Hiatus Ending

After nearly a month off, CAMPA meeting will begin with a General Meeting on May 7th, one week from today at 12 pm, PDT.

Some of the topics we will cover are:

· Refined SEO and AdWord list results
· New landing page strategy
· Office manuals discussion
· E&O insurance discussion
· CA Employment attorney
· What is happening in the region

Put this meeting on your calendar.

E&O Data Being Submitted

As discussed in a previous blog posting, Jill Chioino, our resident Insurance Expert, is submitting the cummulative information to an insurance underwriter for a formal review of our E&O insurance coverage.

See your email (or the April 24th blog posting) for the data that you need to provide.

Your information needs to be in today. If is not, your location will not be included in the underwriting. Send information to jchioino@accudiagnostics.com.

Wisdom

Last week I attended a franchise conference. Like many conferences, there were a lot of experienced franchisors and franchisees. In one of the sessions I attended, there was a panel presenting a topic of winning loyal customers. There was no earth shattering techniques or new secrets on how to get customers, but there were a couple of catch phrases that rang true in our business.

Here are a few that you may want to ponder:

1. Relentless follow through wins customers. It takes 7-9 contacts to win a new customer.
2. Loyal customers spend 67% more on your products and services.
3. Marketing is like gambling. Professional gamblers know their data and then they play the odds.
4. Ask everyone for their email address (If the upcoming AccuDiagnostics newsletter is going to be successful, this is going to be essential).
5. Getting customers is the easy part. Getting them to come back is the hard part.
6. How businesses survive recessions is to market their way through them….it worked in the last 13 recessions – it will work in this one too.
7. What you permit, you promote.

Sometimes wisdom is common sense.

Team Work at Work in E&O Insurance Review

The power of franchising is leverage the collective knowledge of each franchisee to create a competitive advantage in the market place.

Jill Chioino, our CAMPA Insurance Expert, is doing a complete review our E&O insurance coverage. Since the types of business and clients we are working is expanding this is creating additional liability exposure, it is prudent that we evaluate these issues and gather information on the types of testing, procedures and additional services each location is performing. This information will be compiled and submitted to an E&O Policy underwriter to craft coverage for our specific needs in CA and NV.

Kindly respond back to this email and Jill will compile this information and forward it to the agency she is working with at this time. Please answer each question in much detail and give a detailed description of operation.

PHYSICALS

(01) What type of Physicals are being performed?

(02) Is a nurse practitioner or a physician doing the physicals?

(03) Do they have their own Professional Liability Policy? and if so, will their policy cover this exposure?

(04) Are these services done in your office?

(05) Do the employees have experience in this type work?

DNA

(01) What types of DNA collections are you requesting coverage for?

(02) Who are you doing the collections for?

(03) Are these services done in your office?

(04) Do the employees have experience in this type work?

BACKGROUND CHECKS

(01) What kind of background checks are you doing?

(02) Are your employees doing the background checks?

(03) Who are you doing the background checks for?

(04) Are these services done in your office?

(05) Do the employees have experience in this type work?


TRAINING

(01) What kind of training are you doing?

(02) Who is doing the Training?

(03) Are these services done in your office?

(04) Do the employees have experience in this type work?

This Blog Posting will be followed up with an email you can respond to. Please provide this information on or before Tuesday, April 28th. After this date, your information will NOT be included in the underwriting review. Send information to jchioino@accudiagnostics.com.

The Power of Buzz

What is buzz?

By definition buzz is the phenomenon when people you do not even know are talking about you.

In talking to Jeff and Carol yesterday on an unrelated subject, they shared a ‘buzz’ experience. They were talking to one of their Chamber contacts and he told them that he was in Mimi’s Café and Restaurant the other day and there were a group of firemen (AccuDiagnostics of Sacramento has the Sacramento Fire, Police and Bomb Squad account) talking about AccuDiagnostics.

Yep, there is buzz in Sacramento over what Jeff and Carol are building – a reputation for outstanding customer service and the premier drug testing facility in Sacramento.

