14 Steps to PERFECT Prospecting: Expert Business Tips
Posted: May 25, 2012 Filed under: Follow-Up, General Sales Tips, Prospecting Leave a comment »
- Schedule “The Golden Hours” in your calendar as if it’s the most important appointment you have in your day.
- Don’t waste a second during your “Golden Hours”.
- Have your top 20 prospects listed out and in a queue ready to call.
- Stand up for the entire hour.
- Eliminate all possible distractions.
- Put a sign on your door saying “Golden Hours in process. Currently raising your stock value!”
- Turn you outlook email notice button off!
- Do not check email!
- Don’t answer questions.
- Don’t take personal calls.
- Don’t answer any call that is not someone calling to set a new appointment.
- Use the restroom before your “Golden Hours”.
- Don’t hang up the phone for the entire hour. (use your finger to hang up and keep dialing)
- Make as many dials as humanly possible during your “Golden Hours”.
Rule of 3 :: How to Avoid Appointment Cancellations
Posted: May 18, 2012 Filed under: Follow-Up, General Sales Tips, Prospecting 3 Comments »
Remember to use the “Rule of 3” when setting up these appointments (with everyone) because there is nothing worse than having people move the day of when you could of easily put someone else in their slot. The foundation/principle we talked about is to always list the names of people that you are meeting around when this person would like to set their appointment. Once you figure out a day that works read off all that you are doing that day with names to build massive “non-cancellation” credibility in their minds.
- Tell them you are scheduling people from now until Christmas Eve and that you are filling up really quick so they are going to need to be flexible. Then once you figure out a date and time reiterate that you appreciate working with them and also that if they miss this appointment you might not be able to meet with them for another 2 or 3 weeks after. Then say, “So can I count on you on ‘Date and Time’?” Awesome!
- Then tell them that that you will be calling them on their “scheduled appointment day” before you leave the office so that you know they are going to be home. Then have them write down the call time and also the appointment on their fridge so they don’t forget. Then again ask, “So can you for sure be home on ‘Date and Time’ for me?” Great!
- Restate the Date and Time of your appointment, get personal with them and tell them sincerely the things you like about working with them/everyone and then give them a statement of confirmation and appreciation of how you really like the fact that when they set an appointment with you that they never move it or miss it…Say that to everyone so you can create that clearing for them to live right into. Finish the call with, “OK I can’t wait to see you on this ‘Date and Time’. Have an awesome day!”
Follow these simple steps and I know you will see your cancellations decrease!
IN THE SPIRIT OF SUCCESS….
When Working For The Boss Is Not Working For You
Posted: April 24, 2012 Filed under: Follow-Up, General Sales Tips, Prospecting Leave a comment »
Unfortunately this is a situation that has become all too common. Whether the person you report to lacks the appropriate people skills or if it is just a situation where there is a personality clash, many people today are in uncomfortable situations with their superiors. The bad news is that most adults that reach the age where they have been promoted to upper management of a firm are probably old enough where they are not going to change their behavior a great deal. In other words, they are very unlikely to make a change. This is multiplied by the fact that they are in a position of seniority and nothing short of a full on mutiny would cause them to change.
The good news is that by taking a few steps you can dramatically improve the relationship you have with your boss and increase your ability to accomplish your work in spite of this challenge. The first step is to become aware of the situation. Realize and admit you have a conflict with your boss and you need to take action. Unfortunately many people have a coping mechanism in this type of situation. In fact, they may use the following tactics. It would be important for you to become aware of which, if any of these “Passive Aggressive” tactics you use to respond to your bosses negative behavior.
- Obsession and avoidance.
- Self doubt and sulking.
- Wishing for he bosses demise or gloating over failures.
- Making negative comments or gossiping about the boss.
- Direct negative confrontation or Retaliation.
- Shutting out the boss or a total shutdown.
