Is it Time to Let Some of Your Clients Go?

Recently I decided, it’s probably time to do something different with my hair.  (Stick with me gentlemen, I’m not going to get all girly on you here.)  I don’t know what to do, but I do wish my hair was in better condition before I do anything.

Ladies, don’t you just envy the thick, healthy looking hair of our male counterparts?  The ones that do have hair?  Why is their hair usually in such good condition?  That’s easy to answer.  We only see the newest, strongest growth.  The older ends are always cut off and it’s done often.  For those of us gals that like to wear our hair long, that doesn’t happen.

So, I decided that before I could get a new style I needed to strengthen my hair and that meant a trim, a pretty good one at that.  Now this is something I haven’t done in about 17 years, but I decided that the goal I wanted was going to require a sacrifice.

So I cut off about three inches of hair.  The next day, after the initial shock my hair went into (I swear it did) things already looked better.  With dry, split ends gone, my hair now has a chance to improve, with more work I’ll apply in other ways.

Is it time to make some major cuts in your small business in order for you to grow stronger and more profitable this year?  What do I mean?  I mean, do you need to lose that which is hurting your and holding you back.

Do you have habits that you need to change – too much time checking your email, hanging on Facebook, or chatting with “potential” clients who aren’t ready to buy?

Are you giving away too much of your work or time?  Here’s the big one, do you have clients you need to “fire” because they are actually costing you?

We all start our small business with something to prove. You have to make a name for yourself and the best way to do that is to over perform and undercharge.  The next thing you know, you’re in a spot that’s going to be difficult to get out of if you don’t do something now.

It’s time to sit down with your list of clients and the work you do for them and give yourself a good trim.  Oh, you might cringe a little today, but in the end, you’ll have a healthier, stronger business to work from.

 

 

 

So, do you need to make a few cuts?

Micki – Market with Intent

www.MichelleHarbour.com
330-591-1070
804-642-2363
connect@michelleharbour.com

Lessons from My Step Dad – Just Do The Job

I work from home.  I do this in order to be able to stay home with children.  In the process, I hope they are learning how to grow and build their own business and will consider entrepreneurialship when starting their own careers.  As sole proprietor and stay-at-home mom, I wear many hats.  One task I dread, but is required, is to push that vacuum through the house; and with five kids and many pets, that is a once-a-day chore!

Vacuuming is my creative thinking time.  The drone of the vacuum allows me to think uninterrupted and I’ve solved many problems or come up with some great ideas during that ½ hour every day.

The other day I was thinking about my step dad.  I lost him much too early, right before his 60^th birthday.  He was a good father – he came into the relationship with my mom when I was only seven years old.  He embraced his roll immediately, and I realized that morning I was vacuuming that so much of what I learned from him I apply to my business practices.

Throughout this year I hope to share many of those lessons with you – to honor the man that helped me become the person I am.

Lesson #1 my step dad taught me:  Just Do the Job

I never saw my step dad back down from any job – whether it was a repair around the house or something he had to do for his own work.  He just did it with an assurance of knowing that the job had to be and could be accomplished. There was a way to do it, and putting it off didn’t make sense and would only cost you in the end.

As a small business owner, getting right on the task is always the best practice.  It will reward you in the end when you don’t waste time.

Long before Nike came around, Cliff taught me to Just Do It.

Micki – Market with Intent
www.MichelleHarbour.com

It’s the Personal Touch that Matters in Business

Last week I went through the Drive-Thru at Hardee’s.  Their $5 Big Bag Lunch Deal (available at dinner too) is a great deal and feeds the 2 kids I had with me nicely.  Both love burgers and one doesn’t eat fries, so she gets the pie.  It works out great.  Anyway, when the high school girl at the window handed me back my change, she cupped my hand in hers before placing the 4 dollar bills and miscellaneous coins in my hand.  It was a seemingly small act, but it made a big impression on me.  In today’s world, there isn’t a whole lot of that kind of physical contact.  Oh, I see teens hugging their peers all the time, but as for physical contact between different generations, and in business particular, even handshakes seem to have gone by the wayside.

I was impressed by this young lady’s act of kindness – ensuring I didn’t drop my change and not afraid of what germs she might catch from a stranger’s hand.  It said a lot to me about what type of person she is.

 Personal touch in the business world will carry a long way.  I don’t mean that you have to go around hugging all your clients every time you see them.  The touch I strive for every day is the kind that results in what I receive when I walk into a client’s place of business and they almost sigh with relief knowing that I’m there to solve a major task that needs attention.

Sure, at this time of year, I’m busier than a centipede at a toe countin’ contest, but the feeling of satisfaction I have at a customer well-served is worth it.

Besides, I can sleep after the New Year – of course, that’s when clients start fulfilling their New Year’s resolutions of business improvements….who needs sleep anyway?

Micki – Market with Intent
http://www.MichelleHarbour.com

You’re Never Too Small to be a Big Referral Partner

No small business owner is too small to be a big referral partner, because word of mouth from a trusted peer carries more weight than any other form of advertising.  But as a small business owner you may believe that you cannot be an effective referrer.

However, if you’ve taken the time to learn about your referral partners, than it’s just a matter of being prepared to make the referral when the opportunity to do so arises, and to do it naturally and comfortably without sounding like an Amway rep.

Begin by keeping your referral partners’ business cards handy.  Office supply stores sell great little business card books in an easy-to-handle size making it convenient always keep nearby.

–        A couple times a year, go through your referral cards and replace the cards that are outdated or worn and make sure you have enough on hand to pass around.

–        Be sure all your referral partners have your recent business cards and know what you’re looking for in a referral.

But what else can you do to be a good referral partner?  Most of us as small business owners don’t have contact with more than a small group of people on a daily basis – if that many.  Therefore, we feel that maybe we can’t be effective in handing out enough referrals.

