Thank Them All – Often!

Sales Strategies for Success
Strategy #20

Thank Them All – Often!

This week of the Thanksgiving holiday has me thinking about giving thanks. It seems only natural. I have so many things to be thankful for this year. My husband came through major surgery with flying colors, my family is intact and healthy and my business is doing  well. I am very blessed and lucky.

Did I forget anyone? You bet. Let’s start with all of you! My clients, friends and colleagues who let me share some of myself every week. I love hearing your comments and feedback. I also appreciate that you don’t (seem to!) mind me pushing you to do more, or do something differently or more often. You all take it in stride with good humor and I thank you for that. I sincerely appreciate working with each of you because it makes me feel so good! I have such fun and get so much energy from sharing ideas and strategies with you. Working with all of you makes me better.

I think perhaps I don’t tell you that often enough. It may be a common mistake for all of us. Do you remember to tell your clients, your co-workers, your employees, your vendors and your colleagues how much you appreciate them and why? It’s so easy to take each other for granted, especially when things are going well. But that’s the most important time to do it. And you know, if you remember to thank those around you regularly, you’ll find that they are willing to help you out of a jam, pitch in on a project or simply be a joy to be around. That can make your week smoother!

Take a minute (or more!) to tell those around you how much you appreciate their efforts and name some specific things you notice. What you notice gets done and what you appreciate happens more. That’s what I call a win-win strategy!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Call Audrey at Secure Your Success, Inc., 831-241-1545, or visit the website at www.SecureYourSuccessInc.com for more information and business building strategies.

JOIN OUR SUCCESS TEAMS!

Business Success Mastermind Teams
For business professionals who think big!

Work with your mastermind team for leadership support and solutions to make more money, stay motivated and achieve your goals. In addition to working with Audrey on your mastermind calls, team members receive discounts on one-on-one consulting. Twice a month hourly sessions are held by phone and recorded for playback – only by your own team. Masterminding with a leader keeps your calls on target and profitable.

Contact Audrey@SecureYourSucccessInc.com or 831-241-1545 to arrange for your first team call.

SEE AUDREY IN PERSON

Seaside Rotary Club Meeting – December 8, 2008
Audrey will be speaking on sales success at the December 8 lunch meeting of the Seaside Rotary Club held at Tarpy’s Roadhouse, 2999 Monterey Salinas Highway, Monterey, CA, beginning at noon. For more information about the Seaside Rotary, email Prez@seasiderotary.org.

Turning Leads Into Repeat Sales – December 10, 2008
Bring your lunch at noon and spend an hour discovering how to turn leads into repeat sales. Offered through the Monterey, CA Chamber of Commerce, the Brown Bag Lunch program is held at the Monterey County Fair & Exposition Center’s Turf Club, 2004 Monterey Road, Monterey, CA. This event is free and open to the public.

Do You Have Perfect Pitch?

Sales Strategies for Success
Strategy #19

I spent last weekend at a great event put on by Loral Langemeier and the Live Out Loud team. Although wealth building is why you’re familiar with Loral (read “The Millionaire Maker” book), every action we took this weekend revolved around networking. It’s the biggest reason I flew across the country (on a red-eye flight no less!) to attend. I was not disappointed. The networking opportunities were vast and I remembered an important lesson.

Practice your pitch! I wrote recently about how practice makes profit Sales Strategy #12 but I want to specifically stress practicing your pitch. Since we know that we only get one chance to make a first impression, that first “pitch” or opportunity to tell someone who we are and what we do, is critical.

I’ve spent the past year creating, revising and fine-tuning my pitch and yet I modified it even further during this event. Why? Because I had the opportunity to tell it over and over again to many people in a short amount of time and see their reactions. It was extremely beneficial because seeing the “results” of my pitch immediately, I was able to test different revisions with instant feedback.

What are you looking for in the person you “pitch”? I want to see their eyes light up! I look for them to be excited, to lean in and ask more about what I do. Each time that happens, I know I’ve hit the mark and made an impression on my fellow networker.

Right now is the perfect time to practice your pitch as often as possible. My good friend, Mary Jeanne Vincent, owner of Workwise and a fantastic career coach, recently wrote an article pointing out that during this holiday season the opportunities to network are amazing. Between business events, holiday parties and even neighborhood gatherings, the chances to present your pitch are multiplied. Take advantage of them and go to every place possible to network.

Don’t worry if you’re not completely confident in your pitch yet. If you wait until it’s “perfect”, you’ll never present it! Just keep practicing and carefully gauging the response you receive. The more often you make a true connection, the more you’ll gain confidence that you have the perfect pitch!

