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The Big Idea – The Power of the Webinar

A webinar is one of those irritating cyber shorthand words, meaning a “web-based seminar”. I was initially very sceptical about the value of webinars. Why would anyone take time out of their working day to click into a remote access meeting? It felt soulless, boring and quite frankly, a bit geeky. At least that was my view until I received an invitation email from a company hosting a webinar on a topic that I was actually interested in – social media, as it happens – and a new means of learning, developing, marketing and networking was opened up to me.

As a participant, a webinar is essentially a way to attend a conference, seminar or group meeting without leaving home or your office. Through your computer, you can hear a presentation as if you were on a conference call and watch the presenter’s slides on the screen.
Sometimes webinars are one-way, i.e. there is no interaction between the speaker and the participants, but increasingly you can either type in questions at the end of the webinar for the presenter to answer or ask them directly, as in a normal Q&A session, through your computer (VoIP) or over a telephone line.

Often to make the experience more interactive, the participants’ opinions are sought through polling during the presentation. Documents such as the slide pack and recordings of the presentation can also be shared.

The participant receives an invitation to participate in the webinar via email and registers ahead of time to confirm a space and obtain the URL of the webinar and any password needed. Then a couple of reminder emails are sent before the webinar itself reiterating these details. At the set time on the day of the event you simply copy the URL into your internet browser, type in your password and you’re into the seminar.

Not only are webinars a great way to increase your own learning opportunities without leaving the house or office, but as a business owners they can be a brilliant way of connecting with existing customers, potential prospects, or staff. They can be used to sell, to teach, to brief, to market, to network and to broadcast to people around the world at the touch of a button. When used well, they can be an incredibly cost effective way to communicate and educate.

So as a business owner let’s imagine you’re now interested in the possible benefits of holding a webinar. What’s next?

The first thing to decide upon is what to have as the topic of your webinar. If it’s an internal briefing such as teaching staff about a new product or updating them on the company’s progress, then that’s fairly straightforward. But if it’s to an external audience such as prospective customers, then the key is to add value.

People attend webinars when they think they are going to learn something or take something away for free that they did not have before. So try to focus on education – demonstrate your expertise and share your knowledge. Are there new developments in your industry they could benefit from hearing about? Is there a new product that could improve their performance as a business? Are there changes in legislation that could affect their business that you can help with? Try to find something topical, interesting, informative and educational that your clients or potential clients want to hear about.

Once you’ve decided on your topic, then the key to a good webinar is in the preparation and the execution. Firstly you need to find someone to host it for you. There are many service providers offering to host webinar services for companies – just search on Google for a comprehensive list of choices but Livestream, AnyMeeting.com, GoToWebinar, Dimdim and WebEx offer affordable options. Here are some tips when choosing a service provider:

1. Several providers offer a free trial period so take advantage of those to test a few out. Have some dry runs hosting a webinar using members of staff as “guinea pigs” to ensure you’re comfortable with how they work and what the process involves.
2. Ensure easy access for the participants. If the registration process is too long or complicated people will click off before completing registration.
3. Think about whether you want a Q&A, polling facilities, live video and ask for a demonstration of all the features. Make sure the audio and video quality is good and try out the Q&A facilities. If you are going to host a webinar you want it to reflect the quality of your company, service or product. Poor technology will let you down and will turn people off.

Once you’ve chosen who you’re going to use to provide your webinar service, then there are some other things to consider.
Should you charge for webinars? Received wisdom is that it’s better not to charge, particularly while this technology is still in its relative infancy. It seems more sensible to encourage more people to attend by offering information for free, as discussed earlier, to generate goodwill and more leads as a consequence.

How to promote your event? Use social media such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn to get the word out. Use your company’s blog. There are many listing sites such as webinarhero.com which act as directories for webinars by topic, date and speaker, so make sure you’re included on those. Send an email to your client list and prospects list inviting them to the event with clear details of how to register. Follow up with an email one day before the event and another one an hour before the event to remind people.

Once the logistics are in place and you’re comfortable with the technical side of things, then how does a webinar presenter need to prepare?
Essentially you need to treat it as you would any other event that your company may host. Simply because you’re at the end of a computer rather than face-to-face does not mean that your presentation should be anything less than you’d offer in person. In fact, quite the opposite – given the natural barrier between you and your audience, your content needs to be even more engaging and interesting. Put yourself in the position of an audience member and think to yourself, “What would hold my attention? What would I want to hear?”

As well as interesting content, your delivery style needs to be authoritative, engaging and entertaining. How can you make the presentation visually interesting for the audience? Will you include video and audio clips? Will it be just you speaking alone or would an interview-type formula work better to vary the voices the audience hears?

It’s helpful to have an agenda with timings that you stick to at the beginning of your slide pack, so everyone is clear as to the direction and structure of the event. Explain at the beginning how questions will be handled (will you take them during the session or at the end? Will you be polling for opinions through the seminar?)

Ensure your slides support your presentation but don’t duplicate it. As a presenter, you should always have more to say than your slides actually show, but it’s particularly relevant in a webinar where the slides almost entirely hold the attention of the audience.

Make sure you meet the audience’s expectations. Don’t lure them in with an offer of information and educational content then launch into a sales pitch. Make it relevant, interesting and ensure you reflect exactly what you offered when you invited them. It’s far easier to switch off a computer than it is to walk out of a packed conference room.

Pace the seminar – again this can be done through rehearsal. Make sure you don’t rush through slides and make the changeover from one slide to the next slow enough for people to assimilate what they’ve just heard. Remember they may be taking notes as you speak.

