http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/RSS.ashxThe Canvas Mag PagesTue, 14 Jul 2009 20:06:59 +0200http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=1http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=1CANVAS supporting the print sales & Marketing professional July 2009 Wine Communication of Print’s role in the new landscape the2009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=2http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=22009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=3http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=3PubLisher mark potter MANAGiNG eDiTOr graham garrison P2 JULY 2009 Publisher’s Thoughts Leading the Way ArT DireCTOr brent cashman eDiTOriAL bOArD lisa arsenault McArdle Printing Co. gary cone Litho Craft, inc. peter douglas Lake County Press aaron grohs Consolidated Graphics, inc. ron lanio Geographics, inc. randy parkes Lithographix, inc. P4 The Wine of Communication Why print will always have a place at the table P10 Social Networking or Social Not Working? P14 A Worthwhile To-Do List Creating a business and life mentality that keeps you on top CANVAs, Volume 1, issue 2. Published bi-monthly, copyright 2009 CANVAs, All rights reserved, 2180 satellite blvd., suite 400, Duluth, Georgia 30097. Please note: The acceptance of advertising or products mentioned by contributing authors does not constitute endorsement by the publisher. Publisher cannot accept responsibility for the correctness of an opinion expressed by contributing authors. CANVAS P12009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=4http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=4CANVAS publisher’s thoughts I Leading the Way i recently called a friend who runs marketing for a big company. before i could ask about his family or golf game, he launched into a frustrated essay about his marketing budget. “The top of the company is telling me to cut to the bone and try to ride this out,” he said. My response was predictable. “Then you guys are done.” because my friend is an incredibly creative and right-brained i went on to tell him that if they decided to retreat, not only will people think they are things and build a brand that people can trust in the most difficult times. he asked me “how do i get them to change?” how indeed. The answer may be that we cannot change the deep rooted, left brain, traditional thinking. On some level, we are not going to be able to fight DNA. in other words, some people and corresponding corporations are simply trapped in a left brain world. Leadership is needed now more than ever. real leadership, not just from folks who can read a P&L or run a meeting. The kind that is inspiring. Leadership where people step up and step out of their comfort zone. The type of leadership like JFK demanding we put a man on the moon. i’m passionate about reinvention. We are entering a new age, and there is work to be done. Not the kind of work where we punch in and punch out. i mean innovation, collaboraperson, he wholeheartedly agreed. going out of business, some little guy like me will just keep plugging along doing the right tion, and trust building. CANVAS readers have a competitive advantage based on the way you think. You are realizing that it is up to you to lead your respective companies into a new day. You understand that it is up to you to lead the charge for print. Finally, you take responsibility for leading your clients down the path of integrated marketing. Our cover article, “The Wine of Communication” is an attempt to demonstrate the fact that print is the most impactful and lasting way to connect with people. however, we did this in our digital magazine to remind you and your clients that print also plays well with other forms of communication. either way, it is imperative that you drive the value of print and how the most important messages are produced with ink on paper. subsequently, you need to express the importance of promotion and communication on any level and you need to sell it all! if your clients are losing their way, then be a leader. seek out those that have been cast off or those that have always been a bit more obscure and help incubate their dreams. small business will be the path to a prosperous future. And the CANVAS reader should be with them every step of the way. be a leader! Mark Potter Publisher P2 CANVAS July 20092009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=5http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=5C.E.O a n v a s d u c a t i o n n l i n e Delivering the tactical competitive advantage you need CANVAS P32009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=6http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=6Wine Communication of A media buyer’s menu used to be basic the A Sponsored by Why print will always have a place at the table — meat and potatoes basic. There was print, TV, and — if you were feeling like a little desert — maybe radio. The options aren’t so simple anymore. The internet portion alone is bursting with PurLs, rurLs, emails, and podcasts. New choices battle traditional outlets, leaving customers dizzy and providers frantically trying to maintain revenue streams. Joe Duncan, senior VP, director of production strategic sourcing for Leo burnett usA, says the way money is allocated to print executions has changed. The problem is, too many companies are going after business the same way. “[T]o be frank, the print industry as a whole is very fragmented, has allowed itself to become commoditized in its core offering and rarely has a direct