Mark Jewell's Blog: Selling Energy, page 10

Networking Effectively, Part Two

“Networking is a lot like nutrition and fitness: we know what to do, the hard part is making it a top priority." – Herminia Ibarra

Networking Effectively, Part One

“If you're not networking, you're not working.” – Denis Waitley

Networking is a necessary component of building your business and it’s the quickest way to forge relationships within the industry. That’s why this week the Selling Energy Blogs will be focused on the significance of networking.

The Essentials of Goal-Making

We very often explore the “why” behind our sales interactions, but what about the “why” behind our goals? Ideally our work shouldn’t be about “doing,” but “growing.” Goals are how we measure that progress, and if your goals aren’t meaningful, why pursue them at all? I’ve recommended Zig Ziglar’s books before, in particular Secrets of Closing the Sale. This is one of his latest, in which his straightforward advice and sense of humor illuminate the essentials of goal-setting. How do you start? What are the most effective ways to do it? Why are you avoiding it when you could be benefitting from growing today, tomorrow and onward?

Weekly Recap, December 31, 2023

Here are our sales-enhancing tips from this week's Selling Energy Blogs...

How to Talk to People

One of my first recommendations for dealing with prospects is doing your research. Going into a meeting and deciding to “wing it” can only get you so far, and frankly, it often leads to suboptimal results.

10 Tips for a Memorable Elevator Pitch

An elevator pitch is one way to capture someone's attention in 15 seconds or less. It needs to be sensitive to that person's segment, their organization, and personal role within that system. This also applies to where they are in their career. Ask yourself: Are they a young buck trying to gain access to the boardroom? Are they nearing retirement? Are they comfortable where they are? Are they seeking a promotion or a raise? Ideally, you’ll make your elevator pitch memorable enough to be worth repeating to others. As Seth Godin says, you really want to make sure people do your bidding for you. You want the message to go viral on its own. So, here are ten tips to keep in mind:

Strides in Agricultural Lighting

Every now and then you hear about amazing strides being made in the field. Technology continues to change and adapt, but its unforeseen effects on end users are where the surprises happen.

Don't Sweat the Tax Stuff

My philosophy is that when it comes to tax benefits and other reasons to do an energy projects, be careful not to let the tail wag the dog. When you’re pitching, don’t delve into tax credits or deductions. They can be problematic for the following reasons:

Reframing Savings-to-Investment Ratio for Homeowners

If you’ve attended my sales training or are a frequent reader of this blog, you know I'm a big fan of using savings-to-investment ratio (SIR) to showcase the benefits of expense-reducing capital investments (see last week’s “The Power of Savings-to-Investment”). It’s a simple way to showcase how many dollars of present value you can expect to receive for each dollar invested today.

How Healthy Is Your Business?

It’s easy to measure success by the usual standards of business: finance, strategy, marketing, technology, and so forth. Does that always ensure a company’s success? Not necessarily. In the end, how smart or skilled the players are doesn’t always apply, and promising businesses fold all the time. If you’re wondering why, it turns out a large part of success is due to the organizational health of a company. In the fast-paced business world this is an asset that is often overlooked.