Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Are you TRYING to confuse me?


OK, small business needs to be run like a business. We all know this. There's no sense to buying something your company can't possibly afford because, "It's a write-off". Yeah it is - but first you have to PAY for it, then you get to write it off. Maybe the rules are different for giant corporate entities, a bit more "elastic", maybe so flexible the rules lay on the floor - like my kitchen mat, but nonetheless for the rest of us (78% - of businesses have less than 10 employees -remember?) we are expected to be upright and do the right thing. We are expected to read all contracts, understand all agreements, proof all leasing papers and the like.

So then, imagine my gasp when I upgraded a company IPod, and was given this message, "Please read & accept our new license agreement", alright, now you know I'm not a complainer , but this "new agreement" was 37 pages long. Long story, made short - guess what - I just paged to "ACCEPT" and moved on. But this brought a thought to mind.

Companies, and individuals revive this kind of "amendment", or agreement alteration ALL the time. Credit card Acceptance agreements, Company Credit Cards new and updated "changes to our agreement with You" - etc. Pages & pages, and then when you think your done - more pages. What do you do? What do we all do? Well, in some cases we don't have to DO any thing, these are simply the new rules, sometimes we have to initial, or even press OK. Since we don't have a spare room full of lawyers on staff, we simply cannot read these missives, and even if we do - DO WE UNDER STAND THEM? We are all bound by contracts, but this seems one-sided. Or, are we doomed to a world where we have to live by 10 pages of rules in 5 pt type that we would never agree to - if we had a choice.

Oh - and about the "not a complainer comment - don't ask my family and friends - they have some misguided notion that I "occasionally" complain..... Note To Self - explain to them how wrong they are.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Clean Water ? Golf Clubs? Maybe some beers.....





QUESTION: What do these things have in common? Do you want to call a friend, or pick someone from the audience?
ANSWER: The Alan R Wakefield Memorial Golf Tournament, sponsored by the Corona Rotary.

I know you want to go....its a day outside in the sun, convivial companionship, and best of all you're not at WORK. A few drives, several putts, the occasional "fore" and you are a happy camper.

Peter Fischetti wrote a great article about this "sporting event" in the Friday, October 7th edition of the Press-Enterprise, read it and you will WANT to support this cause. Here's a sampling,"Nothing could stop Alan Wakefield from playing golf. It could be raining, and he would say, “Great, the greens will hold.” A windy Santa Ana straightened his hook. The heat of summer loosened his joints, and what we call cold weather in Corona meant nothing to a guy who grew up in western Pennsylvania.
No, nothing could stop Alan Wakefield from playing golf."

For those of you who want to know the legendary stars are shown in the picture ...
From the left... Our hero, Alan Wakefield, Corona Police Chief (ret) Richard Gonzales, Blue Banner Fruit Honcho - John Knaak, and John Milner - our very own AFLAC duck guy.

Guttenberg was right....Print is compelling


There are so many people telling you stuff, cajoling you for time & money, instilling fear if you don't "do" what they suggest RIGHT NOW, and generally asking for your time and attention it can be cause "deafness to anymore information" syndrome. You know what I mean. We all feel it. Even if it is something you need or, better yet, want to hear you, just can't break your default setting - deafness.

That's why print media is an important, and vital part of your message to potential clients. It's one of the single best ways to encourage people to step over the "deafness" line, open their eyes, and make a purchase....

Friday, October 7, 2011

Corona Rotary's salmon experience....or if you wish, we'll share our fish

DATELINE: CORONA,CA - October 7th, Noon Meeting of the Corona Rotarian's at Mill Creek Restaurant.

Several members of this service club went to Alaska recently and came home with boxes of fresh caught salmon. Remembering one of the cardinal rules of Rotary membership, "Is is beneficial to all?"- they knew they had to share... and so lunch today is Alaskan Salmon, brought to you by the very men (& women) who caught them....

Enjoy!

Friday, September 30, 2011

Policies..we don't want no stinkin' policies (1 in a series)


That's our policy, you hear it and you want to scream - I'm a person not a policy", but policies can be your best friend as a small business owner or executive. Think of policies as problem-solvers. In fact they are a "time-travel" solution to problems. You can solve a problem now that might not pop up for 5 years. Really. It's like having Spock or Scottie at your side as you go when no Man or Woman has gone. For those of you younger than the Star Trek generation - use your Firefly analogies. (Okay maybe LOTR or Harry Potter would be more generationally in tune)

With policies in place, you can resolve issues that you presumed, would NEVER happen, and then a few months later --- the never-gonna-happen-issue is square in your face. Well, probably a person is square in your face, or a client, or a customer, or even an employee - but you have thought this through and because you have a policy and a POLICY MANUAL, you're prepared.

If you are member of a peer group, or belong to an association, Widget Manufacturers of America, for example, that has expertise with your business you may be able to draw on their knowledge for a Policy Manual. You can read and adapt these for your own company.

At some point in your business dealings I can almost guarantee that your clearly defined policy manual will save you sleepless hours and (I can hear the sighs) save you money. Small business is rebooting during our "Great Recession", and that money that is better put toward promoting you and your product or service.

We will give examples of various policies that you might want to think about including in your "Time Travel" manual. And look forward to hearing from you about how policies helped you, your company or averted a potentially negative situation.

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Is that your phone ringing?

Okay pretend you have a clearly defined budget and have advertised and promoted yourself and your business. Here's the BIG question !!

Why don't you answer your phone? Why do you let the "machine" take the call for you.

People like to talk to people, even when they don't get all the answers they want - at least they spoke to a human being.

Survey after survey, by large margins, tell us that when we call to respond to an ad, radio promotion or flyer our "want gland" has been activated. Maybe our "need" gland. Now that the Activation Sequence is going, the itching starts....and who do we talk to? Your answering machine. The one you hooked up to your home phone and tried to make sound like you are busy, busy, busy.

Its tough out here in small business-land. Every call is important - answer it. Since we don't have Coca-Cola's budget we can't afford to irritate even 1 or 2 potential clients. Plus, good call, bad call, indifferent - you'll get better at communication, gain experience, and know-how. You'll be a silver-tounged devil in no time.

Small business is BIG ...... seriously

Big...small....it's all a matter of perception and definition, right? Well how big does SEVENTY-EIGHT (78 %) sound to you? Can I have 78% of that cake? How much is a 78% reduction in my house payment? I'm going to get a 78% increase in my income. Sounds big to me.


Well, here's even more BIG news! Seventy-eight percent (78%) of the businesses in this country have 10 or less employees. Whoa! This doesn't count the "large employers" who have up to 20 employees. So even thought the county, state and federal government keep talking about helping small business, they mean business under 500 million. We are nano-sized and yet together we are 78% of the businesses in the USA.


What we want to do on this blog is promote, support and recognize the LOCAL businesses that really make up our cities. Those of us engaged in small business have special needs, we have local knowledge, and we produce genuine jobs in our communities.


SO WE BEGIN!