Or thoughts on going against the grain.

When everybody thought the Internet was a toy, they pioneered e-commerce. When everybody was obsessing over quarterly results, they stuck to a five-year profitability plan business strategy. When everybody was going vertical, they went horizontal.

Yes, Amazon.com can teach us a lot about going against the grain. If you zig when the market zags, you’ll get noticed. More importantly, if you do it right, you may become very … zigcessful.  Continue Reading;

A lot of people have been talking about the great social media revolution for the last few years. They’re not wrong. Social Media has changed a lot about how we think, certainly about how we communicate, and also how we frame our relationships with our customers and prospects. However, just looking at the social media piece of the puzzle is missing where the real revolution has taken place. A major shift has occurred in how customers expect to be treated by companies. This may have happened without Social Media, but Social Media certainly, at the least, enhanced this trend.     Continue Reading;

Retailers use all kinds of methodologies to create perceptions to drive sales.  Sometimes it’s the perception of exclusivity or limited items to create demand.  Other times it’s creating the illusion of a bargain or a “must-have” deal.  However, there is a new methodology that I came across while shopping the other day:

If you will notice, the tag for this BCBG item was originally priced at $198.  That price is crossed out and replaced with the bargain price of….$218.  Continue Reading;

Do you remember the board game of Chutes and Ladders?  I often feel like the path to success is very much like that.

Moving along through milestones in your business journey is like advancing a space on the Chutes and Ladders board. There are certain opportunities that can create a shortcut for you if you land on them at the right time.  When you find these individuals who help you, special opportunities to capitalize upon or some other opportunity to “jump ahead”, it’s much like taking the “ladder” on the game board.  You get to skip a few spaces, which is always enjoyable.

However, sometimes there are pitfalls.  Coincidentally (and often frustratingly), once in a while, the pitfalls may come from the same individuals or opportunities that were previously presented as a ladder. Those situations can send you spiraling down and backwards, just like the “chutes” knock you back a few spaces on the board.  Continue Reading;

A lot of people talk about emotions when it comes to choosing your life’s work. So, you took their advice – you followed your passion and started a business.

Ah, young love. Life is great. Business is fun. It’s new and fresh.

But you don’t hear much about what comes next – courtship is one thing; marriage is another. Continue Reading;

Most people aren’t happy with the sales their business is getting. If they’re not getting sales, they’re obviously uncomfortable with it, but even if they are getting decent sales, most people still aren’t happy with it because they want more. It’s rare that a business is getting more sales than it can handle; those rare occasions are a good problem to have.

Rather than just remaining uncomfortable about your sales, though, let’s look at why you’re really not getting the sales you want:

1) You don’t really believe in what you’re selling  Continue Reading;

In the era of Big Data, companies are making a fortune out of selling information to other companies.  However, what are those companies really paying for?  Is it worth it and what does it do to customer relationships?

I don’t mind getting information for stuff that I want, but when I am barraged with things that are clearly not relevant, sometimes I get mad.  Case and point, the other day I received in the mail this “newborn nourishing” kit from Similac.

Why would I receive baby formula in the mail?  I would have blown it off, but it was the latest in a series of parenting items that I have been receiving, from baby registries to parenting magazines to cord blood information.  The problem is, I am not having a baby and at this point, the constant onslaught of baby items is becoming offensive to me. Continue Reading;

There is a group of people out there that potentially represent one of your biggest sources of income. They rank right up there with your current prospects and your existing customers. But most of you reading this never, ever connect with them. Who are they?

They are your competitors.  Continue Reading;

So… you’ve got a website and great products/services to sell- now what? For many of us, getting visitors to our websites can be a real struggle, so I’ve asked the CarolRoth.com contributor network of experts, advisors and entrepreneurs to provide their best tips for increasing website traffic. Their answers are presented below in no particular order.

You may notice some similar ideas listed, but I kept them separate, as something in the way one is framed may resonate differently with you. Continue Reading;

This blog is extremely personal and is a bit of a departure from my normal fare.  However, mindset is so critical to success, that I felt compelled to share it with you.

My senior year at Wharton and The University of Pennsylvania was a grueling one.  I had been interviewing for investment banking and other jobs for about five months- with about 75 different companies (no exaggeration)- before, in mid-February 1995, accepting an offer to work for investment banking firm Montgomery Securities.

So, when my boyfriend at the time, Justin, suggested that I join him and few friends in Florida for spring break in early March, it didn’t take me long to decide my answer: “No way”.

I was exhausted and all I wanted to do was go to my dad’s house in the north suburbs of Chicago and relax for a week.  I was always independent and didn’t feel the need to be attached to my boyfriend for Spring Break, so I sent him on his way to Florida with his friends and returned back to Chicago.

A few days into the break, the phone rang at my dad’s house.  When I answered, a sketchy sounding man said that he was a detective and wanted to speak with my father.  My dad wasn’t home at the time, so I said that he wasn’t available and offered to take a number.   He wouldn’t leave it. Continue Reading;