Everyone makes mistakes, but missteps in the selling process can have especially serious consequences. Not only do they deprive your business of revenue, but they can erode confidence in your company among members of your staff as well as potential customers. The following mistakes are particularly common among start-ups, but even the most seasoned entrepreneurs can fall victim to them. Here's how to identify them—and avoid them.
Neglecting to collect customer data. Every time you make a sale, it's an opportunity to make another sale down the road. Remember that your existing customers are your best source of revenue. But you can only tap them if you have a method for keeping track of them. Sonny Ahuja, the CEO of Grandperfumes.com, learned that the hard way. "Five years ago I had seven stores selling designer perfumes and colognes in all major malls of Wisconsin," he says. When he began losing customers to Amazon and eBay, Ahuja decided to close his stores and move his business online. But when he launched Grandperfumes.com, he had no money for online marketing. "That's when I realized that if only all my sales people had collected all the names and addresses of customers that came to my stores for the past eight years — imagine the power of that database! I could have been back in business in no time." Now, he's diligent about collecting and segmenting customer data on Grandperfumes.com.
Dig Deeper: 10 Ways to Get More Sales From Existing Customers
Relying too heavily on the Internet. So you've been exceptionally clever with your web strategy and your organic vegan dog food is at the tippity-top of the relevant search engine rankings. The stuff is practically selling itself. Good for you! Until, that is, Google gives you a nasty smack down. That's what happened to Christian Arno, founder Lingo24, an international translation company with offices in London; Aberdeen, Scotland; and New York City. "In 2006, our high Google rankings for key search terms suffered, probably because of Google changing its search algorithm," says Arno. "We suddenly dropped on Google search results for terms we'd always ranked highly for such as translation services and translation agencies. We didn't have any proactive sales strategy in place, so our revenue suffered." Since then, he's hired several outbound sales people who proactively identify potential clients. "And our Google rankings are back up too now, so we have two strong avenues for sales," says Arno.
Dig Deeper: How Google Cost Me $4 Million
Failing to qualify leads. "When I first started in sales, I was an eager beaver," recalls Jon Biedermann,
vice president of
DonorPerfect, a CRM fundraising software company in Horsham, Pennsylvania. "No lead went untouched or uncalled — I treated every opportunity as the sure fire next sale." Big mistake. Early in his career, Biedermann got a lead from a large university. He called to assess their needs, customized the software for them, and worked on personalizing the demonstration for days. "The day of the demo came, and I presented our software in front of 10 people from the university. We had everything they needed — it was perfect," he says. But when he asked about the decision-making timeframe, he was crushed. "Oh, we aren't going to switch software," they told him. "We were thinking about using this for our smaller satellite campus and we were hoping you would donate it to us."
Biedermann realized his error instantly. "In my zeal to get the sale, I completely forgot to ask the one crucial question: Do you have the authority and money to make this decision?"
Dig Deeper: How to Qualify Sales Leads
Delaying sales until your product or service is ready for primetime. There's a lot to be said for doing market research for a new product or service by trying to sell it while it's still in development. That way, you'll find out exactly what customers want before you spend time perfecting your offering in a vacuum. "Entrepreneurs should hit the streets, and talk to 'friendlies' to sell your product or service even when its still just an idea, and ask people what they are willing to pay for it," says Kyle Hawke, co-founder of Whinot, a Charlottesville, Virginia-based virtual firm of independent consultants who work on small business marketing projects. Hawke learned that lesson after spending $5,000 on web features that he says "no one cared about." He now knows that he should have tested Whinot out on low-risk clients who were willing to sign on for a discounted price – or a free trial – while he and his partners worked out the kinks. "The best way to figure out how much something is worth is to get someone to pay for it," he says.
