Monthly Archives: April 2011

April 28, 2011 · 4:57 pm

Engage Early…Engage Often!

If you’ve been following this blog, you probably have picked up on a consistent theme.  Engaging our customers on an emotional as well as a cognitive level can greatly accelerate our success in the marketplace.  What is often overlooked, however, is the value this level of engagement can deliver at the earliest stages of development, long before we enter our target market.

I came across an excellent example of this last week.  During a blog site discussion on the value of strategic business planning, a CEO of a technology company entered into the discourse.  They aggressively touted their new software platform as the be all and end all for automating the strategic planning process, forcing the entrepreneur to prepare for the due diligence of a potential investor, and greatly accelerate funding through their automated pipeline.  

The discussion was mostly populated by fellow consultants and strategic planners, and the aggressive nature of this CEO came across with an almost threatening tone within the forum.  The message was somewhat menacing, of how a set of automated, multiple choice questions could displace the value and livelihoods of the consultants in the discussion.  Whenever a consultant questioned the value of the platform they were quickly dismissed as not understanding the technology.  I scratched my head, wondering what this CEO was attempting to accomplish until all of a sudden they mentioned that the platform could be private labeled and used by consultants to improve their efficiency with their clients.  Now I was curious!  Why hadn’t the CEO led with this positioning statement with a cooperative and supportive tone?

I conducted a bit of my own due diligence and discovered some fundamental flaws in the positioning and value proposition of this new technology.  I’ve had the good fortune to conduct market due diligence for a number of Angel Investor groups, and have prepared many, many startups to pitch and successfully secure Angel investments over the past ten years.  So you could say I’ve worked both sides of the street, affording me a perspective from a rather unique vantage point.

What became immediately obvious to me was the high probability that the software developers had a very poor understanding of deal flow and the Angel Investor pipeline.  The developers of this software were attempting to automate and accelerate the pitch process via the internet, opening a veritable fire hose of opportunities for investment aimed at the private equity community.  Not only does this approach not align with the interests and evaluation process of Angels, it will quickly toss the aspiring entrepreneur into the pass bin long before they have a chance to really pitch.  I couldn’t help but wonder if any Angels or seasoned entrepreneurs had been involved in the development process of this platform?

You see, there is no lack of funding opportunities flowing into the Angel community at this time.  Their process is one of winnowing out the lesser opportunities in favor of the more promising ones.  Angels set up a series of hurdles the entrepreneur must clear, in sequence, to secure their attention and achieve their consideration for investment.  Blasting every Angel Investor group via the internet is a surefire way to exclude one’s self from consideration.  It is a small community, they all talk with each other, and most collaborate, fund-to-fund in their investment strategies.  The fact is, entrepreneurs have limited opportunities to navigate the selection process, and it is a rare occurrence to get more than one chance at bat with each Angel consortium.  Strike out with one too many, and none of the others will even take a look.

For a first time entrepreneur seeking funding, the software sounds fantastic.  “All I need to do is walk through the multiple choice questions, post my pitch to the cloud, and I will automatically access every private investor in the world!”  The only problem is, this isn’t in any way, shape, or form, how this process works in the real world.  If it did, Ebay would have cornered the market on Private Equity transactions years ago!

What Angel Investors will tell you is while there are ample and interesting technologies and businesses to invest in, there are very few management teams worth investing in.  That’s the key…Angels are placing an educated bet on the ability of a company’s leadership to execute on their strategic plan.  This requires relationship.  Angels have designed their deal pipeline to prompt the cream of the crop, in terms of human talent, to rise to the surface.  The process purposefully slows things down so relationships and trust have time to emerge.  I can honestly tell you that in all the years I’ve been working with investor-driven startups I’ve never seen one fail because the technology failed.  Failure, from my personal observations, is almost exclusively rooted in poor management, creating poorly validated strategic plans, resulting in poor execution.

The Benefits of Engaging Targeted Customers Early in Development (click to enlarge)

The rather painful and bitter irony of this example is this company appears to have built their technology in a vacuum.  In attempting to provide a well intentioned tool for automating the strategic planning process, the company did a poor job of strategic planning and development themselves.  If they had engaged and involved their potential customers during the specification process this misalignment would have become clear.  Instead of creating value for the entrepreneur, they’re introducing another, unnecessary risk factor to their targeted prospect.

Engage and involve your target prospects early in your development process.  Doing so will save you time, money, and cultivate relationships with early adopters and opinion leaders that will champion your cause for years to come.

© 2011, Terry Murray.

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April 26, 2011 · 7:22 pm

The Most Common Reasons Startup Businesses Fail

For the past couple of days I’ve participating in a wonderful discussion group on LinkedIn exploring the need for competent strategic business planning.  Today, the conversation turned on some information released by the Small Business Administration as to the most common reasons start-up business fail.  I took some time to dig a bit deeper into the reasons stated by the SBA and traced them all back to the strategic business plan.  A colleague suggested I shared them on the blog.  Here are the nine most common reasons (in no particular order) startups fails and how each reason can be traced back to the strategic planning process (the stages of the strategic business plan are in bold).

