BCA

By Tom L. Randie

We have all done that in our professional lives and the decision had  consequences. Some of us have made that mistake more than once, or re-hired a  former employee with equally disastrous results. Rarely has the attitude and  behavior of a former employee different than when you asked them to find  employment elsewhere or they quit. The marketplace is flooded with unemployed  applicants that have glossy resumes and references are seldom verified. An  applicant that needs a job is likely to say just about anything to gain your  acceptance.

Employee Turnover can be costly

The costs of employee turnover have a significant consequence on your limited  resources. It also has an influence and usually not a positive one on the other  employees. They wonder if you or your human resources department has a clue  about hiring the right people for the job. What have you done to assess whether  or not the applicant shares the traits that you want and the company and its  customers deserve?

I want to help you make the right hiring choices. There are hiring processes  and hiring profiles to provide a holistic approach. The Department of Labor  talks about this approach and recommends a battery of assessments. Let’s look at  three profiles that are readily available, easily administered, proven and  affordable and that my investigation has uncovered as the best of breed.

What natural talents do you have? As the leader of the organization you lead  people and manage things. Using the DISC Index we’ve seen scores as they relate  to superior performance in a variety of roles. There is no ideal or perfect set  of scores for any role as the variables that affect success are many. Those  variables may be taken into consideration by a trained coach after interviewing  the leader in their environment, carefully looking at the scores in context and  with whom the leader will be working, etc.

Why are you motivated to use them? Turnover is expensive, as is not achieving  the goals of the organization through motivated employees who share your vision  and have accountability. Getting the right employees in the right positions and  who share the values of your organization can make or break your career or  business. The opportunity costs of continuing to hire or retain employees who  are not excited or engaged, communicate well with other team members, or don’t  possess the ideal benchmarks for their role, i.e.: sales,  management/supervisory, and customer service increases the chances they will not  be successful in the role you placed them. Can you afford to continue taking  that risk?

What are you looking for? That depends on the role that you are recruiting to  fill or retaining an incumbent that isn’t meeting expectations. Is customer  service an oxymoron in your business? Are your teams pulling together or part?  What is it that annoys you in communications with your team? Which of those  groups do you have the most difficulty with? You have to decide the types of  things that are vitally important to the role, i.e.; call center, and then  determine through proven assessments that the employees now in those roles  possess the ideal traits. Did you hire Tim Tebow on Friday and Charlie Sheen  showed up for work on Monday?

What is it you need to measure? DISC Index is usually my recommendation if  the leadership says that getting their ream to better understand each other is  the objective. A Values Index may be the choice if a leader says their employees  are not excited or engaged. The third profile often used is the Attribute Index  which is my choice if a leader says to me that it is an individual employee  performance issue. The Attribute Index is the first suggestion I make to a  leader so we can determine their leadership talents. That is where the change  has to begin, with the leader of the organization.

To receive a complimentary assessment of your leadership characteriscs,  contact KES Group at info@kesgroupllc.com.

By Ian W. Harvey

When it comes to raising equity, the most important aspects of any investor’s  decision to invest are: 1) How they are going to get their money out? And, 2)  What they are going to make when they exit the deal. This can often be a  complicated matter to explain and, if neglected when developing your business  plan, could end up costing you the financing you need to build your  business.

First, an exit strategy is much more than just what your company is going to  be worth at some point in the future. Understanding what your investor needs to  see is an essential element of your presentation. For example, if you investor  looks for a 2 to 3 year exit then don’t show him a 5 year exit plan.

A well-conceived exit strategy for a prospective investor will look at things  such as; who the potential suitors are for the business, what kind of  professional assistance you will require to properly market the company and  achieve the desired valuation, whether an IPO makes sense for your business,  among other factors. Showing that you’ve put considerable thought into their  exit strategy can give you an advantage when they are deciding on the next  investment for their portfolio.

Play it Consertively

When you plan an exit strategy, the issue of valuation will inevitably come  into question. While it is possible that your company with $1,000,000 in revenue  and breaking even will reach $500,000,000 in sales with 30% EBITDA by the end of  year 5, it is simply not likely. A huge “watch out” for any investor is when an  entrepreneur with a vision is wearing rose-tinted glasses. So, play it  conservative and make sure that your growth and anticipated enterprise value are  somewhere within the realm of possibility.

