Key Takeaways

• Firmographic data includes critical attributes such as industry, size, and revenue to provide a comprehensive view of potential clients.
• It is instrumental in enhancing market segmentation, sales prioritization, and the formulation of business strategy.
• Integrating firmographic data with technographic and intent data unlocks fresh targeting opportunities for superior results.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. What Is Firmographic Data?
3. Key Components of Firmographic Data
4. Benefits of Using Firmographic Data
5. Collecting and Analyzing Firmographic Data
6. Integrating Firmographic Data with Other Data Types
7. Real-World Applications of Firmographic Data
8. Challenges in Using Firmographic Data
9. Best Practices for Leveraging Firmographic Data

In today’s data-driven business environment, success hinges on smart decision-making and effective targeting. Companies aiming to enhance their marketing and sales initiatives are turning to firmographic data for valuable insights. By examining descriptive attributes of potential clients, businesses can identify the most promising opportunities across industries, company sizes, and markets. Firmographic information enables organizations to move beyond surface-level targeting, facilitating precise segmentation and strategy development. When utilized effectively, it becomes a strategic asset, guiding leaders through competitive landscapes and rapidly shifting market conditions while maximizing efficiencies in outreach and engagement. Understanding how to leverage these insights is crucial. As marketplaces evolve and customer expectations rise, intelligently using firmographic data provides a competitive edge. With the right practices in place, organizations can streamline operations, prioritize high-value leads, and unlock significant growth potential. Integrating firmographic attributes with other forms of business intelligence further amplifies results. Combining data layers and refining segmentation approaches paves the way for higher conversion rates and sustainable success. For additional guidance on effective market segmentation strategies, resources such as Forbes’ insights on data-driven market segmentation can provide a deeper dive.

What Is Firmographic Data?

Firmographic data defines organizations through a set of descriptive statistics, similar to how demographic data characterizes individuals. This information includes industry classification, company size, annual revenue, geographic location, and ownership structure. Organizations use these insights for market segmentation and to tailor their go-to-market strategies, ensuring that resources focus on the highest-yield opportunities.

Key Components of Firmographic Data

The most impactful firmographic datasets typically feature several core elements:

• Industry Classification:

Pinpoints the specific sector in which a company operates, often using standardized codes.

• Company Size:

Measured by employee headcount or annual revenue, this factor helps organizations segment prospects based on resources and needs.

• Location:

Includes headquarters address and branches, assisting in geographically targeted outreach.

• Ownership Structure:

Indicates whether a company is public, private, part of a conglomerate, or a subsidiary.

• Growth Indicators:

Signals such as funding rounds, recent mergers, or acquisitions provide insight into the company’s trajectory and potential opportunities.

Benefits of Using Firmographic Data

Integrating firmographic data into business operations delivers distinct advantages, empowering organizations with actionable intelligence:

• Enhanced Market Segmentation:

Targeting becomes significantly more precise, reducing wasted efforts and maximizing return on investment.

• Improved Sales Prioritization:

Sales teams can identify high-potential leads and allocate resources accordingly.

• Strategic Business Planning:

Firmographic insights inform long-term plans, aligning company vision with real-world trends and opportunities.

Collecting and Analyzing Firmographic Data

Reliable firmographic data is foundational to effective business intelligence. Key steps for collecting and analyzing this information include:

• Utilizing Reliable Data Sources:

Relying on accurate, up-to-date, and reputable databases minimizes errors and ensures quality decision-making. Reputable sources often cross-check data points to validate them.

• Regular Data Maintenance:

Periodically updating information maintains accuracy as companies evolve and markets shift.

• Data Integration:

Unifying firmographic data with other business databases supports a holistic approach to segmentation and targeting.

Integrating Firmographic Data with Other Data Types

To unlock advanced targeting and prospect qualification, firms blend firmographic data with other valuable datasets:

• Technographic Data:

Insights into a company’s technology stack reveal its pain points and potential spending.

• Intent Data:

Behavioral signals that indicate when companies may be researching specific products or service helpful in prioritizing outreach.

• Demographic Data:

Adding information about key decision-makers within each company further sharpens targeting.

Real-World Applications of Firmographic Data

Many leading organizations use firmographic data to drive concrete business outcomes, such as:

• Personalized Marketing Campaigns:

Building relevant messages for industry-specific outreach increases engagement.

• Sales Strategy Optimization:

Teams gain clarity on which leads warrant a greater share of sales resources.

• Product Development:

Customized products are more easily developed by identifying unmet needs unique to targeted segments.

Challenges in Using Firmographic Data

Working with firmographic data is not without practical obstacles. Common challenges include:

• Data Accuracy:

Outdated or erroneous information can undermine results, making regular audits necessary.

• Data Integration:

Consolidating firmographic details with other business data can be complex, requiring well-defined processes and robust systems.

• Privacy Concerns:

Companies must remain vigilant about compliance with data protection regulations when collecting and using sensitive organizational information.

Best Practices

By implementing the following best practices, organizations ensure they make the most of their firmographic insights:

• Maintain Up-to-Date Records:

Continually refresh data to prevent inaccuracies from impacting business decisions.

• Leverage Multiple Sources:

Cross-referencing data improves its reliability and mitigates the risk of errors.

• Adhere to Compliance Standards:

Respecting privacy and regulatory requirements protects the company’s reputation and stakeholder trust.

A thoughtful approach to firmographic data positions businesses to respond to market changes with agility and confidence. By treating firmographic intelligence as a strategic resource, companies can set themselves apart, deepen engagement, and achieve sustainable growth.

The post Unlocking Business Insights: The Power of Firmographic Data appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

Small distribution businesses face a structural constraint. Growth requires more sales coverage, but hiring more field representatives increases costs, complexity, and management overhead. At some point, adding people stops being efficient.

The real challenge is not headcount. It is productivity per rep.

Modern distribution leaders understand that scaling field sales depends on systems, not staffing. The goal is to help each sales rep cover more accounts, make better decisions, and close more orders in less time.

This shift requires rethinking how field sales operates on a daily level.

Why Traditional Field Sales Models Stop Scaling

Field sales has long relied on personal relationships and manual workflows. Reps plan visits, check stock, take orders, and report back. These processes work at a small scale. They break under growth pressure.

The main limitations are predictable:

• reps spend too much time on planning and admin
• decisions rely on outdated or incomplete data
• territory coverage becomes inconsistent
• managers lack visibility into daily execution

As a result, revenue growth slows even when demand exists. Teams become reactive instead of proactive.

