Increase Sales Blog

Visit many websites and you will come across the infamous whitepaper. This usually downloadable document tells a story (think sales pitch) about how a company’s solution helped one of their clients. Given the limited time of most website visitors, the majority of whitepapers are one to two pages in length and cover these three topics:

1. The client’s situation
2. The solution developed and executed
3. The results and subsequent return on investment

Now image in you could magically turn your whitepaper into an emotionally engaging sales pitch that would explain what happened in six, yes just six sequential sentences, what would that mean for you:

• More interested prospects?
• More qualified potential ideal customers?
• More increase sales?

If you are thinking, that can’t be done, then you are your own worst enemy because yes it can be done and the added benefit this exercise is fun.

In the book, To Sell Is Human, by Daniel Pink, he described the Pixar sales pitch where you essentially rendered down a whitepaper into six sequential sentences. (Note: Daniel Pink does not use the term whitepaper that is my synthesis of this activity.)

Here is how it goes.

#1 – Once upon a time …

#2 – Every day …

#3 – One day …

#4 – Because of that …

#5 – Because of that …

#6 – Until finally…

If you wish to read an example, visit my LinkedIn profile and read the summary.

Beyond rendering your whitepaper into just six sequential sentences, Pink has also employed the Power of Three with the two “because of that” and the one “until finally.”

Remember people hear words and think in pictures. If you can intentionally craft a picture in an emotionally engaging way, as once upon a time, then are you further ahead of any past sales pitch you might have used. Do you not sound different than all those other sales pitches? And to Be the Red Jacket requires differentiation from that first encounter.

Maybe it is time to redirect some if not much of the poor sales performance as well as lackluster business growth back to the small business owners and those in sales management. This week I was the recipient of two real stories about how sales people are being set up to fail by those in sales leadership and sales management roles specific to meeting sales goals.

business-growth

True Story One

A salesperson reached out to me about achieving her sales goals and quotas.  Nine out of 10 times when she brought what she thought was a new account, she was told it was an house account even though the account had not made a purchase in several years or that with this new account she (the salesperson) did not have enough knowledge to effectively manage the account and hence it was necessary for the small business owner to take the account over and all of its revenue. Additionally when the salesperson requested a listing of house accounts so that she could prospect with greater efficiency, she was told to ask the small business owner and she would be told whether it was a house account.

True Story Number Two

Another experienced salesperson brought a multi-billion dollar company after building a solid relationship with the decision maker  to a fact finding meeting via a webinar. His boss decided to sit in on the session. At the conclusion of this webinar, the potential client was satisfied with the salesperson’s responses and questions because a request for a proposal was offered. When the meeting was over, the small business owner blasted the salesperson for bringing this potential client to the table.

In both cases, these small business owners desperately needed to increase sales, achieve quarterly sales goals and improve overall business growth.

These behaviors by small business owners are not new. I have witnessed similar behaviors when I was in corporate and heard many of these same true stories countless times.

Possibly it is because of desperation these stories continue to come forth? My sense much of it has to do with:

• No clearly articulated positive core values
• No written sales plan, no written sales goals or overall strategic plan
• No written policies
• Inherent distrust of the sales people
• Poor sales leadership and management
• Inconsistent execution
• Greed by the small business owners

There are many good sales people operating in less than positive selling environments.  These men and women work very hard to increase sales and to meet sales goals. They do not need any other obstacles in their ways.  However, working in the dark or when the targets are being consistently moved  is not productive and will not increase sales.

The suggestion if you are a small business owner who wishes to increase sales, meet your sales goals and spur business growth, then maybe it is time to look in the mirror and make sure you are not your own worse enemy.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith is a heurist who disrupts the status quo by discovering new ways to guide and support rapidly growing small businesses or those who wish to grow beyond their current employees as well as executives in chaos.  She can be reached at 219.759.5601 CST.

We’ve talked about CEO contact campaigns that have generated 100% response rates and 8,000% returns on investment.   And in the last installment, about the critical importance of cultivating alliances with C-suite executive assistants, who really are the moving force within your target companies.

"Leanne, was that really necessary?"

So how do you actually break through? Here are four proven contact techniques, ranging in cost of zero to $10,000 per contact.

