April 12, 2020
The 2020 Ultimate Growth Guide - 17 Best Ways to Increase Sales
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Welcome to the 2020 Ultimate Growth Guide - the 17 Best Ways to increase sales for you or your organization. This is a long piece with a lot to digest, so feel free to jump around to those aspects most valuable to you here and now.
These are all of the possible ways to grow your business. Doesn’t matter what you’re selling. Could be hardware or software. Could be a Fortune 10 company or a startup. You could be 65 years old or 18. These are the ways you grow.
Some of these methods are going to make more sense for you than others. That’s all good. There’s no one method for success in this game. You can get to the number 10 a lot of different ways. 8 + 2 isn’t better than 5 + 5, it’s just different.
Use whatever methods work best for you, your company, and your clientele. Test em all!
Hopefully some of the resources talked about explain the WHY side of the sales approach. We talk about the difference of Google and FB, and demand generation (FB) vs demand fulfillment (Google). We also talk about BIG THINK and Edward Bernays approach to PR, along with many others.
Below is a googlesheet to help you keep track of and manage all of these as well as links to some of the references discussed.
It’s available here : Chris Keith - 2020 Ultimate Growth Guide - 17 Best Ways to Increase Sales
File -> Make a Copy -> Fill out your own!
Wanna know the best news about the vast majority this stuff? You can do them from HOME! No QUARANTINE EXCUSES!
Growth Never sleeps!
Let’s dive in.
2B Monthly active users (can be more depending where you look)
This includes:
This can be a lot to digest, but here are a few resources for you to get started
Long story short, there is a ton of advertising real estate available through the google machine. I’d recommend starting small with a small budget and SMART campaign. TLDR - SMART campaigns optimize your campaign for you using Google’s AI.
They’ve recently made it easy to at least dip your toe in the water with SMART campaigns. Can start off with a small budget ($10/day) and googles AI optimizes your ads for target audiences. At the very least, you can run these (2 weeks minimum is a good idea) and gather data /see whats working and move on from there!
Keep in mind, this is the demand fulfillment part of the sales funnel. Think about it, when someone goes to google, they are looking to get an answer to their question. Keep this in mind as you are working on your verbiage for the ads. Answer the questions you believe people will be asking.
As always, TEST - don’t GUESS. You can spend $150 and at least get good info on what people are searching for that relates to the product/service you’re selling.
When this gets working in your direction, you legitimately can tell people what the demand for your product is, ONLINE. That’s power.
2.37 Billion monthly active users (can be more depending where you look)
This includes
There is an incredible video where a Senator asked Zuckerberg was asked how FB can be such a big company when their platform is free: WE RUN ADS. (worth a watch) LOL.
FB advertising makes all if this possible through the back end, your business manager and ad manager. All of the ads are managed through there. Often times it makes sense to try and partner with an advertiser in this space as you really look to scale up.
Getting started isn’t ultra complicated:
Keep in mind, with everything FB and IG related, you’re in the Demand Generation part of the funnel. Unlike Google, which is where people often go to get an answer to a question, FB is simply a platform for people to communicate. So, for these ads, you want to make your creative/verbiage extremely appealing to someone that didn’t know they were interested in whatever it is you’re selling. You need a strong call to action/demand generation to get significant traction here.
Here is a list of the other major social media platforms that you can pretty easily advertise on:
^^ All of these websites have paid business manager options for your advertisements.
There are obviously a ton more…
There is value on being active on every one of these websites. Now, depending on what you're selling, some make more sense than others. But, there really is no such thing as bad press, especially when you're trying to grow.
Focus on a couple of these and put effort there. You run the risk of spreading yourself a bit too thin if you try to attack all of em at once.
Ahhh - this is where we’re trying to figure out Google’s secret sauce!
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is organically ranking for TOP positions in Google. On the front page. ORGANIC means you can't pay for it. You cannot directly influence this, it comes with time, quality, and domain expertise.
There is a bunch that goes into SEO, and depending on what you read and who you follow, you hear different things. Again, this is Google’s secret sauce, no one knows exactly how to crack this nut, and they're not gonna tell us any time soon.
This article from Growth Machine does a great job of explaining how to approach coming up from ground zero.
Long story short, put up content for a few months. Something. Anything. Make it relate to what you’re selling. As you grow the depth of your website and page, it ads to the legitimacy of your domain from Google’s perspective. Growth Machine will even help you find quality writers at different price points!
It’s also a great way to build a very engaged following. If you have a blog and loyal followers, you've created warm leads. Quality content production creates just this.
Here are a few other articles / thought leaders in the SEO space if interested:
SEO takes a while to get built and then up and running, but once it starts to click, its tough to break and really gets going for you. It’s autopilot, and you’re not having to pay for all the traffic you’re organically receiving.
How much more sales/traffic would you generate if you showed up at the very top of the front page of all of the questions your potential clientele would ask about? Let me answer that, a ton. That is why SEO is important.
Email / Messaging is huge - capitalize on your already loyal client base!
Email campaigns can be used to get people to purchase again. They can be used to launch a new product. It can simply be used as a tool to get people back on the phone.
But you need to stay focused here to engage and re-engage your audience. In his book, Pre-Suasion, Robert Cialdini talks about the importance of attention:
This form of pre-suasion accounts for what many see as the principle role (labeled agenda setting) that the news media play in influencing public opinion. The central tenet of agenda-setting theory is that the media rarely produce change directly, by presenting compelling evidence that sweeps an audience to new positions; they are much more likely to persuade indirectly, by giving selected issues and facts better coverage than other issues and facts.
The media cannot tell you what to think. You control that. But they absolutely can control WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT. This is extremely important and why they are such powerful entities.
You want your clientele thinking about you (or your brand/company) when appropriate. Email and SMS is the best way to do that.
Play around with a few different approaches. If you have a subscription company, but together a joint email and SMS campaign, urging people to re-up on whatever good or service they are in need of. Test, don’t guess!!
