Cool Life Systems, Inc., based in Montgomery New York, has been selected as one of three semi-finalists in New York for the 2010 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. The award is the government’s highest recognition for employers that demonstrate exceptional support to employees serving in the National Guard and Reserve.
Cool Life Systems is among 130 semifinalists nationwide selected from more than 2,500 nominations submitted by Guard and Reserve members or their families. The awards, to be announced in the early summer, will be presented at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 23 at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center.
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney of New York City and the county of Suffolk NY, were the two other semifinalists named from 85 nominations in New York.
A hard copy of this press release can be found at the following link. For more information about this award or about Cool Life Systems, Inc., please contact us at 800-988-8850.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Work On Your Business Not In It
Small & medium business owners of all stripes have one thing in common – they are looking for financial reward. James Deyo clearly illustrates, in his article below, the difference between a business owner working for their business and business owner working on their business. However, he left out one key component – “The How”. One of the easiest solutions to accomplish “The How” is implementing business technology solutions provided by Cool Life Systems. The business software tools from Cool Life System allow a business owner to focus on the strategic because their employees have tools to effectively and successfully complete their job without interference, while still being managed.
-
There are several reasons why people go off on their own and start a business. Some see the chance for financial success. Others want the freedom of being their own boss. Still others just want to prove something to themselves or others. But, anyone who starts, or buys a small business gets to the point where they ask, “Why did I ever try to do this?” And, even after achieving the success, it’s easy to reflect back on the process and wonder, “How did I ever do that?” In the end, the most meaningful question is, “if I had it to do all over, would I do it again?”
The concept of working “on your business, not in it” isn’t my own. It belongs to Michael Gerber, who wrote about it in his best-selling book The E-Myth Revisited. I’ll touch on the concept here, but I strongly suggest you read the book – you’ll never look at your business the same again! Four (of the many) questions Gerber asks are:
1. How can I get my business to work, but without me?
2. How can I get my people to work, but without my interference?
3. How can I own my business, but still be free of it?
4. How can I spend my time doing the work I love to do, rather than the work I have to do?
Small businesses get started because the owners have a new idea, or something they want to accomplish. Not all entrepreneurs with an idea, however, know how to run a business. They are often well versed in a couple of disciplines, but not all of the ones necessary to really make their business work. So, they do what people normally do. They focus on the things they are comfortable with and don’t look closely enough at tasks they know they should do, but are “hard.”
At some point in time small business owners become consumed by the business – and maybe the possibility of losing it. This fear is compounded by the fact they have to do every important thing themselves because they do not have the necessary infrastructure. If this is where you are – if these are the four questions you are asking yourself – you need to change the way you’re looking at your world. You don’t own a business – you own a job!
If you can sit in your office, put your feet up on your desk, and think about the “big picture,” you’re working on your business. If you are the one who builds, and rebuilds, and tweaks, and re-tweaks the direction of your company, you are working on your business. If you define your job as being the person who prepares your business for growth, you are working on your business. If you are doing what you set out to do one, or five, or 25 years ago when you started your company – and having fun doing it – you are working on your business. If you are not doing these things, you own a job. It may be a high paying job and your family may appreciate you all the more for it, but it’s still a job – and you are working IN your business, not ON it!
The ultimate goal of working ON your business should be to have it function as well as possible without you. In other words, it’s an investment! You’re probably never going to get this investment to the point where you can treat it like a common stock or a corporate bond. But, your objective should be to get as close to that point as you can. If you do, you will own something that is valuable to someone else and you the have the option to sell it. If all you own is a job, don’t expect people to line up at your door to buy it.
Your objective should be to get your business to the point where it is NOT dependent on you! Develop your employees to do things without your involvement. Figure out how to give your customers what they want, without having to go through you. Have your employees take care of the day-to-day tasks, freeing you to focus on the more strategic issues. Build a model for your business that ensures things get done right at the first point of contact.
Getting your business to this point is not going to happen overnight; it takes a conscious, sustained effort and time. If you want to make it happen, you have to make it happen! You must put the processes in place to support it. Any individual who has built a successful, mature business knows how it happened. If it didn’t start with a clear vision of what the “finished product” would look like, the architect certainly developed one early in the process.
