THE OPTIONEER

THREE TRAITS THAT TREND TO THE TOP

2012-12-02T16:05:00.000-07:00

“There is no short cut to achievement. Life requires thorough preparation…”

George Washington Carver

There are a lot of training programs out there that fill gaps in training techniques. However, I would say that the most successful sales professionals have inbred characteristics and habits that consistently get results from forming successful behaviours. The following three are recommended to create maximum results:

1) START AT THE TOP: Top achievers want to know who the decision maker is and start from there. Far too many reps have a comfort zone on hanging out with admin or middle managers – the folks that ask so many questions, stray reps think they are getting somewhere, when all they are doing is answering questions, researching to answer those questions, asking their boss how to find the answer. In other words, wasting everyone's time. Speaking of wasting time, those that venture to the top typically have a compelling business issue they see that needs solving or a trend that would impact that prospect’s bottom line, attract investors, create matters outside their control. One of the best question tip I was given was to ask “what keeps you awake at night?” to this VIP (very important person). You should have lots of credible testimonials and examples of how you have solved similar problems with other clients (without divulging who or confidential specifics) by percentages or dollars on how it helped them that will trigger attention by the top decision maker. After all, he or she is too busy to give you the time of day because they are swamped with these matters … alas, comes along someone who has ideas that may work to solve it!

“NEVER mistake activity for achievement"

John Wooden

2) ASK GREAT QUESTIONS: Easier said than done. The most competent sales professionals have developed the skill to ask great questions. Guidance from responses from business issues surfacing uncovers real needs or opportunities. Great questions even helps those stuck in the middle to have themselves elevated to a higher decision maker if crafted artfully. You may just want to know when a decision is being made, how it is being made, and by whom. At the very least, good questioning skills allows the rep permission to accept the fact that they may be spinning wheels and move on to greener pastures (more opportunities). They can help create red flags that point to avoiding this prospect for now or forever. They also notify when the occasion may be better in the future and provide a roadmap on how best to keep in touch for when that happens (articles, etc.)

3) FINISH HOMEWORK: Research, research, research. These savvy pros know how to uncover information from Press Releases, Annual Reports, Business Periodicals and newspapers that allows them to have “business to business” discussions. If you want to look, think and act like you are more about solving needs or problems based on expertise, there are no short cuts. Here are some areas you can look at that should help understand a prospect betther:

i. Industry trends

ii. Governing regulations

iii. Who their customers are

iv. What the media is saying

v. Financial picture

Bare minimum, before a rep approaches a prospect, whether it be the decision maker or administrator (by phone, scheduled meeting), they should have a strong understanding of the company, its competitors, customers, industry, governing regulations before taking that first step.

“Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement and success have no meaning.”

Benjamin Franklin

The Say it, Share it, Do it BUSINESS PLAN

2012-07-13T12:04:00.000-06:00

I was recently asked what CRM system I would recommend for motivating and holding sales accountable. My answer is simple. Sometimes you have to revert to tried and true methodologies that have worked for years and there is nothing slick about it. It is called a Business Plan.

1. I recommend a business plan tailored to what you are asking for. There are zillions of BP templates out there...... however, give your team breadth to be innovative.

Sales-tude is Servitude

2012-07-10T14:40:00.001-06:00

People who throw kisses are mighty hopelessly lazy.

~Bob Hope

I ran across a great article on PeopleFirst.com and agreed with the advice offered in "Is Humility a Liability in Sales?"

Unfortunately, it was right on: Many sales managers and executives DO fall into the trap of thinking that they want the macho, superior, confident sales applicant. From my own personal experience they rarely equal the loyal, detail oriented, employee. The article took a bite from one of my most popular posts I wrote a while ago called "Hunter or Farmer" where I attempt to lay out what you may end up with.

It is proven time and time again as a sales pro myself and a hiring manager: HIRE "humility" over and over and OVER again!

Sales is servitude cloaked in disguise. ~Jeannette Marshall

Why? Sales is servitude cloaked in disguise. If you are willing to "serve" your customer, truly understand them, that means putting "them" in front of "you".

Where ART thou? .... on Pinterest!

2012-06-24T13:59:00.004-06:00

“Absorb what is useful, reject what is useless, add what is specifically your own.”
~Bruce Lee

Enter the magical world of Pinterest -- What is it?

"Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes.

Our goal is to connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting. We think that a favorite book, toy, or recipe can reveal a common link between two people. With millions of new pins added every week, Pinterest is connecting people all over the world based on shared tastes and interests.” www.pinterest.com

However humble and simple that sounds, one cannot avoid the millions of followers who think it is a big enough deal to sign up within mere months after launching. Most credible marketers are paying attention now:

“Pinterest stands out in crowded social media field” An article from USAToday stated “Some people in Silicon Valley believe Silbermann — who played cello for the Des Moines youth symphony; whose parents, Jane Wang and Neil Silbermann, are opthalmologists with a family practice in Urbandale; and who competed on the debate team at Roosevelt High School— may have founded the next giant social media website. The soft-spoken 29-year-old believes Pinterest fills a need on the Internet for people to express themselves. You don't have to be witty, or a good photographer, or a good writer to use Pinterest, he says, you just have to pin your interests to an online pinboard.”

Don’t be misled into believing it is only for crafters (that would probably nix serious professional social media marketers). Delve further and deeper, you will see so much more! Even the heartiest of Social Media Divas and Dons are scrambling to climb aboard. Not even Klout or Empire Avenue, have caught up … that is how fresh and unique Pinterest is. Like many social media networks before it, Pinterest would never have predicted, I’m guessing, the ample opportunity in so many other ways.

The Godfather of Social Media: Josepf Haslam

2012-01-21T21:59:00.004-07:00

Some folk still are of the opinion that Social Media is a time waster, for the lonely hearts, social animals or narcissists, while others are knowledge junkies who embrace it as a vehicle to subscribe to information at a speed they control how much they want to absorb. Then there are the exceptions. Those that are in “the know” or the ones who “get it”: a world in which information, networking and socializing that break down barriers such as location, intelligence, color, religion, corporate, private, interactive, passive or active participation. No matter where you sit, most everyone agrees today it a force with which resistance will leave you in its dust.

Once you break down your personal barriers or bias, you discover that there are some people that appear at every turn in the social media phenomena. One such person is Josepf Haslam. I coined him the “Godfather of Social Media” simply because he is an expert, personable and willing to lend an opinion, always. Josepf Haslam is at the heart of Social Media. Luckily, I was able to squeeze in time with Josepf while he “ went from Montreal to Kingston NY to Philly, last to see my girls 13/15 and then back to Kingston on Monday and Montreal Monday night”. Whew.

1. How did you get into Social Media, why, and when?

I have been involved with Social Media since 1979, we just didn’t call it that then! As an early advocate of Social Media, I helped implement a global infrastructure at DuPont along the way. To me the reasons are obvious, collaboration, connections, relationships, and speed.

What’s in, what’s out? 2012 Predictions

2011-12-29T22:46:00.007-07:00

What the heck, everyone is throwing their hats into the ring by forecasting predictions for 2012, I may as well. My predictions do have a fine line between prediction and a wish list with a twist of sarcasm.

Visibility on Google products (Blogger, G+) will influence search results on its search engine. That being said, Blogpost will nudge out WordPress popularity.
Mini skirts will be consider superfluous and replaced by ultraconservative maxi length while Jennifer Aniston tresses will be replaced by pixie cuts.
Klout rhymes with “out” as more savvy, user-sensitive influence measurement tools emerge learning from mistakes on ways to find more unique ways to attract revenue.

Advertising Boxes Out Social Media

2011-12-26T16:11:00.002-07:00

According to an article on Media Post: "Social networking now accounts for one of every five minutes spent online, making it the most popular online activity worldwide, according to a comprehensive new report from comScore. What’s more, it leads all content categories in the number of display ads delivered, accounting for more than 1 in 4 U.S. display ad impressions (28%). "

My Commentary:

After spending over 10 years working with magazines, including launching a national inflight magazine for a major airline, my take why social media is a distant cousin in advertising spend is because the actual people who allocate advertising budgets are simply not involved in Social Media themselves.

Social Media is relatively new, limited by few metrics, sceptics abound and partial resources to quantify ROI. From my days in magazines, justifying budget expenditures were and still are compared by readership, reach, audience, demographics and so on. It tended to lean still towards coupons or call to action ads. It is far easier to rationalize after someone walks in or inquires after newspaper or radios generate the response. Marketers have had years to validate traditional advertising.

10 Reasons why Santa is a Great Leader

2011-12-25T01:58:00.001-07:00

1) Making a list checking it twice.

Organized, makes plans.

2) Now Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen! On, Comet! On, Cupid! on, on Donner and Blitzen!

