Happy belated fall everyone!

It’s been a few months since I last blogged so here goes.

I live in the Kansas City metro. I specifically live in Mission, Kansas. Kansas City is a collection of several cities on both sides of Kansas and Missouri. The Missouri border from my home is just a few miles away.

The population of Mission is roughly 10,000 people or so.  Four years ago, an open city council position came up, I applied and interviewed and they chose someone else. There are 4 wards in my city with 2 representatives each. It was a good experience and I put it behind me and moved on.

Fast forward a few years later. I had lunch with the former mayor of Mission who served 3 terms and was running for another public position and we caught up over a meal and I asked how things were going. She lives in my neighborhood and our dogs play together quite often. This past spring, we caught up again and she asked if I considered running for City Council. I said no and it was out of sight and out of mind.

We had a few more conversations about the open position and right before the deadline, I filed with the election office, paid my $25, and became an official candidate for City Council. I’ll spare you the boring details of elections and politics, but I want to share with you 3 quick lessons that tie into sales and lead generation.

Tap into YOUR circles of influence and don’t try and do it all yourself. What I mean by that is this: After I threw my hat in the ring, I connected with past and present city council members, mayors, influential citizens and let them sing my praises and endorse me. Me tooting my own horn = self-indulgent. Others tooting my horn = solid testimonials and referrals. These people know others I didn’t know personally and it helps to get the word out.

Target your profile audience ruthlessly well. I obtained a list of registered voters and combed through it. I was able to see their basic contact information and more importantly IF they voted or not in the past several elections. I’ve been sending out direct mail, placing signs in people’s yards, etc., and wanted to target ACTIVE voters. It didn’t matter if they were the same affiliation as me. What I cared about is, have they voted in the past 4 recent elections? That eliminated several folks to reach out to. I understand that national elections get the most sizzle and attention, and local elections are not high turnout elections. In sales, targeting correctly is half the battle. Don’t waste your time on prospects who aren’t a fit for you.

Perception is a reality to a certain extent. I ordered 100 signs and have placed them strategically throughout my ward and city. Yes, I had permission to place signs in my neighbor’s yard, but I also connected with friends and people who DON’T live in my ward, can’t vote for me, BUT live in high traffic areas. For example, my friend Nick lives across from a large park with lots of walkers and people driving by. I placed two in his yard. I also approached businesses I frequent that have high traffic and placed them in their work area. For companies and sales executives, pick the RIGHT channels that make sense and be there. Don’t be on every social media channel. Go to the places where your target audience is. I’ve gotten calls from old friends out of the blue who keep saying they see my signs everywhere. Everywhere is relative and I appreciate the sentiment. Have a good website, solid LinkedIn profile, and channels that fit YOUR situation.

Normally I don’t mix business and politics but there are similar principles that overlap between sales and politics. At the end of the day, all elections are sales contests and it’s our job to convince the voters to choose us.

My platform I’m running on? Common sense at the local city level.

I’m Ray Ruecker with Connect 5000.

(Image by Kevin Norris from Pixabay)

Self-published via Amazon that is.

Writing a book has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember. But like so many other things, it fell into the “someday” category until the Fall of 2018, when I casually mentioned my goal to my long-time friend, Stacy Stephens. With her encouragement and introduction to her friend and editor, Sara, my dream became reality.

Sometime this fall, my book “How to Score from First Base! (In Sales)” will be available in both print and electronic copy on Amazon.

Here’s a short description:

If long-term growth is your goal, this is your playbook. Are you struggling to get to first base with targeted companies? In today’s business climate, connecting with key decision-makers and securing meetings is a challenge. Executives rarely pick up the phone, typically ignore emails, and if you do happen to make a live connection, you have seconds to gain their attention. But even with these challenges, you can be successful at connecting with targeted companies by generating qualified sales meetings.

Learn how to:

• Write an introductory email or sales letter that gets a response.
• Leave voicemails that pique curiosity and result in a returned phone call.
• Quickly find contact information for direct decision-makers.
• Bypass the gatekeeper and connect with executives.
• Communicate your values and capture someone’s attention in 10 seconds or less.
• Ask open-ended questions that uncover a prospect’s pain, problems, and challenges.

Whether you are a new or seasoned sales professional, How to Score From First Base! (In Sales) will breathe new life into your day-to-day sales activity. Using both creativity and purposeful connection, this playbook provides a step-by-step guide to shortening sales cycles and multiplying revenue. Because if home plate is your endgame, first base is where you have to start.

Cheers!

Ray Ruecker

(Photo by John Schnobrich)