Why your company doesn't exist- well maybe

If you can’t describe your product in eight words or less … it doesn’t exist.
Customers crave simplicity. Could you explain your idea to your mother?

If you can’t define your product … it doesn’t exist.
Because a confused mind never buys.

If you don’t have a unique product … it doesn’t exist.
Because a choice-saturated mind never buys.

If it doesn’t exist on the Internet … it doesn’t exist.
Not just a web-SITE; a web-PRESENCE. Octopus, not earthworm.

If you can’t Google it … it doesn’t exist.
What happens when someone googles your name?

If people aren’t talking about your product … it doesn’t exist.
It’s simple: get noticed = get remembered = get business. Who’s blogging about you?

If you’re not marketing your company DAILY … it doesn’t exist.
People who “do a little marketing here and there” will “get new customers … here and there.”

If you don’t write it down … it doesn’t exist.
And if you don’t write it down, it never happened. That’s why writing is the basis of all wealth.

If people aren’t retelling your story … it doesn’t exist.
The only true reason your business will grow is if your existing customers are telling your potential customers about you. Word of mouth is the most honest, most sincere and most authentic form of marketing.

If it can’t be found … it doesn’t exist.
Even without Google, people still need to be able to contact you. So, if your phone numbers, addresses and emails are out of date, disconnected or no longer in service, you’ve got a problem. Because if they can’t get you, they’ll just pick the next guy on the list.

Space gardeners

‘ Some Martian dirt has the same basic chemistry as garden soil, a new analysis from the Phoenix lander suggests. The find widens the range of organisms that might be able to live on Mars'.. today - New Scientist

Now this tickles me on several layers. Could this be a place we could send all those TV gardeners who drive you nuts, gleefully describing the zillions ways you can take a plant out of one pot and then put it in another. Or how to best make a hole in the ground and then… well maybe put a plant in it?

Maybe we can grow oilseed rape and turn it form the red planet to the yellow planet like our countryside.

Or maybe, if the gravity is less - and I really don ‘t know if it is so go with me on this one - we could grew increasingly ludicrously sized vegetables. Now wouldn’t that be an allotment show?

To boldy plant lobelia where no man has planted lobelia before.

Stop me now.

Any suggestions to this string welcome

Marketing Mistakes your Company is probably making

Scott has (once again) come up with  an embarrassing list to check yourself against. I cringed at most of the responses for me; like most of us I guess but I learned more about my business in the five minutes  it took to read than any amount of consultancy and therapy  I've ever had. 

Have fun and go to a quiet place to read this, where no one can hear you sob gently.

1. You’re not That Guy.
2. You’re not remarkable.
3. You’re not blogging yet.
4. You’re not marketing daily.
5. You’re not focused at ALL.
6. You’re not using Google Alerts.
7. You’re not word of mouth worthy.
8. You’re not building a permission asset.
9. You’re not reading Seth Godin’s books.
10. You’re not giving enough away for free.
11. You’re not building a timeline of credibility.
12. You’re not the origin; you’re just the echo of someone else’s idea.
13. You’re not leveraging your media appearances in every possible way.

14. You ARE getting talked about, but you don’t know who’s doing the talking.
15. You ARE remarkable, but you’re not relevant. Or worthwhile. Or marketable.
16. You ARE blogging, but you’re not disciplining yourself blog every single day.
17. You ARE blogging every day, but your posts are too long, too safe, uninteresting, unfocused and written with poor architecture and ZERO Call to Action.

18. You’re saying WAY too much.
19. You’re creating noise, not music.
20. You’re trying to force word of mouth.
21. You’re the observer, not the observed.
22. You’re trying to hard to convince people.
23. You’re trying to be the arrow instead of the target.
24. You’re worried about marketshare, not mindshare.
25. You’re interrupting people, not interacting with them.
26. You’re relying on your customers to connect the dots.
27. You’re marketing efforts cause customers to hear FROM you, not ABOUT you.
28. You’re trying too hard to be authentic, which results in you NOT being authentic.
29. You’re sitting around waiting for your annoying, low-rent YouTube video to “go viral.”
30. You’re using WAY too much text on EVERYTHING. (Come on. Nobody’s gonna read all that crap.)

31. You’re (still) calling it “marketing.”
32. You’re (still) calling them “customers.”
33. You’re (still) wasting your money on advertising.
34. You’re (still) using Papyrus as your company’s primary font.

35. You think people care.
36. You think people have time.
37. You think customers aren’t smart.
38. You think putting up a MySpace page is (actually) going to help grow your business.

39. You don’t know who you are.
40. You don’t have enough samples out there.

41. You take too long to return calls and emails.
42. You stop marketing when you become successful.
43. You have a strong web-SITE, but a weak web-PRESENCE.

44. Your marketing looks like marketing.
45. Your goal is to make money, not create positive change.
46. Your company name includes words like “Associates,” “Communications,” “Creative,” “Kwik,” “Premiere,” “Solutions,” “Deluxe” and “Ultimate.”

6 drivers of change

I thought I’d write a short post providing some immediate reflections from an interesting panel discussion I f read about  today.

The panel, titled “Innovation: Change Happens,” featured Dow Corning Chairman, CEO and President Stephanie Burns, Eastman Kodak President and COO Phil Faraci, and Procter & Gamble Chairman and CEO A.G. Lafley. It was part of the Newspaper Association of America and American Society of News Editors “Capital Conference 2008.”

Each of the panelists provided a short account of their respective company’s change efforts and answered audience questions. The six key points that seemed to be in common across the three companies were:

• The need for a crisis or some kind of “burning platform” to motivate transformational change
  
• A clear vision and strategy … that allows room for iteration
  
• A recognition that transformation is a multi-year journey
  
• A need to put the customer or consumer in the center of the transformation equation
  
• The critical importance of demonstrating to skeptics that different actions can lead to different results
  
• The need to over-communicate to employees, customers, stakeholders, and shareholders
  

The Two Big Questions

In new New Product Development or indeed any new business venture there is one critical question to address first. If you don't know the answer you are in grave danger of producing  just a me too or a karaoke product and service. If my local pub karaoke evening is anything to go by this means simply a poor impersonation of  something better.

What's going on?
To answer that we need to provide answers to 5 critical questions

What’s the problem.
What needs to be fixed, and what is the driver for changing it?

What’s the impact? 
What effect doesn’t this problem have and why is it so important?

What’s the information?
What do we know about the problem, what is the root cause and what else do we need to know? 

Who’s involved?
Who exactly is this problem important too, who is a stakeholder, beneficiary or looser if it doesn’t get fixed?

What’s the vision? 
What is the future position we can imagine that would reslove this problem?

answer those and then comes the next big question

What is success? 

This really is about Imagining the future 

• What will the company report say in three years?
  
• What will a future press release read like?
  
• How can you describe the future if the problem if it is solved or reversed?
  

The right question

Unless you ask the Right Question- it doesn't matter how good the rest of your work is

21 Beautiful Questions for the Entrepreneur

My 21 beautiful questions for any new business to ask itself.... and should keep asking daily

1. How can you charge a premium price so you have a large margin to provide an extraordinary value & experience?

2. What is the ‘Reason Why’ customers should do business with you and pay you a premium.

3. What rules do we want to make the rules for your business and how can you prevent industry norms dictate how you’ll work or who you’ll work with.

4. How can you create your business around your life instead of settling for your life around your business?

5. How can we constantly force ourselves to focus on the ‘critically few’ proactive activities that produce exponential results. And prevent getting get caught up in minutia & bullshit?

6. How can we minimise start-up risk but have maximum upside potential?

7.How can you get your idea out there as fast as possible even if it’s not quite ready by setting must-hit deadlines. Let the market tell you if you have a winner or not. If not – move on and fail forward fast! If it’s got potential – then you can make it better.

8. How can you find partners and team members who are strong where you are weak and appreciate being paid on results?

9. How can you avoid ever get paid based on hours worked.

10. How can you leverage your marketing activities exponentially by using direct response methods and testing?

11. How can you measure and track your marketing so you know what’s working and what’s not?

12. How best to Bootstrap? Having too much capital leads to incredible waste and doing things using conventional means.

13.Keep asking the right questions to come up with innovative solutions. “How?”, “What?”, “Where?”, “Who Else?” & “Why?” open up possibilities. How can you get the headspace to realise never have a perfect business and you’ll never be totally “done”? Deal with it.

14.How can you focus most of our time on your core strengths and less time working in areas you suck at?

15. How can you make it easier for customers to buy by taking away the risk of the transaction by guaranteeing what you do in a meaningful way?

16.How can you have something else to sell (via upsell, cross-sell, follow-up offer, etc) whenever a transaction takes place? The hottest buyer in the world is one who just gave you money.

17.How can you fire your most annoying customers? They’ll be replaced with the right ones.

18.How can you prevent the market from beating you down into being just a commodity? and how can  you develop and build your business’s personality so that it that stands out. People want to buy from people.

19.How can you create your own category so you can first in the consumer’s mind?

20.What is the opposite direction competitors are headed – how can you go there ? You’ll stand out.

21. How can we do the unexpected before and after anything goes wrong so customers are compelled to ‘share your story’?

Sharing and caring pays the bills

I often get asked why I blog and give away so much information so freely?

One of my mentors once told me that only by learning and sharing do you get the right to learn more. Thats on the wall of my office. But there is a much more pragmatic reason. Because, as a marketing tool both for me and the business I am involved with, it works and is the cornerstone of my own values and practice. Not just because it is fun and gives me a warm fuzzy feeling but it pays in the long run. And I've proved it over and over again. Yes, some take advantage but they are generally people you wouldn't want as customers anyway. and thats is their problems. Anxiety over al sorts of stuff generally keeps the wrong person awake at night.

For me there are simply 7 actions I focus on. All result in the building a reputation ( Hopefully for common sense and genuine interest in my clients) and developing dialogues with existing and potential customers.


No 1. Give away valuable information

All of your marketing should revolve around this law. Articles,
reports, surveys, teleclasses and other valuable information gives
prospects a real taste of what your business and services are all
about. And these days you can distribute this information
practically for free via email and the web.

No 2. Share valuable resources

When you make an initial connection with someone, it's not
unusual that you learn of a resource they are looking for. It could
be a tip on how to add sound to PowerPoint or a book on how to
work with virtual assistants.

If you know of a resource, let them know and follow up after the
meeting with an email with the information or an online link.
Make it a habit to be a resource and people won't forget you.

No 3. Give free bonuses with your services and products

A bonus can be an enticement to work with you: "When you book
X months of work with me, you'll also receive a copy of this
planning software." Or "If you buy two online products You'll get a
third one for free."

However, it's more than an enticement. It adds real value that
can make a difference to your clients or customers. And if it helps
them get better results, you get more positive word of mouth.
Everyone wins and your cost is minimal.

No 4. Give leads to clients and associates

People value good leads to potential clients. Sometimes they'll
reciprocate, of course. But a good lead that results in a new client
also buys you some access or time with your associate where you
can expand your collaboration.

For instance, you send a lead to an associate and that lead turns
into a good client. You then follow up with the associate and say:
"I'm glad John became a client. I'm sure he'll be happy with your
services. You know, I'd like to sit down with you and brainstorm
some ways we could help each other grow our businesses."

No 5. Give something away to the associates of your clients

This law can create powerful leverage. Say you have a number of
clients who have associates and clients who are also good
potential clients for you. If your client has been happy with your
services, they will often be happy to spread the word about you.
You'd be surprised how generous people can be.

Let them know you've put together a valuable report, a recording,
a teleclass or a live presentation. And then work out a way to offer
this to the clients and associates of your client. It needs to be a
triple-win. The associates win because they receive something of
value. You win because you get access to potential clients. And
your client wins because they are seen as a valuable resource.

No 6. Send written and emailed thank-you notes

Good business is conducted in an atmosphere of gratitude. When
you give, you'll also get in return. You'll also receive valuable
information, resources, bonuses and leads. And you want to
accept these with an open heart and with thanks.

And the best way to make that thanks real is with a written note.
Email will do for little things like the exchange of information and
resources. But when someone goes out of their way to help you,
give you a lead, or assist your business in some way, send a
hand-written card. It goes a long way.

No 7. Give away complimentary sessions by phone

I've left this one to last because it's so important, and for many,
it can be the key to filling a professional practice. At its heart, a
complimentary session is an opportunity to assist a prospect in
getting clear about where they are going, what's in the way, and
what they need to do next.

Sounds simple, but it's not a conversation many business people
have the opportunity to engage in. To focus 100% on a prospect's
situation, dreams and challenges can be a life-changing
experience. And it often paves the way to introduce your services
which can facilitate the realization of their dreams.

Hope this helps.

Follow up questions

The Art of the Follow-up

You may have heard the assertion that people are more afraid of
public speaking than death.

I don't yet have the statistics to back it up yet, but I think the
fear of picking up the phone and calling someone you don't know,
trumps both of these.

I've met many people who have little fear of public speaking, but
I've seen several grown men and women quake with fear at the
prospect of making follow-up calls. In fact, many long years ago, I
was one of those people!

A follow-up call means calling someone by phone whom you've
previously met and who might be a prospect for your services. It
could also be a lead you've received from an associate or an
attendee from a talk or presentation.

The follow-up call is the pivotal action between marketing and
selling. Marketing warms up the selling process, but the follow-up
call is the key action that furthers the business relationship and
often secures the appointment.

To call or not to call, that is the question.

Not only do we not like making follow-up calls, we tend to do a
bad job of them when we finally get around to it. It's not
uncommon that we avoid them altogether, hoping that interested
prospects will call us back instead.

However, when I meet the very rare person who is good at
making follow-up calls, I know they won't have much trouble
consistently attracting clients. They don't wait, they connect.
They seize the opportunity, not wallow in the difficulty.

Let's do a reality check:

1. For the most part, prospects are not going to call you back,
even if they are interested in your services. If you want to turn
that prospect into a client you MUST make the follow-up call.

2. You will survive if you make these calls. I haven't known of
anyone who has died by making follow-up calls or has had the
prospect send a hit man to take them out. It is not fatal.

3. You can get very good at making follow-up calls. You can learn
how to do this relatively easy. Like anything, it will take some
time and practice, but it's not rocket science.

The way to succeed with follow-up calls, is through scripting.