CAMPA Client Newsletter Gets Ready

As discussed in our last CAMPA Meeting, we are getting ready to launch the AccuDiagnostics quarterly email newsletter!

This newsletter is designed to keep your current clients and possible leads updated in the changes taking place in your industry that may apply to or affect their business in any way.

Our goal is to politely keep your name present in your client’s minds while also establishing AccuDiagnostics as the reliable information specialist of whom the client can depend on for changes in regulation and so forth.

Amber will be gathering your entire client and potential client's email addresses in the next few weeks. Please be assured that this newsletter is NOT be intended to pester your clients into buying or using your service. This newsletter will be strictly helpful and interesting information.

Amber will need your client's names and emails by May 1st. Amber will be in touch in the next week or so to discuss getting this information from you. The newsletter will be ready for your review on or before May 8th.

Any questions should be directed to Amber at 801-458-5394 or achristensen@accudiagnostic.com.

George Washington

William Thackeray’s historical novel, The Virginians, poignantly describes George Washington’s stamina as a leader as he captained his beaten down and malnourished troops during the darkest days of the American Revolution. “Through all of the doubt and darkness, the danger and long tempest of the war, it was only the American leader’s indomitable soul that remained entirely steady,” Thackeray wrote.

Washington faced life and death decisions daily as the Commander of a ragtag bunch of citizen soldiers. Likewise, entrepreneurs - big and small - need to reach down to draw upon their inner strength, and show resolve and fortitude in making critical decisions on a daily basis. They need to be calm in the face of an uncertain economy, not only for the benefit of their employees, but also for their clients and customers. They need to see through the fog of today’s uncertain economical environment and project an aura of confidence and an optimistic vision.

There are five characteristics of a great entrepreneurial leader:

1. Humility. In any uncertain environment, it is important to recognize that no one has all of the answers. A leader needs to be open-minded and look for ideas from those around him or her, and his or her mentors and advisors. A leader should never communicate that he or she knows what to do at all times. However, a leader should galvanize around him or her, through collaboration, those who will be responsible with the tactical implementation of the leader’s decisions.

2. Resolve. “I am not going to allow this to happen on my watch!” Drive and focus are critical when things are crazy. Keeping focus on the important stuff is critical. If a leader begins to second guess his or her decisions, it may lead to a downward spiral of self-doubt and a self-inflicted mindset in a vortex of defeat.

3. Keep the End in Mind. It is too easy to get distracted by the day to day minutia and lose sight of the end objective. Washington always had to keep in mind the purpose of the Revolution. Entrepreneurial leaders need to keep the end game in the forefront – why am I in this business and what do I need to do to enhance the probability of getting across the finish line? This line of reasoning will force tough decisions to be made with the end in mind. These decisions become easier to make and are less likely to be delayed. Indecision can be fatal.

4. View the World as a Puzzle. If problems appear insurmountable, it can be difficult to stay motivated, let alone inspire those around you. When a leader sees challenges as a giant puzzle, he or she is more likely to think outside of the box and energize those around him or her, driving innovative solutions. Recently I read about Steven Heydt, president of Elite Island Resorts. Faced with cancellations and declining bookings at his resorts, his team offered customers an opportunity to trade certain stocks, most of which had fallen off the cliff, for credit at July 1, 2008 value for future bookings. Talk about thinking creatively.

5. It Is Not All About You. The world is a dynamic and evolving environment where entrepreneurial leaders will take their share of lumps. An entrepreneurial leader’s primary role is to facilitate the success of those around him or her; if a leader can manage this – success is guaranteed.

Being able to find inner strength is a core leadership trait of a successful entrepreneurial leader. How you do it is not set in stone, but as George Washington did in the darkest days at Valley Forge - he led by example and projected confidence to those around him, motivating those on the brink to look to the hope of the future – the result, the United States of America.

Persistence

While talking on the phone the other day about marketing activities with Mike Mix in Oceanside, he made some insightful comments. The discussion went something like this.

