Archive for March, 2010

18 Disciplines of Selling

by mmaclay Posted: Monday, 3/22/2010

The first quarter of 2010 is coming to a close-have you closed as many sales as you planned? If you are like many, sales is a complex, frustrating activity that can deflate your ego as fast as a pin in a balloon. I continue to hear this from my clients, colleagues, friends and even strangers I happen to strike up a conversation with while waiting in lines, sitting on the bus, even in passing on the street! What is it about having to present a prospect with value worth more than the price that can send an otherwise confident, articulate, enthusiastic adult running for the door?  The magic words, “let me think about it”, bring instant relief to many and justification for the retreat.
back_to_basicsI began sharing the 18 Disciplines of Sales used by a consistently successful sales associate and 2 time recipient of the Brian Tracy award for Sales Excellence. In past blog posts these were presented a few at a time. Considering the consistently recurring sales theme, it seemed timely to share all 18 at once. Hope these offer some relief from frustration. Sales CAN go according to plan. Apply these basics and make the second quarter of 2010 exceed your expectations:
1. Be PROUD of whatever role you are in and act like it. Perception is reality.  CONFIDENCE SELLS!!
2. Act like a WINNER. People gravitate to those they perceive as winners. Success is an attitude.
3. Expect SUCCESSS and er, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER give up. Success requires persistence.                         getting-organized2
4. Be PASSIONATE about what you do and show it. People feel passion and they pay for passion.
5. Get ORGANIZED. If you live in clutter your mind is cluttered.  
6. Set written, clear, concise, smart GOALS. Commit 2 minutes a day to think about and write them down.
7. Have a daily, prioritized PLAN. Must apply this discipline. Prepare it at night and let your superconscious mind go to work on it. Stay focused and insure that what you are doing “right now” is the one thing that will move your business forward.
8. Have a clear idea of who your TARGET CUSTOMER is. Work hard to narrow it down so your prospecting time is effective. Be aware of opportunities right in front of you.
9. Selling is about RELATIONSHIPS and effective communication. Identify who you are speaking with and what their needs are. People buy from those who understand them. Leverage tools out there, like D.I.S.C., to sharpen your listening and communication skills.
10. Clearly understand your UNIQUE SELLING PROPOSITION (USP). What sets you and your business apart from others? Know and be able to articulate it. The time spent figuring this out is worth every minute (or hour!!).
11. Create a POWERFUL 10 second MESSAGE. Only 2% of all salespeople can articulate what they do in 10 seconds. DSC00354Answer WII-FM (what’s in it for me?).

12. In it’s most basic form, selling is a game of NUMBERS. Talk with alot of people, sell to them all. ASK for appointments. ASK for referrals.
13. LISTEN!! the prospect will tell you how to sell them.
14. Be CONSISTANT and PERSISTANT. 80% of ALL sales are made on the FIFTH to TWELTH contact.  48% of salespeople NEVER follow up with a prospect        

15. Understand that closing is NOT A BIG EVENT…It’s Incidental!
16. Understand what you are willing to give up to get what you want.
17. TRACK EVERYTHING…hours, cost, leads, customers…..
18. Work HARD and work SMART . What you put into it is what you get out of it.
Now get out there and SELL!!!!!!

Posted in Basics, Discipline, Goal Achievement, Goal Setting, Productivity, Sales, Success | 1 Comment »

5 Business Success Basics from Olympic Athletes

by mmaclay Posted: Monday, 3/8/2010

Success_FailureCould not have said it better…enjoy!
Five Management Lessons from Olympic Athletes
Monday, March 1, 2010 12:00 AM, Harvey Schachter (Globe and Mail)
The athletes have finished their competition in Vancouver but the memories – and lessons – remain. ‘Whether you’re a sports fan or not, there are valuable lessons to be learned when you view the efforts and results of these amazing athletes from the perspective of leadership and peak performance,’ consultant Kevin Eikenberry says in his e-zine. He offers five – fittingly, one for each Olympic ring – to take to work this week:
They Keep Score
Olympic athletes know how they are doing all the time. They know their results, but they also know their progress and improvement. If you want to improve your performance, Mr. Eikenberry says, you’ve got to keep score of your own efforts and results.

They Have Clear Goals
Every athlete had a goal for the Olympics. To some, just qualifying to be there was the target, while, for others, a medal – or a specific medal, gold – was the obsession. Mr. Eikenberry stresses that the athletes were all clear about their goals, and says you must duplicate that precision in your own work life.

