Selling is All About Relationships

Selling is All About Relationships
Selling is about interacting with people, other human
beings. It is about connecting at a number of levels.
Selling is all about relationships. It demands honesty and
integrity and a perception of caring.

You do not necessarily need to be technically proficient to
be a success in selling. Although computers, projectors,
Powerpoint presentations, videos, spreadsheets, email
campaigns, automated mail programs, CRM, Blackberry's,
flash drives and other technical marvels can certainly aid
us in spreading our sales and marketing message, allowing
us to reach out to more people faster than ever before, our
success is not at all dependent upon the technology we
employ. The technology is simply an aid, a tool, a
resource. It is simply a means to an end. You are actually
the message.

Mike Sansone recently wrote concerning this topic on his
Converstations blog. He created a wonderful C.I.R.C.L.E.
acronym as a reminder to us that success in life is truly a
matter of developing and maintaining relationships with
others. Through these relationships, our circle, we honesty
try to benefit others and be a resource for them. In this
manner, the biblical laws of reciprocity take over and we
benefit as well. Consider Mike's thoughts as applied to
sales. Successful selling is all about:

Connections we make

Influences we earn

Relationships we build

Conversations we conduct

Leveraging newfound knowledge

Engaging in new projects, collaborations...friendships. And
then, we make new connections...

People tend to get hung up on technology, or at least allow
it to get in their way. All too often it becomes either a
crutch of dependence or an excuse for poor performance. In
reality, technology is a tool. It allows us to be more
efficient and streamlined in our work, able to respond
faster and communicate with more people.

Our technology tools are helpful and necessary assets,
never intended to replace the presentation or the message.
Consider the scenario of a sales presentation to a room
full of engineers where your projector bulb burns out,
prohibiting your wonderful slide show that took you hours
to prepare. Is your attitude in check? How are your nerves?
Could you still deliver the goods, capturing the attention
of your audience despite this setback? Will they even
notice? It is up to you.

It's relationships that ultimately matter. Those
relationships start with honest communication and direct
eye contact. They endure trials because you always have the
other person's best interests in mind. In the end, that's
what will further our prosperity, bringing ultimate
satisfaction and allowing us to reach our stated goals. The
relationships will remain when the hectic nature of the day
has passed.

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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

From Pizza Guy to Professional: Three Resume Tips for New College Grads

From Pizza Guy to Professional: Three Resume Tips for New College Grads
As a career coach, I'm often asked by new college grads how
to write a compelling resume when they have little or no
professional experience. How can you demonstrate the
ability to perform in a professional capacity, such as
accounting, marketing or engineering, with a resume that
includes positions like pizza delivery guy, car wash
attendant, or quick-stop market cashier?

If you find yourself in the same dilemma, don't despair!
Here are three tips to write a new college grad resume that
will capture the attention of employers and win you
interviews.

1. Highlight Your Potential

One of the top reasons employers hire recent graduates is
the opportunity to mold new hires to their own corporate
culture and work philosophy. This hiring strategy
motivates employers to look more for potential than for
specific experience-a secret that not many graduates
realize.

No matter what jobs you have held, there are sure to be
things you have done that show your potential. You will
attract more employer attention if you pack your resume
full of those examples. For instance:

* How you solved problems on the job

* How you went beyond the call of duty to satisfy a customer

* When you thought of a new way to do something faster

* How you were able to help your supervisor or coworkers
meet an important goal

In a work world full of mediocre plodders, drive and
ambition is hard to find. Smart companies value candidates
with the potential to solve their future corporate
challenges.

2. Demonstrate Your Work Ethic

Employers are interested in finding new talent with strong
work ethic. One way to illustrate this is by showing how
you juggled school life and real life. Indicate with each
employment entry how many college credits you handled while
employed full or part-time. A student who has had to work
during college has learned to manage time wisely, set
priorities and make the best use of limited resources.
These are qualities that every employer values.

In addition, you might want to include any internship
experience you have. While the experience might not have
been a paid position, it can still showcase your ability to
work in a professional capacity. And semester-long school
projects can also be a good opportunity to demonstrate your
ability to perform, working well with a group and creating
a finished product.

3. Showcase Your Leadership Skills

Employers are always looking for future leaders. You can
illustrate this with extracurricular and volunteer
activities you participated in during college. List
positions of leadership as well as committees you helped
chair. Don't forget to include how you benefited those
organizations. For instance, how you:

* Helped organize a fund or membership drive

* Planned an annual event that drew X% more than the
previous year

* Recruited entertainment to promote an on-campus event

* Led a campaign that resulted in a change of campus policy

Coursework also offers opportunity to demonstrate
leadership, as well as team-building ability. Be sure to
include examples like:

* When you led a team of classmates in a research project
that resulted in publication

* How you created a class presentation that led to greater
insight into a complex subject

The time and effort you spend incorporating these three
tips into your resume will lead to better job opportunities
right from the start. Don't be like many who spend their
first few years out of college fumbling from one dead-end
job to another. Start your job search off right with a
resume that illustrates your potential, work ethic, and
leadership, and soon you'll be on the path to a rewarding
professional career.

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Deborah Walker, CCMC is a career coach who works with
recent college graduates preparing them to compete in the
toughest job markets. Her clients gain top performing
skills in resume writing, interview preparation and salary
negotiation. Learn more about Deborah Walker, career coach
at:
http://www.AlphaAdvantage.com