December 14, 2007

November 16, 2007

Note this is third rather than a fourth Friday to avoid conflicts with Thanksgiving!
7:30 - 10:00 AM

Joanne Black: How to Run a Strategic Referral Business

At Our New Location:

The Club at McInnis Park Golf Center
350 Smith Ranch Rd.
San Rafael, CA 94903

Referral selling sounds so easy. Actually, it’s simple, not easy. Referral business closes a minimum 50 percent and more likely between 70 and 90 percent of the time. No other marketing strategy can come close to these results. Plus, you will increase your revenue and decrease your cost of sales. It’s a strategy that is common sense, but not common practice—even among people who have been selling for years.

As consultants, we love doing the work but don’t always love asking for business. That dreaded term “prospecting” looms large and strong. Yet, the only way we will build a vibrant and profitable business is through referrals.

For most businesses, referral-selling is not a strategic initiative. It is quite delightful when we happen to receive a referral, but it is not a focused, measurable strategy with a written plan, goals, and a way to track and measure referrals.

Instead of making random calls to unqualified prospects, you could be getting qualified leads from the people you already know. Leave with practical tips, tools and strategies for success!

• Learn the five reasons why referral-selling is not the way we work every day and what to do to change your strategy.

• Discover the most important step in your sales process

• Identify your ideal clients and avoid the others.

• Recognize traps to avoid in transitioning to referral selling

About the Speaker:

Joanne Black is America’s leading authority on referral selling. She is a sales strategist, professional speaker, and author of No More Cold Calling™: The Breakthrough System That Will Leave Your Competition in the Dust from Warner Business Books. Clients typically realize a minimum 24 percent increase in their qualified pipeline, double their referral business, and obtain appointments with key decision-makers.

Joanne’s 30-year career has encompassed owning two companies and holding sales and sales management positions with two major consulting and training firms. Over the last eleven years, Joanne has built her business solely on referrals and has trained companies in her proven Referral-Selling System.

Friday, October 26

Liz Greer: Ten Tips for Differentiating Your Solo Consulting Practice

There are two reasons why a clearly differentiated position is critical: first, it helps to make a connection with a prospective client much more quickly by eliminating any confusion about whether you are a good fit. Second, it creates a sustainable advantage for your practice by leveraging your most important marketing tool: your network. When it’s crystal clear who you serve and what unique value you deliver, your network will find it easy to refer clients to you.

In this one-hour presentation, Liz Greer, principal of Going Solo Consulting, will share the most important lessons she has learned about differentiation for solo professionals. In a unique but powerful ’gut check’ exercise, you will assess how strongly you are currently differentiated—and you will learn what to do about it.

Session Outcomes:

You’ll have a better understanding of:

• The reasons why it’s important to differentiate—and the risks
• The many different ways to define niche markets
• How to ensure that your brand position holds together consistently
• How to develop a strong value proposition
• Common mistakes that consultants make when they brand themselves

About the Speaker:

Liz Greer is principal of Going Solo Consulting, a marketing consultancy specializing in helping independent professionals successfully launch and market solo consulting practices. She helps her clients to strategically select the right target market, determine the most effective value proposition and service structure, develop cohesive messaging, and leverage professional network resources in order to get clients.

Liz developed the Going Solo methodology after 25 years of experience in corporate, tech startup, and ’solopreneur’ marketing. She is a former startup CMO and Marketing VP, and has been a successful independent consultant herself for over 14 years. Liz blends her business background with a master’s degree in Counseling to deliver uniquely personalized and highly strategic marketing coaching and consulting to her clients.

Resource: Images for PowerPoint Slides at iStockPhoto.

Showcase

Listen to Nora Wolfson's 10-minute showcase here. (MP3 audio, 4.7 MB) More about Nora at www.norawolfsonconsulting.com.

