Sales is more than just a numbers game...

Entrepreneur’s Challenge: What do you do with 6,000 glass plates, prints and film negatives?

If you are one of the longest operating family-owned commercial photography studios in the United States, you bring the collection online and make it available to collectors, advertising agencies, businesses, interior designers, and the public.

No easy task, Brady Stewart Studio spent four years researching, filing, scanning and printing, a wide array of Black & White, Sepia and Color photographs. This significant collection spans most of the 20th century (1901-1990). There’s more work to be done. Brady Stewart Studio will add 25+ images to their web site every week until completed, which they believe will be another few years to finalize the scanning and filing.

That is all fine, well, and good, but how do you turn this into a viable business? Most of us with any semblance of a collection realize the challenge of keeping track of what we have, the value of each item, and whether or not you can turn it into cash. Far from the average person’s ‘Cash Closet’, how does an independent operator like this compete against the likes of Getty Images, and other online image providers?

One answer would be market segmentation. Make an effort to concentrate on those most likely in need of a specific period piece, e.g., local museums, architects, non-profits, locally-owned and historically significant companies, etc. Another market would be period collectors who are looking for something that may add to their own collection, or as a family heirloom. Artists and graphic designers are always on the prowl for something unique and different – what’s old is new again.

Like any other business that wants to draw attention to itself, it looks like  Brady Stewart Studio has embarked on garnering local press and speaking engagements. What else could they do? Enter today’s demand for social media marketing in the form of a newsletter, blog, Facebook page, Twitter, etc. You need to grasp a community of interested parties and turn them into your outbound marketers, a.k.a., “buzz”. Easy for me to say, but when you have the burden of researching, filing, scanning and printing more of the collection, where do you allocate your time, first?

Isn’t this the challenge most small businesses face today? Demand rich and resource poor, you often find yourself asking how to easily grow your business, without the additional staff and expense.

Photos are courtesy of the Brady Stewart Studio.

More about the Brady Stewart Collection:

The collection captures a historically significant period with photographs of Advertising & Products, Building & Churches, Duquesne University, Homesteading in Idaho, Manufacturing & Equipment, Lake Chautauqua and Erie, Lifestyle & People, Niagara Falls & Washington DC, Pittsburgh City Scenes, Sports and Transportation. Available in a wide range of shapes and sizes, the photographs were made by Brady Stewart, Brady Stewart Jr., and associates of Brady Stewart Studio Inc.

NanoDays 2010 – Events around the country March 27 - April 4, 2010

This notice just hit my desk this morning, so check the link below to see if there are still any events in your area for the weekend (NanoDays 2010 runs March 27 - April 4, 2010). Fortunately for my area, I found one local event for later in the month on April 23rd. I would also call in advance to be sure the event is still being held and verify the location information; things like this are always subject to last minute changes.

Here’s the backgrounder that I got today:

“This weekend, museums and researchers across the country are celebrating NanoDays 2010, a nationwide festival of nanoscale science. The purpose is to bring educators together to create learning experiences for children and adults, and to explore the miniscule world of atoms, molecules and nanoscale forces.

Events are taking place at over 200 science museums, research centers and universities and we're emailing you to let you know your area is included.”

In doing some digging, I found the folks behind NanoDays are the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (NISE Net) . This is an annual event and hosted across North America – to my friends on the other side of the pond, send me information on similar activities on your side. The events are an “all ages” activity so this is a great opportunity for children and adults of all ages to experience hands-on  “materials [that] have special properties and new technologies [that] have spectacular promise.”

In and around my local area, Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill (a.k.a., the Triangle), NC State University is hosting their NanoDay 2010 on April 23, from 3pm-5pm. Here’s the brief mention I discovered:

“Explore amazing new applications and consumer products that have resulted from nanotechnology at NC State University's NanoDays to be held from 3- 5 on April 23, 2010 at Engineering Building 1 on Centennial Campus. Events include demonstrations in nanoscale science, talks by leading researchers, and tours of laboratories that are doing cutting edge science. The grand finale will be the opportunity to sample nano ice cream made by our team of nano engineers.”