However, be careful… being too conservative can turn an investor off your  deal – nobody wants to see flat line projections with five years of losses  ahead! If you honestly think that is where your business is going, do yourself a  favour by shutting the doors and getting started planning your next venture -  never try to set an unrealistic performance expectation to raise capital.

Knowing that you are going to fail and taking the money anyway will kill your  reputation in the financing community and possibly even your industry.

When possible, provide a potential investor with examples of other companies  in your industry that have achieved the type of success that you are projecting.  Depending on the type of investor and stage of growth your company is in, it is  not unreasonable for an equity investor to expect a 3 to 10 times return on an  equity investment over 3 to 5 years.

Understand the Intensions of a Term Sheet From a Business Perspective

If you do manage to attract the interest of an investor who likes the exit  strategy you have presented, be sure to protect your ability to enjoy in the  success of the business down the road. While a good lawyer with extensive merger  and acquisition transaction experience is a necessary resource to protect your  interest from a legal perspective, it is important to make sure that you  understand the intentions of any term sheet or discussion you have from a  business and practical perspective.

For example, it is not uncommon for  investors, even if in a minority position, to insist that they have significant  influence when it comes to business decisions or raising additional capital -

Understand What Your Potential Investor is Looking For

They may also want to ensure that they get their return of capital and any  gains paid out in priority to the other shareholders (i.e. you and you other  shareholders). If you are comfortable with the idea of having an investor who is  going to be self-serving in this respect, then this may work for you.

Many  companies would not have the balance sheet strength to sustain such a cash flow  hit just to pay off an investor, sometimes leaving the remaining shareholders  trying to create additional value in a company that is stripped of its book  value and all but insolvent. In short, understand what your potential investor  is looking for and make sure that they are not in a position to strip the  company of the value you and your team has work so hard for when it is time for  their exit.

http://www.smbedge.com

SMB Edge! was created based on the fact that there are many Small and  Medium-sized businesses (SMBs) without the resources or access to the  information owners and managers need to make well-informed decisions in the  current economy.

Please visit SMB Edge! to gain access to the information and resources your  company needs to thrive!

By David Z. Reynolds

Brief overview: It does take money to make money! There are costs to be  covered by entrepreneurs seeking large amounts of $$$. Be prepared for what is a  fair cost, and what is not…

“It takes money to make money” is very pertinent when it comes to raising  millions of $$$ for a new business. There are very real costs involved in  creating that winning business you have in mind. You will soon find that the  costs of employing professionals to work on your new project takes a lot of  money – unless they are shareholders…

You also have the long list of licences,  permits and approvals that you shall usually need to acquire. It can get to feel  that you’re paying out a lot of money. But that is part of the cost of securing  your financial future – this stuff is necessary, and it costs money.

It’s also true that when it comes to raising money from investors you have  the costs of getting your business a top quality business plan, cashflow  forecasts, and some basic modelling of the business to show that it’s robust and  ‘bullet-proof’ in changeable conditions.

There are also a few financing  consultants who can guide you through the application process with an investor.  If they are experienced and capable, they should know what the investor needs to  feel safe investing in you and your project.

Business Plan is key to face-to-face meet

Without a good business plan you’re not going to get to face-to-face with the  investor to make your pitch. Many would-be business developers then find that  approaching an investment source costs money too. A broker should only charge  for success – a commission at settlement of your financing.

Be wary, and check everything. Since the Global Financial Crisis a huge  amount of capital has been destroyed – severely limiting the ability of banks  and other financial institutions to fund investment. Be just as wary of the  ‘famous names’ as you are of those you’ve never heard of…

The company you  approach may have been an active investor in the past, but check on how much  they are currently investing…

However, an investor may also want to be paid for you lodging an application.  This is valid – because they need to know who you are and whether you’re  ‘credit-worthy’.

Investor due diligence costs you money – and it can be quite a lot of money.  If the investor doesn’t live in your country, they shall want to have their  people travelling to make on-site inspections, face-to-face interviews with  everyone associated with the project. They have to. It’s unavoidable.