line of communication to the people who now make decisions about where to spend money,” he says. “Coming out of this recession, the industry will have to be fundamentally changed to compete and prosper in the light of other communication platforms.” P4 CANVAS July 20092009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=7http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=7Part of that change involves a consistent vision of what print is and what it can do for customers. The Print Council and other industry voices are offering a refined message: Don’t fight the menu choices. Work with them, embrace them, use them and show customers that print’s more than just another option. it deserves a spot at the table all on its own, as the “wine of communication.” The following are reasons why. A finer taste Colors. Gloss. The scope of landscape photography, perhaps rolling hills or crystal clear water, mixed with a company’s written message — all within your fingtertips. Print can elicit thoughts and emotions that some mediums can combine, but no other medium can deliver in a single, hand-held offering. Duncan recently attended a sappi educational presentation that brought to the forefront what an advantage print has over other mediums with its variety of textures and colors and overall visual presentation, and how the industry needs to position itself with these resources. Worth the investment (ROI) NAK integrated Marketing President Thad Kubis has been in the business for almost 30 years. in that timeframe, when it comes to issues such as rOi, accountability and tracking, print has had the edge. “Print has always been the leader in rOi no matter how you analyze it,” says Kubis, who helped create the “Why Print” brochure for The Print Council. “When the internet came in, it became even more so, because it became the main way you got people to the internet. if you don’t have a person’s email address, “The printing platform has become extraordinarily efficient and automated … make readies are measured in minutes not hours, waste of substrates is in single figures, not hundreds of sheets or cutoffs.” – Joe Duncan, senior VP, Leo Burnett USA PIM Fast Facts Eight Out of Ten Shoppers Clip Newspaper Coupons Platform-A, in partnership with Information Resources, Inc. (IRI), has released the results of a new study on trends in consumer couponing. Based on input from more than 36,000 IRI panelists gathered in September 2008, the study gauged consumer usage of traditional newspaper coupons and interest in digitally distributed online coupons. The study reports that more than 90 million consumers (78 percent of retail shoppers) currently use newspaper coupons. While the study finds that nearly one out of every four of the newspaper coupon clippers is likely to be at least 65 years old – conversely, more that three out of every four of the newspaper coupon clippers are likely to be younger (18-64). It also revealed that nearly four out of every 10 shoppers – a total of 40 million consumers – would be very likely to use coupons accessed online. The youngest market segments are the most receptive to online coupon offers. then how do you get to them? You have their hard address. Then, when companies started to link direct mail with creating a Web site, the response rates started to go up. That is still valid today.” Consider a small sampling of facts compiled by Print in the Mix research. in a 2008 DMNews/Pitney bowes survey on consumer attitudes and behaviors related to direct mail, 40 percent of consumers surveyed have tried a new business for the first time because of information received via direct mail. A 2008 survey by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) found that print continues to be the favored vehicle to reach multicultural audiences. Forrester research’s concluded in a study of customer resources for local listings that the printed Yellow Pages is still the king. CANVAS P52009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=8http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=8The Wine of Communication “To watch people both in and out of the print industry, touch, smell, rub and examine beautiful creative that was enhanced by different coating and varnish techniques, brought home the point, in my mind, how much the creation and application of printing had evolved, and yet how poorly we as an industry have positioned its strengths, flexibility and unique appeal with the changing needs of marketers and their consumers,” he says. NAK integrated Marketing conducted a survey of a direct mail campaign that was linked to a PurL. The response rates saw spikes in the first few days, then two to three weeks later, and finally, a spike three to four weeks following the second spike. “We found out through the survey that people actually sort out direct mail and will save it and look at it later,” Kubis says. “People are traveling and won’t get to it until after a few weeks. We’re seeing longevity of print in the cycle.” A wide array of samplings Print is flexible. it’s handheld. it can be used in many different facets and produced in different ways, including the timeframe. “The printing platform has become extraordinarily efficient and automated … make readies are measured in minutes not hours, waste of substrates is in single figures, not hundreds of sheets or cutoffs,” says Duncan. “Web to Print, Variable Print, Print on Demand — all are platforms that change the way printed communication is valued and delivered in the context of the total spend.” Better with age emails, phone calls, Web