According to the Small Business Administration:
* Federal regulations cost small businesses $10,585 per employee, per year
* Small business employers represent 99.7% of all businesses
* Small businesses have created 64% of all new jobs over the past 15 years
In, of and by yourself, as a small business owner there is very little that you can personally do about the over $10,000 in costs per employee from federal regulations. But you can improve your profitability, your bottom line, and help cover these costs by capitalizing on the opportunity of social media.
So, Old Dog, quit sleeping on the porch and get in the game.
In my last two blogs, I recommended several initial steps that a small business owner can take to begin the journey towards social media success. If you haven't yet embarked on the journey, what is holding you back?
If you have started the journey, or have experienced some success along the way, what success can you share with others as an encouragement?
(This is the part where you click on the Comment choice below and share your thoughts)
Thanks for sharing 54 seconds (plus the time you took to Comment) of your day,
Smitty
Monday, May 30, 2011
Friday, May 27, 2011
One Foot In Front Of The Other
WHAT are you trying to accomplish using social media?
WHY are you doing it?
WHERE can you best accomplish it (on which social media platform)?
As a small business owner, once you answer those three questions, you're ready to address the next step:
Decide in advance what success will look like at the completion of your efforts and try to anticipate any potential challenges you may encounter along the way. Imagine that you've made a genuine effort to benefit from the use of social media over the next twelve months. At the beginning of the summer of 2012, you pick up the phone and call someone who is special in your life and say: "I really worked hard this year to achieve my goals in using social media to improve my business, and I SUCCEEDED! I had a couple of challenges along the way, but in the end it was worth it, really worth it."
What happened?
What challenges did you overcome?
While deciding what social media success will look like a year from now, learn from the success of others by exploring a social media channel or platform and just LISTEN. Resist the temptation to participate, at least initially, and observe, listen and learn. Then make a decision to commit the necessary time, be willing to make a mistake here or there (everyone does), and ..... go for it! Learn some New Tricks on the journey and be a courageous Old Dog.
What success a year from now do you have the guts to begin pursuing today?
Thanks for sharing 79 seconds of your day,
Smitty
WHY are you doing it?
WHERE can you best accomplish it (on which social media platform)?
As a small business owner, once you answer those three questions, you're ready to address the next step:
Decide in advance what success will look like at the completion of your efforts and try to anticipate any potential challenges you may encounter along the way. Imagine that you've made a genuine effort to benefit from the use of social media over the next twelve months. At the beginning of the summer of 2012, you pick up the phone and call someone who is special in your life and say: "I really worked hard this year to achieve my goals in using social media to improve my business, and I SUCCEEDED! I had a couple of challenges along the way, but in the end it was worth it, really worth it."
What happened?
What challenges did you overcome?
While deciding what social media success will look like a year from now, learn from the success of others by exploring a social media channel or platform and just LISTEN. Resist the temptation to participate, at least initially, and observe, listen and learn. Then make a decision to commit the necessary time, be willing to make a mistake here or there (everyone does), and ..... go for it! Learn some New Tricks on the journey and be a courageous Old Dog.
What success a year from now do you have the guts to begin pursuing today?
Thanks for sharing 79 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Two Old Dogs
I had breakfast with my pastor the other day. He's an incredible person, and has a knack for letting me know that he genuinely cares about me and my family. Don't you just love people like that?
Among other things, we talked a bit about social media (because he's also nice enough to at least glance at my blog on occasion). He's an Old Dog who has learned a few New Tricks, too. I see him on Facebook: pictures of his family (highlighting his precious granddaughter), drawing attention to works of ministry, adding new Friends.
We chatted a little about how our church might constructively use Facebook as a tool. In many ways, some of the initial consideration for utilizing this tool is the same for a church or a business. As I wrote in an earlier post, you first need to:
Decide specifically WHAT you are trying to accomplish through the use of social media, WHY you are doing it, and WHERE to best accomplish your goal and purpose. There are potentially infinite goals or objectives that can be accomplished, for any number of reasons or motives, through a vast variety of social media platforms (blogging, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.). You can not master every platform and accomplish all your goals and purposes at once. With a very specific goal (WHAT) and purpose (WHY), select a specific tool or platform (WHERE) and put your toe in the water.
