Red Zone Marketing's Blog

Social Media: Now what should I be doing?

You’ve spent the time and effort to get your social media sites developed, now what?

The premise of social media is to present something of value to others in your social network. Valuable content is defined as something that others:

•    Find interesting or informative
•    Deem worthy to take the time to read or view
•    Want more of and thus will follow you to see what’s next
•    Will pass along for others to see

So where does all of this great, valuable content come from? Do you have to be a prolific writer or hire someone that is? And how difficult will it be to get content through compliance? The good news is that there are solutions to the continual release of valuable content.

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The Service Dilemma for Small, Boutique Firms

When I call my favorite airlines, if I don’t get the answer I was hoping for or am having trouble getting the person to understand my request, I don’t continue trying with the same person. I politely end the call and redial to get someone else. More often than not I am able to get closer to what I am requesting by taking this action. It is a hidden benefit of working with a large firm.

The problem with a small company is that there is no one else to call - except another company. And if you think people do this, but certainly not to your company - I ask you to reconsider. Loyalty is harder than ever to come by and even harder to maintain. People have so many options and there is so much noise. Not having the skill set to help a client is one thing. Not having the ability to listen and service a client is unacceptable for a small firm. Some of the most powerful perceived benefits of working with a small firm are the lack of inflexible bureaucracy and the higher level of understanding and personal service.

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2 Myths and 1 Absolute for Making Your Employees Better

Motivating and getting your staff to be as good as, or better than you, is an ongoing challenge. And, although I am not the perfect boss, I have certainly learned some truths over the past 15 years with both my own employees and through consulting on the inner workings of high producing financial services firms. In financial services, the employees often deal directly with clients and prospective clients. Their interactions are critical to the success of the organization. Here are 2 myths and one absolute for creating a better more aligned staff:

Pay them at or above industry standard and they will be great employees: MYTH

Empower them to make decisions and they will be focused on proactively serving as if it were their own company: MYTH

These two above will always be myths and will NEVER work unless they… BELIEVE in you and the firm: ABSOLUTE

Employees that are charged with interacting with prospects or clients need to believe in the mission and direction of the firm and, moreover, they really need to like the people they are working for. If they don’t, it is physically impossible to give what others who do believe will be able to give and accomplish.

However, simply sharing the mission and having employees memorize it doesn’t get them to believe it. One firm I worked with thought the solution was to have their 20 employees chant the mission every Monday morning (they were trying to emulate Walmart). The actual impact of this ritual resulted in the staff rejecting the mission and calling in sick on Monday’s.

So, how do you get your employees to “believe” in what you are doing? Here are 3 fairly simple strategies that I’ve seen work at productive, well-aligned firms:

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Endless work to do? No time to grow? Here’s a solution.

Do you ever wish you could bring in a “to the rescue” assistant to help with an overload of work or long wish list of marketing activities? More and more firms we know, including ours, have hired virtual assistants to help with everything from special projects to longer term tasks. The first reaction I get, however, when I mention a virtual assistant is, “Does that really work? How do you know if they’re actually doing work?”

The answer is - it does work, but you need to separate your current thinking about your current employees from the possibilities of hiring a virtual assistant. For instance, you may, from time to time, observe your salaried employees cut off a little time with a longer lunch or leave early when you’re not in the office. And because of that you believe that a virtual assistant would never work because you wouldn’t be there to watch over them. ERASE this thinking!!

You actually have more control over a virtual assistant. You will pay anywhere from $10 per hour to $40 per hour to get very specific work done. You can manage them based on results, and if work is not getting done, you move on. No drama. Providing these services are individuals, companies, and there’s also an association to help you find just the right skill set in an assistant. These virtual assistants specialize in administrative tasks like scheduling client review appointments and sending out email newsletters or mailings, all the way to helping with prospecting, research, sales, marketing support, and social media data mining. Too good to be true? Here are some examples.

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Does Your Staff Take Immediate Action?

It used to be that if you asked someone to do something, it got done immediately. In the “old days” your employees listened and acted exactly as you said. That’s how they kept their job. But today, because of the swarm of communication that happens in a day - directives, projects, initiatives, emails, face-to-face conversations and instant messages – it isn’t easy for an employee to intake all the details, especially verbally, and then prioritize them correctly and get them done right with one request. Even if you think you are crystal clear.

Some of it is their fault and some is yours as the boss. Today, if you assume that one conversation will bring the exact action you want, it will often lead to damage control, crisis or just high levels of frustration when it doesn’t happen just as you wanted.

A Harvard Business Review article, “Effective Managers Say The Same Thing Twice (or More)” makes an interesting assertion. According to research, the key in getting things done is not just in clarity of message (as I certainly assumed). Getting things done, according to the article and research, requires making your presence felt by staying top of mind. How? Redundancy...

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Venture Capitalists Are Looking for Failures

Did you know failure is one of the biggest indicators of future success in an entrepreneur? According to an article in the April issue of Harvard Business Review, “Failing By Design,” many venture capitalists won’t invest in a new enterprise if the founder has never undergone failure. In other words, they are looking for… failures!  Why??

Let me first state that there are two types of failures, the first are those that do nothing and fail, the second are those that take a risk and end up failing. We are focusing on the second type in this case. If you’ve ever had a failed effort, I hope you feel the same about the reams of research on this. I know I do. From failed efforts it is proven that we have our best learning experiences, we grow, and we gain the experiences necessary for future significant successes. The fact is that businesses will not assume the risks necessary for innovation and development if they’re not ok with the idea of failing on some level.
I know those that are so afraid of failing that they will do anything to avoid it. The problem with fearing failure is that you ultimately avoid risk, don’t bet on yourself or your business, and stunt your richest experiences. Apparently those who have never faced a failure in a product, division or business don’t have the experience that is valued in business. But, no one WANTS to fail!

I recently heard someone quote a high-ranking executive and head of a US division of a multinational company saying that he was sure, nearly 20 times in his career, that he would be fired. Fired for standing out, speaking his mind, and taking relatively risky actions. He was never fired, however, only promoted. But it can be a very fine line at times.

And failure doesn’t just come in the form of losing money. If you commit to working incredibly hard, day and night, to get your business off the ground or move your career forward and it doesn’t work – it is also a failure (and perhaps a blow to your ego after pouring your heart and soul into your failed initiative). It could be assumed that it is simply less disappointing and easier to not work that hard and not reach success. The excuse is built in to the equation already. What would happen if you tried your hardest and it didn’t work out? The real questions is – what if you didn’t?  What could you be losing out on by never trying at all?

I mentioned before that I have had some failures in my business over the years. Painful lessons I certainly don’t want to repeat. But I know the key now is to manage for failures. Be prepared to share what went wrong and dissect it. Also, a strategy I have learned is to create a “disengagement process” for getting out of a project that is showing triggering signs of failure. We all should try enough things that inevitably will result in some that don’t work out so that many more will.

If Failure is NOT an Option, Then Why Do I Want It?

I don’t actually want to fail, but the fact is that we learn near to nothing when everything is going along perfectly. Last Friday I was speaking to the National Speakers Association, Illinois Chapter, and was relaying that over the years the best lessons I’ve learned as a speaker do not come from the positive feedback I receive, but the insightful comments on how I can improve. No one wants to hear that they were terrible, and I certainly never hope for that – but I do crave feedback. Ten years ago, a gentleman approached me after a presentation and told me that if I told the story about my grandma in the beginning of my speech instead of at the end, the whole thing would have made a lot more sense, and the audience would probably have liked me more…Liked me more? Oh sheesh! After I stopped crying, I went back and reworked my entire presentation, hired a speaking coach that I continue to see 2-3 times a year (every year) and I continue to improve. Today, because of the hours and years of work, my presentations usually get the highest ratings from the audience and great feedback from the hiring firms. But that doesn’t mean that I think I’m any good. I still work like I did the day after I received the feedback 10 years ago. Every presentation can be better, and I strive for it.  

Many times we don’t get honest, insightful and helpful feedback because people are afraid to tell us the truth. It takes too much energy to tell someone how they can improve, and frankly, they don’t care. Many businesses ask their clients to rate their service via a survey. But the questions must be structured properly in order to get the real feedback you need from those who care enough to give it. Try asking a question that may give you insightful feedback like, “Could you give us ONE thing we could do to improve this year?” or some variation on that.

I now have a few people I can count on to give me insightful feedback in addition to my coach, Lou Heckler. And if they haven’t seen me speak in a while I send them a DVD of me speaking and a tin of popcorn begging them to take one hour and give me feedback. I believe this is how I have been able to continue speaking year after year. Recently, I was selected to speak at a large Toastmasters convention. I can guarantee I’ll get some feedback there, and I can’t wait!

How do you get feedback to help your business?

Guest Blog: Better Service Equals Better Referrals

Guest Blog from Bill Cates, President of Referral Coach International

Know Your Competition

When you know your competition well, it not only gives you a selling advantage early on, but also continues to help you serve and sell to your client throughout the relationship. You should always serve your clients with the knowledge that they are your competitors’ prospects.

Do you know what pressures your clients are under to move their business? Do you know what they say to all those other financial professionals who call them? If you don't, I suggest you get to know your clients better and find out. The more you know about your competition, the more you can do to make sure you are better than they are.

Your clients may not use you for all their financial needs. Do you know who else they are using and why? Do you know what they like and dislike about them? Not only will you learn from this, you may also find opportunities to increase your percentage of the business they do with you.

Get to Know Your Clients Better

Whenever possible, get to know your clients beyond what brought you together in the first place. Form business friendships with as many clients as you can. Get to know them as people. Take a genuine interest in them. Not every client wants you to do this, but most will appreciate it.

The clients who give me the best referrals and continue to give me referrals long after I've served them are those I now count as business friends. If your attitude is strictly business, you are probably missing tons of opportunities for referrals, not to mention more business from your existing clients.

Bottom line - creating business friendships increases client loyalty and enhances your referability.

Survey Your Clients – Over the Phone

You should be constantly asking your clients, "How am I doing?" "If we could do one thing better, what would it be?" And you should be asking these questions over the phone – not in writing. Here are 6 reasons to conduct your client surveys over the phone:

• You obtain more useful information – it’s easier to talk than it is to write.
• You demonstrate how much you care about serving them well.
• You obtain more honest information – it’s easier to “open up” over the phone than in person.
• Your response rate will be much higher – close to 100 percent.
• This is another personal contact with your clients.
• You can communicate feelings and intentions much better in a conversation than you can in writing.

Sometimes the Little Things Are the Big Things

- Serve them by giving referrals. If they have a need, financial or otherwise, and you’re not the right person to serve them, connect them with someone who can. Follow up to make sure your referral has “gone through.”

- Don’t just be there for them from 9 to 5. Handwrite your cell phone number on your business card as you give it to them. They’ll likely never use it unless they really need to, but it reassures them.

- Keep your word. Doing what you're supposed to do, when you are supposed to do it, is the very minimum required to provide good client service and get referrals.

- When something goes wrong and it will, apologize. When you apologize, you’re not admitting fault, you’re just sorry they are being inconvenienced. It reduces tension because it demonstrates you are there for them. (Almost no one in business ever says they're sorry.) Then, immediately after you apologize, fix the problem as quickly as possible. Even if it’s too late to fix the problem, they’ll feel better if you really listen to them.

- Set high service standards for yourself and your firm, and tell your clients about them.

- If a clients stops doing business with you, don’t burn the bridge. Go out of your way to make them feel comfortable about coming back.

- Say “thank you” every time you get the chance.

Want to learn more? Sign up for Bill Cates & Maribeth Kuzmeski's 2011 Client Acquisition Boot Camp. Register today and save $100!

Why Nobody Reads Your Brochure (or any other marketing materials)

I’ve been trying for years to determine why some marketing, in general, is simply not effective. In fact, sometimes marketing has the exact opposite effect than what is desired. Case in point - the company brochure. Some firms work for hours, days, and months to create the perfect brochure with the best writing and layout. Yet later they discover that they could have inserted a swear word inside without a single person noticing (I don’t actually recommend trying such a thing though). Why don’t they bother reading this piece that you poured your creative blood sweat and tears into?

The objective of most marketing collateral is to present a distinctive company filled with unique benefits that a customer needs and wants. Ultimately, the goal is to have a brochure so compelling in nature that people read through it and then decide they HAVE to do business with the firm! But the reality is, people aren’t reading most brochures (or other marketing materials, for that matter) because they know exactly why it is being presented to them. To “sell” them.

A brochure or even your website, filled with perfectly created marketing phrases and pictures of models and ocean waves hitting the shore, certainly are aesthetically pleasing. But in order to compel people to read your brochure and find out more about your firm, your message must sound and be authentic. That is truly attractive. Marketing today should be…

…as authentic as you are. The words you use should be the words your clients and prospects would use to describe their challenges, solutions and benefits. Not perfect words and perfect pictures.  People want to work with someone they are comfortable with, someone they can trust. In sales, less of the pitch and more of the informal conversational approach has proven to be more successful. And that’s what we need more of today.

We are attracted to real, authentic marketing and portrayals of what you do and who you are.  So, take out the perfect-ness to your marketing and replace it with you. Create a blog with your words, use real pictures, create a video. Show them the real you. You may be surprised at how much more attractive you are – without any of the fluff!

Winning Isn’t Everything: Business Insights from the Super Bowl

As many of the readers of my blog and Marketing Audibles know, I am a lifelong Packer fan (thanks to my dear Grandmother). And yes, of course I am beside-myself-thrilled that my team made it to, and won the Super Bowl! Here are a few insights I gained during this year’s Super Bowl (even If you’re not a Packer fan):

1. Singing: Apparently knowing all the words to The Star Spangled Banner is not a prerequisite to singing it. You can’t “remix” this song. I hope we never forget what is important about what we’re doing.
2. Forgiving: Everyone makes mistakes. Jordy Nelson dropped 3 near perfect passes. But his QB kept passing to him! Many of us may have stopped after the first mistake and surely after the second. But Aaron Rodgers seemed to forgive, forget, and then continued throwing completing 9 passes to Nelson for 140 yards including a touchdown pass. Forgiving pays.
3. Passion: Packers Charles Woodson, after he found out he had a broken collar bone and could not play in the 2nd half, was quoted saying to a sideline reporter, “I don't think I've cried that much since I was a kid.”  What if we felt that same passion for the work we do? What if more employees did?
4. Labels: I guess we really shouldn’t believe the labels people assign us. Runner up to Defensive Player of the Year, Clay Matthews, was a walk-on player at USC and didn’t start until midway through his senior year. Aaron Rodgers, the Super Bowl MVP, was lightly recruited out of high school with only one college showing interest. Later, he fell to 24th in the NFL draft. Believing the labels others give us, good or bad, can lead to a shortfall in the potential to success ratio. Mindset is more important than talent and talent is more important than talk.
5. Heaven: I believe my Grandma was smiling down at the Packers winning on Sunday night. 

Whoever said “winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing” was right – especially Sunday. Thank you Mr. Lombardi. Go Packers!