Scaling without hiring requires removing these inefficiencies.

Turning Field Sales Into a System, Not a Process

The most effective distributors treat field sales as a coordinated system. Each activity connects to data, workflows, and decision logic.

This transformation starts with digital infrastructure.

A practical example can be seen in solutions built around field sales software for distributors. These platforms unify route planning, order management, inventory visibility, and customer data into one system. The key advantage is operational clarity. Sales reps do not guess what to do next. The system guides their actions based on real-time data, customer priorities, and stock availability. This reduces wasted time and increases the number of productive interactions per day.

What Changes When Systems Replace Manual Work

When field sales becomes system-driven, daily operations improve immediately.

• routes are optimized automatically based on location and priority
• orders are created faster with suggested quantities
• inventory data updates in real time
• customer history is available before each visit

These changes increase the number of visits a rep can handle without reducing quality.

The Hidden Cost of Manual Coordination

Many small distributors underestimate how much time is lost in coordination.

Reps call managers to confirm prices. They check stock manually. They record orders after visits. Each step adds friction.

Individually, these delays seem small. Combined, they reduce productivity significantly.

Removing these steps can free several hours per week for each rep. That time translates directly into more customer interactions and higher revenue.

Increasing Coverage Without Expanding the Team

Scaling field sales depends on expanding coverage. The goal is to reach more customers consistently.

This does not require more people. It requires better planning and execution.

Smart Territory Management

Territories often evolve organically. Over time, they become inefficient. Some areas are over-served. Others are neglected.

Data-driven territory management solves this problem.

Systems can analyze customer density, order frequency, and revenue potential. Based on this data, territories can be rebalanced to ensure equal workload and maximum coverage.

This approach prevents gaps and reduces overlap.

Prioritizing High-Value Visits

Not all customer visits generate equal value.

High-performing distributors identify which accounts drive the most revenue and which have growth potential. Sales reps should focus on these accounts first.

This prioritization can be automated.

Systems rank customers based on:

• purchase history
• order frequency
• growth trends
• profitability

Reps then receive clear guidance on where to go and when.

Automating Decision-Making in the Field

Decision-making is one of the biggest bottlenecks in field sales.

Reps must decide what to sell, how much to order, and when to follow up. Without support, these decisions rely on experience alone.

Automation improves both speed and accuracy.

Order Recommendations Based on Data

Instead of building orders manually, reps can use system-generated suggestions.

These recommendations consider past orders, current stock levels, and demand patterns. The result is a more accurate order in less time.

This reduces stockouts and overstock situations.

Real-Time Inventory Visibility

Inventory is a critical factor in sales decisions.

If a rep does not know what is available, they risk selling unavailable products or missing opportunities.

Real-time inventory data eliminates this uncertainty. Reps can adjust orders instantly based on current stock.

This improves both service quality and operational efficiency.

Improving Sales Productivity Per Rep

The key metric for scaling without hiring is output per rep.

Productivity increases when reps spend more time selling and less time managing tasks.

Removing Administrative Work

Administrative tasks consume a large portion of a rep’s day.

These include:

• writing reports
• updating spreadsheets
• tracking orders manually
• coordinating with internal teams

Automation reduces or eliminates these tasks.

Reports can be generated automatically. Orders sync with the system instantly. Communication flows through integrated tools.

This shift allows reps to focus on revenue-generating activities.

Supporting Better Customer Conversations

Data improves not only efficiency but also conversation quality.

When reps have access to customer history, preferences, and past orders, they can make more relevant recommendations.

This increases trust and order value.

Aligning Sales With Operations

Field sales does not operate in isolation. It connects directly to inventory, logistics, and finance.

Misalignment between these functions creates inefficiencies.

For example, sales may push products that are out of stock. Logistics may not be prepared for demand spikes. Finance may lack visibility into order trends.

Integrated systems solve this problem.

Creating a Unified Data Flow

When all departments work with the same data, coordination improves.

Sales orders update inventory automatically. Inventory changes inform sales decisions. Logistics receives accurate demand forecasts.

This alignment reduces errors and improves service reliability.

Reducing Operational Bottlenecks

Bottlenecks often occur at handoff points.

Orders may be delayed because they are entered manually. Inventory updates may lag behind actual stock levels.

Automation removes these delays.

Information flows instantly across the system. Teams act on the same data in real time.

Building a Scalable Sales Model

Scaling without hiring requires a repeatable model.

This model should allow the business to grow without increasing complexity at the same rate.

Core Elements of a Scalable Field Sales Model

1. standardized workflows across all territories
2. centralized data accessible to all teams
3. automated processes for routine tasks
4. clear performance metrics for each rep

These elements create consistency. They also make performance easier to measure and improve.

Measuring What Matters

Scaling requires clear metrics.

Decision-makers should track:

• visits per rep per day
• average order value
• conversion rate per visit
• revenue per territory

These metrics reveal where improvements are needed.

They also help identify top performers and replicate their practices across the team.

The Strategic Advantage of Efficiency

Small distributors often believe they are at a disadvantage compared to larger competitors. In reality, they can be more agile.

With the right systems, a small team can outperform a larger one.

Efficiency becomes a competitive advantage.

Faster decisions, better data, and higher productivity allow small distributors to respond quickly to market changes.

They can serve customers more effectively without increasing costs.

Conclusion

Scaling field sales without hiring more reps is not only possible. It is necessary for sustainable growth.

The solution lies in systems, not staffing.

By digitizing workflows, automating decisions, and aligning operations, distributors can increase productivity per rep. They can expand coverage, improve service, and drive revenue growth.

For decision-makers, the path forward is clear. Evaluate current processes. Identify inefficiencies. Invest in tools that support real-time data and automation.

The companies that make this shift will scale efficiently. Those that rely on manual processes will face limits as they grow.

Field sales is evolving. The businesses that adapt will lead.

The post How Small Distributors Can Scale Field Sales Without Hiring More Reps appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

Introduction

Virtual presentations have become essential in just about every industry. But let’s be honest—talking to a screen can feel distant, even a bit strange. Without the instant feedback and energy of an in-person audience, it’s easy to wonder, “Is anyone actually paying attention?” Thankfully, with the right techniques, you can still connect, get your point across, and leave a lasting impression.

Here, we’ll explore some practical tips for delivering virtual presentations that resonate with your audience. Whether you’re a seasoned presenter or just starting, these insights can help you speak confidently and make that all-important connection. And if you’re looking to elevate your visuals, consider working with a PowerPoint presentation agency for a polished, professional slide deck.

