August 2007 – client k

Asking For Ideas

A friend of mine recently
parted ways with her protege.

The protege asked her opinion on a project.
My friend, taking her role seriously,
put valuable hours into her answer,
hours she didn’t have to waste.

The recommendation was not taken,
no concrete explanation given.

Fine.

Then the protege asked another question.
More hours were put into that new answer.

Again, no action taken on the recommendation,
no explanation.

The third time, my friend was asked,
she replied that the relationship wasn’t working.

If someone takes the time to give a response,
the least they’re owed is an explanation for the no.

The Sales Slump

Stephan Schiffman posted about
beating the sales slump.

His insights on the cause of a sales slump?

“Most times slumps are caused by
not prospecting awhile ago.
In other words because
you did not prospect 6 months ago,
you maybe feeling it now.”

That’s why its important to
always keep the sales funnel full.
Prospect, prospect, prospect.
Put it on the top of the to do list
and get it done.

Sir Richard Branson As Dr. Yes

When compared to a James Bond villian,
rebel billionaire and serial entrepreneur
Sir Richard Branson told Stephen Colbert
that he likes to think of himself as
Dr. Yes, not Dr. No.

Having read numerous articles on the man,
this isn’t a flippant comment.
It is his personal philosophy.

When approached about new ventures,
his first response is why not?

What is your first response?

Top Secret: The Assassination of Jesse James

The mega long titled movie
“The Assassination of Jesse James
by the Coward Robert Ford”
is being pumped as one of the year’s
“top secret” movies.

Forget for a minute that
this Brad Pitt movie was filmed years ago.

If something is called “top secret”,
it is often not good.
Good is difficult to keep quiet.
Good creates buzz.
Good goes viral.

Getting Ahead

One of my buddies is also a daily blogger.
She is constantly having to
forgo opportunities and rearrange her schedule
to get her posts done.

She thinks this sends a signal that
she puts her non-time sensitive blog first.

I disagree.

It says to me that she’s disorganized
and a last minute type of person.
Not someone I prefer to have on my team.

In contrast,
I always have a week of general type posts
“just in case.”

That way if I get a chance to meet Stephen King,
I don’t have to say no thank you.

Give yourself a buffer
so you can take advantage
of opportunities.

The Action Packed Resume

Most of us have heard that
the average resume is looked at
for 10 to 20 seconds so
how to make those seconds count?

First, use white space.
White space draws the eye
to the words that count.

What words to use?
The words on the front page
(as most employers don’t look at the second)
must clearly address
(as in use the exact words if possible)
all the requirements
in the job posting.

And when talking about experience,
start with a verb.
This illustrates that you’re a take action type of person.
Take action people get hired.

Market Like Beckham

Much has been written about David Beckham,
his salary and whether he is “worth it.”

In that evaluation, all factors,
not simply his playing
needs to be considered.

What many people following the industry,
including Robert Boland at New York University,
are pointing out is
the increase in franchise purchase prices
since Beckham joined the league.

As Boland states, Beckham is
“a world champion marketer,
not a world champion player.”

Lies And Leona Helmsley

I don’t mind people making mistakes.
Mistakes happen.
All the time.

What irks me are lies.
If I catch someone in a lie,
I’ll watch my back from that day forward
and second guess any future dealings.

Leona Helmsley felt the same way.
In a 1985 interview with Mike Wallace,
she said “If you lie to me, you’re through.
I won’t do business with you.”

Google Book Search

Google has launched a new Book Search.
The feature has some implementation issues
(as we have become used to seeing with new software)
but I am already excited about the marketing possibilities.

Soon customers won’t have to search for romance
and then wade through 1,000’s of novels,
often getting discouraged
and ending up with nothing.

They will (at least eventually) be able to look for
romances set in India during 1832.

Less choice means more likely to buy.

E-Mail Selling Techniques

Ever receive an e-mail and
ask “why was this sent” or
“what am I supposed to do with this?”

You’re not alone.
Stephan Schiffman in his book E-mail Selling Techniques notes
that the number one mistake
businesspeople make in e-mails is
“Not asking for, confirming or setting the next step.”

How to ask?
He suggests the timeless yet effective P.S.
with the action to be taken.