StoneSells

High Velocity Blog Now LIVE: July 8, 2009

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:35:00 +0000

As promised, we have migrated to a consolidated web presence.

Check out our New Joint Venture and website at: http://highvelocityblog.com/

See ya in the Fast Lane . . .

- Stone

Meet Me @ innovationROI.com

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 16:36:00 +0000

OK, I'm crying Uncle . . . too many irons in the fire, too many who need and want to focus on Innovation Execution. Simply can't justify actively maintaining two blogs right now.

At least for the near term: Follow Stone, his team of renegades, the Innovation Execution conversation in general, and the High Velocity Radio Show (new, exciting format changes for 2009), and all things dedicated to producing Better Results In Less Time at:

http://www.innovationROI.com/ Blog
http://www.highvelocityradio.com/ Radio Show
https://twitter.com/stonepayton Twitter

See Ya In The Fast Lane . . .

- Stone

ATTN: Atlanta Entrepreneurs / Remote Warriors -- ROAM Rocks !

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 19:01:00 +0000

Clients and colleagues here in Atlanta have been telling me about this cool new place called "ROAM" since March or April.

We'd be at a Starbucks or nearby restaurant trying to get some work done, and the subject would come up . . . "Where can the Entrepreneur / Remote Warrior like me get together with clients, colleagues, and referral partners in a comfortable, professional environment -- without leasing expensive office space?" (The closest thing I have to a boss and a real office is in West Hartford Connecticut.)

Well, I skipped out on The DeSai Group's Sales Meeting a little early yesterday -- and finally went to check this "ROAM" place out for myself. Former IBM Exec, Brian Kramer (he's the handsome one in the pic above) runs this thing . . . and it ROCKS!

Free Hi Speed WiFi
Espresso Bar (real bar too)
Great Food
Conference Rooms
Board Rooms
State of the Art Training Room
Super Easy Access --Right off GA 400

The list of amenities is way too long, and I really can't do this place justice here.

Check ROAM out for yourself.

*** In fact -- Between now and December 15, Have A Cup Of Coffee On Me. Just tell them Stone sent you, and have them put one of any coffee drink you want on my tab. ***

By the way -- Guess what their fee is for hanging out in the lobby, accessing their High Speed WiFi and talking biz? $0, Zilch, Nada. You'll find the various membership packages heavy on benefits and very cost effective as well.

See ya in the Fast Lane . . . and if I see you in person, it will likely be at ROAM.

What's With All The "Stealth" Marketing?

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:17:00 +0000

First, please accept my apologies for the long span between posts.

I've been busy getting up to speed over at The DeSai Group -- the "real" job I recently landed. Well -- there's that, and my little jaunt to London last month.

Among other things, I got my "Innovation Execution" blog up and running. Our readership there is a little different than here I suspect -- Fortune 1000 Execs and a handful of practitioners in the "Innovation" space . . . but you might check it out just the same: www.innovationROI.com

Now -- About this "Stealth Marketing" trend I've been seeing . . .

As soon as I book a guest for the High Velocity Radio Show, the first thing I do is go to their website -- looking for a headshot to post on the HVR site. When I can't find one, plan "B" is to call them to see about getting one. I also like to get their physical mailing address so I can send them a Thank You card after the show.

Here's my beef: I'm amazed at just how hard some (honestly, more than some -- many) make it to contact them !!! No phone number on the site, no e-mail address -- or cleverly hidden so only the most talented and committed of sleuths could find it.

Whoever came up with the "Contact Us" form for websites never fed his kids by selling, I can tell you that.

If you want to keep your sexy little "Contact Us" form go ahead . . . but for Pete's sake (that's just an idiom, it's really for YOUR sake) put your phone number and e-mail address on your website -- and in a prominent place, on every single page.

By the way, my new coordinates are:

stone@desai.com
866.35.STONE (866.357.8663)

How To Sophisticate Yourself Right Out Of Business

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:59:00 +0000

How To Sophisticate Yourself Right Out Of Business . . .

I'm on a deadline to complete a chapter with this working title for TSE's Fall E-Book. Typically I'll start such a project by committing my main thoughts on the topic to paper first, then surf around and see what other credible thought leaders might have to say.

(If you've read much of my work, you know that I often have a different perspective -- and sometimes just flat out disagree with "the experts.")

