FIR Podcast Network

Generate more revenue and grow your business through market penetration strategies. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Scott Schilling (http://aha.pub/ScottSchilling), owner at Schilling Sales & Marketing, Inc., international sales coach and consultant, speaker, and author.

Scott conducts market penetration strategy and sales training for entrepreneurs and small business owners. He helps them develop and implement market penetration strategy for their business, improving its profitability. Scott is dedicated to helping his clients transform their businesses, achieving more sales and greater profitability with less effort and expense.

To learn more about Scott, go to http://aha.pub/ScottSchilling. To get in touch with him, visit http://scottschilling.com/.

Here are a couple of AHAmessages from this episode:

* The pain point of many entrepreneurs and small business owners is that they have a hard time achieving more sales and increasing their revenue with less effort and expense. http://scottschilling.com/ @ScottSchilling8

* #MarketPenetration can be an effective business strategy for entrepreneurs and small business owners to improve their profitability. They should consider working with an expert to help them penetrate their target market. http://aha.pub/ScottSchilling

* Are you working with an expert who knows about #MarketPenetration? Knowledge about market penetration can give a person the expertise to help entrepreneurs and small business owners improve their profitability. http://aha.pub/ScottSchilling

* #MarketPenetration can help entrepreneurs and small business owners get closer to their target market and increase their sales. Are you making use of a market penetration strategy to get the right people and #GrowYourSales? http://scottschilling.com/ @ScottSchilling8

* Developing and implementing #MarketPenetration strategies can give someone the credibility to help entrepreneurs and small business owners effectively penetrate their target market. Are you getting help from someone credible? http://aha.pub/ScottSchilling

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.

Share your ideas effectively by developing your communication skills through public speaking. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Neil Thompson (http://aha.pub/NeilThompson), founder at Teach the Geek, patent agent, professional speaker, and author.

Neil offers online courses for STEM professionals to develop their public speaking skills. He helps them realize the significance of public speaking for improving communication skills and gaining access to opportunities. Neil focuses on helping STEM professionals gain visibility at work so they can get the promotions and pay raises they deserve.

To learn more about Neil, go to http://aha.pub/NeilThompson. To get in touch with him, visit https://teachthegeek.com/.

Here are a couple of AHAmessages from this episode:

* The pain point of many STEM professionals is that they struggle with #PublicSpeaking and communicating their ideas effectively with people outside their field. https://teachthegeek.com/ @neil_i_thompson

* #PublicSpeaking is a helpful skill for STEM professionals in communicating their ideas effectively to people. They should consider working with an expert to help them improve their #PublicSpeakingSkills. http://aha.pub/NeilThompson

* Are you working with an expert who knows about #PublicSpeaking and how to communicate effectively? Knowledge about public speaking can give a person the expertise to help STEM professionals improve their #CommunicationSkills. http://aha.pub/NeilThompson

* #CommunicationSkills can help STEM professionals speak effectively with people and develop a good rapport with them to gain opportunities. Are you making use of your communication skills to grow your network? https://teachthegeek.com/ @neil_i_thompson

* #PublicSpeaking can give someone the credibility to help STEM professionals overcome hurdles in communication. Are you getting help from someone who knows how to communicate effectively? http://aha.pub/NeilThompson

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.

Create effective business strategies and grow your business through proper business planning. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert R. Shawn McBride (http://aha.pub/RShawnMcBride), chief innovation officer at McBride for Business, LLC; managing member at The R. Shawn McBride Law Firm, PLLC; host of the Future Done Right™ and the Future of Business shows, business lawyer; certified public accountant; and author. He is also a leadership team member at the National Speaker’s Association in North Texas.

Shawn conducts business planning and legal consultations for business owners to learn how to properly create strategies that will help their business prosper. He helps them build their plans while simplifying the process. Shawn is focused on resolving the issues related to business ownership and maximizing the value of that ownership, preparing for the future.

To learn more about Shawn, go to http://aha.pub/RShawnMcBride. To get in touch with him, visit http://planningdoneright.com/.

