Typically, I share business tips with my readers. These tips come from my client work, coaching, training and learning. Rather than having this as a one way information flow, let’s collaborate!

You have great insight, challenges and stories to share with everyone. So, this is your opportunity to give us your input on your business priorities.

For the next three weeks, I am going to be asking for your feedback to share with other business professionals!   

CLICK HERE TO TAKE SURVEY NOW

Please participate in this survey! We will be summarizing the feedback from our readers! The best way to make this a meaningful exercise is for you to participate! Let us know what you are thinking.

If you have a success story on how you have focused on a business priority and made a big impact on your business, let us know! We will be sharing your success stories with other readers!

Look forward to hearing from you!

Judy Freeman

As small business owners, we get so immersed in our day-to-day operations that we forget about the big picture items within our business. Things like:

• How do people buy our services?
• What is most important to them in selecting a new vendor?
• How do we compare to our competitors?
  • In light of the buying process!
  • As perceived by the buyer
  • Internet including website and social media

Recently, I was asked to conduct a focus group for a client. The purpose of the focus group was to get qualitative information about how individuals make buying decisions for this product. While we were most interested in the role that the website plays in their selection process, we wanted to understand their overall mindset and attitudes about selecting a new service provider. (My client is a dentist, but this approach would apply to all products and services.)

What did we learn from this focus group? We got so much valuable information including how:

• Referrals from friends play a key role in their decision process
• Ease of access from mobile devices is another key factor
• One-stop shopping and making it easy to buy will improve sales

Would a Focus Group benefit your business? If you want to better understand your customers and prospects, this could be an excellent tool. It provides a good foundation for your marketing message, communications, priorities and strategies.

For more information on Focus Groups, give me a call @ 703-627-2745 or judyfreeman@actioncoach.com. Let’s talk about how to best grow your business!

Judy Freeman

As small business owners, we are all looking for ways to grow our businesses and help out our local community. Having an intern program is an excellent way to do both.

By bringing in an intern, you will be giving a student practical experience in a professional capacity. Further, your company will gain the energy and new ideas from someone who is learning and continuing their development.

Currently, I have two clients who have interns as an integral part of their team. Both approaches work effectively for their businesses. Let me share their secrets for success:

1)      Have well defined roles and responsibilities

2)      Match their skills and personality to the role

3)      Hire mature, articulate students who are committed to learning

4)      Be specific in your expectations, requirements and performance goals

5)      Have an open mind on how this individual can help your team

Dr. Kevin Ward is a chiropractor with Taschler Spine and Rehab in Fairfax. His interns work there for a 12-week period. This way, there is new talent coming in throughout the year. Kevin’s keys to finding good interns are to qualify them during the interview process, have written job responsibilities, give them key performance metrics and continue to refine the role to maximize intern effectiveness.

Brenda Hyde, Publisher of FAMILY Magazine, is committed to bringing interns into her publication.

Her program is so successful that students have been offered full time employment with her company. The internship program is an excellent way for employer and intern to evaluate one another to understand if this is a good cultural fit. FAMILY Magazine works hard to give the intern real life experiences in their field of study.

Judy Freeman

The World’s best athletes & teams have outstanding coaches. Often, they have multiple coaches specializing in various aspects of their sports. More and more, business owners and executives are realizing the importance of business coaches for their businesses.

If high performers in sports need coaches, wouldn’t business owners need partners, mentors and trusted advisors? My clients believe that coaching has given them tremendous confidence, momentum and focus as they grow their businesses.

Today, I am sharing some memorable quotes from the most renowned coaches out there!

“I won’t accept anything less than the best a player’s capable of doing, and he has the right to expect the best that I can do for him and the team.”
-Lou Holtz

 
“Coaching is a profession of love. You can’t coach people unless you love them.”
-Eddie Robinson

“I learn teaching from teachers. I learn golf from golfers. I learn winning from coaches.”
-Harvey Penick

“I don’t believe in team motivation. I believe in getting a team prepared so it knows it will have the necessary confidence when it steps on a field and be prepared to play a good game.”
-Tom Landry

“My responsibility is leadership, and the minute I get negative, that is going to have an influence on my team.”
-Don Shula

 
“Leadership, like coaching, is fighting for the hearts and souls of men and getting them to believe in you.”
-Eddie Robinson

 
“To solve big problems you have to be willing to do unpopular things.”
-Lou Holtz

“What makes a good coach? Complete dedication.”

