Hi Malcolm Gallagher here. Okay I've been off blogging for a while as we have had a very heavy video production schedule over the summer.

But now it is time to get down to it and this is part-rant, part-advice.

Government is trying to convince us that the recession is over and the sun will soon be shining . However sensible business people who live in the real world (you and me!) know that most of this is just political speak for their own benefit. The challenge is NOT the recession it is the RECOVERY time - and this one is set to be long and deep.

Often more businesses go bust during the recovery than during the recession. They may have cut back so far in the recession that they don't have the resources and capabilities to manage the turn-around. With credit lines tight, they have a problem.

And customers are nervous! Let me give you an example.


We have recently filmed (for our new online SpotLearn Suppliers Academy) the purchasing team at global company Drager Safety (they make amongst other things the breathing apparatus for fire brigades) and they told me that for the first time ever, they were undertaking credit checks on suppliers. They were nervous about their supply chain. Then I met again this last weekend with Peter, the purchasing manager, who told me that sicne we filmed him a few months ago, three suppliers had gone bust. Now he and his company, who are passionate about quality and make a life-saving product, cannot afford such problems and so are nervouse about all suppliers.

Now is the time for you to bring comfort to your customers. Tell them about your business, reassure them so they can get on with worrying about other suppliers. Oh, and this reassurance may just mean they will refer you to other opportunities!

A positive view!

Kim and I were out for our usual Sunday morning walk with Harvey, BizVision's Chief Security Officer (well if MP's can claim all that on expenses why can't we claim for Harvey!!??)

Anyways, we turned the corner in the walk beside the river here in Northumberland and there was this fabulous view. Views like that make you feel good don't they?

So what's your positive view? Anywhere that inspires you and takes you away from the depressing news in the media?

I'm an avid collector of words and phrases but quite often get stuck!  Like at my seminar for H.M. Revenue & Customs in Hertfordshire this week where I was telling everyone that to manage the tough times look for niches as they contain riches.
So you see niches and riches - but the two words don't seem to hang together.

Unknown to me, in the audience is a brilliant copywriter, Martin Gladdish of The Watered Meadow Ltd  www.wateredmeadow.co.uk who said, at the end, he enjoyed the seminar and gave me his card. On the back were the printed words Inspired By You and underneath he had written some copy for me which goes like this:

Riches increase, when you promote your niche

Brilliant and great to remember! So thanks for that Martin. Let's take note. Find your niche and promote it like crazy to stand out at this time. Your niche may come from your expertise or specialism - one of mine is in helping businesses win public sector contracts. Another is in leadership programmes and I have one of those just for chefs! Or you may find your niche through looking for what people seek on the internet. Try a free day of www.wordtracker.com to get this information. Look for the keywords that people are using.

So riches in niches - actually I like Martin's copy best! You can try his skills out by e-mailing him at martin@wateredmeadow.co.uk

From Malcolm Gallagher.   Here's some sales thinking for the weekend!!

Let me ask you a question

Why is it that most salespeople say they know it's important to ask questions on sales calls, but few take the time to plan really great, provocative ones?

Investing time developing provocative questions will have an immediate impact on your sales results. I love it when a prospect says to me “that’s a really good question” because I know the answer they give me will give a true insight to their thinking and needs.

Great questions are provocative, forcing customers to look beyond the obvious, to analyse, assess and make decisions.

In selling, your ability to ask great questions is highly linked to your sales success. Great questions demonstrate your expertise and enhance your credibility. And, the best questions you can ask are highly provocative – ones your prospects can't possibly answer without seriously considering their business situation.

So how do you come up with provocative questions? First of all, it's virtually impossible to come up with them when you’re in the midst of a sales call. Too many other things are going on.

Provocative questions require pre-planning and a significant investment of your time before you meet with prospective customers. To develop them, you need an in-depth understanding of your own offering from a customer’s perspective.

Here's what you need to consider before you develop your questions.

1. Determine how your prospective customers are meeting their needs if they don’t use your product/service. Identify the 3 to 4 most likely scenarios you encounter. These scenarios may include competitive offerings, their older systems, or even doing nothing.

