March 28th, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
How to Get Out of a Sales Slump
By Dan Fantasia, Treeline, Inc. Founder and President
Have you ever seen your favorite sports team or favorite professional athlete get into a slump and wonder how they got there and when they are going to get out of it? It can be frustrating to watch and even more difficult for the team to recognize the need to make changes in order to snap out of it.
The driving factor behind breaking a slump is 90% mental, which is why it is so difficult to break. Think about it. When was the last time you found yourself in a slump? How long did it take to wake up and move on? What were the factors that motivated you to get over the hump?
Now think of your team. Are some of your players in a slump? If so, they are not the only ones. Frequently, around the end of Q1 a lot of sales representatives fall into slumps. Your team ran straight into Q1 at full speed and with the winter months coming to an end, many have cabin fever and are easily distracted.
The last couple of years have been tough. Many of our sales peers had to fight hard, work harder and their ability to succeed has been tested. Good news, the market is picking up and as sales professionals we have an incredible opportunity to crush our numbers in 2011. We have to take advantage of the time we have to make money.
So how do you get your sales athletes out of a slump?
Acknowledge that some of your players are distracted? Bring it to their attention. Many of them will already feel pressure internally. They will not be sure what is wrong, but will know that they are not producing as well as they should. This is not about being unlucky, or being a victim; this is about getting pointed in the right direction to succeed.
Relieveanxiety that will cause additional distraction by addressing the problem and offering support and council. Sales people know when they are not producing. Help them get back on track with aggressive and direct objectives and goals. Focus on driving activity and inspect results.
Mix it up. Keep your environment fresh and change up the daily routine. Encourage your team to run in the morning, drive a different way to work, read a new book, listen to motivational tapes, eat different foods, take different people out to lunch, get to work early, set a goal to close the office twice a week, etc. Break the common routine; steering your team away from burn out. When in a slump it is easy to burn out, but it is your responsibility to help your team push through the downs. It happens to all of us, but it is those who mentally push through these lows that find better days and much success.
Encourage your team to ask for help. Find new ways to do the job. Encourage your team to be nimble, to adapt, change and learn. Learn from management, peers and from the newest members of the team. Knowledge is power and it revitalizes the sole.
Don’t get distracted. Block out the billions of distractions you have daily. Use your time wisely. Don’t waste time on distracting emails, news stories, family, social networking, the production of others around you, etc. When in the office there is one thing to focus on, booking business. The only way to make money is to sell, so clear everything out of your way that does not relate to your pipeline, booking revenue and hitting your goals. What is it going to take to be number 1?
Have fun. Share a positive attitude, it is contagious and will bring your team success. We are approaching the end of the first quarter. There are 3 quarters left. The weather is changing and instead of being a distraction use the momentum to create fun motivational challenges to build team unity. A happy and positively charged environment creates high production.
Team Unity. Focus on the basics and driving activity. Don’t wait for someone else to do it for you? Take action! Encourage your team to find a peer to commit to call blitz together. Create team games internally with small prizes to build unity and drive activity. Have fun with it and create competition. Prospecting together creates synergy and increases energy and belief. Everyone’s success is shared and the team will achieve positive reinforcement and success.
The key to getting out of a slump is to recognize that you are in one. Take control of your destiny. Don’t be a victim. Instead, shake it off and make small tweaks to your daily routine and get on the offensive. Mix things up and get it done. Be happy and work harder than everyone else. Ultimately, you will find yourself at the top of the heap by end of 2011. This is going to be the best year of your life. Let’s go!
March 28th, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
Carpe Diem!
By Chris Simone, Vice President, Sales at Treeline, Inc.
Since the beginning of time, change, improvement and new ideas have been welcomed and even embraced (sometimes even inspired) by leaders in every pocket of our economy. Innovation and change have fueled the greatest economic system in the world called Capitalism.
