In a Toxic Industry? Use It to Your Advantage: By Kelly K. Spors and Kevin Salwen

Thoughts from Jerome...

I was reading the following article, and it highlights some things I had never thought about before. Most of the time we tend to avoid industries and business models with bad reputations both as investors, entrepreneurs and consumers. This article gives some great tips on countering that and using them as a positive (http://smallbusinessanswers.yahoo.com/reputation-html).

Being in the direct sales and marketing business, this issue rears its ugly head at times. Two things I have found is customers either dont trust the integrity of the product, and potential business partners think you're going to get their investment and run, leaving them hung out to dry. I must admit, in moderation, skepticism is a healthy human emotion, which is birth out of a need for proof (and quite simply protecting ones pocketbook). We see it in religion, science, sales, marketing, etc...

However skepticism and stereotyping can also rob people of something great being added to their lives. For example, my product allows people to be able to see their loved ones without buying plane tickets, road trips, or hooking up web cams (which many relatives my not know how to anyway). My kids can talk to and see their grandparents every night, it has added a value to my life that I cannot put a price on.

However when marketing the product, there are those who are skeptical. Not because it doesn't work, we clearly demonstrate that it does, both as users of the product ourselves and our existing (and growing) customer base. Its also not because they don't trust the company (the manufacturer has been in the Inc 500 for 5 consecutive years, including this year). I have found that some simply don't trust the direct sales marketing model. If this product were in the stores, I believe, people would buy them in droves, because people tend to trust the store bought products more than ones directly sold to them. This is a false trust because many of the products in the stores today were sold using a direct sales model yesterday to create a demand, then placed in stores once they demonstrated that people really wanted this product. Sort of like the independent music artist hawking his own Cd's from his trunk in the parking lot. He creates a demand and buzz for his music, then gets the record deal later (I can think of several artists who have used this exact method).

This model eliminates real estate overhead costs, advertising costs, and shoplifting, and many companies benefit from it. Unfortunately, people think back to the days when soda was sold as a medicine/tonic claiming to be a cure all for various ailments. But we must somehow turn negative stereotypes into an opportunity.

How have YOU overcome negative stereotypes in your area of business? Please read the article and post your thoughts below! (The posting problem should be resolved now)

Jerome Chandler,
5Linx National Expansion Leader
Owner/Operator of House Call Solutions

*********ARTICLE*********
http://smallbusinessanswers.yahoo.com/reputation-html
In a Toxic Industry? Use It to Your Advantage
By Kelly K. Spors and Kevin Salwen

Call them the Tarnished Trades of the business world: Industries with such significant image problems that customers' first reaction is to grip their wallets in panic. Buyers just pray for an honest deal -- any honest deal.

You know the reputations, right?

Auto-repair shops: Under-the-hood rip-off shops, really. They prey on your ignorance to encourage repairs you don't need.

Dog breeders: Woof. Puppies are stuck in filthy, cramped cages all day long. No wonder they’re sick and inbred.

Remodelers: You'd rather hammer your thumb than deal with some of these. Work is shoddy, and good luck finding one that finishes a job on time.

Real-estate brokers: Just milking you for the biggest commission they can get. Will they ever stop hounding?

Moving companies: Buy the extra insurance in case your stuff gets ruined ... or disappears completely.

Bill collectors: Don't answer the phone. Hopefully they won't bat down your front door.

Morticians: Overpriced urns and preying on the grieving. The survivors get buried with ridiculous bills.

Accident lawyers: Ambulance chasers. Hurt? Injured? We need your fees!

Home-cleaning services: Good luck getting them to show up when you ask them to. Wait, where's my iPod?

And those are just some of the industries plagued with bad perceptions -- many others fight them, too. Company owners and employees in these businesses battle huge negatives convincing wary customers they are safe.

But if you're unlucky enough to be in one of these industries, you can actually use the ugly reputations to your advantage. In fact, this bad image can be a primo opportunity to stand out from the pack. Just think about the car business, where Carmax was created with the model that it's the used-car dealer that won't leave you feeling slimy. An honest player in a business that's routinely the brunt of jokes can quickly become the White Knight, sometimes even just by being mediocre because the comparisons are so ugly.

