A Choice Between Two Things vs. Two Choices

Pardon me, but I get really ticked when I hear someone misuse “choice” and “choices.” Capital One comes to mind immediately because the ads are so pervasive. Samuel Jackson is always telling you that you have “two choices” when he really means that you have A CHOICE between two things!

Two choices means two separate sets of decisions, each with two or more options. YOU HAVE A CHOICE between the credit card he is hawking and some other brand of credit card. You DON’T HAVE TWO CHOICES!

If you wanted to have two choices you might need to choose, number one, whether or not to have a credit card at all and two, whether or not to have the credit card brand he’s selling. That’s two choices.

If you were buying a piano from me, I would tell you that you had A CHOICE between walnut or mahogany, not two choices. If you were buying a piano from me, I would tell you that you had A CHOICE of delivery dates — Tuesday or Thursday.

If I want to give you TWO CHOICES I’d tell you that you had two choices — one regarding the finish — walnut or mahogany — and one regarding the delivery date — Tuesday or Thursday.

Now you have A CHOICE. You can choose to ignore this post or you can comment on it. That is your choice. You actually have more than one choice here. If I give you TWO CHOICES your first choice involves whether or not to ignore it or to comment on it and your second choice involves whether you comment positively or negatively.

Got it? Thanks for reading. I hope you choose to comment!

June 18, 2015August 15, 2015

Networking Necessities, Niceties and No-Nos

Networking Necessities, Niceties, and No-Nos

If networking is part of your marketing strategy mix, and for many if not most of us it should be, are you really good at it or is it something you do because you’ve been told that you should do it – like I just did? If you are selling a commodity product, you may not consider networking as an important element of your marketing strategy. Things, after all, should pretty much sell themselves if they are useful and provide clear benefits to the buyer, right? Well, maybe… It might depend on the kind of things you are selling.

Food storage bowls come to mind. You wouldn’t normally think of increasing your sales of these via networking as an important element of your marketing strategy.

But even with the Internet my spouse had a heck of a time finding some help selecting new bowls until I met someone at a networking event who sold them. How about auto insurance? Sure you can buy it over the phone or the Internet if you don’t believe in the value that an agent you know, like and trust can add to your purchase. Having an accident, of course, can change your point of view on this and insurance agents who network know this to be a fact.

I’m a believer in networking because it works for me and for a great many of my clients. The Networking Tips topic in my monthly newsletter is one of the most popular sections. But you have to do networking right if it is going to work for you. So here are some tips on doing it right.

Necessities

The first necessity is a positive attitude. If you dread networking activities it is going to show. You are going to be more of a wallflower than a winner, you are less likely to meet as many people as you could and the impressions you make may not be stellar. The next necessity is a set of goals. How many new people do you want to meet at a networking event? What kinds of people do you want to meet? These goals will help you to select the right networking events. If you sell garden hoses, for example, a home and garden networking event will be much more productive for you than a meeting of condo owners where gardening is done by the association’s hired help.

Niceties

Once you have the necessities covered, it’s time to consider some niceties. Wear a name badge so that people know who you are when you come up to them to ask them what business they are in. Invest in a permanent badge with your company logo on it and wear it on your upper right side to make it easy for people to read as you approach to shake hands. That way you won’t spend your time wrestling with a generic paper badge that will dislodge itself several times during an event. And be confident but considerate when shaking hands. No one likes to have their hand crushed so don’t try to show your dominance of others by doing that to them.

No-Nos

This list could get pretty long but here are the top first few. Mostly talking coupled with little listening is a no-no. How will you find out how you might be able to help someone if you don’t find out what they need? And why waste your own time talking to someone who might never need what you offer. Don’t interrupt an ongoing conversation between others. It’s rude. Wait for your opening while listening to the conversation. You never know – you might learn something! Don’t monopolize. A networking event is not the place to present your entire company and product or services story. It is a time to establish enough rapport so that you can arrange a meeting at a later date given that it makes sense for both parties.

Photo credit: Phoenix Lotus Productions, APACC Mega-Mixer.

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Article credit: The A to Z Blog Book and Inspiration Now! (both by Jon Turino and available on Amazon and Kindle).

May 23, 2015May 23, 2015

Your APATHY Is Killing Your Future!

Warning! This post is not politically correct!

Hey, you! Yes, you! Listen up! I’m talking to you! Pay attention!

