There is a Dakota Sioux Native American saying that goes something like …”when riding a dead horse, dismount”.  I’ve always thought the saying to be funny as it’s a little bit more than obvious.  Sometimes things can be blurred in the sales process and it’s not often clear if you should “dismount”.

Most successful sales reps depend upon a variety of components which they may or may not use during an engagement with a prospect.   These reps can only control the things which are under their power at any given moment and they mitigate factors which are out of their control that can disrupt the flow.  One common flow disruption is falling into the “dead zone”.  Sometimes sales reps will “dismount” without checking to see if the horse is dead.  Though the horse may not be responding – it might still be alive.

To dismount or not to dismount

Imagine that you’ve just met an ideal customer that fits your high probability profile.  You’ve had the first discussion or meeting and closed it out with several follow-up items you need to get done.  In order to make a good impression you scramble to make your commitments complete and send a note off with your deliverables.  Then nothing, no answered calls, no responded emails, no pulse.  Your manager keeps asking you for a status update and you’ve got nothing to give.  The meeting was great – what happened?

We’ll assume it truly was a great meeting and that you didn’t just hear what you wanted.  I guarantee you shouldn’t take it personal (if you do – you shouldn’t be in sales).  Jill Konrath calls these “crazy-busy prospects” and provides some tips for getting and keeping their attention. There are many statistics floating around which indicate it’s now harder than ever to get engaged with a prospect.  You may have a routine that has worked for you with your prospects in the past but you may also have come across a “dead zone” once and a while. While it’s ok to stick with content that addresses similar concerns of a prospect you should strive to keep it from feeling routine – they are different.

A few quick ways to check your horse

• Check to see how many touches you’ve made – are you being impatient?
• Start a process of re-discovery to determine if there is a fit
• Check your content – are sending and communicating the right message?
• Change up your materials – send them current content that fits your previous discussions.
• Make sure your communicating directly – one to one with specific and relevant materials.
• Call their direct telephone at 10 minutes before the hour (they’ll be getting ready for their next meeting)
• Call late/early and pay attention to time zones
• Send an image or personalized video link inside the email – they get a higher click through rate
• Send a note on Saturday (Hubspot  New Data: Emails Sent on Saturdays Have Higher CTRs and Lower Unsub Rates)
• Check to see what materials (if any) they have opened and read in your CRM or on the website
• Check Linked in to see if there have been any changes.
• Send an industry article with a thought you might be interested note

Sales is my client

As a Marketing guy and at the end of every day – Sales is my client. Since the data in Salesforce.com can sometimes be a bit off, I’ve created little tricks that my clients seem to love as it makes their life easier. This one came about from watching an inside rep I was working with.  This also makes complete sense as Salesforce.com should be configured to only include people that have scored a certain number of points and or raised their hands for specific content/inclusion.

The rep had two screens open while they were making calls. They were cutting the name out of Salesforce and pasting it into Linked in as the data inside Linked in appeared to be current and they could see groups, comments, and other people within the company for circle of influence selling and finding a referral within their network. It seemed like a lot of work and was slowing their productivity proven by their daily activity log (Even though the data in Linked in helped them achieve their quota every month).

Create a Linked In Button

I created a very simple Salesforce.com button mash-up which when clicked will open a Linked in page and deposit Lead, Contact or Account Data into the appropriate fields and look for that person who is currently employed at the company. This simple button helped the rep exceed their quota the very next month.

To get it done you’ve got to be an Administrator and follow the below steps:

1. GOTO > Your Name > Setup > Customize > Leads > Buttons and Links > Custom Buttons and Links > New
2. For a Label call it “Linkedin Search” or whatever else you want
3. For a Display Type click the radio button > Detail Page Button
4. For Behavior Select > Display in New Window from the drop down list
5. For Content Source Select > URL from the drop down list
6. In the large box cut and paste the below text:

http://www.linkedin.com/search/fpsearch?fname=

{!Lead.FirstName}&
lname={!Lead.LastName}&company={!Lead.Company}&
currentCompany=C&searchLocationType=I&
countryCode=us&keepFacets=keepFacets&page_num=1&ppl
SearchOrigin=ADVS&viewCriteria=2&sortCriteria=R&redir=redir

Remember the button will not be shown unless you GOTO > Your Name > Setup > Customize > Leads > Page Layout > Edit

Then Click “Buttons” and drag and drop “Linked in Search” into the custom buttons box at the top of the Lead Sample. Saving your work afterwards.

