Getting What You Get, or Getting What You Want?
Over the past several weeks, I’ve been sitting in a number of pipeline and deal reviews. While the companies are in very different businesses, different solutions, different sales processes, different sales force maturities, I’ve noticed some patterns: Deal quality is not where it needs to be. Average deal sizes seem to be eroding. Average sales…
Read MoreHow to Provide Value to Your eCommerce Customers
Providing value is the ultimate goal of any self-respecting business venture. After all, the reason why customers opt for certain products and services instead of others has everything to do with how valued they feel. Consequently, the companies that manage to maximize their offerings in the eyes of consumers are the ones that tend to…
Read MoreHow to Motivate People to Action
It is a 3-step process to get people to take action: Inspiration Being inspired is seeing the big picture. It is the excitement and passion. A person must believe that it is possible for them to achieve. The inspiration usually comes from outside of self. Seeing others who have achieved success in the same situation…
Read MoreMy Advice to Startups Seeking Angel Investment
Over the weekend I was asked what advice I’d give to founders of a startup seeking angel investment. Here’s my list. First, make sure you really want angel investment. Read 10 good reasons not to seek investors for your startup. Take it to heart. If you don’t need investment, really, you are better off without it.…
Read More4 Essential Digital Marketing Actions for Startups and Small Businesses
Today, being successful in business means adopting the digital way, including when it comes to marketing strategies. According to Magna, the research arm of IPG Mediabrands noted that digital ad spending reached $209 billion worldwide in 2017, which is 41 percent of the advertising market. It surpassed TV ad spending with only $178 billion or…
Read MoreHow Effective Are Paid Ads, Really?
If you have your own business, one of the things that probably keeps you up at night is how to increase the amount of traffic your website receives. A paid ads campaign can be one of the solutions. And, indeed, it’s quite a good solution; Facebook ads, Instagram ads, LinkedIn ads, Twitter ads, Google Display…
Read More4 Key Ways to Make the Most of Your Business’s Down Cycle
Starting and growing your own company is exhilarating, exciting and rewarding. It also scares the living daylights out of you when you find yourself strapped into your seat, plummeting towards the very bottom of a roller coaster ride. Ups, downs and roller coaster metaphors aside, business is anything but a linear journey. Many businesses are built on momentum, which can be…
Read More10 Strategies for Building a Business with Influence
Successful entrepreneurs often start with a “random” idea, but they quickly focus their efforts and follow a “system” to organize their startup and maximize the clout of their activities. Too many entrepreneur “wannabes” never get past the idea stage, or strike out randomly in many directions, hoping that their passion will convince people to follow…
Read MoreThe Tao of Entrepreneurship
Wu wei (無 爲) is often translated as non-action, and entrepreneurs seemingly couldn’t be further from this Taoist ideal. Yet, Sifu Adam Mizner may have a better translation of wu wei: non-preference. Preference, in this context of entrepreneurship, refers to being stuck on an idea that ultimately binds us to an increasingly risky and ultimately failing strategy or business model. Water is the essence…
Read MoreHow to Build Trust with Online Customers
In today’s digital economy, where more and more shopping is done online every day, companies everywhere are scrambling to expand their online offerings, and in the process of doing so are encountering the huge trust deficit that defines internet shopping. Around the globe, consumers are hungry for new products and services, but hesitant to embrace…
Read More