Gyms have to be filled with the biggest load of body dysmorphics in
the world; each trying to achieve some Adonis inspired impossibility
of perfection and becoming even more dysmorphic in the process. Last
week, if you remember, I griped about my gym subscription, I thought I
would carry on with the trend. Many people go to gym essentially out
of fear; fear of rejection by the girl across the room, fear of the
fat-induced heart attack, fear that you do not live up to the
photoshopped expectations of the Men's Health cover guy. Others go to
satisfy the macho-image of bench pressing a ludicrous amount of metal
in the name of manhood. Seriously when else do you ever lie on your
back and push a weight off your chest. Unless you are a mechanic and a
VW golf falls on top of you I fail to see the practical benefit of the
bench press. “Ah but bru it gives you better pecs.” Sure, that's a
great reason for performing a non-functional exercise with massive
shoulder wrecking capabilities if done wrong. Despite all this I
really love gym. A convenient way (not the only way) to get some
exercise in and a great endorphin release. I still cannot justify the
expense at the new subscription rates though.
Here is my problem with gyms. They are a luxury experience at the high
end of my expense bill. Like most businesses in Zimbabwe they are
targeting the small minority of people with an above average income.
All the gyms are basically competing for the same, finite pool of
individuals. It is like being in a room of starving people and
fighting over the same small pot of sadza instead of cooking up
another batch from the ingredients in the kitchen. Only one gym in
recent history came into the local market with a strategy of targeting
new clients and even then I do not see it happening any more. What we
have is a pool of professional gym hoppers, people who shift from one
gym to the other. What we do not have is large numbers of people who
have never done gym before trying it out and sticking with it. What we
do not have is a sustained marketing strategy aimed at converting
people over to the product, no one is increasing the size of the sadza
pot.
It takes effort to come up with a way of targeting new clients and
building a relationship with them. The process can be scripted and
systematic, but it needs to be intentional. As a business you cannot
sit around and expect clients to fall into your lap. You have to be
intentional about targeting them, reaching out, and keeping them. Nor
should you be waiting for a lull before you jump into action. It needs
to be part of your process from the opening all the way through. If
you focus on enriching the lives of the client rather than lining your
pocket you will probably do a better job at keeping them. So for the
gym, that means being a little more concerned about my health and
fitness than about just increasing your fees, because if you take care
of me well enough I may just bring a friend along to train.
This is not a gym unique problem. It affects almost any business in
the country right now.
I was reminded this last week of a quote from the 1954 movie Sabrina,
where Linus Larrabee is explaining to his brother his motivation for
business;
'A new product has been found, something of use to the world. A new
industry moves into an undeveloped area. Factories go up, machines go
in and you're in business. It's coincidental that people who've never
seen a dime now have a dollar and barefooted kids wear shoes and have
their faces washed. What's wrong with an urge that gives people
libraries, hospitals, baseball diamonds and movies on a Saturday
night?'
If we keep fighting over the same pot of food we will never grow as a
nation. If we never bother to grow other people and enrich their lives
we will never grow as a nation. If our business is all about just us
getting money, getting fat, and never giving anything back we will
never grow as a nation. It is that simple. We will become a bunch of
greedy, corrupt people, happy to screw each other over in the name of
gain; a bunch of people the rest of the world will never want to deal
with because all we ever do is take.
I want to leave you with another quote from Sabrina, “Making money
isn't the main point of business. Money is a by-product.” Have a great
week.
Tuesday, 26 March 2013
Sunday, 17 March 2013
What Really Matters
Grey's Anatomy has to be one of the most emotional television series in the world (well the current season anyway).
It is a behind the scenes, dramatic look at the world of emergency medicine. It still, however, gets it wrong.
It really fails to get across just how much effort goes into performing a surgery.
Yes, they show the cutting and sewing, but in the essence of high moving drama they leave out a whole chunk of the administration bits.
They leave out the sterilising of equipment, the major disinfecting and cleaning, the often numerous trays of theatre equipment that are on standby, the systems of booking theatre time, of ordering and pumping anaesthetic into the theatre, the waste disposal.