If you’re launching a new product, put together a campaign that asks for feedback! Double down on your most loyal/repeat customers. Engage with them, make them feel like part of the brand!! Capitalize there.
Please - DO NOT overdo this stuff. I hate being bugged via email and text all the time. Less is more. Make it valuable and relevant when you do reach out.
If you get the chance, read Modern Monopolies by Alex Moazed and Nicholas Johnson. (notes).
The book breaks down platform companies, and how valuable it is to simply create massive marketplaces that put supply directly in touch with demand.
Think about why Uber is valuable. It's not necessarily PROFITABLE all the time, but it is VALUABLE. It’s a massive platform that puts cars directly in touch with potential riders. (and now a lot more than just that)
The same goes for the APP store w/ Apple. Sure, Apple makes fantastic hardware, and that is the majority of where their revenue is generated, but can you put an actual dollar value on the worth of the Apple App Store? How many companies exist there and are making a killing, because they built an app for IOS? A lot!
So, what does this mean for you or your business?
Same can go with Amazon:
Want people to read your post?
SPOTIFY is quickly becoming a king in the music/podcast/audio space. They’re more than just music. They want to be the the go to platform for ALL of the audio you’re consuming (just bought The Ringer for 200M)
CHROME! (the internet browser for Christ’s sake!)
Long story short, if you have a good or service that you can be selling in these platforms - GET ON THESE PLATFORMS. Touch base with them to see how you can be featured, etc.
HUGE potential. Platforms aren’t going away any time soon.
This is legitimately how the largest companies (or certainly those with the most users) in the world have been made. Think TikTok most recently, but how FB/Google/Amazon also expanded exponentially.
Viral Loop definition from TRACTION:
The Formula: (again, from TRACTION)
Could be a clever video like dollar shave club or a cool app that puts me in touch with cars like Uber.
This sort of exponential growth is tough to find, but exactly the type of things VCs look for. Do you know where we’ve seen this type of viral growth/trajectory most recently? The spread of COVID-19. Tech people/high finance/the VC world were early adopters on the virus, because the infection numbers and spread were so staggering you could not ignore them.
When things go viral, you can change the world! Powerful stuff.
Moving Forward w/ the Viral Approach (again, very hard to do):
Arguably the easiest way to get a conversion or drive new customer acquisition.
GIVE PEOPLE SOMETHING FOR NOTHING (or at least very little).
This is not a new phenomenon and not one that is going to be getting old any time soon. People like free shit.
A huge benefit of giving people something for nothing is that it invokes the reciprocity principle (also from Cialdini’s Influence), a strong feeling of obligation that you owe them something in return. It’s a major subconscious part of human nature. Capitalize on that!
Perhaps its a PDF, or some other form of engineering,.
For instance, hubspot allows you to use a free CRM. Pretty easy way to get customers, lol.
BRICKELL - legit gives you their starter kit for free! OPRAH - FREE CARS! Youtube TV (and so many other software companies) let you try their stuff for free for a couple weeks. It gets you hooked. This isn’t accidental.
You get the point. If you can work this in somewhere, try it.
A great person to study/read about in this space, often referred to the Father of Public Relations, is Edward Bernays. Great resources: (book highlights below)
Bernays has been credited with getting Americans to standardize on a Bacon and Eggs breakfast. (among others, like making it cool to smoke cigarettes, etc) He was working for a ham manufacturer, and they wanted him to sell more ham. Rather than tell everyone how their ham was better than other ham, he put together a full scale PR campaign on the American public based around eating a hearty, balanced, bacon and eggs breakfast. It ranged from famous people talking about how much they loved bacon and eggs to multiple studies referencing PHD’s and how beneficial it was to eat a large breakfast.
Worked pretty well, bacon is still a go-to breakfast food today!
BIG THINK. Sell your vision, not just the current product!
Valuable insight to keep in mind when approaching PR.
Alright, lets transition back to some PR Specifics:
Reporters
Podcasts
Obviously gaining a ton of traction over the past few years. Great way to get in front of an audience that relates to you or whatever it is you’re trying to promote.
PR Firms / Agencies
If you work with a PR agency, they have connections to larger, big name brands. Think GQ, Forbes, etc.
They can get you featured and whatnot, so you can put on your website, AS SEEN IN THE WSJ. This is more valuable from a social proof perspective, rather than driving sales, but it all depends who you are working with, type of product, etc!
Unconventional PR
Think Elon Musk, Richard Branson, Donald Trump (pre presidential era), etc. The stunts that these guys are pulling aren’t by accident, they are carefully thought out and always have an end goal/call to action in mind. Nothing happens by accident, especially with people at that level. Keep that in mind.
Wendy's Twitter is account is another example. No one is safe, haha!
Also, GODADDY - the superbowl commercials, LOL. They were talking about registering domains back in 2008! Many people had no idea what the hell that meant. But they sure as hell had heard of GODADDY.
PR works, but try to be unique when approaching it! Make you and your brand/company memorable!
Lots of nuance to sales. Here are some key themes to start with, explained in detail by previous posts.
The level of nuance necessary for sales is incredible. There are countless books written on this topic. Here are the most important aspects though:
You Can Do Anything, But you Can't Do Everything
Expectations Are the Root of All Evil
EFFORT Will Win People's Hearts (and close deals)
At a high level, you pay someone a commission to advertise and sell your stuff!
Neil Patel does a nice job in this article describing Affiliate Networks. In the Affiliate space, you can either be a brand or an advertiser.
The following are the large affiliate networks that exist out there today:
There are hundreds more.
If you follow someone online, and they recommend that you buy a product or service, there is about a 99% chance that the link they’re sending you is their “affiliate” link, and they’re getting a percentage of the proceeds from that sale. Doesn’t matter if its a book or an amazon trinket, or a 1000 software package. They’re getting compensated somehow. It’s affiliate marketing.
For the majority of the above Networks, as a brand, you have to be doing about 1MM onlines sales, sometimes higher than that (>5M sales), for them to work with you/partner with you directly and get featured on their website and in their network. Just the reality.
