WOWEE! The price of gold and silver has leapt by leaps and bounds in just a decade! And naturally ppl want to know more - especially as inflation creeps up and financial systems lose their lustre. My associates certainly wanted information on how, where, pay-offs, assurances etc. and invited a some reps to make presentations.
The facts they presented were fascinating and backed by search engines (yeah, grin). And they brought gleaming samples that attractively winked wickedly too! Quite tempting. But, but, ................... questions remained. What brought those on? Quite simply, it had to do with facets of their presentations:
One came dressed shoddily (representing precious metals?) and seemed put off by the incisive questions, another represented a well known company but lacked confidence about the products, and yet another had no business card, office or company bank account!!!!!!!
Ahem! What can I say? Did they really expect investors to part with large sums without presenting some credentials and projecting credibility? The answer would seem to be obvious yet there are some who just haven't yet made the connection. Serious customers want to know what checks and balances they can rely on to protect their investments, and personal guarantees alone simply aren't enough. Almost anything can be faked after all -even gold, its been found!
Do you know someone who has a great product or service, but would make more sales if they took a bit of time to cultivate their personal brand image to reflect the essence of their Brand? I'd be delighted to help them to become more profitable in shorter durations. Just have them call me at 603-21697704 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net.
BRING ME THE BRAND AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Great credentials! Good service! What else?
Financial freedom! Ah! How technology has made that so very much more achievable! The super thing is, many jobs can now be accomplished from home and this is SO good, especially for those with dependants. And so it was with Ms. Accountant: her marriage had ended and she had to care for 2 pre-schoolers plus put food on the table. Her ex-husband? Weeeeell, let's not even go there :(
Ms. Accountant called to ask if I knew of any Accounting firms which need outsourced help; her professional credentials and testimonials were excellent. She had the skills and the time to do the work from home and needed only the opportunity. The fly in the ointment was, she had not registered herself as a company - simply hadn't thought about it, because she was accustomed to working in an office.
Does she need to? Here's the thing: working from home i.e. small office home office (SOHO) means that you become a service-providing company and have more entitlements than a casual worker. The annual registration fee is minimal and there's no rent, salaries to pay and when you lease or buy equipment etc., you can claim it as a business expense. AND, companies who outsource pay greater respect to being billed by a company (SOHO or not) than by an individual. It is more profitable for the service provider! And guess what? You know how sometimes it is difficult to collect payment or deal with some other complaint? It lends greater weight if the grieviance is lodged by a company than an individual :)
So where does Branding come into this, you ask? Mmmmmmm well, when the professional chooses a company name, it is the start of a Brand, even if it is in the name of the individual. Think designer Jimmy Choo or seamtress Coco Chanel. Hey don't laugh! Even YOU are a brand, you know - just depends what you want to do with it?
Know someone who wants to kick loose and get financial freedom working from home, or even providing services in people's homes? Tell them they can start a Brand in a small way and get more profit from it than as an individual. I have a great team of associates who can help them from A-Z and all it takes is the know-how to get launched properly. Just call me at 03-21697707 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net
BRING ME THE BRAND-TO-BE AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITABILITY!
Ms. Accountant called to ask if I knew of any Accounting firms which need outsourced help; her professional credentials and testimonials were excellent. She had the skills and the time to do the work from home and needed only the opportunity. The fly in the ointment was, she had not registered herself as a company - simply hadn't thought about it, because she was accustomed to working in an office.
Does she need to? Here's the thing: working from home i.e. small office home office (SOHO) means that you become a service-providing company and have more entitlements than a casual worker. The annual registration fee is minimal and there's no rent, salaries to pay and when you lease or buy equipment etc., you can claim it as a business expense. AND, companies who outsource pay greater respect to being billed by a company (SOHO or not) than by an individual. It is more profitable for the service provider! And guess what? You know how sometimes it is difficult to collect payment or deal with some other complaint? It lends greater weight if the grieviance is lodged by a company than an individual :)
So where does Branding come into this, you ask? Mmmmmmm well, when the professional chooses a company name, it is the start of a Brand, even if it is in the name of the individual. Think designer Jimmy Choo or seamtress Coco Chanel. Hey don't laugh! Even YOU are a brand, you know - just depends what you want to do with it?
