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Testimonials
"TimeFox is a lifesaver!"
Liz LaJoy
CEA Marketing Group
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"At my agency we have been able to invoice about 15-20% more to the client, since we started to use TimeFox, just the system we needed to make our AD agency run well."
Christian Ramsgaard
Ramsgaard design studio Aps
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"We are now able to provide our clients with a thorough time record, accounting for all of their individual projects, and I can make sure our company's budgets are on track with the click of a mouse."
Tara Goodwin Frier
Goodwin Group
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FunctionFox is committed to helping small creative companies improve their business. TimeFox, our simple time and project tracking system, helps small advertising, design, marketing and public relations firms manage their business and do more with their valuable time.
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Survey: How are you managing your business during the recession?
Feature Article: Benefits of Responding Well to a Downturn
FunctionFox Webinar Series: Removing the Blocks to Creative Thinking
Contact FunctionFox
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Survey: How are you managing your business during the recession?
Interested in learning how other creative professionals are managing in the current economy?
Complete our 4 minute survey online and find out.
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Benefits of Responding Well to a Downturn
by David C. Baker
The heady days of automatic success are long gone, and since late 2001, marketing firms we run across
have achieved success the old fashioned way: they've earned it. I would even argue that the leanness
many firms have experienced has been good for them.
Why, you say? Sometimes it's only the inevitability of your situation that provides the courage to make
those tough choices. When you later look back on the decisions you are making now, you might realize
that this period was a watershed that set you on a path of great prosperity. The vast majority of our clients
have found that to be the case.
Not to get too philosophical here, but in my own experience the things I am most confident about now
are the things that I struggled about earlier. Failing in the trenches has taught me invaluable lessons.
In fact, I tend to coast when things are going well. It's pleasant and relaxing when there is no financial
pressure, but my life does not typically improve any more than incrementally when that is the case.
In your case, these good things that emerge from leanness might help you thrive...eventually. And
here's what I mean.
Better Client Base. Your first tendency in a lean environment is to take any work you can get. You
then might compound that first mistake by making another: keeping staff in order to lose money
servicing clients who aren't a good match. Even though it seems counter intuitive, don't ignore profitability
just for the sake of cashflow. That fallacy is partly how you got here in the first place. You've
got to be choosier, and there is no better time to start. If you must cut staff, just for cash reasons
alone, you will soon face capacity issues as your frantic marketing efforts pay off. When that happens,
pare your client base back even further before adding staff. And that's the point. You'll be more careful
about adding employees, choosing instead to cycle clients.
Better Employee Base. You probably grew up hearing the notion that last hired equals first fired. That
might be integral to some union contracts, but it's not a good way to do business in a creative services
environment. Dismiss people purely on the basis of what you need and how suited they are to meet
that need, and in so doing you will raise the average competency level of your staff. In an environment
where work is falling off the trucks you tend to overlook performance issues because you are struggling
with getting the work done in the first place. Not so when things are lean.
Better Teamwork. Want to find out what people are made of? Go through tougher times when the
difference between selfish and unselfish choices is more apparent. Some people will surprise you and
some won't, but there will be no mystery about who is fair, hardworking, and committed for the long
haul.
Better Prospective Employee Pool. When it does come time to add an employee, either through attrition
or from your renewed growth, there will be more good choices than during a time of economic
strength. Salaries will not be as high, "attitudes" will be less prevalent, and great candidates will be
more
This article has been provided by ReCourses. For more information, please visit their web site at
http://www.recourses.com
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Removing the Blocks to Creative Thinking
Presented By RaShelle S. Roberts, Creative Coach and Founder, inVision
Thursday March 19, 2009
2 PM Eastern | 11AM Pacific (what time is that in my time zone?)
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Free 30 minute webinar with 15 minute Q+A following.
It's not always a lack of creativity that keeps us from delivering our best work. Instead, it's usually the blocks or barriers that stand between us and our ability to perform at an optimal level. Join us as RaShelle teaches how to identify these distractions and eliminate them, so your creative thinking and talents can help you develop your very best efforts - both for your clients and for your career.
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March 2009
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