I’d like to think when this is all over, companies will realize they don’t need have their sales teams “on the road” 24/7…..unfortunately, I think most companies will only cut down on travel in the short-term. I think the moment something goes wrong (e.g. lose a big deal), virtual selling will be blamed. Sales leaders… Read More »The post-coronavirus state of sales
Most companies post content on social media that is all about THEM – their products, services and upcoming releases; using the platform as another advertising channel. That’s a problem. Why? Because no one logged onto social media to read that kind of content. When I tell this to marketing leaders, I am usually shrugged off,… Read More »EXPLAINED: The danger of posting product-based social media content
You send me a cold email.I respond with “not interested”You follow-up with “wait, you don’t understand…”I block you.Why? I understand what your company does but it is in no way relevant to my company. You didn’t do any pre-work to find out about my company, what we do, our pain points, and if you could… Read More »Don’t let a bad email approach get you blocked
“So, you sent me an invitation to connect pitching to help my eCommerce business. 1 problem: That’s not what my company does. This is where bad training or a bad lead-scraping program fails you. YES, I used to run eCommerce for a Fortune 100, but that was 11 YEARS ago. So, even though I pop-up… Read More »Do your homework on LinkedIn
Some quick profile tips to help you get a larger viewership on LinkedIn The first thing people check is your LinkedIn profile when you reach out, so it has to sing. In your profile, show you are smart, trustworthy, and an industry expert, and entice them to learn more (but don’t pitch). Your target audience… Read More »LinkedIn profile tips
This is social media, not ANTI-SOCIAL media. To be successful with social media, you have to engage with others. If you only post content, it’s like you’re on the sidewalk shouting things through a megaphone. Eventually people will tune you out, and stop engaging with your content. Social media is about reciprocity. Engage with the… Read More »This is social, not ANTI-SOCIAL media
When is the best time to connect with someone on LinkedIn? It’s all about proximity. The best 3 times are immediately after: 1. You meet them in-person. Don’t give a key contact a chance to forget you. For example, if you are at a conference, regardless of how late you get back each night from… Read More »When is the right time to send a LinkedIn invite?
When I was in college in the 1990s, the internet was first starting to catch-on. However, most websites were still using their IP addresses, not a domain name (so 205.251.242.54 instead of Amazon.com). I remember my friends and I typing in 4 random numbers in class to see what would come up. Most simple domain… Read More »I lost millions of dollars – what I learned
Recently, LinkedIn asked me (since “you’ve been posting some great stuff on LinkedIn” – wow, pretty cool!) what trends I see for 2019. My answer: MORE Strategy-level: MORE mobile, digital, social and more data-driven and customer-centric decision-making and experimentation with innovations like AI and AR. Tactics: MORE social selling. I get so many spam calls,… Read More »Big sales and marketing innovations coming in 2019
“I failed,” I thought. “I missed the sales goal I set for this year.” (goal was 100% increase YOY, we hit 89%). But then I remembered why I started this company: To spend more time with my family To work with a variety of exciting clients To HELP people, especially non-profits. So, I looked back… Read More »What’s really important in business (and in life)