My business is built on referrals. That's pretty much the only way clients find me. I have a website, and this blog, but both serve more to build credibility than they do to attract new clients. Word of mouth is it for me. And I am convinced that the way to build that word of mouth is by helping others - my referral sources - build their businesses.
That's why I don't need a referral fee. In fact, a fee would be deter me from giving referrals to you. Here's why.
Just a quick link to a recent post by Paul Chaney on Five Ways to Maximize Your Marketing Dollar Via the Web. I heard Paul speak on this topic last Thursday and loved the simplicity of his approach. Great stuff here for any business in 2009.
You have heard that referral marketing – networking – is the most powerful way for entrepreneurs and small business owners – like you – to build business. But you just can’t bear the thought of all those meetings, all those strangers, all those phone calls.
Join us for a six-week teleseminar with Kent Blumberg and learn the secrets of networking for the shy and the not-so-shy. Learn why you might want to become a Comfortable Networker. Re-frame the goal of networking from Get to Give. Gain five key networking skills, learn how to bring your strengths to the party, practice spotting and using personality styles, and make it all happen in real life. Try out your skills in a safe class environment, and then put them to work out in the world. Turn your fear into Excitement about networking. Learn to Initiate encounters, rather than just respond. Move from “could do” to “am doing.”
Continue reading "Class: Networking for the shy and the not-so-shy" »
[Update: Corrected author name on Toastmasters blog at bottom of post.}
Looking to improve your public speaking skills? Need to learn how to think faster on your feet? Hoping for some leadership practice, too? Consider joining Toastmasters.
Continue reading "Join Toastmasters and hone your speaking and leadership skills" »
We all have a network of people who stand ready to help us, if only we will ask. We may not be in touch with most of them. We may not even realize how many folks are out there ready to lend a hand. But they are there.
How can you tend your network so it is more ready to help when you need it? When you need a hand, what are some keys to asking effectively? Once you get the help you need, how do you follow up?
Read on for tips on growing a lush network, and harvesting a bountiful crop of help from it.
Phil Gerbyshak asks "Which five people, alive or dead, would I have dinner with, and why?" He offered up his list in a post called "Dining with Greatness." I think it's a great question, so here's my list.
Continue reading "Five heroes with whom I'd love to have dinner" »
I spend Friday and Saturday with the most amazing group of people - 110 web publishers/conversation architects/bloggers. What a wonder it was to meet some of my writing heroes in person, and to learn from them.
I'll have more on who was there and what I learned, but here are some quick links about the conference.
[Part 10 of a 12 part series exploring the concepts in 12: The Elements of Great Managing
[Updated 12Mar07, 1030 am CST - corrected the spelling of Friend in the title.]
This is the one that bugs most people. "I have a best friend at work." How can that have anything to do with business success? In fact, won't that get in the way of success?
Not from the work Gallup has done. In fact, the Gallup folks would long ago have deleted this question from their engagement surveys but for one thing - it predicts business results.
On page 150, Keshavanand Prabhu says, "I know that I'm not going to be left alone and I'm not going to be blamed if anything goes wrong, because I will always have somebody to help me out, to take me out of the water if anything is wrong."
It's that level of trust that explains Gallup's findings that having a best friend at work can help drive business success.
Continue reading "The Elements of Great Managing: 10 - "I have a best friend at work"" »
Although most of us would like to avoid them, we all need to make cold-calls from time to time. Perhaps we are prospecting for new clients, or looking for a new job or consulting assignment, or seeking help with a problem, or helping raise funds for a charitable foundation. Regardless of the reason for the call, few of us love calling a stranger.
We're usually afraid. Afraid of rejection, or afraid of embarrassment, or afraid of annoying the other person. Good preparation can help reduce the fear and make a cold call successful.
Here are some things that work for me - and for great sales folks - in cold calls.
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