Cleaning Up

With just a little over a week before Graduation, clean up from last Friday's fire is going well. Two rooms remain to be cleaned up from smoke damage. I am deeply blessed by the cleaning angels (as I refer to them) that have done an outstanding job on my house while I've been at work! Every wall, ceiling, corner, nook, window, has been cleaned of the smoke smell. The laundry room clean up/repairs and shed will be dealt with after Graduation. It does not appear that any of my soap was affected by the smoke damage in the house. However, my shop will remain closed until after Graduation, as my family is coming for an extended visit and I fully intend on enjoying the time we have together.

Customer Service Woes

Nothing is more frustrating than having to call Customer Service. It often requires a heavy dose of sedatives and massive quantities of booze to endure making a call to Customer Service. Eating a plate of glass and nails would be less painful.

With the downsizing of most companies, there are a bunch of pencil pushers sitting behind corporate desks concocting brainy ideas of how to streamline services. While computers and technology are great, the better investment as far as I am concerned is in the live representatives. Modern technology subjects the consumer to automated answering services and computers that are guessing what your needs are. Frequently there are no options to speak with a live person. Even more frustrating when you find a company that gives the option to speak with a live person, only to discover that the company has failed to educate/train their employees on how to be effective in Customer Service.

If someone doesn’t know how to handle your concerns, they transfer you to the next person, or guess where you need to go to obtain the help you seek. Most of the time the guess work and “I don’t know what to do’s” of the representative could have been answered if they had listened better and asked more questions of the consumer. It’s frustrating as the consumer to spend hours upon end in total frustration/exasperation, being transferred all over the globe and back before FINALLY getting your question answered (if you are lucky).

Don’t get me wrong. I’ve worked Customer Service for a major Insurance Company. We were required to complete Customer Service Skills and Telephone Skills and pass the tests prior to being able to answer the phones. I know all about answering questions and getting consumers off the phone as quickly as possible so to reduce wait times, etc. Awards and recognition are often given to the representatives that answer the most calls, keep talk times to a minimum, etc. However, in order to be effective as a Customer Service Representative you have to be patient and listen to the customer…after all, they are the ones that pay your paycheck.

All too often, companies don’t worry about the quality of customer service as they should. Is it good customer service if a consumer is rushed off the phone or transferred in a circle of representatives around the globe because of the time factor? Why is it that folks have to call in half a dozen times or more before a representative will take pity and stay with you to see that your concerns are FINALLY taken seriously so you get results?

Multiple phone calls to a company wastes time for both the consumer and company. Representatives have spent more time frustrating the consumer with unanswered questions. Time is wasted and phone costs increase over multiple calls. Money that would be better spent on better employee training if these companies hadn’t enticed the representative with a reward for ending the call quickly and allowed them to spend the time necessary to solve the problem with the first call.

Soapmaking Marathon

Thursday's Rainy Day Soapmaking Marathon - every mold was filled. Keep watching for photos of the cut bars in a few days.

Bessie Says...

A great big THANK YOU to Stormy Designs for a truly unique, one of a kind business card holder.



Gotta love custom requests. Stormy Designs does a great job. Requesting a white couch with black cow spots is no easy task but Stormy stood up for the challenge and did an absolutely remarkable job! Click here to see more of Stormy's custom work and/or to order your own custom business card holder. You may also want to check out Stormy's Blog.

Setting Boundaries with a Home Business

One of the hardest parts about running a business from home is the respect for time and knowing when to shut it off. Being in control is the key to success when setting boundaries.

I had the most outstanding beautician in the midwest that was very good at doing just that. She worked out of her home in an adjoining room that was closed off to the rest of her home and she was great about leaving the exterior door to the shop open for customers if they showed up early for the first appointment of the morning or afternoon. Starting time was a set time and she didn't step foot inside the shop until that time.

Scheduling was precise and executed with perfection so she could shut down for lunch time and/or end her work day on time and "go home". She would turn down the volume on the separate phone line and walk away. At quitting time, she would not answer the phone because she was "off the clock".

Any of her family calling just to talk during business hours were quickly thwarted and told when they should call back...after hours. Her family scheduled hair appointments the same as everyone else. She was very good about turning work off and on without offending anyone. I found her approach between business and personal life to be very balanced, but she had to be in control in order to make it work.

Setting an Action Plan for Goals

I feel fortunate that I can "double dip" with the information and advice I receive from training I take for my 9 - 5 job, as it also applies and relates to running my business. Yesterday in my class we learned about setting goals and setting them in motion with an action plan. I'm guilty of setting goals, but not having an action plan to see those goals being met. This is what I learned about goal setting today.

Break down general goals...Most often, the goals I set are generalized, which could in essence be broken down into several specific goals. I have to force myself to move beyond broad topic goals and set smaller specific goals.

Dates...not just today's date, but the target date you would like to complete your goal.

Outcomes or results...determine measurable outcomes. How will you know that you accomplished the goal? What will change by accomplishing this goal?

Resources...what do you need or what is required to accomplish the goal.

Barriers...what might impact reaching the goal? What will you do to overcome those barriers/obstacles?

Steps...what is necessary to achieve the outcome. What will you do to accomplish your goal? List those who will be responsible and a timeline.

Success...how will you evaluate the success of this plan?

I can definitely see the advantages of setting goals in this format. Goals can be well thought out and broken down into smaller, more manageable pieces. While the broad goal may not be met in its entirety, a piece or two may have been and that brings you closer to reaching that much broader goal.

"Spring Bloom"

The EtsyBloggers Street Team Blog Carnival theme this week is "Spring Bloom". I do quite well with my flower garden. Where I have struggled is with my business. I've learned a lot of valuable lessons along the way. The business name I was using just wasn't clicking, and I hadn't found my "niche" in the B & B market. There are so many soapmakers out there so I had to ask myself...what sets my product ahead of the rest? How can I improve upon what I'm doing and make my product/image stand out? It's not one of those things that just happened overnight for me.

I have been in this "re-do" business process for well over a year. I don't have a ton of money or an unlimited credit card to conduct business. I pay as I go and do what I can with what I have and the sometimes limited funds available. I used to let the money issue stand in the way of my goals. Goals are good to have, but I've learned to work on the realistic goals and keep the "fantasy goals" at bay as a higher goal to achieve down the road.

Three of the most noteworthy successes I've achieved over the past 3 months is that
1. I've turned my love of crochet into a marketable product that goes along with my love of soapmaking.
2. I utilize more of my closest friends that are not soapmakers for brainstorming and ideas. It's a win, win situation for both of us as I gain a better sense of what to focus on for my next project and they get the samples and freebies to test out for me.
3. I had to get very serious about making this business work and stop allowing "obstacles" stand in the way of success.

I feel as though I must be doing something right if I keep getting orders, and repeat customers already.

Brabec Bulletin Anyone?

Have you read the April 2008 Issue of The Brabec Bulletin? For a several years now I have admired Barbara Barbec's enthusiasm, humor and insight into small business. She is a "home-business pioneer, industry leader and professional speaker since 1971"(quote taken from her website). I look forward to Barbara's regular email updates. This month she has written about "Looking at Your Life in an Exciting New Way". If you are wondering how to take your business to the next level, you are sure to benefit from Barbara's insight and wisdom that is spoken from personal experience. It helped me to take a look at my business with a renewed perspective. On Barbara Brabec's World you will find home business advice, craft marketing ideas, Life Lessons, and more. Barbara lost her husband in February 2005 and has a series of uplifting articles for widows and anyone who has or will soon lose a loved one.