The More Clients Blog

MC Blog: My Twitter Policies and Plans

I've been on Twitter a whole week. So what do I know?

Well, I've looked very carefully at Twitter as a powerful marketing medium, a way to promote my brand, increase my visibility and credibility. My brand is about helping self-employed professions who are committed to making a difference be more successful with their marketing. So my Twitter activity needs to reflect that brand. It's a new medium for me, but not so different than my website or eZine in terms of tone or content.

What I like about Twitter is that it's a tool that encourages conversations, interactions, sharing of ideas and resources, and even promotion in real time. Twitter is immediate and moves fast.

Given all of this, I thought it would be smart to develop a set of Twitter Policies and Plans that matches my brand. Here's my first attempt.

My Twitter Policies

1. Twitter is about sharing value in a fairly narrow band. For me that band includes ideas about marketing, selling, and succeeding as an Independent Professional. So when I tweet, that's mostly what you'll be hearing about.

2. My focus will be on sharing value with you, not talking about me. This will include links to blogs and other web content, ideas, tips, strategies, information and inspiration. If I share anything about me, it will be about insights that I think you'll find useful.

3. I'll re-tweet (RT) posts from those I follow that I also think will add value. You won't get spammed with a zillion things just because I think they're cool or because I want to show you how cool I am. Can't imagine you give a damn.

4. I'll sometimes reply to tweets with my comments. This is a great way to build connections but it still needs to add a spark of value. Commenting on someone having lunch seems pointless!

5. I will not quote Socrates, Einstein, Tolstoy or any other wise person. I don't think Twitter is Bartlett's Quotations. Neither will I give you 140 character tweets of my own supposed wisdom. When people do this is, for me it comes of as "the guru speaks" and always seems a little too smug.

6. I will not tell you what I'm doing every hour on the hour. This seems to have been the original direction of Twitter, but it can border on the pathological. If I tell you what I'm up to, there will be a reason.

7. I'll ask questions and use my followers as a resource, if that's OK with you. There's still a lot I need to learn and with Twitter I can tap into this amazing network.

8. I will follow people who I feel have similar interests and who can add value to me and my business. I can't spend my whole day reading Twitter posts, so the number I follow will be considerably smaller than those who follow me. I'll never follow a ton of people in the hopes that they'll follow me. I'm not that insecure.

9. I won't post because I have nothing better to do. Twitter can be another word for procrastination. I have a ton of things on my plate any given day that I need to attend to. And I once in awhile I'll share about those things.

My Twitter Plans

10. A big part of my plan is to blog daily. Sometimes by blog posts will be long, sometimes short. I'll do my best to make them valuable and actionable. I'll blog every weekday and sometimes on weekends.

11. I'll tweet five to ten times a day. More than that is hard to imagine! Sometimes I'll repeat a tweet (say to my blog post for the day), understanding that not all my followers are on Twitter at the same time. First time in the morning. Next time in the afternoon or evening.

12. I'll promote my various products and services regularly but sparingly. I know you want to hear about what I have to offer and I also know you don't want to be hit over the head with it every hour on the hour.

13. Sometimes I'll promote affiliate products and programs. But only ones I've used and gotten value from. I'm not here to make a killing but to make a contribution. There's some great stuff out there that is worth checking out.

14. I'll respond as quickly as possible to all direct messages (DM).

15. I'll spend a little time every day refining my following list. I'll add people and remove others. I'm working on developing a channel that serves me best and that also provides the kind of value I can pass on to my followers. If I find a great person to follow, I'll let you know.

OK, that's about it. I've developed these Policies and Plan to support me in making Twitter work for me. If any of this is useful to you great, if not, ignore it. I do recommend that you create your own Twitter policies and plan as you would any marketing plan. With a real direction and plan of action, you're going to be more successful with Twitter. If you go about participating in Twitter randomly, you'll get random results.

All the best,

Robert Middleton

Blog Post

MC Blog: Rate Your Web Site

Yesterday someone linked me to their web site where she had posted a very good article. The content of the article was great but the site itself had much to desire. Hard to read, boring design, not very good overall content. On a scale of one to ten it was maybe a four.

At a talk I gave last week I spoke about "web sites that look like crap." The thing about these crappy sites is that they are usually owner designed. And because the owner put in umpteen hours on the site, they are very proud of it - because after all, they had never designed anything before in their lives. Sadly, it shows.

