Complete One’s Top 3 Tips to More Engaging Meetings

Following a recent study that reported 46 per cent of workers would rather do anything else than attend a meeting, Complete One offer their top three tips on how to make meetings more engaging.

In a recent Harris poll, sponsored by the online collaboration company Clarizen, 46% of respondents said they’d prefer to do almost anything else instead of sitting in a meeting. 17% said they would choose to watch paint dry and 8% said they would opt for a root canal! But even worse than this, Complete One were shocked to discover that, on average, these people were spending 4 hours a week in these meetings and 4.6 hours a week preparing for them. This means that these meetings cost the average company one day a week of work time per employee.

Complete One says that this does not mean meetings should be abolished, they believe meetings are fundamental in business, but there’s nothing to say they have to be boring. By making meetings more engaging and interactive, they will get done in half the time and attendees will actually leave feeling inspired rather than drained, claims Glen Lowes, Managing Director of Complete One.

Complete One has offered their three top tips to improving meetings:

Try collaboration software
Collaboration or project management software, or even a large spreadsheet on the wall, would allow every member of the team to see the status of every other member’s projects whenever they wanted. This would save a lot of time over meetings or having teams write up reports.

Meet standing up
This technique forces participants to keep their comments short because no one wants to spend hours on their feet. A further benefit is that standing will improve the health of employees who would otherwise be seated all day.

Do something fun instead
The purpose of a meeting is to bring the team together so they can informally exchange ideas and information, bond, and feel and behave like a cohesive unit. By replacing a meeting with something fun every once in a while, people will be happier and possibly more motivated.

Complete One is an outsourced sales and marketing firm based in Newcastle. The firm specialises in a personalised form of marketing where they connect with consumers via face-to-face marketing methods. This leads to long-lasting and personal relationships between brand and consumer and in turn, leads to increased customer acquisition, brand awareness, and brand loyalty for their clients.

Complete One runs regular morning meetings that they believe are fun, interactive and motivating for all involved. These meetings are designed to teach participants valuable lessons that can enhance their skill sets and encourage productivity. 

Time Management Tips From Complete One

As a business owner, effective time management is one of the most important components of running a successful company. Learning to prioritise your most important tasks is a skill that can help whether it's for business or personal purposes. Complete One share our top 5 time management tips to help make your day more productive.




1/ PRIORITISE THE MOST IMPORTANT TASKS


The key factor is identifying the tasks which are most productive for you or your business. Don't waste time on tasks that aren't time sensitive or beneficial for that day. Ensuring you complete the most important tasks first will set up you for success each day.




2/ MAKE A TO DO LIST


We can often find ourselves being distracted by calls, emails or texts. Once you've identified the most important tasks, write a to do list. Having a written list in front of you will give you a clear goal. Having the ability to tick tasks off, once completed, also provides satisfaction and shows progress in getting one step closer to the end goal.




3/ SET TIME LIMITS FOR TASKS

For instance, reading and answering emails can consume your whole day if you let it. Instead, set a limit of one hour a day for this task and stick to it. Settling limits is essential, if your spend too long on one task it may leave you short on time to complete your to do list.

4/ LEARN TO DELEGATE


As much as we have the desire to do everything ourselves, as we often believe others can't do the job as well as we will, learning to delegate will free up time to focus on the most important tasks at hand.


5/ GET ENOUGH SLEEP


The human body is not a machine, we biologically need sleep to be able to function to the best of our abilities. The recommended amount of sleep for adults is a minimum of 6 hours. Plan your day to make it happen!

Upcoming Events At Complete One

There are exciting times ahead for Complete one. This coming weekend we will be attending a seminar in Glasgow, some of our business partners throughout the UK will also be in attendance. It will be an opportunity to network with some of our business partners and to also hear from people who are currently experiencing great successful in our industry. These seminars can often provide invaluable information for newcomers to our industry as well as providing further insight for people who have been around for a while and need to reignite their passion and drive for success. Our own Managing Director, Glen Lowes, has been selected to be a guest speaker which is recognition to the great start we've had to 2014.


Our MD is travelling to Las Vegas next week where he will be attending a few business meetings. The purpose of the trip is to establish new business relationships to start the ball rolling for our expansion into America in 2016 with business partner Harley Woolf.


Check back soon for lots of pictures!

Complete One Review The Benefits Of Direct Marketing

* By using Direct Marketing it enables companies to inform customers directly about new offers and promotions.

* It can be used to experiment in new markets and test new products providing information for future campaigns.

* It is more cost-effective than other marketing methods.

* It can help build a more personal relationship with customers, instilling greater consumer confidence, in turn achieving greater sales.

* It allows companies to focus on specific groups of targeted customers for better results.

* It can provide direct feedback, which in turn helps monitor and review the current marketing strategy.

* The results are quantifiable with a more accurate estimate of the conversion rate, thus helping plan for future campaigns more effectively.


The advantages to direct marketing make it an extremely attractive option for many companies who are now turning away from traditional marketing methods.  If you want to explore new marketing methods get in touch and see what Complete One can do for you.  

