There are basically two ways to get the people who work for you to do what you want. You can bully them into it. Or you can lead them.
The bully’s method is initially effective, because it takes advantage of his superior power. But everything changes with time — including the balance of power within a company. So, ultimately, it fails.
Did your doctor tell you to lose weight? It may be good advice. Then again, he may have based it on bad science — the outdated Body Mass Index (BMI). Calculated from height and weight, it can be grossly misleading. For example, according to the BMI, Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime — at 6′2″ and 257 pounds — was obese.
There’s a small cafe in Annapolis, Maryland. A great breakfast place.
And they will add nearly $20,000 to their sales this year by using one little trick: They make it extremely convenient for their customers to add a $3 item to their order.
Always set two deadlines for every project you agree to handle. One “official” deadline that you give to the outside world. Then another “real” deadline — maybe a week earlier — that you give to yourself and your team.
When the earlier deadline is met, resist the urge to deliver immediately. (The idea is to impress your boss by delivering only one or two days early. Don’t make him wonder if you are grossly under-challenged.) (more…)
I believe there is a direct relationship between hard work and success. Those who work harder achieve more. And that applies equally to individuals, families, ethnic groups, and nations.
Yes, talent helps. But talent is not something we can choose. It is given to us, as are so many other “advantages”: the kind of family we are born into, the color of our skin, and even our native intelligence.
The EEOC’s mission? To make sure workers are not unfairly terminated, harassed, or discriminated against.
Good in theory.
But many bad workers are using the agency to get money they don’t deserve. Employee “retaliation” lawsuits were up 23 percent in 2008.
We all have “enemies” — unpleasant individuals we can’t avoid because of work or social obligations. As a general rule, we deal with them by staying away as much as possible. When we must interact, we speak as little as we can. Just the facts and goodbye.
However, there’s a better way to deal with these people.
1. Start on time.
2. If there’s someone with a reputation for tardiness without whom the meeting can’t take place, schedule a briefing with him 15 minutes beforehand. If he gets there on time, use that 15 minutes to discuss the big issues. If he’s 15 minutes late, he won’t hold things up.
3. Distribute a short agenda to all participants the day before the meeting.
4. Set and enforce a strict time limit for each agenda item. Discussion should end when a specific action has been determined, written down, and assigned.
5. Every five or six meetings, ask for suggestions to improve the way you’re running the proceedings.
(more…)
Time passes so damn quickly. And as you get older, it speeds up so much that, if you don’t do something about it, your life will take place without including the person who’s buried deep inside you.
You know the person I mean. The dreamer. The bright, starry-eyed optimist who was once in charge of your body and soul.
I have wanted to be a writer since I was six years old. It was my father who first encouraged me. After reading a poem I wrote called “How Do I Know the World Is Real?” (Can you believe I can still remember it? Cripes, I can still recite it!), he told me I had a special talent. And that if I nurtured it, I could be a great writer some day.
(more…)
As a development manager for a real-estate project I consult with, SB takes direction from three people: a profit-center manager, a project manager, and me. Most of the time, our advice and recommendations work together. Sometimes, however, we disagree. And when we do, it throws SB into a frenzy.
SB complains about getting mixed messages… being confused… being overworked. At the same time, he does a very good job on the work he understands. The people who work directly for him are happy with his leadership. And the results are almost always excellent.
SB’s mistake is in not understanding who he really works for: his customers. Every dollar the business earns comes from them. Their money funds his paychecks, the paychecks of his bosses, and the paychecks of the people who work under him.
By focusing on what is best for his customers, he can reduce the amount of confusion and conflict he experiences by having three supervisors.
Are you in a similar situation? Are you getting conflicting advice from the people you work for? You can usually determine the right thing to do by understanding what would be best for your customers. (Which decision will improve the service they get? Which one will make their buying experience easier, faster, and more rewarding?)
In the 1960s, the edible oils industry began a campaign to convince us that vegetable oils are healthy.
Yes, these oils are derived from natural sources. But by the time they make it to your grocery store, they are anything but good for you. Corn oil, for example, contains none of the vitamins, minerals, and fiber found in the plant itself.
A number of studies have shown a link between processed oils and heart disease. Processed oils have also been associated with asthma, blindness, cancer, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, stroke, and liver problems. Meanwhile, the average American is consuming more than 50 times as much vegetable oil as he once did.