1.) Over Expansion – This risk factor should be mitigated in the Market Assessment phase of the planning process.  Over estimating demand, misunderstanding adoption rates, or underestimating the potential responses within the Competitive Landscape can all lead to this misstep.

2.) Poor Capital Structure – This is such a fundamental issue that can be traced back to understanding what your capital requirements will be and organizing appropriately.  It can be as simple as an LLC that is out looking for investors (yes, I’ve seen this).  Knowing what one’s cost of capital is, at every stage, is critical.  Please know, there’s a world of difference between finance and accounting.

3.) Over Spending – This often occurs when businesses take on too much overhead prematurely.  Today, entrepreneurs can create a “virtual company”, where they can leverage their Core Competencies and outsource their Weaknesses.  Again, this relates to conducting a brutally honest Self-Assessment, being exponentially conservative in Revenue Projections, and strategically prioritizing Opportunities and related ROI through the use of Dynamic Parallel Targeting®.

4.) Lack of Reserve Funds/Cash Flow – Please see #3…this has a direct relationship to reserves, priorities, and spending.  Where will you gain the most traction, the fastest, for the least amount of investment, that will also strategically position you for the next growth step?  Keep in mind, you don’t necessarily have to be profitable immediately, but if you have ample cash flow you can buy time to build your customer base.

5.) Failure to Adjust to Market Changes – This relates directly to your Market Assessment and how you strategically position yourself in the marketplace.  One thing many nascent entrepreneurs don’t appreciate is structure enables nimble flexibility in rapidly moving markets.  In order to tack quickly and efficiently to change you must first know where you are…otherwise you may find yourself flailing about blindly.

6.) Underestimating Competition – Relates directly to one’s analysis of the Competitive Landscape. Whenever I am launching a new technology, especially a disruptive technology, I always operate on the assumption that someone else is doing the exact same thing in some garage somewhere, under the radar.  Also, if you’re going after a big company’s market share, be prepared for retaliatory actions.  Never forget, big companies play from a position of power and entrenchment.

7.) Poor Execution – A plan is only as good as its execution, but good plans account for this by drilling down to Tactics.  Having a series of step-by-step action items, that are measurable within a committed time frame is critical when things get hectic.  Otherwise the tail ends up wagging the dog.  Know your success gates, build in early indicators to validate your implementation, and hold yourself accountable with good performance metrics.

8.) Poor Location – How many times have you seen a series of new restaurants open and fail in the exact same building?  If you’re business is dependent of traffic flow, accessibility, and neighboring businesses, understanding the dynamics of this mission critical factor should be explored in the Opportunities & Threats section of your plan.

9.) Inadequate Business Plan – I think points 1 through 8 clearly point out the number of issues that can sink the grandest of Visions and the finest of intentions.  All of the above risk factors should be closely examined in the strategic business planning process.  If you anticipate a risk, develop a contingency plan (or several).  What will we do if……?

I hope this is helpful in highlighting the importance of strategic planning at the initiation of new endeavors.

Note:  Dynamic Parallel Targeting® is a registered trademark of SalesForce4Hire, LLC.

© 2011, Terry Murray.

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April 25, 2011 · 4:36 pm

Building Your Brand in the New Economy, Part Four – The Power of Authenticity

We began this blog series talking about the importance of engaging our prospects on both a cognitive and emotional level.  In fact, The Gallup Company® conducted a study that identified companies that engage both their customers and associates on an emotional level enjoy a 240% improvement in financial performance (if you’d like to read the original report published in the Harvard Business Review, drop me a line and I’ll point you to the link).  We shared our brand-building tools and also provided an example of how we integrate and employ all of the tools in unison.  Now, let’s talk about how to ignite those tools with the power that builds a meaningful and resonant brand; authenticity.

There are three primary definitions for authenticity in the dictionary; the quality of being authentic, trustworthy or genuine, and the displaying of undisputed credibility.  The quality of being authentic begins with being true to one’s self.  This quality emerges through self reflection and inner exploration and infers an active awareness of one’s consciousness.  The complete spectrum of who we are physically, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually.  To quote Carl Jung, “Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart … Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens.”  It is obvious that your brand must communicate your vision, but more importantly, your brand will undoubtably communicate your intention as well.  Your prospects cannot know who you are until you know yourself.  At the end of the day, your customers will feel whether or not you are benefiting them and placing their needs at the top of your priority list.  This first step in building authenticity begins with two simple questions:  Who are we and how can we serve?

