Leighton UK Business Information

People have business cards so that they can increase their business. So, individuals should really take note of what their business cards look like and if they really promote business or not. For example, a photographer who uses business cards should really think of good business card designs that not only show off their work but also provide the important information for clients.

For example, a photographer may consider having a business card with several small block photos on the back of the card with a gloss overlay. Those way potential clients can see the photographer’s work and a variety of poses and situations. This conveys the photographer’s style and how he does his work. On the other side of the business cards should be the photographer’s phone number, web address, email address, and even studio address so potential client’s can easily get in touch. So much important information can be placed on such a tiny little card that photographer’s should really take advantage of it.

Another great idea for a photographer’s business cards is to have a variety of backgrounds printed that showcases his work. For example, have a variety of color business cards and black and white business cards printed up with one outstanding photo on the back and the contact information on the other side. This means you should choose one great wedding portrait, a child’s portrait, and even a family portrait to place on your cards. You will have a variety of business cards so that when a potential client asks you about wedding portraits you give them that business card. Or, if they are interested in a child’s’ portrait you give that business card. It sounds confusing, but if you always carry several business cards with you it’s never a problem. Having the larger photo on the business card will really show of your work and help clients get a good idea of your work.

Some photographers have actually started using wallet photos as their business cards. They simply take the extra wallets they have and place a sticker with their personal information on the back. This is an affordable way to use up those leftover wallet photos while advertising your work.

If you don’t want to use an actual photo on the business card then make sure you come up with a professional design that will go well with your profession. For example, a camera or a man with a camera to the side of the business information would convey that it was a photographer’s business card.

You really must decide what works best for you. But, if you take these options and add your own ideas you will surely come up with a great idea for photographer’s business cards.

Before starting up your business I am sure you will have done plenty of research. The recommended ways to research businesses is by taking advice from someone you trust or by reading books, magazines or use of the internet. Businesses that survive the early days need to develop and move on to the next stage; the aim of all start up businesses is to build the business on a solid platform. There are many ways to expand a business, listed below are simply a few ways:

List your Business as a Franchise – Business costs can be very expensive, by franchising your business it will be significantly expanded it at a reduced cost. A lot of successful businesses have been successful simply due to franchising; many businesses have developed quickly by using this technique some have eventually become listed as a PLC (Public Limited Company). The stock market not only values your company at today’s value but also takes into account future growth. This can prove very lucrative for your business.

Form a Partnership or Joint Venture – Joining forces with another on theme business can be a very good way to develop your business. Marketing costs can be very difficult to absorb especially in the early days. Revenue sharing can be seen as a negative however experts believe that new businesses should consider making an alliance.

Target other Areas -. If the business is doing well, then look at other ways you can bring in revenue, great new ideas are being born everyday. The best entrepreneurs do not sit on their laurels; they are always looking towards expansion. Multiple revenue streams can be the key to success in business; they will prove worthwhile if one part of your business starts to under perform.

Win Contracts – One of the best ways for a business to develop is in the winning of contracts, especially government contracts. They not only secure revenue over a fixed period of time they also show an external mark of approval for your business. The winning of a major contract can separate you from your rivals. The winning of a contract can also be used by your marketing team in sourcing out other potential clients. One contract win can be the one factor that eventually makes the business successful.

Customer Retention – One of the best ways to develop a business is to keep your customers happy. Good customer service can go a long way towards making a customer return; added to that is the publicity gained from a recommendation. Generally new businesses provide great customer service in the early days however as businesses expand, this level of service generally diminishes. One example is the use of overseas call centres, this may prove cost effective, however the level of service provided by them is considered poor, although it is improving slightly. A business that can provide a good level of customer service at all levels of expansion should develop well.

Internet Presence – “Bill Gates said that by the end of 2002, there will be only two kinds of businesses: those with an Internet presence, and those with no business at all.” As stated earlier one of the ways to succeed in business is to stay ahead of the game. Your business having an internet presence is viewed by many experts as crucial.

