What Sport Is Your Sales Pitch?

Written by Hal Alpiar

Are you, your boss, and your customers
all playing on the same field?

If your boss talks a never-ending stream of product/service features, and you’re selling charm, wit, good looks, eye-contact, great handshakes, reputation, integrity, and your track-record, but your customers only care about the (“What’s in it for me?”) benefits, you may want to re-think your strategies, maybe even re-visit your career options.

Why? You’re playing baseball on a chessboard or football in a boxing ring. The first thing you need to do is step back and determine who’s playing what sport and on what kind of field, then work at establishing compatibility. (You’ll never get anywhere trying to do a fast break on the basketball court in hockey skates!).

Start with the assumption, which is a pretty safe one, that every customer wants to buy what you have to sell as long as the emotional benefits are clear, and there are enough rational, logical, unemotional features involved that can be used to substantiate and justify the purchase.

Substantiate and justify? Whom might your customer need to appease? His boss, his wife (sometimes the same person!), his relatives, neighbors, friends, clients, customers, patients, community?

It may not seem like a great deal that this new printer cranks out quality equal to the printer you have but costs 30% more . . . UNTIL I tell you that it uses ink cartridges that also cost the same as what you have BUT you only need to replace these cartridges every six months instead of every month. The dollar savings over the long haul is so great that you’ll more than cover the added 30% price of the machine before the end of the summer . . . and then you’ll only need to run to the office supply store twice a year!“

The emotional trigger is fewer time-wasting trips to the office supply store, but the reason the boss will hear about is the dollar-savings.

I tell my friends and family that I spent the extra money and gave in to the lower mileage to buy this truck because it runs like a clock in ice and snow, pulls out tree stumps, is great for those off-road weekend expeditions, will drive through stream-beds and on ocean beaches, and will pull my trailer. The real reason I bought the truck — but would never tell anyone — is that I think I look good driving it!”

The only way you can make sure you (and your boss and your customers) are playing the same sport on the same field, is to ask questions, listen carefully to the answers, paraphrase what you think you understand someone to be saying (is the emphasis on features or benefits?).

People buy benefits and justify their purchases (even the most rational, logical ones) with features. Are you helping them to buy and justify by playing their game on their field? Or are you making your boss and customers be the visiting team and keeping them guessing about how to score points? How flexible are you?

A Great List of Prospects You May Be Overlooking

Written by Silvia Quintanilla, Industry Gems

If you’re in B2B sales and work for a corporation, you’ve got an edge. That’s because you have at least 20 or more companies that would be compelled to meet with you!

The “secret” is to call on companies that depend on you and your company for their profits.

Let’s say that your company uses Xerox for all their copiers, or they use Arrowhead for their water stations, or maybe your annual sales kickoff meeting is held at Marriott Hotels. These are organizations that think of you and your company as a valued customer.

At my last company, I kept in close contact with our Accounts Payable department and had them send me a list of all our vendors. They sent me a “book” with everyone, from our phone company to our furniture vendor!

I used this book to launch my prospecting campaign and was able to set several good appointments. One memorable appointment was a meeting with two senior level executives at Salesforce.com (we used their CRM). They were much smaller then, but we knew they were an up-and-coming company.

I used our current business relationship to my advantage, and when the executives responded, it generally included a statement of, “Thanks for being a customer, we appreciate your business…”

There are least a couple of advantages to this sales strategy. First, if the company was searching for a solution you offered, they’ll likely feel more loyal to meet with you than a non-customer competitor.

Second, depending on how large your company is, and how important you are to the vendor, it gives you great leverage when calling into the “C-level”.

So the next time you’re wondering who to call, look around your office to see what products and services your company uses. It just might be a vendor that considers you a “valued customer,” and compared to your other prospecting activities, the chances of them being willing to meet with you are really high!

A Social Media Cheat Sheet to Accelerate Sales!

Written by Bill Rice, CEO/Founder, Kaleidico

Everyone has heard the mantra, “listen first” when considering your social media strategy. When we talk about social media and sales we have to take one more step–research what to listen to. Otherwise, you will waste too much time listening to useless chatter when you should be knocking down your sales quota.

