Tough-Times Lessons We Shouldn't Forget

Absolutely the last thing I want to do is jinx any possibility of a decent recovery that we've all been waiting, hoping, and working for in the general economy, the advertising and publishing business, and the printing industry. Still, it doesn't seem too premature to take a few minutes now to think about what we've learned these last few years about business, the economy, ourselves, our companies, and our colleagues.

Perhaps, my thinking is, if we spend the time and make an earnest effort, we can salvage a few positives from the bitter remnants of tough times endured.

But how to do this? Well, we can start by recognizing what we've had to do to cope with those tough times. Consciously or not, each of us has had to rethink the priorities that rule both our professional and personal lives—expenditures of time and money, of course, but also how we make the best use of those precious resources.

Whether today we think we have more of one resource or less of another is irrelevant; what's important, it seems to me, is that's the mix is undoubtedly different. So let's consider that, if we're not unhappy with this new ratio, say, more free time but a little less income, perhaps we shouldn't rush to return to the previous mix of more money but less leisure time.

When it comes to the workaday world, I'm sure there are many, many lessons to be learned. Who in the business world hasn't killed extraneous steps, or streamlined a fundamental process, or, facing ever-stiffer competition, figured out a better way to make a product, improve a service, or serve a customer? Should we not in better times continue all the worthwhile efforts, whether it's streamlining our process or enhancing our performance?

And speaking of customers, who has not sought survival in widening the field? Like a lot of businesses, printing companies are notable for focusing on—to tell the truth, relying on—the 20% that provide 80% of the revenue. I'm sure this remains the norm today, even as managers know that three years of recession have fundamentally changed the buying-and-selling process.

Also, prospecting has become an even newer way of life for surviving printers. To me, prospecting involves development of new business from existing clients, plus the search for new customers. Yes, this may require new equipment or capability, but often it does not, just letting the buyer know about a capability or perhaps extending the offer of package pricing.

One sidelight lesson we can learn from getting through tough times is that familiar job descriptions and titles as not as important or restrictive as before. A telephone receptionist, an assistant delivering a job, or a bindery operator answering a technical question are, in their own ways, effective client ambassadors, just as a customer service representative with great listening skills can be a crackerjack business development professional.

(At the same time, I've been cautioned, managers should be on the lookout for a bit of professional jealousy on staff, such as when the prospecting successes achieved by one salesperson, rather than serving as an incentive, put a colleague on edge.)

Once the research part of the prospecting process is completed, I'd say that proven methods of closing the deal predate recent tough times. Nothing substitutes for a face-to-face meeting with a prospect, with plenty of specifics—facts, figures, and samples—carefully chosen to add credibility to capability, while clearly directed at solving a problem or enhancing an opportunity.

Yes, I know, budget restrictions have ruled the industry for a long time, but I have to believe that, for the right idea—presented in a great proposal forged by tough times—a client will find the funding.