Dig Deeper: How to Build a Bootstrapping Culture
Accepting every sale. "No" is not a popular word among entrepreneurs, especially during the start-up phase, and most especially as it pertains to sales. But maybe it should be uttered more often, because the wrong kind of sale is ultimately worse than no sale at all. "It's a big challenge as a small company to say 'No, thanks, this isn't a good fit for us, please give your money to someone else,'" says Michael Buckingham, founder of Holy Cow Creative, a Midland, Michigan, design and marketing company that works with churches and ministries. "In the beginning I said yes to everyone; financially, it felt like I had to," he says. "Next thing I knew I was involved in a project that was not good for me or the client. We pushed through it, we met our objectives but our work is about more than projects and invoices. I learned that relationships are key to sales. It's why I now turn down nearly every RFP; it's void of relationship."
Dig Deeper: Getting to No
Offloading the sales function. When Tom Greenshaw first started Cashier Live in Chicago, he wanted to focus mainly on product development and support for the web-based point of sales software that he sells to independent retailers. So he built a sales channel with affiliates and partners, hoping to offload as much of the direct sales function as possible. "This seemed to be working well and we quickly signed up a number of partners that were interested in selling Cashier Live," he says. "But those partners weren't as well versed in the software as we were." Many of them over-promised customers regarding the capabilities of the software, or dragged Greenshaw's staff into the sales process, which confused customers and ate up company time and resources. "I learned a lot from this experience, and we've since been very successful with our own sales efforts," he says today. When he tries selling through channel partners again, he'll make sure to train them thoroughly on the company's software.
Dig Deeper: Sales: When Is it Safe to Hire?
Fixating on big fish. When Scott Gerber first founded Sizzle It!, a New York City-based video production company, he admits that he "used to be obsessed with only going after home-run clients—those that had big names and huge wallets." But selling to very large companies is time consuming and often frustrating since decision-making is slow and payments even slower. Sizzle It! ultimately landed big clients like Procter & Gamble, but closing sales would sometimes take six months or more. And frequently, Gerber's staff would put months of effort into sales that never materialized. "The pursuit of these titans often put us in cash flow crunches," says Gerber. "My biggest mistake in guiding Sizzle It!'s strategy in its earlier years was not going after more base-hit clients. Now, we have an even split of clients, which has not only helped us to spread the word about our company faster, but also helped us to maintain a healthy cash flow."
Dig Deeper: How to Cold Call a Big Customer
“It remains to be seen if it’s good in the long run but what’s exciting is Amazon has proven the ability to move product,” said Ben Gottlieb, president of mobile app maker Stand Alone Inc. “It all depends on the implementation. But if they live up to what they say, we can make more money.”
That’s a real issue. Gottlieb, who sells a crossword app, says he makes 20-30 times more selling his apps in the App Store compared to Android Market. It’s gotten a little better lately, but it’s still discouraging trying to sell in Android Market, which has more than 80,000 apps. Developers like Gottlieb say the store needs more recommendation and discovery tools, more categories, a better check-out system and more marketing muscle. These are all things that Amazon could immediately address.
Arron La, maker of the Advanced Task Manager app, said Amazon could help ignite sales by giving better recommendation tips and making checkouts easier for users. He said Google Checkout can be a nightmare at times, sometimes charging people multiple times for one app. A reliable and familiar system like Amazon’s could prompt people to open up their wallets, something they don’t do that much of in the Android Market. He also hopes that Amazon will do more to promote apps and advertise its app store, which Google has shied away from.
Google, for its part, is working on a number of changes, including a new web-based Android Market and a reported deal with PayPal for payments. And it just expanded the number of countries that can buy paid apps.Even with those improvements, La feels better about Amazon because the company seems more committed to making money, something Google seems less interested in. Google claims it doesn’t make any money from Android Market.
“Once you have the right things in place and you get that ecosystem going, you can definitely make money out of it,” he said. “But that’s been what’s hurting Android Market. Everyone using Google devices, they want and expect everything for free. When Google released Android market, they had no paid apps in the beginning.”
To be sure, an Amazon Android store or a similar market from Verizon Wireless could be a headache for developers. Developers would have to get in the habit of submitting and updating apps in multiple markets. Users might get confused as to who to turn to for apps or support. Amazon will have the ability to turn down apps and has stated it won’t approve offensive or pornographic content. It could lead to some gripes from developers about rejected apps, similar to complaints about the App Store, and it’s unclear if it will be as easy as one click to buy an app and get it on an Android device.
