Much is being written about burnout. Just Google the term and you’ll receive 52 million results in less than a second. Unfortunately, that doesn’t alter the debilitating landscape for entrepreneurs facing the exhausting influence of burnout.
Month: June 2014
3 Tips to Prevent “UnSelling” Your Potential Buyers
Ask any small business owner how s/he feels about selling and you’ll get a sour lemon face. Few SBO’s really embrace and enjoy the sales process. Consequently, they are “sales reluctant” and their avoidance of learning how to sell in the 21st century is killing deals.
Hiring Great People: 4 Questions You Need to Answer During the Interview (Guest Post)
Hiring great employees goes far beyond the relevant experience highlighted on a candidate’s resume. Someone who is a great fit on paper might not be a great fit in other areas. I’ve shared a few questions that need answering to ensure you hire great employees.
How to Break the Log Jam Slowing Your Small Business Velocity
Have you stood on the bank of a wooded brook and noticed the flow of the beautiful clear stream? The water is fresh and cold and flows easily and effortlessly down the stream — that is, until a small piece of debris reduces the flow ever so slightly.
How Being “Old School” Helps Your Small Business Succeed
Innovation has dramatically changed the business environment. Technology has made information more accessible. Globalization has increased competition. We’ve moved into an age of instant gratification that has shortened the period over which success is measured. If a client can’t get the right answers from you immediately, they get it elsewhere. Yikes!
What Every Small Business Owner Needs to Stand Out in a Crowd
Advancements in technology have leveled the marketing playing field for small business owners. Although it’s more affordable for small businesses to market their products/services along side larger enterprises, the marketplace is changing and is crowded. Subsequently, there is little elbowroom for your potential audience to hear your marketing message.
What Every Small Business Owner Needs to Know to Succeed at Selling
If a potential client were to ask, “What’s in it for me?” during a critical point in a purchasing conversation, how would you respond? Discover the answer to that question and watch your sales grow.
Dealing with Difficult Clients: The Only Strategy You Need
Difficult clients. You know the one (or ones) I’m talking about. Your receptionist answers the phone, politely places the caller on hold and says, “So and so is on the line for you.” It’s when you say, “Ack! I don’t want to talk to him/her” that you know you have a difficult client on your hands. What you do next is critical — for your sake, as well as your client.
Difficult clients, or “D-listers” as one of my clients calls them, share these characteristics:
- Have unrealistic expectations
- Don’t respect or value your work
- Insist on the lowest rate possible
- Require a lot of hand holding
- Demand and drain your time and attention (and not in a nice way)