However, if you’re just starting out, ShareASale is a great option. You’re all in for about $650. Good way to dip your toe in the water with Affiliate marketing.
You can sign up to be an advertiser in these networks at any time. Some affiliate marketers make a great living.
There are also marketing agencies in this space that specialize specifically on managing affiliate marketing, if you’re looking to outsource. Mike at Advertise Purple is great!
One thing about this option is the fact that both the affiliate advertisers (and agencies) work on a commission structure. So, you pay them a percentage of sales, yes, but you’re not blindly throwing money and hoping it works. When they succeed, you succeed. The classic Win-Win!
KNOW YOUR PAYOUTS/understand your numbers! Make sure whatever incentive/commission you’re paying your affiliates isn’t eating too far into your profitability.
Standard Partnerships / Joint Ventures
Win win for both organizations!
Is there some sort of approach or deal you can crack with another big company? Competitor or just a large company in your space? Pursue if possible! Could potentially be a win win - sales is not always a zero sum game! Keep this in mind!
Distribution / Supply Partnerships
Licensing
If you’re in this sort of position - go ahead and look to pursue it, lol.
Influencer Partnerships
So most of you are familiar with influencers and have seen them active on social media and now mainstream. Got news for you, this trend isn’t going away.
People relate to people. Influencers are COMPANIES/BRANDS in themselves. This is will continue.
The dollars that flow in this space are incredible. For high traffic influencers, you’re talking >$100K PER POST!
The tough part with trying to go this route is finding the right ones.
Upfluence really helps with that problem. They’ve created a software platform that allows you the search specifically for the type of influencer you want to partner with. It could be twitter or IG. It could just be a blog. It might be across the US, or perhaps you just want to focus on your local market (Denver, right now).
Upfluence lets you target these searches, then gives you contact methods and acts as a CRM to manage the relationship/transactions.
Costs a few hundred dollars/month, but a great first tool when dipping your toes in this market.
Once you find the rate partners: Try to get them to use/love your stuff!
Targeting Blogs
The same as the influencer piece above, but these people are generally more writing focused. Upfluence also good to help find people here.
TEST don’t GUESS.
Up until 25 years ago or so... This was it. Haha! Isn’t it ridiculous how quickly and dramatically things change?!
These all pretty much speak for themselves. Leverage them if it makes sense.
Out of the Box thinking:
Track as best as possible… Use specific code, etc.
Not spending too much time here.
TEST don’t GUESS.
Social proof holds massive validity with human beings, whether you realize it or not. Something as simple as a ton of positive high quality reviews turns a cold prospect into a warm lead. This matters. Make sure you are thinking about it and doing whatever possible to capitalize on it!
Build a product that people think highly of and want to use/tell their friends about, and it will speak for itself. Word of mouth is by far and away the highest ROI sales/marketing action in the business.
Focus on providing an experience that people enjoy, and they will be forever loyal to you and your brand! This will sell itself.
If you curate a personal brand that is smart and valuable - people will WANT TO WORK WITH YOU.
It's really simple. Here are some of the best examples of this I've found on the internet in no particular order:
Naval Ravikant falls into the realm of consuming whatever he puts out there. There are not many people that make it to that level, he's incredible. Imagine a modern-day startup/entrepreneur Gandhi, who speaks the best English you've ever heard. Worth your time investment, regardless of the field you're in.
*****This specific thread is arguably the best content available on the internet.*****
Randomly stumbled on Nat's blog. It's great. He's got a couple of companies that are crushing it, not surprisingly. Follow/read his stuff. A couple favorites:
Found Growth Machine because of Nat’s personal writing!
Patrick OShaughnessy is the CEO of OSAM asset management in NYC. However, what grabbed my attention was his podcast, Investor Field Guide, specifically the following guests/episodes:
But all of the episodes are quality. Can only image how many more clients Patrick has brought into OSHAG due to this Podcast and the materials he puts out.
Best sports opinion guy out there. Always relates current sporting events and scenarios back to the business world. Analogies on point and does a great job of playing the long game in a media landscape that makes it increasingly more difficult to do so. His 'Best Of' podcast is a great way to catch up on the sporting world daily for 30 minutes or so.
Scott gained notoriety for being the inventor of Dilbert, but has far more to offer than comic relief. He's a fantastic writer (books are excellent and fun to read) and a huge proponent of Persuasion and Rhetoric.
Paul is one of the Founders of Y Combinator, amongst other companies. He's incredibly insightful on twitter and his essays are some of the best advice out there.
You bet your ass I think Y Combinator is a quality organization. Research their returns :)
Shane Parrish is the author of Farnham Street, a website and podcast dedicated to the mastery of mental models, or teaching your brain how to think. He's an exceptionally deep thinker. There's nothing more important than living and thinking deliberately. Farnham Street is the go-to resource.
Absolutely valuable to work with Shane (if you can get on his client list)/have bought his book as well!
This turns cold calls into warm leads. Invaluable from a sales perspective.
Create a personal brand that revolves around being a value add solution provider. Someone that people CAN’T AFFORD NOT TO WORK WITH!!!
Do whatever you possibly can to get in this space.
There is no one size fits all of this approach. Figure out what you're best at or what you like to do the most, and do it.
The following 2 growth methods are a bit harder to do while Working From Home, BUT STILL VALUABLE!
Trade Shows
Can be extremely valuable, especially if it’s a crowd that you are looking to target/break into.
Keep in mind, try to set breakfast/lunches and dinners with people, as that is where most business is done. Not at people’s booths. Do your research and the companies and people coming, and try to get some one on one time. If you can host a fun event or dinner within the event, your odds of being successful go up pretty dramatically.
You don’t necessarily have to have a booth at the conference. Go to one that is in your industry and just swing by the booths and introduce yourself/your company. You can make legit hundreds of contacts with people in a day. Just be sure to follow up afterward!
Conferences
Tim Ferriss talks about how he was able to use conferences to help him build a world class network in record time.
