My Internship at 3R Sales & Marketing

Bye Bye

2005-11-30T02:57:00.000-08:00

This is my final day of internship at 3R Sales & Marketing. It has been a great experience which was intellectually rewarding. I built my luck finding this internship online and both Peter and I gambled, since we didn't know each other before, but the gamble paid of. I must admit that I have been fortunate to have had him as a mentor.

From planning to make this an online journal of my weekly activities to becoming an online weekly advice posting, I hope that you enjoyed my blog as much as I enjoyed writing it.

All the best in your future,
Joachim

Hire smart...because success doesn't come without people!

2005-11-23T11:34:00.000-08:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

Last Friday, Peter presented me a heavy (very heavy) custom made Dublin Crystal piece of art entitled Excellence Award 2005 with my name and 3R (all laser engraved). Which is great, since it shows that I have at least reached Peter's expectations.

A part from this great event, this week, I have worked on a sales survey that tries to understand the pain staking problems sales managers have. Questions range from CRM to sales methodologies.
I have also added from researching questions to Peter's Interview sheets, that he uses to screen and select sales reps. Speaking of that...3R is launching a separate website, www.hireasalesrep.com, specializing in the search for the perfect sales rep which most business owners are struggling with. Have a quick look!

This week, I offer this last advice (and somewhat atypical):

Through out this internship, I have been reading a lot of different books including "The 10 day MBA" by Steven Silbiger (which pushed me to buy "The portable MBA in Marketing") and I realized that I already had learned like +90% of the content of those books at IFI. And yet I will graduate there not with a MBA, but with a Bachelor.

You might be wondering, what about the advice: well, there is nothing more valuable than have a MBA academic brain with a Bachelor degree...since the return on investment is only higher. Of course, you have to then screen the different personalities to find what you are looking for...yet if you are looking for a businessperson capable in international marketing or managemenent, IFI is a very smart place to start.

Joachim

After-sale...don't switch your mind OFF!

2005-11-16T10:40:00.000-08:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

This week, I have been continuing to promote 3R online. I have also been helping Peter out with his tax report by typing all his travel expenses in the last 5 months. In addition, I have been working on a press release with Peter: if you are a newspaper editor and interested in having Peter as a columnist, let us know. Finally, I have been doing the usual promotional tracking.

This week, I offer this advice: once that you have sold, don't dump your prospect-turned customer! After the purchase, your customer will have a period of doubt: "Have I taken the right decision? Was that the right choice?" Send your turned customer a thank you card for example and let them know that you are there for any additional help if needed. Have a great customer service mindset, and the "word-of-mouth" will only be more positive! With more "easy" sales to follow...

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Why are your customers buying from you?

2005-11-09T11:16:00.000-08:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

This week, I have continued our online promotional campaign by sending Peter's articles to websites. I have also done some promotional tracking. Finally, I have been doing some copywriting for 3R's new proposal version.

This week, I offer this advice: Ask kindly your customers to describe your company and your services. Try and find out what exactly decided them to buy from you. You might discover that your selling arguments are not their buying reasons. If so, then you are lucky you got them as customers in the first place! Use this technique to have new and more powerful selling arguments. And you might as well ask them for a referral...

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

This is my last month

2005-11-02T11:43:00.000-08:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

This is my last month at 3R so I hope that you enjoy this blog as much as possible in the weeks to come. ;-)

This week (which was shorter because of bank holiday which I hope you all enjoyed well), I have been researching websites where we can post 3R articles so that publishers can use them. I have started to post articles.
Peter and I have also checked the online survey that I encouraged him to create (from a 900 pages educational book that he asked me to read) and it is really exciting to see the results. Thanks for all of you who took part in it!

This week, I offer this advice: Measure and Monitor you marketing results. Like my Scottish marketing teacher liked to say, marketing is all about results. What is your return on leads? Your return on sales? Your return on profit? Once you have the data, then you can better plan the future. How about changing your ad spending, from the local newspaper to online? Did you consider decreasing your price to generate more volume? You should always test and monitor your results in order to be more productive (even though it is full of numbers...).

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

P.S.: the new 4 weeks show on Channel 4, called "Make Me A Million" at 10PM is a must watch! I saw the first episode yesterday night, and I loved it. Basically, it is a competition between 3 successful entrepreneurs to each mentor a team of 2 to great financial success. Entertaining to watch yet educational (from the advices given by the entrepreneurs to the mistakes made by the apprentices).

Offering a garantee and keeping it!

