Author: Angela Crangle

How to Tackle Your LinkedIn Summary

Not many people enjoy writing summaries. Or bragging about themselves online.

It’s no surprise that the idea of creating a LinkedIn summary is terrifying to a lot of people, but if you want to establish a professional online presence, that’s a fear you’re going to have to face. And we’re here to help.

What is it?

Your LinkedIn summary is a short description of who you are, what you do, and why you do it.

When properly written, it provides valuable insight into your motivation, your area of expertise, and what it’s like to work with you. These are the kinds of things people are looking for when searching for new business connections, partners and talent.

Having no LinkedIn summary in your profile is like having toast with no jam. Crackers with no cheese. Cake with no frosting. You may have the basics covered, but you’re not giving anyone much to get excited about. And you’re seriously lacking in flavor.

What are the key ingredients?

Your inspiration. Your skills. Your experience. Your personality. And guess what? You only get 250 – 500 words to convey all of this information. It may sound impossible, but it’s really not. You just need to be concise and to the point.

If you feel those nerves kicking up, don’t worry. We’ll break these things down one by one.

Your Inspiration

What’s the best part about your job? That one thing that keeps you going, even on your worst day. For a lot of us, it’s helping people. But helping people do what?

  • Helping entrepreneurs bring their ideas to life
  • Helping businesses take care of their employees
  • Helping people discover their true passions

But don’t get stuck on the word helping. There are plenty of other words you can use to explain your why.

  • Delivering life-saving medicine
  • Creating beautiful spaces that bring peace
  • Empowering collaboration through fun and play

They key here is not to tell your life story. Let people know what inspires you about your work but do it in a way that is short and concise.

A third-generation physician, I grew up in hospitals and scrubs. And there’s no place I’d rather be. Being able to help a family during a medical crisis is an incredible gift, and one that I take very seriously. 

Look at that. 38 words. And you kind of want this person to be your doctor, don’t you? Now you just have to come up with one to three short sentences on what motivates you. Deep down. Where it counts.

Your Skills

We’re not talking about your entire resume here. What you want to do is pick two or three things that really define your strengths. Are you super organized? A data whiz? Do you have a way with words? People? Processes?

Choosing your skills can be difficult. Often, people think the things that are easy for them must be easy for everyone. This is not the case! If something is easy for you, it’s because you’re really good at it. Think about your personal superpowers– the things people always ask you to do. Not because they don’t want to, but because you’re just so darn good at them! Those are the kinds of things you want to include here.

An organizational fanatic, I can make your garage sale look like a meticulously stocked convenience store, your kitchen function like a five-star restaurant, or your sales department run as smoothly as a new Ferrari.

Is this a bit of an exaggeration? Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, it gets the point across. Want someone who is detail-oriented and loves processes? Need systems that work more efficiently? Work with this person.

Your Experience

When it comes to experience, no one is looking for a laundry list in your summary. That would not only be boring, it would be redundant. If you’ve filled out your profile correctly, your full work history will already be listed.

What you can do, however, is include some additional information about the kinds of experiences you’ve had.

My experience as a business owner, board member, and part of a fledgling start-up team has given me a wide-ranging perspective on both business and employee lifecycles. This allows me to evaluate the employment relationship from all sides and find that perfect employer-employee match. 

Rather than reiterating what you’ve done, summarize how your past work has made you better at what you do today, and well-equipped to take on more in the future. 

Your Personality

In the great scheme of things, this may seem like the least important factor on the list but remember— we’re talking about social media here. It’s all about bringing your authentic self to the party. Make sure your summary section looks, sounds, and feels like you. If it doesn’t, you’re setting everyone up for disappointment.

Think about the sample LinkedIn snippets above. Did you feel like you knew some of these people? Like you wanted to hear more? Like they might make good connections or coworkers?

This is the jam on your toast. The brie on your cracker. The raspberry buttercream frosting on your cake.

