VSA
Strategic Guide to Build Your Business
Volume 8, Issue 3, January 2014
in this issue
:: Lessons Learned: The Year in Review
:: 2014 Trends
"The Business Builder" is brought to you by VSA, Inc. in collaboration with Rink Consulting. VSA, Inc., founded by Valerie Schlitt, builds and implements B2B prospecting programs for businesses and professional service firms. VSA has a team of professional telephone callers who open doors to new business opportunities for VSA clients. Linda Rink, president of Rink Consulting, specializes
in B2B and consumer marketing and research. Both Wharton MBA graduates, Valerie and Linda often team together to help clients identify and reach new customers. In this newsletter, they share some of their business development insights.

Lessons Learned: The Year in Review

Valerie picture

by Valerie Schlitt,

President of VSA, Inc.  

It's a new year, and I want to highlight some of my key learnings from 2013.   
 
  • So many untapped excellent callers! 
    VSA grew in 2013 and we needed to hire new staff.  I am thrilled to report that are so many people out there who want to be cold callers, who are really good.  Yes, really good.  I thought the VSA staff could not get better, and I have learned differently.  
  • Our clients' sales cycles can be so long
    We have clients for whom we've called all year, and they are still pursuing leads we identified in the first quarter.  Some of our clients pursue our leads for over a year.  This is fascinating to me because our leads are typically highly qualified.  But, clients tell us that they nurture the leads until they become sales.
  • Prospects respond to emails - and set appointments
    In 2013, VSA added the ability to send emails that look like they originated from our clients.  Do you know what?  Prospects actually respond to these emails and we set numerous appointments through email communications.  When you wonder if it's worth the time to send emails, it often is.  When we could not succeed by phone, we sometimes succeeded by email!  And, these prospects were highly qualified because they, themselves, initiated the meeting.
  • Calling over 20 times works! - and doesn't irritate prospects
    VSA had one client with a very limited target market.  This client asked us to keep calling until we got a "yes" or a "no."  Of course, we didn't leave voice messages each time.  We also didn't call every day or even every week.  But, call we did, and call and call.  After 20 attempts, we still received return calls from prospects who kindly told us they were not interested, or who actually set appointments. 
  • Better to call 30 hours twice than 5 hours 12 times

    This year I learned the benefits of power calling and the detriments of short-spurt calling.  Calling in short blocks of time is really not productive.  Clients who wanted us to call 5 hours/week, just didn't get their money's worth.  Plus, clients who wanted 30 hours a week, got more than 6 times the benefit. There is a multiplier effect when a caller can sit down, get in a groove and make calls in large blocks of time.   

  • Team spirit helps
    We have set up a couple rooms for our larger clients and when callers are assigned to these clients, they make calls sitting together.  Boy, does this help.  Each caller's momentum affects the others.  Each caller's success encourages the others to succeed, too.  There is an intangible team energy that's obvious to everyone in the room.
  • Managing 100 hours a week is just like managing 20
    We learned this year that managing clients with 50, 60, or 120 hours a week, takes no more energy than managing clients with 15, 20 or 30 hours.  There is really no difference.  The time to modify scripts, instruct callers, create reports, analyze data and review processes is the same. 
  • We become attached to our clients

    After calling week after week, month after month on behalf of our clients, whether for 15 hours or 120 hours, we became attached.  We introduced ourselves as members of our clients' staff, and we really felt that we were.  When clients leave, take a hiatus or reduce their time with VSA, it's really hard.  We feel that we've lost a friend.  Our attachment is real and that's what makes the job so rewarding.  And, when they return, it's always an amazing reunion. 

VSA, Inc.
441 Station Avenue
Haddonfield, NJ 08033
856-429-5078
Like us on FacebookFollow us on Twitter

2014 Trends

Linda Rink Photo

by Linda Rink, President of Rink Consulting

 

It's time to check out trends for 2014! Here are some particularly interesting predictions from the experts.

