26. February 2009 by The Original Bulldog - Bob Griffin.

When is the last time you took a really good look at your competitors?  I hope you do it often, but most small business owners get caught up in the tidal wave of work that being your own boss can present.  I don’t mean that you have to be a customer for your competitors, but you do need to know what they are doing.

A competitor is anyone who sells the same or similar products or services within your trade area. For retail and food service companies, this is the three to five mile radius around your store. For other companies it can be a much bigger area. Get a list of competitors in your area. Also get a map to see where the other businesses are located. Then call or hit the streets to get all the information you need.

Think about things as your customers do. A customer has a need for products you sell.  There are other businesses that sell the same or similar products.  What goes through a customer’s mind to make a decision on where to spend money?

• Location -  Convenience is one of the top two reasons to spend money somewhere
• Price - Here is the other top reason
• Recommendations - word of mouth advertising is a powerful thing (we will tackle this one in a different article)
• Service - how you treat your customers is added value that can pay BIG dividends

So, what makes you different from your competition?  If you have a brick-and-mortar building, there is not a lot at this point you can do to change your location and be more convenient for customers. If this is the case, think about the costs with delivering your product to customers. This may not be cost effective, but it is something to consider. By delivering products, you take the location problem off the table. (Be aware that added insurance costs can make this unprofitable.

The prices your competitor charges is a huge part of a customer’s attitude toward spending money. If you have any doubt, ask someone where the cheapest gas can be bought. It is usually a specific answer and directions too.

Get all of your competitor’s prices. Many times you can get their prices from websites. You can call, but they are going to be suspicious when you ask so many questions. Visiting their store is recommended. Prices are usually listed on something you can take, if not, bring a pad of paper and write them down. You may need to buy something so that you do not stand out.

Here is where you need to take a cool approach to changing prices. If they have the same products for less, is it going to hurt your profits to drop your prices? Are you going to drop below your break even? Many times, the competition has either a different product, a better contract with vendors, or is using products to get customers to come in and buy and are willing to lose on one product to change customer buying habits.

Going to visit your competition is always good. It is a chance to see what they do to advertise inside their store to draw customers in and get them back. The message they send is either good or bad. If there really isn’t anything that is noteworthy, you can mark that as bad. Mediocre is forgetful. Score the competition on products, service, and visual appeal. This will give you a scorecard that you can refer to when you get back to your store and start looking at changes.

When you visit your competition be a customer – think and act like a customer would.

Being overly critical is not useful

Service is a touchy issue. The employees are only as good as the manager, the training, and the attitude they bring to the store. I had great employees one Mondays but lousy ones on Fridays. Monday they needed the job to pay for their rent. Fridays they wanted to get out of the store to start the weekend. My employees were well trained and I was aware of their slacking on Fridays, but it was a different mood at the end of the week and I struggled to get things turned around.

If you get bad service, mark what happened down and the name of the employee who helped you (if you can). On the next visit try to have someone else help you. This will give you a better idea of the training and the overall service they give.

Also, look around and see when the messages posted in the store tell you. If everything is well labeled and organized and the signage promotes sales, take note and be prepared to meet and exceed that standard. Around 89% of communication is non-verbal. What are they saying?

It is up to you to be aware of the trends that influence customers in your area. By knowing what the competition is doing, you have a ready source of what makes a customer spend money. This is not a one-time thing. Make this a part of your schedule. This new insight can help make your job easier.

Email me directly at: Bgriffin@businessbulldog.com

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23. February 2009 by The Original Bulldog - Bob Griffin.

Do you know where your Business Plan is hiding?  You know. That thing you used to get a loan, convince your wife and friends that you had a million dollar idea, and generally get into business for yourself.  Where and when was the last time you looked at it?

I like to ask everyone I consult for a copy.  I am shocked every now and then that someone has it readily available.  Once I do get a copy, they rarely let me down with good information and a solid plan of operation.  But then, there is actual execution of the plan that seems to be taken from a screen play for some kind of drama.   So, where did things get off course?

There is a trend in small business that owners follow that is surprisingly bad for business.  They get used to having a certain paycheck, they try to cut back, and then they slide like they are on a 45 degree angle on hard-packed snow.  Sorry Gordon Gekko, but greed is bad.  (I couldn’t resist a movie reference).

Usually the Business Plan has a system for handling all the chores at the business.  From the simple to the tactical, they have people to get things done and the operation is good.  What happens is someone tells them they need to cut back on salaries and drop more money to the bottom line quickly.  This is step one to making a mess of things.

Once you lose the team that was going to bring in that first million dollars, you start to slide.   There are people to help you - if you are willing to pay them for their help.  If you slide too far, though, those good people are not going to want to help.  It is the law of diminishing returns - too much effort for too little reward.

Just to contrast things on a bigger scale (much bigger), what are all these companies who have laid off thousands and thousands of workers going to have to pay to get the right people to come back and clean up the mess from the tired few who got to keep their jobs?  Let’s just say it is going to be a shock to the spreadsheet.

