Posted: 02 Jul 2014 12:30 PM PDT

How can I get a big-name entrepreneur to publicly endorse my product / service?

The following answers are provided by the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched StartupCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

1. Pick the Right Person

Not every entrepreneur is the right pick for product or service endorsements. That is one thing to think about. Once you’ve picked the right fit, have conviction about your product or service and don’t be afraid to ask them. Additionally, always be prepared to give them the product or service at no cost to them. And always go for building a good relationship, not just their endorsement.
- Parker Powers, Millionaire Network

2. Offer Equity

A company’s equity is one of its biggest assets to incentivize others to add value to the company. Sometimes granting a big-name entrepreneur a piece of the equity pie can pay enormous dividends in public exposure for your product or service.
- Doug Bend, Bend Law Group, PC

3. Build the Relationship First

It’s much easier to ask for an endorsement from someone you already have an existing relationship with. When I was working on my book proposal I was able to easily garner endorsements from some very big names in the business world. These are all people that I’ve known for years and have never before hit up for a favor. Focus on the relationship first.
- Laura Roeder, LKR Social Media

4. Personalize Your Message

First off, you have to build a quality product. Second, you have to personalize your message to that big-name entrepreneur. Third, find a mutual connection to that person to gain better access to them. Fourth, write a personal note and pick a product that you know they will really like. For instance, if its apparel, send them the colors of their favorite team or school.
- Jason Grill, JGrill Media | Sock 101

5. Ask Them to Mentor You

By asking a big-name entrepreneur to mentor you, they’ll learn the ins and outs of your business and share best practices with you. The more they know about your business, and the more they offer you actionable advice, the more they’ll believe in and stand behind your business. They’ll start to make introductions for you within your industry, as well as advocate and evangelize for you.
- Doreen Bloch, Poshly Inc.

6. Have Them Use the Product

Make sure they're users of the product/service first. If they are, and they like what they see, you should then approach them on Twitter.
- Ioannis Verdelis, Fleksy

7. Give Rather Than Ask

Big-name entrepreneurs get asked to endorse products all the time, so you need to set yourself apart from the rest. First find commonalities and provide value before asking for anything in return. Perhaps find a recent article they’ve written and engage them in discussion, or find a way to add value to one of their existing ventures. Then you can suggest that they take a look at your product.
- Arian Radmand, CoachUp

8. Have Them Help Develop the Product

Get them to create or help develop the product/service. Then it’s no longer just an endorsement. It’s theirs as much as it’s yours. For example, 2014 Boston Marathon champion Meb Keflezighi is designing a Skechers running shoe to his own specs.
- Phil Dumontet, DASHED

9. Ask Them for Feedback

In my experience, most entrepreneurs have a number one company that they remember and refer to others to fulfill the other person’s specific needs. So pick someone who will value and benefit from your product, then do what you can to get an introduction and ask for their feedback. Your job is to create a fantastic product they will love and then get it on their radar.
- David Hassell, 15Five

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Developing Worthiness of Equality

Posted: 02 Jul 2014 10:30 AM PDT

Entrepreneurs, in their first ten years of business, usually feel some type of inadequacy. From a sales perspective, meetings or partnering are not about being equally matched in experience. Instead, the matter is about what we each bring to the table that your prospective client needs, wants and deeply desires.

Sometimes all that is required is an idea and vision of what is possible, and then bring in "the experts" to help you bring it to life. As your idea is heard, excitement is seen. As conversation develops, you may recognize a need for a committee to bring the idea to fruition. And you just might know the perfect fit among your connections. "Recognizing versus critiquing" the talent in each person will bring together a synergistic team that is able to seemingly move mountains.

However, to feel more secure, there are ways to easily develop seemingly professional equality by following these simple steps.

1. Research your prospective partners prior to meeting.

The more you know going into a meeting, and understand how to relate what you learned to your reason for meeting, the greater will be your credibility.

2. Lead with questions.

Upon beginning the business portion of your meeting, ask what caught the person's attention to agree to meet. As the conversation develops, continue with questions to clarify everything being shared with you. Delve more deeply to fully understand what they themselves are trying to achieve. It's important to know the answer so that you may develop additional reasons as to why it would be a good idea to work together.

3. Admit what you don't know.

When you say, "I'd like to learn more about…" many will take you under their wing to explain the information you are missing. The phrase puts a human face on you, and the honesty directs others on how to more easily work together. This goes to developing trust as well as your relationship.

4. Offer connections.

Upon recognizing an interest in you and your idea, ask what the other party needs to move forward including people they would like to meet. Following up in an expedient manner further builds your relationship and credibility. Seeing you are willing to put yourself out to help the more experienced person will put you on an equal playing field.

Over time, personal experience becomes yours. In the meantime, those more experienced than you will have kindly taught you how to advance quickly through the learning curve. And by following the above steps, you will have developed your personal team. Doing this repeatedly, to find the best qualified and matched people to join your team, will bring life to your project and vision.

It's the collaborative effort that will inject momentum in seeing your vision become reality. Looking back, you will realize that while you didn't have the same level of capability upfront, you had the brilliance to take the initiative of bringing the right people together to achieve your vision. This is brilliance on an entirely different level, and one that brings about the Smooth Sale.

How to Turn Networking into Interviews

Posted: 02 Jul 2014 02:30 AM PDT

People in transition know that 60 to 80 percent of job seekers get their next positions through networking. Consequently and whenever possible, they focus their daily activities on such networking. But despite their—sometimes admittedly awkward—efforts, nothing comes of it. The reason is that they don't have an understanding of the actual purpose of networking and how to turn it into interviews.

The purpose of networking is to cultivate relationships for advice, information, leads, and, hopefully, referrals. While it's important to know others for this purpose, it's equally important that those others know you. Most people are willing to network, but they have the right to expect you to (1) focus on specific companies and (2) demonstrate to them that networking is a give-and-take transaction, whereby they, too, may get from you in turn some industry intelligence.

For those who don't know how to go about approaching a person for the purpose of networking, here's a simple script that can be used either over the phone or via e-mail.

My name is Jane Jones. Our mutual acquaintance Stan Smith
suggested I give you a call [send you an e-mail] because he feels
you're an expert in the pharmaceutical industry. Stan suggested
you might be of assistance to me. I'm in transition and looking
for a role as a marketing director. I don't expect you to know
of an opening in this area, but perhaps you can share with me
your thoughts about ways I can find out who's hiring.

The mechanics of a networking dialogue should have the following components. An initial rapport building to establish the relationship. An agenda for the purpose—and that consider how you, too, can add value. Try finding out whom the other person knows or what good contacts the person has. Another element is likability. You must develop your relationship on trust, integrity, and shows of enthusiasm, motivation, and drive. Nobody enjoys a conversation with someone who's depressed—with the possible exception of a psychologist! And last, get engaged in the exchange, and try to feel comfortable asking for referrals. When you get them, make sure you keep your host in the loop.

If you follow these guidelines, it's very likely that you'll generate more interviews. In that event, make sure you're well prepared. You don't want to drop the ball once you're so close to scoring.

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Thursday, July 3, 2014

How to Convince Influential Entrepreneurs to Endorse Your Brand

How to Convince Influential Entrepreneurs to Endorse Your Brand

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