Chrome, An Essential Business Mineral

I LOVE GOOGLE CHROME!!!!

Did I come on a little strong…………………….?

I can’t talk enough about the productivity elements that Chrome offers to business people.  I've battled between Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome for a while, but now I’m a heavy metal head!

Why you ask?  Let me tell you:

1.  Synchronization – I drive a lot for my work and I have an Android phone so it is great to have all of my contacts and prospective addresses synced to my phone and other devices.  Even if I’m just thinking about going to a place, if I searched it on my notebook it quickly pops up on my phone (huge time saver).

2.  Speed – I know Chrome does use a lot of resources on your computer, but when it’s going it’s very fast (I’m all about time saving).

3.  Extensions -  This is the number 1 reason why I love Chrome.  I've found some great extensions that make my work a lot more productive and insightful.  Here’s a section on those  (the bullet title links go to the Chrome Web Store):

1.  Stayfocused – do you ever find yourself just sitting in your email inbox or drifting around LinkedIn or Twitter because of one notification?  Stayfocused allows you to set a timer for websites you use and then when the time expires you cannot login to these sites until the next day.  I’ll tell you what, when you know you can’t get into your email until the next day you look at it with more focus, speed, and efficiency!

2.  PowerInbox – this one just allows you to see any social media emails more completely.  Follow people from your email and unsubscribe from a list right from the inbox without even opening the email!

3.  mxHero Toolbox - Best extension ever!  I send a lot of emails and the fact that this one sends the tracking response right to your email you can see if you have a response on your phone.  Even schedule emails for later and set the email to remind you if you don’t receive a reply by a certain time.  Huge email supercharger!!

There’s a few more, but I think these 3 will get you well on your way to web wizardry!

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This is really a problem….

In 2013 the United States personal savings rate was 4.20%.  That means that a little over 4% of a household’s income is saved over a period of time. 

4%

The median household income is about $51,017 ₁  with an average household size of 4.16 people ₂………………

That means that about $2,000 is saved a year (yeah right) and that is to be used for retirement, emergencies, hospital bills, and child expenses…………

With the new policies for the Healthcare Exchanges rolling out, it will not be odd to see a deductible of $4,000 for the Silver plans (the “benchmark” plan offering the federal savings subsidy).  In general, before Obamacare arose, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that the average deductible was $2,086₃ for a single person.  That number is already outside of the bounds of the average American’s savings.  Now double that………….

Imagine one doctor visit eating up years of savings for you and you have health insurance………..

The funny thing is that the deductibles for most Silver plans is $4,000, but the maximum annual out of pocket is $6,350.  So the Affordable Care Act does greatly help with preventive care, which all human beings need to improve their quality of life, but for the emergencies it only pays out about $2,000 which is what “we” save on average! 

The creation of national healthcare is a novel idea, but we all now need to intelligently plan our income and expenses so that we protect our futures. 

It’s great to have fire and pet insurance, but now you should look into income insurance, because if something disables you will you have the ability to pay your bills?

Have a plan not a plea.

_{1. Median Income Falls For 5th Year, Inequality At Record High http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/17/median-income-falls-inequality_n_3941514.html2. The demographic evolution of U.S. households  http://smartblogs.com/leadership/2013/02/18/the-demographic-evolution-of-u-s-households/3 . High-deductible health plans are a growing trend for employers  http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/09/28/5200346/high-deductible-health-plans-are.html}

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Your Family or Your Staff???

