8 Ways to Wow Anyone

Wazzup Pilipinas!

You’ve got a business but it’s not going as great as you want. Pump things up and transform your business into one that makes your customers go wow

There’s no use of having a business if it’s not earning anything, or if you don’t see it growing. So how do you put some wow into your business and start bringing in the big bucks? Swish knows you need the confidence to pump some life back into your biz, so they stalked motivational speaker and seasoned entrepreneur PJ Lanot to put back the wow factor in your business.

1. Trim off the fat from your life. If you want to have time to make your business boom, you’ve got to cut out the things in your life that won’t matter in the long run. Check your schedule and your commitments, and figure out what you can delete to make more time and energy for what really matters.

2. Bring it back to its infancy. PJ suggests that yes, you should have long-term plans for your business, but you always have to start small. “For example, may gusto kang gawin na bag. May nagawa ka na ba na sample? Kung wala pa, bakit ka na nagpapatayo ng factory? Kung lumalaki na ’yung demand, saka natin palakihin ’yan.”

3. Know the ins and outs of the biz. If you have a coffee shop but you’ve never tried out your own drinks or the coffee concoctions of your competition, that’s where your problem lies. You should know everything there is about your business, and be its number one customer. From knowing how to mix all the coffee drinks to the cleaning schedule of the bathroom, you should know all these details even in your sleep.

4. Focus on your strengths, and let someone else deal with your weaknesses. PJ says, “Kasi kung ’yung weakness mo gagawin mong strength, mapapabayaan mo ’yung oras mo na dapat nakalaan sa strength mo. To compensate, you partner up with someone who is an expert on that field (you are weak in).”

5. Treat your employees well. Filipinos are a hardworking bunch, and they find happiness in their work and working environment. If you think that “Well, they shouldn’t go to work to make friends”, then you might be making your employees unhappy. PJ says, “Ang mga Pilipino, if they’re going to stay for nine hours in a particular job, they think they should be happy. That’s their motivation. They value the working relationship, na naiintindihan sila ni boss. Filipinos are very loyal and full of heart, so you have to maximize that.”

6. Create a better product or service before your competitor does. If you want your customer to go “wow!” about your product or service, then it should be something that they haven’t seen before, or something that they need right now. PJ says, “You have to keep on innovating. If you think, it’s okay, I’m earning anyway, what happens when a stronger player comes along? Kinakain na ’yung sales mo, tapos doon ka palang magpla-plano? No business is safe right now, kailangan worldwide ang tinitignan na competition, and from there, you innovate before it’s too late.”

7. Keep on interacting with your customers. Besides knowing what your competitors are doing, it’s more important to know what your customers are craving for. Their needs always change, so you have to keep on meeting and exceeding their expectations. PJ compares putting up and sustaining a business to being in a relationship. “Kahit sabihin mo hindi naman sila nagrereklamo, kung makakita sila ng iba na can give them a better future, na pwede sila maging happier with, they’ll move there. Pero kung masaya naman sila sa’yo, they won’t even think of leaving.” So take time to constantly interact with the customers you serve and do so professionally, looking and acting the part of a winner. Put your best foot forward (look the pro that matches your brand identity and care enough to look kept, with your hair in place and your breath fresh with SWISH breath spray for a pump of customer confidence), but still remain honest and upfront.

8. Be confident in yourself and in your business, and your customers will feel the change. Confidence comes from knowing your strengths and weaknesses, and being true to you. The same thing can be said about your business—if you continue to tweak your business to show that you know your customers better than anyone, and you want to serve them better than anyone can, then they’ll start flocking to your biz in droves.

Harm Reduction: Most Effective and Compassionate Response to Drug Problem

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Department of Health (DOH) should push for harm reduction strategies as a response to the country's drug problem.

During the government's National Health Summit attended by stakeholders, officials and employees of the health department, Hontiveros said that the 'war on drugs cannot be a war against the people, or worse, a war against the poor'. The senator urged the health department to play a crucial role in providing a public health framework in curbing drug addiction and trafficking in the country.

"In order for our government to succeed in its campaign against illegal drugs and trafficking, we must also respond to the health and social issues that lead to drug dependence", Senator Risa Hontiveros said.


Harm reduction

Hontiveros, who also currently serves as the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health, recently visited Thailand to study its health framework on drugs. She cited the country's effectiveness in pursuing a harm reduction strategy.