Your future depends on it! Don’t make me take you by the shoulders and shake you to get you to listen to me! READ THIS and act upon it!

If you don’t, you are part of the problem I am talking about in this post. So goodbye. Don’t complain to me or to anyone else about your lot in life if you are too apathetic to read this post and act upon it. You deserve what you get. What other people deign to give you.

Are you happy with the way things are going in your life, your job, your city, county, state and country? If you can answer “yes” to that question I would really like to meet you and find out how you have achieved such peace, success, happiness, prosperity and nirvana.

If not, what are you doing about it?

I think that many of the so-called “leaders” in this country have gone nuts. They send people to foreign countries to die. Then they refuse to take care of them when they come home wounded and damaged. What are you — yes you, personally — doing about it? My guess is nothing. Because you are apathetic.

Our “leaders” have this country spending huge amounts of money on weapons — many of them unnecessary and unwanted. Half of those amounts could wipe out hunger and poverty in this country in a day! What are you — yes you, personally — doing to make that happen? My guess is nothing. Because you are more interested in how you might get some of that money than in the larger picture. You’re not apathetic when it comes to getting some for yourself, are you? But your apathy sure comes into play when someone you don’t know is affected.

We send money to our “enemies” so that they can buy weapons from us to start wars with our “friends” who also buy weapons from us. Then we lament such terrible losses of life. Bullshit, I say! Stop the hypocrisy! Stand up and say “enough!”

But are you doing that? You don’t know these people tens of thousands of miles away who’ve been killing each other for thousands of years and are, frankly, never going to stop. They breed, preach and practice hate, for heaven sake. They always have and they always will!

Why are we sending them money for weapons without building a wall around them? Then they can kill each others to their heart’s content. And, hopefully, there won’t be enough of them left to hurt the rest of us. When was the last time you stood up and loudly told our “leaders” that enough is enough? My guess is that most of you answer that question with “never.” You’re just plain too apathetic.

Maybe you’re just too enthralled and engaged with the latest high-tech gadgets, or the fanciest cars, or the newest fads to worry about tomorrow. Or your fellow human beings. If that’s you, enjoy it while you can. Because your apathy is eventually going to kill that lifestyle. And your future.

Or maybe, like many of us, you’re just very busy urgently trying to scratch out a living in this crazy world to make time to do the important things that will benefit us all in the long term. I can empathize with that, even while I’m ranting about all this other stuff. But it doesn’t mean you get to be apathetic when it comes to the political, economic and environmental issues that are going to affect your children and their children. We need to pay attention to both the urgent and the important, no matter how difficult that is!

We have people in positions of power in the federal and state governments who are just plain nutso (a non-politically correct term for out of their “f-ing” minds)! They are convinced that making sure that we are all armed with automatic weapons will lower the rate of deaths by bullets. In Colorado, for crying out loud, you can be made to pay for damages to the gun and ammunition sellers if you sue them because one of their customer’s guns or bullets killed your kids!

The governor of Texas thinks that the federal government is getting ready to invade the state and then sell it to Mexico — or China? What kind of people elected this kind of idiot? Crazy people. What kind of people can get rid of this kind of idiot? Sane people. But the sane people are totally apathetic! So they don’t vote these kinds of fools out of office. They simply suffer and complain. And a lot of good that does. And this kook wants to run for the office of the President of the United States! Maybe we should send them overland in big boats to China as the former Governor or Alaska once suggested.

Don’t even get me started on women’s rights! Some of “our” people in the US Congress and the Senate don’t believe that women should have the right to methods to prevent pregnancy. Nor to abort unwanted pregnancies — even those caused by rape. Some of these people actually think that there is such a thing as “legitimate” rape! Where do these people come from and why are they still in positions of power? Because we — and I include myself — have been too apathetic to throw the bastards out!

They pay for Viagra so that men can screw women for hours on end, whether the women want it or not. But they don’t want to pay for birth control. And they don’t want to pay for care for the illegitimate children that result from these kinds of activities. They don’t have a clue that their own votes as supposed representatives of “the people” are so screwed up as to classify them as psychopaths! But have we gotten rid of them? Nope.

APATHY IS KILLING OUR FUTURE!

We have got to put a stop to the craziness! We have got to begin to speak the truth again — political correctness be damned! We have got to reject bullshit in the media when it is clearly biased bullshit! We have got to reject religious zealots who pervert the preachings of their “Gods” to justify hate and genocide! We have got to stop letting people who wish to live in America continue to bad-mouth it and try to destroy it. We have got to get our leaders to stop giving money to these fanatics.

