The Fastest, Easiest, and Most Reliable System for Getting More Clients Than You Can Handle Even if You Hate Marketing and Selling
Book by Michael Port
To build your service business, cut clients who drain you, so you can handle new ones who inspire you.
Get clients by becoming an authority, and by being likeable and trustworthy.
Build credibility with clients by providing high-quality products or services, solid credentials, effective processes, reasonable rates and customer-focused service.
Know your target market and be able to explain the benefits of your services.
A strong sales process requires knowing your market and what it needs. Be sure your targets know how to find you, why they want you and how to get you.
Your sales cycle should include meeting potential clients daily, having an event to invite prospects to attend and using free offerings to bring in customers.
Always have something else to offer prospective clients. For example, selling a simple, low-cost entry product can hasten the sales cycle.
Choose among seven basic self-promotion strategies: network, reach out, get referrals, have a Web site, write, give talks and always follow up.
A business Web site starts conversations with potential clients and adds credibility.
An e-mail newsletter is a valuable marketing tool.
1. Networking Strategy: Networking doesn’t necessarily mean making sales pitches,and racing to collect and hand out business cards. It is an opportunity to provide value to other people using the 50/50 approach spend half of your networking time with potential clients and the rest with other professionals in your field.
2. Web Strategy: A Web site is a must-have to draw new clients. It demonstrates your expertise, represents your brand identity, lets you collect the names of potential clients and helps you connect with the right clients while sifting out people who do not fit your target market. Your Web site should encourage visitors to act. Enable them to call, send an e-mail or enter contact information. Entice visitors to provide data by offering a free report, seminar or tutorial. Follow up every opportunity. If someone signs up for an online course, connect with the visitor before and after the class.
3. Writing Strategy: Build your expertise and credibility by submitting articles to email newsletters, online e-zines and Web sites, as well as standard publications. If you find writing too stressful, hire a ghostwriter. Write about your passion for an area of your field. Tie your articles to your business. Give readers valuable information. If you publish online, include a short biography with a link to your Web site. Offer a resource box that prompts the reader to do something, such as join your mailing list,request more information or sign up for a free event.
4. Speaking Strategy: Use the podium to get your message out and find the people you are meant to serve. You are not limited to standing in front of an audience. Offer free teleclasses. Seek events where you can talk to as many people as possible. Pursue opportunities to conduct demonstrations, start clubs or hold monthly lunches to build your reputation as someone who helps people connect with each other. This builds trust and credibility.
5. Referral Strategy: Who gave you your last referral? What did the client need? What was the outcome? Use this information to determine why that approach worked so you can boost your referral traffic. Ask for more referrals. Try to get names and contact information so you can follow up.
Have you ever looked at an advertisement and wondered what product was being sold? If so, you’re not alone. Writers Jack Trout and Steve Rivkin thought the same thing and concluded, after 30 years in the marketing and advertising business, that the creative trend in ads has gone way too far. They believe modern companies should follow the advice of legendary ad man Rosser Reeves, and focus on their Unique Selling Proposition.
Thomas Stanley and William Danko are professors of sociology who have made studying wealthy Americans their specialty. They have performed extensive statistical research to profile who wealthy Americans are, how they acquired their wealth, how they live, and how their families function.
From the inception, Stanley and Danko make it clear that the image of “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” has nothing to do with the lifestyle of most wealthy Americans, especially first-generation wealthy Americans. Contrary to the belief of many people who believe most wealth is inherited and “you can’t make it in America today,” eighty percent of America’s millionaires are first-generation rich.
1) How a big client, an Elephant, can help your business grow;
2) How to select and win a big client;
3) What is required to manage and build a major account; and
4) What five killer mistakes to avoid when a high-profile client
rules your revenues.
Book Review of Winning Sales and Influencing Spiders
In the past, businesses would function with brick and mortar buildings, gaining customer relationships through physical advertising and space. This; however, is quickly changing with the new concepts and ideals of what it means to own a business. In the book “How To Win Sales and Influence Spiders,” a new and alternative means for approaching cyber space as a storefront is defined as a new means for businesses.