So how do you know if you have a crappy web site? Take this quiz:

1. On the Home page is there an initial compelling message that stands out? Some call this your "Value Proposition." It's about what your clients get, not about what you do. "How to Give Presentations That Excite and Motivate Your Audiences" works. "Presentation Skills Training" doesn't. Score yourself from one (bad) to ten (great).

2. Does the design of your web site, get this response from people: "That's a really nice website, who's your designer?" Or do you get few to no positive comments? Score from ten to one depending on the response from others (not yourself). 

3. Do you have a page that talks all about "Our Clients" and their challenges and needs? If not, why not? They want to know if you understand who they are. Remember they are interested in themselves, not you! Ten for a great page about your clients. Zero if you don't have a client page.

4. Do you have a "Free Stuff" page with lots of juicy morsels of valuable content? Remember, on the web, the first thing people are looking for is free stuff. Give it to them!! Ten for a ton of good free stuff. Zero if you have none.

5. Do you have an eZine that you sign up people for on the site? Believe it or not, this is the number one purpose for your web site. No kidding. If you don't capture the name and email of visitors do you think they'll ever return? Keep hoping. Ten if you have an eZine and lots of new subscribers. Minus ten if you don't even have an eZine.

6. Do you have an "Our Services" page that answers, most, if not all the questions a prospect might have about your services? They are not psychic. You gotta tell them. A bullet pointed list of services is less than useless. Ten if your service write-ups are highly descriptive and value-packed. One if you service info is a generic paragraph or two.

7. Do you have a page with a bunch of very good, highly credible, and very persuasive Case Studies that relate real client successes? Give yourself one point for every case study you have.

8. Is your "About Us" navigation button near the bottom of the navigation list? If so, you get an extra five points. If it's near the top, deduct five. This is the least visited of all pages. Remember, they ain't so interested in you. Add points - up to ten more if you have a very personable bio (and picture) on this page that shows you're an intelligent, credible, nice human being, not a boring stuffed shirt.

9. On the "Contact Us" page, do you have nothing more than your phone number or a form? If so, deduct five points. If you tell them what happens when they contact you and how you start to work with clients, and you make it safe and friendly to contact you, give yourself a ten.

10. Do you have a Blog, either within your web site, or as a direct link to it from your home page? If you have one and post to it at least five times a week, give yourself ten points. No blog gets a zero, and lower points for posts that are few and far between.

OK, what did you score? (Some people might be in minus territory!)

Despite all the excitement about social media, the centerpiece of your marketing is your web site. And if it's a piece of crap, it's hurting you more than helping you. I don't know about you, but if I'm looking at doing business with someone and they have a crappy site, it's all over; they don't get a chance. But if the site is great, the odds are tipped in their favor.

This is one of those things you have complete control over. Don't put this on a back burner, planning to get around to it someday. In the current economy you need to stand out, look and act professionally, and give people the information they are looking for on your site. Anything less is self-inflicted business suicide.

Learn how you can get a much better site (that scores a ton of points and attracts scores of clients) at this link: www.actionplan.com/wstk.html

Cheers,

Robert Middleton

Blog Post

MC Blog: We are the New Radicals

I want to turn you on to a great and inspiring book I just read: "We are the New Radicals" by Julia Moulden.

Julia reports on people around the world who are making a difference and making it work in their lives and in their communities. It's full of inspiring case studies and ideas for jumping into being New Radicals ourselves.

According to Julia, there are three kinds of New Radicals:

1. Activists are those who go the non-profit route to make the world a better place. Case study - A woman who started a non-profit pharmaceutical firm for third-world countries.

2. Entrepreneurs are those who develop a business designed to make a difference. Case study - A musician who become a psychotherapist and now uses music therapy as a powerful healer.

3. Innovators are those who work within their companies to spearhead a project that makes a contribution: Case study - Man who invented a new type of "hurricane resistant nail" that keeps houses from falling apart in hurricanes and earthquakes.

The book is inspiring, well written and organized, and very validating to those of us are here to make a difference. We are the New Radicals!

Check out Julia and the book online:

http://wearethenewradicals.com/news

Cheers,

Robert Middleton

MC Blog: Tasty Morsels of Content

So you want to get online and start using all the great Web 2.0 tools like blogging, FaceBook and Twitter?

Good for you. But before you start accumulating links, friends, and followers, you need to confront a very challenging word: Content.

What valuable content do you have to share with those in your network?

No content, no impact.

Sure, you can link people to all kinds of great things online, and you should. Some of these include articles, blogs, web content, podcasts, videos, books, services and people.

