Hyundai may extend car return program: U.S. CEO

Hyundai Motor Co Ltd (005380.KS) is considering extending its successful U.S. incentive program that allows consumers to return vehicles if they lose their jobs, its U.S. chief executive said on Wednesday.

The "Hyundai Assurance Program," which began in January and was widely copied by rivals including General Motors Co GM.UL and Ford Motor Co (F.N) contributed to the South Korean automaker increasing sales and expanding market share in a slumping U.S. market.

Hyundai North America Chief Executive John Krafcik told Reuters that the automaker will keep the car return program through the end of 2009, adding, "We're thinking now about how much further we should take it."

Fewer than 50 consumers have returned their vehicles under the program, Krafcik said.

Hyundai's U.S. sales rose 2 percent to 342,217 vehicles in the first nine months of this year from a year earlier, while overall U.S. auto sales fell almost 30 percent.

Hyundai, whose U.S. market share topped 4 percent this year, aims to increase its share further and in 2009 will be one of the few manufacturers to increase sales over last year, Krafcik said. He declined to give a target for increasing the market share.

Industry-wide U.S. auto sales are expected to be in the range of 10 million to 10.5 million units in the fourth quarter on an annualized basis, Krafcik forecast, adding that the market will improve to 11 million to 11.5 million units next year.

"We are being conservative for next year in our expectations," Krafcik said.

He spoke on the sidelines of a meeting on U.S. fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas standards for 2012 to 2016 model year vehicles hosted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

"We desire to be the No. 1 fuel economy brand in the United States, we are No. 3 right now. As quickly as possible," Krafcik said.

Hyundai has a fuel economy rating for its fleet of vehicles of about 28 to 29 miles per gallon, trailing Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) and Honda Motor Co (7267.T).

In improving its fuel economy average, Hyundai will rely mainly on four-cylinder cars and "hundreds of incremental changes" that will make the fleet more efficient, from turbocharged engines to improved aerodynamics to fuel injection improvements. Tweaking the systems to make them more efficient is a constant at Hyundai, he said.

For Hyundai, "Hybrids will play a role, but they're not going to play a significant role," he said. "They are very expensive. And Americans have shown, at least in the current gasoline price regime, that they are not able to make that cost-benefit trade-off."

Hyundai has about 785 U.S. dealers that sell its brands, a number he expects to hold flat in the coming year at a time when others are cutting dealerships.

Mayor gives property tax increase 50/50 chance

Mayor Lionel Rivera was cautiously optimistic yesterday when asked whether he thought Colorado Springs voters would approve measure 2C, a property tax increase on the Nov. 3 ballot.

Rivera said “most of the people” he talks to support 2C.

They believe the city government is underfunded and “imbalanced because of the reliance on sales tax, and the request for a moderate increase in the mill levy is responsible, and it’s something that they can afford,” he said.

“I’m going to support it, and it’s going to impact my pocketbook, but I can’t judge the entire community by the people I run into on a day-to-day basis,” he said.

“If I just judge it based on the people I talk to, I’d say, ‘Hey, it’s going to win 75 (percent) to 25 (percent.)’ But I know that’s not realistic. I know there’s plenty of people (among the city’s) 400,000 citizens that have different views than I do and a different view of the people I run into or associate with on a daily basis, so that’s why I say 50/50,” he said.

http://citydesk.freedomblogging.com/2009/10/21/mayor-gives-property-tax-increase-5050-chance/513/

Use Video Streaming to Increase Sales

Video streaming is definitely the internet's future. Presently, the internet would be the growing marketplace where video is considered as the most effective means of communication in the information super highway.

There are some people who have included images and pictures so that they would be able to add impact and appeal to their website. However, sometimes these are just not enough. People who do their business online would require facilities with fully integrated video streaming that they could use for their online communication. This technology is available in Video Instant Messaging, Video Email and Webcasting, as well as Streaming Web TV.

We are not longer limited to just text and pictures. We have the ability of generating more visitors and amazing them with the use of video streaming on our websites. In a way, video streaming has become an essential part in web building and design that would keep us on the forefront of the future communication revolution.

For web marketing specialists, videos are great and powerful selling tools. Placing videos on your website is a great way to create and establish a personal connection with customers which would appeal to their senses, which would ultimately result to more visitors-turned-customers.

Additionally, websites that have video streaming such as MySpace, Facebook and YouTube offer interactivity to online users, thus increasing visitors to their websites.

Some live video would certainly be able to motivate customers to take some action now instead of skimming through the text and end up just clicking away to another website. Video streaming provides a way for the visitors of your website to appreciate whatever you are offering without having to go through a lot of effort reading and reading.

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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bill_Pratt

Creating A Sales And Marketing Strategy

Small business owners who are concerned about their sales and marketing capabilities could begin to see improvement by breaking down the term "sales and marketing" into discrete, manageable elements. You end up with a checklist that can be reviewed in order to prioritize areas needing improvement - a checklist that will serve as the groundwork for an effective marketing strategy.

In the suggested list below, I will use examples from a retail florist business to make some points clear.

1) MARKETS. How much do you really know about your current markets or future market? Why do your customers buy from you? What could you offer that would attract more non-customers? How can you sell to more of the profitable customers? If you add features or services, will people pay more for them or will they attract more customers? Are there bulk, institutional, industrial, or corporate markets beyond normal retail that you are ignoring?

Florist: Have you thought about selling regular weekly arrangements to area businesses, especially car dealers, law firms, real estate firms, etc. at a reduced rate, but with a one year contract for 50 arrangements?

2) COMPETITION. Who are they and why are they after you? What is the overall market trend and how are you holding up in terms of market share and profit position? How do you really rank against competitors? What substitutes are there to your products and how much of a threat are they?

Florist: If your funeral business is dwindling, what cultural trends ("no flowers" announcements for example) are important here and how can you counter them (such as sending flowers or a fruit basket to the home of survivors, for example)?

3) DISTRIBUTION. How can you get your products/services out to new outlets profitably? Are there unbranded opportunities? Can you bundle in your products with someone else's?

Florist: Can you partner with service providers for high school proms in the area (photographers, limo services) and offer a one-stop package for young people? This could become a good new sales channel for you.

4) SUPPLY CHAIN: Are you at the mercy of wholesalers for your raw materials or product components? How can you manage suppliers and gain more buying power over them? Can you simplify your products and reduce your supply needs? Can you buy in bulk and store them somewhere in a cost effective manner? Can you buy some things pre-fabricated cheaper than doing it yourself (or vice versa)?

Florist: Use the Internet to locate California-based rose growers who will air freight roses in volume for you and a loose consortium of other florists in your area. They'll give you greater variety at the standard market rate, versus reduced availability and price gouging during holidays from local wholesalers. Be prepared for friction from them, however.

5) POSITIONING. Where do your products/services fall in relation to the total market? Is this truly the position you want? Are you "all things to all people," or should you move more toward a high-end position (charging a premium for a differentiated service), or a low-cost position (undercutting others' prices but at a profit, due to high efficiency)? If you are truly "in the middle," you should examine how well you're doing regularly (with the help of a good accounting system).

Florist: Should you consider exiting no-growth "traditional lines" such as church flowers and move toward faster-growth lines such as silk flowers for weddings? Does your shop portray the position you want to be in?

Continue on to the next page to read more about the elements of sales and marketing that you need to consider as you build an effective marketing strategy.

6 Sure Ways to Increase Sales

Want to increase sales dramatically? Then shift your sales focus from attracting new customers to enticing your proven customers to buy again. The best sales prospect is a prospect that’s already converted – in other words, one of your current customers.

Think of it this way; if your business is located in a small town with a population of 1000 people and you sell a sprocket to everyone in that town, man, woman, and child, you’ve sold 1000 sprockets – and saturated your market. Your sprocket selling days are over. Is it time to pack up and move on?

No! If you start focusing your sales efforts on your proven customers, you’ll be able to increase your sprocket sales dramatically. And these sure ways to increase sales will help build customer loyalty, too. Try some or all of these ideas to increase your sales:

1. Set up a sales incentive program.

Give your sales staff a reason to get out there and sell, sell, sell. Why do so many businesses that rely on their sales staff to drive sales have incentive programs in place? Because offering their sales staff the trips and/or TVs for x amount of sales works. See Paul Shearstone’s Creating Sales Incentive Programs That Work for how to make your sales incentive program “sweet and simple and attainable”.