Knows the team and recognizes them by name.

3) Rudoph with your nose so bright won’t you guide my sleigh tonight.

Delegates and allow others to lead based on their expertise.

If you slow down, how do you end up selling faster?

2011-12-12T19:49:00.010-07:00

"Slow Down, Sell Faster" Author Kevin Davis Interview

“Prospects take their time and they aren’t going to speed up their process just because you are in a hurry. With all the talk about relationship-oriented selling, there have been very few books that spell out the “how to” of creating lasting relationships with customers.”

Gerhard Gschwandtner

Founder and Publisher, Selling Power

While with a Fortune 500 corporation, I was one of the Guinea Pigs sent down to Houston to test the course as a senior member of their sales force. That was my first introduction, if you want to call it that, to Kevin Davis. Although, I was doing fairly well, this process transformed my relationships with buyers. I was no long “selling”. I became invested in customers’ success, instead looking upon business relationships as a way to understand where the customer was at. Instead of slowing me down, it catapulted me higher.

Years later, while doing sales training of my own, I was tracking down copies and wrote Kevin to find out where I could find copies. He was helpful, we got to corresponding and talking. The next thing I knew, this mentor was asking me my opinions, how the methodology was being applied … and there I was “Jeannette Jones” in “Slow Down, Sell Faster” …. replaying obstacles, reliving sales scenarios, trying more new things!

LEADER OR DICTATOR? Positive or Negative Signs That Indicate Who You Are

2011-11-20T20:37:00.011-07:00

“More gold has been mined from the thoughts of men than has been taken from the earth.”

~Napoleon Hill

POSITIVE SIGNS you are a LEADER:

PRESENT: You are always available. You are attentive, listen, clarify, and offer feedback. Observant.
PURPOSE: You are self-aware, understand who or what you are responsible for. You have goals and monitor them. Motivated.
COMMUNICATE: You tell people they matter, you’re in it together, together anything is possible by creating dialogue that is collaborative. Connect.

Making a list? Checking it twice? Send a Holiday Greeting for the Naughty and Nice

2011-11-09T22:06:00.001-07:00

Salesman: This computer will cut your workload by 50%.

Office Manager: That's great, I'll take two of them.

Around this time, we start thinking about getting our greeting card list assembled, getting ahold of a printer, and all those fine time consuming tasks that in the world of automation, means you have to “do it yourself”. I liked the automation of "Send Out Cards" so much that I did sign up for distributorship because it is a total turnkey solution (including card, stamps, mailing). I was skeptical so I sent one to myself initially. Even if you don’t follow the “Christmas” tradition, many cultures and religions still engage the time to send personalized greetings to acknowledge the time that others celebrate.

#SALESCHAT : The online classroom. From posting to interactive dialogue.

2011-11-03T00:43:00.003-06:00

“Stanzr puts the ‘engagement’ in Social Media”

~Jeannette Marshall

What is in a name preceded by the #? It is called a “Hashtag” developed to allow Twitter users to join in conversation on a similar topic or interest. About 5 months ago, Taariq Lewis, CEO of Stanzr.com was launching a BETA to take the Twitter conversation a step further by providing an environment to do so. Now, it has evolved from a weekly #saleschat on Sunday afternoons to a mid-monthly Wednesday forum.

The topics surround sales techniques, tools and processes. Moderated by Jeannette Marshall, Taariq Lewis and Austin Miles, with guests experts ranging from top selling author Kevin Davies, Slow Down Sell Faster (www.toplineleadership.com) to Cesar Rodriguez, CEO, www.activitytracker.com. Participants actively jump in or others sit back and read the content as it is unfolding. It is free, there is no commitment other than having a Twitter ID (www.twitter.com). You don’t have to be a social media guru, it could be an incentive to use Twitter as a learning tool.

To give you an idea, the following is the October 12^th transcripts and attendees while we covered that month’s topic: Activity Metrics ... How do you measure what you are doing in sales to maximize your time and focus on the RIGHT results! Everyone logs on by the 9 p.m. EST time slot and off we go! http://stanzr.com/7ps9pui6

PARTICIPANTS:

· Taariq Lewis, CEO, Stanzr.com ~Moderator @taariqlewis
· Jeannette Marshall, BlogHER ~Moderator @optioneerJM
· Cesar Rodriguez, CEO, www.salestracker.com ~Special Guest @activitytracker

§ Joseph Olewitz, Founder & CEO, www.22ndstorystrategies.com @jolewitz

§ Maureen Blandford, Lead Strategist, Mind Time Group @maureenB2B

§ Gart Hart, Sales, www.SalesDuJour.com @salesdujour

§ Justin Pirie, Cloud Strategist, Mimecast, @justinpirie

§ Nick Bianchi, Account Manager, Dealermine, @nickbianchi

§ Sherree Worrell, Project Administrator, Management Consulting @sherree_W

§ Joseph Gier, CEO, Learn To Grow @josephgier

§ Deborah Thomas-Nininger, Founder/CEO, DTN Productions @DTNetiquette

§ Bill Gardiner, Channel Management Director, Cirrusabs, @b_gardiner

§ Andy Houston, Director of Member Services, North American Inter-Fraternity Conference @hust0058

§ Perry Pucetti, CEO, The Triple-I Corporation @DelphiUSA

TRANSCRIPTS (Curated by Taariq Lewis):

What Metrics are you using right now?

OptioneerJM Everyone, Cesar Rodriguez is our special guest, he's the CEO, founder and sales guru for Activity Tracker,

ActivityTracker I define tracking your activity as everything you do that goes into your sales process
ActivityTracker for example how many calls u make a day, appointments, presentations, sales, etc

SalesDuJour Quantity of calls, meetings (virtual, F2F, V2V) length, preparation and research, related admin

ActivityTracker the pieces that eventually lead up to a sale. I'm not talking about organizing your desk and the non essentials

SalesDuJour Proposals and correspondence, prospecting and networking.

DTNEtiquette Yes, I track calls, e-mails, connectivity updates - it is my own system

OptioneerJM As Cesar and I spoke about, most people, me included have used Activity Tracking within CRM dynamics

ActivityTracker We all know that every step in your sales process leads to that end sale, but seldom do we take time to track the core metrics that generate that end result.

ActivityTracker Some people do some people don't. Most sales people like me hate that stuff, and just want to get busy and not be slowed down by loggin in information, but we all know it's important

SalesDuJour Return on Time and Effort has always been critical to me.

ActivityTracker but it can also be very motivating to know what your own personal law of averages numbers are and your personal ratios

NickBianchi I have tracked call #'s etc. in the past. But not as much as much anymore. Not because it's not effective but my environment has changed in such a way that the path to the sale (the BIG win) is less clear now

DTNEtiquette Based upon current and/or prospective client I determine what type of follow-up is best first - all are made aware of my podcasts

ActivityTracker when u find your ratios show that you close 1 out of 10 then you don't focus on the yes's nad hte no's but rather the 9 you have to burn thru to get to that tenth

justinpirie This might be too detailed- but how do you integrate into existing CRM and ERP systems?

SalesDuJour @ActivityTracker Avoiding the 9 losers is critical to real success

NickBianchi @ActivityTracker Just don't be in too much of a hurry to burn thru the 9 that you burn right thru the 10th!

DTNEtiquette Yes, it is homegrown - 20+ years in business!

Josephgier well sales is a bit like commodity trading in that way... 8 losses in row but the two that you get more than make up for them

SalesDuJour Activity tracking of ROE & ROT helps prioritize and become selective

OptioneerJM CRMs is a lot of data .... lots of which create dashboards for mgt ... what we're speaking about is instead of a homegrown

ActivityTracker Yes, here's an example of why tracking is important and a great motivational tool....

Justinpirie @josephgier I was thinking- we use Netsuite for ERP which drives everything- how would we use it?

Josephgier Well, I have a sales question for the sharks..are there generally accepted metric to guage a sales success or failure

SalesDuJour @josephgier That needs to be tailored to each sales environment. In other words, there is not a "standard"

ActivityTracker we all know that every thing u do in ur sales earns you money, for example if you have to ten people to get that one yes and that one yes earned you $100 then you know that every No or rejection earned u $10

ActivityTracker people forget that sometimes or to figure it out it takes a long time and is time consuming or cumbersome

NickBianchi @SalesDuJour Yes! Attempts to set goals/quotas using a system from a different space can be REALLY bad!

ActivityTracker Also within the Yes's and No's are further ratios

MaureenB2B I have so many clients and they all have different systems and I have 1 F1000 that has 6 regions and 6 different sales processes. Oy vey

ActivityTracker for example if you had to make 50 calls to the 10 prospects then that $100 commission divided by 50 calls = $2 per call right?