Hontiveros explained that harm reduction strategies will allow the creation of friendly, community-based drop-in centers and outreach services, encourage the uptake of health services through improved peer education and support, and spend resources on sustainable, evidence-based policies and interventions at the community level.

"Harm reduction is not only a compassionate response, it is also the most effective response", Hontiveros said.

The senator lamented the fact that there are only 44 drug rehabilitation centers in the country. "Clearly, much has to be done in this aspect", she said.



Universal Healthcare

The Senator also urged stakeholders to build the momentum towards universal healthcare' through public spending and localization.

The Senator also lauded the Duterte administration's decision to send the government's health officials to Cuba to the study their public health system. She said the visit is a step towards heavy public spending for health professionals, healthcare providers and health infrastructure to address hospital shortages and facility upgrades.



"Cuba-inspired super barangay health centers"

The Senator also urged the government to seriously study the possibility of building “super barangay health centers” similar to Cuba’s consultorios (clinics) and policlinicos (specialty clinics) to strengthen the role of our local government units, down to the barangay level, and bring healthcare to the farthest and to the fringes.

"Super barangay health centers could strengthen our current barangay health system by modernizing it with adequate facilities, personnel and expertise. Our barangays must become the people’s first line of defense against preventable diseases, especially with the emergence of new and dangerous viruses like the Zika," Hontiveros concluded.

Challenges in the Philippine Housing Industry to be Taken Up at the 25th SHDA Convention

Wazzup Pilipinas!

The Philippines has, in the last few years, experienced consistent economic growth, registering an increase in gross domestic product (GDP) by 6.3% in the last quarter of 2015, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). Revenues from the fast-growing IT-BPM (Information Technology and Business Process Management) industry and overseas Filipino remittances are major drivers of the economy. However, with such escalating growth also come accompanying challenges—one of them is housing.

The 25th Subdivision and Housing Developers’ Association (SHDA) National Convention will tackle “The Many Faces of Housing” to address the challenges and respond with appropriate and practicable solutions. It will be held at the Iloilo Convention Center, Megaworld Blvd, Mandurriao, Iloilo City from September 22-23, 2016. This annual event will gather more than 200 members of SHDA from all over the country.

As a partner in nation-building, the housing sector practitioners, of which the SHDA is the biggest organization in the Philippines, appreciate that they play a key role and must be aligned with the Duterte administration’s 10-point socio-economic agenda.

“Since the government, in partnership with the private sector, is mandated to undertake a comprehensive and continuing urban development and housing program under Republic Act 7279 or the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992 —the policy directions of the government agencies, which practitioners in the housing industry deal with—shall be very crucial in crafting short-term as well as long-term plans,” said Rodel Racadio, national president of SHDA. The two-day program is well-crafted to address the needs of the private and public components of the sector.

Participants will be given the Prospects for the Philippine Housing Industry. Aside from the improving economy, an increase in population necessitates roofs over families’ heads. The population is projected to increase by more than a million annually—from about 95 million in 2011 to 126 million by 2030. These translate into 19 million households in 2011 to about 25 million by 2030.

There are many facets of housing that will be discussed during the convention: (1) Housing that is responsive to a family’s needs regardless of economic status, with socialized housing, low-cost housing, and economic housing. These strategies manifest the industry's involvement in ensuring inclusive growth. (2) The human resources to respond to the demands of the development of a housing project. The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) even designed its own roadmap to keep pace with the requirements of the housing industry's roadmap. (3) In consideration of sustainability, the industry has espoused green building initiatives to minimize the effects of global warming, at the same time that it addresses the need to preserve nature. Housing developers also undertake activities to further their corporate social responsibility. (4) Adapting a long view, the government’s policy toward the sector is a positive step towards ensuring and enabling an environment that will allow housing developers to sustain their efforts to further grow the housing industry by pushing through with their housing development plans in 2016 and beyond.

Racadio promises that this year’s convention will be a memorable one. “We are optimistic that we can all work together--the government and the private sector—in order to continue advancing toward the fulfillment of goals encapsulated in the Housing Roadmap 2030.” With the concerted effort of the sectors represented, there is hope that the strides already made in the past years will gain and sustain their momentum.

For inquiries, please e-mail the SHDA Secretariat: shda.secretariat@gmail.com.