Vegetable oils are not easy to avoid. They are in all salad dressings and processed foods. But some are healthier than others.
Choose coconut oil for cooking. Choose olive oil (which is easily damaged by cooking heat) for salads.
(more…)
It’s tempting to give a promising employee more freedom than he can realistically handle. It may seem like a good way to boost his self-esteem. But if you do and he screws up, whose fault is it? Yours.
So, yes, praise your employees for good work and goals met. But also praise mistakes that were “smart” tries.
Not always easy to do.
The trick is to define the employee’s limits beforehand. That way, you are much less likely to face disappointment. And if and when you do, you will feel as if the failure was your responsibility as much as anyone else’s. If you feel that way, it will be easy to say, “Nice try.”
(more…)
LW, a friend and colleague, is a master of good hiring. His first hire — an entry-level marketing assistant — bloomed into a world-class marketing pro who is already running his company for him. The two of them hired another superb employee who helped them double their sales in one year. Now, the staff consists of four people, and they are doing as much business as it would normally take eight people to do.
It takes time and effort to hire good people, but it’s well worth it. Here are the four most important things I’ve learned:
(more…)
Like the stereotypical male who won’t ask for directions when lost, many workers clam up when they get stuck on a job.
It’s an avoidable mistake.
Getting a hand from others is an important part of being a member of any team. You’ll be better off if you mention your difficulty to a colleague. Chances are good that either of two things will happen:
1. He’ll offer a helpful hint to get you back on track.
2. Just talking about the obstacle will get you moving in the right direction.
Don’t be ashamed or afraid to ask for help from your mates. Taking a small amount of time to refocus is likely to save you a lot of time in the long run.
(more…)
People like to feel superior. As a marketer, understanding this universal desire can help you do an awful lot of selling.
By appealing to your prospects’ pride, you can persuade them to pay more — sometimes much more — than what you could get by appealing to any other emotion.
Let’s talk watches.
For $10, you can buy a handsome digital sports watch that will outperform and outlast virtually any luxury watch made. When these watches were first introduced (over 20 years ago), they were so good and cheap that everyone predicted the demise of the analog timepiece.
Well, it didn’t happen. The new technology revolutionized the watch industry and changed the market forever. But analog watches survived. In fact, according to one estimate, sales of $1,000-plus watches have more than doubled since the 1970s and continue to grow every year.
It’s Not Simply a Matter of Dollars and Cents
Why do people pay thousands for watches when a $29 one works just as well and looks great? (By the way, have you taken an objective look at some of the fancier Rolexes lately? Tack-eeee. Piagets? Like a muscleman in a tutu.) I like the look of the expensive watch I bought in Paris, but I’ve had to have it repaired twice in two years. And boy did they charge me for that!
It’s not reliability. It’s not durability. It’s not precision. And it’s not beauty. So what does all that extra money buy?
In a word, prestige. Slap on an Ebel or a Cartier and you have instant credibility with the fashion police. Thrust out a Rolex-clad wrist and you announce to all those around you, “I have arrived.”
You need not say a word. What could be better than that?
The idea that price equates to quality is a myth. But price does relate to value. In the case of luxury goods, that value is prestige.
(more…)
In all forms of expression, summarizing is lethal. But that’s what many copywriters do. At the end of a sales letter, they methodically recount all the important points they just made. What happens is that the energy of the copy is dissipated, the blood drained off.
A much better approach is to take a single strong element of the sales argument and present it in detail. This has a much greater emotional impact on the reader. And it often conveys some of the rest of the whole — even without talking about it.
(more…)
We’re seeing more and more junk food passed off as health food these days. Manufacturers have learned that they can increase sales (and justify significant price increases) simply by putting the word “organic” on the label. But “organic” doesn’t always mean “healthy.”
You can buy organic sugar, white flour, potato chips, corn chips, donuts, waffles, sugar-added cereals, pizza, and frozen dinners at your local health food store. All of these products are highly processed. They contain little to no nutritional value, and they have a high glycemic index.
My advice is to skip the same aisles in the health food store as you would in the regular grocery store. Avoid the baked goods, snack foods, cereals, and ice creams. Stick to whole foods and fresh produce.
(more…)
Credit card companies were given 15 months to clean up their act and eliminate unfair and predatory practices. But they’ve taken that time to speed up the process of screwing over consumers. Interest rates, already high, are up an average of 20 percent industry-wide. Even customers who pay on time are seeing higher rates.
