Top Secrets of Marketing & Sales David Blaise

There are a lot of people who aren't quite sure where they are with the whole business growth thing vs. just maintenance. Some people are content where they are. And if you're okay with just maintaining, then none of this applies to you. Right?



You're not required to grow your business if that's not where you're going. But there are so many people that I talk to that really want to do it. They want it to grow. They want it to be more than it is.



They want to be able to create better lives for themselves, for their employees, for their families, for everybody they impact. And they know they can't do it without growing. And when they use maintenance as an excuse, that's a tough one to overcome.







David: Hi and welcome to the podcast. In today's episode, co host Jay McFarland and I will be discussing business growth versus just maintenance. Welcome back, Jay.



Jay: Hey David, once again, it is a pleasure to be here. And it's so funny, oftentimes we choose these topics and I'm like, "man, I am right in the middle of that!" So, again, I'm excited to discuss this with you.



David: Yeah, I think the reason that I wanted to talk about it, this came to mind fairly recently because I've had so many conversations with people, business owners primarily, small business owners for the most part, some sales managers, who say, "listen, I really need to grow this business. I need to grow my sales. I need to grow my profits. I need to make that happen now. This is a priority for me."



And then we talk about some of the incentives and we talk about some of the things that they're going to need to do. we talk about some of the steps they'll need to follow and nearly all of it is designed to save them time, save them money, generate more revenue, just make everything a whole lot easier and a whole lot better.



And one of the things that I find extremely frustrating is when I'm talking to someone like that, who then says, well, I really don't feel like I have time to implement this because I have so much that I'm dealing with on a daily basis, maintaining the business, essentially.



I'm busy doing this and I'm busy doing that. And I'm doing all these different things that are allowing me to stay just underwater, a little bit, where my nose is just barely peeking up and down above the water, but I don't have time to do the things that are going to get me out of the water and make sure that things are still functioning the way that they need to function.



So in most cases, I believe that growth is the solution to maintenance, but it doesn't work the other way around.



Jay: Yeah. What is it? Winning gets rid of all the stink or, you know, whatever. Winning is the best deodorant. That's what it is. Winning is the best deodorant.



David: That's true.



Jay: Yeah, you know, it's funny, this last year, I'm kind of reliving everything that you're talking about, because of our seasonality, we have times where we have to be all growth, all the time, we have this influx of customers. We can't be worried about maintenance at that moment, but then all of a sudden, it practically dies instantly, so now we're asking the question, "How do we maintain our current base?"



Because we want them to be back and so what maintenance things do we need to do? But not only that, what about the people who we talk to who might be interested in the future? Can we reach out to them on a regular basis?



So now that we've died down, we're talking about drip programs, we're talking about newsletters to our existing clientele.



So we're kind of in this process between maintaining, we still want to grow during this time so we can pay our bills. But we're really kind of in this mode where we're trying to do both, but a certain part of the year we can't do one....

There are so many situations where inadequate product knowledge, damaged reputation, and inefficient or poorly executed sales processes come from having untrained salespeople.







David: Hi, and welcome to the podcast. In today's episode, co host Jay McFarland and I will discuss the incredible cost of untrained salespeople. Welcome back, Jay.



Jay: Hey, it's such a pleasure to be here, David. Sometimes I think I'm that guy. I'm the untrained salesperson. So, this will be very informative to me, I hope.



David: Okay. Well, you know, there's a difference between being untrained and untrainable. So, as long as you're trainable, that's a really big plus.



Jay: OK, I feel a little better.



David: No, I'm sure you're trainable, but untrained salespeople can really cause a great deal of harm to themselves, to their companies, to their prospects, to the businesses they're associated with.



It is really kind of epidemic and It's largely unnecessary. A lot of it comes from, particularly in small businesses an employers desire to delegate it quickly, to get it off their plate.



Like, "okay, I'm not doing this as well as I'd like. I better hire somebody else to do it." And they're hoping that that person is going to know how to do it.



And if you don't have protocols in place, like we talked about in our previous podcast, then of course that just makes it that much more difficult. But the biggest problems that people are likely to run into, the obvious ones are lost sales opportunities, right?



