Most of the material I’ve learned was from the Original ABC Shark Kevin Harrington and his book Key Person of Influence which is co-authored by Daniel Priestly. Not only have I used the steps from the book, I tailored it for me and my own experience.
I had already started my own journey 5 years ago before meeting any influencer. In December of 2015 I made a decision to level up and meet with Kevin Harrington. The steps he shared matched up very well with what I was experiencing in product development. It validated that there is a process and firmed up areas I was unfamiliar with. Here is what I learned and can be summarized in 6 Steps.
1) Identify Your Niche…For me I had spent years in Business Development, Sales, Started my own businesses, worked for Fortune 500 Companies and had invented my own product. So what were my Talents and Skills out of all of this?
You have to be able to identify what you enjoy doing the most. I came to the realization that I was good at arranging meetings. In all my ventures this was the common factor for me. After looking back and reviewing everything I had done I learned that I had arranged over 25,000 sales meetings from the beginning of my career to date. This was my niche. But let’s look further.
Then you have to determine of the skills and knowledge what people need and what are they willing to pay money for. I know that every sale starts with a meeting. And I know that all businesses need a good Sales representative. But not all Sales people end up being a good fit for a company or they move on to a better opportunity. So there is high turnover. I am not talking about ecommerce or retail Sales. I am talking true B2B Sales. This is my aha moment. People will pay for arranged meetings.
I tested this model for the last 8 years as a Business Development Contractor for Prairie Technology Alliance. That is my specific duty…to arranged business sales meetings and introductions. I have arranged nearly 3,000 meetings during this time. Does this make me an expert, let’s see.
The Definition of an Expert.
2) What Is Your Why? ...You must have a why. It could be for money and of course money is good. But what drives you to go through all the hard work, long days and rejection. Do you have a cause or have you experienced a hardship in life or a maybe it’s for your family. I am Leveling up to leave a Legacy for my daughter and sons. That is my Why! I want to show them that if I can do great things so can they. Discover your “Why” before moving to the next step. Be serious with yourself and do not pass this step.
3) Publicize Yourself… Now you have to publicize yourself and to become a Key Person of Influence which is part of being successful. This can be a very difficult stage and always is. Some people will view you as arrogant and be turned away by the attention and not know how to deal with it. You should be confident but it is only because you know what you want.
Here is where I made a decision to accelerate my profile and back it up with proof. I made a decision as part of leveling up and started writing my first book January 1st 2016 and was finished by March 2016 with over 62,000 words and a 232 page manuscript. I have never written anything of this caliber in my life. I got it published in June of 2016 and started promoting myself and my book. I wrote more blogs than I ever have in my life in 2016. I read more books by influencers and coaches than I ever have in my life. I got published in magazines and went on Local TV interviews and my product was also airing on National TV. I even ended up winning the 2016 Best New Business Book by Richter Publishing.
I started doing FREE Sales Training workshops for all of the Chambers of Commerce in my area. I volunteered my time to do more workshops than I ever have in my life. I started working hard on my social media accounts like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn building followers and connections and creating content. I focused on getting endorsements and recommendations and secured more written recommendations last year than I have my whole career. I even went the distance to secure 3 written recommendations for my new book “Nothing Happens Until The Meeting Is Set” by The Original Shark Kevin Harrington, the Co-Founder of Priceline .com Jeff Hoffman and the Director of Dale Carnegie Training in Central Illinois Steve Grant, all of this in 2016. To top it all off I build two new websites geared at marketing my business, my book and new ventures.
This is the type of action it takes and I am setting the bar real high for myself. Even if I fall short I will still be way ahead of the normal me. I recently heard an Oscar acceptance speech by the Hollywood Movie Star Matthew McConaughey. He talked about a man who asked him who his hero was and he said let me think about it and get back to me in two weeks. Two weeks go by and the man asks him again did you decide who your hero is? He responds saying “Me” my hero is me in 10 years. Ten years go by and the same man asks if he is a hero he said “No” It will be me in another 10 years. His point is that he will never reach his hero status, but that is OK. It keeps him reaching and chasing. He knows he will never reach his hero. I am nowhere near where I want to be but I have no intentions of ever giving up. I even made it a point to meet and talk with as many Key Influencers as I can as well.
