Do you ever get discouraged with your business or job?  Do you ever feel like you’re the only fighting an uphill battle?  Do you wonder what other businesses are doing to be successful?  How do other business owners overcome the challenges they face on a daily/weekly/monthly basis?

Well, these are all GREAT questions and I’m sure you’re not the only one that’s ever asked them.  In fact, I’d be willing to be there are a LOT of other business owners asking the very same questions.  I know I sure do!

So, where do you find the answers to these questions?  Where do you find the support you need to truly take your business to the next level and beyond?

I can tell you it sure isn’t staying right where you are or associating with the people you normally hang out with on the weekends.  Well, maybe it is, but chances are you’re not always around like-minded people that are thinkers, doers, and go-getters.

However, it’s EXTREMELY important that you surround yourself, even if it’s only on occassion, with people that are thinkers and doers.  People that you can bounce ideas off of, get support from through the challenging times, or just feel like you’re not alone in this scary world of ‘business’.

I raise these questions to you because I spent all of this morning  and most of this afternoon in what’s called a Mastermind meeting.

What’s a ‘Mastermind’ you ask?  Well, it can be many things really, but in this case it’s a group of local business owners here in the Charlotte area that get together at least once a month to talk business ideas and strategies.  We all come from different industries and businesses which makes for a VERY interesting time, especially when it comes to discussing the challenges and issues we face.

However, it’s a good interesting because I LOVE hearing suggestions or commentary from people outside my business.  It gives me a different perspective and way to look at the problems and challenges I face every day.

Another benefit is that I get to associate myself with other successful people that are trying to push and stretch their way to new growth, just like I am.  Napoleon Hill said,

“Men take on the nature and habits and power of thought of those with whom they associate most closely…”

Well, let me say this.  If I can take on the collective nature, habits, and power of though of the guys I get to mastermind with, I’m excited about the fantastic things I’ll be able to accomplish in my business.

So, let me ask you this?  Who are you associating with?  Who are you ‘masterminding’ with?  Are they the kind of people that can help you achieve your personal and professional objectives?  Will they provide you with a solid sounding board upon which to grow and stretch your capacities?

I challenge you to seek out your own mastermind group so that you too can benefit from the power of the collective wisdom!

I’m sitting in a Panera Bread in Orlando, FL right now writing this post, and even though that may not sound like a big deal, it is to me.  You see, if you didn’t already know this, I live in Rock Hill, SC which is a quiet little suburb of Charlotte, NC.

I’m in Orlando today because I was meeting with a prospect I’ve been trying to get some business from for quite some time.  Now, the big deal really isn’t the fact that I’m in Orlando.  The big deal is how I got here.

You see, I woke up this morning at 2:30am, in Rock Hill, SC, to hit the road for a 12pm meeting with this prospect, in Orlando, FL.

That’s right, I didn’t fly.  I drove. All 8+ hours of it and just so I could sit with a prospect for no more than 2 hours and talk about MAYBE doing business together.

Now, I know it sounds like a totally crazy idea, but in my mind it was something I absolutely HAD to do.  See, I’ve been working on building a relationship with this gentleman for quite some time now so I knew he was qualified.  And he’s a bit scatter brained and ADD so if I wanted his undivided attention I knew I had to be sitting in front of him face to face.

No problem, right?  Not so.  He’s on the road about 200+ days a year so getting in front of him is no small feat.  When he told me he’d be in Orlando, FL today and would have a few hours to sit and chat I knew it was an opportunity I couldn’t miss.

So, what are the marketing lessons to learn from this?

First, know that I very carefully qualified this potential opportunity.  I knew he’d absolutely be a good candidate for my services, plus he has the potential to be a very big add for my business  so I was willing to take steps I wouldn’t take with most prospects.

Second, something you just have to do in person.  As much as I talk about creating marketing systems for generating leads, screening and converting those leads, and then maximizing your customer relationships, absolutely NOTHING beats sitting face to face with your prospect.  You just can’t get the same level of communication via email, direct mail, or the telephone you can when you sit down together.

And third, be willing to do big things to land the big fish.  Sure I drove 8 hours to get here and am getting ready to turn around and drive another 8 to get home, but with the way the meeting went, it will be 16 hours VERY WELL spent.

