Corporate Escapees

Episode OverviewYou're in the business of growing your own business. Barry successively grew his business by 600%, and in this podcast interview, he shares his 3 most critical steps.Value of picking a niche The three legs of the stool to a successful cloud consulting bizWhat marketing activities work Barry’s background Barry is a Leader in hi-tech consulting, staffing, services, and solutions who understands how to motivate multiple sales teams and develop rewarding client relationships. In ten years has grown his Microsoft Gold business by 600% and has plans to meet 1600% in 13 years. Has a direct team of 30 employees and 30 consultants. Canadian and has lived in Ottawa for 36 years, and is the fastest 62 old swimmer in any pool.Links453 - Show NotesBarry's websiteBarry's LinkedInCloud Consultants CollectiveScaling BlueprintSendSparkJoin our newsletter Connect With PaulOn LinkedInOn FacebookOn Twitter: @PaulHiggins555On Instagram: @paulhigginsmentoringEmail: Paul@

In this episode, I talk through the change in podcast name from Accelerate Sales to Cloud Consultants. I want to let you know about an exciting brand change for the podcast Ep 461, on 7 April 2023, we will be rebranding the podcast from Accelerate Sales to Cloud Consultants show Why the Change?2022 niched down to cloud consultants Built Cloud Consultants Collective to 200+ people Built my expertise and network Love the industry and the people A genuine need for what we doSales - lack of sales - still a burning platform for many Cloud Consultants - there is more to scaling a CC business. Including the suitable business model, marketing, and team Felt the title Accelerate sales was not representing the topics discussed by guests This isn't our 1st rodeo On 4 May 2017, I launched the podcast, which was called corporate escapeesFor people who left corporate to run their own businessHaving left myself in 2011 and, I had built practical knowledge/experiences&nb

Episode OverviewMost of you are selling B2B services, and I'll be very surprised if your audience isn't on LinkedIn. At last count, around 800 million people were active on the platform.It makes sense to leverage, and it makes even more sense, given it is free to do so.The next question is how you do it and how you do it well. In my interview with Kotryna, she covers what you need to know, including: Why do only 9% of Linkedin user post, and what are they missing out onHow LinkedIn content drives more revenue How to maximize your posts outcomes Kotryna’s backgroundKotryna Kurt is the founder of a consulting company called Linkedist, which helps other businesses grow with the power of LinkedIn marketing, advertising, and sales. She is also an active contributor and a thought leader on LinkedIn, where she talks about entrepreneurship, leadership, sales, and marketing.For the last 6 years, Katrina has delivered +300 company and public workshops and helped different European accelerators

Episode OverviewAre you drowning in work? Are you at the same time helping your clients to solve the same problem? In my interview with Nick, we go through his three-step framework - CPR - a way of improving team efficiencies. The framework is the cornerstone behind his latest book;Come up for AirHow teams leverage systems and tools to stop drowning in work. He explains what each stands for;C = Communicate. Having both email and another internal tool.P = Plan. He talks about having built-for-purpose SaaS tools rather than one-size-fits. R = Resource. Two types of knowledge management - static and dynamic.He talks about the quickest way to store information is not the quickest way to retrieve it. He also covers tips on how you can get out of delivery.Nick’s backgroundNick Sonnenberg is the founder and CEO of Leverage, a business efficiency consultant, Inc. columnist, and author of the book Idea to Execution. As a serial entrepreneur with a passion for productivity and a backg

In this episode, I share my learnings from coaching cloud consultants to help you accelerate your sales. When I meet a consultant for the first time, I ask them, "Why do you do what you do?" I get the answers like “I love to help people with technology,” “I love solving complex problems,” “I love running my own business,” “I love leading a team of people,” and the list goes on. But I challenge them by saying - this is not why are you doing what you do? There is something more to it than that.Until I find that valid reason, I will not work with someone because I don't know their internal motivation. Needs to be a burning desire for my change because, as we all know, change is incredibly difficult.So for you, why do you do what you do? Because ultimately, no one knows that reason better than you.I am here for you if you are unsure and need help finding this. Book a call at talkpaul.com, and let's talk it through - no obligations or tricks.Unlocking burning desire could be the catalyst to change your business an

