When Paula Abdul handed out Klegg Minis to audience members on The TonyDanza Show in February, she did more than put the smallest color-display MP3 player into the hands of eager recipients. The American Idol diva put the spotlight on a product developed by a black-owned firm.
The brainchild of Dennis Gentles, the Klegg Mini has appeared on CBS and NBC, on VHI's The Fabulous Life (on which Abdul performed while holding the MP3 player) and at the Virgin
Megastore in Times Square (where it was the focus of a three-day promotional event).
So what's the buzz about, you ask? Well, it's all over a 1.8-by-l.6-inch MP3 player that holds up to 250 songs and 10,000 images. It sells for $49.99 to $99.99, depending on memory size, via the company's Website (www.klegg.com) and at select retailers. The product was developed and manufactured by Las Vegas-based Klegg Electronics Inc., which Gentles, 32, launched in 2003 with $70,000 of his own money. In addition to MP3 players, the company's consumer products line offers slim-line televisions and high-end home theater systems.
Klegg's current product lineup includes the M6 501 surround-sound home theater system, the KP line of plasma televisions, the R6150 and R6110 LCD remote controls, and the C7 and I9 in-wall/ceiling speakers. Using technology and aesthetics as a foundation, the firm's engineers have designed a home theater system with speakers that are only slightly larger than a credit card yet powerful enough to provide "thunderous but precise base resolution," explains Gentles.
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The 13-employee company got its start as a distributor for a European-based consumer electronics brand, which Gentles later purchased and brought to the United States. Having previously run a computer consulting firm for 10 years, Gentles says his dream was to build a business that could bring consumer electronics products together in a seamless fashion through home networks and similar systems.
Working with a third-party marketing firm, Gentles set out to find a musically-oriented spokesperson who could spread the word about the Klegg Mini. Abdul's association with American Idol made her the perfect choice. Gentles offered her a combination of company stock and cash in exchange for touting the product in the national media, on the company's Website, and in other venues.
Currently, 24 dealers distribute Klegg's products nationally. In addition to high-end dealers such as Sound City, new retailers include Speaker City in Burbank, California, and Audio Vision in San Francisco; HomeTronics Lifestyles in North Haven, Connecticut; Summit Sound in Bangor, Maine; and TV Specialist Inc. in Salt Lake City. Gentles hopes to increase the number of dealers to 65 by the end of the year, and Klegg has just closed on a deal to sell the Minis at Tower Records.
Company sales have grown from $240,000 in 2005 to an expected $1.5 million this year, and several new products-engineered around marketplace needs and an aesthetically-pleasing design--are in the cards, including media server products. Gentles also plans to open retail stores that would focus on custom home installations for consumers.
Knowing the potential of the MP3 market alone, Sean Wargo, director of industry an@is for the Arlington, Virginia-based Consumer Electronics Association, sees potential for small firms that can rise above the noise generated by Apple's iPod. Sales of portable MP3 players more than doubled in 2004 to nearly 7 million units, accounting for $1.2 billion in revenues, according to the CEA. "Those brands that harness the opportunity and offer targeted products to a specific consumer group will definitely find opportunity in this growing market," Wargo says
Do You Have A Sales Prevention Department In Your Company?
Back in the February 1994 issue of Telemarketing magazine (the parent publication of this magazine), I wrote an editorial with the above title. Since then, I have received several inquiries about this very important topic. In fact, as recently as last week, we had yet another request for a copy of this editorial.
Based on the extreme importance of this topic, I decided to revisit this matter and expand upon it with greater detail.
Most Companies Have One, But They Don't Know They Do
As I have indicated in my editorial in 1994, many companies actually have a sales prevention department, but they are completely unaware of this fact. When I say "sales prevention department," I don't mean that these companies literally have a separate department with that tide. However, the regular violations of certain important rules that I have indicated in this editorial actually constitute a cancerous problem within many companies.
Sales And Marketing Are Everything In Every Company
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As you may know, I have been a student of marketing for the last 25 years; in fact, we do have a marketing test at TMC that 99 percent of the marketing managers who have taken it have failed. In my view, the test is a simple one and contains the basic knowledge that every true marketing manager must possess. There is no point in hiring a marketing manager who cannot even define marketing. In many of my previous editorials, I have elaborated on this topic, as you may know.
