What blogs do you read?

Do you like reading blogs written by salespeople?

Do you like reading blogs written by marketers?

Do you like reading blogs written by webbies?

Social/personal blogs?

Have you ever searched Google for the most popular blogs?

or for the most popular sales blogs?

If this is the only blog that you read, check out the other blogs that I read.

Then give us a thought on the comment page.

I was watching the Secret the other day and am borrowing one of its analogies.

Think about driving from Maine to California at night. Your headlights will illuminate the 200′ in front of your car. It’s thousands of miles from Maine to California, You can’t see thousands of miles ahead, but you’ll drive it 200′ at a time and you’ll get there just fine.

A sales call works the same way. You can’t see your destination, you can only see what’s been illuminated for you, but if you focus on listening to your prospect and moving through the illuminated area, you’ll get through it.

All you have to do is start it the right way.

Remember the way Nomar Garciaparra used to start his at bats?

Who starts their speeches with My Fellow Americans…?

How about this way to start a day?

OK – What’s the First Thing? How do you start a sales call?

Henry Ford said, “People can have the Model T in any color – so long as it’s black.” One choice. That’s it.

How many color choices do car buyers have in 2009?

When I was growing up, we had a television antenna on the roof. It had a VHF component and a UHF component. Two choices.

There were three networks. NBC (National Broadcasting Company), CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) and ABC (American Broadcasting Company). Seemingly three choices, but the reception for ABC was terrible, so we usually only had two choices.

Let’s see….How many cable channels are there? Satellite? Dish? How many viewing choices do viewers have in 2009?

What’s the point? Think of your prospect as a couch potato with their finger on the “surf” button on the remote.

Click…Click…Click…Click…Click…Click…Click…Click…YOU!

Can you get their attention in that split second to keep them from clicking again? Can you get them engaged so they’ll relax their grip on the remote? Can you figure out what they want and give it to them so they’ll stay for the whole show? Will they tune in again next week?

No answers here. Just questions.

I found this an interesting twist. Enjoy.

http://adrianmiller.wordpress.com/2009/01/26/are-you-frozen/

I started working with a new client last month. Honestly, it wasn’t the easiest sale that I’ve ever made, but once we engaged, he committed 100%. Last Friday, I sent the following email to him, “This question was posted to one of my groups. Is it something for you?” and I included the details of the request. I received the following response. “Rick, Good lead …we appreciate it very much!!” It was unexpected and he verbally added that our relationship was already showing a return. Well, Duh! Isn’t that what it’s about? Actually, I never tell prospects that they should expect referrals from me, but give me a break! I practice what I preach.

Contrast that with this email that I received yesterday. “Hi Rick, Do you know these guys? I noticed they came up on the the (prospect list) for February. We do a lot of work helping companies (yada yada yada). Would you be able to introduce me to someone? Thanks” I’ve never referred him. He’s never referred me. I don’t buy from him. He’s not a client. As a matter of fact, he’s a client of a competitor. I know a guzzillion people in his industry and I have an expert that would be my first call. Why would I introduce him?

So. I sent the following email to my expert. “Expert, I know the guys that (he) wants to talk to except I don’t want to refer him. Who should I introduce them to? Somebody like you that does (that stuff). Straight shooter. No bullshit. I don’t like (him), but if he’s the only choice, and the my client wants to help, I’ll hold my nose, grit my teeth and make the introduction.“

My guy’s handling it.

If you’re not getting it, you should read How I Refer. I’m pretty black and white. I like clients and I do almost anything for them and if their business fails, it’s not because of me.

Remember Mr. Awesome? His real name is Matt Webster. He calls himself The Supreme Chancellor. This is his company.

OK. So, now it’s your turn. He’s out there. He’s real. He’s not perfect, but he’s trying. Here’s his blog. Give him some feedback.

Comment here. Comment on his blog. Tell him what you think. Tell him what you like and don’t like.

Click here to read several good recommendations.

If you are at all aware of internet marketing, you should be aware of the term ‘viral’. Internet marketers love when a blog post, video, podcast ‘goes viral’ because it means that the market is passing the message along with no further effort by the marketer. Sometimes, I get the feeling that they (internet marketers) think that they invented the idea. Those of you who are old enough may remember this commercial. Isn’t that viral?

Here’s a question…Is your REAL reputation viral? Do you have people talking about you? Does the conversation continue after you leave the room? I’m not talking about forwarding a you-tube video. Is one person talking to another about you? Is the second person talking to a third? Can you ‘go viral’ in reality?

I remember (years ago) Cutco prospects greeting me with, “I was wondering when you were gonna get here. All my friends have told me about you.” I’m not trying to take anything away from all those internet people. I just want to point out that you don’t need a computer to create a buzz.

My most recent example…You may remember this blog post about Paula’s personality. Today, Elaine asked me if I would stop at Talbots and return an item that she had purchased. When I walked into the store, Paula was about 30 feet away. “Rick, how are you? Come on in. I want to introduce you to some people.” I met Becky, the manager of the branch across the mall. I met Lauren, the general manager of both stores. I was told that my blog post had been forwarded to the district manager and Becky asked if I was going to write about them tonight.

Each of them was warm. Each of them was friendly. Why would anyone not want to visit the Talbots at the Solomon Pond Mall?

Trudy, take a look at my wife’s charge account and see how many of your locations we’ve visited over the course of the past year. Not all Talbots locations are created equal. Not all are as welcoming as the Solomon Pond Mall location. My wife loved Jordan Marsh and Filenes. She almost cried when they went away. These are extraordinary times. Have you evaluated your salespeople? Do you know why some succeed and some get by? Here’s my bio. Here’s our process. Use the link at the top of the page to send me an email with your contact info. I’ll call.

Or are you gonna continue doing what you’re doing because you know how to do it even though IT’S NOT WORKING !?!?!?

I read Dave Kurlan’s post tonight about why some companies see results more quickly than others. Bottom line…They want to change and they’re ready! Great post, Dave! It got me to thinking about some real people.

Last week I bumped into this guy. He was with his boss. Two peas in a pod. Couldn’t get away quickly enough.

While I was searching for his post, I found the post about Sir. I wonder if he’s still in business.

Then I found this post which is actually a better example. These two bozos paid us and never stopped fighting us.

OK. Enough negativity. Let’s end on a positive note that’s another great example. Read this.

In case I haven’t said it lately, thank you for reading.

I found Dave Kurlan’s “thoughts of the day” interesting and thought that I’d share them without comment.

Feel free to enjoy privately or comment if you are so moved.