Author Archives: Kim Clark

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When Your Client Goes Hybrid

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You’re a Freelance consultant and well aware that continually demonstrating your value to clients, prospects and potential referral sources is an ongoing must-do. You may agree this is especially true when you recently arrive at an assignment. Your new client may throw a curve ball, maybe as a test or maybe because s/he is crazy busy. Whatever the motive, you’d better not fumble.

Increasingly, the ability to function effectively in a hybrid work environment is a competency that Freelancers and company leaders and their teams must acquire. Those of you who specialize in process improvement might even be hired to help a client institute systems and protocols designed to enable a hybrid team to operate well. Others may discover—-surprise!—-that you’ve arrived at a gig where the team is in the midst of going hybrid. Don’t be surprised to see that it will be up to you to figure out how to interact with both at-home and office-based staff and still hit your milestones and meet the deadline.

So in your back pocket it’s a good idea to have a road map to guide you through the hybrid landscape, a blueprint designed to minimize any awkwardness or missteps between the at-home and in-office crews and you. The objectives are to demonstrate your project management and political skills, produce the deliverable you’ve been hired to produce (on time and on budget) and, most of all, increase the odds of getting called back for another project. You can do it.

Martine Haas, Ph.D., professor of management and organizational behavior at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton Business School, notes that the most common challenges resulting from hybrid teams originate from what she named 5C Challenges: communication, coordination, connection, creativity and culture. You can study her 5C guideposts as you prepare to encourage hybrid team members you’ll work with to bridge the divide between working from home and working in the office. Do that and you’ll support efficiency and productivity, enhance the success of your project and lower your stress level, too.

Communication

Sometimes, a team member who should be included in an email is accidentally omitted. That little error can result in that person being unintentionally dropped from an important conversation. The error might also result in that person being excluded from an important decision. This type of unfortunate consequence is disproportionately borne by those on the WFH shift.

Freelancers might consider developing a list of primary and secondary contacts and stakeholders and making note of who is present or absent from communications and also when decisions will be made. Politically savvy and practical Freelancers take steps to ensure that all who can contribute valuable work and perspectives will participate when you need them most.

More often than in-office teams like to admit, WFH team members are also prone to be omitted from informal discussions and minor decisions made by those who are working together in the office. The problem lies somewhere between out of sight, out of mind and the logistics of bringing WFH folks into the conversation.

Connection

In addition to technological and logistical coordination, the importance of the team’s social interactions should not be minimized. It’s vital to also encourage social connections between in-office and WFH crews, although composition of each may vary depending on the day of the week. Life and work are about building and nurturing relationships. Our networks contribute quite a bit to the success and happiness we achieve. There’s a reason that most people consider networking to meet peers or potential mentors, partners, investors, or sponsors so important.

Because a WFH schedule physically separates coworkers and has the potential to isolate and cause relationships to wither, occasional informal videoconference meetings could provide a helpful balance. Freelancers should be able to schedule an informal video meeting or two without appearing to over-reach. Nurturing relationships within your working team will make the experience better for all. Speak with your primary contact and propose an ice-breaker introduction video call designed to bring your project team together and set the stage for positive 5C experiences.

Coordination

Hybrid teams bring a greater risk of snafus than working face2face. The most common downside is the gradual onset of a rift between the in-office and WFH crews. Freelancers would be wise to apply extra effort to coordinate and follow-up with team members who work remotely. Without diligence, WFH team members could slip out of the loop.

That could result in the WFH crew not being completely on board with certain assumptions or adjustments that the in-office crew has agreed upon, for example. Freelancers working in a hybrid environment would be wise to take whatever necessary steps that bring in-office and WFH crews into agreement and on the same page. Freelancers usually depend on certain information, access, approvals, or actions to reach project milestones. Agreement and coordination are essential to success and must be enabled.

Creativity

It was probably discovered a few centuries ago that conversations spark creativity. It’s becoming apparent that teams working together in the same physical space experience a sort of collective creativity that arises organically when co-workers spontaneously begin to discuss a problem or opportunity. Scheduling a videoconference to conduct a brainstorming session is just not the same. It’s so much better to bounce ideas around with others or work intensively on solving a problem together. If it’s possible to bring WFH team members into the office once or twice during the project timeline do so. All 5C metrics will get a boost.

Culture

The phenomenon known as The Great Resignation, which was discussed in the September 7, 2021 post, has had a profound effect on working in America. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently reported that in February 2022, U.S. businesses had nearly 12 million unfilled jobs.