That’s it…Most Sales reps will call you a hero for doing it. Give us a call if you have any difficulty.

Never forget that you’re selling to people.

Sales are the backbone of every successful company and it’s always a good idea to study up on how to improve your sales ability through one to one communication.  In order to thrive, sales must engage personally though not necessarily in person – this concept is not always easy to grasp.  You can create personal engagements with the use of specific content that is relevant to the folks your sending it to.  This information could be in an email, tweet, landing page, text, or phone call.  Your not communicating to a company, your conversing with a person who has their own fears and concerns that you need to address.  Just because they aren’t sitting across from you doesn’t make the fear disappear.  It’s in you best interest to find out what their concerns are so take the time to do so.

Learn to say no

All leads are not created equal – not every customer is a fit. The sooner that you learn this and put it into practice, the quicker you will be able to move on to clients that are going to help you produce references and generate flows of revenue. Marketing will qualify through lead scoring in an attempt to let you know which targets have higher probability for you. Actionable insight is key for one to one sales communication. You need to learn to decipher who is a prospect in the market to buy your product and who will just waste your time. Look for the trigger event.  Just because they downloaded a paper does not make them a lead. It might sound harsh but time is money and yours does matter. Do not get clogged up with prospects you know cannot or will not be interested in your product.

Close the Right Thing

Have you ever been asked for a commitment way to early in the process?  I always think of car sales asking me – “how can I get you to buy today?”.  Instead of using a static tactic, try getting a smaller commitment instead. Not a commitment to buy, but a commitment for more of your prospects time for one to one communication, in return you give the prospect more of your time. Use this time in a persistent manner to show them more of your value, customer successes, or examples of your services that they care about. The less pressure you put on them, the more likely they are to want your services. There is no excuse to not ask for a commitment – just make sure its the right one.

Timing is Everything

They may be the right prospect however they are not primed to buy. You may think it’s a bad idea to push them back to Marketing to include them in a nurturing campaign and that you need to control the flow. Talk yourself out of it, control is an illusion and the prospect is already searching the web for data points.   You (may) run no risk at this stage of pushing back to Marketing with a request to nurture. I always felt its worth the risk as you need to be focused on time management.  You have prospects that are primed to buy and you need to be talking to them.  This point is VERY specific to the prospect and you need to be very conscious of what you are doing. Marketing groups will electronically communicate with the prospects until they pop up again with a more specific interest that you can personally address.

Skip the Company History

Prospects do not necessarily care about how your company was founded and how much of a profit you made last year. Keep your presentations relevant to the them and their concerns. Get the prospect emotionally involved with personal stories relating to the benefits of your products of services. Mention their competitors and or friends on Linked In that are using your products. Make your prospect feel like they have to have your product or they will be left out. It’s about them – not your company.

Give Them a Laugh

No one wants to buy a product from someone who is not excited or enthused about what they are trying to sell. People can tell when you’re passionate – it’s hard to fake – so relax with them. Do not focus on how you are going to sell your prospect, but instead focus on the value you are delivering and how you can motivate them to understand your services and the fit between you both – one to one.

Sales One on One Communication

Most people want to feel like they are special and indeed, every prospect is unique and special in their own way. Let them know how you can provide one on one personal service through tailored messages based entirely upon their requirements and interest characteristics.

Building Trust through Content

Before you can sell your services to a customer, you need to build a relationship. In business, the relationship between the salesperson and the customer is based on a foundation of trust.

One of the easiest ways to generate profitable publicity and to build a foundation of trust is to establish yourself as an expert in your niche. The point is to create a reputation as being the source for information about your product or service. – and the best way to provide information is via content.

