Employees – Earn more – be worth more, break the rules

MN Employees: Do you want more money and a bigger salary or paycheck?

Teach yourself and your boss why you should be paid more.

The epic tale of the salesperson and the website that would not sell

I recently spoke to a salesperson for a global company.  His company still has not entered the Internet age.  They have a website, but they really don’t see the value in having people come to it, because they have no search engine optimization and no keywords – in other words, when you search for their service on google, they are NOWHERE to be found.  This means all the potential new customers go somewhere else.

Now, I told this salesperson that he needs to own responsibility to fix this problem.  He wasn’t convinced, so I asked him, how much would it be worth in additional sales?  He conservatively answered in the high 6 figures.  Needless to say if he made all these sales himself, it would mean a significant income boost for him also.

So then, the next question is, how much for search engine optimization?  Conservative estimates are in the three to four figure range.

So, um, let’s see, for thousands of dollars, he can receive a million dollar benefit? Or possibly more?

I told him that what he needs to do is own the responsibility for the website marketing in exchange for the leads.

Out of that, he could offer to give the additional sales to the other people on his sales force. Remember, we’re talking about him personally investing his own money in the marketing and promotion of the website for a 6 figure payoff.  If he wanted to, he could sell those leads to other sales people or take a percentage as a fee for managing the website.

But again, why not? Look at the math.  It’s worth it to him to start doing this immediately.

Will there be some challenges to convince his managers to let him take responsibility of the website? Probably. However, he’s a salesperson for pete’s sake. He needs to sell the benefits, which include the company no longer has to pay for a website that they really don’t care about and haven’t gotten results from.  They only care about sales, which is what his job is.  That’s what he offers.  “You give me control of the website, I’ll give you more sales.” Period.

It’s called aligning to common interests in sales-speak.

Now forget about him, let’s talk about you.  What do you bring that is of immediate value to yourself and to your company?  What do you bring to your customers?  Can you start bringing in more clients?  Would your company appreciate it? Would they appreciate it enough to pay you more?

If not, then would your company’s competition appreciate it more? IE would they appreciate it enough to pay you?  Maybe you’re working for the wrong company.

Never forget there’s more companies to work at than there are people like you who bring real value.

Learn more about leadership and value at http://srkinc.com and learn about making a difference at http://quantumcommonwealth.com

Alan Hill

(612) 819-1803

The Gift Of Adversity – Executive Leadership Trainer Shows You How

Business Leaders: Are you worried about the economic impact on your business?

Management Trainers: Is this your best opportunity to create value for your company?

“To whom much is given, much will be expected”

I always loved that verse in the bible.  But as you will see, I have a MUCH different take on it.

Most of us tend to think it implies those who have all the benefits of a wealthy income and lifestyle have an obligation to give back.  This is not a bad idea.  Trusting in someone to reach down to those who are disadvantaged is a great idea.

But what if you’ve not been given all the advantages?  What if you’ve only been given dis-advantages… what can be expected of you?

I have been given much adversity – how much will be expected of me?

Likewise, you may be experiencing some adversity in your business or work.  How much is going to be expected of you?

Here’s the point: What are you learning?  Some may learn “that which does not kill us, makes us stronger’.  That’s a great lesson, especially given some of the hubris of our last economic boom in America.

It’s also true that we learn a lot of value… real value… when challenged by adversity.  This might be expected of you to help your company during this economic downturn.

But what happens when you’re given more than just a little adversity?  Or perhaps more adversity than your peers?  What then will be expected of you?  How much more could be asked of someone in those circumstances?  Yet still, it rings out… “To whom much is given… much will be expected”

For me, a part of that answer is in teaching others to recognize the value of adversity.  To do more than just learn from challenge and change, but to go the extra mile and actively seek it out.  Welcome adversity and change.  A question I ask myself is: ‘How much a better person would I be if a little adversity is beneficial?”  And then “how much better would I be if there were more adversity?” and finally I ask myself “How much better would I be to others if I learned from THEIR mistakes and adversity, not just my own?”

Ultimately, “How much better would I be to the world if I taught this perspective to others… to learn from others mistakes and challenges as well as my own?”

What would the world be like in 10 years? 20 years? 50 years?

I have a lot to teach from my adversity.  What do you have to teach from yours?

Alan Hill

612) 819-1803

http://srkinc.com

http://quantumcommonwealth.com

Attention MN Inventors: Fastest Market Research Ever! FREE!

Entrepreneurs – do you have the Executive Coaching to know if your idea will sell?

How can market research uncover what your customers really want?

How can you do this BEFORE investing any money in a patent or business plan?