sites, even radio and TV spots … have you ever seen any of those on a coffee table? Print lasts. even direct mail, which has the shortest lifespan of print products, still lasts. PIM Fast Facts Direct Marketing Media: ROI 2003-2013 Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI) represents what $1 invested in a direct marketing ad generates in increased sales, on average. For example, in 2008, every $1 spent on Direct Mail (Non-Catalog) resulted in $15.55 in sales. The chart below represents the DMA’s calculated average return by direct marketing medium, including the forecasts for 2009 and 2013. ROMI: Summary of DM-Driven Sales Per $1 of DM Advertising Return by Medium Direct Mail (Non-Catalog) Direct Mail (Catalog) Telephone Internet (Non E-Mail) Commercial E-Mail DR Newspaper DR TV DR Magazine DR Radio Insert Media Other* 2003 $15.50 $7.12 $8.43 $28.02 $54.38 $13.09 $7.07 $10.31 $8.63 $11.69 $6.86 2007 $15.58 $7.23 $8.58 $20.60 $48.34 $12.94 $6.89 $10.22 $8.68 $11.66 $7.05 2008 $15.55 $7.28 $8.55 $19.94 $45.06 $12.77 $6.81 $10.10 $8.60 $11.63 $7.01 2009 $15.50 $7.25 $8.46 $19.97 $43.52 $12.46 $6.72 $10.09 $8.46 $11.56 $6.94 2013 $15.66 $7.29 $8.31 $19.97 $37.99 $11.90 $6.66 $10.15 $8.35 $11.45 $7.00 P6 CANVAS July 20092009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=9http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=9CANVAS P72009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=10http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=10The Wine of Communication A known commodity how often does a consumer enjoy it when a vendor pushes a product on them? Telemarketers and spam email are often considered intrusive. Print reaches customers in a way that other outlets can’t – at their leisure. “Print is provided to the reader, when they want it,” says Kubis. “When they’re ready to read it, they will just take it out and look at it. it puts you in control, allows you the ability to say yes or no, i want more information.” “Technology has given control of access to media to the consumer,” says Duncan. “You cannot just put an ad on TV, or in a publication and ensure that consumers see it. The consumer is in control of when they want content, and what platform they use to get it.” Completes the meal if you share only one point with your customers on why print is the “wine of communication,” it’s this – print tastes great with other mediums. Print doesn’t have to compete, when it can collaborate. Kubis says his company sees a tremendous spike in response rates whenever an email or Web campaign is linked with print. The same goes for telemarketing campaigns. instead of an intrusive phone call, the customer receives a promotional piece in the mail with a number to call and can decide when to make the phone call. internet campaigns linked with print follow the same successful formula. “One of our clients was running a travel program, where half the program was done with direct mail, and half was done with direct mail and a PurL,” Kubis says. “Direct mail with a PurL received three times the response rate.” PIM Fast Facts Custom Publishing: Consumers Read and Take Action A study commissioned by the Custom Publishing Council (CPC) and conducted by Roper Public Affairs finds that custom magazines and electronic custom media have increased in influence and acceptance since the study was last conducted in 2005. The survey, conducted via telephone with 1,000 U.S. adults in February-March 2009, finds that: • 70% of those surveyed say they like custom publications • Nearly three-quarters of respondents prefer to learn about companies from “an interesting collection of articles” as compared to getting the same information from ads • 78% believe that companies that send custom publications are interested in building strong relationships with customers • Two-thirds of respondents said they were likely to buy from a company that provided them a custom publication, and just about as many (63%) report they have bought something they saw in a custom publication. P8 CANVAS July 20092009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=11http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=11Indeed, the “wine of communication” may be print’s permanent spot in the scope of media. And why not? It’s been around the longest. It strengthens other media’s campaigns. “Print’s future is less about competing with other technological communication platforms and more about using its portability and flexibility to integrate communication touch points for the marketer and the consumer,” says Duncan. “The ability to integrate scent, texture, hi resolution graphics as well as variable data at multiple points of engagement are print’s strengths.” indeed, the “wine of communication” may be print’s permanent spot in the scope of media. And why not? it’s been around the longest. it strengthens other media’s campaigns. in today’s landscape, one will not get it done, says Duncan. “One message on one platform will not deliver to the sophisticated consumers of today and the future,” says Duncan. “Print’s role will be to be part of the mix and to deliver integration and rOi in the execution of multi-platform communication campaigns — something that plays to print’s strengths and growth potential.” Quick hits Need factoids for customers interested in a print campaign? Print in the Mix has plenty. Top 5 Fast Facts (most viewed) Reasons that Compel Consumers to Open Their Direct Mail ROI: Direct Marketing Driven Sales v. Non-Direct Marketing Sales Direct Mail is Lead Purchasing Decision Influencer for Internet Users