MLS: Tell me something good that is happening.

MM: I have been making telemarketing calls and after making around 70 calls I got staffing company that was interested in having their drug testing policy reviewed.

MLS: What did this lead to?

MM: I made a sales call and signed them up. They gave me a referral to another staffing company and I signed them up. I then got a third staffing company. Three in a week. Not bad !

MLS: Cool.

MM: I have also been working some of other leads and I am bumping into the same companies I call on months ago but there is a new person in the decision maker’s chair and I have signed up a few of these companies. We have around 50 clients.

MLS: Sounds like you have a lot going? What is the difference?

MM: If I had to identify one thing, it would be that I am really learning the business and feel a lot more confident in making presentations and figuring out how to present a solution that fits the client’s needs. We are shooting to have at least 300 clients by the end of next year.

MLS: Keep doing what you are doing and you will have this and more.

Moral of the story: Aggressive persistence always yields fruit.

Incoming Call Logs

Every location should be maintaining an Incoming Call Log. This log is critical because this is one of the only methods available for you to know what is making your phone ring. Although it is true that many calls fall into the telemarketing calls or in the Quest direction’s category, these calls need to be logged too. One of these days you will be adding staff and having this type of information will be important in making staffing decisions on how to man the phone or how to streamline these types of calls. If you have information, it will make a decision a smart decision vs. a blind decision process. I have always maintained: He with the most Information wins!

An Incoming Call Log should capture the following information:

1. Name or company
2. How they found out about you
3. Reason for the call.

Telemarketing or Quest direction calls can be coded: TM or Q. Capturing this data only takes a second but having this information will be useful down the road.

The real benefit of having data becomes critical when it is time to make a decision on what to spend on the Yellow Pages – usually a $3-5k decision or set an AdWord budget – a $2-6k decision. Without information – get out the dart board.

Kylee will be collection the Incoming Call Log information every Monday. Be prepared to send her your call logs.

Week One of Training FInishes

The Platts and Duncans finished their classroom training in the Sacramento Regional Training Center last Saturday. As each training class is completed, from the comments that have been made, the training classes continue to be refined and improved upon.

Because he is anixous to get in the saddle and to get out and shake the tree for business, Bob Duncan did his field training before going to training in Sacramento, which is in a different order than most of the field training sessions have been done in the past. However, it seemed to work well. Jimmy will begin his field training in two weeks.

We are looking for great things from these two new team members.

CallSource: New features added to your reports

For the next few weeks we will be utilizing the following features, which are now available on your CallSource reports.

- Recorded Calls

The recorded calls could be very useful in the day to day training of staff as well as analyzing interactions with customers to ultimately improve our level of service.

- Detailed caller information

The detailed caller information, if applicable, provides a Name and Address of the caller in addition to the number they called from.

Please take your time to utilize these new functions, and be prepared to share your thoughts so we can evaluate the usefulness of this service being applied to other areas of operation in addition to our Adwords and Organic advertising.

Cell Phone Numbers Go Public

All cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies next month and you will start to receive sales calls on your cell phones and, depending on your calling plan, you may be charged for these incoming calls.

To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone: 1-888-382-1222, which is the National DO NOT CALL list. Your number will be blocked for five (5) years.

Note that you must call from the cell phone number you want to have blocked.

Everything is Negotiable

While this may be a stretch, many things are negotiable. I have attached a link to an article that you may find interesting.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/management/operations/article201002.html

In talks with several franchisees recently, the issue of minimizing expenses and conserving cash came up. Profitability is a function of two dynamics. One is growing sales and the other is reducing expenses. When sales are not growing, many fixed expenses become a drain on reaching breakeven (for newer franchisees) or maintaining profitability for mature franchisees. In either case, looking at reducing any expense is a critical component that needs to be explored.
Rent is one of the expenses that can be re-negotiated in some cases. Of course, reductions depend on the specific situation but it never hurts to ask. Other reductions can vary. The rule of thumb in today’s economic environment is look at everything.