Here’s six ways to use content to increase sales:

Be the Expert

First impressions are everything, and chances are your customer will first ‘meet’ you on your website. In a study by FOCUS two-thirds of a prospects mind is made up prior to engaging a sales rep. So be sure to fill your site with content that establishes you as a well-informed authority on your product or service. Your website should not be a supermarket of content with relevant  information buried under layers of lingo and buzz words.  Creating landing pages which are specific to the individuals you are trying to converse with is important.  This is the cornerstone of trust.

Don’t Sell, Teach

People love to buy stuff, but they hate to feel sold. Avoid this turnoff and focus your content as providing information. Fill your website with educational, tutorial-style content that will decrease sales resistance. Create content that allows the viewer to self direct their education. Consider using Video, PDF’s, Slides, Pictures, Lists and anything else that will speak to them about their concerns.

Don’t Just Tell, Show

Video is an excellent way to provide engaging content to your potential clients in a unique format. Consider making a how-to video. If you make a demonstration video, the content should focus on the benefits of the product or service.  Video does not have to be overly produced consider – business casual video.  Clean and clear recordings with good audio conveys and honest and direct approach which will be appreciated.

Engage

Follow blogs and social media sites that deal with your product or service to see what customers are talking about. And then engage with them in a conversation by offering pointers, answers and advice.

Write for Others

Chances are there’s a trade publication, blog or site dealing with your sector. Why not write a guest article for it? Just make sure the article doesn’t preach but provides valuable information to the reader.

Don’t Forget SEO

When writing your content, don’t forget to make sure it’s search engine optimized. Customers will only find you if you show up on the search engine results!

In this post we thought we’d highlight a common scenario some refer as the “Dead Zone”.  A prospect has indicated interest in some way and now you’re trying to connect.

It’s never pleasant waiting for the phone to ring and most successful people don’t. Everyone does occasionally wonder why some folks just won’t call you back. Are you struggling to get your calls returned? Are you becoming frustrated with empty promises to ‘call you back’? Try these five simple tips to increase your call backs:

Capitalize on Trigger Events

According to Craig Elias, the key to getting a prospect to call you back is to capitalize on what he refers to as ‘trigger events’. “When you cold call someone in attempt to sell them something, you’re interrupting that person’s day,” says Elias. “The dominant instinct is always going to be for that person to find any reason to get off the phone and get back to what they were doing.” At the beginning of the call or prior to it, you want to find out if there has been a trigger event – or whether or not they are already talking to the competition. If so, that means there’s an opening and you need to capitalize on this immediately.

Reference Referrals Up Front

According to Jill Konrath, the single best way to keep prospects listening is to start the conversation by mentioning the name of a respected colleague. If you do this on a message machine, chances are they will call you back.

Do Your Homework

Konrath further suggests that doing your homework – and letting your prospect know you did your homework – also increases the chance of a callback. “Let them know you prepared for this call by researching their business,” she says.

Use Your Script as a Foundation

Any salesperson knows that the script is an essential sales tool – helping you stay focused.  It’s a game of permission, so every word counts.  Your first statement earns you the next 15 seconds.  That 15 seconds leads to 45 more seconds. The first 45 seconds leads to the next minute and so on.  Scripts are guides – not the end all be all and must be used as a reference not verbatim.

Create a Deadline

Finally, as Anneke Seley points out, after every conversation you should end with an agreement from the prospect outlining the next steps. And always include a date for when these steps will be accomplished. That way, when the time for the follow up call comes around the prospect will be expecting it.

In the end combining all materials (triggers, referrals, homework, scripts, deadlines)  and their sub-components can earn you enough trust with a prospect to continue the discussion.

Links to reference materials on Amazon.com:

• Shift: Harness The Trigger Events That Turn Prospects Into Customers
• SNAP Selling: Speed Up Sales & Win More Business with Today’s Frazzled Customers
• Sales 2.0: prove Business Results Using Innovative Sales Practices and Technology 

David Meerman Scott just launched his revised & updated book The NEW RULES of MARKETING & PR (Click to buy).  If you haven’t read it you should.

