Business Blog by Jacquelyn Lynn
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Sales Strategy: When the Gatekeeper is Also a Competitor
Sales professionals know that a gatekeeper is anyone they must go through to get to the decision-maker. Gatekeepers are typically receptionists, secretaries and assistants, but they could also be first-line managers, other decision-influencers, outside consultants or even your competitors. Many sales reps view gatekeepers as either unimportant or just another obstacle to overcome on the way to the sale. A better strategy is to make the gatekeeper your ally. Here’s a real-life example of why — from a gatekeeper’s...
read moreDigital sale or digital suicide?
We all know the benefits of online advertising. The top ones that come to mind include: It’s affordable. Online ads have one of the lowest CPM (cost per thousand reached) rates of any medium. It can be tightly targeted. You can define a very specific market and reach only those people. It’s global — or not. You set your own geographic boundaries. But when does online advertising cross over from digital sales to digital suicide? Digital advertising is not your father’s network TV ad! Research shows that 20% of US...
read moreCan you get new business from old accounts? Your very best prospects may already be customers
Looking for ways to grow your business? Don’t look exclusively outward—you may find a substantial portion of it can come from existing accounts. Closing your first sale with a new customer is just the beginning of your relationship. Now that you know the customer has a need for your product you can develop and expand on that need. Find out what uses the customer might have for your product beyond the initial purchase. Take the time to understand why they bought from you in the first place. Was it quality? Price? Delivery time? Your...
read moreIs it possible to avoid spam?
Is it possible to avoid spam? Sadly, I don’t think so. One of the reasons I had my website redesigned recently was to integrated my blog with my primary site for greater search engine optimization. It worked. More people are finding and visiting my site–and more spammers are leaving comments filled with links on my posts. Fortunately, my web designer was able to tweak the spam controls so most of those comments go straight to the spam category and I don’t have to deal with them. I know I’m risking not seeing a...
read moreWhat is your writer publishing under your name?
Full disclosure: I’m a ghostwriter. I write books, articles, blogs and more that are published under my clients’ names. Using a ghostwriter is a smart move for busy executives, professionals and subject matter experts who need to publish material but don’t have the time and/or writing skills to do it themselves. One caveat: If you decide to hire a ghostwriter, be sure you know and approve what he/she is publishing under your name. What prompted me to write about this? A former client of mine (why “former” is a...
read moreAre Your Press Releases Worth It – Or a Waste of Time?
Press releases can be a powerful weapon in your marketing and public relations arsenal. Just be sure you don’t shoot yourself in the foot with them. I can’t count the number of press releases I’ve written over the years in my career as a business writer–and it’s almost as hard to count the number of times I’ve had to explain to my clients why it’s critical for their releases to be well-written, accurate and actually contain news. Thanks to the internet and search engines, press releases can work harder and do more than...
read moreDo you conduct credit reviews on your long-time customers?
If you extend credit to your customers, how long has it been since you’ve done a credit check on your accounts? If it’s been more than a year, it’s been too long. You may know that JK Harris & Co. was my client (I was the ghostwriter for JK Harris’ books Flashpoint, Sales Flashpoint, and IRS Tax Secrets, and handled additional business writing and content marketing projects). When the firm filed bankruptcy, I was one of thousands of unsecured creditors. I doubt that I’ll ever see a penny of what the company owes me. But it could...
read more9 Tips to Be a Great Guest Speaker – and Get Results!
Have you decided to hit the speaking circuit to promote your product or service? Congratulations! Giving talks is a powerful, effective way to enhance your reputation and grow your business. Once you’re booked, these tips will help you be a speaker who is applauded, referred and invited back: 1. Provide appropriate promotional materials in advance. Find out if the host organization has a newsletter, when it goes out, and the preferred content submission format. Send a brief description of your presentation, your bio, and a photo well ahead...
read moreDisconnect Health Insurance from Employment
It’s reasonable for health insurance companies to ask policyholders about their lifestyles. After all, that’s a key element in the risk equation. But when insurance is provided by the employer, privacy becomes a major issue. Individuals may have lifestyle and other health-related issues they’d rather people at work didn’t know about. Orlando Sentinel columnist Beth Kassab says she is getting “used to” companies asking for more information about their employees—information that was in years past considered private. Instead of...
read moreCaution: Beware of counterfeit checks and overpayment scams
Orlando’s beleaguered KEL law firm has been scammed out of about $285,000 by a phony client. According to news reports, the firm was contacted via email by someone (obviously a sophisticated scammer) pretending to have lost wages from a fictitious employer. The firm received a settlement check; the “client” requested that the funds be sent to his account in a Japanese bank. The law firm did so before the check cleared—and it turned out the check was counterfeit. The firm couldn’t get wire transfer reversed. It’s easier than ever...
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Jacquelyn Lynn is a talented, accomplished business writer and ghostwriter whose credits include more than 25 traditional books, 3,000+ magazine articles, ebooks, blogs, white papers, and more.
For more information on how to put Jacquelyn's writing skills to work for your organization, please call (407) 971-2260 or email Jacquelyn@ContactTCS.com.