Here are a couple of AHAmessages from this episode:

* The pain point of many business owners is that they struggle in handling issues related to business ownership and maximizing its value. #BusinessPlanning http://planningdoneright.com @McBrideForBus

* #BusinessPlanning is a great help for business owners in creating effective business strategies to grow their business. They should consider working with an expert to help them plan their business. http://aha.pub/RShawnMcBride

* Are you working with an expert who can create effective business plans? Knowledge about #BusinessPlanning can give a person the expertise to help business owners find the right strategies to make their business work. http://aha.pub/RShawnMcBride

* Business strategies can help business owners make their business work and become successful. Are you making use of business strategies in creating your #BusinessPlan? http://planningdoneright.com @McBrideForBus

* Doing #BusinessPlanning can give someone the credibility to help business owners overcome the issues of business ownership and maximize its value. Are you getting help from someone who knows how to create successful business plans? http://aha.pub/RShawnMcBride

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.

I don’t like negotiations.

You have to talk about money, you probably feel insecure, and of course, there’s always the possibility of failure.

For those reasons, and probably more, many of us tend to avoid business negotiations like the plague.

But you can’t achieve what you don’t ask for, so let’s talk about how to succeed in the art of negotiation.

Why Communication Pros Shy Away from Negotiations

Let’s start by looking at some of the reasons PR professionals would rather do anything than a negotiation.

Even those of those people oozing with confidence worry things won’t go as planned.

There’s a chance you’ll walk away completely empty-handed and that in itself is scary.

On top of that, it almost always feels like you’re going in for a fight, the topic of money is never fun and most of us think we’re terrible at playing the negotiation game.

So what do we do?

Avoid it.

We become yes-people.

We say yes to the first salary and title offer we receive.

Or we don’t prepare to ask for raises and promotions.

We don’t demand clients pay us what we know we’re worth.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Negotiation is finding the best outcome that works for everyone involved.

This means for your colleagues, bosses, and clients.

You need the right skills and attitude to help you adjust your approach.

The Spin Sucks Podcast

In this episode of the Spin Sucks podcast, we talk about:

* Working on your negotiation skills

* Preparing to negotiate

* Why negotiation doesn’t mean you’ll lose

* How to negotiate a fair price with potential clients

* How NOT to negotiate with your employer or boss

* What to do when you negotiate with your employers

* Why it isn’t always about money

How Are Your Skills?

Is negotiation something you struggle with?

You’re certainly not alone and that’s OK.

But communications professionals need to understand that negotiations are part of business and, done well, help both sides achieve their goals.

How would you rate your negotiation skills? Any tips or stories?

The comments are yours.

 

Social media has elevated discussions and awareness towards causes. The unemployment rate is low, meaning employees have more options. And younger millennials and Gen Z have not only entered the workplace, but also are now becoming managers, senior leaders, and in some instances, CEO’s. You might be thinking, okay – what does any of this have to do with me, and the answer would be “a lot.”

Employee activism is on the rise and these employees are passionate about transparency, holding true to values, and doing the right thing. They are the employees you want – articulate, passionate, and they do it because they care about the company. And they are also the ones that every marketer, communications professional, senior leader, and CEO need to keep their eyes on as they can be your biggest cheerleader, and your greatest heartache.

 

In this episode of AMP Up Your Digital Marketing, Glenn Gaudet speaks to Sharon McIntosh, former Vice President of Global Internal Communications at PepsiCo and President of And Then Communications about the rise of employee activism.

Here you’ll learn from Sharon:

* Why company values are more than just writing on the wall.

* How do you take the pressure out of the balloon when your values say X and you did Y?

* After the shoe drops with an employee activism event, how you can go back and retroactively implement changes and learn for future use.

* When personal values become workplace values.

Understanding your listening strategy for the organization, and making it a shared responsibility, is important for every organization. We have to get better at not trying to control the conversation – it’s just not the direction companies are going in. Rather we need to do a better job at listening and driving a change for the right reasons. It’s a whole new world – have a conversation and a dialogue.

Sharon’s Bio: Former Vice President of Global Internal Communications at PepsiCo, Sharon McIntosh, is a seasoned employee communications professional, now leading her own organization, And Then Communications. As President of And Then Communications, she champions employee engagement and change communications to drive success stories for her clients. Sharon can be reached on LinkedIn, Twitter, or on her website.

