Archive for February, 2006

My wife and I are about 20 weeks along and yesterday had our Ultrasound. We found out that we will be having a boy!

Click on the photo to see a bigger image…Once open, click photo or press on the X to close.

The pregnancy process thus far has been great and we know that come July, our lives will be changing big time with the birth of our first child.

I’ll stay on topic with this blog and turn the conversation to Time Management.  This is something that most all business people and entrepreneurs battle with on a daily basis.

Balancing work, family life, spiritual life, hobbies, social responsibilities….these things and more all require a chuck of our time.  The toughest thing is making sure that one doesn’t dominate the rest.  Usually that one ends up being WORK.

You may love your work.  The harder you work, the more money you may make.  There may be things that you feel can’t wait until tomorrow and you have to stay late or work into the night in order to finish them now.

But when you step back and look at the whole picture….where does your family fall on your priority list?  Is your spouse or children getting the short end of the straw?  Are you not going to church because you feel you “need” to finish up some work?  Are you not able to volunteer some of your time, because you can’t commit to a few hours each week?

Everyone is different…all this post is trying to say is this:  THINK.  Make sure your life is balanced.  Make sure everything that is important in your life is getting the attention it deserves.

I feel this type of thinking leads to a healthier, more complete and rewarding life.

Share your thoughts or experiences on this topic by leaving a comment.

And ALSO, leave a comment about how cute our baby boy is! We’re ecstatic about him.

(This is in reference to Your Marketing Guy’s sister company - Hunt Hosting.)

There’s a goal, eh?  Sounds like I’m aiming for a grain of salt.  But in reality, the .0003 (3/10,000th of one percent) market share I am aiming for would translate into a very solid business.  Let me explain…

There are 765,487 in the State of Michigan (Source: U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy.)  I want .0003 percent of those businesses as my clients.  That’s a bit over 225.  Sounds small.  But that’s my target.

My hosting clients come from all over the USA and even a few in Europe.  But the main focus of my business is here in Michigan.  My focus with Hunt Hosting is on helping small businesses in small Michigan towns have a successful online presence.

Why do I want a .0003 market share?  Why not .0006, or heck, get crazy and shoot for .001?  Because I want to be able to offer my clients personal service.  By phone, via e-mail, or in-person.  I need to give them the proper consulting they need and offer them the tools and services they need in order to be successful with their web site.

I know a .0003 market share is a good number because I’ve run the numbers.  I have a business plan.

“You need to know where you are going before you can get there.”

“Fail to plan, plan to fail.”

Think about these questions in relation to your business:

What market share do you want to capture?

Who is your ideal customer/client?

Do you have a business plan?  If not; why not?!

I’ll have more thoughts on these topics in future posts…

I have yet to find a business that is doing everything right.  There is always room for improvement.  Most of the time there is room for HUGE improvement.  You can have a very successful business and still be very far away from your full potential.  I’ve seen it.

You can read the thousands of books that are out there about business planning, marketing, sales, and web sites.  Bottom line is this; learning about these topics won’t change your business. Saying, “Oh, that sounds like a good idea!” won’t change the bottom line.

IMPLEMENTING good, quality ideas is what will improve your business.  It takes work.  It’s sometimes tedious and repetitive.  But IMPLEMENTATION is what it’s all about.

It’s amazing how one change – implementing one good idea, can change your bottom line and improve the outlook you and your employees have on your business. 

These “ideas to implement” may come from you thinking about your business and how to improve it, they may come from talking with colleagues and co-workers, they may come from an organization you belong to, a book or magazine you have read, or MAYBE…THIS BLOG.

When you get done reading the posts in this blog and you like what they say….ACT.  Don’t sit on them and keep them warm.  Don’t add them to the end of your “Great Ideas to Implement!” list that is sitting on your desk.  ACT on them.  IMPLEMENT them.  Most of the time it takes work, but the reality is - that’s what it takes to be successful and to improve.

That’s some of my, “Telling it like it is” talk.  If you like what you read, then visit this blog often and chime in by leaving comments, or e-mailing me (kyle@yourmarketingguy.com.)  Thank you for your visit!