Start Selling More

Motivation is not my department it's your department. Let me explain.

As a professional speaker and sales trainer, I sometimes get introduced as a motivational speaker. The truth is I'm not.

You see, if you weren't a motivated person before I started speaking, you probably wouldn't be motivated after I finished.

And the simple truth is that motivation is an inside job. It's up to you - it's not up to me or anyone else. It's up to you!

You have one life - live it with gusto. Don't just satisfy your customers - astonish them with your service. Take chances, make mistakes and exhaust your human potential. You won't have to chase business you will attract it.

Here are 25 things you can do to fire up your internal motivational burners:

1. Create a Personal Life List which includes a list of things you'd like to do in your lifetime.

2. Create a Professional Life List which includes a list of your career / business goals.

3. Take pictures of your top 10 customers and your top 10 prospects - buildings, logos, etc. Create an album which includes your specific goals and a specific date for achieving them. You'll achieve more goals when you can see them clearly. That's why a picture is worth a 1,000 words.

4. You'll get really motivated to make better telephone calls after you buy and of course read Art Sobczak’s book, “How To Sell More In Less Time With No Rejection.”

Get your copy here:

or cut and paste this into your browser: http://bbp.infusionsoft.com/go/HSM/JM/

You gotta make the appointment before you make the sale. Art Sobczak is a master at showing salespeople how to do it.

5. Tell your family what your specific sales goals are for the year and keep them posted on your progress. Tell your family if you achieve 110% or more of your annual sales quota, you will take them anywhere they want to go on vacation.

6. Tell your family how, as a family, you will celebrate when you become the top sales representative in your company. If you're not the top sales rep in your company, maybe it's because you never thought about it. Remember - you will become what you think about most.

7. Tell your family every time you achieve a new monthly sales record, you will take them out to celebrate.

8. To get motivated about improving your personal financial situation, set a personal net worth goal and write it on a spread sheet, then review it monthly. This will also keep you focused on achieving your sales goals. Self worth increases proportionately with net worth.

9. Buy a book of inspiration and keep it in your car. Read it daily. One of my favorites is, "Light From Many Lamps" by Lillian Eichler Watson. Remember - you're the chief inspiration officer in your life. Inspirational words are usually inspiring.

10. Record, and burn to a CD, 30 of your favorite quotations. Nothing is more powerful than the sound of your own voice. If you need some ideas checkout out my eBook titled, "250 Transformational, Informational, Motivational, and Educational Quotations."

Go here to get your copy:

Or cut and paste this into your browser:
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/netcart.asp?MerchantID=39581&ProductID=3051758

11. Buy a composition notebook for your car. Record your successes, failures, and daily observations about your selling environment. Make your life your laboratory.

12. Go to audible.com to download MP3 files of the newest and best business books to help you achieve your Life (Personal and Professional) goals. For example "Made To Stick," by the Heath Brothers.

13. Begin every day with a six-pack. A written and prioritized list of the things you want to do and the people you want to call. Using numbers prioritize your list everyday. This will minimize the distractions and interruptions and keep you focused on doing what's important first.

14. Write down a list of all the things you don't like about your work and your life. From this list - create a list of goals to eliminate the negatives in your life. It's your life - take control. Do this and you'll get rid of that helpless and hopeless feeling forever.

15. Invest 15 minutes every day to read books and articles about your selling profession. This is gourmet food for your brain. Don’t skip a day. Snack often!

16. Invest 15 minutes daily to plan for the next day. There is nothing more motivating than starting your day with a written plan - your plan!. Make this a daily habit and you'll sell more in less time and have more fun doing it.

17. Write your own headlines. Business, personal, golf, family, spiritual, financial, self-development, physical well-being etc. Creating your own headlines for how you want your life to turn out, will have a definite influence on how indeed your life turns out!

18. Run with the stars - hang out with the best in your business/industry. Model their behaviors and don't be shy about asking them for advice. Learn to experiment with the ideas you get from observing the pros in action.

