Week 3: RECRUIT YOUR SALESFORCE Orientation This week, we focus on the key differentiators between wildly successful and unsuccessful professional services sellers.

These are the game changers that can elevate your business results. These are not one-time actions, but actions you can

begin now and continue throughout your career. They continue to work if you continue to work them.

Who Does the Selling? In most companies, the selling is done by

• Account managers

• Sales executives

• Sales representatives

In small businesses, you might say your selling is done by

• Your website

• Twitter

• YouTube

• Facebook

No! These are marketing initiatives, NOT selling initiatives. These don’t sell in and of themselves.

The Truthful Answer: For most small businesses, YOU are the only one who is selling.

We know people believe what others say about you more readily than they believe what you say about yourself.

Word-of-Mouth Marketing Word-of-mouth marketing creates credibility for you. You get to borrow other people’s credibility for a short time –

until you actually start talking with the prospective client – then that credibility loan is immediately repaid and you have

to establish your own credibility, but it begins the conversation; the sales process.

The bottom line: to achieve extraordinary success, you must not be limited by yourself. You must recruit a salesforce.

Recruit Your Salesforce “Recruit our salesforce” means: netWORK. It’s work.

Your Challenge: Get into a weekly networking group.

Specifically: Business Network International (BNI) and your local Chamber of Commerce.

Business Network International (BNI) Website: www.bni.com; click “Find a Chapter”. If there is not a chapter available to you locally, start one. (Note: if there

is already someone in a chapter with your profession, some chapters will not allow you to join but instead will refer to

you another chapter without someone in your field, if one is available. If not, you may need to start one.)

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Take BNI to the Next Level After you join, get educated on how to be an effective member. A strong chapter will tell you the normative behaviors

expected from members and help you grow into being an effective BNI’er. That’s good, but here’s how to get the most

from it and go next level.

1. Power Teams

a. Are a subset of a BNI chapter that meet in addition to the regular club meeting

b. Are a group of people who serve the same clientele but are not competitors with one another

c. Educate each other about your ideal clients

d. Essentially recruiting “eyes and ears” or “feet on the street” for each other: a sales force that leverages

you capabilities and your footprint in the marketplace. (Note: you must also serve this role for others.)

e. If there isn’t a Power Team you can get in, create one.

2. Educational Coordinator

a. As soon as possible, become the Educational Coordinator for your chapter.

b. Everyone gets a 1-minute or so “commercial”. The Educational Coordinator also gets about 3 minutes to

educate the chapter about a subject relevant to word-of-mouth marketing.

i. This is not a commercial for your business. Keep it educational.

ii. You have enormous resources available with relevant information as a JMT member.

iii. People get to know your knowledge base, your credibility, who you are, your personality, your

sense of humor, your skillset — all the elements of your uniqueness you previously identified.

iv. This helps you establish the “know, like, and trust” factor (rapport) that makes you the person to

whom others are far more likely to refer business.

3. President

a. This may take 1-2 years (unless you are starting a chapter).

b. The President runs the meeting. This allows you to:

i. Be seen in action on a regular basis.

ii. Demonstrate your leadership.

iii. Establish even more credibility.

iv. Get even more referrals.

v. Have an even bigger recruited salesforce.

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Chamber of Commerce U.S. Chamber website: www.uschamber.com; find your local chamber at www.uschamber.com/chamber/directory

(Note: all Chambers may not be listed on this website)

International members: you may need to find a different, similar organization where you are.

Know who is on the board. Cultivate relationships with the people in leadership positions. Get meetings or

appointments with the board members, president, and other leaders.

Do not be transactional. Don’t go for business.

Go to serve.

Remember: VCP

VCP 1. Visibility

2. Credibility

3. Profitability

You do it in that order.

Visibility

Serve first. Givers gain.

Help people.

Listen effectively.

Become a member of their sales force.

Generate reciprocity. People are far more likely to refer to business to you if you have referred business to

them. At least show a genuine interest in helping them and demonstrate your value first.

Do this, not as one time transaction but repeatedly, and build credibility and profitability over time.

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Action Plan This week, you’ll work with your Accountability Partner(s) to improve your word-of-mouth salesforce and build your

VCP.

1. Watch the video with the worksheet.

2. Reflect on the work you did last week regarding your unique selling proposition.

3. Take action to join or start a local BNI chapter.

a. Become your BNI chapter’s Educational Coordinator as soon as possible.

b. Work to become your BNI chapter’s President.

4. Join and get involved with your local Chamber of Commerce.

5. Schedule meetings with the leaders of these organizations — with the intent of serving — and begin building

those relationships.

6. Identify other key organizations and members in your community and netWORK within them.

7. Complete the following exercise (next page).

8. Hold (at least) two meetings with your Accountability Partner(s) to set your intention at the start of the week

and to check in and report how you’ve done at the end of the week.

9. Hold each other accountable to take the actions that cultivate relationships and truly build a network that

becomes a salesforce for your business. You may be amazed how quickly this works!

MOVE OUT!

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Exercise Score yourself on each of these.

0 = I’m not doing this yet (but I will).

1 = I’m doing this, but can (and will) improve on this.

2 = I’m rocking this.

Repeat the evaluation each week of bootcamp and discuss with your accountability partner regularly.

After bootcamp, repeat the exercise monthly to check in and hold yourself accountable.

Objective Score

1. I am an active member of a local BNI chapter.

2. I am the Educational Coordinator of my BNI chapter.

3. I am the President of my BNI chapter.

4. I am an active member of my Chamber of Commerce (or equivalent).

5. I scheduled meetings and introduced myself to the Chamber leaders.

6. I am actively cultivating relationships with the leaders of my Chamber, BNI group,

and other organizations.

7. I am netWORKing; putting in the WORK to help others and expand my influence.

8. I am serving others and adding value to them as a member of their salesforces.

9. I am actively building Visibility with the intent of building Credibility, ultimately

for Profitability (VCP).

10. I recognize the difference between my marketing activities and my selling activities

and I am not relying on the marketing to do my selling but instead am actively

and intentionally recruiting my salesforce.

TOTAL SCORE:

Bonus Motivation: Subtract your score from 20 and hit the deck for that number of push-ups!

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