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How to Survive the Recession
...Stronger Than Before
As bad as it is out there, it's important to recognize that this is a time of tremendous opportunity.
Get my free report, "How to Survive the Recession ...Stronger than Before" by replying to this email or by calling the number above.
Quick Quiz
Each month I’ll give you a new question.
Just reply to this email for the answer.
What animal's milk is used to make authentic Italian mozzarella cheese?
Worth Reading
Selections from the best articles seen online this month.
How to Hire an Executive Assistant
from Inc.com
Christine Lagorio offers a guide for finding and hiring a good executive assistant (EA). Before beginning the hiring process, she says, it’s important to identify exactly what the position entails and to draw up a job description that includes a summary overview and a list of duties and responsibilities. The article goes on to outline what tasks an EA can be expected to take on, what skills are necessary and what qualifications an employer should look for.
How to Become a Social Entrepreneur
from Inc.com
At age 28, Scott Harrison conceived the idea to launch Charity: Water, a nonprofit organization that delivers clean drinking water to more than 1 million people in 17 different countries. His experience as a social entrepreneur shows turning a passion into a successful nonprofit venture takes real business acumen.
BOOK REVIEW
Words That Work, by Frank Luntz
Frank Luntz is best known for the work he has done to help elect presidents, mostly on the Republican side of the spectrum. He is a master at understanding the power of words - not just to help politicians get votes, but also to help businesses thrive.
In this book, which is packed with corporate and political examples, Luntz says that it's not the words that are said that are important, it's what is actually heard and understood. And that means that the significance of various words culturally can have a huge effect on your message.
In the business context, for example, Luntz talks about Las Vegas promoting "gaming," not "gambling." The actual product didn't change, but the switch in words changed how people saw the industry. Similarly, "liquor" became "spirits" - erasing the negative connotations of one word with the uplifting sense of another. Many businesses could benefit from these kinds of changes.
Wisdom
Quotes by...Peter Lynch
The person that turns over the most rocks wins the game. And that’s always been my philosophy.
In this business if you’re good, you're right six times out of ten. You’re never going to be right nine times out of ten.
Go for a business that any idiot can run - because sooner or later, any idiot probably is going to run it.
Peter Lynch is an investor, best known for his books One Up on Wall Street and Beating the Street. |
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FOR STUDIOS
How to Squeeze More Income out of Every Student
Having a student sign up for a class is not the only way that you earn income from that person.
If you want your studio to prosper, then you will need to consider alternate ways of earning money.
Up-selling and cross-selling are techniques that are commonly used in business.
You can utilize them too in order to maximize the amount of money that you receive from each student.
If you intertwine both of these methods, you could see a large increase in your income.
So let’s take a look at these and ways you can use them.
Up-selling is a marketing technique that involves trying to sell a more expensive item to a consumer. In your studio you can use this method in many different ways.
The most common is offering more expensive classes first rather than the less expensive ones. For example, when a student calls to sign up for a class in a dance studio, offer more expensive private sessions first, instead of first asking whether they would like to sign up for the less expensive ones. This way you have a chance to introduce your more expensive sessions first before the potential student realizes that they could get the alternative lessons at a lower price.
A great way to do this is to appeal to the side of the person who may not be so out going. Maybe they would feel embarrassed dancing in front of others.
Consider letting them know that if they order the private lessons today, you will give them a 10% discount.
Cross-selling, on the other hand, is trying to sell related items to a student who is only interested in signing up for a dance session. When a student comes in to sign up for a lesson, you can sell dance wear or instructional videos in the same room. The student might not have been initially interested in these items, but if they see them conveniently in full view while they are purchasing lessons, they will be more likely to buy them.
This is the same mentality that giant market stores use when they put their candy and magazines alongside the checkout line.
If you utilize cross-selling in the right way, you will have customers walking out of your studio not only with lessons but a lot of other merchandise as well.
SPECIAL
AutoPay for Free?
Here is a fantastic idea about making AutoPay pay for itself. It comes from an AutoPay user and I can't remember who shared it (if it was you let me know).
In the AutoPay online Virtual Terminal you can set up email receipts that can go out to parents. This email can be customized so here is what you can do: Contact a local insurance agent (maybe you have a parent). Let them know they can "sponsor" (read advertise) your receipts. Your receipt might say: "Sponsored by State Farm Agent Sue Jones-contact Sue at 1234567 for all your insurance needs".
Sue gets an affluent targeted base of prospects. You collect $25-$50/month (on AutoPay of course!). Great Idea.
MANAGEMENT
Keep Your Staff Engaged and See Your Profits Rise
 Are your employees engaged? Are they filled with purpose, passion and dedication? Do they feel appreciated?
Studies by prominent business research and human resource consulting firms have revealed powerful links between employee engagement and corporate success. Employees who are engaged are more productive, customer-focused, safer, and less likely to malinger or to quit.
A recent report by Gallup International revealed that businesses in the top 24% of employee engagement had less turnover and significantly greater customer loyalty, profitability and revenues. The findings showed a strong correlation between engagement levels and age, role, level, tenure and trust in the organization. It pointed to training and career development opportunities as key drivers of job satisfaction.
In top-performing organizations, engagement is a strategic fundamental and a core business principle. Management's ongoing commitment to keeping employees engaged and excited about the work they do is a daily priority. Following are some tips for keeping employees engaged:
- Communicate expectations.
- Create personal relationships with employees.
- Ask for feedback, accept it graciously and express appreciation.
- Make sure employees have the tools and training they need.
- Train employees in problem-solving and conflict resolution.
- Empower employees to deal with issues and resolve problems that arise.
- Publicize success stories.
- Reward and recognize employees in meaningful ways.
- Talk about engagement.
MARKETING
How to Set Up a LinkedIn Company Page
 With more than 100 million members, LinkedIn is the top business social networking site.
A company page on LinkedIn enables you to speak to millions of professionals about your studio's products and services, job opportunities, and work culture.
You can use a company page to bring your brand to life.
You can also use a company page to highlight how members use your services or to post updates on key developments in your industry.
It takes only about 30 minutes to set up a LinkedIn company page.
First, however, you need to have an email address with your company domain.
This email address must also be listed on your profile.
Addresses tied to free email services like Hotmail, Gmail and Yahoo don't count.
To create a company page, click on "Companies" in the navigation bar near the top of the home page.
Then click the "Add a Company" link.
You will see tabs labeled "Company Overview," "Careers," "Products and Services," and "Analytics."
The overview provides a guide for setting up your company page and presenting a good snapshot of your company.
The "Products and Services" tab tells you how to showcase your offerings and highlight featured products.
The "Careers" tab allows you to interact with job seekers and describe your company's culture and hiring practices.
In addition to being a great place to promote your company to LinkedIn members, your company page gets listed in Google's and LinkedIn's search engines.
Picture credit.
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