Make sure your personal flavor is shining through, and you’ll attract people who are interested in what you have to offer.

Are we there yet? (a helpful checklist)

Not sure if you’re finished? Here’s a quick checklist for you:

  • Is your summary between 250 and 500 words?
  • Does it include your personal motivation and why?
  • Did you pinpoint one or two skills that set you apart?
  • Have you demonstrated how your experience has made you better, stronger, and more capable?
  • Does your summary sound like you wrote it? Does it fit your personality? Is it consistent with your personal brand?

Great! You’re just about done!

The last step is to have at least one other person read through it and provide feedback. Not only will this save you from having typos in your LinkedIn profile (always a bad idea), it will also help you determine if you’ve let your personal strengths and personality shine through.

Happy writing!

 

Photo by inbj

Spending Too Much on Coffee? There’s a Business Lesson Here.

Did you start your day with a stop at your favorite coffee shop?

Let’s stop for a moment and think about the experience— and the reasoning behind it.

It’s about more than coffee

You could have made your coffee at home, saving time and money in the process. So what made you go to down to that coffee shop instead? There are likely several reasons:

  • The coffee is better than what you make at home.
  • You know what you’re getting. It’s the same every time.
  • The staff is friendly. Maybe they even know your name. Or your drink.
  • The overall experience makes you feel happy and satisfied.

Yes, you paid a premium for your morning beverage of choice. And let’s be honest. You’ll probably go back tomorrow and do it again. Because the value you get from going there is worth the time, money, and effort it takes to make it happen.

But what if it wasn’t?

What if your favorite coffee shop decided not to invest in the quality of their product and their employees?

What if every time you went there, you got a different experience, a different employee, and a different tasting drink?

Suddenly, the value you once perceived is gone. Now it’s a crap shoot. Maybe you’ll get a good cup of coffee, maybe you won’t. Instead of investing in a positive way to start your day, you’re merely gambling.

And odds are you’re not going to be willing to take that risk for long.

What your customers want

To keep clients from heading out the door and down the street, your business needs to provide both quality and consistency.

In other words, your team needs to have the tools and training to be able to deliver on the promises your marketing makes.

This requires investing in your processes and your employees.

It’s not rocket science. We’re talking about the basics here:

  • Hire good people.
  • Train them well and often.
  • Compensate them appropriately.
  • Put processes in place that ensure quality and consistency.
  • Build a culture that places high value on customer and employee experiences.
  • Hold everyone accountable to the standards you have set.
  • Let go of people and processes that aren’t serving you or your clients well.

Yes, this list may sound simplistic, but it’s uncanny how many businesses skimp on these things to make an extra buck or two.

The problem is that skimping on quality and consistency will cost you way more in the long run than you will ever save in the short term. 

What does your team need?

Depending on what kind of company you’re running, there could be a variety of things. But here are some key items worth investing in.

  • A meaningful purpose
  • A defined sales process
  • A clear vision of what the customer experience looks like
  • Happy, engaged employees to deliver on that experience
  • Strong leadership that isn’t afraid to make difficult decisions
  • An organizational culture that attracts and retains top tier talent

None of these things will happen overnight. But investing in them can have a huge impact on the long-term success of your business.

If you don’t know how to make these things happen on your own, invest in the necessary professional development, coaching, and training get you there.

It can’t just be talk

If the sign in your window says you offer the best cup of coffee in the world, you’d better not be serving up the instant crystals.

Talking about quality is one thing but producing and maintaining it is another. It takes work. And time. And yes, even money. But if you make quality, consistency, and an amazing customer experience integral parts of your brand, your customers will keep coming back for more. And telling everyone else about it.

Because the only thing better than the best cup of coffee in the world is sharing it with a friend. 

 

Photo by Somsak Sudthangtum 

Keeping Your Marketing Efforts on Track

Is your marketing based on a detailed, well-thought-out strategy and plan? Or are your efforts simply a compilation of random marketing activities you think you should be doing?

