Social Media Soft Skills - To Tweet or Not to Tweet?

President Trump has used Twitter as his 'Social Media Bully Pulpit." Whether you think he is being successful using it or not I am sure it has made you look at your own use of social media for your business and wonder how you appear to your customers.

Here are a few tips on how to make sure your use of social media enhances your business.

1) Choose the right media. There are many options for people to use in order to promote their business. One of the biggest mistakes I see a business tries to do them all or take on too many. Use the social media that your customers use. If they are on Facebook then you should be on Facebook. If they are on Instagram then so should you. There are various software available that will help you manage all your social media. Hootsuite is a good example. But even using a software management system takes thought. 

2) Focus your message. People have short attention spans. Each post to social media should have just one simple message. Promote a sale, an event, a product and leave it at that. 

3) Ask for feedback. Customers love to be heard. Ask them what they think about your business. Pay attention to what they tell you. You will get some positive feedback that you may be able to use as a promotion. You will also receive some negative feedback. Addressing that can improve your business and your relationship with those customers.

4) Address complaints - Immediately! The beauty of social media is it gives a very public voice to anyone who take the time to write or record. You will hear from unhappy customers. If you don't you aren't trying. When they complain listen to them. They care enough to let you know. Here is what to do: 1) Thank them for their feedback. 2) Apologize for the problem and do not make excuses for it. 3) Fix the problem if possible. 4) Tell them what you are doing to make sure problems like that do not happen in the future. 5) Thank them again. 

5) Use proper English. Edit your work, better yet, have someone else edit it. If you post something with a lot of grammatical errors and incorrect word usage you come off as someone who just does not care. Worse, you come off as someone who is just plain stupid. 

6) It is all about connections. Good business is about building relationships. Treat your customers well on social media and you will build good relationships with them. They will like and share your posts so more people will know about you and your business. 

Cheers!

Know your weaknesses, play to your strengths

Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. I do. You do.

The question is not do you have weaknesses. The questions are:

1) Do you know what they are?
2) What do you do about them?

If you are brutally honest with yourself you will acknowledge those things where you are not that strong. In my work with budding entrepreneurs one area they are consistently lacking is... wait for it... Finances. Oh, they are great at their craft. They are passionate about their idea and their business. They KNOW it will help save the world, or at least make it a little better.

But when asked about the numbers they become meek and unsure about their business. Sometimes they will admit this, but often they ignore it as an area where they need help. The advice I give them is two fold. First, learn how to understand the numbers. Develop that weakness so it is not so weak. Look at the numbers every day until you can speak and listen to what they mean intelligently.

Second, build a relationship with a good, trusted accountant. Get to know that person and understand their language. Learn how to talk with them.

For some people, the numbers are their strength. To them I say, Awesome! But, I then ask, what are your growing edges? Where do you need help? Could it be marketing? Could it be people skills? Could it be recognizing new opportunities?

Know what your area of need is and find a way to strengthen it. Build up your own skill, and build a relationship with someone who can assist. Hire them if necessary.

Ultimately, this is about self understanding. Self Knowledge. Successful entrepreneurs are very self aware. If you are not sure what your are ask a trusted friend. As your business associates. Ask people you trust where you need help. Also ask them what they perceive your strength to be. Ask them to be honest with you.

But do not only trust them. Go to an objective source. Below are two books I recommend. They can help you go through a process in which your strengths (and conversely, your weaknesses) are highlighted. Once you understand what you are good at, you can focus on that and have other people take care of those things where you can use a little help.

Top Ten Reasons to NOT Start a Business

Last post I gave my top ten reasons for starting a business. There are a lot of other reasons, but these are the ten that keep coming up in my work with entrepreneurs.

Now let's look at the other side. What are the reasons for NOT starting a business. Here are my top ten?

10) It is demanding on your time.  When I speak to budding entrepreneurs I tell them if they want to start a business the need to be prepared to work 28 hour days, 8 days a week.

There is usually silence after that comment as I see them trying to calculate what I just said. Starting a business is demanding and can literally suck all the time out of your day.

9) You have to deal with people who are not as committed to your business as you are.  They can be employees, contractors, suppliers, or any number of people you need for your business to be successful. They are not as invested in your business on the same level you are. In fact, no one will be as committed to your business as your are. This can change your personality into someone others do not like.

8) You have to make difficult decisions. Yes, you get to make decisions for your business and take it in any direction you want to. You also have to decide to do things that are not popular. You may have to reduce your employee base. You may have to change suppliers. You may have to discontinue a relationship with a partner, who is also a friend.

7) Your business is your reputation. Bad things happen. You may have an employee or business partner who does something that goes against the culture you want the business to have. Worse yet, they could do something illegal. And it reflects on your business. It reflects on you.

6) You have to pay taxes etc etc. Business is not cheap. There are some taxes you just cannot get out of. You also have to pay employees, utilities, loans, and more. You will get paid last, after all those other obligations are fulfilled every month.

5) You have 5,000 bosses. You have to listen to your customers. You may want to take the business in one direction. But your customers are telling you, in many ways, they will do business with you if you go in a different directions Customers can be demanding. You are taking their money, they want what they want.