I hope the advice given is considered useful for businesses that are past the start-up stage and are now looking to expand.

If you would like any more information on this subject then please visit our website at www.businessservicesuk.com.com, we have a team of experts who are well versed in the art of business recovery. Our website offers an array of Business Services including a FREE business directory and a Free website review service

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Many business owners treat the concept of team building with some skepticism and disdain, despite the tangible benefits it can bring to your group of employees. From the largest organization down to the smallest, these exercises can play a significant part in bringing people closer together and in making units work cohesively and more closely. As a result, this has a knock on impact on the output of the team and how effectively it can achieve its objectives.

The Concept

Team building exercises come in a range of different forms, and are largely designed to bring business owners and their staff closer together. From this simple beginning, a full blown industry that focuses in organizing activities and events has emerged. The organizers are perfectly used to dealing with stressed business owners, and as such they know how to cater to their demands.

The Activities

From paintballing, white water rafting to orienteering, the range of activities covered can be arranged across a diverse number of different sports and hobbies. From day trips, weekend sessions all the way up to week long courses, these can be designed to meet the needs of your business, whatever its size and requirements, allowing you to find the right solution for your organization in a time suitable for you.

Why These Exercises Work

While some business owners will still argue that it is ineffective, there are proven advantages to be had in terms of morale and output. These excursions can have a significant impact on how your employees perform when working together. A group of awkward strangers cannot ever be as effective as a team that really knows each other on a social and personal level. By making your employees much more close-knit this should lead to a more united approach and a greater sense of uniformity throughout your organization.

Can Your Business Benefit?

Whether your business is a large-scale operation with hundreds or even thousands of staff, or you have just a couple of part time employees, team building exercises can prove to be money and time well spent, reaping returns in the form of increased motivation and camaraderie within your working environment.

End Result

This then has a knock on effect on the way customers are handled, and can boost the perception and therefore the profits of your business over time, simply as a result of having highly motivated, closer members of staff. Considering the relatively insignificant level of investment required, these events can be a worthwhile addition for your business. They can lead to a benevolent and more productive working environment. It really is a great way to build bonds and long term friendships.

It is becoming a popular and paying strategy to register a business in UK. Even those businesses that are set up elsewhere want to register a business in UK. The reasons for this enthusiasm are clear. Registering and setting up a business in the UK is a fairly straightforward procedure. It is easy, quick and profitable. There are tax benefits to be thought of besides the highly streamlined process that is available for incorporating a business in UK.

Fortunately, registering a business in the UK follows well established guidelines. So, there is no need for any confusion.

The first step is to have a physical address in the UK. This is not a problem for native residents. However, foreign companies may require a temporary office address before they can set up their actual office. In this case, the company can pay a small amount to a solicitor and use their address temporarily. An address in England, Wales or Scotland would do. Mind you, all official communication must carry this address. Also, copies of official documents have to be kept at this address.

Equally important is the decision regarding the business structure. There are a number of structures to choose from. Most small businesses prefer to become sole proprietorships because this is the quickest and the least complicated route. However, in case the business is big enough, it might be better to consider a partnership or a Limited Liability Company.

The last thing to do before you register a business in UK is choose the name of your company or business. The name has to be unique and there should be no copyright violations. Legally, that is all there is to choosing the name of your business. But, remember that you have to live with the name you choose for a long, long time. So, apply some thought and choose wisely.

After this, you can fill out forms 10 and 12. Form 12 requires the presence of a solicitor, notary and justice of peace or a commissioner of oaths before it can be signed. The Memorandum of Association lists the address and name of the company along with the company’s assets and liabilities. The Articles of Incorporation (as the name suggests) deals with the structure of the company and lays down the company’s policies regarding voting and other activities that govern the operation of the business. Understandably, this form will be signed by shareholders too.

These forms must be duly filled and signed and submitted to the Companies House for assessment. You can then open a bank account in the name of your company/business.

Once the formalities are over, you will have to start with insurance policies and payment of tax etc. Keep all documents safely because a new legislation introduced in April 2009 imposes penalties if records and tax returns are not maintained properly.