Standing up, saying “enough is enough,” voting out the crazies and the greedy and the pocket liners — and their corporate backers — may mean some short-term pain. But it will certainly lead to some long-term gain! If WE — YOU and ME — stand up and force the needed changes to happen. If we can find a way to overcome our apathy.

We have got to stop people in Congress from betraying the Social Security contract with the American people. This contract IS NOT AN ENTITLEMENT! We who have worked all our lives, and who continue to work — voluntarily or out of necessity — have paid, and continue to pay, billions of payroll dollars into this fund so that we will have something to support us when we are forced to retire. SOCIAL SECURITY IS NOT AN ENTITLEMENT and the irresponsible misogynists current in power need to be made to understand that or they need to be removed from their offices.

THERE ARE SOLUTIONS TO THESE PROBLEMS! This country was built on creating and implementing solutions that increased productivity and prosperity. We’ve done it before and we can do it again. If we can get rid of the impediments — many of our current “leaders.” But voter turnout is at all time lows. Why? Because we are simply apathetic! Or too burdened but what these “leaders” have done to us to have the time, energy and money to stand up to them and say “NO MORE!”

The 1% have the money and the power to keep these people in power. They own our elected representatives. They own our economy. They own us! If you’ve never listened to George Carlin, may he rest in peace, you should do so now. Unless you don’t care. Unless you think someone else should or will solve these problems. But if you don’t do it, who will? Nobody.

AND YOUR APATHY WILL KILL YOUR FUTURE!

On a personal level, are you saving enough money to support yourself when you are too old to work? Or when you are forced out? Or when you are replaced? The time to start taking care of that issue is now! Not tomorrow, not next week, not next month and not next year. NOW! Because I don’t think that we’re going to find a cure for apathy anytime soon. And that means that we had all better start looking out for ourselves. No one else will, especially those who run our country and our economy. The vast majority of these people are only out for themselves.

Do you have enough life insurance to support your loved ones if you get hit by a bus — or a beer truck — tomorrow? If not, you should probably rectify that situation. And not tomorrow, next week, next month or next year. NOW! Because safety nets from our government are going to continue to disappear.

Do you have disability insurance to replace your income if you are injured or become seriously ill for a long time? I don’t mean group disability from your company, which may pay for injury but not for sickness and will maybe pay for 60% that will be taxed so that you are forced to live on 40% of your normal take-home pay. I mean disability insurance coverage to fill that 60% gap that YOU OWN!

Have I got your attention yet? I really don’t mean to be a “the sky is falling” kind of guy. But at my age — 68, by the way — I’ve seen way too much and, according to my spouse, spent way too much time yelling at the television when I hear about what is going on. I don’t consider myself a conspiracy nut, but I sure do wonder what is happening behind the scenes when our attention is directed to the trumped-up crisis or disaster of the day.

I know, there are many who will say that we can’t do anything about that. Why should we try? As individuals, is it true that we don’t have the resources or the power to fix things? Is the system too big and destined grind us down? Does that mean that we just shouldn’t try? I don’t think that it has to be this way! I believe we can make things better. It will take work but it can be done. To believe otherwise is to surrender. To become totally apathetic.

So I say it this one last time in conclusion: YOUR APATHY WILL KILL YOUR FUTURE! Please don’t let that happen. I have decided to fight in every way that I can and I hope I can inspire you to do the same. Let’s not let the bastards grind us down. Let’s register to vote. Let’s vote! Let’s expose the crazies for who they are and get rid of them. Let’s insist that our leaders work for us and not just for themselves. Let’s insist that they honor the commitments this country has made to us — and especially to the members of our armed services who defend us.

Let us seize each day by doing at least one small thing to make the world a better place. Because if I don’t do it nobody else will. And that goes for you, too.

May 17, 2015May 17, 2015

What’s In It For You?

What Is In It For You?

I had an interesting set of short conversations a couple of weeks ago at a mentoring event that it turns out was for women only. I was the only male, besides the host of the event, in a field of 250+ very intelligent women and the 35 female “mentors” they were there to meet. Needless to say I got a considerable amount of attention and even a fair amount of praise for participating at the event.