If you’ve  been working with good people, who can deliver, then they shall be working 12-16  hours a day on the due diligence, and avoiding partying and girls. The other  sort you don’t want to be involved with…

Overall budget for the application process to be about 0.5% of what you’re  seeking. So if you’re applying for US $50,000,000, that would involve costs of  about US$250,000 in the whole process, application and investor due  diligence.

David Z. Reynolds is a senior Financing Consultant who’s been working for  investors analysing investment opportunities for 12 years. He has undertaken due  diligence for many investors on many continents. He is the senior partner in GPC  Business Plans who can be found at http//gpcbusinessplans.com GPC provides free information for entrepreneurs that assist in guiding them  into developing their business and through the funding application process with  investors.

Maria Elena Duron, CEO (chief engagement officer), buzz2bucks | a word of mouth marketing firm, is skilled at making networks “work” and harnessing powerful online and offline buzz, she facilitates online visibility services and word of mouth coaching and workshops – taking companies and professionals from buzz-worthy to bucks-worthy, http://buzz2bucks.com.

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The Brand is the Identity
A brand may refer to products or services, but  branding involves much more than that. It is the process by which those  offerings and the values of the company are communicated to the buying public.  When done correctly, this process can clearly identify any company and enable  customers to clearly see exactly what makes that company different from all of  its business rivals.

Understand the Audience
When projecting an identity to the buying public,  make sure that the identity is consistent with the needs and vales of potential  customers. It is great for a company to have a personality, but that personality  will mean nothing if it fails to resonate with customers. Every attempt to  create and establish a company brand should only be done after extensive  research focused on audience sensibilities is completed.

Use the Right Methods
Brands require tools. These include logos,  recognizable company colors, a motto, and other easily identified methods for  distinguishing one company from another. While it is easy to get caught up in  the overall look of any logo or design, it is important to always remember that  customers care less about the actual aesthetics of these tools than the fact  that they are consistently used, and therefore, remembered and recognized

Be Consistent
Indeed, consistency is the key to successfully establishing  a company identity. Logos should remain fairly consistent over time. A company  motto that reflects the business’ core values should remain the same so that  customers come to identify the company with those ideals. Keep it simple, but  steady. Even a bland company motto or unattractive logo will take root in  customers’ minds if they are seen and heard on a consistent basis over time.

Use a variety of Mediums
Today’s companies cannot just rely upon the old  methods of communication. In addition to print media and broadcast  advertisements, companies should also develop clearly branded websites and make  use of the full range of social media available today. Every method for  communicating with customers is an opportunity to further develop the company  brand.

Focus on Value and Values
The brand should ultimately be associated with  values. To accomplish this, every interaction with customers must be  accomplished with those values in mind. This includes every advertisement, every  display, and every bit of contact between employees of the company and the  customers they serve. Many businesses become so obsessed with the external  aspects of creating their brands, that they neglect the very real role of  employee decorum demonstrated by actual contact with customers.

When executed properly, any strategy for building a brand can reap huge  rewards for the company. Entrepreneurs who adhere to these basic principles of  business branding will find themselves experiencing greater success as their  corporate identities become firmly established in the public mind.

Aveta Solutions – Six Sigma Online ( http://www.sixsigmaonline.org ) offers online six sigma  training and certification classes for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts,  and yellow belts.

By Phillip Davis

As companies grow, product lines expand and market conditions change,  business owners often find themselves with a company brand image that no longer  reflects who they are or what they do. Perhaps they started in a niche market,  or with a very specific product, and built their entire company identity around  it — and the business now serves a different, bigger or more diverse customer  base.

What to do?

A sure symptom of this brand misalignment is the constant need to explain or  clarify what the company really does. Or when an owner pines “We’re more than  just (fill in the service or product category.) At this point, a new brand  strategy is obviously in order, but it begs the question “Do I need to  reposition my company or completely rebrand it?”

Reposition if the name is right but the message is wrong

Repositioning a company makes sense when the company brand name is well  established and not in any way misleading. In other words, it’s not so much an  issue with the identity as it is with the message and focus.  Apple expanded beyond its original core product line of computers, but that  didn’t require a change in their name. They simply dropped the word “Computers”  from their name and shifted their branding to reflect their “Think Different”  philosophy. They no longer position their brand as a “computer company” but more  as a cool, digital lifestyle provider.