It has become much more crucial that any company follows the right procedures when it comes to improving information management for business needs. Not only do private but also public sector businesses need to follow these. So today in order that they can gather information to determine how effectively the business is running it can be carried out in several ways. But before a business can go out and purchase such a system they should learn some more about them and what they are capable of doing. In this article we take a quick look at what these systems can do as well as the things that should be taken into consideration before investing in one.

When it comes to these systems their main aim is to provide data quickly to the user to enable those who need to make important decisions relating to the way the business is run can do so more effectively. The information that may be gathered can look like a complete mess to those that don’t know what they are looking at. Once the algorithms have been run it provides the information in a format that allows them to identify aspects of the business where they can make improvements and so enhance its performance. So what things will need to be considered when thinking of purchasing software that provides information management for businesses? In this article we take a look at what some of these are.

Factor 1 – How Relevant Is The Information?

As well as the information being relevant to those who have entered the data, it should also be something that others find relevant as well. Those programs that provide any additional information to the end user may actually cause the person’s judgment to become clouded and they will not be able to make an informed decision relating to how they business runs.

Factor 2 – How Accurate Is The Information Provided?

Where a program is able to provide accurate information to those reviewing it will ensure that they can make informed decisions. Should any of the information provided be inaccurate then how can the person making the decision determine that what they are doing is in fact right for their business.

Factor 3 – How Easy Can The Information Be Communicated?

Yes any kind of information management for business program should provide clearly decipherable reports to the end user. Plus they must be produce in a way that won’t cost the business too much.

In this article we have taken a look at some of the things that need to be taken into consideration before purchasing any kind of information management for business software that is now available. If you keep in mind what has been mentioned above then not only can you find one that meets your particular needs but also is simple to use.

Branding is not just about your business logo. It covers and includes practically every aspect of your business including marketing, advertising, packaging, customer service and how you deal with your suppliers.

Branding covers every dot within and surrounding your business. The reputation of the owners, the shareholders, suppliers, employees, and even the customers all contribute to the brand image of the business. Every action that the entities involved in the business take, is contributing to the brand image of a company. That’s why it is important to plan every step carefully and take precautions, as every move you make will impact your brand image, either in a positive or negative way.

For branding to be truly effective it has to penetrate every aspect of your business dealings and no opportunity should be missed to enhance your brand further.

Consistent Branding

One of the ways you can enhance your branding is by being consistent. Consistency is a key to better branding. Take a look at all your applications and processes and see if your brand is promoted across the board in a similar fashion. Give the role of checking and applying your brand to one competent person, so that they can make sure that it is applied consistently across the board.

Chances are, not only will it be cost savings for you; you will also set one identity to your employees, customers and suppliers. When they see that one image, logo, management style and mission statement across the board, they will know it is you. It’s your business. It’s your company. The world will identify you with a common image, a common color, a common message or statement. If you change one or the other, not only will it confuse your customers, it will also be adding extra cost for you and your business.

Developing a Brand

To start your brand making process, try asking things like “what do we do in our company” or perhaps “what do we represent”. If your employees, customers or suppliers answer differently, then you have to investigate further on your branding. Why is it that people have different views about the business? Probably it was because you have given them varying representations about your business. In short, branding was not given proper attention and focus.

A proper brand will aid you when launching new products or services. Think about the Virgin brand and see how successfully Richard Branson has exploited it across his entire group of companies ranging from tourism, mobile phones, airlines and the train business.

Poor branding will hamper you at every stage of business development. Some new businesses struggle to make headway, purely because they had no strategy in place to maintain and develop their brand.

Take time to develop your brand and then support it fully across the full spectrum of your business activities. Branding defines the company’s strategy. It shows the world what makes you different compared to the rest of the competition. It sets you apart. That alone is an important benefit that a business can get from investing in branding.

You have been running a business and you’re doing well. However, the economy begins to falter, and recession looms. What can you do to maintain your market share and your income? It is during a recession that your income has to be at its most stable, so how do you achieve that while everyone around you starts to panic?

