better-business

Michael Port: Innovtion Starts With You

by on May 28, 2011

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Every successful entrepreneur, indeed every successful person, is an innovator. You might be saying to yourself, “Not me, I’ll never invent the light bulb. Don’t confuse the idea of innovation with the idea of invention. An innovator can change perspective and adopt new habits. Innovation is changing the way you do and see things. It is asking yourself, “How will I view my business differently today than I did yesterday?” For many people, innovation can be overwhelming. We can feel trapped by our business, stuck in habits, practices, and perspectives. “I work with clients one at a time,” you might think. The idea of creating and licensing intellectual property may seem beyond your reach. You feel safe with your present practices. I know. I’ve been there. I still am, because it’s not a one-shot deal. You can’t innovate and be done with it. Innovation, building a bigger, better business, is an organic process, iterative and ongoing. Every time you solve a problem or meet a challenge, a new one presents itself. Innovation is a process of creation, maintenance, and destruction followed by re-creation and so on. It’s very rare to be able to dust off your hands and say, “Now then, I’m done.” What does it really mean to innovate? Divesting the busywork that takes up too much of your time, which would be better spent with your clients on your “real” work — that’s innovating. Figuring out how to outsource the mechanisms for keeping in touch with clients through regular mailings or other contact — that’s innovating. Implementing new record-keeping systems — that’s innovating. Finding little ways to alleviate annoyances — that’s innovating. Restructuring your business so it’s built for growth, while at the same time lightening your load — that’s innovating. My dear friend, Hal Macomber , whose insight on innovation and doing projects has been invaluable to me, likes to use the orange juice carton example to illustrate this cycle of innovation. For a long time, orange juice was sold in cardboard cartons with cardboard spouts. But orange juice in this form (i.e., not frozen concentrate) didn’t last very long. So something had to be done to give the orange juice longer shelf life. Pasteurization turned out to be the answer, which was great, except for one thing: Orange juice (which is a long-lasting acid liquid) degraded the cardboard spout. One challenge solved, another presented. Something had to be done, or the paperboard industry couldn’t supply cartons to the orange juice producers anymore.The next innovation was the plastic spout on the cardboard juice container. Great, again. Of course, the plastic spout likely brought its own new challenges, but we won’t get into those. As each new hurdle is overcome, another presents itself. And the cycle repeats again and again. Take the plunge and become an innovator. It’s not nearly as daunting as it seems. In fact, it can and should be exhilarating, which is not to say it won’t be hard work — it will be, but that’s okay because in the end you’ll be experiencing the deep sense of purpose that comes from the pursuit of mastery.

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Michael Port: Innovtion Starts With You

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Anne Phillips: Suckers in the Garden