That was not unexpected. And it shouldn’t be affecting you, if you’ve been following my advice all these years.
Here’s the deal:
If it’s going to be worth less after you buy it, or if you’ll have forgotten all about it by this time next year, pay cash. That includes stereos, vacations, dinners out, clothes… you get the idea.
Use credit only for things that are going to appreciate in value — such things as houses, investments, or an income-producing side business.
This goes back to the one way you can possibly hope to become wealthy: Earn more than you spend. Then save and invest the rest. You won’t get rich with debts and liabilities hanging over your head.
(more…)
Today, I tell you why, when it comes to luxury items, price doesn’t mean quality to buyers. It means something more intangible. And I show you how to apply that secret to your marketing.
I also discuss what you should and shouldn’t be buying “on credit,” the rise of organic junk food, and a marketing trap that is all too easy to fall into.
Here’s what’s on tap for the rest of the week…
Rich Schefren, who is appearing at ETR’s Info-Marketing Bootcamp, lays down the four stages of learning. Before truly mastering any skill, you must go through these steps.
AWAI’s John Wood shows you how to meet powerful people in your industry. A simple “Hi, how are you?” could change your career and life.
Comedian, copywriter, and professional speaker Peter Fogel explains why self-confidence is not necessary to be a great public speaker. You just have to pretend you have it.
And finally, success mentor Brian Tracy explains the Law of Indirect Efforts. The quickest way to raise your self-esteem, says Brian, is to focus on making others feel good about themselves first.
(more…)
I learned a lovely word today: MacGuffin. A MacGuffin is an irrelevant interest grabber — a story whose purpose is to draw attention to itself and away from something else.
It comes from a plot device invented by Alfred Hitchcock. He borrowed it from a shaggy-dog story that goes something like this:
A couple, riding in an English train, notice a tall man carrying a large, odd-looking package. They ask him what it contains. Instead of telling them to mind their own business, he says, “A MacGuffin.” (more…)
Profiled in The Wall Street Journal the other day: A single mother, hit hard by the recession. She can barely keep a roof over her family’s head. Her salary was cut by 60 percent. And buying even the basics is a struggle. A story we’ve heard again and again.
“How sad,” I thought to myself, as I read the article. “How can somebody possibly be expected to live on … $150,000 a year? Wait! What?”
That’s right. This woman, a Hollywood realtor, is bitching about making more than 95 percent of Americans. (more…)
When a customer says “no” to your sales pitch, ask him why. (more…)
If you are too hungry when you sit down to a meal, you will probably overeat and end up feeling way too full. Try this: Drink two full glasses of water 15 minutes before you eat.
I tried it recently and found that I ate considerably less. You wouldn’t think the water could have that much of an effect. But it does!
When you are going to be interviewed for a job, try to be the last one they see.
Studies show, and my experience confirms, that the people who do best in multiple interviews are those who are first or last. And that’s regardless of how good they actually are. (more…)
In most businesses, the 80/20 rule applies to just about everything — including the question “Which customers contribute most to our bottom line?”
There is a good chance that about 20 percent of your customers are responsible for more than 80 percent of your profits. (more…)
Sharks are said to be the most efficient eating machines on the planet. They are perfectly equipped to hunt and kill. The shape of their bodies… the way they propel themselves through the water… the sensitivity of their hearing and smell… and the construction of their jaws. (more…)
Having trouble falling — and staying — asleep? The culprit may be additives in your food. Aspartame, MSG, artificial coloring, nitrates, and even soy contain “excitotoxins.”These chemicals can alter brain chemistry and lead to insomnia. (more…)
When writing or reviewing long marketing copy, you’ve got to get to the point where you find yourself thinking, “Yes! This is good! This is really, really good!”
I call it the Eureka Moment. (more…)
Products — the most successful products — meet urgent needs and solve important problems.
But what solves today’s problem won’t necessarily solve tomorrow’s. We must constantly refine and reinvent to make our products “new.” (more…)
MaryEllen and I were sitting in my office the other day, discussing our upcoming joint speech at ETR’s Info-Marketing Bootcamp.
We talked about how smart it is for a business to host conferences. As we say in our book Changing the Channel, it can teach you a great deal about your customers that you can’t get from surveys or marketing statistics. It is a must, in fact, for any business that “wants to know its customers on a face-to-face basis.” (more…)