Yes, I have an idiot light that tells me I need to make that detour.  Yes, I have heard the lectures about how it’s bad for the engine to cycle the crap at the bottom of the tank through the innards of the vehicle.  Yes, my out of state friends, I TOTALLY get it that I don’t even have to get out of the car and deal wtih the elements to pump my own.

It’s not that I am particularly averse to the notion of feeding my van.  I am just always needing to be somewhere more important.  It is an inconvenience.

Now you can imagine the desperate state I get myself into when I have to admit I need gas.  And. I. Need. It. NOW. So the other day, I am in “that not happy place” and I spot a station on the other side of the road and I know they offer the same price for cash or credit cards.  BUT…………..

All of the signs are lit up saying “E4″ instead of the price per gallon. 

Seriously????  I probably don’t have enough gas to do the loop de loop to circle around to pull up to the pump to see the price.  Desperate or not, I don’t want a new mortgage on my home just to fill up!  I want to know the price.  So I gambled, drove a bit further down the road and went to the station with clearly marked prices.

And yes, as desperately as I needed it, I still did the comparison shopping thing.  Mock me if you will, but I prefer not to feed the van more expensive “food” than I feed my family!  That said though, for the peace of mind that filling up right at that moment would have brought, I’d have done the loops AND paid a little more.  I just wasn’t willing to sign a blank check.

Here’s the point.  (And I mean the one OTHER than checking my gauge before borrowing my vehicle.)  I was a customer ready to buy at that time.  I was as qualified as they come.  I was the proverbial “live one” at the door.  But that station wasn’t ready to sell to me.  It took days for them to correct their signs.  Unfamiliar with the intricacies of high voltage signage, I have no idea if that was a reasonable length of time for a repair or a ridiculous timeframe.  Either way, they should have gone to Plan B.  Temporary signs.

Are you ready to sell when your clients are ready to buy?  Are your systems in place to deal with industry emergencies?  (My fudge vendor had a fire that gutted his warehouse several years ago and he was up, running and back in production on a temporary site within a day.)  Can your clients count on you to keep them running on THEIR schedule, not yours?

Think about it.  You don’t want them gassing up elsewhere.

Imagine.  A guy who 2 other teams rejected.  A guy who the GMs, coaches AND scouts missed.  A guy who has people watching NBA games who didn’t even know what the letters stood for before last week.  It’s better than Tebowmania because at least on this one, most agree this kid can play!

So what’s my business point this time?  (Because if you’ve been  following my blog, you know that I talk about sports a lot and in my own convoluted way, always wrap it around to business!)

The Aha! moment is this.  Somewhere in your locker room you might have the best kept secret in your industry.  Someone whose very input could totally change the dynamic of your company.  (S)he may have gone unnoticed by your corporate GM, may have been under the radar of your scout OR maybe your coach just never plucked him off your bench!  Someone on your team may have the  next best marketing idea, a different way of looking at one of your business practices or a revolutionary concept for sales. 

Have you asked?  For the Knicks it was as simple as putting Lin into the game.  What if it is that easy for you to attain success?  What might you be able to accomplish if you ASK your employees and best clients for input?  Don’t let a golden opportunity languish in hiding.  You just might be sitting on your next greatest Linnovation.  Go for it!

The Commissioner has made significant adjustments in what is allowed and not allowed nowadays specifically about head trauma.  Some say that it’s just not the way football was meant to be played.  Others say it’s for the best. But the bottom line is what Mike & Mike stated simply and accurately:

                                                                   “You cannot protect people who don’t want to be protected.” 

If, in spite of the Commissioner, team physicians, specialists and moms (OK, so maybe moms don’t get consulted, but they should be!) guys play after taking a serious shot to the head, there isn’t really a way to keep them safe from themselves.  They act as if they can’t be touched by serious, potentially permanent injury.  It can’t happen to them. 

But bad things happen.  In sports and in business.  And going through the motions with blinders on doesn’t help even a little bit.

Smart business people have their own specialists:  business coaches, accountants, legal consultants and networking partners.  None of them are doctors, but all help keep companies healthy.  Protected.  So the question is:  DO YOU LISTEN TO YOUR PROTECTORS?  Are you less stubborn than the linemen you may watch on Sundays?  Do you take their advice to heart? 

