More customers, more productivity, more profit. Guaranteed.

That’s my USP (unique selling proposition), but some might also call it my mission statement. I don’t really look at it like a mission statement by someone’s pure definition, but in a lot of ways – they are the same thing.

So why is it that and not something like “blah blah blah optimal blah blah blah cohesive blah blah blah forward-thinking blah blah solutions blah blah blah”? (as spoken by Charlie Brown’s teacher)

Other than the fact that I can actually *remember* the short one, it’s because I’ve been through the process Dan Heath describes below in this short 3 minute video:

It’s usually an AWFUL process and interestingly enough – after all that self-inflicted punishment, I always work my way back to the original statement and keep it because it’s short and powerful. It doesn’t have a lot of crap, wordsmithing or baggage. Believe me, I’ve tried adding words to it like “I help small business get …” and so on.

EVERY time, I end up pulling those things out.

Norm at Norm’s News in Kalispell says “Eat dessert first”, for example. They sell old-fashioned candy, milk shakes like your great grandpa talks about and so on.

Is yours short and powerful?

Is yours not only short enough to remember, but powerful and impactful enough to act on and motivate others? I hope so.

Don’t stop there – Now apply this to your marketing message(s).

If they feel like something that came from the meeting described in the video, ask yourself a few questions:

• Could this be why your marketing is so darned boring?
• Is this why your response rate is 0.005%?

Uh, yeah. Probably so.

Take that dude with the corporate-speak hat out in the parking lot and have him park cars, wax deck chairs or something until that stuff clears out of his mind. Maybe toss one of Seth’s books at him.

No matter what – take a firehose to that vocabulary. It’s boring, it doesn’t stand out in any crowd and it sure doesn’t compel anyone to do business with you – not even the stodgiest of companies.

Now, start over. Remember what you wanted to do when you started this thing? Remember the stuff you do for customers that gets you jacked up? Remember the thing that you’d rather do than almost anything (yeah, besides “that” and skiing, of course).

That’s what your mission – and most likely your USP – is all about.

Update: A nice resource from Dan and Chip Heath to help you get this process right, tossing out the stuff you dont need.

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Your competition’s employees in LowRentEconomyIstan are willing to work this hard – and not for $50K a year. Maybe for 50 cents a day.

Someone mentioned to me privately after reading Where were you that if he didn’t know better, he’d think I was trying to put a guilt trip on folks.

He didn’t mention it (though I know he realized it) that my real point was that anyone used to competing locally has already found (or will soon find) themselves competing in a statewide / regional / national / global market.

How you react is the critical thing.

Whaddya do, wait, whine or work?

A friend’s business is facing a similar challenge.

For two decades and then some, they’ve competed against local and in-state firms.

That’s all changed now.

In the last year or so, every single opportunity they’ve bid on has had national and regional players at the table.

My guess is that some of you are experiencing the same thing.

In that environment, in their market, qualifications aren’t likely to even make it into the discussion before local firms get pushed off the table.

The national firm’s materials will make them the obvious choice (where have you heard that before?) because a local firm’s marketing materials, sales expertise and experience will be *normally* be hard pressed to match that of a national firm.

Of course, those processing the bids won’t acknowledge it and they might not even realize they’re doing it because worst case, it happens subconsciously as if they were staring at a pretty girl or a handsome man.

Because they have to compete on a bigger, shinier stage, these firms have honed their image and their materials over years of competing with other national and regional firms. It’s quite possible that some of them have had to battle it out with international competitors.

That leaves the local firm with the same choice we discussed a while back: Wait, Whine or Work.

Again, we circle back to “what other people do”. What do they do to succeed that you don’t yet do? It doesn’t matter how important *you* think these things are. What matters is how important they are in the minds of your customers and prospects.

In simple terms: What’s the market think? How do they buy? Why do they buy? What puts them over the edge?

Your reasons don’t mean much. Theirs mean everything. Either you deal with global competition or it’ll deal with you.

Waiting around for some Senator to “fix” your competitive problem isn’t gonna help. Fix your competitive position yourself. It’s faster and a lot cheaper than a politician.

