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Amy Swift Crosby

the story is in the telling

The Dip vs. The Dive

May 26, 2015 · By Amy Swift Crosby

DipvsDiveThe Dip, which Seth Godin coined, is that momentary “low” of despair. It is the cyclical point in a relationship, business, or season that makes you question, reflect, scratch your head and ask if there’s a good reason to go on doing it. There usually is. The Dive is something else, something I use in my own life to distinguish from The Dip. The Dive is just how it sounds – a jump, head first, where there’s no turning back. The Dive is that moment in a relationship when you realize you’ve already walked out, even though your physical body is still there. Or, when a business owner becomes ‘done’ for whatever reason. She wants out and there is no argument that could change her mind.
An old friend of mine in New York, the yogi author, teacher, speaker and thought leader Elena Brower, recently closed her Manhattan studio. Why? Email. 
 
Certainly it was more than the administrative mud of too many emails, but that about says it all. She was simply tired of the business of having a brick and mortar business. We all get that, whether we traffic in bricks or clicks. The exhaustion of running something can takes its toll and it’s okay to shut it down, even when it’s healthy.
There is this overriding mantra in our minds that we have to build it, grow it, sell it –  but you don’t. You are allowed to walk away because your life mission changes, and the business no longer fist in. But first, before you do anything drastic, make sure you’re not just in a “dip”. Here’s how you tell:
1. Over and over, the back end feels overwhelmingly out of sync with the joy on the front end.
2. There’s something else (personal or professional) that continues to knock on the door of your mind – and won’t let go.
3. You can make up the income readily through another channel.
I’m all for diving. And if you do, make it a clean, beautiful, strong dive. No apologies. You’ll come up out of the water having done it with sincerity, integrity and strength, and there’s a lot of enviable entrepreneurial DNA in that.
Amy

The Bird Theory

January 16, 2015 · By Amy Swift Crosby

Stephanie Barrymore smallI learned something about birds that was kinda interesting recently. They see best in black and white, so when you first get a feeder, the best way to let them know it’s there and ready to feast on is to put seeds that are black and white inside. Despite being a bit messier, it’s the fastest way for them to see it, and the best way to build your “bird posse”. After that, add seed that leaves fewer shells, and in any color you like.

Clients and customers are the same way. The marketplace is crowded – we have to be crystal clear with our message, our offering, our value – we have to make it black and white to even get people’s attention. If it isn’t absolutely clear, it’s a client who keeps clicking….right on past your products or service.

Once you have a client or customer, as everyone knows, it’s a lot easier to keep ’em! So how do you drive the flock? Having a sales person is one way.

Check out some of our virtual offerings coming up in the next few weeks – especially our SALES webinar with Stephanie Barrymore. She’s going to tackle some amazing questions about structuring relationships with sales people – specifically if you’re a service provider. She’ll answer:

– When is it time to hire a sales person?
– How do you structure the relationship financially?
– How do you hire the right person – based on experience or rolodex?
– How do you manage them and set metrics for success?
– When do you let them go or determine it’s not working?
– How much training do they need?
– What kind of uptick in revenue can you expect and how long will it take?

I like what Stephanie’s presenting because we so often get it for product people, but hardly ever for service professionals.

 

Amy

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About Me

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I’m a brand strategist and copy writer. I mostly work with partner agencies or directly with the leadership or founding team at a brand. My primary mission is to connect design and messaging solutions to business missions. I work with start-ups and Fortune 500 companies, across beauty, hospitality, wellness/fitness, CPG and retail. This blog reflects my personal writing and explores our humanity – often as it relates to work, space, time and language. You can review my portfolio here or connect with me here.

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The Brandsmiths Podcast



Brand Strategists Hilary Laffer and Amy Swift Crosby tackle business questions with candid, (mostly) serious and definitely unscripted workshopping sessions. Guests – from small business owners to CEOs, executive directors and founders – bring their head-scratchers, hunches and conundrums to Hilary, the owner of a boutique creative agency in Los Angeles, and Amy, a copy writer.

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