Page 280 - Duct Tape Marketing

Commit to Your Marketing with a Plan, Budget, and Calendar

aim to help us manage and control it, but for the small business, there
is a complex set of variables that come into play.

I’ve begun to apply the term logistics more broadly when it comes
to running a business. The term is commonly used when referring to
the idea of delivering a product or set of goods from one location to
another, but what if you began to think about the logistical consump-
tion of time to deliver a result from one state to another. I think that’s
what small businesses must do at the highest level. The manager or
owner of that business brings the highest value when he or she can
orchestrate, not manage, time—the organization’s greatest resource.

Stay with me on this, because now I need to add another layer. It’s
not enough to show up to work each day, create a to-do list, and call
it a symphony of time. Today, every business has three clocks running
at all times—and the management of the flow of goods, information
and other resources, energy, and people depend on observing each of
these clocks—although they run at different paces.

Today’s business needs to live simultaneously in real time, deal
time, and meal time.

Real time. Information and opportunities come at us today at an
astounding speed. Businesses must create systems and processes that
enable them to take advantage of marketing, PR, and product devel-
opment opportunities instantaneously. Failure to monitor, and thus
seize, real-time competitive advantages is a threat to even the most
entrenched players. Of course, it’s never been easier to chase the new
shiny thing too. The creative view of world events through the lens of
a marketing strategy is an arena that you must hire and manage for.

Deal time. This is where the technician lives—“Hey, all that
namby-pamby ‘Kumbaya’ stuff is great, but we gotta get some business
in the door.” Yep, it’s the cold, hard reality of running a business. Deal
time is always on the mind of any business facing a payroll or college
tuition payment, and it must be dealt with realistically. It may mean
getting out from behind the computer and knocking on some doors,

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