On the very day that we were all starting our third quarter, I read a post over at Inside Sales Experts. I thought it ironic that the fourth quarter was knocking on the very first day of the third quarter. The article was all about how to make "them" successful. It was a great article, but what about you? You, the solopreneur. You the chief cook and bottle washer. You're having a hard enough time keeping your head above water, let alone thinking about using the 4th quarter to set up a good 2010. Let's get through July first! So, I've been letting the idea mellow. What can you do? Then it hit me. While I've been letting it mellow....While I've been dealing with the everyday....While I've been trying to get through July, half of the month passed by. One sixth of the quarter is gone. Before I know it, fourth quarter will be here and I'll still be trying to deal with the third quarter.

Sound familiar? I know.

Have you even thought about it? If nothing changes, how much will you EARN in 4Q09? Don't wish or hope. If nothing changes... So, if you could EARN $25,000 over and above that, not sell, EARN, bottom line, your money in your pocket. A $25,000 raise for 4Q09 and set yourself up to earn $100K+ additional in 2010. So, would you make the necessary changes right now? Would you want someone to hold you accountable? Would you want to be debriefed at the end of the day? Would you want help strategizing upcoming calls?

Tick. Tick. Tick. Knock. Knock. Third Quarter's passing. Fourth Quarter's coming!

Same old Same old or shall we do something different? Want my help? Let's talk this week and find a way.

Dharmesh Shah posted "10 Things Most MBA Schools Won't Teach You About Startups". Enjoy!

Do you speak in your prospect's language? Do you use words that they use and understand? Hubspot's Website Grader will tell you whether you write at the college level or elementary school level (like my blog). Are you smart enough to communicate in such a way that more people understand? Are you humble enough to use your prospect's everyday words?

Do you use error or mistake? smart or intelligent? recession or economic downturn? sales or business development? trait or characteristic? marketing or sales? Are each of these pairs truly interchangable in all situations with all people?

Do you use abbreviations? I was recently playing cards and drinking with 7 others. A nurse (one of the seven) suggested (I don't remember why.) that an "MI was the best way to go." Most of the people at the table (college educated adults) didn't know that MI meant "myocardial infarction". Nor did they know that a myocarial infarction was a "heart attack". Do you use any abbreviations in your sales or networking activity? Are you sure that everybody understands them the same way you do? Going back to the mi example, myo-whatever doesn't even make the first page of Google. Speaking of misunderstanding abbreviations, check out the third link on the Google page. I thought "DNR" stood for "Do Not Resuscitate". (Couldn't that have meant, "Do Not Revive"?)

I hope that you found this article useful and interesting. It's my way of saying,

"Happy Birthday, Hubspot!"

I just read Catie's post about nonprofit faux pas. As you read her post, who did you identify with?

Did you identify with Catie because you're sick and tired of some bozo calling you up and asking for your money? (There are many great causes our there that deserve to be supported. They just don't know how to ask.)

Did you identify with the nonprofit? Huh? How could you possibly identify with the nonprofit? You're an entrepreneur with a great idea that will solve all the problems of the world. All you have to do is tell people about it and they'll give you their money and you'll be rich and famous. Then how come when you call people, they act like you're just another person asking them for money? How come you're not rich and famous? How come you're not profitable?

We are all in sales and most can't do it and don't know why. Politicians asking for votes, nonprofits saving the world, entrepreneurs bootstrapping their way one customer at a time, even social situations require sales expertise. Look up faux pas. Have you ever considered that what you think is "acceptable" in selling, may not be?

I talk to dozens of entrepreneurs every week. Most will never make it. They spend tons of money on marketing and product development. They hire salespeople themselves because they think that although they can't sell, they can recognize who can. They blog, tweet, trade LI recommendations and develop a fan base on Facebook. They eventually run out of money, energy and enthusiasm and get a job.

Thank you for a great sales lesson, Catie!

So, Pete Caputa wrote another great post titled 6 Marketing Mistakes that CEOs Make.

I commented that I thought that the list could be adapted to other industries.

Rebekah Donaldson asked for an example.

First thing I did was hit Google. (1 - 10 of about 2,150,000 for six mistakes. (0.43 seconds)

But, let's give this a shot for my prospects.

#6. "Me too." When was the last time you walked into a retail outlet and didn't hear, "May I help you?" When you try to close a sale, do you ever resort to the "Ben Franklin" close? When you follow up with a repeat customer, do you ever say, "Just checking in." Prospects sit in their offices saying, "Here comes one." every time a salesperson walks into the building because they all look the same, sound the same, make the same promises and use the same moves.

#5. "Uncoordinated Specialists" Do your salespeople know what happened in their industry yesterday? How many times has a prospect asked them about the overnight news and your salesperson was surprised? Do you think that the way you start an opportunity has anything to do with the way it's going to close? Are your telemarketers coordinated with your inside people coordinated with your field sales people coordinated with your service people? Who's driving?

#4. "Push (Not Inbound) Marketing" Can your salespeople get invited in? Do they have to be pushy, intrusive, and unwelcome? Do customers cancel because they bought just to get rid of your salespeople?......You're doing it wrong!

#3. "Awareness - The Red Herring" When your salespeople hear a prospect say, "Hey, I've heard good things about what you guys are doing over there." Do they pull out their order pad? Should they?

#2. "Hiring Specialists Too Soon" There are a guzillion sales trainers out there ready to take your money and teach your salespeople how to bond better, prospect better, close better, handle objections better, or write better proposals. What if it's not what their doing? What if it's the process, the manager, conflicting strategies, compensation, systems, processes, or something not at all sales related? Won't the trainers be fixing the wrong thing?

