Successful Blog

Get More Sales and Better Revenue Numbers

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asaleeDoes your sales team enjoy your sales meetings? Or have you caught the telltale glazed eyes that let you know the stacks of work back at their desks are looking a lot more attractive than your meeting right now?

Done right, your sales meetings can boost your profits, help your team bond, and bring you the insights you need to drive your business forward. So what makes for a great sales team meeting?

Follow these five tips to turn your sales team meetings from boring to brilliant:

1. Keep Your Focus Narrow

As the article “Ideas For Sales Meetings – Sales Skills Development” points out, cramming too into too little time leads to dull meetings that drag on and bore your sales team.

By picking a focus for each meeting – such as a specific skill or product – you’ll make your meetings more effective.

Your team will have time to digest the new information and learn from it. You can’t cover multiple topics effectively, so narrow your focus.

2. Offer Something to Take Away

If you want your team to get something from your meetings – offer them something!

The goal of your sales team meetings isn’t to give your team an info dump and then send them back into the field. The goal is to make your meetings count, improving your sales and getting the most from your team.

To do that, add fun and interesting skill building exercises, team bonding activities, or even bring in an expert to teach something new.

Use your meeting time to strengthen your sales team and you’ll see the benefit in your business turnover.

3. Give Everyone the Floor

Being talked at for the duration of a meeting really makes it feel like a drag for your team.

Instead, get them engaged by making sure at least some of the meeting time is dedicated to giving everyone a chance to have their say.

Keep the conversation productive with direct questions and great time management to make sure everyone gets a chance to contribute without the discussion getting too far away from the key point.

If you make the conversation about everyone, your team will be more engaged.

4. Presentations? Make Them Pop

Presentations can be an engaging way to get your point across during sales meetings. Or they can be the point when your sales team starts surreptitiously checking their smartphones.

To make presentations work for you, keep them sharp and relevant. Try adding multimedia such as sound bites, video or images, and inject something new, unexpected, humorous or interesting to keep your team’s attention.

Make time in your presentation for interaction, such as questions or even a simple show of hands.

5. Make Time for Motivation

Adding motivation to your team meetings adds an element of fun and competition that encourages your team to do better.

You can offer rewards, for both a job well done, and for excelling at in-meeting activities. The rewards can be as simple or as impressive as you like. Don’t forget the simple act of thanking your team, praising the team as a whole and any particularly outstanding performers.

Make sure your team knows you appreciate them, and give them a reason to give you their best.

Your sales team meetings don’t have to be a chore.

Following these tips will help you build meetings that your team will benefit from, leaving them feeling valued, motivated, and with new skills ready to bring to the table.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: Tristan Anwyn writes on a wide variety of topics, including social media, SEO, sales skills and team meetings.

Have a Good Business Idea?

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abizideaThe business world changes every day and if you want your business idea to succeed tomorrow, then you should pay attention to what’s trending today.

That’s right, by keeping an eye on the current market and successful business ideas; you can make an informed decision based on changing consumer needs.

When it comes to learning from current business trends, here are just a few types of businesses that are expected to grow for years to come:

Accounting

Whether it’s for small businesses or individuals, everyone needs help running numbers. If you have a knack for the financial side of life, then starting an accounting business is definitely a promising career. Accounting is a growing business landscape that offers plenty of job opportunities. The field of accounting isn’t something you can just jump into. To become a certified accountant, licensing and training is required. However, if you do have experience, turning your accounting business idea into a reality is a relatively easy and affordable process. From handling company balance sheets to general tax accounting, there’s no end to the growth possibilities of accounting.

Computer and Smartphone Repair

The popularity of computers and smartphones is going to continue to increase exponentially as time goes on. With a little training and basic licensing, you can turn your computer and smartphone repair business idea into a full-fledged career. There are a growing number of repair businesses that specialize in on-site computer hardware and software repairs as well as smartphone screen repairs. In addition, there are also a number of mobile repair businesses that can take care of repairs quickly and on the spot. No matter which direction you take, the computer and smartphone repair industry is really taking off.

Business Planning

If your business idea involves helping others develop their own business plans, then you’re on the right track. As the following article shows, starting a business plan service is 1 of 3 business careers that are actually fun and rewarding for both parties involved. The startup costs for a business planning service are minimal, but the career opportunities are huge. From preparing and formatting business plan layouts to creating financial outlooks, helping others plan their business will provide you with steady work for the foreseeable future. You can even offer add-on services like ongoing business consulting, which will provide you with a steady workflow as opposed to a freelance-style business approach.

Editing

Editorial services take a number of different shapes and forms nowadays. Whether it’s copyediting for online publications or proofreading company documents, businesses and individuals are always in need of quality editors. The best part is, being an editor means you’ll have a flexible career that you can take on in a full-time, part-time, or freelance capacity. Copyediting and proofreading are probably the two main editorial services that come to mind, but you can expand on your business idea to include other services too. Developmental editing, indexing, copywriting, blog writing and editing, ghost writing, and book doctoring are all much-needed services that fall under the editorial services umbrella.