 -George Halas

“My responsibility is leadership, and the minute I get negative, that is going to have an influence on my team.”
-Don Shula

 
 Do you need a good coach? If so, give me a call for a complimentary coaching session. Let’s see how I can help you out. I can be reached @ 703-627-2745 or judyfreeman@actioncoach.com.

Look forward to talking with you!

Judy Freeman

In the aftermath of the Boston bombings, I am proud to be a Bostonian. The way that the city of Boston came together was truly amazing!

I grew up cheering for the Red Sox and going to Fenway Park. I am a devoted Boston Celtics fan and stood by the Patriots way before the era of Tom Brady. When I was in college, the Marathon runners came right past my dorm on heartbreak hill. I felt a strong connection to the people living in horror after this terrorism.

The Friday night that they caught the suspect alive, I screamed. When Neil Diamond arrived at Fenway Park to sing Sweet Caroline, I was so emotional. There was such love, hope and camaraderie among the fans!

The way that 1st responders, FBI, politicians, police, firefighters and citizens handled this bombing showed Americans at their best. From the minute that this tragedy occurred, everyone started helping one another. This was a situation where everybody rose to the occasion. It is MIRACULOUS that there were not more lives lost due to this senseless violence.

Here are the key words that describe them:

• Cooperative
• Pride
• Determined
• Loving
• Loyal
• Dedicated
• Camaraderie

Didn’t their efforts seem like a well orchestrated band? They were meticulous in their approach to investigating this crime. This was an example of outstanding teamwork, knowledge, training and technology to solve a problem.

How does this relate to us as business leaders and owners? By leveraging our teams, knowledge and technology, we can solve our problems. The key is to have a common goal and work together to make our businesses work like a well orchestrated band.

Let’s take this tragedy and see how we can learn from the positive actions that people took in their time of desperation! Be committed to doing well and being our best every day!

BOSTON STRONG!

Judy Freeman

Many business owners forget how important the phone is to their business success.

Think about it. When a new prospect or business associate wants to reach you, they often pick up the phone and call your place of business. This is the initial touch point with them and creates a lasting impression. If you are difficult to contact or lack responsiveness, that may have a negative impact on your business profits.

Let’s look at a few simple scenarios. These are all real and recent. They aren’t huge customer success failures. Rather, they are everyday issues that DO result in lost business.

What type of impression does your business make when a call comes in? Is it handled in a professional and responsive manner? Are your team members trained on scripts for handling questions and scheduling appointments? Are there systems in place to confirm appointments or reservations?

Does your team need help with phone skills? If so, let’s talk further. I can help with this.

I can be reached @ 703-627-2745 or judyfreeman@actioncoach.com.

To your success,

Judy Freeman

Do you ever feel like you are moving forward but not getting results quickly enough?

I hear my clients saying the exact same thing. Yet, we all need to ask ourselves:

• “Are we doing the right things?”
• “Are we using our time effectively to reach our goals?”
• “Are we constantly readjusting our course with new information to get the results we want?”
• “Do we focus on the most important tasks every day?”
• “Do we keep a positive mindset and believe in ourselves?”

Patience is a virtue! If we learn to be patient and positive in our endeavors, it will make the journey much more fun. We will create a nurturing and energetic culture where the team believes in the future. The team will be calm yet happy and optimistic. If you continue to set goals and metrics and ensure that you are moving forward, success will be yours.

Persistence is another key component to success! When you hear no, it simply means not now. We must all learn to be resilient and realize that we must “get back on the horse.” Think about famous people who had success later in life: Susan Boyle became a singing sensation @ 48, Ray Kroc started McDonalds @ 52 and Maya Angelou was in her 60’s when her books became popular! It was their persistence, confidence and commitment that helped them realize their dreams.

Patience and persistence are a powerful, winning combination!

Wishing you a powerful week!

Judy Freeman

Last week, I was running a bit early for an appointment. Yes, I was running early as shocking as that may seem. So, I started to clean out my purse that has gotten heavier and heavier this season. Well, I found some amazing notes from the Action COACH conference in Las Vegas. These notes were so relevant that I started pulling them out in my next coaching session!