Even if you’re of the best health you’ve probably had some kind of conversation or read something about healthcare reform this year.  If not, here’s some news for you!
Starting October 1st, 2013 the people of the United States will have the opportunity to  apply for medical benefits facilitated by the Affordable Care Act or ObamaCare as the media has coined it.
This is so significant to small business owners (which are the majority of businesses in the US) because a lot of them have been leaving their staff out when it comes to medical coverage. 
All too often I hear business owners say “I don’t offer my employees benefits, but I’m all taken care of.”  When did this divide happen?
It’s been gradual, but now according to the Kaiser Family Foundation about 56% of employees are covered by health plans offered by their employers.  At the same time though, most of these plans come with a deductible of $1,000 or more, but these same workers statistically have less than $1,000 in savings (about 51%) and 60% of people say they live paycheck to paycheck!₁
So what do we do for 44% with no coverage or the 40% living paycheck to paycheck?  That is what the ideal of ObamaCare is.  Yet, why do so many small business owners not care to educate their staff on what is going on?
69% of small business owners are either not prepared or don’t know that to do for the October 1st deadline set by the Department of Labor to simply educate their staff₂. 
So why is their family more important than their employee’s family?
Once their was a time when your employee was family.
Now I’m not asking every business owner to invite their employees over for brunch, but at least realize they are your most valuable asset.
Yes, you are the visionary, the drive, and the force, but they are the business. 
It’s like a great composer is nothing without an orchestra.  At least tell them where to get instruments……..
60% of employees look to their boss for information about benefits₃.  If you’re not going to offer any benefits then at least take this milestone as a chance to improve morale. 
If you just show an employee “hey, I can’t pay for your benefits, but I’m going to try to help you find the best thing for you and your family” it will speak volumes to them.  Heck, it may gain you an employee for life.
Do something different with this huge change.  Don’t follow the herd.  Mainly because the herd thinks that this whole thing only applies to companies with 50 employees or more.
WRONG!!!!!!
Read for yourself and be a real leader to your staff.
1.http://www.creditdonkey.com/increase-savings-2013.html
2.http://ifawebnews.com/2013/03/28/small-businesses-confused-about-aca-will-need-help-moving-into-2014/
3.https://sell.aflac.com/Training%20and%20Resources/Business%20Insights/HCR%20Page.aspx

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You’re Going To Lose A Lot Of Money

Did you know that since 2005, more than 80% of all credit card breaches have occurred at a small business?

Sounds like a horror movie doesn’t it?  Sadly, it is reality. 

Everyday I see more and more businesses being “sloppy” about PCI compliance (Payment Card Industry if you’re a little more than sloppy……).

• Some have all of their clients credit card numbers on an Excel spreadsheet anyone can get to……………
• Some have a binder with all of the customer’s credit info so they can charge them on a recurring basis without having to call…………….
• Some even have to get a customer’s credit card number written on a basic invoice with one of their technicians who later brings it to the shop to be charged………..

All of these are a big no no that can result in fines anywhere from $90 to $500,000 and possible civil litigation from the consumer on top of that!!


In 2006, 40% of businesses that reported breaches had them come from contractors, employees, and business partners……………..

So how do you protect yourself?

1. Protect stored card holder data
1. If you have to keep customer’s credit info, do it the smart way.  This means no paper records or folder full of the info.  Use the computer.  It's kind of a useful tool............
2. Encrypt the data
1. The easiest way to do this is to have a payment processing system that has encryption with it already.  Preferably one that has a web based system of storing the data.  That way it is never physically in your possession. 
3. Assign a unique user ID to each person that may have access to the data
1. This does 2 things.  One is that not just anybody can access the data.  Two is that if something does happen, you can more readily find the culprit.

In short, if you’re keeping your customers’ credit info do an assessment of your security.  If it’s still “old school” you definitely need to upgrade to a safer and more modern system for your customers and your protection. 

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3 Things All Small Businesses Should Do

So you've been in business for a while.  Things are going pretty good.  You're paying your bills.  Your doors are still open,............but you're they're all the time!!  

Are you running your business or is your business running you?  And when I say "run" it I mean being the most efficient with the least amount of your most valuable resource, ………..time.  

Owning your own business is supposed to provide you the greatest luxury of owning your time.  A poll in 2009 poll concluded that out 39% of small business owners work more than 10 hours per day.  Struggling businesses are probably closer to 70% working more than 12 hours a day! 

So how can you stop this conundrum? 

By being more efficient. 

There are a lot of missed opportunities for marketing and sales in small businesses  that some know about and some never thought of.

1.  Social Media

I can't stress this enough.  For some reasons businesses think they don't need social media.  Take Twitter for instance.  Stephanie Wagner says "Twitter not only facilitates real-time businesses-to-consumer communication, but it also facilitates business-to-business and consumer-to-consumer communication. Twitter has transformed the platform of business communication. " That is marketing gold.  Plus,
ALL SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS ARE FREE!!!!!