OptioneerJM Yes, how does it work basically @ActivityTracker ? lOTS of sales would be worried about just more data entry

ActivityTracker I've been in sales since i was a kid selling baseball cards and magic cards and hustling anything i could because i loved the trill of the sale

ActivityTracker to make a friend to have some fun and to make them happy and me money

MaureenB2B @NickBianchi old bricks and mortar. they really need to do an actual reorg, lots of old, engrained relationships with clients - some RMs threaten to walk with their businesses if anyone forces them to change.

OptioneerJM ok, let's move to the next question in a couple min as it leads into to the WHY you should be tracking your activity

ActivityTracker In sales there are only 2 reasons why ur not successful...

ActivityTracker you're either not doing something right or your not doing something enough

ActivityTracker how many calls, appointments, presentations, new people prospected etc

ActivityTracker One person might be a killer closer on the presentation table but they might be horrible at setting appointments that stick

ActivityTracker one person might be a killer appt setter but have a weak closing percentage

ActivityTracker over the phone they don't know why they're missing it. they just know they're not getting sales

ActivityTracker I developed an fun free and easy sales activity tracking tool that allowed people on my team to go online...

ActivityTracker and click buttons to increment their activity

I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think

~Socrates

Products. Benefits. Cost. ROI.

hust0058 @ActivityTracker I could see this being helpful in the #nonprofit #fundraising space for tracking donor outreach.

ActivityTracker @taariqlewis Pricing is the best part...it's currently free

ActivityTracker It was going to be a freemium model

OptioneerJM BINGO when u click the buttons to increment the activities you do it crunches ur numbers and shows u ur ratios for every area of ur sales process

hust0058 @ActivityTracker thanks for that info on (the lack of) pricing! :)

OptioneerJM so the main benefit from what I can see, its for you, the sales pro or entrepreneur or NFP

OptioneerJM if you can examine your activity and decide where you're getting traction, there is your ROI ...

ActivityTracker Freemium meaning our biz model was going to be where had 80% of the features free and if u wanted advanced tracking features it wud cost something like $15 a month, but we decided to open it up in a beta test

ActivityTracker and not charge anyone anything just yet and give it all away for free in exchange for avluable information on future features and whatnot

OptioneerJM the fact that it's free, not a CRM and personalizable ... looks like a no brainer doesn't it?

ActivityTracker Go to www.ActivityTracker.com/join/FreeAccount

ActivityTracker the site is ActivityTracker.com but the free account invitation code will set u up with a few free templates

ActivityTracker Penn Life insurance, Robbins Research International aka the Tony Robbins company

hust0058 @ActivityTracker just signed up.

ActivityTracker I love tony robbins so the fact that his people use it to track their sales is pretty cool

Personally, I am always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.

~Winston Churchill

After this discussion will you start using Activity Trackers?

Josephgier Yes Ill give it a shot

OptioneerJM agree Cesar ... but some would say time is money :o)

NickBianchi I will commit to creating an account. Too early to say if I will use it.

hust0058 @ActivityTracker your sales activity from #salechat should be 100% :)

Josephgier whats the downside

ActivityTracker Chatting doesnt do the tool all that much justice, there is 3minute a video on the homepage with a very handsome young man overviewing the site and how it works, i recommend watching that

OptioneerJM +RT @hust0058 @ActivityTracker your sales activity from #salechat should be 100% :)

ActivityTracker if you watch the quick start video within the site it'll overview all the cool things you can do like how u can friend up other people, share it with ur friends, and view other peoples activity

DTNEtiquette yes I will give it a try as well - & love sharing new tools w/my clients!

ActivityTracker the beautty of the AT is that I know exactly how much i make per phone call $17, and i know everytime i shake a hand I average earning $42

hust0058 @ActivityTracker thanks. My org doesn't have a flashy crm, so this can help give me some data!

ActivityTracker i also know that i close 45% of evreyone i send to a website video for my other company

ActivityTracker and 64% of every appointment sticks

ActivityTracker @josephgier Exactly! It's a HUGE motivation tool!

OptioneerJM Personally, professionally I knew that you have to be able to understand your own success ratio and this is the ticket

ActivityTracker when i don't feel like prospecting someone i ask myself. If that person had $42 in their hand and was wanting to give it to me in a handshake sould i walk over there and take it

OptioneerJM You can't just tell people they have to do more calls ... you need to show them what calls are successful and go from there

ActivityTracker often i don't want to prospect people but when i think about how much i make per my average closing percentages and dollar per prospect my lazy butt gets in gear!

hust0058 @OptioneerJM getting to the success (sale) takes failure along the way. Some can't see past those in the sales process.

ActivityTracker my fav part is the split testing to

ActivityTracker once u see the ratios between ur activities u can coach urself

ActivityTracker i coach people and charge $400 an hour

OptioneerJM Well part of sales is networking right? So hopefully, you all enlightened at the same time

ActivityTracker but realistically if u use this tool it can break down ur ratios and u can see where ur weakest

ActivityTracker that's why i created this tool

OptioneerJM great idea ... assumptive close (that they will watch); alternative time: I am available at this time, what works best for you?

ActivityTracker Yup, u have to inspect what u expect. Before AT we both woulda been clueless as to what he was doing wrong

OptioneerJM BUT the Activity tracking enhanced his efforts to focus on where he'd be more successful

ActivityTracker in one glance i saw it plain as day

ActivityTracker all i did was see he had a weak appt setting ratio and percentage

OptioneerJM Problem with many CRMs activity measurement tools are for management not for the sales pro

SalesDuJour @ActivityTracker Thanks Cesar. We have similar philosophies.

ActivityTracker and reply back to the intial welcome email to message me once u setup an account and let me know u found the site thru this sales chat and I'll be sure to give u personal help

ActivityTracker go to http://youtube.com/CoachCRod

ActivityTracker there's a video called "Why u suck at setting appointments"

ActivityTracker and another that says "bootcamp appointment setting"

OptioneerJM OK, maybe we'll use that as a basis of our next topic .. an assignment, then a discussion ... for Nov 16th - agreement?

ActivityTracker also my video blog http://cesarlrodriguez.com has tons of videos and even some fun and crazy ones.

OptioneerJM That would make a great #saleschat theme Tariq: "Why you suck at making appointments"

ActivityTracker probably stuff i shouldn't post seeing as i run a company now, and shud prob act a lil more serious and businessey. LoL!

OptioneerJM Well I'd like to thank Cesar as our guest, and as the topic was so interesting we didn't have any missiles flying tonight

ActivityTracker @OptioneerJM Thanx Jeannette, i think this is a cool idea, i love networking with people into sales, I LOVE sales people! We're just so dang fun and outgoing & lovable aren't we! =)

hust0058 @ActivityTracker @OptioneerJM Yes, thanks for the chat! H/T to @Taariqlewis for it showing up in my tweets

OptioneerJM Stanzr puts the "engagement" in social media doesn't it @ActivityTracker ? You're interacting with your audience live

ActivityTracker def. Btw, we're developing a killer sales blog so if we have some people that'd be interested in contributing blog posts please contact me

ActivityTracker always looking for killer content to share

Give interactive learning a try! The next event will be Wednesday, November 16^th at 9 p.m. EST under the topic “Why you suck at getting appointments”. http://stanzr.com/7ps9pui6

I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.

~Albert Einstein

LEADERSHIP: Work ON the business, not IN the business

2011-10-24T18:34:00.004-06:00

"If you think you're too small to have an impact, try going to bed with a mosquito in the room"

~Dame Anita Roddick, founder, The Body Shop

A boss asked me once "Are you working ON the business or IN the business?" He was a President I directly reported to. It was asked while we were reviewing the financials I was responsible for together. That advice remained with me. It rings true if not several times a day, it is magnified often. I've seen many entrepreneurs struggle with growth. Often, it is because they have difficulty letting go and allowing other people to take over.

There is a fine line between "if I don't do the work, nobody else cares as much as I do about success" and "hiring people whom you trust, mentor and help follow in your footsteps so you can focus on the business and not the tasks".

Once you consider that advice, you can clearly see those that fall into the trap from those that make the transition successfully.

I recommend succession planning from day one. That way, you will ensure you have the "right" people ready so you focus ON the business. You will discover yourself moving beyond tasks to vision.

A Fortune 500 corporation that I worked was phenomenal at succession planning. The previous year’s ink would barely be dried and already planning for that year’s end began. All managers would meet, bringing forward candidates for consideration for that year’s leadership path. Amongst the pool, three or four would be agreed upon. The culture dictated that everyone, from the VP to the operations team, would help groom and prepare that candidate for a leadership post by year’s end.