In it David talks about the creation of a video category called business casual (page 252). He explains that video in all its forms need not be the high production difficulty and cost you’ve come to expect from “formal video”.  David goes on to make several points

1. You can produce simple low cost engaging content that works/converts.
2. Do not create poorly shot video, with bad lighting and editing – there is a baseline.
3. He is “convinced that the trend towards casual content means that consumers want to get closer to the organizations they do business with”.
4. Informal “telling it like it is – will make us more efficient”

One additional learning that David and our customers have stressed is -

Trust.

Business Casual video is honest. You’re standing out there on your own with no fancy backgrounds nor teleprompter.  People love the directness and the honesty that comes through the simple format.  We find that people appreciate it and are therefore willing to advance to conversation with such a forthright individual that’s focused on the content delivered.

Never forget that no matter how produced your video is – the content must be authentic and engaging. That is what converts visitors. The business casual content is easily produced on small high definition capable cameras (Cisco Flip, Kodak Zi8) that are simple to use and cost less than $80 to purchase. The quality is fantastic and as of this post Flip cameras are still online for sale.

Here is an example of business casual video content –

Today, when visitors see this business casual content they find it genuine and engaging. The results are excellent and the more you do it the easier it gets.

Bad First Date

There are many companies out there that provide the ability to create drip campaigns in marketing automation platforms (see: Eloqua, Marketo, Pardot, Silverpop). Supporting this capability are many sources that will refer to statistics.  These statistics say that anywhere from 7 and 20 repeats are required for any communication to gain consideration access.   Interestingly enough a personal dating stat from VIDA (Virtual Dating Assistant)  gave an “estimate of between 5 and 15 emails” before a meeting in person was accomplished.

After all thats what we are trying to do right?..get that first meeting (date)?

More often than not drip campaigns are still created in an impersonal way and its difficult to “fake” an engagement attempt.  Marketers are considering it a time saving device as opposed to a conversation with people. Most marketers will try to change messages based on profiles, activities with varying offers creating more and more as the campaign progresses.  Drips need to be thoughtful and comprehensive based upon participants within the actual campaign in a well thought out manner.  If your just going to link a bunch of templates together, don’t – you won’t win a lot of fans – nor get a second date (unless your lucky).

I speak from personal experience (names are not used to protect the guilty).  I received an email after I requested a download from a site that I was interested in.  I have no problem filling in a form for a company that I would like to stay linked to.  The first email was the obligatory “Thanks” and was totally expected.  The second arriving a day later was way off topic to anything I was interested in.  The third (arriving the next day) was an offer I’m not ready for yet. The forth got annoying as I’m unclear if they really understand what I was looking for.  The fifth made me opt out as it had nothing of value.  As a consumer and a seller its on both of us to uncover whether we are a match. Sending a generic marketing mail is not going to help me make a decision unless you address MY concerns. One to one communication will work as long as it’s specific, relevant, and timed properly.

Please end the torture, treat me like a human being not a notch in you sales/marketing belt. I want a relationship not a date and if its a fit, great… otherwise move on.

A few years ago, so-called “user-generated content” emerged. Today we now accept that blog posts, tweets and other nuggets of insight are trustworthy and, in some cases, highly entertaining. In the realm of video, YouTube not only made digital expression accessible to all, it forever changed the expectation for video content. YouTube proved that simply-produced and authentic video could be as, if not more, engaging than professional content.

Despite the popularity of social media (what is essentially evolved user-generated content), businesses were, until recently, reluctant to adopt the more freewheeling and often spontaneous sensibilities YouTube-style video. Today, however, erstwhile “corporate video,” often highly produced with b-roll, scripted actors and music, can seem disingenuous and inauthentic. Consumers – even buyers of technology and business services – have come to expect a more authentic dialogue. And this is good news for businesses that want to use video to engage and convert – authentic video can be easier and less costly to produce!

