Here are some steps that will help you enter and explore opportunities in business social media:

1. Research it prior to jumping in. There are plenty of books that cover this topic.
2. Sign up for a couple of the outlets. Signing up is very easy and most mistakes are very easy to fix.
3. Follow others first before commenting. You can learn the proper etiquette by watching and learning from the mistakes and successes of others.
4. Hire a professional to provide some guidance. Book a few hours with someone that can show you the ropes and get you started off on the right foot. Posse Social Media is a contributor of ours and has been instrumental in helping us.
5. When you start sharing information, ask yourself “how can I add value?”.
6. Re-share information that you might find useful to the people that are following you. Writing your own material is great but it might suffice to pass on information from somebody else. Your followers gain, and the original author will appreciate you passing along the information.
7. Develop a strategy. Define what you want to give via the social media and what do you hope to get out of them.

These are just the basics to get you started. The environment is changing quickly. Jump in, have fun and enjoy this new frontier of business.

1. They have a desire to serve others. We believe that this is very important for any position in a company for every organization.

2. They are eager to learn. Be careful of the ones that think they have it all figured out.

3. The right fit will admit mistakes quickly and apologize if necessary.

4. Are they genuine/real? There is just something attractive about a person that is comfortable in their own skin.

5. Are they technically sound? They certainly must have the ability to perform the job but be sure to not overlook the potential for them to grow into it.

6. The right people will put a high emphasis on being responsive to phone calls, email, etc…

It is a little easier to identify these traits when you work for an organization that has testing resources but what about a start up with very little resources?

Test them first by giving them a project. Most start ups can get by initially by using independent contractors. Use this method first before you allow someone to grow roots in one of the seats. Present them with a task and see if they respond in a way that demonstrates the qualities listed above.

As they say, “time is money” and this certainly holds true when it comes to working on a start up.

Enter: My Mom.

SomewhereOver is based on engaging customers during the various stages of developing our products so focus groups will need to be developed.

“Is a Mom the right choice?” you may be asking. Well, in this case let’s look at some facts.

1. The price is right. $0 for the leader of a focus group sounds pretty good to us. Cheap comes to mind (not you Mom, just the price).

2. She loves us. I may have moved down the pecking order when the grandkids started arriving, but I did play a role in the creation of two of them.

3. My mom is pretty good at giving candid feedback (boy is she) which will be important when watching every penny.

4. She is part of a cool group of ladies, most of which, I spent a lot of time around when I was a kid. I consider them family, and they also don’t have a problem with giving feedback.

These are just a few reasons why we fire up our first focus with mom (Mimi) as the leader.

Laugh if you like, but the price is right, the feedback will be good and they are a group of influencers. Pretty good combination.

In a nutshell: I strongly recommend that you get a copy of “Action Trumps Everything.” Once in hand, underline key points within. Make notes in the margins. Dog-ear pages that detail information you know want to return to (and there will be lots of those).

Read the book in its entirety – from front to back, then again (and again) until the rich, cutting-edge business advice it offers begins becomes as familiar as your favorite pair of running shoes.

Why? Because this book will truly transform the way you think about business – for the better. I’m betting that it will positively impact you and your bottom-line, if you let it.

“Action Trumps Everything” provides thought-provoking technical advice that you can count to help you achieve higher levels of success – whether an entrepreneur or working for someone else. What’s more, the book is an easy, enjoyable read. That’s right! A business book you don’t want to put down.

I tip my hat to the authors of “Action Trumps Everything,” for showing readers a refreshing new way to look at business and, in doing so, provide an invigorating approach to business success – one that is almost certain to result in success if applied as instructed. Their no-nonsense approach makes for crystal clear clarity, but if you really want to know what to expect with this read, I think the titles of the first two chapters probably sums it up best:

Chapter 1: “What’s in this for you?”

Chapter 2: “Everyone can do this.”

I also like the fact authors Kiefer, Schlesinger and Brown start the book with a guarantee:

“Our promise to you:

“If you follow the handful of principles in the following pages, whatever

you want will come closer within reach.”

I couldn’t agree more.

“Action Trumps Everything” is sure to help you succeed in a business environment that is continually evolving and changes at the speed of lightning. Meeting ever-changing demands is a challenge for all of us, but technology enables us to access “fresh” information almost as fast as these changes occur. Within this “fresh” information you’re sure to find all the resources and tools you need to make winning adjustments and to try new, win-win approaches. Among these: “Action Trumps Everything.”

In closing, I highly recommend “Action Trumps Everything” to any businessperson looking to achieve and maintain success in today’s rapidly changing business environment. If you thumb through the book, I think you’ll agree that it’s a great addition to your business library.