Unless you are in the medical field you have no idea what the real goings on in a theatre are, you just don’t see the complexity of the backend.
Primarily an IT term in website design, the backend refers to the whole bunch of stuff that takes place behind the scenes that the client never gets to see. And for the most part the client does not really care.
Most clients only care about the front-end, the bit that they interact with and that they see.
For the most part the client doesn’t even think about what happens at the back, unless you are like me, of course, and are fascinated by what makes things tick.
I am the sort of guy that will fly into a new city and be intrigued by how they dispose of the daily waste of 10 million people without you really noticing that the rubbish disappears every week never to be seen again.
This is probably an intrigue that is fuelled perhaps by the failure of my rubbish to vanish more than twice a month. But then Zach is a bit of an oddity.
As a client, if you think about it hard enough it makes sense that there are systems that happen behind the scenes, that there must be banking, billing, accounting, stock ordering, tracking, data capture and storage etc.
But in all reality it never really crosses your mind. For a patient in theatre all that matters is that they go in, are operated on and resuscitated with their problem solved and preferably without pain.
And that is the crux of any client interaction in any business, I go in with a problem and you solve it for me as painlessly as possible with a perceived cost-benefit in my favour.
It is only when the backend has a problem that interferes with the front-end that the client may actually care.
So how do you build a great front-end and a solid backend to support it?
Well start at the beginning of the problem-painfree solution-cost benefit idea.
Learn to identify what your clients really want. The man who walks into a sports shop asking for a new set of golf clubs does not just want a new piece of sporting equipment, what he wants is to better his game of golf.
If you just sell him a set of clubs he may be happy, if you sell him a set of clubs that improves his handicap he will be ecstatic, and will tell his mates on the green what a difference you made in his life.
That may require a better sales pitch, better research into what each club does, a little scientific application into what the best club length to golfer height ratio is, and an indoor driving range to practice his swing on so he can see the benefit while in your store.
But I am getting ahead of myself. First really ask what the client wants experientially. Once you know the problem you can accurately identify the solution.
Solution solving if more of us did this our lives would be better. Now for a little application of the KISS principle. KISS stands for Keep It Simple Stupid.
Fifty step solutions help no one. Both in the front-end where your client will hate it and in the backend where some poor staff member has to work the magic.
The more steps there are, the greater the chance that something may go wrong.
The more parts, the less the chance of perfection and (not always) greater the cost.
Building a simple system takes as much, and if not more, time as a building a complicated one because you have to cut through the crap.
ZBC changed strategy from giving fines to offering solutions. You can buy your radio licence disc there in the car park.
You are no longer penalised on the street. They cut out a whole system that was open to circumvention, which annoyed people on end and involved a lot of administration. They identified the problem and found an answer for it.
Now the last bit, perceived cost benefit. At the end of this month I will be cancelling my gym subscription.
It just went up by 50 percent and no explanation given. Whatever backend processes created this decision I could not care.
I can find better ways of spending US$1 000 a year (new prices) than on fitness, and I can find cheaper ways of keeping fit.
There is no change in terms of benefits for me after this massive cost increase beyond the level of inflation.
So for them to make money at the new rates they have to hope that one in three current members do leave.
Cost benefit is difficult to gauge at times and requires a chunk of research (more that “wow we need more money”).
However, if you can correctly identify and simply solve your client’s problem they will probably be willing to pay a little bit more.
It is a behind the scenes, dramatic look at the world of emergency medicine. It still, however, gets it wrong.
It really fails to get across just how much effort goes into performing a surgery.
Yes, they show the cutting and sewing, but in the essence of high moving drama they leave out a whole chunk of the administration bits.
They leave out the sterilising of equipment, the major disinfecting and cleaning, the often numerous trays of theatre equipment that are on standby, the systems of booking theatre time, of ordering and pumping anaesthetic into the theatre, the waste disposal.
Unless you are in the medical field you have no idea what the real goings on in a theatre are, you just don’t see the complexity of the backend.
Primarily an IT term in website design, the backend refers to the whole bunch of stuff that takes place behind the scenes that the client never gets to see. And for the most part the client does not really care.
