Politics

What, or who, is not impacted by politics? Arguably, even the wine you drink is a decanter of politics going down your throat, gulp by gulp. In his book, Wine Politics, Tyler Colman makes the argument that “government, environmentalists, mobsters and critics influence the wine we drink.” It should not come as a big surprise that the wine business is mired in politics. Wine making in the U.S. alone is a $25 billion dollar industry. Globally, the wine industry is in the region of $240 billion dollars with the Chinese market rallying hard for global dominance in a decade or so. That is why there are so many stakeholders. With the kind of cash flow involved, how could it ever be free from the influences of “politicians?”

Small businesses are not free from the influences of politicians either. Small business owners have to be very mindful of their politics, as a matter of fact. In making the argument that small businesses have to mind their politics, I am not really talking about who you will vote for in the next presidential elections, although, that is a part of it. After all, both Barack Obama and John McCain indicate that they have strong ideas of the roll small businesses will play in the economy, the extent to which they will be taxed, and the amount of federal aid they can expect in the years to come. In this context, a small business owner’s politics might be influenced by a candidate’s take on such things as taxes, immigration, healthcare, funding and other matters such as job creation and recession. So it is important to be active in that process, as to do so is a small business owner's way of protecting their interests.

But what I am really talking about with this blog entry is the politics of doing business – and the extent to which a small business practices good politics with customers/clients and prospects as a part of their strategy for growth and profitability.

What is meant by "practice good politics." Well, for one thing, a small business has to have good PR with clients and competitors. There is such a thing as bad publicity and bad PR when you are a small business. Depending on what the issue is, negative PR can actually destroy your business. That is why the small business owner may want to think about their political strategy as it relates to not only their customers, but also to the competitors, the media, and their environment.

A small business must understand how to attract and keep customers, what to say, how to present their products and services to optimize the number of positive responses and ultimately, the small business owner must understand the sheer dollars and cents that are generated by their politics. Is it a game? Yes.

Good politics involves leadership, likeability, customer service, product proliferation and availability, quality of services and products, strong social and economic networks, crisis management, cost benefit analysis, knowledge and information, sharing values, work ethic, pricing, proper exercise of power, accountability and transparency.

In a sense, every small business, even if it is a vineyard in Napa or Bordeaux that distributes 500 bottles per year, should think of itself as a spa. That's right. A spa. It should think of itself as the Ananda Spa in the Himalyas. Or better yet, the Pezula Spa in Knysna, South Africa. Have you been there? Me neither. But I hear it is a thesis in "business politics." Pezula is situated on the coast of the Indian Ocean between soaring cliffs and the Knysna Lagoon. I am told that it will surely demonstrate rather than explicate how small businesses practices good politics, why it is important to do so, and how profitable it can be.