After decades of personal selling and observing others sell, I am convinced most buying decisions are based on emotions rather than on a rational basis. The ratio of the two motivators varies with the individual buyer and the circumstances at the time, but clearly the seller must always be aware of the emotional component of [...]

A Small Business Lesson In a recent post on the importance of good listening, I received a comment from Jeff Hahn, who agrees with my premise on how listening can improve your business success and your personal relationships.  Jeff wanted to extend the premise to our elected officials operating out of Washington, DC. The more [...]

Success or knowledge in one area or endeavor does not automatically ensure the same in others. I have never met anyone who knows everything about everything. No one can know it all although many think they do. I’m sure you’ve met some of them. However, when many people are asked a question and they don’t [...]

Suppliers can be a critical component of your growth and survival. Your approach to suppliers needs to be part of your strategic plan, since almost every company, whether product or service oriented, is dependent on suppliers. Many people seem to get this supplier issue wrong. They feel that because they write the order, they are [...]

The use of the words Entrepreneur, Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurism keep growing as more and more people strive to be entrepreneurs with their job creating ability. This was not always the case. Not so long ago, Entrepreneurs were described in such unflattering terms as shiftless, unfocused, shady, money-hungry, sharks, quick-buck artists, unreliable, shoot from-the-hip operators, and so [...]

When I blogged my earlier post on Suppliers, I received a great comment from Pierre Martell, the CEO of Martell Home Builders in Moncton, Canada, that I want to share with everyone. Their mission is to build customized homes in 99 days on budget. Their website is their primary selling tool. To accomplish this, they [...]

Entrepreneurs can save time and angst by looking beyond banks and other mythical sources of startup capital. One of the major obstacles entrepreneurs face in starting a business is raising the money they need. It can be the most time-consuming, frustrating and disheartening factor in launching a new venture. Save yourself some energy and angst [...]

What’s the Opportunity? Sales is the lifeblood of any successful business, as Sales bring you customers who give you Orders, without which you have no business.  Many Small Business owners think they can secure these coveted orders by using the latest tech tool. This may work to an extent in some enterprises, but for those [...]

The most effective advertising a company can get is more difficult to achieve but much more effective and lasting than traditional media advertising. It is word of mouth advertising, and it is earned rather than purchased. It is your customers’ opinion of your product, which at times can be very vocal with praise or derision. [...]

Barter, an $8-12 billion dollar industry, is one of the businesses that flourishes in bad economies, as it offers entrepreneurs many opportunities to acquire things they need and want for no or little cash. Here are some of the things you should know about Barter, a great Bootstrapping activity. 1. It is the exchange of [...]

Why is it that in most business and social encounters the mouth is employed much more than your two ears? Many people think they are listening when they are just hearing. If your ears are healthy, hearing is an automatic anatomical response to sound in your vicinity. It takes no effort or skill. On the [...]

Trust Builds Confidence The single most important thing you can do in starting and building a business is to get people to trust you. Trust needs to be earned and takes time, although you can lose it in a second. Telling people to trust you doesn’t cut it. In fact, when people I just meet [...]

My definition of Entrepreneurship is “The recognition and pursuit of opportunity without regard to the resources you currently control, with confidence that you can succeed, with the flexibility to change course as necessary, and with the will to Rebound from Setbacks.” (This definition is primarily from Professor Howard Stevenson of Harvard Business School with some [...]

The sports media and coaching community consistently attribute the success of our sports stars to their dedication to preparing for their role on the playing field. Football quarterbacks, who besides their extreme physical routine, spend huge amounts of time seeing film of their next opponent and studying their game plans. Baseball pitchers study countless hours [...]

Would you believe NO can get you a good Yes? Yes, it’s true; sometimes NO is the keyword for successful selling. In all negotiations and selling which falls into that category, you need to understand the other person’s needs, job responsibility, and goals. One of the major responsibilities of a buyer is to get the [...]