BizTipper

Tag: MONEY

  • Maintain Customer Trust: The Power of Listening

    realtor_shakes_hands_with_clients

    One of my greatest pet peeves is telling someone who I am paying what I want and them telling me that’s not what I want. A couple of years ago, an industry contact got me a great audition with a huge Voiceover agency in NYC. I submitted my first audition and they loved it but they stated the quality was not there and for me to record it again. They even went out of their way to send me scripts.  Truth be told, I did not have a professional recording studio in my home and I called one of my old stations to ask if I could use their studios and they were hard up for money and wanted to charge me to use the studio. I was insulted since I had worked there for several years but down the line I realized, I SHOULD have done it. I went to a voiceover “Professional” who had her own cheap studio and when I started to do the reads, she would not give me headphones and she told me I didn’t need them but I KNEW I did. My professional training as a radio announcer and voice actor requires that I hear my delivery. It’s the same as a singer in the studio who has to hear themselves sing so they can make sure they are on pitch and their tones and modulation are on point. At any rate, I needed to get this second tape to the agency ASAP. So I did it in a few reads. I was absolutely not confident that the reads were good and the woman told me I was wrong and that my reads were so good that she wanted to use me for some other projects. This is another one of those situations where I should have used my gut and went to the station instead where I would have had to pay but I would have been in control of my audition and could have stayed there all night if necessary. This woman was in a rush to get me out of there and to just get my money.

    I submitted the audition to the agency and they had a meeting and listened to is and declined me. They stated the reads were not good and to try out again in 2 years, that’s friendly language for “don’t call us, we’ll NEVER call you.”  I was furious. More upset with myself for not following my gut and leaving that woman’s studio. Needless to say, she never called me for the extra work either, she just wanted my money. I’m about to audition again for another major agency and I’m going to make sure i’m on point this time and I do it myself.

    The message in this story is when you are paying for something you have the right to expect what YOU ask for. The same goes for your customers. Never ASSUME you know what they want or take anything for granted. The customer is indeed always right, even when they are wrong in your eyes.  I make a concerted effort to reach out to my clients and double-check certain things with them all the time like do they want their personal cell numbers on ads for Radio Facts email blasts or do they want their email address written out. They ALWAYS thank me for double checking. It’s better to get this done BEFORE I send out the information than to have them be upset when it’s too late. Make sure you listen, write down and confirm when someone is paying you to do something.

    My best in business

    Kevin

  • Entrepreneur Burnout: Most Important Things to Avoid it

    i-m-too-stressed-21631901Yep, first and foremost we KNOW it takes a GREAT deal of effort to hire someone in the first place, you are concerned about paying them and you have to take the time to train them. You wonder if it##Q##s worth it. The answer my friends is YES it is. You will KILL yourself working 14 hour days, the years will fly by and you will not have a life. I know MANY entrepreneurs who endure this on a day to day and it##Q##s not smart. You CAN hire someone and you DON##Q##T have to do the work yourself, you just have to find ways to pay them like hiring them a month at a time or part time. When we make money that is NOT the time to go out and treat yourself to a new car or some extravagant gift (though you should treat yourself) but this is the time to ease the tension and to fork over some of the day to day to someone else to free you up to focus on the things you probably have been ignoring like sales or billing. You will certainly hire the wrong people from time to time as I have and here are some suggestions to avoid costly mistakes in hiring… (click “NEXT” after each segment above or below)

  • Entrepreneur Michael Baisden Offers Excellent Advice on

    Michael Baisden just lost his contract of 10 years broadcasting his radio show on over 20 radio stations nationwide. Baisden owns his own show and used Cumulus media to garner affiliates (stations) to run it. His commentary is below about the situation.

    Michael Baisden Commentary: A Man With A Plan And A Man Of Principles

    I don##Q##t understand why people get so angry when they get fired from a job or dumped in a relationship. Didn##Q##t they see it coming? Or are they so caught up in the “vapors” that they develop a case of selective amnesia?

    The day that someone comes to work for me, I tell them to start planning for life after radio. “What is your plan?” I ask them. And if we##Q##re within 3 years of the end of a contract I have a meeting with my staff and tell them, “Start planning to leave, now!”

