Dollars And Cents

From Seth’s blog:

“Watch the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves.”

I’m not sure this is true. In fact, I’m pretty sure that if you watch the dollars, you don’t have to worry so much about pennies.

Big brands don’t sweat the small expenses. They don’t hassle about a return, or a little coupon fraud or the last penny per square foot on the rent in a prime location. In fact, they understand that there’s a powerful honest signal sent when you don’t worry about the tiny expenses. It shows confidence.

So many small businesspeople are crippled by their relationship with money. The thing is, if you run out of money you lose the game. That’s a given. But what’s the best strategy for not running out of money?

I don’t think the answer is to worry insanely about little expenses (saving $20 on your blogging expenses in exchange for distracting ads, for example.)

The thing to do is invest in scary innovations, large leaps, significant savings. Instead of renting a skimpy booth at the big trade show and scrimping on all the extras, why not rent a limo and drive the key buyers around town, or sponsor the awards luncheon? When you skimp all the time, you signal that you’re struggling.

A lot of what sells in business and in brands is the perception of confidence. You are trying to get people to trust you. And people tend to trust the brave and successful instead of the fearful and frugal.

On a side note, I’ve found the best meetings always have food. Snacks make people happy. And happy people buy ideas.

- Christian