-Charles Dickens

The Christmas weekend is here and I am gearing up for my annual life lesson from actor Jimmy Stewart in the movie “It’s a Wonderful Life.” In the movie, George Bailey (aka Jimmy Stewart)  spends his entire life doing selfless things for others. From saving his younger brother from drowning, to giving away all his cash to save the family business, George created a blessed life for many…including himself. But George, like all of us, ran into some trouble that made him doubt all the good decisions he made in his life. He let the bad overshadow the good. In the movie, he had the chance to see what life would be like without him, and it was that “viewing” that made him realize how special he was.

Take a minute right now and close your eyes and think of three amazing things you did in ’11. Then think of how many people you touched while doing those things. Then think of how many people they touched. Once you fully understand the power you have to change the world you can then understand how much positive impact you have on your company, sales territory, customers and everybody you meet. You, my friend, are a blessing.

On behalf of the Sullivan kids (and Mom and Dad), we want to thank you for tuning in each week for the PRECISE Selling weekly tips. God bless you and your family this Holiday Season!

President of Kansas City-based PRECISE Selling, Brian delivers seminars and internet training programs on sales, customer service, leadership and presentation skills to companies of all sizes.  He also hosts the radio talk show Entrepreneurial Moments, a show dedicated to personal and business development. To find out more, visit him at www.preciseselling.com or email Brian at bsullivan@preciseselling.com.

Are you tired of leaving voicemails for prospects that don’t get returned? Well it’s official. You’re human! In fact, studies show that prospects only return between 5-10% of all voicemails left. So the first question may be, “Should I even leave a voicemail?” And the answer is, “Yes!” But your objective is to get that number up over 25%.

Let’s talk about why you should leave a voice mail. First, there are only three ways to be successful in sales.

1.    Make a ton of calls and leave a ton of voicemails
2.    Make sure your voicemail is a good one.
3.    Leave a ton of voicemails AND make them good ones.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, Option 3 is the best way to go. So let’s break it down.

1) Effort  and Activity- If you make more calls than your competition, and as a result, leave more voicemails, you will increase your chances of getting called back. (How’s that for deep thought?) Perhaps NHL legend Wayne Gretzky said it best when he said:  You will miss 100% of the shots you never take.

Even if your voicemail is less than spectacular, you still have almost a one in ten chance of getting it returned. So keep making calls!

2) Make ‘Em Good- Think about a recent voicemail message you left. If you were on the receiving end of it, would YOU return the call? Below are some tips that will make the prospect want to return your call.

• Do your research- Face it, a cold call doesn’t have to be cold. It’s only cold if you don’t do your homework. Do a quick Google search on the business. Also, head over to LinkedIn and do a search to see if you can find the prospect’s profile. They often will tell you everything you need to say to create the needed curiosity to draw them in. (Don’t believe me, go to LinkedIn right now and search for a prospect!)
• Don’t be a stiff!- What’s worse than getting a voicemail from a salesperson who sounds like they would rather be bathing in a tub of scissors than making this call. Sound like you are happy to be reaching out…because you truly believe you have something that can help them. The prospect can hear and feel the vibe you put off. Also, don’t sound like a corporate brochure. If you wouldn’t talk that way at a cocktail party, don’t talk that way on the phone. People buy from people they like, not corporate stiffs.
• Name and Number- Immediately give them your name and number.
  • “Hello Sue, my name is Brian Sullivan. My direct number is 913-530-8894.
• Credibility- Tell them who you are and what your company does.
  • “I am with Acme and we specialize in ________________ (Make this a BIG BENEFIT that you have done for other companies like theirs.)
• Reference Research-If they know that you actually cared enough to possibly understand their needs, they just might care what comes next.
  • “In researching your facility prior to calling you today I learned _____________.
• Make it Personal- This is where you state what may be in it for them only IF they call you back.
  • In working with another company like yours (if you have a well-known name, use it here), we were able to (state huge value) _____________.
• Curiosity Builder- The most important emotion you need to create in any voicemail is curiosity.
  • I have some ideas that I’d like to share with you regarding how you can possibly  _______________.
• The Gift- If you have nothing they want or need, they won’t be calling you back. So offer something of value.
  • I also have a marketing analysis that’s been useful in departments like yours from (credible source, regulatory agency, etc) that you might find useful for your department. (Give some examples) It’s helped some folks save a ton of money…hours…etc.
• The Close- Your ultimate objective is to get them to call you back. So ask for it.
  • “While I can’t promise the same results we got with (another facility), I promise it will be worth your time. I can make myself available tomorrow morning between 9:00-11:00 or Wednesday afternoon between 1:30 and 3:00. (Notice how leaving specific times makes you seem busy. And I know you are!) In the meantime if you would like to learn more about us, stop by www.yourcompany.com. Let me know if either time works by calling me back at 913-530-8894. Or you can drop me an email at bsullivan@preciseselling.com. Thanks a ton, Sue!

