Strong relationships are probably the most important things in your professional life, but some people don’t actually have a pipeline of relationships. Many people anchor their minds on their relationships with people in the past instead of the future - however, you can’t anchor on that. You want to focus on the future. In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, I’m sharing how you can be strategic about your most important relationships.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  The importance of writing down your most important relationships The types of people you have relationships with  Adding value to the lives of people you have relationships with   Everyone is important, but with your list, you’ve got some first among equals. Don’t skip writing these down. It is so incredibly important that you make this strategic. Like any project, if you want to get good at it, you’ve got to write stuff down.  For more on deepening relationships, make sure you check out my conversation with Sandy Lutton. She’s one of the most interesting people I have ever met and in this conversation, we talked about how she thinks about relationships. I know you’ll really like it so make sure to check it out.    Resources Mentioned: Check out my conversation with Sandy Lutton

This week on Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are focusing on relationships. I’m going to give you a ton of steps and mindset tips about how to deepen your relationships. A great deal can make your year, but a great relationship can make your career.  In this episode, I’m sharing the science of building relationships and the science of likeability.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Commonality Frequency Mutual benefit Balance Uniqueness   Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that likeability is innate. It’s not! It’s a learnable skill and you can get better at it. You can take these tips and dial up your likeability for your most important relationships.  Make sure to check out this free mini-course called BD Habits. This will help you dig way deeper into how to create a system to manage your opportunities, manage your relationships, and manage yourself.    Resources Mentioned: Check out BD Habits

In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we dive deep into the topic of money. The way you talk about money with your client matters, and it all starts with your mindset. I share tips for how to be confident when delivering your pricing, value anchors and price anchors, how to own your pricing, tips for healthy negotiations, and when to provide options to your clients.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Auditing how you talk about money Why bad experiences outweigh good experiences The importance of speaking with confidence about money What the value anchor is Why estimates are fine when talking with clients What the price anchor is Setting your price anchor at a rate that will keep you in the game What to think about if you are more expensive Why people want you more if you own your pricing Why it’s a vote of confidence when people think you’re expensive Healthy negotiations.  Why everything has to cost something Why exact prices are trusted more When to provide options The power of three when providing options The benefits of providing a good, better, and best option Many people wilt when it comes to the money conversation, but it’s so important that you’re engaged and confident when you talk about money and how great your work is.  Own your pricing. Get aligned. If you share how great you are and you have high pricing, it all makes sense. It is a wonderful compliment when someone says that you are expensive. That is actually a vote of confidence.    Resources Mentioned: Read the Baumeister study Check out Galinsky’s research on price offers as anchors Check out Conley’s research on pricing Check out the research on why you should use exact prices Listen to my conversation with Maria

In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are talking about something that is rarely done with service-based offerings. It’s a pro-ninja tip that I think is going to help you a lot in certain situations. I’m sharing why from time to time, you want to provide options for your clients to move forward. When it’s clear that there’s one offer, you want to go down that road. However, there are times when the client isn’t sure how they want to proceed so you’ll want to give them a few different options to choose from.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  When to provide options The power of three when providing options The benefits of providing a good, better, and best option Providing options is a great way to get your client to agree to work with you when they aren’t sure what is best for them. Just make sure to avoid providing too many options. Three really is the magic number in this case.  When you use this construct, make it as simple as possible. Make it clear what the value, work, and investment is. You want to get into your consulting mode and make it clear what is the best option for them.  For more tips on talking about money, make sure to check out my conversation with Maria Kelly linked below. It was an excellent conversation and I know you’ll enjoy it.    Resources Mentioned: Listen to my conversation with Maria

In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are talking about the principle that we need to make everything cost something. We all know that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Many times clients will ask for something at a lower rate or they’ll ask for something to be thrown in for free. There will be times when you do that. However, in this episode, we are talking about negotiating a specific project and why you should always ask for something in return.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Healthy negotiations.  Why everything has to cost something Why exact prices are trusted more When your client asks for something, you have to ask for something in return. That is the bottom line. If they call and ask for a favor, take your time and think about what you can ask for in return. You don’t want to make it too easy for them. This will help you get farther faster.  It’s also important to remember that you’ll get more wins by not rounding the number of your price. Keep it exact and you will build more trust and increase your ability to raise prices going forward. Check out the research on why rounded prices should be avoided at the link below!    Resources Mentioned: Check out the research on why you should use exact prices

