Alice Heiman

#320: The Stories CEOs Are Telling That Prevent Sales

#320: The Stories CEOs Are Telling That Prevent Sales

Could you be the one preventing sales in your company?

As the CEO you hold many responsibilities for your company to succeed. And driving sales and being able to sustain your company’s growth is one of them.

But how do you grasp that opportunity for exponential growth potential? It’s all in redefining your sales strategy with these changing times so you can start having an effective sales approach that isn’t outdated and ensures you have the proper structure to get the tremendous growth you want.

Today, I’m bringing in our guest expert, Alice Heiman, who teaches companies all around the world how to elevate their sales to increase valuation for their companies with a B2B sale. Alice is a Chief Sales Energizer who spends her time strategizing with CEOs, company leaders and their sales leadership to build the strategies that find new business and grow existing accounts.

She is also the host of the popular podcast, Sales Talk for CEOs, and dedicates her time to local entrepreneurs by teaching at the University of Nevada in the entrepreneurship minor which she helped inspire. Alice also serves on the board of several growing companies to energize and elevate their sales. (more…)

Sam George

#319: Why We Tell Ourselves Horror Stories When We’re Ghosted

#319: Why We Tell Ourselves Horror Stories When We’re Ghosted

Digital communication has had a profound impact on the way we deliver our message to our prospects and it provides a solid foundation for communication that is critical to our relationships with them.

But how do you make sure your message is not left unreturned, delayed or answered ambiguously so you’re not left churning into a psychological loop of worst-case scenarios and catastrophizing? It’s being able to close the gap of the broken communication loop so your message can be fully understood and promptly returned.

In today’s episode, Sam George will teach us exactly what we can do when we’ve been ghosted out. Sam is a media consultant for political campaigns, non-profit organizations and corporations who specializes in email marketing and also leads an entirely online yoga company, YMEDICA which educates yoga teachers on medical yoga.

He is the author of I’ll Get Back to You: The Dyscommunication Crisis – Why Unreturned Messages Drive Us Crazy and What to Do About It. He emphasizes the Dyscommunication crisis we’re facing is caused by delayed and ambiguous communication brought on by our reliance on impersonal digital tools like texts and emails. When we don’t get a response we have an open loop in our story that our subconscious brain absolutely can’t stand. It needs closure. So it makes up a negative story to close the loop.  (more…)

With Randy Olson, PhD

#318: The One Narrative Framework You Need for Effective Business Storytelling

#318: The One Narrative Framework You Need for Effective Business Storytelling

You have an important brand story to tell and you need to communicate it in a way that will quickly connect and convert your prospects into life-long customers. But you’re not connecting like you could because you’re overcomplicating your message confusing your audience.

Therefore, I’m excited to connect you with this extra-special edition of The Business Of Story that launches my second book, The Narrative Gym For Business. Co-authored with my good friend, Dr. Randy Olson who introduced me to the foundational narrative framework of the ABT (And, But, Therefore) in 2013, The Narrative Gym for Business is a short 75-page deep dive guide into how you can craft this messaging dynamo for all of your business communications. 

Legendary Silicon Valley marketer Christopher Locchead says, “This book provides an unfair advantage for anyone who cares about producing exponential results.”

Greg Head, Founder of ScalingPoint and Greg’s List, said, “The ABT is THE most powerful framework for communication that I have ever used. Thanks for your podcasts, blog posts, and workshops that led up to this book about the ABT.”

Communications consultant Ariella Label added, “The ABT is such a good framework it deserves verb status!”

Tune in as Randy and I share this secret selling technique and how you can use this fundamental narrative framework of the ABT to transform your business storytelling and win your customers over every time.

(more…)

Dov Baron

#317: How to Find Your Story of Personal Fulfillment

#317: How to Find Your Story of Personal Fulfillment

One of the biggest lies we’ve learned is that vulnerability is a form of weakness. Vulnerability is actually our greatest strength. And when you step up to reveal your truth and the message you’ve got to deliver, that’s what makes the impact.

But it’s all about living a purpose-driven life, one rich with meaning. Being courageous enough to strip away the layers and all the covers you hide behind so you can tell the right story to cultivate trust, bond and connection with your audience.

A master storyteller himself and a leading authority figure on actualized leadership, Dov Baron teaches us how we can get the results we set out to achieve in the most meaningful manner.

Dov, for over thirty years, has worked with committed elite-level leaders who have outward success but are dealing with internal turmoil from childhood imprinting that impacts their happiness and fulfillment. He shows them how to embrace those good and bad impressionable moments and use them to accelerate their careers and happiness.  (more…)

John O’Hagan

#316: How to Tell Your Brand Story by Just Being You

#316: How to Tell Your Brand Story by Just Being You

Your brand story is the essence of your business. People buy from people. People relate to other people. And allowing your customers to see the reason why you are the best person they know they can count on and help them make better decisions is what will create that trust and drive your business forward.

But what makes your brand completely unique? It’s all about being authentic! Being truly genuine and not being afraid to expose your reality to motivate your audience so you can grow your business. 

One guy who knows a thing or two about how to just be yourself is John O’Hagan. A former punk band member and co-owner of Restro Real Estate. John has been a Realtor for 14 years, a designated broker for the last 2 years and started Retro Real Estate 3 and a half years ago to go out on his own.

He was the former co-founder and owner of Golden Rule Tattoo which he started in 2010. One of the busiest tattoo shops in metropolitan Phoenix, winning more number one awards than any other tattoo shop in the Valley. And is now the co-founder and owner of Maxwell-O’Hagan Group, a real estate investment and design company that buys and does wild remodels of homes to either re-sell or keep for vacation rentals.  (more…)

John DeMato

#315: How to Use Your Photo in Business Storytelling

#315: How to Use Your Photo in Business Storytelling

The way you market yourself and your business through visual imagery is key in communicating your brand and your message to those you serve. And you want your visuals to be able to captivate their attention so you can drive better sales. 

But, your visual storytelling can only be powerful if you can convey an emotional connection with your customers so you can present yourself as the go-to expert in your space, inspire them to care and drive action. Connection is everything!

John DeMato is a visual story expert who collaborates with speakers, trainers, consultants and business leaders to create image content that captures your audience’s attention through artistry and emotion.

A guy who has spent 20 years behind the camera and has been featured as a photography expert on several NBC Universal daytime and reality shows. John isn’t simply a photographer – he thinks like a marketer. He sets his clients up for success beyond the photo sessions by educating them on how to leverage their portraits, book images, virtual and live event photos across their online presence.  (more…)

Jim Shaddick

#314: My Newfound Brother-in-Law is an International Casino Consultant

#314: My Newfound Brother-in-Law is an International Casino Consultant

We all have a back story to tell, our origin stories that have taken us to great heights in both our personal lives and our careers. But how do you use your back story to move, inspire and persuade your audience and become a compelling storyteller?

It’s being able to look into your own memories and life experiences for ways to illustrate your message. Looking into the events in your life that make you believe in the idea you are trying to share so you can be authentic, relatable, and accessible to your audience. And when you hone into this, it allows your story to stand out. 

To celebrate this very special 6th anniversary edition of the Business of Story, I am honored to bring you my new brother-in-law, Hugh Jim Reynolds Shaddick. My wife, Michele’s, newfound brother via the DNA test 23andMe.

Jim has undoubtedly lived a storied life. He studied fine art and industrial design at Grimsby Technical College School of Art and was accepted to the Royal College of Art in London but passed for work in Rome.

Jim later became the Executive Vice President and General Manager of Linc Smith, a division of Bally Manufacturing. At its peak, he oversaw 3,500 employees manufacturing and distributing 3,700 video machines, 670 pinball tables and 120 to 150 slot machines per day. Jim became an international casino consultant designing gaming experiences from Greece to France to Italy to Russia. (more…)

Patty Limerick

#313: The Power of Playing the Fool in Business

#313: The Power of Playing the Fool in Business

We have never lived in a more polarized time. Facts just aren’t going to cut it when you are trying to change someone’s mind. But how do you become a catalyst for change? If you can tap into your inner fool to convey your stories that can challenge the thinking and logic of your audience, break down barriers and cultivate trust – it can truly empower them to take risks and win. 

Today’s guest will show you how. Patty Limerick is the Faculty Director and Chair of the Board of the Center of the American West at the University of Colorado, best-selling author of The Legacy of Conquest, a MacArthur Fellow and the former Official Fool for both Yale and Harvard Universities. 

Patty has dedicated her career to bridging the gap between academics and the general public and to demonstrating the benefits of applying historical perspective to contemporary dilemmas and conflicts. She is an energetic, fun and engaging public speaker on American Western history and is regularly featured on the op-ed pages of local and national newspapers, including serving as a guest columnist for The New York Times in the summer of 2005. She currently writes a monthly column for The Denver Post. (more…)

Zach Phillips

#312: How to Improvise on Your Story to Thrive in Tough Times

#312: How to Improvise on Your Story to Thrive in Tough Times

2020 heavily impacted the way we did business and forced many of us to adapt our ways in order to survive. But how do you ensure your business thrives and comes out stronger than before the next time unexpected chaos hits?

If you focus on finding new and innovative ways that level up and meet the needs of your customers, your message has a much higher chance of being appreciated, understood, and make a life-long impression.

On this week’s show, we have Zach Phillips, the director of professional development for the National Association of Music Merchants, or NAMM. NAMM was founded in 1901 with a mission to strengthen the music products industry and promote the pleasures and benefits of making music.

The NAMM Resource Center covers innovative creations, the evolution of music, sound, and entertainment products, the ever-changing world of music retail, as well as the member’s collective quest to improve music education around the globe. Its Oral History program and Music History Project podcast features stories of those who have helped shape and expand the music industry through the years. (more…)

Tamsen Webster

#311: How to Find the Red Thread for Your Story

#311: How to Find the Red Thread for Your Story

You have a powerful story to tell and you want to communicate it with your audience in a way that will create transformational change and make an undeniable impact in order to convert. But you just can’t seem to find that sweet spot between the potential you see in your ideas and how to translate it so it connects and makes sense to your audience.

In this episode, Tamsen Webster teaches you how to bridge that gap and make the connection of the invisible link between your audience’s problem and the solution your business can answer. Making your story one that will be impossible to resist and will inspire your audience into action.

Tamsen has spent the last twenty years helping experts drive action from their ideas. Part message strategist, part storyteller, part English-to-English translator, her work focuses on how to find and build the stories partners, investors, clients, and customers will tell themselves—and others. 

She is a professional advisor at the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship and a mentor for the Harvard Innovation Labs. Serving over eight years as executive producer and idea strategist for one of the oldest locally organized TED Talk events in the world (TEDxCambridge).  (more…)