Neo was happy in the matrix – as long as he didn’t know it existed. But once he took the red pill, he could see the world as it really is. Did that knowledge make him happy? No, it turned him into a revolutionary whose very life was in danger! When we lead our clients,…
In our last discussion, we were talking about how clients hire expert firms to reduce their risk. They want a job done promptly with the expected benefit. For that certainty, they are willing to pay money! 2020 has undermined our ability to offer assurance to our clients, making it harder for them to decide to…
Most people start their business with a broad target. We throw some things up against the wall to see what sticks. Our biggest fear is that no one will buy, and so we try to sell to everyone! By trying to be everything to everyone, we weren’t the perfect thing for any client! Plus, we…
When I talk to folks about the chat app Slack, I’m amazed at how folks either love it or hate it! Those who have embraced it tell me about how it reduces their internal email load to almost zero. They feel like everything is easier to find (Slack’s search is excellent) and better organized. They…
A week or so ago, I used the example of choosing an accountant to do your taxes to demonstrate the advantages of focusing on a specific target market that has predictable and expensive problems. Let’s look at that again. Pretend that you met two accountants who could help you file your taxes. One was the…
There’s no doubt that he’s stuck. We got on the phone and he told me about his business challenges. So I ask him about his target audience and what he offers. What’s different about his agency? What does his team know more about than the agency down the street? Brad, it’s our creative! Don’t you…
If you’ve been on this list for any length of time you’ve heard a few messages from me over and over; You need to do less. Serve fewer audiences. Offer fewer services. Find one thing that you can do again and again and again until you get really really good at it. You need to…
“I always say, “Be so good that they can’t ignore you.” If someone’s thinking, “How can I be really good?” people are going to come to you…” ~ Steve Martin Last week I told you the story of my client who tripled her business and only added five employees, by focusing on a specialty and…
About a year ago, I started experiencing some foot pain. One of the doctor’s recommendations was to try some different shoes with wider toe boxes and better insoles. I tried a bunch of things with varying success until I broke down and tried a pair of Birkenstocks. Why did it take me so long to…
In our last conversation, we talked about choosing an industry, or vertical specialization, as a way to find your “people like us,” but what if there’s not one industry that fits your business? One of my clients, Diane Yetter of Yetter Tax, helps people with their most difficult sales tax problems. Though we think of sales…