Showcasing experienced entrepreneurs offers an added marketing communications or social media element to help promote their businesses. In addition, it provides a forum through which they can share solutions to unique business challenges that might be the answer to a similar challenge with which yet another entrepreneur is struggling. This openness of information flows with the following story offered by
Ronnis Oher, owner
LifeMaps - The Story of a Lifetime
www.lifemaps.biz
info@lifemaps.biz
847-398-0187
ABOUT MY BUSINESS
I’ve been called a visual eulogist because I’m in the business of creating customized keepsake treasures called LifeMaps. A LifeMap is a full-color, hand-drawn geographical map that outlines someone’s life. It incorporates their personality traits, their relationships, their major life events and some of their fondest memories. It captures not only the facts of the person’s life, but also who they are/were. The maps are humorous and whimsical featuring mountains, deserts, swamps, rivers, campgrounds, highway and small businesses - all representing a specific story about a person’s life. Yet, at the same time, they can be touching because they not only allow people to see what impact their lives have had on those around them, but also to learn how fondly they are viewed by others in their lives.
MY UNIQUENESS
While I don’t have a great deal of direct competition, what makes my business unique among those who provide a similar product is that I bring great interviewing skills to the project along with a sense of humor and custom creativity which others may not.
IDEAL CLIENT PROFILE
My ideal client would be anyone looking for a special gift for a special person who may be celebrating an anniversary, birthday, graduation, wedding or retirement. That would include corporations and non-profits that are looking for special retirement gifts and awards or visual mission statements or sales presentation handouts. Since LifeMaps make great memorials or family member keepsakes, some of my perfect clients would also be the families of seniors who wish to capture the lives of their loved ones while they still have the opportunity to do so.
UNIQUE BUSINESS CHALLENGE
My greatest challenge seems to be how to close the sale. How to get around a prospect’s saying LifeMaps are not within their budgets without realizing just how economical they are and the lifetime value they provide.
EFFECTIVE RESOLUTION
I approached this obstacle head on by offering a traditional lay-away plan to people. If they have an event coming up in six or nine months down the line, I give them the opportunity to start making payments well in advance so that by the time the day arrives, most of the LifeMap will be paid for. This makes the transaction much more manageable. This seems to help people make the commitment which allows me to introduce more LifeMaps into the lives of more people.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Friend's last request turns into memorial services business that celebrates life
Showcasing recent entrepreneurs has a twofold purpose. One is to offer an added marketing communications or social media element to help promote their businesses. The second is to provide a forum through which they can guide other aspiring business owners around avoidable obstacles and toward a path of attainable goals. Sharing insights starts with hearing their stories firsthand such as through this conversation with
Deborah Williams, owner
Loving Touches Memorial Services
www.lovingtouchesmemorialservices.com
dwilliams@lovingtouchesmemorialservices.com
847-991-0546
BEGINNING MY BUSINESS
I began Loving Touches in July of 2009. What motivated me to start this type of business was that I had lost two of my best friends to breast cancer. One had asked me to handle her memorial service to take the burden off her two sons. She specifically said she didn’t want the traditional morbid funeral, but something fun that focused on all the good times of her life. That wasn’t something normally done at the time, but with the input of her sons, I took on the challenge. I created a DVD of her life, developed a huge photo collage, booked a hotel ballroom and brought in a band. The eulogy was a celebration that covered five areas of her life delivered by five family members, neighbors and friends. At the end, we all toasted her with a shot of Bailey’s which was her favorite. When the event ended, everyone approached me saying that I had missed my calling – and that planted the seed for Loving Touches.
MY SERVICES
Our services are offered both as a package or ala carte. We customize our memorials based on the particular interests and events of the person’s life. Some families have requested bagpipers, flag ceremonies, and a Japanese white butterfly release. Our number one requested item is our eight to 10-minute DVD which is an uplifting life-story summary depicting an era or various life celebrations of the loved one. Each service can be as unique as the person whose life is being celebrated.
MY UNIQUENESS
The beauty of what we do is that it is very cost effective. Combining cremation along with our memorial service is about half the cost of a traditional funeral. – very appealing in this economy. In addition, cremation and what we do are 100 percent environmentally safe which is of great importance to many people, today.
IDEAL CLIENT
That would be people in the age range of 45 to 65 primarily because they are looking after their parents, or those who are above 65 and in the position of having to make their own memorial decisions.