4) Perfect Your Pitch…Perfecting your pitch is what will separate you from everyone else. I always give an example. If asked what it is that I do I could say I am a Business Development Contractor. And that is OK. However aren’t there thousands of Business Development Professionals? Better said, it would go like this: “I specialize in connecting People, Businesses and Products through paid arranged meetings using my own proven system that saves you time and money.” This is something you would remember.
Any business owner can craft a pitch specifically to what it is you do that is unique. Create a short meaningful but memorable pitch.
5) Surround Yourself With Like Minded People…Surrounding yourself with Key People and Experts will force you to Level Up. Everything you do should always be a notch above and keep you reaching. I mentioned this earlier; how I went out to meet Kevin Harrington. Then I made my way to meet Jeff Hoffman Co-Founder of Priceline .com, UFC Legend and TV Actor Ken Shamrock, Businessman and Visionary Des Woodruff and Wealth Coach JT Foxx. I did not stop there. You have to keep growing your circle of influence so I reached out to more Key Influencers offering to create a value add proposition. That opportunity led me to communicating with LightSpeedVt Founder Brad Lea, Influencers from Huffington Post, iHeart Radio personality Brandon Rimes, Expert Publisher Tara Richter and TV Producer of Ambitious Adventures and Author to Key To Crowdfunding Brandon T Adams.
Surrounding myself with these experts keeps me pushing the envelope for myself. I always say in idle time what would they do. I know the answer, but it helps drive me. Now I stay busy and if I do have extra time I end up writing blogs like this one or creating new content. I hope that it can possibly help someone else see the possibilities of becoming successful.
Surrounding yourself with Key People does not mean you shouldn’t have friends and family. That would be silly. But it does mean is that those around you should realize your potential and the journey you want to take. If they care about you they will see it as a good thing and support you. You just do not need anything that will bring you down.
6) Always Give Back…I have always wanted to donate my time to something greater than myself. All great people of influence give back to their communities and to the world in one form or another. You cannot just take, take and take without giving back.
For as long as I can remember I have always made it a point to donate my time. I have served for years as a volunteer for a local Hospitals, Churches, and Charities and now as a Score Volunteer Mentor I can help coach others for FREE. Score is a perfect outlet for me because business is what I know best.
I encourage you to find something that you can do to serve others and donate your time.
These are the 6 Steps and One Way Route to a Success Model that I use. Please Like and Share.
If you would like more information on my Sales Workshops, how to Meet with Key People of Influence on demand or Speaking Opportunities please contact me directly at: john@business453.com. I am also on LinkedIn and Twitter as JohnMcKee453.
#BusinessDevelopment #KeyPerson #Influencer #Speaking #Coaching #JohnMcKee453 #Success #Leadership #BuyingAMeeting #BAM Done!
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During their social media Live Streams I see a lot of the followers and fans leaving comments asking “How Can I Meet You”, “Do You Offer Consulting Time?”, “Are You Available for Mentoring Session?”, “Can You Help Me With My Business?”, “How Did You Do XYZ?” etc.
You can buy their books, study their materials. This does work. And this is one way of learning from them. You can attend a workshop or seminar. You may have to wait for them to come around to a convenient location and time. They are all great alternatives. But what are other options?
Most of the experts have their way of giving back and do everything they can. They offer video blogs, live streaming, downloads and more. You can learn a lot from the sessions and best of all they are usually FREE. Most of the live streams are general overviews and high lights of how to do certain aspects of running a business.
