The Poetry Portal Net

Mary Haven, who is a top rainmaker for her company believes that she
gets her calls returned because her clients know that she has a wealth
of knowledge about what’s going on in her industry. She can discuss
business trends as well as who’s been promoted, demoted or changed
jobs. This type of industry knowledge, or gossip, is very enticing. Taking
a telephone call from Mary is really an opportunity to get updated on
trends and who’s doing what in her industry.

Mary supplements her reputation by writing frequently for an industry
trade publication and speaking at conferences, meetings and
symposiums. She uses her speeches as a tool for staying in touch by
calling existing and prospective clients and encouraging them to attend.
Writing articles both enhances Mary’s credibility and provides her with a
variety of excuses for staying in touch with her clients, both when she is
researching the article and after it is published.

Focus is an important component in developing your reputation for
expertise. Most people define their focus by industry. Others define it by
function or by what department typically buys their services. Finally,
others may have a geographical focus. Naturally, focus can be some
combination of these three. It’s important to have a focus, otherwise it’s
very hard to become an expert. If you don’t, it’s a little like saying let’s go
eat American food. It just doesn’t limit your choices significantly in order
to target your efforts.

Joining What Your Prospects Join

Once you’ve determined where to focus the next step is to join the group
that caters to that industry or function. If you’re unclear on what
association serves these groups, the answer is as near as your
computer. Go on-line and access Google. Type in the industry or
function you want, followed by the word, association. In a matter of
moments you’ll see a vast list of potential groups that cater to your
search criteria. It will probably take you a little bit of time to investigate
the various sites that are listed, and it’s likely you will run down a few
blind alleys.

However, with a modicum of effort you should be able come up with
multiple associations that are worth investigating. Another benefit of this
search process is that you will uncover special, one-time events that you
might want to attend. I’d encourage you to get on-line with Google right
now and see what your research turns up!

Reading What Your Prospects Read

The second strategy of successful rainmakers was that they read what
their targeted group of prospects read.

Once you’ve determined where to focus the next step is to join the group
that caters to that industry or function. If you’re unclear on what
association serves these groups, the answer is as near as your
computer. Also pay attention to what magazines are lying around in the
reception area the next time you call on your client. This not only gives
you information about what your clients read but who else sells to this
group of prospects.

When you’re reading these magazines or trade journals you’ll want to
make sure that you’re reading them from a marketer’s perspective. How
can what I’m reading help me build my business? An interesting point of
fact is that few people who are mentioned in the press are ever
contacted by individuals seeking their business.

This point was driven home a few days ago. I was in a local bookstore
and happened to browse the magazine rack. I picked up a copy of the
Harvard Business Review and noticed that there was an article in it by
an old colleague of mine. Of course I was thoroughly impressed to know
someone who was published in such a prestigious magazine, and took
it upon myself to give this person a call a few days later. I knew that the
magazine had been on the racks for the better part of a month, so I was
interested in how many other people had called the author to
congratulate him or to seek his business. I wasn’t terribly surprised
when in response to my question the author replied, “How many people
have contacted me? You mean aside from my mother? Just you.” The
point is that hardly anyone contacts people who appear in print, and
that’s a shame. It’s easy to write the author of an article you’re
impressed with a short note, and if you don’t know the address, you can
send it to them in care of the publication. It’s an easy and highly
productive method to establish contact with people who would be
difficult to get in touch with by other means.

Along these same lines it’s helpful to establish relationships with the
business reporters who cover your industry. For example, since a lot of
my work is with technology companies and consulting firms, I’ve made it
a point to get to know the reporters who cover these areas. By being a
source to them I’ve been able to establish relationships that are mutually
beneficial. They get quotes and insights into the goings-on in these
industries, and I get tips about personnel changes, mergers and
relocations. I’m a little surprised that none of my competitors have tried
to strike up similar relationships with these reporters.

Something else you’ll want to pay attention to as you’re perusing the
trade publications is who is advertising? Again this is an often-
overlooked area of opportunity.

I do a fair amount of business with one of the largest technology
consulting firms in the country largely because they happened to run an
advertisement in a trade journal. This particular ad listed the name of the
regional VP and gave his phone number. That prompted me to give this
person a call in which I referenced the ad and how effective I thought it
was. This initial call ultimately resulted in an introduction to their national
head of training. Today, this consulting firm is a valued client of my firm.

