Karen Skidmore's Kick-Ass Blog | CanDoCanBe

Give your customers what they want - not what they need

When you are marketing a home business and have limited resources and time, it is important to generate cash as quickly as possible (cashflow is king, as you often hear!).

And this is why is important when defining your products and services to make sure you are giving your customers what they want - and not necessarily what you think they need.

What's the difference?  The difference is in the amount of sales you make.

A woman in her 40's who is over-weight and unfit may need to lose weight by eating less and exercising more.  But does she want this solution?  Quite often not which is why there is a huge market for quick fix diets and supplement pills.

A male executive who still dresses with a mickey mouse tie and cartoon socks when he presents a major pitch for a new client may need some serious advice about personal branding.  But does he want this solution?  Quite often not which is why there is a huge "secret" following of men reading their wife's fashion magazines, tutting their way through the adverts but quietly absorbing what the articles about personal style :)

So STOP a minute and ask yourself whether you are offering products and services that take little effort to sell.  Because if there aren't selling it may be that you have fallen in to the trap of offering what your customer needs - and not what they want.

Google Alert yourself and never miss a thing

Ever wondered how some people find out where they have popped up and been mentioned on various blogs or websites? 

Leesa Barnes, of www.LeesaBarnes.com, promptly commented on a blog posting just this week.  In fact within 24 hours of the post appearing here on this blog.

How did she do it?  I am sure she had Google Alerts set up so that anytime her name was mentioned on a site indexed by Google, she would receive an email straight in to her inbox.

If you haven’t done this already, I recommend you do this right now.  Go to Google Alerts and set up notifications for both your name and your business name.  It’s not only free, it really is that easy!

So, thanks Leesa for dropping by and if you want to learn more about podcasting, I recommend you sign up for her newsletter!

Why You Should Record Everything You Do or Say

“Why You Should Record Everything You Do or Say” by Guest Author Leesa Barnes

Note from Karen:  Leesa’s email newsletters have been coming in to my inbox for some while and when this one popped in today, I knew I had to share it with you.  I couldn’t say it better myself – you really should record everything you do or say! Over to you, Leesa.

One of the mistakes I made early in my business is not recording anything. Speeches, workshops, presentations, you name it, I didn't record it.

Times have certainly changed. I can't go anywhere without recording my speeches or workshops. I even carry my digital recorder in my purse just in case I have to give an impromptu speech.

There are several reasons why it's important to record your what you say and what you do:

1. You can review what you've done and make it better.

I remember a speech I used to do called "Networking Mistakes to Avoid." Because I recorded it, I was able to review it and make the next speech even better. The very last time I did, it was flawless.

2. You can pinpoint just what worked and what didn't.

I don't know about you, but my memory is pretty bad. If I tried to remember every speech I did, I would fail.

By recording it, I can review and understand why the audience didn't laugh at my joke at the beginning or why the audience seemed fully engaged in the middle of my speech.

It also gives me a chance to incorporate the answers I gave to the questions from the audience. I do this to make my speech sound richer.

3. You can leverage the content for other uses.

This is my favourite point. By recording a speech or workshop, you now have content that you can re-purpose for other uses.

After recording a workshop, I get it transcribed and email it to attendees as a bonus. Or, I can use the audio and video content for my podcast. The possibilities are endless.

© 2008 Leesa R. Barnes. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

Award-winning blogger and podcasting expert, Leesa Barnes, teaches insider tips on how to boost your sales and make a six-figure income using a podcast. Visit http://www.leesabarnes.com and sign up to receive 2 FREE chapters from her book, Podcasting for Profit.

Marketing a home business - is it a skill or a mindset?

Marketing a home business, especially when you are the business, can be one of the biggest challenges to starting up.

If you struggle at attracting clients, then you have no one spending money with you.  And if you have no one spending money with you, then you don't have a business - do you?

But what is marketing? 

Is it a skill that you can learn from reading a book or going on a course or two?  Or is it a mindset - the way that you think and feel about you and your business?

There is no doubt that to attract clients you have to know what to do to get prospects contacting you.  You have to understand who your customer is, how to reach out to them and discover how they like to be communicated with.  Understanding the marketing process is a skill that can be learnt, developed and put in to action for your business.

But what I see many home business owners and self-employed professionals doing is asking how to attract clients without understanding how important the marketing mindset is.

