My life is undergoing a bit of a transformation recently, which has been seven and a half years in the making following my first NLP course. This transformation is a good thing. I am getting healthier, more positive and more productive. I know that I am at the start of the ‘next phase’ of my [...]
Continue Reading →BT Telemarketing Numbnuts
My translation of the sales call I just took from BT…. “Hello it’s Martin here from BT, firstly I am going to try and be friendly by asking you how you are today even though I don’t mean it. Next, I am going to state the obvious about the Internet, a subject I know jack-shit [...]
Continue Reading →Impotent Bank Managers
As I was growing my first business, we relied on banks a lot and stuck with the same crew all the way through – Nat West, which became part of RBS, now mainly owned by the Tax Payer due to mis-management. Since I moved on from that business, which was creating well over a million [...]
Continue Reading →Why Mission Statements Are Wank
I went to see a company today and on the wall was a mission statement, part of which said… We aim to be innovative and creative in all that we do. I can’t think of a less innovative or creative way to say that.
Continue Reading →While All Around You Lose Their Heads…
The economic outlook seems more depressing than ever. It’s tough out there, without a doubt. But, I have a circle of five business owners I speak to regularly. We (me included) are all pinching ourselves wondering what we are doing wrong / right. Business is good. For some, it’s better than it’s ever been.
Continue Reading →Why I’m Giving Up On Twitter
This is quite apt, considering my last post about doing fewer things well… I’m giving up on Twitter.
Continue Reading →Doing Fewer Things Well
Optimising your business offering is essential for any company – especially retailers.
Continue Reading →Being Remarkable and Referable
Marketer Seth Godin talks about being remarkable as giving a service / experience that compels someone to make a remark about you. Being just another business in your industry is easy – but then again so is being remarkable when you think about it.
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Who Goes First. Liverpool or Man Utd?
Hypothetical thought, but it’s got me thinking. News International are taking a bashing right now and it’s getting worse by the day. I have to wonder if they can survive in the UK. As a large shareholder (not majority) of BskyB, they are often seen as the owners. Sky is synonymous with Rupert Murdoch and vice versa [...]
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Retail As An Experience
This week, it seems like a tower of playing cards falling down as a number of retailers are either posting huge losses, closing some of their sites or closing the door completely.
My worry is that some simply aren’t flexible enough for the changes in consumer behaviour.