By GentleRain on April 8, 2009
I get asked this question a lot. “How important is it to have a list?” Without meaning to be snide, it’s only important if you want to achieve any level of success. (I’m reminded of Dan Kennedy’s answer to the question of “Do speakers have to be funny?” To which he replied, “Only if they [...]
Posted in Small Business
By GentleRain on April 8, 2009
There’s an old saying that if you “Build a better mousetrap, they will come.” Unfortunately that’s the approach many small business owners take when they think about getting new clients. On one level it would seem correct that your good work should simply be enough. After all that’s where you put in your time and [...]
Posted in Lead Generation
By GentleRain on February 20, 2009
It’s clear that marketing and selling high value services requires a different approach than selling tangibles or less expensive products. Thus, the importance of being able to make the business case for what you offer. By that I mean that since you’re going to ask people to pay money for what you do, you need [...]
Posted in Develop Your Skill
By GentleRain on January 28, 2009
The recent announcement by executive search giant Heidrick & Struggles to shrink it’s recruiting practice by 45% and focus on consulting caused me to think about the role of diversifying services during these uncertain economic times. As common sense would dictate, consultants and advisors who offer only a single program or service are at a [...]
Posted in Develop Your Skill
By GentleRain on October 26, 2008
It’s been said that sales quotas (whether they be weekly, monthly or quarterly) are one of the biggest obstacles to effective sales performance. The rational is that the pressure to meet the deadline causes sales people to attempt to “hurry up ” the sales process. They typically do this by presenting their solutions way too [...]
Posted in Develop Your Skill
By GentleRain on May 21, 2008
You’ve probably heard the story that it took Thomas Edison 1,000 tires before he invented the light bulb. But did you know that, 12 publishers rejected J.K Rowling’s first Harry Potter book before an obscure publishing house finally picked it up? That Decca Records turned down the Beatles? That Walt Disney was fired by a [...]
Posted in Develop Your Skill