Once you detect that a negative situation exists, and the coping mechanisms you use, you can separate yourself from the situation. Bottom line is you are not the reason for this behavior; it existed long before you came around and chances are you will not be able to change him or her. Make every attempt to avoid the coping mechanisms that were listed earlier. You also want to make sure that you don’t let this negativity roll down hill and dump on the people you may be responsible for in the organization. Finally, don’t “medicate” with the bad C.A.T.S. (Caffeine, Alcohol, Tobacco and Sugar) Make sure you exercise, stay active and eat right. These practices will not only help you manage the negative relationship with your boss, however it is guaranteed to have other benefits as well.
The third step is to negotiate a plan for dealing with this situation. It may begin with taking personal inventory of what your expectations are from authority. Ask yourself, what do you specifically expect and need from your boss. Then ask how those unmet needs can be met outside the relationship with the boss. In my early days in business I had a boss that never gave out recognition. No matter what I seemed to do, I cold never get a “pat on the back” or a compliment. After some time, I realized that was his style and I was not going to change it. He believed that giving recognition for good performance led to “settling” and felt that the only way to continually drive performance to higher levels was to make people think there was always room for improvement and that the job was never completed satisfactorily. I perform best when I feel appreciated, I was not getting it from the boss so I worked on receiving recognition from clients. In the end, I got what I needed, understood my managers strategy and improved my performance through other sources of recognition.
I believe it helps to have three strategies for dealing with the boss’s behavior. First, the over all approach. This is a quality or attitude that you embody when dealing with the boss. They are in a position of leadership and while you may not be able to get along with them, they deserve certain respects and you should make every effort to be tolerant and avoid falling into the coping mechanisms we discussed earlier. Secondly, you need to have tactics that you can use for dealing with the challenges in the specific moment. Consider what responses or behaviors you can demonstrate when you are confronted with the negative behaviors. Choose healthy responses that involve direct and open communication. Don’t be afraid to express how you are feeling or communicate what areas you believe could be improved in the way your boss communicates with you. As we discussed earlier, this does not mean they will change, however you need to be certain you are doing everything possible to contribute to the solution. Finally, you probably need to be considering the long term strategy be planning the appropriate “moves” to allow you to be transferred or promoted out of this boss’s direct responsibility.
I am confident that if you are struggling with your supervisor, following these simple, though not always easy, steps will greatly improve your ability to work through this tough relationship. Stay focused and positive and you will get through it.
The ‘Integrated Approach’ (Guest Post by Lars Tewes)
Posted: April 12, 2012 Filed under: Follow-Up, General Sales Tips Leave a comment »Selling in the Consulting World – tackling the issues consultants currently face as they embrace the business development arena. Each month Lars Tewes, MD of SBR Consulting shares a challenge / issue he is working on with his clients, and looks at how it is being addressed.
Client Sales Challenge of the Month: Have we confused attempting to add value to our clients by “cross-selling” instead of providing a truly “integrated” approach?
In the current climate, working with your existing clients and retaining them through continually adding value is essential. This article addresses why integrating your services within a client may not be happening quite as you wish and I will recommend 4 ways to ensure an integrated approach can happen, and how you can influence it.
Our definition of an “integrated approach” is whereby the client has a strong understanding of all your services early on in the sales process and so they know how you can partner with them long-term. Of course there are some situations where it is more appropriate to initially focus on one key area of need and prove your value there first however, this is not an excuse to not make time to help the key decision makers know about your full portfolio.
The definition of “Cross-selling” is introducing another part of the business when there is a known need. This is a healthy thing to do but is probably not achieved as often as one would like. More upsetting is the number of times a consultant hears that they have lost out to a competitor and the client contact says something to you like, “You should have told us, we didn’t know you could help in that area,” or, “We see you as a real partner in “x” services since that is where your strengths lie. We did not think of you for “y” services”. This can be infuriating, especially if your firm are experts in “y” services but the client just did not know (and whose fault is that?).
