"Purpose and laughter are the twins that must not separate. Each is empty without the other."

Remember hearing, “Watch your language” or “Don’t say that!”? Our parents said those when we used unacceptable language.  Even as adults this message still applies. As business owners and salespeople, we should always be “watching our language” in a sales situation. By carefully choosing the right words at the right time can mean the difference of sale or no sale, deal or no deal.
The words we speak make up about 7 percent of effective communication, but they’re almost always deal sealers or deal stealers. I’m not just referring to asking the right question at the right time, handling objections when they arise or knowing all the facts about your product or service.  It means not stepping on word landmines.
To become a lean, mean, selling machine means ridding yourself of the words and phrases that repel buyers.  It means freeing yourself of the language that diminishes your power and decreases your credibility. Start speaking the language of sales success.
In my sales career, I have said some stupid things on a sales call; sometimes subtle and sometimes overt. I now watch my language and train others to watch theirs as well.  I cringe when I hear salespeople use unacceptable bad language. The following language has been banned from my sales vocabulary.  So the next time one of these top statements start to come out of your mouth, stop, hold your tongue and find something better to say.
1.) "Did I catch you at a good time?" – These days there’s no such thing as a good time to talk. The only way there will ever be a good time is when you say something relevant that piques customer’s interest. Otherwise, you will be met with a “no this is not a good time to talk.” Get in their world, know their issues and speak to their problems. Then it will always be a good time to talk.
2.) "I know you’re busy so I won’t take up much of your time.” – Yes you will. You already wasted their time with that line. You can have all the time in the world if you’re taking about their issues and problems instead of pushing your products and solutions. They may be busy but I bet they will be willing for you to take their time if you are fixing their problems.
3.) “In my opinion” – Most of the time your opinion isn’t necessary in a sales situation. Unless people ask for it, don’t give it. Sure, you can make recommendations and offer suggestions but never offer your opinion unless one is solicited. A better way of getting permission to give advice is to say something like, “Many of my clients have encountered something similar. Are you interested in the way we handled it?”
4.) “Trust me or to be honest with you”- Those are real deal killers. Statements like that give people the impression that you haven’t been completely upfront or you have something to hide. When you use phrases like that it sends a message that you’re trying to convince your customer instead of letting them discover why you’re the best option. Why should you have to tell someone to trust you or that you’re being honest. Start by being honest and displaying trust.
5.) "I'm not trying to sell you anything." – Then what are you calling them?  That sounds phony and tacky and will result in a lost sale.  Pick up the phone, have a purpose, craft a great message and then you may be able to get to the next step and secure a meeting.
Always be finding better ways to say things in the sales process. This bad language is a surefire way to annoy your prospect and potentially lose a sale. Watching your language will require effort on your part to ensure you are not using words and phrases that turn buyers off and lead to another lost sale.

It is possible to be happy and joyful most of the time. You just have to look at little children and see their natural joy. You may say that little children are free and don't have anything to worry about, but you are free too! You are free to choose worry or to choose joy, and whatever you choose will attract exactly that. Worry attracts more worry. Joy attracts more joy.

"The first great gift we can bestow on others is a good example."

"No great thing is created suddenly."

"A successful individual typically sets his next goal somewhat but not too much above his last achievement."

"I know asking the right sales questions will help close more sales, but what's the one sales question I should avoid?"
SalesBuzz Answer:
You are correct in saying that asking better sales questions will help you close more sales. And yes, there are a lot of sales questions that should be retired from the field, however, the one that is and has been my biggest pet peeve for a while is when a sales person asks a prospect:
"What Keeps You Up At Night?"
WAIT, WHY IS THAT "BAD"?
I think this is one of the WORST sales questions to ask and here's why:
It gives the appearance that you, the sales person, are simply fishing for a hot button.
So in other words, it makes me, the prospect, feel like saying:
"you really don't know how you can help me; you're just hoping that whatever I say, you'll be able to pounce on. Is that it?"
THE ANATOMY OF A SUCCESSFUL SALES QUESTION
Understand that smart sales questions lead to predictable results.
You may think that you have no idea how a prospect will respond to one of your sales questions, however, if you ask the right sales question, at the right time, for the right reason & purpose, no matter how they respond, it will be something you can work with (the key though is as mentioned: right question, right time, right reason & purpose).
If you simply fire off sales questions as they come to you and with no real rhyme or reason other than it "felt right at the moment", you are going to be dealing with a lot more needless stalls, false objections and "red herrings".
BUT IT'S WORKED FOR ME IN THE PAST
One thing you should know about me, and that is I am a big believer of the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" rule. So if it's "working" for you, by all means, don't change.
But I would ask what your definition of "working" is. Are you at or above quota for the Month/Quarter/Year? If so, OK. But if you are not, and sales is become more frustrating and less enjoyable with each and every sales call you make, then a simple tweak in the sales questions you are asking may be all the change you need in order to make 2014 one of the best sales years you've had in a long time.

"The happiness of most people we know is not ruined by great catastrophes or fatal errors, but by the repetition of slowly destructive little things."

