Sales Compensation Requires Careful Consideration By Peter Lyle DeHaan Our company had multiple offices. Those in larger cities called for having full-time salespeople. At one of those offices, one with a larger geographic workforce to draw from, my ads always received a response. Yet not all respondents were good fits. For one applicant, Jennifer, our […]
Consider both publishing options for your next book For the past few years, there has been a great deal of press—and hence a great deal of excitement—about e-books. Correspondingly, there is also significant debate about the relative merits of each option. The purists insist that the printed version is the way to go, nearly sacred. […]
You Can’t Control What Happens Online, but How You React Is Key By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Content posted on the internet can take on a life of its own, with the masses sharing it, adding comments, and promoting it to more and more people. This is usually an emotional response and seldom an informed […]
Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures By Peter Lyle DeHaan Her words surprised me. “I can’t run this ad!” The rep’s response caught me off guard, but it wasn’t completely unexpected either. “I agree that it’s a bit unorthodox.” “I might get fired if I publish this.” She fumbled for words. “Or we might get […]
Does using a story device guide our work or hamper our creativity? In many books and most movies, something will happen about three-fourths of the way through. With the desired goal within reach, a roadblock pops up to thwart our protagonist’s progress. While this is sometimes an ingenious plot twist, too often the problem seems […]
Ill-Conceived Incentive Programs Can Actually Hurt Sales By Peter Lyle DeHaan John was a salesperson who periodically visited our business. His company supplied specialized equipment to our industry, and we regularly bought from him. He cultivated relationships with many people in the company, including me, even though at the time I was scarcely an influencer—let […]
As someone who’s written 2,500 blog posts and counting, you may be surprised that I don’t think a writer must blog. Here are two considerations, followed by a blogging option: Fiction Writers It’s hard for fiction writers to build a following with a blog. Unless you want to blog and have ideas for posts that […]
Discover the Keys to Search Engine Optimization By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD You have a website for your telephone answering service. That’s the first step to establishing your online presence. But is your website doing all that you want it to do? Is it living up to your expectations? If you’re not enjoying the […]
Promote a Product, Service, or Idea to Achieve a Desired Outcome By Peter Lyle DeHaan Every business or organization has a sales and marketing function. It’s only the details that vary. They may have an existing department, or two, to address this need. Or the sales and marketing functions may fall under the purview of […]
Disrespecting Customers Is the Fastest Way to Lose Them By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Though not as frequent as our biennial cell phone migration from one carrier to another, my family and I have all too often found ourselves forced to change entertainment providers due to escalating charges. These companies have the same mentality as […]