October 26, 2003
Carnival Of The Capitalists #3
Welcome, welcome one and all to the show that never ends! I'm going to dispense with all the Earnhardt paeans (even though I have the perfect opportunity for them, having week #3 and being Southern and all) and get right into the meat of why you came: this weeks collection of excellent posts having to do with capitalism in all its forms and pieces.
Entries for next week's Carnival, which is being hosted by Robert Prather of Insults Unpunished, can be sent to editor - at - robertprather.us or to the old standby capitalists - at - elhide.com.
And now for the entries, in no particular order:
What's Your Threat Business Model? by Tim Oren. Tim analyzes how we managed to end up with SSL (secure socket layer - the technology that runs e-commerce right now) despite the best efforts of the tech developers to screw it up.
Time Inconsistency and Social Security by Steve Verdon. Steve looks at how privatization of Social Security isn't as clear cut and simple as everyone wants to believe. His analysis of risk behaviors is dead on.
Google IPO by Beth Mauldin. Beth takes a look at the proposed Google IPO and a few of the very real issues with how IPOs are issued. She points out a number of facts about IPOs that most investors don't know, but should.
A possible answer to the economic puzzle of the Do Not Call list by Craig Newmark. Craig looks at a few of the reasons why telemarketers oppose the Do Not Call list.
Dow 10000, Psychology, and the ECMH by Stephen Bainbridge. Professor Bainbridge looks at one of my favorite topics - market anomalies. The psychological barrier of 10,000 is just one.
World Series Web Browsing by Matt Certo. Matt looks at some of the different advertising techniques that Sprint used during the National League Championship Series and their effectiveness.
What Would Adam Smith Do? by Robert Prather. Next week's host looks at how regulation and protectionism affects the economy through a phenomenon known as "rent-seeking."
Globalization by Kyle Markley. Kyle looks at globalization and how it has helped to make more efficient use of the factors of production in the US.
The New Economics of Music: File-Sharing and Double Moral Hazard by Umair Haque. Umair has an excellent post about how downloading of .mp3s is as much a form of risk transference as it is of piracy
The Grinding Heel of Socialism by Kin Kinayda. Kin takes on the socialist mindset, particularly in Israel, but also in the US through a use of personal anecdotes and well reasoned argument.
The Real Bills Doctrine (who needs gold?) by Mike Northover. Mike and I had been having a crossblog debate on the gold standard and this is the last post (for the time being). A very interesting theory and one which has made think.
American Airlines Showing Profit by Michael Williams. Michael looks at the government bailout of the airlines and the flaws in the current airline business model.
First Thing...Let's Quell All the Liars by David Giacalone. David looks at legal ethics from the point of view of the consumer, analyzing Shakespeare's famous "Kill all the lawyers" quote and the ABA's attempts to put a positive spin on it. I love the part about the profession needing more PR: "Professional Responsibility," not "Public Relations."
Rant Ahead by Chuck Simmins. Chuck takes on all the folks who refuse to volunteer and then complain about paying taxes to pay for services that volunteers used to perform.
Truth by Kevin Aylward. Kevin points out that the Free Software Foundation is espousing a form of communism by calling for all software and digital media to be made open source by virtue of its very production.
It's An Improving Economy, Stupid by Director Mitch. Mitch takes us, step by step, through an analysis of the macroeconomic environment and how it will trickle down to his company and the upcoming Presidential election. This post shows in detail how to do an analysis like this - a skill that really is lacking in today's business world.
Student loan rip-off by Michael Kantor. Michael looks at how the explosion of student loan debt may have hurt graduates by making their degrees less valuable while simultaneously saddling them huge debt loads. I think he's right that this is a problem issue that very few people want to address.
The Frankenstein Economy? by Barry Ritholtz. Barry states many of the points I've been trying to express, mainly that we may be seeing not a fundamental strengthening of the economy, but the result of massive economic stimulus. He, of course, does it in a much more concise and interesting to read format than me.
Choose the right words by Todd. Todd takes a look at the most valuable words to have when selling Google ads with Adsense.
Business and the "Tragic" View of Human Nature by Rob. Rob looks at and compares the art and science of management. He also analyzes how human nature affects our decision making process in regards to management decisions.
Capitalism and Complacency by Sorge Diaz. Sorge offers his advice to the government and to the citizens in how to improve the economy and welfare of our citizens.
Mutual Fund Corruption could be serious by Howard. Howard takes a good look at the possible ramifications of the mutual fund scandal along with the relative lack of recognition about the problem on the part of the political left.
DUMB COMPANY TRICKS Call Center Clownishness by David Foster. David takes on companies that script calls for their call center reps - and refuse to allow any discretion in times of high call volume. This is one of my pet peeves also since I was once on the other side of the phone trying to help as many people as possible.
Should someone be penalized for a bad roll of the genetic dice? - by Jack Grant. Jack takes on the insurance industry and its unusual position in our society. I agree that the insurance industry has substantial problems that need to be addressed and unfortunately agree that it won't happen.
No Way To Run Things by Jay Solo. Jay has provided us with an excellent post on some of the most important lessons to remember when setting up a contract between companies. He also is calling for commentary on items he might have missed. The company I currently work for is in the position of his customer, so I completely understand everything he talks about.
Paul Krugman sings the babysitting blues by Jonathan Wilde. Jonathan takes a long hard look at fiat currency, pricing via the market mechanism, and inflation by analyzing a Paul Krugman article. An excellent read.