The Q&A session can be a testing time, so don’t forget to prepare for that. Rehearse the areas that might be covered, in particular the difficult ones, and work out beforehand how you’ll answer in a succinct fashion. Also ensure there are a few “planted” questions for the moderator to ask. This ensures the Q&A session gets going if the audience are slow to post their questions.

Of course afterwards don’t forget to follow up. Not only is each participant a possible sales lead or source of referral but also be sure to get their feedback on what they enjoyed about the webinar and what they felt could be improved. Send out a recording and slides to the participants within 24 hours of the webinar to increase goodwill and demonstrate professionalism and responsiveness.

Webinars may be a current buzzword of big business but it seems to me that there’s a huge application for them within the SME community as well. Something that’s both cost effective and cutting edge must be worth a try!

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses. www.nabcommunications.co.uk

Latest Big Idea published today

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In this edition of The Big Idea, I wanted to share with you some fascinating ideas from a book I’ve read recently by Professor Richard Wiseman. Entitled “59 Seconds”, the book works on the basis that there are many simple, effective and practical techniques that can take less than a minute to implement but can significantly improve your life.

The book is broken down into several areas of research with Persuasion, Motivation, Creativity and Decision Making probably being the ones most pertinent to business owners and employers. Wiseman, a professor in psychology, uses evidence-based research to back up his suggestions and recommendations and does so in an easy and accessible way.

One of the things Wiseman looks at is how to give the perfect interview – and as employers, it’s interesting to consider his thoughts whichever side of the desk we’re sitting on. Although previous experience and qualifications are obviously important for a candidate, it appears from research that there is one overwhelming factor as to why interviewers choose one particular candidate as opposed to another, and that is whether the candidate appears to be a pleasant person. It’s as simple as that. 

According to Wiseman, going out of your way to be genuinely pleasant in an interview is more important than any other quality in the interview process and is more likely to get you the job. Whether consciously or unconsciously, studies have shown an interviewer is far more likely to appoint candidates who, for example, smile, maintain eye contact, are enthusiastic and praise the organisation or find a topic of interest to the interviewer outside of work, irrespective of other factors that one would consider rationally as more important.

Another useful tip of Wiseman’s is that presenting weakness early is seen as a sign of openness, not failure. So in a presentation or an interview, research shows that getting the bad stuff out of the way early on shows an honesty which is valued by interviewers. Similarly, Wiseman cites research showing that lawyers presenting a case in court who present the weaknesses in their case early on in the trial have statistically a far better chance of winning the case than those who attempt to hide those weaknesses until later and are therefore seen unconsciously as attempting to mislead. 

Another fascinating observation of Wiseman’s is to sit in the middle or centre of a group if you want to make a good impression in a meeting or presentation. Research has shown that when looking at a group, people use a basic and instinctive rule of thumb, which is that important people sit in the middle. Those around the edge are seen as marginalised and less important. It’s called the “centre-stage effect”.

Use of language is another valuable point that Wiseman raises. It’s always a temptation to try to look more intelligent by using complicated or highbrow language. However, a series of studies have shown that the opposite is true. When rating the intelligence of the authors of various pieces of writing, the readers tended to rate those who used simpler language as possessing far higher intelligence than the authors of the more wordy or complicated pieces. It seems that expressing oneself simply but effectively is valued more highly than complex language, which sends out a negative impression of arrogance and superiority. So keep it simple. 

Another interesting thing to know about which is raised by Wiseman is the “bystander effect”. Time and time again, studies have shown that if, for example, someone has a seizure in the street and there are many people on the spot, very often no one will come to help. But if there is just one person there, the chances are they will assist. It’s as though when many people are around, no one is prepared to take individual responsibility whereas when you’re on your own, the responsibility is all yours instinctively and people seem more likely to step up to the plate.
So as a business owner, the message is clear – try to give individual people individual responsibilities. Don’t allow your employees to become “faceless bystanders” but, by allocating tasks that are theirs and theirs alone, you transform them into a “fully functioning human being” to use Wiseman’s expressions.

And finally, what does Wiseman have to say about motivation – always a thorn in the side of business owners. He is fairly dismissive of one of the classic management tools to inspire motivation – visualisation – and he suggests that it can actually be counterproductive to visualise a perfect or ideal situation, because that can mean one is unprepared for the possible setbacks along the way and the disappointment at not achieving the goal outweighs any benefits of visualising it. 

But he has five suggestions to help you motivate yourself and actually get done the stuff you want to get achieved, and again, he has empirical research to prove these methods work. 

• Firstly define your overall goal then make a series of sub-goals which can become a step-by-step, manageable plan. The sub-goals need to be concrete, measurable and time-based (as we’ve discussed in the Big Idea before). 

• Secondly, tell people about your goals. Keeping your aims to yourself makes it easier to fall back into old ways whereas when others are involved, generally you’re more likely to stick to your aims or promises. 

• Thirdly, remind yourself of why life will be better when you achieve your goals. Having a more positive future to look forward to is a strong motivator.

• Fourthly, give yourself a reward when you achieve each sub-goal to encourage yourself along the way. 

• And finally, keep a record of how you’re doing in a journal, on your computer, through photos or whichever method works for you – but the act of committing your journey to paper is apparently one of the most powerful ways to ensure you’re successful. 

Wiseman’s work is full of interesting tips and techniques, and the beauty of many of them is that you can incorporate them into your life in less time than it takes to make a cup of tea. It’s a great book to dip in and out of, and whether or not you agree with all of his findings, there’s bound to be something in there to at least make you stop and think – if only for 59 seconds.

Please find a link to the book here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/023074429X/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1CEY9XCGBYEBJHBFD98W&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128533&pf_rd_i=468294

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses.

Three years ago only the most pessimistic forecaster would have predicted the difficult economic environment in which we as business owners are now operating. Many of us will have seen our businesses go through significant changes over the past few years, for good or bad. Whether we’ve grown or downsized, changed direction, moved into new markets or shaved our costs, change is part and parcel of running a business.

