Strategen’s Newsletter Archive

Last month we mentioned the word “WILL” in the context of having the WILL to do the work.  This means  determining what you and your company do best and making the commitment to seeking out those companies that need what you do best and selling them.

This might be simplistic but in our estimation too few business owners see their business in this context.  The power of an individual’s WILL is an incredible force!  When that force is combined with the commitment of management and the “buy in” of a sales force magic can happen.  We have seen this magic happen many times in companies of every size and the stuff that makes it happen is as simple as the decision to exercise one’s WILL to start the process of defining both your company’s capabilities and the market that needs these capabilities.  Recognize and mentor this WILL in your people and sales force and the magic will happen.

We are having great success teaching and implementing these methods and our clients love it!

I think we have a handle on the “implementation” phase of the Strategic Plan and have recognized that resource allocation is crucial to the successful “implementation” of the Strategic Plan. But where does one start in the development of the Strategic Plan?

There are many schools of thought and most of these are complicated, complex and very time consuming.  We, at Strategen, believe that “simple is better” from a draft and “implementation” stand point and we have drafted and implemented many successful Strategic Plans. If simple is better, where do we start?

We start with a Strategic statement of what we sell.  This must be stated in one to two sentences and be clearly stated and agreed to by all the key people whom will be charged with “implementation.”  Sounds simple, right?  Well it’s not and that’s where the fun starts.

We are having great success teaching and implementing these methods and our clients love it!

Last month’s discussion was focused on the rules and how they have changed.  This month we will focus on what we do to address these changes.

If all the rules have changed then we have to change.  What was working is not and will not work in today’s market.  There are MORE companies seeking LESS market.  If this is true then we either have to be better, faster and stronger or we need to develop new markets.  This is not the environment in which most of today’s business people can function.

Today’s markets and the new markets that your company may need to develop require commitment, focus and WILL!  The WILL to do the work and determine what it is that you do best  and commit to doing it to as many as you can.  This sounds simple but in practice the ability to commit and be proactive is in short supply.

We are having great success teaching and implementing these methods and our clients love it!

It used to be, just last year it seems, that there were rules; rules that governed how business was conducted, how we won business and how we lost business.  Well all the rules are gone or have changed.

It use to be, just last year, if we were the lowest price we won and if we were high we lost.  It used to be, just last year it seems, that if we quoted enough we would get the business we needed to hit our profit targets.  It used to be that the phone was ringing off the hook and we had trouble keeping up with quotation requests.  Well not anymore.  The rules have changed and most of us are not in the loop.

The companies that are increasing business and market share are those who understand and can communicate value.  They are target marketers and develop and execute market/business plans that capitalize on these bits of knowledge and do it with excellence and junk yard dog tenacity.

We are having great success teaching and implementing these methods and our clients love it!

Doing business in today’s business climate is making many people take another look at how they sell. It is almost like the clock is being turned back 20 to 30 years.

People who are using “today’s” traditional methods such as emails, websites, trade shows, trade journals and “one way” direct mail and then waiting for the phone to ring are finding: the phone isn’t ringing and business stinks.  Many of these people are struggling to stay in business!

One fundamental that has not changed with the internet and all the “new” methods is that “people buy from people they know, like and trust” and this cannot be achieved by waiting for the phone to ring.

Today’s sales people do not know how to prospect and develop business and if they do they resist it because it is “too much work”.  It is hard work, but necessary, and it pays off.

We are having great success teaching and implementing “old” prospecting and business development methods and our clients love it!

But the question remains…if we must be known, liked and trusted in order for people/prospects/customers to buy from us, how do we make this happen?

The answer is developing and implementing proactive market strategies focused on developing new relationships and improving existing relationships.  It’s ALL about relationships and we cannot develop these all important relationships sitting in our offices waiting for the phone to ring, going to trade shows, and advertising in trade journals.  These are the “old” ways, let us show you the “new” ways.