4) You will experience extreme frustration.  You will be pulled in 73 directions at once, will need to fund the business, NEED MORE HERE 

3) You have to do things you just do not like to do. There are many facets to a business. You may be the best at what you do, but you may suck at the business side of things. You have to know marketing, customer service, accounting, finance, forecasting, operations, organization, and a lot more. And you may simply hate doing those things.

2)  You may get divorced. The business is demanding on your time, your energy, your personality, your love. At the end of the day (1 am) you have nothing left. And that person who has been your spouse, partner, lover, needs some of you. There is nothing left to give and the alarm will go off very soon starting another demanding day.

1) You can lose all your money. When I discussed the top 10 reasons to go in to business for yourself I mentioned money as the last reason. #10. Here it is #1 because starting a business is a HUGE risk and does take a lot of capital. If the business does not succeed you , and your investors, can lose everything that was put in to the business. Sure, there are ways to reduce and minimize the risk, and you should do all you can to do just that. But there are no guarantees.

Top Ten Reasons to Start a Business

You may be thinking of starting a business. Below are ten reasons why that could be a good idea for you. Ultimately it is your decision, but it should be an educated decision. You are in for a lot of hard work, late nights, and frustration. It is not easy, but it can be worthwhile. Here is why.

10) You can make a lot of money. OK, some people would put this as #1. Not me. Making money is the RESULT of all the other reasons. If you start your business because you only want to make a lot of money you will eventually fail. But, business ownership can lead to financial independence and security. Please do it for the right reasons.

9) You can hire who you want. There is a saying in business, Hire slowly, Fire quickly. You will have people work for you. There will be a team of people who work with you (think accountants, lawyers, bankers). They will help run and grow your business - maybe. It is critical you have the right people doing that work. As you business grows you will need to rely on and trust your employees to provide the customer service you want and need for your company to grow. You will need your team to help you make good decisions. So take your time in bringing in the right people. And if you learn the fit is not right then cut ties as quickly as you can.

8) You make the decisions. You wake up Monday morning and discover there is a problem at work. You deal with it. You do not have to go to a boss or committee to get permission to take action or to decide what the best action to take might be. You deal with it, or delegate who you want to deal with it.

On the other hand, you wake up Monday morning and see an opportunity. You can jump on it. You do not have to go to a superior and make your case. Just do it.

7) You can set your own hours. I played in a charity golf tournament a while back. One of our foursome had played golf the day before, and he was going to play the next day. He loved golf so much he played five days a week, more some weeks. When the weather got cold, he went south. He would periodically be on the phone with the office and provide direction to one of his employees. He had built his business to the point his employees took care of 95% of what needed to be taken care of. And he played golf. Now this did not happen on day one, it took time. But he was able to do what he wanted.

6) You can be respected in the community. Most business owners I know want to give back. They want to be involved in their local community and contribute in some way. By being involved they make a positive contribution and also make connections. They help other businesses, organizations, and families. Some serve on the local chamber. Some coach a youth league sport. Some volunteer for charity events. There are countless opportunities to share their expertise with others.

5) You are your own boss. This does relate to #8 above, but it is more than about making decisions. You can be the boss you want to be. Remember those bad bosses you have had? You do not have to be that way. Remember that one good boss you had? You can emulate how she treated you and other employees. Your business is an extension of you. It expresses your values. You create the culture of the business.

4) You receive tax benefits. This is a very practical reason. The car you drive, the trips you take, the dinners you buy, the home office in which you work, and more, can all be provided by the business and/or be a tax write off. (Disclaimer - I am not an accountant or an attorney. Please consult with a reliable CPA regarding these benefits.)

3) You can do good for society. Look around. There are a lot of problems in the world. Choose one, it does not have to be a big one like world hunger, and develop a solution for it. If you can solve one problem, and if people will purchase your solution, and if enough people will purchase your solution, you have done two things. You have bettered their lives. You have made money doing so.

Another benefit you are providing society is you are creating jobs for people. They work for you, you compensate them. They spend and save that money. That contributes to the economic engine. Even if they do not work for you directly you are still helping provide jobs. When you do business with a supplier that supplier is able to pay employees.

2) You can be proud of what you have done. Your business is your baby. You have conceived of the idea, You have nurtured the idea and felt it develop. Finally, you have delivered your product or service - and it is beautiful! Step back and admire. You have contributed to society and have helped make people's lives better (including your own!).

1) You can do what you love. This is the number one reason to take this step. If you have a passion for something and want to spend a lot of time doing it, why not get paid? I know people who love to bake - and have started successful bakeries. I know people who love computers and analytics - and have started successful technology companies. I know people who are really in to health and nutrition who have started successful businesses around those. What would jazz you every day if you had to do it? That is not work.

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I recently read a book by Simon Senek called Start with Why. It is an easy read, and a profound book. His message is clear - know and understand WHY you are doing what you are doing. I highly recommend the book. You can read it in one sitting, but will want to refer back to it.

Here is a link to it on Amazon:  Start With Why