Hey. Who are you talking to?

The advance of social media has many of us scrambling to teach an old(er) dog new tricks. We're thinking that Tweeting and Liking in 140 characters or less -- in tweet-speak-- is the only new wave of customer service and marketing.

But whoa, big fella. The tried and true adage of marketing insists you talk directly to and in the language of the party to whom you are speaking -- as Ernestine was so fond of saying. If you know the character of Lily Tomlin's telephone company, Dan Rowan and Dick Martin, well, then you are indeed the party we address.

The average Boomer is now 54.

And there are now more Americans aged 51 than any other age.

If your business is trying to appeal to business owners and decision makers, you have to recognize that a giant number of these potential customers are in their 50s and 60s. Not just some of them, but most of them. They also have more money as personal consumers.

Maybe that's why marketers at the likes of Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Clorox, Procter & Gamble, and General Mills are researching and targeting Baby Boomers (now aged 47-65).  Even Google is adopting ways to reach midlife consumers through search. 

So what are the marketers at your company doing?

That is to say, be true to your brand and even truer to your customer. Just because you can mimic your 15-year old on Facebook, doesn't mean you should.

Should you be fired?

The one thing about working for yourself is that you can't be fired. Even, perhaps, when you should be.

As a business owner wearing many hats, you may be failing your company at any one of your roles. Unfortunately for you, all those hats are essential to the success of your entreprise.

If you were employed and you were failing in your job, your boss would have three options.

Option One: Ignore your inadequacies, hoping for a better outcome next month (next year?) but all the while knowing your performance could adversely affect the company's success. And, knowing that somewhere down the line it will have to be addressed.

Option Two: Fire you and put someone competent in your job.

Option Three:  Look for ways to help you improve. Could you use training, coursework, mentors, or an advisory team that helps you transition from sorry to super in your role?

The answer is probably obvious. The last option is probably the best option. Unfortunately, for many self employed professionals, we opt out for solution number one.

Part of being your own boss means making yourself accountable for all the roles you must tackle in the day to day grind.  If you don't do it well, it's unproductive to stick your head in the sand and hope for a better tomorrow. Take an active role in making yourself a better "employee" of your own company.

How would accomplish such an exercise?  Here's a step by step plan.

1. Make a list. Start by making a list of all the tasks and responsibilties that fall to your plate. Be as detailed as possibile. You may want to have several tiers:  the first one addressing executive tasks, the second one managerial, the third tier support, and so on as it relates to your business. Pull from your business plan to include your entire scope of operations.


2. Evaluate performance.  Create an evaluation grid that looks at the tasks, the skills needed to perform the tasks, and how well you perform them. Be honest. Rather than using pass or fail – good or bad verbiage, consider using detailed critiques, such as skills demonstrated, technical accuracy, initiative, follow-through, subject expertise, and the like.

3.  Do your homework. Explore the different job titles associated with your performance grid. What types of experience, education, or training would a person need to be hired for the position? What associations serve those roles in your industry? What types of continuing education and training are available? What contacts and colleagues could you call on for help?

 4. Draft a plan. You can really see the big picture by now. Identify what areas are a top priority for you to work on and what resources you can use to improve. Whether you enroll in an actual class or take a more informal approach, set a course schedule for each area you want to improve. Establish a timeline, deadlines, and a way to hold yourself accountable as well as celebrate your achievements.

5. Give yourself a raise. Now that you've improved your skill set, you are even more valuable to your company. Reward yourself for the effort. You may want to choose something personal like a vacation or an increase in draw. Or you might purchase an item for the company, like that iPad or business card scanner you've been dreaming of. 

Be sure to keep track of the process so you can look back on accomplishments with a sense of  empowerment and progress. You will find that as you improve, your company's bottom line improves. And that's the best measure of a job well done.

Best Wishes for Best Practices

Every once in awhile, a message gets through. I mean really through. To the core of your soul through.  That happened to me while working on this issue.

I had the pleasure of sitting in a room with some of the world’s giants during the Champions For Kids (CFK) Global Leadership Conference. You’ll find a snippet of the day in the Biz2Biz feature story this month. My takeaway was on the reality of America’s (non-existent) “Best Practices” for children.  It’s impossible to condense an entire day into 1,000 words, but I hope you will take note that there is a lot of work to be done here at many levels, and that you will not be alone if you take up the gauntlet. In fact, you will be in great company.

Adelaide Schaeffer is CEO of CFK. David Gergen called her a “luminous woman” and I have to agree. She said, “We’re living in a world of transactions, whether as non-profits, businesses, or people. We may think we are going to relate with people based on transactions. But we don’t. People do not become part of the bigger team because of the price point, the glitz, the glamor or the shelf space. There they make a transaction. At the end of the day they buy the product or they don’t. But it doesn’t change their lives.”

Well, doggone, she’s right. As business leaders we can even be dedicated to a best practices approach and still just be making a transaction. Even our 140 characters on Twitter or Facebook is posting a transaction.  As consumers, it’s all about “me.”

No, I don’t have an answer to conclude this letter. I only have more questions. But I can see that as long as we’re asking questions, we’re looking for answers.  Open your eyes to the possibilities.

Best Wishes for Best Practices in 2011!

Doing 'The Work'

Are you an entrepreneur or business owner who feels there's never enough time in your day? Never enough skills in your skill set? Or tools in your toolbox? 

