Harden Up - the T-shirt that said it all...
April 13th 2012 05:33
But While The Message Was Pertinent Should He Have Been Wearing It In Public?
The other day I was in a hardware store, and I saw a bloke wearing a t-shirt that so completely grabbed my attention, that first my jaw dropped and then I giggled, and also felt compelled to say something to him... "as you do"...
Here is what it said:
"Go To Bunnings - Buy Some Concrete - And Harden The F*** Up"
(And there were no asterisks - the glorious F word was spelled out in full.)
I was being a bit cheeky when I approached him, and said, "That's rude!"
He assumed of course that I was inferring my shock was generated from the F word.
I laughed at his equally cheeky response then said, "No, I am talking about 'Bunnings'!"
The point was relevant because we were not in a Bunnings Warehouse - we were in one of their competitor's stores!
He got my point.
But what is my point today... and why did the T-shirt say it all?
I certainly don't echo the guts of the message on this man's t-shirt, at least not in the aggressive tendency.
However, I agree with the sentiment - to a degree - as it applies to today's business operators who sadly are feeling more overwhelmed day by day about the "current economic climate".
I would have to say, when I hear the typical comments being reported of business owners' feelings and experiences, I am almost inclined to be brutal and say, "Toughen Up Princess"... (but instead offer a genuine sense of compassion in my tone...
)Look, I am not going to argue with them about tough conditions.
There are enough business- and consumer- confidence surveys out today that support claims about consumers spending less in retail outlets, while seeming to spend more online when they do shop.
But that's not entirely true.
A large sector of the market - the families with mortgages - are not redirecting their spending online instead of supporting bricks and mortar retailers.
In fact, recent survey results suggest that they are investing more of their income into their mortgages - presumably to give themselves some breathing space if things get tough, to build up equity perhaps and even possibly to just get the mortgage paid off quicker.
What's frustrating me about the "common flow" of viewpoints from business owners, especially those in Small to Medium Enterprises, is that there is an inclination to "whine" about how bad things are, yet get their "backs up" at the thought of taking reasonable action (ACTION, people) to change what's happening.
"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results."
It applies very accurately in this situation - business owners appear so flat, overwhelmed, distrusting, armoured, and resistant to something they may not have tried before.
My speculation is that Australia's once trusting nature was destroyed in the 90s when a swag of scammers, rip-off merchants, conmen and women, fraudsters and a host of other criminals took the unsuspecting for a ride that was both costly financially and also psychologically.
Since then Aussies are less inclined to trust, and have instead become cynical and extremely cautious - to the point of "cutting their noses off despite their faces".
Completely understandable.
But potentially damaging to their business growth.
So, toughen up. Stop complaining about things that you are not taking action to rectify. If you can't trust taking risks in today's business climate, you better have an escape hatch built into your business. You're going to need it.
Be prepared to take action.
Calculated risk - that's what it's about.
Knowing the risk you are taking, estimating what the positives are in respect of the down sides and then determining what you can handle - financially and psychologically - that will take your business into the future, successfully.
Let me finish today's tale by recounting my experience today.
I was meeting a client in the city.
We live on opposite sides of the city to each other, so the city was a good middle ground.
I suggested a large easily accessible place with lots of car parking.
We met upstairs in a large cafe.
Here is what I observed and mentioned to my client, to make a point of my case for my marketing services:
I had to wait for almost 45 mins for my client to arrive due to her being held up by a series of events. I was fine about it, just concerned I had to cut my time with her short.
As I sat in the cafe:
Lots of people came and went, maybe a dozen or more.
About another half dozen or so came in, took their orders to tables and sat for a while.
This continued on when my client arrived.
I ordered our coffees and not at any time during the 90 minutes I was at their cafe did they engage in conversation with me; nor did they engage with me at the register other than to thank me for my order.
There was NO conversation, there was no way of them ever identifying me as a repeat customer as they never asked me for anything. I was a stranger and would remain so.
What could they have done differently?
Asked me to complete a 3 question survey on a slip of paper that would also have asked me for my first name, email address and mobile number.
Three questions - would take me about 15-30 seconds to complete - the length of time it took the barista to make my coffee order. (Want to know what 3 questions? Contact me.)
Or, he could have said, "Thank you for coming to our cafe" and provided me with a punch-card and a free sweet. That would both satisfy my sweet tooth and encourage me to come back again to get the punch card filled with the necessary quota of punch holes that would show I had previously paid for 6 cuppas and earned the next one for free.
Beyond capturing my details, there is another action he could take:
He could offer an incentive to all local business people - book lunch for six or more, and receive free coffees... and register with name, mobile and phone number.
See!
There are simple - QUICK - easy ideas that don't take long.
But the mistake is, the business owner was NOT doing any of them and he MISSED capturing for future marketing and promotions over 30 people who walked in, had food and drink and walked out. All remaining as strangers.
Think about it.
Then contact me at the Profit Frog for assistance to "harden up".
Call - 61 1300 -- 98 -- 36 -- 41
There is someone to answer your call at all times.
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