Setting the Scene for Success

Choosing the Right Platform

Every virtual platform whether it’s Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Google Meet—has its quirks and features. Take a moment to familiarise yourself with the one you’ll be using. Explore the tools it offers, like polls, breakout rooms, or screen-sharing options. A quick test run can make all the difference in helping you feel comfortable and prepared.

Technical Preparation

Glitches happen. But you can keep them to a minimum with a bit of prep. Check your audio and video settings, make sure your internet connection is stable, and have all your visuals ready to go. A decent microphone can vastly improve sound quality, and good lighting—whether natural or from a ring light—can help you come across clearly.

Creating a Distraction-Free Environment

Choose a quiet, uncluttered space. A clean background and good lighting make a huge difference. If your room is a bit echoey, adding some soft furnishings or a rug can help improve sound quality. The fewer distractions, the easier it is for your audience to focus on what you’re saying.

Engaging with Body Language and Eye Contact

Camera Placement for Natural Eye Contact

Placing your camera at eye level gives the impression you’re looking directly at your audience. It may seem like a small detail, but it helps build a stronger connection than if you were looking down at the screen.

Using Gestures and Facial Expressions

Body language still counts in a virtual setting. Simple gestures or a friendly expression can add warmth to your presentation. Keep your hands visible to reinforce your points, and don’t hesitate to smile or nod occasionally it makes you feel more approachable.

Keeping Eye Contact with the Camera

This might feel unnatural at first, but focusing on the camera lens (not the screen) helps maintain “eye contact” with your audience. It makes them feel as if you’re addressing them directly, creating a more personal connection.

Voice and Tone Techniques for Conviction

Varying Your Tone

Using a single tone throughout can make even the best content sound flat. Vary your pitch, speed, and volume to keep things lively. Pauses can be powerful, too—giving listeners a moment to process key points can be just as impactful as the message itself.

Practicing and Warming Up

Warming up your voice before a presentation can improve clarity and reduce tension. Simple exercises like humming or gentle vocal stretches—can make a noticeable difference in how you sound.

Pacing and Strategic Pauses

Intentional pauses help your audience absorb important information. They also give your message a moment to settle, allowing you to avoid that rushed feeling and create more emphasis where it counts.

Maximising Audience Engagement

Interactive Tools

Keep your audience involved by using interactive elements like polls, quizzes, and Q&A sessions. These small breaks turn your presentation into more of a conversation, making it easier to keep everyone engaged.

Audience Callouts and Direct Questions

Calling on people by name or asking questions can help hold attention. For example, “Sarah, have you encountered this situation before?” or “Who else has faced this challenge?” This approach makes people feel seen and invites them to participate more actively.

Sharing Stories and Anecdotes

Stories and humour can go a long way in keeping things interesting. A quick story, a personal experience, or even a bit of humour can make your presentation more relatable and memorable.

Using Visual Aids Effectively

Designing Simple, Impactful Slides

Your slides should support your message without overwhelming it. Stick to clear headings, minimal text, and a cohesive colour scheme. Aim for clean, easy-to-follow slides that enhance your presentation, not distract from it.

Integrating Multimedia Thoughtfully

Using videos, infographics, or short demonstrations can help reinforce your points. But don’t go overboard—in virtual presentations, less is often more when it comes to visuals. Keep things simple for maximum impact.

Avoiding Overloaded Slides

Stick to one main idea per slide. A cluttered slide makes it harder for your audience to follow along and can dilute your message. Keep it focused, and your points will come across more clearly.

Handling Disruptions and Technical Glitches

Staying Calm and Collected

No matter how well-prepared you are, issues can still pop up. If they do, keep calm and address them openly. A simple, “Thanks for bearing with me while I sort this out” shows professionalism and reassures your audience.

Troubleshooting Basics

Keep some backup options handy, like a PDF version of your slides or a second device in case something goes wrong. Knowing you have a fallback plan can ease a lot of last-minute stress.

Transparency and Audience Patience

If you’re facing a more significant issue, be transparent. Acknowledge the problem, thank your audience for their patience, and keep things light. This honesty can actually strengthen your rapport with attendees.

Practising and Perfecting

Rehearsing with Feedback

Practice isn’t just about memorising your material; it’s about finding a comfortable flow. Present to a friend or colleague and note any sections that feel rough. Adjust as needed to smooth things out.

Recording and Reviewing

Recording a practice run can help you spot details you might miss otherwise, like pacing or eye focus. These small adjustments can make a big difference on presentation day.

Learning from Each Experience

Each presentation is a chance to improve. The more you present, the more natural it will feel and the more engaging you’ll become.

Wrapping Up Strongly

Memorable Takeaways

A quick recap of your main points helps cement your message in your audience’s mind. Summing up also brings your presentation to a close on a clear, confident note.

Inviting Action

End with a call-to-action, whether it’s inviting questions, connecting on social media, or providing further resources. Give your audience a way to continue engaging with you after the presentation.

A Genuine Thank You

Always thank your audience for their time and attention. It’s a simple gesture, but it leaves a lasting, positive impression.

Conclusion

Virtual presentations can feel challenging, but a few thoughtful techniques can make all the difference in how your audience receives your message. Use these tips as a foundation, and with each presentation, you’ll become more comfortable and effective. Before you know it, virtual presentations will feel just as engaging as being in the room.

The post Tips for Delivering Virtual Presentations That Connect and Engage appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

Selling Insurance Policies in America is a difficult task. For a country of over 333 million people, statistics show that 8.6% of people in America did not have any form of insurance throughout 2020. While this may not look like a big number, it accounts for approximately 28 million Americans who did not have any form of insurance during last year.

For any other insured person in the country, these numbers may not be important. However, if you are an insurance agent or broker, this may be good news for you as it signifies that there is a huge market for you in America.

If you have ever reached out to a prospect as an insurance agent and heard the dreadful “I will get back to you” response, this article will show all you need to know and do to convert it into a more favorable response.

Are you ready to follow up with your prospects and close more sales as an insurance agent? Here’s what you need to do.

Why do you need to follow up with prospects as an insurance agent?

Not many business owners like to follow up with their prospects. It may be because of the discomfort associated with consistently hitting up someone and talking about your business.

However, if you want to grow your insurance business, here are a couple of reasons why you need to follow up with your prospects.

1. Following up with a prospect allows you to build that relationship needed for them to purchase insurance policies from you.

