In this Advantages “Hot Deals,” Editor Kathy Huston offers tips on how to be a standout salesperson. Subscribe now to our YouTube videos.

Jump-Start Your 2010 Sales
It’s the start of a new year, and with it come those old familiar resolutions. How about making a New Year’s resolution that 2010 will be your best year ever for sales – even in a still-tough economy? Here are some smart tactics for turbo-charging your sales efforts.

Have a Plan – and Work It
“Most salespeople are relatively random with their efforts. They show up, talk without a script or specific goal, and sometimes sales happen,” says David Masover, author of Mastering Your Sales Process and a co-founder of Branders.com. “Effective salespeople are deliberate about every step they take in their sales process, from picking up the phone to signing the deal.”
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In this “Dear Stitches” video, Stitches Editor Nicole Rollender and Staff Writer Matt George help out a decorator who partied and tweeted (with regrets later) to his business contacts and desperately needs some social-networking advice. Subscribe now to our YouTube videos.

Risky Ways to Promote Your Business
Last year had a lot of people feeling uncomfortable. Constricted budgets, layoffs and general economic doom and gloom led to a certain uneasiness. Well, rather than attempt to quell that feeling, embrace it and take it to the next level. Try to get out of your comfort zone by marketing your business in new ways.

Become a Blogger
When it comes to wasting time, many view the Web as the biggest culprit, what with all that tweeting and “friending.” However, much like the terrestrial world, the digital world offers many opportunities to network.
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Heat Up Your Sales With a Heat Press
If you want to pump up your imprinting capabilities with small-run decoration, consider adding a heat press to your business. Only a modest investment is required to add basic capabilities. “To decorate with a heat press you pretty much just need a heat press,” says Josh Ellsworth, general manager at Stahl’s CAD-Cut Direct. “If you plan to make your own heat-applied transfers, then you’ll also need the appropriate output device such as a vinyl cutter.” He estimates that for less than $1,000 you can get started with quality equipment.

Your return on investment depends on a variety of factors – mainly how aggressively you book jobs at good margins. “Return on investment depends a lot on the type of jobs you land or the price your finished garments are sold at,” Ellsworth says. “I’d say most decorators cover their investment after they sell 150 to 200 shirts.”
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