Whale Hunting Women, Volume I

June 15th, 2009

Whale Hunting Women, Volume I, by Dr. Barbara Weaver Smith, celebrates how women do big deals in business and community.  It’s about the unique talents that women bring to whale hunting–doing big deals–, such as a preference for collaboration and cooperation, a willingness to mentor their team, and an ability to empower others.  It’s also about the special challenges that women sometimes face, such as a reluctance to claim their expertise, a lack of confidence, or the feeling that their organization is too small to hunt.Big deals are big sales.  They are big projects.  They are big events.  They are lofty goals and big ideas.  How you go about accomplishing a big deal is the same whether you are a salesperson, a business owner, an executive, a board member, an educator, a community leader, or part of a team that does big deals.

If you do big deals, or if you want to do big deals, this is the book for you! 

 Purchase your download copy now! 
25% discount throughout the Virtual Blog Tour!

The Buzz about Whale Hunting Women
Whale Hunting Women Summit, Indianapolis, June 4 2009
Read an Excerpt: Hanging from Your Own Rope
Table of Contents
Dates and Places:  The Virtual Blog Tour for Whale Hunting Women
The Buzz About Whale Hunting Women

Visit with Joyce Anthony, Books and Authors Blog
Interview with MaAnna Stephenson for Just the FAQs
Interview with Wayne Hurlbert, Blog Business World

Book Review by Wayne Hurlbert Blog Business World

“I highly recommend Whale Hunting Women: How Women Do Big Deals by Barbara Weaver Smith, to any women business owners or managers who seek to transform their companies from small bit players to major sales and marketing organizations. Through practical and hands on advice, the author shows a clear path for landing those major corporate whales, and growing a small business into a much larger company.

Read Whale Hunting Women: How Women Do Big Deals by Barbara Weaver Smith, and discover the power and importance of devoting a small percentage of the sales and marketing budget on pursuing very large customers. Simply landing one of these whale sized clients will change a business bottom line overnight. Stop thinking like a minnow, and go after and land the whales.”  Wayne Hurlbert

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction
How Women Hunt Whales
Only A Minnow (In A Sea Of Whales)
Small Fish Hunting Whales
Radical Culture: Take A Rival To Lunch
Radical Culture: Money Is Cheap
Radical Culture:  Kill Some Commandments
Who Do You Trust?
Hanging From Your Own Rope
Fast Times
Whale Hunting Resolutions
Conclusion
Whale Hunting Glossary

EXCERPT FROM WHALE HUNTING WOMEN, VOLUME 1.

HANGING FROM YOUR OWN ROPE

“Commoditization”  represents a massive shift in today’s economy.  It’s an ugly word that reflects an even uglier situation.  Many whale hunters are struggling to fight it.

A commodity is a product for which there is market demand but that is relatively undifferentiated by brand.  Think of unprocessed produce like rice, corn, soy beans.  Market price fluctuates on the basis of supply and demand, not features and benefits.  There’s nothing wrong with commodities-markets need them and companies make money buying and selling them.

The trouble comes when a product or service that was once considered “premium” loses its cachet, and buyers start treating it like a commodity. 

All kinds of companies in all kinds of markets are fighting this trend.  Products and services that were once highly differentiated based upon their value proposition or were in short supply are regularly undercut–”commoditized”–by innovation, new supply, and cheaper methods of conducting the transaction.  Within any industry vertical, you will find companies struggling to avoid the commodity trap.  Perhaps you are one of them.  The ubiquitous “solution sale,” [sell “the solution” - not the product or service ] a typical method to fight commoditization, is becoming a commodity itself.  Not that there’s anything wrong with providing a solution to a customer’s problem, but if everything is promoted as a “solution,” the term becomes meaningless.

But the most dangerous position of all is when you unintentionally “commoditize” yourself, as I see clients do all too often.   It can happen like this:    

  • “Free consulting.” Give away too much of your wisdom up front and your buyer will not value what you have left to sell. This is the biggest danger in writing proposals and responding to RFP/RFQ requirements. You run the great risk of giving away your methods, processes and prices , enabling an unscrupulous buyer to implement without you or hand off to your competitor.
  • “Cut rate.” The buyer will not value your product or service more than you do. If you lead with a discounted price, you seriously undermine your value proposition. Buyers may want a discount and may even expect a discount, but if everything is “discounted” you have no real price point. The buyer will continue to want it for less, and you will become very disgruntled with that customer, perhaps providing lackluster service, which further commoditizes you. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t offer products or services at various price levels if that’s part of your sales plan. But they should be differentiated, not simply discounted. If the buyer is going to select a vendor based solely on price, you don’t want to win that business unless you are selling a commodity.
  • “Earn It.” Accept a contract for a small piece of business in hopes of “earning” the right to do more. In our experience, this strategy usually leaves you pigeonholed in a small vendor space from which you can’t escape. The kind of work you accept teaches the customer who you are and what you provide. If you are inadvertently teaching “small”, “local,” and “niche,” that’s how the buyer will identify you. National firms don’t buy from the companies that make small sales to their local outlets. It is very hard and therefore very costly to move from one silo to another inside of a large company.
  • “Not on target.” When you violate your target filter by going after business that is wrong for you, you devalue yourself and what you are selling. It means you don’t trust your strategy, you don’t trust the image you intended to present to your market, and you don’t trust your ability to sell the right things to the right customers. Every client has stories about the “killer whale” - the one you landed that was all wrong for you. Most of the time, if you’re honest with yourself, you knew it wasn’t a good deal for you.

If you suffer from commoditizing yourself, what can you do about it?

  1. Understand it as a danger and take active steps to avoid it. Be sure you are clear about the steps in your sales process and what you need to learn from the whale at every step. Be sure the whale understands how you sell and that you learn how the whale buys. Vigorously research who is at the Buyers’ Table and get to know how they make decisions. If it’s not a good fit, send it Back to Baja.
  2. Be very choosy about answering RFPs. Be sure you understand how the RFP will be handled and how your rights and intellectual property will be protected during the process. Do your best to know the solicitor and determine whether it is trustworthy. Test the RFP against the “Dirty Dozen” flaws that spell trouble for you.
  3. Review and if necessary revise your Target Filter. Be certain that you have the right criteria that will lead you to the best possible whales. Each time you consider a new prospect, compare it to your target filter Don’t put it on your Whale Chart if it doesn’t fit.

Markets are constantly commoditizing products and services-it’s a natural outcome of innovation and globalization.   If you sell something unique or differentiated, make sure you’re not helping the market commoditize you.

The Heart of Markreting Speaks to Common Needs

June 14th, 2009

Making money online is getting more and more popular. And it’is especially appealing to service providers who’ve been used to working only one-on-one in the confines of their offices.

With making online money easier and easier to understand and implelment (provided you get started correctly), the spiritually inclined service provider has only needed an appropriate mindset to open the window on vast life-changing influence and unlimited profits.

Our book The Heart of Marketing - Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back (Morgan James Publishing, May 2009) - provides exactly what is needed.

So it’s no surprise that our book’s Amazon page notes that 99% of all people who come to the page leave only after they’ve ordered The Heart of Marketing.

We are proud and honored to have written a book that promises both internal and external success which arises from the use of soft sell marketing, soul-based pricing, and selling as spiritual service.

To celebrate, we have extended the availability of our Launch Sponsors’ 62 Bonus Gifts when you get our book by going to http://TheHeartOfMarketing.com

#3 on Morgan James Best Seller List

June 7th, 2009

We are soooo pleased to share with you that our new book

The Heart of Marketing: Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back

was the #3 Best Seller at Morgan James Publishing
for the month of May!

And we keep hearing from readers that when they first got the book and started to skim 3 hours later they had finished reading because they couldn’t put it down! (We’ll share a few of these reader responses in a future blog post)

Also we decided to extend the availability of the 62 Bonus Gifts provided by our book launch sponsors from all around the world - so you and your friends and colleagues can still get them when you get our book through Amazon (for less than $15 incl shipping) by going to:

http://TheHeartOfMarketing.com

So be sure to get your own copy of you haven’t already.

And please tell everyone you know to be sure to get our book if they need guidance and support in succeeding in their marketing and selling while remaining in integrity!

Watch Out for These Internet Dating Dangers

June 6th, 2009

Watch Out for Internet Dating Dangers

Most people who sign up at dating websites are usually clueless about Internet dating dangers — whether they pay to join an Internet dating service or it’s a totally free Internet dating site — it doesn’t make the experience any safer if you don’t know what to watch out for.

So, be on the look out for these common Internet dating dangers:

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Helping Teen-Agers Be Fabulous

May 24th, 2009

An Online Interview with Justin Sachs

We want to introduce you to Justin Sachs bt asking him a few important questions.

Justin is the author of a new book, Your Mailbox Is Full and is the founder of the Creating Possibilities Coaching Program in which Justin helps teenagers to increase their grades, eliminate procrastination, and create balance in all the areas of their life.

