I’m being interviewed on The Laura Dion-Jones Show on WRMN-1410AM, today between 4 and 5 PM. You can listen live on the Web at http://bit.ly/bIcYec.
The call-in line is 847-931-1410.
Radio interviews are always interesting. As a long-time professional speaker and entertainer, it’s an adjustment to not have the benefit of audience reaction.
Hope you get to listen for at least a few minutes!
Jeffrey Gitomer
Sales are the lifeblood of every organization, right?
Even non-profit businesses and Rotary clubs must generate revenue in order to survive.
And yet, it seems to be getting harder and harder to sell. The government instituted a “Do Not Call” list in 2008. Savvy prospects are often one step ahead of the salesperson. Sales expert Jeffrey Gitomer is right when he says, “People don’t like to be sold to.”
Lisa Mininni
That’s why I got involved with referral marketing a while back. This is positively the easiest way to generate new business because you get your strongest advocates to help you sell.
They’ll gladly do this because you will provide valuable referrals for them.
Anyway, ION Strategic Partners is hosting an event called This Is Your Time–Referrals, Revenue & Reward! I’m honored that they’ve asked me to speak.
Tim Green
They’ve also asked two of the best speakers in Michigan, Tim Green and Lisa Mininni, to share their great strategies for growing your business.
This referral selling concept is quite a bit more involved than just exchanging business cards.
But I promise that Tim, Lisa, and I will make sure you don’t leave our program without a brand new, effective skill set–a proven referral marketing system to get more customers.
Just look at what we have planed for you:
- Teach your best customers and vendors to bring you customers
- Hear from three world-class speakers for the price of one
- Learn a four-step system to kick your referral marketing into overdrive
- Discover the VCP Process™ & how it create referrals from thin air
- Get out of your own way when closing a sale
- 4 key ways to achieve a 98% conversion rate
- Keep your customer pipeline filled even during slow times
- Create massive exposure for your business
- Never worry about cash flow or operating income again
- Receive more qualified referrals
- Get cool ideas for leveraging your online and offline networks
- Work a room as if you own it
- ION’s proven method for regional networking
Seating is limited, so register today. Bring/send your entire sales team. If you don’t have a sales team, send your leadership team. Anyone can do referral marketing, if they have the right training. We’ll show you how to make every employee at your company a revenue center!
Details for This Is Your Time–Referrals, Revenue & Reward!
When: Friday, May 6, 2011, 8am – 5pm (nice lunch included!)
Where: MSU Management Ed. Center, 811 W. Square Lake Rd. in Troy
Investment: Only $299* per person; group discounts available
ION members are admitted free. *Use promotion code 100 and get $100 off your tuition–another reward for reading my blog once in a while. 
Register and get more info at http://bit.ly/ThisIsYourTime or call (313)530-8117 with questions.
You will be completely happy with this program or we will make things right with you.
Simply put, this one-day conference is a game changer and I’m excited for you! See you May 6!
Sincerely,
Michael Angelo Caruso, Communication Consultant, Sales trainer 248-224-9667
P.S. Bring lots of business cards to this event. We’re going to help you benefit from these new referral techniques in real time!
www.MichaelAngeloCaruso.com 432S. Washington, #1105 Royal Oak, MI 48067
/Sales training /Leadership Development /Personal Development /Team Building
I generate a ton of content!
You may know that I produce a bi-monthly newsletter, post three blogs a week, and maintain multiple accounts on Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter.
I also conduct monthly teleseminars, post tons of video on my YouTube and Vimeo channels and have created over 75 information products.
People often ask me how I get it all done. Sometimes I wonder, too!
My favorite magic trick
One of my “tricks” involves repurposing content. It’s a useful technique for anyone who works as a leader or supervisor, salesperson, customer service rep or whatever.
When you repurpose your great content, your information becomes accessible to more people in more convenient ways. When your relevant content shows up in multiple places, YOU become more familiar, and people start thinking of you as an industry expert. Pretty cool!
Do you ever give presentations? Here are three easy ways to make your talk available in different modalities:
1) Record your live presentation with a digital recorder like those sold at Radio Shack. Then, import the sound file to a free audio editing program such as “Audacity” and burn audio CDs to giveaway or sell.
2) Record a three-minute highlight of your speech with a Flip video camera and post the clip on YouTube. Be sure to display your Web site on the “bottom third” of the screen to drive traffic to your Web site.
