Issues
How My Surprise Gym Encounter Can Help Your Business Soar
By MaryEllen Tribby
As a businesswoman and mother of three, I need plenty of energy to get me through the day. The best way I know to get a big surge of energy is to start my day with an hour at the gym. The hour I spend working out sets the tone for my entire day. It boosts my productivity. It keeps me upbeat and fresh. And it lifts my mood (which means I’m much more pleasant to be around!).
All of this from my simple morning workout.
Monday through Friday, I’m waiting for the gym doors to open at 4:55 a.m. And I am not alone. I wait outside with my fellow “regulars.” We exchange pleasantries and chat about major news items. But when the doors open at 5:00 a.m., we can be mid-sentence and the conversation stops. We all focus on our fitness goals.
At least that’s how it goes 99 out of 100 times. But once in a while, “stuff happens.”
A few weeks ago, I was up with Delaine (my 4-year-old) at 1:00 a.m. because her tummy hurt. I knew my morning workout was in jeopardy. As I crawled into bed at 1:30, I nudged my husband and said, “I can’t believe I have to get up in three hours.”
“Don’t do it,” he said. “Get some sleep.”
I responded with “My day will be shot if I don’t get my workout in!”
In need of sleep himself, he suggested that I set the alarm for 6:30. That would get me to the gym before 7:00 and in the office by 9:00. That, I could live with.
But here’s the funny part. Walking into the same gym at 7:00 a.m. was like walking into a foreign country! The music was loud. The cafe was open and crowded. People were standing by the stairs and by the weights and by the exercise equipment, talking and laughing.
I was a little taken aback. But I decided to just go with it. After all, in business I am constantly reminded how important change is to overall success.
So after an abbreviated version of my weight training, I headed to the third floor to find my favorite elliptical machine waiting for me.
Soon I was in my zone, drowning everything else out. It was just Bono and me, and he was telling me it was a beautiful day.
Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a woman approaching. She was smiling at me. I knew she was going to try to engage me in conversation.
I had to think fast to preserve the only “alone” time in my entire day.
But before I could come up with something that didn’t sound crazy or mean, she was standing right in front of me. Against my better judgment, I put Bono on pause and took off my earphones.
“Liz” started off by complimenting me. She said I looked like I owned the machine, because I made it look so easy. Then she told me she had joined the gym recently, a few months after giving birth to her first child.
She said she was embarrassed by the size of her thighs, but most of the machines intimidated her. All she’d been doing were modest workouts on the treadmill.
Having been a new mom not once but three times, I understand how it feels to want to lose the extra weight after giving birth. So I decided to turn Bono off and help her get started on the elliptical.
Within minutes, Liz was doing fine on the machine, and we were having a pleasant conversation.
She told me that before having the baby she was a marketing director with a large advertising agency in Miami. She loved marketing. But she said that, with a newborn, there was no way she could handle the long commute and demands of the job. And though her attorney husband had a good income, she knew that with the new addition to the family, her salary would be sorely missed.
And then Liz said the magic words that were music to my ears.
She wanted to start an online business!
Liz had already enlisted a friend to help build her site. But she felt like the site was going in the wrong direction, and that it was too complicated.
Well, of course I jumped right in with advice. Here’s what I told her:
Building the Website That’s Right for Your Business
There are basically three marketing reasons to have a website. So before you start building yours, make sure you understand which one is best for your business:
1. To provide information about a product or company in order to establish a presence on the World Wide Web
2. To stimulate sales through direct marketing
3. To develop a list of prospective buyers
Each of these reasons is valid. Each dictates a different sort of website.
• The Information Site
A site built to provide information about a product or company — and, thus, add to its credibility — must be comprehensive, beneficial, and easy to navigate. It should be rich in useful free content: articles, photos, videos, news, and advice.
• The Direct-Response-Driven Site
A website built for marketing purposes must have all the important elements of a direct-response promotion. That includes a strongly defined look and message, free content, and a call to action. The call to action could be in the form of an offer or a subscription sign-up box. It’s best to have two sign-up opportunities on EVERY page — one in the upper right hand corner and one centered at the bottom. The site should also be constructed to gain high rankings on search engines like Google. EarlyToRise.com is a good example of a direct-response-driven site.
• The List-Building Site
A website built to develop a list of prospective buyers must be engaging, interactive, and constantly changing — with a prominent, easy-to-fill-in e-mail sign-up box. It should also offer a free bonus, such as an e-report or e-book, in exchange for signing up. A good example is expert info publisher/copywriter Bob Bly’s list-building site Bly.com.
Each of these websites is different. Each requires different copy, graphics, and technology. But all of them should have plenty of free, useful content. And all should load quickly and be accessible to people with older computers and slower Internet connections.
After I explained all of this to Liz, she said she was happy she’d had the courage to talk to me. She said she was going to go home and call her Web designer immediately.
I have to admit that Liz was not the only one who learned something that morning. I walked away with a few valuable lessons myself. For one thing, this experience reconfirmed that change is good. By getting to the gym at a different time, I not only made a new business contact but a new friend as well. Plus, it reminded me not to judge a book by its cover. When I saw Liz approaching that morning, I assumed I was in for some inane small talk. But it turned out she is a smart, well spoken, and interesting person who has added something to my life.
Take a good look at your life. Are you opposed to change? Do you make negative assumptions that keep you from having something good happen in your life?
Remember, if you want to change your life … change your actions.
Who’s Talking About You?
By MaryEllen Tribby
“Like it or not, people are talking about your business all the time.”
– Jerry Wilson
Print ads, pay-per-click ads, direct mail, radio, television. There are dozens of marketing channels that you can use to effectively get your message out to millions of potential customers. Now, you may be using all of these marketing methods… and even others that I haven’t mentioned. But I want to be sure that you aren’t neglecting one of the fastest-growing types of marketing available today.
I’m talking about word of mouth. That’s it – customers talking about your business and products. I started thinking differently about this powerful (and free!) marketing channel after reading Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking by Andy Sernovitz.
Now I did not fall in love with this book. It has some flaws. But I applaud how it shows why customer service and marketing must go hand-in-hand. And how it explains that deceptive marketing is a very bad policy and that listening and talking to your customers are the best practices you can follow.
We have all heard of B-to-C (business-to-consumer) marketing. And we have all heard of B-to-B (business-to-business) marketing. We have even (more recently) heard of C-to-C (consumer-to-consumer) marketing. But what Word of Mouth Marketing explores is the new world of B-to-C-to-C marketing – business-to-consumer-to-consumer! It’s all about the second hop, the third hop, the fourth hop, and so on.
You may be thinking, “Word of mouth isn’t a new concept. It’s been going on forever. So what’s the big deal?”
What’s new is that word of mouth has evolved from anecdotal to actionable, from something that “just happens” to something you can influence. In fact, because we now have the tools and knowledge to work with it, word of mouth marketing has become the fastest-growing form of marketing.
Word of mouth is about authentic consumer conversation. That means marketers join in a conversation with their customers, participating in it but never manipulating, faking, or degrading its fundamental honesty in any way.
Mr. Sernovitz explains that there are five T’s to word of mouth marketing:
1. Talkers: Finding people who will talk about you
Talkers are any group of people who have enthusiasm and the connections to relay your message. Talkers are regular people, your best customers.
Recently, I attended a seminar in Atlanta – along with about 2,500 other people. Jim, the very first person I met, asked me what I did. When I told him about the company I was running at the time, he said, “Oh, I know them. The only publication I read is their flagship newsletter.” We spoke at length about how that newsletter has helped him grow his business, how he has told friends and industry colleagues about it, and how many of those folks are now fans.
Jim is a great example of a talker.
You just don’t find talkers … you cultivate them. People talk about you for two reasons: They either had a very good experience with your company or they had a very bad experience. Either way, by responding to their comments you can turn them into big marketers for your company. Here’s how to do it:
• Acknowledge your mistakes. If you screw up, you should never try to sweep it under the rug. Instead, apologize to the customers it affected, correct the problem, and thank your customers for staying with you. You’ll find that your customers will thank YOU for correcting the mistake. And they may even go on to recommend your company to people they know.