Wise entrepreneurs will take heed: Don’t wait until your back is against the wall, crisis sets in, or you're being shredded apart by the bombardment of decisions that freeze your organization until you give your blessing. That isn't leadership. It is fuelling the ego and the need to be in control. Often it is disguised. If you are leader in place by shareholders or executives what goes around comes around eventually ... to bite you. If you are an owner/principle of the organization, who has the nerve to tell you that you should be grooming your people to be able to step up in a heartbeat. They should have the confidence that they are not being set up to fail or be reprimanded for making the wrong decision.

Start today. Look around you. Who has potential to step in and step up in the event a crisis arises and let’s say an instantaneous decision has to be made and you’re in the air flying somewhere, and unreachable? (I’d rather not present a situation that is more life-threatening to raise alarm bells.) If you are hedging on a quick answer, then you have a huge issue to deal with.

Take a chapter from Steve Jobs, whom we are examining more and more after his passing. He was known to say that one of his greatest skills was recognizing and managing talent. The book “Good to Great” by Jim Collins provides oodles of examples of extremely successful empires that were only successful while its main leader was holding all the reigns. What resonates with me on the book is that the organizations that continue to weather many storms and survive decades are when the leadership surrounds itself with highly capable individuals who may be more talented in a particular area.

This may require baby steps. It isn’t easy to give up “control”. Often, ego gets in the way. I’ve seen executives confuse surrounding themselves with “yesmen” (aka political/gender unbiased “yes people”) as having the right people on the bus. Don’t fall into that trap.

You may have someone that bristle hair on the back of your neck when they don’t succumb to your point of view and are prepared to be passionate to argue a different stance. They may go against the rest of the “yesmen” team. Don’t consider that person controversial, not a team player, or opinionated. Look beyond the style to the substance behind the argument. Consider the passionate ideas behind the message that they are prepared to stand up for. Consider embracing them.

Perhaps it would be wise to sit down separately to clarify their ideas, coach on the style. You could end up discovering that they "get it" and truly cares enough about your success or that of the organization because they’re prepared to risk themselves for that. I’d put my money before one individual like that, than 10 “yesmen” All may be equally talented in several ways, but success doesn’t make a good bedfellow with “yesmen”.

Unfortunately, I’ve witnessed where a leader may have had only one truly trusted sidekick. No disrespect intended for “sidekick” – that trusted someone that you share friendship, respect, vision, workload with. That person could be gone and then what? That is why I recommend you create a team of experts that truly respect each other and share the same vision you do, with the ultimate passion and talent to drive success. That team can be “masters of their domain”. They’re people you trust with your vision and believe in the organizations success before their own political prowess. Try not to give only one other “power”. You could be still limiting the organization the same way as if everything halts if you’re not there to stamp “GO”.

“Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it.”

~Dwight D. Eisenhower

Image permission:

MEMO: Sales needs to get on the same page

2011-10-20T20:55:00.004-06:00

"I have never worked a day in my life without selling. If I believe in something, I sell it, and I sell it hard."

Estee Lauder

It's no wonder there is a fascination, fear and disrespect for the profession of sales. There are oodles of experts with unique perspectives, definitions and advice. Seriously folk, let's get on the same page for goodness sakes!

Most, many, MBA, B.Comm., BA consider "sales" as a final resort. Defeat when CEO doesn't appear to be accomplished any time soon. Then you have your father-in-law or someone several times removed tell you their worst sales nightmare when you admit that you are considering sales as a career.

Sadly, only the ones that "get it" really "get it". Sales as a profession has so many opportunities. For example, where can you build a business without putting your own capital up front? Be rewarded, compensated when the business grows without any ceiling? Sales.

What frustrates me is that sales professionals, sales experts, sales trainers are their own worst enemy. They are too readily prepared to offer advice without explanation, credentials, or common language. It is little wonder, that if you look up sales under Google, Twitter, Wikipedia or Facebook you are bombarded with conflicting and massive information overload.

PLEASE. Everyone get on the same "page".

Let's agree that "order takers" are not sales reps, they are "customer service reps". Hunters with the capability to market are Business Development Representatives (BDRs). Farmers that are pros at expanding established customer base, are called "Account Executive" or "Account Manager". Then there are "Sales Representatives" that sell, with a little bit of everything else thrown in. Get over it. Most knowledgeable buyers recognize titles ... Managers, Directors, VPs. What they want is "listen to me".

It all comes down to hunting (catching), farming (sowing) and then cooking (customer service) and delivering (operations). Each has a unique role, none more important than the other. When everyone can understand that, get on the same "page", share, communicate, strategize .... it's amazing what can happen!

I admire those that come up with "Customer Experience Manager" or "Big Cheese" as cool or innovative. BUT please, can we at least agree on what is what, who is who, when it comes to sales? That is, get on with our jobs. Bring in new revenue.

"Catch a man a fish, and you can sell it to him. Teach a man to fish, and you ruin a wonderful business opportunity."

Karl Marx

Wisdom. Knowledge. Understanding. What I wish I knew when I was a teenager.

2011-10-20T00:47:00.009-06:00

"Information is not knowledge."

~Albert Einstein

With free time until a new assignment November 1^st I have been working through a “MeDOs” list. Except, it seems my two teenage daughters have decided that they are in one crisis or another defined as "stressed out" to them:

A) HOMEWORK: After job, boyfriend, friends

B) SLEEP: Cell phone alarm doesn't work

C) BOSS: Won't switch shifts because of A)

D) MONEY: Equals clothes, gas, entertainment

E) CAR: Gas drains from D) because of A)

I bet you know of cures or recommendations. Trust me, they’re teenagers. They don't want it. They want to be heard and understood. They certainly don’t want you to tell them how to solve anything.

My father passed away a year ago October 28, 2011. I miss him. We would always have these great conversations. He was 76, just shy of 77. He seemed to always call when Mom was out playing bridge and between his beloved Vancouver Canucks games (or baseball, etc.) When I was the same age as my daughters, he went to work and that’s all I remember really. Everything else revolved around me. Hmm, let’s see, homework (check), working (check) … you get the picture! I don’t recall asking his advice or if I did, what that advice may have been. I doubt I was listening.

It was the past 5 or 10 years that I started to ask his advice. Perhaps retirement and aging brings out the glory days of wanting to revisit them, share them, or just plain have your kids learn from them? Most likely, nature evolves into a pattern where we want to hear about everything from our parents.

I’d rather my kids learn NOW what I know several years later, wish I knew or paid attention to while I was in my teens. Most likely, that will arrive when they hit their 40s, with families of their own. Miraculously, if they were to listen, this is what I would say:

MISTAKES: Everyone makes them. When you admit them and learn from them, that is when you will grow.

INTEGRITY: Is something that you have and nobody can take it away from you.

LEARN: Be a sponge, ask questions, then more questions, clarify if you don’t understand, restate it in a way you comprehend, finally share it. There is always something you can learn from anyone regardless of age, station or background.

SUCCESS: As soon as you think you’ve “arrived” you have just limited yourself. Always have goals, with ladders or specific goals within those goals.

FAILURE: Is normal. No, it isn’t cool. Yet, the coolest people can count the number of failures they’ve had.

REPUTATION: No matter how far you reach, how far you’ve come, there will always be someone out to discredit you, take you off track, or suck you into negativity or character assassination. If you keep a steady path, you will see it for what it is.

CHARACTER: Be known for being a person of character. It is within your own control. Beauty, wealth, athleticism fade long before character.

YOUTH: Youth is not a look, it is a spirit. Like words in a song: there are young people wise beyond their years and old people immature.

PERSEVERANCE: Continue no matter what. It doesn’t matter how often you face challenges, it is more important how you face them.

HUMOUR: Always and often. Find ways to laugh so hard that it is contagious.

COMMUNICATION: Listen more, speak less. You may not realize what you're missing if all you hear is yourself. Write often to inspires yourself. Nobody else has to read it to be of value.

DECISIONS: (My dad’s favourite) “What’s the payoff?” What is the worst that could happen? Instead, focus on what could be the best.

HUMILITY: Be humble. There is no such thing as saying “thank you” too much. When people ask how you are, they’re not asking for a play-by-play. Let others brag about accomplishments, if they’re meaningful, you won’t have to.

INTELLIGENCE: Is not IQ. It is a measurement of what your brain can absorb. Your attitude determines what you retain.

“Nothing is impossible. The word itself says “I’m possible”

~Audrey Hepburn

“MeDOs”

HEALTH: Annual Physical: Usually schedule around my birthday. Life is a gift.
AUTO: Maintenance: September is a good goal to have. Back to everything.
CLOTHES: Sort through clothes I no longer want. Donate to charity
PAPERWORK: Organize paperwork in advance for tax season. Proactive.

Health, Heart, Soul spells GO!

2011-10-11T23:51:00.001-06:00

"Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity."