This week we have been talking all about money. In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are talking about the idea that what costs more is worth more. We have all heard the saying “you get what you pay for.” In general, what costs more is more desirable, and this is important to keep in mind when you consider your pricing.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  What to think about if you are more expensive Why people want you more if you own your pricing Why it’s a vote of confidence when people think you’re expensive If you own your pricing and talk about it calmly, people will want you more. Do you want a car that is cheaper or more expensive? The mental heuristic is what costs more is more desirable. So don’t doubt yourself if you’re more expensive.  Own your pricing. Get aligned. If you share how great you are and you have high pricing, it all makes sense. It is a wonderful compliment when someone says that you are expensive. That is actually a vote of confidence.  Conley’s research on this topic is extremely interesting and I highly recommend you read it if you want to dig in deeper.    Resources Mentioned: Check out Conley’s research on pricing

So far we have covered how to have the right mindset when talking about money, and in this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are talking about how to price your offers. There are two specific anchors that you want to think about when you talk about the value of your pricing so that clients are compelled to work with you.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  What the value anchor is Why estimates are fine when talking with clients What the price anchor is Setting your price anchor at a rate that will keep you in the game This stuff is so important so you don’t want to go into the money conversation without thinking of these things beforehand. Get your team together and think long and hard about what your desired price is and set your price anchor at the maximum level.  There is so much contextual significance that there’s no way I could tell you what’s right or wrong. It all depends on the context! If you want to learn more, I highly recommend you check out Galinsky’s research on this topic. There’s a lot of very good information in there.    Resources Mentioned: Check out Galinsky’s research on price offers as anchors

This week on Real Relationships Real Revenue, we are talking all about money. In this episode, we are diving into the topic of money mindset. How you talk about money matters. Many people wilt when it comes to the money conversation. It’s so important that you’re engaged when you talk about money and how great your work is with confidence.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Auditing how you talk about money Why bad experiences outweigh good experiences The importance of speaking with confidence about money You are the expert.  You know what clients can do and what they can’t do. You should have the same level of confidence when you talk about your expertise as you do when you talk about money.  Bring up your pricing just like you do with everything else. Hold your shoulders back, use a calm tone, and just be confident.  Make sure to check out the Baumeister study. It’s classic peer-reviewed literature, and it’s really powerful stuff.    Resources Mentioned: Read the Baumeister study

How do you position yourself uniquely so that you can win more often? In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, I’m diving into the topic of positioning. I have found that this is very rarely taught but it’s a critical skill to make yourself unique in the mind of the buyer. I’m sharing tips for creating your three key messages, how to become more memorable, pro tips for communicating, and so much more so that you can truly stand out amongst the competition.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  The law of positioning Why people don’t care about your accolades The three words to use when talking to a client  Why three is the perfect number Why you need to include three reasons a client should work with you The research that supports this method Why 3s and 4s are more memorable The three levels at which you might talk about your positioning Why it’s up to you to determine how to add more value The five things you need to choose your three key messages The four reasons that clients choose someone else  When to be bold in your positioning Using one to two words per message How exactly to word your three messages The benefits of using rhyming or alliteration It is up to you to figure out how you're clearly going to add more value than anybody else. Boil it down to three things, because that's more believable and memorable to your clients. Show how in this exact position, you are going to provide a unique value.  Make sure your team is on board so everything is aligned and make sure you learn how to communicate effectively using the tips I shared today so that clients will choose you more often.  If you do these things right and embed them in your habits, you can use them forever! Resources Mentioned: Read the Cryder research Read Dr. Suzanne Shu’s research Read the Rouder research about 3s Check out the positioning Wikipedia page Get the Al Ries and Jack Trout book on positioning Read the study about rhyming

The last few episodes have been all about positioning yourself uniquely in the mind of your client or decision-maker. You’ll want to use these methods and frameworks every time you are speaking with a client and especially when the stakes are high. You want them to see you as the only one who can give them what they are looking for. In this episode of Real Relationships Real Revenue, I’m sharing some pro tips on how exactly you can communicate these three messages more effectively.  Topics We Cover in This Episode:  Using one to two words per message How exactly to word your three messages The benefits of using rhyming or alliteration You're striving for simplicity, believability, the benefit to your client, and all these other things that we've been talking about in these episodes. The last thing I want is for you to do all of the work to come up with your unique positioning and then not communicate them effectively.  If you do these things right and embed them in your habits, you can use them forever. If you want to learn more about the study of why rhyming is so effective, check it out here. It’s a super interesting study.    Resources Mentioned: Read the study about rhyming