"Perfection consists not in doing extraordinary things, but in doing ordinary things extraordinarily well. "

"We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself."

Have you ever heard the 19th century English carol, I Saw Three Ships? This song got me thinking about ships this holiday season, particularly about one type of “ship” I teach my K.Coaching clients: the PartnerShip.
If you intentionally, deliberately and proactively work on building your “PartnerShip” with each of your clients, you will have personal sustainable growth. But every ship needs to be solid and purposeful, so let’s discover how you can build a ship to last a lifetime.
1. Understand the other person. What are their needs and their circumstances?
Find out what is happening in their business, not just what is new and important with yours. Just because a customer has been with you for a long time, that does not make it the determining factor of a great PartnerShip. It is the quality of understanding in what each other wants and needs and purposefully working toward a common goal.
2. How can we work together to meet each other’s wants and needs?
A PartnerShip is not just one sided. If you have a PartnerShip but feel like the other party isn’t holding up their end of the bargain, you have a problem. A PartnerShip shouldn’t feel unfair.
3. Execute with care, trust, and integrity.
Typically a PartnerShip is an agreement. Care, trust, and integrity will ensure you execute your agreement better and faster.
4.Exceed the other’s expectations.
Sometime in a PartnerShip you might feel “I’ve given it my all!” Both parties need to always try and exceed what is expected, then no one gets complacent or taken for granted. The primary reason customers leave is because they feel undervalued or ignored.
Consider one or two important partnerships. What can you do to build your ships so they are purposeful and strong enough to last? What will your ship look like when it comes “sailing in”?

"Victory often goes to the army that makes the least mistakes, not the most brilliant plans."

"Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts."

6 Lies sales people tell themselves

 

 

Sales Lie #1  

"I could reach my quota if my company lowered their prices."

 

 

Nice try. It has more to do with your sales technique

then your quota. If you rely solely on price to close

sales then you condition your customers to

constantly push you for a larger discount or a

better price.

 

Sales Lie #2:

"I've got this deal in the bag." 

 

 

If a client tells you that they're interested,

that everything looks good and that they will

get back to you in a few days, it doesn't mean

that the client is going to definitely buy from

you.  No deal is guaranteed until the other

person signs the agreement, gives you confirmation,

or places the order.

 

Sales Lie #3:

"The competition is always offering better prices."

 

 

Not so fast! While some competitors will

consistently beat you on price, the reality

is that most companies are competitively priced.

It's a rare situation when a competitor will

out-price you on everything you sell unless

the products are different.

 

Sales Lie: #4:

"If I don't set a sales target I won't be disappointed."

 

 

By doing this, you're basically saying that

you don't want to succeed and you don't want

to work hard. Top performing sales reps always

set high, ambitious goals and their targets

are usually higher than those set by their

company. They use these goals to inspire and

motivate themselves to achieve more.

 

Sales Lie: #5:

"No one is buying." 

 

 

This is a huge misconception. Regardless of

the economy, people still make buying decisions.

They still make purchases. Stop wasting time

thinking about the people who aren't buying and

find the people and companies who are buying!

 

Sales Lie #6:  

"I don't need to practice my

skills and sales presentation."

 

If you want to be a good salesperson you have to

practice, because practice makes perfect. The best

sales people seldom take their sales appointments

and meetings for granted. They rehearse the

questions they need to ask. They run through

their presentation to make sure they have included

the necessary details and that their presentation

flows in a logical manner and that it addresses

their prospect's situation and/or needs.

It seems like everyone has mental blocks that keep them from succeeding.
And salespeople are ESPECIALLY notorious for this!
In fact, it seems that mindset has more to do with sales failure than cold calling, the economy, pricing, and all of the rest put together.
A few years back I began using the term "Secret Excuse" in my programs.
A Secret Excuse is, very simply, any excuse you make in your head that gives you a phony reason not to get out there and succeed.
Before I reveal the most common Secret Excuse for salespeople, here are the most common excuses people have for not getting off their butts and making something great of themselves:

• I wasn't born into the right family
• I'm not "connected"
• I don't have a college education
• "It can't be done"
• Why hasn't someone else done it already?
• I don't have enough money
• I have a family to support

And so on and so on... until it make me want to puke.
The Most Common Sales "Secret Excuse"
Day after day after day, the same question comes into our help desk, on phone calls, and into my email and LinkedIn inboxes:
"Your program sounds great, but will it work for ME?"

Here's the reality:
Only YOU can make something work for YOU!
YOU have to try something new and get into action. After all, doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results is the very definition of insanity.
So, here it is - drum roll please - the most common sales Secret Excuse is:
"It won't work for me!"
WRONG!
You only THINK something won't work for you. And I'm not just talking about my system. Whether it's putting yourself out there and doing free speaking to local chambers and service organizations to expose yourself, or learning how to network properly and start going to Meetup groups where business owners congregate, if you THINK it won't work for you, you're right!
Never forget Henry Ford's famous quote: "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't - you're right."
So do this right now: STOP making Secret Excuses about "it won't work for me" and START putting new ideas, strategies, and techniques into action. And then you will finally get RESULTS!