A couple of clicks on an iPAD over Wi-Fi, through Google, to Wikipedia yields the following definition of innovation: “Innovation is the improving of an existing product, service, system or process and the introduction of something better. The term derives from the Latin innovationem, the noun of action from innovare…and stemming from the Latin innovatus, pp. of innovare ‘to renew or change,’ from in- ‘into’ + novus ‘new.’” [Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Innovation]
Carpe diem is commonly translated in popular culture as “Seize the Day.” Many believe the origin of the phrase was a work by the Roman Poet Horace. However, I prefer Robin Williams movie quote from, “Dead Poets Society,” in which he plays English professor John Keating: “…carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary.” [another thank you for the innovative www.imdb.com]
Fun history lesson, but what’s my point? I’ll get there, I promise…
I’m thinking specifically about the space in which the large and growing DADO community collectively directs its passion – the process and practices by which companies find top sales athletes, and the ways in which sales professionals propel their candidacy and careers.
The job boards deserve credit for bringing innovation into the job search domain in the mid to late 1990’s. These leaders truly innovated.
Monster.com and HotJobs (which are now consolidating) and CareerBuilder had combined revenue in 2009 of over $1 billion USD. These sites register over 50 million unique visitors per month, but this activity is not translating into progress for their primary stakeholders – Corporations emerging from the economic downturn, Hiring Managers, and Job Seekers.
Do you agree as Sales and Organization Leaders that the following challenges exist?
Corporations have fewer people and resources with which to execute the traditional hiring process in the wake of the economic downturn, yet new talented employees are required to propel growth and revenue;
Hiring Managers need faster access to more relevant candidates but precision (which equates to relevance+speed) is not possible on the job boards;
Job Seekers need to stand out and grab the attention of Hiring Managers to avoid getting lost in monstrous job boards;
Hiring Managers and Job Seekers need new content and tools to gauge veracity, reality, culture, and character in order to close the trust gap.
So, here we are again. We are living in an interesting time when change is inevitable. It would be an overstatement to go so far as to suggest that Capitalism is depending on us — the stakes are high enough nonetheless. The economy is posed for a re-bound (the signs are all around us) and innovation is our opportunity and responsibility as stewards of our businesses and the role our businesses play in our respective communities.
Consensus exists within and beyond the DADO community that sustainable growth in the 21st century requires new approaches and processes that are smarter more relevant and faster. More specifically, companies can no longer afford to pay for, or handle high volumes of irrelevant resume traffic; and Job Seekers are increasingly uninterested in paying to post their resumes, or for the privilege of reading nebulous job posts as a prelude to an obscured employer and interview process.
What does this mean for us? How should we fulfill our responsibility and seize our opportunity? Do the answers lie within social media and social networking? Nielsen reports that 75% of Internet users visit social media and networking sites and that over 20% (and rising fast) of our time on the Internet is spent engaging in various ways on social networking sites. By some estimates, the “big-3” (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter) have over 700 million combined users and they are growing rapidly. However, this activity is not easily converted into precision within the job search domain.
Please share your ideas for our collective path forward! We also invite you to learn more about DADO – an innovative Social Recruiting platform that fuses 21st century technologies (including social media) and behaviors with recruiting best practices. DADO powers Treeline and is Treeline’s contribution to the journey of significance which the readers of this blog share. Dado is one step, maybe a leap, forward and will improve by the same behaviors and influences for which it was created to harness: knowledge, technology, social collaborative engagement, and urgency.
To the Sales and Organization leaders reading this blog we offer this call to action – Carpe diem!
March 28th, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
“Innovation is at the heart of economic prosperity and SBANE continues to recognize those companies that have transformed their innovative ideas into a product or service that delivers proven value to customers.” (www.sbane.org)
As many of you know, Treeline has developed an application called DADO, a first of its kind Social Recruiting platform and community that fuses 21st century technologies (including social media) and behaviors with recruiting best practices.
The Smaller Business Association of New England, Inc. (SBANE) recognizes innovative corporations who have unique growth characteristics and traction in their respective markets. SBANE utilizes its highly competitive Innovation awards program to showcase technology-driven enterprises who are potentially “game changers” in their marketplace niche. (www.sbane.org)
As a nominee of the New England Innovation Award, Treeline presented DADO, to an influential group of judges. Treeline was among 400+ attendees that attended the March 24th event.
