JACK
In the past couple of months a number of people have asked me for advice on how to go into business and, particularly, how to choose and market a product. Back in 1996 I wrote a book “There’s No Business Like Your Business: How to Turn Your Knowledge into Personal Profit”. In the early 1990’s the economy was very similar to what we are currently experiencing. There was a recession, and thousands of companies were downsizing. Hundreds of thousands of people lost their jobs at big companies like General Motors and IBM. It was important then, as it is now, to investigate other possibilities. The United States was, and is, the greatest source of entrepreneurs. Then, as now, the work force needs to find profitable businesses. Regardless of the size, and the investment, it is important to recognize the opportunities that exist and to find the entry point.

Usually, people seeking advice have a product that they feel has possibilities. In this case, they must ask the hard questions. One, is there a real demand? Two, are you capable of manufacturing this product? Three, is there anything like it on the market, and how successful is the existing product? Four, in what way is your product superior to what already exists? Five, do you have the knowledge and the financing to make it a success? The over-riding rule is you must find a real need and be able to fill it.

HILLARY
But filling a need isn’t necessarily about a product, right? It can be a service, too.

JACK
You’re absolutely right. It can be a product, a process, or even an idea. But, in all cases, it must satisfy a need. Fred Smith conceived the idea for FedEx as a student, and I believe he got a C on his paper. But here was a remarkable idea to fill the need for over-night delivery. His spectacular concept was to have a central point of distribution. As it works out, all FedEx packages go to Tennessee and then they are routed to their destinations. Even if you are sending your package across the street it takes the same route.

HILLARY
That’s something to keep in mind when sending a package. If something is local, or even within your state, perhaps FedEx is not the best choice. At least, not environmentally.

JACK
This is a whole new factor that has come into the equation since FedEx was created. At that time there was no energy shortage, and no environmental concern. Perhaps it is time to rethink, and perhaps come up with a better idea. I can’t tell you what it is, but this is the joy of working on a worthwhile project.

HILLARY
This is part of what makes America an amazing place to live, as we continue to evolve and our innovation evolves with us.

JACK
This leads to the question that is most often asked of me. Is there less opportunity today then there was when you started? After all, so many products and services have already been developed. The answer of course is that the opportunities are far greater. It is almost impossible to contemplate the possibilities that exist within the computer arena alone. I can think of so many functions that are done in a timely manner that was quite impossible 50 years ago. However, the same basic rules of business apply. It doesn’t matter if you’re coming up with your figures with an abacus, an adding machine, or a computer. Two plus two is always four. But the beauty is that you now have the solution in an instant. My first rule of merchandise was to do some research and learn about any products that are now, or have been, in the marketplace, similar to what you have conceived. Today you find out immediately just by using any of the remarkable search engines. Every time something new is developed a whole industry can spring up around it. When Steve Jobs was tinkering in his garage he certainly didn’t see iTunes, iChat, and iPhones. With the advantage of advanced thinking, Apple has far outstripped IBM. 40 years ago, Apple was one of my direct-marketing clients and everybody was of the opinion that there was no way that they could compete with IBM.

I think I’m getting carried away with modern technology. For the newcomer, you can stick to the simple products and services. You don’t have to be a computer genius to succeed in today’s world. Just look at and think of the products that you use every day, and think of how you can make it better. The United States economy thrives on practical innovation. You can be part of this remarkable exciting treasure hunt.

Taken from July 15, 2008 Presidential Press Conference. (Transcript from Whitehouse.gov)

THE PRESIDENT: I think people ought to conserve and be wise about how they use gasoline and energy. Absolutely. And there’s some easy steps people can take. You know, if they’re not in their home, they don’t keep their air-conditioning running. There’s a lot of things people can do. But my point to you, Mark, is that, you know, it’s a little presumptuous on my part to dictate to consumers how they live their lives. The American people are plenty capable and plenty smart people and they’ll make adjustments to their own pocketbooks.