Let's take two image consultants. Both image consultants finished their training from the same course, at the same time.  They both live and want to work in and around their own, similar affluent market towns, where their target audience of corporate executives commute in to the city.  They both have similar branding reflected in their websites, business cards and leaflets and they have both got a 12 week marketing plan that focuses on networking, getting speaking appearances, offering a free report to build their database as well as nicely packaged programme that a client will discover exactly how to improve their personal branding to get their next promotion.

The only difference is that one image consultant, let's call her Sue, is having a bit of rough time at home.  Money is little tight having spent all her savings on the training course and her new website and, although she does not say anything to her partner, she is worried about how on earth she is going to make a go at this business.

The second image consultant, let's call her Mandy, is in the same financial position but she has a very clear vision of where she is headed in 12 months.  She can almost smell, taste and feel what it will be like when her image consultancy practice is full and she imagines what it will be like to work with a couple of associates.  Mandy even smiles to herself on the inside when she sees her book up on her bookcase. You know the one - that book that Mandy is going to get written and self-publish to establish herself as a personal branding guru in the city.

Sue, although outwardly confident, is allowing doubt gnaw away at her.  That little gremlin pops up every time she walks in to her office and switches on her PC.  The same little gremlin sits on her shoulder at her first few networking events, quietly whispering in her ear "What do you think you are achieving by being here?  Can't you see that everyone knows you are a fraud and that you have only just finished your training?"

Mandy has the same little gremlin popping in from time to time.  After all, listening to our doubts and fears are an important part of making good decisions.  But she smiles at her little gremlin and tells it "I hear what you say and thanks for pointing out what could happen. But be gone because you are not helping me achieve my goals", and the little gremlin shuffles off, head hung low in disappointment because Mandy has chosen not to listen to it.

Who will bring in more client leads?

They both have the same marketing skills, the same starting point and the same process to attracting clients - but who do you think will have the full practice this time, next year?  Sue or Mandy?

What are your thoughts?  Add your comments below.

Ever had a red light day?

Have you ever experienced a car journey where every set of traffic lights you go approach turns to red?  Frustrating, isn’t it?

I believe that you can have red light days, too!  Everything you feel you are trying to move forward with, gives you the red light. 

You can’t log on to a site because you have forgotten the password and you have to request it by email. Your PC goes that little bit slower just when you are trying to convert a file.  The phone rings and someone cancels a meeting that you had just finishing preparing for.  You just keep getting the red light!

Well, I have had more than a few red light days over the past few weeks, I can tell you.  More than I feel I can bear!  I stop and ask myself “should this be the right thing to be doing right now?” because there could be a very good reason why I shouldn’t be doing what I wanted to be doing.

But, then the stubbornness and determination to move forward rises to the surface and I think “No, go on – keep giving me another red light.  It may slow me down but I am not going to give up!” 

I have recommended a book in the last posting by Seth Godin “The Dip” and if you are feeling hit by one red light day after another, take a break and go get yourself a copy.  It makes great reading

Read, Surf & Listen - Top Resources for Home Businesses

Can you believe it that is almost Easter? The last time we had an Easter this early was in 1913, so it not surprising that some of you may have been taken by surprise with such an early holiday weekend.  I know I certainly am!

If you are lucky enough to get away for a break over Easter, I thought you may like some recommended reading.  And if you are hanging out at home but still plan to tinker on the internet, rather than totally switch off (I know, it's hard to do, isn't it?) I have also listed some useful websites that I know are popular with home businesses and self-employed professionals.

If you are more of an audio person and prefer to listen and learn, then check out the recommended podcasts.

Have a great Easter break and try not to eat too much chocolate! 

Read: Top Business Books to read over Easter

Feeling like you want to quit?

Seth Godin's latest book "The Dip" is a great read for anyone is wondering whether to quit or stick.  With the latest budget and talk of a possible recession, some of you may be wondering whether working for yourself is the right thing. 

Well, if you can succeed when the going gets tough, you can succeed at anything - and this book is great at helping you quit (if you really want to) or showing you that if you push through, you can achieve excellence. I know you know which one I would prefer you do :)

You can read this in an evening - short, sweet and very simple to read

Click here to view it on Amazon

Feel inspired after reading other people stories?

Personally, I tend to stay away from the "big entrepreneurs" biographies as they never seem to relate to me and my life.  But someone recommended Duncan Bannatyne's book "Anyone Can Do It" and as I enjoy a good episode of Dragon's Den, I decided to buy it. 