In many companies, the sales department is regarded as die most important department in die company. Of course, here at TMC, we do not subscribe to this thinking because we feel that every department is equally important. Having said that, my frequent associations with many CEOs within our industry and elsewhere have led me to believe that most companies, in fact, consider the sales department one of the most the important, IF NOT THE MOST IMPORTANT DEPARTMENT.
In my way of thinking, this is not true. I feel that if you are going to rank the departments, marketing should come ahead of the sales department. Here is why:
All Sales Begin With A Sales Lead
As I have indicated in several of my past editorials, one of the paramount responsibilities of the marketing department is to create awareness about the company, articulate the benefits of dealing with the company and highlight the company's differentiation from its competitors. The cumulative results of the above mentioned marketing functions eventually lead to the all-important lead generation which is vital to any company's growth and prosperity. In other words, the sales department will be crippled if the marketing department does not generate a stream of continuous, qualified sales leads for the sales department.
Sales Prevention Diagnostics
Having stated the above importance of the sales and marketing departments, there are many details that need to be addressed if sales prevention is to be avoided. In this editorial, I will try to refer to as many of these problems as possible, and I ask our valued readers to address whichever factors that are most appropriate for their situations. Here are the areas that are most likely to contribute to sales prevention:
1. Ignore The Golden Rule Of Integrated Marketing And, Most Important, Ignore The Golden Triangle. When a company ignores the rules of integrated marketing and the golden triangle, which includes print, online and event marketing, the company has, in fact, prevented maximum lead generation for the sales department.
2. Ignore Marketing Completely. Believe it or not, many companies give lip service to marketing and, as far as I have been able to study, such companies either go under or, if they exist at all, they really don't get anywhere.
I recall a pair of companies that started out in the Chicago area at the same time. Company A was a master marketer and Company B did not care about marketing at all. To make a very long story short, the owner of Company A is a billionaire today while Company B is still struggling and has gotten nowhere in the same period of time!
3. Waste Sales Leads. Many companies spend a tremendous amount of money every year to attend trade shows or advertise in print and online and generate a considerable amount of leads. However, research indicates that as many as 70 to 80 percent of sales leads generated are either ignored completely or followed up too late to be of any use. Indeed, this is one of the leading causes of sales prevention.
4. Ignore Your Customers' Needs And, Most Important, Ignore Your Customers' Customers' Needs. In this highly competitive business environment, the companies that go beyond the call of duty are those that will survive. Once again, as mentioned in many previous editorials, to succeed in business, you need to understand your customers' needs as well as your customers' customers' needs. Let us remember that customer care is the only sustainable competitive advantage.
5. Ignore Sales Training. Many companies, particularly the entrepreneurial small and medium-sized companies, have a tendency to ignore sales training. This is practically unthinkable. How can anyone expect a sales person to sell anything without knowing the benefits and features of the products or service they are expected to sell? Believe it or not, this problem continues to exist.
Based on the extreme importance of this topic, I decided to revisit this matter and expand upon it with greater detail.
Most Companies Have One, But They Don't Know They Do
As I have indicated in my editorial in 1994, many companies actually have a sales prevention department, but they are completely unaware of this fact. When I say "sales prevention department," I don't mean that these companies literally have a separate department with that tide. However, the regular violations of certain important rules that I have indicated in this editorial actually constitute a cancerous problem within many companies.
Sales And Marketing Are Everything In Every Company
Advertisement
As you may know, I have been a student of marketing for the last 25 years; in fact, we do have a marketing test at TMC that 99 percent of the marketing managers who have taken it have failed. In my view, the test is a simple one and contains the basic knowledge that every true marketing manager must possess. There is no point in hiring a marketing manager who cannot even define marketing. In many of my previous editorials, I have elaborated on this topic, as you may know.
In many companies, the sales department is regarded as die most important department in die company. Of course, here at TMC, we do not subscribe to this thinking because we feel that every department is equally important. Having said that, my frequent associations with many CEOs within our industry and elsewhere have led me to believe that most companies, in fact, consider the sales department one of the most the important, IF NOT THE MOST IMPORTANT DEPARTMENT.
