Facebook Faux Pas – what not to do….

Last week I noticed that one of my colleagues had placed a response on a facebook page, to which someone else placed what was basically an advertisement for their wedding business. My colleague responded “Not sure how you think you will get any business by spamming other people comments?” which I fully (FULLY) agreed with. I see folks like this who think that simply putting out on facebook that they are a business who does “xyz” will somehow magically bring them business. I write this article with these folks in mind.
First things first- if you do this- it does not benefit you. It would behoove you to stop.
If you see someone else you know doing it- Tell them to stop.
Facebook is referred to as Social Media- meaning that is where you go to see your “friends” and “like” things. You socialize there. That is the place you go to relax (and sometimes, people are too relaxed). You don’t go there to argue (well, some people do) or to stress. Some people are less than social, but simply said- it is the place where you go to hang. Can you imagine a friend showing up to a Backyard Grill and setting up a card table to start selling you and your friends a financial product?
There is a component of business which can be effective for you on facebook. Keep in mind that my business model is different than yours, so my strategy on facebook is different that what I will suggest to you. I apply a Business to Business model, whereas you mostly apply a Business to Consumer model. That said- you also have other “friends” in the industry who can potentially do or send business to you who are on facebook.
Here is what I want you to realize about facebook- it is only meant to warm a relationship- not solidify or close the deal. When you post up your “stuff” (by the way- especially to a group who will not buy from you- remember your fellow vendors are not your customer and posting on their walls will not make you warm and fuzzy with them to where they want to refer you either).
There is another conversation that we should have- what do you do with your facebook fan page and all the “likes” you strive to get? I , again, see vendors asking for reciprocal “likes” (you like me, I like you). What will that do to get you business? If you are looking for pure numbers, give me a call and I will tell you how to get hundreds of “likes” for a few bucks (I don’t by any means recommend it- I got all of my likes by being out in front of thousands every year, didn’t buy any and I give my facebook fans unique content and special offers- but again, my customer base is different from yours.
My advice is to do 2 things with facebook: 1) give content 2) drive conversation. When you are giving great content, it is content that matters to your prospective client base. It is something that will benefit them and set you up as the expert. If you drive conversation, you are getting your prospective clients to engage and interact with you. By doing this, you are creating trust, you are getting them to get to know you and sidle up to you as someone they may go forward with.
If you use Facebook in these 2 manners, you will warm up many more relationships. You may not close a single deal, but this may be the water that gives life to the seed. The water starts the production of the fruit, but in and of itself does not create any fruit.
Until Next Week, Here’s to your Facebook Success!

The Case for Higher Prices

In the past few years of going out speaking and selling my CD’s and consulting I have found an interesting situation. To best describe this situation, let me state it simply: those who invest will reap the rewards. Those who don’t, don’t. Sounds simplistic, but as I explain my experiences deeper, you will understand and see my point of view. Let me “tee-up” what I have found.
When I first started in the business, I knew that I needed to have some form of back end to monetize what I teach. I had not yet thought about one on one consulting. I could either charge speaking fees, but in researching it, I found that 95% of the associations I chatted with were no able to afford speaking fees. Further, I knew that a 1 or even 2 hour talk would do little to really solve problems and challenges. As I did not yet have videos of myself speaking (I now have about 20, but in the beginning, nada, zilch, zero), I sent out some of my CD’s thinking “they will hear what I have to teach about and it will make sense to have me come speak to their group”.
What I have found out since then is the point of this article; 95% of those who received the CD’s didn’t even open them.
I put my heart and soul into this material and felt it had such infinite value, yet they would not even open them up- WTH! Fact was, it wasn’t personal. People are busy, they have life happening all around them. They simply had no skin in the game. They received this “free” thing in the mail and it had exactly that value to them. At first, I was offended, but when I pulled my head out of my armpit I realized that it was my problem, not theirs.
I figured out that those who paid me more got more out of what I sold them. Those who just came for the “free advice” or even paid a little to attend a seminar would go away satisfied, but true effect of what I taught them really did not take hold. Not that my materials we not valuable- but let’s face it- going to a 1 or 2 hour seminar does not give the constant reinforced instruction necessary to understand a concept or to master a technique.  I call this phenomenon of learning through investing “Paying for Attention”.
This article is not about me though- it is about you. I speak about what I have experienced to show my point. With you- the more people pay for your product or service, the more they want it to be absolutely fabulous and wonderful so they can almost brag about what a genius they were to hire you and pay that extra money.
When a Bride (or any consumer) invests, they want to be proven correct that they did indeed make a wise move. This “paying for Attention” principle works for every Wedding vendor out there, just like it works for me. Now simply paying for garbage is still paying for garbage. If the product or service that you sell is not up to snuff- get it there. That said, most times vendors hesitate to raise their own prices or raise the bar in their business because they have some poor belief systems which are not working for them, but working against their business.
If you prefer to waddle around in the world of low prices, you will be stuck there and will never be able to make enough money to retire and have a proper exit strategy. If you, however, wish to retire well off and make the money you deserve, it may be time to raise your prices and set the standard.
100% of my customers could have bought something cheaper whether it be consulting or information products. Doesn’t mean it would be better , in fact, I can guarantee that most of the cheaper stuff is in fact garbage. By the way- after selling thousands of CD’s I have only had to do one refund (that was to a Photographer with 35 years experience and was truly doing everything on the one CD I suggested he do).
Until Next week, Here’s to your Success~!