by on May 13, 2011

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PT Barnum I guess said it best ” There is a sucker born every minute.” Unfortunately I think we can be much more gullible when times are more difficult. When we get a call from a potential client that has a large project, or one that says they have several properties and is looking for a landscaper to partner with, we want to believe that it isn’t someone looking for free design ideas. Just like the suckers on your roses that drain the plant of energy, these folks looking for suckers to take advantage of take time away from serious clients and work. My goal, as with rose suckers, is to spot them quickly and snip them off before too much time is wasted. I just returned from a meeting I was supposed to have at a firm that billed itself as one that will assist you in getting government contracts. I had my doubts when speaking with them on the phone but when I looked at the website it looked professional. You see chamber associations, Better Business Bureau, and a Forbes link. There weren’t any reviews on any site posted so I thought I would check them out. As I waited for my appointment I looked at all of these framed chamber memberships, and the Forbes piece. It turns out the Forbes piece was a paid advertisement — so not an article on them at all. Nothing that they didn’t pay for was on that wall. All chamber memberships (paid for), the Better Business Bureau (which costs you $300 or so a year), and this advertisement. All of this with the hopes of making them look legitimate. The sad part about this is that many people that don’t have the experience or education will think this makes them a credible company. They are going after contractors that typically don’t have the highest levels of education and fit that category of being the hardest hit in the recession. It turns out of course that they charge you a fee to find this work. This is work that is available to anyone for free on government websites. I left without having the meeting. I do have to say the person that has put this together is slick. They schedule multiple people to come in at once. This way it looks like you are competing with other people. They have desks in the waiting room with folks that look like they are working (if you listen you hear they really aren’t but one of them was playing a game on her computer). They make it seem like you need to be interviewed to qualify but no input was given when questioned what those qualifications really are. Things really haven’t changed much since PT Barnum. The same conman tactics apply. This week I had what seemed like a nice couple contact me about doing some landscaping at a home they were remodeling and going to sell. I was told that they had several investment properties and they were looking for a new landscaper to work with. The one they had been working with was not honest with his pricing. I met with them, produced the estimate with some ideas on plants and hardscape. But instead of questions I got a request for a sketch for their financial partner. This of course is usually explained as just a formality, we really want to go with you because we like your ideas so far. Having been a sucker a few times in my early years as a designer, I recognize this as the I am looking for a free design so I can get some folks that are not licensed or insured to install it for me at half of what you will charge. As I always do now I say ” Great, I look forward to working with you. I will send over my design contract and we can get started. Design fees of course apply towards the installation so you don’t have to worry it won’t be extra for you.” At this point unless I have really misjudged them (unfortunately rarely happens) I don’t hear back. On to the next potential sucker. Looking at it now, I see the same pattern as with this faux government assistance agency: Try to seem legitimate (they took me to a house they were working on), create the impression that only one or a few will be chosen (they kept saying they were interviewing others and of course only one will be chosen), make the mark (con man lingo) believe you like them and are going to select them if they just give you a free design (or wire money etc.), then when the mark gives you what you as a good con man you disappear. So life isn’t that different from what goes on in the garden. There is always a lot of weeding to do and keep the suckers to a minimum.

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Anne Phillips: Suckers in the Garden

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New Rule Cracks Down On Debt Settlement Industry

July 29, 2010

NEW YORK — Companies that promise to reduce or eliminate credit card balances and other debt for customers will no longer be allowed to charge an upfront fee. The Federal Trade Commission said Thursday that the new restrictions are a crack down on the debt settlement industry, which flourished during the economic downturn as borrowers struggled to pay bills. Debt settlement companies will now only be able to charge a fee once a customer’s debt has been reduced, settled or renegotiated. The rule goes into effect Oct. 27. Since the start of the recession, the Better Business Bureau has received more than 3,500 complaints about debt settlement companies. Customers complained that they ended up deeper in debt or were sued by creditors after failing to make payments. The bureau did not separately track complaints against the industry prior to the recession. Debt settlement companies often charge an upfront fee, typically a percentage of the customer’s outstanding balance. In exchange, the company promises to negotiate with creditors to reduce or eliminate the debt, sometimes by as much as half. The new FTC regulations also require debt settlement companies to disclose to customers how long it will take to get results, how much it will cost, and any negative consequences that could arise from the process. For example, customers can go deeper into debt when they hire a debt settlement company. This is because customers stop making payments on their loans, and late fees and interest charges continue piling up. Customers are also often required to start setting aside money in a separate account maintained by the debt settlement company. This money is intended to eventually pay off any remaining debt. Under the new rule, however, companies will only be able to require such an account if it’s maintained at an independent financial institution under a customer’s name. The customer must also be able to withdraw the money at any time without penalty. The amendments to the FTC’s telemarketing sales rule apply to any debt relief companies that sell services over the phone. They do no apply if the initial contact is in-person, or if the services are rendered entirely online. The new rule will cover the vast majority of the debt settlement industry, however, because most companies use TV and radio ads to advertise toll-free phone numbers for customers to call, said Allison Brown, an attorney with the FTC. Debt settlement companies that step outside the rules will be subject to a $16,000 fine per violation. The Federal Trade Commission’s rules only apply to for-profit companies. The agency warned that it will go after companies that pose as nonprofits. The Better Business Bureau cautions customers to be wary of any organization that charges steep upfront fees and makes promises that sound too good to be true. The group also suggests that struggling borrowers first try contacting lenders directly to negotiate debt. Alternatively, borrowers can seek help from nonprofit credit counseling centers, which typically charge small nominal fees for help managing debt. Nonprofit credit counselors can be located on the National Foundation for Credit Counseling’s website at . http://www.nfcc.org

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A better business outlook for Pakistan in new financial year

July 12, 2010

A better business outlook for Pakistan in new financial year

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Walmart Ad Claims To Save Families $700 Million A Year

May 21, 2010

Last year Walmart got into some trouble for claiming it saved shoppers $700 a year just by shopping its stores. Competitors took issue with the claim, as did the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, and the ads were pulled. But Walmart is at it again, saying it can save shoppers $28 a week with its latest round of reduced prices. That’s more than twice the amount it claimed that got it into hot water last year. Is it true?