Let me help you develop your pitch, tag line, elevator speech and business introduction. Call 831-241-1545, or visit the website at Secure Your Success, Inc. for more information and business success opportunities.

BE A PART OF A SUCCESS TEAM!

Business Success Mastermind Teams
For business professionals who want to catapult their income.

Work with your mastermind team for focused leadership support and solutions to achieve your goals, make more money and stay motivated. In addition to working with Audrey on your mastermind calls, team members receive discounts on one-on-one consulting. Twice a month hourly sessions are held by phone and recorded for playback – only by your own team. Masterminding with a leader keeps your calls on target and profitable.

Contact Audrey@SecureYourSucccessInc.com or 831-241-1545 to arrange for your first team call.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Seaside Rotary Club Meeting – December 8, 2008

Audrey will be speaking on sales success at the December 8 lunch meeting of the Seaside Rotary Club held at Tarpy’s Roadhouse, 2999 Monterey Salinas Highway, Monterey, CA, beginning at noon. For more information about the Seaside Rotary, email Prez@seasiderotary.org.

Turning Leads Into Repeat Sales – December 10, 2008
Bring your lunch at noon and spend an hour discovering how to turn leads into repeat sales. Offered through the Monterey, CA Chamber of Commerce, the Brown Bag Lunch program is held at the Monterey County Fair & Exposition Center’s Turf Club, 2004 Monterey Road, Monterey, CA. This event is free and open to the public.

We look forward to seeing you soon!

To your sales success,

Audrey

Audrey Pierson
Secure Your Success, Inc.
831-241-1545
audrey@SecureYourSuccessInc.com

Make more money faster!

How Many Salespeople Does it Take to . . . ?

Missed previous Sales Strategies for Success? Go to the Secure Your Success Blog and find more!

Before I get into this week’s strategy, let me brag for just a minute. I received the following note from a client last week and I’m still beaming. I just had to share it with all of you.

Hi Audrey,

I gave my presentation to the Rotary yesterday and it went great. I have the first of three meetings later today as a result of it. Your advice on how to communicate my value was dead on. Today I’m sending follow up letters to all the others I collected business cards from. Thanks!

Steve

How cool is that? Let’s get at least three hot leads in a 20 minute talk for your business. Call me today at 831-241-1545.

Now, on to this week’s strategy.

Sales Strategies for Success
Strategy #18

How Many Salespeople Does it Take to . . . ?

You can complete this week’s subject line with any joke you choose. In fact, if you come up with a good one, please send it to me! I’ll be happy to share your joke AND your business with my readers.

How many sales representatives are in your company? Among my various sales experiences I have been one of less than ten, the solo salesperson and sales manager of 13 excellent sales professionals.

Regardless of the size of your company, what is the minimum number of salespeople required to sell a customer?

It seems like the obvious answer is one. I sold alarm systems very profitably for over 15 years as the sole salesperson and I built a very strong company that way.  But did I do it alone? Absolutely not. I had someone with whom I shared ideas, strategies and goals. That person was also a great motivator for me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very driven on my own, but someone outside of your day-to-day world can really spur you to even greater heights.

I believe that none of us does our best work in a vacuum. And although I may be biased because it is my field, I think it is especially true of the sales profession. It’s not always easy to hear “no” over and over again and even the best of us do hear it. Keeping our focus, drive and motivation on track can sometimes be difficult.

Being part of a company with other sales professionals is not necessarily the solution, because everyone has their own prospects and customers. In many cases, sales professionals within the same company are pitted against each other. Sales managers must follow the bottom line and may not always be the one to whom you turn for motivation. What is a sales professional to do?

Find an accountability partner or a coach – immediately. This is a person who won’t let you off the hook about what you’ve said you want to accomplish. They won’t listen to stories or excuses, they will simply help you to stay on target to sell the customer and make money.

A sales coach is particularly helpful because she will help you with strategies to reach the goals you’ve set, keep you focused on the prize, and motivate you to keep going when you hit a wall.

I do this work with the clients on my Business Success Mastermind Teams. I also know the tremendous value of working with a coach because I have my own coach! None of us can do our best work in a bubble. We benefit greatly from working with someone who does not control our salary or compete with us for clients. Never underestimate the value of motivation and inspiration. We all need it everyday and receiving it will show in our bottom line.

Talk to Audrey about joining a Business Success Mastermind Team. As a regular reader of these weekly Sales Strategies for Success, you may join your team for the first month free! Call Audrey at 831-241-1545, or visit the website at Secure Your Success, Inc. for more information and business success opportunities.

BE A PART OF A SUCCESS TEAM!

Business Success Mastermind Teams
For business professionals who want to catapult their income.