80/20 Rule

First, you must focus on your core business, and make sure that you remain focused on the products and services that are making you most money. This is where the 80/20 principle has to be strictly applied. You know the theory: 80% of your income comes from 20% of your customers, or 80% of your wastage or scrap comes from 20% of your products.

Focus on your customers first and waste second. You have to identify the 80% and 20% factors so that you can plan your cost cutting strategy going forwards.

Change Your Product Mix

However, also keep in mind that during a recession people sacrifice luxuries, and this might mean some readjusting of your business focus from luxury goods to essentials, from expensive products to their cheaper equivalents. What you should do, therefore, is to diversify into products that would be more practical at times of crisis.

Marketing

Guerilla marketing tactics also work better in recessions, and you have to get the maximum benefit from the resources that you have. That means negotiating as hard as possible for marketing and advertising, and making best use of what marketing is carried out. You cannot just stop marketing your products or services, but make sure that the expenditure you do make brings as much return as possible, and pause the advertising campaigns that focus on building a brand.

Retain Existing Customers

Although it seems perverse during a recession, discounts to customers can often help to maintain the loyalty of your more important customers. Some of your competitors might try to take advantage of financial squeezes to wrestle your customers from you, and this is one way of preventing them. What you must not do is bad-mouth your competitors, because nothing is more certain to lose you business than that.

This is a good time to strengthen bonds with existing customers and clients and who knows: you might be able to help them through these difficult times, and then they will show their appreciation to you once the good times come back.

Reduce Labour Costs

Staff is another area where savings should be made. It’s not easy to let staff go, but sometimes essential. You could convert some full timers to part-time contracts temporarily, and retain the brightest and best workers full time. It might have an adverse effect in the short term but it will increase your chances of surviving any economic downturn.

Cut Down on Waste

Budgeting of consumables is another area that can be tackled, and even paper supplies mount up over a period of time. Calculate savings in terms of annual rather than daily. OK, you might only save 50 daily, but that is 18,000 annually, in what ever currency you work with. The same is true of time. Reduce the number of hours worked in overtime and manage your staff better so that you still get the work done.

There are many similar savings to be made that in themselves contribute only a little, but when taken together over the course of a year can equate to considerable cash saving. Do that and also focus on your core business, or that part of it that is most profitable, and your business stands a better chance of withstanding anything the average recession can throw at you.

With a lot of companies going under due to the recession, you have to be especially vigilant about not letting customers get behind on the bills. You may think that if you are too lenient and a laggard customer folds, insolvency proceedings will belatedly recover some of what you are owed. Perhaps your customer’s debt to you is secured, which leads you to believe that you will be among the first in priority for payment if the customer collapses.

But in the United Kingdom, that is not necessarily true.

When a UK company collapses, it goes into administration. An administrator is appointed (usually an accountant with considerable experience handling insolvencies). The administrator uses the company’s assets to pay creditors to the extent feasible. Exactly how it is done and exactly what powers the administrator has depend upon details such as the age of any security interests against the assets.

So far, this is comparable to what you expect when a company in a nation with similar laws, such as the USA, files for bankruptcy protection. But there is a variant in the UK that can catch you by surprise and leave you with nothing.

Pre-packaged administration (pre-pack) essentially allows the best portion of a collapsing business to be sold without prior notice to creditors before an administrator takes over.

While an administrator sifts through assets and looks for a buyer, a collapsing company continues to deteriorate. In theory, pre-pack can save jobs and keep the productive parts of a business contributing to the economy by providing a streamlined path for handling insolvency. In practice, frequently not enough is left after pre-pack for the administrator to do much for creditors. This sometimes causes a ripple effect of job losses and business collapses among vendors to the pre-packed firm–a ripple you do not want to join.

