Stay Away From The Tech Talk To Connect With Your Customer - ISSUE 41 - 6/22/12

SIMPLIFY YOUR THOUGHTS AND IDEAS

A major concern with small business owners is that they focus too heavily on ‘Tech Jargon.’ Tech jargon comes in many forms since ‘Tech’ stems from the word ‘Technical’ and just about every industry uses computers/technology for their business as well as technical words to describe precision.

In other words, tech doesn’t specifically pertain to computers; it can also pertain to your industry which uses computers. Most people do not understand what the heck techies are talking about when they speak ‘Klingon’ (Star Trek) so why would you expect someone to understand you when you speak Venetian (a person from Venus)?

More and more people are becoming familiar with words such as ‘Megabyte,’ ‘Gigabyte,’ and ‘Terabyte,’ but you’d be amazed at how few people actually understand what they mean. For those of you whom I’m referring, ‘a Gigabyte is a form of measurement for storage capacity and/or is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage.’ (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gigabyte).

There are one thousand bytes in a megabyte, one thousand megabytes in a gigabyte, and one thousand gigabytes in a terabyte. Or, in the easiest form to understand, there are approximately seven thousand web pages per gigabyte (if you have a monthly allowance for the Internet on your cell phone, this pertains to you).

THE SOLUTION

I have worked in the technology field for many years and since I was in sales the majority of the time, I have personally spoken and interacted with thousands of people face-to-face. Let me tell you, when people constantly look at you with a look like they’re a deer in the headlights, you quickly realize very few people actually know what the heck you are talking about when using big words, complex ideas, and especially, tech jargon. I have had countless frustrating experiences of information dumping and overload causing people to feel overwhelmed with my thoughts and ideas so I slowly, but surely, moved away from speaking complexly and began simplifying.

There are many languages and industries in the world today and contrary to popular belief, most people have a very narrow understanding of anything outside of their respective professions and/or areas of expertise. If you want to deliver your ideas and thoughts to someone outside of your industry, you must always imagine yourself speaking to a child, especially if your company is in any way technologically related. Children obviously do not have a vast understanding of the world, nor do they have an area of expertise (with the exception of a few), so the method to use to ensure you are doing this correctly is to simplify your thoughts and ideas and to explain what you are talking about in significant detail.

Doing this will take some time and practice and may be frustrating in the beginning, but people will greatly appreciate you and will always come back for more. Becoming known as the ‘expert’ is not about making people feel stupid or belittled; rather, it’s about connecting and relating. The more you practice, the more you will have the latter rather than the former.

Focus Your Energy Outward - Reap The Rewards - ISSUE 40 - 6/13/12

I’ve said this time and time again, “If you want to be successful, you must focus your energy outward.” Whether you have the best intention or not, if you aren’t perceived as outward focused to your customer, you aren’t outward focused. You must always put yourself in the mind of your customer. Failing to do this could lead to a failing company.

This morning I was drinking my coffee and perusing our company Twitter account (@SuitedMktgCo). I always look at the Mentions section first because I want to see what our followers are saying about us and what they are quoting to their followers. We provide a lot of value so we receive quite a few daily Mentions and ReTweets.

One particular ReTweet caught my eye because there are a very large amount of people on the Internet making the claim of being so-called “experts” in their field when they are the furthest from the truth. To clarify, I don’t know who this individual is, nor do I know his reputation as an “expert.” I’m simply stating that there are too many of these “experts” and not enough success nor credibility to truly consider them as such.

I could tell that the individual had the best of intentions, so I decided to take a look at his webpage to understand his qualifications a little better. His company is incorporated and directly on the front page he specifically claims to have over 20 years experience in the field of entrepreneurship. I thought to myself, “Ok. This guy seems to know what he’s doing.”

However, as mentioned previously, one very crucial aspect of an outward focused company is to ensure your current and future customers feel the same way you do. On the front page of his site, I noticed a pattern he may not even know exists. There was an overwhelming feeling that everything stated on the page was all about his company and not enough about me (the customer). Because of this, I decided to count how many times he used the words “us, our, we, [our company name], etc.” compared to “you, your, the customer, etc.” The outcome was 12-to-4, respectively.

Again, I'm confident he has the best of intentions, but this is definitely something that needs to be addressed. It’s not at all about him or his company. Rather, it’s all about the customer. One way to easily alleviate this issue would be to mention the customer early and primarily in all the claims being made.

For example, stay away from, “We provide expertise and integrity, analysis and insight, and high quality/high tech input into your company’s success.” This makes a potential customer feel that everything being said is all about the company.

