Where is Galt?

by Don Harkey

I know I haven't posted in awhile and I am very sorry for that! My schedule has changed and I no longer spend my time in the mornings getting new articles online. Don't fret! I plan to continue this blog and have some plans to make it better than ever by adding some services to supplement the articles online. I'll soon by announcing a "Leadership Book of the Month Club" complete with a new book each month and a newsletter summarizing and discussing the book by me and my good friend Randy Mayes of the Success Coach Network.

Also, I am setting up a speaking platform and will be announcing some dates where you can come and see me talk on various topics (similar to the blog, only louder!). The first date is August 7th at noon at Deer Lake Golf Course at the 19th Hole Networking Event. Watch for more information on how to register. The event is FREE and includes networking, golf instruction, lunch and yes, me (WOW! Free Golf Instruction!!!).

Hang in there my friends! I thank you for following me and for your comments!!!

Marketing for Dummies

by Don Harkey

I recently asked a business owner for their marketing plan. The reply was, "well, we thought about hanging fliers on campus". The business was not close to the college and probably wouldn't have a strong student base if they were. I can't really criticize as I knew less than nothing about marketing entering into my business. This is compounded by the fact that my father taught marketing in high school for many years! Not a lot of marketing taught in engineering school!

I've learned a couple of things that have helped me grow my business that I wanted to share with you.

Networking
is the most effective and important activity that I have engaged in. Business simply doesn't walk in the door while you are sitting in your office, on the shop floor, or in your place of business... at least not enough business. Even successful restaurant owners I know spend some time getting their message out. How do you get started? How you get started doesn't matter as much as getting started.

There are LOTS of networking opportunities out there. If you are just getting your feet wet, I would recommend joining your local chamber of commerce. The Springfield Area Chamber holds 3 major networking events per month (Good Morning Springfield, Business-2-Business, Business After Hours). Each is a different format. Try all of them. If you prefer a different approach, try joining a local BNI chapter (www.bni.com). BNI chapters have representatives from multiple industries who do not compete against each other. The members get to know each other in order to pass referrals for each other. This is another great tool for businesses. There are also multiple community groups and activities that present networking opportunities.

While networking, there are 2 key points that will help you. First of all, look for quality, not quantity. Don't be "that guy" who pushes their business card in front of everyone in the room. "Working the Room" is more for parties where you are already known, not for networking events. Your goal is should be to meet one or more high quality individuals whom you would like to meet with again. Find that person or persons and schedule a meeting to get to know them.

The second key point is what BNI calls the "Giver's Gain" philosophy. Do not approach the networking event as a source of business. Approach it looking to meet and connect other people with valuable resources. Ask a lot of questions and offer to connect people who might find each other valuable. Don't look for customers. This sounds counterintuitive, but believe me that this is the best approach. It will help you enjoy the event more, and it will get your more business. As you become the "go-to" person for multiple people, your credibility skyrockets and it becomes much easier for you to get work. People will go out of there way to find work for you.

One last thing... make sure you bring lots of business cards with current information on them. I can't tell how many times I have met new business owners without business cards or with cards with their old phone numbers on them. This is not a fatal mistake, but you only have a couple of minutes to make an impression.

Web Presence
A companies web presence is a hot topic in marketing and it is tempting to follow the story of the business that boomed from a viral internet marketing campaign. This does happen from time to time, but remember that corporations spend millions trying to make this happen and are not successful more often than they are. Viral is hard.

A better approach is to think of the internet as another networking opportunity. You need to have a professional looking website that properly conveys the image of your company. This is a basic need. Unless your business is on the internet, you don't need an extensive website. Also, don't use a Flash website (like mine!). It looks cool, but it is harder for search engines to find and they don't work on many smart phones.

There are other web options that might be worth spending a little time on (and I mean "a little" time). More and more people are reading blogs for information on a variety of topics. Establishing a blog with a regular readership can provide you with an excellent opportunity to target your market and get your message out. If you don't know anything about blogging and don't particularly like to write, you can check out other options like www.blarkets.com. Are blogs worth it? My blog (this one) gets 4 to 5 times more traffic than my website.

