IMHO, I don’t think committing any of these offenses could be considered a good sales strategy

The story I’m going to tell involves an interaction I had with somebody who tried to peddle his services. I’m not going to name names, describe the service or any other particulars because 1) that’s not cool and 2) I believe such an incident isn’t limited to that particular industry. I said this on Facebook but feel the need to go into greater detail.

There comes a time (sometimes more often than we wish) when entrepreneurs need to cold call or send an unsolicited email to folks they’ve never contacted previously. In an ideal situation, cold calling wouldn’t be required but it happens. As a solopreneur, I do everything myself; hopefully the day will come that I don’t have to do everything myself but I’m not there yet.

I got an email from somebody who took a shot in the dark by contacting me in hopes that he can take one of those tasks off my hands. Not for nothing, I appreciated the opportunity for that to happen so we corresponded back and forth over the course of a few days before I decided to take a pass on his services.

The first rule is to listen. I told him what I was doing, how I was set up, etc. but not once did he offer to work with what I had, make suggestions on improvements, etc. All he wanted to do was push his agenda. When I looked at his work samples, the format that he seemed to use wasn’t going to work with what I have and there would’ve been a learning curve, shall we say, for me to do any reviews, updates, etc.

Rule #2 – back up your claims. Don’t insult my intelligence by saying that you have a lot of “big clients” but your portfolio dictates otherwise. I’m not going to knock somebody for having a portfolio of mom & pop shops but don’t pass yourself off to be bigger than you actually are. On the one hand, I might be intimidated by somebody who works solely with “heavy hitters” but I might be flattered to be in that ballpark.

Rule #3 – don’t assume. This part was nightmarish and this is where he showed how much of a tool (I used a less polite word when talking to somebody about this) he was. Quite frankly, I found humor in the whole thing and I wonder how he’s scoring all of these “big clients” and selling “millions in services” if he’s turning me off. I had to laugh when he said in one of his emails that I must be in my early 20s & obviously had a lot of learn. I would’ve killed to see the look on his face when I corrected him by saying I just turned 40 & have over 17 years of relevant experience. The one statement that takes the cake is when he said something about not orchestrating my next failure because I’m already succeeding in that respect. Oh yeah, like I’m really going to change my mind over that statement. Hell, if he’s raking in the Benjamins, what’s the deal with chasing me?

Rule #4 – don’t harass. I understand the art of getting to yes but if the chemistry (or whatever) isn’t there, don’t press it. While my folks that do sales for a living may state otherwise, I equate this part to dating; if I’m not comfortable with you during this part of the transaction, I doubt I will have the warm & fuzzies while we’re doing business together. After I declined, the emails that followed really annoyed me.

Rule #5 – don’t badmouth anybody, especially your competition (who your potential client is currently using BTW). I don’t think I have to go into details about this.

Rule #6 – don’t be dismissive. I know that I’m a startup, you don’t have to remind me about that. Hell, didn’t firms like Microsoft, Apple and Dell start in somebody’s garage, spare bedroom or basement? The condescending attitude doesn’t score points with me.

Finally, don’t take cheap shots. It’s not about getting business from me or anybody about being done with it, it’s about creating future opportunities for yourself. If all went well between us, I would’ve sung his praises and referred him to everybody. He blew it. He’s lucky that I’m classy enough to not name names.

If there are any takeaways from this, I’m glad that I did my due diligence and went with my gut when things didn’t seem right. I feel the need to incorporate some Dale Carnegie by saying that being a meany isn’t a way to win friends and influence people.

Facing a “catch 22.” Presenting my capabilities to create opportunities.

For years, I was told that I’m good at what I do and that I should think about starting my own business. Let’s face it, we’ve all thought about the “perks” of being our own boss but those dreams get dashed by the fear & uncertainty of being a business owner. This “challenging” economy has shown that “job security” doesn’t exist and a number of folks have hung up a shingle in hopes of creating an opportunity instead of being at the mercy of what’s available.

When I lost my job two years ago, it was not an “ideal” time for me to start a business…hell, it wasn’t an ideal time to be out of work. My daughter was 8 months old and my husband was out of work. I went on the “interview circuit” and was sickened by what I saw; very few firms were interested in the level of experience I had (15 years at the time) and the postings that I noticed called for 5-7 years of experience. I had three versions of my resume; the “true” version covered my 15 years, the “shorted” version covered 10 years and the “dumbed down” version covered 5 years. Which version generated to most responses? The dumbed down version. I went through the exercise of interviewing and I was disgusted by the process. I was in my late 30s at the time and felt sickened by the thought of passing myself off as somebody with 5 years of experience; I hoped the interviewer didn’t notice the grays in my hair since I could no longer afford a decent colorist. The dumbed down version of my resume not only eliminated 10 years of my experience but also didn’t include references to articles that I’ve written, presentations I’ve given, leadership positions I’ve held (I was President-Elect of SMPS-LI at the time) and my extensive association involvement. Yes, I could’ve gone through the motions of interviewing but I knew in my heart of hearts that I was selling myself short and couldn’t help but wonder how happy I would be if I got hired.

When I applied for unemployment, I received a letter from the Department of Labor saying that I was eligible for the Self Employment Assistance Program which would allow me to start a business with the support of the DOL. I had to complete an application and wait to hear if I was accepted. The program required a bunch of deliverables and the completion of 20 hours of classes. At the conclusion of the program, I had an actual business in place.

That’s where the fun began. I started a business that was based around my capabilities but everything that I’ve done to build up my skills were done as an employee or through SMPS. A few months ago, I submitted a proposal for services that I had the capabilities in performing; my representative experience was through my SMPS involvement. I didn’t get the project. I’m facing similar roadblocks as I market the firm to other government agencies because they want to know where I have worked in terms of other public clients so they can properly vet me for work with them. The work that I’ve done to date have been for private clients and I secured those clients through my existing connections. Hopefully, I can find some opportunities as a subconsultant which can help me build a portfolio.

Getting off the pot

I didn’t know how to title this blog but decided to spin a phrase that I tend to use, “shit or get off the pot.” A considerable number of us talk about doing things but tend to not take action due to unfamiliarity, stepping out of a “comfort zone,” or fear. I thought about starting my own marketing consulting business for a number of years but didn’t know where to start.

As a marketing professional, I was confident about my ability to market a business but wasn’t too sure about all the other aspects about running a business. Also, I was working for somebody else and quite frankly, didn’t have the time or energy to build a business on the side and generate enough activity that it could support my lifestyle.

When I lost my job in January, I was at a crossroads as to what to do with myself. Unfortunately, I learned the hard way that “job security” is an oxymoron and the one way to control how far you go in a company is to have your own business. After I applied for unemployment, I received a letter from the Department of Labor saying that I was eligible for the Self Employment Assistance Program, a program that would essentially walk me through various steps to start a business.  One of the requirements of the program included 20 hours of business-related seminars and there was an abundance of free seminars through various groups including NYC Small Business Services and SCORE Long Island; walking about from each course made the process of starting a business less overwhelming. There were other deliverables that I needed to complete and once they were done, I was left with a tremendous sense of accomplishment.

There are still some challenges that I am facing in terms of building a book a business but I know that those things take time. I’m confident that once things start rolling, I can effectively work on my terms.