So, we are often asked, how much authenticity and simplicity is enough? After all, we’ve got we’ve got a valuable brand here, and we can’t risk undermining it. Although every company is different, we start with three simple rules for an effective video:

• Meet basic expectations for lighting and sound. Make sure that faces aren’t in shadow or direct sunlight, and be sure ambient noise won’t drown voices out. If you’re thinking of buying a digital video camera, consider one that has an external microphone jack.
• Feature real people from your business talking about subjects for which they are truly passionate. Don’t worry if they’re not Al Pacino. Do worry if they don’t convey authentic enthusiasm.
• Make the video more conversational and less scripted. Talking points are better than a formal script. Don’t let message perfection be the enemy of authenticity.

Some companies may have a budding Leonardo DiCaprio or a closet Apple Final Cut Pro editor, but you don’t need that level of talent to get started. You simply need to find your company’s comfort zone for quality versus expediency. It’s best to start small and experiment, proving to yourself – and your management team perhaps – that a simple, authentic video can actually convert online leads into sales. That’s reason enough to give it a try.

To read about other tips for using video to convert online visitors to leads, please download our eBook, Best Practices for Using Video to Convert Visitors to Leads, here.

And be sure to come back to our blog for more tips and tricks.

There was a time when companies would spend considerable time and dollars to produce long “talking head” videos. In fact, many businesses still think of this style of video when they hear “business video.” That thinking is old school.

Today, a new formula is emerging that is based on conversion numbers, not artistic experimentation. A five-minute video of executives talking, featuring slick transitions and impressive graphics, may look nice, but it often doesn’t convert as well as a 90-second video with a strong call to action.

So, want a simple formula for creating highly converting video? Here it is:

10- to 15-second intro + 30- to 45-second overview/teaser + 10- to 20-second offer/ call-to-action

Sure, many digital marketers will experiment and try a slightly longer teaser or call to action, but the general guidelines are still useful. We’ve seen them work for clients time and time again. Whether you’re using video to promote an event, such as a webinar, a whitepaper or a product/service demo or trial, keep the formula above in mind and see your conversion numbers grow.

To read about other tips for using video to convert online visitors to leads, please download our eBook, Best Practices for Using Video to Convert Visitors to Leads, here.

OR Watch the video below to see an overview of the eBook:

Be sure to come back to our blog for more tips and tricks.

One question we often get is “why do I need anything besides You Tube for my video?”  With the phenomenal success of You Tube, this is a natural reaction.  As with most marketing questions, however, the right answer really depends on your specific goals.

Digital marketers generally have three high-level goals  – create awareness, engage prospects and convert visitors to leads.  The good news is that video can dramatically increase your results in all three areas.

You Tube is a great channel for achieving the first goal – it’s built for generating awareness.  Millions of people go to You Tube to look for relevant videos. Posting your videos to You Tube is an easy, inexpensive way to be discovered.

But engaging and converting prospects requires a more considered approach. Digital marketers typically spend a great deal of time and money to attract visitors to their websites, as well as optimizing that experience for conversion. To maximize your investment, you want your video content to be a vital part of that overall experience and conversion process.  Keeping prospects engaged on your site gives you more time and opportunity to convert them.

If, on the other hand, you send those hard-earned prospects off to You Tube, you may risk degrading their experience and lose everything you’ve already gained.  Yes, they see your video, but they’re no longer on your site, and you have lost control of their experience.  The prospect is now open to presentation of irrelevant content or, even worse, to content from competitors.

Once a prospect reaches your site, your goal should be to give them an experience that is tuned to their needs and enables them to easily take action that converts them from a suspect to a lead.   At a basic level, this requires interactivity and integrated calls to action.

Finally, whenever you do engage prospects on your site, you want to measure those interactions so you can constantly tune your efforts and programs to maximize conversion. Leading marketers are now successfully integrating their overall tracking and individual user actions within marketing automation (e.g., Eloqua, Unica, HubSpot, Marketo) and sales automation (Salesforce.com) systems. This ensures that the process of creating awareness, engaging prospects and converting visitors is properly executed and measured from start to finish.