You're Going To Be Great At This!

Networking is important for the success of our business, sales goals, and even personal relationships. Meeting people and building a rapport with them can lead to other introductions and referrals. But what should you do after a networking event to increase the odds of meeting your goals? Years ago, I would go to a networking event and hand out business cards like I was dealing poker. People would be polite and say "thank you" with an occasional "I'll give you a call". Of course, they did not call. Disappointed, I would question why I should bother and ask myself how this was working for other people. A coworker explained that I needed to be more proactive. Instead of handing out my cards (which are not cheap, by the way), I should be collecting cards from others, and following up on my own. This worked and I was soon booking appointments and getting some traction. Recently, I had Dorien Morin-Van Dam, host of the Strategy Talks podcast (a great listen) and we ...

As entrepreneurs, business owners and other self-employed types, we are always try to learn how to work efficiently, maximize profits and keep our focus on the future. Sometimes, we overlook an obvious resource. By listening to the stories of how others in our shoes have made the journey to successful business person, we can see how our own stories are either similar or completely different. I personally love reading biographies of successful business people throughout history. Recently I finished David McCullough's book, "The Wright Brothers". Most of us know the story of these two bicycle shop owners who figured out how to fly and control the flight. However, there were other parts of this story that I learned. Their tenacity, business acumen and planning were integral to their success.  This is usually the case of most successful people.  By reading or hearing of these kinds of examples, we can look at our experiences to learn as well. Recently I had Adam Griggs of the...

For those of us who are in sales or are self-employed, we tend to concentrate on marketing, networking, production numbers and other factors that affect the bottom line. However, we often overlook an important factor. When considering your state of mind when selling, one should also how they feel physically as well. By exercising and staying healthy, we are more productive, can increase our working years and be more effective.  Victor Fernandes of Fernandesfit.com was a guest on a recent episode of my podcast and we discussed how staying healthy and moving our bodies can impact the success of our business.  Coincidentally, I was a guest on his podcast as well, which is on YouTube . In both of these we talk about getting up out of the chair and keeping healthy by doing the "small things", like drinking water and walking. Small changes can make a big difference! Chris Castane s is a humorous speaker who helps sales people succeed through workshops and humorous presentations. H...

One of the biggest obstacles we face in our careers as business owners, sales reps and other self-employed folk, is getting our mental blocks out of the way so we can succeed.  Carl Willis of Remodeling Marketing Team and I talk about optimizing your mindset for hitting goals and making more money.  By knowing who your customer is and understanding what problem your product or service solves, you can get better clarity around your business.  Carl shares a good story of an entrepreneur who was undervaluing her work, and by virtue, underpricing her product. Take a listen and please follow/subscribe.  Chris Castane s is a humorous speaker who helps sales people succeed through workshops and humorous presentations. His new book, "Nearly Motivated" is available on Amazon. For booking information,  click here . His new podcast,  "You're Going To Be Great At This!"  is available on most platforms.   He's also the president of  Surf Financial Br...

As someone who is self-employed, I have found that a great way to get my message out and to network with people I want to meet. By joining my local chamber of commerce, I've met great people, become referable and learned about all kinds of businesses that I didn't know existed. In an episode of the "You're Going To Be Great At This" podcast, I talked with Wendy Malenfant of the Little River (SC) Chamber of Commerce and we discussed the perks of joining a chamber.  I sincerely hope you find value in our podcast and ask that you follow/subscribe.  Chris Castane s is a humorous speaker who helps sales people succeed through workshops and humorous presentations. His new book, "Nearly Motivated" is available on Amazon. For booking information,  click here . His new podcast,  "You're Going To Be Great At This!"  is available on most platforms.   He's also the president of  Surf Financial Brokers  selling life and disability insurance in sever...

We all want to land that one big prospect that can make our month or year. But how do we work on that "whale" while working our usual market? In this episode of our podcast, I discuss how to recognize which ones of these "whales" we are targeting and how to turn them from prospect to client. As always, I appreciate your support. Please follow/subscribe to the podcast. Thanks! Chris Castane s is a humorous speaker who helps sales people succeed through workshops and humorous presentations. His new book, "Nearly Motivated" is available on Amazon. For booking information,  click here . His new podcast,  "You're Going To Be Great At This!"  is available on most platforms.   He's also the president of  Surf Financial Brokers  selling life and disability insurance in several states.

