WORK FLOWGet Unstuck
If you’re procrastinating, it’s often because you don’t know the next appropriate action. It can help to ask yourself what it is that you need to find out, decide or do. “Usually the roadblock is one of those three things,” productivity coach Liz Sumner told INC. “What information do you need to locate? What decision is up in the air and what are the choices? What needs to be done so that the rest of the pieces fall into place? These questions will get you moving again.”
PRODUCTIVITYHighlight Outsourcing Opportunities
If you suspect you’re not focusing enough on important tasks, Lauren Edvalson, CEO of Edvalson Marketing, suggests logging your productivity every day for a week. At the end of the period, take a highlighter and mark anything you can delegate for say $50 per hour or less via apps such as elancer and Upwork, she tells INC. “I like to do this exercise quarterly so that I can measure my progress and also have some accountability for letting go of time-sucking tasks that don’t serve my business goals.”
MARKETINGPound the Pavement
Summer means different things to different people. At Midwest Jewelers and Estate Buyers in Zionsville, IN, it means it’s time to pound the pavement. The store prints up marketing materials focusing on its estate buying services and then two staff members head out, targeting businesses that might be interested. “They called on local banks, insurance agents, nursing homes. When they walked in you could just see the employees thinking, ‘Oh no, not more solicitors,’” recalls owner Brian McCall. “But after the initial introduction, they were excited to find a business where they could send their clients. We saw a large uptick on the buying side of the business. When the sun starts shining, we will be back at it!”
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MANAGEMENTBuild a Better Comment Box
Lots of businesses have an idea or comment box. That’s great, but innovation consultant Bryan Mattimore, author of 21 Days To A Big Idea, suggests you take it to the next level by adding some structure. At his company, the Growth Engine, managers post an organizational challenge on a whiteboard and invite their co-workers to submit suggestions. “After a week’s time, the manager records (and then pursues) the best ideas/suggestions on the whiteboard. He or she then posts a new weekly challenge. It’s easy to do, doesn’t really cost anything, and it has created some huge productivity improvements/wins for our clients,” says Mattimore.
MARKETINGSought-after Invitations
Cooper & Binkley Jewelers’ annual trunk shows are keenly awaited events for its regular customers — although probably not as much as the actual invitations. Each year, the staff at the Brighton, MI, store try to top themselves with “invitations that are more unique, creative and surprising than the previous year,” says co-owner Barb Binkley. Examples include a three-part invitation that built anticipation over three weeks, a message in a glass bottle, a chocolate candy bar with the message on the wrapper, a jigsaw puzzle that had to be assembled and a cookie with the designer logo.
CUSTOMER APPRECIATIONBest Seat in the House
Do you live in a city that has a restaurant where it’s almost impossible to get a reservation? Impress your customers by booking a table (better yet, a prime table at the prime time of the night). You can do it far in advance. You can do it every week. Then give the reservations to a customer who purchases a big piece from you.