2005-10-26T02:27:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

Great news! Last week, I told you about the survey that I created. Well, Peter with some modifications will include it in this month newsletter! If you are not yet subscribed to our SUCCESS newsletter, don't forget to subscribe now! (it's free and it's powerful if you act on the information we give you).

This week, I have continued to work on the lead generation project. In addition, I have done some promotional tracking. I have also done some sales assement reports.

This week, I offer this advice: you need to increase the confidence and trust in your prospect before making a sales. By giving assurances you will reduce the notion of risk in order to close the sale more easily, faster and more often. Are you offering any garantee right now? If not, why not? Don't forget to keep your promises once offered because your reputation is at stake!

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Public speaking: valuable promoting!

2005-10-19T02:43:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

I have discovered something amazing: this blog is ranked first, if you search "internship sales" or "internship marketing" in http://blogsearch.google.com/.
If you are looking indeed for an internship in sales or marketing, I will be leaving end of November 2005 to continue my studies, so you are welcome to apply to experience 3R. (it's great!)

This week, I have continued to work on 3R's database by filing and editing the data sent by Peter. The accumulated knowledge is quiet amazing. I have also done some promotional tracking. In addition, I have worked on the new homepage of 3R exploiting my knowledge from my reading. I have finally created a detailed survey that I asked Peter to send to the SUCCESS subscribers to have better intelligence.

This week, I offer this advice: One of the cheapest way to advertise yourself is public speaking. Think about it? How much does it cost you to give a speech in front of prospects except some of your time? Research the organizations that your potential client belong to and try to give a speech there. Of course, it shouldn't be a selling presentation!

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

P.S.: any suggestions about my blog? Please let me know at joachim@3r.ie

Questioning, not telling...

2005-10-12T02:05:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

This week, I have been intensely reading the work of an internet expert so that I can apply the latest techniques to develop our new website. Speaking of website, I want to keep you up to date on Peter's other venture: www.exitplan.ie is completed! Feel free to check it out and give us feedbacks! Other than that, I have also done some promotional tracking and polished new tips and techniques for 3R's file. Speaking of which...

This week, I offer this advice: Selling by telling is a losing approach. Selling by asking is a winning approach. Indeed, you need to ask your prospects questions to learn what is going on in their minds in order to convince them that you have the solution to their problems. You will even be able to respond more easily to objections. Next time you try to sell, ask them questions...and you will dramatically increase your sales!

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Ask for the sale!

2005-10-05T02:06:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

This week, I have done some copywriting for a new website for a customer of ours. I have also done some promotional tracking. I have also worked on some promotion for a client and done the usual typing for a sales & marketing assessment report (sign up for free if you want an analysis on your business and some advices on how to improve its performance).

This week, I offer this advice: don’t be afraid to ask for the sale – because so much money is lost by not asking. It is not hard yet the fear of rejection is too high for many when in person or digital (website). Yet you would be making much more money. So change your techniques and set up an order form at the bottom of every of your website. And when in person, don’t hesitate to close when you feel it is the right time! Time is money, and wasted time...is money lost!

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Happy Birthday 3R!

2005-09-28T02:56:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

This is a special week since 3R Sales & Marketing is one year old! A big happy birthday and all the best wishes to 3R and its founder, Peter who is its proud owner. I am just happy to be part of this experience.

Other than that I have been working on the lead generation project. I have also done some promotional tracking. Finally, I have done an analysis of a client's business with a couple of advices to improve it.

This week, I offer this advice: it is important that you show results to your prospect. This will highly increase your chances of making the sale! Who wants to pay a nobody (especially for services)...without knowing what you get! It would be just a risky decision. Reduce this feeling of risk in your prospect by showing for example testimonials and case studies.

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Past clients & Future revenues = There is a link!

2005-09-21T02:30:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

This week, I have been concentrating on the lead generation project. I have accomplished the first stage which was the creation of the leads. Now I will have to concentrate on organizing them according to criterias set by Peter. I also have done an analysis of one of our client's website.

This week, I offer this advice: when was it the last time you concentrated on your past clients? Are you wasting your money and energy on looking for new business elswhere? Give your past clients a call to check how they are doing. Show that you care about them (and do care about them by taking their input seriously) which will develop loyalty.

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

P.S.: I visited Cork last weekend which is for the moment the European Capital of Culture and I highly recommend a one night stay there. A great Irish city!

