When you are starting or growing a business, you typically can’t do it all alone---even in the early stages where the first steps might be proof of concept and customer validation, which are fancy ways of saying you're finding out if your idea is as great as you think it is and getting an idea of the demand for your idea in the market. This may mean conducting a survey or … [Read more...]
4 Cs to Correctly Classifying Independent Contractors
From Uber and Lyft drivers to New York nail salon technicians, the media has been highlighting questions regarding correctly classifying workers. Are they independent contractors? Or are they employees? The answer can determine how much risk businesses can transfer to workers. Also hanging in the balance are overtime pay, worker’s compensation, and unemployment insurance … [Read more...]
Are You Ready for a Walking Meeting?
A 2014 study at Stanford School of education is changing the way some corporations are conducting their meetings. Instead of assembling the department heads around a board room table, they are distributing agendas for meetings coupled with invitations to meet in certain outdoor areas to have walking meetings. The walking meeting may be trendy now, but it is not a new … [Read more...]
Top 5 Ways to Effectively Manage a Public Relations Crisis
Many of us are fascinated by the characters in television programs tasked with solving a crisis or protecting a reputation. Think Olivia Pope from “Scandal” or Eli Gold from “The Good Wife.” Some do it well; others, not so much. In real life, you want a crisis manager who can handle a sticky situation. Here are the top 5 tips for managing a public relations crisis … [Read more...]
Surviving Virtual Interviews with the 5 Ps
Virtualization of the workplace has taken over our work lives. Interviews, meetings, appraisal discussions, conferences, training programs---everything has become global and virtual thanks to technology. It’s amazing how two or more people can connect over the web, regardless of their locations and time zones. Having conducted 500+ virtual interviews using web cams over the … [Read more...]
Golf is the Ultimate Business Tool: Here’s Why
Golf is more than just a sport. The power of the dimpled ball has the ability to open doors, create connections, and close many deals. It can also be a one-way street to a road full of success. Here are the seven top reasons that golf will forever be the ultimate business tool: 1. Face-to-Face Connections Golf is a platform for business. The golf course can be the perfect … [Read more...]
5 Tips to Prevent Your Website from Falling into a Black Hole of Mediocrity
Not everyone likes writing. Not everyone’s good at writing. But that doesn’t stop gazillions of companies from getting their employees to write their web content, to… er, save money. Often you end up with a hot mess of confused messaging, disjointed copy, and a tone of voice split seven ways to Sunday. And nobody, but no one sticks around when they’re baffled by blah-filled … [Read more...]
Married to Sales – A 10-Step Sales Process
This isn't a piece about how to land your next client. The truth of the matter is, I don't know what you should do to land your next client. I can tell you what I've done, but that may not work for you. I can tell you about a sales process that works, and it just so happens to look a lot like my marriage. It's not perfect, but it works. Surely, you’ve developed a significant … [Read more...]
3-Step Check-up to Make Sure Your Social Media Strategy is Working
With the world of commerce in the summer slowdown, now is a good time to perform an audit of how your company’s efforts are performing in reaching out to customers and other audiences on social media. These audits, which a business should do every six months, examine where things are going well in your social media outreach, what you need to do better and what measures are … [Read more...]
You Have to Get Lost Before You Can Be Found
How I went from having a dead end job and hating my life to successfully launching a company and finding happiness... Have you ever heard the saying, "You have to get lost before you can be found?" Yeah, I thought that was crap too. But that's exactly what happened to me. I was lost. Like… crying in my car, banging my head against the steering wheel, clinging to a fortune … [Read more...]