January 25, 2011 · 12:01 pm
One of the first things you learn in sales is to believe in your own product. Some folks call it eating your own dog food but the basic idea is two-fold. First, if you’re going to foist something on a customer you should be willing to be that customer yourself. Second, it’s a great way to do usability testing and in sales, it helps you discover selling points that may not even have been designed into the product plan.
I’m a big fan of the process and was really impressed when I read about what I consider to be the ultimate instance of belief in a product: one that literally puts your life on the line. Continue reading →
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Filed under Consulting, Helpful Hints
Tagged as Boing Boing, business, business thinking, management, managing, Marfan syndrome, marketing, presentations, Sales, Sales pitch, selling, Usability testing
January 24, 2011 · 12:44 pm
Is there anyone you know who isn’t fascinated by magic? Whether we go back to wizards in ancient courts or right to today with Penn and Teller, David Blaine, or Chriss Angel, I think most people enjoy a good magic trick. Inevitably, you find yourself uttering “how did he do that?” out loud. Well, it’s pretty easy to find out how they performed the trick. A quick search and we know it all. Or do we? Continue reading →
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Tagged as Art, business, business thinking, David Blaine, Effects, entertainment, Magic, magician, management, Penn & Teller, Penn Jillette, Performing arts
January 12, 2011 · 10:15 am
This is a follow-up to yesterday’s post on high-touch. 30 years ago, United Airlines put out a commercial which conveys what I said more succinctly (no shock there) and clearly. 
As you watch the commercial, which I’ve embedded below, I think all you need to do is change the words “phone call” and “fax” to “text” and “email” and you could run the spot today. The fact that the commercial has stayed with me for 30 years is testament to the message. Continue reading →
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Tagged as advice, business, business thinking, Customer service, East Coast, East Coast of the United States, High tech, Leo Burnett, management, Social network, United Airlines
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