business link magazine july 2014 issue

BusinessLink Magazine July 2014 ||Pg 1


A great attitude attitude attitude attitude

becomes a great day day day day

which becomes a great monthmonthmonthmonth which

becomes a great year year year year which becomes a great lifelifelifelife. [Mandy

Hale]

ALWAYS DO CAREFUL RESEARCH

BusinessLink magazine is designed to

educate and provide general

information as well as to stimulate

readers’ thinking. While every care is

taken to ensure that information in this

magazine is correct, we advise readers

to consult their professional advisors

when making business decisions. The

magazine is distributed on the

understanding that the publisher is not

rendering legal or financial advice and

readers use the information herein at

their own risk.

BUSINESSLINK MAGAZINE

BusinessLink, the magazine for

growing companies, delivers real

solutions for today’s innovative

business builders. It gives advice,

tools and resources to CEOs and

owners of small-to-midsize

companies as well as new

entrepreneurs that help accelerate

their growth.


Publisher: Phillip Chichoni, email [email protected]

Marketing : Christine Mangwanya, email [email protected]

Design and graphics: Nzwisisai Gonese, email [email protected]

Distribution: PCL Marketing and Distribution

BusinessLink Magazine is published by

Admiral Business Systems (Pvt) Ltd

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Street, Harare, Zimbabwe.

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Table of Contents

Publisher’s note: Proper Management and Innovation Will Drive Agro-

Entrepreneurship Success .................................................................................................. 7

Readers Have Your Say .................................................................................................. 8

The Trap of Inaction ....................................................................................................... 8

Fear Robbery ..................................................................................................................... 9

4 Power Lines to Ignite your Purpose ............................................................................... 10

Lesson in Effective Guerilla Marketing from the World Cup............................................. 11

Entrepreneur on Fire: Meet financial markets and ICT genius Samuelle Dimairho .......... 14

Facebook Quiz: Win lunch with a CEO ............................................................................. 15

In an economic crunch the Client is King .......................................................................... 16

Digital Marketing: The Advent of a New Era in Marketing ............................................... 18

Brand it like James Bond .................................................................................................. 20

Networking: How to Start and Hold Productive Conversations ........................................ 22

How to make money online in Zimbabwe: 6 Local Case-studies ...................................... 25

12 Excel Tricks to Expedite Common Chores .................................................................... 29

The Best Snacks To Eat At Your Desk ............................................................................... 32

Breakfast with Chomi Makina: Relationships are crucial to business success .................. 35

Winning Ways: Don’t undervalue yourself ....................................................................... 36

Join the BusinessLink Network and Start Accelerating Your Growth ............................ 37


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Visit http://smebusinesslink.com/businesslink-resources or come to 3rd Floor

Merchant House, Robson Manyika/ 2nd

Street, Harare, or call/ Whatsapp Christine on

0772 854 301.


Publisher’s note:

Proper Management

and Innovation Will

Drive Agro-

Entrepreneurship

Success

In last month’s issue, we looked

at the three cogs necessary for

success in the business of farming,

which are: running it like a business,

going for value and always being

innovating.

To validate the points we raised,

a local newspaper recently featured

the story of Manicaland farmers

whose lives are being changed as a

result of commercial banana

cultivation.

The farmers, working with the

Zimbabwe Agricultural Income and

Employment Development (Zim-

AIED) programme funded by the

United States Agency for

International Development (USAID),

have witnessed an increase in their

yield through improved agricultural

practices and new technologies,

such as irrigation systems, better

fertilizers and improved post–

harvest handling.

Chipinge district, characterised by

a hot climate and high rainfall

patterns, is well suited for

agriculture. It is traditionally

reputed for its abundant tea, coffee

and macadamia nuts. The hot, dry

Save Valley is home to many small–

scale and subsistence farmers who

traditionally scraped a living from

cultivating the staple maize crop.

Farmers’ incomes have been on

the rise in response to the increase

in banana yields, with farmers

realizing sales incomes ranging

between $5 000 and $6 000 per

0,25 hectare plot. This has been

complemented by prices soaring to

as much as $0,31 per kg.

The project, in which banana

marketing company Matanuska

poured in 20% of the funding in

partnership with Zim-AIED, has 128

women participating along with 110

men at Mutema irrigation scheme

alone.

Zimbabweans have the potential

to move out of poverty into self-

sustenance through implementing

the three cogs in their farming

businesses.

Please email me your feedback,

or get on Twitter: #BizLinkMagazine.


Readers Have Your Say

The Trap of Inaction

By Milton Kamwendo

Dear BusinessLink Readers This is your page. Please feel free to share your thoughts. Your feedback and

suggestions help us improve our content and quality.

Please email them to [email protected].

You can also post at our Facebook page, search for the SME BusinessLink page


Fear Robbery “Do one thing every day that

scares you” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

By Milton Kamwendo

Robbery is

never good.

Vandalism is

never heroism.

To rob

yourself of a

future because

of fear is to

punch too low and live

irresponsibly. When things are really

tough and fearful it is difficult to

imagine that there will be a future.

When you are just eking through

each day and living from hand to

mouth, it is difficult to think

strategically, plan thoughtfully and

act boldly. Even when all around

you are fearful and scampering for

comfortable cover, you must shake

off the mantle of fear and let faith

be your life's narrative.

The past is past, today is the

product of yesterday and it is up to

you to name the future you want

rather than let fear dictate your

faith. The name you give the future

has nothing much to do with your

environment or circumstances; it

has all to do with your state of mind

and vision.

Refuse to be a fearful soul that

thinks that everyone owes you a

living and you are a victim. Life is for

the bold and courageous. Fear

flattens your tyres.

To the fearful the future is called

"The Falling off the Edge." The

fearful feel that the future must be

approached with fearful caution as

though stepping on the edge of the

Victoria Falls.

Fear imprisons dreams and kills

initiative. Many people cannot step

boldly into the future with a

magnificent vision because they

imagine fear breaking their bones

and serving their brains as lunch.

Refuse to let fear stop you from

trying, moving forward and

attempting something worthwhile.