But if you don't have any of your own content to share, you're missing the most potent and impactful facet of online networking: your own identity and brand. Those in your network don't just want to hear from you and get value from you, they want YOU! They want to hear your point of view, your ideas, your particular take on things.

After all, you're not doing online networking for your health. You're doing it to grow your business. Essentially, your content is a sample of your services.

Ever go to Costco on a Saturday morning? At the end of each aisle is a little old lady giving away samples, morsels of various foods - pancakes, sausages, orange juice. You take a few bites, and say "Yum, where can I get this?" and she points you toward the freezer case behind her.

Samples of food for Costco are like content for you.

Start sharing your content. Show people how you think and how you work; demonstrate that you're an expert; invite them to a teleclass; sign them up for your eZine; give away reports that wake them up to new opportunities and possibilities.

One of my favorite pieces of content is Case Studies. This goes beyond ideas, it shows how you produce results for your clients. Again, it's another thing that will give them a taste of what you do and the value you provide.

Here's a Case Study Sample: Darrell Crawford

If you want your online networking to be potent, you'd better get cracking by creating some tasty morsels of content.

Cheers,

Robert Middleton

MC Blog: Business Plan or Lifestyle Plan?

We all need a business plan, right? Well yes, but we need a lifestyle plan even more.

Simply put, a business plan outlines our business goals, our strategy to reach those goals and the tactics we need to implement those strategies.

It also includes a marketing and financial plan and plans for other parts of the business. For Independent Professionals, about 80% of the business plan is the marketing plan. Who are your ideal clients, what is the service you are selling, what is your brand or identity, and what are all the ways you're going to get the word out?

Finally, you need step-by-step action plans to implement each of your marketing goals.

But don't stop there. Create a lifestyle plan as well. After all, you have a business to support your lifestyle, don't you? If you are only immersed in your business, as so many Independent Professionals are, you often leave out your life entirely. No wonder you're stressed and your relationships are suffering.

A Lifestyle Plan starts with headings for all the important areas of your life: Health and Well-Being, Relationships, Finances, Home and Possessions, Leisure and Recreation, Family and Friends, Educational and Spiritual, etc.

And then under each of these headings list four to six things you want to have in those areas this year. For some you may already be there. For instance, under health and well-being, I'm already exercising six times a week. But I was going to bed too late and not getting enough sleep. Also, I was was getting one massage a month. I went to two a month. Leisure time? Too much TV. So I took a big step and virtually eliminated it.

Take as much, if not more time building your Lifestyle Plan as you do building your business and marketing plans. If you do, you'll have some balance and actually enjoy all that money you'll be making!

MC Blog: Writing and Mind Mapping

Excerpt from an Interview with Daphne Gray-Grant, writing coach. From the Action Plan Marketing Club.

Robert: Where do you start, and what do you do? You have this thing you do called “mind mapping.” Is that often where you start with a writing project?

Daphne: Yes it is. Mind mapping is a very interesting technique. I didn’t discover this until after I had done most of my own research on writing. When I heard about it, I thought it sounded too phony to be true, and I dismissed it.

Then, in this online forum I belong to, I saw more and more mention of it. I thought, “This is really crazy. I guess I’d better give it a try.” I posted a note and said, “Can someone tell me some more about mind mapping?” A bunch of people wrote back and said, “There’s really not much to tell.” That made my heart sink because I thought it sounded too easy, too simple.

Robert: Sometimes, the best things are really simple.

Daphne: Exactly. Mind mapping was invented during either ancient Greek or ancient Roman times. Basically, you take a piece of paper and turn it sideways, so it’s sitting in front of you, landscape fashion. You take the subject you want to write about, write it in the middle of the page and draw a circle around it.

Robert: That’s the title of your article, in some cases.

Daphne: It may be, but I don’t want people to feel that it has to be. You just pick something that is enough to get your brain going on this particular subject. It may or may not be the title.

After you’ve written it in the middle of the page and drawn a circle around it, then whatever else pops into your mind, you write elsewhere on the page, draw a circle around it and draw a line from it to the central phrase. If your next idea comes from a secondary circle, then you can draw a line to that, write another phrase and draw a circle around it.

I don’t spend too much time fussing about which idea is a parent of which child because I don’t think that’s so important. The idea is to just get whatever is in your head onto the paper.

Robert: Say I’m thinking of writing an article about web marketing. In the middle, I’d write “web marketing.” The first idea is that we need to have good design. Then we need content, so I’d write another circle there.

