Process Prodigy – Work Less, Make More Money & Create Outrageously Effective Systems for Your Business

It’s fiesta time. My mom, sister-in-law and I threw a wedding shower fiesta for my cousin who is taking a trip down the aisle in just a few weeks. Good friends, close family and margaritas – how can you go wrong?

Last week’s article was all about my crazy hair and how you can take your business from wild and crazy to smooth and organized (if you missed it, you can still catch it on my facebook page www.facebook.com/bethschneider).

As we start the final quarter of the year, I thought it was time for a little pep talk. I had the privilege of meeting and hearing astronaut Buzz Aldrin speak at a charity event and found him very inspiring so I thought I’d share my inspiration with you. Enjoy.

Beth and Family

Here I am with my cousin aka the bride-to-be at our fiesta themed wedding shower. For me, family and friends are my highest priority so I spend a lot of time with them. What’s your highest priority?

Who Says the Sky’s the Limit?

By Beth Schneider

“The sky is not the limit. The limit is what you set.”

- Buzz Aldrin, Apollo XI Astronaut, one of the first two humans to walk on the moon

“To Infinity and Beyond.”

- Buzz Lightyear, Space Ranger

So it seems that all the “Buzz” is about being able to have whatever you want. Are you ready to shoot for the stars (and beyond)? Have you thought about your goals and what you can do to reach them? If you could have anything you wanted, what would that be? And don’t forget to dream BIG. Buzz Aldrin, Apollo XI Astronaut said it best when he said, “The sky is not the limit. The limit is what you set.” And since he’s been beyond the sky, I think he’s worth listening to. Here are 5 tips to give your business a kick start.

1. Hire experts

Remember when you were a kid and someone on the playground yelled out, “know it all”? It was an insult. Well fast forward to today, not much has changed. I’m sure you are brilliant at what you do, but you can’t be an effective expert at everything. The easiest way to get ahead is to focus on your strengths and bring in the help you need. When I started spending money on experts to help me, people like a coach, a copywriter, a marketing consultant I actually started making more money. Consider what expert could advise you, guide you and help you put more cash in your pocket.

2. Rely on your team

You took that first step and got yourself a team (even if that only means one person). Sometimes it’s hard to let go and actually let them help you. You are not alone. One client was convinced he had to be woken up and informed about all emergency 3 am calls. It took me 30 minutes to convince him that his emergency on-call manager could handle it by himself . . . while he gets his beauty sleep. You know what convinced him? An effect, efficient process that kept him in the communication loop and ensured his clients would get the same attention and quality he insists on. You too can set up processes and systems that allow your team to do it all for you. Need some help with that? Check out the Outrageously Effective Systems Club.

3. Take small bites

There used to be this commercial where a kid shoved two mouthfuls of cereal into his mouth at once and the wiser, older sister looks at him and says, “take human bites.” When you are looking at a huge laundry list of projects. It can get overwhelming. Take a look at what you have on your plate. Decide what the most important things to accomplish are and start there. Schedule specific time to work on them first. It’s easier and more effective to finish the cereal one human bite at a time rather than shoving the entire bowl in your mouth at once.

4. Get back on the horse

Face it, life is not always a bed of roses. Sometimes things don’t go your way. Nobody ever seems to talk about the things that go wrong, but disappointment happens. Know that it happens. That everyone has been there. The key is to get buck up, wipe yourself off and keep going.

5. Go on vacation

So you don’t have time for a break, eh? Taking a break will actually help you. Some of my best ideas have come while sitting on a beach relaxing. Your mind needs time to rejuvenate and wander. Put a vacation on the books or book yourself a “staycation”. Spend the day being a tourist in your own town or book a day at the spa. You’ll come back relaxed and ready to head towards your dreams.

Stay focused and you’ll keep moving as Buzz Lightyear would say to infinity …. and beyond.

© 2009 Beth Schneider, Process Prodigy, Inc.
Want to reprint this article? Feel free as long as you include the following:
Beth Schneider, President of Process Prodigy Inc., www.processprodigy.com, along with her team of highly sought after operations consultants, reveal the insider secrets billion-dollar corporations pay thousands of dollars for. Specializing in process creation, Process Prodigy tools and techniques have helped entrepreneurs increase productivity by as much as 600%, and revenues by as much as 250%. Visit www.processprodigy.com/ezine and grab your FREE systems starter kit valued at $297.00

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Thoughts from your Systems Goddess, Sandye Linnetz, Process Prodigy

Is marketing in your advertising budget??? Or is advertising in the marketing budget??? Are they the same? Related? What??? If you are having trouble differentiating between the two… read on.

By definition, ADVERTISING is a transitive verb which means:
To describe or draw attention to (a product, service, or event) in a public medium in order to promote sales; the paid, public, non-personal persuasive message or promotion by a sponsor or firm of its products or services to existing and potential customers.

MARKETING is a transitive verb which means:
To advertise or promote something; the systematic planning and implementation of business activities to bring together buyers and sellers for the mutually advantageous exchange or transfer of goods or services.

Ah, now we begin to see where the confusion enters the picture. It appears that the two verbs are not only related, but seemingly almost the same. But NO, my friends, the two are quite different and understanding that difference may just be the key to being successful in BOTH arenas.

Consider that advertising is more directly related to lead generating while marketing is a foundational business tool we can use to see that those advertising dollars are wisely spent – by first getting pertinent information about your customers so that money is spent in appropriate areas. Although many of us would like to believe otherwise, not everyone is a potential customer for your business. Therefore, doing the research and analysis first – Who are our customers? Where are they? What and why do they buy from us? – is essential. Knowing who our customers are; the customers’ demographics, preferences and buying habits, allows us to advertise in ways that can almost guarantee desired results.

I’ve talked about Michael Gerber and his book, The E-Myth. His organization uses the term “marketing” to mean: understanding who your customers are, why they buy, where they are located, and what your overall strategy should be to meet the needs of those customers. That process, as described, is the foundational step that needs to be taken well before advertising happens, so marketing then, is not part of advertising, but the first step – the strategy behind – the advertising plan.

Advertising is a single piece of the marketing puzzle; frequently the most expensive piece. For that reason alone, care must be taken to first do effective marketing/research and planning. Advertising is the piece that, if done well, gets the word out to the customers about who and what YOU are and what you have to offer. We’re talkin’ ad placements, commercials (in all mediums from radio to TV and beyond), direct mail, Internet… get the idea?
The marketing plan (or “marketing process” as we at Process Prodigy prefer) also encompasses market research, sales strategy, media planning, customer support, distribution, and community/public relations. It is when the whole marketing plan is in sync… when everything is working smoothly and effectively – each piece on it’s own and as part of the bigger picture, that we can declare a successful process at work. And that successful process is the payoff for hours and hours and hours of research, planning and implementation.
So, I guess you can advertise your marketing plan… but not market your advertising??? You get it, don’t you?

© 2008 Beth Schneider, Process Prodigy, Inc. Want to reprint this article? Feel free as long as you include the following: Beth Schneider, President of Process Prodigy Inc., www.processprodigy.com, along with her team of highly sought after operations consultants, reveal the insider secrets billion-dollar corporations pay thousands of dollars for. Specializing in process creation, Process Prodigy tools and techniques have helped entrepreneurs increase productivity by as much as 600%, and revenues by as much as 250%. Visit www.processprodigy.com/ezine and grab your FREE systems starter kit valued at $297.00.

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Systemizing Your Business: Are You Advertising Your Marketing Plan?

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