That means once cohesive teams are in danger of weakening as people exit. When experienced employees leave and new ones arrive, another challenge of the WFH era is how to onboard newcomers and integrate them into the company’s culture, the expression of its brand and respect for its values. If a fluid but essentially constant percentage of a company’s workforce will remain in WFH mode, rarely or never working side-by-side with colleagues or spending time together to talk shop, how can a company’s unique “personality” be maintained or communicated? Back-channel, off-the-record. tellings are powerful. Institutional memory is a precious resource.

One fact is clear about the future of work, at least in the near term and that is, the hybrid workforce will be the norm for many organizations large and small and we’d better learn to navigate them.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

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Rinse and Repeat: Your Content is Evergreen

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What’s the purpose of your marketing campaign? Is it about branding, to make your company name, primary product, or service, memorable in the minds of clients and prospects? Or are you going head-to-head with a competitor and looking to gain or retain market share? Maybe your goal is to expand into a niche market, where you’ve discovered that your product or service is gaining traction and could have potential for more sales?

For every marketing tool that you use—display ad, social media, press release, newsletter, podcast, white paper, webinar—-you create content that costs time, bandwidth and money to produce. Why limit its use to just one platform? Your content is a versatile asset that can be recycled through multiple formats. It is evergreen.

Like a big holiday feast, when many dishes are served and preparation time is longer than the usual weeknight supper, don’t waste the leftovers. Instead, make note of what’s popular and serve it up again in another setting. You’ll not only deliver powerful content to new groups of fans and followers, growing your audience, you’ll save time as you do. Let’s talk possibilities.

White paper slice and dice

Can we start by defining the document? A white paper is written to promote a certain product, service, technology, or methodology and persuade current and prospective clients to believe that it’s useful and beneficial. White papers are stealth sales/ marketing documents written to entice potential clients to learn more about and eventually buy the product, service, technology, or whatever. They are designed to be used as a marketing tool in advance of a sale, to inspire curiosity, trust and demand.

White papers are typically 2000+ words in length and that makes them ideal candidates for content recycling. Selected paragraphs of your white paper can be edited and reused as (one or more) blog posts or newsletters. Your white paper can also become the core of an e-book that you can use in a call-to-action appeal on your website and social media outlets, helping to move prospects through your sales/ marketing funnel and grow your email list as you do.

If contacting media outlets is part of your campaign, a paragraph or two of your white paper might be used as the key message in your press release. If you can schedule yourself into a webinar or podcast, your white paper can provide your talking points.

Blog or newsletter recycle

If you’ve received lots of likes or comments on a post that you’ve written, you might extract a few sentences to create interesting social media posts that you can drop into one or more platforms. Your evergreen blog or newsletter content might result in two or more good social media posts that bring new and relevant info to your fans and followers. Or, you can repost an entire blog or newsletter in one or more of your social media accounts.

You might also be able to recycle a blog topic on a blogging platform, e.g., Medium. You’ll find a few of my posts in Lioness Magazine https://lionessmagazine.com/, a digital publication whose target audience is women entrepreneurs. I’m paid (very modestly) for published articles.

Consider diving into your blog and newsletter archive and updating a topic. Last December, I did exactly that when I realized that a 2019 post on writing a press release is evergreen. I updated with current info and expanded the topic to discuss creating an up-to-date press kit. I sent the article to Lioness Magazine and thank goodness my editor was pleased and agreed to publish it.

You can also turn your newsletter or blog post into a video. You wouldn’t just read it, but rather go on camera and discuss how what you’ve written is useful and actionable and will help viewers make money or operate their business more efficiently. Upload the video to your website, YouTube, Twitter, or other social media accounts.

Finally, you can reconfigure your blog or newsletter, or white paper, into a Power Point presentation and upload it to LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, or your website.

Webinar and podcast encore

If the program host will agree to send you the link and you have editing skills, this feast will yield high-end leftovers. For the price of an email address (that grows your list), visitors to your website, YouTube account and other social media can be greeted with an enticing call-to-action, an invitation-only rebroadcast of the entire podcast or webinar. You might also edit a tempting 3 or 4 minute audio or video clip to upload and make your CTA even more appealing.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Patty Duke (1946 – 2016) starred as both Patty and her identical cousin Cathy in The Patty Duke Show (ABC-TV September 1963 – April 1966).

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5-Star Client Onboarding Leads to Smooth Sailing

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Hallelujah, you’ve just brought in a client, and a good one. You and the team are psyched to start working and prove your bona fides but may I suggest that you slow down and present what might be called a “soft opening” for your new client? While you want to honor deadlines, it’s good business to first give new clients a proper introduction to your company, an opportunity to understand how his/her team and yours will pleasantly and efficiently get the job done.

This first order of business is a powerful move purposed to set the stage for a mutually satisfying working partnership. As it is for so many important goals, when your intention is to develop positive and long-lasting client relationships, it makes sense to begin with the end in mind. When you consider the big picture you’ll realize that an effective client retention strategy actually starts with good onboarding.

