06/21/10 I am toying with the idea of offering a new service to all contractors: HVAC, plumbers, electricians, etc. This would be something totally separate from my work for Clockwork Home Services, which I will be leaving by the end of July 2010. This would be completely within the realm of my freelance business. Here it is:eBook & Social Networking for Contractors - Short, concise biography of a business - Gives more "meat" than a website story or postcard - PDF format, downloadable - Available on business website (for customers) or in hard copy (for salespeople) - Living document, always changeable and updated - Professionally written with graphics and photos - No longer than 25-30 pages - Maintained and marketed by author viasocial networks, e-mailing - All writing and editing done by author but business can submit text, documents, and/or photos - Service includes creating and maintainingFacebook,Twitter&Linkedinsocial network accounts(with open access to business owner or staff) This eBook would be owned by the business and be accessible to me for updates and for marketing purposes. My minimum fee to begin the project would be $500 and the hourly rate would be $50 per hour. I would estimate that a completed eBook would probably take 20-40 hours to complete, maximizing the investment at $1,000. If I need to visit the contractor for interviews, photos, etc. the travel costs would be additional. I would charge a flat $100 monthly maintenance fee to update the eBook, make changes, and performone e-mail or social network blast. For an additional fee I will monitor and update all three social networks on a $25 per/hour basis (not to exceed one hour a week.) 04/21/10
"Face-to-Face" Web Social Networking
The idea of social networking over the Internet via sites like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and Linkedin is to put many people who are normally shy and who lack confidence to interact in public the chance to grab a soapbox and chirp, errrrrr, tweet away. That's okay -- for the most part. A lot of great ideas are exchanged that way and new friendships/partnerships formed.
But there is still something to be said for face-to-face interaction. Hearing a voice that talks in dialogue lasting more than 140 characters is often more fulfilling and informative to the average listener. Plus, in-person meetings are personable and often where the "real" person emerges from their cocoons, previously insulated by the wall of secrecy and privacy of their own computers and Internet connections. I am the first to admit that my first line of communication is no longer the telephone or in-person meeting -- it is via e-mail, texting, or web posting. I'm very comfortable doing that.
But I do step out of my comfort zone from time to time -- both for business and personal reasons. It's nice to be able to meet the person behind their screen name.
So here is an idea that keeps swirling around in my head: create a one-day seminar (in this case, metro Detroit), where people who communicate via social network portals can meet face-to-face and exchange ideas via roundtable meetings and seminars. Throw in some food and refreshments, a few takeaways (knick-knacks) and you have a very informative, entertaining, and rewarding experience.
I'll volunteer to speak or host a roundtable session. Any takers?
Please let me know. You can e-mail (ideaperson@ideaperson.net) or post your reply using this website's contact form. I guess you could call but I might not answer the phone (just kidding).
03/23/10
Share Me All You Like
Now you can use any of my thought-provoking blogs here in any form you'd like, thanks to that 'thing' above my picture which gives you copyright permission. That's a pretty cool little widget. It's a 'Creative Commons Attribution License' -- a quick way to get permission to reprint one's creative work without worrying about violating copyright laws.
Just click on the highlighted text (not my name but the other highlighted text) and it will explain fully how to use this information. And if you'd like people to visit your website and copy your blogs for their own use, you might want to add this little widget to your website, too.
Just go to www.creativecommons.org for more information.
01/29/10
Tech Expo 2010 Provides Timely Information LIVONIA – The Tech Expo 2010 on Thursday evening, January 28th at Livonia Stevenson High School, sponsored by the Livonia Public Schools and the Livonia Chamber of Commerce appeared to be a big success, with attendance and participation up from last year, according to event organizers. The event featured 20 “updated technology sessions” for parents and community members. Presenters included teachers from Livonia Public Schools, local business leaders, and the Livonia Police Department. At the end of the evening, there was a panel discussion featuring all presenters who answered questions from the collective audience. Door prizes were given to attendees, compliments of local sponsoring businesses. Some of topics included information on social networking websites like Facebook and Twitter, technology topics like tools to aid in buying computers and computer software, “how-to” seminars on editing photos and movies, Internet search and communication tools, and Internet safety.