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photo credit: coolz0r

On the BBC television show TopGear, one of the hosts was reviewing a new Audi sports car.

After going on about the car, cooing about its performance and handling, he had to come up with something to say how amazing he felt about it overall.

Keep in mind that despite slowly changing demographics, this is mostly a guy show. It’s about cars, geeky mechanical stuff and perhaps most importantly, stupid projects we build for no apparent reason.

So he said about the car…. “It’s like Scarlett Johansson’s lips.”

He said it much better than just saying “Wow”, or perhaps just by staring “for too long” as if you were hypnotized. I’m guessing that anyone who actually knows who Scarlett is (or at least has seen her photos/movies) knows exactly what he means.

By describing it in that way, he put an exclamation point on it that made it difficult not to want to drive the car.

How do the testimonials your clients give make it difficult not to try your products and services?

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

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Rory Sutherland asks how a prospect or customer gets to that place in this 16 minute TED video. Sort of.

How does perceived value impact your business and your clientele’s thinking?

How could it?

It’s not about lying or confusing prospective (and existing) customers.

It’s about making it easier to see the value in what you make or do. You have no more important job and that’s what marketing (and positioning) are all about.

If you sell the best *whatever* in the world but know one seems to know about it, does it really matter how good that *whatever* is?

Making it obvious to the customer why they can’t get to sleep that night without getting their hands on a package of that thing (or service) that you sell. Holy cow, I gotta have that.

Think about it over a bowl of Diamond Shreddies. I suggest the combo pack…

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photo credit: gruntzooki

Would airlines be (more?) profitable if they didn’t have to pay for the fuel to get their planes from the runway to 35,000 feet?

I’m guessing they would. Think about all the fuel it takes to lift half a million pounds (or so) of aluminum, fuel, people, iPods and 3 ounce shampoo bottles all the way to 35,000 feet.

A lot. From the research I’ve done, it takes about twice as much fuel to climb as it does to cruise. There are variables, but that’s the basics.

Whether you run an airline or a flower shop, how you get started is important.

What it costs in time and money to get a new customer rocking and rolling with your product and service is more than important.

Set the tone

How you get started usually sets the tone for everything that comes after that point.

As I may have told you that back in the prehistoric days (ie: the photo software), we were always looking for a way to shorten the sales cycle. To find a way to make people think “yep, gotta have that now” vs. “gotta have that, but maybe next quarter”.

We talked about this a little not long ago when pet peeves was the topic of the day.

One of the pet peeves of any custom software product is the setup process. In the case of a detailed, vertical market package like ours (and perhaps like yours), “teaching” the software how you run your business isn’t easy.

We had one couple tell us that they put it off for 6 months and ended up renting a hotel room for the weekend just to get the setup task behind them. Well meaning, always intending to do it, but never could get enough quiet time to educate our software – until they got a room.

Hello? McFly? Am I paying attention to that?

Absolutely.

Yes, of course we started doing the setup for them. I may have told that story here before. Doesn’t matter – it’s that important.

It transformed our sales process and started our customers off so fast that they were productive in short order.

It was a killer start to our relationship because it allowed our experts to set the software up right (kinda important) and the information they sent us (price lists, policies, documents and such) helped us understand our new customer’s business.

Oh, and they loved it because we did it for them and their investment started getting used right away.

But that isn’t why I brought it up (though it’s a pretty good reason.

Bang

And that’s what I’m getting at today. That setup thing got them started with a bang. In no time, they were productive and at cruising altitude at almost no cost to them in time or hard dollars.

No excuses. 7 days from purchase to startup. Everyone’s head turns at that “no time or hard dollar cost” thing – especially in 7 days.

What can you do to make the climb to cruising altitude easier for your clientele?

Whether you sell software, coffee beans, tax services or lawn tractors, I’ll bet there’s something (else) you could be doing to make the climb a little bit (or a lot) easier.

Now…imagine what a competitive edge it will be when you can say something like this: “If you buy our planes and use our maintenance services, we’ll pay for the fuel required to get our planes from takeoff to cruising altitude and we’ll do it for as long as your service contract is in force.”