Another web option is the use of social media such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube... there are LOTS of them. Creative use of these tools can help you build awareness of you and your company. As a general rule, don't direct sell on social media. No one likes to deliberately follow a commercial. You should post useful and interesting content and use these tools in collaboration with each other.

Media
More and more businesses are looking for alternatives to marketing outside of traditional radio and television. However, this means that you have an opportunity to have a louder voice than before. My friends in the industry tell me that the most effective campaigns deliver a clear and consistent message repetitively. Running a single radio ad or TV commercial one time is not effective. Finding a good marketing consultant to help guide you is very valuable (http://www.brickad.com/).

Print media is also considered to be a declining industry, but again, it only makes your voice louder than before. Consider the publications that your clients will be reading and try to get into those publications. You can purchase advertising (again, you need repetition), or you can contribute to the publication as an expert. Contributing can establish you as an industry expert (again, you can't sell directly). In Springfield, I recommend the Springfield Business Journal as a great publication with extensive readership and great quality (www.sbj.net).

You
I think one of the temptations of marketing is that you can do x, y, and z, and get business. The truth is that the most important marketing tool you have is you. You need to take care of your clients. You need to present yourself as quality and high value, which means you actually have to be quality and have high value. You have to have a great product. One of the best advertising campaigns in history was Saturn in the 1980's. It was a "different kind of car company" and the brand struck American's very effectively. It worked until GM's quality (or lack thereof) leaked into the Saturn brand and the car's reputation outpaced their advertising. It turns out they really weren't that different.

When your business matures, you may be able to work entirely off client referrals. This is a nice place to be, but be cautious even when you get to this point. Market downturns can cause these revenue streams to dry up (as many of you are finding out!). Always be on the look for new markets and always maintain a marketing presence. Think of it this way... imagine being able to select only the best clients to work with. Nice!

Enough of this... get out from behind the counter or from behind your desk and make some noise! Meet some people, add some value, and get your message out there. Want a good resource? Read "Guerrilla Marketing" by Jay Conrad Levinson. Contact me at donharkey@galtconsulting.com if you are interesting in attending a seminar on August 12th in Springfield on marketing given by my friend Brett Curry. I can get you a special price!

People Mirror their Leadership

by Don Harkey

I was involved in an interesting discussion with a client recently. We were talking about important traits of a leader and the trait of character was brought up. While everyone in the room believed that character was an important trait, the question arose as to whether it was important in terms of leadership of an organization. Is high ethics and character really important to a business or is it just a trait that we like people to have? In other words, all other things being equal, does a person of high character make a better leader than a person of lesser character?

Have you ever heard that pets often reflect their owners? If you see a burly looking gruff guy walking down the street with a pit bull, I don't think I would pet the dog. While this isn't always true, the truth is that it is sometimes true. A dog owner who is rough and doesn't treat their dog nicely will often get a dog who is rough and doesn't treat anyone else nicely.

The same is true for management. Workers often reflect their managers. A McDonald's or other fast food place has very tight controls on how the restaurant is to be run. They hire the same people with the same food and the same procedures. However, you might hear someone say, "oh... that's a good McDonald's" or "that McDonald's isn't very good". What is the difference? Simple. It's management.

Have you ever complained about poor service at a business only to discover that the person you are complaining to is even worse? I got incredibly bad serve at a fast food place (there was nearly a riot in the place) and called the manager out who said, "what do you expect me to do?". That's funny... that is exactly the attitude the upset customers were seeing!

One of the largest myths in business is that hiring is search for "good people". The fact is that while people have widely varying strengths and weaknesses, they typically want to do a good job. A "bad person" is probably just someone who lived under bad management. A "good person" is probably just someone who lived under good management. Yes, it takes awhile to get someone to assimilate to a culture, but it is possible and very worth it. The thing is that the "culture" doesn't come from a procedures manual, slogan, or mission statement, it comes from the day to day reality of the organization. It comes from the walk, not from the talk.

This is why character is important in business and why people of high character are so much more valuable. A manager might really like their employees and truly care about what they do. If the manager lies to a client in order to protect the company, this might be considered a "tough decision", but justified. The problem is that employees see this and absorb the culture. They protect each other by not sharing information on mistakes. They hide negative feedback from clients. Pretty soon, leadership is not getting real information from the client that is needed to make good decisions.