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Janis Bowdler: Setting the Record Straight: Why Auto Dealers Do Not Need Carve-Outs

April 28, 2010

Auto dealers arrived on Capitol Hill yesterday seeking special carve-outs from the proposed “Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010″ (S. 3217) . This banking reform bill aims to put an end to the reckless practices of Wall Street and the abusive and discriminatory tactics by financiers of all stripes. In their search for a loophole, auto dealers claim that the bill will restrict affordable car loans and result in fee hikes. The dealers’ concerns, itemized in a press advisory issued by the National Auto Dealers Association on April 26, patently ignore clearly stated rules in the bill. Before more misinformation is propagated, we need to set the record straight. The auto dealers are urging senators to avoid over-regulating their dealerships, burdening them with redundant laws, and ultimately limiting consumers’ credit options. These concerns are unfounded. A key feature of the “Financial Stability” bill is to consolidate the consumer protections currently scattered across several federal agencies under one roof by creating a Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA). The CFPA would be charged with monitoring the financial marketplace and structured to react quickly to new tricks, scams, and abuses. In the case of auto dealers, the CFPA would not regulate the sale of a car or financing when the borrower obtains their financing from their bank or credit union. Dealers would only be subject to regulation―as they are now―when they affect the terms and conditions of auto loans. The bill would not impose onerous new regulations, but give the CFPA the authority currently held by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the primary regulator of most auto dealers: the power to address unfair or abusive lending practices wherever they occur. This would ultimately save the consumer money, not limit their credit options. While not much will change for auto dealers in the way of rules, the CFPA promises to indentify and stem abusive trends that have cropped up in the loosely enforced rules of today. Of all industries, auto dealers could use another cop on the beat. They are consistently the top source of consumer complaints to the Better Business Bureau and state and local consumer protection agencies. As in the mortgage industry, predatory and abusive financing practices have occurred throughout the auto market. Such abuses are especially prevalent among borrowers of color. Research shows that similar to home loans, Latino and African American borrowers are charged unnecessary mark-ups much more frequently than their White peers. The “Financial Stability Act” will improve matters for consumers and ultimately lenders alike. Having authority over all lending entities, such as auto dealers, a strong CFPA would streamline and reward better practices and contribute to stabilizing the market. Exemptions for special-interest groups would carve out major players who have committed some of the biggest offenses in stripping our families of their honest dollars. Click here for more information.

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Breast Cancer Awareness VIDEO: Watch Out For Misleading Pink Labels

October 14, 2009

It’s Breast Cancer Awareness month, and breast cancer is not the only thing you should be aware of. The next time you see pink packaging beckoning you from the shopping aisle, don’t fall for it right away – sometimes, pink is just pink. According to a report by Wish TV , some products (especially cleaning supplies) just slap some pink on their packaging and a “Breast Cancer Awareness” emblem, but don’t take it a step further by donating any proceeds. There’s arguably nothing wrong with making people aware of Breast Cancer Awareness month. However, it’s clearly a marketing ploy, as consumers understandably assume that a pink ribbon equals a donation. So instead of donating to the cause, the company actually capitalizes off of it. Things are also ambiguous when it comes to companies that are making donations. Breast Cancer Action , the watchdog of the breast cancer movement, is a great resource for tracking down information such as: how much money is being donated per purchase, to what organization, and for what kind of research. The Better Business Bureau also issued a warning of fake pink ribbons and how to avoid being duped. A simple way of spotting products that definitely donate to the cause is by looking for the pink ribbon paired with a dot, which is the symbol for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation. Bottom line: Think before you buy pink.

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