Most of your fears have not

happened and will never happen

anywhere except in your mind.

The biggest fear that haunts

people is the fear of death.

Whenever I conduct a presentation

skills workshops one of my opening

lines is always that people have

three major fears. The first one is

the fear of death, the second is the

fear of speaking in public. The third

is the fear of dying while speaking in

public!

Never let the fear of death

reduce you into a shadow of death

yourself. It is better to die while

pursuing something worthwhile,

than to live a life which is nothing

more than a daily rehearsal of

death. To die while you are living is

to expire too soon.


Do what you fear and see if will

still be alive. Some people will never

travel far, because they are afraid

they will be lost and will lose

relevance and cultural touch. Some

people will never attempt

something big because they fear

they will fail and everyone will

congregate at their house for a

laughter party.

It is better to fail having

attempted something big, than to

succeed at allowing fear to be your

master. Some people will never

dream big because they are afraid

they will just be frustrated and their

dreams will never happen. Refuse to

be a slave of fear, a cousin of fear or

its sibling.

What would you do if you were

not afraid? There is no heroism in

cowardice and there is no pride in

doing nothing. There is no growth

that comes to those hiding their

talents, ideas and dreams in the

shroud of fear.

You may feel justified in your

fears, but rest assured posterity will

not absolve your of your

irresponsibility. The fear of falling

off and being embarrassed or

injured may look real. Twenty years

from now will you be so proud that

you were such a fearful wimp that

could not dare anything, believe

anything or attempt anything?

Come to the edge and you will learn

how to fly. Come to the edge and

you will do what you have never

done. You can never be anything

you have never been before if you

are always doing what you have

done. You will never fly if you are so

obsessed with walking on firm

ground.

Committed to your greatness.

Milton Kamwendo

4 Power Lines to

Ignite your Purpose • The fact that other people may

have failed in one area does not

mean you will too. Count

yourself fortunate to have access

to how others failed because you

now know how not to fail.

• The fact that you are unique

does not mean you are inferior.

It is not possible that everyone

will have the same purpose

otherwise others will lack

relevance.

• The gap between challenges and

solutions is one's willingness and

resolution to work towards the

solution.

• When it is your time, no one can

stand in your way and prevail.

Even your enemies will propel

you to the top. By Rabison Shumba


Lesson in Effective

Guerilla Marketing from

the World Cup

Picture Credit: Frank Augstein /AP

By Phillip Chichoni

FOOTBALL PLAYERS ARE not the only ones fighting for supremacy on the

World Cup pitch: Shoe brands are fighting for glory too. For the most part, it’s

the fluorescent Nike Vapors versus the Adidas Adizera Battle Pack clears. But

while those brands dominate the soccer market, one smaller competitor has a

counterattack. This is in the form of mismatched pink and blue soccer boots

called Tricks, says Kyle Stock of Bloomberg Businessweek.

“You see a lot of yellows out there and oranges and reds, but in the blur of

the feet, you notice the Tricks,” said Stock.

Some of the biggest stars in soccer wore the blue and pink shoes, like Italy’s

superstar Mario Balotelli and Ivorian Yaya Toure.


Puma has cleverly sneaked in the game without incurring heavy advertising

expenditure. The giants, Nike and Adidas, are officially advertising as they are

FIFA World Cup partners. This comes at a cost of $75 million for each of the six

official partners, according to Advertising Age. Well, they can afford the bill, as

between them they have a 70 percent share of the soccer market. Nike makes

about $25 billion in annual revenue, Adidas $19 billion, while Puma makes only

$4 billion.

Puma has said publicly it cannot afford to advertise at the World Cup.

However, they are advertising indirectly. By having some soccer stars putting

on the mismatched boots before they are available on the market, their

product is already validated. Kids will be bugging their parents for these soccer

boots as soon as they are available in stores.

That is a very effective guerilla marketing tactic.

What can underdog entrepreneurs learn from these tricks of the trade? A

lot.

1. Target a narrow market segment. Your brand can't be all things to all

people. Guerilla marketing is the strategy that works for small and medium

sized businesses that do not have big marketing budgets. In our current

environment that is true for most businesses. The reason the strategy works is

because one uses creativity, rather than money, to create a buzz and draw

attention to one’s products.

For guerilla marketing to be effective, the small business will have to reduce

the field of play. Instead of targeting the mass market served by big companies,

the guerilla marketer targets a small niche. In other words, it tries to become a


big fish in a small pond. You can become a guerilla marketer by targeting a

small geographical area. This could be a certain suburb of a city or certain types

of customers across the country.

2. You don't need the spotlight of TV commercials or megabrand tie-ins. In

bypassing World Cup commercials Puma is preferring to let the product's

performance do the talking. The product experience is where you build a

performance brand. You can't get there with advertising. Advertising is a

turbocharger, but the product is where you really create authenticity and

credibility.

3. A differentiated image can help you. Puma's latest cleats are visibly

different from Nike's and Adidas's. While Nike and Adidas focused on fins,

ultra-light synthetic materials, and intricate knitting that fused the boot with

the sock, Puma kept its strategy simple: “really bright shoes in different colors,"

writes Stock. You read that right: Each shoe is a different color. The right boot is

pink. The left boot is blue.

As for Puma, its pink-and-blue shoes are an illustrative reminder of

how image can become a significant point of differentiation for an underdog

brand. Perhaps most importantly, the differentiated look allows Puma's

endorsers to cast themselves as difference-makers, too. For example, Mario

Balotelli, a standout player on Italy's team, said: "In the end, it is exactly the

reason why I chose to be with Puma. They dare to be different, and everyone

knows that I do as well."

Here are the main principles of guerilla marketing that you can start using

today and accelerate your growth without a big advertising budget:

a) Presence: you have to find ways to make yourself known by your target

market at all times. These may include email; forums; discussion boards;

radio; magazines; websites; social media; blogs; yellow pages.

b) Activity: you should always be on the lookout for opportunities to make

your products known at all times and work on them.

c) Energy: you must be marketing all the time, “360 degree” marketing!