One of the problems that all business owners face is how to communicate change effectively. The more autocratic among us may think that communication is simply unnecessary – “It’s my business and I’ll do what I like with it”. But realistically most enlightened business owners realise that unless changes are communicated and explained, it causes a vacuum in information which can leave the workforce at best undirected and at worst disillusioned.

Don’t think that only “bad” changes such as job losses and redundancies need to be communicated. Even “good” change can be unsettling and disconcerting if not communicated effectively by management. Perception is reality during times of change and what you perceive as something positive may not translate in that way to someone operating on the front line of your business, if they don’t understand why it’s happening.

Effective communication of change can and does positively affect the behaviour of your front line employees during such periods.

So as a manager what are the key things you need to think about when communicating a change to your workforce? Firstly, identify exactly what it is that you are planning to change and why. Clarify in your own mind the objectives for the changes being introduced and the results you hope to achieve as a consequence of implementing them. Avoid management jargon and “MBA speak” and think about your target audience – frame what you are doing in language they will understand.

The next thing is to ensure you communicate from the top and in person. If a major change is being implemented, then it helps if it’s explained by the leader of the business so he or she can be seen as championing the change and leading from the front. Everyone in the business will be influenced by the way you as the boss manage change – so you need to show that you’re personally committed to the process.

Start out by explaining the nature of the changes to be implemented, objectives, anticipated results and set out a clear timeline for the process including key dates, activities and milestones. Then be ready and open to take what may be challenging questions. Be as honest as you can so you are not risking storing up any nasty surprises for the future, even if you’re sharing bad news. Don’t spin it – if the news is bad for some of the audience then it’s only fair and right to acknowledge that openly. Listen carefully to feedback given, deal with concerns and respond quickly to sensitive topics.

But remember that allowing employees to have a voice is not the same as allowing them to have a veto. Nonetheless it does help them feel involved and gives them an assurance that their point of view has been heard in the process.

The next point is timing. Inform employees about a change process as soon as possible. Change takes time to unfold and the sooner they are involved, the less unsettling the whole process will be for them and the less disruptive to the business as a whole. If you don’t know all the facts at the beginning of the process, acknowledge that, but also tell your workforce that you will inform them of new information as the process develops.

Ensure you deliver on that promise. Employers are ultimately judged on their behaviours, not their words (something that applies to most of life in fact!) Try to follow through on your initial messages and if you do need to change direction during the change process, then explain why. Sending out mixed messages to your workforce is a recipe for mistrust which can lead to reduced productivity, disharmony in the workplace and even loss of key staff.

Throughout the change process, communicate often and through lots of different methods, remembering that different people digest information differently. If you’re an SME it could be as simple as an update in the weekly team meeting. But for a larger company, using different vehicles such as a newsletter, email, the intranet as well as face-to-face meetings and presentations can be helpful to cover off your bases.

As a rule of thumb, the Internet is best for getting over information that’s short and easily digestible. Paper is best for more complicated, detailed or new ideas. Additionally, face-to-face methods are best for achieving long-term changes in behaviour. Logical really, because people feel more involved and engaged when dealing with real people.

Whilst frequency of communication is important, don’t sacrifice quality. Ensure you’re sending out significant and substantial information that will mean something to staff during any process of change.

A common mistake is to assume that just because you’re putting out lots of information, it’s actually being taken on board by employees. It’s essential to engage them in the process actively so that you maintain their loyalty and buy-in once the transition is completed. Ensure your communication is two-way. Ask for their feedback on the process and give them many opportunities and methods to share their concerns, raise questions and offer ideas. Hold regular forums if necessary to express their thoughts, worries and contributions. Make sure that you as their leader through this process follow up with answers and updates whenever you can, preferably face-to-face. Developing a feedback loop as it’s called is essential to implementing and communicating change effectively.

During the process of change, people need to feel supported. It’s very easy to bring in new technologies, for example, which you know will revolutionise your business – but if you don’t train your people properly before or once it’s introduced, you’re wasting your money. So listen to what your employees tell you about the implications of the changes you’re introducing otherwise you could find yourself with an expensive disaster on your hands.

Make sure you support your workforce through recognition too. When you reach milestones in the process – the signing of a contract, the introduction of a new technology – then acknowledge and appreciate the people who’ve made it happen either privately, publicly or both. Even in a negative situation, such as redundancies, make sure you show your gratitude to those who’ve worked on dealing with the lay-offs – often a demoralising and dispiriting job however sensitively handled.

Remember that change is disruptive and difficult. There’s no perfect or ideal way to make transitions from one state to another comfortable or easy – we know that from our personal lives as much as we see it in our professional ones. But if you follow these simple and common sense tips, you should find the process a great deal easier to manage.

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses.

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The Big Idea – Power to the People

Over the Christmas period I finally managed to get around to working through some of my “to be read when I have a quiet moment” pile of documents. You know the sort; the reports, pieces of research, trade journals and so on that you are sent in the post and that really should read to keep up with trends and developments, but which more often than not sit in a pile staring accusingly at you.

And here’s the thing. When I got around the making the effort, I found some real gems among that slightly dusty pile, which gave me a host of thoughts for future big ideas.

One piece of research which really struck me was Deloitte’s Media Predictions Report (2010, I’m ashamed to say…). One of the main findings of that research was quite challenging and I think has implications for all sorts of consumer-facing businesses.

The way we consume media has changed radically. Instead of three to four channels and the TV Times to guide our viewing, we can watch a plethora of channels, as we like and when we like. Sky Plus and other such services mean that we can record shows and watch them at our convenience; log a whole series with the push of one button; and essentially manage our TV viewing experience to suit our individual tastes.

