Tom's Events

We're happy to announce a new feature at the site. For those fans who were missing our former calendar of Tom's events, you'll be happy to know that we've added a Tom's Events section in the right column here at the front page of tompeters.com. It's right over there under the video box. We'll be updating the list to include only upcoming events that are open to the public. We're hoping this will make it easier for you to make plans to see Tom speak.

Little BIG Video #42
Excellence:
Thoughts on Tom Watson

In video number 42 from The Little BIG Things Video Series, Tom shares the secret of Excellence according to Tom Watson, founder of IBM.

You can find the video in the right column of the front page of tompeters.com or you can watch the video on YouTube. [Time: 1 minute, 49 seconds] You can also download a PDF transcript of the video's content: Excellence: Thoughts on Tom Watson.

The Little BIG Things
Synopsis Series
#7 Recession46
#8 Self

It's time for two new sections in The Little BIG Things Synopsis Series. The next two sections in The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways to Pursue Excellence are titled "Special Section: The Recession 46" and "Self." The Special Section offers strategies for coping with the economic crisis. The "Self" section focuses on adjusting your attitude and working on your story, things that elevate your personal brand.

You can download free pdfs of those sections from The Little BIG Things Synopsis Series* by clicking below:
#7 Special Section: The Recession 46
#8 Self

*The Synopsis Series is an adaptation that gives you a taste of the BIG idea in each of the 163 Little BIG Things. More information on the book can be found on this page. The Synopsis Series as released thus far can be found here.

Cool Friend #151:
Maddy Dychtwald

New Cool Friend Maddy Dychtwald is the coauthor of Influence: How Women's Soaring Economic Power Will Transform Our World for the Better. She and Erik Hansen discuss the increase in women's economic power and her belief that women will be "the biggest change agent of the next several decades." She dispels some myths about women-owned businesses and proposes that we can all help this change along by "fostering financial knowledge, education, and expertise for ourselves and for women and girls."

Read the interview and find out more about her at Age Wave or her blog, Influence.

Little BIG Video #41
Leadership:
The Power of Apology

In video number 41 from The Little BIG Things Video Series, Tom encourages us to become students of apology. He says, "Learning how to apologize effectively is the real essence of strategic strength."

You can find the video in the right column of the front page of tompeters.com or you can watch the video on YouTube. [Time: 3 minutes, 2 seconds] You can also download a PDF transcript of the video's content: Leadership: The Power of Apology.

X2: REALLY First Things Before First Things

I have a new habit. Before flashing my title slide up on the screen these days, I offer up two others first—or "REALLY First Things Before First Things." I label them "X2." Or: "The Excellence TWO." They encompass two central ideas that often get lost in a list of 10 or 20 key ideas—or never make the list at all.

They encompass two notions of ... Surpassing Strategic Importance.

Two notions we all "care about"—but two notions that we frequently fail to ... OBSESS ... on. And it is precisely ... OBSESSION ... that is called for.

The X2:

EXCELLENCE in Cross-functional Communication and Integration.
EXCELLENCE in 1st-line management.

Check out the attached pdf.
Then act ... TODAY.

The Little BIG Things
Synopsis Series
#5 Opportunity
#6 Resilience

It's time for two new sections in The Little BIG Things Synopsis Series. The next two sections in The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways to Pursue Excellence are titled "Opportunity" and "Resilience." Both new sections focus on how to respond to difficult times.

You can download free pdfs of those sections from The Little BIG Things Synopsis Series* by clicking below:
#5 Opportunity
#6 Resilience

*The Synopsis Series is an adaptation that gives you a taste of the BIG idea in each of the 163 Little BIG Things. More information on the book can be found on this page. The Synopsis Series as released thus far can be found here.

Little BIG Video #40
Strategy: Sock Solution

In video number 40 from The Little BIG Things Video Series, Tom asks us to look for solutions that are astonishingly powerful, yet astonishingly unsexy.

You can find the video in the right column of the front page of tompeters.com or you can watch the video on YouTube. [Time: 2 minutes, 54 seconds] You can also download a PDF transcript of the video's content: Strategy: Sock Solution.

20 Questions

Tom is featured in the Financial Times 20 Questions series today. He's asked, among other things, what he likes and hates about his job, what he's reading, and how he deals with critics. Don't miss his answer to the worst thing ever said about him—it was from Peter Drucker.

A Collection of Summary Presentations

Herewith for your amusement* ...

First Things First
The "3H Theory of Everything"
The "9H Theory of Everything"
Words to the Wise
Cause. Space. Decency.
PXX. Period.

(*Okay, "amusement," but I'm rather happy with this set.)

