May 31st, 2009
Outdoor ads are used almost everywhere in the world because of their simplicity and the relatively low cost of creating them. Current estimates are that global outdoor-advertising sales will be a $30 billion business this year. One of the great weaknesses of older ad media, like outdoor-billboard marketing and newspaper display, is that results have been nearly impossible to quantify effectively. Twitter will change that. Until recently, marketers could merely survey whether people remembered what they saw on outdoor ads and measure the number of cars that passed a sign on a given day. Using Twitter opens up the possibility to make a very large and nearly unmeasurable medium measurable. (See the best and worst Super Bowl commercials of 2009.)
Marketers using outdoor ads will have to give Twitter users an incentive to report that they have seen a billboard. A Twitter user who sees an ad for a Toyota (TM) Corolla could be encouraged to send a tweet to the local dealer in exchange for a pint of oil or a T shirt. The tweeter would obviously have to go to the showroom to get that promotional item. The same principle would apply to newspaper display ads, a shrinking category that is disappearing so fast, it is helping destroy the newspaper industry. Some display ads have coupons, but the ability of a newspaper advertiser to get reactions from consumers through Twitter help make another hard-to-measure medium at least partially interactive.
If the use of Twitter to measure these categories of marketing are even modestly successful, it could completely change the marketing methodology and advertising investments that companies are willing to make in outdoor media. That category includes billboards, telephones, taxis and public transportation. Because Twitter can be used on mobile devices as well as PCs, and since Twitter allows messages of a maximum of 140 characters, the reactions to outdoor ad messages can be instantaneous. Conversely, relying on e-mail responses or postings on MySpace or Facebook requires a much longer and more complex process for both the end user and the company. Many people will not take the time to follow through if the incentives to do so are minimal. It takes only a few seconds for a Twitter user to indicate by texting that he has seen an outdoor ad or newspaper display message.
—Douglas A. McIntyre
Tags: incentive, incentive programs, incentives, rewards
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May 31st, 2009
Microblogging platform Twitter has 32 million users, an increase from about 2 million a year ago, according to research mentioned in the Wall Street Journal. Some Internet measurement services show that figure increasing 50% to 100% month over month. While it is not clear that Twitter will become as large as social networks MySpace and Facebook or video-sharing site YouTube, the company could certainly have 50 million visitors by the end of the year.
Because Twitter can be used with ease on both PCs and mobile devices, and because it limits users to very short messages of 140 characters or fewer, it has become one of the largest platforms in the world for sharing real-time data. A number of large businesses and celebrities have hundreds of thousands of followers on Twitter. This includes personalities like Oprah and Ashton Kutcher. JetBlue (JBLU), Whole Foods (WFMI) and Dell (DELL), along with other multinational corporations, are among the most followed names on the service. (See the top 10 celebrity Twitter feeds.)
As Twitter grows, it will increasingly become a place where companies build brands, do research, send information to customers, conduct e-commerce and create communities for their users. Some industries, like local retail, could be transformed by Twitter — both at one-store operations that cater to customers within a few blocks of their locations and at the individual stores of giant retail operations like Wal-Mart (WMT). In either case, having the opportunity to tell customers about attractive sales and new products can be done at remarkably low cost while providing for greater geographic accuracy.
For Twitter to be a part of a company’s efforts to communicate with customers, the customers must be willing to “follow” the company on Twitter. That allows the individual consumer to choose which firms he is willing to get messages directly from. It may not be surprising that “new age” brands like Whole Foods and JetBlue have large followings and older and much larger brands like Kroger (KR) and American Airlines (AMR) do not. Whole Foods and JetBlue have successfully marketed themselves as being “customer-centric” — the kind of companies that would not misuse the access to a customer’s private Twitter information. (Read Ashton Kutcher’s take on why the Twitter founders made the TIME 100.)
While there may be commercial value for using Twitter to communicate with customers, the danger is that the Twitter community could turn against a marketer viewed as being too crass by being relentlessly self-promoting. Twitter users have set up their own rules of conduct when using the service, not unlike those with MySpace and Facebook. These rules were not put together by Twitter itself, which mandates only rules of use. Like many social-network sites, Twitter is self-governed by its members, and companies must take that into account as they join the service.
