A Question from the Field

Hi Everyone,

I thought I would post a question received on a forum that I moderate at Software CEO. The question is relevent for many of my clients....


Dear Colleen

We have offered finders fees in the past (generally around 10%) for qualified referrals leading to a sale of our software product. A partner company has asked us for a similar arrangement, except the referrals may involve a significant amount of services on our part in addition to or in lieu of the software product sale. The services may be done on a fixed price or hourly basis, depending on the project.

Does you have suggestions for the structure and rate of a finders fee for services engagements for 1) fixed price and 2) hourly projects?

My concerns are 1) the real cost of the services deliverable compared with the negligible cost to provide a downloadable copy of a product, 2) the added financial risk on a fixed price engagement (unless we bump the price to account for the referral fee which may not be practical), and 3) the finders fee size for long term engagements.

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Hi,

If the services delivered really are "significant" the profit should also be "significant" if priced correctly. - albeit NOT as high as a product sale.

It's my opinion that most early stage companies under value their service contracts in an effort to win the business. Ironically most buyer will pay we just don't ask for it. So....my suggestion is that you keep the 10% finders fee standard and work on increasing your service fees to a rate that better reflects the true value you are delivering to the client.

Dedicated to increasing your sales,

Colleen

Be Nice: Make some one feel special

I have always argued that being nice was a principal tenant of the top 10% of sales people. Harvard researchers agree with me, Mike Staver, and Joe Girard (Guinness book of records top sales person) agree with me and now....Donald Cooper agrees with me too! I am so glad that top thought leaders in sales, leadership and customer management are hoping on board the "nice" train.

Donald reminds us that there are 4 currencies important to people, Money, Time, Safety and Feeling Special. These four currencies are all things that are in limited supply and we want more of them.

How can you make your customers feel special? Provide them genuine compliments. If you think their business is great - tell them! If they have just won an award, Congratulate them! If they are a pleasure to do business with - tell them in front of their colleagues!! If they look good - tell them. ( but not in a creepy way just in a nice genuine way: Like "that colour is great on you!")

There is no time like the present. According to Chases Book of Days today is National compliment. What does that mean? - find 5 people and provide them each a genuine compliment. Recognize someone today for the great job they have been doing for you. Tell them how much you appreciate the work they have been doing. Anything - as long as you mean it!

I think National Compliment Day should be everyday. Try it today, and you will reap so many rewards yourself, you too....will soon agree with me!

Dedicated to increasing your sales,

Colleen

Get out there and say something!

They say that most people fear public speaking more than they do death. Apparently fewer than 3% of North Americans have no fear of public speaking at all - or at least have never felt shy.

If you are one of those shy types - today is your day to Stand up, Speak out and Succeed! Because, thanks to Mary Ellen Drummond, of Polished Presentations inc. Today is National Speak up and Succeed day!

Excellent speaking and presentations skills are vital to sales. The best sales people are excellent communicators. Its no surprise to me that top performers practice the art of speaking regularly - and always practice before they give a presentation in front of a real (and potentially paying) audience.

What do you do everyday to improve how you communicate? My suggestion is join Toastmasters. With 211,000 members in more than 10,500 clubs meeting in approximately 90 countries it would be hard to say "but they don't have on in my town!". Yes there are other presentations courses out there. What is exceptional about toastmasters is its weekly format which provides you regular development and feedback.

Top performers are constant students of sales. They know they are never finished learning and implementing new, and old ideas. Rather than lamenting "But I know all that stuff already!" top performers ask "sure, but am I using it?"

I am sure that you read many of my postings and think "I already know that". True. You are probably right. The question is how often are you using it.

Dedicated to increasing your sales,

Colleen

Becoming a Top Sales Professional

One this we know about top performing sales people is that they, like everyone else, make mistakes and fail to close business. The difference is that Top Performers take ownership of the loss, learn from their mistakes and apply those learning to the next opportunity. As a result, top performers seldom lose business for the same reason more than once. When I interview top performers and I ask them, what happened, "why did that client not buy?" they answer buy saying:

"I didn't qualify the client deeply enough" or
"I didn't follow up the way I should"
"I presented to early"
"I didn't clarify my understanding."

Never do top performers blame the client, their company or their colleagues for the loss. They know, that ultimately the responsibility is theirs.

