Here’s a tip:   Sit down with your sales team, and make a list of all the low cost, high impact marketing efforts that you have in place right now.  For example, you may have articles that are being written and submitted to newspapers.  Do you know how many newspapers get your articles or how many newspapers may run your articles?  How about E-Blast newsletters that you send out to your Suspect Pool?  Did you know that there’s a way to track how many people open up that e-mail and how many people actually read it?  This is true particularly if the e-mail is on your website and the E-Blast points them to your website.  Think of the number of free talks you might be able to give to your Suspect Pool maybe through Chamber’s of Commerce, free seminars and/or Association talks.  As you inventory these systematized, monthly reoccurring, marketing efforts you’ll find they truly are low cost but have a very, very high impact.

This has been your CEO Rule of the Week.  I am Ruben Estrada.  Your Next Move

Please click here to listen to the CEO Rule of the Week

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Here is a question:  What systems do you have in place to respond to the unexpected customer request?  How will you respond to make sure that every request is heard and acknowledged?  Do your systems allow and even encourage your customers to ask for things that may not be immediately visible as part of your product or service?  When they do ask, will you be able to respond quickly and fulfill their request?  How will you respond when their request is real, but your service is not able to respond?

Here is a tip.  Take some time in the next 30-60 days to identify as many possible requests for additional or alternative services or products that your customers might want.  Determine how you will respond if those requests become realities.  Now, go one step further, work with your team to create a plan to respond when requests that you did not foresee come in.  Make sure everyone on the team knows their part in this customer service system.  Remember, an unfulfilled request IS and unspoken complaint.

This has been your CEO Rule of the Week.  I am Ruben Estrada.  Your Next Move

Click here to listen to the CEO Rule of the Week

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

As a CEO Coach, I have encountered many senior to mid-level managers, who have years of experience and talent, but still can’t find work. In light of the job climate, many of them have opted to start their own companies. According to census figures about 22 percent of all businesses are started by women, or men of African and Hispanic descent.

Starting a business is always challenging, but here are some of the issues that I see minority business owners facing:

Education.  Learning how to run a business is not a skill you can acquire in a classroom, but having some educational training in business does help. I would advise minority business owners to learn as much about the business world as they can. Read business books, attend seminars and also seek out mentors. Many of our clients seek us out because they realize that when they are the boss, there is no one to turn to when you need advice.

Capital. This is not only a problem with minority owners. I talk to business advisers all the time and they say one of the most common requests they face is assistance with funding. However there are many avenues you can look into such as business loans, savings, lines of credit, etc. The key thing to remember is that when you walk into a meeting with a potential financier, you have to have a business plan written out with quarterly revenue projections.  Investors want to know where their money is going and when they are going to see a return.

Management Experience.   Management experience is critical when you are running your own business.  But if you have never had the chance to lead a company, it can seem overwhelming when you are responsible for all the decisions.  You can learn a lot about leadership by evaluating past managers and noting what they did right, or what they did wrong. You can take the best elements of past managers to create your own leadership style. Estrada Strategies CEO Coach can also provide great management training.

Administration skills. In a small company, the CEO wears many hats, he has to be the accountant, the administrative assistant and public relations representative. Many of these tasks are mainly administrative, and while they might seem minor, they are still an important part of running a business. I have worked with many clients where I have realized that most of their problems are caused by the lack of delegation. Unpaid bills  and missed meetings, eventually effect the businesses’ bottom line. The mark of a good manager is knowing when to delegate authority.  The CEO cannot oversee every detail of the company. His time is better spent working on the big issues. But in order to delegate authority, you have to hire employees who you can trust.

Leadership skills. Many African Americans, and other minorities, are taught by their parents to go to college and get a good job. Schools often focus on students following the curriculum and learning to work through the bureaucracy. These skills do not nurture leadership, and you have to be an effective leader when you run your own company. You can gain leadership skills by volunteering to head up your professional association or civic group. Many civic groups, such as the Jaycees, also offer leadership classes held in conjunction with local cities. Leadership skills are critical because, as a business owner, your employees look to your for guidance and count on you to make good decisions that steer the business in the right direction.