2. Sometimes, your prospects may need some more time to think about their options and get back to you on what insurance policy they would love to purchase. If you don’t follow up with them, another insurance broker will close the sale.

When the prospect is eventually ready to buy the insurance policy, they will buy from the agent who was more consistent with follow-up.

Now that we have discussed these points, here’s how to effectively follow up with your prospects as an insurance agent.

How to follow up with prospects as an insurance agent

If you want to sell more insurance policies this month, here’s what you can do to convert those prospects into successful buyers.

1. Understand that there are so many ways to reach prospective customers today

All thanks to the internet and technological advancements, you don’t have to spend your entire day cooped up behind a desk, making endless calls. Now, prospects are just a chat away.

You may get across to them via email, social media DMs, calls, or even via teleconferencing apps like Zoom. The point is, there are many ways for you to reach prospects, and as a goal-oriented insurance agent, you should be utilizing these platforms to follow up on your leads as well.

Your follow-up tactics should depend on a few factors, especially the communication platform you have chosen to use.

2. Put your contact details out there

It is not enough to update your Facebook bio or website homepage to say that you are an insurance agent. How can prospects reach you?

If you are using a website as your primary lead generation platform, you should have a contact request form embedded into your website. This way, website visitors can fill in their relevant details, and you get those details fed into your comprehensive database.

If you are active on social media, please ensure that your contact details (like your email address and phone numbers) are there on your social handles. This way, the prospect can reach out to you whenever they want.

3. When a prospect calls or emails 

One thing your prospects don’t want is to be kept waiting. It affects almost every type of business as humans usually look for convenience and speed whenever they are about to transact with business owners.

By any chance, if you missed a prospect’s call or email, immediately return it. Consider every missed call you refuse to return a missed opportunity, one that any other insurance agent in America can take. You don’t want that, do you?

4. Schedule a follow-up call with them

If a prospect found their way to you (either your social media handle, email, or website), they may be deciding to purchase an insurance package but just need a little extra push to do so. A sure way to give them that push they need is by scheduling a call with them.

Calls give you the luxury of speaking with the prospect in real-time. When you are on the phone with someone, it is easier to get real-time feedback. Getting a favorable response on call is easier if you play your cards well.

So, at intervals, take a look at all your lead pools and extract the information of new prospects. Reach out to these leads via emails or instant messaging on platforms like WhatsApp and schedule follow-up calls with them. During these calls, keep in mind what you will discuss in the next point.

5. Spend more time talking about the prospect’s needs

You want to sell more insurance packages, but you can’t sell more if you don’t understand your prospects’ needs.

When you get on a follow-up call with a prospect, consciously ask them about what they think their liabilities are. Questions like “what insurance package do you want to purchase” and “how much is your budget” can not provide you with much information. You need to ask questions like, do you have funds for your family to use even if you are not there? Who would take care of your family if you stopped working today? With this information, you can speak about the needs of the prospect and close the sale.

Note that the follow-up call doesn’t have to be a phone call. You can do it via any platform that allows real-time communication between both parties. If you aren’t scared of videos, Zoom or Google Meet are great alternatives.

6. Sometimes, you will need to educate

The more you interact with leads, the more you will understand that some people have no clue about insurance policies and their implications. You will meet many naive customers in your journey as an insurance agent.

You will have to bring them up to speed on what you are offering. That is why the previous step was necessary.

During the sales call, some prospects may ask some ‘dumb’ questions. If you can handle them well, they may likely purchase any of the insurance packages from you.

7. Be consistent

No matter how hard you try, some prospects won’t purchase any of your insurance packages the first time you follow up. For this class of people, consistency is the key. You may need to call them over an extended period before closing that sale.

However, as a wise insurance agent, you must know when to back away from one prospect and channel your energies on others. This is because not everyone will end up purchasing insurance packages from you. Your time should be all-important.

Summary

Follow-up is a crucial aspect to grow your business as an insurance agent. Knowing how to impress your prospects and convert them into customers is vital if you want to hit your sales targets.

One thing to note is that speed is vital when following up with prospects as an insurance agent. Many people end up purchasing their insurance from available agents whenever they are ready. Hence, initiating follow-up conversations immediately after a prospect leaves their contact details is necessary.

To be successful with your insurance business, you need the perfect blend of speed and sales closing skills because 78% business goes to the first company that calls.

The post How to Effectively Follow Up with a Prospect and Close the Sale as an Insurance Agent appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

Women continue to make their mark in the business world. Data analysis reports there are 252 million female entrepreneurs in the world. The following is adapted from Don’t Settle for a Seat.

Women in the workforce hear it all the time: “You’re so emotional.” It’s a criticism levied at women (usually from men who are afraid to express their own feelings). The subtext is: “You’re too emotional to lead, to make levelheaded decisions, to be a grown-up.”

It is infantilizing, damaging, and worst of all, it aims at our core strength. Because our ability to feel, sense, and manage our emotions is actually our superpower.

Women have a stronger drive than men to connect emotionally with other people, and that has both biological and social roots. We have evolved for and been trained all our lives to connect emotionally — and that ability is an asset with real economic value.

It is what our realtor used to win our trust when my husband and I bought our house, for example, and it can be what you use to attract customers who are thrilled to work with you and pay you well for the value you add to their lives. To do that, you need to leverage your emotional intelligence in a cornerstone of entrepreneurial life: sales.

Specifically, you need to leverage your emotional intelligence within the new model of sales for which women are primed for success. In this article, I will share some tips on how to amplify your empathy and apply your innate emotional intelligence to sell more and forge lasting customer connections.

Emotional Intelligence and the Old and New Art of Sales

We are all living in a messy, in-between moment when the old way and the new way of doing sales coexist. In comparing the two, the one thing that sets them apart — emotional intelligence — becomes impossible to ignore.

When it is missing, salespeople tend to do whatever it takes, such as reaching out blindly to prospects using mass cold calls and other aggressive, impersonal tactics. They ignore or push past objections, stick to a script, and try to talk the other person into saying yes.

The new way, in contrast, puts emotional intelligence at the center of everything that happens in the sales process. As a seller, your primary aim is to understand the customer’s needs or problems, and you do that by listening — not just to respond, but to understand.

You get out of your own head and into the customers’ heads by paying attention not only to what they are saying, but also how they are saying it. Your focus, instead of being on expressing yourself, is on serving the other person, which is what women are socialized to do. This emotionally informed sales process works better and feels better for everyone.

