Online and Print: Like Peanut Butter and Jelly?

Some self-appointed experts proclaim there's a vast difference between the brave new digital world and more traditional media like print. Although there are obvious differences in the way messages are delivered, fundamentally there are more similarities than it may seem.

At the core, it all revolves around communication. We are still trying to communicate the same things:

• Persuading recipients to open our communication



• Encouraging people to read our relevant messages



• Convincing our target market to believe the point we are trying to get across



• Driving people to take action on our message

There's no denying that the Internet has changed how we communicate. However, it would be a mistake to believe that digital should completely replace message delivery methods like print. As studies have shown, most people trust print more than email and social media. Anyone can send out a tweet, blast an email, or publish a Facebook post, but only legitimate businesses will invest the time and necessary resources to create a print campaign.

It's interesting to note a recent trend with many online retailers and other Internet-based businesses using print advertising to drive visitors and sales to their websites. Even Google uses direct mail. Online and print work well together when there's a solid strategy in place.

One of the unfortunate side effects of the digital age has been the exponential increase of spam and junk aimed at businesses and consumers. The low cost barrier to entry has encouraged irrelevant messages to fill in-boxes and clog the Internet with useless information. It turns out there is a cost to free.

The other negative side effect of digital delivery and the Internet has been to give equal footing to the useless and the idiotic. This makes the job of having your messages stand out even more difficult.

Whether you're writing an email, a web page, or social media posts, it's a struggle to be seen and heard above the massive onslaught of junk and spam in the digital wasteland of today. Ironically, the new additional marketing mediums of today have made it much harder, not easier to get your message across.

Despite the issues, digital is here to stay. But print is not going away either. There are strengths for both mediums. Smart businesses and marketers know that for any campaign to work as well as it can, there must be a combination of print and digital.

Using print and digital together is a lot like having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Sure, you can have one without the other, but it tastes a lot better when you combine the two.

6 Steps to a Referral Strategy

Referrals are one of the best ways for growing a small business, yet most companies have no formal process in place to make sure this great source for quality leads continues.

Waiting for leads to fall in your lap is not a systematic referral-generation strategy! Some people feel guilty about asking for referrals because they falsely believe they are simply asking for favors. The truth is, if you believe that the products and services you provide deliver real value to people and will benefit those who use them, you're the one who's doing the favor in asking for referrals... not the other way around. Achieving that mentality is the first step toward building a solid foundation for your lead-generating referral system.

Here are six steps to turn up your referral-generation machine.

1. Define your most ideal referral. Your chances of finding referrals increases if you know who you're looking for. The tighter you can articulate the demographic characteristics of your most ideal referral, the better. What are their business needs? What problems do they have that you can solve?



2. Team up with matching referral partners. After defining your ideal referral, identify who would be ideal referral partners for you. Who's already doing business and in contact with people that fit your most ideal referral profile? Find ways to provide value for them and make it easy for them to refer you.



3. Build a database. Create a contact list of potential referral sources and contacts. This can help you focus your referral-generating campaigns on people who can help you the most. Great communication starts with a focused list of ideal referral partners.



4. Create an incentive. Most people want to help others. You can encourage them to do what they already want to do by giving them an incentive to refer you. Incentives can be something tangible like gift cards, discounts, commissions, and other perks. A simple thank you card and other positive reinforcement goes a long way to building the goodwill generated from helping others.



5. Have a referral script. It's comforting to know what you're going to say ahead of time in asking for a referral. Your script should be adapted for face-to-face networking, email communication, phone conversations, and mailed letters. Practice until it becomes natural and not forced.



6. Set goals. An effective system includes a way to measure it. Setting referral goals and tracking results weekly is a great way to build and sustain continual momentum. Tracking your referrals also allows you to see how many referrals it takes to get one new client.

No system works without action. Start your referral-generating system by implementing and tracking the results. Ask your current network for referrals. This will give you something to build on. As you practice and gain confidence, refine your tactics and branch out to get referrals from other sources. It's easier than you think.

Where are the budding stars at your company?

The answer is simple: They're everywhere. And it's up to you to find them.

In his biography of Bill Russell, author Murry R. Nelson writes about the NBA legend's athletic struggles in high school and about one teacher/coach who helped to bring out the best in the young man others had overlooked and taken for granted.

After failing to make the school's football team, Russell decided to try out for basketball instead. There were 15 spots available on the junior varsity team, and Russell, who had never played organized basketball before, was number 16 on the depth chart. But his coach "saw something in him as a person" and allowed him to split time with another player in order to make the team. He also helped Russell join the local Boys Club, where he could "practice his game on an indoor court."

"In return for the faith and 'investment' [the coach] made in him," Nelson writes, Russell "provided a constant drive and energy on the basketball court." What's more, he began practicing hard throughout the year and was able to make the varsity team his senior season.

Bill Russell would go on to enjoy a Hall of Fame career in the NBA, where he led the Boston Celtics to 11 NBA titles over the course of 13 years.