Most clients only care about the front-end, the bit that they interact with and that they see.
For the most part the client doesn’t even think about what happens at the back, unless you are like me, of course, and are fascinated by what makes things tick.
I am the sort of guy that will fly into a new city and be intrigued by how they dispose of the daily waste of 10 million people without you really noticing that the rubbish disappears every week never to be seen again.
This is probably an intrigue that is fuelled perhaps by the failure of my rubbish to vanish more than twice a month. But then Zach is a bit of an oddity.
As a client, if you think about it hard enough it makes sense that there are systems that happen behind the scenes, that there must be banking, billing, accounting, stock ordering, tracking, data capture and storage etc.
But in all reality it never really crosses your mind. For a patient in theatre all that matters is that they go in, are operated on and resuscitated with their problem solved and preferably without pain.
And that is the crux of any client interaction in any business, I go in with a problem and you solve it for me as painlessly as possible with a perceived cost-benefit in my favour.
It is only when the backend has a problem that interferes with the front-end that the client may actually care.
So how do you build a great front-end and a solid backend to support it?
Well start at the beginning of the problem-painfree solution-cost benefit idea.
Learn to identify what your clients really want. The man who walks into a sports shop asking for a new set of golf clubs does not just want a new piece of sporting equipment, what he wants is to better his game of golf.
If you just sell him a set of clubs he may be happy, if you sell him a set of clubs that improves his handicap he will be ecstatic, and will tell his mates on the green what a difference you made in his life.
That may require a better sales pitch, better research into what each club does, a little scientific application into what the best club length to golfer height ratio is, and an indoor driving range to practice his swing on so he can see the benefit while in your store.
But I am getting ahead of myself. First really ask what the client wants experientially. Once you know the problem you can accurately identify the solution.
Solution solving if more of us did this our lives would be better. Now for a little application of the KISS principle. KISS stands for Keep It Simple Stupid.
Fifty step solutions help no one. Both in the front-end where your client will hate it and in the backend where some poor staff member has to work the magic.
The more steps there are, the greater the chance that something may go wrong.
The more parts, the less the chance of perfection and (not always) greater the cost.
Building a simple system takes as much, and if not more, time as a building a complicated one because you have to cut through the crap.
ZBC changed strategy from giving fines to offering solutions. You can buy your radio licence disc there in the car park.
You are no longer penalised on the street. They cut out a whole system that was open to circumvention, which annoyed people on end and involved a lot of administration. They identified the problem and found an answer for it.
Now the last bit, perceived cost benefit. At the end of this month I will be cancelling my gym subscription.
It just went up by 50 percent and no explanation given. Whatever backend processes created this decision I could not care.
I can find better ways of spending US$1 000 a year (new prices) than on fitness, and I can find cheaper ways of keeping fit.
There is no change in terms of benefits for me after this massive cost increase beyond the level of inflation.
So for them to make money at the new rates they have to hope that one in three current members do leave.
Cost benefit is difficult to gauge at times and requires a chunk of research (more that “wow we need more money”).
However, if you can correctly identify and simply solve your client’s problem they will probably be willing to pay a little bit more.
Thursday, 28 February 2013
The Best Return on Investment Ever
Ladies and gentlemen, abandon all your other endeavours! Forget diamonds, I have found it!
I have found the best possible return you can get on an investment, one that will give
you up to 100 000 percent return on your money.
All you need is a piece of paper and be in a position to offer a legally required service that no one else can possibly offer.
It is the beginning of the year and like most businesses I needed to renew my City of Harare health certificate (nice little paper that allows me to do business in the city).
So I sent for the application form (no it is not available online). It cost me US$20 to just get the form, a single A4 printed piece of paper. Now a piece of blank A4 paper costs less than two cents. This translates into over a 100 000 percent return. Even with the printing on it, it is unlikely that the price per sheet will come to more than 20 cents (and that is a very generous estimate), that is still a 100 times mark-up on the cost of the paper.
I am obviously in the wrong business. Not only that, after filling out the paper I was then informed that I would have to fetch the inspector and bring him to the premises to inspect them.