In today's fast-paced world, staying connected and informed is key to successful networking. Imagine having a tool that keeps you updated on your prospects' achievements and interests without lifting a finger. Enter Google Alerts—an easy way to keep your network engaged and your name top of mind. Google Alerts allows you to monitor the web for specific keywords, such as a prospect's name or industry-related topics. When you set up alerts, you receive notifications whenever new content appears online. This enables you to congratulate a contact on a recent achievement or share relevant articles, demonstrating your attentiveness and interest in their success.  Consider a scenario where a client, Mary Johnson*, is mentioned in an article for her outstanding work. With Google Alerts, you receive this information promptly and can reach out with a congratulatory message. This small gesture can strengthen your relationship and keep you in their thoughts for future opportunities. Ne...

I was pretty surprised when I saw that my last blog post was several months ago. Time really does fly when you're having fun, or in my case, just having a busy workload. In the last few months I've been on the road for an approximate total of 9 weeks. Needless to say I get less than motivated to work in a hotel room after selling insurance for 8 hours, so blogging isn't on my "to do" list. While driving in my car during these trips I try to make my time productive my listening to podcasts on business and marketing. I'm not sure if someone was trying to tell me something but over the course of a week or so, I heard 4 episodes on how starting a podcast can help boost your business. After mulling this over and considering my options, I decided to take the plunge and start one myself. I've had a YouTube channel for a while which is fine, but I wanted to do something a little different. So I decided to start the "You're Going To Be Great At This!"...

One of the biggest hurdles I've faced in my career has been finding prospects, moving them through the sales process, and turning them into clients, all while constantly being on the hunt for more prospects. It's an endless cycle. (In my industry, it can be even harder to sell something when people ultimately don't want to buy. If your client is a young couple with kids and a mortgage, do you think they would rather spend money on a vacation or a life insurance policy?) Having a good referral system and making networking effective are the best ways to start the process of keeping the pipeline full. Having a center of influence or creating a friendly relationship through networking can save a lot of time and be much less expensive than buying leads.   One of the most effective things you can accomplish is to establish a "referral network". This may take some time to get going but if you can find four or five good sources who are willing refer to each other, you can...

I've been off the grid for a while, and for good reason. In a nutshell, I had hit a wall. Creating content for this blog, along with memes (which I hope are funny) and short videos takes a toll. And since I have another role as president of Surf Financial Brokers , which can involve lots of travel, my time and mental energy had nearly gotten wiped out.  However, I have also used that time to decide what I wanted to focus on in my next book. My only other book, " You're Going To Be Great At This! " was written and published in 2017, so you would think I have more to offer. But I didn't want the follow up to be the throwaway information. In a lot of ways it's like a musician who releases several albums and then the record label wants to release the stuff that sucked and didn't make it to the other albums. I don't want to do that to you. Also, my master plan is to use the next book as a link to my future speaking engagements. Hopefully Covid is behind us ...

Covid is starting to show a steady decrease in cases, hospitalizations and deaths, which I hope continues. Of course, the Debby Downer in me sees the cold weather and holiday gatherings around the corner, which can mean that people are gathering indoors again. Let's continue to think positive thoughts though. With that in mind, I have been considering in-person networking events that have begun again or will soon. I have attended a few online events that really didn't give me an opportunity to really network, as we had to wait for our turn to speak, which can dampen a spontaneous conversation. One of my concerns is that for those who have not done any networking in person, this skill set can be rusty. Also, there are those who haven't gotten into a field during the pandemic and have never even been to an event before.  There will be those people who will jump right back into networking and say "It's just like riding a bike!" Bless their hearts! For the rest of...

When I talk to sales organizations I give my definition of sales, which is a bit different than the one you would find in a dictionary.  A sale is the actual transaction, where "sales" and "selling" are the steps that lead up to that transaction. You see, sales is trying to convince, cajole or urge someone to take action now , not later. Also, there does not need to be a monetary goal at the end of the process.  Think of a college basketball team. The freshmen, who have come from different high schools with different coaches, are now playing for their new coach, who has a specific game plan in mind. He has to convince his new players (we're assuming that the upperclassmen have been convinced) to "buy in" to this plan so they are all on the same page.  Anyone who has tried to talk a co-worker into trying a new way of doing things or tried to convince a toddler to eat their vegetables is "selling". In other words, we all sell.  But the part of ...