• Acknowledge compliments. Many people think that if someone pays you a compliment, a response is not necessary. This could not be further from the truth. That person took the first step by making a comment. Now you need to seize the opportunity to turn her into a talker. You do this by replying to your customers’ letters, e-mails, and forum postings.
• Acknowledge your fans. Sometimes you can turn a person into a talker just by talking to them first. Look for signs of extreme enthusiasm. Look for customers who frequently attend the events you sponsor or know the names of your employees or wear your logo.
For example, while visiting my husband’s family in Long Island last summer, I saw a man on the beach wearing a hat with my company’s logo. I was so excited that I went over to him and introduced myself. Noticing the confusion on his face, I pointed to his hat and said, “I run that company!” Well, he told me it was his buddy’s hat, and he just liked the color.
I apologized for bothering him, and went back to building sand castles with my kids. An hour later, a different man came up to me and told me it was his hat … and that he had been a client of ours for years.
“Steve” and I talked for a while about his Internet business. And when I got back to the office, I asked our customer service manager to look up his address – and I sent him a personal note and a new hat. I’m pretty sure Steve is now a talker.
2. Topics: Giving people a reason to talk
All word of mouth starts with creating a message that spreads. In other words, with a good, clear idea that’s easy to repeat.
I ran a company that adhered to a philosophy called Ready, Fire, Aim. The company’s experts write about Ready, Fire, Aim and speak about it at the events they sponsor, so all of their customers can benefit from it. If you take a look at videos of the people who attend this company’s events, video after video shows them repeating this mantra.
The reason Ready, Fire, Aim works is because it is short and sweet. It was developed around a single idea that is easy to repeat. And it’s a concept that not only resonates with entrepreneurs but has been proven to work time after time.
Good topics are organic. They are based on the exceptional qualities that make your products stand out. They flow naturally from the products’ attributes, without needing to be pushed by marketing.
3. Tools: Helping the message spread faster and further
Non info-publishing, info-marketing companies have been doing this for years. Dining establishments spread the word by handing out 2 for 1 coupons. Cosmetics companies give away free samples. Apartment complexes offer one month’s free rent. Phone companies give you a $50 credit for referring a friend. And so on.
But with the Internet, it has never been faster, easier, or cheaper. Just think about it. How many times have you read something online and forwarded it to not just one or two friends, colleagues, or relatives but five or 10? And that’s without any marketing push. If you have a “Forward to a Friend” or “Tell a Friend” button at the bottom of your e-mailed publication, you’re adding exponential marketing power to it.
I have always been a big fan of forums and message boards. They encourage like-minded people to share ideas, problems, and solutions. Plus, they allow you to “listen in on” and participate in their conversations.
I love to find out what my customers are saying, because it helps me better understand their needs. If you ask me, any company that believes in their products and employees will have forums. Forums not only facilitate communication, they increase accountability.
4. Taking Part: Joining the conversation
Once you have reached out to real people and encouraged them to talk, there is no turning back. You must join the conversation. You must reply to e-mails, accept comments on your blog, participate in the discussion board, answer the phone.
Joining the conversation is even more powerful when it is public. For instance, you can publish readers’ comments and questions in your newsletter or other marketing publications. If one of your customers is struggling and takes the time to ask for help, you need to (1) acknowledge that and (2) share your advice with others who may be in the same situation.
Again, if your customers are complimenting you, thank them. If customers are saying negative things, find out why and fix the problem.
There is no better focus group than your customers. Yes, you will get crazies every once in a while – and you may need to hire outside resources to communicate with them on your company’s behalf. But, at the same time, you are earning the respect and recommendations of your customers and building long-term lasting relationships with them … as long as you are helpful, truthful, thankful, and nice.
5. Tracking: Measuring and understanding what people are saying
Because of the popularity of blogs and online communities, people are writing down nearly every thought they have about your company. And because these B-to-C-to-C conversations are written down, they are easy to find and easy to track. You can find every comment about you and your company moments after it is written. And monitoring that online communication allows you to understand what your customers really think about you, your marketing, and your products.
There are wonderful online tools – such as Google Alert and Technorati – that can help you monitor your word of mouth. They are at your fingertips, and they are instant and free.
Start right now. Don’t make any marketing decisions without considering the potential for word of mouth. Ad agencies, media executives, and reporters no longer control the message. Real consumers with real communication power have added their voices to the mix. And their voices are drowning out traditional media. A single consumer voice, in the end, has a huge impact on your company’s future.
Word of mouth will become more and more important as the Internet continues to expand. But I am still a firm believer in the importance of direct-response marketing. The best thing you can do for your company is to successfully incorporate multiple methods into your overall marketing strategy. You’ll maximize your efforts, build your customer base, and reap the profits.
Finding a Yankee in Delray Beach
By MaryEllen Tribby
Who would have thought that taking my son to baseball practice would send me soaring back in time three decades…
You see, I’d just enrolled Connor in the Bucky Dent Baseball School in Delray Beach, Florida. New York Yankee shortstop Bucky Dent was my idol as a young girl. And I have vivid memories of that landmark moment in 1978, when Bucky hit one of the most famous homeruns in baseball history, destroying the dreams of the Boston Red Sox and their chances of going to the World Series. As a huge fan, I remember the exact moment Bucky’s bat connected with Mike Torrez’s pitch.
Little did I know that I’d be able to meet him 30 years later, and even have the chance to chat with him one-on-one and pick his brain.
But we didn’t just talk about baseball. I got his insights into entrepreneurship, customer service, mentors and partners, and goal setting. And I discovered that the core values Bucky used to become one of the most famous baseball players in history are the same core values he has used his entire life to build and maintain a successful business and gratifying life.
His advice is right in line with what I’ve always recommended. And you can use his experience and suggestions to make your own dreams come true – whether it’s to start a business, lose 20 pounds, or become a baseball star.
Entrepreneurship in the Making
One of the biggest takeaways from my conversation with Bucky was how synergistic our philosophies are. Here’s one example. Whether I am speaking at a conference or industry event or I am attending one of my kids’ sporting events, I inevitably field someone’s question about “what kind of business should I start?”
I always tell people they need to start a business that meets two major criteria:
• You must be passionate about it.
• You must have experience in that field.
This is something Bucky not only understood 30 years ago but implemented. During our conversation, he shared with me that after his famous homerun many people wanted to go into business with him because he had a “name” that provided instant equity. He told me that the majority of these offers were for the restaurant business. He said, “I did not particularly like the idea of the restaurant business and I knew nothing about that business. What I knew and had so much experience in was baseball, and what I loved was baseball.”
It’s no wonder, then, that the business Bucky ended up pursuing was running a baseball school.
He told me that when he was a rookie with the White Sox, he was a guest instructor at a baseball school. He said he loved working with the kids. He had to alter his teaching method and vocabulary depending on the age and experience level of each child, because the only thing that mattered to him was that the child had a great week. He wanted to make sure the child walked away with even more passion for the sport and learned something in the process.
I thought to myself, “Here is someone who understands the value of ‘knowing your customer and creating the best customer experience possible.’”
This is one of my core business philosophies, and something I personally witness with Bucky’s business. My son attends his baseball school on EVERY school break as well as during the summer. Not only does Connor’s skill set continue to improve, his love for the game continues to grow at the same time.
The Importance of Mentors & Partners
One of the most important lessons I’ve ever learned was that regardless of your professional status and your experience level, EVERYONE needs mentors and partners. Yet I see so many entrepreneurs fight this. They think they can go it alone, and it usually blows up in their face.
This is yet another core business philosophy that I share with Bucky. He told me that his older brother was his greatest mentor. He explained that his brother not only coached him in sports but was also the biggest believer in Bucky’s abilities.
Bucky’s feelings about the importance of mentors and partners are evident in the way he runs his business. He explained that there are now three partners at the school:
• Partner One is the money guy. He handles everything from reconciling the tuition revenue to paying the bills to dealing with taxes. Everything your CFO would do.
• Partner Two runs the show behind the scenes. He makes sure the fields are in playing condition, hires the top-notch staff, deals with parent/child issues that arise, and has the marketing team report to him.
• Partner Three is the face of the business. (That’s Bucky.) He decides on the curriculum. And, of course, he is out there with the other coaches teaching the kids.
The three primary aspects of Bucky’s business are managed by three people who are experts in their field – which is something you should apply to your business. If, for example, you are not a marketing genius and do not have the desire to learn how to market well, that is okay. But only if you recognize that marketing is the most important part of your business and you partner with an expert marketer.
Still Setting Goals
Thirty years after becoming famous, Bucky is still setting goals. But the practice of goal setting did not start when he became a professional athlete. It began when Bucky was a child, determining what he wanted from life.
1. Start with the big picture. Bucky shared with me that all his life he wanted to be a professional athlete. He trained physically, making it his primary goal to become healthy and fit. It was not until he was a sophomore in high school that he decided he wanted to be a professional baseball player, at which point the majority of his workouts become baseball-specific.
The same approach applies whether you are starting a business or you want to lose weight.
2. Conquer roadblocks. Bucky believes in the total elimination of mental and physical roadblocks. For years, people told Bucky that he was neither good enough nor big enough to be a professional athlete. Instead of allowing that to alter his goals, he got those people out of his life.
I know that “things” seem to get in the way of accomplishing your goals. Let’s say you are determined to get healthy and fit. You tell yourself that you will eat healthy and walk one mile a day. But you have an unfortunate accident and break your leg.
What do you do now? Do you give up and allow this roadblock to prevent you from achieving your goal? The way I see it, you have two choices:
• You can put off working toward your health goal for 12 weeks until your leg heals.
• You can start eating healthy while doing some simple exercises that do not involve your leg, and you can start keeping a journal of your progress.
But giving in is not an option. It’s easy to run into obstacles. But you can almost always find a way around them.
3. One is the loneliest number. Just like Bucky, we realize that there is strength in numbers. Study after study shows that having an “accountability partner” will give you a 65 percent higher success rate. Why? Because you have someone else doing some of the pushing.
You know those days when you do not feel like going to the gym or writing a poem or setting up a Google AdWords campaign? With a partner, you can always get help to move forward. It doesn’t matter what your goal is – once you share it with someone, you have a better chance of accomplishing that goal.
It’s funny how life works out. If I’d had the opportunity to meet Bucky when I was 15 years old instead of now, the conversation would have been much different, I suspect. I would not have appreciated everything he had to offer. As it turned out, it was like talking to an old friend – not only about baseball, but about business and the importance of excellent customer service and even the role of family values.
If there is a child in your life who loves baseball, check out Bucky’s school at buckydentbaseballschool.com.
And if you have had the opportunity to meet one of your childhood heroes, I would love to hear your story. Share and send your story to customersurport@workingmomsonly.com
3 Simple Rules for Making Million-Dollar Deals
By MaryEllen Tribby
It was a birthday that I’ll never forget…
My son Connor had just turned seven years old. We had planned a whole weekend of birthday festivities – including a class party, a party with his friends at a local arcade, a family-and-friend gathering, and a family gift-giving session at home. My husband and I surprised him with an Xbox 360. As the weekend came to a close, I took Connor down to the beach to experience his first sunrise. I admit it – this was more of a present (and memory) for me.
As I tucked Connor in Sunday night, I asked him what his favorite part of his birthday celebration was. Expecting to hear rave reviews about the Xbox, I was astonished when he replied, “Going to the beach with you, Mom.” As I held back my tears, I asked him why. His answer was simple and honest: “Because it was just you and me talking.”
This got me thinking about all the partnerships and deal making I have done over the past 22 years. The best deals were not made sitting in a boardroom around a huge mahogany table with 10 or 12 people. They were done one-on-one over lunch or dinner with simple and honest communication leading to mutually beneficial agreements.
Early in my career, for example, I worked for a well-known publisher in NYC, and we wanted to partner with another well-known publisher in Boston. We had a great idea for a new product that would benefit both sets of customers. We organized a special task force comprised of marketers, editors, and customer service people. The other publisher did the same. We had in-person meetings that required flying eight people 300 miles to the other publisher’s office. This was followed up by endless conference calls with 12 to 16 people on the phone.
The entire time this was going on, my gut was telling me that this was not the way to do it. But everyone else was convinced that we needed the “collective brilliance” of the team. You do need input from smart people when you’re working on the product … but these meetings were just on contract negotiation. This was just to get the deal done!