If you attend one of these events, let us know about your experience.  For a more complete list of activities (and hosts) in your area, follow this link.

Entrepreneur’s Challenge: The problem continues – Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD)

Back in October of 2007, I wrote a blog Post titled “Entrepreneur’s Challenge: When the colony collapses, where do the honey bees go?” I challenged readers with the following:

“Here’s the Entrepreneur’s Challenge: How would you go about tracking the whereabouts of the missing honey bees? Since they navigate to and from the hive in a relatively short distance, around 2-4 miles, it should be easy to set up some low range tracking device and help solve the mystery of the missing honey bees.”

This morning I caught a headline on msnbc.com titled “Busy bees, but hives are besieged, diseased” with a subtitle of “Scientists struggle to find cause — and fix — for colony collapse disorder”.

In the article by Adrian Higgins, from washingtonpost.com, the problem can be summed up with “After three years of research, scientists think the cause is not a single factor but a cocktail of maladies that together weaken and sicken the bees.”

Stephen L. Buchmann, Ph.D (Department of Entomology, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ), made mention of this aspect in a comment to my original Post. In that comment he brings forth a number of the factors that could contribute to the problem as well as some education surrounding the industry and how it affects crops.

Also, funding for research and awareness seems to be minimal to solve the problem. Not long ago, I watched the film “The Last Beekeeper” on Planet Green (Discovery Communications), which “…follows the lives of three commercial beekeepers in South Carolina, Montana, and Washington. Over the course of a year they struggle to come to terms with the Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), a phenomenon in which worker bees from a beehive or European honey bee colony abruptly disappear.” Other documentary films like “Vanishing of the Bees” are making an effort to raise awareness, but they are minimally funded and scrambling for attention.

Sadly, the extent to which the USDA suggests the public help combat CCD is limited to “The best action you can take to benefit honey bees is to not use pesticides indiscriminately, especially not to use pesticides at mid-day when honey bees are most likely to be out foraging for nectar. In addition, you can plant and encourage the planting of good nectar sources such as red clover, foxglove, bee balm, and joe-pye weed.”

With so much government spending elsewhere, whilst our nation's crops are most certainly at risk (from this unsolved mystery), you would think they could do more about CCD; while spreading all the $timulu$ around, how about sending some toward solving CCD. Maybe it’s time for all of us to pen a note or make a call to the local, state, and national Department of Agriculture offices and help raise this profile of need. Look around the universities in your area and see what they need, too. After all, this is one issue that literally goes right to your gut.

p.s. Follow this link to the USDA’s Progress Report on CCD, dated June 2009.

Sound and Fury – the divisive nature of technology and culture

When you talk about technology and culture that divides people, sometimes you think in simplistic comparisons like PC vs. Mac, iPhone vs. Palm Pre, Kindle vs. Nook, and many others.  Or, you may associate it with a term like the “Digital Divide” – a technology division that crosses numerous cultural, social, and economic boundaries.

One of my favorite blogs, MediaShift  (hosted by Mark Glaser), offered a thorough description in 2007 as “The digital divide is the chasm separating the haves and have-nots in digital technology. On one side are people who can afford or who have access to computers, a high-speed broadband connection and the plethora of services from online banking to social networking to blogging. On the other side of the equation are people who cannot afford the technology, cannot get broadband access because of their location, or who have learning or cultural limitations to using the technology.”

But what if the division rests with “…a close-knit, supportive community based on a rich history and beautiful language.” This is the culture of the deaf, which was vividly brought to life for me in the movie Sound and Fury, a 2001 Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Feature.

Rented on DVD, I was originally attracted to the film by the Netflix description of “Josh Aronson's documentary takes an unexpected approach to the "medical miracle" film by examining the political and emotional turmoil that erupts between brothers over the cochlear implant that might allow their deaf children to hear. The ways in which a so-called miracle cure can divide as well as heal families and communities is the focus of Sound and Fury, which received an Oscar nomination for Best Documentary Feature.”

Although slow moving at first, I found myself quickly drawn-in to the lives and struggles of the families, friends, and community which opened my eyes to how a technology that appears ground-breaking, can become a lightning rod that leads to anger, resentment, and division amongst family and friends.

