21st Century Sales

I was very eager to go to the Northern Voice blogging conference this year.  I went in 2005, its first year, because my friends at Bryght were on the organizing team.  Last year, my wife scooped me by registering first and I got to stay at home with the kids.  Same this year, but one of my kids was sick with the flu and only mama could provide the required TLC, so I got to go to 1/2 the conference.  It was a good investment of time!
Several people I have a lot of time for would consider themselves bloggers in the same way that I would consider myself a salesperson or a runner.  To them, being a blogger is one of the key attributes of who they are.

My first impressions 3 years ago were who really cares about your blog?  You see, these folks were so passionate about their blogs and blogging that I figured the options were:

1. Have a blog
2. Have a life

I now have 3 blogs.  (OK, one is for an MBA course I'm not currently teaching, so I guess it doesn't count.)  I think I still have a life.  Maybe that's because I don't live for my blogs, rather I see them as a means to an end rather than the end itself? 

Anyway, what I came away with was that blogging and other Web 2.0 things will play a major role in 21st century sales.  I will most definitely have to weave them into the book.

Here are a few of my takeaways from the conference:

• a lot of people are now blogging and a lot more will likely take it up soon
• blogging includes podcasting (think your own personal radio station) and videocasting (think your own little Internet television station.)
• blogs are probably better ways to promote a business than a website (they are likely cheaper, easier to manage, easier to find in a web that is getting bigger and bigger every day, more personal) than static Web 1.0 websites
• there's a whole lot of tools and techniques I'd best learn and include in the book
• you have to watch what you say in your blog because people notice!

On the last point, I bumped into Roland Tanglao, one of the principles of Bryght I'd not seen in a while.  He was busy with organizing the conference, but took 30 seconds to say "Hi!" and mentioned he'd read my new blog. 

Read my new blog?  This blog?  I've only had it up for 2 weeks and I think I've only told a handful of pals about it.  How'd he do that?

It was a simple answer... and a technique that all 21st century salespeople will need to know... but one I'll explore another day!