Do Business Well

INSTANT MESSAGING

Instant messaging (IM), sometimes called “online chat,” is becoming an increasingly powerful way to engage customers. (Some IM functions can be automated, but the term generally implies interacting with a live person.) While there are often delays sending and receiving email, IM happens in real time. If a customer shows up on your website and needs help locating a product or specific information or is having difficulty navigating on the site, IM enables someone at your company to communicate directly with her. IM functionality may also become incorporated directly into email marketing programs. Emails may have embedded “Need Help?” and “Got Any Questions?” buttons that recipients can click on to immediately reach a customer service or salesperson. The customer’s profile would instantly pop up on the service representative’s screen, complete with a detailed history of all previous interactions with that customer and a snapshot of the email the customer is responding to. Continue Reading »

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One of the most powerful ways to teach and communicate is through stories. And one of the best ways to engage your customers is to think of your communications as a narrative. Even the blandest material can be spiced up by giving it an engaging rhythm and making it familiar and involving. At the same time, even the most exciting information can be made boring by presenting it as a list of facts, without any personality or tension. Like a good storyteller, you have to consider how your story will engage your audience. Now I’m not proposing that you try to disguise your marketing and sales messages as gripping drama. Customers are too savvy for that and they’ll call your bluff. But you can still include a narrative thread to draw people in. An online health products retailer could, for example, includes a storyline in its email communication that features real people and the impact that health products have had on their lives. By following the lives of a cast of characters over an extended time period, readers become engaged in the story and follow it. The important thing to remember is that people like stories, remember them, and enjoy telling them to others. Continue Reading »

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To open doors we need the vision of those who have gone ahead to inspire us — role models. We need a lift-up from those already in positions of power and influence — sponsors. We need the ear of those more experienced than us — mentors. We need the helping hands of those around us — our support network. And, last but not least, we need to remember to help others who are walking the path some distance behind us.

Wanted: role models

As you begin to develop your career, look around you for positive role models. Our generation of career-orientated women has had some difficulty in finding role models who are suited to the new challenges that we face. Continue Reading »

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There are many situations that may cause you to seriously consider selling out. Among these are the obvious such as age, ill health, a decision to move your family to a new area, burnout, family pressure, or just the desire to move on to something new.

When selling becomes a serious option, you need at least nine months to find a buyer and consummate the sale. For even better results, plan to take two years. Here are the steps you should follow to obtain the highest price for your enterprise.

1. Change the way you do your bookkeeping one to two years before the sale. There are many different ways to prepare your income and financial statements that are legal and ethical. When selling the business is not a consideration, your priorities are probably determined by taxes or banks. You’re either trying to limit your profits to reduce tax exposure or maximize profits to prove creditworthiness.

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This one really bugs me. It’s a philosophical thing. You’ll be pleased to see a lot of stores encouraging you in the same thing: SAVE BIG! SAVE MORE! But they’re talking about something else.

The only way to save money is . . . well, to save it. That means, Don’t spend it. When a store announces that you’ll “save money,” what they really mean is that you’ll spend less of it than if you shopped somewhere else. (And as we saw with that discount trick, that claim may not even be true.)

But whether you spend $145 for something, or “save” by spending just $125, you’re still spending it. Of course, retailers don’t want you to think that way. They know that if you focus on what you’re spending, you may have second thoughts. So they try to focus on the positive side. There’s nothing wrong with that. And if you truly are going to spend money anyway, then look for ways to spend less of it. Continue Reading »

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