Treeline believes that DADO will change the way the recruiting industry operates; it will also transform the way companies everywhere recruit their workforces, and the way professionals propel their job searches. In this new paradigm, recruiters add knowledge and support; thereby, fostering and reinforcing the social recruiting service for the 21st century, which is knowledge-powered, technology-enabled, collaborative, and social.
March 21st, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
B2B Marketing Manager
B2B Marketing Manager #781 – MA – Technology – $75k
Our client has experienced double digit growth over the past 5 years. They are solid, profitable, and have never had a layoff in their 25 year history. This company is recognized as a market leader in their space for exceptional technology solutions for enterprise companies.
Job Description: This is the senior Marketing Manager position repoting to the Senior Management team. The ideal candidate will manage online marketing and demand generation efforts including email marketing, managing the customer/prospect data base, webinars, customer case studies, PPC & SEO activities, web site, promotional campaigns, Customer Newsletter, and interface with external vendors & partners for lead programs. This is dynamic role, within a fast-paced environment, with the core goal of generating quality leads for the sales team. This position requires significant ongoing interaction and effective communication with the sales management team.
Requirements: 4 – 8 years High-Tech B2B marketing experience (of a technical product) to senior level I.T. Buyers is required. Specific, demonstrable, online marketing experience, and web 2.0 leadership, are also a “Must have” to be considered for this position. The ideal candidate must also be an excellent writer and have a meticulous attention to detail. Nice to have – experience with SFDC, Pardot, and TimeDriver.
March 14th, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
Account Executive
Account Executive 751 – Burlington, MA – Technology – $110k
This organization is a rapidly growing company that has a casual working environment and has experienced double digit growth every year. This is a cutting edge, privately held company that is about to explode.
Job Description: This opportunity is calling for a successful inside sales representative to call on C-Level Sales & Market Executives. This is a strategic sale where the representative will be given leads as well as prospect for new business. The rep will also conduct web demo’s.
Requirements: The ideal candidate will have a minimum of four years of inside sales experience hitting quotas and who is comfortable working in an unstructured office.
Base Comp. $50,000
Total Comp. $110,000
If you are interested please Join Our Network! If you are already a member of our sales network contact your Treeline consultant.
March 14th, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
Thank You OR “No Thank You”
By Kathleen Mauriot, Division Manager at Treeline, Inc.
Dear Mr. Jones,
I am writing to thankyou for taking time out of your busy shedule to meet with me. I found our discussion about ACME’s new Gizmo software to be very excirting, and I to believe in gizzmo’s potential to be disrputive in the marketplace.
I understand from our discussion that you are looking for an agressive Sales guy that is not afraid to pick up the phone and make calls. I welcome the chance to further demonstrate that I am the right sales person for the job!
Thank you,
Jimmy
Can you find the typos in this note? You can bet that Mr. Jones will…
Imagine what’s going through a hiring manager’s mind when they read this email? Do you think they are scurrying to HR inquiring about how quickly they can get an offer letter out to you? No way!
Sending a thank you note is general protocol after any interview. Not only is it a way to express your interest in a job opportunity, but a thank you note also exemplifies your ability to communicate effectively through your writing skills. As the internet continues to be a common tool of communication, it is imperative that companies hire individuals with effective writing skills. Would you hire Jimmy to represent your company?
Now more than ever, employers scrutinize every aspect of a potential hire. Remember, although the job market is getting better, there are still many candidates for companies to choose from.
Hiring Managers will look for any red flags or clues to alert them that a candidate could be a risky hire. The cost associated with a wrong hiring decision is quite significant for any organization. Therefore, the margin for error for any candidate is ZERO.
When writing a Thank You note, follow these guidelines:
Send it within 24 hours of the interview. I recommend sending it in the form of an email.
Keep it concise, but not generic. Put some thought into it. Write about 1 or 2 points discussed in the interview that really appeal to you about the job and company.
