People have requested that I give them a quick peek at the new www.bloggertone.com website - the site will be launching very soon!

Bloggertone is a new space that allows people in business to access and share useful business information and opinions, constantly updated by the collaborative effort of selected business bloggers………. Here is a screenshot of the new platform.

Bloggertone has 10 sections that a blogger can post under, they are:

1. Talking Leadership
2. Transforming Your Business
3. Managing Money
4. People Matters
5. Technology & Web 2.0
6. Marketing Ideas
7. Growing Sales
8. Going International
9. Work/Life Balance
10. What’s Happening?

Functionalities will include author pages for the bloggers, voting, post ratings, and the usual social media sharing widgets (share this, tweet this, facebook connect, etc). Ultimately, the site encourages a conversation, so readers are encouraged to comment and most commented posts will make it to the homepage too.

The site is currently still been developed by my parthners in crime on this project - Fred and Facundo of Dublin web agency, Channelship. If you fancy becoming a featured blogger and contributing content to this unique new online space - why not contect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter.

Btb Guest Author

Jonathan Farrington

INTRODUCING…………..

Last Wednesday, we shared some exciting news with the entire Top Sales Experts team, and now I can at last share that news with you.

When we formed Top Sales Associates in 2007, our original plan was to follow the successful launches of Top 10 Sales Articles and Top Sales Experts with a number of other “Top Sales” initiatives and create a global brand.

However, as we all know, time is a great “educator” and based on the experience we have gained during the last two years, and after lengthy discussions with the TSE Executive Board, we have decided to change our strategy.

The desire to ornate the definitive sales related location remains strong, but instead of diluting our offerings, we are going to merge them and build an all-encompassing, one-stop, “sales supermarket” – so welcome to …..

Top Sales World…The Global Sales Resource.

We intend to use the Top Sales Experts project as the foundation, and in fact, we will only be promoting the products/services/solutions of the TSE team, plus those of our  Sponsors and TSE Strategic Partners.

This is of course, our most ambitious project to date, and it is outside the scope of our existing resources. We will therefore be working with outsourced expertise where necessary, specifically; website design, copywriting and marketing.

The projected launch date is January 12th.

So let me share with you what precisely is involved.

Site Content – Existing Sections:

Top Sales Experts
Top Sales Masterclasses
Top Sales Roundtables
Top 10 Sales Articles
Top Sales Articles/Top Sales Podcasts/Top Sales Guides
Top Sales Newsletter/ Top Sales Ebook
Top Sales Assessments
Top Sales Blogs

Ok, so that’s the eleven existing successful sections. Now let me introduce you to the seven new ones …..

Top Sales Leadership Zone
Top Sales 2.0
Top Sales Tools
Top Sales Jobs
Top Sales Store
Top Sales Events
Top Sales Advice

Those then are the eighteen areas that we have identified, and there may be two more to be added before we launch.

For example, it would make sense to have a “Top Sales Resources” Section  where we promote our Strategic Partners.

Project Timetable:

Site design chosen – October
Build begins – November
Testing phase – Mid-December
Launch – January 12th

In Summary:

We are building the significant sales related location
It will contain every conceivable sales resource
We will only be promoting the products/services/solutions of the TSE team and those of our sponsor and strategic partners

Top Sales World – Where in the world do you want to go today?

More soon….

This post appeared in Joinathan’s blog on October 3rd.

———————-

Jonathan Farrington is a globally recognized business coach, mentor, author, and consultant, who has guided hundreds of companies and tens of thousands of individuals around the world towards optimum performance levels.  He has authored in excess of three hundred skills development programmes, designed a range of unique and innovative process tools and has been published extensively on a wide range of business topics including organizational and sales team development, leadership and the customer imperative.  Jonathan’s first book, “Tougher At The Top” will be published early in 2009.  Visit his website @ www.jonathanfarrington.com

There is a revolution taking place……We are witnessing the greatest shift since the industrial revolution but at a pace that we can only struggle to appreciate.

• Technology and specifically Social Media technologies are advancing at an exponential rate.
• The growth of users of social media has followed a similar path – for example, Facebook now has 1000000 Irish users.
• Further applications (technologies) are constantly been developed off the back of the original idea.

Read between the lines and you begin to realise that “the hierarchical nature of our society is beginning to crumple”

• The concept of ownership as we previously understood it now no longer applies e.g. music industry.
• The “normal Joe” now has the resource and facility to reach out and influence the collective.
• Organisations can no longer control the message (idea); engagement is the only way to now exert influence.

Power is very quickly been transferred to the individual and the collective……..The smartest individuals (Obama) and organizations are learning to embrace rather than fight this tide.

Where does Ireland presently sit in the new world?

• We are 18-24 months behind in terms of our learning.
• We are currently still debating “which tools” rather than “what opportunities exist” for us. We need to GET REAL.

So what realizations do we need to make?