A better way to prove to the customer you have their best intentions in mind would be to say, “We provide you, the customer, with all the expertise you need to ensure your company’s success such as 20 years in the field of entrepreneurism, integrity, analysis, and insight combined with high quality and high tech support.” If you didn't notice, the focus shifts significantly away from the company and onto the customer.

Just remember, it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it. The mistake being made is that he emphasizes and focuses too heavily on himself and his company. Always put the customer’s best interest first. If you do this for everything, you will reap the rewards. I guarantee it!

Life Is What You Make of It - Life With a Purpose - ISSUE 39 - 6/1/12

As human beings, we are all creatures of habit. Just about everything we do on a daily basis is some form of repeated behavior. Most of the time we don't even realize the things we do are the result of years of repeating them over and over.

Take a moment and think about the way you talk, the way you chew, the way you dress yourself, the way you shower, the way you drive to work everyday, etc. I assure you, these are all behaviors you have most likely done for so many years that very little thought goes into how you do them. Some may say that it's "Second Nature."

Obviously, there are good habits and bad habits. You should be able to distinguish between the two fairly quickly. If you want to be successful in business and in life, you are going to have to throw away as many bad habits and adopt as many good habits as humanly possible.

PROCRASTINATION IS OPPORTUNITY'S ASSASSIN

Procrastination is one of the worst habits any business owner could have. The reason for this is because so much success comes from the simple act of doing. Nowadays too many people have the mindset of "I'll do it tomorrow" because there is more entertainment now than ever in the history of mankind and in my opinion, too many people are engulfed in a life full of too much entertainment. Don't let yourself fall into this category; it's a trap. You will never get anywhere in life and you will never accomplish the goals you want to if all you do is party and have fun all the time.

One of the other root causes of procrastination is drugs and alcohol. They both fall into the same category for this discussion because they both make you feel like crap, and when you feel like crap, you aren't going to be productive. It's that simple. They also impair your judgment and significantly affect your mental and physical health. Unfortunately, for those of you who like to do either or both, you are going to have to consume very little, if at all, if you want to get anywhere in life. You need to be on your "A-game" at all times, especially if you are like most people who have a full time job and are working to grow your business on your spare time.

WAKE UP EACH DAY AS IF IT WERE ON PURPOSE

I heard the best quote in the movie 'Hitch' -- "Like I always tell my clients - begin each day as if it were on purpose." You have to make a choice. No one else is going to make it for you. Do you want to live a life full of "Purpose" or do you want to live a life of "Sitting on your @$$, watching TV"?

The other day I was thinking about a seminar I went to recently hosted by one of my favorite authors, Jeffrey Gitomer. He mentioned that while people are at home watching TV, he's at home writing and making money. He lives every day of his life happier than anyone else I know because his purpose is to make a difference in other people's lives.

What finally dawned on me was that the people on TV are usually the ones living a life of purpose. They are the ones people watch accomplishing their goals and dreams. This is where you're going to have to make a choice - Do you want to always be the person sitting on the couch, watching other people become successful and accomplish their goals and dreams, or do you want to be someone other people watch on the TV?

The funniest part of this revelation was when I realized that most people who are successful tend to be loaners and the people who are entertainment junkies are the ones who have lots of friends. I've always been the loaner type for that very reason and never even realized it. I have a very hard time just "hanging out" anymore because I feel it's a waste of my time. I know I could be doing something more productive than just sitting around doing nothing.

STAY AWAY FROM THE NEGATIVE PEOPLE

Also, people are very judgmental. Whether you realize it or not, most people don't have the same mindset as you and there's nothing you can do to force people to see the world through your eyes. They see the world through their own eyes and their own mindset. No matter how hard you try, they are going to do whatever it takes to bring you down to their level. You must hold yourself to the highest of standards and not let anyone pull you away from what you have or want to do in life. You only have one life and it's YOURS not THEIRS.

I believe that the people in your life are either with you, or against you when it comes to success. If they don't support your goals and aspirations, they are against you. If they are truly the people they say and truly love you, they will support you in anything you decide. Whether they admit it or not, your friends and family can become very envious and jealous of your decision to live a life full of purpose because most people give up on their dreams early on in life. You must keep your thoughts and ideals to yourself (unless, of course, they take a big interest in what you are doing) because those people closest to you have more power over your destination than you could possibly imagine.

In most instances people will not listen to a word you have to say until you have proven yourself to be successful. The best way to get your friends and family on board with what you are doing is to let your actions speak rather than your words. Attract people to you rather than going around telling everyone what you are doing. Believe me when I say, "IT WORKS!"