Archive for Marketing and Sales
Opportunity and the “Attitude of Gratitude”
For sure, life is more fun with an “attitude of gratitude”. A fine therapist friend of mine tells many of his clients to end each evening by listing three things from the day that they are thankful for. I’m convinced that when I remember to do this, I go to sleep more peacefully and have [...]
Gutter Repair and Honest Sales
“My manager says that if you’ll tell others about our work but keep our discount confidential, he’ll move some of our ad budget into a $500 discount for you” “You know that the Attorney General would get mad if we told you that this discount is good for today, but then extended it until Monday. [...]
Doing the Right Thing
Doing the right thing allows you to stop spending money on advertising. Dan Roach, Roach-Lamburg Roofing Dan came highly recommended by my realtor, who only recommends the best. Nearly all his work comes from referrals. That’s much more important than repeat business for a roofer — seeing how he sells a product that lasts for [...]
First Focus, Then Expand
“First focus, then expand” reminds me of the old adage: “The only place that Success comes before Work is in the dictionary.” You don’t hear that one too often any more. Too old-fashioned and Calvinist even if it’s still true. But Work isn’t the problem for most people I know. Most people I know are [...]
Web Design and Worth
I often wish my website looked better, if not necessarily fancier. I wouldn’t mind copying most of the Fortune 50 whose websites are not fancy but are executed with care. The typography is clean (even if it’s all done in Helvetica or Arial), the layouts are pleasing and they have a few pieces of original [...]
Ted Williams on Marketing Focus
One of Ted Williams’ principles of hitting was that an average hitter swinging at a good pitch to hit is better than a great hitter swinging at a bad pitch to hit. – Reggie Jackson in Sixty Feet, Six Inches, by Bob Gibson and Reggie Jackson (2009) One of my former clients had an above-average [...]
Survey Says… Happy Customers Care Enough to Fill Them Out
One of my favorite new clients — an online local news blog — needed some information about its readership, so we did a quick online survey. Ten questions, ten minutes, and the chance to win a $10 gift certificate. In a remarkable display of interest, 200 readers completed the survey within the first 24 hours. [...]
Verizon and the Net Promoter Score + Testimonials
When I signed on with Verizon Wireless this week, I discovered that they Net Promoter idea very seriously. In fact, it’s the only question on their new-customer survey: 1. How likely is it that you would recommend Verizon Wireless to a friend or colleague? I clicked on “extremely likely” and added a comment why: Great [...]
Business Data at the Library
If you haven’t visited the library since you were in college, you have no idea what you’re missing. Here are some things I’ve done at the library in the past six months: downloaded data from ReferenceUSA with contact information for 500+ potential qualified clients for one of my clients (criteria: plumbing companies with revenue >$5MM, [...]
The Invisible Competitor — Inaction
For non-essential products, customer inaction is often a bigger “competitor” than any comparable substitute. The top three CRM products for small and medium sized businesses aren’t just competing against each other — they’re competing against you not buying any CRM software at all. Next time your marketing and sales group sits down to size up [...]