19. The slower you start something, the faster you'll finish it. Break up big projects into smaller and less threatening pieces. The more smaller tasks you do the sooner your big project will be completed.

20. You can over achieve every sales quota you are given if you follow this street smart sales tip. First, write yourself a check dated for 12/31/New Year - payable to you and write how much you want to earn on the amount line. Make three laminated copies and put one in your briefcase, auto console, and home office. Look at them every day and ask, "How am I doing?"

Second, always aim higher than the quota you are given. Be sure to sign the check to make it stick. If you adjust your aim, your results will improve.

21. Get a mentor, preferably one outside of your company. Successful people love helping others to become successful too. But you gotta ask. The truly successful people never go it alone.

22. Join or start a mastermind group. I belong to one and we've been meeting every three months for the last 10 years. It's the best reality check I've ever had. It's also extremely motivating when your group encourages and supports you as you take bold risks to get to the next level.

23. You can dramatically improve your sales performance and results by using cue cards. Prepare your own laminated cue cards. Create cue cards for making appointments, a list of your 12 best questions, for handling the price objection, and for asking for the order. Each cue card should be prepared word-for-word. Your performance will sky-rocket - and so will your self-confidence.

24. Make a dinner date with your spouse tonight and go some place special. Tell the person your plans for succeeding in business and in life and ask for his/her support.

25. Select one song that really gets you moving and play it every morning as you back out of your driveway. And if you ever get beat up royally on a sales call, make sure you play that song again - to pick yourself up again.

Sure motivation is an inside job. Sure you have to work at it. You have two options. You can be motivated or you can choose not to be.

Motivated salespeople make more money, have more customers, have more friends, have more fun and believe it or not have more time to achieve their personal and professional goals.

When you get motivated and stay motivated, you'll start selling more . . .


Sales Management

What a great way to start 2008. Come to Florida. Take a break and get an education too! Bring your clubs and we'll also tee it up!

Here's what past participants have to say . . .

This was the most thought provoking and productive two days I have ever had in my management career. Randy Scott

If you are in sales management and want to improve your sales team's results, you need to come to this seminar. Brian Kiernan

Two days of eye-opening and thought provoking ideas.
Kimberly Clark

The Advanced Sales Management Program is scheduled for January 29-30, 2008. Call (800) 266-1268.

Use this link to get more information and to see what you'll be missing if you don't attend.




Time Saver Tip

During a sales presentation, usually when you’re speaking, have you ever caught a potential customer trying to sneak a peak at his watch? Of course you have and so have I, up until I made a discovery. What I learned was that potential customers looked at their watches when I was talking, not when they were talking. They always become more interested in any subject when they are the ones doing the talking.

And the more they talk, the less they look at their watches. And as a matter of fact, have never seen a potential customer look at his watch when he was talking.

Never. Always ask questions to get your customers talking. Need help - get my best selling book, "The 12 Best Questions To Ask Customers."


Sales Tip

Never ever say "NO" to a potential customer - everything is negotiable.

Never lower your price without getting something in return.

Develop an attitude that says, "I can wiggle with the price if you can wiggle with the order." For example, the quantity, what else can be bundled with the order, and the length of the contract.

And the biggest sales tip of the day is - the time to start thinking how you will respond to the price objection is before you make the sales call.

The last thing you want to do in front of a customer is squirm, squeal, and sweat. If they observe this the game is over because they GOTCHA!


Words of Wisdom

However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.
Winston Churchill

Television is NOT real life. In real life, people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Bill Gates

I would rather earn 1% of 100 people's efforts than 100% of my efforts alone.
J. Paul Getty


Rants, Raves, and Other Loose Ends

Here's what subscribers are saying about the new layout and format of the newsletter:

I love the new format. Thanks so much for the inspiration and helpful newsletters. They have definitely helped me to become one of the top sales performers in my company.
Katrina Walker

HTML newsletter looks GREAT - it's much more readable. Keep 'em coming!
Jim Gowen
VP, Marketing and Sales

Jim – simple, clean, professional, easy to look at –great job!
Michael J. Maturo
President

Love the new format. Classy, easy to read and NOT boring,
Brian Waring

I think your new newsletter format is great. It pops, so I want to stop and read it now instead of later. Kathleen O’Neill-Smith



Jim Meisenheimer
Publisher - Start Selling More Newsletter

19 years . . .

