More Than A Few Words

Do you have a personal brand? Do you even know what that is and why you need one?  My guest Ian Moyse explains that while the term "personal brand" sounds illustrious, something for celebrities and influencers, everyone has a personal brand.  Your personal brand is the perception others have of you. What they think of you and what they say of you when you're not in the room.  These days with social media, it is easier than ever for people to learn about you, good and bad from your digital profile.  About Ian Moyse Ian Moyse, Chief Revenue Officer at OneUp Sales, has led numerous revenue teams, 7 in smaller firms taking 4 through to exit. He was awarded the accolade of UK Sales Director of the year by BESMA (British Excellence in Sales Management Awards) and was listed in the top 50 Sales Keynote speakers by Top Sales World in 2019 & 2020 . Ian has been a regular judge on the Women in Sales Awards (WISA), Top Sales Awards, BESMA and the UK Cloud Awards.

Your business does not happen by accident. You have to have processes and procedures in place to make sure that everything gets done when it's supposed to.  Does that sound a little overwhelming? It doesn't have to be according to my guest Brittni Schroeder.  She explains you are only one person, and systems help you streamline your activities and  create processes you can share with others. The systems help you scale and handle more clients and bigger projects to grow your business.    About Brittni Brittni Schroeder Is a Certified Life and Business Coach. She helps female entrepreneurs launch and level up their businesses. Brittni worked as Photographer for over 10 years. She also owned and operated Mozi Magazine up until 2017. Her work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Good Morning America and several publications. She has worked in the non-profit sector for over 10 years and recently founded her own non-profit called The Compassion Club. She currently lives in Houston, TX.

In the age of the great resignation, business owners of all size companies are struggling with employee turnover. The pandemic had accelerated the resignations, but if you have employees, sooner or later you will need to address employee turnover. It is a natural part of owning a business. People will come and go for a variety of reasons. In some cases, there are things you can’t control (a spouse is transferred out of state or the employee is recruited by a firm that will pay 1-1/2 times what they make with your firm). The trick in reducing employee turnover is to focus on things you can control. Improve company culture One of the best ways to reduced employee turnover is to create an environment where people want to work.   Be selective about who you hire Take your time, even if it feels like forever, to find people who have the right skill and the right attitude. And if you make a bad hire, address toxic individuals head on.    Take responsibility for your team’s satisfaction Talk about the long term, even

It would be great if the rules of SEO would remain constant.  Unfortunately, SEO like most of your digital marketing is constantly evolving, as the technology evolves.  In this episode, Ryan Morgan, founder of the digital consultancy swell, Digital and an SEO training program called The SEO Cohort talks about the latest SEO trends.  These days, search doesn't begin with keywords.  It starts with a question. Ryan believes the companies that will come out on top are the ones with websites that do the best job of answering those questions.  About Ryan Ryan Morgan is a 15+ year digital marketing expert with a focus on SEO. He has led organizational and agency digital teams and has a history of driving growth for organizations using SEO.

If you're like me, you've started lots of things that you hoped would become habits. You run at them full bore for a little while and then you lose steam.  That start and stop is natural, but it doesn't have to be.  In this episode, Wendy Harris shares tips to make your new habits a permanent part of your routine. The first step is to start with one thing.  Making too many changes at once is overwhelming and not sustainable, so start with one new behavior and do it every day.  .   Podcast Host & Author  Expert telemarketer, Queen of Conversation, and natural chatterbox, Wendy Harris loves helping people to make their conversations count.   Wendy has worked in the sales and communication industry for over 30 years, and now uses this knowledge to train others in telemarketing, training them to make their conversations count.    She is the Best-Selling Author of the Training Handbook “Making Conversations Count – How to sell over the phone” host of the show “Making Conversations Count”. 

When it comes to content creation, more is not always better. I've been blogging since 2008. And I have a library filled with thousands of blog posts which I  wrote as resources for for clients and prospects and because Google loves fresh content. Unfortunately, only a fraction of those posts drive much traffic. It is exhausting to churn out three to five posts a week, only to have them sink into oblivion, buried under a sea of new posts. So, a few years ago, I switched my approach to blogging. Sure, I still write some new content every month. But the majority of my content creation time is spent reviewing and updating old posts. In addition to reducing my overall workload, I have rich content, which is better for building SEO authority. I have fresh content for social media, and an improved visitor experience because there are more in depth answers to visitor questions.