Because bad things happen.  Take a look around and see if you have the people “on your bench” that you need.  And if they’re not there, find them.  Why risk everything you’ve worked so hard on needlessly?  Business, like football, is best managed when played as a team.

Manning won the Superbowl.  His second.  He was the MVP.  Top of the world, right?  What on earth could POSSIBLY be better…….come after that……….trump that weekend????

Answer:  The most fun place on earth.  He spent Monday at Disney World.  The Magic Kingdom.  Manning & Mickey, just hanging out together.

Now, my company hasn’t made enough money in all of my years in business to be able to afford that kind of advertising!  But what a great move by Disney.  Look at that powerful message:  even the most popular guy on the football planet celebrates at Disney.  Even this fun-loving dude, literally at the top of his game, takes time to go to Disney.  Disney is where EVERYONE  goes to relax and unwind.

The Disney message loud and clear.  They recognized an opportunity and seized it.

So the questions for those of us in a totally different spending bracket are these: 

• What are you doing to maximize marketing opportunities?  Without a Manning in your client list, are there ways to publicly exclaim about a way you just saved a client hundreds/thousands of dollars or hours of time because of something you brought to their table?  What paper, magazine or publication might be powerful advertising to consider?
• How do you send your message with most impact?  You may not have a television audience but have you announced it on LinkedIn or Twitter or your website or Facebook?
• Is your marketing message clear and concise?  Disney’s is.  Disney stands for magic times, guaranteed satisfaction and a perfect experience.  What is yours?

Just because we can’t spend as if we have superstars lined up at our doors doesn’t mean we can’t treat our clients as if they are superstars.  Be Disney;  market with impact.

Now let me quickly add that it was a great thing!  The meetings were productive, exceedingly thought-provoking and most probably will result in new intensely satisfied clients.  The energy generated in each consultation set the room buzzing and curled my hair!  (Oh.  Hold on.  My hair is already curled.  Alas.)

But the pace is what I’m counting on to get your “I can relate to her” vote.  And I’m hoping that’s how I can rationalize the fact that  I left the 5:00PM Board meeting without my pocketbook.  I mean, what woman on the planet manages to walk away without her purse??????????

When alerted, the hotel that hosted the meeting immediately retrieved it for safekeeping in their front desk office.  I returned about 3 hours later.

I was chuckling to myself as I entered about exactly how I planned to prove I was me since they had all of my ID.  I figured I’d identify myself as the ditz who left her purse.  That didn’t happen.  The front desk clerk took just one quick look at me and smiled.  Before I had time to open my mouth (and if you know me that means it was a lightning fast reaction!!!!), she said: “Oh, the pocketbook!” and dashed into the back room.

When she emerged I asked if I did, indeed, LOOK like a complete ditz that she knew who I was so quickly.  Her response????

“I recognized your jacket because I saw it when you were here earlier and really loved it!”

I didn’t speak to anyone on my way in.  I knew where the boardroom was and walked straight to it.  Never even glanced over at the front desk.  We’re talking maybe 9 seconds between the front door through the lobby and off to the hallway.  My point???? 

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER & SPEED OF FIRST IMPRESIONS.

So I have to ask.  Is your business focused on the power and impact of that message? 

• Are the people who answer your phones cheerful, informed and helpful?  They are your first representation of your company.
• Are they dressed appropriately?  (One profesional office I have occasion to visit skipped right over attractive receptionist and just went straight to ex-Hooters waitress in skin tight top .  While I “get” the appeal, it just is not profesional, sorry guys.)
• Are your salespeople well spoken and able to articulate the company’s value propositions succinctly and intelligently?
• Are their shoes shined?  Do they literally put the company’s best foot forward?  (Yes, I know 2 different companies that will NOT hire applicants with scuffed shoes.)
• Does their vehicle look like a mobile office or a recycling dump?  (Yes, I also know someone who will not hire anyone with a cluttered car.)

Some of the above don’t even involve your employees speaking!  First impressions are reached fast and conclusions are jumped to on the spot about whether or not to do busines with you ….rightly or wrongly!  

It’s worth a little time to check & make sure there are systems in place to keep opportunities alive.  Why risk losing business before you even get a chance to share with a prospect how easy you can make their life????

The Wyndham Philadelphia-Mt. Laurel http://goo.gl/J35PO certainly made MY life easier!  And it’s good to know that I have an “impact jacket” in my wardrobe.