These are just a few of the problems I have identified among minority business owners. Many of these problems are common among all new business owners. But, once these problems are identified, we can now take steps to either fix them or avoid them.

Yolanda Mason is a CEO Coach for Estrada Strategies. For more information call 909.489.5708 or ymason@estradstrategies.com.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

First over coming the fear that comes with the territory, isn’t eliminating fear but channeling it and harnessing it to your advantage. No you won’t kill the “butterflies” but realizing that fear is part of the process and knowing that preparation is the enemy of fear, harness the energy that fear produces.

The most common forms of fear are; fear of the unknown, fear of forgetting and fear of unanticipated questions. Dealing with fear of the unknown will be overcome by following the same procedure it takes to get to Carnegie Hall, practice, practice, practice. It’s your talk, don’t worry, someone may know more than you about the subject but they don’t know what you have planned, you do.

Fear of forgetting can be easily overcome by having a small card with you key points or writing out your presentation. If the holder of our highest office in the land can have speeches fully pre-prepared then you can too.

Those worrisome unanticipated questions, if you allow for questions to be asked, can be  simply overcome by responding honestly to a question that you don’t know the correct answer to by saying “That’s a very good question and I don’t know the answer, but I will get that answer for you and get back to you personally.” By answering this way you show genuine interest in the question and a sincere desire to provide the correct answer.  Stumbling through an attempt at trying be “all that” will prove your not, so take the high road and provide even further evidence that you are a person of integrity.

So to sum up the surest ways to overcome fear, don’t procrastinate developing your presentation, become familiar with you key points by practicing, and start by calendaring the time to prepare.

By Steve Lynn

CEO Coach, Ontario

909-578-7000 direct

estradastrategies.com/ontario

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Ruben Estrada – CEO Coach

		Download story podcast

02:40 PM PDT on Wednesday, April 6, 2011

There are many articles that talk about “succession planning.” Many of these articles are informative and offer valuable advice on how to develop a succession plan for your business. However, many owners of small to mid-sized companies still view themselves as invincible and shielded from adverse situations that would pull them out of their businesses for an extended period of time. I feel this way because of the hundreds of business owners I have coached who had no succession plan and were reluctant to address the topic head on.

I can remember the days when I also felt this way. That is until I was diagnosed with cancer last June. Six months of aggressive chemotherapy has kept me out of my business for more than five months, and the pending lung surgery and future chemotherapy will keep me away from work for another six months to a year. Yet, my businesses continue to operate and grow without me. Could you say the same, if you were put in the same situation?

I ask this question with a serious tone and challenge you to answer the question seriously, because the future of your business, and in many cases, the future of your family, is dependent on your answer.

If you are like the hundreds of small business owners I have coached, I can predict your answer to be, “No, my business cannot run without me!” Well, then you have a choice. You can continue to believe that you are invincible or you can get your head out of the sand and begin to do what is needed to ensure the survival of your business in the unlikely and unfortunate event that you are “out of action.”

What is needed you ask? The answer to that question is easier than you think. You basically need two things: systems and people.

Systems: Having a documented and clear understanding of your company’s work flow process and a repository of all systems that make up the steps in the process. These systems collectively would make up your operations manual and employee training manuals.

People: This speaks to having the right people in the right positions that are capable to develop, manage and/or deploy the systems.

Sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it? Well, it’s quite the opposite.

The whole idea of becoming a systems-based company can be overwhelming and all consuming. The skills to identify the best people for key positions can be equally challenging. And both tasks will require a lot of work to complete.

But think of the alternative, no systems in place, and the wrong people in charge and you not around for six months. This increases the possibility of your business failing.

So I ask you one more time, “Can your business survive without you?” If the answer is still no, then you need to seek the advice of a professional to help draw up a

succession plan.