Complete One Examine The Effect Technology Will Have On TV Advertising?

The world in which we now live is extremely fast paced. We've become accustomed to having things done at the touch of a button. We are impatient and don't like to have to wait, the same ideology applies to Television. Why watch adverts when you now have the luxury of fast forwarding through pre recorded programmes? As more and more people are changing the way they watch TV with the introduction of platforms such as Sky Go, Sky Plus, Virgins Tivo and other alternatives, the question has to be asked, how will technology influence companies marketing?


Research shows that 86% of people fast forward through adverts when watching shows they've pre-recorded. With companies paying large sums of money on advertising campaigns, especially during prime time programming, it is inevitable they may begin to consider spending their budget on alternative marketing methods. While it is undeniable the massive impact that a TV advertisement has it also unmeasurable in terms of customer acquisition rates. A company is unable to ascertain the percentage of customers who purchased or subscribed to their products/services based on a TV advertising campaign.





“I predict that more companies will start to opt for more direct marketing strategies. How, where and when people watch TV has changed, therefore so will companies approach to advertising. One of the reasons Complete One has continued to go from strength to strength is our personalised, cost effective marketing methods. Our ability to plan and implement a direct marketing campaign in a short space of time, generating high customer acquisition rates, rapidly increasing our clients Brand Awareness and Market Share has made our business model extremely attractive to many companies .” ~ Managing Director, Glen Lowes

Complete One Study The Similarities Between Business & Sport

The back bone of every successful sports team is an incredible coach or Manager. The Manager is the one who ultimately determines how well the team performs based on planning and implementing a strategy to win! In business the responsibility falls on the shoulders of the CEO/MD. It's their vision for the company and how well they prepare and train the people working with them to attain that goal that will determine success or failure.


The people they surround themselves with and choose to work with plays a huge role. Like with any sports team, 50% of the work is done in the dressing room with the planning, preparation and training, similarly in business 50% of the work is done in the board room. It is up to the players on the field or the people working on the ground to complete the ground work that has been set and make it a success.


As with any business, money is a determining factor. The teams and companies with the biggest budget to spend are generally going to achieve the greatest success. It makes sense that if you are able to buy the greatest players or spend the most on advertising you will crush the competition. However without a great coach or Manager to give direction and guide the team, even the greatest players or business partners can find themselves lost without a purpose and cause.


2 perfect examples of great coaches/Managers who brought success to their teams:


Sir Alex Ferguson ~ He holds the record of winning Manager of the year, the most times in British football history. He spent 26 years at Manchester United and they secured 13 domestic league titles in his time at the helm.

Vincent Lombardi ~ He began coaching as an assistant and later as a head coach at St. Cecilia High School. He was an assistant coach at Fordham, at the United States Military Academy, and with the New York Giants before becoming a head coach for the Green Bay Packers from 1959 to 1967 and the Washington Red Skins in 1969. He never had a losing season as a head coach in the NFL.

The influence a great Manager can exert on a team or a CEO can impart on a company is undeniable. The figures and statistics will always speak for themselves.

“Having great determination, passion and will to win can often be just as important than ability and skill. The greatest sports stars are the ones who are the most competitive, who are driven to be the best and who will only accept finishing in first place. At Complete One we adopt the same beliefs and attitude. It is our strive for perfection that helps us to consistently perform better and achieve greater results.” ~ Managing Director Glen Lowes  

Complete One's Recommended Reading for 2014

The commencement of a New Year always brings resolutions and hope for great things. If you feel like your career is at a stand still or are just looking for some motivation to make 2014 a prosperous year for you, Managing Director Glen Lowes, has shared some of the books that helped and inspired him in 2013.


1/ "How To Win Friends And Influence People," by Dale Carnegie

It is one of the essential self help guides for anyone starting out in business. It provides insight on how to get people to like you, make good conversation, and win people over to your way of thinking, essentially giving you the basic fundamentals for succeeding in business. If you're an entrepreneur make this the first book you read this year.

2/ "Losing My Virginity: How I Survived, Had Fun, And Made A Fortune Doing Business My Way," by Richard Branson

I chose this book over the hundreds of other autobiographies on the shelves simply because I knew Richard Branson has had some business failures and failure is one sure way to inspire someone to great success. Having the confidence to fail is one of the surest ways to attain success. According to the Forbes list of billionaires, Richard Branson is the 4^th richest person in the UK, not bad for someone who left school at 16.


3/ “The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership” by John C. Maxwell


Learning to be a great leader is a key tool for success in practically every aspect of life, not just business. “The Law of Buy-in: People buy into the leader, then the vision” is one of the one I related to the most, especially following on from reading How To Win Friends And Influence People. People must first believe in me and my goals before they can help work to achieve them.


4/ “Start With Why” by Simon Sinek



I could really relate with the author and was intrigued to see the pattern emerge between successful people. By studying some of the worlds most influential leaders, Simon Sinek made a great discovery, they all think, act, and communicate in the exact same way and it's the complete opposite of what everyone else does. It was a truly inspiring read and one which I would suggest individual looking for business or personal success put at the top of their must read list.