Your creativity and hard work is what will produce positive results.

d) Networks: you must always be looking to make contacts and develop

networks. Relationships are very important in guerilla marketing.

e) Smart: your marketing activities must be smart; do not offend

customers or turn them off; e.g. by sending spam emails or irritating text

messages, or being overly pushy.

You will find more guerilla marketing tips in my book “High Impact Low cost

Marketing Strategies for SMEs”, available from the BusinessLink bookstore.

BusinessLink Magazine Ju

Entrepreneur on

Fire: Meet financial

markets and ICT

genius Samuelle

Dimairho

Photo: www.auragrp.com

By Phillip Chichoni

When he was 17 years old he

started working on a project to

simplify trading on the Zimbabwe

Stock Exchange. At that age he was

an upcoming stock investor, having

started buying shares at fifteen

BusinessLink Magazine July 2014

Entrepreneur on

: Meet financial

markets and ICT

genius Samuelle

auragrp.com

When he was 17 years old he

started working on a project to

simplify trading on the Zimbabwe

Stock Exchange. At that age he was

an upcoming stock investor, having

started buying shares at fifteen

while still attending high school at

Prince Edward. No he wa

young kid; in fact his parents, father

a headmaster and an entrepreneur,

mother an accountant, were

struggling to provide for their five

children during those hyperinflation

days. Samuelle did part

accounting jobs during school

holidays and started the habit of

saving and investing.

A great influence to his interest in

financial markets was the books and

journals his father gave him

regularly to read. He started

attending Annual General Meetings

of companies, as well going to see

trading sessions at the ZSE. That is

when he noticed that the local

exchange’s manual trading system

was way behind international

standards.

The idea of an automated share

trading system fascinated him then

and he could see that it would bring

transparency and co

traders.

In 2008, after his ordinary levels,

Samuelle began to seriously work on

making the automated trading

system a reality. He worked hard to

develop partnerships, look for

finance and present a proposal to

the Securities and Exchange

Commission of Zimbabwe, which

had been tasked to set up a Central

Securities Depository.

His team bid and won the tender

in 2010 and Chengetedzai

Depository Company was given the

2014 ||Pg 14

while still attending high school at

Prince Edward. No he was not a rich

young kid; in fact his parents, father

a headmaster and an entrepreneur,

mother an accountant, were

struggling to provide for their five

children during those hyperinflation

days. Samuelle did part-time

accounting jobs during school

nd started the habit of

saving and investing.

A great influence to his interest in

financial markets was the books and

journals his father gave him

regularly to read. He started

attending Annual General Meetings

of companies, as well going to see

sessions at the ZSE. That is

when he noticed that the local

exchange’s manual trading system

was way behind international

The idea of an automated share

trading system fascinated him then

and he could see that it would bring

transparency and convenience to

In 2008, after his ordinary levels,

Samuelle began to seriously work on

automated trading

system a reality. He worked hard to

develop partnerships, look for

finance and present a proposal to

the Securities and Exchange

mission of Zimbabwe, which

had been tasked to set up a Central

Securities Depository.

and won the tender

in 2010 and Chengetedzai

Depository Company was given the


mandate to automate the share

trading system at the Zimbabwe

Stock Exchange.

What drove him? His father

provided him with financial reading

materials and his mother motivated

him and prayed with him to pursue

his dreams.

Hardworking and results driven,

Samuelle demonstrated the

potential to grow and become a

global corporate leader from a

young age.

Apart from founding

Chengetedzai Depository Company,

where he is still a shareholder with a

seat on the board, Samuelle also

worked at Chartered Systems

Integration as business

development director since 2009,

helping the firm to win 5 prestigious

awards from Microsoft as well as

from the Zimbabwean Ministry of

ICT. For 5 years at CSI, Samuelle

oversaw implementation of 30 IT

projects in Southern Africa.

Samuelle then co-founded Aura

Group in 2013. This is a pan-African

ICT services and solutions company,

where he remains as business

development director to date.

Samuelle is a holder of the ACCA

Advanced Diploma in Accounting

and Business, and is in the final

stages of completing a BSc. (Hon) in

Applied Accounting as well as the

professional stage of ACCA.

Facebook Quiz:

Win lunch with a

CEO

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Competition and you could win

a lunch with a CEO who could

teach you a few lessons in

Business.

Simply go to the SME

BusinessLink page on

Facebook, Like it and then

answer these three questions:

1. What do you enjoy most

about BusinessLink

magazine?

2. What type of articles would

you want to see more of?

3. What can we improve on to

make it a better magazine?

First Draw will be on

Wednesday 16 July, at 12pm.

Don’t miss it on Facebook as

you could be a winner.


In an economic

crunch the Client is

King

By Takudzwa Madzikanda

I remember a time when Agency

was King. We had the prerogative to

determine our fees and to dictate

our work to the consumer. In those

times, the most adventurous and

daring work came to light.

Those times are under threat and

this is not just the case in my

country, but it is being witnessed

throughout the world as Clients

continually reduce marketing

budgets to remain in business,

assuming that the one area they can

cut is marketing because more often

than not its effects are not

immediately appreciated.

What this has meant is that we

are all continuously in a battle

against our own competitors (Other

agencies; both brick & mortar and

briefcase) for the same ever-

reducing client pool. This has

allowed the locus of control to

switch to the Client who suddenly

has option B – Z to choose from, as

opposed to simply using our

services.

The biggest question is, how do

we usurp the King?

Let us look at the problem from

the source. There is a battle within

the halls of our clients’ offices

between Marketing and Finance,

where marketing (which is not a

revenue generating department) is

constantly asking for money and

trying their best to insist that they

are actually part of Sales (a revenue

generating department).

I strongly believe that this is the

core of the problem; connecting

marketing and sales to the extent

that the failure of the one is directly

attributed to the other. What this

means is that a reduction in sales,

leads to a reduction in the

marketing budget of many

organisations.

