|
The Big Picture:
5 Small Business Management Questions that Can Boost Your Business
Bobette Kyle 
As business managers, entrepreneurs, and Webmasters,
we strive for unobtainable perfection. Why do I say unobtainable?
Because when we focus on perfection in one area, we forego attention
elsewhere. Limited money and time mean you must choose from the
endless parade of advice and recommendations. This creates a dilemma.
How do you choose which to embrace and which to pass up?
Consultants, specialists, and/or other departments within your company
will eagerly give advice from their viewpoints. You will hear the
benefits of focusing on "___" (fill in the blank with appropriate
specialty). This is not a bad thing; it is their job to sell you on the
advantages of their specialties. It is your job to probe for
the downsides and tradeoffs.
Different Perspectives
Back in my brand management days, it was sometimes
frustrating when individual departments could not grasp The Big
Picture. The graphics department and the outside ad agency wanted to
get artsy when artsy wasn't the best strategy. Manufacturing was only
worried about throughput and efficiency - never mind what the customer
wanted. Each department was doing what it could to optimize its own
function, but this did not always work in The Big Picture. If all
functions were "optimized", it could be to the detriment of the
project. When resources are spread too thin and timelines expand,
implementation suffers.
In the virtual world the same Big Picture problems occur. Search
Engine Optimization (SEO) firms focus on page optimization and
submission. Copywriters tout the best way to write content. PR firms
tell you how to send press releases. Marketing gurus sell proven
programs. Yes, 95% of the advice makes sense in theory. Toss in a dose
of reality, however, and you may have an unmanageable mess.
The Big Picture
When reality hits, you find it is simply impossible to
optimize all areas of your business. You cannot grind everything to a
halt while you try for detailed perfection. God may be in the details,
but profit is in the implementation. As manager or "chief cook and
bottle washer", it is your job to bundle the advice into a profitable
package and make it work.
Once you accept that some areas are going to be initially less than
perfect (providing you with opportunity over time to improve.), the
challenge is to figure out what makes sense for your business and
site. When is it critical to optimize and when is less than perfect
acceptable?
When considering specialist's advice, ask yourself these five
questions:
1) Does it solve a problem?
One of the best ways to comprehend the importance of an action is to
relate it to a problem. If you think strategically - first identifying
your major problems, then designing solutions to solve those problems
- your business is more likely to thrive.
2) What are my alternatives?
There is always more than one solution to a problem. If you evaluate
different approaches, you will ultimately make better decisions.
3) What are the downsides?
Perfection and optimization are in the eyes of the beholder. What you
see as a disadvantage may seem trivial to the specialists. Ask
questions and do some research on your own to uncover the downsides.
4) Is it likely to be profitable for me?
It is a cruel fact that larger companies can afford programs that
smaller companies and individuals cannot. If you have to go into debt
or dramatically reduce other critical activities to implement a
program, your cost increases dramatically. In these cases, carefully
weigh the resources required against the potential gain.
5) What happens if I do not do this?
Some activities are "niceties" and some are necessities. Know the
difference. If you are losing customers to other sites or businesses,
for example, taking action is critical. Some activities - those you
want to do but do not help solve a significant problem - can be
pushed to the back burner.
Incorporating The Big Picture into your decision-making is critical.
When you ask yourself these five questions, you are in a better
position to make the right decision. Your business depends on it.
*******************************
Bobette Kyle draws upon 12+ years of Marketing/Executive experience, Marketing MBA,
and online marketing research in her writing. Bobette is proprietor of the Web Site Marketing
Plan Network,
and
Moderator for the
Web Marketing topic at highrankings.com forums.
Subscribe to Pathway To Success
Published every other Sunday, our Ezine helps Subscribers to succeed in their online business, providing them with top webmaster resources, hot marketing tips, profitable business opportunities, FREE advertising, articles, motivational reading, FREE Web Lions' Library, Bonuses and more.
|
 Discover
the Power of 'Next Generation Popups'
Start Enjoying a Huge Surge in Sales, Commissions and Subscribers using...
Pressure Popups, DHTML Hover Popups, PictoPopups, Conditional
Popups, Instant Opt-in Popups, Sliding Popups, Rotating Popups, and
more...
Click
Here to Download the 90-Day Risk-Free Trial
The Most Feature Rich Popup Generator in the Market
|
Not Fully Familiar With Your Computer, Get Your Questions Answered Here!
Get a Top Item the Minute It's Out - Watch News Express
Special 30-Day Success Course
11 Instalments
Yours for FREE if You Act Now!
|
|
 I'm Smartie: Get Me to YOUR Desktop. Just Click Here and
Get 'Search Engine Manual' As a FREE Bonus. Click here!
Want to know why you should get Smartie?
Check here!
|
To listen to a new Top Show, click the picture.
|
Visit 'Pathway To Success' Archives and Read Past Issues 2001
Visit 'Pathway To Success' Archives and Read Past Issues 2002
Visit 'Pathway To Success' Archives and Read Past Issues 2003
Visit 'Pathway To Success' Archives and Read Past Issues 2004
 | The Success Seeds
The Entrepreneurial Bible: Get the Entrepreneurial Mind & Crete the Wealth You Imagine. The Entrepreneurial Bible
deals with true entrepreneurship, successful entrepreneurs, profitable business, success principles, entrepreneurial myths, character streaks, income streams, investments, investment principles, discipline, motivation for a successful entrepreneur, how to behave moneywise, financial intuition, how to successfully profit on forex, how to succeed in everything a person touches and more.
|
|
Attitude Versus Aptitude: Use the 80/20 Rule - The 80/20 rule is as applicable to individual salespeople as it is to a large sales force. Fully eighty percent of your success as a salesperson will be determined by your attitude and only twenty percent by your aptitude...
Brian Tracy
NEW!
Install our new toolbar, get special business information fast and be informed the minute hot items are out, incl Articles here in Subscriber Corner, new Pathway To Success Issues and much more.
http://www.thecassiopeia.com/WebLions/theCassi.zip
Note: Download the above file, unzip and install. When you open a new browser window, the toolbar should be there. If not, please go to 'View', 'Toolbars' and you will see 'theCassiopeia's' - click on it and the toolbar will display.
Whenever there's a new item, an icon will blink. Click on it and it will take you straight to the information.
Important: you can have a toolbar of your own below. It's an
amazing tool: easy to create, easy to use, easy to update,
unobtrusive, bringing unbelievable results PLUS endless
makreting and other possibilities limited only by your
imagination. Definitely a tool of the future. I even
created several for my own use containing the information I
need and use regularly. PLUS if you order before 05/07/2004
you will get Bonus templates and pay only a ridiculously low
introductory price:
http://www.thecassiopeia.com/toolbar/
|
Read More Business Articles