2. Encourage your sales staff to upsell.

Essentially, upselling involves adding related products and/or services to your line and making it convenient and necessary for customer to buy them. Just placing more products near your usual products isn’t going to increase your sales much. To upsell successfully, the customer has to be persuaded of the benefit. For instance, when I last had my carpets cleaned, the cleaner noticed a pet stain. Instead of just cleaning it up, he drew my attention to it, and showed me how easily and effectively the spot cleaning solution removed all trace of the stain. Did I buy the spot cleaning solution? You bet. He persuaded me that buying it was beneficial to me and made it convenient to purchase it. Result: increased sales for the carpet cleaning company.

3. Give your customers the inside scoop.

Recently I was shopping at a retail housewares store. I had picked out an item and was mulling over whether to buy it or not when a salesperson came up to me and said, “I see you’re interested in that blender. We’re having a sale next week and all our blenders will be 20 percent off. You might want to come back then.” Guess what? I did – and bought two other items as well. Lesson: if you have a promotion or sale coming up, tell your customers about it. They’ll come back – and probably bring some friends with them too. (And don't forget - you can give your customers the inside scoop by emailing or calling them, too.)

4. Tier your customers.

There should be a clear and obvious difference between regular customers and other customers – a difference that your regular customers perceive as showing that you value them. How can you expect customer loyalty if all customers are treated as “someone off the street”? There are all kinds of ways that you can show your regular customers that you value them, from small things such as greeting them by name through larger benefits such as giving regulars extended credit or discounts.

5. Set up a customer rewards program.

We’re all familiar with the customer rewards programs that so many large businesses have in place. But there’s no reason that a small business can’t have a customer rewards program, too. It can be as simple as a discount on a customer’s birthday or as complex as a points system that earns various rewards such as discounts on merchandise. Done right, rewards programs can really help build customer loyalty and increase sales.

6. Distribute free samples to customers.

Why do so many businesses include free samples of other products when you buy something from them? Because it can increase sales in so many ways. As the customer who bought the original product, I might try and like the sample of the new product and buy some of it, too. Or I might pass on the sample to someone else, who might try the product, like it, and buy that and other products from the company. At the very least, the original customer will be thinking warm thoughts about your company, and hopefully telling other people about your products.

Attracting new customers is a good thing. But attracting new customers is not the only way to increase your sales, and is, in fact, the hard way of going about it. Shifting your sales focus to enticing your current customers can make increasing your sales easier – and best of all, build the customer loyalty that results in repeat sales.

What the Eiffel Tower Teaches Us About Process

In redecorating my home office, I began looking for images for the walls that would inspire and motivate me. This needed to be more than pretty pictures of flowers and landscapes. One day I was in a book store and started sifting through a bin of art prints. Voila! There it was: a series of images of the Eiffel Tower, spanning one year of construction from foundation to finished tower. I'd never had any real interest in the Eiffel Tower and didn't know much beyond that it was built for the World's Fair. Yet, the image spoke to me, and I couldn't wait to get it home and hang it up.

It's really an image to contemplate. For me, it symbolizes the journey and stages of becoming tall, strong and even iconic. I see powerful connections between the Eiffel Tower and process:

The Eiffel Tower didn't spring fully formed out of the ground and instantly become a classic symbol of a city. Sometimes, when I'm feeling discouraged or overwhelmed, I forget that everyone started somewhere. It's easy to think that certain people were just born with their PhD and expert status, in demand on several continents. In reality, they started from the ground and built up. There are no "overnight" successes.

The most important growth period happens when it appears that there is little outside progress. In the case of the Eiffel Tower, the longest period of time between two major points of construction was four months, yet that period exhibits the least amount of change. From the photos, it looks as though that's when critical infrastructure was added that created stability and strength for the remaining upward build. I see this same process with clients. While they are being coached, they are doing a lot of internal building of self-esteem and positive self-talk "infrastructure." They are making huge shifts and changes, ones that form the solid foundation for all future growth.

It takes a village to build something that lasts. The Eiffel Tower had 300+ people involved in its construction. It also has 2.5 million rivets holding it together! Just as the tower needed people who believed in it and solid reinforcements to keep it standing, so do we as individuals on our personal journeys. It's not just about networking; it's about forming relationships of mutual support and trust that will stand the test of time. Just as there's no "overnight success," there are no "self-made millionaires" either. Every successful person has a team of supporters, friends, colleagues and mentors. And when one prospers, they all prosper.

People didn't like the Eiffel Tower at first; they may not like you either. Harsh, I know. When the tower was first constructed, it was assailed with criticism from prominent members of the community as well as the general citizenry. People were actually angry and thought it was an eyesore.

Today, of course, we cannot imagine the Parisian skyline without the Eiffel Tower. Attitudes shifted, and its aesthetic and practical significance (as a communication tower) saved it from the plan to demolish it after 20 years. Paris is now celebrating the tower's 120th birthday.

People who succeed in any endeavor often have to persevere through naysayers and wet blankets. They may not like you or your idea. Does that matter? NO. There is plenty of room in your process for people to offer constructive criticism and feedback if it supports your growth. There is no room for those who want to keep you small or who feel threatened. Surround yourself with people who will build you up, not tear you down. Those who built the tower had to withstand insult and injury. They stood by their vision, and c'est magnifique!

About Beth Buelow: As a Personal Coach, Beth's purpose is to partner with people who are seeking to live a more intentional life. She offers coaching, programs and services for individuals and teams, using an inside-out process to expand clarity and choice, leading to stronger relationships, self-expression and focus. http://www.intentionaltalk.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Beth_Buelow

Do You Have Double Vision?

No I am not talking about the album by Foreigner and I'm not talking about the physical condition that can be repaired with eye drops or contacts. I am talking about the inability to focus on what it is in life you want to accomplish.

A lot of people walk through life with what I call mental double vision, bumping along and hoping to arrive somewhere, someday. The fact is that you can't accidentally accomplish your goals. It is impossible to accidentally become great, accidentally lose weight, or accidentally start that business. These things have to be done on purpose with a single vision in mind.

When you wake up and begin your day, do you head out the door with a shotgun or rifle? The shotgun approach to life is sloppy, careless and guaranteed to be unsuccessful. The shotgun says whatever happens happens and I might hit or might not.

But with the rifle approach your aim is precise, focused and exact. You know your target, you know your goal, and you focus, aim and pull the trigger. Your vision is clear and now attainable.

Mental double vision, just like the physical, will keep you from accomplishing and achieving your goals. Don't be satisfied with bumping along in life and accepting what ever happens.

Get clear, get focused and get going! There is a lot more to see and be when you get focused! Oh yeah, Double Vision by Foreigner is a great album, especially on vinyl!

Living Life On Purpose!

James Life Coach http://www.jamescarnaghi.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=James_Carnaghi

Fools Jump In? Let's Think About That One

Everyone has heard the phrase "fools jump in" at one time or another. I have no idea when it was first said or by whom, but it sounds like something everyone's Dad has said to their children doesn't it? I'm pretty sure I heard it from mine. I suppose that in some ways its reasonable advice too. On the other hand, history is littered with individuals, groups and companies who waited, waited, waited...and waited before adopting something new or different. More often than not, that waiting or not recognizing that an opportunity to be seized upon was at hand produced unwanted consequences. There are many examples, but here's a famous one:

Remember the telegraph? Probably not, but maybe you've seen them in the movies. Let's go back in time to 1876 for just a moment shall we? At that particular time, W.U. Telegraph Company had a monopoly on the telegraph, which was then the world's most advanced communications technology. If you were getting a telegram at that time, it was the W.U. network transmitting it, receiving it and then delivering it to you. This company was rich and powerful and didn't really have any competition at all, so when the president of W.U., William Orton was offered the opportunity to buy the patent for a new and really cool communications invention, he sat back in his big padded chair and had himself a big laugh. These nuts were asking for $100,000! Full of amused indignation, Orton wrote a letter to the inventor.

