Anne Miller | Make What You Say... Pay.

Thursday, February 02, 2012

Simplest Way to Get Attention

Into the sunset alone. Sometimes the obvious eludes otherwise really smart people. I am talking about what goes on the first slide of a presentation or on the first page of a proposal. I was reminded of this recently during a consulting assignment with a leading company in the digital space.

Think about what you do. What do you put on the first slide of a sales presentation? The name of your company (XYZ). Check. The name and/or logo of the prospective buyer (ABC). Check. And, then, what is your title?

Is it a version of any of the following?

· Partnering for Success with ABC, or

· Proposal for ABC, or

· XYZ and ABC

If you answered yes, then you have just shot yourself in the foot and lost your listeners. One: Listeners don’t care about your desire for a partnership. They have other things on their mind. Two: Listeners already know this is a proposal. (Duh.) Three: You may have your two firms married in a business deal in your mind, but they aren’t even sure they want to date you at this point! You’re rushing it. (For the record, this was my client’s original title.)

It’s About Them, Not You

The only title that grabs attention is the one that promises an alignment of interests between what you do and what they want and what buyers want is to do any of the following:

· Increase a metric: sales, revenues, market share, conversions, clicks, traffic, profits, etc.

· Improve something they value: insights, quality, productivity, image, morale, brand safety, leverage, etc.

· Reduce things that lead to loss: costs, inefficiencies, time, waste, error rates, etc.

Know what your buyer wants and make THAT the title of your PPT presentation or your written proposal. You may not win the business, but you will win the right to their attention.

Words Matter: Make What You Say Pay!

If you are interested in selecting sales software check out this site and article by Lauren Carlson
CRM Analyst at www.SoftwareAdvice.com

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Wednesday, January 18, 2012

5 Ways to Counter Competitive Lies

Given the level of negative advertising among the candidates for the Republican presidential nomination, I was reminded of a problem that comes up from time to time in business. What do you do when a competitor smears your company with lies and misrepresentations? Here are five suggestions...

1. Act like a leader. You cannot be on the defensive (Nixon: “I am not a crook.”)

2. Act quickly. Assemble your sales and marketing teams immediately to decide best counter- strategies.

3. Go on the offense. Publish a video, email blast, printed matter, or blog themed: “If They Are Wrong About This, What Else Are They Wrong About?” Give the facts and raise doubts about some of their other claims.

4. Help buyers buy. Distribute a press release or a “How-To” article on how to buy services like yours and zero in on criteria that favor your firm and the truth. Use this as an opportunity to reconnect with prospects to share the value of what you sell vs. anything they may have heard.

5. Get a cheerleader. Ask a good client to write a letter to clients/prospects, an industry blogger, or news outlet saying, “As a longtime client of XYX and someone who is very familiar with the industry, I would like to warn potential buyers about some misinformation that has been circulating from a relative newcomer to the field. ABC has claimed… and … These claims are not true. The correct information is… It is always good to see new companies enter a field, but they need to rise on their own merits and not by misrepresenting others."

Hopefully, this does not happen frequently in your world, but if it does, jump on it. Word spreads quickly these days and you want that word to be the right one about you.

If you have additional ideas on how to handle competitive smears, please let me know and I will publish them. amiller@annemiller.com

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Recommendation: If you are seeking more leads and better ROI on your online marketing, check out www.Hubspot.com They are extremely nice to deal with and offer a basket of really useful services.

FYI. To avoid receiving telemarketing calls and the charges that go with them, call 888-382-1222 from your cell phone. It is the National Do Not Call list and they will block your number for five years.

Planning a sales meeting? Call today for ideas to "raise the bar" for your sales team and boost your bottom-line in 2012. 212 876 1875

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Words Matter: Make What You Say Pay!

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Thursday, January 05, 2012

Resolutions to Keep

Ah, yes, it is that time of the year for the resolution ritual. First, we make them. Then, a few weeks later, we abandon them. However, here are three sales resolutions you dare not give up on…

Resolve to:

1. Know more. The more you know about your prospect’s products, industry, competition, and trends, the more likely it is you will gain credibility and trust with a buyer and enjoy a higher level conversation that leads to broader business. Prospects want to spend more time solving problems than educating would-be sellers on the basics of their businesses.

2. Present as a conversation. Dog and pony shows are out. Monologues are out. In one-on-one and small group meetings, conversation is in. Buyers glaze over from slides that all say the same thing (“This is who we are. This is why we are great. This is why you should use us. This is our client list, etc.”). Use your PowerPoint slides selectively to illustrate specific points in the discussion. Remember, visuals aid a discussion; they are not the focus of the discussion.

3. Involve buyers at every opportunity. Chinese proverb. “I tell you, you forget. I show you, you remember. I involve you, you understand.” Ask questions. Provoke a discussion. Have listeners imagine a situation. Ask them to speculate on how they would use some aspect of your service. Use “you” as in, “When you use this…”.or, “One of the things you’ll find helpful is…” No one buys cars or paintings by simply looking at them. Buyers fall in love and buy after a test drive or after they have the painting hanging on their wall for a few days. Get your buyers to fall in love with what you sell by involving them in the experience of owning your product, system, or service.

Happy New Year!

Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. (Emerson)

No one becomes exceptional without continuous training. (Miller).

Your team has the enthusiasm. Now, give them the training to make them truly exceptional in 2012!

Call today: 212 876 1875 or email at amiller@annemiller.com

Exceptional performance in any arena is to be greatly admired. Check this out and be pleasantly astonished. http://www.wimp.com/harmonicacarnegie

Words Matter: Make What You Say Pay!

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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

What Do CEOs Think About?

Not sure what will be under your tree this year, but here is a very valuable gift for you—and it’s free!

As you know, it isn’t easy to distinguish yourself in the market, but how much of an edge would you have if you could get inside the heads of the CEOs whose companies you are calling on? What if you could see how they think, what they worry about, how they accomplished their successes, recovered from their failures, and how they view the future? How much more robust would your business conversations be? What additional competitive edge would that give you?

Please “unwrap” www.ceoshow.com

The CEO Show is the brainchild of Robert Reiss, a corporate strategist who has worked with CEOs across many industries. His idea is simple: interview leading CEOs online and make the video or audio versions of these lively conversations available for free online and on your mobile for you to view at your convenience.

CEOs from Verizon, Siemens, Ogilvy + Mather Worldwide, Southwest Airlines, Zappos, AFLAC, and my favorites, Cirque du Soleil and Build-a-Bear, are only a handful of the 200+ hour-long interviews he has done in the last four seasons. Reiss crosses all industries, so even if the CEO of your particular prospect hasn’t been interviewed yet, it is a good bet that another in the same industry has, which can give you equally unique perspectives and ammunition for your meetings. The programs also air 3000 times a week on radio as a daily show in 85 markets. It’s a great concept and 600,000 weekly listeners agree.

This website is for CEOs of other companies to get a chance to hear from their peers, but it is also an opportunity for the business public to learn from those conversations as well.

Opportunity sometimes presents itself in unexpected places. If you are in sales, check out www.ceoshow.com This could be a “gift” that will give to you all year long.

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Words Matter: Make What You Say Pay!

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What Do CEOs Think About?

Not sure what will be under your tree this year, but here is a very valuable gift for you—and it’s free!

Please “unwrap” www.ceoshow.com

This website is for CEOs of other companies to get a chance to hear from their peers, but it is also an opportunity for the business public to learn from those conversations as well.

Opportunity sometimes presents itself in unexpected places. If you are in sales, check out www.ceoshow.com This could be a “gift” that will give to you all year long.

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Words Matter: Make What You Say Pay!

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