New Audio: Tom Reads The Little BIG Things

This week's additions to the audio files on the book page are in the section titled "CHANGE":

#79. Zen and the Art of Achieving Change Where It Already Exists.

#80. The Way of the Demo.

#81. Big Change-All at Once!

#82. Big Change-in a Short Time.

#83. Clever? Never!

Collect them all, and when we're finished, you'll have an audio version of the entire book.

The Little BIG Things
Synopsis Series
#3 Guru Gaffes
#4 Crisis

It's time for two new sections in The Little BIG Things Synopsis Series. The next two sections in The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways to Pursue Excellence are titled "Special Section: Guru Gaffes" and "Crisis." "Guru Gaffes" is a reality check and assault on business jargon. "Crisis" offers some new ground rules for business.

You can download free pdfs of those sections from The Little BIG Things Synopsis Series* by clicking below:
Special Section: Guru Gaffes
Crisis

*The Synopsis Series is an adaptation that gives you a taste of the BIG idea in each of the 163 Little BIG Things. More information on the book can be found on this page. The Synopsis Series as released thus far can be found here.

The Retail Edge

Following up on my seminar last week, aboard the "Seabourn Spirit" and aimed at independent retailers under attack from their "big box" brethren, I drafted "The Independent Retailer Edge." It is attached here as a pdf. I believe it holds to some extent beyond retail. Enjoy!

What Can Happen If You Open a Half-hour Early!

The bill came to about $2,700.

Getting that hearty bundle-of-bucks is an indicator of what happens when you open a little earlier and close a little later than the norm.

My wife went shopping for a mattress at the Nelson store of a "major New Zealand retailer." The retailer, incidentally, had run a huge print ad that day in an effort to immediately increase traffic—though my wife hadn't seen it. It was rather late in the day. She wandered around, wasn't overly impressed by the offerings—though they were decent enough. There were four or five salespeople on the floor, however, who had a fair shot at earning her custom. Not one approached her. A few minutes later she walked out. Not in a huff. Just walked out.

The next morning, while awaiting the 9AM opening of another shop (not bedding), we walked past Brownies, a family-run mattress and bedding store, around since 1939. Brownies, to our pleasant surprise, stood out by opening at 830AM, about a half-hour, at least, before the herd. One of the family members, on active duty at the opening bell, subsequently told us they opened early and closed late in part to attract folks going to or coming back from work. "That's when a lot of people shop," was their straightforward answer (in the "duh" category—though it apparently didn't occur to others).

An exceptionally knowledgeable salesperson immediately engaged Susan. She wandered around, and eventually made a purchase. That is, she purchased the mattress she'd hoped to find. And, uhm, a set of twin bed mattresses and bed frame, that were not on her list. And about four pillows—as I said, about $2,700 worth in total.

All because the store was open early, had a decent-but-not-spectacular set of products, and very attentive-but-not-hovering staff.

The "major New Zealand retailer," by the way, is also under newfound competitive assault. Their local folks failed miserably—not on product selection, but on attentiveness. My wife is not as picky about customer service as I am, by a long shot. But aggressive rudeness is another kettle of fish.

May Brownies prosper from now until kingdom come!

(And may the "major New Zealand retailer" get its act together—that is, improve by an order of magnitude on the basics which can indeed set local stores apart from the "big box" monsters.)

(This vignette is also included in our recitation on independent retailers.)

Little BIG Video #39
Brand You: Never Trash Your Competitors

In video number 39 from The Little BIG Things Video Series, Tom reminds us not to stoop so low as to badmouth the competition. It may be a simple truth, but it's a valuable one.

You can find the video in the right column of the front page of tompeters.com or you can watch the video on YouTube. [Time: 2 minutes, 38 seconds] You can also download a PDF transcript of the video's content: Brand You: Never Trash Your Competitors.

We've Been Watching You

[Our guest blogger is Cool Friend Steve Yastrow. Find out more about Steve at Yastrow.com.]

A cover story in last Monday's New York Times describes the online advertising practice of "retargeting," also known by its euphemistic synonym, "remarketing." Retargeting is the cookie-enabled practice of showing people banner ads based on their past browsing behavior.

In one sense, retargeting is the panacea we all hoped for in the early days of the Internet boom. I remember giving speeches in the early '90s, describing how the "information superhighway" would make advertising less irritating to consumers because they would only see ads for products they want. I imagined my entire neighborhood all glued to the same TV show, but with different ads showing up on our screens during one commercial break. At the same moment a pizza delivery coupon from my favorite Italian restaurant was printing out of my TV set, a coupon for Children's Tylenol was printing out of my neighbor's because he had purchased a Robitussin formula for kids that morning at Walgreen's.