The overall concept that becomes important in this book is related to using technology while remaining a unique business. This specifically means that the technology that is used should not turn a business into a robot, but instead provide relationship building and unique concepts towards any business simply through the means of the Internet as the main area. The concept of combining technology with personality is a driving force in this book, and is an important concept to remember to those using the Internet for their business.
After the defining of building relationships through technology, the book moves into a variety of means in which one should be aware of when beginning a business through the Internet instead of with physical concepts. One of the ways in which this is mentioned is through the use of SEO, or search engine optimization. When this is mentioned, there is a set of basic concepts that one should follow as a formula for gaining search engine notice ability combined with making sure that one follows the cyber space rules of not becoming spam and remaining an individual on the web, which spiders that put one in search engines are always looking for.
These specific types of concepts continue throughout the book with providing insight into the different technology that can be used on the Internet. The web is no longer simply about building a website, but also maintaining it through content and through different means of reaching customers. Marketing, such as blogging, press releases, newsletters, links, videos, pay-per-click, and even e-mail are all given a place in this book to provide insight into the basic rules to follow for Internet concepts and how to use these in order to increase your business needs.
It is through these, as well as the other tools that are mentioned in this book that lead to the overall concept of the Internet as a technological piece of equipment that can be used for the best of business, not only in establishing a presence through these tools, but also to become a part of the Internet community that continues to grow. These tools and the ability to advertise is one that is then linked to the overall concept of the Internet, based on connections and a global community that has been looking for your business.
For anyone who is interested in a complete understanding of the Internet and the technology that can be used, “How to Win Sales and Influence Spiders” is a must read. It allows for a new level of understanding and insight to be a part of one’s business, leading to an increase in connections and community and allowing you to become a part of the platform of a global business area.
Finding the best technological tools to grow a business is one that is essential to any level business owner. With the increases and changes in the Internet are also new tools that continue to re-define the best way to reach potential customers and build business on the web. A must read for anyone who is re-defining the Internet through their business is “Blog Wild,” which defines how one can add into their technological toolbox.
“Blog Wild” works for businesses that are beginning blogs by taking one through the concepts of what a blog means and how to use one. This begins with understanding the essentials of blogs, including the defining of a blog as a platform for moving text on the Internet and how this can work in order to grab the attention of spiders and to gain higher rankings on the Internet.
From here, “Blog Wild” defines the various areas in which one can blog and how this relates to other elements of the web. For example, blogging and it’s relationship to websites, newsletters and search engines are all defined in how they relate to blogging and how one can best use blogging as a tool that is added into these various areas of the Internet.
Moving past these basic relationships is the next step that this book defines. Blogs are seen in this book not only as a tool for the Internet but also as a way to create your own image and business identity through. This includes understanding the basics about posting blogs into your Internet through a blog platform and how to best approach this. By doing this, you can ensure that your blog is unique and that you can gain more momentum on the Internet.
The book then moves past the basic tools that can combine with blogging and into ways to promote your blog as a business. Doing this includes the idea of feeding blogs and moving them into a place in which they can be exposed to traffic. For any business, this is a must know in order to create a unique blog without having it exposed as spam, and in which spiders will recognize and use to move up in the search engines.
“Blog Wild” is a great book for any business that is looking into beginning blogging and wants the foundational material behind understanding what a blog is and how it can help in approaching exposure on the Internet. Reading this will allow one to gain a basic ideal of how to approach the web as a business and how to continue to expose their business through the Internet as a main storefront.
Any business that is interested in staying in business also needs to have specific tactics for marketing. This is one of the most important ideals to develop in order to be effective in what you are promoting. The book Guerrilla Marketing in 30 Days is one that allows those in business to have specific attacks for marketing their business effectively. These tactics are not only shown through throwing ideas out, but by giving you, as an entrepreneur, a 30 day calendar of guerrilla marketing plans to enhance your business. Following is the break through of the 30 days for marketing offered in the book.
Day 1: The first step to take is preparation. This means that your mindset needs to be prepared and ready to build prospects and ideas that are related directly to marketing. Day 1 includes everything about developing the right mind in order to work towards success with the tactics that can be used.