Selling is not about manipulation!

 

Why are some people still using yesterday's approach with today's new buyer? Because sadly, they still work. Manipulation is not a sales strategy. Manipulation, deceit and slick one-liners need to be buried for good.

 

Potential clients are more intuitive and smarter these days. Any attempt to pull out the bag of sales tricks insults their intelligence and shuts you down. 

 

You've probably heard that people buy from people they like and people they trust.I think they buy from people they believe as well. That means some sales people that are good liars, stretch the truth, omit important information and use manipulation tactics are so good at being dishonest that honest people believe what they're saying.

 

I believe that people are basically honest. When you train honest people to use dishonest tactics, they fail miserably.  When an honest person has to sell in a dishonest way, they wind up feeling guilty and end up not selling at all.  Most salespeople are basically honest people who simply haven't learned there is a more effective way to sell.

 

Telling the truth and using honesty to grow your business will never go out of style. The truth is a sales tool that never stops working.  I have seen far too many companies that lost business because they used high pressure and manipulative tactics that created sales resistance from a potential client. That's a very expensive way to run a business.

"Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open."

"A good plan is like a road map: It shows the final destination and usually the best way to get there."

"I don't believe in a fate that will fall on us no matter what we do. I do believe in a fate that will fall on us if we do nothing."

SALES QUESTION:

"We follow up on new leads that register for a free trial of our Saas and I’m having a hard time getting them to call or email me back. I would expect that if the leads were cold but these are warm leads (hand raisers). Are we just getting bad leads?"

Answer:

This is a common problem. A lot of sales people think that just because it's a "warm lead" that its OK to handle the call a little differently (read: SKIP SALES STEPS)

No matter if you are making cold calls or contacting warm or even hot prospects, you must always lead with a WHAT’S IN IT FOR THEM statement. You must first PIQUE their interest. 

Most sales people will call a warm lead and say / leave a voicemail message or email something to the effect of:

"You recently set up a trial of our (_________) service, so I was calling to get a little more insight into your requirements and learn what you are looking to accomplish"

Now here's the problem… the prospect most likely is already on to a new fire. Taking the time to educate you on what they need is most likely not high on their to-do list. Even with a warm lead who is interested in solving a problem they have.

However, most prospects are willing to talk to someone that can help them get what they want. There's a big difference.

Let's see if this alternative example will help get the point of today's lesson across:

Salesperson:

"I understand you're curious about what type of LEAD RESPONSE you might be able to get by using our drip marketing campaign software as well as what pricing incentives may be available"

Do you see how one discusses "insight" and "requirements" (BORING) and the other discusses a hot button (in this case, LEAD RESPONSE) and "pricing incentives"?

Which call / voicemail / email would increase your chances of responding to? The one that wants to know insight / requirements or one that has promise of helping you get what it is that you are really after? 

SALES QUESTION:
"We follow up on new leads that register for a free trial of our Saas and I’m having a hard time getting them to call or email me back. I would expect that if the leads were cold but these are warm leads (hand raisers). Are we just getting bad leads?"
Answer:
This is a common problem. A lot of sales people think that just because it's a "warm lead" that its OK to handle the call a little differently (read: SKIP SALES STEPS)
No matter if you are making cold calls or contacting warm or even hot prospects, you must always lead with a WHAT’S IN IT FOR THEM statement. You must first PIQUE their interest.
Most sales people will call a warm lead and say / leave a voicemail message or email something to the effect of:
"You recently set up a trial of our (_________) service, so I was calling to get a little more insight into your requirements and learn what you are looking to accomplish"
Now here's the problem… the prospect most likely is already on to a new fire. Taking the time to educate you on what they need is most likely not high on their to-do list. Even with a warm lead who is interested in solving a problem they have.
However, most prospects are willing to talk to someone that can help them get what they want. There's a big difference.
Let's see if this alternative example will help get the point of today's lesson across:
Salesperson:
"I understand you're curious about what type of LEAD RESPONSE you might be able to get by using our drip marketing campaign software as well as what pricing incentives may be available"
Do you see how one discusses "insight" and "requirements" (BORING) and the other discusses a hot button (in this case, LEAD RESPONSE) and "pricing incentives"?
Which call / voicemail / email would increase your chances of responding to? The one that wants to know insight / requirements or one that has promise of helping you get what it is that you are really after?

This may be counter-intuitive for you.

I didn't always know this.

But getting people angry is one of the fastest way to make more
sales.

Strange but true.

This can be a bit hard to understand and accept at first.
Especially if you are like me and most other sales people
and you really like relating to people.

But here's the truth:

The sale is made only someone gets fed up with a problem and
decides to do something about it.

The decision to "do something" is an emotional one. And most
action starts from dissatisfaction.

The ultimate decision to buy, and to buy from you happens
when someone is feeling upset, frustrated, angry, anxious,
etc. about a problem and they believe you have the solution
to their problem.

The difference is, when prospects are "evaluating" products
or solutions from multiple competing companies, those people
in an intellectual mode a lot more of the time. They
certainly use this ability to detach from the decision for
awhile to control the evaluation and to try and control you.