Random activities will keep you busy for sure, but will they keep you focused and get you where you need to go? Or will they just result in frustration and abandonment?

If you want your marketing to be more than just a bunch of tasks on a list, you’ll want to take the time to evaluate what you’re doing. And more importantly, why you’re doing it.

Not sure where to start? Make a list of everything that falls into your marketing bucket, and then ask yourself these key questions for each one:

1.) Does this activity align with our brand? 

It’s easy to think that any marketing activity will be good for your brand. But there’s a big difference between brand recognition and brand strength. Just because people know your name doesn’t mean they want to be associated with it.

Some businesses instinctively say “Yes!” to every brand opportunity that comes along, without thinking about whether or not it aligns with their core company values and goals. Sponsoring an event? Partnering with another organization? Considering product placement? It’s critical to evaluate whether or not these things make sense, not just from a monetary and/or exposure perspective, but from value alignment and PR perspectives as well.

Before you do any marketing or sales activity, ask yourself the question, “Does this portray what we want to say about our organizational brand and identity?” If the answer is yes, consider this question again from your target market’s point of view: “Will our key customer demographic feel good about this? Is it consistent with our mission, our image, and our why?”

If the answer to either of these questions is no, strike the activity from your list. And do it completely guilt free. Your time and resources can be put to better use elsewhere.

If you feel good about the opportunity and the value alignment, then by all means, participate. But always assess the activity and the results after the fact to see if it lived up to your expectations and purpose.

2.) Does this activity inspire client engagement and loyalty? 

It’s easier to keep a happy customer than to win over a new one. Client loyalty and engagement not only helps you hang onto your biggest fans, they can also lead to genuine, heartfelt referrals. Which leads to more happy customers!

Keep this question in mind when considering any marketing task or activity. Yes, marketing can bring you new leads and customers, but putting the majority of your focus on future clients at the expense of your current clients is a huge missed opportunity.

A single happy customer who consistently sings your praises and recommends you can be much more valuable than a giant pile of cold leads.

3.) Why are we doing this?

It’s easy to get caught up in a set of marketing activities you feel you should do. Some marketing guru says you HAVE to be on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. But do you? It all depends on what you are looking to accomplish.

When it comes to marketing, one size does not fit all. To be effective, you’ll want to center your marketing goals, strategies, and activities around your business model, your ideal customer profile, and your specific objectives. Are you looking to create brand awareness? Generate leads? Build credibility in your industry? Expand your feel-good factor? Depending on who you are as a business and where your customers are, Instagram may or may not make sense.

You can waste a lot of time and resources listening to every marketing recommendation that comes your way. Even more so if you attempt to implement them all.

Before you jump into the next big marketing idea, pause. Back up. Take some time to think about what you want for your marketing, your brand, and your client experience. Then ease back in, choosing your activities carefully and strategically based on those things.

4.) Can we do this?

Coming up with a solid marketing plan is one thing. But implementing it is another. As you are evaluating your choices, you’ll need to consider these key components as well:

  • Brand identity – Are you clear on this? Choosing a clear marketing strategy without a defined brand is nearly impossible.
  • Staff and resources – Do you have the budget and capacity to take on the marketing activities you’ve chosen?
  • Internal processes – Do you have the team and systems you need to follow up with new leads, take on new clients/orders/requests and provide a great customer experience?
  • Accountability and results – Are you choosing activities and/or metrics that can be tracked and quantified? If not, how will you know if your work is paying off?

Once you’ve defined who you are, what you want to accomplish, and whether or not you have the necessary tools, people, and resources to make it happen, you can put together a marketing strategy that doesn’t just keep you busy, but keeps you on the forefront of your clients’ minds. And keeps your organization moving in the right direction.