Depending on your business model, you will know which method is more common for you, “integrated” or “cross-selling”. The question to continually ask yourself is, “Are you seeing the revenue that you expect to come in from clients in your space?” You know the correct answer so if it is “no” then one or more of the following are the potential reasons:
- Integrated selling is not a natural part of your sales strategy
The Heads of each service/offering often do not lead the way on this. They are technical experts in their field, and so lead and chase business that fits their natural skillset, as opposed to leading with another part of the group. For example: accounting firms leading with the Audit function when either consulting or advisory services may be the real need; engineering firms leading with the buildings and infrastructure group when one of the consulting workstreams may be more applicable to build the relationship; marketing firms leading with their core marketing service when a newer technological offering may be more enticing from the client’s perspective and add the competitive advantage required.
- Trust in the other teams/individuals within the business
Often not spoken about out loud when discussing integrated selling in internal meetings, is that many are concerned about the ability and trustworthiness of some of their peers to add value. This is a harsh statement but I have lost count of the number of times I have heard this comment during training over the years. People, especially analytical/technical specialists, do not want to ruin “their” relationship by passing it over to someone else.
- Worried about being seen as too pushy or “salesy”
Many are mistaken into thinking that if they share the bigger picture of how their firm can add value in other areas the prospect will think they have moved into sales mode. However, when done correctly, it should have the exact opposite effect on the prospect and show that you care about providing the right solution at the right time for their business.
- Not part of an individuals targets and objectives
Although there is a huge benefit to the firm for integrated selling and cross selling to take place, in lots of cases, the individuals may not have real motivation to make it happen. I’m not talking solely about monetary motivation but there needs to be at least some driver that shows that they were instrumental in securing the win. There are numerous ways a firm can do this without breaking the bank.
So how can you ensure that your business creates an integrated sales approach? Here are 4 ways to make this happen:
1. Decide it is part of the Board’s / Directors’ overall strategy.
It can no longer be just hearsay or lip service. Communicate this at every possible opportunity. Build in drivers to encourage the right behaviours to make this happen.
2. Make time for the Directors and Client Directors to meet and share key accounts and strategies
In a society where companies are spending £000’s of pounds on ways to touch the prospects, it is amazing how little time is spent internally on some of the easier and more natural wins.
3. Have the confidence to approach a client as an integrated provider not just about your particular expertise
Be aware that timing is important and needs to be considered based on the stage the prospect is in their buying cycle, however do not allow this to become the excuse that stops you from ever picking up the phone. Suggest a meeting to discuss how you could add even more value. You might be surprised how many take you up on this.
4. Remember that you need to be building relationships with all the decision makers
This strategy forces you to build the right relationships, not just with you internal champion who knows you for only one thing, but now with the 3 key decision makers; the Money, the Authority and the Need (M.A.N.)
In conclusion, decide that when you talk about integrated solutions to your internal team you really mean it. Then allow time to collaborate, debate and work together for the greater vision of the firm. Add motivational drivers that encourage this. The current economic environment means this has to become a major area of focus if you are going to future-proof your business.
Guest Post by Lars Tewes
Managing Your Sales Results Through Tough Economic Times (Guest Blog with Ron Marks)
Posted: March 26, 2012 Filed under: General Sales Tips Leave a comment »As news of the battered economy is broadcast in the media and consumer confidence stagnates to historic lows, nowhere does the impact hit closer to home than in the sales industry. That’s why it is so critical to have an effective strategy in place to take action when the economy is trending down. In response to this, most companies cut two vital elements in their company. Training and Advertising expenditures, like a ship in a storm get tossed overboard. Most of the people reading this article would agree that those are foolish responses to a tough economy, however a large percentage of even their companies have already made the cuts.
Even if your budget to bring in training is absent, there are a number of things you as the sales leader and manager should be doing to “weather this storm.”