Not the case here though: I've been a fan of Mark Satterfield's work for some time now, and always enjoy getting the periodic e-mail from his shop. This morning, I received an e-mail that touched on the "consultant speak" issue I run into so often. (It's something we speak to quite a bit in SPEED® School as well.) Here's an excerpt from that note:

Excerpt From Mark Satterfield e-mail 10/2/08:

>>>QUESTION FROM A READER
We're a consulting firm with lots of great intellectual capital, but none of our prospects seem interested in it. Help! Todd, Boston

***MY RESPONSE (Actually more of a rant.)
Intellectual capital...first of all I would get away from the habit of referring to your offer of free information that way. The sad truth is that most Intellectual Capital is a rehashing of stuff that's been out in the market for a long time.

So the first question I'd ask is this REALLY something new? Which means that you are subscribing to all your competitors' newsletters and you know what has already been communicated to your prospects. True intellectual capital means that you have a NEW angle, twist or insight. So first take a hard look at what your offering and see if it truly is what you claim it to be, or if you're just using consulting-speak to try to position your report at a loftier height than it realistically is flying.

Let me be blunt...The reality is that you're not McKinsey. You're not the Harvard Business School. So it's silly to try to market the same way they do.

Rather than telling me you have "great intellectual capital", tell me that you have great information that helps clients solve a specific problem. Tell me what the problem is and share some practical ideas that will be helpful to others that face the same challenges. Stop acting like a stereotypical consultant and start acting like a problem solving advisor.

Every time you describe what you do, the message should ring out loud and clear about HOW YOU SOLVE PROBLEMS.

Now, aren't you glad you asked?

***********************************************************************

Thank You Mark for sound advice we all need to follow -- and Thanks for inspiring and informing this next piece of mine.

Wednesday Night Live @ Blank Stage

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:08:00 +0000

Innovation is a topic very much on my mind these days . . .

1. I'm currently in the process of courting a Strategic Innovation firm (DeSai Group) in hopes they will invite me to join their team -- to formally represent them in growing their Innovation and Change practice area. (In case you're wondering: Having a "real job" with a Best of Breed firm serving the Fortune 1000, has always been the secret to my success in serving the local entrepreneurial market.) I'm actually out there on the street doing the stuff I counsel local Trainers, Coaches, and Consultants to do in their own Sales & Marketing efforts -- and this "in the trenches" experience is where we get all the rich, practical content that we now provide worldwide in SPEED® School.

2. We've been meeting a lot of truly innovative business people here locally (Atlanta) as we work to book our Fall and Winter line ups for The High Velocity Radio Show.

Enter Brent Brooks and the incredibly talented team at Blank Stage:

Bottom Line: I witnessed an ecstatic client get more real work done in an hour and a 1/2 than he would have accomplished in a month of meetings with some ad agency or marketing guru.

What I Saw Last Night: I won't do it justice here. For that, you'll want to have a conversation with Blank Stage's Lesley Gray. Lesley@blankstageproductions.com 404.406.0366

But see if you can picture this: Armed with just a little input provided by the client (brief questionnaire before-hand, and short interview just before the fun starts), six or seven professional Improv Actors play out in rapid fire, scene after scene vividly portraying dozens of absolutely hilarious situations that effortlessly create awareness, desire, excitement, concern, curiosity . . . and evoke every other thought and emotion one would want to elicit from their target market. Pan camera left, and see the client furiously taking notes the entire time (except when he laughed so hard he spewed his coke and dropped his pen).

It was by far the most entertaining evening I've personally enjoyed in a very long time. More importantly . . .

- The client thinks I'm a genius for connecting him with these folks and this process.

- After 90 minutes of pure delight and fun, this usually harried executive walked away with a bounce in his step, a twinkle in his eye, and more practical ideas for getting the real work of marketing done than he would have ever accomplished through any other means.

If you serve in a marketing capacity for your organization, or consult to those who do . . . get to know the folks at Blank Stage.

Stone Goes "Chic" And Gets New Perspective

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 23:22:00 +0000

I went "Chic" this week !
* Apparently those in the know pronounce this "sheek."

Noted Author and Business Advisor, Elizabeth Gordon invited me to join her "Chic Perspectives" broadcast this week. If you want to hear me spout off on topics like speed, service, and the unique challenges facing entrepreneurs, you can listen in on our homepage or on the Chic Entrepreneur website.

But the real purpose in this post is to introduce you to Elizabeth Gordon. What a phenomenal lady and powerful, refreshing presence -- someone we all have so much to learn from.

Ladies: Just go to the website, and you'll "get it" immediately.

Guys: Don't let the feminine graphics on the website fool you. I don't care what your gender is: If you're serious about jumpstarting your growth and taking your business to the next level . . .

Buy the book, get the newsletter, listen to to the interviews -- and seriously consider reaching out to Elizabeth Gordon personally.