So, what can we do to emulate this behaviour and become a top performer. Easy. Take a minute right now and think about the last time you lost some business. Maybe the client didn't file the paperwork on time or maybe they cancelled. Maybe they stood you up for a meeting? Now, what are 2 things you cold have done differently that might have prevented the loss? What could you have done to avoid the missed meeting or the cancellation. Write those down. Take ownership of them and promise yourself that you will take those actions on the next customer. Doing so will ensure that you avoid the same situation again….and will make it more likely that you will win the business.

Cheers, Colleen

Toll Free at 1-877-364-2438
P.S. – If you have not already taken advantage of my 30-Day no-charge trial of Lead- Up sales mentoring program, here is another opportunity to see what you have been missing: http://www.lead-up.com

"Colleen, one of our reps went from one or two conversations out of 10 cold-call connects and no prospects (previous week average), to 6 prospects from of his 10 cold-calls on the day immediately following your training. That is a pretty dramatic and immediate result!" – Thanks, Lewis Prochnau Corporate Sales Manager Protus IP

When was the last time you did anything for the first time?

Bonjour!

I know I am not the first one to ask that question, and I can't even remember the first time I heard it. "When was the last time you did anything for the first time?"

That expression has stuck with me for at least the last 5 years and I have really taken it to heart. Doing things for the first time is invigorating, scary and empowering all in the same breath. I encourage you to do something new this month. You will grow and your business will grow as a result.

This weekend I am in France for the first time by myself. I am also in a location I have never been to before - Aix en Provence. Yee Haw! I can count this trip as two firsts at the same time. Truth is I have not been to France in over 17 years so this is an exciting trip. I only wish I could stay longer and have my loved ones with me.

How did I end up here on business? For the last 5 years I have been encouraging my clients to publish articles in on-line and off-line journals in their markets. Publishing is something we do at Engage each month. Writing articles and write papers is the best way to show your expertise to the market place. Currently I publish articles to about 100 journals each month on the web and in print. To do this we use a software called article announcer. It's a wonderful tool for finding and maintaining relationships with relevant online publications.

One day last fall I received a call from the president of a German software company who loved an article I wrote that was published in an on-line journal. He asked that teach the principles in the article to his sales team January in Aix. Hard to say no to that offer eh?

That's is the power of writing articles. Writing and publishing position you as an expert that people want to do business with. Your phone wrings with qualified prospects as a result. So here I am, enjoying a glass of wine, blogging from the old town with a view of the town centre fountain - still lit up for Christmas.

Of course I did a bit of shopping - seriously though I had more fun with the food stores than anything else. Nobody does food better than the French! I mean really, could you resist a candy store like this?

I did manage to pick up some extra treats for a few lucky clients. I am always always on the lookout for great candy that is suitable for mailing so I can send it as a thank you gift (and of course to give to Casey for holding down the fort while I am on the road!). Those receiving a thank you from me later this month are likely due to receive French caramels, chocolates or bon bons. You too should be looking for unique ways to thank clients for doing business with you. Being nice, saying thanks, and showing appreciation is critical to securing a long term, profitable customer relationship.

Well, that's it for today. I am operating on 3 hours sleep from the overnight flight and the adrenaline from experiencing a new city so its time to hit the proverbial hay. Think about what you could be doing for the first time. Stretch yourself. Grow. Share those experiences with your network and write articles Thank your clients for being your clients. Appreciate the business they send you. I know 2007 will be a profitable year for you if you commit to these three actions.

Dedicated to increasing your sales,

Colleen

Everyone Should Read this!

My friend Tom Tom Asacker just posted a new article titled "Plaid is the New Black and White". In it he discusses the right way to market yourself - ala Emmitt Smith and
Barack Obama. Its a terrific read and everyone should take note!

Thanks Tom - another great thought on branding

Cheers Colleen

Albert Einstein was a sales genius!

Having once said that "If A is success in life, then A equals x plus y plus z. Work is x; y is play; and z is keeping your mouth shut", Albert Eistein got it right about sales success!

Its true: Listening is more important that talking in sales. Knowing that here are some ideas on how to improve your listening skills with clients, prospects and employees.

1. Pause and listen.Let's be honest - do you really listen to what your customers have to say, or are you just catching your breath between questions? If that sounds a little too familiar, try counting silently to three (at a regular speaking pace!) every time your prospect finishes talking. This will give them enough time to gather their thoughts and continue what they were saying if they haven't finished, while also not being a long enough pause to seem awkward if they are done talking, and are simply waiting for your response.

2. Support what they tell you only when you mean it.Before you ask your next question, make sure to thank your prospect for the information they already provided in response to your previous one. It’s not always easy for a prospect to open up, especially in the early stages of your relationship. If they have been generous with their information, thank them for being open. If they ask a great question, thank them for it. But while this approach can yield great results, don’t ever fake a compliment or expression of gratitude. If you don't truly believe what you are telling and thanking your prospects for, then believe me - you won't be fooling anyone but yourself.

