Have you ever had this experience?

Someone whom you look up  to, consider a role model and whom you want to emulate suddenly notices you?  Or validates something you have done?

That’s how I felt this morning when I saw that Jill Konrath - of Selling to  Big Companies, Sales Shebang and Get Back to Work Faster – posted a blog post about Sharpenz.   I wanted to sing Barry Manilow’s song…Looks Like We Made It! 

Really!  Jill does topnotch work, gives her stuff away free with the Great Sales Give and is mentioned in thesame breath as all the big sales “guys”.  And now she has endorsed Sharpenz sales boosters!   This nod has given me energy today!

If you haven’t yet visited www.sharpenz.com now is the time!  Our 50% off ALL orders ends on November 15th.  We hope you’ll take us up on a Try Before You Buy - and then return for more.

As Laura Holtz of Data Financial told me today (she delivered her first Sharpenz on Monday): 

To my great pleasure…the booster is so well written… there is movement, collaboration and …. that is was exciting to hear how engaged they were. 

Our marketing manager said “who, amazing to have the people on spot with you that time of day so engaged, really sharing high level of energy.  We were thrilled!

Thanks Laura for your feedback! 

Make the time to visit Sharpenz today – your team will thank you for it!  

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Tags: learning, networking

Yes, FREE Sales training!  We’re calling it our own Economic Stimulus plan for local companies (within 60 miles of Milwaukee, WI). 

As we get ready to announce our secret project, we are giving the unbelievable opportunity for FREE sales training to you!  Don’t reside in Wisconsin?  It won’t matter once you learn more about Sharpenz later next month. 

To learn more about our offer to deliver a high impact, compact and focused sales training workshop – You will find the information you need at Milwaukee Sales Training.

A few notes from participants who have experienced a Sharpenz session:  

• “They are short, to the point and contain good information. Great thought provoking session.” Sonya A., Primex Wireless, Inc.
• “This is a good format because a lot of concrete, useful information is shared in a short time.” D  Bennett, Kalmbach Publishing
• “An educated and fun way to deal with the sales process.” L. Jones  Woodward Radio

In the meantime, a quote for any of you who think we might be crazy for offering this:

Part of being sane, is being a little bit crazy.     Janet Long

Best to you today!

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Tags: learning, Sales Tips, Sales training

Finding success these days means we might have to try something new to stay in the game.  And it seems these days the “new” technology is coming faster than I am ready.

In 2009 I have – and am still – working through many changes as I adapt my business to the ever-changing market, needs of my clients and technology.  I have migrated my accounting system, this blog, my newsletter, Facebook use, I’m Tweeting, and I have a touch screen cell that I’m still not sure about, and on and on and on. 

At different times in the last month I have begun to feel that technology is going to get the best of me sooner or later.  That’s why sometimes when someone tells me I NEED to do another something new with technology I am not jumping up and down.  I don’t feel I’ve grasped all the technology I started this year and I’m not sure my brain can absorb anymore at this point!

Today though, I finally opened up to the idea of video use in marketing and sales – but only after the fourth “expert” let me know that I should include video in the launch plan of our super secret new product line that we will announce soon.  I’m not sure why, but today I listened…and then I pulled out the Flip Video camera that so far, I have only used for fun family times (we bought a waterproof cover and have had great fun in the pool).

Guess what?  It was FUN!  And probably one of the easiest new pieces of technology I have attempted to incorporate this year.  I passed along my freshman effort to a couple of colleagues and they said that the message on the video helped them connect to the new product in a way that the text of the new website has not.

Now I do have more work to do on lighting and making sure I am succinct, but I see why video can be so valuable.  It speaks to different Types of people.  Of course, I’ll post some of the “ready” videos here very soon and you be the judge of the quality and message.  And if I am forced to admit it, I will say that all the new tech tools I have adopted are bringing some efficiencies that I needed. 

In the meantime, what is one technology tool that you did not easily adopt and then found later you couldn’t live without?

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Tags: learning, productivity

Today is a happy day for many parents in my area…the first day of the school year!  It seems a long time ago when we were all singing School’s Out for Summer (this might be an age thing), the song by Alice Cooper that celebrates summer and “no more pencils, books or teachers’ dirty looks.” 

And though the school’s out mindset works for students in traditional schools, what about us professionals?  Is school ever OUT for us?   

Would love your comments…is “school” or learning about how to do things more effectively, information that helps our customers, information about our customers, technology, etc. ever done?  In what ways do you keep yourself IN school? 

We could rephrase the song title to “Schools in Forever” (compliments of Maggi Franks of Harper College for Businesses).

p.s. Feel like rocking to Alice Cooper?  A You Tube version of the song is here.  

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In today’s economy, it’s becoming increasingly easy to blame our lack of success on something other than our own actions.  While the economy certainly impacts sales activity, it’s not an excuse for failing to do those activities that made us successful in the first place. 

When your day isn’t going right, when your sales aren’t where you want them to be, when the project you’re working on isn’t working … Who do you hold responsible?