There’s actually a lot more that you can do and in a way that doesn’t take up too much of your time once the plan is all set up.

1)    Work closely with other businesses that have a similar client base as you have.  That will afford you many opportunities to refer prospects to each other.
2)    Consider partnering up with your competition.  Build a trusted relationship with another business that does the same work as you do, but perhaps takes on clients that are outside of the tasks you want to take on.  You could easily refer those jobs to them and take on the clients they don’t want to work with.

1. One way to keep those referrals coming back to you is to reward those industry referral partners with a tangible thank you gift when they send a good client your way.
2. All your referral partners should get some sort of thank you gift for a referral they send to you.

3)    Use the website that represents you 24 hours a day and let it do some of the referral work for you.  Have a section or a page labeled Useful Links or My Partners that lists all your industry related peers.

• When you do that, you not only are playing the part of a good referral partner, but you are placing your business in the same circle that your peers are – and if they have a great reputation, you’ll be seen in the same light.
•  When you list and link your referral partners on your website and they link back to your website, you are both building outgoing and incoming links – and search engines love that when they rank websites.

4)    Use your Social Media pages in the same way.  First, be sure your Facebook page LIKES the Facebook page of your partners.  Then use your social media pages to refer your partners in the posts you make by sharing their posts or statuses and what they are up to.  Encourage your partners to make posts on your page when it’s mutually beneficial for both of you.

• When you do this, your partners’ fans will see more of your posts and your fans will see your peers’ posts – everyone benefits and will expand their following to reach more potential customers.

5)    Every small business should have a blog and you should make a blog post at least once a month.  However, the more you post the higher your ranking in the search engines.  Allow your peers to make guest posts on your blog – it’s a great way to give them a new audience for their business while keeping your blog active.

• Don’t forget to give your referral partners a listing in some way on your blog as you do on your website.

6)    Get together with your referral partners and hold a workshop or an event of some sort that is related to your business types.  For example, a sign making business, and business coach, and a marketing service company could hold a workshop for people looking to start up or who have just started up a new business and need to get off and running.  An exterminator, an HVAC company, and a chimney sweep could do a workshop on Preparing Your Home for Winter.

• If a workshop or seminar is out of the question at the time, consider doing a charitable fundraiser or event with your partners so everyone is seen in a positive light within the community.

So as you can see, you’re never too small to be a big referral partner and to get good referrals coming back to you.

Micki
– Market with Intent
connect@michelleharbour.com
330.591.1070
804.642.2363
www.michelleharbour.com

You have to leave the ground if you’re going to soar with the eagles.

Don’t be a chicken.  Take off today!

Don’t Stop Until You’re Finished

I don’t stop when I’m tired.
I stop when I’m finished.

What are you working on this week?

Micki
804-642-2363
330-591-1070 mobile
connect@michelleharbour.com
www.michelleharbour.com

Be an Original

What makes your business different from everyone else?  You’re unique!  We all have a niche.  It’s what sets us apart from our competitors and makes us stand out!

You’re an original.

If that’s true, then shouldn’t your website be an original too?  Why settle for a cookie-cutter, template website that looks like every other website out there?

I design original websites, hand-coded and made to order.  I don’t use templates sitting under the heating lamps waiting for the next customer to drive through (or is that drive thru?)  I take the time to get to know you, your business, and how you work, and then design a website that’s just like you – unique and original among all the others.

If that sounds like the type of attention and service you’re looking for, then let’s get to work!!  I love working with businesses that want to be creative and have fun with their website and their marketing!

Micki – your web gal
804-642-2363
330-591-1070 mobile (you can even text me if you’d like)
connect@michelleharbour.com
www.michelleharbour.com

Believe Unquestionably

“When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable.” – Walt Disney

Micki – your web gal
804-642-2363
330-591-1070 mobile (you can even text me if you’d like)
connect@michelleharbour.com
www.michelleharbour.com

Should You Hire Someone to Do Your Social Media for You

Here’s how I see it.

If you ask the folks who do manage social media for businesses, they’ll say you should absolutely hire someone to maintain your pages for you.  After all, they have the experience and know how, and you have too much to do and too much to lose by doing it yourself.  Of course, all the largest businesses actually have in-house employees to do the job for them.  So these folks will tell you that you should definitely hire out.

Ask the businesses that are doing it themselves and they’ll tell you they are saving money by doing it themselves, why hire someone?

So who’s right?

Both.  If you can do it yourself, stay consistent with it, and monitor the page daily during your hours of operation – great.  Do it!

If you know you don’t have the time or creativity to post regularly, to monitor the site throughout the day for comments, messages, and questions, or you know that this is just something you don’t want to do – hire out to get the job done!

What you do need to do is one OR the other.  This is not a task that should be ignored.  Social media marketing is a must in today’s business world.

Need help getting started?  Ready to hire someone to just get this task going?  Call me!

Micki – your web gal
804-642-2363
330-591-1070 mobile (you can even text me if you’d like)
connect@michelleharbour.com
www.michelleharbour.com

Must You Fail to Succeed

“Failure is an inevitable part of success. It is no coincidence that the most successful people — be it in business, art or science — are also those who failed the most times.” — Tal Ben-Shahar, psychologist

If you’re not failing, you’re not taking risks, you’re not thinking outside the box, you’re not looking for new and better solutions.  Ask your mom, I’ll bet you didn’t just stand up and start walking on your first birthday.  You fell a lot, and you probably got bruised and banged up a few times.

You shouldn’t fear failure, you should fear the lack of taking chances!  Go for it!

Micki – your web gal
804-642-2363
330-591-1070 mobile (you can even text me if you’d like)
connect@michelleharbour.com
www.michelleharbour.com