SPEED® School students: If you do write her or speak with Elizabeth personally, please help me recruit her for the Pit Crew. We really want her to conduct a couple laps, and I can assure you we will all be so much the better for it if she does.

SPEED® School Pit Pass Now Available

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 19:32:00 +0000

We've made SPEED® School Pit Passes available for the "StoneSells" community.

Take a spin -- experience two laps at your own pace, in your own way, at no fee.

Request Your Pit Pass at: www.marketmate.org/pitpass.html

The High Velocity Radio Show

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 20:36:00 +0000

Introducing . . .

The High Velocity Radio Show -- Spotlighting top performers producing Better Results in Less Time.

Our first show airs live Monday September 22, 10:00 to 10:30 am Eastern.

Each week we'll feature Senior Execs, Managers, Top Performers, Internal & External Consultants, Speakers and Authors helping organizations drive their business strategies more effectively.

Check Out HighVelocityRadio.com in the coming days and weeks for details, downloads, and more.

Innovation: From Cool To Critical . . .

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 15:56:00 +0000

"To succeed and thrive, a business cannot accidentally or occasionally be innovative. It must innovate at a rate faster than current (or future) competitors -- with a high degree of predictability."

- Jatin DeSai

Wow, I wish I could articulate core principles and meaningful counsel with such eloquence. But Jatin and his team don't stop there . . .

I was fortunate enough to get my hands on a thorough, well-crafted white paper from The DeSai Group describing in great detail why this statement holds so true -- and exactly what top performing organizations are doing about it.

If you're serious about achieving sustainable growth -- or serving clients who are -- you should get to know Jatin DeSai and his work now. In fact, our recommendation is that you subscribe to his blog, join his community, and shoot him an e-mail requesting this insightful white paper: jdesai@desai.com. It's entitled:

Mastering Innovation: Roadmap To Sustainable Value Creation

Enjoy !

Double Your Fees

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 19:38:00 +0000

The first piece of advice we often give to Trainers, Consultants, and Coaches struggling with their sales effort is: Double Your Fees.

Call / Write anytime if you'd like the rationale behind this recommendation, or some objective input regarding whether this is a practical strategy for your specific situation.

In the meantime . . . Brad Farris has written a brief, but very strong piece on exactly how to manage such a shift with your existing clients.

Click Here for his feature article on Vistage.com.

Enjoy . . .

Lead Incubation (vs. Generation), And . . .

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 12:02:00 +0000

Recent Items we thought you might enjoy . . .

1. GrowthANSWERS recently published some "Stone" thoughts on Lead Incubation and "managing the white spaces."

2. They also posted my 8/13 interview with Atlanta Business Radio.

3. Last week, Jonathan Farrington invited us to share our perspective on Leading Change.

THANK YOU for all the great feedback on SPEED® School. We're delighted to hear you're finding the material and this process so helpful.

If you don't know about SPEED® School . . . Click Here For Details

See ya in the Fast Lane . . .

- Stone

Stone Speaks: Someone's Gonna Lose An Eye . . .

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:50:00 +0000

Stone speaks for the GrowthANSWERS Meet The eXpert series in August:

Someone's Gonna Lose An Eye:
And Other Words of Caution From The Fast Lane

August 20th, Atlanta, GA at The Georgian Club -- Stone waxing eloquent, decent breakfast, and always some interesting connections. What else could you ask for?

If you're in the Atlanta area and schedule permits, I hope you'll join us.

Click Here For Details / Registration

Don't Let The Client Drive

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 16:19:00 +0000

This clip is an extreme example to illustrate the point and provide comic relief, of course.

Still, there’s usually some truth in really good comedy. When I saw this, I immediately thought:

Haahh !!! – This is Why (effectively) Selling Expertise Really Is Different . . . And Why we're so obsessed with telling anyone in the Training / Consulting / Coaching arena who will listen:

Stop Letting The Client Drive The Process.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU9YeOQm3Y0

Enjoy . . .

Jeb Blount / Sales Gravy Releases Power Principles Audio Book

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:47:00 +0000

Jeb Blount's best-selling "Power Principles" is now available in Audio, and we're delighted to make this available to you through the MarketMate (TM) Digital Store

. . . OR . . . you can go directly to the source, and purchase at Sales Gravy.

Either Way: We think so much of Jeb and the Winning Edge Strategies he shares in this work, we're providing our readers and SPEED® School students extra incentive to get your hands on your own copy . . .

Simply E-mail Proof of Purchase to us at: stone@marketmate.org , and we will send you a Complimentary Copy of Stone's "Never Fry Bacon In The Nude" E-Book.

Start Serving Your Competitors, And You Won't Have Any

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:22:00 +0000

Your Thoughts Please . . .

