Speak with people

[Helge V. Keitel]

What is marketing and sales all about? Simple things. Speak with your clients and prospects.

A marketing program doesn't need to be very complicated. The most important thing is to get your organization to get in touch with people.

Sales methods can be very simple. Make a list, start to call your clients. Offer what people want and need while sales and marketing people love to sell!

Forget about selling as a way to force your product or service upon people. Start talking. Social interaction is most important. Talk to get:

Attention (you've to touch a need)
Interest (learn about the need)
Desire (tell stories about applications)
Action (work together to find an agreement)
Close (close the sale by solving a problem or fulfilling a need)

Marketing in recession doesn't differ from marketing and sales in any other time of a business cycle. Talk with people, listen and learn what they want.

Marketing and sales don't need to be complicated. The dialog is most important. Don't be a teller, be a seller. Listening to peoples needs is probably the most difficult task.

[Kai Nyman]

Wau!! Good advice. Better than in many books.

[Helge V. Keitel]

Kai, thanks, yeah sometimes the short form is easier to grasp than all the kottlers about marketing and sales. We also need to understand:

Product
Price
Place
Promotion
Politics

[Petre]

I have to start working with this AIDAC-concept, allthought many of those things will come naturally, or will they?

[Helge V. Keitel]

How many seasoned business men or women know the advantages of social media and global networking? Those newer to the social media game will not always know what they should be doing or how they should be doing it.

- Social media is cost effective if you don't count the hours you use to build your network
- Global networking is possible but does it lead to tangible results?

When we are thinking about spending your time on a networking event or a new platform, you need to think about some important questions.

- Is this the right place for me?
- What would I like to do with these people?
- Do I have something in common?
- What can i share?
- What is my contribution?

A good business networking event or a network should be a cost efficient way of increasing the potential number of your customers or valuable contacts. A bad one wastes your time and money.

- I've never calculated the ROI of my network activities
- I don't do it for how I live my life
- There isn't economy in everything
- There are more values than money
- I like to have friends and partners all over the world

For a business person, the only reason for networking is to increase the amount of sales you have coming into your business. If your sales do not increase then it’s a social occasion not a networking event, go out with your friends instead.

- How productive is your networking?
- Do personal relations include other values?
- I'd like to have your opinions