Twitter is still in the early stages of developing a plan for making money as a company, but plenty of large corporations like Starbucks (SBUX) are already using it as a marketing tool. Twitter will probably evolve into both a community of individuals and a community of companies that provide goods and services for those individuals.
24/7 Wall St. has come up with 10 ways in which Twitter will permanently change American business within the next two to three years, based on an examination of Twitter’s model, the way that corporations and small businesses are currently using the service and some of the logical extensions of how companies will use Twitter in the future. Some of these firms are already using Twitter, but their efforts are in the earliest stages of development. 24/7 Wall St. evaluated other sensible and potentially highly profitable ways Twitter’s real-time, multiplatform presence is likely to be
— Douglas A. McIntyre
Tags: crm, marketing, marketing program, retention
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May 28th, 2009
If you think the same way as the top achievers think, you can begin to get the same results they do. Here are ten psychological and practical ways to mirror the attitudes of top-achievers.
1. See yourself as a consultant rather than a salesperson. Believe that you are a problem-solver with regard to your product and how the client can best use it.
2. Become a doctor of selling. Act in the best interests of your “patients” and have a high code of ethics.
3. See yourself as the president of your own sales corporation. Accept 100 percent responsibility for your results.
4. Commit yourself to being the best in your field. Dedicate yourself to lifelong learning.
5. Be ambitious, hungry, and determined to use selling as a stepping-stone to the success you want in life.
6. Have integrity. Be honest with yourself and others.
7. Engage in thorough preparation prior to every call.
8. Be an excellent listener; be extremely customer-focused.
9. Have tremendous courage. Be willing to face your fears of rejection and failure, and overcome them.
10. Be highly persistent. Start your workday earlier, work harder, and stay longer.
To make these changes work you must walk, talk, and behave consistently with them every hour of every day.
Focus On the Future
First, whatever challenges you face, focus on the future rather than on the past. Instead of worrying about who did what and who is to blame, focus on where you want to be and what you want to do. Get a clear mental image of your ideal successful future, and then take whatever action you can to begin moving in that direction. Get your mind, your thoughts, and your mental images on the future.
Think About the Solution
Second, whenever you’re faced with a difficulty, focus on the solution rather than on the problem. Think and talk about the ideal solution to the obstacle or setback, rather than wasting time rehashing and reflecting on the problem. Solutions are inherently positive, whereas problems are inherently negative. The instant that you begin thinking in terms of solutions, you become a positive and constructive human being.
Look For the Good
Third, assume that something good is hidden within each difficulty or challenge. Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, a major proponent of positive thinking, once said, “Whenever God wants to give us a gift, he wraps it up in a problem.” The bigger the gift you have coming, the bigger the problem you will receive. But the wonderful thing is that if you look for the gift, you will always find it.
Seek the Valuable Lesson
Fourth, assume that whatever situation you are facing at the moment is exactly the right situation you need to ultimately be successful. This situation has been sent to you to help you learn something, to help you become better, to help you expand and grow.
Decide to Be Positive
A Positive Mental Attitude is indispensable to your success. You can be as positive as you want to be if you will simply think about the future, focus on the solution and look for the good. If you do what other successful people do, if you use your mind to exert mental control over the situation, you will be positive and cheerful most of the time. And you will reap the benefits enjoyed by all successful people.
Action Exercises
Here are three steps you can take immediately to put these ideas into action:
First, become solution-oriented with every difficulty you face. Make a habit of looking for the answers to your questions, the solutions to your problems.
Second, seek for the valuable lesson in every adversity. Make a list of every idea or insight you can gain from every setback or difficulty.
Third, think on paper. Take some time to write out every detail of the problem, and then take the most logical next step to solve it.
Tags: incentive programs, recruit donors
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May 27th, 2009
A couple of decades ago I introduced a friend who sold pianos to the manager of a local radio station. The manager suggested that the piano salesman consider radio advertising sales. The salesman refused.
“Sometimes advertising works,” he said, “and many more times it doesn’t. The worst part is you can never predict which is going to happen. I couldn’t in good conscience sell something that I don’t believe will work.”
Ouch. Is advertising more of a gamble than a science?