Here is my simple, 3 Step Social Media Sales Research 101:

1. Researching the Company - Every sales person has a list of clients they want–start there. Pull out that list of target companies and see what we can find.

Start at the company website. With the growing popularity of social media, this is probably the hub of their social media activity. Look for social media icons–Twitter, Facebook, RSS. Connect to each of these. Not only will it give you an instant snapshot into what is important to this company now, it will offer a steady future flow of data and event triggers to call on this company.

Finally, don’t forget to check out their Press or Media pages. This is what they want the market to know about their company–shouldn’t you?

2. Identifying Decision Makers - Organizations are flattening and changing everyday. The classic strategy of snagging the org chart isn’t that effective. Fortunately, social media is letting decision makers tell us where they fit in the organization and their personal priorities.

For this part of my research, I like to dig into Linkedin.com. It gives me two important approaches to connecting with the right people. First, the advanced search feature allows me to focus on the people in my target company with the right skills and at that right level to buy from me. Second, it inherently tells me how I might use my network to connect with these prospective decision makers.

Linkedin is a very efficient way to find the right people to talk to about your product or service, but that’s not even the biggest sales opportunity. On Linkedin these people will actually tell you how to connect and build a relationship with them. Links to blogs and other social media profiles tell you other ways to connect. And status messages, SlideShare.net, TripIT.com, and Reading Lists plug-ins gives you good insight into how they think.

3. Finding Communities and Influencers - Nothing closes a deal faster than being recommended by a community of friends or experts. Think about it. If you wanted to buy a new car you might look around your neighborhood or ask for recommendations at the block party. If you wanted a new laptop you probably ask colleagues. If you need a piece of software to get something done you’re tossing up the question in your business network.

Business communities, experts, and networks associated with your industry influence decisions. If you want to sell these people something you had better be plugged in. As my friend Chris Brogan says, “be there before the sale.”

Now to find them… it is easier than you might think! Communities naturally want to be found and they want to include knowledgeable people. This should make your search easy and your inclusion natural (assuming you know your stuff). But, where to look? Here are my favorite places to search:

• Linkedin Answers - This is a great venue to show off your thought leadership in a valuable way. You are immediately helping others by answering their questions, without having to make a sales pitch for attention.
• Linkedin Groups - These Linkedin communities are only a simple search away. However, many of them are exclusive–meaning you need to get through the moderator. If you have participated in Linkedin Answers, have a relevant profile, and ask nicely you can plug into most of these groups. Just mind your manners when you get the invite.
• Blog Search - Use Google Blogsearch, Technorati, or IceRocket (blog-specific search engines) to find relevant blogs to follow. This, in-and-of-itself, is valuable; however, my secret is scouting out the blogrolls and comments. This will quickly tell you who everyone thinks is important (often linked to on everyone’s blog roll) and the “sneezers” (those hyperactive networkers and news spreaders that are on the spot in everyone’s comments.
• Twitter Search - Searching Twitter is like pulling up the industry newswire for your market. It is the super-distribution channel for the real-time Web. Searching your industry keywords will immediately tap you into reporters, influencers, and networkers–all of whom can pay key roles in getting you to a sale.

Search each and every one of these channels. Simple observation will quickly tell you which communities are the most active, who the organizers are, and who are the probably influencers. Get yourself included and add value to the conversation and you will be in a command position when an influential buyer needs a solution.

If you skimmed the rest of the article STOP and READ THIS!

All of this only takes about 30 minutes a day and will make your sales calls so much more productive. Here is the cheat sheet:

1. Subscribe to company RSS feed and any affiliated social media users
2. Search and subscribe to relevant industry blogs. Look for frequent personalities (influencers)
3. Comment on relevant Linkedin Answers and join proper Linkedin Groups
4. Follow the social media profiles of people you think are relevant prospective buyers

This quick, ongoing flow of research will make every sales call easier and accelerate your sales!

Sales Self-Sabotage: Fools Rush In

Written by Jill Konrath, Selling to Big Companies

Call me a prude if you will, but I’ve had it with sellers who are totally clueless that they’re going too far, too fast in their initial meeting with me. The worst thing is, they have no idea how their actions are perceived.

Could you possibly be guilty of this promiscuous behavior? If so, do you have any idea what it’s doing to your reputation?

