8 Points To Grow Your Business

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Have a plan

Businesses are always seeking new clients and most companies do so without a plan or use a process to find new clients. Making 100 sales calls per month isn’t productive anymore when you consider the odds to close new business is about 1% at best. New business development programs have been around for decades. Yet we keep searching for a full proof system that doesn’t require effort.

Maybe it’s time to stop searching, and time to begin with a plan or process that will help your business today. For those who want to grow their business, use these 8 tips. You might be surprised how these tips (reminders) can help your business grow this year.

1-   Existing Clients Bring More Business.

After we close a new client, typically we move on to look for the next new client. This is time consuming and not always rewarding.

Existing clients can bring you more business. For example, ask what their goals are and see how you can help them reach those goals. In turn, they just might buy more from you. Also, when you ask them for referrals, you might be surprised to see how eager they are to help you.

2-   Go Beyond What Is Expected.

Providing the goods and services to your existing clients is the easy part. Go one step further. Show interest in their industry and learn more about it. Use your network, or contacts to see if someone might be a good match for your client.

3-   Painkillers Remove Headaches.

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Learn how to listen to your customers

It doesn’t matter what type of business or service you provide, the reason why a client does business with you is to remove their pain. So become a “listener.” Whether you are at a cocktail party, an event or other social gathering, let a potential, or existing clients vent their pain. This might sound strange, but gaining their loyalty and being there to listen will show you are interested. Who knows, you might just have a solution to lessen their pain.

4-   Power Partners.

Surround yourself with similar businesses. Ask how they built their customer base and what things they did right and wrong. Ask how they improved their sales and if they have a new business development program. You may not get all the answers you are looking for, but you can learn from their mistakes to avoid those pitfalls.

Another great business source are your vendors. Ask them who they know that could use your products or services. It’s ok to request an introduction, just make sure you are offering your vendor an incentive. It can be a finder fee after you make that new sale, or a gift card to a nice restaurant.

5-   Networking Face-to-Face.

Belonging to groups online, such as LinkedIn is fine. But the best way to find new business is through the traditional face-to-face meetings. Some people call these one-on-one meetings. The point is to meet prospects in person, while keeping your online social network active.

6-   Elevator Speech.

This is the most known term in business, the elevator speech. Unfortunately most sales people, even business owners cannot explain their business in a short 30-second speech. Probably because we want to tell everything about our business fearing we might miss something in a short introduction. One way to better understand the elevator speech is to ask your self what would you put on a billboard, or say in a 30-second TV commercial. I recommend having two maybe three different elevator speeches. They can be written for specific markets, or industries. Then use the one that is most appropriate.

7-   Get Noticed. Stand Out in the Crowd.

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Make yourself and business known

No matter how successful or popular a business or person might be, they are continually marketing themselves through all forms of media: print, broadcast, mailers, and social media. A day almost doesn’t go by without reading about Apple, UPS, Taylor Swift, or Kim Kardashian to name a few.

This doesn’t mean you have to spend millions, or invent the first smart phone to get noticed. You need to be creative. Join a local community program or offer your spare time to a charity. If you are a B2B company, or B2C, you can use social media to build your awareness. Using publicity is another inexpensive form of media that will get you noticed.

8-   Do Your Homework Before Making Any Contact.

Know what the company is selling, if they have more than one location, who their competition is, and where they fit into their market are just a few things to know before making that first sales call. Being knowledgeable about their company can give you the advantage over your competition.

These tips might sound like reminders, and they are, and you’re probably saying, “I have used a few of these in the past”, well, that’s the problem. These should be used all the time. So why aren’t you using them? Now get your team together and make this part of your new business development program.

If you need further help in growing your business to the next level, give George Carson a call at 949-477-9400 or you could wait until your competitors call him first!

Get National Publicity for Your Company

How difficult can it be to send a press release to the Wall Street Journal, or get your company featured on a national TV news show, like Diane Sawyer? Actually, it is very difficult. Sending the release alone is easy. Getting the reporters to take serious notice of what you sent, that’s difficult. And harder yet, is to make your company be newsworthy in their eyes.

