How to Find Out If They’re a Good Fit

by Mark Bloom | Dec 23, 2019 | Agency Advice

Listen for Clues from Your Employees & Clients

Business owners, project managers and marketing directors may not always speak the same language, but they’ve got to learn to communicate to do their specific jobs. If you run a business or you’re in charge of a project, you want to deal with people who have the same basic values and principles as you do. In general, there are two maxims that reflect this attitude:

1. People do business with people and companies they like. If you don’t think this is true, consider all the business British Petroleum (BP) lost after its oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Most people support the businesses they respect and want to succeed.
    
2. When everyone’s on the same page, business flows smoothly and effortlessly. In an ideal world, your marketing department speaks to your web development team. Everyone in your company is working toward the same goals. If you talk at people, you don’t listen for clues of understanding.

To find out if the people you’re dealing with in business are a good fit for you and your company, you need to listen for clues when you meet for the first time. Probe a little and know what you’re looking for in their answers. This may sound like a job for a psychology or management graduate, but you can master the technique by adopting some simple steps.

Choose Committed Employees and Likable Clients

You may entertain the notion that hiring the right employees, signing the best contractors, choosing the most reliable vendors and finding the easiest clients to work with are completely distinct processes. You’re wrong. All of these things — which nearly every business does — are related more closely than you may realize.

Yes, you have to master some listening skills to really hear what people say to you, but the first step in that process is knowing what to listen for. When you listen for clues, you pick them up effortlessly, which feeds your decision-making process, whether it involves a client, a contractor, a vendor or an employee.

Tips for Making the Best Connections

Learning anything new is a process. Learning to listen for clues is the same. Follow these steps to hire more dedicated employees and sign up clients who are easier to work with:

1. Identify your company values. Before you can align with someone else’s values, you have to know your own. Spend the time necessary to come up with a list of values that matter to you as the business owner or project manager. It’s usually something other than the bottom line. It may involve quality, education, satisfaction or challenges. Whatever it is, make sure you not only know it, but keep it in the forefront of your mind for every business transaction.
    
2. Keep a list of what you’re seeking. When you’re hiring, you most likely have a list of duties and responsibilities. That’s the easy part. Now consider what you’re looking for in the person you want to hire. Timeliness? Courtesy? Professionalism? Reasonableness? Eager? Teachable? Whatever you want, make sure it’s on the list. Now you know what you’re looking for — and what questions to ask in an interview.
    
3. Consider communication styles. People communicate differently, just as people learn differently. When you’re cognizant of your preferred communication style, find others who match that style. It speeds up your communication and makes it clearer. For example, do you ask a lot of questions? Do you appreciate someone who does or do you find it annoying? Your answers tell you what to look for in an employee, contractor, vendor and even a client.
    
4. Know your management style. If you’re hands-off in your management approach, you expect employees to ask if they don’t understand an assignment. If you’re hands-on, you actively check to make sure your charges understand what’s expected of them. These are two very different management styles. Wherever you fall along the spectrum, find others who can fill the role that’s best for you. Listen for clues about how they work, and this applies to every business relationship.
    
5. Ask the right questions. Once you’ve done the preliminary work, you have a much better idea what you’re looking for from an employee, contractor, vendor or client. During your interview process, ask pointed questions about expectations and work processes. Go directly to the issues that matter to you to explore their values and to set expectations. Listen for clues and watch their body language. Most of what people communicate is non-verbal.
    
6. Get everyone on board. When you hire a new employee or sign on a new client, talk to your partner or your team. Collect everyone’s input and make sure everyone feels heard. When you bring your team together toward one decision, everyone lands on the same page of positive expectations. If an issue arose during the interview or contract stage, everyone shares an awareness of the issue and is better prepared to handle related problems. It’s more than communication; it’s preparation.
    
7. Check references. Before you make an offer to a new employee, contractor or vendor, check all possible references. You may learn something new or you may confirm something you suspected. Before you sign up a new client, do your due diligence. Speak to your point-of-contact. Check the Better Business Bureau for non-payment or other issues. This extra work prevents future headaches.

Solving Problems Before They Become Problems

Consider the internal problems two distinct businesses face when they merge. If the company cultures clash, a power struggle for supremacy may rip the merged company apart. When America Online and Time Warner merged, the process hurt both businesses. That’s what makes international business so fraught with peril. When cultures collide, you’re not sure how to listen for clues to read the people you’re dealing with.

Business is tough enough. Make it as easy as possible in your business relationships. When you’re dealing with people you like, everything may become easier and more enjoyable!

Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business to succeed. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters, and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.