The Fantasy

Let’s say I’m your ideal prospect. You call me up, catch me on the phone, deliver a message that piques my curiosity and I agree to meet.

Sounds like the perfect scenario, right? If you’re like most sellers, you’re probably pretty excited about our upcoming meeting. After all, I’m one hot prospect who’s interested in what you’ve got.

So what happens when we finally get together? Initially you focus on building a relationship with me. You thank me for agreeing to meet. We chitchat for a few minutes about little things. Then you ask me about my company to get me talking about business.

After you’ve warmed me up, it’s time to get serious. Since I agreed to meet, clearly I want to learn about your company and offering, so an overview comes next. You want to make sure I understand all the salient details about your organization, its history and more.

Then it’s time for a few questions. Perhaps you start by assessing if I’m a qualified buyer with money in my budget. Or, you might focus on my very specific needs so you can determine the appropriate solution.

Following that, you present information on the products or services you think I’d be most interested in. When I start asking questions, you get more excited. We’re connecting, bonding, getting closer to consummating the business relationship.

The Reality

But the truth is, you are dead wrong! You’ve totally misjudged my interest level and thus, lost the opportunity to do business with me.

Why? You don’t understand how I (your prospect) think. You assumed that my interest meant one thing, when it fact it signifies something entirely different.

In SNAP Selling (coming in May), I’ve structured the whole book around the three primary decisions your prospects make:

• First Decision: Allow Access
  When you approach a prospect with an enticing message, they’ll agree to meet-perhaps by phone, web conference or in person. They’re willing to invest a small bit of time with you. You’ve moved them from being oblivious about your existence to curious.

• Second Decision: Initiate Change
  In the second decision, your prospect evaluates if it’s worth it to change from the status quo. They’d prefer not to because it takes a lot of extra time and effort. But, if they can see that all the hassle and pain leads to a better outcome, they’ll do it.

• Third Decision: Select Resources
  Once your prospect decides that change is worthwhile, then they want to learn about your product or service. Understanding your differentiators becomes important to them. Even the risk of doing business with you is considered. At the end of this decision, they pick the option they determine is best for them.

Understanding the difference between these three decisions is imperative to your sales success. At each stage of the process, your sales behaviors must change if you want to keep advancing your relationship. Failure to get it right means you get dumped.

So Here’s the Deal

Over 90% of the people you meet with are in the Second Decision phase. They’re trying to determine if they want to change.

But there you are, trying to seduce them with all the cool things about your product, service or solution. That’s Third Decision behavior. It’s way too much information about your offering much too quickly. And, it’s coming at a time when the focus should be on helping your prospect assess the ROI for moving off the status quo.

When you prematurely elaborate, you set up a lose/lose situation. Prospects don’t want to have anything more to do with you, even if you could have made a difference to their business. From their perspective, you’re only concern is making a quick sale. While that wasn’t your intent, that is how you’re perceived.

Anytime you meet with new prospects, first find out if they’ve already decided to change. If not, don’t talk for more than a few minutes about your offering or company.

Instead say, “While many of our customers have realized significant value from changing, what we really need to do is determine if it makes sense for you.” Then, be prepared to ask questions that lead to that outcome.

Don’t sabotage your chances of sales success by trying to move too quickly. Slow down. Way down. Ensure your prospect has made the Second Decision, before you jump into Third Decision behaviors – or suffer the consequences. You can’t rush a relationship!

Jill Konrath, author of Selling to Big Companies and SNAP Selling, helps sellers crack into corporate accounts, shorten sales cycles and win big contracts. She is a frequent speaker at annual sales meetings and association events.

“The Dog Ate Your Phone? Seriously?” CareerBuilder Survey Reveals Bizarre Excuses for Being Late to Work

Posted by: Mary Lorenz on March 17, 2010

With fewer employees coming in late to work these days than they did a year ago, you might think the well of bizarre excuses they come up with for being late was running low as well.

You’d be wrong.

According to CareerBuilder’s most recent survey, released today, 16 percent of workers said they arrive late to work at least once a week, down from 20 percent who said the same in last year’s survey. Eight percent of workers said they are late at least twice a week, down from 12 percent last year.

The decrease in tardiness could indicate that worries over job security may have workers taking punctuality – and their overall on-the-job performance – more seriously, says CareerBuilder’s vice president of human resources, Rosemary Haefner, in the press release.

Of the more than 5,200 workers who participated in the survey, 32 percent cited traffic as the biggest reason for being tardy, followed by lack of sleep (24 percent). Seven percent said getting their kids ready for school or day care was the cause of their lateness, while the same amount (7 percent) said bad weather was the culprit. Other common reasons included public transportation, wardrobe issues or dealing with pets.

And then…there were the following uncommon reasons employees have given for being late (according to hiring managers surveyed):

• “I got mugged and was tied to the steering wheel of my car.”
• “My deodorant was frozen to the window sill.”
• “My car door fell off.”
• “It was too windy.”
• “I dreamt I was already at work.”
• “I had to go to the hospital because I drank antifreeze.”
• “I had an early morning gig as a clown.”
• “A roach crawled in my ear.”
• “I saw an elderly lady at a bus stop and decided to pick her up.”
• “My dog swallowed my cell phone.”

Perhaps it is hard-to-believe excuses like these that help explain why 34 percent of hiring managers reported that they’ve terminated employees for being late (up from 30 percent who said the same last year).

Or perhaps employee tardiness indicates a bigger problem at hand, such as the need to better communicate the company’s tardiness policy, or simply a need among employees for a better work-life balance.

5 Sales Lessons Learned From The Great Recession

by Kelly Robertson

The past year was definitely interesting. Some sales professionals prospered while others suffered. I spoke to one person who doubled his income and he works in automotive sales! Yet, another well- established person experienced a decline of more than fifty percent in their sales. There are several key sales lessons that can be learned from selling in a recession. These will help you succeed in the upcoming year.

Companies are Leaner
This has been an ongoing factor for many years with continual downsizing and cut backs. However, the recession forced many companies to scale back even further than they normally would have. This has resulted in an extremely lean workforce.

What does that mean for sales people?

It means people are stretched even further and busier than ever before. It means it will become even more difficult to connect with decision makers. It means projects will be put on hold because people will be too busy to implement them. It means you need to find a way to help your customers deal with this. Make your solutions easier. Assist with the implementation. This also means respecting their time when you meet. If you have sixty minutes allotted for your meeting but you can wrap it up in forty-five then do so. Your customer will appreciate it and it will help you stand out from the crowd.

The Buying Process Has Changed
There is no question that decision makers in corporate America have changed the way they make buying decisions. Caution is now a standard business practice and I suspect that it will remain that way for years to come. This means you need to become more adept and proficient in your discovery process. You not only need to find out who is responsible for the buying decision but also what internal factors your key decision makers are facing that may derail the sale or prevent the process from moving forward.

This has always been part of the sales processor at least it should have been. However, it is even more critical to uncover this information as part of your discovery process. The sales professionals who get this will outshine their colleagues and competitors.

Signing Authority
Many decision makers no longer have the ability to sign-off on the same level of expenses or purchases that they were once accustomed to. This has significant ramifications.

The ego issue. Picture yourself in the executive office, perhaps a VP of Sales or Marketing. Until last year you could approve any purchase under $20,000. Now, you need to get approval from a purchasing committee for any expense over $5,000. Although you understand the philosophy behind this policy it is challenging to deal with because in your eight year history with the company you have never made a poor buying decision.

The buying committee. You may now have to deal with buying committees, and if youre not careful, you wont even get the chance to meet them. That means the decision to use your product, service or solution could be vetoed.

No approval. Some purchases simply wont be approved because of the extent or nature of the expense. Even though your solution may benefit the company, the organization may choose not to move forward simple because they know they wont get approval for the expense. Its not fair but it is a fact of business.

Once again, this means that you need to ask more questions to uncover the approval process. Be sensitive to the decision makers position if you discover that they no longer have the authority to sign- off on your product or service. Look for ways to help them facilitate their decision. Work with your company to extend payment terms in certain circumstances.

Value is King
Value has always been important in the eyes of the decision maker. However, it has become even more important. But, it is critical to note that this value is what they, the decision makers, deem as value. Its not about you touting the features, advantages and benefits of your product. Just because you think something is important does not mean your prospect or customer will. Value is in the eyes of the beholder only. That means you need to ask high-value questions to determine EXACTLY what is important to each prospect and each customer. Once you have accomplished this you need to adapt your sales presentation (aka sales pitch) to ensure that it addresses your prospect value requirement(s).

Make No Excuses
The sales professionals who prospered this past year were assertive in generating business. They did not use the recession as an excuse. They did not wait for business opportunities to come their way; they took responsibility and did whatever they could to reach their targets. This has always been a distinguishing factor between high-performing sales professionals and it will become even more important in the future.

These are just five sales lessons I learned last year. What did you learn from selling in a recession and are you prepared to make changes in order to make 2010 a great year?

As President of The Robertson Training Group, Kelley Robertson has helped thousands of sales professionals improve their sales with his engaging approach. He is the author of two books, Stop, Ask & Listen-Proven Sales Techniques to Turn Browsers into Buyers and The Secrets of Power Selling. He also publishes a weekly electronic newsletter called 59 Seconds to Sales Success which is distributed to thousands of people around the globe.

Learn more at www.RobertsonTrainingGroup.com.

4 Targeting Tips to Improve Your Prospecting

Doyle Slayton | Mar 17, 2010

Dirty databases kill morale. It’s so difficult to reach decision makers these days. More than ever, sales success is dependent on our ability to be more efficient. If you are like most sales people, you are working through a combination of various leads lists, and those who are wise, are managing their most targeted contacts through a CRM.

Most sales roles require high activity to achieve quota, and so we get wrapped up in call, call, call… persist, persist, persist. Ironically, the very thing that drives our success can also get us into trouble. This is especially true if you have a ridiculously large list of unqualified leads to filter through.

Let’s say you have three or four lists to call from. In addition, you have a “purchased” list that was dumped into your database. None of them are qualified and you are pulling your hair out wondering where to begin. To make matters worse, the database is filled with duplicates.

Filtering through name after name of unqualified prospects can wear you down, especially when you keep running into, “You have reached a number that has been disconnected.” Believe me, I feel your pain!

Here’s a list of four targeting tips you can use to immediately improve your prospecting efficiency…

Too Specialized – There are highly specialized industries that primarily work with partners specific to that industry. If your service doesn’t fit into that niche, you are probably wasting your time trying to convince these prospects that your product is better. You are probably not even speaking their language, and you lose credibility every time you call.

Wrong Size – Let’s use employee count as an example. If your company targets clients with an employee count of 50-500, you need to stay within that space. It’s easy to think the grass is greener on the other side.

With small companies, you become addicted to the rush of the quick sale, and the one call close… but at the end of the day, one of two things is happening. You are either missing quota, or you are exhausted because of the effort it required to beat your goals. In either case, you are left wondering, “How can I ever make this work long term?”

With companies that are too large, people get sucked in to unrealistic projections. As the deal progresses, so does it’s complexity. Again, it takes a toll on your time and resources. Your entire pipeline takes a nose dive, and you have very few deals that can close “today.”

Of course, people will ask, “Should I turn that business away?” The answer is simple, “No.” If an opportunity presents itself organically, take it, but when it comes to your everyday activities, don’t intentionally seek out and chase those types of accounts. The odds are not in your favor.

Off Target Demographic – With this example, let’s say you have a highly sophisticated product. It can do “backflips on the freeway” if you asked it to, and is best suited for white collar businesses. You know you are selling to the wrong demographic when they can’t see it’s value.

Not a User – Some companies do everything in house. They don’t currently use your type of service. Although they have met with other vendors, they have always kept things internal. Why waste your time banging your head against this brick wall. Move on!

If you are in a high activity sales role, you should be striving to maintain a “clean” list of 200-300 qualified prospects. Now when you call, call , call… persist, persist, persist… the results will be dramatically different! You’ll be back to your old self… believing, “This is what I was born to do… sell!”

What Makes for a Great Leader?

By Debra Wheatman

What makes for a great leader? Are leaders born, or can they be molded? Whether or not someone has the capacity to be a great leader, they still need to be molded and nurtured. What are the traits that define leadership anyway? You asked. So, in a nutshell here they are:

Vision: Leaders have a clear vision of where they want to go, specifically related to an organization, how they will grow it into a well known business with a recognizable brand that differentiates it from its competition. However, vision alone is not enough. Leaders not only have this vision but also are able to develop and implement a plan for success. Passion and drive complete the picture; leaders are also able to share their vision and generate support from others to fulfill the goal.

Focus and Discipline: Strong leaders are disciplined. They set priorities and single-mindedly create a set of actions that they fulfill. This focus enables them to drive action and achieve results. You can spot a good leader because they are so focused on the goal while inspiring and encouraging others to participate.

Trust and Values: At the core of every true leader is a trust and value system that hinges on integrity. Leaders display a genuine character and never sway from a truthful path. Leaders do not take short cuts that have the potential to harm the business. They would rather take a bit longer and ensure that integrity is maintained rather than pursue a less righteous path. They are honest, forthright, and controlled to ensure that others feel comfortable in approaching them with information and ideas. This ability to build trust generates followers that are highly loyal.

Shared Success and Shared Failure: Great leaders share success with others, and also failures as well. They have the ability to credit others with success and also take responsibility for failures. The ability to take the good with the bad and share it all is the hallmark of a leader.

Humility: "We are all human." Leaders recognize and embrace this. They do not put themselves on any pedestals but treat others the way they expect to be treated and work to support the overall efforts of a group. They are receptive to new ideas and realize that they are not the only ones that can foster change. A good leader listens and can accept that a different way of doing things might be better than maintaining an existing situation. They do not judge but are open, establishing trust and mutual respect.

Humor: Above all leaders can use humor to create camaraderie and generate support. There is nothing like a good dose of laughter to diffuse a tough situation.

There is no doubt that some people are born leaders. However, those traits need to be nurtured to realize their full potential. So there is more than a dash of molding that needs to be thrown into the pot and stirred to 'produce' someone who can truly inspire, motivate and lead others to achieve greatness.

What is the Best Time to Call Prospects?

by Jeb Blount

We received this question from a reader named Jay from Houston who asks, "Jeb is it better to contact a prospect during the morning than the end of business day? Do you think they will be more likely to be chipper and more receptive to my call in the morning?"

Is there a best time to make prospecting calls?

This is one of the most common questions I get relative to telephone prospecting. I get this question from salespeople across all industries and all experience levels. There are several reasons salespeople ask this question:

A) They are truly interested in timing their calls.

B) They are frustrated and just venting in which case my answer falls on deaf ears.

C) They are seeking validation for not making their prospecting calls and the question is being used as a cop-out. In this case they do not like my answer.

A great analogy for timing your calls is investing. The investor who attempts to time the market has historically failed to beat the investor who uses a dollar-cost-averaging strategy which is essentially making incremental investments on a regular schedule over time.

If you think about prospecting in the same vein, salespeople who prospect daily on a regular schedule are always more successful over time than those who make the attempt to time their prospects. Like investing, statistics are always in the favor of the sales pro who does a little bit of prospecting every day.

There are of course some industry norms that must be taken into consideration. For instance, if you call on industrial or manufacturing buyers you will find them in the office much earlier in the morning than buyers in the banking and financial services industries. With that in mind it is reasonable that you time your calls so that the people you are calling are actually in the office.

Outside of that my recommendation is that you forget about timing and focus instead on calling - every day. Though it may not seem like it when you first get started, when you make a regular number of out bound dials each day, over time, you will make more calls, reach more prospects, and keep your pipeline overflowing.

Prospecting is the most important activity in sales. It is also frustrating and uncomfortable. No matter how much you wish it to be different, the vast majority of your calls will go to voice mail, you will deal with rude gatekeepers, and you will often catch prospects at the worst possible time in their day. That is life in the sales world. And despite the ongoing fantasy that there is some magical time when prospects will welcome your call with a kind voice and an open mind, nothing will change this fact.

It is because prospecting is so difficult that I recommend making your prospecting calls first thing in the morning; not because the prospect is in a better mood, but because you are. You will feel better, sound more enthusiastic, and weather the inevitable rejection much better. Most importantly if you tackle prospecting first thing in the morning it is more likely to get done than of put off. Never, ever forget that prospecting procrastination is the number one reason salespeople lose their jobs. It usually goes something like this. Johnny , the sales rep, says to himself:

"I shouldn't call these prospects at 8am because they are just getting in the office. I'll give them some time to settle in."

"I shouldn't call these prospects at 10am because they'll be in meetings. I'll wait until later."

"I can't call now because it is lunch time. I'll wait until later."

"I shouldn't call now because they are probably returning phone calls after lunch. I'll call later."

"It's 3pm and calling now is a bad idea because the prospect is probably not in the mood to talk to a salesperson this late in the afternoon. I'll call a little later."

"I can't call now because it is 5pm and it is time to go home. I guess I'll try again tomorrow."

Johnny, who has repeated these same lines day after day and by now is failing, approaches me after a speech or sales training and asks, "What is the best time to call prospects?", secretly hoping that my answer will help back up his lack of activity. I see right through the smoke screen. My advice is and always will be the same. Forget about timing. Focus instead on consistent, daily prospecting and I promise you will never worry about where your next sale is going to come from.

Clarity or Diversion?

By Eric Pennington

From JobDig

Does your organization call meetings for strategy or diversion? If you ask many employees (specifically non-management) you would get an answer of "diversion."Â What causes people to hide from strategy and embrace diversion? It's simple; fear brought on by the absence of clarity. Fear paralyzes individuals and organizations so that a clear path is unable to be charted.

When organizations or individuals lack clarity and direction they resort to diversion. When you don't know where you're going, you can't give directions on how to get there. In many ways, your success can contribute to this condition. Success can often cause you to relax. It can cause you to put things off, or worse, hold onto what got you to the success you're experiencing today. Rarely does yesterday's success provide sufficient fuel for tomorrow's challenges.

We have become soft. Like the prize fighter who is tired of the rigors of training, not realizing that the training is what delivers the title belt. Corporations and the senior leaders within are complicit in allowing this state to continue. When organizations are fixated first and last on quarterly numbers, clarity goes out the window. When your only strategy is making money you can't truly strategize on core growth.

Consider the following as you seek to move to clarity and away from diversion. All of these solutions are rooted in the art of making decisions:

• Decide what you want and be prepared for the consequences (good and bad). If you want clarity you need to prepare for it to cost you something. Your family may shake their heads, your boss may laugh or maybe you'll doubt your decision hours later. Every profitable decision carries a price. The beautiful part is you get better and learn more as a result.
• Decide to seek help. You may call it a life coach, a mentor or a pastor. Regardless, all performers know that asking for help is a major step toward breakthrough and greatness. You don't get to where you want to be alone.
• Decide to stop doing certain things. These might be habits, career or even relationships. In a recent interview, the actor Denzel Washington said ending certain relationships helped him as he crossed 50. If a habit or a person doesn't contribute to your growth, then why are you involved?
• Decide that you'll finish well. This might be the biggest decision you'll ever make. A dear friend told me once that when his dad passed away, he knew he had finished well. That's life-changing leadership, and that's a life well lived!
• Decide not to give up. There will be times when you won't think your pursuits are worth the trouble. There will be times when it seems the odds are stacked squarely against you. No matter where you find yourself, just don't give up. The only exception to this is when quitting get's you closer to your destination (thank you Seth Godin).

Whether you are the CEO or the mail room clerk, clarity is important. Diversion only leads to wasted opportunities and regret. Think about the preferred future you desire and how that makes you feel. One thing is for certain it won't happen without clarity of mind and clarity of direction.

Over 70 Percent of Workers Age 60+ Can’t Afford to Retire, New Survey Finds

• Posted by: Mary Lorenz on March 3, 2010

Stop me if you’ve heard this one…Money problems continue to plague American workers.

The latest evidence comes from a new CareerBuilder survey out today, showing that financial restraints are now putting a crimp in many older workers’ retirement plans.

According to the survey, 72 percent of workers over the age of 60 who said they are putting off their retirement are doing so because they can’t afford to retire. When comparing genders, the survey found that three-quarters (76 percent) of female workers over the age of 60 who said they are putting off retirement are doing so because they can’t afford it, while 68 percent of males said the same.

It’s Not All About the Benjamins…
According to the release, financial reasons are not the only grounds for postponing retirement for workers over the age of 60.

Other reasons cited among those putting off retirement include:

• Either enjoy their job or enjoy where they work and don’t want to leave it (71 percent)
• Plan to stay because they need the health insurance and additional benefits provided (50 percent)
• Fear retirement may just be boring (24 percent)
• Enjoy feeling needed (15 percent)

If you work with or supervise mature workers, be ready in case they decide they want to stay aboard a little bit longer than originally planned. “Twenty-seven percent of hiring managers say they were approached about postponing retirements last year and were open to retaining mature workers,” sais Jason Ferrara, senior career advisor at CareerBuilder.

Employees wanting to postpone retirement could actually be good news for companies that are worried about losing or replacing some their most skilled, experienced and loyal workers during a time when they need them the most. If you’ve already replaced them, consider whether you can keep them on in another role or department, and see if they’d be open to that.

Help Yourself By Helping Your Employees Plan for Their Future
Whether postponed retirement is an issue at your company or not, right now might be a good time to check in with your employees – who are likely overwhelmed by the effects of the slow economy – and see if you can’t help ease their burdens. After all, if they’re focused on financial strains, they’re not focused on much else (as in, their work duties), and that doesn’t reflect well on you.

Rosemary Haefner, vice president of Human Resources at CareerBuilder, suggests setting up a meeting with your employees and members of your HR department, so employees can learn or be refreshed on what is available to help them save on monthly expenses. (It’s likely that your company offers a lot of benefits employees aren’t even aware of.) An informal meeting in which employees can ask questions and clear up uncertainties may be extremely helpful for them.

2 Ways to Outsell Your Fiercest Competitor!

Doyle Slayton | Feb 28, 2010

If you are in a highly competitive industry, you are always going up against an arch rival that’s chasing after the same business opportunities. They are a formidable foe. Just like you, they are willing to work harder than anyone else, they crank out the phone calls, they are relentless about follow-up, and if it comes down to a price war… they will practically give it away just to beat you.

When you win, it’s pure joy, excitement, high fives for everyone! It also comes with a deep breath, a sense of relief, exhaustion, and the thought of, “I have to keep finding new ways to beat these guys!”

Here are two tips to keep you winning against your fiercest competitor…

1. What makes you different and why is that better?

The worst thing you can hear from a prospect is, “That looks very similar to (insert competitor’s name here),” or they might say, “Everyone says that about their company.” Those two statements burn me up! They serve as a reminder that we must get better!

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and if your presentation looks and sounds like everyone else, your chances of winning are well… just as good as everyone else.

You need to have an imaginary sign in front of you… with big bold letters scrolling through that says, “WHAT MAKES YOU DIFFERENT? WHAT MAKES YOU GREAT? WHAT MAKES YOU BETTER THAN EVERYONE ELSE?” Build that greatness into every presentation. Make it a part of your story and reinforce it by applying it to your prospect’s needs.

2. Create opportunity around your competitor’s weakness?

If your prospect says they are looking at other vendors. Ask them…

“Who are we up against?”

“How would you compare our product with theirs?

You can learn a lot about yourself and your competitors here. Listen closely. Some prospects will reveal more than others. Gain as much information as possible. Then, without sounding defensive, and without being classless about bashing the competition, you strategically make your case. I’ll share a couple of scenarios…

Let’s say you are going up against their current provider. You might say…

“How are they doing with… (insert competitor’s weakness)”

“That’s an important point of comparison. Based on (insert what’s most important to prospect on that issue). Here’s how we handle it…”

Let’s say you are going against your rival who, like you, is trying to win a new customer. You could say…

“How would you compare their product with ours?”

“We go up against them all the time. I recently brought on (insert accurate number of takeaways) of their former clients and they chose us because (insert important reasons that apply to your current prospects needs). That’s why I believe we are also the better option for you. In fact, I’ll get you some references, former (insert competitor here) clients that will tell you why they like our product better!”

There are a lot of people who think it’s a bad idea to engage in conversation about the competition. If you do it the right way, with class, you gain the advantage. Your quota, your job, and your livelihood all depend on the deals you win. There is no room to be timid. Be professionally aggressive and crush the competition!