Set Leadership Goals for the New Year, by Jennifer H. Ledet, SPHR
January 29, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Well, it’s that time again. The time of year when we all sit down and write out some New Year’s resolutions. Ugh!
This year, think in terms of your career. Why not plan to become a better leader in the coming year? Why not plot ways to make your organization more employee-friendly? Even if you’re not in a leadership position yet, you can commit to some of these goals that would enhance your potential for promotion.
• Reward/recognize employees. If you’re already recognizing employees, set yourself a goal to do so more often. Recognize employees for “going the extra mile”, for having a pleasant attitude toward work, or just for being dependable and reliable. You don’t have to spend a lot of money. A handwritten note or a sticky note on their desk or phone can go a long way!
• Commit to investing in your own professional development. Attend seminars, workshops, classes, online courses, etc. No matter what your industry, you need to stay up-to-date with current trends. And everybody can use a refresher on leadership and management skills from time to time.
• Commit to investing in your employees’ professional development. If your budget allows, provide opportunities for your employees to attend seminars, workshops, and classes. You may even opt to have workshops conducted in-house, which provides a great opportunity for employees to get together and network while they learn a new skill.
• Participate in industry and professional organizations and encourage your employees to join and get involved. Getting involved in industry and professional organizations offers employees the opportunity to broaden their perspective and may help them to generate more innovative ways for getting their job done.
• Read professional and personal development books. As an avid reader, my biggest problem is which book to read first. I believe that reading a wide variety of books will make you a well-rounded person and certainly a more knowledgeable and articulate leader. Set yourself a goal of reading a certain number of books per week/month/year.
• Ask for, and really listen to feedback from your employees. One of the top ten factors in determining employee satisfaction is the feeling that the employee is “in” on things. Often, employees have great ideas for improving productivity, innovative solutions to problems and a thorough understanding of operations. By asking for their input, you may not only be improving employee morale, you may just be improving your bottom line!
• Sit down with your employees and map out performance goals for them. My favorite quote on this subject comes from Yogi Berra, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you might not get there”. Anyway, you get my point: employees need to have some direction and certainly need to know what you expect of them.
So, what leadership goals have you set for the New Year? You know, success with any skill doesn’t happen by accident. You have to plan for it. Let me hear your plans for improvement. You may inspire others to reach higher!
To Your Success,
Jennifer
How Flexible is Your Selling Style? By Tiffanie Z. Lyon
January 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment
We all are unique individuals. I believe our personalities are shaped both by our DNA and through our upbringing and environment (“nature” vs. “nurture”). We have a style that comes naturally to us, without effort; innate tendencies.
The type of selling I promote, teach and advocate for is just that: natural and genuine. Our prospects and customers can read through anybody being fake, insincere or trying to be something they are not. You must remain “you.”
That said, it’s also important to smoothly and seamlessly adapt to others so that you can build a connection and positive first impression. This goes for when we meet anybody for the first time, social and business networking events and when we’re prospecting for new business.
Here are a few examples to consider:
- If you tend to speak fast, loudly and are naturally enthusiastic and you meet with someone who is soft-spoken, calm and slower-paced, it’s advantageous for you to take your natural style down a couple notches.
- If you tend to be private, analytical and fact-based and the person you are meeting is asking you about your family and expressing broad opinions, you can share only what you feel comfortable and quickly turn it back around and ask them questions about the same.
Your style can be adaptable by reversing the table and letting a talkative person talk. They are bound to like you for that. If you tend to be talkative, friendly and outgoing and the person you are meeting with seems calculated and looking at his/her watch, it would be wise to skip the common pleasantries and get right- to-the-point of your meeting.
Remember, adapting your style to others is NOT being deceptive. It’s showing flexibility to work with others who may be different than you and building a connection with someone as the relationship develops. This is the first impression starting point of being able to naturally adjust your selling style for optimal results.
What do you think your personal selling style is? Do you adapt to others and augment your style depending on how your prospects and customers display themselves? Can you see the benefit of adjusting your style?
Happy Selling!