It’s human nature to blame circumstances or other people for many things.  Today, instead of complaining about something that isn’t working, consciously ask yourself, “What action can I take to make it better?”  It will keep you from the trap explained in the Parable of Responsibility.

 The Parable of Responsibility  

Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody were members of a group.

 There was an important job to do and Everybody was asked to do it.

 Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it.

 Anybody would have done it, but Nobody did it.

 Somebody got angry because it was Everybody’s job.

 Everybody thought Anybody would do it, but Nobody realized that Anybody wouldn’t do it.

 It ended up that Everybody, blamed Somebody, when Nobody did, what Anybody could have done.

 Unknown author of condensed version of Charles Osgood’s – A Poem About Responsibility.

 Today’s post is by Lynn Zimmer of the Sales Pro Insider team. 

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At Sales Pro Insider, Inc. we are privileged to be a part of people’s lives for 6-9 weeks at a time.  Our courses are facilitated over time to give participants an opportunity to apply the concepts in their real world, build their skill and confidence and work these into habits that last.  We very much become involved in the successes/challenges of the participants as they work hard to develop their sales, leadership and customer service results.

I’m sharing this with you to give you some insight into why last week was tough.  One of our participants passed away suddenly.  Not only does her passing affect the company and employees, it affects us.  Lynn Zimmer, a key member of our team, has worked with this person for many hours over the last 6 weeks and it is a loss to her.  On the same day, a close friend of Lynn’s also died suddenly.  That is why the following message that Lynn sent out to her readers this morning is worth sharing with you.

Life is short, make it all matter.    Nancy Bleeke

-   -   -   -   -   -   -  -   -   -   -   -   -    -

Every once in a while, an event occurs in our lives that reminds us to reflect on the value of what we do each day. It could be the loss of a friend or family member, a serious change in your health, career, etc.   When this happens, it’s important to “take time” to pause …. reflect and if appropriate, make changes in how we’re currently doing things.

Here is an excerpt from the book, 10-10-10, by Suzy Welch (co-author with husband, Jack Welch, of the book, Winning) that highlights some key points for reflection:

We all want to lead a life of our own choosing. But in today’s accelerated world, with its competing priorities, information overload, and confounding options, we can easily find ourselves steered by impulse, stress, or expedience. Are our decisions the right ones? Or are we being governed, time and time again, and against our best intentions, by the demands of the moment?

With 10-10-10, Welch proposes 1 question that will impact your life:

How will my choice affect my life:

• 10 minutes from now?
• 10 months from now?
• 10 years from now?

 By looking at the middle and longer time frames, we’re truly assessing the impact and value of our decisions.  When you bring long term value to the decisions you help your customers implement, you bring added value to the relationship.

The same applies in your personal life.

Reflect upon your present blessings – of which every man has many – not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some. 

 Charles Dickens

Wishing you a week of reflections,

Lynn Zimmer of Sales Pro Insider, Inc.

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Tags: focus, learning, priorities, productivity

Do you know why we observe Memorial Day in the United States?  I wasn’t sure anymore…it seems to be about an extra day off of work, the start of summer and something American and the military.  When I don’t know something I research.  And I found that the holiday is so much more than backyard cookouts and I am embarrassed that I forgot the significance. 

The first Memorial Day was observed on May 30, 1868. As a day to observe fallen soldiers – those who died in our nation’s service.  It included a focus on decorating the graves of those soldiers.  In 1970 a bill was passed to move the date to the last Monday in May (to make it a 3 day weekend for Federal  holidays).  Now there are some  purists trying to get it moved back to the May 30th date permanently.

Okay – what does Memorial Day have to do in a blog about sales success?  Not much.  But as an American business owner who has freedom and liberties I enjoy because of many fallen soldiers, I believe we should all follow the National Moment of Rememberance.    At 3 p.m. (your local time) stop what you are doing and reflect on those that have been willing to lay down their life for others.  If you missed 3 p.m. on May 25th, take that moment now.

I also want to take the time to honor a couple of soldiers…In 2004, a leader I know had a knock at her family door.  It was the military informing her husband that his son (her stepson), Cpl Richard Warner,  a U.S. Marine, had been killed in Iraq.  In 1944, my Aunt had the same knock to find my cousin Bruno Oribiletti had lost his life in World War II. 

To the future, my nephew, Nicholas Noel, enlisted in the US Air Force.  He heads off to basic training in August.  He is willing to fight for all of us to make the world a safe place.  I pray that he be safe and am proud that he considers the rest of worthy of his time and possibly his life. 

It hits home…whether you agree with war or not…people sacrifice for others, families are changed forever, and they deserve all of us to remember what Memorial Day is about.

Take that moment to remember this afternoon.  They all deserve it.

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Tags: learning

 I have been working on a post about email prospecting.  There has been some BAD email prospecting going on these days.   A robust post is coming because I’ve asked other sales experts to weigh in on this approach to prospecting and want to include their comments.  But this post couldn’t wait…

Maggi, a seasoned sales pro, forwarded me a series of emails that demonstrate a nasty side of human nature…the act of pointing fingers when someone else makes an error!  The story follows…

A newer sales rep at a Chicago radio station sent out a mis-guided attempt at email prospecting.  Ignoring the text of the message itself, the biggest problem was that she inadvertently included ALL the names/emails of the distribution list so they could be seen by everyone on the list.  Ouch!  