We can draw an interesting parallel to the world of quantum physics.  Quantum physics has identified the fact that everything in our universe is, at the most fundamental level, comprised of energy and information.  The sub-atomic energy of a tree is guided by the information to be a tree.  Our perceptions of the tree actually influence the reality we experience (please Google “Schroedinger’s Cat Theorem” for a fascinating example of this phenomena).  My point is, your vision is information, but your intention is the energy that will carry this information into the world.  Everything we experience in this world is an interaction between the observer and the observed.  This is why there is so much attention being paid to social media today.  It is interactive, allowing the observer and the observed to change roles, again and again.  This creates a dynamic, energetic (or emotional, if you will) connection between marketers and the market.  This only happens when people sense positive intention.

The second definition of authenticity is “trustworthy or genuine”.  Trust is an energy that flows in a circular orbit.  It cannot move in one direction without returning to whence it came.  Some people allow themselves to trust more readily than others, but once trust has been broached it is often nearly impossible to mend.  So, how does a brand communicate trust?  Well, just look at Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder®.  What just came to your mind?  What came to your heart?  How did J&J build this level of trust with our most precious beings?  By consistently delivering on the third definition of authenticity; the displaying of undisputed credibility.  We trust J&J because of their positive intention (go look at their value statements on their corporate website to see what I mean).  This company has never misled us or tried to take advantage of our own good will.  This currency if you will, is brand equity.  It has very real and tangible value in the marketplace.

Now, what do these brands communicate to you?  Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Goldman Sachs.  More importantly, how do they make you feel?  I know they certainly trigger an emotional response in me, but not one of connection and engagement!  Why, because their intention is painfully clear.  They are (and in some cases now, were) only in service to themselves, the rest of us on Main Street be damned.  Remember their commercials prior to the financial crisis?  What they said, trust us with your dreams, was totally incongruent with what they were doing.  These are broken brands that represent broken institutions and corrupt leadership.  Regardless of what they say, ever again, we now know, and unfortunately, many of us have felt, their intention

My takeaway from this series is this…

Be Authentic!

Be Congruent!

and…

Be of Service!

If you follow these three simple guidelines your brand will resonate with your customers, associates, partners, and constituents.  It may take some time, but keep chipping away and your brand will unfold before you!

© 2011, Terry Murray.

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April 22, 2011 · 1:16 pm

Building Your Brand In The New Economy, Part Three – An Example of Integration

In my last blog I spoke about the six tools we use, in unison, to help build our brand in the marketplace.  Here is an example of how we are using five out of the six tools (and eventually the sixth) to communicate our intention, vision, and mission with our customers:

1.)  We’re promoting my book, which speaks to the core of our values, vision, and reason for being with our customers.

2.)  We’re using video to promote the book (they actually call it a “book trailer”).

3.)  We’re blogging about the video.

4.)  We will announce the new video is appearing on the blog site on our social media sites and, where appropriate, within our discussion groups.

5.)  We will release a Press Release this morning announcing the new video is available.  We’re cautious not to overuse press releases, but it is a part of our P.R. strategy.  The video is also publicly available on YouTube for greater visibility.

Once this blog series on branding is complete, we will compress the highlights from it into an article and distribute that on the internet as well.  Because we’ve invested in a comprehensive branding platform we’re able to quickly and efficiently toggle all of the levers placing the platform into motion.  Everything you see here (short of writing the book, of course) was accomplished in less than one working day!  That’s the power of building a vibrant platform.  We’ve created a system that draws upon all of our core competencies to build brand awareness in a way that is congruent with our philosophy.

I hope this example was helpful!

© 2011, Terry Murray.

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April 20, 2011 · 6:40 pm

Building Your Brand In The New Economy, Part Two – Our Branding Toolbox

Building a strong, meaningful brand, like anything of significant and lasting value, takes time.  Unless you’re sitting on the next Google, trying to explode onto the scene will most likely leave you, your company, and your brand in tatters.  Remember what I mentioned in the last blog?  Effective brands engage people on both an emotional and cognitive level.  In order to fully engage your prospects you must first connect with them in a way that is meaningful to them, and then, and only then, can you begin to gain their trust.  We’ll talk more about aligning your vision and intention with your customers’ needs as we go along, but first, I’d like to talk a little bit about the tools we have available to us to help build a distinct brand in our markets.

Our company, Performance Transformation, LLC (http://www.performtransform.com) uses six, highly coordinated tools to communicate our intention, vision, and value proposition to the marketplace.  As a professional coaching and strategic development company, it is imperative we fully engage our prospects.  Without full engagement, our process cannot take root.  Our clients must come to us and be willing to fully trust in us and our process.  We cannot change anyone…the change must come from within for it to be effective and lasting.  We provide insights, education, structure, and hold the space for a shift in perspective to occur.  For our business, our brand must resonate with our prospects, so we spend significant time tending and cultivating it.  Here’s what we do:

1.)  I Wrote a Book.  The Transformational Entrepreneur walks the reader through our entire process; of aligning leadership, strategy, and culture for breakthrough performance.  We have a very distinct business philosophy that embraces the importance of human beings as spiritual, emotional, and cognitive beings.  The book created a wonderful tool for communicating our philosophy, expertise, experience, and methodologies for driving success.

2.)  Blogging.  If you’re reading this, it must be working on some level, right?  Blogging keeps us in touch with our prospects, customers, and the world at large.  Traditional websites are very flat in today’s interactive world.  They are online brochures, which serve a purpose, but they do not create community!  That’s the key, blogs are interactive , engaging your prospects and clients in a two way conversation that builds relationship.

3.)  Article Writing.  We consistently write and freely distribute articles on the internet based upon our areas of expertise.  Do you hate cold calling?  Yeah, who doesn’t.  Well, our firm actually receives phone calls from prospects that have read one or more of our articles.  One CEO of an investor-driven startup recently sought us out and told me that after reading one of our articles he felt in his gut that he needed to be doing business with us.  That speaks volumes to the fact that we are not just communicating our expertise, but we’re also clearly communicating our intention as well.  He feels he should be working with us.  That’s emotional connection!

4.)  Videos.  Did you know that more than 90% of communication is non-verbal?  It’s true.  Think about a leader you admire.  Do they command presence when they enter a room?  Are they able to engage, inspire, and motivate others simply by their proximity?  The use of videos, video podcasts, and the placement of videos on sites like YouTube enables us to communicate in this non-verbal dimension.  People can see us, see what we do, and get a sense of whether or not we may be a good fit for their needs.  Television changed the world…online videos can help change yours.

5.)  Social Media.  Here’s what we’ve learned about social media:  Choose wisely, and engage fully.  Be careful not to dilute your efforts across social media sites that do not align with your mission and vision.  When you do find the right fit, engage!  Participate in the discussion groups for a few days and see what starts to happen.  Networking isn’t sales, it’s helping other people connect in ways that will serve them.  The vacuous affiliate marketing characters quickly reveal themselves in discussion groups and, from what I’ve seen, are dismissed as background noise fairly quickly.  Be authentic, be of service, and be prepared for some interesting results!

6.)  Public Relations.  Over the course of my career I’ve been fairly underwhelmed by most P.R. firms.  If you find a good one, they’re worth their weight in gold!  We’re about to launch a radio, print, and television campaign with a P.R. company (E.M.S.I.) that understands our message and aligns with our philosophy.  You may have noticed I’ve left this tool for last.  Why?  Because it was critical that we had all the prior elements in place prior to making this investment.  Now, when someone hears about us through the media we have a presence on the web to support our expertise and capabilities.  If you Google my name with the name of our firm we dominate the first seven pages of the search!  That took time and it is a result of the foundation the first five elements delivered.

Notice I didn’t mention Search Engine Optimization?  Rather than hire a SEO company to help us, we chose to do it organically.  We felt this approach aligned more closely with our intention.  SEO, as a discipline, can be an attempt to manipulate the search algorithms. (Years ago I actually took on a client project to write 50, 500 word articles peppered with key words.  They didn’t have to really say anything, as the articles placed on their website were only visible to the search engines.  It was the worst project I ever did, but it did drive their search results).  We help leaders and entrepreneurs motivate their associates and prospects without dominating or coercive behavior.  For us, hiring someone for SEO was not authentic, and by employing the tools we’ve discussed, we’ve worked our way up the search engine sphere on our own accord.

We also dabble a bit with Adwords, but more on an experimental level rather than a core element of our branding strategy.

That’s it.  Those are the tools we use for building our brand presence in the marketplace.  Please note, there’s no single, magic bullet to building your brand.  It is a multi-pronged approach that consistently communicates who we are and what we stand for in the market.

In the next blog, I’ll speak to the most critical aspect of your branding:  Authenticity.

© 2011, Terry Murray

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April 19, 2011 · 4:52 pm

Building Your Brand In The New Economy

We are privileged to live in highly transformational times.  While the convulsions of change have been disruptive and painful, we are well served to remember that growth in consciousness does not come easily.  The information technology that has emerged over the past decade is part and parcel of this transformation.  It has disrupted entire industries, be it music (iTunes), publishing (print-on-demand and ebooks), newspapers (blog sites and instant access to news 24/7), or oppressive regimes (Twitter, Facebook, etc.).  The enabling and remarkably affordable technology that is right at our finger tips is proving to be a great leveler throughout society.  Never before in the history of humankind have markets been more accessible; and subsequently, more noisy.

The democratization of ideas and the ability of any individual to share their innovations, insights, and talents with the entire globe is nothing short of breathtaking.  While political and financial power still wrests in the hands of an elite few, the free flow of ideas and innovations enabled by technology is nipping at the heels of the old guard.