2. Define the key problems, difficulties and concerns prospects likely experience in each of these scenarios. Say them to yourself in your prospect's words.

3. Clarify the business implications of these problems. What’s the pain, what’s the gain? How do they impact productivity, time-to-market, legal issues, compliance, profitability, costs, operational efficiency, decision-making and more?

4. Determine the value a customer gets if they replace their current methods, systems or processes with your offering.

Don't just have a shallow understanding of your offering.

Here’s a thought. Most customers are living with a less-than-perfect system, service or product. They know it has its drawbacks but they've learned how to work around things and get by. Besides, they're much too busy to analyse every difficulty, aggravation or potential problem.

Most customers have no idea about the total cost of continuing to do things the 'same old way.' When you ask questions about the business implications or the value of change, they're provocative! They get your prospect thinking about why change is necessary - and why it's needed now.

And better yet, these provocative questions create a reason to do business with you today not in the distant future. Plus, they demonstrate your knowledge and expertise – making you an invaluable resource to your customer.

To ask provocative questions, it also helps to frame them with your knowledge of your customer's business, industry, or market trends.

A data shredding business could ask (after having discussed say recent news about data theft)
What would be the impact on your company if your customer data fell into the wrong hands from either being stolen or through careless disposal?
Go on start putting together your selection of provocative questions. It applied to ALL businesses!

Send me your thoughts or even a selection to publish in a forthcoming issue! Free publicity!

I'm writing this from Uttoxeter Racecourse where around 600 businesses are coming to-day to heare my seminars for HMRC. I came here a
early this morning when there was still a mist over the course. Whilst there's no racing to-day, you could just imagine the thundering of the horses coming down the track. Which made me think about  YOUR need to watch out for Thundering Hooves. In this time of recession, your competitors may be even more hungry and chasing after your customers. So ring fence your customers by keeping in touch with them.

Do you know how close your competitors are behind you? How will you keep ahead and go on past the winning post?
And, interestingly, how can you worry your biggest competitors and be their thundering hooves?

Now is a great time to test the relationship your competitors have with their customers? Are they letting them down? What should they be doing better? What can you do for them?

Thanks for your patience

Are you a gloomer or a boomer? I’m seeing too many business people of all types and sizes who are believing the media hype about the current downturn, recession, depression - or whatever it is being called to-day. If you look gloomy then you stay gloomy and it rubs off onto your people, customers and supporters. It’s time to stop reading gloomy. It’s time to seize opportunity and go for the boom!

Over the last 5 months over 2,000 businesses have seen me present my toolkit Tactics for Tough Times and whilst that seems to have given many structure and direction – I’m not sure it put enough smiles on faces!

So welcome to Gloom 2 Boom.

It’s not just the name of the new uplifting seminar I’m presenting in many parts of the UK over the coming months, but a collection of proven strategies, tools and ideas available to you through my blog over the coming weeks – at no cost, with my compliments ! Be sure to pass them onto colleagues or link to the blog.

Your options in the current climate are like the 3 pigs in the graphic below. Survive, Maintain or Thrive. You know which one I want you to choose!

First you need tactics across three strategic elements, Financial, Operational and Marketing. Here are the questions for you to answer!

Your financial strategy is to reduce your vulnerability. Tactics include reducing working capital need, maximising cash flow, ensuring your work is profitable.

Your operational strategy needs to include the control of quality, reduction of wastes and the aggressive management of your top line

Now for the third strategy which is to seize Marketing Opportunity. That’s right move forward, don’t stand still. You know you need to keep marketing in a recession but now is the time to win market share. Your tactics include thinking how you can “market to one”, ensuring your customer knows and believes that everything you are doing is “with them in mind”. Thomson Holidays are achieving this brilliantly with their latest TV commercial.

Next posting. Start your action plan from Gloom to Boom with my unique, wait for it, Yellow Brick Road Map. You’ll be able to download the road map and start skipping ahead of your competitors. PS The Wizard of Oz is not only a “happy film” but this year it is 70 years since it was released!