Work with your mastermind team for focused leadership support and solutions to achieve your goals, make more money and stay motivated. In addition to working with Audrey on your mastermind calls, team members receive discounts on one-on-one consulting. Twice a month hourly sessions are held by phone and recorded for playback – only by your own team. Masterminding with a leader keeps your calls on target and profitable.

Contact Audrey@SecureYourSucccessInc.com or 831-241-1545 to arrange for your first team call.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Seaside Rotary Club Meeting – December 8, 2008

Audrey will be speaking on sales success at the December 8 lunch meeting of the Seaside Rotary Club held at Tarpy’s Roadhouse, 2999 Monterey Salinas Highway, Monterey, CA, beginning at noon. For more information about the Seaside Rotary, email Prez@seasiderotary.org.

Turning Leads Into Repeat Sales – December 10, 2008
Bring your lunch at noon and spend an hour discovering how to turn leads into repeat sales. Offered through the Monterey, CA Chamber of Commerce, the Brown Bag Lunch program is held at the Monterey County Fair & Exposition Center’s Turf Club, 2004 Monterey Road, Monterey, CA. This event is free and open to the public.

We look forward to seeing you soon!

To your sales success,

Audrey

Audrey Pierson
Secure Your Success, Inc.
831-241-1545
audrey@SecureYourSuccessInc.com

Make more money through effective sales strategies.

Talk About It!

Sales Strategies for Success
Strategy #17

Earlier this week I was interviewed about Secure Your Success, Inc. on a local cable TV station. The interview aired simultaneously on a local radio station and online. I just love doing events like that! Do you?

I know many of you just got a cold shiver and others are thinking, How can I do that? This difference in reaction demonstrates the differences in the sales process of all individuals. We each have our own personalities, as do our prospective customers. But there is one thing we all have in common.

We must tell others what we do if we expect them to do business with us. No business survives in obscurity. You may very well be the world’s leading expert in your field, but if no one knows about it, you won’t be making money doing it.

“If you don’t tell them, how will they know?” This is one of my sales mantras. Seems obvious, but really, it’s easy to forget to tell everyone you know about what you do. I’ve been in business for many, many years (no, I’m not giving you dates!) and yet when I launched my coaching and training firm, it was several months before I sent a note introducing it to my contacts from my last business venture.

Once I did, I started to receive notes and calls back asking for help with sales, requesting speaking engagements and offers of referrals to others. Why did I wait? Probably the same reason many of you do. It’s often difficult to “put yourself out there” in a new light. We all have some measure of fear of failure and by saying out loud what you do, you invite response from others, whether good or bad.

I’m here to tell you, go for it! Tell everyone! It’s never too late. Have you been in business for a long time, but never specifically told your personal network (family, friends, PTA parents, car pool) about it? Do it now. Did you move into a different industry? Go back and make sure that everyone in your “old world” knows what you do now.

The relationships you’ve built in all areas of your life will carry over to your new undertaking. Those who know, like and trust you will want to help you succeed. Let them. If they asked you for the same help, you’d give it to them wouldn’t you? Of course you would, and you’d feel good about doing it. Give your networking circle the same opportunity to feel good about helping you succeed.

For support in creating ways to tell everyone what you do, call Audrey at Secure Your Success, Inc., 831-241-1545, or visit our website at www.SecureYourSuccessInc.com for more information and business success opportunities.

BE PART OF A SUCCESS TEAM!

Business Success Mastermind Teams
For business professionals who want to catapult their income.

Work with your mastermind team for focused leadership support and solutions to achieve your goals, make more money and stay motivated. In addition to working with Audrey on your mastermind calls, mastermind group members receive discounts on one-on-one consulting with Audrey. Twice a month hourly sessions are held by phone and recorded for playback – only by your own team.

Contact Audrey Pierson at Audrey@SecureYourSucccessInc.com or 831-241-1545 to arrange a free consultation call to determine if masterminding is right for you.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Hear Audrey live~

HEAR AUDREY IN PERSON

Seaside Rotary Club Meeting – December 8, 2008
Audrey will be speaking on sales success at the December 8 lunch meeting of the Seaside Rotary Club held at Tarpy’s Roadhouse, 2999 Monterey Salinas Highway, Monterey, CA, beginning at noon. For more information about the Seaside Rotary, email Prez@seasiderotary.org.

LEARN IN PERSON

Turning Leads Into Repeat Sales – December 10, 2008
Bring your lunch at noon and spend an hour discovering how to turn leads into repeat sales. Offered through the Monterey, CA Chamber of Commerce, the Brown Bag Lunch program is held at the Monterey County Fair & Exposition Center’s Turf Club, 2004 Monterey Road, Monterey, CA. This event is free and open to the public.