Handwritten cards trump e-cards

I don't pay much attention to the growing number of holiday e-cards that I receive from companies or people that have me on their email list. This is an impersonal mass mailing by vendors that go through the motions by using a no effort approach to sending the same e-card to everyone.

However, I read every word in a personally written holiday card.

I consider other types of e-cards such as birthdays or customer anniversaries as nice to receive.  For these I know that their system differentiates me from all the rest of its list.

Successful People Surround Themselves With Others Who Complement Them

I hear successful executives say this all the time, "I know what I'm good at and what I'm not good at.  My success depends on finding other people to fill my gaps."

Sales organizations are quick to title their people as "sales executives".  If they are truly executives and want to be successful, then why should it be expected that each one is fully competent in everything necessary to produce a thriving sales organization?  No one is good at all the things necessary to fulfill the sales role including proposal writing, finding new business, giving presentations, relationship building, closing the "golden spike" deal, etc.

I think the compensation system disables sales leaders from doing the right thing with respect to organizing for success.  In most sales situations, team selling is essential.  If companies were able to break down the role into positions just like on a baseball team, there'd be someone playing first base, pitching, driving in runs, etc.  And the right compensation scheme would naturally fit into place.

So, how can we make this happen and not let singular sales rep commission entitlement be the deciding factor?

Good Mission Statements Are Sustainable

Yesterday I read an interesting post on Seth Godins' blog There's nothing wrong with having a plan. Seth's message is that over time plans succeed and fail and need to be updated, but your company's mission should be bullet proof and stable - the beacon that drives your plans. 

So, what should a mission statement include?  Here are some ideas to mull around:

Mission statements define why a company exists. With underpinnings of trust and integrity, a mission statement must address employees, customers and partners, community [online and offline, cause based and industrial categories] and financial results.

• Employee satisfaction based on accomplishment and pride in belonging to something excellent
• Customers and partners value the quality of their experiences with your company as much as they do the products and services they purchase.  It is our goal for them to have an excellent experience throughout their lifetime relationship.  We make it easy for them to do business with us.  Interaction is smooth and easy and we enable communications through the means they prefer.  We provide useful information to them.  We guarantee our work.  We quickly follow up to correct experience gaps.
• A visible member of the community through sponsorships and participation in events.
• Results measured in financial, marketing and operations terms

Business Development In Its Basic Form

Find Ways To Win Today

While Building For The Future

Allow your business to be the best it can be by answering four basic questions every day:

1. What will my business look like in a couple of years if I continue to run it in its current form?
2. What could I be doing today to improve short term results?
3. What would I like my business to look like in 2 to 3 years?
4. Will short term results subsidize my company's future?

Now, you're ready to define business development's role for your business.

Sustainable Energy Needs a Rock Star

Yesterday I attended a venture group event and the topic was sustainable energy.  The panel included people who ran companies that produced sustainable energy technology [solar, hydrogen fuel cell, etc.] along with government officials who are trying to catalyze sustainable energy investment.

The conversation centered around obstacles and "policy" rather than customers, markets, creativity, etc.  I learned about all the reasons that sustainable energy hasn't become a mainstream alternative.  For example, without a way to store natural energy for when the sun isn't shining or the wind isn't blowing, public utility companies will remain adversaries because they won't be able to fulfill their backup role and the traditional grid will never go away.  Maybe we should be funneling investment money towards entrepreneurs who can design and manufacture the right backup solution.

Another reason is that since natural gas prices are so low, it's tough to justify investing in sustainable energy solutions.  We all know that as soon as natural gas demand skyrockets, its price will also soar.

Another reason is that because of party politics, the federal government align with a unified energy strategy.  Well, what a great opportunity for a state to attract new tax paying businesses by making itself "energy friendly" through a creative approach.

No wonder sustainable energy is going nowhere fast.

Sustainable energy needs a rock star.

• VHS beat Beta Max
• Prius beat all the rest [and will do even better when their technology finds its way to other types of vehicles]
• iTunes succeeded while Napster failed
• Blue Ray beat HDTV

Each one of these success stories was led by a charismatic visionary who focused on the customer rather than the easy to rationalize reasons as to why it won't work.

JFK challenged us to go to the moon.  We did.


We need someone like Ted Turner or Steve Jobs to make it happen.

Generating Sales-Ready Leads is Essential

How do you define "sales ready" leads?

An inquiry does not equal a lead, nor does a suspect or prospect.

An early stage lead is marketing accepted, but needs nurturing before it can be "sales ready".

Business And Basketball Are Similar

Business And Basketball Are Similar

We're well into this year's NBA playoffs.  This got me to thinking about the similarities between leading a basketball team and leading a business.

You need a great coach, manager and architect with the vision to structure the team and design a style of play that integrates cohesive rhythm on offense with intensive continuity on defense through players who work as a seamless unit and execute through teamwork and communication.

Ensure understanding by breaking down the play [not the same as micro-managing] and use candor to translate goals into a set of individual responsibilities and a series of specific steps.

You're always recruiting multidimensional, dexterous, skilled players that fit the same style of play each season.  They must have strong fundamentals: shooting, passing, dribbling, instinctively create balance on the floor, move the ball, move without the ball, exploit mismatches, know when to dish and when to take high percentage shots.

Super stars share the spotlight with complementary role players e.g. defensive stopper.  The right approach to practice optimizes the chances to win through timely hoops at the end of the game.