Give the Customer What They Want

I recently read an article about using your customers as a means for improving your customer service and products by treating customers as co-authors and not targets. This is achieved through social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The article notes how this is a genius idea because it's effective, inexpensive, let's the consumer feel heard, and allows your consumer to create products and ideas for you. I completely agree with the article. By allowing your customers to feel that they are an integral part of your business, you are creating customer loyalty. People want to feel that their opinions are not only heard, but that they matter. The fact that it is inexpensive to operate this way is really a win-win for both the consumer and the business. However, it could be argued that there are some downsides to this idea. Businesses today are subject to the wrath of dissatisfied consumers online. Even if businesses don't have their on website for customer service complaints, which is unlikely, consumers can still tweet and post about it. It's also risky to let consumers come up with new products and ideas, because they may come up with something that is too expensive or just isn't feasible for your company to do, but the idea may be popular with all of your customer base, so you're left with two options. One, refusing to do the idea or create the product, and potentially losing customers. Or, two, going ahead with the product or idea despite your company's reservations, and potentially losing revenue. Even with these downsides in mind, I still believe that this is a good idea. It's easier to sell to an audience when they've had input on what it is that they want to buy.

Advertising Confusion

Advertising can be a very difficult job, especially when a product has been around for a long time, or there are many products similar to yours. So I can understand how it would be difficult for companies to come up with memorable, effective ads, but there are some companies whose ads are trying so hard to be memorable and different that they are not effective. This is something that I've noticed a lot when it comes to ads geared toward children, such as commercials for candy and cereal. Two commercials come to mind when I consider this topic. One commercial for candy is often inappropriate and somewhat disgusting, which are two things that should be avoided when trying to sell candy to children. Another commercial is a cereal advertisement that features people singing an annoying song while sitting at a table and eating the cereal. When compared to the candy ad, the cereal ad is much more tame in terms of what is appropriate for children, but nevertheless, it's still annoying, and I don't think children, or their parents, would respond well to the ad. Advertisements geared toward adults aren't exempt from these advertising mistakes. There are plenty of ads that don't focus on the product they are selling, and focus instead on the people who are selling them. It's fine to use attractive people to sell your product, as long as your product is the main point of the advertisement. When creating an ad for your product, try to be creative, but remember that your product should be the focus of the ad, and people should walk from your ad feeling positive about your company and the product you are selling.

Opinions In Business

Voicing your opinion on social issues is commonplace in our society. It's perfectly acceptable for someone to state their dislike of a new law, or voice that they dislike the president. Sometimes behavior on social media can get people in trouble with their employers, but it's riskier if the organization itself voices its opinion on social issues. An employee may say something on social media that can result in the loss of their job, but when an organization says something controversial, the entire organization can be affected. For instance, a few years ago, the COO of Chick-Fil-A made comments opposing same-sex marriage. It was then discovered that Chick-Fil-A was using part of the funds from a charitable organization to fund anti-LGBT organizations. These discoveries led to major backlash, including boycotts and protests. Eventually, Chick-Fil-A made a statement that they would leave the debate over same-sex marriage to the government. Is it wise for business owners to voice their personal beliefs, considering that their organizations cater to a variety of consumers? On the one hand, Chick-Fil-A did have support from those who oppose same-sex marriage, but on the other hand, by stating their opinion they limited their customer base. It's tempting to state your opinion, especially when it concerns your beliefs, but it does not make good business sense.

Employee Appreciation

The greatest asset an organization has is its employees. Employees are more than just people who do a job for a paycheck. Every employee, regardless of the task, is an important part of any organization. I believe that some organizations fail to recognize this, and fail to realize that showing appreciation for your employees is very important. In the long run, it costs more to continuously hire new employees and train them than it does to ensure that your employees are happy and satisfied within their positions. Organizations can show employee appreciation in many ways. Something as simple as telling your employee that they are doing a good job will go a long way in ensuring that your employee feels recognized and appreciated. Another way to show employee appreciation is to develop a rewards program. Studies show that employees who feel recognized and appreciated are more likely to stay with their company, and are more productive and efficient. Some organizations feel that spending time on employee appreciation is a waste of other resources, but I disagree. I believe that spending a small amount of time on employee appreciation will lead to efficiency and greater productivity.