David Mitchell & Sheila Hoetger talk to seminar attendees.
The World of Google I attended two seminars. The first, titled “The World of Google” was hosted by Sheila Hoetger and David Mitchell. They described the seminar this way. “Google is much more than a search engine. Did you know Google has applications that allow you to create and share a calendar? Or that you can create, edit, and share documents and spreadsheets? Come see the abundance of tools that Google offers that can make your personal and/or professional life more efficient.” I was impressed by each presenter’s knowledge and grasp of the subject. Although I am “somewhat” above the novice stage when it comes to understanding the power of Google, I learned some interesting tidbits. “Google wants people to share everything – to collaborate with others online,” said Mitchell. “One of those ways is through YouTube [which Google owns]. If I need to know how to do something I go to YouTube and type in what I need to learn. There are videos that show me exactly what I need to know.” He also said that Google is working on technology where a user can download a photo or drawing to a “Goggle” program and the program would try and identify it through its massive database of information. “Google wants to find everything anywhere for you,” Mitchell added. “You will eventually see this technology in Web 3.0.” Hoetger joked, “Google is trying to take over the world.” I could tell that there was a lot of truth to her comment. Skype, Twitter and Other Tech Tools Hoetger and Mitchell also hosted a seminar on these popular chat and social networking websites. Here is how they described this seminar. “Keep hearing about Twitter but have no idea what it is or how to use it? How about Skype? Interested in ways to talk, chat, or even video conference, without paying a dime? Come learn the benefits of “tweeting” and powerful tools such as Skype.” Mitchell said that Skype is a good communications tool, used between people who share Skype software. It is free and easy to download. Skype users can chat online and also communicate through the use of a Webcam, which is increasing in popularity and allows for users to see each other as they communicate. “I have seen up to 25 millions users at a time on Skype,” Mitchell said. “It is becoming more popular because it is getting a lot of publicity. Oprah uses it a lot.” Mitchell demonstrated its use by calling his mother and chatting with her and his kids – including a live video feed. He also talked about Twitter, the “micro blog” website which basically asks, “What are you doing right now?” Mitchell didn’t like Twitter at first because he really didn’t care to know what people were doing at the moment, i.e. what they are eating or reading, etc. “I like it now because I can go to Twitter to get all of my news updates,” he said. He does this by “following” news organizations like USA Today or the Detroit Free Press, which send him specific information about breaking news stories. “It streamlines a lot of news for me,” Mitchell added. Hoetger noted, “If you are trying to grow a business or promote anything, Twitter is usually the place to go.” They also spoke briefly about two of their favorite websites: http://www.allmyfaves.com/ (basically a search tool) and http://www.picnik.com/ (photo editing software). Both sessions were packed with overflow crowds and a lot of good information was exchanged. If you would like more information about these types of programs, visit http://www.livoniapublicschools.org/ or http://www.livonia.org/. 01/18/10
An Unscientific Study of Yellow Pages/Website Ads There is nothing scientific about the study I used for this story. I simply opened up the Detroit West/Northwest July 2009 Yellow Pages book and began looking for air conditioning contractors who included their website addresses in their display or directory listings. Why? I am always curious to see how many HVAC contractors choose to include their website address in their Yellow Pages listing – or even if they have a website at all. It always amazes me that the HVAC contractors who take out larger display ads and have the room to include a website address – fail to do so. I see no logic in that thinking. With that jaded opinion in mind, let’s look at this random sampling from the Yellow Pages directory that includes mainly air conditioning contractors from Detroit’s western suburbs (not including Detroit). There are a total of 93 listings under the “Air Conditioning Contractors” heading. These include the total number of display advertisers since each display advertiser also has a free standard listing. I classify display advertisers as any who highlight their listing in a different color ink, have a ‘boxed’ ad, or have a larger display ad that runs outside of the boundaries of the standard listings. There are 33 display advertisers or 35% of the total number of listed contractors. Of those 33 advertisers, 23 list their websites in their ads for a total of 70%. (I later discovered that two of those websites were inoperative or shut down.) So, there are a total of ten display advertisers who had the opportunity to include a website address in their ad but chose not to. Strangely enough, one of the ten did include the website address in the free standard listing – can’t figure that one out at all. One of these ten – with a 3/8-page ad – doesn’t even have a website. The other nine have websites but just don’t list them. I’m not sure why. Heating Contractors – Weak I found it more interesting – if you want to describe it that way – when I totaled up the numbers from the “Heating Contractors” heading. Woeful would be a good way to describe this category. There are a total of 99 listings but only 19 display ads (19%). Of those 19, only seven HVAC contractors – or 37% -- opt to include their website address in their display ads. Two of the twelve didn’t include their website address but yet took out ½ page display ads. No wonder they could afford these ads – they didn’t have to pay for a website, which neither had.