Ruben Estrada is president and CEO of Estrada Strategies, a CEO Coaching Franchise for small and medium-sized businesses. He can be reached via 909-476-3510 or Ruben@EstradaStrategies.com.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

I have often wondered why people seem afraid or hesitant when I talk about Internet marketing. To me, the topic seems so simple and clear. Then again, if I had to talk about industrial equipment, I’d be in trouble. And that’s exactly what I want to discuss today: Internet marketing…or more specifically, how to embrace your fear and begin using proven online marketing tactics, especially social media strategies, to make an astounding difference in your own success.

What Qualifies Me To Help You?

I embarked on a 5 month social media campaign in January. I had about 15 connections on LinkedIn, no Facebook presence, no Twitter presence. By the middle of May, I had 12,000+ followers and more business than I could shake a metric at. I won’t lie to you and say it wasn’t a lot of work, or cost me no money. It was. It did. But even today, almost 6 weeks since my campaign officially ended, the ‘promo machine’ we created continues to generate buzz, leads, and all kinds of conversation starters. It’s a beautiful thing when it’s done right.

I thought you should know this because I’m hoping to come back and chat with you about once a week right here at The Business Coach, and I want to thank Kevin for allowing me to do so. If we’re going to work together to get you on the path to your highest aspirations, I think it only fair that you know who I am. (Learn more at http://bit.ly/a7M7az )

The Very, Very Basics of Internet Marketing

People often ask me, “So you’re an Internet marketer. What exactly is that?” Internet marketing is a very broad term for promoting products and services online. After all, each of us comes to the web as a buyer or a seller. (Sometimes we just want information, but even this often eventually leads to buying something.) Think about your corner store – they sell products, offer sales, put merchandise in the window, and advertise to bring in business. That’s marketing, plain and simple. Online marketing is no different – except there is no physical store. Someone like me simply helps companies figure out the best methods for reaching and selling to a specific target audience.

Where Internet marketing begins to raise anxiety levels is in deciding which strategies are best. The typical online merchant feels completely overwhelmed, unsure, and indecisive about which strategies to invest in. From building a website, implementing SEO (search engine optimization), and choosing a shopping cart, to linkbuilding campaigns, PPC (Pay-Per-Click) advertising and social media, it’s enough to make you quit. On top of all of this, one expert says “Do this”, while another says, “No, do this.” So what happens? You do nothing, because you just don’t know what to do.

Fail to Plan, Plan to Fail

Bottom line, the best Internet marketing results can’t be had without a plan. I know talking about plans, strategies, data and target audiences isn’t fun. But unless you do the hard work beforehand, your marketing strategy is doomed to failure. You’ll start out in one area, then become completely distracted somewhere else, and end up with a hodgepodge of unrelated, unmeasured tactics, none of which are working well. The next thing you know, you’re on the phone with me saying, “Internet marketing doesn’t work for my industry.” Unless you’re working in a secret underground military installation, this is hogwash! Every company needs to sell goods and services to survive. Traditional media is dying, replaced by Internet marketing more and more each day, with billions of dollars worth of goods being exchanged daily. It simply doesn’t hold water to say it doesn’t work for you. The problem is not the marketing; the problem is your approach. Perhaps you don’t understand where to begin…or you’ve begun but become stuck…or someone gave you very bad advice. This is common, and very fixable. But you’ve got to build your online presence and show up where your customers are. It’s the only way, because they’re all online, looking for you.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll help you understand the basics of the most common Internet marketing strategies…in plain English, no bells and whistles, no hype. You’ve got to know what you’re doing, why you’re doing it and what results you hope to achieve. You’ve got to know your budget, and how to squeeze every ounce out of every dollar you spend. And finally, you’ve got to have a clear vision of how all the available strategies work synergistically to point your target audience to your brand. It’s the only way to achieve online success.

I welcome your questions and comments. Visit http://TheConfidentCopywriter.com, email me at Victoria@TheConfidentCopywriter.com or call me at 800-614-4619.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.