I am the first person to tell you that you need to watch the checkbook and save where you can.  This is mostly a caution for someone who may feel like a big spender and want to show off.  Those types of people will lose anyway, but I tell them none the less.  The difference between being cautious and being cutthroat is the cautious person will be in business where the cutthroat person is having a fire sale after their first down quarter.

You may have noticed that I haven’t talked about the jobs that need to be performed and have focused on the people.  Recent trends in the hiring process of small businesses and the downsizing in bigger companies anyone can see the drain that is going to empty the business world any day now and how detrimental it is going to be for moving us out of this economy.

With Baby Boomers on the cusp of retirement, there was going to be a shift in resources anyway.  Now, the shift is going to look like a roller coaster when retirees are looked at as “too expensive to hire back” and “too valuable to leave on the market”.  This is a great time to bring in these well qualified people who can build your business like you wrote in your Business Plan.

Here’s the catch - you have to make them part of the plan, the business, and the profits.  Don’t just hire in talent, hire in “partners” who can help you grow your business.  Those people who are shocked and can’t imagine having a partner, you need to stop and think about this a little longer.  If you have a manager, you essentially have a partner. 

You need to bring in the talent you wrote about in your plan and reward them enough to give them a reason to join and a reason to stay. Bringing in someone who can compliment your talents is a wonderful way of helping someone and helping yourself.

Bulldog Rule #5 - Every business is a people business

The reason for the Business Plan is to give you a goal for getting into business.  You looked for the right tools and the right talent to get things going.  Now is a great time to grab the talent to fill the holes that cutting back caused (either by you or by another business).  Dust off your Business Plan and start changing the parts that need updating and start dreaming again.

If you could get sales in _______market, you would increase your bottom line by $_______.

OK, now fill in the blanks and start looking for the talent to get you into where you want to be.  The right people are out there and ready to work with you. Make them a part of the revised for 2009 Business Plan.

Bgriffin@businessbulldog.com

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20. February 2009 by The Original Bulldog - Bob Griffin.

There is a view in the business world that you need to always keep your guard up because customers are going to steal from you if you give them the chance.  I think this is garbage.  Why would I, a guy who has seen the worst situations from armed robbery to flat out theft, be saying customers are not going to steal?  Mostly, I know better than to paint a picture with one big brush.
Can you honestly tell me that most of your customers are thieves?  I hope not.  What a bleary, dark and dreary world you must live in to have that view of people.
There valid reasons for thinking this way.

It could be your location.  Some places are not good for business and soon there is no business worth owning there.

It could be your micromanagement threshold is set too high.  Many underfunded new owners have a fear of losing that puts them on the edge of rational thought.

I think if you spend any time watching the local news you are going to have warped view of your area and are going to approach things from the wrong angle.

Small business management consulting gives me the opportunity to travel the country and see first-hand the people who frequent stores and how they are.  I ask customers questions when I want to know about a store (sorry, but owners do not know why a customer visited better than the customer himself).  Customers, by and large, are good.  I should highlight that again –

Customers are good people!!

OK, now that I have most business owners sending me mean emails, let me clarify my remarks.  Customers are good – some people aren’t.
I had a great mentor when I started consulting.  He was a rough-around-the-edges kind of a guy, but he threw some gems on the table when he wanted you to think about a situation.  He said,
“Customers will ask for more than you have on the shelf.  It will drive you crazy trying to please every customer.  Remember, though, not every person who walks in your store is a customer.”
I think about that when a person starts to raise their voice instead of asking like every other person in the store does.  The “non-customers” have a tendency to be loud, rude, and threatening.  They are easy to spot and just as easy to get rid of.  You do not want to spend any more time than you have to trying to please them, get them to settle down, or trying to make the problem go away.  You need to make the person go away and have them understand that you do not want them back.
In a time when you are scratching to get any customer, it may seem backwards logic to send someone away, but they weren’t going to buy anything. They were only going to disrupt your business and give you heartburn.

THE 2% RULE

We call this law of business the 2% rule.  In the entire world, there is only 2% of the population that is looking to steal from you.  That means that 98% of people are good, law-abiding citizens who want to follow the rules of commerce and buy what they need.  Which group are you going to want to spend most of your time thinking about and working with?
Be cautious when you operate your business.  Be aware of everyone who enters your store.  You need to plan for your employee’s safety and your own safety when you are operating your store.  Just don’t spend all your time thinking about theft.
It may seem sometimes that you have nothing but “2%’ers” walking into your store and you may be right.  Thieves do run in gangs and will call each other when there is a store that they feel they can overwhelm and take from.  This is a great reason to talk with your neighbors and let them know what you observe.  It works the same way old neighborhoods did.  Everyone knew what was going on and were able to handle the situation before it got out of hand.
Be focused on the good stuff (real customers) and plan for the rough spots (2%’ers) and you will have a smile back a lot fewer grey hairs.

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19. February 2009 by The Original Bulldog - Bob Griffin.

We are facing a tough time with people losing jobs and with the economy a long way from turning around. So, what do you do for your employees when they look to you for more?

