Recently, I interviewed a “real-world” sales counselor from Ottawa, Canada. Valerie has been selling new homes for ten years and her insights into the business are right on point. Listen to what she has to say.
If you want to be interviewed, drop me an email to paul@paulmontelongo.com with the subject line, “pick me, pick me”.
Until our paths cross again,
Paul
If you have not implemented video messages in your marketing, you are missing out. Builders, Remodelers, Real Estate Agents, Contractors, and Vendors have products that need to be showcased…and video is the most effective means of demonstrating your product.
All you need is a video camera and an idea. The video camera can be as simple as the video feature on your cell phone or hand held Flip Cam which retails for less than $250.
The technology is the easy part. Just about any high school student can upload a video to www.YouTube.com for you in case you are a technophobe. The more challenging part is for you to come up with the ideas for videos that will distinguish you and elevate you above your competition.
So what constitutes a good video, a useful video that attracts customers? Consider these elements when using video on YouTube to promote your products and yourself.
Unless you want to make a travesty out of your video avoid these mistakes.
There are other video storage sites like Viddler.com and Flickr.com. Each has their own special features. YouTube is by far the most widely used and is universally recognized.
Videos give your prospective buyers a view into your product and your personality. Video can act as a lead generator as well as a lead qualifier.
As with most other forms of marketing, video marketing is a work-in-progress. The more you work with it, the more it will work for you. Go forth and video your message.
Check out my YouTube TV station here: http://www.youtube.com/plmontelongo
Paul
Ps. Share your story with readers of this blog. Check out the tab above called “Got a Story”.
Hey,
As a Builder, Remodelor, Realtor or housing industry professional, can you use blogging to promote your business and make more sales? Take a look at this video as well as the list below…
Top ten reasons a housing industry professional should blog…
1. To express your thoughts or opinions…about your market, your niche, your customers and who should take advantage of your services.
2. To market or promote your business…blogging allows you to overtly promote your company. It also allows you to build value by offering credible information for your customers.
3. To establish yourself as an expert…the more you write about your industry, the more you can be perceived as an expert…people prefer to do business with experts.
4. To help people…the more people that are exposed to your helpful information, the more credibility you build. If you want to be helped, help others.
5. To make money…you can sell your services and products online on your blog. You can offer discounts to readers, referral fees, and incentives to gather leads.
6. To distinguish your company or yourself as unique among your competitors. The features of your blog and the way you present it to the public can make you stand out above the competition.
7. To stay connected to customers, prospects, vendors and your professional network…Blogging allows you to maintain an ongoing personal appearance with regular product updates.
8. To poll your customers…with features like comments and rss feeds, you can get a beat on what your readers are interested in, what they want more of and less of.
9. To stay abreast of the latest trends, technologies and news in your industry...regular blogging calls up on you to do research in your industry. You will also receive suggestions and information from your readers that keeps you up with the industry.
10.To attract a more savvy, influential customer base…it’s true that the internet provides a source of information for savvy buyers. The more savvy the buyer, the more research they do. When you position yourself on the Internet with your highly informative blog, you will have a greater chance to attract a more discriminating, affluent buyer.
There are plenty of other reasons to blog. It can be fun and an outlet for you to be creative and express yourself. You learn along the way and you open yourself up to a whole new world of information and technology.
Let me know your thoughts below about blogging.
Until our paths cross again,
Paul
Top 10 list of low or no-cost marketing
Marketing and publicity are the driving force behind every viable business. After all, if your potential clients do not know that you exist, how can they become your clients? Multi-billionaire Donald Trump says, ”the only bad publicity is no publicity”. Well, with some of the publicity he has had over the years, I am not sure I completely agree with that. The point is, we all know of Trump and something about his business.
The benefits of publicity are enormous. When massive amounts of people know who you are, what your product or service is and how it can benefit them, your chance of obtaining new clients dramatically increases. The challenge is that fancy ad campaigns, marketing research and publicity agents can represent a sizable investment. There are times when these resources may be appropriate. For most of us though, the best kind of publicity is FREE PUBLICITY, or at least very low cost publicity. Here are the top ten ideas and resources about obtaining FREE PUBLICITY that I have collected over the years that may benefit your company.
1. Join organizations and associations and get involved. Become an active member in the organizations that represent your industry and speak on behalf of the organization to consumer groups and potential clients. Do this for free and with no hidden agenda of obtaining business, but rather as open info rmation to benefit the public.
2. Send out press releases. Notices of changes or improvements in your business can be sent to industry trade journals, local newspapers, association newsletters and corresponding associations. Always mention your company name and a brief comment about your service or product.
