Asklorraine/23/dp1st/mark2nd
Question: My family runs a local grocery store. Even with all of the big supermarket chains, we still do a nice business mostly because we service the needs of our community. Keeping our employees motivated, however, is a bit hard, especially since we are just a mom-and-pop shop and there isn’t a lot of pizzazz attached to the business. We need some pizzazz. Help!
Answer: Go fish. I’m not trying to be sarcastic. One of the best motivation videos available is titled “Go Fish” and was produced by the owners of one of the major fish markets in Seattle. For me, the video was made even better when I saw these guys in action down at Fisherman’s Wharf.
The video sheds new light on the job of cleaning and selling fresh fish obviously considered mundane and boring. But these guys have fun on the job. Why? They come to work thinking about how they can enjoy getting through the day. They make it work for themselves and their customers.
The tape is a lesson for all human resource professionals trying to motivate workers. It gives people a real-life, blue-collar lesson in turning any job into an experience that adds revenue to the bottom line.
Get a copy. If you want more information, e-mail me at [email protected].
Q: My brother and I have bootstrapped our arts and crafts business for the past two years. Hopefully in the next 12 months we will be able to support the business with cash flow. We manufacture our own products and sell them directly through our store. We don’t have a lot of money to advertise or hire a distribution company. Any ideas about how we might make more money? Another year seems like a long, long time to wait to bring in some income.
A: Ever watch the movie “Baby Boom”? It’s a great movie about being an entrepreneur. What did the character played by Diane Keaton do in that film to sell her home-grown baby food? She went to local shops and did it direct. So can you.
That’s not so far-fetched. Companies are still doing it all the time. It gives you a chance to meet other store owners in your business while getting new customers and ideas about marketing from people you have something in common with.
Of course, this will take you away from the store. So you might have to bring in some family members or friends to help out so your brother isn’t overburdened while you’re out marketing.
In addition, there is always the good old Internet. Why not put together a Web site that could reach out to a customer base? The problem with e-commerce, as I’m sure you know, is that it takes money to set up a site. It might be easier to try and get into an existing catalog or onto someone else’s site so you can capitalize on their advertising and marketing dollars. You can offer up a piece of the sale as barter. Even if you don’t make any money at all on the products you sell online, it’s a great marketing tool to beef up sales in the future.
Q: I spend a lot of time on the road, which makes it difficult to communicate with my staff. Sometimes I’m not that far away, but two-way communication still gets expensive and complicated. Are there any new services out there that might make staying in touch more time-efficient as well as cost-effective?
A: Last week I was at a conference in Colorado Springs and got to hear a presentation by a company run by brilliant entrepreneur and visionary Craig McCaw. The company is Nextel, which has some really cool business-to-business communication systems. I went away so excited that I’m getting the service for my own business.
It is truly the future. Nextel offers two-way paging, text messaging, and newer, faster ways of communicating that will make traveling less painful and more productive.
Q: I just developed a new concept and put together a business plan. I’ve got enough money saved to kick off the project, but I would really like to test it before taking unnecessary chances. I don’t think I have enough money to hire a consultant, however. Is there another way?
A: Go back to school. We live in an area that has some of the best business schools on the planet. Call up the MBA administration offices at USC, UCLA, Cal State Northridge, Pepperdine, Loyola Marymount and Claremont (just to name a few). Check out whether you can make a presentation this fall to some of the second-year classes. You’ll get a chance to tap into minds that are fresh with ideas and full of current information. If you work with one of the executive MBA programs, you’ll get to meet working professionals who might even be able to network through their organizations.
This is an unbelievable opportunity. It not only serves your best interests but can help those students use their newfound knowledge to build your business. Sometimes free advice can be the best advice.
Lorraine Spurge is a personal finance advisor, author of “Money Clips: 365 Tips That Will Pay One Day at a Time,” and business news commentator. She can be reached at (818) 705-3740 or by e-mail at [email protected].