505 corporate customers . . .

83.3% repeat business . . .

(800) 266-1268




PS - "The 10 Biggest Mistakes New Sales Reps Make And How To Avoid Making Them." If you've been selling for less than 18 months, you need this! Get your copy here. What are you waiting for?

You can get more information here:

or cut and paste this link into your browser:
http://www.meisenheimer.com/products/10bigletter.htm

Doing your homework before you make a sales call has never been easier.

And the good news is, the bigger the account, the more information you can uncover.

Making assumptions is second only to procrastination in undermining your effort to win more business and make morey money.

Why make assumptions, when you can get answers to specific questions. For example:

=> The company - what business are they in?

=> What are their sales and profits?

=> What are their strategies?


=> Who are their competitors?

=> What's being said and written about them?

=> Who are their key players?

Plus so much more . . .

Sure you can go to Google.com, Yahoo.com, and even Ask.com and do searches on these things. But there's something else you can do, that will provide you a steady stream of information without having to lift a finger. It also creates a competitive advantage for you.

Google has a program that will e-mail you updates of the latest relevant Google results (web and news stories) based on your query, topic, company name, or a person's name.

Imagine getting an e-mail every time something is written about your customers, prospects, and YES - even your competitors.

It's your way of keeping tabs on what's important. Just set up a Google Alert.

This sales tip is a sales tip that will keep on giving. You can set up Google Alerts for the following:

Your biggest customers
Your biggest Prospects
Your biggest competitors
Your smallest competitors
Your own company
Your own name

Use this link to get the ball rolling. http://www.google.com/alerts

Don't be too busy to be smart. This is a clever way to be well-informed.

This sales tip, using Google Alerts, enables you to focus on what's important and what's new and changing.

You won't have to spend a penny to have Google put this on autopilot for you.

Doing your homework isn't optional and has never been easier!

You now have a system in place to give you an edge over your competitors.

If you enjoy looking at your competitors from your car's rearview mirror, you can double the distance between you and your competition after you read my Sales Manual - "Are You Complete To Compete."

You'll get 10 mini-systems to drive your competitors bananas - and I bet you like the sound of that!

Get your copy here:

or you can cut and paste this into your browser.

http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/javanof.asp?MerchantID=39581&ProductID=2573535





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Sales Management

Here's a simple truth. You don't know, what you don't know.

If you want to learn what you don't know about being an effective sales manager, call (800) 266-1268. My next Advanced Sales Management Program is scheduled for January 29-30, 2008.

Attendance is limited to three and only two seats remain.

Use this link to get more information and to see what you'll be missing if you don't attend.


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Time Saver Tip

Get a grip. Is it possible to manage time? Can you make the clock run faster? Can you make it run slower? You have no control over time. Each of us begins the day with 1,440 minutes and a whopping 86,400 seconds.

It’s your personal inventory. You use the time or you lose the time. There are simply no alternatives. Each week has 168 hours, no more no less. While managing time is out, managing yourself is in.

Remember, as Henry Ford once said, “Don’t complain, don’t explain.”


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Sales Tip

Don't chase business, learn how to attract it. For example treat your prospects better than the sales person who already has the business. Try something like this:

Personalize your follow-up system and for Pete's sake have a system for following up.

The day you meet a new prospect - send an e-mail and thank him for anything but his time.

Three days later - send a handwritten note confirming your next meeting. You did secure the next appointment didn't you?

Seven days later - send another handwritten attached to a general interest article and say, "FYI - I thought you'd like to see this."

Thirty days later - send a good book. You can autograph any book you send to make it even more special.

Why chase the business when you can attract it?