~World Health Organization, 1948

A healthy, happy and well-fed sales pro or leader is created by balance at home, great company, family, and a holistic outlook from the inside out. For example, the post Thanksgiving Dinner I had tonight with my husband was splendid. Although his first reaction was there wouldn't be enough for his carnivore pallet :

POST THANKSGIVING DINNER:

JM's Lite Cheaters Ceasar Salad topped with fresh shrimp
Hard boiled egg
Home made Bruchetta
Couple slices of cheddar cheese
Few Carrot Sticks
Crantini

Bruschetta (8 Roma tomatoes, 4 garlic cloves, 1 T fresh Basil, 1/2 tsp ea. freeze dried Oregano, 1 small red onion; sprinkle sea salt; chop everything into fine pieces ~ let ingredients absorb ~ahhh can you say garlic?

JM's LITE CHEATERS CEASAR SALAD: Fresh Ceasar Salad Dressing from Produce section of Supermarket, 2 Romaine Lettuce Hearts (washed in ice cold water with ice, absorbed in towel and store wrapped in fridge until ready to toss); approx 3 T Ceasar separate container; add about 3-4 cloves minced garlic; let sit for 20-30 min.; when ready to serve lightly coat with Parmasan Cheese, douse with coarse pepper, then toss with Cheaters Dressing. I leave out croutons because there are enough calories .... ahhh garlic .. again!

Crantini Martini made from left over homemade Thanksgiving Cranberries (below) Place 2-3 cups ice; 1 oz vodka, 2-3 T leftover Cranberry mixture into Blender ~let it rip!

FRESH CRANBERRIES: Fresh cranberries, 1/2 cup brown sugar (or sugar to taste), cover fresh cranberries with water, boil/simmer/mash/cool

CAUTION: Ensure everyone eats at the same time to enjoy each other's garlic "aroma"

VOILA: You feel healthy, prudent using leftover while being happy (thanks to the Crantini)

NOTE: Flowers from Thanksgiving Dinner Table

TIME: No more than an hour if you follow the menu order.

P.S. No, hubby didn't go looking for snacks afterwards.

DESSERT: Go for a walk, preferably a park close by (like the one I'm fortunate to have nearby pictured above) and just "BE".

"Diseases of the soul are more dangerous and more numerous than those of the body"

~Cicero

Knock off JOBS!

2011-10-08T00:42:00.002-06:00

“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life.”

Steve Jobs

I certainly was expecting that sooner or later someone would start bashing Steve Jobs, as most, if not all, icons have their weaknesses, nor are perfect. I'm respectfully ascertain that most have even done the appropriate amount of research before publishing their article.

What I despise and would expect is "professionalism". Meaning respect for those that knew him personally (wife, children, inner circle, colleagues) who loved him intensely, warts and all, and allow them time for grief …. Before having to face the ugly side that was sure to emerge.

To assume that anyone of us is perfect is naive. Give people credit. The wide world of web means access to a ton of information, opinions, truths, and lies. Very few faced with so much information, believe everything they read. About Jobs already? All I know, is very little is accomplished without a lot of sweat and tears. Many of us have had teachers or bosses that seemed impossible, didn't always communicate in the best fashion yet we look back at them with respect to the degree in what they taught us.

My own naivity continues to believe in the best of people. Yet, I would still expect grace to allow the mourners the time to reflect on wonderful memories before having to face those that want to be the first to “expose” Steve Jobs weaknesses. I guess there is that notch out there -- to be recognized as one of the first to uncover the ugly side of Steve Jobs. We all have our choices. My choice is to think about the magnificent impact he did have on my life. i.e. a colleague sending me his “Stanford address” around 6 months ago so I could pass it on to my 18 year old daughter who was trying to decide what to do with her life, what to take in university, etc. I forwarded it to her, we discussed it, saying: “don’t worry so much about figuring out your whole life, start by understanding what you are interested in, want to learn, and go with that”. That is what Steve Jobs’ address inspired me to say to her.

Uncovering the commentaries on who, what, where the iPODs, iPhones, iPADs are manufactured. China: imagine that! Look at what you wear, where you shop. I could pretend that I’m brilliant to say that there is a pretty good chance many are “Made in China”. I certainly hope those same authors are asking people to boycott places that sound like W-mrt. Let’s see, 1 billion people, minimum wages unheard of in North American terms, an outrage! Teens and younger having to work instead of going to school, that is beyond fathomable! I have had teens who turn up their nose at washing dishes in my own home, never mind at a restaurant. Who are we fooling here? Give credit that there are people out there that respect, help out their families, placing others before their own desires, just to put food on their tables by everyone pitching in. Those same articles and beliefs are where all this self-entitlement comes from. We push our kids off to university, let them live at home, while their degree measures up to working at a fast food restaurant because if the job isn’t the CEO, then they’ll bide their time.

So those that do want to continue to bash Steve Jobs. Continue. I’d love to see you wrestle the iPhones and iPADs away from your kids. Do you think they care who, what, where or how they’re made? If you do, hats off. If you don’t, I’ll root for the long climb ahead of you. Those that say “huh?” well, ‘nuff said …. Perhaps controversial readership is where its all at?

At the end of the day … when my time comes to pass, I would be thankful if people celebrate the good that I’ve done, respect my family and loved ones mourning. Thinking about it, perhaps obscurity won’t be such a bad thing. At least, there won’t be an “a-wake” to what I could have done better.

“Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.”

Steve Jobs

Is Cold Calling Dead? Instead ask: "What if there were no longer sales pros?"

2011-10-05T16:30:00.000-06:00

"It's not whether you get knocked down; it's whether you get up."

Vince Lombardi

I have to give credit where credit is due. A Google+ posted by my pal Gary Hart (Salesdujour) whom I respect and follow inspired me to write this Blog! The same question keeps cropping up in several different ways, in several different manners, regardless of what forum I dip into: Linked In, Quora, Blogs, Facebook, Twitter and now Google+ "Is Cold Calling Dead?" .... there is even professionals out there that tell you it is dead in no uncertain terms.

Cold calling is part of sales, like "prospecting" "closing" "objection" functions are. In my perfect world everyone will join together to get on the same page, agreeing on a definition. Instead, when you ask what people feel towards cold calling you end up with a debate on whether it works, alive, etc. If you "Google" cold calling, you may end up at Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_calling that explains it to be: "Cold calling is the marketing process of approaching prospective customers or clients, typically via telephone, who were not expecting such an interaction. The word "cold" is used because the person receiving the call is not expecting a call or has not specifically asked to be contacted by a sales person."

Oh, oh. The last business development role I was involved in, they would have hired "Telemarketers" to do "cold" telephone calls, which some are asked to schedule appointments for sales people. What they wanted was a warm body in front of customers that they weren't reaching by advertising, marketing, etc. Most bosses I know who have sales departments consider hiring telemarketers an overhead cost. More often, that falls under "sales" on the balance sheet. Even more, would say they don't need telemarketers if they have sales professionals to do their own telemarketing.

My first take when I see the question asked is that not cold calling means you be handed engaged buyer-ready customers. Perfect, all you have to do is "close" them. I want a million dollars and a second home in the tropics too. Doesn't mean I'm going to get either. In fact, if the world agreed that cold calling is dead, then sales pros may just be killing their own careers!

Seriously, if companies want order takers primed on the ready for warmed leads banging down their door, a sales career would become obsolete. If marketing could bring in new customers all nice and neatly tied up in a bow that just needed to be written up, would they need sales professionals? I think not, they would be called "Customer Service Representatives". In fact, if that were the case, I'm sure most executives would pour more money into marketing and be talking to accounting more about what to do with all that money.

Sales professionals are one of the toughest groups to manage. Each brings in a set of tools, success strategies, and war stories that would make even the most notorious war generals blink! Asked why sales aren't improving, you better sit down because that may take a while.

One of my first Blogs ever, written last August 2010 "When the Going Gets Tough The Tough Go Hunting" http://optioneerjm.blogspot.com/2010/08/when-going-gets-tough-tough-go-hunting.html What I said then and say still is when the economy softens and revenue streams dry up, people turn to their sales professionals or even some stretch resources to hire sales professional(s) to offset declines.

Now, if we start talking techniques that take the "Cold out of Call" http://optioneerjm.blogspot.com/2010/11/take-cold-out-of-call.html and devise solutions on making it seem less intrusive to people that are too busy to stop for a call from a customer, never mind a sales pro that somehow got through, then we're getting somewhere.

The great part of these debates, they fuel my passion to write more! That is why so many sales Blogs like mine are alive and doing well. Well folks, you won't find any excuses NOT to cold call on this one.

"Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go."

