Pro Global Etiquette on CNTV© - Discussion on corporate etiquette in the workplace with Adrienne.

This is Gary Atencio with CNTV, and today we're in Daytona Beach, Florida. I am here at Professional Global Etiquette. Since 2016, this award-winning professional has provided specific training on of business protocol and etiquette to companies and employees here in Florida as well as across the globe. I'm joined with Adrienne Barker. Thanks so much for joining us here today. I mean, you have quite a few titles: entrepreneur, business owner, educator, LinkedIn account representative, mother. I mean, you've done quite a bit in your life. Let's start off a little bit about your story. You were formally educated Eastern Connecticut State University, a degree in business administration. You've served on boards back then, you continue serving on boards today. You were certified in 2016 from the Protocol School of Washington. But really where your, you know, business in your blood began is through your family. I mean, really working with your father throughout the years. Share with me how this passion for navigating people properly in the business world begin for you?

So thank you so much. You got it all correct. And I'm also the chapter chair for SCORE Volusia Flagler. I love SCORE. I've been a mentor, certified business mentor for 5 years. But I, yes, I, so I left college and went to work for my family's business. My parents were amazing. My dad was the marketing genius and my mom was the HR and watching them and kind of formulating and getting my own feet wet in business, it didn't hit me then, but it hits me now that I am a true servant leader. I really tend to care what the employees are doing. Are they comfortable in their position? Does their title match what they're doing? And a lot of times my mom was like, why are you always so worried about what, you know, the employees and if they're comfortable and happy? But because somehow I just knew in my heart that it was important to make sure that the employees were comfortable and then they could go on and sell and be successful. So I've really enjoyed learning from my parents. They're incredible. The promotional products industry, they've laid their fingerprints on that. And then coming along, I have too. I'm actually one of 2% of individuals in the promotional products industry that have their Master's of Advertising Specialties. And then at the age, the young age of 59, I have a lifetime designation. So no more classes for me, but I'm really proud of that. And I'm proud of a lot of the successes that I've done, but I owe it all to my mom. And dad, and let me tell you right now, I'm wearing my mom's favorite jacket. It is so comfortable. I feel like they're with me right now. I lost my mom in 2017. My dad passed away in 2019. They were one month shy of their 70th wedding anniversary. They were truly great role models in all sorts, always.

Let me ask you this. I mean, it's safe to say that the business is different than it was back in the '80s when you graduated, when I grew up. I mean, back in the day, they simply hung a sign up on their business. Now we have social media, we have the World Wide Web. I mean, it's obvious these large companies, they realize that— how critical that component is. They realize it's no longer a luxury but a necessity to be known out there. Do you think that small businesses— I mean, they're a little bit slow to understand how important that is, and why can that be a problem?

Businesses actually can be slow by not doing their social media. I think there's a few things. I think businesses have to see if social media fits for them. If it does, then they should learn how to do it and do it correctly. And I think right now what weighs heavy on my heart is the next generation coming into the workplace. And you could graduate and you can have all the degrees and you can open up a business, but what's missing is leadership and management training and how to treat your employees. That's a big piece that's missing, and that is a piece that I want to try to solve by helping management to understand customer service, how to work better with their employees, read body language, everything that they can do for their employees to make sure that the employees and the sales team are successful, that so they could go out and get more business. That's what's important right now.

I think that's really needed. Before we talk about the workplace and what you're able to provide there as far as workshops and whatnot, I want to talk about the social media aspect of it because I know on LinkedIn, I mean, you're a rock star on LinkedIn. You've got 12,000 followers out there. Share with me, I mean, no longer are the days a company is a brick and mortar. You now have individuals that are complete companies, maybe in their basement. They're self-employed, but regardless if they're self-employed or if they work for somebody else, Do you feel it's important people brand themselves out there and they've basically got a profile that matches who they are?

I think so. I've been doing it for 17 years, 3 months and 22 days, not to be exact. But when LinkedIn came out, I just knew that it was important. And I got teased a lot, like, why are you on social media? Why do you need to be on there? But I knew that you really, I had to market myself and brand myself. I didn't know what my future would hold. But it never mattered. Even if I'd stayed in the family business, I'd still want people, they're gonna buy from me and then the company. So I think it's very important for people to get on LinkedIn, do it correctly, or hire me. I actually offer an I'm You service, which I'm doing right now for a few employees, a few clients. And it really works fantastic because I go in and I take care of massaging your connections, making them feel good, getting you appointments and all the good stuff that happens with lead generation.