Selling Results

If I were to ask you to tell me 5 reasons why a Bride should book with you, what would you tell me? Maybe that you offer excellent customer service. It might be excellent quality. How about you care about your clients. All of those are excellent reasons to do business with someone. The problem is that none of those mean anything to your prospective clients. Let me explain before you get all in a wad (trust me when I say- I have around 11,000 people who receive my emails and every week, I hear the differing opinions who either misunderstand or interpret what I say fully differently than the other 10,999 people who read the same message ). Brides do not buy features- they buy results. They also do not buy on logic- they buy fully emotionally. Selling in a style which is suitable to how they buy will not only increase your sales, but will increase your referrals.
Back in the early 90’s I took a sales course called “FAB Selling” . This course taught us how to sell Features, Advantages, and Benefits.
Here is what a feature looks like- A photographer gives 5 hours of on location photography.
Here is what an Advantage looks like- With 5 hours of shooting, you will get about 1200 images
Here is what a Benefit looks like- Out of 1200 images, you will get photos you will want to share with everyone you know all the way down to sharing with your grandchildren.
We live in the Wedding World 24/7 and forget that our prospects do not understand or comprehend what our “features” mean on a deeper level which would actually mean something to them. We often put industry buzz words, we speak in vague terms (i.e “we offer outstanding quality”) Speaking to our prospects about what A) matters to them B) They understand C) they will respond to will help us to get more of these Brides to act how we want them to act.
Here is another example: Nobody has ever bought a shovel to hang in their garage and admire. They bought that shovel to dig holes- the result. When you sell based upon the result- and again, please note: the result that your customer is looking for, you end up selling more effectively. Pretend you to go into a travel agent looking for the result of sitting on a lounge chair , soaking up the sun, sipping on a cold drink, listening to the sea gulls and the ocean gently lapping at the beach, yet the travel agent spoke about customer service, and quality, and guarantees. It may not touch your buttons as much as a travel agent who starts in by talking about, “you must be in desperate need of a vacation- when was the last time you went on a vacation?” or “That sounds like a perfect getaway- are you able to do it often?”
Homework assignment: Go find the nearest Wedding magazine and start browsing through the ads and see how many sell features vs. selling results. I pick up magazines in every city I visit and browse through them. Let me share with you that were you to make this adjustment correctly (by correctly- run it by several people – let me take a look at it and make sure that it is truly pushing some buttons), you would be amongst the 1% that sell and market results.
Results matter- they are sexy, exciting and fun. Features bore the hell out of me and your Brides.
What are your Results? (please comment below)

You won’t believe what this Bride had too say…

This posting was made (of all places) Craig’s List. As you read it, put yourself in this Bride’s place as best you can (I left the typos and the misspellings in there-not me  )
WHY is finding an amazing wedding photographer so difficult? :/

I am a Bride who is getting married this summer and have yet to find a decently priced, exceptional, amazingly talented, fun photographer.

