DWC Home | Magazine | Back Issues | July 2006 | Managing For Money

The Power of Meetings
It may be that you cannot afford not to go!

by Steven C. Bursten

As my partner, Steve Wishnow, and I attended the Comfortex BlindCrafter annual meeting in Las Vegas, NV, in June, I was reminded about the power of meetings and the value that leaders find by attending them. Meetings are powerful. The cost to attend can often be recovered in days by ideas you put to work after returning home. Yet, fewer than one out of five industry business owners will attend a major national window coverings event this year. What is it about meetings that leaders find so valuable and others can’t justify?

The excuses for not attending are pretty simple: Time and money. If you are struggling for survival, if you have customer problems that won’t wait, it’s easy to justify taking a pass. But the flip side is, the very fact you are struggling could be exactly the reason you need to be at the meeting! After all, who will benefit more, the owner trying to survive or the one at the peak of success?

I will admit, during my early years, I didn’t appreciate the value of meetings. I didn’t attend every one. But with experience and, over time, observing the success of scores of business owners, I have learned that attending industry events is one of best predictors of future achievement. If you have been on the fence about the value of meetings, maybe this article will help you land with both feet on the right side of your own growth and success. After all, that is why I write these columns—to encourage your success in this wonderful window coverings business. If I can tip the balance for you, then you will tell others and many will benefit.

ATTENDING PAYS OFF
If you are looking for good, tangible reasons why you should invest $2,000 or so to attend a major meeting, here are five powerful ones . . . and one proven way to get your money back immediately, then to profit tangibly for a lifetime:

1. Cleanse the mind—lift yourself to a higher plane. When you are home, fighting daily problems, rushing to juggle family and business, you just can’t move your mind to a higher level. You are the general, the leader for your business. You need to be on a higher level to get perspective, to sense the big picture, to grapple with decisions about the right things to do not just how to do things right.

2. Meet successful business owners. I used to think the main reasons for meetings were to find new products, listen to expert speakers, and to learn new colors and fashions. What I have learned is that meeting other business owners and learning from their experiences may be the most valuable reason to attend. Why? Because leaders are at meetings. That’s the place to meet them and learn from them.

Sure, you may have heard about an idea or read about it, but when you meet someone who put it to work and prospered, there is no equal motivator for you to do the same.

3. Inspiration, not perspiration. Thomas Edison said, “Genius is one percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration.” Every successful person knows the wisdom of that comment. Yet, the question is, where does the one percent inspiration come from?

You already know how to perspire. That doesn’t take genius. The question is where to get the one percent to inspire you to change? Meetings are the answer.

4. New products. Yes, you will learn about new products. Suppliers like to introduce new things at major meetings. Even if you don’t buy the product, knowing about it early on makes you a leader. Knowledge gives you confidence. After all, most of your competitors didn’t attend. Now you have the leadership edge.

5. Benefit your customers. Your customers benefit two ways by your attendance at meetings. First, you may find a new product that is right for their needs. But, even if you don’t, you will be more confident. You will be educated on the latest techniques and ideas and inspired by the success of others. Customers want to buy from a confident expert. In fact, your personal confidence may be the single most important reason that quality customers buy from you.

DO MEETINGS PAY?
If you aspire to more than mediocrity, if you want to be among the successful elite who build a fabulous following of customers who buy from you again and again and tell their friends about you, if you want the personal satisfaction of knowing you have given your best to your profession, if you want the income to put your kids through college and to live the lifestyle you deserve, then you owe it to yourself to attend at least two major events every year.

For most, the investment will be only two to three percent of revenue and should be budgeted just like any other expense. If it is a higher percentage for you, then all the more reason you should attend—you will learn to increase your sales so that meetings and education will be a smaller percentage.

MAKE IMMEDIATE RETURN ON YOUR INVESTMENT
If you really want to make an immediate return on your investment, I will give you one, totally reliable way to get your money back quickly: First, calculate the cost of your meeting. Then, figure the percent of sales to recover your cost within 90 days. Then add that percentage to the price you charge your customers.

Example: if it costs you $2,000 to attend the meeting and if your sales are $200,000 a year, or $50,000 a quarter, then the meeting cost is four percent of your quarterly sales. If you add four percent to your prices, customers are glad to pay it because they are dealing with an expert.

Wouldn’t you rather spend $2,080 with a person that is confident and expert, than $2,000 with someone who doesn’t have your passion for the business? I predict there is not a customer you sell to that wouldn’t prefer to have you serve them instead of a competitor, when the difference is only four percent more.

KEEP THE PROFIT FOR A LIFETIME
Now, take that example a step further. If you recover your cost in 90 days, there is no need to lower your price afterwards. So now, you can continue the same pricing and keep the four percent for yourself . . . for a lifetime!

In one year you earn $6,000 added profit ($8,000 to $2,000 meeting cost). In three years you earn over $20,000 plus the increased sales you will achieve by what you learned at the meeting!

Do you have a good story about how a meeting benefited you? Please send it to me at steveb@ExcitingWindows.com. I would love to hear it and pass it on for others to benefit.

Yes, meetings pay off—immediately and for a lifetime. The simple truth: You cannot afford not to go.