What Deloitte found – which is fascinating – is that whilst many people do use Sky Plus and other “non-linear” services, as they call it in the trade – most consumers of content still, to quote the report “remain happily beholden to the schedule, rather than resentful…..linear is likely to remain dominant not just in 2010 but for many years to come.”

I found this interesting in many ways. Firstly it tells us that, in essence, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink. We now have the technology to watch whatever TV we like whenever we like, but at the moment the majority of people don’t do so. As the report says, “The behaviours of early adopters do not necessarily become mainstream”.

In addition – and in a way even more interesting – is the fact that although they only moderately use these technologies, people are generally happy to pay for them. As the report also observes, “Consumers appear quite content to purchase devices and subscribe to services that they then hardly ever use.”

So what does that means for us, business owners and providers of services or products? I think these trends really can teach us a few useful things. One is that our customers are ultimately the arbiters of how they spend their time and how quickly they adopt something new – whether it be technology or a change to a product they’ve grown used to. We can’t force them however improved we think our new way might be. We need to do it gradually and with sensitivity.

And let’s face it, when you’re dealing with something as established as the television schedule, it’s about more than clever technology. It’s about emotion. People associate Coronation Street at 7.30pm with time for their family, with cups of tea, with getting home from work and with relaxing. As businesses, we need to learn to understand the emotional ties and associations which our products have for our customers as well as the external benefits that we can clearly see certain add-on whistles and bells will bring for them.

So if that’s the case, then to use another cliché, “If it ain’t broke, why fix it?” Why should we ever bother to innovate or develop our products if customers are happy with what they’ve got? We’d all be sitting around campfires hunting bison with clubs. Well here’s the flipside and that comes in Deloitte’s observation that many people seem content to pay for this technology although they hardly use it. Why is that?

Ultimately, because consumers are just fundamentally sensible, I think. They can see the benefits in something like Sky Plus and they use it to improve their lives as and when they need it. It’s not that they’re afraid of it, or can’t use it, because they do use it. There are times when it’s absolutely great – when they’re on holiday, when they are following a series, when their kids disrupt their favourite programme and they can stick it onto record and go and sort out the crisis in hand.

Consumers are making it work in the way they want it to work – which, interestingly, doesn’t seem to correlate to the grand view that the boffins had when they developed these non-linear technologies. It doesn’t mean the technologies aren’t half useful though!

Objectively anyone can see that in an ideal world, it would be wonderful to be able to watch all the programmes we want to watch in the order in which we want to watch them – which is to some extent what something like Sky Plus offers. So why don’t people use it like that? Because we consumers know that the schedule takes the load away from us in terms of making constant, half hourly decisions about what we watch (who needs that pressure?) and it lends familiarity and emotional comfort to our lives and to our experiences. But we also know that technologies such as Sky Plus can give extra benefits, which are still worth paying for.

So for us, as businesses, we need to recognize that we can’t necessarily force something on our customers in the way we want them to digest it. It may turn out that they find a different way of using our product, a different way of interacting with it, which doesn’t make it any the less valuable but which may not fit with our original concept. And one of the biggest dangers in business is to be inflexible. Have an idea, have a goal, but if things are moving in a different direction then don’t be blind to those opportunities. Talk to your customers, work out what makes them tick, delve into their emotional connections as well as the more hard-nosed practical benefits your product or service may bring them.

And then, you may find that they provide far more to help to you in developing your business, because they are the ones who actually spend money to use your service.

Perhaps this was a strange corollary to take from the Deloitte Report, but it really did strike me that we can all learn something from this trend. Whilst not a consumer backlash in any sense, there is something of the “power to the people” in this pattern which can teach us all as business owners about listening to our customers and learning from their behaviours and choices.

Click the following link to see the report: http://www.deloitte.com/tmtpredictions2010

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses. www.nabcommunications.co.uk

The Big Idea: The Power of Creative Thinking

http://www.thebottomlineonline.co.uk/pages/fullarticle.asp?id=293

In a recent survey by Fortune Magazine, one of America’s leading business magazines, the majority of top executives from 500 companies across the USA ranked creativity as a more important asset than intelligence for success in business today.�

This led me to wonder what exactly is ‘creative thinking’? It’s a term we throw around but what does it really involve, and more importantly how can it be applied to the small business environment? 

Ed McCabe, one of the leaders of the creative revolution in advertising in the 1960s and 1970s, said that “Creativity is one of the last remaining legal ways of gaining an unfair advantage over the competition.” How can we harness that power to our advantage?

In fact businesses, whether small or large, are quite simply being forced by the current economic environment to get creative. When times are hard, you can’t simply carry on doing things the way you’ve always done them. Whether it’s addressing your cost base, improving productivity or working out how to retain customers, innovation, clever thinking and new ways of tackling issues are more important than ever. But creativity is something that should be encouraged whether or not the backdrop is tough. 

Essentially through creative thinking we introduce a new idea into the mix. It can either be small and iterative, along the lines of the Japanese Kaizen method we discussed in a previous article, or it can effect a major shift in the business. Evidence shows that businesses that have the awareness to continually create, evaluate and successfully exploit their new ideas are more likely to survive and prosper. 

Finding time to encourage your organisation to be creative in its thinking is tough. The ongoing pace of a 24/7 connected business inhibits creativity and stepping out of an operational zone into a thinking zone is extremely difficult. But the advantages of taking that time are great.
Let’s learn from the big boys – Google is a case in point. It asks its employees to dedicate 20 percent of their time to developing ideas for the company. Whilst that might seem wildly unrealistic for a small business, there’s certainly no harm in setting aside some time every week for a creative meeting to share ideas or to set up an ideas box with incentives for the best innovations. In harder economic times, the need for every employee in a firm to contribute creative ideas and original solutions is greater than ever.