I used to think that if I actually contacted people who were quoted in the
press or wrote articles they would think I was a pest. I incorrectly
assumed that they got bombarded with telephone calls. Ironically, the
exact opposite is true. Moreover, when you introduce yourself and say
that you really enjoyed their article, it’s a very positive way to begin a
business relationship.

Mark Satterfield is the creator of the Gentle Rain Marketing System: How
to Generate a Consistent Flow of New Clients. Quickly & Easily. With No
Cold Calling. Find out more: http://www.gentlerainmarketing.com

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Finding business leads can allow your business the opportunity to build your business by bringing in paying customers. There are some firms that offer lead generating services in order to provide you with targeted business leads that bring about quality contacts with potential consumers. Since having quality prospects is the key to building your business, you may want to consider trusting the generation of your business leads to an experienced firm that gives you a constant stream of professional and optimized business leads.

Experienced business lead generation companies usually come up with thousands of business leads no matter what type of business you run. A top firm will provide you with business leads that come by innovative software and technologically advanced marketing strategies. The software that these firms use to generate business leads allows them to set parameters that targets potential consumers for your specific type of business. They can program the software to target people based on age, gender, product needs, or any other information that is unique to the business leads that are best for your area of business.

There are a number of methods that these firms use to generate your business leads. They can use banner ads, pop-ups, ad campaigns, opt in mail and newsletters, plus just about any form of internet communication. Traditionally, business leads only came from direct mail, telemarketing, and ad campaigns, but in today’s electronic age, they can come from a greater range of sources.

When you are considering using a firm to provide you with business leads, the optimal business leads are ones that the firm has double verified with a phone call from the firm. You should check to make sure that the business leads are not necessarily all from advertising for gift offers, because they are not necessarily the best business leads as they tend to be unreliable. Check with your firm to find out exactly what methods they use to generate your business leads.

Besides asking what types of methods the firm uses to get your business leads, you will also want to ask how fresh your business leads are. Many people choose to obtain their own business leads so that they can respond in real time. However, many marketing firms do provide business leads that are no more than 48 hours old, which is optimal. You will also want to make sure that the firm is selling you exclusive business leads so that you are not calling prospective contacts that have been called a dozen times before. Business leads that are exclusive, fresh, and double verified may be a little more pricey, but they will be worth it when you see better results.

Read the rest of the article here: Business Leads.

Download the Home Based Business Manual (Free $97 Value!) and receive valuable tips, strategies and techniques designed to grow a very successful Home Based Business.

Charles Fuchs is an established Six Figure Income earner and one of the top online marketer’s. He specializes in showing people the fastest way to Starting a business.

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There are several reasons why consultants ultimately lose deals they should have won. Unless your portfolio is poor, consultants lose contracts because they either didnt listen or they didnt speak effectively to convey what services they could offer, that would help the client reach their goals. Here are a few tips to help you sell your services.

Every consultant feels that if there is anything that they do well, its talking the talk. Effective speaking is more of an art than a science. If you cant effectively convey how your services are going to help the client, you wont get the contract.

Reflect Before You React

Its human nature to say the first thing that comes to our mind when we’re asked a question. Take a moment to think of what answer is best for the client. It will show that you put thought into your work and dont just plow ahead. Your clients will appreciate that. Your best reaction is not always your first reaction.

Keep It Simple Superstar

Just because you know the ins and outs of your business doesnt mean that your client will. Speak to them on their level, not yours. Keep the conversation simple and get straight to the point. If your client understands what you can do for them, they are more likely to hire you. If you try and dazzle them with industry speak, you’ll lose them, and lose the contract.

You may find that if you are speaking to a perspective client on the phone, stand up. For many people, standing makes them get straight to the point.

Let the Client Talk

If you want to learn how to best position yourself, find out exactly what the client wants and ask questions to home in on what their needs are. By asking questions, you gain a better understanding of how you can help the client, and the client feels that they are part of the solution. This gives you a chance to reflect on what you can offer your prospective client.

A Little Enthusiasm Goes A Long Way

Your client feels passionate about what they do, and if you show that you are passionate and enthusiastic about providing them the solution they want, you’ll get the client onboard. Enthusiasm will open many doors for you.

