Supported by Ulster Bank, Small Business Can is the fastest growing small business network in the UK & Ireland today. (more…)

I recently gave a talk on Social Media to the Kildare branch of Network Ireland. Network Ireland provides a forum where women in business, the professionals, and the Arts can exchange ideas and increase their business contacts.

I think it’s fair to say that while within the group there was a realisation as to the need to be actively using social media; there was also trepidation around where to start, how much time to spend and the technical knowledge that was required. (more…)

Please read my orginal #FollowFriday post to understand how this works (more…)

Borrowed this idea from @barneyausten over at My Project Tracker blog.

“I read a great post from Chris Brogan the other week about using a blog post to be able to share more about why you recommend following someone on Twitter. I thought it was a great concept”

Here are some top #sales folks to follow on Twitter (more…)

I’m sometimes asked where I go to for social media know-how, the simple answer is that virtually everything you need to know is available online. There are many great social media blogs who publish straight forward & practical advice & know-how.  Here are 10 truly excellent blogs to get you started. (more…)

I’ve spoken about my admiration for Linkedin and how to use it as a development tool for business before. Linkedin groups are a wonderful way to market you and your business, make connections and have your questions about business answered. I am a member of many Linkedin groups and try to participate as much as possible. Here is a list of the top 30 Irish Linkedin groups by number of members. (more…)

Umair Haque writes an exceptional thought provoking piece called The Social Media Bubble at Harvard Business Review.

He advances this hypothesis:

“Despite all the excitement surrounding social media, the Internet isn’t connecting us as much as we think it is. It’s largely home to weak, artificial connections, what I call thin relationships. (more…)

In my first Bloggertone post – Social Media inside the Corporation – I introduced the story of how a personal interest in what we then referred to as Web 2.0, had grown into a key business initiative inside the organisation where I work, which we now call SNBC (Social Networking & Business Collaboration).  It has been an exciting journey over the last two plus years, with many twists and turns as we have adapted to the various challenges of trying to increase usage of Social Media for internal communication and collaboration. (more…)

Ok! So I got your attention, right? (more…)

I thought I’d share my favourite business tools I have used this year. I am amazed at how many amazing products for business are very inexpensive or often completely free. The only challenge is to find them in the first place. (more…)

The environment in which salespeople now sell has changed considerably. The process of buying has changed – therefore the process of selling has changed accordingly…. Markets are smaller and more complex – there are less genuine opportunities for salespeople to sell…. Decision makers and the people involved in decision making have changed meaning purchasing decisions are now longer and much more complex. Reality check! The bottom line is that the market will not adapt or return for the salesperson, it is now up to the salesperson to change – so as to meet the needs of this new sales environment. If you are still a salesperson in 2010, firstly congratulations – here are 5 recommended strategies you can employ towards getting on top of your target this year.

1. Start by Moving the Target Up

What? I hear you ask, my target is challenging enough without putting additional target and pressure on top. Wrong! Sales are ultimately about smart averages, so putting your target up a notch means you give yourself more breathing space from the get go. In planning for a higher target, you automatically increase your chances of hitting and exceeding your original target. It’s a simple fact!

2. Analyse Performance and then Plan for Success

It amazes me to this day how many companies continue to use KPIs badly and how many salespeople insist on trying to fudge the figures. Your KPIs are one of the mostly deadly sales tools you have. A proper and realistic analysis of your KPIs will provide you with everything you need to know and do to improve your performance. In short, they provide you with the building blocks for both your long-term and short-term sales planning.

So KPIs provide you with the relevant information and your sales plan decides how and where you intend to spend your time. You will need to plan for long-term (yearly) and short-term (monthly, weekly). It’s critical that you get this right, because your time is your ultimate resource in sales – so ensure that you are spending it wisely. In the words of a famous ex-Manchester united captain “Fail to prepare, prepare to fail”

3. The Trick is to Prospect rather than Close

A key skill for all sales people in this environment is their ability to find genuine prospects. Its takes time and research but it pays to do so. A problem for a great many salespeople right now is that rather invest in prospecting, they are choosing instead to invest in closing. In other words, they are continuing to spend the majority of their time chasing prospects that don’t want to buy rather than finding prospects that do. You could almost call it, a type of sales madness. Remember, research is the key piece when prospecting. The more thorough your research, the better prepared you will be to meet the decision maker and ultimately the greater your chances of success.

4. Selling is Easier when you Embrace Technology

While technology may on one hand threaten the very role of the salesperson, it also assists us to be increasingly more effective and professional. Information is freely and widely available on the organisations and the people that we want to sell to. It is now easier than ever to connect with these people and networking can happen at speeds unimaginable only a few years ago. A salesperson that is not willing or afraid of these new tools will quickly be left behind. Embrace rather fight technology, it just made selling a whole lot easier.

5. Become a Business Person, not a Sales Person

In 2010, being a salesperson alone no longer cuts the mustard. Prospect’s time is increasingly valuable; they are only interested in speaking to people who will bring lots of value to any conversations. The flipside is that you now are expected to know a lot more than merely what you sell. The salespeople that will succeed will be those who bring with them developed and strong business acumen. They will be those who can step behind the desk of the senior managers within organisations and see the world through their eyes.

This means that the role of salesperson is also that of someone who has an aptitude and appetite to constantly better oneself. If your company are lacking in their support in this regard, you must pick up the slack, and consciously devote both your person and time to learning. The wealth of available information means that this is now very easy to do. So whether it is reading a business book a month or subscribing to some top class business blogs, it will not happen unless you make it so.

My Sales Prediction for 2010…..

While 2009 could be considered perhaps survival of the fittest in terms of its effect on professional sales and sales people, it is my prediction, that in 2010 – we may start to see the survival of the most knowledgeable. I am not one who subscribes to the theory that technology is making sales a redundant profession. It is my belief that what we are actually seeing is the start of the true professionalism of sales. It would make me exceedingly happy if this turns out to be the case…. Please be sure to share your strategies towards making target in the comments section below and the very best of luck in 2010.

For the last few months, Bloggertone has been a labour of love and indeed a steep learning curve for me and the guys at Channelship. For those of you that don’t know (the new official explanation), Bloggertone is a business blogging community, a place where business professionals can stand out. You can read the specialists; share opinions and sign up to blog about business!

The site went live on the 23^rd of October 2009 and as it now goes through its first redesign, it feels like a good time to look back and access what I have learned in between.

Identity takes time

I had an idea in my head of what Bloggertone would be before the project got off the ground. In some respects, it now resembles those initial thoughts and in other ways it is completely different. “What Bloggertone is” has changed and is changing. I now realise that this is one definition online community, it is an entity that grows and changes and you as the parent need to support rather than resist. I now realise that it may be some time before Bloggertone acquires it’s grown up persona.

Community means you setting the example

I think most Bloggertoners (what they now like to be called) would agree that the single biggest success of the project so far is the community. It was probably 6-7 wks after the launch that this realisation fully dawned on me. Its easy to talk up community, but to really support a growing community like Bloggertone, you must be prepared to put some work in. You yourself need to become the example of the community member that you are trying to create.

It takes all types

The strengths and levels of involvement differ from member to member. Some people are great bloggers and produce excellent content. Others are wonderful networkers who promote, support and interact effectively - while some members come purely for the advice. The point is that people interact in the way that best suits them, while you might like everyone to do everything; this is not a realistic expectation. A better way is to accept this and find ways to make it easier for members to continue their level of involvement.

Summary:

The strength of any community is down to the people, we are very lucky in that we have great people who have invested themselves in the success of the project. This is really what has set the tone for Bloggertone.