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execution Tagged Articles

Visionary, Salesman and Pragmatist Model of Business Success
Josh Kaufman has posted an article, Are You an Implementor or an Enabler? where he posits that businesses revolve around two complementary skill sets. Here I offer an alternative, hopefully more complete model of what roles are necessary for business success.

Take Control and Increase Growth – Article 3

The purpose of this article is to help business owners understand the key daily decisions that influence dependence on external funding and either limit or expand the growth potential of a business. There are essentially 4 decisions: 1. cash; 2. people; 3. strategy; and 4. execution. This article (#3) addresses strategy, which is the primary driver of growth. If you are not growing in the top tier of your industry segment you have a strategy problem. In this article are ideas to help you develop your strategy.

Take Control and Increase Growth - Article 1 of 4
The purpose of this article is to help business owners understand the key daily decisions that influence dependence on external funding and either limit or expand the growth potential of a business. There are essentially 4 decisions: 1. cash; 2. people; 3. strategy; and 4. execution. Article 1 of 4 will focus on cash.

Take Control and Increase Growth Article 2 of 4

The purpose of this article is to help business owners understand the key daily decisions that influence dependence on external funding and either limit or expand the growth potential of a business. There are essentially 4 decisions: 1) cash; 2) people; 3) strategy; and 4) execution. This article (#2) addresses how your decisions about people affect growth and identifies 6 ideas for growing your business.

12 Steps to Implementing Anything in Your Business: Step One: Take Responsibility

The underlying assumption for my framework for execution is that you, as the business owner actually want to increase your sales and profits, and if that is indeed is the case then you need to take full responsibility for making that happen. If you are a manager reading this then you are been paid by the business owner to maximize sales and profits. This means that you have the responsibility for its success, you have to look ahead, anticipate what can happen and take action before the fact to deal with it. You cannot wait, deflect, or sidestep any issue or issues

12 Steps to Implementing Anything in Your Business: Step Seven: Make Demands Effectively
Successful execution requires making demands in ways that generate productive responses. You will really need to call on your demand making capabilities during the hard work of caring out your implementation plan. That is when the forces of complexity, inertia, diversion, and even opposition assert themselves and the strengths of your leadership as a business owner or manager are heavily tested.

12 Steps to Implementing Anything in Your Business: Step Eight: Follow Up...Follow Up...Follow Up!

Getting something implemented in your business is a lot like moving a huge round boulder, it takes a lot of heavy pushing to get it going, but once it is moving it only takes the lightest touch to keep it momentum going. If you have followed the previous steps, you have already done the heavy pushing to get the implementation and execution of your project underway, now it just takes a light touch to keep it going.

Accountability - The Secret Ingredients for Execution

We all "Talk the Talk". We understand that we must introduce accountability into the organization if we have any hope of achieving our objectives. Yet, many companies struggle, some unknowingly, with this concept for many different reasons. Long term employees can become complacent, competencies can be limited, a free pass is sometimes given for a variety of reasons and the "Peter Principle" is still alive and in existence today; Promoting people beyond their ability to perform. That's not to say that many employees, often the majority, understand the concept and want to be held accountable. But, what about those that don't?

Implementing Change: People Hold the Key to Success

Why do the results of even good plans and strategies sometimes fall short of our expectations in the execution? Because we make the mistake of focusing solely on strategy and planning. In fact, that is thinking about change, not "implementing" change. The implementation can be far more difficult than the planning. The reason: people. People have different reactions and points of view, different interests and needs. People decide whether to help, hinder or ignore any change initiative. They spell success or failure for any plan.

Start an Execution Revolution: Five Ways Leaders Get Results
Leaders need more than vision and strategy to get results. If an organization can’t execute, nothing else matters. A recent survey found that companies and leaders that consistently deliver results use five actions to close the execution gap.

Idea Versus Execution
An article that addresses the common issues of "idea versus execution" and getting the credit you deserve. This article is partially a response to the Tech Crunch article, "If Execution is What Matters, Where Does That Leave Ideas?"

Lesson #3: The Essential Lies in the Execution
When Huizenga was asked what he thought was more important in creating a successful company – the idea or the execution – he did not hesitate for a second to respond: “The execution, because there are many great ideas, but you must be able to execute to succeed.”

Creating a String of Blockbusters: How Huizenga Achieved Success
“My father always said working for somebody else never amounted to anything,” Huizenga once said. “You have to be an entrepreneur.”

