Originally Posted by
SeedToSequoia
Scott,
I am not sure I understand the concern that you have for me posting on this forum as I intend to have good interactions with members on environmental, health and safety topics.
Yes its free advice with the desire that there may be some companies in the forum that may hire me to take their EHS to the next level. Last month I helped a company with five employees get certified to R2 (Responsible Recycling).
Yes, I may respond to some questions with referring them to a blog post that I previously created on my website. I also intend on posting long columns to this site after I figure out some tech issues that I am having on this site.
I guess I am feeling that you have singled me out although we are both here for the same reasons to interact, give advice, learn and generate business. I assume it is because you do not regard EHS consultation as important by stating: “To try and sell them on the idea that they need to pay someone…”.
I hope that my assumptions are wrong and I hope that others can see the value that I can bring to this forum.
Russell
I understand your desire to add validity to your business by expressing certain things on a site like this. However I do also realize that in doing so, imparting too much information would negate the need for a consultant.
I also realize that it is most likely your intent to increase traffic to your own website, by using this forum, that would be a natural intention of anyone who owns a business, to increase traffic to their own site.
For some, an EHS consultant may be useful, and important, but after reading your website I came to realize that you have posted some benefits which while seemingly part of what might be, generally are not and certainly not in the case where there is only one person doing the scrapping, or only a few.
I used to own grocery stores, and hired an EHS consultant who did a great job suggesting posting posters, instituting training programs, etc so that I could lower my insurance rates. But honestly, it did not increase nor decrease the number of accidents as accidents are exactly that, accidents. We already had in place best practices and policies that allowed us to function at the highest level of safety. The only reason I hired an EHS consultant was to lower our insurance. However, after all was said and done, and considering the requirements of our insurance policy in reducing the cost of the insurance, it ended up costing almost the same to dedicate the labor for specialized training instead of doing so by managing as opposed to a special class set on a specific day where employees would be required to attend and thus also require to be paid for the study time.
It's a balance to be sure, value added services often do add value, but often increase expenses as well. In attempting to drive business, you may be overlooking the fact that the majority of the people who post on this site, while finding any information you impart here useful and important, will not be buying your services as a consultant.
If your intent is to drive traffic to your own website by posting links, and your personal email address so that they contact you outside of this forum, so that you can impart pricing information on consulting for them, then any monies you gain were at the expense, or perhaps more correctly because you were exposed on this site and you perhaps might think about upgrading your membership to reflect your appreciation of this fact.
I do not know you, and you have yet to spend enough time on this site to allow me to make any kind of judgment call about your intentions or actions, as well I am not even inclined to judge anyone. But I would suggest supporting this site more than only posting links to your own website. And if it does turn out that you impart useful and important information that can be retained on this forum for all future members, and current members for that matter, then that is a wonderful thing. But the key is that the information you may impart be done on this forum, so that it can be retained for it's members. There is no guarantee that your site will always be in operation as you may sell your business, move onto something else, fail even although I would like to avoid that scenario, or otherwise. Having the information here ensures that it will continue to be accessible for posterity, not only for your benefit but for the benefit of everyone who attends this place on the web.
I am not sure how you can reason that I must have no faith in EHS consulting, just because I stated the obvious in that you are trying to sell people on the idea that they need a consultant, when the vast majority of people on this site actually do not need a consultant, only information. Matter of fact, since hiring a EHS consultant, I have never required one since because I retained the knowledge. The majority of time, small businesses incur more cost in hiring an EHS consultant, than they receive in benefit as I have stated above. Most of the businesses on this forum are smaller rather than larger, however there are larger businesses that might be able to, in a cost effective manor, hire your services and benefit from them. Most of the people here will benefit from your generosity in providing valuable information. If you have not already noticed by my own posts, and those of others, we impart valuable information here in a fairly regular basis without sending people to websites we own, or others we are attempting to drive business on. As well, you will also notice that those who are advertising buying, do so on a specific thread that has been created for them to do so which they must first provide a donation for in order to have a buyers thread. You will also notice that there are places provided for paid advertisement, and that some choose to do this as well. While these have been made available for your use, I do not see that you have used any of them and would encourage you, as a paying member myself, to make use of these offerings to increase your exposure in a way that also benefits this forum, and thus benefits all of us in that way as well.
While I can appreciate what you have stated, in that you are here to exchange information, to impart information to help others, and by the way I think this is a wonderful thing. I also am concerned as to your intent, and the fact you are attempting to drive business that is service related that specifically is set up for people to pay you, for this same information and advice you seem to be insisting you will provide here, on this forum, in the form of posts. That seems contradictory to your business model if we are being totally honest.
Without getting into specifics on the things you state on your website, as I would not want to affect your intended business in a negative way. We can say with a reasonable amount of certainty that most of what you state on your website as benefits in paying you for your services, would not be so for small businesses under a specific number of people. Without stating more I think we can agree on that point, if we are being totally honest.
My problem has always been that I say exactly what I think without reservation, usually. I have reserved some of what I might have said in respect for the fact you are a business owner, and attempting to drive your business in a way that leads me to believe you have not only just started it, but intend if by sheer will alone, to make it work. I respect that, being a business owner myself. I do not want to affect your business in anyway that might be negative. But I also believe that the people here are very good people in almost every case, and I consider them the type of people we need to see more of in this world. I would see them elevated because of the information that is shared, that they share and discuss, that others share and discuss rather than sent to another site. I would also prefer to see them increase their own businesses without the additional costs of things they can obviously do without if only they have the information required to do so. To this end as well, I would welcome any information you post here, and encourage you again to do so. But I would also encourage you to do so here, instead of driving the traffic and discussion here, to your own website. It is just as simple to copy and paste that information here as it is to post a link to the information on your site, there are no specific technical issues you have to contend with. The only difference is that one is a button you have to click to enter your website link, and the other simply what you do anyway, posting text in a box such as I am doing currently, which by the way seems to be something you are more than capable of doing, without any technical difficulties at all.
Scott
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