 

Photo by David Carillet 

20 Things That Matter to Your Employees

It’s no secret that many businesses are struggling to find and keep good employees. A common refrain is that this is due to a strong economy and low unemployment rate. And these factors are most certainly at play. But at the end of the day, employees choose to stay or leave for a variety of reasons.

Is there a way to make your organizational turnover magically disappear? No. But there are really just two basic steps to recruiting and retaining great employees:

  1. Find out what they care about.
  2. Do your best to provide it.

If you want to hang onto your best people, it serves you well to find out what they value and begin to shape your corporate culture around those key things.

What are employees looking for?

Don’t get stuck in the mindset that a paycheck is the only thing that matters. Yes, compensation is important. And it still ranks near the top of the list when it comes to reasons to take or leave a new position. But today’s employees care about a whole lot of things. And unlike during the recession, they aren’t afraid to venture out looking for new opportunities that provide them.

Lots of research has been done on what employees want out of their jobs and careers. If you want to take a direct approach that applies specifically to your team, business and industry, ask your employees what matters most to them. Survey your entire team regularly and commit to conducting exit and stay interviews with your best employees.

If you want some quick answers based on employee satisfaction research and studies, we’ve got you covered.

Here’s a list of 20 things that show up time and time again on the list of things employees want and need from their employers in order to be happy and satisfied at work.

  1. R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Find out what it means to employees. Hint: Fair, honest, and respectful treatment of all employees at all levels has become a basic expectation.
  2. Fair and adequate compensation – Employees will accept lower salaries in exchange for other meaningful things, but at the end of the day they need to feel valued AND be able to make rent.
  3. Comprehensive benefits – Healthcare is becoming a larger driver of job choice and satisfaction. Today’s job seekers are expecting to see benefits information listed up front in job postings, and they are using that information to make career decisions.
  4. Career development – Dead end jobs are so yesterday! If your employees can’t see a path for the future within your organization, they’ll start looking elsewhere.
  5. Trust – Levels of consumer and employee trust are at an all-time low. A culture of transparency will go a long way toward increasing staff loyalty and engagement.
  6. Meaning – Your employees want to be connected to something bigger than their To Do list. They want to work for companies who are doing good in the world, and they want to know how their work contributes to that vision.
  7. Flexibility – Employees are balancing a variety of responsibilities, both at work and at home.
  8. Balance – More and more people are prioritizing a healthy balance of work and rest. Your staff is willing to work hard, but they can’t (and won’t) do it 24 hours a day.
  9. Recognition – Feeling valued and appreciated is critical to keeping your team happy. This doesn’t have to mean constant praise or raises. But they need to feel that their work is important and that they are valued both as people and contributors.
  10. Communication – Poor communication and lack of information are top complaints of unhappy employees. It’s a basic thing that is often overlooked. Don’t be that employer.
  11. Culture – Nothing chases good employees away faster than a toxic manager or culture. Tolerating a negative environment and destructive behaviors will encourage bad employees to stay and good employees to leave.
  12. Leadership – Organizations with weak leadership will have a hard time hanging onto strong employees. Lack of clear direction, goals, and expectations leads to lack of engagement. Bottom line: positive, motivated employees want to work for positive, motivated leaders.
  13. Autonomy – Employees want to feel like their ideas matter and that they are capable of running projects and making decisions. Micromanagement will crush employee innovation, creativity, and initiative. It will also destroy engagement and morale.
  14. Teamwork – An environment of support and collaboration is far superior than working alone or in a vacuum. Even the most independently motivated workers want to know there’s a capable team behind them they can count on.
  15. Technology – Your employees want to be good at their jobs, and they expect to be given the tools to do so. Outdated tools and processes will quickly frustrate those who strive for high performance and continued improvement.
  16. Training – Developing your employee skill sets doesn’t just help you and your company. It shows your employees that they are worth investing in. And it keeps their work from becoming monotonous, boring, or stagnant.
  17. Diversity – Employees come in all shapes, colors, sizes, and preferences. Your employees crave variety and so should you. Not only do diverse teams perform better, they open the door to a wider pool of talent.
  18. Sustainability – Think people aren’t concerned about the long-term survival of their jobs, companies, communities, and the planet? Wrong. Sustainability has become a catch phrase for a reason, and today’s employees are factoring corporate social responsibility into their career choices.
  19. Integrity – For better or worse, employers lead by example. Increasing numbers of employees are looking for employers who demonstrate things like honesty, fairness, and equality, and they can tell the difference between companies who talk a good game and actually follow through.
  20. Security – Employees want to be part of financially sound and stable organizations. Yes, today’s workforce is mobile, but it’s not just about random job hopping. Career moves and decisions are often based on forward motion, increased opportunities, and the ability to get ahead financially. A chaotic, unpredictable, or volatile environment won’t feel like a safe bet.

