When it comes to business though, we love competition and especially when it directly affects hayWire. Here’s why:

1. It lets us know in the right industry- Things must be hopping if new players keep joining.
2. It keeps us sharp- We’re always on our toes and have to be constantly researching and improving our services/products/customer experience to grow.
3. It forces us to define our niche-  Are we going to build low-cost, template-y websites or we going to stick with custom designs and great user experience? We chose the latter.

Are we missing anything else? Bring on the competition!

• The Back of  a Business Card- I’ve seen several business try to cram everything on the front side and have a completely blank backside. My thought is put your contact info on one side and list your services/products on the other.
• Toilet Stalls/Restrooms- There are tasteful ways to do this and I’ve seen it well-done to horribly done. If you have a business with a nicer individual bathroom, try putting an ad in a nice picture frame promoting an upcoming event or product. If you’re dealing with toilet stalls, keep the ads simple and relevant. I mean, come on! You have a captivated audience already…
• Lobby Areas/Waiting Rooms- You subscribe to all these magazines and are essentially advertising them in your waiting room…why not put up a “Did you know we…” sign to get people thinking of other things they can buy from you?

These are simple and plainly obviously opportunities to upsell and cross sell given your current resources so why not use them?

Tangent thought: Imagine if Tums started paying businesses to advertise in their restroom stalls….

Southwest

1. Bags Fly Free- Only airline (that I know of) that will allow two free bags per person. Right around 2008, many airlines started charging for checked bags due to the cost of rising fuel and likely to the added security measures provided by TSA. Southwest stood out as one who did not and continues not to do so. You gotta their clever ads promoting Bags Fly Free.
2. No Third Party Ticket Vendors- I think it was sometime last year that Southwest came out with a bunch of ads saying that the only place you could buy tickets was through their website. This was a risky strategy that would certainly limit their customer reach, however, they had to figure out a way to maintain profits. Judging by my last flight a week ago on one of their planes (completely full), I don’t think they’re having a problem keeping their seats filled.

Domino’s Pizza

1. Pizza Turnaround- They started a campaign that pretty much said “We know our pizza sucks, we’re redoing the recipe, now come try it and we promise you’ll like it”.  Here’s the video that started it all.
2. Continued Transparency- They continued this campaign of transparency by showing the source of their high-quality ingredients, continuing their $5.99 two-topping special, and even their pizza tracker which would let you rate how individuals did in making your pizza, seen here.
3. Feedback- For every new product they released (chicken strips, cheese bread, artisan pizzas) they continually encouraged feedback and have responded as a result. This possibly might be their most powerful tool for their turnaround success.

So how can you stand out in your industry by doing something outrageously (or not so outrageously) different?

1. TreeHouse- Great colors, icons, and purpose of the site is understood in about .5 seconds.

2. Appmiral- This site is too fun! Love the theme, copy, custom graphics, and sweet use of HTML5. You gotta scroll through this home page!

3. Rice Bowls- Great cause, icons, high-quality photos, and story-telling layout. They also have a sister site that’s great too: Rice Bowl Challenge.

1. How much is hosting? We recommend third party hosting sites such as Bluehost.com which ranges from $5-$7/month. On rare occasion, you may need a dedicated server which we are happy to help set up. If you already have a hosting company you like, no problem, we’ll build your site over there!

2. What are the recurring cost with building a website with you guys? The only thing you’ll have to worry about is hosting really. Very rarely comes a time when you would need us to do extra design/development work because most of what you need is already built in with your site! (ie adding photo galleries, adding/deleting pages, changing text/photos, etc.)

3. How much do you charge for updates? The short answer is nothing. That is the beauty of giving you a site built with WordPress that YOU CONTROL and are fully-trained on how to use. Should you forget, we are happy to remind you

4. Do I own the site? Of course, silly! You paid for it so it should be yours although we may want to show it off.

5. How long does it typically take? About 4-6 weeks for our standard site from the time we start. We provide you a scope that holds us both accountable and therefore will ensure that the timeline is as closely met as possible.

6. Am I stuck with you forever? Never. Though we don’t like breakups, we sure don’t make it hard to go our separate ways. What’s great about building a site with WordPress is that it’s open source (AKA non-proprietary) and therefore there are several other people who can easily hit the ground running with it. We’re proud that this hasn’t yet happened and plan on keeping it that way!

7. When can I get started with you guys ? Whenever, give us a call at (402) 885-4946 or email at howdy@hay-wire.com.

1. Billboards- Don’t use more than 5-7 words, otherwise people driving at 70 mph can’t it. Here’s a great example:

2. Mailings- I recently got a letter from my dentist that was about two paragraphs long and whole message he was trying to get across was “Use It Or Lose It” with your dental insurance benefits. It probably would have caught my attention (and saved on his postage) to simply send a card that said that VS. trying to explain in great detail.
3. E-Blasts- In addition to having an awesome subject line, the email should concisely answer the very thing the subject line addresses. So for instance, my subject line could be “Make Your Marketing Suck Less” and the email would say “Stop wasting on traditional mediums and invest in your current clients to gain word of mouth referrals, click here to learn more”.