Do you have a clear, specific goal or objective for your family-owned small business in utilizing social media? Deciding what you're aiming for, and why (purpose), are very crucial decisions for a business owner to make when embarking upon social media success. And then, put your toe in the water and get going.
In my very first blog (February 22 of this year), I encouraged people like me to not fear embracing the future of social media for the benefit of their small business. If you need help, post a Comment or call me. I genuinely want you to succeed and will do what I can to help.
I'll try to be as good as my pastor in caring about you and your dreams. Because he's the very best.
Thanks for sharing 123 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Among other things, we talked a bit about social media (because he's also nice enough to at least glance at my blog on occasion). He's an Old Dog who has learned a few New Tricks, too. I see him on Facebook: pictures of his family (highlighting his precious granddaughter), drawing attention to works of ministry, adding new Friends.
We chatted a little about how our church might constructively use Facebook as a tool. In many ways, some of the initial consideration for utilizing this tool is the same for a church or a business. As I wrote in an earlier post, you first need to:
Decide specifically WHAT you are trying to accomplish through the use of social media, WHY you are doing it, and WHERE to best accomplish your goal and purpose. There are potentially infinite goals or objectives that can be accomplished, for any number of reasons or motives, through a vast variety of social media platforms (blogging, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.). You can not master every platform and accomplish all your goals and purposes at once. With a very specific goal (WHAT) and purpose (WHY), select a specific tool or platform (WHERE) and put your toe in the water.
Do you have a clear, specific goal or objective for your family-owned small business in utilizing social media? Deciding what you're aiming for, and why (purpose), are very crucial decisions for a business owner to make when embarking upon social media success. And then, put your toe in the water and get going.
In my very first blog (February 22 of this year), I encouraged people like me to not fear embracing the future of social media for the benefit of their small business. If you need help, post a Comment or call me. I genuinely want you to succeed and will do what I can to help.
I'll try to be as good as my pastor in caring about you and your dreams. Because he's the very best.
Thanks for sharing 123 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Monday, May 23, 2011
Champagne For Breakfast?
Last Thursday morning, in Mountain View, CA at 6:00AM, employees and past employees who are shareholders held glasses of champagne waiting to celebrate while in New York city, where it was 9:00AM, 100 brokers crowded around LinkedIn's post as the New York Stock Exchange began trading. LinkedIn, the social media platform for business professionals with over 100 million members, began their initial public offering (IPO) of stock at a price of $45 per share. At 4:00PM in New York, LinkedIn closed at $94.25 per share.
The champagne celebrating shareholders received congratulatory phone calls from family members, friends .... and tax advisors. The average purchase price for existing stockholders is $1 per share. Many became instant millionaires on paper. The 20% stake of LinkedIn's chairman, Reid Hoffman, calculated to $1.8 billion in value.
One short month ago, in April 2011, employees were given options at $22.59 per share, which was considered a fair value for a share of LinkedIn stock. Facebook, said to be worth $35 billion in December of 2010 (less than a half year ago) is now valued at $70 billion, and is expected to make an initial public offering of stock in the near future. Monster.com was a hot stock in 2007, yet now sells for a fraction of the 2007 peak price.
Anyone else besides me remember a dot.com boom, and subsequent bust, about a decade ago?
Monster.com is valued at $1.9 billion (20% the value of LinkedIn) and had $1 billion in revenue. LinkedIn had $243 million in revenue in 2010. I'm as enamored with the potential of social media as much as anyone, but, quick: name a dot.com success from the last bubble other than Amazon and eBay.
Aside from LinkedIn ex-employees, I can think of a fella who lives in DC in a house regularly repainted in white and 535 elected people who work in a building nearby that are desperately hoping these technology companies will help to revive an incredibly ill economy.
