Does your small business deliver WOW service? Does it embrace and drive change? Does your family business make you adventurous, open minded and creative? Does your closely held business create fun, pursue growth and learning? Are you passionate, open, and communicative; [column width=”46%” padding=”4%”] believe in Teams and Family? Do you understand that companies with better business cultures are more successful? Do you understand that you have a role and responsibility to the culture?
Your business culture is part of your past and your future it’s one of the points that makes us who we are! [/column] [column width=”50%” padding=”0″] [/column] [end_columns]
In his book Delivering Happiness Tony Hsieh compared marketing and business to playing poker.
Evaluating Market Opportunities
• Table selection is the most important decision you can make.
• It’s okay to switch tables if you discover it’s too hard to win at your table.
• If there are too many competitors (some irrational or inexperienced), even if you’re the best it’s a lot harder to win.
Marketing and Branding
• Act weak when strong, act strong when weak. Know when to bluff.
• Your “brand” is important.
• Help shape the stories that people are telling about you.
Financials
• Always be ready for the worst possible scenario.
• The guy who wins the most hands is not the guy who makes the most money in the long run.
• The guy who never loses a hand is not the guy who makes the most money in the long run.
• Go for positive expected value, not what’s least risky.
• Make sure your bankroll is large enough for the game you’re playing and the risks you’re taking.
• Play only with what you can afford to lose.
• Remember that it’s a long-term game. You will win or lose individual hands or sessions, but it’s what happens in the long term that matters.
Strategy
• Don’t play games that you don’t understand, even if you see lots of other people making money from them.
• Figure out the game when the stakes aren’t high.
• Don’t cheat. Cheaters never win in the long run.
• Stick to your principles.
• You need to adjust your style of play throughout the night as the dynamics of the game change. Be flexible.
• Be patient and think long-term.
• The players with the most stamina and focus usually win.
• Differentiate yourself. Do the opposite of what the rest of the table is doing.
• Hope is not a good plan.
• Don’t let yourself go “on tilt.” It’s much more cost-effective to take a break, walk around, or leave the game for the night.
Continual Learning
• Educate yourself. Read books and learn from others who have done it before.
• Learn by doing. Theory is nice, but nothing replaces actual experience.
• Learn by surrounding yourself with talented players.
• Just because you win a hand doesn’t mean you’re good and you don’t have more learning to do. You might have just gotten lucky.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for advice.
Business Culture
• You’ve gotta love the game. To become really good, you need to live it and sleep it.
• Don’t be cocky. Don’t be flashy. There’s always someone better than you.
• Be nice and make friends. It’s a small community.
• Share what you’ve learned with others.
• Look for opportunities beyond just the game you sat down to play. You never know who you’re going to meet, including new friends for life or new business contacts.
• Have fun. The game is a lot more enjoyable when you’re trying to do more than just make money.”
• If you answered all of those questions YES! Congratulations you work at a company like ZAPPOS!
ZAPPOS was founded in 2001. In 2010 they reached a Billion in sales and were listed in Fortune’s list of The Best Companies to Work For.
ZAPPOS business model is base loyalty relationship marketing. The primary sources of the company’s rapid growth have been repeat customers and numerous word of mouth recommendations some 70+% are repeat customers.
The company’s customer service reputation has been augmented through viral, SEO marketing and actual customer experience.
ZAPPOS has a stated goal to offer “best service in the industry. Their service includes such benefits as:
• Free shipping both ways
• A 365-day return policy
• A 24/7 call center
Tony Hsieh founded ZAPPOS and wrote the employee handbook and the best seller “Delivering Happiness”.
ZAPPOS core values are:
1. Deliver WOW through Service
2. Embrace and Drive Change
3. Create Fun and a Little Weirdness
4. Be Adventurous, Creative and Open-Minded
5. Pursue Growth and Learning
6. Build Open and Honest Relationships with Communication
7. Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit
8. Do More with Less
9. Be Passionate and Determined
10. Be Humble
We are our business’ culture. It’s our individual responsibility to swipe in, focus everyday on being better, better to each other.
We all win or we all lose.
What a simple and persuasive way of thinking about business culture and collaboration. Yet egos, politics and budgets typically obscure this message. We must have a collective mind-set. It is only then we can be better and win.
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