Employees are scared you make close the business, but still are looking for more from you - either in pay or in incentives. It is human nature to want more. Don’t hold it against them. It has nothing to do with greed. If you have been honest about how your business is doing financially, they are going to understand the burden you have.

So, what can you do for your employees to help them and give them more than they already have? Just hit the subject head-on, you are not going to pay them more. The dollars are just not there. This, however, is a time when you can help them grow personally and professionally by providing information, resources, and the time to explore ways to build skills and knowledge.

When I was running stores as a Manager, I would get in a few minutes early to stretch out and get my body ready for the pounding of a full day on hard floors and give myself the right frame of mind to be excited for the customers. One of my employees came in early and asked me about it (laughingly at first). I mentioned how I felt better after stretching and how I had a better day when I took 15 minutes to do it. It wasn’t long after that I had most of my team in early stretching. It was amazing how it changed them.

Physically getting better is one of the best ways to add value to your employee’s lives.

Another way to help them is to find resources they can use to improve their minds. Many times there are free events or classes through the local public schools or colleges that are not well advertised, but are full of great information. Find the websites and print the calendar.

The Chamber of Commerce in your city is also a wonderful place to get information. You can use the list of companies from the Chamber as a reference and see if any of them would be interested in swapping information. A likely swap would be a financial planner talking to your team about budgeting and planning for the future. That company may get more clients and your employees have useful information.

Check out the U.S. Chamber of Commerce for your local chapter

Think out of the box a little and you can bring value to what you give your employees. Be proactive about their well being and they will build loyalty to you and your business.

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13. February 2009 by The Original Bulldog - Bob Griffin.

Why can’t anyone sell me something?  I visit businesses every day and so far the only place that I have been asked to buy something was at the video store. The kid behind the counter said, “You know what will go well with that movie? Popcorn and we have it on sale. ”It was conversational and it wasn’t until I paid and left that it hit me. I was actually sold something. Once I realized it, I started counting the places I visited that sold me something. Where someone would actually talk with me about a product and how I should buy it. I am still looking for that next place. (On a side note, I have not been shopping for a car lately).

Do managers not understand that their bonus is attached to the amount of sales that flow through the register? I have seen it more times than I can mention here how the employees of a store (manager included) just go through the paces of operating a store and don’t grab every dollar they can. Is it a change in the way business is done these days? I can’t imagine that anyone would want to leave the amount of a sale to chance. Even the table games in Vegas have the dealer ask you to place your bets. Nothing left to chance there. So what is wrong with the way most small businesses are being operated?

Ultimately, it is the owner’s fault. Yes, I am going right to the source and holding a mirror in front of the owner. As a small business consultant if I can shine a light on the store owner’s situation maybe they will change what they are doing.

Why isn’t anyone selling anything? I have heard it all.

“I can’t find good people to work here. “

“The employees won’t work harder than they have to.”

“No one sells more than me.  The employees can’t do what I do.” – Personal favorite

All of these statements are a reflection of a lack of training/ coaching programs. Start at the beginning. When you were thinking about owning a store, did you think about how the employees were going to treat customers, what they were going to do to sell your products, and how much you would earn? Of course you did. It’s the “Business Utopia” effect that got you into business in the first place. So, you started your business, you ran it well, and then….what happened?
There are a couple of things that crop up once you get your store going.

• You realized that you do not train people well.
• You realized that you do not know HOW to train people.
• You did not set expectations with your employees from day one.
• You hired the wrong people.

Anyone can manage a store (if they care to). The hardest part of business is selling products and services. Money and keeping it rolling in is the only reason that matters in business. Call me a Capitalist, but it is true. No matter how noble you are, no one gets into business to just give people jobs.

So, where do you start?

If you are your own best salesperson, you are ahead of the game. Congratulations! You know what works. The idea is to clone what works and get more people to do what you do. Start by writing down what you do to get a good sale. From the time a customer walks into the store until they leave with a receipt. Make it logical, legible, and easy to tell someone else like you were telling a story.
Too often an owner will post a script at the register and leave it to the employees to read it to the customers. Not only does that no work, but it actually hurts your business. It is degrading to a worker to read a script to a customer. Hire for talent, give them direction, and then get out of the way.

Talented people find their own words and ways to make sales. They just need to know that getting bigger and bigger sales are part of the job.

Get the training started this way:

• Before the customer gets to the store get ready. That includes looking like a place that people want to spend money.

The video store has the crew wear T-shorts that have the latest movie for rent on it and poster around the front doors.  The message is clear – BUY THIS!

• Let the crew know what to say about the products. Give them a list of statements and questions they can use to talk with customers about adding items to their sale.
• “Have you tried, seen, heard about..?”
• “This is nice…”
• “If you ever needed a …we have it.”
• Have the crew demonstrate the product or service in the store.
• There is a large group of customers unaccustomed to change and want to know that they can ask someone questions to feel more secure BEFORE buying.

Training (and re-training) is the ONLY way to make big things happen in your business. Have the vision that you did when you were starting out and keep that vision of how you want the store to look, sound, and behave. Be creative, be positive, and be ready to reinforce the winning team members as they sell more.

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