When someone contacts me, a lot of times it’s because they feel stuck in their problem. They probably spent some time trying to solve them on their own, and maybe even tried a few other methods that didn’t give them the results they were looking for.  When they finally come to me, they  have a certain expectation about what will happen and how coaching is going to help them “fix” their problem and even them selves. Then I explain to them, that it’s not really the case and not what the process is all about.

Today I received a recommendation letter … Continue Reading

When you move from ‘vacuum salesman’ to trusted advisor you seal more deals.

Every day, I hear from someone who calls themselves a “software salesman” or an “insurance saleswoman,” and I wonder why they pigeonhole themselves this way.

And then it strikes me: They are product peddlers as opposed to salespeople.

What do I mean by this? Well, a gifted salesperson can sell anything to anyone. Not because they have great products but instead because they are supremely confident about themselves and know they can charm and intrigue virtually everyone they come in contact with.

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Looking for ways to make your company more productive, make your team more creative, and make your operations more efficient? If so, then check out these 25 strategies, which range from thoughts on leadership to advice on how to motivate employees to ways of reducing IT costs. Each of these ideas has been tested by other small businesses and yielded a significant pay-off. Here’s hoping they work just as well at your business.

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My clients as well as the people that interact with me are often surprised with the quality of thinking and ideas that I have. Given the fact that I look young makes them even more perplexed. This often leads to questions like “What school did you go to?”, “Where did you learn this all this?” and my favorite “How did you get so smart?”. The truth is that I don’t really consider myself to be naturally smarter then anyone else. I certainly don’t believe that I learned all that much in school. Mostly because the subjects were uninteresting and uninspiring … Continue Reading

Do you really know your customer?

A client of mine just sent me this great video. It’s a perfect illustration of the disconnect between business, advertisers and customers. Thanks to the internet the days of big flashy gimmicky marketing are forever gone. In today’s market and economy people have the option of looking and finding specifically what they want. On top of that, there are so may available options that are one Google search away.

What really matters today are the kinds of relationships that you build with your customers. Building these relationships will require you to know the pains, problems and … Continue Reading

So you seen the fancy website, and so what? Anyone can put together a professional photo and talk about how great they and their services are. If you are like me you want some proof. From real people like you. Someone who has faced some of the same issues as you and got real results.

Here is a video that Allen Spindel, CTO of Serious Matchmaking Inc. was nice enough to make from his pool. He shares his experience of working with me (Gene Plotkin) and the… Continue Reading