Power to Prosperity

Power Play # 23 - Understanding Power Plays

A snippet from the workshop I recently did in June 2009. It is short and people at the workshop told me they liked this thinking. Hope you enjoy it. Have a good day and good weekend.

Power Play # 22 - Get your Brand out there

Sir Richard Branson on marketing in tough markets.  Love the simplicity of what he says.  Simply put, get your brand out here, hire a PR firm and get them to get your name and your brand out there to your target audience.  If you cannot afford them, then you do the same.  Its all about connecting the dots. 

I have recently noticed a few businesses falter ... due to the economy; they say.  But when I asked them about their marketing campaigns they looked at me like I was suddenly talking a foreign language.   The same thing applies for those of us looking for work in a tough market.

Get the word out - more importantly; get your brand image out.  There is a difference.  Your brand is what ever it is that makes you special and different.  (in simple terms)

What's your brand?  Are you getting it out there to the right people?

Power Play # 21 - Go Past Your Dips

For those of us that are committed to making our dreams come true, we need to understand the process of evolution - from idea and concept to maturity and profitability.  Seth Godin explains it well.

This is a short 5 minute video, worth the listen.

Thank you SellingPower.com for bringing us all this good information. 
Check out the rest of their videos.

Power Play # 20 - Learn to "Close" today's customers

I have noticed something over the last few years and have recently been observing this more recently.  As everything in life changes; so does the behavior of our "customers".  When I used to sell used cars and other things 15 and 20 years ago, people ... i.e.; customers behaved a certain way.  Now a days their behavior is different.  My question is for you to make a conscious effort to observe how "your" customers behave in your market place today. 

Once you do that - you will have a higher potential to sell them something.  Sales is a dance - between the customer and you, using that analogy, it becomes clear that one needs to be in sync with your partner if you want to dance and stay in step.  So again, I ask you ... how have your customers changed?

The basic trend is that customers have become more sophisticated and are more involved in getting a better deal because they can.  The internet allows them to shop around on their terms, in the comfort of their own home or Starbucks ... which might be easier for some and do valuable research about the product or service they are considering buying.

Now that you know this to be true .... how do you design your sales process?  How do you design a powerful offer that is "valuable" to your customer?  How do you present yourself in ways that your customer is searching for you? 

Just as you controlled your body language and tried to read your customer's body language .... are you controlling your Digital Body Language - Check out this nerdy but very powerful blog on the subject. 

I rest my case ... your customer has changed ... have you?

Power Play # 19 – What Recession?

In the last two days, I have met four different people that have told me that they are doing great in today's market.  It maybe just Cincinnati, but listen up ... there is a message here.

Mark actually replied "What Recession"!  when I asked him how he was doing with his Wholesale Business in this bad market place. He sells gift items to gift and novelty stores like you would find in the front part of any Cracker Barrel restaurant.  To make it better - he says he has grown consistently every year over the last three years and the last three Trade shows he did in May of 2009 were better than they were last year.

Then there was Bill who services 450+ dentists offices, he has not seen any significant drop in activity.  He just moved and is looking for help.  He needs to hire an office manager and a few people that want to work part-time (10 -15 hours a week)

I was at a networking event with The Circuit yesterday and met a couple of people there.  One of them was Christine a recruiter in the Financial space - she too is doing well.  She says, she has had a great year so far.

And then I met Steve with a IT services company that has 90 clients just in Cincinnati alone and they do not seem to be hurting in any way.  I loved their story, will write about them soon, when I interview their outfit, stay tuned for that. They are 4 times bigger than their closest competition and not looking back.

My point is this - all these people are SOLVING A NEED their clients have.  I have been saying this over and over again - the more you do this the better off you will be.  There were more people I have met that are doing well in this market place and they are all in different types of industries.   So keep you spirits up and find your place in the sun!

Power Play # 18 - Being a Super Hero

The earlier post was about the Super Heroes of America - this new breed of people that are pushing the envelope on reality and how they interact with it. This is cool especially when they are trying to do something of value.  But as I watch this - it is hard to not notice how they seem to be scrambling for a sense of Identity.  Doing good things or important things without knowing who you really are and what is important to yourself might not be the safest way of spending your time.

My suggestion is to stay grounded and be a Super Hero to yourSELF.  Start by taking yourSELF seriously and aligning with what is important to yourSELF.  Are you living in power?  Are you in a loving relationship?  Are you being true to yourSELF in every way possible.  These are not easy to do.  Most people might think they are, but no; it takes effort.

When you have a family and children that need you ... all of you.  This becomes all the more important.  The jobs we have, the careers we hold on to the life choices we make - they all impact our lives and our families. Make the right choices.  Be a Super Hero at home.  I have begun to say something real simple. A happy wife makes a happy life. 

Make choices that support you and your life - be a Super Hero to yourSELF.

Superheroes Amongst Us ... be one yourself.

