Date archives "August 2010"

The Fountainhead

I was reading a blog post of a web designer whose work I admire,  she has quoted a snippet from an incredible book, The Fountainhead.

“Throughout the centuries there were men who took first steps down new roads armed with nothing but their own vision. their goals differed, but they all had this in common: that the step was first, the road new, the vision unborrowed, and the response they received- hatred. the great creators- the thinkers, the artists, the scientists, the inventors- stood alone against the men of their time. every great new thought was opposed. every great new invention was denounced. the first motor was considered foolish. the airplane was considered impossible. the power loom was considered vicious. anesthesia was considered sinful. but the men of unborrowed vision went ahead. they fought, they suffered and they paid. but they won.” – Howard Roark / Ayn Rand

This passage is one I can relate to on multiple levels. Being an entrepreneur we battle on a daily basis, with our own inner doubts and doubts others have regarding what we are doing, we do however still carry on, as we must, on a path which seems to shift direction almost every week. We reach a point where going back is no longer an option and the only way to move, is forward.

The last line of the passage has the most relevance in my opinion. The ability to persevere, stay true to one’s own beliefs and visions is what separates the individuals who succeed from those who do not.

3 Critical Business Mistakes

Every small business owner has visions about closing that one large referral client, who will help take their business to the next level. Large referral clients can accelerate the growth of your business, one does however need to realize, at what cost.

Far too often many business owners abandon their sales funnels when doing their best to close the big account. This is the first mistake:

1. Never abandon your sales lead generation processes altogether. You could reduce the time that is put into them substantially, but do not neglect them for an extended period of time. This breaks the momentum which is critical in moving your business along.

Pursuing a large client requires continuous engagement. When you have identified a certain need in the organization that you can fill, but the circumstances are presently not right to close the deal, do not give up. This is often the second mistake that is made:

2. Closing large accounts takes continuous effort, engagement and a lot of perseverance. Even if you get a flat out ”no” the first time around, do your best to remain connected in one way or other with the prospects. Ask the prospect to signup for your newsletter, monitor keywords to watch for activity in their space or perhaps send them a link or ebook that they might find helpful.

If you do not end up closing the sale, it is not the end of the world. Many business owners lose steam around this time and the business heads into a downward spiral. This is the last and most serious mistake that is made by small business owners.

3.It is most important at this point in time to do a recap of all the objections that were made, the materials or presentations that were sent over, also analyze any other factors that may have contributed to not winning the deal. Make the necessary adjustments, ask for feedback from mentors or even the client. Each “no” should make you stronger and push you that much further along the path to close the next big deal that comes your way.

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