In my way of thinking, this is not true. I feel that if you are going to rank the departments, marketing should come ahead of the sales department. Here is why:
All Sales Begin With A Sales Lead
As I have indicated in several of my past editorials, one of the paramount responsibilities of the marketing department is to create awareness about the company, articulate the benefits of dealing with the company and highlight the company's differentiation from its competitors. The cumulative results of the above mentioned marketing functions eventually lead to the all-important lead generation which is vital to any company's growth and prosperity. In other words, the sales department will be crippled if the marketing department does not generate a stream of continuous, qualified sales leads for the sales department.
Sales Prevention Diagnostics
Having stated the above importance of the sales and marketing departments, there are many details that need to be addressed if sales prevention is to be avoided. In this editorial, I will try to refer to as many of these problems as possible, and I ask our valued readers to address whichever factors that are most appropriate for their situations. Here are the areas that are most likely to contribute to sales prevention:
1. Ignore The Golden Rule Of Integrated Marketing And, Most Important, Ignore The Golden Triangle. When a company ignores the rules of integrated marketing and the golden triangle, which includes print, online and event marketing, the company has, in fact, prevented maximum lead generation for the sales department.
2. Ignore Marketing Completely. Believe it or not, many companies give lip service to marketing and, as far as I have been able to study, such companies either go under or, if they exist at all, they really don't get anywhere.
I recall a pair of companies that started out in the Chicago area at the same time. Company A was a master marketer and Company B did not care about marketing at all. To make a very long story short, the owner of Company A is a billionaire today while Company B is still struggling and has gotten nowhere in the same period of time!
3. Waste Sales Leads. Many companies spend a tremendous amount of money every year to attend trade shows or advertise in print and online and generate a considerable amount of leads. However, research indicates that as many as 70 to 80 percent of sales leads generated are either ignored completely or followed up too late to be of any use. Indeed, this is one of the leading causes of sales prevention.
4. Ignore Your Customers' Needs And, Most Important, Ignore Your Customers' Customers' Needs. In this highly competitive business environment, the companies that go beyond the call of duty are those that will survive. Once again, as mentioned in many previous editorials, to succeed in business, you need to understand your customers' needs as well as your customers' customers' needs. Let us remember that customer care is the only sustainable competitive advantage.
5. Ignore Sales Training. Many companies, particularly the entrepreneurial small and medium-sized companies, have a tendency to ignore sales training. This is practically unthinkable. How can anyone expect a sales person to sell anything without knowing the benefits and features of the products or service they are expected to sell? Believe it or not, this problem continues to exist.
Environmental firms: ranked by number of L.A. County environmental employees
THE 20 largest environmental firms in L.A. County employ nearly 3,000 workers dedicated to environmental services.
Environmental firms provide a variety of services including water and wastewater treatment, landfill design and development, brownfield redevelopment, impact statements, asbestos remediation, cleanup of mold and other toxic materials, and consulting services.
Houston-based Waste Management Inc. continues to lead the list, accounting for 39 percent of the environmental employees.
Gardena-based California Waste Services is one of the fastest growing companies on the list. Its revenues have grown to $14 million in 2005, up $8 million or 233 percent from 2003. The company specializes in processing and hauling construction and demolition material. It moved up two spots this year with 145 employees.
No. 14 Environ International Corp. saw local revenues increase in 2005 to $17.3 million, up $6.5 million compared with the previous year. The L.A.-based firm saw total revenue increase to more than $100 million in 2005, up 54 percent from the previous year.
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Overall, the 20 largest environmental firms employ 94,000 people in 2,722 offices worldwide.
THE PACESETTER WASTE MANAGEMENT INC.
Waste Management Inc., the Houston-based owner and operator of Bradley Landfill in Sun Valley, has 1,100 employees in L.A. County, more than any other environmental firm.
The company specializes in solid waste collection and disposal, hazardous waste disposal, recycling, and electrical power generation.
The green energy program at Bradley Landfill converts "landfill gas"--methane produced from the waste--into electricity. The program produces enough electricity to power 10,000 homes per year.
