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I have many business contacts that do a pretty spectacular job at marketing their businesses. Online and off too they engage in robust marketing programs designed to build their businesses. The truth is that I’m actually a little in awe because their marketing campaigns are almost flawless and I haven’t quite gotten to be that proficient in doing the marketing for my own company. What I'm good at is SALES. Whether marketing with copy or not, I know that a marketing campaign that is not tightly integrated with proactive sales strategies and excellent sales competencies is doomed to fail or at best generate a much smaller return on investment. It’s quite sad really. So many companies create excellent marketing plans yet neglect to think about any or all of the following: The sales strategy that will be aligned with the marketing campaign The sales competencies of the people that are tasked with selling the prospects generated by the marketing campaign The follow up processes that must be deployed to maximize results from the marketing campaign Do you believe in “Build it and they will come?” If that’s not your style then it’s best to do the following: Don’t isolate your sales and marketing departments. You will build your business much more effectively if sales knows what marketing is doing and vice versa. These departments must be in sync. I’ve known companies that have launched marketing campaigns, neglected to tell their sales team which then resulted in miscommunication with prospects and clients alike. Engage in ongoing sales training in order to ensure that everyone’s sales competencies are at their highest levels. In order to get the best results training should always be ongoing and consistent. Create metrics so that you can assess and evaluate the results of your marketing and sales campaigns. Be as precise as possible. Design a lead follow up strategy so that interested prospects generated by your marketing campaigns do not disappear and die from lack of attention and timely, thoughtful and thorough follow up. Don’t waste another dollar on marketing without doing the above. Marry your marketing and sales and you’re sure to generate improved results.

If you're in business and you're in sales, you're probably doing a whole bunch of networking right now. What I'd like to do is give you three quick tips on how to make your networking more effective and to make sure you get more return on that networking investment. The first thing is to not think about your networking in a linear fashion. You never know who knows who. If you're only networking with the people who fall under your industry umbrella, you are 100% missing opportunities from someone like me who may not be under your umbrella, but who knows thousands of people and would be happy to make contacts and connections for you once we get to know each other. Number two, and this one is so self-evident, yet so many people forget it. Follow up and follow through. Follow up on all of the introductions that are made for you. When you go to these events, and when you go to these luncheons, make sure to follow through and reach out to people for a one-on-one conversation or lunch, and see where the relationship can go. Lastly, there's a cliché. The cliché is givers get. I don't believe that. Givers don't always get because there are real takers out there. The fact is, when you're giving introductions and you're making contacts for people, and you notice it's not coming back to you in any way, shape, or form, you have to be proactive. You need to ask for some of these same people to think about you, to make an introduction for you. Make it easy for them, send them a PDF of what you do. You have to ask. You can't always assume that they're going to be thinking of you. Unfortunately, the majority of people are just not doing that. There are many more ideas, many more tips. Contact me at adrianmiller.com, and I'm happy to share them with you. Thanks.

1. Reach out to 5 dormant accounts 2. Make 5 prospecting calls each week 3. Become more active on social media 4. Ramp up your networking 5. Create an ebooklet and use it as a lead magnet 6. Do content marketing 7. Develop a group of networking power partners 8. Cross sell your existing clients 9. Take a class and improve your skills 10. Ask for referrals 11. Mine the gold in your existing database 12. Find out why the project was awarded to another company 13. Consider starting a board of advisors to help you with major decisions 14. Conduct a SWOT analysis 15. Get to work earlier or stay later 16. Revisit direct mail 17. Participate in trade shows 18. Do speaking engagements 19. Advertise 20. Become a thought leader in your space

There’s no avoiding it. Regardless of the size of your company or type of industry or profession, social media must be part of your integrated sales and marketing program. And while it is very good to understand the importance of deploying these tactics, it is also important to recognize how time consuming it can be and just how much content must be developed on a consistent basis. I understand the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to social media, newsletters and content development and because I am a sales consultant at heart I create these documents with an end goal in sight…retaining and winning more new business. I’ve developed a unique program designed specifically for businesses that desire the increased visibility and credibility that comes from being active on the various social media platforms and who wish to consistently distribute valuable content in their blog and newsletter. Customized and scaled exactly to fit your unique needs, AMST can handle content creation and content management for your business ensuring your visibility without taking you away from the more mission critical aspects of your job. * Creation of customized blogs to generate visibility and credibility * Development of customized and focused newsletters * Content development for all social media platforms We can write it, post it and measure the results. If you don’t have the time or feel that you don’t have the ability to write these all important marketing materials, we can do it for you.

