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Marketing Eye Blog Articles
Entrepreneurs need to get their hands dirty every now and then
Apr 11, 2012 Written by Mellissah Smith
There are some things, that no-one else but the entrepreneur in a small business can do. It almost makes them indispensible although we are all trained to think that no-one is this.
You learn new things every day... but you need to be open to it
Apr 10, 2012 Written by Mellissah Smith
I have arrived safely at my desk at 11.30am after an early morning interstate flight and am a bit weary even though I have just spent 5 days away, in the most picturesque setting possible with loads of sunshine, great wines and good food. The company wasn't too bad either ;-)
Queensland is such a stunning place. Like most people who travel up there, I always dream of living there permanently because in a week, you don't get bored, the flies don't bother you too much, and you cannot get enough of the sun and surf. It is pure paradise. Beautiful one day, perfect the next as the slogan goes.
Never one to 100% tune out on business, I learned a few things during my Easter break that I would like to share with you:
Sun, surf, flying a plane and riding motorbikes - not a bad combo this Easter!
Apr 03, 2012 Written by Mellissah Smith
There are so many things we all can relate "Make hay while the sun shines" to. Here are some that I think you should consider;
A few weeks ago, I had to cancel a trip to the US that was for both business and pleasure. Mainly business, but a few days pleasure that I was seriously looking forward to. There were real reasons, which I cannot disclose here, but nevertheless, business was somewhat involved.
Then my beautiful girlfriend married the man of her dreams in South Africa, and I had to cancel going there too. More than $1000 down the drain, because South African Airlines don't reimburse you for cancelled flights nor do they give you a credit. Yet again, work got in the way.
Then this weekend, it's Easter and my two nephews are looking forward to spending the special occasion with their Aunt Mellissah. I have work to do and I was about to book a flight to fly to Queensland on Friday and back Sunday until...
As a table of 5 women sharing their stories and updating everyone on their lives, one thing became apparent. Everybody has their shit.
Not the most enticing word in the English Dictionary, I agree, but nevertheless, its meaning in this context makes it appropriate.
I enjoyed the company of 5 fabulous women tonight. Smart, beautiful, successful, emotionally intelligent and value adding, women that can converse on every topic imaginable.
They depict the women that I had in mind when I wrote "what men can do to make their women more successful."
After not seeing each other for quite some time, I was glad a catch up with one of my girlfriend, Fatimah was in order last week. She was happy to find out that I was interning at Marketing Eye for the past month and I told her how exciting it is to finally have something to wake up to each week!
After telling me the updates on her life, I began telling her how real the marketing world is and how different it is from university life. The environment at Marketing Eye was pretty laid back, yet focused. It is a small team in the Melbourne office; therefore everyone is usually engrossed in their work. I told Fatimah how the company has a blog written by the CEO of the company and how she perfectly relates business to life in general and she should check the blog out herself!
The following week she did so at her workplace and not only was she reading a few, but a whole lot of them even dating back to 2010! She found it highly amusing and could not stop reading the blog. Fatimah then texted me straight away saying “The blog is so interesting because Mellissah tells facts yet relates it back to her own personal experience and draws out a conclusion from it. Because she is a career woman, I could somehow relate myself to her (e.g: lunching out with an inspiring girlfriend or thoughts about men).
Fatimah is an engineer and works in a male dominated office and after informing some of her friends and colleagues about the blog, they have also started reading the posts and enjoying it themselves. Its remarkable how the power of word-of-mouth happens and reaches great lengths no matter what their professions are as everyone could somehow relate a blog post to their own lives!
It's how you deal with it that counts.
Which has me thinking. I am what I affectionately call a "stress pet". Someone, who stresses a lot. If not daily, bi-daily. I find things to stress about that sometimes deserve my attention, and then others that certainly don't.
Managing stress has always been an issue and I have over time tried everything. But just like any diet, or new health regime, you need to keep with it long after the actual decision to do it in the first place and constantly remind yourself that it is something that requires ongoing work, not just a quick fix.
What you can learn as a small business owner from friendships
Mar 27, 2012 Written by Mellissah Smith
Having run a small business myself for 13 years, I can identify that at the end of the day, unless you have a business partner, it can be quite lonely.
Yesterday, was particularly stressful.
The business is going so well, and clients are literally running through our doors. Although we have mechanism in place for growth, there are always things to do, that when you add it to your own daily jobs, becomes overwhelming - if you let it.On top of running a business, we have an issue with a client who is happy with the service, but owes us $80,000 just for invoices raised in the month of February. After, continually asking about when the invoices will be paid, they keep saying that it is coming. I am sure they will pay, but the situation is stressful nevertheless because after years of dealing with business owners, without really knowing them, the trust factor on such things gets deminished.
Blogging isn't for everyone. In fact, few people can pull it off and actually get a reasonable return on investment. While it can be fun to share your ideas, there is a whole world out there whose ideas differ from that of your own. And beware... sometimes they are even happy to tell you about it.
But it isn't all doom and gloom.
Blogging can be quite lucrative from a brand profile prospect and for some, financially. Successful bloggers don't just make their livings out of blogging, they quite often make their fortune. Think Mia Freedman (www.mamamia.com.au) and Seth Godin.
So, you gave it a bit of a push. Here and there. Everywhere. Networking. Business cards. Advertising. Facebook. You name it - you've tried it.
And then what?
Yesterday, I wrote a blog on how women can help their man be more successful. As promised, today I am publishing how men can help their women be more successful (in business).
If you are a man and lucky enough to have a woman that is determined, ambitious, talented and intelligent - as well as owning their own business or having a high flying career - then count your lucky stars. You are in the minority,
Coming from a European family, where the men rule the roost and women play the pivotal role of supporting their man, I am an advocate of women doing what it takes to support their families and in particular, the men in their lives.
When I grew up, my father was the provider. He took the rubbish out and mowed the lawn. He fixed anything that needed to be fixed.
Keep Pushing: You'll Get There - A lesson to all small businesses
Mar 24, 2012 Written by Mellissah Smith
To have success though, you need to have a reason. Every successful person has a reason as to why they want to be successful.
