Chris Barrow’s Blog

Welcome back to the 21st Century, modern life and social media.

Best decision of the vacation – NOT taking Macbooks or iPads, even though our hotel did have free wifi (and my daughters did indulge in Skype and Facebook after dinner each night).

Annie and I stayed away from the web.

The result?

• deep connection with my girls
• great conversation
• endless laughter
• read the first two books of the Stieg Larsson Millennium series and now engrossed in the third and final book.

So here’s the count back at CoachBarrow central.

• 641 emails in the in-box
• 39 individual sets of documents – domestic and professional correspondence
• 26 “Notes” written to myself whilst on vacation
• 1 mind-map created on my iPhone (on the flight to Athens), detailing my plan for financial independence at age 60
• 36 development tasks and 6 major projects created in “Things”
• 4 direct messages and 28 new friends requests in Facebook
• 0 telephone messages
• a fantastic job done by Phillippa and Team Barrow whilst I was away.

and I intend to spend the rest of the weekend resting (and doing laundry!), watching my tan fade and wondering how I’m going to lose half a stone.

The business will be back on Monday morning.

• and now – more beer, more football – the last lap. #
• I uploaded a YouTube video — Race start and first lap http://youtu.be/h_w2krvbfYo?a #
• Well done Paul and viva Espana! The best team won. #
• I uploaded a YouTube video — These lads can't keep up http://youtu.be/k_pg-_ShFUQ?a #
• I uploaded a YouTube video — Porsche Supercup start http://youtu.be/kmDh8xTZolI?a #
• I uploaded a YouTube video — The Red Arrows entertain http://youtu.be/E089_YMAukE?a #
• "The cool thing about reckless abandon is that there is always time to be sensible later."- Seth Godin http://tinyurl.com/28mdp8e #
• A quick pizza (@ Danilos) http://4sq.com/b1OwRR #
• Off to Manchester City Centre again this morning #
• Another early meeting with free wifi. Excellent (@ Starbucks) http://4sq.com/6koflZ #
• And now a croque Monsieur (@ Starbucks) http://4sq.com/6koflZ #
• I just downloaded the @awarenessinc eBook: Top 10 Ways Enterprise Marketers Can Leverage foursquare – http://bit.ly/bFH0CD #
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/clips/p008rdzh/that_mitchell_and_webb_look_ibag/ #
• The shop is closed – thank you all for coming – good night. #
• Excited! New practice visit today – another lovely place that needs a spark to ignite the passion. #
• One of those "needs must" moments (@ McDonalds) http://4sq.com/ckOPKU #
• I just unlocked the "Explorer" badge on @foursquare! http://4sq.com/bqRdFB #
• Oh god, what a crap hotel and restaurant (@ Radisson Blu Portman Hotel) http://4sq.com/bGFMH9 #
• If you ask for a second opinion, you will end up with two opinions #
• A day of discovery and achievement, of old and new friends, of mind-boggling opportunity. #
• I have not needed a holiday so much for some years – last day of coaching and then… #
• One of my all time favourite UK hotels. One of these days I'll rest here for a while. Beautiful room, food, environment and team #
• and gone…. #
• Heading North (@ M5) http://4sq.com/dCPtPG #
• Everything made very easy. Here we go… (@ Radisson SAS Hotel Manchester Airport) http://4sq.com/9rUNHG #
• Have successfully arranged the Penfold manoeuvre – thanks Graham #

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OK – time to close it all down.

Emails answered.

All remaining “to do’s” and projects posted forward to 2nd August.

Auto-responder switched to “on” with vacation message.

All Professional and Domestic bills paid to the end of the month.

As previously mentioned – Macbook, iPad and technology in secure mothballs.

Big agreement with Annie – we are NOT taking our iPads to Ithaca – because we know darn well what will happen…..

Our beautiful boutique hotel (this is year 6) has wifi and sure as Apples is Apples, we’ll be checking into Facebook every evening.

No chance.

My daughters are coming with us this year for the first time – Rachel (17) and Ellie (15) and that will create a new dimension as we cruise around the islands on our little boat.

I’m so looking forward to the journey (2 days in Athens first – take the girls to see the Parthenon), to the arrival in Vathi, to re-connecting with the Grivas family and the staff at the hotel and to hugging my friend Dennis at Sirens when we arrive for dinner.