Oh yeah, and why did I drive instead of fly?  Because it was a last minute meeting (I found out about it on Wednesday) and I couldn’t really stomach paying over $700 for an airline ticket when it’ll end up costing me less than $100 in food and gas.  Heh, maybe when I’ve got Donald Trump type money it won’t be that big of a deal. 

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, things will be different from here on out.  And just because not everyone voted for Barack Obama doesn’t make him any less our new President.  In fact, I thought his acceptance speech did a great job of pointing this out.

Now, whether you agree with his agenda and the principles espoused by the Democratic Party or not, the job of rebuilding our economy rests with each one of us individually.  No one can do it alone and it’s going to take a collective effort by us all in order to drag our lagging economy back to where it needs to be.

How do we do this?  By going out and doing a better job of selling the products and/or services we sell, by providing exceptional customer service, and by doing everything we can to make sure our customers spend as much money as possible.

Is it bad to expect your customers to spend money with you?  Absolutely not.  In fact, that’s the only way we’ll be able to stimulate the economy.

As more and more people spend money, there’s more money available for your business to invest in exapansion.  The more money people spend, there’s more available for you to hire more employees, which in turn means they have money to spend on other products and services.

You see, it’s a big cycle and as long as people are spending money, our economy will continue to grow and progress.

Now, there’s always the fear that this new administration will raise taxes to the point that nobody has the funds available to spend more money with you, but whether that happens or not, it’s your job to find customers that have money to spend regardless and then convince them to spend their money with you.  So again, it’s a bit of a cycle.

The big key is to assume that things will be challenging regardless and just go out and focus on finding more new customers, BETTER customers, and then sell them as much as you can.

If you’ll do that, it won’t matter what our new President and his cronies decide to do.

Are you heading to Louisville, KY next week for the annual Green Industry Expo and Green Industry Conference?

In case you’re not aware, it’s Thursday through Saturday (23-25) at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville.  There will be over 60 different educational sessions and 650+ companies showing off their products and services.

If you will be there, let’s meet up!

That’s right, I’ll be making an appearance at this year’s show.  Originally, I wasn’t going to be able to make it because of some family obligations, but I decided it’s important enough that I need to go for at least one day so I’ll be there Thursday the 23rd.

If you are going, drop me an email and let me know so we can get together at some point.  Heck, if there are enough people maybe we could all do lunch or dinner as a group.  It would be a blast to finally meet some of my members face to face!

So, if you’re going let me know and we’ll figure out a time and place to meet up next week in Louisville!

With the news of the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy filing and the $50B sale of Wall Street giant Merrill Lynch to Bank of America, you’d think the sky was falling!  Heck, the stock marketing even fell by 500 points, its worst day since 2001 when the dot com bubble burst.

So with all this news and the general panic and uncertainty that results, is it impossible to even think about growing a thriving, successful lawn care or landscaping business in this climate?

In one word, ABSOLUTELY!

You see, regardless of what the media wants us to believe, there are still people out there with money to spend and invest.  There are still consumers out there that are in desperate need of the services you provide and it’s simply up to you to go find them.

Are they a little harder to find?  Yes, but that doesn’t mean they don’t exist.  It just means you’ve got to work smarter to find them and coax them out of their caves.

Here are a few quick suggestions to not just survive this current market upheavel, but really thrive and build a dominating lawn care or landscaping business:

1. Readjust your target market if necessary.  If you’re finding your target market are the ones most affected by the financial roller coaster, readjust your sights on a target market that has a little more disposable income.  In most cases, you’ll be able to charge even more for your services AND these customers will respect and appreciate the work you do even more because they’re not pinching every penny.
2. Readjust your service offerings if necessary.  I’m not saying take out services and I’m by no means saying cut your prices.  All I’m suggesting is give your services a new package.  Add a new service that allows you to charge more.  Change the name and reintroduce it to your marketplace.  There are many ways you can make minor changes to the service packages you offer and come out the other end better off than before.
3. Focus your marketing efforts on establishing your position as the market leader and the one to do business with.  Remember, there are still plenty of people paying good money for the services you offer.  Now it’s a matter of setting yourself apart from everyone else and you do this by creating a killer USP or magical marketing message.  In a nutshell, tell your prospects why they’d be complete fools to do business with any other option but you.

Look, I’m not going to expect you to put on your rose colored glasses and ignore what’s going on.  But at the same time, I’m going to expect you to determine ways you can make changes to your marketing that will still allow you to become the dominant player in your marketplace.  In spite of what all the talking heads want you to believe!