Obviously you’ll be saying it in the context of what you do – but I think you get the idea, mostly because my example is so far fetched.

Perhaps best of all, I’ll bet you can find something awesome without giving away 6500 lbs of jet fuel every day (per plane).

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photo credit: Sukanto Debnath

The primary message / goal / mission of this blog is that you and your business need to create a more personal connection with your clients.

To that end, someone asked me this morning about the website work that I do. We talked briefly about the technology (because that someone was a technical person) but the really important thing to talk about is the conversation you want the site to have with the people who visit it.

To your existing clients and those who already trust you, your site can be a channel to elicit conversation, to keep folks up to date on what’s new in your business and how you can help them.

But…you have to get them from “Hi, nice to meet you” before that conversation makes sense. Otherwise, it can feel like spam or an unwanted telemarketing call.

Nice to meet you

To everyone that you’ve never met or who hasn’t yet got a reason to trust you, your website is an introduction. It’s a way to expose to them what you do, what you think, what you have in common, perhaps personally and professionally but more importantly mindset-wise.

How would you want a client, friend or partner to introduce you to a prospective new client or business partner?

How would you want to be introduced to someone who has needs that are a *perfect* fit with your best skills and deepest expertise?

How would you want to be introduced to someone who already has the trust of 614 people who would greatly benefit from what you do?

What conversation about you would motivate the perfect prospective client feel the need to contact you immediately?

Is your website doing these things?

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photo credit: joshuahoffmanphoto

Kinda stands on its own, doesn’t it?

http://www.cowboyethics.org/TenPrinciples.html

It’s what customers want and expect, but in many cases they’ve become accustomed to much less.

Use it as a starting point and deliver no less.

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I have to say that I never expected a country-western song to be a guest post, but it is what it is.

For the rest of the story about how United baggage handlers trashed Dave Carroll’s guitar and more importantly, their customer service and management mistakes afterwards, drop over to FastCompany.com.

4.5 million views later, it’s more than the old saw that customers who have a bad experience tell 10 people. Nowadays, they can tell everyone, everywhere.

If your service isn’t what it should be, don’t be surprised if you end up going viral for all the wrong reasons.

Of course, that assumes that you care in the first place.

PS: Play close attention to the winner in this deal: Taylor Guitars.

Update: CNN’s Wolf Blitzer covers the story.

Update: United Breaks Guitars – Song 2

Update: A video that was supposedly made by the Mrs. Irlweg referred to in both songs. I don’t know if it’s really her or not. If it is, not a wise move IMO.

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photo credit: Tim Farris Photographer

Today’s guest post from Lisa Barone is all about professionalism, sort of.

Lisa talks about doing the unexpected vs. being the stuffy professional everyone expects to you be.

There is room for both when seasoned with a little common sense.

Remember the last time someone at a business did something unexpected for you?

Remember what your reaction was? How many people did you share that with?

Yeah, that.

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photo credit: mhoey

Wednesday, MSNBC reported that John Barry, the former CEO of WD-40 company had recently passed on.

Normally, I don’t spend a lot of time reading obits, but something made me consume this one.

Perhaps it is because WD-40’s branding penetrated our culture so well. Just one indication: when my not so mechanically inclined wife wants something oiled, she says put some WD-40 on it.  Just yesterday, in fact.

Anyhow, I’m reading down through the article about his domain over this product and his company and more and more little signals stick out about how this guy truly understood his focus.

He knew he wasn’t in the oil business. A lot of folks wouldn’t get that. Too many, in fact.

You’ve had some good examples. You wont catch Starbucks management telling people they’re in the coffee business. That’s just one.

As I went down through the article, it just got better and better…. and then the quote:

“We may appear to be a manufacturing company,” Mr. Barry said to Forbes, “but in fact we are a marketing company.”

That is Mr. Barry’s parting gift to you. This is how you have to think of your business and now here’s a very successful CEO opening the curtain and confirming it.

The news piece is here.

I strongly suggest taking a few moments to read it and then consider what business you’re in.

Tech folks (programmers and the like): If this is where you start feeling slimy, get over it. Get way over it.