Until then, I can't wait to buy some Facebook stock. Just as soon as I sell my MySpace stock for the same price I purchased it.
Know anybody willing to buy MySpace stock these days?
Thanks for sharing 121 seconds of your day,
Smitty
The champagne celebrating shareholders received congratulatory phone calls from family members, friends .... and tax advisors. The average purchase price for existing stockholders is $1 per share. Many became instant millionaires on paper. The 20% stake of LinkedIn's chairman, Reid Hoffman, calculated to $1.8 billion in value.
One short month ago, in April 2011, employees were given options at $22.59 per share, which was considered a fair value for a share of LinkedIn stock. Facebook, said to be worth $35 billion in December of 2010 (less than a half year ago) is now valued at $70 billion, and is expected to make an initial public offering of stock in the near future. Monster.com was a hot stock in 2007, yet now sells for a fraction of the 2007 peak price.
Anyone else besides me remember a dot.com boom, and subsequent bust, about a decade ago?
Monster.com is valued at $1.9 billion (20% the value of LinkedIn) and had $1 billion in revenue. LinkedIn had $243 million in revenue in 2010. I'm as enamored with the potential of social media as much as anyone, but, quick: name a dot.com success from the last bubble other than Amazon and eBay.
Aside from LinkedIn ex-employees, I can think of a fella who lives in DC in a house regularly repainted in white and 535 elected people who work in a building nearby that are desperately hoping these technology companies will help to revive an incredibly ill economy.
Until then, I can't wait to buy some Facebook stock. Just as soon as I sell my MySpace stock for the same price I purchased it.
Know anybody willing to buy MySpace stock these days?
Thanks for sharing 121 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Should You Shut Down Your Website?
Recently, David Rogers wrote an intriguing article, "Is It Time To Shut Down Your Website?", on the CBS Interactive Business Network page. He shares these statistics on monthly unique visitors:
Starbucks Facebook page: 19.4 million
Starbucks website: 1.8 million
Coca-Cola Facebook page: 22.5 million
Coca-Cola website: 270,000
Huh.
People are spending more time on social media like Facebook because they want to be.....social. They want to have a two-way conversation where the Word of Mouth is explosive and dynamic, and it's just so easy to participate by clicking a "Like" button and sharing your opinion. Although websites offer companies the ability to control their design, content and data, and to focus their message, one can't help but realize that something is fundamentally changing about how the public desires to have a business relationship.
Did you notice that there are 80 times more visitors on Coca-Cola's Facebook page?
I just watched "The Page Creators - Dusty and Michael" video on the Coca-Cola Facebook page, and became the 26,850,155th person to "Like" their page. Hey, I really do like Coke more than Pepsi, and can almost 27 Million people be wrong?
(To demonstrate how crazy this page is, sixty-eight other people "Liked" the page while I was watching a 4 minute video - Yikes!)
While I go explore the Coca-Cola page further, I thought I'd leave you with an all-time favorite, for my fellow Pittsburgh Steelers fans (see video below).
Thanks for sharing 143 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Starbucks Facebook page: 19.4 million
Starbucks website: 1.8 million
Coca-Cola Facebook page: 22.5 million
Coca-Cola website: 270,000
Huh.
People are spending more time on social media like Facebook because they want to be.....social. They want to have a two-way conversation where the Word of Mouth is explosive and dynamic, and it's just so easy to participate by clicking a "Like" button and sharing your opinion. Although websites offer companies the ability to control their design, content and data, and to focus their message, one can't help but realize that something is fundamentally changing about how the public desires to have a business relationship.
Did you notice that there are 80 times more visitors on Coca-Cola's Facebook page?
I just watched "The Page Creators - Dusty and Michael" video on the Coca-Cola Facebook page, and became the 26,850,155th person to "Like" their page. Hey, I really do like Coke more than Pepsi, and can almost 27 Million people be wrong?
