'A slow sort of country!' said the Queen. 'Now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!'

 

The moral of the story for SEO: if you want to maintain your search engine rankings, if you want to stay where you are, start running. Hard and fast.

On June 8th, I gave a talk at the Alpharetta Joomla Users' Group about website analytics. You can see the presentation online, but you'll miss my snappy commentary, unfortunately.

Probably half of our clients rarely, if ever, update their sites. We don't update our home page often, but we do blog semi-regularly. It's just become more important to all of us to update our web site's content regularly. Why? A post just appeared ont the official Google Blog (you didn't know they had one, did you?) entitled Giving you fresher, more recent search results, Google will now more heavily weight freshness of content. How heavily? They're rather vague about that, but the article seems to indicate that this will be a major shift for Google. My take-away from this is

if your site and another are about equal in content value, the site that's been more recently updated will appear higher in the search results. So now it's no longer sufficient to have great, well-structured content. That content needs to be fresh as well. So here's your assignment:

• Look at your Google Analytics and see what key words people are searching for when they find you.
• Look at your site in the administrator side and see what articles relate to those terms.
• See when you last updated those articles.
• If it's been a few months, see if there's anything new you can add to the article.
• Set yourself a regular schedule (weekly, monthly, quarterly) to update content.

The alternative is to start slipping in the search rankings.

We help numerous organizations implement e-mail marketing packages like MailChimp and Constant Contact. We even help some develop and maintain campaigns. E-mail marketing used to be a load and fire kind of activity, but things have changed over the years from a legal and technical standpoint. So how do you keep up?

 

Once the CAN-SPAM Act came heavily into play almost seven (7) years ago, any business using e-mail to market their products and services should have been aware of the $16,000 per incident penalty, but many still don't realize that they send e-mail every day that is not compliant.

But avoiding penalty is the very base level of e-mail marketing. It should generate business for you, shouldn't it?

Rather than using trial and error, MailChimp offers a neat selection of "how to" manuals from their site---for free. One of our favorites is Common Rookie Mistakes, but they have a wide selection that can move you from rookie to expert. Take a look at the full library!

Oh, and rather than being on pins and needles about what you may be doing wrong, we recommend using MailChimp so they can worry about those things and you can worry about strategies that will grow your business.

After an initial interaction with a prospective client, I immediately know if this is an organization with whom our company can partner. How do I know? From a strictly business sense, we have the skills and experience to recognize a need that we can fill, and fill well. Yet, there is another, more interpersonal aspect of organizational match and agreement on establishing a path of success that are just as important for a true partnership. As with the start of any deep, committed relationship, what you do in the first meeting is crucial. If you are looking for tips on recognizing true partner material, read on!

Don’t bother looking too deeply for the 101, by the way. You can find a lot of opinions about what partnership means from consultants around the globe. The word has become trite, primarily because many product and service providers naively believe that partnership is established solely by a contract in place, thus discounting the essential spirit of the relationship. Real partnership comes from knowing your own company and attentively learning about your potential partner.

If you are thinking “partner, shmartner, I have vendors, not partners,” you might as well stop reading now. If you are thinking that your company is too small or new to consider this approach, please keep reading. Every company needs partners, whether you realize that right now or not.

Any successful sales or account manager, especially those using a consultative sales approach, already understand the Partnering 101 content. Here are the basics:

• Listen to the challenges and opportunities your prospective partner faces.
• Make sure you have a great story to tell and don’t make it a pitch—mostly by providing an honest and transparent account of your success.
• Collaborate with the prospect to identify key areas for fit.
• Have enough confidence and faith to start in a place of trust.

The goal is not finding a spot for your product or service—the goal is to be able to respond to a need in a way that is natural and fulfilling to both parties. You may occasionally get scarred, but in the process, you become better at qualifying future partners, learning from every interaction.

In the last 10+ years, we have had some fantastic client experiences. Some have been successful, “rock my world” experiences, and others have been complete and total failures. Thankfully, more of the former than the latter have allowed us to be better and stronger, but all of those experiences have helped us identify our sweet spot for success. The evaluation of that sweet spot is not based upon the total revenue dollars an account brings us, or even the percent profit we derive, but rather a holistic review of the mutual benefits to our respective organizations. It pays to evaluate the ones that ate your lunch, too, so you understand what NOT to repeat.

The first step in recognizing your optimum partnering environment is to deeply know your organization and the employees who make it up—including yourself as its leader. Be brutally honest with yourself and key resources within your organization. Next, make sure your mission is in alignment and clear to your internal team and the world, succinctly defining your sweet spot and your target audience. Your products and/or services should clearly facilitate that mission. Your mission should be a sieve through which all decisions are made.

Once you have your mission, products/services, and story properly defined, you are ready to market to properly fitting prospective clients and ensure that your operational procedures motivate the appropriate behaviors to meet their needs. Continue to use your mission as a filter through which you test new offerings when changes are required—and they will be.

As an example, although we offer tactical services, we are most successful and efficient when we can first participate at a strategic level. To some readers, this may seem intuitive, but others believe it to be a waste of time and profit, thinking it would be great to be able to just check off the list of how their service meets specific needs, much as a waitperson at your favorite restaurant would take an order. That may be great for their organization, but not for ours.

Occasionally, we have preliminary conversations with a client who wants and needs a waitperson, with no interest in a strategic partner. Depending upon their level of desperation, we may agree to help them temporarily, but are vocal about how we operate and can best be of service. Sometimes, those clients come to understand that they do need more strategic assistance, but other times, they move on to a tactical-specific partner. Some would consider this a loss, but we know that their time with us was temporary and that they were not a true partnering fit for our organization. The beauty is that they can find other providers whose sweet spot is tactical, once their original crisis is remedied, and we are usually facilitators in helping them understand their true need. This difference is what makes the business world go around, but understanding in what sphere your organization works best, and identifying the prospect’s mode of operation is essential for forming a lasting partnership. Sometimes, turning away business is the best decision you can make, even when it seems painful at the time.