Cause I'm talking to somebody who could potentially buy, but I'm saying all the wrong things and I'm not positioning the company well, and I'm not finding the right needs that the people are actually looking for, and I'm saying the wrong things, there's no way that sales is going to happen.



It's a bad reflection on the salesperson and the company, and the prospect will walk away thinking that that company is not good at what they do because the salesperson did not do a good enough job of explaining what they do.



So, it creates a complete disconnect between what the business might be capable of and what the world is likely to think they're capable of. So that's a killer.



Poor communication is another one that when you have a salesperson who is not trained on what they need to ask, what they need to find out from the prospect, how they need to address those questions and issues, that defines poor communication, because they're just going to say whatever comes to their mind or they're going to say, "well, I have to find out, let you know."



Now there are situations in pretty much any sales scenario where that might be the case, where you don't have every single bit of information that they might need to know. So there will be situations where you might have to find something out.



But if it's happening more than a couple of times at any particular sales presentation, you might want to look at the process that you're using to make that happen.



The training that you have or have not received. Actually, this really does dovetail pretty well in our previous conversation about protocols. So if you're seeing this podcast and you didn't see that one, go back and watch that one as well because these things really tie together.



Jay: Yeah, a couple of things come to mind.



And the first is, how do you know you have an untrained salesperson? If they are not where you're at, if they're doing outside sales and they're sitting in somebody else's office, how do you know what they're saying and how they're interacting?



That can be very difficult. The second thing is if they're on the phone making those calls, how do you assess their situation there?



Like I said earlier,

A lot of the people that I work with now are exceptional at what they do, but they may struggle to get other people in their organization to be able to do it, because they haven't codified the success protocols that would allow them to say, "okay, this is how we perform this task. This is how we do this. This is how we do that." And when they start doing that, they're just amazed at how far their people can come so quickly.







David: Hi, and welcome to the podcast. In today's episode, co host Jay McFarland and I will be discussing your protocols for success. Welcome back, Jay.



Jay: Hey, it's such a pleasure to be here with you again. This may be a situation where I want to sit back and listen to you a little bit because I know you have a lot of experience and coming up with these protocols and things like that.



So I'm just going to say hit me and I'll see if I can learn something here.



David: Okay. Well, when I talk about protocols for success, we talk a lot about systems and processes and the work that we do with our clients. And if you want to be able to create consistent results in your business, you need to have these things in place.



Protocols is another term for it. But the reason I like the word protocols is that it sort of establishes the fact that these things aren't optional. This is what we're doing. This is how we're doing it in this organization. And when you approach it like that, everything gets a lot easier because you don't have to make a hundred different decisions now.



It's like, I know what the process is. I simply need to follow it. If you're veering from it, you know it. If you're on it, you know it. And so does everybody else. People who don't like accountability will not like that. But people who do like accountability will know, Hey, listen, I followed this procedure to the letter and this didn't work.



And then you can talk to the person that you're working with to have them explain, okay, well maybe this protocol needs to be changed or updated.



It's almost like a baseline. Most people need to start with some sort of baseline protocol that they're going to say, okay, this is how we do this.



This is how we perform this particular task. And then you have a number of people do it and they follow the protocol or they don't. If they follow it and they get a comparable or consistent result, great. That's a good protocol. If five different people try it and they get five different results and they all follow the protocol, you have a problem with your protocol.



You need to clarify, you need to identify, okay, what are the problems with each of these steps? And I need to tweak that so that when I hand it to five different people, they can all get a similar result. That's the nutshell version.



Jay: Hmm. You know, this is something that's so critical. I think a lot of managers miss this point.



Managers are afraid to hold people to the protocol or hold them accountable, and they don't realize that this actually robs your staff from feelings of success. Because if you don't have a baseline, and the baseline is basically when they fall before it, it's not a matter of getting mad at them, it's a matter of saying, okay, what was wrong with the protocol first?



And if the protocol is good, then we probably have a training issue, right? So that's underneath the expected line. But above the line means that they met the line or they did better. That's the only way you're going to feel success. If there is no line, I promise you, your employees will never feel like, man, we did it.



Because you never put a baseline on it. So that's, to me, how you consistently make people happy. And that's why I like the word protocol over accountability, because accountability always sounds negative to people.

