How to Eliminate Objections to Price

by admin on April 19th, 2009

Have you ever stepped your way through the sales process
only to be disappointed by your prospect’s objection to
your price?

This situation unfolds all too regularly for many small
business owners.

The other day I was talking to Joan who was lamenting how
she’d spent a ton of time developing a relationship with a
new prospect, but in the end wasn’t able to make the sale.
Over the course of six sales meetings her prospect seemed
like a slam dunk. He was very enthusiastic about her
product (inventory control software for the food service
industry), he hadn’t seen a similar product on the market
(Joan’s software has a unique and easy to use interface) and
he and Joan seemed to have a great rapport (they both are
avid snow boarders and each loves jazz) . But when it came
time for Joan to ask for the business the answer was ‘no’.
Her hot prospect was cool on her price.

Where did Joan go wrong? She was quite befuddled with her
collapsed deal and wanted to know what she could do to
prevent such future failings. Not only did she not get the
business, she ended up wasting her valuable time which could
have been better spent developing a lead that turned into a
sale.

Does this sound familiar? Have you ever spent time
developing a great lead only to have the deal fall apart
because your prospect objects to your price?

If so, you may have made the same common sales mistake Joan
made: she tried to make the sale without having enough
information to make her prospect the right offer, despite
her six positive sales meetings.

What Joan neglected to do was to ask her prospect about his
accounting needs with respect to inventory control.
Unfortunately for Joan, she learned this important fact only
after our conversation when she called her prospect back to
find out where she went wrong. Her prospect had already
decided to use the software of one of her competitors. Even
though Joan’s software features a nice accounting package,
her offer included nothing with respect to accounting. Her
prospect assumed that her software didn’t feature the
accounting functionality he required because Joan didn’t
mention it. She talked a lot about the software’s
innovative, easy to use interface and its great database
functionality but she never mentioned the accounting
features because her prospect didn’t ask. Her price would
have been fine if her prospect had known about the
accounting capability of her software!

During your sales process be sure to ask all the questions
you need answered to understand your prospect’s needs. You
can then use the information you’ve acquired to shape your
pitch around exactly what is going to solve your prospect’s
problems.

Before you tell your prospect your price make sure the time
is right by asking questions like:

Does this sound helpful?

Is there anything I haven’t mentioned that would be helpful?

What do you like best about our competition’s product or service?

By obtaining answers to these questions you will be able to
gauge whether or not you have enough information to make an
offer that your prospect would be ill-advised to decline.

If you don’t have enough information go back for more;
schedule another meeting and then go through another probing
round of questions.

If you do have enough information, make your prospect the
best offer they’ve ever heard. If you’ve done enough
homework you’ll make the sale.

The author, marketing coach, Jeremy Cohen, helps small business owners and professional service providers attract more clients, grow their business and be more successful with his marketing guides and coaching service. Get his free guide at: http://www.bettermarketingresults.com/marketing-services.asp.

Can Barter Help Increase Cash Sales and Visability for Your Small Business?

by admin on April 7th, 2009

Barter is becoming an increasingly popular method of commerce. The U.S. Department of Commerce estimates that 20 to 25% of world trade is now barter. Corporate barter is now a 20 billion dollar industry. It seems as though everyone from the big corporations on the New York Stock Exchange to small home-based businesses are jumping on the barter bandwagon.

I never thought about barter as a tool for building my businesses. That changed in April when I joined a local barter network in Vermont. For a small membership fee and a small commission on each trade, I now have access to almost 200 (and growing) local merchants’ products and services including everything from popular restaurants, to spa services, electricians, hotels, rental cars, landscapers, and yes, even flying or sailing lessons!

How does it work?(Most of the big networks function in this way.)

• When you join the network, you receive a no-interest line of barter credit. Barter credit is similar to the credit line on your credit card. You can use the credit as you please and when you trade your company’s goods or services, you receive barter dollars (par with US dollars) credited to your account.
• Your business is listed in the network membership directory. The listing provides basic information about your business and buyers contact you directly.
• When someone in the network wants your product or service, you authorize the transaction according to the agreed price and the system keeps track of the details for you. It isn’t necessary to purchase goods from the person who purchased from you. Your trade dollars can be used to purchase from any other network members.
• You receive a computer-generated monthly statement showing your barter activity. You pay a small commission based on the amount of barter dollars transacted. Think of it like an interest rate on a credit card only it costs much less and has more benefits.