HILLARY
The President thinks that we all know ways to save energy, and in turn save money. For example, he mentioned household temperature. But I wonder if people really understand that by lowering heat in the winter by just 2 degrees you can cut your energy bill by 10 percent. That is one good way to save energy, but there are many, such as not leaving the refrigerator door open, and by turning off lights when you leave a room. Even better, you can unplug appliances when they are not in use. Americans waste $1 billion a year powering items like TVs and DVD players while they’re turned off. So unplug your TV, stereo, computer, microwave when you’re done using them. Unplug cell-phone and MP3 chargers as soon as the devices are powered up.

JACK
As important as our knowledge of energy saving processes is, we need to make it an important part of our experience. Yes, on some level, I know that I’m going to save some energy by turning out lights, unplugging appliances, and minimizing the amount of time that I spend in the automobile. However, it has not hit the alarm sign. I vaguely know I’m wasting energy, but basically feel it is so small that it is insignificant in the overall scheme of things – a drop in the ocean. What I am hearing now from you, and from many other people, is that a real effort made in saving the energy that I am responsible for will add up to big numbers, both in the economy and in cleaning the atmosphere. Assuming the truth is in what you say, then the President is making a major mistake in this casual assessment. As a matter of fact, there should be a concerted effort to publicize the reality and how each one of us impacts on these major problems.

HILLARY
You couldn’t be more right. It is the little things that will significantly add up to make a real difference. For example, if every American had one meat-free day per week, it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions as much as taking 8 million cars off the roads.

JACK
And that doesn’t include your feeling better without the personal gas that meat creates in your system.

HILLARY
Right. We’re not even going there! Another easy change that can help people with their fuel consumption, and therefore lower their bills, is in the laundry. Ninety percent of the energy used in clothes washing goes to heat the water, so washing in cold water is a simple way to cut energy use drastically.

These little changes can save a family money, stop the waste of resources, and change the supply/demand ratio, which will bring down costs for everyone. Seems like something that our leaders could be sharing with the population at large.

JACK
It is a clear cut coincidence, but has a great deal of meaning. Today’s economic headline is that the price of oil dropped almost $16/barrel due to decreased demand. As a natural adjunct of this rare good news the stock market shot up 270 points and suddenly (at least for the day) Americans have a more optimistic outlook. But whether we like it or not, the reality of energy at a higher price effects our lives.

There are pieces of information now hitting us from many different directions. Currently, there is a movement to reduce the speed limits to 55 miles per hour. In the 1970s, the 55 mph speed limit saved 167,000 barrels of oil a day, or 2 percent of the country’s highway fuel consumption. Up to 4,000 traffic deaths a year were avoided as well, with the lower maximum speed. It makes sense to live with the inconvenience of a lower speed limit.

We now need to dispense with the inane idea that our individual contributions are so small as to be insignificant. Our politicians need to stop talking about the fact that we are at war and must sacrifice and tell us how. They must emphasize the importance of persuading all Americans to join the conservation cause. It takes a planned effort to not only tell us we have a problem, but also tell us how we may help to solve it.

Please note, Hillary, that Jack Nadel International now has a complete section (http://www.eco.nadel.com/) and emphasis on going “green” in our merchandising efforts. I would invite Paul Navabpour who leads this cause at our company to comment on some of the results.

JACK
One of the great issues today is the American addiction to oil, and what is happening as the price climbs and we seemingly have no control over how high it will go. When President Bush took office the price of oil was $17 a barrel. We are now paying over $140 a barrel. This has had a tremendously negative effect on our economy, and has brought many Americans into an emergency mode. It has become a question as to whether we can put as much gas as we want into the car, or whether we can buy food, medicine, clothing, etc. We are stunned by the massive profits of the oil companies. In the last reporting period Exxon reported the highest earnings of any company in the existence of the world. We can only guess at the amount of money taken in by Saudi Arabia and other large suppliers of oil.

President Bush makes the blanket statement “we are addicted to oil,” as he shrugs his shoulders helplessly. In my mind, every administration since President Carter is responsible for getting us into this current mess. It’s amazing that in our democracy after some 40 years of complaining, we really have done very little to improve our position. Many solutions have been proposed, but in 2008 we are more victimized than ever.