#1 – Pick up the phone and call (cost:  $0/contact) 

If you call before or after hours, you might reach the CEO directly, but don’t count on it.  Instead, target the CEO’s executive assistant and simply explain why you want to meet.  Be firm in your purpose for calling, concise in your explanation and express it all in terms of benefits to the target company.  Be prepared to send a follow up e-mail summary and suggest a call or meeting time.

#2 – Send a Personalized Cartoon on a Giant Foam Core Postcard ($250/contact)

This is the contact campaign tool we used in the earlier example, to help the sales trainer reach five Fortune 1000 CEOs, producing a 100% response rate, $100,000 in immediate sales and an 8,000% ROI.  What’s wonderful about this method is that, with a well-targeted cartoon, the piece becomes an heirloom to the recipient’s career, and it stays on prominent display in their office for years.  Which means you’ll be remembered for a very long time as well.   CartoonLink.com

#3 – Send Half of a Remote-Control Toy ($300/contact)

You can buy a remote-control toy at Radio Shack for $20, but if you’re going to use this method, spring for something the CEO might actually want, like the Parrot AR Drone.  The idea here is to deliver the toy without the controller and promise to bring it when you meet.  Careful, though:  this and other forms of hold-back tactics do work, but can come off as heavy-handed.   ardrone2.parrot.com

#4 – Run an Ad in The Wall Street Journal ($10,000/contact)

Rick Bennett is the master of this technique, which involves writing an open letter from you to your target, producing it as a full-page ad and placing it in The Wall Street Journal.  The beauty of this technique is the day-long deluge of calls it produces from the CEO’s friends, all calling attention to the ad and your message.  RickBennett.com

Next:  The final must-have ingredient for breaking through to CEOs…

About the author: 

Drawing Attention author Stu Heinecke is one of The Wall Street Journal cartoonists, a DMA Hall of Fame-nominated marketer, and founder and President of Seattle-based CartoonLink, Inc.  His unique brand of “CEO contact campaigning,” using the magic of cartoons, has allowed him to break through to Presidents, Prime Ministers, celebrities, CEOs and countless top decision-makers.

Enjoyment of one’s job is a necessary sales leadership talent. Yet job satisfaction continues to allude many individuals as evidenced Manpower study in 2012. If you do not enjoy your job, how can you be believable or credible?

According to Innermetrix, this sales leadership talent of job enjoyment is simply defined as:

“The feeling that one’s job is both fulfilling and rewarding and that it has a positive and useful benefit.”

In examining the study by Manpower, two thirds of those surveyed had negative feelings about their jobs.  These negative feelings confirm other data from this research and mirror what happens when sales people or others fail to demonstrate this sales leadership talent.  Innermetrix concludes “It is possible to ‘love’ the job, yet still score low in this capacity, due to being deeply frustrated by some aspect of that job that keeps them from doing the job as they would like to.  This could be a lack of time or resources, inadequate skills, insufficient self-confidence, etc.  If this capacity is low it is important to take a close look at the position and person and determine which scenario is involved (i.e., internal or external) since only then can movement be made towards correcting the problem.”

When sales people enjoy their job there is a tendency to “view their job as more than simply a means to earn an income, but rather a valuable endeavor that proves beneficial to others as well as him or her self.”

This past week in speaking with several local salespersons much of the poor sales performance is because these dedicated sales professionals are facing ongoing internal obstacles especially within the area of small business management and leadership. From the hording of house accounts to the confiscation of new accounts as house accounts to not having a clear marketing message, all contribute to sales professionals not finding enjoyment in their jobs.

Maybe no other sales leadership talent is so directly connected to small business management and leadership as this one. If you want your small business to increase sales, then look internally and be willing to recognize you as senior leadership might be the problem.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith is a heurist who disrupts the status quo by discovering new ways to guide and support rapidly growing small businesses or those who wish to grow beyond their current employees as well as executives in chaos.  She can be reached at 219.759.5601 CST.

Have you ever attended a business to business networking event and experienced the following?

A complete stranger runs up to you, shoves his or her business card into your hand, mutters something about “if you need prices” and then scurries off to the next unsuspecting victim. You are now another small business casualty of the pitch price selling behavior.

Each week across America this scenario is repeated thousands of times. Sales starved entrepreneurs are pitching their products, their prices and their proposals at every opportunity because they believe this is how it should be done.

There are plethora of resources from which to learn how not to make a sales pitch especially in a marketing situation. Books abound such as Breakthrough Networking and even in my book Be the Red Jacket I share some tips.  Then you can always Google other resources or attend local workshops.