Is there a guarantee that this voicemail will be returned? Nope! But the above structure, combined with your dynamic personality, will help open more doors than the average salesperson. And knowing it’s still a numbers game, you will find that leaving lots of great voicemails can still be one of your most effective tools to getting to the top and staying there. (Quick note…this structure works if they actually pick up the other end of the phone too!)

Sales Coach and Business Consultant Brian Sullivan, CSP is the author of the book, 20 Days to the TOP- How the PRECISE Selling Formula Will Make You Your Company’s Top Sales Performer in 20 Days or Less. Sign up for his free weekly motivation and sales tip by going to www.preciseselling.com. Fun stuff that will keep you focused on getting to the top!

A common mistake among new managers is to believe their job is to impart their wisdom on the people who report to them. After all, they were put in that position for a reason, right?  The problem with that philosophy is that it just doesn’t work. The more you tell people how to act the more they try to develop reasons why those actions are not in their best interest.

The experienced leader, on the other hand, realizes the best way to influence others is to get THEM to come to the leader’s conclusion. They do this by asking questions that allow their associate to think and express their opinions. By doing this, the leader gives the associate a chance to come to the same conclusion. But because it came out of their mind and mouth…THEY OWN IT!

So this week, while influencing others, don’t tell them what they need. Ask them questions and let them figure it out on their own.  You will create more loyalty, trust and in the end, more results.  Make it a habit to do it regularly, and you will have found the greatest weapon of the world’s most influential leaders.

For specific lessons on how to coach your team to top performance, listen to this week’s radio interview by going to www.preciseselling.com/Radioaccess.htm. You will learn 7 steps that will help you get results from your team.

It’s that time of year. The Christmas music has prematurely hit the
radio waves prompting us that it’s time to get ready for the big
holiday season. Which means you may need to begin thinking about
the 2010 Version of your Holiday Card. But here is an idea. Rather
than send your standard Seasons Greetings card immediately after
Thanksgiving, why not try to be the first one in the door of your
favorite customers…with a Thanksgiving Card.

By sending a Thanksgiving card, your early gift of gratitude for
your customer’s business will get more attention. So this week,
consider getting that early jump on your competition by expressing
gratitude for the trust your best customer’s have put in you. By
doing so, your thanks will be the first present your customer opens
this holiday season. And in return, you will remind them why you
are the person they are thankful to do business with.

For cool Thanksgiving card ideas, check out
https://www.sendoutcards.com/precise. And to learn more about Brian
Sullivan’s sales and leadership training programs, go to
www.preciseselling.com.

Half the time people think they are talking business, they are wasting time.
-Edgar Watson Howe

Think of the number of meetings you attend each week. What percentage would you say are a waste of time? If you are like many, that percentage is high. Because too many meetings take too long, get too little done and often only add to the confusion that existed before the meeting. Studies show that one key reason meetings are unproductive is because too much time is spent going over the same topics discussed in previous meetings.

So this week, follow these tips to a successful meeting (or sales call).

•    Have a clear objective. A good objective is what you want the people in that room to do as a result of you being there. In other words, it’s not about what you do, it’s about what THEY do as a result of you being in that meeting.

•    Simplify- Quit “re-visiting” old issues. Then pick no more than three action items that must take place as a result of the meeting. If you walk away with fifty things that need to be done, not all will get done. And the stuff you do get to will not be done as well as it should.

•    Shorten- Cut the time you set aside for meetings in half. The urgency to get things done will force you to trim the BS and help you accomplish more.

In short, be PRECISE. Which means exact, sharply defined or stated. And by following the lessons above, you will find you are about to get twice as much done in half the time.

The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.
-Albert Einstein

“I’ve been in this business for over 25 years. I have run out of things to learn,” was one of the saddest comments I have ever heard from one of my recent seminar attendees. Stop learning? Don’t we need to learn from our customers so we can effectively serve them? Don’t we need to learn what our competition is doing? Don’t we need to learn how our peers and employees feel about working with us? Don’t we need to learn how much we DON’T know? Once you lose your hunger to learn, you lose the ability to positively affect everybody around you. And who would choose that? And it’s not enough to be open to learning; you have to aggressively seek opportunities to learn.

For example, this week try these three questions with your current customers…and family members:

•    What am I doing I should keep doing?
•    What am I doing I should stop doing?
•    What aren’t I doing that I should begin doing?

Because customers, peers, employees and family members won’t often seek you out to tell you how you can be more valuable to them, you have to ask. And when you ask, you show a willingness to learn. And once you create a habit of LEARNING, you will create a habit that creates some of the world’s top performers.

“I Email, Twitter and Blog…therefore I am.”
-Brian Sullivan

What is the first thing you do in the morning when you get in the office…or kitchen for that matter? Do you kiss your computer even before you kiss your spouse, kids or dog? To prevent communications technology from ruling or even ruining your life, do the following.

