17 August 2008
We have all heard that you should “work smarter not harder”. As cliché as it may sound, it’s true. Life is short and fun is essential (like oxygen).
So how do you work smarter? Assume nothing, question everything! Challenge your current assumptions about your business, the market, and what you believe to be true.
Business is about a product meeting a need or a service solving a problem. Most of all it’s the solution that the customer is wiling to pay for. Work smart by targeting your product/service to the right audience. Know what they like, how they think, what they value and how they buy. Provide a solution to their need, not a solution to what you think they need.
It makes sense having specific solutions for specific targeted audiences and not catering to the masses. Focus energy and input on the right solutions and markets and you could have big results with less input.
Posted in: Business
10 August 2008
Focus on your key strengths. You can’t be good at everything!
By doing something that is not your key strength you are increasing your chances of screwing up exponentially. You will end up fire-fighting problems in the areas you are not strong at. Why not spend the time excelling at the things you really good at?
Your customers will appreciate and understand the fact that you cannot be an expert on everything from plumbing to rocket science. Remember that more services does not mean more profitability. Do not dilute your service offering with too many services, in the hope to make more money. Worker smarter!
Posted in: Business
04 August 2008
The size of your startup is not a reflection of your business skills. More employees, premises and flashy branding do not make you a better business person.
Having fewer but well paying clients is the ideal. It is also the key to maintaining your sanity. Success [and profit] are determined by the quality and not the quantity of your clients. Familiarize yourself with the 80/20 rule.
Posted in: Business
04 August 2008
Entrepreneurship runs in my veins. I have been giving the concept of business and what it means being in business a lot of thought recently.
Business is not for the faint-hearted. It is most definately not for the person who values stability and security. Yet, for those who can brave the turmoil it is often a fulfilling and rewarding experience. Any business person will tell you that you are bound to make numerous mistakes and learn a fair share of (expensive) lessons along the way.
I thought I’d create a series to put some of my business lessons to good use. As promised it will be a bite-size series!
Posted in: Business
30 July 2008
Shake Interactive SA recently ran a successful online campaign in North America for The Macallan, the world’s most precious whisky.
Isn’t it fantastic seeing South African brains being utilized abroad? The Cape Town-based office worked with the client-facing Shake team in New York to design, implement and deliver the campaign.
The campaign:
The electronic CRM campaign (e-CRM), which was based around Father’s Day, was intended to raise brand awareness and help The Macallan clean up and tighten its database. The campaign enjoyed click-through rates of 39% and an open rate of 38.6%. Typically these rates are closer to 9.3% and 26% respectively across the industry. In terms of the bottom line, this translated to a cost of $0.73 (R5.74) per brand exposure, and $1.87 (R14.68) per brand action.
The response is even more remarkable given that the campaign focussed on branding and did not offer a targeted call to purchase, as it is not legal to sell alcohol online in the US. The email encouraged recipients to “make their way up the family pecking order” this Father’s Day and highlighted the time The Macallan spirit spends maturing in carefully selected oak casks, the hallmark of the brand.
“We believe these great results are thanks to well-constructed creative and copy which ensured such high delivery rates, as well as enough text and brand loyalty to encourage click-throughs, even without a special offer,” said Daniel Aufrichtig, Managing Director of Shake Interactive SA and Executive Development Director of the Shake Group.
“We are delighted with these extraordinary results from the team at Shake. They have mastered the delicate intersection of technology and persuasive content, delivering a winning campaign that has far exceeded our expectations based on industry benchmarks,” said Eric Maldonado, The Macallan U.S. brand manager at Rémy Cointreau USA, Inc.
Well done Shake!
Posted in: Branding, Reviews
28 July 2008
A truly South African network for solo entrepreneurs and freelancers.
Now you can network, collaborate, share experiences, tips, ask questions, get answers and generally improve your business smarts.
If you haven’t joined the Flying Solo network, now is your chance!
Join here!
Posted in: Entrepreneur, Tools & Tips
26 July 2008
Here is my presentation for the Flying Solo Unconference - “Bragging Rights: Personal branding for entrepreneurs”
Posted in: Branding, Entrepreneur
14 July 2008
Tips, tricks, considerations, experience, lessons - call it what you wish, but here is what I know about starting a business.
- You must be in love with concept. In actual fact you must be fascinated and completely obsessed with the concept.
- Budget is not an issue. Creativity is.
- Business branding is important. Spend time on the concept, name, slogan and corporate identity. This will not change for a long time.
- Communication is key. Keep all communication clear and concise.
- Promotion will include perfect pitching and awesome networking skills
- Professionalism and astounding service is the best marketing tool.
- The size of your startup is not a reflection of your business skills. More employees, premises and flashy branding do not make you a better business person.
- Outsourcing rules! Create and manage ad-hoc working teams for best results.
- The accounting, legal and tax issues need to be right from the word go – these are the basics.
- Execution will determine your success. Stop talking and put those ideas into action. That is what counts and puts money in the bank.
Did I miss anything?
Posted in: Business, Entrepreneur, Tools & Tips
06 July 2008
Starting a business is not for the faint hearted. Here are five considerations that you need to embrace before you attempt to be an entrepreneur:
- There will be ups, downs, stress and ambiguity. If you cannot embrace this – don’t start a business.
- A start up consumes you – complete attention and devotion is needed. You will be working when other people are having fun.
- Your family and friends will not understand the amount of passion, time or energy required to make a start-up a success. Make peace with the fact that business is often a lonely road.
- Why are you starting a company? If you cannot come up with at least three solid and positive reasons, business is not for you.
- You will be emotional ALL of the time: fear, delight, distress, desperation, rage, joy, pride, excitement, contentment, optimism and love. You will spend a fair share of time learning to harness these.
If you survived this post and you still want to start a business, you one step closer. Before you proceed though, clarify wheather you survived it due to bravery or stupidity.
Posted in: Business, Entrepreneur
02 July 2008
It’s no secret that I work with one of the hottest [and also sexiest] PR agencies in Cape Town. I firmly believe that Mango-OMC has taken the lead in the South African PR industry with the adoption and integration of new technology. Their innovative and creative use of both online and mobile platforms and the convergence of these technologies to enhance brand awareness and publicity for their clients cannot be missed.
An example of this can be seen with their blog tagging game for Rocking the Daisies. It is sleek and sexy! A well thought out concept indeed.
So here is the real scoop though…Rocking the Daisies is hosting an online blog competition and the prizes kick butt. Not only can you win a set of double tickets with VIP and backstage access, you also stand a chance of winning great prizes from DigiCape. Best of all though, the guys are setting up a DigiCape blog station at the festival that will feature all the latest Apple gear so that you can blog live from there. All you have to do is:
- Write a blog post about RTD and tell them what the five things are that you definitely can’t leave home without if you are on your way to spend a weekend at the coolest eco-friendly music festival in SA.
- Link to both the Rocking the Daisies competition page and Digicape (the sponsors of the kick-ass prizes) in your post.
- Tag as many friends in your post as you like. (The more you tag the better your chances of winning.)
- Lastly register on the competition page and tag your name, your post and the person that originally tagged you in their post on the competition blog.
If this doesn’t get online conversation going, I don’t know what will! A slick concept with awesome prizes up for grabs.
Posted in: Reviews, Tools & Tips
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