So what can you do? First, realize you have a powerful tool at your fingertips: The Internet. Consumers are using the Web in droves to read up and leave reviews of companies. A 2007 study by Deloitte found that about two-thirds of consumers read online reviews regularly and, of those, about 80 percent rely on those comments when making purchase decisions. "If nothing else, make yourself aware that there is a conversation going on," says Matt McGee, a small business search marketing expert in Tri-Cities, Wash.

There are plenty of opportunities in the physical world, too, to make your reputation shine - you just have to listen a little closer to what customers are saying.

Here, then, is a three-step plan to manage your company's reputation.



PREVENTION FIRST
The backbone of a company’s reputation, of course, is quality service. Fewer customers with bad experiences will result in fewer bad reviews. Your happiest clients will become your best marketers with their word-of-mouth reviews.

So don't overlook basic good practices: hire the right people to deal with customers and then train and empower those people to solve customer problems.

Companies with the best reputations tend to closely monitor their customer experiences using follow-up surveys and other feedback tools so they can address service problems early, says Ben McConnell, an Austin, Texas-based marketing expert.

This can be especially useful to companies in industries where bad reputations are the norm. Star Auto Authority, a Vernon Hills, Ill., auto mechanic with 22 employees and $2.5 million in annual revenues, is constantly trying to improve the experience at its shop.

A few days after a job, customers receive email surveys asking them to rate their experience. The survey results help the shop identify service shortfalls, as well as let Star Auto resolve problems before customers vent their frustrations online, says Angi Semler, director of operations. The company president personally calls customers who leave negative feedback. "There are people, when they are at our service counter, may not be satisfied but may not say anything," Ms. Semler says. The survey offers "them a chance to speak somewhat anonymously about their experience."



LISTEN CLOSELY
Even businesses with great service occasionally get bad online reviews. Sites like Yelp, Twitter, Citysearch and Yahoo! Local give consumers a louder voice than ever before - and these reviews often show up near the top in search results for a small company's name. (Terrifying translation: A bad review might be the first thing somebody reads when they search for your business.) Quickly spotting bad reviews and dealing with them can soften the blow.

Online tools such as Google Alerts let you easily track blog posts, news stories or Web comments where your company name or key employees' names pops up. It's a good idea, experts say, to have one person at a small business designated to reading the reviews and handling a company's online reputation.

What should a business do when it discovers a disparaging remark?

Andy Beal, chief executive of Trackur.com, an online reputation monitoring service for small businesses, says businesses can't ignore angry comments. When a business encounters a negative review online, it should leave a short response starting with a straightforward and genuine apology. Then it should note that bad experiences aren't common for the business and offer a phone number where the upset customer can call to talk about the problem and have it resolved.

Being apologetic in the public response –not defensive – will suggest the business cares about its customers. But Mr. Beal suggests trying to take the conversation with the disgruntled reviewer offline, to avoid fueling an angry back-and-forth conversation for everyone to read. "You want to just nip it in the bud," he says. "Offer a clear-cut apology and then take it offline."



CARVE THE CONVERSATION
Managing a reputation isn't just about thwarting and dealing with negative reviews. It's equally about creating positive ones.

Creating an online fan base helps ensure positive coverage of your business appears prominently in online searches or when people read up about you online. You can start a "fan page" or "group" on Facebook, or simply connect with customers and prospects using Twitter and other social-networking sites.

Review sites can also be used to your advantage to create more good publicity. Many businesses now direct their happiest, most loyal customers to the most influential review sites in their industry and ask them to leave feedback.

Ramon De Leon, operating partner of a six-store Domino's Pizza franchise in Chicago, uses Twitter to find customers talking about Domino's Pizza in the Chicago area and then communicates with them and offers them discounts on pizzas. He uses Twitter apps such as Monitter to keep track of what Chicago-based Twitter users are saying about Domino's.

Mr. De Leon says being active on Twitter has helped draw in more customers. "When the need arises to buy a pizza, hopefully that friendship will make me top of their order list."