1)    Schedule email time- When in the office, only check email at specific times…for instance 10:00 and 2:00 pm. Then put an autorespond message telling others your email schedule. Checking email every five minutes can divert you from focusing on your most important objectives that day. (Time Savings 45 minutes each day)

2)    Honor the Email Sabbath- Pick at least one day during the weekend to go email free. You will get several minutes back that can be spent on better things…like cleaning the garage! (Time Savings 1 hour)

3)    Don’t Bring Facebook or Cell Phone to Dinner. Instead, talk to the face in front of you, and then get reacquainted with that little book on the table called a menu.  (Time Savings- 2 Hours of Apologizing)

By following these tips, you can get back 7 or more hours each week, which accounts to 15 days a year! That’s two full weeks of bonus time that can be spent prospecting for new customers, reading that recommended business book, or just hanging out with your #1 customers…your family and friends.

“How’s it going,” were the words I casually used as I walked past a fellow vacationer in a hotel hallway. The bearded man responded reluctantly, “It’s going.” That was it! No “Fine, how are you?” …or “Great, how you doing?” “Oh well, perhaps the guy is just having a tough day,” I thought. The next day as I carried my 3-year old’s floatie to the pool, there he was. As I walked past him I tried again, “How’s it going?” Sure enough, he responded with the same apathetic grunt, “It’s going.”

As I walked away I wondered why he had chosen to make THAT his response to a simple greeting. Why did he CHOOSE to be cold and uninterested in a stranger who was showing interest in him? So how do YOU greet strangers and even co-workers when you pass them in the hall? Do you look down at your feet as if the answers to life’s problems are on your shoelaces, or do you make the first “warm” move? If you said the latter, congratulations!

So this week, pay attention to every casual encounter you have and be sure to deliver your best. Because with each warm greeting and smile you deliver, you increase your worth and value to your customers, organization and world. In other words, your “stock” value goes up. But perhaps even more importantly, you help others “stock” value go up as well. And don’t be surprised if the gift of good nature that you deliver is returned in the form of more knowledge, more money and more honor…whether you intended it to or not.

I would rather entertain and hope that people learned something than educate people and hope they were entertained.
-Walt Disney

The definition of entertainment is: an activity that is diverting and that holds the attention. So when delivering your product presentation, do something that diverts your prospect’s mind to keep your message interesting. If you are a team leader holding a meeting, do something entertaining to make your audience want to listen to your vision. Below is a list of some entertaining things you can do to spice up your delivery:

•    Smile and laugh more frequently. When your audience sees you loosening up, so too will they. And when their mouths are open with laughter, so too are their ears…and their wallets!
•    Tell a story that illuminates your message. As you paint the picture, their imagination brings them closer to your words. Stories are salespeople’s most effective yet most underused sales tool.
•    Use images, audio and even video to stir the senses. These can be used in email, voicemails, PowerPoints or any other place you make customer contact.

In short, have a BLAST when selling or presenting, by adding entertainment to every contact you make. Because the Sales Business can be just like Show Business. And there’s no business like it! So let YOUR Show begin!

“Proper grammar is power.”

-Dianna Booher
Author of Rules of Business Grammar
101 Fast and Easy Ways to Correct the Most Common Errors

R U Amazed at the affect email and texting has had on the way we use grammer and how we spell in our electronic communication. It ain’t right that you and me have been slackin’ off with our spellin’ and such in emails.

In fact, sentences with spelling and grammar errors like the one you just read are littering emails that we send everyday. For many, the speed of an email has become more important than the content and the grammatical correctness. So what’s the big deal with a few misspelled words and an occasional misuse of the English language, you ask?

Truth is, your prospects and peers will judge your ability to serve them by the words you use. Which means every email you send that looks like the neighbor’s first grade kid wrote it tells the recipient that accuracy is not important to you. It also says that you DON’T pay attention to detail. Now let me ask you something. Are accuracy and attention to detail important qualities in a salesperson, an operations manager, or a sales leader? Of course they are! So understand that every email you send is like a brochure that represents your ability to perform. So here are some email tips that will help you show others that you are PRECISE:

• Use Spell Check with every email
o It takes 20 seconds and will save you from looking unprofessional.

• Read your email back to yourself before pressing the send button.
o More than half the time you will make a correction.

• Make your point once, and be DONE with it.
o Use as few words as possible to convey your message. Not only will this minimize your chances of making a grammatical error, but will also help your message “stick.” (works with voicemail as well)

• Take 15 seconds to think about the OBJECTIVE of the email before you write it.
o Email should be a tool for ACTION. After the recipient reads your email, what do you want them to do? If the email isn’t getting them to do something, perhaps it isn’t necessary to send it.

So this week, let’s get back to English (and Action) class. And while it might not be necessary to start diagramming sentences, it could be time to be more PRECISE with one of our greatest sales and service weapons…our written word.

To listen to Brian discuss communicating with power with author Dianna Booher (www.booher.com) on his weekly radio show, go to www.preciseselling.com/Radio.htm. As president of PRECISE Selling, Brian Sullivan helps improve sales, customer service, negotiations, leadership, and presentation skills through seminars and internet training programs. He is also the author of the book, 20 Days to the Top-How the PRECISE Selling Formula Will Make You Your Company’s Top Sales Performer in 20 Days or Less. To learn more, go to www.preciseselling.com.