3) Publish an e-book version of your speech. Use voice recognition software to create a transcript or keystroke the speech into a Word doc (if you use a PC) and convert the document into a .pdf.
Oh, and congratulations! When you do #3, you’ll officially be a published author!
Churn out your own info products
For dozens of more tips on this subject and to generate a passive revenue stream for yourself, listen to my 60-minute audio CD, How to Create Info Products. It comes with a 30-page e-book, too!
Thanks for your interest in self-improvement. Now go repurpose some of your great content!
-Michael Angelo Caruso, Royal Oak, Michigan
Most people think of ROI as “return-on-investment,” but thanks to my friend Jerry Van Rossum, I now think of ROI as “return-on-involvement.”
In other words, you get what you give.
This is true for many things in life including love, service clubs such as Rotary and the Optimists, and Facebook activity, too.
Even traditional relationships such as friendships and marriages blossom with a return-on-involvement arrangement.
Loads of research suggests that the best parents make sure to spend quality time with their children. They know the importance of not being “absent” guardians.
Good salespeople are aware that it’s critical to be involved with the customers concerns and issues rather than make a habit of “drive-by” visits.
A story explains it best
There’s an old chestnut about a window salesman who had finally been asked to leave his low-rent territory to call on the owner of the biggest mansion in town.
The salesman was practically giddy as he pulled into the mansion’s circular drive. This was going to be the biggest sale of his career! Why the commission from this sale would be more money than he made the entire first half of the year!
The seller was so focused on his return-on-investment–how much he would be compensated for the time he spent selling his services, that he forgot to focus on return-on-involvement–that if he simply engaged the prospect and gave him the right kind of attention, things would work out for both parties.
It’s okay to pursue an ROI, as long as you don’t forget to be involved.
It’s happened again.
I made time for community involvement a while back and it’s turned into something big. Isn’t that how good deeds are supposed to work?
Way back in November, I dedicated a weekend to teaching about 100 area high school students leadership skills. It was a tough gig, by most standards. Over 13 hours of class time, not including prep.
The event was sponsored by Rotary District 6400 in southeastern, Michigan. They hold this Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) weekend every year and its director, Dr. Jim Karolyi, does a fantastic job putting it together.
Speaking to 100 young people is not exactly my specialty, but I tried to have fun with it. Well, something just happened that showed me the gig was well worth the effort.
Ron Warren, one of the young people attending the event, was given an award by the Rotary Club of Lincoln Park, Michigan and I just read got to read about it. The News-Herald, the local newspaper, interviewed Ron and I’ll be darned if the young man didn’t mention my name. A lot.
Read the interview for yourself and see if it doesn’t make you smile.
I’m grateful for the shoutout, Ron. Reading about your award reminds me of how impressed I was with the quality of students at RYLA 2010. Thanks for helping make community involvement so rewarding, Mr. Warren.
So, it’s official; I’m a hero!
And it’s addicting. Dr. Karolyi has asked me to speak again at his 2011 event.
Most people haven’t figured out blogging, yet. That’s because blogging, that is writing, is a discipline like playing the trumpet or flying an airplane. Or juggling. It takes time and effort to make it worthwhile. It also helps to be motivated, which usually happens when one is a little knowledgeable about the discipline.
Here are 5 reasons to blog, even if nobody reads it, followed by a chance for you to learn more from a soccer mom I interviewed who now gets paid to blog for other people.
1. Search perks. Internet search engines love fresh content. Since blogs, especially WordPress blogs, are easily updated your company is more likely to be found even if you create a blog post once per week. Blogs are the new Web sites.
2. Perpetual value. Time and again, I am contacted by people who tell me they read an old blog post and liked what I had to say. Some of these folks turn into customers. Your blog content keeps working for you year after year!
3. Drip marketing. Periodic blog posts are a great way to keep in touch. People will never forget about you because they are always being reminded. Rig your social media sites to automatically post blog articles.
4. Virtual salesperson. SAP advertises training services in a sidebar on its blog. Wegmans grocery store blogs about recipes that use their food products.
5. Massive public relations reach. If your blog is consistently good, you may get picked up by an aggregation service. When this happens, your lil’ ol’ blog could be read by hundreds of thousands of people!
________
Soccer mom and paid blogger, Paula Parisot
A while back, I interviewed Paula Parisot, a soccer mom who now gets paid for blogging. A non-techie by her own admission, Paula talks about how she does it and shares valuable tips on how you can get started doing the same. That is, unless you can’t use the money. Learn more Blogging for Profit by listening to this fun CD.
