Business in General blog

Circuit City shut its doors, office supply stores are reporting slow quarters, and consumers are staying home. The slow economy has reduced sales in just about every retail store. If your company is selling in the retail channel (or thinking about it), the news can be frightening.

One year ago I could read the writing on the wall. The retail channel was either dead or mortally wounded. Consumers’ buying habits had changed and product sales in brick and mortar stores were in a steep decline. I had the dubious pleasure of steering a once profitable sales channel into the ground.

During a period when retail sales reports were appalling and getting worse each week, Palo Alto Software chose to review every aspect of its retail channel plan. We didn’t expect to be able to fully rebound; we were hoping that we could find a way to slow the decline. We looked at every partnership, channel position, and retail decision. We challenged ourselves to make wholesale changes where necessary. We threw out all of our preconceived notions and started from scratch.

Was our software selling on-shelf in the right stores? Did our pricing model maximize revenue? Did we know where our customers were shopping? What was our competition’s strategy? Were retail sales in the process of dying off? Every aspect of our retail strategy was researched, challenged and weighed. Our start-from-scratch approach immediately brought glaring problems to the surface.

By asking the right questions, our management team was able to get a better understanding of the retail market. We were able to correct our mistakes and identify some very significant opportunities. A year later, Palo Alto Software has a thriving retail channel that continues to realize significant growth, month over month. Retail is not dead, it’s not wounded, it’s just changing!

In retail, the learning curve can be very steep and unforgiving.

Over the next couple of weeks I will be blogging about the lessons we learned in retail. Hopefully this series will challenge your business to take a fresh look at retail. It is a complicated, time-consuming sales channel, but the returns can be well worth the effort.

David Shear is the Channel Sales Manager at Palo Alto Software, where he oversees all academic, corporate, government and retail sales.  David came to Palo Alto Software from the banking industry where he was a regional and national sales manager for Indymac Bank, Optium Financial and Rainland Mortgage; David worked in correspondent and wholesale mortgages for over a decade.

Having attended University of Oregon’s Law School, David is quick to point out that while the Oregon Ducks are his first love, sales come in a close second.

(editor’s note: David’s status with UofO was incorrectly listed as being an Alum. This is completely a miss on ‘Chelle’s part and not a devious attempt on David’s. )

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Tags: David Shear, inside look, retail, sales
Posted under Management, Small Business, Success, sales on February 5th, 2010 | 3 Comments »

Technology and its Effect on our Lives and Business

I remember reading a book when I was young which made an attempt to predict the future and how we would be living today. Most of the changes had to do with technology–specifically along the lines of a popular TV show from the 1960s, The Jetsons. I remember the large picture telephones in one of the illustrations that were predicted to be in everyone’s home. And of course there were the gadgets and vehicles that were going to make our lives more convenient and enjoyable. While some of the things were a little “off” (don’t know if we’ll ever live in sky apartments; is it really necessary?), for the most part the representations have become a reality. And I must tell you, most of the developments that I see are pretty wonderful.

I think for most of us, technology is still a bit of a shady character that few want to fully embrace. Books, movies, and TV shows have mostly depicted technology and the future as a cold, soulless world. Some movies even depict the future as a world where technology “takes over” and enslaves the population in some manner. These dystopias do nothing to communicate all the good that technology provides. Technological advances in communication today allow us to connect with virtually anyone in the world instantaneously. For many of us, there is a negative knee-jerk reaction which comes with that. After all, who really wants to hear from that third-grade classmate? My belief is that the good far outweighs the bad.

In spite of our ambivalence, technology and improved communication trudges on. The Pew Research Center says that 74% of American adults now surf the Internet (do I really need to remind you of the ever-increasing Internet usage statistics?). People of all age groups, income ranges and education levels are shedding the fear of “Big Brother” and plugging in. And the prediction for the future–more of the same.

I had the opportunity to speak to a local engineering association. In the audience was an engineer who openly scoffed at the idea of using online sites to communicate and market his services. He knew of the massive number of people who had accepted the Internet as a way to get information quickly and to communicate; yet because of his skepticism, or fear, he has effectively rejected technology (If you can’t see the irony of an engineer rejecting technology, then I haven’t explained it right). But I don’t think he’s alone in his rejection. I think we all continue to hold technology at arm’s length.