Onboarding is a series of choreographed actions that introduce new clients to your company and show them how to access and utilize the value in your products, services and organization—-everything that made them recognize you as The One. Your onboarding program sets the tone for productive client-company relationships, signaling that client expectations will be met and reconfirming that selecting you to do business with was a wise choice. Ideally, the onboarding experience you present will amplify your clients’ trust and confidence in you and your organization, resulting in referrals, recommendations and repeat business.

Onboarding is integral to client retention and limiting client churn, meaning one-and-done assignments. I don’t have to remind you that it costs at least five times the resources— your time and money—- to land a new client than it does to keep those you have. There will always be one-off projects but continually starting at zero and chasing prospects is expensive in terms of time, money and energy.

The top two reasons for client churn are 1) the client doesn’t understand your product; and 2) the client doesn’t know how to obtain the expected value from the product. Your thoughtfully designed and well-presented 5-star onboarding protocols can solve both problems. Here’s how you can greet new clients and start persuading them to become long-time fans and devotees of your organization.

Onboarding building blocks

Along with a welcome email, in which you thank the client for choosing your company over the other potential options and letting the client know how excited you are to work together, a 5-star onboarding recipe can include all or some of the following. Making the client and his/ her team feel confident in and comfortable with you and your team is the onboarding purpose.

  • Video tutorial
  • Live online or in-person product training
  • Follow-up video or phone call to confirm that the client is properly using the product or service purchased and is satisfied with the results and outcomes (and to troubleshoot where necessary)
  • In- person or videoconference meeting to introduce your project team and the client’s team, to discuss roles, milestones, invoicing schedules, reporting updates and the like
  • Company logo swag items and/ or a gift basket delivered to the client

The good news is that your new client already likes and trusts you and believes in your product or service and that’s why the decision to work with your organization was made. Build on these front-loaded advantages by creating an onboarding method that shows clients how to have positive experiences when using your product or service and working with your team. Your onboarding process is a follow-up step of the promises made in your sales talking points.

The onboarding process has lasting benefits for your clients and your business. Onboarding makes clients’ lives easy. It is vital to lowering client acquisition costs, increasing client retention, increasing the average lifetime value of clients and supports business growth.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Super yacht Saint Nicolas (230′ 4″/ 70.2 m) at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival

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Next Up: Generation Z

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Do you hear the footsteps? Generation Z is at the door. They were born between 1997 and 2012, they number about 72 million and they have an estimated annual buying power of nearly $300 billion. Perhaps most notably, they’re the first generation to never know a world without the internet; they grew up with cellphones and their virtual lives seem as real as IRL. The oldest of them are about 25 and getting ready to enter jobs where they might be able to influence decision-makers. So maybe it’s time for Freelancers to get to know Generation Z?

They’re not the same as their predecessors, the Millennials, who grew up in more stable financial times and have a different outlook on life and different spending habits. Defining memories of particularly the older Gen Z cohort members were formed during the Great Recession of the 2000s and it wasn’t pretty.

Tough times were waiting for us when the new millennium arrived, bringing the one-two punch of the market-crashing dot-com sell-off that was soon followed by the September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade towers. A few years later, the subprime mortgage scam and real estate market collapse in 2007 caused thousands to lose their homes and their money. Remember also the the demise of the Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers investment houses in 2008 and a few months later, the exposing of Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, when even Stephen Spielberg took a hit.

Many Gen Z members were raised in families that had financial worries, if not hardship, and they’re made of different stuff than Millennials who, on average, experienced a more supportive economy. Experience seems to have given Gen Z a practical, cautious and even skeptical bent. For example, they are often concerned about the values and beliefs of those they do business with. They are also price conscious.

Affinity for small business

Since January 2020, Gen Z increased its small business spending by more than 260% according to Afterpay, an Australia-based payment platform that’s designed to be supportive of the credit-building needs of its users (and seems so totally aligned with the Gen Z style). Afterpay reports that Gen Z small business purchases were 80% higher than Millennials. This is being interpreted as a response to the pandemic, since it was well known that thousands of small businesses were struggling or going under.

Gen Z prefers online shopping and not only for the convenience. Marketing survey results show that most were driven by the ability to contribute to the local economy, with 77% of Gen Z customers reporting that online shopping allows them to discover products from new or small companies they wouldn’t be able to find in person. Only 38% say they prefer in-store shopping. A June 2021 survey conducted by the France-based marketing company Sendinblue and CITE Research, the survey and research marketing firm, found that 46% of Gen Z shoppers had purchased more items from small businesses than they had before the pandemic.