Talking to Investors

Coming back to the subject of sales - I am constantly amazed at how important it is to understand one of the fundamental truths about the sales process.  At its core - you can ONLY sell something that someone wants to buy.  Hear me out - it might come across as an obvious point - almost silly to mention it ... again!  Yet - I am confident it is important for all of us to get - even an orthopedic surgeon.  You know they are constantly "selling" their services - if they do not, they starve.  But that is a whole different conversation - you will be amazed at how everyone is selling something at sometime.

So going back to this notion of talking to investors and other people you want to sell something to.   You can or rather will make a sale ONLY when you sell them something they are in the market for.  Let me simplify it for you.  Do you like the Ferrari car?  Most people answer ... yes!  ok, next question.  Would you like to drive one?  Again! most people say yes.  Now the relevant question ... Would you like to buy one today?  and as you would imagine...  most people say "No". 

So you see - your investors might like the concept or idea you are proposing - but they might have an "investment strategy" the suggests they look for opportunities that have a potential for growth and sustainability, you stand a chance of closing a deal, if your idea - creates an similar opportunity.  But if you say you want to create this web site that will ultimately be bought by Google or eBay in the next 18 months or so ... you might find that it could turn certain people off, because as an investment fund, they do not touch such high risk businesses.

Investors invest in companies that support their investment strategy.  So, please do not be too surprised when they turn you down.  I would encourage you to ask them a lot of qualifying questions, along the way - this will help you keep your conversations grounded and cost effective.  You love your product -  and they want to make money.  OR you might find that they want to make money and create a positive ROI in the area of research or services to a specific demographic.  Know your investor's investment strategy and then speak your truth and relate it to their strategy.  This will improve your chances ten fold.

Hope that helps ... and one more thing.  There is nothing like tenacity.  Stay the course you might just be the last man or woman standing and win.  But then again, please recognize when you have not made a sale a know that you might have to shift gears and go do something else.  All the best.

Power Play # 17 - Be yourSELF

You were born an Original don't die a Copy!

Jacqueline Tomaschko

How cool is that - just heard about this quote from a friend of mine Jacquelin Tomaschko in Kenya - This is a book by John Mason, that she introduced me to. I have not read the book yet - but by golly this idea is worth every bit of attention.  The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the value of this kind of thinking goes deeper than one might originally think.

Here are some thoughts I had ....

From the perspective of our sense of Self Identity - it totally makes sense.  But how often are we shaped by the thinking of others.  Sometimes I ask people ... Who are you?  and very often, in fact, too often I get an answer that goes something like this.  "I am Bob, I am an Engineer". An Engineer? Just like Rebecca and Steve over there? You get my drift.

Now take this further, one might even say in Relationships, this is fast becoming one of my favorite subjects.  Because the nature of your primary relationship WILL impact EVERYTHING else in your life.  So in relationships - very often our courting dances and the postures we take are so common and safe, we feel scared to do what our hearts really want to do.  May I suggest you be original in love my friends.  Put your moves on guys! and ladies ... strike a pose.

In Business this idea is deep too and makes a lot of sense.  Take for instance someone trying to start a restaurant.  You can open up another burger joint and try to make some money.  But chances are, that if you are original in some fashion and not just another copy; you might really do well.  My favorite chain Dunkin Donuts did just that.  But what about all the other success stories we have in business - Apple with the iPhone, for instance.  They did something totally original and unique and turned an industry over on its head.

So, be yourself and have a good time, make a stand and live your truth, you will find your power and it will get you to prosperity.  In peace.

Power Play # 16 - Constantly Innovate

A few days ago, I wrote about increasing your capacity to Innovate.  Thought I would revisit this idea, with a more practical sense of urgency for businesses in the market place.  Let's face it - we have to in effect ... go sell something!  Here are somethings I did in the past.

This is me a few years ago:

I was working with Barker Blue a large format printing company in the San Francisco Bay Area.  I was brought in to break the trend of increasing revenue approximately 3% or so a year.  After I did my basic house keeping tasks of getting my team up to par, I began reaching out and assessing my customer base. First off, I stopped calling on high cost customers, I also researched my "Entire" customer data base and found that there were a lot of customer we had not called on, in years. So I started doing customer calls and asking customers how they consumed "large format prints"  the product and the service we offered.  I also asked them what they would like to see us do different.  I also asked them what was going on in their world and how we could help.

It was during these meetings and "sales calls" that we realized that they were not that interested in the quality of the print me made for them, but were more interested in the content on the paper, how fast they could get them, how they might market them up and get them re-printed as well.  One interesting idea we got back was them wanting to be able to get the content on-line in the nights and evenings, so they could plan their day and coordinate their crew for the next day's jobs.

Guess what - we innovated, we changed our story, we changed our offerings, we partnered with them and we closed more business.  We were not the cheapest, I believe we were the costliest service in that market place, but we managed to grow 20% in one year - this was something that never happened before.  Simply because we innovated, we changed our approach and we became a different company.

Find out how you can change and innovate in your world.  Partner with your customers and see where they might take you.  Heck, it might be worth your while to follow their lead.  Ya never know, how profitable that might be.

All the best.