Benefits include:

• Barter increases new business: Attract customers and referrals who wouldn’t have known about your business otherwise. Members of the network are likely to choose you over the competition if there is no outlay of cash. This in turn, will increase your cash sales, simply because your product is gaining exposure and referrals.
• Barter expands your customer base: Expand your market while maintaining your existing cash customer base. Please your barter customers and they are sure to tell other potential customers all about you.
• Barter enhances your lifestyle: Use your barter credit for whatever you want in the network without using credit cards or spending cash. If there is a service or product that does not exist in your network, recruit a business that provides that service. Many barter networks pay you a referral bonus in the form of barter credits if you recruit a business they accept into the network.

How does one choose a barter network?

• Do an Internet search on Google to find a reputable network. The beauty of the Internet is that you don’t have to live in the state where the network is administrated.
• Talk to the person administrating the network. Make sure he/she answers all your questions to your satisfaction and doesn’t try to hard-sell you.
• Make sure all of the conditions are in writing and be sure you understand all network trading rules and limits before you sign or pay anything.
• Check to see what other businesses participate in the network. Are they businesses you respect, admire, and with whom you’ll want to do business?
• Tell your friends and other business owners. Spread the word about barter. You’d be surprised at how little people know about this method of conducting business.
• Get involved. Go to meetings or mixers. You get as much out of the experience as you are willing to put into networking. Remember, networking and sales are all about creating relationships.

Barter has created new power for my businesses. I feel good that I am supporting small companies like my own who I may have never met otherwise. Could barter work as part of your marketing plan?

Copyright 2005, Ann Zuccardy, All rights reserved.

Ann Zuccardy is a freelance technical and copy writer with 17 years of industry experience in marketing and technical communication. She currently consults with IBM in Essex Junction, Vermont where she writes software user manuals, training guides, and release notes. Ann is also the owner of Vermont Shortbread Company. She can be reached at Wordbrains.com.

Computer Consulting Services: Selling the Network as Security and Data Protection

by admin on February 25th, 2009

Small business prospects and clients may view your computer consulting services as part of their insurance policy. You write up a service agreement that lists what’s covered and what’s not, as well as various parameters for coverage. Then each month, quarter, or year you collect some kind of retainer deposit, similar to an insurance premium.

Play Up the Value of your Computer Consulting Services

Part of the reason small business owners never miss a premium is because they want to make sure that your firm will be there in their time of need. So effectively, one of the reasons small businesses hire your firm is for “security”. Rather than go kicking and screaming trying to vehemently deny this, play up the value of your computer consulting services and add security and data protection into your sales pitch – as major parts of your clients’ network investments.

Superior Security Foundation

Be sure to weave some of the following security and data protection points into your computer consulting services sales presentations. In sharp contrast to a client/server network like the one you’re proposing, a peer-to-peer “server” generally isn’t capable of maintaining its own user account security database.

As a result, a standalone peer-to-peer network is limited to “share-level” access control. This means everyone that connects to this peer-to-peer “server” share point has the same user name and password. There’s no way to differentiate between access levels of users and no way to terminate an individual’s password when he or she leaves the company.

Highlight Your Computer Consulting Services

A dedicated server OS, on the other hand, provides much better control over who has access to which shared resources. Each person can be assigned his or her own user name and password. Be sure to highlight how your proposed networking solution takes this into account.

Security with your proposed networking solution is also more flexible or granular. With most peer-to-peer “servers”, security can only be controlled at the share level. When a share point is set up on a dedicated server with a true NOS security can be controlled all the way down to the file level.

The Bottom Line about Computer Consulting Services

Consider adapting this file cabinet analogy for your client presentations: Would you rather grant employees unrestricted access to an entire room full of file cabinets, or just a few select hanging folders in certain file drawers which are pertinent to their job?