Today is my birthday.  When we were little, we always went out to dinner for our birthdays.  My dad would secretly order a surprise cake.  Now, as toddlers we’d be absolutely AMAZED that the server “knew” and brought us a cake!  As we wised up a bit, dad had to be a bit more creative.  He’d slip a note into his menu, trail behind us as we walked to the table so he could whisper to the maitre ‘d, maybe even call ahead.  That bought him a little time but we were bright kids and soon caught onto all of his tricks.

Undaunted, he started ordering a cake for one of us when it was just some random dinner out….nowhere remotely CLOSE to a real birthday.  We were nervous wrecks all through the meal because by then we were teens, embarrassed out of our minds when the server approached… cake in hand… flanked by the rest of the waitstaff… serenading the mortified “birthday person.”   Sometimes if we had a friend with us we could escape by  getting him to order it for that poor soul.

The common thread was the element of surprise.  We made him work for it and that made it even more special.  Even when we wanted to crawl under the table and hide, it was still secretly exciting.  We were singled out.  It was “OUR” moment and embarrassed or not, we owned it.   By creating the unexpected, my dad elevated feeling like #1 to an art form.

We do the same for you.  Know a college student….a kid at summer camp….an employee….a key client….a relative….with a birthday?  Let us send a surprise gift to share that “feeling special” moment.

• care package with microwave birthday cake bonanza
• jumbo chocolate chip cake personalized with his/her name
• favorite art supplies, sports items, hobby items or just yummy snacks

We’ll get it there on time, on budget and it’ll feel like a hug in a box!

1.  Did you even know the Empire State Building HAD a chapel???

2.  Yes?  Well, then did you know you could get married there?

3.  Did you also know that the chapel is specially decorated in pink for the day?

4.  And did you know if you DO get married there that you can get in free every year on your anniversary?

Now there’s probably very little debate that free is good.  But the REAL question is:  what good is it if no one knows?

Does your company have special offers that no one knows about?  Think of the extra value you could be offering your clients if they only knew.  Even better….think of all those extra sales!  How much more loyal would your clients be?  If your offers are free and your clients tell their friends, think about all the potential future business you could generate. 

I’m thinking that if you actually spread the word about YOUR special offer, you’d be in the pink too!

A wine connoisseur I am not.  I know that I prefer red and that I prefer to buy my own instead of paying through the nose at a restaurant.  And I’m not alone in this either.

The prevalence of BYO establishments in this area is more than fine by me…and apparently with enough other people to support many cool places.   According to Urbanspoon’s list of BEST BYOB restaurants in South Jersey, there are 218.  (Wonder how many others didn’t make the list.)  But even at 218, that’s a LOT of restaurants.  Certainly the allure is a combination of the total freedom of choice, the wider variety shopping at a liquor store offers AND the money savings.

So let’s talk about personal choice.  

Sometimes you have that perfect item you want to include in a gift.  Sometimes you might even have ALL of the perfect items.  Either way, bring them to us and we”ll include them with other items or wrap exactly what you bring to us.  Just like your favorite BYOB place, we’re really OK not being the ones to go shopping.  (Although we are happy to when asked.)  Instead of the corkscrew and glasses, we’ll provide the basket and bow.  It’s your gift;  you call the shots.

In fact, the article went on to say that if car theft were a legitimate business measured by stock analyst firms, it would instantly become a Fortune 500 company. There’s a lot of theft going on and, despite the fact that thieves aren’t the most reliable guys on the planet, auto theft is well organized. 

So if criminals aren’t generally considered all that bright, what, pray tell does this say about car owners who don’t hit the lock button?!?!?!  Call me crazy (and many do!), but if safeguarding my business were as easy as locking my van, I’d do it in a heartbeat. 

And it is exactly that easy.  Just like thieves will try to steal your car, your competitors want to steal your clients.  So don’t leave them unprotected!  Make sure you are in front of them periodically to say thank you.  Let them know they are valuable to you.   And for gosh sakes, be sure to let your referral partners know how much you appreciate them.  Say. Thank. You.

When you leave your registration or title in the glove compartment, you make it easy for a thief to take possession of your car.  When you leave your clients unattended, you do the same thing for your competition.  Lock up, pay attention and call us to protect your fleet of clients.