Seasonal Marketing Campaigns 1: Recognize Seasonal Opportunities

This begins a series focusing on successful seasonal marketing campaigns

First, I love Christmas, not the Happy Holidays, by the celebration of Christ’s birth. I listen to Christmas Carols at times throughout the whole year, because they remind my of my Savior. Having said that, I do not like Happy Holiday displays in stores before Halloween. I do not like the fact that I cannot find a swim suit in department stores after May. I recognize the beauty of seasonal selling. I just think it spiraled out-of-control 15 years ago. I will focus, however, on recognizing and calendaring seasonal marketing campaigns for your business.

Identify Your Seasonal Opportunities

Your business will fluctuate depending on buying cycles. Every business does. Yet, many business owners fail to recognize the seasons of their business. Some seasons remain obvious.

• Professional photographers increase sales for Mother’s Day, June Weddings, High School graduations, Back-to-school, and Christmas.
• Candy stores sell well during Valentine’s day, Mother’s Day, Halloween, and Christmas. Their sales go down during the summer months from June-September.
• Sporting Good manufacturers increase production 3-4 months prior to winter sports, hunting seasons, water sports, and summer camping seasons.
• Sales and maintenance of heaters increase during Fall and Winter seasons. While sales and maintenance of Air Conditioners increase in Spring and Summer months.
• Sales for health spas and diet aids increase immediately after the Christmas holidays and before swim suit seasons
• Housing sales typically increase in the Spring and late Summer so family’s can move without disrupting school or because moving in snowy conditions is more difficult.

Other companies may be what I call counter seasons because their sales decrease in certain seasons because sales increase elsewhere. People spend their money on other purchases. The tough economic times, with associated money crunches, decrease how much people can spend.

More Information

Read the following blogs and articles to learn more:

• SCORE offers an entire series on Seasonal Sales
• Practical ecommerce shares Tips for a Successful Seasonal Marketing Campaign
• The Barefoot Executive published Seasonal Marketing for Online Business Owners

Thursday we continue our series by describing fulfilling successful seasonal campaigns

Recognize & Appreciate Employee Performance & Enhance Performance

This concludes our series on motivating your employees to perform better

Many business owners institute incentive programs that do not succeed. As we discussed earlier, factors related to generational, intrinsic, and extrinsic motivations affect how your employees will respond to incentives. Offer the wrong reward and you not only may not achieve your desired result, but destroy trust with that person. Selecting the right rewards and avoiding the pitfalls will improve your reward system.

The Carrot Principle

Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton wrote The Carrot Principle How the Best Managers Use Recognition to Engage Their People, Retain Talent, and Accelerate Performance. They outline how giving employees carrots (recognition and appreciation) motivates workers better than sticks—or worse neglect. They described the benefits and elements of recognition programs. They proved that recognition was key to transforming positive work experiences into a self-actualized workforce.

• At Carrots.com you can sign up for their free
• Esprit de Corps weekly team tips
• A Carrot a Week—52 fun recognition tips

O. C. Tanner

O. C. Tanner provides a wonderful web site for you to learn more about how to successfully appreciate employees. In addition to selling wonderful recognition items, they provide:

• Global Research
  • Towers Perrin research on Determining Worldwide Drivers of Employee Engagement and the Role Employee Recognition Plays in Contributing to It
  • Cicero Groups research on Optimizing Your Employee Recognition Program
• White papers
  • Optimizing Employee Recognition Programs
  • FIS: Aligned for Success
  • Pepsi Beverage Company: Bottling Engagement
  • Improving Staff Engagement: a practical toolkit
  • Papers delivered at Recognition Summits held from 2005-2011 
• Industry Resources
• The Relationship Between Employee Satisfaction and Hospital Patient Experiences published by the Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement
• Building a True Recognition Culture in the Workplace published by Scott Trumpbolt
• Employee Engagement Rooted in Managers Leadership Skills a study of 450 organizations conducted by the Aberdeen Group
• The Value and ROI of Employee Recognition a white paper from the Human Capital Institute (HCI)

O. C. Tanner and the people at Carrots.com can help you implement a great appreciation and recognition program within your business.

Tuesday we will share tips for seasonal marketing campaigns

Employees from Different Generations & Different Motivations

This continues our series on how to motivate your employees to better performance

Managing employees from different generations confuses and frustrates many business owners. A typical workplace may contain people from four different generations. The different generations have unique names, and unique personal and lifestyle characteristics. The following list will help you understand each generation’s outlook toward work, money, and motivation.