WHY because the word “WEDDING” is involved photographers think they can change you $ 3,000.00 for wedding photos? Oh, because no bride is going to go without so they are going to pay it, because they HAVE to. They are ripping people off for all they have! Why when you want to get married it costs you AT LEAST 15 grand after all is said-and-done? Its such CRAP!! I love all you $ 3,000.00 photographers out there but i think your prices are WACK. All your doing is hanging out at a wedding taking tons of photos and editing them.. and thats owrth 3 GRAND!!! You’re making so much money its crazy. I just wish people would be more realistic. I mean the “average” persons salary for 1 freaking month is somewhere around 3 grand. (Thats making 19$ an hour) So you’re going to take someones WHOLE MONTH paycheck for one flippen day of photos? Just because you CAN!!?????? So that maybe they will not be able to feed themselves or pay any other bills they have, right? It makes me SICK!

I know im speaking for more than just myself right now. Alot of brides out there think the same thing. & I bet all you fancy photographers wont even read this. oh-well.
Maybe there are cheaper photographers that will read this and LOVE to take my photos
Here was my response:
I have read your letter and wanted to hopefully enlighten you.
The tone of your letter infers that there is a great conspiracy to out there to “rip off Brides”. As someone who is firmly in the middle of the Wedding Industry, let me tell you that you could not be more wrong.
The average Photographer will spend typically 8-10 hours of “taking pictures” as you put it , on your Wedding Day. For each wedding they “take Pictures” for, they will also have to do approximately 5-7 hours of continued education so that when they “take pictures” they will be doing the best and most advanced techniques. Many times this education costs money. Further, the average Photographer will spend around $300 and 4 hours (for every time they “take Pictures” ) of marketing efforts and dollars. The Photographer will on average meet with 2 brides for every one that books (to “take Pictures”), which takes around 3 hours. Let’s pretend that the admin stuff of their business magically takes care of itself (the bookkeeping, the licensing and the ordering of supplies, hiring and firing of employees- the day to day operations) This admin stuff doesn’t magically take care of itself (and the expenses are still there too) , but let’s just pretend. Going back to the “taking pictures” there is also approximately 6-8 hours of back end time for every 1 hour of shooting time. This includes the “editing of a few pictures” as you put it, sorting down from 1500 + images (and they have to look at them all) to a manageable amount (this alone takes around 8 hours) and putting together albums, as well as uploading them to the internet. So your 8 hours of “taking Pictures” added with the 5 hours of continued education, coupled with the 4 hours of marketing and the 48 hours of post production adds up to 67 hours (at a minimum) worth of work divided by what ends up to be around half- $1500 = around what you suggest the average bride makes (based on if they stay booked which there is not guarantee)= a little more reasonable rate. Oh, but wait, I did not include the thousands of dollars in equipment, the travel time to and from the event, the insurance, the fees for phones, internet and studios which it costs , not to mention if they have to pay an employee. You are further assuming that they simply go out casually for a few hours once or twice a week and knock down 200-300k a year from “unsuspecting brides”.
Here is the good news- You can find someone who is cheaper. The Problem is that a camera and a business card does not a Wedding Photographer make. If once you find that person, you may decide to keep looking, you can find someone cheaper than that. If you even keep looking all the way up to the day before your wedding, guess what- there is always someone cheaper. Fact is you are equating these photographers as a commodity which they are not. Ask around the industry with non-photographer wedding professionals and see if they have heard of nightmare stories of the photographer a) not showing up b) screwing up the pictures when they did show up c) not providing the final product (it got lost, destroyed or otherwise) afterwards. I see cases such as those all the time on Judge Judy. I mean, why does Lexis rip off people so much- it has the same tires, steering wheel, windows, engine, etc.. as a Kia doesn’t it?
My advice for you is to not blame the price, but to appreciate the reason behind it. Good luck on your wedding (btw- if you need a referral, I am happy to share some names of professionals who care in the Puget Sound area. They will probably cost more, but you will get what you pay for)
Sincerely

Rick
www.getmorebrides.com

What are your Thoughts?