Under the “Furnace” heading the news was a little better. There were a total of 80 listings and 16 display ads (20%). Of those 18, ten chose to include their website address. The same two with ½ page ads did not include their website addresses. Shame on them.
And here is one more laughable item: one of the display advertisers was named “Lowest Bid Heating & Cooling.” Amazing. So what does this all mean? That a good number of HVAC contractors – based on the small numbers in this unscientific study – are paying a lot of money for Yellow Pages advertising and ignoring the place where many of their customers are now shopping for everything: the Internet. Mom and pop mentality at its best.
(For more info on HVAC contractors visit www.joemaintenance.com.)
11/02/09
Set Parameters for Your Goals: Learn From My Mistake
Okay, I’m not perfect. Far from it. I experiment with a lot of different things (legally) and see if I can hit on a winning formula. That’s why I anointed myself with the ‘IdeaPerson’ moniker several years ago. Many of you probably see yourselves as idea people, leaders of your business, who have enjoyed successes – and failures – from programs you have implemented in your workplace. Maybe you have developed a winning business strategy and continue to build on it. If you did create a winner, chances are you had it clearly defined with recognizable parameters. In other words, you had pretty clear idea of what the results would be before you started the plan. I have used that same philosophy for one of the things I like to do best: polling people and collecting measurable data. Some of the things I try – and have had success at – are polling people on relevant business topics. I usually have an idea of what the answers to the polls will be ahead of time. Sometimes I am pleasantly – or unpleasantly – surprised by the results. And then there was one poll where I really missed the mark. It was because I didn’t set clearly defined parameters and conditions. Those of you who have shared a similar fate can identify with the following fiasco. The Linkedin Poll I create a lot of online polls at one of my favorite social networking Websites: Linkedin.com. Unlike other social networking like Facebook and Twitter, Linkedin has more of a ‘business atmosphere’ where people meet to exchange topical business ideas rather than discuss what they are wearing to a party or how the weather is in their part of the country. This isn’t a slam on this type of social networking – I enjoy it – but if I want to talk business I turn to Linkedin. I usually post one or two polls each month and strive for at least 100 responses. Sometimes I hit the mark and sometimes I don’t. One recent poll not only missed the mark, it missed the parameters by a long shot. I committed the cardinal sin of setting up a scenario with too many gray areas and not enough specifics. Let me explain. I asked the following question and gave multiple choice answers: “If a ‘trusted’ resource could save your business a “substantial amount” of money, what would it be worth to you each month?”