Be willing to spend enough time to get to know a prospect and their needs before determining if they are partner material. Discuss what you can and can’t provide for them honestly and transparently, all the while listening for the clues they will provide about what is really important to them. As a technology company, we find very few companies really understand their needs accurately because they simply don’t have a full grasp of what is possible. This lack of understanding is not a judgement on their intellect or abilities—it is just outside of their area of expertise. After we have an understanding of their mission, objectives, and current state, we can help them visualize the way in which technology can bring those goals into focus, and help them develop the appropriate strategy to accomplish stated goals.

Once you have gone through the process enough times, it becomes easier. You will develop more accuracy in approaching target organizations and the decision of whether your prospect is a good partnering fit becomes instinctive.

Why is this approach important? The health of your business—and that of your partner—depends upon it. Fit leads to efficiency, which then leads to profitability and sustainable growth. Fit also makes for a less stressful, drama-free operating environment where the work can be fulfilling and enjoyable.

Don’t become sidetracked by opportunities that may provide short-term revenue growth, but require significant re-tooling or flash hiring. There’s nothing wrong with stretching your comfort zone when it is a logical conclusion, or is within the context of a very limited project, but straying too far can ultimately destroy your business. Instead, remain true to your mission. Seek that sweet spot where you and your partners will enjoy long-term growth and profitability.

If you are part of a small to medium-sized business that needs help finding a web strategy that will rock your world, please contact us!

We know you’ve been there—something did not go as planned and conflict has arisen. It happens in business, because business occurs between human beings. Your response to these situations can make or break your client partnership, so your initial steps in preserving your partnership are crucial. Since this post builds on concepts presented in “Being a Partner 201: Recognizing Your Partner”, please start there.

The reality is that some time, either you or your client will make a mistake. You may fail to meet a commitment, or make an error in approach that impacts their business (yikes!). Your partner may have provided incorrect information, made a bad decision, or failed to pay an invoice when you were depending upon the cash flow (yikes!). Regardless of who makes the mistake—who is at fault—or the degree of damage that ensues from the mistake, the first thing to do is stop, take a knee, and try to view things objectively, especially if the situation seems to be turning into a crisis.

This first step is the foundation of your approach, so take a breath and study the problem. If your client partner is pressing you for resolution, be gently forthright in letting them know that you simply need a moment of evaluation to ensure that you are taking the right approach, and set a specific date and time for the discussion. If your client is bucking for a confrontation that must happen immediately, they were really never a partner, right?

Protection From Difficulty

Let’s back up just a bit, because the first step to diffusing difficult situations is to have processes in place that protect you from having them.

In our line of work—web design and development—that means the following, at a minimum:

• Thorough project scope and estimate documents, complete with all required legalese;
• A review of the items above with your client;
• A pre-established payment plan;
• Open communications for the duration of your project;
• Recordings and/or notes of meetings with quick distribution to meeting members;
• Timely, efficient time-tracking of billable hours and expenses;
• A method to control project changes; and
• A solid acceptance process.

In other words, pay attention to the details and make sure your partner is doing so, too. When everyone knows what to expect, there is little room for unintended events to occur. Having a well-oiled change control process will allow you to minimize the possibilities further.

When things do slip in or past you, don’t create drama within your team or with your partner—just handle it professionally. Many conflicts have started and good partnerships ended because of drama. Relegate your business to be a drama-free zone (DFZ), because drama, or emotional infusion, can only make a difficult situation worse.

Make Investigation a Priority

Back to the program...

Now that you have a moment, do whatever you need to do to set aside time in your schedule to evaluate. You have worked hard to earn this partner, and they have worked hard to be a good partner, too, so it is important enough for you to give the matter your full attention.

If you need information from your team, make sure they understand that it is a priority, too. This is a good time to remember that making something a priority does not mean injecting drama. Now is not the time for an emotional response. In fact, now is the time to remove emotion from the equation altogether in order to get to the root of the problem.

It may help to create a timeline of events at this point, just for clarity, and gather pertinent email correspondence or discussion notes. Meeting recordings or notes are crucial documentation for this very situation. Some call this CYA, but we consider it claryifying rather than covering. The extra bit of effort taken to document decisions being made is not only important to executing your project successfully, it may also be key to salvaging your business relationship.

The important thing is to get all of the facts—not the suppositions or opinions—but the facts. Discard all things that are not strictly factual. Doing so will keep you in the DFZ.

Find the Cause and Solution

Your evaluation should result in finding the error and the source of the error. If it doesn’t, you haven’t dug deep enough.

Regardless of who made the error, make sure that you understand every detail of how it transpired—the when and the how, even the why, if you can determine it free from opinion. And document it all, even if only to have discussion notes.

This is also a good time to analyze your assessment of the facts. Are you making assumptions, or are you able to remove yourself enough from the emotion of the situation to not make value judgments based upon this particular incident? Be honest with yourself and about your team. If you are a “never wrong” kind of person, weigh that into your assessment…and get over yourself. Being wrong is not a character flaw, as long as it is not your most consistent trait.

Resist the sometimes immediate stance of defense. Don't let protection of your team, self, or your client partner blind you to errors or omissions, and don't let excuses cloud your understanding of "why".

Next, make sure that you have a clear path for resolution, because there is always a solution. Part of the solution should be a process for ensuring that the same issue can’t occur in the future. Depending upon the circumstance, the resolution might be impacted by further negotiations—especially if finances are involved—but it is critical to understand what needs to be done and what you need from your partner to accomplish the resolution.

It is essential is to remember that your goal is an on-going relationship with your partner. As a true partner, you should not be willing to burn a bridge in your affiliation, but to prove, once again, why are you are the best partner for their business by getting through the difficulty in an amicable and just way. This is another good time to remember the DFZ, and squash any emotional response.

Prepare for the Discussion

Hopefully, you have completed your investigation, established the cause, and found a solution prior to your appointment for a discussion with your client. Be urgent about doing so, because this is not an appointment you want to reschedule, and you should really have enough time to pray about or at least "sleep on" your approach. Keeping your scheduled appointment and being prepared indicates to your partner that the situation and their business is important to your organization. Giving yourself time for proper contemplation of the events and resolution will help you stay focused, confident in your approach, and keep you in the DFZ.