They Practice
Actually, they practice, practice, practice – and practice some more. “They don’t expect world-class performance after only putting in occasional efforts in training. They know to be their best, they must practice in focused and strategic ways to reach their goals,” he notes. “Do you practice like a champion? Are you as diligent and consistent in learning the skills that will help you succeed as they are?”

They Play To The End
They know where the finish line is, and they don’t stop until they hit it. They pick themselves up after falling and continue, or even ignore injuries in their zeal to make it to the finish line. Their chance to achieve their goal may be lost but they don’t stop. And you will rarely hear them blaming others for results, unlike many folks in the workplace who constantly berate scapegoats. “Olympic athletes play to the end, remaining singularly focused on their endeavour. Do you?” Mr. Eikenberry asks.

Margaret MaclayThey Have Coaches
It’s unheard of for these world-class athletes not to have a coach. Even though they are among the best in the world, they recognize that they need help to keep improving their performance. It’s the same for achieving success in the office. The best thing you can do to improve your own or your staff’s performance is to find a coach.

I welcome your thoughts and comments. Need some help applying these to your business and life? Join me, local business owners and professionals on March 15th in Edgewater, NJ for “Flight Plan 2010″ Workshop and make a commitment RIGHT NOW to take the action necessary and implement these 5 lessons and more. Register on the Flight Plan link.

Posted in Business performance, Coaching, Goal Setting, Success, Teleseminar | No Comments »

Perform at your best…no matter what!

by mmaclay Posted: Monday, 3/1/2010

Margaret MaclayBack in August I was all excited about writing a blog. I jumped right in and entered my first post!!!

Then I got distracted, things got “busy”, procrastination set in and suddenly hesitant about whether anyone would actually read or care about what I had to say, the posts ceased as rapidly as they had begun.

When posting my March workshops I realized that more than 195 days had passed since my first/last/only blog entry. My, how time flies! But isn’t this indicative of what happens to us in business and life every day? They say “time flies when you’re having fun”…but it flies whether or not you’re having fun. Months just seem to glide by.

I was reading something a more diligent author posted-don’t recall the source, so sorry to whomever I quoted in the title of this post-and was struck by the words “Perform at your best…no matter what”.  No matter what? Despite intentions to do our best, we all have overly full schedules, reasons for why things didn’t get done… much better than blaming the dog for eating it and distractions, good, bad or otherwise.

Most recently, The Olympics were the distraction. The snow was a distraction. The Yahoo blog post about winners and losers at the Olympics was a distraction. After all, despite 17 days of viewing, on 3 channels, with recaps at least twice an hour, something important could have been missed!! It was…the lesson we can be reminded of by some of these amazing athlete’s who truly do perform at their best no matter what. Time to take action!

Part of performing at your best no matter what as a business owner, is to take action every day. Take action that might not always be fun, but is important to moving your business forward. This is what distinguishes the winners.

Indeed time is flying. Today is March 1st. The first quarter of 2010 is almost over. Yikes! What a great time to make a commitment to “perform at your best no matter what”  and achieve everything you planned for 2010.  Even if it’s not always that fun. The results are bound to be fun and satisfying.

 So, my initial blogpost stated that I was going to share the 18 Disciplines of Selling put forth by our top FocalPoint Coach, Dan Creed, 2 time recipient of the Brian Tracy Award for Sales Excellence. The first 5 can be found in my post “Success Is Not An Accident!”. Here are the next 5,  which are sure to impact your business success if you give them your best shot no matter what:

6. Set written, clear, concise, smart GOALS. Commit 2 minutes a day to think about and write them down.

7. Have a daily, prioritized PLAN. Must have this little discipline. If you prepare it at night, your superconscious mind will go to work on it. Be focused and insure that what you are doing “right now” is the one thing that will move your business forward.

8. Have a clear idea of who your TARGET CUSTOMER is. Work hard to narrow it down so your prospecting time is effective. Be aware of opportunities right in front of you.

9. Selling is about RELATIONSHIPS and effective communication. Identify who you are speaking with and what their needs are. People buy from those who understand them, not those they understand. Leverage tools out there, like D.I.S.C., to sharpen your listening and communication skills.

10. Clearly understand your USP (unique selling proposition). What sets you and your business apart from others? Know and be able to articulate it. The time spent figuring this out is worth every minute (or hour!!)

The next 5 will be coming soon. No waiting another 195+ days.

What’s getting in the way of you performing at your best, no matter what?

Posted in Business performance, Goal Achievement, Procrastination, Productivity, Sales | 1 Comment »