There are some principles you can put into practice to develop your own creativity, and encourage your employees to do so. The first is to be open to new experiences. Read widely, look at other industries and practices and think laterally. Creativity is based on original thinking and it’s only by keeping your eyes open that you will make connections that you might otherwise not have made to develop your business in a different direction. Go to different networking events, read different magazines, watch different TV programmes and keep thinking. 

Bringing together many diverse ideas and taking the best from them is often one of the main stimulators for creativity. Take notes, cut interesting articles out of newspapers and magazines and keep them in a particular folder or notebook where you can refer back to them.
Involve other people in the conversation – fellow employees, suppliers, contacts, customers, friends and family even. If they bring a different perspective to the mix then they can add something unique and fresh to your business situation. They might ask the obvious questions which can throw light on particular blocks to your business or make you reconsider why you have always done things in a certain way. 

The flipside to involving others is also to ensure you take some time out for yourself. Solutions often appear when you’re least expecting them, during your own quiet thinking time. It’s important to take some time out to relax. Studies have shown that stress, exhaustion, boredom and physical pain all serve as blocks to creativity. 

Creative thinking is different to analytical thinking in that you don’t follow a logical argument, work out the answer, eliminate incorrect paths and focus on the correct one. Creative thinking is much more about generating possibilities and looking for many right answers to a problem. So stop looking for one answer. “Multiple solution thinking”, as they call it in the trade, can help you to generate many ideas which ultimately lead to better, stronger and more resilient solutions than a single-minded approach. 

Essentially the different techniques that produce creative results are as follows, and it’s worth bearing all in mind when stepping into a creative frame of mind. If one isn’t working, try another tactic:

1. Evolution – new solutions stem from previous ones. Make something a little better here, a little better there, and gradually it’s a lot better than the original.
2. Synthesis – two or more ideas are combined to produce an innovative third idea. So a mobile telephone is combined with a camera to take pictures on the go, a laptop combined with a book to make an e-reader, and so on.
3. Revolution – sometimes the best new idea is a total step change or even reversal from what has gone before.
4. Reapplication – revisit something with new eyes. See beyond the obvious to think about different ways of doing something, using something or approaching something.
5. Changing direction – try to solve a problem by approaching it from another angle rather than staying on the same path. Change your perspective on the problem in hand to see if other solutions come to light. 

Also everyone has their own creative rhythms. For some people first thing in the morning is when they function best; for others it’s the middle of the night. Respect your own rhythms, be aware of them and most importantly ensure you have a notebook or laptop around at those times to capture your ideas before they slip out of your mind again. 

And if that isn’t enough, keep yourself in good shape – exercise, bringing oxygen to the brain, is shown to stimulate and improve creative thinking!

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses. www.nabcommunications.co.uk

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The Big Idea – The Science of Happiness

As part of his push towards a “Big Society”, David Cameron has proposed a well-being index to measure, as a nation, how happy we are. Brushing off criticisms that such an index would be “woolly or impractical”, Cameron believes that GDP is an inadequate measure of the performance of a nation, reflecting comments made by Robert Kennedy that GDP “measures everything except that which makes life worthwhile”.

Other factors, in Cameron’s view, contribute to the quality of life of the nation which can’t be measured by a balance sheet.

If such an idea applies to our nation as a whole, then surely it must apply to our own businesses and the way we run them? It’s a logical step to consider whether there are intangible elements which can add to the overall quality of a business, which aren’t reflected in the accounts books.
One school of thought that would support such an approach is the positive psychology movement. Now a recognised stream of psychology, this came into being more than ten years ago when Martin Seligman, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and Head of the American

Psychology Association at the time, decided to take a different approach.

In its most simple form, what Seligman did was to study people who were generally happy with their lives rather than people who were mainly unhappy, which had been the traditional psychological domain. Seligman reasoned that we could learn whether such people had predominant traits or attitudes which could help us all to learn the “secrets” of how to live a happy life.

The difference between positive psychology as opposed to many of the self-help books and CDs we may use (helpful as they can certainly be) is that it has ten years of clinical research behind it. It’s an established line of science and is respected as such. The most interesting thing is that positive psychologists believe that optimism can be learned to help people lead happier, more meaningful and more fulfilling lives.

Whilst no one can be happy all the time, and there are certain situations where optimism is inappropriate (we prefer our airline pilots to err on the side of caution for example), the findings are that people can take control of certain actions that will make them happier for a time, such as setting appropriate goals. They can add gratitude, hope, and a dose of self-control to their day.

This movement is now spilling over into the workplace and ties in well with the current national theme of well-being. How can we, as business owners, use these techniques to improve our own game and improve the quality of life for our employees?

A decade of research suggests that happiness at work—defined as pleasure, engagement, and a sense of meaning—can improve revenue, profitability, staff retention, customer loyalty, and workplace safety. Positive emotion in the workplace can increase creativity and problem-solving ability as well as helping fight stress.

Some simple ideas that can help bring a more positive approach into the workplace are:

1. In performance reviews focus on the value that an individual brings to the workplace. Identify his or her “signature strengths” where they really do make a difference and check that these are aligned to the responsibilities they have been given to ensure you’re bringing out the best in each person.

2. Have a weekly team meeting where you open with a success story such as positive feedback from a client, or ask everyone around the table to open with something positive that has happened to them within the business that week. Also finish team meetings by asking everyone to outline some way in which they improved their performance or learnt something new this week – a new article, a new style of selling, a tip or trick etc. This keeps people focused on continuous improvement and fosters teamwork.