The High end Bride Myth

I see articles, I see advertisements I see people trying to “lure” in Wedding Vendors to get more “High End Brides”. Let me be blunt- there is no such thing. Maybe there is though….. I think they are standing next to the Polka Dotted Unicorns. The High End Bride that is being touted here is the Bride who has tons of money and she wants to spend it with vendors like you. We like to think that she exists because Price is such an issue in the wedding world. Of course we get Brides who spend more money, but simply said- does that mean they have more money to spend or this- She has more priority on the amount of money that she is willing to use with you.
I want you to think about this: How would one attract a “High End Bride”? Do you only advertise in certain parts of town? Do you make them bring a W-2 with them for their consultation? And even if you determined that this Bride had less income, would you turn her away if she paid for your services? Probably not. The Idea of searching after the High End Bride is a pointless search.
Let me prove my point. When was the last time you had a Bride who said- “Money is No Object! – Here is my No-limit Credit card, do with it as you will. “ Doesn’t happen. Think about the girls from the best, more upscale parts of town. It has been my experience that those Brides are even more keen on negotiating, than are the Brides with less affluence. Just because she lives in a nice house, in a nice part of town does not indicate that she wants to just throw caution to the wind. In fact, she probably got to the nice house in the nice part of town because she is very cautious.
Let me repeat- Stop going for the “High End” Bride and Start going for the “High Priority” Bride. This does not mean that you should not take a Bride who wants to spend a Bunch of money with you. Let me explain:
The High Priority Bride is one who will spend what she needs to spend with the right person because she truly believes she is getting value in exchange for their offering. She is the one who may come into the consult with a $1500 budget, but you end up writing a contract that is twice that amount, maybe 3 times as much! Each Bride has a different set of priorities, so my advice to you is to not pre-judge any brides based on economics, geography, how they dress or anything that has anything to do with price.
Now the obvious question is , “How do I find out what their priority is?”. Simple, they are the Brides who call, email and show up for appointments. They are focused on potentially hiring you for their wedding and they are following the steps of someone who is motivated to get what you have. Those who do not show up, who show up late, who never call or email simply do not have the priority.
Very rarely in the Wedding industry do I come across someone who will be so selective in their processes of hiring a Bride (it is hiring when you do the choosing) that they will exclude someone who looks or is lower income/means. My suggestion that if you do not meet that category of Wedding vendor, that you proceed and meet with as many Brides as possible. You can not predict which ones are willing and able to spend money with you. Further, while there are major indicators out there of what their budget is, their budget for other items such as venue, dress, etc… have little to no bearing on what you potentially sell them. Do not pre-judge Brides who could potentially spend money with you to the point to where you lose business.
Until Next week, Here’s to your Success!