3. Teach a class. Continuing education classes for school districts and community colleges provide an opportunity to share your business knowledge and experience with others. You will have credibility as an established expert in the community. Your teaching colleagues and students will share this others. Send out press releases of your classes and put the notice in your marketing kit.
4. Form alliances. Act as a sub contractor or joint venture with others when possible. Their clients, in effect, become yours and visa versa. Creating a master mind or “think tank” group can open opportunities for all involved. This support system can be used to collaborate on marketing programs and advertising campaigns.
5. Ask! That’s right. Ask! Did I say ask? Ask for at least 3 leads from every client and provide a self-addressed, stamped envelope for their convenience. Reward them for the new business you obtain from their referral. I have known of contracts that included a clause requiring at least three legitimate referrals. Keep a tickler file for re-contacting your clients every 3 to 6 months. Reconnect the relationship with them and ask again for their business or if they know of someone who needs your service.
6. Be a radio or TV guest. Offer your presence to a radio or TV show when there is a newsworthy item relating to your business. For example, an HVAC contractor may offer 5 simple steps for keeping your house cool and energy efficient in the hot summer months. Understand that news reporters are very busy. They want bites of information relative to hot issues. Tailor your contribution to what is current in the news.
7. Have stuff and label your stuff. Carry your brochure, one-page ad, and promotional material with you at all times. Include in them awards and any recognition you have received. Put your name and critical information on your stuff. Let others know who you are and what qualifies you as an expert. Label everything from your trucks and cars to your pen and pencil sets. Be proud of your promotional stuff. We affectionately call it in our business the, “We love us package.”
8. Get a coach or be a coach. Having someone hold you accountable to your goals and plans is valuable. Your coach will endorse you as someone who is worthy of the trust of others. Mentor a young entrepreneur. Coach a new businessperson. Share your knowledge. They will show their gratitude by telling others what a great person you are.
9. Send an e-mail newsletter. This is a no-cost way of maintaining a presence in front of your clients. The newsletter can be just a couple of hundred words long. Brevity is important. It must have a tip or provide something of value. It must be more than just junk mail. Always offer a product or service at the end of the newsletter and a way for the newsletter to be subscribed to by others.
10.Get involved in lateral organizations. Join and get involved in organizations that support the construction industry. Banking, real estate, and insurance adjuster associations are a natural support to our industry. Your presence and expertise will be a tremendous asset to these organizations. This will lead to more business from sources you may not have consciously targeted.
Publicity for your business is an ongoing venture. Investing the time and energy in these small ways can pay huge dividends when building a client base. One note of encouragement is to FOLLOW UP. Whatever leads for potential new business come your way needs to be followed up.
If you would like my personal list of at least 50 ways to grow your business with free or very low cost publicity, send me an e-mail requesting the list. I will gladly share these with you and perhaps you can enlighten me with some additional ways to publicize your business for free.
Until we have the honor to meet in person, remember, “Success is YOUR choice, choose well.”
5 ways to be instantly irresistible
I recently saw a poster in a sporting goods store of the three stooges. Larry, Curly and Moe were slovenly dressed, holding their golf clubs and looking comfortably smug in each other’s presence. The title of the poster was…”Play Golf with Your Friends”. After a good chuckle, I was reminded of the truth in this statement. We tend to choose our friends and associates because of our perception of similarities with them.
Successful entrepreneurs understand the longevity of their enterprise depends on the relationship and bond that is built with clients, vendors and prospective customers. How do you make more sales, open more quality alliances, and have better customer relationships in the highly competitive construction business? Rapport is the key. Here are the five most effective ways to create instant and lasting rapport with anyone you meet.
1. Express a genuine interest in the other person and in what is important to them. Ask leading questions to elicit details about their family, hobbies, career and business. Do this in an effort to find things in common. Use their personal name often. The sweetest sound to people is the sound of their own name. Make mental or written notes of the important events and activities in their life. Refer to these as often as possible. It is amazing how we all like to talk about ourselves. When you have an interest in others, they will open up and really tell you what they want in the business relationship. They will also be more apt to listen to what you want.
2. Create physical rapport. Since we tend to relate more easily to those who are like us in some way, establishing physical rapport is a skill to develop. This is sometimes called matching, mirroring or parroting. Try to match the body language, vocabulary and tone of voice of the other person. This allows you to more readily understand and empathize with the person’s position. Why? Because, though we are all different, we are all similar in many aspects. We tend to have the same body language for similar emotions. If we adjust our body language slightly to match the other person, we begin to find likeness with the other person. This shows respect and adds validity to what the person is saying while allowing you experience some of the same reactions.