I guess I knew that it was a women-only event, but I didn’t really think about it that way until I arrived at the venue. The young lady who greeted me asked me, very nicely, why I was there. So I told her I wanted to ask some questions of the mentors, several if not all of whom seemed like very bright people. She thanked me for being there and for appreciating the people I was going to meet and talk with — female though they may be!

I wasn’t at the event to network or to try to sell something to the people participating in the event. I did strike up conversations with several of the women while standing in line to speak with my chosen mentors, and we had good giggles about my presence as the only male participating in the event. I had a ball! And I got to talk to the three women mentors that I wanted to speak to.

My question to the women I spoke to was pretty simple and pretty specific: How do I attract more readers for my new (2015) book Inspiration Now!? Two said they had no idea. Book promotions weren’t their thing. Fair enough. Number three, however, had a good question: “Why your Inspiration Now! instead of anybody else’s?” I think that was a pretty good question. But I didn’t like her suggestion for personalizing it, even though people have made money — and maybe a lot of money — “repurposing” the same material over and over.

Her thought was that I create a whole series of ersatz titles: Inspiration for Dummies, Inspiration for Accountants, Inspiration for Smart People and Inspiration for yadda, yadda, yadda specific audiences. Same basic book, a few tweaks and wow — an instant empire of books.

What do you think? The book is designed to inspire people regardless of their profession. I give even “dummies” the benefit of the doubt. If they think they might get a good idea from reading it, and they turn out to be right, are they dummies? I don’t think so! Is an accountant or a “smart person” too obtuse to figure out that even one inspiration from the book might double or triple his or her practice unless I “package” it specifically for them? I don’t think so.

But OK, let’s play devil’s advocate. I’m supposedly a marketing guy after all. I know the book could — should? — be repackaged into a big series. But I just don’t like the ethics of it. And I’d like some additional opinions. Yours, if you please.

The book is at Amazon — http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RQT1BLK — and it’s a whopping $2.99 in the electronic version for Kindle — and other — eBook reading smartphones and tablets if you want to read it before rendering your opinion. You don’t have to do that, of course. I’ll respect your opinion either way. But please do let me know via a comment to this post about the strategy you think I should use.

If you don’t, I may have to replicate it as “What’s In It For You?” for Dummies. And I really don’t think my readers are dummies. Please don’t prove me wrong! As an incentive — What Is In It For You? — I’ll send you a free copy of the new “Presentations That Persuade!” ebook — a $4.95 value — in return for your comment.

Come to think of it, you might want to read Inspiration Now! at $2.99, make a comment on this post, and get the $4.95 Presentations That Persuade! book in return. Make sense?

I look forward to hearing from you either way. Thanks!

April 1, 2015April 1, 2015

What Price Wisdom?

I am, at age 68, by many standards, old. I am, in many companies, unemployable. Because I am old. Because I am overqualified. Because I am worth more in compensation than young, inexperienced new people entering the job market will accept — although I’ll actually accept less than most companies think for the privilege of sharing my experience and earning a living wage.

That’s not to say that I am destitute. I have a satisfying career helping people — young, middle-aged and yes, even old, make the best choices in terms of their risk management and wealth accumulation strategies. For those who will listen. And there are not nearly enough of those. Far too many spend more time planning vacations instead of their financial futures.

Many young people today have never seen a telephone that required a wired connection. Many have never seen computer applications that used word commands instead of pointing devices. Virtually none remember the BETA vs. VHS video recording wars. They can’t even fathom that content wasn’t always streamed over their smartphones and tablets and once upon a time required physical media and equipment for playing it. And many who can text at multiple thumbstrokes per second can’t carry on an actual conversation with another person.

In “the olden days,” where multiple generations interacted in family and business situations, the wisdom of the “elders” was passed on to the younger generations so that mistakes could be avoided and so that past experience could be applied to new situations. But today’s “elders,” at least for the most part in the business world, are discarded and ignored. And thus their wisdom and experience is lost so that new generations are given the opportunity to make the same mistakes again and again.

Imagine, if you will, a situation where a finance VP decides that the sales people are making too much money and decides to cut their commission rates. If you look at the spreadsheet you’ll see that the savings in commission will make a big improvement to the bottom line. What you won’t see is how the top line will drop dramatically to offset any calculated gains and begin a downward spiral of the business. FYI, I lived this experience!

Who could predict that? The technology supported the decision. But experience tells us that this is faulty thinking. Uh Oh… What experience? There isn’t any. We got rid of that to “save” costs and “improve” productivity. We did that at the same time we eliminated human contact with clients and customers with new phone tree answering systems. Press 1 to…Press 2 to… Want a human? Sorry, that’s not an option.

