Dealing with Gatekeepers Almost everyone has had an encounter with a gatekeeper: a secretary, receptionist, or administrative assistant that is preventing them from speaking with the decision maker. For many new (and even some experienced) salespeople, gatekeepers can be intimidating, and getting around them can seem almost impossible. If you are still having a difficult time with gatekeepers, here are a few strategies you can use to get around those persistent secretaries and receptionists. · Make friends - New salespeople often find this the easiest way to deal with gatekeepers. It only takes a couple of minutes, but if you can strike up a friendly conversation and find at least one or two things you have in common, you'll have a much easier time making it through to the decision maker. Before they transfer your call, make sure to let the gatekeeper know that you really enjoyed talking to him or her—especially since you know how busy they are. · Pull rank - Online sales and marketing strategy usually falls outside of a receptionist's sphere of responsibility. Something this important should only be handled by the most senior members of the company. Always remain polite and respectful, but remind the gatekeeper that this is probably something he or she is not in a position to handle directly. · Call outside normal business hours - Most people who own their own business work long, hard hours; gatekeepers are usually 9-to-5 employees. By calling outside normal business hours, the owner may answer the phone, and save you the trouble of circumventing the gatekeeper. · Ask tough questions - Almost anyone at the company can provide answers for simple questions like "What exactly does your company do?" or "How long have you been in business?" But there are only a few people who could provide answers to questions like "What percentage of gross sales do you typically budget for advertising and marketing expenses?" or "By the end of next year, how much revenue are you forecasting to generate from online sales and marketing activities?" These are valid questions that deserve an answer, and 9 times out of 10, the gatekeeper will not be able to handle your questions. Dealing with gatekeepers is just a part of being a salesperson. Try not to take it personally when secretaries or receptionists do not send your call straight through to the business owner; they are just doing what their boss has asked them to do. The sooner you become comfortable handling the obstacles gatekeepers will try to throw in your way, the sooner you will start setting more walkthrough appointments.     Did you know that the World Wide Web contains about 170 terabytes* of information on its pages? In printed form, that would be enough books to fill the United States Library of Congress 17 times! *1 terabyte = 1,000 gigabytes OR 1,000,000,000,000 bytes

Selling Sites In Time for the Holidays Over the next couple of months, we are expecting to see a huge increase in the number of Web sites our WebCenter owners sell. Many small and mid-sized business owners are anxiously awaiting the start of the holiday shopping season, and with good reason: between Thanksgiving and the end of December, consumers will spend nearly $220 BILLION on holiday gifts! For many retailers, the next few months will account for nearly 30% of their annual sales and over 50% of their annual profits. So how does this translate to higher Web site sales? Only businesses with a Web site will be able to earn a piece of the $22 billion that will be spent shopping online this holiday season. If you have any prospects that stand to benefit from the holiday shopping rush, remind them that they need to get their Web site up and running soon. It's going to take at least a week to finish customizing their site, and it will probably take another month before they start showing up in search engine listings. If they don't act quickly, your prospects will miss out on the most lucrative time of the year!       If you're having trouble getting your Web site sales and hosting business off the ground, you should start using Sales Support! Over the past nine months, our team of Product Specialists has been closing almost 45% of all the walkthroughs they complete. Our Web site sales professionals can show you how to effectively present the Web site building platform to your prospects—and make money for you in the process! Just find a few small or mid-sized businesses that need a Web site, and schedule an appointment in the online Sales Calendar inside your WebCenter. Commit yourself to really using your WebCenter for the next two months. Schedule at least one qualified appointment each week, and let us take care of everything else! Sales Support is one of the most powerful tools at your disposal, so take advantage of our knowledge and experience and let us help you find success with your WebCenter.           Do you have any questions about selling Web sites? Online marketing? Tools or features in the software? If there is anything we can do to help make your business more successful, please e-mail us at newsletter@mawebcenters.com.