The Key Influencers are definitely limited in time because they still have businesses to run. What if you wanted to meet with them? How would you go about it? You can contact them directly on social media or their website and try to offer some type of value in return for meeting them. Maybe you have a mutual connection and can ask for a referral. These are great solutions. However paying them will usually get their attention.
I started thinking about the time I was able to meet a Key Influencer. The paid meeting opportunity turned out to be the best investment of my life. In fact the direct advice I received helped me put my product on TV. It also gave me the direction I needed to write a book and who to contact. For me personally, I do not think watching or listening to a video or reading an Instagram post would have led me to my actions. They defiantly motivate me and I do have their books. But it was the direct interaction of the mentor session that led to my results.
I believe face to face time covering a specific issue or topic is a key ingredient. This is a real mentor session. The option for Startup’s, Entrepreneurs and Businesses to pay for an arranged meeting with them makes sense, I’ve done it.
So I decided to take it upon myself to ask some of them to participate in offering meeting time via a centralized website and some are saying yes! Now we have a beta website that offers options to meet with experts. Meetings are available in 30 or 60 minute sessions, Face to Face, Phone or a Skype call. It is as easy as that. It’s on demand, point and click saves you time. Plus you get to meet or talk with one of your favorite influencer and get the business coaching you really need. It’s definitely an investment in yourself and your business. And who knows where the relationship will go from there.
The groups experience almost covers every aspect of a startup. We will see more niche industry experts in the near future. Today we have a TV Shark, Mogul, Visionary, Businessman, Expert Publisher, Crowdunding Expert, Product Development Expert, TV, Radio and PodCast Experts, Startup Experts, Founders of Fortune 500 Companies, AsSeenOnTV and Digital Media Experts, Business Development Experts, Sports Legend and Real Estate Gurus.
There is nothing wrong with all the other ways to make the connection; we just wanted to make it a lot easier for you. Now you can point and click and arrange the meeting. If you are an expert in your field we would like to talk with you as well. We will announce additional experts in Professional Speaking, Street Philosophers, Magazine Contributors and more very soon. If there is an area of expertise we are not currently covering or a specific contributor you follow we do not have please contact us. We want to hear from you.
Check it out, follow us and tell a friend. Click Here
John McKee
Twitter: @JohnMcKee453
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It’s the experience that will set you in motion, the repetitive things you do, the things that you do that make you happy, motivate you to get up and go. It’s what you look forward to doing, and others recognize it.
I believe we have all been educated by experiences. You can get started anytime. It is never too late or too early. Maybe you have been a housewife all your life, raised children on your own, run a flower shop or a golf club store, or maybe you have built a successful corporation. Let’s not forget it’s highly possible that you may just be very good at your job. No matter what you are doing, there is a niche in it.
You can become a KPI, Key Person of Influence in your area of expertise, but please do not just do it for the money. It is amazing how many people work just for the money. Sound familiar?
When I examine myself and think about what I do every day, every week, I know I have to go out there and recruit new business and sales opportunities. I am happy doing this and it doesn’t seem like work to me – maybe it’s because it’s a fun job. No matter what it is, I just get up and go, do a good job, and work hard.
Webster’s Online defines an expert as “having or showing special skill or knowledge because of what you have been taught and what you have experienced.”
Researcher K. Anders Ericsson argued that for someone to become an expert in their field, they need at least 10,000 hours of practice.
I call an expert someone who is a KPI, or Key Person of Influence. Someone who goes from being a functional worker at a job to becoming a vital entrepreneur and creating something on your own.
I believe there are a lot of people out there going through stages in their life where they ask,”Where do I go from here?” Or “what should I do now?” Find what you LOVE doing and do that!
Material from the book “Nothing Happens Until The Meeting Is Set” on Amazon
John McKee
Twitter: @JohnMcKee453
]]>If you can match your career or business startup with someone who has done the same thing or similar and has been successful then you will benefit greatly. This is why you happily pay to go to college right? There is no doubt this is key to your success in today’s society. You read about it everywhere including having a social media influencer as well.