Know someone who wants to kick loose and get financial freedom working from home, or even providing services in people's homes? Tell them they can start a Brand in a small way and get more profit from it than as an individual. I have a great team of associates who can help them from A-Z and all it takes is the know-how to get launched properly. Just call me at 03-21697707 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net
BRING ME THE BRAND-TO-BE AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITABILITY!
Friday, August 26, 2011
The relationship between market-entry and Branding
"I have tried EVERYTHING you know, but they just won't deal with me!" Sigh. Several colleagues had reached out to introduce this foreigners' products among their connections, because they were high quality and profitable, but to no avail.
Yes indeedy, there are times when the product may be excellent and there is a market demand, but consumers want to buy from people whom they have a previous affinity with. Brand association / prejudice / protectionism etc., etc., Call it what you will but its right there, staring at you in the face!
It's like the tale of the Jaffa oranges (text book case from Marketing classes yonks ago) and how they got into some markets. The buyers had no problem with their quality or price, but wanted nothing to do with the label. So, the importers sold to an acceptable label that promptly placed theirs over 'Jaffa' and voila! instant sales! hehehe. Aren't people so easy to please when you know how? And if you're willing to re-brand?
Back to my foreign friend: He did something similar and tied up with an 'acceptable' marketing channel which fronted his goods for him. Last I heard, he was getting buyers! woo hoo!
Know someone with a good product but is struggling with market-entry? It could be the channels, or pricing strategies or even the timing. If they would like an analysis, just say to call me at 603-21697704 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net and we'll get it sorted. :)
BRING ME THE BRAND AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Yes indeedy, there are times when the product may be excellent and there is a market demand, but consumers want to buy from people whom they have a previous affinity with. Brand association / prejudice / protectionism etc., etc., Call it what you will but its right there, staring at you in the face!
It's like the tale of the Jaffa oranges (text book case from Marketing classes yonks ago) and how they got into some markets. The buyers had no problem with their quality or price, but wanted nothing to do with the label. So, the importers sold to an acceptable label that promptly placed theirs over 'Jaffa' and voila! instant sales! hehehe. Aren't people so easy to please when you know how? And if you're willing to re-brand?
Back to my foreign friend: He did something similar and tied up with an 'acceptable' marketing channel which fronted his goods for him. Last I heard, he was getting buyers! woo hoo!
Know someone with a good product but is struggling with market-entry? It could be the channels, or pricing strategies or even the timing. If they would like an analysis, just say to call me at 603-21697704 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net and we'll get it sorted. :)
BRING ME THE BRAND AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Personal Branding can make or break business deals
"Don't mention THAT brand to me again EVER!"
OUCH! That was such a stinger to hear!!! What on earth had happened? The highly professional businesswoman wryly related the incident; she was quite put out. Can't say I blame her really. You know what? She had recommended a world-class brand to her close associates as a potential business venture, and they enthusiastically met with an agent of the company. All laughter and eagerness, they wanted to sample the products and learn about the compensation plan. The Brand had excellent credentials, an illustrious track record and the business prospects were highly lucrative! What went wrong?????
As it turned out - far from being enthused, they became totally turned off!!!!! It was the agents' approach: she saw they were interested and WHAM! turned into a relentless bloodhound that was after a kill. She didn't give them a chance to ask questions, or take the time to learn their preferences. How silly! She'd had a golden opportunity on a platter to forge solid business relationships, but showed no respect for her potential customers.
And so an opportunity for all concerned to develop a new business turned into a nightmare to be wryly joked about for a loooooooong time afterwards. Reminds me that Branding is an all-encompassing process of delivering a product or service in myriad ways, to meet a need. Simple! Just service the need identified, to match the attributes of the Brand.
Oh sure, I do know the frustration of having to wait for the right timing or environment etc., but isn't that better than turning potential customers off? Delivering a Brand well includes being its role model, listening for what people want, and going the extra mile.
Ready to align your personal brand with the essence of your product or service? Just call me at 603-21697704 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net.
BRING ME THE BRAND AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
OUCH! That was such a stinger to hear!!! What on earth had happened? The highly professional businesswoman wryly related the incident; she was quite put out. Can't say I blame her really. You know what? She had recommended a world-class brand to her close associates as a potential business venture, and they enthusiastically met with an agent of the company. All laughter and eagerness, they wanted to sample the products and learn about the compensation plan. The Brand had excellent credentials, an illustrious track record and the business prospects were highly lucrative! What went wrong?????