Wayne Huizenga Quotes
Wayne Huizenga Quotes

Can you describe the strategy for your business growth in 6 words?
Most strategies fail to get executed because the folk charged with execution don't understand the strategy or it has not been personalised sufficiently for them to take appropriate action. Being able to describe our strategy succinctly increases the likelihood of buy-in and personalisation.

The Not-To-Do List: 9 Habits to Stop Now

“Not-to-do” lists are often more effective than to-do lists for upgrading performance. The reason is simple: what you don’t do determines what you can do. Here are nine stressful and common habits that entrepreneurs and office workers should strive to eliminate. The bullets are followed by more detailed descriptions. Focus on one or two at a time, just as you would with high-priority to-do items. I’ve worded them in no-to-do action form:

Gift certificates for referral
Sending gift certificates, good towards the purchase of your products and, yes, services too, can be a great way to stimulate additional purchases.

Go, Coach!
I must admit that, though a fanatic football fan, I find that most coaches' books leave me cold. Not so the recent offering from legendary Michigan coach Bo Schembechler: Bo's Lasting Lessons (with John Bacon).

Read It Anyway!
I really dislike the recently released Jacked Up: The Inside Story of How Jack Welch Talked GE into Becoming the World's Greatest Company. I put it down several times. I threw it down several times.

The 19Es of Excellence
Today's joyous commemoration of the birth of Dr Martin Luther King Jr and tomorrow's unique show of peaceful American renewal and celebration of limitless American possibility got me thinking about Excellence—no surprise. Out of which came these "19 Es of Excellence."

Execution Meltdown: Four Key Failures that Sank BP
Though the worst oil spill in history resulted from many contributing factors, they can all be summed up in one big problem for BP-lack of execution. What exactly went wrong and what can other companies learn from BP’s failures.

The Execution Solution: Five Trade Secrets of Leaders and Companies That Consistently Get Things Done
What differentiates the results-getters from the can’t-get-it-done-ers? It’s not strategy or vision or quality or any of the other usual suspects. It is five research-based “bridges” that set companies up for success.

Execution All-Stars: Five Famous Companies That Bridged the Execution Gap (and How They Did It)

Ever wonder why some companies consistently meet their goals and others don’t? So did I. And when my consulting firm conducted a study of 400 companies, we found some answers. We discovered that there are five factors that set apart the organizations with the best performance results and those more effective at execution. I think of them as ‘The Five Bridges’ because they help companies close the gap between strategy and execution.” To see what the bridges look like in action, let’s look at a handful of well-known companies that execute exceptionally well.

The Golden Thread: Linking Strategy to Execution
Detailed operational planning has to relate corporate strategy with the operations of the enterprise at the initiative level and below that at the project level. This Method Frameworks article describes ways to inject operational planning into the strategic planning process and string the “golden thread” through all of the execution loop-holes.

A Bridge Builders “Cheat Sheet”: Tips & Tricks to Help You Traverse the Execution Gap

My research has found “Five Bridges” that enable a company to execute well. But how do you go about building them? First, you get comfortable with the fact that it’s a never-ending process. Then, you put certain time-tested tools and techniques in place and implement them relentlessly. Here, excerpted from Closing the Execution Gap, are some of my favorite tricks of the trade for getting these bridges underway.

Mental Toughness=Profits and Success Today

All sizes and shapes of companies are focused on survival in what Tom Peters calls our “Looney” times today. And, I have focused a lot on survival strategies with my clients. However, strategies, tactics, methods, and techniques are not the total answer. My thinking about survival in our recession has been profoundly influenced by a book called "Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why" by Laurence Gonzales. It's a book that chronicles incredible stories of survival in plane crashes, getting lost at sea, surviving in Arctic temperatures for weeks, etc. And one theme comes through like a beacon. It is not the physically strong that survive. Surviving [and profiting from this recession] all starts with a single decision.

How Good is 99 Percent?

How many times have you heard the expression: "good enough for government work?" Too often I am sure. Sometimes it may even apply to your business or other activities. Of course, that is not your standard of excellence. Most of the time you strive for better than 90 percent perfection, don't you? What if we strived for 99 percent? Sounds good, doesn't it? No more than one error in a hundred. But how good is that really?

