Category: Sales 101

NetWorks! – All About Results

NetWorks! means ROI. More importantly, it means maximizing that magical equation. In order to fully understand this concept we must be first willing to accept that there is a difference between an expense and an investment. When we expense something we expect to receive something of equal value in return. However, with an investment we reasonably expect to get back much more. We anticipate the “gift that keeps on giving”. That, my friend, is ROI. That, my friend, is NetWorks!

Let me ask you a few simple questions. Do you go to a restaurant for lunch two or more times per week? If you “brown bag” it….would you like to be able to eat out (smile)? When you do go out to lunch, would you classify that as an expense or as an investment? Certainly, if you are taking a client to lunch, I would call that an investment. Even better, half that lunch date, per IRS rules, may be tax deductible. Continue reading “NetWorks! – All About Results”

NetWorking – Striking Your Balance

If you have never been to this site before, let’s just say that I am a traditional networker trying to find his way in a new fangled electronic world. Most of this blog is devoted to that journey. And, make no mistake, I am a huge believer in networking and close to 100% of my client base is connected in one way or another to creating, nurturing, and building these types of relationships. Now, more than ever, there are a lot of ways out there to connect with others. So, how to strike a balance?

Business-Social Leads Groups (business emphasis): Perhaps the traditional networker’s most widely recognized tool of trade. I have been involved in these since the early 90’s and still maintain relationships that began that same long time ago.  I am not making this up, I have sold millions of dollars worth of signs as a direct result of relationships that began in these same groups. Relationships that continue today. I am such a huge believer in these organizations that I created one that meets my exacting specifications for the leads group fueled by steroids …. NetWorks! (smile). NetWorks! fulfills what I like to call the business-social segment of networking. We are social but, the focus is on business. Just this week, I was presented with a ground floor opportunity to further present the sign aspect of my business to a very targeted and lucrative market. The offer came from a gentleman who was a member of my leads group some 16 years ago. This type of networking is best designed for those of us who are comfortable with being considered as carnivorous by nature (smile). Continue reading “NetWorking – Striking Your Balance”

Sales 101 – Qualifying For Budget Part III

Authors note: Please be aware that this blog is being written by a sales person who knows absolutely nothing about marketing. I’m faking it (fake it till you make it) and learning about social media at the same time. Call it “survival instinct” (smile). My hope is that this site may serve to help other sales people in the same boat as I am……struggling to adapt to this new form of networking while at the same time being strangely intrigued (smile). And, it is also about coming to the realization that you either “grow or die”. Right now, I prefer growth (smile). Of course, this could change (smile).

Every now and then, I have the need to clear my mind of all things electronic and marketing and talk about my passion…Selling. After all, no matter what anybody might tell you…..nothing happens until somebody sells something (smile).  This is the third chapter of a series. You may wish to refer to Part I and Part II and, even then, please proceed at your own risk and please do not try this at home (smile).

Qualifying For Budget Part III:  This post will allow us to get to the meat of the matter. How do you effectively ask for somebody’s budget or……..how do you help them to define it. Once again, everybody has a budget.  I might approach the subject in this manner: Continue reading “Sales 101 – Qualifying For Budget Part III”

Sales 101 – Qualifying For Budget Part II

Show me the money! Repeat……Show me the money! (smile). First off, just might be good for all to review “Qualifying For Budget Part I” prior to embarking on the rest of this journey (smile). In the previous post we discussed that everybody has a budget. Today we will discuss:

  1. Why they don’t want you to know what that number is
  2. Why you desperately need to know this information
  3. The benefits for both parties involved

#1 – Why folks don’t want to share their budget Continue reading “Sales 101 – Qualifying For Budget Part II”

Sales 101 – Qualifying For Budget Part I

All this talk about “marketing” is making Craigy cranky (smile). Time to get back to the basics. Time to kick it old school. Time to talk about selling (smile).  So let’s discuss what, in my experience, is one of the probably two most challenging aspects of selling for both inexperienced and experienced sales people……………qualifying. The other would be closing (more on this later as saying that a “sales person can’t close” is largely a misnomer. Fact is….they can’t perform any of the previous selling steps properly)  and they both have to do with money. That dirty little topic that nobody seems to want to bring up (smile). Continue reading “Sales 101 – Qualifying For Budget Part I”