In our last post, we recommended preparation steps for the scheduled client partner meeting to discuss your difficult situation, and reviewed an approach when your team was responsible for the original issue. This next installment covers what to do when your partner is at fault, and how to survive either of these two scenarios.

Since this is a continuation of the “Being a Partner” series with a third post, please read the other two, Being a Partner 201: Recognizing Your Partner and Being a Partner 202A: Surviving Difficult Client Situations, and then return. I know…homework is rarely fun, but we’ll wait, because it’s worth it.

If your client partner was at fault, be equally concise in outlining only the crucial point of decision or misinformation that created the problem. You don’t have to give them the full backstory in your statement of the issue. State the facts you discovered during investigation and then plan to give them the opportunity to speak.

Develop your background bullet points—and even categorize—so that you can address any disparity between perspectives. Leave any desire to sermonize behind, and only use them if reality is becoming clouded. Don’t use the facts as a bludgeon, but as a salve. Ultimately, your goal is to come to agreement about what happened and the primary point of failure so you can move forward with your project and your relationship. The more words said during a crisis, the greater the opportunity to stray from the DFZ (drama-free zone) bounds, and the less likely you will find an amicable resolution.

In order to plan for the introduction of your resolution, quickly recap your past collaborative successes at working through challenges, then lay out your solution, including any process or financial remedies. Know in advance what you might be willing to concede as a remedy, such as a portion of billable time, and consider what your partner may be able to concede, as well. Although this may seem like a negotiation prep, we find it best to think of it as evidence of your value of the relationship.

This portion of the discussion should take less than one minute. Write your script and toss out everything nonessential.

If your client is a true partner, and not just a customer, be generous in your planned concessions, because they are worth it. Always run the self-test of putting yourself in their shoes, or looking at things from their perspective. This seems the right place to recommend being fair, but know that many difficult situations end badly because someone chooses “fair” as a hill upon which to die.

Your resolution should be prepared in writing, with a copy for your partner to be delivered during the last stages of your meeting.

By this time, after your investigation and preparation, it’s time to forgive all errors by all parties involved. It’s time for you to move on in your own mind, so you can focus on being concise but warm in your delivery, and getting to the end goal of resolution.

Now, Have the Discussion

Have the discussion with your partner quickly, but not without the previously-mentioned planning steps. Don’t let a conflict linger, because, unresolved, it will only fester and become less manageable.

You are armed with the facts, your best solution, and a heart of forgiveness. You know what is negotiable and what is not. You have your script and brief notes. This is not the time for email or texts. Meet in person at a neutral location, or, if your client is long-distance, via a telephone call or a video conference.

Gird yourself with a DFZ approach, keeping your own emotion in check, then follow your plan.

Keep it concise, keep it to the point, and don’t feel like you need to make small talk before making your opening statement. You both know why you are here, and it is best to rip off the Band-aid quickly. If you are meeting over coffee or a meal, place your order before you start the meeting.

Once you have opened, give them an opportunity to respond and really listen to what they are saying. Only interject if you need clarification of their point or they trip into an emotional response, in order to get back to a fact-based discussion…and, again, do so gently.

If you hear points in their feedback that do not match the facts from your research, jot down a note to address that point once they have finished. REALLY listen to what they are saying. Are they providing additional facts about which you were previously unaware? Do these facts substantially change your evaluation and reparations?

If your client partner repeats the same point multiple times, do interject to repeat what you heard them say, ask them to confirm your understanding, and then write that point down. If you are on the phone or a video conference, be sure to tell them that you are making a note of their point, so they are clear that you have heard them. Rehashing is counter-productive to getting to a point of resolution.

Don’t interrupt them to contradict. Show them grace and let them get their irritation off their chest, if they are, in fact irritated. Remember that this is not a battle, but a bridge to your future together.

This is not a time for “us and them”, but a time for how we, as a team, will move forward. Don’t offer excuses for any mistakes you’ve made, and certainly don’t assign blame for their errors. Continue to move the conversation toward how your relationship can work in the future, and how to implement the solution to this particular challenge. You don’t have to be pushy about this, but don’t lose momentum in the conversation.

You’ll have to be the judge of whether your partner is straying outside of the DFZ in their delivery. Just nudge them back in bounds gracefully and move on to the solution. If they don’t respond to a gentle nudge, remind them that this situation is not standard in your relationship, and that you’re happy to continue the discussion if it can be handled professionally. In a worst case of truly really bad behavior, let them know that you will email the information you have discovered and excuse yourself or them, if the meeting is at your office. This is a time when that age-old southern tradition of not “causing a scene” is beneficial to all involved.

Come to a Mutual Conclusion & Resolution

Assuming things don’t go too sideways, once the dust has settled and your partner has spoken “their piece”, thank them for their candor and clarify only points that are crucial to the overall resolution. If they haven’t voiced any concerns, be willing to acknowledge that they may need time to digest your presented facts. Even if this is the case, you have, at a minimum, been able to present your facts and your resolution.

If your agenda and plan go smoothly, and they are able to digest the information on the spot, you should now be working with your partner in a way that you both have experience—together to achieve the common goal—but this time geared toward re-engaging your partnership. Ask directly for agreement on how things got to the current state and then verbally review the main points of your proposed resolution.

In the case of a change in your current process, be specific about each party’s responsibility in your proposed revision, and request for your partner’s feedback for improvements to your recommendations to keep it collaborative.

You may need to provide some detailed information about planned concessions, particularly those of a billing or payment nature. It may be necessary to provide additional reporting for these details, so be sure to take good notes for any required follow-up tasks.

If changes to your resolution are necessary, based upon collaborative discussion, document those changes on both written copies, then verbally review the primary points (with edits) and give them their copy. This way, everyone leaves the meeting with the same expectation.

What Happens if You Can’t Agree?

There will be times when agreement can’t be reached, for a myriad of reasons. Most of those reasons ultimately boil down to a lack of trust. Sometimes a lack of trust is earned and deserved, but the dissolution of trust on either “side” is death to a partnership.

We wish there was a way to guide you through the split-second decision of “should I stay or should I go”, but it’s more of a general gut response that, ultimately, can’t be taught. This is one of the reasons the front-end research and solution-building is very important. Trust yourself in the moment, as long as you are weighing the importance of this client to your business, and what you have to give up to keep them. Sometimes, in the long run, what you have to give up will never be worth the business.