The firm is doing its part on the pollution-fighting front and is saving money in the process, It lessens the blow of high fuel costs by operating the largest natural gas fleet in the nation. Its 430 trash trucks operate on liquid natural gas and compressed natural gas.
Waste Management Inc. reported net income of $186 million for the first quarter ended March 31, up 31 percent from $150 million for the same period a year earlier. First-quarter revenue exceeded $3.2 billion, versus $3 billion in the first quarter of 2005.
Environmental firms provide a variety of services including water and wastewater treatment, landfill design and development, brownfield redevelopment, impact statements, asbestos remediation, cleanup of mold and other toxic materials, and consulting services.
Houston-based Waste Management Inc. continues to lead the list, accounting for 39 percent of the environmental employees.
Gardena-based California Waste Services is one of the fastest growing companies on the list. Its revenues have grown to $14 million in 2005, up $8 million or 233 percent from 2003. The company specializes in processing and hauling construction and demolition material. It moved up two spots this year with 145 employees.
No. 14 Environ International Corp. saw local revenues increase in 2005 to $17.3 million, up $6.5 million compared with the previous year. The L.A.-based firm saw total revenue increase to more than $100 million in 2005, up 54 percent from the previous year.
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Overall, the 20 largest environmental firms employ 94,000 people in 2,722 offices worldwide.
THE PACESETTER WASTE MANAGEMENT INC.
Waste Management Inc., the Houston-based owner and operator of Bradley Landfill in Sun Valley, has 1,100 employees in L.A. County, more than any other environmental firm.
The company specializes in solid waste collection and disposal, hazardous waste disposal, recycling, and electrical power generation.
The green energy program at Bradley Landfill converts "landfill gas"--methane produced from the waste--into electricity. The program produces enough electricity to power 10,000 homes per year.
The firm is doing its part on the pollution-fighting front and is saving money in the process, It lessens the blow of high fuel costs by operating the largest natural gas fleet in the nation. Its 430 trash trucks operate on liquid natural gas and compressed natural gas.
Waste Management Inc. reported net income of $186 million for the first quarter ended March 31, up 31 percent from $150 million for the same period a year earlier. First-quarter revenue exceeded $3.2 billion, versus $3 billion in the first quarter of 2005.
Full of hot air: how to handle big egos on your sales team before they're blown out of proportion - Sales Force
ALONGSIDE SUCH PERSONALITY-describing adjectives as "competitive" and "assertive," the word "egotistical" is often cast in a pejorative light. But being a little egotistical can be a good thing in sales. Without a firm concept of their own worth, salespeople would quickly be gobbled up by the quicksand of insecurity.
Since such a personality makes one well-suited to thrive in a selling environment, you may be harboring a few shades of ego in your sales force right now. Unfortunately, the same personality trait that makes your salespeople superlative deal-closers may also ruffle feathers in the ranks. Here are a few methods for managing big heads on your sales team:
* Know how to talk ego-ese. Joseph Weintraub, management professor at Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and co-author of The Coaching Manager: Developing Top Talent in Business (Sage Publications), works with companies dealing with sales strife. To assess individual work styles and identify the ones likely to cause conflict, Weintraub uses a "Stop, Start, Continue" exercise. "Each person writes down what he or she wants the other person to stop doing, to start doing and to continue doing," he says. "We discuss the lists, and through negotiation, we try to build an agreement that fits the needs of the parties involved."
According to Star-Team's "Insights Survey" ($40 at www.star-teams.com), developed in part by Weintraub, effective communication with a dominant personality depends on sticking to the facts, supporting an efficient environment and putting all projects in writing. Communicating don'ts for strong personalities include wasting time, being redundant, using a paternalistic approach or dwelling on details.
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* Learn how to separate emotion from fact. "Ego is always emotional," says Dave Lakhani, owner of Balls Out Sales & Marketing, a sales consulting firm in Boise, Idaho. Lakhani advises entrepreneurs to address the issues and create a definable outcome. Lakhani also urges managers to let sales team members know they will be evaluated not on an ability to relate to just clients, but to each other as well. One way to encourage cooperation is to create competitions that force members to rely on each other to win. "You'll be amazed how quickly communication and support come around," Lakhani says.
