27. March 2009 by Bob Griffin.

I managed a dry cleaners during college to help pay the bills. Not an enviable job, but finding a decent job when there are thousands of other students looking for work isn’t easy. I considered myself lucky just to have the job.

It was a back-to-basics customer service kind of work. There were six or seven other dry cleaners on the same road, so being the service leader was vital to staying in business (and keeping my job). I would get to know each customer and have their clothes ready when they pulled up.

One night I was called by the owner. He told me there had been a fire and the entire store burned down. This was a real nightmare. You only bring your best clothes to the dry cleaners and now they were burned or smoke damaged - definitely not very clean.

The owner, not being the brave one, gave me the job of calling all of the customers and letting them know we lost their good clothes to a fire. I had to get the price they paid for the clothes to give to the insurance company and other information so they could be paid for their loss. On top of that, I had to sit outside the burned ruins of the business and talk with the customers who drove to the store to talk. This was a perfect time to use some of those crisis management skills I had learned.

Overall, customers were supportive. I had spent the prior year getting to know them, their families, and the story behind a lot of the stains on their clothes. I had a ready question about their family, work, or vacation when they visited to drop off or pick up clothes, so letting them know how sorry I was that we burned their nice clothes was made easier because they also knew me.

There were customers who were not so nice. I still vividly recall those people in my mind. The screams of, “How dare you burn my clothes!” and “What are you going to do about this!” were ringing in my ears for weeks after the accident.

Once the insurance company paid the claim was when things really got moving rebuilding the store.

Think about that for a second. We were going to get back into the same business where just months earlier we had lost all of our customer’s clothes. A business that was out of business and sent customers to our competitors. How in the world was I going to attract customers back and keep them after an accident like this?

I gave them BBQ!

Bulldog Rule # 7 - Remember to dream about where your business can go and then make it happen

When it came time to reopen the store, I wanted to take some of  mystery out of dry cleaning. After all, how do you clean something without getting it wet? I also gave the customers a chance to look around the sparkling clean, new store. I sent invitations to our “Re-Grand Opening” and made it look like a party.  We had music playing, toys for the kids, and BBQ sandwiches to eat. I decorated the outside of the store with balloons and streamers and made a sign to hold at the street.

Now, I want to mention the BBQ sandwiches again.  This was my moment of genius. Since customers are always worried that stains on their clothes would not come out, I made sure to feed them something that was guaranteed to cause stains. Once they dripped that tasty BBQ sauce on their shirt, I would bring them back to the new machines that would remove the stains and show them how it worked. If it was possible, I would use some of the cleaning fluid and remove the stain while they were still wearing the shirt. On top of that, I gave them a coupon with a steep discount to use on their next visit.

Customers came back because they could see how nice the store was and that we truly wanted them to come back. I re-instituted  the customer service that we were known for and customers even brought new customers.

In the end, a fire made things look overwhelmingly dire, but taking advantage of the good customer service I had provided along with a plan to transparent business model gave us a chance to come back stronger than before. A year later, other dry cleaners on that same street started to close. We had taken too many of their customers to keep them going.

If you think like a Business Bulldog, there is always a chance to bring your best efforts. You just have to want it, plan for it, and make it happen.

Posted in Marketing, Customer Service, Being the Boss | Print | 108 Comments »

25. March 2009 by Noel Guilford.

A successful marketing campaign isn’t as complicated as some might believe. It really just takes a little homework, creativity and guts most of all. Try to view marketing as the best way to communicate with your customers. No marketing, no communication. Bad marketing, bad communication! I have seen more money wasted on marketing than in any other part of a business. It is the black hole that many businesses with good intentions fall into daily.

Most small business owners have realized that there is no magic wand to wave when it comes to marketing. Much of it will be trial and error until the right combination of tools for each market can be identified and utilized. As much as I or anyone would like to be able to give you all the answers on what will work for you, it simply doesn’t exist. What I can offer is a few tips to consider when making your decision.

                               11 Keys to Marketing Basics

1. If you are not sure what to do with your marketing dollars stop and ask someone who does.                                        

The money spent speaking with someone familiar with your market and your demographic could save you valuable resources. It is well worth the investment.

2. If there simply isn’t any money to market you won’t be in business long

Marketing is a necessity few businesses can survive without it

3. Excellent marketing falls short in the face of bad operations

Without solid operations to support a strong marketing plan, many of the customers gained will be lost.