MARKETING MY BUSINESS
Currently, about 95 percent of my business has come through referrals from cremation societies or people who have known or used us. The other five percent has come from the Internet thanks to a great website and some Google Adwords. I also advertise in the Pioneer Press and the Daily Herald. I have been featured in Crain’s as well as in the Daily Herald and I will be featured in Our Family Magazine in Barrington.
SHARED ADVICE
What surprised me the most was the traditional value systems of everyone and their resistance to change. Initially, we had surveyed residents of the northwest suburban area who had recently dealt with the loss of a loved one. We found that 73 percent said they were dissatisfied with the service that they had, yet their resistance to making a change was surprising. They were nervous in thinking that a memorial service could be a happy occasion.
The one thing that I might have done differently would be to have marketed the business in advance of starting it. I tried to get it up and running first and then did my marketing. I find that the Midwest is a more conservative area. Change is difficult here. Had we started on the West Coast, we might have taken off a little more quickly.
I’d advise budding entrepreneurs to do your research and be willing to change because you’re going to have to continually re-evaluate your market at first. Who you think is your target customer may not always be the case and you’ll have to adjust many times over. Also, be open to the comments that you receive because many of them will be positive suggestions and recommendations that can help you. In the beginning of any business, there will be many ups and downs. You’ve got to ride those waves in order to make it.
Deborah Williams, owner
Loving Touches Memorial Services
www.lovingtouchesmemorialservices.com
dwilliams@lovingtouchesmemorialservices.com
847-991-0546
BEGINNING MY BUSINESS
I began Loving Touches in July of 2009. What motivated me to start this type of business was that I had lost two of my best friends to breast cancer. One had asked me to handle her memorial service to take the burden off her two sons. She specifically said she didn’t want the traditional morbid funeral, but something fun that focused on all the good times of her life. That wasn’t something normally done at the time, but with the input of her sons, I took on the challenge. I created a DVD of her life, developed a huge photo collage, booked a hotel ballroom and brought in a band. The eulogy was a celebration that covered five areas of her life delivered by five family members, neighbors and friends. At the end, we all toasted her with a shot of Bailey’s which was her favorite. When the event ended, everyone approached me saying that I had missed my calling – and that planted the seed for Loving Touches.
MY SERVICES
Our services are offered both as a package or ala carte. We customize our memorials based on the particular interests and events of the person’s life. Some families have requested bagpipers, flag ceremonies, and a Japanese white butterfly release. Our number one requested item is our eight to 10-minute DVD which is an uplifting life-story summary depicting an era or various life celebrations of the loved one. Each service can be as unique as the person whose life is being celebrated.
MY UNIQUENESS
The beauty of what we do is that it is very cost effective. Combining cremation along with our memorial service is about half the cost of a traditional funeral. – very appealing in this economy. In addition, cremation and what we do are 100 percent environmentally safe which is of great importance to many people, today.
IDEAL CLIENT
That would be people in the age range of 45 to 65 primarily because they are looking after their parents, or those who are above 65 and in the position of having to make their own memorial decisions.
MARKETING MY BUSINESS
Currently, about 95 percent of my business has come through referrals from cremation societies or people who have known or used us. The other five percent has come from the Internet thanks to a great website and some Google Adwords. I also advertise in the Pioneer Press and the Daily Herald. I have been featured in Crain’s as well as in the Daily Herald and I will be featured in Our Family Magazine in Barrington.
SHARED ADVICE
What surprised me the most was the traditional value systems of everyone and their resistance to change. Initially, we had surveyed residents of the northwest suburban area who had recently dealt with the loss of a loved one. We found that 73 percent said they were dissatisfied with the service that they had, yet their resistance to making a change was surprising. They were nervous in thinking that a memorial service could be a happy occasion.
The one thing that I might have done differently would be to have marketed the business in advance of starting it. I tried to get it up and running first and then did my marketing. I find that the Midwest is a more conservative area. Change is difficult here. Had we started on the West Coast, we might have taken off a little more quickly.
I’d advise budding entrepreneurs to do your research and be willing to change because you’re going to have to continually re-evaluate your market at first. Who you think is your target customer may not always be the case and you’ll have to adjust many times over. Also, be open to the comments that you receive because many of them will be positive suggestions and recommendations that can help you. In the beginning of any business, there will be many ups and downs. You’ve got to ride those waves in order to make it.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Entrepreneur sells clients on full-service marketing with accountability workshops
Showcasing experienced entrepreneurs offers an added marketing communications or social media element to help promote their businesses. In addition, it provides a forum through which they can share solutions to unique business challenges that might be the answer to a similar challenge with which yet another entrepreneur is struggling. This openness of information flows with the following story offered by
Claire Slattery, director of client marketing
and business development
Mindful Mix
http://www.mindfulmix.com/
claires@mindfulmix.com
847-284-4404
ABOUT MY BUSINESS
Mindful Mix is a full-service marketing agency that helps companies determine the right marketing strategies for their business. Working within the budgets of each client, we specialize in maximizing the reach and ROI of each promotion. We provide business planning, strategies, budgets, branding, corporate communications, sales collateral, website development, seminars and webinars, along with marketing coaching.
