05/12/2011 by Ann.

For the uninitiated, Marmite is a yeast paste, made out of the by-product from brewing and has a distinctive salty and vinegary flavour. It is known as Vegemite in Australia.

Due to its strong flavour its strap line is ‘You either love it or you hate it’. I have to be honest and say I don’t like it but I know plenty of people who love it spread on toast.

So why am I talking about a food product?

It’s very simple: when you are in business you have worked hard on the product or service you are offering to make it the best it can be. You have spent hours tweaking it, making it better, getting feedback from clients and friends, doing surveys even.

This means that you often have a big emotional attachment to it: after all this is your baby and you want everyone to love it as much as you do!

But all products and services are to some extent, like Marmite. Some people will love what you are offering, others will be a bit indifferent and yes, some will hate it!

I think that is a really good thing: wouldn’t you rather inspire a strong reaction in people than a mild interest or even indifferenceI’ve worked with some top mentors and even they readily admit that not everyone likes their style! There are millions of potential customers out there, so it doesn’t matter if some of them choose to go elsewhere: think of Coke and Pepsi, neither of them are struggling to attract customers (and I dislike both – I doubt either company is losing any sleep about that!).

The thing is, you are here to serve the people you need to serve; those who will benefit most from your offering, and the rest is really none of your business, it is somebody else’s. There is room for everyone, so keep focussing on the people you were meant to serve, who you love and who will love you back for what you do for them.

See, it really is simple!

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12/10/2011 by Ann.

One of the main things you need in your business is focus and that applies to your customers. You have to know who you are speaking to and what they want or else you could be heading out into choppy waters. Take a look at the example below:

Max Factor produces make-up and Twinings make tea. These are two very different markets and two very different sets of customers. It would seem though, that Max Factor has a better understanding of its customers than Twinings!

The make-up market is fast moving: barely a week goes by without a new mascara or foundation coming out and Max Factor has probably produced more foundations than most other companies over the past five years.

Max Factor realises that they are selling the beauty ‘dream’ and that the technological innovations in skincare can be used to their advantage. Their customers want the latest developments in the laboratory in their hands as soon as they can, because they are all about looking and staying young and youthful; by default that means that time is not on their side. Their customers get excited by the newest foundation and cannot wait to try it. Their products are directly connected to the latest fashions and trends so they have to keep moving forward and updating their offering.

Twinings is a UK company that sells tea. Tea is a tradition and various blends have endured throughout the years. That’s not to say that new blends have been ignored: they can be introduced alongside the traditional teas, but it is the core teas that form the loyal customer base and, for most of these people, they want to consume a product that delivers time after time (or cup after cup) with no deviations.

Twinings unpublicised changes to one of their most popular teas, Earl Grey, has turned into a marketing disaster. Most customers are asking ‘Why change something that is much loved and needs nothing done to it?’ It is being likened to the ‘New Coke’ debacle. Sure, introduce variations (Lady Grey, Lavender Earl Grey, Decaffeinated Earl Grey) but don’t mess with your lead product. To make matters worse, it is only in the UK that the new blend was introduced, thus annoying its most loyal customers even more. Hundreds of comments on their website leave you in no doubt that the new blend has not gone down well with the palates of those who have drunk Earl Grey for years, and that customers are voting with their taste buds and switching brands. Twinings is a premium brand and people are not going to pay a premium price for a product that they now consider sub-standard.

Understanding the profile of your customers and what they value is key to your product development strategy and to maintaining your brand image. Max Factor seems to have understood this far better than Twinings and, like the other Earl Grey fans, I have binned the new blend and voted to take my money elsewhere. After twenty-five years, Twinings have managed to destroy my customer loyalty, and that of many others, in one disastrous decision.

It doesn’t matter if it is a product or a service you are supplying: the same principles apply and you need to be sure you fully understand what motivates your customers in order to maintain a profitable and rewarding business.

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26/09/2011 by Ann.

It’s tricky when you first get started in business; you often feel like a fraud and everyone, simply everyone, seems to know how to do it better than you.

Or do they?

Perhaps they are just better at acting than you are?

One of the best ways of developing confidence is acting ‘as if’. So, as a coach,  you would act as if you are the best coach in the world, or as Kendall Summerhawk suggests to her clients: ‘Ask yourself what a millionaire coach would do’. Just insert your chosen profession for the word ‘coach’ and see what a difference that makes.

The main thing to remember is that everyone had to start at the beginning; and that includes Richard Branson and Oprah. They had to learn how to run a business and made mistakes along the way, but they had the belief in themselves and the passion for their business to behave in a way that made the people around them believe that they could do it.

