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Marketing Eye Small Business Marketing Articles
After chatting to one of the top Hedge Fund Managers in Australia last week about the state of the economy and where it is heading... I got thinking – is my business recession proof?
The European market isn’t getting any better and in fact, it is expected to get a lot worse. Greece is battered by recession, debt and now a snow storm and the recession in the Eurozone is one of the deepest recessions on record.
The US – well that’s another story. But debt levels are higher now than they were in the 1920’s recession. Much higher. No wonder people are stopping their shopping sprees and thinking twice before buying a new set of golf clubs or another pair of Jimmy Choos.
As small business owners, we have a lot to think about. If you are anything like me, I think about what I should do and often only get to do a few things off my list because there is always something else that pops up. Thinking about your business and how equipped it is to survive a further downturn is not only smart, but critical if you want to survive- yet while many of us think about these things, how many of us actually do something about it?
While over-hyped valuations are still going crazy in the market similar to the dot com boom (Instagram!!), the property and the mining booms – we all know that what goes up must come down. But as small business owners we cannot afford to go down with the economy.
Here are some things all small business owners should look at:
I genuinely thought someone had hacked my account but couldn't understand why. Who would waste that much time deleting followers.
But the culprit was someone I did not suspect. Someone I had a lot of trust in. It was...
Many entrepreneurs are 'ideas people' or 'thinkers'. They sit down for breakfast and think about what they can do to change the world, improve their companies and inspire their people. Great ideas are good, but are nothing without being 'seen through'. There are many great entrepreneurs in history who had somewhat peculiar habits, but when it comes to strategy and the workings of how they made wealth and kept it, they each had something in common.
If you look at the life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr., you would note that while he gave away his money as wisely as he accumulated it, he was incredibly focused. He retired at 35 after accumulating more wealth than anyone in history. He detested ostentation and raised his children as if he were not a wealthy man. He had an obsession with costs and is known for his saying "It's the figures that count". To that point, he recorded in a notebook every cent he ever made. This recording of his monetary status was something that many buddying entrepreneurs would note about Rockefeller, and it certainly gives backbone to what many entrepreneurs may think about doing when it comes to not only accounting for their financial growth but also, documenting their ideas and how they see it through.
Rockefeller once said to a friend while driving on a country road observing a happy boy whilstling and convorting on a beautiful day, "That young man will never be a success in life." When asked why, he replied, "Because he is not thinking of driving his horse, and that his is business."
Rockefeller was a practical man with an abundance of common sense, an activist and a doer, rather than a thinker.
Too many entrepreneurs are thinkers. Not doers. Are you one of them?
What goes up... must come down - ever wondered what happens next?
Apr 16, 2012 Written by Mellissah SmithWhen I started out working, my friends were all in the same boat. They were starting out their careers too in journalism, advertising, television and marketing. Today, most of them are Directors of News, Television Presenters, Editors and Senior Managers. We all still keep in touch from time to time and support each other whenever and wherever possible.
Entrepreneurs need to get their hands dirty every now and then
Apr 11, 2012 Written by Mellissah SmithThere are some things, that no-one else but the entrepreneur in a small business can do. It almost makes them indispensible although we are all trained to think that no-one is this.
There are so many things we all can relate "Make hay while the sun shines" to. Here are some that I think you should consider;
A few weeks ago, I had to cancel a trip to the US that was for both business and pleasure. Mainly business, but a few days pleasure that I was seriously looking forward to. There were real reasons, which I cannot disclose here, but nevertheless, business was somewhat involved.
Then my beautiful girlfriend married the man of her dreams in South Africa, and I had to cancel going there too. More than $1000 down the drain, because South African Airlines don't reimburse you for cancelled flights nor do they give you a credit. Yet again, work got in the way.
Then this weekend, it's Easter and my two nephews are looking forward to spending the special occasion with their Aunt Mellissah. I have work to do and I was about to book a flight to fly to Queensland on Friday and back Sunday until...
As a table of 5 women sharing their stories and updating everyone on their lives, one thing became apparent. Everybody has their shit.
Not the most enticing word in the English Dictionary, I agree, but nevertheless, its meaning in this context makes it appropriate.
I enjoyed the company of 5 fabulous women tonight. Smart, beautiful, successful, emotionally intelligent and value adding, women that can converse on every topic imaginable.
They depict the women that I had in mind when I wrote "what men can do to make their women more successful."
After not seeing each other for quite some time, I was glad a catch up with one of my girlfriend, Fatimah was in order last week. She was happy to find out that I was interning at Marketing Eye for the past month and I told her how exciting it is to finally have something to wake up to each week!
After telling me the updates on her life, I began telling her how real the marketing world is and how different it is from university life. The environment at Marketing Eye was pretty laid back, yet focused. It is a small team in the Melbourne office; therefore everyone is usually engrossed in their work. I told Fatimah how the company has a blog written by the CEO of the company and how she perfectly relates business to life in general and she should check the blog out herself!
The following week she did so at her workplace and not only was she reading a few, but a whole lot of them even dating back to 2010! She found it highly amusing and could not stop reading the blog. Fatimah then texted me straight away saying “The blog is so interesting because Mellissah tells facts yet relates it back to her own personal experience and draws out a conclusion from it. Because she is a career woman, I could somehow relate myself to her (e.g: lunching out with an inspiring girlfriend or thoughts about men).
Fatimah is an engineer and works in a male dominated office and after informing some of her friends and colleagues about the blog, they have also started reading the posts and enjoying it themselves. Its remarkable how the power of word-of-mouth happens and reaches great lengths no matter what their professions are as everyone could somehow relate a blog post to their own lives!
What you can learn as a small business owner from friendships
Mar 27, 2012 Written by Mellissah Smith
Having run a small business myself for 13 years, I can identify that at the end of the day, unless you have a business partner, it can be quite lonely.
Yesterday, was particularly stressful.
The business is going so well, and clients are literally running through our doors. Although we have mechanism in place for growth, there are always things to do, that when you add it to your own daily jobs, becomes overwhelming - if you let it.On top of running a business, we have an issue with a client who is happy with the service, but owes us $80,000 just for invoices raised in the month of February. After, continually asking about when the invoices will be paid, they keep saying that it is coming. I am sure they will pay, but the situation is stressful nevertheless because after years of dealing with business owners, without really knowing them, the trust factor on such things gets deminished.
Blogging isn't for everyone. In fact, few people can pull it off and actually get a reasonable return on investment. While it can be fun to share your ideas, there is a whole world out there whose ideas differ from that of your own. And beware... sometimes they are even happy to tell you about it.
But it isn't all doom and gloom.
Blogging can be quite lucrative from a brand profile prospect and for some, financially. Successful bloggers don't just make their livings out of blogging, they quite often make their fortune. Think Mia Freedman (www.mamamia.com.au) and Seth Godin.
So, you gave it a bit of a push. Here and there. Everywhere. Networking. Business cards. Advertising. Facebook. You name it - you've tried it.
And then what?
Yesterday, I wrote a blog on how women can help their man be more successful. As promised, today I am publishing how men can help their women be more successful (in business).
If you are a man and lucky enough to have a woman that is determined, ambitious, talented and intelligent - as well as owning their own business or having a high flying career - then count your lucky stars. You are in the minority,
Keep Pushing: You'll Get There - A lesson to all small businesses
Mar 24, 2012 Written by Mellissah Smith
To have success though, you need to have a reason. Every successful person has a reason as to why they want to be successful.