You can make a very good argument that retargeting is good for consumers because it reduces the unwanted advertising clutter thrown at them, and my interest in this topic has less to do with Internet privacy or any sort of need for government regulation of the tracking of online consumer behavior. I'm more interested in understanding where personalization crosses the line from customer convenience to customer turn-off.

Imagine if you got on an elevator and saw a slick salesman waiting for you. With a big smile and an outstretched hand, he greets you by name, comments on the hotel you stayed in last weekend, and starts talking about the relative merits of the three cameras you were considering during a shopping trip the previous day. He produces a chart showing a comparison of the three cameras, with the particular features you are interested in shaded to highlight them.

Would you be more likely to buy from this guy, because he understands your so well and knows what you've been doing, or would you be press the button of the nearest floor so you can escape quickly?

For all of the possibilities retargeting offers to benefit both customers and marketers, companies risk becoming "that sales guy" if they are not careful. I'd worry less about the ethics and more about the effectiveness.

Here's a simple rule of thumb: What would you think if a friend did it? We appreciate if our friends buy us personalized birthday presents or recommend particular books because they know us well. But even a friend can become a stalker if he starts to follow you too closely.

Headed to Des Moines

On October 7th, Tom will be speaking in Des Moines, Iowa at Iowa's Advanced Manufacturing Conference. The event is open to the public. If you're interested in attending, you can find out more here.

The Little BIG Things
Synopsis Series
#1 Little
#2 Excellence

The first two sections in The Little BIG Things: 163 Ways to Pursue Excellence are titled "Little" and "Excellence." "Little" explains how "small stuff" can make a huge difference. "Excellence" is a series of powerful reminders to aspire to Excellence.

You can download free pdfs of those sections from The Little BIG Things Synopsis Series* by clicking below:
Little
Excellence

*The Synopsis Series is an adaptation that gives you a taste of the BIG idea in each of the 163 Little BIG Things. More information on the book can be found on this page. The Synopsis Series as released thus far can be found here.

New Audio: Tom Reads The Little BIG Things

This week's additions to the audio files on the book page are in the section titled "ACTION":

#75. "Trying My Damnedest!" Wrong Answer!

#76. It Is Not Enough to Care!

#77. Captain "Day" and Captain "Night": A Tale of Two Deployments. And Two Suggestions.

#78. If You Want to Find Oil, You Must Drill Wells.

Collect them all, and when we're finished, you'll have an audio version of the entire book.

Little BIG Video #38
Strategy: The Story is More Powerful than the Brand

In video number 38 from The Little BIG Things Video Series, Tom describes just how powerful storytelling can be and argues that's why it's essential to turn your brand into a story.

You can find the video in the right column of the front page of tompeters.com or you can watch the video on YouTube. [Time: 1 minutes, 55 seconds] You can also download a PDF transcript of the video's content: Strategy: The Story is More Powerful than the Brand.

Excellence Always: the Cruise

Tom is speaking today to NARTA/National Associated Retail Traders of Australia. NARTA supports/supplies the other-than-big-box retailers in Australia and New Zealand. The feisty independents will soon confront the likes of Costco and Best Buy. (In a first, Tom is speaking aboard ship—the Seabourn Spirit—en route from Dubrovnik, Croatia to Venice.)

Download the PPT slides.

Recent Books from our Cool Friends

Tom's great friends and former partners, Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner, have a new book out called The Truth About Leadership: The No-Fads, Heart of the Matter Facts You Need to Know. They've devoted their lives to leadership, so this is one you won't want to miss.

Bob Sutton has a new book coming out in September called Good Boss, Bad Boss: How to Be the Best... and Learn from the Worst. Not only that, according to Bob, "we just put together a quiz that people can use to help determine of their boss is good or bad—and whether he or she lives in a fool's paradise."

Don Tapscott also has a book coming out in September called MacroWikinomics: Rebooting Business and the World.

David Meerman Scott's new book is Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead:What Every Business Can Learn from the Most Iconic Band in History. Tom has quoted Jerry Garcia for years and wholly subscribes to the "give lots away for free" aspect of their marketing philosophy.

Sally Helgesen has a new book out called The Female Vision: Women's Real Power at Work.

If there's a single person we'd recommend you listen to about social media, it's Chris Brogan. Thankfully, he published a handbook this year called Social Media 101: Tactics and Tips to Develop Your Business Online.

And someone who never ceases to surprise us with revelations about human behavior, Dan Ariely, has a new book called The Upside of Irrationality: The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home.

This doesn't fit precisely within the theme of this post, but we want to point you to an excellent resource. Our good friends and colleagues Robert Thompson and Mike Neiss have started a series of podcasts that they cleverly call Thought Grenades. Have a listen.