The emotion they feel though when you upset them about the
problems they are having and how those problems will effect
their business, their career, or their life is what get's
them wanting to buy, and wanting to buy now rather than
later.

People can't help it.

None of us can.

All decisions are rooted in emotion, and rationalized with
logic.

There's all kinds of excuses for why people won't buy from
you.

The simple fact is though that if you can find and get
someone emotional about a problem they are having, or will
have, you got an insanely high chance of making the sale.

So go out and find some pain and get someone mad about it now.

“Buy:  To acquire in exchange for money or its equivalent; purchase. Sell:  To exchange or deliver for money or its equivalent.”

My attitude towards business and sales shifted massively for
the better when I got sick and tired of all the sucking up I
used to do, and decided to sell and do business on my own
terms.

Here's a short list of the strategies that I adopted that
allowed me to stop sucking up to make sales:


1 - Declare Your Expertise - You must know specifically what
you and your company are good at and who will perceive you
that way. This applies whether you are a sales rep or a
business owner yourself.


2 - Prove Yourself - You must demonstrate proof that are
worth what you say you are and that you can deliver on your
promises. Customer case studies, stories, and testimonials
can serve to do this very well.


3 - Be High Value, Not Low-Cost - Price is not a sustainable
advantage. People want good value, and most will put out
extra bux for it when it is truly there.


4 - Market Your Expertise - Get your message out to
potential prospects via as much media as your prospects
watch, read, and listen to. Ads, mail, phone calls, email,
blogs, etc. Get them to find out about you and come to you
when they are in need.


5 - Make Prospects Sell You - With interested prospects
coming to you, you must then entice people to *sell you* on
why you should select them as a client or customer.

"Optimism is essential to achievement and it is also the foundation of courage and true progress."

Your Holiday Card Opportunity

You should definitely send a holiday card to your customers, vendors, prospects, industry peers and friends, and referral sources. It’s an opportunity to “touch” them in a high-quality way.
Don’t be cheap. Impressions matter, and for many it will be the only thing they see and touch about you and your company this year.
Yes, “the holiday card project” is a real chore when done right. You need to make sure you have all the names spelled correctly, titles and companies and addresses updated. Someone needs to get on it now – months in advance. And it’s best to mail them early. Drop ’em just after Thanksgiving, before “card fatigue” kicks in.
No, don’t add business promotions, advertisements or pitches for more business. It’s about sending a genuine wish for a joyous holiday and prosperous New Year. Make the message short and sweet and not overly religious, unless that’s a real part of who you are and for what you stand. Be careful, though. It’s about sending a positive message to all. Steer clear of anything that could alienate or offend.
Do include a quality logo or image of your company, and sign each card personally. Any person who is active on the “account” should also sign their name.
If you use a picture of your office or “team,” make sure it’s impeccable. Professionally produced. When in doubt, don’t do it.
Try to make it memorable without risking being unprofessional or offensive. Avoid the cheesy and overused “holiday poinsettia” card and “puppy stuffed in an elf suit type of stuff.” Move into the modern age and send something that has style, color and beauty.
Make sure to include a return address. Update your database for return mail and get the card rapidly on its way to the new location. A friendly call to the person who moved is in order, just to check in and see what’s up, show you care, and make sure you have their correct information.
The holiday season is an opportunity to touch those you know and care about in a positive way. Many of your competitors will fail to take full advantage, or will stumble out of the gate. It’s your opportunity to put a few more drops in the rain bucket of positive impressions. Over time, the raindrops produced by each of your many efforts will fill the bucket until it’s overflowing.

"it is time to get back to basics: to self-discipline and respect for the law, to consideration for others, to accepting responsibility for yourself and your family, and not shuffling it off on the state."

Proposals That Close More Business

Do you struggle to close prospects that seem to be a perfect fit?
I met with a successful retirement-age business owner last week to discuss representing him in the sale of his business. His business provides specialty maintenance-type services to natural gas companies. As he shared with me the operations of his business, he explained that he doesn’t have written agreements with his clients. He said he learned long ago that written agreements just get in the way. All that’s needed is a gentleman’s understanding of the terms of service and verbal approval to start. Once you have this, begin the work and start billing. He said this way of doing business has served him well over the years, and he’s never encountered a serious problem.
As it turns out, I’ve been doing some reading, thinking and experimenting on the subject. Heck, problems arise even when we DO have strong written agreements, so why mess with them?
Customer agreements are misused and misunderstood. They shouldn’t become a barrier to doing business. For most businesses, they need not be filled with legalese nor require review by the prospect’s legal advisor. Goodness, no. Lawyers kill deals. Delays do, too!
Proposals shouldn’t be used to introduce yourself or your firm. Nor to gauge a prospect’s interest.
Similarly, proposals shouldn’t be spread out like trotlines. Writing and submitting proposals takes time away from what you need to be doing – talking to prospects, assessing needs, helping the prospects understand your unique abilities to deliver the results they desire, agreeing on the value you can deliver to them, and performing the work.
A proposal is not a “starting point” or a document that’s a “work in progress.”
I don’t even like the name “proposal.” “Agreement” is a better word.
A proposal is a clear and concise summary of what will be accomplished for the prospect and the value they will enjoy.
Yes, the proposal will become the main part of your agreement with the prospect, once they approve it. It will also be a document that you, they, and others can refer to as a guide for what is being done and what will be gained. It should be brief – no more than three pages at the very most using standard margins, spacing and font sizes. Preferably, a single page. It shouldn’t look “legal” but it should be clear and professional.
It should NOT contain any mention of your fees!
Each agreement should be 100% tailored to the subject project. It should NOT be written by a lawyer, and it should not be designed to provide unilateral protection for either party.
When the desire is to bring in more business and spend less time chasing prospects, you need to break down the barriers that lie between your prospects and the pen they use to write the check. Here’s the simple formula:

Your fees should only be presented AFTER you and the prospect have agreed on everything else. The agreement on your fees can be attached as an addendum. Here are some other suggestions for formulating proposals that close more business:

• Do not include details about what you will do to deliver the benefits outlined in the proposal. The client should already trust you and be convinced you can deliver the desired results. You can talk about process, develop methodologies, and help them understand what you will do, but this does not need to be in the proposal/agreement. If the client has a need to add great detail in these areas then you have a trust problem. Spend more time helping them understand you, your firm, your experience, your capabilities, your commitment, and the process you will work. Then, explain that all the details will bog down the agreement, and that’s not good for anyone.
• Provide in your proposal three options for accomplishing what the client desires – one with a minimalist scope of services, one with a middling scope of services, and one with an extensive scope of services. For our merger and acquisitions advisory services, here are the three sets we provide for seller clients, in summary form:

• Analyze the business; provide an estimate of market price and terms; prepare summary offering documents; and then introduce the client-seller to three buyers that are a good fit. The client handles it from there. Of course, we don’t recommend this one!
• Analyze the business; provide an estimate of market price and terms; prepare best-of-class offering documents; select three top buyers candidates; and represent the seller in working with the buyers and closing a transaction.
• All of b above but instead of limiting the buyer work to three, we run a full buyer search; attempt to secure offers from ten buyers; and then work them all to maximize the sale price. The time required of our firm is much greater here, but it typically results in the highest sale price.

Of course, the fee requirement for each of the above will be different. The lowest fee choice (and lowest value delivered) will be option A. Option C will offer the highest value and require the highest commitment (fee) from the client.
One great benefit of the “multiple options” strategy is to get the client to move from “who do I choose?” to “which option of yours do I choose?” For you, the proposer, it’s a choice of yeses.

•  Identify and work only with the decision maker/ultimate buyer. The person that can approve the agreement and sign the check. Proposals to non-buyers are a waste of time, paper and ink. When a non-decision maker explains that you have to work with him, explain that your company policy prohibits you from working with non-decision makers. You are only able to work with decision makers directly. The reason is there is a lot at stake and you cannot risk miscommunication or errors that can occur by not working directly with the decision maker/person that will ultimately be judging the results.4. Establish and include in your proposal the project’s business objectives. Not deliverables, methodologies or “tasks to be performed” but objectives that will be accomplished for the client. Include the value to the client of completing each. The items can be for either the company or the person you’re working with (or both). For business seller representation, it’s a sale price or range of sale prices for the business.
• Include measures of success for the project. These are the things that you’ll both look to evaluate to see that progress is being made. For business sellers advisory, it’s x number of offers in x price range, and then a signed letter of intent with a qualified buyer in the target price range.
• Don’t deliver the agreement until everything that’s in it is agreed to between you and the prospect. Each time they ask for a proposal, drill down on the terms that need to be clearly agreed upon. Explain that once you agree on terms, you can deliver a proposal that contains the agreed-upon terms. When you have an agreement and they’re excited to get started and see the results, tell them the proposal will be on their desk, in writing, the next day. Make it happen. No need to present it in person –– they’ll need time to review it anyway.
• Include in the written proposal that agreement is contingent on agreement of the fees to be paid. When the client asks for the fees, tell him or her that you need to agree on what you will be doing before you can provide fees. Then, once they’ve reviewed the proposal and agreed to all the terms and said they want to get it going, provide the fee proposal, in writing, with an investment stipulated for each option (as described above). Include in your fee proposal ROI estimates for each option. Then, agree with the prospect on when you will follow up (after he’s had a chance to review the fee proposal), in the event you have not heard from him already.