Friday, September 28

The Confident Speaker: 7 Slightly Radical Secrets to Speaking with Confidence and Authenticity

with Nancy Tierney

If you get nervous or scared when you speak in public, you may be avoiding the most powerful, productive way to attract perfect clients and become famous in your field of expertise. In this presentation, you will learn how to kiss your fear goodbye and start speaking with confidence, clarity and your own authentic charisma. Nancy Tierney will debunk the myths that keep you from saying “Yes!” to speaking opportunities, teach you how to make a magnetic connection with your audience and reveal the 7 “Diva” Secrets for always feeling confident and at ease anytime you are expressing yourself in any way.

Public speaking can be a consultant's most powerful marketing and public relations tool. With one speech, you can attract more clients, sell more products and become better recognized in your field of expertise than you would by using any other marketing tool. When marketing genius Robert Middleton moved his marketing consultation practice to the Bay Area, he went from zero clients to more than he could handle just by speaking to community and professional organizations.

And yet many consultants shy away from public speaking much less seek out opportunities, because they are either scared of speaking in public, hold misconceptions about what public speaking entails, or feel they don't know how to speak effectively.

In this session, you will:

• Let go of the myths and nonsense thinking that is preventing you from taking full advantage of public speaking opportunities.Most of our excuses for not speaking in public are built on illusion, false beliefs and old myths taught to us by out-dated experts.
• Learn the essential, if slightly radical, steps to move out of your fear and into a new, rewarding experience of speaking with confidence, clarity and your own kind of authentic charisma.
• Discover how to make a magnetic connection with your audience, whether it is an audience of one or one thousand.

You will leave this session knowing that your old excuses of being too nervous or not being “good enough” to speak in public are all a bunch of baloney, and that if you want to, you can speak in any situation with confidence and ease.

About the Speaker

Nancy Tierney is a professional singer, author, speech/performance coach who moves people out of their fear and into a new experience of speaking in public with confidence, clarity and charisma. Through her business, Unconditional Confidence, based in Sebastopol, CA, Nancy offers teleseminars, e-programs and one-on-one coaching to entrepreneurs and musicians who want to experience an unconditional confidence in who they are and what they have to offer.

As a singer, Nancy once had a debilitating form of stage fright that made every performance a nightmare. In her determination to be free of her own intense nervousness, she devoted years to research, training and through-the-fire personal experiences to discover what really works when it comes to banishing stage fright and being able to express oneself fully and fearlessly.

Friday, July 27

Panel Discussion: Writing and Publishing for Consultants

Download the MP3 audio recording of the panel

This truism about academia applies to business as well. The consultants who command the highest fees are all authors. (Think of Alan Weiss, Jeffrey Fox, and Jill Konrath, or Robert Middleton with his 50,000-subscriber e-zine.) If you want to get better clients and reach out to more prospects by writing, this panel is for you.

We’ve collected questions from BACN members so we can address the issues that matter most to independent professionals. There will also be time to ask questions at the end, and we’re providing an extensive list of links and resources.

Get Answers to Your Questions About:

• Article marketing to drive traffic to your website.
• Where to publish your articles online.
• Writing syndicated columns.
• Producing white papers.
• Where to find interesting topics to write about.
• How to improve your writing.
• Writing, publishing, and marketing business books.
• Traditional publishing, self-publishing, and Print On Demand.
• Working with a professional writer.