Perhaps the best thing to do is to position technology in our lives as a partner rather than a rival–something that makes us more productive, while at the same time allows us to maintain a level of privacy. My guess is that social media sites will continue trying to give you a tremendous level of communication when you want it while shielding you from unwanted contact… in a sense keeping the good and shedding the bad. We’ll see. But in spite of the positioning, technology and improved communication march on, making inroads into every area of our lives. While I’d prefer that you welcome it and make it a partner in your life rather than have it forced upon you (see engineer…what are his options?), technology and improved communication will continue to become a bigger part of our lives.

I’m still amazed by the number of businesses that are “unplugged” today. Granted, I can understand the need for privacy on a personal level, but gaining clients has to do with visibility and promotion. Over time, it’s my estimation that businesses will simply have to plug in to compete. Having a website will be a starting point, along with a business license. Letting others know what you do in mass (social media, etc), will be a routine marketing activity. And the companies that will be the most successful are the ones who harness technology the most effectively.

How is your business, technology-wise? Are you online? Do you have a website? Maintain a blog? Use online advertising? Are you plugged in to the social media world? Have you integrated your offline marketing with online marketing? With all the numbers of people jumping online looking for products and services, is it time to set your business up so that they can find you easily? With the enhanced privacy features of a lot of online tools, is it time to jump on in? I think so…the water’s great!

Scott Campbell is the President of Impact Marketing, a results-oriented marketing coaching/consulting firm. They focus on helping small business grow using repeatable marketing processes…using mainly online tactics such as website development, search engine optimization, and social media. Their website is located at www.impactyourcompany.com

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Tags: Duct Tape Marketing Coach, Scott Campbell, technology
Posted under Duct Tape Marketing Coach on February 2nd, 2010 | No Comments »

Business people often say the presentation of any concept or sales call is as important as the content, in some cases even more important.

So what are the ingredients of a successful presentation? What practical insights are there on how to improve your personal skills? What do you need to know to create presentations that not only get rave reviews, but also succeed in getting recommendations approved and vigorously supported?

In 30 years of teaching presentation effectiveness at one of Canada’s premier business schools, we’ve had a real life lab in what works, and what business owners, executives, and sales people really need. They told us they want a way to reduce the time required to prepare a presentation significantly. They want to know how to respond to challenges and objections from the audience; and, they want to stay in control of the situation and not have their meeting hijacked. And of course everyone wants to know how to control the nerves and fear of standing up to present.

This is a rich subject for discussion. Let’s start by looking at what we see are the biggest mistakes people make every day.

As a starting point, please realize that nobody wants to talk about your product or service! Your business is the most important thing to you, but your prospect’s or client’s business is the most important thing to her. A good rule of thumb is to talk a lot about them, and very little about you. Your audience wants to know one thing only: how is your product or service going to help me compete in a dynamic, cluttered, and puzzling market. So don’t tell them about how fast your widget processing speed is, tell them how much faster their product will get into customers’ hands and start pumping out cash.

Start your presentation with a promise of value. We feel so strongly about this we insist that all our clients begin their presentations with these exact words, “At the end of this meeting you will have…” Make it as relevant as you can.

A good trick is to find out what the audience’s biggest frustration is with your product or service category, and build a promise around solving it. You might say, “At the end of this meeting, you will have a proven solution to your inventory problem, which will increase stock turns by 14 percent.” Be focused. Be specific.

End your presentation with a clear request for meaningful action, and double your chances of getting a positive response by demonstrating that you have skin in the game too. This simply means that you will ask your audience to do something, and promise to do something meaningful in return.

Here’s how that might go: “Bob, I’m asking you to purchase twelve dozen of our gizmos for delivery by the end of the month, and in return I will provide our advanced training for the whole team a week before the stock is delivered.”

Simple rules that will make a real difference in how well your presentations and sales calls go: talk more about the customer than about your company; start with a promise; end with a clear “ask” and another promise.