If Amazon proves to be a real player in the app market, expect a lot of developers to look Amazon’s way. They’ll be happy to get something closer to an App Store experience for their apps. “Apple is about the making the whole experience pleasant while Google is just focused on getting the job done and it’s not always pretty,” Gottlieb said. “Amazon is somewhere in between and it’s definitely closer to Apple than Google.”
Related research from GigaOM Pro (subscription req’d):
- Why Google Launched App Inventor
- Is Amazon the New Self-Publish Kingpin?
- Why Carriers Still Hold the Key to Handset Sales
robert shumake hall of shame
Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
robert shumake hall of shame
Everyone makes mistakes, but missteps in the selling process can have especially serious consequences. Not only do they deprive your business of revenue, but they can erode confidence in your company among members of your staff as well as potential customers. The following mistakes are particularly common among start-ups, but even the most seasoned entrepreneurs can fall victim to them. Here's how to identify them—and avoid them.
Neglecting to collect customer data. Every time you make a sale, it's an opportunity to make another sale down the road. Remember that your existing customers are your best source of revenue. But you can only tap them if you have a method for keeping track of them. Sonny Ahuja, the CEO of Grandperfumes.com, learned that the hard way. "Five years ago I had seven stores selling designer perfumes and colognes in all major malls of Wisconsin," he says. When he began losing customers to Amazon and eBay, Ahuja decided to close his stores and move his business online. But when he launched Grandperfumes.com, he had no money for online marketing. "That's when I realized that if only all my sales people had collected all the names and addresses of customers that came to my stores for the past eight years — imagine the power of that database! I could have been back in business in no time." Now, he's diligent about collecting and segmenting customer data on Grandperfumes.com.
Dig Deeper: 10 Ways to Get More Sales From Existing Customers
Relying too heavily on the Internet. So you've been exceptionally clever with your web strategy and your organic vegan dog food is at the tippity-top of the relevant search engine rankings. The stuff is practically selling itself. Good for you! Until, that is, Google gives you a nasty smack down. That's what happened to Christian Arno, founder Lingo24, an international translation company with offices in London; Aberdeen, Scotland; and New York City. "In 2006, our high Google rankings for key search terms suffered, probably because of Google changing its search algorithm," says Arno. "We suddenly dropped on Google search results for terms we'd always ranked highly for such as translation services and translation agencies. We didn't have any proactive sales strategy in place, so our revenue suffered." Since then, he's hired several outbound sales people who proactively identify potential clients. "And our Google rankings are back up too now, so we have two strong avenues for sales," says Arno.
Dig Deeper: How Google Cost Me $4 Million
Failing to qualify leads. "When I first started in sales, I was an eager beaver," recalls Jon Biedermann,
vice president of
DonorPerfect, a CRM fundraising software company in Horsham, Pennsylvania. "No lead went untouched or uncalled — I treated every opportunity as the sure fire next sale." Big mistake. Early in his career, Biedermann got a lead from a large university. He called to assess their needs, customized the software for them, and worked on personalizing the demonstration for days. "The day of the demo came, and I presented our software in front of 10 people from the university. We had everything they needed — it was perfect," he says. But when he asked about the decision-making timeframe, he was crushed. "Oh, we aren't going to switch software," they told him. "We were thinking about using this for our smaller satellite campus and we were hoping you would donate it to us."
Biedermann realized his error instantly. "In my zeal to get the sale, I completely forgot to ask the one crucial question: Do you have the authority and money to make this decision?"
Dig Deeper: How to Qualify Sales Leads
Delaying sales until your product or service is ready for primetime. There's a lot to be said for doing market research for a new product or service by trying to sell it while it's still in development. That way, you'll find out exactly what customers want before you spend time perfecting your offering in a vacuum. "Entrepreneurs should hit the streets, and talk to 'friendlies' to sell your product or service even when its still just an idea, and ask people what they are willing to pay for it," says Kyle Hawke, co-founder of Whinot, a Charlottesville, Virginia-based virtual firm of independent consultants who work on small business marketing projects. Hawke learned that lesson after spending $5,000 on web features that he says "no one cared about." He now knows that he should have tested Whinot out on low-risk clients who were willing to sign on for a discounted price – or a free trial – while he and his partners worked out the kinks. "The best way to figure out how much something is worth is to get someone to pay for it," he says.
