Bill Gluth's Creative Business Strategy Blog

Follow Your Feelings to Make More Sales

Recently, I attended a weekend seminar. I almost didn't go, but I had a feeling that it would be a good idea to attend. 

I arrived at the last minute to find about 500 people in a large hotel ballroom.

I generally like to sit toward the front, but unfortunately, I arrived at the 11th hour and had to sit about half way back.

Sitting in between two groups of women, one of the ladies on my right asked, "What do you do?"

I told her I was a commercial writer and sales process strategist. Then asked, "How about you?"

It turned out she was in the HR business and needed copy for a new Web site written.

We exchanged cards, I followed up the next week and we began a buyer-centric Web copy project. All because I had the 'feeling' that I should attend this event, even though I was a bit resistant to going the day of.

Follow those feelings and see remarkable things happen in your life more often than not.

Send a Card to a Soldier This Holiday Season

My friend, the Money Master, Jeff Fagin, sent me an email asking for my support of a program that lets our wounded soldiers know that we are thinking of them and appreciate their sacrifices.

Here's the message Jeff sent:

GREAT  IDEA! When doing your holiday cards this year, take one card and send it to this address.  If we pass this on and everyone sends one card, think of how many cards these wonderful special people who have sacrificed so much would get. 
 

Holiday Mail for Heros
PO Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456

This effort is provided by the American Red Cross. Over 600,000 cards were delivered to deserving service men and women in 2007. They hope to break the record this year, but all cards must be sent by December 10th to make the deadline.

I would encourage everyone to take a short break and send your appreciation to these deserving women and men and spread the word among your tribe.

Thank you very much for participating.

Hope for the Future

Do you know what makes me hopeful?

I'll tell you in a second, but first ...

Ask anyone around the world and it's quite clear: Night before last the world, together, was given a renewed sense of hope.

It doesn't matter where you're from, what you believe in, who you voted for as an American. Some moments bring the world together and that was one of them.

I personally don't agree with all of President-elect Obama's policies, but I agree with the message he gave the world in his acceptance speech: peace, liberty, and hope for the future ...

Those are ideas we can all get behind. What really makes me hopeful is that I live in a time where great information from true visionaries can make its way to so many people - all through the power of technology.

For example; my friend Mark Joyner's "Kaizen Club" went live:
http://www.simpleology.com/p/kc/billgluth/

If you don't know Mark, you should ... He has been referred to as "one of the most important minds of the 21st century" by news agencies and scholars. His books are read throughout the globe in 20 different languages.

What Mr. Joyner is offering there fits perfectly with this wonderful moment in history.

Kaizen is, in fact, about hope. It is a system of changing your life that is so easy and unstoppable that it's hard not to be filled with optimism.

If you haven't yet read the back story (and the hundreds upon hundreds of responses from people), check out the blog: http://www.simpleology.com/p/blog/billgluth/

This is truly a great time to be alive.

Why Bother

When you feel like you’re so busy that you can’t spare another moment, it’s easy to put important tasks on the back burner and say, “Why bother.”

The reason to bother is simple to understand but sometimes hard to believe.

One action you take today can make all the difference in the world to someone else. Try these simple ideas and see the results you gain, both personally and professionally.

When you think of a client, call them or drop them a card. Let them know you appreciate their business.

If there’s a prospect you’ve been chasing, offer to take them to lunch or coffee. Then don’t try to sell them anything. Instead, ask questions that will help you get to know them better.

Go on a mission to create a value that can enhance the life of another human being. When you feel like your work is making a difference in the world, you are much more willing to go out and share that vision with others.

The reason to “bother” is always very simple to understand. The action you take, no matter how small it may seem, can change the life of another person and enhance your life at the same time.

The Concept of Logos is Dated

 In the not too distant past businesses established their name thanks, in part, to a logo.

The logo showcased a business by creating memorable “art” that helped people recognize the name whenever they saw it.

The problem was when the logo was viewed, buyer’s still wondered what the business actually did.

A new breed of business identity device has replaced the logo and it’s called a meme.

Meme's give us an immediate frame of reference for ideas. For example, a heart is a frequently used meme to project the idea of love.

The word meme is a term borrowed from the world of genetics and means, “A unit of identification.”

In marketing a business, the meme differs from a logo in that it utilizes words, the company name and an image to create a memorable message.