Why does this work? Well, when we talk to heads of companies large and small and ask them what bugs them most about sales calls and supplier presentations, they tell us (and very frankly I might add): people who don’t understand their business; lengthy meetings with no clear outcome or value proposition for them; and no commitment by the supplier to contribute to success.

There’s an old sales guy motto you might recall right about now: the customer is always right. In this situation, it’s worth paying attention to.

Ken Burgin and Elizabeth Walker are the Marketing Masters (www.MarketingMasters.ca), a full-service marketing and advertising partnership that helps build busy businesses. Send your ideas on How to Thrive in Times Like These to liz@marketingmasters.ca or ken@marketingmasters.ca, or call 1-866-908-5720.

web: http://www.marketing,masters.ca
blog: http://thebuzzwithkenandliz.blogspot.com/

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Tags: Duct Tape Marketing Coach, Elizabeth Walker, Ken Burgin, presentation
Posted under Duct Tape Marketing Coach, Success on February 1st, 2010 | No Comments »

Today we say goodbye to one of our favorite Business in General authors, Steve Lange.

After 12 years with Palo Alto Software, Steve and his lovely wife Vie (who happens to be Palo Alto Software’s Controller and has been with the company for 15 years) are retiring.

Steve has been invaluable in the documentation department and I know they will feel his absence keenly. He’s also been  a strong blogger for me and his interesting and informative pieces will be missed.

Thank you, Steve, for all the fantastic work you’ve given the company, and the words you’ve given to this blog.

I can’t begin to tell you how much you’ll be missed.

Happy Retirement!

‘Chelle Parmele
Social Media Marketing Manager

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Posted under Palo Alto Software News on January 29th, 2010 | 3 Comments »

A recent post You Probably Mistreat Your Best Clients, by Tim Berry on his Planning Startup Stories got me thinking about a corollary … Do businesses treat their new hires better than their existing long-term employees?

Berry asks: Do your long-term loyal clients get the worst treatment? Do they pay the highest rates? Do you take them for granted? Do you give new customers better rates than existing customers?

Many pundits, organizations, governments, universities, authors, bloggers, and companies are proud to announce to one and all that “Their employees are their most valuable assets.” But is it really true? Do they really treat those employees as most valuable? Ask yourself the same questions, but substitute employees for clients and customers.

Do your long-term loyal employees get the worst treatment?

Do you take your long-term employees for granted? Do your long-term employees become invisible, competently doing those behind-the-scenes support roles so well that management just sort of assumes they will always be there? Do they perform their jobs so well that they are never considered for promotion or new opportunities? So necessary, yet so overlooked.

Do they get paid the highest salaries or the lowest? Have your people’s salaries kept pace with inflation and the cost of living?  Do your most senior employees have less spendable income now than when they were hired? In some companies, especially those teetering on the edge of the cash flow abyss, it is entirely possible that they are now in violation of Wage and Hour laws because Federal and State Minimum wage amounts jumped ahead of what some people make, especially as many companies chose to forgo employee raises in 2009.  That’s easy to test, for yourself: take the suspect salaries and compare them to the minimums.

Do you give new employees better salaries than existing employees? This one is prevalent in many businesses. It’s not that companies intentionally set out to short-change their long-term employees. It’s just that COL raises never keep pace with inflation, but new employees seek jobs with starting salaries commensurate with the current job market. The loyal, stable, current employee suddenly finds that the new hire, often in a lower tier in the organizational structure, is being paid more than they are, after putting in years of service building a successful company. And here’s a good test of that one: if you had to hire a new person to replace your existing one, would you have to pay more than their salary, or less?

Does it cost more to get a new employee or keep an existing one? Most companies know that the cost of losing an employee, and recruiting and training a new one, is very high. That’s in the business literature everywhere. Still, as a reminder, this is a paraphrase of a marketing axiom that it costs more to get a new customer than to keep an existing one. This can apply to employees as well. Remember, in this context, that there is the productivity lost when the employee is no longer present. Next come the costs for advertising, screening, interviewing and filling the position. Then there are the losses during training periods, where you have two people (trainee and trainer) working at less than peak performance. In some cases the company loses skills and knowledge that can never be reacquired.