If you decide that you can’t reach a successful conclusion to overcome this particular issue, be frank and make this statement before you part ways in a calm, non-inflammatory manner. Many times, we find that when a client realizes that you are willing to walk away from their business, they will have a change of heart, but be warned that this is generally an emotional response and not likely to result in a long-term solution. Only you can know if you are willing to take that chance.

Briefly discuss what you will do in follow-up to a decision to part ways, such as a final invoice, hand-off of documentation, and final status for work efforts, and set a mutually-agreed upon schedule to execute these plans. Do your best to part on friendly, professional terms.

Reflect, Improve, then Move On

Regardless of the outcome of your meeting, use the feedback provided to become better in what you do. Use this experience to improve any exposed points of failure, and be sure to continuously evaluate the results of those improvements. Let those improvements spill into your general policies and practices, across all of your client base.

Most importantly, allowing these occasional setbacks to consume your thoughts can have a major impact on your business. Take the good and the bad from it, make your organization better, then press on with your goals. If your partner falls into the trap of lingering on past issues, encourage them onward in a nurturing way. Use the experience as building block and stay positive. 

We hope that our experience in dealing with difficult situations can help you in your partnering relationships. Always value the partners you have and perform your best work for them, so these exchanges are the exception in your organization.

If you are looking for a true partner to help market your business on the web or develop amazing online tools, please contact us!

In today's digital age, social media is an essential tool for businesses to connect with their target audience, build their brand, and drive sales. However, with so many different social media platforms available, it can be challenging to determine which ones are the best fit for your business. In this blog post, we'll explore which social media platforms are best for different types of businesses, based on their usage statistics and effectiveness for business marketing.

Facebook

Facebook is the world's largest social media platform, with over 2.8 billion active users. It's an excellent platform for businesses looking to connect with a broad audience, particularly if they're targeting direct consumers. With a Facebook page, businesses can share updates, photos, videos, and engage with their followers through comments and direct messages.

According to a survey by the Pew Research Center, 69% of adults in the United States use Facebook, with the largest group (23.8% of all users) falling between the ages of 25-34 years old. In terms of business marketing, Facebook is particularly useful for businesses that sell products or services that appeal to a wide audience, such as e-commerce companies, restaurants, and retailers. The platform's advertising tools are also powerful, allowing businesses to target their ads to specific demographics, interests, and behaviors.

Instagram

Instagram is a photo and video sharing platform that has rapidly grown in popularity over the past few years. With over 1 billion monthly active users, it's an excellent platform for businesses looking to showcase their products and services visually. According to Instagram, 62.2% of users are between the ages of 18-34 and it is the 5th most visited website worldwide.

In terms of business marketing, Instagram is particularly useful for businesses in the fashion, beauty, food, and travel industries, as well as any company that can benefit from visually engaging content. The platform's visual nature also makes it an excellent tool for building brand awareness and creating a loyal following.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is the world's largest professional networking platform, with over 740 million members. It's an excellent platform for businesses targeting professionals, particularly those in B2B industries.

According to current LinkedIn data, an ad on LinkedIn can reach 14.6% of the world's population over the age of eighteen. This percentage may not be the highest among social media platforms, but LinkedIn has the advantage of a business-centric user base. In terms of business marketing, LinkedIn is particularly useful for businesses that sell products or services to other businesses, such as software companies, marketing agencies, and consulting firms. The platform's advertising tools also allow businesses to target their ads to specific job titles, industries, and company sizes.

 

Twitter

Twitter is a micro-blogging platform that allows users to share short messages called tweets. With over 330 million monthly active users, it's an excellent platform for businesses looking to engage with their audience in real-time. According to Twitter, 66% of users have discovered a new small or medium-sized business on the platform. In terms of business marketing, Twitter is particularly useful for businesses that want to provide quick updates, news, and customer service to their followers. The platform's real-time nature also makes it an excellent tool for businesses in the news, entertainment, and sports industries.

 

YouTube

YouTube is the world's largest video-sharing platform, with over 2 billion monthly active users. It's an excellent platform for businesses looking to share video content with their audience. According to data from a Nielsen study, YouTube reaches more adults aged 18-49 in the United States than any cable network, which makes it a powerful tool for marketing. YouTube is particularly useful for businesses that can benefit from visually engaging content, such as product demonstrations, tutorials, and behind-the-scenes videos. The platform's advertising tools also allow businesses to target their ads to specific demographics and interests.

 

TikTok

TikTok is a video-sharing platform that has rapidly grown in popularity over the past few years, particularly among younger audiences. With over 1 billion monthly active users, it's an excellent platform for businesses looking to reach a younger demographic.

According to TikTok, 66% of users are under the age of 30. TikTok has the potential to be an excellent platform for businesses that want to create fun and engaging content that resonates with younger audiences. The platform's algorithm allows businesses to reach a large audience quickly, even without a significant following. The platform's short-form video format also makes it an excellent tool for showcasing products, launching new products, and building brand awareness.

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Choosing the right social media platform for your business can be challenging, but understanding the usage statistics and effectiveness of each platform can help you make an informed decision. By choosing the right platform for your business, you can build a strong social media presence and connect with your target audience effectively. Stay tuned for additional posts in our Social Media for Business series, where we take a deeper look at each of the recommended social media platforms.

The team at 3by400 helps businesses make the most out of their social media marketing strategy. Contact us today to see how we can help your company expand its reach and take advantage of the powerful marketing tools offered through social media.

As a followup to my previous post on ecommerce hints, one of our clients reported that using chat support for ecommerce has helped them close a couple of large sales. They don't get many chats requesting support, but it does seem worthwhile.

Free 3by400 eSeminars Provide Business Tips

As a service to our clients, 3by400 started a new seminar series that covers a wide variety of topics important to managing and promoting web sites. We started our eSieminar series in January and have covered:

• The Joomla Content Editor (JCE), our online editing tool of choice
• Image Optimization for Web Sites
• Joomla 2.5 Preview
• Understanding Google Analytics; and
• All You Need to Know About MailChimp

Our next topic is Introduction to Social Media, and we've received considerable interest from our clients.