If advertising is an investment, you should expect to see a predictable profit from that investment. Invest a dollar in advertising, get back four, or five, or six. At the very least, shouldn’t you get back a dollar ten?
But if you you don’t know whether your ads are driving revenue, you can’t very well call it investing. If you don’t know whether you’ll win, or lose, or break even, you are gambling.
And if you put your money into ads that you “feel” are working, but but can’t measure their effect, you’re still gambling.
Noted investor Peter Lynch once said, “An investment is simply a gamble in which you’ve managed to tilt the odds in your favor.”
So, maybe effective advertising is that which has been tilted in your favor. Not so much an answer, as a process, which includes better targeting, more effective messaging, and improved media selection.
The purpose of an ad budget?
The reality is that most of us fear that we aren’t turning our marketing dollars into profit. Not consistently. Not directly. Which is why we have advertising budgets. To limit risk.
An ad budget serves the same purpose as going to the casino with a hundred dollars in your pocket and saying “When this hundred is gone I’m done playing. Maybe I’ll get lucky. But I’ve got to set a limit on how much I can afford to lose.”
Think about it. If you knew you were going to get back more than you spent, why would you ever stop spending?
Perhaps you don’t need a budget so much as a lever.
The Greek mathematician, Archimedes, understood leverage. He’s reported to have said, “Give me a long enough lever and a place to stand, and I will move the earth.”
When applied to advertising, leverage means doing more with less. Getting more bang for your buck. Controlling large sums of revenue with relatively small sums invested in advertising. Stacking the odds in your favor.
But, if you were capable of stacking those odds, wouldn’t you also be running more advertising?
A surprising number of companies try to avoid advertising, then force themselves run ads when sales are down or when they have excess inventory.
Unfortunately, they’re open for business all of those other days, too. And they need customers to come buy what they sell on every one of them.
That constant need for additional sales makes advertising the most important thing any of us can do for our own business. What other activity can multiply raw dollars with this kind of leverage?
First, measure.
Do you know your rate of return?
Note your sales levels. Run your campaign. Note any change in your sales levels.
Divide increase by the amount spent. This is Return On Advertising Investment (ROAI). If you are bringing in more money than you are spending, your ROAI is positive. Congratulations.
Of course if your advertising is not effective, the negative ROAI produces a constant drain on your resources. Is this why you don’t advertise often? Do you justify the resulting poor return as “getting your name out there?”
How effective is your lever?
Is your advertising an investment or a gamble?
The primary question you must ask is the rate of your ROAI. Until you know the answer, this is the only question that matters.
How well does your current marketing stack up? Are you gambling with your advertising budget without even realizing it?
__________
Chuck McKay is a marketing consultant who helps customers discover you, and choose your business
Tags: crm, incentives, marketing incentives, rewards
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May 27th, 2009
One key to becoming a great conversationalist is to pause before replying. A short pause, of three to five seconds, is a very classy thing to do in a conversation. When you pause, you accomplish three goals simultaneously.
The Benefits of Pausing
First, you avoid running the risk of interrupting if the other person is just catching his or her breath before continuing. Second, you show the other person that you are giving careful consideration to his or her words by not jumping in with your own comments at the earliest opportunity. The third benefit of pausing is that you will actually hear the other person better. His or her words will soak into a deeper level of your mind and you will understand what he or she is saying with greater clarity. By pausing, you mark yourself as a brilliant conversationalist.
Ask Questions
Another way to become a great conversationalist is to question for clarification. Never assume that you understand what the person is saying or trying to say. Instead, ask, “How do you mean, exactly?”
This is the most powerful question I’ve ever learned for controlling a conversation. It is almost impossible not to answer. When you ask, “How do you mean?” the other person cannot stop himself or herself from answering more extensively. You can then follow up with other open-ended questions and keep the conversation rolling along.
Paraphrase the Speaker’s Words
The third way to become a great conversationalist is to paraphrase the speaker’s words in your own words. After you’ve nodded and smiled, you can then say, “Let me see if I’ve got this right. What you’re saying is . . .”
Demonstrate Attentiveness
By paraphrasing the speaker’s words, you demonstrate in no uncertain terms that you are genuinely paying attention and making every effort to understand his or her thoughts or feelings. And the wonderful thing is, when you practice effective listening, other people will begin to find you fascinating. They will want to be around you. They will feel relaxed and happy in your presence.