Those loyal long-term employees can save you from Santayana’s Law of Repetitive Consequences, i.e., “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” A “new” hot marketing program idea, for example, may turn out to be a complete waste of time and money … just like the last time it was tried … reinventing the flat tire, as it were … if there is no one left in the company who remembered when it flopped before.

Your long-term employees are the folks that helped you start up and grow your company to where it is today. They were key to the foundation of your venture, and now provide continuity between where you have been and where and what you plan to become.

Steve Lange

Senior Editor
Palo Alto Software

————————————–
A message from Palo Alto Software’s CEO  Sabrina Parsons: Steve is right! And the good thing is, as a long term employee who retires today,  Steve was a very welcome part of the team who will be missed. A message from Steve about retiring:

“What a long strange trip it’s been…” Ok, so I’m not part of the Grateful Dead –”I’m not dead yet. Too old to rock ‘n’ roll; too young to die.” — but I can certainly be one of the Grateful Retired.

Twelve years! That’s the longest I worked at any one job, and the longest I worked in any one industry. Whodathunkit.
Lots happened at Palo Alto during that time, and I traveled and learned as I participated in that journey.

Thanks to all of you for your friendship, your encouragement, and for laughing at my awful puns.

“Adventure’s out there!” — UP!

Steve

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Tags: employees, human resources, long-term employees, news, personnel
Posted under Management, Strategy on January 29th, 2010 | 1 Comment »

Fascinating article from ReadWriteStart about what the iPad could possibly mean to start-ups. In a word? Instant Demos.

“Startups and entrepreneurs will benefit immensely from the ability to create documents, spreadsheets and presentations on-the-go, allowing them to take their product pitches with them wherever they go. When they meet people at events, they can whip out their iPad and flip through their Keynote presentation right then and there.”

Read the rest of the article at ReadWriteStart

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Tags: apple, hardware, startup, techology
Posted under Small Business on January 28th, 2010 | 2 Comments »

In our social media training we talk a lot about creating listening stations and using RSS readers to help us keep up with online conversations. “How do I keep up with all of these feeds that I’ve added to my feed reader” is a question that always comes up during these sessions. For me, the answer lies in how I organize my feeds and the system I use to manage all of my social media activities.

I’m not claiming there is a right or wrong way to organize your RSS feeds. I have reorganized my feeds a few times over the past 5 years and this is what works for me. In my opinion, the “right way” is the way that helps you get the information you need in a timely fashion.

What is a feed reader?

Not everyone may be familiar with feed readers, so let’s begin there. A feed reader is a piece of software that allows you to manage your RSS subscriptions. It will also periodically go out and check for updates, and if it finds them, adds the new entries to your reader. Readers look similar to email clients; in fact many email clients (such as Outlook) include the ability to read RSS feeds as well as email. Feed readers come in online only, desktop, and combination varieties. Some popular feed readers include Google Reader, Bloglines, and RSS Bandit.

When I first started using a feed reader, I used to organize my feeds by topic. As I began to follow more and more feeds, I struggled with getting information in a timely manner without spending hours reading all of those feeds. I decided to organize my feeds by how often I want to read them. This is influenced by 1) how often the feed is updated; 2) the urgency or relevance to my business; and 3) how actionable the typical items in that feed are.

How often the feed is updated – Some blog authors post once or more per day. I was finding that when I read a feed that had 10 or more new items, I tended to skim through them and feel like I didn’t have time to give them the attention they deserved.

Relevancy to my business – Early in my career, I was a software developer. I still follow bloggers who write about software development issues. But since that is not my primary focus, I need to prioritize those posts accordingly.

How actionable the items are – Some items are “nice to know”. Others I collect because they will be of interest to my customers. Others may be about events I want to attend, industry news, what my competitors are up to, etc.

Using this criteria, I organize my feeds by how frequently I feel I need to read them in order to get the information I need in a timely manner. Here is how my feeds are organized in my reader:

• Daily – These are typically blogs of people that I like to follow, who post fairly frequently about topics relevant to my business. For me, fairly frequently means three or more times per week. I also included Google alerts that I have set up in this category.
• Weekly – This category contains feeds of blogs I like, but don’t need to read every day. When I find a new blog to follow, I will typically put it in this category or the “someday” category until I am familiar enough with it to decide where it will live.
• Monthly – These are items that I want to be aware of. Typically, I will scan these items and maybe fully read one or two posts out of 10 in entirety.
• Someday – Things not directly related to my business. Maybe they occasionally post items I find interesting. Typically, I haven’t decided if I want to follow this blog yet, but I don’t want to lose track of it until I’ve read some more posts.