I want to talk about that. That is very cool. I mean, I think the consumers out there, they understand the power of social media because they choose to engage in it every day. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram. But I mean, these social medias are used for business, but they're not built solely for business and professionals like that of LinkedIn. Do you think many times LinkedIn's overlooked by professionals? And not only overlooked, but maybe overlook some of the power of how powerful it can be and all the different components.

It is. And how I know that is actually I'm also on Clubhouse and I run a Clubhouse LinkedIn room with two other wonderful women every other Tuesday. And we're consistently getting, you know, connections coming into the room and saying, you know, this is great. We don't know much about LinkedIn, or I was on LinkedIn and I was for my company and all the questions that go on. And Clubhouse is a brand new audio app that's really cool too. And very unique and different. But I find it makes sense if I'm going to try to help my page, my clients understand marketing, then I should know every app. I don't spend a lot of time on it, but I— Clubhouse, Fishbowl, Entree— there's all these new programs out there. And depending on what your business is, it may be important for you to be on that platform. You got to try it for yourself or hire someone to do it.

A true entrepreneur, you never stop learning and you enjoy that process. I mean, what the World Wide Web did for businesses at the turn of the century, LinkedIn is now doing for professionals. We're talking over 722 million members, both male and females engage every day. It's available in 24 languages. I mean, if the profile is now our business sign, if you will, being hung, it's no longer limited to a single street. It's available 24/7. It's on all the time. That's kind of exciting to be able to put yourself out there in a way that gets recognized.

Absolutely. And the SEO is fantastic. So like the minute you Google your name, for instance, I Googled you, your LinkedIn popped up. I was able to find you. I was able to reach out and tell you how amazing you're— what you're doing is great and reach out to your connections. I love watching the show and then reaching out to say you did a fantastic job or I'd like to learn more about what you do. Also, I actually use it to thank those in the community that have won awards because everyone that has won an award in our community becomes a role model for my child. And so I want them to know that I appreciate the work that they have done. So LinkedIn can be used for many different ways. One is just keeping a kind of your Rolodex.

I mean, like I said, it's pretty exciting for people who understand that. For those that don't understand, maybe they're intimidated by LinkedIn, this is really where you, the expert, comes in. I mean, Do you think it's kind of common for people to create a profile, maybe even rush through it, and then leave it? It's outdated, it sits there. And why do you think that can be a mistake?

That just happened. So I took over for a new client who had 59, and he didn't really have anything, no profile, no banner, no about. And all of a sudden now he's like, ooh, jacked up, this is juicy. He's got going on, he's like, Adrienne, what more can I do? So I'm happy to show someone how to actually use it. So I also offer a LinkedIn Level Up service where I will lift it up for you. I'll level you up. I'll make sure that you're optimized for success. I'll give you all the tips and strategies, and then you do it. You don't need me to do it every day. But once you start to see, once he got like 30 people connecting over the weekend and everyone's saying they're interested, oh yeah, now he's hooked too. So get hooked on LinkedIn.

As with all public interaction, be it on the web or in person, I mean, there's a right way to do it and a not so right. I mean, Webster's definition of etiquette, customary code of polite behavior in a society or among members of a particular profession or group. Is etiquette, does it matter? Is it important in the business world? What would you say?

So of course, I would say yes. I will tell you that I took the classes at Protocol School of Washington. It was a week-long and expensive program. I needed it. I knew I needed it. As much as my parents were amazing in business, they were traditionalists, so they were born in the, in the like late '30s. My dad thought he was Popeye, just so you know, born January and, um, 1928, so he loved Popeye. But yes, I was missing just even how to eat. You ever go to dinner and not, you know, so many silverware and, and glasses and nobody knows how to use them correctly? So I knew that I needed to first feel comfortable with what I understood etiquette and how to handle business, and then I could teach others. And if you want to learn something, teach it. I heard that, right? So that's what I decided to do. I will share one tip, what I see, because obviously we're back to shaking hands, which is just delicious to me. But what people don't do is they don't stand. So for instance, when Ebony came in, the first thing I did was I stood for her. I don't care what age you are, unless you're older, stand. Stand. If you're younger, the minute someone comes into you, no matter where you are, stand up. That's the number one way to show respect. That's a lost art.

It is a lost art, and that's one of the really big reasons I wanted to sit down with you, because I said you're doing something that really people aren't focused on, and they don't understand that that first impression is everything. We know that, but what is that first impression saying? I mean, be it in person or on the web, proper etiquette. Do you think people are able to gain an advantage over their competition just by having some of those, those tools and strategies?

