One of the easiest ways to gain expert status – at no cost – is to have your own byline. A published article promotes your expertise, your products, and your services. And writing articles is one of the best ways to drive traffic to your Web site.

Networking is a critical skill for sales people; after all, the more people you connect with the more sales opportunities you create. However, many sales people make a variety of mistakes that prevent them from maximizing the power of networking. Here are ten blunders and mistakes you must avoid.

Many sales professionals and sales leaders are so busy handling day to day challenges that they forget to formalize their sales career aspirations and goals. Make the time to do this today. Spending just 10 to 20 minutes on this 5-step sales coaching process could make all the difference in the world. 

When my son was in third grade, he asked that I participate in a Parent’s Career Day. During my 15 minute segment, I was to explain to his classmates what I did for a living. When I took my place in front of the room, introduced as Ben’s mom who works in a downtown insurance company, I explained that I worked as a boss who managed people in the operational departments of my company. I’m here to testify that a person will never feel so totally hung out to dry until they see a child’s eyes glaze over from boredom or incomprehension.

The phone rings and the sales manager hears on the other end the all-too-familiar plea of a salesperson. The salesperson tries to convince the sales manager that it makes so much sense to offer the prospect a discount to get them to finally become a customer. Of course, the salesperson has the expectation that this new customer will quickly become a high-profit customer.  The sales manager has heard the same plea hundreds of times before, and yet for some reason, the salesperson and the lack of current sales suddenly make offering a discount very attractive.

Have you joined the trend of business professionals jumping on the meditation bandwagon?  It's been on the covers of Time and Business Weekly magazines. CEOs and celebrities alike attribute their success and happiness to it.  Meditation is a powerful tool to reduce stress while increasing health and well-being. 

I recently lamented to a colleague that I spent an entire day cleaning my home. He said he thought cleaning was a waste of time, that I should really consider hiring a cleaning person and use my time to invest in writing, research and other things pertaining to my profession. Surprised by his comments, I decided to give them some serious personal consideration. Was I wasting my time? Should I really be outsourcing the cleaning of my home? It certainly would free up a great deal of time for me to invest in my work. After careful reflection, I realized this: I really enjoy the satisfaction I receive from cleaning. The results are tangible. I start with a messy, disorganized home, and at the end of the day, it is tidy and organized. It smells like Mr. Clean and it looks staged, like no one actually lives here. Oh, the satisfaction! It is a kind of concrete result I rarely see as directly in the work that I do (which is probably one of the reasons why I find cleaning so personally rewarding). It energizes me.

I am often asked what the difference is between sales and marketing. Marketing researches the opportunity, prepares the strategy, produces the tools to inform the prospect and places the potential sale on the table. The Salesperson then picks up the ball and confirms the opportunity, contributes to the strategy, uses the tools to inform the prospect and moves the opportunity off the table and into the cash register.   Marketing is everything from how you answer the telephone, correct spelling in your correspondence, SEO, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook to the words and graphics of your emails, website and brochures.