3,000,000+ results from my Google Search!!!

What the !!!  I really wonder why when I do a Google search for something that I get sooooo many responses.  I have just thought of a simple option when searching, why not have the ability to limit the number of responses I get?

I must admit, I used to think it was impressive to have 3m+ responses to some searches, now I begin to wonder, WHY?

What do you think?  Leave your comments on this one…..

To Yellow Page or Not?

A question often asked by business owners – should I spend $XXX on Yellow Pages?  My response, show me the return on investment.  How many leads has the YP delivered, what % closed to a sale and what average dollar value did you achieve from those sales??  Not many can answer these questions and to me this is madness.  Would you go to the horse track, throw $20,000 on a horse and never check to see where it came?  Of course you wouldn’t, you would follow that damn nag step by step around the track.

So why is it we are willing to do the same with advertising – not just YP, any advertising?

Why not track enquiries through a simple lead tracking sheet, ask callers how did they find you, use different 1800 or 1300 numbers, use campaign codes on coupons in local papers, there are lots of ways you cant use to value up your investment in marketing or calculate the ROI from your marketing.

On line advertising (SEM) will track a level of stats for you and the PPC (Pay per click) campaigns help you with budgeting, you are responsible for tracking the return on the investment analysis.

Retail, as we know it, is DEAD…

I was speaking with a woman yesterday about her Toy store.  She was rather proud of the selection and quality of toys available, her and her hubby had set this up as they realised that the suburb they had moved to was devoid of such a place for parents to buy for their kids.

Unfortunately, foot traffic was poor, there were a plethora of large stores (BigW, Toys are Us etc…) in the area and she was wondering what she could do to boost sales.  My question- what does your web site look like?  Ummmmm, welllll, we’ve been meaning to get one, was her response.

As someone in her mid 40’s, she was in danger of being left behind by not playing in the on line space.  She didn’t get the whole on line thing and thought that people would want to visit her store!!!  Sorry, it just doesn’t work that way so much any more.

I also encouraged her to become an eBay seller to boost sales, lets face it, this is a product that will go well on line.  I sent her an eBook on this subject and hopefully she will take the bull by the horns and get going.

Retail as we know it is DEAD….

Pay Per Click Marketing Guide – eBook..

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Whats the difference between a rut and a grave?

Simple – a rut is just a grave with the ends kicked out!

I was visiting a client South of Sydney yesterday.  This guy may have well been in a grave the rut was so deep.  No heart, no passion and you wonder why he has trouble finding great staff.  He said to me “I wish my staff were on the same page as me” – I said, “show me the page”; he paused and looked at me quizzically.

He got the point, no plans, no goals, no vision or purpose.  His purpose was to earn a measly $1000 per week for 80 hours of input, all while watching his 2 teenage kids lives slip by.

My advice, go get a job, at least it would be better than earning $12.50 an hour before tax!!!

In order to succedd in business and in life you got to have passion…. get out of the rut  before it tuns into a grave.

The 3 Minute Rule.

When people walk into a restaurant something interesting happens.  Firstly, it’s usually been a while since theynlast ate – their blood sugar level is low and they want something to eat /drink. 

If you are running a restaurant you need to understand the 3 minute rile – GET FOOD OR DRINK ON THE TABLE INSIDE 3 MINUTES.  This does amazing this to the physiology of people, it relaxes them, opens them up, gets them chatting and they are sampling your free food.

What price would you be willing to pay as a restaurantuer to have happy clients within 3 minutes of being seated?  Its Priceless….

Get people happy and what will they remember – your restaurant.

Why restaurants don’t work…

I moved my family from the hustle and bustle of Sydney to the Southern Highlands recently.  We have had a bunch of fun exploring the local restaurants.  Some have it some don’t.  The Indian restaurant has it from a food perspective - the service, ambiance and restrooms don’t. 

The restaurant business is simple, as long as your food is good, the rest is easy. What these guys put out on a plate is wonderful, how they do it is not.  They wonder why people flock to a restaurant next door!! they look after their clients!!!

You have to love clients, learn the 3 minute rule, find out whether people will refer their friends and work on these key things.

Do you stand out in a crowd?

This is how I do….

My Business Card

Imagine you were about to meet a large prospective client or step into a networking opportunity.  How memorable are you?

I had these made so I can stand out be be remembered…

Let me know what you think..

$900 Electricity Bill Shock

Bit of a mouthful I know!!  I recently got my power bill (at home) and found out that my electricity usage averages $10 per day!!!  I was somewhat astounded at this level of consumption and called to complain.  Upon further investigation the bill does look right – how the heck did we do that, use $10 a day in electricity, especially when we have gas heating and gas hot water!!

Here’s how.

We had an auditor come in from the power company and she laid down the law as far as what we are doing wrong, it really was an eye opener.  Plasma screens, laptops, pool pumps, fish pond fountains, out door lighting, electric heaters, bar fridges, solar heater water pumps, you get my drift.

We were given some real useful tools and ideas including switching off all unused items AT THE WALL.  They all use standby power while switched off themselves and still being on at the wall.

My advice in these tough times, get an audit done – it was free, get them to come to your business, educate your staff and start to save $$$.

Customer dis-service

I often get asked about the state of the economy and business right now.  I usually explain how things should be not how they are.

Thought I would give you an example of shite customer service, this from one of my local stores!!

I just visited an Office Stationery store right here in my home town, when I walked in I was the only customer in the entire store.  I wandered up to the counter and got the over the top of the glasses look from the woman behind the counter – she was attending to some mundane task, obviously more important than servicing her clients.  She said to me – won’t be a minute.

Thats about all  I had and she wanted me to wait while she finished – which is more important?  So I attempted to speed up the process and find what it is I was looking for.  I did so and managed to down sell myself.  I can’t help but think what could have been achieved if she had dropped what it was she was doing and actually SERVED ME!!!  An opportunity to up sell no doubt.

I then went to another store to be greeted with a smile and a helpfull offer.  He upsold me and proceeded to build a relationship, now that is what I look for, thats SERVICE.  It’s so simple, isn’t it?