Listening Builds Trust
The reason why listening is such a powerful tool in developing the art and skill of conversation is because listening builds trust. The more you listen to another person, the more he or she trusts you and believes in you.
Listening also builds self-esteem. When you listen attentively to another person, his or her self-esteem will naturally increase.
Listening Develops Discipline
Finally, listening builds self-discipline in the listener. Because your mind can process words at 500-600 words per minute, and we can only talk at about 150 words per minute, it takes a real effort to keep your attention focused on another person?s words. If you do not practice self-discipline in conversation, your mind will wander in a hundred different directions. The more you work at paying close attention to what the other person is saying, the more self-disciplined you will become. In other words, by learning to listen well, you actually develop your own character and your own personality.
Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action.
First, make a habit of pausing before replying in any conversation or discussion. You will be amazed at how powerful this technique really is.
Second, continually ask, “How do you mean?” in response to anything that is not perfectly clear. This gives you even more time to listen well.
Tags: incentive, incentives, recognition
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May 26th, 2009
A simple motto hung on the living room wall of my grandparents’ small frame house, where many seeds for my development were planted. My grandmother and grandfather didn’t talk about the lines; they lived them.
Life is like a field of newly fallen snow;
where I choose to walk, every step will show.
They believed you were either honest or you weren’t. There was nothing in between, no such thing as partial honesty. Integrity, a standard of personal morality and ethics, is not relative to the situation you happen to find yourself in and doesn’t sell out to expediency. Its short supply is getting even shorter — but without it, leadership is a facade.
Learning to see through exteriors is a critical development in the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Sadly, most people continue to be taken in by big talk and media popularity, flashy or bizarre looks, and expensive possessions. They move through most of their years convinced that the externals are what count, and are thus doomed to live shallow lives. Men and women who rely on their looks or status to feel good about themselves inevitably do everything they can to enhance the impression they make — and do correspondingly little to develop their inner value and personal growth. The paradox is that the people who try hardest to impress are often the least impressive. Devotion to image is often for the money it can reap. Puffing to appear powerful is an attempt to hide insecurity. If only we could see many of our celebrities when their guard and pretenses were down!
The myth that all that counts is bottom-line success often leads to fleeting stardom and ultimate defeat. Ask a thousand has-beens. There are no degrees of integrity. Just as you’re pregnant or you’re not, you have it or you don’t.
Integrity is 24/7 If you have real, internal value, you don’t need a loud, expensive imitation.
It is not what you get that makes you successful, it is what you are continuing to do with what you’ve got.
Identify with excellence, put your name on your work, and both your work and name will stand the test of time.
It is not so much what the job gives you, it’s what you give to the job.
Give your best effort, because you are worth your best effort.
Tags: incentives, recognition programs, rewards
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May 25th, 2009
When I walked into the dry cleaners the other day to drop off my shirts, I found a $5-off coupon on the counter for the pizza shop two doors down. I decided I wanted pizza, so I walked down to the pizza shop, redeemed my coupon, and found a coupon on their counter for $5 off at the dry-cleaning place I was just at. These two establishments were sending traffic to each other; they had formed a strategic business alliance. In the world of Guerrilla Marketing, this is known as fusion marketing.
As entrepreneurs, we always think we have to do things alone, but its amazing the synergy available from collaborating or aligning with others. Fusion marketing can take your business to levels you never thought possible before now.
Those that are likely collaborators or fusion marketing alliances are power partners. A “power partner” is a business that has a similar target market as yours but doesn’t really compete with you. Examples of this are an estate planning attorney and a life insurance salesperson; a graphic designer and a printer; a real estate professional and a mortgage broker; a wedding photographer and a caterer or disc jockey. I think when you look at these examples you start to get the idea. The number of power partners or fusion marketing partners is only limited by your imagination.
Fusion arrangements can come in many forms in addition to the coupon example above–you can join your mailing list with your partners and do a joint mailing; you can make joint sales calls; you can offer an incentive from your alliance partner for each purchase of your product and vice-versa for your partner.