Probably the biggest damage with all this pitch price behaviors is your credibility because people buy from people they know and trust. The pitch, pitch, pitch sales behaviors suggest you do not want to know anyone and therefore no one can trust you. And the question to be asked especially if you are starting out “Can you afford those first impressions from your pitch price selling?”

Leanne Hoagland-Smith is a heurist who disrupts the status quo by discovering new ways to guide and support rapidly growing small businesses or those who wish to grow beyond their current employees as well as executives in chaos.  She can be reached at 219.759.5601 CST.

For many the thought of the sales and stewardship are probably not related and potentially even polar opposites. Stewardship is more associated with religious worship to the environment.

Yet when we examine some of the definitions of the word steward, we may begin to realize in today’s global market place top sales performers epitomize the role of stewards. Stewardship may indeed become the next generation in sales.

A steward, according to my New World Collegiate Dictionary 7th Edition, is:

1. One employe in a large household or estate to mange domestic concerns including supervision of servants, collection of rents, and keeping of accounts
2. Shop steward
3. A finance officer
4. An employee of a ship, airplane, bus or train who manages the provisions of food and otherwise attends passengers
5. One who actively directs affairs : Manager

Given a large household or estate is truly a small business or organization, then a salesperson is truly a steward of keeping the accounts (customers) and within the sales process does actively direct affairs.

When we begin to think of ourselves as stewards as well as top sales performers, we may start to change our beliefs and then our behaviors. With so many small businesses now engage in education based marketing and due to the impact of technology, customers are seeking sales people who will go beyond the sale and stay with them. This is where excellent leadership skills in the form of stewardship are required.

My philosophy is change the words you think, speak and write and you will change your results.

What would happen when you begin to visualize yourself not only as a top sales performer, but a steward who takes care of your customers and potential customers?  As by the above definition, stewardship appears to be a more natural fit if you are engaged in nurture marketing. And how many salespeople are involved with finances of the small business either directly or indirectly?

For me the word steward implies a good ego and not an overly strong one where the ego is announced before the salesperson enters the room. There also exists more genuine and authentic feelings about the customers from the behaviors of the salesperson.  And finally, being a steward implies some sort of tether back to the organization or the enterprise.

Today’s top sales performers are more than just order takers. These individuals are important to building customer loyalty and keeping the small business financially sound. And the words steward and stewardship just may be the next generation when it comes to sales in the 21st century.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith is a heurist who disrupts the status quo by discovering new ways to guide and support rapidly growing small businesses or those who wish to grow beyond their current employees as well as executives in chaos.  She can be reached at 219.759.5601 CST.

Three is a powerful number.  Travel back through history and this number appears in so many cultures. Even today’s culture, the power of three (3) is present such as:

• I will count to 3, 1, 2, 3
• A, B, C
• Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• Primary colors – red, yellow, blue
• Axiology – Systems, intrinsic, or extrinsic thinkers
• H2O – the 3 molecules of water

Possibly the reason for the power of three is because it is easy to remember.  When we can render the complex down to its simplest elements or components, this action makes understanding much easier.

Whether is it in business or in life especially in today’s hectic and jam packed world, finding the simplicity in all of he complexity reduces stress and increases our own happiness.

Yes life is indeed complex and sometimes necessarily so because the complexity was created outside of our control. So the next time you are presented with a new complex challenge or reworking an old one, determine if you can render it down to 3 main categories or buckets. Who knows how you will benefit from the power of three?

Leanne Hoagland-Smith is a heurist who disrupts the status quo by discovering new ways to guide and support rapidly growing small businesses or those who wish to grow beyond their current employees as well as executives in chaos.  She can be reached at 219.759.5601 CST.

In reading a book recently, I noticed the word enterprise peppered throughout the pages. In areas where another author might have written organization, this writer employed the word enterprise.

So being a natural heurist (someone  discovers and guides) I pulled out my trusty Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary 7th Edition and read the following three (3) definitions:

1. “A project or undertaking that is difficult, complicated or risky
2. (a) a business organization (b) a systematic purposeful activity
3. Readiness to engage in daring action: INITIATIVE”

Additionally, I learned the origins of the word are French and mean “to undertake.” Then I looked up the word “organization” to have better clarity as to the differences between these two (2) words:

1. “The act of process of organizing or of being organized
2. The condition or manner of being organized
3. (a) ASSOCIATION, SOCIETY (b) an administrative and functional structure; also the personnel of such structure”

Upon further reflection, the word organization had for me no energy because it was more inorganic as exemplified by “condition or manner.”  Enterprise on the other hand radiated energy because it was about “purposeful activity… ready to engage in daring action.”