Why Do Business Strategies Fail?
A survey of senior executives at 197 companies showed that firms achieve only 63% of the expected results of their strategic plans. The key reason – they don’t know how to execute effectively. Without effective execution, no business strategy can succeed. Unfortunately, many managers know far more about developing strategy than about executing it …

7 Ways to Test Your Strategic Planning Approach
Evaluate your corporate strategic planning approach using these 7 tests to determine if yours is as good as it should be.

Qualities of an Effective Corporate Strategic Planning Process
Corporate strategic planning is intended to provide both the direction (strategy) and the actions (execution) needed to achieve strategic goals. The combination of smart strategy and successful execution is the hallmark of a great planning process. Does your planning process have the qualities to translate strategy into successful business execution?

How To Succeed In Your Start-Up Business
Learn how others have succeeded in their start-up businesses. read about the keys to entrepreneuria; success of others. Find three keys that enhance success in difficult start-up situations.

Execution - The Power of Getting Things Done.
The biggest frustration in life is - all talk and no action. We are all goal setting machines and like to know we are making progress. Maximum progress is directly proportional little to no frustration

Preparing for Sales Training - Becoming Change Ready
I just took a talented group of salespeople through three days of training. Perhaps you've been in a situation just like that at some point. There are several ways this group can approach integration, application and execution at the end of the training.

6 Reasons Your Small Business Needs a Public Relations Campaign
Discover six important reasons your small business needs to engage in a public relations campaign.

Incorporating Social Media into Traditional Marketing

It has been suggested by social media enthusiasts that by using it, businesses no longer need what is known as traditional marketing tools, i.e. business cards, web sites, etc. I believe incorporating social media into traditional marketing will enhance the ‘brick and mortar’ of traditional marketing. People still need business cards for face-to-face meetings, web sites provide essential company information and services provided. People want/expect more than a sales pitch in a tweet to encourage them to use your services.

HR's Challenge for the Recovery!

As many companies think out strategies in response to the recent recessionary downturn, and its anticipated effect on them, HR's role in their corporation's activities must change. To help companies thrive, HR must work to lower workforce related costs and increase productivity. To improve business performance over the longer term, HR must revamp and realign its functional contributions, and its services, in order to seize the opportunities created by the economic recovery.

Long Live Profit Sellling
Successful enterprises will focus on their bottom line through a combination of profit selling and cost cutting while relentlessly driving extraordinary value to selected customers.

Making Leadership Stick

Personal and professional growth is not a sure thing process. In order to discover things about yourself or about how the business works, you must be allowed to “experiment”, and the leader who is always telling people what to do misses out on a very important part of the whole growth cycle. It’s been said that success is a poor teacher, and in the area of growth, if you are always winning, how can you know what real success tastes like if you haven’t tasted any sort of failure.

Fear of Authenticity
Since the earliest days of human culture some have sought to control the minds of others. Methods have progressed, but the objective remains the same - obedience and conformity.

The 2010 Execution Round-Up: Six Companies That Couldn’t “Get It Done” This Year (and Two That Did)
No doubt about it: 2010 saw its share of losers (and the occasional winner) in the business arena. Here are a few of this year’s headline makers and the lessons that can be learned from each of them.

DO SOMETHING!
Lack of confidence throughout an organization immobilizes and discourages, diverting energy from important tasks and wasting time and resources. To create the burning desire to win leaders must mobilize and engage the organization.

How Focus Helps Sales Management Effectiveness
In a strong economy just showing up to play is enough to achieve your sales objectives. In today’s economic environment sales leaders are facing sales force downsizing and poor sales rep morale. Sales reps are frustrated by longer sales cycles, dropping demand, unrealistic quotas, concerns about declining income and losing their jobs.

How True Leaders Execute Plans Without Fail & Celebrate Their Victories
Execution is everything; it separates those with lofty ideas from those who end up winning the game…plan & dream, then turn that key or you've accomplished nothing.

How To Think Yourself Rich and "Make Money Online"
Are you thinking yourself Rich? Learn secrets on how to increase your wealth and success.

Create your ‘Ideal’ sales force blueprint
Now is the time to rethink your sales strategy and your sales force. Design the sales force your business needs and get great results. To help you start your thinking and planning here are two case studies from our work files where the businesses got it right.