To lazy days on the boat and equally lazy evenings, with good food and wine.

To sunsets over the harbour.

To sleep – sleep – sleep.

To reading good novels (NO business books).

More than perhaps all of this, I’m looking forward to the connection with my loved ones and the chance to recover, recharge, revitalise my mind and body.

The first 6 months of this year have been my “best year yet” since 1987, when I became self-employed – a year of growth, evolution and opportunity.

I have NEVER been so excited about the future. I have NEVER considered myself so blessed.

For now – my wish for you is everything I wish for myself.

If your year is a tough one, remember – “all things will pass” and, as I have done so many times in the past, keep going.

If you are having a great year – enjoy the moment.

I’ve just downloaded the latest update.

Probably the most useful software I now use across all three devices, iPhone, iPad and Macbook – and getting better all the time.

cb

Here’s an interesting course on photography from Laura Horton.
photographyflyer

Remember the days when you used to go to PC World to buy software for your computer?

How ancient does that sound now?

Drive to the nearest store, wander around the aisles, pick up the box, read the options.

And “which version shall I buy?” was the next question.

Of course, what Microsoft and others did was to generate a series of parallel drop-down tick box menus (is there a generic term for that?), indicating the FEATURES of each version of the software and adding successive “knobs and whistles” for each version.

That made it easy for us to decide how far up the ladder of options we wanted to go – get the basic version because all you want to do is X or the Supersonic Platinum version because you wanted to do X + Y + Z.

Now the spin into the business of dentistry.

I was chatting over dinner last night with the principal of one of the UK’s best specialist referral clinics.

They know how to charge.

A few years ago I needed an RCT and asked the price (this is my own client and a good friend) for his in-house “endo” specialist to do the job – I specifically said “no mates rates”.

After he told me the number they could have performed the procedure there and then, before i came around.

I did actually ask, out of polite interest, why their price was 50% higher then anything I had previously observed and the answer came back “because we have the best endodontist in the UK working for us.”

Commendable self-confidence but bugger off – this is about me.

Back to last night’s dinner conversation.

We were in the West End and I was revisiting last week’s blog post about Q-Clinic precipitating a price war.

I asked my client:

“If I were to ask any member of your team, clinical or otherwise, why you have the highest prices in the region, would they be able to give me a clear, concise and compelling answer?”

Of course, I’m a consultant, so I only ever ask questions that I already know the answer to

The fact is that they think they know why they are the most expensive:

• the clinical team would say “best equipment, best materials, best lab, loads of courses” – because they think its about them
• the support team would say “best dentists, lovely building, customer service”
• but there would be a sneaking suspicion in the minds of the team that it might be because all the dentists are living the high life?

either way around – its all about “us” (the practice – we are the best) and not all about “them” (the patient – you should treat yourself, you are worth it)

• I’m willing to bet that, like my dinner companion, your team haven’t nailed the answer in a way that makes the offer appealing to the patient
• I’m equally convinced that you don’t have any written material that answers the same question – no software box

Now my purpose here is to stimulate you into action before the ripple effect from Central London hits you.

Prices, my friends, are coming down – across the profession.

I had an email from a dentist this week, asking if I could promote in my ezine the sale of unwanted Invisalign kits – because the price at which they HAVE to sell is higher than the price at which patients are buying.

And there are no winners in a price war, not even patients – the smallest and most vulnerable businesses are the first victims, the quality of everything goes downhill with the prices.

So YOU MUST train all of your team RIGHT NOW in the communication skills necessary to answer just one question from patients (and telephone punters):

“I CAN GET THIS DOWN THE ROAD CHEAPER – WHY SHOULD I DEAL WITH YOU?”

Back to PC World.

Bill Gates was never there to answer the question “which version of Office is right for me?” – so he created the drop down, tick box menu – that spelled out the features of each version – enabling me to make an informed decision for myself about features that would enhance MY experience.

I propose a campaign inside your business, to be conducted in my absence over the next 2 weeks – to create a similar drop down, tick box menu for the reasons why I should choose:

• private over NHS?
• white over metal?
• membership over FPI?
• Cerec over traditional?
• your practice over their practice?
• independent over corporate/retailer?
• Mac over PC (only kidding)

and so on – get it?

Don’t have your telephony, reception, TCO or clinical team “making it up” – get the answers and the lists written as your holiday project for August – so that when everyone recovers their sanity on 1st September, you have it nailed.