Normally I would have found myself wanting to know more about the technology surrounding  the cochlear implant and how it works. Even the surgery to implant the device would have been a high curiosity for me. But in this case, I was more interested in how it touched the lives of those involved in the process; from family members, and the larger community of the deaf, to the professionals involved in education, medicine, and the implant technology.

Of equal interest to me was a ‘position statement’ on the topic of implants from the National Association of the Deaf (NAD). Cited in the movie, the statement appears to still be intact today: “NAD Position Statement on Cochlear Implants (2000)”. Contained within the statement is “The role of the cochlear implant in this regard is evolving and will certainly change in the future.  Cochlear implants are not appropriate for all deaf and hard of hearing children and adults.  Cochlear implantation is a technology that represents a tool to be used in some forms of communication, and not a cure for deafness.  Cochlear implants provide sensitive hearing, but do not, by themselves, impart the ability to understand spoken language through listening alone.  In addition, they do not guarantee the development of cognition or reduce the benefit of emphasis on parallel visual language and literacy development.”

Now I find myself with a new appreciation for the deaf community and a desire to know more; I hope you will, too. Follow the PBS links to the site for the movie. Poke around and learn more. Then, rent the movie – or do that, first, then poke around the site. As for me, I am going to look for the follow-up: “In 2006, Josh Aronson completed a new film SOUND AND FURY: SIX YEARS LATER a follow-up to the film SOUND AND FURY."

p.s. There are some educator opportunities, too, in the form of lesson plans on the site.

Morning Light – A film for your next retreat

Not in the mood to get back in the car to retrieve a movie, and in-between Netflix choices, I go for the remote and Time Warner Cable’s On Demand. Up and down the choices, nothing catches my eye. Ah, but what’s this? “Morning Light” – a true-life documentary of fifteen (young) rookie sailors, soon to be a team of eleven, competing in the Transpac Yacht Race.

My sailing days were short-lived once I discovered flying, and then moved to the West Coast. I picked it up again when a friend asked me to crew on his 26-foot sailboat in the San Francisco Bay. Although I did some racing, it was nothing to brag about. Maybe that’s what caught my interest; what would it be like to have competed on such a large scale?

Go ahead and watch the trailer; but I would encourage you not to spoil the enjoyment of the film by watching the rest of the clips. From Disney.com, here is the Plot Summary:

“Experience a riveting and inspiring true-life adventure aboard the high-tech sloop MORNING LIGHT. Fifteen rookie sailors have one goal in mind -- to be part of her crew, racing in the most revered sailing competition on Earth, the Transpac Yacht Race. From start to finish, it's a rollercoaster ride of emotions and physical challenges, beginning with six months of intense training. Only eleven will survive to race in the grueling 2,225-mile Transpac. Matching wits and skills against experienced pros and the unforgiving, unpredictable Pacific Ocean, these young men and women develop a powerful bond and prove how dedication, teamwork and an unyielding spirit can overcome the greatest of odds.”

What a film! I thoroughly enjoyed it from many perspectives. You see the training, selection, and performance of the various members of the team from a wide range of vantage points. You witness the preparation for the race, and an emphasis on safety as a key to success. The scenery was beautiful, but so were the close-ups of the highs and lows of the competitive environment. Also, the character-building outcome is documented as you watch the rolling credits at the end of the film.

For those of you planning a retreat for teambuilding and planning, take some time out and show this film. Rated “PG”, it is a family worthy film, too.

p.s. If you have seen the film Morning Light, jump into the discussion with a comment, below.

Good job, cowboy! – nothing like a little praise for a job well done

Many years ago, while living in California, our family passed through Orange County Airport (SNA) for the trip back home to the San Francisco/Bay Area. At the time of this visit, a prominent bronze statue of the actor John Wayne, fondly known as "the Duke", had been erected near the main entrance of the terminal building - the airport was renamed to “John Wayne Airport” back in 1979.