Organization In Business

Businesses cannot thrive without organization. Organization can help prevent lost inventory, fraud, and lost time. Time is money, and wasting time by trying to find lost inventory costs your company money. I know of a very successful company that has been in business for many years. You might think that a successful company would have good organizational skills, but this is not the case. At the moment, the company is scrambling to find lost inventory and purchase orders, which is costing the company time and money. It isn't hard to be organized. The best way to ensure that you don't lose purchase orders or inventory is to create a system that every worker knows and follows. Every business should have its own organizational system. Without organization, there is chaos, and chaos cannot allow a business to flourish.

Consider Your Parking

Something I've noticed lately, that I don't think a lot of businesses consider, is parking. Perhaps the owners are too preoccupied with the other aspects of opening their businesses that they fail to consider where exactly their costumers are going to park. There is a big name pharmacy in a town where I frequently shop, and the parking lot is so difficult to get into that I rarely shop there. I only go there when it's absolutely necessary, and when those dreadful moments come, I feel so anxious thinking about having to get into the lot. I don't have a picture of it, but you basically have to pull a u-turn into the lot, all while avoiding cars coming out of the drive-thru lane, and avoiding cars parked in front of the building. There is literally just enough space for one vehicle to u-turn into the parking lot, from a busy highway, and it is beyond terrifying. I know that most owners don't have control of how their parking lots are designed, but I think it's definitely something you should consider when you are looking for spaces to rent or buy for your business. As an anxious driver, I will go without something that I desperately need if it means that I don't have to navigate through an insane parking lot, or cross many lanes of traffic to get to the building.

Changing with the Times

What do you do when society changes, but you can't change your product? How do you change your marketing strategies to fit in with society's new standards? It is possible to change your product to fit in with the new society, but it makes more sense to change your marketing. This can be seen today with breakfast cereal. When I was a child, cereals like Lucky Charms and Froot Loops were advertised to children with mascots. Advertisers made cereal seem fun and exciting, and the mascots certainly grabbed children's attention. Today, however, I have noticed that the advertising for children's cereals isn't really geared toward children anymore, but more toward adults. I have noticed that commercials for the cereal rarely feature mascots, or children, and mainly feature adults eating the cereal and playing video games. I think there might be two reasons for this. One, the generation that grew up loving those cereals are now adults, and are free to buy whatever cereals they want, so the cereal companies are marketing to them, reminding them of their childhood, and letting them know it's okay to eat children's cereal. Two, I think society has such negative feelings about children eating sugary cereals that the companies have been forced to change their demographic. Parents are refusing to buy cereal full of sugar and high fructose corn syrup, so cereal companies are now turning their marketing to adults who have the freedom to buy and eat whatever they want. Maybe I'm wrong, but it's definitely something I've noticed.

Celebrity Endorsements

I have seen celebrities advertise products my entire life. From actresses like Jennifer Aniston, to musicians like Beyonce, and comedians such as Ellen, the list is endless. And let's face it, these days you can't watch TV without seeing a commercial with a Kardashian in it. My main concern when considering celebrity endorsements is the fallout that would come with a celebrity scandal. Of the four that I just mentioned, I can name a "scandal" for each of them, and so could anyone else. Personally, celebrities don't change my opinion on whether or not to purchase an item when I like them, but if it is revealed that a celebrity has done something unforgivable, I refuse to buy anything that they are selling. Whether it's a product that they are just simply promoting, or something that they themselves created, like a movie or an album. One of the biggest examples I could give would be Chris Brown. Six years ago, it was revealed that Brown assaulted his then-girlfriend Rihanna. I don't support anyone who assaults their partner, and I refuse to further his career by watching his movies, or listening to his music. So, with this example in mind, I have to ask, are celebrity endorsements really worth it? I don't think so. Celebrities are human, and humans make mistakes, some bigger than others. But when a celebrity makes a mistake, the entire world hears about it. It's not worth the potential revenue their endorsement would bring in when you consider the cost of a celebrity scandal. When a celebrity does something that the public considers wrong, companies have to scramble to pull out their advertisements, sometimes costing them in the millions with lost advertising and revenue. While the potential revenue is appealing, risking my company's name and reputation by partnering with someone in the public eye is not.