"Mr. Bell, after careful consideration of your invention, while it is a very interesting novelty, we have come to the conclusion that it has no commercial possibilities... What use could this company make of an electrical toy?"

You know how this story turns out don't you? The young inventor was Alexander Graham Bell. When his proposal was rejected by W.U.'s's William Orton, he decided to keep the patent and find investors to help bring it to the market. Within a few short years, his American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) had become the largest corporation in the United States. The Bell patent that was offered to Orton for a measly $100,000 became the single most valuable patent in history. Orton realized his mistake almost immediately, as he watched Bell and his investors begin to develop and expand the technology. He attempted to block Bell's patent over the next few years, and play catch up at the same time, but the game was already lost. He'd simply missed the opportunity.

Sometimes people simply miss the clues that signal a coming change. It happens.Change can be upon us in an instant. More often than that though, people just find reasons to wait, to delay, to stall, to explain why it would be foolish to jump in! Even if something seems beneficial or will clearly improve on an outdated method or product, careful cautiousness often rules the day. Its fear of change, not being comfortable with a new process, anything that gets that old advice kicking in: "Let's just wait and see how this pans out before doing anything hasty."

I submit to you that this is no decent way to live! While we must exercise common sense, we need not be locked behind the door of "caution." Seize the opportunities that show up in your life. Always maintain an open mind. Be curious about new things, not fearful. Life is ever changing, always flowing. The only variable is your ability to accept change or to resist change. Why not float downstream and enjoy the ride instead of paddling against the current? Jump In!

Grant Criddle http://www.grantcriddle.com/ Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Grant_Criddle

Desire - Make a Plan and Take Action

You can have the things you want in life, if you set your mind on them and develop a plan to achieve your dreams. It's true, It's so true. These words contain the secret to limitless success and endless streams of cash, yet unfortunately most will go through this life never even scratching the surface in terms of what they could be experiencing.

What do you want from life? How do you define a good quality of life? Have you develop a plan to take you there? Perhaps you're not shore about the kind of life you want for yourself and for your family. It's possible your sort of stuck somewhere between survival and limited beliefs, listen your mind is an incredible powerful tool. It can propel you forward or pull you backwards! It works a lot like a computer.

Computers are very powerful, they can do amazing things, however they can't do anything unless they are told what to do. Once they understand what you want them to do, then they can complete the task very well. Your mind works the same way.

Your mind does what you tell it to do. Here's an example; Have you ever gotten yourself in the situation where you just couldn't remember a friends name and because of that it bugs you? In fact it bugs you so much that you begin to think so hard that suddenly it pops out in your head as if by magic. Isn't that a great feeling when this happens? Just like the computer are brain is programmed to give answers to complex equation or even simple tasks such as this one. Here's the key, you are what you allow yourself to dwell on. Tony Robbins says it best; Your life is nothing more then a mirror of your consistent thoughts and actions. So with this in mind let me ask you a very important question, what do you dwell on? Is it the lack of money your making? Is it the economy or the doom and gloom media coverage? Perhaps you are dwelling on something that is harmful to you and that will never propel you forward. These things may have a firm grip on keeping you where you are.

Are you happy with where you are in life? Imagine yourself for a moment in a very different life. Imagine a life where you can let go of the stress. A life where you aren't constantly worried about money. A life where you can truly enjoy yourself. you know being able perhaps for the very first time or perhaps for the very first time in a very long time. Being able to take a deep breath and exhale slowly as every trouble and stressful event fade away. And these things get replaced with good things like more money, better relationship and a overall quality of life that grabs hold of you that that perhaps you've never felt before.

Its a defining moment where you finally realized what you have reached the level of success that you've been working towards. That does a few things, first you get that adrenalin rush that you've made it, this is followed by relief. Next you are greatly humble to be where only few are and that in it of it self is an amazing feeling. I saw on CNN a program that was talking about the 5% of Americans in terms of income.

As I listened I realized that how many people are there that is not in the 5% and that they can truly change their way of life if they commit to themselves to doing so. So here is where you choice comes in, shore you could keep on doing what your doing, I'll bet you got working hard down to a science. I'll bet your really good at working hard, in fact your so good at working hard that it may be all you know in terms of how to make money.

Here is what else i know. I know you're working to hard for a lot less money. You aren't making as much as your worth either. Not by a long shot. So you are working harder for less money, what's the solution?

Well, you need to discover how to work smarter and in the process you will make more money. Listen! My mentor and a friend of mine taught me this; You can make money or you can make excuses, but you can't make both effectively at the same time! So yes you can have the things you want in life, if you set your mind on them and develop a plan to achieve your dreams. I'll make a deal with you! If you bring the desire, i'll give you the plan to make it happen. Do you think this is fair? How do you think desire and plan stack up in balance? Is your desire more important then having a plan? They are both important, in fact they are both critical to your success. Without desire it doesn't matter how good the plan is and without a plan all the desire in the world will not take you anywhere.

Hey, I hope I've given you some things to think about. Remember of what i've sad that success is a direct result of what you dwell on. I know for a fact that you can have the thing in life that you want but its only possible if you have the desire and a plan. Dream on because that is when you're alive. Early on one of my friends and family member would say Renald you're a dreamer or your eyes are big, they sad these things because they always saw that i wanted more from life and expected more etc. My response was always the same, one day i will show you but just give me the time to do so. You have to dream, you have to set goals, you have to initiate your desire in order to execute your plan so you can have more out of life.

I would be honored to help you realize your dreams. You'll receive guidance from one of the all time top earner in the industry by just visiting my website here under. We are here to help you and that is what we want to do. Its time to get exited about your life. Life is an incredible journey so let me help you make the discovery of a lifetime.

Renald Croes is a young entrepreneur who started from humble beginnings to having his own online home based business opportunity with Coastal Vacations and is the CEO of Dream Vacations Network For more information about him and his business visit http://www.cashconsistency.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Renald_Croes

Simple Steps to Making Changes and Creating Dreams!

Are your habits and beliefs pulling you down? Is your inner voice shouting words of hopelessness and despair? Would you like to improve your life? Your beliefs and habits are what represents who you are inside, changing the ones which are no longer useful, and discovering new ones, which will bring those dreams.

Steps to making changes and creating dreams:

1. Purpose: State your dreams and goals: What is it you really want in life?

2. Discovery: Finding which old beliefs and habits hold you back. Begin creating new ones, such as thinking positive, being optimistic, and no longer believing you are a victim, but a doer.

3. Desire:This is what pushes you forward, desire is the passion and drive, needed to reach the top. When we crave for something, our strongest emotions are let out, and we will do what ever it takes to get it. The more you desire what you want, faster it comes.

4. Repetition: Repeating, every morning and night your desires. In Japan there is a saying, "Keep it simple, keep it repetitive," Soon your thoughts will change.

5. Visualization: Imagine you have achieved your goals, and are living the life you want. Make it real, and it will come.

6. Action: This is the last step is to bring your desires to reality. You are now aware of what you really want, take action, bring your wants to reality. Makes it happen.

Here is a little rhyme I wrote, reminding you to never stop believing.

When day has turned to night,
And there is no more light;
Just close you eyes,
And visualize,
The life you so desire;
And soon one special day,
That dream, will come your way.

Patty Okawa
BA/Psychology, Cert. L/B Coaching, Masters Clinical Hypnotherapist
Please feel free to email me at achangingday@gmail.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Patty_Okawa

The 5 Skills of Great Sales Leaders Building a High Performance Sales-Team

Anyone can sell in the good times!

As a sales manager you need a road-map to help navigate and drive results in a tough market economy. The fact is, it doesn't really take a great a salesperson (or manager) to achieve quota in times of double digit market returns. But what should you as a sales-leader do when the economy hits the skids?

What are you going to do to ensure your team achieves their targets when the market is flat?

Most managers are promoted into their roles because they were "good salespeople". Managing a team is very different! Managing a sales team in tough times is very stressful. Many struggle!

How do you as the leader plan to achieve your budget when there is so much indecision and fear in the market? Think about it, do you really know how each of your salespeople are going perform in these troubled times?

For most sales-managers it takes years of trial and error to master the art of managing a team.

The 5 critical skills of Sales-Leaders:

There are 5 critical skills that Leaders must master if they are to effectively move beyond their current limitations and drive increased results, whilst at the same time engaging their entire team preventing them from being poached by the competition.