Dale Jarrett Racing Adventure felt restricted by their brand image as a  racing school. It affected their approach to advertising, marketing and product  development. After carefully determining their core value proposition, they  re-emerged with the tag line “Full Throttle Living!” The emphasis  shifted from the cars to the experience. And that experience has since been  expanded to include World War II re-enactments and firefighting drills. They now  position themselves as a lifetime adventure company that simulates a day in the  life of an adrenaline-charged professional. That’s a big departure from a racing  school, and that’s the power of repositioning.

Old Spice has made a concerted effort to reposition its brand from a stodgy  aftershave product to a cool, contemporary array of “fragrant man goods.” Their viral video  campaign has served to introduce a whole new audience to this once  old-school cologne.

Rebrand if your company name causes confusion

Rebranding comes into play when the original company identity has grown  outdated, confusing or outright misleading. The owners and staff can all agree  on the brand’s current position and message, but the customer can’t get past the  name itself. CompUSA struggles to brand itself as more than just computers.  Radio Shack remains mentally tethered to an old technology and a dilapidated  building. Burlington Coat Factory sells more than just coats. At some point, the  cost of clarifying a brand becomes such a drag co-efficient that it makes more  sense to start with a clean slate.

Would 3M be recognized as a global leader in innovation if it had remained  The Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Company? Popular consumer electronics  company LG rebranded twice, from the original legacy name of Lak-Hui Chemical  Industrial Corporation to Lucky Goldstar, and in 1995 to their current moniker  of LG with the tag line “Life’s Good.”

Repositioning and rebranding keep a company current, relevant and  profitable

Both repositioning and rebranding serve the goal of greater brand clarity.  Repositioning highlights a company’s emerging role and redefines its new  territory in the marketplace, (often while keeping the legacy name in place,  e.g. Apple) Rebranding addresses the outward facing identity of the company,  typically the name and visual components, and helps to alleviate and/or correct  misconceptions about the direction of the business (e.g. 3M and KFC).

Rebranding and/or repositioning offer unique and specific benefits when  applied correctly. Clarifying the brand identity and market position allows  potential customers to place the company in the right mental “box” for easy and  accurate recall. This type of intuitive branding reduces customer confusion,  improves bottom line performance and positions your company for continued  success. With careful consideration, rebranding and repositioning will have your  customers remembering and revisiting you more often.

How about your company? Have you considered or attempted a rebrand? If so,  share the ups and downs of your experience so others can benefit.

Phillip Davis is president and owner of Tungsten Branding, strategic company branding consultants specializing in name development,  rebranding and brand positioning.

You’re an expert who knows how to get the work done, generate results and  make a difference to your customers and your colleagues. Naturally you want to  share how you do it all. But wait–your audience may not be ready for the  ‘How’.

Successful persuasion taps into people’s emotions and inspires them to  imagine a better situation. This is true whether you’re marketing IT products,  professional services or a cultural shift within your company. To be a  persuasive speaker you’ll need to lead the audience to an image of  perfection–or at least, improvement. Until they feel it, they won’t be ready to  do it.

Focus on the “what” and the “why”

In any speaking setting that is not training or a workshop, your presentation  must focus on “what” and “why.” The “what” is the action(s) they should take to  reach their goal. The “why” makes it clear that the “what” will help them reach  their goal.

Let’s look at an example: You are responsible for leading a major change of  behavior in your company. You could just lay down the law and threaten  punishment for anyone who resists. That isn’t likely to generate a favorable  response. You could offer a carrot–do this and you’ll get a reward. That’s also  a short-term approach that could lead to offering ever-increasing carrots.

First describe the behavioral change

The best approach is to describe the behavioral change, which is the “what.”  Describe it in many dimensions-how it will affect their daily actions, and also  their feelings, expectations and interactions. Then talk about the “why”–why is  the new behavior valuable to them as individuals; you might eventually talk  about why the change is valuable to the company as a whole, but whatever you do,  don’t start with that! People always put their self-interest first and  foremost.

The “what” and the “why” are more than enough for a one hour speech or  presentation. Give your audience of employees or colleagues time to savor the  image you’ve helped them picture. Encourage them to keep thinking about it.  Encourage them to add details to the picture; to discuss their visions with  their peers; to move from today and tomorrow to 6 months or a year ahead.