Then I think, “How do you get found on the web?” That’s another one. Another is building a list. This is something I obviously know about.

From design, I can talk about some of the rules of design. I can talk about colors. All of a sudden, I have the middle topic and four main things, and then other things start to pop up all over the place. Before long, I have the main content of the article, but it’s not organized in any linear way at this point.

Daphne: That’s the purpose of mind mapping. It’s not meant to be organized.

Robert: Its purpose is to get those ideas out of your head.

Daphne: I sometimes describe it as “vomiting onto the page!”

Robert: That’s a good image!

Daphne: Some months ago, I was contacted by someone who works with copywriters. He had heard me talk about mind mapping the same week he was approached by a book publisher and invited to write a book.

He desperately wanted to do it, but the deadline was about six months. That is a very short amount of time for a book. He was also trying to run his business at this time.

He really didn’t know if he could do it, but he had heard my little blurb about mind mapping and thought, “I’m going to give that a try.” He started his mind map. Because it was for a book, it was very big. I sometimes recommend to people doing mind maps for a book that they get a piece of butcher paper, not just 8.5-by-11, and pull it over the dining room or boardroom table, someplace very big.

He did this mind map. All of a sudden, the word “pancakes” popped into his head. He wrote down the word “pancakes” because I had emphasized how important it was not to let these words get away, even if they seemed irrelevant.

Within about five minutes, he had decided that pancakes were going to be a central metaphor in his book. They were, and it worked well. He got the book done within the timeframe. He was thrilled with how mind mapping worked for him. This excerpt is from one of my Expert Marketing Interviews in the Action Plan Marketing Club.

Antidote to Pushy Marketing

After last week's eZine on "Playing it Safe" I got this response that Ruby Curran posted on my blog:

"I am enthusiastic and passionate about my business, but I must admit, I do a good job of keeping it to myself - unless someone shows an interest during a conversation. Why?

"I'm concerned about turning people off. I'm often turned off when someone I meet goes on and on about something I'm really not interested in. It often seems like they're trying to push me into something. I don't want to do that to others, so I find it hard to promote myself.

"Does that make any sense? Anyone else know what I'm talking about? How can I be sure I'm being passionate without annoying other people? Ideas?"

Thanks! Ruby

Thanks for this question, Ruby. This really gets to the heart of what stops people from marketing successfully.

There is a fundamental misunderstanding about marketing that you are making. You think marketing is about you. You think marketing is boasting, a big ego trip and fundamentally self-centered. You think that marketing is "going on and on about something I'm not really interested in."

If you believe that, of course, you'll keep your business to yourself. You don't want to be seen as an obnoxious egomaniac.

But marketing is NOT about you. It's not even about your services. It's not about all the things you do and it certainly isn't about going on and on until people are turned off.

Marketing isn't about what YOU do, it's about what THEY get.

Just think, when someone asks you what you do, you tend to talk all about you and how your business works. It just pours out automatically. You can't seem to help yourself. But you realize that this is a turn-off, so you solve the problem by not talking about your business at all (unless someone shows interest).

Clearly, this approach doesn't work.

When someone asks me what I do, I NEVER talk about my business. I talk about the problems my prospects and clients are experiencing. And when I do that, most people do show interest.

I say, "I work with Independent Professionals who have a great service but who struggle with attracting clients." There's absolutely nothing about me in that message. And it interests people because it's about them.

When they ask me how I do this, I say, "I work with them so that marketing is easier for them and becomes less of a struggle, and so that they ultimately attract more clients."

Again, nothing about me, it's all about what they get. And that is interesting as well. It starts a lot of good conversations.

And if they want to know more about how it works, I tell them a story of a client I worked with and the results they got. Again, nothing about me. Stories are great because people can see that if you helped someone else, maybe you can help them as well.

And you know what? When you talk about your business like that, people become interested. They want to know more. Then you provide more information in the form of an article or details of your services on your web site. And, of course, you get their email and put them on your regular eZine list.

Why do I have 50,000 people on my weekly eZine list? It's because that's how I've consistently communicated about my business over the years. It's all about communicating value, not going on and on about how great my business is.

But there's also another way to look at this.

I realize, that at any given time, I'm not going to communicate perfectly. I may say things that turn people off. I might send one too many emails and have someone unsubscribe. Once in awhile I might forget myself and go on and on.

But so what?