• The tool (technology) does what it says on the tin.
• The real conversation should be about the effectiveness of the person, organization, country or tribe using these tools.
• We are a small country; we should be able to move fast.
• There exists very real potential for Ireland Inc around “Global Irish” and “Smart Economy”
• There will no prize for second place, to truly benefit we have to become the Global Leader - a “Silicon Valley” approach.
• The future is now, time is running out. SPEED is King

So here it is, the NEW GAME… #IrelandInc #SmartEconomy #GlobalIrish #SocialMedia - Let’s start to Join the dots?

For anyone just tuning in, this series of posts is my attempt to describe one of the busiest weeks; I’ve had in a long while.

In part one; I talked about our second SLI meet up “From the Buyers Perspective” and in part two and three about our International Partnership events “International Success for Tech Companies”

Thursday: IT@Cork Internationalisation Event

The it@cork is a member-driven not-for-profit business association representing the interests of ICT professionals which has over 280 corporate members based in the Cork region.

Again Dave Brock enthralled with another presentation and talk about the challenges of Internationalisation. This was Dave’s 4th talk of the week to an Irish audience, his ability to teach, to communicate and to engage as fresh as ever. Had Dave been an Irish man, he would in my opinion have come from the People’s Republic of Cork….a Roy Keane or Christy Ring of the sales world!

Since Dave has settled back home in sunny California, he has written two blog posts about his trip to Ireland. They are Intensity, Clarity, and Purposefulness & The Courage To Admit You Are Wrong make sure you check them out, I think he likes us :).

Just after Dave on the day was Pat Phelan of MaxRoam. Talk about a brilliant Irish technology business! MAXroam have negotiated voice deals with more than 700 mobile carriers in over 213 countries and data deals in 139 countries across the globe. Through these international partnerships, they now offer up to 80% lower roaming charges to people all over the world by simply replacing your regular SIM with your MAXroam SIM card.

Pat talked honestly about having to completely change their route to market strategies mid stream, and how ultimately this realisation has led to their great success. He talked about the long hours and challenges of dealing with so many different time zones and the pressure it puts of the support mechanisms within the business.

Interestingly to me he also talked about how he has so effectively used social networking to identify and capitalise on new business opportunities. In fact, he only uses social marketing!

As he talked, a thought struck me… could Pat Phelan be the most sophisticated user of social media in Ireland? I think he very well may be - particularly if you consider how quickly he has grown the biz to a multi million organisation. It was our 3rd inspirational talk from a leading Irish Tech entrepreneur that week.

Friday: Digest and Catch Up!

Our tech leaders are now intrinsically tied to our economic recovery, not only that, they are fundamentally important people, if we are ever hoping to realise our aspirations of becoming a smart economy.

Irish software companies are born International, there is no choice! We may be good at supporting them but we need to get better, there is no choice! The International Partnership, bringing ladies and gentlemen of the calibre of Dave Brock to these shores and getting International results is something I intend to see happen.

In the meantime…..Phew!!… That was some week.

In part one; I talked about our second SLI meet up “From the Buyers Perspective” and in part two about our morning International Partnership event “International Success for Tech Companies”

Tuesday: The International Partnership – International Success for Tech Companies (Afternoon Session)

As already stated, the interest in this took us by surprise so we ended up holding a second session on Tuesday afternoon. The running order followed a similar pattern to the morning event, with both Donagh and Dave speaking again (see part two)

However this time first up was Paddy Holahan. Paddy is CEO of Newbay Software, a leader in digital lifestyle solutions for operators, enabling subscribers to create, store, view and share user content. Paddy brings huge experience in the Irish tech sector, having previously been Executive Vice President of Marketing & Product Management at Baltimore Technologies.

He spoke at length about his humble beginnings and how he managed to grow the various Irish software businesses that he has been involved with. Paddy is a straight talker, someone who is not afraid to call it as he sees it - but I think what impressed everyone most was his incredible focus.

He demonstrated an ability to back his own judgement, sometimes against the advice of others - but more often than not proving his was the right course to take. As a fellow Tipp man, I have to say - I liked his style.

Again, the quality of the people that attended was reflected in the intelligent dialogue and engagement that ensued all afternoon. As the risk of repeating myself, the Irish tech sector is in good hands. It’s the rest of us that need to make sure we adequately support our tech leaders - I for one, intend to make that happen.

Wednesday: Day of Rest? Yeah Right!

I travelled from Dublin to Tipp on Wednesday, happy in knowledge that the previous two days events had exceeded my expectations. I had intended to do a little work in the afternoon; I also knew I had a conference call with Jonathan Farrington and the Top Sales Experts International team that evening.

Irish Biz Blog Network

On the way down, I put a call into Fred and Facundo at Channelship. The guys and I have teamed up to launch Ireland’s first Biz Blogging Network.

Now I have always believed that best way to get stuff done is to simply trust the right people and then let them do their thing. I don’t want to give too much away just yet, but let’s just say it was another expectation exceeded. I would seriously encourage you to watch this space and Channelship because they are rightly becoming leaders in their field.

Here’s a recent Slideshare from Channelship.