If you could have a conversation with anyone, who would you choose?” Almost everyone has a first choice and maybe a second, but who has hundreds of choices? As the host of More than a Few Words , Lorraine Ball has enjoyed the opportunity to talk with marketing and small business professionals from around the world for more than 13 years. You might think we would run out of things to talk about, but living in a digital world there is always something new. So today, in celebration of those 700 conversations, we thought it would be fun to revisit some of our favorites. #172 The Brand Position - Where do you fit?   #561 The Elevator Pitch #494 The Five Most Common Web Design Mistakes #569 Welcome Readers in Three Easy Steps #694 Change Your Sales Process in Four Words

No matter what your job is, sales expert, business owner or manager working your way up the corporate ladder, you're going to have to sell your ideas.  The prospect can be a little scary but it doesn't have to be according to our guest Patrick Donadio. He shares some simple tips like opening with a hook instead of an introduction.  You can open with a question or a compelling statistic that catches their attention. Then you have earned the right to tell them who you are.   Engage the audience on an physical, mental and emotional level.  Then close with a specific call to action.    About Patrick  For the past three decades, Patrick Donadio has spoken nationally and internationally and trained thousands of leaders and their teams, in a variety of industries, from Fortune 100 companies to associations. In his desire to help C-Suite executives and all leaders “grow their people”, Patrick has taken his decades of experience and crafted a results-based process detailed in his book, “Communicating with IMPACT”. His

Have you let your brand become marketing wallpaper. You've said the same things over and over and over again to build consistency which is great but you've said it so much people no longer hear it.  If that's happened to you and your message has become so bland that it's forgettable. You need to bring your brand to the forefront again with subtle changes.   Maybe it is pulling forward a new color in your visuals, or adjusting your standard wording to focus on one specific element of your message.  The small change in the familiar will catch your audience off guard and they are likely to start  paying attention to you again.

If you have something to say, you may be frustrated as you try to get that message out to the right people. Our guest, Jonathan Milligan shares some tips on how you can rise above the noise so prospective customers hear what you have to say.  Often what prevents people from hearing your message, or taking time to figure out if they want to buy from you is the fact that they may not believe they can use your product or service.  If you want to get heard, and sell more, you need to start by addressing this  belief and out teaching the competition instead of trying to out sell them.    About Jonathan  Jonathan Milligan is an author of Your Message Matters: How to Rise Above the Noise and Get Paid for What You Know. He is also a blogger, speaker, and online business coach. He has spent the last decade guiding and directing creative professionals on how to pursue meaningful work. Since 2009, Jonathan has run his own portable lifestyle business online. Today he teaches others how to build a business with their pass

According to our guest, Ryan Sullivan, modern day marketers understand that the buying journey is not linear. so the content on your website should speak to every aspect of the buying journey.  This creates a strong network effect on your website as you align your content with the search behavior of your target audiences. It is important to remember what people say, and what they actually do are not the same. That’s why it is important to have data tools which monitor actual search behavior instead of relying just on anecdotal information to drive your content topics. 

To develop really effective marketing, you need to be clear about your brand position, what makes you uniquely qualified to earn the business of your customers. Look beyond the technical skills and product specifications to the intangible elements. What should customers think and how should they feel as they interact with the brand. Sounds simple, but it isn’t. Being high quality, hardworking, offering leading-edge technology or providing good service are important but they are not things which really set a company apart. Why? Think about it, how often to you hear about a company which offers crappy service, high prices, poor technology or inferior products? These benefits put you on parity with everyone in your market. Your position statement must be more. So the hunt for  something unique begins. Unfortunately, it’s hard work, and many companies take the easy road, trying to combine two or more benefits which really don’t go together. The result is marketing that feels like a giant game of tug-of-war, pushi

According to our guest Merit Kahn, it is one thing to be really well versed in what you're going to say to a prospect and how you're going to go through your sales process but you need to engage the prospect. If you are having your best presentation ever, but the person that you're talking to is not open to hearing new ideas it won't matter how great your solution is the conversation isn't going to end well.  She suggests you begin any conversation by confirming your audience was open to receiving your message with four simple words:  "Are you open to"  The phrase is so simple, yet so powerful.    About Merit Kahn CEO of SELLect Sales Development. Sales & Business Development expert. Certified Emotional Intelligence expert. Certified Speaking Professional. Entrepreneur since 1998. Author. Stand-up comedian. Writer, producer and performer of a one-woman inspiring comedy show. Single mom of a teen.

