Failure is a part of success. Sometimes failure can be the key to your fortune. You may have heard the story of how an engineer at 3M was trying to invent a super strong adhesive, but came up with a super weak one instead. That weak adhesive he invented became the secret to 3M Post-it…
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My last blog, “5 Reasons to Stop Using Voicemail,” triggered several conversations with people who had different viewpoints. Some conversations, including one left as a post on the blog, asked for ways to increase responses. Today’s post gives you alternatives to increase responses that are much more worthwhile than leaving voicemails especially when prospecting. Do…
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Question: I don’t like reconciling my checking account. Is there really a reason to do that? Answer: Monthly reconciliations are a critical part of your accounting. I could argue that it is one of the most important steps to making sure your records are complete and correct. Every month, you should reconcile each of your…
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Question: How do I record an apparel order with more than one supplier? Answer: We do have complicated orders in our business—none more so than apparel orders. In all orders, I recommend that you use your internal purchase order number to number all parts of the order in your system: customer sales order, supplier purchase…
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Happy New Year. From the day this article is published, you have 363 days left in your new year. You have a clean slate. A fresh opportunity. What will you accomplish with these 363 days? Dream big. Businesses in North America spend almost $300 billion per year on printing and promotional products. You are within…
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Back in the early days of building my original Proforma distributorship, I had an appointment with the owner of a furniture store chain. I was on time. He was not. After waiting for half an hour, I asked the receptionist if the owner knew I was there. She informed me that he was filming a…
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Over the years I have developed what I call the “Muzzillo 10 Percent Rule.” Simply stated, the rule is that, at any point in time, only about 10 percent of folks are dissatisfied enough with their current situation that they are wide open for change. This is true for end-user customers. Only about 10 percent…
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Question: Can I print checks in QuickBooks? If so, do you have any tips for buying the checks? Answer: Yes, you can print checks in QuickBooks. When doing so, the transaction is recorded directly into your general ledger (into the account you designate). Also, when writing a check to pay a supplier purchase order, the…
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For the last decade, we’ve been told to make obscure passwords to keep our data safe. NeverM1Nd!, the advice was bad. Researchers have now proven that a password such as “Tr0ub4dor&3” would take only three days to crack. If we used four-word phrases, such as “correct horse battery staple,” it would take 550 years to…
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About 25 years ago, we purchased a great 30,000 square foot office building on a beautiful eight-acre campus. Soon after, I met with the signage company to finalize the wording for our sign. At first it seemed like a no brainer that the sign should read “Proforma Headquarters,” but that wording didn’t align with the…
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