Over the years I have moved around a bit working for several companies. The reasons for doing this have varied, but mostly it came down to a couple of factors. The first one being money.  For example, I went to work with a very large insurance company years ago. They offered me a base salary and a commission based on my sales. My job was to contact current clients and have them come by the office to purchase life insurance. When these people would come into the office the other staff members would write the policies seeing notes I had already put into the client's file. I didn't get my commissions and brought this up to my superior, who didn't care. After seeing this happen again and again I left with no explanation.  Another reason I have left jobs is because the recruiting manager was less than truthful about the job. As I have mentioned in my book, when I interviewed for my first sales job (I was right out of college) the recruiter said all kinds of things that weren...

Sales people know that one of the hardest parts of the job is prospecting. As a former colleague of mine used to say, "I spent most of my day just trying to find someone to talk to." Prospecting is what keeps the sales pipeline full. An empty pipeline can mean trouble.  Of course, there are different ways to solve the issue of the pipeline. One is to cold call, which can work for some people. I spent the early years of my sales career calling on people at their homes, which was a horrible way to work. Putting yourself in the prospect's shoes, you probably wouldn't want someone to come to your home unexpectedly while you were relaxing after a hard day at work, much less someone trying to sell you something. Personally speaking, I have no problem whatsoever with cold calling businesses. As a matter of fact, after calling on people at their homes for a year of so (and having guns pulled on me), any fear of cold calling an office building was non-existent. The battle was ...

For those of us who work on a "commission only" basis, it can be difficult to make a budget for household expenses or other personal financial decisions. Not knowing from one month to the next what your income will be can be tough. With this in mind, many sales professionals have decided to supplement their income with extra income, by either working a part-time job, starting a business on the side, or working as a "gig" employee. Years ago when I was just getting started selling insurance, I would work a part-time job in a retail store. This extra income helped to pay some of my expenses, which helped out tremendously until I could get my career off the ground. As soon as it looked like I may be okay, I turned in my notice. The funny part was that my retail manager asked if she could keep me on the payroll in case one of the other employees called in sick. I worked about once a month for them for another 2 years. A friend of mine who is also an insurance agent, has...

How do you deal with your competitors? For some, a little friendly competition is a good thing. On the other hand, our competitors are taking sales away from us, which means a loss of income. And some will try to work with their competitors by forging alliances or even just taking over their business by buying them out. Years ago, I met a gentleman who was established in the insurance field. I was an upstart just getting back into the business after an absence. He and I chatted from time to time and we really didn't cross paths too much when it came to our clientele. Generally speaking we got along.  One day a lady called me and said she wanted to change her insurance. She was going through a divorce and was on her soon to be ex-husband's group plan. She said she had tried to reach her agent but he wouldn't return her phone calls. I obliged her and got her a policy she could afford.  About a month later the other agent approached me in the hallway at a networking function, ...

In the previous post, I discussed how companies, and their management teams, react when sales drop. The numbers affect the bottom line, which affects the profitability of the company, which in turn can lower bonuses and other perks, like profit sharing. The company, not sure what to do, begins to institute a program of micromanagement, making everyone more accountable for their time, while at the same time, making all the sales people miserable. That's the macro perspective. On the other hand, what happens to the sales person is a bit different. Especially if they are dependent on commissions, which are a reflection of their sales numbers, to pay their bills. Yes, they are miserable because they are under a microscope from management. Suddenly the sales person has to copy their bosses on items like details of appointments, how many phone calls were made, why the customer didn't buy and so on. Along with getting pestered by management, the sales person is also having to figure o...

A couple of years ago, before Covid arrived, I was asked to speak at a breakfast meeting of a local civic organization. I brought a few copies of my book along just in case someone wanted to purchase one. The person who had invited me to speak apparently had a last minute appointment or something and couldn't be there, but he let the rest of the group know who I was and why I would be there. As I walked in a young professional looking man approached me and introduced himself. "Hi, I'm Bob. We're looking forward to your talk," he said. "Please feel free to eat something. It's on us." He pointed to a table filled with store bought muffins and Krispy Kreme doughnuts, my favorite. Since I had not eaten breakfast at home (I was told there would be food) I thanked him and treated myself to an assortment of the delicious round treats. In retrospect, I probably had too many, but hey, you only live once, right? The young man was the president of the group and...