Jul 31

Running your business: Document to Differentiate, the Mac Way!

5 Marketing, Business No Comments »

I just gave this morning a very short Keynote presentation to Creative Connections about how to differentiate your business from others. In fact, of what I’m about to tell you only three people had heard about what I had talked about:

A Document to Differentiate Your Business.

How this came about was I was in a discussion with a number of vendors such as graphic artists, editors, etc about my upcoming books about using Mac in business and we all kept going back over and over what both sides were trying to say and accomplish. Each of us, both me as the customer and them as the vendors has responsibilities as well as inputs and requirements to get whatever job was needed to be done. My frustration was in dealing with understanding what each vendor needed from me, what I would receive from them, and the results that I would get back.

So here’s the answer for you as an entrepreneur.

Create a document on how you work!

Here are the elements that you’ll need:

  • Define your ideal customer – not the one that is anyone that comes to you, but specifically the type of customer that you want to work with.
  • Define the process – here is where things can get muddy for creative types, the process nearly always does not change, the various inputs and outputs do. Define each step from the time the customer contacts you until you finally get paid.
  • Define what the customer wants – here is where you’ll go back and forth over what the customer wants and may require multiple iterations to get the final idea down.
  • Define what you need – what do you specifically need from your customer in order to get their job done
  • Define the scope or time – here you need to set a time frame for each step as well as the complete project time needed to do the project. If your customer balks about the time, do a “FEDEX” on them saying it’ll cost more to get it done quicker to do a quality job. Keep in mind that it’s the value you bring to the hour, not necessarily the hours you put in.

There are more details, but you get the idea, so how can a Mac help out?

iLife and iWork ’09, using audio, video, and desktop publishing you can create any number of types of documents that will give your customer the education they’ll need of you and your business.

Watch for my up coming book that will go into more details on why this document can reduce your workload getting new customers and getting only those customers that you want to work with.

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Jul 31

Entrepreneurs need encouragement: Art Williams – Do it!

Business, Challenge, Change, Startups, Tips No Comments »

All entrepreneurs need encouragement.  When I was younger I did sell for A. L. Williams and working with them it taught me some things about myself. So here is Art Williams in 1987 speaking about at that time, which could not be any much different than right now, and is most appropriate at this time. So listen to it and get some encouragement

Art Williams – Do it! Part 1

Art Williams – Do it! Part 2

Art Williams – Nobody wants a boss, everybody wants a Coach!

But to add to what Art says, you need smart, ACTIVE people today.

Hope you enjoyed your encouragement for the week.

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Jul 30

Meet me at a Meetup: Creative Connections Jul 31st, Denver

5 Marketing, Business, Entrepreneur, Small Business, Startups, Tips, Tools No Comments »

Hi all,

If you’d like to meet me I’ll be attend the Meetup group Creative Connections tomorrow at 9 AM and give a short talk about improving your marketing for entrepreneurs and start ups. As the marketing for this meeting says:

“The #1 priority for nearly all small businesses is getting new customers. But do you know that by changing the way you market and handle your customer you can make more money? We’ll be working as a group on creating a small marketing piece that will be sure to get better qualified and educated customers, create better communications with your customers about your business, reduce your workload to concentrate on what you do best, and to set the stage for more marketing results. So come prepared to walk out with an Action Plan of increasing your business going forward.”

I look forward to meeting you, we’ll have fun for sure.

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Jul 29

Entrepreneurs can change the world

Entrepreneur, Small Business, Startups, Thoughts No Comments »

This is great, take a look and dream.

Entrepreneurs can change the world

Jul 27

Old Macs: how to get more life out of them.

Hardware, Mac, Tips, Tools, software No Comments »

As a Mac user we all come to the point that we need to get a new Mac because the old one just can’t hack it any more. The old one still works, it’s just not fast enough and you’d like to still use it if possible. So, how can you use that old Mac.

  • ScreenRecycler is an application that allows you to use that old computer’s monitor to be used as a second monitor without having to purchase another monitor and/or a graphics card or cables. For $29.90 you can download the application and begin using that old Mac as a second monitor.
  • Network that old Mac and add or swap out that hard drive for a larger one and it becomes a file or a backup server for your files.
  • Use that old Mac to hook up an old printer and share that printer on your network using the System Preferences > Sharing > Printer Sharing.