In my case I wanted to elevate my new product by association with a key person. I had an opportunity to pay to go to an Innovators Think Tank and meet the Original Shark Tank’s Kevin Harrington. I had no problem paying for round trip airfare, hotel and for the opportunity to meet. In my mind you just don’t get these opportunities by sitting around. You have to make it happen for yourself. I knew I would get one to one face time with Mr. Harrington and I could ask whatever I wanted without interruption. It also gave me the opportunity to ask for references to other people he knew in the industry which I would have never had the chance otherwise.
Now I have the credibility, the reference and the knowledge from his experience. And to top it all off he even gave me tips on how to elevate my own profile. So this was added value to the meeting. I later put my product on TV with Mr. Harrington and took advantage of the advice and wrote my first book. So you can see just from this one experience how it paid for me to meet with him.
I would not be on the track I am on if I did not take action, seize the opportunity and meet with a key person of influence. There was a fork in the road and I took the high road. I recommend you do the same. Your life will change because of it. Learn from the best and someday you will have the same opportunity to give your time and advice as a paid influencer. Don’t regret missing your opportunities to grow.
John McKee
Twitter: @JohnMcKee453
]]>With so many meetings it’s a wonder how we ever get anything done. There are only so many hours in a day. Not only do we participate in 11 million meetings a day, we have to somehow arrange them in the first place. In sales we have to do research for new prospects, cold call and follow up. In business meetings we have to get the right people involved, organize the meeting, and make sure the calendars are all right. Then sometimes we have to reschedule them due to conflicts. Don’t forget we may have to drive or fly to the meeting location or prepare your computer for the conference call, etc, etc…wow that is a lot of work.
Then we have to determine how it fits in with your daily routine. I mean especially of you are in professional sales. You’re asked to canvas for new prospects, do some cold calling and maybe even manage your social media. It’s a proven fact that if you are a new sales candidate it can take up to 3-5 months just to get yourself acclimated with your product or service and then start filling your pipeline.
For a business owner there never really is a guarantee that you will ever be the right candidate for the company. That’s scary considering what most professional business development candidates cost today. Only time will truly tell.
Now let’s talk about another type of meeting. Maybe you are a Startup or Entrepreneur and need business advice and direction. Receiving mentoring from a key person of influence may never happen. Most key people of influence are already extremely busy. We have access to mentors in our local community and those are necessary and extremely important. Most of the time it is sufficient to get us by. Especially if the advice is with someone who has already accomplished what you are trying to do.
This is great but what about raising your profile by having access to a key person of influence who has created a 50 or 100 million dollar company several times over. Or someone who has made it their life mission to know everything about a particular subject or topic. This person could be very hard to secure time with, if at all possible to even find. And even if you do have a mentor like this in mind how do you go about convincing them to give you the time. It sounds like more work doesn’t it?
All of these potential meetings take time, energy, money and again are never guaranteed. This can be very frustrating to anyone. Wouldn’t the perfect scenario be to make the decision on who you would like to meet with and buy the meeting? It would cost about the same, most likely even less and best of all it would be guaranteed. So at least you would know what you’re getting for your money. No more guessing.
Well it is all possible. At BuyingAMeeting we specialize in; Connecting People, Businesses and Products through paid arranged meeting. In life and in business “Nothing Happens Until The Meeting Is Set” Buying A Meeting is a new opportunity for everyone. You want to meet with a new prospect? BAM done! You need to get advice or meet with a Key Person of Influence? BAM done!
Let our indirect sales members connect you with the prospective client you seek. Browse Key Influencer profiles and select to buy a meeting in person, phone or Skype. BAM done…It’s as easy as that.
If you are a key person of influence or have a tremendous amount of contacts we invite you to join our community, it’s FREE. At the very least you will be helping others out by making the connection and arranging the meeting for them. You have worked hard your relationships and connections so you should be paid for those resources and the ability to make a meeting happen.
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