Archive for June, 2010

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Peddling his wares
Gabriel Gate turns berries and a bike race into a tasty little earner.

Read more on The Age

Jewel of Indian cinema
MANI Ratnam is a film-maker whose celluloid fingerprint is unique, one that displays artistic integrity, and is commercially savvy as well.

Read more on AsiaOne

A mega tunnel under the ‘pile of dead bodies’
Its beauty notwithstanding, this 13,300 feet high mountainous pass also, because of its treacherous terrain, ominously means ‘pile of dead bodies’. For India’s Border Roads Organisation (BRO), that is building the nearly 9 km-long Rohtang tunnel, it will prove a ‘geological challenge’ to cut through the mighty Himalayas to create an all-weather passage in this avalanche-prone zone.

Read more on Calcutta News

Copyright (c) 2008 Gavin Ingham

Over the last few months there has been a lot of talk of recession. Wherever you look and whatever you read, ever since the American subprime crisis, talk of a recession seems to be bombarding us from every possible media. Every expert there is seems to have something to say about whether there will or whether there won’t be a serious recession and if there is, how long will it last and just how severe will it be?

If there is a serious recession, learning how to keep on selling in a recession will be vital. Sales training might well be the key.

I have worked with many clients who have weathered recessions, grown their businesses through recessions and even set up and started successful businesses in recessions. Now is not the time to be panicking. Now is the time to be checking your sales activities, sharpening your sales training activities and applying solid sales principles.

1. Believe you can and stay positive!

One of the problems with all of this talk about recession is that once people believe there is going to be a recession they start to feel negative about their prospects. The nature of belief is such that people only tend to see what they believe rather than believing what they see. Once you believe that there is going to be a recession you tend to only notice articles, comments and statistics that support your beliefs.

What’s more, your negative beliefs quickly affect your outlook and the way that you feel about your business prospects. Think about it for a second… If you thought 2008 was going to be a great year for business, your best year yet; how would you feel? Conversely, if you thought 2008 was going to see a major recession and that it was going to hit you and your business hard; how would you feel?

Mighty different huh? And remember, nothing’s changed here… only your belief. Having a positive and supportive belief structure is essential if you want to succeed in any market but it is vitally essential if you want to keep on selling in a tough one.

Having a winning belief system does not mean that you need to be deluded however! In the middle of the darkest recession you don’t want to have your eyes shut! But the truth is that when times are tough companies will look to work with the best partners for their business.

Suppliers that they can rely on. Suppliers that support them. Suppliers who are going to be around tomorrow. And if your competitors struggle, that means more sales and more business for you.

2. Get proactive

If this year is going to be tough then you need to be more proactive. Much more proactive. You need to do more marketing and more selling. You need to attend more events and do more networking. You need to do more promotion and more canvassing. Bottom line, you need to increase your sales activities, maybe dramatically.

In a recession many companies cut their sales activites. They figure, “If we’re not going to sell anything, what’s the point?” Many individual salespeople do this too. Perhaps it’s not a conscious choice but it’s what they do.

Touche. Cut your activity, cut your sales. You’re a living, breathing, self-fulfilling prophecy! You believe there is not much business out there, so you feel negative. That in turn affects your activity and your activity destroys your sales results.

Even if (and it is only if at the moment) there is not as much business out there, then you need to be more active, more focused and more targeted. If your competitors are easing off a little, now is the time to up the anti and grab your share of the market. Even if sales do slow down temporarily, you will be in pole position when things pick up again.

3. Sharpen your sales skills

Most salespeople do not spend enough time working on improving their sales skills and techniques. Perhaps they can get away with this in a booming market when sales are easy. Perhaps not. But things will always change if the market tightens. Sales success will go to the salesperson who really understands why people buy and can help people make the right business decisions. Salespeople of this calibre stand to benefit from possible changes ahead because there will be more business for them as their competition falls by the wayside.

Sales will not go to the journeyman salesperson, the mediocre wannabee or the 9-5 order taker. Salespeople like these could well be in for a rough time.

When did you last read a sales training book on selling? How many sales training audios have you listened to over the last month? How many sales training seminars have you atteneded in the last 6 months? For 80% of salespeople reading this, the answer is zero.

If you’re in the 20% who have invested in yourself… Great, you’re on track. Keep the study up and make sure you stay ahead of the game.