So, here’s my chance to share them with you. You are bound to find a Golden Nugget in here!

• BE AN EAGLE - Stop scratching with the chickens. Rather, soar like an eagle!
• INVEST 10% of your time in yourself. This will pay you high dividends!
• NOURISH YOUR MIND - If you have awful content in your mind, where will you go?
• WHERE ATTENTION FLOWS - energy goes! Focus your energy where you want to BE.
• GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE - to accomplish what you want in life
• PICK A TOPIC and learn about it in depth. Become an expert one step at a time.
• BE PROACTIVE versus reactive. When you are reactive, you aren’t creating change.

What Golden Nuggets do you have to share with us? Send them to me, and I will share them with others in an upcoming newsletter?

Have a great week!

Judy Freeman

As business owners, we spend lots of time and money attracting new customers to our business. Yet, we often lose sight of a valuable asset: our existing customers! By paying more attention to our existing customers, they will stay with us longer and refer others to our business.

This is the fourth in a four part newsletter series discussing best ways to increase revenues. This series will leverage Action COACH 5 Ways to increase Revenues by 46% guaranteed! It will include a special offer for you to use our 5 Ways Checklist to track and analyze your numbers!

Today, we are going to focus on 5 easy ways to increase the number of transactions per customer in your business!

1. Consistently stay in contact with your customers-This may be by providing a newsletter, postcard, lunch or phone call. The best system will depend on your type of business and the customers within the business. For example, an “A” customer with a large company may be someone that you take to lunch quarterly. A “C” customer for that same company may get a phone call quarterly.
2. Survey your customers-Have a quarterly or annual system for surveying your customers. This will give you excellent feedback from them on their current and future business needs. Further, they will be more likely to buy from you if they know that you value their opinion in making your business decisions.
3. Special or exclusive offers-Offer them a package of services that is only offered to existing customers. This is an excellent way to show them that you value their ongoing business. Further, it may be a way to have them do additional business with you!
4. Membership rewards-Depending on your business, you may have a membership rewards program. This may be that you get $$ off after a certain threshold or get your nth service for free. The idea behind membership rewards programs is to reward customer loyalty. Once it becomes their habit to be your customer, it will be hard to break.
5. Exceptional experience-will bring customers back more frequently! Ask yourself and your employees what you can do differently or better to encourage customers to come back more often. For example, Donut Mondays or Happy Hour Fridays as a way to build relationships and bring them into your business.

Do you know your average dollar sale? Would it be beneficial to have a worksheet to understand and analyze your 5 ways numbers? For a limited time, I am offering this powerful worksheet to my readers. Contact me @ 703-627-2745 or judyfreeman@actioncoach.com.

Judy Freeman

Most business owners want to make more money and profits. Yet, they fail to look at the details of how they get their revenues. It is a simple equation.

Leads * Conversion=Customers * Average Dollar Sale * Number of transactions/customer=Revenues

This is the third in a four part newsletter series discussing best ways to increase revenues. This series will leverage Action COACH 5 Ways to increase Revenues by 46% guaranteed! It will include a special offer for you to use our 5 Ways Checklist to track and analyze your numbers!

Today, we are going to review 5 easy ways to increase your average $$ sale.

1. Increase your prices - When was the last time you increased prices? Where are you in contrast to your competitors? You may be leaving money on the table on each sale.
2. Have a list of add on options - Often, there are complementary products and services that your customers would love to buy from you. They simply need to know that you offer them. Train your sales team to ask about them on all transactions. (This is like going to McDonald’s and them asking if you want fries and a drink. Now, they assume that you want it.)
3. Focus more time on your ideal customers - Ideal customers will spend more money with you. They are the kind of business or consumer who truly values your product or service. By focusing sales efforts here, there will be a higher average $$ sale.
4. Stop discounting - For many businesses, the average $$ sale goes down, because their sales team discounts their products.
5. Bundle your products and services to make it easy for them to buy more. Be creative in ways that you offer packages so that you create value and differentiate your business to prospects and customers.

Do you know your average $$ sale? Would you benefit from a worksheet that analyzes your leads, conversion rate, average dollar sale and number of transactions per customer? If so, contact me @ 703-627-2745 or judyfreeman@actioncoach.com. For a limited time, I am offering this powerful tool.

Judy Freeman