I’m not one for rules and regulations, and I don’t much follow any sports except hockey, but one thing I do know for certain is that most sales reps do better and sell more if they have a sales playbook. The playbook doesn’t have to be an elaborate document although that’s perfectly fine too but in my 29 years of sales training and consulting I’ve found that simple is usually better and simple gets followed more often too. Here’s what you should include in your playbook: Who are your prospects Where can you find them What’s your primary offer/deliverable Secondary offers Sales outreach methods / touch point management How to handle positive responders What to do with negative responders and unreachables Networking initiatives Measurement and results analyses The old rule of thumb applies – develop your plan, work your plan and you will achieve results. Any questions? Call me! #sales

W: Want. Fact. You must want the business enough to take every action that you can in order to close the sale. Going half way these days will never work. Be smart and strategic so that you may stand apart from the competition and win the business. Halfway doesn’t work, persistence is mandated and being the “runner-up” won’t pay your bills. What can you do DIFFERENTLY in order to win the business! I: Invest. Invest in yourself and your business. Take classes and courses that can help you to expand your knowledge. Bring in subject matter experts and other resources so that you may attend to what is mission critical for your business as well as give you the time to do what you do best. N: Nurture. Leads and prospects must be carefully nurtured in order to bring them to the point where they are interested in becoming your client. Checking in and touching base on an infrequent basis will do nothing but allow your competition to get a foot in the door. Add value to the relationship even BEFORE there is a business relationship and you will find that you close more new business and do it faster as well. (Remember the 3 I’s: information, invitations and introductions. These will help you to stay on the radar screen!) I’d be remiss if I didn’t offer you our sales coaching program at www.AdrianMiller.com. It’s customized and designed to keep you on track with all of your sales endeavors.

Sure you don’t want to cold call, but sometimes it’s simply a necessity such as when your sales pipeline is empty and not enough leads are coming in or your networking isn’t generating enough activity. Most people approach cold calling with a certain degree of fear and loathing but with a small amount of preparation and a good amount of confidence your cold calling efforts can generate positive results. Here are the top 5 things for you to take into consideration when preparing to cold call: Pick your list with care It’s pretty apparent that the success of your program will be impacted based upon the quality of your target list. The more time you take in evaluating and selecting your list the better results you will have. It only stands to reason that if you are reaching out to the wrong market then your results will be dismal. Develop a call guide that is solutions oriented and reflects your personality Even the most seasoned sales reps can benefit from having a key point talk guide that helps them with the flow of the dialogue. Certainly the call guide is not anything that should be read; instead it helps you with the “landmarks” of the conversation and helps to keep you on track. Create an outstanding voice mail Many or actually most of your calls will wind up with you leaving a voicemail message. Don’t hang up on voicemail as it presents you with a good opportunity to leave a message with the person you’re trying to reach. Once again it’s important to not sound like you are reading and to insert your personality into the message. Formulate probing questions Discovery is a key component of any sales call and that’s certainly true with cold calls. Create a list of questions that you can insert into the calls and remember to lead with questions that do not make the prospect feel that they are disclosing too much before they feel a sense of trust. Be prepared Attempting to “wing it” is just plain wrong. You must prepare what you want to say and how you want to say it as well as knowing how to respond to objections and challenges that are thrown your way. Cold calling is not for everyone but with some preparation and work it can be a successful business development endeavor. In the best of all worlds you will utilize “demand generation” tools to get your prospects to COME TO YOU but if those tactics aren’t yielding enough results then a concerted outreach program might be the answer. #buildbusinesscoldcallingsalesskillssales