If you’re in the 80% who haven’t… Don’t panic! You still have time. Start now by putting together your own sales training and development plan to sharpen your sales skills and hone your sales techiniques. Salespeople who can sell in any market will always be in demand. Effort now will reward you whatever this year brings.

4. Improve your service and focus on relationships

As I write this many companies will be working out how to cut corners. Companies will try to increase profits by cutting their service levels. They will try and eek extra profits out of their clients by cutting the bells and whistles from their offerings. This is not a good idea.

If business is tight you want to be wowing your clients with the best service that they have ever had, from you or from any of your competitors. You need to be going the extra mile. If a recession bites many companies will try and discount to survive. They probably won’t (survive), but you don’t want your clients going to them as they try to keep their heads above water! You need to “lock in” your existing clients now so that they won’t even think about going anywhere else.

Spend time with your clients. Build stronger relationships with your clients. Make sure you truly understand them, their concerns and their businesses. Find ways to help them and add value over and above what they could have ever expected.

5. Leverage your efforts

In a soft market many salespeople only chase the easy stuff. They don’t chase the tough stuff. Most salespeople have all sorts of opportunities which they squander every day and every month because there are seemingly easier things that they can be doing.

In a tough market you must leverage all of your efforts. This is not rocket science, this should be common practise for you… Here are just a few ideas.

Always ask for referrals. Referrals are great business but most salespeople do not ask for them because clients often say no. Learn how to ask for a referral properly and then build asking for a referral into your sales process and ask for one every time.

Upsell and cross-sell. Whether though laziness, lack of knowledge or lack of ability many salespeople sit on accounts where there is so much more business than they are currently leveraging. Extending your business with existing clients will not only make you more money, it will also strengthen your relationships with and value to them and their businesses.

Contact dormant accounts. Most companies have hundreds if not thousands of “dormant” accounts. There may be multiple reasons for this from changing business practises to fall-outs with the client. Dormant clients may well be redeemable and may have been “lost” purely because someone forgot to ring them or a salesperson moved on. Get in touch with them!

Follow up on all leads. I recently contacted 5 health insurance companies over the web. Only one replied. You should not be burning leads like this in any market. Chase up all leads by using a proven sales approach and you will sign up more business. New clients are essential for any business in any market.

So there we are, 5 tips to help you to sell in a recession. This year may well prove to be an interesting year for some businesses and individuals. Some of this will be down to the market itself. Much of it will be down to you and how you react and respond to what might be a challenging year.

Here’s my prediction for the year…

There will be winners and there will be losers. Which are you going to be?

1001 ways to say ‘I’m sorry’
I made an apology the other day.

Read more on This Week Delaware

Make the most of your week’s ‘168 Hours’
Do you always feel like you’re in a time crunch? Author Laura Vanderkam says that shouldn’t be the case, and shares strategies of people who successfully balance work, family and fun. An excerpt. Work – Work and Family – Laura Vanderkam – Organizations – Author

Read more on MSNBC

Institute for Genomics and Systems Biology, 454, Illumina, Center for Research in Agricultural Genomics, National …
The Institute for Genomics and Systems Biology, a joint venture of the Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago, said this week that it has acquired two second-generation sequencers: a Roche/454 GS FLX and an Illumina Genome Analyzer.

Read more on GenomeWeb News

www.howdini.com Even during an economic downturn, some careers are safe. Career consultant Maggie Mistal explains which industries are recession proof, no matter what the overall job market is doing. How to find recession proof jobs What is a recession-proof job? * Jobs that cant be outsourced * Jobs for which there is a great demand What are some top recession-proof industries? Health Care * Baby Boomers are aging and they will require increased health services. * In addition to health care and care giving jobs, there are traditional functions such as marketing, legal and accounting that serve the health care industry. Education * Baby Boomer teachers will begin retiring. * There will always be a demand for education services. How can job-seekers translate their existing skills into the health or education field? * Make a list of skills that transfer no matter the type of job function you are doing, such as communication, writing, presentation skills, problem solving and team skills. When targeting recession proof jobs in the health or education industry, how can job-seekers rewrite their resume to be more relevant? * Go to the Bureau of Labor Statistics website. * Look at the Occupational Outlook Handbook, which lists all kinds of jobs. * Search for the jobs that have skills and requirements that most closely match your experience. * On your resume, highlight the skills and experience youve attained that match up with the job you are seeking. What are some good websites …

AE Finalists: California Dreamin’
Greens question the need for Golden Staters

Read more on The Austin Chronicle