Macs last longer than most PCs do, so keep them running and redeploy them in other ways.

Update: 07/31/2009 – A comment from a Twitter post today said that running an old Mac computer just for the screen is a waste of power. That may be true, but you could have it both a second screen AND a file server for you at the same time. Depending on how old the Mac is they may be right, but from a cost perspective, you may not have the money to purchase another monitor at the moment.

Jul 26

Reciprocity – build your business the right way.

Business, Entrepreneur, Thoughts, Tips No Comments »

As some of your may know from reading my blog I’m in the process of finishing up two books about using Macs to run your business, a short one of over 100 pages and a longer one of about 300 pages. One of the things that publishers suggest is that you “farm out” your books to others to get feedback and to input about your book, whether it’s on track, needs improvement, or just plain lacks something. Getting that feedback improves your book.

I recently sent a copies of my short book to some people to help them out because they were my target audience and to hopefully get some feedback to what I had written. Only one sent me something. Why? Because this person understands that if you get something of value from someone that is beneficial to you, share something back to them. He also recognizes that reciprocating to others keeps your integrity intact with the person you are dealing with because at a later date you may be working with them.

The rest who only took and did not respond back were either too busy to respond, too selfish to say thank you, or are just small thinkers and dreamers and only say to themselves “What’s in it for me?” when dealing with others. What can I get! And this is not only dealing with those of limited means, it can be also those of more substantial means as well

So how do you build a business with integrity? Here are a few steps:

  1. Christine Comaford of “Rules of Renegades” fame says it best, say “Please,” ”Thank you,” ”I’m sorry,” and ”I don’t know” when dealing with others whether with customers, vendors, or other business people. How many business books do you hear this from?
  2. If you make a mistake, own up to to it, and make it right to who was harmed.
  3. If you receive valuable information, suggestions, or otherwise your life has been improved some by their input, tell them personally. There is nothing like getting feedback to something you have done positively for someone else as encouragement to continue doing it.

If working with others is not a win/win situation and is either a win/lose/ or a lose/win situation, that relationship is going sour and bad blood will be spread around. You have to walk away from the win/lose or the lose/win situation to keep things peaceful.

So don’t short yourself as you start your business by only taking from others and not giving back. Besides, those that give may be watching how you respond to their gift to you and may decide if they want to work with you or not.

Jul 25

Geek humor

Apple, Tips No Comments »

For those that hang around geeks a lot there are a few web sites devoted to explaining geeks and their view of humor. Here’s Joy of Tech’s “Warning Labels for Blogger” and User Friendly that you might find interesting. Enjoy the comics, but if you really want a joke, here’s a goon one.

Three Microsoft engineers and three Apple employees are traveling by train to a computer conference. At the station, the three Microsoft engineers each buy tickets and watch as the three Apple employees buy only a single ticket.

“How are three people going to travel on only one ticket?” asks a Microsoft engineer.

“Watch and you`ll see,” answers the Apple employee.

They all board the train. The Microsoft engineers take their respective seats, but all three Apple employees cram into a restroom and close the door behind them. Shortly after the train has departed, the conductor comes around collecting tickets. He knocks on the restroom door and says, “Ticket, please.”

The door opens just a crack and a single arm emerges with a ticket in hand. The conductor takes the ticket and moves on.

The Microsoft engineers saw this and agreed it was quite a clever idea. So after the conference, the Microsoft engineers decide to do the same on the return trip and save some money.
When they get to the station, they buy a single ticket for the return trip. To their astonishment, the Apple employees don`t buy any ticket, at all.

“How are you going to travel without a ticket?” asks one perplexed Microsoft engineer.

“Watch and you`ll see,” answers an Apple employee.

When they board the train the three Microsoft engineers cram into a restroom and the three Apple employees cram into another one nearby. The train departs. Shortly afterward, one of the Apple employees leaves his restroom and walks over to the restroom where the Microsoft engineers are hiding. He knocks on the door and says,

“Ticket, please…”

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Jul 24

Content Entrepreneur: writers, authors – promoting your product.

Planning, Thoughts, Writing No Comments »

As one in the process of finishing up writing two books and beginning a third one one of the factors that most people may not realize about being an author/writer is that you become an entrepreneur of content, your content. What is an entrepreneur of content?