The best answer I ever received came from Margaret Thorpe from the Univ of St. Thomas Small Business Development Center. Took her longer to explain it to me than to do the research and find out the answer.

1. Identify the industry you are targeting as your customer.
2. Find out the big trade assocation(s) in that industry.
3. Research their annual convention keynote speech (web or trade magazine).
4. In that speech there is always 2 slides…
A. What are our top challenges this coming year
B. What are our top solutions for these challenges
5. If your product or service fits in with B. you have a winning product or service. if not, try another industry.

As a business development specialist in Minnesota, I’ve used this to help lots of entrepreneurs know if they have a winning idea before they invest any money. I advise them to do this quick study first before they even apply for patent protection because it’s so quick to do.

If you want to discuss further, please don’t hesitate to contact me. My website has my contact information.

Minneapolis Business Leaders, Become a Transformational Leader

Labor Dimensions

Leadership Dimensions

Multi-Dimensional Thinking

Develop instant leadership skills by asking great questions

Use the Transformation Matrix and become a transformational leader

 

Transforming from a manager or technician to a leader requires changing from having great answers to having great questions.  Questions designed to make your team think and inspire them to reach beyond the obvious answers.

 

I remember working with a CEO of a national construction firm.  During an initial meeting with a consulting group discussing ways to transform the company, the consultants made the mistake of stating ‘cheaper faster or better, you get control of your choice of two, we control the other one’.  The CEO ended the meeting rather abruptly by emphatically stating that in order to compete in his marketplace, his customer was demanding cheaper, faster, better AND more – and in order for him to be competitive he needed consultants ready to help him achieve improvements in all areas.

 

The simple solution for this CEO was to challenge his team to change how they perform their work to achieve gains in all areas – Cost (cheaper), Productivity (faster), Quality (better) and Capability (more).  These dimensions are the focus of technicians, engineers and skilled labor.  By creating trade-offs in these dimensions they create a balance of speed, performance, quality and capability.  What labor can’t do is achieve gains in all dimensions.

 

Leaders focus their attention in other dimensions.  Referred to as the ‘5 W’s of a leader; Who, What, When, Where, Why and how are the key dimensions great leaders relate to when considering any challenge or opportunity (see chart).  A transformational leader is able to combine these dimensions together to get powerful results.

 

Let’s say your team shows you a competitor’s new product that is significantly cheaper than yours.  Your team advises you that in order to match this, you’ll need to either decrease the quality or features or both and are asking for your decision.  What do you do?

 

Look at the combined chart.  Now you can ask transformation-based questions that cause your team’s thinking to expand.  Can you change ‘who” your customers are?  Can you change ‘where’ you get the raw materials in order to decrease your costs?  “What” additions can you incorporate into the product to increase the value?  “What” other uses are available for your product?  Can you change ‘how’ you manufacture the product by using different materials (plastic instead of steel)?  Can you change ‘where’ you manufacture the product – producing it on the customers premises – eliminating shipping and packaging costs? 

 

Using this matrix will allow you to lead your team to greater achievement in your marketplace.  Teaching this matrix to your employees and systematizing it’s use throughout your company will create a sustainable competitive advantage through continued innovation, which will turn your company into a transformational company.

 

Alan Hill is a business and executive coach in Minneapolis, Minnesota with ActionCOACH, the world’s number one business coaching company.  If you would like to learn more about him or to contact him for a private consultation, check out his website at http://actioncoach.com/alanhill  

Attention Minneapolis Business Owners: Are You Ready To Succeed In Business Without Fighting the Competition?

 

Recently I saw a CEO of a national coffee chain claim that his company’s market position was all about the beans – in other words, all about the taste of the coffee.  Unfortunately for him, his competition has also staked out that territory.  Even worse, a quick trip to any coffee shop reveals that customers are there for the environment and experience, not the coffee.  From business movers and shakers to teens who are looking for a place to hang out, coffee is just rental fee for the use of the space. 

 

Think about it – when was the last time you saw someone in a coffee shop actually savoring the taste of their coffee?  Perhaps you’ve noticed as I have that no-one curls up to their coffee cup.

 

So, why is this important?  Because great tasting coffee is not a differentiator.

 

This CEO is about to spend a LOT of money trying to buy his way into the minds of people who’ve already made a decision.  And he’s going to try to do it based on parameters that his potential customers already expect.  By the way, I’ve tried his coffee and he’s right, they do have good coffee – just like everyone else, including McDonalds.