2.  Get customers’ emails (if you’re not already)

Email is one of the biggest revolutions in marketing today.  Even if you’re not a great marketer, it provides great opportunity.  Jay Baer concluded from a study that 44% of email recipients made at least one purchase last year based on a promotional email.  In 2012, 85% of the world uses email…………So basically, if you get all of your customer’s email addresses you may be able to get 1 extra sale from 44% of them!  That’s potentially huge!!  Don’t miss the chance.  The easiest way to get their emails is to use it for their receipt or invoice.  If you’re not paperless, then hurry up!

3.  Watch your competition

This may seem like common sense, but I don’t mean just watch the competition and hate them.  If they appear to be doing more than you, see why.  Are they using more social media?  Is their page better placed on search engine results?  Are their online listings more complete than yours?  There’s nothing wrong with learning from your competition.  There is something wrong with being obliterated by them for simple reasons though!

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Don’t Tweet Like A Twit

Hi guys!  So let’s start off with a few updates on social media’s impact.  Namely Twitter. 
Last year, Twitter was the number 2 tool for social media branding at 53% of businesses using it.  Facebook was number one at 83%, but that is a different strategy.  I want to talk about a few quick tips for Twitter, because I see a lot of businesses make these mistakes. 
Top 5 tips:

1. Know that you’re tweeting!
1. You’d be amazed about how many companies don’t know what or when they’re tweeting and then have the gall to say, “I don’t think Twitter helps my business”…………  You definitely need some automizing to help your tweeting, but if you don’t know when or what it’s helping you with then you’re kind of wasting the web’s time….
2. Stop talking about yourself all the time!
1. You know that friend you hate to talk to because the entire conversation is about them?  Don’t be that guy on Twitter.  So many people get surprised that they don’t have followers when all they talk about is specials and promos.  There’s only so many times someone will want to see you say thing are half off before they’re all the way gone…………
3. Be helpful!
1. Try to provide your audience with some knowledge you’ve gained from your industry or life experiences.  Sure you want to gain sales from these people, but social media is like a Hanzel and Gretel situation.  Give people a few crumbs to lead them to the real meal!
4. Get to the point!
1. Yes twitter allows 140 characters, but don’t do the long sentence … thing.  People don’t respond to those that often unless you have a very compelling 137 characters.  Try to leave something hard hitting and a quick take away with a link attached.  If you expect everyone to read all of your “extended” tweets you’ll have a lot of extended alone time.
5. Be fun!
1. Last year 91% of mobile internet access was spent socializing.  Not self promoting!  Talk about fun things sometimes.  Provide cool news articles related to your field or how you help people.  People will read this a lot sooner and you develop a subliminal link with them.  Then you’re able to slip in  very small marketing things here and there. 

Social media is very much a cat and mouse game.  You  cannot expect quick techniques to work or not spend any time planning.  You have to be likeable especially when you consider how short the shelf life of a tweet is. 
Definitely get familiar with sites like Hootsuite, Tweetcaster, and Buffer.  They’re 3 of my favorite social media tools and greatly help. 

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4 Insights To Improve Your Business Now

So I was talking to a business owner about their current situation. They ran a furniture store. Pretty good inventory and a decent location because it was near some new housing and not too far from a military base. They were drowning. As I spoke to them more they said “we don’t understand the new way of business.” That resounded with me because a lot of small business owners are thinking this, but won’t say anything. They were used to the old school ways of people having extra cash and buying the most expensive things or referrals being their life blood

THE GLORY DAYS ARE OVER!

(at least for now)

As I spoke to them they also though the newspaper was still a viable form of marketing………..

Therefore, I wrote this blog to let you know the simple, inexpensive tips I bestowed upon them to get them going now. These are sales and marketing tips that can be applied to any business format.

1. Business is getting a customer and keeping them for life. This needs to be a way of life. Unfortunately businesses lose an average 10% of their customers each year for various reasons. A way to curtail this is to realize that you began a relationship when they spent their money on you. Target will never know me. Though they try withemail marketing. Why don’t you? Send thank you emails. Ask them a bit about their lives. Yourself is your favorite topic. Your clients feel the same way about themselves. Indulge them. Who knows, you may develop some genuine relationships like people did in the good old days.

