Tag Archives: Leading

Dirty Laundry

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We’ve heard it so many times from clients & suppliers… “we’re customer focused… everything we do is with the customer in mind… we’re number one for our clients… you can trust us to deliver… we won’t let you down… yawn yawn etc” Then they proceed to say “But don’t take our word for it, listen to what our customers have to say” then they role out a series of amazing client testimonials which cover them in glory.

Brilliant idea, that’s what you should do, it’s what everyone else is doing so it must be a good idea, wrong, wrong, wrong! Don’t do it, as you’d be wasting your time.

If you want to encourage or build a new client / customer relationship I’m afraid there’s no quick fix, no matter how good your testimonials make you sound, we know you’ve edited out the mediocre or bad ones, you’re only revealing half the story (in fact probably only a 10%, as you’re unlikely to ask every client for a testimonial, only the ones that you already know are going to write something good about you). So testimonials won’t do it for you.

So how do you build trust, how do you get a customer to use you or trust you? The answers quite simple actually, you have to honest with them, you have to be open, but not just saying you are, you have to be truly transparent!

How? Ever used eBay? If you had two sellers selling exactly the same things, same price etc and one had a 90% “unedited” good hit rate and the other had a 100% “edited” hit rate which would you choose? My point exactly, the “unedited” completely open & honest seller.

So if you say you’re customer focused, and you put your customer first, prove it. Ask every single customer to give you honest & open customer feedback, at the end of every project ask your clients to fill in a satisfaction survey… but don’t ask them, why did you choose our product or how good was the project delivery, ask them why would they choose a competitor, what was wrong with your delivery, how could you improve it next time, what other things would they like you to offer!

But here’s the really good bit, if you’re truly customer focused, then put your money where your mouth is, put it ALL on display, hang your dirty laundry out on your website, the pristine white shirt hanging pride of place alongside your socks with the worn out heels & holes where your toes stick through. Nobody’s perfect, so don’t pretend to be. You’ll soon become focused on getting more of those white shirts on your line, that the holey socks will become a thing of the past, rather just hidden away when visitors come round.

If you can be honest with yourself, then you can truly be honest with your customers, they’ll respect you for it and over time, they’re really trust you!

I hear there’s a recession, but I’ve decided not to take part

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At the end of 2007 I sold two of my companies, vision360 & ezpresenter, to the Cordovan Group, with the new company becoming Cordovan Digital (where I’m currently a Board Director). We’ve had a pretty good year, highest turnover & profits of our previous 10 year history, so I can’t say fairer than that. Of course the coming year will be telling, but I feel positive about it, I work with an amazing bunch of guys (& girls!), whom I have complete confidence in, they work incredibly well together & I’m dedicated to ensuring their futures too.

So how have I prepared for the coming year? Probably not as you’d expect… upon selling the two companies last year I retained a third one, named no paper™, which we’re still developing & planning a major launch of in 2009. Then in November this year I registered two entirely new companies (ID Gator™ & F451 Labs™), plus a forum on Identity issues Your Identity Matters™ (to be launched in April-May), plus two non-profit organisations, Your Small Change™ & I Skipped Lunch™, both of which I’m hoping to change to charity status in 2010. So I shall be entering 2009 with 5 companies under my direct control with an ongoing concern with Cordovan.

Am I being ambitious? Yes
Am I over stretching myself? Probably
Can I do it? Absolutely
Would I have it any other way? No
Am I worried about the recession? No
Am I mad? Ask me in a years time!

So don’t bury your head in the sand and wait for the economic downturn to go away, it won’t, there’ll be winners & losers, either way it’s going to be risky in 2009, but it’s your choice… at least doing it my way I can see the risks ahead of me!

And if that’s not a good enough reason then read these:

It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want To Be
Whatever You Think, Think The Opposite
Paul Arden

Either way, I hope 2009 is good to you.

Be Effective

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As a classic INTJ through and through I hate ineffeciency, it’s a pet hate and I strive to remove it from many aspects of my business, but I’ve just spent a couple of very informative days brain storming & discussing future strategies for the Cordovan Group with the board members along with Prof David Drennan. David said something that really made me stop and think about a few things (To be fair, David said plenty of insightful stuff, but I’m only going to highlight one of them).

To be efficient is “to do things right”
To be effective is “to do the right things”

So while being efficient is all very well, being effective is far more important!

Tribes Q&A

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Here’s another free eBook created by the guys in Triiibes
unlike the case studies ebook, this time, this one has been laid out properly (by Paul “Bolofeesh” Durban) and has been edited to make it a better read. Paul’s even created a Kinetic Typography style video to entice you (there’s obviously a lot more to Paul than just feesh!?)

How to be a Leader

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Make your passion your goal & be committed to it
Be true to your ideology
Wear your values on your sleeve
Listen with an open mind
Speak from the heart
Be honest, most of all to yourself
Give respect where it’s due
Know when you’re right
Admit when you’re wrong
Give your audience what they want & be generous
and most of all
Be an inspiration & make a difference
Your tribe will gather, and when they do
Empower them to do the same

To read more of the same you can get a free eBook full of case studies the guys on Triiibes contributed.

Are You Ready to Lead?

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the-guru

In the morning the disciple would awake before dawn
He would draw water from the well & carry it up the hill
He would clean & sweep the temple
He would pick fresh mangoes, wash, slice & prepare them
He would grind coffee by hand
He would boil the water
He would awake the guru at sun rise
He would wash him
He would dress him
He would prepare the Guru’s seat
He would sit quietly, while the Guru ate
He would clear everything away
He would then sit in silence, listening to the Guru’s words of wisdom

He did this every morning for years, until one day…
He awoke
He collected the water
He picked the fruit
He prepared it
He ground the coffee
He boiled the water
He sat on the veranda and consumed the lot, as he watched the sun come up
He had a pang of guilt for what he had just done
How will the Guru react?
He turned, only to find the Guru standing quietly behind him, smiling from ear to ear
He said to the disciple “so now you’re a Guru”

Only you, can decide when it’s time & when you’re ready to lead

To read more of the same you can get a free eBook full of case studies the guys on Triiibes contributed.