Business Tips by Chris Reich
Tips from growing a business to dealing with disputesSunk Costs
Sunk costs. During a slow down, many businesses will cling to sunk costs and refuse to see the wisdom of bailing water! A sunk cost is money spent---it's gone, it's sunk into something. Let's say you get the idea that red baseball caps are sure to sell like crazy. You...
Game Theory Concept
An SEO firm called me today. I personally do not like SEO firms. Most use underhanded tricks to give a business a short-lived boost in search rankings. Some are okay. This firm "guaranteed" that they would get me more business for less advertising cost. For $1,000 per...
A Dangerous Assumption
There is a dangerous assumption that most people make in business negotiations or transactions. This false assumption often leads to poor, sometimes disastrous, outcomes. What is it?Let's start by defining "transaction". As I use the word transaction in this context,...
A Reminder
I saw this post from a friend and really liked it so I'm passing it on.... "Getting a quick "out of the blue" call this morning to be told some really kind things was such a nice gesture 🙂 It only takes a few minutes to reach out to others and remind them the impact...
In Communication We trust
Communication in business builds trust. When communication goes, trust follows. When trust goes, all hell breaks loose. A business with a lot of internal strife will suffers from poor communication. No one trusts anyone. Hard to reverse. Tools won't do it. It take...
Is It All about Price? Maybe!
If you read in a business article that price is not the sole determinant of purchase, be very careful. I've made that statement myself but there a million traps in that thinking. The more similar product A is to Product B, the more price pressure will be on both...
Business Aphorisms from TeachU
What to Decide? No, How to Decide!
Not enough attention is given to one of the most important aspects of business planning. Too often planning sessions and business meetings are focused on what to decide. Rarely is attention given to how to decide.For example, if sales take a dip, the team will...
Why Must Work Be Fun?
I had my first job when I was 5 years old. Our neighbor, my best friend at the time, was a boy of the same age as me whose father worked for an egg processing company. He, the father, asked me if I wanted to work a few hours with his son at the plant. It was a...
What Matters in Business?
Some businesses grade their performance on year over year, "same store", comparisons. That means if sales are up over the previous year, taking into account the same number of production units, the business is doing well. If there are more production units, which...
How To Make a Business Decision
You must make a business decision?Start by deciding HOW the decision will be made rather than WHAT decision you should make.Define the decision making process first, then go to work on the decision. This will save you many, many missteps in business.Chris Reich,...
Tire Shops and Medical Offices
I had to deal with a tire blowout recently. It was an expensive tire but it was made in China. Don't buy tires made in China.Okay, moving on. My tire failed on the freeway, in the dark, between towns and after all nearby (within 20 miles) tire shops had closed.I also...
Thought Experiments Work to Solve Problems
I follow a well-known physics professor who will, from time to time post a "contest" for people to solve physics problems. The problems are not too difficult but are often counter intuitive. That means the answer goes against our feelings or intuition.It is...
Things Could Be Better But…
There are two kinds of problems. There are problems people want to fix and problems people want to complain about. Understanding this will save a lot of time in your life and at work.I learned a long time ago that sometimes people want to own and whine about a...
Marketing is Every Day
I talk with a lot of firms about marketing. My general philosophy is to be very conservative with the marketing budget.
Radicals Win in the End
Would you consider a radical idea for a minute? The easiest road to increased productivity is to foster fun at work. Not games. Not free food. Allow the work itself to be fun. Few managers are self-confident enough to allow fun at work--- but fun is great productivity...
Are You Executive Material?
So, you think you are executive material? Let's see.The best CEOs and managers I know never interrupt meetings with phone calls. I know of no good manager who will bring a cell phone into a meeting.Do you constantly interrupt the person you're talking with by...
Clean House
If it's in your inventory and hasn't sold for a year, mark it down to whatever it will take to get rid of it by the end of January. Your other choice is to give it to a good client who might be able to use your unsold, dead inventory. ANYTHING is better than goods on...