About the Panelists:
Bette Daoust, Ph.D., has spent 25 years in various technical and business leadership roles. Dr. Daoust brings to the table a successful executive career combining many years working with government, non-profit and for profit organizations in a broad variety of industries. Her positions have included executive, financial, marketing, sales, and service management. She has worked with such companies as Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Mobile BIS, Cisco, Accenture and Avaya in the field of knowledge management. She is the author of three “Blueprint for Success” books and runs the Blueprint Books online store.
Patricia Coate, West Coast Manager of emerson consulting group,has more than 25 years’ experience as a business communications and public relations strategist, publicist, writer and editor. Currently, she increases the visibility and credibility of her clients—and creates “market gravity” for them—through thoughtleading techniques, including publishing articles, books, e-zines, and blogs. Prior to joining emersongroup, she edited the Handbook of Business Strategy, an annual book including 50 articles she sourced and edited on winning business concepts. Earlier in her career, she was a corporate communications executive where she developed award-winning business and financial publications for corporate giants including Citigroup, J.P. Morgan/Chase and HSBC.
Karen Pierce Gonzalez has twenty-five years experience in the media. She worked as a journalist for such media as the San Francisco Chronicle, Marin Independent Journal, and Point Reyes Light newspapers as well as numerous local and national magazines. She knows what makes the news and what does not. Her company, Karen Pierce Gonzalez Public Relations, specializes in identifying newsworthy angles about her clients’ events and activities and obtaining news coverage from appropriate media outlets. She is a published fiction and non-fiction writer and has won numerous awards and nominations for her short stories.
Author-izer Sallie Goetsch (Moderator) started helping other people with their writing at the age of nine. Before going into business for herself, she translated, directed, produced, and was sometimes forced to act in Greek and Roman plays, as well as founding an electronic journal. Her FileSlinger™ Backup Blog appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle in May 2005.

Member's Showcase

Friday, June 22, 2007

Dr. Keith Merron

The Keys to Consulting Mastery

This presentation is designed to help participants explore ways to significantly improve their own consulting practice by looking at the relationships they form with their clients, the beliefs they hold about the consulting process, and the strategies, actions and outcomes that result from these relationships and beliefs. Keith Merron offers a clear model for consulting mastery and helps consultants identify ways to turbocharge their efforts.

Session Outcomes:

• Understand the goals, strategies and actions crucial to sustainable excellence in the consulting profession.
• Understand how positioning yourself and acting within that position makes a big difference.
• Know what to expect of clients in the change process and what traps to avoid.
• Identify ways to improve your own practice.

About the Speaker:

Keith Merron is the founder and Managing Partner of Avista Consulting Group, an organizational consulting and leadership development firm dedicated to helping organizations with bold visions achieve sustainable high performance and industry leadership. He has more than 25 years of experience assisting executives and managers in business, government, and education. He is the author of Riding the Wave: Designing Your Organization for Enduring Success and Consulting Mastery: How the Best Make the Biggest Difference.

Showcase

May 25th, 2007

Robert Middleton: Action Plan Marketing Workshop

Are you spending your precious time and money on marketing without getting the ROI you feel you deserve?

Are you overwhelmed by the choices you have on today’s marketing menu?

Are you tired of the guesswork?

Are you running as fast as you can and still not winning the race?

Join us to find out how you can get on

The Fast Track to More Clients

Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing, the consultants’ consultant, specializes in helping Independent Professionals attract the clients they covet. Do yourself and your company a favor and don’t miss this rare Bay Area appearance and practical hands-on workshop. Fact is, Mr. Middleton is training others to do these face-to-face sessions and this promises to be one of this guru’s last.

This session will be a business “tipping point” for consultants who are:

• Tired of struggling with marketing and getting minimal results
• Resistant to engaging in marketing activities
• Committed to growing their business to a whole new level

In this session we’ll cover Seven Key Marketing Principles that will enable you to:

• Understand marketing as a game you can play to win
• Let go of the resistance and fear of promoting yourself
• Speak the “language of marketing” to generate immediate attention
• Articulate a marketing message that makes you stand out in a crowd
• Develop marketing materials that build credibility and trust
• Implement marketing tactics that get consistent results
• Develop marketing action plans that ensure your success

About Our Special Guest Speaker:

Robert Middleton of Action Plan Marketing has been working with consultants and other Independent Professionals since 1984. Through his coaching and consulting, workshops, virtual programs and online products, Robert has helped tens of thousands of business people be better marketers of their services. Robert is the author of the InfoGuru Marketing Manual, the Web Site ToolKit and publishes the More Clients email newsletter that goes out to almost 50,000 people weekly.

