Business 101: It's okay to be judgmental

When you run a business and wait on customers who have chosen you over a sea of competitors, you owe it to them to objectively judge how well you're doing.

Put yourself in the shoes of a customer from time to time. Look at the hoops they have to jump through before they’re able to get back to their lives. Pay attention to wait times, and what people see while they're waiting. If someone’s standing at a counter waiting, they're keenly aware of the performance of your employees. They see your people plod along oblivious to customers.

I actively count employees are on the job and compare them to active orders being filled. I tend to resent watching employees perform tasks unrelated to serving customers ahead of me. When nothing is being done to advance orders, the wait seems endless.

It’s frustrating to watch servers stand in one spot as they wait for people who plod along behind the scenes, who have no sense of purpose and who are oblivious to the business at hand -- all the while condiments are depleted, trashes are full and tables are disgusting. The server's job is simple, but requires constant discipline: provide fast, friendly service.

You can't fix problems you don't see. So thank customers first by judging your service.

Ads: Pick radio, it’s more effective

Magazine advertising aside, newspapers get the bulk of ad dollars, far ahead of radio. And in fact, more is spent on Internet ads than radio campaigns by $1 billion. But none of that changes the apples-to-apples demonstration that proves radio’s response is 14 times more effective than newspaper’s when it comes to driving traffic to a web site. Want to see the test?

http://www.mondaymorningmemo.com/?ShowMe=ThisMemo&MemoID=1768

Ads: replace hype with authentic grabbers

If you're in retail business, don't make the mistake of thinking you're in the entertainment business in your marketing. Awards don't sell snow blowers.

Be cautious not to use cute ideas for cute-sake. Grab attention in an unfamiliar, attention-getting way, but remember to bridge your opening line in a believable way, and support the opening and bridge in your copy.

Opening example: "Now would be a horrible time for a flat tire!"

If you've placed this ad during morning drive, at the height of morning rush hour, you now have seized the attention of every driver on the road at that moment, and each are now imagining what a flat tire would do to their day.

The ad doesn't have to be about tires or tire repair. In fact, that would be too obvious an opening even for a towing service. But now that you have their attention, carefully craft your bridge to bring people into your story.

Bridge example: "You don't have any spare time today and there are probably a pretty good number new tasks waiting for you when you hit the office."

See, a flat tire would be inconvenient because your customers are time-starved like the rest of the free world. This ad now can take any direction it needs to.

Body example: "Since the odds are squarely against your actually getting a flat, you now have a few more seconds to stop at the Barry's Good Java drive-thru to pick up an exotic coffee reward. And when we hand you the cup, we'll also give you a card good for another cup tomorrow -- on us -- as a thank you for trying us out. Barry's Good Java. A few more extras; no nickels & dimes."

Notice how we got attention without hype? Then we bridged into our story. Then we told the story, and made a suggestion that offered a benefit to the morning commuter along the way. Nothing terribly devious, just good clean attention-getting.

PLACEMENT
Now we wouldn't have been terribly selective about which radio station we used to placed the commercial; we're interested in reaching as many people as we can afford to reach. That simple. For this we pay attention to CUME (total weekly station audience) or AQH (total simultaneous listeners within a day part) during the 5a-10a (AMD) day part. Our major focus is on placing one commercial an hour M-F on the station you can afford.

Ads: A clever attempt that fails is not clever

I recently saw part of a silent television commercial for a local car dealer, and I'm frankly surprised I even noticed it. I missed at least the first half of it because I was enthralled by a piece of lint that was hovering in the air at that fleeting moment. Then my advertising brain took note of the spectacle before me.

As a broadcaster for more than twenty-five years, I've learned the power of sounds in advertising. I'm a huge believer that the right sounds are capable of longer life in the mind than a visual. I'd never let a client of mine waste that moment. It was reminiscent of that cable TV channel that's dedicated to placard advertising with some generic music in the background.

Back to the car ad. It was clearly trying to be clever in its silence, but failed miserably in the message, which unsurprisingly I cannot relay to you.

A silent television ad may as well go into a newspaper or on a web site. Use clever audio to get attention if you think it's right, but silence is anything but clever -- unless it's a well-placed pause -- and always a wasted opportunity.

Billy McGuigan on KXnO

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Billy McGuigan is as comfortable playing Beatles or Buddy Holly music and he demonstrates the ease as he sat down with Larry Cotlar on Cotlar & Company on KXnO.  Billy's next stage progect involves Beatles music, which you can see him play here.

Michael Gartne on Van & Bonnie

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HTML clipboardMichael Gartner was the "Designated Bonnie" Monday, September 29 with Van Harden on WHO Radio in Des Moines, Iowa.  Michael is a past president of the Iowa Board of Regents; was a sports reporter and eventual president of the Des Moines Register, executive of Gannett and USA Today; writer for the Wall Street Journal and USA Today is currently Chairman of Racoon Baseball, owner of the Iowa Cubs.

Erin Kiernan on Van & Bonnie

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Erin Kiernan guest-hosted the WHO Radio morning show along with Van Harden as "Designated Bonnie".  Erin is the co-anchor for Channel 13 News at 5, 6, & 10 -- and is married to Des Moines City Council Member Michael Kiernan.

Stacy Keach interview

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Stacy Keach in Des Moines for his part in the theatrical production Frost Nixon at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines through October 5, 2008.  He visited the WHO Radio studios and talked with morning show host Van Harden about the performance, golf, favorite leading ladies and recent project.

Principal confirms firearm found on campus

A paper note was issued to students today referencing the firearm incident:

Dear East High Community,

I want to make sure you are aware of an incident which occurred at school on Monday September 29th, 2008.

While conducting a routine investigation into another matter, it was discovered that a student had inadvertently left a small caliber target rifle in their vehicle. The weapon was not loaded and was cased. There was no ammunition found. There was no evidence of any sort of threat against a student or staff member.

However, we take any incident involving the possession of a weapon on school grounds very seriously, and students who violate the school district's weapons policy are subject to disciplinary action, which may include expulsion.

I am thankful to our staff at East High School who worked on this situation, and I want to make sure that you heard from us first hand about what happened. The safety of our students is always a top priority. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely
(Signed)
Mike Zelenovich, Principal

Brandon McHose - Token

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Brandon McHose performed the title song from his new CD Token on KXnO's Cotlar & Company, Des Moines, Iowa.

State school network

You've probably heard of the web sites that let you logon and see how your kid's doing in school. Not in Des Moines's district, but in many progressive communities. Sure, we get a notification in the evening (when it's too late to call and find out why) that your student missed a class, but you can't reply & hope for any further details.

In 2008, I'm floored that our school's in the dark ages when it comes to useful technology. There's a lot that should be going on that isn't, as I eluded to in a a recent business discussion group.

I would propose a state-wide network that connects all able students via connected computers. They logon to the school server every morning when school commences and their entire day is managed within their account. Exercises and assignments, including tests and reports are done through their accounts. School administrators, teachers and parents can watch, in real time, student activity and progress.

Statewide standards can be implemented by massaging the core curriculum components from year to year; teacher performance can be measured and overall accountability is enhanced.

An an excellent example of the benefits of getting our schools on the same page with state and national education standards, all 7th-grade English classes follow the same curriculum and performance standards.

Snow days are no longer non-productive because students are online from home. Teacher in-service days are eliminated. Parent-teacher interaction is maximized, engaging parents, so conferences are nearly eliminated. Teachers spend far less time grading papers. Roll call is automated. School supply costs are dramatically decreased. Layers of administration could be eliminated, and that would undoubtedly save millions.

In our schools, we're so far behind the tech curve and it makes you wonder why.