How much time to spend

Here is another trick I use. I used to set goals like “I will read my feeds for at least one hour a day”. Depending upon the last time I had read items in my reader, it would be easy for this one hour to double into two or more hours.
Now I set my goal as a maximum, rather than a minimum, amount of time that I will spend reading. For example, I may set my goal this way: “I can only spend 45 minutes today reading my feeds”.

This does a couple of things for me. It helps me decide what goes in (and what stays in) my daily category. I also use this goal to give myself permission to read items in other categories, once I’ve finished the Daily activities and as long as I don’t go over the 45 minutes.

One last note. I’m a big fan of David Allen’s Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity. One of the big lessons I took away from David’s book is the importance of separating collecting from processing. Here is how this plays out in my feed reader. As I am reading, I will find things that I want to comment on, share with clients, or use as the starting point for a post of my own. Since I only have 45 minutes to collect items from my feed reader I must follow the rule of either doing it in two minutes or putting it into my collection system. Since I use Google Reader, I “star” items that I want to put in my collection system for processing at a later date.

RSS feed readers can be a powerful tool to help you collect and manage information to help you with your business. The system that I use may not work for you, but I hope that by sharing how I organize my feeds, you will see that it is possible to keep up with a large amount of information without it turning into a full time job.

Bill Brelsford is the owner of Rebar Business Builders. As an Authorized Duct Tape Marketing Coach, Bill works with professional service firms and independent professionals who want to spend less time chasing business and more time serving profitable customers.
phone: 913.962.9261
email: bill@rebarbusinessbuilders.com
web: http://www.RebarBusinessBuilders.com
blog: http://blog.rebarbusinessbuilders.com

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Tags: Bill Brelsford, Duct Tape Marketing Coach, how to, social media
Posted under Duct Tape Marketing Coach on January 27th, 2010 | No Comments »

I first heard about the Three Envelopes more than 30 years ago when I was working for a local educational institution. It was a very short presentation on briefing the person replacing you. Over the years I’ve run across the program in other places, in slightly different forms, including some Internet search results. I’m retiring soon, and I’ll be leaving three envelopes at my workstation for my replacement.

Envelope #1

Outside note: Open in six months if the job is tougher than you thought

Contents: “If the job is getting tough, simply say that you are just getting up to speed, learning the systems you’ve inherited.”

Moving into an existing job always requires learning how things work. Whether they use Strunk’s Elements of Style, OpenSource servers, Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, or self-written Step-by-Step Operating Procedures, every business will adjust and modify that guide or program to best satisfy the needs of the company. No matter who in the company chose that system, you must claim that you, the new person, need time to learn how it works. Make sure you take that time.

Envelope #2

Outside note: Open in a year if the job is getting very stressful

Contents: “If you are getting really stressed by the job and upper management is breathing down your neck, blame everything on me.”

Using your predecessor as the scapegoat has a long and honored history. It is no less effective for having been used a gazillion times before. Your predecessor is not present to defend themselves, and blame is safely transferred offsite without collateral damage. No one present will gainsay you in the presence of higher management and risk blame backlash.

Envelope #3

Outside note: Open anytime after one year if you’re overwhelmed by the job, and your job performance/output can’t reach correspondence with chief level (CEO, CIO, CCBWO) denizen’s preconceived pet theories.

Contents: “Make out three new envelopes.”

Steve Lange
Senior Editor (Ret.)
Palo Alto Software

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Tags: leaving, personnel, retiring, three envelopes, training
Posted under General Business Information on January 25th, 2010 | 2 Comments »

My sister-in-law is due for some very specialized heart surgery. She has to travel from Hawaii to Los Angeles for the procedure.

For several weeks she was emailing the surgeon’s office, trying to confirm the day and time of her procedure, pre-op appointments, preparatory instructions and the like. Irritatingly, the surgeon’s office never replied.