Just as faith from a coach helped to mold a young Bill Russell's career path, guidance and mentoring are valuable training tools in business, too. Providing team members with the resources and skills training needed to succeed at their jobs can make a difference not only for the individuals you're helping but also for the company (and team) as a whole. After all, who knows what potential "all-stars" might be waiting to be discovered on your team. All they need is a chance to shine.

Are You Strategic or Are You Tactical?

Strategic planning and thinking are critical to success in business -- and in sales. Strategic thought focuses on the big picture. It looks at building sustainable, long-term relationships with clients who can benefit from what you have to provide. Tactical thinking, however, focuses on the here and now. It cares only for making the quick sale and staying afloat. Without a strategy behind it, tactical thinking can often lead to reactionary planning that provides little or no long-term viability.

If you find yourself in any of these positions, you may be too tactical:

• Prospects are taking too long to make a decision and stringing you along to get lower pricing.


• You're unclear on exactly who you are selling to.


• Your sales efforts are not focused on a specific product or service you should be selling.


• You're selling almost exclusively to the type of customers who buy one-time projects.


• You're selling to the type of customers who will switch to lower-priced competitors at the drop of a hat (or price).

Being overly tactical can force you to become desperate for work. That desperation shows through to prospects, who are either scared off by it or use it to force a much lower-price sale.

Being overly tactical forces you to be reactive to the marketplace around you, rather than proactive in growing sales. This can also lead to taking on clients at unsustainable prices -- often clients you really should have declined in the first place.

Most owners and executives who find themselves in this position will try:

• Hiring a new salesperson who knows what they are doing


• Creating an incredible new offer or service package


• Offering a brand new capability


• Lowering prices to increase volume

While these tactics can work, they often won't unless you first learn to start selling strategically in your business.

Strategic selling means creating a sales process that is based on:

• Positioning your company as the expert for what you sell


• Creating real relationships with prospects who truly value what you offer


• Attracting prospects who can afford to pay for what you sell


• Working with prospects and customers on their business goals and challenges, so you're not seen as a commodity vendor

This is what it means to change from a tactical business to a strategic business.

Broke companies look for the cheapest, while successful companies are looking for value and strategic partners. Being tactical means having commodity conversations about commodity services and products. This leads to attracting customers who view you as a commodity and end up paying you commodity prices. On the other hand, having strategic conversations with strategically minded businesses means that you attract higher-quality clients who value and pay for the services they seek.

As a strategic business, you'll begin to have conversations with prospects who truly value what you bring to the table. You'll talk about not just the tactical things but also how your services can help them grow. This type of client doesn't leave quickly and will gladly pay you for the work you do. This in turn will lead to a much higher client value and will allow you to provide better service to attract more clients just like them.

So how do you move to having strategic conversations? Start by asking the type of questions that generate the answers you're looking for.

• What are your biggest challenges?


• Is your business growing as fast as you'd like?


• What's working for you?


• What's not working for you?


• What are your biggest challenges?


• What are you currently doing to market and grow your business?

The beauty is in the simplicity. No magic needed. Ask questions that are designed to let your prospects open up and share their challenges.

Moving from a tactical business to a strategic one starts with a mindset shift. It takes time and effort to change the culture of a tactical business. It starts with being clear that you need to seek clients who value and can pay for what you sell. Then you must have strategic conversations to prove the worth of what you bring to the table. Having strategic conversations separates you from your competition. Being strategic is one way to command and get higher prices.

Beware the Cycle of Doom

The cycle of doom is the nightmare of every business owner and salesperson who works to attract prospects and customers. It occurs when you find yourself without a steady, predictable stream of high-quality prospects that turn into customers. As the cycle progresses, every day can feel like a challenge. Where are the next leads coming from? Where are the customers you're looking to gain?

"Your present circumstances don't determine where you can go; they merely determine where you start." - Nido Qubein

If you're stuck in a cycle of doom, you need to establish a system for attracting your ideal leads -- the people in your market who are looking for what you sell. Rest assured, such people do exist. The problem is that not enough of them know about your services and products.

That's where your lead-generation system will come into play.

"The fact is, everyone is in sales. Whatever area you work in, you do have clients, and you do need to sell." - Jay Abraham

Thousands of books and articles are written each year about the marketing and selling process. There are many variations and specific nuisances, but most of these resources can be distilled down to three relatively simple, uncomplicated steps.

The first is to determine exactly who your ideal customer is. The next is to make them aware of the solutions your products and services provide to solve their pain. The final step is to engage and answer any questions and objections before closing the sale.

Any lead-generation system you create needs to employ these strategies in order to make it a predictable source of continuous, high-quality prospects. Testing and measuring for what works best for your business is a never-ending and continual process. The important thing is to have an actual framework and base system in place to build upon.

Outbound marketing (direct mail, telemarketing, and traditional media) still works today, but you need to have a strategy in place first to attract and convert the type of audience you are hoping to reach. Blasting out unwanted information to the wrong audience didn't work well in the past, and it doesn't work today either.

