I receive emails every week that thank me for keeping hope alive, and enthusiasm flowing in a positive direction. After all, that is what I do.

Having always considered myself a realist, I have a few thoughts to share about “throwing in the towel.” And, make no mistake about it, the day is coming when those exact four words will enter your thinking process.

I fear the day when you are going to feel the full brunt of all your apparently useless efforts is coming, and you will want to call it quits and “throw in the towel.” This will not be the action of a sore loser, but as a conscious decision from a hard-working, good-intentioned entrepreneur Read the rest of this entry »

Why is building a profitable business so difficult? This is an easy question to answer. And it has nothing to do with COVID-19 or the Internet.

It became glaringly obvious to me over the years that most people are still not practicing the simple art of marketing with any degree of consistency. Because there was (is) so much print on the subject, people were not being introduced to the finer (simple) points of marketing in a fashion that is being taken seriously. Read the rest of this entry »

My latest audible book “listen” is a book by Greg McKeown title Essentialism. It is about understanding what is essential while discounting the rest. I listen to a chapter every night while lying in bed ready to call it a day. When I heard the phrase, “Are you protecting your assets?” I sat up and made a note to myself immediately.

It has been said by many people, in many ways, that YOU are the product in a service organization. YOU are the true differentiating factor. YOU are the reason in a me-too industry people select you as their service advisor. Read the rest of this entry »

If you have been reading any of my daily articles over the last four years, you know I have a penchant for the “analogy.” (Comparison; similarity; equivalence between independent parts; a form of reasoning.) 

Today’s idea came to me while I was climbing to my roof to replace a few loose shingles torn by a recent windstorm.

You probably never stopped to focus on it, but ladders are potentially dangerous constructs. Notice how many “warning” labels are glued to the sides of your ladder. Just like Jim Croce recommended in song “not to mess around with Jim,” I’m telling you not to mess around with ladders. (But I digress.) Read the rest of this entry »

I like the musical singing group Fleetwood Mac. I like their sound and the words to their songs. I like everything about them. I find myself feeling good when I hear them on the radio. Many groups I can take or leave. This group hits a chord with me.

One of my favorite songs is Don’t Stop. If you are prone to jumping to conclusions, you are probably saying to yourself, “Marchev is about to remind us of the power of persistence, or the importance of not quitting too soon.” I could. I’m not. Read the rest of this entry »

Today, I decided to focus on one of my sixteen marketing strategies I share in my advanced training classes. I was prompted to do so after reading a SpeakerNetNews tip from Rebecca Morgan featuring The Interview.

Do you remember Larry King? He was the man who sat on one side of his desk, sporting a pair of suspenders and outdated eyeglasses. He would invite popular guests to his show and interview them. He asked questions without providing his opinion. His guest was the reason for tuning in. Read the rest of this entry »

You are probably wondering if Marchev has gone off the deep end? No, I haven’t. Not yet. I want to share an observation I once had in a fabric store of all places. My wife Barbara and I were strolling through a fabric store looking for ideas when the subject of today’s memo hit me.

After being in the store for just a few minutes, I felt a mild migraine coming on – and I don’t get migraines! I was being introduced to the Three C’s: Choices, colors, and the associated cost. I must admit there was a lot of good-looking “stuff” in that store. In fact, my eyes started to glaze over at the myriad of styles, fabrics, and colors began to overwhelm me. Read the rest of this entry »

Little things can make or break your business.

In a “me-too-only-cheaper” competitive environment, the fundamentals and strict adherence to the little things will position companies faster and more accurately than just about anything else.

Fact: Clients are in the driver’s seat.
Fact: They know it, and have a number of options when preparing to make a purchase.
Fact: Your success will have everything to do with how you manage the “details.” Read the rest of this entry »

E-X-E-C-U-T-I-O-N is a nine-letter word that identifies the reason most companies and individuals fail to meet their full potential. More realistically, it is a lack of execution.

According to Webster’s New World College Dictionary, Execute is defined as: [to carry out; perform; Do.]

The issue is not a lack of knowledge. It is a shortage of — DO. Try this out, for the next seven days focus on the DO… the concept of execution.

The author Tom Peters (In Search of Excellence) once said Read the rest of this entry »

I realize there is still over two months before we kiss 2020 goodbye and look forward to a new year filled with hope. Now is not too soon to begin planning for a prosperous future.

For many, the following advice may sound a tad boring, mundane, or even amateurish. It isn’t. Trying to do too much too soon is an exercise in futility.

Bottom Line: Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Read the rest of this entry »

This particular topic popped into my head early this morning, for no apparent reason. I awoke to find myself thinking about words, phrases, and sentences that were directed my way over the years. (Over many years.)

You never know how your words may be taken by the recipient. For example, I don’t think I will ever forget a particular sentence tossed my way by my college football coach. I will spare you the specifics, but let it suffice to say, I have laid awake many nights reliving that particular sequence of events.