Want to appear on AMP Up Your Digital Marketing? Contact Us and let us know how our listeners can benefit from hearing your message.

The co-hosts discuss an article that Gini wrote for Spin Sucks that looks at 6 reasons that agency owners have trouble scaling. The conversation includes lots of actionable ideas — despite Chip’s best efforts to sidetrack things as he struggles to remember high school science basics in making an analogy.

* Reason #1: You Don’t Have a Business Plan

* Reason #2: You Can’t Break Free from Client Work

* Reason #3: Operating In Chaos

* Reason #4: Freakin’ Technology! Who Can Keep Up?

* Reason #5: Not Understanding the Whole “Measurement” Thing

* Reason #6: You Lose Focus

Agency owners are entrepreneurs and Gini notes that tends to come with a certain level of stubbornness.  Or as Chip put it: “There’s great similarity between a toddler and an entrepreneur.”

The pair try to help owners break out of this tendency to find solutions and help them scale. As an added bonus, they talk about making beds, splitting atoms, renovating kitchens, and lots of other things to keep you entertained.

RESOURCES

* Six Reasons Agency Owners Get Stuck and Can’t Scale

* Do I need a business plan?

* Traction by Gino Wickman

* Built to Sell by John Warrillow

[read the transcript]

Reach your epic potential by rewriting your inner dialogue and negative thinking through effective mindset coaching. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert, Pam Thomas (http://aha.pub/PamThomas), owner and mindset coach at What’s Within U. She is also an International Coach Federation (ICF) Certified Professional Coach and an intuitive.

Pam conducts mindset coaching for entrepreneurs, coaches and leaders in order for them to find ways to deal with their inner dialogues and negative thinking so that they can reach their epic potentials. She helps them bust out of the blocks that stand between them and their own epicness, personally and professionally. Pam is passionate about supporting her clients so that they can rewrite their negative stories.

To learn more about Pam, go to http://aha.pub/PamThomas. To get in touch with her, visit https://www.whatswithinu.com/.

Here are a few AHA messages from this episode:

* The pain point of many entrepreneurs, coaches and leaders is that they are vulnerable to the negative stories around them; and that hinders them from reaching their potential. #MindsetCoaching https://www.whatswithinu.com/ @whatswithinu

* #MindsetCoaching can help entrepreneurs, coaches and leaders to rewrite the negative stories that are keeping them from being the #Epic person they want to be. They should consider working with an expert to help them. http://aha.pub/PamThomas

* Are you working with an expert who is well-versed in #MindsetCoaching? Knowledge about mindset coaching can give a person the expertise to help entrepreneurs, coaches and leaders find a way to deal with their inner dialogue and negative thoughts. http://aha.pub/PamThomas

* Knowing how to deal with your inner dialogues can help you overcome your negative thinking and reach your #EpicPotential. Do you know how to deal with your negative thinking? #MindsetCoaching https://www.whatswithinu.com/ @whatswithinu

* Doing #MindsetCoaching can give someone the credibility to help entrepreneurs, coaches and leaders to change their negative mindset and reach their #EpicPotential. Are you getting help from someone who knows how to deal with negative thinking? http://aha.pub/PamThomas

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.

When Sean Cassidy walked out of Tufts University in 1990, he graduated with a major in Cold War foreign policy — just as the Soviet Union was about to dissolve. He hadn’t aspired to a career in public relations, but it turned out he was a good writer and he caught the eye of a small agency owner.

Three decades later, Sean leads DKC, a prominent independent PR agency headquartered in New York. They recently rolled out a new tagline: “maximizing return on news.” In this episode, he explains why he believes PR agencies should be news-driven organizations and what skills that requires.

He and Chip also explore the role of analytics, the benefits of spending time working in politics, and more.

QUOTES

* Sean: “I’ve been at DKC for 27 years. And these days, it seems like 27 minutes is a long time for somebody to stay at one place, so 27 years is quite something.”