(To demonstrate how crazy this page is, sixty-eight other people "Liked" the page while I was watching a 4 minute video - Yikes!)
While I go explore the Coca-Cola page further, I thought I'd leave you with an all-time favorite, for my fellow Pittsburgh Steelers fans (see video below).
Thanks for sharing 143 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Facebook: The Reality Show
Naw, I'm not talking about one of those goofy reality shows where people are caught on camera being their ugly sinful selves (and then we turn off the show and feel good that we aren't that bad, by comparison). I'm talking about real life, and how an Old Dog gets saved on Facebook by a new friend, an out of state friend and an old buddy, in 12 minutes. Just so happens, the Old Dog is .....me.
If you are as dependent as I am, both professionally and personally, on your computer (and who isn't?), you know that awful, sinking, pulse-racing feeling when ... your .... computer..... won't ...... work. Black screen. All that precious info hiding somewhere behind that black screen.
Push the Power button. After the 12th push of the Power button (kinda like pushing the already lit elevator button when you want it to come in a hurry) I tried CTRL/ALT/DEL buttons... once, twice, eight times.
Black screen. Prayer to the God Who has fixed so very many things in my life. Push Power button a 13th time.
Black screen. I text two friends who are incredibly intelligent about computers, asking for a recommendation of a good repair person. And wait.
Then the Idea strikes (and I can almost feel the warmth from a beam of light and hear an angelic chorus in the distance): why not try asking for help on Facebook? I did, and in less than 12 minutes a new friend who I have gotten to know on Facebook through a mutual friend, one of my long-time best friend's daughter-in-law from out of state and a close buddy who has walked through some of my darkest storms in life with me, all respond with advice.
I now know to pop out and replace your battery when your laptop goes black, and I have the name and phone number of a professional who repairs computers quickly and inexpensively, for future reference. Most of all, the alleviation of my anxiety was, as they say, priceless. Twenty-seven minutes after I had texted my two computer expert friends, I texted them again to let them know all in life was good again.
Yes, I know, this may not seem like such a big deal. But it was to me. An hour and fifteen minutes after texting my two friends, with my anxiety growing on a Monday morning, it would have seemed like an even bigger deal. Perhaps the biggest deal is that, only four months ago, it wouldn't have even occurred to me to use this social media tool to obtain a solution.
Yes, Old Dogs can learn New Tricks.
Thanks for sharing 133 seconds of your day,
Smitty
If you are as dependent as I am, both professionally and personally, on your computer (and who isn't?), you know that awful, sinking, pulse-racing feeling when ... your .... computer..... won't ...... work. Black screen. All that precious info hiding somewhere behind that black screen.
Push the Power button. After the 12th push of the Power button (kinda like pushing the already lit elevator button when you want it to come in a hurry) I tried CTRL/ALT/DEL buttons... once, twice, eight times.
Black screen. Prayer to the God Who has fixed so very many things in my life. Push Power button a 13th time.
Black screen. I text two friends who are incredibly intelligent about computers, asking for a recommendation of a good repair person. And wait.
Then the Idea strikes (and I can almost feel the warmth from a beam of light and hear an angelic chorus in the distance): why not try asking for help on Facebook? I did, and in less than 12 minutes a new friend who I have gotten to know on Facebook through a mutual friend, one of my long-time best friend's daughter-in-law from out of state and a close buddy who has walked through some of my darkest storms in life with me, all respond with advice.
I now know to pop out and replace your battery when your laptop goes black, and I have the name and phone number of a professional who repairs computers quickly and inexpensively, for future reference. Most of all, the alleviation of my anxiety was, as they say, priceless. Twenty-seven minutes after I had texted my two computer expert friends, I texted them again to let them know all in life was good again.
Yes, I know, this may not seem like such a big deal. But it was to me. An hour and fifteen minutes after texting my two friends, with my anxiety growing on a Monday morning, it would have seemed like an even bigger deal. Perhaps the biggest deal is that, only four months ago, it wouldn't have even occurred to me to use this social media tool to obtain a solution.