Then there’s stuff the other way around. Us old folks, while having a lot of experience in a lot of things, don’t necessarily know that we need WiFi to use our tablet devices or to make sure that we’re not overcharged for smartphone data usage because we don’t know that we need to connect to it. We have the Internet, don’t we? What is this Wifi and why is my 4gLTE bill so high?

I heard a great suggestion at a networking meeting a couple of months ago. How about we put retirement homes next door to pre-schools and elementary schools? Imagine what the oldsters could teach the youngsters and vice versa! I’m computer literate for the most part, but I still have to call my sons for help with operating systems and website development tools. In the “old days” when we needed help with some newfangled electronic device, we called a teenager!

I guess the point of this diatribe is that I think it’s a shame, and a tremendous waste of talent, experience, and wisdom, to dump the old folks and bring in the (cheaper?) new folks. We need both! Too many CEOs listen to too many CFOs who put spreadsheets together based on inaccurate assumptions and build presentations to show how smart they are. And too many CEOs fall into the trap.

But they don’t care. They slash and burn the business and move on to the next one before anyone realizes what they’ve really done. With multi-million dollar bonuses — for being fired! — while thousands of workers lose their jobs, their pensions, and their dignity. What a travesty.

It doesn’t have to be this way, people. We can fix it. But it will take work, inspiration, and education. Will it happen quickly? Not in my experience. It took me 20 years to make Design for Test happen in the electronics industry. But I did it. The device you are using to read this is easier to test than it would have been had I not written a 77-page book in 1979 and “preached and teached” its tenets all over the world for two decades.

I changed the world and I think you can too. At the risk of seeming self-serving, I suggest you start by reading my new book Inspiration Now! It may give you some insight into why I think the way I do and to why you might want to ask yourself why you think the way you do. And whether or not you want to do anything about it..

Because you have that power, no matter what your age, profession, employment status or position in an organization. You have the power to change a great many things, not the least of which is your own set of visions, feelings and actions. No one can stop you from changing yourself. You don’t need anyone’s permission. You don’t need to do anything but decide that you will use your personal power to accomplish your personal dreams and goals. Because you can. You have that power.

Comments, compliments, brickbats and lambasts are all, of course, welcome as always. Thanks for reading.

Go to http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RQT1BLK to order your copy of Inspiration Now!

January 2, 2015

My New Book for You – Inspiration Now!

I spent the month of December, 2014, working on a labor of love in the form of my newest book, Inspiration Now!

Inspiration Now! helps its readers define and implement their dreams and desires for personal and professional happiness and success. It explains the process of visualizing and planning to achieve results no matter what the goal. It talks about time and life management issues and explains how to develop practical, workable goals, strategies and tactics for achieving these objectives.

Filled with engaging stories from the author’s own personal experiences, the book illustrates the importance of practicing to gain the skills a person needs to succeed, provides hints for maximizing personal performance and talks about the importance of celebrating successes. Central to the book’s theme is the description of how to use visual image formation to make the reality you’d like to live actually happen.

It is in itself an inspiring book that will help the reader realize the “magic” provided by the advice and empower him or her to achieve whatever it is that they desire.

Here’s what some of the early reviewers had to say about Inspiration Now!

“LOVED the book!! “Inspiration Now!” is a must read for all who are interested in success, happiness, and making a difference in the world. This book has become my newest addition of books to read over and over again, along with other greats like “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” Very inspirational and thoughtful, the book is easy to read; Jon’s use of stories based on his own experiences make’s it quite entertaining.” — Becky Tengwall, Co-Founder, I Take The Lead

“I have always been honored to call Jon Turino a friend and mentor. His book should inspire all of us to follow our ‘Why.’ Thank you, Jon for the ‘kick in the rear.’” – JimTeasley, SendOutCards

“This book has helped me surge forward with my goals and my dreams. Thank you, Jon, for putting your words of wisdom and encouragement in this powerhouse of a book. This will be a ‘go to’ book when we stumble across our doubts, fears and uncertainties.” – Judith Lind, Portland, OR

“Whether you are building your own future or helping others with theirs, this book is a valuable tool for creating a vision that is authentic, powerful and meaningful.” –Stephanie Austin, CircleUpNetworking.com