Dig Deeper: How to Build a Bootstrapping Culture
Accepting every sale. "No" is not a popular word among entrepreneurs, especially during the start-up phase, and most especially as it pertains to sales. But maybe it should be uttered more often, because the wrong kind of sale is ultimately worse than no sale at all. "It's a big challenge as a small company to say 'No, thanks, this isn't a good fit for us, please give your money to someone else,'" says Michael Buckingham, founder of Holy Cow Creative, a Midland, Michigan, design and marketing company that works with churches and ministries. "In the beginning I said yes to everyone; financially, it felt like I had to," he says. "Next thing I knew I was involved in a project that was not good for me or the client. We pushed through it, we met our objectives but our work is about more than projects and invoices. I learned that relationships are key to sales. It's why I now turn down nearly every RFP; it's void of relationship."
Dig Deeper: Getting to No
Offloading the sales function. When Tom Greenshaw first started Cashier Live in Chicago, he wanted to focus mainly on product development and support for the web-based point of sales software that he sells to independent retailers. So he built a sales channel with affiliates and partners, hoping to offload as much of the direct sales function as possible. "This seemed to be working well and we quickly signed up a number of partners that were interested in selling Cashier Live," he says. "But those partners weren't as well versed in the software as we were." Many of them over-promised customers regarding the capabilities of the software, or dragged Greenshaw's staff into the sales process, which confused customers and ate up company time and resources. "I learned a lot from this experience, and we've since been very successful with our own sales efforts," he says today. When he tries selling through channel partners again, he'll make sure to train them thoroughly on the company's software.
Dig Deeper: Sales: When Is it Safe to Hire?
Fixating on big fish. When Scott Gerber first founded Sizzle It!, a New York City-based video production company, he admits that he "used to be obsessed with only going after home-run clients—those that had big names and huge wallets." But selling to very large companies is time consuming and often frustrating since decision-making is slow and payments even slower. Sizzle It! ultimately landed big clients like Procter & Gamble, but closing sales would sometimes take six months or more. And frequently, Gerber's staff would put months of effort into sales that never materialized. "The pursuit of these titans often put us in cash flow crunches," says Gerber. "My biggest mistake in guiding Sizzle It!'s strategy in its earlier years was not going after more base-hit clients. Now, we have an even split of clients, which has not only helped us to spread the word about our company faster, but also helped us to maintain a healthy cash flow."
Dig Deeper: How to Cold Call a Big Customer
“It remains to be seen if it’s good in the long run but what’s exciting is Amazon has proven the ability to move product,” said Ben Gottlieb, president of mobile app maker Stand Alone Inc. “It all depends on the implementation. But if they live up to what they say, we can make more money.”
That’s a real issue. Gottlieb, who sells a crossword app, says he makes 20-30 times more selling his apps in the App Store compared to Android Market. It’s gotten a little better lately, but it’s still discouraging trying to sell in Android Market, which has more than 80,000 apps. Developers like Gottlieb say the store needs more recommendation and discovery tools, more categories, a better check-out system and more marketing muscle. These are all things that Amazon could immediately address.
Arron La, maker of the Advanced Task Manager app, said Amazon could help ignite sales by giving better recommendation tips and making checkouts easier for users. He said Google Checkout can be a nightmare at times, sometimes charging people multiple times for one app. A reliable and familiar system like Amazon’s could prompt people to open up their wallets, something they don’t do that much of in the Android Market. He also hopes that Amazon will do more to promote apps and advertise its app store, which Google has shied away from.
Google, for its part, is working on a number of changes, including a new web-based Android Market and a reported deal with PayPal for payments. And it just expanded the number of countries that can buy paid apps.Even with those improvements, La feels better about Amazon because the company seems more committed to making money, something Google seems less interested in. Google claims it doesn’t make any money from Android Market.