These are big business. Jason Lemkin is a SaaS conference advocate, and it seems to have done well for him/they get a decent lineup of speakers at the conference on an annual basis.
Sam Parr actually leveraged Hustlecon the event to start getting major legs with The Hustle.
All you need is to make one connection or find one valuable contact from these events and get a massive ROI. Keep that in mind!
17 - COMMUNITY BUILDING
A great way to think about this is doing things that don't scale, a Paul Graham Post.
Host Meet ups, or exclusive events for your top clientele!
Harley Davidson is legendary in this space. The Harley Owners Group. Jeep has a similar type deal going on. (Think the Jeep wave)
Instead of offering discounts to nonusers, Mac Weldon automatically gives you a % off your order if you have an account set up with them.
Wheels Up encourages you to connect with other members to coordinate trips.
DRINK HAUS has done a great job of this, recently went to a Happy Hour they hosted here in Denver.
Legit - throw/sponsor a party. This building businesses is supposed to be fun anyway 🙂. Sell stuff that has your branding on it that people recognize. (Think Lulu) It all plays!
FB Groups is a huge part of community building. A ton of brands have created a nice niche here.
Exclusive Launches are something companies like SUPREME and MSCHF have perfected. Scarcity is a real thing.
Your Community is what defines you! Don't skimp!
******************
You can capitalize on the majority of these growth areas WORKING FROM HOME!!! Use this time for growth!
Re-Read the article. Figure out what areas make the most sense to focus on to start. Save the resources you find most valuable and ad them to your customized spreadsheet version of 2020 Ultimate Growth Guide - 17 Best Ways to Increase Sales
Fill out / and start trying different areas for growth!
TEST don’t GUESS
Good luck out there :)
as always, follow @itschriskeith on Twitter for more frequent updates
Let’s talk about Black Swan Events and White Knight Opportunities.
Ultimate crises scenarios = Black Swan Events.
If you’re unfamiliar with Nassim Nicholas Taleb, here is a quick explanation of Black Swan Theory:
Our current pandemic is perhaps the greatest Black Swan scenario in history. Certainly recent history.
Black Swan events produce carnage. There will be massive impact across the board economically, yes. We’re beginning to see it. Whiting Petroleum filed for bankruptcy yesterday. Some chefs in the hospitality industry are under the impression that up to 50% of restaurants will not reopen after our mandated quarantine period comes to an end. Major companies and industries as asking for more help as the $2 Trillion dollar stimulus package last week is not enough for them.
But there will also be White Knight opportunities. Let me explain:
Take a look at this market info from Ben Carlson (awealthofcommonsense). It highlights the performance of the Russel 2000 following terribly performing quarters (like the one we just had) since 1979.
Some companies are hiring hundreds of thousands of people (not just amazon):
Reality is changing right now, so they may look different then even a few weeks ago, but opportunities are hiding in plain site.
You might have to support your clientele differently. You might have to change your style of teaching or approach to interaction from in person to over video chat. You might have to optimize your online presence to boost overall company sales. You may have to switch industries or companies. You might have to completely shift your growth focus altogether. You might have to throw away your previous business plan or restructure the funding you thought you were going to receive from that angel investor.
But there is a white knight hidden in there, somewhere.
Find the White Knight!
Look for anomalies and capitalize where possible. People see your true colors in times of crisis.
As always, follow @itschriskeith on Twitter for more regular updates :)
The definition of malleable is: easily influenced; pliable.
Reality is Malleable.
It's best to remember that in the upcoming weeks and months.
One of Steve Job's more memorable quirks was his ability to create a "Reality Distortion Field":
"Steve Jobs’ “reality distortion field” was a personal refusal to accept limitations that stood in the way of his ideas, to convince himself that any difficulty was surmountable. This “field” was so strong that he was able to convince others that they, too, could achieve the impossible. It was an internal reality so powerful it also became an external reality"
2020 is the year of reality distortion for the United States of America.
Internally and externally. Both personally and business-wise. It's happening from all angles.
Every part of the business world is being impacted by COVID-19. Look at the top 12 industries of the US Economy:
Here is a breakdown of what each industry does, with company names, and a BRIEF impact of this crisis.
Every single one of these industries being is impacted right now. This is what makes this dilemma different from crisis' of the past.
Take a look at this graph of the major bank stocks:
We've never experienced anything as wide ranging as this economic impact.
We don't know what the ramifications are going to be.
What we do know is that realities are changing. Rapidly.
The amount of stimulus being brought forth by government's across the globe is unprecedented. Till 10 days ago, pumping TRILLIONS of dollars into the economy was not a reality. Today, it's a necessity.
Till last week, tax day was April 15. Now, it's July 15. You also don't have to make your federal student loan payments for a few months. That wasn't a point of negotiation while I was paying off student loans.
Following these leads, new realities are going to be constructed from corporate standpoints.
Industries and Companies will soon have to face reality (if they haven't already):
These types of questions are already flowing through all of the companies and industries mentioned above + all the other industries that didn't crack the top 12!
This is building a NEW REALITY / NEW ERA moving forward.
PEOPLE are starting to realize the severity of our circumstances, though we will likely have to experience a bit more loss for it to officially set in.
THINGS (THINGS GENERALLY/ ALL THINGS/ THE WHOLE WORKS) ARE INDEED NOT WORKING VERY WELL. IN FACT, THEY NEVER DID.
SYSTEMS TEND TO MALFUNCTION CONSPICUOUSLY JUST AFTER THEIR GREATEST TRIUMPH
Reality distortion has become our new normal. What is true and concrete one day is changing the next.
Its hard to adjust to, and will certainly be inconvenient, but the better we understand, are prepared for, and react to these changes will help us both short term and long term.
TAKEAWAYS:
REALITY IS MALLEABLE!
Things are changing fast. Adjust as necessary.
DO NOT SPREAD UNNECESSARY FEAR!