Let us pause and examine this once again, I have just paid US$20 for a piece of paper and I now have to fork out transport for the inspector to come to my offices!
There is something very wrong with this picture. I’m sorry City Council but I fail to see why you cannot take a few dollars from the 20 that I have just paid and send the inspector yourselves!
It is just wrong.
For those of you unaware of the process, once approved I then have to cough up the rest of the annual fee (somewhere in excess of US$300).
Now don’t get me wrong, I am happy to pay US$20 for a health inspection fee.
The way the system is structured, however, makes it look to me like I am paying an exorbitant price for a piece of paper. Perhaps paying for the form is to stop people walking into the department and picking up 50 application forms to use as free note taking paper at home?
I don’t know and honestly I don’t care. What I care about is the perceived injustice of the whole situation.
The fact that this is one of three statutory registrations I have to do annually in this particular field (one of them is a duplicate health inspection) is another bone of contention. But enough ranting about City of Harare et al, let’s talk about us.
Perception
It is what our clients think about us. It is what makes us pay US$800 for an unlocked iPhone and think we are getting the better part of the deal (well double that if you live in Zimbabwe, that is if you are crazy enough not to make a plan to get it outside the country).
It is why you shop at one supermarket and not another (because it fits your status and price level). It is why you have still not left the country in search of a perpetually “greener pasture” and rather rave about our weather and the benefits of cheap domestic help.
Perceptions are complex little things based on current and previous experience, and emotion.
I had blood tests last week. It took me three days to get the courage to go to the labs, simply because my perception was “needle equals pain”.
This was based on past experiences punctured by less than wonderful situations involving syringes and blood when I was 10.
My heart was racing as I handed over the form, my palms were sweaty and my throat dry and no needle had even been produced.
That is the power of perception - it is so powerful that if you hate needles merely reading my description probably has set off a sinking feeling in your gut.
Creating a positive perception in the minds of your client is important.
Fortunately, my bloody ordeal ended well, an ex-ICU nurse bled me with only a minor prick, I did not pass out and have recalibrated my perception (but only to that lab, mind you).
Imagine this scenario on renewing a licence/annual fee. A month before renewal I get a polite email reminder that the time to embark on the process is due.
It clearly outlines the next steps including the amount due. I can either log onto a website or visit the offices where I can fill in a free form and THEN pay electronically or in cash for my application fee.
This fee includes the cost of the inspector’s transport.
When he visits within the next week (after receiving an appointment notice from him so that I am present when he arrives) it is a pleasant experience pointing out areas I need to stay on top of.
I can then pay the annual fee via the website or through the swipe machine that the inspector brought along. Now for some parts of the world this is normal. If you are reading this from the USA or UK you are probably amazed that something so simple can go so strangely wrong.
Much has been said in the past about looking through the customer’s eyes. But we rarely do that in our bid to rip people off. If we do, it is likely that we fail to really see through the client’s eyes, we see through our own biased opinion.
It takes a lot of effort to step back, watch clients objectively, and change things to make a difference.
Planting secret shoppers and reviewers is one way of achieving this while hiring of consultants is another.
Simple cold logic works as well, it doesn’t take a genius to realise that putting products meant for the elderly on the bottom shelf where they cannot reach without bending down is rather stupid.
But none of this matters unless it results in change. Real meaningful change. Fortunately, I have to wait a year before dealing with the City Council again.
I have found the best possible return you can get on an investment, one that will give
you up to 100 000 percent return on your money.
All you need is a piece of paper and be in a position to offer a legally required service that no one else can possibly offer.
It is the beginning of the year and like most businesses I needed to renew my City of Harare health certificate (nice little paper that allows me to do business in the city).
So I sent for the application form (no it is not available online). It cost me US$20 to just get the form, a single A4 printed piece of paper. Now a piece of blank A4 paper costs less than two cents. This translates into over a 100 000 percent return. Even with the printing on it, it is unlikely that the price per sheet will come to more than 20 cents (and that is a very generous estimate), that is still a 100 times mark-up on the cost of the paper.