Take a look at the common thread that runs through the examples I listed above.  Record companies had a notorious track record of exploiting musicians, sometimes to the point of bankruptcy or forcing them underground until manipulative contracts expired (i.e. Billy Joel wrote “Piano Man” while he was waiting out an egregious contract).  Publishing houses traditionally paid authors an 8% to 15% royalty on the sale of their books.  Now, and I can speak first hand to this, I earn approximately 70% royalties on the sales of my book, along with other self-published writers.  Newspapers once held sway over elections and charged exorbitant rates for advertising, placing a stranglehold on media access for local businesses.  And of course, we just need look to what is happening throughout the Middle East to see how social media is playing a major part in the overthrow of oppressive dictatorships.  Technology is empowering talent and hobbling the institutions and businesses whose entire operating model was based upon exploitation and an oligarchical control of markets and people.  Through technology, economic power is shifting back to its creative source and rightful owners; individual human beings.

The remarkable access we all have to markets today is unprecedented.  But it also creates a noisy, bustling environment that can instantly swallow up and drown out the next entrant.  The fact is, building a distinct, highly differentiating brand is essential if we want to rise above the cacophony of the internet.

Effective, powerful brands evoke an emotional response.  Certain brands may remind us of our childhood; of simpler times and the comfort of home and family.  Other brands may excite us, captivating our imaginations in anticipation of the next gadget or innovation.  Companies that successfully build their brand engage peoples‘ hearts as much as their heads.  Resent research from Applied Behavioral Economics supports this perspective.  The consensus amongst behavioral economists points to the fact that upwards of 70% of our economic decision making is emotionally driven, with the remaining 30% based in rational thought.

In this series of blogs we’ll explore the highly affordable and accessible tools available to us for building a strong, meaningful brand.  A brand that authentically reflects our intention and vision.  A brand that resonates in the hearts and minds of our prospects, customers, associates, and community.

Please stay tuned!

© 2011, Terry Murray.

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April 17, 2011 · 1:43 pm

Differentiating Your Strategic Plan From A Business Plan

I’ve recently been following and participating in a discussion group on LinkedIn regarding the importance of having a business plan.  The discussion, like most on social networking sites, had an eclectic mix of perspectives.  There were the young techies in the discussion flouting their philosophy of “no planning necessary, just do it”.  I find it fascinating how consistent this segment is in thinking if you can write code and are web savvy you don’t need any type of planning to succeed.  It is a great example of we don’t know what we don’t know, and how we have a natural tendency to gravitate to our comfort zone.  Worshiping at the alter of technology appears to be a blinding activity for these naive entrepreneurs, and the competitive advantage one technology has over another is entering a point of diminishing returns.  At the end of the day, the differentiators going forward are strategic.  We’re long past the point of build a better mouse trap and customers will beat a path to your door.

As I continued to read the discussion, I realized there’s a fair amount of misunderstanding regarding the difference between writing a business plan and creating a strategic plan.  Business plans tend to be two dimensional.  People follow a template, fill in the blanks, and when they’re done, it goes on the shelf until next year.  Strategic plans are three dimension, they are living documents that provide the structure and guidance that enables nimble thinking and rapid action.  In strategic planning, the questions we ask of ourselves are often more important than the answers we discover along the way.  Strategic planning is about a process; of developing the discipline of strategic thinking.  Business planning is about writing a document.  It lacks life, passion, and the energy necessary to attract, engage, and excite your prospects, customers, constituents, and the community.

Strategic planning is a form of creative visualization.  It empowers your vision with actionable steps that move you forward towards the manifestation of your goals.  It also helps cultivate presence in your organization.  It pulls peoples’ attention into the present moment, focusing your organizational energy on activities that build value and momentum with your prospects and customers.  If I may, I’d like to share an excerpt from “The Transformational Entrepreneur”:

Strategic planning as a form of creative visualization that also enables presence may raise the question, “How are you in the moment when you are looking one, three, or five years ahead?”  It is a logical question.  Let me use an analogy to help explain this:

Let’s envision a business, just for a moment, as a tribe of hunters and gatherers living ten thousand years ago.  As the leaders of the tribe, we are highly aware of our environment.  As time passes, we begin to observe a change in the climate; with each passing year it is getting colder much earlier in the year and staying cold much longer into the spring.  We observe the birds and other animals beginning to migrate south much earlier than what we have historically observed and notice they are also returning later in the spring.  From our observations, from our awareness, we develop a Vision that these elongated winters may be less severe in the South.  It stands to reason that if the migrating animals are leaving earlier and staying longer food supplies are most likely more abundant as well.

We establish a Goal of migrating south to ensure the tribe will continue to prosper.  In order to do so, we must cross a large mountain range before the early autumn snows begin and block the high passes.  We now have an Objective that is critical to the success of achieving our Goal; we must clear the high passes before the snow flies or we could become stranded and perish.

There are many passes we can choose from, some representing a more arduous climb, but are more direct, and others that offer a gentle slope, yet will take longer.  We must now decide upon our Strategies.  The amount of risk we are willing to incur and how we intend to balance the risk of each approach with the risk of failing to reach the passes before the snows begin.

