The sales rep “quick start” program that you don’t have…but need.

How do your salespeople tell your company’s story? Inconsistently? Make it up as they go? You don’t know? What kind of training do you give new salespeople in your company’s story and the important ways to differentiate themselves and win. What is your 30-60-90 day sales plan for their start and how is the company […]

Ignoring data is keeping you from hitting origination goals.

Spend time on data, increases enterprise wide sales and marketing efficiency. Common sense, right? Nope. 33% of our new clients in the Commercial Finance space cannot easily produce a simple database of targets for email, direct mail, etc. 43%: The average invalid contact data percentage of a database we start working with 60% of our […]

I think the gap between Marketing and Sales…is Marketing’s fault.

I hold the Marketing truths of new media, content marketing and demand generation to be self-evident, that the benefit for all sales teams are created equal. Bunk. Now that I have Marketer’s blood pressure up, let me explain. I have written in the past on the innovation of Marketing in recent years. Demand Generation, Social, […]

Is middle market a real thing?

Growing up a deal guy, I’ve often been astounded at the brave new levels of “finance geek” we can speak to each other. I’ve managed a ton of relationships in the middle market, smaller business and large corporate space and the one thing I have found is that rarely do the actual companies identify with […]

2 ways to waste money on a marketing firm.

1. Pick a firm with no experience in your business Oh we know, they all say their in-depth, up-front consultative approach (that you pay for in an in-depth, up-front kind of way) gives them the learning foundation they need to sell your stuff. Would you hire a senior salesperson with little experience in your business […]

Equipment Finance – It’s about the asset, dummy.

An infographic on common life cycles of different asset classes. Tell the story of a key relationship that depends on leasing to best manage a type of asset Tell the story of your asset managers and how they do what they do Use humor, be provocative in your messaging and by all means…speak English not […]

B2B: Top 3 ways to sell relationship, before you’re in a relationship.

“I feel ya man”. Love that phrase. Often we hear people in the business utter phrases like, “What we do is really a commodity. Our people are what make the difference”. “Or, it’s the relationships that set us apart not an offering or capability.” I feel ya man. But it’s kinda hard for a prospect […]

Is marketing innovating while sales is selling like it’s 1990?

In Q4, I resolved to ask the senior sales and origination leaders of our newly on-boarded clients the same two questions. What is inbound marketing? What is content marketing? The answers, God love ‘em, were awful. They didn’t really know. As I continued to present the value of and importance of these concepts, they became […]

B2B Lending: 10 Marketing phrases to avoid…

Partner. Unless you are an equity investor, you’re not a partner.  Better to call yourself an investor.  By loaning money you are actually more of an investor than a partner. Great Customer Service:  Who says their customer service sucks? Ease of doing business:  Again, who says they are damn near impossible to work with We […]

Marketing ideas for end of finance term renewals…

Fill the top of the funnel.  We spend just huge time there in the equipment finance business.  But how big is the hole in the bucket?  You know, the existing customers that have a deal expiring and end up doing the refinance with a competitor. These guys already know you and have bought something from […]