After submitting the fee schedule, follow up at the agreed-upon time. When you reach him or her and complete the initial greeting and niceties, don’t say a word. Just wait for a response. If he beats around the bush, ask which option he has chosen. Don’t agree to reduce any fees without removing some of the deliverables or methodologies, whether or not they are outlined specifically in the agreement. Refer to the ROI for each. You are selling value, not price. It’s about ROI to the client!
Ask if he is ready to get started. Signing of the document and payment of the initial fee is secondary to getting started on the work. Once you begin, the agreement is basically in place. Or, at least that’s the way I suggest you handle it. Of course, the client will want to get the agreement finalized as well. And he will. If, however, you simply receive a check, don’t bother with the signature. Add to the proposal that payment for services constitutes acceptance of the agreement.
Are you skilled at getting new business booked? If not, there’s no better place for you to improve your skills. The people that close business enjoy the spoils.
Your industry does things differently? Well, maybe you can be a pioneer. Maybe a non-traditional method can be an innovation that helps you earn more business and grow faster.
By the way, the business owner-seller mentioned at the beginning of this article hired me to represent him in the sale of his business. We shook hands on it and got started immediately. I followed up with an email that documented our agreed-upon next steps and the agreed-upon compensation. He does not even need to respond to my email affirmatively. I trust him (or I would not do business with him) and what is most important is we get started. An oral agreement is a legally binding agreement. If, in the worst-case scenario, he tried to wiggle out of the fee, I have documentation of our agreement and will have ample documentation of the work I do on the project that will have clearly given rise to the business sale. I’ve worked in this manner with other clients and have never had a

It Starts with Lead Generation

You cannot grow revenue and earn high profits without first becoming great at lead generation. If you aspire to be in the business fast lane, lead generation is your fuel.
What’s the key to lead generation? Every business is unique, so it’s a question you must find the answer to yourself. It’s a challenging task, to be sure, but it’s imperative. For some, a key component is the physical location. The signage and “look” that get the right prospects in the door. For almost all types of businesses, it’s about figuring out which types of campaigns are most effective.
Once leads are being consistently generated in sufficient quality and quantity to support revenue levels that will allow profitable operation of the business, the task turns to lead conversion. Fuel alone won’t get you motoring down the road. You need a lead conversion machine. An efficient machine that maximizes the revenue derived from the investment you make in lead generation.
Finally, a business must satisfactorily deliver the purchased product or service if it hopes to endure. Deliver in a manner that garners return business. And so business, in its essence, is simply:

• Lead generation
• Lead conversion
• Product or service delivery

Are you giving enough attention to A and B above? Do you realize how critical C is to your repeat business?

Lead Generation

The only way to figure out the most cost-effective means for generating quality leads is trial and error. To be sure, you can learn a lot from your peers. The best place to do this is at trade shows and conferences. But in the end you must try, try and try again. Better yet, test, test and test gain. It’s a game of keeping track of each effort, tracking the results and then trying different combinations and nuances to find an even more successful campaign. Finding one great campaign might do the trick for a while, but you should never stop experimenting and tracking the results. It’s expensive. It’s an investment. It’s the only way to build a business that has enduring success.
What will it take? At least one full-time person dedicated to running, and building, your lead generation machine.

Lead Conversion

Leads have no value unless converted to cash. Turing them to cash is an entirely different process from lead generation. But similar to lead generation, the process should be handled by a dedicated person, or staff. A specialist, or specialists, whose one task is converting leads into clients.
Again, the appropriate and optimal process differs for each business. For a retailer, it’s about how walk-in traffic is greeted, how the inventory is presented or arranged, how their questions are answered, and how they’re “checked out.” McDonald’s has it down pat, of course. “Would you like to try one of our new premium smoothies today?”
Similar to lead generation, lead conversion is a process of testing and comparing results. A process of continually replaced inferior techniques with higher-yielding ones. Do in-person visits with free mock-ups, for example, yield a higher ROI than phone sales with samples of work performed for other customers?

Product or Service Delivery

What’s better than turning a lead into cash? Well, turning a lead into a stream of cash, of course. Returning customers are more profitable than new ones because:

• They do not require an investment in lead generation.
• They do not require the same level of service, i.e., persuading, teaching, selling, system/database setup, post-purchase assistance, etc.

Companies that enjoy a high level of repeat customers are almost always very profitable. You want to have a very profitable company, right? You must execute. Your execution effort is your third critical business process. You should have at least one full-time person in charge of product and/or service delivery and customer satisfaction. Customers return when they’re satisfied with their prior purchases and then they send their friends.
Developing a highly profitable business is not easy, of course, but when we boil down the complexity and see clearly the key processes that can lead us to success, our task becomes easier. Just three processes must be mastered. Becoming “decent” at all three is probably enough to put yourself in the top 20 percent. That’s where the spoils are.

"Don't tell people how to do things, tell them what to do and let them surprise you with their results. "

"You have made some mistakes, and you may not be where you want to be, but that has nothing to do with your future."

Prospecting !

When a prospect voices an objection, does your heart start pounding and your palms become sweaty? Do get a knot in your stomach? There is another way. Here is a simple strategy which will enable you to eliminate prospect objections before they occur.
Far too many sales professionals hear prospect objections as personal rejection. Because of this, many sales professionals are terrified of prospect objections. Rather than being something scary, however, the truth is that an objection from your prospect is important information. You are learning about your prospect, how that prospect thinks and feels and what is important to them. Listen carefully.
That said, however, you do not necessarily have to hear every prospect objection. There are some that you can and should eliminate.
The way that you preempt an objection is to mention that objection first, before your prospect can even bring it up. This is best used with the types of objections that you hear all the time. Addressing objections first and up front is an incredibly powerful way to minimize the number of objections you actually do hear.at the very start of your sales process. This is called “preempting objections.”