Yes, Old Dogs can learn New Tricks.
Thanks for sharing 133 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
The Referral Engine
If you own a small business, by this book: The Referral Engine by John Jantsch. If you know somebody who owns a business, buy it for them and make a new friend.
Social media, and more importantly the public expectations that the new media fosters, has fundamentally transformed successful business practices. For example, individuals are demanding greater authenticity and integrity from companies, and expect to be treated with increased respect and care.
One principle has remained unchanged. Small business owners still believe that the best form of advertising is Word of Mouth, and these owners are correct. Social media is Word of Mouth on steroids, providing individuals with a unique opportunity to refer a business to vast numbers of people simultaneously.
Company owners intuitively recognize the wisdom of having an effective referral system, yet struggle to attain one. Two thirds of small business owners believe that over half their business comes from word of mouth referrals, yet 80% of these businesses have no established system for generating referrals. They lack an authentic and systematic strategy to stimulate conversations, collect leads, educate prospects or convert referrals into customers.
John Jantsch can help fill this void. He seems like a regular guy, as the video below indicates. But his book is brilliant.
When I first began reading The Referral Engine, I phoned one of my clients and said, "You're going to be a multi-millionaire. I'm reading a book that is perfect for your business". The same could happen for the new friend that you make when you give him a copy of this book.
Thanks for sharing 163 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Social media, and more importantly the public expectations that the new media fosters, has fundamentally transformed successful business practices. For example, individuals are demanding greater authenticity and integrity from companies, and expect to be treated with increased respect and care.
One principle has remained unchanged. Small business owners still believe that the best form of advertising is Word of Mouth, and these owners are correct. Social media is Word of Mouth on steroids, providing individuals with a unique opportunity to refer a business to vast numbers of people simultaneously.
Company owners intuitively recognize the wisdom of having an effective referral system, yet struggle to attain one. Two thirds of small business owners believe that over half their business comes from word of mouth referrals, yet 80% of these businesses have no established system for generating referrals. They lack an authentic and systematic strategy to stimulate conversations, collect leads, educate prospects or convert referrals into customers.
John Jantsch can help fill this void. He seems like a regular guy, as the video below indicates. But his book is brilliant.
When I first began reading The Referral Engine, I phoned one of my clients and said, "You're going to be a multi-millionaire. I'm reading a book that is perfect for your business". The same could happen for the new friend that you make when you give him a copy of this book.
Thanks for sharing 163 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Overnight Success
Social media expert Chris Brogan enjoys saying things like: I'm an overnight success.... after 11 years of hard work, I became an overnight success. Chris had the foresight to begin blogging early on, and is now recognized as a popular and well followed blogger. Although he is an example that hard work over time does pay off, the relative newness of the social media phenomenon permits others to achieve success in a relatively brief period of time.
The social media experts providing seminars and advice in the Pittsburgh area, in some cases, have been at this game for less than two years. Some authors of books that sell nationally have become experts in as little as three years. With the new media industry just beginning to flourish, we are in exciting times - kind of like being around in the days of Henry Ford and the automobile industry during the industrial revolution. Only in the information revolution, things are evolving so much faster.
Passion for the potential of social media is important in harnessing this opportunity. You have an opportunity as the owner of a family owned small business to obtain success and move your business to the next level utilizing the opportunities afforded by social media. All that is required is that you engage the opportunity with "gusto" (kinda sounds like a beer commercial lauding the achievements of elite athletes, eh?).
With the help of a young Director of Store Operations, Mark Helgerman (owner of Trinity Jewelers) and I have experienced the blessing of hundreds of individuals visiting the Trinity Jewelers' Facebook page. In a two month period, Trinity Jewelers went from non-existent on social media platforms to having the highest "Like" count for any jeweler in the Pittsburgh area that I can find on Facebook. Pretty amazing for two conservative middle-aged Old Dogs. (OK, we cheated - we had the help of a manager who is a very sharp young lady).
