Philippe Matthews Show Guru Advice, Author Reviews, Tech Reviews, Entertainment News

Conflicts rarely end well, so it's natural to want to avoid them. But you can't hide from them forever. For every hard-nosed, coldly logical businessperson there are hundreds of entrepreneurs just like us: Worried about how others perceive us and avoiding confrontation at all cost

Conflicts rarely end well, so it's natural to want to avoid them. But you can't hide from them forever.

Here's how I make sure my employees are ready to help our customers.

Why you should think twice about an advertising scheme coming from a company that's about to IPO. A funny thing happened to Facebook on the way to its IPO: It decided that mobile ads are a must. During its first marketing conference , Facebook announced new ways for companies to get in front of consumers, including ads on the social network's mobile apps

Conventional 'wisdom' about selling is frequently dead wrong. Here's a reality check. The business world is full of conventional wisdom that gets passed from office to office

Companies that provide most of their value through independent contractors are always at risk. Heres how to create a model that's win-win for the business, contractor and customer

Use these 4 smart tricks to create and share customer testimonials. Nothing sells your product or service better than a passionate customer. Strong customer testimonials break the ice with prospects on the fence.

All customers ask the same questions--of themselves & of you--in this exact order. If you want to sell more, be prepared to answer them.

When showcasing your capabilities for a prospective business partner, three key elements could help you close the deal. A client our ours expressed that he was interested in building a new business in the healthcare sector. We agreed that to be successful, the company would need a strategic partner that has experience and capabilities in the healthcare space to complement the customer relationships the client has cultivated over the years.

To rigorously evaluate a new idea, business plan, sales pitch, or product feature, be sure you ask these three simple questions. They will save you. Before you waste your time with a business case, sales pitch, or SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats), put yourself in your customers' shoes

A former fighter pilot explains how to use military discipline to increase your sales figures. There are real similarities between flying combat missions and going on sales calls, according to former fighter pilot Rob "Waldo" Wingman , author of the bestseller Never Fly Solo: Lead with Courage, Build Trusting Partnerships, and Reach New Heights in Business . As he explained it to me a while back: "Both jobs require short-term mission success and long-term victory, both require specialized training, and both demand an ability to perform under stress." Here are Wingman's 10 steps for "flying" your next sales "mission." Phase 1: Preparation 1.

What you think is an elevator pitch will actually alienate customers. Instead, have a conversation that creates a real sales opportunity. If you're like most entrepreneurs, you think an "elevator pitch" is a one- to three-minute sales pitch that you could presumably give during a very long elevator ride

Our expectations have everything to do with how much we like a new product or experience. Your marketing needs to reflect this

If you blow it at a face-to-face meeting, you'll have wasted both your time & your client's. Avoid these goofs to turn more prospects into paying customers. Customer visits are expensive–and if you don't make a sale, your time and travel expense has been wasted

Customers may say you have a great idea for a product -- but how can you tell if they will actually buy it? One of the trickiest things about starting a company is getting an accurate read on demand