The Value of Thought Leadership

How to develop it

by Randy Shattuck, The Shattuck Group

The executive VP laid seven of the company's most recent white papers out on the boardroom table one by one. "We spent weeks developing these," he said with a worried look crossing his face. "Downloads get worse every day. But the real problem is that no one mentions them in the sales process anymore. Frankly, I think our sales force is losing confidence in them. What should we do?"

Build thought leadership ... Have a nice day ... Get a spine … Diamond sales

Last month, Randy Shattuck gave the inside story on "thought leadership" and why it matters. This issue, he shows how to establish thought leadership.

We all say phrases automatically like "Have a nice day" and "How are you?" Mary Hanna likes to find other ways to say the standard phrase; see what she recommends.

Sometimes shaking things up helps people listen better. Don't have the nerve to speak up when problems arise? Experts show you great ways to strengthen your spine.

A manager's diamond of a salesperson has lost his shine. Do you have the cure for helping the sales star get the sparkle back? Share it and enlighten our readers.

New Year. Fresh start. We're all about providing you with good stuff every issue. Tell us of any changes you’d like to see in PSJ, and as a thank you, we’ll enter your name into a drawing for a pair of Garmin Rino 100 MP3 GPS. Thanks for reading — Jack

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Heart of any online marketing campaign."

Read our interview with Seth.

Greasing the Wheels

Beyond: "Here's your ticket, Ma'am. Have a nice day."

by Mary Hanna

When someone asks you, "How are you?" do you automatically respond, "Fine" or "Good" even though you don't feel that way? I still remember my dad's answering machine always ending with, "Have a nice day." For businesses, this may not be an ideal phrase since it makes some folks cringe, especially when they're frustrated clients.