Last week, I heard somewhere a proposal that we go to a 4-day workweek. It makes sense to me since as we enact this kind of program we get immediate relief. There are millions of cars that are used for people to commute to work, and they use millions of gallons of gasoline. Just think of the massive improvement if we can take those numbers down by 20% merely buy changing our working hours. The state of Utah is about to go to the 4-day week, yet I have heard nothing else about this program, which has been under examination in certain quarters for more than 30 years.

HILLARY
I find this concept fascinating. I can’t think of anyone that I’ve ever worked with that wouldn’t rather work 10 hours four days a week versus 8 hours five days a week. When I would discuss this with co-workers I never thought that it would help the environment, and conserve gasoline too. It seems like a no brainer from the employee standpoint, but what about employers, Jack?

JACK
As an employer, I see no reason why it cannot be structured to work for the benefit of the company. As a matter of fact, I can see many ways that it would reduce costs and improve productivity. I recently heard an expression from Joel Silberman, a good friend and a media consultant. Joel coined the phrase “Progressive Capitalism”. These two words brought together encompass my old feelings of the need for a progressive agenda with a practical business base. In infers to me we can create a concept that embraces our capitalistic way of life that has produced the highest standard of living in the history of the world. It sounds like an oxymoron, but the words “progressive” and “capitalism” can fit very nicely together to produce an even better standard of living for all people. An idea like the four-day workweek would fit within the scope of many ideas that would contribute to a higher and a healthier standard of living. There is nothing wrong with making a profit on a concept that benefits every body.

HILLARY
Do you have any other ideas of what could be done to help our citizenry in your Progressive Capitalism model?

JACK
It is hard to be an instant genius, but I can certainly think of the many companies with which we have all be familiar over the past few years that have had great success and are of continuing benefit to its work force, customers, and management. My definition would include such well-known companies as Google, Apple, and Microsoft. Their position in the commercial world have helped to make the American economy as powerful as it is, without destroying anything in the process. These three immediately come to mind, but I’m sure that there are thousands of others whose model we can follow. These are companies that found a huge need and were able to structure the answer to fill that need. Instant information, immediate communication around the world, and innovative software are American in concept and execution. Successful American business operates to provide a profit for its stockholders, a user-friendly working place, and products and services that are needed.

I would really love to see a new President harness the creative juices of people like
Larry Page, Steve Jobs, and Bill Gates. And I would classify all of them as Progressive Capitalists. My years of experience tells me that these ideas do not have to be original and I make no such claim, they just must be pertinent to the time in which we live.

JACK
It suddenly occurs to me that everything seems to be done differently than in the past. I feel that we are constantly being dumbed down, and I know that I had a much better feeling of what was happening politically in former days. Now bills are passing through Congress under what seems like a cloak of secrecy. I am not sure whether I can tie the two together, but the information on Television seem to be addressed to a lower intelligence level. Do you, as a young person, have any feeling about this? I feel a much lower threshold of real information. I also feel that we are very sensitive in arenas where it should not be that important, while also displaying a lack of feeling for truly important issues. I feel desperately sad for the thousands of veterans in Iraq who have suffered terrible injuries, or for the families of those who have been killed. I find this recent flap about Senator McCain’s qualifications as a military expert very disturbing. No one denies his years of service and his heroism, but General Clark was very legitimate in questioning what he has learned as a result of these terrible experiences that qualifies him to be Commander in Chief. Despite the fact that he used his own experiences as an example, I could not believe the anguished roar of resentment for daring to ask the question. Are my eyes too jaded to understand, or is my brain too aged to understand truth?

HILLARY
Young eyes can be jaded too, which might explain your television watching experience over the past few years. During the 1940’s there were a lot of musical films, were there not?

JACK
Yes, absolutely. Many.

Hillary
In film class this is called “escapism.” I think the same phenomenon might be responsible. Those of us who watch the news every day, or get online, or read the paper, can get easily bogged down in the shear amount of suffering and corruption that exists in the world. Sometimes it must be easier to watch somebody doing something stupid on TV, or on Youtube. The difference today is, there is a lot more frivolity from which to choose.