2. Don’t throw a lot of money at advertising if you can’t or unless you’ve exhausted other means. The place I dealt with instantly thought about the newspaper. That costs money. Do you have a Google page? No. Do you have a Twitter? No. Do you have any web presence? No. So how will the Sunday paper help you?! Unless your audience is only seniors, forget about the paper. About 90% of people say that online reviews impact their purchases somehow. If you’re not involved online then you’re missing 90% of the people shopping! That’s huge, isn’t it? Try the free means of advertising before you blow money you’re losing. IT’S FREE FOR GOD’S SAKE!!!

3. Do not every begin the relationship with your customers based on budget. I know that is hard to hear for some people, but it is a proven no no that great sales people live by. A lot of small businesses can’t hire a sales force or the one they have isn’t stellar. In this furniture store they developed a habit of asking “what is your budget?” This cripples you. You should approach with as many open questions as possible. What are you looking for in particular? Where will you be using it? Tell me about that area. How long did you have your last __? Budget becomes a last piece because if they give you all of the emotional reasons of why they are even looking for something then the logic will come into place. It reminds me of a time when me and my wife were in a hotel and needed to just get some lotion. We stopped at one of the seemingly unattended cosmetic booths and used some lotion. A young lady approaches and starts to ask if we need any facial products. We say no, but then she asks what are you using now? This opens up a whole conversation of what we tried, what did or did not work, what success she had with her product versus others. Needless to say, our innocent stop for lotion led to a cosmetic purchase because she appealed to our emotions. We rationalized the price afterwards. Most of your clients behave in the same manner so live by emotions not logic.

4. Look at things from your client’s eyes. All of us forget that there are 2 sides to business some times. We get so hung up on what we want and how great our business is that we forget that our customers often have limited resources. This doesn’t mean treat them like scum, but instead show empathy and figure out how you can genuinely help them. If you sell any physical product, really figure out what your product will mean to them and convey that back. If you sell a service, try to really understand how your service will improve THEIR LIFE. We often times know we have a great product that we know everybody needs, but people need it for different reasons. A lot of purchases happen because people feel comfortable with the salesperson. You, as a small business owner need to develop that skill until you can hire somebody that comes with that.

In short, your customers are people too and the internet is one of businesses greatest tools. Few things we do are done with total logic. A large majority of our decisions are emotional. Print and television advertising is dying. Print is losing about 39% of advertising, television is losing about 7% per year, and internet advertising is growing at least 10% each year. Catch the wave!

PS – I hope these tips help your business grow.

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Your Fear Of Technology Is Killing Your Business

I work with all different walks of life when it comes to business. Young, old, black, white, skinny, fat, foreign, local, etc. With that said, I have noticed a terribly annoying trend with certain groups (there’s not one specific, but all in all they are pesky).

This group is the “I don’t like technology even though it controls 99% of my life” group. When I say technology it can be anything from social media topaperless payments to email marketing. These people seem content on the “word of mouth” factor and referrals from existing customers…………..

I’m dedicating this blog to these people to open their eyes to a few things:

1. Businesses typically lose 10% of their customers each year. This is typically in the case of the businesses that have no efficient way of attaining new customers. Word of mouth isn’t nearly efficient as it used to be when you speak on it vocally. The internet is the new word of mouth. 72% of people trust an online review as much as their friend! Capitalize on this! Make a bloody Google places page (this takes time so get on it……….mine is still in limbo with the “we do not service” error………) or Google+ for God’s sake!!

2. 91% of internet usage on mobile devices is spent socializing. This is huge!! EVERYBODY IS ON SOCIAL MEDIA! WHY AREN’T YOU?! I admit it can be daunting, but not unbearable. Pick 2 platforms to start with and really study and get used to them. When you opened your business you probably spent a lot of time looking for print marketing or television. Apply the same to social media.

3. I don’t like paperless systems / I don’t want my info on the internet. This one really irks me because the people that say this already have info on the internet!! If you have car insurance, the info is online. If you have a home, the info is online. If you pay bills, you probably pay them online (you’re silly to waste postage if you don’t do this). If you have a business, your info is online. When you can get a paperless system for your office it means:

a. You don’t need as many filing cabinets

b. You can find records in minutes even seconds versus hours.

c. You save paper that would otherwise be thrown away within 6 months.

d. If your office burns or you move your records are still there (thank the cloud!)

e. Lessening your exposure the Cancer causing chemical BPA .