Sales-Performance Coaching has been proven to deliver the fastest and most effective sales creation vehicle to drive your growth. One-to-one performance coaching is a powerful and time tested sales acceleration strategy. When mastered, it will maximise your growth whilst at the same time help to build a foundation of permanent growth in your business.

Sales-Optimisation Planning when done effectively, is a powerful yet simple tool which rapidly generates measurable results and is easy to introduce, control and monitor for quick wins. Whilst there are many strategy and planning methodologies around, the object of the exercise must be 'execution'.If the planning process is too complicated or it lacks simple and tactical objectives, implementation gets put into the 'too hard basket'. Each territory and individual Representative should have an effective plan that focuses on execution and delivery of outcomes.

Streamlined-Sales Process - A Sales-Process Map is a powerful sales consistency creation tool which captures the science for the best way to sell your products/services in your specific market. A well designed Process includes a series of pre-determined customer-focused steps that will enable your salespeople to substantively increase win rates, build customer retention and increase revenue production on a consistent basis. Each step consists of several key activities and must have predictable and measurable performance outcomes.

Sales Skill and Capability Development - For Sales capability training to be effective it must be tailored to suit your selling environment and market. Effective skill development should be based on the principle that 70% of all workplace learning happens on the job and not in the classroom. Whilst your Team may have all been trained in a specific selling methodology, many still fail to implement the elected training methodology to extract its full value. The most effective way to boost the capabilities of each salesperson is to tailor specific selling skills based on their individual needs.

Individual Performance Motivation - There is an enormous body of research out there which points to the fact that we are all motivated and driven by different needs and wants. The most effective salesperson motivation method lies in focusing on the individual.Most sales incentives and motivational drives are generally directed at the Sales Team, whereas an individually based performance strategy delivers far superior results. An individual performance management strategy should be specifically tailored to suit each of the members of your Team with a view to drive their sales development and growth, as well as ensuring the execution of their exclusive growth plan. A programme like this will also have the added benefit of enhancing the retention of your top performers.

As one of Australia's leading authorities and coaches in sales management, Ian Segail has been involved in the coaching, training and development of sales managers and salespeople for over two decades.

Drawing on 25 years of experience in sales, sales management and leading an HR and training team, Ian brings a strong dose of fiscal reality and practicality to his works as a Sales Performance Coach.

Engaging directly with business owners and both novice and experienced sales managers alike, across a wide variety of industries and selling disciplines, the focus of Ian's work is to transform sales results for companies by improving sales management practices.

Ian is the author of "Bulletproof Your Sales Team - The 5 Keys To Turbo-Boosting Your Sales Team's Results" and a number of business articles, business reports and white papers including "The fish stinks from the head!" and "Why Sales Training Doesn't Work."

Ian has an insatiable hunger for studying selling and people management and has passionately pursued answers to the question "How come some people can sell and most can't?"

Find out why sales training doesn't work by downloading Ian's whitepaper from http://www.salestutor.com.au/Content_Common/pg-Salestutor-Tools-and-Resources-Articles-and-Whitepapers.seo

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ian_Segail

Newsletter Marketing - An Inexpensive But Effective Way To Increase Sales

Want to increase your company's equipment and service sales through marketing and promotional programs but don't have the big ticket budget for advertising or promotion?

Try using an inexpensive but effective Newsletter E-mail Marketing program.

What is Newsletter E-Mail Marketing?

The purpose behind newsletter marketing would be to promote your company's products and services, and to enhance its image and reputation as a professional, dependable, and knowledgeable entity.

Newsletter marketing offers some of the benefits typically gained from On-Hold Promotions, in that it informs the customer about promotional specials or new items and services offered by your company. But an added advantage to you is that your promotional message is delivered to your customers or prospects on a regular basis, rather than your waiting for your customers to hear your promo message only when they call your company and are put on hold. In addition, your newsletter's content gives your prospect motivation to open your newsletter and read it when he receives it.

How is all this accomplished?

A weekly--or monthly--newsletter with your company name, logo, and promotional information is created, along with news, tips, articles, advice, and information which are all selected on the basis of their potential interest to your customers. After your newsletter is approved by you, it is then E-mailed to a list of customers or prospects of your choosing.

Newsletter Format and Content

Your newsletter format is designed with these factors in mind.

* Contents of each issue includes current and of particular interest to business people
* New information, tips, news, advice, include articles and announcements about services, products, and new technology (excluding items which might promote your competitors, their services, or products), is chosen from professional articles and news releases, and replaces old copy from previous newsletter issues.
* Your company name and logo are displayed in a prominent location on each newsletter intended to project the impression that the newsletter is created and published by your company, or at least that your company is an expert in this field.
* Advertisements (except for your company promotions) from other vendors are not published in the newsletter.
* Your Company Promotions

Each newsletter will feature a special column or space designed to promote your company, its products, and its services, such as:

* Monthly equipment or services pricing discounts
* Promotional information about your company, such as new equipment and services you are adding to your line
* Special recognition, awards, or achievements of your company's executives or employees
* Personnel or management changes at your company
* Changes in company policies and services

Newsletter Service

A Newsletter service is one that is in business to help create and mail newsletters. In addition to mailing your newsletter, these services typically include reports that tell you which recipients actually open E-mails containing your newsletter.

How does this newsletter process work?

A simple four-step procedure allows you to choose your newsletter content and send it to selected prospects or customers, without printing costs or postage. All you pay for is a small fee for using the newsletter service (usually $.01 to $.02 per E-mail recipient). Or, if you work with a service that designs your newsletter and writes copy for you, there will typically be a small fee for that.

Step 1: You choose the template and format which you think will be of greatest interest to your prospects who receive your newsletter, along with a format which best represents your company, its services, products, and its policies.

Step 2: You create (and submit to your newsletter design service, if you have one) monthly specials, promotions, or news about your company (such as new products and service, upgrades, monthly pricing specials, etc.) which you'll want inserted into your newsletter template.

Step 3: Your template (if you use a design service) with your inserted company information is submitted to you for your approval.

Step 4: You E-mail your final template to a list of customers and/or prospects you have added to your E-mail list. (You can also print the one-page template to be used as a stuffer, hand out, or prospecting piece)

Using your newsletter for promotion in prospecting or in presentations to prospective customers

By including prospective customers in your Newsletter E-mail list, you keep your company name information in front of prospective customers, so that when they decide to purchase systems or service you can provide, your company will be one which the prospect contacts for quotes or information.

In following these simple steps, even a manager with little or no experience in newsletter marketing will be able to easily create an effective tool in marketing his products and services.

Garry Steck is publisher of Telcom Today, a newsletter for managers of telephone sales and service companies across the U.S., in addition to his 30 years as an independent telecom consultant. Among his most successful marketing programs, he lists newsletters as being near the top. He says a large portion of his new clients came to him as a result of his company's newsletters.

You will find reprints from his newsletter articles on telecommunications on his website: http://www.telcommgtassociates.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Garry_Steck

Grab Cheaper Contractor Prospects Online

Have you ever felt that you have done every thing to ensure your company's success? Have you often wondered why despite pouring blood, sweat and tears in order to make your business come alive, it has remained comatose? Are you on the verge of giving up due to these seemingly endless woes?

Hold on! There is still hope. Maybe the reason why you couldn't get any customer is because you have been looking at all the wrong places. It is a must that cheap contractor prospects are available to you to land your ideal clients and ultimately, dream jobs. So where do you think is the best place to do that? Ask no more because it will be revealed to help you out.

The world wide web, or more fondly known as the internet, is the greatest way to obtain cheaper contractor prospects. It is an immense resource area that has helped people learn new skills, improve their craft, and do business with partners even if they are separated by a thousand miles.

Use this, too, to study your clients. Learn what their wants are and how to make your services more affordable. Create a standard business template that you can use for every customer but at the same time, allow room for individual variations and differences. You may even recognize threats from other competitors by utilizing the internet. If you can do that, you can overcome that threat and convert it into an opportunity to market your company's strengths.

