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Increase Business Sales: Prospecting Tips for a Slow Economy
Prospecting Tips for a Slow Economy
Frequently I am asked, “How can I prospect for more business?”
My favorite Frippicisim: It is not your clients’ and prospects’ job to remember you. It is your obligation and responsibility to make sure they don’t forget you.
Here is some practical advice that works for any industry.
1. Don’t overlook the obvious. Go through your address book, data base,
Christmas card list and confirm everybody you know is familiar with your profession,
what your specialty is, and who is the perfect prospect for you to best serve.
2. If you used to work in another industry, update your satisfied clients that you can
still serve them in this different capacity.
3. Keep in touch with your present clients more frequently. Not just asking
for referrals. The better your relationship with them the more they will want to send
you new prospects.
4. One of my friends in the advertising specialty business had a very creative office
décor. Anyone who had seen it raved about it. Going up in the elevator of his building
of 22 floors I had a conversation with a fellow passenger. I asked, “Do you work in this
building or are you visiting?” He mentioned he had worked there for 2 years. I inquired
if he had ever heard of my friend Jonathan and his unique and memorable office. He
said “No.” My recommendation to my friend and everyone else who works in a large
building is to every few months go from floor to floor, office to office, and introduce yourself to your neighbors. You could well quadruple your business close to home.
5. Don’t forget to work on your sales presentation skills! That is something I can help you with!
Why come come to my June 29-30 Speaking School in Las Vegas?
Read More...Executive Speech Coach’s sister-in-law Toyah Willcox
You may have read about my brother Robert Fripp performing in Estonia for the celebration of their independence. I read this on his wife Toyah’s blog. Excuse me for being a proud sister-in-law, but is amazing, beautiful, and multifaceted in her talent. She can sing, act, write, be an amazing talk show guest or host. Her stage performances have been delighting audiences for thirty years. She started performing in her teens and has been in movies with Sir Laurence Olivier and Katherine Hepburn.
“WE ARE THE HUMANS” BLOG – MAY 2009
Hello my friends,
I’m just between flights from Estonia and Gran Canaria!
The last month has been extraordinary. The filming of THE POWER OF THREE went from strength to strength, I even started to get film offers from productions over Europe asking me to fly out and do a few days filming whilst still commited to PO3! The team where brilliant, Mikolaj Jaroszewicz the Director of Photography created wonders on a budget of pounds. The first AD Stephanie Zari kept us all to time and my fellow actors (including myself) GAVE BLOOD! Rumour has it the ‘rushes’ are splendid and the director Yvonne Deutschman is off to Cannes on the 15th May! I pray she kicks as much butt as she did on set and a little bit more.
The last week has been a pure joy. Bill Rieflin, Robert Fripp, Chris Wong and myself all met in Tartu, Estonia on the 26th April where we had a week’s rehearsal before performing THE HUMANS album, in it’s complete form for the President and the First Lady at Tartu University. Robert was with us to open the show with his ‘soundscapes’, but it became evident on the first days rehearsal he was intending to play the whole of THE HUMANS set too. This is partly down to the calming effect of BILL. Bill has the presence of a ‘kindly father’; when he is not being manically scary, he and Robert are like brothers. I don’t think I could have encouraged Robert to play the whole set unless I had a spare million to give away but Bill managed it without even being aware of it!
The sound was awesome. It added a whole new dimension. I created THE HUMANS because I wanted a project that Bill and I could work on but also, because I wanted tonal space so my voice would sit on it’s own without competing with guitars and keyboards. So THE HUMANS consist mainly of bass, vocal and sound effects. Robert added another tonal dimension that didn’t venture into my vocal range, he added a commentary to my vocal lines. Apart from rehearsing the set daily, (some days we ran the set four times) we ate a lot of cheesecake. Tartu is renowned for cheesecake. Bill, Robert, Wongy, ‘Trev the sound’ and myself can eat cake till the sun sets.
We always knew we where playing for the President but what we didn’t know was we where going to be in the same hotel and dining with him. On the Wednesday the secret service arrived at the hotel, checking it out and us too. We had probably been well ‘checked out’ before we left our countries of residence. I found these men on the roof and in the corridors very amusing, they all talked into their shirt pockets and wrist cuffs but never cracked a smile. Soon the bulletproof limo arrived and the hotel was buzzing with excitement. On Thursday evening, at the hotel, THE HUMANS had dinner with the President and the First Lady plus the Estonian Ambassidor for England, the Minister of Justice and Robert Fripp. The President is a huge Fripp fan which is partly why we were all there to perform.
I gave the President a HUMANS CD. He was very, very happy that is says ‘written and performed in Estonia’. This is an immensely proud country, which has fought for it’s independence from Russia and to have musicians visit and site it for the inspiration for a whole album really means something. I sat next to the President all evening and his last remark got a huge laugh (and I’m sure it was a joke) “Toyah I’d like you to know I will not being hosting a dinner for Madonna when she visits later in the year!”
