On this episode of Business Insanity Talk Radio, we first talk to Jay Baer, one of the world’s leading content marketing experts, about customers that are haters and how to handle them. Next, we’ll talk about businesses using the green movement as a way to attract new customers; is it really working? Then, we’ll tell you everything you need to know to get a piece of the $500M that the federal government is giving to small businesses in subcontracting. After, we celebrate National Small Business Week (May 1 – May 7) with a series of segments sponsored by Microsoft. We are talking to small business owners that are using technology to leverage their business. Finally, we’ll talk to an entrepreneur about her experience starting her own food truck for a fraction of the average cost.
Listen and enjoy:
Segment 1: Jay Baer is the world’s most retweeted person among digital marketers. Jay has advised more than 700 companies since 1994, including Caterpillar, Nike, Allstate, The United Nations and 32 of the FORTUNE 500. His Convince & Convert Media division owns the world’s #1 content marketing blog and the world’s top marketing podcast. The creator of five multi-million dollar companies, Jay is an active venture capitalist and technology advisor, as well as an avid tequila collector, and certified barbecue judge. His new book is “Hug Your Haters: How to Embrace Complaints and Keep Your Customers Focused on These Themes”.
2:30 – How is customer service being disrupted and why aren’t small businesses on top of the change?
3:45 – 80% of businesses say they deliver superior customer service. Only 8% agree. Why is this the case?
5:10 – 1/3 of all customer complaints are ignored, most of them online and in public. Jay explains why businesses should be answering every complaint, in every channel, every time.
7:00 – Don’t trade empathy for speed. Jay explains the trap large corporations fall into.
8:10 – Why your business should WANT complaints.
10:00 – How to hug your haters in your daily life.
Segment 2: Shel Horowitz has been showing business owners how to be more profitable by being green and ethical. Shel is an international speaker, transformational business consultant, and the multiple-award-winning author of ten books, including the long-running category bestseller Guerrilla Marketing Goes Green and the brand new Guerrilla Marketing to Heal the World (both co-authored with Jay Conrad Levinson, Father of Guerrilla Marketing.
15:15 – Does “green” still sell?
16:30 – Who are the customers of green products?
17:30 – How do you figure out how green your customers are?
19:00 – Why every company should have a green strategy.
20:00 – How can businesses become more green?
21:45 – How can you figure out how much your customers will pay for green products?
23:00 – How are competitors collaborating in the green movement?
Segment 3: Lourdes Martin-Rosa is the American Express OPEN Advisor on Government Contracting. In this role, she uses her more than 20 years of experience in the federal space to coach small business owners on how to get contract-ready and find contract success. Lourdes is also president of Government Business Solutions, a women-owned small business offering government and business consulting services.
31:15 – Why does the government want to give $500M to small businesses in subcontracting?
31:50 – How do you qualify for the women-owned small business category to get federal contracting?
32:30 – How do you market your services to the federal government? How can WOSBs stand out to purchasing officials when competing for contracts?
35:20 – What is the government buying?
Segment 4: Vadim Vladimirskiy founded Adar in 2005 with the vision of helping businesses by applying proven technologies in new and creative ways. His passion is innovating systems and processes to take Fortune 500-level IT hardware, software, and services and make them affordable for small and midsize organizations.
41:00 – What is Adar?
42:15 – How does Adar integrate with Office365?
43:30 – What are the most popular applications?
44:45 – How popular is OneDrive and using the Office365 suite across platforms?
45:30 – The benefits of outsourcing IT services.
Segment 5: Annah Mitchell is the owner and founder of Gobble Doggs, a family-owned catering and food truck business that specializes in serving turkey hot dogs with a variety of delicious gourmet toppings. What Annah enjoys most about the business is that it is family-owned, with her 19-year-old twins, who work with her in every capacity from operations to marketing to customer service. Annah hopes to one day own a franchise of Gobble Doggs trucks so everyone can enjoy her delicious Gobble Doggs.
49:45 – Why did Annah start Gobble Doggs?
50:40 – How much capital did it take to start the Gobble Doggs food truck?
51:50 – What advice do you have for others wanting to start a food truck?
