Here is a question I’ve received more than a hundred times in one form or another: How do I make a (better) name for myself?
Here is the premise, the definition and the answer: In sales, it’s not who you know; it’s who knows you.
The challenge is not just making a name for yourself or building your brand; it’s building the components that generate that name. How do you achieve more recognition, notoriety and a better reputation in your market and your community? Those are the elements that lead to a better name.
And to be clear, I’m talking about a better name for both the company and individual.
There are no easy answers. And there are very few answers that don’t require commitment, planning and work – hard work.
The good news: Most salespeople are not willing to do the hard work it takes to make selling easy. So if you’re willing, you automatically move to the top 10 percent. And if you execute, you’re in the top 5 percent.
So, how do you tell the whiners from the winners? The whiners are complaining about everything, and they’re worried about “losing their job.” The winners are planning to win, believing they’ll win and taking action. Which are you?
Here’s the better news: When the economy is sluggish, it’s the easiest time for you to make a change and begin to execute new ideas.
There are the things you must begin to put in place now. Below are the actions that lead to long-term name building that must be implemented and built on. None of these elements is a “do now and forget about,” rather they are “do now, do tomorrow and do forever.”
• Blog. It’s your way to communicate your thoughts and ideas to the world. Take a look at other blogs to see what works. Blog to show your human side. Make your blog a family affair, not just your business side. Show your person, your personality, your passion and your fun. Mother Google will find you and reward you with listings.
• Create your own weekly e-zine that features valuable information and highlights your customers. Look at other weekly email magazines as examples.
• Register www.(yourname).com today. It’s only $10. If it’s taken, put “The Great” or “the one and only” in front of it. Get your Web address, your URL, registered today. The world is on the Web. The Internet is never going away. It’s the growth and the future of commerce. Be on it or be gone.
• Invest in a small but powerful website that looks like something people would read, admire, tell others about and maybe even buy from. Start with a one-page site that talks about, “how I treat my customers.” Make a list of the 10 most valuable things you are dedicated to. Later you can add more pages, pictures, graphics and pizzazz. But start small, and be compelling.
• Be 1,000 percent more proactive. This means hitting both the phone and the send button. Make 10 calls a day that have value, and send 25 emails that have meaning to the recipient. Build relationships and earn referrals.
• Write something that puts you in front of customers and prospects. Put an article in your trade publication or your chamber magazine. Writing leads to recognition. Writing positions you as an expert and an authority.
• Give a speech or two at civic organizations. Speaking leads to perceived leadership – especially if the speech was good. Afraid of speaking? Take classes.
• YouTube. Post videos of your value proposition, your testimonials and your philosophy of sales and service. Post your videos on YouTube. Your customers and prospects will find them and find you more attractive than your (lazy) competitors.
• Get involved in your community. Pick one charity or one civic organization to get involved with and assert your leadership.
• Get more Google-able. Wake up, Sparky! Your customer is Googling you, just like you are Googling them. Your one-page website, your e-zine, your article, your speech and your community involvement will bring your name and your company’s name to the top of the Google pile.
• Be a value provider, not a beggar, a solicitor or a salesman. People will buy if they perceive your value. And they will spread the word and your name.
Remember to be patient with it. Invest in it. Use it to your best advantage. To really build a name for yourself, it takes time – lots of it. It takes commitment – lots of it. And it takes consistency.
Name and reputation are intertwined. Your value-based information, your exceptional service and your quality of product and person determine your reputation, your name and your fate. Those who become valuable to their customers, their marketplace and their community are the ones who win. If you want to build name recognition and a great reputation, you have to dedicate yourself to the long-term process and the short-term work.
If you want the easy answers, there are none.
Jeffrey Gitomer, author of “The Little Red Book of Selling” and 11 other titles, is president of Charlotte, N.C.-based Buy Gitomer. He gives seminars, runs annual sales meetings and conducts Internet training programs on sales and customer service at Gitomer.com. He can be reached at salesman@gitomer.com.
