Business: Engaged!

Marketing to the Hispanic Consumer

A Nielsen study found that if U.S. Hispanics were a stand-alone country, their market buying power would be one of the top twenty economies in the world. They are highly likely to accumulate wealth and have significant buying power. Have I’ve got your attention? Our guest on this episode is marketing specialist Rey Hernandez. He explains the nuances of the Hispanic customer base. He shares secrets for creating culturally relevant marketing plans that will become increasingly critical as the population becomes more diverse and the buying power of U.S. Hispanics becomes even more significant. I share some information from a couple of great internet articles on the topic too. The Nielsen company recently released a report called the “State of the Hispanic Consumer: The Hispanic Market Imperative.” Forbes magazine also ran a recent article on the topic entitled “Don’t Sell to Me! Hispanics Buy Brands that Empower Their Cultural Relevancy.” Both are excellent resources on the topic. You should check them out.

Your Chamber of Commerce: What They Do for Businesses

A chamber of commerce is often the first place a business connects in a community. However, they do more than host networking groups and send out welcome packets. How much do you know about what they do? In this episode of Business: Engaged!, we talk with Raymond Burns and Michael Lindsey of the Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce in Rogers, Arkansas. They explain what a chamber of commerce does and how membership can benefit a business. One important role that a chamber of commerce serves is influencing legislation that affects economic development and business regulation. They'll update us on what members are saying and how lawmakers are responding. This is Episode 12. It originally aired on July 9, 2012 on my old network. I'm re-broadcasting it to share my older episodes with my BlogTalkRadio listeners. Most of my show are on evergreen topics. This encore episode includes a few minutes of discussion on some active legislation that is a timely topic. Even though it's a year old, I'm convinced you'll find it to be interesting and relevant to your business.

Reinventing a Company's Brand for the New Economy

It was 2008 and the writing was on the wall: Kent Rylee’s 20-year business relationship with General Motors was about to change forever. He was faced with many options. Instead, he chose to reinvent his business. While other car dealers faced with the same dilemma were closing their doors, he took a long look at what they could do with the facility, employees, and reputation they had. What emerged was Kent Rylee Automotive Solutions, a local Napa Auto parts dealer with a full service center that sells used cars. Join us as we talk with Kent Rylee and his marketing director Stephanie Orman as they share key steps they took in reinventing and rebranding the business. The name change was a minor detail. The major work was in operations and marketing of the company. With an experienced and highly skilled support and technical staff, Kent and his business partner Darrell Bone worked on streamlining the company, developing the auto parts business, and evolving the used car operation. Gone were the co-op dollars that manufacturers and franchises provide to assist with advertising costs. And at the same time, how people shopped for used cars was changing. Stephanie had to look for guerrilla marketing techniques that would fit her reduced advertising budget and reach all the customers who shop for cars today on the internet. You’ll learn the details of how they used focus groups to engage their existing customers and how the management team and the employees stepped up to re-launch this business. This is Episode 9. It originally aired on June 18, 2012 on my old network. I'm re-broadcasting it to share my older episodes with my BlogTalkRadio listeners.

Why Business Expansion Doesn't Always Mean More Profit

Over twenty years, Eureka Pizza has earned its place as Arkansas’ leading independent pizzeria. Owner Rolf Wilkin today is keeping it local with his nine Northwest Arkansas pizza shops. He talks about the journey to expand and shares his insights. He’ll be the first to tell you that massive growth doesn’t always mean more profit, or, more importantly, quality of life. Rolf has always believed in shameless self-promotion. From standing on street corners shaking signs to recording his own pizza commercials to engaging with followers on Twitter, he’s the face of Eureka Pizza. We aren’t just buying a pizza, we’re doing business with Rolf. And like any serial entrepreneur, Rolf also has lots to say about his newest business, Local Trade Partners. This trade bank is nationally affiliated but he understands that what local business owners really want is to do business with other local business owners. We talk about why his local approach works for the barter network members. This is Episode 10. It originally aired on June 25, 2012 on my old network. I'm re-broadcasting it to share my older episodes with my BlogTalkRadio listeners.

Addressing Employee Performance Issues

If she should know better, why is she not doing what you want her to do? One of the biggest management challenges is motivating and leading employees to do what we want them to do. The key to addressing performance issues with employees is communicating clear expectations.In this episode of Business: Engaged!, Kelly Riggs of Vmax Performance Group talks about importance of creating a culture of performance in an organization. He provides four steps to setting performance expectations and addressing issues related to poor performance. His one-on-one meeting process sets the stage for success and creates a culture of open communication. Kelly is a management and sales consultant. He is also the author of 1-on-1 Management™: What Every Great Manager Knows That You Don't. He just released Quit Whining and Start SELLING! A Step-by-Step Guide to a Hall of Fame Career in Sales. You can follow Kelly Riggs on Twitter at @KellyRiggs and learn more about Kelly and his work with organizations at www.vmaxpg.com [http://www.vmaxpg.com]. This is Episode 8. It originally aired on June 11, 2012 on my old network. I'm re-broadcasting it to share my older episodes with my BlogTalkRadio listeners.