What Separates an Advocate from a Vendor?
I developed a better understanding of our company’s business model the morning our son and his three-week-old driver’s license crossed paths with another vehicle in a local roundabout. Our car didn’t look too good, but he was fine. The driver who hit him was also uninjured, and her car suffered the worst of the damage. Most of us don’t get [...]
Three Easy Fixes for Your LinkedIn Profile
While LinkedIn celebrates its 18th birthday on May 5, few people realize that LinkedIn was launched nine months before Facebook launched at Harvard – making it one of the oldest social networks still in use today. With 55 million companies as members, LinkedIn is clearly a driving force in the economy as evidenced by 61 million “senior-level influencers.” Thirty-three percent [...]
How Do You Know if Your Marketing Efforts are Successful?
It happens frequently, and it always puzzles me. During an initial conversation with a CEO or company owner, I’ll ask how well their marketing is working. And they’ll reply with something like “I guess okay” or “it seems to be” or “I’m not sure” or even just a shrug. These are companies that invest significant sums to promote their advantages [...]
Happy Holidays from Buckaroo!
During the holiday season more than ever, our thoughts turn gratefully to those who have made our progress possible. We are deeply thankful and extend to you our best wishes for a happy and healthy holiday season. It is in this spirit we say, simply but sincerely… Thank you and Best Wishes for the Holiday Season from the entire Buckaroo [...]
How Do You Sustain Trust with Customers?
In my last column, I described a variety of effective ways for building trust among those who don’t know you. Once you’ve started the process, how do you maintain and grow that trust? A recent experience with a prospective service provider helped me think about the steps I take to strengthen trust among my customers and prospects. The firm contacted [...]
How Do You Create Trust with Prospects?
There was a time when cold calling was the mainstay of the sales process. Successful salespeople were those who had the courage to pick up the phone and call prospects, knowing that nine out of ten would reject them outright. Cold calling no longer works for a variety of reasons. For one, people rarely answer calls immediately. The invention of [...]