Author: Jim Deyo, Originally published 4/2006. Reprinted with permission.
-
There are several reasons why people go off on their own and start a business. Some see the chance for financial success. Others want the freedom of being their own boss. Still others just want to prove something to themselves or others. But, anyone who starts, or buys a small business gets to the point where they ask, “Why did I ever try to do this?” And, even after achieving the success, it’s easy to reflect back on the process and wonder, “How did I ever do that?” In the end, the most meaningful question is, “if I had it to do all over, would I do it again?”
The concept of working “on your business, not in it” isn’t my own. It belongs to Michael Gerber, who wrote about it in his best-selling book The E-Myth Revisited. I’ll touch on the concept here, but I strongly suggest you read the book – you’ll never look at your business the same again! Four (of the many) questions Gerber asks are:
1. How can I get my business to work, but without me?
2. How can I get my people to work, but without my interference?
3. How can I own my business, but still be free of it?
4. How can I spend my time doing the work I love to do, rather than the work I have to do?
Small businesses get started because the owners have a new idea, or something they want to accomplish. Not all entrepreneurs with an idea, however, know how to run a business. They are often well versed in a couple of disciplines, but not all of the ones necessary to really make their business work. So, they do what people normally do. They focus on the things they are comfortable with and don’t look closely enough at tasks they know they should do, but are “hard.”
At some point in time small business owners become consumed by the business – and maybe the possibility of losing it. This fear is compounded by the fact they have to do every important thing themselves because they do not have the necessary infrastructure. If this is where you are – if these are the four questions you are asking yourself – you need to change the way you’re looking at your world. You don’t own a business – you own a job!
If you can sit in your office, put your feet up on your desk, and think about the “big picture,” you’re working on your business. If you are the one who builds, and rebuilds, and tweaks, and re-tweaks the direction of your company, you are working on your business. If you define your job as being the person who prepares your business for growth, you are working on your business. If you are doing what you set out to do one, or five, or 25 years ago when you started your company – and having fun doing it – you are working on your business. If you are not doing these things, you own a job. It may be a high paying job and your family may appreciate you all the more for it, but it’s still a job – and you are working IN your business, not ON it!
The ultimate goal of working ON your business should be to have it function as well as possible without you. In other words, it’s an investment! You’re probably never going to get this investment to the point where you can treat it like a common stock or a corporate bond. But, your objective should be to get as close to that point as you can. If you do, you will own something that is valuable to someone else and you the have the option to sell it. If all you own is a job, don’t expect people to line up at your door to buy it.
Your objective should be to get your business to the point where it is NOT dependent on you! Develop your employees to do things without your involvement. Figure out how to give your customers what they want, without having to go through you. Have your employees take care of the day-to-day tasks, freeing you to focus on the more strategic issues. Build a model for your business that ensures things get done right at the first point of contact.
Getting your business to this point is not going to happen overnight; it takes a conscious, sustained effort and time. If you want to make it happen, you have to make it happen! You must put the processes in place to support it. Any individual who has built a successful, mature business knows how it happened. If it didn’t start with a clear vision of what the “finished product” would look like, the architect certainly developed one early in the process.
Author: Jim Deyo, Originally published 4/2006. Reprinted with permission.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Small business, social media not mixing
CNNFN.com recently published an article about how small businesses have yet to fully embrace the world of Social Media. Why? It appears that they spend their scarce resources to generate revenue/sales on more traditional methods, especially during these lean times. This article underscores the need of small firms to engage companies, like Cool Life Systems, to help them better navigate the consumer shift to social media as a communication method so as to spend their limited budgets in the best possible way. The article follows below:
Thu Oct 8, 2009 3:33pm EDT
Original Source, www.Cnnfn.com By Ellen Wulfhorst
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Few U.S. small businesses have adopted social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter for business uses, according to research released Thursday.
Three-quarters of small businesses say they have not found sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn helpful for generating business leads or expanding business in the past year, according to a survey conducted for Citibank Small Business of 500 U.S. businesses with fewer than 100 employees.
Also, 86 percent said they have not used social networking sites for information or business advice. Ten percent said they have sought business advice and information on expert blogs.
