You’ve heard quite a few of those stories and I’m sure my sharing one more might get a little “old” but I can’t help it, don’t worry though, this won’t be another one of those “create an experience like Starbucks” stories!

A little while ago Douglas Albertson wrote a great article about Nordstrom and the Importance of Storytelling in Branding, and I’d like you to read it.

Here’s a snippet of what you’ll gain from it…

“Do you have a similar story to tell about your brand? Do you have stories that are as impressive as the one above? Would your employees even go to such lengths to serve your customers?

Nordstrom has never told this story publicly and they do not encourage their employees to do so. They figure if the stories are good enough, word-of-mouth will take them to the marketplace and the stories will carry even more credibility than if Nordstrom is caught tooting their own horn.

Such is the case with the famous Nordstrom “tire chains” story. A man walked into the main Nordstrom store with a set of used tire chains and insisted that he had purchased them there. Nordstrom sells clothing and the like. Without hesitation, the clerk refunded his money, even though the receipt clearly indicated another store. She paid him out of her own pocket. Then, on her lunch hour, she went to the store where the chains had been purchased and got her money back. Brilliant.

If you don’t have stories like this to tell, your brand may be in trouble. If your customers aren’t telling positive stories about you, they may be telling negative stories about you. In short, if there’s no word-of-mouth buzz about your brand, your customer service probably stinks. “Adequate” ain’t good enough anymore. A brand isn’t something that’s “nice to have if you can afford it” as some people have said. It’s an essential ingredient to your business plan.

If you don’t think storytelling is an important part of branding, count how many times you tell (or are tempted to tell) the Nordstrom story to co-workers, friends, peers, business acquaintances or people at conferences. “

Sometimes it’s hard to focus isn’t it? I often times see people acting like my cute dog Apple. For instance, I throw her the ball and with all the excitement in the world she goes after it, fast as a cheetah and hopping like a gazelle in the savannah! She picks it up and eagerly heads back to me for all of two seconds when she spots an imaginary speckle of dirt on the ground and starts sniffing away and forgetting all together about her mission of bringing me back the ball. People do that too you see; they’re eager in the beginning but they get distracted along the way because they don’t see immediate gratification.

I see that all the time! They’re determined in their new venture, they give it all they’ve got only to let go of it before it can payoff. Kind of like a rocket… they power it up for what seems to be an eternity, make sure everything is working properly, the flames start coming out of the nozzle, the ground around them trembles, it’s going to take off, oh yes it’s now, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6… but it never makes it.

So sad.

Most first-time business owners think business is like riding a bike downhill… oh so fun!! They don’t realize though, that they need to ride it back up.

Don’t know what’s up with the analogies today! Business is like a Rubik’s Cube… you know what it’s supposed to look like in the end, but getting the colors to line up is a hell of a challenge! However, it’s extremely gratifying and the thrill of doing it is unquestionably good. Kind of like that tasty treat Apple gets when she finally brings me the ball!

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to hear Nido Qubein speak. Nido’s the president of High Point University and Chairman of the Board of Great Harvest Bread Company. I was hooked throughout the entire presentation and prompted to take action immediately after his talk.

Lately I’ve been sharing with others a few of the things I learned with him. If you walk in to any Great Harvest they will always offer you a big slice of freshly baked bread with some kind of yummy-licious spread on it. People often ask Nido why they do that and if it’s worth it, after all it is a good piece of bread they’re giving out for free, is it really worth the expense?

Human beings are very interesting creatures, and there’s a psychological effect that’s triggered when Great Harvest offers such generous portions of bread. Basically it comes down to this… guilt. You accept the gift, and feel obliged to purchase the entire loaf of bread, thus, making free very lucrative.

What are you doing in order to ethically instill “guilt” or rather an intense sense of action in your prospects in order to monetize? Think about that.

David Kiley brought up what I thought was an interesting point about branding. In an article about the world’s best vodka he points out that vodka’s taste notes are so subtle that people make their choices based on bottle and label design, country of origin—and brand story.

I agree with him, good branding counts in this world. “The brand imagery, billions of dollars, and hype surrounding Grey Goose, Absolut, Ketel One, and of course even Trump Vodka, have all created very definite preferences for something that is meant to be odorless, colorless, and tasteless. If Perrier and Dasani can do it, why not vodka?”

It doesn’t matter what your product is, if you can drive it with a good compelling story you’ll hit a homerun. I can’t stress it enough. Think about it, people will go out of their way and pay a lot of cash for something as commoditized as water or as “neutral spirit” as vodka because they’re “buying” the story. In your business, what story are you selling?

Last week I heard a very good interview on NPR with Neil Diamond. Being the rather eclectic gal that I am I enjoy Diamond’s tunes a lot. His new CD “Home Before Dark” is great by the way!

What I thought was interesting was a little story he told about that song “Sweet Caroline“. Apparently it’s one of his greatest hits ever, which is a little bit ironic considering that it was also the fastest song he ever wrote. He had a 3-hour studio session and only two songs to record (back then you would record 3 songs per 3-hour session) so he went out the night before, jotted down a few words, created this song, and recorded it at the studio the next day! The song is so popular it’s played at every Red Sox home game and known through out generations. The reporter mentioned that it was a very popular song and pointed out that it was often played at bars, to which Diamond replied that it was a fun little song that you can sing no matter how many drinks you’ve had!

