1.Define benefits to customer. You’ve found their pain, now you need to come up with a cure by answering their question, “What’s in it For ME?” For instance, if you are pet-care provider you “make it possible for a couple to enjoy their honeymoon in Hawaii without feeling guilty about leaving their pet.”

2.Qualify before you present. Okay, you know their pain and can cure it. You now need to know if person on other end of phone or e-mail query is likely to buy from you. Take time up front to ensure this a good prospect for you. When you qualify your prospect you want to know: a.Is this person decision maker? b.Does this person have a real need for what I’m selling? c.Does this person have budget necessary to pay for my product or service? d.When does this person wish to start using my product or service?

3.Only sell to decision maker. No matter how well your product or service solves a client’s problem, and no matter how wonderfully you articulate that benefit – if you are selling to someone who doesn’t have authority to purchase your product or service, you’ve wasted your time.

4.It’s about relationship! Every interaction you have with potential client either builds or destroys their trust in you. As Henry Ward Beecher said, “Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anybody else expects of you. Never excuse yourself.” This a great mantra for anyone involved in sales cycle. Trust takes a long time to build and it’s very easy to destroy. Make sure every part of your relationship with prospect is held to your highest standard.

It's that time of year again, when all Canadians rush to their mailboxes, their corner stores or their neighbor's houses to read latest edition of Maclean's Magazine.

For those who don't know it, Maclean's is Canadian equivalent of Time or Newsweek, and time of year is annual Top 100 Employers report – employers who issue more than just a paycheck (although right now a paycheck would be quite a treat!)

Being frugal shopper that I am, I shunned mailbox and corner store – no loss, we don't have a corner store in this hamlet – and headed right over to my neighbor's log cabin high up on summit of Mount Okabingbong.

"OK, Happy Guy, what now?" came his usual warm greeting. "No, wait. Let me guess. It's Maclean's 100 Top Employers edition, right?"

"Right."

"And you want to check if your employer is on list this year, right?" he continued.

"Right."

"And you'll be disappointed that your employer didn't make it on list, again, right?" he asked.

"Right. Oh..."

"Happy Guy, you are a self-employed hermit. You don't have an employer," Mountain Neighbor said.

"Yes I do. Me. I am my employer, and a mighty good one at that."

"What makes you think you would be good enough to qualify?" he asked.

"It says right here that they want employers who don't just to woo best employees, but work to keep them."

"If I were you, I would just fire all your employees," Mountain Neighbor remarked.

I ignored sarcasm. "Look at what makes these guys a top employer. They have an on-site fitness facility. Well, I exercise on-site, too."

"So you do," he agreed.

"And this employer offers a profit-sharing plan. Well, I do that."