* Sean: “We believe in the value of news. We think that storytelling is all driven by news. News creates an acuteness. It creates a need for discussion or an impetus for discussion.”

* Sean: “As a PR executive, you’re 50% marketer, and 50% editor.”

* Sean: “I personally do not have a political background, but a few of the executives who have been with us for a long time do. And I find the political world is an extraordinary training ground for great public relations executives because in politics, you have to be able to think quickly, you have to be nimble. You have to be strategic, and every second counts.”

RESOURCES

* DKC website

* Is Outcome Relations the future of communications? (featuring Matt Rizzetta)

ABOUT SEAN CASSIDY

Sean F. Cassidy is President of DKC, one of the leading independently-owned public relations agencies in North America. Sean’s extensive experience includes media, corporate, music, major transportation, health and legal public relations as well as crisis management. Named a Partner in 1996, Sean built DKC’s health care practice into one of the largest and most reputable providers of public relations services to hospitals and health-related not-for-profit organizations.

[read the transcript]

Leverage your leadership’s strengths with effective feedback that works in the organization. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Joe Folkman (http://aha.pub/JoeFolkman), psychometrician, speaker, president at Zenger Folkman, and best-selling author of “The Extraordinary Leader.” Joe’s extensive work can be seen in research publications such as Forbes, The Harvard Business Review, and The Wall Street Journal’s National Business Employment Weekly.

Joe helps decrease the likelihood of people leaving any organization and to help discover extraordinary leaders. He provides 360-degree feedback assessments, specifically designed for clients, are based on a database of millions of assessments of over 80,000 leaders that can facilitate change and leadership development by focusing on people’s strengths.

To learn more about Joe Folkman, go to http://aha.pub/JoeFolkman. To get in touch with him, visit https://zengerfolkman.com/.

Here are a couple of AHAmessages from this episode:

* The pain point of many organizations is facilitating development and change using feedback that will produce effective and #ExtraordinaryLeaders. https://zengerfolkman.com @JoeFolkman

* Many businesses are losing talent because some people are disengaged and frustrated. How do you decrease their likelihood of leaving the organization? https://zengerfolkman.com/ @JoeFolkman

* Losing great talent can mean losing profitability and failing customer satisfaction. Do you know where your leaders are and where they’re going? http://aha.pub/JoeFolkman

* CEOs can consider hiring psychometricians and survey research experts to evaluate the leadership pool in their organization and increase people engagement. Do you recognize this need in your business? https://zengerfolkman.com @JoeFolkman

* Many leaders can be better and good leaders can turn into #ExtraordinaryLeaders. Choose someone with expertise in organizational and leadership management to affect change in your company. http://aha.pub/JoeFolkman

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.

Use CRM to manage the relationships that are critical to your business success. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Jon Ferrara (http://aha.pub/JonFerrara), the founder and CEO of Nimble, an award-winning social sales and marketing CRM for individuals and teams.

Jon was the creator and co-founder of the award-winning customer management product, GoldMine. He is dedicated to helping individuals and teams succeed in business and life by providing the tools to help them manage and nurture the personal and business relationships that are critical to their success.

To learn more about Jon, go to http://aha.pub/JonFerrara. To get in touch with him, visit https://www.nimble.com/.

Here are a couple of AHAmessages from this episode:

* The pain point of many individuals and teams is that they struggle to manage the relationships that are critical to their success in life. #CRM https://www.nimble.com @JonFerrara

* Identifying the people who matter and staying connected can help individuals and teams succeed in business. How can you identify the relevant relationships for your business? #CRM https://www.nimble.com @JonFerrara

* #CRM can be a powerful tool for individuals and teams to connect with personal and business contacts. What tools are you using to connect with people? https://www.nimble.com @JonFerrara

* #CRM can help individuals and teams manage their contact history and interactions in business. How are you managing your business contacts and interactions? https://www.nimble.com @JonFerrara

* Having a record of social interactions can help individuals and teams keep track of whom they are connecting with. Consider working with an expert who can help you! #CRM http://aha.pub/JonFerrara

 

To learn more about Thought Leadership and how it can help you be successful, subscribe to the channel: http://youtube.com/user/thoughtleaderlife.