Empathy Is Essential

Empathy, which is the ability to feel what someone else is feeling, is a crucial piece of emotional intelligence. It involves not only reading someone else’s emotions but also sharing them. To build and maintain your customers’ trust, it is essential that your customers see that you genuinely care about them.

Let’s look at my fitness coaching business as an example. My ideal customer was a woman who wanted to take control of her health and her body image but couldn’t do it alone. Before she found me on Instagram, she was feeling pretty crappy about her body. She probably experienced anxiety about her health, confusion about what to eat and how to exercise, and shame for not living up to her aspirations in these areas.

That is not the headspace of someone who’s ready to shell out serious money for high-end fitness coaching and dive into the program with unstoppable enthusiasm. To be ready to buy, she needed to feel convinced that her problem was solvable, excited that I had the right solution for her, and confident that with my help, she would be capable of producing the results she wanted. My job was to lead her down that path from anxiety and self-doubt to trust and self-empowerment — to show her that I empathized, and genuinely care.

The best news: As a woman, you already have an advantage. Research shows that women generally tend to demonstrate greater empathy than men.

How to Strengthen Your Empathy

OK, you’re thinking. I’m a woman, but sales still freak me out. What if my feeling-with-others tools are a little rusty? Intentional practice can strengthen your empathy and keep it top of mind. Incorporate these into your everyday life to amplify your empathy:

Talk to new people. Invite casual acquaintances out to lunch to get to know them better or strike up a conversation with that neighbor you always wave to but have never actually met.

Practice curiosity. In every conversation, make curiosity your highest priority. Go beyond the usual small talk with deeper questions that provoke more intimate, genuine dialogue. Follow that up with great listening.

Try out a different life. Get out of your comfort zone and try on a new outlook by doing things outside your normal routine, which can open your mind to the ways other people’s lives and views are different from yours. Start by traveling to a new place. Do something you’ve never done before, like playing a new sport. Read books about people who are unlike you.

If you do a few of these things every day, you’ll quickly notice your instinct for empathy becoming stronger.

Managing Your Emotions During the Sales Process

Empathy is just one piece of emotional intelligence you’ll need to master sales. Another is managing emotions. That’s the skill that will allow you to disconnect your ego from the result of the sale, and meet your customers where they are.

If you’re emotionally hung up on whether you’ll get a yes or a no, there’s no way you’ll be able to listen with empathy and adapt your response according to the customers’ needs. You’ll end up interpreting every objection, question, or refusal as a personal attack, and that can leave you feeling nervous, angry, or dejected. With those emotions in the room, you’d be amazed at how quickly the sales process can unravel.

There’s an easy perspective shift that solves this problem immediately: The sale isn’t about you at all — it’s about the customers. If you’re thinking too much about yourself, you’ll get stuck in your head when you really need to be in theirs. They need you to help them solve problems, so the more you focus on listening to them and showing them how your solutions will improve their problems, the easier it will be to take your ego out of the equation.

For my students who have trouble managing their emotions during sales conversations, I do recommend using practices like affirmations, mantras, and meditation to get in the right mindset. During the conversation, check in with yourself occasionally and ask who you’re paying attention to, yourself or the other person. If you apply these simple practices regularly, pretty soon you’ll approach every sales conversation with excitement and a sense of possibility.

Mirroring Your Customer

Once your ego is in check, you need to meet your customers where they are emotionally. Mismatched vibes are uncomfortable. Just imagine, if you were a woman on a mission ready to get the job done and the salesperson was the definition of Zen, would you think she was the right person to help you?

You want your customers to feel you’re on the same wavelength. So, mirror their emotional states and energy levels at the start of the sales conversations. This will make them more open to following as you guide them toward the emotional state you want them to be in.

That’s not to say if someone comes to you frustrated, you mirror that and spend the entire conversation feeding each other’s annoyance. Instead, show that you get the person’s frustration, then lead him/her toward relief by explaining how you can solve the irritating problem.

Paying Attention, Every Day

I hope you’ve realized that if you pay close attention to this crucial skillset, you can strengthen it just by going about your daily life. There is no need to set aside time to practice, meditate, or reflect.

Just keep doing what you do — working, studying, shopping, playing, socializing, and caring for others — but with a more conscious awareness of the emotions in and around you. Who’s feeling what? How can you tell? How can you make them feel better and strengthen their connection with you?

Cultivating your emotional intelligence is good for all your relationships, but pay special attention to how it affects business interactions. As a customer, when have you felt thrilled about a purchase? Underwhelmed? Now, whenever you buy something, notice those feelings and try to identify where they come from.

This deliberate practice and heightened awareness will strengthen your emotional intelligence, and soon you’ll feel like you can almost read your customers’ minds. You’ll empathize, mirror them, and create lasting connections that will serve you, your brand, and, most importantly, your customers, for the life of your business.

For more advice on using emotional intelligence to your advantage, you can find Don’t Settle for a Seat on Amazon.

The post Harnessing Your Emotional Intelligence as a Female Entrepreneur appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

In my learning and coaching company, I have been asked to teach selling lately. I love teaching sales. Why, you ask? “Is selling hard?” “But I do not like rejection!” “I do not want to bother someone…worse, I don’t want to ask for money!”

I hear that often in my work.

The reason I love selling is because it is such a skill-filled profession.

You must be good at researching and understanding the market, your client’s needs/wants, and the trends in business or in our socio-economic landscape. You must know about your product or service too!

In sales you must be able to communicate in a way that attracts clients to you. You must communicate your value or what will be some compelling end results for your customers.

Now, of course, good marketing should communicate to your ideal client and share your value and outcomes that your customers/prospects get from you as well.

You must be good at presenting ideas, asking for the sale, doing the work, serving the customer, and ensuring they are happy and feel taken care of on an ongoing basis.

These are real skills…but for this month’s learning, I want to share 4 other skills that I have been including in my learning programs, which are these 4 vital elements.

I call it the E-Q-S-P approach.

E- stands for Empathy. In this day and age of uncertainty, pain, loss and how many businesses have been rocked this year, you need to put yourself in your customer’s shoes. The late Dr. Stephen Covey wrote in his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, that we are to “seek to understand first, rather than being understood.”

Having an inquiring mind to check in to see where your client is at is so vital. People are emotional, weary, and challenged right now, so as much as you want to sell your stuff (product or service), check in first to see if your client even needs it.

Get to know your client first and see if the timing is right for them to utilize what you have. Empathy also means to be patient with your clients, so nurture the relationship along until such time that your client is ready to buy.