We were honored last week with a nomination for this piece on Top 10 Sales Articles.

Actual article is posted here at Eyes On Sales.

Perhaps the "holiday" timing had some impact, but we were really surprised not to receive any comments??? (We so often get a little flak from our SPEED® School students on this issue -- at least initially.)

Anyway . . . We'd love to hear your thoughts.

P.S. While you're scanning the Top 10 Sales Articles site, you'll definitely want to read Brian Bieler's piece on Storytelling.

See Ya In The Fast Lane . . .

SPEED® School: Faster Is Better

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 04:16:00 +0000

Median income for Self-Employed Consultants in this country is $151,000 US.*

This means that of all the Independent Consultants, Trainers, and Coaches in the U.S. marketplace, roughly 50% made $151,000 US or more last year.

If you are not one of these people (and would like to be) we’d like to help. See SPEED® School for details.

If you are one of these people: Please consider “paying it forward” and serving on the SPEED® School Pit Crew. You can contact Crew Chief, Stone Payton personally at: 866.42.SPEED (866.427.7333) or pitcrew@marketmate.org

* We trust “hard number” statistics like this about as much as we trust e-mails from Nigeria. Like so much “research”, it’s rare to find more than one source citing the same number (we’ve seen this particular number as low as $120k and high as $200k). We believe it’s safe to say however, that $151k is a reasonably accurate figure . . . and we know it’s safe to say SPEED® School will help you increase the only number that really matters to you – yours.

Kevin Eikenberry Nails It -- The Fear Factor . . .

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:36:00 +0000

Mention Stone Payton in the marketplace, and 3 perceptions will immediately come to mind for most:

1. Fun, Giving, High Energy Guy -- Great Speaker

2. Knowledgeable, Thought Provoking Writer & Consultant -- Great Resource

3. Intolerant

Unfortunately, it's a package -- and as proud as I am of #1 and #2 (and believe them to be accurate myself), #3 is equally true.

I have a decidedly unhelpful, unproductive Lack of Empathy and Zero Tolerance for Failure To Act.

It's a major hole in my swing -- and I'm working on it. In the meantime however, some clients are getting so much less than they deserve from me -- and although I don't really know how to quantify it, I'm sure it's costing me money.

The Reason I Mention It: Kevin Eikenberry shares an insightful post today -- regarding Why We Fail to Innovate and Implement.

I highly recommend it -- to both Consultant & Client.

If you're serving others as a Trainer / Consultant / Coach, and get frustrated with Client Inaction as easily and severly as I do -- maybe you'll be inspired to learn more about why people don't take action, and take personal accountability for helping them work through their fears.

That's certainly my "take away", my Homework Assignment from this. My responsibility doesn't end with providing good counsel. I owe it to my clients to help them work through their fear(s) of taking action.

If you're on the other side of the table -- sitting on a ton of good counsel from your trusted advisor(s), but can't seem to get mobilized, maybe Kevin's insights will help you as well?

See Ya In The Fast Lane . . .

- Stone

Great Personal Branding Tool / MarketMate Client Pre-requisite . . .

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 00:53:00 +0000

As is my practice (at least once a week), I had a nice meal with yet another Marketing Guru today. Meet Andy Greider . . .

Better yet, take a close look at this Fabulous Tool he shared with me . . . for exercising critical control over your Google / Yahoo presence -- and Actively Managing Your Personal Brand.

Do This Now:

Step 1. Google yourself.

Step 2. Google me.

Call / Write if I need to explain further or somehow justify the $10/mth. investment *, but I suspect most of our readers will "get it" immediately from here. If you're a little skiddish about all things "web" and want to consult your local SEO guru before coming off the ten bucks -- then by all means do so (I did).

That said . . . If they can't explain why this is such a marvelous Tool (and don't purchase the service for themselves right behind you), my recommendation is to Fire them immediately.

* Not a typo. This service is only ten dollars / month.

Step 3. Click on the globe at the top of My Q Alias Profile (or Andy's, or the Profile page of anyone else who is taking personal accountability for Actively Managing Their Personal Brand ) and start using the service.

Step 4. Pay It Forward . . . Share this Tool with anyone else you care about. If nothing else, pony up the $10 yourself for your College Junior or Senior preparing to enter the competitive job market and discerning world of Corporate Recruiters now armed with Google search as one of their primary tools for wading through (and weeding out) countless resumes and job board postings.

FYI: For those of you who are thinking that you (or those you care about) already have the Google / Yahoo presence you need -- I had the same thought at first . . .