Personal Branding From The King of Pop
Yesterday, the world heard the bizarre news that Michael Jackson, the self-proclaimed King of Pop, had died. Talk about a strong personal brand. Here's a guy who was absolutely unique-unlike anyone else. You may love him, you may hate him, but one thing is certain: you know him. You understand who he was, what he has done, what he stood for and what he was all about.

If It Doesn’t Hurt, I Must Be Doing It Wrong
Are your prospects hanging up on you? Saying they’re “not interested,” they “have a vendor” or “send me some information we’ll call if we need you?” Does prospecting hurt?

The Power of a Blank Whiteboard

Unfortunately for many companies, people don't usually respond well to change. Anything but. I wish we could embrace the opportunity to evolve processes and thinking and behaviors - but often we don't. Especially in tough times - when the company environment is probably already tense and constricted. When things get tense, people tend to hang on to what they know, as a touchstone for the status quo - which is known and safe, even if it does mean a downhill slide. Hanging onto 'the way we've always done it' is one of the most common challenges I encounter in my clients.

People Are Not the Problem: Eight Tips to Effectively Manage Change
OnPoint’s annual Execution Gap Survey indicates that while managing change is still a challenge for many leaders, some leaders have discovered how to do it right

No Time To Plan
Planning is key to long-term success. Some say there is no time to plan, but I beg to differ.

Should you outsource sales management – the key considerations
No matter how great your product or service is, if you don't have people using and buying what you produce, you go out of business. So how do you set up an efficient sales and marketing machine, on a limited budget? Do you have experience in sales management? Would you know how to maximize the potential of a good sales person?

The Importance of Directors
This article focuses on the importance of directors in closely-held companies. It discusses the factors that should be considered in selecting a director. The article explains how effective directors can help the management team.

Executing a strategic plan requires heavy lifting
The importance of executing a strategy to achieve a goal

The Laws of Execution - How to Systematically Get Things Done - Five Part Series - Part One

SERIES PART ONE: Too often we talk about habits and changes that need to be made in our lives and careers, but the corrective actions to be executed die at the discussion table where they began. Nothing is accomplished and the circle of frustration continues with little positive results. How do we change this? It all starts and ends with you. . Start with these practical ways of creating systems to begin closing the gap towards the person you want to be:

The Laws of Execution - How to Systematically Get Things Done - Five Part Series - Part Two

SERIES PART TWO: Too often we talk about habits and changes that need to be made in our lives and careers, but the corrective actions to be executed die at the discussion table where they began. Nothing is accomplished and the circle of frustration continues with little positive results. How do we change this? It all starts and ends with you. . Start with these practical ways of creating systems to begin closing the gap towards the person you want to be:

The Laws of Execution - How to Systematically Get Things Done - Five Part Series - Part Three

SERIES PART THREE: Too often we talk about habits and changes that need to be made in our lives and careers, but the corrective actions to be executed die at the discussion table where they began. Nothing is accomplished and the circle of frustration continues with little positive results. How do we change this? It all starts and ends with you. . Start with these practical ways of creating systems to begin closing the gap towards the person you want to be:

The Laws of Execution - How to Systematically Get Things Done - Five Part Series - Part Four

SERIES PART FOUR: Too often we talk about habits and changes that need to be made in our lives and careers, but the corrective actions to be executed die at the discussion table where they began. Nothing is accomplished and the circle of frustration continues with little positive results. How do we change this? It all starts and ends with you. . Start with these practical ways of creating systems to begin closing the gap towards the person you want to be:

The Laws of Execution - How to Systematically Get Things Done - Five Part Series - Part Five

SERIES PART FIVE: Too often we talk about habits and changes that need to be made in our lives and careers, but the corrective actions to be executed die at the discussion table where they began. Nothing is accomplished and the circle of frustration continues with little positive results. How do we change this? It all starts and ends with you. . Start with these practical ways of creating systems to begin closing the gap towards the person you want to be:

A SIMPLE Explanation Of How Computers Work

A computer is a machine that is able to perform calculations and make logical decisions automatically by following a list of instructions called a "program." The numbers used in the calculations are called "data." Both the program instructions and the data are coded using a "binary" code with only two digits - 0 and 1. Inside the computer each digit or "bit" is represented by an electric current that is either on or off, or a magnetic polarity that is either north or south. A data or program file is actually just a coded sequence of 0's and 1's represented by magnetised spots on the surface of a disk.

Win More Sales By Thinking Like a NFL Team
Yes, winning in sales and in sports obviously have a lot in common. However, a recent statistic may provide even greater insight in that you may need to start thinking like a NFL team.

