(By Loyd Ford) Gag me. So much conversation about inflation, supply chain problems and stock market worries. The world has a lot of problems, right? Here’s a secret. All of these things are good for you. They’re not bad.
Of course, they may impact your bottom-line temporarily and for this you should be prepared. Most likely this will hit your transactional business hardest.
Then What Should You Be Focused On?
That leaves the local business owners. They have a choice when a new challenge is presented for their business, and it is a single choice.
- Sell and get out.
- Stay in business and find solutions to propel their business while dealing with the new problems.
That’s really it. So, where does this leave you?
You have a choice
- See your role as being someone who has to sell each of your clients all the time. You know, coffee is for closers
- See yourself as a person who studies and brings solutions to local clients. Adults know they have problems. Business owners are the adults of the business world. But what do adults love? They love it when they know someone has their back and someone brings creative solutions to problems they face regularly. I suggest you be that choice.
I really don’t care if it is inflation, China, low interest rates, high interest rates, difficulty finding employees or anything else. Problems are opportunities.
Do yourself a favor. Stop listening to the noise about the world being over. That’s only going to be right once, and it isn’t likely this (latest) crisis.
You Are In The Discovery Business
Stop seeing yourself as a hunter and start seeing yourself as a problem-solver, a creative that brings your clients unique ideas that they will fear missing out on. Be a detective to find out where money is going in your market. Where are the new opportunities?
Realize and make room for the fact that you are responsible for helping your clients solve the most relevant problems they have week after week.
Money Does Not Stand Still
People think, “Oh, my God, if there is a depression (recession, twin towers falling, monster virus, whatever) money disappears.” No, it doesn’t. Especially today, people have money. You’ve heard a million times, “You have to manage money.” It’s true. If you don’t manage money, it disappears. That’s because money always moves.
Build value and clients buy. No one complains about price if they see the value they are receiving is perceived as more than what they are paying.
One of your key responsibilities is to be watchful and to study where money is moving. What categories need the most help or have the more available money now? Those answers move. Open your sales net by identifying people with a need or people with money (or ideally both) and bring them unique ‘real estate,’ special opportunities and creative solutions to help local clients generate new customers and encourage their existing customers to return more often. Staying in business and finding ways to do that is business in any economy.
Radio is a creative business. We connect people locally. We influence. We are proven to drive new customers to all kinds of businesses and encourage existing customers to return to local businesses more often.
If you have a prospect with a problem, that’s an opportunity.
Go help local clients. They’ll thank you for it.
Loyd Ford is president and chief strategic officer at Rainmaker Pathway Consulting Works (RPC). Reach Loyd at 864.448.4169 or
