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As a person with severe allergies to cats I think that people who own cats often overlook the impact their furry friends have on those around them.

Sure they’re cute, fun, and can make you feel at home, but at the same time they’re making everything in your house (including you) smell, they’re shedding everywhere, and they’re keeping people like me from coming over and visiting.

I have a few friends that have cats and it’s a real shame for both of us. I want to spend more time with them and grow our relationship, but they’re not making it easy to do so. Sure we can go out to eat, go to the movies, etc., but after a while the costs start adding up. We can talk on the phone, but that’s usually brief or a game of phone tag and not my preferred choice of communication. If my friend wants to spend time with me, but only gives me the option of going over to their house, it’s not going to happen.

So what do my cat owning friends have to do with business?

Friendships and business are the same really, they’re both relationships. The easier you make it to develop that relationship, the more likely it’s going to grow.

So the question is, does your business have a cat? Something that you’re used to, you’re comfortable with, or maybe even enjoy that might be keeping others from doing business with you?

Maybe it’s your less than generous return policy, your store hours that don’t make sense, your outdated website, or your customer service, but like the cat owner covered in cat hair, there’s probably something you’re not paying attention to that is keeping valuable customers from doing business with you.

Whatever it is, you’re used to it and probably don’t notice it so ask your customers. Your regular customers have probably noticed and your former customers most definitely have, so ask them what you’re currently doing that is making doing business with you more difficult than it should be.

I’m positive they’ll have the right answers.

How often in business do we do what pays the bills instead of what we really set out to accomplish? Sometimes we think, “I’ll take whatever business I can get, and then once things are going well I’ll start being more picky with the clients and gigs I take.” When money is tight this can be a necessary, short-term strategy, but if your current activities aren’t in line with your goal they may end up taking your further away from your dream.

Are you currently doing work that is taking you closer to your goal or are you practicing the piano in order to play professional football? What can you do today that will put you closer to your goal?

Word of Mouth is one of the hottest trends that organizations are seeking to create online as Facebook, Twitter, and a cast of other online social media tools are becoming more and more powerful. However, the most well known sports brand, Nike and one of the most well known sports icons, Lebron James are teaming up to break the biggest rule of Word of Mouth.

Never ignore it!

When you open up a dialogue between your organization and your audience you are bound to get negative feedback, it doesn’t matter how perfect your product or company is. What you do with that negative feedback can echo across the globe in a matter of seconds and leave a much longer lasting impression. If and when this inevitably happens the best thing you can do is join the conversation and tackle it head on. If you messed up, admit it and make things right. If someone has a complaint, even if it is a misinformed one, don’t obsess about defending yourself, instead calmly offer solutions to the perceived problem.

The other day Lebron James, arguably the best basketball player in the world, got dunked on by a college kid (who used to play in Indiana I might add) the other day. Two cameramen video taped it, but Nike and Lebron confiscated the tapes so his reputation wouldn’t get damaged. Now, instead of a YouTube video of the dunk being the talk of the town for a day or two and then forgotten, the whole controversy of the confiscation and ensuing coverup is creating an even bigger stir. We’ll see what Lebron and Nike end up doing with the video, but the longer they try to sweep it under the rug, the more damage they will be doing to their image and brand.

Watch some of the controversy below and see how negative the reaction is across the media:

Over the past few months I have become a huge Seth Godin fan.  I’ve read as many of his books, ebooks, and pages of blog posts as I can.  His insight and writings about business and marketing were enough for me to think that he is remarkable and worth talking about, but now I have personal proof to back up that claim.

The other night I had a question about my business and really wished I could talk to Seth and ask him.  After about five seconds I thought, well I’ll just email him.  Now keep in mind this is an author that practically lives on the New York Times Bestseller List, has one of the most popular blogs on the internet, and is highly sought after.  However, I figured I had nothing to lose so I sent him a brief email around 11:45pm west coast time.  The next morning I woke up and checked my email.  At 3:49am (6:49am his time) I had already received a personal email straight from him answering my question.

Based on his writings I expected him to respond, but when he actually did I was still surprised.  He probably has the same amount of emails coming to him as my local congressperson and by just taking a minute of time and giving it to me not only did he prove why politicians have high disapproval ratings, he also increased my motivation to tell everyone I know about the experience and recommending his books and website.  In fact, go to his website right now: www.sethgodin.com.