Indecision comes with a high price. I think most of us in business try to make the best decisions possible, but really it becomes a matter of saying, "okay, do I have all the information I need?" And if I do, then make the decision. Say yes, say no, but make the decision.







David: Hi, and welcome to the podcast. In today's episode, co host Jay McFarland and I are back with a talk on the high price of indecision. Welcome back, Jay.



Jay: Thank you so much. It's such a pleasure to be here. And I think this is something that we all suffer with, especially in a new business, just knowing what you should do.



What are your priorities? How can you tell that? Paralysis by analysis is very common.



David: Yeah, no question. And I think some people are more wired to be decisive while others are more wired to be indecisive.



If you're decisive, dealing with indecisive people is extremely frustrating.



And if you're indecisive, dealing with decisive people can feel a little intimidating. So it's a challenge.



Jay: Yeah. And I think sometimes you need both. I mean, if you're sitting around waiting to make a decision. You could miss the perfect opportunity, right? But if you move too fast, you're probably not going to be prepared for that situation.



So we got to find balance in the force here. How do we do that?



David: Great question. Yeah. I think missed opportunities is definitely the first thing we tend to think of when it comes to indecision. But if we're trying to find balance in the force, then that would also mean talking about, well, should decisive people do anything differently?



And my guess is that's kind of a quick one. My guess would be to say, all right, if you think you're too decisive, then maybe you need to take a step back, aand consider things a little more. But in business, wow, it's much more detrimental in most cases, in my opinion, to be indecisive. And there's a great quote from Tom Watson that says:



"Solve it. Solve it quickly, solve it right or wrong. If you solve it wrong, it will come back and slap you in the face, and then you can solve it right. Lying dead in the water and doing nothing is a comfortable alternative because it is without risk, but it is an absolutely fatal way to manage a business."



So there are lots of schools of thought on this. The bottom line for most of us is that you're better off making a decision, because if it's the wrong decision, you'll find out sooner, and then you can change it and make a better decision.



If it's the right decision, then you're already past the point where you would have been if you were still putting it off.



Jay: Yeah, I think part of this though is to be decisive, but to be informed in your decisiveness.



If you don't have good tracking of what's going on, like, we were decisive before, and this is how we learned, and we tracked it, and so next time we can move faster because we have some knowledge, we have some key performance indicators, those things are going to help our decisions go faster, and we're going to be more confident in those decisions.



Because for me, sometimes when I feel like we've acted too soon, I'm not at my best. I'm hesitant because I'm hoping it's going to work, but I'm not sure that there's anything backing it up.



David: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. I think you also sort of raised an interesting point, which is the difference between informed decisions and uninformed decisions, right? I don't think decisiveness means just making up your mind without having all the facts.



I'm saying basically, if you've got all the facts and you're failing to decide, that to me is indecisiveness. If you've got all the facts and then you ARE deciding,

Particularly in the early stages, breaking through a sales plateau may just mean doing more of what you're doing. But generally, at some point, we hit a plateau that is created by the fact that we can't run any faster. We can't do any more by ourselves.



So we either need to implement new procedures and new processes, we need to get some help, or something needs to change fundamentally in the business in order to get us to that next level.







David: Hi, and welcome to the podcast. In today's episode, cohost Jay McFarland, and I will be discussing the idea of breaking through your sales plateau. Welcome back, Jay.



Jay: It's so good to be here again with you David, and as always, I'm very excited about this topic. I know businesses that hit these thresholds. It can be a monumental task to get to the next level and they're not sure how to do it. Is it, is it marketing? Is it adding new products? I think that's what a lot of them try to do. They're like, well, let's add 10 more products to the lineup and then we'll do it. And oftentimes that can just make the situation worse and not better.



David: Yeah, it's true. Most businesses, I think it's safe to say, at some point run into some sort of plateau. They hit a level of sales and they can't get past it. I believe in small businesses this is particularly true, where you're just working and pushing and you're trying to get to that next benchmark. And you just can't reach it.



And there are thresholds, I believe in small business, getting to your first hundred thousand in gross sales and then your first 250, and then you hit 500 and then a million and then 2 million and going from there.



And in the early stages, you can generally do pretty well, like to get from a hundred thousand to 250 is often easier than it is to get from a million to 2 million.