I’m going to be blunt here; women are great at apologising for lacking experience, talent, etc.  This is where you need to use a more masculine approach and focus on your talents and what you are great at, not focus on what you are not so good at. False modesty never made anyone a great success.

So, act as if you are already the most successful business woman/man in your area. If you are still struggling think of someone who you really admire and ask yourself the question ‘What would xxx do?’  By taking the emotion out of it, and focussing on someone else, you begin to feel and act in a more confident way and your belief increases which makes you more attractive to your prospects. It really is that simple.

Start doing that today and notice the difference it makes to you and your business.

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29/08/2011 by Ann.

One of the things that freaks entrepreneurs out more than anything else is  competition.

It brings out all the ‘What if’ statements such as:

What if they are better than me?

What if there aren’t enough customers to go round?

What if my clients go to my competitors instead?

What if they are cheaper than me?

You get my drift!

So let’s bust all those myths once and for all:

1.      What if they are better than me?

How do you know and why do you care? Focus on your target market and do all the things you need to do to help you grow yourself and your business; attend training courses, get a coach, get business advice. Keep learning!

2.      What if there aren’t enough customers to go around?

I live in Alton, Hampshire.  When I first moved here many years ago we had no big supermarket then, eighteen years ago we got one. Now we have two new ones about to be built with other major supermarkets lining up to get into the town and, believe me, the population hasn’t grown very much in the past eighteen years.

Consider coffee shops: how many of those have sprung up near you in recent years? Did it stop at one of the major chains?  I thought not! Your ideal customers will stick with you if you are supplying what they want. I always go to my local Italian coffee shop as I love the staff and the atmosphere as well as the coffee (OK, I really mean the cakes!)

3. What if my clients go to my competitors instead?

Then all that means is that they are not the right clients for you! Focus on targeting people who you really want to work with and accept nothing less. Sure sometimes people move on, but this could be because they need something different from what you have to offer and that is fine; if you sell  Ford cars and your customer decides it is time to upgrade to an Aston Martin, then you are not the car supplier for them. People change all the time, so this frees up space for someone else to come into your life and give you their business.

4. What if they are cheaper than me?

What if they are? People who buy on price alone are always changing suppliers so they are not the kind of customers you want! They tend to be demanding and always asking you for a discount. Let someone else deal with them. Price your goods and services based on quality and value. Focus on people who value what you have to offer enough to pay you for it, because they can see the benefits they are going to get from coming to you.

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26/05/2011 by Ann.

Last night my friend Liz treated me to an audience with Rob Lowe who was discussing his new book ‘Stories I only tell my friends’.

The venue up in London was packed with women and a few brave men! I really wasn’t sure what to expect from this Hollywood actor, but I was in for a number of surprises:

Liz and I were talking when I glanced across the room and saw a man who looked remarkably like Rob Lowe, but I was imagining there would be a grand entrance and how wrong was I? The auditorium fell silent as people realised it was him:  he walked onto the stage, beamed at the audience and seemed remarkably relaxed.

For the next ninety minutes he spoke about his book and answered questions. He was so down to earth and had the ability to seemingly look the entire audience in the eye, individually. He was funny, self-effacing and highly entertaining. He was also extremely polite.

At the end Liz and I were standing by the stage when he suddenly turned and walked past us. I was completely flabbergasted by how handsome he still is. Liz even managed to say something to him and he gave us a fabulous smile.

It is really easy to have pre-conceived ideas about people, and especially those in the public eye,  but it can also be a very pleasant surprise when they perhaps contradict your first impressions.

It got me wondering how aware we are of the impressions we make on people?

Ann

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24/05/2011 by Ann.

The UK is awash with the debate on privacy laws following a number of super injunctions, preventing famous actors, footballers and businessmen from having details of their private lives (affairs) published by newspapers.

However it seems that Twitter users have spilled the beans and most of the world outside the UK has known the identity of the high profile footballer who is trying to sue Twitter and, after his name was mentioned in the house of commons he is now front page news.

It prompts the question: Can you present one image for your work and have a private life that conflicts with it?

How congruent is that?

When you are starting out in business, getting people to KTL (Know, Trust and Like) you is extremely important. If you are to promote yourself as being an honest and trustworthy person, your clients are not going to be impressed if you suddenly end up in court for deliberately avoiding paying your tax.

How would your clients/customers feel if you took out an injunction which prevented them knowing this information?

Would you wish to work with someone who was hiding information from you?

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