If you were playing in Hamlet, you'd have a script. If you didn't,
can you imagine how you'd come across? You'd bomb! Well, isn't
your business more important than a play?

With follow-up calls, you can't wing it; you need to know what to
say, when to say it and how to say it. You need to write out your
scripts and use them as guidelines as you make your calls. You
never actually read your scripts, but use them as outlines to keep
you on track.

I'd recommend four kinds of scripts:

1. The script for voice mail
2. The script when you reach a prospect
3. The script for dealing with gatekeepers
4. The general purpose information script

Armed with these four scripts, you finally have power when you
make your calls. You will start to control the flow of the call
instead of the call controlling you. (In the audio program, we go
over these scripts in great detail and even role-play each one of
them.)

Also, like being in Hamlet, you need to practice. Out loud. Use a
mirror and a tape recorder for immediate feedback. Until you feel
comfortable with your scripts, you will sound awkward and
hesitant, missing that authentic connection with your prospects.

If and when you master the art of the follow-up call, you will see
the following results: Fewer opportunities missed, more
appointments with qualified prospects, and more business closed.

Follow-up calls need to be a central part of your marketing plan.
No matter what marketing activities you do, follow-up calls need
to be part of the equation. If you don't make them, you may be
waiting a very long time for prospects to call you back. And that,
my friend, can kill you!

Customer Qualification Questions

I think it's very useful in business development to break down marketing into its component parts and then study the details and how-tos of each of these parts.

My "Next 50 customers Model" breaks the client-attracting process
into the following four parts:

Part 1. Developing your marketing message, identity and
materials that communicate the essence of your business.

Part 2. Engaging in marketing activities, from networking and
speaking, to eZines and blogging (utilizing the messages and
materials from Part 1).

Part 3. The Marketing Conversation, where you interact (usually
verbally) with a prospect as a result of engaging in marketing
activities.

Part 4. The Selling Conversation where you move on from the
Marketing Conversation and explore the actual needs of a
prospect, and then present your services.

Today, I want to focus on the Marketing Conversation.

The Marketing Conversation has four distinct steps. Most people
have some practice with the first step (getting attention and
interest), but usually fall down on the last three steps.

Marketing Conversations - The Four Steps

1. The Audio Logo.
This is the initial interaction with a prospect
where you get their attention and interest. This includes talking
about who you serve (your target market), the problems and
issues that challenge your clients, the solutions and outcomes you
provide, and stories that illustrate all of the above.

2. Qualification.
These are the back and forth questions and
answers you and the prospect engage in to feel each other out for
a possible match. It also includes sharing in more depth about
how you work with clients and the results you produce. We'll go
into this step in more detail below.

3. The Offer.
Once you have the attention and interest of a
prospect and you've qualified them, you need to have a call-to-
action, or nothing will happen. The best way to do this is to offer
more information related to your business (an article, for
instance) and an offer to follow up (usually by phone and/or
email). Again, more on this below.

4. The Follow-Up.
After you've provided information, you need to
follow-up and explore with the prospect if there is enough
common ground to engage in the Selling Conversation. I
discussed follow-up strategies in detail in recent eZines.

If you master the four steps of the Marketing Conversation, you
will jump much faster from marketing activities to Selling
Conversations, and ultimately to new closed business.

If you miss one or more steps in the Marketing Conversation,
marketing will usually be a struggle. You'll talk about your
business, even generate some interest, but you won't have a clear
path from the initial connection to a Sales Conversation.

Qualification Secret

One of the biggest mistakes we make in the Qualification Step is
talking all the time about what we do. The prospect asks a
question and off we go, a mile a minute. Then at the end, you
hand out your card, they walk away and you wonder. "Wha'
happened?!"

Here's the secret. Simple, but not so obvious. When a prospect
asks a question, answer briefly and then turn around and ask a
question of them.

Prospect: What process do you use to increase retention?

You: We use various processes, with our main focus on hiring the
right people to begin with. Can you tell me the biggest issue your
company has with retention?

With several of those exchanges you are informing your prospect
about your services (in bite-sized pieces), and you are learning
more about their needs.

Step Three Secret

Once you've qualified the prospect and they seem to be a good
potential client, you need to find a comfortable transition that will
lead to a Sales Conversation. Once a prospect is interested, they
want one thing: more information. So offer it to them.

"I've written a White Paper on retention called, 'The Seven
Biggest Mistakes Companies Make in Retaining their Best People.'
I think you'll find it very interesting. Can I send you copy?"

The answer to such an offer is almost always "Yes." Remember, if
you've interested them, they WILL want more information. This
relevant information makes you stand out immediately as a
valued professional. (Time to start working on that article!)

Then you reply, "Great, I'll send it to you by email. Then I'd love
to get your reaction to it and find out a bit more about your
business. When's the best time to reach you?"