4. We get all of our clients from referrals. This is awesome if it always happens, but there’s a few things you’re leaving to chance. If you go through a slew of transit, cheap, or unhappy customers, then you get no referrals. If the clients you do get aren’t forthcoming about their experience or don’t have friends that need your help, then dead end. Referrals today come from the web so much. This is why places ask “how did you hear about us?” More often than not you’ll hear they found you online or saw a web ad. People spend about 60% of their online time shopping. You need to position yourself for this.

In short, don’t be a hermit! The digital age has been hear since we though Y2K was the end of the world! The only thing that ended then was the world as we knew it.

I like to phase it this way a lot: if I presented you the option of a land line phone or a smart phone for the same amount of money each month, which would you choose?........................

If you say landline phone, disconnect your computer right now…………..

I hope these tips help your business grow!

PS – I help business owners increase their sales and lower their costs up to 40% on average.

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Your Clients Will Love When You Do This

Running a business is hard. Period.

So how can you make it easier is the prime question. A lot of people don’t realize a core element of “business”.

Old business was a better example of how it should be done.

Let’s talk about Jimmy’s Shake Shop. Jimmy made the best shakes anybody had tried so he decided to open a shop. Jimmy personally spoke to every customer that came in the shop. Jimmy really befriended a lot of them too.

That element is mostly gone these days. Now I’m not saying be fake, but make an effort. Business is really making a customer and keeping that customer for life. Sadly nowadays companies lose around 10% of their customers every year. This is really sad because a lot of people don’t gather that 80% of their business is often generated by 20% of their customers!

In this digital age there is a quick and painless way to “befriend” your customers.

Did you know that half of all local searches are done on smart phones and that 91% of mobile internet access is used to socialize!

What this means is, use this to your advantage. Empower your customers if anything. Too often I see small business owners set up some service to bombard their customers with Twitter ads or meaningless updates. That actually has an adverse effect.

Use it for advertising , but do so in such a manner that doesn’t cry desperation and that you can follow up on. I remember once I tweeted back on a deal I saw and never got a response.

Don’t do anything that overwhelms you. Once you find a platform that works for you, run with it.

I cannot stress the power of empowerment. That’s what Jimmy did. He would try to help his customers with anything he knew. People already respect you more because you had the stones to start a business. Send some educational info out pertaining to your business. Don’t give the secret recipe, but people love when someone in their network is a giver as well. No body wants someone to entirely take from them.

I hope these tips help your business grow!

PS – Tweet them if they do!! Ha ha, ……..see how I did that. I kid I kid!

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This Is Why You Should Go Paperless

You may have heard of paperless offices.
If you haven’t, you’ve lived under a tree!
So why should you make the plunge into paperless?

There are a plethora of reasons (bear in mind that a paperless office can still print things out. The point though is to avoid this as much as possible. A lot of owners get scared that “paperless” means there is no other option.)

1. Saving money: You can save upwards of $100,000 a year by going paperless because you avoid paper costs, receipt paper costs, printing toner, mailing costs, and storage! That amount can be the difference in a business still running for another month sometimes.
2. Protecting yourself: This is in the case of receipt paper. A lot of people don’t know this, but receipt paper contains high levels of BPA and BPS. These chemicals are bad for your health as they cause cancer, diabetes, obesity, etc. Imagine your staff being exposed to cancer causing chemicals every single day!
3. Marketing: If you go paperless you open up a new venue of marketing. Typically paperless systems integrate a lot more email into the routine. THIS IS FREE MARKETING GOLD! When you get a client’s email you have all kinds of opportunities to increase revenue.
4. Improve accounts receivables: Surveys find that businesses who accept payments electronically are normally paid within 10 days versus 27 days for all other forms. Every owner I’ve dealt with wanted their money ASAP. Obviously electronic is faster because who carries checks?...........................Plus,
5. Reduce the amount of bounced checks: Back in 2000 it was estimated that 731 million checks would bounce for various reasons. Don’t get caught in that statistic having to chase a customer down! With a credit/debit card payment you find out right away if it is good, not days later! Plus people nowadays like the convenience of it. I rarely carry my checkbook.
6. Store records on a hard drive not a hard cabinet: A computer can take up inches and hold billions of records while paper takes up cubic feet! Find your transactions in split seconds, not minutes or even hours. Plus, if you pay for bookkeeping, it will save you money being able to present your records via email or USB rather than a folder (accountants hate folder files)

