A mid-size Ohio corporation was being featured in a professional publication. This corporation had a reputation for an excellent product. Their bottom line showed the result of good management and efficient production methods. The veteran journalist who wrote the article in the trade journal arrived for his appointment with the company’s CEO. During the interview, the journalist asked a simple question. “What is your product?”. to which the CEO responded, “Satisfied, mature and well-balanced employees“. The answer caught the journalist off guard so he rephrased his question. “What I was asking is what does this company produce?”. He received the same response. The CEO elaborated by explaining that the particular “product” the company manufactured for the auto industry was only a tool to produce what the owners and leadership had established the company to produce, which was satisfied, mature, and well-balanced employees who were good citizens and provided a positive contribution to society. In our first blog of this series, I asked leaders to focus on the purpose of their business. This Ohio company began with a very different purpose and they were very good at fulfilling their purpose. Employees retention was extremely high, the pay was competitive, and the benefits were first-rate. Employees’ families were treated like royalty, the content employees produced greatly, and whatever they produced, they took pride in and the financial bottom line reflected such. When will many of our nations’ companies understand that great ideas, great teamwork, and happy employees produce more? Why are workplaces still filled with hypertensive bosses who use foul language to belittle and berate their underlings hoping that fear and intimidation will increase both production and quality? When do the blinders come off and the harsh tongue become silenced? The majority of employees want their companies to succeed. Company success is the employees’ best hope for job-security, family provision, and a solid retirement. But, many employees consider their job to be who they are and what defines their life. When asked by a new acquaintance as to who they are and what they do, 9 times out of 10, they will reply with a job-related answer. Their job is their identity. Understanding that concept is foundational for a business seeking to hire well, to retain its employees, and to see strong returns on their investment. It is important to develop a culture that provides for the well-being of the employees. History has witnessed and recorded the struggle between business management and the employee union. One can read of the great robber barons throughout history and cringe in anger and disgust at the calloused brutality of leadership motivated only by greed. I want to close the history book and start my own employee’s union in protest. Then, I’ll open a newspaper and read about the power-mongering and blatant disregard for quality and respect for a business...
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We hope you’re enjoying our on-going flip series, The 8 Phases of the Flip – Atlanta. This week, we’ve posted information for our third house located in Atlanta’s East Village. Be sure to check back to watch these transformations evolve! East Atlanta Village Rebuild House Atlanta, GA 30316 We are taking the opportunity to completely tear down and rebuild this home that was originally built in 1935. Size: 3 bedroom 1 bathroom 1,151 square feet = Living Space 4,356 square feet = Lot Size Location: This diamond in the rough is located in the East Atlanta Village neighborhood. The East Atlanta neighborhood has been around since the late 1800’s and was voted as Atlanta’s Best Neighborhood for two consecutive years in 2007 and 2008. East Village is known as being a friendly, warm community and residents rave about the local Farmers Market. There’s a wide variety of food, entertainment, and coffeehouses that make East Village a peaceful and pleasant community to be a part of. Numbers: Purchase price = $108,000 Rehab/New Construction cost = $85.00/square foot Upon completion, this house will be 2,150 total square feet = roughly $182,750 to $190,000 ARV = roughly $400,000 to $420,000 How I found the property: We obtained this property from one of our real estate agents who constantly scours the MLS for houses. We have multiple agents locating deals for us. Budget: We plan on spending $85.00 per square foot which is a little on the higher side due to the premium upgrades that we plan on using. Total budget = $182,750 to $190,000 ...
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In this week’s DIY video, Andrew reminds you to always be on the look-out during the flip process. You might just find an extra bonus or wow factor. These are pre-existing wow factors installed by the previous owner that may save you money or increase your profits! ...
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Marketing 101: Inbound Marketing Explained In the majority of “marketing circles”, one is faced with the following question: “How do I engage people”? With the explosion of the “information age“, we have had to face new realities. One of which is the development of “inbound marketing“. By typing “inbound marketing” into a search engine, HubSpot defines it as “creating and sharing content with the world. By creating content specifically designed to appeal to your dream customers, inbound attracts qualified prospects to your business and keeps them coming back for more“. We no longer wish to be engaged by door-to-door salesmen, pushy car dealers, or even a suggestion from a local retailer. Rather, we sit in front of our computer screen searching and shopping for items we’d like to prove as a worthy choice to purchase. We peruse the online inventories of local car dealers in search of a specific vehicle instead of pulling into the physical car lot to observe it with our own eyes under the watchful eyes of aggressive ever present car sale sharks. Is this an example of a modern desire to avoid confrontational sales people? For me personally, I believe that it’s a desire for efficiency and accurate knowledge regarding practical purchases. What would we do without CarFax? We’d do exactly what our fathers did in the past. Purchase a used vehicle that had been in some undisclosed car accident with a twisted frame that required frequent tire changes due to uneven wear. As marketing professionals, our desire to be efficient buyers should help our realization of the importance in information dissemination. Customers buy because of information and in many cases, make accurate, well thought-out decisions. A recent Fortune 500 company stated that over 95% of their first time retail visitors had already visited them on the web before ever entering their actual store. When planning your marketing budget, I recommend that you first consider how much you should be diverting from mass advertising and how much you should spend on in-bound marketing. In closing, please consider these stats: 1. Inbound marketing costs 62% less per lead than traditional, outbound marketing. 2. 78% of Internet users conduct product research online. 3. In the past year, Web-based email usage dropped a staggering 59% among 12-17 year olds, who prefer to communicate via text, instant messaging, and social networks. 4. 78% of business people use their mobile device to check email. 5. 40% of US smartphone owners compare prices on their mobile device while in-store, shopping for an item. 6. 84% of 25-34 year-olds have left a favorite website because of intrusive or irrelevant advertising. 7. 57% of businesses have acquired a customer through their company blog. 8. 41% of B2B companies and 67% of B2C companies have acquired a customer through Facebook. 9....
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