The Most Important Secret of Sales

Every business owner and salesperson wants to close more deals.  Every MonaVie Distributor wants to enroll more people onto his/her team.  Is it our Read more

How To Say Thank You When Someone Refers You Business

The mark of every good business person is their inherent trait to reward those who refer them business.  When someone refers you a potential customer, prospect, or important contact by all means show Read more

7 Business Networking Tips

1) Prior to attending any business networking event practice your brief (preferably 30-60 second) pitch of what products and services you offer to others.  It wouldn’t be a bad idea Read more

When Calling Someone Ask If They Are Free To Talk

When was the last time someone called you and as you said, “hello” they proceeded immediately to convey their message (and sometimes a very long one)?  When it comes to good professional business etiquette, it is sometimes a great idea to clear the receiver’s availability for conversation before proceeding with your agenda.  This communicates that you, the caller, understand and respect the other professional’s most precious resource, TIME.  I can remember when someone called me and upon answering, they began to chatter away while I, the receiver, had my primary attention on the task at hand.  A good approach and remedy to this for the caller may go something like:

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• “Hi Joy, this is _______, am I catching you at a good time?”
• “Hi Ricardo, you busy?”
• “What’s up Bobby!  Can you talk right now?”
• “Mr. Zagat, I’m calling in regards to the Preston File.  Is this a good time to speak with you?”

As you think about the nature of a phone call correspondence you may be saying to yourself, “well, if they pick up the phone they must be able to talk.”  This is true, to an extent.  However, as many professional and courteous people on the other end of the call sometimes do, they answer to let you know they are there for you, but will need to call back when they are finished with their current activity.  The odds are pretty darn good that more people will appreciate this simple gesture and be more inclined to listen intently when they are ready to.

How to Get Voicemail Messages Returned

How often does your prospective client/customer return your voicemail?  For the most part, it’s deleted long before they give it a second thought.  In fact, in a recent survey of 1000 participants, 90%+ keep their finger ready at the whim for the DELETE button!

Does this sound familiar?

• Hello Mr / Ms __. This is (your name) with (your company / Monavie)
• We  (fill in the blank with how great your product and your company are?)
• Our offering is (let’s not get too into ourselves)
• I’d “like” to get together to show you how my company can a help/provide _______
• I’d be glad to meet at your earliest convenience.
• You can reach me at ___________

Does this work?  10 to 1 odds that the majority of the time it does not!  Let’s not kid ourselves, the 21st century and economic changes have CHANGED the customs we were accustomed to!

“PLEASE LEAVE ME A COMPELLING MESSAGE MY FRIEND”

To be worth calling back you must leave a different type of message - one that focuses on their wants/needs/issues and addresses a possible solution or way to help with priority and urgency.  This type of message requires careful consideration and study of your prospect usually and is not done at the WHIM of a moment.

Here are five IDEAS you can use to increase the probability your voicemails will be returned:

1. REFERENCE YOUR RESEARCH

Do you know how few sellers actually invest time studying their clients before placing a call? Very few. You’ll immediately set yourself apart if you mention it in your voicemail.

You might say:

• “We’ve looked into your company’s business and, I believe / noticed that …”

• “In reviewing the nature of your company’s business interests from your website and literature we______”

You should as often as possible do this research prior to contacting prior to reconnecting with a big company or prospect

2. State Your Strong Value Proposition with Confidence!

Powerful value propositions focus on the business outcomes companies or prospects get from joining your business or using your products or services.  Citing measurable and and potential results can be hugely compelling.

Value Proposition Examples:

• We have several distributors and/or customers after using the Monavie product have noticed significant improvement in their energy levels, sleep patterns and overall better health.”

• “After partnering with our company, the average retail clients see sales conversion ratios increases 15%-21% while their subscriber / auto-ship retention have increased 25%-30%”

Prospective clients, customers and potential Monavie distributors are enticed by STRONG VALUE PROPOSITIONS  because they address critical issues AND demonstrate immense value.  To increase your credibility try citing examples related to their personal concerns or company background.

*This article was contributed by a Monavie distributor with significant experience in field sales training and prospect/client relationship management

Throwing Dinner Parties and Social Gatherings

One of the best ways to develop great friendships and connections is with dinner parties or social gatherings with food and beverage.  In today’s world the art of such a function seems almost a thing of the past to more and more people.  How often do we get invited to such an event? 

It’s easy to pass on a business or professional appointment at times, but when it comes down to it - a social gathering based around having a great time with friends and meeting people seems to earn far more enthusiasm and fond memory.  It also often develops fantastic future business opportunity and contacts.

The problem can be the costs of having one.  Do not worry, there are plenty of ways to have a dinner party and not go overboard.
 

One idea is to have the guests provide most of the food or drink such as a potluck.  There are pros and cons to this.  Pro is you can save a lot of money.  Con is if guests must bring their own food or drink you can be viewed as cheap to those who are not accustomed to it.  And we know how that goes in the world of personal and professional relationships. However, for many people such a party style is perfectly acceptable and enjoyable too. 

Your party may or may not include alcoholic refreshments.  This is a good approach if you are on a tight budget.  One possibility is you provide the atmosphere and food while guests bring wine or beer.