Our Strategies reflect the constraints we have identified through a thorough Self-Assessment.   We have examined our strengths and weaknesses.  How many children and elders must survive this trek?  Do we have ample supplies for the journey?  Who are our harbingers for this journey that can blaze the trail for the remainder of the tribe?  Have we carefully evaluated the landscape and challenged our assumptions of the risks involved?  What is the Competitive Landscape; are there hostile tribes living along the way that may wish us harm?  Might there be opportunities to partner with other tribes?  Have we properly scouted our options and truly know what we face?  Have we challenged our assumptions and appreciate the fact we still don’t know what we don’t know?

At the end of all this discussion and evaluation we realize that the only way we can manifest our Vision (abundance for the tribe) and achieve our Goal (to be in the South), and to secure our Objective (navigate the mountain passes before the autumn snow), is to walk south every day one step at a time, regardless of the Strategic path we have chosen.  Our Tactics…for each of us, once the decision has been made to take the journey, must simply focus on taking one step at a time in the moment.

Much like the tribal elders in this analogy, business leaders have the responsibility of formulating a clear and concise vision, communicate it effectively so that others can share in it, and to discern the best path for the organization to follow through the mature evaluation of risks and rewards.  In doing so, we can, in combination with a healthy, vibrant, and trusting culture, enable associates to concentrate on each step they are taking in the moment, to be truly present, to execute on the plan now and make it a reality for us all.

© Terry Murray, 2011.

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April 11, 2011 · 8:34 pm

Conscious Selling – Part Five, The Three “R’s” of Selling

The idea of actively selling one’s products and services can be an intimidating proposition to many entrepreneurs.  We’ve all experienced so many negative encounters with poorly trained, overly aggressive sales people that even the thought of picking up the phone to call a prospect can conjure up images of used car salesmen, fast talkers, and pesky sales clerks.  Not exactly how any of us want to be perceived by our prospects.

At the end of the day, however, someone in your organization that has a complete command of your mission, your value proposition, knowledge of your targeted prospects, and the ability (and authority) to engage and secure commitment, is going to have to pursue some form of sales.  I’ve been known to say, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, that in all my years of business-to-business sales I’ve never had a customer come to my office to buy something.  Wouldn’t that have been nice?  It seems like I always had to take the first steps for things to move forward.  But it doesn’t have to be as painful as we project it might be in our minds.  By looking at the process from a slightly different perspective it can be educational, enriching, and actually quite a bit of fun!

We covered a lot of ground in the previous blogs, but it can all be summarized in what I call the three R’s of Conscious Selling; Resource, Relationship, and Relax.

Be a Resource

The first step in differentiating yourself and your company from the noise of the marketplace is to become a resource for your prospects and customers.  Help them achieve their objectives, solve problems, and capture opportunities.  Be of service.  It is amazing how far a little selflessness can go!  Be willing to go the extra mile and know that you don’t need to make money on everything you do.  Becoming a resource is an investment that will pay off over time.

Becoming a resource can begin as simply as asking a few questions.  Starting a conversation (after introductions and pleasantries, of course) with a prospect, even on a cold call, with something as simple as, “I appreciate the value of your time, so I was wondering if I might ask a few questions so I might better understand how we might help you?” changes the whole tenor of the encounter.  You just went from selling something to inquiring about their needs and desires.

Asking well researched questions will differentiate you and build credibility.  The insights you gain into your prospect’s world will also help you position your value proposition.  In other words, it helps you maximize the value of your fit to their need.  And what you learn from one prospect will inevitably apply with another one down the road.  This beneficial learning curve contributes to your skills and abilities over time and should be a key point of market research for your company.

Being a resource validates you with your customers.  It also sets the foundation for the next R…

Build Relationships

The insights you gain through your thoughtful questions delivers another benefit as well.  These insights enable empathy to emerge.  I cannot overstate the importance of being able to express authentic empathy in establishing trusting relationships.  Please don’t confuse this with cloying sympathy, it is about one’s ability to correlate their own experiences with the experiences of another.  There’s something very powerful about the shared human experience, no matter what it is.  It connects us and enables us to relate not only to what other people think, but what they feel as well.

Remember the research we discussed earlier?  That companies that engage both their associates and customers on an emotional level enjoy a 240% improvement in financial performance?  Being able to quickly gain insights into your prospects needs, understand their constraints, opportunities, risks (both personal and professional), and authentically relate to how they feel about doing business with you sets this in motion.  That’s the power of empathy.

People are funny.  They don’t always come right out and tell you what they want or need.  Please think about whether or not this has happened in your life?  Even when a relationship is in place, sometimes people are hard to read.  This is where your emotional intelligence can help you discern what may or may not be happening with your prospects.  Elevating your self-awareness, self management, social awareness, and relationship management skills helps you get off the dance floor and into the balcony, providing even greater insights to emerge from your conscious, highly aware perspective.  Most importantly, these skills help you feel your thinking, delivering a presence with your prospects that is highly engaging.