In this solo podcast, I talk about one common sales mistake I see cloud consultants continually make all the time.What do you think it is?If you said you do not understand the client - you are right. Hang on a minute, Paul. Isn't that a little obvious? As I say in the podcast, common sense is not always that common. In the podcast, I cover specifically what I mean by not understanding the client. This includes:Who are their ideal clients How do they make their money What are the three key strategies for the business for the yearWho are the key decision-makers, and what are their personal and business wins Who have they spoken to or used in the past in regard to the problem they are looking to solve What topics would you like me to cover in the next solo podcast? Email me your ideas to paul@paulhigginsmentoring.comLinks448 - Show Notes Cloud Consultants CollectiveSendSparkJoin our newsletter Connect With Paul On LinkedInOn FacebookOn Twitter: @PaulHiggins555On

Episode OverviewYou know how hard it is to run a service-based business. You might be considering a move from services to consulting, My interview with Daniel is perfect for you. He talks through his life-changing experience to make it easier for you. He also shares valuable tips as an EOS implementor for agencies.Daniel’s background Daniel Moshe, founder and CEO of Tech Guru: IT for Accounting Firms, combines his passion for business and technology with finance and accounting to help modernize accounting firms and strengthen the entrepreneurial ecosystem. He is the founder of Lucid Day, a monday.com partner helping empower effective teams, and an Airbnb host. Daniel is also a certified EOS® (Entrepreneurial Operating System) implementer at EOS Worldwide and weaves these principles into all his businesses. He works with leadership teams to implement simple, practical tools to help them get what they want from their businesses. In addition, he regularly speaks at peaks at con

If you aren’t using Linkedin to gain more leads, then you are missing out big time. But you didn’t need me to tell you that. What you do need is an expert who tells you how to do it. Guillaume covers:Why LinkedIn automation is safer than manual Benchmarks for acceptances and replies and how to get them Linkedin 4-5x more replies than emailGuillaume Portalier is the co-founder and COO of Waalaxy, a Linkedin sales automation platform that focuses on ease of use. They've gone from 0 to $6M ARR in less than 3 years, bootstrapped.Links446 show notesGuillaume's websiteGuillaume's LinkedIn profileCloud Consultants CollectiveSendSparkJoin our newsletterConnect With Paul  On LinkedInOn FacebookOn Twitter: @PaulHiggins555On Instagram: @paulhigginsmentoringEmail: Paul@paulhigginsmentoring.com Thank You for Tuning In!

Hello, I'm Paul Higgins, and welcome to Accelerate Sales solo podcast episode number 445Today's topic isStart the year with less If it is your first time, welcome. I share my learnings from mentoring cloud consultants - typically 10-15min max.  Check out past shows - search Accelerate sales and try the interview shows.If you love what you hear, please subscribe.If you are a regular, thanks for your support. Please email me at paul@paulhigginsmentoring.com to let me know if you listen and what topic you would like me to cover for you.  Before we start, I want to talk about the world's only revenue-focused community for Cloud Consultants.Get your questions answered quickly by peers  Less technical - more bizgo to https://cloudconsultantscollective.com to join for free TODAY STARTYou are probably listening to this at the beginning of 2023To be honest - it doesn't matter as what I will share with you today applies to the start of any year You have a

40-60% of deals are lost due to no decision. This is typically after a purchase journey with you, demos, legal - the whole lot, and they still don’t make a decision. Taking a large amount of time on both sides.They have stated the status quo is not good enough, but nothing ends up happening. You need 2 playbooks - one for the status quo and one for no decision. Too many salespeople dial up the FOMO of missing out. 84% of the time, using this technique will kill the deal.  This is why you need a no-decision playbook.  Matt walks us through the three fears of no decision.Fear of not knowing what to buyFear of not having enough homework You might not see the benefits And how to overcome them.  Laid out in the name of the book - The Jolt effect. Judge = Judging the level of indecision. Offer = Offering your recommendation. Limit = Limit the exploration. Take = Take the risk off the table. Matthew Dixon is the Wall Street Jou