Also, be patient with yourself right now too. Sales cycles have changed and so has your customers’ budgets and truest needs. Sometimes, emotional support for your client and yourself is the type of “Empathy” you need.

The “Q” in the E-Q-S-P model stands for asking good questions. Your ability to ask questions will yield results. One is you will know where your customer is at with respect to what you are offering.

Then ask about future possibilities; ask to stay in touch in a way that is not too intensive.

Seek to find out what your customer needs, wants, and find common ground and opportunities to really serve them.

Position yourself as a trusted advisor for your clients. But ask good questions! Develop good questions to ask your customer.

There are 2 key places in the sales process to ask your clients questions, one is simply when you make that phone call or (prospecting call). If your client/prospect declines your offer on the call, ask politely to probe the “No” and be prepared to ask good questions so you can seek to serve them in the future.

The other place to ask questions is when you first meet. You want to search for need, challenges, budgets and goals that your customer has.

The “S” in the E-Q-S-P model is to position yourself as a “Solutions Provider”. Good consultative selling is about asking questions, but then to recommend workable solutions for your end users.

Finally, the “P” stands for 2 things… one is to have patience with yourself and those you serve. Your timelines may not be your client’s timeline, so be patient and keep playing for another day, when the timing and need match your solution, product and service.

The other “P” is about having passion. Even though we are in a challenging market environment, don’t lose your passion and excitement in sharing what you do for your customers and prospects. Passion sells, so get a buddy to help you get it back if it begins to wane.

This month, practice the E-Q-S-P approach to selling and let me know how it goes.

The post We Need New Skills to Develop New Business in This Market Environment appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

By Rachel Reynolds

What if you and your competitor down the street are competing for the attention of a potential client who is toggling back-and-forth between your websites, trying to decide who to call? You have excellent credentials, and so does your competitor. You’ve won some big legal cases, so have they.

What could be the one thing that tips the scales and causes the potential client to call you?

TESTIMONIALS!

There are few things more powerful than a satisfied client describing in their own words why your firm is fabulous and, above all, the best choice.

That’s because customers listen to other customers when it comes to evaluating a service provider. The power of client testimonials cannot be overstated! There’s nothing like an independent, third-party endorsement to convert a website visitor into a lead. Website content — even when it’s well-written and compelling — will always be made more powerful when it is accompanied by comments from enthusiastic, satisfied clients.

Whether they describe your firm culture, your service or your accomplishments, published comments from happy clients are often essential in attracting new clients to your firm and increasing word-of-mouth referrals.

A lot of law firm marketing can be expensive, but client testimonials are low hanging fruit. They cost no money — it only takes 5 minutes and 3 sentences to recommend your firm.

Marketing has evolved, moving away from “here’s a list of what you get” toward an emotional “let me tell you why I’m so satisfied.” Online marketing has become an open line of communication between you and the potential client, according to “Take It From Me” – Why Testimonials Are So Effective.

Strategic Factory, a Maryland marketing and branding firm, writes in the article:

“Instead of ‘taking your word’ for it that your product or service is going to impact their lives positively, it lets real customers hear from other real customers why the decision they’re about to make is a good one.” 

CLIENTS NO LONGER WANT TO BE “SOLD TO.” INSTEAD, THEY WANT TO BE REASSURED THAT THEY’RE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

Testimonials create a deeper, more emotional appeal for your branding. Strategic Factory goes on to offer these statistics:

• Regular use of client testimonials can help you generate 62% more revenue from every customer, every visit, according to one study.
• A whopping 92% of people say they read testimonials when considering a purchase.
• 88% of consumers say they trust reviews and testimonials just as much as personal recommendations from people they know, according to this same study.
• And 40% of consumers form an opinion by reading just one to three clients’ comments.

What Makes a Great Testimonial?

For law firms, there are certain elements that make a client testimonial powerful. The more of these that are included, the better:

1. A REALLY happy client.
2. A short 2-3 sentences.
3. Statements that are convincing and believable.
4. As many specifics as a client is willing to give including the outcome, a circumspect reference to the amount of the award (“sizable” or “very large”), the practice area involved and the quality of your client service.
5. Their full name, if possible, but even a first name and last initial is good.
6. A headshot (remind clients that a selfie with a smart phone is fine).
7. And if you’re really lucky — a client who is willing to provide a video review.

Testimonials can be sprinkled across your firm’s website with the most outstanding one appearing on your homepage. Others can appear on you practice area pages. If you’re fortunate enough to get 5-6 client testimonials, you can create a testimonials tab on your site with multiple happy clients that deliver a strong one-two punch.

Video testimonials are a little bit trickier and more costly because you need to hire a professional videographer, set up lighting and a tripod, and convince clients to get in their cars and drive somewhere for a shoot. But if you have the budget and cooperative clients, video testimonials are fantastic!

Otherwise, clients can simply write a 2 to 3 sentence testimonial in an email, attach a selfie headshot, and hit the send button. Or you can create a template or automated system that makes writing a testimonial nearly effortless. It’s that easy to secure a testimonial from a satisfied client.

Asking a Satisfied Client for a Testimonial

Strike while the iron is hot!

The best time to ask clients for a testimonial is when you hand them the award or settlement check and they are relieved and satisfied. Ask them in person if you can and then follow up a few days later with a phone call or email. Give them as many ways as possible to provide a testimonial including email, text, website form or even by phone with a staff member taking notes. If you need more ideas about asking clients for testimonials, our Gladiator professionals would be glad to help. Contact us at 888-683-3212.

Encourage clients to write only a few sentences, stressing that a longer paragraph or two is not necessary. A request for a shorter testimonial is good for a couple of reasons. First, you’re more likely to get it if the client thinks it will only take a minute or two to write rather than hours of their time. And second, website visitors don’t have the patience to read long narrative testimonials — they’ll only read a few sentences before deciding whether or not to make a phone call to your law firm. They are more likely to read several, if not all, of your testimonials if they can do so quickly.

Boast, a specialty marketing firm in Lansing, Michigan, offers examples of testimonial request emails that work and also lists 10 Tips To Request a Testimonial Fast and Easy. Here are the tips they recommend:

1. Don’t Wait
2. Solve Problems
3. Customize Your Testimonial Request
4. Make It Easy
5. Use Many Different Methods
6. Follow Up
7. Automate
8. Ask the Right Questions
9. Offer Incentives
10. Be Sincere

Boast also offers 9 downloadable email templates that do the heavy lifting and show you how to create personalized requests for client testimonials.