We select topics based upon our most frequent requests for support and prevelant trends in the marketplace. Some of the sessions are very tactical, with step-by-step instruction, while others are addressed from a more strategic point of view. Our follow-up surveys indicate that all of the topics thus far have been extremely useful in helping our clients in their path toward understanding what tools and strategies make sense for their business.

We call them eSeminars because we deliver them via GoToMeeting...just to allow maximum participation. You don't even have to leave your desk to participate! The sessions are also very interactive, so, although we offer a recorded version of each eSeminar, the live eSeminar offers the ability to get answers to those burning quesitons.

If you are a current client, you can see the full archive of eSeminars here (after logging on, of course): http://3by400.com/index.php/previous-seminars.

Yet another example of 3by400's commitment to partnering and results for our clients! If you want to become a 3by400 client, please contact us.

I don’t often use my column to vent, but between experiencing some really bad customer service and listening to a vintage Clark Howard radio episode over the last several weeks, I feel compelled to put an issue on the table—customer no-service. I’ll admit, I’m warped about this topic because I worked in telephone user support for Digital Equipment Corporation for about three years, so giving bad customer service was just not an option. In fact, the extremely high standard of customer service may well be one of the reasons Digital couldn’t hold on in the contemporary marketplace. Now isn’t that a commentary on the sad state of affairs?

Just the other day, I went into a national chain dress shop in Cumming. I shop there frequently and am probably responsible for funding at least one employee’s salary. I know most of the employees there and they know me. One of the items I purchased about six weeks ago had a quality issue—the seaming at the top of the waistband came apart. It was the first problem I’ve had with the quality of their items and, after explaining the issue to one of the employees, she recommended that I bring the item back in—they’d be happy to replace it even though I no longer had my receipt.

When I brought the item in, that employee was not working—problem #1. Right off the bat I was asked for a receipt and was promptly told the item couldn’t be returned without a receipt. Now, this same person has probably sold me about $800 worth of goods in the last eight months. I immediately told her that the other employee said I didn’t require a receipt and that obviously, the product was their brand, it was a new product, and there was no question that I bought the item there. Still—no receipt, no return. As I started reminding the clerk of how often I shopped there, she went toward the back of the store to get the manager. Unbeknownst to her, I followed and got to the stockroom door just in time to hear her tell the manager that I was giving her “lip.” Did you just hear the cellos play that “duh, duh, duh”?I couldn’t believe it. I had been neither rude nor loud. I was firm and I wasn’t going to take “no” for an answer. That must be “lip” these days. I couldn’t believe it and I called her on it. Needless to say, I got a replacement for the item, but now I feel compelled to never go back. That irritates me because I really like their products and it’s one of the few places I can always find something I like. Okay, so I may give them another chance…as long as the “lip” girl doesn’t wait on me. 

Clark Howard calls this approach “customer no-service”—the general attitude of nonchalance by companies who should be appreciating our business. Organizations have become so large that the individual customer and how they’re treated doesn’t seem to be important. They just don’t believe we’ll fire them and hire a competitor.Face-to-face rudeness is tough to take, but what really torques me up is when they think we’re stupid. I’ve seen a report of a cable company that has started adding a new fee to their bills. It’s a very small fee—less than $.25—but it is to pay for the advertisements that are included with their bills. Yes, not only are those little slips of paper merely shedder food, now you may actually be paying for them. Give me a break!

I recently read an article about one of my other pet peeves—being “dumped” by a call center representative. According to the Des Moines Register, “Nationwide Mutual Insurance has fired five Iowa workers who routinely hung up on policyholders trying to file claims with the company.” One call handler was found to have dumped 34% of calls taken, all in an effort to meet the aggressive performance metrics. In subsequent hearings, one worker testified, “I wasn’t really thinking about the customer. I was thinking about myself and my stats.”I’m sure we all have enough customer no-service stories to fill this magazine. The question is—what do you do about it? The way I look at it, you have three choices: 1) accept it; 2) escalate; or 3) vote with your feet and fire the company.

Unfortunately, the reason we experience customer no-service so frequently is that most people just accept bad behavior. Whether they don’t feel they have the time or empowerment to call bad service what it is, many just overlook being mistreated. If you can do this and still keep a smile on your face, more power to you. However, the next time you get hung up on and don’t call back, or don’t take the time to escalate, know that you are rewarding the bad behavior. You’re also setting up the next customer for being treated poorly, too.If you’re tired and you’re not going to take it anymore, escalate. Escalation is not just when you’re being mistreated by a representative, but when the process doesn’t work. The last time I escalated a call, it was because the call handler told me, “The system won’t let me do that,” when trying to correct a mistake the company had made in billing. Sorry—just not willing to let “the system” have control over my credit report. Mysteriously, upon escalation, the manager was able to get “the system” to do what was needed to resolve the situation.The original situation that caused me to make the call in the first place was a local branch of a big-box retailer performing what I would consider to be a scam. We were purchasing a large ticket item and tried to use the credit account we had with that retailer for about eight years. The local store indicated that our account was no longer active and that we would have to fill out a new application. Knowing we hadn’t used the card in a while, we believed them. We only discovered the error, however, after accidentally paying on our old account number. I learned that our old account was, indeed, active and that the local store should have known that. Back to metrics: those locations are driven to open a certain number of new accounts every month and we were simply caught in the trap of an employee figuring out a way to make it look as if they were performing.

How you escalate is important. If someone is really being nasty and you’re angry, hang up and cool off—then call back. Always be polite and kind, speaking to the person on the other end of the phone as you wish to be spoken to. If you’re having a really bad day, shelve the issue until such time as you’re in a better frame of mind. It’s also important to make sure you have the important information if you’re going to escalate. Names (or those infernal numbers) are a must. If you’re escalating after the fact, make sure you have the timeline documented. Be clear about what you need and don’t feel like you have to recount your dreaded tale to each new person with whom you speak—the more professional you are, hopefully, the more professional they will be.

If you don’t get satisfaction from the first level of escalation, continue to escalate. With one series of escalations with a major investment company, I did not get my situation resolved until I spoke to the President/CEO’s assistant. That issue concerned an identity security breach issue, so it was critical and was definitely worth the considerable amount of time it took to resolve. If it’s important to you, don’t give up.