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photo credit: James Jordan

Remember driving across the country in your car as a kid on those family vacations?

Picture this: Your dad, brother, uncle or whoever gets out of the car, goes into the restroom, comes back a few moments later and without a word, they’re ready for the next leg of the trip.

Next, your mom, sister, aunt or grandmother heads for the restroom, comes back almost immediately and is beside themselves about how gross that bathroom is.

The car doors slam and you’re moving a mile or five down the road to find a bathroom that might have been cleaned in the last year or two.

When mom, sis or whoever returns from the clean bathroom, they can’t help but comment about the gross one a few miles back and they might even be incredulous about the fact that you (dad, brother, whoever) didn’t think anything of it – much less that you didn’t say a word.

Maybe it’s about expectations, but that’s not where I’m heading today.

Standing up

Newsflash from the Business is Personal Department of Obviousness: Guys go standing up. Ladies do not.

As a result, the conversation about restrooms is different even though the facility is exactly the same for both.

Peeing on the seat is (effectively) meaningless to one group and like kryptonite to another. The perception of two audiences is totally different, despite everything in the room being identical.

Likewise, you can sell the side of the road in a bad neighborhood as “acceptable” to a guy who has to go, while you better not even think about stopping there for most ladies. Yeah, I know there are exceptions. Move along.

Are your conversations one size fits all?

The question is, do the conversations you start with your clients and prospects look like those bathrooms? Are they one size fits all?

If they’re acceptable to those who stand up, is your message lost on those who are sitting down?

All too often, I see websites, ads, pitches and other materials treated like those bathrooms – one message for everyone. It doesn’t work.

Talking to everyone is talking to no one.

One size may (more or less) fit all when it comes to doorways, water in the tank, toilet seats and the hardware – but that’s where it ends. How you talk (verbally, on paper or on the web) with different folks is much the same as those bathrooms.

The *conversation* you would have in person with a single mom is different than the one you’ll have with the 12 year old boy or the 47 year old menopausal woman.  So why is your marketing and other content aimed at some random spot in the middle of those three?

You already know that the perception and expectations of each group that enters the bathroom (ie: reads your ad, reads/hears your pitch, listens to your talk, reads your blog) is totally different – so why not do something about it.

Talk to the 72-75 year old widows differently than you would 65 year old ladies whose husbands are alive.

Talk to the 22 year old skateboarder and the 32 year old mom of three in a way and about the things that matter to them – not as if they are just a gaggle of identical humanoids (or the Borg).

Otherwise, you may as well not bother having the conversation.

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photo credit: Amir K.

Shane over at AskShane.org mentioned to me a while back about an interaction he had with Comcast.

Yes, I’ve seen the litany of “Comcast sucks” threads, and I’m aware that they have a support team on Twitter.

First, mosey over to AskShane and read about his experience with Comcast. Then come back so we can discuss how this applies to your business.

Mark hums the Jeopardy theme song as you read Shane’s story

Ok, welcome back.

Think about the obvious stuff your website should be telling people.

Think about the message it sends about your company when everyday information that your customers and prospects need is hidden from them.

Worse case, does the site lose them by assuming what they know?

Yeah, it’s worse when they can’t get it by website or phone (as in Shane’s case), but more and more folks depend on the net to start the relationship.

In more and more cases, it’s the bellwether that signals whether they will do business with you at all.

Maybe you don’t do business via your site, but if your site doesn’t introduce you, your company and what you do properly, many will leave right then and there and choose someone whose site does get the message across.

Fairness is irrelevant

Is that fair? Doesn’t matter.

If a prospect uses that as their “sorting hat” to decide whether your company has its game on, you made the decision for them.

Can we depend on your site to start the relationship properly?

To get the right message – and the right info – across to someone new to you?

Paper is so 1900’s…or is it?

This isn’t just about your website. What about your other “new prospect-facing materials”?

Yeah, those business cards, paper brochures and so on.

Are they doing the job of introducing your business to others? Or are they just something with your phone #, website and email address on them?

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photo credit: volante

An essential element of doing business in a competitive marketplace (is there a market that isn’t?) is taking every step possible that will show a prospective client that your business is the only logical choice to provide what they want/need.