Include 1 or 2 sentences about why you are a good fit for the role. Be specific.
Express your confidence in your ability to be a successful member of their team.
Sum it up with an assumptive closing statement, as well as a day and time that you will follow up.
Use spell check. Every computer has it.
We have seen candidates on the verge of an offer have the offer rescinded because of grammar and spelling errors in their Thank You note. Unfortunately, careless mistakes often cost candidates the job; after going through a hard and tedious interview process it is a shame that the thank you note prevents them from moving forward.
And just a reminder, always have someone read your email before you hit that send button!
Do you have a story of a time you, or someone you know, went through the interview process and because of a careless mistake did not get the job?
March 8th, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
Brand Sales Representative
Brand Sales Representative 761 – Boston – Technology – $135k
Company Profile: Our client offers one of the fastest growing start-up opportunities in Massachusetts. This dynamic organization is growing at an exponential rate and looking for articulate, intelligent and talented sales executives.
Job Description: In this role you will be responsible for selling to CMO’s, VP’s of Marketing, Interactive Marketing and Media, Social Media Professionals, and professionals trying to propel their company brand. This can be a transactional and complex strategic sale. You must be able to handle the activity, prioritize and still present to the C-Level. This requires impeccable presentation skills, great communication and a high level of intelligence and sophistication. This is also a very new entrepreneurial sale where education and relationship play a major part in each sale. You must be able to sell technology and progressive social mobile engagement.
Requirements:
3-5 years sales experience (Media, Social, Software)
Demonstrated success consistently achieving quota
Comprehensive understanding of social media
Adaptable and eager for a vigorous and dynamic startup environment
Hungry, driven, competitive hunter mentality
Base Comp. $70,000
Total Comp. $120,000
If you are interested please Join Our Network! If you are already a member of our sales network contact your Treeline consultant.
March 7th, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
Big Jump in Private Jobs Bolsters Recovery Hopes
By Catherine Rampell
The economic waiting game may soon be over, as businesses signal that they are finally willing to resume widespread hiring.
In all, the nation added 192,000 jobs in February, a big jump from the 63,000 added the previous month, the Labor Department reported on Friday.
The job growth was the most in nearly a year, and the 12th consecutive month of gains by companies, which added 222,000 workers last month. It followed an unusually weak report in January, when major snowstorms across the country prompted offices and factories to close.
Taken together, the first two months of the year produced growth at about the same pace as last fall.
Economists say they are hopeful the pace will soon pick up further.
“Economic recoveries can be like a snowball rolling down a hill, in that it takes time to get some momentum,” said John Ryding, chief economist at RDQ Economics. “People hesitate until they feel that the recovery’s durable enough, and then they have a tendency to jump in. Maybe we’re finally getting to that jumping-in moment.”
Threats to a more robust recovery remain, of course, including a surge in energy and food prices, with the possibility of disruptions in oil production in the Middle East continuing to weigh on the financial markets. State and local governments are also shedding jobs, which depressed the total for February, as they grapple with budget woes.
But for now, the improvement is notable. The unemployment rate ticked down to 8.9 percent last month, falling below 9 percent for the first time in nearly two years. This rate, which comes from a survey separate from the payroll numbers and is based on the total number of Americans who want to work, has remained stubbornly high the last year. Altogether, 13.7 million people are still out of work and actively looking.
Economists say the unemployment rate could rise temporarily in the next few months, as stronger job growth lures some discouraged workers to look for jobs again. Right now, just 64.2 percent of adults are actively involved in the work force, meaning they are either in a job or actively looking for one. That is the lowest participation rate in 25 years, an indication that many Americans are either staying home, going back to school, raising children or otherwise waiting for better conditions before applying for work.
“It’s a puzzle, a genuine puzzle why that number has been stuck,” a senior economist at Credit Suisse, Jay Feldman, said. “I expect it to recover somewhat in the coming months as the labor market improves and more people become encouraged about their job prospects.”