I could go on longer, but you might run out of paper………………………

Seriously though, get with it. There’s nothing to be afraid of. Change is good!

I hope these tips help your business grow!
PS – They will.

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What Everybody Should Know About Receipts

Shopping. Sometimes mundane yet sometimes exciting. We do it habitually but also impulsively.
It is such a joy, but carries a serious threat.

WE USE 4.3 MILLION TREES A YEAR FOR RECEIPTS!

We found that in the United States 80% of the population receives 1 to 3 receipts a day!  That is a ton of paper.  On top of that, 70% said they have no organized way of storing their receipts (think about the size of them.....You're either stapling or using envelopes....) plus 30% agree that paper receipts are a growing environmental concern. 

So basically,

MAJORITY OF PEOPLE HATE RECEIPTS!!!

ON TOP OF THAT, THERE IS THE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS CHEMICAL BPA FOUND ALL OVER THE RECEIPTS.

Oh yeah, if you didn't know, BPA can cause Cancer, Diabetes,  obesity, infertility, and more.
Business owners have an opportunity now to make a difference. There is up to 19 times more BPA on a receipt than a plastic bottle. The only solution is to go paperless. Protect the earth and yourself!

Plus, paperless offices run far more efficiently.

I hope this tip helps your business grow!

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While You Are Drooling Over the iPhone 5 Launch, Don’t Forget These 3 Things

The new iPhone has been unveiled!!!!!!!!!
Stop everything! This is a code red!!!!!
………………………..
Ok, now on to serious matters. The world has been captivated with the iPhone since its inception. Why is that? Apple was a niche computer manufacturer with a decent share hold and the company had no experience in smartphones. So how did they poise themselves for success and hold onto it?
1. Exposure.
a. Apple is great for their showmanship. I can’t say that I really recalled electronic product launches as flashy and attractive like theirs at any given day. In CES you see a lot of these things and it’s kind of a captive audience. Apple will say, “let’s do it next Tuesday” and the entire world is there. They did this by having their hand in a little bit of everything. TV, magazines, and social media I think benefited them the most. It’s a whole culture of iPhone people and Apple does a good job of reinforcing why they should stay that way. Do that with your clients. This is a crucial building block . A lot of business owners don’t “house keep” their customer book and then they wonder why they lose them. Often times people will stay with a given business purely because of the customer service and interaction.
2. Developing a competitive edge.
a. I won’t say Apple is the best at making phones, but they are the best at creating small changes to software that people love. Siri is their biggest hit. Yes Android has Iris (I use androids myself), but it isn’t the same. Siri is a personality, a person in some households. People just like feeling like they have a little servant in their hand. You need to development a similar competitive edge. If you’re an auto repair shop amongst 100 try doing things like having follow up emails after service is rendered or offering coupons to your best customers from a database you create. Do that extra step and people will respond. I’m always befuddled when a fast food attendant smiles extra big, says please and thank you a lot, plus extra careful of my food. Develop that edge quickly!
3. Customer service
a. Apple is definitely top notch in this department. They bend over backwards for their customers most times. People like that. People like knowing they can get a phone and have a massive network of help using it. Let your customers feel the same way about you. Follow up with them in an appropriate time for your sales cycle. Ask them for reviews. Ask if they have any friends you can help . TELL THEM THANK YOU (should be automatic, but I thought I’d toss it in!).
Doing things like this can set you on a path to be the iPhone of whatever you do!
And customers will come back even if you just change your product/service a little bit……….
I hope these tips help your business grow!

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3 Things You Should Do Like The Kardashians

The Kardashian family. One of the most known, talked about, and followed families on the planet. And this is all for absolutely no reason! There’s not really any clear “talent” in this family, but America eats them up.

