Blog from Maribeth Kuzmeski of Red Zone Marketing What is worth the effort in your business? Where does your productivity and focus pay off the most? Of course, the activities that produce the greatest results are not the easiest. The biggest successes often come when we are in the difficult, magnified, and critical “red zone.” The red zone is a common football term. … [Read more...]
Customize Your Pitch
Why do we hate those nagging telephone calls from strangers telling us to buy something? Why do car salesmen have a bad reputation? The reason, I believe, is that the sales techniques they use are impersonal and we often feel that something is being forced on us that we do not want or need. The fact of the matter is that even if we do need the product or service that’s … [Read more...]
If you were Brick and Mortar, would you Shop (Hire) YOU?
Ask yourself honestly, if you were going to shop for a stellar, top-notch player for your team, would you shop you? A simple yes or no will suffice. If you answered yes, fantastic! Read on and see if your answer is still yes at the close of today’s read. For my retail fans, I am dedicating today’s blog to you! This includes corporate Product Managers, Buyers, Operations, … [Read more...]
Why Aren’t People Buying From You?
The reason most entrepreneurial ventures fail? Quite simply, they overestimate the number of people that will buy what they are selling. As entrepreneurs, how can this doomed fate be avoided? If increasing sales is a continuous struggle for you and a relentless concern, consider which of the following issues you may be experiencing: 1) Potential buyers don’t want … [Read more...]
Attacking and Beating Sales Reluctance With the Right Mindset
“I don’t like selling. But I’m the best salesperson we’ve got . . .” Have you heard someone saying this recently? Or, worse, have you caught yourself making this comment or something similar? Many professionals suffer from sales embarrassment – the notion that selling their services is somehow unseemly or demeaning. They know they need sales to generate … [Read more...]
How Do You Get Someone’s Attention?
I was in Orlando this past week with some colleagues training a medical device sales force on “purposeful communication”. “Purposeful Communication” is communication that has a goal or desired outcome and when applied to sales presentations, the objective is to create a sales presentation that is well organized around a desired outcome with your target audience. Selling to a … [Read more...]
Top 10 US Cities to Capture Small Business Recovery Act Dollars
Uncle Sam wants small business entrepreneurs to lead the nation to economic recovery--and has billions of dollars to make it happen. Small business owners are in line to receive low-interest loans and government contracts through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). To secure your little corner of the recovery, you'll need to be at the right place with the right … [Read more...]
Pitching the Media Correctly
Part 1 of 7 It doesn't matter whether you're a seasoned PR professional or a newbie, you'll need to know how to pitch the media correctly if you want to get publicity, interviews, articles and write ups about your business. With all the bad pitches and PR spamming, it is time to teach you how to do it the right way. By pitching the media correctly, you will see your … [Read more...]
How are you doing on price?
I first published this discussion six months ao. Since then, I have had more and more discussions with my clients about their pricing strategies and being squeezed in this market. In a lean economy, many sales and business development people feel obligated to discount their prices; at least, the discussion of price and where it fits in the sales strategy becomes more … [Read more...]
An observation about sales staff
I had lunch one time at a popular eatery in a nearby town. It was a place where on weekends, families and couples would have brunch or dinner; but on a weekday at lunch time, it was usually business people meeting. On this particular day the restaurant was very crowded and I was quite lucky to get a table. My little table-for-two was positioned between two larger tables. … [Read more...]