Archives for June 2009

How to Sell in a Web 2.0 Economy

Yesterday I spoke at the 2009 Snow and Ice Management Symposium – The Four Greatest Days of Snow.  Sometimes you are with a group of people and the collaborative energy is undeniable; this was one of those experiences.   The snow business has changed dramatically since this organization was formed over ten years ago.  Professionalism is expected these days or you are out, just as with virtually every other other industry.  At the same time, our society is changing, especially the last couple of years.  It only stands to reason then that you need to adjust your selling practices to accommodate these changes.  

My role at this event was to educate the members about selling.   As I prepared my Selling Like a Natural program, which I have presented to SIMA on several occasions over the last 5 years, I began to wonder if the word selling is even relevant anymore.   Customers today have complex needs that reach beyond those satisfied by just professional service.  Why?  Customers are people.  They have personal needs, and being members of a community that may be dealing with economic challenges, they tend to engage with brands that are consistent with their views of society – companies that care. 

This is actually great news for entrepreneurs whose business brands are practically synonymous with their personal brands – what they personally care about.  They are the company.  Their personal involvement within the communities they serve wraps a layer over their company brand that can differentiate them in bidding situations where all other things are equal – if they have the tools and know-how. 

One way this  can work is to use social media to show prospects and customers what you really care about.  Give them a behind the scenes look at your company's operations and how you have integrated this with your way of doing business.  Are you passionate about safety, a logical one for snow professionals?  How about the environment, education, or possibly a family oriented workplace?  Customers know that who you are is inseparable from your company brand, and that is engaging and builds trust, which is a huge selling too when much of the cost of your operations lies in prep work or the work that is performed late at night  — both of which the customer never gets a good look at to appreciate its value.

To show how easy this is, I pulled out my Flip Mino camcorder and recorded an impromptu video for my enthusiastic audience (posted below).   A video blog like this one would be an excellent tool for developing a reality show – short segments over the season that give glimpses of what's really involved for snow professionals that deal with unpredictable and harsh weather conditions at every turn.  If that's too complicated, taking that Flip and shooting some 2 or 3 minute videos and posting  YouTube® would also tell a powerful story.  Prospects and customers could be directed to these through ezines, newsletters, and even direct sales conversations. 

Social media is a powerful medium for selling, marketing, and building relationships.  There is a common perception that technology creates a distance between us.  The opposite is true.  Social media engages people in new ways if you know how to use it.  It humanizes the selling experience by communicating what people need and want to know.   Traditional selling isn't going to work in an economy that is heavily influenced by Web 2.0 methods.

My impression of the snow and ice management industry is they get this.  They are a relaxed group of people that love what they do.  I have no doubt the SIMA members I had the pleasure of engaging with will embrace these new methods for engaging their customers at all levels – professionally, socially, and personally.   Good luck everyone.  It was my pleasure learning with you. 

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How The Future of Social Media Will Change Your Business

Yesterday morning I was making some oatmeal, which should be an unusual event in the summer, but it has been a chilly Spring here in Chicago recently with temps in the ’60’s.  This particular brand of oatmeal included “dinosaur eggs.”  I was kidding my son: “Hey look, I thought dinosaurs were extinct.  How come their eggs are in my breakfast?”

For some reason the word ‘extinct’ struck me as a funny.  It’s not a word you use every day.  In fact, its a word that typically applies only to dinosaurs.  Those dinosaurs have really carved out a unique niche – extinct.  Fair or not, that’s their label.

People get lost, they go away, but thanks to social media they seem to be coming back from pseudo-extinction.  Long lost friends are coming back to life for most  of us.  This has to be a good thing, right?  But what does it mean for your businesses?

Today I was having positive thoughts and when I went to my office, viola – a nice surprise.  I was hired for a wonderful speaking opportunity in a beautiful place.  How cool!  Later that morning, as I was cooking up those dinosaur eggs, I was thinking about another deal that wasn’t going so well.  To my amazement, I went back to my computer and there was this email: “Sorry Jeff, we’re going in another direction.”  While it wasn’t a pleasant surprise, it was very cool too that I had the thought and then it happened!   Needless to say I’ve been very careful with my thoughts lately.  

Our tendency is to focus on that good deal and forget about the other – sending it to the land of extinction.   But wait a minute?  I began to wonder if I  could resurrect that lost deal.  And if I could do that, what about all of the clients and business deals that have been lost over the years.  We reconnect with friends we haven’t seen since high school, so why can’t we do this with business relationships?  Isn’t that one of the purposes of social media marketing? 

Deepak Chopra is one of the undisputed mind-body experts.  I was fortunate to study with him and many other experts and thought leaders for the past 15 years.  Deepak once explained to a group of us that if we could muster absolute purity of thinking – we could have a thought and it would become reality.  And that statement is proved by the science of quantum mechanics. 

While having purity of thought may be impossible unless you are willing to meditate in a cave for the next 40 years, it is possible for very brief moments.  Imagine using social media to enhance or at least maintain your business relationships so they don’t become extinct, and then every once in a while having that purity of thought that allows for great things to happen.  It’s really a simple process of “preparedness meeting opportunity.” 

Its’ more than a crazy idea.  It’s the future of business in a social media world.  

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The Key to Serving Your Clients with Your Blog: Heart

I'm thinking about that line from the film Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.  "When you tell a story, here's a tip – have a point – it makes it so much more interesting for the listener!"  The lesson I take from that sarcastic bit of humor that also tugs at the heartstrings is you have to […]

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How to Keep Your Customers Tuned into Your Social Media

Curiosity is one of those human behaviors you can count on when you are marketing your business.  People want to know what's new, better, and different.  They also want to know what doesn't work.   They love to see the underdog win, and not surprisingly, they love to see the perennial leader fail.  Of course, most […]

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