This mindset sank once thriving companies such as Sun Microsystems, Memorex and potentially Palm.

The state of mind I’m speaking of is “complacency” and it certainly applies to entrepreneurship.

How did complacency affect these companies? Memorex is out of business; Sun is almost gone; and Palm lost most of its market-share to Apple Computer. Management at the top of each of these companies lost their long-term vision. You must always be thinking years ahead and working backwards to implement projects. They were so proud to be at the top of their game one point in time, they must have thought that would always be true, and failed to keep up with the changing times.

Similarly many entrepreneurs do not want to make the effort to educate themselves on social media or learn how to incorporate additional avenues into their practice to further advance their presence. As economies and centuries change so must your strategies and forms of communication. As you adapt new forms into your business, not only will you be in the forefront but you will be seen as a leader thereby attracting additional prospects and clients.

My words of advice is to silently contemplate and truthfully acknowledge where you wish to be in ten years. Once you admit to what you truly want, it’s easy to create projects and goals for getting there. The important piece is to routinely examine if your vision has changed, new developments in the marketplace have come about, and how you may best adapt.

Resetting goals, projects and vision is vital for remaining and thriving in business. A side benefit but important one is that your underlying marketing message is you are a very savvy business owner. This too will attract additional audiences.

As you implement these practices and build relationships with your clientele, business development will take off and you will experience the Smooth Sale!

What is your subconscious telling you?

Any endeavor you undertake begins with the messages you allow to pass through your mind. This discussion was prompted by my friend and colleague, Kelly Watson of Wordwise Marketing. Marketing precedes sales and so it is vitally important you understand your mindset when it comes to telling everyone who you are.

In the early days, I found it difficult to talk about myself and what I bring to my clientele because I was taught not to talk about myself. However, when you operate a business, that must change. In fact the opposite is true – you must take the leadership stance by letting the world know who you are. You must succinctly and effectively express how you are different and why they will benefit using your services so that you will be viewed as an expert in your field. Of course, the benefits should address your prospects’ and clients’ needs – not yours!

According to Kelly, most small business owners have a written business plan to guide their efforts, but few take the time to create a written marketing plan. She advises to not underestimate its power. We both agree your marketing effort needs to be scheduled into your list of priorities and acted upon regularly.

Communicating who you are and what you bring to the table will distinguish you from your competition. This strategy serves to help with your business development and spread word of mouth among many. It also serves to attract new audiences. When your marketing plan is in tact and you work to build relationships with everyone you encounter, your sales will flow and best of all they will each be a Smooth Sale!

Are you overlooking ways in which to further build relationships?

As I was speaking with associates, two incidents came to light regarding missed opportunities to build relationships further with both prospects and clients.

Situation #1: An organization was seeking speakers for their next convention. They apparently received well over 100 applications. Only those who were granted speaker slots received acknowledgment for their time and effort put into their application along with the welcoming note. All of the other applicants who spent an equal amount of time on their application did not hear a single word. Being left to wonder and then completely ignored is an unsettling feeling. I’m willing to bet they are less likely to recommend let alone attend the event than if they had been properly acknowledged.

Situation #2: Members who were loyal to a particular organization for years, for different reasons chose to drop out. They never received word of thanks for their years of past support or even a suggestion that down the road they consider re-joining. Instead, they were threatened that they could never again attend an event. It was a hostile end to what was once a beautiful relationship.

These behaviors greatly affects a third category for possibility – those you do not yet know but would if positive word of mouth were to continue to spread in your favor. No matter which side of the story you represent, it is always of utmost importance you do your best to understand that of the other.

Your best strategy is to get into the mindset of the people with whom you do work and with whom you might work for your relationships to remain strong and encourage repeat business, referrals and testimonials. How you conduct yourself in all avenues of your business is indicative of you the person, and formulates your marketing message about who you actually are. When outsiders see an inconsistency, well the game is over.

Remember, your words, actions and deeds must all be in sync for you to be seen as a credible leader and an expert to whom others wish to turn and recommend. This is the easiest and the better path for your business development serving to increase your revenue through additional sales. Your consistency and integrity combined are what lead to a very Smooth Sale!