Leading In A Down Economy - Crisis Or Opportunity
Yes, most often the buck does stop with you the leader when it comes down to the big or final decisions; however, using your best organizational talent can “turn your crisis into their opportunity.” What keeps you up at night can keep them up at night and this can be a good thing.

How to Sell More Effectively in a Recession
How can you sell more effectively in this economy? You'll need to perform some self-diagnostics. If you use Sales Force Automation of some kind, perhaps a report like the one in figure 1.0 below is available to you.

Complexity: The Execution Challenge You Don't See

Complexity lies in every aspect of strategic planning and it is a concept that needs to be clearly understood in order to anticipate and overcome execution challenges. We live in a highly complex world and - for the most part - we cannot comprehend the intricate concepts needed for strategic planning. With outside management consulting, companies often see that it is easier to understand the complex architecture of cause and effect.

Implementation vs. Execution
Sales leaders need to understand and appreciate that words count, and using the wrong words or using words inappropriately will lead to same results: wrong and/or inappropriate. Using the right words will help their teams achieve the desired results and improve execution.

Time To Swap Rituals
Sales people and their managers spend too much time performing the wrong rituals for the wrong reasons. Instead of focusing on closing the last week of the month or quarter, they just need to switch rituals and focus on adding new opportunities every day. This will allow them to always be closing something based on what they have already started.

Take Action And Ensure Your Career Is Successful
Success in any entrepreneurial endeavour is conditional on a simple truth: Learning does not always require thinking. Actually, thinking often hinders learning. Hinders learning?

Analysis Paralysis
If you are finding it hard to make decisions that will move your business forward, you could be suffering from "analysis paralysis." Use the tips discussed in this article to break free and gain the momentum you need to grow.

How Great Leaders and Their Companies Get Results Every Time
If an organization cannot effectively execute, nothing else matters. Despite the importance of execution to business success, OnPoint Consulting’s Annual Pulse Survey found that 37% of leaders believe there is a gap between their organization’s ability to develop a strategy and its ability to execute that strategy. And, even more surprising, 62% lack confidence that the gap can be closed.

To Go or No Go That Is The Question
Many entrepreneurs would rather have their front teeth pulled without anesthetic than go to the time and trouble of creating a feasibility plan; often because they are afraid of what it will reveal

How Good Is Your Big Idea
Every business idea, no matter how good it sounds while bouncing around inside your head, should be put to the test before you invest time and money into its execution. Success lies not in what you think of your idea, but what the buying public will think. Many entrepreneurs find out too late that the public’s opinion of their idea differs greatly from their own.

Stress-Free Selling® - How to Make it About Them

You've heard a million times by now to make your sales About Them. But how do you do that???? Here's one easy way how. Take a look at a recent letter or proposal you wrote. Count how many times you wrote "I" or "we." Now count how many times you wrote "you" and "your." If you're like most people, there are ten times more "I's" and "we's" as there are "you's" and "your's." Reverse that! When you write in "I" terms, you write about yourself.

All the Truth about Business Coaching
Demand for Business Coaching has been soaring in the last few years. Hundreds of entrepreneurs and executives of large corporations contract business coaches with the objective to reach higher levels of business performance. This article provides details about the Business Coaching methodology, areas of application and guidelines to select the best coach.

GIT R DONE: EXECUTING YOUR LEAD GENERATION PLAN

By Mike Schultz Question: On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being "always" and 5 being "never", how often do you stick to project schedules and keep commitments you make to clients? I'm guessing that most of you would give yourself a 1 (or a 2). Of course you make commitments and keep them. What kind of professional would you be if you didn't? (I don't know about you, but many a service provider has made commitments to me and not kept them. A topic for another time...)

Make Time for Sales`
The SBA states that 90% of all businesses fail in their first 5 years. They can blame it on location, credit, competitors, economy-- but the real reason is not enough business. Business owners wear many hats and can easily make excuses for being busy. But they must focus on that top line, or little will make it to the bottom.

Smart Women Rarely Hallucinate
Since the beginning of the New Year I’ve been writing about taking risks, realizing your dreams and goals, and taking inspired action on your big idea. I’ve been expressing the idea that you need to create the space in your life to explore and discover what’s next in your life’s journey.