Many businesses have learned that non-strategic social media posts and email blasts have the same characteristics as any other marketing fail. Offering low-value content leads to non-engagement, which ends up producing low-quality leads and zero customers.

The scariest feeling in business is not knowing where your next sale and customer are coming from. Everything is unsettled. You don't have the necessary confidence, and you don't control the conversation. As a result, you end up bending and twisting on price just to get a sale.

"Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishments." - Jim Rohn

Getting out of the cycle of doom requires strategic thinking. Who do you want as a customer? What does this customer need in order to make decisions before they purchase what you sell? Where are the places you can communicate these messages with this customer?

Creating a system sets the groundwork for a predictable pipeline -- one that allows for a reserve of prospects and suspects you can rely on and pull from as needed. It also has the added benefit of giving you the luxury of turning down prospects who are not a good fit for your business.

When you have a systematic approach and tweak it until it works predictably, you control the process. Your business is in demand, and your services are valuable and scarce.

Become a valuable resource for the prospects you seek. Let them know on a consistent basis about the value you provide. Make it easy for them to find your valuable information. Systematize your process, and the cycle of doom will be an old nightmare that gets buried for good.

Is Your Business Sellable?

One of the goals of every business owner should be to build a company that is worth selling. Whether it is actually put on the market or not is another matter.

A business that is worth selling is growing, vibrant, and healthy. That's why it's in the best interest of everyone involved in the company to continually work toward building a sellable business.

Many metrics are used to measure the worth of a sellable business. One of the key metrics is the ability of the business to generate recurring revenue.

There are several ways to achieve a consistent, recurring revenue stream. Not all will work for every type of business, product, or service. Here are a few ideas to consider, depending on the types of services and products you provide.

Long-Term Sales Contracts

One method of building recurring revenue is to offer contracts that tie a client to a long-term engagement. A customer could be enticed to sign a contract if they are offered preferred pricing and services. An example of this can be seen with most cell phone contracts. The multi-year contracts are offered as a way to get a free or discounted cell phone in exchange for signing a two or three year contract. The buyer gets the cell phone quicker, and the cell phone provider locks in a guaranteed, predictable revenue stream.

Service and Maintenance Contracts

Some businesses can offer service contracts for after-sale support. For example, an IT company will charge for installing and setting up a network in a business but could also charge a yearly support fee to keep the network up and running free of viruses. Maintenance contracts can be a great source of additional revenue throughout the year. In many automotive dealerships, the service bays bring in much higher profits than the car sales departments.

Product and Service Training Fees

If your product or service involves a learning curve, customers would get more value from their purchase if you also offer training and certification after the sale. Product training becomes a true win-win, as the customer gets better use of their purchase, while you get additional revenue from an existing client. Many software companies offer training for their products to help their buyers understand and use the software to its potential.

When your business can generate sales from multiple revenue streams that support each other, the risk to a potential buyer is reduced dramatically. The business becomes a much more attractive candidate.

Predictable, recurring, multiple income streams make a business seem less risky to a potential buyer. So the sooner you start building recurring revenue streams in your business, the better your position will be if and when the time comes to sell.

Introducing: Your Next Sales Super Achiever

We all want to increase sales and grow our businesses. We also know that hiring and grooming a sales superstar is one surefire way of achieving those goals. Unfortunately, finding and retaining a sales superstar is a difficult task. Until you find the secret to make that a reality, here's an alternate path to consider for reaching your sales goals.

Self-publish a book!

You read that correctly. One of the best ways to increase your sales and grow your business is to author and publish your own book. Self-publishing your book allows you to present your points to your target audience in an authoritative way -- just like a sales superstar would.

Now, to be clear, we aren't talking about writing a novel the size of War and Peace. Nor are we talking about writing a prize-winning book. This type of book is written specifically to bring you leads and the types of customers who are looking to buy what you sell.

They say everyone has at least one book in them, but no one tells you how to go about writing it. Being an author is on many people's dream lists, but few go about actually accomplishing the tasks needed to bring a book to life. Perhaps that's because writing a book seems so overwhelming. "It will take many years." "I don't know how to write a book." "I don't know what to write about." These are some of the many excuses that stand in the way of making authorship a reality.

It doesn't have to be that way. Here are five simple steps to get you going:

1. Pick your topic title.


2. Make an outline of your main topic and sub-topics.


3. Choose three main subjects to write about.


4. Think about ways you or your products/services go about solving your customers' problems. Come up with 10-20 solutions.


5. Write about and expand on one of those points one hour every day.

It really can be as simple as that. Within a few weeks, you'll have the main part of the book finished and ready for editing. Finding nice cover graphics and having it printed is not difficult.

Imagine being able to hand a prospect your own beautifully printed book. Do you think that would establish credibility and open some doors?

Your own self-published book is the ultimate business card -- and the sales superstar you can use to grow your business in ways not otherwise possible. What's more, this kind of sales superstar has no ego and doesn't call in sick either. There's at least one book in you. Start writing it today.