MY UNIQUENESS
I bring a wealth of well-rounded marketing experience to the table. Unlike some contemporaries who specialize only in specific marketing disciplines such as graphic design, PR, or research, I offer personal expertise in every aspect of marketing. There are few small agencies of our size that offer this hands-on working relationship. In essence, I serve as the client’s marketing director without its having to incur the expense of hiring a full-time staffer or paying the premium costs of contracting with a large, high-priced marketing firm. In addition, I offer accountability coaching to keep clients on target toward reaching their short and long-term goals – unusual for marketing firms.
IDEAL CLIENT PROFILE
The ideal client for Mindful Mix is any size business that has a genuine commitment to marketing, but is also aware that it may not be in the position to hire its own full-time marketing professional. A secondary client profile would be that of a company that has downsized its staff and is comfortable with outsourcing its marketing projects to professional contractors.
UNIQUE BUSINESS CHALLENGE
My primary challenge is determining how to get business owners to make that initial investment in marketing in order to take their businesses to the next level. Most understand the value of a marketing program, but shy away from committing the funding necessary to take that first step.
EFFECTIVE RESOLUTION
We have designed coaching and accountability seminars that give business owners a sampling of how marketing can increase their bottom line. As a result of these programs, clients begin to see the measurable results of a concentrated marketing focus. In turn, clients not only readily accept the concept of a more complete, on-going marketing plan, but also choose Mindful Mix as the full-service marketing resource to put their plan in place.
Claire Slattery, director of client marketing
and business development
Mindful Mix
http://www.mindfulmix.com/
claires@mindfulmix.com
847-284-4404
ABOUT MY BUSINESS
Mindful Mix is a full-service marketing agency that helps companies determine the right marketing strategies for their business. Working within the budgets of each client, we specialize in maximizing the reach and ROI of each promotion. We provide business planning, strategies, budgets, branding, corporate communications, sales collateral, website development, seminars and webinars, along with marketing coaching.
MY UNIQUENESS
I bring a wealth of well-rounded marketing experience to the table. Unlike some contemporaries who specialize only in specific marketing disciplines such as graphic design, PR, or research, I offer personal expertise in every aspect of marketing. There are few small agencies of our size that offer this hands-on working relationship. In essence, I serve as the client’s marketing director without its having to incur the expense of hiring a full-time staffer or paying the premium costs of contracting with a large, high-priced marketing firm. In addition, I offer accountability coaching to keep clients on target toward reaching their short and long-term goals – unusual for marketing firms.
IDEAL CLIENT PROFILE
The ideal client for Mindful Mix is any size business that has a genuine commitment to marketing, but is also aware that it may not be in the position to hire its own full-time marketing professional. A secondary client profile would be that of a company that has downsized its staff and is comfortable with outsourcing its marketing projects to professional contractors.
UNIQUE BUSINESS CHALLENGE
My primary challenge is determining how to get business owners to make that initial investment in marketing in order to take their businesses to the next level. Most understand the value of a marketing program, but shy away from committing the funding necessary to take that first step.
EFFECTIVE RESOLUTION
We have designed coaching and accountability seminars that give business owners a sampling of how marketing can increase their bottom line. As a result of these programs, clients begin to see the measurable results of a concentrated marketing focus. In turn, clients not only readily accept the concept of a more complete, on-going marketing plan, but also choose Mindful Mix as the full-service marketing resource to put their plan in place.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Despite recession analytics consultant sets up niche business in 24 hours
Showcasing experienced entrepreneurs offers an added marketing communications or social media element to help promote their businesses. In addition, it provides a forum through which they can share solutions to unique business challenges that might be the answer to a similar challenge with which yet another entrepreneur is struggling. This openness of information flows with the following story offered by
Alex Caffarini, president
Analysights, LLC
www.analysights.com
acaffarini@analysights.com
blog: http://analysights.wordpress.com
847-895-2565
ABOUT MY BUSINESS
We’re a market research and analytics firm that helps companies make better marketing decisions based on analytics. In other words, imagine having a magic wand that would tell you which non-customers would have the best chance of becoming customers, or which current customers are at risk of leaving you and going to a competitor. We’re able to do this by comparing a customer’s purchasing history, demographics, and psychographics to those former clients who have left your company. We can also come up with a score for your current customers using similar data to better know on which ones you should be spending your marketing dollars. In addition, we’re able to provide information through surveys on how much the market is willing to pay for a new product concept as well as the size of the market.