1. Justin, what do you do?
I work with teenagers to increase their grades, eliminate procrastination, create balance in their lives, and overcome any obstacles standing in their way of success.

2. Tell us about your new book.
Your Mailbox Is Full is a book for teenagers, that teaches them the tools they need to become successful in school and throughout their lives. They learn things like goal setting, time management, living a healthy lifestyle, and modeling and attracting success.

3. Why did you write it?
When I was 14 years old . . .

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The Heart of Marketing #1 All Over Amazon

May 21st, 2009

Last week we launched our new book –

The Heart of Marketing - Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back (Morgan James Publishing)

with an Amazon Best Seller Campaign!

And a Best-Seller it is!

*** It hit #59 on Amazon overall (which means that only 58 books sold better than ours)

AND . . . The Heart of Marketing was . . .

#1 in Marketing
#1 in Marketing & Sales
#1 in Direct Marketing
#1 in eCommerce
#1 in Web Marketing

Be sure to take advantage of this Book Launch Special if you are in any way involved in sales, marketing, and/or business.

AND get your choice of 62 Free Bonus Gifts when you go to -

http://TheHeartofMarketing.com

ALSO. . . Please tell everyone you know who would also be blessed by this book - and would enjoy nearly $10,000 in Bonus Gifts when our book is purchased for less than $11.00.

The beauty is that everyone comes out ahead!

Because It IS All in the Connection,
Judith & Jim

The Heart of Marketing # 1 All Over Amazon

May 14th, 2009

Today! Get your copy of The Heart of Marketing - Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back (Morgan James) at

http://theheartofmarketing.com

And get 62 Free Gifts from leading marketers around the world at the same time.

Do it now! We are heading toward #1 best selling book on Amazon - along with #1 in all the marketing categories!

And tell your friends! Thank you from Judith & Jim

The Heart of Marketing…Gets 5 Star Reviews…

May 13th, 2009

We’re getting more and more reviews for our new book The Heart of Marketing - all excellent. Take a look at these…

The Heart of Marketing –
Dynamic, Imaginative, Inspiring!”
Printed Words Blog

*The Heart of Marketing* is for not only for marketers and people in business. It’s for everyone! You’ll enjoy reading it even if you have nothing to sell. Judith and Jim present tools that can be applied in relationships of all kinds since it’s really about people and how they think. And their writing style is so compelling that it inspires interest on many levels. Just as their book on wedding planning is thoughtful, enlightening and entertaining, *The Heart of Marketing* brings new knowledge, wisdom and understanding that can be applied to all aspects of life.
Sharon Steffensen, Editor
Yoga Chicago magazine

Judith and Jim have done their homework through experience, the best teacher of all, and delivered what has needed to be said for a very long time in this book that will help those in business and sales find their path to sales with integrity. We recommend The Heart of Marketing as a guide to how business should and can be conducted, realizing success, sales and profits with customer care, pride and honesty.
Nancy J. Reid
Editor, Blend Magazine

SO get in on our Book Launch Campaign that starts at midnight EST May 14th at http://theheartofmarketing.com

Purchase The Heart of Marketing through the Amazon button there and then return to the site to get your choice of 62 Bonus Gifts, donated by marketing leaders from around the world including Mark Joyner, David Riklan, Christine Kloser, Jody Colvard and so many more!! The Value - over $8400.00!

One More Day to The Heart of Marketing

May 13th, 2009

Just 2 more sleeps, as they say in Australia, before we take you into the Super Amazon Best Seller page that we’ve created with over 62 Bonus Gifts for you when you buy our new book

The Heart of Marketing — Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back (Morgan James Publishing, May 2009)

on Thursday May 14th at Amazon -

Wait til you see the 43 endorsements from top marketing leaders!

$8400 worth of Gifts for you from some of those same leaders AND others who want to support you getting this history making, transformational book!

So stay tuned. Back to you very soon!

Because It’s All in the Connection,

Judith & Jim

 

The Heart of Marketing is Coming…

May 4th, 2009

Wall Street greed has hurt Main Street’s need to keep their shops and stores open and profitable.

Money, money, money as the reason to sell more, ever more, and ever more again . . . has pushed millions out of their homes, out of their cars, out of their modest lives.

And advertising abuse using threats and attacks to grab the viewer’s or reader’s attention has gone way over the top -and flies in the face of basic human integrity.

It’s time for a change . . .

A big change . . .

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