Hollander, Linda - The Wealthy Bag Lady
By: Dominick A. Miserandino
The Wealthy Bag Lady teaches us how to use our feminine side to succeed in business.
DM) What gave you the idea to start your book?
LH) Well, I had been an entrepreneur for 20 years and basically, I couldn't find a book that spoke to me as a woman entrepreneur. They were all written from a generic point of view, or a male point of view. And women have these issues and challenges as entrepreneurs and business women, so I thought there needed to be a book out there that addressed these issues and concerns. And really one of the things that I address in my book is femininity as a base of power rather then a weakness. And femininity, if used in the right way, can really explode a business.
DM) What do you mean by "using your femininity?"
LH) Well, women are all about, relationships. We are the relationship. In business this translates to nurturing clients, having five star service, and doing great follow up. Sixy Percent of business is lost because of bad follow up. A lot of sales could be made and a lot of businesses are lost because of bad follow up. People don't do business with faceless companies, they do business with people. It always has been that way, it always will be that way. If women think of nurturing their clients by listening, and using that feminine strength that they have, they have their advantage on a plate.
DM) Do these rules apply to men?
LH) Absolutely, men need to be interested and focus on this topic because women are starting businesses at twice the rate as men. In fact, it's the fastest growing economic segment out there. So, as a man you'll either be working with a woman owned business, dealing with one, or selling to a woman own business.
The rules apply to women too, as they need to be more in touch with the relationship building aspect.
DM) How important is the relationship building aspect?
LH) I think it's critical, especially now that the business model has changed and the economy has changed. You've got to offer things that make you unique in the business, and really create a niche for yourself. You've got to offer service and reliability. Somebody's giving you their hard earned money. And more importantly, is their referring you to other people. When you get a referral you are 70% more likely to close that deal.. If you can have extraordinary customer service you'll get a lot more business.
DM) When you talk about follow up, when is follow up appropriate and when is follow up nagging?
LH) (laughs) I can't give you a blanket answer on that. I'd say three follow up calls without a response is probably a good general rule. After that, you're probably crossing the line from welcome guest to a pest. After the three times and no response I would say, "Move on to something else.".
DM) Somebody said that the internet has changed things. In the sense that email is instantaneous, people don't always answer their emails quickly. They felt that email completely changed the game.
LH) It does change the game and a lot of times you'll get the out of office replies. If you send an email you can't always be sure if they got it. The only way that you know they got the message, is to speak phone-to-phone or face-to-face. If you make that human connection, you can be sure. Otherwise, you're never sure if they got your connection. That said, I think that email is wonderful. I think it's a great form of communication., It's not the be all and end all. It's not the only relationship builder. The best way to build relationship is to make the connection. You hear the voice intonation- that connection.
DM) Is there a rule of thumb on how much communication a business should do?
LH) As a rule of thumb I'd say, most businesses should spend 30-40% of their time doing outbound marketing. For a new business probably 60% of your time doing outbound marketing. No matter what you do every company is a sales and marketing company. Without sales and marketing you will not exist as a company. Without sales and marketing, you might as well hang an out of business sign on your door.
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