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Computer Consultants Secrets. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}

Joshua Feinberg has helped thousands of computer consultants get more steady, high-paying clients. Learn how you can too. Sign-up now for Joshua’s free Computer Consultants Secrets audio training at www.ComputerConsultantsSecrets.com/blog/

Overcoming Voicemail….The Salesperson’s Enemy

by admin on February 24th, 2009

You’ve all been in the position where you’ve left multiple voicemails only to have them not be returned. Frequently the prospect can begin to hear the frustration in your voice as they hit the delete bottom. Voicemail does not have to be the salesperson’s enemy, rather if used effectively it can assist in the sales process. So, just “how do we overcome it?”

The first cardinal rule of voicemail is if they don’t return your call, you MUST use a different approach. Be creative but do not continue to leave the same voicemail time and again because I guarantee it won’t be returned. You will also be viewed as an annoyance.

Once you’ve decided to leave a voicemail , do not leave your name and number because they simply are not going to call you back. Leave a very brief message that suggests your relationship and indicate that you will call again at a specific time. In a nutshell, give a 30 second commercial including your relationship and indicate a time you are going to call back. Be very specific about the time.

Next, more than likely your contact is not going to be there when you make your second call so you are probably going to have to leave another message. Indicate that you are making the call as promised and that you understand how busy they are & go ahead and suggest another time that you will call back. This time you will indicate that if the time doesn’t work, their secretary (by name) if you know it, should give you a call to schedule a better time. Leave a number for her to reach you at or mention that you will call at the suggested time.

By leaving this message, you are demonstrating that you follow through on things, that you are connected to the referral source and that you are courteous and considerate. You will know his secretary’s name because of the relationship building that you’ve done with the switchboard operator. You have also indicated to him that you respect his position because you mentioned that you understand how busy he is.

Another technique that can be very valuable in getting past voicemail is to establish a relationship with the receptionist or the operator. Typically, they have little human interaction on the phone-often they will welcome a personal conversation. An approach that can be used with a person in this position might be, “I know that you are busy with incoming calls, so feel free to put me on hold if necessary. Please tell me who might be in charge of buying cleaning supplies for your organization?” This person knows better than anyone who is handling what tasks, because it is their job.

Tim Hagen owns Sales Progress LLC, a sales consulting and development firm located in Mequon, Wisconsin. He has worked in a variety of industries to increase sales and address performance improvement. Feel free to contact him directly at salebuilder@aol.com or visit our website at http://www.SalesProgress.com.

Why You Buy, Part Three

by admin on February 23rd, 2009

Still more discoveries from the recent studies in behavioral economics:

Over-Valuing “Mine”

People consistently place a higher value on things they own, even if their “ownership” is temporary. The research is interesting, and I often saw this phenomenum used by salesmen on busses in Ecuador. A product is thrust into your hands, and after a ten-minute sales pitch, you pay or give back “your” item. It’s a very effective technique.

Regret Aversion

Of course you should bet $10 to win $20 on a toss of a coin, but for many, fear of regret (I lost $10!) outweighs desire to profit (I won $20!). The applications for this facet of human nature are in how you present things. With a person who has a strong tendency towards regret aversion, you’ll more likely to make a sale by suggesting what will be lost if he does’t buy, than by promising great benefits.

Refusal To “Book” Losses

I often saw this one when I worked at a casino. The loss doesn’t seem real to the player until he leaves the table, so he stays and loses more. There are thousands in casinos right now, losing more money and mumbling, “I just want to get even.”

Investors regularly hold losing investments simply because to sell them is an admission of the truth. Ask them which stocks will have the greatest return, and they won’t name their losing ones. They also won’t sell them to invest the money in the better stocks they do name, which would be the logical thing to do.

The Future Of Behavioral Economics

The science of behavioral economics is a growing field, with more studies being done every year. Though it hasn’t had much formal transference to the world of business yet, the techniques being studied have certainly been used for ages. Learn them, and you can profit – or protect yourself.

