Jad Research Blog

I’ve been hearing for years that a successful business needs to have a USP (unique sales point). The problem is that most businesses find difficulty in identifying what their USP is. And even if they have a USP, eventually they find their competitors doing the same thing.

So instead of losing sleep wondering what your USP could be, far better to think about what your ESP (emotional sales point), could be.

Your ESP is about how your customers feel when they deal with you. How they feel when they use your product or service.

A USP could be – “We have a 24 hour delivery service” The ESP would be – “You’ll be enjoying our product the day after ordering it”

A USP – “Our prices are very competitive” The ESP – “You’ll feel you’ve received value for money if you buy this” As all good sales people know, we don’t sell a feature (USP) we sell a benefit (ESP).

Customers don’t buy Nike clothing because there made from quality materials, they buy Nike because they want to feel like Tiger Woods on the Golf course or Andre Aggasi on the tennis court.

They don’t buy Microsoft products because of all the research they’ve done, they buy them because they feel good about them.

Start to think what your ESP is. What does your product or service do that makes your customers feel secure, comfortable, acceptable to others, admired, stylish, wealthy, important, happy, relaxed or sexy.

For those of you selling engineering or technical products and think this isn’t for you – think again.

Some years ago I worked as a Sales Engineer for Loctite industrial adhesives. On several occasions I proved to engineers through numerous tests, how my product could save time and money over the assembly methods they were using.

Many engineers agreed with all the test results however they often rejected the product on the basis that it didn’t FEEL right for them. I realised then that I needed an ESP to overcome this resistance.

So there you have it – always remember that a customer will make an emotional decision before a logical one, whatever they’re buying – so what’s your ESP?

The Chinese have been using ginseng tea for their health for thousands of years. Experts in Chinese medicine recommend that it should be drunk daily or whenever one is feeling unwell. However, it should only be a secondary boost to health and not used as a primary form of cure for any illnesses. It should be used for maintaining health and not curing diseases or illnesses.

It was discovered that the weather and soil conditions of the United States and Canada are suitable for growing ginseng. As a result, there have been great exports of ginseng to China or overseas Chinese communities, as well as Korea.

The principle ingredients of American ginseng tea are panax quinquefolium, herbal lysimachiae and radix glycyrrhizae. American ginseng is gown in North America, in the temperate belts like Wisconsin. American ginseng is sometimes referred to as quinquefolium. Ginseng tea is probably the most popular use for Wisconsin ginseng.

The tea can be made from the whole root, slices, ginseng tea cut or ginseng tea bags. When using the whole root for cooking or ginseng tea, it is often sliced or broken into smaller pieces so that it does not have to simmer for long. The ginseng slices are very popular, because they have already been sliced into thinner pieces and are ready for use.

When making ginseng tea, it usually takes about 2-3 grams of ginseng per cup of tea. This is about 5-8 slices, about 1 teaspoon of ginseng tea cut or powder, or one tea bag. Ginseng tea is very simple to prepare. Just add the ginseng to hot water and allow it to steep for about 4-5 minutes, or as long as you like, depending on how “”strong”" you like tea. The ginseng can usually be reused for about 2-3 cups of tea and then eaten if desired.

Ginseng provides detailed information on Ginseng, Growing Ginseng, Ginseng Tea, American Ginseng and more. Ginseng is affiliated with Therapeutic Essential Oils.

There are over one million active realtors in the United States. Most of them survive by sheer tenacity. Few truly succeed and attain the income levels promised during recruitment events. What are they doing wrong, and what can you learn from their Top 3 mistakes?

1) Have a ‘Winning’ Personality: Many salespeople believe that their natural charms, gregarious natures, and ‘can-do’ attitude will inevitably lead to success. The evidence is clear – that is Wrong!

Selling is a skill; you’re born with aptitude, but you need to acquire and refine a skill set in order to attain sales success.

2) Make Your Own Luck: Neophyte realtors tend to rely on open houses, work their “farms,” and cultivate circles of acquaintances to acquire leads. Their mistaken belief is that sooner or later, they’ll be in the Right Place at the Right Time.

Being in the right place at the right time is not a matter of luck: A good salesperson knows that the only viable prospect is one who is actively in the market – now – and is willing to do business with you already. Top salespeople only spend time with High Probability prospects.

3) Excellent marketing materials will overcome prospects’ natural resistance to sales techniques.

Elaborate graphics, presentations, and ad campaigns can’t compensate for ineffective salesmanship. Slick marketing is inherently disrespectful. It implicitly sends the message that prospects are too dumb to understand real estate.

People want to do business with people they trust and respect. A winning sales strategy is to develop relationships of mutual trust and respect – immediately. That is the best foundation for closing sales.

Here’s what you can learn from struggling realtors:

• If what you’re doing isn’t working well enough for you, it’s time for a change.

• It’s time to develop genuine confidence and self-esteem, based on utilizing a highly effective sales process. Learn how to treat prospects with genuine respect- and require them to treat you with respect.

• It’s time to stop envying others’ ‘natural sales talent’ and develop true competence in selling.

©Jacques Werth, High Probability® Selling – All rights reserved.

Jacques Werth, author of “High Probability Selling,” is an internationally respected Sales Trainer and Sales Consultant. HPS graduates are excelling as Top Producers in over 70 industries. Visit http://www.highprobsell.com to read more articles, preview the book, and learn more about High Probability Selling.

Looks like Microsoft Great Plains becomes more and more popular, partly because of Microsoft muscles behind it. Now it is targeted to the whole spectrum of horizontal and vertical market clientele. Small companies use Small Business Manager (which is based on the same technology – Great Plains Dexterity dictionary and runtime), Great Plains Standard on MSDE is for small to midsize clients, and then Great Plains serves the rest of the market up to big corporations. There are several reporting tools available and you definitely need to know which one to use for different types of reports.

If you are developer who is asked: how do we create report for Microsoft Great Plains – read this and you will have the clues on where to look further.

1. Great Plains Report Writer (ReportWriter) – this is built-in reporting tool. All the original report in Great Plains are written in ReportWriter. ReportWriter itself is Dexterity module. You should use this tool if you would like to modify existing Great Plains reports, such as Blank Invoice Form – here you can place your company logo, change the positioning, fonts, colors, etc. ReportWriter will allow you also do new reports – simple option if you want to export all the records from one Great Plains table – use it. New report, however doesn’t have interface where you would enter parameters – so it is not useful for real custom reports. Another limitation of ReportWriter – you can not do cross-modules report – when you need sales and purchasing info on the same report for example.

2. FRx. This is excellent tool when deal with financial reporting – it works on the General Ledger level (Balance sheet, P&L, Cash Flow Statement, etc.). It also allows you to do multiple companies consolidation – when you do consolidated Balance Sheet (with inter-companies transactions elimination).

3. Smart List – Export to Excel – this is nice feature in Great Plains – you could create a list with simple criteria and then export it to Excel.

4. Crystal Reports. It gives you unlimited functionality. Obviously flexibility requires you to know Great Plains table structure: Launch Great Plains and go to Tools->Resource Description->Tables. Find the table in the proper series. If you are looking for the customers – it should be RM00101 – customer master file. If you need historical Sales Order Processing documents – they are in SOP30200 – Sales History Header file, etc. Create ODBC connection to GP Company database. Use the same technique as when you create standard ODBC connection for GP workstation – but change default database to targeted company database. Create SQL Query to probe the data – we always recommend tuning your query and see that you are getting adequate results – in any case – Crystal Report is just a nice tool to show the results of your query.

5. Direct Web Publishing off Great Plains databases – yes – it is easy now with Visual Studio.Net and you can hire good programmers. This is good – Microsoft Business Solutions products: Great Plains, Solomon, Navision and Axapta will be integrated into so called Microsoft Business Portal – which will have web interface – you can get the idea if you look at Microsoft CRM web client – so derecti web publishing is good taste.

6. SQL Queries. If you have SQL background – this is great field for you. You know – with properly formatted SQL query you can realize simple EDI export/import for the integration with legacy systems.

Happy designing! if you want us to do the job – give us a call!

About The Author

Andrew Karasev is Chief Technology Officer in Alba Spectrum Technologies – USA nationwide Microsoft CRM, Microsoft Great Plains customization company, based in Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston, Atlanta, and Miami and having locations in multiple states and internationally www.albaspectrum.com, he is Dexterity, SQL, VB/C#.Net, Crystal Reports and Microsoft CRM SDK developer.

akarasev@albaspectrum.com

1-866-528-0577 help@albaspectrum.com

There is a proper way and a wrong way to leave voicemail messages when cold calling. I’m not an advocate of cold calling; the odds of generating any amount of significant sales leads or new business are stacked against you when cold calling. But, it does work for a minority of people and some still do it. If you are a cold caller you must know the proper etiquette when leaving voicemail messages.

When you call on a prospect and receive his voicemail, your message must begin with your name and phone number, followed by your message or sales pitch, and ending with your name and phone number once more.

Before I explain why, let me tell you about a typical work week for me. In a typical week, I receive dozens of cold calls. People pitch me all kinds of products and services. Unlike most people, I actually don’t mind receiving these calls. I enjoy hearing the various sales techniques that salespeople use. I’ve heard them all. I don’t normally respond to them, but I at least hear them out. I don’t always get to answer my phone, so logically many of these calls go to my voicemail.

Some of these voicemails amaze me. You wouldn’t believe how many times I get a voicemail that is a couple of minutes long and, often, the caller doesn’t leave his return phone number until the very end. What happens if, as he is leaving his phone number, I get distracted, or I get a beep from my calling waiting, or background noise from his end garbles up the phone number? What would happen is that I would miss the phone number. That means that if I were interested in returning his call I would have to listen to the entire message again to get his number. Do you think I have time to do that? Do you think that any executive or decision maker has time for it for that matter? NO!

When leaving voicemail messages while cold calling you must start each message with your name and number, followed by your message, and ending with your name and number again. It’s proper etiquette. It will increase your ratio of call backs. If someone misses your number and has to listen to your message again he won’t have to listen to the entire voicemail.

Tino Buntic created TradePals to provide B2B & B2C sales leads without cold calling to salespeople across the United States and Canada.

Your fears, anxieties, and other problems have the best of you and you don’t know what to do. You try to manage your fears but are not able to do so. At this point, what you need to do is to be smart in how you manage your fears and anxieties.

The most important thing to remember is to manage your fears and anxieties one step at a time. Some people make the mistake of trying to get rid of all of their fears at the same time. When they do this, they are unsuccessful and the fears and anxieties continue bothering the person.

Try to find out what is causing all of your anxiety. If you have trouble, then use the services of a professional to find out what is the source of your fears.

Once you know the source of your anxieties, then try to break the source of your fear into a series of smaller steps. Completing these smaller tasks one at a time will make the stress more manageable and increases your chances of success.

For instance, let’s say that you have a fear of speaking in front of a large group of people. In order to get rid of this fear, get into the habit of speaking in front of 10 people. Once you feel comfortable, then try speaking in front of 20 people, then 30 people, and so forth. As you feel comfortable doing this, gradually increase the number of people you speak to. Breaking the overall goal into a series of steps will make it easier to get over your fear of speaking in front of a large group of people.

In addition, learn to take it one day at a time. Instead of worrying about how you will get through the rest of the week or coming month, try to focus on today. Each day can provide us with different opportunities to learn new things and that includes learning how to deal with your problems. Focus on the present and stop trying to predict what may happen next week. Next week will take care of itself.

As a Layman, I realize that our anxieties and stresses can sometimes get the best of us, however remember to tackle each fear one step a time. It might take some hard work and persistence, but eventually you will be successful in conquering your fears.

Stan Popovich is the author of “A Layman’s Guide to Managing Fear” an easy to read book that presents a overview of techniques that are effective in managing persistent fears and anxieties. For additional information go to: www.managingfear.com

There are many ways in which a company can improve its profits. For example it can cut costs, if there are any left to cut; suppliers can be squeezed if there is any juice left in the orange; acquisitions, mergers and disposals are other ways of increasing profits; and of course let us not forget restructuring and refocusing, the favourite terms in press releases, as companies try to convince analysts that the extraordinary charge on their P & L was justified. Most if not all, of the above are expensive, some extremely expensive, some are short term and some potentially dangerous.

In our opinion there is another way, and maybe it is taken for granted – and that is to sell more, sell better, and sell faster. After all greater volumes, better margins, and improved cash flow are not far from most executives’ priorities, and these are the benefits that come from selling more, selling better and selling faster.

Also it is relatively cheap to implement. “No it’s not!” is the cry from the frustrated CFO who after three years implementing a CRM system at a preposterous cost, is still waiting to see some bottom line benefits. “Oh no it’s not!” is the cry from the equally frustrated HR Director as he trips over a pile of unused sales training manuals and strategic selling charts. This may seem a little harsh, and it probably is, but weren’t there good sales people before the introduction of IT systems and complex sales techniques?

Much is written in the business pages and journals about all aspects of business, but so little about selling.

The fundamentals of selling are simple; find a prospect who needs something you have to sell, and has the money to pay for it. Convince them of the value of your proposition, counter their objections and ask for the order. Sales people flourish in an organisation where there is a clear business plan with realistic goals, a well defined, unambiguous sales strategy, a strong value proposition, and a supportive management environment. If an organization has these attributes a well managed and motivated sales force will do the execution.