Help your sales team find your clients pain
If there is no pain, there is no sale. Now is the time to thoroughly understand and feel your client’s pain, and adapt accordingly. Pain has three distinct elements; problems, reasons and impact. By putting the pieces together with your client you are able to recognize what’s happening. If you can’t solve your client’s pain, your competition will. More than ever before encourage your sales people to ask more questions and show their customer that they are interested in more than just a sale. One of the symptoms of a down economy is that many sales people get a really bad case of “commission breath”. They sometimes get so desperate to make a sale because their own sales are down that they put undue pressure, some even at a subconscious level, on their customers to buy. Your sales people may even thing they are just offering a “good deal” yet the customer only sees it as desperation.
The Fear Factor
Understand the psychology behind a recession’s fear factor and openly discuss it with your sales team. Engage a team approach of how to meet company goals. Share your vision of what measures need to be taken to ensure success, and ask them to be part of the solution by finding hidden opportunity, up-selling and identifying cost saving measures within the organization. Encourage a positive mindset that looks beyond public perceptions to the opportunities change affords. Remind your seasoned veterans and educate your newer team members about economic business cycles. Make sure they understand that this is all cyclical and they now, more than ever need to stay focused and continue to work hard. Your sales people need to know that “this too shall pass”.
Remain Flexible
With rising fuel costs many companies have shifted to a condensed work week or other changes to reduce expenses. Make sure your salespeople are willing to meet clients at their location and recognize the changing nature of the standard work week by making yourself accessible and available where and when they are. Have them take advantage of phone conferences, confirmation of appointment calls and email to communicate before jumping in the car. Make sure the team knows you are behind them as their leader and you will also be flexible in helping them to close business.
Coach and Train
The worst time to cut back on sales or training is in a recession. Focus and highlight every area of success and discuss what was done to create it and exploit it. Highlight sales wins, reference goals and site historical examples of how the company or a salesperson has gone above and beyond. Stay consistent with your weekly training meetings. (You do meet with your team don’t you?) Enlist the help of members of your team to lead training and motivational sessions. Encourage your sales people to replace the radio and music in their cars with inspirational and motivational messages. There is no better time than now to be constantly listening to positive messages.
Mobilize your Sales Force
All eyes need to be focused on the objective. That means bringing every department that supports what sales does into the mix. Ratchet your sales focus up a notch. Now is the time to quantify what you can do for clients because everyone is looking for ways to either save money or make more money. Help everyone on the team, sales personnel or not to pull together and work through this business cycle.
Ron Marks is the author of “Managing for Sales Results” published by John Wiley and Sons.
He can be reached at rmarks@ssnseminars.com
To Reach The Top, Do What Others Won’t (Guest Post by Rory Vaden)
Posted: March 15, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized Leave a comment »editors note: Rory Vaden is co-founder of Southwestern Consulting and author of the New York Times bestseller Take the stairs: 7 Steps to Achieving True Success. This article was featured on cnn.com recently. You can see it by clicking HERE
Getting ahead in your career is not just about being successful; it’s about being noticed.
So how do you stand out to be hired by potential employers? How do you stand out for a promotion to a superior? How do you stand out as loyal to the people you are leading? It’s simple: do the things that others aren’t willing to do.
Whether you’re a leader, a team member, or a candidate, success comes from having the discipline to do the things that you know you should be doing, even when you don’t feel like doing them. When you practice this kind of self discipline regularly, you’ll naturally stand out from the pack — because most people avoid the hard stuff. It’s just easier to put it off.
But the truth is that what feels easy now creates problems down the line. And what feels hard now — doing the stuff you don’t feel like — makes everything easier in the long-term. Self discipline doesn’t have to be hard — you just have to change the way you think about it.
Successful people have mastered the art of self discipline. I’ve spent the last 10 years studying and coaching some of the most successful people in business, figuring out what makes them different. They’re not smarter or more talented than the average person — they just consistently do what others aren’t willing to do by keeping three principles in mind:
Do it scared. Fear is one of the biggest saboteurs of our goals, because it inhibits action. The next time you feel yourself putting something off because you’re afraid — of uncertainty or failure — just “do it scared.”
