DW's Blog

Know Your Customers

by DW Green — March 7, 2018

The times, they are a-changin’.

Dorothy Lane Market in Dayton Ohio is one of my favorite companies. They are an excellent retailer, one of the very best in America. It’s an honor to know them. I hold the entire organization in high esteem. In fact, they are celebrating their 70^th Anniversary this year, which in itself, speaks to their enduring ability to maintain relevancy in the ever changing, fast paced supermarket industry. Dorothy Lane is a premier leader in customer loyalty marketing. They have stayed the course and have improved and deepened their knowledge and expertise in rewarding, valuing and understanding their best customers. Being relevant in the marketplace is huge for any business. But knowing and doing are two different things. Staying relevant means acknowledging past successes and failures but leaving them in the past and focusing on the present. What do my customers want and need today? And how can we better satisfy those desires today?In this week’s “Club Deals” email blast Dorothy Lane features their “Rainbow Roll”, 9 count package for $10.99. Their Rainbow Roll “uses a California base of krab, cucumber, and avocadoes topped with tuna, salmon, red snapper, shrimp, and more avocado for a...

by DW Green — February 28, 2018

And that hymn is what we call purpose.

Trust is perhaps the most important currency in business, and big ideas may be the only true source of competitive advantage. Lack of trust is a form of tax. And that tax rate has increased over the years. Customers simply don’t trust institutions as much today. Particularly large businesses. The main reason is that we now live in an “information everywhere” and more transparent world. Every customer has a camera in their cell phone, a Facebook in their pocket and Twitter at their fingertips. This means we hear and see evidence of businesses not walking their talk. Their products don’t match their promise. In order to regain this trust you must simply make sure that all your products, your merchandising, your advertising, your people and the totality of your touch points with consumers sing from the same hymn. And that hymn is what we call purpose. Some people call it vision. Others call it focus. It is the same thing. It is source of your promise. It answers the question: Why are you here?

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by DW Green — February 21, 2018

Leaders who get in the way cause friction.

Many of us, on occasion, find ourselves micromanaging a project—either intentionally or unintentionally. Why? Because we can, or because we feel we know better or we’re more qualified than our staff. All that may be true. Or not. Sometimes micromanaging causes more problems than it solves. At best we should refrain from micromanaging but at least we should be aware of when we choose to do so.I enjoy reading author Scott Mabry. He has amazing insight on leadership. I highly recommend reading his blog, Soul To Work, life-affirming work experiences that make a positive impact on the world. https://soul2work.com/author/mabryosm/The following is from his February 6, 2018 blog, dealing with micromanaging.5 REASONS FOR LEADERS TO GET OUT OF THE WAY—SCOTT MABRY“Leaders who get in the way create friction.
Leaders who get out of the way create space.”Think about some of your favorite leaders. Were they in the way? Did people have to go through or around them to get things done? Did they try to control people or outcomes? Were they micromanagers?My guess is they were more or less the opposit...

by DW Green — February 14, 2018

Living with integrity requires an ever-present awareness.

I read a great article in Harvard Business Review this week. Ban These 5 Words From Your Corporate Values Statement, by Denise Lee Yohn.Denise writes, “Practically every organization today has a set of core values that ideally function as the ‘operating instructions’ of the company. The goal of articulating the essential and enduring principles of your organization is to inform, inspire, and instruct the day-to-day behaviors of everyone who works at your company. But this rarely happens, because most core values statements don’t get at what’s unique about the firm.”Denise bans the following five terms from every core values list she works on:Ethical (or integrity), Teamwork, Authentic, Fun and Customer-oriented. She writes, “Not only are these concepts mere table stakes for any business that wants to be competitive in today’s environment, they also don’t specify what is distinctive or uniquely valuable about your organization.”I agree with her overall premise and four of the five terms she believes should be banned. The one I question is Ethical (or integrity). According to Denise, “every company should operate ethically and...

by DW Green — February 7, 2018

Take care of customers you already have

I had an unpleasant experience at the ole auto dealership last month. I’ve leased five cars at that dealership over the past seven years. The car looks good, runs great and a heck of a value! So when my lease was up, I went to the dealer to lease a new one, same model and color. I was told they didn’t have the color I wanted in that particular model. I asked if they could get the car from another dealer? I was told that there wasn’t one in the state of Arizona. My options were to either purchase one in a color I didn’t want or drive to Nevada or California to buy the one I wanted. I wasn’t pleased with either option so I bought a different brand of car from a different dealer.Later when scheduling an inspection for the car I was returning, I was told by the national car manufacture that I could extend my lease payments for up to six months so I could order the car I wanted. Well, it was too late by then, as I had already purchased a different car. When I returned the leased car to the dealer, I explained the situation to the sales manager, telling him there was a third option, in case someone else visited the dealership with a similar situation to mine. The sales manager didn’t listen, was arrogant and ...