Another interesting insight is that Gen Z customers are more willing to share their data with small businesses that they frequent, in exchange for discounts and deals. However, they insist that the business inform them of how the information will be used. That’s great news for Freelancers and small business owners and leaders who are figuring out how to reach and persuade Gen Z prospects to become customers.

Finally (and no surprise), a 2021 Consumer Culture Report compiled by PR and marketing firm 5W Public Relations showed that Gen Z gravitates to electronics and technology. Health and wellness emerged as their second favorite category. While the Zs are financially cautious and love a bargain, they can be persuaded to make larger purchases that offer fun experiences or improve their daily lives. They like video games.

It’s important for Freelancers and marketers in general who want to reach Gen Z to create content that demonstrates usefulness to cohort members. Make clear why they might need the product or service by communicating how it will improve their life, for example, improve health or promote fun, and also explain why your product or service is better than what competitors offer.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Fortnite™, the video game favored by Generation Z

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Is It Time for a Price Increase?

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We’re here to talk about pricing today, a favorite subject of mine, but I admit the process is tricky. Pricing is more important than you might think because if you don’t get it right you either won’t sell much, because prospects and customers feel you’re too expensive, or you’ll sell but won’t make as much money as you could, because you’ve priced too low. Pricing B2B services can be a challenge. You can’t walk into a couple of stores or check on line and comparison shop your competitors, so competition-based pricing doesn’t work. Value-based pricing is the best option for B2B services.

So that you can at least maintain, if not increase, profitability in these unstable times, business leaders and owners would be wise to evaluate the pricing of their products and services and make adjustments when necessary. Revenue and profit are tied to more than sales volume. The most important driver of sales revenue, after ensuring that production or acquisition costs are covered by the price, is the value that clients assign to your products and services. I suppose that’s another compelling reason why B2B services are most successfully priced according to the value and ROI they bring to your customers.

Conducting basic market research will help you discover or confirm the purpose, must-haves, priorities and ROI that drive the confidence in and sales of your products and services. As usual, knowing the customer means everything. Whether you get them on the phone or take them out to lunch, speak to three or four of your best clients to determine which outcomes and benefits, tangible and intangible, matter most. You want to obtain insight into how your products or services bring ROI to clients. Once you understand what your offerings enable clients to do, align your price with the value they bring. Furthermore, include in your marketing messages those benefits that clients with whom you’ve spoken indicated are the most highly prized.

When announcing price increases, it may be useful to explain your increased costs and how long it’s been since your prices have been adjusted. Don’t shy away from highlighting how much your clients have raised their prices. For clients who may be struggling, consider “grandfathering” to continue the pricing for the product or service they buy most often. You could also soften the blow of price increases by designing product and service options to accommodate price-sensitive clients. No-frills, economy versions of your offerings may be welcomed by some. Consider also indirect price increases, such as adding surcharges for expedited shipping, longer payment terms, rush orders and for performing small projects.

Charging one price for your products and services is, in fact, limiting for both you and your clients. The buying decision may be simpler, but it leaves no room for clients to upgrade and you to bring in additional revenue from upselling.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: The banker from the board game Monopoly ™, which was patented by Parker Brothers in 1935.

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How to Amplify Your Brand

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What does branding mean to you? The term brand refers to a marketing strategy created to help a company’s current and potential customers identify that company and its products or services. A brand is a collection of often intangible characteristics that collectively represent the company and are the basis of its reputation. The brand helps to shape public perceptions of the company, its services and products and public-facing leaders. For those reasons, the brand is considered foundational to a business.

Brands commonly use certain attributes to help create an identity or personality to distinguish the brand and add to its appeal. A powerful brand identity attracts the loyalty and trust of a company’s customers and that usually results in purchases made, as fans of the brand seek to associate themselves with attributes they find desirable. A good brand brings enormous value to the company, giving it a competitive edge over others in the same industry. Many business entities provide legal protection for their brand by obtaining trademarks for the company name, logo design and slogan.

An effective and compelling brand generates memorable, lasting impressions. Developing a respected brand is integral to business success. Consistent communication of your company’s brand can enhance and solidify its reputation, revenues, profits and long-term viability.

Business owners and leaders are advised to continually evaluate the perception and performance of the company brand. Without careful stewardship, it’s possible to unintentionally weaken or muddle your company’s identity and get lost in the weeds regarding the messaging, priorities, values and practices that loyal customers trust and expect.

Therefore, devising a branding strategy to monitor the impact of your company brand is essential. Consistent promotion of the brand is key to launching and sustaining a company that current and potential customers regard as memorable, recognizable, dependable and trustworthy.

