Weekly Quote

Here is a quote I like and that I like to try to live: "An idealist thinks the short run doesn't count. A cynic thinks the long run doesn't matter. A realist believes that what is done or left undone in the short term determines the long term." Sydney Harris Remembering that every thing you do has a direct effect on your future is the best way to insure that future. Keep Smiling, Keep Selling! Thanks Jim Busch

I've been framed.

I just read about a study where college students where given lists of words to read. One group was given a list of words linked to rudeness (insult, offend etc.) and the second group read a list of "polite" words (Complement, Thanks etc.). The subjects were then asked to walk down a hall where one of the researchers "accidentally" bumped into them. The people who read the rude words responded rudely and the members of the second group responded courteously. Psychologists call this "priming" and it has a big impact on sales. We should prime our customers with "value" words to make them more inclined to buy. On the flip side we should be careful that we are not "primed" by the negative thoughts and objections we hear over and over. Being aware of "priming" is a key to being successful in sales. Keep Smiling, Keep Selling! Thanks Jim Busch

Keep your eyes open for ideas

Over the weekend I received a coupon mailer from Half Price Books. This mailer provided me with something more valuable than a few bucks off a book--an idea. The headline on the mailer was "Give your wallet a spring break!" I put a copy of this in my headline file. This is a headline that I can borrow (Steal?) for one of my customers. I am always on the look out for useful or adaptable lines that can be used to create good ads for my clients. I may not use this for years or I might use it next week. Of course you need to be careful of copyrighted terms like "You deserve a break today." but in most cases doing this is fine. For example if I was working with a restaurant I could use "Give your kitchen a spring break, let us cook dinner for you." An idea file can be a great tool to jog your creativity. Keep Smiling, Keep Selling! Thanks Jim Busch

The secret to success in sales

Here is an important thing to remember if you are a sales person:

"People like to talk a lot more than they like to listen!"

I was out with a sales rep today who told me that many customer's won't give him 30 seconds. Once I saw him in action i understood why--he never asked a question but just babbled on about our products. People are only interested in your product if they think it can benefit them. You have to uncover problems and opportunities by listening to them. I visited several of his "quickie" customers and engaged them in some lengthy and useful conversations. They opened up when I showed some genuine interest in them. Like everyone else we like to talk, but if we want to make money as salespeople, we need to suppress the urge to open our yap! Keep Smiling, Keep Selling! Thanks Jim Busch

Information Gathering Phrases

Before we can sell a customer we need to collect information about their business and their problems. Here are some of my favorite phrases to get (or keep) customers talking:

• Could you give me your perspective on...


• Tell me more about...


• Would you elaborate on...


• Could you give me an example of...


• What else should I know about...


• What else would help me understand...


• Talk to me about...


• How do you handle...


• How does _________fit into the picture?


• Tell me about your experience with...

Use these to get the information you need to make a sale.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks Jim Busch

Weekly Quote

"Develop the hunter's attitude, the outlook that wherever you go, there are ideas waiting to be discovered." Roger Von Oech

This is a quote from one of the best books ever written on creativity and one of my favorite reads. Roger Von Oech's "A whack on the side of the head." This quote makes me think of going into the woods with my grandfather as a child. As a lifelong woodsman and hunter grandpap would see many, many things that I would overlook. He saw them because he knew the woods have many things to offer him. Psychologists call this the "broaden and build effect." People who expect to encounter good things in their lives keep their eyes open and see opportunities that more negative people will miss. Keep the "hunter's attitude" and you will be much more successful.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

May I help you?

Here is a simple fact of life--most people don't like to be told what to do, even if what they are being told can help them. This fact makes offering advice to a customer tricky. Professional counselors use a technique to overcome this challenge that works just as well for sales people. When offering a suggestion or advice ask for permission upfront. For example you can say: "Are you open to some suggestions on your ad?" or "I have a few ideas to help you market your business, would you like to hear them?" Customer's seldom if ever refuse you permission to proceed and this method makes them receptive to your ideas. This comes off as less pushy and more consultative.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

State a benefit with a question

Customers are naturally wary of statements by sales people. Like most people they don't like to be told what to do. This is why questions are the best tool a salesperson can use to fully engage a customer. Instead of stating a benefit, "My product targets the local market", use a question to get your point across, "How important is targeting the local market" This not only highlights your point but causes the customer to think.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Using Likedin

If you are not already using the online networking site LinkedIn you should consider joining. Once on LinkedIn you should try to make connections with your advertisers. Get in the habit of updating your status by posting ideas and success stories. Each time you do this your clients will be updated. They may choose not to read every post because they are busy but this still creates the impression that you are a person that gets things done. LinkedIn is also a great place to learn what is going on in your customer's world. When a client or prospect posts some good news drop them a card or at least send a congratulatory e-mail. This site also is a great place to research prospects and find common ground with them. "I see you went to State U., so did I." In our business, as in life, knowledge is power, LinkedIn is a great way to gather knowledge about your customers.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Weekly Quote

