Loyal Customers
Educational Sales – the What
Last week we took a close look at enterprise sales and the various level of customers within each client organization. This led us to Educational Sales. But what is educational sales? And how do you do it? Why educational sales B2B sales will always be decision by committee. And not all people involved in the…
Read MoreB2B Sales – Selling to Enterprise
A recent project I had included writing a sales strategy for a company that sold an outsourced business service to larger business clients. In other words: B2B service sales. The trick was: their target clients were companies who did not currently have this function in house. Hence their need to buy an outsourced solution. Many…
Read MoreInformation – Knowledge – Wisdom
Information is knowing what you are. Let’s say, you’re a CPA. Saying “I’m a CPA” demonstrates that you have the correct information. Knowledge is knowing what you do. “I complete your tax return and do your monthly book keeping”. This demonstrates that you know what the information means, you know what being a CPA entails.…
Read MoreHow Do You Keep Up?
“How do you remain ahead of competitors when dealing with digital challenges?” This question was presented in a small business forum, which I frequent. Things happen quickly in digital trends, customer preferences, and life in general, frankly. When a competitor seems to be making noise, the immediate reaction is often to try to one-up them.…
Read MoreValue: It’s Not About You
Last week we looked at how price and service are intrinsically linked, because service determines value and price is the manifestation of value. Value is a key area where my business mantra applies: It’s not me, it’s you. There are two key things to know about Value: It is subjective It is what clients buy,…
Read MoreService vs Price: Who Wins?
Where should a business strategy focus to win clients? Does better service outweigh a higher price? Or are most buying decisions ultimately a battle between pricing options? Most business owners and leaders have wondered this at some point or another; often after having lost a deal to a cheaper competitor. Slashing prices seems like such…
Read MoreStop Selling
That is: if you want to grow your business. People who work with me regularly are familiar with my approach to sales, which is to refocus it on “buying”. A commercial transaction requires actions performed by another person. That is the key to a new sale: it is actually the other person performing the act…
Read MoreMake It Easy To Buy From You
You’ve been reading this blog for a while, and have by now determined your market position and messaging. People know who you are, and they know both what you do and what’s in it for them. Now what? Do these people know what to do next? Do they know how to hire you? If you…
Read MoreQuality – What’s In A Word
You see it all the time: a website, a brochure, a speaker, promising that their company’s number one mission is to provide “Quality” of product or service. And I have to ask: what is the alternative? If the best you can promise is quality, you have not given enough thought to what makes you good…
Read MoreWhy You Should Welcome Competition
There really is space in the market for more than one of you. Focus on your differences, not your similarities, and learn to carve out your niche areas. More importantly: don’t focus on your competition when considering how to innovate and develop. We’ve mentioned this before, but Stephen Fry really says it best: What is…
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