Lets Get Personal

It takes experience and a watchful eye, however, if you show your client that they are more than just another big deal for their portfolio you will learn how to best work with them. Treat all clients the same way, and you will find your schedule empty of projects. Remember that clients say things for a reason. If they volunteer that they cant talk right now because they are getting ready for Bobby’s birthday party on Saturday, on your follow up call, ask them casually how the party went. Don’t pry, and don’t send balloons. By casually asking about the party, you show that you pay attention to details. Knowing how successful the party was will prepare you on how to approach the conversation.

Remember that you need to sell to the customer’s needs, not your skills. Master this and you will have a long career as a consultant.

Tips for small business consultants. get fresh and original consulting ideas and tips - visit http://www.consultingscene.com

Christopher Smith has been creating web sites for small businesses for over 7 years. In addition to providing deisgn and consultation services, Christopher also provides tips on search engine optimization, internet marketing and traffic generation.

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Once or twice in the last five years I’ve read one of those inordinately lengthy sales letters from start to finish. (You know, the ones that Internet marketing gurus claim are essential to make huge sales.) They must have been some of the better written, interesting letters. Or I must have been starved for some literary stimulation.

Now I realise that I really don’t have time to read all the hackneyed stuff inserted to establish credibility and to show how many testimonials one has collected. After the third or fourth testimonial, it all gets a bit ‘ho hum’. We get the message.

Similarly, audio snippets are of little benefit and I usually pass them by. The ones I have listened to were simply readings of the written test. Why would I need to read it and hear it?

Today I came across one of those long sales letters and this time I took special note of how I process the information. First I read the opening paragraph to make sure that the program I had seen advertised was the one discussed here. Yes, it was. Yes, I was able to get a good overview of what this program was about right up front. I didn’t have to wade through a tonne of fluff to find out what in hell this program was all about.

Next, I needed to know how much I was going to have to pay to own this program. Was that up front? No way. I scrolled down to the bottom of the six foot long page and eventually found a “Buy Now” button. Still no dollar signs anywhere to be seen. So I clicked on the Buy Now button and went to a processing site. Yes, the price was $97 and according to the writer, a terribly good bargain for a product who has made literally millions for so many people. If only I were to buy this program, my Internet marketing woes would all vanish and one day I’d be rolling in money like all of those about whom testimonials had been written.

While deciding whether I needed yet another program telling me how to make millions, I suddenly saw the freight fee of $75 and decided that today I could do without this product. ($172US is a fair stack of money in any currency).

So I backed out of the credit card processing pages and looked for another site I had on my list.

Now you know my MO. First, I verify what the program or service is … does it promote link management, is it MLM, a pyramid scheme, or simply an ebook you buy? Next, I want to know how much it costs and specifically if the fee is recurring (these can be a real trap!). After that I look for some additional information if I need it that will give me some reason to believe it’s worth the fee being charged. Most of the ebooks and other digital media I come across are over-priced when considering what you pay for similar type information in hard copy format.

I spoke with several of my colleagues who buy information products and services online and asked how they handle long sales letters. Without exception, they do the same as me; get an overview, look for the price and then make a decision about whether to purchase. Also without exception, they are annoyed when they can’t find a price until they click on an order button.

I strongly suspect that the reason why long copy is being used and ’said’ to be so much more successful is that copywriters earn more producing long copy. Now, I may be completely off track, but one has to wonder. What would be more conclusive is for one of the high fliers of Internet marketing to run some different advertisements, some short, the others long and see what works best.

Now there’s a challenge. One option for the short sales letters is to either provide two options for users - one long, one short and let them choose (click through statistics would reveal preferences). Alternatively, brief information could be provided at the sales letter stage and a link provided to further information for anyone who wants to read it.

While I’m deciding whether length is better than quality, I’ve changed one of my ebook sites to a shorter version with a subscription box where visitors can get further information by autoresponder if required. That way I get an email address too.

I’ll see what eventuates with this altered approach and determine whether my belief that surfers are fatigued by the long-winded sales letter and now prefer the concise, succinct version. Watch this space for a reply.

