2011 Declaration of TOTAL Business Independence

 

Well, it’s July! And much has been made in the business press about the year being half over. That much is true. However if you follow my writing you know that your success or lack of it is largely based on your perception of reality. For me the year is half over, but it’s also a time of opportunity; A time to make adjustments; a time for new and improved beginnings. We should only look at the past six months as a way to analyze what we are doing well and what we are not and then, with that information, we make valuable course corrections.

Everything we do and should do is based on the singular goal of becoming an independent and successful entrepreneur; manager; executive and business owner. The only way to achieve this goal is to constantly be in search of ways to get better; to analyze the past to make the future great. Sometimes this is achieved simply by committing to a level of excellence in the basic foundational and time proven factors of success. It’s time to get serious….

It’s also a time to review our goals and to, in some cases, make a stand!! It is a time to confidently make concrete and rock solid commitments to certain disciplines and thoughts that have proven through time to be the foundation of successful and profitable sales, marketing and business practices.

So, to that end, and to stay with the central theme of July, I would like to offer up my……….

2011 Declaration of Business Independence.

1. I will set goals and objectives, and I will write them down in order to achieve my dream. (A dream pushes you to do something out of the ordinary and your goals help you make your dream a reality.)
2. I will shift my marketing away from “selling” to “helping”. (No one likes to be sold, but everyone likes to get help.)
3. I will review each of my marketing materials and revise any that are focused on selling my company or my products, and I will shift the focus to helping my prospects and customers achieve what they want from their point of view.
4. I will work to build trust through everything that I do and say by demonstrating my expertise and the effectiveness of my services and products. Trust is the basis for strong relationships and sales.
5. I will replace sales lingo in my marketing with natural and conversational language. It’s much easier to engage a prospect with a conversation than with a monologue.
6. I will measure the effectiveness of every aspect of my marketing and sales process and continually test alternatives to improve my conversion rates and my sales. No matter how good your marketing is, you can always improve it. You’ll ending up making more money with less effort.
7. I will discover alternative ways to close the sale that aren’t pushy or uncomfortable for me to use. For example, asking questions is the easiest way to get a prospect to sell themselves, and a better way to control the sales process.
8. I will avoid wasting time and money trying to reinvent the wheel and will get help from experts and trusted advisors when I find myself struggling.
9. I will delegate any and all tasks that someone else could do with a modicum of training. (You can’t grow your business if you’re spending your time sorting email or running to the post office. There are hundreds of simple but time consuming tasks involved in keeping your business going. Delegate them.)10. I will create a plan for how I can maximize the use of my time and I will follow it to maximize sales. Without a plan, you’ll never get to developing that new product, service or implementing your marketing strategy.

So let’s look at the coming months with an eye to the future rather than the issues of the past. Let’s focus and make it the best year of our life….so far!

If you need some assistance getting there and want to talk about it, call me at any time. And, as always,

Be GREAT!!

 

Coach Dan

Excerpts taken from Charlie Cook, Marketing for Success, More Business Ezine 07/03/08