Network Effect
The classic example is the telephone. The more people own telephones, the more valuable the telephone is to each owner. This creates a positive externality because a user may purchase a telephone without intending to create value for other users, but does so in any case. Online social networks work in the same way, with sites like Twitter and Facebook being more useful the more users join.
The expression "network effect" is applied most commonly to positive network externalities as in the case of the telephone. Negative network externalities can also occur, where more users make a product less valuable, but are more commonly referred to as "congestion" (as in traffic congestion or network congestion).
Over time, positive network effects can create a bandwagon effect as the network becomes more valuable and more people join, in a positive feedback loop.
Source: Wikipedia
Personal Branding
There’s an old axiom in sales, “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” But in today’s market, knowing someone is rarely enough to make the sale. So the axiom has shifted to be, “it’s not who you know, it’s who knows you!”
So, to be known by your customers is a key driver of success. This familiarity is best achieved through personal branding. Personal branding is a #gamechanger in our business climate since customers buy the salesperson first, and then the p/s (product or service). So what is personal branding?
Personal branding = process of how we market ourselves to others. Dan Schwabel who spearheads a PB blog says that your self-impression = how people perceive you. This is what PB can do for you:
- Create demand for your p/s indirectly (remember pull marketing from last week.. bingo)
- Establish yourself as an expert in your field
- Be seen and known as a though leader
- Separate yourself from the nameless masses through innovation
All sound good? Good. So how do we build / develop / promote our PB?
- Do everything with a creative flair. Memorability is a vital link to building brand awareness.
- Be willing to give of yourself first. Do this by becoming a resource. To be a resource you must be an expert, so study up (Malcolm Gladwell 10,000 hour rule!).
- Basics: develop an online presence, create consistency, Google alerts, blog, join associations.
There was a sales person one time who routinely called on a co-worker of mine, and on their first conversation he asked for my co-worker’s shoe size. Weird, right? Then he said something to the extent of “I’m always going to remember you wear a size 11 shoe.” So the salesperson inputted that size 11 into his CRM database, and each time he calls he mentions the size 11 feet. Now he’s forever known as the “shoe guy.”
Now, is my co-worker every going to buy? Depends on a lot of factors. But, is he ever going to forget who this guy is? Not a chance.
Take some time to develop and promote your brand! You can figure out something better than remembering a prospect’s shoe size, right?
Source: Will May
So, to be known by your customers is a key driver of success. This familiarity is best achieved through personal branding. Personal branding is a #gamechanger in our business climate since customers buy the salesperson first, and then the p/s (product or service). So what is personal branding?
Personal branding = process of how we market ourselves to others. Dan Schwabel who spearheads a PB blog says that your self-impression = how people perceive you. This is what PB can do for you:
- Create demand for your p/s indirectly (remember pull marketing from last week.. bingo)
- Establish yourself as an expert in your field
- Be seen and known as a though leader
- Separate yourself from the nameless masses through innovation
All sound good? Good. So how do we build / develop / promote our PB?
- Do everything with a creative flair. Memorability is a vital link to building brand awareness.
- Be willing to give of yourself first. Do this by becoming a resource. To be a resource you must be an expert, so study up (Malcolm Gladwell 10,000 hour rule!).
- Basics: develop an online presence, create consistency, Google alerts, blog, join associations.
There was a sales person one time who routinely called on a co-worker of mine, and on their first conversation he asked for my co-worker’s shoe size. Weird, right? Then he said something to the extent of “I’m always going to remember you wear a size 11 shoe.” So the salesperson inputted that size 11 into his CRM database, and each time he calls he mentions the size 11 feet. Now he’s forever known as the “shoe guy.”
Now, is my co-worker every going to buy? Depends on a lot of factors. But, is he ever going to forget who this guy is? Not a chance.
Take some time to develop and promote your brand! You can figure out something better than remembering a prospect’s shoe size, right?
Source: Will May
Strenths
Tom Rath, author of Strengths Finder 2.0 and creator of that test we took, has an interesting take on strengths and weaknesses. He starts off the book with a great quote: “At its fundamentally flawed core, the aim of almost any learning program is to help us become who we are not.”
Isn’t that an interesting concept? If you think about it, the things we consistently do (school, athletic practice, etc.) are rarely to maximize our strengths but rather minimize our weaknesses. So here’s the million dollar takeaway from Stregnths Finder 2.0 – routinely look for ways to accentuate your strengths. Besides, if you strive to manage what you’re weak at, all you will achieve is mediocrity.
As we approach our professional lives, look for ways to sharpen your strengths even more so to potentially move into that “outlier” category that Gladwell talks about by making the most productive use of your time.
If you’re looking for a list of the strengths, take a look at this article: http://rap.ucar.edu/~dumont/talent/strengths.pdf
Source: Will May
Isn’t that an interesting concept? If you think about it, the things we consistently do (school, athletic practice, etc.) are rarely to maximize our strengths but rather minimize our weaknesses. So here’s the million dollar takeaway from Stregnths Finder 2.0 – routinely look for ways to accentuate your strengths. Besides, if you strive to manage what you’re weak at, all you will achieve is mediocrity.
As we approach our professional lives, look for ways to sharpen your strengths even more so to potentially move into that “outlier” category that Gladwell talks about by making the most productive use of your time.
If you’re looking for a list of the strengths, take a look at this article: http://rap.ucar.edu/~dumont/talent/strengths.pdf
Source: Will May
Selective Demand vs. Primary Demand
When it comes to making a sale, which do you think is more important? Educating a prospect on the realized benefits if they choose your product / service, OR sizing up your offering against the competition available in the market? The truth is they both are critical and represent a subtle shift in the type of demand you are hoping to generate.
Let’s examine the first – primary demand. You want to target primary demand when the potential client is thinking about trying your product / service for the first time. In a true primary demand case, none of your competitors are your direct competition. The difficulty lies in getting the customer to change the way they are currently doing things. So, the key is to educate the buyer on the idea you’re selling.
Let’s examine the first – primary demand. You want to target primary demand when the potential client is thinking about trying your product / service for the first time. In a true primary demand case, none of your competitors are your direct competition. The difficulty lies in getting the customer to change the way they are currently doing things. So, the key is to educate the buyer on the idea you’re selling.
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