Other recent economic reports — like those on unemployment claims and manufacturing — have pointed to stronger demand for workers. The Federal Reserve, in a survey of its 12 districts, noted on Wednesday that the labor market had improved modestly, but the Fed chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, told lawmakers that “until we see a sustained period of stronger job creation, we cannot consider the recovery to be truly established.”
The unemployment rate has fallen from a peak of 10.1 percent in this downturn. A broad measure of unemployment, which includes people working part time because they cannot find full-time jobs and those so discouraged that they have given up searching, dipped to 15.9 percent in February, from 16.1 percent in January.
Job gains appeared in nearly every industry last month. Among the biggest winners were the manufacturing, construction, and professional and business services industries. Construction payrolls bounced back from a very low level in January, when severe snowstorms hindered activity.
“In some cases it’s very hard to judge how big the underlying improvement there is in this data,” said Nigel Gault, chief United States economist at IHS Global Insight.
State and local governments, squeezed by revenue shortfalls and a reluctance to raise taxes, again laid off workers. Local governments have eliminated 377,000 jobs since September 2008, when their employment last peaked.
“There’s no work out here,” said Julio Santiago, 33, a mechanic who repaired police cars and sanitation trucks for the city of Newark before he was let go last November.
He and his wife, who has been job-hunting for two years, have canceled their children’s summer camp plans, cut out cable and Internet, borrowed from friends and even given away the family dog to make ends meet.
“The only work they have is only temporary work, or one or two days a week, and I can’t afford to do that,” Mr. Santiago said. “Plus they told me they may cut my unemployment benefits if I take those jobs, even if they know I’m only getting to work a few hours a week.”
Federal payrolls were unchanged in February, but federal employees may also be at risk of significant layoffs if Republican leaders in Congress are successful with their proposed budget cuts. Economists at Goldman Sachs and elsewhere have warned that such budget cuts could ripple through the economy and lead to layoffs in the private sector. “I am optimistic we can get to a bipartisan budget agreement, whereby the government is on a path to staying within its means without derailing the recovery and slowing the job creation engine,” said Austan Goolsbee, chairman of President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers. “What we cut, and how, matters.”
Rising prices for energy and food also remain a risk to job growth, economists say, as they leave less money for consumers and businesses to spend on other purchases that could potentially spur hiring.
The contract for future delivery of light sweet crude oil rose to $104.42 a barrel on Friday, an increase of nearly $7 for the week, depressing the major stock indexes, which were down less than 1 percent on the day.
Many economists forecast that job growth will pick up later this year to a rate of more than 200,000 a month. While that would be a welcome development compared with the modest growth in January and the bloodletting during the recession, it still is not fast enough to recover much of the ground lost.
Since the downturn began in December 2007, the economy has shed 7.5 million jobs, or about 5.4 percent of its nonfarm payrolls. If the country adds 200,000 jobs every month, it would take more than three years to return to the employment level before the recession. And that does not take into account the fact that the working-age population has continued to grow — meaning that if the economy were healthy, it would have more jobs today than before the recession.
While gains by industry have been relatively widespread, the benefits to workers themselves have not been as universal. Workers who have already been unemployed for months or even years, for example, have had trouble getting employers to consider them. As a result, even though those out of work a few weeks have gotten new jobs, the average duration of unemployment has climbed to the unusually high level of 37.1 weeks. Many of these long-term unemployed are older workers who are considering giving up and could permanently leave the job market.
Men and women have also been affected differently by the recovery.
While men bore the brunt of job losses in the recession, requiring more women to serve as their family breadwinners, that has since changed. In the last year the share of men with jobs has risen and the share of women with jobs has fallen. In fact, the portion of women working declined to 53.2 percent in February, the lowest share since 1988.
March 1st, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
Account Executive
Account Executive 42 – Wakefield, MA – Technology – $100k
Our client specializes in building direct to consumer relationships for their clients, by utilizing multiple different online marketing services. These services include e-mail marketing, paid search, vertically targeted properties, co-registration, brand specific micro sites, surveys and polls, and data analytics to ensure they are doing everything from finding new customers, qualifying the potential prospects and then helping their client organizations retain their customers to ultimately increase sales.