The low number of small businesses using such sites for business purposes was unexpected, particularly as social media use has grown overall, said Maria Veltre, executive vice president of Citi’s Small Business segment. Citibank is part of Citigroup Inc.
“We were very surprised we did not see more use of some of the social media outlets, even if just for advice,” she said.
“What this survey indicates to us is small businesses are very, very focused on running their business and on generating sales and managing their cash flow and doing the things that are really important, especially in these economic times,” Veltre said. “I don’t think quite yet the social media piece of it has proven to be as significant.”
The survey found 42 percent of small businesses have made greater use of their company websites to generate business leads and sales.
Nineteen percent were doing more advertising to attract new customers in the economic downturn, 38 percent said they were doing less and 41 percent were doing the same, it found.
Also, 28 percent were using more email marketing and 25 percent using more online advertising to generate business leads and sales, it found.
The telephone poll was conducted for Citibank Small Business by GFK Roper from August 20-27 of a sample of 500 small business executives across the United States. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
Thu Oct 8, 2009 3:33pm EDT
Original Source, www.Cnnfn.com By Ellen Wulfhorst
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Few U.S. small businesses have adopted social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter for business uses, according to research released Thursday.
Three-quarters of small businesses say they have not found sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn helpful for generating business leads or expanding business in the past year, according to a survey conducted for Citibank Small Business of 500 U.S. businesses with fewer than 100 employees.
Also, 86 percent said they have not used social networking sites for information or business advice. Ten percent said they have sought business advice and information on expert blogs.
The low number of small businesses using such sites for business purposes was unexpected, particularly as social media use has grown overall, said Maria Veltre, executive vice president of Citi’s Small Business segment. Citibank is part of Citigroup Inc.
“We were very surprised we did not see more use of some of the social media outlets, even if just for advice,” she said.
“What this survey indicates to us is small businesses are very, very focused on running their business and on generating sales and managing their cash flow and doing the things that are really important, especially in these economic times,” Veltre said. “I don’t think quite yet the social media piece of it has proven to be as significant.”
The survey found 42 percent of small businesses have made greater use of their company websites to generate business leads and sales.
Nineteen percent were doing more advertising to attract new customers in the economic downturn, 38 percent said they were doing less and 41 percent were doing the same, it found.
Also, 28 percent were using more email marketing and 25 percent using more online advertising to generate business leads and sales, it found.
The telephone poll was conducted for Citibank Small Business by GFK Roper from August 20-27 of a sample of 500 small business executives across the United States. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
Monday, December 28, 2009
A New Year - New Ways to Market
2009 is drawing to a close and in terms of marketing; businesses are reflecting on the often lackluster 2009 and now brainstorming new plans and strategies for 2010. To achieve 2010 success, Web Marketing is an essential ingredient for ensuring the business success.
Over the last few years the elements of the marketing mix have evolved to include not only traditional channels like print, radio and television, but also online channels like search engines, banner adverts and social media platforms.
Online media offers a flexible structure and is far more cost-effective and measurable than traditional media. Depending on the goals and objectives of each business, different online marketing elements will be used. While online fundamentals like email marketing and banner placements are very effective when executed correctly, there are a few other elements to consider while planning your online strategy for 2010.
SEO drives traffic to your website via search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo. The purpose of SEO is to increase a websites ranking on search engine result pages for relevant search terms. This is achieved by optimizing the website for key-phrases related to the business products and services in order to provide searchers with relevant and high quality content.
Why should you include SEO in your marketing plan?
Even though SEO is a long-term commitment results from such a campaign are sustainable and provide proven ROI. When implementing a SEO campaign will tweak existing content, create new web pages and include website usability changes. Better usability makes it easier for visitors to access your website and increases conversions or desired actions.
Social Media Marketing
By correctly leveraging platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter and social media can create brand awareness and build relationships with new and existing customers. Social media marketing has been likened to word-of-mouth, because it’s all about the conversations. These conversations occur amongst and between your customers and yourself. Social media marketing is not push-marketing - if you use social media platforms to broadcast overt commercial and marketing messages your social media campaign is guaranteed to fail.
