Most of the press seem to be singing his praises.
Which is fair enough, as he is obviously a very successful entrepreneur
with the type of vision and single-minded obsession with quality
that has driven him, and those following in his wake, to the level
of achievement he has reached. And these are entrepreneurial virtues
that we should all admire.
But as a role model for how to lead and motivate
people? Perhaps not so clear-cut.
Let's get something perfectly clear. Despite the
label "reality TV show", what you were watching was not the real
world at all. It was a show, designed to entertain its viewers,
and very cleverly done at that.
If you are about to launch your new enterprise,
or are pushing for that extra level of growth or effort from your
dedicated band of paid helpers, then shouting, screaming and swearing
at them will almost certainly end up with one result.
You appearing in front of an employment tribunal.
If you behave like that with your staff, you'll
clear out the good as well as the bad and the indifferent, and it'll
only be a matter of time before someone sues you for stress, bullying
or generally being an unreasonable and most likely an unlawful employer.
Treat them fairly and with respect and you'll get
the right sort of performance in return.
As far as being obsessed with standards is concerned,
well, we can probably learn a hell of a lot from our celebrity chef.
In today's information-packed, advertising-led society,
you can't blame consumers for being a bit jaded with the never-ending
stream of TV ads, web pop-ups, mailshots and marketing calls they
receive on a daily basis. You can't even watch a football match
without being bombarded with advertising - whether it's on the players'
shirts or plastered on billboards around the pitch. The sheer volume
of advertising around these days makes people naturally sceptical.
After all, why should they believe you over the hundreds of other
businesses demanding five minutes of their time?
That's why customer testimonials are so effective.
They overcome your prospects' natural scepticism and disbelief for
one key reason.
Someone other than you is singing your praises.
You can say good things about your products or services
till you're blue in the face - but you might never win over a naturally
suspicious prospect who's had enough of meaningless ads. But if
you can get someone else, someone totally unconnected with your
business to recommend it, with no obvious gain to themselves by
doing so, then your credibility will skyrocket.
So, Mrs G from Tunbridge Wells has just bought your
product, and has rung you up to tell you how much she's enjoying
it. You're halfway there - all you have to do now is thank her again
for her custom, and for the time she's taken to make the call, and
then ask her if she'd be happy for you to use her comments, together
with her name, in your marketing material. Chances are, if she's
taken the trouble to call you up, she's so over the moon with her
new purchase that she'll be more than willing to help you out.
A few choice words is all you need from her, to
describe how your product solved a problem she was having, how your
excellent customer service made doing business with you a pleasure,
or how an aspect of your USP (such as free same-day delivery) made
the purchase extra convenient. If possible, ask Mrs G if she's happy
for you to use a photo of her using your product, as this adds even
more to your credibility.
An additional benefit of testimonials is that the
customers who give them are likely to stay loyal to your business.
After all, they've put their names and reputations on the line for
you. Make sure you increase their goodwill by following up testimonials
with a personalised letter of thanks.
Next week, we'll give you some great ideas for where
you can use customer testimonials in your marketing activities.
For hundreds more tips and tactics for boosting
your sales using proven marketing strategies that work no matter
what product or service you sell, check out our UK
Small Business Marketing Bible
Legal
tip
Advertising and the CAP Code
Getting your promotion right is mostly a question
of pitching a persuasive message to your customers. But it's also
worth bearing in mind the legal aspects of advertising when you're
preparing your campaign, and that means knowing a little about the
CAP Code.
The Committee of Advertising Practice's (CAP) Code
of Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing is run by the
Advertising Standards Authority. And as they tell us on the TV,
advertising has to be Legal, Decent, Honest and Truthful.
This means a number of things: it should abide by
the law, it should avoid including offensive material, it shouldn't
exploit the consumer's inexperience or lack of knowledge, and it
shouldn't be misleading.
This gives you a certain amount of freedom. You
can say your product is the best in the world as long as you make
it clear that this is your opinion and nothing more. You can point
out that Mrs G from Tunbridge Wells wrote to let you know your business
changed her life, as long as Mrs G really did send you a testimonial.
You can even say that your goods are cheaper, go faster, and use
less glue than your nearest competitors', as long as you can prove
it's true.
However, there are certain rules you need to stick
to closely. Your prices must be clear, and must include VAT. If
you're promoting a limited amount of stock, you should say so, and
you need to be clear about the nature of any guarantees you offer.
You should also avoid causing confusion between your own products
and your competitors', so marketing your Krunch-e-o breakfast cereal
with a big red letter 'K' is probably not a good idea.
For the lowdown on the Code of Advertising, a visit
to the CAP website at http://www.cap.org.uk
should answer all your questions.
For hundreds more scenarios, frequently asked questions
and tips on complying with and understanding the laws that apply
to small businesses, check out our new service, the Red Tape BUSTER
IT
tip
Going back to basics
Once in a while, amid the recurring panics surrounding
computer security, it's worth going back to the beginning and thinking
about the basic things you can do to filter out 90% of the risk
to your computer.
As you'll know if you've been paying attention over
the past few weeks, worms and spyware are the threat of the moment.
Microsoft has bundled all its security information and updates into
a single section of its site, which is at http://www.microsoft.com/protect, and you can set your computer
to check for upgrades automatically, or ask them to send you a CD.
It's no guarantee, but keeping your software regularly updated should
get rid of the latest Sasser or Melissa.
Spyware tends to get onto your computer when you
install shareware or freeware programmes but it can also be picked
up quite easily from websites. Lavasoft (http://www.lavasoft.de) have a nice little programme called
Ad-Aware which will get rid of a lot of it, and Spybot Search and
Destroy http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?page=spybotsd
should take care of most of the rest.
You can prevent infection by most viruses if you
follow basic precautions. When you get an attachment by e-mail,
ask yourself if you were expecting something from the person who
sent it to you, and before you open it, try to work out if it's
a potentially dangerous file (something ending with .exe or .vbs,
for example).
For many businesses, the computer is a vital (and
expensive) investment, and business would stop without it. Panic
and paranoia won't help, but the willingness to stop and think certainly
will. A healthy suspicion of everything you put on your computer
could save you the endless bother of putting things right later.