If building, enhancing, or refreshing your company brand, or if rebranding is your goal (perhaps in response to a pivot), follow these four steps:

  • Determine the target audience for your company’s products and services
  • Position your product and business in the marketplace–premium, mid-market, budget, or green, for example
  • Define your company’s personality—trend-setter, carefree, athletic, or folksy, for example
  • Create a logo, choose signature colors and devise a slogan/ tag line.

Effective branding involves developing a brand identity that carries through across all of your marketing platforms and consumer touch points. Everything from graphic design to content development, web design to email signatures should communicate your company’s brand identity. That way, from first to last impressions, your customers will know exactly who you are as a brand.

Everything embodied in your brand, from logo design to value propositions, should represent who you are, what you do and your fundamental brand personality to the customers who encounter your business. A successful and memorable brand image is one of the best ways to differentiate yourself from the competition and ensure that customers come knocking on your door. Branding is an opening to so many business opportunities. A robust brand strategy will help you:

Establish credibility

Building customer trust and loyalty for the company and its products and services is the purpose of branding. Communicating the brand consistently, at every customer touch point, demonstrates a business’s credibility and encourages brand loyalty in the process. Consistent marketing messages that deliver on promises and expectations reassure customers and prospects of the experience they can expect from doing business with your company.

Stand out in competitive marketplace

Branding gives a business the opportunity to stand out from its competitors. Use your branding strategy to differentiate your company from the competition. Develop a brand persona that resonates with your target market and promote it relentlessly, through verbal and visual messaging, pricing, packaging, advertising media choices (the publications or social media platforms that you use, for example) in a way that speaks directly to your target market.

Project a trustworthy and professional image

Consistent communication of the company’s brand persona makes the business look professional. The best way to maintain a comprehensive branding strategy is to create a set of branding guidelines (a.k.a, a brand book). Your brand book will function as a reference library that documents your defining brand symbolisms, including the brand name, narrative, logo, text fonts, color schemes, images and even the theme song, if applicable.

Increase customer loyalty and customer referrals

If customers gravitate to your brand persona and values, they are more likely to buy. Furthermore, they’re more likely to become repeat customers who share their enthusiasm for your products and services with friends and family members. Great branding is a launchpad for increased sales, customer loyalty and referrals. Compelling and consistent verbal and visual messaging is the key to attracting a loyal customer base for your business.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: The Reddit logo was designed by the company co-founder Alexis Ohanian

Technology / Office , , Leave a comment

Step Up to Business Tech

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Are you operating your business as if it was still the 20th century? You may do a good job and generate enough revenue to reliably pay your expenses and take the occasional vacation but we’re 20 + years into the 21st century now. It’s time to catch up! Respectfully, I suggest that a few practical concessions to the present will improve your command of business management, save time and increase revenue and profit.

You don’t have to give up everything you like about last century. You can still listen to 80s music (like me) and rollerblade (I was afraid to try that). Help yourself sustain and build on the successes you’ve already created. Step out from behind your unease with the unknown and understand that to conquer today’s business challenges you won’t win without today’s business tools and the tools are digital. Fast access to accurate, actionable data is just one of the benefits you’ll receive when you take on a digital business solution or two.

According to a 2017 survey of 2000+ small businesses in the U.S. conducted by Google on behalf of mega-consulting firm Deloitte, 80 % of small business owners underutilize digital business tools (I think that finding can be extended to include Freelancers) and 40 % feel that digital tools don’t apply to their business. The survey was pre-pandemic but other than the introduction of videoconference sales meetings not much has changed, despite the fact that even pre-pandemic it had been demonstrated that prospects and customers expect to be able to communicate and do business online, whether or not the companies are e-commerce.

Here’s the reality—-mostly, prospects launch their buyer’s journey on the internet, using key words they hope will call up websites they can browse to investigate available options. When they find providers who look promising they dig deeper and, e.g., check out case studies and testimonials. They’ll use chatbots to quickly find what they’d like to see. They might click call-to-action buttons and schedule free consultation calls with companies whose offerings look like a fit. They’ll probably also search those companies on Yelp and social media.

Does your website measure up to the buyer’s journey described above? If not, it’s time to step up your business technology. Don’t panic! Accelo, Google Analytics, Constant Contact, Block, Calendly and others are here to help you analyze and use your website stats, support your email marketing and/ or newsletter or blog, get you going with a chatbot and overall help you to build a more profitable company.