Relax

Relax, the world is not beating down any doors to discover another high-pressure, unconscious sales person.  In a day when each of us are bombarded with anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 marketing messages and sales pitches per day, assuming a traditional, hard-sell approach just adds to the noise.

Before speaking with prospects, take a breath, ground yourself, and smile.  Enjoy the opportunity you have to share the passion you have for your endeavor!  Be a resource and invest in your relationships and amazing things are sure to follow.  Best of all, you’ll have mastered Conscious Selling!

© 2011, Terry Murray.

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April 6, 2011 · 7:39 pm

The Coming Wave Of Pentagenarian Entrepreneurs

For better or for worse, the Baby Boomer generation has left its indelible stamp on the American cultural landscape.  It looks like this 77 million member strong generation (of which I must disclose, I am a member) is about to leave another mark on the U.S. economy in its wake.  A number of factors are conspiring to bring about a renaissance of entrepreneurial activity amongst older Americans.  In fact, the most recent Kaufmann Index of Entrepreneurial Activity1 reported that entrepreneurship rates are rising amongst older Americans.  People between the ages of 55 to 64 represented 14.5% of new business starts in 1996.  In 2010 this same group represented 22.9% of business births.  Older Americans are now the second fastest growing demographic for entrepreneurial activity.  Another recent report by the Associated Press indicates more than 14 million Baby Boomers plan to start a business in retirement.

It is an interesting phenomena that has major implications for our nation’s cultural and economic future.  About half of my entrepreneurial coaching practice consists of Baby Boomers.  While my younger clients are launching businesses in a variety of industries, all of my Boomers are in the process of launching new endeavors meant to be of service to the community.  Together, we’re exploring innovative approaches to leverage the for profit business model in support of traditionally nonprofit concerns.  It’s exciting to be a part of these initiatives.  To paraphrase Mahatma Gandhi, I cannot help but wonder if these counter-cultural children of the sixties are about to be the change they wish to see through their entrepreneurial activities.  Perhaps the generation that embraced free love, is about to embrace free markets?

While I’ve been fortunate to be a part of positive, planned transitions into starting businesses, the coming wave of older entrepreneurship will likely have darker undertones.  I see a confluence of five distinct factors that will contribute to the coming surge in startups by Baby Boomers:

1.)  The number of displaced, older workers is at record levels.  Historically, older workers had greater job security than younger workers.  Now, however, older workers are more likely than younger workers to lose their employment.2 The Great Recession left 15 million people unemployed…2.1 million of them were 55 years of age or older.

2.)  The barriers to re-entry into the job market are higher for workers over fifty.  The Bureau of Labor Statics reports that when older workers lose their jobs they will experience greater losses in earning and endure a significantly longer search than younger workers.  Dislocated workers with two decades of experience secure jobs that pay, on average, between 20% and 40% less than their previous wage.

Older workers face impediments in the attitudes and perceptions of employers, too.  The Government Accounting Office recently held a forum for employers to explore issues surrounding older workers.  From this meeting, the GAO reported employers were hesitant to hire older workers because they felt they were more expensive.  Their compensation, the rising cost of health insurance, and perceptions that older workers cost more to train discourage hiring.  The attending employers also expressed concerns that older workers were less productive, produced lower quality work, and were more resistant to change than younger workers.  These attitudes are deeply rooted and subtle.  The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College reports that workers under 50 years old are 42% more likely to be called for an interview than those over 50 years in age. 3

Not surprisingly, workers over 55 have the lowest reemployment rate of any demographic group.4 In fact, the University of Michigan Retirement Research Center found that only half of older job seekers are successful at attaining employment.

3.)  The levels of employee disengagement, dissatisfaction, and work-related stress are at record levels.  The Gallup Company published research in the Harvard Business Review5 that indicates only 29% of employees show up with enthusiasm and passion for their work.  Seven out of ten of workers are either disengaged (54%), meaning they’re sleepwalking through portions of their day, or actively disengaged (17%), meaning they’re working at cross-purpose with their employer.

According to research published by the American Psychological Association in 2009, 69% of employees report that work is a significant source of stress.  Fifty-one percent of employees report that they are less productive at work as a result of stress.

Research conducted by the Families and Work Institute6 found that one third of U.S. employees are chronically overworked.  Thirty-nine percent of overworked employees feel very angry toward their employers.  That’s a lot of unhappy people on the job.  As a result, 54% of currently employed adults plan to look for a new job once the economy improves.7

4.)  Economics.  According to research conducted by the Heldrich Center for Workforce Development, 82% of older workers have less savings than when the recession began.  In addition, 62% report they have a lot less and 35% report seeing their savings diminish by half in the past year alone.8 Add to this the record drop in property values over the past several years and you can see how the overall asset base for older workers has eroded significantly.  In addition, many older workers simply wont have enough time to recoup their losses.

