10 Reasons Why Companies Rebrand

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on December 13th, 2016

Your brand forms the core identity of your business. It’s more than simply the name of your company, but a fusion of all the values, standards, ideals and characteristics that are embodied by your organisation. A brand, indeed, is your business’s personality.

However, sometimes, even the most well-known and beloved brands need to revisit and reinvent their personality. Perhaps it’s simply because the times have moved on, and what was once a winning brand identity no longer speaks to its audience in the same way that it used to.

Categories: Branding, Marketing

How to Align Sales and Marketing to Drive Conversions

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on October 27th, 2016

Here’s a little script for a stage play I’ve been working on. I’ve only got two lines so far, and only two characters – but I think I’ve got the all-important conflict of the drama pretty much nailed.

Here goes…

Sales [irate]: These leads you’ve handed to me are absolutely useless.

Marketing [indignant]: You wouldn’t know a good lead if it slapped you round the face.

Top 5 Negotiation Mistakes to Avoid at All Costs

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on October 25th, 2016

Being a good negotiator is essential in the corporate world. There are countless deals to be made, partnerships to be formed, and indeed salaries to be bargained for – all of which require a tête-à-tête with another individual who will be as equally determined as you to get the best deal.

Negotiation is a skill, which some people seem to be born with. However, not everyone is a natural negotiator – but that doesn’t mean that you can’t learn how to do it, and how to do it well.

Categories: Sales, Sales Negotiation

10 Top Tips to Be a Better Negotiator

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on September 26th, 2016

“A negotiator should observe everything. You must be part Sherlock Holmes, part Sigmund Freud.” – Victor Kiam

Negotiation. It’s a tricky business – and even trickier to get right. We negotiate on a daily basis with everyone in our lives – be they friends, relatives, colleagues, or potential business partners who could be worth millions to our company.

It’s not uncommon for people to routinely shy away from negotiation – the fear of conflict, and even the fear of losing, can indeed be enough to prevent some from even entering into the process in the first place.

Categories: General

10 Reasons Why Sales and Marketing Work Better Together

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on September 4th, 2016

Traditionally, sales and marketing teams have been known to have a somewhat, shall we say, turbulent relationship at best. Company cultures have historically dictated that these divisions be kept separate from one another – often working in different parts of the building, or even at completely separate locations altogether.

The result, inevitably, is a breakdown of communication between the two, creating, unfortunately, a prevailing “us-against-them” attitude on both sides of the divide.

Categories: Marketing, Sales, Sales and Marketing : One Team

5 Key Skills Your Sales Team Needs To Win

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on August 17th, 2016

Both marketing and sales have changed forever.

In the age of the internet – and particularly social media – traditional marketing has been quite savagely displaced by inbound marketing. Blogs, social media competitions, and online videos are increasingly being embraced by businesses far and wide, all with the purpose of drawing greater attention to a brand’s activities via online mediums.

And a similar story is being told from the point of sales.

Categories: Sales

5 Key Performance Indicators That Should Define Your Sales Strategy

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on August 3rd, 2016

Metrics.

Sales and success are both determined by them. However, it can sometimes feel as if, in 2016, with our unprecedented ability to measure pretty much everything that flows in, out and through the enterprise – from Facebook likes to annual turnover – that our attentions are being constantly misdirected. Indeed, whilst sales managers still demand so much time spent measuring everything under the sun, appropriate levels of energy and resources are left wanting in the areas that actually matter.

Categories: Sales

Why Sales And Marketing Should Be One Team With One Vision

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on July 18th, 2016

Here’s a question that all CEOs should ask themselves:

“Are my sales and marketing teams working together as a close-knit unit – or are they, essentially, adversaries?”

Indeed, you may be asking yourself this already – the idea that these key departments should be more co-operative is not, after all, an entirely new concept to most industry executives. However, it seems that even with the best will in the world, there are many organisations that continue to struggle with turning the theory into a working, profitable practice.

Categories: Marketing, Sales, Sales and Marketing : One Team

How to make stress your friend

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on March 21st, 2015

Stress has many permutations for everyone but in essence it is a state of mental or emotional strain resulting from adverse or demanding circumstances. In the main people have a tendency to think that stress is really bad for them and is often the root cause of illness. However if we could change how we think about stress could that reduce the effect on our bodies?

I recommend this talk on TED by Kelly McGonigal, a psychologist at Harvard University, where she states that studies demonstrate that when you change your mind about stress then you can change your body’s response to it.

Categories: General

The power of vulnerability

Posted by Eilis Cope MCIM on February 22nd, 2015

People don’t usually think of the workplace as an environment for demonstrating vulnerability. Instead, they often see a place of business as where they go to perform a role.

Whether you’re the CEO of a large corporation or a new startup your focus undoubtedly has been largely on appearing professional. While professionalism is a necessary part of business, some surprising benefits result from leaders allowing vulnerability to enter the workplace.

Categories: General

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