In today's challenging marketplace, successful selling requires much more than just presenting a product or service to a prospect. A salesperson is increasingly expected to be a complex hybrid of marketing specialist, consultant, customer service representative, and confidant to make a sale and maintain a customer. It's time for a reality check. Salespeople are simply a dime a dozen. However, trusted resources and business partners are hard to find and definitely worth their weight in gold to businesses and decision-makers. The more value that you can provide; the less chance that you will be replaced. Those who have hung on to old-fashioned selling techniques are being left in the dust by multi-tasking sales professionals who are more than willing to roll up their sleeves and help their customers in any and every capacity. Having to wear so many hats to improve sales effectiveness is daunting but also absolutely necessary. Is it realistic? You bet! With the following best practices, you can dramatically ramp up your sales capabilities and ensure that you are your customers' solutions provider and not merely a vendor. If you're ready to redefine yourself as an indispensable resource and partner, read on. Ask Lots of Questions Ask the right questions, and your prospect will tell you what they need, when and why they need it, and how much they'll pay for it. Probing for information is a fundamental component to success as a salesperson. You know what they say about those who assume. So, don't fall into the trap of thinking you know what someone wants or needs. You'll never go wrong by being genuinely interested and inquisitive. Do Your Homework Learn everything that you can about new prospects. Use the Internet and carefully research their business, market, and competition. Utilize Hoover's and other online resources to find out what you can. Research doesn't stop after you make a sale. It needs to be ongoing so that you can stay current with what's happening with a client's industry and competition. To maximize your ability to be a resource, use Google Alerts, read industry sites, blogs, journals, and even the local business section of the newspaper to be "in the know". Bottom line - the more that you know about your prospects and clients, the more that you can target your message and provide customized service. Be Timely Time is of the essence like never before. With a variety of communication modes literally at our fingertips, being slow to respond is a surefire way to fail. Having the right stuff but offering it too late is a double negative for salespeople. If you are spending the time doing the work, but don't provide it in a timely manner, you will never get the credit, and you'll receive all of the blame. Watch Their Back Word of mouth marketing is an extremely powerful tool in any salesperson's arsenal. If you are a partner, advocate, or trusted vendor, it's your obligation to create positive buzz about your clients and prospects. Be a cheerleader, and you'll be rewarded with return business time and time again. Go Deep Don't forget to dig for other business opportunities within the same organization. Cross-sell, up-sell, and probe for future requirements. You might just find additional sales potential in the account. Go the Extra Mile Your job doesn't stop once you've made a sale. In fact, it's only just begun. Make certain that your customer service channels are in gear and that you are as attentive to a client after the sale as you were during the selling process. To be the most effective salesperson that you can be requires an ongoing dedication to exceed expectations. Are you up to the task? #selling #sales

In 1938, the Finnish government introduced the Maternity Grants Act. That year, Finland’s expectant mothers each received a baby shower of supplies for their newborn. All-weather clothing, health and hygiene products, bedding, a toy–these were some of life’s bare necessities included in the box (which even doubled as a crib). Today, the 75-year-old maternity package tradition is very much thriving, a cultural rite of passage for proud mothers-to-be, and a key contributor to the country’s low infant mortality and high quality of life. When the legislation first passed, Finland boasted one of the highest infant mortality rates in the world–65 deaths per 1,000 births. There was no nationalized health insurance program (as there is today), and a weak hospital network left many Finns with no access to doctors and nurses. Prenatal care was a mere afterthought for the large rural poor population, and few sought it. Even fewer could afford it. The Maternity Grants Act was passed as a legal measure to combat these social ills, a healthy-minded gift of government, as it were. Carefully curated maternity packages are intended to give all Finnish children the same start, if not the same winter caps. Interestingly almost all first-time mothers choose the package over the 140 Euros cash grant. To collect, pregnant women are required to seek prenatal tests at a municipal maternity unit before their fourth month. There, they are given essential, once-unaffordable supplies and healthcare advice (like, “Don’t sleep with your baby; lie it on its back in this box,” and “Show your baby this photo book so s/he can learn”). For several decades, the successful maternity grants program was the one of its kind in the world. By 1979, 100 percent of women were seeking prenatal care, up from 20 percent in 1940. In 2012, Finland had one of the world’s lowest infant mortality rates, an impressively small 2.4 (Finland National Institute for Health and Welfare).