Copyright Robin Henry 2005

Robin Henry is an educator, human resources specialist and Internet entrepreneur. He helps small and home-based businesses and individuals improve performance by applying smart technology and processes and developing personally. He runs his business Desert Wave Enterprises from his home base at Alice Springs in Central Australia, although at present he is working in the United Arab Emirates.

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Trade shows are a great place to network. People are there to meet other people, and learn about who’s doing what. These 6 tips will help you maximize the networking opportunities at any trade show.

1. Meet the exhibitors

The exhibitors at any trade show paid to be able to talk to you. Make an effort to visit as many vendors as you can. Learn about them and what they have to offer. You might also ask who their target market is, or who their ideal client is.

2. Make it fun!

Consider making a game out of your networking efforts. Try to meet at least one new person every 10-15 minutes. That’ll give you enough time to spend 5 or 10 minutes getting to know them. You’ll also have a few minutes left over to meet your next new friend.

3. Listen

When you’re meeting new people listen more than you talk. Try to find a common interest. Ask them about their business and their personal interests. This information will come in handy later when you follow-up.

4. Give people value, be a resource

Be listening for ways that you can help people. Direct them to the exhibitor you met earlier who might have a great solution for them. Tell them about the great drawing you just entered, and suggest that they do the same. Offer to introduce them to someone else you know at the event who you think they might be able to make a good connection with.

5. Use business cards

Business cards are a tool. After you meet someone be sure to ask them for a business card. Take a couple of seconds to make a couple of notes about what you learned about them. Before handing someone your own business card you might want to write a quick note that will add value. Write the name of a website they might find useful (NetworkInAustin.com perhaps?), a book, another networking event. Anything that will make your card stand out, because you’ve show that you’re a valuable resource.

6. Follow-up

This is probably the most important tip of all. Your networking efforts at any networking event are unlikely to bear any fruit if you don’t take the time to follow-up with those you met. Be sure to make at least one, preferably two, contacts during the week following the show, with each person you met. A hand written note and a voicemail. A brief phone conversation and an e-mail. Just be sure to reconnect so you can truly begin building a relationship.

Happy networking!

Scott Ingram is the founder of etworkInAustin.com a networking resource for networkers in Central Texas. He also posts regularly to his Business Networking Blog where you’ll learn more about Scott as well as how to become a better networker. When he’s not out building relationships at trade shows and other business networking events you’ll find Scott out running with friends on the trails of Town Lake in Austin, Texas or spending time with his growing family which currently consists of 2 cats and dog and his expecting wife Emily.

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If you are a loan officer or mortgage broker, you have more than likely dealt with mortgage lead companies in the past.

If you are one of the ones that have invested money in lead companies in the past, than you fall into one of two categories.

Those that have lost money to lead companies, and those that are going to loose money to lead companies.

Loan officers have every reason to be skeptical of lead companies. However, if you are considering taking a shot with a mortgage lead company, here are a few things to keep in mind.

For starters, take your time, and do as much research as you can. Remember, you work hard for your money, so make sure those hard earned dollars will result in a return on your investment.

Speak with someone in the customer service department of the lead company you are considering. Find out where and how they obtain their leads. If they do not use their own web sites to obtain their leads, than move onto the next company.

If they are not using their own sites, than most likely they are buying them from a third party, and selling them second hand. So you can be sure that they have passed through the hands of many other loan officers.

Find out how they sell the lead and how it is delivered. Is it sold exclusively, or non exclusively? Can you cherry pick the lead, or is it a real time, streamline process? Either way works. It just depends on your style, preference, and most important, your time.

In the end, it is the quality of the lead that makes the difference. It just may be worth your while to spend a few extra bucks on a lead to ensure you are getting good quality.

Also, keep in mind, when speaking with someone in customer service, the quality of the service you receive, can be a good indicator of the quality of the lead you receive.

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Basic psychology is about people’s needs and their need to fulfil them. Most of us have a distinct priority at any given time, one problem that must be solved before all others, a “one thing at a time” mentality.

You will be unlikely to interest a homeless man in a new car, until he’s fulfilled his basic need for shelter first - unless he plans to live in the vehicle, I suppose.

