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Proven programs that grow great businesses for great people who care.

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22+ Reasons Your Small Business Is Keeping You Up at Night

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Owners are often insomniac. Photo by Olivia Townsend.

Owners are often insomniac. Photo by Olivia Townsend.

News 8 reporter Harlan Schmidt interviewed me about why Austin is a good place to start a business in 2010. I told him it was Austin’s “can do & it’s ok to fail” culture. And it is also about the fact that we have a highly educated population which means we can learn from our mistakes. I would still say that.

Then he asked me what needs to be done to improve our ability to sustain businesses. After all, it is not about starting — anyone can start one. It is about keeping it going — although not necessarily growing as large as, say Dell. [Read more…]

Feeling Driven to Marketing is Not Being Market-Driven

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Are you driven to marketing to fear, money, or making things better.

Are you driven to marketing out of fear, money, or making things better?

Are you driven to marketing? This is not the same as being market-driven.

Do you hate marketing your products and company? If you feel that you’d rather have all your teeth extracted than do anything with marketing, you could hate being “marketing driven”. You’re not alone. Most of our clients (except the advertising and marketing companies) don’t say “Whoopee, I get to come up with and implement my inbound or outbound marketing”.  [Read more…]

Repositioning Makes Old Products New Again

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Dogs have slept with humans for years. Now it's used as a repositioning reality™ for Serta. Photo from Commons at flickr.com

Dogs have slept with humans for years. Now it’s used as a repositioning reality™ for Serta. Photo from Commons at flickr.com

Repositioning helps customers think of your product or service in a new way.

Sometimes it works. I grew up with $10 tennis shoes. Nike told younger generations they were “training tools” (with appropriate tool and endorsers  names) not just shoes. Nike got it right and made big profits. [Read more…]

Business Owners Hierarchy of Needs

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What motivates business owners? It depends on where they are in the owners' hierarchy of needs.

What motivates business owners? It depends on where they are in the owners’ hierarchy of needs.

You’ve probably heard of Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs”. He identified how a person’s needs dominate motivation and behavior and that there is a specific order in which they should be met.

His theory suggested that the basic needs (physiological, safety, love and belonging) had to be met before the individual will desire and pursue higher levels of needs (esteem, self actualization, and self transcendence).

If a need is not met, the individual will feel tense and anxious. Although people may have several needs at any time, one will dominate their actions. [Read more…]

4 Traits Make Sure You Have the Right Customers

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Pennies-group-from-http-www.flickr.comphotossjsharktank4630355374-

A penny saved and earned. Photo by ssjsharktank.

Everyone wants and needs sales to have a profitable and successful business. But, sales from the wrong customers can kill a business.  If you doubt me, read Angel Customers and Demon Customers by Larry Selden and Geoffrey Colvin.

What should you look for? Basically, there are two options:

  • Low hanging fruit — the most responsive, easiest sale, shortest sales cycle
  • High value  —  the most lucrative, harder sale, longer, requires more thorough sales process so longer sales cycle

How do you decide who is right and who is wrong? [Read more…]

Urbane Direct Mail Piece That You Gotta See

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I have done direct mail pieces over the years that I liked and got great results with. One memorable black and white piece even got a 20% conversion  because we had the right list, the right offer, as well as the right creative graphic.

You may not agree, but I really think direct mail still has an important role to play in marketing strategy. No, Virginia, it’s not dead and this piece proves it.

Just look at it. It’s a Happy New Year card with a purpose. It came in a clear wrapping to intrigue me. Sent to my home address. I LOVE IT. [Read more…]

Selective Marketing

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Below is a presentation I gave at a local Austin meetup. It deals with how to use sales and marketing strategies and processes to save money and increase sales.

Choosing Business Entity Should Not Be a Popularity Contest

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Paper work sucks.

Paper work sucks.

Everyone has an opinion and they are passionate about what kind of legal form your business should take.

Get a group of business owners together in the same room and the fur really flies on this issue. I know I have done this.

Ask a lawyer. They will usually say: “You must be an LLC.” (As my mother would say, “Maybe they are poets and don’t know it.”) Why? For liability’s sake. [Read more…]