There are two levels of customer service. The first is meeting the basic requirements that are requested. Unfortunately, this is not even done well today, and we have grown accustomed to just dealing with it. It seems like it is strictly about a transaction, and customer service has nothing to do with it. We have become so used to getting poor service that we get surprised when our basic needs are met, so let me start with the first basic level of customer service, which is not complicated.

Do what the customer expects you to do.
Perform it in a manner that does not seem like you are doing them a favor.
If you mess up, apologize.

It is really that simple but way too many companies miss it. Get this one done right and you are already ahead of many of your competitors.

The second level of customer service is where real success is found.

Doing the basics plus a little more than what is expected is where you delight customers, and it starts with keeping the customer in the forefront of your mind. This is easy to say but often hard to do but excellent customer service always starts with improving the experience of the receiver and therefore it is in their eyes to determine what is pleasing. It is very important to stay aware and flexible.

Providing excellent customer service starts with the willingness and attitude to do it.  Let me give some examples of what it means to give a little more than expected.

• Make every customer feel like they are your most important customer. If you make the time and effort to do this one, you will be a huge winner.
• Learn to be an engaged listener. The term multitasking has gained way too much popularity over the past few years. Forget about it! When you are communicating with a customer, do what is needed to focus your attention only on them.
• Do what you say you are going to do. If you give a deadline or commit to an activity, do it on time or give as much notice as possible if you will not be able to perform on time.
• Keep a positive tone in your voice. It is amazing how rare it is to hear this in someone’s voice, so I bet you can remember the people that do this for you consistently.
• Learn to provide excellent follow up, especially when it is not expected. For example, “I just called to let you know that your shipment delivered yesterday”, “I know that you purchased from us yesterday. Were you pleased with your experience?”
• Put the customer first, not your efficiency. The customer does not care if you can answer a set number of calls in an hour or if your EM box stays clean. I heard a consultant the other day bragging about how clean she can keep her EM box by taking only a set number of seconds to respond to every EM. Sure enough I noticed it the when I was corresponding with her and I have been a client for years. Really, how long does it take to add just a touch of warmth to an EM. Treat us like a number and you stand a pretty good chance of having us leave.
• Don’t just charge by the minutes.
• Last but not least, apologize when you mess up. There is a pretty good chance that you will make mistakes. It is how you recover that makes all the difference. If done well, you might have a better relationship after the mistake than you did before it. Customers are  just not used to a sincere apology.

Next time you are interacting with a customer make sure to pay attention to their needs not yours.  Provide the basics plus a little more and you will keep them coming back time and time again. They might even bring others with them.

The old ones I work with and have always appreciated the way that they serve others. I consider myself lucky to have friends like them.

My new friends were a group of special needs adults that went bowling with us. They arrived in separate buses and totaled around 60 bowlers by the time that we got started. We were set up on the first 12 lanes and I ended up on lanes 11 and 12, where I stayed the entire two hours with the 6 people that I would consider friends by the end of the night. Each one had a very unique bowling style.

First there was Linda. She arrived with medals around her neck. One was for bowling and the other two for basketball. It wasn’t long before I knew why Linda had won the medals. Regardless of whether she knocked down 2 pins (a rarity) or 9 pins, she always turned around with a huge smile and requested a two handed “high 5”. The “high 5’s” turned into a hug if she had a spare or strike.

Cora was a short left handed bowler who stepped up when it was her turn, knocked it out, then sat back down. There was not much wasted effort in her movements. She had taken tabs from soft drink cans and tied them from the shoe lace holes in her shoes. Pretty cool.

Jenks was a man who appeared to be in his late 50’s or early 60‘s with short blond hair and one of the best smiles that I have ever seen. After every bowl, Jenks would turn around, put his hands on each side of his face and laugh out loud. The kind of laugh that caused you to laugh with him. After his turn, Jenks would want us to shake his hand ,from there, he would take my arm and place it around his shoulder for a hug. Jenks’ hugs reminded me of the kind that I get from my daughter. Not just any hug but the kind that expresses a genuine love and friendship. I found myself looking forward to hugs from Jenks.

Dickie was about 6’4’’, appeared to be in his late 60’s and had a sweet way about him. After he bowled his first ball he would turn around, look at us with a big smile and do thumbs up. He would then stand by the ball rack and hold up one finger asking if he had one more to bowl. Following every second ball that he bowled, he would watch it and twitch his right leg up and down as if he was doing a very subtle one legged dance. Once all of the pins were knocked down he would continue standing there staring down the lane for a few seconds before returning to his seat. I never was sure if he was savoring the moment or counting pins.