Understanding this principle and seeing how it applies to selling, will enhance your sales performance zillion-fold. Sell one thing at a time and concentrate on that. Sell other things as “back-end” once the immediate need is fulfilled. Don’t confuse, don’t stray from the point, do stick on the blinkers and keep to the target and the matter in hand.

Don’t overlook the obvious.

Make sure you put the words “Click Here” on a banner. People respond to simple commands. Serve up testimonials next to your products or your newsletter sign-up form. People want to belong to groups: they’ll want to belong to your “club” if it is seen to be a good one and endorsed by others.

Use colours that convey the right image and incite the right actions. Want to be seen as an authority? Use black and yellow. Conservative and business-like? Dark blue, maybe a bit of grey. Business-like and money-orientated? Blue and green - which so many large corporate sites have adopted.

Positioning of elements on a web page also makes a big difference. Apparently, whatever is at the top-right of the screen is what’s most likely to get clicked. The average eye is drawn to that position - nothing to do with Windows’ exit button being up there, I’m sure! This and 90% of the population being right-handed, to me, makes a strong case for right-hand navigation, with your best offer in pole position.

Words: I could write tomes on what you can do with them! But I won’t make an idiot of myself, instead read what great copywriters like David Garfinkel, who is the author of Killer Copy Tactics and widely acclaimed as “The World’s Greatest Copywriting Coach” says. He uses psychology to great effect: http://www.roibot.com/kc.cgi

The main point with words is to get to the emotions of your visitors. It has been said time and time again, but all anyone is interested in, is what your product or service will do for them. They do not care who you are or how many bells your widget has: they want to know if it will save them time or money, make them more desirable to the opposite sex or solve some problem they have. You need to show them the problem and how your offer solves it for them.

Some of these things are seemingly very small, simple and insignificant, which is the beauty of them and, at the same time, the very reason why most people will overlook them. Using the right format in terms of colour, design and wording will have psychological influence on your visitors, which turns them into subscribers, buyers or whatever it is you desire.

Great to have power, isn’t it?

I know, I know, it all sounds awfully manipulative and in the wrong hands, I’d tend to agree with you. But I am not talking about making people do something against their will. I am saying that this is nature and harnessing it: guiding people in the direction that they would naturally go, is a far more logical way of obtaining the result you require.

Think about the rules of Judo or Karate, where you utilise your opponent’s own strength to gain advantage. Pushing them further in the direction that they were already going will have them over a lot easier than it would have if you’d struggled to use your strength against them in the opposite direction.

The same goes for mental engagements. People - that includes you and me, whether we wish to admit it or not - do react in almost predictable ways to these stimuli. It is our nature: instinct and it surely makes sense to work with that, rather than against it.

Otherwise, you are fighting against people and nature: giving yourself an uphill struggle, creating an unnecessary battle and a hurdle to be overcome. Don’t make it hard for yourself or your prospective clients. Know who they are and what they need, fulfil that and you are well on your way to success.

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Three weeks after I announced a free and customizable e-mail workshop I created, I received a rather bewildered and distressed e-mail from someone who signed up to take it.

In her e-mail, she wanted to know in what way was the free e-mail workshop relevant to her business. She wanted to know what good creating an e-mail workshop would do for her and her business. And I could tell from her e-mail she was genuinely lost and confused, and needed an immediate response.

I read her e-mail several times, and then I got ready to tackle her questions one by one. My answers were lengthy, and I also visited her site so I could give her more realistic examples of how she can use e-mail workshops in attracting leads or customers for her business.

In my response to her, I didn’t try to give her a sales talk. I didn’t focus on the benefits she would gain if she bought a copy of the e-book I’d written on the subject. Instead, I focused on her questions and answering them as clearly as I could. The only place I mentioned my e-book was in my signature line, just below my name. That, and the URL.

A couple of days later, I received another e-mail from her. She thanked me for answering her questions thoroughly and clearly. She was surprised I visited and explored the site so I can give her examples and ideas for possible e-mail workshops she can use. And that same day, she bought my e-book — and I didn’t even try selling it to her!

Two important lessons can be derived from this, and we can all apply these lessons every day when we go about building and promoting our business on the Internet:

1. Treat every legitimate e-mail inquiry promptly, respectfully and professionally, even if the e-mail borders on the annoying, antagonistic or silly side. Take the e-mails as a challenge to prove that you know what you are talking about; that you indeed do and live what you teach.