As we walked past this statue, my daughter – who at the time was quite young – looked up and said, “Good job, cowboy!” It was a spontaneous comment that seemed to come out of nowhere. Little did I know how much I would use that phrase over the years to offer up appreciation or praise for the work of others.

It came forward in my mind the other morning, pre-dawn I might add, as I crafted a brief email to someone in order to show my appreciation for their effort. I had witnessed qualities of leadership and style, in their words and actions, that often seems rare in our ‘hurry up and get it done’ way of life. I was careful in my choice of words, pondering how they may be taken by the recipient. That is the downside to email; you only see one side of the response.

Many situations pass our way each day. But, how often do we take a minute to acknowledge the positive brought upon us by others? Not just in those instances where we stand to gain some ground. There are many situations or acts that we bear witness to where we can learn how to handle something better, or grow in our character and well-being.

This is not limited to co-workers and friends. Keep in mind, your boss might appreciate a little praise once in awhile, too. So, the next time you see or feel the positive effect of someone else, take a moment to say, “Good job, cowboy!”

Photo Credit:  John Wayne Airport - owned and operated by the County of Orange.

“The John Wayne Associates commissioned sculptor Robert Summers to create a bronze statue of "the Duke" in commemoration of the late actor and true American patriot John Wayne.

The nine-foot statue was dedicated to the County on November 4, 1982 and placed outside, in front of the Eddie Martin Terminal. After the Thomas F. Riley Terminal was built, the refinished and restored statue was placed in the lobby of the new Terminal.”

When you think retail, quality racks can make or break a sale

Many of us who are now in the profession of Sales, ‘cut our teeth’ by starting out somewhere in a Retail business. For me, it was Women’s and Children’s clothing (independent retail store). One thing that needed attention was restocking the shelves and the various display racks. I recall when we remodeled the store, we met with the architect to select new displays for clothing and accessories. It was not much different from selecting appliances in a kitchen remodel.

As time went on, and I changed jobs, racks and displays popped up in a variety of places. We needed revolving racks for trade show displays for easy access and the presentation of collateral and brochures. Coming into the hotel at night, I would see racks stocked with regional tourism or event information. As a manufacturer, when working with distributors and wholesalers, we often provided racks for them to display our product, or marketing materials.

As I look at today’s market and economic climate, I got to thinking about this niche industry of manufacturing displays and racks. The manufacturing side is suffering the same pressure as any other manufacturer located in the United States. Also, there is the wide range of materials and designs available for the same application, i.e., why choose wire racks over acrylic/plastic ones?

When the announcement was made on Monday that Blockbuster would be closing more stores (“Blockbuster more than doubles planned store closures to nearly 1,000”), I began to think about all those racks that would be re-sold, or discarded. Looking at how thin my local newspaper is – not to mention the giant leap in price at the newsstand ‘rack’ – I have to believe the number of racks built for newspapers and magazines is on the decline. How about the declining numbers of independent, local bookstores –the movie “You’ve Got Mail” quickly comes to mind. Enter the momentum of the digital book and e-readers for the classroom, or reading for leisure with a handheld device or Smartphone – I still like ink on my hands.

With all these market forces, if you were in the display and rack business as a manufacturer, I am betting you wish there was a “Cash for Clunkers” program for racks of all kinds. Some of the display racks I see in stores or outdoors would definitely qualify and not require a means to disable them; they are nearly DOA already.

Although the above may seem bleak, there is one manufacturer I know, with over 30 years in the industry, which is far from tossing in the towel. R WIREworks, Inc, based out of Elmira, NY, offers a wide range of wire racks and displays, where “most items proudly carry a Made in the USA label “. When you look through the selection of categories and individual racks, it reminds me of one of my favorite phrases I used during my time with Unisource; “If we don’t have it, you don’t need it.”

Selection is not always enough in their industry. Product innovation and quality are equally important to survive. They use high quality materials and pay attention to creative designs. Knowing the construction and wholesale lumber & building material dealer industries well, I could appreciate their venture into Roofing Displays. Not only do they design and manufacture these displays, but they assist their customer with layout and installation needs, too. They are taking a full-service approach to a product that can easily be seen as nothing more than a commodity in a catalogue.