And what a great read.  Possibly not everyone's way of making business happen, but Duncan's story is very interesting and certainly proves that you can be successful from any background - and at any age.

Click here to view it on Amazon

Want to get started on a blog over Easter?

Andy Wibbels' book "BlogWild" inspired me more than 18 months ago and I still haven't found another book that outlines the steps to starting your own blog so simply.  Easy to digest chapters and simple steps to follow. Andy avoids any technical jargon and explains things so beautifully.

Click here to view it on Amazon

Surf:  Website resources to browse whilst avoiding those chocolate Easter eggs!

www.EveryWoman.com has been around for many years and offers a particularly good list of regional networking groups for women

www.BusinessWomensCafe.com is an online community for women in business that has just been launched.

www.EnterpriseNation.com launched last year as an online resource for home based businesses.

www.StartUpNation.com is an American based online community but is full of useful info, including some very active forums.

Listen:  Top Podcasts to download & learn from

www.ThePodcastSisters.com
is THE best podcast around so if you would rather listen than read or surf, then I can highly recommended you download the latest episodes.  Subscribe at i-tunes or listen through your PC, which ever is easier for you.  But I just know you will enjoy Krishna, Heather & Anna's take on Web 2.0.  The technophobes answer to techy stuff!

www.SmallBizPod.co.uk is a podcast hosted by Alex Bellinger.  Alex produces a great show where he presents interviews and case studies on topics such as social enterprise, business planning and life after Dragon's Den.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/shows/ross/ is the Jonathan Ross podcast from his Saturday morning radio show.  Absolutely nothing to do with starting & growing a business! but if you want to laugh out loud and have break from work, then this is a fabulous way of doing it.  We all have to have fun, even at work

Children's Party Entertainer doesn't give his customers what they want

How long do you propose on offering the same services and products in your home business?

It was my son’s 6^th birthday party last weekend and we had booked a magician to provide the entertainment.  This magician put on a great show, doing the classic magic tricks … that, to be honest, were just too classic to have much of an impact on his audience.  To say that he was heckled by a group of 6 year olds may be a little strong! but their sharp little minds enjoyed working out how the tricks were done and were only too quick to shout when they saw his slight of hand!

Although the children obviously enjoyed the show, I did go up and apologise to the magician, hoping that he didn’t mind too much.  He sighed and said what a shame it was that kids today didn’t seem to be innocently charmed by the act that he had obviously been doing for 20 years.

Yes, I had to admit that our group of children did seem to be 6 going on 16 – but if you were that magician, wouldn’t you think what you could do to engage with “kids today”.

Just because a product or service sold well last year, does that mean the same product or service will sell as well this year? 

A magic formula to a successful business only works if you continue to give your customers what they want.  If this changes over time, then you have to change with them.  Remember this as you grow your business from home over the coming years, and make sure you don’t get heckled by your customers

Stuck on where to go next? What are your Quick Wins?

When running a home business, sometimes it doesn’t matter how good your planning and goal setting skills are, day-to-day business “stuff” just fogs the brain and you feel lost on where to go next.

The quickest way to get back on track is to ask yourself where your “Quick Wins” are.

“Quick Wins” are the easiest and simplest way to make money TODAY! Not sometime next week.  Not sometime over the coming months – but TODAY!

What can you do that will require the least amount of effort and creativity to generate some income – TODAY?

It may be that it is making those phone calls to customers who haven’t placed an order with you for months.  It may be as simple as sending out an email to your database with a special offer – 3 sessions for the price of 2.

There’s nothing like an order or a request for a meeting to discuss business to get the motivation back in to gear again.

Completion not perfection

It can be expected that everything you do you want done right.  To have the correct grammar and spelling.  To have the right message and images in your marketing material.  After all you have standards and the right business image to create.

But to strive for perfection is business suicide.

Perfection means that everything has to be just right.  And to be just right can take weeks, if not months, of checking and checking again.

Running your own business from home doesn’t allow you weeks or months of checking.  You can’t afford weeks of indecision and making the smallest of corrections before launching a new product or service.

Actions need to be taken for you to move forward.  Projects need completing for results to be seen.  And you can’t find out what is and what isn’t going to work until the results come in.

So if you are a perfectionist and are waiting for a final check before you launch that website, send out that email, speak to that client – just remember the completion not perfection rule.

Take action and do!