End the conversation by agreeing on a time you'll make a follow-
up call. This works a lot better than saying, "Okay, I'll send it to
you and please give me a call if you have any questions." That's
called "dropping the ball." It's YOUR job to follow-up!

If you work at mastering the Marketing Conversation, you'll go
way beyond getting attention and interest; you'll end up with a
lot more Selling Conversations and, ultimately, more clients.

Hope that helps.

Wanted! Innovators

Reblogged from Jeff Philllps

Read this and thought it about sums up the state of innovation in the UK.


Sometimes I think that many firms should place an ad in the employment pages that says: Wanted: Innovation Leaders. Must be visionary, tough, well-connected and willing to risk it all.

I was reading a post from Drew Boyd about academic research into what competencies are important in innovation practitioners and innovation leaders. Drew, and the academics and research he cites, are far more eloquent than I can be. However, the lack of eloquence has never slowed me from climbing up on the soapbox.

Any firm that decides to build a consistent, sustainable innovation capability needs senior executive commitment and funding. That goes without saying. But the innovation initiative needs a strong, determined leader who can demonstrate the following four skills or competencies:

Vision
Commitment
Fearlessness
Excellent communication

A person lacking in one or two of these competencies might be able to compensate with the addition of a sidekick or team mate who can bring that specific skill to the table. Let's drill into each to determine why they are important.

Vision: The innovation team leader will recruit people to his team in an uncertain climate to do some fairly risky things. She needs to be able to communicate her vision for innovation capabilities and how that aligns to the senior management team's needs and strategies.

Commitment: Sorry, part-timers need not apply. If your innovation team leader is part-time, how can she convince people to join her team and make a big commitment. They'll all have one foot in the innovation team and one foot firmly planted in their safe, comfortable existing roles. An innovation leader trying to start a challenging new process that probably runs counter to organization culture can't succeed on a part-time basis.

Fearlessness: You can't succeed when innovation trying not to fail. Too many innovation programs seek very simple, very safe ideas to generate and implement. That's not the point. We've already got Black belts and continuous improvement programs and product roadmaps. We need some risk and danger. The leader needs to be able to stick her neck out and ask some crazy questions, cannibalize existing products and overturn markets, or the end result will be more of the same.

Communication: The innovation leader will recruit full time and part time people to a completely new task, create new processes and methods and generate ideas that will hopefully threaten existing products and services. Based on that description, don't you think they need great communication skills? This means both the skills to speak to the executives as well as to inform the team and the general population.

If your team is forming, or you are considering building an innovation program, now is a good time to write the job description of the innovation leader. Part Gary Cooper, Part Dr. Phil and fully committed to success.

What to do with what you have learned

FIRST: Preserve your learning by evaluating it.

After all, we learn not from our experiences but from intelligent reflection upon those experiences.

So, ask yourself these questions:

*What else is like this?
*What did I just learn from this experience?
*How does this fit into my theory of the universe?
*Does this statement give me any insight about myself?
*How can the basic concept be applied to different areas?
*What went right/wrong/perfectly about what just happened?

SECOND: Preserve your learning by writing it down.

After all, if you don’t write it down, it never happened.

So, ask yourself these questions:

*How can I blog about this?
*What folder does this go into?
*What journal does this go into?
*How can I make writing a part of this?
*What list can I immediately make this into?
*What are the various ways I can recycle this intellectual property?

THIRD: Preserve your learning by teaching it to others.

After all, you learn something most effectively the moment you teach it to someone else.

So, ask yourself these questions:

*How can I teach this to others?
*Who else needs to know about this?
*What’s the Universal Human Emotion/Experience?
*Through which medium can I best teach this idea to others?
*Now that I’ve written about this, what else does this make possible?
*If everyone did exactly what I said, what would their world look like?

FINALLY: Preserve your learning by leveraging it.

After all, killing two stones with one bird is always the best business practice.

So, ask yourself these questions:

*Where can I use this?
*What else can be made from this?
*How can I make this last forever?
*How many different ways can I leverage this?
*How can I use this to add more value to myself?
*How can this mistake quickly be made into something good?

REMEMBER: Evaluate. Write. Teach. Leverage.

How to stop wasting your time.

Scott has again come up with some simple but remarkable motivation bytes I thought I'd share

1. Stop wasting your time … advertising.
If people always hear FROM you instead of ABOUT you, you’re doing something wrong.

AS OSCAR WILDE SAYS: The only thing worse than being talked about is (not) being talked about.

2. Stop wasting your time … trying, in general.
If someone uses the word “trying” a lot, he probably ISN’T.

AS YODA SAYS: There is no try. Only do or do not.

3. Stop wasting your time … trying to prove yourself.
If YOU know you’re good enough, that’s enough.

AS BUDDHA SAYS: He is able who thinks he is able.

4. Stop wasting your time … trying to convince people.
If they don’t “get it” right away, they probably never will.

AS SETH GODIN SAYS: If you can’t explain it in 8 words or less, it’s not a good idea.

