Earning the Right To Sell With Stats ? 10 Steps to Greatness

We could learn a thing or two from pro sports.

Baseball players use stats to tell the story of their season and their career. Scorekeepers keep track of every at bat, every hit, every strike out, every run scored and every base stolen.

Those stats are cited by commentators during the game, sports reporters after the game and they are featured on the backs of baseball cards to they tell the story of the player's career.

Those of us in business could learn a thing or two from baseball players about using stats to size-up our careers and experience.

Give your prospects a reason to listen to what you have to say.

I was attending a conference last month and the topic of using business stats to "earn the right" among prospects was brought up. "Earning the right" was explained as giving your audience a reason to listen to what you have to say.

Before you can sell anything you must establish credibility.

Before you can sell anyone anything, you must first convince them you or your product or service are worthy. And one way to do that is with stats.

At the conference, we were tasked with compiling a list of our own stats (what we've achieved in our business or career, or what qualifies us to be doing what we're doing) and I was amazed at how few of my own I could recall on a moment's notice.

Can you easily list all your "stats" - I couldn't!

It was easy to come up with the obvious - I've been helping clients successfully market for 20 years.

And I could also recall two recent marketing successes: gaining free exposure for my business to 100,000+ of my ideal customers and tripling my web site traffic in a three-month period.

But beyond that I was stumped. My 20 years of marketing experience and seven years of entrepreneurial experience were boiled down to three stats that did not do a very good job of representing my career or my expertise.

I came home from the conference determined to compile my list of stats and to start using them. And, to inspire you, my readers and clients, to do the same.

Use my 10 questions to create your own list of "stats"

To make it easy, I've compiled a list of 10 questions you can ask yourself to come up with your own list of stats. This list is just a jumping off point.

Feel free to brainstorm further to come up with your own list of compelling stats that you believe will help you "earn the right" to be seen as an expert in your field by your prospects.

I call this list your "10 Steps to Greatness" Why? Because when you are able to list stats in 10 different areas, you will be able to convince your prospects you are great at what you do AND that your product or service can help them.

I've included my own stats as examples, NOT to brag about them, but for several reasons: First, to show you I DID come home from that conference and compile my own stats; Second, to give you examples to follow; and Third, to inspire you (if I can do it, you can, too!).

Not all of my stats are earth-shattering. But by having a full list to choose from, you can be sure to have a handful of compelling stats available at any time.

10 Steps to Greatness

(1) How many years have you been in your current line of business (or a related field)?

For example, I've been in the marketing field for over 20 years.

(2) How many clients or students or customers have your served (in your current business or your total years in this industry)?

For example, I've taught over 600 small business owners how to create and implement their own marketing plans using the 10stepmarketing System.

(3) What results have you generated with your business, products or services?

For example, I increased my subscriber base by 590% in four months and I tripled my web site traffic in three months.

(4) What results have your clients or customers gotten with the help of your products or services?

For example, when I worked with the American Council on Exercise, I helped them generate over 340.8 million media impressions in three years, through public relations and public service ads. I have also secured nearly $1 million in free media exposure for my clients.

(5) How many awards or recognitions have you or your business, products or services received?

For example, I've earned three national and two local marketing awards, plus a small business top achievement award.

(6) Have you spoken, taught or done presentations?

For example, I have spoken on marketing at conferences across the United States and in Canada, and I've taught hundreds of small business owners via teleseminar.

(7) Have your articles been published or have you been quoted or interviewed or written up in the media?

For example, my marketing advice is featured in Entrepreneur Magazine's Start-Up Series publication "How To Start A Personal Training Business." Additionally I am an Expert Author on EzineArticles.com and my marketing how-to articles are featured on numerous web sites.

(8) How can you quantify your business (e.g. how many business deals or transactions have you made, or how many articles have you written)?

For example, I've written and published 40 articles in the past six months.

(9) How many products have you sold?

For example, I made 20 sales my first two weeks in business.

(10) What experts in your industry have you studied or learned from?

For example, I have taken courses from such marketing and business experts as T. Harv Eker, Jay Abraham, Brian Tracy, Robert Allen and Mark Victor Hansen.

