One of the best practices I try to utilize is to be introducing good people to other good people all the time.  Just recently, I was prospecting a CEO of a particular company – let’s call him CEO Joe.  In our conversations, I realized there was another CEO with whom I was connected – let’s call him CEO Moe – of a similar sized company (each organization did between $40 and $50 million in annual revenue) that would make a great introduction for CEO Joe.  A week or so after facilitating that introduction, CEO Moe called me to let me know his company was going to start doing business with CEO Joe’s company; he was so thankful for the introduction that he called me a “rock star” (true story).  Armed with that information, I called CEO Joe to ask him how his conversation with CEO Moe went.  I knew full well that the introduction was a fruitful one, so this was just my legitimate reason for calling, as I knew without a doubt that CEO Joe would take my call – I’d just gotten him a new piece of business.  Remember – the best way to get a referral or an introduction is to first give a referral or introduction.  So Always Be Introducing.                   - Lisa Peskin

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When I know I’m going into an area – say, I’m schlepping into the city – I always make sure to take a look at who else I can see when I’m in that area, be it a prospect, an existing client, or even a strategic alliance of mine who works in the area.  If I’m travelling more than 30 minutes, I make sure to schedule at least two, and preferably three appointments in that area.  Otherwise, it’s not worth my time to make the trip.  I like to call this tactic “Clustering My Tasks.”

Clustering tasks is a way to get a lot done in a short amount of time.  I have a niece with Down’s Syndrome who used to stuff envelopes for the sales associates when I was at ADP.  No one taught her the best technique for stuffing envelopes, they merely told her to get the papers folded and stuffed into the envelopes, and to get the envelopes sealed and out the door.  But she ultimately figured out that, in order to get the most done in the shortest amount of time, she should fold a bunch of papers at one time, then stuff those folded papers into envelopes, and finally seal those envelopes.  She was clustering her tasks.

In addition to clustering my tasks, I’m picky about my tasks, and picky about what types of meetings I’ll have with different people.  As such, I developed a system for what I do with cards that I gather at speaking engagements and networking events.  I take notes on the cards indicating where and when I met the person, and what we discussed – to ensure accuracy, this obviously needs to be done shortly after an event, or a lot of that information will have vanished from your head.  I then use a simple coding system.  I put a number 1 on cards of folks that I want my assistant to simply put in our database and get connected through LinkedIn.  I put a number 2 on cards of folks who, in addition to getting connected via LinkedIn with, I want to have a phone conversation.  I put a 3 on the cards of people with whom I want a face-to-face meeting, whether that be breakfast, a coffee or a lunch meeting.  This allows me to be efficient and effective with my time.  When I first started networking, I would meet with anyone and everyone; I wasted a lot of time.  Implementing this system has really helped me grow my business.

A colleague of mine has added a wrinkle to this system that I think is really innovative and clever.  She likes to set up what she calls “Tele-Coffees.”  It cuts down on her travel time – and cuts down her expenses, as she’s not always picking up the tab.  Coffee may seem relatively inexpensive, but all of those coffee tabs can add up to a big number.  My system works great for me; my colleague’s “Tele-Coffees” help her be more efficient, and save her money on her bottom line.  So the point is not necessarily to implement my system, but to make sure you have some type of system in place.  Have fun with it and make it your own. You’ll enjoy what you’re doing, and you’ll earn more business doing it. 

If you would like a 30 minute complimentary consultation on your sales challenges email Lisa!

LinkedIn is one of the most powerful marketing tools available to us today. Most marketing professionals are not leveraging LinkedIn’s true power to get your message infront of people they didn’t even know they didn’t know.  The key is that your blog lives on your website and at the bottom of the blog there is a call to action such as to learn more, to join our newsletter, for a free consultation or register here links.  If you have a solid blog and you are looking to drive targeted traffic to your website, try these 3 tips:

1. Join the maximum of 50 groups in LinkedIn- and make sure they are groups where your prospects are hanging out -NOT your competition. Many times we join industry related groups – but they are not our prospects.

2. The headline or title of your blog needs to attract your target market. In fact, if you use the title of your prospect in the blog title they are much more likely to click through it. 

3. There are 2 categories of connections that we can send direct messages to, your 1st connections and shared groups members. This is a great opportunity to get your blog in front of your targeted  audience. When in a LinkedIn group – click on members and put the title of your prospect in the search box in the top left corner – and search. You now have a list of your ideal prospects that you are not currently connected to that you can share your blog with. 

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Back in my days as VP of Sales, I used to say I could spend the entire day, every day, engaged in mail management.  Every day I would get upwards of 30 voice mails, more than 50 emails, and a stack of paper that was responsible for the death of a small forest.  But I quickly learned that spending too much time going through all of this “mail,” and reacting to events and tasks triggered by it, was not a very productive use of my time.  My main job was to help my managers and sales associates to be as successful as possible.  By spending my days consumed in mail management, I was busy, but I wasn’t being very productive.

 The way I managed to be successful was to adopt the doctrine of SEDO – simplify, eliminate, delegate and outsource.  There are certain tasks that we over complicate, making more work for ourselves.  We need to find the simplest and most efficient way to accomplish certain job functions.  We also need to eliminate or delegate certain tasks.  So many of us are creatures of habit, that we continue to do things that are either ineffective, or no longer part of our job description, just because we’ve always done them.  When I became a VP of Sales, I was certainly guilty of this at first, but I identified certain tasks to eliminate from my daily activities, and delegated others that needed to get done, but weren’t the best use of my time.  Finally, when appropriate, you need to outsource certain functions.  This is especially true for small business owners and one-man shops.  There is only so much of us to go around, so we need to focus on the tasks that will help us grow our business, and hire competent third parties to do the rest.

 These same rules apply to sales associates and non-selling professionals who are responsible for developing new business – the most important aspect of your job is filling the pipeline with good, qualified prospects.  Any time spent not identifying or securing opportunities and appointments is time wasted.  Unless you’re in front of clients or prospects, or trying to get in front of them, you are not focusing on your top priority.  When you find you’re engaging in this type of self-destructive activity, just remember SEDO – simplify, eliminate, delegate and outsource.             – Lisa Peskin

If you would like a 30 minute complimentary consultation on your sales challenges email Lisa!

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