April 27th

Story Tell, Story Sell: Story-Based Sales for Consultants

Use the power of storytelling to share success stories with clients, prospects and colleagues to build your consulting practice. Unlike résumés that tell what you did, stories showcase your skills, experience, values and style. Stories resonate with listeners. They allow the listener to connect emotionally with you, the storyteller. Because listeners hear themselves in the stories they are told, they admire, like and trust you enough to both hire and recommend you others.

• Learn Craig’s Setting-Situation-Solution storytelling format
• Employ techniques to tap universal themes and showcase key qualities
• Discover how to mine your past for “success” stories
• Practice telling your “success” stories during this session

About the Speaker

Craig Harrison founded Expressions of Excellence!™ to provide sales and service solutions through speaking. Harrison sits on the board of the Storytelling Association of Alta California, is past president of the National Speakers Association’s Northern California chapter and the International Customer Service Association for San Francisco-Silicon Valley. Among his clients: Pfizer, United Airlines, Hilton Hotels and a host of associations. He’s been profiled by the Wall Street Journal, interviewed by 60 Minutes and BBC Radio, quoted by the Financial Times, Selling Power and Bottom Line.

For more on Craig: www.ExpressionsofExcellence.com, e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or call (510) 547-0664.

Download Craig's Handout/Story Workbook

March 23rd, 2007

Claire Cohn

Managing Meetings for Results: How to Herd the Cats to Keep Meetings on Track!

All consultants need to know:

• How to develop agreements on goals and directions for their assignments.
• How to gain trust and collaboration.
• How to produce results without becoming a taskmaster.

If these issues caused you concern, it is because relationship building is at the core of all our activities. Learn how to capitalize on your team’s potential by incorporating activities that build trust, enhance learning, as well as encourage risk taking. Leveraging the use of appropriate team activity tools, you will be able to build energetic teams committed to achieving common objectives, results, and camaraderie.

In this workshop, you will participate in activities that build team collaboration and innovation—and, keep meetings on track! Claire will lead enjoyable and skill building activities that open up communication and build trust:

• Identify issues that inhibit team productivity.
• Get meetings back on track playfully.
• Select specific team activities from our EZTeamToolZ© Activity Cards to create cohesiveness in groups.

About the Speaker

Claire R. Cohn, MA, BFA, organization consultant, master trainer and owner of On Your Feet Consulting and Team Building, brings over fifteen years of experience in organization consulting, team building, mind-body wellness, and business communication. She facilitates team retreats which result in increased communication and improved work relationships.

Exercise: What Are Your Pet Peeves about Meetings?

• Not having an agenda
• Not sticking to the agenda
• People who dominate the meeting and do all the talking
• They’re indoors
• When the speaker asks for quesstions someone says “I don’t have a question but I do have a comment.”
• No clear summary at the end of who will do what by when
• Unfocused discussion
• People come unprepared
• Unproductive—waste time and no deliverables
• People tell long unrelated personal stories
• Not starting on time; people coming late to the meeting
• Grandstanding
• People having side conversations
• Having to go around gladhanding everyone
• Boring
• Not having a purpose or goals
• They take time away from what I want to be doing

Pearls of Wisdom Exercise

Here are some things you probably didn’t realize BACN members can do:

• Chip golf balls onto the green
• Take wrinkles out of clothes
• Taste wine
• Massage a dog’s paws
• Sail
• Replace electrical outlets
• Cycle long distances
• Make wine
• Make great omelettes
• Provide advanced medical care to cats
• Give great parties
• Make vegetarian moussaka
• Start an IV on a patient
• Take an award-winning photograph
• Garden
• Dive for abalone
• Plan a trip

And some things you might know that BACN members can do:

• Get good referrals
• Persuade people
• Solve problems
• Get things done
• Open doors
• Make Skype video calls
• Post a video on a website
• Subscribe to podcasts
• Create PowerPoint presentations
• Design databases

Showcase

Feburary 23rd, 2007

Gerald Sindell

Differentiation Forward: How to Be Seen as a Leader in Your World

Satchel Paige said "Don't look back! They may be gaining on you." If that's how you feel about your competition, you need better differentiation.