Don't ignore objections

2005-09-14T02:51:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

This week, I have done two research projects for two different clients. For one, I used my French background to do a competitive research & analysis of the French market to pick some nice ideas for one of our client operating in Ireland. One of the many advantages of having a multi cultural team! The second research was for a newsletter for a client of ours. Talking of clients, 3R has seen an dramatic increase recently! I have also been working on the lead generation project. Peter expects between 200 and 300 leads...so it is a challenging work but very interesting.

This week, I offer this advice: Don't ignore your prospect's objections. Don't act as it is not important. Don't act as deaf. If you do, then you are probably not closing as many sales as you easily could. If you take into consideration her/his objections, then your prospect will feel more secure. And you will be making more money!

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

P.S.: For the past two weeks, I have been watching Stelios' new venture into the cruising industry on SKY TV at 8.00PM and I higly recommend this show! Stelios is a marketing genius and the man behind the Easy brand name (www.easy.com).
To all the business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs, you will see that starting a new business is always complicated even when you have "easy" marked on it! ;-)

Become an advisor!

2005-09-07T03:04:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week.

Like always (I promise next week I'll stop mentioning it!), I sure did by learning a lot. This week, I have been concentrating on the lead generation project. I have done some research and brainstorm to find new leads ideas. I also did my habitual work of sales & marketing assessment report, and some promotion tracking (don't forget to sign up...more and more people do rightfully so).

This week, I offer this advice: instead of simply being a vendor, become an advisor. Your prospect will judge you on price if you are a vendor, but if you are an advisor, you will be much more useful and a long term relationship will naturally develop. I don't think that I need to remind you that honesty needs to be your number one attitude when adopting this strategy for sake of survival...

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Half way thrus...

2005-08-31T02:26:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope you had a great week. I sure did.

Today marks the middle of my internship. I have already accomplished half of my internship and I know that the next half will go at least twice as faster. If I can characterise my experience up to now, it would be as "a thrilling experience"! Peter has invited me to lunch on Friday to mark the event.

Not a week goes by that I don't learn more than something at 3R. This week, I have finished my project on the publication list. I had also to do a research assignment for one of our clients. Now I need to concentrate on the lead generation project. Peter has send the new SUCCESS newsletter in which I am a contributor for the wealth article (don't forget to sign up to check it out).

This week I offer this advice: to close more sales, your clients need to feel a sense of urgency. You need to make them feel urged to purchase your product or service. Translate the time lost in their indecision in terms of revenues and profits. That will help them to act now to purchase your product's or service's benefits! You will soon be making more money in less time...isn't it great?

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Promoting

2005-08-24T02:43:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had a great week. I sure did!

I have been concentrating my energy on one single project: gathering all the publications in Ireland. At first, I only found a couple on the internet, but Peter reminded me of an old tool which power I forgot. It was really interesting since I discovered so many publications.

This week, I offer this advice: once again, I have been inspired by a business article. This time it is on the struggling Pier 1 Imports story. To increase sales, they tested catalogues in some local markets with great results as traffic in stores increased.
When was it the last time you considered sending a catalogue to your potential buyers? As the article underlines, it creates "an impulse buying and brand awarness" which can only help your business. (at 3R can help you in the conception of your catalogue)
To read the complete article: Pier 1 Warns of 2Q Loss on Falling Sales By STEVE QUINN, Associated Press Writer (that you will find on Yahoo! Business News).

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Tasting...testing...

2005-08-17T02:30:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope you had a great week. I sure did.

I have been continuing to read a lot to acquire more knowledge. I have also done some proof-reading for Peter's articles that will be published in the next newsletter (subscribe now, if you haven't yet, there are some great tips for free!).

I have done some promotional tracking. Finally, I have done two different ads for a client.

This week, I offer this advice: inspired from an article on a successful private firm producing sausage named Johnsonville Sausage in the USA, one of their techniques that I admire is a very powerful one that their competitors (big corporations) forgot. They have three semitrailers equipped with huge grills so that people can taste their sausages. A small investment for a long term value return.
Allowing people to test your product is an extremly successful strategy to adopt. That is what is called guerilla marketing and in the competitive enviromnent that many of you operate in, it is only one more solution to face the problem of trying to succeed in the marketplace.
To read the article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050815/ap_on_re_us/bratwurst_boss

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

P.S.: I would love to have your opinion on my blog : joachim@3r.ie

What is the buying motive?

2005-08-10T03:01:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope you had a great week. I sure did.

Yesterday, after a networking meeting in which I represented 3R in Dublin, I had the opportunity to visit the capital. I was surprised by its small size which made it very convinient to walk around. It really is a nice city by Greystones -where we are located- is more relaxing.