Absolutely. And what we have seen, and this is actually not great etiquette, is sharing your political views on social media. Just like you really— what happens over dinner table, we don't talk about religion, we don't talk about our political views. Doing that on social media absolutely can hurt you. And you could say, you know, it's okay, I don't mind if someone doesn't give me business because they read— but you don't even know that, right? Not true. So part of the way that I'm able to sell myself and say, Gary, I could do your social media, is I'm an etiquette consultant. One thing you could trust is that I'm not going to do anything to put you or your business in an uncomfortable situation.

Sure.

And that could easily happen. And especially what I've seen is people wearing promotional products. I grew up in the promotional products industry. But imagine that someone's wearing a CTN golf shirt and then out doing some of the worst things that you could do on the streets. So you want to be careful, and you want to make sure that your employees also understand what they need to do correctly in social media and in real life, IRL.

That is right. I mean, I personally have sat down with close to 1,600 of my connections on LinkedIn. Not many people can say that, that they've actually sat down in person, reached out, not only in the digital world. I've done that, but I do have to say, when I first learned about them, it was their profile on LinkedIn. I have to say that some of them are good and some of them are not so good. I think your service is very much needed there, the lift up. I mean, this short 1 hour that you can go in and really just give them a revamping, if you will, that really has to be important because that many times is all somebody has to go on is just that profile before they even decide to meet you in person.

Exactly. And you want to have personality too, so you don't want to come off as cold. And, you know, most people like a little fun. I really unstuff the stuffy conversation of etiquette. And I also teach, which I think is really important, Gary, everyone needs to understand how to eat bacon. Do you eat bacon correctly? Bacon?

Explain, explain to me.

With your fingers. It's okay if it's nice and crispy. Crispy, eat with your fingers. If it's not that crispy, eat with your fork.

But interesting things that most people don't even realize, don't even know, but very important. Um, let me ask you then, I mean, not only is the profile impacting people out there And, uh, but you're, you're going beyond just that profile. You're really creating a presence for them when you're talking about this I'm You that you provide. I mean, tell me a little bit more about that. You must really get to know the person pretty well where you can actually jump in and become them.

Exactly. So I'm doing it— so it's easy for me if it's in the promotional products industry after 35 years, and what I'm doing and what I'm offering is very special. I'm only gonna be you in one state. So right now, New Jersey is taken. So if you're a distributor and you want my service and you're in New Jersey, I have to say no because I wanna be careful of the area so that you don't have me kind of reaching out to, even though there's so many millions of people out there. Also, I'm gonna interview you as a client to make sure that your ideal customer is on LinkedIn because you may be looking for Oh, let's just say you're looking for me, an overweight, busy woman who wants to get healthy. Well, you can't find overweight, busy woman in LinkedIn. You're not gonna be able to search that. So understanding the search parameters and then working backwards really makes sense. I'm working with an insurance woman right now. I love it, but it's a lot of learning for me 'cause I'm not so understanding of the insurance world. So, you know, I have to make sure that's something that I can do. How much help will I get from the client? And then I'm going to learn their business so I can be them.

That is interesting. I mean, you get to know these people on the front end, so then for— you can make posts, comments that are relevant, create content that they don't have time to do. I mean, the first business rule is duplication, and to me, to be able to have somebody duplicate myself, and so I can focus on what I do great, and you're out there and creating that presence, that has to be very powerful people, realizing that you're them, but really you're almost better than them, I think, because of the fact that you have the etiquette to understand what you should talk about and maybe what you shouldn't talk about. And you understand how these people think.

I love it. I'm just laughing. I could see my new logo. I'm you, but better.

That's really what I got from understanding it.

That's awesome. Thank you so much. I'll add that on for an extra little— I'm kidding you. But that's great. And it is true. And you know what, people don't have the time. You don't need a lot of time though. That's why I'm happy to just show you how to do it. But starting off and getting the profile picture, the banner, and the about, and your tagline, that I could do in about an hour to 2 hours, make sure it all looks great. From there, about a half hour a day is all I really need to massage your network. And I'm very affordable, 'cause I love doing it. I love business. Business, Gary. I can't explain it. I just, you know, when you're like sitting around the campfire, what do you talk about? Well, I do love campfire songs. I do. I'm not gonna lie. I will sing every campfire song in the world. But I do love business too. That's my conversation.

That you're my favorite type of people to sit down with because I have a passion for business, all aspects of it. It's very exciting. You made mention many times of your parents who obviously live on through you. And yet not only live on through you, but they live on in their art. Tell me a little bit about how people out there are able to share in that as well.