Personalizing Direct Mailings Direct Mail Drives Consumers to Contact Businesses Top 5 Research Summaries (most viewed) Measuring Media Effectiveness: Assessing Media ROI throughout the Purchase Funnel DMA 2007 Response Rate Trends Report 2008 DMNews/Pitney Bowes Direct Mail Survey The Power of Personalization: The Impact + Influence of Individualized Content Delivery Document Communications Industry Trends: 2008 Survey Results To read more about additional studies and news on the value of print, please go to the Print in the Mix Web site www.printinthemix.rit.edu. Print in the Mix is a free and easily accessible clearinghouse of research on print media effectiveness, published by the Printing Industry Center at RIT and made possible by a grant from The Print Council (www.theprintcouncil.org). hP is proud to sponsor CANVAS. We invite you to visit the hP Digital Printing resource Center to download whitepapers, view on-demand press demos, webinars and more! CANVAS P92009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=12http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=12D work for you? their followers. and adjusting as you go. P10 CANVAS July 2009 Networking or Do you tweet? Are you Linkedin®? is your blackberry ® preset to automatically ping Facebook ®? if you said yes to any of these questions, then you likely get the gist of all the hoopla, but have you actually put it to As seO/sMO advisor to spider Trainers, LLC, i work with clients every day that fall into one of three categories: They don’t know a tweet from Tweety bird, they think tweet is for kids, or they post their personal tweets between three and, unbelievably, 100 times a day. For those of you lost in the first sentence, a tweet is a comment that you post to Twitter ® (http://www. twitter.com) so that your subscribers (followers) know what you are doing. A retweet is when someone takes your tweet and quotes it, thus passing it forward to Difficulties can arise when people underestimate the stickiness of Web content or the power of the pen. Twitter and other social networking sites can have a positive impact on your business, but only when used like any other business tool: carefully, with precision, Social Working? by Cyndie shaffstall Not Social2009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=13http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=13Too much or not enough? Social networking for you can be a powerful tool, but stay focused. Despite the allure and ease — and that your kids are doing it — you should not be using social networks as a place to post your private information. Your business associate, client, boss, or board member can read your content. They don’t need to know that you just drove your child to the soccer field. They have much more important tasks than to flip through your Vegas bachelor party pictures, and most importantly, they do not want to read as you disparage your boss due to a disagreement over the last project (neither does your boss). • “According to employment law firm Peninsula, 233 million hours are lost every month as a result of employees ‘wasting time’ on social networking. The study — based on a survey of 3,500 UK companies — concluded that businesses need to take firm action on the use of social networks at work. Some firms have already banned employees from accessing Facebook,” states BBC News in an online article, http://news.bbc.co.uk /1/hi/technology/6989100.stm • “An Australian study found surfing the Internet for fun during office hours actually increased employees’ productivity by 9 percent. Study author Brent Coker, from the University of Melbourne said ‘workplace Internet leisure browsing,’ or WILB, helped to sharpen workers’ concentration,” counters Mail Online, ht tp://w w w.dailymail.co.uk /sciencetech/article-1166634/Twittering-watching-YouTube-videos-makes-workersproductive.html You are either ready to ban or embrace this new pastime. Regardless of how you feel about it, it’s obviously captured the attention of young and old, despite their position in life; and whether or not they work for you. you carefully manage the content, followers, buddies, subscribers and links. Social networking falls into categories: • Blog • Microblog (i.e. Twitter) • Networking (Faceboook, LinkedIn, or Plaxo) • Social bookmarking (Delicious®) • Social news (Digg®) • Opinion sites (Yelp!) • Discussion group (LinkedIn, Yahoo, and Google have groups features) • Chat • Multimedia sharing (Flickr ® and YouTube®) Each site caters to a typical demographic. This demographic is what you must use to guide you. In all cases, though, my mom said it best, “Write like your worst enemy will use it against you.” OK, so that might be a little strong, but as a businessperson you are exposed to all sorts of potentially harmful scenarios: Employment Social media is all about word of mouth. What you post may well be shared with members of your clients’ groups. issues (remember the last person you fired?), partner issues (you thought you were such a great team), and not the least threatening, divorce (everyone thought you were such a great couple). If you post to social networks as though those three people are reading everything you write, you will have much, much less to worry about and your sticky content will serve you well for months or years to come. Blogs, such spidertrainers.spidertrainersblog.com, can be a great alternative or complement to your company or personal Web site. Thankfully, you don’t have to be an expert in HTML in order to maintain a beautiful, well-organized site. Another benefit is that