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Words of Wisdom

We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.
Winston Churchill

Serving others by doing what you love to do is your way to wealth. Don't let anyone lure you away from it.
Steve Chandler and Sam Beckford

Fear always springs from ignorance.
Ralph Waldo Emerson


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Rants, Raves, and Other Loose Ends

For the second time in three months I've been victimized by the Norton Internet Security program. It's too long of a story to go into the details. You can mess with me once, but when it happens again I take my business elsewhere.

McAfee Security now has my business. McAfee has won the lifetime value of my business. That's payback!



Jim Meisenheimer
Publisher - Start Selling More Newsletter

19 years . . .

505 corporate customers . . .

83.3% repeat business . . .

(800) 266-1268


PS - Wow! I can't believe the numbers! Thanks to everyone who ordered a copy of "The 10 Biggest Mistakes New Sales Reps Make And How To Avoid Making Them." If you've been selling for less than 18 months, you need this! Get your copy here:

You can get more information here:

or cut and paste this link into your browser:
http://www.meisenheimer.com/products/10bigletter.htm

PPS - Here's the link I should have given you last week.

http://www.prioritypass.com

I've always been impressed with salespeople and entrepreneurs who have the abilities and skills to accomplish so much on a daily basis. And not surprisingly - they are usually the high performers.

I gotta tell you about an article I just read in Saturday's Wall Street Journal written by Peggy Noonan. It's vintage Noonan - who is one of my favorite writers. She can tell a story with glaring clarity - not a bad trait for professional salespeople to have.

She talks about an event in the life of Gen. David Petraeus, who is you know the commander of U.S. troops in Irag.

Now don't get your tail feathers up - this article isn't about politics - so I encourage you to keep reading.

Here are a few facts about the general you may not be aware of. He graduated from West Point in 1974, 10th in his class.
He has a masters degree in Public Administration and a Ph.D in the lessons of Vietnam.

He has served in these places: Bosnia, Kuwait, Iraq, Karbala, Hilla, and Najaf. He is admired and respected.

Now back to Peggy Noonan's story.

On September 21, 1991 he was shot in the chest. During a live fire training exercise, one of his soldiers tripped over his M-16 causing it to fire a round.

He's rushed away, by helicopter, to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. A local surgeon was called to the scene.

Without going into all the gory details, the general had lost an incredible amount of blood.

The surgeon had to decide whether to stabilize the patient or operate.

The surgeon could the general was conscious and said, "Listen, I gotta make a decision about whether to take you straight to surgery or stabilize you first and give you blood."

The doctor was surprised at the general's response. "Don't waste any time. Get it done. Let's get on with it."

Now that's the story and here's the take away for salespeople and entrepreneurs.

What are you sitting on that you should be working on?

Do you realize the key to finishing is starting?

Have you considered that today's the most important day in your life?

I remember my first sales job. I was excited to get it and dreaded to start it. I didn't have a clue what selling was about.

If you're a sales veteran, you can jump ahead to the next section. If you're new to sales keep reading the next few lines.

Is your self-confidence not running at full throttle?

Do you feel a little overwhelmed at the start of every business day?

Are you long on enthusiasm and short on selling skills?

Well if you answered "YES" to any of these questions, you're probably making mistakes as soon as your car leaves your drive way.

Being new to sales doesn't mean you have to endure a long and miserable learning curve. I've been there and done that and I know it's not fun.

You can replace your fears with boundless self-confidence.

You can shorten your learning curve and start selling more.

"Don't waste any time."

"Get it done."

"Let's get on with it."

Take a look at my New Selling Report, The 10 Biggest Mistakes New Sales Reps Make And How To Avoid Making Them."

You can get more information here:

or cut and paste this link into your browser:
http://www.meisenheimer.com/products/10bigletter.htm

Oh, I forgot to mention that Dr. Bill Frist, who later became a U.S. Senator, then Majority Leader, was the surgeon who operated on Gen. Petraeus.

A get it done attitude will increase your sales faster than anything else you can do.

"Get it done."

First, let me give you my definition of the word "Rich."