    When someone let##Q##s you go in business or relationship, there##Q##s no time for anger, that##Q##s the time to execute your plans. That##Q##s right, I said plans with a capital (S) because you##Q##d better have a plan A, B, and C. And D, if possible.

    Today##Q##s world is not the one our parents grew up in where you can expect to work 20 to 30 years in a factory, get a pension with benefits, and live happily ever after. Those days are long gone! You better start planning for retirement at 25 if you##Q##re serious about having enough money to enjoy your golden years! It##Q##s that serious.

    Life after radio for me is not going to be an issue because unlike many celebrities I did not spend my money on fancy cars, making babies all over town, purchasing big houses, and bling blinging with extravagant jewelry.

    My truck is 5 years old, I have one daughter and she is about to graduate college next month, and instead of buying one of those huge “MTV Cribs” I invested most of my money into rental properties. As the saying goes, “If it##Q##s on your ass…it##Q##s not an asset!”

    We must stop being slaves to our possessions. When we do that we put ourselves at the mercy of those who would take advantage of us. Stop showing off, being flashy is a sign of insecurity. Real wealth does not show off, it moves in silence.

    And above all else, we must set standards and stick to them. Yes, my radio career is over….FOR NOW! And although I may not have the same paycheck come April 1st, I can look at the man in the mirror and be proud of the reflection of the person looking back at me. And that’s what being a real man and woman is all about, having your business in order and standing by your principles.

    Good Night Family – Michael Baisden

  • 5 Ways You May Be Killing Your Business

    Are you a producer, singer, promoter, blogger, writer… whatever kind of small business owner you are this information can help you.

    My name is Kevin Ross and for many years I was a DJ on several radio stations. Truth be told I was good at it but I hated it, I could not be myself and I saw a lot of dirty deals and many of my bosses were not in it for the love of the craft but they were crooks trying to make as much money illegally as they could. You can learn more about me later but to make a long story short, I took what I learned in radio and created a very successful industry magazine called Radio Facts then I morphed the magazine into a successful industry site Radiofacts.com. Thanks to Radio Facts, this June, I will be a seasoned entrepreneur with a business that has lasted 18 years. That’s almost impossible for a small minority business in the music industry. There are MANY things that I have learned over the years with my first business that could have saved me a TON of Time a TON of frustration and a TON of MONEY. We have thousands of people on our mailing list, several with their own small businesses and I see the same common mistakes over and over and over…. Don’t get me wrong I LOVE being in business for myself and would not trade it for the WORLD but you have to make sure you are satisfying your passion if you are in business for yourself otherwise you might as well get a regular job.

    The rules that generate success can often be very different for minority entrepreneurs because we don’t often have the resources to build our businesses. By “minorities” I mean anybody besides white men. Because of our lack of resources, we often help and aid each other in business to remain alive and well in the world on entrepreneurship. Nevertheless there are some HORRIFIC mistakes we often make that sabotage our businesses for years that we may not be aware of. This past June, I did a hardcore beta test of my business in every aspect using some of the excellent free tools to help my business grow and prosper. Using these tools, I’m proud to say, revenue has tripled over the last few months. To help you… I came up with several Great Tips to Improve Your Business and Make Money from a minority business owners perspective. If you have ever wanted to be in business, I am confident these tips will not only help YOU they will greatly help your BUSINESS. (click “Next” above or below to see the tips)

    Kevin Ross – [email protected]

    1. Doing “Favors” and “Hook-ups”

    blogwallet

    The best way to destroy a money making business? Give product away for FREE. if someone asks you for a massive discount or services for free they are completely disrespecting YOU and what YOU DO. One of the BIGGEST mistakes I made with my business from day one was doing “favors” giving people things for free with the (mostly fake) possibility of them bringing business later. It’s the oldest trick in the BOOK. I call them “Carrot Danglers” because they treat you like a dumb science project, they dangle the carrot in front of you and string you along until you are exhausted with no reward in the end. Some of them are SO good they create the impression they are helping you by giving you the opportunity to help them. TELL ANYBODY COMING TO YOU FOR anything for FREE and MASSIVE DISCOUNTS to take a long walk on a short pier. Here are a few of the reasons you should not walk but RUN from these people:

    • They are bad for the self esteem of your business
    • They don’t have the money now but do you have the business now?
    • It’s a win/lose situation and the “win” is NOT in your favor
    • You are being misled, lied to and used moreover what if they tell other potential clients (and they will) they got your service for free or for a massive discount?
    • The person will NEVER see the monetary value in what you do from the point you give them something for free, this is the same as sleeping with someone on the first date. They know the value of your BRAND that’s why they contacted you but they have screwed your business in order to get that value for free… what’s left?
    • Is your rent or mortgage free? Does the bank give you “Hook ups?”
    • Simply tell them “NO” and say “I have to go.” You don’t even have time to have a conversation with someone who does not respect your business. Respect YOURSELF and YOUR business and clients will respect YOU.
    • Ask them to go into a Gucci store and ask for something for free. They will get a “free” trip by security and be shown the door.

    2. Chasing Dead Clients

    blogwallet

    This past year, I made a decision that I was not going to call clients or potential clients who didn’t return my calls after 2 tries. It’s a waste of your time and energy to pursue people who don’t believe in your brand or perhaps they don’t believe in you. MOVE ON. Ideally, your brand should be generating clients if you are reaching your target but if you have to make calls understand how this can drain you and your business. There are many people who will support you ONLY because they like you. That’s mostly how the entertainment industry works but other industries like online blogs and sites based their advertising on unique visitors, they may not even know the site owner but if he or she has enough “uniques” that qualifies for major advertising. I also talk about “Running From Some Clients” this details difficult clients in perspective.

    3. Corrupt Competition

    blogwalletCompetitors can be ruthless and clients can have a bit of fun telling you what they are saying about you. My competitors for example, steal content and pictures from my site and take credit for it… I know everything my competitors say about me to my clients and much of it is absolutely idiotic. Two competitors in particular ask my clients “Why are you advertising with Kevin?” How stupid is that? Then they get cussed out and rightfully so. The competitors are idiots because they think by making my clients “aware” that they know they are supporting my brand will generate automatic support for them. Truth be told their brands SUCK but they are too lazy to fix THAT or perhaps they don’t know how and that’s why they are not getting support in addition the client gets pissed when being questioned about how they spend their budgets so the dumb competitor digs himself or herself deeper into the grave.

    4. Know Your Audience

    blogwallet

    This is OUTRAGEOUSLY important and believe it or not MANY entrepreneurs DON‘T know their audience they target their audience based on their own thoughts or beliefs. Major mistake. Programming radio taught me how important it is to know your audience. I describe many ways you can discover who your audience is.

    5. Hire Duplicate “You’s”

    blogwallet

    You must and I can’t say this enough you MUST hire other people and you MUST delegate. The people you hire should be self starters. Excuses and flipping the script are not acceptable, if they can’t do the work you show them on their own they have to go. Find people who can mimic you and who think like you do. If you try to do everything yourself your business will never grow.

    Some of the OTHER topics covered:

    • Why your Business won’t Grow
    • Why it’s best to walk away from some Clients
    • Find out what competitors are saying and doing behind your back
    • Ways to grow your business and rise above competitors
    • Now that you’re making money Do THIS ….

    and more, order your copy early for this eBook “Make Money: Learn the Ways to EARN.” It will be $10.95 next week. If you pre-order now, you will get a link via email with the eBook next week (March 1, 2012)

    Kevin Ross
    http://radiofacts.com

  • Blog Business: Making the Most Money with Google Adsense

    making money with adsense

    Making the Most Money with Google Adsense

    CONTENT IS KING but the way you POST the Content is law
    Copying a story for your blog that is already on 10,000 other sites is not going to win over many fans. Why should they come to you when they can get the same information 10,000 other places? If you DO repeat a story, add a twist to is and RE–WRITE the titles. You can check to see how many other people have used your title already by searching for it in Google BEFORE you do the actual post. The title of this story is Make MORE Money with Google Adsense.