This week I have continued to study the work of the internet marketing expert. I have also worked on the lead generation project (researching all the Irish vertical industry publications that exist). I finally just participated in a sales assessment by phone in which Peter helped the owner with some great advices (for free).

This week, I offer this tip: Selling is all about the buying motive. If you can't uncover it, you will never be able to make a sell, even if you have the best presentation in the world! What are the purchaser's motive(s)? If you uncover that, success is guaranteed! And you will discover it through questionning, not telling! (hey, that's two tips in one week...I've got to stop!).

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Features vs. Benefits

2005-08-03T02:29:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope you had a great week. I want to say that I sure did with this little break but the weather was so dreadfull that it would be a lie. Anyway, I first experienced the weather conditions for which Ireland is famous for.

I have now accomplished a third of my internship and achieved many things. I have got to admit that it has been a thrilling experience until now. The amount of knowledge that I have acquired has just been tremendous. I look foward for the rest of my limited time.

I have started to work on the lead generation project. Amazingly interesting. Who doesn't want to have better leads?

I also forgot to mention that 3R's website (www.3r.ie) is one of the best ranked website on Yahoo (www.yahoo.com) for key words that describe us. (type "increase sales Ireland" for example).

Finally, I am studing the work of an expert in internet marketing and there are a couple of good ideas (although most of it is basic stuff). It will take me a couple of week to go through all his stuff but the returns in knowledge will be important for 3R and for me (and eventually for you if you need our expertise). You can always learn something from anybody...

This week, I offer this advice: Do you have problems with sales? If so, maybe it is because you talk about features instead of benefits (a classic mistake). You need to show the value to your cutomers so that he/she wants to buy (customer-oriented). What is the return on investment that the customer will get? What value does it bring to him? If you adopt this approach, your sales will explode.

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

The power of promotional+informative Emails

2005-07-27T03:01:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope you had a great week. I sure did but it went flying by so fast. I thought I wrote my last post this week until I realized it was last week.

So this week I have been working on the tips and techniques project. I finnished it yesterday. Now Peter is himself going to polish the data.

It was a really enriching experience...but I guess that is what my internship at 3R is all about in a sentence!

I also filed the data from our newsletter from June. Peter send the July version yesterday and if you are not subcribe to our SUCCESS newsletter, you are losing big! Go on www.3r.ie to sign up for free.

I am looking for some time off in the next few days...and also looking to start my next project on "Lead Generation Techniques". The goal of marketing concentrated in one project...

I am growing as an intern while 3R is growing as a company!

This week, I offer this advice: Make your promotional Emails informative! By associating your products or services with usefull information, you increase the interest and readership of your emails. You also build loyalty (who wants to miss usefull information for their business or themselves?) and trust...and we all know what trust brings in business...more business!

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

P.S.: Please send my blog adress to anyone interested in my weekly tips...I am sure you know at least 2 persons. As a marketing consultant at 3R, my philosophy is to help as many people as possible.

A membership club

2005-07-20T02:50:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope that you had an exciting week. I sure did (again).

I have worked most of the amount of my time on the same project than last week which consist of filing all the best tips and techniques that exist.

I have also been selecting with Peter the best website template for exitplan.ie. The new design with probably astonish you...it is a real beauty!

Finally yesterday, I have been working on setting up all our contacts in one file. This allows 3R to establish a more efficient sales process than before. The more people you have, the harder it becomes to be as efficient…

This week I offer this advice: Have you ever considered having a membership club? This will allow you to increase loyalty among your customers by showing how much you appreciate them (we all like to feel special)... and learn more from them! It will allow you to develop a more personal relationship. Don’t forget to make that club really special with some attractive offers.

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

Trust

2005-07-13T05:23:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope you had a great week. I sure did again.

This week has been very intense because I have integrated so much knowledge in my brain!

I am working on a project called "tips & techniques" in sales & marketing where we are gathering the best of those. It is taking me full time. This will enrich 3R's ressources in terms of knowledge.

Hence, I will be able to give you one idea for every week.

This week, I offer this advice: If you're sales are bad, then maybe you are not trusted as a potential partner. Have you thoughts about it? Through marketing (promotion), you need to build trust and awarness in your decision maker's mind, so that when he needs the service's you are offering, he will call you. And you won't wasting your time trying to call prospects...

The sales & marketing report have been modified by Peter. The report now clearly gives a sales report and a marketing report within the general report whereas before it could have been more confusing. He has also added a "vital statistic" section.

As you have realized, I now report my experience on the blog every Wednesday.

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

My longer week...