Differentiating yourself from the pack is fundamental to your value proposition. Undifferentiated, you can only compete based on price, and that puts you out of business. Properly differentiated, you increase your value and your compensation. Let Gerald Sindell show you how to Photosop your competition right out of the picture.

• Dig into your identity and fill in any gaps in your IP.
• Choose your mountain: define success.
• Create your reality.
• Implement internally and to the world.
• Integrate systems to keep yourself in the lead

You'll take away a map of the Differentiation Forward process for individual consultants, their organizations, and their clients' organizations.

About the Speaker

Gerald Sindell, Founder of Thought Leaders International, is best known as an internationally recognized intellectual property consultant, with clients in the U.S., Europe and Asia. He developed his marketing skills in Hollywood, creating marketing campaigns for hundreds of films, working with Robert Altman and Sam Goldwyn Distributors and many others. As a publisher and book developer, he is responsible for many NY Times bestselling books, and has put more than 75 million books in print.

His clients include bestselling authors like Jeffrey Fox of Fox and Co. (How to Become CEO and many subsequent titles), Larry Ackerman, Senior VP of Siegal+Gale (Identity is Destiny), and Ken Dychtwald of AgeWave (The Power Years). Find out more at www.thoughtleadersintl.com

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January 26, 2007: SPECIAL EVENT

Jill Konrath, author of Selling to Big Companies

"Make Yourself Irresistible to Prospects"

Sausalito Yacht Club
El Portal Drive
Sausalito, CA 94965


If you sell services, you won't want to miss the second annual BACN Special Event featuring Jill Konrath. We'll be meeting at the Sausalito Yacht Club and starting right at 8:00 with Jill's presentation.

Selling to businesses is harder than ever. The old tried-and-true techniques just don’t work anymore. Worse yet, there’s nothing harder to sell than consulting services. If you’re tired of “dialing for dollars,” you won’t want to miss this special conversation with Jill Konrath. You’ll learn how successful sellers break through e-mail and voicemail barriers and generate “How soon can we talk?” responses from prospective customers. Jill knows what decision makers are facing and how to get in front of them. Whether your goal is to go after a few long term consulting gigs with local companies or to build an international client base, attending this program will improve your odds.

We guarantee you will leave with at least three things you can do to immediately gain entry to new accounts and boost your sales. Here are just a few of the insights you’ll get:

• Why filling the pipeline is no longer your best sales strategy.
• Who your biggest competitor really is.
• Why most networking is a waste of time.
• How the traditional seller is being eclipsed by today’s seller.

Extended Q&A session

Ask Jill how her methods apply to your business.

What BACN members are saying about Jill Konrath

“My sales success skyrocketed when I started following Jill’s advice. The first four times I followed her recommendations I got four appointments with decision makers. Two are now clients. Her book is one of two that I recommend to all consultants. Thanks, Jill!"

Ron Person, Tor Consulting

Don't take our word for it: listen to this interview with BusinessWeek's Savvy Selling columnist or order your copy of Jill's book now. (Jill will sign books after the presentation. You'll also have an opportunity to buy her CDs and her manual Winning More Sales at the event.)

About the Speaker

Jill Konrath is a leading-edge sales strategist and business advisor who helps sellers crack into corporate accounts, shorten time to revenue, speed up their sales cycle and achieve their revenue growth goals.

Since starting her consulting firm, she's worked with such well-known corporate giants as 3M, General Mills, Medtronic, UnitedHealthcare, Imation, RSM McGladrey and Hilton.

Several years ago, Jill started SellingtoBigCompanies.com to make her knowledge and expertise available to entrepreneurs, services providers and independent professionals. By creating this invaluable web portal, she became a highly sought after advisor to this growing market segment.

Last year Jill was selected as a FAST 50 semi-finalist by FAST Company magazine for creating a web resource for small business owners. Additionally she was selected as a "Women Changemaker of the Year" by the Business Journal of Minneapolis/St. Paul.

Get Jill's slides and some other goodies.

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