I once heard a true story of a woman who was trapped in a burning building on the 80th floor. She was terrified of heights and enclosed spaces, and when the fire alarm went off, she refused to follow her colleagues into the stairwell to evacuate to safety.
The firemen did a sweep of the building and found her hiding under her desk, waiting to die. She was screaming “I’m scared, I’m scared!” as the firemen insisted she walk down the stairwell. Until one fireman said: “that’s OK, just do it scared.” He repeated it all the way down the 80 flights of stairs, until he brought her to safety.
We’ve all faced these moments in our careers — when you know what has to be done, but your fear holds you back. In order to stand out, you must develop the habit of acting in the face of fear. It’s fine to be scared — do it scared. It’s fine to be unsure — do it unsure. It’s fine to be uncomfortable — do it uncomfortable. Just do something.
This is the attitude of the most disciplined and successful people on the planet. They might be scared, but they do it anyways. And by just doing something, you create movement and momentum that will lead to progress and results.
Habits, not results. Perfectionism is one of the most common reasons people procrastinate, and we’ve all done it at some point.
The best way to overcome this impulse is to put your self esteem into stellar work habits instead of results. It can take a while to see the fruits of your labor — whether you’re spearheading a new initiative, trying to launch a business, or planning a second act career. To keep yourself motivated, take pride in sticking to your work habits, rather than looking for immediate results. In time, success will follow.
Remember the big picture. The pursuit of any goal will inevitably face a number of obstacles. The difference between those who stand out in the careers and those who blend in lies in what you do when you reach these critical turning points. Do you hesitate and turn back? Or do you press forward? When you feel frustrated, depressed, or disappointed, don’t give up — just get some perspective.
I have a mental reminder that helps me push past these hurdles. I hold my pen up to my eye and stare directly down the barrel. Then, I pull it away and look at it in its entirety. It’s a quick way to remind myself to look at my life in the same way.
Stop fixating on the here and now, and think about the big picture. Today’s challenges may not make sense, but you must have faith that over the long-term, they will be nothing more than blips on the radar screen. Having this perspective and faith will help you press forward at the moments when others turn back.
Contrary to popular belief, people who have reached the highest levels in their careers aren’t necessarily better educated, more talented or better connected. Neither are they simply more motivated or harder workers. Rather, successful people have realized that getting to the top means that they first have to do the things that they don’t want to do related to their goals.
It’s not about enjoying self discipline — it’s about adopting a few new ways of thinking that simply make discipline easier to endure. And when you develop the habit of doing things that others won’t do, you’re putting yourself on the fast track to the route to the top.
Battle of the Sexes
Posted: March 2, 2012 Filed under: General Sales Tips Leave a comment »Click Here to see how men and women respond differently to mobile advertising.
In the Spirit of Success,
Amanda Johns
Corporate Partner and Program Director
ajohns@southwesternconsulting.com
Why is everyone suddenly choosing to “Take the Stairs” (Guest Blog with Rory Vaden)
Posted: February 17, 2012 Filed under: General Sales Tips Leave a comment »Rory Vaden has a somewhat peculiar area of study in that he is the world’s only Self-Discipline Strategist. However, he does great work and as a first time author his new book Take the Stairs hit #1 on the bestseller lists last week for both Amazon and Barnes and Noble, #1 on USA Today, and #2 on the New York Times Bestseller list!
I read books all the time and I have to say, Take the Stairs, is a book I will actually recommend and read again so I asked him to expand on some of the most interesting concepts presented in the book.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing business today?
Procrastination is the most expensive invisible cost in business today. In our research for the book we found a study of 10,000 US employees who were anonymously surveyed and asked the question “in a given 40 hour work week how much time do you spend while on the job on ‘non-job related activities?” The average person self-admitted to wasting 2.09 hours each day! Then we went to the US Department of Labor Bureau of statistics and found that the average American earns $39,795 per year.