But do wrap your head around what reality could look like moving forward. We're gonna make it through this, but things are going to change, for sure. Let's try to embrace crisis as best we can in the tough times ahead. Help out when able. Go the extra mile for those less fortunate. Do the right thing for humanity.
DO NOT BET AGAINST CAPITALISM!
All of the graphs and simulations being run do not take into consideration how we are going to react to the crises in real time.
In closing:
Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith.
- Steve Jobs
This is a big brick - BUT WE CANNOT LOSE FAITH!
Reality is Malleable - let’s make the best of it.
Follow along @itschriskeith for more info in Twitter :)
Up till this point in time, we mostly feared COVID-19. Now it’s beginning to cause loss.
Loss is much more significant. Loss of lifestyle, jobs, companies, industries, lives, etc.
It's tough to tell exactly how bad the economic impact will be and how much personal loss will happen, hence market volatility and uncertainty.
This article from McKinsey (specifically the brief from 3/16/20) does an excellent example of highlighting what the realistic impacts on the economy, and talks about the time horizon as well. TLDR, there are far reaching impacts from this situation that will not be fixed overnight. If you're skimming, read the paragraphs directly following the two scenarios headlined, delayed recovery and prolonged contraction.
This twitter thread runs through economic modeling of virus spread in the US. The results are alarming.
This article from the LA Times highlights that we could be looking at +/- 20% unemployment, quickly.
These statistics make us afraid. What will be (potentially) be worse is the actual loss associated with the above scenarios.
Loss is permanent. It cuts deep. As human beings, we have trained ourselves to avoid loss at all costs. The cognitive impact pf loss is incredibly impactful on the human psyche.
The loss aversion theory states:
Loss aversion refers to people's tendency to prefer avoiding losses to acquiring equivalent gains: it is better to not lose $5 than to find $5. The principle is very prominent in the domain of economics. Humans may be hardwired to be loss averse due to asymmetric evolutionary pressure on losses and gains: for an organism operating close to the edge of survival.
This comes from our ancestors. If they lost, they died. Luckily, its 2020 AD, not 2020 BC, so we'll pull this back around.
From a business perspective:
FEAR is when the stock of the company that you work for/own shares of, craters significantly, and you lose 50% of your portfolio. This sucks and makes you uneasy.
LOSS is when that company goes bankrupt. You lose your job. Your investment goes from a 50% potential loss to a $0 basis.
From the COVID-19 perspective:
FEAR was the initial spread of this virus. The explosion of cases over in China was so far away, so distant. They live completely different lives and have a different healthcare system. Even in Europe, still, they live on top of each other. We hear stories of countries on lock down, but that can’t happen here in the US.
Over the past weeks/days, this narrative has changed dramatically. Not only is the US heading towards lock-down (some already are) but the spread of COVID-19 will continue to rise dramatically as more people are exposed, and we test more people/get accurate results.
That means we’re going to experience LOSS.
Hopefully, its not the loss of too many lives, hopefully it’s not the loss of too many jobs and companies, but there will be loss associated. We’re beginning to see it already. Even if you simply test positive for the virus, you lose all personal privileges for 14 days. You're silo’d in personal quarantined jail.
It will be interesting to see the impact of fear vs. loss in the upcoming weeks and months.
PLEASE - remain positive! We'll make it through this! Don’t panic and buy into the fear-mongering that the world is coming to an end. History has shown we’re extremely resilient, and the government is demonstrating (House + Senate passed a stimulus bill late yesterday as well) they are willing to do whatever it takes to get us through this. Private + Public sector companies are coming together to make this possible!
China’s new cases have dropped significantly (close to 0) and Italy’s new cases appear to be leveling off as well!
BUT - BE SMART in these uncertain times. We’re +/- 10 days behind Italy and far more behind China.
Time, as always, is our most precious commodity. Anything we can do as a population to buy more time for healthcare professions to treat the virus / stop the spread / and work on a cure or vaccine is the most beneficial use of time we have!
Follow on Twitter for shorter thoughts and more updates @itschriskeith
We're not at the bottom just yet.
Quick disclaimer:
1 - Do not take this as specific investment advice.
2- There are people far more technical and sophisticated in this space. The points below are simply meant to give context for where we are today and likely where things are headed over the next few weeks/months.
3 - No one on knows exactly what is going on right now and where this will situation will finish. Anybody who looks at complex/dynamic situations with complete certainty is an idiot. If a money manager tells you he/she has been correctly timing the market buys/ selloffs for any extended period of time, ask why they aren't managing all of the money in the world. No one has these answers!
Take a look at this chart, which (with the red line on the left) shows the market drop in the past couple weeks, compared to the 2008/09 financial crisis:
The average Bull Market over the past 100 years lasts for 4.9 years. We’ve been bullish for >10 years. The average Bear Market lasts 1.4 years. We’re 26 days in. This has only just begun.
Current Dynamics at play, which has lead to market volatility the past month:
Like Trump or not, he is an incredible showman. Scott Adams refers to him as a Master Persuader.
Did you watch the full video the press conference on Friday afternoon? He had the CEO's of major, blue chip American companies up on stage with him, shaking hands, talking about the plans we're putting in place, and how we're working to make it through. (Walmart, CVS, Quest Diagnostics, etc).
There was very little actual substance, but that has been his brand this whole time, and frankly, (like it or not) it has worked. We saw a massive rally to end the day on Friday (him coming on at 3:30 EST was not an accident) for almost a 9% gain. Short term, great. Not sustainable though.
Hopefully, politics aside, this helps our country, and our planet, both in the short term (to get over this unknown enemy we all currently face, COVID-19) and long term (remove some of the damn red tape that is draped all over the healthcare industry at large).
But, from a trading/stock market perspective, over the next weeks/months, the fundamentals and facts will catch up. History repeats, (reference the above charts)... And the stock market will go lower.
In the words of the Warren Buffet:
It's only when the tide goes out that you learn who has been swimming naked.
The tide is beginning to recede, and we’ve still got a way to go.
Please don’t read this and panic, but do properly align expectations. Misaligned expectations are the root of all disappointment.