3. Take notes and ask for clarification.To make sure you remember the details as well as the substance of what a customer is telling you, take notes, and ask for clarification any time they say something you don't fully understand. Remember, in sales, your best friends are “why," "how" and "what." Use them often to get additional information from your customers - and then don’t forget to document their answers!

4. Echo and paraphrase.They say that you never really understand something until you have to teach it to someone else. To be certain you really understand what a customer is telling you, repeat it back to them, using your own words and interpretation. Then end with a question, to gain their confirmation that your understanding is correct.

Experts agree that the most successful sales people listen 70% of the time, and talk only 30%. Check out our articles The Fine Line Between Being Honest, And Being Brutal and Don't Get Angry - Get Results), you receive more tools to get the information you need from your prospects, create an open dialogue - and start building long-term profitable relationships with your customers.


Cheers, Colleen
Toll Free at 1-877-364-2438

P.S. – If you have not already taken advantage of my 30-Day no-charge trial of Lead- Up sales mentoring program, here is another opportunity to see what you have been missing: http://www.lead-up.com

"Colleen, one of our reps went from one or two conversations out of 10 cold-call connects and no prospects (previous week average), to 6 prospects from of his 10 cold-calls on the day immediately following your training. That is a pretty dramatic and immediate result!" – Thanks, Lewis Prochnau Corporate Sales Manager Protus IP

The Power of a Grand Vision

Did you know that:

1) Colonel Sanders talked to a 1005 people before he actually found one person who would try his recipe. In sales terms that makes his closing ratio 1005 to 1 and undeniably the worst I have ever seen.

2) Thomas Edison went broke 4 times.

3) Michael Jordan, was cut from his high school basket ball team.

4) A news paper editor fired Walt Disney, because he had no good ideas.

5) Steven Spielberg, was put into a learning disabled class only to get frustrated drop out and never go back.

6) Einstein’s parents, mentally disabled and actually had teachers say to him you would never amount to anything.

What is inspiring to me about these very successful people is that they were able to overcome failure and to achieve greatness. How? They had a grand vision of what they wanted to accomplish. With a grand vision, failures are not absolute but rather setbacks.

What is your grand vision for 2007?

Dedicated to increasing your sales,

Colleen

The Most Important Thing In 2007

From the Magazine Person of the Year: Time's Person of the Year: You

"In 2006, the World Wide Web became a tool for bringing together the small contributions of millions of people and making them matter"- Lev Grossman

From Business 2.0 July 2006 issue - The 50 Who Matter Now

"Why you matter: They've always said the customer is always right. But they never really meant it. Now they have no choice. You...continually crate and filter new forms of content, anointing the useful, the rel event, and the amusing, and rejecting the rest."

I think its interesting that both Time and Business 2.0 have listed "You" as the most important person of the year - or as the person who mattered most (Business. 2.0 ranked you number 1 which incidentally that is above Bill Gates, Bono, and Rupert Murdoch - I guess they are more important as part of the collective "You" than they are as individuals.....)

Both sources site "You" as the most important because of our ability and willingness to create, filter and user customized content on the Internet. Everyone with a computer today has the ability to create a community, connect with people of shared interest regardless of where they are in the wold. This blog is a simple example of that.

The world is smaller, that is for sure. I am amazed every week when we are shipping sales content to users in Europe, Australia, India....all because someone saw an article I had written on my site, someone else's site, or a blog. Very little of our business comes from someone who didn't see me on the web first.

How web enabled is your business? Does your company have a newsletter? Do you post articles to web based magazines? Do you blog? Run surveys? Have special email promotions? Create user communities?

And its not just about creating your own unique content either. Some companies are now using their web communities to help them develop new slogans (Delta and T-Mobile), while Lego actively incorporates your product ideas into their new product designs.

VW allowed you to select unique car colours only by ordering on line when the new bug was released and Proctor and Gamble currently takes suggestions and ideas from their website.

"You" are driving business decisions worldwide.

Imagine how powerful this is as a sales strategy. Your company can solicit ideas online from your user community, you then launch the product and sell it back to those same users who contributed to the product idea. How can your community no?? Truth is they can't. Engage clients who incorporate client ideas into their product and service design reduce their closing ratios by as much as 50%. "You" simply can't resist buying something they had a hand in creating.

Dedicated to increasing your sales,

Colleen