Steve Gillman has been studying every aspect of money for thirty years. You can find more interesting and useful information on his website; http://www.UnusualWaysToMakeMoney.com

Prospecting – Keep Good Records and Follow up

by admin on February 11th, 2009

Studies have shown that in commercial and industrial sales, the initial sale doesn’t come until after the fourth or fifth call. Therefore, we must assume that you have to make at least four or five calls on a new prospect in order to get a sale. Now that may seem simple logic and not require saying, but the conduct of many sales professionals belies that logic.

When I am in the field making cold calls (I call them BLITZ CALLs®) with a sales professional, I always tell them to keep good notes on the calls so we know how and when to follow up. They often look at me like I must be nuts, because they know what to do.

“If we get an appointment or a request for information, I will simply do what needs to be done.”

That sounds reasonable, but it does not show up in reality.

When I start training a sales team to make Prospecting a regular part of their weekly activities, I find several things.

• The first thing I find is that they suddenly have plenty of time to do the Prospecting that is needed. One of the standard excuses for not Prospecting is, “I simply don’t have the time.” Our Prospecting system was developed for that specific situation, so that problem is eliminated.

• The second thing I find is that the sales person is not used to Prospecting on a regular repeatable basis and therefore is not very well prepared to handle the requirements of their new found proactive endeavors. The result too often is delayed follow up or no follow up at all.

I was Prospecting with a salesman in Toronto a couple of years ago with the specific assignment to get him some new customers. He had just been made a salesman, and had not been able to get any new customers in almost 60 days on the job.

I said to him that I would make all of the Prospecting calls; he was to watch me and be sure to keep good records. My mistake was to assume that his understanding of good records and mine were the same.

We spent about 4 hours in the field and made 13 cold calls, which resulted in 5 appointments and several call backs. Then we went back to the office to debrief and get him ready for the appointments. I would not be able to go on those appointments with him.

When we started the review of the calls he had one of the appointments written down, he remembered two of the others, but the first two were a total blank in his mind. You see he thought he could remember anything of significance that happened when Prospecting. He couldn’t. Fortunately, I had kept a few notes and we were able to reconstruct the meetings we had had and then the appointments. Imagine how it would have been if he had not shown up for those appointments!

Since that experience I have been amazed to see how many sales people rely on their memories for so many important facts. And almost universally they forget too many details.

Follow up is one of the most important factors to successful Prospecting. Simply making those four or five Prospecting calls a week can get you many more customers. That is why you prospect. If you don’t keep good records, however, and don’t follow up, your Prospecting will result in a lot of wasted time for you and a bad reputation for your company.

There are a host of resources for record keeping and follow up available to the sales professional today ranging from index card boxes to day planners, personal organizers, to computer tracking and contact management programs. There is no reason for shoddy record keeping and follow up.

When you record what was discussed, focus on the Prospect’s wants and needs, the products you have to meet those needs and what ever else you may feel is important. Also, immediately record a date to follow up that is timely for both you and the Prospect. Then simply follow up as is appropriate.

In a very short time you’ll know why we put so much emphasis on the plan, “keep good records and follow up.”

Sell Well and Often,

Bill Truax
Bill@BlitzCall.com

© Copyright 2006 WJ Truax

Bill Truax is a Sales Management and Field Operations Consultant living in Cleveland, Oh. He conducts Sales Team Assessments, Management and Leadership programs, and works with Field Sales Professionals and Managers both in the field and in workshops. He has written 3 books and recorded 2 CD’s on Prospecting and Making Cold Calls and conducts a variety of skill based seminars, workshops, and train the trainer programs.
Bill has spent literally thousands of hours in the field making cold calls with sales professionals to teach his BLITZ CALL System. When Bill is in the field he actually makes many of the BLITZ CALLs himself, regardless of the industry. This is to demonstrate that anyone can prospect you just need to know how.
Bill writes a Free weekly Prospecting Succes Tip for subscribers at his website http://www.BlitzCall.com The site also details all the materials and programs Trufield offers.

Myths of Sales Management: The Entrepreneurial Salesperson

by admin on February 8th, 2009

I just had a phone conversation with a client who had a familiar story to tell. He had built his business on the model of an entrepreneurial sales force. Give them a territory, pay them straight commission, and tell them they are in business for themselves, free to develop the customers they chose with the products they wanted.

