London, UK
Taken last year in Leicester, this video has John Willman, Geoff Burch, Steve Nallon and me after a Business & Politics event. Impersonator Steve Nallon was the event host and moderator and amongst the panel was the Conservative blogger and radio presenter, Iain Dale.
London, UK
One of the business speakers at “Successful Selling” last October was John Hotowka.
John was in London earlier this and I caught up with him in Baker Street for a bit of fun on camera. John is an excellent after-dinner speaker and raconteur. He’s also not bad at magic as you’ll see in the video clip.
London, UK
Over the past couple of years, I’ve met some interesting and exceptional people on my travels. This morning, whilst working the desk at a radio studio, I had the privilege to meet Henry Lewis. Henry is Hon.Vice President of the Magic Circle and quite a remarkable man. Those who listened in heard rapturous laughter and applause from those of us who were stunned by his dexterity and brilliance with various card tricks.
Last October, I met up with another member of the Magic Circle, the talented and very funny John Hotowka. John uses magic in his business talks to great effect and his presentation went down a storm at Successful Selling 2009.
London, UK
Did some presenting and voice-over work at Tristar TV yesterday. They’re really good at producing commercials using blue-screen technology. Here’s an example:
London, UK
OK, it’s that time of year. I’ve listed my top ten prophecies for 2010 and perhaps I can do a little better than in 2008 and 2009
1. There’ll be an off-the-field scandal for the England team at the World Cup in South Africa.
2. The Conservative Party will have a majority of 75+ seats after the next election.
3. More turmoil in Pakistan.
4. Breakthough in Middle East peace process.
5. The London FTSE-100 will nose-dive in March.
6. Tiger Woods will compete in the “Masters” and win it.
7. Simon Cowell to have a setback.
8. Statesman dies.
9. There will be a motor sport tragedy in the USA.
10. Natural disasters will occur in Latin America and the Pacific region.
As in previous years’, this post is tagged to certain bloggers:
Ellee Seymour, E Barlow, Welshcakes, Colin Campbell, Mrs Smallprint
London, UK
The voice of Top Cat, Arnold Stang has died.
One of the most distinctive voices from my past, has passed away. Arnold Stang was Top Cat. Before Monty Python and after Bill & Ben, Top Cat was superbly delivered to the Jacobs’ household in “Rediffusion” black-and-white.
Here’s Stang in conversation followed by a couple of Top Cat clips:
Childhood cartoons and early episodes of Dr Who are seared into my memory. But there’s another reason why Top Cat won’t be forgotten by many in this country. The series started out as Top Cat but quickly changed name. Wikipedia explains:
“In the United Kingdom, the show was first aired on BBC television (now called BBC One) but renamed Boss Cat shortly after it premiered in 1962 because Top Cat was also the name of a brand of cat food. The dialogue and theme tune still referred to the character by his original name but a small cut was made in the opening credits (resulting in a slight ‘jump’ in the film) and a title card added before the episode proper. The new name was last used for a repeat run in 1989; by the time the series was next aired in 1999 the ‘Top Cat’ food brand had long since disappeared, allowing the original title to be used. This continues to be the case in the showings on Boomerang and BBC Two”.
London, UK
A stinking cold is making this the laziest of posts. Here’s a couple of takes on the Eurostar story:
Rob Fenwick‘s view of the Eurostar communication failure and this piece by Christian Wolmar.
London, UK
Upon opening my Inbox a bit earlier, I find this had arrived from Eurostar:
A Christmas present to remember from £69
Don’t traipse around the shops for days to find that perfect gift. Treat your special someone to an escape with these wonderful winter offers to the continent. Whether it’s a stylish start to 2010 à Paris or a post-Christmas break en Brussels, Eurostar has the perfect present for your nearest and dearest – an experience they’ll never forget. Find out when you can book for £69.
“an experience they’ll never forget” – an unfortunate piece of copy to say the least in the light of the awful problems difficulties 2000 Eurostar passengers had to endure last night. Was it a case of incompetence or the wrong type of snow?
One can’t blame Eurostar for the “severe weather” or electrical power problems but should the train operator have done more for their paying passengers? These reports (A) (B) and (C) suggest they ought to communicate a little better.
UPDATE
Snow Latest:
“First and foremost we are very, very sorry”
Richard Brown
Eurostar Chief Executive
So what are you going to about it Mr Brown?
London, UK
On Tuesday, January 26th, there’s to be another Communicate With Clarity, D-I-Y cold-calling workshop. It’s being held at the offices of Ablestoke Consulting in Clerkenwell, London, EC1. Details of the event are on the Training page of this site.
Delegates at previous events seemed to really appreciate how important cold-calling or telemarketing, as it’s sometimes called, is as crucial for business today as it’s always been. Some took the time to say a short piece to camera (see the Testimonials page).
Naturally, things in the business world and selling do change and the days of collecting compliment slips from a variety of reception desks then calling those companies with a standard script may well be over. Nowadays, prospective customers don’t really have the time or inclination to listen to every Tom, Dick and Harry’s sales spiel. Therefore, it’s very important, especially in difficult economic conditions, you have something relevant and compelling to say and that you understand how your product or service can be of benefit to potential new clients. You mustn’t fall into the trap of hoping that “doing the numbers” will see you through. That’s something the “also-rans” like to do and they invariably get it wrong as outlined at (1) and (2).
Another important aspect of cold-calling is record keeping. How are you recording or tracking your cold-calling sessions? There’s really no excuse as we hurtle towards 2010, of not using some type of tracking, sales or CRM software. By using such a system, you’ll soon establish who’s worth calling and which of your prospects ought to be placed on the back-burner for future consideration.
London, UK
For several hours today this site, along with many others, was down. LCN my hosting company, seems to have been hacked and you can see what happens below. Of course, it’s possible the the two situations were not connected in anyway but in any case, what a pain!
UPDATE Received an apologeitc e-mail from the Head of Customer Services at LCN which is much appreciated.
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