If you are doing services and have an idea to productize it, this is the podcast for you.  We cover: Change from service to product funded by a client  How to leverage Sales Force to build a vertical solution Changing B2B sales and how to adapt  Tom Burton has over 30 years of experience helping forward-thinking businesses (ranging from startups to Fortune 500 companies) develop and implement innovative, technology-based strategies and solutions that drive sales and predictable revenue growth. Today, Tom is an investor and co-founder in LeadSmart Technologies, which has developed an innovative and unique CRM and collaboration platform that enables businesses to visualize what is taking place with their prospects and customers and proactively assist these prospects and customers in reaching the Revenue Zone. He also serves as a trusted advisor to companies and investment firms that are looking to leverage technology-based solutions to improve their marketing, reach new qualified prospects and achieve predict

Is SEO right for your business? Believing that every business needs an SEO strategy is one of the reasons many business owners have a bad experience with SEO. It all comes down to your customer acquisition strategies, sales cycle, and whether your customers are looking for your solution on Google. Farzad Rashidi is here today to help you figure out if SEO is right for your business and, if so, how to choose the right person for the job. He also reveals the one thing that can make your SEO strategy succeed or fail: Backlinks. Page rank ​​was basically created as a popularity contest, meaning that the vote of popularity goes to you if other credible websites in your space are talking about you. Getting those backlinks from relevant authoritative websites in your space will help you gain high rankings and build trust and reputation.   Links 442 - Show Notes Farzad's website Farzad's LinkedIn Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With Paul  On LinkedIn On Facebook On Twitter: @Pa

This is the last solo show of the year, so I want to go through the key podcasts of 2022 and the outlook for 2023. We aired 68 podcasts, so I will only cover my favorites of the year. In these episodes, we had amazing guests and covered topics from LinkedIn outreach, personalized video, how channel partners can grow sales, how to improve your delivery margin, and a few other things. What’s coming in 2023? I’ve built a great free community, the Cloud Consultants Collective, with more than 150 members. My goal for next year is to hit the 500 mark. I will also be launching a paid membership called Cloud Consultants Pro, where we will have masterminds and exclusive workshops. Lifting up a gear for the Fast Track program and scaling my business is also part of the outlook for 2023.   Links 441 - Show Notes Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With Paul  On LinkedIn On Facebook On Twitter: @PaulHiggins555 On Instagram: @paulhigginsmentoring Email: Paul@paulhigginsmentoring.com  

Increasing your prices by 5-10% to keep up with inflation is not the type of price adjustment that will reposition your company and set you up for successful growth. In this episode, Mandi Ellefson will explain in detail how to increase your fees by 50-200% by attracting an entirely different kind of client. All you have to do is be very intentional about the type of growth that you want for your business. How do you do that? It all starts with an irresistible offer that the right prospects want to buy from you. Then, define the minimum client standards you need to deliver that offer by qualifying and quantifying them. Her advice: Choose to work with a higher-level client and make sales a priority. In the end, it’s all about a mindset.   Links 440 - Show Notes Mandi's website Mandi's LinkedIn Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With Paul  On LinkedIn On Facebook On Twitter: @PaulHiggins555 On Instagram: @paulhigginsmentoring Email: Paul@paulhigginsmentoring.com   Thank You

When the economy is strong, you can rely on referrals from your network and SaaS platform to grow your revenue. However, when it goes the other way, you have to work harder for sales. I don't have to spell out to you that the current global economic headwinds are massive. What was easier has now become harder.  Many of the factors are uncontrollable, but not all. So what can you do today to improve your sales strategy and, ultimately, your revenue? I'll share in this solo show two factors you can control to make that happen: Outbound and strategic partners.   Links 439 - Show Notes Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With Paul  On LinkedIn On Facebook On Twitter: @PaulHiggins555 On Instagram: @paulhigginsmentoring Email: Paul@paulhigginsmentoring.com   Thank You for Tuning In!

