John Edwards Doesn't Have What It Takes

The recent downfall of John Edwards reminds us all that what you see is not necessarily what you get. Despite our many differences, he and I grew up singing the same hymns and hearing the same sermons. While Edwards was in a Baptist church in the South, I was hearing my Louisiana-born father preaching in Southern California where he had moved our family to follow God's call for his life.

Of course, we all have feet of clay, but it is an extreme disappointment to see one who banks his entire future on his reputation act so selfishly and then lie as if the rules don't apply to him. Unlike Edwards, small business owners can't lie over and over because we can't afford to take our reputations for granted. We are too close to our employees and customers, and we know that to earn their respect and business requires our daily personal and professional vigilence. Contrast this to a description of Edwards in the New York Observer. Even though Edwards has run in many campaigns, he has won very few votes but he keeps popping up as if he was a winner. This is what I call the fake-it-'til-you-make-it strategy.

As small business owners, we may be able to launch our business with fake-it-'til-you-make-it strategy, but we quickly learn the truth of running a successful business. If we don't start delivering real products and services to customers and collecting real dollars, we won't be able to keep those customers coming back. And, because we know the value of our reputation, we wouldn't think of disappointing the people to whom we owe our success.

Cafe Pilon is owned by the sons of Enrique Souto. In Cuba he built a coffee roasting business that was stolen from him when Castro took over his beloved homeland. Enrique fled to Miami where he started over with young sons who soon were old enough to help him. Today they have the largest Cuban coffee roasting company in the world. With nearly $100 million in annual sales, the sons all told me that the greatest lesson they learned from their father was that their name--their reputation--was their only true asset.

Whether it's politics or business, the universal truth is that reputation matters more than products, services or accomplishments. John Edwards doesn't have what it takes to run a business for many reasons but the biggest one is that he threw away what Mr. Souto would consider his most valuable asset. Without that, what's left isn't really much at all.

The Opposite of Paris Hilton

Paris Hilton is back thanks to John McCain. It just proves that in the world of marketing, you can get a lift--or a blow--from some pretty unexpected places. When John McCain used a two-second image of her in an ad, that ad received major buzz. Quickly Paris used the free marketing McCain gave her and turned the two seconds into hours and hours of self-promotion.

Most small business owners don't have much in common with Paris Hilton when it comes to promoting themselves. There are 17 million one-person companies in the U.S. and in those businesses, a bit like Paris, the owner is the brand. We've all seen the local celebrity car dealer owners who do their own TV commercials, and are more recognizable than the car brands they sell. However, self-promotion is not the path taken by most strong owners. Why? Because it is can prevent you from growing your business in ways that benefit customers and you.

Most companies that consistently deliver for customers year after year are run by owners who focus on others, not themselves. And consciously or not, they have learned what Paris knows very well: what they're really selling. A great customer service experience? A product that meets a unique customer need? Innovative and creative resources to help others solve their business problems?

One owner we know is just as good looking as Paris. He has a big, quick smile and when he walks in the room people are happy to see him. Lupe Fraga built an office supply business from nothing to more than $50 million in annual revenue by promoting his team's service, not himself. Understanding what it is that customers really want and delivering it consistently is the best promotion you can do for your business.