Last week Opportunity Inc. published its newest web site www.opportunity-inc.com . Over 20 years we always have tried to be cutting edge. We were out there in front of the wave with E Business Cards and streaming video on our site. Ron and I would have to candidly confess,” the shoemakers did not look down at the holes in their own shoes” in recent years.  Our site was not mobile friendly and did not lever the search engine power that our blogs and published articles should have.

There is always an excuse for not refreshing your brand presentation and levering technology. We were busy with clients and the Book.  But in the end we would both admit we would have not accepted the excuses from clients. We were wrong!

The experience reminded me that “do as I say not what I do” is simply not acceptable. So we are dusting off a tool we carry called “The Marketing & Sales Audit” and evaluating Opportunity Inc. Below is the checklist. If you own or manage an emerging business consider evaluating your marketing/sales program in all criteria. If you are not deploying a tactic honestly judge whether you should be and consider how you could. It is an outstanding discipline – ANNUALLY OR MORE FREQUENTLY!

Marketing & Sales Audit Checklist

 

Profit By Customer Type Branding/Image Analysis
Competitive Analysis Sales Segmentation

  •     Territory
  •     Product
  •     Customer Type & Size
Product & Service Analysis Market Research
Pricing Industry Trend Analysis
Customer Feedback/Surveys Differentiation

 

 Promotion Checklist

 

Advertising

  •    TV
  •    Radio
  •    Print
  •    Web  (Search Engine Optimization)
  •    Social Media
  •    Direct Mail
  •    Telemarketing
 Collateral Materials

  •    Capability Brochure
  •    Cut Sheets
  •    Video
  •    Case Studies
  •    Value Proposition
  •    CD Roms
Trade Shows Customer Loyalty Programs
Alliance Formulation Programs Events
Speaking Article Publishing

 

Prospecting Checklist

 

Market Research for Suspects Reasons for Losses
Best Practices Training
Telemarketing

  •    Who
  •    Time Dedicated
  •    The Pitch
  •    Responses
 Prospect Tracking Program

  •    Probability Estimating
  •    Account Strategy Development
  •    Sales Person Matching
Hit Ratios  CRM System

 

Sales Checklist

 

Sales People

  •    Current Account vs. New
  •    Skills
  •    Time Analysis
 Sales Cycle

  •    Length
  •    Areas of Improvement
  •    Prospect Status
Distribution Channels Sales Management
Sales Metrics Territory Managment
Hiring Practices Obstacle Evaluation & Remedies
Top Accounts

  •    Opportunity Audit
  •    Cross Selling