If you don't understand the kind of outbound process your organization needs, you need to listen to this episode. Antoine Marsden, who helps business owners to accelerate sales revenue, is here to explain why outbound is a huge developer of mid to long-term pipelines. Crafting your message, getting it out there, and creating a list of people potentially interested in your product or service are the first steps to building a successful outbound strategy. You could have the best product in the market, but you won't get anywhere if you don't know how to sell it.  Outbound is a massive driver of conversation that allows you to understand how your products are viewed in the eyes of your potential ICP and give you some valuable feedback as to where those organizations you are targeting happen to be in the market right now.   Links 438 - Show Notes Antoine's website Antoine's LinkedIn Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With Paul  On LinkedIn On Facebook On Twitter: @PaulHiggins55

When working with a SaaS partner, building a relationship with your direct reps will return in the form of more new business. Why? Omi Diaz-Cooper, a marketing genius with 25 years of experience, is here to paint a clear picture of how to use partnerships to close sales earlier. Her approach is to let the direct reps know you're well-versed in a specific vertical or industry, and they will come to you when they need a personalized onboarding experience. Now it's on you to close the deal. Omi uses really deep, exploratory questions during the sales process. The trick here is to make it easier for them and let them go as in-depth as they want. That's what she calls a consultative approach to sales. It's all about helping people rather than showcasing solutions you don't know they need. Everything should be around their challenges, pain points, and goals.   437 - Show Notes Omi's website Omi's LinkedIn ​​ROI calculator Free Website Audit Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With

Did you hit your sales targets last week? If you don't have a weekly target, don't worry because that's more common than you think. At Coca-Cola, I was taught to break annual targets into cases sold for the day because that's how you can only impact the actions for today, not the future. But if you want to scale your business, you should know the answer to this question. So what are those three daily habits that help me achieve my weekly sales targets? Listen to the full episode to find out.   Links 436 - Show Notes Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With Paul  On LinkedIn On Facebook On Twitter: @PaulHiggins555 On Instagram: @paulhigginsmentoring Email: Paul@paulhigginsmentoring.com   Thank You for Tuning In!

Today, 75% of world trade flows indirectly. Things are changing, industries are progressing, and the world is becoming embedded. Jay McBain is here to share his perspective and predictions on the partner ecosystem future based on a ton of research he has made.  In Jay's words, the ecosystem has always been around us, just not at the scale. But SaaS companies are bringing more and more partners to the dance to make the never-ending customer journey easier for everybody. That's what he calls the partner assist function, where partners go to marketplaces and buy on behalf of the customer. So that 75% of indirect sales we're seeing today through channel resellers might go down to 33% in the future.   Links 435 - Show Notes Jay's website Jay's LinkedIn Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With Paul  On LinkedIn On Facebook On Twitter: @PaulHiggins555 On Instagram: @paulhigginsmentoring Email: Paul@paulhigginsmentoring.com   Thank You for Tuning In!

Creating a business with an exit plan in mind will only help you build a healthy business, even if you don't ever sell. It's basically a business strategy that makes you keep the operational and financial side of the company in order and create solid marketing and sales engine.  But let Lorne Kaufman tell us from his experience what lessons he learned from exiting three businesses. He's a managing partner at Momentum Solutionz and a serial entrepreneur who's always thinking about his next project. Lorne also thinks having the right market environment is essential for a successful exit.   Links 434 - Show Notes Lorne’s website Lorne’s LinkedIn Cloud Consultants Collective SendSpark Join our newsletter   Connect With Paul  On LinkedIn On Facebook On Twitter: @PaulHiggins555 On Instagram: @paulhigginsmentoring Email: Paul@paulhigginsmentoring.com   Thank You for Tuning In!