2. Sometimes, it’s better not to think of someone who comes to us as a “prospective customer” or someone we can convince to buy from us. Building, growing and maintaining a business is not just all about making money or producing large profits. It’s also about gaining people’s trust and making them believe you are sincere and honest.

Work on building good relationships with people and they eventually will want to do business with you.

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A trance is when you are strongly and continually focused on a feeling, thought, vision, mood, emotion or idea. Usually it takes repetitive actions by a person to gain your attention. You have likely been in a trance at least a few times this week.

Haven’t you ever been reading a book, watching TV or listening to music and your parent or friend said something like “Are you ignoring me?, I’ve asked you three times what you wanted to eat for dinner?” And you say something like “No, I was just watching this really cool show on sharks”.

See, you have been in a trance plenty of times and didn’t even know it. Just think how many products you could sell if you could put your prospects in a trance? Well you can, if you follow these very important steps.

First, you have to give them a feeling, thought, vision, mood, emotion or idea they will focus on. This can be accomplished by using an appealing headline or visual. Now, any one can have thoughts and still be able to concentrate on other things.

Next, your goal is to influence them to continually focus on it. You need to make sure each and every word, phrase and sentence is interesting enough so they keep reading and thinking about your offer.

How do you accomplish this? You need to use words and phrases that appeal to their emotions and thoughts. For example, if you were selling an ebook on eliminating your credit card debts you could say: No more living pay check to pay check. (or) Eliminate those harassing creditors calls once and for all.

Each word needs to take them step by step by step into a continuing trance. You don’t want any boring or irrelevant information to interrupt the trance.

Finally, when you ask for the order they will be so involved that they’ll have to order to keep the enjoyable trance continuing.

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Note: To see the charts in this article, view it on www.HowWinnersSell.com Most people who have been selling for even a short period of time understand that some level of corporate politics is present in every organization into which they sell. As sales professionals’ experience and political savvy increases, so does what they observe in their accounts. If you aren’t aware of political activity in your accounts, it doesn’t mean that it isn’t there. It just means you can’t see it and certainly can’t leverage it. If your competitor is politically savvy, you are at a distinct disadvantage. What is politics? According to Merriam-Webster one definition is, “competition between competing interest groups or individuals for power and leadership.” Winners have developed a set of skills that enables them to consistently succeed because of, or in spite of, politics. They’ve learned to select the right competing interest groups and then ride the power and leadership wave to success by devising and executing political strategies for each key influencer and decision maker. Being adept politically will rarely lead to a win by itself. There are many other components to winning. But to not understand and take advantage of the interpersonal forces within an account is to leave assets unleveraged. Here are some of the key skills required to elevate yourself into the realm of political selling: Skill: A basic understanding of how corporate politics works. For our purposes, politics and influence are synonymous. People need the help of other people to achieve certain business goals (i.e. my department’s project gets funded) as well as business-driven personal goals (i.e. if it is successful, I get a raise–I can afford that new house). Within a company, it works something like this: “If you report to me I can just tell you to do something and you will do it.” That’s SAY-SO influence. You’ll do it because I say so. But if you don’t work for me–let’s say you work in another department–it becomes more difficult. I then have to influence you to help me. I’ll use POLITICAL influence. That requires a combination of skills and artistry and it takes time and strategy. Here is an example: Let’s say that we both work for the same company, but for different departments. If I need your help for my department to achieve its quarterly objectives, I might look for ways in which I can help you achieve your objectives (ideally, business and personal objectives) and subtly advertise those to you as benefits of helping me. In that way we are aligned with a set of common interdependent purposes. Win-win. When you are selling into a company, you have absolutely no SAY-SO over the buyer. You can’t tell anyone in your customer’s company what to do. You can only influence them to give you information, insights, coaching and preference so that they influence others to look at you and your offering favorably. The best way to influence someone is to clearly communicate how and by how much you will contribute to the advancement of their business and (business-related) personal goals. In the diagram below, you’ll see that when you can help a buyer or influencer meet their personal and business goals (Quadrant 1), you’re much more likely to gain commitment from them in helping you win. In Quadrant 2, there is no personal win, so their commitment, although altruistic so far as a contribution to their company, will not be supported as strongly. Stay away from people in Quadrant 3. In those cases, the person you are selling to is “in it for themselves,” acting counter to what is in the best interests of their company. You run the risk of not only losing the deal, but being associated with “dirty politics,” which could affect your personal and your company’s reputation. Quadrant 4 reminds you that if you find you can’t contribute to the person achieving their business or personal goals, your likelihood of gaining their support is minimal. Don’t turn these people into enemies, but focus your efforts on finding and selling to influencers in the first quadrant. Skill: The ability to see what’s invisible As I suggested earlier, not everyone is skilled enough to observe sophisticated corporate politicians being influential. Savvy politicians do their thing privately. It’s not unlike the backroom deals done by government politicians. How do you know that there is influence being wielded? First, assume it is. Then begin to look at results and work backward. We can extract a good example from everyday government politics: If there is “pork”–say $650.3 million in corporate tax benefits for igloo manufacturers in Alaska–embedded in a House of Representatives education bill, you can quickly figure out who lent a hand getting it through committee. Ask your contacts within your customer’s company or government department about prior purchases, projects and initiatives. Find out who sponsored them, whose budgets paid for them, who were the ultimate decision makers and who benefited in some more personal ways. The names you come up with will likely be people of influence, either through their command of an organization, or through astute politicking. They are the ones for whose influence you will be positioning during your sales campaign. Skill: Connecting the dots You’ve done some discovery and have begun to make associations. When you asked about recent projects, several people referenced Carrie Miehome, who works in the IT organization. She deftly led the steering committee with the CRM project last year. Funny thing though, that project was put ahead of others that already had funding. Why would that be, you might ask? Who benefits from a CRM implementation? The VP of Sales? The VP of Customer Service? Perhaps the CFO who wants more visibility into the revenue stream… It’s perfectly reasonable to expect that she was influenced by a higher power. The challenge will be finding out whom, what was in it for them and what was in it for her if you are selling IT solutions to that company. Skill: Knowing how to map out the organization You’ll need to start with an organization chart. If they won’t give you one, you can build one by getting answers to pointed questions about reporting structure, by reading information on the web and, if your customer is a public company, from corporate SEC filings.