"The positive thinker is a hard-headed, tough-minded, and factual realist. He sees all the difficulties clearly...which is more than can be said for the average negative thinker. But he sees more than difficulties...he tries to see the solutions of those difficulties."
Dr. Norman Vincent Peale

Last week at the FCPNY conference I was talking with a friend about the importance of maintaining a positive attitude. We've both noticed that many people in these cynical times think that positive thinkers are clueless idealists. They do not realize that true positive thinkers are very aware of the problems in the world. Positive thinkers know that complaining never made anything better and that a negative attitude just makes things worst. A better name for positive thinkers might be "Solution Thinkers"

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Know what you are selling

The name of this blog and my business is Ideas and Eyeballs. This rather odd title comes from my belief that this is what we advertising folks really sell. We offer good ideas to move customers products and deliver them to the "eyeballs", the people they want to reach. As a rep you should prepare a "dossier" of the people in your market area. You should know the ages, incomes etc. of the areas where your publication is delivered. You can get this information from local chambers and business groups or from the web. A good place to start is melissadata.com Their ""free look ups" include detailed demographics by zip code. Having this information allows you to talk intelligently about the market and the value you deliver to the customer.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Gas prices and free papers

Once again the price of gas is going through the roof. Like every change in the economy this can be a challenge or an opportunity. It can be a challenge if it stops people from shopping and makes our customer's paranoid. It can be an opportunity if we are proactive and help our customers be prepared for the impact of rising fuel costs. High prices at the pump will keep people close to home. This is a good thing for locally oriented papers like ours. We should also go after accounts that offer energy saving services such as tune-ups, oil changes etc. or businesses that offer home delivery. You can also design ads with headlines like "Save gas, shop close to home."

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Never use the "A" word

I try to avoid using the word "Advertising" on a sales call. This word has a bad connotation with customers. They see advertising as an expense. I prefer to say "tell your story to the public," or "put informqtion about your business in front of potential customers." These phrases are much more descriptive and less threatening to your prospects.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Weekly Quote

Essentially there are two actions in life.

Performance and excuses.

Make a decision as to which you will accept for yourself.

Stephen Brown

All my life I have been interested in what makes some people successful and others unsuccessful. As I get older I have come to believe that taking responsibility for the outcome of your own actions is the the single most important factor in determining this.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Spring is on its way

My local weather man is predicting 5 inches of snow tomorrow but I have it on good authority that spring is on its way. Now is the time to line up your advertisers for April. Here are a few businesses that do a major portion of their business in the spring:

• Boat dealers
• Carpet and Upholstery Cleaners
• Equipment rental (Commercial and DIY projects drive this business)
• Garden centers and hardware stores
• Landscaping contractors
• Pet Grooming (People tend to wait for warmer weather to get Fi-Fi clipped)
• Tanning salons (Time to get ready for bikini season)
• Tree Services

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Book recommendation

I just read the latest book by one of my favorite business authors. Seth Godin's "Linchpin" is a unique book because it is focused on managing your personal image and career. It is a treatise on becoming the linchpin of an organization, a person who makes a difference, a person that is a key player in the success of their company and of their customer's. This book is very thought provoking and like Godin's other books is based on his observations from a long successful business career. I highly recommend this book.

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Economics of advertising

Here is something to discuss with those customers who are satisfied with their business and don't feel they need to advertise. This is simple economics--there are two kinds of costs in business, fixed and variable. The fixed costs include things like rent and insurance. The variable costs are related to sales, for example merchandise costs go up when sales increase--not a bad thing. This is where advertising can help, because fixed are "Duh"--fixed, they are not affected by sales volume. A business can not make a profit until the fixed costs are covered but once they are covered the business gets to keep a larger and larger share of each additional dollar they bring in. This is because the fixed costs become a smaller and smaller percentage of the business's sales. This means that if a business is already covering costs, increasing volume through advertising means a higher profit margin for you customers. For an example of using this on a sales call, go to the PaperChain website, click on the Link and Learn Tab and read "What does an empty table cost?"

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

Quote of the week

"You've got to think about the 'big things' while your doing the small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction." Alvin Toffler

As sales people we are very good at compartmentalizing. We go from from sale to another, from one account to another without "connecting the dots." We are usually focused on the next issue or at most on this month's sales target. I believe we should always have long term goals in mind for each account and for our territory in mind. These goals should be considered whenever we are talking with our accounts and especially when we are making recommendations. It is also important to align the program with the customer's goals. Keeping this long term focus means that everything you do will advance you toward your long term goals greatly increasing your chances of achieving them,

Keep Smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch

The write way to reduce stress

I carry a small spiral notebook with me at all times. I use it to jot down ideas, things I need to do and to capture the names and phone numbers of new businesses I notice. This helps me to stay organized but also serves to keep my stress level in check. The Chinese have a saying: "The palest ink lasts longer than the strongest memory." Writing things down means that I won't forget to followup on leads or fail to live up to my commitments. This keeps me on track and significantly reduces the stress in my life. Get in the habit of constant note making, Writing things down frees you to concentrate on action instead of wasting your energy on remembering a hundred little details.

Keep smiling, Keep Selling!

Thanks

Jim Busch