Think of our current circumstance this way:
If this were a baseball game we're in the first or second inning. Get comfortable, make sure you have a some beer in the fridge, a few frozen pizzas and other nonperishable food stocked up for social distancing reasons, and extra toilet paper, cause we've got a lot of game left!
We're not at the bottom just yet.
Follow on Twitter for shorter thoughts and more updates @itschriskeith
Don't shy away from crisis. Embrace it.
A novice salesperson gets nervous and avoids crisis when shit hits the fan. An expert sees the opportunity.
Anyone can be the guy when everything is going well. People's true colors show in times if uncertainty and crisis.
Diving Deeper:
Early on in your sales career, you're going to try to do everything humanly possible to try and avoid crisis.
This makes sense. When you're new and relationship building, you don't want to start things with a massive disagreement. Think about new friend you've developed. It's generally not the best idea to kick off a budding friendship with a catastrophic argument, say talking about politics or religion. That's just not perfect.
However, as we know, business is different than many personal relationships. And, in business, its not a matter of whether things will go wrong. Its a matter of when.
Referencing the SYSTEMS BIBLE, by John Gall:
Its not a matter of if something will break, but when.
So, take a second, and have this internal dialog:
Things are going to go wrong. It might be my fault. It might not be. It might be an obvious issue, or it might be something that we didn't see coming. It might be a quick fix, it might be a longer term and more painful situation.
Either way - I understand this. My client also understands this.
I’m going to to everything in my power to make this go away. We’re going to make it through, and be strong on the other side. We’re actually going to enjoy a nice steak dinner afterwards and laugh about this damn thing.
But, while we’re knee deep in this thing:
I Promise to resolve the issue. As fast as we can. I promise to mitigate the damage as best as possible while we're having issues, and make my client whole on the back end.
Crisis separates the adults from the toddlers. It's that simple.
Its easy to be the milk run sales guy/resources expert who can swing by and talk about new technology or take people to lunch and dinner when things are going well. That's easy.
Your client will see your true colors when shit hits the fan. They are going to JUDGE and REMEMBER you and your company based on how you react when things aren’t perfect. When you have to think outside of the box. When the chips are down, how did you treat them? How did you make them feel? Were you still adding value? Or did you leave them high and dry?
Remember, people are constantly having issues. Systems malfunction and they fail.
Inexperienced / Novice salespeople crumble during these circumstances. Here are a list of things you want to avoid:
Instead, in time of crisis, take a few steps back and think about the opportunity you've been given.
This is a chance for you and your client to get down in the trenches, TOGETHER!!! How cool, you guys get to fight in the same battle! No better way to see what each other are made of and build camaraderie.
In crisis mode, you gotta be all hands on deck. This includes:
Its going to take some time, effort, energy, blood, sweat, and tears - but generally, you make it to the other side, and everything is OK. In fact, it’s better.
Granted, while the crisis is going on, all you can think about is doing everything in your power to make it stop.
But remember, your client is down in the trenches with you. After you've made it through a battle together, your relationship is far deeper than before.
Think about your personal life. Think about your closest relationships. How often have you had meaningful experiences with those people? Whether it be late nights out on the town, travel abroad, or heated conversations/arguments... These type of experiences are what bring us together!
1- Embrace it!!! It's an opportunity to show your true colors and actually add real value!
2 - Over - Communicate - with all items/good and bad / internally and externally. Cannot shy away from tough conversations!
3 - Make it through to the other side, grab a nice steak dinner, and laugh about it 🙂
Good luck out there!
How someone makes us feel will never be automated or removed by technology.
No matter how good technology gets, at least in the near future, we're still going to need to interact with human beings. These reasons will continue to evaporate, lol, but you're going to need human help for the foreseeable future for the following circumstances:
As we attempt to remove human interaction from the majority of our day to day activities, the human interfaces you get the chance to have will matter more and more. So, when you do have the chance to interact with someone, the stakes will get higher and higher. We'll have a slimmer margin of error across the board, as people will have a lower tolerance for BS.
Reasons for this:
Scarcity - as we remove people from day to day interaction, the amount of time you get to interface will matter more and more. You’ll really have to knock it out of the park when you actually get in front of a potential client/other human. This is great for companies/ people that have this figured out. On the contrary, it’s going to be an uphill battle for those who don’t.
Scarcity, PT 2 - at least for the next 20 years or so, there are decision makers who are age 40+ that are comfortable talking on the phone and would often times prefer to get help/advice from a real person. That means there is still going to be a ton of people out there who are looking for (at least the option) to have human to human interaction.
REAL People will still be making the highest level (and most expensive) purchasing decisions for the foreseeable future:
As we continue to progress from a technology perspective, experiences will become a more prized commodity.
Specifically, EXPERIENCE buys/packages will only go up in value
One thing that technology will ever be able to take away from us - how we make someone FEEL. The EXPERIENCE we provide. In fact, as technology evolves and continues to move forward, this part of human interaction will only prove to be more valuable. (see the scarcity references earlier in this post)
Think about this from a technology perspective. Why is Apple so successful with their hardware? Have you ever used an iPhone or a Mac? The shit just works. Why has Amazon taken over the industry? When you order something it shows up in 2 days, max. When you lose an item, they refund you immediately. Why does Google own a significant amount of real estate online? Have you googled a question and not gotten a near perfect answer in the last, idk, 3 hours?
GREAT, Chris. What does this all mean?
It means you should always be working on mastering the art of human interaction. The better you get at it, the more success you’re going to have in life, particularly in sales.
Think about the jobs that will continue to go away. Mind you - high paying jobs, not just the minimum wage jobs the nation news focus on. We’re talking Wall Street financial analysts, mortgage brokers, real estate agents, many statisticians, lawyers pouring over agreements, and other high paying white collar jobs, just to name a few. These are often times $100k + a year jobs folks, disappearing, because of AI, automation and sheer computing power.
You know what’s not being automated? Human interactions and experiences.