Google Analytics —-Make sense of the numbers taken from your blog, newsletter, website and social media accounts and use the data to make smart decisions that improve your company’s sales funnel/ buyer’s journey and win more new customers. Are there pages in your website that seem to frustrate visitors and cause them to exit the site? Your data will find the problem so you can consider how to improve page experiences. Click to get more info and register your website and business.

https://marketingplatform.google.com/about/small-business/

Email marketing—-promote your products and services to current and potential customers. You’ll need to invite/ persuade prospects to provide their email address. Do not spam. The link is to an overview and comparison of companies that provide the services, including prices.

https://www.quicksprout.com/best-email-marketing-services/

Time tracking & invoices—-B2B service providers need to monitor time spent on hourly work assignments, as well as invoice client work on time, in order to get paid when the bills are due. See the features and cost overview and comparison of companies at the link below.

https://timeanalyticssoftware.com/19-best-billable-hours-tracker-software-in-2021/

Call-to-Action—-Ask your website designer to create this for you or DIY with an embedded hyperlink. Use CTAs to take your website and social media visitors by the hand and 1.) tempt them with timely and valuable information and 2.) persuade them to take a quick and easy action to get it (click me!). Sort of like what I’m doing in this post when I invite you to click below and learn how to create your CTA.

https://tinkseo.com/call-to-action-button-cta-design-guide/

Chat bot—-Ask a web or app development expert to set one up because my research shows that “plug & play” is a myth. Furthermore, think carefully about how to make your chat bot useful. What questions can the bot answer? Please click the article accessed at the link.

https://www.callcentrehelper.com/chatbots-examples-160804.htm

Mobile payments—-Secure, convenient payment is an important component of good customer service as well as a component of good cash-flow. Take a look and decide which system will be most useful for you and your customers.

https://www.predictiveanalyticstoday.com/mobile-payment-providers/

Online and in-person payments—-The customers of many small businesses are a mix of e-commerce and in-person, making it necessary to find a credit /debit card processor that offers acceptable processing fees for both types of transactions. Another consideration is the number of transactions that you’ll run: some businesses have many (often small) transactions and the fee structure will be an important factor. But if a significant number of orders are typically phoned in, then the keyed-in transaction rate will be a deciding factor. Bear in mind that according to American Consumer Credit Counseling, Inc., just 14% of shoppers use cash for every day or large purchases.

https://www.usnews.com/360-reviews/business/credit-card-processing/best-small-business-credit-card-processing

Appointments and calls—-Whether you invite a client or prospect to speak by telephone, video, or face2face, by way of a CTA button or email, creating the appointment online is a given. Check out this link and evaluate free scheduling apps that allow you to indicate your availability, clients and prospects to choose a time and will send a reminder to all parties.

https://fitsmallbusiness.com/best-free-appointment-scheduling-software/

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Leonard Nimoy as First Officer Spock in Star Trek (NBC-TV 1966-1969)

Business Strategy , , , Leave a comment

Good Questions Are Your Best Sales Strategy

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Many factors influence a B2B sale, including egos and power struggles, budget allocation and politics, trending industry fads and the success or failure of what’s been done before. But as you know, Freelancer friend, you can only control what you can control.

To obtain some measure of control you need information, because knowledge is power. To determine whether there is a sale here for you, you’ll need clarification of the factors listed below, which are known to influence B2B sales. Knowing if there was a recent attempt to reach the goal or resolve the problem before you were contacted is also useful intel, as is knowing if the prospect is actively considering another solution (that would be provided by someone else).

  • Define the problem or goal and learn if it’s high priority or urgent
  • Understand what the prospect wants you to do and when it must be completed or delivered
  • Is the prospect talking to a competitor?
  • The decision-maker
  • Estimated budget

The most efficient way to get the backstory on your sale and create for yourself a realistic chance of winning is to ask questions that bring out the answers you need. Phrase the questions in words that feel natural for you. I think what’s listed below will both lead you to more sales and quickly eliminate those who present themselves as interested but are just not that into you.

1. What led you to contact me/ respond to our outreach?

2. Is getting this project done/ product installed an immediate priority? When would you like to see it completed/ made available?

3. Have you been using a solution (i. e., a product or service) that isn’t working? What fell short of your needs?

4. What. are three key outcomes you want to occur when the goal is reached/ problem is resolved?

5. What other options are you currently considering?

6. Which department in your company will be the end users of the product/ or who will be my contact as the service is implemented?

7. What kind of support/ training/ post-sale service would your team like to receive as the solution is being implemented or when the product is purchased?

8. Are you the person who decides the budget for this project and has funding been allocated?

9. Based on what you’ve told me, I think my organization can help you achieve your objectives. I’d like to work with you! What is your decision-making process like?

10. Is there anyone else who might appreciate having a conversation about this solution? Anyone else I might speak with?

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: Judy Holliday (standing) has a couple of incisive questions for her husband (Tom Ewell) and the other woman (Jean Hagen) in Adam’s Rib (1949, directed by George Kukor and starring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn).

