Be Different in Business

Marketing is often misunderstood, with many thinking it's the leaflets, advertising and promotion that you do for your business. But it isn't. Marketing is everything you do, from the product you decide to sell - whether it's a premier product or cheap as chips product - to the way you invoice, and the very culture of your business. Because it's all of that which affects how you act, and so how you're perceived by your potential customers.

And I saw a brilliant example of a company that absolutely nailed this when I went down to visit Innocent's Head Office in London this week - what a great place! If you've never looked at how they market themselves, do take the time. I chatted with Richard Reed, one of the co-founders, who's a warm, fun guy, and the sense that *everything* the company does is done well permeates the walls.

Innocent actually started by going to a music festival where they took two bins, one with yes on it the other with no, and asked the question to everyone who bought their drinks, should we quit our jobs and set up in business making these full time? They were genuinely committed to going with the consensus so, at the end of the weekend when the yes bin was full, they went ahead and quit their jobs and started the company full time.

Rather than a use-by date on their products they have an "enjoy by" and they actually went through a phase of not only having the ingredients on the bottles but putting fun stuff on too, including most famously - and controversially - "two plump nuns". That one ended up with Richard being taken to court by the trading standards, and a finding from the judge that he needed to "either remove the two plump nuns reference from the ingredients label or actually add them to the product"!

On the packaging they also offer people the chance to ring the customer service Banana Phone should they have any queries, and if you take one of the tours offered by Innocent around their head office you can actually see a real, live, physical version. Innocent's culture and mission statements are literally written on the walls too so there's no mistake.

Their vision statement is:

make natural, delicious food and drink that helps people live well and die old

Everything innocent makes will always be 100% natural, delicious and nutritionally net-positive, so people are physically and mentally better off after they have eaten our food than before. In other words, we want to be a Trojan horse in society, getting as much fruit and vegetables into people as possible, to help us all live well and die old.

The culture is set out as:

be natural

Not just our products, but being natural in how we treat each other and how we speak to the most important people - our drinkers

be entrepreneurial

innocent began as a small, entrepreneurial company, and nothing much has changed. We aren't afraid to do things differently, and we've never given up on a good opportunity.

be responsible

We keep our promises, are mindful of our impact on our community and our environment, and always try to leave things a little bit better than we found them.

be commercial

We wouldn't be here if we didn't keep our eyes on the numbers at all times. Ultimately we want to deliver growth for us and our customers too.

be generous

This means giving honest feedback to one another, taking time to say thank you, and where we can, donating our resources or money to those who need it more than us. It's that simple.

Talking to the staff there that evening it's clear that they love where they work, and even admitted that they could work somewhere else for more money but just didn't want to. And to achieve all of this starts with a simple decision to build something different. Why not be wacky? Why not have fun? It doesn't mean you can't build something that makes money and has a positive impact on employees and customers alike. The Innocent message? Do it and they'll love you

Source: http://www.alansadams.com

The Benefits of Trusting

Many of us have difficulty trusting others. There are many different reasons that make trusting others difficult. One reason, for example, is that some of us were trained to not trust. Another reason is that some have suffered greatly during their childhood. As a result, they may have decided that they could not really trust anyone. Regardless of the reason, all of us have experienced relationships in which trust was broken. So, why should we bother trusting anyone at all?

In his excellent book, The Compassionate Samurai, author Brian Klemmer explains the reasons that we should learn to trust others in spite of our fears. He explains that taking the risk to trust others can yield more benefits than disadvantages. Klemmer identifies these five benefits that motivate us to trust:

1. Trusting others is the only way to access the synergistic power of teamwork.

2. Trusting others builds relationship and intimacy.

3. Trusting others releases time, freedom, and efficiency.

4. Trusting others is the primary tool for making a difference and being of service to others.

5. Trusting others provides you with a feeling of exhilaration.

Learning to trust others affects both your personal and professional lives. As a strategic business owner, you must be looking for people who are trustworthy. You must be keeping an eye out for trustworthy people with whom you can partner and do business.

As a matter of fact, your decision to trust others is so important that it distinguishes you as an average or extraordinary business owner. You see, the average business owner remains unwilling to take any risks. He plays not to lose by not trusting others. As a result, he does not reap any of the benefits identified by Klemmer. In contrast, extraordinary business owners learn when and whom to trust.  They actively seek to build trusting relationships. They take risks, but they reap great rewards.

Source: http://www.thegrowthcoachhouston.com

Marketing From Your Genius

Your genius is a combination of your passion, what you really love to do, your expertise, which is how much time did you spend studying the subject and your talents, something you are naturally good at just by being you. When you combine all three elements, you can come up with something unique and special that becomes your signature offer other people can greatly benefit from.

Most people know about their passion and have a generally good idea about what they love to do. What stops them from pursuing their passion however is the question, how can I take my genius and turn it into something marketable that people will actually buy. The trick is, know who your buyers are, know what they need and really care about their success and well being. This is not about what you think can be beneficial to them, but rather what is it they already know and recognize as valuable. The other trick is not to lose yourself or your passion in the process of crafting your marketing message. You are not just catering something to their needs, you are creating something beneficial for them, primarily using your unique skills and abilities.

The big question is, on one hand you have your unique genius, on the other hand you have your clients and their needs. How do you marry the two without losing anything crucial in the process? The danger with making it all about your clients and their needs is losing yourself in the process, which in the end will not bring you the true success you're looking for. It may make you money and keep you busy, but will you really feel satisfied and fulfilled? That is a completely different question.

On the other hand, if you only focus on what you want and what you love to do without taking into consideration the needs of others, you won't get many clients. People will have hard time recognizing how can they benefit from your services and at the very best acknowledge you for following your passion and wish you good luck in your next endeavor. Plus, you will not get the deep satisfaction of knowing that your hard work has impacted someone's life, which is one of the biggest ingredients for happiness.

When you share your message with others, people want to hear your unique personal input into your message. The message itself they can probably hear elsewhere, however, the way you say it can only be unique to you. And because you delivered it differently, some people will only hear it and get it when you say it in your own unique and special way.

Source: http://www.CourageousMessage.com