Put Aside Your Ego to Listen without Prejudice

by Mark Bloom | Dec 9, 2019 | Agency Advice

Listen without Prejudice to Grow in New Ways

If you’re like most business and web agency owners, you listen to your gut. Your instincts — especially if you’ve devoted yourself to business experience and education — may be honed to a fine edge, an edge that gives you an advantage over your competition. If nothing else, your instincts likely contributed to your success to date.

However, if you can listen without prejudice, you’ll find there are new things to learn. And you may avoid making preventable mistakes that set you and your company back. When you run a business, you must put aside your ego so your company can grow and flourish. Sometimes, you have to admit that maybe — just maybe — you don’t have all the (right) answers. And be aware that your ego tells you that you do.

Gather Information from Trusted Sources

There’s an old saying: “If you want to improve yourself, hang around people who are better or smarter than you are.” Would you rather be around people who started one company, failed and stopped trying? Or would you rather hang out with serial entrepreneurs who kept failing until they finally succeed?

The saying works for business growth as well. Seek counsel from those who’ve been there, done that. Find confidantes who have more experience than you. Enlist the help of a mentor to provide timely advice. Doing so helps you overcome your ego and listen without prejudice to new ideas.

Finding authoritative sources in your research encourages you to put your guard down. Every successful person knows the value of continual learning. They know that when you stop learning, you stop growing.

Even Old Dogs Can Learn New Tricks

While you can learn listening skills, they take time to master. Like learning a new language or a musical instrument, all the advice in the world won’t help you unless you apply it again and again until it becomes second nature. And when it comes to your ego, you can’t expect it to be receptive to being put aside. Your ego more likely will resemble a whining two-year-old who demands attention.

But the rewards are great if you succeed. Consider that most people, including business owners, learn life lessons the hard way: through experience. If you can bypass those painful lessons and adopt new ideas, attitudes and techniques by listening objectively, without the unconscious biases you bring to the table, you’ll grow through wisdom and not through lessons.

How to Listen without Prejudice

Just because you have prejudices doesn’t mean you have to act on them. You can learn to listen without prejudice by taking specific, concrete steps. Listening objectively is a skill that takes time to master. You’ll likely make mistakes. You may even lose some opportunities, but you’ll be headed in the right direction.

The best way to get better at it is to practice. It takes willpower and effort, but it’s worth it in the end. Tips to to improve your listening skills include:

1. Put yourself in their shoes. While listening, consider the person who’s speaking. You often don’t know what they’ve been through or where they’re coming from, especially if it’s a stranger. Consider their perspective to gain insight into their words.
    
2. Be a gracious listener. Don’t interrupt. Wait patiently for your turn to speak. That time will come. Listen carefully and take note of the unspoken cues, such as body language, facial expressions and gestures. The words people say make up only a small percentage of what they’re communicating.
    
3. Count to 30. Don’t jump into a conversation with the first thing that pops into your head. Think about what you want to say. Formulate your answer. Your second response is almost always going to be better than your first.
    
4. Repeat what you heard. Foster communication by reiterating what the person has said to you — in your own words — which lets them know you’ve heard them. This act also reinforces the idea in your own mind.
    
5. Imagine being recorded. Before you say anything in response during a conversation, picture a microphone in your face. Don’t say anything you’ll later regret. Don’t say anything in the heat of the moment from a place of anger. Consider what would happen if your words were recorded for others to hear.
    
6. Put your opinions on hold. To listen without prejudice simply means to keep a completely open mind. It’s hard, if not impossible to allow new ideas into a closed mind. When you suspend judgement while listening closely, you may just be surprised at what you hear.

Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business to succeed. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters, and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.

How Important Web Development Is to the World

by Mark Bloom | Nov 5, 2019 | Agency Advice

We Rely on the Importance of Web Work

Everything is moving online. Some countries, like Estonia, have made governmental responsibilities and interactions easier and more convenient by moving them to web-based programs. As a result, normally treacherous government agencies and services, such as the Department of Motor Vehicles, are now streamlined and headache-free.

But this transition — which is expected to gain more momentum in the years ahead — is only possible with consistent, stable and fast internet connections. The shift to the online platform also highlights the importance of web work: development, design, content and speed. If there’s one thing that the initial rollout of the Affordable Care Act taught Americans, it’s that any platform and website better be ready to handle the load.

Change Relies on Expertise

In a changing world, the ones who do it right are usually the ones who come out ahead. In other words, web development requires more than just a good coder. Creating an online platform for goods and services is akin to making a motion picture. You need more than actors and a director. The list of credits shown at the end of every movie shows how much of a team effort the movie required.

Similarly, the importance of web work counts on the knowledge and abilities of many, not just a few. Including:

• Web developers
• User experience (UX) designers
• Graphic designers
• Content writers
• Photographers
• Project managers

Without any of this principle talent, the project may not succeed. Each brings special abilities to the project. As a team working together, the project becomes greater than any individual’s input … just as a good movie does.