National and Local Publicity

Getting any reporters attention requires relationships. A good public relations agency has developed strong relationships with the media. This doesn’t happen overnight. Unless you have a world changing product, or a unique service, it may be a challenge to just get any media to listen to what you have to say. With all the world politics today, disasters, and 3rd world revolutions, getting your 15 minutes of fame may not be as easy as you expect. PR Clients tend to believe they have the best product, best story, or the best new widget and the world needs to know this. Well, as true as this might be, if the presentation to the media isn’t as exciting, then you just lost that pr opportunity.

Packaging (presenting) your story is critical, as is the timing. Putting fluff into your release or story is not a good idea. Keep the facts real, keep the information short and don’t SELL your story using sales pitch language. Remember, reporters are people. They do not want to be sold to or told that you are the greatest at what you do. Explain why your product or service will help others, or solve a specific problem. That is just one way to get the attention of the media.

If you want to get local publicity, you need to do the same thing as a national publicity story. A good local publicity agency will have a good relationship with the local media, and they will know how to package your story to the selected reporters that best meets your pr marketing strategy.

Learn more about getting national or local publicity from Carson Marketing, Inc. Call for a NO COST consultation meeting to discuss how your company can be in the news. Contact George Carson at 949-477-9400.

How to get the advantage in a job interview

This is a topic I feel needs to be discussed. I will provide some information to enlighten those seeking a job, changing careers or those looking for a better position in their current job.job readiness, soft skills

The secret to getting the advantage over another person is Soft Skills!

If you are not aware or do not know what soft skills are, then you need to read on. Soft Skills are not taught in any schools or colleges. These are things like, listening skills, how to interview, networking, knowing how to write a business email, how to write a resume, knowing phone etiquette and much more. For example your body language tells a lot. If you cross your arms while having a conversation, this usually sends a message that you are bored, or just don’t want to listen to the other person speaking. Another example, in a business meeting, don’t check your cell phone for messages, or text anyone, and most important, sit in proper posture at a meeting. If you don’t it shows you are not interested and sends a bad message to the speaker as well as others around you.

PR marketing people need soft skills. Sometimes I meet professional publicity people who just don’t know or understand why others ignore them, or won’t take their calls. It’s because they never learned their soft skills.

These examples are just a few soft skills you need to know when interviewing. To learn how to have a great interview and how to network, there is a video lesson titled: “Interviewing and Business Networking” by Business SoftSkills. In all, the company produces over 12 video lessons that are entertaining and very informative. I highly recommend everyone learn their soft skills, it can only improve your chances in a job interview, as well as it could get you promoted at your current job.

This is the company’s website: www.BusinessSoftSkills.com.

Make Networking Work For You

People Knowing People


Publicity is basically the networking of people. Whether they are reporters, publishers, editors or broadcasters, you need to communicate with people.

When your network grows among the media, the more people you meet, the better opportunities you have in getting the story published.

If you are a professional publicity agency, or a pr client, then you need to make your network becomes a priority when establishing  your contacts. If you are in a vertical market, then your task is much easier. If you are in a more general consumer market, then you need to be more selective on the media that you network with. Why? Because you can’t expect to have a very large network and stay in contact without giving them nonsense stories. These people are just that, people. Just like you, they too do not like being sent stories or releases that try to sell a product or a company. Make the content be informative, something that their readers will enjoy.

Another tip, you don’t want to oversell your company, or your pr clients. Too much selling, or pitching, is like the salesman who doesn’t know when to stop selling. Your network of media can become a friendly one. Not meaning a social thing. Why? Because getting too close to the media as a social group puts you in a different perspective. Then they, the media, feel you are only getting their attention to get stories published. Keep your relationship professional.

I saw a journalist who has an article about this subject and offers some other interesting insights that expand on my thoughts. Basically, be honest, keep in contact with your network through eNewsletters, and follow-up as needed.

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