“Once you have the right things in place and you get that ecosystem going, you can definitely make money out of it,” he said. “But that’s been what’s hurting Android Market. Everyone using Google devices, they want and expect everything for free. When Google released Android market, they had no paid apps in the beginning.”
To be sure, an Amazon Android store or a similar market from Verizon Wireless could be a headache for developers. Developers would have to get in the habit of submitting and updating apps in multiple markets. Users might get confused as to who to turn to for apps or support. Amazon will have the ability to turn down apps and has stated it won’t approve offensive or pornographic content. It could lead to some gripes from developers about rejected apps, similar to complaints about the App Store, and it’s unclear if it will be as easy as one click to buy an app and get it on an Android device.
If Amazon proves to be a real player in the app market, expect a lot of developers to look Amazon’s way. They’ll be happy to get something closer to an App Store experience for their apps. “Apple is about the making the whole experience pleasant while Google is just focused on getting the job done and it’s not always pretty,” Gottlieb said. “Amazon is somewhere in between and it’s definitely closer to Apple than Google.”
Related research from GigaOM Pro (subscription req’d):
- Why Google Launched App Inventor
- Is Amazon the New Self-Publish Kingpin?
- Why Carriers Still Hold the Key to Handset Sales
bench craft company reviews
Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
robert shumake detroit
robert shumake twitter
robert shumake detroit
Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
robert shumake detroit
Everyone makes mistakes, but missteps in the selling process can have especially serious consequences. Not only do they deprive your business of revenue, but they can erode confidence in your company among members of your staff as well as potential customers. The following mistakes are particularly common among start-ups, but even the most seasoned entrepreneurs can fall victim to them. Here's how to identify them—and avoid them.
Neglecting to collect customer data. Every time you make a sale, it's an opportunity to make another sale down the road. Remember that your existing customers are your best source of revenue. But you can only tap them if you have a method for keeping track of them. Sonny Ahuja, the CEO of Grandperfumes.com, learned that the hard way. "Five years ago I had seven stores selling designer perfumes and colognes in all major malls of Wisconsin," he says. When he began losing customers to Amazon and eBay, Ahuja decided to close his stores and move his business online. But when he launched Grandperfumes.com, he had no money for online marketing. "That's when I realized that if only all my sales people had collected all the names and addresses of customers that came to my stores for the past eight years — imagine the power of that database! I could have been back in business in no time." Now, he's diligent about collecting and segmenting customer data on Grandperfumes.com.
Dig Deeper: 10 Ways to Get More Sales From Existing Customers
Relying too heavily on the Internet. So you've been exceptionally clever with your web strategy and your organic vegan dog food is at the tippity-top of the relevant search engine rankings. The stuff is practically selling itself. Good for you! Until, that is, Google gives you a nasty smack down. That's what happened to Christian Arno, founder Lingo24, an international translation company with offices in London; Aberdeen, Scotland; and New York City. "In 2006, our high Google rankings for key search terms suffered, probably because of Google changing its search algorithm," says Arno. "We suddenly dropped on Google search results for terms we'd always ranked highly for such as translation services and translation agencies. We didn't have any proactive sales strategy in place, so our revenue suffered." Since then, he's hired several outbound sales people who proactively identify potential clients. "And our Google rankings are back up too now, so we have two strong avenues for sales," says Arno.
Dig Deeper: How Google Cost Me $4 Million
Failing to qualify leads. "When I first started in sales, I was an eager beaver," recalls Jon Biedermann,
vice president of
DonorPerfect, a CRM fundraising software company in Horsham, Pennsylvania. "No lead went untouched or uncalled — I treated every opportunity as the sure fire next sale." Big mistake. Early in his career, Biedermann got a lead from a large university. He called to assess their needs, customized the software for them, and worked on personalizing the demonstration for days. "The day of the demo came, and I presented our software in front of 10 people from the university. We had everything they needed — it was perfect," he says. But when he asked about the decision-making timeframe, he was crushed. "Oh, we aren't going to switch software," they told him. "We were thinking about using this for our smaller satellite campus and we were hoping you would donate it to us."