The Newest Way to Expand Your Copywriting Business
The Newest Way to “Expand” Your Copywriting Business - Will Newman explains how offering more services can land you more clients.

Just Get STARTED!
One day at a time, step by step, do what you can and repeat it until you reach the top of the mountain, until that wonderful day when your friends wake up and are amazed at how "lucky" you are!

Three Secrets To Becoming The Employee Companies Strive To Keep
In today’s market everyone seems to be worried. Worried about finding a job, worried about keeping a job, and worried about how to get ahead in an already overcrowded market. Unemployment rates are at an all time high, more new businesses are failing and the economic outlook changes so often that to call it uncertain seems like an understatement.

Integrating Your Multi-Channel Marketing Approach
This article provides some insight on how to effectively utilize the many different channels available to us to promote our businesses. The key is balance -- and really getting a good understanding of your customers.

Preparing for 2008
I haven't coded or blogged as much as I'd like to over the past few weeks because I've been working on ou strategy for 2008. I never really new hwo difficult or demanding it would be until when I decided to sit down and really assess when,how,why, and what I'm going to do for the next 12 months. The key resounding themes in everything I'm doing are:

What’s On the Minds of Leaders Today?
In today’s economic climate, executives are focused on regaining their post-recession footing, keeping employees engaged, and enhancing customer relationships. Although all of these issues are critical, in order to address them, there is really only one question that warrants attention: Did the company effectively execute its plans and initiatives?

Branding & Marketing Defined, and how to fuse them together for maximum results
Simply put, your “brand” or corporate image is the impression formed at every point of contact with your prospects and clients.

3 Localized Ideas for African Web Developers
There is a group of Kenyan techies, called Skunkworks, that talk on a Skype channel regularly. It’s an interesting mix of developers who share news and talk passionately about the potential of the web and mobile market in Kenya. In our conversation last week, the discussion of local content for specific regions kept popping up.

What\'s An Opinion, Anyway?
A client called me recently with what she said might sound like an odd request. "I need your 'opinion,'" she said, "and it has to be in writing. Can you do that? And what does that mean, anyway?" After reassuring her that it was not an odd request and that not only could I do it, I would, I gave her an explanation...

The 2011 Execution Round-Up: Six Organizations That Couldn’t “Get It Done” This Year
It’s that time of year when business owners and senior executives take stock of the past twelve months. What did 2011 look like for you and your company? The questions you could ask during your year-end assessment are endless. But, there’s only one that really matters: Did your company effectively execute its plans and initiatives?

Brother can you Spare a Sale?
Sometimes you have to look beyond sales and to unexpected sources to figure out what you have to do to succeed in sales; so be it if it can make a real difference.

Sales and the City
What kind of relationships is your sales approach creating? One night stands, or long-term productive partnerships. Learn to consistently create the latter. If you're a sales person, whose only relationship is with their commission, rather than your clients. You should consider a more meaningful, long-term and rewarding (financial and otherwise) sales relationship.

Management by Osmosis

Sales Managers are a critical part of any sales organization and by extension, the entire enterprise. Selecting the right manger and providing them with the tools and skills necessary to succeed are vital, and sadly too often mismanaged. Avoiding this costly error should be the most important mission for senior executives in a sales organization, it should be hands-on and practical, not passive and emotional.

As in the Movies, in Sales, the Closing Isn’t Everything
A good movie has a number of elements similar to good sales. As the director, you have to plan, manage, and execute the sale in a way that builds to a mutually satistfying ending.

Understand Pipeline Management for Stronger Forecasts
Having clear definitions around your sales, and sales stages help one sell better, organizations plan and use resources more efficiently, and most importantly win more sales and happy customers. Taking the time to define and understand the difference between forecasts, pipeline, prospects and more, pays continuous dividends.

Thoughts For Incentives

Incentives are one of the greatest challenges most sales organizations face. While many start with the age old adage that "incentives drive behavior," they still find it difficult achieving a plan that drives business. One of the core challenges is that many organizations do not clearly define the behavior that they are truly trying to drive. While it is easy enough to say you want your incentive plan to drive sales, sales are not a behavior, they are an outcome.

Resolve to Commit
Each year starts out with resolutions and plans to change the way we do things. Well it takes more than just hopes and wishes. You have to resolve to commit and then execute with every action.

How much is too many?
There is a big difference between being persistent and being an unprofessional badger. Make sure you don't fall to either extreme why doing your job.

Working Backwards From Your Goal To Get Ahead

It is always interesting when you sit with a group of sales people and the subject turns to sports. No matter what the sport, there is the inevitable talk of the leaders and their potential accomplishments over the course of the season. The athlete’s numbers are dissected and analyzed from all angles, usually in connection with a pool or a wager. Like athletes, sales professionals need to track their stats if they want to consistently outperform. How many at bats? Or better yet how many appointments did you have this year, and how is that versus last year? Is that number of appointments adequate to get you to your goal?

What's Your Value Proposition?
It is one thing to propose value to a client, and perhaps they may buy from you, a vendor. But to become a partner you have to become a source of vale, to do that you have to mutually build it with your client.

Five Proven Ways to Get More Appointments

This time of year you see a lot of surveys about sales, views of sales leaders and their goals for the year ahead. One consistent theme is the need for more prospecting both within existing accounts and for new clients. This can not be accomplished without getting appointments, probably the least liked activity for all sales people, veteran or new. It's not rocket science: Sales come Prospects, Prospects are a result of meeting with people: Appointments.

Took my Time
If you want tomaster sales, master time. Not manage time, but be the master of your time.

Two Words You Always Want To Use To Help You SELL BETTER!

With all the focus on the type of questions you can ask in sales, many sales people lose sight of the goal of the questions, and with that lose the ability to effectively move the sale forward. Here we focus on how to structure questions and why the type of question is less important than how and why you ask the question to begin with. Once you master and understand how and why, you won't worry as to the type of question.

Start of Year Tune Up!
New year, new beginnings. Give yourself an edge and get ahead of the fray by doing a few simple things at the start that will pay of the entire year and beyond.

ROI With Teeth
Many sales reps today rely to heavily on ROI based selling. The concept being that if one can show a company or individual a return on their invested dollars within a reasonable time frame, there should be no reason why an average sane buyer would not buy what they are selling. However, all too often these ROI calculation is too vendor centric, and fail to engage the prospect.

Selling to Procurement

Even during the best of times procurement or purchasing specialists are a reality sales people would rather not deal with. As the economy tightens and companies reexamine their spending, reclassify things in terms of crucial or discretionary, the role of these professionals becomes even more critical and frequent. They make more decisions in a vacuum where value is a distant second to price, Procurement Specialist wield more power than ever before.

Success, by Choice

Every month we diligently publish our newsletter presenting ideas, techniques, as a means helping sales professionals sell better. Add ours to the thousands of other fine newsletters appearing each month, hundreds of books published, webinars, blogs and multitudes of other sources of sales advice available. Yet despite this wealth of quality advice and techniques, consistent application and results continues to be an unattainable goal for many.

Success
Success is not an abstract concept, it is something that can be planned, and executed, you just need to focus on the right elements. Here are some core components if you are in sales.

The Hall of Shame: Six Organizations That Couldn’t “Get It Done” in 2011

It’s that time of year when business owners and senior executives take stock of the past twelve months. What did 2011 look like for you and your company? The questions you could ask during your year-end review are endless. But, there’s only one that really matters: Did your company effectively execute its business goals? To learn from the “living laboratory” of real-world companies, here are six of this year’s headline makers and the lessons we can take away from their struggle.

The 3 Secrets to becoming a Sales SUPERSTAR
There are 3 secrets all salespeople must know to become a SUPERSTAR in the new economy. Sean Moffett breaks them down.

Execution - Kill IT!
Excellence is a choice. A choice we must make. It is our responsibility to live beyond our potential to realize the true greatness we all have been given.

Business and Life Strategies Taught by a 6 Year Old
Everything I forgot about living I am re-learning from my kids. Childlike wonder is a rare commodity.

“Don’t We Have People For That?”: Operational Planning & Strategy Execution
No business likes to admit it, but most are lacking in the know-how, competencies (skills, knowledge, experience) and discipline to carry off precise execution of strategic goals. This article addresses just how critical operational planning is to having good execution and offers help to those organizations who struggle with why and how to do it.

X-Gap: Using Strategic Planning to Close the Project Execution
Teams and organizations are constantly plagued by project execution errors and failures. These failures create an execution gap - a gap between what an individual and/or team plans to do and what they actually do instead; however, there are strategic planning techniques that a team can utilize to improve project execution. One of these techniques is the Execution Gap Meeting, or X-Gap.

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