your visitors can comment on your postings. They are free to endorse or question your view. This dialogue and interaction with your clients can be beneficial in many ways. If you would like to get started with a blog, try WordPress at http://www.wordpress.com or Blogger at http://www.blogger.com. You can be running your own blog in a matter of minutes. Breaking it down I am a huge fan of social networking. In today’s electronic landscape, participating in this type of messaging can be critical to you. The benefit is best realized when CANVAS P112009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=14http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=14Social Networking or Social Not Working? Microblogs, such as Twitter, enable you to post small bursts of information. The character limit is about 140 and you may also include a link. This can be really great if you have a bit of news and you would like to notify your followers. We use this at spider Trainers, LLC, regularly. each time a client posts a new blog entry, we tweet to remind their followers to read the latest posting. if however, you read through their entire history of tweets, you will not find a singe comment about the discount that the pizza place was having. with a number of colleagues because i found their constant posting of their private information to be (first) irritating, and (second) risky. i don’t want my colleagues, business associates, or clients to read their chatter. if you’re looking for a professional site, try Linkedin. LinkedIn is a very well executed professional site. it also offers the microblog capabilities, but i’ve found that my network respects the business rules and keeps their postings on the professional side. Linkedin also has a groups feature, which i’ll get into later. show caution when joining a group, however, because many of the groups are not well monitored and you may end up with endless spam-type postings. Don’t be afraid to try a group and then give it the boot because they don’t moderate their members. Networking There are a few popular networking sites and they are categorized best by demographics. MySpace® is primarily a kids’ and young adults’ site and should be avoided at all cost — unless you are using it to position a Bookmarks Our society seems to be starving for advice, leadership, mentoring, and guidance. That is supported by the sheer size of the selfhelp section of your local bookstore. To this end, social bookmarking provides Web readers with guidance. using a social bookmark site one can collect, organize, search, and manage the bookmarks When you have a large following, there is a better chance that your message will be spread far and wide. Social media is all about word of mouth. product, and your product’s demographics are kids and young adults. if you MusT have a Myspace account for the purpose of personal conversations, consider doing so under an assumed name that you share only with your family and close friends. Do not link it to your other sites and do not give it out to business associates. The risk here, despite your account name, is that someone in your group could forward your messages and you have no control over that whatsoever. Plaxo® is designed as a networking site for professionals, but it includes a microblog feature that enables you to make postings very similar to Twitter. i have had to disassociate Digg is a Web site of content submitted by members — anyone can create a membership. Once your content is submitted, other members review it and digg it. When a product or subject receives enough diggs, it is promoted to the front page of the Digg Web site. This is very much like a search engine, except that the promotion is not controlled by a set of obscure, ever-changing programming rules defined for the search engine’s spider, but rather by popular vote. in the pursuit of product promotion, opinion sites such as Yelp! provide a different kind of network where visitors leave comments, recommendations, and criticisms about businesses. of their favorite pages and share them with other users. it’s like creating a recommended reading list that you share with people who have access to your page. You could create this and then post your Delicious page at your blog and microblog. P12 CANVAS July 20092009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=15http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=15A discussion group, such as those you will find as a feature of LinkedIn, Yahoo, and Google enable like-minded people to congregate — online, of course. Think of it as a support group for your favorite business topic. YouTube may be the most well-known of the multimedia-sharing sites, but it certainly is not alone. What YouTube is to video, Flickr is to images. Creating podcasts (audio recordings), screencasts (video recordings), or Webcasts (trainings or meetings held by sharing video through a Web browser) are inexpensive ways for you to reach a lot of clients at once, or over a period of time by posting the recordings. Use blogs. Web sites are not enough anymore and while social-media platforms are wonderful boosts, don’t miss out on the opportunities afforded you by creating and maintaining your own blog. Many companies are actually foregoing traditional sites in favor of blogs, but i recommend both. (remember to link back and forth between the two.) Send invitations. Once you have created or added to your social network, remember to invite your customers, clients, associates, and colleagues to join. When you have a large following, there is a better chance