The Competitive Advantage

December 11, 2018

Marketing & Sales for ‘Old’ Business Owners, Part 2

“Do I really need to be on social media?”

Spoiler alert… “Yes!” Yes, you do need to be on social media.

When I talk to oldsters (I can say that… I’m 60), their feelings about social media are generally like this: LinkedIn is just for job-hunting… Facebook is for looking at pictures of friends & family… and they don’t have any idea what Twitter is about.

Allow me to simplify and make the case for all three of them. Social media platforms are marketing channels through which you can communicate to clients and prospective clients. By doing so on a regular basis, social media allows you to build and maintain a level of awareness in the markets you serve, develop connections and engage with those buyers, and position yourself as a Subject Matter Expert or Thought Leader.

Let’s do a quick review of each of the platforms…

December 4, 2018

Marketing & Sales for ‘Old’ Business Owners, Part 1

The first in a 5-part series on marketing & sales for ‘seasoned’ professionals.

I’m really lucky. I get to work with small business owners and managers all across the country. And many – if not most – are my contemporaries… same age range (50s-60s), same stage of life, same stage of business, etc.

And one of the obstacles I face is that these ‘old’ people (I’m 60 – so I’m allowed to say that!) have a blind spot when it comes to marketing & sales. They often don’t want to do it, don’t like to do it or don’t know how to do it. Yet, oddly, they do know that some kind of marketing & sales effort is important to their business.

It’s for this group that I’ve decided to write this blog series addressing the most common questions I hear from this ‘veteran’ group…

November 27, 2018

Look left and right for revenue growth!

When you think about the growth of your company, 99% of the time, you think about how to increase revenue for your core business. That is, how do you sell more of the kinds of products & services you’re already selling to more of the kinds of clients you’re already selling to? And you should think like it… that is your business, after all.

But before you set in stone your growth plans for next year, you need to consider two other ways to grow your business.

November 13, 2018

Ignore the title on your business card… you’re in sales!

What is selling? Simply defined, selling is the process of influencing a buying decision. That’s it.

And guess what? Your sales people aren’t the only ones who do that. Everyone at your firm has the opportunity and responsibility to do that – particularly in regards to ensuring repeat clients.

November 6, 2018

6 Reasons Why eBooks are a Great Marketing Tool

eBooks have been a staple of content marketing for some time. Loosely defined as booklets of multiple pages (usually 8 or more), well-designed and covering fairly broad topics, eBooks have proven to be a great marketing tool. If you’ve not considered producing an eBook for your firm, here are 6 reasons why you should.

October 23, 2018

Showing signs of insanity? Uh-oh…

Here are 8 new ideas for 2019 to make sure you’re not crazy!

It’s almost the end of 2018. Stop what you’re doing for just a minute and take stock of the year that’s winding down. Have you grown like you wanted… acquired as many new clients as you hoped… launched that new service line you were planning on?

If you answered ‘no’ to any of those questions, then the immediate follow-up is, “So, what are you doing about it?”

And if your answer to that is “I don’t know,” then consider the accepted definition of insanity: “To keep doing the same things over and over… and expecting the outcome to change.”

October 16, 2018

Case Studies: Your ‘Proof Source’ for Closing Deals.

This past week, I sat in on a webinar entitled, “How to Engage and Sell Today’s Corporate Research Buyer,” hosted by GreenBook. It was the presentation of data collected by GreenBook, Collaborata and David Harris. In it, a lot of really good information was presented, but one of the recurring themes – directly stated by the buyers themselves – was the value of ‘case studies’ and their role in the buying decision.

Some content – eBooks and checklists, for example – are used to generate interest and awareness… to get prospects into the “top of the funnel.”

Other content – for the middle of the funnel – is used to educate and inform (and showcase your Subject Matter Expertise). Think webinars, blog posts and infographics.

But at the bottom of the funnel – at decision time – your prospective buyer wants proof. Proof that you can do what you say you can do… and that’s where case studies come in to play.

October 6, 2018

Revenue Forecasting for 2019… It Doesn’t Need to Be a Guessing Game!

It’s getting to be that time of year when you’ll start thinking about and planning for 2019. And one of the first questions you’ll have to answer for your firm is, “What’s our revenue goal for next year?”

Traditionally – and unfortunately – this is answered in one of two ways: