As noted in the video below, it takes several, if not hundreds and sometimes thousands, of failures before we succeed.

How has your past failure motivated you?

One of my past failures was public speaking – A HUGE fear of many, many Americans.

In fact, it’s the #1 fear of people in America. Guess what’s #2?

Death.

Yep – most people are more afraid to speak in front of people than to die. And to some people, they are basically the same thing!

I, too, used to get really freaked out, scared to death, and tremble when I had to speak in front of a group – classmates, peers, you name it. And this was before I really had anything on the line, or anything that I was personally hoping to get out of giving the presentation, other than a grade or pat on the back.

After that, I did ironically end up in a career as a corporate trainer, speaking in front of groups as large as 500 people.

But even after that and when I was in business for myself, the first time I had to address a packed room of well-dressed business people that on the whole were older and more experienced than me, all those old feelings came rushing back.

Every time I used to say to myself:

- “Why should these people listen to me?”
- “Who am I to tell them how to do this?”
- “I wonder if I can get out of this somehow – fake illness, maybe??”

Well, I’m glad I didn’t. And I’m glad I found a great way to turn it all around and make public speaking an important part of my life and then my business.

And interestingly, I think you’ll be glad I turned it around, too.

Because my success after failure is about to pay off for you too.

Yeah, that was a little bit of a teaser for you.

If you’re on my email list, you’ll know what I’m talking about soon. And trust me, what I’m going to share will turn your service business around or make it explode to a whole new level:

Sign up for our Email Newsletter

So make sure you’re on my list to get the free training that’s coming in up a few weeks.

You’ll thank me later :)

This even happened yesterday when I met someone that I was very interested in having speak at one of my networking events for small business owners. But you see…

She unknowingly messed it all up in a big way and blew her chances at getting a lot of business.

And at the same time, she also killed my impression of her.

*********************************************************************************

Are you closing the door on sales that
you didn’t even know you had locked up?

*********************************************************************************

This is one of the biggest and easiest mistakes to make for us small business owners while networking as well as during a sales conversation that costs us dearly.

I used to make this same mistake all the time.

Often. And I had no idea I was doing it.

It was costing me lots of clients that would have hired me.

Then I finally figured it out and learned to do the exact opposite of what my instincts were telling me. But that was after years of working with sales and marketing gurus, and I was finally able to connect the dots.

Most small business owners never know they are doing it, and if you’re one of these people, it’s costing you clients, time, energy, money and reputation.

I’ll explain in detail below how to avoid doing this one thing, and give you

THREE SIMPLE SALES LESSONS to handle the situation and
give you a HUGE SALES LIFT instead.

*********************************************************************************

Does this sound familiar:

You’re at a networking event. Or maybe just met someone at a social gathering.

You’re having a really good conversation. It definitely seems like they are seriously interested in hiring you, and you go to put it over the top.

Then you hear a ‘maybe’, or more likely “Ok.. I’ll call you.”

And then… Nothing.

How frustrating is that?

VERY!

You probably have just talked yourself out of a new client, and you didn’t even know it.

Or maybe you do, but you just can’t figure out what went wrong. And that’s even more annoying and upsetting.

And then you start questioning if you are wasting your time at networking events, or if people just don’t “get” what you offer.

Or maybe you figure next time you need to explain your services more… but it doesn’t work any better, and you lead yourself into a cycle of doubt, rejection and disappointment.

Like I said, I’ve been there, done that and bought the t-shirt.

It’s extremely discouraging.

Not only can this happen easily and often while networking, but it also can happen during a sales conversation.

And when this happens, you are MISSING GREAT OPPORTUNITIES to get more clients and move your business forward.

Here’s what I’m talking about:

Human nature is to get excited when someone shows interest in your services, so your natural reaction is to show your expertise, prove your worth, and get them eager to hear more, follow up and to hire you.

And when you see that they really do NEED you to help them, then the adrenaline REALLY gets pumping!

So you go into high-gear, and agree with them, and tell, explain, convince, and set up a time to talk…

But you don’t get the sale!

Maybe they even blew off your appointment or call. But I mean, after all, they were the ones that started it and said they were interested.

WHAT’S UP WITH THAT?

Well, when someone shows a lot of intrigue, excitement or says they are curious about what you do or working with you, the worst thing you can do is go into “hyper-sales mode.”

At this point, it’s common to automatically throw out every single benefit you can think of and talk about everything that your service can do for them.

And here’s what you think you’re doing: agreeing with them, educating them, and driving their desire; being honest, straight forward and helpful.

Sometimes you even start dropping your price right away or bringing up why you are much better or cheaper than your competitor.

Again, you’re just being of extreme service to them and showing your value. Then they almost HAVE TO BUY.

It makes so much sense. Right?

Wrong. In fact…

DO NOT DO ANY OF THE ABOVE!

Instead, the best thing you can do is fight that urge and excitement, andask a simple question of them.

—————————————————————————————————

SIMPLE SALES LESSON #1:

“AN EFFECTIVE AND CARING SALES PERSON LISTENS
80% OF THE TIME AND TALKS 20%.”

—————————————————————————————————

For instance, if your prospect says, ”That’s interesting. I think that might help me,” or even, “Wow.. I need to talk to you!!”

The best thing to come out of your mouth next is something that gets you more information, gets them talking and reinforces their excitement all at the same time.

Do this by asking a question that digs deeper.

So let’s rewind and try that again:

You tell them what you do, and they say,

“Wow.. I need to talk to you!!”

You reply:

–> “What makes you say that?” or

–> “What is it that you find most interesting?” or

–> “How would that be helpful to you?”

You see, when you go into “super-over-drive convince-and-close” selling mode, not only do you seem incredibly desperate and needy, but you also focus on all the benefits of your service AS *YOU* SEE THEM.

—————————————————————————————————

SIMPLE SALES LESSON #2:

“YOU ARE NOT THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON IN
YOUR INTERACTION. YOUR POTENTIAL CLIENT IS.”

—————————————————————————————————

Even though you may have been in business for years and “have seen it all,” you don’t know exactly what’s going on in their mind and what it is about your offering that really piqued their interest.

And YOU MIGHT BE WAY OFF BASE with what you think they see as the benefits, and the low price, and the additional services, and the easy process, and, and…

You are now selling all the wrong things, and what they really want was lost way back there.

And they feel like you don’t understand them, and it’s not a fit.

But, if you stop and ask a question that digs deeper into WHAT THEY SEE as the benefit and how your service solves a problem they have, you are able to:

• Get more and better information on their buying criteria
• Let them reinforce the value of your service from their own perspective and situation
• Demonstrate how committed you are to listening and understanding them – their concerns, fears, wants, needs and desires
• Show that you are professional and polished
• Close the sale much easier
• Get paid what you’re worth, without discounting your prices
• Increase your value and be a much better service provider to them as your relationship continues to grow.

This process is 100 times more powerful than just feverishly rattling off every reason in rapid-fire fashion as to why YOU THINK they MIGHT be interested, and in the process completely turning them off and killing your closing chances, not to mention your reputation.

It’s based on this simple truth -

—————————————————————————————————

SIMPLE SALES LESSON #3:

“PEOPLE DON’T ARGUE WITH THEIR OWN INFORMATION.”

—————————————————————————————————

So let them sell themselves, with just a little help from you filling some info gaps here and there, and acting as a guide and sounding board.

You’ll get a much more enthusiastic buyer, an easier close, and a happier, more grateful new client!

Jason E. Rosado
Small Business Growth Coach
(773) 829-1276
Jason (at) DistinctiveCoaching.com

This can be done in person via speaking engagements, workshops, classes, networking events; on the phone on teleclasses, teleseminars, etc.; or on the web through webinars, social networking, blogging, newsletters, Fan Pages, and so many more methods… 

Over the years, I have given hundreds of presentations. And I’ve learned something VERY IMPORTANT that I want to share this with you:

To make sales from your presentation, just giving a killer speech isn’t good enough.

Below are my “Fantastic 5 Keys to Delivering a Kick-Ass, Sales-Generating Presentation!” as posted on my “Small Business Daily Success Tips” on http://facebook.com/GrowYourBiz: 

11/8/10
MONDAY “Tip of the Day”: BizCoachJason’s Fantastic 5 Keys to Deliver a Kick-Ass, Sales-Generating Presentation: Key #1 – “Make a great first impression!” How important is this? Our subconscious mind tells us whether we like someone or not based on an intuitive first impression. If it’s a bad impression, it can be overcome but that can be *very* difficult. Get started on the track, right away. And remember to SMILE!

11/9/10
TUESDAY “Tip of the Day”: Key #2 – “Make a BOLD promise!” Grab your audience’s attention in a big way! Tell them what’s in it for them to spend their precious time, attention and energy listening to you. You’ll gain acceptance and enthusiasm, and make it more fun for you and them. And you better deliver on your bold promise!

11/10/10
WEDNESDAY “Tip of the Day”: Key #3 – “Learn something about your audience” This is a really important component of your talk to make sure you are delivering value and building the relationship with your audience members. You need to know who you are talking to and what their challenges are, even when you invited a specific group of people.

11/11/10
THURSDAY “Tip of the Day”: Key #4 – “Involve your participants” People learn in different ways. Engage your audience members by involving them and making them a part of your presentation. Make it fun for them. Give them an experience, not just a lecture, and they will learn, remember and enjoy it exponentially more.

11/12/10
FRIDAY “Tip of the Day”: Key #5 – “Provide a Call to Action” Without this, you can give a magnificent, stellar presentation and GET NO SALES. I’ve been there, done that. I’ve seen too many others fall prey to this as well. YOU NEED TO MAKE AN IRRESISTIBLE OFFER and tell your audience EXACTLY what to do to accept. This makes it a win-win!

Now go out there and create massive value for your target market by giving kick-ass presentations that will serve you and serve them!

Remember, to get even more sales, marketing, social media and other business success tips:
- Go to and “Like” http://facebook.com/GrowYourBiz
- Introduce yourself and your business on The Wall
- Come back each day to read and comment on the tips. This will grow your skills and your business as well as your own social networking connections and effectiveness.

To your success!
BizCoachJason Rosado

P.S. For more tips on using social networking to build your marketing and sales funnel, provide huge value to your prospects and build your business quickly, check out the special report “Untangling Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and More…”

Want to help more people and make more sales?

While teaching sales strategies to two different clients yesterday and today, both said to me, “Wow.. I need to unlearn what my company taught me. No wonder I’m not getting many appointments set.”

I’ve also heard this before from past clients. And this can’t be coincidence.

These two particular companies are well known and respected ones – one of the oldest and best-known in the financial services industry and one very respected marketing company. Both teach their sales staff very specific strategies and scripts filled with phrases that boast of the company’s successes, accolades, and awards but do very little to engage the prospect’s dreams, wants and desires. They don’t connect the dots from what the company offers to what’s in the prospect’s mind and heart.

So how do you connect those dots? By asking great sales questions.

Here are six quick tips to do it: 

1. Don’t assume you know your prospect’s pain and pleasure points – ask them. Even if you guess correctly, they need to be expressed in their own words, not yours, so they can relate both intellectually and emotionally.
2. Make an active sales experience for your prospect, not passive.
3. Create a sales conversation instead of a presentation.
4. Help your prospect get clear on what they want, how it will positively impact them and what the costs are for not acting.
5. Use check-in questions and assess the fit as you go.
6. Leave the decision-making power with your prospect. As you progress, ask them if they’d like to hear more. Don’t try to be sly or force a sale on them. If you’ve done a good job at helping them connect the dots, the buying decision (the “close”) is up to them. 

It doesn’t matter how good your product or service is if you can’t help your prospect make an emotional and intellectual connection. Your goal is help them to take action and have ownership of their buying decision. These steps will virtually guarantee that. 

Jason E. Rosado
Business Coach & Speaker

Helping service-based small biz owners and sales professionals achieve your ideal business in 12 months or less. Want to get started?  Sign up for your FREE “Business Success E-Series”!   

773.829.1276
Jason@DistinctiveCoaching.com

Website: http://www.AchieveYourIdealBusiness.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/BizCoachJason
Facebook Profile: http://facebook.com/BizCoachJason 
Small Biz Tip of the Day: http://facebook.com/GrowYourBiz  

BEST:
A really good sales (and marketing) system and approach is one that helps people to make life-changing decisions and take action, even if they don’t buy.

LEAST:
Honestly, nothing comes to mind. When I sell, as well as when I teach my clients how to sell, it’s all about getting to what’s best for the prospect. Again so even if they don’t buy, I look at it as a ‘Win’ for both sides. And taking that approach and giving that value does lead to many more closes and happy clients.

But, I don’t want to short-change the question, so I guess if I had to pick one thing as a “least,” it would be the once-in-a-while when I can’t help someone to make a decision one way or the other. I find that generally these people are usually not the sort of people I want to work with anyway.

Sorry… I guess I turned that back into a positive again. LOL

I’m sure there are things I don’t like, but this was just off the top of my head in reponse to an online post.

-> What are your thoughts on the “Best and Least Liked Aspects of Sales”?

Sales skills – relationship building, problem solving and service skills – outweigh product knowledge importance.

In short order, your task list to close a sale is:

• Get buyer attention
• Tailor and deliver an enticing marketing message
• Build the relationship, as well as your credibility, trustworthiness and likeability
• Coach the sale through to completion
• Follow up when promised

Of course you want to have a good understanding of how the product or service works, and more importantly, how it will solve the prospect’s challenges, wants and needs. And you want to sound knowledgeable and professional, but the specifics about the product or service process aren’t as important because you can call on others in your company to answer those questions, if needed.

Researching info and getting back to the prospect in a prompt fashion with the requested data can even aid in building credibility. It’s much better to double-check something than provide incorrect, conflict or confusing information.

Happy Sales!
Jason

Do you agree or disagree? Please post your thoughts and experiences.

Dear Chicago Entrepreneurs and Small Business Owners,

Confused by the difference between a Profile, a Group and a Fan Page?

Not sure which to use, or if you should use Facebook at all for business?? You’re not alone. Many people are confused. And the short answer is…

YES! You should ABSOLUTELY be using Facebook for business.

We held this workshop earlier in the year, and everyone loved it. SO we’re doing it again!

REGISTRATION, LOCATION and REVIEWS – TWO great local groups to choose from:
http://www.meetup.com/ChicagoBusinessDevelopmentForum/calendar/11921834/ 
http://www.meetup.com/OakParkSmallBiz/calendar/11921942/

*** In this “FACEBOOK for Fun and Profit!” session, we are going to focus on using “FB” to:
- Build your networking, marketing and client funnel
- Set YOU up as an expert in your field
- Get you maximum exposure
- Explore the different features and find out which ones work

…So clients will be attracted and drawn to you!

- Uncover the easy SALES and MARKETING tips, tricks, and strategies that the pro’s use and HOW to apply these to your FACEBOOK Strategy.
- Find out HOW easy it is, and what to do to catch this Social Networking wave and ride it to your heart’s desire
- Find out the fastest way to make connections, build relationships and harness online networking power of Facebook
- Learn from others that have experienced firsthand the business explosion from Facebook and will teach you HOW to duplicate it AND have fun with it!

December 2, 2009
1:30 – 3pm, Wicker Park, Chicago

REGISTRATION, LOCATION and REVIEWS – TWO great local groups to choose from:
http://www.meetup.com/ChicagoBusinessDevelopmentForum/calendar/11921834/ 
http://www.meetup.com/OakParkSmallBiz/calendar/11921942/

See you there!
Jason Organizer & Founder:
Chicago Business Development Forum
Oak Park Area Small Biz & Entrepreneurs
– “Cultivating Small Business Networking, Growth and Success!”

“I don’t know about the rest of you but I have decided to stop boring my prospects and wasting their time. Before my next sales call I will have at least 12 reserve question topics to use when the prospect gets silent. What I am doing currently is wait until things get silent the start showing brochures and product dumping…”

This is an interesting question, and I know a lot of entrepreneurs feel this way when they are making lead generation calls, having coffee while networking or giving sales presentations.

Here was my reply and advice on this question:

Hi,

Kudos on the idea for preparing 12 questions for your next sales call.

What I would recommend instead of waiting to use them for when the prospect gets silent, is to start with them.

This is what I work on with my own clients to greatly increase their sales effectiveness and close rates. Also, from a personal stand-point, I hate it when someone is trying to sell me something and assumes that I have no background or clue about what they’re talking about. They take 10 – 15 minutes of my time to “educate me” on stuff I already know or don’t take the time to find out my previous experiences or perceptions. This is a big turn-off, and even if I really have some interest, they probably have already blown the sale with me.

As a sales pro, you want to ask lots of questions, get them talking. Have them talk about their pains, their desires, their wants, their needs. Ask them about problems they’ve had and experiences they want to top.

Ideally, they should be talking 80% of the time. After they have given you all the info they can think of and relate to, and qualifying and pre-selling themselves in the process, then it’s your turn talk and be the answer to all their prayers.

Just make sure you are being truthful and can deliver on all you promise.

Good luck on the next call! And please let me know if I can answer any questions or ever be of assistance in any way.

All the best, and no more Zzzzzzzzzzzzz…..’s :)

Jason
http://www.AchieveYourIdealBusiness.com

So what does this all mean?

Even though this article is aimed at the corporate world, there are obviously huge implications for the small business and entrepreneurial folks.  Massive societal growth in networking, collaborating and coaching… some of my favorite pastimes… will lead to better decision-making skill and helping and service attitudes – which also will lead to more viral marketing, affiliate marketing and joint ventures between companies offering their products and services to the same target markets.

For those of us already doing the solopreneur gig, we have a headstart. But we need to keep learning, growing and staying ahead of the curve.

And… Don’t miss tomorrow’s FREE TELECLASS to start this new world process: http://idealprospect.eventbrite.com – better networking, marketing and sales success for eveyone!

“Get Out of the Training Business”  –  Jay Cross

The dawn of a new age

If you’re looking for a way to weather the economic downturn, the first thing you need to do is realize that it’s a permanent climate change, not a passing storm.

What we are experiencing today is fundamental. The industrial age is in its death throes, making way for the unfolding of the network age…

http://www.clomedia.com/effectiveness/jay-cross/2009/February/2532/index.php

Enjoy!
Jason

Jason E. Rosado
Business Coach

Helping entrepreneurs, home-based & small biz owners, and sales professionals achieve your ideal business in 12 months or less.
Want to get started?  Sign up for your FREE “Business Success E-Series”!773.829.1276
Jason@DistinctiveCoaching.com

Website: http://www.AchieveYourIdealBusiness.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/BizCoachJason
Facebook Profile: http://profile.to/BizCoachJason
Facebook Business Group: http://groups.to/IdealBusinessCommunity

So what does this all mean?

Even though this article is aimed at the corporate world, there are obviously huge implications for the small business and entrepreneurial folks.  Massive societal growth in networking, collaborating and coaching… some of my favorite pastimes… will lead to better decision-making skill and helping and service attitudes – which also will lead to more viral marketing, affiliate marketing and joint ventures between companies offering their products and services to the same target markets.

For those of us already doing the solopreneur gig, we have a headstart. But we need to keep learning, growing and staying ahead of the curve.

And… Don’t miss tomorrow’s FREE TELECLASS to start this new world process: http://idealprospect.eventbrite.com – better networking, marketing and sales success for eveyone!

“Get Out of the Training Business”  –  Jay Cross

The dawn of a new age

If you’re looking for a way to weather the economic downturn, the first thing you need to do is realize that it’s a permanent climate change, not a passing storm.

What we are experiencing today is fundamental. The industrial age is in its death throes, making way for the unfolding of the network age…

http://www.clomedia.com/effectiveness/jay-cross/2009/February/2532/index.php

Enjoy!
Jason

Jason E. Rosado
Business Coach

Helping entrepreneurs, home-based & small biz owners, and sales professionals achieve your ideal business in 12 months or less.
Want to get started?  Sign up for your FREE “Business Success E-Series”!773.829.1276
Jason@DistinctiveCoaching.com

Website: http://www.AchieveYourIdealBusiness.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/BizCoachJason
Facebook Profile: http://profile.to/BizCoachJason
Facebook Business Group: http://groups.to/IdealBusinessCommunity