Blog

01 Jul

Posted at 23:15h in Entrepreneurship, Sales by

I don't get it--Why Won't Entrepreneurs Learn How to Sell? If you have your own business--you ARE a sales person. There is no super successful entrepreneur who is not also their own best sales person. Think of Sir Richard Branson, he is truly a one-of-a-kind self-promo wizard. He is out promoting the Virgin brand 24/7 . Born into an entrepreneurial family, it’s in my DNA to be independent and stubborn, like most entrepreneurs. You need that persistence gene to...

04 Jun

Posted at 18:49h in Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Rant, Sales by

There are three kinds of coaches: Certified Coaches Mini-Me Coaches Maxi-You Coaches 1.  Certified Coaches  I am not a certified coach, nor will I ever be. I had three coaches in my first year of branding myself a coach, with varying degrees of success. What I do have are decades of real life entrepreneurial experience, IBM sales training, an MBA in Marketing and no patience to go through another program (nor add any more initials after my name). Being in sales,...

05 May

Posted at 15:35h in Rant, Sales by

  I've had a few conversations lately with business owners who think that they can solve their sales problems by simply hiring a great sales person. They cannot be more wrong! If YOU cannot sell your "stuff", how do you expect to train someone else to? If you cannot articulate: what you do what value you provide why people buy from you how to duplicate sales over and over again-- How can you expect someone else to? Sales professionals cannot do what you cannot do. It's...

26 Apr

Posted at 22:21h in Entrepreneurship, Marketing by

I don't know about you, but I get tired of hearing so many leadership, marketing and customer service speakers and authors always cite Zappos and Apple as being the ultimate companies to emulate for service and corporate culture. There are many other companies out there to emulate, but they don't get the recognition that they deserve! I've found the next Zappos in the making. The company to watch? Infusionsoft. They are proof that all it takes to be an...

09 Mar

Posted at 16:59h in Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Rant, Sales by

Like in Texas Hold'em, the term 'all-in' for a small biz owner means that you are you totally and intensively focused on making your one business successful and profitable. The opposite being that you still have one foot in the 'grass is greener' pasture. That "green" grass can be a corporate job or another idea or another company. Unless you're ALL-IN for this one company and product/service, then you're diluting your attention and your results. And it's a...

18 Feb

Posted at 20:28h in Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Sales by

  Seeing a car with its hood up is a universal sign that help is needed. When I was 26 and traveling in Communist Hungary and my $1,000 car was acting up, I managed to get it fixed just by opening the hood and looking at it with a perplexed face. When I saw a truck coming my way, I waved it down. Using my universal hand signals and grunting noise language (as I spoke no Hungarian),...

10 Jan

Posted at 00:04h in Entrepreneurship, Sales by

Since I've overcome my shyness, I've been able to talk to anyone, anywhere and at anytime. Last summer when I was waiting to hand in my application at the passport office, I looked around and thought that if I'm going to be waiting for an hour+, I might as well be sitting next to a handsome gentleman--you never know who that person could turn out to be (either way, it's definitely better than screaming kids). Turns out he...

06 Oct

Posted at 17:36h in Marketing, Rant by

I received this email and it's wrong in so many ways. It was sent by Zoomer Promotions on behalf of Medjool Dates. Their lack of call to action or any incentive makes me wonder how this could have been sent out to what I assume is a considerable mailing list.  Even if the client doesn't understand why they need a call to action or incentive - the person advising the client should intervene and educate...

01 Aug

Posted at 14:33h in Sales by

  Recently I had lunch with the lovely and fun Aline Ayoub, Head HR Guru of Aline Ayoub HR Consulting at the fabulous waterside  'makes you feel like you're on holidays' Palais Royale's Charity lunch (a well kept Toronto secret) . [caption id="attachment_216" align="alignright" width="150"] Aline Ayoub[/caption] She started her business three years ago after decades of corporate work at blue-chip organizations like Sears, Loblaw and Hudson's Bay Company. Aline fits the profile of my ideal client in that, as an entrepreneur, she...

15 Jul

Posted at 17:01h in Sales by

[caption id="attachment_197" align="alignright" width="152"] Patti at IBM Basic Systems Training[/caption] When I learned to sell at IBM I was a shy introverted nerd - for proof - just look right. I had trained as a programmer after rejecting becoming an accountant - all really introverted professions, not known for their outgoing personalities. Who knew that once I discovered that introverts make the best sales people that I would eventually  LOVE selling!?! I credit Seventeen magazine's "How to talk to...