Jacci Adams

How often do you cut off your prospects in mid-resopnse?

One of my favorite sales gurus, Mike Brooks, offers this advice.  Stop interrupting!

There you are sitting with your prospective client, you’re on the edge of your seat, ready to jump in with the product that will solve all their problems.  You ask a question.  The prospect begins to answer, but you know what they are about to say and you interrupt with an answer.  You weren’t really listening, you were just trying to sell, I mean help, her.  Even helpful interruptions can come off as rude and leaving the prospect feeling like you don’t care.

So how do you break yourself of this bad habit?

Use your mute button.  Immediately after you ask the prospect a question, push the mute button.  This forces you to allow your prospect to keep talking.  With the phone muted, even if you try to cut her off, she won’t be offended by the interruption.

“Once you hit mute, leave it on for a couple of seconds even if you think she is done talking,” Brooks says.  “You’ll be amazed by how much more information your prospect will provide you if you just shut up and listen.”

After practicing this on phone conversations with prospects it can be transferred to your face-to-face meetings as well.  Yes, it does require a little more discipline.

I have to admit, I was a little skeptical about this, but I tried it and it works really well.  Thanks Mike.

The Total Social Media System

Social Outbreak™ Opens for Business on Wednesday Aug 17th

The Total Social Media System, the cutting edge Facebook lead generation application created by Social Outbreak™ will be available world wide starting on Wednesday Aug 17th at 12 NOON EDT!
(Please check Time and Date for the time in your location.)

A limited number (500) of enrollments will be accepted every day starting at 12 NOON EDT.

Hear all the details on “CATCH THE BUZZ” with Scott Arvin CEO and Chris McMahon VP of Marketing on Social Outbreak Online Radio

You are most welcome to join us for a live demonstration and overview of the system at any of the following times:

WEDNESDAY August 17th
10PM EDT

THURSDAY August 18th
1pm EDT
8pm EDT

FRIDAY August 19th
1pm EDT
6pm EDT (Leader update call)
10pm EDT

To attend the presentations, please click here and enter password: getitnow

If you are unable to attend a live presentation, you may watch the videos on this page in your own time.

My Total Social Media fanpage will also be kept up to date with all developments.

The link to secure an account with Social Outbreak™ will only be activated at 12 noon EDT on 17 August 2011 and will only be active until the 500 enrollments for the day have been accepted. If you are not able to enroll due to the slots having already been taken, please try again at 12 noon EDT the following day!

Please click on the image below to get started:

I often meet clients and prospects outside of my office.  Usually at Panera Bread, Blake’s Café & Cupcakery, and Bob Evans because they offer free WiFi.  However, there are times when we need to meet in other locations that don’t offer WiFi.  This means I have to spend an additional $20-$30 more a month for a wireless card I only need occasionally.  It doesn’t make financial sense to me for occasional use; daily use, yes.

Since I’m already paying for data service on my cell phone, I was pleased to find out how to save some money by using my cell phone as a modem for my laptop.  The June Fabrics PDA Technology Group created the PdaNet application for all types of smart phones.  You can use PdaNet for free, but once the 14-day trial expires, it will start blocking secure websites.   Each type of smart phone has a different set of installation instructions as well as pricing.  The example below is for Android phones.

I recommend purchasing the full version, it’s only $23.95 for a single license.  However, they are currently offering a limited time special for $15.95.  This is a one time fee.

It’s a very simple process.

1. Go to www.junefabrics.com
2. Select PdaNet for Android
3. Select download and follow the instructions.

I use physical tethering with the USB cable that came with my phone.  They also offer the ability to use Bluetooth DUN, but I haven’t been able to get this to work.
Please visit www.junefabrics.com for the instructions specific to your smart phone.

Things to know:

• Can’t be directly downloaded from the VZW app store onto your phone.
• Text messages or calls disrupt the data transfer.
• Check your data plan, if it’s not unlimited, it may cause usage overage charges.
• Is this legal?  Check your plans terms of service.  The whole idea behind PDAnet is to connect for occasional use and not have to pay that extra money.  If you are constantly on the road with a laptop and need access wherever you go, it’s best to invest in a wireless card or Mobile Hot Spot.

How many of us put off exercising because we don’t think we have enough time?  I used to feel that way until I found this video.  It’s only 8 minutes.  I know I can find 8 minutes at some point in my day to do this. Can you?

8 Minute Energy Boosting Workout – Makes a great morning or lunch time workout. The moves are easy enough for most. I can easily see myself memorizing the moves and going for a second set later on in my day.

There are also two other short workouts one for AM and one for PM.

7 minute morning work out -  A bit more advanced than the 8 minute energy boosting video. It consists of several sets of push-ups.  My suggestion is to start with as many reps as you can and work your way up to the 10.  This can really help you get going in the morning.

5 minute PM workout – This helps you to relax from your very stressful day with lots of stretching.  Great to do before bed.

How did I find out about these videos? Through Success magazine . It comes every month with a free CD.

… For Your Presentations

Here are some tips on using digital and social media in your next presentation.

BEFORE the presentation

Use the social web to research the people and organizations attending the event.  This will give you insight into who your audience is and what they are all about and what’s important to them.

Twitter can be used if you are speaking at a conference.  Conferences often come with a hashtag or other reference words you can search Twitter (search.twitter.com).  Google Blog Search (blogsearch.google.com) can also be used to search for references.

DURING the presentation
Tired of using PowerPoint for your presentations?  Why not give prezi.com a try?  It makes for a whole different method of visualization and it keeps people’s attention.