that your message will be spread far and wide. social media is all about word of mouth. What you post may well be shared with members of your clients’ groups. if you are using your social networks to build your professional presence or to launch a new product, it isn’t a question of lost productivity — you’ve simply found a new tool for promoting your business. i think you’ll find that you rarely or never have a reason to tweet about your product 100 times a day … but we can dream, can’t we? Advice before you get started Now that you have a feel for the lay of the land, let’s go over a few tips: Use keywords. When posting online or creating tags for your media, use words that are easily identifiable with you (this might be as simple as your company name) and include them in every posting. This helps you create brand awareness. Find a focus and stick to it. Include links. Make sure that every posting links back to your site, to your offer, or to other social outlets to which you subscribe. You will build validity. (For more information on the importance of links, visit my blog at cshaffstall.spidertrainersblog.com) CANVAS P132009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=16http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=16A Worthwhile To-Do List B P14 CANVAS July 2009 Creating a business and life mentality that keeps you on top Fast from reveng e and feast on forgiving people Fast from bragging and feast on having good sportsmanship by brian sullivan before school was out, a laminated multi-colored list was hung on the refrigerator. This is what it said: This summer i pledge to: Fast from complaining and feast on being thankful Fast from fighting and feast on compromising2009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=17http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=17Fast from being lazy and feast on getting active Fast from lying and feast on telling the truth Fast from judging people and feast on looking for good in others Fast from selfishness and feast on giving to others CANVAS P152009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=18http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=18A Worthwhile To-Do-List The above was a list developed by my son Jake’s 4th grade class. each child was to develop their own Fast and Feast list, and this was his. As i read the list, i was amazed at how simple yet profound it was. And what a great list it’d make for sales professionals. so what are the sales and leadership habits you should FAsT from? What habits should you be feasting on? here are a few to think about: • Fast from doing only what worked in the past and feast on finding new ways to serve external and internal customers • Fast from taking current customers for granted and feast on finding creative ways to thank them • Fast on being satisfied with the number of customers you have and feast on making at least five new prospecting calls a day • Fast on believing you know enough to get by and feast on scheduling time each week to learn something new (30-60 minutes) • Fast on showing up for sales calls to just “check in” and feast on having a specific sALes objective that introduces a new product or solution on every call • Fast on doing all the talking in your presentation and feast on asking questions, listening and learning • Fast on delayed follow up and feast on getting back to customers and associates quickly • Fast on seeing the problem with things and feast on finding the solution • Fast from being unnoticed and feast on ways to STAND OUT so this week, grab some crayons, a fancy piece of construction paper (A pad and pen will do) and take 10 minutes to write down By keeping your personalized fast vs. feast list in front of you for 20 days, you will begin to create sales and leadership habits that will have you feasting on more positive relationships, more productivity, and a lot more sales. the things you need to FAsT from and FeAsT on. Then keep them in front of you for 20 days. Or type them in a document and save the list as your screensaver. if you are in outside sales, print out your own list and tape it to your dashboard. Just keep it close. by keeping your personalized fast vs. feast list in front of you for 20 days, you will begin to create sales and leadership habits that will have you feasting on more positive relationships, more productivity, and a lot more sales. With those positive habits, you can plan on getting to the top … fast! President of Kansas City-based PreCise selling, brian delivers seminars and internet training programs on sales, customer service, leadership and presentation skills to companies of all sizes. he is also author of the book, “20 Days to the Top - how the PreCise selling Formula Will Make You Your Company’s Top sales Performer in 20 Days or Less.” To sign up for his free weekly tips, go to www.preciseselling.com or email brian at bsullivan@preciseselling.com. P16 CANVAS July 20092009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=19http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=19CANVAS P9932009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=20http://ipaperus.ipaperus.com/thecanvasmag/july2009/?Page=20CANVAS supporting the print sales & Marketing professional Subscribe today online for a year of CANVAS@ www.thecanvasmag.com Each subscription includes one popular weekly e-newsletter Canvas Notes. The only publication for the print sales & marketing professional. Get a competitive advantage you cant find anywhere else. Sign up today online at WWW.THECANVASMAG.COM2009-07-14T20:06:59+02:00