“Does the world really need another motivational guide? Absolutely! Because for those of us who seek personal and professional growth, the simple daily habit of reading books just like this can be tremendously powerful. Jon Turino skillfully picks up the torch carried by the likes of Bob Proctor and Earl Nightingale before him, sharing lessons from his own achievements and providing tools and structure for his readers to discover and act on their own inspirations.” – David Baer, BaerOnMarketing.com

Inspiration Now! is available from Amazon.com athttps://www.createspace.com/5124589

You’ll find more inspiration per page in this book than anything you’ve read before. You’ll love the little, boxed bits of advice that appear throughout and you’ll experience a lifetime of wisdom condensed into a wonderfully easy-to-read book! This is an absolute gem of a book. A must read for sure! Click Here to order your copy now!

P.S.: Please SHARE this with those you know who could use a little Inspiration Now!

October 14, 2013November 26, 2014

Returning to Some Core Competencies

“You got to know when to hold them and know when to fold them.” These are definitely some wise words from the song The Gambler.

Many of you know that I have a background, besides my marketing jobs in the high tech world, in the insurance and financial services business and that I spent many years as an agent for Farmers Insurance. I’m licensed for Property & Casualty and Life & Health Insurance in Oregon and Washington and have my Series 6 and 63 securities licenses for offering variable life insurance policies, annuities and both qualified and non-qualified retirement plans (including 401(k) rollovers and setting up traditional and Roth IRAs).

For the past eighteen months I’ve been helping small businesses sort out their marketing needs in terms of markets, messages and media. But it’s been slow going and the demand for marketing strategy consulting hasn’t been as strong as I’d originally anticipated. So while it’s been fun, and I’m pleased to have helped a fair number of clients, it’s just not keeping me busy enough and there’s only so much time one can spend on social media activities without going a little stir crazy!

August 7, 2013August 7, 2013

Praise for a Faucet Maker

About a dozen years ago my spouse and I remodeled the kitchen in our condominium. We bought a beautiful Moen faucet for the sink and have been very happy with it until recently when the little rubber piece on top of the extensible spout that covers the stream vs. spray mode began to wear out. Still worked OK, of course, but it didn’t look “pretty” anymore. So I was tasked with solving this problem.

To the web I went for the Moen website. One click to get to kitchen faucets. Another click to browse by collection. A quick scroll to find the Extensa model number. Then to Replacement Parts for an excellent pictorial illustration of the faucet parts. But not down to the little grey gasket. Only to the whole spout. Hmm. Copy the spout part number from the illustration, paste it into the Part Number box and, viola, the $44.05 pullout spout is ready to be added to my cart for purchase.

Trouble is, though, I don’t need a whole new spout for $44.05. I only need a rubber gasket to replace the one that is worn on my otherwise perfectly good spout. So to the Contact Us tab for a phone number, which was toll free, and then a phone menu that was mercifully clear and short with only a few minutes wait for a human being to whom I described my situation.

The customer service rep asked me for the faucet model number, which I had written down. She asked me a couple of questions about the faucet, including the location of the logo and the color of the spout and then asked me for my name, address, zip code and email address. When I inquired as to why she needed this information to answer my question about whether or not I could buy just the gasket I was informed that she needed the information to ship me, without cost, a new spout since the gasket was not a user replaceable item and since the faucet is guaranteed for life. She then asked if delivery within 5-7 days was OK or if I needed it sooner, in which case I would have to pay for expedited shipping.

I was, frankly, blown away by this kind of warranty and this kind of service. She asked me if there was anything else she could do for me and told me that I’d receive an email confirming my order for the replacement spout. And that promised email was in my inbox before I even hung up the phone.

Why am I telling you this story? Because I think it’s high time we tell as many people as possible about good customer service as we usually tell people about bad customer service. You see the horror stories all over the Internet. Complaints about never being able to speak to a human being. Complaints about things failing one day after the warranty expires. Complaints about rude customer service representatives.

Don’t you tell as many people as possible about your unsatisfactory customer service experiences and maybe tell one or two, if you even tell anyone, about the good ones? How will the companies with bad customer service improve if we consumers don’t provide them with examples of what good customer service looks, sounds and feels like? We need to publicize the companies that do it right and, in my humble opinion, Moen gets a grade of “A+” for their policies, procedures and people.