Next, get out a color marker. Draw black circles around isolated executives with no clout, orange lines between people with known connections, and blue circles around groups of people who serve on committees that are known to get funding and get things done. The most influential of the influencers get their names encircled in green. Draw red circles around people who are in Quadrant 3 above - those who are in it for themselves. You’ll begin to see your customer’s organization in a whole new light. Skill: Targeting the right influencers Now that you have a map of the political/influence environment, you’ve got to begin targeting the influencers. It’s a mini-version of the same four-part plan I discuss in my book, How Winners Sell and in the e-Learning Edition: Situation Assessment: What is their background, how do they make decisions, who do they depend upon, what are their successes, failures, with whom do they align, how do they influence others, what’s in it for them on a personal and business goals basis… You get the idea. Goal: Your goal is straightforward. You want them to support you at a minimum, but ideally to sell internally on your behalf. (At a higher level, your goal for the deal is to win it.) What’s important here is to focus on their goal. If they achieve theirs, you have a much greater opportunity to achieve yours. Strategy: Remember my strategy statement format: They are going to buy from me because ____. In this case, they are going to influence a decision in my favor because ______. Remember that the strategy is the means to and end — the goal. Tactics: Every phone call, sales call, visit, lunch, dinner, presentation, discussion by the water cooler, email message, and snail-mail letter has to advance your strategy. Some of your tactics will be to prove that you can advance their business goals and some (more discreetly handled) will indicate that you understand and will work toward them achieving their personal goals. I’ve covered the basics of “political” selling. Be aware, there are risks involved: getting in over your head, taking the wrong side, over-focusing on politics, not spending time on the competitive side, overlooking people who can sabotage your deal. And the list goes on. If you don’t have any experience with this aspect of selling, I strongly suggest finding a mentor to coach you through. If you or your company is pursuing a critical deal where a strong political strategy is required, or you would like Dave Stein to give a presentation or speech about this subject to your team, give us a call. ©2003 The Stein Advantage, Inc. All Rights Reserved. For permission to republish this article call or email us. (845) 621-4100

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