Hi -

Sitting under a circus big top is the last place you'd expect to have a revelation about business. But surprises like that are, to me at least, what make life so interesting. You just never know when a situation is going to reach out, gently grab you, and say, "Pay attention -- you might learn something if you watch closely."

This month's tip is that kind of story. I hope you enjoy it.

In this season of giving thanks, please know how much I appreciate your continuing interest in and support of this newsletter. New subscribers sign up almost daily, in large part because of referrals from you and other readers. It's a privilege to spend a few minutes every month sharing these ideas with you… and to hear from you about the challenges and successes you're experiencing in your business.

Everywhere you turn these days someone's writing about the customer experience. Understanding the experience. Maximizing the experience. Creating the experience. I don't know about you but too often those "expert" opinions strike me as too academic, not real world. Then all of a sudden, you experience the customer experience done well… and it clicks. You get it. The pieces just snap into focus.

That's what happened to me a couple of weeks ago… thanks to my wife, who treated our kids and me to Cirque du Soleil's latest show, "Corteo", on tour here in DC.

Now I could tell you about how I first fell in love with Cirque du Soleil nearly 20 years ago before they became a phenomenon; how seeing them brought me back to my (then recent) college days performing street magic at Quincy Market in Boston… but that's a story for another day.

What hit me this time is how clearly and completely they've studied, and systematically responded to, the wants and needs of their audience -- along the way wowing thousands of people night after night, city after city, year after year. The sights, sounds, and smells, the artistry, the feel of magic in the air. All the little touches. Making the impossible seem effortless and in the process reconnecting that audience with the power of imagination.

OK Kip, what the heck are you talking about? What on earth does a circus have to do with running my business? Aren't you the technology guy?

Well, sort of. Which is part of what I'm pointing out here: how completely this organization has integrated "technology" into the fiber of the experience they deliver.

Do you know how Webster's defines technology? From the Greek technE - art, craft, skill. The practical application of knowledge; a manner of accomplishing a task especially using technical processes or methods.

Could be (or should be) a definition of how you run your business. Skillful, practical application of knowledge to accomplish a result.

Something to ponder as yearend approaches and you begin focusing energy on 2007: How smoothly are the movements of your business choreographed and executed, so that in every encounter with clients or prospects you are completely focused on delighting them and delivering lasting satisfaction… not scrambling to remember what you're supposed to do next?

Tough to do if you're constantly preparing last-minute reports, spending your day mired in email, never getting around to making those touching base phone calls or putting out that monthly newsletter, or going into annual review sessions with no clue of how you'll fill the other 50 minutes in the hour once you've reviewed the client's account.

So how do you break that cycle? By identifying, documenting, and then assessing the different things you do day in and day out. Answering questions such as:

• What's our process for preparing for, conducting, and then following up on each meeting -- from the first written reminder to the last "tying up loose ends" phone call?



• What parts of that process could be eliminated? Which could be automated? Which could I delegate, or outsource?



• Have I stopped to ask myself what would "Wow!" me if I were my client? Have I asked my clients what would wow them? Have I done what they've suggested?



• Standing in my clients' shoes, what would tell me unequivocally that I was the most important person in my advisor's business at any time we interacted?

One-on-One and Team Coaching

Last December I suggested five questions anyone serious about improving their business in 2006 might consider. As this year draws to a close I'm wondering, are you today where you planned to be 12 months ago? Not just hitting your financial goals, but positioning your business for even greater success. With strategies and systems, processes, and procedures in place that have made (and will continue to make) achieving the results you seek easier and more predictable.

If you'd like a faster, straighter, more dependable route to your next level of success... or you're not reaching your full potential and any of the following are challenges for you... we should talk:

• Finding and fixing productivity leaks - minimizing the time you lose to email, putting a stop to recreating information you know you already have, locating what you need online faster, and delivering on follow-up commitments more efficiently are just a few examples
  
  
• Defining sales and service processes – from contact to contract to ongoing care and feeding of clients… understanding who does what when, and where technology fits (or could fit) into the picture
  
  
• Developing a marketing communication strategy and calendar – mapping out an annual plan for keeping in touch with and in front of clients, prospects, centers of influence, and the media
  
  
• Cultivating referrals from current clients – strategies and tactics for expanding your business with help from those who know it best
  
  
• Designing a step-by-step improvement plan for strengthening key aspects of your business - identifying opportunities and developing work flows in designated areas of the practice
  
  
• Team building and successful delegation – defining the vision, setting expectations, identifying desired results, managing the process, and the tools that make it easier

Keynote, Breakout, and Workshop Speaking

Late this week and early next I head out for my final talks of 2006; one in San Diego (for Dunham & Associates), the other in Beaver Creek, CO (for IMCA's inaugural Practice Management conference). Speaking to audiences is one of my very favorite things to do. Frankly, it doesn't get better than having the opportunity to show people ways of using resources they already own to save time, make more money, and take greater control of their future. (I know you understand… it's part of what got you into this business, isn't it?)

My sessions offer the kind of practical, innovative, take-it-back-to-the-office-and-put-it-to-work-immediately value attendees are looking for. Here's a quick rundown of the presentations I can deliver to your organization.

Leveraging Technology to Build Your Business

Looking to increase productivity and profits using technology you already own? Discover easy, practical ways to unlock the power of your PC and the Internet to save time and increase effectiveness. Learn how to: 1. permanently conquer information overload with a simple system for cataloging important information, 2. build a systematic, measurable, and repeatable roadmap to success, and, 3. put an hour of selling time back into every day by taming your email inbox. You'll come away from this session with easy-to-implement, inexpensive tactics you can take back to the office and put to work immediately!

Topics include:

• Understanding your productivity gap… and how to close it


• The 80/20 rule of information - how to keep what's critical at your fingertips


• A simple approach to creating your team's process playbook


• Developing a 30-day improvement game plan


• Eliminating email overload -- managing your message flow (optional)

Things I Thought You Should Know About

Got a tip you'd like to share? Or a topic you'd like to see covered in a future issue? Email me your ideas.

Until next time wishing you all the best,

Kip Gregory

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The Gregory Group:
Teaching Clients to Leverage Their Time, Talent, and Technology to Increase Productivity and Profit
202.364.6913

http://www.kipgregory.com

© 2006 Kip Gregory. All Rights Reserved. Reproducing or republishing this content either electronically or in print without prior permission is prohibited.