Which means, that if we are procrastinating an average amount our procrastination costs employers $10,396 per year, per employee! If we are in sales or we’re a small business owner then that is what its costing us. Except no one ever thinks of procrastination as a cost because it doesn’t show up on our P and L or in our checkbook register.
According to your experience what is the key to success?
It seems that the only thing that ALL successful people have in common is that they have developed the ability to do the things that they know they should be doing in the moments when they don’t feel like doing them. In other words success isn’t about choosing to take the escalator; it’s about choosing to Take the Stairs. In a word I sum it up as discipline. The discipline to do the things we know we should be doing even when we don’t feel like doing them. But self-discipline isn’t as hard as we think – when we think about it the right way.
What we noticed is that the most disciplined people in the world don’t like discipline more than the rest of us, and they aren’t disciplined out of some weird masochistic pleasure for seeking pain. Instead, they simply process their choices through a different set of criteria from the rest of us. In other words they think about it differently (in 7 specific ways outlined in the book) and that enables them to make choices that most people can’t normally get themselves to make.
How did you get to where you are? How is your personal experience one that lends itself to the study of self-discipline?
When I was 5 years old my mother put me into martial arts, and by age 10, I became the youngest black belt in Colorado…to ever get beaten up by a girl! I used to argue with my mom “I don’t like this! It isn’t fun for me! And this isn’t something I enjoy!” and she’d always say back “That’s ok Rory, enjoying it isn’t a requirement of doing it.” So, being raised by a single mom she taught me to put a lot of faith in self-discipline.
Then when I went to college I worked with The Southwestern Company. I spent 5 summers away from home, waking up at 5:59 am, taking ice cold showers, and knocking on doors 14 hours a day, 6 days a week, on straight commission, paying all of my own expenses, selling educational children’s books door to door. It was the most rigorous and challenging thing I’ve ever done but I made over $250k in 5 summers and Southwestern taught me the skills and character I needed to be successful in life.
I’ve heard you mention that there is a perpetual enemy we face in our life that is working against us from taking action. Can you introduce that to us and share with us what the remedy is?
The Law of Diminishing Intent simply states, “our intention to take action is highest the moment we create that intention but then naturally, over time, that intention slowly starts to fade. Which explains why when you go to the gym on January 5th it is packed and when you go on March 5th it is empty. But most people don’t take action even in those few moments when they are inspired and see a dream for their own life that they want. They never even get started.
I wrestled a long time with the questions “Does that mean they’re bad people? That they just don’t have integrity? That they simply don’t have the will power? Do they not care about success? Do they not care about letting people down? Or is success just not written in the stars for them?” Until I finally realized that “No!” that’s not at all what it means – in fact it’s just the opposite. The reason most people don’t take action is because they care so much about success that they just want to wait to get started until they have the perfect time, the perfect set of resources, the perfect amount of money, etc. What they don’t realize is that perfect time never comes and with each moment that they don’t take action, the likelihood that they ever will decreases exponentially. The strategy is to learn to focus relentlessly on progress meanwhile completely freeing yourself of the demand for perfection.
Tell us about your “Take the Stairs tour.” What is it all about?
We decided with all of the momentum of this book that we should do something more productive then just go around to bookstores and beg 3 friends to come out to get their book signed. So instead we are taking a tour bus across the country to 20 states between Feb 20 and Mar 20 to support Youth Character Education. We are hosting 2.5 hr FREE events in every city where members of the community come to a live event at a local venue (high school auditorium, college, church, etc) WITH their teenagers and I teach all 7 strategies of self-discipline and the Take the Stairs mindset. We then collect a $10 suggested donation at the door and give 100% of the money we raise that night right back to that local school district foundation or some other local youth charity that supports character education. Our plan is to hopefully raise at least $10,000 at each event and over $250k total for the whole tour.