The next time you are planning a strategic review to enhance shareholder value, or just to improve profits, make sure you ask the question, “Whatever happened to selling?”

Paul Chiswick FInstSMM is MD of sales improvement specialists B46 Consulting.
Tel: 0121 748 4138
paul@b46.org

http://www.b46.org

During my many years of reviewing and analyzing inventions, new products and service offerings I have been amazed by the innate fear of selling expressed by so many otherwise capable entrepreneurs. There exists a palpable fear of selling that mimics vertigo, arachnophobia or a fear of snakes. This fear should never stop a project from successfully entering the marketplace.

Ponder the daily aspects of life virtually all of us experience. We seek out, and interview, for jobs. We seek out, then court, and marry our mate. We compete in sports, lobby for promotions, seek support for church and charities, and support causes. Each of these, and so many other activities, require us to utilize some portion of a sales experience.

In reality, sales are nothing more that asking for a preferred result. The seller wants to receive consideration in return for placement, or acceptance of their product or service. A selling situation almost always requires an equal transfer of benefits. A simple example is selling a car. If book value of a car is $5000, and the seller asks $7500, the sale will almost never happen unless a witless soul arrives and can be hustled.

Nevertheless, many people get the sweats, can’t sleep, or hyperventilate at the mere thought of an imminent sales presentation. No matter how confident they may be in all other situations, standing, presenting, selling their opportunity before a stranger is a chilling experience. There are affordable alternative options available to avoid this difficult hurdle for many entrepreneurs.

1. Utilize the inter-net. There are many web-sites specializing in specific areas of sales: technology, consumer products, hard-goods, giftware, etc.
SalesGenie.com is one, but a thorough search will turn up many more. These e-commerce sites specialize in matching sales agents with appropriate products.

2. Research trade organizations specializing in your product category. One example, if you develop a new hair care device, research the Barber, Beauty, Salon Institute (BBSI). This is an industry specific trade group that organizes expositions, lobbies, provides research and acts as a central clearing-house for the salon market. Sales agents are members and are always seeking out new products to represent, and they work on commission. From hardware to auto parts there are similar trade associations seeking the next hot new product.

3. Hire a consultant. There are many consultants specializing in sales and marketing within specific industry categories. The advantage of a sales consultant is that they will work more closely with a seller to customize the approach, strategy, the offers and promotions. This will result in a stronger opportunity to close a deal, and that is always goal number one. Search the inter-net using keywords such as sales consultant, sales engineer, sales strategy, marketing consultant, and hundreds of other search-word combinations. Remember to always get and check references.

4. Visit and utilize gift mart showrooms. There are huge permanent Gift Marts in Dallas, Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Los Angeles. Millions of square feet are devoted to presenting a bewildering array of products in licensed showrooms. Each showroom also has a field sales force covering specific states. These territories are assigned by vendors (sellers) and are commission based. Again, most of these thousands of showrooms specialize in a product or category. From Christmas, to lighting, to tabletop, to clocks, and thousands of other product categories, you may discover a sales group potentially ready to handle your line of product.

5. Seek out expositions, fairs and trade shows specific to your commercial opportunity. I typically walk trade shows to network for clients. This is invaluable. Each category of product has an inside baseball aspect. Trade terminology, unique trade terms, assigned coverage territories, trend cycles vary greatly by industry. You need to learn what is going within your area of interest and there is no better place than shows to study, research and meet potential sales partners.

These are only a few ideas offering alternatives to fear of selling. There are far too many opportunities that never get off the ground simply because the creator believes, “I am not a salesman”. You do not have to be. There is a sea of experienced sales talent ready and able to sell their expertise.

Duquesa Marketing, Inc. is an international consulting firm with over 35 years experience looking at hundreds of new products, concepts and inventions each year from entrepreneurs, inventors and companies all having the same goal; to commercialize their product. The ideas and products that succeed invariably consist of the same basic elements. In order to successfully place a service or product in this very aggressive marketplace no shortcuts are tolerated. There has never been a better time or place to launch that needed new product, and the rewards have never been greater.

Geoff Ficke is President of Duquesa Marketing, Inc. An international consulting firm with over 35 years experience in creating customized strategies and business plans, product development and funding opportunities for entrepreneurs, inventors and small business expansion. Mr. Ficke is also a Senior Fellow at the Page Center for Entrepreneurial Study at the Business School, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio. He can be reached at 407-260-1127 or through the company website, http://www.duquesamarketing.com.