Here's the real Trick: keeping these new Friends engaged. Anyone can get a ton of "Like" responses on their small business Facebook page. Does your family owned small business have enough exciting and engaging qualities to turn the curious prospect into a Raving Fan? I think the Trinity Jewelers family does. I hope your business does, too.
Life is often filled with hindsight regrets: "Wish I'd seen that one coming and got on board sooner". You've been warned in time, as there is still a window of opportunity to get on board the social media success train.
It's time to board. Don't let this train leave the station without you.
Thanks for sharing 131 seconds of your day,
Smitty
The social media experts providing seminars and advice in the Pittsburgh area, in some cases, have been at this game for less than two years. Some authors of books that sell nationally have become experts in as little as three years. With the new media industry just beginning to flourish, we are in exciting times - kind of like being around in the days of Henry Ford and the automobile industry during the industrial revolution. Only in the information revolution, things are evolving so much faster.
Passion for the potential of social media is important in harnessing this opportunity. You have an opportunity as the owner of a family owned small business to obtain success and move your business to the next level utilizing the opportunities afforded by social media. All that is required is that you engage the opportunity with "gusto" (kinda sounds like a beer commercial lauding the achievements of elite athletes, eh?).
With the help of a young Director of Store Operations, Mark Helgerman (owner of Trinity Jewelers) and I have experienced the blessing of hundreds of individuals visiting the Trinity Jewelers' Facebook page. In a two month period, Trinity Jewelers went from non-existent on social media platforms to having the highest "Like" count for any jeweler in the Pittsburgh area that I can find on Facebook. Pretty amazing for two conservative middle-aged Old Dogs. (OK, we cheated - we had the help of a manager who is a very sharp young lady).
Here's the real Trick: keeping these new Friends engaged. Anyone can get a ton of "Like" responses on their small business Facebook page. Does your family owned small business have enough exciting and engaging qualities to turn the curious prospect into a Raving Fan? I think the Trinity Jewelers family does. I hope your business does, too.
Life is often filled with hindsight regrets: "Wish I'd seen that one coming and got on board sooner". You've been warned in time, as there is still a window of opportunity to get on board the social media success train.
It's time to board. Don't let this train leave the station without you.
Thanks for sharing 131 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Thursday, May 5, 2011
The Mystery, Vastness and Depth of the Ocean
The other evening I had the pleasure and the privilege of strolling along the sand with the Atlantic Ocean to my side, in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Love that place. The ocean and its' unspeakable vastness make me think of the infinite, make me feel appropriately small. Why do I so often think that the world spins on its' axis to please me?
Later that same night I had one of those incredibly precious life moments with one of our soon-to-be-19-years-old twin sons, Tim, as we stood before the pounding waves, gazed out at the vast darkness, and looked up at the stars that are a kajillion light years away. Love that young man.
What is it about the incredible expanse and depth of the ocean and space that makes us ponder the Infinite?
A newsletter of one of my favorite "thank you for having an impact on my life" people, Roy Williams ("The Wizard of Ads"), addressed the topic of our failure to think big thoughts due to the busyness of life. Roy stated that "big thoughts make us realize that we are much smaller creatures than we like to pretend." Roy also pondered the Infinite, and concluded you either believe that there is Intelligent life beyond our little planet, or you don't. With either conclusion, the very thought (that there is a God or there isn't a God) is staggering.
My gaze at the deep dark ocean with my son by my side, pondering the Infinite together, affirms my belief in Intelligent Design. Personally I believe that the Author of creative design is the one true God (God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit). And I believe that, being made in His image, we are gifted with the ability to create. This is one of the things that makes this Old Dog exploration into social media so interesting: We have been given the capacity to create.
Through social media we have been given the capacity to be exceedingly creative, for the benefit of others as well as ourselves. Love that idea.
So what about you? Engage your God-given creativity, set aside the busyness of life, think big thoughts and share it across the planet on a social media platform. Come on, as an Old Dog you're never too old to learn New Tricks. It's a fascinating world, with infinite possibilities.