I appreciate that. And so my parents started in 1955 the promotional products business, which was just fantastic. And that's still going strong and run by my siblings, Jerry, Steven, and Amy. And but then they decided that they fell in love with Disney art. And my dad and mom decided to open up Barker Animation Art Gallery. At one point they had 5. There's 2 left right now. Largest collection of animation art on the planet. So Disney, Hanna-Barbera, you know, like, yeah, it's amazing. It's amazing. So I love that. And I had a gallery here for about 8 months in Daytona Beach, and then my dad passed and we moved it back up to Connecticut. But they wanted to leave a gift. Now I want to say in artwork, they have donated over $2 million of artwork. So if you go to any of the hospitals in South Florida, you'll probably see walls with Barker animation, Gloria and her Barker. And also in Connecticut, they did Art from the Heart, very important program. But they left all of us a gift of the Barker Cartoon Character and Comic Museum. It's their private collection of 80,000 toys in Cheshire, Connecticut. It's on a beautiful, beautiful landscape area. You have the museum, you have a little studio, all the grounds and the murals. And there's just so many stories out there that the kids can play and find things. And when my parents were alive, they did amazing events. They would buy like 1,000 hot dogs and hold an event. And, uh, and, you know, they'd have Scooby-Doo and all of the costume characters there. They're just such— I miss my mom and dad. Thank you for letting me talk about them because they're gone now. But like, when they were here, they were just so magnificent. They really were. So if you're in Chester, Connecticut, On Route 10 in Cheshire, the Barker Cartoon Character— Cartoon Comic Character Museum. It's just barkermuseum.com if you go onto the web. Barker Museum.

We might have to go there ourselves. We might have to go down there and do a feature just on the museum. That would be very cool. Before we move on to the workplace inside beyond LinkedIn, I mean, LinkedIn is one of the most trusted social media sites there is out there, yet there's so many tools that are beyond just the profile. Things like that of Sales Navigator, LinkedIn Live, some of these advanced techniques, is that something you can provide for as well?

Absolutely. So I do my own little show called No Prep Needed. It's Adrienne Barker Speaks, and we go live on Facebook or LinkedIn. And the premise is really, if I met you and I said to you, Gary, let's go get a cup of coffee, I'm really not going to go in the bathroom and Google everything about you. And I don't need to I don't need to read so much about you to have a conversation because it just comes naturally wanting to know. So, and I love that I could also help someone who hasn't done any lives to go on and kind of have that comfortable feeling of speaking and enjoying. Yeah, I love that. So we go live on LinkedIn and we go live on Facebook and you have to have a third-party vendor for LinkedIn. So I use an app called BeLive. You know, I have Sales Navigator too, which is a great program, Don't buy it if you don't know how to use it. Why waste $75 a month? That doesn't make sense to me. And my parents always said to know enough so that you know the person that you're hiring is doing a good or not so good job in any part of the business. If you need a roofer, make sure you know enough to make sure that you're not taking advantage of, and you can guide them correctly too. So I think that's important, and I kind of go with the same philosophy as mom and dad.

That is great. I mean, it's very clear as we discuss this that to set up an online presence is very important, but let's talk about etiquette in the workplace a little bit before I let you go. Etiquette in person, I mean, this is a way, like you say, you can outclass your competition and have fun while you're doing it. Tell me a little bit about the workshops. What are you able to provide for companies when you go in and, and teach these employees?

So I do customized workshops, so depending if you have 500 employees or you have 10 employees. And there's 2 things I like to offer. One is I'll teach the teacher. So I'll teach your human resources director. So I'll teach them once and then they can deliver the program. And that's great. I actually own over 100 workshops that I personally bought in 2016, how to communications, harassment, integrity, ethics, you just name it. I have the workshop for it. Or I can teach. So during COVID I did a lot of Zoom meetings because all of a sudden what happened, there was virtual etiquette. And wow, remember the stories that came on? The judge that had to tell the attorney not to get on Zoom, you know, in bed with no shirt, like that wouldn't be a good idea. Maybe put your shirt on. Or, you know, I mean, there's some scary stories out there. So now we're getting back to work. So yes, you really have to know Your etiquette. I did all the wrong things. I used to think burping was cute and funny, and you know, people know me for being very silly until I realized it was hurting my business. It was hurting who I am. It's also, you know, the confidence that you have when you know how to act. But it's our younger generation, and that's what worries me. I want to make sure they're going to graduate from high school, they'll graduate from college, they're going to have all those hard skills, but will they know the soft skills? Will they understand that you can't have your phone during an interview? Because a lot of kids do.