4. Never start a marketing campaign that you can’t stop

Remain in control of your promotions at all times. Use phrases like “limited time only” to allow you to pull the marketing at your discretion.

5. Aggressive incentives aren’t always the best road to take

When going aggressive, make sure that there are other products and services that interest the customer. Being less expensive will work till someone else is cheaper.

6. If it’s not new it better look new, sound new, or taste new

No need to remake the wheel, but you might need to shine it up every once and a while.

7. Know what your customers want and market to your demographic

Don’t waste time and money. Focus your efforts on what your customers want and deliver the message where those customers can see it.

8. Give it some time before you move on

Before any marketing campaign can be judged a failure or success there needs to be an appropriate time in which to evaluate the program. Start with a 90 day commitment.

9. Be willing to negotiate

The first time using a marketing vehicle is a great opportunity to negotiate an introductory   rate, so take it. Or maybe the last time you used it the response was unsatisfactory, now is a good time to negotiate a better rate so they can keep your business.

10. The only way to gauge your marketing success is with detailed records

How many responses to your marketing program did your receive daily, weekly, monthly. How many were new customers, existing customers, or return customers. This is just a portion of the information needed to judge your marketing plan.

11. Always know what and where your competition is marketing

Never miss an opportunity to size up the competition and the types of marketing they are using. This will save you lots of foot work. They have already pinpointed what types of marketing reach the customers that you share.  

Posted in Marketing, Being the Boss, Saving Money, Making Money | Print | 68 Comments »

21. March 2009 by Bob Griffin.

There is one thing that I hear more often than I care to from owners because the problem and the answer are right in front of them. They say, “I can’t find good people to hire.” This is frustrating because they have the right tools, but because they hired poorly from the start no one who could help them would want to help them.

Bulldog Rule # 14 - The right people never want to work with the wrong people

You may think your business is a great place to work, but if you are having a tough time finding quality workers, you may want to take a good look at the group dynamics of your store.

I am not saying that you can ignore the obvious areas of salary, compensation, or required perks of the job. If you are not up to industry standards then forget finding the person you need. Even if you do luck out and find someone who meets your needs, they will be gone like the wind when they find a better fit for their career.

Look at the group you have representing your company and find your weak link or links. I was managing a store years ago and was given the ability to hire anyone I needed. I had an eclectic group of people, but they got along and helped build a strong base of customers. It is not always about having a person with a strong resume on staff, but also about how well they interact with the rest of the staff and the customers.

I had to add a person that my boss hired to my payroll. He had great skills and a great big ego to match. My boss let me know that this guy was a great salesman and would have my profits jumping higher and higher. What actually happened was he ran away my good employees and when I had to hire people to fill roles instead of having the right people on staff, I lost sales. This guy left when he had enough bruises to his ego. Then I rebuilt my team.

It may be tough to see the people on staff who are keeping great people from joining the team. I had the opportunity to work with a team one time that functioned well and got along, but the ones who had the answers would not help anyone else. They were afraid that by letting anyone know how to do a job they were going to be replaced. When these people had to be out of the office for a few days was when the walls came tumbling down. Too bad since it also drove the company down.

I had always asked, “Why should I hire you?” when I was interviewing someone. Turning that statement around the interviewee can ask, “Why should I work here?” If you can’t talk about the culture of your organization in the first few sentences then you don’t have a good atmosphere to work in.

You should have a good mix of people on staff and yes, they will not always get along. The red flag you need to look for is when you have people who are driving the rest of the team crazy.

Do not confuse a problem with a person. If you have a product or service that does not work and a good person in charge of that product, do not cut that person from payroll.

The best advice I can offer is to let the team help you hire. That way you get the best feedback on the person and you have the team to help welcome the person into the business. If the person is wrong for the job, you can go back to the team and look for feedback on where things went wrong.

In the end, do not look for a team that looks the same, acts the same, or has all the same goals. The best teams (and the places that everyone want to work) have a good mix of backgrounds, skills, and talents and are focused on new and better ways of building a better company.

Posted in Hiring Process, Creating the Culture, Being the Boss, Training | Print | 65 Comments »

20. March 2009 by Bob Griffin.

When is the last time that you got a heart-felt “Thank You” or “I love this place!” from a customer?

It is amazing that most businesses, big and small, are not laser-focused on getting customer compliments.  There should be a section of every store dedicated to posting customer compliments.  Everyone in the store should know who gave the compliment and why it was given.  It should be in the budget to get compliments.