“What a great service for people who don’t already have a healthy Google presence, a cool name, a popular book on the market, a blog following, several published articles, etc.”

Then, I Googled myself, and it hit me like a ton of bricks . . . I want -- I need -- to have some direct influence on exactly what most people see and read about me first -- and then, how (the sequence) they progress through their “Stone” research from there.

I don't want a Meeting Planner, Sr. Exec, or some Consulting firm struggling with their sales effort reading my 2001 article on Change Sponsorship data . . . not as their first impression of me, anyway!

It’s a “no-brainer” for me and my clients -- and I highly recommend you check it out for yourself. In fact . . . As of today, using this service is a non-negotiable MarketMate TM client pre-requisite.

To our potential Training / Consulting / Coaching clients -- An equally candid message on the topic -- Don't call us for marketing advice until you've done this.

It's that important.

See Ya In The Fast Lane . . .

- Stone

Getting Your Expertise Noticed -- Fast & Cheap

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 03:01:00 +0000

One Page Resource Handout we shared with a group of Consultants this morning:

Getting Your Expertise Noticed -- Fast & Cheap: 10 Quick & Easy Tips / Resources

Enjoy . . .

- Stone

TSE Releases (FREE) Summer E-Book Today

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 14:06:00 +0000

"Top Sales Experts" released the Summer 2008 Edition E-Book Today -- 50 Sales Gurus Share Their Top Articles.

Yes -- someone on the panel got distracted for a moment, and I made the cut. (My contribution -- a brief rant on the folly of submitting proposals, starts on pg.100.)

Ordinarily, I might not be so "giddy" about a 4 page entry within a 139 pg., multi-author work -- but I find myself in some pretty impressive company on this one . . . including the "Three J's":

Jeb Blount, Jill Konrath, and Jonathan Farrington

Enjoy!

See Ya In The Fast Lane . . .

- Stone

5 Pearls From Dan Lappin

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 15:03:00 +0000

I just love it when someone can take a critical issue we're all struggling with and boil it all down to a concise, manageable, ACTIONABLE set of key disciplines.

Dan Lappin of Caskey Achievement Strategies has done just that in his latest article.

See: The Sales Appointment That Won't Change -- Until You Do!

I've been a fan of Bill Caskey's work for some time now. Clearly part of his secret to success is working with sharp folks like Dan. As long as you're investing a few moments in yourself by reading Dan's brief article, take 4 more minutes to see Bill's Video Clip on Fundamental Shifts.

Enjoy . . .

MarketMate Releases AUDIO Book / Training Tool

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Wed, 28 May 2008 02:50:00 +0000

Thanks to Elance and the Audio Magicians at SonicArt, we just released the "Never Fry Bacon In The Nude" Audio Book / Training Tool . . . more than a month ahead of schedule.

CLICK HERE for SAMPLE Chapter. I know I'm biased, but I believe with all my heart this is $18 extremely well invested. If you're a Manager, Corporate Trainer, or Internal Consultant, you'll want the Organizational License.

If you're an Independent Trainer or Consultant, check out the Training / Consulting License and the Content Partner Program.

In Other News: "Eyes On Sales" picked up my latest rant . . .
Enough With The Questions Already!

Enjoy !

God Bless Brad Fallon: FreeIQ Rocks

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Fri, 23 May 2008 02:54:00 +0000

We've had a couple items posted at FreeIQ ever since I saw Brad Fallon speak in Atlanta last year. FreeIQ Rocks! It's "You Tube" for Business.

We've been reaching people we never would otherwise -- and easily picking up affiliates for the E-book. Since we're releasing the "Never Fry Bacon" Audio Book next month, we finally started integrating FreeIQ into our website as well.

See: http://marketmate.org/speedchannel2.html

I'm recommending FreeIQ to all my clients -- It's a "no-brainer" for Trainers & Consultants.

The $77 Sales Solution

stonepayton@att.net (Stone) — Sat, 17 May 2008 20:34:00 +0000

From May 16 thru June 30, you can join The $77 Sales Solution for only seven dollars ($7).

This is not a typo -- You get the entire process for only $7.

This proven PROCESS is getting a Major Tune Up with some very exciting enhancements. We've pulled it off the market till July 1, so this is your "Pre-release" price.

We have a goal of 1,000 New Users by October 1, and want to make it as easy as possible for you to share this resource with your colleagues and your own customers trying to Grow Their Business.

Just like Before: You and those you want to help can Sign In Now, and get Instant Access to the 4 Pre-Work Modules Absolutely FREE.

CLICK HERE for $0 INSTANT ACCESS and your Joining Gift.

Enjoy !

. . . And Please Keep Sharing Your Success Stories.