William Feather

Walk a Mile in my Shoes ... FIX your Organization's Dysfunction

2011-09-30T04:53:00.003-06:00

"We are in a race between cooperation and catastrophe, and the threat is outrunning our response"

~Sam Nunn

Why do organizations hire sales training? To help their sales pros be stellar? The underlying, hidden agenda is maximizing results. Many concur that most sales training programs, books, etc. fall short. I asked myself why? I then deliberated about the challenge amongst all the distinct agendas within organizations.

Pondering, I took a look at the CEO, along with his team at the C-Suite: challenged by meeting shareholders expectations. Those expectations typically fall on making a profit which translates into dividends or ROI (ROI=Return on Investment). That oftentimes equates to operating revenue.

Operations is faced with meeting deadlines, goals, targets, with the resources that they are given. Always, always, ALWAYS with a critical eye on the bottom line geared towards profit, or making do with what finances they have to make it all work.

What about marketing? There is a responsibility to convey brand and attract new customers who will buy today. They are tested to understand and anticipate the customer’s wants, needs, joined by what they expect to spend, their budget, their industry, their critical criteria.

Afterwards: What customers can sales deliver based on the C-suites promises, operations requirements on deliverables while meeting marketing’s brand?

Most organizations state that their best interest lies within meeting the customer’s expectation, having happy employees, and being stellar at what they do. Many are successful at what they do. Many more fall short on customer’s expectations, having happy employees, can provide an excellent marketing outline, human resources mandate .. while still failing to meet financial goals: increasing revenue.

Interestingly, this REAL example is typical of most organizations. Do you see what I see? They are all operating under silos within goals, trying to meet goals and agendas that are disconnected. I’m sure they all have convincing business plans.

Disconnection breeds ineffectiveness. How often have the sales team heard from the C-suite how important shareholder confidence is? (Translation: the organization’s ability to delivery on what returns on their investment that has been promised)? The closest communication typically is disgruntled operations complaints that sales has to sell more in order to justify the resources that they are asking from the C-Suite to meet the existing customers, never mind increased customers’ pressure.

What about marketing? They’ve taken the time to develop the brand, deliver the message and, in their eyes, deliver ripe prospects that all the sales folk have to do is “close” the prospects that they have brought forward on a silver platter.

Excusemoi, Sales says: While the C-Suite is promoting the organization to shareholders, we’ve memorized our value proposition, mission statement, and are out pounding the pavement! Before they’ve even have a chance to take a look at the leads that Marketing brings forward, we’re looking for new customers, filling in CRMs (Customer Relationship Management) systems, providing forecasts and Business Plans (in pretty power point presentations no less). Furthermore, half the time the leads Marketing brings us aren’t qualified and even a quarter of the time just tire kickers (price shoppers). THEN, when we do finally bring a new customer forward, unless it fits into a certain profile, operations is challenged to deliver. Ohmygod, if the customer happens to want a unique, customized application, service or product …. Operations response is “show me the money”. Sales expresses their concern that customers (which really could be them) are losing confidence in the organization’s ability to deliver on what they’ve promised.

If you’re selling widgets, the issues may be easier resolved. However, if you are trying to sell solutions or services, that becomes a different challenge altogether.

I’m exhausted already. All I have done is drawn all the silos in the organization. Ahhh, the bright observers say: it’s easy, all you have to do is collaborate and cross-section all the silos to a joint effort. Brilliant!

OK, fair enough. How DO you do that? Duh: Communication!

Wouldn’t it be easier if all silos within the organization came together to map out what needs to be done? Ultimately, it is to expand upon existing customers isn’t it?

A credentialed expert you've hired says: “Well, no. One cannot survive on customers alone. You have to drive new business or attract new customers.” There are several charts and excel spreadsheets backing how quality improvements, operational excellence and process re-engineering will meet or exceed your goals.

The C-Suite folds its arms: That is what I have this operations, that marketing and this sales force to do!

Hhrrumph, says operations. I told the executive if I had this widget, software, budget, personnel I would have be able to deliver what sales “supposedly” tells me the customer wants.

Alas, marketing has their back up. I’ve done the research, compared amongst peers, created the brand, engaged an agency (or something), produced the best website (social media, campaigns, sales collateral, etc. etc.) and delivered this ROI and that statistic, don’t look at me.

The sales department, who happens to be the front line to the customer, hasn’t heard much of any of this until now and much later and usually once they've heard "OK, this is what we're going to do". Why? Yet, they are in front of the customer, translating most of this ever-changing message, asking for the business! Imagine that. Certainly, the turnover in the sales bullpen may not look good. Several sales pros have left because they are frustrated by looking like a fool in front of the customer. Seriously, we convinced them to give us a try and we can’t deliver on our most basic value proposition, never mind their customized requirements.

As the organization turns … who is really listening to each other? From this scenario, I imagine that everyone is concerned with saving their own bacon and facing their own challenges.

What results, and I have no crystal ball, is everyone starts to finger point. The higher up the chain you are the better it is for you to have someone to be “accountable” (aka blame). However, in this challenging economy we live with what tends to happen: everyone is looking for a fall guy.

Seriously, how more dysfunctional do I have to draw out for you? Sounds like a nightmare to me, and I’m the one writing this all down!

From the perspective of a sales professional, as a manager and after being on an executive management team, I’ve seen it from several angles. Sometimes each silo engages outside expertise, i.e. consultants, marketing agencies, web gurus, sales trainers … hungry sales reps who spill their guts on what your competitors are doing ….. still sounds like everyone is still working in circles and covering their butts!

As the economy becomes more of a challenge, less customers are simply walking in the door, and a serious marketing campaign just isn’t a role, you need traction …. What do you do?

Communication. Appreciation. Understanding. Collaboration.

MOSt Important of all: Desire to succeed!

Get everyone on the same page. You all have to respect, understand, where each area is coming from. What do you have to gain? Hmmm, let’s see … your jobs, your respect, your security, your pride for starters. Check your agenda, pride at the door. Start a true collaboration. Don’t ask the manager of this department or that supervisor to be the voice. Trust me, they will sugar coat it to save their own hides. Ask the folks in the trenches.

If you are going to engage an expert from the outside, I’m going to suggest a communications expert with a round table. It may be amazing what you all come together with. You ALL have an important role to make the organization successful. If you truly understand what part you play, be humble, open your ears and eyes … you just may get there!

Until you all truly understand what it means to walk a mile in each other shoes, you will keep running around in circles.

The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them."

~General Colin Powell

Google+ is the Way to Go to Build Online Influence

2011-09-22T15:25:00.004-06:00

"Learn before you earn pays off in the long run."

~Jeannette Marshall

Whether people admit it or not, they "Google" their name(s) … Not a bad idea. In a sales meeting about five years ago, I recall our General Sales Manager posing a question to the team something along the line of: “What is the one reason prospective employers (you can add customers too) will write you off before they’ve even read your resume?” Imagine the assortment of answers:

No cover letter
Typos
The position had already been filled
and a bunch of "Ooh-ooh-ooooh" like Horshack from "Welcome Back Kotter"

The answer? By “Googling” your name. He went on to explain that your online profile is your brand. Basically, what you do/say online can come back to haunt you.

Fascinated, I Googled “Googling”. Merriam-Webster is the first site to come up and this is what it says (see for yourself http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/google ):

goo·gle
verb, often capitalized \ˈgü-gəl\

goo·gled goo·gling Definition of GOOGLE to use the Google search engine to obtain information about (as a person) on the World Wide Web

Examples of GOOGLE

To the movies; to television (hours and hours); to Googling obsessively (hours and hours); to blogging, emailing and text messaging —Cynthia Ozick, Harper's, 2007

2. [+]more

Origin of GOOGLE

Google, trademark for a search engine

First Known Use: 2001

Interesting statistic also noted: Google is currently in the top 1% of lookups and is the 5th most popular word on Merriam-Webster.com. Holy cow! THAT is online influence!

So for fun, I decided to do what many of us do but rarely admit …. I “Googled” my name. For my first name “Jeannette”. Wikipedia was the first result shown. According to Wikipedia, I’m a town in Pennsylvania that settled in 1888 with a population of almost 10,000 people:

Sorry Mom. I think I was named after a Saint. Foreshadowing perhaps that I was not going to be one? Well, if you like to have fun with numbers, I was born on the “18^th” so there’s that. What explains how "Jeannette" allows me to come second?

Next up. My last name. First, humour me by taking into consideration that I once had a maiden name, I had a first marriage and “borrowed” that name for twenty some odd years, and remarried only five years ago. So the name “Jeannette Marshall” is really only a child in online terms. Then, I only started my online Linked In, Facebook around May 2010 with my Blog around August 2010. Ok, you get it, I’m still a baby!