For example: A very frequent objection prospectors’ hear is: “It’s too expensive” as in “I’ve heard about your product/service and it’s too expensive.” If this is something you hear frequently you can eliminate this objection’s power by addressing it first. If indeed your product/service is more expensive than the competition, there is probably a reason for that additional expense. What is the reason? Does your company uses superior quality products in manufacturing? Does your company offer a special level of service above and beyond what the competition offers? Identify the reason that your product/service is more expensive than your competitors’. Then bring it up yourself. An example:

“Our product/service is certainly not the cheapest. That’s because we use superior quality materials and 24/7 service. None of our competitors can say that.”

By addressing the objection first, you’ve turned a negative into a positive.

Another example: Let’s say that your company has been having service issues and that these problems are widely known.  You’re certain that your prospect knows about the issues and will see them as a negative. If the issues have been corrected or are in the process of being corrected you should bring those issues up first:

“While we were having some challenges with (fill in the blank) that caused the company to (fill in the blank with the actions taken by the company) and institute new procedures to (fill in the blank with new procedures) which will actually cause (fill in the blank with a benefit that the prospect will reap from these changes).”

As in the previous example you are turning a negative into a positive.

When you bring up an objection first and address it, you not only eliminate the objection, you are able to position the objection the way that you want it to be perceived. This usually enables you to turn that objection from a negative into a positive.
Your homework, then, is to thoroughly review all the prospect objections that you frequently hear and brain storm ways to preempt them. You will not be able to preempt all prospect objections; however you will be able to preempt many of them. If you do this well you will be in a much stronger place to be able to move your sales process forward.

Online Marketing !

Contact Gino :   @   http://www.inbusinesswithyou.com  Business Description: Directories and Maps We here to help your business grow by extending its reach across the vast online universe. With the focus of creating a complete web presence, a campaign will help your business compete for customers in its area. Once you submit your business information, will send it out to a variety of directories and online platforms, including: Google, Bing and Yahoo search platforms Mobile device submission (Blackberry, IPhone, Droid) Social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare) Online directories Mapping submission GPS submission and 411 directories OnStar and other Telematics platforms Newsletter with coaching and tutoring your own IT life line Completion and audit reports showing your progress online Mobile Websites 71% of smartphone users search because of an ad they’ve seen either online or offline 82% of smartphone users notice mobile ads 74% of smartphone shoppers make a purchase as a result of using their smartphones to help with shopping 88% of those who look for local information on their smartphones take action within a day As smartphones become an integral part of people’s lives, consumers use mobile search more and more as a source for action-oriented search queries. With a combination of keywords, ads and websites that are strategically created for the mobile-search environment, LikesLocal mobile campaigns are designed to help local businesses connect with their local customers through this constantly growing search medium. Advantage Internet Marketing Millions of people use their computers to find information through search engines. LikesLocal Advantage campaigns are designed to help people using laptop and desktop computers find your business through strategically-designed search campaigns that target local search users in your area. Whether your target audience is big or small, a LikesLocal Advantage campaign will make it easy for them to find your business. When people enter search queries that are relevant to your products and services, an ad for your business will appear in their search results. Once search users click on the ad, they will be taken to your campaign’s website. This site, designed to be an engaging and intuitive experience for the user, will provide a mixture of informative and beneficial content about your business, with the focus of creating a conversion-oriented response. Your potential customers are searching for your business. LikesLocal will create an effective online presence that will help them find you. Please contact me to set up an appointment ! @408-256-2814

Mobile Marketing !

Directories and Maps     http://www.ginomarketinggroup.com
We here to help your business grow by extending its reach across the vast online universe. With the focus of creating a complete web presence, a NetCare campaign will help your business compete for customers in its area. Once you submit your business information, NetCare will send it out to a variety of directories and online platforms, including:
Google, Bing and Yahoo search platforms
Mobile device submission (Blackberry, IPhone, Droid)
Social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare)
Online directories
Mapping submission
GPS submission and 411 directories
OnStar and other Telematics platforms
Newsletter with coaching and tutoring your own IT life line
Completion and audit reports showing your progress online
Mobile Websites
71% of smartphone users search because of an ad they’ve seen either online or offline
82% of smartphone users notice mobile ads
74% of smartphone shoppers make a purchase as a result of using their smartphones to help with shopping
88% of those who look for local information on their smartphones take action within a day
As smartphones become an integral part of people’s lives, consumers use mobile search more and more as a source for action-oriented search queries. With a combination of keywords, ads and websites that are strategically created for the mobile-search environment, LikesLocal mobile campaigns are designed to help local businesses connect with their local customers through this constantly growing search medium.
Advantage Internet Marketing
Millions of people use their computers to find information through search engines. are designed to help people using laptop and desktop computers find your business through strategically-designed search campaigns that target local search users in your area.
Whether your target audience is big or small, a LikesLocal Advantage campaign will make it easy for them to find your business. When people enter search queries that are relevant to your products and services, an ad for your business will appear in their search results. Once search users click on the ad, they will be taken to your campaign’s website. This site, designed to be an engaging and intuitive experience for the user, will provide a mixture of informative and beneficial content about your business, with the focus of creating a conversion-oriented response. Your potential customers are searching for your business. will create an effective online presence that will help them find you.
Please contact me to set up an appointment !