No.

You know, I mean, but they don't understand it. They don't understand about how, you know, interrupting conversation, when to speak, when to listen, how to focus. I could go on. It's— I love it. I love the whole conversation because you see it all. And then, you know, so it's so important. So make sure you have enough of information because it's only for yourself. That's the whole key. To know yourself so that you can be better and you can— your whole self can shine. But etiquette is all about not just your handshake from the beginning, it's also how you network. Yeah, how you make a sales call, how you pick someone up in your car, how you take them to dinner. How do you take someone to dinner? Who does pays? If I say, Gary, I'd like to take you to lunch today, you should expect that I'm treating you.

Correct.

Right?

Correct.

And then it goes on from there. How to order, how to make sure it's comfortable.

Oh, I know. I mean, what really attracted me to sitting down with you was the fact that I love things that are being taught out there that you just really can't find anywhere. I mean, there's so many things on how to find more salespeople, how to do this, how to do that, but yet at the end of the day, it turns down to a— comes down to the interaction between two people and And did you make a good impression or did you not? Do you think, I mean, would you agree with me that it's probably not too quick or early to start kids on etiquette? And is that something you are able to provide as well? Maybe some of our younger adults, getting them started in the world.

Manners matter. Manners matter. And it's time to teach your kids now. And the number one thing is keep the phone off the table. That is so important. Teach your children, obviously, the P's and Q's— thank you, you're welcome. Teach them how to listen and not to interrupt.

I agree with that. I mean, succeeding not only in the local arena, the global arena, the worldwide arena— these are all things you do. Um, you say you're on your team but not on your payroll. Um, is it rewarding for you to see your clients and your team members succeed?

It is so important to me, and I love my saying, by the way. You know, I feel like I should probably trademark it. It's such a good one: on your team and not your payroll, which is so true because I'm a freelancer and I do a lot of other things. I actually, I take care, I supervise two student exchange. One comes from South Korea, the other one is here and from France. So I, I make sure that I, you know, follow up with them monthly and make sure that they're doing great. So I love that I work International Student Exchange. So I do a few things, but my best pleasure, my passion is SCORE. And with SCORE, I can help businesses succeed. I can offer the tips and the tricks and the strategies that they need. So I love SCORE. We have about 40 mentors here in Fallujah Flagler. We're growing, and it's just such a— yeah, it's a gift to be able to help. I probably donate about 10 hours a week. —to score. I mean, I am— this is not just, you know, someone who does something 1 hour a day. It's funny, you know, I don't share it. Actually, this is really out loud the first time I'm telling people, you know, what I do. It's a lot of time, a lot of energy. I'm also a board member for Art House Foundation, beautiful organization here in Port Orange and Volusia, Volusia, that takes care of teaching students art and, uh, understanding the arts. I do that in my parents' memory, actually. That's very important to me. I serve on, as you said, a variety of committees, and all of that is important too. I don't know what I would do if I, if I didn't have that. That's so important to me. I can't explain.

That's your way of giving back. That's your way of giving back. You're teaching. You love teaching others, yet at the same time you learn. You're much more knowledgeable by teaching. Like I said, it was an honor to tell your story. I'm glad you wore this sweater that you wore today. It's definitely them living forward and basically seen what they created. Someone who understands the business world, but more importantly, understands people. Understands that we're all, we need to respect ourselves and respect those around us. Viewers, let's take a look at the bottom of the screen right there. What you're gonna see is her website. On the website, you're gonna see some of the workshops she's able to provide, and there's just a touch of 'em there. Like she said, she pretty much has a workshop on everything you can think of. Regardless of the size of your company, if you're not sure, reach out and find out. Because basically, she's going to get involved if she's able to help you. If she is not, basically, she's going to find somebody else that will do this for you. This is somebody who understands business, not only from the entrepreneur or the ownership standpoint, but also from the employee standpoint. What it's like to work for a company and make sure that the culture of that company is in the direction that you want to go. The best place to learn about her is on LinkedIn. Check out that profile page. You'll be amazed at what this person has done in the past years. I, I don't understand how there's enough hours in the day for everything that she's able to do, but she does it great, and it's been an honor for us to come out and tell her story. Once again, that is Professional Global Etiquette, providing specific training of business protocol and etiquette to company's employees. This is Gary Atencio with CNTV, and if you don't know, now you know.