Veterans

• Born 1922-1945
• Influenced by the great depression and World War II
• Core Values: respect for authority, conformers, & discipline
• Traditional, nuclear families
• Considered education a dream
• Communicates one-on-one, writes memos, and used rotary phones
• Puts money away, pays cash for purchases
• No feedback “no news is good news”
• Seeks long-term jobs
• Motivated by loyalty

Baby boomers

• Born 1946-1964
• Influenced by the economic boom following WWII and the Vietnam War
• Core Values: optimism and involvement
• Disintegrating families
• Considered education a birthright
• Communicates with touch-tone phones and an attitude of call me anytime
• Buys now, pays later (high credit)
• Accepts annual or quarterly reviews
• Willing to stay at a job, but doesn’t want to be slaves to it
• Motivated by opportunities to shine, self-help books and tapes

Generation X

• Born 1965-1980
• Influenced by Space Shuttle explosion
• Core Values: skepticism, fun, informality
• Grew up as latch-key kids
• Considered education as a way to get there
• Communicates on cell phones, but asks that you only call them at work
• Extreme savers in a cautious and conservative manner
• Require frequent feedback because parents were encouraged to give praise
• See their job as a career step instead of a destination
• Motivated by flexibility, family-friendly environments, and relationships with colleagues

Generation Y (or Millennial)

• Born 1981-2000
• Influenced by 911 trade towers falling and dot com bust
• Core Values: realism, confidence, extreme fun, and socially motivated
• Grew up in merged families
• Considered education as an incredible expense
• Communicates via the Internet, picture phones, and email
• Earns money to spend it
• Requires more feedback than any generation to prepare for the next job
• Want immediate promotions
• Motivated by feedback, tools to perform, and time to play

Saturday we will review the various ways to reward your employees

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivators for Your Employees

This post explores how employees motivate themselves from within or outside themselves

I attended a national convention two weeks ago. During a problem solving session, two people at our table highlighted the same problem even though they were from different states. The problem: how to motivate employees. Motivating the workforce challenges many business owners. This post will examine motivations from within the employee and motivations outside the employee. The next post will examine motivational quirks unique to the five generations currently working in America.

People Motivate Themselves

Many studies indicate that managers, leaders, and others cannot motivate people. Studies emphasize that motivation must come from within. The University of Michigan wrote

“People who appear to be motivated in everything they do have just been successful in understanding how to motivate themselves in a variety of settings and tasks.  Two things contribute to your motivation for any task: what you expect from yourself and what value you place on achieving a goal.  The key to motivation is understanding that you have the power to change both your expectations of yourself and the value placed on a task.”

People respond to intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation comes from values and ideals within you: helping people, changing the world, and making a difference. Extrinsic motivation comes from outside: more money, vacations and trips, praise and awards from others.

Carter McNamara wrote an article on Understanding Motivation. He lists several links to other articles. You may also enjoy Steve Chandler’s book 100 Ways to Motivate Others.

Additional Scholarly Research

You may want to read some of the articles listed below:

• Mark R. Lepper, Sheena Sethi, Dania Dialdin, and Michael Drake wrote Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation: A developmental perspective
• Brent D. Russo, Kathryn H. Dekas, and Amy Wrzesniewski authored On the Meaning of Work: A theoretical integration and review
• James L. Perry published Introduction to the Symposium on Public Service Motivation Research
• Adam M. Grant researched Does Intrinsic Motivation Fuel the Prosocial Fire? Motivational Synergy in Predicting Persistence, Performance, and Productivity

Thursday we analyze what motivates Baby Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y, and Millennials

Using Subjective Criteria and Opinions in Measuring Performance

This continues our series analyzing how to measure business and employee performance

“Not everything that counts can be counted. And not everything that can be counted counts.” Albert Einstein

Previous posts discussed how to measure performance metrics, scorecards, benchmarks, and indicators. We shared the benefits and how to create them. This post will share additional opinions about adding subjective opinions to your performance evaluation process.

The Myth of Performance Metrics

Dick Grote outlines The Myth of Performance Metrics in The Harvard Business Review Blog. He calls the concept of measurable, objective assessments that require quantifiable metrics a myth. He defines a performance appraisal as "a formal record of a manager’s opinion of the quality of an employee’s work.”

