Assuming the No

Recently, I wrote about the pursuit of the Big Idea, and how we prevent ourselves from making them into reality.

One of the reasons we use to prevent our development of Big Ideas is:

We decide we can’t get buy-in from needed partners or leaders.

This is "Assuming the No".

People in direct sales are very familiar with this, and to be successful, they have to do a very good job in overcoming what I suspect is a natural inclination to assume people don't want you, your ideas, your products, or your services.

I struggle with this myself! I have a nearly pathological fear of approaching people I don't already know in order to sell my services (and yes, I'm working on that).

This is related to something a friend and I were discussing the other day - the idea that we have

Protip:  Grumpy Cat will not be on board.

been programmed to ask for permission to do anything.

Starting as small children, we need to ask for permission from parents, teachers, pastors, coaches and a whole host of other people.  As adults, we include needing the permission of bosses, coworkers, vendors, and customers.

When we become small business people, we then retain this habit, even when we don't have to!

So this is what we do:

1. We ask or wait for permission
2. We assume that permission will not be granted.

I want to explore asking for permission further in another post, so lets get back to that NO you think you're going to get, and let's assume you do need "permission" to proceed with the idea (such as buy-in from a potential partner).

We all know the saying about assuming things (and if you want to see the origin of the phrase, as far as I can tell, take a few minutes and watch this scene from The Odd Couple - classic!) but that's not the real core of this problem.

Why are we automatically assuming that NO is the answer?

What happens if we change our minds and assume that YES is the answer? That the idea will sound as good to other people as it does to us?  That they, too, will be swept up in the excitement of our Big Idea?

Unlike when we were kids, where we learned that Mom and Dad were absolutely not going to allow us to eat candy for dinner every night, there's no good reason to assume that every person will give you no for an answer other than our own doubts and fears.

Here's a challenge: for one week, in everything you do, to assume that whenever you need buy-in from somebody else, that the answer will be YES.  Don't let your fear of no prevent you from getting that client, partner, or Big Idea off the ground.

Start assuming the yes.

I bet it's going to change your perception of what you can do - and you'll discover that it was you saying no far more often than other people.

Try it, and let me know how it goes!

You can always drop me a note at AbanicoMktg@gmail.com or comment below.

Five Ways to Make Your Business Card Awesome (Part 2)

If you missed the first part (with the first two points), you can catch up here.  Let's continue on with some ways to make your business card awesome.

AWESOME BIZ CARD TIP 3: DON'T TRY TO USE YOUR CARD TO SELL YOUR SERVICES

Some people will take up the majority of the real estate of a business card – which is only 2 inches by 3 inches - with product information, lists, product photos, etc.  I've heard and read some experts advise doing this, and I do understand the logic behind the suggestion, but I'm going to respectfully disagree.

NO.  Just... no.

A short list of key products or services – on the back of the card – is just fine.

A line or two about what you do, that’s cool too.

A tagline and call to action?  Go for it.

Your picture? I’m a big fan of this, no matter what industry you are in – it really helps people associate your name and company with your face, and humanizes your business.

But before you start using your card as a replacement brochure, keep in mind that the purpose is for people to contact you, not to tell them everything about any possible product or service you might offer.

I have seen dozens of business cards trying to cram all of that information in that very tiny space, in six (or even four!) point type.  It all becomes unreadable and your contact information becomes lost in competing marketing messages.

So while it’s tempting to do this in order to save money, keep the extra information and marketing messaging under control and let your card serve its true purpose.

AWESOME BIZ CARD TIP 4: ONLY ONE PERSON PER BIZ CARD

It's not unusual to see a business card where two people are "sharing" the same card (sometimes they even share the same email address).

While business cards aren't cheap, they aren't crazy expensive either.  Please, let’s stop using one card for more than one person.  If you and a friend have a business together, you should each have your own card.

It’s especially difficult when there are two people on the card with the same gender (or both have gender-neutral names) and you can’t remember the name of the person you met specifically (it may have been at a big event, for example, where you met lots of people and you're having trouble associating a face with a name). 

I have run across this many times now, and I think it’s just a cost-savings thing, but please, if you want your business card to be awesome, it must be about an individual - YOU.

I’m not contacting some faceless corporation and it doesn't matter who responds - I want to contact you and it does matter who responds.

Please, let's get a business card for each person who needs one, thanks.

AWESOME BIZ CARD TIP 5: HAVE FUN AND EXPRESS YOURSELF

Ok, yes, I've just laid down a bunch of rules on you, so you probably believe that I think that your business card has to be boring to be effective or communicate clearly.

I’m here to tell you that isn't true – you can clearly communicate the key information and still have a sharp business card that will uniquely identify you and what you do.