The toughest situations exist when you are dealing with a monopoly—like a power co-op, rural telecommunications, or worse, a government entity. Those situations are the ultimate frustration. It’s especially important to keep your cool, and document everything. On a positive note, based on my dealings, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) seems to have completely overhauled its telephone customer service (although I can usually find most things online). The last time I called the IRS, I received a very thorough answer to my question by a kind, patient person who then happily helped me with another topic. I was shocked.

When all else fails, fire the company if you can. When I fire a company, I always make sure they know I fired them and went to their competitor. Even if it seems ridiculous, I know that by calling, they generally have a record of my dissatisfaction and the fact that they’ve been fired. If you really want to let them know, investigate until you can find a physical postal address for an “e” level in the company and send them a letter. I’m really a big fan of providing feedback.

I often wonder how customer service got to this low point. I think it’s probably a combination of things—it seems people are less patient and angrier these days (on both sides of the communication); companies are so greedy and profit-driven that they discount the human factor of their business; and busy consumers allow the bad behavior. While many organizations seem to be failing miserably, I am encouraged every time I receive a survey after having some interaction with the customer service department of a company. I try to always fill these out promptly so my voice is heard. I can always hope that someone of influence is looking at these surveys on a regular basis.

As a business owner, I review these scenarios to determine if there is any way they might apply to our environments. Thankfully, almost all of our employees are “old timers” who know how to do two incredibly important things: take care of their responsibilities; and listen to our customers. However, no one is perfect and things sometimes fall through the cracks. It’s tough to handle tough situations, but well worth caring for even one single customer.

Clark Howard takes it all to the bottom line—if you evaluate your marketing, advertising, and sales costs compared to the cost of customer service, it is definitely less costly to keep an existing customer than to find a new one. It may be a point to remember the next time you have to get on the phone as a customer—or as a customer service representative.

This article used with permission from 400 Edition, Inc. It is unlawful to use this article or any portion of it without the expressed permission of its author. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Years ago, customer information was kept on rolodex cards or ledger sheets. Today the web-based equivalent is the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system. They're still about as exciting and visually appealing as a rolodex card, but just as invaluable. For instance, in our business, all our customers contact information is in our CRM, as well as their website information: who the name registrar is, what Joomla components they have installed, which software licenses they've paid for, etc. This enables any of our team members to gain access to this critical information wherever they are.

In the PC-centric days of the 1990s, the big names in CRM were ACT and Goldmine. Today the largest web-based CRM provider is Salesforce.com. Since we're big open-source advocates we use what's probably the top open-source CRM product: SugarCRM. It comes with a useful standard set of client fields, and custom fields that our particular business needs can be added with relative ease.

Takeaway question: how does your business handle your customer information? Is it time to look at updating it? If so, we'd be glad to talk with you about it.

How do you determine what is "fair"?

I grew up in a time when not everyone got a trophy, grades were not assigned on a sliding scale, and no one bailed out businesses who couldn't figure out how to stay in business. That makes me sound really old, but I'm under 50. Two pieces of fresh news today lead me to believe that facts are becoming less and less important.

First, I had to shake my head at a Business Insider "news" story that totally missed reporting on the new Google Conversion API because they were too busy complaining about the way that DoublClick (who apparently uses Google Analytics as a driver for their highly annoying advertising campaign software) announced their use of the Conversion API. When I read the statement, it was very clear to me and their meaning was evident. However, I know what Google Conversion Goals are and I know what an API is. It is possible that I had an unfair advantage while reading the message and was biased toward understanding what was meant.

I had to have a conversation with myself the other day because my skimming through an email message left me with the wrong understanding of one of our client's correspondence. If I had responded with what I THOUGHT i had read, rather than what they actually wrote....well, I would not be having as happy a holiday. 

So, on one hand, it may not be that people are ignoring the facts, but that they just don't understand them, or are too busy to fully read them!

Next, on BBC World News (which I say, "I will never watch again," every time I watch it), a story was presented in which the Europeans have now made it illegal for insurance companies to determine a rate based upon gender. This is really bad news for young female drivers, who had been enjoying a 38% discount over their male counterparts; and females in general, who will now pay 30% higher life insurance premiums. A court ruling now requires that the "cost" of these insurance products be spread equally across both sexes.

Just after college, before I knew that computers would be the staple of my career, I spent a short stint considering the field of actuarial sciences. An actuary evaluates risk and uses statistical evidence to form their opinions regarding risk. Yes, they are "opinions", since no one can predict the future, but actuaries perform more statistical analysis before lunch in one day than most of us will do in a lifetime, so their opinions are based upon facts. Actuaries are effectively the ones who decide how much your insurance premiums are...based upon statistics about all facets of you and your lifestyle...one of which, of course, is your gender.

So, does a court decision change the fact that statistically, young male drivers cause more accidents than any other gender and age group? That they typically live shorter lives and die more frequently of heart attacks? And, should insurance companies be able to use these facts to assign higher costs to those who result in more claims? More importantly in my mind: if they don't use these facts, how will they assign premium costs?

It seems to me that everyone's getting a trophy here, no matter how they performed; that in an effort to be "fair", we are, indeed, going the way of "unjust" or false, or just plain ignoring the facts and historical evidence. I like to be fair, but I believe that being just is equally if not more important.

We hope you won't fall into this trap about your web site, because your business actually depends upon it! So, until some ridiculous law is passed preventing you from doing so, we encourage you to review the statistics captured by Google Analytics to determine the facts about your site. It should guide your decisions about your site...where to improve and invest...based upon real, live facts! If you need help with Google Anlaytics, please contact us, and we'll give you "just the facts, ma'am."

 

 

When we work with someone who wants to blog, and they don't want to use Joomla content items (like we're using here), we generally recommend blogger.com. This is a free service from Google. It's a bit limited, but it's drop-dead simple. We can then do an RSS feed from the blog to the main website. There's another blogging service that's about to get my nod. It's called Tumblr. I think it may be even simpler than blogger.