I do my very best to communicate with integrity. I know my weekly eZine provides value. I know that my products and services have made a huge difference to thousands of people.

But you can't please everyone all the time. In fact, if you're doing really well with your marketing, you're still only going to please (get positive response from) about 10% of your audience (at best).

For instance, I've been promoting my Fast Track to More Clients workshops since early March. In that time, about 2,000 people have visited the information page about the workshop. And about 200 people have signed up for the workshop. That's just 10%.

What am I going to do, weep and wail that 90% didn't sign up and then beat myself up because I might have turned them off?

Give me a break!

Look, if you communicate about your business with passion, if you stop playing it safe, inside your comfort zone, and instead, put your attention on the value you provide to your clients, your business will take off in ways that will amaze you.

So where do you start with this?

First, you need to understand some fundamental marketing principles. There are seven distinct principles you need to know if you're going to market yourself successfully:

1. The Game of Marketing
2. Your Marketing Mindset
3. The Language of Marketing
4. Your Marketing Message
5. Marketing Information
6. Marketing Strategies
7. Marketing Action Plans

In this eZine, I just touched on the Language of Marketing. But this is only the tip of the iceberg. The more you understand how these principles work, the easier and more effective your marketing will be.

If you don't understand and apply these principles, you're going to struggle. You're going to play the game ineffectively, you're going to hold yourself back, afraid of turning people off. The chances of winning will be very slim indeed.

How long do you want to be a victim about your marketing, worrying you'll offend someone? This is a completely powerless way to live and to run your business.

Learn the principles and then get out and spread the word.

*

The More Clients Bottom Line: If you are worrying you'll offend people when you get enthusiastic about your business, you're just not marketing correctly. Your premise is at fault, not marketing. Master the principles and skills of marketing and you'll be free to be enthusiastic, while turning more people on than off.

*

Do you have any examples that prove the premise of today's eZine? Please share on the More Clients Blog.

Unsticking Your Marketing

During the IMC Confab last week, one of the sessions I attended was the "IMC Experts Talk Show." Several people submitted questions ahead of time. In the session, the questions were read and the whole group answered them.

The question I asked was: "In working with clients, what percentage of the work you do is knowledge/skills based and what percentage is psychologically based?"

I've always been curious about this but had never gotten a large group consensus. When the question was asked, several people laughed and then someone stood up and said: "I've never done a client engagement where 85% of the issues weren't psychologically based!"

And that was typical of the rest of the answers. The consensus was that psychological issues were the number one reason a client called a consultant or professional in the first place.

But paradoxically, that was NEVER why the client thought they brought the consultant in to help them. They thought they were interested in getting help with knowledge and skills.

In my consulting and coaching I've always put a lot of emphasis on knowledge and skills. I think they are very, very important. Six of my Seven Marketing Principles are knowledge/skill based, but the second principle "The Marketing Mindset," usually has the biggest impact on a client's ultimate results.

What I try to make very clear is that the Marketing Mindset you have shapes your actions and results. You can have the knowledge, the skills and the plan, but get terrible results if your mindset remains: "Marketing is fundamentally dishonest," or, "I'll never find the time to market myself."

I've seen very smart and highly educated people flounder helplessly with their marketing because of some hesitation, doubt or fear.

But here's the funny (and perhaps tragic), thing: Even when people realize that their current mindset is in the way, they try to add more knowledge and skills to change the mindset.

This is a little like being on a train heading for a bridge that is out, and moving the baggage around in the baggage car, hoping that this will prevent the train from falling into the ravine!

"Hmm, I'm afraid of being rejected. That's why I don't follow up with prospects. Great insight. I think I'll get another degree. Maybe that will help!"

Or, more typically, a marketing strategy you've implemented isn't working as well as you'd like. But you don't notice that you had something to do with it. Because of your doubt and hesitation, you didn't follow through, sweat the details, or build up any real enthusiasm for the plan. But you blame the plan.

So how can you unstick your marketing mindset?

A way that you may find extraordinarily useful is to look at how you are BEING about your marketing. Are you Being fearful, doubtful or confused? Those ways of Being clearly won't help your marketing.

Your thinking, feelings and actions are always in alignment with the way you are Being. Be confused and you will act confused.

But what you may fail to notice is that you can't change your way of Being by doing! If you gather more knowledge and develop more skills, you may still remain fearful, doubtful or confused.

What if you chose who you were going to be instead?