The net will also act as your face in the virtual world. Therefore, it is a must that you make an interesting website filled with pertinent details regarding your company. Give a rundown of the items that you are selling as well as the services you are offering. A price range is not really necessary but it can help viewers decide if they can afford what you are hawking. Leaving a message box may also prove to be helpful because clients may have concerns you need to answer and doubts that you must clarify. Lastly, your contact information will prove to be an invaluable tool to for clients to reach you without leaving the comforts of their rooms.

Having former patrons to speak about you candidly in a testimonial forum will also add to your chances of grabbing cheap contractor leads online. You can tell them to just speak their mind on what they liked best about your company, whether it is your friendly public relations personnel, your value for money services, your pioneering products or all of the above. Nothing beats the personal experiences of these former clients in terms of advertising.

Now, instead of moping around like a depressed loser, raise your head up high and focus your attention on these tips in catching cheaper contractor prospects online. You will surprise even yourself with the endless possibilities that are available once you have taken the initial step. If this business offers you a challenge, do everything to overcome it.

May the force be with you.

Thomas Johnsen is the Author and Leading Expert on High quality contractor leads and the creator of the publication How to Find Contractor Leads. Visit the site now to find easy-to-understand step-by-step guides on locating contractor leads available online today.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Thomas_Johnsen

Direct Sales - The Latest 3 Exciting Secrets to Boost Your Sales

Before I share you with my secrets, let me explain first what direct selling means. This is the process of selling products and services to clients without using middlemen. That means, sellers and buyers are the only persons involve in the transaction.

Here's how you can boost your direct sales:

1. Use telemarketing. I am well aware that there are quite a lot of buyers who despise getting calls from marketers that they do not know. However, research and studies confirm that telemarketing is still one of the best ways to connect with your target market and to sell your products and services. The key here is mastering phone etiquettes (when to call, what to say and not to say, etc.) and knowing the best ways on how you can excite and later on, involve your customers in the selling process.

2. Direct mail. Write a compelling letter that talks about the problems or needs of your target market. Make it sound personal by empathizing when needed. It's important that you make these people feel that you do understand where they are coming from. Then, talk about your products and services. Highlight their features and benefits and present them as the best solution to the problems of your prospects. Sign the letter and if possible, include your most friendly-looking photo to add personal touch.

3. Do face-to-face selling. Although this is one of the most difficult and time-consuming ways to sell your products and services, this is definitely one of the best. Consider paying your prospects a visit and bring along your products. Aside from telling your clients how your products were made, their selling points, and their competitive advantage, you can also do demonstrations so these people will see how your offerings really work.

Do you want to learn more about how I do it? I have just completed a brand new free guide. Download it free here: Internet Marketing

Do you want to learn how to use articles like this to drive targeted traffic to your site? Click here: Article Writing Guide

Keep Your Own Profits Satisfied and Your Customer Satisfied, in That Order

When it comes to genuine profit, it is a law of pure persistence. Persistence so pure, it has to be combined fully with patience. Sales comes down to a law of persistence and averages. The more you call, the more you will get, even if you have to repeat some, sort of like how George Herman "Babe" Ruth got his home run record while striking out the most in baseball. So, this article is about keeping the customer and your own profits rationally satisfied. In life, the best you can do is fail forward and succeed back. Now, what do I mean by "fail forward and succeed back"? Well, I mean this: Failing forward is to practice the law of persistence and adjustment until you do succeed. And succeeding back is simply doing what works and honing it consistently until you get consistently successful results.

Indeed, genuine profit comes through genuine persistence and rational adjustment. So, in this case, the only way to genuinely succeed consistently is to "succeed back". If "beginners luck" were the rule all the time, then we would have a sickeningly perfect world with no room for growth. Growth is the key to real wisdom and necessary, otherwise there would be no need for natural law or even time or even learning of any sort. In short, it would be an uninteresting world and a genuinely unprofitable world with this sort of certainty. Sure, this sort of certainty sounds desirable until put into practice, then you do see what I am writing about.

Integration and rational living is the key, along with persistence. A genuine quitter is a person who in many ways quits before they do succeed. A genuine quitter does believe in "beginners luck" and not success after persistence.

To define a winner, a consistent winner is a person with a genuine ability to assimilate, learn, "fail forward" and "succeed back", as I defined it in the first and second paragraphs. A genuine loser is a traditional quitter that does not persist no matter what to ultimate success. Like the man who lost the patent to the telephone because of the turn of a screw on the telephone to create a device to talk over long distances with and not sing over long distances with. My point is simple, success can happen at any time, all you have to do is persist well and honestly adjust your approach. This is not just the reality of the situation as I see it, this is how existence, success and the universe work. So, although I have keep the customer satisfied second, and keep your own profits satisfied first in my title, they both go equally hand in hand. You cannot have profits without good customers and you cannot have good profits without being willing to consistently do business honestly and persistently. Both things require bringing out the best in yourself and people, no matter what.

Sure, what I am saying has been said many ways and many times, but, what genuinely works is what genuinely works. As a law that never changes, but, it can always be indeed honed and bettered, always. When considering genuine winning, there is no mission that is impossible without genuine persistence. Anything rational can be genuinely done if a way is found to do it. That is the fact. In fact quitting is a mystical unreali6ty as proven by the body of this article, unless "genuinely" considering "beginners luck" and silly games like that. Sure the rational definition of luck could be preparation meeting opportunity. But the idea of "beginners luck" is the real irrationality, for it happens rarely because it violates natural law for the most part. Right down to winning a lottery instead of earning the equivalent money. Earned money always has more value no matter what could be said for "not putting out the effort". After all most unearned money drains away and is quickly spent like water through a drain running without being used when considering the history of most people that do win lotteries. What is earned is generally taken care of better. It is as simple as that.

So, to end this article to keep your profits and the customer satisfied, persistence and effort is always required. Without exception we see this in all successful businesses, even those that do "have beginners luck" in conducting. Because there are no exceptions to what invariably works.

The Importance of Pre-Sell Preparation

You will find it is not sufficient to sell yourself on the value of your product just once. For a time at least, you should sell yourself every time before you approach a customer, whether it is on the internet or in person. The large number of objections that will be made to your goods by customers will have a tendency to put your mind in a negative state about the quality of your product. So before ever speaking to a customer, review everything positive about your product and make sure YOU are sold on it.You must sell yourself over and over again, until you have a reservoir of positive facts about your product that is inexhaustible; until you have at least two or three answers to every objection a customer can make.

Constant study of your product will bring new points to mind. Jot these points down and use them in outlining your sales talk or webpage copy.

It will require all your ability to keep your mind positive. It will require all your memory-power to retain the positive facts concerning your goods. It will require all your imagination to generate the enthusiasm which is so necessary in selling a customer.

Think right thoughts and you will soon be a confident, aggressive, optimistic salesperson that no customer can withstand. As a matter of fact, no customer will want to turn you down if you are a high-grade salesperson, because everybody likes to add to the success of an already successful person by doing business with that person.

The biggest thing in the world is not financial success. It is in being a "real person" in every sense of the word. Although you may not fully realize the great importance of character and personality and education to success, you will find in your actual work that, other things being equal, the "real person" earns the biggest income.

When you think of selling a particular customer you should mentally go through the sale, and decide just what you intend to say and do during the sales talk. You should decide just how you are going to approach this particular customer, in view of what you know about them. You should select the points that will give this type of customer the best understanding of your goods. You should work out the appeals that you are going to make and use only those that will convince him he needs your product.

You should outline the suggestions and reasons why that will bring him to the decision. You should give most careful consideration to what you are going to say, and the particular thing or things you can do to close him on the spot.

Now you are wondering how you get information about the contact. That is really beyond the scope of this article, however when searching for leads, even on the internet, get as much information as possible and then use that to develop a picture of who you are dealing with. Obviously they are looking for something you are selling or they would not have submitted their information in the first place.

It is good to have a script, but do not read from it. Use it to practice what you will say until you have it cold. There is nothing worse for sales than a stuttering, bumbling sales person who appears clueless about the product. Remember that those highly successful infomercial people have scripts they have rehearsed over and over again just like an actor. Why? Because you ARE an actor/actress and you are trying to sell your product with your performance and knowledge.

