Want to Double Your Sales? Cut Your Market in Half
Want to Double Your Sales? Cut Your Market in Half
Neither segment was large enough to stand alone, so I spent my time split between both. When someone asked me what I did, I was never quite sure how to respond and often said too much.
Networking associates overloaded with T.M.I. (Too Much Information) rarely had a good referral for me. How could they? If I didn't know what I did or who I wanted to meet, it was unrealistic to expect others to be able to help me. A drastic change was required!
Narrow Your Focus and Create a Plan
And so I made a decision to narrow my focus, targeting small business owners exclusively. This was the segment which had been most productive and I believed if I created an action plan to support the change I would see improved results. I began by evaluating every element of my marketing plan, eliminating elements which no longer fit the overall direction of the business.
My Goal was to become well known and respected in a smaller circle. I wanted to be the go-to person for small business marketing in Indianapolis.
* I gave up chasing "corporate gigs" and I concentrated on small businesses.
1. I pulled 650 prospects from my database which did not fit my core target. I turned the contacts over to a competitor. (There was no changing direction after that!)
2. I discontinued my corporate eNews and gave up memberships in organizations which were not relevant for my core small business customer.
* Next I redirected my time and resources to attract the attention of small business owners,
1. Networking venues and groups were selected because they would allow me to spend more time with small business owners.
2. To be seen as a thought leader, I knew I needed to be more then just a member. Since I was being more selective in the events I was attending it was easier to commit to taking on a leadership roles in organizations which served this market.
3. I became a preferred resource for the SBDC and the SBA, offering free or low cost workshops on topics which were relevant to small business owners.
4. I reviewed the articles I had written, and began submitting them to on-line and off line publications with a readership which was comprised primarily of small business owners. I focused on local business publications first.
5. And finally, I revised all our marketing material to support this new focus. We added information and phrases which are relevant to my core customer/
The Result
In two years I have moved from being self-employed to running a business with a team of four employees and two interns. Roundpeg is known for our small business expertise. Many of our current clients and referral sources have no idea we ever worked with larger firms, and they never need to know. Tightening our focus has allowed us to concentrate and grow!
Want to Double Your Sales Cut Your Market in Half - To learn more about this author, visit Lorriane Ball's Website.
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Two years ago, my firm suffered from split business disorder and as the owner, so did I. Offering marketing services for small business owners, we also offered team building and training services to Fortune 500 firms.
Neither segment was large enough to stand alone, so I spent my time split between both. When someone asked me what I did, I was never quite sure how to respond and often said too much.
Networking associates overloaded with T.M.I. (Too Much Information) rarely had a good referral for me. How could they? If I didn't know what I did or who I wanted to meet, it was unrealistic to expect others to be able to help me. A drastic change was required!
Narrow Your Focus and Create a Plan
And so I made a decision to narrow my focus, targeting small business owners exclusively. This was the segment which had been most productive and I believed if I created an action plan to support the change I would see improved results. I began by evaluating every element of my marketing plan, eliminating elements which no longer fit the overall direction of the business.
My Goal was to become well known and respected in a smaller circle. I wanted to be the go-to person for small business marketing in Indianapolis.
* I gave up chasing "corporate gigs" and I concentrated on small businesses.
1. I pulled 650 prospects from my database which did not fit my core target. I turned the contacts over to a competitor. (There was no changing direction after that!)
2. I discontinued my corporate eNews and gave up memberships in organizations which were not relevant for my core small business customer.
* Next I redirected my time and resources to attract the attention of small business owners,
1. Networking venues and groups were selected because they would allow me to spend more time with small business owners.
2. To be seen as a thought leader, I knew I needed to be more then just a member. Since I was being more selective in the events I was attending it was easier to commit to taking on a leadership roles in organizations which served this market.
3. I became a preferred resource for the SBDC and the SBA, offering free or low cost workshops on topics which were relevant to small business owners.
4. I reviewed the articles I had written, and began submitting them to on-line and off line publications with a readership which was comprised primarily of small business owners. I focused on local business publications first.
5. And finally, I revised all our marketing material to support this new focus. We added information and phrases which are relevant to my core customer/
The Result
In two years I have moved from being self-employed to running a business with a team of four employees and two interns. Roundpeg is known for our small business expertise. Many of our current clients and referral sources have no idea we ever worked with larger firms, and they never need to know. Tightening our focus has allowed us to concentrate and grow!
Want to Double Your Sales Cut Your Market in Half - To learn more about this author, visit Lorriane Ball's Website.
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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