It isn’t practical to drive looking only in the rear view mirror. Even if you think you know what is in front of you, sooner or later you will run into something you didn’t expect. When you run your business simply by reviewing your bottom line, you are driving using your rear view mirror. Why? Because the monthly revenue number is a lagging indicator, telling you how well you have done. There is no preview of the months to come. Don’t get me wrong, I think it is important to look at your P&L as a score sheet, but if you want a road map, you need to pay attention other business tools which are leading indicators. These numbers tell you months in advance if you are heading in the right direction, or if a course correction is needed. Closing Rate is one of the Great Predictive Business Tools This simple number drives your marketing budget. The better your closing rate, the fewer leads you need and the less you need to spend on advertising. So how good are you? How often do you walk away with a sale after a

What is the difference between an thought and an idea.  It is not just semantics according to my guest Bruno Pesec.   A thought is something fleeting.  It becomes an idea when you write it down and start formulating a process to bring it to life.    Ideas are free, but the time and resources required to bring them to life are not.  So before you pull the trigger on that idea you need to think about the value of the idea. Who will it serve, how does it fit into your business and what will it take to bring that idea to reality?    About Bruno Bruno Pešec helps business leaders innovate profitably. He is one of the rare innovators who can claim that he has worked on a regulation-defying freight train and an award-winning board game for teaching entrepreneurship and innovation. With ten years of experience in different industries—including defense, manufacturing, education, entertainment, and financial services—he has delivered projects that had positive impact on GDP of several countries, succeeded and failed

Has this happened at your house?  It is Christmas morning and after your child gleefully tears open a present, finding their much anticipated toy inside, they are disappointed because the batteries were not included. What usually ensues is a mad dash around the house as everyone searches for the right battery, followed by a trip to the store which may or may not be open on Christmas morning. Regardless of how the battery is ultimately found, the chaos and the time between opening the box and eventually turning on the toy diminishes the enjoyment of that first moment of play.  This could have easily been avoided if someone had simply checked to see if batteries were included in the box. The same is true for many websites.  The eagerly anticipated launch date arrives and suddenly there are questions. What about the SEO or social media links and profiles?  Why is there still Greek text on some of the interior pages?  Much like the batteries, these issue arise because there isn’t clear understanding of what is in

Some people think that chaos is a dirty word. But as my guest Robert Raymond Riopel suggests, a little bit of chaos in your life is a good thing. He suggests that as as human beings, one of our primary functions is to evolve and chaos is actually what forces us to evolve.  When you courageously volunteer for chaos, instead of allowing it to overwhelm you can takes steps to proactively change and improve your situation.     About Robert Raymond Riopel An international Best-Selling author, App Designer, Entrepreneur and Trainer who has spent the past 18+ years travelling around the world sharing his passion. He has also shared the stage with and trained many of the top trainers and thought leaders in the world today.

What is a non-fiction brand?  It is a brand that is true and authentic in its reflection of a company.  To build your non-fiction brand, my guest DP Knudten you need to start with a hard look in the mirror. As a business owner you need to go beyond the surface to discover exactly who you are, what you do, and how you do it. Those three things right there which comprise  your brand proposition are absolutely fundamental because that's what makes you different than someone who does the exact same thing across the street.   About DP  DP has worked on some of the biggest brands in the business, including Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Great Wolf Resorts, ClosetMaid, and Georgia-Pacific, and at agencies like DDB Needham/Chicago and McCann Erickson/Atlanta. A writer by trade, he enjoys playing in the intersection between the visual and the verbal, using his NonFiction Branding™ approach to move people—and product. DP is also the author of NONFICTION BRAND—Discover, craft and communicate the ‘completely true / completely y

The more you know about a prospect, the easier it is to sell. Asking questions is a great way to learn what you need to know and avoid wasting time talking about your product or solution if you don't know if you are talking to the right person . So, what should you be asking? Of course, there are the basic question which kick off the conversation. Why did you call me? What are you hoping we can do? What kind of time frame are you looking for? Why now? This is my favorite question because it helps me understand what has changed or what their pain point is. I use this information to match the right points in the service presentation to what they need. Beyond the basics are the tough questions salespeople are reluctant to ask because sometimes the answers make them uncomfortable. But these questions are critical to helping determine if you are talking to a qualified prospect, someone who has the resources, motivation, and authority to buy from you.   Here are some of those tough, but important questions:   Do y

If you are like me, you probably spend a lot of time on social Media. While these tools are helpful, are they the best resource for your business.  My guest, Megan Brame has eliminated both her Facebook and Instagram profiles. How is she generating leads? By going back to basics, relying on word of mouth, phone calls and email.    Megan Brame  is a 5x award-winning entrepreneur, author, and Advanced Digital Marketing Strategist. She helps entrepreneurs develop value-based marketing initiatives that create ride-or-die customers for life.  She is also the host of  Stop Sucking at Business Podcast