Biedermann realized his error instantly. "In my zeal to get the sale, I completely forgot to ask the one crucial question: Do you have the authority and money to make this decision?"
Dig Deeper: How to Qualify Sales Leads
Delaying sales until your product or service is ready for primetime. There's a lot to be said for doing market research for a new product or service by trying to sell it while it's still in development. That way, you'll find out exactly what customers want before you spend time perfecting your offering in a vacuum. "Entrepreneurs should hit the streets, and talk to 'friendlies' to sell your product or service even when its still just an idea, and ask people what they are willing to pay for it," says Kyle Hawke, co-founder of Whinot, a Charlottesville, Virginia-based virtual firm of independent consultants who work on small business marketing projects. Hawke learned that lesson after spending $5,000 on web features that he says "no one cared about." He now knows that he should have tested Whinot out on low-risk clients who were willing to sign on for a discounted price – or a free trial – while he and his partners worked out the kinks. "The best way to figure out how much something is worth is to get someone to pay for it," he says.
Dig Deeper: How to Build a Bootstrapping Culture
Accepting every sale. "No" is not a popular word among entrepreneurs, especially during the start-up phase, and most especially as it pertains to sales. But maybe it should be uttered more often, because the wrong kind of sale is ultimately worse than no sale at all. "It's a big challenge as a small company to say 'No, thanks, this isn't a good fit for us, please give your money to someone else,'" says Michael Buckingham, founder of Holy Cow Creative, a Midland, Michigan, design and marketing company that works with churches and ministries. "In the beginning I said yes to everyone; financially, it felt like I had to," he says. "Next thing I knew I was involved in a project that was not good for me or the client. We pushed through it, we met our objectives but our work is about more than projects and invoices. I learned that relationships are key to sales. It's why I now turn down nearly every RFP; it's void of relationship."
Dig Deeper: Getting to No
Offloading the sales function. When Tom Greenshaw first started Cashier Live in Chicago, he wanted to focus mainly on product development and support for the web-based point of sales software that he sells to independent retailers. So he built a sales channel with affiliates and partners, hoping to offload as much of the direct sales function as possible. "This seemed to be working well and we quickly signed up a number of partners that were interested in selling Cashier Live," he says. "But those partners weren't as well versed in the software as we were." Many of them over-promised customers regarding the capabilities of the software, or dragged Greenshaw's staff into the sales process, which confused customers and ate up company time and resources. "I learned a lot from this experience, and we've since been very successful with our own sales efforts," he says today. When he tries selling through channel partners again, he'll make sure to train them thoroughly on the company's software.
Dig Deeper: Sales: When Is it Safe to Hire?
Fixating on big fish. When Scott Gerber first founded Sizzle It!, a New York City-based video production company, he admits that he "used to be obsessed with only going after home-run clients—those that had big names and huge wallets." But selling to very large companies is time consuming and often frustrating since decision-making is slow and payments even slower. Sizzle It! ultimately landed big clients like Procter & Gamble, but closing sales would sometimes take six months or more. And frequently, Gerber's staff would put months of effort into sales that never materialized. "The pursuit of these titans often put us in cash flow crunches," says Gerber. "My biggest mistake in guiding Sizzle It!'s strategy in its earlier years was not going after more base-hit clients. Now, we have an even split of clients, which has not only helped us to spread the word about our company faster, but also helped us to maintain a healthy cash flow."
Dig Deeper: How to Cold Call a Big Customer
“It remains to be seen if it’s good in the long run but what’s exciting is Amazon has proven the ability to move product,” said Ben Gottlieb, president of mobile app maker Stand Alone Inc. “It all depends on the implementation. But if they live up to what they say, we can make more money.”
That’s a real issue. Gottlieb, who sells a crossword app, says he makes 20-30 times more selling his apps in the App Store compared to Android Market. It’s gotten a little better lately, but it’s still discouraging trying to sell in Android Market, which has more than 80,000 apps. Developers like Gottlieb say the store needs more recommendation and discovery tools, more categories, a better check-out system and more marketing muscle. These are all things that Amazon could immediately address.