You probably won’t be surprised to hear that we never agreed upon the terms (someone would always chime in with a last-minute concern), and hundreds of thousands of customers missed out on what would have been a great product. Plus, both my company and the other publisher lost the potential for millions of dollars in revenue.
Since that time, I try to do all my deals on a one-to-one basis.
My deal making success rate is high because I follow three simple guidelines. These apply to everything from making joint venture deals to developing new departments within the company to hiring copywriters. They even apply to vendor and service relationships, such as e-mail deployment, printing and media buying, and hiring freelancers. Here they are:
Rule #1. Know the person behind the business.
To the best of my ability, I try to meet, in person, everyone I do business with. This is the best way to gauge their business ethics and integrity. I will fly cross-country for lunch, or meet them at an industry event and have a drink. I’m not saying you have to like everyone you do business with, but personal contact helps expedite the deal and solidify the end result.
A couple of years ago, I wanted to find a partner who could help my customers understand the importance of product launches. I mentioned this to my friend and business colleague Rich Schefren. Well, it just so happened he was flying to Denver in two days to speak at a conference being put on by Jeff Walker, the foremost expert in product launches. I ended up on the plane with Rich, met Jeff, and three weeks later Jeff was speaking at my company’s sold-out Internet marketing conference.
But this is not an anomaly for me.
My friend and colleague David Cross introduced me via e-mail to Tim Ferriss, the author of The 4-Hour Work Week, and I phoned Tim immediately. After discovering that we were both going to be in New York the following week, we made a breakfast date. Two weeks later, Tim’s articles started appearing in my company’s flagship publication.
These deals happened fast because not only did I get credible references from Rich and David, two people I respect and trust, I also took the time to meet Jeff Walker and Tim Ferriss in person.
Even if you can’t meet everyone in person, make sure you have reliable references. Always do your due diligence. Make it your goal to understand not just the company you want to partner with but the person behind the company.
Rule #2. Only make deals that will benefit your customers.
You may be passing up millions of dollars initially, but if a deal is not in the best interests of your customers, it will cost you more in the long run in dollars, time, and reputation.
Just this past summer, a “friend” in the industry came to me with a product he had developed. He showed me sales reports from his launch. He showed me his brilliantly written marketing copy. My first impression was: “My customers need this. They will love it. And it will be a nice contribution to my bottom line.”
So I told him, “Great. Just send me a sample of the product so I can evaluate it. If it is as good as you say it is, I am sure I can promote it to my customers.”
Well, my “friend” was a bit taken aback. He did not understand why I wanted to see the product when he had already shared his sales report.
I tried to explain that this was my policy – that I had to believe in the product.
He said if I would not just take his word for it, he would take the product to my competitor. Well, he did. And I heard through the grapevine that it was a tremendous hit. Customers were buying it up, both parties were making tons of money – and I secretly questioned my decision.
But it turned out that the product did not live up to the marketing hype. Refunds were coming in like gangbusters, and our “friend’s” new partner did not want to work with him anymore.
Had my competitor lived by the same rule that prompted me to say no to this particular deal, he would not have wasted his resources and lost the respect of his customers.
If you follow this rule, you may miss out on a good opportunity every once in a while. But you will also be able to pass up deals that just won’t satisfy your customers.
Rule #3. Only make deals that will benefit your organization.
At first glance, this rule might seem to contradict Rule #2. On the contrary, these two rules need to work in unison.
Let’s say you are asked to hire a vendor because he is the husband of your wife’s best friend. You know him, and you know his product will be good for your customers. But his prices are outrageous and you can get a better price and equal quality from another vendor. What do you do?
To me, this is a no-brainer. You go with the other vendor. That is a better decision for your company – and for your customers. Never forget: You are running (or starting) a business, and good businesspeople have to make tough decisions.
Deal making takes a lot of time. But it’s worth it, because you want to build relationships that last. You can’t make a good deal without a good partnership. You can’t have a good partnership without a personal relationship. And you can’t build a personal relationship through phone calls or e-mails or in a conference room. Know your potential partner well, understand his expectations and needs, and make sure he understands yours. Both companies will benefit.