If you are a person/business that is capable of giving a positive experiences, you’re going to win more and have more loyal clients. It’s that simple.
If you make it a priority to make yourself or your “support team” available and capable of giving quality help and support, you’re going to win more and have more loyal clients. It’s that simple.
Double down on becoming a master of human interaction and experience, and you will corner yourself into a job that cannot be automated.
So, how do you go about it!?
******CALL TO ACTION*******
After every interaction you have, ask the following questions:
People will remember and be loyal.
You Can Do Anything - But You Can't Do Everything.
Lucky us! Another sales paradigm that directly also coincides with day to day life!
Let's talk about the most valuable commodity of all - TIME.
Time is the most precious resource that you have in life, so naturally it is the most important variable in how you choose to grow your business. You need to figure out where your time is best spent to maximize your effectiveness.
A major issue young professionals have is not knowing what to spend their time on. Every time the phone rings, you drop everything and answer it. You run around like a chicken with your head cut off because you’re trying to check off all of the boxes necessary set in place by a company, what you think is the most important, Larry from the cube down the hall, etc. You spend the same amount of time on a $10k opp as you would on a $1MM opp.
Of course, when you are new, you have no experience. You have to learn these lessons the hard way. You need to build those relationships. The only way to do that is by time spent.
But as you progress in your career, you need to be brutally honest about how you are allocating the finite amount of time you have available.
Please know that effective time management is the only was to grow/scale your business. Time is a limited resource - you need to prioritize and maximize the ROI you are getting from each of your actions.
Million Dollar wins are moving the needle They should not be placed on the same tier of a hierarchical structure as a $10k opportunity. The sooner you realize you cannot afford to spend the same amount of time/effort/energy on these opps, the better you'll be
So, how do you go about spending your time correctly? You create and follow the Chris Keith - Opportunity/Client Tracker :). That link will take you to a Googlesheets doc I already created for ya.
Simply press File -> Make a Copy -> and save your own!
Create a tiered list for current opportunities:
Same thing happens with your client list, it just moves down a bit
Opportunity pipeline is the the ruler of all. When you drum up a potential Tier 1 opportunity, it immediately gets the attention it deserves - so take that into consideration right away, and start spending the time necessary on it! These do not come along often - you have to capitalize on them when they do.
Another major mistake novice salespeople make is not sniffing out the major tier 1 opportunities, because they have “other things going on” or “boxes to check”. Not acceptable. ALWAYS be looking for needle mover opportunities and rearrange your hierarchy when you potentially find one. You cannot apologize for spending the time necessary on those massive whales. As mentioned, they can often time be year changing/career making deals. That shit matters!
Also note - in the Chris Keith - OPP/Client Tracker Example, you’ll notice that there isn’t a ton of additional room in the ‘Pursuit / Next Action columns. That isn’t by accident. This sheet is not supposed to bog you down with unnecessary work/information, as you should be managing that in your head already. This is an overview of the critical next steps to move the needle forward, that’s all.
Call to action:
Happy selling 🙂
In memory of the late, Kobe Bryant. Let’s talk about the MAMBA MENTALITY.
Obsessiveness is a Superpower. Obsession in a specifically targeted and productive way.
Like Kobe Bryant or not, he is certainly among the upper echelon of athletes that you need to RESPECT. The only aspect of Kobe’s game that transcended his ability on the court was his work ethic. The stories about this aspect of his game and mentality were beyond legendary, and clearly why he was going to be successful in any area of his life that he decided to spend time. (evidenced by winning a Grammy, the Mamba Academy, family life, etc.)
For anyone who isn’t familiar with Kobe’s work ethic, here is an example to paint the picture for you. As some additional context, this story is from back in 2008 when Kobe was playing on the “Redeem” Olympic Team. Rob was one of the main trainers for team USA at that time:
Yes, Kobe was a supernaturally gift physical athlete (newsflash, every single NBA player is). His differentiation was his obsessiveness.
Diving deeper, outside just the specifics of basketball:
One of my friends is a former Olympic skier. He argues that the most important aspect of any athlete at a professional level is the amount of time (or practice) they are willing to commit. It’s constant. Every hour that you're not out on the slopes, you know there is someone, somewhere, who is. You have to be obsessed. It’s a day in and day out commitment. Hours and hours and hours and hours and hours.
With skiing, the more you practice, the more you improve. You're capable of tricks and turns that were previously impossible. It's easy to wow your mere mortal friends with your body control and speed flying down the slopes.
Think about lifting weights. Generally, if you're consistent in this type of practice, results are clear and obvious. You can see your physique change. If you focus on diet, you generally lose weight or remain slim. There are tangible rewards visible to you personally AND the outside world.
Would you have the same results if you read about lifting weights without any of the physical follow up? Or you watched a cooking show that demonstrated how to eat healthy on your phone while sitting in the McDonalds drive-through?
No.
The theory of obsession does not just apply to athletes or physical activities. It is applied by the most successful people in the business world as well. The same phenomena happens internally in our brains when we practice specific business/sales/or any sort of skill. This is why it is crucial to practice what you preach - you have to put in the time necessary to improve!
Take the following example from James Clear, in his book, Atomic Habits:
"The more you repeat an activity, the more the structure of your brain changes to become efficient at that activity. Neuroscientists call this long-term potentiation, which refers to the strengthening of connections between neurons in the brain based on recent patterns of activity. Mathematicians have increased gray matter in the inferior parietal lobule, which plays a key role in computation and calculation. It's size is directly correlated with the amount of time spent in the field; the older and more experienced the mathematician, the greater the increase in gray matter."
Josh Waistkin also explains this concept from his point of view (one of the youngest Chess Grandmasters of all time) in The Art of Learning:
"It is important to understand that by numbers to leave numbers, or form to leave form, I am describing a process in which technical information is integrated into what feels like natural intelligence. Sometimes there will literally be numbers. Other times there will be principles, patterns, variations, techniques, ideas. A good literal example of this process, one that does in fact involve numbers, is a beginner’s very first chess lesson. All chess players learn that the pieces have numerical equivalents—bishops and knights are worth three pawns, a rook is five pawns, a queen is nine. Novices are counting in their heads or on their fingers before they make exchanges. In time, they will stop counting. The pieces will achieve a more flowing and integrated value system. They will move across the board like fields of force. What was once seen mathematically is now felt intuitively."