How to use Email Successfully

I recently read a headline on how to make a multi- million dollar company through email marketing. As I opened up the email and read about how Groupon had used email marketing (combined with referral marketing) to become a $6 Billion company (that is what Groupon was offered by Google to buy them). For those of you who are not familiar with Groupon, there is great benefit to using them- Here is a link for you to check out the local deals that they offer:
(click here and then find your local city) http://www.groupon.com/r/uu16272133
Groupon offers it’s users something they want- local deals on things they are interested in.
Now you may be wondering “How do I make email work for me” I will share 2 ideas that have and will work when you use them correctly. The fact is, if you can get your email opened, you have a chance of getting your consumers attention. If you can get their attention, you have a chance of getting them to engage or take another step. If you can get them to take that step (i.e. go to your website) you have a chance of building trust to get another step out of them.
Let me first ask you this question; Are you trying to get your consumer to take too many steps at a time? If so, how is that working for you? Fact is, the consumer who does not purchase what you sell often if ever will move forward with great caution unless you clear the path (in other words, show them you are trustworthy). Most people use Email completely wrong, and in so doing, lower the bar to where when used correctly, the proper email will not only shine, but will become extremely effective.
The wrong way in using email is in these three manners; 1) they blast out offers which are trying to get the Bride to take too many steps at once 2) They assume the need/relationship/sale 3) They are written from a business centric bias rather than a consumer centric bias.
Here are two email methods that work : 1) Be free with information- give them the reports, the ideas and the information they are looking for without giving them too much to where they think they have it all and can do without you. 2) Set yourself as the Gold Standard giver- when you are the expert and state your information as such (i.e. “When hiring a Wedding Consultant, be sure they have these 5 qualities to insure a magical, stress free day” is much more concrete than is “I feel that you should want 5 certain qualities when looking for a Wedding Consultant”. The Gold Standard Giver is the wedding vendor who sets themselves up as the expert and freely imparts advice, tips, and useful information to the Bride that is not “salesy”. Invite the Bride to interact, whether she does business with you or not.
Using the above 2 techniques together is the only way I have seen Email work in the Wedding World. I know that many of you are gathering your lists from the Bridal shows. These lists have value. These are Brides who have raised their hands and essentially said, “ I am going to buy certain things for my wedding, I may buy them from you if I am convinced”. Brides are mostly new to getting married, and while they can find a myriad of info online, there are 2 main reasons why she hesitates: 1) She is scared of making a bad choice 2) She gets too much conflicting info.
Help her to trust that you have the info she needs and that you will not steer her in the wrong direction and use email to build this trust. Email when used right is AWESOME- I would not go without it!
Until Next Week, Here’s to your Success!

Prices on your website

Prices on your website
For years now, the dual edge sword of putting prices on your website has been questioned. Vendors all around struggle with do I put my prices on the website or do I leave them off. There are definitely 2 sides to this, and which way you decide to go will make a difference. That difference needs to have a much more completed strategy, including proper website conversion, proper follow up techniques and more. To not get stuck in the middle of “should I” or “shouldn’t I”, you need to look at each angle so you can choose what fits you and your business best. Let’s talk about the 2 sides of this issue and then I’ll throw in my advice.
Side #1- Put your pricing on your website.
When you put your pricing on the website, you run into a few issues. Issue #1- You are commoditizing yourself. Brides know green dollar bills. They do not understand the depth of experience, the nuance of quality and more. When you put price on your site, you are simply stating one dynamic of your business- the “how much” dynamic. The problem with stating your prices to Brides at this stage is they are too fresh and using only this dynamic to measure your business which is a false measurement. #2 Issue – There will always be someone cheaper. Assuming that the bride is using only price as a comparison (not fair- I know) , you will most times lose. Prices only tell one side of the story and that side is not the story that matters to Brides. I have also seen where most times, Brides will gravitate to the lower end of the price scale. If a vendor puts a range of pricing, the focus becomes on the entry point rather than the high end price. Imagine you are that Bride and you see prices ranging from $700, $900, maybe $1200. She will enter the buying process with this subconscious idea that the price should be around $1000. When she goes to the various vendors and figures out that the price she will pay for what she specifically wants is more around $2000, she feels shock, dismay and confusion. She will shut down and not make a decision.
Side #2- Don’t put your prices on the website.
When you don’t put your prices on your website, there are two potential issues there. Issue #1 – The Bride passes by you (or even worse- gets mad) because that is the only thing she is looking for. Here is a rule for sales: Until she gives you some money/signs a contract/both, she is a prospect. Sometimes prospects will take shots at people to make them feel bad because it gives them a sense of power/being. Don’t let her need for price override what you know to be right and good for your business. Issue #2- You will get the brides who don’t have any budget wasting your time. You’ve had Brides who call you up and even meet with you to the point to where you know they are wasting your time. In rare cases, though, having prices on the web will help you avoid this (there is no guarantee that the Brides will see your prices either way). I think I have a rather simple solution which meets both sides in the middle.
Solution:
Put price ranges with enough information, but not too much on your site. Simply said, you almost want to disregard the issue with this, without going too far- you need to give her enough information without letting her think she has enough to make a decision. For the Special Report on how to range your prices, Please Email me :   rick@getmorebrides.com
Until Next week, Here’s to your Success!