And for a couple decades it had worked well. The business grew and expanded. More entrepreneurial sales people were added, and the model was duplicated over and over again.

So far so good. But then the growth in sales began to slow down. Three flat or declining years in a row has caused this company president to question the status quo. Not only is business flat, but he’s unable to get his sales force to promote the lines that he wants to promote, he’s unable to get them to use some of the new technology that the company wants them to use, and he’s unable to get them to prospect for new customers. Now he’s faced with an experienced sales force, who for the most part, are unmanageable.

The culprit? A sales model that was built on the concept of the entrepreneurial salesperson. There was a time when this model was effective, but in today’s competitive economy, there are serious difficulties with the entrepreneurial model.

This model works best when the market is growing. As long as there is more and more business out there to be had, the focus of most companies is to grab as much as they can, without caring a whole lot as to which customers and which products make up the business. Employing a group of entrepreneurial salespeople reduces the demands on sales management so that the company’s executives can focus on building the infrastructure necessary to keep up with the consistent growth.

As we all know, this was the case for most of the previous decade. By shifting the responsibility for sales management unto the salespeople, however, you give up much of your management influence. In effect, you cede management of the sales force to the salespeople. And they generally make decisions that are in their own self interest, not yours. The very concept of an entrepreneurial salesperson is that he/she will manage himself. By definition, you abdicate your managerial role and cede management to the salesperson.

Is it any wonder that you can’t direct the salesperson?

As long as business was consistently growing, this wasn’t an issue. But now it is a concern. Most distributors have experienced a reduction in sales volume over the last few years. Many have come to the conclusion that they have to initiate significant changes in their sales organizations if they are going to be profitable and growing.

Now, instead of just more business, progressive distributors want to expand the business in target accounts, emphasize key product lines, and acquire new accounts. In other words, they want to direct the sales force more precisely, to focus them on the behaviors that further the company’s strategic objectives.

At just the time that they want to more precisely focus the sales force, they are faced with a group of experienced salespeople who have become satisfied and content.

These sales people would rather not move out of their comfort zones of established customers and established products. They have no desire to do the hard work of prospecting for new accounts. And many are content with the diminished incomes of the past few years.

The culprit in this difficult situation is the entrepreneurial model. This is not to say that there are no entrepreneurial salespeople. Certainly a certain percentage of every large group of sales people will turn out to be highly motivated, constantly improving, driven to succeed and willing to accept your direction. From my experience, this is about one of 20 sales people. The chances of your entire group fitting this mold are slight. The issue is not the occasional exception to the rule; the issue is the model that no longer supports your strategic interests.

What to do?

The company president on the phone was looking for solutions. How could he change the established routines, attitudes and practices of his experienced sales force? How could he revive the slumbering entrepreneurial drive? How could he gain some degree of directability?

Unfortunately, the answers are larger and more challenging than that which could be discussed in a half hour phone call. Decades of a certain way of doing business have resulted in attitudes cast in granite. Half-way measures can’t be counted on to work.

The solution is going to require strenuous work.

Wipe the slate clean and start over. Begin with the definition of what you would like the salespeople to do. What do you really want your sales force to do? Noodle your ideas onto a blank sheet of paper, and review it for a couple of days. When you have a well-articulated full page of detail, you will have taken a major step forward.

Once you have a clear and specific idea of what you want them to do, then start dealing with implications of that. For example, does you compensation plan support the behavior you want? If not, then change that.

Does you training and development program equip the sales people with the skills that support your vision? If not, it’s time to revise that.

Does you infrastructure support your idea of what the sales people should be doing? In other words, does customer service, purchasing, delivery, operations, sales management, etc., all support the revised job description? If not, make some refinements.

Finally, do you have the kind of people who will whole-heartedly embrace your new vision? If not, then it’s time to begin the process of recruiting new sales people.

Each of these is difficult and challenging issues that speak to the heart of how you have your sales force structured. Designing and implementing these changes can take the better part of a year or two. Each of these initiatives will be met with resistance from some. It won’t be easy. Before you rush into the fray, however, make sure you count the cost. You may decide that you are not up for the task and that it is easier to continue to cede management to your sales people.