The Importance of Web Work to the Internet

As more and more people browse the web for information, research and entertainment, it’s going to become more and more vital that the websites they find are clear, easy-to-use and responsive. Regardless where technology takes us all, websites must keep up. Otherwise, they’ll be left behind. Review your own website to make sure it doesn’t look like it was built in 1999 and not touched since.

Just as broadband has increased everyone’s expectations of instant downloads, every website needs to load quickly, present information accurately and give visitors clear choices. Web developers today can build nearly any design they’re given. Therefore, it’s up to:

• UX designers, graphical designers and photographers to work out the best designs possible
• Content writers to produce engaging, understandable and compelling copy that enables visitors to complete their task at hand
• Project managers to bring everyone to the table — including clients — to create the best websites to serve a purpose, even if that purpose is just to entertain

If You Build It, Will They Come?

Every website must now consider search engine optimization (SEO) so that it can compete or even be seen in an increasingly competitive online marketplace. But once visitors click through to your website, make sure it’s up to the task of giving them what they want. To improve the online world, put effort into every website you design or build.

The importance of web work will become more and more obvious as the well-designed sites grow and the poorly designed sites fade away. Every functionally effective website you create makes the internet a better and safer place to visit. Every positive experience from your own website increases the likelihood of a return visit.

If you build or design websites, make each one the best. If you write website content, please your audience. If you’re a project manager, bring out the best from everyone on your team. And if you do none of these things, hire the best to get it done right.

Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words that empower your business to succeed. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters, and more, with cross-links and thorough internet research.

The Mind-Blowing Stress of Disorganization

by Mark Bloom | Oct 29, 2019 | Agency Advice

Why Being Disorganized Causes Stress

There have been studies that suggest that a clear desk indicates a clear mind. If you have a clear mind, so the theory goes, you’re more productive because you spend more time working and less time looking for necessary notes, papers or data. A clear desk eliminates the stress of disorganization, which is true for business owners, web developers, project managers and content creators.

Disorganization can take many forms, in addition to a cluttered desk. In fact, the number one reason for being or feeling disorganized pertains to time management. If you’re wasting time, you’re not productive. If you’re not focused, you’re potentially doing things that aren’t the best use of your time. Other ways of adding to the stress of disorganization, even if you don’t realize it, include:

• Procrastinating
• Putting too many tasks on your to-do list
• Doing other things until your deadline looms
• Not prioritizing your time and your to-do list
• Waiting for the perfect moment or the right mood to strike
• Getting caught up in less important tasks
• Waiting for others to complete their tasks before you start yours
• Not planning ahead, so if an emergency hits, you’re unprepared
• Using too many scraps of paper for your notes that are always in danger of being misplaced
• Mixing up project-related notes with personal notes
• Being distracted by your phone, the birds outside your window, anything
• Allowing yourself to be interrupted while you’re working

How the Stress of Disorganization Emerges

Whether you’re a web developer or a project manager, clutter on your desk and clutter in your mind create stress because you always feel like you’re on uneven footing. When you know exactly what you need to do, you’re likely to stay focused and engaged. According to Psychology Today, disorganization causes stress because:

• Visual clutter overloads your senses and distracts you from your task at hand.
• Your brain needs “white space” or blank areas to help it focus and solve problems. Too much disorganization, and you can’t cogitate properly.
• A messy desk makes it seem that you have more things to do than you actually have.
• A disorganized area creates a sense of anxiety in your mind.
• You may feel guilty about not have a cleaner space.

The best way to become more productive is to organize your desk, your mind and your time. When you know where everything is, it’s a good sign that you know what you need to do. When your mind is calm and relaxed, you’re more likely to be quicker to solve problems and think creatively. You can’t do that when you’re confronted by the mind-blowing stress of disorganization.

Overcoming Disorganization

But there are things you can do as a web developer or business owner to get organized and allow your mind to become sharper. Avoiding clutter helps clear your mind and changes the way you approach your job. If you want to succeed — in your project and your peace of mind — these steps are worth the conscious investment of your time and energy.

To defuse the mind-blowing stress of disorganization, you must take steps to organize your workspace and your work habits. Some tips include:

• Get a smaller desk. You won’t be able to put as many things on it, forcing yourself to reorganize your mess.
• Put aside time at the end of each day to organize your desk. Make sure everything is in its place. The time you spend each evening is way less than you’d spend doing a major cleanup.
• Either keep a central notebook with all your notes or go completely electronic. Either way, you’re more likely to know where important information is and how to get to it when you need it.
• Ask for help when you need it. Chances are, you’re not alone in your office or in your business. Make it a team effort to be more organized.
• Always put things back where they belong after you’re finished with them. Once you’ve cleaned up your space, keep it clean and well organized.
• Create project files to keep related documents, designs and notes all together.
• Use neurolinguistic programming (NLP) to de-stress.
• Regardless what else you do, give your brain some space to decompress. Close your eyes for a minute or two before starting work. Take frequent breaks to keep it fresh and give your mind a breather.

Remember that stress is the enemy of productivity. Fight back against the mind-blowing stress of disorganization to reach your highest potential. The online world of business is often stressful enough; don’t add to it with a disorganized desk or office. When web developers, project managers and business owners want to succeed, they clear their desks and their minds. Prepare to engage!

Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words that empower your business to succeed. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters, and more, with cross-links and thorough internet research.

The Stress of Content Delay

by Mark Bloom | Oct 15, 2019 | Agency Advice

Learn How to Avoid the Ills of Content Delay

Don’t let waiting for content put your company underwater

Every website development business, every web design firm and every content marketer has likely had an unpleasant experience dealing with content delay. A common scenario runs something like this:

1. A company hires you to develop a new website, completely revamp an existing site or make some other kinds of tweaks to a site. You assign a contact from your team of project managers.
    
2. For budgetary or other reasons, the client agrees to furnish the content for the new or updated site. Your project manager schedules milestone and deadlines.
    
3. Your web designers work diligently with the client to produce the mockups for approval. Once approved, your web developers start coding the actual site.
    
4. All along the way, your project manager checks in with the client regarding the promised content. As the deadline for the content approaches, the client stops replying to your emails and answering your calls.
    
5. The deadline for content comes and goes with no word. Your team of web developers finishes the coding, but the project is stalled.

If this sounds familiar to you, you’ve experienced content delay. Even though you got at least a 50 percent deposit up front before you started the project, by this point, your expenses may exceed that amount. And without a responsive client, the end of the project is nowhere in sight. Welcome to the stress of content delay.

Decision Time for Project Managers

So you have some decisions to make. You can’t move forward on the client’s project. The coding is complete, except for any fixes or last-minute requests that can happen during the testing phase, but the testing phase can’t move forward without real content. It’s a dilemma that has to cause stress, even without the financial aspect.

You may continue to press the client for answers, but it’s soon obvious that your contact has left you in the lurch, had a serious accident, left for vacation without telling you or died suddenly. You reluctantly put the project aside and move onto other things. Your web developers and your project managers get involved in other web projects and forget about the incomplete project. Your team is back on track with a (hopefully) more responsive client.

Out of the Blue

A month or maybe two later, the original client reaches out to deliver the content and ask when the website can be finished. At first, you may feel elated, thinking that now you can be paid for all the work your team has done. And then you realize that your team is booked solid through the next two months.

Now you have to negotiate with the client, telling him the bad news while trying to assure him the site will be ready. All this adds to stress levels that are already high from running a successful small business. Content delay has repercussions for you and your team of web developers, project managers and graphic designers.

Solutions to Content Delay

To avoid the stress of content delays, you need a strategy for dealing with clients who let you down. You need to plan for content before it stops your website project. Some proven ideas include:

• Late fees. Attach fees to each milestone in your project plan. Your project managers will love the idea of added incentives. To get your clients onboard, tell them that the fees apply to your milestones too. If you miss a milestone, the client receives discounts or freebies. It may help prevent content delays when the client knows that he’ll have to pay more if the content is late. You can even make it progressive, so the longer the delay, the more the fees.
• Different pay structure. Instead of 50 percent up front and 50 percent on completion, break it up. Maybe every milestone has a payment associated with it. The deeper into the project the milestone, the less each payment is. It’s incentive to continue with your services.
• Put it in writing. If your client Is preparing the content, put the warnings of tardiness in the contract. You can use fees as incentive, but that may be insufficient. Make sure the client knows that if you have to put the project on hold due to a missed deadline, you can’t pick it right back up when the content finally arrives. In addition to the financial penalties, the project has to go to the back of the queue.
• Prioritize the content. If you’re worried that you won’t get the content on time, make the content a project priority. Tell the client you can’t start the website development until you have the content in hand. That’s certainly a motivating strategy. Introduce your client to a professional writing team to provide the content, if necessary.
• Assume responsibility for the content. Don’t allow the client to write the content, no matter how much he insists. This produces two wins: no content delay and better content for the site. If you have no content team, outsource it to a responsive and talented content writing firm, such as Ray Access.

When you hire third-party professionals to write the content for your client, you not only save time, money and headaches, but you also improve the quality of the overall product your team develops. Effective website content gets noticed by visitors and search engines alike. It also generates more leads for the client, another win for which a smart client credits you and your web developers.

Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words that empower your business to succeed. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters, and more, with cross-links and thorough internet research.