Everybody is talking! It seems like that phrase has been
around for some time. It is so true, more so today than
ever before. Everybody is indeed talking. Our society and
technology have made it easy, effective and inexpensive. We
talk on the land phone, cell phone, conference call, voice
mail, email, letters, notes, signs, radio, television, the
web, direct mail, blogs and seemingly countless other
means. We talk directly, indirectly and covertly, behind
someone's back. Our communication is both positive and
negative, and operates at a wide variety of volume levels
from the sublime to the skywriter. It seems that everyone
has something to say.
Salespeople, marketers and companies are listening too! We
are all paying attention. In a day where the viral action
of a mere blog post can reach more people than almost any
other form of media, we are more aware than ever that there
is real conversation going on at every level imaginable.
Consider the RSS phenomenon. I have RSS feeds keeping me
abreast of new developments and conversations in virtually
every area of my interests. I have even combined some of
these feeds from a variety of sources within a single
industry for my viewing and listening pleasure. That is
correct, we are no longer limited to simply the written
word, but may enjoy video and audio from an almost
unlimited number of sources, custom delivered right to our
desktop!
So why are we discussing this here? We are in the Age of
Conversation. Consider how fast information is now becoming
available. A mere century ago, we relied on newspapers,
telegraph, cryptic radio and telephone and the mail to
spread the word. As a result, change was slower to occur.
Speed up the rate of communications and you increase the
rate of change. Today, information that may alter the face
of an industry is available instantaneously; at least for
those who are paying attention.
These conversations are becoming critical to both our sales
focus and marketing efforts. Today, marketers can survey an
entire market segment by monitoring applicable blogs and
pod-casts in their industries. Companies that are paying
attention can adapt and tailor their marketing, sales
strategies and tactics on the fly. They can be flexible,
quick to either cut their losses or to change course and
immediately pursue an alternate opportunity.
The savvy salesperson is positioned to be a foot-soldier
and a ground-level conversationalist. Having an "ear to the
ground" or "nose to the grindstone" so-to-say enables us to
respond to market changes more rapidly. Product, market and
application information as well as troubleshooting
assistance has become almost immediately available,
enabling a sales call to be a completely beneficial
experience for both salesperson and customer. This daily
conversation then, becomes part of the growing community of
conversationalists where everyone has the opportunity to
make both deposits and withdrawals. Your participation in
your industry conversations may become your most effective
sales strategy.
Every entrepreneur, marketer and salesperson needs to be
participating in the numerous conversations found on
countless blogs everywhere. Communicate. Share your
expertise and get to know your community. Opportunity
abounds, but you have to be prepared, know where to look
and always be ready to act.
----------------------------------------------------
Daniel Sitter, author of both Learning For Profit, and
Superior Selling Skills Mastery, has garnered extensive
experience in sales, training, marketing and personal
development spanning a successful 25 year career.
Experience his blog at http://www.idea-sellers.com
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