Working on your business versus Working in your business

While making sales calls for Jersey Shore Coupons to people I have known for years I got some strange comments! Looking like most of the people I spoke with were busy working in their businesses. Too busy to think about promoting or advertising their business. And you guessed it! They all were doing terrible…

Years ago I learned that I if spent all my time working in the business my income usually suffered because I had no new business coming in. Sandler Sales Training taught me to set aside a part of each day to build my business. At first this was very hard… But as time went on I got control of my schedule I found it was not too difficult to make the time necessary to keep my business growing. My frustration level starting going down and my income started going up.

So spend more time working on you business….

Richard M.J. Jarosz on LinkedIn
Lone Keep Internet, Inc.

How Rude!

As you know if someone contacts me I assume they want to hear from me. WRONG! Oh, so wrong... I save up all the email advertisements I get and about once or twice a month I give them a call just to touch base. See if I can help them, see if they can help me.

Well I just have to vent! This "Design" company has sent me three emails since the beginning of the month! So... I called them and OMG! How Rude! First, they did not even announce that I had called their company (personal number?). Second when I stated who I was and why I was calling I got this list of question: Who, What, Where etc.

I finally said "Wait a minute! You don't owe me any money. I was just calling in response to the emails you sent me" This prompted another line of questions. I answered all of her questions politely but still could not have a conversation with all her defensiveness. So I politely thanked her for her time and hung up!

I was looking to work with an additional design company but I would not send a single client of mine to her. So I just deleted all of her emails and blocked her email address.

Wonder how the economy is treating her?

Richard M.J. Jarosz
Lone Keep Internet, Inc.

PROJECT: "What on your Shelf?" is Over!

And what a depressing project it was! Over half of the businesses gone in less that two years. Of the other half most are on their way... bad business people! And almost all don't know how to use their business cards or the phone!!!!

The raw stats:
Business Cards in the Box: 0 (Started at 1000)
Out of Business: 548
Businesses actually looking to grow: 102
Businesses that called back: 79

10% only were actually looking to grow. How did I arrive at that number? These were the ones that answered their phone like a business and starting a conversation with me. I did not sell them and they did not sell me... just a pleasant conversation between two local business people whom I have met before. We talked about BNI, Toastmasters, local chambers, the Jersey Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau and my FREE monthly seminars and how each could help their business. Some actually showed up to these meeting/events and we continued our discussions. Nice folks.

The other 400 (not out of business) were just rude! If I was not buying from them, right then and there, they they wanted nothing to do with me... Not exactly nice in this business environment! They will soon follow the path of the 500 currently out of business. I wish them the best but...

So I ask again, "What's on your shelf?"

Using your 60 Second Commercial as Blog Content

Most of the people I speak with tell me they have nothing to blog about. However most belong to networking groups. These groups let you do a 60 second commercial at the beginning of each meeting as a form of introduction.

These 60 Second introductions usually include who you are looking to meet in the upcoming week or some interesting tidbit to catch the listeners ear. One such example was at my BNI meeting this past Thursday. The Pest Control expert mentioned Bed Bugs as they have been getting a lot of press here in Monmouth County. He mentioned that he was an expert in their removal and used a greener (safer) method to do the job. A method not used by other local pest control companies. When I asked him if he put this info into a blog post or even an email to his current clients his response was typical. "No one wants to hear about it!" Well actually yes they do. It's been all over the papers and even the nightly news! Bed bugs are becoming a problem at the Jersey Shore. Even the local Multiplex theater make the nightly news with their bed bug issue.

So if you have invested the time and effort into a great 60 Second commercial why not use that as a basis for your blog entry. Most networking groups recommend that you have a different one each week. So you have a different blog entry each week. Now that is Working Smarter not Harder!

Richard M.J. Jarosz
Charter member of the Shore Money Chapter of BNI
We meet in Ocean Grove, NJ each Thursday morning.

Promoting Content with Social Media - Facebook

Social Media is generating a lot of buzz right now among marketers and business owners. Business that can leverage social media to help distribute content and generally get the word out. Social media allows your customers and prospects to communicate directly with you online allowing interesting content to be spread quickly.

With more than 500 million users, Facebook has become the major player n the social media industry. It is the number 2 most visited site in the world, right behind Google which is number 1! While many people still think of it as a place for high school and college kids, it is actually a diverse network consisting of all demographics.

The first step in leveraging Facebook for business is to set up a business fan page like the one for Lone Keep Internet, Inc.

The second step is to suggest your business page to all your friends.

How many already have business fan pages?