Bringing the subject to the present, I will try to shed some light on the power of word choice by sharing a few more examples: Read the rest of this entry »

If you are a Jeopardy fan or not, the following statement is as true as rain. The definition of an “easy” question is one that you know the answer to. Then it should come as no surprise to hear the definition of a hard question. You got it. It is a question you do not know the answer to.

With this as the basis for today’s message, I would like to share what I consider to be both “easy” and logical. It may be my 71 years talking, coupled to my many years of accumulating more miscues than hits, but I believe growing a profitable business is easy. I also believe that you are making it a lot harder than it has to be – at the very least.

I do not see what all the fuss is all about. Read the rest of this entry »

I am often asked where I get my ideas for my daily marketing column. My answer: EVERYWHERE.

Today, I find myself cooling my heels in a Honda Dealership in Yorkville, NY. There are some things that just don’t have to happen with a little planning… and discipline. (1) You do not have to get a speeding ticket. (2) You do not have to run out of gas. (3) You do not have to own a car that does not operate as designed.

As a result, I service my car as the book suggests, knowing I may be spending a tad more annually than I have to. I just don’t want to be bitten by the big three listed above. Read the rest of this entry »

This year, time may not have flown as it has in the past, but we are looking down the barrel of the last quarter – complete with beautiful foliage. Yesterday, I heard from a local country “hay seed” that this year’s colorful scenery was due to a lack of water. Sounded plausible to me.

We have most of October, November, and December to continue to look for ways to build our businesses and to continue to move forward with some semblance of positivity. And we can use every minute we have.

Nearly 120 days are left this year to find and help other people begin planning their dreams. Three months to shed a few pounds while introducing ourselves to more upbeat, fun, proactive people out there in marketing land. Read the rest of this entry »

One of my favorite all-time ads was a cover for Business Week Magazine. The year was 1996. Proctor & Gamble suggested that we make marketing simple.

“Marketers sell too much stuff in too many different ways. Now the smart ones are cutting the complexity.”

Whoever reminded us that ‘what was old is new again,’ had their hand on the pulse. With more and more people becoming more and more familiar with the workings of the Internet, we are all being inundated with marketing come-ons from every corner of the globe. (I bet you didn’t know the globe has corners. Neither did I.) Read the rest of this entry »

I was recently reviewing a few archived sales meetings of mine and, by accident, I came across the following sound-bite: It was Thomas Edison who once said, “ It is a shame to see many (if not most) people quit just one experiment short of finding the solution.”

This single sentence had my mind spinning with past phrases, suggestions, recommendations, and reminders of mine with regard to the concept of quitting too soon.

One particular reminder that came to mind was the phrase, “The next one could be the big one.” Read the rest of this entry »

Let me rephrase today’s title: All good ideas are worth repeating.

On September 24^th, I shared my views on how a daily crossword puzzle can effectively remind us of the concept of leveraging clues appropriately. While I fumbled through the USA Crossword Puzzle earlier this week, the lesson re-surfaced and I found myself smiling.

I don’t say this very often but, this particular lesson is a “gem” and it is worth repeating. I will use slightly different words this time, so as not to appear like a lazy slug by simply regurgitating my words from September 24^th. Found here.

Same message. Different words. Read the rest of this entry »

I awoke earlier than usual this morning, stoked the fire, made some coffee, and began browsing through a few TED videos. One of the more popular ones was only nine minutes. Most TED videos are between 18-20 minutes in length. Short, sweet, and on point. I clicked on the nine-minute speech and was soon watching a young bathing suit model talking about self-image. (This woman was not the most polished speaker I have reviewed, but I immediately appreciated why this was one of the more popular TED videos.)

Although it would be highly improbable, I won’t bore you with the details of her presentation. I will, however, share the major take-away. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the many truths I have learned throughout my 71 years of dancing and scratching my way to this point in time, is that everything has a flip side. I mean EVERYTHING. To give you just one example: “Haste makes waste,” is a phrase we all can come to terms with. But soon we are reminded, “He who hesitates is lost.” Total opposite beliefs.

Recently, I was confronted with a situation where I had to decide if the fall was a good time to plant a little grass – or if I should wait until springtime. I Googled the quandary and was soon confronted with two opposing opinions. Read the rest of this entry »

Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes.

If I am starting to sound like a broken record, it is because you have heard me say this no less than twenty times in the last few months. Mistakes are good things. They are not something you strive to make, but they are not something you want to shy away from. The word mistake is synonymous with the word failure, and failing remains your fastest way to progress. There, I said it again. Read the rest of this entry »

I am not wearing my “feel-good” hat today and trying to make the world a better place by simply putting lipstick on a pig. We are all facing the most challenging times of our lives. Make no mistake about it. We have been, and will continue to be, in for some rough sledding.

But that being said, this is the hand we have been dealt. Our only recourse is to play our cards accordingly.

It comes as no surprise to see some people walking around looking as if they have just lost their best friend. (Mask or no mask.) These people are communicating to the world that life is, and will continue to be, an unfair experience. Daily existence is a total drag while life offers nothing in return for their “showing up.” If you know one or more of this type of individual (and I’m betting that you do) Read the rest of this entry »