* Know how to keep egos in check. "Egos are healthy up to a point," says Janice Calnan, a psychotherapist in Ottawa and author of SHIFT: Secrets of Positive Change for Organizations and Their Leaders (Creative Bound). While the ego helps humans survive, it can also interfere with relationships. "[Egos] put us in a 'judgment mode,' where we want to blame each other." It's when the ego takes charge of a situation that "the rational self is out of control," warns Calnan, who offers tips on handling squabbles in the ranks:
1. Encourage an environment in which salespeople provide each other with positive feedback It's hard to clash with someone who's offered you support.
2. Remember that what we focus on will expand. Focus on what's working, and you'll begin to notice more of what works. Focus on the negative, and suddenly more things seem not to work.
Since such a personality makes one well-suited to thrive in a selling environment, you may be harboring a few shades of ego in your sales force right now. Unfortunately, the same personality trait that makes your salespeople superlative deal-closers may also ruffle feathers in the ranks. Here are a few methods for managing big heads on your sales team:
* Know how to talk ego-ese. Joseph Weintraub, management professor at Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and co-author of The Coaching Manager: Developing Top Talent in Business (Sage Publications), works with companies dealing with sales strife. To assess individual work styles and identify the ones likely to cause conflict, Weintraub uses a "Stop, Start, Continue" exercise. "Each person writes down what he or she wants the other person to stop doing, to start doing and to continue doing," he says. "We discuss the lists, and through negotiation, we try to build an agreement that fits the needs of the parties involved."
According to Star-Team's "Insights Survey" ($40 at www.star-teams.com), developed in part by Weintraub, effective communication with a dominant personality depends on sticking to the facts, supporting an efficient environment and putting all projects in writing. Communicating don'ts for strong personalities include wasting time, being redundant, using a paternalistic approach or dwelling on details.
Advertisement
* Learn how to separate emotion from fact. "Ego is always emotional," says Dave Lakhani, owner of Balls Out Sales & Marketing, a sales consulting firm in Boise, Idaho. Lakhani advises entrepreneurs to address the issues and create a definable outcome. Lakhani also urges managers to let sales team members know they will be evaluated not on an ability to relate to just clients, but to each other as well. One way to encourage cooperation is to create competitions that force members to rely on each other to win. "You'll be amazed how quickly communication and support come around," Lakhani says.
* Know how to keep egos in check. "Egos are healthy up to a point," says Janice Calnan, a psychotherapist in Ottawa and author of SHIFT: Secrets of Positive Change for Organizations and Their Leaders (Creative Bound). While the ego helps humans survive, it can also interfere with relationships. "[Egos] put us in a 'judgment mode,' where we want to blame each other." It's when the ego takes charge of a situation that "the rational self is out of control," warns Calnan, who offers tips on handling squabbles in the ranks:
1. Encourage an environment in which salespeople provide each other with positive feedback It's hard to clash with someone who's offered you support.
2. Remember that what we focus on will expand. Focus on what's working, and you'll begin to notice more of what works. Focus on the negative, and suddenly more things seem not to work.
Interiors by design: how one woman went from handling direct mail to designing home interiors
When Dennese Guadeloupe Rojas was laid off from her production position at a direct mail company in the late '80s, she was disappointed about losing a job but she viewed it as a "golden opportunity" to pursue her life's passion. "Often when you lose a job, you have time to reflect. 'What do I really want to do? What is my life's purpose?'" she says. For Rojas, it turned out to be interior design.
Rojas earned a degree in interior design from Bauder College in Miami but never put it to good use. Unable to find work in her chosen field, she spent several years in advertising. Rojas relocated to Maryland with her daughter in 1988. While at the direct mail company, "I designed a friend's home as a surprise for his wife. That was so rewarding," she says.
Today, Rojas is the sole proprietor of Interiors By Design, which provides interior and exterior design as well as accessories. She is also the owner of a retail store, Interior Accents Etc., where she sells a broad selection of home decor. Last year, both businesses grossed $319,856; Rojas anticipates making $276,351 in the retail store with another $300,000 in design revenues in 2004.