I am obviously in the wrong business. Not only that, after filling out the paper I was then informed that I would have to fetch the inspector and bring him to the premises to inspect them.
Let us pause and examine this once again, I have just paid US$20 for a piece of paper and I now have to fork out transport for the inspector to come to my offices!
There is something very wrong with this picture. I’m sorry City Council but I fail to see why you cannot take a few dollars from the 20 that I have just paid and send the inspector yourselves!
It is just wrong.
For those of you unaware of the process, once approved I then have to cough up the rest of the annual fee (somewhere in excess of US$300).
Now don’t get me wrong, I am happy to pay US$20 for a health inspection fee.
The way the system is structured, however, makes it look to me like I am paying an exorbitant price for a piece of paper. Perhaps paying for the form is to stop people walking into the department and picking up 50 application forms to use as free note taking paper at home?
I don’t know and honestly I don’t care. What I care about is the perceived injustice of the whole situation.
The fact that this is one of three statutory registrations I have to do annually in this particular field (one of them is a duplicate health inspection) is another bone of contention. But enough ranting about City of Harare et al, let’s talk about us.
Perception
It is what our clients think about us. It is what makes us pay US$800 for an unlocked iPhone and think we are getting the better part of the deal (well double that if you live in Zimbabwe, that is if you are crazy enough not to make a plan to get it outside the country).
It is why you shop at one supermarket and not another (because it fits your status and price level). It is why you have still not left the country in search of a perpetually “greener pasture” and rather rave about our weather and the benefits of cheap domestic help.
Perceptions are complex little things based on current and previous experience, and emotion.
I had blood tests last week. It took me three days to get the courage to go to the labs, simply because my perception was “needle equals pain”.
This was based on past experiences punctured by less than wonderful situations involving syringes and blood when I was 10.
My heart was racing as I handed over the form, my palms were sweaty and my throat dry and no needle had even been produced.
That is the power of perception - it is so powerful that if you hate needles merely reading my description probably has set off a sinking feeling in your gut.
Creating a positive perception in the minds of your client is important.
Fortunately, my bloody ordeal ended well, an ex-ICU nurse bled me with only a minor prick, I did not pass out and have recalibrated my perception (but only to that lab, mind you).
Imagine this scenario on renewing a licence/annual fee. A month before renewal I get a polite email reminder that the time to embark on the process is due.
It clearly outlines the next steps including the amount due. I can either log onto a website or visit the offices where I can fill in a free form and THEN pay electronically or in cash for my application fee.
This fee includes the cost of the inspector’s transport.
When he visits within the next week (after receiving an appointment notice from him so that I am present when he arrives) it is a pleasant experience pointing out areas I need to stay on top of.
I can then pay the annual fee via the website or through the swipe machine that the inspector brought along. Now for some parts of the world this is normal. If you are reading this from the USA or UK you are probably amazed that something so simple can go so strangely wrong.
Much has been said in the past about looking through the customer’s eyes. But we rarely do that in our bid to rip people off. If we do, it is likely that we fail to really see through the client’s eyes, we see through our own biased opinion.
It takes a lot of effort to step back, watch clients objectively, and change things to make a difference.
Planting secret shoppers and reviewers is one way of achieving this while hiring of consultants is another.
Simple cold logic works as well, it doesn’t take a genius to realise that putting products meant for the elderly on the bottom shelf where they cannot reach without bending down is rather stupid.
But none of this matters unless it results in change. Real meaningful change. Fortunately, I have to wait a year before dealing with the City Council again.
Thursday, 21 February 2013
In Bad Taste: A Case of the Selfish Joker
The body of Oscar Pistorius’ girlfriend had barely reached the morgue and the jokes were already flying around the web.
Many of them making reference to his lack of lower limbs or Nike’s sponsorship record
with disgraced athletes.
And we all laughed at them and went on with our lives.
A woman was shot! She died! It is not funny! Yet we laugh.
When the Challenger space shuttle blew up, when Princess Diana died, when Discovery exploded, the jokes flew around the world turning a tragedy into a trivial bit of harmless fun.