TSE, the Greatest Show on Earth!

All that was left was the conference with TSE, and boy, did Jonathan have lots of exciting news. I am not sure that there is someone doing more for the profession of selling than Jonathan.

Again, I need to remain tight lipped for now but let’s just say there are a serious of BIG announcements planned over the coming months. If you haven’t checked TSE out yet, click on the banner – It is already an incredible sales resource and is on the way to becoming the one-stop shop for sales info on the planet.

Next up, was Thursday, which was the IT of Cork meet up and another very successful Irish entrepreneur – who may also double to be the most successful social networker in the land??

In part one, I talked about the second Sales Leadership Ireland meet up on Monday and the wonderful dialogue that resulted…….So on to Tuesday.

Tuesday: The International Partnership – International Success for Tech Companies.

These were two events (morning and afternoon) organised by myself, Donagh Kiernan of Maidsfield Associates and Dave Brock of Partners of Excellence to kick off our three-way International Partnership.

First up on the day was Kevin O Leary, CEO of QUMAS, an Irish company that provides compliance management software to the world’s leading blue chip companies. Kevin is an inspiring and charismatic presenter, and his story is one of continued success.

As part of his unique and engaging presentation, Kevin waked us through the actual pipeline of the business. He talked about why hiring a capable and analytical sales manager was a critical component of their success.

QUMAS have grown their business substantially in a very short space of time through strategic global partnerships. It’s a wonderful success story and Kevin was very kind in sharing his insights and learning with us, an entirely captivated audience throughout.

Next up was Donagh Kiernan who has worked closely with Kevin over the years in identifying the right fit International partners. Taking us through his step by step process, he talked about how he researches and creates the ecosystem of the particular market. While Donagh’s methods may be scientific, he stressed why instinct is still an important factor in arriving at a decision. It was an insightful presentation from Donagh that complimented Kevin’s earlier delivery.

Our third and final presentation was from Dave Brock, this would be Dave’s second of three presentations in only two days. Dave brought a truly global perspective, his IBM background, his experience as an investor in software companies and his huge consulting experience with his firm Partners in Excellence.

Dave has worked with the virtually every player of the global tech landscape, his experience shining through as he talked about the different strategies he implemented over the years. He talked about how it is possible for a big company to love a smaller one to death, the pesky details that can wreck International relationships and which strategy you employ really depends on a great many factors.

All three presentations were interoperable in nature and the questions and dialogue from those that attended was intelligent and though provoking. The Irish tech sector appears to me to be in many good hands.

Because of the level of interest in this event, we had to run an additional session in the afternoon. This proved equally engaging but more on that in part three.

Apologies for not blogging in a while, it’s not an excuse but this is easily the busiest I have been since I started the business. I know it’s a great complaint in the present environment.

Wow! What a week this week was, I am both excited and exhausted as a result. I have so many people to thank, it’s not funny

My dear friend and mentor “Dave Brock” was in Ireland all week to help us kick off The International Partnership. Dave is a genuine thought leader on sales and biz development. He has more experience and wisdom in his little finger than most of us could hope to achieve in a lifetime.

Monday: Sales Leadership Ireland – The Buyers Perspective

John O Gorman of the ASG Group and I organised the second SLI event. John is currently writing a book that will no doubt prove an invaluable sales resource. More about that in the coming months.

Dave Brock kicked off the event and talked about “adopting an outward in perspective in conversations with clients will help us all understand our clients a bit better”. Dave has been called “the conversation starter” and the resulting dialogue was wonderful. “We tend to talk a lot about putting the customer first but then forget to put ourselves in their shoes, the question what keeps your customer up at night is as still as valid as ever”

Dave Coffee from Supplierforce was next up. Dave is an expert on procurement and after hearing him talk, I can’t recommend the guy highly enough. The insight he provided was a salesperson’s dream.  “Buying has changed and procurement people within orgs are under immense pressure to help drive the business forward”

Dave’s 10 tips for salespeople.

1.    Seek to understand the level of strategic procurement that is taking place in the organisation you are targeting
2.    Beware of coming in late in the sourcing process
3.    Focus on the total cost of the solution and understand the overall investment that needs to be made
4.    Segment yourself
5.    Don’t oversell
6.    Listen and engage in conversations
7.    Engage across multiple levels before you propose
8.    Don’t stop once you get the sales ensure implementation is successful
9.    Consider your clients efficiency ratio
10.    Make sure you know how to speak to the CFO

When someone of the calibre of Sean Weafer says that he found it “more stimulating that anything I’ve attended in selling here to date” you know something good went down. Thanks to everyone that attended live and on Twitter, the interaction and insight was brilliant.

This is what I had intended SLI to be, when I started the group.

Still to come…..

3 more great events
Talks from 3 of Ireland’s most successful entrepreneurs.
One of Ireland’s leading experts for Tech companies.
The spanking new bloggers network for business in Ireland.
The greatest sales resource on the planet
Why many Irish companies are born International
And a whole lot of networking

Join me next time to find out more