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10 Tips to Create Repeat Business

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A well-known study conducted by Frederick Reichheld of Bain & Company in 2010 confirmed what has been well-known anecdotally by business owners and leaders for decades—that it costs (at least) 5 times more to bring in a new customer than it does to keep the customer you already have. Decreasing churn, that is, the phenomenon of one-off customers who are never seen again, is not the way to build a sustainably profitable venture. You don’t want to run a business that behaves like a revolving door.

Your repeat customers are loyal to your brand because they have had good experiences with you. Due to this, repeat customers are highly likely to promote your brand through word of mouth or social media and on review sites such as Yelp and Trip Advisor. In other words, your repeat customers pay you with referrals and testimonials that bring more new customers to your door. It doesn’t get better than that!

As you build your business and go about refining and strengthening your brand, you should strive to cultivate a community that believes in your brand, that is loyal and is invested in seeing you succeed. One of the best ways to ensure customer loyalty is to make your customers feel that they’re a part of something rewarding when they engage and do business with your brand. Below are a few low-cost, no-cost actions you can take to promote customer loyalty, which usually translate into customer retention, I.e. repeat business and referrals, too.

Surprise and delight

Pleasant surprises are always a good thing during the course of a customer relationship. Introducing a nice surprise, typically in the form of an unexpected little perk for the customer and in particular at the beginning of the interaction, is a great strategy to differentiate yourself from competitors. It’s good business to show customers and serious prospects that you’re a cut above.

Customer experience, customer service

According to a 2018 survey of US consumers released by the multinational professional services company Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC), which happens to be the second-largest professional services firm in the world, consumers rank price and quality at top-of-mind when buying decisions are made. But when they think about interacting with companies they buy from, 73% of survey respondents reported that positive experiences influence their purchasing decisions and 65% feel that a positive buying experience is more influential than great advertising.

You basically have only one chance to get your customer experience and service right. 32% of customers surveyed reported that they’d stop doing business with a brand they loved after even
one bad experience.

Make an effort to structure the experience your business provides to reflect what matters most to the customers. When customers feel appreciated the company benefits, primarily from customer retention and referrals. 86% of survey respondents indicated that they’re willing to pay more for a good end-to-end customer experience and 80% say their reason for switching to another company was poor customer service.

Email marketing, social media, blog, newsletter

Update your customers by way of your website and social media accounts about what’s new—-special offers, new products or services or special pricing and be certain to include those who have not purchased in a while. If you publish a newsletter and/ or blog, include your product and service special offers, special pricing or new product or service announcement. Get your community excited about what’s happening and they may share the good news with those who could become your future customers and loyal fans.

Retain on your mailing list all customers with whom you’ve worked over the past five years, including those who’ve been inactive, and also retain on your mailing list prospects who have had some level of engagement with your organization. Always position yourself to win over a prospect or win back an inactive customer. Until someone clicks the opt-out button, continue to send marketing emails, your newsletter and/or your blog. You never know when lightening will strike.

Payment made easy

Make paying for your products and services easy. By adding digital payment options such as Square, Paypal, Bill.com, or Stripe and facilitating direct deposit payments to your bank or debit card and/or accepting online check payments, you’ll encourage customers to do business with you more often because you’ll make paying invoices a convenient process. Easy payment is an element of a pleasant customer experience.

Website and social media

Merely having an “online presence” is no longer enough. The internet is over-saturated and short attention spans are the norm. To maintain the appeal of your social media accounts and website, make your content—text, audio and video–relevant and timely. Constantly confirm that your posts and images resonate. Update regularly with fresh images, blog posts and and other text, audio and/or video.

Thank you card

The survey revealed that human interaction matters now—and 82% of U.S.
consumers want more of it in the future. With that in mind, a small personal gesture, such as sending a thank you card (or note) to a new customer, or one who has spent a certain threshold amount is a powerful statement. Your card or note can create or enhance the feeling of community and build loyalty for your brand.

Special occasions

The PwC survey found that when customers feel appreciated, they are more likely to recommend or endorse a brand on social media or review sites, subscribe to a brand’s newsletter, sign up for special promotions and make repeat purchases. Sending cards to mark occasions such as customer birthdays, if that is appropriate for your industry, or holiday cards in December is a predictable but usually much-appreciated way to communicate to customers your thoughtfulness.

Showcase testimonials

If visitors to your website and social media accounts see your customers and colleagues singing your praises, in text, audio, or video, then chances are they’ll be more likely to take a chance and buy from you themselves. User-generated content in the form of reviews is a powerful way to win customer loyalty. Case studies in text or video format, are also quite compelling since the story of how you and your team assess and resolve a problem is told.