by DW Green — January 31, 2018

Less is more. “Acceptance is the great healer of strife, conflict, and upset. It also corrects major imbalances of perception and precludes the dominance of negative feelings. Everything serves a purpose. Humility means that we will not understand all events or occurrences. Acceptance is not passivity, but non-positionionality.” – David Hawkins

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Everything serves a purpose.

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by DW Green — January 24, 2018

A college friend of mine recently passed way. Roy Wittstruck was his name. Roy was a big dude, very smart and very funny. He was a good man and a good friend. I think we are all blessed with the individuals we meet in a lifetime. They become our teachers, mentors, companions and friends. And I believe it’s not by accident or coincidence that certain people come into are lives. It is all meant to be, for we attract to us what we emanate.With the death of my friend Roy, I’m reminded of the wonderful poem by T.S. Elliot.The Little Gidding…

We attract to us what we emanate.

“What we call the beginning is often the end
And to make and end is to make a beginning.
The end is where we start from… We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring –
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time…Through the unknown, unremembered gate
When the last of earth left to discover
Is that which was the beginning;
At the source of the longest river
The voice of the hidden waterfall
And the children in the apple-tree
Not known, because not looked for
But heard, half-heard, in th...

by DW Green — January 17, 2018

Truth is unveiled

I have a folder on my desktop entitled “Thoughts”. When I read stuff, I type portions of what I’ve read that interest me and save them in my thoughts folder. I’ve been doing this for about ten years. I have hundreds of pages of “what’s interesting to me” thoughts in that folder. Here’s an example of a thought entry from December 29^t, 2017.Cease to identify with the body/emotions/ mind as “me.” Be truthful and admit that they are yours but not you.From thinking that we are our minds, we begin to see that we have minds—and that it is the mind that has thoughts, beliefs, feelings and opinions. Eventually we may arrive at the insight that all our thoughts are merely borrowed from the great database of consciousness and were never really our own.At all times, remain aware that the real you is not the ego. Refuse to identify with it.Truth is unveiled when we see that one has “that” or does “that,” instead of is “that.”There is great freedom in the realization that I “have” a body and a mind, rather than I “am” my mind or body.Suffering is only the price w...

by DW Green — January 10, 2018

In a word it’s purpose

Growing up in the 60’s and 70’s, I became a non-conformist, a maverick, and a Beatles fan, always questioning and challenging the status quo. I think that’s why the study of brands is so appealing to me. Branding is about connecting companies emotionally to their customers and helping them differentiate themselves in their markets. It’s about leading, not following. It’s about competing with yourself, making your company better, stronger, staying relevant in an ever-changing world and creating the best possible shopping EXPERIENCE for the customer.At the risk of sounding wacko, I invite you to have a look at a different organizational paradigm. Consider refocusing on the deep longings we have for community, meaning, dignity, purpose, and love in our organizational lives. Begin to look at the strong emotions of being human, rather than segmenting ourselves by believing that love doesn’t belong at work, or that feelings are irrelevant in an organization. Begin to see ourselves in much richer dimensions, to appreciate our wholeness, and hopefully, to design organizations that honor and make use of the great gift of who we humans are.In a word, it’s purpose. What is the underlying purpose of your...

by DW Green — January 3, 2018

“When you are through changing, you are through.”

Change is synonymous with life. Everything, everywhere is in a constant flux of change. I like this quote from Bruce Barton, author, advertising executive and politician, “When you are through changing, you are through.”The supermarket business continues to go through radical changes and rapid transformation. Remember only you can control your reaction to changes in your business. Everyone filters information through his or her personal background, wants, needs, fears, hopes, prejudices and beliefs. The result is often the development of urban “myths” about change. Let’s explore some of those myths—and the reality of business.Myth: This will go away.Reality: Change is here to stay. Myth: It will help if I get upset with this.Reality: Controlling your emotions increases your control over the situation. Myth: This is a bad thing for my store(s).Reality: Progress often masquerades as trouble. Myth: I can keep running my store(s) as I always have.Reality:...
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