Arron La, maker of the Advanced Task Manager app, said Amazon could help ignite sales by giving better recommendation tips and making checkouts easier for users. He said Google Checkout can be a nightmare at times, sometimes charging people multiple times for one app. A reliable and familiar system like Amazon’s could prompt people to open up their wallets, something they don’t do that much of in the Android Market. He also hopes that Amazon will do more to promote apps and advertise its app store, which Google has shied away from.
Google, for its part, is working on a number of changes, including a new web-based Android Market and a reported deal with PayPal for payments. And it just expanded the number of countries that can buy paid apps.Even with those improvements, La feels better about Amazon because the company seems more committed to making money, something Google seems less interested in. Google claims it doesn’t make any money from Android Market.
“Once you have the right things in place and you get that ecosystem going, you can definitely make money out of it,” he said. “But that’s been what’s hurting Android Market. Everyone using Google devices, they want and expect everything for free. When Google released Android market, they had no paid apps in the beginning.”
To be sure, an Amazon Android store or a similar market from Verizon Wireless could be a headache for developers. Developers would have to get in the habit of submitting and updating apps in multiple markets. Users might get confused as to who to turn to for apps or support. Amazon will have the ability to turn down apps and has stated it won’t approve offensive or pornographic content. It could lead to some gripes from developers about rejected apps, similar to complaints about the App Store, and it’s unclear if it will be as easy as one click to buy an app and get it on an Android device.
If Amazon proves to be a real player in the app market, expect a lot of developers to look Amazon’s way. They’ll be happy to get something closer to an App Store experience for their apps. “Apple is about the making the whole experience pleasant while Google is just focused on getting the job done and it’s not always pretty,” Gottlieb said. “Amazon is somewhere in between and it’s definitely closer to Apple than Google.”
Related research from GigaOM Pro (subscription req’d):
- Why Google Launched App Inventor
- Is Amazon the New Self-Publish Kingpin?
- Why Carriers Still Hold the Key to Handset Sales
robert shumake hall of shame
robert shumake twitter
Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
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Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
robert shumake hall of shame
Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
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Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
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Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
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Everybody wants to get rich online. It seems to be what every single person you talk to is looking for in this huge world of technology that we live in. But is it as easy as they make out to be? Absolutely Not!
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Honest Money Making Program # 1 ~ Associated Content.com
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Honest Money Making Program # 2 ~ Ebay.com
Everyone has heard of EBay, but so many people are afraid to step out there and try to sell their wares. Start with junk you have laying around the house, you'll be surprised and what people will buy and what they are willing to pay for it!
Honest Money Making Program # 3 ~ Doba.com
This is a certified eBay provider offering great wholesale discounts on everything for consumer electronics to sporting goods.
Honest Money Making Program # 4 ~ Dollar Days.com
This is another Wholesale provider that provides just about everything at low wholesale prices. Take a look around this one, you'll be surprised how many times you've seen the same items in stores!
Honest Money Making Program # 5 ~ Helium.com
Write articles, participate in debates and so much more! This is another great company that should be given it's due!
I've offered you the steps, now go take the action! I'm not going to tell you it's easy, because it sure isn't! There are times when I work well through the wee hours of morning, but once I'm through for the day (or night) I go to sleep knowing the next day I get spend more time with my family! You really can make money from these programs and stop wasting your life at a desk miles from where you want to be!
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Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
robert shumake twitter
Crowd gets raucous at Oberstar-Cravaack debate | Duluth <b>News</b> <b>...</b>
Jim Oberstar and Chip Cravaack didn't just face each other this morning at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Auditorium, they faced angry mobs of their opponent's supporters.
Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad | iLounge <b>News</b>
iLounge news discussing the Watershed debuts Waterproof Bag for iPad. Find more iPad Accessories news from leading independent iPod, iPhone, and iPad site.
<b>News</b>: Jean Claude Van Damme Suffers Heart Attack On Set Of WEAPON
Images From Cronenberg's TALKING CURE � Brody Versus Argento � JCVD Has Heart Attack On Set � TROLL HUNTER Coming To America � MORPHINE Doc Gets A Trailer � Pegg / Frost Alien Comedy PAUL Trailer. Film News ...
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