Posted by Norma Shepardson on Wed, Sep 08, 2010 @ 01:16 PM
So what does Rocky have in common with your sales team?
Considering that they both take the punches and keep on rolling, a lot! Well, that is if your sales reps do indeed keep on rolling....
We all know that sales reps face a tough match in the ring daily, what with the constant rejection and persistent call-backs. But we also know that it's all worth it when there is a breakthrough, and an appointment is set that eventually leads to a huge deal for your company. Now that sales rep surely feels like a true champion!
We recently stumbled across an article by Paul Castain that likened the try-and-try-again philosophy of the best sales reps. He points out that while the average sales rep gives up after only 3-4 attempts, the greatest achievements in the world were only accomplished after multiple (hundreds! thousands!) of attempts. His lesson: Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. Translated for a sales rep, this means simply don't give up! Pick up the phone and try again, because if you don't you will never know what could have been.
Here are few inspiring tidbits from the article amongst other sources:
- The Rocky script was rejected something like 1300 times
- Chicken Soup For The Soul received over 140 rejections
- Colonel Sanders took 1,009 “No’s” before his first “YES” in launching KFC
- Winston Churchill failed sixth grade. He was subsequently defeated in every election for public office until he became Prime Minister at the age of 62. He later wrote, "Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never..."
- Thomas Edison made 1,000 unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb
- Babe Ruth held the record for strikeouts for decades. He hit 714 home runs and struck out 1,330 times in his career.
- Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team. Jordan once observed, "I've failed over and over again in my life. That is why I succeed."
Click here to read the entire article by Paul Castain, or here to read about more famous figures who 'did not give up.'
Posted by Norma Shepardson on Thu, Aug 05, 2010 @ 09:19 AM
Have you ever wondered what exactly is a multi-touch marketing campaign? For those not in the know, a multi-touch marketing campaign utilizes multiple methods of reaching out to prospects in order to maximize the effectiveness of a campaign. An example would be a campaign that combines calling efforts with direct mail, email, and a webinar.
Though it may seem overwhelming, a multi-touch marketing campagin may be more simple to deploy than you think. We wanted to share some of our first-hand knowledge with you, so here are a few steps and tips to get you moving forward with your first (or 100th) multi-touch campaign.
- Brainstorm and research the best ways to connect with your prospects. Would a webinar be useful to them and present you as thought leader, or perhaps a direct mail campaign would allow you to advertise a special deal or upcoming event.
- Determine your budget beforehand so that you do not get sidetracked by ideas that you can't afford to implement.
- Have a follow up procedure in place if you are intending to use direct mail or email of some sort. Calls placed to the recipients of direct mail and email can tell you if your tactics are being recieved, and if so what the response to them may be.
- Think outside the box. A good brainstorming session with some colleagues may produce some interesting ideas for unique campaigns that may prove more effective than the same messaging you have used in the past.
- Be Consistent. If you are utilizing multiple tactics such as email and direct mail, be sure the recipient will know they are part of the same campaign simply by looking at them.
- Be flexible. If you are finding that the response to one of your tactics isn't as good as you had hoped, focus on the parts of your campaign that are doing well and put more time and energy into those. You may even consider doing away with the part of your campaign that is less effective altogether.
Multi-touch marketing is becoming more and more popular as companies strive to increase awareness. You may very well find that your most effective campaigns involve a multi-touch approach, but you will never know unless you try!
Posted by Norma Shepardson on Thu, Jul 22, 2010 @ 10:56 AM
As we find ourselves in the heat of the summer, daydreaming about lazy days in the sun and long trips to the beach, we should take a minute to stop and 'tweet' the ice cream. Ben & Jerry's ice cream to be specific.
In a recent blog post, Ben & Jerry's announced that their customers will no longer be receiving email marketing from the brand, and that instead they invite their fellow ice cream lovers to join them on Facebook and Twitter for updates. Ben & Jerry's is the first major corporation to discontinue email marketing in favor social media, so we can learn a lot by monitoring how successful their decision is in the near future.
Ben & Jerry's customers' preferred being updated via social media so they made the groundbreaking decision to halt subscribed email altogether. This is an extreme example of how important it is to read your customers and figure out the best way to deliver information to them. It shows that Ben & Jerry's is committed to maintaining a positive, growing relationship with its current and future customers.
It seems likely that Ben & Jerry's will find success in moving away from email as their main marketing tactic because they already have an extremely strong social media presence, but most companies will want to consider that email marketing remains a powerful tool and, in most cases, should not be abandoned. It is vital that you analyze your current marketing strategies and look for tactics that are successful for your brand while eliminating programs and campaigns that do not drive interest or awareness. More than likely you do not want or need to discontinue your email marketing, but rather hone in on what is working for your company and focus on making those strategies even more powerful.
You must be receptive and give your customers more of what they want, and also make it easy for them to get it. Once that happens, they will surely be back for more. Be inspired by ice cream...people will always keep going back for more because they know they can choose the flavor that suits them best.
Source: HubSpot. Click Here to read more.
Posted by Tara Robertson on Mon, May 31, 2010 @ 09:22 AM
TSL Marketing would like to wish a Happy Memorial Day to our American readers. We hope you all have a safe day and remember those who have served in your honor:
Happy Memorial Day from TSL!
Posted by Norma Shepardson on Thu, Apr 29, 2010 @ 04:06 PM
This coming week TSL Marketing will be sponsoring the MarketingProfs B2B Forum. We are excited for the event, and if you are planning on being there stop by booth 17 to say hello.
These are a few event highlights...
- Get a comprehensive B2B marketing education
- Sharpen your B2B skills overnight
- Use social media to grab more attention
- Learn from your peers in the interactive discussions
If you want to view full agenda for the Forum, click here.
We definitely are looking forward to hosting the Wii station at the Forum, it should be a fun way to see everyone between sessions, seminars, and speakers. If you are planning on attending, stop by and enter the raffle for a chance to win the Wii at the end of the day on Wednesday.
If you are unable to attend the forum, check back in the coming weeks and we will be sure to share some of the new information, marketing trends, and sales advice we will learn about while we are there.
Event details can be found by logging on to the MarketingProfs website, or by clicking here.
Posted by Tara Robertson on Thu, Dec 24, 2009 @ 03:51 PM
Wishing you a safe, joyous, and wonderful holiday season from TSL!
Posted by Tara Donnelly on Tue, Jun 23, 2009 @ 10:28 PM
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Welcome to the new face of TSL Marketing's blog "Market NOW!" We are excited that you have joined us here and look forward to keeping you up to date with market trends, marketing reports, and top tips to market effectively in today's fast paced business world.
As we move into Q3 of 2009, we are both excited and anxious to get some relevant roundtable discussions started through our blog. We welcome you to share with us any topics of interest that you would like to see us blog about and we will be sure to add your questions/topics to one of our upcoming posts. For any questions or additional comments, feel free to contact us anytime.
Happy blogging!