3. Consider holding a half day seminar every six months to brief employees on updates within the firm and to brainstorm new ideas. When employees discuss the “larger purpose” or direction of an organisation it can help improve morale and produce cost savings, efficiencies and new ideas for the direction of the business.

4. When hiring, look as much for character as much as for skills. Whilst obviously in some professions you need certain skills – I wouldn’t want a doctor who is unqualified for example – in other areas, character traits such as optimism, enthusiasm, a sense of purpose and emotional intelligence can go a lot further in the long run than someone who ticks every box on the skills front.

5. Push beyond your comfort zone. Every week or month try to achieve something that you thought was beyond your reach. As with exercise, if you keep pushing your body to just beyond its comfort zone to goals that are always moving ahead slightly, similarly your company can keep improving in small ways by introducing this self-discipline.

Inevitably many are cynical about such thinking. One criticism is that positive psychology is too soft for numbers-focused business owners. Quantifiable research is underway which is beginning to produce tangible and encouraging results to support using positive psychology in the workplace but it is in its early stages.

Fundamentally though, it costs very little to implement the small changes outlined above. It’s amazing how much business owners will spend on ill-thought out and costly initiatives and expenditure when something which is in many ways simply common sense – the idea that if you create a positive environment of appreciation, it will make you more efficient and profitable—seems so difficult for many to take on board. Happy bosses perform measurably better, build productive teams and inspire loyalty. Perhaps some positive psychology might add a bit of value to your business too?

Find out more here: www.authentichappiness.org

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses. http://www.nabcommunications.co.uk/

The Big Idea – What Makes An Entrepreneur?

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This week (15-21 November 2010) is Global Entrepreneurship Week and its theme is “Make a Job, Don’t Take a Job”. Having a look at their website got me to thinking about what makes an entrepreneur? Why is it that some people work all their lives for large organisations whilst others feel the need to strike out on their own? And are there some myths around the characteristics of an entrepreneur?

One of the fascinating facts on the Global Entrepreneurship Week website is that if self-employment rose by just 1% – that’s less than 300,000 new entrepreneurs – then the UK’s GDP would be boosted by £22 billion wiping out Government cuts for two years (YouGov Report 2010). So entrepreneurs have a massive impact on the state of the economy. If you run your own business, then you matter.

What makes an entrepreneur is a fascinating question. Many people believe that entrepreneurs are born rather than made – you either have it or you don’t. The reality is more complex. The classic stereotypical entrepreneur is very competitive and motivated (your Type A individual); typically male; often not formally educated beyond school level; a high risk taker with the drive to work incredibly hard to achieve his (and I use that word advisedly) objectives.

However, we will all know very successful entrepreneurs who do not fit that stereotype so let’s look beyond obvious and the superficial assumptions to what really makes the great entrepreneurs tick.

Certainly the instincts to succeed and to work hard are essential to developing a successful business. I don’t know a single person who has founded their own business without putting in extra hours and working weekends and evenings in the pursuit of getting it right, particularly in the early days. It’s also about having the belief and tenacity to get on and do something about your ideas. In the words of Nolan Bushnell, the founder of Atari, “The critical ingredient is getting off your butt and doing something. Its as simple as that. A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. But today. The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.”

Whilst there is, by necessity, a certain amount of personal courage involved in setting up your own business, entrepreneurs are not always high risk takers as might be the perception. In fact those who do take high risks tend not to flourish, unless they are very lucky. But those who spot a gap in the market, do their research, assimilate information quickly, make conscious and confident decisions and then work their butts off tend be the more successful; managed risk rather than pure gambling.

Another characteristic of entrepreneurs is high energy and enthusiasm. Being innovative and constantly thinking of ways to improve and develop your organisation and your product is natural to the true entrepreneur. To quote the UK’s most famous entrepreneur, Sir Richard Branson, “Business opportunities are like buses – theres always another one coming.” It’s all about keeping your eyes open, reading, learning and feeding off your environment.

Which brings me to education, or the lack thereof. It’s true that many – although not all – entrepreneurs didn’t have much in the way of a formal education and there is a belief that this often inspires people to work harder in their professional lives. Some entrepreneurs simply wanted to get out into the “real world” and get on with building a business. But equally the thirst for knowledge – whether it’s reading business books, following the news religiously or learning constantly about things seemingly unrelated to business such as culture and the arts – is another hallmark of many entrepreneurs. A lack of formal qualifications should never be taken as a lack of intellect. Also the good entrepreneur has to be self-aware – knowing his or her own deficiencies, they are often canny enough to put people around them who fill the gaps, be it lawyers, researchers, developers, programmers. The true entrepreneur is of course confident enough in his or her own talents not to feel threatened but to celebrate the skills of the wider team.

The stereotype of the male entrepreneur is another one worth challenging. Admittedly there are still more male than female entrepreneurs but statistics show that more women than ever are opting to start their own business. A quarter of the UK’s self-employed workforce and 30% of business owners are women – statistics that may surprise.

As the saying goes, necessity is the mother (note – not the father!) of invention, and sometimes women may find that whilst a traditional career path is no longer their cup of tea having started a family, other unexpected opportunities may arise as a consequence. Justine Roberts, founder of MumsNet, is a prime example of that dynamic. A former sports journalist, she spotted the opportunity for a social networking website for Mums to swap advice, tips and chat when she was feeling isolated at home with new born twins. Similarly, the late and wonderful Dame Anita Roddick set up the Body Shop to earn some extra income for herself and her daughters whilst her husband was working away in South America.

Having said that, many female entrepreneurs set up for exactly the same reasons as their male counterparts, irrespective of their personal circumstances – they simply have a great idea and the drive and energy to see it through – and those ideas may extend far beyond businesses traditionally seen as a “female” domain.