I guess I could just leave it at that and end my blog post right here, but that got me thinking… how cool it is to have a product so popular it’s everlasting, and how phenomenal it is that it’s simple and yet very impactful?! Sure it’s just a song, but a product nonetheless, no?

Are you solving other people’s problems with your business? Is it easy to use, or are you making us jump through hoops in order to get to you? It’s no coincidence that time and time again we run into that annoying little acronym KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid), we often tend to complicate what should be oversimplified. Learn from Neil Diamond… someone’s depressed at a bar, Neil offers an easy and simple, yet effective “product” to cheer them up.

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Isn’t it funny how there are just as many men shorter than 5 feet 9 inches as those who are taller and yet only a handful of stores cater exclusively to shorter men?!

It’s a common mistake to assume that what your clients need is what you think they need. It really shouldn’t be about what you think, I mean, who cares about that? It’s about the facts… the facts will make a difference in your bottom line.

So be sure to study and track your progress. Maybe what you think is true but you will only know for sure if you’re cautious and diligent in implementing, studying, and monitoring your activities.

Hey, Jimmy Au’s didn’t remove the words “Short and Small” from the store’s name simply because they thought it was better, they did it because inhibitions were lowered, and sales rose.

In keeping up with the topic of change, I grinned when I read an article on BusinessWeek about the big change McDonald’s is going through.

It’s often unrealistic to base your business on examples of huge national companies, let’s face it they’ve got the budget to move things forward a lot faster and the resources to control the damage, if any.

But the reason I like to bring up companies like Disney, GE, McDonald’s and so on is to show that no matter how huge they are they still must go through up’s and downs, shifts, and changes. Yes, it’s on a different scale, but it’s just as daunting to them as it is to you.

McDonalds is working on growing their breakfast market and making some big changes, perhaps the biggest change they’ve done since 1977, and yet that’s not stopping them because the changes will lead to new and better scenarios.

Take a look at your business with “fresh eyes” – if it’s time to start selling specialty coffee when you’re known for selling hamburgers, go for it… just be sure to be prepared.

Oh you’ve read it in several books and heard it from innumerous people, “you must have a laser focus, go deep, stay narrow, don’t go too wide, focus focus focus.”

I tend to accept something if I keep hearing it over and over again even if I’m not quite sure why they say it, especially when successful people keep saying it – they’re successful they must know a thing or two about business! Here’s the thing though, everything has a context and just because that snippet of text stands out does not mean it’s entirely true.

You see, yes you must focus, but you must also be prepared to change your target. It’s the natural process of life, things change, they evolve and one must be ready to accompany and adapt to such changes. What’s important today might not be as significant tomorrow.

It’s ok to change, I see it as a sign of strength.

GE just recently announced that they’re not going to sell appliances anymore. That’s huge! Let’s face it, they’re fairly known for that! And yet, focusing elsewhere becomes a distinct and more desirable challenge that will lead to greater profits.

Shoemoney recently blogged about something similar – same thing… when you grow, as you evolve no matter in what stage you’re in, your willingness to perfect and remodel your business to achieve greater things increases, and one must be willing to take that step forward.

So if you’re focusing and drilling deep, keep doing it, but don’t be afraid to start drilling somewhere else when time proves it’s a better thing to do.

Yes, it’s a must. In my opinion being the best in your industry does not simply mean having the best product or service, it’s a combination of traits and patterns that are inherent in you and your business.

I’m reading that book by Guy Kawasaki called ” Rules For Revolutionaries” (really good by the way!) and at one point he says something to the gist of if you have the best product in the world that doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter if it’s perfect if other things like customer service and the likes come in second place. Like he said, if that were true Bill Gates would be serving coffee at Starbucks today!

Sure you need to have a good product or service, but acknowledging that it’s good and knowing all about it is just not enough. You want to become the expert in your field and this will bring you customers. How do you do it? Know as much as possible about your topic, which means constantly educating yourself on the latest information in your industry. You also want to provide stellar customer service. This means going the extra mile to make sure your customers are satisfied with the purchases they make. Build value into your products or services and strive for constant improvement. Word travels fast on the internet, and you want others to say positive things about your business.

I’ve noticed that while in business I’ve acquired a few habits – one of those has been a keen observation of surrounding businesses. I believe that it’s my duty to analyze and study the successful ones, and those emerging around me to see what they do and how they do it. Of course I’ll always have an opinion about something they’re doing!

In any case, one of those companies is Disney. I have learned so much from them solely by observing their methods and procedures and encourage you to do the same.

Recently on CNNMoney.com they published an article called “No such thing as recession in Disneyland?“. I love it because it goes to show that such a well orchestrated business like Disney was able to boost their earnings amidst an era where most companies are struggling.

Like Disney, what systems do you have in place in your business to make it recession resilient?