Some people think that something else is oldest profession, that (profession) is really just a subset of sales. As a business owner, you're in sales whether you like it or not. All of us are in sales. We sell to our customers, spouses, children and even ourselves.  If you're not sure you have the personality to succeed in selling, consider these 12 ideas to create a truly great sales mindset. 

Turn On Your Marketing Charm

Whether you choose to do your marketing online or offline, one thing does not change. The simple realization is that no single marketing strategy will be as effective as a combination of two or more marketing programs. This does not mean it is necessary for you to implement every known marketing strategy to promote your business, but rather it implies that it is worthwhile to market from a few different perspectives to help you achieve your business related goals. Let’s examine the importance of combining email marketing with other types of marketing to create a successful multi-tiered marketing strategy Managing more than one marketing strategy at once can be easily handled using a well thought out plan.

If You’re In Sales…

If you’re in sales, you’re in customer service. If you’re in customer service, you’re in sales. These two roles are so linked the lines are constantly blurred. Why then do we see the rise of mediocrity with reminders that it looks like neither one cares to make a difference in how they perform.

We have grown accustomed to goods and services that receive a barely passable grade. When the server at the diner, chews gum like a cow chewing a cud. Or the taxi driver, who never acknowledges you as a paying customer and continues to talk on his cell phone. So how much better do you need to be to separate you or your company from the rest of the pack?

Marketing and Sales: What is the difference?

Marketing and sales are one of the most important components of a business’s survival in the market. While both are dependent on each other many people confuse marketing with sales and vice-versa which is a big mistake. Marketing involves designing a product according to the needs of the market and customers, promoting the product through advertising etc. and setting up a competitive price for the product. Marketing is a platform which drives sales. While on the other hand the sales process is what you do to successfully sell a product and close a contract. Sales and marketing together is a part of selling and one cannot do without the other. The success of a business is critical to the success of these two important activities.

Redefining Print as we [use to] know it

It’s no secret the Printing Industry has undergone major changes over the past decade, however many printing companies have remained unchanged except for the occasional printer that thinks differently in the way they conduct business. Our industry is in a crisis. This crisis is a powerful motivator for change. Change is inevitable; in fact it’s going to happen based on technology, economy, invention and the necessity to survive. The owner who has embraced change and won’t be satisfied with the status quo has thrived in this chaos.

Printers are craftsman, but that needs to be extended in order to revive the industry. It’s time for printers to reinvent what they do and how they sell to their customers. Print is not just paper. The services that printers offer should be extended beyond the old paradigm of delivering ink on paper. Many clients need additional services that printers can provide, such as web design and maintenance. Social Media page design for clients who are intimidated by Facebook, or Twitter, but who need a Social Media presence for their business can be part of your product offering.

4 Ways - You can get your Opt In Subscribers to trust you quickly

While the rest of the world has developed many barriers and protections to keep their e-mail accounts spam-free, there are also those that subscribe to mails that promote their products, services and their websites. This is mainly because these subscribers want to know more about what these sites are offering and how it can be beneficial for them. They expect to get be kept posted on what they are interested in and what is new in the market or field they have chosen.

Businesses would be so lucky to have these kinds of customers; the basic element needed to get these types of people is trust. When your customers trust you they will reward you with their loyalty. Many internet users have gone to great lengths in protecting their email accounts from spam mail. Some free-mail internet providers and internet service providers offer spam protection while there are also some internet based companies that screen your mails for you.

Social Media – Is it right for my company?

The first step when it comes to planning an effective social media strategy is to answer some questions. Should you be on Facebook? What about Twitter? Is LinkedIn right for our business? What about blogging? What about content management?

These are all great questions. They can’t be answered effectively until you’ve gone through the process of planning and research to find out what social media can do for you or your business. Your presence on social media will be more successful if you take some time to answer these following questions.

I Need Your Lowest Price 

In the race to secure new business we hear this refrain from every customer – I need your lowest price. 

The government requires bidders submit their lowest price to win their business, then pay twice as much, or more, when they want it to work the way the RFP was written. 

Create Your Own Recovery Plan

If you’re a printer and you’re not printing you’d better be marketing. Many printers have run for cover in these current economic times. Perhaps you should turn your knowledge into a recovery campaign for your business.

Many printers are feeling the pinch due to tightened spending with print budgets, but opportunities are out there and plentiful if you’re willing and able to take advantage of them.

Culture? We don’t need no stinking culture!

This is the title of a chapter from my good friend Pat Taylor’s new book Sales Savvy – Self-Help for Small Business. In it he talks about how every company has a culture whether they recognize it or not and how that culture is infused into every employee who works for the company.

In Search of Value Added Services

In today’s competitive marketplace sales people require greater tools and skills than ever before when working with current and potential customers. We’ve all heard the phrase “value add” but what does it mean and how can we use it when providing customers with the right products.

Are you MAD – Making a Difference

A sale is defined as a transaction taking place between a seller and a buyer, but is it just the salesperson doing the selling? Within every organization, large and small, everyone has the responsibility to sell to the client. There has always been a strong resistance of other than front-line salespeople to get involved in the sale. Technicians look at the sales process akin to having a tooth pulled without Novocain, or placing themselves directly in front of a firing squad.

The Winds of Change

Two weeks ago the East Coast of the US was hit with Hurricane Irene, the first hurricane to make landfall in NJ since 1903. The weather services told us days ahead to be prepared. There are many similarities between Hurricane Irene and today’s state of the printing industry.

We knew change was coming, everyone told us it was coming. Vendors and industry experts encouraged it with technologies that made for faster production, direct to plate (CTP) systems, better presses and of course the internet. They promised many things, and many things have been blamed for punishing the print industry. No one is to blame but us, we did it to ourselves by being unprepared.