Bobby started the night off slowly. He did not like crowds so he sat off in the lane 13 and 14 area by himself until it was his turn at which time I had to take him by the hand, help him down the steps, line him up in front of the land and hand him his own ball. After he finished the frame he would need help back to his seat. I thought we had a pretty good thing going until halfway through the first game when he pointed to one of my co workers (Brittany) that was helping out in the same area and made the shape of a heart in the air with his fingers. After that point I was out of the picture for the most part. He was slow to respond to anyone’s help except Brittany’s. I also noticed that Bobby’s bowling improved and his ability to help himself up the steps greatly increased. Amazing how love changes a guy.

On lane 12 we had Ann, Ann and Shawnta.

The first Ann would quietly bowl, slap us a “high five” and then sit back down, usually behind the bowling area where the pizza was set up. We thought it was pretty cool how she would casually bowl then sit down with her non bowling friends, facing away from the lane until it was time for me to tap her on the shoulder to let her know that it was her turn again.

The second Ann would step up and roll the ball harder than most men, pump her fist and sit back down. Ann never said anything except for when she would shout out the name of a famous athlete. It took me about the third shout to realize that she was watching Sportscenter and would recognize one of her favorite athletes or announcers.

And last but not least we had Shawnta. She always sat in the booth at the back until we would let her know that it was her turn upon which time she would always grab her ball on the opposite side of the ball return from the lane where she was bowling. We had to be careful of the traffic jam that was created when she crossed over. Midway through the second game we noticed that she became distracted. A few moments later she pointed to one of our coworkers in the next lane and stated how good looking he was which prompted an introduction. For the remainder of the time her bowling became much better. Amazing how love changes a gal.

So for two hours Brittany, our new friends and I bowled, laughed, shared “high fives” and an occasional hug. Oh yes, and a chorus of “Yellow Submarine” lead by Jenks. We had an extended intermission when the pizza arrived whereby we lost our entire bowling group. They would not be rushed back. We also spent very little time looking at the score on the screen. It was rare when the bowlers looked at the screen and I stopped noticing it as well. In fact, at one point I got lane 11 all tangled up. Cora bowled twice in a row, Bobby was skipped once and a few times they bowled half frames. I had transitioned from caring about the score to looking forward to the “high fives” and hugs.

You see, last night I learned a great deal………

From my old friends, I learned a deeper appreciation for them.

From my new friends, I learned that life is not to be filled with scorekeeping, competition or many of the things that worry us. Life is to be filled with joy and love.

For two hours last night my friends showed me that life can be beautiful.

1. It keeps you from “breaking the bank” when starting something. Today it is not     necessary to overextend to chase a dream.
2. Bootstrapping keeps you sharp. If you start with very little and have to raise money, you get very creative in your methods.
3. It teaches you the art of negotiating.
4. You learn from the very beginning how to watch every penny, which is a tremendous trait to have when running a business. If you have a lot of money to spare you can tend to get sloppy with it if you are not careful.

There are several different methods of bootstrapping that we have used at somewhereover which will discussed in upcoming blog posts but let me mention a few.

1. Bartering or as some of my “Okie” relatives call it – swapping.
2. Selling stuff that you don’t need (a personal favorite of mine).
3. Enlisting friends and family.
4. Begging. Hey, this one gets a bad rap. If you want something bad enough, you should be willing to say please a time or two (or three or four).

Let’s face it, in today’s business environment there are a lot of people with great ideas but they are lacking the resources to explore and fund these ideas. The good news is that it might be easier than ever to explore business opportunities.  Follow us at somewhereover as we try out many of the methods.

No one has ever achieved success without encountering and overcoming challenges. As you encounter roadblocks on your journey to success, keeping your goals and your objectives in mind will be more important that ever. That can be a challenge in itself because losing your vision is all too easy when distracted or sidelined by a tough challenge. It is then, when you are being tested and when you have related doubt that you need to focus even more intently on the goals you have set for yourself.

Of course, you need to revisit your objectives and your goals (personally and professionally) on a regular basis. As you achieve each, look at adding a new goal or objective and at raising the bar as you do. Checking off goals and objectives as we meet them can be a great motivator, but don’t forget to reevaluate your goals and objectives every time you check one off. Then ask yourself what you can do to your list of goals to help you achieve the level of success you desire?

This brings to mind a favorite poem of mine. I’ve often recited it to myself when I needed extra motivation or as I assessed my own goals

“I bargained with Life for a penny,

And Life would pay no more,

However I begged at evening

When I counted my scanty store.

For Life is a just employer,

He gives you what you ask,

But once you have set the wages,

Why, you must bear the task.

I worked for a menial hire,

Only to learn, dismayed,

That any wage I had asked of Life,

Life would have willingly paid.”

Your success should be determined by your individual objectives and goals and not dictated by the world around you. Regardless of what you dream of doing, aim high and bargain with Life for the very best. You deserve it!

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