An integrated strategy comprising a mix of social media elements will ensure maximum return on your marketing investment. When creating an online strategy the Cool Life Systems team provides tools and that help to create a strategy that will amplify your message. It is important that online not be included as an after-thought. If you want to achieve great results, involve your Cool Life Systems from the conception phase as they can advise which elements will work best to achieve the specific goals of the campaign.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Interesting Time Line on Unemployment
For a great automated timeline graph on unemployment, take a look at this. While unemployment is considered a trailing indicator, it still bothers the the mind to think that we may have a way to go! Normally, I don't post outside links, but this is definitely worth the 30 seconds to watch.
-Cool Life Systems
-Cool Life Systems
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Social Media is VOC: The rise of the new ticker tape
In today’s information society the amount of output from various social media channels is more like the ticker tape of old than anything else. A constant, unending stream of information. While it’s great to be able to find all this information the question begs to be asked, what is the value of Social Media? Social Media, as it is delivered now, is all about information. And therein lays the value. I have no doubt as to the significance and necessity of the information delivered by Social Media but it needs to efficiently gathered and monitored. However, I believe there is a better question to ask: what is the best use of the various social media channels from a B2B / B2C perspective. Should it primarily be used to create brand awareness and brand management or is it better used for lead generation. One source is inbound information, the other outbound. While social media is currently used for both, in its current iteration social media is best used for building brand awareness and brand management (that does provide some cross over/pull through applicable to lead generation). One major caveat does follow at the end of the article.
Client and company experience and our own research combines to support the conclusion that social media is geared to brand management and brand awareness. I have also yet to find any empirical proofs that social media has increased sales (notwithstanding some anecdotal proofs). I have found multiple instances of social media successfully being used as listening posts to monitor traffic (both brand and client) and enable pre-sale research. Social media allows a company to monitor both Voice of the Customer and Voice of the Employee (otherwise known as VOC & VOE respectively) to aide in the development of Net Promoter Score (NPS). Given the multitude of social media applications and outlets such as Twitter, LinkedIn, and blogs to name a few – the information is often too voluminous and time intensive to sort through and compile on a regular basis. Tools are needed to aggregate the various social media channels and provide a complete view of what is being said and discussed to allow marketing to steer the message and allow the business development staff to close a sale.
One of the tools developed by Cool Life Systems is a platform to view composite and aggregated information from social media channels based on the terms and information you deem relevant. It pulls in channels from blogs, websites, social networking sites, and more. It is a powerful and easy to use tool to create and adapt your marketing message. A business is foolish not to monitor the “tape” to learn what is being said about your business. With information going viral at the drop of the hat, you cannot afford to know what is being said about you – both the good and the bad.
The caveat. The web and the habits of users changes and evolves almost daily. I do expect that social media will eventually become a primary tool of lead generation as the consumer becomes more accustomed to social marketing, individual technology use becomes more widespread (wider adoption of personal mobile devices), and technology and software innovation continues to improve. This adoption curve is dependent upon development, application, technology, infrastructure, adaptation. Adopting a sound social media foundation now and later adapting that foundation as social media evolves will allow the businesses already engaged in using social media platform to easily move their pivot their position to change from listening post to active lead generation. Simply put – Things Change!
Friday, November 27, 2009
LAUNCH OF THE NEW FINANCIAL CONSULTING GROUP WEBSITE
I would like to share with everyone a piece of Cool Life Systems new work. Recently, we relaunched the website for Financial Consulting Group website in addition to providing the organization a new back office system and a member and organization management system. Financial Consulting Group, also known as FCG, is the largest organization of independently owned accounting, business valuation, and financial services firms in North America.
Cool Life Systems is responsible for the revised look, feel and functionality of FCG’s new website as well the technology that runs behind the scenes which includes member and event management, marketing systems and the exclusive FCG member extranet. The new extranet system will offer FCG members a better way to request assistance on engagements, learn to use resources, and post questions and receive answers from other FCG members.
FCG only showcases a portion of the technology and services we offer to our client base every day. So go ahead, take a look around our website look at some of our work and let us know what you think. This blog regularly points out shortcoming that we see in the small to mid size business segment whether it is data management, sales and marketing efforts, or organization management. The shortcomings pointed out are all too often easily corrected, and unabashedly can be easily corrected with use of the Cool Life Systems product. We look forward to speaking with you soon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