What I am constantly trying to

explain to my Clients is that

something worth doing is worth

doing well. There is a point where

you begin to simply waste money,

because you are not reaching the

requisite communications

thresholds. Unfortunately, finance

will not see this and will instead

simply say that Marketing is not

generating results.

What they fail to take into

consideration is the fact that many

consumer products companies

spend 50% or more of their net

revenue on launching new offerings

for instance.

This means that both marketing

and their finance departments need

to determine by how much and how

quickly they want their brands to

grow.

Typically, a company should

spend around 5% of their total


revenue on marketing to maintain

their current position.

Companies looking to grow or

gain greater market share should

budget a higher percentage—

usually around 10 percent.

However, during economic

crunches, marketing costs will

always be high, around 20-50%.

So how do we usurp the King? Is

it by improved creativity? Improved

costing? Or is the situation so dire

that we need to improve our own

agency business models in order to

remain viable and profitable under

the rule of the King. From my

experience, it is a combination of all

three.

The work that we produce needs

to be more creative, our media

plans need to be more targeted and

relevant and at a lower fee.

However, we cannot mass

produce creativity like a Model T

Ford conveyor belt; instead we need

to answer the call for more nuanced

communications solutions by

increasing the total amount of

income that accedes to agency in

every job that we do.

We need to get out of our ATL

comfort zones and start looking at

ourselves as Communications

specialists and not Mad-Men, and

begin to offer holistic services that

transcend all areas of marketing….

Then, and only then can we, at the

very least, be in line to the throne.

Takudzwa

Madzikanda

Account

Manager at

Adrenalin

Advertising &

Design

Consultants


Digital Marketing:

The Advent of a

Era in Marketing

By Trust Gumise

ago the word

INTERNET

was

considered

as a first

but now with over 4 million people

having access to internet via mobile

networks in Zimbabwe, the truth is

the internet is HERE to STAY.

With the advent of the internet

many entrepreneurs have come to

realise the power the INTERNET has

in successfully growing bus

There are a number of tools that

are being incorporated into the day

to-day running of businesses but

one that stands out is DIGITAL

MARKETING.

DIGITAL MARKETING is the

promotion of products or brands via

one or more forms of electronic

media. Digital marketing differs

from traditional marketing in that it

involves the use of channels and

methods that enable an

organization to analyze marketing


arketing:

dvent of a New

arketing

Ten years

ago the word

INTERNET

was

considered

as a first

world tool

not to

ever be

embraced

by our

society,

million people

having access to internet via mobile

networks in Zimbabwe, the truth is

the internet is HERE to STAY.

With the advent of the internet

many entrepreneurs have come to

realise the power the INTERNET has

in successfully growing businesses.

There are a number of tools that

are being incorporated into the day-

day running of businesses but

one that stands out is DIGITAL

DIGITAL MARKETING is the

promotion of products or brands via

one or more forms of electronic

media. Digital marketing differs

from traditional marketing in that it

involves the use of channels and

organization to analyze marketing

campaigns and understand what is

working and what isn’t

real time.

Digital marketing is often referred

to as 'online marketing' or 'internet

marketing'. The term 'digital

marketing' has grown in popularity

over time, particularly in certain

countries.

The new in-thing in marketing is

digital marketing. With digital

marketing it is easier to reach a

crowd of potential clients as the

internet is not defined by

geographical borders. Amongst the

media used in this form of

marketing, the most

FACEBOOK.

Most big brands have adopted

the use of Facebook pages to grow

their client base and

their brands. It is with th

realization that the internet and all

the various media that are a part of

it are being consumed on a daily

basis by a clientele that is slowly

getting addicted to using the

internet for minimal tasks.

Another advantage of e

Marketing is the significant cost

cutting it brings. Traditional

marketing required the use of

significant chunks of

whole lot of material had to be

printed and distributors paid to

distribute it. We are in a stage, in

our economy, where companies are

trying by all means to cut costs

while at the same time maximising

2014 ||Pg 18

mpaigns and understand what is

working and what isn’t – typically in

Digital marketing is often referred

to as 'online marketing' or 'internet

marketing'. The term 'digital

marketing' has grown in popularity

over time, particularly in certain

thing in marketing is

digital marketing. With digital

marketing it is easier to reach a

crowd of potential clients as the

internet is not defined by

geographical borders. Amongst the

media used in this form of

marketing, the most popular is

Most big brands have adopted

the use of Facebook pages to grow

their client base and strengthen

s with this

ation that the internet and all

the various media that are a part of

it are being consumed on a daily

s by a clientele that is slowly

getting addicted to using the

internet for minimal tasks.

Another advantage of e-

Marketing is the significant cost

cutting it brings. Traditional

marketing required the use of

of money as a

aterial had to be

printed and distributors paid to

distribute it. We are in a stage, in

our economy, where companies are

trying by all means to cut costs

while at the same time maximising


on sales, and e-Marketing is proving

the perfect tool to achieve that end.

Other media used are websites,

emails, twitter, LinkedIn. A safer bet

for any company will be to invest on

a good website and then use social

networking sites to drive traffic to

their website (where meaningful

business transactions can occur) via

the use of links

Two different forms of digital

marketing exist:

In pull digital marketing, the

consumer actively seeks the

marketing content, often via web

searches or opening an email, text

message or feed. Websites, blogs

and streaming media (audio and

video) are examples of pull digital

marketing. In each of these, users

have to navigate to the website to

view the content. Only current web

browser technology is required to

maintain static content. Search

engine optimization is one tactic

used to increase activity. In 2003,

Martin et al. found that consumers

prefer special sales and new product

information, whereas "interesting"

content was not useful.

In push digital marketing the

marketer sends a message without

the recipient actively seeking the

content, such as display advertising

on websites and news blogs. Email,

text messaging and web feeds can

also be classified as push digital

marketing when the recipient has

not actively sought the marketing

message.

Some of the latest developments

include:

1. Segmentation: more focus has

been placed on segmentation within

digital marketing, in order to target

specific markets in both business to

business and business to consumer

sectors.