He presents several points:

• “Your opinions, feelings, and judgments are what the appraisal process demands”
• “Managers must make judgments even when—or particularly when—all of the facts are not available”
• “Insisting that there must be quantifiable metrics can lead us astray in accurately evaluating performance”
• “Despite the myth that objectivity requires metrics, people generally want to know their supervisor’s opinion of their performance. They want honest answers to their most important questions”
• “Don’t get hung up trying to find quantitative metrics to support every judgment in a performance appraisal”

Neil Kokemuller added in What Is a Subjective Performance Evaluation? “A subjective performance evaluation typically relates to intangible employee qualities and is based on subjective feedback from the manager as opposed to objective, measurable feedback. Use of subjective evaluation criteria can offer employees a better overall picture of their performance, but overuse of subjective criteria does pose some risks.”

Berating Employees About Negative Aspects of Performance

Arnold Anderson published Myths About Performance Evaluation for The Chronicle of Houston. He said “employees sometimes see the annual performance evaluation as a way for management to berate them about the negative aspects of their performance.”

He lists the following myths:

• “Appraisals are not important”—they are
• “Performance appraisals are manager-employee only”—others help
• “Your appraisal determines your raise”—predetermined budgets do
• “Employee input is not considered”—employees’ views matter

Tuesday we will discuss using intrinsic and extrinsic motivation with your employees

Center for Management & Organization Effectiveness

This continues a series of posts dealing with measuring the performance in your business

The Center for Management & Organization Effectiveness (CMOE) provides another resource you can use to research how to improve the business. The center includes experts from around the world who specialize on managing more effectively.”

Scoring Employee Performance

Dr. Richard Williams wrote an article for the Center for Management & Organization Effectiveness titled Scoring Employee Performance is Better Than the Annual Performance Appraisal. He wrote:

“When performance is measured, performance improves; when performance is measured and reported back, the rate of improvement accelerates.” –Thomas S. Monson

While working in the publishing industry Thomas S. Monson discovered that when workers were kept in the dark about their job performance they frequently became average performers, and for some workers less than average. But when workers were provided timely, relevant, and easy to understand information about their performance, many became superior performers.”

He asks you if you want an employee who “merely ‘meets expectations’ or one who smashes beyond ‘meets’ and consistently hits home runs.” He points out that “we measure something to see if it is wrong. We keep a scorecard to track what is correct."

Creating a Scorecard System

Dr. Williams outlines 10 characteristics essential to a “report back” system:

• "The employee must have psychological ownerships of his or her scorecard”
• “Scorecards must be based on specific measurable results”
• “Scorecards must be posted near the employee’s work area”
• “Scorecards must be updated by the employee every day, or at least every month”
• “Scorecards must include an agreed upon performance line”
• “Scorecards must include an agreed upon goal line”
• “Scorecards must include a way for the employee to compare his or her performance against past performance”
• “When a scorecard shows performance below a performance line, an action plan must be connected to the scorecard”
• “The employee’s coach must pay attention to scorecards and give daily, or at least weekly feedback and coaching”
• “The employee must feel a sense of celebration when his or her scorecard performance exceeds the goal”

Saturday we’ll discuss Dick Grote’s article criticizing performance measurement

Benchmark Business Results: Key Performance Indicators (KPI) Library

Identify your key performance indicators and compare them to benchmarks with others

Businesses grow by improving performance to certain key measurements related to the business. Businesses compete by performing and improving better than industry standards. The KPI Library provides tools and data that allows you to create your own measurements, track the information, or compare your progress with benchmarked performance with industry standards.

Establishing Performance Measurements and Benchmarks

You determine the measurements that will lead to the greatest improvement in your business. We frequently refer to these measurements as indicators or metrics.

You may set some Key Indicators that measure the most important or bottom line performance of your company:

• Total profits
• Total revenues
• Total expenses
• Total production numbers
• Total sales numbers

Process indicators measure the steps or actions that contribute to achieving the key indicators:

• Number of pieces that pass a quality inspection and the number that fail
• Number of clients called or visited with the number that heard a full presentation
• Amount of raw material consumed during the production process
• Number of days between receiving an account receivable and  deposit into the bank

KPI Library One Tool in Many

KPI stands for Key Performance Indicators. KPI can help you generate both very simple and complex measurements or metrics. They also offer a lot of articles and blogs that can help you. KPI provides you tools to

• Create scorecards for each of the metrics you want to measure
• Browse key performance indicators by industry, by process, and by the framework
• Additional metrics added by other companies, industry, or more
• Ask questions or answer questions from other people
• Survey others to identify benchmarks within the industry, framework, or process
• Learn from experts on key performance indicators’ blogs

The video below will help you understand more about the KPI Library.

