Learn and Apply

What's the point of learning if we never apply it? An easy thing to do, but when we apply what we learn life get's alot easier and much more pleasant. Let me explain...

If I had to choose just one important learning experience over the past year it would be the increasing awareness of giving 100% to my wife, instead of the traditional 50% you hear about. You know the drill ... the wife gives 50% and the husband gives 50% and you get a 100% marriage. Sounds logical, but what if both gave 100% to each other?

My 100% this past year has come from that moment in time when you know you're spouse has 'figured you out' and you have a choice to make. You can either deny 'it' and effortlessly defend yourself or you can pause, admit your own selfishness, and put your spouse ahead of yourself. That's closer to 100% than 50%. Try it yourself this coming year and see the difference it can make in your marriage!

Same can go for all of us in business as well. Not so much the example I've provided, but the principal of Learn and Apply. How often do we learn something and just keep doing the same thing over and over not learning from our mistakes. Hopefully, not too often. If you are STOP. Make a difference in your business in 2006.

Until next time ... Activity does not always equal progress!

Don't Let Your Emotions Make Decisions for You

My mind was racing after a late night of Ecommerce strategy meeting last night, but I couldn't muster the strength to pound the keys, so I opted for the History Channel instead. So, today you get my 'after thoughts'. You know the kind ... the ones that seem more like common sense after you've had time to absorb and evaluate the ideas from a meeting.

The first rule of Ecommerce should be - Only sell products that you can make money at selling. Seems obvious, doesn't it? Well, if you've ever tried to start any business for that matter it is soooo easy to get too 'involved' with the emotions of your business. Don't keep offering products just because it took a long time to get the vendor relationship, get pictures and content, and get it into your site. Take a serious look at what you are selling online. Figure in every cost, including your time, drop ship fees, etc... And GET RID of any product(s) that you can't make money on.

Take this approach and you will change the direction and momentum of your online business. It's amazing what a simple thing like a 'choice' can do for you.

Until next time - It's hard to read the label when you are inside the bottle.

Dinosaurs and Bandwagons

Kind of a strange title, but there are two types of business models in the website design and marketing industry that just get under my skin. They are the dinosaurs and the bandwagons.

Dinosaurs ... These website service companies stricly exist to survive. Most of the products and services they offer are aged and typically do not make their customers competitive in their online marketplace. More than likely their customer base is dwindling instead of growing. Typically, they do not have a doable progressive plan in place, but they may have 'a pie in the sky' type of 'someday' plan. Their pricing structure is typically very low and more than likely the lowest of all their competitors. The saddest part is that their customers businesses are suffering and the customer doesn't even realize it. Heck, the Dinosaur probably doesn't even know it. Prepare for extinction.

Bandwagons ... These website marketing companies jump on whatever 'hype' will get them more money by providing services to their customers without really having the skills to get lasting results. For instance, the search engine optimization services market is growing larger every day. Many companies now offer these services to their clients, however they have very little skill to get expected and lasting results.

While at the RVIA show a couple of weeks ago I spoke with RV America, a website services company for RV Dealers. Of course I was 'disguised' and wanted to understand their service offerings. They have a very basic product that does what it is meant to do. In addition, they have these add-on services, which of course they nickel and dime you on. One of them being called EStrategy which is defined as a search engine solution. To make a long story short, they are disguising Pay-Per-Click ads as search engine optimization and the dealer has no idea what they are missing. PPC has it's place and it can work, however, can be very expensive and is only a short term solution. Much better off spending your money on your own website's architecture and relevant link building practices which will give you longer term success.

So what can you do about it and how can you tell if you've got a dinosaur or bandwagon dragging your profits down? Start by asking yourself these questions...

Are they cheap?
Do they nickel and dime you to death?
Can they name the last three changes they made to their website software that directly relates to getting you more qualified leads?
Do they present your website as complete or do they re-direct or use frames to display any new or used unit information?
Do you have a good gut feeling and the results speak for themselves?

Another option is to find a good website consultant you can trust to do a website analysis and review. Having a second set of eyes can rarely hurt and usually helps tremendously.

Until next time ... Speaking of Bandwagons ... 'All ships rise when the tide comes in' ... will your ship stay on top after the 'hype' wears down?

The Thoughts Just Keep Coming...

Ever been hit by too much thought provoking stuff for one day? Pretty sure today was my day. It's all good:)

The first one I am claiming as my very own original thought. Of course it was spawned by the idea behind Seth Godin's book The Big Moo, and here it is ... Nearly Perfect. Nothing earth shattering I admit, but it's so easy to get caught in the 'have to be perfect' trap. One of my all time favorite quotes goes something like this ... Activity doesn't necessarily equal progress! So, focus, get it done, and move on.

Second one for the day isn't mine and I can't locate the website I found it on. It went something like ... It can be very hard to read the label when you are in the bottle. In the website design and marketing business I continually meet and converse with clients and prospects about their website efforts. Many times it is difficult to sit and listen to someone who has so much potential yet is trying to read the label from inside their bottle. Great lesson for all including myself.

RVIA Louisville Show

Just got back very late Wednesday night from the RVIA Louisville show. Fantastic! First time I had ever been and man was it worth it. They had every type and kind of recreational vehicle you can think of. From the A-Liner (tent looking thing) to the half million class A rigs. Incredible. The reason I went was mainly to build relationships with vendors and distributors for the Campings Best e-tail site. Campings Best offers quality outdoor gear and rv accessories online. Brad and I went together and had a great time. You think you have an idea of the size of an industry and then you go to something like that. Sorry, it was only open to dealers, suppliers, and manufacturers and not the general public.

We did have one bad experience though. Do NOT go to the Tumbleweed Restuarants in Louisville. It was one of those times when you just sit there and say to yourself... ok, the next bad thing I'm getting up and leaving ... however, for some strange reason we still sat there and endured. I have to say that our waiter was awesome. One of the best, but he still couldn't make up for the environment.

One good thing that did come of the bad restuarant experience is a new saying we have... Don't do the Tumbleweed! Basically, it means that if you feel something isn't right or your criteria for any situation isn't being met, then cut and run. Don't do the Tumblweed and hang around. Apply it to daily living or your business. No doubt you have your own 'Tumbleweed' experience.

Until next time!