Tail of The Tape

Deleting Your Insightly Calendar from Google Calendar

• Open Google Calendar.
• Click the gear icon in the upper right.
• Select Settings from the drop-down.

• Click the Calendars link in the upper left. This will display your list of calendars
• Click the Unsubscribe link to the right of each calendar you want to remove.

If you are using Insightly’s calendar sync feature, you will need to turn off the sync from the User Settings > Google Sync page. See our calendar sync article for a screenshot of this setting.

This week’s tip was provided by Tony Roma. Tony is an Insightly product expert who has been helping businesses implement software solutions for over ten years.

Lights, Camera, Headshot

Putting your best face forward–literally and figuratively–can make a big difference in presenting yourself as a polished business person. Before you head over to the studio for your professional headshots, here are some wardrobe tips that will help you look sharp:

What to Wear – Women

• Avoid big prints and busy patterns
• Different necklines will change the apparent shape of your face. Bring a variety different shirts/blouses to see what works best
• For a no-jacket casual look, bring various colored blouses – ideally darker than your skin tone
• Be stylish and fashionable, but remember the picture is about your face and not your clothes or jewelry
• Sleeveless tops/dresses can draw attention to your shoulders/arms. Consider bringing items with a variety of different sleeves

What to Wear – Men

• The standard business look is a suit jacket, dress shirt and tie
• A casual business look is often a jacket and open dress shirt, shirt and tie (no jacket), or dress shirt on it’s own
• Polo shirts are a good look for some businesses. Be sure the shirt is in good condition and fits well
• For a no-jacket casual look, bring colored shirts – ideally darker than your skin tone
• A white dress shirt by itself is a bad idea – unless you plan to wear it underneath something (jacket or sweater)
• Bring a few different jackets, shirt colors and ties so we have choices for the photo

Tail of the Tape

How to Build a Competitive Advantage in Sales

The best salespeople really prove their value when they’re faced with the challenge of selling a product that is virtually the same as a million other products out there.

What the most successful  sales reps do (besides using  Spiro) is find their own competitive advantage.

Back in the 80s, Michael Porter, a professor at Harvard Business School, wrote a brilliant book on this very topic. His main point was that to beat your competition, you have to either be cheaper than the other guys, or be different from them, thereby justifying a higher cost. It’s that simple.

Be the Best Option Available

Offering your customer the lowest price is often “option A”. But the first option isn’t always the best. Having a bargain basement price can make your product appear not just low in cost, but also low in quality.

Although this option is pretty straightforward – offer them the best deal – it’s not what I would recommend. The best salespeople show value even when they need to be creative to make it show. It’s more about having competitive advantage by differentiating yourself from your competition.

Provide Superior Customer Service

Let’s say you are selling something pretty basic, like ball bearings. To me, a ball bearing is a ball bearing is a ball bearing. If you can’t show your advantage by differentiating the product, then perhaps you can provide the customer with superior service.

Make sure you keep them informed of important dates throughout the sale, putting them in touch with the shipping department to ensure timely delivery. Question them on their concerns, so you can proactively alleviate any stresses they may have, and work to  provide them with the appropriate, thorough answers they deserve.

Read more tips on building a competitive advantage.

This week’s sales tip is provided by Adam Honig, CEO of Spiro Technologies. Spiro’s mission is to help salespeople make more money using artificial intelligence.