My favorite grocery store company has a very strong and captivating brand. No, I am not talking about the company’s logo or the type of advertisements the business runs in the Sunday newspaper. When I say brand, I mean that the company has so many unique and desirable attributes that I want to shop there.
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The following was published in the July 7 edition of the Richmond Times-Dispatch:
Editor, Times-Dispatch:
Each year I get to celebrate Independence Day twice. On June 30 I celebrate my independence day and on July 4 I celebrate America’s. This year is special, because it marks the 40th anniversary of my independence.
On June 30, 1968, I escaped Communist Cuba and a few months later I was in the United States to stay. That I happened to arrive in Richmond on Thanksgiving Day is just part of the story, but I digress.
I’ve thought a lot about the anniversary this year. The election-year rhetoric has made me think a lot about Cuba and what transpired there. In the late 1950s, most Cubans thought Cuba needed a change, and they were right. So when a young leader came along, every Cuban was at least receptive.
When the young leader spoke eloquently and passionately and denounced the old system, the press fell in love with him. They never questioned who his friends were or what he really believed in. When he said he would help the farmers and the poor and bring free medical care and education to all, everyone followed. When he said he would bring justice and equality to all, everyone said “Praise the Lord.” And when the young leader said, “I will be for change and I’ll bring you change,” everyone yelled, “Viva Fidel!”
But nobody asked about the change, so by the time the executioner’s guns went silent the people’s guns had been taken away. By the time everyone was equal, they were equally poor, hungry, and oppressed. By the time everyone received their free education it was worth nothing. By the time the press noticed, it was too late, because they were now working for him. By the time the change was finally implemented Cuba had been knocked down a couple of notches to Third-World status. By the time the change was over more than a million people had taken to boats, rafts, and inner tubes. You can call those who made it ashore anywhere else in the world the most fortunate Cubans. And now I’m back to the beginning of my story.
Luckily, we would never fall in America for a young leader who promised change without asking, what change? How will you carry it out? What will it cost America?
Would we?
Manuel Alvarez Jr. Sandy Hook.
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If you are struggling to figure out your customers, perhaps you should consider asking them some questions.
Surveying your clientele on a regular basis, even in an informal way, can accomplish a number of important goals and provide your business with much-needed credibility in the marketplace.
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No contract!? That is crazy.
You should always start with a written agreement. Read my article at the Central Penn Business Journal to learn more.
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Think about it: How many times have you almost placed an order, almost made an impulse buy or almost responded to a survey, but then realized that it would just take too much effort? Have you ever considered how many of your prospects made that same decision today?
Read the rest of my article at the Central Penn Business Journal.
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I have long-used VNC and variants (ie: TightVNC) as a way to access my Linux desktops. Comparing VNC to Windows’ Remote Desktop, I have never been happy at all with the way that VNC underperforms. This is of course due to the underlying differences in the way that VNC and RDP render screens, but that is beside the point. Mouse tracking on VNC has always been problematic; often where the mouse actually is on the screen and where VNC thinks it is does not match and you end up playing a game of missed clicks. Additionally, VNC usually lags pretty badly and mouse movement and screen redraws are painfully slow.
Luckily, I no longer have to put up with VNC as a coworker recently turned me on to NoMachine NX Free Edition for Linux.
The install on Ubuntu was absolutely painless. Installers are available in TAR, DEB and RPM formats for easy setup. Traffic is routed securely over SSH on port 22 and if you need to change the default port, that is easy too.
I have been using NoMachine NX for several months now and the program peforms optimally. I can see and work on my Ubuntu desktop remotely over a cable modem uplink and everything renders and operates as if I were at home. While I have not had much time to investigate all of the particulars of the other NX products, the company behind the product, Medialogic, seems to offer a full suite of tremendously useful products. This software just works and I will never go back to VNC. Check it out when you get a chance.
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Can sales really kill a business? Check out my blog this week at the Central Penn Business Journal.
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Have you ever thought about how discounts can actually undermine your market and ruin your chances of selling your product or service for its full value?
Two of my favorite authors, Steve Chandler and Sam Beckford, address the discount myth as Lie #5 in their easy reading book 9 Lies That Are Holding Your Business Back…: And the Truth That Will Set It Free.
If you are struggling as a business owner to figure out what your customers want or how to make money without any money, this is a great book laced with many simple and easy to follow tips. You can pick up a copy today to reveal the other 4 lies that might land you in hot water as a business owner:
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Check out my blog this week at the Central Penn Business Journal.
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If you want to know everything there is to know about Google AdWords and you do not know who Perry Marshall is, find out! Perry is the AdWords guru and has been perfecting and proselytizing the right way to direct market using Google AdWords for many years.
I make the introduction to Perry only because the idea I am about to relate is not my own, but one that Perry presented at an industry talk several years ago. If all of this AdWords information I have been telling you these past few weeks has peaked your interest, go to YouTube.com and you will find a plethora of valuable information in recorded talks given by Perry. Furthermore, go to PerryMarshall.com and sign up for Perry’s free e-newsletter. Be forewarned, your head might explode with exciting ideas as Perry gives concrete and real-world examples of how to make AdWords work for your business.
Are you ready? Here is the breakthrough idea that Perry proposed:
As an entrepreneur who has a business idea, you can test a market, unlock the secrets that sell in that demographic, and figure out what allows your competition to dominate without ever investing a dime in inventory or taking any major risk. The only collateral you have on the line is a few dollars each month in advertising with Google AdWords. The best part is that AdWords allows you to control to the penny how much you spend daily and you can back out at any time without losing your shirt.
This is one of those ideas that makes you smack yourself in the head for not thinking of it yourself and here it is:
Take the idea you want to market, identify your biggest competition and then buy advertising for their web site using Google AdWords. That’s right! You are going to market for the competition to find out what works before taking any risk on the concept.
Employing this strategy allows you to see what your competition’s demographic is searching for and truly interested in; in turn, this strategy allows you to see what sells and what does not.
As you perfect the advertising and draw prospects in, you can even deploy opt-in campaigns and surveys in the middle of the process, building a database of interested buyers on the way to the competition’s site. Later, you can contact these prospects directly, tell them about your improved concept and attract them away from the competition!
Read more about Google AdWords at the Central Penn Business Journal web site.
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Read my latest Central Penn Business Journal Articles: Part I & Part II
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Read my latest blog for the Central Penn Business Journal here: VoIP delivers best-value telephone service
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