Let Happy Clients Convince Prospective Clients

Every law firm has limited marketing dollars and is always looking for cost-effective ways to attract new clients and increase their bottom line. Let satisfied clients help you do that!

Client testimonials on your website are a powerful tool that nudges readers to make that call and initiate contact with your firm. It only takes 5 minutes and 3 sentences to create a testimonial, and satisfied clients are often willing to do this for you. The best time to ask them is in person when you hand them a settlement check.

In today’s marketplace, customers rely on other customers to get the honest lowdown on which companies and firms provide the best services. Gone are the days when customers want to be “sold to.” Instead, clients are looking for third-party endorsements and feedback that convince them that they’re making the right choice.

You can place online testimonials on your website homepage and practice area pages to reinforce the credibility and trustworthiness of your brand.

So get out there! Ask happy clients to write testimonials on your behalf. Do this on a consistent, routine basis and you’ll have loads of testimonials to use in your marketing efforts!

The post Testimonials Can Convince a Potential Client to Make That Call appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

If you’re running a business, you are probably pretty familiar with the word “No”. No matter how great your service and products might be, rejection is one of those things that most entrepreneurs and business owners get on a regular basis. What’s even more interesting is that, the more successful your business gets, the more rejection and dislikes you also get.

As much as we like to hear positive affirmations all the time, there are successful entrepreneurs who believe that the word “No” is actually one of those necessary evils that is actually good for your business.

Not everyone agrees with this, but something happened recently to me that made me agree that “no” from customers is actually an essential component in running a successful business.

Someone had reached out to me recently. He sells insurance and he was very enthusiastic about helping me. He asked if we can schedule a time for him to take a look at how he can give me great home insurance. This is fantastic considering he was coming from a value-add perspective.

We started on the right foot. As our conversation progressed, though, I noticed he was talking about aspects of his offerings that I didn’t really care about. He spent a lot of time on them. Every now and then he stopped, looked up, and asked me things like, “Does this sound good to you?” or “Are you with me on this?”. And even though I wasn’t really feeling it, I said “Sure” or “Yes”, because I didn’t feel like he would necessarily listen if I had said “No”.

When it came for him to close the sale, I simply said “No, thanks”.

He looked at me like I was an alien who came from outer space. He stormed out and I never heard from him again.

I couldn’t blame him for his reaction. But I also couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if I had stopped him on his tracks earlier in the conversation and said “no” to some of his offerings. His fatal mistake was never really identifying my needs or wants. If he had just asked me better questions and found particular pain points that I cared about, he probably would’ve secured the account.

Except he didn’t.

This begs the question: are we constantly just looking for all the affirmations from ‘happy’ customers, and subconsciously ignoring what could be the most important feedback for our business?

Better yet, are we asking in a way that we uncover their real “No”, so that we can improve our business?

Feedback is King

It’s no secret that good market research can cost an arm and a leg. It’s one thing to send out a survey and read incoming feedback and put them in your file somewhere. It’s another thing when business owners are on the outbound constantly collecting market feedback. Not only is it hard work, it also takes extremely precious time away from running your business.

And yet, without good market feedback, your only measure of your performance is your sales—which indicates how well you’re doing now, but not necessarily how well you will be doing in a few months, or a few years’ time.

There are many contributing factors to future success, but we aren’t usually aware of problem areas that could become a real issue, unless our customers tell us. This is the reason why general managers of restaurants always go around the floor and ask things like, “How’s everything going for you?”. My answer to this is typically “great!” even if it’s not really an earth-shattering experience.

Good business owners would tastefully prod their customers with better questions that have a 1-2-punch structure:

1)  They’d briefly introduce themselves to us and then ask specific questions like “What about this program is to your liking?” This keeps them from falling into the trap of asking big overarching questions that doesn’t always reveal true feedback.

2)  Then they may close with yet another calibrated, yet specific question like, “How else could we have improved your dining experience?”

Asking the right question makes a big difference in getting specific, measurable, and actionable feedback.

No now is better than no later

Many of us who have spent some time with a future client knows how expensive it can get to only to be told no at the end. Once, I spent close to 100 hours on a client and the client told me that he couldn’t move forward. Just imagine who else I could’ve helped with my services during that time.

I really wished they had told me “no” sooner.

From that experience, I learned that there are multiple types of no.

1)  No to now. Sometimes your amazing offering just doesn’t fit their need. This is important to discover because your offering is meant for a certain audience. Talking to the wrong audience who do not need it then, or ever, only tells you that you should move on and focus on those who would buy from you.

2)  No to the services or product. This is always good to hear because then you can find out ways to improve it. I consider this to be a goldmine. Sometimes, as business owners, we can get so wrapped up in our business that we are oblivious to the real problems.

3)  No to the experience. Sometimes it’s not about the offerings at all. Sometimes it’s about the way it’s offered, the positioning, and what it means for them to buy it. Other times, it might even be a no to the deliverer. This is why it’s crucial to determine your brand voice, your messaging, and how you’d like your company to be perceived in the marketplace. Determining this in the early days of your business will save you from hours of painstaking remedy, or worse, closure in the future.

No is a trustworthy way to get to Yes

Your customers are people. People like to have a say. And having a say more often than not means being able to say no repeatedly.

Just think about your family. Your kids probably say no to you more times than they ever say yes. And yet, they trust you implicitly. Your spouse would definitely be the one to call you out on your mistakes and what they’d disagree with. This means that no is a common, or even a necessary component to building trust.

If your customers don’t feel like they can say no, or complain, or point things out to you that you may not like to hear, you have yet to earn their trust.

And your relationship with your customer will only get weaker if all you are willing to hear is a yes.

Stratospheric success is often built on a mountain of rejection

It’s no secret that successes are built on failures and rejection. Here are just some examples:

1)  Sir James Dyson took 15 years, all his savings, and 5,126 failed prototypes before he became the household name for vacuum cleaners.

2)  Akio Morita, founder of Sony’s first product was a rice cooker that burned rice instead of cooking it.

3)  Ariana Huffington’s second book was rejected by 36 publishers before she launched the successful media company that is now known as The Huffington Post.

4)  Tim Ferris was turned down by 25 publishers before finding one who was willing to publish his best-selling book “The 4-Hour Workweek”.

5)  Colonel Sanders started at age 65 and was rejected 1009 times before a restaurant agreed to sell his chicken.

I’m not sure if there are too many stories of how someone became an overnight success, because if you really look more closely, overnight might simply mean years worth of hard work.