Small businesses like R WIREworks are under a great deal of pressure from many directions. Pricing in the business of racks and displays is very competitive, and the cost to manufacture is not going down. To survive, manufacturers will need to not only serve their existing markets well, but also look for new markets with innovative, high-quality products. Recognizing that supplying retailers is a partnership, quality racks can make or break a sale.

Simple online add-ons make for a better customer experience

As an online purchaser, I would probably rank pretty low. I am still a ‘touch it, feel it, take it for a test drive’ kinda guy. But, when it comes to interactive chat in tech support, or product inquiry/clarification, I don’t hesitate to burn the wires with rapid-fire keystrokes.

Two recent ‘retail’ experiences have shown me that an emphasis on having a good Web site can be augmented with the addition of some extra communication add-ons for higher customer satisfaction.

After a recent purchase at the local Sears store, I sought some information on my order. It was going to be a pricing inquiry and membership discount question. Since the receipt only had the store phone, I decided this would probably be something that should be handled at the corporate level. I poked around Sears.com and found the customer service numbers. Calling the first 1-800 didn’t offer any choices that sounded like my need. Instead of going back to more phone numbers, I opted for their “Click to Call” vs. “Click to Chat”. I was greeted with a Pop-up window that offered two choices – talk by phone, or talk by computer.

I was eager to try the talk by computer choice to see how this might work. Much like using this in GoToMeeting webinars, I wanted to experience this as a customer service event. It didn’t go anywhere; an error code popped up to say there was an application error. On to Plan B, Talk by Phone. In this case, you insert your phone number and choose the delay timeframe to call the number. I chose the ‘talk now’ selection. No sooner did I finish hitting the enter button, and my phone was ringing. That works!

Ah, but not altogether true. There is no telling what department or category of customer service request is calling you back. Within a short period, I could see that this was not the right destination for my inquiry. Nor was there any offer from the customer service person to transfer me to another department or individual. This quickly hit the bin of “Good plan, flawed execution.”

On to the second example, Netflix. Again, I have been slow to adapt. When it comes to movie rentals, I still frequent my three top options: Blockbuster (local store), Redbox (local grocery store), and Time Warner Cable OnDemand. Having helped others with their Netflix accounts and movie choices, the pressure was on for me to do the same for myself. Since I am not a big movie watcher – especially now with the (USTA) US Open on ESPN2 – I never felt pressured to join Netflix.

I was finally ‘voted off the island’ and have succumbed to a subscription to Netflix – more like, I am trying this out to see if it works at the pace I rent movies. As before, the account setup and Free Trial was completed in short order; kudos to them for the ease to set-up an account and get started. With movies on order, I was a day or two away from the first one.

The movie arrived as advertised and I turned it around for return in minutes – poor choice on my part - on to the next one. Although I had experienced email confirmations from them for movies of arrival and departure, this morning a survey-style email arrived. They wanted confirmation on their delivery turnaround by offering choices of when they expected it to arrive. A couple of clicks later on my part gave them valuable customer service information on their part. Why couldn’t more companies do this?

With a little extra thought and effort, I am willing to bet that many businesses could make small investments in online add-ons and reap better (customer) results. Also, you probably have some good examples of your own. What is your company doing to improve the customer experience with online add-ons?

Forget about the solution – look at the root cause, first

When I wrote about the Prediction Market Industry, I was quite taken with the notion of what constitutes ‘transparency’. Stumbling upon the definition that transparency (this came from a doctor) is “…being clear about what we know and don't know.” has left a lasting effect on my thinking, especially around sales forecasting.

Early in my career, my career mentor challenged me with the maxim, “Define the problem and the solution will present itself.” What Mike was trying to get me to do was to look for the ‘root cause’; what contributed to this problem in the first place. Of late, I find people are spending a great deal of time putting forth solutions without regard for what caused the problem. Often the solutions become a Band-Aid and offer a short-term fix, or less.

This is not reserved as a business observation, only. I see it carry over to many facets of the work and life balance we all face. What I have been looking for is the ‘why’. I believe some of it may be related to the rapid-fire communication we wallow in day and night. From social media to an overabundance of communication tools and devices, we rarely get a break to just stare out the window and take a break – think about the momentum to ban text messaging while driving.