Before I go to the replies, there is one thing that any pollster will tell you. You never want the ‘other’ answers to outnumber any of the multiple choices. Mine did. I cut off the poll when I only had 49 responses. Of that total, 24 people (48 percent) checked ‘other’ and made a comment. The next closest answer was ‘above $100’ with 26 percent of the total. The problem was not necessarily with the multiple choices, it was with the question. I was far too vague when I made “substantial amount” the benchmark number. That is open to many different interpretations – many. Some people even questioned who a ‘trusted’ resource was. If I had to do it again – and I might once the wounds heal – I would definitely put a dollar figure and/or a percentage to represent the “substantial amount.” I knew what answers and results I was looking for but set the parameters up incorrectly. I’m willing to bet that you have suffered that same fate when looking for solutions to some of your business questions. If you aren’t specific and focused on what you want, the results may be less than you expected – and sometimes can create too many negatives. The following is a sampling of some of the scolding, errr, comments that I got. Comments: The Overwhelming Majority I don’t have enough room to list all 24 responses and some were almost identical thoughts, only worded differently.
There is something else that was reinforced from this poll: the respondents are sharp businesspeople. But I knew that going in. Too bad I gave them a dull poll to reply to. The lesson learned – once again – is to clearly define your parameters and objectives for each goal or business plan before jumping in with both feet. I missed the mark on this one but I am not going to stop jumping – and neither should you. I’m back in the saddle again – check out my latest polls by searching for me at Linkedin.com. 10/22/09
Twenty Reasons Why Social Networking Will NOT Replace E-Mails I was reading the responses to a recent Wall Street Journal article from both Cris Crum, a writer for WebProNews and VerticalResponse CEO Janine Popick. Both called out the article writer for taking the stand that e-mailing is no longer the preferred communications method for many users. The title of the article was “E-mail no longer rules.” So both Crum and Popick made a list of ten reasons why social media won’t replace e-mail. The links to the full text of each article is included below. For brevity sake, I have combined both lists and here they are:
Have you go a 21st or more? Let me know! Crum’s article: http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2009/10/12/10-reasons-social-media-isnt-replacing-email Popick’s article: http://www.webpronews.com/blogtalk/2009/10/15/10-more-reasons-why-social-media-wont-replace-email 10/12/09
Getting a “Hint” of How a Website Makes Money for You – Yeah Right The offer sounded interesting – “2009 Internet Income Training Conference” – so I gave it a shot. The “conference” was sponsored by storesonline.com and attendees were guaranteed a free lunch and MP3 player just for sitting in on the 90-minute “conference.” More on that later. The reason I have been putting the word conference in parenthesis is because of its misnomer. It was really a sales pitch. I expected that going in and wasn’t disappointed. But if I had any interest in how “half-a-million people generate income from the Internet, where $198 billion was spent last year” I had to take advantage of this offer, right? The numbers I quote are from the storesonline.com promotional literature. All of the attendees were asked to dress in business casual yet the presenter, Mike Webb, was wearing blue jeans, tennis shoes, and an untucked dress shirt. The warning flag went up immediately. Maybe his luggage was lost at the airport. Then again, maybe not. One of the first things he wanted to know about the audience was their Web presence. He polled the audience of approximately 70 people and asked how many had their own websites. Only 20 percent said they did. The audience was ripe for the picking. But let’s get to the real meat of the presentation, err, conference. Webb (appropriately named) talked about how the Web can make money for people who know how to market their websites. He said it wasn’t enough to have a website; people had to know where to find it. Webb pointed out three reasons why websites fail:
He made some good points which included target marketing. Webb said that one area that website hosts should explore is target marketing, which is the ability to market to a finite area as small as one zip code. He also threw out the term, “reverse search engine tool” – which shows what demand there is for a product or service. He mentioned the importance of “drop shipping,” too. He had the audience’s attention. He also said there are four characteristics of success:
“Fear is the number one business killer,” he said. “You need to be prepared to make money.” At that point in the conference – approximately 30 minutes later – the information morphed into a sales presentation. Here is what attendees were “pitched’ at this point:
So, for the lucky 70 people in attendance, there was some very good news. Instead of paying these “anytime” prices, all it took was – and get this – $48 for the following things: one website, six weeks of hosting, and a one-day conference including free lunch and one-on-one personal consultations. $48! Most folks couldn’t wait to whip out their credit cards. It was too good to be true. Plus, there was no obligation to sign any type of contract for web hosting. Hmmmm. And we were always tempted to learn more but Webb had a standard line, “I don’t have time to go into details today.” I had that line memorized by the fifth time he said it. There was a bit of chaos and poor planning as Webb’s assistants handed out registration cards while lunch was being served. Somehow I managed to elude their watchful eyes and ditched the card before they had to a chance to “consult” with me on how to fill it out. I did the math real quickly and figured if the 70 people all signed up storesonline.com would have generated $3,360 that day. But they didn’t get my $48. In the fine print on the registration cards it said each attendee would get a free MP3 player or a certificate for an iPod Shuffle (smaller 1G version), which would include an additional shipping charge. Neither happened. There were no MP3 players and everyone was handed a card for redemption using a special code on a gift redemption website. The card was for an MP3 player only. I wanted my iPod Shuffle, if the shipping charge wasn’t exorbitant. So I e-mailed storesonline.com customer service and said they were using false advertising. I heard from them shortly afterward and they said they would mail me my certificate for the iPod Shuffle. Mail, not e-mail. But they did send it out and it will cost me $14.95 shipping. Still, that is better than paying $40-$50 in the store for it. The good news: I did learn one thing from the presentation that made it worth my while. I learned that there is such a thing as a reverse search engine tool. And I am going to use it. Thanks storesonline.com for giving me a good morsel of information, a good lunch, and hopefully a functioning iPod Shuffle. Good luck to everyone who will be attending the one-day conference and enjoying the other goodies. I hope you make more than $48 on your e-commerce adventures. 10/09/09
Hey Business Owners, Are You 'Website Challenged?'
This past week, I conducted an ‘informal’ study of how many HVAC contractors in the community of Big Rapids,
I split my exhaustive research over two local telephone directories: the Yellowbook and the Phone Directory Services (PDS) book that I found in my hotel room. The HVAC contractors fell under four listings: Air Conditioning, Heating, Furnaces, and Geothermal.
Overall I found 158 total listings, not including display ads. There were a total of 26 display ads. These totals include many duplicate listings by HVAC contractors who appeared in a number of different listings throughout all categories in both telephone books. So for you statistics freaks, this is a total of 184 useable listings. Keep in mind that these phonebooks cover mostly rural areas and thus, the small number of listings.
Of this entire number, there were six websites listed. Four of those websites were manufacturer-specific. In other words, the local contractors used their manufacturer’s websites in their ads. That left a grand total of two websites out of 184 listings. For you stat freaks, that’s .010%. That’s pretty sad.
I would like to be one of those two HVAC contractors who listed their websites in their telephone directory ads. They basically have no competition. And I looked up the businesses that had display ads and of the 26, only two (other the aforementioned two) actually had a website. Of these two, one was a manufacturer’s website and the other was a plain one-page informational website set up by the phone directory. Boring.
My conclusion? It’s obvious. HVAC contractors in these communities don’t have websites. Duh. I was hoping to find a bunch who had websites but who didn’t list them in their telephone directory ads. That was the original intention of my research. But 98.37% of them didn’t even have a website. GET A WEBSITE FOLKS!
I guess I’ll have to scrounge through another small-town telephone book the next time I’m on the road to get some quantitative answers. Sigh. 08/28/09
After All, Isn’t it All About the Quality of Life? My wife and I were driving back from an appointment in downtown
This could have been any town – not just
Part of this growing-up experience was the time we all had to spend with each other as well as our extended families and neighbors. There never seemed to be a time when we couldn’t just kick back and relax (although I’m sure there were some).Our quality of life was great.
And as my wife and I drove back to our home in suburban
But I had the human data to back up my statement. It All Started With the Drive-Thru
When I was very young there were no such things as drive-thru restaurants. The closest things were the drive-up hamburger joints where you could dine in your car. Thankfully there are still some of them around.