Are you taking these steps now? How do you assert (much less prove) that you are THE one they need to do the work?

The obvious one is testimonials. We’ve talked about that many times. I print them all out and include them in the package I give to prospective clients.

Another obvious one is to be Google-able. When they Google your name (and they will), what will they find?

Your reputation and your work’s reputation are huge as well. We talk about improvement here at BIP almost every day.

What else can you do?

Beyond the Obvious

Here’s one example of what I offer potential technology clients: I give them a ready-made interview form to help them interview and evaluate potential technology consultants.

First, the instructions and evaluation form I provide to prospective clients. I call the interview “The 17 Questions Your Computer Consultant Hopes You’ll Never Ask”.

Next, I provide them with customizable forms I provide to prospective clients for their own use (Word 2007 or Word XP/2003). Free.

Finally, I provide them with a copy of the interview form that I have filled out about my business.

What are you doing to make yourself the obvious choice and thus, the only logical choice?

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photo credit: TheAlieness GiselaGiardino²³

Today’s guest post is from Bud Caddell, where he’s taking something that is so pervasive that it has become a cliche – and turned it into a visual that is far more meaningful.

While I might not insist upon doing what you love, I would say you’d better have an interest in it for sure, otherwise someone is likely to come along and spank you at your own game.

Regardless, I thought you might enjoy it.

See it here: http://whatconsumesme.com/2009/what-im-writing/how-to-be-happy-in-business-venn-diagram/

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Rather than weigh this down with words, I’ll let it speak for itself.

Good business is simple. Boil it down.

“…so that I can sell with confidence.”

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photo credit: jas kaur

Not long ago, I was having a conversation with a photographer friend about a photographer he knew that was in the middle of shooting a Sikh wedding.

I’ve never been to one, but it sounded like it lasts several days and ends up resulting in 6000-10000 photos. Quite a celebration.

I suggested that if one really studied their ceremony, their beliefs and learned more about these things than anyone else in their large community, this photographer would really standout and as a result, dominate that business.

The end result would be to become the #1 expert in photographing Sikh weddings in that area, perhaps nationwide.

My friend said “Standing out is the new normal.”, in effect saying that everyone stands out in that business and that standing out is no big deal these days.

Maybe he’s right, but I haven’t seen that yet.

I believe there is always room – in any market, to do what others won’t do, to learn what others won’t learn and to provide service that others can’t or won’t provide.

As I remarked to him, “even in a room full of billionaires, the 80/15/5 rule holds true.”

In other words, even in a room full of highly-successful people, 5% of them could kick the crap out of the others in business, tennis, mountain climbing or whatever they attempted.

Yet they’d all be billionaires.

To that end, Tom Peters’ site posted “Be irreplaceable” today – definitely worth a read.

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Since January 2005, I’ve been spent a lot of time explaining how Business is Personal.

When I started this journey way back then, I named the blog “Pancake Bunny“.

I called it that as a result of a customer service interaction where a company’s CEO told a customer that their message made no sense and then included the pancake bunny in their reply (click here to see the original pancake bunny).

It struck me that I had work to do.

Not solely because of the bunny remark, but because of a pervasive antagonistic attitude toward customers – especially by many in tech-related industries (remember, Ive been in the software biz since 1982).

Nine Hundred Eighty Five

Nine hundred and eighty four times I have posted here in order to teach this one important lesson. This one is number 985.

I’ve shared little anecdotes here and there, stories, admonitions, an occasional rant or two – whatever it takes to make you and your staff attract, sell, talk to, think about and work with your customers as if they are real people.

Like your grandma. Imagine that.

That lady you were snarky with on the phone this morning is probably someone’s grandma, or mom or something. Would you talk that way if she were in front of you? Hopefully you aren’t the snarky one in the first place and that was intended for someone else cuz you’d never do that.

Progress

I know that in many cases I am preaching to the choir, but I also know that many people have related personally to a story here and it has changed their business. They have finally seen how treating their clientele like a friend, a partner, a family member – changes their business.