In writing this article I went back to the Moen website and noticed their tagline: “Buy it for looks. Buy it for life.®” And I guess they really mean it based on the way they walked the talk with me. I know that if I ever have to buy another faucet, or recommend one to someone else, you can bet that a Moen product will be high on the list.

There may be other faucet makers who do as good a job as Moen. I just don’t have any personal experience on which to base an opinion pro or con so I can’t comment with any knowledge about them. But if I ever do have a good experience with another company like the one I had with Moen I promise to publicize it as well.

Do you have example of things you are especially pleased about? Or about outstanding customer service experiences? Please share them and ask others to do so as well. Thanks for reading.

Scoop.it

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July 18, 2013July 22, 2013

Ewwww! Gross!! — Marketing the Unmarketable

Ewwww! Gross!! – Marketing the Unmarketable

Karen Rice from Myrtle Beach, SC, posted the graphic you see to the left a few days ago. Here’s a snapshot of the conversation as a result of her post:

Jon Turino: Wrong question! Whose brand are you buying? Why? Strength? Softness? Economy? Some other reason? Get it together at http://jonturino.com/probiotic-infographic/ Enjoy!

Monday at 10:32pm, Kathleen O’Mara: I don’t want to know! LOL

Monday at 10:44pm, Kim Henson: I would have never thought of all that, Jon Turino. Guess that’s why you market and I write.

17 hours ago, Kim Henson: Me either, Kathleen O’Mara. Gross.

17 hours ago, Jon Turino: I wouldn’t want to be the marketer for this product either. But the people who are have come up with the bears who (1) shouldn’t use so much and (2) won’t end up with traces on their behinds, the “Enjoy the Go” campaign, using quarters to illustrate strength (with blue water), etc. Now let’s talk about probiotics and gluten free and how they can make your experience in the WC so much more enjoyable that you’ll sing and dance about it on national TV. For more of my “humor” get a copy of http://jonturino.com/packages-pricing/the-a-to-z-blog-book-jon-turino-on-amazon-and-kindle/ . There are 26 articles in it that we can chat about.

14 hours ago, Susan Baiden Chestnut: This one makes me go Hmmm!

9 hours ago, Kim Henson: Susan Baiden Chestnut, it makes me go Ewwww! Lol.

Thus I found the title for this post. And I got to thinking: What other products are really tough to market?

How about hemorrhoid creams?

How about medicines for adult rash?

There’s a new TV campaign for men who leak a little after peeing whose tagline is “Protect your manhood.”

And pads for women who might leak a little when they laugh too hard, or cough, or are having their periods have been on the market for years.

Then there are adult diapers for both sexes.

Have I missed anything yet?

These are not generally the kinds of products that people talk about at social gatherings or business networking meetings, folks! They are normally quietly discussed between close friends to whom one trusts a seemingly or potentially embarrassing secret while looking for advice. And, like toilet paper, each has its own features and benefits when it comes to solving the problem – relieving the pain – associated with the condition.

I don’t know how much money advertisers spend on promoting toilet paper but it’s in the multiple millions of dollars per year. As are the expenditures for the other products mentioned above and illustrated in this post.

So what’s my point?

My point is that while everybody buys these things, the ones that get bought most often are the ones that are marketed most successfully. Just because everyone needs it and uses it doesn’t mean that you can expect to sell it without marketing.

If it can’t be found by the consumer or if your brand for your bottom is not “top of mind” when the need to buy it arises then you simply won’t have a viable business.

So let’s give a “hat’s off” – or a “bottoms up” – to the very creative folks who find new ways to market the unmentionables. And please give me a call if you need help marketing your product or service.

As always, thanks for reading and please do make time to comment pro or con.

Scoop.it

July 17, 2013July 17, 2013

If I write it will they read it?

If a tree falls in the forest when no one is nearby does the falling tree make any noise?

If a tree falls in the forest is the man wrong anyway?

What is the difference between the sound of one tree falling and two trees falling?

How do you know?

Do you know because you were there, or do you think you know because someone told you about their experience either in person or through their writings?

If you don’t know someone who has experienced something then you are very likely to learn many lessons in hard and painful ways. Unless, or course, you can read about them, understand them and avoid the hard and painful experiences.

But to do that, of course, you must make a conscious effort to read and understand what others have written – preferably before you are faced with a situation where prior knowledge would be extremely helpful.

Have you read something recently that will help you gain knowledge and wisdom or will you take your chances on being wrong in a critical situation?

Only you can choose.

Scoop.it