I believe being "Rich" is getting paid to do the work you love doing.
I also believe that's a no-brainer!

If you listen to your inner voice you already know what you love doing.

If you love selling - you just absolutely love the action, you should
be in sales.

If you don't love selling, you're not likely to ever become really good
at it. And reading this newsletter won't make much of a difference
either.

I write these newsletters for the people who love to sell. And if you
love to sell you probably love to win. You also probably enjoy the
satisfaction of solving customer problems and winning their trust and
all of their business.

And if you enjoy this, you probably relish the idea of being rich some
day. It's never too late to start thinking about becoming rich.

Rich isn't limited to money. In fact you can be rich in mind, body,
spirit, and okay let's toss in money.

Growing up as a kid I thought anyone who had $1 million dollars was
rich. I didn't have $1 million dollars and wasn't sure I ever would.

You have to be careful what you wish for.

If you want $1 million dollars wishing isn't enough. You must establish
goals and action plans - but that's the subject for another letter.

According to the Wall Street Journal, "The Securities and Exchange
Commission has redefined what it means to be rich."

And the article pointed out, "Being rich today, it turns out, requires
more than twice as much money as it did in the 1980s."

Once again, quoting the Wall Street Journal article, "The SEC says
investors need to have assets of least $2.5 million dollars to invest,
excluding equity in any homes or businesses, to be eligible to sign on
a hedge funds dotted line."

While this may be hard to believe, a staggering 8% of all US households
in 2004 were worth at least $1 million dollars. "Now, according to the
SEC, the new definition of rich would apply to only about 1% of the
population."

What does this mean if you are a mere mortal salesperson? It means you
should be keeping an eye on your Net Worth, and doing everything possible
to increase it. The higher your net worth - the more options you have
throughout your life.

It's no longer enough to dream about having assets, excluding your home,
of $1 million dollars, you should be upping the ante to $2.5 million dollars.

You should be learning to earn. Let that statement sink in for a minute.
Here's a sales tip you can take to the bank on your way to becoming rich.

Telephone sales tip - use a 5 X 7 mirror positioned next to your telephone
to make sure you're smiling throughout the entire sales call. It makes
a huge difference. You'll always make more money When you're smiling!

Back to the subject . . .

The first step in becoming rich - using the new definition, is to want to
become rich.

Strange as it may be, not everyone in sales thinks about becoming rich.

If you don't plan to become rich you may end up being poor. Inflation
can chew-up and demoralize people with big ideas and limited net worth.

Consider that your kids may live with you longer than you lived with your
parents.

Add to those expenses, the cost of your parents or the cost of your
spouse's parents moving in with you is filled with choices that can drain
your assets until the tank is bone dry.

There are three things you can do today:

1. Establish a net worth goal that includes seven numbers excluding the
decimal point.

2. Hire an outstanding financial planner. Get referrals!

3. Read "The Science Of Getting Rich: and practice what it preaches!
Here's the link.

Printed version - $39.95
http://www.meisenheimer.com/products/getrich.htm

eBook version - $24.95
http://www.meisenheimer.com/products/getrich.htm

Here are some excerpts from "The Science Of Getting Rich."

"The person who does not desire to live more abundantly is abnormal."

"Every person naturally wants to become all that he is capable of
becoming; this desire to realize innate possibilities is inherent in
human nature."

"The idea that dumb people and smart people get rich and talented people
and blockheads do to, should make the whole idea of getting rich very
appealing to you."

"You are a part of a very natural and prosperous phenomenon. There are
no gates on the road to riches. There are however entitlement mentalities
and negative attitudes which will always holds people back."

Look you're already a millionaire! Depending on your current age, you
can expect to earn a lot more than a million dollars during your lifetime.

There's never been a better time in the history of the United States
to become rich.

You will become what you think about. If you're not thinking about
becoming rich, change your thoughts.

"It all appears to change when we change," says Henri-Frederic Amiel.

"The Science Of Getting Rich" is just that a science. It's not theory.
It's a Science.

There's only one person preventing you from becoming rich!