5. Stop wasting your time … trying to be better than the competition.
If you position your value correctly, you won’t HAVE any competition.

AS SCOTT GINSBERG SAYS: The best way to eliminate the competition is to not have any.

6. Stop wasting your time … dealing with people who can’t sign the check.
If they’re not the economic buyer, save your breath and move on.

AS ERIC MAISEL SAYS: Playing to the wrong crowd is dangerous.

7. Stop wasting your time … selling to people who just aren’t going to buy.
If they’re just there to kick tires, that’s cool. Greet them warmly and move on to someone else. They’ll come when they’re ready.

AS SCOTT GINSBERG SAYS: If they want you, they’ll find you.

8. Stop wasting your time … selling to people who don’t know how to value you yet.
If they’re not ready for you, they don’t deserve you.

AS DAVID ALLEN SAYS: Saying NO to the wrong person leads to saying YES to the right person.

9. Stop wasting your time … following up with people who never, ever call you back.
If they wanted you, they would have hired you already. You can only call so many times.

AS LAO TZU SAYS: Any over determined behavior produces its opposite.

10. Stop wasting your time … making people happy who aren’t in your target market.
If they’re not your ideal customer, who cares if they don’t like you?

AS MY DAD SAYS: Focus on pleasing the people who PAY.

11. Stop wasting your time … sending prospects your hideous brochures and literature.
If they get it, they will immediately store it in the circular file cabinet.

Marching to a different drum

I-Google's 'quote of the day' service does serve up some gems. Today's is one that resonates a lot when thinking about creativity and innovation, both at a individual and at a corporate level.


'Read, every day, something no one else is reading. Think, every day, something no one else is thinking. Do, every day, something no one else would be silly enough to do. It is bad for the mind to be always part of unanimity'

If you immerse yourself in same things, do the same things because that is why we have always done it. Look at the same competitors and use them as your benchmark instead of looking at completely different sectors and how they do it then you can't be entirely surprised if you feel stale,find yourself in plod mode and just loose energy.

Its not always about looking outside the box, more looking at what is already in your box but with different eyes.

Monday Morning

Sometimes we just need to unplug. We can get so wrapped up in the politics and frustrations of work life and the turmoil of everything else that sometimes we simply can't breath - but on monday morning do yourself a favour. Set the alarm for about 4, earlier if you can stand it and go outside, hopefully where there is little light pollution and just look up.

First thing you will notice is that there is no moon, This is a good thing - and then you should begin to see dozens and dozens of shooting stars. If you are lucky enough to be in the Southern hemisphere it will be even more. what you will see is the remnants of Halleys' Comet, well bits of it bouncing, across our atmosphere.

Take your kids out with you, rent them or borrow them if you don't have any. And just look. Take a blanket and lie on the ground, with fresh coffe and a big sweater.

And while you do try some communicating with yourself. You might like what you hear.

Although the din of the dawn chorus, now in full voice, might make it a bit tricky to hear yourself think but will probably make even better.

Just enjoy.... its a day off anyway so you can go back to bed.

Intranet World and Virtual Reality Intranet

Thanks to all the lovely people who turned up at Internet World and heard my colleague Tony Tickle from t3d and myself talk about Virtual Worlds- a reality check. We received some interesting and complimentary feedback and at the request of a couple of people are just about to launch our own blog on the subject of Virtual Reality Intranets.

We are looking for a good name though so any suggestions for a working title would be gratefully received.

Intranet World itself was interesting but only in what hasn't changed- just more of it; More CMS vendors, with bigger garish stands, more SEO companies and a lot more speakers which is frankly the main reason for going. So please Mr Organisers, can we have some bigger theatres so more people can attend. and here is a thing, why not a conference without an exhibition or vendors but a real conference, not something just tagged on. Internet World has outgrown the venue. It is pretty cramped and just nasty. Move it to the NEC where we can all get a hotel, travel to it, walk around without traffic jams and get home before midnight and not have our cars towed- Tony is still upset. And it will give all those poor London bods a nice day out. They need to get out more anyway.

Having said that I know t3D who were exhibiting there were overwhelmed with interest in their web enabled VR solutions, and some fantastic enquires and contacts to work with. So he isn't complaining. well maybe about his car...

to make him feel less like Mr Grumpy you can check out his web site

www.t3d.co.uk

Blogging About

I’m having a great time right now, putting together the final chapter on my book, and the workshop that goes with it, which looks at communication strategies and tools for innovation amplification in an organisation. What I call Speed Duck Herding.

It has a little bit of everything. Basically, I walk readers through a four-step system for improving their internal communications generally but specifically for ideation and new knowledge. The same ideas work for any communication goal if I’m honest, but as it is supposedly about creating and promoting innovation I thought we best focus on that.