3 Foundational Elements for Success

J Paul Getty once said that you only need three things to be rich:
1. Work Hard
2. Work Smart
3. Strike Oil
There are many of us who have set new goals or intentions for this coming year and we have the hope that the economic winds are too our back. I have thought and thought about the subject of what fundamental elements does one require to be successful. I have narrowed it down to these three (I call them the Triple A)
1. Actions
2. Abilities
3. Attitudes
Actions.
Without Action, you are dead in the water. Let me compare our work in our businesses with an analogy of growing a garden. If we have the intention of growing a garden, we first need to act. We need to prepare the ground as well as plant the seeds. Further, we need to keep on acting. We need to continue to water those seeds, as well as tend to the soil and fertilize. Acting at the beginning, while necessary, is not enough.
Abilities.
Our abilities in our business life are necessary to make our actions effective. Without effective actions, we will overwork and burn the ground to where nothing will grow. Going back to the gardening analogy; if we over water, or underwater, our crop does not benefit near as well as if we give the right amount of watering. If we do not use the proper fertilizer, the proper methods in airing the soil, etc… we can “act” all day long and not have near the results of the two elements of action and ability combined.
Attitude.
Many times, it is our own head games which keep us from playing. We have the attitude that we will never be able to grow in that soil, or the weather will ruin our crops or… (excuse, excuse , excuse) . What ends up happening is we never even plant the seeds, or we excuse our behavior from acting (and from improving our abilities) so we never even get started or if we get started, we slow/stutter our progress.
You can see how Actions and Abilities without the proper Attitudes can give us less than stellar results. You can further see the obvious of lacking in Actions or lacking in Abilities (even with a great Attitude) will leave you short on your end product. Having all three elements is necessary and crucial towards finding the success that you not only strive for, but deserve.
Use these three critical elements and explode who you are meant to be in the coming year!
Until Next Week, Here’s to your Success!

The Christmas Orange

This is a story a friend of mine shared with me years ago- Thank you Lori:-)
(btw- they sell chocolate oranges at Walgreens- you can share this story with your family like I do and break open one of these chocolate treats- The kids love when we pass it around and they share with each other!)
The Christmas Orange
In the very early 1800′s, a young boy about 14 years old named John lived in an orphanage in England along with several other children. Orphanages were dreaded. Orphan meant unwanted and unloved. The orphanage was administered by a master and his wife who were results of meager backgrounds themselves and were short on love but high on discipline. No childlike play, no expression of compassion, no understanding.
Every day of the year was spent working. They worked in gardens, cleaned, sewed, and cooked sometimes for wealthy children. They were up at dawn and worked until dark and usually received only one meal a day. However, they were very grateful because they were taught to be hard workers. John had absolutely nothing to call his own. None of the children did.
Christmas was the one day of the year when the children did not work and received a gift. A gift for each child — something to call their own.
This special gift was an orange. John had been in the orphanage long enough to look forward with delight and anticipation of this special day of Christmas and to the orange he would receive. In Old England, and to John and his orphan companions, an orange was a rare and special gift. It had an unusual aroma of something they smelled only at Christmas. The children prized it so much that they kept it for several days, weeks, and even months — protecting it, smelling it, touching it and loving it. Usually they tried to savor and preserve it for so long that it often rotted before they ever peeled it to enjoy the sweet juice.
Many thought were expressed this year as Christmas time approached. The children would say, “I will keep mine the longest.” They always talked about how big their last orange was and how long they had kept it.
John usually slept with his next to his pillow. He would put it right by his nose and smell of its goodness, holding it tenderly and carefully as not to bruise it. He would dream of children all over the world smelling the sweet aroma of oranges. It gave him security and a sense of well being, hope and dreams of a future filled with good food and a life different from this meager existence.
This year John was overjoyed by the Christmas season. He was becoming a man. He knew he was becoming stronger and soon he would be old enough to leave. He was excited by this anticipation and excited about Christmas. He would save his orange until his birthday in July. If he preserved it very carefully, kept it cool and did not drop it, he might be able to eat it on his birthday.
Christmas day finally came. The children were so excited as they entered the big dining hall. John could smell the unusual aroma of meat. In his excitement and because of his oversized feet, he tripped, causing a disturbance. Immediately the master roared, “John, leave the hall and there will be no orange for you this year.” John’s heart broke violently wide open. He began to cry. He turned and went swiftly back to the cold room and his corner so the small children would not see his anguish.
Then he heard the door open and each of the children entered. Little Elizabeth with her hair falling over her shoulders, a smile on her face, and tears in her eyes held out a piece of rag to John. “Here John,” she said, “this is for you.” John was touched by her youth and innocence as he reached for the bulge in her hand.
As he lifted back the edges of the rag he saw a big juicy orange all peeled and quartered. . . and then he realized what they had done. Each had sacrificed their own orange by sharing a quarter and had created a big, beautiful orange for John. John never forgot the sharing, love and personal sacrifice his friends had shown him that Christmas day.
May your Christmas season be filled with the thought of abundance and blessings we enjoy. It is our goal to be reminded to share with another and to keep in mind that while perhaps there were challenges in the past year, the best is yet to come!
Merry Christmas from the Brewer’s!

