‘Recession’
Episode 2 – Smoke Your Competition
Monday Motivational Minute – Episode 2
Smoke Your Competition
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What’s Your Best Strategy?
A few days ago, a poll at SellingPower.com caught my eye, where it asked “What is your best strategy for this economy?” Here were the results:
- Focus on better prospects: 33%
- Make more calls: 25%
- Improve sales process: 29%
- Reduce risk of buying 8%
- Lower price: 2%
- Get better technology: 2%
I find these results interesting. First off, on a positive note, I’m glad to see only 2% responded by stating they’d lower their price. Though the skeptic in me wonders if they just don’t want to admit that’s one of the things they’re doing. In a previous entry, a commenter pointed out the special discount this past week on my products as an example of cutting price (by the way the 50% discount ends Friday night). Again, thank you for your comments Chris! However, the engine of my business for nearly 25 years has been speaking engagements, and in fact my fee went up in 2008 by 20%! Offering an aggressive discount on product means they get into more hands and my message gets out to more people, some of which have the ability to hire me!
I’m also thrilled to see that 25% said they’d make more calls, because many salespeople don’t make enough calls.
If you’ve read anything I’ve ever written on prospecting, listened to my audio program, Don’t Count the Yes’s, Count the No’s, or watched my prospecting DVD, Prospecting Skills that Work, you know how important it is to specifically quantify the amount of calls you need to make. Anytime you leave something vague or open ended, it makes it way too easy to stop doing it! Without a plan, “Make More Calls” can be a recipe for disaster.
As far as “improve sales process” and “focus on better prospects,” they both seem pretty vague. I mean so many elements can fall under “sales process.” As far as “better prospects,” some of my least qualified prospects have gone on to be some of my biggest winners, and many times salespeople use “we need better prospects” as an excuse not to sell.
But the good news is: Salespeople and companies are recognizing the crucial need to adapt.
Which brings me to you; I’d like to know: What are some of the strategies you’re using?
If you’re improving your sales process, give specific examples how. If you’re focusing on better prospects, let us know what kind and how you came to that decision. Even if you’re not in sales, any type of personal or professional strategy is welcome!
Episode 1 – Don’t Surrender to the Recession
Monday Motivational Minute – Episode 1
Don’t Surrender to the Recession
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Science Park & A Sales Mentality
We need to talk about the importance of creating a sales mentality throughout your entire organization.
But before I start, this Monday, I will be releasing my first Motivational Minute Podcast. This is exclusive to email subscribers. Each week, you’ll be getting one of these motivational minutes to supercharge you for the week. Also, I’ll be releasing details about my new keynote speech for 2009 “Beat The Recession With Warren Greshes,” a 90 minute hard-hitting, no-holds-barred presentation guaranteed to transform your organization. Now back to the topic at hand…
I don’t know about you, but many companies with services I need seem to have dropped off the face of the earth. Are they out of business, or just hiding because they’re afraid to sell, or, maybe don’t know how? It has forced me to give my business to people I wouldn’t normally deal with. Sure it might be tougher out there today, but everyone needs to know that when prospects say “NO” today it only means “NO” today. It’s not “NO” tomorrow, the next day, week or month.
I want to tell you a story about the first experience I had with an organization where there was no sales mentality, and why to this day I speak about ensuring that the sales process permeates your entire business culture.
Around 1987 or ‘88, not long after I had started my speaking business, I landed a new client in Connecticut named Science Park. Science Park was an incubator whose purpose was to bring together, under one roof, entrepreneurs and small business owners who were trying to get their fledgling companies off the ground.
Science Park not only provided them with office space, but also with administrative and consulting support. Most of these small new companies were high tech startups. Each and every one of them was started and owned by highly intelligent people who believed they had come up with the next great product or idea. And, in fact, many of them had come up with outstanding ideas.
Their one big problem was: while they all had a certain amount of technical knowledge and tremendous expertise, not a single one of them knew how to sell. On top of that, they thought selling was beneath them and they weren’t quite sure it was necessary.
These would-be entrepreneurs honestly believed, if you build a better mouse trap the world will beat a path to your door. Unfortunately, many of them ended up sitting in their tiny little offices waiting for that door to open and guess what: that’s right; it never did.
My job was to teach these business owners not only how to sell, but the importance of having a sales mentality, how critical it is for business owners to always be involved in the sales process, even if you have salespeople working for you.
As the economy continues to unravel, it becomes absolutely critical for business owners, and executives, who distance themselves from the sales process, to get involved; quickly.
Clients need to be hearing from the top dog on a regular basis. If you don’t know how to sell; learn! If you think selling is something dirty that’s beneath you, here’s your choice: sell or go out of business!
If you think you can’t sell or are afraid to sell, but still want to learn how, let me recommend two of my DVD’s that can get you started. One of them, Prospecting Skills That Work, will teach you how to bring in new business and the other, Make My Life Easier will teach you how to keep it and grow it. And remember, you still have one day to buy them at a 50% discount!
Stop Watching The News
Stop watching the news! Come on folks is this what we’re destined to become? A nation of bad news junkies? And the reason I say this is because every time I turn around someone is telling me how bad it is out there.
Well guess what, we’re the only ones who can make it better!
And I’ll tell you another thing, there are salespeople, entrepreneurs and business owners out there right now that haven’t even had the time to look up and witness a recession. Why? Because they’re too damn busy opening up new markets, capturing market share and beating out all the competitors who have been scared off by bad news.
Listen, for 26 YEARS, from 1982 until September of 2008 the U.S. economy was in a recession for a grand total of 16 months! In other words, we are coming off of 26 total years of economic prosperity; the longest economic boom in the history of the United States, which is amazing. But therein lies the problem.
Most salespeople and business owners have been order-takers for decades.
Let’s face it, when business was booming did you really have to sell? Or did you just sit around waiting for the phone to ring or the door to open?
The big problem for far too many salespeople and dealers is they only know how to sell this way. They’re still sitting there waiting for the phone to ring (which it’s NOT) or the door to open (also NOT).
What is needed right now is a strategic attitude change when it comes to goal-setting, client relationships and prospecting for new business.
I am in the business of motivation and aggressive business development. Getting professionals of all stripes to take action in their lives, careers and businesses is what makes me tick. And with all the negativity every where you turn, I want to make an extra effort to get my programs into the hands of people like you.
My programs will help you create a game plan for your life, career or business and get back that crucial confidence you need to make 2009 a big winner. I promise you that.
For the first business week of December ending this Friday, I am offering a 50% discount on all of my products. They can be found by clicking these links:
This includes all of my DVDs: Make My Life Easier (my definitive seminar on building client relationships), Goal-Setting Techniques That Work, and Prospecting Skills That Work.
This means you can buy my DVD Success Series which includes all three of my DVDs plus a bonus copy of my book for less than $75! Click here to order.
Simply click on any of the “add item to cart” links like you normally would to purchase with us, and the 50% discount will automatically be deducted from the order total.