1. Research. This is the essential but sometimes tedious part of finding out what people probably already know or suspect and would normally pay a huge consultant's fee just to have a sanity check. What you get back is ' nobody in the warehouse has a clue what the sale departments are doing'. ( Sales don't know what they are doing anyway so no surprises there) That sort of stuff: we do introduce the concept of simplifying it using a Map of Engagement™ and lines in the sand.

2. Planning. The even more tedious part which lays out what we are going to do although it is basically is the same for each programme, just the copy and paste and change the name of the project. It is that generic. I can actually write it in a paragraph but most people seem to think that they need 50 pages of analysis and justification for any document to be worth anything. They don't feel as if they are getting their money's worth unless there are at least five appendixes. Common sense is as common as a politician’s apology.

3. Implementation. Now this is the fun part, where we talk about the development of the stories and beautiful questions, the ways to get them out there into the social software and all the social media, intranets and all the fun stuff that really floats my boat.

4. How are we doing then? The necessary stuff about measurement- to look at gaps, impact and essentially gives the bullets for the gun that gets the budget from the board for the next phase.

I’ve passed this new the chapter on to a few colleagues for their input. I had thought that the implementation and soclal media part would be of most interest, but I'm surprised at how hungry people are for information on the 1, 2 and 4 processes.

And, as usual with my writings, I'm learning as much as I am teaching. For example, one of my network was telling me about what is happening in their company were they have a policy where any employee can blog . . linked to their intranet, (clever people) .and about 30 % of them are bloggophiles which is a pretty remarkable take up. They use them to share information, swap ideas, get the word out about something, anything. From baby news, holiday and car sharing to asking and looking for specific solutions. All sorts of reasons.

But their bosses are using it in a different way I hadn’t heard of before. They are a multi site operation; have 200+ retail outlets and are using a variation of the 'management by walking about principle'- a really effective tool started in the 80’s and used with great effect by managers with imagination. Definitely so in this case, as rather than burning petrol, they are popping on with the odd comment, to employee's blog sites. They read the comments, and see what people are saying and add to the discussion. Just a brilliant use of social networking to get a real dialogue going throughout an organisation that bypasses the upward and sideways filters that so often get in the way of the real story.

The process has been gaining momentum on the back of just one story of it working in practice. One casual employee, a student who just worked a few hours a week, posted on their shop blog site a low level complaint that the stock was not being labeled clearly enough and the codes were all over the place. Wouldn’t it be easier to put a photograph of the content on the outside?

Operations director talked to their suppliers about labeling, and just asked the question, was it actually doable? And it was so. Now it is being phased in across their suppliers as part of prequalification. This saves them hours of frustration, clipboards, climbing up and down ladders to read code at 10 pt size from ten feet. It makes the retail managers jobs a whole lot easier more fun and requires less training. Its is so easy to misread a 12 figure code number so they are adding images to their ERP system and stock control and ordering system. You do it for your client on your web site, why not for your own colleagues? Of course the IT department had a kitten fit about bandwidth- No Surprises there then) Derrrr. . God knows how much money time and effort it saves them but importantly it shows how sometimes the obvious can be overlooked. The scary part is that this idea that would have been missed. The Saturday girl comes up with the beautiful answer.

Now I remember one CEO who used to complain to me that 'his door was always open' but no-one ever came through it and I was trying to explain, tactfully, that the door works the other way too. He has legs. His staff, no matter how affable he thinks he is are just plain scared. That is how it works. The beauty of blogging about is that with just a few minutes every day any manager get a feel for the mood, problems and general well being of her of his ecosystem. Identify problems and eliminate some of those worst practices that have a disproportionate effect on company morale. You can’t be everywhere but the benefit of employee blogging gives the opportunity to at least have the opportunity to absorb and understand in a way that zillions of reports and PowerPoint files and spreadsheets just cannot do. And most importantly to provide a continuous feedback and constant noise rather than an annual engagement survey which is basically a historic document as soon as you receive it. But you have to start somewhere.

Of course, it will only work if employees are allowed to blog in the first place . . . so it probably won’t catch on anytime soon.

But I’m going to have to add another bloody chapter now, just in case it does.

King Coal

Even though China is bringing on line two coal powered power stations a week it currently has only a couple of weeks coal left stock piled after a terrible winter according to New Scientist. And air con requirements in the southern provinces are actually outstripping industrial demand so the summer isn't going to help much..

Now this is a really interesting and relevant story for me being based in the centre of the old Yorkshire coal mining area that was ripped out in the late 80’s, - I can see the old NUM HQ and Arthur's Seat from my window. It shows, amongst a great deal of other things, that one man's gold is another man's poison. And now - and I'm not sure if it is ironic or paradoxical or probably both, we, in my little town, are sat on a bleedin' fortune. Like steel, the price of coal is set to go through the roof and what used to be a marginal business looks like it may rise again. Chinese economic growth is actually limited by how much coal they have and how fast they can get out of the ground.

Another interesting fact the article points out is that despite its reliance on fossil fuels for generation it still has a lower emissions per head figure than the US.

Maybe the Olympic torch will be the only light shining at some times in Bejjiing this summer. If you are going, take your own candles. In the mean time anyone got a shovel?

He who asks the best questions gets the customer

Questions are the basis of all sales

Questions are the basis of all knowledge

Questions are the basis of all creativity

Questions are the basis of all discovery

Questions are the basis of all learning

Questions are the basis of all listening

Questions are the basis of all understanding

and just to repeat

Questions are the basis of all sales

For my top 20 sales questions of all time e-mail me at barry@thesavvypartnership.co.uk and I will send you them for free.

Questions about questions

Types of Questions and Why They Work


Asking The Beautiful Question is essential to creativity. Ask the right question and people will move into different places in their head and help them to see the same landscape but with new eyes.

In innovation and creativity there are a whole slew of questions based around the principles of TRIZ that I use to enable people with the opportunity to shift their preconceived ideas. But even at its most basic level a brainstorming session will only be productive if the questions the participants are asked to throw their energies into are refined enough paradoxically to open up the horizons. Creativity loves constraint.

Questions and what to ask when are essential in any communication, building engagement, rapport and trust. We don't ask enough or use their power to anything like their full potential

So here is a whistle stop tour of some questions I use, how and why they work.

1. Are you saying…?
Identifies someone’s language patterns.

2. Are you willing to…?
Tests someone’s limits.

3. Can you give me…?
Encourages examples and specifics.

4. Can you remember…?
Taps into someone’s memory.

5. Did you ask…?
Questions someone’s questions.

6. Have you considered…?
Non-threatening proposal of options.

7. Have you given any thought to…?
Suggestive, yet doesn’t sound like advice.

8. Have you thought about…?
Forces someone to think!

9. How are you constantly…?
Promotes consistency of action.

10. How are you creating…?
Proves that someone has a choice.

11. How can you become…?
Future oriented, motivational.

12. How can you make…?
Enlists someone’s creativity.

13. How could you have…?
Focused on past performance improvement.

14. How do you feel…?
Feelings are good.

15. How do you measure…?
Clarifies and specifies someone’s statement.

16. How do you plan to…?
Future oriented, process oriented, action oriented.

17. How do you want…?
Visualises ideal conditions.

18. How does this relate to…?
Keeps someone on point, uncovers connections between things.

19. How else could this be…?
Encourages open, option-oriented and leverage-based thinking.

20. How long will it take to…?
Clarifies time specifics.

21. How many different ways…?
Enlists someone’s creativity, explores various options.

22. How many people…?
Clarifies and specifies.

23. How might you…?
All about potential and possibility.

24. How much energy…?
Identifies patterns of energy investment.

25. How much money…?
Identifies patterns of financial investment.

26. How much time each day…?
Identifies patterns of (daily) time investment.

27. How much time…?
Identifies patterns of energy investment.

28. How often do you…?
Gets an idea of someone’s frequency.

29. How well do you…?
Uncovers abilities.

30. How will you know when/if…?
Predicts outcomes of ideal situations.

31. If you could change…?
Visualizes improvement.

32. If you had to…?
Possibility thinking.

33. If you showed your…?
Imagining what others would say.

34. If you stopped…?
Cause-effect question.

35. If you were…?
Ideal situation.

36. In what areas…?
Searching for multiple answers.

37. Is anybody going to…?
Deciding if something even matters.

38. Is there any other…?
Challenges someone to find ONE more answer.

39. Is there anything else…?
Yep, there probably is. Answers are rarely absolute.

40. Is your idea…?
Forces someone to think objectively.

41. On a scale from 1 to 10…?
Putting a number to an emotion clarifies it.

42. What are some of the…?
Encourages list making.

43. What are the biggest mistakes…?
Negative based for preventative measures.

44. What are the keys to…?
Searching for best practices.

45. What are the patterns of…?
Uncovering commonalities.

46. What are the things that…?
Because there’s probably more than one answer.

47. What are the ways…?
Freedom (not) to resign to one solution.

48. What are you currently...?
Assesses present situations.

49. What are you doing that…?
Assesses present actions.

50. What are you willing to…?
Explores limits.

51. What can I do to…?
Demonstrates a desire to serve.

52. What can WE do to…?
Partnership-oriented.

53. What can you do right now…?
Focuses on immediate action being taken.

54. What can you do today…?
Focuses on daily action being taken.

55. What causes your…?
Uncovering true motives without the dreaded, "Why?"

56. What challenges are…?
Identifies barriers.

57. What did you learn…?
Because people don’t care what you know; only what you learned.

58. What do you need to…?
Needs assessment.

59. What does that tell you about…?
Encourages someone to figure out the answer individually.

60. What else can you…?
Because there’s always options.

61. What evidence…?
Because specificity is persuasion.