It was fun interviewing Paula. She takes a “real-world” approach to things and I think you’ll like her!
-Michael Angelo Caruso
Royal Oak, Michigan
Speaking is a lot like driving. We all think we’re good drivers, but there are a lot of dented cars on the road!
Here are 5 Cool Ideas for sharpening your next presentation, followed by a link to order my Present Like a Pro DVD:
1. It’s better to make mistakes when you’re alone.
I teach managers and salespeople how to be more effective. The fastest improvement occurs when clients adopt my motto: It’s better to screw up when you’re alone.
2. Practice the beginning of your talk more than any other part.
Your nervous system is most likely to be under siege at the beginning of your presentation. Practice the first part of your talk more than the middle or the end.
3. Call your own voice mail to record sections of your presentation.
Use this “poor man’s” recording technique to listen to yourself and make improvements.
4. PowerPoint often hurts more than it helps.
Stories are far more effective than bullet points because people tend to make buying decisions using the “emotional side” of the brain. Use stories to inspire, motivate, and get the audience involved. Develop a strong “signature story” and work it, baby.
5. Be specific with your time-sensitive call to action.
All good presentations end with a clear call to action. Don’t say “Please take this form back to your office and send it to me when you have time,” when you can say, “Please fill out this form before you leave the room. I’ll be at the door to collect it from you.”
Order the Present Like a Pro DVD now! It will be especially helpful to your leadership and sales team!
Place your order within 48 hours and I’ll immediately e-mail you a fantastic 30-page, companion e-book at no extra charge. Watch for it and download it quickly.
As with all my products and services, you’ll get much more than you pay for.
Speaking about speaking,
Michael Angelo Caruso, Keynote Speaker T 248-224-9667
P.S. You must order Present Like a Pro within 48 hours to receive the bonus 30-page e-book.
P.P.S. You’re welcome to publish these 5 Cool Ideas in your corporate newsletter, on your Web site and blog. Just send a quick message to Reprint@EdisonHouse.com.
The Fifth, 432 S. Washington, #1105 Royal Oak, MI 48067
The ability to make effective, persuasive presentations is almost an art form.
I often compare the art of presenting to a golf swing. Both activities have a lot going on–and a lot that can go wrong.
Here are a few speaking tips to take your speaking to another level:
1. Personally greet people before you begin speaking. You’ll be much more effective if you build rapport with individual audience members in advance of your talk. This is also a great way to settle your nerves, if you find yourself anxious prior to speaking.
2. Speak to the four different personality styles in your audience. Thinkers like to hear statistics, so give them facts and figures. Directors like you to get to the bottom line; be succinct for them. Relaters want you to identify with them, so tell stories. Socializers want to have fun and laugh, so don’t take yourself too seriously.
3. End the speech using the same words and phrases you used at the beginning of your talk. This technique is called “bookending” and it’s the hallmark of a professional speaker. Bookending helps you finish your talk with style and flair.
Thanks for your interest in self-improvement! If you’d like to become a better presenter, it’s better to watch video than read a book on the subject. Reading a book about speaking is like listening to the radio to learn how to dance.
That’s why I produced a DVD titled, Present Like a Pro, a 45-minute video that tells–and more importantly shows–my best speaking tips. As always, you’ll get much more than you pay for with my products. A 100% unconditional refund if you’re unhappy with this product for any reason.
Behavioral psychologists say it takes about 21 days to make–or break–a habit.
So, if you’ve made a New Year’s Resolution and are already slipping, there’s still time to turn things around.
One of the easiest things you can do to achieve a goal is to write it down. The very act of putting pen to paper helps clarify whatever you’re thinking about. When you write down your goal, you create a living document that can be posted or revisited. Reviewing the document provides serious emotional reinforcement.
Many smart people in history have become known for writing things down.
Once, there was a guy named Tim Matlock. He was an architect who served on a committee to improve government.
Known to be a good writer with excellent penmanship, Tim was asked to create an official handwritten version of a very important document. As clerk to the Secretary of the Continental Congress, Tim Matlock–Timothy Matlock–was chosen to inscribe the Declaration of Independence, perhaps one of the greatest goals ever put to paper.
Matlock’s work is now on display in the National Archives.
Writing down your goals is a very good idea!
-Michael Angelo Caruso, Communication That Means Business, www.MichaelAngeloCaruso.com