I know a printer who offers a free pizza coupon or free ice cream coupon on the back page of their notepads. The pizza place and ice cream store get the benefit of the distribution of the notepads to the printing company’s prospects, and the printing company gets the benefit of offering their prospects something for free.
Easy Steps to Setting Up Your Own Fusion Marketing Arrangement
Here are easy steps you can take to set up your own fusion marketing arrangements:
- Step 1: Define your power partners. A power partner is someone who has similar prospects as you and who could benefit from the same type of prospects, but isn’t in the same business. Examples: landscaper/builder, realtor/mortgage broker, network marketer/entrepreneur, massage therapist/chiropractor.
- Step 2: Figure out with your power partner what your offer will be. Maybe the printer gives a two-for-one offer while the designer offers to design a logo along with the design piece of a direct-mail piece. Maybe the attorney offers a free consultation on wills while the insurance salesperson offers a tips list on avoiding probate tax. Maybe the massage therapist offers a free midday office visit for a massage break while the chiropractor offers a back adjustment. Figure out what joint offer makes sense.
- Step 3: Write up a general letter of agreement. This doesn’t have to be a major-league legal document, but the one thing that hinders an alliance is lack of communication. This assures who does what and gets what. It can be a simple e-mail exchange.
- Step 4: Package it up. Write all the verbiage: the marketing copy, sales letter, press releases (if appropriate), e-mail letters, etc. Either have both businesses write it up and compare notes or have one write it and let the other approve. Be creative here. Be benefit-oriented. What’s in it for the prospect?
- Step 6: Be responsive to any responses. Fulfill offers; make it easy to sign up, to buy, to take the next step and keep track. Follow up and attention will convert prospects into paying customers. Share leads and conversions for future follow-up and future marketing.
- Step 7: Follow up. Both businesses should continue marketing to each of the converted people as follow-up marketing.
That’s all there really is to it. It’s a straight set of deliberate, planned-out steps, with a high degree of communication and execution. That’s what all marketing is, and the more it’s spelled out and planned out, the higher probability someone will act upon in. That’s what all the marketing I get involved in does–this is the key to marketing. It’s not going to happen overnight but with steps, plans and accountability, you’ll increase your revenue. I prove it to myself every day, and I prove it to my clients.
Al Lautenslager is the “Guerrilla Marketing” coach at Entrepreneur.comand is an award-winning marketing and PR consultant and direct-mail promotion specialist. He’s also the principle of Market For Profits, a Chicago-based marketing consulting firm. His two latest books, Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days and The Ultimate Guide to Direct Marketing are available at www.entrepreneurpress.com.
Tags: collborative marketing, crm, incentive, marketing incentives
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May 23rd, 2009
There’s $787 billion in the economic stimulus pot, but it can’t help you if you don’t know how or where to get it. Data on stimulus money is publicly available, but pinpointing what’s relevant to your business is a daunting task: $400 billion-plus is being distributed at the local and state levels, and there are more than 89,000 of these agencies around the country.
That’s where organizations like National Strategies, Inc., Onvia and Business Matchmaking come in.
In February, National Strategies, a business-to-government consulting firm that helps companies break into contracting and procurement markets, launched the Stimulus Opportunity Roadmap, an online database of tens of thousands of “shovel-ready” projects that could be funded by the stimulus. “We’re able to figure out all the streams of dollars through the stimulus package that are relevant to X business,” CEO Al Gordon says. “Once we do that, we put together a strategy of how we access those dollars by literally matching up–by project and location–what you’re selling with funding [opportunities] and go after them.”
With Recovery.org, public works information aggregator Onvia provides a similar service. The site captures all government spending information from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and reports it so business owners can identify and pursue the appropriate projects.
Michael Balsam and Eric Gillespie, respectively Onvia’s chief solutions officer and chief information officer, say the purpose was to carve out stimulus-specific projects for small- to medium-sized businesses, and provide those businesses with opportunities to bid on work.
You can sift through information based on project type and location, and if you register, Onvia alerts you when matching projects appear in the database. “In many cases we are the trigger for our clients to pursue business,” Gillespie says. “The government is the last client standing … and what we do serves to help businesses get access to projects from the government.”