There are thousands of ads fighting for your attention everyday. If yours is not short, memorable then you’ve just wasted money!

(Tip: Some companies will tell you that repetition is key. While that is true, if your ad sucks then you’ll have to spend more money to advertise more often with an unmemorable ad compared to having a memorable one)

Well, frankly that stills rings true when it comes to getting a job so don’t think sending out your resume to 500 companies will get you hired. Instead, focus on a few companies that you definitely want to work at and cater yourself to them. When I say “Get Social” here’s what I mean:

1. Get on LinkedIn- HELLO!!! It’s basically your resume online and free for the world to see so why not. Plus a major benefit is that LinkedIn will show you if you have any mutual friends with someone at the company you’re applying at. Doesn’t get much easier than that to find an “in”, does it? (And it also doesn’t hurt to have current and former colleagues/bosses write a nice recommendation for you too)
2. Figure out ways to network- Just because you’re not in a “professional” position doesn’t mean you can’t hang out where the professionals are. Some good examples of places to network might include…Live Networking events via LinkedIn, Alumni groups at your college, Omaha or Sarpy business chamber networking events, etc. etc. The trick is you really have to put yourself out there.
3. Use your current networks- If you read my How Facebook Will Get You Hired post, then I’m basically referring to that again. I don’t know why people are so scared to straight up ask “Hey, does anyone know someone who works at XYZ corporation?”. Chances are that someone does and chances are that they are willing to help. (If not, then why are you even Facebook friends?)

There are really a gazillion other ways to Get Social in hopes of landing the job you want, but the main thing is don’t be lazy and don’t underestimate the power of social media.

See examples here:

Why only 3 options?

• It tends to force people to the middle option.
• People want more than 2 choices, but 4 requires too much thought.
• It usually meets the need the of majority.

So what services do you offer that you could group up into a 3-choice option?

Seriously though. If you are applying a professional job and fail to include a cover letter then consider yourself disqualified.

Ok so here’s how I would structure my resume.

HEADING

1. Your Name, Address, Phone, and Email on the top left corner.
2. Date just beneath that (spaces in between)
3. Attn: (address it to whoever your contact is in the company. If no one, then use “Personnel”)
4. Put the Name and Address of the business underneath that.

BODY

1. First paragraph- How you found the job and/or who you know in the company that referred you to the position.
2. Second paragraph- Describe your job skills and experience and how it relates to the requirements of the position.
3. Third paragraph- Sum everything up and remind them again why you’re a good candidate and you deserve an interview.

CLOSING

I use “All the best, Cam Vacek”

Make sure, just like the resume, to customize each cover letter to each position and save as a PDF. (Name your document FirstNameLastName-CoverLetter.PDF)

Let me know if you need help!

1. OBJECTIVE- This doesn’t necessarily have to be called objective unless you’re applying at a corporate-y/conservative place. Other suggestions could be “What Motivates Me” or “Mission”. The most important part of this section is to remember to change it for EACH position you’re applying for. Generic statements are the worst and employers expect you to spend the extra 15 seconds to customize it to their company/position. Also, the statement has to state why you’d be a benefit to the company and NOT why it would benefit you.

Mission
I’m seeking to join (insert company name) as a (insert position) to contribute to the (insert department) by successfully (insert job description requirements).

2.WORK EXPERIENCE- This is more important than Education unless you don’t have much. Put them in the order of most recent job first. It should go Company, Position, Years Worked and then a few bullets points or sentences about what you did there. (Much like how they’re listed on LinkedIn)

3. EDUCATION- I would NOT put high school on there unless that is your highest level of education. If there were certain studies that you did and/or clubs that would be pertinent to the position, then put that on there. If not, then remove it. (For instance, Con Agra probably doesn’t care that you were President of Chess Club)

4. RECOGNITION/OTHER SKILLS- Any pertinent skills, awards, certifications, etc. that could further qualify you for the position should be listed. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD YOU PUT HOBBIES. This may have a time and place during the interview, but no one cares that you collect stamps on your downtime.

5. CONTACT- This might seem like an no-brainer, but you would be surprised at how often this section is butchered. Put your name, email, address, phone, website (if you have it) and I would even recommend putting your LinkedIn link on there too. No weird emails please (webdesignluvr@hotmail.com)

So here’s what you should take away…each resume needs to be tailored to each company and position. Lazy people have one version of their resume they send out to everyone. People who want a job spend the time to customize each resume for each position.

Lastly, always save your resume in PDF format or otherwise. Saving it as word doc is a no no.

Remember, your goal in having an awesome resume is so that it won’t be overlooked and they would consider calling you in for an interview.

Check out some of these amazing resume templates to give you inspiration:

• Swiss Style
• SineWave

Need further help, drop me a line!