Here’s a few ways to do it:

• Instead of landscape orientation, use portrait.
• Try an unusual shape or size: if you are selling electricity, maybe your card could be in the shape of a light bulb.  If you’re a Realtor – have one shaped like a house!  Try a round or oval card or a thin one (1 x 3).  I know this annoys some people out there, but in my opinion, if you can afford it, it's a great way to stand out. One caveat – I do not recommend an oversize or dimensions larger than 2" x 3", as they are hard to keep in what many people use for business card holders. Use the standard dimensions of 2" x 3" or smaller.
• Indirect imagery related to your product or service: let’s say you sell cars - what if you had a background watermark of an open road?  If you are an accountant, what if you have a background that looks like an old-school ledger?  This is one way you can be really creative and make your business card represent you and what you do but not interrupt the purpose of the card.
• Play with your head shot: instead of a boring business portrait, why not have one with special effects applied to it – think of the effects you can get with Instagram, for example. I strongly advise people selling services to include their picture on their card, because half of what you sell is yourself, not your service.

Those are just a few ideas.  Working with a graphic designer can bring forth a lot more.  That being said, remember, never let the design overwhelm the purpose - always make sure the Big Four (full name, company name, phone number, and email address) are clearly communicated on your card.

I hope you have found these tips useful – got an awesome business card? Share it with me, I’d love to see it!

Five Ways to Make Your Business Card Awesome (Part 1)

I do a lot of networking and I meet dozens of people every week.  I end up collecting a lot of business cards, and then I enter them into a contact manager for follow-up later.

Yes, yes, Bump, CardMunch (or for us Android users, CamCard) exist, yay technology, but still, it's still a paper business card world.  You won't be taken seriously without one.

So, as you can imagine, I've been giving business card design a lot of thought after entering the contact information of lots and lots and lots of folks into my contact manager.  I think we can all make some basic changes for the better – let’s all make our business cards awesome.

AWESOME BIZ CARD TIP 1: LESS IS MORE

Money is tight, and business cards are not cheap.

However, you business card has a primary purpose – to give your contact information to other people so they can contact you at a future date.  If your contact information is not being clearly communicated on your card, you are wasting your money.

There are four critical pieces of information your business card must clearly communicate: your full name, your company name, your primary phone number, and your email address.

Other bits of information (such as your title) are useful, but not required for your card to serve its basic purpose. (Caveat - if you have a physical location, such as a retail shop, you should include your address, but do not omit the Big Four or make those unreadable in order to fit in your address.).

Ivory text on White Paper is so hip!

I have in my collection a card I was given some weeks ago at leads group I attended. It has a script font in medium blue on a black background in 6 point type with a list of products, next to a product image, all on one side of the card (with the back blank).  It’s basically unreadable.  I'm sad for this person, as they have wasted their money (even if you use the free Vistaprint cards... it's a waste).

Here's some tips to improve readabilty:

• Have a high-contrast color scheme – black type on white paper is popular because it’s inexpensive, but it's also very readable.
• Use larger type in a standard font (such as Georgia or Arial) – in a size that is greater than eight points - ten is better.
• Bold or make larger the four important points of information (name, company, phone, email address) if you have other content on your card.
• If you use light color on dark background, make sure it’s very high contrast (for example, white, neon green, or yellow on black is more readable than blue or red).
• If you want to say more than just the basics, use both sides of the card - one side for contact info, the other for marketing information.

Note: if you are a designer or someone who does a creative service such as photography, your business card should reflect your style and, theoretically, include at least one image indicative of your work.

AWESOME BIZ CARD TIP 2: INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS (no exceptions)

I am amazed at how many professional business cards I get missing email addresses.

Friends, we are living in the second full decade of the 21st century. Not having an email address in your advertising and on your business card is the modern equivalent of having no phone number in 1970.

Email is still one of the most preferred methods of contact for lots and lots of people - and when you omit it, you lose that audience.

So, of you do not have an email address to use for business purposes only, get ye to www.google.com and sign up for Gmail immediately.  It’s free and it takes literally minutes.

Go get your new business cards printed with your email prominently displayed on it.  Watch your interactions with your peers, your customers, and your partners improve (because it will).

As an aside, please, do check your business email frequently.  Many people prefer this communication method and it’ll be perceived as lazy or rude if you don’t check it daily at a minimum.  You can ignore personal email all you like - and I know plenty who do - but you can't do that with business email.  Ignore it at your peril.


Part 2 (and three more tips) about making your business cards awesome will come on Thursday - but in the mean time, have you seen any business cards that you really admire?  What about one that make you cringe? I'd love to hear about it at AbanicoMktg@gmail.com or in the comments.