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Making the transition to self-employment in 1990, Rojas began working out of her home in Burtonsville, Maryland, relying on word of mouth and attending trade shows in drum up prospective clients. She eventually courted high-scale clients, namely NFL players, including Anthony McFarland and Shaun King. By 2001, Interiors By Design was solid. But each buying trip was limited by Rojas' small-scale approach. She had nowhere to stock the quantities that allow designers to buy from the big players.
At that point, Rojas decided to set up shop. With her sights set on the high-income, middle-class suburban area of Silver Spring, Maryland, Rojas found a space to lease in October 2001. Lacking retail experience, she turned to a friend, someone who had a store selling home furnishings for 10 years. "I hired her as a consultant; we worked out a payment arrangement," says Rojas, whose startup costs were $70,000 to $90,000. She managed to snare a $45,000 micro loan through the SBA. She also used about, $20,000 of her personal savings.
For Rojas. adding a store to her existing design work was rocky at first. The construction of a loft to accommodate a design office separate from the 1,400-square-foot display floor was delayed, and Rojas had to have a friend fix what the original architect botched. Reliable employees were harder to find, although she now has a dependable crew of four full-time and two part time workers.
Nationally, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, interior design is growing at a faster pace than average, with a projected 22% increase in the number of working designers by 2012. Annual billings, calculated per state by Dun and Bradstreet, stood between $200,000 and $900,000 in 2003, with most between $400,000 and $600,000.
While the flurry of home makeover programs on television has made interior designers popular commodities, Rojas notes that it's a blessing as well as a curse. Such shows "have more people coming into the store and seeking a designer to help with the interior of their homes," explains Rojas, who has worked with homeowners with budgets ranging from $10,000 to $4 million. "But people think they can get everything that they want for just $1,000
Rojas earned a degree in interior design from Bauder College in Miami but never put it to good use. Unable to find work in her chosen field, she spent several years in advertising. Rojas relocated to Maryland with her daughter in 1988. While at the direct mail company, "I designed a friend's home as a surprise for his wife. That was so rewarding," she says.
Today, Rojas is the sole proprietor of Interiors By Design, which provides interior and exterior design as well as accessories. She is also the owner of a retail store, Interior Accents Etc., where she sells a broad selection of home decor. Last year, both businesses grossed $319,856; Rojas anticipates making $276,351 in the retail store with another $300,000 in design revenues in 2004.
Advertisement
Making the transition to self-employment in 1990, Rojas began working out of her home in Burtonsville, Maryland, relying on word of mouth and attending trade shows in drum up prospective clients. She eventually courted high-scale clients, namely NFL players, including Anthony McFarland and Shaun King. By 2001, Interiors By Design was solid. But each buying trip was limited by Rojas' small-scale approach. She had nowhere to stock the quantities that allow designers to buy from the big players.
At that point, Rojas decided to set up shop. With her sights set on the high-income, middle-class suburban area of Silver Spring, Maryland, Rojas found a space to lease in October 2001. Lacking retail experience, she turned to a friend, someone who had a store selling home furnishings for 10 years. "I hired her as a consultant; we worked out a payment arrangement," says Rojas, whose startup costs were $70,000 to $90,000. She managed to snare a $45,000 micro loan through the SBA. She also used about, $20,000 of her personal savings.
For Rojas. adding a store to her existing design work was rocky at first. The construction of a loft to accommodate a design office separate from the 1,400-square-foot display floor was delayed, and Rojas had to have a friend fix what the original architect botched. Reliable employees were harder to find, although she now has a dependable crew of four full-time and two part time workers.
Nationally, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, interior design is growing at a faster pace than average, with a projected 22% increase in the number of working designers by 2012. Annual billings, calculated per state by Dun and Bradstreet, stood between $200,000 and $900,000 in 2003, with most between $400,000 and $600,000.
While the flurry of home makeover programs on television has made interior designers popular commodities, Rojas notes that it's a blessing as well as a curse. Such shows "have more people coming into the store and seeking a designer to help with the interior of their homes," explains Rojas, who has worked with homeowners with budgets ranging from $10,000 to $4 million. "But people think they can get everything that they want for just $1,000
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