Since ADVANCED SYSTEMS was founded on working and supporting people because people are the most advanced systems on our planet, I realized how much more the word enterprise was in alignment with the purpose of the company I founded over 15 years ago. Even though many people do not know the word heurist or are confused when I may respond with “enterprise development,” this provides new opportunities to start conversations and demonstrate differentiation from all those other organizational development consultants or even executive coaches.

My belief is when we discover words that reflect our purpose and continue to fuel our passion, our energy allows us to glow like the beacon from a lighthouse or a star in the clear, dark night’s sky.  For it is the words we think, speak and write that will change our behaviors and ultimately improve our results.

Now you know why I am an enterprise heurist.  So your goal, if you are intrigued,  is to find those words that not only differentiate you from everyone else, but actually energize you when you think, speak or write them.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith is a heurist who disrupts the status quo by discovering new ways to guide and support rapidly growing small businesses or those who wish to grow beyond their current employees as well as executives in chaos.  She can be reached at 219.759.5601 CST.

Once again at a morning business to business networking event I was confronted by a clueless small business owner whose behaviors are replicated by so many entrepreneurs.

Without a hello, what’s your name to I am, a new entrepreneur said “Here take my card. I do…(name remains anonymous). I have a price sheet if you are interested.” Then during introductions she mentioned “I am cheap.”

Beyond infecting everyone in the room with the 3Ps virus of price, product and proposal, she did herself more harm than good. She turned her unique business into a transactional sale because she failed to highlight why someone may wish to consider her solutions.

She also demonstrated she is clueless about the sales process as are so many other sales starved entrepreneurs. People buy from people they know and trust.

I do not know you through a business card shoved into my hand. Your goal to work the room, pass out as many business cards and fail to even collect any cards only further demonstrated your cluelessness.

Finally, maybe the most damaging aspect of this behavior is the lack of emotional intelligence. From my observations so many sales starved entrepreneurs are deficient in their emotional intelligence because they believe logic first and emotions second is the path to increase sales.

This reasoning is 100% backwards as people buy first on emotions justified by logic. When you have made real emotional connections and have begun to establish relationships, then and only then can you stopped being in the ranks of all those other sales starved entrepreneurs.

Do you feel like an exhausted Tasmanian Devil when it comes to your sales activity?

You are a whirlwind of action.

You find yourself attending numerous small business to business networking events; passing out business cards; grabbing the cards from others; stuffing the cards into your pockets; posting on various social media channels to scheduling meeting after meeting. And in spite of all this sales activity, you still are not able to significantly increase sales.

You remember reading “Sales activity equals sales results” in some sales book or after hearing some small business coach speak.

You have been active, in fact so active you are exhausted!!!!

You find yourself thinking “What is wrong?” 

“Is it me?”

“Maybe my elevator speech needs polishing?”

“Possibly I need to refresh my brochures?”

What is missing is this one word:

Intentional

Intentional sales activity is based upon having the following:

• Ideal customer profile
• Target market research 9competitive market analysis)
• Marketing plan with written marketing goals
• Sales plan with written sales goals
• Keeping plan with written follow-up  goals

Intentional is a word born from clarity.

For when you have clarity, you recognize where you must engage with intention.  Sure you still may appear to be the Tasmanian Devil to some, however you know the majority of your actions will result in increase sales and not just a collection of business cards to be thrown onto a pile on your desk.

To gain clarity requires you to take those actions as noted in the above bullets. Also it may help to truly know what you do well, what are your top talents specific to supporting your sales activity?

Of course you could continue to be the exhausted Tasmanian Devil when it comes to your sales activity.

Yet maybe now is the time to gain that much needed clarity so your sales activity is far more intentional.

You just may be surprised by the results especially the one you really want – to increase sales.

Leanne Hoagland-Smith is a heurist who disrupts the status quo by discovering new ways to guide and support rapidly growing small businesses or those who wish to grow beyond their current employees as well as executives in chaos.  She can be reached at 219.759.5601 CST.