After sale service

After-sales service often amounts to listening to customer feedback and being available to answer questions or give encouragement. After-sales service can make the difference between a happy customer who loves doing business with your organization, or one who is underwhelmed or even frustrated. A follow-up call to a customer, especially a new customer, will 1). Show your empathy—you care about the customer’s pain point or goal; and 2). Ensure that the customer is achieving objectives. If the solution isn’t working as expected, you can quickly diagnose the glitch and fix it. If a training will help, deliver it, on the spot or by appointment. You want to create a cadre of satisfied customers who will become your loyal cheerleaders.

Do the math

While at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland, the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto (1848-1923) in 1896 demonstrated that on average, a business will derive 80% of its revenue from 20% of its customers. Further research has demonstrated that the likelihood of selling to an existing customer is 60% – 70% and repeat customers will on average spend 31% more than your new customers. Just a 5% increase your company’s customer retention rate will reward you with a 25% increase in profits. Are you convinced yet?

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: © WalterFilm. Marilyn Monroe in a publicity photo for How to Marry a Millionaire (1953, 20th Century Fox Studios)

Professional Development , , , Leave a comment

Why Upskilling Matters

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A study that polled more than 5,670 global executives in 48 countries and was published in September 2019 by the IBM Institute for Business Value (IBV) found that as many as 120 million workers in the world’s 12 largest economies may need to be either retrained or upskilled as a result of the increasing use of AI and intelligent automation in workplaces. No surprise, study respondents indicated that new skills requirements are rapidly emerging, as other skills become obsolete.

For example in the 2016 IBV study, participating executives ranked STEM technical core capabilities and basic computer and software/application competency as the top two most critical skills for employees. But in 2018, the most valued skills were behavioral, not technical– willingness to be flexible/ agile and adaptable to change, as well as time management skills and the ability to prioritize.

Because you are a small fish Freelance consultant or small business owner, it would be wise to acknowledge that in order to successfully compete and sustain your venture, the quality of the solutions and value your company delivers is intimately dependent on the quality of your expertise. To maintain the efficacy and viability of your skills, continuing education is required.

Sometimes, Freelancers aren’t sure of which new skills it makes sense to acquire, especially when looking ahead to emerging technologies and the evolving priorities of clients. What might be a passing fad and what will probably be a keeper that calls for a pivot or retooling? You may not subscribe to the (sometimes costly) data that provides insights and analyses of market trends.

The advantage gained through digital marketing techniques is but one example of where many small operations should strive to catch-up. Many Freelancers and small business owners and leaders are not fully aware that their marketing tactics are behind the curve. Marketers at small ventures often haven’t seen how bigger, better-funded companies use digital tools and tactics to generate leads and move prospects through the sales funnel by using social media. They haven’t seen the evidence that shows how SEO key words and phrases can drive traffic to websites and social media accounts.

Unfortunately, upskilling education can be expensive. The good news is that obtaining professional education has never been more accessible than it is today, thanks to the pandemic-fueled explosion of online learning. In September 2020, I used a federal stimulus check to finance a 2-day remotely presented workshop (total 14 hours) to improve my ability to present remote workshops (or run online meetings, for that matter) and optimize the experience for those who attend.

For 12+ years I’ve taught business plan writing courses and other business-themed workshops at an incubator that for 26 years has provided coaching and other assistance to aspiring and current female entrepreneurs. It was easy to see that if I wanted to continue working with the organization, I had to master the subtle differences between in-person and remote instruction and communication dynamics.

In January the incubator, which operates 5 locations in 4 New England states, offered the rare opportunity of providing teacher training (at no charge to affiliated instructors). Last week, I completed the second installment of a 3-part (total 9 hours) remote workshop that’s teaching my colleagues and I the rationale for and fundamentals of an innovative business model canvasing technique that borrows from the lean start-up method. In the third session, we’ll learn how to present the business modeling method in our classes.

How can you find upskilling education that will be useful and reasonably affordable, as well as convenient? Once again, I’ll recommend the usually well-designed and presented professional development programs and resources available at chambers of commerce and other business or professional associations. Explore community colleges as well; they’ll mostly offer semester long courses but many now also offer day-long and half-day workshops that appeal to business owners and leaders. The available courses seem to have become more sophisticated and varied over the years, apparently in response to demand.

Visit websites and join mailing lists to receive advance notice of what might benefit you. Also, pay attention to thought leaders and analysts by listening to business-themed podcasts every once in a while, and reading the business section of your local newspaper. Do a search to locate articles and even studies that address your industry and customer groups and please, keep reading my posts. I’m here for you.

Thanks for reading,

Kim

Image: John Houseman (1902-1988) as the redoubtable law professor Charles W. Kingsfield in The Paper Chase (1973, directed by James Bridges), for which he won the 1974 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Houseman reprised the role in the television series that was inspired by the film and broadcast 1978-1979 on CBS-TV and then on Showtime 1983-1986.