Positive Thinking As an Aid in Creating Confidence During a Sale

Think you are going to win in every sale. The fact that you do not close each sale does not mean that you are a failure in that line, as it may only be necessary to close one or two sales a day in order that you may earn a good living. There are some high end stores where 1 sale a MONTH is considered a success.

But you are surely a lazy and inefficient salesperson if you do not work your line for all it is worth. A positive attitude of mind will keep you from becoming discouraged when business is apparently poor; and it will whet your appetite for more and still more business, when business is good.

When you think of a prospective customer as being willing to listen to what you have to say, your mental attitude and the radiation from your personality will be positive; and the customer will feel the influence when you go into his presence.

Remember this, however, that this attitude of mind must be reached during the pre-approach. It is largely the result of your investigation of the conditions that surround a customer and the facts that you have been able to learn about the customer himself.

Salespeople, as a class, have to work harder mentally to succeed than do many other classes of workers. It is right that this should be so. The reason is that salespeople deal with ideas, people, and things; while mechanical and inside employees deal mainly with things. It is much harder to handle people than things.

You may rightly estimate that the average working person uses about 20% of his/her energy in thinking and the balance in working. The salesperson, on the other hand, uses 20% of his/her energy in working and the balance in thinking. The average worker or mechanic soon becomes accustomed to handling his tools and very little creative thinking is required to do work in a creditable manner.

The salesperson, in order to do the most creditable work, must be educated in salesmanship, progressive, courageous; in fact, she/he must be able to overcome conditions where the average person would fail. It is not surprising then, that the salesperson must have some way to keep himself positive in mind, body and will. Regardless of conditions YOU CAN MAINTAIN A PROPER MENTAL ATTITUDE. You can master yourself and make sales even on off days. You can sell every customer you make up your mind to sell. It is even a good idea to take extra time in selling a hard customer, when you have it to spare, to convince yourself that any customer can be sold when the salesman wants to make the sale.

Think success thoughts. If you think of making sales, you will make them. You cannot think of making good and fail. You must succeed if you think success. If you believe in yourself, others must believe in you. If you believe in your own ability, you will prove you have it. You will perhaps try new tasks, and increase your power to do and to achieve.

Five Steps to Being Assertive So You Get Things Done Without Being Aggressive

She looked at me and said, "I'll do whatever it takes to make it right. What do you want me to do?" The right words but her hands were on her hips, her legs were spread apart and she was looking down her nose at me. Everything screamed, "Lady, you really are the problem. Just tell me what it takes to get rid of you." And everything in my body tightened for battle.

There is a distinct difference between being assertive and being aggressive. One can move you up the corporate ladder while the other can alienate you. Let's start by defining the two words. Assertive is putting forward positively and with confidence even in the face of adversity. Aggressive is putting forward in a combative readiness. Both are forceful only one does it by breaking you the other by working with you.

In the example above, the sales women's words were positive but her body language was combative and aggressive. Aggressive behavior will push people away or cause people to be defensive with you. You only want to resort to this behavior when you are pushed to the brink and you are willing to handle the consequences for that behavior.

The difficulty becomes in learning how to say what you mean and mean what you say without being mean. There will be times you will need to buck heads with people and times your point will not be the most favorable opinion in town. But it doesn't mean that those times need to be full armored confrontations. Instead you just need to learn how to assertively speak so people WANT to listen to you.

Follow these five quick steps to ensure that you get your point across without pain:

1. Know the outcome/result you want from this communication. This is the framework you want the listener to think in and it sets the tone for how you will phrase questions and present your ideas. This tells the other person exactly what you want from them and what they need to focus on during your discussion. Are you looking for an answer? Ideas? For them to buy? Think deeper. In a memo, this should be your headline. 90% of all people I work with never stop to think about what they really want from a discussion, they just assume the other person will think the same way they do.
2. Think about what objections or concerns others might have and address those upfront. You had better address these upfront. Trying to ignore them or breeze over them causes the other person to think, "yeah, but..." and you never get 100% of their attention. On top of that, their energy gets spent on refuting what you are saying instead of on helping you discover solutions. If you don't shatter those objections you will not shatter their resistance.
3. State the bottom line and address the concerns/objections you think might come up. What is the outcome you want? Give it straight out. This again helps them focus their attention.
4. Give supporting data/facts. You need to be able to support what you are saying with the whys.
5. Summary/call to action. Rephrase your original question and drive toward the outcome desired.

Here's is how it looks in action:

Situation: You have a new idea of how to turn call-in requests for bank CD rates into new customers. You believe this new system; although it will take extra time can generate 30% of new business for the bank.

Taking the situation through all five steps:

1. Outcome you want from this communication: You want the bank to take action on your idea of how to generate new business from call-ins.
2. What objections/concerns might they have? It is too difficult, it requires us to have more face to face appointments, it might cost us too much in people's time while it gets up and going, we have too much change already.
3. State the bottom line and answer objections: You say: "I have an idea of how we can generate some new business from our call in requests for CD pricing. My question is, what is the best way to get this idea implemented so people are excited about it? As you listen to this business idea you may be thinking, "we all have a lot on our plates right now, it sounds like work, will it really drive new business or how will it fit with all the change we have going on. I will address all of these issues and show how it can add an additional 30% to our bottom line."
4. Give supporting facts/data. Here you would explain the procedure that is followed right now for a call in, what you propose happens instead and how that will generate new business. For example, you might say, "Right now when a person calls in for a CD we quote them the rate, thank them for the call or maybe, ask if they want to talk with a bank officer. I recommend we have them immediately transfer the person to a loan officer who will say, "in order to make sure that we recommend the best option for you, can you please share with me the following information." And he/she will ask the following three questions...
5. Summary/call to action. So based on what you heard, what is the best way for us to implement this new strategy and get everyone on board?

Pay attention to your last question because it sets the tone for the next discussion. If I had ended the presentation with "based on what you heard, can we get this up and going?" I would be openly asking for people to agree or disagree with what I said and I would have moved myself to a defensive position rather than an offensive position.

Science Before Art - The Science and Art of Selling and Sales

"Every artist dips his brush in his own soul, and paints his own nature into his pictures."

- Henry Ward Beecher

Do you know someone who has made an art out of cooking? Do you know someone who conjures up the most magnificent dishes by tossing together "a little bit of this, and a little bit of that"?

My grandmother would bake exquisitely by touch. No recipe required, just a taste and touch here and there. Yet even without a formal process her baked goodies were always consistent, down to the last crumb. Her chocolate chiffon and baked cheese cake were works of art.

There was a time however, when she was taught to bake by following a recipe. As a young girl learning to bake with her mother, she would have followed the same recipe over and over again, without changing anything. Then over time she would have experimented.

"What if I threw in a touch of cinnamon? What if I added less sugar and more eggs? What if I baked at 120° for 20 minutes versus ½ an hour at 140°?" and slowly baking her had become "art".

First however, came the science (recipe), and then came the art. The same is true when it comes to developing the "art" of persuasion. First you must learn the science and then you can begin to sculpt the tactics and techniques you learn from others. First practice the skills you learn, see and hear to perfect your form and then the material will have become yours to "play" with.

Think back to when you learned how to drive. Remember the concentration it took to become a competent driver? Now think about the last time you drove to work and when you reflected back could remember little or nothing about the trip. Where were you whilst driving? You were on autopilot. What did it take for you to get to the point of unconscious competence? Practice.

Practice, practice and more practice. Research has shown that for any skill to develop requires a process of continuing and ongoing repetition over time. Only through regular practice the new neural pathways and patterns in your brain are established and thereby enable the new skill. It is whilst learning the "new skill" that the neural pathway is immature and underdeveloped, making one feel unnatural with the new desired routine and the skill feels weak.

Just like developing a muscle the new skill must be worked on over and over again until it it has become a part of your persuasion repertoire. So train.

Keep on learning and practicing because as the 1st century roman slave and writer Publilius Syrus once said, "Practice is the best of all instructors."

Practice, drill and rehearse until you become competitive. Hone your sales skills to the point of "art" and you will leave your competition in your dust!

As one of Australia's leading authorities and coaches in sales management, Ian Segail has been involved in the coaching, training and development of sales managers and salespeople for over two decades.

Drawing on 25 years of experience in sales, sales management and leading an HR and training team, Ian brings a strong dose of fiscal reality and practicality to his works as a Sales Performance Coach.