Entrepreneurs are also often the sort of individuals who don’t really enjoy toeing the line. By definition, if you feel you can set up your own business, it’s because you think you can do something faster, better, more quickly, more efficiently, more innovatively, more smartly or more creatively than your competitors. So an independence of spirit and sometimes even a touch of non-conformity can often be marks of the successful entrepreneur.

And finally there’s the myth that entrepreneurs are just in it to get rich quick and it’s all about the money. True, for some founding your own business can lead to immense wealth. But so can some of the more traditional corporate routes too. There’s more to it than money. It’s also about building self-esteem, self-worth, setting yourself a challenge and achieving it, even surpassing it.

Furthermore, according to the Global Entrepreneurship website, 64% of entrepreneurs think they have a key role in addressing issues such as climate change and poverty. Bill Gates – the most famous entrepreneur in the world – is also one of the world’s biggest philanthropists through his foundation. Often entrepreneurs are multi-faceted individuals with an interest not just in themselves, their personal wealth and their own empire, but also in social issues, the arts, the environment. They can be as driven in contributing to those areas as they are in building their own businesses. It’s wrong, and again superficial, to stick to stereotypes.

To conclude, I hand over to someone who summarises the true spirit of entrepreneurship in this fantastic comment – the inspirational Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple and Pixar.

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

http://www.gew.org.uk – the Global Entrepreneurship Week website

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses. www.nabcommunications.co.uk

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As a small to medium-sized business owner, it may well be that your business has grown in a rather unplanned fashion. Perhaps as it took off and became more successful, the need grew to bring in new people to support the increased turnover, customer demands and other business functions.

So you may find yourself in the unexpected position of suddenly being a leader of people alongside being an entrepreneur – and that can be a tough transition.

Some people seem to be born leaders. But for those of us for whom it does not come so naturally, is it a skill that can be learned? In fact management theory recognises that there isn’t just one kind of leader, but many different leadership styles. We probably can all identify people who fall into the various categories. There is the autocratic leadership style, which feels somewhat archaic in the modern business environment but which still can have its place in certain situations. The laissez faire leader, on the other hand, minimises his or her actual direction and guidance but develops an efficient team to take the business forward. And the participative leader allows people to develop their own skills and have some autonomy whilst maintaining control at an arm’s length distance – i.e. trust combined with responsibility. Most small- to medium-sized business leaders tend to fall either into the first or third category; taking a hands off approach when it’s your own business is unusual.

Whatever your leadership style, there are some common key areas and skills which differentiate outstanding leaders – although if you’re of an autocratic disposition, some will be more evident than others!

It’s worth thinking about these areas, identified below, and evaluating whether you currently demonstrate them; whether you can incorporate them into the way you run your business; or whether you can learn them through studying, training or emulating others.

The characteristics can be defined in the following ways:

1. Primarily many experts believe the most essential leadership skill is integrity. It’s more than just honesty – it’s about having guiding principles, beliefs and values which influence every decision you make in your business in a consistent manner. Without integrity at the top it is extremely difficult to foster trust within a working environment.
2. Great leaders are marked out by their vision – again something which can be hard when you have been entirely focused on growing your business. It’s about relating your day-to-day activities to your overall strategy for the business; knowing where you want to business to be going beyond this month’s results or budget targets; and developing a long term vision that helps everyone relate to the bigger picture for the business.
3. Communication is also a key element of leadership. How often is the main complaint from employees that the management fails to communicate with them? A two way flow of information is important – the ability to listen to your employees is as vital as talking to them. And also as a leader it’s essential to know when to stay schtum and keep private information private – discretion being the better part of valour.
4. People are central to how any organisation runs, be it ten people or thousands of employees. A leader who is comfortable with dealing with people and who likes to build strong relationships with them will be at an advantage as he or she will be able to forge powerful and loyal teams and gain the respect of employees. So relationship building is another characteristic of powerful leaders.
5. We can all think of great leaders who were great orators – Churchill being the inevitable example. Persuasion is a key skill for great leaders. Part of leadership is getting people to do things that they sometimes don’t want to do, or don’t feel ready to do.
6. Whilst vision and strategy are a key asset for a leader, so is flexibility – and striking a balance between the two skills can be tough. But being able to embrace change and adapt to different circumstances – perhaps even recognising them as an opportunity – is another characteristic of a leader.
7. A great leader understands that he or she can’t do or know everything. The ability to delegate appropriately and to build teams that allow you to focus on the bigger picture is another essential part of leadership – and again, one that the SME owner can find particularly difficult to master.
8. Encouraging those around you, sharing your skills and experience and developing their talents is another characteristic of leaders. A great leader never feels threatened by the abilities of those around him or her – training and development is central to exceptional leadership.
9. Decisiveness is also essential to being a good leader – but again, this should be measured and controlled. Indecision can be fatal to an organisation but similarly hasty decisions can be repented at leisure. Making strong decisions based on good, relevant data in a well-considered way is very important.
10. And finally, planning – which involves making certain assumptions about the future and taking action in the present to influence that future. It’s linked to strategy but also linked the flexibility – the ability to plan for activities and projects but also to think strategically and flexibly is possibly one of the largest leadership balancing acts.

It’s interesting as a business owner to look at this list and evaluate what you’re doing well and where you could improve. We all have strengths and weaknesses, and hopefully none of us need to lead in the manner of a Churchill…but there’s no harm in looking at how the great leaders operated and taking a few tips back to our own workplaces.

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses. www.nabcommunications.co.uk

Gaining financing is difficult for an SME at the best of times and the current economic environment can make it feel nigh on impossible. Whatever the banks may say, it feels very tough at the moment if you’re at the sharp end seeking finance either to start a new business or develop your existing business. However there are some tips and ideas that can help SME’s access the right source of financing.