Should you decide to revise your sales force, you can anticipate arriving at a focused and directable sales force – an enormously powerful asset for any distributor.

Absolutely Easy Ways to Explode Your Website Traffic & Sales through the ROOF

by admin on February 2nd, 2009

If you want to multiply your sales, profits and dollars in your bank account, then this might be the most important article you’ll ever read.

If you want to create life-time paying customers, then I urge you to check out these simple tricks that can BOOST your profits through the ROOF.

If you’re sick and tired of seeing low sales pouring in, then here’s some good news.

Apply these 5 simple steps and I bet you will see your sales counter EXPLODE…

STEP 1 – Your Website – A Killer Resource Center.

Design your web site to be a targeted resource center. Choose one subject and build on it. You’ll gain repeat visitors that are interested in that topic.

Make sure you provide quality content on your website on continuous basis. This will also help you in getting hoards of search engine traffic.

STEP 2 – Give a Quality Product or Service for FREE.

Offer something that is really free. If people go to your site and what you said was free really isn’t, you’ll lose their trust and they won’t buy anything.

The word FREE is a great puller and will get visitors to check out your website.

STEP 3 – Add a Discussion Forum on Your Website.

Add a chat room or message board to your web site. People want to interact with other people that have same interests as them.

This will also help you in getting repeat traffic to your website.

In few short months you will have visitors that will visit your forum on a daily basis to interact with other people in your niche.

You can now place your ads in the forum and make sales from the traffic pouring in.

STEP 4 – Boost Your Link Popularity.

Entice people to link to your web site by giving them something free in return. This’ll increase your ranking in some search engines.

You can also get involved in a reciprocal linking campaign where you exchange links with other theme based sites in your niche.

You can also write articles that will quickly increase the amount of incoming links to your site.

STEP 5 – Make them Emotional.

Trigger your reader’s emotions in your ad copy. Example, if you sell a book on gambling tips, tell them the feelings they’ll get when they win money.

If you sell a weight loss product, tell them the feelings they will get when they wear a tight fitting T-Shirt and Jeans.

If you can use more new customers… and I mean TONS of new prospects hunting for your products and services, this ‘5 Step System’ will surely help you to achieve your goals.

These powerful, inexpensive ways will bring in all the customers, profits and leads you’ll ever need. The kind of leads that will rocket your sales right off the charts.

If you’ve been looking for a quick and easy way to take your business to the next level, this article has shown you exactly how to do it INSTANTLY.

There’s never been a better time for you to BOOST your profits and sales through the ROOF, than it is today!

Who Controls The Sale: The Buyer Or The Seller?

by admin on January 18th, 2009

How do you prefer to sell: through email & the web, by phone, or face-to-face?

How do your prospects like to buy?

What happens when these preferences conflict?

Famed management guru and my professor, Peter F. Drucker, was fond of pointing out that there are at least three kinds of customers:

(1) Readers
(2) Listeners, and

(3) Writers.
To his list, we can also probably add

(4) Talkers and
(5) Viewers.

These are the main modalities through which people like to get their information.

The general idea is we should respect customer preferences, communicating through media that are appropriate to each individual.

But is this the way we should sell? Should we defer to apparent customer preferences, or assert our own?

For instance, let’s say you receive an inquiry through your web site’s email, requesting additional information about your products or services. It’s easy to reply by scribbling something, or by attaching documents, and then by clicking the mouse.

This, it would seem, is what the inquirer is requesting, right?

But let’s say, at the end of the email, the person has “signed it” with his name and phone number. Should we take that as an invitation, or at least permission to respond by phone?

While I’m a writer, and I’m comfortable crafting responsive emails, I prefer to sell prospects in real-time, face to face, or by phone. I believe calling an inquirer quickly, not only shows I’m interested in earning his business. It gives me a chance to learn more about his project, his needs, budget, and I get to assess his sense of urgency and seriousness from his voice.

I can find out about his authority to buy, where he is in the process of evaluating sources of supply, and if he’s operating under a deadline. Also, how did he hear about mefrom a referral, a search engine, one of my books?

I just can’t surmise this detail from an initial email, so there are solid selling reasons to get back with him by phone.

But there are risks, as well.