The drive-thru “mentality” was – and is – based on getting products and services in a hurry so we, as consumers, didn’t have to waste our valuable time waiting. I buy that. In fact the company I work for believes very strongly in the importance of their customer’s time. Respect for one’s time is a philosophical cornerstone of Clockwork Home Services, which brings me to my point.
The idea of getting products and services at lightning speed has changed society’s entire lifestyle. We now believe that it is more important to get things done quickly because there is always another task or assignment that awaits us afterward. We have developed almost a neurosis based on our fear that if we don’t get it done right away, someone else will and thus, we will have failed.
I suppose if you were in the drive-thru business, you would be excused for having that mind set. But most of us aren’t. Super-Speed Communications? Bah!
Of course, since we could get hamburgers in lightning drive-thru speed, why not speed up everything else? Why not make it so we could actually talk to other people without waiting to get home or to a corner telephone booth (remember those?). So the mobile, errr, cell phone was invented. And why not get more than six television stations? Let’s get a few hundred. So cable television was created. And why not make it so people could see what was happening all over the world instantly? So an armada of satellites was sent out into deep space to send signals everywhere. And why not find a way to use existing telephone lines to create another form of communication? Thus the Internet was born.
Then let us take this whole technological advance one step further. Let’s make the news and features so compelling that people will want to spend hours and hours each day talking on the phone, watching television, and browsing through the Internet. Who cares about spending time with friends at the park, playing “until the streetlights come on,” and leaving work at work instead of bringing it home?
The tidal wave of high-speed communication swept away the simple pleasures of our lives and with it, the quality of life as well. In the “old days” we had time to do things. Now, artificially, we do not. And that is why the quality of life sucks today. We Are Bringing Back the Quality
All of what I have written brings me to the very point that I want to make. I think it is important – no, imperative – that we bring back some of the quality of life that was reminiscent of my childhood in the 50s and 60s. We can’t reverse technology and will likely find more ways to make our lives more stressful as we find every opportunity to cram 25 hours into a 24-hour day.
But speaking of hours, there are companies like One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning who are doing their part in making people’s lives less stressful and giving them more time to do important things – like spending time with family and friends – or just relaxing.
One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning values time. Period. The company knows that customers believe in the old adage that “time is money.” But time is not only money; it is precious and often priceless.
That’s why if a customer needs service or replacement of their heating and cooling equipment, they need it done right away by professionals, with as little disruption in their daily lives as possible. The customers want to know that a service technician will be on time and will make the repair or replace the equipment correctly. Thus, the on-time and fixed right guarantee.
One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning is doing their part to bring back the quality of life to a lot of people. Now, how many other companies can boast that and if they can – which one is going to step up next? Maybe we can still get a piece of that “simple life” that I spoke of – and share it with our family, friends, and neighbors. There is still time.
Why do I brag about One Hour? They are good -- and I happen to work for their parent company.
01/20/09
Today marks the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th U.S. president. This is quite a history-making event for our country.
Looking beyond the significance of being the first non-white president, we need to put the entire 'state of the nation' in perspective and see if President Obama can truly put his name in the record books for something other than being black.
He has a daunting task ahead of him -- trying to lead this country out of its worst economic slump since the not-so-great depression. President Obama has taken the reins of a nation that is gripped in unemployment, credit worries, lost 'American dreams' (homes), and pessimism that is unprecedented. Putting aside -- for now -- other issues like health care, crime, terrorism, etc., President Obama needs to put a plan in place immediately to get America feeling good about itself again and on the road to survivability, let alone prosperity.
Right now, in my mind, the jury is out on President Obama. Let's see what fruit his first 100 days in office yields and after that, observe where we are as a nation one year from now. I'll give the new president a free pass for his first year and if the future is brighter and better one year from now, I'll sing his praises.
God Bless our new president and the United States of America.
12/16/08
My latest Northwest Airlines ‘experience’ on 12/15/08: Announcement at gate – plane has arrived and expected departure 5:40
Slight delay as crewmember had 'left the gate area'
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