Preventing Theft

Since starting this blog, I realize that I've been more observant of the way people run their businesses. The other day, I stopped at a convenience store that I frequently purchase gas from. I've probably been in this store about a thousand times, but it was until recently that I realized how disorganized this store is. There are a few cash registers at the front, with at least four women behind the counter operating them. Now, this store is one of two gas stations in my town, so it's always busy and somewhat hectic. On this particular day, I realized that all of the women use all of the registers, and that no one has a set register that they are supposed to work from. As I watched the flurry of activity, both in front of and behind the counter, I started to have a bit of anxiety. There was so much going on, it was impossible to be sure that the money was going into the register. There are security cameras, but with so much activity, how can you see what is happening? And how would you know when or where to look? I'm not saying anyone at this store would steal money, but if they wanted to, I think they could get away with it. When it comes to preventing theft, you can never be too careful. I would suggest that this owner make it a policy that each cashier must work from their own register, that way if theft occurs, the culprit would likely be caught.

Keep Your Ideas

There are a lot of things I want to do in my life. I want to open a bakery and a restaurant, publish novels, and write and direct a movie. Whenever I get inspired with an idea for one of these projects, I write it down on a dry erase board in my room. Sometimes, when I'm not in my room, I'll write it down on whatever paper I have at the moment, then take it to the board. It's so important to keep up with your ideas, because you never know what idea will become a success. It would be a shame if you thought of something amazing, but didn't write it down, and then eventually you saw that same idea done by someone else, who is now seeing major success because of it. So, do what I do, and keep your ideas. It's also great to have them where you can always see them, to keep you motivated to expand on your ideas, and create something new.

The Value of Pricing

Pricing is one of the most important aspects of your business. When people think of pricing, they usually think of what they would charge for their product or service. Obviously this is very important and necessary, but something most people don't consider, and something that I've noticed a lot lately, is that people don't display their prices. Customers are more willing to purchase your product if they know what they are being charged. I, for one, hate when something in a grocery store doesn't have a price on it and, instead of asking someone how much it costs, I usually just don't buy the product. Businesses are really costing themselves a lot of revenue by simply not making sure that their products have visible prices. When I have my bakery, I will make sure that my prices are obviously displayed.

Different from the Rest

How do you make your business different from every other business that has the same idea as you? Someday, I want to open a bakery. How am I going to make my bakery more preferable to other bakeries out there? One idea I've been considering is to only have my bakery open during certain days of the week. I know it sounds risky, because people tend to get frustrated with businesses that keep weird hours, but I think the lack of daily access to my baked goods might create more of a demand. I know of two businesses that operate this way, and both have been running for well over a decade. Another business did this in my small town, and was booming, then they decided to open up every day, and eventually had to shut down. Only opening your business on certain days of the week creates a  demand for your product, and also lowers operating costs. If you choose to operate only four days of the week, rather than seven, you won't have to throw away unsold goods every day, and you save on water and electricity. Every business you open comes with a certain amount of risk, but I think operating this way will be worth it.

Kickstart Your Business

One of the greatest things about the internet, other than Netflix, is the ability to use it to crowdfund your business. Websites like Kickstarter, GoFundMe, and IndieGoGo, allow you to start a campaign to raise money for your endeavors. An example to show you the potential magnitude of online crowdfunding would be Veronica Mars. Veronica Mars is a TV show that ran for three seasons before being cancelled. Fans of the show were devastated, as it ended on a cliffhanger. However, thanks to Kickstarter, Rob Thomas, the writer and creator of the show, was able to start a campaign to raise money for a Veronica Mars movie. Fans of the show were able to contribute money and receive rewards for doing so. Mr. Thomas raised over five million dollars in just one month, it’s really incredible. Not every campaign will be this successful, but many people have found success on websites like these. I may not use a crowdfunding website when I start my own business, but it is definitely something for aspiring entrepreneurs to keep in mind. Raising capital can be difficult in the beginning, but using a website like this just might make it easier.

Effective Advertising

One of the best examples of great advertising that I can think of is Keith the Plumber. Every time I drive on Highway 79, I see his advertisements. Not only are they instantly recognizable, but the image is definitely one that sticks with you, as you can see below. Now, a man stuck inside of a toilet may not inspire confidence in your plumber, but the image will come to mind when you are in need of a plumbing service. It is so important to stick out when you are in an industry such as this, and this advertisement is certainly an effective way to do that. This is effective advertising because the name of the service sticks with you, and the image is so memorable.