As a good writer’s coach, Otti Seiden stated that most authors need to consider that their books are not works of art, and unless you can really write at that level such as Steinbeck or Daniel Steele. It’s a matter of just writing toward your audience whoever they are . His comment is very appropriate for the average author, but more importantly it frees them up to write their thoughts anyway.

But while most writers want to write and in some cases ONLY write, they’re missing the rest of their potential income by not considering that writing, other than the enjoyment of it, is conveying information to your audience and customers. As a writer, and hopefully a published author, you have to consider that you’re in the business of being an entrepreneur of your content.

So, if you’re an aspiring writer, hopefully to get published, and then to sell your books that there three different processes at work:

  • Process of writing your book or books
  • Process of publishing your book
  • Process of marketing your book
  • Process of managing your content into more books, online, eBooks, etc

There you have it. It’s all about your content.

So, think of more than the words that you’re writing, think about promoting and making money with the words.

Jul 20

Apple’s Mail app: Mailbox, mail rules, and Smart folders

8 Operations, Mac, Tips, software No Comments »

One of the interesting part of using Apple’s Mail program is the use of mailbox, mail rules and Smart folders. Creating a mailbox allows you to place incoming emails into certain locations such as customers, sales, vendors, volunteers, family, and friends.

Creating  mailbox and Mail rules. Creating mailbox in Mail creates a static, i.e. stable location to place your emails. I know a lot of business people that just use the email Inbox part of Mail and little else, so here ‘s a way to be more productive with your Mail application and all of your emails.

  1. Under “On My Mac” on the left side of the Mail window and create a new mailbox for a subject that you want to categorize such as “Customers.”
  2. Click on an email that you want to put into the newly created folder
  3. Under Mail > Preferences > Rules (far right tab) > click on the “Add Rule” button and select what actions you want to be done with this and future emails and click “Apply.”
  4. A dialog box comes up if you want to apply this rule to all emails, say “Yes” and watch Mail put all of the emails that follow that rule into your new mail folder.

Now do the above sequence for all the other folders you want to create and Mail rules will put all of the emails into the right mailboxes. Now we’ll go into using Smart folders

Smart folders. One of the aspects of smart folders is that allows you to have dynamic information concerning your emails, one such idea I’ll show you here, showing all of the last seven days emails.

  1. Go to Mailbox > New Smart Mailbox folder and name a new smart mailbox, in this case name it “Last 7 Days”
  2. Double click on “Last 7 Days” mailbox and enter all of the info below in the next line.
  3. “Contains ‘Messages’” that match “all” of the following conditions “Date Received” “is in the last” “7″ “Days”
  4. Click on “Ok”

There you have it and you’ll see all of the mail, both read and unread, in the new Smart Mail folder that will adjust each

Hope you see how automating some of  your email tasks can save you time and money.

Jul 18

How to get a Mac into a small business

Apple, Hardware, Mac, Thoughts No Comments »

I was at a business meeting Friday morning from my Meetup group “Creative Connections” and a person came up to me and when he saw my Apple logo on my polo shirt he stated he loved his Mac at home, but his small office did not want to spend the money and so he had to have a PC. Right away my “Mac Opportunity” kicked into gear.

So here’s how you can get your favorite Mac into a small business.

  • Draw up some paperwork for both you and the owners files explaining in agreement what you intend to do.
  • Ask the business owner what they intend to budget for a PC for the job? Say $900 laptop.
  • Offer to take pay the difference between what you want (a $1699 MacBook Pro) and their laptop ($900), about $800.
  • If you need to run Windows, then offer to pay for a copy of an OEM version of Windows (for new PC computers only) and use Boot Camp to run the Windows side, or use VMWare Fusion + Windows.
  • If you leave the company, pay for the used price of the originally intended laptop back to the owner and keep the Mac.
  • If the owner wants to buy a new PC for you in two years, pay the owner what he would get for the used “PC” price and pay them that and keep the Mac.
  • If they like the Mac and what it can do, wipe the Windows off of the Mac and jump for joy at getting a Mac at work.

However you work this out, you get to use the Mac and the company gets a Windows computer. There might be other legal issues such as who owns the computer, etc, but it could be worth the try to get to use a Mac in a small business.

How did you handle getting a Mac into a small business?

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