This Monday morning I woke up with a huge pile of things on my plate. Not only did I have the eZine to write, but my in-progress projects include writing an online marketing software program, gearing up for my next Certification Program, giving feedback to my Marketing Coaches and creating a big fundraising event for a non-profit organization (Room to Read).

What I noticed, before even getting out of bed, was that I was gearing up to BE overwhelmed. I also remembered that when I'm overwhelmed, I either start procrastinating, stuck in not knowing what to do first, or I go into "stressed-out panic mode."

I also remembered that both of these options were not very effective in handling overwhelm. So I asked myself, "If I couldn't be overwhelmed, who would I be?" The answer came quickly: "I'd be calm, focused and fearless."

I clearly saw that if I was calm, focused and fearless, I'd look at all the things I had on my plate, do a little planning and prioritizing and then do one thing at a time. And then I asked myself, "Who am I going to choose to Be? Overwhelmed, or calm, focused and fearless?"

That wasn't a hard one to answer! So far the day is going just great. Being scattered and frantic has been replaced by productivity and ease.

Now take a look at some marketing activity that you are not having much success with. You are stuck or struggling. Ask yourself who you are being regarding that activity or project.

Look at the behaviors that come out of that way of Being, and ask "If I couldn't be that way, who would I prefer to be?" And if that resonates with you, choose to be that way and take the first action towards that project, coming from that way of being.

I predict you'll discover you don't need to know a whole lot more or even learn more skills to take that first step.

*

The More Clients Bottom Line: It's not what you know or what you do that has the biggest impact on your success and productivity, It's who you are Being. Be aware of who you are being regarding an area where you are stuck, and ask if that's working for you. If it's not, choose a new way to be.

*

Who have you been BEING that has you stuck in moving forward with your marketing? Please share on the More Clients Blog.

Let Your Writing Do the Heavy Lifting

Go to a services page on the web site of any independent professional.

What will you find in most cases? Not enough information. It's not unusual that you'll see one to three paragraphs of very general information about the service and then at the end "call or email for more information."

Why the hell would I want to call for more information? Why isn't the information I'm looking for right there on the page? After all, this is what a web site is for. When you list one of your services, tell everything about it and answer all the questions someone may have about it. And then when people respond, it won't be for more information, it will be to actually explore working together.

In fact, one of my practices is to note any questions I get about the service (usually by email) and then go back to the web page and answer that question in the copy. I don't want people asking questions about the service. I want people saying "I think I need this service, can we talk?"

Some of the information to include on a service page.

• A title that actually says something that's benefit oriented (not "Our Services")

• An opening paragraph that talks about the target audience for this service and why this service is needed (what problems or challenges it addresses).

• A paragraph on the big result or ultimate outcome this service delivers.

• Several one to two-sentence bullet points that outline all the benefits and advantages of the service.

• A paragraph or two that explains exactly how the services works and how it is delivered.

• A testimonial quote from someone who has used the service successfully.

• A link to more detailed information such as a report, article or audio related to the service.

• A phone number, email and response form to make it easy to be in touch with you about using the service.

If you provide this level of detail about a service, when people contact you they will either be ready to buy or almost ready to buy. Let the writing do the heavy lifting of marketing and selling the service. It will save you time fielding calls for "more information" that could have easily be included on the services web page.

The only thing you usually want to leave out is the price. That gives your serious prospects another reason to contact you.

Disqualiying Prospects

In yesterday's eZine I said that marketing problem number three is when "your prospect knows more about your business, but is not yet sure your service is the appropriate one for them." This is when you need to provide information to qualify that prospect. But just as important is to disqualify that prospect.

I found a great article by Tom Varjan that talks about the importance of disqualifying prospects. You can find the complete article at this link. He're the opening of the article:

While in traditional sales we talk about qualifying prospects, I think it's even better to start disqualifying prospects.

I can't remember the exact words of Gill Wagner, author of Honest Selling, but the essence of his article was this: "Throughout our interactions with buyers, we're looking for a reason why we can't do business together. The sooner we find the reason, the sooner we can go home." He even used this phrase with prospects: "I guess we've just found a reason not to do business together. Would you agree?"

I loved his approach and being true to his company's (and book's) name, Gill's approach sounded honest to me.

Disqualification is a great way of finding committed buyers, but only if we can detach ourselves from the outcome. Of course this is easy for independent consultants, but an uphill struggle for consultants who work for a firm that pressures them to turn every piece of warm meat into paying clients.

Check out Tom Varjan's Blog with a collection of thought-provoking articles at this link.