5.)  The Brain and Experience Drain.  While the first four factors point to the constraints being imparted upon older workers by recent events and current hiring practices, the last factor has to do with the emerging demand for their talent, experience, and expertise.  This is the year that the Baby Boomers begin to turn 65.  In fact, beginning in 2011, more than 10,000 Baby Boomers will retire per day.  This rate of retirement will continue for 19 years!  Demographically, there simply aren’t enough trained, experienced, and tenured workers to backfill this rate of retirement.  Generally speaking, companies are poorly prepared to address this accelerating issue and, at some point, will find themselves in the market for these resources.

Let’s face it, for a lot of Americans it isn’t very much fun working in Corporate America today.  Unfortunately, for older workers, the only thing that is perhaps less enjoyable than working for Corporate America is not working at all.  Simply put, many of these new entrepreneurs will be embarking on this journey because they have few other viable alternatives.  This is reflected in the Kauffman Index finding that while entrepreneurial activity is up, the employer establishment (companies that plan to hire employees) birth rate is down.  Many of the new entrepreneurs are sole practitioners.  While operating as a sole practitioner is less expensive, it brings along its own set of challenges for the uninitiated.

While older entrepreneurs are often technical experts, their ability to rapidly and efficiently commercialize their technical expertise will be critical to their survival.  Anticipating and thoroughly understanding the challenges of launching a startup through the use of a comprehensive strategic planning process is the place to start.  This will help the nascent entrepreneur hone their vision on their target market, identify the resources they will need along the way, and create a step-by-step plan to secure traction and grow their business.

While many of the emerging, older entrepreneurs may not have planned to be where they are today, they can take hold of their lives, careers, and earnings by planning on where they want to be tomorrow.

© 2011, Terry Murray.

1 “Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, 1996-2010”, Fairlie, Robert W., The Kauffman Foundation, March, 2011.

2 Munnell, A. H., Sass, S., Soto, M., & Zhivan, N. (2008). Do older workers face greater risk of displacement? (Issue Brief No. 53). Chestnut Hill, MA: Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. Retrieved from http://crr.bc.edu/images/stories/Briefs/ib_53.pdf.

3 “Do Older Workers Face Discrimination?”, Lahey, J. N. (2005). Do older workers face discrimination? (Issue Brief No. 33). Chestnut Hill, MA: Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.

Retrieved from http://crr.bc.edu/images/stories/Briefs/ib_33.pdf?phpMyAdmin=43ac483c4de9t51d9eb41.

4 “Work Trends Data”, John J. Heldrich Center For Workforce Development, Rutgers University, 2010.

5 “Manage Your Human Sigma”, Fleming, John H., Coffman, C., Harter, James K., Harvard Business Review, July, 2005.  Retrieved from http://hbr.org/product/manage-your-human-sigma/an/R0507J-PDF-ENG.

6 “Overwork in America: When the Way We Work Becomes Too Nuch”, Galinsky, E., Bond, J. T., Kim, S. S., Backon, L., Brownfield, E., & Sakai, K. (2005). Families and Work Institute. Retrieved from http://familiesandwork.org/site/research/summary/overwork2005summ.pdf.

7 “Hoping for Stabilization…Better Plan for Resignations”, 2009, Adecco.

8 “Older Workers, the Great Recession, and the Impact of Long-Term Unemployment”, Van Horn, Corre, and Heidkamp, John J. Heldrich Center For Workforce Development, Rutgers University, February, 2011.

 

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April 5, 2011 · 6:23 pm

Best Selling Author and Entrepreneur Linda Kohanov Endorses “The Transformational Entrepreneur”

Linda Kohanov, best-selling author and successful entrepreneur, was kind enough to read The Transformational Entrepreneur and had this to say:

“It’s clear from recent events that conventional ways of doing business are fast becoming obsolete. And yet developing a more productive and more fulfilling approach requires more than a leap of faith. It requires a leap of consciousness. In The Transformational Entrepreneur, Terry Murray does the near impossible: giving us practical advice and innovative methodology for engaging the as yet untapped resources of the human mind, heart and spirit, inspiring us to step out of the box with sure-footedness and a sense of adventure. Terry’s breakthrough philosophy is based on his own powerful experiences exploring a new way of being and a new way of doing business in the 21st century.” ~ Linda Kohanov

For those of you that are unfamiliar with Linda, she is the author of three best-selling books; “The Tao Of Equus”, “Riding Between The Worlds”, and “The Way Of The Horse”.  Linda is also a pioneer in the field of personal and professional development through an approach called Equine Facilitated Learning.  You can learn more about Linda and The Epona Center at her website.  I was fortunate enough to apprentice with Linda for more than a year and it was an experience that truly changed the course of my life.

Thanks for the kind words, Linda!

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