Anyone can register, its absolutely free (other than the suggested donation), and we are inviting people to come with their teenagers (8th grade and up) so they can do something fun together as a family and learn about the importance of self-discipline together. The complete list of tour locations where they can register and all of the information is available at www.takethestairstour.com
There are very few books that come along that really change your perspective … this is one of them. This is one of those books that makes you want to make a change, even when you don’t feel like doing it. It’s thoughtful yet funny, serious yet entertaining.
Rory is giving away 4 big bonuses for the first 2000 people who buy the book at www.buytakethestairs.com so check it out!
In the Spirit of Success,
Amanda Johns
Corporate Partner and Program Director
ajohns@southwesternconsulting.com
9-Step Follow-up Touch System
Posted: February 10, 2012 Filed under: Follow-Up 1 Comment »This client touch system consists of 9 different touches. Touches 1 through 4 are separated by 2 weeks between touches and then touches 5 through 9 each have a month between.
1st Touch – Send a Hand-written Thank You Card
This should be 3 or 4 sentences following this pattern:
- Your excitement to be working with them
- Value in your services that you provide
- Future statement that gives them the big picture of working with you for life
- Compliment their decision for working with you
2nd Touch – Email Consisting of Third Party Stories of satisfied clients with quotes and names and joyful experiences working with you.
3rd Touch – Send them a monthly newsletter that provides value to them and their decision to be working with you.
4th Touch – Email explaining the Monthly newsletter and why it’s important.
5th Touch – Using this 4-step process to build 3-dimensional names and also gain some referrals after they have seen how great you are:
- Call them just to check in as a courtesy call and see what they thought of your service or product. Specifically, what they thought of your professionalism and how you helped them with your services/products. (remember you may have to dig a little here so that you can get a good fully explained story for your use).
- Remind/Restate that you are there for them if they need anything and really make them feel good about working with a professional like yourself that really cares about them if issues come up.
- Make sure they have your number/email address always handy in case they have any questions. Get them to write it in their address book, install it into their cell phone, write it on the fridge, etc. Where ever they keep their names and numbers you need to be there.
- Then immediately when they are in front of their “circle of influence” names and numbers – ask them if there is anyone else that you should be speaking to that they know that would love to experience this tip top level of service you provide?
6th Touch – Update email reminding them of their plan or their coverage or the advantages of their product and really just recapping everything you have done for them up till this point. Just a friendly reminder email restating everything.
7th Touch – This is a physical “Gift” touch that gift needs to come with a “cheese ball” or humorous statement card or tag that connects you and them and why you are so good for them. Be funny and creative. 
8th Touch – Your Stats or your “good to know” email with some pertinent facts and figures for them.
9th Touch – Mail a Pre-Printed Thank you card with a little blurb about how you appreciate their business and also a picture of you inside.
In the Spirit of Success,
Amanda Johns
Corporate Partner and Program Director
ajohns@southwesternconsulting.com
What Season Are You?
Posted: January 6, 2012 Filed under: Dress For Success Leave a comment »Knowing what colors you look best in is an important part of dressing for success. Your best colors can make you look younger, thinner, and more energetic. The wrong colors can make you look older, heavier, and even sickly.
A skin-tone color analysis will identify your color category, or season. The categories are named after the seasons:
- Winter colors are cool, clear, and dark to light.
- Summer colors are cool, muted, and medium-light to medium-dark.
- Autumn colors are warm, muted, and medium light to medium-dark.
- Spring colors are warm, clear, bright and medium to light.
Click Here for female celebrity examples of each season or Click Here for male celebrity examples.
You can have your color assessed by an Image Consultant, or you can take one of the many online quizzes to get a basic understanding of your season.
Resources for Men
Ask Andy about Clothes
Resources for Women
Style Makeover HQ
In the Spirit of Success,
Amanda Johns
Corporate Partner and Program Director
ajohns@southwesternconsulting.com
Learn How to Work with, Sell to, and Manage the Opposite Gender
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