Photo by Al Elmes on Unsplash ‘Tis, indeed. I love how we conjugate “it is” in a special way only one month out of the year. 11 months, it’s. December, ‘tis. I like funny quirky habits like that, especially when we all do it together as a group. Ok – no business talk today. If…
Photo by Krišjānis Kazaks on Unsplash Don’t overcomplicate it. I’m about halfway through Poor Charlie’s Almanac, which is loaded with wisdom from Charlie Munger, one of the most prolific and successful investors of all time. So naturally, I have Charlie-isms on the mind. (and now you will, too) This one is hard to digest in…
Photo by Isabella Fischer on Unsplash Day 2 of Charlie Week. (it’s like Shark Week, but makes you more business savvy) Charlie Munger has another great saying that is so simple, it’s easy to miss when you’re thinking about going into business, buying a business, or going into a new area of business. And that…
Photo by Josh Hemsley on Unsplash I’m on a Charlie Munger kick this week. Fair warning – I’m working my way through Poor Charlie’s Almanac, and it is chock full of incredible life and business advice, simplified into digestible sound bites. It contains some of Charlie Munger’s best speeches and lectures, along with his back story…
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash Warren Buffet says so. If your audience knows you, loves you, and trusts you then you can probably raise your prices right now. Raising prices is all about expectations and value. If the perceived value that the shopper is expecting from you meets or exceeds the price of the…
Photo by Venti Views on Unsplash Do you know what suppliers your competitors are using? Don’t fly blind – it’s best to know what everyone around you is doing. But finding that info out is an art form, which I’m not going into here. There are healthy and ahem unhealthy ways to uncover precious intel. (only…
Photo by Tao Yuan on Unsplash The horizontal long game. Horizontal Integration is a long game with a long-range return on investment, but it can be a fantastic way to grow your business – especially if you’ve really “figured it out”. If you have a competitive advantage, if you have better marketing, sales or operations,…
Photo by Raimond Klavins on Unsplash I’m a fan of B-12. My body finally made me quit, but once upon a time I was a hockey player. It’s no secret that adult hockey players reliving the glory days get the worst ice time. Often our “beer league” team would have a 10:45pm puck drop time…
Photo by Elsa Gonzalez on Unsplash Vertical Integration is when you acquire (or become) a supplier or customer of your current business. It is growth via supply chain. And the most common way that a small business Vertically Integrates is by buying a building rather than leasing space. You can turn one of your biggest…
Photo by Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash You set up a marketing campaign. Everything looks to be going well. The phone is ringing, and you’re getting leads by email. Not every one is a perfect fit, but that’s ok because it’s not hard to sort through them and find the prospects you want. But what do…