Pre-pack has become a magic wand. Owners or directors can put together a new company, line up financing, and buy the best of the collapsing business in a pre-packaged deal. There is no prior notice, nothing put on the market to let anyone else have a chance at buying it. Creditors find out after it has been done. The new company, which may be owned and run by the same people who ran the old one, is unfettered by the original firm’s unpaid creditors or customers who never got what they paid for. Creditors may never get a penny, since the administrator is left only the dregs for satisfying the old company’s liabilities.

New guidelines took effect in January 2009 (Statement of Insolvency Practice 16). These call for disclosure of 17 factors in a pre-pack sale, to show why pre-pack is justified. However, this disclosure need not be available until after (perhaps long after) the prearranged sale. The new guidelines have a loophole for exceptional circumstances that can cause some information never to be available to creditors. Although the new guidelines are supposed to cut down on pre-pack sales to related parties (owners and directors of the insolvent firm), it is not at all clear whether that will happen.

So if you are doing business in the UK, pay extra attention to your customers’ financial health. A bankrupt customer in some countries means you will wait a long time to collect a fraction of what you are owed. But if a customer in the UK goes into pre-pack administration, you may very well never collect anything.

Opportunity may be seen as the existence of a situation whereby it presents itself to an individual or group of individuals to profit in someway by pursuing it in a certain manner? The results may yield a favourable outcome for the pursuer(s) but the reason only a small amount of opportunity is exploited to present its rewards is that along with most opportunity comes an element of risk.

It is almost possible to show this graphically illustrating the greater the potential, the greater the risk, e.g. A small business owner contemplates opening a bistro bar in a shopping centre with a potential yield of $100 000 per annum, risking $250 000 whereas Donald Trump may risk $100m on a new golf course development, with a potential yield of $10m per annum

Hence, in the world of business, the universal search is for opportunity! There is plenty out there so what stops us from taking it? As has been well documented throughout the years, people have vastly different attitudes to risk, thus by definition, vastly different attitudes towards opportunity. As a result many of these great opportunities are passed by in favour of security whereby the individual(s) dismiss the opportunity and move on? What governs this thought process?

We constantly are told through various mediums not to miss out on this opportunity – by simple reasoning and the law of numbers – a great ally if one wishes to use it correctly –
EVERY OPPORTUNITY CANNOT BE FLAWED! Therefore by failing to at least examine each opportunity is a gross mis-service to our experience in this life.

What many of us fail to realise is that we are economists constantly involved in decisions and choice under the constraint of limited resources – great to have the opportunity to examine an opportunity but held back by a famous, or infamous, economic concept- opportunity choice.

Opportunity Cost may be defined as the cost of choice, when output, time and money are limited. On a practical everyday level one may fail to even examine an opportunity, or examine an opportunity, but look at what this will cost to undertake.

This is where our thought processes enter the debate. Aside from the natural character of the individual(s) involved; this may involve how we are taught to think from a young age. Are we bombarded by positive or negative thoughts and statements from a young age?

Do we really believe that we will live forever and can take the assets that may be involved in an opportunity or have been accumulated over time with us? If we are lucky enough to have an opportunity it probably means we have been given an opportunity already. Circumstances, freedom from war, starvation or the basic need to devote every hour to survival- is it then correct, for us, even morally, to fail to examine an opportunity?

Luckily, we have tools with which to examine opportunity. The ability to do our homework, freedom to access any amount of information to aid us in our evaluation, the law of numbers and the aforementioned favourable circumstances.

In America we produce great opportunity takers. Is this conditioning? They are certainly no cleverer than any other country’s populace! They merely do their homework and apply the basics to each opportunity presented more than any other people.

The underlying message must be to at least examine every opportunity using the basics, irrespective of the final decision, producing a circular process:

Circumstances enable Opportunity. This gives us a chance to do our Homework. The Law of Numbers dictates that at least one Opportunity will work. The Opportunity Cost will help us make a Decision.

This method of Opportunity Seeking cannot fail to produce results; whether or not they produce the desired results, one at least owes it to themselves and those not fortunate enough to have opportunity, to examine it properly.