2. Influencer marketing:

Important nodes are identified

within related communities, known

as influencers. This is becoming an

important concept in digital

targeting. It is possible to reach

influencers via paid advertising,

such as Facebook or Google Ad

sense campaigns, or through

sophisticated sCRM (social customer

relationship management) software,

such as Microsoft Dynamics and

Sales force CRM.

In a nutshell, Pull digital

marketing is characterized by

consumers actively seeking

marketing content while Push digital

marketing occurs when marketers

send messages without that content

being actively sought by the

recipients.

Trust Gumise holds a BSc (Hon)

degree in Computer Science from

the National University of Science

and Technology and is the founder

of Gift Creative Technologies, a

Digital Business Solutions provider

based in Bulawayo. His email is

[email protected], and

phone +263 773 248 583


Brand it like James

Bond

By Chipo Mapungwana

I am an action film addict and I

confess that like millions of fans out

there, I await for every new James

Bond movie with anticipation.

James Bond has fascinated and

annoyed many millions of film

viewers in almost like measure, but

love him or hate him, the makers of

this iconic film have managed to

create a brand with millions of loyal

followers.

Why then has James Bond

become a world- wide brand,

commanding a following second

only to Harry Potter? Can marketers

learn anything at all from this movie

brand?

Bond makes us feel good about

ourselves

James Bond never loses his charm

and whether he is talking to the

scheming and conniving bad Bond

girl or elderly ladies, he is his

attentive and disarming self. A great

brand is one that fights for justice

and defeats evil in the eyes of its

consumers and in the case of

consumer brands, one that

effectively resolves problems that

consumers have.

In the end it makes us feel good

about us by enhancing our self-

concept. We love brands that are

able to make us feel special, brands

that make us feel that we are the

reason that their executives and

managers wake up and go to work

every morning and not their huge

profits or their huge salaries.

Bond knows his enemies well

James Bond is seemingly

invincible because he knows his

enemy and he intuitively figures out

his enemy’s plans. He therefore

never goes into battle unprepared,

down to the gadgets hidden all over

his person.

And so in the corporate battle

field great brands know who their

competitors are, what their

strengths and weaknesses are and

they use this information to create

for themselves, core competencies

that their competitors cannot copy,

including products and services that

appeal to the hearts and minds of

their customers.

Bond has a great image

Many of my male friends hate

James Bond. And I can understand


why. Bond looks great in …well

almost anything.. from his custom

make clothes to the occasional

wetsuit. There is no evidence of flab

and middle spread on him. And he

always gets the girl.

Some of the world’s most

valuable brands have created great

images over time and brand

identities that we have come to

connect with , to know well and

love. Even as the brands have

evolved, we continue to use them

because we identify with their

brand image.

Bond is consistent

“Martini, shaken, not stirred”.

Throughout 50 years of Bond

movies, we have heard James Bond

say this line. While the years have

rolled by, the cars and the gadgets

have changed, the leading men and

women have changed, but the

image of the ruggedly handsome,

charming, manly and deadly spy has

not changed, the story line is almost

predictable and the villain is never

likable.

Great brands that have remained

consistent over time while keeping

up to date with their customers’

changing expectations and needs,

continue to command patronage.

Those brands that have tried to

change so drastically that customers

could no longer identify with them

and or have not been able to keep

up to date with their customers,

have unfortunately fallen along the

way or lost their customer base.

Bond is a great communicator

Bond always knows what to say,

even when he is in a near death

situation. He never loses his cool.

Great brands know how to engage

their customers and communicate

with them at their point of need.

They inform, probe, question,

entertain and keep their customers

informed about their products and

services.

Bond makes mistakes but we

forgive him

To err is human and Bond

sometimes makes choices that we

question. He has frequently found

himself in situations where he has

been thoroughly overpowered. Even

great brands miss the mark many

times , but because of the

reputational bank account of good

will they have built over years, we

forgive them and support them to

get back on track.

To the utter dismay of some of

my friends, I shall join the millions of

fans who will go and watch the next

James Bond movie when it lands on

our screens, if only to experience

the James Bond brand of movie

magic. Love him, hate him, James

Bond can teach marketers a thing or

two about branding.

Chipo

Mapungwana

Founder and

Editor in Chief at

The CEO Magazine,

Zimbabwe


Networking: How to Start and Hold

Productive Conversations

I remember it clearly because it was in the month of July. A group of us from

an all boys school had been invited to attend the Bastille Day (French

Independence day- 14th

July) celebrations at a neighbouring all girls school. We

were all jovial and sharing exciting stories while in our group; until a teacher

ordered us to separate and mix up with the girls.

Trying to be brave, I went to one young lady and said hello.

“Hie,” she replied. I kept on looking at her trying to quickly think of

something interesting to say, but nothing came out from my mouth. After what

seemed like an hour, the young lady asked, “So, what’s your name?”

I replied, but I was already embarrassed to be the one being asked. The

arrival of my mates saved the day, but it was one of those occasions where you

wonder what happened to your normally high confidence.

Later on, as I started attending and hosting networking events (through the

BusinessLink Networking Club) I noticed many people acting awkwardly whilst

trying to start conversations with strangers. It is common for one to struggle to

think of something to say to a new person and we sometimes miss an

opportunity to soar professionally, socially or even romantically as we grapple

through with poor conversation starting skills.


Here are some tips I have learned

from experience and from other

people over the years to help all

those struggling with starting and

keeping a conversation going

entertainingly.

Small Talk

People dismiss small talk as

superficial and boring. People are

wrong. Small talk is an essential part

of the social contract. It allows us to

engage and identify common

ground with safe, low-risk topics.

One way to make conversation?

Ask open-ended questions that

invite people to tell stories, rather

than give bland, one-word answers:

Instead of these...

"How was your day?"

"Where are you from?"

"What do you do?"

"What's your name?"

"How was your weekend?"

"How are you?"

"What's up?"

Try these...

"Tell me three unlikely things you

did today."

"What's the strangest thing about

where you grew up?"

"What does your name mean?" (If

they say, "I don't know," reply,

"What would you like it to mean?")

"What are you looking forward to

this week?"