Finally, out of desperation, my sister-in-law called the surgeon’s office and was transferred to the Patient Contact Coordinator. When she told the Coordinator that she’d been emailing for weeks but had received no answer, the coordinator replied, “Oh, your emails went to the SPAM folder and were deleted. If you’re not in my Contacts List, emails are automatically listed as SPAM and deleted.”

“So, can I confirm my appointments and get my pre-op information?” asked sister-in-law.

“Sure. Just send me an email,” replied Patient Contact Coordinator.

Pause. Wait. Wait for it.

“Soooooo, do you want my email address to add to your Contacts List?” finally inquired exasperated sister-in-law.

“Huh?” responded the quick-on-the-uptake Coordinator.

“So that the email you just asked me to send you doesn’t get automatically sent to SPAM and deleted ….. again?”

“Uh … Oh … Yeah, I guess.”

To quote a sage, contemporary American icon: “D’oh!”

How does this surgeon ever stay in business if they never get new patients because new patient emails are summarily deleted because they are not in the Coordinator’s current patient Contacts List?

This office, or at least this Patient Contact Coordinator, could benefit from the advanced email management features of Email Center Pro.

Steve Lange
Senior Editor (Ret.)
Palo Alto Software

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Tags: communications, customer contact, email, Email Center Pro, failure, office coordination
Posted under Email Fail on January 20th, 2010 | No Comments »

What is a full service animation studio doing in a quiet Northern Virginia neighborhood?

Producing animation for “the big screen, the small screen, and all the screens in between,” says its founder, Charlotte Rinderknecht.

Studio Kinate is a “concept to completion” studio whose artists use traditional hand-drawn animation to create its projects.

But it’s not just its unusual location and old-school style that set Kinate apart from other animation studios. “It is our process that makes us stand out. I believe in apprenticeship. The animations we produce rely on interns and apprentices working alongside veteran and senior animators,” Rinderknecht says.

Rinderknecht feels this is an important part of what makes her company special. “Our films not only engage audiences, they inspire a new generation of animators. Each and every Studio Kinate project includes the work of student, intern, and junior animators.” This, she says, is the key to creating relevant and progressive storytelling that resonates with young audiences.

While she had been involved in other businesses, it wasn’t until she decided to seek funding for Studio Kinate that she embarked upon writing her first business plan. “When I was looking for help, it was the reviews that made me turn to Business Plan Pro, because I had no idea where else to turn.”

“My business model is unusual, so people who were advising me had a hard time seeing the possibilities outside the norm,” Charlotte notes. Then she discovered the Business Success Coaching service, and found a coach who supported her vision and helped her achieve it. “My coach, Paul Gibson, was amazing. He helped me keep on goal and helped me with questions that were related more to my industry, that helped me understand how to write my plans. For instance, since my company produces animation for feature distribution, I need to build a plan for each of those projects. Paul was amazing and encouraging.”

Charlotte Rinderknecht

Charlotte considers any business plan a work in progress. “The business plan is a living document and should be revisited to help keep track of where you are going. I feel it is like a map, and you don’t just look at the map when you begin a journey. You need to review and plan new routes as you travel.” On her planning journey, she’s found the most challenging part to be crunching the numbers. “It takes considerable research and planning to develop the funding requirements of the studio. Business Plan Pro helps me get organized and walks me through the process. It also provides additional resources,” she says, which provided valuable assistance in finding the data she needed to complete her plan.

Studio Kinate is not just a business. Its productions include both traditional hand drawing techniques and innovative digital technology, says Charlotte, “because we believe the warmth and artistry of hand drawn animation is an art worth preserving for the next generation.” And since the animations are created by young animators sitting alongside seasoned professionals, viewers and creators alike benefit from the process.

And so does Charlotte. “I love watching people come together on a project. Working with young people and introducing them to veterans in the industry has been priceless. I love watching them work together to produce something that audiences will love. Don’t get me wrong, this is the scariest thing I’ve ever done, but it is also the most rewarding.”

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Tags: customer spotlight, Success, success story, testimonials
Posted under General, Success on January 19th, 2010 | No Comments »