Are you one of those who constantly measures where you've been and where you are going and how much further you must travel to get there? 

Yes? I want to join your club. And I want to bring something to the table with me. 

It's called "The Work" and it's a simple process of inquiry developed by Bryon Katie.  It's a way of identifying and questioning the thoughts that cause our fears and inefficiencies.

I may be spilling some beans here, but I know that MY thinking can and does do damage. Which, of course, only piles up on MY plate to fix, undo, and get over.

In doing The Work, I have found that I project my own fears and doubts onto others and second guess my abilities long before they do. I am constantly assailing myself with the belief that I must be more, do more, achieve more. I must be smarter, faster, first. It's exhausting! Staying competitive in today's marketplace is exhausting!

The Work is a personal journey, and it's not necessarily for the workplace. But rest assured, everyone who is coming to work could use The Work to make them happier, healthier, more efficient employees, bosses, and leaders.

One might could say the marketing messages we communicate about ourselves to ourselves are the most prevalent in our lives.  If we can open just one door that lets in enough light to see we are indeed good, honest, capable, compassionate human beings, then we're all going to benefit from it. Imagine, then, if we could throw open all the doors. What a world!

Check out TheWork.org website and videos, and any number of Bryon Katie's books on the subject at Amazon.com, along with books co-authored with Eckhart Tolle.

Measuring the positives

As I approach my business and marketing planning retreat for 2011, I am reminded to look back at where I’ve been with as much enthusiasm as I look forward. I have to admit that I am more likely to have enthusiasm for what lies ahead and criticism for what’s been left behind. For me, it’s easier to have hope about something yet to come than to see the successes-not-the-failures passed.

Today I’m doing a turn around. Today, I’m looking back on the positives of 2010 and how I’m going to apply them to the future.

I learned a lot from the columnists who share the pages of Biz2Biz digital magazine. I gained a better insight on my role as CFO and how each decision I make can be tracked to the bottom line. I learned how little things can make a difference and how valuable perspective can be. 

I gained skills as a leader of my business, my time, and my passion. I learned how to better organize each of these roles, which individually could occupy all of my energy if I let them. As many of you know, I’m a single mom, too, so family and the responsibilities of home, hearth and happiness have to join the plate in heaping big amounts.

I learned about new media, sales cycles, social media and small business champions. I was inspired by others who jump out of bed everyday to climb the Mt. Everest of entrepreneurship. I mentored those with aspirations to start the trek. I shared a cup of solace with those whose dreams were dashed, and cheered for those who found their mark. And all the while I edited, edited, edited.

It’s been a good year.

B2B Bingo by Janie Clark: Who's minding the store?

B2B Bingo by Janie Clark: Who's minding the store?: "When business messaging isn't so haute. As a communications strategist, I am always looking at business messaging with a critical eye. I ..."

Who's minding the store?

When business messaging isn't so haute.

As a communications strategist, I am always looking at business messaging with a critical eye. I see typos and taboos like a hound dog sniffs out a rat. We all make mistakes, but when communicating with our potential customers -- whether in an advertisement, an email or a text message -- what you say or don't can make or break the bond. 

That goes for verbal messaging, too. How you greet a customer when they enter your store or telephone the office is just as important in this sequence of successful communications.

Yesterday I found two rats in the game that were so disturbing I have to blog it out. 

I made a call from the car about a piece of real estate. The path was confusing enough-- the sign in the front yard had four or five names and telephone numbers. I dialed one and was given another number -- verbally -- which is a difficult task when you're driving. From there I was transferred to another number and asked to hold, and while I was waiting my call dropped off. Now I'm back to square one. I looped through the pattern twice before I gave up. 

I still don't have the information I wanted. They don't have the sale. 

Later I was at a block party in an upscale shopping center in Rogers. I visited one store three times, even tried on something, and was never greeted by the owner or staff. Never. Nothing. And, we might have purchased the item we tried on if the situation had been different.

So, who's minding the store?

It's not fair ratting them out without being constructive in return. Here are three points to consider in your business messaging.  

1.  Establish a experience protocol. What you do want your customers to experience when they contact you?  Remember, they've taken the initiative to respond to your stimuli (whatever that is), which you've spent good money to acquire. What's in it for them? Write out the story you want to tell, the experience you what them to have, then make sure every step in your protocol supports it. Test it. Refine it. What will be their final message about your company?

2. Create an immediate bond.  Let's face it, there are some basic dos and don'ts. A company that doesn't greet people who walk in the door simply won't be in business long. Even the sub makers at Firehouse Subs look up from what they're doing to welcome you when you walk in their door. Every one. Every time. Make no mistake, that's no accident. 

3. Find a way to reconnect. Invite people to return to your business at another time. Whether it's a business card, a sample, or news about an upcoming sale, extend an invitation to return. Invite them to join your email list, your loyalty program, your taste of the month club.

If you are on the phone you might ask for their name and number if you must put them on hold. One of my favorite examples comes from my phone carrier's support protocol. Not only do they establish an immediate bond -- an exhange of first names -- but they get my telephone number so they can call me back if (read: when) we get disconnected. And they tell me that's what they are doing. 

So much of business is common sense, and yet it's the uncommon we gravitate to. Remember to be good to your customers... or they are likely to become someone else's!