"Who do you think is the luckiest

person in this room?"

"What does this house remind

you of?"

"If you could fly, where would

you go right now?"

"Hi, I don't know too many

people here, so I wanted to

introduce myself. I'm [name] and I

work at [company]." And bam—you

got it.

“So, what do you do?" gets them

talking first and you can think about

how to approach the conversation

or how you could possibly work

together.

Location, Location, Location

No matter what, you've got at

least a couple things in common

with every person in the room: the

event you're attending, the place it's

being held at, and the food and

drink you're consuming. Use that to

your advantage by striking up

conversation about what's going on

around you.

Great for Introverts

If you're an introvert, walking into

a room full of unknown people can

feel extra intimidating.

One great approach is to look

toward the outskirts of the room

and find someone who looks a little

lonely. Maybe that woman sitting by

herself at the table doesn’t know

anyone and is just hoping that

someone will come talk to her. Be

that person, and try one of these

lines.

“Man, these networking events

can be so crazy. Mind if I join you


over here where it’s a little

quieter?”

Information Quest

Ask a group of people how many

cars are in this country. No one will

know, so insist that they guess. Ten

thousand? Alex, what do you think?

Eight thousand? Tanya, you say one

million? Any other guesses?

Pause dramatically before you

reveal the answer, and then say,

"Actually, I have no idea." Then

discuss how you might construct an

answer based on only the things you

do know. No Googling.

No more talk

Like too many bowls of ice cream,

too much of a good conversation

can ruin the initial delight and cause

you to vomit ice cream. Having

mastered the art of starting the

chat, you must now learn to stop

once the time has come. Spoken

with confidence, these words will

get you out of any exchange: It's

been so nice talking with you. Then

fake-faint until the other person

walks away.


How to make money online in Zimbabwe: 6

Local Case-studies

By Tinashe Nyaruwanga

Last year I wrote an article, “Predicting

an Ecommerce Boom in Zimbabwe” and

fortunately the events and firsts such as

the launching of locally based and home

grown payment gateways such as

Pay4App, Zimswitch’s VPayments, as well

as the many ecommerce websites being

launched gave credence to my thoughts

and expectations. Now I am more than

convinced that 2014 will be a tipping

point and watershed moment for Ecom-

merce in Zimbabwe and that you need to

be part of the equation and make some money from the boom as well.

When the internet craze hit in Zimbabwe in the early 2000, most techies or

as there were then referred to as then geeks in Zimbabwe started creating

websites and monetized them by placing banner ads. That was as far as it

went, however, there are now quite a number of models available. Let’s

explore how some enterprising Zimbabweans are making their money online.

#1 Consultancy – Max Soutter One of the not so difficult ways to make money using the web is to use your

website to get consultancy gigs. One person doing a great job at this and has

managed to carve a niche for himself is Max Soutter.

Max Soutter’s Web-

site Screenshot

With his BizSet Blog

Max has acquired more

than 6000 email sub-

scribers for his mailing

list and has built a large

following on social

media which he uses to promote the consultancy side of his business.


#2 Subscription – Zimbabwe Classifieds Webdev’s Zimbabwe online classifieds have built a large and popular online

market place in Zimbabwe.

Classifieds.co.zw website screenshot

The website is so popular that it is Zimbabwe’s most visited website accord-

ing to an article done by Creative Loop which quoted Alexa.com. Webdev’s

strategy is simple they charge companies and individuals to set up personalised

Store Fronts to sell their goods and services.

#3 Speaking and EBooks – Rabison Shumba

Rabison Shumba selling books from his website

Many motivational speakers and trainers have used the traditional media to

write articles and generate publicity for themselves, however, there is now a

new breed that has incorporated new media such as social networking sites

and websites to promote themselves. One such is Rabison Shumba a Keynote

and Motivational Speaker who uses his website to promote his personal brand

and sell his books. He sells his books on his website via a link from Amazon.


#4 Content – Zimbokitchen Similarly to Rabison Shumba, Zimbokitchen uses their website as a platform

to promote their content which is mainly Zimbabwean traditional recipes,

online shop as well as Ebooks.

Zimbokitchen’s website screenshot

#5 Advertising – Front Row Zim This is one of the most common monetisation models in Zimbabwe, and one

that most international websites such as Huffingtonpost, Mashable rely on.

The strategy is simple you focus on attracting tons of traffic which makes your

blog or website an attractive platform for advertising.

Front Row Zim’s website screenshot

FrontRowZim is one of the many Zimbabwean websites that are using

this model.


#6 Sell Products – Zimbogini If there is any good thing to come out of the current Economic meltdown in

Zimbabwe is that everyone has been turned into a seller and most people have

added selling as an additional revenue stream. The internet offers a viable and

profitable way to do that.

Zimbogini Ecommerce Website’s Screenshot

Zimbogini is one such websites and it has to be one of the most exciting E-

commerce retail shops to come out of Zimbabwe. Zimbogini sells groceries and

delivers door to door in urban areas and post offices in rural areas. They use

Ecocash, VPayments and as well as Mastercards and prepaid cards for

accepting payments.

Take Home Points

As you have seen making money online is not rocket science and with the

many online tools available it has even become easier. The ball is now firmly in

your court, for some it might be starting from scratch, for others maybe its

simply looking for adverts for your already popular blog or even packaging con-

tent that is on your blog into an E-book.

Tinashe

Nyaruwanga is a

marketing and

social blogger at

tinashenyaruwanga.com.


12 Excel Tricks to Expedite Common

Chores

From TechRepublic magazine

The business world is full of users who have neither the opportunity nor the

inclination to figure out Excel's shortcuts. They end up wasting a lot of time

because they just don't know the smartest ways to work with spreadsheet

data. Here are some highly u

boost productivity.

Excel Tip No. 1: Automatically SUM() with ALT + =

Quickly add an entire column or row by clicking in the first empty cell in the

column. Then enter ALT + ‘=' (equals key) to add up

above.

Excel Tip No. 2: Logic for Number Formatting Keyboard Shortcuts

At times keyboard shortcuts seem random, but there is logic behind them.

