I didn””t see the nail poking out, until after the board hit the ceiling and the business end burrowed itself into my forehead. There is something cool about opening the door and your wife seeing blood running down your face. (not to worry, it looked a lot worse than it really was). A few years ago I was speaking to 600 Amish businessmen. It was lunch and 6 of us were surrounding a table, eating the box lunches and talking. I pulled out the cellophane wrapped Snicker Doodle cookie and commented on it being labeled “Homemade Snicker Doodle”. I pointed
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Posts by Kordell Norton
How make a Stand Out Voicemail . . . Making a Dent In YOUR Universe – (for those who want more customers, increased sales, and more influence)
It has been said that 80% of all conversations now occur with one person communicating with another, with some sort of technology acting as the go-between. Voice mail! That technology monster that buffers us from those who we can help. Is there a formula for leaving voice mail? If I left you a voice mail on the value of quick drying paint, you probably are going to delete it in record time. Even if it is short and to the point. But if I leave you a message on proven methods to make your vacation twice as fun, without additional
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Beam Me Up Scotty . . . The 3 Types of Marketing and Sales
It was a hot summer day in 1969 when Neil Armstrong said those immortal words, “Hey this place looks like southern Arizona . . . now what?” To stand on a different planet (or moon) is a major “Ah-ha” for mankind. We have been there before. Columbus, Einstein, and Captain James T. Kirk. What? There are three phases to sales and marketing. Three distinct processes. Each has a different focus. All three result in revenue. But each evokes a different type of customer response. Let’s call them the 3 T’s. Transaction > Transformation > Transportation Transaction This is the world
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The Wisdom of Jill Konrath . . . .
The bus was taking us to the famous Second City Comedy Club. There were 60 CSPs (Certified Speaking Professional members of the National Speakers Association) which included several hall of fame speakers and many whose names you would recognize. Pretty heady stuff. I sat down next to an unknown on the bus and introduced myself. “Hi, I am Kordell Norton.” “Good to meet you Kordell. I am Jill Konrath.” “Are you kidding? Jill I am rereading your books right now.” Jill IS one of the hot properties for the sales training world . Her books: Selling to Big Companies, and
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Being Cool is over the horizon of the average.
Facebook is not cool. Recent findings of note indicate that the social media site is loosing some of its cachet with the teen crowd. There is a real value in exclusivity. Does that $80,0000 dollar import sedan get a gas mileage that is 3 times better than the American sedan, while selling for 3 times the price? Is it’s sound system three times better? The fact is that there is real value in the unique, the niche. The $30,000 watch may only be a ten thousandth of a second more accurate than the $100 watch . . . but the
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Ice Cream and the Civil War – The Next Steps for Providing the Value that YOUR Members Want
The South attacked from the north. And the North attacked from the south. What insights from the battle of Gettysburg are there for associations? Consider some basic principles. Transactions grow up into Transformation As business matures, and competition increases, most products and services become more transactional. Specialized offerings get more competition, which forces everyone to sharpen their pricing, or get some sort of edge. Eventually products become so generic that the market evolves into a “big box store” or morphs into high value offerings. Consider the overrun of Sears by Wal-Mart (transaction) and Nordstrom (transformation). When you want a makeover
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What keeps people from Selling More
Their creative nature. . . .”Squirrel!” They get distracted Time Management (see #1) Lack of coaching (see #1 & #2) Lack of direction and clarity (see #3) Status Quo maintenance – “this is the way it has always been done” Self Esteem issues To little product knowledge To much product knowledge Lack of faith in the product Lack of a Sales Plan (see #4) Lack of Creativity and Innovation (thinking outside the box) Lack of new ideas (see #11) Lack of new prospects (see #10, 11, 12) Using old methods of selling Don’t understand the market and the new dynamics (our
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Hey, you extraverts out there. You are working IT too hard.
“Dad,” he says. “There is one thing you need to tweak. It is not a big thing, but you are overthinking something.” My son has grown up. With a family of his own and some life experience to tote around, I was all ears. You have got to love it when you kids teach you most significant lessons of life. Back to that story in a minute. Let’s walk another path for a moment. Blah, blah, blah . . . yada, yada, yada. The old “show up and throw up.” Are you guilty of amateur selling? May I suggest you
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The New Rules for Branding – Getting Edgy or Getting Lost in the Noise of YOUR Marketplace
The biggest enemy to your business these days is being average. With mass customization, free information, and a tight economy, you need to drive your branding image. What are the new rules for branding? 1 – It must have a plot or a storyline. Think Disney. Chipotle has it’s brown bags with stories on them. Harley is about terrorizing small towns (see previous blog post) 2. It must be unique to stand out. Unless you have a BHAC (Big Hairy Audacious Concept) you have beige, average, pedestrian. 3. It must fill a need or create a new mind set for
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Is your Association out Terrorizing the Neighborhood?
Can you believe it! The federal government actually thinks that Harley-Davidson is in the business of selling motorcycles. When asked one Harley honcho explained it this way. “What we sell is the ability for a 43-year-old accountant to dress in black leather, ride through small towns, and have people be afraid of him.” So just what does Harley-Davidson sell? In a word . . . an experience. There are some associations who still think that they are . . . well . . . er . . . associations. Recent surveys indicate that 3 of the top 4 four things
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