If you utilize e-mail marketing to prospective customers, make sure you don’t become an offensive spammer. There are a few simple rules to follow that can make a difference between happy customers and angry spam recipients. These rules are outlined in the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) CAN SPAM Act, which went into effect January 1, 2004. The CAN SPAM Act applies to commercial and pornographic electronic messaging and carries penalties for non-compliance of up to $11,000. Learn more about the CAN SPAM Act at www.ftc.gov/spam, including how to turn in offenders.

Be legitimate. Masking header information (such as the sender and recipient’s actual e-mail addresses) is illegal. It makes sense. If the claims within the e-mail are honest, knowing who sent it is reasonable. 

Honesty is the best policy. Subject lines must reflect the content of the message. Baiting a reader with a subject line that is not indicative of the actual content sent within the body of the message is not an honest approach.

Provide a legitimate opt-out. Opt-out is a simple mechanism that allows a recipient to remove themselves from your list. This is generally a clickable link that allows the recipient to complete a form and results in their address being removed from your e-mail list. Opt-outs should be immediately honored.

Provide a valid postal address and notification of solicitation. The FTC also requires that the e-mail sender’s postal address be included within the body of the e-mail and that it be identified as a solicitation.

If you are about to start an e-mail marketing campaign, try using a product like Constant Contact to get you started. This package takes legal issues into account and helps you manage responses such as bounced (erroneous addressee) messages and opt-out.

Put these items into action to reduce the impact of spam on your life and ensure that you are playing by the rules. And if you receive a message that looks intriguing, do your research and don’t be scammed by the spammers!

About.com Offers some pretty decent tips about e-mail campaigns:

Address Recipients with Their Name in Email Campaigns
Make your newsletter recipients feel more like themselves, less like mere numbers by greeting them individually and personally.

Avoid $$$ Signs in Email Marketing Campaigns
Why "$$$" won't bring you $$$.

Avoid Email Marketing During the Holidays
Holidays are often holidays from email, too. That's why email marketing during the holidays is often not very effective.

Create a Clear Call to Action in Email Marketing Campaigns
Make sure recipients of your email marketing message know what you expect them to do (and what they can expect in return).

Don't Forget the Preview Pane in Your Campaign
Move the boring stuff down the page, and greet recipients with your best offer instead.

Email Marketing Needs to Reflect Your Corporate Design
If it's your email marketing, make people see instantly that it is your email marketing.

Emphasize with Words, Not Exclamation Marks in Your Copy
The path to successful email marketing is not paved with exclamation marks.

Experiment with Link Placement in Newsletters
Maximize performance by putting the right links in the right places.

HTML or Plain Text: Let Your Recipients Decide
If you can't decide whether you should publish your newsletter as HTML or plain text, do both and let your recipients decide individually which they prefer.

Include an Easy to Use Unsubscription Link in Newsletters
Unhappy subscribers are worse than no subscribers. An easy and fail-safe way to unsubscribe is a way to make subscribers happy.

Inform Your ISP About Your Email Marketing Activities
The connection to your ISP is one of the most important. So make sure they know that you're sending legitimate bulk email and won't disconnect you as a spammer.

Instruments of Email Marketing
There is more to email marketing than personalized mass mails and newsletters. Discover all the forms and instruments of effective email marketing.

Learn from Spam
Spammers can teach you a lot about email marketing.

Make it Easy for Subscribers to Change Their Email Address
Lose one address, gain another, retain a subscriber when a user's email address changes.

Make Sure Unusbscriptions are Effective Immediately
Avoid a spam-like impression by making sure unsubscriptions from your newsletters or email marketing lists go into effect immediately.

Newsletter Content Ideas: Asking the User's Questions
Content ideas usually have this form: "How can I do this?". So how can I get great content ideas?

Newsletter Content Ideas: Press Summary
Consolidating news provides a useful service to your newsletter subscribers, and it shows your expertise in the field, too.

Put Newsletter Sign-up Boxes on Every Page
Make sure visitors can sign up to your newsletter when and where they want.

Reply to Requests Within 1 Day
You've got 24 hours to win — or lose — a customer, so be sure to reply to emails within a day.

Rule of Thumb How Often to Send Your Newsletter
Find the right frequency for your email marketing efforts.

Rule of Thumb When to Send Your Newsletter
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday? Which day will work best?

Sales Pitch Makes No Newsletter
Newsletter subscribers expect and deserve content, which salespeak alone is not.

Use Your Name in the From: Line
People don't like to read mail from strangers or robots. But messages From: a name they know and trust are welcome. 

This article used with permission from 400 Edition, Inc. It is unlawful to use this article or any portion of it without the expressed permission of its author. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The next time you're watching your favorite show on DVR or Tivo, instead of fast-forwarding through the commercials, keep tabs on the number of those advertisements displaying either the Facebook badge (that's the blue block with the "f" on it for non-facebookers) or have "or find us on Facebook" as the voice over trails off? As much as you might try to avoid it, everyone except you and your dog have a Facebook account...and the dog is considering it now that security has been tightened on friends of friends.

So is Facebook just another mindless tool for college kids or can it really be a viable business tool?

Just to set the record straight, I have been about as anti-Facebook as one can get. In fact, you couldn't even browse Facebook on my wireless network because I blocked it...just like MySpace.com and a few bandwidth-sucking games. I blocked it because I have children who have access to that network and it gave me an excuse when one of my friends said, "I can't believe YOUR not on Facebook!" 

But real success in Social Media is more to do with your audience and the amount of time you can dedicate to it.

If your business markets to "general consumers", then tools like Facebook and Twitter may be of value to you. It is, for all intents and purposes, word of mouth. If you market to other businesses, Linked:In may have some potential, but our experience is that these leads tend to be weak (i.e., significantly lower closure rate that other means).

The other thing is that social media is tough to "stick your toe in". Having an unattended Facebook page can even be detrimental to your business if negative posts have been made that go unanswered...or even positive posts and questions. If you have a hard time coming up with simple content, you should consider providing social media updates from your web site, such as your blog posts.

Although the social media experts don't agree with automated content, it certainly beats no content at all. Use it until you get the hang of things or to augment your tweets or status updates on Facebook and Linked:In. All you need is an RSS Feed for your site and an account on a tool like TwitterFeed.

