The Job Nobody Dreams Of

Part Time Sales

I saw a news release yesterday about the Chairman of Pre-Paid Legal Services going on tour to promote the opportunity his company offers individuals - http://tinyurl.com/b5wv2j

I have never sold Pre-Paid Legal Services but I am a customer. I don't have an opinion about Network Marketing in general but the angle PPL is taking in these tough economic times is smart and is reminiscent of a post I did back in July - http://tinyurl.com/askz9f - where I talked about creating your own job out of thin air.

The idea of creating your own job also applies to part-time work. Pre-Paid Legal Services could be an option, but so is any other company. Normally firms would probably not entertain bringing on part-time sales help, but as we've seen the past few months...these are not normal times. Companies are slashing expenses (including payroll) but the ONLY way to truly save a company is to increase sales.

This is the time that someone can truly shine and make a difference. It doesn't matter if you're currently employed or out of a job. If you could help some company increase their sales...management wants to hear from you!

I will tell you right now that 99% of the opportunities out there will be straight commission. That's OK. If you are able to develop business for a firm from scratch, the rewards (commission) will be far better than any salary. If you are concerned about your future, you can find 5 - 20 hours a week to devote to your part-time sales job. I love "Lost" and "24" but if I had to...there's 2 hours a week I could free up.

Follow the strategy I talk about in my book- http://www.thejobnobodydreamsof.com/downloadebook.htm - to help you decide what company to apply to and how you will land the job. The same "come to Jesus" speech you would use to land a full-time job will work just as well for a part-tiime gig.

Don't forget that "selling" isn't necessarily about talking face-to-face with people. One of the first things I would do if I joined a company (full or part-time) is get a list of all previous customers for the past few years and contact them about how I can help. It might be as simple as shooting off an email (most companies have been collecting customer email addresses for years now). Do you think you could do that for a couple hours a day in return for a possible reward of several hundred dollars (or more!) a month? It's even possible you wouldn't have to follow up with the people who responded. The leads you generate could get turned over to another salesperson and you split the commission.

Another part-time sales opportunity is to team up with someone else and help market their services to the people you know. A perfect example is what I did when I teamed up with a local speaker. Shari Alexander and I designed a program targeted at my industry (IT). Since Shari was already an authority on presentation skills,  all she had to do was alter some of the things she had already done to make them relevant to the IT world. Think about the industry you work in or did work in. You have contacts, how could you act as a "broker" to help someone else sell their product or service to those contacts?

The only way to guarantee your future is to take control of it. Hoping you don't get laid off or find a new job isn't a strategy. If you are passionate about a product or service then you probably can help sell it and if you can help sell it...you'll get rewarded. Let me know if I can help.

Happy Selling!

 

So Much For the MBAs

Ever since my radio days I have not been a big fan of "consultants." A radio consultant was just a former Program Director who hadn't found a job. A lot of sales "consultants" are former salespeople who didn't make it. Obviously there are exceptions, but I always remember the quote someone said years ago, "A consultant is someone who will take your watch and tell you what time it is."

Which leads me to the recent demise of Circuit City. Circuit City was a fine electronics retailer whose fate was sealed in 2007 (long before any recession started) when the high priced MBA consultants persuaded management to whack their best sales people - http://2cents.dailyreckoning.com/viewtopic.php?t=42659

With no knowledgeable salespeople to create value for their products, Circuit City had to resort to price and the folks from Bentonville, Arkansas win that game every time. That decision has to rank up there with "New Coke" as one of the bone head business decisions of all time!

Comedian Brian Reagan has a funny bit on selling refrigerators - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rmun8GK6o2c - he's making fun of salespeople but he also is making a case why Circuit City failed because of salespeople who were ineffective.

This was a no brainer! If you cut all the salespeople (or whack just the good ones) the revenue plummets and the company will fail. One of the principles of "The Job Nobody Dreams Of" is that salespeople don't get laid off. When I go into greater detail to explain this principle I admit that there are times that an underperforming salesperson could lose their job when things get tight but only because they aren't producing...Circuit City did the opposite! They fired the good salespeople and kept the bad ones!

The "consultants" looked like geniuses because they lowered employee costs (sales commissions). Here is the secret the MBAs evidently didn't know...for every dollar they paid a salesperson in commission...the company made 6 to 10 dollars (figuring a 15% to 10% commission structure in my example). Maybe they saved ten million in commissions but it cost them sixty million in sales. Nice job Masters of the Universe. Stick to what you know...Wall Street...wait...never mind!

Happy Selling!

Toastmasters

Even if you never intend to get into management you should take a look at public speaking training. The confidence you gain from learning speaking skills goes way beyond “giving a speech.” It will help you deliver a presentation to your co-workers or lead a meeting, become a better manager and help promote yourself and your company!

When I have an important presentation I will practice at my club meeting and get feedback from multiple people. It's a great place to make mistakes and fine-tune my delivery.

The best place to start is to find a local Toastmasters Club: http://www.toastmasters.org - There are clubs that meet early in the morning, over the noon hour, after work and in the evening.

Your improved presentation skills will win you the respect and admiration of your colleagues and employees - and make them wonder what you did to change! Leadership skills acquired through participation in Toastmasters will increase your management potential.

As a Toastmaster you will acquire an increased ability to motivate and persuade, making you more effective as a supervisor, manager or salesperson. You can visit several clubs as a guest as often as you want until you decide which club to join.

If you want to go beyond Toastmasters you can create a couple of speeches that you can give in the business community…usually on a fee basis. Not only will you be networking and building your name recognition within the community and/or your industry…you could make a few bucks on the side as well! If this route sounds like it is a trek you want to take then go get Dottie Walters awesome book titled “Speak and Grow Rich” - http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0134904001/qid=1026071345/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_1/102-3534531-8602565 - it is the bible for paid public speakers.

Regardless of what job you have or career you hope for, joining Toastmasters is one of the smartest things you can do.

Happy Selling!

 

Adult Merit Badges

My friend's son is working on becoming an Eagle Scout, which requires a boy to get 21 merit badges from a list of 121. The categories include Personal Development, Sports, Professions, Business and Industry (including Salesmanship) and many others.

This got me thinking…as in so many aspects of adult life we often times stop learning when we leave school and youth organizations like Boy Scouts (or 4-H or others).

Why NOT have adult Merit Badges? When we grow up; get married; start a family our “to do” list becomes full of “have to dos” instead of “want to dos.”  Is that old list of dreams pretty dusty? Things you thought you’d do when you grew up or got settled (does THAT ever happen!?); things that might appear every January when you put together your New Year’s resolutions and then you look up from your bills or laundry and think, “One of these days…” Make a decision that TODAY is the day!

Make a “badge buddy.” Tell someone what you are going to do, and/or make a date to do it together - most people are less likely to stand up another person  than we are to stand up ourselves (which is why personal trainers do so well.

Make a list of what you want to do over the next couple of years (learn to paint, take a photography class or maybe learn to scuba dive). Need help remembering? Here is the official Boy Scout list of merit badges - http://www.usscouts.org/meritbadges.asp

If we don't take the time to make our wishes come true they might never happen. Take time for yourself and fullfil your inner renaissance man (or woman). You'll feel better about yourself, which can only work wonders for your career and personal life.

Happy Selling!