Day 2: The best way to reach the end is to start at the end. Day 2 involves setting the goals, vision and ideals that you want in order to achieve your marketing goals. These should be realistic, prioritized and broken down into action steps to get over possible difficulties.
Day 3: When you gain knowledge, you gain power. This is what Day 3 is all about. You will learn about your competition, research the possibilities, understand your target markets and test out products or services in order to find the potential.
Day 4: After you gain the knowledge and know your research, you can define a target market. Knowing where to aim is half the battle in learning to compete as well as finding those who would be interested in what you have to offer.
Day 5: Position your opening statements in order to draw the right attention. This means that you have to be able to reach your target market by identifying yourself, what you offer, the benefits and values.
Day 6: Find your niche. One of the benefits of being an entrepreneur is that you don’t have to reach everyone. In fact, you don’t want to. Finding your specialization in the market will help you to focus even more on getting the potential customers you want.
Day 7: Now that you have the knowledge, the beginning of implementing it is through planning. Day 7 includes building your marketing plan and strategy for success. The idea is to keep it simple, focused, with a vision, and with the ability to implement action.
Day 8: This day is about creating advantages that your customers will gain through your strategy. You want to think about how your customers will gain from choosing your business over others.
Day 9: Create an identity. This doesn’t mean that you need a logo or image. Instead, identify who you are as a business, what your abilities are and what makes you special.
Day 10: Day 10 is about getting the word out. In order for your marketing plans and strategies to be a reality, it takes learning how to use marketing communication essentials in order to build the correct approach to letting others know about your business. This includes building creative plans, action plans and marketing steps.
Day 11: Advertising is the next step in building your business marketing plan. This doesn’t mean going out on a limb to state what your business is about. Instead, it is finding a message, finding ways to reach your market and knowing all of the components that fulfill the idea of an ad that can truly reach those you want.
Day 12: Not only should advertising be done through specific portals, but also by letting others know about your business. Building networks of individuals that you can create a relationship with is your next step to keeping your marketing substantial.
Day 13: Once you have built individual relationships, why not step it up a notch? Connecting with other businesses through the use of fusion marketing and building alliances that support other businesses as well as yours can help in building your network and marketing.
Day 14: Another combination to add to your marketing is direct selling. This is a simple way of letting others know what you have available through contacts and building a relationship that results from the sale.
Day 15: Preparing for other options in marketing can also be included. Day 15 teaches you how to work on using the telephone for your sales.
Day 16: Everything you market should be seen in writing. Having printed sales sheets, brochures and collateral that represent your identity correctly are just as important with your sales.
Day 17: Move the print into one more step with a stamp for marketing with direct mail. If you are going to do this, be sure to focus on providing a complete mailing message.
Day 18: One of the most powerful marketing tools happens at this point, which includes radio, television and cable TV. Understanding the alternatives for promotion on this particular level will help you to move into a target market in your locality that has been looking for your identity.
Day 19: The next step is to focus on marketing hooks, which enables you to move your potential customers into action and into your business.
Day 20: No matter what your level of business is, never forget to keep everything about reaching others. Public relations allow you to do this by spreading the news of your business to the community through media means.
Day 21: If you want to continue to be in business, make sure you have an outline of how you will stay. A marketing calendar that will show you when to implement new markets, how to do so and the cost will help you to take the steps needed for your marketing plan.
Day 22: Using alternative marketing can also be part of the attack plan for success. Using coupons for discounts, contests for the community and speeches for the public can help to peak the interest of your expertise and your business.
Day 23: Of course, a marketing plan is never complete without online marketing. This introduces web sites, communication through e-mail and search engines.
Day 24: The idea of online marketing is so large, that it continues into two days. Understanding how to use online content tools for consistent communication can help enhance your business marketing plan.
Day 25: Getting recognized in the public is another step to success in the market. Trade shows and expos are some of the best ways to do this and to get a large amount of customers from the opportunity.
Day 26: In the relationship building sector of your business, it is always good to keep it continuous through newsletters. This serves as a friendly reminder to your customers and with the right look, it can help you to keep your image in their minds.
Day 27: Of course, all of the planning and marketing tools will need to have cost and budgeting related to them. It will be important to analyze everything that you are going to do and to find the cost that it will take to do so. Make sure that this is flexible and works with you.
