Dave and Barbara Gassaway discuss the importance of leadership training, mentors, and creating an atmosphere for your employees to improve at what they do.
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Episode Highlights
Inflection points from the show
[00:54] Your staff represents your business: Dave Charest shares a pleasant customer service experience from a recent concert he went to with his family. It made him remember just how important every staff member is to the success of a business.
[07:00] A love of exploration: Barbara shares how she got into market research and why she’s stayed for nearly 30 years.
[12:20] The people make it worthwhile: For Barbara, watching her staff grow is one of the best parts of owning a business.
[13:14] From 26 employees to two W2s: Barbara talks about the considerable impact COVID had on her business. From once being entirely in-person to shifting to 80% virtual work to once working with VP-level staff and now young professionals, a lot has changed.
[15:13] Always be learning: Barbara took leadership training during the COVID business shift. That gave her the necessary guidance to help grow her people.
[16:11] Golden nuggets lie with your customers: A top priority for Barbara’s market research business is listening to her customers, adapting to their needs, and moving forward.
[17:14] Happiness equals success: While Barbara has no specific success metric, as long as her staff is happy and thriving, she considers that a big win.
[18:07] Be okay with letting go: Part of Barbara’s pivot after COVID was going from a primarily strategic role to handling more administrative work, which she readily admits she’s not fond of.
[19:40] A focus on relationship building: Everything Barbara does in her marketing efforts returns to relationship building. The group’s blogs and newsletters don’t focus on marketing trends or consumer behavior. She solves problems for her customers and builds trust.
[20:55] Why Constant Contact: Ease of use and searchable content are just a couple of reasons Barbara chose Constant Contact to communicate with her audience.
[24:04] Take a walk in your customer’s shoes: If there’s one thing Barbara wants listeners to walk away with, it’s to understand your audience and have empathy for them. Know where they stand to succeed.