These are a few entries I found during the week that were not formally submitted, but that I thought would have been good candidates.
I gotta say this by Drumwaster. Drumwaster takes issue with the striking grocery workers in Southern California, pointing out how they are helping to contribute to the higher price of food in the area.
Anti-Spam Legislation by Dean Esmay. Dean takes a look at the whole issue of anti-spam legislation, in particular at how spam does in fact cost the recipient, in terms of time and productivity. He also proposes a reasonable penalty for violation, one that is scaled based on the egregiousness of the violation.
Hell Froze Over by Jeff Walters. Jeff looks at the "new" Apple iTunes Store and comes away suitably impressed. He also goes through the marketing points that Apple is using and their effectiveness on him.
This has really been fun and has introduced me to a number of blogs that I probably never would have read otherwise. I really appreciate Rob and Jay offering me the opportunity to host this event and I look forward to seeing what everyone enters in the future!
Jay also has a poll going over at his site about possibly renaming this Carnival. Some of the proposed names are pretty good! Go over and vote on your choice or to keep the Carnival of the Capitalists name.
If you find any errors, omissions, or broken links, please send me an email at blog - at - cbnoble.com
Idea for the logo shamelessly ripped off from Professor Bainbridge
Posted by Chris at October 26, 2003 10:20 PM | TrackBack | Linked by:The American Mind linked with Cold, Hard Cash
One Fine Jay linked with Let the fingers do the walking
I have a question that perhaps some of your contributors could help me with.
I have a small plastics manufacturing company. A competitor of mine announced he was closing his doors within two weeks. I would like to take on some of his work, particularly one customer who I have already been talking too, but I am having trouble with them taking me seriously because of my relatively small size. They always seem to be stuck on things that are easily changed such as, "you have so few employees", well, give me some work and I'll hire more! One of the people that came down to look at my facility made a point of telling me that, "You really should have a broucher". I mean, what the fuck, I get the impression that they really would rather be talking to a salesman than the person who is doing the work.
Signed,
Frustrated and becoming resentful,
Mike Messina
First, I wanted to thank Mr. Noble for hosting this this week.
As for Mike above, my free advice, and that's what it's worth, here are some of the things that went through my head as I read your message and since I don't have the details, some of these may be "out there", but are really meant just to get the creativity going:
1. Is there any way you could get the ex-competitor (the pres, sales guy, whoever had the client relationship) over into your company to help you in bringing in the new client(s)? If not a permanent hire, maybe a consulting fee or the like?
2. Can you provide some sort of business plan to the client that you are going to acquire the assets, etc. of the ex-competitor? Whether you do or not, showing him a detailed business plan with a realistic expansion plan could give him the confidence that you have the ability to expand with his needs
3. Can you find out if acquiring the assets/customer list of the ex-competitor is possible and worth your time and investment?
4. Go ahead and do the brochure and other collateral (I'm in marketing, so am biased). This is really a signal of your company's "professionalism" and worth the investment of a local consultant or the like to put one together.
Mike,
I have to agree with what Director Mitch said, it really is good advice.
A couple of observations that I've had in all but officially running a business are:
1.) Properly done advertising is worth its weight in gold. You also have a bonus opportunity with the client who mentioned a need for brochures. If you produce some, take one to that prospect and tell them "I thought about your advice and thought it was good. Here's one of my new brochures to put in your files." This not only gets your advertising in the prospect's hands, it also tells them that you're open to reasonable suggestions. Play off his or her desire to be helpful, make it an advantage for you.
2.) Realize that you are in sales. Business owners have to be part of the sales force. Ensuring a good customer base is one of the biggest challenges facing businesses today (as you're noticing). Get used to and embrace the sales job, as it is what allows you to do everything else. You don't have to be a used car salesman, but you don't want to be disdainful of the sales process either.
That's my take on it. Who else has something good to add to help Mike out?
Posted by: Chris at October 28, 2003 05:00 PMNothing really to add, except to say the advice from Chris and Mitch is excellent. Mix, match, and expand upon as works best for you.
If it is a matter of financing to expand enough to eserve the new prospect, well, a contract in hand is highly bankable for financing and if the prospect is nervous, that may be something they could be reminded of in some way that is persuasive.
Showing a plan, even an imperfect one on the right track, is cool too.
Another thing to consider: If not you, who are these customers going to hire? Who and where is the other competition? Can the prospect by sold by, say, transportation costs and such because the nearest likely alternative to you is 2000 miles away? Selling points like that, well presented, never hurt.
Remember it's all about what you can do for THEM. Being the local alternative when they lose the other supplier is only thing one you can do. Efficiency? Savings? Leverage because they will be a big customer by comparison? Quality? What are you selling besides the fact that you can make the same stuff they got from the company that's going under. Like it or not, you are a salesman, and because you do the work too, there are times you can be a superior salesman, so long as you know you are wearing that hat too.
Posted by: Jay Solo at October 28, 2003 06:56 PMHey Mike
More than half of business failures are attributed to lack of customers. Obvious, yes, but above all else you need to be a salesman. I I work with hundreds of customers and the ones who don't make it are the ones who think the quality of work will stand on it's own. You need to be on the web and in the yellow pages even if you do no other advertising.
All the above ideas are great, too. Good Luck!
Posted by: irishlass at November 1, 2003 12:29 AMComments have been closed on this entry in an effort to conserve disk space. If you have feedback on this entry, please email me at blog - at - cbnoble.com.
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