Avoid topics such as “5 Ways to Do X” or “The 7 Factors of Success” or “Three  Steps to Learning Y.” Instead, speak about benefits to the audience: “Success  Comes to Those Who Envision Change” or “You’re the Leader, So Lead.” “Success”  or “Leadership” are the “what” and the rest of your speech is the “why.”

Persuade first on an emotional level

People aren’t ready to be instructed how to do new behaviors until they’ve  fully internalized and integrated the new vision. It’s no different than the way  you might approach a new sport–if you can’t imagine how much you’ll enjoy  playing golf, you won’t learn how to play golf no matter how effective the  instructor. Your “What and Why” speech or presentation is the warm-up that makes  them ready for the “How.”

Persuade first on an emotional level and instruct later on an intellectual  level.

Business speakers who confidently engage their audiences meet their business  and personal objectives. Promotion? More revenue? Elite clients? You increase  your likelihood of success with high-quality business presentation skills. Susan  Trivers consults with and coaches executives and managers to persuade their  audiences to take actions across the spectrum of business goals. Learn more  about how you can become a great speaker at http://www.susantrivers.com and http://www.greatspeakingcoach.com

By Ina R. Seno

Before diving into keyword research, type this phrase in your browser’s  search box, “SEO services in Michigan.” Your search engine will pick this up and  show all the relevant or related websites. The words you typed are really  keywords or more accurately a keyword phrase. The sites displayed are the result  of SEO methods performed on those websites. The better the SEO method used, the  higher your rank will be in its pages.

One significant portion of SEO is  choosing the important keywords or keyword phrases through research.

The Meaning of Keyword Research

Keyword research is the method by which you look for the correct keywords for  you to optimize your site. It’s not as easy as you think. It takes a lot of hard  work and diligence to accomplish.

For example, you want to list down the  keywords you can use for violin lessons. You can use Google AdWords Keyword  Tool. It’s used by many people and it’s free. When you get to Google AdWords  Keyword Tool, type violin lessons and a list of suggested keywords are  displayed. Look at the columns on your right side.

One of the columns has Global  Monthly Search Volume as its title. This column informs you the number of  Internet viewers who search for that particular keyword every month. Select  keywords with greater than 2500 search volumes. This will guarantee that there  is a market for that keyword who are really typing and looking for it.

Jot down  the keywords that you have chosen. More importantly, after selecting the  keywords you have to know how many individuals are competing for that keyword.  You can use the free version of Traffic Travis to know the competition for each  word. Utilize keywords with easy competition and those are the ones which you  should use in your blog posts and articles. This will gradually increase your  rank in the search engines.

Keyword Stuffing

Never use the same keyword too many times in a single blog post or article.  Keep the keyword density below two percent. Your blog post or article can get  penalized by the search engines and decrease your ranking. This method was  utilized before to increase the ranking of sites by stuffing articles and blog  posts with keywords. The article loses its meaning. It’s important to bear in  mind that you’re writing for the human readers and not search robots.

Generalization

If you don’t choose the right keywords through research, the search engines  will not know where to locate your site and determine how high it will rank in  its pages. If these significant points are too much to understand, don’t worry,  that’s a natural response. To make the entire process easier and hassle free for  you, find an SEO company that not only handles your keyword research but the  whole SEO method.

For the whole package of SEO solutions, contact us, Michigan SEO Firm. We provide the complete SEO services and  not just keyword research. Your satisfaction, guaranteed.

• “Culture isn’t just one aspect of the game – it is the  game. In the end, an organization is nothing more than the collective  capacity of its people to create value.” Values such as outstanding customer  service, teamwork, excellence, integrity, and stakeholder value don’t translate  into the same kind of behavior in all companies, such as how people actually go  about their work, how they interact with one another, and what motivates them.  Employees’ actions and behaviors emanate from an organization’s culture, not  from agreed-upon values or written policies.

JFD Performance Solutions ( http://www.jfdperfsolutions.com  )
As a business coaching and consulting firm, we specialize in helping  individuals to reach more of their potential, companies to achieve greater  results, and teams to work better together. We help our clients implement  sustainable change and be more successful.