One day I went to Diego Salazar Antique Frames in Long Island City, New York. It’s a place well known in the frame game (Merkelson 2013), but I surprisingly found it hidden among steel-doored warehouses just south of Queens Boulevard. Having seen his frames before at Sotheby’s and among collectors’ private storage, I knew the man had refined taste. I figured I should stop by, especially because of this recent New York Times article. Mr. Salazar is a private collector and dealer, an expert in form and design who has devoted the past 40 years building a unique collection of authentic European and American period frames. The 200 carefully curated frames on display represent a small percentage of his 1000+ collection. It’s an impressive sight, the ornately carved Italian of 1425 installed opposite the c.1890 Stanford White gilded masterpiece. You almost forget there is no artwork; still, frame upon frame, the emptiness is not lost in mere pieces of wood. Mr. Salazar’s love for intricately carved French frames on display in his gallery (photo credit Nicholas Merkelson) I went there knowing less about the Italian vs. American than I’d like to admit, plus I quickly realized the Lion’s Den was not the best place for a crash course in antique frames (Indeed, I was sweating from the ride and locked my hulking 30-year-old Motobecane next to his E350; I was quite aware of my presence). I presented a few legitimate but typical questions: How many? How long? Any favorites? Why frames? I think/hope he could see I wanted to know more despite my appearance of a sweaty thief. In the 20 minutes I chatted with him, I pegged three characteristic traits of collectors*: The collection occupies a big space. Mr. Salazar’s frames fill the showroom, adjacent studios, a nearby building, and I’m sure his apartment, too. Decades of fastidious collecting has resulted in a massive amount of objects. With total care taken to maximize display and storage, those who encounter the collection will appreciate not just individual frames but the complete size, scope, diversity, and arrangement. (As any collections manager is wont to do, I wondered what method is used to house so many frames, what is the chosen cataloging or inventory software, etc.) Really, how are the quirky folks on American Pickers who construct their homes around their collections any different than the collector who “has enough space” to showcase a $500,000 frame? The collection is a living thing. Mr. Salazar speaks of a frame’s beauty, of falling in love with each one, of aged gilding and how a frame looks better over time. Though “they play second fiddle” in the art market, this is an aspect of ongoing collecting Mr. Salazar thoroughly enjoys. It may take three months to sell just one frame, he says. Not a problem, more opportunity for the collection to grow. (I image snooty curators or snooty collectors wavering incessantly about the minutiae of style; with a slight glance at their bank account, they both settle on a Woolworth’s frame instead.) When asked if he could identify a favorite, Mr. Salazar seemed hesitant to answer, pointing first at a Louis XIV, then towards the 15th century Italian, while looking over at the walls of Spanish, Dutch, and Americans. They were all exquisite. The collection provides a great business. Mr. Salazar got his start manufacturing frames over 30 years ago. If you can make it, you can appreciate it, right? Well, if you can make it AND sell it, you can appreciate it even more. As a gallery, Diego Salazar Antique Frames offers clients services beyond dealing “museum quality frames”–from restoration and replication of a frame’s antique appearance; to stabilization and conservation of original elements; to expert appraisals and condition surveys. He will even give public lectures and gallery talks, the only sense of philanthropy in the educative value of his customized presentations. When you’re the face of a one-of-a-kind collection like that, own it. As a collector, there’s nothing like spelling your own name on an awning, let alone lending it to a gallery or creating an entire museum. I would love to own a Goya and put it in one of these gorgeous Spanish frames (photo credit: Nicholas Merkelson) I am not presenting these as characteristic of collectors in general. Collectors are as unique as their collections. However, I believe these are attributable to people who have a collecting tendencies, which as we’ve seen is widespread and universal (read: “What is a collection, and what is collecting?”)

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Do You Want Fries With That? When you order a burger and the salesperson asks “Would you like fries with that,” you’ve experienced a marketing tactic called cross-selling. This strategy encourages customers to purchase additional products and services that are related to the item they are already buying. Cross-selling doesn’t just work with fast food; it’s also a highly effective technique for any type of sales. Here are a few ideas to help you achieve cross-selling success: Service with a Smile The success of cross-selling depends not only on the quality and value of the product, but also the customer service provided. Customer service begins with the very first encounter, either in person, through email, or on the phone. It’s true that you only get one chance to make a first impression. Every customer should always be greeted with enthusiasm and respect Listen to the Customer Many sales opportunities arise by just listening to the customer. The simple skill of listening demonstrates that you are helpful and approachable. A good salesperson should be able to take information from the customer and inform them of all the products and services that would be benefit their needs. Customers appreciate being informed of additional products and services that could provide an added benefit to the item they already intend on purchasing. How Well Do You Know Your Product? Product knowledge is the key to successful sales. Successful salespeople know every detail of their products from how they work to when to use them. It’s essential that this knowledge be relayed to the customer to help them understand why they can benefit from your product. The product you are cross-selling should either be related or complementary to the original item the customer purchased. It’s unlikely to sell an add-on product or service that offers no additional value to the original product. Don’t Forget to Ask Many customers walk out the door without ever being asked whether they could benefit from related products. It should go without saying, but it is necessary to ask the customer whether they are interested. Even the best products and services won’t sell themselves. Sales must be initiated. Follow-up Numerous cross-selling opportunities are lost because the salesperson didn’t take the initiative to contact the customer regarding their original purchase. A quick follow-up call shows the customer that you truly care about their needs and not just the initial sale. This is a perfect time to find out whether they could benefit from related products or services. This simple act will open the door to a long-term sales relationship.