This is it, September is here. While it’s not officially fall yet, and there’s really no need to rush the actual seasons, this does mark the beginning of one type of new year. Certainly this is the ‘back to business’ season as we shift our focus and attitude. I for one love this time of year and all of the potential that it brings. This is such a great time to connect with your customers and to learn more about what challenges they’ll be facing this fall and how we can be there to help them.
8 Tips All Sales Teams Need To Know
Scott MacFarland
This is a Huffington Post article from May that is worth reviewing now as we transition into September. The article is a reminder about how we have to invest in our sales teams. He talks about personas, product knowledge, value proposition, overcoming objections, cross selling and up-selling, competitors information, social media, blogging, mobile technology… and something I particularly like is his “selling money” idea. It’s a good article and it’s timely to review these concepts now.
The Simple Truths About Selling
Mike Kunkle
While selling isn’t necessarily easy, it’s certainly a lot simpler than many people make it out to be. It all comes down to certain key principles and truths and I love the way that Mike has boiled this down to a very poignant list. 460 words in 21 bullet points. It’s worth your time to have a read. Mike’s also posed questions for us to ask ourselves, and I love the way that posts like this get me focused and thinking. That’s the whole point of this business growth roundup; to leverage the knowledge of my fellow industry experts and to get inspired for the upcoming week. This blog post does exactly that. Read it and let me know what you think.
Enough Is Enough Already: Productive ACTION = Success
Nancy Bleeke
What an interesting idea. What is “enough”? Nancy contrasts the people who are information junkies, constantly loading up on new information, with the people who fall short on knowledge. How do we gauge the right balance of what is enough so that we can spend our time more appropriately and take action? The most successful people know enough, but they don’t spin their wheels and lose time overloading on information. Nancy gives us some questions to ask ourselves and challenges us to differentiate between knowledge being power, and being able to take powerful action.
What’s the Full-Funnel Effect?
Amanda Maksymiw
It’s not just about getting new customers, it’s about engaging more effectively with existing customers and giving them the best possible value from the trust you build in your relationship. This article explores the researching that shows that predictive marketing tools can help you to grow revenue from both your new customers as well as from your existing customers. The author, Amanda Maksymiw, looks at how we should avoid working only from the top of the funnel and access the full funnel for true business growth. It’s all about marketing across the customer lifecycle. Does your company have a marketing budget? Her statistics show that about half of most businesses are lacking a budget. What’s your situation?
I hope that you have a great kick off to September and that these articles help you to feel motivated to take the action this seasonal change demands. Back to business, have a great week!