How do you measure up?

Is your organization committed to providing some these kinds of things? If not, it’s time to start— unless you secretly enjoy higher turnover, lower productivity, and a constant struggle to find good people.

In that case, forget about this list and keep on churning through your staff. Your competitors will be more than happy to snatch up your best employees.

 

Photo by WAYHOME studio

Just Be a Better Healthcare Consumer, Will You?

As healthcare woes continue for businesses and individuals alike, there’s growing sentiment from some benefits brokers that patients just need to become better consumers of healthcare. But there are others who realize it’s not that simple, and who are committed to shouldering some of that responsibility— and making a difference.

Common healthcare consumer advice sounds something like this:

  • Spend more time shopping around!
  • Put as much thought and effort into looking for a surgeon as you do into looking for a car! Or a microwave! Or some other fill-in-the-blank item!
  • Get recommendations on hospitals and doctors!
  • Do price comparisons on procedures!
  • Just be healthy to start with!

Often, these things are said with much vigor and enthusiasm. And many exclamation points! As if it’s a simple, basic idea no one has thought of yet. Or as in, “Why aren’t people doing this already?!?!?!”

Well, for lots of reasons. Including the fact that the current healthcare landscape makes it nearly impossible.

It ain’t that simple

When employees think about employee benefits, they see themselves as patients, not as consumers. And that’s a very different dynamic.

Consumers have choices. And time. And alternative options.

Need a new car?

You’re not going to die if it doesn’t happen today. And you probably know a mechanic or two who can give you some pretty solid advice. You could also check out the latest Consumer Reports, which will provide extremely detailed information on which cars perform the best on every factor imaginable. Once you’ve decided what you want, there are all kinds of places you can go to make that purchase, and the MSRP and Kelley Blue Book values make it easy to know if you’re getting hosed or not. More importantly, if you don’t want to rush this purchase, you don’t have to. You can take the bus. Or carpool. Or get a Lyft.

Now, let’s say your appendix goes out.

It happens pretty quickly and you’re in extreme pain. And let’s be honest, it’s probably the middle of the night. Decision making is impaired at best, and comparison shopping is out of the question. There’s one, maybe two hospitals in your area. No sense in getting a recommendation or asking how much an appendectomy costs. You’re stuck with the doctor on call— and whatever random price point the facility decides to set. What’s it based on? You have no clue. You can request an itemized bill after the fact, but you’ll have to jump through hoops to get it. And then what? There’s no option to get your money or your old appendix back. There is only an arduous battle over charges, coverage, networks, and payment plans.

Comparing patients to consumers only goes so far

Patients are often at an extreme disadvantage, even when they don’t need emergency surgery.

The system isn’t set up to be patient friendly. It’s set up to be profit friendly.

  • And cumbersome
  • And inefficient
  • And mysterious

Have you ever tried to shop around for a doctor? There isn’t much to go on. Personal anecdotes from friends, relatives and the Internet— where we all know everyone is super reasonable.

