Ben Polis has had had a rapid and damaging fall following the outing almost two weeks ago of offensive posts he had made on Facebook. His former (he sold his shared after quitting) business, Energy Watch lost suppliers and customers and was dumped as major sponsor for the Melbourne AFL team. There are questions as to whether it will even survive.
The Ben Polis story is a reminder that each of us who leads a business is central of the brand of the business. What we say directly effects the business and how people perceive the business.
Some newsagents have used this to great effect, building their personal brand in their local community and, though this, the brand, and success, of their business. Others have missed the opportunity and therefore missed out on some business.
Living and breathing your brand in your community, whether it be geographic or congregated in some other way, is vital in today’s marketplace. I say vital as people are more connected than ever before. This means that how we live goes beyond our home and our street, it gores to our Facebook posts, Tweets and comments published by us and about us by others on all matter of social media sites.
There was a time when a business leader had to behave at the local pub and in the local shops. Now, scrutiny is 24/7. This is a good thing as it means that we need to live authentic lives, lives which genuinely reflect what we stand for in our lives and our businesses.
This is where we can learn from there Ben Polis situation. It is a reminder that we need to be authentic 24/7. This builds trust and respect and from these comes loyalty and loyalty is key to the success of any newsagency.
Being authentic means being true to our brand and what it stands for 24/7 – in Facebook posts, Tweets, everywhere. But it goes further. You can use these social media outlets to more publicly define yourself and your brand and thereby help more people find you and your business. But to do that you need to be certain of your brand and what you stand for first.
I don’t feel sorry for Ben as he said what he said and has faced the consequences of his actions. This is as it should be.
If the newsagency you lead is not a leading business in your town, on your street or in your shopping centre then it should be. This should be a goal for you. You need to be out the front of the business leading it to this situation. By living a committed and authentic life which speaks to the principles of the business.
Get this right and it could / should differentiate your business from others. If shows you off as being more valuable to your community than, say, a major retailer who ships profits out of the town or even overseas. If shows you as understanding the local community and reinvesting whereas others just advertise they do it.
But it has to be real. This is where what you say is how you have to live. Otherwise you could be outed like Ben Polis and your business suffer as a result.
The cover of the latest issue of Feast magazine is one of the best magazine covers I have seen recently. It captures the slice of cake beautifully, showing off the colours in a mouth-drooling way.
I have added a regional round to the Newsagency of the Future series. Starting next week I am getting out of the cities and into farther apart locations to talk with newsagents about the future. This next round will go further than the round just completed, benefiting from the discussions had already and feedback from newsagents. Click 