Others have finally figured out that hiding from their customers, treating them poorly (if they treat them at all) and thinking “Damn, if those customers didn’t keep interrupting me I’d get some REAL work done” is not how business is done.

Instead, it’s how your “Dear Valued Customer” becomes someone else’s.

If you haven’t gotten that yet, today might be your lucky day.

Enter Mister Butts

Earlier today I got an email from a Twitter acquaintance named Rick Butts. He’s one of those internet marketer types (and he just winced when he read that – sorry Rick).

EXCEPT, he isn’t like many of them. He’s a regular guy who gets the Business is Personal thing.

If after reading Rick’s email, you don’t understand why you simply have to treat someone who is viewing your blog, your newsletter, walking into your store, calling you on the phone, or tweeting you *like your grandmother*, then I suggest going back to post #1 and read a few posts a day.

I can’t help but think it’ll help.

Here’s Rick’s email. Enjoy.

I Am Joe’s Email List – An Open Letter To Internet Marketers

Hi,

I am Joe’s email list.

Joe calls me his list, his peeps, and sometimes just “the list.”

But, I am not a list, really, I am not a crowd, or an audience. I am not “everyone out there” as they teach new broadcasters to say.

I am me.

One single person with hopes, dreams, stresses and fears.

In many ways I am just like you – the way you describe yourself in your hungry years before you went to that life changing event, read the book, and started making money online.

I get email from you Joe.

I can’t remember for sure, but I think I “joined” one day when you offered a free report or video and I had to put my email address in – and confirm – in order to see it.

In my inbox, Joe, your email looks just like the personal emails I get from my daughter or son, and sometimes, sadly, from my ex.

Now that you’ve been sending me email – as well as some of your “good friends” – I have begun to be able to see in a glance that they are just offers, sometimes disguised as important messages, sometimes blatantly, not.

Whenever I see the word “this” in your subject lines, like – “this won’t last long” – or “have you seen this?” I know it’s an offer.

Since the Product Launch Formula I and especially II – I’m amazed at how many times per month I am literally inundated with emails from so many people all about the same exciting product.

They arrive over multiple days, culminating in a bonus orgy that is just overwhelming.

I read a clever post in a forum once, that “the bonuses are so comprehensive, it makes me wonder what is covered in the course, that is not already covered in the bonuses!”

That made me laugh.

I’m writing you today, to share something important about myself – and I hope you’ll take the time to consider my feelings, ok?

I have to get off of some of these lists.

The volume of email and the distraction of chasing the offers is just crippling my time, my focus, and my ability to get things done.

When Rick Butts asked his readers to consider unsubscribing from the people who sent you Stompernet Launch offers IF they had not provided any useful content in the last month – he really got me thinking.

Then Ed Dale made a video saying, basically, that no one is holding a gun to your head and that if you wanted to stop getting offers – stop bitching – and just unsubscribe.

But here’s the deal. I’d LIKE to learn from you Joe – and to be able to know that being on “your list” is valuable to me, my business, and my future.

So, please don’t think me a big whiner, I’m a customer, and here’s what I respectfully request:

1. Slow down the frequency of mailing to me, Joe.

Do not email me every day – that’s just way too much now.

2. Don’t mail me offers all the time.

I’m reading a lot more RSS feeds from bloggers who are putting out great content. If you are using Feedburner or Feedblitz or Aweber’s blog notification service that mails me when you update your blog – then, cool. I’m good with that.

3. If you do mail me an offer PLEASE don’t cut and paste the pre-written one from the creator of the product.

Do you know how stupid that makes you look to me? And, how insulting it is to get them from multiple people?

4. Try giving me some TRUTHINESS in your communiques to me.

If you are really making money in the non-marketing-to-Internet-marketers, then tell me some useful tips that are working for you. No, you don’t need to tell me your market niche but hey, every once in a while how about your show me how valuable I am to you buy sharing one of those SECRETS?

5. Show me some stuff that made less than $1,000,000.00.

I’d be immensely interested in real world examples of success I can get my head around. I’m never going to build a big list of “biz-op” peeps and hammer them with a big JV launch. Show me how I can make $500 a week – then be able to replace my income and quit my skank job.

