As a professional selling your own services, you may believe that you feel uncomfortable about calling prospective clients on the phone because you’re not a “real” salesperson. But studies reveal that up to 40% of full-time salespeople experience episodes of call reluctance that are serious enough to threaten their careers. Read more

“What’s wrong with my marketing?” That’s a question I often hear from clients, students, and readers. It’s a useful query, as there frequently are areas where you could do better at marketing and sales. But while the question “what’s wrong” can uncover your marketing problems, it doesn’t always suggest answers. You may need to ask what you’re doing right. Read more

That’s really the million dollar question, isn’t it? If only you knew why your marketing efforts weren’t paying off, you could change what you were doing, and start seeing better results. In a recent article, I wrote about the five most common marketing saboteurs. Read more

It’s a strong temptation when starting out with a new business to market to everyone. You don’t want to miss out on any possible opportunity. If you take the approach that anyone can be a client, how can you lose? Read more

Sometimes you may just have to prospect. While it’s true that networking, referrals, and other relationship-oriented marketing strategies are superior ways to build a professional services business in the long run, the problem can lie in that word “long.” It takes time to build a network and generate referrals. Read more

The Federal Trade Commission and Federal Communications Commission regulations governing the National Do Not Call Registry went into effect nationwide in the U.S. in October 2003. The FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule covers calls made across state lines Read more

When launching a professional practice or service business, the success of your first few months of operation is crucial. If you are a typical service business owner, you’re starting up with less capital than a storefront or product-based business. You are likely to have the expectation that you will begin earning income right away. Read more

Q. I am the volunteer coordinator of an informal network of trainers, training managers, and training administrators who work in corporate training departments. How do I get these members to hire me as a consultant without directly asking for their business? Read more

I’ve been asking successful independent professionals lately what it was they did that launched their success. What activity helped them the most to stop struggling to market themselves and start finding clients with more ease? Read more

I’ve been thinking a lot about comfort zones lately, mostly because I can’t seem to see mine very clearly anymore. Or more accurately stated, I can see it, I just haven’t spent that much time there recently. Read more