Thanks for sharing 104 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Later that same night I had one of those incredibly precious life moments with one of our soon-to-be-19-years-old twin sons, Tim, as we stood before the pounding waves, gazed out at the vast darkness, and looked up at the stars that are a kajillion light years away. Love that young man.
What is it about the incredible expanse and depth of the ocean and space that makes us ponder the Infinite?
A newsletter of one of my favorite "thank you for having an impact on my life" people, Roy Williams ("The Wizard of Ads"), addressed the topic of our failure to think big thoughts due to the busyness of life. Roy stated that "big thoughts make us realize that we are much smaller creatures than we like to pretend." Roy also pondered the Infinite, and concluded you either believe that there is Intelligent life beyond our little planet, or you don't. With either conclusion, the very thought (that there is a God or there isn't a God) is staggering.
My gaze at the deep dark ocean with my son by my side, pondering the Infinite together, affirms my belief in Intelligent Design. Personally I believe that the Author of creative design is the one true God (God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit). And I believe that, being made in His image, we are gifted with the ability to create. This is one of the things that makes this Old Dog exploration into social media so interesting: We have been given the capacity to create.
Through social media we have been given the capacity to be exceedingly creative, for the benefit of others as well as ourselves. Love that idea.
So what about you? Engage your God-given creativity, set aside the busyness of life, think big thoughts and share it across the planet on a social media platform. Come on, as an Old Dog you're never too old to learn New Tricks. It's a fascinating world, with infinite possibilities.
Thanks for sharing 104 seconds of your day,
Smitty
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Who Cares About The Competition?
I've been voraciously devouring information from the smartest people I can find. No sense being an Old Dog who doesn't try to learn the very best New Tricks. Why study and learn from the average, the commonplace? I habitually read the creative genius blogs of Chris Brogan, Seth Godin and Mitch Joel, and study research information from eMarketer. Bits and pieces of information from these crisp thinkers are of great value to family owned small business owners. This blog is a journey that includes the of sharing such ideas.
For example, Brogan recently blogged: No one ever won a race looking sideways. Don't worry about what others are doing or thinking, even your competition. Social media continues to change customer engagement so rapidly you don't have time to worry about your competitors. Focus on your customer, and their needs. Things have changed so much in the transparent culture of social media that competitors are actually working together in collaborative efforts, benefiting all.
What should the small business owner be doing?
Brogan also believes that it is wise to give all that you can to your customers: I’ve said this in many different ways, and it’s my strategy for business: learn new and useful things and serve my customer. Share as much as I can. Be helpful and be everywhere. These are the ways I’ve built my business. Wise advice. Treat others the way that you would like to be treated. The greatest Teacher commanded us to do so.
By utilizing social media to deliberately focus on on your customers and potential customers, and genuinely serving them in every way possible, you aren't intentionally ignoring your competition. You'll be so busy enjoying success, your competition won't matter.
Thanks for sharing 81 seconds of your day,
Smitty
For example, Brogan recently blogged: No one ever won a race looking sideways. Don't worry about what others are doing or thinking, even your competition. Social media continues to change customer engagement so rapidly you don't have time to worry about your competitors. Focus on your customer, and their needs. Things have changed so much in the transparent culture of social media that competitors are actually working together in collaborative efforts, benefiting all.
What should the small business owner be doing?
Brogan also believes that it is wise to give all that you can to your customers: I’ve said this in many different ways, and it’s my strategy for business: learn new and useful things and serve my customer. Share as much as I can. Be helpful and be everywhere. These are the ways I’ve built my business. Wise advice. Treat others the way that you would like to be treated. The greatest Teacher commanded us to do so.
By utilizing social media to deliberately focus on on your customers and potential customers, and genuinely serving them in every way possible, you aren't intentionally ignoring your competition. You'll be so busy enjoying success, your competition won't matter.
Thanks for sharing 81 seconds of your day,
Smitty
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