Yes, definitely an error.  And an error that isn’t that hard to make.  What happened next is what has me irritated… more than a dozen people on the list decided to Reply All and humiliate the poor woman to everyone on the list!  They called her unprofessional, asked how she got their email, and on and on. 

C’mon!  Is THAT professional?  Clogging up EVERYONE’s mail box with your complaint?  And for what?  What was to be gained?  Finally one person asked for it to stop  – his note…

“This is nuts! I think we all agree that she made a mistake,
so can we stop replying all, why the need to embarrass her any further?
Reply to her directly and ask to be removed from her list, now that
would be the professional thing to do. If you’ve had the opportunity to
meet with her, you’d realize that she is a young and aggressive AE
learning the business and I’m sure this is one lesson she soon won’t
forget, but c’mon, enough already…”

Thanks for standing up for her!  Mob mentality isn’t a good thing.  And as business people can’t we help build and support each other?  This error was not one that needed THAT much time and attention from everyone on the list.

Next time you see someone who made an “oops” how about a direct message giving constructive feedback that they can use?  And maybe a little compassion because on the path to learning to be great, we ALL make mistakes!

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Tags: Email Prospecting, learning

Ringggg.   Ringggg.  Not my favorite sound in the evening when I am in the midst of all kinds of fun mothering activities – think homework, cleaning, moderating disagreements.  And yet last week I picked up the phone…”Hi Nancy, its Virginia.”  Oh, okay, I know who this is…and after some pleasantries…”I’m calling to tell you about my work because you asked the other night.”   Hmmm.  “I’m so excited and want you to meet the guys I work with.”  And so the discussion went.  Me justifying I didn’t need to meet these guys as I don’t need their services and Virginia giving me more and more options on time and location because I should meet them.

I hung up feeling like I had dodged the bullet for now…and went on with my evening.  Forty-five minutes later … Ringggg.  Ringggg.  Now who?  “Hi, its Virginia again. I’m calling to get some advice.  Do you have a few minutes?”  Of course…  “I don’t think the conversation went the best before and I want your advice on what I can do to have different outcomes in making my calls.”

What???  Calling a sales expert who trains people to ask for advice?  Now THAT got me involved!  We then had over an hour discussion on the importance of making calls, putting the focus on the caller instead of our own excitement about what we do, asking good questions and being a great listener.  And that all of these being critical skills are ones she had developed in her years in the medical profession!

Wow, I am so proud of Virginia’s professionalism.  She did what so many sales professionals will not do…she:

• - Evaluated her call objectively
• - Noted that it could have gone much better
• - Asked for coaching to do better next time

She realized that these first calls  in her new role- to the people she already knew – could make or break her future.  And she didn’t want to burn any of these relationships even if she was excited about her new role in sales. She didn’t get defensive. She listened to the advice, tried to get down to specific actions she could take and then committed to those actions.  What a great demonstration of strong emotional intelligence!

Rookie or not, her willingness to call me back sets her apart from a lot of seasoned sales professionals.  I think she has a great career ahead of her with that type of mindset.

A challenge to all sales professionals…what are you currently doing that isn’t producing the results you want/need? Who can you call for advice or coaching so you can do better?  Now, pick up the phone and call them…you’ll be glad you did. 

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Randy Paush’s book, the Last Lecture, is still on the Best Seller list.  And as I read the book this past weekend, I see why.  There is a lot of wisdom in his stories and advice.  One in particular hit home with me…about time management.

As a person who works very hard and long to accomplish business priorities it is easy for me to spot that behavior in others too.  I observe many of the very successful sales people I work with are awesome time managers and get a lot done.  Yet, I see a commonality in that there are some life principles we can sometimes forget with our long To Do lists.  Randy recapped the principle of using our time effectively and wisely in his Last Lecture.  The bolded sections are Randy’s words:

• Time must be explicitly managed, like money.  Not to invest time on irrelevant details. Ever spend HOURS on a minute detail when getting ready for a client meeting?  And then miss some of the key points?
• You can always change your plan, but only if you have one. Planning is important – and the process of the identifying the outcome AND the steps to get there is what works.
• Ask yourself:  Are you spending your time on the right things?  You may have causes, goals, interests.  Are they even worth pursuing?  Take a look at your client and prospect list – where are you spending your time?
• Develop a good filing system.  So much is wasted looking for things that aren’t where they need to be – CRM systems CAN bring great efficiencies!
• Rethink the telephone.  Need to keep a call short?  Never put your feet up or get comfortable.  stand up!  Oh, how easy it is to extend a conversation with others and it is so important.  The key is to keep it to an appropriate length that gets the business accomplished, strengthens the relationship and then ends so both parties can get to other things.

In a house with teens the word “lecture” is not well received.  In this case, a lecture is just what I needed.  Thanks Randy. 

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Tags: learning, priorities