Some free time? Here are books about sales you might want to check out.

I just finished three books of fiction for pure pleasure while on vacation last week. Now that I’m back to reality I’ve decided to read some books about sales to help motivate me in 2009. Happily the 2008 Sales Book Awards, an organization that recognizes books, authors, and publishers whose work advances sales as a profession, has just released this year's winners.

Sales, I’m not in sales, you say! I am a director of a philanthropy, a middle management administrator, a lawyer who works for someone else. Guys, it’s time to re-think. Yes, all of us sadly in one way or another are in sales. If its convincing your boss that you deserve the new title, or you're a CEO and need to excite your staff about yet the next big thing in the company, even if its your kids that need to be motivated to pick up their dirty laundry, in one form or another we are constantly selling.

A panel of 35 judges rated submissions in 10 separate categories, awarding one Gold Medal and two Silver Medals in each. Each book was rated on five primary criteria: Authority, Readability, Content Relevance, Physical Quality & Writing Style. I’ve included the 2008 Sales Book Gold Award Winners in my list.

Hmmm, where should I begin, Any suggestions?

General Sales
• Gold Medal: Perfect Selling by Linda Richardson

Classic Sales Books
• Gold: Selling to Big Companies by Jill Konrath

Sales Leadership
• Gold: Coaching Salespeople Into Sales Champions by Keith Rosen

Sales Methodology
• Gold: Reality Sells by Bill Guertin and Andrew Corbus

Sales Motivation
• Gold: The All Star Sales Book by Billy Cox

Prospecting
• Gold: The Real Secrets of the Top 20% by Mike Brooks

Presenting
• Gold: Presentations That Change Minds by Josh Gordon

Industry Specific
• Gold: Salesopedia by Clayton Shold

Sales Audio Programs
• Gold: Nano Sales Books by Linda Richardson

eBooks
• Gold: 200 Sales Hunting Tips by Mark Hunter

– Ann Byne, Principal/Creative Director

Managing Your Reputation Online

It’s a subject that most likely concerned us all greatly in Junior High: Reputation Management.

It’s a big, virtual world out there and whether you like it or not, people are talking about you! The good news is, you can make sure it’s not all behind your back.

Fact is, there are more people online creating “buzz” about you than you create yourself, and considering how much you invest in marketing, it’s not to be ignored!

One of my favorite blogs, marketingprofs, recently offered 6 keys ways to manage your reputation online. I’ve summarized my fave’s.

…and yes you can do it all from your computer at home (but don’t tell this to your boss)!

1. Google—Google.com/alerts
Set up an alert and you’ll know whenever someone writes something about you, or even your competitors. Best to set it up in your RSS reader and you can sort the results to find out who the biggest talkers are… and who to kiss up to!

2. Blog Posts—Technorati.com
If you have a blog, register and Technorati will track other blogs who are linking to yours. What’s the point? It’s all about relationship management. Try to link to them in your blog, comment and spread the love.

3. Blog comments—Backtype.com
It’s so important to comment on blog posts that mention you, whether positive or negative. Use backtype.com to keep track of all of the conversations you participate in. The coolest part is you will begin to find out who the key influencers are (one bad apple can spoil the whole barrel) and do a little targeted damage control. And for those singing your praises? Tell them you appreciate it.

4. Discussion Boards—Boardtracker.com
Get alerts when someone in a “forum” mentions your name, and join the top few. Then you can establish yourself as a leader on the topic and offer resources. What great publicity!

So remember, it might be overwhelming at first, but after you’re up and running you will have a great picture of who is talking about you, what they are saying, and also the opportunity to inform, educate and be a good community citizen.

Just do it!

–Jennifer Zapf, Art Director

Are You on a Tight Budget?

Times like these you need to be more creative with your budget. The good news is that email marketing can fit into most anyone's budget. Wikipedia explains that email marketing is a form of direct marketing, which uses electronic mail as a means of communicating commercial or fundraising messages to your customers/clients. You can achieve a big bang for a small price while getting out relevant messages, achieving brand appeal and the ability to measure it all.

• Reduce Other Costs_ Think about what you are printing: holiday cards, invitations, newsletters. Could these be emailed? Of course they can.

• Get Valuable Info_ Using email you can obtain valuable stats and watch response rates in real time. With this information you can easily tweak your emails, see what is working and not working with your client/customer base.

• Build Brand Loyalty_ With email you can keep current clients/customers happy and engaged. Reward loyal customers, but keep it interesting.

• Do's and Don'ts – Use Email The Right Way
DON'T buy/rent an email list
DON'T send emails everyday
DO be client/customer specific
DO keep your focus on a permission-based strategy
DO make it fun and different

–Melissa Behrens, Senior Graphic Designer