Do You Measure Results and Activity? How do you Plan on Being Better if You Don't.

You need to measure results in order to understand what is working and what isn't so you can funnel your resources into what works and avoid what doesn't. Do you take a shot gun approach to your advertising or are your a marksman? It is my job to help businesspeople reach their goals and I reach mine by measuring my activity everyday.

So how do you measure results? Do you count how many consumers come through your door and how many of them buy something? Do you ask consumers how they heard about you AND where they found your contact information? Do you keep records on sales, what is selling and what is sitting on the shelves?

It's not enough to just ask where they heard about you and how they found your contact information - you have to keep a written record. Think it's hard - not really just have a chart that shows where your advertising dollars have been spent. Add a tick wherever your customers say they heard about you and how they found your contact information. Your creative advertising and your directional advertising will need to be seperated to understand how each work together to drive customers into your business.

Directional Headings for your chart:
Yellow Pages Phonebook
CanPages Phonebook
Other Phonebooks
Yellow Pages Online
CanPages Online
Other Online Directories
Word of Mouth / Referal gave contact info.

Creative Headings for your chart:
TV Ads
Radio Ads
Newspaper Ads
Direct Mail
Magazines
Other publications
Word of Mouth / Referal gave me your name.

After a period of time count up the ticks and tally at the bottom of each column. What is working what isn't? Which is bringing you good return on investment, which isn't?

The only way you can make good business decisions is if you understand how your business is working and where it's not. It doesn't take much effort, just some good record keeping. What's your close rate? What's your activity levels? Are your employees productive? Where do your customers come from? What do they buy? Why do they buy? All it takes is asking the questions and ticking off a chart.

Links:

Should You Advertise?
Tracking Where Your Clients Found You is Important
Advertising - Can People Find Your Business?

The Wizard of Ads

I'm re reading the book - The Wizard of Ads by Roy H. Williams. It is a collection of small essays written by Mr. Williams on Advertising, what works and what doesn't work. Each small essay gets the brain thinking about how to have a better advertising campaign.

If you own a business and you want to know more about advertising but don't have a lot of extra time to read, this book (and it's 2 successors) would be a valuable addition to your resource library.

Want to know more about what he has to say before you invest in his books? Check out the Entrepreneurs.com articles he's written. As well you can go to his website and read the archived weekly newsletters. If you like podcasts then you can subscribe to the Wizard of Ads podcast with itunes.

If you want to grow in business then you need to let people know your story and you need to advertise it to the marketplace. To have effective ads you need to understand how ads work, you can either hire someone who knows what they are talking about or you can read up on it yourself - your choice.

Advertising Based on a Lie

Economic Woes for Some are Opportunity for Others ... Will Your Business Survive the Economic Downturn

Reading about the projected Christmas Season spending of 2.2% increase and Master Card's report of a -3% decline in spending over last year may bring fear to some business owners. To me this market slow down is an exciting time for business owners.

How can a recession be a good thing for business owners? This slow down is bringing our economy back to where it needs to be in order to be healthy. Over the past 10 years our economic growth has been unhealthy because it has caused business people to be fat and lazy resulting in poor quality products and less than acceptable service. This so called recession will clean up the economy and inspire some business people to rise and be better for the marketplace and put the less then reputable out of business.

So will you rise to the challenge? Will you become a better business person? Will your business become leaner, meaner and stronger in the world or will you shut your doors? The choice is yours and it will take work because you will need to look at how you do business and how you want to do business, find that gap and create a business you will be proud of and will survive any recession.

Links for more on this topic:

After Christmas Sales a Result of Lower Christmas Spending

Will Your Business Survive a Recession?

High Gas Prices and the Price of Bread

As a Business Owner you need to Embrase your Sale Role

Every business owner is a salesperson and needs to come to terms with this. In order to be successful as a salesperson every business owner needs to learn as much as possible about how to be a good salesperson.

A great blog on sales and marketing tips

Check out podcasts on itunes, many sales coaches have podcasts on itunes for free. Load them onto your ipods to learn as you go about sales, business and marketing.

Economic Uncertainty Causing Many to Review their Assets and Investments

I just returned from the Yukon and met some very friendly and knowledgeable business people in all different industries.

I met with two friendly, knowledgable, and down to earth people who run the Primerica office in Whitehorse Yukon. They have been in the industry long enough to fully comprehend the economic ups and downs and are extremly easy to talk to. They have no airs about them and don't act the big city part as others in their industry were. They were the same small town people their clients are.

People like variety and that's why there are so much competition in the world. You have to know your marketplace's attitudes, lifestyle, and general outlook. If your clientel is all about latest fashion and the newest gadgets then make sure you have that image. If your clientel is about small town living, friendly attitudes and a slower pace match that in your image and attitude. Don't try to be the big city hot shot in a small town or the country bumpkin on wall street.

Link:If you are in the Yukon and are looking for some financial advice contact Primerica.