Balsam says Onvia is the only central portal that not only notifies clients of new postings, but also provides access to additional materials when they arise. “At each step of the process, we’re going to be adding supporting source documentation,” he says. “As the money is set aside, we notify the public of that; when a request for proposal is made available, we’ll post the documents online. Incidentally, this is not something the government can do.”
Go Where the Grass Is Green
Where do the greatest opportunities lie? In energy efficiency and sustainable technologies, says NSI’s Gordon, not only because of the billions earmarked for the cause, but also because the entire stimulus bill is full of “green” components. In fact, he recently spoke to one particular company in the energy industry whose CEO expects to hire another 50 employees based on the work available from government contracts. “That’s a big win for the stimulus package.”
But most important, business owners need to be ready to seize on contracting opportunities because the bill is pushing for all money to be committed by September 2010. “It’s on your shoulders since you’re looking at a relatively short time frame. If you sit back … it’s not going to come,” warns Gordon. “But if you take the bull by the horns, develop a plan and match what you’re offering to these various streams of money, you could be in the game.”
If the red tape is what’s holding you back, the folks at Business Matchmaking are ready to help. And, says executive producer Chuck Ashman, the process isn’t as difficult as you might think.
Ashman sees the stimulus package an as opportunity for business owners to break into contracting and procurement. “Our attendance application and interest on the website is up about 60 percent in the past 90 days,” he says–the biggest increase since the company was founded six years ago.
Beginning in June, Business Matchmaking will embark on a 15-city tour to train business owners on ways they can benefit from all the extra money going into state agency coffers. “We’ll take the top buyers from state and federal agencies, and people from the Small Business Administration, and [explain the process] to companies that have never sold to a government agency, but who have an appetite for it,” Ashman says.
In addition, Business Matchmaking has partnered with the small business arm of American Express to launch a program that helps companies in the same industry collaborate and go after contracts together. “A lot of small-business owners have the desire to sell to a federal agency, but can’t handle it alone,” Ashman says.
Jump These Hurdles
The major problem is that small-business owners are intimidated by the red tape they think exists when dealing with the government. At one time, the process may have been complicated, but that’s no longer true, Ashman says. For example, getting on the government registry is simple: Make one free phone call to Dun and Bradstreet to get what’s called a DUNS number, use that number to register in the Central Contractor Registry and you’re eligible to work with the government.
Much of the information is available on the internet–sometimes exclusively so–so it’s also important to be comfortable working online. Then, look into programs that give you a leg up, especially if you’re a minority, a woman or even a disabled veteran. “There are a tremendous number of companies eligible, but they haven’t taken advantage of the opportunity,” Ashman says.
The main obstacle to get over is the intimidation factor, but NSI’s Gordon points out that business owners should prepare for what comes after, too–the transparency and reporting requirements. “Make sure you’ve got people trained to deal with the government. Every company is going to have to report the dollars they received and how they were used and the impact of those dollars.”
Any reticence is understandable, though. “I’d call it busy-ness. The toughest commodity for a small-business owner is [time],” Ashman notes. “If someone says, ‘You’ve got to go to this training program and learn how to get certified,’ I’m sure they’d say, ‘Sure, but only if you can do it at 2 am on a Thursday.’”
Fortunately, Business Matchmaking, SBA and SCORE are taking it to businesses, and these stumbling blocks are being addressed. Ashman’s also optimistic that policymakers and politicians are noticing that small business is where jobs are and should be created. “The most encouraging thing I see with the stimulus package is an across-the-board recognition of the significance of the role of small business.”
Tags: crm, incentive, recognition, recognition programs, recruit donors
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May 23rd, 2009
In sales, “getting new business” is also called “prospecting.” Unfortunately, using that term tends to turn off average salespeople who are afraid of doing it. If you know how to prospect properly, you’ll never fear doing it.
The best place to start prospecting is with people who have already paid money for products and services similar to yours.
When you’re finally prepared enough with knowledge about your product, service, or concept and have a good level of selling skills, you then need to begin finding those people. Because you won’t have a lot of qualifying, presenting, closing, or follow-up to do when you’re new, your primary focus should be on prospecting. In fact, early in your selling career, your daily plan should be to invest about 75 percent of your time prospecting. The other 25 percent of your time should go toward developing your product knowledge and presentation skills.