I caught a feature article on Ken Burns (“famed Americana documentary filmmaker”) in Fortune magazine that noted how much he enjoyed driving and taking-in the scenery; it was good for idea generation, reflection, and thought. I share his desire to avoid the trials and tribulations of air travel. Not only have I rediscovered the joy of driving, I now appreciate Webinars as a more effective tool than many a business trip by plane.

When thinking of problem solving, where do you think we miss the mark? Is it along the lines of my premise that we fail to pursue the root cause? Or, is it bigger than that? What can we do to become better problem solvers in the future?

Taking your company center stage with affordable online video advertising

Companies are catching the wave of online video as a means to communicate to employees, customers, and the investment community. Beyond the obvious advertising value or television commercial, there is an emerging trend to use video for annual reports. Video offers a more vibrant presentation and a significant cost savings over the more traditional print and mail of annual reports.  To get a feel for this trend, click on this link to visit California Pizza Kitchen’s past reports.

But for the small to medium size company, high quality video has been seen as cost-prohibitive. Not anymore. You can take your company to center stage with services from online video production companies at minimal cost.  Two companies I have kept my eye on are PixelFish and SpotRunner.  Although they provide similar services, your advertising and promotion needs may favor one or the other.

John McIntyre, CEO of PixelFish, puts an emphasis on affordable creativity. In our conversation he said, “Lower costs of production combined with new distribution options have finally made video ads worth the investment for SMBs (small to medium businesses). Most SMBs don’t have experience creating and distributing video ads so we have to make the process easy, affordable, and fast.”

Beyond their creative templates, i.e., pre-produced/do-it-yourself video solutions, you can leverage their network of professional videographers to come to your location and create original work.  PixelFish calls this style of video, a Documentary-style where they send a videographer to the business’s location and capture the owner, customers or other spokespeople on camera talking about the business. 

John went on to say , “Although affordable options for TV ads such as Google TV are emerging, we believe online directories and search currently offer the best value for SMBs.” They even offer Yellow Page (online) distribution as an option. In a short time segment of five minutes or less, you will be able to include recognizable examples for the viewer, a reflection of your company and employees, and an integrated message of how you serve your customers needs better than anyone else.

SpotRunner takes an all-encompassing approach; they provide a fully integrated advertising solution that includes creative production, media planning and media buying. Not only can they serve your production needs for video, but they can help you book the airtime on local stations.  When I talked to Keith Wiley, Manager of Corporate Communications at SpotRunner, he said, “We can help create and execute integrated effective, multi-media campaigns for TV, online, radio and print.”

This translates to a highly targeted local advertising and marketing campaign from a single source. Wiley explained it like this, “The Spot Runner Production Network can be quickly deployed to shoot onsite footage of a client's business...whether it be their store front, famous dishes, customer testimonials or interviews with the store's owners." If your production needs include print and mail, as part of a larger marketing campaign, they can help with that, too. SpotRunner has a full complement of in-house services, or they will partner with your advertising agency, to ensure a consistent message and brand recognition.

Video offers you a medium that can reinforce your brand while connecting with the audience. In our conversation, Wiley said, "Video advertising, whether TV or online, is extremely important for SMBs. It's the most powerful form of communication out there -- nothing else combines sight, sound and motion to engage consumers and deliver a message, so it's really important for SMBs to consider the best ways of leveraging it." Adding text to the video can reinforce your message.

How can you put this to use? Beyond the earlier mention of annual reports and online advertising, other applications of online video include press releases, sales and marketing collateral, human resources (HR) and recruiting, meetings and presentations, training, and more. With your newfound ability to serve a wider and more diverse audience, at an affordable price, this can translate into creating a virtual tradeshow for any number of events or market segments. There’s a viral marketing aspect to all this, too.

Here’s a parting thought. By reducing printed materials , you are demonstrating a commitment to social responsibility through “Reduce, reuse, and recycle”. Just one more reason to go video for your next ad campaign.