Let's break an example down. To format a number as a currency the shortcut is

CRTL + SHIFT + 4.

Both the SHIFT and 4 keys seem random, but they're intentionally used

because SHIFT + 4 is the dollar sign ($). Therefore if we want to format as a

currency, it's simply: CTRL + ‘$' (where the dollar sign is SHIFT + 4). The same is

true for formatting a number as a percent.

Excel Tip No. 3: Display Formulas with CTRL + `

When you're troubleshooting misbehaving numbers first look at the

formulas. Display the formula used in a cell by hitting just two keys: Ctrl + `

(known as the acute accent

with the number keys. When shifted it is the tilde (~).


cks to Expedite Common

From TechRepublic magazine




data. Here are some highly useful tips that can streamline typical tasks and

Excel Tip No. 1: Automatically SUM() with ALT + =


column. Then enter ALT + ‘=' (equals key) to add up the numbers in every cell







formatting a number as a percent.

Excel Tip No. 3: Display Formulas with CTRL + `



(known as the acute accent key) – this key is furthest to the left on the row

with the number keys. When shifted it is the tilde (~).

2014 ||Pg 29

cks to Expedite Common




seful tips that can streamline typical tasks and


the numbers in every cell









this key is furthest to the left on the row


Excel Tip No. 4: Jump to the Start or End of a Column Keyboard Shortcut

You are thousands of rows deep into your data set and need to get to the

first or last cell. Scrolling is OK but the quickest way is to use the keyboard

shortcut CTRL + ↑ to jump to the top cell, or CTRL + ↓ to drop to the last cell

before an empty cell.

When you combine this shortcut with the SHIFT key, you'll select a

continuous block of cells from your original starting point.

Excel Tip No. 5: Repeat a Formula to Multiple Cells

Never type out the same formula over and over in new cells again. This trick

populates all of the cells in a column with the same formula, but adjusts to use

the data specific to each row.

Create the formula you need in the first cell. Then move your cursor to the

lower right corner of that cell and, when it turns into a plus sign, double click to

copy that formula into the rest of the cells in that column. Each cell in the

column will show the results of the formula using the data in that row.

Excel Tip No. 6: Add or Delete Columns Keyboard Shortcut

Managing columns and rows in your spreadsheet is an all-day task. Whether

adding or deleting, you can save a little time when you use this keyboard

shortcut. CTRL + ‘-‘ (minus key) will delete the column your cursor is in and

CTRL + SHIFT + ‘=' (equal key) will add a new column. From an earlier tip, think

about CTRL + ‘+' (plus sign).

Excel Tip No. 7: Adjust Width of One or Multiple Columns

It's easy to adjust a column to the width of its content and get rid of those

useless ##### entries. Click on the column's header, move your cursor to the

right side of the header and double click when it turns into a plus sign.

Excel Tip No. 8: Copy a Pattern of Numbers or Even Dates

Another amazing feature built into Excel is its ability to recognize a pattern

in your data, and allow you to automatically copy it to other cells. Simply enter

information in two rows which establish the pattern, highlight those rows and

drag down for as many cells as you want to populate. This works with

numbers, days of the week or months!

Excel Tip No. 9: Tab Between Worksheets

Jumping from worksheet to worksheet doesn't mean you have to move your

hand off the keyboard with this cool shortcut. To change to the next worksheet


to the right enter CTRL + PGDN. And conversely change to the worksheet to

the left by entering CTRL + PGUP.

Excel Tip No. 10: Double Click Format Painter

Format Painter is a great tool which lets you duplicate a format in other cells

with no more effort than a mouse click. Many Excel users (Outlook, Word and

PowerPoint too) use this handy feature, but did you know you can double-click

Format Painter to copy the format into multiple cells? It's quite a time-saver.

Excel Tip No.11: Transpose data from a row to a column, or vice-versa

Here's a tip that eliminates the need to rekey data. Suppose you've entered

your data in a row but now want it in a column.

You'll find the best solution under the Paste Special menu. Start by selecting

and copying your entire data range. Click on a new location in your sheet, then

go to Edit | Paste Special and select the Transpose check box. Click OK, and

Excel will transpose the column and row labels and data.

Excel Tip No.12: Fast navigation.

When you press [Ctrl] and any arrow key (north, east, south, or west), you

jump to the last populated cell in that direction. Think of using the [Ctrl]-arrow

key shortcut as an alternative to pressing [Page Down] to find the bottom row

of a data set or pressing [Tab] to find the last column. Bonus tip: Hold down

the [Shift] key while you press any [Ctrl]-arrow key shortcut to select all the

cells between where you are and where you jump with the [Ctrl] key.

Any tricks you know of that we have left out? Please share by emailing

[email protected].

Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others. — Jack Welch


The Best Snacks To Eat At Your Desk

By Jacquelyn Smith, Business Insider

These snacks will give you a boost of energy and help you stay productive all

day long.

What you eat all day doesn't just impact your health and weight; it affects

your productivity, too.

"If you eat high fat, high sugar meals and snacks you will be sleepy and have

low energy overall," says Lisa De Fazio, a healthy lifestyle expert and registered

dietitian. "High fat foods take more work to digest. Candy causes sugar to spike

in your blood stream then crash, and you also may have an upset stomach.

Who can be productive with all of this going on?"

But, unfortunately, she says, many people tend to make bad eating

decisions during the workday.

"Boredom and stress often lead to mindless snacking on things like sweets

and chips," De Fazio explains.

Time--or lack thereof--also plays a part. "One of the reasons people don't

stick to their healthy eating resolutions of bringing their own homemade

prepared food, rather than ordering or eating out, is because of a lack of time,"

explains Nicole Maftoum, a Lebanese clinical dietitian. "In a fast-paced world,

fast food comes as the optimum solution."

Maftoum says sleep deprivation also affects appetite and pushes one to eat

twice the amount of calories that they'd typically consume in a day.

The experts say all of these factors make it easy for us to develop bad eating

habits at work--but they're terrible excuses. Luckily, there are plenty of quick,

easy, and inexpensive healthy snack options.