Go ahead! Try to come up with a Consumer Reports style matrix with physician and hospital ratings, success and failure rates, accurate pricing, and comprehensive data based on specific experiential factors. An experienced employee benefits broker may be able to gain access to these kinds of numbers, but the typical healthcare consumer is straight out of luck.  

Being better consumers of healthcare is difficult

Here are a few key reasons why:

1.) Lack of data

Navigating the healthcare system is nebulous at best, nightmarish at worst. Medical charges are based on a variety of factors that patients have little control over or even knowledge of: Contracts between doctors and hospitals, hospitals and drug stores, drug stores and pharmaceutical companies, employers and insurance providers, insurance providers and care providers, and the list goes on.

Plus, there’s that little thing called the Chargemaster, a comprehensive collection of prices for everything from alcohol swabs and IV bags to spinal surgeries and heart transplants. But here’s the fun part: Chargemaster pricing isn’t standardized and costs vary wildly from hospital to hospital. Historically, this information wasn’t even available to patients! 

Recent regulations now require hospitals to post and update their price lists online. This may seem like a good fix, but it’s not as helpful as it sounds. This information can be extremely difficult to decipher, and exactly how these charges are calculated for each hospital remains a mystery. 

Long story short: Your average Joe or Jane patient does not have access to the information necessary to make rational healthcare choices and decisions.

2.) Lack of power

The doctor/patient relationship is not an egalitarian one. The patient is sick, scared, and in perhaps in pain. They have no idea what is wrong or how to fix it. The doctor has all the knowledge, experience, authority, and power.

And yet somehow the frightened, confused, sick person is expected to take charge of the situation and become an informed consumer. How good are you at research, communication, and standing up for yourself when you have the flu? Probably not nearly as effective as when you’re well.

Expecting patients to take charge when they are feeling most vulnerable isn’t realistic. Their reasoning and decision making have been compromised. They just want to be taken care of. They want to put trust in their doctors and caregivers, not question everything they do. 

3.) Lack of resources

If you’re lucky, you may be able to delay your elective surgery long enough to shop around. If you’re really lucky, you may have found a way to access reliable information on the best place to have it done. If you’re exponentially lucky, you have all of the time and resources you need to be able to go to that place.

The problem is that a lot of healthcare consumers don’t. Geographically, their options are limited. Physically, they can’t travel. Financially, they can’t afford to go to the next town or city or state. It’s quite possible they can’t even afford the visit they just had.

In a perfect world, everyone would be able to shop and spend where it makes the most sense. But in the real world, there are a whole lot of people who simply don’t have that option.

4.) Lack of control

“Just be healthier!” can be valid advice, but it’s not the ultimate answer.

The cold, hard truth is that even healthy people can become sick. Or get in a car accident. Or have a child with cancer.

Sometimes, stuff just happens. Despite the best of intentions. Blaming sick people for the cost of healthcare may seem reasonable— until that sick person is someone we know and love.

How employers (and brokers!) can help

A patient is just one person. But a business is a group of people with more resources and leverage, and access to an employee benefits advisor who knows the system inside and out.

Good brokers understand they can’t fix the problems at the core of the healthcare system.

Great brokers know they have the power to inch their way toward making positive change within it, and for the organizations and employees they are helping.

As an employer, you actually do comparison shop for healthcare. Every single year. And, you’re buying in bulk! This gives you a level of power that individual healthcare consumers don’t have. Use this leverage, and the knowledge of your benefits broker, to make choices that make sense not just for your business, but for those who need coverage and care.

Working with the right broker makes all the difference here. You can choose a broker that focuses on plans and premiums, or you can work with an advisor who is committed to helping you create the right healthcare strategy for your business and the build best benefits plan for your employees.

A quality advisor will also go the extra mile, helping to educate your workforce about the plan details, how to use it, and where to go for care— before they need it. The more your employees know upfront, the smarter choices they can make.

People really do want to be better health care consumers. They just need the tools to do it. Let’s all work together to make it happen.

 

Photo by Dmitriy Shironosov