Mar

28

Ridiculously Obvious Selling Tips

March 28, 2006 | Leave a Comment

Via Lori Richardson’s Sales Coach blog [link no longer available] I found an absolute gem – a free download from Tom Peters, the renowned management guru.  It has 111 quick-to-read tips about selling. 
The very first tip hit me between the eyes, because it is one that people sometimes plain forget.  It essentially says (and I paraphrase):  Strategy is overrated and […]

Mar

20

Use Triggering Events to Keep Sales Pipeline Full

March 20, 2006 | Leave a Comment

Jill Konrath runs a website called Selling to Big Companies.  (Consider it the photographic negative of this site, Selling to Small Business)
On her blog she suggests using triggering events to keep your pipeline full.
What’s a triggering event?  It’s an opportunity that crosses your path that you should leverage to get in the door with big companies.  Jill […]

Feb

23

Selling to Law Firms

February 23, 2006 | Leave a Comment

A large law firm is considered one with over 100 lawyers.  Yet, in the United States (and most other countries) the majority of law firms are equivalent in size to what we all consider a small business, say, 250 employees and under.
MarketingSherpa offers a long article about marketing to lawyers.  Having been a lawyer myself in […]

Jan

23

Differences Between Corporate Buyers and Small Business Buyers

January 23, 2006 | Leave a Comment

Bob Bly, the copywriting guru, notes seven differences between B-to-B buyers and consumer buyers in an article found at his site.  And of course, when you are talking about a corporate business buyer, he is right.  After all, how can you argue with a guru?
However, the small business buyer is actually a hybrid between the corporate buyer and […]

Oct

24

Making Email Contact with Web 2.0 Entrepreneurs

October 24, 2005 | 2 Comments

Recently I wrote about using email to cold call.  Of course, it isn’t strictly cold calling.  A purist would take issue and say (a) it isn’t calling because you don’t actually speak with anyone, and (b) it is too passive.
Points well taken.  But in today’s world, and especially with today’s Web 2.0 entrepreneurs and small […]

Oct

20

Cold Calling Today

October 20, 2005 | 2 Comments

Over at Inc.com I found a great, lo-o-o-ong article about making in-person cold calls.   It’s titled “48 Hours with the King of Cold Calls.”
The article almost 15 years old, but some advice on selling is timeless, right? 
However, there is one big difference I see between today and that cold call of yesterday:  the effect of email. 
First, there is […]

Oct

15

Small Business Customers Are Worth 20 Times More

October 15, 2005 | Leave a Comment

The sheer numbers of the small business market – 25 million strong in the United States alone – are too alluring to resist.
Yet, sales individually to each small business customer can be relatively small.  A few thousand dollars in a year’s time, perhaps much less, may be the typical sales volume to a small business customer. 
That makes it a difficult […]

Sep

25

Need a Sales Boost to End the Year?

September 25, 2005 | Leave a Comment

Are you planning holiday sales programs this Christmas and New Year’s season?  They generate goodwill and give your business the opportunity for more visibility — not to mention increasing sales. 
Holiday promotions are not just for consumers.  Small businesses respond to them, too. 
Remember that with small business customers, you are dealing with sales situations that may more often resemble consumer sales, than […]

Jul

14

Streamline Your Sales Processes for Happy Customers

July 14, 2005 | Leave a Comment

According to the SBA’s Office of Advocacy:
“Advocacy’s research shows that small businesses pay an average of $6,975 per employee annually to comply with federal regulations – 60% more than large businesses.”
I cite this statistic here as an example of how extra paperwork, extra meetings, or extra staffing hit small businesses harder than large businesses. 
The same goes for lengthy sales […]

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