Engaging directly with business owners and both novice and experienced sales managers alike, across a wide variety of industries and selling disciplines, the focus of Ian's work is to transform sales results for companies by improving sales management practices.

Ian is the author of "Bulletproof Your Sales Team "The 5 Keys To Turbo-Boosting Your Sales Team's Results" and a number of business articles, business reports and white papers including "The fish stinks from the head!" and "Why Sales Training Doesn't Work."

Ian has an insatiable hunger for studying selling and people management and has passionately pursued answers to the question "How come some people can sell and most can't?"

Sales Team Make it Through the Current Economic Turmoil

After all these years of searching for the elixir, the cure all, the silver bullet... I have come to discover that for you to grow revenues you want to focus your energies on understanding & implementing the key code combination that i am about to share with you.

What if I told you that there's 4 key codes that must be in place if you want to unlock the power of your sales team & navigate your way through this current economic turmoil & beyond?

These 4 codes are the recipe that will unlock the power of your sales team to deliver their sales results ...consistently!

However, because there is far much information to dump on you in two sitting, I have decided to send you this newsletter over a quantity of installments which will

Before I share them with you, let me establish a context for the information I intend to divulge. Come into my common sense corner for a fast moment & let's understand a principle truth that you as a sales leader must first to come to grips with. Whilst this core principle may sound basic & "un-sexy" it is the fundamental ingredient of any highly functional team.

a) give you time to digest the material and
b) more importantly, execute the ideas contained herein.

You can teach a pig to climb a tree but you're better off to use a monkey.

In a recent podcast with Paul Macklin, the principal & founder of Amazing People a highly sought after Organizational Development Company, Paul & I discussed the impact of leadership, coaching & other methods of improving people performance.

PAUL MACKLIN: Let's say I'm a luthier - a person that makes violins. & let's also say this was way back in the old days before you went to the hardware store to buy your lumber. You would go to the forest to find a tree to make the violin from. You would look for a certain quality of timber. You would want something that was straight & fine grained, free of knots. & you would cut the tree & then you would season the lumber for a period of time. Only then would you have the right piece of wood. This, in an organizational metaphor context is recruitment. The first query I ask a team leader when I'm working with them on improving team performance is, "Who have you got on the team?"

In our discussion Paul used the metaphor which I would like to reiterate for the purposes of understanding the key principle when it comes to developing a sales team that is capable of developing consistent sales results, no matter what the prevailing market conditions. So let's listen in on the dialogue ..

IAN SEGAIL: Do you have the right people on the team?

PAUL MACKLIN: "Do we have the right people on the bus", right. So recruitment & selection gets you the right people & if you had asked me, "What is the most significant factor in developing a high performance team?" I've got to always say, it's selection. There's a friend of mine Fred Hull who says, "You can teach a pig to climb a tree but you're better off to use a monkey." This principle of, "the right team first", is powerfully expressed in the business classic book good to Great. Here, author Jim Collins says, "...to build a successful organization & team you must get the right people on the bus." Jim's research shows that great companies & great organizations make sure that, whatever it takes, they get the right people on the bus & then make sure that they put them in the right seats.

Typically salespeople will tend to fall into two of the seven categories below:

Right now, do you have the right people in your sales team to over your company through the rapids of economic turmoil the world is currently experiencing? Currently your team would be made up of combination of seven types of salespeople.

The naturally talented rainmaker has an innate gift for selling. These gifted salespeople will make sales whatever, wherever, & for whomever they sell. These make up between only seven to seven percent of the sales population.

Firstly, the Rainmaker.

The rainmaker is recognized as that rare bird that is exceptionally successful in bringing in profitable business to his or her organization.

Oh, how we wish we had seven or seven of them! How we struggle to find & keep them! How much pressure is relieved when we have a rainmaker on the team! These people are the naturals. They are the gifted & talented salespeople. These rainmakers can sell in any economic climate!

"Natural born" salespeople are like this . That's why we call them rainmakers.

These are the Roger Federers, the Mohamed Alis, & the Tiger Woods of selling. When you watch Roger Federer on the tennis court, you know that you are in the presence of a "natural." The media describes Roger's tennis using words such as clinical, mastery, finesse, artistry, graceful, & so on. Similar things are said about Tiger Woods & other individual sporting greats. What makes these players so great are not basically their well honed & practiced skills, but their awesome natural talents. These abilities when combined are harnessed to deliver greatness.

* We watch in awe as they build rapport with the "un-rapport-build-able."
* we're amazed at their ability to read the state of play, asking the right questions at the right time.
* we're "gob-smacked" at their ability to make things happen, & to pull last minute rabbits out of seemingly empty hats.
* We look back at what they do, & how they do it, & are struck with wonder.

Yes they have skills, yes they have knowledge, but most importantly, underpinning all of that is pure, natural talent. If you've ever had the good fortune to work with a rainmaker, then you have, most likely, at some time, had the desire to clone them. Rainmakers have an innate talent, a natural ability & insight that enables them to "sell intuitively."

Also if you are fortunate to have a rainmaker on your team you know how precious & demanding they can be. there's no doubt also times where you feel held to ransom by these talented individuals & wonder if they are worth it!

Unfortunately however, the universal problem that all business owners, entrepreneurs & sales managers face is that whilst there's plenty of pretenders & try-hards about, there's basically few real rainmakers to go around. So whilst it's wonderful for you if you should be so lucky as to have a rain maker on your team, the query that probably haunts you constantly though is, what if they leave? What if they are poached by your competition?

The second group are those experienced salespeople with plenty of years of knowledge, education & street smarts behind them. Typically they would have been around a particular industry sector for a quantity of years. Through years of dogged persistence they have advanced their sales careers. These savvy sales people are often regarded as experts in a particular field. Years of experience have honed their knowledge of how to apply their solutions to their customer's problems. Their knowledge & skills, which have evolved & developed over time, help them to establish credibility quickly & easily with the customer. they have sharpened their instincts over time & have learned through trial & error how & when to generate sales. Unfortunately, it takes years to grow & create these sales producers. If only you could "put an old head on young shoulders!" These experienced salespeople only make up between twelve & twenty percent of salespeople.

Secondly, experienced salespeople

Thirdly, well-trained scheme driven salespeople

there is a small group of salespeople who have been fortunate to either currently work for, or they have had the opportunity to work for, a sales organization that invested in them with effective sales training. they have also learned to follow a pre-tested specifically engineered sales scheme that consistently delivers results. These well-trained, motivated & scheme directed sales people utilise their proven knowledge & processes to significantly outperform their competitors. Their training includes product knowledge application training which allows them to clearly understand the problems that their product/service solves. People persuasion skills & how to follow a pre-tested specifically engineered sales scheme are also part of their ongoing training & coaching regime.

The forth group, the ordinaries

However, unfortunately because of the investment required to train & up-skill these salespeople, they are few & far between. In fact this small, well-trained, motivated & scheme directed group of salespeople make up only around ten to fifteen percent of the sales populace.

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Finally there is the group that the large bulk of the sales population fall into, this is the category of pedestrian or mediocre salespeople. This class of the sales population have managed to maintain a career in selling by scraping by, often basically by stumbling across "ready-made sales." In the majority of cases, these salespeople have been fortunate to come across situations where the customer is already in the market ready to buy or alter suppliers. Often they are the right person at the right time. it is more often than not that the customer chooses to buy, than the salesperson actually making the sale. With limited training & no clear sales scheme to follow, this group of salespeople often move from job to job, industry to industry, falling dismally short of their selling potential & sales results. During good economic times this group of mediocre sellers somehow fly below the radar & get by. However when things toughen up & sales have to be made, this is when this group come unglued. Depending on the industry, this majority group of salespeople make up anywhere between fifty to sixty percent of all salespeople.

Review the players that make up your sales team. How plenty of of them are:

* Rainmakers
* Highly experienced
* scheme directed
* Ordinaries

Looking at the your numbers above, on average, if you are like most sales teams out there in the marketplace, then the majority of the salespeople that make up your sales team are not likely to be rainmakers, highly experienced or scheme directed salespeople. The bulk of your sales team will be made up of ordinaries.

