Derby Management's "Competitive Edge" Blog

Let's start with the total raw workdays between Monday and 12/22.  

Tags: Sales Best Practices, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, Teaching at Tufts University, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Marketing Plans

We've all heard the adage about the better mousetrap and buyers beating a path to the door.  In fact, the U.S. patent office over the years has issued more than 4,400 patents for "better" mousetraps, and my guess is that over my years of owning houses, my choices always seem to come down to two: the old-fashioned, dangerous, lose-your-finger, spring traps and the myriad of make-you-cringe newer glue traps.  4,400 ideas reduced to just a couple of choices and actual buying decisions typically being made in the aisles or on the websites of Home Depot and ACE based on colors, brand names, fonts, images of dead critters, and anonymous reviews citing "better, "faster" and "more humane".   

Tags: HubSpot Tips, how to write a marketing plan, Making Tough Choices, how to write a sales plan, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, Teaching entrepreneurship, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Sales Planning, 2023 Marketing Plans

When I was in junior high school, it was obvious to me and to my parents that I was not doing well in math.  As a result, every Saturday morning was spent at the house of Mr. Sampson, the head of the high school math department, who served as my tutor taking me from basic addition to more complicated algebraic formulas resulting in a slow rewiring of my brain.  Math Saturdays took place all year including when the family returned from the beach in August, and I still remember walking back and forth to Mr. Sampson's house in the sweltering heat of the summer.  To a large degree, the rewiring process worked...although not so well according to my CFO friends.  

Tags: Sales Best Practices, HubSpot Tips, Inboound, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Sales Planning

Welcome to the Summa! 

Just a superb holiday period last week, as I took unfair advantage of the fact that I live on the NH beach by lugging my book-filled beach bag out the door every afternoon and laying claim to my time-tested perfect location of sand and surf.  

- Perfect for catching up on my long list of required reading assignments
- Necessary for the final edits to the fall syllabus which went out on the 5th
- Relaxing from being at the tip of the spear for the last quarter.

Tags: Sales Optimization, Sales Best Practices, Sales Management Best Practices, Sales quota, Sales Leadership in the Revolution, Tufts Entrepreneurship, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, Teaching at Tufts University, 2023 Business Planning

With the end of the Q just eight days away (don't plan on anyone working on the 30th before the July 4th weekend/holiday week), it's time to plan the second half of the sales year in terms of strategic focus and where I'm going to focus my management time and my limited budget.  Do I focus on ...

Tags: Sales Best Practices, Sales Management Best Practices, Making Tough Choices, 4th of July, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Marketing Plans

Cautionary times?  Sure!

Tags: Making Tough Choices, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Sales Planning, 2023 Marketing Plans

I live on the NH beach and frequently commute to Boston.  Those days that I'm teaching, I leave at 5:00 AM to arrive at 7:00 and schedule student meetings before my afternoon marketing and sales classes.  In my consulting work, if the client says, "I want to meet in the office", I'm in the car driving around NE or on Amtrak to NYC.  Yesterday's commute to Boston, however, clearly defined why salespeople should not be going back to any city-based office just because some out-of-touch supervisor states that they want everyone sitting at their desks.   Notice above my use of the phrase "city-based office".  

Tags: Sales Leadership in the Revolution, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Sales Planning, 2023 Marketing Plans

13 weeks later, these two final weeks are the final presentations by the teams to the senior management of their respective Sales or Marketing projects.  Completing this from the NH beach this AM before heading out to Waltham in a couple of minutes where the student team of six will present their marketing research, strategies and implementation tactics to six sales and marketing managers at the company.  Real life. Real expertise. Real and direct feedback.  For the students and for me, the culmination of their work is very exciting and always a bit unnerving since the success (and 40% of the grade) is defined by the customer.   

Tags: Sales Optimization, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Sales Planning

A wicked busy week combined with customers, fundraising for our new startup, and super excited about this week at The Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts as we enter into the final competition at the annual Tufts $100K Business Plan Contest being held this Thursday night from 6-9:00.  If you want to participate online in this professional slice magic of entrepreneurship at its best, click here to register.

Tags: Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, entrepreneurshipfortherestofus, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Sales Planning, 2023 Marketing Plans

Last Tuesday, I wrote about The Tufts $100K Business Plan contest and its upcoming semi-finals which occurred last Thursday night. 50 Plus solid teams of students and faculty who had completed detailed applications, provided business plans and videos were narrowed down to 15, who will now be moving on to the Finals to be held on April 13th 6:00-9:00 PM.  I am looking forward to seeing you there!   For more information on last Thursday and just superb examples of the reality of what true entrepreneurship is, please click here for our LinkedIn post.   

Unfortunately, what has also occurred at exactly the same time is the very difficult situation caused by the mismanagement of the senior execs of Silicon Valley Bank, which continues to make waves in the tech market and will most probably cascade into the general banking community of small banks everywhere.  Clearly a very tough situation, and for those of us who start and invest in companies, the reality of corrections we will now need to take will slow down what we should be doing at this time of year...which is figuring out how to better market and sell our products and services.  

as managers, It's important to focus on what we can control

What we, as entrepreneurs, personally cannot control is the external banking environment and what will now assuredly result in in terms of tighter controls.  For many weeks ahead, we'll listen to the histrionics of politicians, bankers and administrators pointing fingers at one another while mandating increased controls, and that, in turn, will hopefully reign in bad management.   

In the meantime, what we can not only "control", but we can invest time and money into are a few of five business fundamentals of successful entrepreneurship.  Success in entrepreneurship for the rest of us always ...especially in difficult times...comes down to intense leadership focus in markets, in product, and in selling value to real people and not allowing the team to be distracted. 

https://www.brainshark.com/derbymanagement/vu?pi=zFGzu5funzFFz0

Just a few ideas to think about this morning while a different type of a wicked weatha' storm encompasses us here in Boston!   

 

2023 SALES PLANNING  

For more than a few ideas and real fingers-in-the-dirt details, take a look at our free Writing the Winning Sales Plan for 2023.  

Or you can just email me, and I will send you a free copy, and, of course, you can connect with me at any time for questions, comments or just catching up. 


CONNECT ANYTIME!

Connect with me at any time for some quick ideas and feedback. 

There's never a cost for a call or two, plus I love listening and talking about Sales & Marketing.   

www.derbymanagement.com  
Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts.

 

 

 

 

 

Tags: angel investing, how to write a business plan, Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts, entrepreneurshipfortherestofus, 2023 Business Planning, 2023 Sales Planning, 2023 Marketing Plans