Trent365

Not every trend, a market makes.

So said Rodger Berman.

I think it's an important perspective to keep in mind, especially in these crazy times we are living in today.

Lots of us are looking to reinvent ourselves. Trying to find a way to evolve our businesses.

In that search, we can sometimes read too much into trends and convince ourselves of a market opportunity that really isn't there. Or at best, it could be a short lived opportunity.

The current trend towards bespoke face masks comes to mind.

No doubt there is a market for such face masks today. But I think we're all hoping it will be short lived and that some day soon we won't have to wear them.

So just tread careful. Not every tend, a market makes.

BTW - If you do want to get hold of those cool face masks I mentioned from Raad Ghantous - here's the link - https://bit.ly/2BfPQrC

#facemasks #marketopportunity #trends

We all have our own, unique lines in the sand.

In fact, whether we're aware of it or not, we've all drawn these lines for just about every aspect of our lives.

Of course, there are certain community rules and social norms that set the parameters, but the exact location of each line is for each of us, alone, to draw.

But it's worth remembering, that just as sand tends to move, it's ok if your line moves a little sometimes too.

The world in which we live is constantly changing, so it makes sense to recalibrate and reassess our lines in the sand from time to time.

#lineinthesand #limits #life

There will always be those who seek to advantage of a crisis situation.

I've heard several stories of business owners of accommodation, villa rentals, AirBnB, etc who have been had customers and clients request obscenely large discounts. Just because they can.

They believe that they have all the leverage and can make demands that are in essence opportunistic, mercenary and even predatory in nature.

It's not fair. It's not right. But it is, I fear, part of our New Normal.

So as businesses, we need to get our head around how we want to deal with it.

What are your limits? How will you respond to these crazy requests? How will you educate your staff to cope with them?

Eventually, I believe the market will make the correction and even things out. But for now, it may well be part of your New Normal. 

So get ready.

#negotiations #tactics #pricing #newnormal

The way we respond to pandemics and crises in the future will be informed by what we're doing now.

What can we learn about how better to prepare our business.

If, When and How your business is permitted to open in the wake of this global pandemic will no doubt be determined by your local, state and federal governments and regulatory bodies.

As we're seeing, the type of licence you have for your business is one of the key considerations.

In Malaysia, Spas can not open yet, but Beauty Salons can. 

Some Spas have only a Spa License. Some have a Spa License and a Beauty License.

Those Spas with a Beauty License are permitted to open to provide beauty services only.

For many businesses, being open to open a few weeks earlier may be the difference between survival and bankruptcy.

So, whatever your business, consider what different types of business licences you could have for your business.

When the next wave or the next crisis hits, it may just give you some more options for survival.

#businesslicense #covidlearning #crisisplanning

If you're in the business of selling your time and expertise then you generally look at revenue opportunities through the lens of your Hourly/Daily Rate.

That makes perfect sense...if you're busy.

But if you're not...it's pretty irrelevant.

Trust me. I know.

I'm currently narrating an audiobook, for which I'm getting paid $100 per Finished Hour Of Audio. 

Sounds like good money, right? $100 per hour.

What if I told you it takes me 4 hrs to create 1 hour of Finished Audio?

Now, my effective hourly rate is just $25 per hour.

I was getting more than that working as a casual bellman in a hotel 30 years ago.

So if I was busy doing other stuff, this hourly rate isn't a good time/money trade off.

However, if I was just going to be sitting on the couch anyway, this hourly rate is a great deal.

#timeismoney #hourlyrate #valueyourself

My wife bought some Aesop hand wash on the weekend. I love it!

Her experience in-store started me thinking that this is a unique moment in time for Aesop...and any other brands selling high quality soaps.

We're all now obsessed with washing our hands, often with pretty average soap products, or even worse, those horrible hand sanitisers.

So, how about the Aesop Hand Wash Membership Card?

You pay $50 for your membership and that entitles you to come into any Aesop store, any time you like, to wash your hands.

If for no other reason, it lets wash off the smell of those hand sanitisers!

Who wants one?

PS: Hats off to Aesop too. Awesome product. Cool stores!

#soap #skincare #brandingtip

The Democratisation of Wellness is all about making Wellness accessible to all.

Wellness should not be something exclusively for Elite and the Wealthy.

Thus far, it's something we've largely failed to deliver.

What if we created a not for profit Global Wellness Certification?

Any business in the World of Wellness, from Spas to Hotels to Product & Supply Companies pay a fee to receive this new Global Wellness Certification.

The profits generated from the certification revenues are then dedicated to providing Wellness products, services and solutions for those who could not otherwise afford them.

What do you think?

Would this work?

#wellness #democratization #certification

There's a lot of business advices that suggests when building a new product, you should first ask your customers what they want.

But Jason Fried says it's better to build the first version for yourself. Then you can seek customer feedback to hone, tweak and improve your product.

Personally, I think I prefer Jason's approach.

Asking customers what they want can get messy. Also, they don't know what they don't know. 

By seeking out customer opinion as your first source of direction, you might be missing a massive upside that you see, but they do not.

#productdesign #marketing #customerfeedback

The more people you have involved, the less likely you are to get any one of them to take action.

It seems counterintuitive.

That is the phenomenon of the Diffusion of Responsibility.

If there are other people involved, why do I need to take action? Why didn't they?

When it comes to decision making in your organisation, the concept of the Diffusion of Responsibility is one which you really need to understand, if you want to get stuff done.

#responsibility #accountability #decisionnmaking

Yesterday Twitter launched Voice Tweets - and I have access.

It works just like you'd imagine...compose a tweet, click the Voice icon, record your message.

Voice Tweets are limited to 2 minutes 20 seconds, but if you run over that time, it just splits your Voice Tweets into a Thread.

Voice Guru, Brian Roemmele, has suggested this may be the start of a new micro-podcasting platform.

Maybe. Who knows?

Regardless, it certainly opens up some interesting opportunities for storytelling on Twitter.

You can read more about Voice Tweets here - https://blog.twitter.com/en_us/topics/product/2020/your-tweet-your-voice.html

#voicetweets #voicefirst #voicetech