The next time someone say “no” to you, it’s your chance to dig into the goldmine and find out why they’re saying “no”.

The post Why “No” Is the Best Thing Your Customers Can Say to You appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

A business usually starts with an idea, often an entrepreneur with an idea. They may not think of themselves as an entrepreneur, but nevertheless someone somewhere comes up with something, an offering that they believe the market needs. And then, usually with unbounded passion, they jump in and start a business. And in more than a few cases, they actually do connect with potential customers and thus a business is born. However, the sad fact is that the vast majority of such business acorns never really gain the market traction they likely deserve. These entrepreneurs will often exhaust their energy, and in some cases their finances, in an elusive pursuit to find customers. And if they hadn’t already figured it out, they soon realize that creating a customer is indeed the #1 challenge for just about any business—a healthy stream of customers that will provide the very lifeblood for the business.

To understand how to solve this challenge, let’s look at what it takes to create a customer. And let’s start with some tough talk by blowing away the biggest myth out there—that it all starts with a superior offering. You may have an offering that you believe people can’t live without. But guess what, they can. You may have an offering that will clearly and unarguably save organizations money. This guarantees nothing. It takes far more than a great offering that will deliver value to actually create a customer.

At this stage you may well be thinking that this doesn’t make sense. How could a potential customer turn away from buying something that is so good for them? And you would not be alone in that thinking. From startups to giant corporations, many fall foul to thinking that if you can gain awareness for your offering in the marketplace and show the value of investing in it, then only a fool wouldn’t buy. This myth then leads to the very faulty thinking that if the market isn’t buying, all you have to do is to focus on how to better position your offering and how to better prove the value.

Well, here’s the tough love—you’d be solving the wrong problem. Because our research has shown that the vast majority of customers actually do “get it”, they understand the value of the offering, they believe the ROI benefits to be had, and yet they still don’t buy. They are seemingly quite happy to walk away from countless offerings which on closer inspection would actually represent very real value, quality and user satisfaction.

Because the issue here is not what they buy, it’s how they buy. Today’s buyers, whether it is you or your prospective customer, live in a very different world than they used to. Thanks to technology and a number of socioeconomic trends, customers are buying very differently in today’s world, and it’s vitally important to understand why. Here are three notable changes we have seen in buying.

Abundance: Buyers today have quite literally, a virtually infinite choice of how to invest their time and resources on how and what to spend their money. They are at the same time inundated with a constant flood of incoming sales and marketing messages. To cope with this, most people have learnt to just turn the noise off.

Fully Deployed Resources: Most customers have already chosen what they want to do, what they want to buy, and who they want to buy from. They aren’t waiting, cash in hand so to speak, for yet another great idea, product or service. Their bets have all been placed.

Change Adversity: Although we have been talking about change for decades and calling it the new normal, most buyers don’t like change. Part of this change adversity is that they simply don’t have time to evaluate new offerings and learn new habits.

Working against the entrepreneur in all of this is that they can often trivialize or are even blind to what they are actually asking their buyer to do. To use another example, perhaps you are selling a revolutionary new printer that hooks via Bluetooth to your desktop and prints faster and uses much less ink. A no-brainer it would seem. You can show what they will save in ink and demonstrate the superior speed. Only a fool wouldn’t buy. But let’s stop and take a look at what the buyer could be thinking.

• Last time I bought a new printer it took days to get the driver to work. I don’t want to go through that again
• Yes, sure this is a better printer, but there is always someone with a faster, better printer
• What do I do with the ink cartridges I still have for my old printer
• The input screen looks kind of complicated
• I like the way my old printer looks on my desk
• My four-year-old has just learnt how to use my printer and it may be tough for him to learn the new one
• I like the way I can take the card out of my camera and put it in my printer and simply print my pictures
• I’d like to buy this new printer, but I just bought that new touch screen
• Well, it’s the printer or those new shoes
• Not sure I need a faster printer
• Perhaps I’ll just wait as my current printer is good enough

And the list goes on. In this case, if the printer isn’t selling and we take the usual route of reiterating the benefits to our prospects, how many of these concerns go away? None. Now, every so often you will find someone who thinks “Yes, it’s worth it. Never mind my concerns. My old printer is dying anyway and it’s tough to find ink for it now, so let’s buy it.” But take note because they aren’t buying because of any great selling or marketing, this is a different market; a market that is typified by those using old printers with ink cartridges that are hard to find. Just because you can sell to prospects in this market doesn’t imply you can sell to others whose current printers are working just fine.

To solve the #1 challenge for any business—how to create a customer—you must reverse the traditional thinking. Do not start with your offering—take the Outside-In approach. Start by working through your prospective customer’s end-to-end buying journey. Examine it fully and decode the underlying strands of what we call the Buying Journey DNA. What is everything that buyer is likely to do in their overall journey from awareness to adoption? Who is going to get involved and what are their motivations and concerns? Why would they buy, what do they hope to get from their acquisition? What are the implications and change that they are faced with if they do buy? And most importantly what are their buying concerns likely to be?

This approach opens the lens from a myopic pinhole focused simply on the offering and its associated benefits, to a wide-angle panorama of understanding the entire Customer Buying Journey. When this picture is fully unveiled, insights often appear as to exactly why prospective customers may stall or stop in their buying journey. It is not without irony perhaps, that our research shows it is invariably more productive to focus on removing the barriers to acquisition, rather than on reinforcing the benefits.

The post Solving the #1 Challenge appeared first on Home Business Magazine.

Martyn R. Lewis, CEO and entrepreneur, knows that in a world where everything is on-demand, customer buying changed. Buyers have an abundance of information and choice at their fingertips, and the divide between companies and buyers is wider than ever. Whether you’re an executive, entrepreneur, or marketer, it’s time to look beyond your sales process and focus on your buyers.

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Martyn R. Lewis (www.buyingjourneydna.com) introduces fresh ideas and methods in his new book How Customers Buy…& Why They Don’t.

Richard “Capt’n” Henderson and Sherilyn Colleen interview Martyn R. Lewis, who challenges YOU to rethink your current selling method, whether you’re a one-person home-based business, mid-sized small business or Fortune 500 company.

Subjects Discussed with Martyn R. Lewis in Podcast

• Six elements of the customer’s buying DNA
• How today’s online buying journey has changed from the past, and why this matters
• The secret to unlocking how a buyers think
• What should you do when customers aren’t buying your products or services?
• Buying concerns that can derail the buying journey
• Five essential components of a market engagement strategy

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