But most of us, at some point, will encounter some sort of sales plateau. You get there, you see it, you're targeting it, you're working toward it and you just can't seem to hit it.



And so it's really just a matter of getting stuck. It's like, I feel like I'm stuck and I'm here and I need to be here and I'm not sure what to do next.



Jay: Yeah. And I wonder how much of it is that they're not really sure how they got to the first plateau. I mean, they may think that they know,



David: That's true.



Jay: But it could be something completely different. And this could go back to something we talked about in a previous podcast: following up with your customers.



Find out why they purchased, how they feel about their purchase. Are they returning customers? Are they not returning customers? So if you didn't understand why they bought in the first place and how they felt about that purchase, it's going to be hard breaking through that next plateau.



David: It is, absolutely. And the biggest hangup that I see for most people is not knowing, "what do I do next?"



And as you indicated, people get to a certain point in some cases, they're not sure how they did it. What's that referred to as? Unconscious competence?



Jay: Mm-hmm,



David: Where I'm doing things and it's working, but I'm not even sure of what I've done. So I haven't gotten around to building a system around it to put that into place so I can replicate it.



But there's also the idea that what gets me to here will not necessarily get me to here. Right? So what gets me to level one won't necessarily get me to level two.



That's not always the case, particularly in the early stages, you can do more of what you're doing to get to a higher level. But generally, at some point, we hit a sales plateau that is created by the fact that we can't run any faster. We can't do any more by ourselves.

From a sales mindset connection standpoint, market domination starts with the idea that it's possible. And if you're not sure that it's possible, ask yourself this, your very best clients. When they think about who to go to for the products and services you offer, who do they think about?



Obviously, if they're your very best clients, it's you. They're thinking about you. So you've already achieved a level of mindset or market domination with your very best clients. That demonstrates that it can be done. So then it's a matter of saying, okay, well, how can we do this with other people?









David: Hi, and welcome to the podcast. In today's episode, co host Bianca Istvan and I will be discussing the topic of the sales mindset connection. Welcome Bianca.



Bianca: Thank you so much, David. Very happy to be here with you. And I'm just curious, what do you say to people who think mindset is woo-woo?



David: Yeah, there are a lot of people who feel that way. To some extent, I've been one of them. And in fact, Bianca is our newest addition to our team here at Top Secrets. She and I actually met in a clubhouse group years ago, and we were talking about the idea of mindset there.



And I said, well, I'm not really all that much into mindset. Most of my training is about the specifics of what to do. And Bianca said to me, well, I don't think so. Everything you talk about is pretty much mindset related. And I didn't realize it at the time, but it really kind of opened my eyes to the fact that, yeah, a lot of what we do, even though it's not geared to be about mindset, is about mindset.



So the whole woo-woo thing really kind of touches a nerve with me because I felt that way in the past. It's like, oh, mindset, well, no, you just need to do the stuff. But the reality of the situation is that if you don't have the right mindset, if you're not willing to take the necessary actions, then you're not going to be able to get there.



So it seems to me there's always a mindset element that has to be there, whether or not you really want to think about it.



Bianca: That's so true. And you know, for me, it's great to see that. I mean, you have this ability to connect with people on another level and that's, you know, congrats to you for having this mindset. Fantastic.



David: Well, thanks. And so do you. And that's actually how we started communicating was in this clubhouse group and so when we connected again recently, I just thought it would be so great to have you on our team because I know that that's an important aspect of what you do and your communication with people has been great.



So I'm really glad we've been able to put this together. But for most salespeople, it seems to me that mindset may be in the back of their mind. They may be thinking about it, but for the most part, they're probably just thinking, How do I make this next sale? How do I make this next contact? And so while I don't think you have to spend a ton of time thinking about mindset every day, just recognize that if you don't at least have it going on somewhere in the back of your mind, you're probably not going to do the work you have to do in order to get it started.



Bianca: Yeah, that's so right. And I know you talk a lot about the first contact and what that means, but please tell me, you know, why do you think the mindset is so important when having the first contact with your potential client?



David: Well, first contact is difficult for a lot of people, and a lot of people think of first contact as just being cold calls. And that's one example of first contact. And in those situations, mindset is really hard for some people. J just the idea of the fear of picking up the phone is an issue for people, which is all a mindset thing.



If they can't get past that,