So, how do you find these elusive, but absolutely essential prospects? Read on!
Friends and Relatives
The first potential clients that usually come to mind are friends and relatives. Then, move to people you come in contact with on a social basis. Those you meet socially would include fellow church members, school workers, and those you enjoy doing your hobbies or playing sports with. Business friends would include people you have worked with in the past or met through workshops or clubs and organizations specifically set up for business professionals.
Other Salespeople
One area of prospecting that is often overlooked is other salespeople. Work up a win-win situation with other salespeople by sharing leads or finding a complement in your product or service to what they have to offer. The favors you give away often return tenfold.
Do your prospecting efforts end with your last appointment of the day? If you answer yes, you’ve closed your eyes to a lot of business.
Enjoying a dinner in a restaurant, shopping in a mall, dropping off dry cleaning, and purchasing groceries put you in contact with potential future clients. If you’re in network marketing, you can benefit by turning those who have demonstrated good people skills on to your business. In doing so however, never intrude on their work time. Simply say, “I can’t help but notice that you have a nice way with people. I’m curious, are you achieving all of your goals working here? The reason I ask is that the firm I represent is in an expansion mode and we’re looking for quality people to take advantage of the opportunity. Do you have an interest in knowing more?”
If they do, say: “Ethically, because you’re working now, I’m not at liberty to discuss it. However, if you’d like to jot down a number and time I can reach you when you’re not working, we can visit and see if it’s a win-win possibility.”
Always carry your business cards with you and freely hand it out to those you feel particularly impressed with. Following up with a letter or thank you note regarding the service they provided leaves a good impression of you and your company.
Newspaper
A favorite prospecting tool, and one that is the greatest source around, can be delivered to your doorstep for under a dollar a day in most areas. It’s the newspaper. I used to read mine with a pen so I could circle all of the opportunities I found. The local news, business, and announcement sections are the most beneficial portions of the paper.
Circle who has been promoted in business, who recently had a baby, who just started up a new business, who just sold or purchased a home in the community, and so on. Then, contact them. You do this by cutting out the article. Make a copy for yourself. Then send a brief note, saying, “I saw you in the news. I’m in business in the community and hope to meet you someday in person. I thought you might enjoy having an extra copy of the article to share with friends or relatives.” Always include your business card.
People love seeing that they were in the news. And they love having extra copies of the articles to send to friends and relatives who are not in the local area. When you follow up, you’ll already have something in common to talk about — the news item. By providing this small service in a non-threatening way, you can gain a lot of big business. I know I did. You can, too.
Tags: crm, incentive, marketing, marketing incentives
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May 22nd, 2009
What if, like most managers, you’re dealing with a strong but not stellar group, players of varying drive and skill, and a severely limited ability to bring in fresh talent?
Executive coach Daisy Wademan Downing takes inspiration from Tom Donnelly, the men’s track and field coach for the past 34 years at Haverford College, a Quaker school with fewer than 1,200 students. Despite the school’s tiny enrollment, noncompetitive philosophy, and lack of athletic scholarships, Donnelly has managed to produce 113 All-Americans and 24 individual N.C.A.A. champions – a jaw-dropping record for a school of any size or budget.
Donnelly’s superb, sustained results are the kind every manager dreams of. And, according to the coach himself, they’r the kind of results any manager can shoot for – and attain. The secrets to getting your team out front, he says, are as follows:
* Spend as much time with the slowest runner as with the fastest. To improve a team’s performance, focus on its weakest members. As long as a team member is working hard, he or she deservess your attentive, careful coaching.
* Take away performance pressure by adding perspective – and fun. Donnelly’s pep talks are laced with trivia, history and jokes. He readily acknowledges that running track is not the only important thing in his athletes’ lives.
* Accept inevitable setback – and move past them quickly. The times when other teams win? Donnelly and his runners spend no time sulking or pointing fingers. “We acknowledge the other team’s accomplishment and we recover.”
* Let your team’s performance be its own reward. The team’s trophies and award certificates go up in Donnelly’s office. His own coaching awards go in the trash. They get in the way, Donnelly claims, of doing his job – teaching other people how to succed.
Tags: crm, incentive, incentives, performance programs, recognition programs
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