Why though?

What can you learn from them?

I’ll tell you 3 things they are talented at that you should apply to your business strategy

1. They are all over you like a spider monkey!

a. Every outlet of the media has Kardashian. They are on every single platform (as new as Pinterest is they already have 381 followers…). Try to get on all social media platforms that pertain to you (I don’t really think a Physician can use a Facebook or Pinterest that much without another marketing team). If you can fit it in your budget and time, then do it. There are a lot of them though. If need be, get some kind of software or add-on to your browser so you can make the spreading of one news update across all platforms very seamless.

2. They play to their strengths.

a. Pretty much the Kardashians are good at being outrageous and looking stylish. Yes they have an empire, but it’s built upon others intelligence and musk. They never talk about their intellectual capital unless it’s about a style they like. You do the same. Highlight your strengths to your clients and don’t be afraid to tell them you need to look for an answer. They’ll appreciate your honesty that way better than you making up something and they find out………

3. They form great strategic alliances.

a. People have long but forgotten the friendship of Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian. Then people thought “ooh, who’s the Armenian girl” and “awwww, aren’t they cute besties!” WRONG!!!! Kim was working on her first strategic alliance. After she received her notoriety and fame, they split. The family later learned to not just disappear after connecting with someone and I’m telling you now to not do that ever. No need to learn the hard way that this act can tarnish your name. Look for people in your community that you can help and who can help you, but be for real about it. Don’t be a leech.

So go out there and get your Kardashian on!!!

I hope these tips help your business grow! ………………………………….like Kim’s rear!

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I Bet You're Not Doing This 1 Simple Thing To Nurture Your Business

With so many tips out there for small business owners, what is the most powerful? ( When I speak of business owners on this topic I am mainly referring to those with a physical business). Some people think it is to invest in a commercial on TV (which is still pretty powerful). Others will say online directory marketing (also powerful).

Although both of these are great things to do, they also can be very expensive………some of these online advertisers charge $200 a month and you may not have a great return on that investment all of the time. So what is the solution?

GET EVERY CUSTOMER’S EMAIL ADDRESS!!!!!

A survey conducted in December 2009 by ExactTarget indicates that more than 50% of consumers make purchases as a direct outcome of email. It also drives more ROI than any other channel including social media and PPC advertising.

This little thing is one of the things that helped Amazon become the giant they are today. With your email submitted to them you get recommendations on products to buy, deals, and links to review what you bought. All are marketing gold!!

So here’s all you have to do in your brick and mortar business:

1. When you are completing a sale with a customer, get their email so you can send them a paperless receipt . Tell them you’re doing it for their safety and for the better of the environment (if you’re not paperless now, catch up!!).

2. Within 1-2 weeks (depending on your sales cycle) send another email with 3 parts:

a. Telling them thank you for choosing your company/product

b. A request for them to leave you a review (preferably on Google, but otherwise on SuperPages, YellowPages, Yelp, Bing, Yahoo, or HealthGrades if you’re a physician

c. A direct link to your social media pages (FaceBook, Twitter, Google+, Yelp, FourSquare, MySpace, or whatever you have!!)

This simple 2 email process does 2 things:

1. A little old fashioned courtesy in saying thank you again. This practice has all but died out unless in this fashion. I wouldn’t really expect you to send thank you notes, but at least you can do this……… People appreciate it.

2. Increases your chances of getting reviews. We all know that people will post negative reviews easily. The positive reviews sometimes need a push. If you contain a link right there in their email for where to go, then there is little to no excuse for them to not review you!

I hope these tips help your business grow!!

Paperless Joy: Paperless Business & Lifestyle Design (Google Affiliate Ad)

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Shocking Way You're Killing Your Staff and the Earth

Human beings. The top of the food chain, arguably. We are a consuming people. Otherwise we would’ve never gotten to the pinnacles we are at now, but at what cost. I look at it like a butterfly effect sometimes. You just don’t know how much one mundane incident means to the future. Here’s one that most business owners don’t think about…………….