KPI provides you a free trial for 30 days. The cost for small organizations is $149 per month. KPI adjust pricing for large organizations depending on services requested.

Check the KPI Library at www.KPILibrary.com or another program like BizStats.

Thursday we introduce you to the Center for Management & Organization Effectiveness

Covey’s Speed of Trust 10: 2nd Wave—Relationship Trust

We continue our series reviewing Stephen M. R. Covey’s book The Speed of Trust. I encourage you to buy the book and study it multiple times.

Once you establish or reestablish self-trust (trusting yourself and others trusting you), you move to the second wave of trust: relationship trust. Covey writes “The Second Wave—Relationship Trust—is all about behavior…consistent behavior. It’s about learning how to interact with others in ways that increase trust and avoid interacting in ways that destroy it.”

Relationship Trust

Covey continues “More specifically, it’s about the 13 Behaviors that are common to high-trust leaders and people throughout the world. These behaviors are powerful because:

• They are based on principles that govern trusting relationships…
• They grow out of the 4 cores…
• They are actionable…
• They are universal…”

The author highlights the need to “If you’re not a caring person now—but you desire to be a caring person—then go out and behave in caring ways. If you’re not an honest person—but you desire to be honest—then go out and behave in honest ways. Just do what caring and honest people do. It may take time, but as you do these things, you can behave yourself into the kind of person you want to be.

Build Trust Accounts

Once again I quote Covey “As you work on behaving in ways that build trust, one helpful way to visualize and quantify your efforts is by thinking in terms of “Trust Accounts.”…By behaving in ways that build trust, you make deposits. By behaving in ways that destroy trust, you make withdrawals. The “balance” in the account reflects the amount of trust in the relationship at any given time.

The 13 Behaviors

He says '”I can promise you that these 13 Behaviors will significantly enhance your ability to establish trust in all relationships—both personal and professional:

1. Talk Straight
2. Demonstrate Respect
3. Create Transparency
4. Right Wrongs
5. Show Loyalty
6. Deliver Results
7. Get Better
8. Confront Reality
9. Clarify Expectations
10. Practice Accountability
11. Listen First
12. Keep Commitments
13. Extend Trust

We’ll review the behaviors in the next few posts.

Wednesday focuses on 2 behaviors of relationship trust—talk straight & demonstrate respect

Business Success 6: Two College Students Managing Learning Better

Another story highlighting a business success to inspire you with your business

John E. Richards, an angel partner, describes four types of entrepreneurships: 1) small-businesses to provide for a family, 2) scalable businesses with huge growth and quick exit, 3) large-businesses to build wealth, and 4) social entrepreneurship. He highlights that most venture capitalists invest in scalable businesses rather than the other three.

The Story of Instructure

I share the story from Brian Whitmer’s 2010 blog The Story of Instructure. He and Devlin Daley received an assignment in a master’s class at Brigham Young University to create a business idea and plan, and pitch it to a hypothetical group of investors.

They saw a weakness in the learning management system (LMS) currently used by their university. They served as teaching assistant’s and felt both confusion and frustration with the current LMS. They

• Identified that no company was driving innovation in the LMS market
• Generated ideas for how online learning could be improved
• Studied the size of the market and how contracts were signed
• Discovered why innovation stagnated
• Outlined the broken features of the main competitors and ideas to fix them
• Prepared a presentation to gather information from potential clients
• Surveyed 18 major and minor universities to gather feedback about their ideas
• Took exhaustive notes from each presentation, then reworked it based on feedback
• Found an angel investor who liked the ideas and gave startup funding
• AFTER ALL THIS, they started writing code based on the multiple ideas from their potential clients

As a result, Instructure has became a dominant player in learning management systems (LMS). 

Model of Lean and Pivot Business Development

Instructure demonstrates the principals of lean and pivot development:

• Create a business idea
• Present your idea to potential clients
• Pivot the idea based on their feedback
• Present the modified idea to the same and other potential clients
• Pivot again based on their feedback
• Continue the process until most accept the idea
• Only then do you begin actual development (that’s lean)

Monday we highlight how you can use KPI Marketing to compare your benchmarks to others

Business Success 5: Two Sisters Put Stamp on $220 Million Enterprise

Another success story of determination, persistence & great timing to inspire you

Some businesses grow because of a brilliant business idea. Others grow through the determination and persistence of the owner. Many move a good idea at the right time. The sisters Shelli Gardner and LaVonne Crosby combined all of the above with a good entrepreneurial spirit to build Stampin’ Up! into a $220 million enterprise. Here is a little bit of their story. You can read the entire story by Gary Toushek.

Turning a Hobby into an Income

Sisters Shelli Gardner and LaVonne Crosby were young mothers trying to raise their families and augment their family’s income. They sold Tupperware and other multi-level products and services. They liked the idea of rubber stamps when introduced. It gave them an artistic capability when neither one could draw.

As scrapbooking and rubber stamping captured the interest of thousands of women around the country, they saw an opportunity. So, in 1988 they

• Studied the business models for Tupperware, Discovery toys and Mary Kay to sell stamps
• Established the goal to provide high-quality, wide-variety of rubber stamps and accessories
• Invested their family savings to start Stampin’ Up!
• Licensed with major rubber stamp firms to sell those company’s stamps
• Printed a 64-page catalog of stamps
• Recruited women to demonstrate the product and finalize the sales
• Allowed each demonstrator to participate as they wanted
• Designed and manufactured their own stamps in 1992
• Stopped selling other manufacturer’s stamps in 1997
• LaVonne Crosby left the business to be a full-time mother in 1998
• Ernst & Young named Shelli Gardner Entrepreneur of the Year in 1999

What We Can Learn from the Sisters

A review of what Shelli and LaVonne did can illuminate what you can do to grow your business. The sisters

• Identified a product that interested and inspired them personally
• Researched the product thoroughly and connected with manufacturers
• Bought product wholesale and resold it at a markup
• Studied various successful businesses to identify their chosen marketing method
• Adapted the method as times changed

Saturday we examine how two college students managed learning through lean & pivot

Business Success 4: Business Turnarounds through Venture Capital

We share another story of business success involving owners of small- to mid-size business

Venture capitalists provide funding to businesses they feel will give a great return on their investment. Many business owners avoid accepting money from venture capitalists. They heard horror stories about others who were ousted from their own companies by the venture capitalists. Many business owners also share great experiences with venture capital.

Transition Specialist

Stephen fostered a business idea into a solid enterprise. He recognized that as baby boomers aged, many created companies 20-30 years earlier. Some aging entrepreneurs want to retire, but do not have successors for the enterprise. They care about their business and want to transition to new owners that will care for their employees and maintain the reputation they worked so hard to establish.

Stephen helps these baby boomer entrepreneurs transition their companies to acceptable new ownership teams. He:

• Helps the current owner clarify what they want for the future of the company
• Identifies a new executive team to take over and eventually buy the company
• Ensures the new management team meets the owner’s expectations
• Purchases the company and installs the approved management team
• Provides the capital for the future owners to purchase the company
• Stays involved in the growth and development of the company for 5-10 years
• Allows the new owners to buy his share of the company or sell it for a profit

Benefits of Transitioning

His clients include trucking, petroleum, utility, and other kinds of companies. Stephen helps them

• Extend the life of the babies
• Calm anxiety about the future of the business
• Instill confidence in the new management team
• Helps the new managers grow the business to 5-10 times their original size
• Create jobs for hundreds of people

Potential for Great Good

Millions of baby boomers will reach retirement age in the next ten years. Hundreds of thousands started successful businesses. If Stephen transitions even a small fraction of their businesses to greater growth and profits, he could generate thousands of jobs.

Thursday we will highlight a woman who took a small craft business to a family enterprise

Business Success 3: Converted from Construction Worker to Handyperson

This continues our series on small-business successes to inspire you to achieve success

The plummeting economy, housing prices, and construction jobs affected millions of Americans since August 2008. Thousands of general and sub-contractors closed their doors. Hundreds of thousands of construction workers found their hours, salaries, and livelihoods disappeared in months. I want to share the story of John, a construction worker, who reframed his career by starting a handyman business.

Preparation Before the Recession

John began his construction career with a goal to become a general contractor. His insatiable curiosity yearned for practical learning. He set out to learn all the different trades in construction. He worked as a roofer, framer, finish carpenter, electrician’s helper, insulator, and duct worker. His versatility kept him busy. Many subs took this young dynamo under their wing and mentored him.

He supervised a crew of framers on high-end residential construction when the housing bubble burst. He went from working 50-60 hours a week to 10-15. He needed the hours. He needed the money.