Throughout this book so far, I’ve made reference to the fact that Paolo the Barber thinks, acts, and makes decisions like a business owner. I’m sure you can think of an instance in your own life where you have experienced a superior level of customer service and attention from the business owner, than you would have done if you had been served by a regular employee.

Why is this?

It’s because business owners have a deeper connection with their company. They love their work, are passionate about it, and have an energy and commitment which is rarely seen in the wider workforce.

Business owners understand that their actions have a direct impact on whether a customer will come back and repeat buy, or go on and do their marketing for them.

That’s not to say that business-owner-thinking cannot be found deeper in a workforce. Certainly, people who think like business-owners exist in many companies, but there are all too few of them, and their efforts are often drowned out by a sea of mediocrity, composed of Middlemen, and Barmen.

Barbers, Barmen and Middlemen

Allan Leighton, one of the UK’s most respected CEOs, talks about a three level appraisal system. He categorises people’s performances as brilliant, good and bad.

I think this three level approach reflects the type of people -namely Barbers, Middlemen and Barmen – found in all companies.

People like Paolo the Barber share all the traits of a business owner. He:

? Is passionate
? Is in love with his work
? Understands the need to connect with customers
? Makes customers want to come back and buy
? Turns customers into raving fans who tell their friends and family about him.

Because Paolo loves his work, it shows, and in Allan’s scale, Paolo would be brilliant.

You also have in your company people like the Barman. These are people who:

? Are not connected to their work
? See their work just as a job
? Fail to see the connection between their salary at the end of the month, and the revenue which comes through the door from customers
? Have a lack of connection and enthusiasm for their work, and therefore fail to demonstrate any passion and energy
? Don’t give customers a compelling reason to come back and buy.

On Allan’s appraisal scale the Barman would be bad, simply because people like him can never take your company forward. They are inherently the wrong people for your company and are a drag on the future success of your business.

Let’s say in your company right now, you have (more or less) 25% of your employees who are like Paolo the Barber, and 25% who are like the Barman.

This leaves around 50% of people we haven’t spoken about and who I call Middlemen and women. For the sake of simplicity in this book, I’ll refer to them simply as Middlemen, as ‘middle people’ doesn’t have the same ring to it!

Middlemen neither share the passion and desire of Paolo the Barber, nor the negative energy of the Barman. They are somewhere in the centre. They neither over perform, nor under perform. Allan would say their performance is good, but ‘good’ in this case has a wide definition.

Good is only good. It is not excellent, it is not brilliant.

Good may give a customer a reason to come back and buy, but it may not. Customers want and expect excellence and brilliance. They want to be dazzled, thrilled and wowed! It’s that level of excellence which will raise you to the top of your niche market, and it is that level of excellence which will make your customers return to you, and become evangelical about you.

Good, in the eyes of your customers, is often not good enough.

The only way for you to achieve this level of excellence is to have virtually every employee thinking and acting like Paolo the Barber. This means employees putting the needs of your customers first, being innovative and creative (because they love their work), being proud of and connected to their work, and understanding the direct connection between the revenues coming from your customers and their salary being paid at the end of the month.

Unless you have everybody in your company elevating the level of service, care, and attention they give your customer, and being connected to their work at an emotional level, you will never stand out from your competitors and you will never fully turn your workforce into your salesforce.

Let’s explore a few typical business scenarios to see what people like the Barman, Barber and Middleman would do differently in each situation.

SCENARIO 1: Ordering a coffee in a coffee shop

You go into a coffee shop and order a coffee. The worst case scenario comes when you deal with somebody like the Barman who doesn’t care for you, his customer. Barely a word is spoken, barely a smile or greeting is exchanged and the transaction leaves you cold and emotionless.

You know the person serving doesn’t want to be there, and to them their job is just a job.

If you ask for extra sugar or milk, you are greeted with little more than a grunt and a point in the direction of where the milk and sugar can be found.

From your perspective, there is nothing in this experience for you to latch onto and certainly no reason to recommend this place to anyone else.