Your receipts

These small little slips can do some significant damage. Did you know that a large majority (some say 100%) of all U.S. receipts contain the chemical BP-A or BP-S (Bisphenol A or S). A lot of people are familiar with BP-A, but now companies are trying to pass BP-S in products that say “BP-A Free” (clever huh).Bad thing about BP-S is that is up to 19 times more absorbable in the skin that BP-A!!! Now if you didn’t know, BPA has been linked to :

Cancer	Diabetes
Obesity	Infertility
Liver Problems	Heart disease

YOU ARE EXPOSING YOURSELF AND YOUR STAFF TO A LIFE THREATENING CHEMICAL EVERY DAY

The chemical rubs off of the receipts very easily and can be found on your hands up to 2 hours after washing your hands. Plus, we use 4.3 million trees every year just for receipts! Of these 4.3 million trees, most of the receipts are just tossed in the street.

Do yourself a favor and go paperless. It’s the only way to protect yourself, your staff, and your earth.

It would be nice to not have all those little receipts everywhere, wouldn’t it?

Imagine just looking in a digital database for a receipt and not in an old filing cabinet! Pretty sweet huh?

That chemical exposure and wasting of paper is the only reason places like Macy’s asks you if your want your receipt emailed to you.

There is an extremely easy way for your office to go paperless without breaking the bank.

Send me any questions you have! If I don’t have the answer, I will find it!

Sources: http://www.naturalnews.com

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3 Things Businesses Can Learn From Political Ads

My name is Daryl Perry and I approve this message..........

Ok, so you're seeing possibly hundreds of political ads now.  Question is, are they effective?  Some would say yes.  Many would say no.  I've noticed a few things about these political ads that could be extremely effective in small business.

1.     Great Attention Grabbers

§  Most of these ads begin by focusing on some hot button topic.  What are your customer’s saying?  Do you know?  If you do you can print mail or email them something that solves their problem in exchange for your services.  People want help, no matter how much they scream they don’t.  They just want to be able to initiate it, so if you show you’ve listened then they are ok.

2.     Asking For A Clear Action

§  Every political ad ends in either telling you to raise funds for your candidate or to vote.  Always make your contacts with existing or potential clients include the same thing.  If you just send a message with no requested action, you’ll have no idea if it was received or effective.

3.     Use of Multiple Ways To Reach Us

§  My wife loves to tell me that Barrack Obama emailed her……. Dorky, but effective.  We see them on the TV, in our inbox, even on YouTube!  Be just as resilient with your business.  There are so many avenues of free marketing, but you have to go use them.  Yes it will take some work, but what business doesn’t!  The more places you are online, the better.

Hope these tips help you and your business!

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2 Reasons Your Business Is Slowing Down

2 Reasons Your Business Is Slowing Down

I work with a lot of different types of business owners, but they typically have 1 common concern.........

How do I get more customers?

Often people think they are eating from a shrinking pie, so what they have is suitable.  The thing is, the pie may be growing, but you're trying to cut it with the wrong knife.  So how do you get the simple marketing tools you need today?

1.  USE THE INTERNET, USE THE INTERNET, USE THE INTERNET!!  

Often times, owners get in a system as they call it, but it's really a rut.  In order to do something different you have to do something you've never done.  This is key in business.  So what all of your previous customers came via word of mouth!  That river can dry up easily.  In fact, 72% of people trust an online review as much as word of mouth!  So have a social media page and most importantly a Google page.  Make sure you're listed correctly on any relevant search directory.

2.  Ask your current or potential customers for more.

Have you ever really looked at the receipts from large businesses like Walmart or Home Depot?  They always put some kind of call to action to go to their site so you can receive more marketing from them.  Try putting something on your receipts that tells your customers to like you on Facebook, or +1 you, or more importantly to put a review up for you.  If they post a unique review with their picture, that is worth gold! People want to know the reviews come from a human and not a computer.  Also ask for referrals in the same way.  If you need to, provide some incentive.

Remember, this must become a habit.  If you get someone's email, there is huge potential for more business for very little investment.  Too often owners or managers tell me, "we don't ask for customer's email" and say it with an air of it's a bother.  WHY DON'T YOU ASK FOR THEIR EMAIL? YOU'VE ALREADY GOT THEIR MONEY...... With their email you can more easily get more reviews and comments online.

Try it out!  I know it will better your business!

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