As it turned out - far from being enthused, they became totally turned off!!!!! It was the agents' approach: she saw they were interested and WHAM! turned into a relentless bloodhound that was after a kill. She didn't give them a chance to ask questions, or take the time to learn their preferences. How silly! She'd had a golden opportunity on a platter to forge solid business relationships, but showed no respect for her potential customers.
And so an opportunity for all concerned to develop a new business turned into a nightmare to be wryly joked about for a loooooooong time afterwards. Reminds me that Branding is an all-encompassing process of delivering a product or service in myriad ways, to meet a need. Simple! Just service the need identified, to match the attributes of the Brand.
Oh sure, I do know the frustration of having to wait for the right timing or environment etc., but isn't that better than turning potential customers off? Delivering a Brand well includes being its role model, listening for what people want, and going the extra mile.
Ready to align your personal brand with the essence of your product or service? Just call me at 603-21697704 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net.
BRING ME THE BRAND AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Monday, August 8, 2011
THE ultimate reason for Branding
Lunch was simply scrumptious and the conversation was tantalizing! My companion regaled me with his knowledge of the finer points of Branding as we discussed how to pitch various proposition. Around and around the various positionings of products, we dissected how badly Sales Training had been downgraded to hard selling and what key factors would turn customers into raving fans.
While we raved over the delicate pavlova - with crisp, fresh blueberries and strawberries atop dollops of light whipped cream (ooooo SO sinfully yummy) - we extracted what a good Sales Training program ought to deliver, and listed the processes involved. Done professionally, salesmanship ought to be about helping a consumer to meet a need in ways that make him or her look to you as a problem-solver to turn to again. Absolutely NOT the too-often pushy pest that one dreads meeting and tries hard to avoid :(
Right - so that's the Sales process - well, the way it should be anyway. But what does it have to do with Branding? The end purpose for building a Brand is for the owner to richly cash out, ot leave a lucrative legacy or even both if possible! This is the result of achieving Brand Value that customers are willing to pay for. Aha! My deep and articulate companion smartly pointed out "so then Brand Building is about selling then, isn't it?" Can't argue with that hehehe. For my part of the process, it's about training staff to do things in a way thta is unique to their company so that customers buy that set of unique deliverable! In essence it's about showing howto deliver the Brand to get repeat sales! Ta da!
We'd gotten to sipping a potent blend of aromatic coffee to wash down our creamy indulgences, and decide that it had been a most satisfying lunch time, getting to the nub of pitching propositions which customers would be delighted with.
Would it delight you to have your staff understand what is so unique about your business, and project it so that it becomes an increasingly lucrative venture? Well, I would so love to help you with that! Just call me at 603-21697704 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net and you're there :)
BRING ME THE BRAND AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
While we raved over the delicate pavlova - with crisp, fresh blueberries and strawberries atop dollops of light whipped cream (ooooo SO sinfully yummy) - we extracted what a good Sales Training program ought to deliver, and listed the processes involved. Done professionally, salesmanship ought to be about helping a consumer to meet a need in ways that make him or her look to you as a problem-solver to turn to again. Absolutely NOT the too-often pushy pest that one dreads meeting and tries hard to avoid :(
Right - so that's the Sales process - well, the way it should be anyway. But what does it have to do with Branding? The end purpose for building a Brand is for the owner to richly cash out, ot leave a lucrative legacy or even both if possible! This is the result of achieving Brand Value that customers are willing to pay for. Aha! My deep and articulate companion smartly pointed out "so then Brand Building is about selling then, isn't it?" Can't argue with that hehehe. For my part of the process, it's about training staff to do things in a way thta is unique to their company so that customers buy that set of unique deliverable! In essence it's about showing howto deliver the Brand to get repeat sales! Ta da!
We'd gotten to sipping a potent blend of aromatic coffee to wash down our creamy indulgences, and decide that it had been a most satisfying lunch time, getting to the nub of pitching propositions which customers would be delighted with.
Would it delight you to have your staff understand what is so unique about your business, and project it so that it becomes an increasingly lucrative venture? Well, I would so love to help you with that! Just call me at 603-21697704 or email evelyn@atheneumgroup.net and you're there :)
BRING ME THE BRAND AND I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
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