So how hard is it?  It depends on how you approach your business and what influences a compliment in the first place.

Let’s spin it around and look at the opposite of working to get compliments:

• It is easier to lose a customer
• It is easier to just do the job
• It is easier to spend money on advertising
• It is easier to work to not get complaints

When you think about exceptional customer service you should have the three parts of the business in mind - the invitation, the presentation, and the follow up. 

A big part of the invitation should be word-of-mouth advertising. Compliments bring this type of marketing. The presentation can be lost in trying to help customers too fast without listening to them.  The follow up is the part where the feedback is the strongest. This feedback can either be a compliment or a complaint. If you do not get any feedback just add that customer to the complaint pile.

Do you make it hard to get a compliment?  There are many subtle ways of keeping customers from giving you a compliment.  The biggest way is to stop asking them how they like your  products or service.  If a customer buys and leaves the store and no one asks the customer how they like your service they are going to go somewhere else next time.  There are plenty of businesses that don’t listen to the customers. Those stores are usually empty soon after opening for business and leave a stunned owner wondering where the customers went.

The sloppiest way to get a compliment is the latest trend - the survey on the receipt. I almost never call the number or enter information online and I am a consultant for small businesses. This approach lacks the personal touch that customers are looking for. Remember Bulldog Rule # 5 - “Every business is a people business“. Removing the human element to the feedback is rude. Do not do this. It is a waste of time and money and it tells your customers you do not care. If you called five new customers and asked how they liked the service you would have more repeat customers.

There are companies that have a toll free number the customer can call and talk with a live person. This is a little better since there is the human element.  Make sure the person answering is the person you want to talk with your customers - whether it is a compliment or a complaint. Have a system to follow up with the customer within a couple of days. Letting feedback grow old is another sign of not caring what the customer has to say.

The best way is to ask the customer as they are in the middle of the process of spending money with you and after the transaction is done. You should be prepared to take notes and follow up with the customer. There is no better way to let a customer know they are wanted than to ask for feedback and be honestly interested in what they have to say.

I mentioned posting the compliments earlier in this article. This is not optional. It should be part of your business culture. If you do not reinforce your employees efforts for a job done well, then you let them know that mediocre work is the norm and that is exactly what they will give you.

In closing I want to mention Bulldog Rule # 7 - “Remember to dream about where your business can go and then make it happen“. What would your business be like if you had employees working to get compliments every time they helped a customer? The only thing keeping that from happening is you.

Posted in Customer Service, Creating the Culture, Training | Print | 87 Comments »

19. March 2009 by Noel Guilford.

The best advice I or anyone could give when it comes to running a business is to take it personally. Seriously, no one is more responsible for the success or failure of a business than its owner. From the moment the open sign lights up for the first time the performance of that business is a direct reflection on the owner.

For you to think that customers blame the frontline employees or their supervisors is an open invitation for the customers to do business with your competition. You need to take t they say personally. As difficult as it is to build and maintain a good reputation, it is even more so to change a tarnished reputation.

It is impossible to directly oversee each and every cog that turns a machine. The main objective is to ensure that all those cogs spin and they all work in tandem with each other. This is part of training the right people the right way and holding them to your standards of operation.                                                        

                                                Bulldog Rules for Business

                                    # 3 - Hire the right people to do the job                                 

                               # 4 - Train and then keep training your employees

For analogy sake let’s say the cogs of a business are the different aspects that run it.

• Marketing 
• Customer Service  
• Image  
• Training  
• Human Resources  
• Quality of Products and Services 

Place these and several other key elements of business together and you get profit right? Well, not necessarily. I’ve worked with businesses where you could almost hear the gears grinding and you can see that the business is breaking down. The only person taking it personally at that point is the customer, which is not enough to grease the gears and get things moving.  

One of the most inefficient uses of time is possessed by the Micro-Manager. Taking it personally is exactly what the Micro-Manager does - just in excess. If you can fault the micro-manager for anything it won’t be for lack of trying. So I warn anyone who thinks that the only way to get something done right is to do it themselves - it won’t work for long.

If someone would only inoculate everyone within an organization with a little personal pride and business ethics there would be a bottom line worth looking at. That is your job as the owner. Who better than the person with the most to gain and the most to lose? Keep one thing in mind; there are more pleasant things that roll down hill. Take every aspect of your business personally and roll something useful down that hill. 

Posted in Creating the Culture, Being the Boss, Training | Print | 75 Comments »