Good guys really do win in the end. Hitler was a very strong leader with a clear (and horrifying) vision. In the end, his constant deceptions caught up with him as his people held back information. As the Allies landed on D-Day, Hitler was asleep. None of his people would wake him and none of them would give an order. This was critical in the course of the war.

If your organization has a lot of corruption, look at your leadership. If you have trouble finding the right type of person, first look for the right type of leader.

Choosing to Be Happy

by Don Harkey

I was talking with Chris Watkins last week, a Springfield Wellness Coach, and she was presenting her "unified theory" of organizations, which is a work in progress. One of the factors she had was "Awareness". This is a great point that many people don't realize (aren't "aware" of!).

I used to have a problem with road rage. I didn't yell at anyone, but I would just get angry when someone cut me off or drove badly near me. My blood pressure would rise and I would tense up. Then one day, someone said something that hit home. "You realize that most of the time the other person has no idea that you are mad at them." From that day forward, I was cured. I don't get mad anymore. I simply decided to stop. It was really THAT simple.

I think the concept of "Awareness" is that we all have the ability to control our reactions to things. As another saying goes, "you can't be offended without first giving your permission". If someone calls you a name, you can get upset or you can decide not to get upset. Seriously.

Andy Andrews, author of "Traveler's Gift" talks about choosing to be happy. We all have problems and we all have challenges in our lives. It is NOT fair. Yet, how we deal with these challenges is our choice. Our society sometimes teaches us that this is not true. We teach ourselves to act PC and be cautious not to offend, and to some extent, being considerate of others is a good thing.

Within an organization, this can go too far.

When a friend of mine recently made a mistake, I approached the friend and told them how I felt. It was painful, but she appreciated it. I recently had a client tell me how he felt I could have improved on one aspect of my service. Ouch! Ego is what makes it hurt, but when we are "aware", we can overcome this and process the information. The suggestion will only make me a better consultant and will only make him a more trusted source of information.

So, be aware that you have control. If it seems hard, it is only because you are making it that way. Simply choose to react differently. Simply choose not to get upset. Simply choose to have control. Get a grip! Keep your wits about you! It will make a big difference in your life!

Power of the Paradigm

by Don Harkey

I was driving home the other night when I witnessed an accident. The van 2 cars in front of me turned left on a green arrow. Suddenly, the front of the van exploded and another car sped through the intersection narrowly missing the lightpost and costing about 100 yards on the median of the road. Amazingly, everyone walked away from the accident. In the van was a mother and her young son (maybe 8 years old). In the car was 3 people. The first person got out of the car and ran away. The other two stood by the car because one of them was cut up with abrasions all over his body.

As witnesses came together, the story began to become clear. The van was simply heading home. The car had been chasing another car and had been driving on the shoulder of the road passing vehicles at speeds well above the 50 MPH speed limit. It was amazing that no one was killed. Now the man stood by his car, bloody and in pain, watching people gather around trying to comfort the young boy and his mother. A woman who apparently knew the man stopped her car and asked what happened. "That woman pulled in front of me.", he said.

It is one of those moments that from my perspective seemed absurd. I don't know who the guy was chasing, but here he was surrounded by witnesses watching a family stand by their totaled minivan and all he could think about was why the lady had the gaul to turn her car on a green arrow and not watch for vehicles running red lights from the shoulder. She was obviously out of line!

This really shows the power of the paradigm. In my world, I feel bad when I don't see someone in time to let them pull onto a busy road from a parking lot. I'm not a saint (at least the road thing doesn't qualify me), but that is my paradigm. This guy was so far away from that paradigm, we would have difficulty understanding each other.

Within an organization, a paradigm quickly forms and it is extremely hard to break. It is hard not only because change is difficult, but because it is hard to see outside of the paradigm.

Paradigms are not always bad. In a company that breeds character and service, employees do not even dream of cheating. However, in a company that needs to change, they often do not even dream of changing. Changing requires learning which means stepping outside of your comfort zone. It is important to keep on learning so that you can take opportunities to step outside of your paradigm and identify when change is needed and when it is not.