 

CONSUMER TRENDS

Trendwatching is my favorite source for on-target, sometimes unique takes on our "Zeitgeist". Here are two of their 2014 trends:   

Crowd Shaped 
"Connected consumers are creating vast profiles and data trails that relate to everything from their 
music preferences to their daily movements...CROWDSHAPING [means] new products and services shaped by the aggregated preferences or behavior of (small and big) groups of consumers, as expressed via their data."

 

Mychiatry 
"Consumers will increasingly see their smartphones as devices for total lifestyle assistance. Improving techniques for self-treatment, developments in stress-detecting technologies and near-total smartphone penetration in many markets, means consumers will lap up innovations that help track and improve mental wellbeing too."

 

BUSINESS & MARKETING TRENDS

Ian Altman, blogging for Huffington Post, includes these two trends in "Key Trends in Sales and Business Development for 2014": http://tinyurl.com/ot4zppn

 
Content Becomes Emperor 
"Last year, people said: 'Content is king.' In 2014, content will continue to be the core to building value and getting heard above the noise... It used to be that companies feared sharing their best stuff on their websites. As more initial investigations for solutions move to search engines, your ability to stand out from the crowd comes down to whether or not you are addressing the most important questions for your ideal customer."  

 

Honesty Prevails 

"With so much hype and old-school tactics, buyers will reward sellers who identify their own limitations. Claiming you are an expert at everything will be hard to believe when the buyer can search to discover the truth. Humility and candor will be sought after skills in 2014."

TECH TRENDS

Three current tech trends:

 

3-D Printing 
3-D printing, very useful for sales presentations and prototypes, will become affordable for even small businesses. Bennett J. Loudon of the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle writes: "The 3-D printing craze that burst onto the scene last year is continuing to establish itself as a reliable technology for prototyping and small-scale production."

http://tinyurl.com/l4lpll3

 

Jamie Carter, writing for Techradar.com, adds two more tech trends of note:

http://tinyurl.com/kmqypd9

 

Tablets Will Get Bigger 

"The iPad mini was just a phase. The 12-inch Samsung Galaxy Note has already had its details leaked and could make an appearance at CES 2014 or soon after...Tablets will also get bigger in reputation as they spread beyond our homes and offices to... everywhere."
 
Movement Data 
"'Wearable technology, particularly health-related devices, have finally become affordable, accurate and accessible...,' says Norm Johnston, Chief Digital Officer for global media network Mindshare Worldwide. 'Brands will truly begin to explore their role in this new space, whether by co-developing new products and applications, or inserting relevant advertising into the experiences.'"
 

 

FOOD TRENDS

Kate Taylor bids farewell to the ubiquitous cupcake in Entrepreneur's "R.I.P. Cupcakes: The 6 Most Exciting Food Trends for 2014."  "Once upon a time, cupcakes ruled the trendy food market. So, what should restaurants be whipping up for dessert in 2014?" The answer, from the San Francisco-based hospitality consulting firm Andrew Freeman & Co., is ice cream sandwiches.  Yum!!

http://www.entrepreneur.com/slideshow2/

29839#1

 

And my final trend, from the world of fashion and d�cor, is:

 

2014 Color of the Year: RADIANT ORCHID

PANTONE� 18-3224 "Radiant Orchid" is color of the Year for 2014. "An invitation to innovation, Radiant Orchid encourages expanded creativity and originality... An enchanting harmony of fuchsia, purple and pink undertones, Radiant Orchid inspires confidence and emanates great joy, love and health... Radiant Orchid beckons with tropical breezes, exotic flowers, and a new refreshment for the eyes."

 www.pantone.com

 

Looking out my office window at snow, ice and freezing temps, "tropical breezes" and "exotic flowers" would truly be refreshment for my eyes!

 

RINK Consulting
1420 Locust Street, Suite31N
Philadelphia, PA 19102
215-546-5863