You can also use your SmartPhone to keep track of Facebook, Linked:In, and Twitter. If you can spend just a few moments to keep them at bay throughout the day, you'll find it much less taxing.

Like all other things marketing, be sure you can measure the effectiveness of these methods. And that measurement should be in sales and profit, not "likes" or "followers!

A tip: many of the feed burner or aggregator tools will not post to your Facebook Page (formerly Fan Page)...only to an account. The links below will work for pages.

Setting up automated feeds to Twitter, Facebook, and Linked:In using TwitterFeed.

I spoke at UGA's Small Business Bootcamp on October 2nd, and gave a presentation on electronic marketing. See the online version after the break:

 

 

Moving from idea to implementation

In a month, 3by400 receives at least three or four calls from people who have the "best idea for a new web site". About 1% of them really do have a great idea for a site. The rest, unfortunately, failed to Google their thought before running headlong to web site design. That 1% is worth the others...so how do you decide if your concept is truly a great new entrepreneurial idea?

Put Pen to Passion
Like any good idea, the first thing you should do is write it down. You don't have to come up with a clever name right now, nor do you need to worry about details. Just write down your ideas, then set your summary aside and look at it again next week, or at least tomorrow. Did you sleep last night? Does it still excite you? If so, you probably have an idea about which you can be passionate. If it becomes an actionable plan and grows to a business, you will need that passion to get you through the trying times.

Hobby or Business?
Some people are extremely passionate about their hobbies. I sing in a barbershop quartet, and although we do perform paid gigs sometimes, it is still a hobby...and I am very passionate about it. Just because you can earn some revenue doesn't necessarily make your idea business-worthy. A business will provide goods or services that can be purchased by a distributor, reseller, or consumer. Is there a market for your idea? Can you identify revenue streams and expenses? What would you have to do to generate enough revenue to provide support for you or make it a sustainable concern?

Unique or Better?
Your idea doesn't really have to be new and unique to be successful, but if someone else is already  executing your idea, they may have a competitive advantage due to an established market, proven processes, and a brand. If you can do it better, faster, or cheaper, though, you can still find success.

We have seen many successful ventures spawn from "re-application"--that is taking an idea from one market to a different one or focusing on a very niche market. For example, job boards have been available online for decades, but many companies have found success by focusing only on specific careers, such as healthcare as an audience, or veterans as a workforce pool.

This last example brings another potentially better approach--rather than focusing on the demand end of the economic equation, focus on the supply end, or vice versa. 

Google It
Now that you have had some time to carefully evaluate and qualify your idea, spend some significant time using Google to look for businesses that may offer your planned service or product. To facilitate this activity, make a list of words that describe your idea in several different ways, so that your searches can be complete. For example, if you have an idea to invent a "tomato slicer", you would want to search for "vegetable cutter" also...and you might want to add "Ronco^®" to that list, too.

The other advantage of googling your idea is that you can glean new ideas and terminology along the way by viewing the sites from your search results. Even if you find that your original idea is not quite as original as you thought, this research may birth new angles that you haven't yet considered. Consider it part of your education.

Time consuming? Yes. Tedious? Maybe. Worth it? Absolutely!

Pay the Piper
Unless you are a renaissance person, you will probably need help in some area of your idea to convert it to a working business. Make a list of all of the tasks and responsibilities required, both for daily operations and more long-term or strategic items. It helps to break these up into categories like daily, monthly, quarterly, annually, and as-needed.

Next, highlight the items that fall within your skills and talents--honest assessment is key. You may wish to make these selections yourself, then have someone who knows you well, such as a spouse, parent, or very good friend, give you an assessment of your ability in these areas, just to keep things real. They may also be able to uncover some items that you haven't highlighted that are still in your wheelhouse.

Take your list of "can do" items and place an "x" next to the items for which you may have the skills and talents, but may steal your joy in life. Finally, analyze the volume of activities by the timing category. If you would have to spend exhaustive hours on purely operational items, you should probably add more "x's" to your list!

Now that you have a list of responsibilities, as flawed as it may be due to unknowns such as the volume of business you may be handling, you have a place to start for finding the right kind of help. Many times, you may be able to perform all required tasks until the business yields sufficient activity to demand assistance, but only you can decide what price you are willing to pay to get that help.

Make Your Plan
Now that you have moved from the "Ive got a great idea" stage, develop a plan. You can use your original "ideas" document and your Google research as a starting point. Don't get so focused on details within your plan that you can never finish it. Here is a good outline of what you might want to include in your plan.

Even if you can't round out all of the outlined areas, you will need some documentation--frequently referred to as a business plan--to gain traction with others and, frankly, to remind yourself of your goals. Don't get caught up on that "business plan" name, though, unless you are expecting to approach investors. The goal is communicate what you intend to do and how you intend to do it.

Part of your plan should include timing. Having a timeline will motivate most people into action and helps you organize the priority of events associated with launching your plan, thus finding dependencies like drafting your requirements for a web site before you go about receiving quotes.

Protect Yourself
If you are going to discuss your idea with others, you should probably have a non-disclosure agreement handy. When signed beforehand, this instrument creates penalty for anyone who discusses your plan with others or tries to nab it for themselves. It also keeps things on a professional level and lets potential collaborators know you are serious about your idea.

If your idea includes something that you can patent, register for trademark, or copyright, and you are willing to make the investment, do so. Just know that you could be investing in something with no return at this juncture.

The Right Resouces
The advantage of bringing others into the mix early is that you will have the opportunity to collaborate. An attorney will likely uncover areas of risk that may not be evident to you; an excellent web developer will know how to automate tasks that can help you be more profitable; and a human resource professional can probably help you ensure that potential candidates are a good fit. The minute you begin to think that your idea can't be improved upon is probably the minute that you are setting yourself up for failure. Stick to what you know and surround yourself with others you can trust (and who have signed your non-disclosure agreement) who do the same.

We Want In!
If you find that you really DO have an idea that has legs, contact us! We have significant expertise in providing technology visioning and helping define requirements that can result in an efficient plan for moving your idea into reality. We live by the spirit of partnership with our clients.

Here's to your success!