Otherwise, bye bye profits, people and patients.

You have been warned.

I reminded a client yesterday that a “recession” is a mental construct (just like the horizon) – it’s not really there and, as Ashley Latter reminds us in his excellent ezine this morning, you can choose to “not take part” – but that’s not by adopting a position of denial – its by upping your game.

I’m so excited that today is (finally, after all the preparation) our first Mastermind meeting in Central London.

Around 20 people from 10 practices, principals and managers.

Location of members?

Practices have travelled in from all points of the UK compass, including Central Scotland, the North East, North West, Midlands, the West Country and the Home Counties.

We started the ball rolling with 8 for dinner last night – and I left them at 00:30, still drinking, talking and laughing as I staggered to my bed after a very long day.

We are also filming the event, Jem Patel and the team from JSP Media Group will be catching highlights for our new web site.

What’s the purpose of the meetings?

To create an environment in which 10 practices can move their businesses forward by sharing ideas and experiences, with my help as a facilitator.

Principals can meet with Principals.

Managers can meet Managers.

And I have no doubt that they will be in conversation with each other on a constant basis after today’s inaugural meeting – I expect practice exchange visits as well.

“More Profit in Less Time” you might say – and a chance to share the very best ideas.

The concept is well established and I’ve delivered this style of meeting for over 10 years with hugely beneficial results.

We will be launching the second group later in the year.

Dates for Group 2 will be:

Thursday 4th November 2010
Thursday 3rd March 2011
Thursday 12th May 2011
Thursday 15th September 2011

These meetings will be in London and are very likely to be held at the Royal College of Physicians.

If you are interested, please let me know.

For now – I’m off to breakfast and to prepare for what promises to be the start of some life-long friendships between dental entrepreneurs and their managers.

“Hi Chris

Look forward to hearing from you
Thanks
Ricky”

Readers of my ezine will know that I published a long article on “social media strategy” this week CLICK HERE

Here’s a considered response that continues the conversation:

CB,
 
Interesting post.
 
There is lots of hot and cold air being blown around about Social Media Marketing by the Information Marketing Community. (You are in the Information Marketing Business of course).  I wish I knew the answer.  Lots of new ideas from people who haven’t actually made any money, but talk a lot!
 
I prefer to take advice from people who have consistently made money of many decades.  I refer to Dan Kennedy mainly.  But others like Seth Godin, Anthony Robbins et al have very profitable business models.
 
I think there is a real danger of fooling one’s self into thinking you have a duty to be a content provider.  The pressure spirals.  In reality your business demands that you sell products and/or services for money.  Social Media is merely one of many available marketing channels.  The monetisation of which is unproven.  Over speculation in new and unproven investments is never a good strategy in a portfolio.
 
If I was advising dentist (which I do occasionally on a very small scale), I would tell them to call lost customers first, join BNI second and put Social Media into a objective context in their marketing plan.  Not saying it is not an interesting channel, but it will never, every, every have as high a conversation rate to money as talking face to face with a potential customer.
 
Rant over:  Yours from one of the 1400+ people who scans your ezine when I have time, never looks you up on Facebook and is not in the market to buy your products or service but is included in your numbers. 
 

David Holland <david.holland@exela.co.uk>
 
P.S. I do enjoy reading your stuff and very much respect you and your views.  Just making a point to consider.

Aren’t they great?

1. there was a second gunman in Dallas
2. there was no Moon landing
3. Hitler survived and opened a halal tapas bar in Montevideo

Here’s my addition to the genre:

• HSBC moved their telephone banking operation overseas to save money
• (Lets face it – they have nobody left in the UK under 30 – just disco banks run by kids)
• the staff overseas have created a healthy secondary market in selling our bank details to their mates in the car park
• so much phishing is going on that they (the bank) are scared of getting busted
• so they now go into “overkill” on fraud prevention (see the recent thread on Mark Oborn’s Facebook page)
• and if I use my debit card more than a few times a day or in more than one location it triggers….
• some faceless, heartless, humourless woman overseas telling me my card is suspended

Ever tried to make a joke with an overseas bank telephone clerk?

You can hear the earth turning in the silence.

My “theory” is that these people have screwed up hugely – and are trying to hide it from us.

I think they may be watching me……