If you want to know your business idea is a worthwhile venture for the future, then take a tip from the top trending businesses above.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of ddpavumba at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: Adam Groff is a freelance writer and creator of content. He writes on a variety of topics including business planning and career outlooks.

Give Yourself Credit in Finding the Right Business Credit Card

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asuccessfull

When you run a business, you have a plethora of responsibilities that must be covered.

Hiring the right talent, keeping your company on budget, making sure your customers are happy etc. are just some of the things that can leave business owners counting sheep at night.

One area of importance that may oftentimes get overlooked is finding the right business credit card. Whether you are using a merchant card for customer transactions or one for business expenses that you and/or your team will use, means finding the right credit card provider that offers both stellar customer service and a price everyone can agree on.

Know the Numbers

First and foremost, make sure when selecting a card for your business that you do your research.

Keep in mind that not all cardholders are alike. Some may state they have great deals for you, but you will find after reading the fine print that it is not that great after all.

Ways to go about landing the right card include:

  • Research – Take to the Internet and review a half dozen or more card provider websites. Make sure the information they report jives with what you need. Also view their social media pages to see if they have courteous and prompt responses to customer inquiries;
  • Pricing – Look to see what their APR rates are (see more below). Given these numbers can and oftentimes change over time, you do not want to get locked into a card that will ultimately be bleeding you money over time;
  • Referrals – Check with others (family, friends, businesses you are on good terms with etc.) to see who they recommend. In today’s financial world, a business recommendation can go a long way.

According to Jeffrey Weber of SmartBalanceTransfers.com, for most consumers, especially those intending to use their new credit card for purchases, a 0% APR credit card for balance transfers and purchases can provide the best value. “Unfortunately, the number of credit cards offering a 0% APR on both purchases and balance transfers has become somewhat limited in recent years. However, a few credit cards still offer these deals,” Weber noted.

For the man or woman running their own business, credit cards are all but a necessity in today’s financial world.

Online Shopping Continues to Grow

Take note that many more consumers are now turning to online shopping to make product and service purchases. If you don’t have a credit card option for them, you can be missing out on a substantial revenue collection.

Secondly, there is a very good chance when running a business that your employees will either need a business credit card to make purchases (office supplies etc.) or for when meeting with current and potential clients (meals etc.). Without a credit card in hand, these transactions can be made more difficult.

If you do not already have a business credit card, take the time now to shop around and sign up with the provider that offers the best service and prices.

When you do, take credit yourself for making a good deal for your business.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: Dave Thomas writes for a variety of websites on topics such as human resources and running a small business.

 

Ice More Business with Solid Digital Marketing

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amarketerUnless you crawled out from under a rock, you had to have heard about the recent ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.

You may have known someone who participated. You may have even been challenged yourself. It was so widespread that you couldn’t miss it, especially if you spent any time on Facebook or YouTube.

Businesses should pay close attention to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.

They can learn something about marketing from it. In fact, it was a brilliant way to promote a cause.

Here are some tips you can take from the challenge and apply to your own business….

1.  Single Goal

One main reason the campaign was so successful is that it focused on a single goal – to raise awareness and money for ALS.

The early expectations were not that it would go viral but that it would benefit a cause the originators cared about. They were personally involved and knew someone with the disease.

Businesses must set goals they care about and focus on those instead of getting sidetracked with too many ideas.

2. Simple Rules

The Ice Bucket Challenge was simple.

You didn’t need a lot of fancy equipment or to go to a special place. Just a bucket of ice water and a video phone would do. Since most people have a social media account, it was easy for them to participate.

Businesses must make their marketing campaigns simple with rules that are easy to follow. They can appeal to more people if the challenge isn’t difficult. It gives the mental message of “anyone can do this.”

3. Short Deadline

Perhaps one of the biggest secrets to the Challenge’s success was that you only had 24 hours to do it. This was long enough that anyone could find time to participate but not so long that it would be forgotten.

Businesses must promote a sense of urgency with their marketing methods. If there is no deadline, there will be little motivation to do anything. In the person’s mind, he or she can always do it later. This often results in not doing it at all. Any successful marketing campaign should include a deadline.

4. Make It Fun

As the article, “18 Reasons the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is Your New Standard in Digital Marketing”, says, it’s important that the challenge is fun. After all, who wouldn’t want to be doused with ice cold water on a hot summer day?

The fun doesn’t stop there.

Every participant can be a little creative in making the video as long as the basic criteria are met. And when it is over, you get to challenge your friends to do the same thing.

Businesses must remember that it is easier to get people to do something that they want to do. Convince them that your challenge is fun and they will get on board.

You may never achieve the level of success with any digital marketing campaign that the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge had, but you can learn a lot from it.

Use those tips in your own marketing efforts and you will see better sales results.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: Joyce Morse is an author who writes on a variety of topics, including business and marketing.