6. Stop bragging about your zero-gravity dives and how you are spending my money in outrageous ways.

Trust me, this is a lot more fun for you, then it is for me to read about it. You may excuse it as “inspirational” but I dont’ even think that works in MLM anymore. It just annoys me. A little “high life” goes a long way and I’m more impressed by how Internet marketing lets you enjoy your family.

7. Please, please, please, for the love of God, stop participating in these dreadful launches!

Let me believe you are successful enough without having to bend over and schlup me and the rest of my list mates through your embarrassing attempt to get me to “buy from you” and help you win a contest.

The reason Rick Butts wrote about the 12 Biggest Whores, without naming anyone, is that we have all watched the emergence of about that many well known marketers who cross-promote each others stuff so regularly it is hard to imagine that they do anything else.

I think that gives you a pretty good idea of the kind of things that would make getting email from you valuable again – and persuade me not to unsubscribe from you forever.

Final thought…

The blowback from the “unsubscribe” and “launch fatigue” has been to accuse me and my list mates, the little people, of being whiners.

And while there is no shortage of whiners in the world, I want you to know that from the bottom of my heart – I am pleading with you to not dismiss me so easily.

What most of us really want is for you to provide us with value, treat us like a long term relationship, and we will, certainly reward you for helping us get to the next level.

Now back to check my email, I think there’s a Traffic Secrets 2.0 launch today?

Sincerely,

Joe’s List

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photo credit: hapal

Unless you’ve been living under a fish, you’ve heard the saying “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.”

While it also might remind you of a childish South Park episode (and maybe that’s a little redundant) about fish sticks, think about how you do business – particularly if you are a consultant, coach or service provider.

Are you offering your clients more than just a plain old fish?

If you feed that client for a day with your services (fish), are they any better than they were yesterday?

Or is it just a case of their tummy being full for a little while?

5 years from now, do you give them the same fish? If so, have you really contributed to their growth as a client?

If that’s what you do services-wise, it sounds more like you’ve turned into a shipper of fish, rather than a helper of customers.

Seems to me that if all you sell is fish, it’d be awfully easy to replace you with someone who ships fish overnight or for a lower price.

On the other hand, if after 5 years your client requires a four course meal instead of an uncleaned, just caught fish – then maybe you’ve really accomplished something special.

Something with serious value that keeps clients coming back for more.

What’s your fish?

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photo credit: fazen

We had a brief guest-post-ular discussion about this a week or so ago when I used Chris Garrett’s ‘What are you a natural at?” as a guest post.

Add to that, this comment from Drew McLellan and it struck me that there are a fair number of people that I feel like I know fairly well – yet I really don’t know deep down what they do.

In the case of those of you who read Business is Personal, that’s certainly true unless you’ve linked back to the blog so I could follow the trail to your site and read about you.

So here’s the deal.

Add a post on your blog that tells your visitors what you do and link back to this page. Or add a post that refers to an already existing page on your site and link back here in that post. Or post a comment here that links to your “So what do you do?” page.

Not only will I learn more about what you do, which might make it easier for me (and anyone else who reads BIP) to send you some business – but I’ll make an example out of the best responses I get to the question “So, what exactly do you do, anyhow?”.

I’ll find a nice way to reward the best responses: the ones that do a really great job of answering the question.

If you’re looking for an example, here’s my “So, what exactly do you do?” page.

Do I think it’s perfect? Nope. Like anything else, it’s a work in progress that I tinker with regularly.

PS: Yeah, I just invented the word ‘guest-post-ular’:)

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photo credit: Ed-meister

The trouble with dragon slayers is that they aren’t sure what to do when the last dragon is gone.

Without vision, they’re completely lost, wandering in search of a dragon they heard of just over the next hill.

The good dragon slayers find a new species of dragon and slay those until those too are extinct. Over and over, they hop from dragon to dragon, making the best of the situation until they temporarily put themselves out of business.

The rest wander about, until they find a new, temporary home. Some get lucky and find something else.

Have you built a business that can survive the extinction of the dragon you currently slay?

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