The show the next day started at midnight on Friday evening, it was too late in the day to be nervous, I could only be extremely excited. Our audience where mainly musicians invited to say thank you for being in Tartu for the Tartu Music Days festival. The President introduced us, which caused a stir because no one in the audience knew he would be there, and when he stood up from the front row and walked to my microphone there was a gasp from the assembled people.
AND the show itself? It was magical. At one point I caught the eye of the secret service men either side of the President, one winked at me and the other put his thumb up and smiled! At 1.15 am we received a 10 minute standing ovation. Congregating in the backstage area after our one and only encore available to us because we only rehearsed the album material, I asked Bill what where we going to do? They where clapping for more. So we went out, bowed and told them to go to bed!
Estonia is an extraordinary place, it has a magical resonance. I strongly recommend you visit it, take a good book and soak up the atmosphere, because it is a place to think and grow.
I hope all of you who have your HUMANS album by now, enjoy it thoroughly!
BE LOUD, BE PROUD, BE HEARD.
LOVE TOYAH
Good Customer Service Is More Than Good PR
At a time when every customer counts we must never forget how our customers see us. One single negative contact can ruin your reputation in the eyes of not only that one customer — but everyone he or she knows as well. After all, word of mouth works both for or against you.
You need to make sure everybody in your organization knows he or she is an important part of it. Each department depends and dovetails into the other to produce quality in service or product. Everyone makes a difference: the sales force, the service technicians, the clerical staff, the PR department all work together toward the same goal — keeping the customers satisfied.
A perfect example of how everyone makes a difference is when I was in a Nashville hotel attending a board of directors meeting for the National Speakers Association. After the meeting, several of us went to the coffee shop to continue our deliberations. Each of us asked for exceptions or additions to the menu items; we wanted separate checks; and to make things even more confusing, being speakers, we talked to each other the whole time the waitress patiently took our orders.
Read More...Public Speaking and Financial Planning Philosphy: Fripp & Snider
In a conversation with Kim Snider, brilliant financial adviser from Dallas, she mentioned,” On February 18, 2009, the WSJ asked eminent economists, including some Nobel Prize Winners, “How do you think Americans should spend their $8 a week of stimulus money to have the biggest impact?”
Robert Shiller, of Yale, summed up many of their answers. “You give a good tip to the taxi drivers. They talk to their customers all day – business people. If you don’t take taxis, tip your hairdresser.These people shape perception.”
So do we all in our communities and with our clients. Kim is a Shaper of Perceptions. I like that! If you want to share your opinons in a way that has impact you may want a little help. Yes, that's right!
A plug for my June 29-30 Speaking School in Las Vegas.
For more information on Kim Snider
Read More...Public Speaking Tip for Great Presentation Skills:Open Hot, Close Hotter
Open Hot, Close Hotter
As an executive speech coach and public speaking trainer for executives and professional motivational speakers, here is some of the advice I give. To grab audience attention and be remembered and repeated, start the presentation with a bang, not a limp, “Thanks, it’s nice to be here.” The first (and last) 30 seconds have the most impact on the audience. Save any greetings and gratitude until they’ve already grabbed the audience with a powerful opening. And don’t end with a whimper. Remember that last words linger. Unfortunately, many speakers close with, “Are there any questions?” Wrong! Instead, say, “Before I close, what are your questions?” Answer them. Then close on a high note. Always look at your opening remarks to see if you can tie it together in a circular way. When I addressed the American Cemetery Association my opening story was about when my mother died. Don’t worry! It was upbeat. Mother had a great life and lived long enough to see both her children successful. My opening line was, “What do you say about a woman who wanted everyone to wear bright red at her funeral?” The close was my brother’s experience when she died. He wrote about it on the liner notes of a CD called “Tears of Angels.” “Life is what we are given, Life is what we do with it…………….”
Read More...Executive Speech Coach, Legendary Guitarist & British Bird Trivia
In case you want some interesting trivia for your next cocktail party, my brother Robert Fripp told me.
In England there are 120-130 million birds. There are also 5-8 million cats. Each year British cats kill 50-80 million birds. Not sure how you will slip it into the conversation. It will impress any of your British friends or fans of King Crimson and legendary guitarist Robert Fripp. AKA Brother!
Business Marketing Tips for the Non-Stop Marketing
How you can attract, retain and extend your relationship with customers.
by Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE
Frippicisms on Sales and Marketing strategy
• It is not your client’s job to remember you, it is your obligation and responsibility to make sure they don’t forget you.
• The real sale comes after the sale.
• Your best customer is the hottest prospect for your competitors.
• Your efforts have to be ongoing and consistent.
