Bill Gluth's Creative Business Strategy Blog

Seth's Blog: 3 million emails for $500

Link: Seth's Blog: 3 million emails for $500. I have to say, Genius Thinker Seth Godin finds great information to blog.

Respect goes with caring. Follow the link, read the post and DON'T EVER send 3 million emails for $500.

If you're a Creative Business Strategist, you care WWAAYY more about the people who trust you than to waste time in highly unproductive and potentially damaging pursuits like the ones described here.

Read, heed and learn

Details - Taking Advantage of More Small Things That Matter to Small Business Marketing

Small details make marketing both effective and enjoyable.

Evaluate Small Things and Improve Your Marketing Overnight

Consider:

• How you and your staff dress.
• How your business phone is answered.
• What your outbound message tells callers when they can't reach you.
• How promptly someone knowledgeable returns calls.

All are key issues to your marketing success or failure.

Take a look at businesses YOU buy from. What do they do that you dislike?

What can you learn and take back to your own business? The key is to be consistently observant of all businesses you buy from. Learn from their mistakes and capitalize on their strengths.

Here are More Small Details That Matter to Your Clients and Prospects

1. Hours and days of operation. Are they convenient for your target market?
2. Telephone demeanor. How do you and your staff say hello and goodbye?
3. Follow up and quality contact time with clients.
4. Sharing with peers.
5. Spare time activities. Everything you do makes a brand impression.
6. Reputation.
7. Enthusiasm and passion.
8. Credibility.
9. Consistency in marketing.
10. Flexibility.

And my personal favorite, being a giver instead of a taker.

This Weeks Action

1. Take a look at the bullet points and more small details list above. Write down areas you are not considering or are weak in.

2. Pick 1 area you would like to improve. Improve just 1 area this week.

3. Next week, pick another area to improve. Follow this process until you have improved all the major areas of marketing detail weakness in your business.

4. Email me at details@developyouvision.com to let me know the positive effect improving small details has on your business. I'll post your comments on my Blog. Don't delay, fame and fortune wait!

Receive a Bonus Action Step

Email bonusaction@developingyourvision.com. Learn how to make your business card work harder by working smarter.

Next Week

The Stories You Tell Reflect the Business You Get

Anger is NOT Good for Small Business Marketing

So many times we find ourselves challenged by client events. Sometimes, we have to make decisions that are not well received by clients. And sometimes, clients can get angry with those decisions.

It's always important to remember, anger directed at anger always starts a fire that burns out of control quickly.

When confronted with a situation that angers you, STOP, breathe, then respond in a rational, fact based way.

Take the emotion out of the situation. Explain why you made the decision you did, build your case on facts, not conjecture and put water on the "client anger fire" instead of fuel.

Too Much To Do May Be Good

"Unless a man undertakes more than he possibly can do, he will never do all that he can."

Henry Drummond (1851-1897)
Scottish theologist and scientist

Next time you're feeling overwhelmed, remember this quote.
S T R E T C H I N G may be one secret of success.

Quote courtesy of Just Sell, http://www.justsell.com

Proof; Advertising is Not Effective

One of my favorite newsletters is IAB Smart Brief. It gives me updates on the latest in marketing in minutes a day.

Today one headline was

"Marketing is Everywhere, but People Just Edit it Out."

And the blurb went on to a say, "It's no secret that on-demand media is decreasing the preeminence of the 30-second TV spot, but marketers are concerned that other types of advertising also might be falling on deaf ears. As advertising becomes ubiquitous, people appear to have a natural tendency to just tune it out."

Which lead to this story in USA Today. Ironically, at the end of the story there were a few ads.

What did I do? I tuned them out of course.

If marketing doesn't tell a relevant story that fits your unique view of the world, you are GONE! That's just our reaction to mass culture marketing.   

Study Bolsters Blog-Related PR Practices

Link: Study Bolsters Blog-Related PR Practices. For those who may not understand the power of blooging, ClickZNews provides food for thought.

Caring - The Secret Sales Strategy

Marketing is a LOT more than advertising, direct mail and sales. Authentic, caring is a vital key that few people ever think of.

Sales information resource Just Sell, calls caring "sales love". Here's the meaning:

Sales love ('sAlz - luv): noun: 1: unselfish and loyal care for the good of a customer, prospect, reseller, and/or team member.

As a reader of Creative Business Strategies you understand that the only reason we are in business is to provide value to a group of people who care.

Falling in love with your client is where marketing really begins.

• Care about your clients more than yourself.
• Love your clients; not your business.
• Always ensure complete client satisfaction, no matter what.

Take time to understand what the client REALLY needs and make recommendations that solve their immediate problem; even if it means less profit on the initial sale.

Follow the action steps below to add care to your marketing and sales arsenal. You'll increase your closing ratios, top line revenues and referrals simultaneously.

This Weeks Action

1. Understand the lifetime value of every client.

2. What is the value you provide others? Practice articulating it until you become comfortable talking about value instead of features and benefits.

3. Study your client database. Make sure everyone has been personally touched (communicated with) this year.

4. Have a plan to follow up with every new client, starting today.

5. Help your fans (overjoyed clients) spread the word. Provide clients with articles written by you or other industry experts. Provide instructions that help clients remember to spread the good news (your service and information) to people they know.

6. Respond to all client communications quickly. Respond to clients on the same day they communicate with you.

7. Continuously comb your database. Be aware of everyone in it. Keeping a "clean" database ensures your clients are cared for consistently.

8. Every database entry has a follow up action scheduled or you remove them. No action = lack of care.

Next Week

Details - Taking Advantage of More Small Things That Matter

What's in a Name? It's the Headline That Generates Interest

The most important marketing tool available is the story you tell to clients and prospects.

A poor story equals no interest in your business. Your story begins with the name of your company.

Think carefully and choose a name that reflects YOUR:

• values
• talents
• and passion

Then create a story that communicates what the name means. Figure out who cares the most and tell them that story consistently.

Learn more about stories by reading All Marketers Are Liars. You can order it here. All Marketers Are Liars

Special thanks to Jara and Phil Salmon at Affordable LLC Filings for inspiring this post. Visit them at http://www.affordablellcs.com

Caring About Quality

"Quality is not an act. It is a habit."
Aristotle (384bc-322bc) Greek philosopher, physician & scientist

One Creative Business Strategy we ALL can use, for free, is the habit of caring about quality.

Take a look at everything you do in business. Analyze whether or not it is the best it can be, make corrections if/as needed, and repeat the process tomorrow.

We can never be too vigilant about the quality of our:

* Products/services
* Value we offer clients
* Caring and commitment to clients
* Follow up on the various interactions we have with people

Next Monday’s Creative Business Strategy is about care as a sales secret.

Is it REALLY a secret?

Based on the quality of interactions I obeserved with varius businesses, it appears it may well be.

Truthfully confront the quality of what you are doing today, so you can incorporate care into your sales strategy on Monday.

acleareye.com

Link: acleareye.com. YIKES! Does this scare you as much as it does me? Post courtesy of acleareye.com

We are drowning in information, while starving for wisdom."

This just in (okay . . . two months ago): Information fogs the brain

The flood of emails, cell-phone calls, and text messages that bombard modern workers can lower their IQs twice as many points as smoking marijuana, a new study says. And they didn't even consider reading blogs! Researchers at the University of London found that trying to work while checking messages temporarily knocks about 10 points off a person's IQ. (Smoking pot, by contrast, results in a loss of four IQ points.)

Ummm . . . anyway . . . what was I just saying? Ahh, forgetaboutit. I gotta grab a few more chocolate chip cookies and check out some more of my favorite blogs. ;)