Learning sales techniques from the Apprentice?

Learning sales techniques from the Apprentice?
Ah, it’s “Apprentice” season again. No, that doesn’t mean you can reach for a shotgun and bag a couple of arrogant 20 somethings, however tempting the thought. If there’s one thing you can consistently learn from the show it seems to be how not to be a salesperson. But why is the show so good at forming terrible salespeople and what makes for a good one? Can sales training really teach you how to sell or should it come naturally?
Why the lack of empathy, guys?

Sticking a group of competing egotists in a house together for several weeks is hardly the sure-fire way to develop this skill. Empathy needs to be the starting point for every sale; connect with people and you’ve won half the battle. You need a bit of it to start with, but sales training will teach aspiring hopefuls how to maximise it to its full potential.
Stop multi-tasking, you’re supposed to be selling

Focus – to be fair, many of the contestants seem to be focused enough; focused on showing how utterly amazing they are at every possible role imaginable. Good sales people shouldn’t be expected to multi-task, it’s not what they’re built for – they are excellent at focusing on one single thing. Some call it the kill, some call it a sale, but they get things done. Again, ability in this area needs to be inbuilt. Training in sales can help but some people are better at multi-tasking than focus – other roles may suit them better.
Responsible practices

Responsibility – the moment they get in the boardroom nearly every single one of the contestants (year on year) deny any sense of personal responsibility. Good sales people take the blame when bad situations arise. They don’t mouth the words, “It was my fault” if caught out, they simply start working on how to fix it. As far as sales training goes, this is one trick that a lot of people have to learn.
Optimism

There’s a fine line here, so fine that many “Apprentice” contestants seem to not notice it and run headily from the bright land of optimism off into the sunset of arrogance. Optimism, in sales people, is about understanding that customer refusal is not personal rejection. They simply try another tactic or approach, they are even prepared to admit defeat from time to time – and, importantly, move on. This is another area where sales training can teach a sales team or individual to deal with rejection!

3 Things to Consider When Looking for Event Space

When it comes to performing on stage, or choosing the right place to perform, there are a lot of things you need to consider. As performers, it’s important to give out all your best in able to give the audience a great show. And there are some qualities, or let’s say contexts, that affects every performance. So it is crucial that you’re doing everything right. Especially when it comes to choosing the event venue. Okay, let’s say maybe you’re not a performer. Maybe you’re just looking for a place to host an event, say a wedding, a coming out party, or just about any social event that’s important to you. When it comes to these important events, the venue is also crucial to the success of the gathering. The performance space is where it all happens.

There are three very important details you need to consider when it comes to choosing the right performance space: The Location, where it is and how far it is from your guests. The Cost, how much will you be spending and if it’s right for your budget. The actual space itself must be taken into consideration. How many people or guests it can hold, does it have every facility you need, are everything accessible to all your guests, etc. The Borland Center for Performing Arts in Palm Beach Gardens, FL gives you all three. It is the perfect performing space for just about any event. It’s proud of the five outstanding spaces you can choose to use depending on which event you are celebrating. It can be a wedding ceremony, a birthday party, an anniversary, pre and post event parties… You name it; this place has the space to hold it! Everything from corporate events to just about any social gathering you can think of! Just dream and plan your party, and the Borland Center for Performing Arts can host the ceremony and reception of your dream event!

These five outstanding, unique and wonderful spaces are all blank slate, just waiting for your command to turn it into something magical, or whatever you’re planning! These spaces are like that pumpkin in that fairy tale just waiting to be turned into a beautiful coach, and you’re the magical fairy godmother or father, whichever’s the case. It doesn’t matter if you’re planning to invite 50 or 500 guests! Their facilities have the perfect option for all. The Borland Center boasts over 10,000 square feet of affordable space with stunning lighting effects. The five reception areas, The Theater, The Rotunda, The Ballroom, The Student Center and The Lake are ready to accommodate your next big event! Each reception has its own unique setting that will add more mood to your experience, and make everybody feel the vibe.

The worst advice I’ve ever heard about writing books

The worst advice I’ve ever heard about writing books!

The worst advice I’ve ever heard about writing books begins with the assumption that writing the book is the only reason for the writer to complete the book. Most writers have an idea of what they want to accomplish with their book. Some reasoning is transparent, like entertainment or information. In most cases the author wants their book read by as many people as possible. This brings into play a whole galaxy of “must-do things” that goes beyond finishing the manuscript.

Few people write books just to see their name in print. For those few people, the Internet offers a broad array of publishers and prices, more precisely printers, eager to fulfill the need. However, entertainment and information requires mass penetration of the probable market for whatever the topic covers. In these cases, beginning at the end can be more appropriate. Developing and refining an audience for the book, starts the journey on a successful path.

So, some of the worst advice begins with the phrase “just do it”regarding actually writing the book. Thinking through why you want to write the book is just as important as the pen or the keyboard. The next most valueless point assumes you have already written the book, so you must get a literary agent. Now a whole new toolbox comes into active use.

To get a literary agent you have to write a query letter and a proposal. A query letter has one purpose, convince the recipient to look at your book, giving you a better chance of selling it. The query letter is a sales tool, a sales letter selling your book. Yes, it gets deeper.

Writing a successful query letter involves analyzing your manuscript and writing a compelling synopsis. A synopsis is not a step-by-step description of what happens, but the emotions that accompany the actions, fear, hope, excitement, and disappointment presented at each turn of the events. Here the use of your writing talent may have to be tweaked to illustrate your marketing and salesmanship. A problem, if this is not one of your strong points.

Next, your proposal letter should be the result of research that identifies an audience for your manuscript. Again, not a step-by-step description of demographic labels, but a compelling argument matching the essence of your book to the needs of a targeted segment of your probable audience. Unless your book is about “marketing psychology” this may severely tax your patience.

Once you have secured an agent who then snares a publisher and more money, you need to determine what you need the publisher to do that will propel your book to the best-sellers lists. The more expensive publishers often have a marketing package on hand for the client. Instead, you may have to suggest a social marketing plan to support your work. What makes this part of the “bad advice collection” is that a writer is seldom necessarily a social marketing campaign designer.

The core point of this journey down “the rabbit hole” of becoming a published author, resides in the fact that the gift of the author is on the written page. In this high-tech low-touch society, delivering your artistic gift to the public, requires a completely different skill set than that of a talented author. In fact, best sellers are grown, they don’t just happen under the rainbow of “write it and they will buy.”

Reject the worst advice you’ve ever heard about writing books, open your thinking to an exciting new approach to publishing – one that starts with the end that in mind. Why not sell your first thousand books before you have written a single word?

The time is now and the choice is yours, take action – turn the page, today.

www.projectbestseller.com 

« Previous Page — Next Page »