I challenge you to spend some time this week, compiling your own list of stats. Start with these 10 questions and see what you can come up with. Draw on your personal or professional experience.

What makes you great at what you do? What experience and knowledge to you have to offer? What are you passionate about and how can you translate that passion into credibility? Why should others pay attention when you talk? Be creative. Brainstorm.

Then select a few of the strongest, most compelling stats and start using them in your marketing.

Remember, you are not using these stats to brag about your accomplishments. You're using them to get your prospects to pay attention to you and to establish credibility.

(C) Copyright 2005 Debbie LaChusa

20-year marketing veteran Debbie LaChusa created The 10stepmarketing System to help small business owners successfully market their business, themselves without spending a fortune on marketing. To learn more about this simple, step-by-step program and to sign up for her FREE audio class and FREE weekly ezine featuring how-to articles, tips and advice, visit http://www.10stepmarketing.com

---

Google News Updated : Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:13:38 GMT My Super Sweet 16: The Miley Cyrus Edition - E! Online E! Online My Super Sweet 16: The Miley Cyrus Edition E! Online - 3 hours ago Miley Cyrus is about to show up all those spoiled brats on My Super Sweet 16 who think they're cool being flown to their party by helicopter or when they're carried in like a princess by a group of hot dudes. Miley Cyrus to Celebrate Turning 16 at Disneyland People Magazine Miley Cyrus Sweet 16 KFSN Press-Enterprise - The Gossip Girls - United Press International - Best Syndication all 87 news articles Publ.Date : Thu, 21 Aug 2008 20:21:48 GMT Marlins let one slip away in San Francisco - Sports Network The Associated Press Marlins let one slip away in San Francisco Sports Network - 39 minutes ago San Francisco, CA (Sports Network) - Marlins reliever Kevin Gregg's wild pitch in bottom of the ninth inning scored Emmanuel Burriss to send San Francisco past Florida, 4-3, in the finale of a three-game series. Giants walk off on Gregg's wild pitch MLB.com Giants beat Marlins on wild pitch in 9th inning The Associated Press San Jose Mercury News - Rotoworld.com - Akron Farm Report - Flamarlins.com all 81 news articles Publ.Date : Thu, 21 Aug 2008 23:33:45 GMT Microsoft's Photosynth wilts under pressure - Computerworld Washington Post Microsoft's Photosynth wilts under pressure Computerworld - 44 minutes ago By Gregg Keizer August 21, 2008 (Computerworld) Within hours of its launch, Microsoft Corp.'s new photo-stitching service went dark, overwhelmed by demand, the company said Thursday afternoon. New Microsoft photo site spends first day offline The Associated Press New Microsoft Tech Converts Photo Soup Into 3-D Image TechNewsWorld InformationWeek - PC Magazine - TG Daily - Christian Science Monitor all 323 news articles Publ.Date : Thu, 21 Aug 2008 23:28:59 GMT UPDATE 1-Microsoft enlists Seinfeld for ad campaign--source - Reuters UPDATE 1-Microsoft enlists Seinfeld for ad campaign--source Reuters - 2 hours ago By Steve Gorman LOS ANGELES, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Comedian Jerry Seinfeld will star in a $300 million marketing campaign for Microsoft Corp aimed at burnishing the image of its computer operating system, a person familiar with the effort said on Thursday ... Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates to star in anti-Apple ads TG Daily Seinfeld to be pitchman for Microsoft The Associated Press Slashdot - Bizjournals.com - GameSHOUT - Ars Technica all 474 news articles Publ.Date : Thu, 21 Aug 2008 21:27:28 GMT GM to Invest $500 Million To Build Chevy Cruze - Wall Street Journal Turkish Press GM to Invest $500 Million To Build Chevy Cruze Wall Street Journal - 3 hours ago By KATHY SHWIFF General Motors Corp. will spend more than $500 million in the US to build the Chevrolet Cruze, a next-generation compact car. GM announces $500M investment for small car The Associated Press GM to invest $500 million in small car plant MarketWatch Reuters - CNNMoney.com - CNET News - BloggingStocks all 266 news articles Publ.Date : Thu, 21 Aug 2008 21:10:12 GMT IAC Officially Breaks Up - Wall Street Journal Los Angeles Times IAC Officially Breaks Up Wall Street Journal - 55 minutes ago By DAVID BENOIT and KATHY SHWIFF IAC is left as a collection of more than 35 Internet companies -- including search engine Ask.com, dating site Match. IAC: And Then There Were Five Forbes Diller's IAC Split May Fail to Boost Investor Returns (Update2) Bloomberg The Associated Press - MarketWatch - FOXBusiness - CNNMoney.com all 280 news articles Publ.Date : Thu, 21 Aug 2008 23:17:40 GMT Hillary Clinton's Staff Looking to Avoid Embarrassing Anti-Obama ... - FOXNews Times Online Hillary Clinton's Staff Looking to Avoid Embarrassing Anti-Obama ... FOXNews - 58 minutes ago Hillary Clinton's staff is trying to avoid an embarrassing anti-Obama demonstration by her supporters during the floor vote at next week's Democratic convention in Denver. Clinton Will Attend Fund-Raiser for Towns New York Times Clinton for VP? She Says Ask the Obama Campaign ABC News CNN Political Ticker - New York Times Blogs - Newsweek - U.S. News & World Report all 546 news articles Publ.Date : Thu, 21 Aug 2008 23:15:16 GMT RSS to HTML Website Traffic Promotion

PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts, Websites, and more...

Adsense websites

A Questionnaire for Businesses

As best you can, answer the following twenty-five questions. There's... Read More

Be Prepared for Marketing

For most businesses, making a sale is all important. However,... Read More

20 Power Marketing Tips

Use these powerful yet simple tips from the national best-seller,... Read More

Creating Your Unique Selling Proposition or USP

Creating Your Unique Selling Proposition"Don't tell them what you do.... Read More

Direct Mail Formats: How to Choose the Right One for Your Next Mailing

Which pulls the best response, a postcard, a self-mailer or... Read More

Creating Your Own Lead Capture Pages

Having a downline can be golden. A downline is a... Read More

Why Market to Generation X?

Generation X"--the 40 million or so people born between 1965... Read More

Unique Selling Proposition - Your Competitive Advantage!

To capture a larger market share and be viable, sustainable... Read More

Take a Leap! How To Take Your Business To New Heights

Take a moment to reflect on the current reality of... Read More

Turning The Casual Scanner Into A Buyer

The world is full... Read More

Trade Show Videos Need to be Planned

A few months ago, we attended the recent Austech 2005... Read More

Small Business Bonzai Marketing

Do you own a small business? Do you wish to... Read More

Are You Marketing Backwards?

Marketing is like rowing a boat. When you know how... Read More

Spike TV - Know Your Audience

What do Klingons, giant rubber bands, and monster trucks all... Read More

Hello, My Name Is . . . What Your Name Tag Says About You

When you attend networking functions, what kind of name tag... Read More

Make Your Prospects Say Yes!

6 Secrets to Stellar Sales PresentationsEvery sale is won or... Read More

4 Dynamic Marketing Tactics

Some of the simplest marketing tactics often produce the most... Read More

The Process of Change in Marketing Approaches

In a world economy that is in constant flux and... Read More

Testimonials - FREE Quality Advertising FOR YOU!

Every business person who has any kind of product or... Read More

Who are Those People Youre Selling To?

If you're in the IT business, that's an important question.Most... Read More

What to be Successful? Marketing Makes the Difference

When you hear the word "marketing" what comes to mind?... Read More

Using Business Cards as Invitations

Business card size works well for invitations to special events.What... Read More

How Important is Your Marketing?

Bob called last week from Phoenix, Arizona with some stunning... Read More

Marketing Hat for Graphic Designers or Wannabe?s

Many people think that the quality of any graphic design... Read More

These Four Things Will Make Your Direct Marketing Successful

Direct marketing is built on four things. The other way... Read More