Firstly you need to develop a strong business case as to why you are seeking additional financing. This should help potential investors or lenders understand the vision or goals for your business and why you need financing to progress these aims. It should incorporate an executive summary, a company description, details of key personnel with an organisation chart, market research on the sector, competitors and how your product or services sits within its marketplace including a SWOT analysis (strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats), a marketing plan, historical financial information including key ration, financial projections for the next three to five years, cashflow forecast, an indication of the amount of funding needed, where this financing will go and how it will help the business to develop. Also you should include why and how the financing will be managed and how and when investors can expect get their money back. You should also outline any existing financing sources from banks and other investors as that can be evidence of your credibility and worthiness of investment.

Also bear in mind that the investors may not know your sector or business – if there are any trends such as seasonality which may add lumpiness to your earnings, make sure these are explained in detail. Banks and other investors like consistency – but failing that they like to understand any anomalies.

It may sound like a huge amount of data and information to collate – but if you haven’t done your homework, then it would be unreasonable to expect anyone to back you and take a risk on your business. Some people say it’s good to build about 20% headroom into your projections as the bank will automatically discount anything by at least that amount whilst others say you must be realistic in your projections, if not even erring on the conservative side. But the one thing that is absolutely sure is that you must be honest and truthful in your disclosure of your current financial position.

Also you need to know your audience. Research the background of those you will be approaching for funding. If you’re approaching a bank, know their exact criteria and whether they have a track record in lending to businesses in your sector/of your size. Find out what other businesses they have lent to, and why. If it’s a private equity company or business angel, then find out all you can about their expertise and background as well as track record. We’ve all seen people crumble in the Dragon’s Den once they realise they’ve been talking unknowingly to a Dragon with twenty years’ experience and a multi-million pound business in their exact sector…..so rehearse and practice your pitch beforehand as you’ll only get one shot to get it right and know who you are addressing.

Alongside traditional debt financing from banks, it’s worth thinking about other options such as early stage investment VCs and business angels. This can be a particularly good option where the project is such that conventional lenders may not be attracted to it, or when the business will be putting most of its cash into core activities or funding growth so may not have enough cash to repay loan interest. VCs and BAs tend to be paid their investment back through dividend payments as the business grows – and because of the increased risk tend to expect a higher return. There are many networks and associations that can introduce SME’s to such companies and this is where effective networking can really come into play. The British Venture Capital Association is at http://www.bvca.co.uk/home and The British Business Angels’ Website is at http://www.bbaa.org.uk/ for more information.

Finally, even though we see huge cuts at every level and the Government has announced its intention to abolish the RDAs, it’s still worth investigating possible help from Government grants. Business Link has helpful information about the types of grants available at http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/layer?topicId=1073869074

So no one is saying that it’s easy. It’s very hard to find finance – but at least you can get yourself in the best possible position to do so. The key is to do your homework and know your own business as well as your audience inside out and to think laterally about potential funding sources. Even if you don’t succeed in gaining financing, the knowledge you gain in the process can help solidify your current business model and even potentially improve your relationship with your existing lender.

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses. www.nabcommunications.co.uk

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It takes something fairly special to be described by BusinessWeek as “The Man Who Invented Management”. But back in November 2005, a couple of weeks after his death at the grand old age of 95, that was the cover story accolade given to a man named Peter F. Drucker.

Drucker was born in Austria in 1909 and grew up in an intensely educated and elitist hub of professionals and academics. Intellectuals, artists, government officials and scientists would meet at his parents’ house. As a child he even met Sigmund Freud. Although himself not Jewish, Drucker wrote articles on the situation in Germany which offended the Nazis so much that they were banned and burned. The few copies remaining in library archives today are marked with the swastika. Drucker left Germany when Hitler became Chancellor and moved to London, ultimately settling in America in 1937. The oppression of Nazism and the danger of centralised power remained central to his thinking on business and his work on management.

So why is he so seminal in management thinking to this day? His experiences in Europe left him fascinated with the question of authority. He latched on early to the concept of decentralisation in organisations, particularly through his work with General Motors, passing power out from management to engage and harness the energy of the workers in a company.

He believed that management is a “liberal art”. What did he mean by that? Among other things, he felt workers should be treated as assets rather than liabilities. Nothing new in that, perhaps? But remember, it was during the 1950s when he first expressed that view. Similarly, back in the fifties, he also appreciated that: “The purpose of business is to create and keep a customer.” This heralded the focus on sales, marketing and customer service that is now a standard part of most business operations, from an SME to a multi-national conglomerate.

He also believed that all institutions had a responsibility to the whole of society and should be built on trust for the worker – forty years before even the most enlightened corporations latched onto corporate and social responsibility as a “must do”. In the 1970s, Drucker expressed the view that the knowledge that workers could bring to a company would add more value than simply focusing on processing raw materials – again, many years before the phrase “knowledge-based economy” became standard for us all. He was always ahead of the curve, predicting trends decades before they happened.

So how can the thinking of this late, great management guru help us? Probably only through the power of his own words…so I’ve listed some two of the quotations from Drucker that most resonate with me. Perhaps they will strike a chord with you, too, when running your business and managing your people. (link to “The Essential Peter Drucker” book).

“The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say I. And thats not because they have trained themselves not to say I. They dont think I. They think we; they think team. They understand their job to be to make the team function. They accept responsibility and dont sidestep it, but we gets the credit…. This is what creates trust, what enables you to get the task done.”

Deborah Done, the author of our Big Ideas, is founder and director of Nab Communications, a freelance public relations agency which provides sensible and value for money PR advice to regional and national businesses. www.nabcommunications.co.uk