Fly Past These Cloud Computing Concerns

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acloudyCloud computing has been seeing rapid adoption around the world over the past few years; because it is a truly beneficial IT solution that can help businesses achieve greater growth and success.

While many businesses have already jumped on the Cloud bandwagon, others prefer to take a cautious stance. Despite its many advantages, Cloud adoption comes with certain risks and challenges.

Here is a look at the five biggest Cloud computing concerns and how you can overcome them….

Security and Privacy

Security is one of the top priorities for businesses, especially those that have to deal with sensitive data on a regular basis.

Many businesses are hesitant to adopt Cloud computing because having their sensitive data residing in the Cloud means leaving it in the hands of outsiders.

However, most Cloud service providers are now able to offer the same level of protection as on-premise computing systems.

When you are choosing a Cloud service, it is important that you find out about the security solutions that the provider is using and the assurances that it is willing to provide in the event of a data breach.

Also, you can make your data more secure by implementing a strong user authentication solution.

Regulatory Compliance

According to an article entitled “The 5 Biggest Security Concerns with Cloud Computing“, businesses in North America are required to comply with certain data security regulations.

There are numerous regulations that apply to the handling of sensitive data, and this makes achieving and maintaining compliance a daunting task. Make sure you select a provider that is truly compliant.

Loss of Control

When you are using a Cloud service, you have to rely on your provider to keep your workloads up and running, protect your data and perform backup and recovery.

The lack of visibility and control that comes with Cloud computing can make you feel vulnerable.

You can alleviate this concern by choosing a provider that has an excellent track record and using management tools that enable you to gain good visibility into your entire Cloud environment.

Reliability and Availability

Service disruptions used to be a relatively common part of the Cloud experience, but most Cloud providers have improved their uptimes dramatically over the years.

Many providers have created multiple redundancy levels in their systems to enhance the reliability and availability of their services, and they have also developed excellent backup and recovery plans to mitigate the impact of Cloud outages. Selecting one of these providers will give you a better Cloud experience.

Interoperability

Being locked into a Cloud service is another challenge that you may face after you switch to Cloud computing.

Businesses value the freedom of being able to move data and workloads in and out of the Cloud with minimal issues, and lock-in is one of the factors that make them think twice about adopting the Cloud.

In order to overcome this challenge, you need to make sure that your provider can seamlessly integrate your Cloud computing needs with its IT operations.

Once you get past these concerns, you will be able to take full advantage of the benefits of Cloud computing.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of Pixomar at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: John McMalcolm is a freelance writer who writes on a wide range of subjects, from social media marketing to Cloud computing.

Is More Education in the Works?

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aeduEducation is at the heart of personal betterment in the pursuit of a richer life. But does going back to school make sense as an investment in your career and your business?

For many business owners and employees alike, it just might.

Why Business Owners Go Back to School

An article in Entrepreneur detailed a few of the many reasons business owners go back to school, other than intellectual betterment.

The reasons are as diverse as the businesses they own.

Research shows that more than three quarters of small business owners are older than 45. Since they were in school, the business world has changed dramatically.

Business owners may feel that they’ve fallen behind or missed out on the skills it takes to survive in the digital age – even if their business has nothing to do with computers, software or information.

A baker, a plumber or a roofer could decide that:

  • A course in digital marketing could help them expand their business and learn skills like search-engine optimization and back-end analytics.
  • A course in social media may enable them to reach out to new customers on networks such as Facebook and Twitter.
  • A course in graphic design could help them gain control over their website’s layout.
  • A course in personal finance may help them plan for retirement.

Why Employees Get Educated

For people who collect paychecks, the reasons for advancing their education may be directly related to a desire to advance their career and their income.

Findings from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show irrefutable evidence that there is a direct and dramatic correlation between education and income.

There is also an undeniable connection between education and job security. Highly educated people command far higher salaries and are far less likely to be unemployed during times of economic turmoil.

But it’s not just money.

Research from Six Sigma Aveta Business Institute shows that education leads to career advancement across the board, as well. The higher the worker’s education, the more likely he or she is to get a promotion and achieve a position of authority.

The article “Is it Time to go Back to School?” outlines even more reasons to crack the books, such as networking, prepping for a new career and sharpening up old skills.

Tips for Going Back to School

School is hard when you’ve got nothing else going on.

For full-time workers and business owners, it can seem impossible – but it’s not. Remember that you don’t have to pursue a degree. Learning valuable new skills can be achieved with a single course.

Consider online education.

Once a marginal niche that was frowned upon by the academic community, distance learning is now mainstream.

Offered by most colleges and universities, online education – or hybrid courses, which require some on-campus instruction – can be tailored to your schedule, it can provide more individualized attention and it can be significantly cheaper.

Education is worth pursuing for anyone who may benefit from the professional boost it can give.

It is not easy to work and go to school at the same time, but education can boost a career and a business.

Photo credit: Image courtesy of Pong at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About the Author: Andrew Lisa is a freelance business writer. He covers small-business planning and career advancement.