JACK
The question really is, how does this all come together and make sense? The public is outraged if we question the ability of a hero. I can only turn to my own experience. I flew 27 combat missions over Japan in a B-29. I was decorated for my service, above and beyond. But none of it qualified me to determine who should be bombed, what kind of bombs we should carry, when the raid should be executed, or even if it was time to negotiate. I feel no insult if someone tells me I am not qualified, and it in no way detracts from the services I performed for my country. So what’s all the fuss about? And why should a statement of fact defile another recognized war hero, like General Clark?

Hillary
I think it’s all a distraction. I think it’s meant to keep us out of the process. If we are obsessed with minutia, we won’t look for the real issues. So, it is our responsibility to look past all of the fluff, and arm ourselves with information to present to our leaders with the hope of bringing about meaningful change.

JACK
As I get deeper into social issues I am amazed at how closely they parallel personal problems. One of the greatest factors in solving problems, and closing deals, is an ability to finalize the issue. Specifically, great sales people know how to close. If you don’t close the deal then everything that you did leading up to it is pure waste. It’s like taking the ball to the two-yard line but not getting over the goal for a touch down. It really doesn’t matter how brilliant you were getting to that point. In the world of sales the closer is most valuable, and sometimes success depends on developing a few simple techniques. For example, your prospect says to you, “Your idea is great, but we just don’t have the budget for it.” There should be a momentary pause before you respond, “That’s too bad, but besides that what other problem is there for us to complete the deal?” It’s really amazing, but a very good question at the time. The first reason is the excuse, but when you ask what else is involved you get the real reason he is not ready to give you the order. Now you have a fighting chance to overcome the objection because you are dealing in reality. This simple device can be applied to your personal life. From “I am too tired to go out,” but besides that why don’t you want to go? “Well, I really have no desire to see that movie.” Take your time and apply the same technique to your sex life.

Another seemingly simple response from your target, “It sounds good, but let me sleep on it.” Believe it or not, there is an answer. It’s bold but it works. “Can you tell me what you will know tomorrow that you don’t know right now? This deal makes so much sense, let’s put it to work for you immediately.” A third way to make a deal when a prospect is on the fence, and making a decision for anybody is tough. Every instinct tells that person not to give you the order. Then it’s time to embellish the deal with more advantages. You will get better results if, at the earliest possible moment, you can go from being an adversary to being an associate. Figuratively, sit on the same side of the desk and never talk about his or your problem, but “our” problem. And, obviously, “our” solution.

Almost always you can cross the goal line if you are able to come up with additional benefits. In order to be a winner, one must create a sense of urgency, a belief in your target that he or she cannot do without accepting your offer – now.

In the world of politics I am continually frustrated by watching interviews. It is rare, but the best interviewer is one who asks the questions I would ask. I am still waiting for the final answer on the debate over the Iraq War. So many politicians will say, “We can only leave after we have achieved ‘victory’.” I would like to know what ‘victory’ means. I have yet to hear a clear definition.

We have previously written about the importance of being specific. I know of no deal that can be closed, or no answer that can be made unless it is specific and direct. Is everybody else as frustrated as I am, when a big-time anchor asks a tough question and the candidate never really responds to the question that is asked? Every so often we get a powerful interviewer who says, “Would you please answer my question?” It can be in matters as complex as world politics and as simple as “What kind of food do you want for dinner?” When your companion says, “I don’t know, what do you want?” Then you might say, “Do you prefer Italian or Chinese?” He blithely says, “It’s ok, I like them both.” How many people then say, “You know, you really didn’t answer my question.”

It’s amazing how each problem mirrors the other one. It can be as simple as “what are we going to eat,” or as complex as getting a contract for a major project that will help to raise your economic standards. Your enemies, your friends, will have greater respect when you’re able to state your case in specifics. Whether in politics, love or business, everybody really wants to know where you stand on the issues.