#1. "Tactical Tunnel Vision" One of my most valued colleagues reminds me frequently that if all you've got is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Prospects, customers, clients expect unique solutions, applications and approaches to their issues. They don't want to have to fit their issue to the way you sell it. You have to sell it the way they want it. Be ready and responsive.

So, Pete and Rebekah, this is how I'd twist the list to fit my world and my prospects. Imagine what this list would look like if it were done by a plumber, or some other home remodeler? How about a hotel manager, restaurant owner or other hospitality people? Think about what camera people, insurance people, fitness people, or any other expert might put on their list. Anyone want their List of Six Biggest Mistakes published as a guest post on one of our blogs? What do you think?

Our digital camera stopped working when it hit the floor. Our family vacation, including grandchildren, starts tomorrow. We need a camera. So, I get myself over to Best Buy in Marlborough, MA. (Are there other choices?)

So, I walk in the front door. The place is huge! Light, but not blindingly bright. I search the ceiling for a digital camera sign and off I go. Archie is standing at ease at the end of an aisle. I asked him if he was guarding the cameras. He asked something like, "digital, SLR or movie?". When I answered, "digital". He said follow me.

He learned that I was mostly into small and simple. He did show me a new feature called the auto scene selector. (I think.) He explained the differences in batteries and why it mattered to me. He asked questions and answered mine regarding battery life, storage cards, different models, and manufacturers. He explained the extended warranty options. I bought my camera, shook his hand, asked him for his email address so I could send him this post. He asked me to go to betsbuycares.com and rate my experience in the store that day. I told him that I would and left for home.

During my visit, he told me that he was recently returned from Loudon, NH where he watched the Best Buy Dodge race. Many of the examples and stories that he used with me were from that day. It was like I was talking to a friend about how great his camera was that weekend, what he was able to do and some of the great shots that he got. However, for some reason, Archie was very sensitive to the fact that I wasn't as savvy as he was about cameras, so he only told me stories that were appropriate to the question that I had asked. Very interesting. Usually when I talk to these guys, they show their knowledge and experience and lose or intimidate me.

If I needed to buy something at another Best Buy department, I would probably return to Archie and ask, "Hey, Archie, thanks for the help with my camera. Who knows as much about ______ as you know about cameras?" and I'd look for him to introduce me to that person.

Thanks, Archie.

Last week, I saw a friend out and about. I noticed that she was wearing a surgical boot-thingy on one of her feet. She told me that she had a bunion removed. Stupid me. I appeared interested. So, she told me how they do it. First, they cut the bunion off of her toe. Then they broke her toe and reset it so it was straight. Then they cast it and she goes through the healing process.

Strong stomachs can click here.

First they cut her. Then they broke her toe. Can you imagine if she didn't have anesthesia? She slept through the whole thing. She was probably sore the next day. The first few steps were probably a little awkward, but after a few weeks, no pain, walking straighter, better than ever.

So, I was thinking. When we work with a company, we're typically hired by the CEO. Some CEO's feel for their employees when we start to make changes that hurt. Cutting out the bad habits, changing processes, breaking up the routine. Employees resist change. They're comfortable with the status quo. They push back and whine. When we don't back down, they turn to the CEO. First they look for sympathy. Then they look betrayed and threaten to quit. It's often painful for the CEO not to step in and protect or comfort their employee(s). Especially when the employee being corrected is a long time employee or even a family member.

But what if the we gave the CEO a good dose of anesthesia? Put them to sleep. They don't have any of the pain. We don't have to worry about the CEO backing down and not supporting the changes. Eventually, we wake them up when we're done. They've got a new and improved sales force and they didn't have to feel the pain.

HMMMM!

In case you don't know Dan Tyre, I've heard him described as a machine. I've been told that he's the first one on the phone and the last one off the phone and his last call is as energetic as the first. This is a paraphrased email from him today. "I've offered my rolodex (look it up) to hundreds of folks to ask for intros and you are one of 10 who have taken me up on it. One of my customers has generated 100 leads from it."

10 out of hundreds....Come on people. You have to show up!

Pete Caputa has a great conversation happening over at Hubspot. I got involved. Subscribed to the comments. Read Barbara's comment. Checked out her blog. Commented there. She quoted me. Guess who's gonna get a call. Tim Patterson made a very thoughtful comment. I checked out his blog. Just in time for me to pass it out to all of the attendees at our seminar tomorrow. Bob Poole says, "I Dare You." and started following me on Twitter. OK, so I'll call him, too.

You can find people to talk to anywhere. Be open. Take a chance. They'd probably love to here from you. (They're probably trying to avoid making cold calls, too.)

Finally, is anybody else wondering how many referrals Jason gave?

Thanks, again, Pete!

If you listened to my interview on Meet the Sales Experts, you heard me say that I dabbled in sales as a teenager, but my career in sales actually started in 1973. Yesterday, I was listening to Mike Volpe make a point about Engagement Marketing and I started thinking about some of the differences between selling in 1973 and selling in 2009.

We used to work door to door. I remember one day starting at #1, knocking on every door until the person at #183 let me in. It was one of the easiest sales in my life, but it was hard getting through all those doors.

I've already told the story of starting my business. 30 cold calls from a telephone directory every weekday morning for months.

Nowadays, companies are doing lead generation for their salespeople. We do social networking and inbound marketing. We talk about providing content to engage.

We also have very active chambers of commerce. There's something to do every morning and evening. There are so many BNI and other referral group meetings that you could visit one every day for months without visiting the same one twice.

So, I was thinking. "Is it easier today than it was back then?" I'll tell you that door to door and cold calls are a tough way to go, but once you got through was it easier? Today, it seems like it might be less painful to get in front of a prospect, but once you get there, "Is it more difficult to do business?" Can you handled an informed prospect? Can you handle a prospect that has options?