Who are you and what do you stand for? We’re all exposed to continuous advertising. Yes, it’s now continuous (rather than “continual”) because it’s impossible to escape. You know it. I know it. It’s everywhere. And the businesses that are most effective are the ones that have established their brands. Brands are critical to recognition, and recognition is critical to successful advertising. There has to…
That’s exactly right, what better way to use your acting and talent than to market your business! I do it all the time. And I am going to share some of the top tips I use to be entertaining and grow my business at the same time. Tell Stories – We all use stories, both personal and professional, to illustrate a point. Remember, facts can be…
What is the difference? What is an entrepreneur? The standard definition is “someone in possession of a venture, idea or innovation around which he or she builds a business.” It’s a person who takes risks to succeed. Today's entrepreneur has become almost synonymous with "business owner," but the reality is that there are many business owners who are not entrepreneurs. Among those of us with…
The best sales teams are most often led by someone who is more like a sales coach than a sales manager. The dedication to developing inside sales skills ultimately creates a sales team that not only hits its short-term goals but instills a culture of learning and self-improvement in order to achieve its long-term goals as well. But it’s not always so easy. Superb inside…
Details aren’t what you focus on after you’ve figured out everything else. The details are everything else. They ultimately determine if your plan works or not. The details are the difference between executing a failed strategy or delivering impressive results. So, it’s a bad idea to make the details an afterthought. The tiniest of details can make a big difference in how well your idea…
When agriculture was the secret to survive, farmers understood the value of sunlight. You could only work while the sun was shining so a typical day was from sun up to sun down. When the sun went down, you stopped working. Whether you wanted to keep working or not, you had to stop. You were forced to stop. Sunlight was the key to success. And…
Customer service is arguably the most important thing for your business to get right. Inbound marketing is customer-focused and inherently aids customer service, but that doesn't mean companies who use it can't still be guilty of bad service experiences. Top Side Effects of Bad Customer Service A Damaged Reputation Leads Don't Convert Your Customer Lifetime Value Drops You Lose Your Best Employees Of course, "good”…
All salespeople want to think of themselves as powerful but, if asked, would have no idea where that power actually comes from. Most salespeople fail to understand their own power. This lack of understanding then manifests into complaints about price, unreturned phone calls, bidding, loyalty to others, and other excuses as to why a sale does not take place and the relationship isn’t being built.…
Today’s marketplace has transformed as to how sales are generated and sustained. And nowhere else is this more apparent than in the changing relationship between sellers and buyers. Gone are the days of pure transactional selling. Buyers don’t wait for you to come to them anymore. Instead, they seek out what they’re looking for. When they’re prepared, they choose to do business with those who…
There was a time when the sun was the time clock. You worked from daylight until dusk to produce a successful harvest. There was no understanding of working 9-to-5. No populist “need to be balanced” explanation for working less. You weren’t smarter because you worked less. There was only one reason why you didn’t put in the effort required to be successful. Because you were…
Every spring they appear like leaves in the fall. Unwanted, they sit at the end of the driveway in the muddy-muck left from winter. Landscapers, contractors, handymen, and asphalt companies have all latched on to a marketing technique that bears some discussion. Here’s how it works: Print up a cheap flyer on yellow or green paper, grab some gravel or a single rock, stuff both…