Imagine my amazement when I “Googled” the last name “Marshall” this is what come up:

1) Marshall Amps -that’s cool, I like music)

2) Marshalls – brand name :o) shopping

3) Jeannette Marshall Google Profile

WOWZERS. Once again, I’m on the first page. Not just once, but THREE times! Twice under Google and once under Twitter.

OK, enough about me! (REALLY?) What about you? Do you still scoff at the importance of online branding? I am starting to imagine that Marshall Amps and Marshalls store has invested quite a bit of money in their website design and marketing personnel/campaigns.

There is a lot of discussion whether people like G+ more than Facebook or Twitter, especially since Google has opened the doors wide open for Google+ and Facebook is making a lot of changes that some believe takes some of the best part of Google’s offering and incorporated into Facebook or improved other things.

What this tells me is that, no matter how you shake it. We all like Facebook or Twitter or what have you for personal or professional reasons.

However, if you are looking to build your online presence or brand, the power and influence of Google can’t be ignored. Wondering if you should try out G+? I’m thinking you’ve climbed on board before you finished reading this.

Now, if the next HR firm “Googles” me, they may think I don’t do anything besides hang out online … which is far from the truth. I simply G+ and Twitter a bit, read a lot, and VOILA!

I’m happy with coming in third. Maybe there is a career for a gal from Calgary CANADA in “online marketing”?

Your thoughts?

12 Sales Career Myths

2011-09-20T02:18:00.004-06:00

“Many of the things you can count, don't count. Many of the things you can't count, really count.” ~Albert Einstein

Many people go into sales career for the wrong reasons. You may be considering sales yourself. Here are some of the myths uncovered to shed light on misconceptions:

1. Anyone can do it. FALSE. Like a nurse or a fireman, not everyone can be a sales person. There is ongoing training and skills improvement.

2. Your relatives tell you, you would be good at it. FALSE. Mom and dad think it would be nice for you to be out on your own now you are 35.

3. You are good at meeting people. FALSE. It is getting harder and harder to schedule meetings with decision makers who are savvy to all the tricks and are simply too busy themselves to get caught up in meetings for the sake of meetings.

4. It can be rewarding. TRUE. That comes after you’ve put in long hours, built a strong reputation and customers have come to rely on you. You are also the person that they will turn to when something goes wrong.

5. You're tenacious and never give up. TRUE. It will come in handy when you hear a lot of "NOs" before a "YES". You may not want to be too tenacious or you will be tuned out, turned off and shut down.

6. You have the gift of the gab. FALSE. Sales is 3/4 listening, 1/4 talking.

7. You get to take customers out for lunch. FALSE. Many companies have employees sign codes of ethics which disallows them from taking anything from suppliers or vendors in case it may be considered a bribe to win the contract. Gifts, fishing trips, concert tickets, etc. all fall under these extra-curricular events.

8. You’re good at golf and heard business is done on the golf courses. TRUE. Except golf doesn’t usually start happening for a long time after a "business" relationship established.

9. You're aggressive. FALSE. The best sales pros are not aggressive. They are people oriented, and strive to do what their customers ask them to do or solve problems.

10. You can make big bucks. TRUE. After you spend a few years learning the trade, often you start out in a commission-only compensation, and once you’ve put in one to two years developing your client base and territory.

11. You get an expense account. FALSE. In today’s economy many companies have cut back or eliminated expense accounts. However, you can save your receipts and claim them against your income tax.

12. You look good in a suit. TRUE. Then again, shouldn't you have a better reason than that?

The following video does an exceptional job of explaining what sales is all about and what you should expect if this is the career route you decide to take entitled "Selling is Hard Work" by Infoteam Consulting (http://www.infoteam-consulting.com/ ):

Don’t sell widgets, ask QUESTIONS

2011-09-11T21:47:00.006-06:00

“Asking the right questions takes as much skill as giving the right answers”

~ Robert Half

You read everywhere that in order to become a super star sales pro, you should ask great questions. That hasn’t changed. I am going to share an exercise in asking terrific questions for the aspiring or veteran sales person.

Put everything you've learned and morph into a new dimension of “equal business stature”. What I mean by that is instead of being programmed to do feature and benefit dumps, you should start thinking of yourself as a professional that asks real business questions. This exercise is shared so that if you try it, you may “get it”.

If you’ve read my other blogs, you will be familiar with a consistent theme:

It is EASIER to sell to organizations when you understand issues that your product or service can solve
Start as high in the organization as possible
Ask great questions.

If you are solely interested in selling widgets today, then this may not be the best sales Blog for you to be reading.

If you're still with me, then that’s great! That may mean that you want to L-E-A-R-N! Being keen to read is second to wanting to A-S-K great questions! I will try to explain the “jargon” and why they matter.

Let's start out with an exercise so you can start applying what you are learning: Write down these questions in a manner that suits your own unique style so that you are comfortable. Try them with your partner or room mate. Not a colleague because that defeats the purpose -- they have a head start in understanding you. Rotate between asking and then answering each questions. Convey in normal language. You should avoid jargon, acronyms or gibberish (because sales lingo to some seems so). If you stumble, that is ok. With practice, it will soon become natural and fall smoothly from your tongue. If your partner looks at you as if you’ve started speaking in a foreign language, that’s ok. They didn’t fall asleep did they?

What is your value proposition? Hold it! Before you pick up the phone or meet with an executive or decision maker, you better know this. Why do customers need your product? The best way to be able to answer this is to interview to understand why your best customers buys your product or service. Use their words, believe them, they’re paying for you to. Even the most vocal (some may call worst) give the the best feedback.
Does your product address a viable market? Pretty simple. No? Look at it this way: it is far easier to sell to those circles that your best customers move in – i.e. their industry. Look up their web site, read their Press Releases, who are their partners and why? What projects or initiatives are critical to their business? What issue(s) do you solve? How is your product/service solving a niche in that business? Let your competitors do feature dumps while you position yourself as the "go to guy/gal" because you understand who they are, what outside influences are impacting their industry?
What differentiates your product/service/company from the competition? Sorry, I’m going to have to send you to the corner if you start spewing features and benefits. There must be a reason you have customers otherwise you wouldn’t have a job to begin with. Look, you know why you’re priced a certain way, manufactured to meet a particular need. Do your homework. Speak to the folks in research and development, question marketing on what the key message is? Someone, somewhere did a lot of research to launch it, so why not ask them? Offer to buy them a coffee or green tea because you want to "pick their brain". Mentally excuse them politely when they are amazed that a sales person is actually interested!
How does your business scale? “Scalable businesses are those that can produce the next widget at a fraction of the cost.” Here, you are conveying a deeper understanding of what you are selling. Why not ask existing customers what makes them special, what went into their success? Often it could even evolve into sharing what some of the problems they encountered while building their business. This is not permission to burden your audience with techno mumbo jumbo! What does that have to do with sales? Go directly to sell widgets based on price.
How committed are you? Do you recognize an issue that your product or service solves? Do you understand how you go beyond just selling it to ensuring that any implementation or execution has the right team on board? Do you clock out at 5 and have your people call their people? Does your management support your efforts even when they appear unusual because they are solving your customers needs .. which may require more resources (this is where you have to convince them in a business case how it is going to pay dividends -- their language). The higher up you are, the better your audience can smell commission breath. If you don’t believe me, ask them why they are so committed to the current incumbent who was on call 24/7, weekends, evenings, brought donuts (whatever) while everyone on both teams were working around the clock to meet a deadline? You won’t need me to tell you that you can wave the best price or incentive in front of a customer who has had exceptional commitment and service. What you will discover is they won’t budge or consider your sales “pitch”. If you do run across this type of situation, do NOT knock your competitor! Admire them for having the insight and integrity to ensure their commitments are made beyond the customer's expectations.
What are your strengths? You, your organization, product or service has made it this far so why is that? You have customers who buy, why do they? Yes, many will buy strictly on price – nix them (yes, you are cancelling membership in the "sell widgets or price point" association). Find out why some customers switched from a competitor to you. Has your organization had to about face, change solution at the last minute based on a customer need, industry change, Government regulations? Well then, you’ve just shown an example of how “flexible you are to meet your customers ongoing demands.” That is a strength … isn’t it?
What are your weaknesses? If you don’t think you have any, proceed to selling widgets based on price in "The Half Price Club". Seriously, this is where you have to be R-E-A-L-I-S-T-I-C. Granted, we all like to be proud of whom we work for and what we do. Yet even the APPLES of the world understand what they’re good at and what they stay away from. “Stick to what you know and find trusted partners to handle the rest”. A customer will appreciate honesty and not think of it as a weakness. You can share with them at what point you stop and another service/product has to step in. The secret here is to offer them knowledge and the option to go that route themselves or you do it for them, at a markup. (They’re businesspeople, they “get it” that there is a cost to doing business). The best sales pros recognize that there is more work, perhaps they don’t even get compensated for it, but in the long run it pays off if they or their team oversee completion. It shouldn’t be surprising when a customer is prepared to pay for a markup when they’ve established trust with YOU!
What price are your customers willing to pay? Straight out. Ask what the budget is. What are they comparing your product or service to? I’m not suggesting you unprofessionally ask them to divulge what the competitor is offering so you can “match”. That’s kind of tacky don’t you agree? The gem is asking this question at the outset. When the customer is making their needs known and you are being asked to present your proposal. Don’t be asking it when you think the ship is sinking and you may be losing the deal. You will lose credibility quickly. If you’re sunk, then ask why they chose that direction. Suck it up. Class is what you’ll need at this point. Take it as a valuable lesson to understand for the next time. Unless you quit, there will be a next time.