He may think it’s too aggressive, or premature, preferring to keep potential sources at arms length, for the time being. He may be a reader, preferring to sift through documentation, comparing sources, and planning his second dispatch.

But if I call, I can always follow that chat with literature, if that’s his wish.

I prefer to play to my strengths, rather than deferring to a prospect’s. So, I’ll make an effort to discover a person’s phone number, even if they haven’t provided one in their email inquiry.

When I call, I say that I wanted to make sure I sent the right information, and to do that it’s best to get acquainted a little with their specific needs.

What if they reply, “All I wanted was some basic information.”

This suggests they aren’t serious prospects, or that they’re simply going through the motions of shopping so they can seem that they’ve “objectively” settled on using someone else, a source they already decided to work with.

Or, they could be calling as shills for my competitors, to learn more about what I’m up to, for intelligence.

In any case, I can disqualify them from receiving further attention or more detailed information.

Ultimately, the question is who will control the buying process: him or me?

I’m comfortable taking control, as a principle of economy, not power, or personality.

The goal here is not developing an ideal relationship, it’s doing profitable business. That doesn’t always happen in an egalitarian context, or necessarily by putting the customer, first!

Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of Customersatisfaction.com, is a popular keynote speaker, management consultant, and seminar leader and the best-selling author of 12 books, including Reach Out & Sell Someone® and Monitoring, Measuring & Managing Customer Service. He is a frequent guest on radio and television, worldwide. A Ph.D. from USC’s Annenberg School, Gary offers programs through UCLA Extension and numerous universities, trade associations, and other organizations in the United States and abroad. He is headquartered in Glendale, California, and he can be reached at (818) 243-7338 or at: gary@customersatisfaction.com.

Three Keys to a Great PowerPoint!

by admin on January 13th, 2009

Can you believe Microsoft PowerPoint has been around since 1987? I remember the first time I watched someone give a presentation with PowerPoint. I wasn’t quite sure what I was seeing, but I was definitely “wowed” by it.

Should you still be using PowerPoint even though the “wow” factor is no longer there? Absolutely. Studies show your audience will retain up to 50% more of your information just by adding visual elements to reinforce your points.

Key: Make your first impression count (or it may be your only one).

I don’t mean to sound pessimistic, but In the business world today- it’s true. Amongst the increasing information and advertising clutter, you may only have one chance to make your point. My personal philosophy is this: you will make either a positive or negative impression during that first (and maybe only) meeting. Make no mistake, a mediocre first impression is a negative first impression. First impressions are lasting and will color the rest of your dealings with that company. So, you’d better make a good first impression or you’ll be fighting an uphill battle the rest of the way.

Key: Your PowerPoint presentation is a powerful (often subconscious) part of that first impression.

Often, your presentation pitch will be the first time many key decision makers have heard anything in detail about your company and it’s products. To gain those details they may have only two immediate sources- you and your PowerPoint. Don’t let your PowerPoint be the weak link. If your PowerPoint presentation is cheap looking, sloppy and not well thought out- guess what impression your audience will gather about your company.

Just as you would never show up to an important presentation dressed in torn jeans and a plain t-shirt, your presentation needs to make a professional impression. Back in the 90’s it was perfectly acceptable to use a free template that came with PowerPoint. But, today your PowerPoint is an integral part of your sales and marketing collateral. If you don’t think of your PowerPoint in this way then you truly need to shift your thinking.

Key: Dress your PowerPoint for success.

Today, there are many sites that sell pre-made professional PowerPoint templates. You can simply choose one (from among the hundreds) that best matches your company’s look, feel and color scheme. Once you purchase and download the template, you can customize it to your liking.

Another option- If you don’t have the time or expertise to do it yourself, you can hire an outside firm to do the PowerPoint creation and customization for you. This can truly make your presentation stand apart from the rest of your competitors, through professional-quality images, advanced charts and by utilizing appropriate animations that enhance and compliment your message.

But, whether you decide to do it yourself or hire a professional, it is definitely worth the investment to maximize the professionalism and effectiveness of your PowerPoint presentation. You’ll not only be doing your audience a favor, but the high return on investment will greatly benefit your company and you.