Newsflash: You are in Sales

Yes, we're all in sales, but I'm referring to a career that has defined metrics. You sell, you survive. You don't sell, your commission is affected. You park your laptop on a desk in the “sales department” kind of sales. You have numbers you need to hit this quarter, kind of sales. You eat what you kill, kind of sales. It's one thing for your performance to be measured by how you do your job. It's much different to be judged by the actual money you actually bring in the actual door. 

Sales is the transference of trust, so you must build strong relationships. Sales can be a grind and not for those with delicate digestive tracts. It's common for those not in sales to think the sales department will do anything for a buck. After all, they are rewarded in their pay stubs if they sell more stuff. That couldn't be farther from the truth. If you don't respect and believe in what you're selling, making numbers will be a guess at best. 

Numbers and People 

I've spent almost twenty years of my career selling myself long before selling any product or service. That isn't an easy process and the self-ringing phone has yet to be invented. Sales is not easy, but if you have the right product or service, and most importantly, support of your team and management, it can be exciting and rewarding. 

To those in sales, you have my upmost gratitude and respect. To those who are not in a sales role, I have an idea for you – try it for just one day.

You will gain a entire new perspective. __________________________________________________________________

Google Plus or Minus?

Last week saw the launch of Google+. Like many early adopters or experimenters, I joined right away. As with the first few days on Twitter or Facebook or Empire Avenue or countless other spaces, I'm still trying to figure out what to do with it.

Google+ received seven million sign-ups in the first 24 hours and now the race begins on trying to attract attention and have conversations on another interface. If it lasts that long, we are a year away from business caring about this channel. In the meantime, the cool kids will race to add numbers to then claim it's not about the numbers.

Will this be another Google Buzz? Time, as they say, will tell.


Kneale Mann

image credits: Google

Digital Time Off

Spill in Aisle 5

Friday began with a review of a packed but exciting schedule. Meetings, calls, clients, prospects and even an hour off to think. My kinda day. At around 9:35am, the phone rang and something happened that hasn't happened in probably a decade. My freshly brewed coffee was on the left side of my laptop, instead of its usual right. The land line, which was ringing, was on the the left as well.

I wasn't aware that my cat-like reflexes were still so sharp but as steaming hot coffee (with milk and sugar) nipped the edge of the laptop and continued to flood my desk, the computer was unplugged and in my hands. I chose not to bow to what was probably my fate until I mopped, wiped and vacuumed the laptop. Desk was cleaned after that.

@knealemann: Coffee meets laptop. How's your day?

I don't usually share such silly things on Twitter but chose to on Friday and a wonderful flood of great advice and help came through. Never underestimate your friends and colleagues' ability to help out.

After returning from an afternoon of meetings, I saw an email that suggested putting the laptop in a bag of dry rice. It was 8-hour old (now dried) coffee so my hopes weren't high but what was the downside. So off to the store to buy two large boxes of rice.

Give it some time

I let the laptop sit in the dry rice until Saturday afternoon when I took it out, dusted it off, vacuumed the excess and hit the power button. No such luck. It would turn on but the keyboard was gone. There was a moment of silence. All data is backed up twice a day so nothing was lost. Well, except a laptop that will eventually hit the recycle bin.

One of my client's computer guy sent suggested replacements while a colleague offered me their backup laptop and a client offered to help with data transfer.

Lessons Learned

Keep everything far away from electronics.
Remember you have great friends who want to help.
Back up your data daily.
Always keep rice in the pantry.

Kneale Mann

image credit: istock

Will All This Webby Stuff Work?

Money Back Guaranteed

The job starts Monday. New city, new gig, new apartment and nerves are sparring with excitement. It’s what you have been working toward during all those long hours, weekends and late nights. The money is good, the benefits and vacation time is cool, the company seems solid and now there’s only one concern. You hope it will work.

The team at the agency promised the campaign is going to nail the perfect customer. The target of men 18-25 will eat this up. The focus groups loved it and the cross media approach was the way to go. But you can hear that voice deep down pondering just one question. You worry if it will work.

Smart People Converge

There are two excellent events going on this month. One right now is Social2011 in Boston and next week it’s SOBCon in Chicago. It is inspiring to see how the discussion has advanced.  Fifteen to twenty ears ago, those of us utilizing the Internet on a regular basis were looked at as weird geek people who needed to get some fresh air.

Now the discussion is with business people conceptualizing the digital future. It’s nothing short of amazing yet there continues to be one issue tugging at the consciousness of many people. Will it work.

Now is the Time

Perhaps we need to listen, collaborate, experiment, have fun, take chances, make mistakes and understand there is not just one way to navigate all this web stuff. Maybe with some time your company can gain some traction through commitment to the channels. And the effort will subside the desire for instant wins. It might just work.

Do you hope it will work or do you work at it every day?

Kneale Mann

image credit: tiltedpixel

2011 Check-List

For some, it is the quietest time of the year. To others, this is the most important month of revenue for the entire fiscal. Some are going into work and making themselves look busy. While others won't see blue sky for a few more weeks. And we should send out a special thanks to anyone working retail right now!

What do you do?

It's amazing to connect to people across the world through the social web. However, we spend so little time actually getting to know what each of us does for a living or for fun.

If you have some downtime over the Holidays, spend a little time on some profiles and websites. You may gain valuable ideas for the coming year. It could unearth a new business contact or client.

Plan. Prepare. Proceed.

Another idea is to go through your schedule for the past year and note where you may want to revisit a meeting or book a follow-up discussion that now seems unfinished.

There is obviously more to life than work but if we are going to spend so much time in the media, on the blogosphere, on Facebook, on Twitter and in meetings complaining about the economy, perhaps we can all skip a nog or two to work on some things that will make next year even better.

What will you do in the next 10 days to ensure a kick ass 2011?

knealemann | email


image credit: psdgraphics