Posts Tagged ‘#closingstrong’
ARE YOU PREPARED FOR WHEN YOU NO LONGER OWN YOUR BUSINESS?
To be prepared for when you no longer own your business, you need clear answers to two questions. What will I DO when I step away from the business? What will I NEED when I step away from the business? The question of DO is the most important. DO has to do with fulfilling your…
Read MoreTHE DISCIPLINE OF MARKET LEADERS
Successful businesses know precisely who their customers are, what they need, and how they want to receive their product or service. They also need to choose the correct strategy to maximize their value to the market. In The Discipline of Market Leaders, authors Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema suggest that “No company can succeed today…
Read MoreA MORE EFFECTIVE ELEVATOR SPEECH
We are all taught that an elevator speech is a crucial sales practice. A well-crafted elevator speech will concisely communicate (1) who you are, (2) what you are looking for, (3) the benefit you provide, and (4) do it within 30 seconds. The two biggest challenges I have with this old approach are that it…
Read MoreWHAT ARE YOU DOING THAT IS NEW?
We just sold our house. It is a great house, and we enjoyed raising our family in it, but now my wife and I are empty nesters, so it is no longer a great fit. We are moving on to something new. Your personal life changes, and so do your needs. The same is true…
Read MoreTRUE ENTREPRENEURS POSSESS AN AMAZING SUPERPOWER
True entrepreneurs possess an amazing superpower – a peculiar type of myopia that makes everything seem possible. The entrepreneur sees a gap, an inefficiency, an opportunity, and their passion fulfills the need better. Money is never their top priority. The entrepreneur sees the goal so vividly all the problems and obstacles fade into the background. …
Read MoreCOVID-19 IS NO LONGER A VALID BUSINESS EXCUSE
COVID-19 is no longer a valid business excuse. It is more than past time to move on. While today’s economy has not fully recovered, it is more than 90% there, and the momentum is more limited by a lack of supply and employment than demand. Economic factors have not all returned to pre-COVID levels, but…
Read MoreHERE ARE 2 TAX CREDITS THAT SAVE GET YOU THOUSANDS (AND YOU SHOULDN’T ASSUME YOUR CPA KNOWS ABOUT THEM)
I speak to dozens of business owners every month. This week I asked a couple who work in tax if they had any tips for other business owners this year. Here are two that are so good I needed to share them with you. Recall these are tax credits (not deductions), so they directly reduce…
Read MoreUSING AVATARS TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS
I ask business owners, “Who is a good customer for you?” I find that more than half answer some form of either “Everyone” or “Everyone who wants to buy what I provide.” Disappointing. If your answer is the same, your marketing activities are equally broad. And ineffective. A more effective method is target marketing. To…
Read MoreTHE REAL REASON COMPANIES DON’T GROW
After years of monthly conversations with dozens of business leaders and owners, unsurprisingly, one of the most common topics is about growth and how to grow. From these discussions, the single, most common reason many companies don’t grow has become evident. They don’t want to. Now those are not the exact words they use. Instead,…
Read More