The end result is, a complete sales message is delivered every time the meme is viewed.

When taken into sales situations, you’ll find greater receptiveness from your buyers and quicker qualifying, which ultimately leads to more sales closings. You’ll also have a way to inspire greater word of mouth marketing from viewers of your meme.

The secret to a meme’s success is to make sure that you are telling a complete story, at a glance, which inspires your buyers to ask you to tell them more.

The War of Art by Steven Pressfield -- Outstanding!

I was recently directed to read a book called, The War of Art, Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles. It was written by Author, Steven Pressfield, who also wrote The Legend of Bagger Vance, Gates of Fire, Tides of War and other fiction titles.

This was his first venture into non-fiction and I hope not his last.

His ideas were thought provoking and served as gentle, and at times not so gentle reminders of how to be a break through blocks that keep us from succeeding in creative endeavors.

It's a perfect read for any business person who is not achieving their goals, dreams and full potential.

Buy it now, read it, follow the advice and improve both your outlook and productivity in running your business or any creative endeavor.

Cover image courtesy of Steven Pressfeld.com

Garbage In, Garbage Out

I was working on an article for a client’s sales process campaign recently that talked about audio in legal settings.

In one part of the article, my client indicated that, “The major factor in obtaining a clear transcription of an interview, no matter what the source, is the simple adage: Garbage in, garbage out.”

That got me thinking about small business. The single greatest ‘garbage in’ thought that inhibits business success is fear.

The greatest fear many small business owners face, daily, is managing the fear of sales.

The reason for the fear is most businesses do not have a compelling story to tell that potential new prospects care about. The majority of businesses talk about their products or services from the ME perspective.

As a result, buyers block instead of embrace the marketing and sales message. This makes creating new sales opportunities an uphill battle.

Istead, understand what your buyers care about and project that story in your sales process. The buyer-centric concept is focused on the speaking to the buyer about what they want. They generally want solutions to challenges they face.

If you target your buyer list properly, you’ll get more people to raise their hand and say the magic words of marketing success, “Tell me more about that.”

Your prospects will engage with your offer better because you are communicating in a way they can hear you. You are talking about their challenges instead of your services and adding value to the conversation up-front.

Garbage in turns into focused messages and garbage out becomes new sales in your pipeline.

David Meerman Scott Has a Great Advice for the Presidential Candidates

As a follow up to my post on John McCain and Barak Obama's Advertising Hell, David Meerman Scott, Author of The New Rules of Marketing and PR, has outstanding advice for the Presidential candidates.

David points out, "Nobody cares about your products and services except you and the others in your organization.

"What your buyers do care about are themselves. And they care a great deal about solving their problems (and are always on the lookout for a company that can help them do so)."

David goes on to say that these rules apply to politicians as well as businesses. The politicians buyer persona's include voters, supporters, and contributors.

Read his excellent post on Buyer-Centric marketing at http://www.webinknow.com/2008/08/nobody-cares-ab.html

Let's all hope the candidates catch the wave of this idea soon. Thanks for the great ideas, David.

How Trying Can Ruin Your Business

Here’s an interesting fact. The word “try” can be the kiss of death to your business accomplishments.

The reason is the word try indicates to your subconscious mind that you really don’t think it’s possible to accomplish the task you’re considering.

You use the word try as a way fend off the feeling of failure.

“I tried, but just couldn’t get around to __________ (fill in the unaccomplished task).

Instead of trying and being disappointed, use this approach.

Think of something important you want to accomplish.

Decide with firm conviction you’re going to do it.

Set an exact date and time to accomplish the task.

Schedule it in your time planner. If you don’t have a time planner, get a simple one going today. I like the “At a Glance” calendar books for their simplicity and effectiveness.

Stick to your schedule and accomplish the task.

Treat it like any other important appointment. You cannot blow it off because something else came up any more than you could dismiss a sales call or client meeting.

Repeat with every important task you have.

Michael Gerber and The EMyth Revisited Reminder

I picked up a new copy of EMyth Revisited yesterday. After visiting their Web site I was inspired to read the book again.

I love the quote on the last page. It is so true and often forgotten. As a reminder, here it is:

When you hear something, you forget it. When you see something, you remember it. But not until you do something will you understand it.

Great quote from a brillant man, Michael Gerber. An inspriation to us all.