I will be sharing more great questions to ask on your next executive sales call in future Blogposts. First, let me know by commenting, if you liked this exercise, tried it, and see how differently you position yourself ... or making sales calls without dumping features, sales or screaming deals.

"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."

~ Sir Winston Churchill

Top Guns don’t need Bullets

2011-08-30T19:34:00.002-06:00

You can always tell the size of the man by the size of the things that upset him.

~J. B. Harris, Jr.

Knock knock

Who’s there?

The competition.

The competition who?

The competition that knocks you!

Have you ever been in a sales situation where you discover that the competition has been saying unprofessional things about you, your company? How about fear mongering? What about out and out lies? How did you handle it? Do you call it gorilla tactics like me to incite humour into what appears to be a desperate time calling for desperate measures?

Unfortunately, it happens far too often. You are just about to sign a new customer and out of the blue, a bunch of questions are hurled at you. You sense it is greater than buyer’s remorse and there is an underlying issue at hand. Do you keep calm, and respond by saying: “Ms. Customer, I appreciate these questions and will do my best to handle them one by one. However, I am curious as to what really may be bothering you?” That’s when it unfolds that your competitor, sensing a loss, is bringing out all the artillery.

Most customers are intelligent enough to recognize when a competitor is being underhanded and trashing you in a last ditch attempt to save their own sale. Most will appreciate when you take the high road. Experience dictates that when competitors start trashing you, it sends alarm bells ringing to your customers. If you start scrambling and going on the defensive, similarly raises red flags.

When faced with a competitor throwing garbage out at you, stay calm in front of the customer. Always take the high road and avoid getting tangled up in their web. Going on the defensive in front of your customer only acknowledges that there may be a grain of truth somewhere in the allegations.

The biggest underlying cause of this type of behaviour is called complacency. The competitor was caught off guard, perhaps not as attentive with the customer, kept up with ongoing changes in its business or with the decision maker. One should never take their customers for granted. Treat them as your best customer every day, all the time. That way, when gorilla tactics come into play, the customer will immediately see it for what it is, shoddy fear mongering. It is their reaction to you being a threat.

The next time a competitor starts waging war. Shrug it off, pat yourself on the back! You are doing a GREAT job .... they have every reason to feel worried. You won’t stoop to their level now will you?

A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both.

~Dwight D. Eisenhower

WARNING: Old Geezers Are Taking Over Social Media

2011-08-18T11:04:00.008-06:00

Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter

~Mark Train

As I was going through my e-mail this morning, I came to the realization that I probably should encourage my 76 year-old mother to try Google+ since Facebook bombed miserably (she didn't seem to grasp that the grand kids photos and messages were directed at their friends and not her).

When my son introduced her to the web and e-mail about seven years ago, little did we know he'd created Mrs. Frankenstein.

One thing we failed to realize was what should have been obvious: seniors have more free time on their hands than all of us combined in one day! I must get at least five e-mails a day, ranging from:

Catastrophic warnings to my health
The inevitable computer crashers
"if you don't forward this, you will have bad luck for the rest of your life"
Unite for this cause by signing this petition if you have a conscience
"old geezers" sex jokes

Honestly, I didn't even want to imagine my parents doing anything other than cooking my dinner or giving me my allowance when I was young, why would I want to know anything besides words of wisdom or new recipes now?

If I can get my Mom on track with Social Media, starting with Google+ because it's so user friendly, it could mean she'd still be satisfied that she's sharing under the "groove" with her kids and grandkids ... then I can read her posts in my own time and my own head space.

I love my mom, bless her heart with all her good intentions. Did I fail to mention English is not her native tongue? That in itself presents a whole different matter under the umbrella of “what not to say in an e-mail”.

The fact is: “Geezers” are taking over Social Media. Don’t believe me? Watch this:

Do your senior parent or grandparent a favor: show them how it’s done; that way, you can help them navigate the web-sphere. Like it or not, they’re taking over. Don’t say I didn’t warn you! At the very least you should help them to minimize the level of embarrassment they can cause themselves (of course, not you).

Then again, perhaps I should be content that she’s still in e-mail mode. At least that way there is still damage control. Or, most likely, I should call her more often to see how she's doing ... the "old fashioned" way.

Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional.

~Chili Davis

RRR REcycle REuse REnew

2011-08-06T01:00:00.004-06:00

Ok, so I may be switching it up a bit. After all, I tend to focus on sales tips, with the a couple of sidebars. Call me behind, or having a gigantic job underway, but I want to touch on one of my other passions – sustainability!

No, I don’t own a pair of Birkenstocks -- not that I knock people that do because I’m one in a million who are not comfortable because of a high arch … many friends would ah hem point out that it’s due to being vertically challenged, I’m accustomed to wearing heals. Nope, I haven’t chained myself to any great tree … if you don’t count the chain link fence surrounding my yard facing a beautiful pathway to allow people to freely admire my garden as they cycle, walk, jog by.

My mother is coming to visit! Seriously, I’m not a bad housekeeper (boy, do I miss my nanny/housekeeper) but compared to mom, who was married to my air force father for 54 years gets me cracking! As we moved from Canada to Europe and back, there was always an inspection of our house because it was rented through the military. Yes, they did come in with white gloves. The only time my mom ever got dinged was while waiting for the inspection she had a coffee (maybe it should have been whisky?) while waiting and it left a ring mark.

Everyone should have a mom like mom come visit so they can clear the clutter and clean. Beats waiting until you move. While prepping for the inevitable, I realized that there were quite a few items around my home that signified that I walked the walk, not just talked the talk about sustainability … from a unique angle. I had a couple to share.

I accessorize, accessorize, accessorize! I have more jewellery, most of it costume, than a bohemian boutique. A few years ago, frustrated with always untangling necklaces, never mind being able to match with earring, I came up with, what I think pretty clever idea (at the time, I thought I could retire by mass producing) I had this old bulletin board limping from its glory days as a command center for schedules, art work, and “to do” lists. I painted the wood around the bulletin board (please, don’t drink and draw). Secondly, I applied leftover wallpaper to the cork board.

Since cup hooks to neatly hang cups within cupboards were passe’ (yeah right, in your dreams I’d have anyone in my house hang cups when they can throw them in the cupboard – yup, teenagers). I screwed the cup hooks on to the bulletin board with the wallpaper as my artistic backdrop. Voila! I hung up the necklaces with matching earrings looped to them and it formed almost a piece of art.

Now, you are thinking … the loyal readers that are male are tuned out. Sigh. Sadness settles in. I definitely have changed tactics on sales. Then again, I’m passionate about coming up with ways that someone like me – a shopaholic in green heels – can do my part by making toss-away items into innovative ideas.

But guys .. this one is for you. Sort of. What about bras? Did you know that bras with padding are great utility items? Cut around the cups and you now have a silky smooth cleaning buffer! For your vehicle! Don’t tell me, someone “else” does the housework? Come on .. if you can use a bra, you may partake in household chores more often. If you use those old bras on rings around the bathtub, imagine the other instances your hand could be on a … well, never mind.

One of my best forms of recycling that I learned from my teenage girls. Thankfully, they limit their high cost items are their jeans. In my day (ok, sounds old), we never paid $200 for a pair of jean! They love excursions to Goodwill or Value Village (in Canada) second hand stores. At first, I’d let them scour the clothes while I focussed on the book section. Then, it became a mission. Can you find the most expensive designer clothes at a fraction, or a fraction of a fraction, of what they’d normally cost? I love a challenge. Hooked, you bet! The best part is I donate to those same stores. Now, shopaholics, unite, you can say you RECYCLE.

In case Mom reads this. I do have another tip. Instead of just tossing the fabric softener into the recycling bin, I like to tip it upside down to drain the last bit of fluid, add a bit of water, then soak the sink wash cloth with the residue. In my house, if I don’t put it into the laundry, who knows what it smells like!

A relapse from a business sales blog. Perhaps. Gotcha thinking? Double the bonus then!