— Tiffanie Z. Lyon, www.lyonsalesinstitute.com
Understanding Your Sales Cycle- Part 1 By Tiffanie Z. Lyon
January 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Your Sales Process or Sales Cycle is what takes you from the introduction of an opportunity to a closed sale. Some sales cycles are short– like a retail transaction such as buying milk in a grocery store, to a longer sales cycles like buying a car or investing in professional services. The sales cycle/process tends to be longer when:
- it’s a high-ticket item; a lot of money involved
- multiple decision makers have to weigh in (i.e committees)
- significant consequences or ramifications if the wrong decision is made; risky
Step 1: Identify the steps of your sale:
It doesn’t have to be 7 steps, but it should be about 5-7. Example: New Opportunity, Approach, Planned to Meet, Analysis Complete, Proposal Submitted, Contract Signed, Follow Up and CRM. Use phrases that make sense to you. Remember: Some sales will combine steps and some may skip steps, but you’ll always have the first and last steps (the intro & close).
EXAMPLE:
New Opportunity– you get that business card of a lead, you see a business on the street you’d like to work with, somebody gives you a referral
Approach– a dialog is started, either in person, via email or telephone
Planned to Meet– you’ve schedule a phone appointment or in-person meeting to “qualify” and understand their needs
Analysis Complete– you’ve met and did a complete needs analysis to see if you can even help them (needs, decision-maker, timing and budget)
Proposal Submitted– you’ve now submitted pricing, quote, terms, arrangement, investment based on their needs, budget and timing
Contract Signed– paperwork is signed, handshake, letter of intent, closed deal
Follow up/Customer Relationship Management– product delivered, services rendered, follow up and cross-selling opportunities
Step 2: Describe what should happen in each step and also what needs to be confirmed before moving to the next.
Step 3: Timeframes: for each step, identify how long (on average) your prospect stays at that step.
Step 4: Allocations: You must always have prospects pretty evenly distributed throughout the sales funnel/process. Keep the sales funnel filled!
Ok, so that’s the 4-step process of identifying and defining your sales process. Do you know what your particular sales process looks like? Are you committed to documenting it? Will you take action?
Now, once you understand your sales process, it’s important to control that process (not “control the prospect”) to ensure prospects move through it quickly….. STAY TUNED… Next post—
“Part 2: 3 Tips To Speed Up Your Sales Cycle.”
Happy Selling!
–Tiffanie Z. Lyon, www.lyonsalesinstitute.com
Winning Pricing Strategies for You and Your Customers by Myra L. Corrello
January 1, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Today we are faced with enormous changes in our economic climate. Prices, in part due to the rising price of oil, are rising on everything. In turn, we are paying more for everything in our businesses. Our expenses are rising.Have you adjusted your pricing to compensate for your increased costs?
Many business owners are reluctant to raise prices for fear of alienating good, long-standing clients. This reluctance can drag on for years and slowly erode your profit margin till you are practically working for nothing.
Raising your prices is one of the most important tools you have in managing your profitability. There are even measures you can take to mitigate any negative reaction from existing customers if you execute them properly.
First, let’s review some important principles of pricing:
- The more distinct your product or service is in a way that your customers care about, the less price sensitivity you’ll encounter. People will pay more for something if it’s giving them what they need or want and they perceive there are few or no good substitutes. Seek to “brand” your uniqueness and find effective ways to communicate your distinction.
- Add value to your existing product or service by combining it with a complementary product or service to create packages.
- Carefully plan a price increase so that you, your staff, and your customers have time to adjust. You can create goodwill, yes, goodwill even during a price increase if you handle it properly.
How do you create goodwill with current customers during a price increase?
- First, start by setting the price increase a few months out. Three months gives you a good working timeframe.
- Next, create a pre-increase sales promotion program. Communicate with all your customers, the more personal the communication the better, about the increase and suggest they stock up on your product prior to the increase. A sense of time-urgency is a powerful motivator.
- Be prepared to have lots of orders the day before the increase! By contacting your customers personally, they will perceive that you care about their welfare and value their patronage.
- Consider offering a bulk-purchase discount, if you don’t already, to make their stock-up strategy even more beneficial.
Raising prices is a stressful issue for most business owners but it is the most efficient way to greater profitability. Just remember to plan your process well, use it to reconnect with your customers in a positive way, and offer your current customers an opportunity to adapt to the change.
What specific activities could you plan for to make a price increase a successful experience?
Myra
Helping Individuals and Organizations Increase Their Image, Influence, and Impact
MyraCorrello.com
