Jeremy Hall – Confessions of a serial entrepreneur

The CV that stands out

The lady that send this CV in has some form of marketing experience, but I would say it is weak compared to others we have seen. However, her CV was a work of art compared to the two page Word documents attached to an e-mail that everyone else sent in. I turned to my colleague and said, “lovely CV, but she is not right for the job.” But she had put so much effort in, this was just not fair.
This lady has produced a folder for her CV, letters of recommendation, press articles and other relevant information. The paper she was using was designed and stood out from every other CV we had seen. She was the only person to post her details, all the others came in via e-mail.
“Janet, call her and say I will meet but please point out it is only because she has done such a great job. Please explain that if she wishes, we will see her but we are concerned about her lack of relevant experience. ” I noted to our Office Manager – now promoted to Personnel Manager.
So the lady with the CV that stands out has her wish of an interview and all because she has taken the time to produce such a fantastic document. A big lesson to anyone looking for a job.

Back to marketing…and the CV’s we have received

The advert we placed in the local paper has resulted in about twenty five replies. There are three CV’s that really stand out, about five that were just embarrassingly bad and the rest did not have relevant experience.
Let’s start with the good – these were well written, and the individuals had taken the time to adapt their CV to the job role.
The middle bunch – clearly these people had taken the effort to write a good letter and present themselves well. However, there was some desperation there. One person lived in Ireland, one in Hertfordshire and most of the others wanted (or so they sais) a job in marketing but did not have experience.
The bad – and do we mean bad. One of the CV’s was so bad I would like to publish it here as a perfect example of how not to present yourself. Spelling errors, grammatical mistakes, slang, you name it, she had included it. And let’s not forget, I must have counted up at least 20 jobs she has had in the past.
This blog may have spelling mistakes and with more effort could be crafted to present me as a more sophisticated person. But, I do not get time, it is a diary written when I have the spare time. Creating the masterpiece of your CV should not be like that, take your time and get it right.

I am playing poker, scrabble and chess all at once

I am involved in a negotiation. These conversations are definitely like playing poker, constantly reviewing our hand and working out exactly the options the other player has. Every time I send an email or have a conversation I am stating my position just like in chess. And then there is scrabble, carefully crafting out my words to ensure I get the result I am looking for.
Business life is sometimes about playing these games. It is about analysing your strengths, evaluating your customers options and making a move a that will project you forward without losing an important advantage point.

Is he just a friendly face?

At the Leasing Life conference, I meet a friendly face who is a competitor I have known for many years. In this business we do not just make small talk, we can discuss what we are up to in more detail without fear. But where do you draw the line? I do know many competitors who are very open, others that will not say a thing.
Anyway getting back to this chap. He is highly knowledgeable and successful but there he was asking me some very basic questions. He kept quiet and was coming across as a buffoon. So what is the situation here I thought. Is he really naive or just pumping me for info? If in doubt assume the latter.

Leasing conference

We could spend a day every month attending some form of conference or event that is specific to our business sector. It is always a difficult call here, there is the cost and time elements to consider. This year’s Leasing Life conference was in Munich.
I had a 3.30am start and will be out of the office for two days. At 70 euro per taxi journey from the hotel to the centre of Munich means I spend more on taxis than I do on the Easyjet flight.
So is it worth it spending two days mingling with comrades but not customers. Yes is the quick answer, but you have to qualify this and note you cannot spend every day doing this form of networking.
I did not leave this even with the new next idea that will make a million, but the contacts I made were invaluable. Even after 20 years in leasing, it is interesting to see how I still manage to meet people who have been doing this job for the same time that I have never heard off.

Writing for the press

We have been brainstorming articles to write that are interesting and relevant. Now this is an art, a skill only a small percentage of the population are blessed with. If you do not have this skill, buy the resource in. Think about it, this is a simple subject;

1. Brainstorm a number of interesting things about your business, sector, product etc
2. Write them down with a heading that catches the imagination
3. Send this off to the press
4. Follow with the publisher and convince them to publish the article

The papers are crying out for press articles

Apparently, there has been some redundancies at our local paper. There are not so many reporters on the street so those that are left are finding a reduced supply of news worthy articles. The answer is simple, write an article, attach a picture and send it in to the local paper. We have done this and our first article gets printed this month.
All free PR!

Recruitment

Whilst business owners are in survival mode, our focus is on brand development. It is time for us to create noise, and there is no better time than when our competitors are not investing into marketing. But like all projects, you need a champion, a leader, a person who can take charge and focus their energies onto this specific subject.
For us that starts with a Marketing Manager. Our starting point is with the web, an area that is overlooked in our business sector. Following on, it is PR. This new employee will have more than enough to keep them busy.

Marketing Month

I am sure if you spoke to a marketing guru they would say March was Marketing Month. Rhyming, it would make a better headline than November is Marketing Month. For me, this is the month when we are to make serious advances in the development of our brand, spreading the word as they say, putting WestWon on the map.
I understand marketing, it’s importance in business and how it works. A struggle with a few things such as implementation and the writing of articles, brochures, but these tasks can be delegated.
So, this month’s blog will have a very heavy marketing focus. It will document our ideas, what we are to do and most importantly, the implementation and results of these ideas.

Do you employ a Marketing Manager?

How many small companies have a Marketing Manager? Not many is the answer that quickly comes to mind. I see small companies that trade mainly on the net and they have a dedicated person who works with Google addwords and the company website – I would image they would call this person a marketing employee, personally I would look at them as a salesperson, a fee generator. The facts are that most SME companies will invest into sales people and maybe advertising, but outsource their marketing and design efforts. Even when Wyse Leasing was a UK powerhouse, we only had one full time marketing employee. Looking back, this was so important to our company to have one central resource to promote the brand.
We are just about to recruit a Marketing Manager, so this to me is a topical subject. Interestingly, my perception is that this is something we do when we feel positively about the future. When you are downbeat and negative, the first thing you do is terminated the marketing Manager and their budget.