This is why it takes time when you begin anything new. When starting fresh in a new job/new industry/new sport, there is going to be a marinating period until you’re able to make any sort of significant impact. Fresh out of college, you're looking at 18 months to get a feel for your industry and new role. Then you'll notice that you start making an impact. It will take a few years on top of that until you're actually considered good, much less great.
That's the reality.
Malcolm Gladwell outlines this in his book Outliers with the 10,000-Hour Rule, claiming that the key to achieving world-class expertise in any skill, is, to a large extent, a matter of practicing the correct way, for a total of around 10,000 hours.
We can debate the actual number of hours required, the point is, you gotta practice.
The good news is as soon as you begin to develop these mental muscles, you'll use them for the rest of your career. Most skills you develop professionally are easily transferred from industry to industry / company to company / roll to roll, et cetera.
For instance, the ability to navigate the corporate ladder from one organization to another will never be identical, but fundamentals will be just about the same. Humans are quite simple from a basic needs perspective - the interpersonal relationships will always be the most active dynamic at play in those scenarios. Once you begin playing the game, you'll be able to develop the skills necessary to advance.
Code is code, products are products, numbers are numbers and people are people. The fundamentals remain the same. If you can write code, the software will work. If you can manage a 40MM software line, you can figure out the hardware side of it. If you're an expert at breaking down Corporate M&A deals, real estate investments will also make sense. If you can sell hardware, software is also possible.
Now back to the title of this whole piece.
This is the mindset needed to become great.
In closing, take note of this final quote from Kobe Bryant:
If you really want to be great at something, you have to truly care about it. If you want to be great in a particular area, you have to obsess over it. A lot of people say they want to be great, but they’re not willing to make the sacrifices necessary to achieve greatness. They have other concerns, whether important or not, and they spread themselves out. That’s totally fine. After all, greatness is not for everybody.
Successful people in life will attribute their success to some form of obsession.
REST IN PEACE KOBE BRYANT
EFFORT will win people’s hearts.
So much of sales is effort based. Wait, let me take a step back.
The longer you live in the world of sales, the quicker you realize that effort is legitimately 95% of the battle.
This is the brute force method : sometimes you have to WILL your way through solutions. It’s going to be hard. It's going to be time consuming. But if you take the time, the energy, and the EFFORT, results follow.
The great thing about effort is that anyone can have it. Anyone can do it. It cannot be taught. It’s a personal choice. Its not decided the moment you're born, like your family/where in the world you're located. Effort rests completely on you.
Some people (top performers) use this to their advantage. Other people (average to below average performers) do not. They watch the clock, don't go the extra mile (or an extra 10 feet) to get to the prize.
There isn’t anything wrong with the work/life balance argument. Some people are completely consumed by work (to the fact that is doesn't seem like work at all, its actually fun, see my article on the power of obsession), and others are not. It's reality. However, if you are the type of person who watches the clock, there’s a chance sales isn't exactly the right job for you.
Though effort can absolutely be controlled, it’s not something that can be forced. It’s impossible to fake effort in the long run. Sure, some people will be able to fake effort and try extra hard when they start a new job or are pursuing a new client for a day, a week, a month. But to truly be great, the effort cannot stop. There needs to be a desire to win instilled so deep that it likely won't ever be fulfilled.
The best news is, when you're young and inexperienced, effort can carry you through a lot of obstacles you're going to run into. You won't understand your product or the market, but if you try extremely hard, work the hours, and put in the effort, your clientele will notice. You’ll also notice. The flow is real. You’ll feel it.
Follow up when you say you're going to. Get back to people early in the morning and late at night. They will remember.
It will help you learn faster. The more brute strength you apply to something early on will help you overcome the learning curve at a higher rate of speed.
Here are a few examples of high effort individuals (and not coincidentally, exceptionally successful people) to paint the picture
Take this quote from the beginning of Michael Ovitz’s book, Who Is Michael Ovitz:
David Goggins (Marine and Green Beret , now ultra marathoner) refers to his process of maximum effort or mental edge as Taking People’s Souls. This is an extreme example, but people who can relate to this sort of thing will instantly recognize the mindset he’s applying. Here are a few highlighted captions from his book, Can't Hurt Me:
Taking Souls is a ticket to finding your own reserve power and riding a second wind. It’s the tool you can call upon to win any competition or overcome every life obstacle. This is a tactic for you to be your best when duty calls. It’s a mind game you’re playing on yourself.
Taking someone’s soul means you’ve gained a tactical advantage. Whoever you’re dealing with, your goal is to make them watch you achieve what they could never have done themselves.
Take their negativity and use it to dominate your task with everything you’ve got. Take their motherf******soul!
Jason Lemkin (must follow on twitter) highlights one of the tough parts of sales and it's as simple as this:
I’d argue, there is a small percentage of the population that doesn’t know how to operate WITHOUT that type of pressure. You want to work with these people / have them selling your stuff!
Control what you can control. So much of sales (and life) is difficult and frustrating because there a ton of dynamics that are completely outside of your control.
Here is a quote from the Fish That Ate the Whale, (Cohen) about Sam Zemurry, “the Banana King” who overthrew United Fruit, one of the largest conglomerates in the world back in the early 1900’s.
For Zemurray, his motivation was clear: he wanted to win. And would do whatever it took. Here was a self-made man, filled with the most dangerous kind of confidence: he had done it before and believed he could do it again. This gave him the air of a berserker, who says, If you’re going to fight me, you better kill me.
If you’ve ever known such a person, you will recognize the type at once.
You should NEVER lose due to lack of effort.
Main follow up from this post is pretty straightforward:
