This is one of the key areas of a leading businessperson.  So much of our business success rests on the ability of us individually to make proactive client and sales related calls.

I admire business people and salespeople who have the ability to be routine in their follow up with making phone calls.  They build trust, they build confidence and ultimately they bond the relationship.  So why do so many sales orientated people not follow up?  It is linked to perceived failure and also involves self talk regarding the call before the call is made.  The best way to get around call reluctance is to either have a set script or to have three set questions.  When you go to a call centre there is no call reluctance.  Why?  Because the caller has a set script to work from and the call becomes routine.  It is easy to do, you know what direction you are heading and you know how the call is to be finished.  Most of us are not call centres, most of us are people in business trying to generate more business. 

When we establish a routine in making phonecalls then we are guaranteed that business will be generated.  In the cycle of the sales process there are two parts to making telephone contact.  The first is where you are calling a client to either establish a relationship or to sell a product.  The second part is the follow up call to either ascertain where the business is up to or to close the business.  Making telephone calls is the fastest way to generate new business and to make appointments.  Going from part contact to full contact is the reason why we make phonecalls.

Three things to remember to avoid call reluctance: 

1. Set a routine time every week to make your calls.
2. Know who you are going to call and what you are going to call about.
3. Promise that you will be making a follow up call.

With these three components making phone calls will be successful. 

PERSONAL TIP : If you are serious about phone contact get yourself a headset you will find they have many benefits for you.

I recently spent time in New Delhi, India and I was fortunate to be hosted for a lunch at a traditional Indian restaurant. 

When you are in someone else’s country you are effectively in someone else’s culture.  We got to talking about languages and the traditions that surround the use of language.  Over the past 10 years English has become a preferred teaching language in India, to the stage where many parents who can afford it send their children to international schools to ensure their children have exposure to English. 

The interesting point about this is that when a generation is being taught a new language then the gap between the generations becomes wider.  But from talking with my hosts, there is an upside and that is the desire to understand culture has never been greater.  His children want to know and ask a lot of questions about Hindu traditions and they want to learn more about what their parents and grandparents have done in the past.  Is the past considered important enough to the future? 

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As we come towards the end of the year key people more so this year will make decisions regarding their career path than they probably have over the past number of years.  As the employment market loosens up good employees are going to be given the opportunity to begin to review their current positions with more confidence.  This brings some direct benefits for both employers and employees but get ready 2010 could be the year of seat-switching.  In a recent survey conducted by the Adler Group showed that of the 59% of people would talk if they were approached but of that 59% only 19% would be actively looking for a new position because of the perception that it is still a risk to move in the current environment.

There are four key areas for employers who are looking to get the best people on their team in 2010: 

1.  The need for a direct approach at a targeted candidate list whether you do this directly as the employer or whether you outsource this, making that first contact will give a much better result than potentially a response from an advertisement.

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This week I have come into contact with two people who are going through the experience of committing to a business decision through the form of a contract, agreement  or handshake.  Which one has the greatest ability to be built on?

The first experience was of a friend who was looking at a franchised business opportunity that involved a significant financial committment but was a relatively new business model into the marketplace.  He met with the franchisor and was impressed with their desire and committment to the direction of the proposed business.  He took the step of a handshake to further his potential relationship with this opportunity.  From there he received a franchise contract which was Read the rest of this entry »

The creation of a brand within a brand has become the hallmark of many successful companies as they diversify their customer base from Commercial Importance to Very Important.

How do they do at it? Should more of us being looking into this growth area rather than leaving markets unexplored?

The airline industry has been able to achieve this thinking and in most instances been a regular part of their long haul services.  Everyone gets onto the same plane, the branding is consistent for each customer yet the experience of travelling economy to travelling first class is distinctly different and the value to the airline also is based on a per customer spend.  The level of loyalty between customers in different classes is known to be much more successful when better levels of service are offered.  Clearly the price you pay with an airline can determine the service that you get. 

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