 

I asked myself why do I go to a coffee shop?  It’s because I’m meeting someone there.  So the coffee is backdrop.  While I don’t want to meet someone where the coffee is tastes bad, I’m never there because of their coffee.  It seems some are there to meet others, like me.  Others are there for a retreat – reading a book or newspaper, or doing work on their computer, but I noticed no one was enjoying the fact that their coffee was excellent.

 

So I started to wonder what would make this a different, better experience for me?  What would make me drive out of my way to meet people at a particular shop?  Well, if I’m there to get work done, what about a mini office supply store?  Or if I’m there to ‘retreat’ then stock the latest books (audio and paperback)?  Or what if they had computer support help?  A Geek onsite to fix computers and sell you software, downloaded on your computer right there.  That’s what I’d like.  A paring of Kinko’s and coffee.  Ah, but see, this is not about the coffee is it? 

 

I can hear this CEO now, ‘That’s straying away from our core competency and our brand identity’.  You know what, it is.  It’s ‘straying toward’ your customers and away from a brand that says ‘me too’.  Maybe Kinko’s should think about adding coffee to their stores.  That should do wonders for increasing their store traffic.

 

So how about you?  What business are you in?  Is your brand identity saying ‘me to’ or does it say ‘I know why you’re here, I know what you want, and we’re the only ones who give it to you’?

 

You should not be expected to spend a lot in advertising and marketing promotions to get this type of compelling market position.  This is the real power creating a unique brand identity.  And you don’t have to fight anyone to get the market share you deserve. 

 

Alan Hill is a business and executive coach in Minneapolis, Minnesota with ActionCOACH, the world’s number one business coaching company.  If you would like to learn more about him or to contact him for a private consultation, check out his website at http://actioncoach.com/alanhill.

Crisis Equals Danger Plus Opportunity (C=D+O)

I’ve been told the Chinese ideogram (or word, if you prefer) for crisis is made up of the symbols Danger and Opportunity.  This is similar to the old saying “there’s a silver lining in every cloud’.

This didn’t really ‘click’ with me until I realized this is an algebra equation.  Here’s what I mean: if Crisis = Danger + Opportunity…

 

…Then wouldn’t Danger = Crisis – Opportunity?

In other words, if there was no opportunity in a crisis, that would be dangerous, right?

 

Then what is Opportunity? A crisis without danger. (Opportunity = Crisis – Danger).

Think of that… how many times have you heard this story… something in the news about some major crisis and then someone was ‘smart enough’ to profit from the situation?  They were able to look at the situation objectively and determine a way to minimize the risk to themselves and for others.

 

Why wasn’t that you?  Probably because you weren’t alert to look for the way to minimize (or eliminate) the danger to create an opportunity.

 

I first realized the power of this formula when I read a book about George Soros, the international financier.  One of the themes throughout his book was his approach to situations.  He always looked for the opportunity by minimizing the danger.  For example, he watched as international banks loaned money to many countries in South America.  The ‘fatal flaw’ he saw was these banks were crediting the cash from other banks in those countries’ ‘ability to pay’ calculations, and loaning more money.  This was a danger for the banks.  How did he find the opportunity?  By betting against the stock values of those banks by using a ‘put’ stock option strategy.  Imagine if someone was obligated to pay you for a stock that went down in value.  This is a stock market instrument that allows George (and you) the right to ‘put’ the stock to someone at an agreed upon price, even if that price is lower than expected.  When their stock price went down, he made an incredible profit.  If you want more info on stock option strategies, check out Wade Cook’s books, they’re a plain talk explanation on how to use them.

 

Another example from one of my clients – They have to shut off the air conditioning and inconvenience the homeowner for 2 to 4 hours while they clean their ducts (Danger).  Instead I had them create an opportunity by partnering with local merchants – nail salons, hair dressers, spas, etc. and they create a pamper package.  Now when the homeowner returns my client has cleaned their ducts and returned the air climate to a comfortable temperature and the client has been on a pampering expedition.  Meanwhile some lucky local merchants have the benefit of potentially getting a new client from a great referral source.

 

Practical exercise:  Think of a current crisis situation in your business, personal or work life.  What is the danger?  What is the opportunity? How can you minimize the danger and take advantage of the opportunity?  By asking these questions of yourself, you’ll make things work when others only see a crisis. 

 

Perhaps for example your company is receiving negative press on the Internet for your customer service policies.  Is there an opportunity to change your customer service approach and create a unique niche for your company?  Target stores did this (though it didn’t take negative press to do it).  If Target sells it (or sold it) they’ll take your return even without a receipt.

 

Alan Hill is a business and executive coach with ActionCOACH, the world’s number one business coaching company, ActionCOACH.  If you would like to learn more about him, check out his website at http://actioncoach.com/alanhill.