Your other option is to throw a dinner party where no one is required to bring food or drink.  In this scenario choose your menu items very carefully (pasta is one great inexpensive option), as well as your guest list.  You can either cook the food yourself or decide to pick up something simple from the deli at your preferred grocery store..  You don’t have to go super fancy as it can be as simple as an afternoon BBQ  menu selection of  burgers, salads and simple refreshments.

The goal of a dinner party / social gathering is really up to you.  It is highly recommended though that you make it more socially themed and let business develop on it’s own naturally!

6 Steps to Proper Business Email Etiquette

While most people understand the importance of following certain rules when writing a business letter, they often forget these rules when composing an email message. Here’s a refresher to keep things safer:

Step 1

Reply promptly. Everyone loves a fast response to their email.  It makes them feel important.   Isn’t that one of the major aspects of an Email–a quick, timely way of communicating?  It’s a good idea to reply to emails ASAP or at least within 24 hours of receipt. If you are away for prolonged periods use and auto email responder such as a vacation response built into many email systems.

Step 2

Please personally address the person you are emailing by name.  It captures their attention far more.

Step 3

Whatever you do, before sending your mail, use spell check, proper grammar and punctuation!  Give your email a draft read to ensure proper content.

Step 4

Add a subject. Make sure it is meaningful to the reason why the email is being sent. Avoid forwarding whenever possible.  Forwarding can make a person feel less important or even part of a chain email with no personality.

Step 5

Everyone loves a smiley jack or happy face, especially in person.  When it comes to professional emails, use them cautiously.  On the same token, be sure not to use sarcasm or dry humor in email.  It is best to assume the other person may not understand correctly.

Step 6

Always include the previous correspondence in your responses.

Relationship Building Conversational Topics

When I meet someone new who I am trying to get to know I make it a point to find out what motivates them.  It usually boils down to one of three things: making money, finding love or changing the world.  Many people upon reading this may laugh.  The revelation may be a nuance to some, but try it!

How do two people who have never met or have hardly conversed engagingly shorten the distance between stranger and friend?   One of the answers in my opinion is to talk about what matters most to the other person.  More specifically, matters of one’s heart and emotions.  The most successful relationship builders are without doubt a therapist-like expert on finances, love and good deeds!

When I meet someone upon introduction, in a business setting, I do what I can to inquire about their professional interests and what they enjoy most about it.  Almost invariably, if I am listening intently, they will mention a connection somehow to more in-depth money making stories/opportunities,  their family / significant other or a cause/organization which they feel strongly passionate about.  At this point if the situation permits, I often like to dive a little deeper and add a follow up question or positive comment.

If the conversation is going well there will be an almost rhythmic flow between us.  This often includes genuine intuitive interests from each other, similar body language, mutual laughs, eye contact and an overall good time.

Being a connector, a friend, a great relationship advocate, is what many would agree, a philosophy of life, a cultural world-view that resonates beyond the mundane.  I love spending time with friends at summer BBQ’s and morning coffee at the local hot spots.  If my conversation with someone new can resemble such intimate moments, I think I would be doing well!

The Art of Small Talk

Small talk, the talk between two people who have never met or do not know each other - can be one of the most opportunistic moments.  Your goal should be simple: start the conversation, keep it going, listen more than you talk, and create a bond which should leave the other person thinking, “that was a pretty cool person.  I wouldn’t mind hearing from them again.”

There are a multitude of books and “professionals” who set parameters of what NOT to say, such as overly personal or highly debatable issues.  These are excellent guidelines to follow for a boring and unmemorable interaction.

Be as personal and different as possible!  In fact, being yourself, being sincere, being the way you would be among a close circle of trusted friends works far better wonders.  In my experience, the world today appreciates transparency, authenticity and the sharing of information.

As we walk into future chance opportunity meetings in life we can participate in shallow conversation or we can invest a little of ourselves and vulnerability to show another our humanistic side.  In the end, people remember REAL PEOPLE…

Don’t Be Afraid to Fail!

Thomas Edison had ten thousand failures before he invented the incandescent light bulb.  Colonel Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken received more than 1000 no’s before his big break in receiving  a YES to market his recipe for success.  The rest of the story to these two legends is…history!

So it goes without saying, what’s holding us back?  When was the last time we failed 10,000 experiments or inventions?  When was the last time we received 1000 no’s sharing the MonaVie opportunity before the BIG YES?  If we study baseball’s greatest hitters, such as Babe Ruth, or Basketball’s greatest scores such as Michael Jordan, we shall find that they often missed/failed more than most others, yet their victories are what is written in the annals of history today.

Dr. Louis E. Bisch, one of the nation’s most renowned psychiatrist wrote: “Cultivate a little the don’t-care habit; don’t worry what people may think.  This will endear you to others and make you liked and loved all the more.”

Success in many fields is a numbers game.  If we make 10 presentations and succeed with only one, that’s a 10% conversion ratio - than may one dare to say to close 10 enrollments/transactions/deals to just up the attempts to 100?  Whatever your success rate or conversion ratio may be,  tracking your results is a great way to monitor and adjust your course.

One who has never failed has not really ever succeeded…

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