Starting His Own Business

John quickly realized that he would have to do something different to provide for his family. He also recognized his most marketable skills dealt with construction. Within two months of the onset of the recession, John decided to start a handyman’s business. He took several steps to get his business going. He

• Found a seasoned, skilled handyman that agreed to apprentice him
• Listed ads on Craig’s List and a local TV web site that carried advertisements
• Built the business around 3 main clients that needed his help every week
• Gave extraordinary service that caused his clients to tell their friends
• Solicited referrals from friends, family, clients, and former bosses
• Estimated when past clients would need new work done and contacted them

The business struggled in early 2009, but began to flourish toward the end of the year. John has had plenty of work for two years. He earns more money than he did working construction, works fewer hours, and has more freedom.

Monday we share a woman who grew a small handicraft business into a family enterprise

Business Success 2: Strengthens Struggling Retail Stores

I hope you find these stories of success inspiring you to improve your own business

Ralph worked as the marketing and sales VP for a national specialty retail chain. He worked hard to help his chain move forward in a very competitive market. He created excellent marketing strategies, campaigns, and materials. The stores that followed his lead progressed and increased sales. Unfortunately, too many franchise owners continued with old school marketing. They did not progress as well. In fact, many of them lost ground and market niche. So, Ralph took a bold move. He bought a losing franchise in Las Vegas just after the bottom dropped out of the market.

Implement Good Management & Marketing

Ralph bought a store that sold very high end housing accessories two years after the housing boom dropped. Las Vegas received the brunt on the recession. Housing costs plummeted leaving so many home owners upside down. In addition, high salaries dropped and unemployment rose.

It seemed a crazy time to buy an expensive household items franchise. Yet, Ralph had faith in his marketing plans and strategies. He knew that if he implemented them his store would succeed. So, he followed his own advice, he:

• Advertised in the best home and society magazines
• Targeted mailers to selected zip codes with appropriate income levels
• Used mystery shoppers to test and improve client service
• Let potential clients take product home to test for several days
• Encouraged customers to spend time in the store trying out chairs and mattresses

Results of the Changes

Within six months of taking over a declining store,

• Ralph turned it into one of the top stores in a 116 franchise chain
• Increased sales revenues 10 times over previous sales
• Decreased overhead by 20%
• Improved walk-in traffic by 75%

What You Can Learn

• Reject the perceived negativism of scarcity or loss
• Accept the ability to learn new skills and improve your performance
• Learn from others who know more than you
• Implement the best practices you can find
• Do what works for you

Saturday we will share another success story of a scalable startup doing well

Business Success 1: Grew the Business Focusing on Clients

I like to share stories of business success to inspire your success

Focusing on your clients can generate more business. You know that. Sometimes, however, you may struggle to find new or better ways to create more contacts with clients. Let me share the story of a heating and air conditioning company that found several ideas by networking with several other businesses through Bryan Waldon Pope’s Marketing Success Institute. He presented ideas. They gave him feedback. He took the ideas to the owners. The company implemented some of them.

Client Retention Ideas

We’ll call the marketing director for a local heating and air company Chris. Chris meets once a month with several other business owners or marketing chiefs. Each one presents a marketing idea or challenge. The group listens and gives feedback. They become, what Bryan Waldon Pope calls, one another’s marketing team.

Chris presented several ideas to the group over the year. They included:

• Technicians leaving “personal service” cards to connect with clients
• Technicians  up-selling service contracts at discount prices
• Coupon books with free furnace services and discounts
• Calling past clients offering preventative maintenance
• Bringing free filters to clients who call for service calls during slow times
• and twenty other marketing ideas

Results from the Ideas

Chris reports that several of the ideas increased revenues. For example:

• Service calls increased by 18% over a 3 month periods
• Preventative maintenance contracts generated $60,000+
• New furnace and air conditioner sales increased by 16%

Rules of Mastermind Groups

Participating in mastermind groups can grow your business. Some organizations will help you establish a mastermind group as part of their membership benefits. A mastermind group consists of 5-6 (Chris’ group through Marketing Success Institute consists of 10-12 people, but they meet from 9-12:30). Most groups follow a simple agenda. Each person:

• Restates goals they are working on
• Reports action taken to achieve the goal
• Asks for ideas, suggestions, & feedback on an idea, problem, or challenge
• Lists action to take before the next meeting
• Places documents, questions, or feedback on collaboration sites

Thursday we share another story describing a business success