Almonds: Almonds are a great source

of protein and healthy fat that is

satisfying. "They contain nine essential

nutrients; have the highest rate of

proteins when compared to other nuts;

have the highest rate of fiber (3.5g per

23 pieces) when compared to other nuts;

are rich in Vitamin E (23 pieces provide

35% of the daily value of Vitamin E); and

contain monounsaturated fats that help

increase HDL levels," Maftoum says.


Low-fat Popcorn: This low-calorie snack

will satisfy your craving for something

salty and crunchy, and it’s also a good

source of fiber, De Fazio says.

Fresh Fruit: Fruits are packed with

vitamins and minerals, and are full of great

natural sweetness, Maftoum says. "They

are also a great source of antioxidants

needed for a stronger immune system and

a better performance at work."

Dried Fruit: Fresh fruit is always a great

snack option — but if you want to mix

things up, try dried apricots, raisins, apples,

or bananas. These snacks are sweet, chewy,

high in fiber, and high in potassium.

Dry Cereal: The brain draws nearly all its

energy from glucose, which is the most

important simple sugar in human

metabolism, Maftoum explains.

"Consumption of low glycemic index foods

like bran flakes will release glucose at a slow

rate in the bloodstream, which will

minimize blood sugar swings and optimize

brainpower and mental focus."

Frozen Banana: This is a great substitute

to ice cream, which is rich in sugar and fat.

A medium-sized banana contains the

needed amount of glucose by the brain to

perform at its best.


Hard-boiled Egg: This is an excellent

source of protein, which will satisfy

hunger and stabilize blood sugars. But be

aware of the offensive smell! Eat your

hard-boiled egg in the office kitchen.

Tomato Juice: Sometimes when you

think you are hungry or crave sugar, you

are actually thirsty, De Fazio explains.

Next time this happens, try drinking a

can of low sodium tomato or vegetable

juice.

Yogurt: Many yogurts are made

using "good bacteria," which is great

for your digestive tract. Yogurt also

contains probiotics, and offers

protein, calcium, vitamins, potassium,

and magnesium.

Apples and Peanut Butter: The

apple provides fiber and

carbohydrates for energy, while the

peanut butter (you can also use

almond butter) provides healthy

monounsaturated fat and protein,

which stabilizes blood sugar ups and

downs. "This snack is so tasty and

satisfying and will hold you over for a

few hours," De Fazio says.

IMAGES: socialeurope/Flickr, Flickr


Breakfast with

Chomi Makina:

Relationships are

crucial to business

success

Excerpts from Mr.Makina’

presentation

“There is no one formula for

success. Each person has his own

journey and his own way of doing

things. Don’t just follow others

without looking at your own

strengths and talents.

In the past ten years I have been

in business, I have found that

people do business with people

they know and people they like. I

attended a training workshop by an

organization called 95% Market

Share Inc. They have excellent

training methods which build upon

this principle. If people don’t like

you, don’t like your business, they

will not buy your products.

According to Jim Niekamp of 95%

Market Share, you will succeed if

you build customers for a lifetime to

buy all your products, and tell their

friends.

If someone approaches me and

says Mr. Makina, I have this

business proposal, if it is someone I

know and like, I will listen. That is

why it is important to network,

meet people and build

relationships. When I started

working at Zimnat Insurance, during

my induction, I was taught that the

first cut is the deepest. The first

contact with the customer makes or

breaks a lifelong relationship. If the

customer is impressed, they will tell

their friends, and word of mouth is

the most powerful marketing

method.

Do you know your customers by

name? The best marketing

companies do some intelligence to

find out information about their

new clients. When you arrive at the

reception, you will be surprised

when you are greeted by name.

Who will not be impressed by that?

Once customers come, make sure

your products are reliable. It is

better to under promise and over

deliver. Relationship customers will

stay for a lifetime, if your products

are reliable. The best part, they will


tell their friends who will also

become lifetime customers. “

Download the full presentation at

http://smebusinesslink.com; send us

an email to get the download link.

You can also get the presentation on

CD from our office, free for Silver

Club members.

Winning Ways:

Don’t undervalue

yourself

In last month’s issue we had an

article about Chuck Wepner entitled

“What if he had surrendered?”

Well, Wepner was a boxer who

fought bravely. He became know as

the “Bayone bleeder” because he

never gave up no matter how much

bashing he took. After his match

with Heavy Weight Champion

Muhammad Ali in 1975, which he

lost after almost knocking out Ali in

the ninth round, Wepner received

$100,000, a lot more money than

he had ever touched in his life.

When his story was turned into a

movie, the academy award winning

Rocky, Wepner was hired as a

consultant. He was offered a choice

of either one percent of the movie’s

takings or a once off $70,000 fee.

Wepner accepted the cash offer.

However he lost out on $8 million

dollars, as the movie went on to

gross $800 million. Today, Chuck

Wepner lives in Bayone and works

as a liquor salesman. This is what

happens when you sell yourself

short.

To win with people, you must be

a winner yourself, or at least be on

your way to becoming one. You

cannot give others what you don’t

have. You cannot take people

further than you have travelled

yourself.

Being a winner comes down to

one thing, your value. Winners are

valuable, ask any star athlete who

has just signed a multimillion dollar

deal. However, true winning has

nothing to do with your

performance, salary or earning

capacity. It has all to do with your

value, whether or not you have

owned it. When you embrace your

personal value, when you are

secure in who you are, then you are

a winner.

Act to increase your value so that

you can be useful to others. Identify

your insecurities and bad habits to

break and make a plan for self

improvement. Maximize your value

by changing those things that you

can. Each of us can improve

ourselves once we decide to.

To be continued in next month’s

issue.

Extracted from John Maxwell’s

“21 Ways to Win with People”, a

Nielsen Business audio book.


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business link magazine july 2014 issue

Small Business & Entrepreneurship

streamline typical tasks

upcoming stock investor

automated trading system

revenue generating department

started buying shares

central securities depository

meet financial markets

de fazio explains