I’m always taken aback when someone asks me how much time I devote to marketing. Every single thing we do is marketing. Talking to strangers at seminars or group meetings or even in elevators or taxis is marketing. Customer service is part of marketing. I am an unabashed, relentless, promoter of my services and products. I get the drive from the love I have for my business.
Here are a few suggestions on how you can attract, retain and extend your relationship with customers.
Read More...Effective Public Speaking: Robert Fripp speaks about Heroes
My brother Robert Fripp and his wife Toyah Willcox are performing for the President of Estonia as part of their celebration of their independence.
Meanwhile I am in Milwaukee speaking with Heartland Advisers. Great company! They were recognized in August 2008 as a “Top Milwaukee Workplace” by The Business Journal…and their 50 employees.
As part of my presentation I quoted my brother’s comments about heroes. He played on David Bowie’s Heroes. As you can read my brother has quite a way with words! This is an excerpt from our spoken word concerts. Enjoy!
PF David Bowie sang: We can be heroes – just for one day.
RF So, if we can be heroes – just for one day – can we be heroes for longer than that? And if we can’t be a hero for all of one day, can we be a hero for 10 minutes? Or an hour?
RF What does it mean to be a hero?
The hero aspires to three things:
the clarity to see what is required of them;
the courage to accept what is required of them;
the capacity to discharge what is required of them.
Three categories of hero:
the occasional, or unlikely, hero;
the everyday, or ordinary, hero;
the superhero.
The occasional (or unlikely) hero is one who responds honorably to an unlikely & unexpected event: they rise to an occasion; they rise to a challenge when it presents itself.
The everyday, ordinary hero is reliably, repeatably & responsibly heroic
on a daily basis . They are proficient & sufficient.
The world continues to run because of them. Although this category of hero is described as ordinary, such heroism is already extraordinary.
The superhero is one who directs the way the world runs.
They hold the overview of their particular field of endeavor.
They see the whole of an undertaking, or corporation. They see the operation of all departments, on all floors, in all the offices of the corporation.
The effects & repercussions of their decision-making, initiatives & actions extend in time & in space.
The everyday hero, and the superhero,
bring a degree of quality to what they do, an ongoing level of care,
on a regular basis.
These heroes do-what-they-can-do + 10% on a daily basis.
These heroes manifest acts of quality, regularly.
PF How do we become a hero?
RF By practicing acts of heroism!
How do we describe or define the characteristics of heroic behavior?
Heroes undertake, manifest & demonstrate acts of quality on a regular basis.
Two key points: quality, regularity.
RF what is an act of quality?
An act of quality follows the injunction:
Honor necessity, honor sufficiency.
Honor necessity is the Rule of Quality.
Honor sufficiency is the Rule of Quantity.
When we honor necessity, we address what is required of us;
not what we want to do,
neither following an arbitrary impulse,
When we honor sufficiency, we use no more energy is
employed than is needed to discharge the particular function.
Effortless effort. Gracefulness. Callisthenic.
PF Why is an act of quality important?
RF Quality is ungovernable by number.
So, a small act of quality is as big as a large act of quality.
In the New Testament, the parable of the Widow’s Mite is one example of this. The Widow gave what, in the World of Number, was about as small a contribution as could be measured & accounted. In the World of Quality, the Widow gave all that she had. The Widow was a hero.
An act of quality spreads.
The repercussions from an act of quality move outwards from the originating act.
Although we may never see the effects & repercussions of a quality undertaking, we may have faith that an act of quality spreads & moves out into the world.
Our prime concern is the quality of our undertaking, not the effects of the undertaking.
For more information on Robert check out his spoken word concerts.
Go out and perform acts of quality.
If you want to speak in a clear, concise, compelling manner just like Robert Fripp
check out my June 29-30, 2009 Las Vegas Speaking School.
The Trusted Advisor Helps us Build Trusted Client Partnerships
“Great relationships start with great conversations, not one person showing the other how smart he or she is.”
I have fond memories of being locked in my executive speech coach studio with a brilliant gentleman helping her turn his good presentation into a business developing masterpiece. He is Andrew Sobel author of “Clients for Life” and “Making Rain”. His new book is called “All for One: 10 Strategies for Building Trusted Client Partnerships”
Whenever I hear Andrew has written a new book I recommend it…even before I read it. That is how confident I am in his research an ability to connect with his readers.
“All for One” is based on five years of research, including a study of 50 major, flagship client relationships built by a variety of leading services firms. Think of it as moving from trusted advisor to trusted partner.
You can check it out on his website at https://andrewsobel.com/books/all-for-one/
For a short time he is also offering to anyone who buys a copy of “All for One” the choice of three free, seriously valuable gifts, including a brand new copy of one of his previous books.
“Great relationships start with great conversations, not one person showing the other how smart he or she is.”
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