Now, I can hear you wailing, not me! Not my team! Well let me challenge you to re-read the definitions of the seven types of sales people. Seriously, if your life depended on it would you back the players on your team? Look again at the salespeople on your team that you may have credited with being scheme driven. Do they consistently deliver their required sales results month in, month out?

What about those salespeople who you have ascribed to fall into the category of "highly experienced"? Are they a match with the definition above, or have they been around forever? Do they build credibility quickly & easily with customers & prospects? Are their sales instincts sharp or have they been blunted by years of neglect & lack of renewal? Do they truly know how & when to generate sales?

If you were the manager of a world class sports team, would you be happy to take your team onto the field as they stand right now? Well it may not be life or death & you may not be the manager of a world class sports team, but why would you settle for a second rate sales team who deliver sub standard results? Forget about the fact that you are working in a tough economic marketplace. someone, somewhere is currently still achieving their sales quota in your space! Therefore for you to manage & drive a sales team that delivers consistent sales results, as a sales leader you only have seven options, either...

In other words if you currently don't have a champion team, you will want to either go on a recruitment drive or implement the strategies & processes required to unlock the potential of your sales team. The fact is that finding & hiring rainmakers, highly experienced or scheme directed salespeople may be expensive or take long. Also, due to a quantity of variables, replacing your current team may not be an option right now. The great news is that you can create your own team of highly scheme directed & motivated sellers.

1. Work hard to find & keep rainmakers, highly experienced or scheme directed salespeople. If they are hard to find & maybe cost much to hire & retain, then your second option is to...
2. create your own team of motivated scheme directed salespeople.

Over the next few articles it is my purpose to unpack the 4 key codes that make up the combination which will free your sales people from their current limitations & ensure that you create a team of champions!

Because whilst finding rain makers & experienced sellers may want an element of good fortune, training & developing scheme directed salespeople is well within your locus of control. there's some specific things that you can implement that I will show you the over the next few weeks to help make this happen.

As two of Australia's leading authorities & coaches in sales management, Ian Segail has been involved in the coaching, training & development of sales managers & salespeople for over seven decades.

Drawing on 25 years of experience in sales, sales management & leading an HR & training team, Ian brings a strong dose of fiscal reality & practicality to his works as a Sales Performance Coach.

Ian is the author of "Bulletproof Your Sales Team - The 5 Keys To Turbo-Boosting Your Sales Team's Results" & a quantity of business articles, business reports & white papers including "The fish stinks from the head!" & "Why Sales Training Doesn't Work."

Engaging directly with business owners & both novice & experienced sales managers alike, across a wide variety of industries & selling disciplines, the focus of Ian's work is to transform sales results for companies by improving sales management practices.

Selling Teleseminars Online - Latest 4 Secrets to Multiply Teleseminar Sales

Not all experts or gurus have great writing skills but that doesn't mean that they are unable to monetize on their knowledge or expertise. If you are one of these people, you can make money online by sharing your knowledge through teleseminars. At this time, these information base products are selling like hotcakes online as they are more convenient and more powerful compare to ebooks and audio products.

Here's how you can multiply your teleseminar sales:

1. Cold call. Doing cold calling is not exactly the most enjoyable task that you need to do in growing your sales and revenue. Your prospects might hung up on you before you even finish your first sentence, they might turn their answering machine on making it impossible for you to talk to them personally, or worst, they'll pick up just to tell you to get a life! No matter how difficult it may sound, you will need to do this to generate sales. It would help if you can research your prospects and make sure that they are interested to buy your product and if you prepare a powerful opening statement that your prospects would be delighted to hear about.

2. Follow up on your leads. If you have done cold calling yesterday and you've got some leads, call them today to make a follow up. Avoid sounding like a marketer who's desperate to make a sale. You can keep your conversation "low-key" by focusing on their needs and demands and by giving them all the time to talk about their needs and demands. The secret here is getting these people to speak up so you'll know how to present your teleseminars in such a way that they will become more valuable to their eyes.

3. Find new qualified clients. Getting too many prospects isn't really a problem when doing internet marketing. Do not stop visiting forums and blogs where you will usually meet people who might get interested on what you offer. Also, continuously host free short seminars that will attract those people who might need your assistance and expertise. By doing these, you'll connect to more people who might be able to give you business in the long run.

4. Get an internet marketing coach. If you haven't learned the ropes of internet marketing just yet, now is the time to hire an expert who can teach you the best ways on how to promote your teleseminars online. This step might cost you hundreds or even thousands of dollars but I can guarantee you that it will worth it.

Selling High Ticket Classes - 4 Ways to Breakthrough With Selling High Ticket Classes

If you have recently designed a high ticket class and you can't wait to convert it to instant cash, this article is for you. In here, I will share the ways on how you can easily sell your information based products without breaking a sweat and without burning your pockets.

Here's how you can breakthrough with selling high ticket classes:

1. Make it easier for people to find you. Think of the time when you hit rock bottom and you were in desperate need of help. Did you find some people to help you out? Did you look at the yellow pages and made some call? Perhaps, you went online, keyed in some keywords, and did business with the first person who came up on the search page result. Now that the table has been turned and you are the one offering help and information, make it easier for your prospects to find you to increase your sales leads and revenue. Strive to improve your page ranking, promote your website, yourself, and your products on search engines, and make your domain name easy to remember.

2. Be prepared to get rejected. As an online entrepreneur and as a marketer, you need to prepare yourself for rejection as not all your prospects will become your buying customers. What I am saying is, don't be in despair if you fail to get some people to buy from you. Instead, learn from it and "fail forward". Learn from your failures and make sure that they will not cost you a single prospect in the future.

3. Help your prospects. This is the most effective way to get people to buy from you. Instead of bombarding your prospects with ads and sales pitches, be there for them to help them out. Offer them a slice of your expertise to help them resolve their problems and share some insider tips that can help them to advance in their chosen careers. When you help these people, they are most likely to return the favor by being loyal to you and by doing business with you in the long run.

4. Build personal relationship with your prospects. It is much easier to convince people to buy from you if they already know you, like you, and trust you. So, before you pitch your products, care to build personal relationship with your prospects first. Be a friend to them and always be there when they need you. Once you earn their trust, you can literally get them to swipe their credit cards anytime you want.

Coaching Sales - 4 Secrets to Excel at Coaching Sales

Life with its inevitable problems is good for your business. You can share your expertise and make a very nice online income. If you have a program that can completely solve somebody's serious problem, you can easily start making thousands of dollars online as a problem solver. Each of us is an expert at something. What you know may seem obvious and ordinary to you. However, I assure you, there are a lot of people that will pay thousands of dollars to you to completely solve their problem. I do it and have been doing it for a while. I invite you to do the same thing. I will show you 4 secrets to excel at coaching sales.

1. What's the first thing you've got to do to excel at coaching? It's building your list. Once you build your list then you have someone to work with. You've got to interact with your market and help them completely solve those problems by sharing lots of good information. You just give it to them in article marketing and in an e-mail campaign. So, first and foremost, build that list. It is gold to your business.

2. So, as you're building your list and sharing lots of good information, do you know what else you are doing? You are developing trust and rapport with your niche. People can't know you until they can relate to you. They can know you once they know you are really interested in helping them completely solve their problems. Get that? Completely solve somebody's life altering problem. When you help them solve their problems, they will remember you for life and refer others to you. It's all good, then, isn't it?

3. Your class or consulting package or 8 to 12 week class, the one that has to completely solve their problem, will prove invaluable to your clients. When you are no longer grieving over a distracting and disappointing life problem, you feel much better. Have you ever wanted something so much you just didn't know what to do? Well, that's what your coaching does. It does what nobody else has done for your client. You're the only one who has know how to help your client and he or she feels so grateful that he or she has consented to complete your entire coaching program.

4. So, have you identified what your real expertise is? If so, remember, that it is very valuable. Some people call that life experience. I call it self-training. You've read up on some techniques and put them into action. You've developed skills nobody else knows how to do the same way you know how to do it. That's worth a lot of money. Accept the idea that people will pay maybe $2000 to $5000 or more to learn from you how they can solve their problem. It's already a fact. Go show people how to completely solve their most pressing life challenges. Lots of people are already doing it. Now it's your turn.