IDEAL CLIENT PROFILE
My ideal client would typically include banks, credit card companies with $500 million to $2 billion in assets. Or associations with large memberships wanting to determine which non-members are likely to become members and which current members are at risk of leaving. Typically, any data-rich industry whose companies collect a lot of statistics on their customers for marketing effectiveness would be a perfect client – mobile broadband firms, retail catalog companies, direct marketers, credit unions, credit card companies.
MY UNIQUENESS
We’re strong in discussing complex analytical concepts in layman terms so that anyone not familiar with statistics or analytics in market research will gain a simplified understanding of everything they need to know. We don’t use any heavy technical jargon to which most clients can’t relate. And, our size allows us to offer a great deal of personal interaction between us and the client.
BUSINESS CHALLENGE
My primary challenge was to get this business flying in the midst of a recession. The company will be two years old this November. I had been working for the American Medical Association at the time doctors began dropping their memberships. I saw the writing on the wall and decided to start my business in 2008.
EFFECTIVE SOLUTION
I wasted no time in getting things moving. I got my tax papers in order, created my business plan, got my LLC designation, and set up my website all in the span of a single day. Obtaining that first client became my focus. I participated in countless networking events because demonstrating your abilities and capabilities is key to selling any consulting service, especially analytics. I worked on getting myself known as an expert in the field – “You’ve got to circulate in order to percolate.” There were no quick fixes. I called family members and sent relatives letters telling them I was in business. I soon realized that I was focusing on too broad a range of clients. I was looking at both small and large companies which would be impossible to manage. So, I honed in on what became my niche – financial companies and tech companies. In addition, I started a blog to build a following and I created a Facebook™ page. As a result of these efforts, things are beginning to move along steadily for Analysights LLC.
Alex Caffarini, president
Analysights, LLC
www.analysights.com
acaffarini@analysights.com
blog: http://analysights.wordpress.com
847-895-2565
ABOUT MY BUSINESS
We’re a market research and analytics firm that helps companies make better marketing decisions based on analytics. In other words, imagine having a magic wand that would tell you which non-customers would have the best chance of becoming customers, or which current customers are at risk of leaving you and going to a competitor. We’re able to do this by comparing a customer’s purchasing history, demographics, and psychographics to those former clients who have left your company. We can also come up with a score for your current customers using similar data to better know on which ones you should be spending your marketing dollars. In addition, we’re able to provide information through surveys on how much the market is willing to pay for a new product concept as well as the size of the market.
IDEAL CLIENT PROFILE
My ideal client would typically include banks, credit card companies with $500 million to $2 billion in assets. Or associations with large memberships wanting to determine which non-members are likely to become members and which current members are at risk of leaving. Typically, any data-rich industry whose companies collect a lot of statistics on their customers for marketing effectiveness would be a perfect client – mobile broadband firms, retail catalog companies, direct marketers, credit unions, credit card companies.
MY UNIQUENESS
We’re strong in discussing complex analytical concepts in layman terms so that anyone not familiar with statistics or analytics in market research will gain a simplified understanding of everything they need to know. We don’t use any heavy technical jargon to which most clients can’t relate. And, our size allows us to offer a great deal of personal interaction between us and the client.
BUSINESS CHALLENGE
My primary challenge was to get this business flying in the midst of a recession. The company will be two years old this November. I had been working for the American Medical Association at the time doctors began dropping their memberships. I saw the writing on the wall and decided to start my business in 2008.
EFFECTIVE SOLUTION
I wasted no time in getting things moving. I got my tax papers in order, created my business plan, got my LLC designation, and set up my website all in the span of a single day. Obtaining that first client became my focus. I participated in countless networking events because demonstrating your abilities and capabilities is key to selling any consulting service, especially analytics. I worked on getting myself known as an expert in the field – “You’ve got to circulate in order to percolate.” There were no quick fixes. I called family members and sent relatives letters telling them I was in business. I soon realized that I was focusing on too broad a range of clients. I was looking at both small and large companies which would be impossible to manage. So, I honed in on what became my niche – financial companies and tech companies. In addition, I started a blog to build a following and I created a Facebook™ page. As a result of these efforts, things are beginning to move along steadily for Analysights LLC.
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