You might get slightly better customer service from a Middleman, who neither under or over-performs, but sees your order purely as a transaction which has to be completed. If you are lucky you might be served with a smile and a bit of banter, but it is still seen as a regular transaction.

This is fine from your point of view, as you get what you want quickly and efficiently, but it is nothing special and does not leave a lasting impression on you.

Now think what your experience would be if the business owner was serving that same cup of coffee. Think if Howard Schultz, the founder of Starbucks, was behind the counter. What would he do for you?

Remember Schultz is a man who is passionate about coffee, wants you to feel his same passion, and wants to make sure the cup of coffee he serves is the most perfect for you. Often I find that when I order a Tall Skinny Latte in Starbucks (or a cup of milky coffee anywhere else!), it physically weighs less than when I ordered it the time before. That’s because the cup is filled with more froth than milk.

I’m confident that Howard Schultz would never personally let that happen. Each cup of coffee would always be served at the right temperature, at the right weight, and would be offered with a warm genuine smile. I’m sure Schultz would serve it exactly as he would expect to receive it if he was a paying customer standing on the other side of the counter.

Rather than asking if you would like anything else, I bet Schultz would recommend a special pastry of the day, or a new, special blend of coffee for you to try next time that he is particularly proud of.

Schultz could say to you ‘have a nice day’, but it would mean something, where as if it was said by the other two employees, it would be said with varying degrees of sincerity, ranging from totally emotionless and insincere from the Barman, to a warmer statement from the middle 50%.

Without question, Howard Schultz would leave you with a feeling that goes beyond a pure transaction; an emotional connection that would give you something to tell your friends about.

Would you want to recommend this coffee shop to your friends and family? Most definitely. Would you want to keep visiting this coffee shop in the future? Certainly.

The emotional bonds which would be created in that short transaction would be tangible and memorable, simply because Schultz is so proud of his coffee and the environment that he created, and it would shine and show through in everything he did.

SCENARIO 2: Checking-in at the airport

Let’s imagine now another situation of you checking in at an airport.

If at the check-in desk you were first greeted by somebody like the Barman who didn’t care and didn’t want to be there, again, the transaction would be cold and emotionless.

Although the check-in attendant would be wearing the uniform of the airline and representing the brand of the airline, their actions would be inconsistent with the true values behind the brand.

If you asked for anything out of the ordinary to someone like the Barman, it would become an obstacle. Their first word would probably be ‘no’ as they would be thinking more about their own needs and having to do a little bit of extra work, rather than meeting (or exceeding) your needs as the paying customer and the person ultimately paying their salary.

If you checked-in and were greeted by one of the Middlemen, you could expect a much warmer greeting. They would probably have a higher level of understanding of your needs and notice for example that you were in a hurry and wanted to move through quickly to the departure lounge. Or they might notice you had checked in early and suggest some activities or entertainment for you before you board the plane. However, they wouldn’t come anywhere close to the experience you would have if you were served by the very owner of the airline, for example somebody like Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou Sir Richard Branson.

These two guys would be proud of the airline they had created and they would be proud to wear the uniform representing the brand of Easyjet or Virgin Airlines. They would take time to understand your needs as a traveller, to find you the best seat in the case of Virgin, or to advise you of the best food and drink to buy on Easyjet. They might even be so proud as to tell you about the plane you were travelling on that day (why not, they bought it!).

In either situation, the personality of the company and the brand would shine through leaving a lasting impressing on you, so that you would want to fly with them again and want to recommend them to your friends and family and tell them about the treatment you had which left you feeling so special.

SCENARIO 3: Buying a Computer

If you went to buy a computer from your local shop, you might be unfortunate enough to deal with a passionless employee, like the Barman. Someone who simply reeled off (in rote fashion) the specification of the computer, in the same way you could if you read the accompanying information sheet.

Their level of service in helping you make a complex buying decision would be woefully poor, leaving you with no alternative but to find another supplier to help you through the maze of computer specifications. The shop would lose out on an easy ?1,000 sale.