Dealing with Down Time

In the wedding world, there are distinct times during the year, where your business comes to a crawl. Many of you out there are very good at keeping busy and welcome the restful periods. Some also keep busy with different types of business (Christmas parties and summer picnics come to mind). For those of you who are slowing down and have some extra time on your hands, here are some items you may want to look at on your check list to help you to tie up loose ends or prepare for a great year next year.
1. Have you written your goals for next year? I will actually be giving a free Goal setting webinar next Tuesday (information below). Let me challenge you to write your goals before then and then attend the webinar to give you some ideas to adjust your approach. It is CRUCIAL that you write your goals. A goal not written is merely an idea. We all have ideas every day. When you write your goal, it makes it much more concrete.
2. Analyze your systems. Do you have a written marketing strategy and a written sales approach. Do you measure most things that you do? If your strategy and approach are not written, write them out. If you do not have standards and measurements other than “your best guess” you need to look at this. One of the biggest items I look at when I work with a business is to see if they’re systems are a servant or a master. A big indicator of a failure in business is typically a failure in their systems. By having structured approaches to how you deal with your day to day operations of your business, you can adjust and improve upon those approaches. Further, you are better geared for change. Change is inevitable in any given business and failure to change will leave you behind the times and losing business.
3. Measure your year end results. By now most of you should be able to put an accurate measurement on your year end results meaning Profits and Losses. You should be able to look at a comparable year to year view and measure are you up, are you down, are you better or are you worse than the past. Many times you will be able to look at what happened and again adjust for the coming year. I looked at one year where I went for 2 solid months (in fairness, I was busy ) of not sending out a weekly email. I determined to change that for the following year and saw an approximate 35% increase to my bottom line from this singular action. I have found it is the fundamental actions, the basics, the blocking and tackling that really makes a difference in your business and by figuring out what these fundamental money making areas are and measure them.
4. Take time to tie up loose ends. File all the stuff on your desk, get your marketing tuned up for next year, get ready for Bridal show season, re-vamp your website or social media approach. You know what the loose ends that you have in your life. Find 5-6 of them and get them done while you have some ability to accomplish it.
5. Give yourself a pat on the back. You have finished the year (hopefully strong) and are set for another year in business. It is hard being a small business owner, and I am sure you know the mortality rate of small businesses. You have made it through another year and by all indications, next year is going to be great. Allow yourself to have some mis steps , to have made some mistakes and to have had learning experiences. These all are building blocks for your business and necessary in many cases to grow to the next level.
Down time can feel like a curse when we want/need to make money, but recognize the benefits and take full advantage of them.

Until Next Week, Here’s to your Success!