The Business Growth Blog by Rob Cuesta

You owe it to your customers to close

At a networking breakfast this morning I told the group at my table a short story about one of my clients. Like many professionals, he hates to sell. I observed one of his sales meetings, at his invitation, and I was shocked to see him go all the way through flawlessly, explaining his unique value propositions, clearly differentiating himself from his competitors, and using all the NLP skills I'd taught him to get the prospect to the brink of signing, and then he opened his mouth and uttered that awful, awful phrase "well, I expect you want to take this all away and think about it".

Have you made yourself scarce?

Have you ever paid over the odds for a 'limited edition' of something? Have you ever felt an irresistible urge to buy something NOW because it was part of a limited offer? And what about those REALLY old (and rare) bottles of vintage wine that sell for thousands, even though everyone - including the seller AND the buyer - know that the wine is undrinkable after so many years?

The answer is simple...    

Personal Branding and the Accounting Profession

Even as far back as 2005, members of the UK's Institute of Chartered Accountants were being advised to work on their personal brand. Addressing that year's prizewinners and the Institute's annual awards, Steve Easterbrook (UK CEO of McDonalds) said: “Chartered Accountants are in such high demand due to their well-rounded flexibility. [Accountants] learn from and observe business management competencies, behaviours and soft skills - both good and bad. To be respected today you have to be authentic. You must understand who you are, your strengths, your weaknesses and your personal values. By being open about these and by being consistent you will be able to build and protect your own reputation.”

Always give 100%

It's happened to all of us: you wake up in the morning feeling tired or somehow below par. Maybe you couldn't get to sleep, maybe you were up late, maybe you're starting to go down with something. You go in to work and you think "I'm not feeling great; I'll put in 60% effort today, but it's OK, I'll make up for it tomorrow."

Starting a Social Media Team

Social can seem like a bit of a minefield in the corporate environment - after all, who wants their staff mouthing off online about their petty gripes in the workplace (at least that's how a lot of corporate executives still seem to view the medium), so I was pleased to find this post about how to set up a corporate social media team, though it's applicable to organisations of any size, and just as relevant in the not-for-profit sector.

Niche personal brands

As I sat the other day lecturing some undergraduates on corporate strategy, I started to think about Michael Porter, the guru whose business model I was explaining.

Probably 80% of the people reading this have just gone "Michael who?" And that's fine, because the chances are that if you've never heard to Michael Porter it's because you didn't need to. For the other 20%, though, he is likely to be a major figure in many professional conversations, or at least in their daily thinking at work.

Now, does that make him any less powerful a personal brand than, say, Oprah, Bill Gates or Richard Branson?

All the money you will ever earn...

Whether you're an employee or a business owner, all the money you will ever earn is currently in the hands of other people. So here's my challenge to you:

Why should they give it to you rather than to anyone else?

And how does your personal brand help to convey those reasons?

Putting back into the community - the Financial Services Career Bailout

We are living in "interesting times". Even with the many government-funded interventions around the world, with the collapse of so many old and respected financial institutions, I know many people on Wall Street and in The City who are still worried about their future. For those who have already been caught up in the turmoil, I - in common with many of the Reach Personal Brand Strategists - am taking part in a worldwide initiative called the "Career Bailout" programme.

If you are an employee of one of the failed banks or financial institutions and recently lost your job, you qualify for a free career services package that includes a CV review, 360°Reach personal brand assessment and an Online ID evaluation. This package will help you differentiate and position yourself in a crowded and competitive job market.

Whether you are in the UK, the US or any other country, if you are a former employee of Northern Rock, Alliance & Leicester, Bradford & Bingley, or other affected UK firms, or of one of the American banks (Bear Sterns, Wachovia, WaMu or Lehman Bros), and have lost your job as a result of the recent failure, you qualify for brandedLeader’s  career bailout package free of charge. This package is comprised of:

• a resume review;
• a 360°Reach personal brand assessment;
• an online ID evaluation.

In addition, affected financial service professionals will receive preferential rates on related products and coaching services. These services are limited, and will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis.

To get started, contact me by email. Please provide your former institution, position, date of separation, and the type of position you will be seeking. You can also expedite your access to your free consultation by making sure to include your CV in Word ro PDF format.

Want to know more?

Apologies to my friends in the USA...

I am truly sorry... but... I'm afraid...

...you won't be seeing the new Bond movie for another couple of weeks :)

Now, if all had gone to plan, I would have been in New York this week, and I would have missed the first day. However, thanks to  last minute change of plan, that didn't happen. So instead I was here in the UK for the release of A Quantum of Solace.

By now you may be getting the fact that I am a bit of a Bond fan, so it was inevitable that I'd head down to the cinema for the first showing of the day. And so, 'bucket' of Coke in hand (not very Bond-like, I know, but it's the cinema!) I waited with baited breath as the lights came down.

Are today's executives more like the free agents we associate with sports teams than the 'company man' of days (and years) gone by?

Some time ago, I saw a question on LinkedIn about  how the  behaviour of executives is changing. The questioner (Bradley Foster) asked:

"Are today's executives more like the free agents we associate with sports teams than the 'company man' of days (and years) gone by?

A lot of the executives I coach are more like lone wolves than what we have come to think of executives as team players who are loyal to the company they serve. Are executives more like the free agents we associate with sports teams than the 'company man' of days (and years) gone by? "