You might be lucky enough to be greeted by somebody like the Middleman, with a much stronger interest in computers, but who lacks the real conviction in their voice which gives you the certainty that you are buying the right computer.

They would fail to fully understand your needs, and instead of trying to find the right computer for you, just want to make a sale, which would take them closer to their monthly bonus.

Consider now if you walked into a computer supermarket and there serving you was Steve Jobs, the founder and CEO of Apple Computers.

How more alive would that transaction be? How more engaging and passionate would it be when the architect of Apple computers helped you make your buying decision? His enthusiasm would be contagious and almost un-containable as he proudly presented the range of laptops and desktops machines to you, marrying your needs and wants to the features in the range of Apple computers.

You only have to listen to Steve Jobs talk at one of his company presentations (which I’ve seen many times through streaming webcasts), to notice his language, which is rich and eloquent and his passion shines through.

No other computer salesperson I know uses the words ‘gorgeous and beautiful’ to describe computer products. Only somebody who is truly proud of what they are selling, and believes wholeheartedly in the value they offer, would use these words with such sincerity and conviction.

SCENARIO 4: Buying Household Furniture

Think finally of buying some household furniture, something my wife Jane and I did recently when we needed a new bed and sofa. Both items were around ?1,000 each, so not an insignificant amount of money to spend on one item.

Although we didn’t meet anybody like the Barman, we did buy a sofa from a salesman who was clearly one of the Middlemen, perhaps even on the lower side of the 50%.

He was employed as a salesperson for a large national supplier of sofas who obviously spend millions of pounds each year developing their brand through advertising and using high-profile celebrity endorsements. In no way did this salesperson represent the values of the brand.

In fact, along with his fellow workers, he was dressed as if he was ready for a stag-night with his wide-boy suit and spiked-up hair. His over-relaxed, unengaged, matter of fact way of selling simply did not fill me with confidence.

When I asked him what the lead time for delivery of one of the sofas was, and what colour it came in, he eventually managed to drag himself to his feet and say, “Good question, I’ll just go and find out”. He came back rather reluctantly a few minutes later with the answers.

Although he wasn’t as bad as the Barman, he wasn’t far off, but with the right training and development he could become more like Paolo.

We eventually bought a sofa from him, and we also bought a bed from a local business and were served this time by the business owner.

Here was a man who was proud of every product he had to offer. He was clearly knowledgeable; he took time to understand our specific individual needs and wouldn’t let us buy the wrong product.

He gave us total confidence and reassurance that the bed we had bought was without question the right bed for us. Having now taken delivery of it, there is no doubt in our minds that we made the right decision.

With the sofa we bought, we both still have doubt in our minds that we chose the right one, but I’m sure if we had bought from the owner of that sofa shop (and not an unmotivated salesperson), we would have been assured that it was the best for us and would have been left in no doubt that it was the right decision.

It goes without saying that Jane and I would recommend anybody to go and see the business owner at the local bed-shop, but I am relatively indifferent to the supplier of the sofas.

What should be evident from these examples, is that if you have employees in your company who are like the Barman, you have zero chance of ever turning your workforce into your salesforce. It simply will not happen because they are unengaged, do not care enough, and this is reflected in everything they do.

If you have people like the Middlemen who neither under or over performs, you will always do ok, but will never give customers anything to be excited or thrilled about. Customers will remain indifferent to you, as you are to them.

However, if you have people in your company who share the same passion, belief and enthusiasm as the business owner, then that passion, belief and enthusiasm will be transferred to your customers. They will then walk away confident in their purchase, feeling special, and knowing that they had a remarkable experience in a market where most customer experiences are ordinary.

It is not difficult for you as a company to elevate yourself to a position of leadership in your market, but first you must develop your staff – at all levels – to see themselves as business owners who are responsible for the success and ongoing growth of your company.

To give your customers a remarkable and extraordinary experience that they rave about, you need to develop your staff into remarkable, extraordinary people who you rave about. You need employees in your company who Allan Leighton would say are brilliant.

You need to develop your staff into people who think, act and make decisions like business owners.