A change of scenery

I met a few friends or business connections today in two locations here in the Seattle-Bellevue area. I met one person at the Bellevue Hyatt Hotel and another at the University Village Starbucks (near UW).

The Hyatt had a huge addition put on over the past two years and has been open for a few months. The connecting area between the original hotel lobby and the new one is a gorgeous atrium- a very attractive and comfortable place to sit and converse. The new tower has new ballrooms and meeting rooms and the entire facility says ‘1^st Class’. If I was visiting Bellevue or the eastside on business this is where I would stay.

The Starbucks in U-Village has been remodeled also. It’s well done- very warm and comfortable and it strikes me as a step away from the almost too sterile, too perfect, too predictable Starbucks that we see everywhere. In my opinion, Starbucks has been in need of an upgraded and different look at their stores for quite a while. I don’t know if this is a test store for them or not. To me, the colors and mood of the place seem more coffeehouse like, and I liked it.

Whatever business you’re in, it probably makes sense to hit the reset button periodically to refresh your image. Every major company does this and small businesses would be wise to do so also. McDonalds comes up with a new slogan every year or so. Microsoft uses their Windows logo and colors in new ways. Nordstrom has been gradually changing the interiors of their main stores. IBM does variations on its famous logo and its tag lines. The auto companies change their messaging to fit the buying public’s latest hot button.

The world around you is constantly changing. Your customers are always looking for something new and/or different. What are you doing to reinvent yourself and be seen as fresh, exciting and relevant?

© 2009 Peter E. McDowell

PERFORMA Business Development

Different View/ Better Results

pete@performabusdev.com

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Recapping the business

I’m always attempting to convey points of view and information that have real value for people in business- things for you to think about and possibly nudge to get you to take action to improve your situation.

Recently, my newsletter and blog articles have stressed the need for business owners and managers to relook at or continually look at their businesses to see what needs to be different in order to move forward. This is strategic thinking first, followed by tactical thinking and execution. I’m no different than many of you! I do the same with my business and have evolved my offering and messaging over the past year to better reflect what it is that I do.

Spin

I’m not sure about you, but for me the political spin from the two main political parties is getting really old. Yes, I know it’s been going on for decades but it actually seems to be getting worse. I’m sick of it and so are many others that I know. Wouldn’t it be nice to have real dialogue?

If you regularly spin your business story you’ve got deep functional and values problems and sooner or later spin will bite you.

I’m sorry, your product is no longer economical

I read an interesting article in the front section of the WSJ yesterday, by Ann Davis and Russell Gold: U.S. Biofuel Boom Running on Empty. It made perfect sense to me. It’s another example of the lack of solid business strategic planning and business best practices.
Every business in every industry must have the following: a legitimate and real market for a product or service (the market has a real need for the specific product) and one that economically makes sense. Products and their inherent benefits or solutions to problems will make sense economically when people demand the product and there are not other less costly alternatives.

No frills

I like to read the Wall Street Journal, to get a different slant in the news than what is reported daily in the local Seattle media. On Monday, one article caught my attention because it has relevance to every business, I think. This is a great example of business strategic planning in the midst of challenging times.