Day 28: Now you have your plan, or your ‘blueprint.‘ Day 28 is your beginning to taking these steps and putting them into action for your market.
Day 29: Once you begin to understand your market and can implement your plan, you have the ability to grow. This day is going back to looking at the long term and finding ways to think about how to reach your overall objectives through change and new implementations.
Day 30: The end of the 30 days is recognition that it is more than 30 days. Now that you have a plan, it is easy for you to begin to move towards continuous success. Building relationships, ideas and prospects for a better business is your key to being able to be a part of the guerrilla market.
There are two kinds of businesses in the world. One is the ‘corporation’ in which most are familiar with. They set the products and services out there, but they don’t know your name. Instead, they only know the number that you are from the check out line. The second is what can be referred to as the ‘mom and pop’ image. This is one that knows your name and that you don’t have to ask for products from. They already know what you want.
The question is: which type of business are you? Are you one that cares about the numbers and the money, or do your riches come from another source, such as value and quality service? In Jeffrey Gitomer’s Little Black Book of Connections, he lets you know which type of business you should be. In today’s business world, you can’t be set apart with a series of numbers. Instead, your sources for good customers come from how you value them. This is an invaluable tool that will help you to get the word out.
Your riches, according to Gitomer, aren’t from the dollar value that you have with your products and services. It is much more than that. It is now coming to an era where your business will be run by how you treat the customers. Do you provide them with value for their money? Do you treat them like they are your only customer?
Relationship building in any business is becoming the essential way to make sure that you can get customers and keep customers. This is a key element to having the ability to show that you respect those who respect your company enough to look into your products and services. Your first marketing tool becomes your ability to connect with customers and to build the relationship that you have with them. The products and the services are simply an outcome from the way in which you treat others.
It can be said that The Little Black Book of Connections is a book filled with the golden rule of treating others like you would want to be treated. However, you shouldn’t just do this because it is the moral thing to do. It is also the way to do business. This should be your company’s message. By treating customers with respect, providing them with value, and allowing them to take priority, second to your products and services, you will be ensuring your businesses success.
Gaining power in the business world is no longer about how thick your pocketbook is. Today, it is also about how rich your relationships are with others. By understanding the value of customer service and relationships with everyone who walks into your business, you will have the ability to be a successful and powerful business in the world. All you have to do is sit back and ask yourself, ‘what type of business do I want to be?’
If you would like more information on The Little Black Book of Connections, or would like more tips linked to the ideas in this book, please contact Mark Bove.
We’ve all heard the statistics of the failing entrepreneurs in America. 40% of those who start a business fail in the first year. 80% of these will fail in the 5 years. Why are there such high rates of failure in beginning businesses? It has all come back to the myths that have become a part of the idea of being an entrepreneur. Through the E-Myth Revisited, author Michael Gerber explains what is occurring in the world of business.
The major idea behind the E-Myth Revisited, is to focus on entrepreneurs who are in the beginning stages of owning their own business. By reading this book, it is the hope from the author that the statistics of failure will begin to slowly filter down and create positive experiences for true success among those who are entrepreneurs. For those that have failed, this book is meant to teach the lessons and pass them on, so that the statistics will begin to lower.
The key behind this book is to explain the Entrepreneurial Myth, which is that most that begin their own businesses do so to gain a large amount of profit. This particular idea is not true. It is believed that by chipping away at this large myth, most will realize what it truly takes to be a successful entrepreneur. This is done by creating a Business Development Process that focuses on creating a substantial strategy and sets of plans for years of success.
The E-Myth relies on taking an individual who begins as an entrepreneur and showing how they build a business through their focus on what the business is as well as their own characteristics. Once one understands this, they can move into the process of becoming a true entrepreneur. This means delving into the different areas of owning a business, building levels of plans for success, and creating strategies that can be implemented for years to come.
The major idea of the E-Myth book is to help those who are moving into their own business to have the dream of being a business owner come true. The main concepts are to be effective in business by beginning on the right foot. Through preparing correctly, and taking the lessons from others who have learned the hard way, entrepreneurs can begin to break the statistics and move into their own freedom as a business owner.