2005-07-06T02:13:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope you had an exciting week. I sure did (again).

First, I apologize for not publishing my post yesterday, but it was a special day. I went with Peter to Dublin and it was exciting. We were at a networking meeting and then had a sales and marketing assessment report with an entrepreneur. But the assessment did change direction when his situation was different from the norm. Adaptation is a must in business! The qualitative tips we gave him made his return on time (ROT) very productive.

I had a lot of sales and marketing report to fill this week again. It never stops which is logical since there is only value to gain.

I have also continued to work on exitplan.ie. Strategic planning is a must for any business and as advisers, exitplan's seems to be able to improve performance for many of them. The promotion of exitplan needs some work though and that is what I have been working on.

See you in a week and all the best until then,
Joachim

P.S.: I read an article this morning on McDonald's (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8475023/). Uniform is part of marketing! If you're employees wear a uniform, when was the last time you thought about its importance?

Progress never stops

2005-06-28T11:45:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I hope you had an exciting week. I sure did.

On friday, it will officially be one month that I have been working for 3R Sales & Marketing. Time seems to accelerate as it goes by. But it is also good news, since it is a sign that I am enjoying my time here.

This week, I have been upgrading the Sales Assessment Report once again with Peter.

He has also accepted most modifications that I suggested on the Interview sheet. We ask more targeted questions in order to have better answers and deliver a better report.

Progress never stops, and we at 3R accept this philosophy and integrate it in our way of working. Peter likes to be challenged with new ideas and suggestions. This is what I believe makes a great manager; to be open to change and risk new things.

More and more people are asking for our Sales Assessment report and so I need to fill more and more reports which I have been doing this week.

I have also been working on the SUCCESS newsletter database to try and organize it better. We have done a better selection of who we want to be subscribed at our newsletter.

I have also been working on a big project which is on ExitPlan (www.exitplan.ie). I have done a scanning on the competition to have a better understanding of Existplan's position in the marketplace. I also need to change the content of the website. If you have any suggestions on what can be changed, please leave me a comment, or send me an email at joachim@3r.ie.

I have also been doing more reading which as always is time well invested.

See you in a week and all the best until then.
Joachim

My busy week

2005-06-21T03:17:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I hope you had an exciting week. I sure did.

First, like always, I have been doing a lot of reading and I love it.

Then, I have been working on a new homepage of a client with Peter.

It made me think about website design in general. Designers are artists, they can and often do make great stuff, but are they customer-oriented like we guys are obsessed about? Who does the company trust when it comes to the content? Is it the computer-engineering or the marketing expert?

In addition, I have helped to craft a new sales assessment report plan. More direct, clearer, more informative, it is really a nice piece of work which I'm proud of.

I also helped in the conception with somes ideas for one customer (although it's free, I still like to think of them as customers, motivating you to do the best...).

Finally, I have been working on a new Marketing Plan Template with some interesting ideas and theories inserted. Peter brought a more practical side to it, always thinking about the customer and differentiating 3R from the rest (marketing=customer-oriented, product-differenciation...).

I forgot to mention that I have been cold calling by phone to sign up to our SUCCESS newsletter. Most sellsman will tell you that cold calling is one of their dislikes (including me), yet it is a mental thing: see it as a game to win, if they say no, they reject your offer not you etc...

My challenge is that they are only positive aspects and not a negative one, so they feel like they must be a trap or something..."why is he calling to get my email address to send me free valuable information for my business?"

Well, I guess at 3R, helping people is a natural belief and attitude of ours.

See you in a week and all the best until then.
Joachim

PS: if you know anybody that would be intereted in our newsletter, please let him/her know about it or sign that person up directly at www.3r.ie, if you really care.

What is this blog all about?

2005-06-14T05:22:00.000-07:00

Hi and welcome to my weekly blog,

I am an intern at 3R Sales & Marketing ( www.3r.ie) in Greystones, Ireland, for 6 months and this blog is all about my experience in this great firm. I chose 3R because of its specialized activities and Ireland because it's an interesting country.

Peter Lawless is my boss, and I am learning everyday from his experience and expertise.

Since the 1st of June, I have learned that the real estate market in Ireland is "special". Joking aside, I have done a lot of reading, because the business of 3R (consulting) is a lot about knowledge.I have also been working on marketing assignements with Peter and it's been quiet exciting.

We have been doing a Wedding Editorial as well as an advertisment for the services of Hoopers Catering. In addition, I have been assisting in the conception of an article that lists 7 +1 criterias that a business owner should consider when selecting sales and marketing services .

Joachim