When your speeches are public,  encourage the audience members to use your  Twitter name (ie. @jacci3x4) and a hashtag for the speech as well as the event hashtag. This lets people search their online notes later, plus it promotes your efforts and the event for others.

Another thing to try is to blend in digital elements ahead of time that launch while you are speaking.  For instance, if you are live at 2:00 p.m., set up a blog post to launch at that time with the handout information for your presentation.  Poof – instant traffic to your website.

AFTER the presentation
When it’s all done, look to see who’s written a blog post or tweeted about your speech, then follow up with everyone individually.  Make sure everyone who’s talking about your or to you on the social web gets a response, which helps foster new relationships.
This advice works for pitches, speeches, demonstrations and more.  It will not work well if the events you are speaking at are private.

(These tips came from the February 2011 Entrepreneur Magazine article by Chris Brogan.)

Treat every page of your website as if it’s the homepage.

We all know first impressions count.  Is every page of  your website making a positive first impression?

If you assume everyone who comes to your site lands on your homepage, think again.  Natural search results drive users to individual pages that best match the user’s search query.  Many times this is not your homepage.

Most business owners and marketing managers focus 90 percent of their attention and resources designing a stunning home page and treat the rest as an afterthought.  Don’t make this mistake! Give every page the same care and attention you devote to your site’s homepage.

If you are unsure of your site’s purpose, this is the first issue to tackle.  You should have a clear purpose for your site before you build it.  If you missed that step, stop, and formulate it now.

Every page, not just your homepage, should communicate your site’s purpose and steer visitors to the desired call to action.  If you built the site to encourage visitors to call for an estimate, every page should include a phone number.  If the site’s purpose is to sell products, every page should direct traffic to the product pages.

Remember, with search, you never know which door a customer is likely to walk through when entering your site.  Make sure every entrance offers a greeting, projects an air of professionalism, presents relevant content and serves your purpose for building and maintaining the site in the first place.

Anita Campbell of Akron, Ohio puts together one of THE best resources for small businesses.

Her blog, Small Business Trends updates you on trends affecting the small business market. “Small business success … delivered daily”.  One of her latest posts contains information every small business must check out.  I can’t stress the “Must Check Out” strongly enough.

101 Small Business Web Applications You Must Check Out

Click on the category in the table below to see the web applications.

… For Your Business

Mobile phones are becoming people’s primary connection to the world around them.  Where is your phone now?  Chances are it’s within 3 feet of you, if not actually on you.

The statistics are overwhelming!

• There are three times more cell phones than computers
• 90% of text messages are read withing 1  minute of receipt
• 23% of text messages are forwarded to others
• 57% of cell phone users text regularly

Savvy marketers know this always-on mode of communication is a smart way to send timely, targeted marketing messages.

Here are some ways mobile text marketing might work for your business without being intrusive.

1. Invite loyal customers to visit your business at a specific time. For example, a restaurant could send out a text coupon to boost traffic.  For example, it’s Monday at 11 a.m. People are starting to think about lunch. A restaurant owner could send a message that says, “Buy one lunch get one free from noon to 2 p.m. today.”  Because the coupon is in their phones, customers won’t lose or forget it, and business owners can track the response rate.

2. Encourage timely repeat purchases by putting customers on a reminder schedule. Let’s use an auto shop as an example.  When your customers get an oil change, ask them if they would like to get a coupon for $5 off their next oil change.  To get the coupon, they send a text to opt into your reminder service.  Then in 12 weeks they get a coupon for an oil change for that week only.

3. Increase tele-seminar participation. By sending a reminder with the conference number to registrants 15 minutes before the call.

Mobile marketing is direct, and can be very simple.  It is estimated that by 2015 one out of every three businesses in America will have a mobile marketing program.  Click here:  learn how simple it is to get started, then click on the Mobile tab.

Don’t get left behind.  Contact me to learn how effective, affordable  and simple it is to get started right away.

article taken from Success Magazine (Jam, 2011)

No, but a recent study reveals some interesting findings.

This fall, a Princeton study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States set out to analyze the relationship between annual income and two factors: emotional well-being (“the emotional quality of an individual’s everyday experience — the frequency and intensity of experiences of joy, stress, sadness, anger and affection”) and life evaluation (“thoughts that people have about their life when they think about it”).

Evaluating the responses from 450,000 Americans in 2008 and 2009, the study determined that people’s positive perceptions of their lives increased with income, but that their everyday feelings did not improve above an income of $75,000 a year.

“More money does not necessarily buy more happiness, but less money is associated with emotional pain,” the authors write.  “Perhaps $75,000 is a threshold beyond which further increases in income no longer improve individuals’ ability to do what matters most to their emotional well-being, such as spending time with people they like, avoiding pain and disease, and enjoying leisure.”

However, they noted that the study didn’t take into account the impact of a large gain or loss of money.

“What the data suggests is that above a certain level of stable income, individuals’ emotional well-being is constrained by other factors in their temperament and life circumstances.”

“Formal education will make you a living;
self-education will make you a fortune.” — Jim Rohn

Want to increase your learning and earning potential?

1. Learn while you commute.  Listening to educational audios while commuting 12,000 mile annually for three years can be equivalent to two years of college study.

2. Read up.  While experts debate the number of books you must read to make you an expert on a topic (somewhere between 3 and 300), many tout reading as the key to success.

3. Teach someone what you know. Teaching others reinforces your own abilities, helps you look at a subject in different ways and inspires you to learn you subject inside and out.

4. Practice, practice, practice. But remember Vince Lombardi’s advice; “Only perfect practice makes perfect.”