3. Be an active listener. The best communicators in the world have the ability to listen at least four times more than they speak. Listening attentively enables you to discern what the real issues are by what is said and, in many cases, what is not said. Paraphrasing what has been said or asking re-direct questions validate that the other person has been heard. It usually leads to more clarity of what is really being said. Again, people love to talk more than they like to listen. The listener controls the conversation. Active listening helps you discern how the other person processes info rmation. Are they looking for visual aids? Will they learn more if you verbally describe your service or must they be motivated by the sense or feeling of what you have to offer? When these processing styles are determined, you then can present your case in a way that they will most likely appreciate.
4. Seek agreement. It is easier to move from agreement to agreement than from disagreement to agreement. Search for any way to reach similarities. Use similar jargon. This shouldn’t be too difficult in the construction business. We all use similar phrases and terminology. Look for beliefs or opinions that you share in common. This is different from adopting another person’s beliefs. Rather, acknowledge the fundamental commonalties that may be woven in the other person’s opinion. On rare occasions, the agreement to disagree may build enough respect for opening a relationship. Seeking agreement requires flexibility. It means that you may need to adjust your perception of the situation in order to move to agreement. Agreement of even the minutest details provides a foundation for broader agreement.
5. Be genuinely friendly. There is absolutely no substitute for being friendly. I mean being real. A smile and a pleasant disposition usually will diffuse any tense situation long before it happens. When it is real, it builds long term trust and credibility. After all, do you like to deal with people who are pleasant? That doesn’t mean you have to be the bubbly cheerleader type. A sincere smile, a warm handshake and good manners go a long way. Their impact is subtle and often remains long after you leave. Sometimes this is overlooked in the construction industry. Since that is the case, it is even more impressive when it is a part of your personal protocol.
In business, these strategies greatly enhance your ability to create strong bonds and relationships. Here is a secret. They are also a fantastic way to build better family and personal relationships. Selling your product or services in this day and age is about OPENING relationships rather than just closing deals. It is estimated that 80% of the time, we purchase the products we do based on how we feel about the person who is selling them to us. In service related industries, like construction, the percentage is even higher. In other words, do we like the other person? Is he trustworthy? Do his or her business and personal interests resemble ours? These are questions that most buyers ask themselves at a conscious or a sub conscious level. Simply stated, we buy much more often from those we like.
Until we have the honor to meet in person, remember, “Success is YOUR choice, choose well.”
Dear Colleague,
The old adage goes like this, “The man with one watch knows what time it is. The man with two is never sure”, which begs the question…
Do you know what “time” it is?
The challenge with many sales professionals and entrepreneurs is they tend to be so creative and expressive, they loose laser focus of their real objectives. Why do some people tend to be more successful in their sales than others? Why do some sales people thrive when others meander through “challenging markets”? Why will some sales people and entrepreneurs earn major money and market share when others succumb to “corrections”, “adjusting markets” and “market gluts”?
The answer is…they are looking at only one watch. They know what time it is and there is no uncertainty about the time. There is no confusion.
Naysayers will submit the excuse that sounds like, “I am a realist. There is a definite softening in my market. The statistics prove it.” The reality is that line of thinking is evidence that you are wearing two watches. The man (or woman) with only one watch sees nothing but opportunity in any market.
The other reality is… even in markets where sales may be down as much as fifty percent, someone is selling the other fifty percent. Is it you?
There are three key elements to being in the “zone of sales success”. The first component is Intention. You may know it as focus, purpose, target or even your objective. Your Intention is the complete certainty with which you move toward your desired outcome. When you “wear two watches”, you can never be one hundred percent certain of your Intention. Your ability to focus on your desired outcomes and to block out peripheral opponents is the key to your success.
Peripheral opponents are the “other watches”. These opponents cloud your vision. They distort your focus. They cause confusion which, in turn, cause fear and disillusionment.
Your Intention is revealed by your laser focus and the certainty with which you work toward your objectives. In order to keep your Intention in line and reach your desired level of success (or better) it requires that you do the following:
Thank you for taking time to read this article. So often, I am approached by sales people who attend my seminars and workshops asking me about the process, the system, the solution or the secret to real sales success. The answer is quite simply your dedication to your singular focus and Intention for sales success…or any other form of success for that matter.
Until we greet again in person, remember…”Success is YOUR choice. Choose well.”
Greetings everyone:
As an internationally recognized trainer, keynote speaker and business consultant, I would like to officially welcome you to this blog. It is my intention to provide you with the most up to date information on everything related to marketing and sales. And, when I say everything I mean it – I’m going to touch base on topics like super sales success, leadership enrichment, personal morale, customer service, employee empowerment, marketing and promotion, home building, new home building, real estate and more.
All of the information presented has one goal in mind – to help you punch up your sales using the unique professional experience™!
Thank you for taking time to read this post.
Until we greet again in person, remember…”Success is YOUR choice. Choose well.”