Job Description: As an Account Executive for our client you must posses an aggressive personality, and a consultative sales approach. Although this is in every way a HUNTER position, you will be giving a list of key accounts to begin within. You will be responsible for cultivating relationships at the C-level in the consumer packaged goods industry.
Requirements: This role requires 3-5 of experience in service sales, media or web-based technology. Must be a strong Hunter; tenacious, good listener, genuine and wants to help grow a firm. Passionate about being successful, Consultative, Relationship Driven individuals who have the ability to work in a deadline driven environment, build strong relationships and work as a team.
Base Comp. $45,000
Total Comp. $105,000
If you are interested please Join Our Network! If you are already a member of our sales network contact your Treeline consultant.
March 1st, 2011 by Amanda Musto, Social Media Marketing Representative at Treeline, Inc
By: Gerry Corbett
For certain we are enduring one of the worst job markets since the 1930s. Unemployment is still near double digits and we are now only seeing early buds of a recovery. Jobs are few and far between. With that backdrop, you would logically think that landing any job under any circumstance would be acceptable. Not so, kemo sabe!
In my view, we operate in an era that I will loosely call “employment trust,” whereby employee and employer are on equal footing, with each having the right of first recusal. This means that both the job seeker and the employer have equal rights to find each other unfit or unqualified. Sure jobs and job offers are hard to come by. But jumping at the first job that comes along might be foolhardy at best or a disaster of major proportions at worst.
So what is the litmus test to ascertain if an employer is fit to have you grace its presence? You have the best research tool at your fingertips: your search engine. Here are a few critical elements to researching a potential employer online:
1. Learn the history, assuming the position is one that lights your fire and about which you have much passion and interest. What is the background of the position you are filling? Have there been any headlines about the post in the trades or on industry blogs? Who was in the job and did the person leave voluntarily? For that matter, has the role been a revolving door? Have you seen the same job listing pop up in your search engine every six months? Unless your predecessor was promoted up the ladder or went on to greener pastures, you may want to take a pass. Rapid turnover is a warning sign that there is danger looming ahead.
2. Examine management stability. Look at the top as well. Has the CEO been at the company for some time? If not, how long has that person been on the job? And what is the history of the CEO slot? You should definitely be able to find the company’s press releases—let’s say for the last 5 to 10 years—online. If the company has had a string of leaders, chances are the company is operating without a rudder. Let that ship sail without you.
3. Study the company’s vision and values, often stated in a mission or vision statement on the company’s own homepage. If their values are not in sync with your own goals and objectives, don’t be blindsided by the offer. The company may not be a good fit. Make certain there is a resonance with your own thinking, philosophy, and personality. Do not compromise your own integrity.
4. Find out if your potential employer really is an “unemployer.” Do your Google or Bing research. Does the company have a record of layoffs, restructurings, or strategy shifts? These are an indication of poor management. If uncertainty is not your cup of tea, run and do not look back
5. Consider profitability. Unless the company is a startup and in the formation mode, the company ought to be making money. If not, make haste and forget that loser. Again, a news search or trade search will be your best bet. Go back at least five years to get a clearer picture.
6. See what the customers’ gripes are. Sure, every company or service has a long list of complaints on consumer message boards; but if you keep seeing the same complaint over and over again, you may want to take heed. Find out if the customers are pleased with the product as well as the service. Let’s face it, the “customer is always right.” So if you encounter complaints of any sort, where there is smoke there is fire. Just walk on by that frying pan.
7. Check out Glassdoor.com to find out if the company gets a “thumbs down.” Glassdoor.com is a website that takes an inside look at jobs and companies from anonymous sources. What you may find is a broad spectrum of opinion from disgruntled former employees, or from delightfully happy current employees. Consider the source but stay the course. Read all of the reviews and judge for yourself. If you find two or more red flags, you may have a lemon on your hands. Forewarned is forearmed.
