Marketing Secrets for the New Economy – Part 1

Marketing Secrets for the New Economy – Part 1 overviews the opportunities we have as entrepreneurs and business owners to dramatically increase revenues and profits in the ‘new economy’. Part 2 will address the importance of globalizing your business for sustainable long-term growth.

We have all heard many times over that most millionaires have a total of seven income sources. In the first part of the article, you will see examples of how you too can systematically create multiple income streams for a business around your greatest asset – YOU.

The image below reflects what these multiple income sources might include for a typical emerging business. I refer to this chart as the “Circle of Life” because it also provides an evolutionary path for scaling a growth business through the various life-cycle stages.

YOU

Now let’s explore each of these potential revenue streams in a little more detail, so you have a better idea of how applicable they may be for your particular situation. Continue reading…

No One Said It Would Be Easy

No one said it would be easy. Even in the best of times, starting a new business can be risky business. However, despite a volatile economy and job market, more and more people have ventured out into the entrepreneurial world.

We have all seen reports that suggest 50% – 75% of new businesses fail within the first three years. Why do so many fail?

  1. Limited resources – time, people, capital and expertise.
  2. Lack of focus and planning.
  3. No formal sales and marketing system.

These are a few of the primary reasons most new business starts fail to make it. So, what can you do differently to tilt the odds of success in your favor and build a profitable and sustainable new business?

Cliff Climbing Image

There are no absolutes, but there are some fundamental things you should do as a new business owner to make it easier to achieve your goals: Continue reading…

Want to Win a New Ferrari?

Want to win a new Ferrari? Guess what, me too, but this blog article has absolutely nothing to do with winning a new Ferrari. It does, however, have everything to do with driving more business to your front door!

This article is about the “power of the pen” or more to the point, the power of a well written headline and/or subject line to attract the reader’s attention and help improve your business results. In order to capture the reader’s attention the headline and related sub-text needs to draw them to the copy, so a connection is made that will motivate prospective buyers to purchase your product or service offer.

Ferrari Image

One of the most effective ways to do this is through the use of what I commonly refer to as “magic” or trigger words and phrases that grab the prospective buyer’s attention. Continue reading…

Do First Impressions Still Matter?

We have all heard the old adage many times over that, “You only get one chance to make a good first impression”. But does this really apply in business today?

This past Saturday I had the opportunity to speak to members of a national association at their annual conference on the topic of “How to Improve Your 30-Second Elevator Pitch”. One of the questions I asked the participants’ was “in a networking group setting today, do first impressions still matter?” Continue reading…

Five “Bees” of Selling to Executives

One of the toughest challenges sales people face is penetrating the C-Suite and successfully selling to C-level executives. Why? According to comments directly from C-level executives, “sales people focus the conversation on their product or service, and not what is important to them.”

So, what are the five “bees” of selling to executives or to business owners you need to know?

There are five critical areas that you must address in order to “bee” successful in selling your product or service to C-level executives or business owners: Continue reading…

Business Survival Checklist

All business owners are looking for ways to improve top-line revenues, reduce expenses and increase profits in order to grow their respective businesses. However, the troubling economy and other factors have forced many of these same business owners to replace the word “grow” with the word “survive”.

The majority of business owner’s I have met with in the past all responded with the same answer when I have asked them, “what is the one thing that is critical to your business success”. The simple answer is “more customers”. More profitable customers are the life-blood for any viable business.

Every successful business has or should have a universal checklist of the things that are central to acquiring new customers, growth and yes, survival.

Here is the list of ten things that I believe should be included in your Business Survival Checklist:

  1. Business/Marketing/Financial Roadmap. What are your existing plans to deliver maximum ROI performance in the next 12-24 months, 3-5 years, 5-10 years and 10+ years? The roadmap for your business, at a minimum, should address the next two fiscal years. Don’t be too optimistic – it is much better to over-deliver on your projections than to fall short. Continue reading…

Want to Buy a Toothbrush?

Traditional sales and selling techniques have changed dramatically over the years.

Fading fast are the door-to-door canvassers, dinner-hour telemarketers and transactional salespeople who appear to be interested in only making a quick sale and then moving on to the next one. The so-called  “trickster” sales companies who rely upon sleight of hand selling approaches and gimmicks to entice you to buy are also dying out as consumers become better educated and informed about the products and services they choose to purchase.

One of my favorite stories from sales lore reflects the progress we have made over the years in changing the dynamics of the buyer-seller relationship. It’s the timeless story of a toothbrush salesman who consistently failed to meet his quota and was told by his boss at a trade show that if he did not achieve his sales goal for the event he would be fired. After delivering his stern ultimatum, the salesman’s boss left for a series of meetings, but told him he would return in a couple hours to check on his progress. Continue reading…

Four Keys to Going Up

Like many of you, I have had my share of horror stories over the years when it comes to working with contractors. The past two weeks in particular, have been challenging for me in attempting to schedule routine maintenance and repairs around our home.

I won’t belabor you with all the gory details. Suffice it to say that if you are a contractor or business owner and are serious about growing your business, then I hope you will find the content of this article from a customer’s perspective to be beneficial.

For businesses of all sizes, I believe there are four keys to “going up” and achieving success that are integral to sustainable business growth and will generate higher customer satisfaction ratings, referrals and more repeat business: Continue reading…

How to Get Moving When You’re Stuck

I’m stuck …

It’s more difficult than I expected …

I can’t get over the hump …

Things just aren’t working out …

I’m lost …

Tell me what to do!

These are a few of the typical comments I hear during the initial discovery meetings with many of my new clients. Being an entrepreneur or small business owner is difficult, particularly in the first 1-3 years, and you can get frustrated when things aren’t going your way or there aren’t a lot of people around to turn to for advice and counsel. Continue reading…

Are You Speaking To Me?

There are three important elements that lead to success in a typical networking setting when positioning yourself, your business and your value proposition to group members:

  1. Preparation and planning,
  2. Tailoring the message to your audience.
  3. Follow-up.

This article will address #2 “Tailoring the message to your audience”, and I will provide you with some ideas and an example that should help you raise your profile, obtain more quality referrals and effectively promote your business through networking.

Far too often, I see people just going through the motions when it comes to networking activities. You know what I’m talking about. When it’s time for 30-second introductions they start with their name and business name, and then offer little additional information to enable them to connect with the audience. What a waste of time! Continue reading…