Selling !

I focus on buying motives.
Reason? They’re a million times more powerful than selling skills. Make that a zillion. And here’s the best part — your competition is still “selling.”
Two big questions: How do you uncover buying motives? At the heart of understanding and capturing buying motives is a strategy that’s so powerful it’s almost always overlooked.
Big answer: Ask previous customers. Ask them why they bought. Yes, it’s that simple. But, it will help if a few things are in place. First you have to have a relationship with the customer you want to ask. Second, you should have a reason to visit other than “taking.” (The meeting will be much more communicative if you are offering something of value in exchange for his or her candor.)

Advertising

Contact:  Gino  http://www.ginochimienti.com

Business Description: Directories and Maps We here to help your business grow by extending its reach across the vast online universe. With the focus of creating a complete web presence, a campaign will help your business compete for customers in its area. Once you submit your business information, will send it out to a variety of directories and online platforms, including: Google, Bing and Yahoo search platforms Mobile device submission (Blackberry, IPhone, Droid) Social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare) Online directories Mapping submission GPS submission and 411 directories OnStar and other Telematics platforms Newsletter with coaching and tutoring your own IT life line Completion and audit reports showing your progress online Mobile Websites 71% of smartphone users search because of an ad they’ve seen either online or offline 82% of smartphone users notice mobile ads 74% of smartphone shoppers make a purchase as a result of using their smartphones to help with shopping 88% of those who look for local information on their smartphones take action within a day As smartphones become an integral part of people’s lives, consumers use mobile search more and more as a source for action-oriented search queries. With a combination of keywords, ads and websites that are strategically created for the mobile-search environment, LikesLocal mobile campaigns are designed to help local businesses connect with their local customers through this constantly growing search medium. Advantage Internet Marketing Millions of people use their computers to find information through search engines. LikesLocal Advantage campaigns are designed to help people using laptop and desktop computers find your business through strategically-designed search campaigns that target local search users in your area. Whether your target audience is big or small, a LikesLocal Advantage campaign will make it easy for them to find your business. When people enter search queries that are relevant to your products and services, an ad for your business will appear in their search results. Once search users click on the ad, they will be taken to your campaign’s website. This site, designed to be an engaging and intuitive experience for the user, will provide a mixture of informative and beneficial content about your business, with the focus of creating a conversion-oriented response. Your potential customers are searching for your business. LikesLocal will create an effective online presence that will help them find you. Please contact me to set up an appointment ! @408-256-2814

Marketing !

Contact:  Gino  @ http://www.ginochimienti.com

Business Description: Directories and Maps We here to help your business grow by extending its reach across the vast online universe. With the focus of creating a complete web presence, a campaign will help your business compete for customers in its area. Once you submit your business information, will send it out to a variety of directories and online platforms, including: Google, Bing and Yahoo search platforms Mobile device submission (Blackberry, IPhone, Droid) Social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare) Online directories Mapping submission GPS submission and 411 directories OnStar and other Telematics platforms Newsletter with coaching and tutoring your own IT life line Completion and audit reports showing your progress online Mobile Websites 71% of smartphone users search because of an ad they’ve seen either online or offline 82% of smartphone users notice mobile ads 74% of smartphone shoppers make a purchase as a result of using their smartphones to help with shopping 88% of those who look for local information on their smartphones take action within a day As smartphones become an integral part of people’s lives, consumers use mobile search more and more as a source for action-oriented search queries. With a combination of keywords, ads and websites that are strategically created for the mobile-search environment,  mobile campaigns are designed to help local businesses connect with their local customers through this constantly growing search medium. Advantage Internet Marketing Millions of people use their computers to find information through search engines campaigns are designed to help people using laptop and desktop computers find your business through strategically-designed search campaigns that target local search users in your area. Whether your target audience is big or small, a  campaign will make it easy for them to find your business. When people enter search queries that are relevant to your products and services, an ad for your business will appear in their search results. Once search users click on the ad, they will be taken to your campaign’s website. This site, designed to be an engaging and intuitive experience for the user, will provide a mixture of informative and beneficial content about your business, with the focus of creating a conversion-oriented response. Your potential customers are searching for your business.  will create an effective online presence that will help them find you. Please contact me to set up an appointment ! @408-256-2814

.“Attitudes”

Of all the Of all the “attitudes” we can acquire, surely the attitude of gratitude is the most important and by far the most life changing. we can acquire, surely the attitude of gratitude is the most important and by far the most life changing.

Persist !

"The pro is the person who has all the hassles, obstacles, and disappointing frustrations that everyone else has. yet continues to persist, does the job, and makes it look easy."