Lean Thinking A3 Sales Call Sheet

This A3 report is a takeoff on a marvelous book by Mahan Khalsa, Let’s Get Real or Let’s Not Play. It is about determining what’s of value to your client and how to provide a solution that meets this value criterion. I have used this for many years as a guideline for selling. After writing Read More …

Is your marketing concentrated in area that makes a difference?

Identifying your customer segments is imperative in your future marketing efforts. If you have not identified those segments well, you will be discounting, providing unpaid services and minimizing profits to be competitive in the market place. Customer (Market) Identification is not easy. However, it may be the most important task that marketing has within your Read More …

Is your price worth it? And why you settle for less!

How many times have you been approached to match a price after working diligently to provide a solution? You may have incurred design, engineering, sourcing and/or many other soft assets in the engagement that are typically built into the price of the product. You lose this job many times because a competitor has swooped in Read More …

Where is the path in Continuous Improvement for Sales and Marketing?

In the sales and marketing process we have always stayed away from a process. Things were just not consistent enough to enable us to install a process. Very few people take on the challenge of bringing continuous improvement to sales and marketing and one of the reasons it is so difficult is that sales always Read More …

Lean Problem Solving approach

Practical problem solving is at the heart of the Toyota Production System and a Lean culture. These skills are based on the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle and are the bases of the A3 problem solving process. Why is learning the foundation of problem solving so important? When you start looking through the lens of Why? Why Read More …

Kill the Sales and Marketing Funnel

The Sales and Marketing Funnel is a theory that needs to be laid to rest. A linear approach to predict, plan, and proceed is a precarious way to advance. This approach prematurely foresees a solution for the customer without ever understanding their problem. And if you consider addressing the application of social media, it does Read More …