It doesn’t seem so funny now, does it? Why though, why our insensitive ability as humans to create memes and jokes at the misfortune of others?
One of the reasons is that we are distant from the event; I don’t know Oscar, why should I care.
There is another reason, one that cannot be so flippantly disregarded.
We use the opportunity to make ourselves feel better about our situation and lives.
Birthed out of selfishness, the idea of belittling someone else takes the focus off our failings and inadequacies.
That is why reality television does so well, the greater the stuff ups by the performers the better we feel about our poor, snivelling situation.
We are selfish. Sorry, there is no getting away from it.
We care more about what we can get and how we can get ahead of everyone else than about making a real difference.
How can we be less selfish? How can we be more outward looking and care a little more for others?
There are two ways to make yourself feel good.
One is to belittle someone, to make fun at their expense and be satisfied that you are “better than them”.
The other is to genuinely help them out, make a positive contribution in their life to help them get out of their situation.
That generates a different feeling inside; one that, despite the cost of time and effort, lightens your soul. I am so glad that someone took the time to help me learn to dress well, rather than laughing at my outdated fashion sense.
The great advantage you have if you run a business is the capacity to expand this ability to reach and build the lives of thousands.
Your product expands your reach, one client at a time, far beyond what you can do merely as an individual.
I remember a story about the supermarket chain Tesco’s that tells of how rather than cramming as many checkout counters in as possible into stores they decided to keep the aisles wide enough for people to comfortably move through them.
A small change but a meaningful one for a harried and flustered customer at the end of the day who does not need the added aggravation of frequent shopping trolley accidents.
What does it take to donate goods to a worthwhile cause, not because you want the publicity, but because you desire to make a difference?
Or unpretentiously and quietly building up the lives of those who supply your raw materials (think grocery store and supporting rural fresh vegetable production).
It takes a change in mindset to look a little more outside our small and cloistered wor
Many of them making reference to his lack of lower limbs or Nike’s sponsorship record
with disgraced athletes.
And we all laughed at them and went on with our lives.
A woman was shot! She died! It is not funny! Yet we laugh.
When the Challenger space shuttle blew up, when Princess Diana died, when Discovery exploded, the jokes flew around the world turning a tragedy into a trivial bit of harmless fun.
It doesn’t seem so funny now, does it? Why though, why our insensitive ability as humans to create memes and jokes at the misfortune of others?
One of the reasons is that we are distant from the event; I don’t know Oscar, why should I care.
There is another reason, one that cannot be so flippantly disregarded.
We use the opportunity to make ourselves feel better about our situation and lives.
Birthed out of selfishness, the idea of belittling someone else takes the focus off our failings and inadequacies.
That is why reality television does so well, the greater the stuff ups by the performers the better we feel about our poor, snivelling situation.
We are selfish. Sorry, there is no getting away from it.
We care more about what we can get and how we can get ahead of everyone else than about making a real difference.
How can we be less selfish? How can we be more outward looking and care a little more for others?
There are two ways to make yourself feel good.
One is to belittle someone, to make fun at their expense and be satisfied that you are “better than them”.
The other is to genuinely help them out, make a positive contribution in their life to help them get out of their situation.
That generates a different feeling inside; one that, despite the cost of time and effort, lightens your soul. I am so glad that someone took the time to help me learn to dress well, rather than laughing at my outdated fashion sense.
The great advantage you have if you run a business is the capacity to expand this ability to reach and build the lives of thousands.
Your product expands your reach, one client at a time, far beyond what you can do merely as an individual.
I remember a story about the supermarket chain Tesco’s that tells of how rather than cramming as many checkout counters in as possible into stores they decided to keep the aisles wide enough for people to comfortably move through them.
A small change but a meaningful one for a harried and flustered customer at the end of the day who does not need the added aggravation of frequent shopping trolley accidents.
What does it take to donate goods to a worthwhile cause, not because you want the publicity, but because you desire to make a difference?
Or unpretentiously and quietly building up the lives of those who supply your raw materials (think grocery store and supporting rural fresh vegetable production).
It takes a change in mindset to look a little more outside our small and cloistered wor
Thursday, 14 February 2013
An exercise in colouring for business
Take the picture below.
Print it out.
Colour it in before reading on.
Chances are you coloured in the lines like you were taught when you were grade one. Being in the lines is safe. It is also boring and involves no risk.
Our conditioning to stay in the lines (risk free and avoiding punishment) does not serve us well when we need to take risks.
Go on, reprint it, scribble, scrawl, tear it up outside the lines, enjoy the satisfaction of breaking the nonexistant rule.
PS While you at it dont use green for the grass either.
PPS The origional pic can be found at http://www.myfreecolouringpages.com/zoo_animals_coloring_pages/moose1.htm
Print it out.
Colour it in before reading on.
Our conditioning to stay in the lines (risk free and avoiding punishment) does not serve us well when we need to take risks.
Go on, reprint it, scribble, scrawl, tear it up outside the lines, enjoy the satisfaction of breaking the nonexistant rule.
PS While you at it dont use green for the grass either.
PPS The origional pic can be found at http://www.myfreecolouringpages.com/zoo_animals_coloring_pages/moose1.htm
Tuesday, 5 February 2013
The News : Richard the Who
Do you suffer from news addiction? Checking Google News or Yahoo's main page every hour (at least). Keeping the news channels on permanently in the background. Panicking about the slightest change in policy. I can sympathize, I used to be there.
This week in the UK news the world of British archaeology raged about the discovery of Richard III's body and confirmation that it was him. Great detective work and a well executed plan to discover it (seriously they planned the whole thing and succeeded..that's impressive). BUT WHO CARES! Really, a tainted history portrays him as a throne stealing king whose greatest feat seems to be being the last king to die in battle on British soil. It may be news, but my life will go on regardless. I am none the richer for the discovery (then again I'm not really British now am I).
Make news that matters. What matters in the lives of your clients and customers? What can you do that will bring them real, positive emotion and enrich their day. That is the newsworthy you should be aiming for. The therapist that spends an extra uncharged 15 minutes with their client because they will benefit from it, the cashier who smiles at each customer and suggests options for them to buy the next time, the lawyer who delivers a manifest containing some of his best work early. Creating art. Going the extra mile. Making news. You may not get on CNN with it, but you can get some great word of mouth.
This week in the UK news the world of British archaeology raged about the discovery of Richard III's body and confirmation that it was him. Great detective work and a well executed plan to discover it (seriously they planned the whole thing and succeeded..that's impressive). BUT WHO CARES! Really, a tainted history portrays him as a throne stealing king whose greatest feat seems to be being the last king to die in battle on British soil. It may be news, but my life will go on regardless. I am none the richer for the discovery (then again I'm not really British now am I).
Make news that matters. What matters in the lives of your clients and customers? What can you do that will bring them real, positive emotion and enrich their day. That is the newsworthy you should be aiming for. The therapist that spends an extra uncharged 15 minutes with their client because they will benefit from it, the cashier who smiles at each customer and suggests options for them to buy the next time, the lawyer who delivers a manifest containing some of his best work early. Creating art. Going the extra mile. Making news. You may not get on CNN with it, but you can get some great word of mouth.
Friday, 25 January 2013
Revisitation
Imagine if I published the same article each week. You would give up reading after a while.
What if everyday was just like yesterday, exactly the same second for aching second, 24 hours of monotony with your only consolation being that it will be repeated again tomorrow.
Same food, same bad jokes, same mistakes, never moving forward, stuck in an endless cycle of repetition, revisiting where you have already been.
For more on revisitation have a look at http://emergingideas.com/the-revisitation
Break the cycle in your business that keeps going over the same ground.
What if everyday was just like yesterday, exactly the same second for aching second, 24 hours of monotony with your only consolation being that it will be repeated again tomorrow.
Same food, same bad jokes, same mistakes, never moving forward, stuck in an endless cycle of repetition, revisiting where you have already been.
For more on revisitation have a look at http://emergingideas.com/the-revisitation
Break the cycle in your business that keeps going over the same ground.
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