On the positive note, companies that do drug testing should be looking for better and more efficient ways to do their testing. When you present a fast, better and cheaper alternative….ears perk up. Never miss an opportunity to open a “have you considered….” type of discussion.

Is American Dream now the Age of Less?

In a recent conversation with a friend at a meeting in which the buzz was all about social media, I said, “A few years ago there were only two methods of communication – putting a stamp on an envelope and picking up a telephone. Today communicating is like drinking from a fire hydrant with faxes, email, text messaging, Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, etc., etc. There is a lot of water available, but it is going by so fast, it is nearly impossible to get a drink of water.”

A Bob Dylan song penned decades ago, “The Times They Are A-Changin',” had lyrics that are relevant today. The pace of change is accelerating. Little more than a year ago, most people were living or planning on living the American Dream. Today’s economic reality seems to be dismantling the very foundation of everything we have believed for most of our lives.
It is hard to find a piece of good news anyplace. Does this mean that the American Dream as we know it, is dead? Are financial opportunities which we have come to consider our birthright, gone forever? Will this country bounce back as it has so many times before, or are we destined to become a nation of has beens? Yes, “The Times They Are A-Changin' ” but the good news is that I believe the changes are for the good.

Here's Why:

1. Real estate appreciation of the last decade could not sustain the 10%-30% annual increases indefinitely.
2. Reckless lending (on Wall Street and by banks) and spending (by consumers) had to adjust at some point and when it did, it was with a vengeance that no one could have ever imagined.
3. Esoteric financial instruments that not even the people creating them really understood, and the financial models that presumably could manage the risk exposure, failed, creating an unfathomable domino effect, wreaking havoc with the world’s financial system.
4. Greed always leads to stupid decisions (i.e., trusting Madoff).
5. Unsound mortgage practices (subprime loans) by necessity create a situation in which the chickens come home to roost.
6. Esoteric financial instruments such as credit swap derivatives authorized by the SEC, allowed the investment banking community to throw caution to the wind and create as much as 30 to 1 leverage in the pursuit of over-sized profits
7. The focus on short term profits by investment banks allowed these companies to payout the now infamous monstrous bonuses.

What does all of this mean? Is the foundation of our capitalistic society broken and are we destined to be mired down in a financial abyss for years, decades or longer?

I don’t think so. This is what I believe. The USA has an immense ability to learn, adjust, and pick up the pieces and move forward. We will learn and emerge from an error of stupidity, smarter and wiser.

Also, the essence of this country has always been the entrepreneurial spirit. Entrepreneurs have always spotted opportunity in every recession. During the recession of the mid-to-late 1970’s when the prime interest rate was 20%+, people lined up at their neighborhood service stations to get their weekly rationing of gas, and the government temporarily implemented pricing controls to manage the runaway inflationary spiral at the time that had gripped the economy. When most people were losing hope, the entrepreneurial spirit did not die nor go into hibernation. Out of these turbulent times came Intel, Apple Computer, and Microsoft, with business models that enhanced our productive to heights that no one ever thought possible, fueling a new era of prosperity.

When the Internet bubble burst in the early part of this decade, there was blood running in the streets of Silicon Valley. The failure of numerous billion dollar venture capital backing “good ideas” and hundreds of smaller Internet companies, did not kill the entrepreneurial spirit. A new round of innovative entrepreneurs gave birth to the likes of Google, Amazon, and ebay, that blazed the way for to the newest social media explosion and the emergence of Web 2.0 companies such as Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, and LinkedIn, to name a few.

Yes, times are toug, but the entrepreneurial spirit is not dead, the American Dream is not dead, and the Age of Less is only a passing rage. Sanity will return to our economic system. Credit will begin to flow, entrepreneurs will again take risks and life as we know it will return – a little more prudent, but the American Dream will be reborn. The entrepreneurial spirit in this country will always adjust and push our way of life forward.

Will there be adjustments? Absolutely. Will jobs be lost, never to return? Absolutely. Will companies fall into bankruptcy, causing enormous dislocation and pain on an individual level? Absolutely. Will there be financial pain at every level? Absolutely. But this too will pass.
What should you do? Perhaps this phrase best summarizes my thoughts. “Those who stop, sit down, and fret about their situation, will get run over by those who are making things happen.”

Yes, the “times they are a changin' ”- but I believe for the better, and these changes will lay the groundwork for yet another cycle of entrepreneur ingenuity. Hail to the entrepreneur!

March SEO Results

As we discussed on our last CAMPA conference call, the AdWord campaign being discontinued had an impact on the incoming calls to our locations. Most locations AdWord campaigns have been restarted and the calls are coming in again. There is power in reliable data.
To view the SEO results for March 2009 click below.

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pggA80UqEUrGboXfDOkFCew

Please note that individual location statistics are located on the page tabs at the bottom of the page.

Quest Collections – A Waste of Time

Heard from the field: Bill Baumgartner has some interesting insights on how to view Quest Collections.

Bill shares: I’ve heard people comment that Quest collections are a waste of time. Not worth the $10 for all the hassle involved. While I’d agree that I’d much rather have us working on a more profitable test in any given 10 minute time period, Quest is paying me $710 in March.

I’ve been trying to maximize my Quest collections and one thing I’ve been doing is “mining” my chains of custody and sign in sheets for nearby companies and chains. Whenever I notice a worthwhile business, I try and drop off some maps and introduce myself to the HR person. I made up a flier that bills us as a “Quest Diagnostics’ Preferred Patient Service Center Serving the Inland Empire.” It also has our logo, Quest’s logo, and a map.

Most recently, we spoke to a couple of employees from the Hilton who told us about a new location being built in Fontana. I dropped off some of fliers at the onsite construction trailer, and got 24 collections out of it.

Idea: Each location should compile a list of the larger companies in their areas that use Quest for collections. There are lots of chains out there: TGI Fridays, Beverages and More, Rite Aid, Redbox… I’m sure the list goes on and on. Especially when you add hospital groups, staffing chains, unions, etc. And many of these chains own other companies too. Hilton, for example, owns DoubleTree, Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn, Homewood Suites among others.

If we all work together to put this list together, we don’t have to leave it up to chance that a donor chooses our offices out of all the other choices on Quest’s website. Plus, if we nurture these relationships with their local HR staff, we can use them as references and be there if and when they realize Quest isn’t meeting their needs.

The average Quest Collection takes from 6 to 10 minutes. I’m going to try to get that time down even more by making a rubber stamp to fill in all our site info on the chains of custody.

If we could fill our lobbies with Quest collections and that was all we did, that could be 6-10 collections an hour. That’s $480 to $800 a day or $124,800 to $208,000 a year with no cost of the sale, other than staff! Ok, I’m getting out of hand, but you get the point. Quest isn’t so bad, so let’s get this list going!

Bill is thinking innovatively. It is a good idea. What are your ideas? This is on the agenda for the CAMPA Brainstorming Meeting on May 7th at 12 pm.

Mentoring

One of the real competitive advantages of the franchise business model is the ability to leverage the resources of the group to create a competitive advantage. This leveraging can be group purchasing, our AdWord and SEO strategy, CAMPA, group training (such as we have recently completed), and mentoring.

I am a big believer in franchisee mentoring. As you know, mentoring is the strategy of using the collective knowledge and experience of knowledgeable franchise operators to help and encourage new franchisees as they open their businesses and get started. The AccuDiagnostics Mentoring program in the Western Region will officially begin with our two newest franchisees in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Jill Chioino will mentor Jimmy Platt in Las Vegas and Doug Kimball will mentor Bob Duncan in Los Angeles.

I am excited about the ability of franchisees in our region to collaborate and help each other in becoming successful. As more and more franchisees enter our system, each of you will get an opportunity to be a mentor to others.