“Don’t take tourism for granted” says Mexico’s Secretary of Tourism Gloria Guevara Manzo in recent published remarks as the nation looks at preserving its’ past, present and future while generating jobs, wealth and well being for its’ citizens.

Last year was a milestone year for travel and tourism in Mexico as the country’s industry contributed 100 million jobs and over $2 trillion in GDP.

The people of Mexico realize that travel and tourism are powerful engines for driving positive socio-economic change and as such, tourism is a national priority.

In 2011 there were a record-setting 22.67 million international visitors who came to Mexico, the most since records started being kept in 1980 by the Bank of Mexico.

The goal is to take Mexico from the 10th tourism destination to the Top 5 by 2018.

Mexico is promoting sustainability and is a global leader in the fight against climate change – promoting “green growth” development and attractions.

Throughout the country there is an effort to organize attractions and to effectively target market them to the world.

Diversification of these markets, products and destinations has helped Mexico over the years to be a more popular destination with the majority of its tourism coming from America.

Tourism is now Mexico’s third largest industry and it set to grow steadily over the coming years.

A key attraction is a lasting legacy for travelers – those who come to Mexico can see, touch and be moved by centuries of history, from 500-700 A.D., to the present. This rich history is very unique as it reaches back to before the Spanish arrival in 1519 when Indians roamed the land.

Early cultures included the Maya, Totonac, Huastec, Otomi, Mixtecs, Zapotecs, Tlaxcalans, Tarascans and Aztecs. And all these cultures created a vast number of historical wonders which visitors can tour first hand.

The lasting influence of the Spanish arrival in 1519 left a lasting influence through the entire fabric of the country. Now tourists from over 140 countries enjoy that legacy for the New World conquerors. Mexico displays her Colonial legacy in most all of her states and particularly in the capital.

Sites listed by a recent tourism promotion note that in Central Mexico “it is possible to enjoy the Churches of Guadalupe, San Marcos, San Diego and The Government Palace in Aguascalientes. In Cuernavaca, cradle of the Revolutionary War led gy Emiliano Zapata, stand the Cathedral (XVI century) and the Palacio de Cortes (constructed in 1538).

Visitors to Guanajuato will find a great examples of Colonial heritage and in the city of Puebla are the many churches.

I’ve been listening to sales rep pitch their products and services for over 25 years now, and there are still words, phrases and techniques that send shivers down my spine. And I’ll tell you now they send shivers down the spines of their prospects and clients, too.

Let’s face it – when selling over the phone, all you have is your voice, and the way you deliver your presentation – the words you use, the inflection, pacing and timing you use – has a huge impact on the way you are perceived by your prospects. Unfortunately, many sales reps project an image of being unprepared, unsure, rushed and sometimes even scared.

Your prospects sense this immediately. They know from your first few sentences whether they are dealing with a confident sales pro, or with someone who isn’t very sure of what they’re selling and who is uncomfortable with the sales process. And like sharks, these prospects will attack and blow you off with all the stalls, resistance and objections you get now.

If you want to project an image of professional competency, then make sure and avoid using any of the following statements or words:

What NOT to say when cold calling or prospecting:

1) Stop opening your calls with, “How are you?” I’ve written about this before, but 99% of sales reps are still telegraphing themselves as unwanted sales persons by starting out their conversations this way. How do YOU feel when someone you don’t know calls you and uses this worn out line? Probably like hanging up on them- which is exactly how your prospects feel as well. So stop it!

Instead, use a better opening line that immediately differentiates you from all the other sales reps calling your prospects. Use something that connects with them instead, that focuses them on the call and that forces them to think and interact with you.

A few of my favorites are: “How’s your Tuesday going so far?” and “Has it started/stopped snowing there yet?” and “Can you hear me O.K.?”

2) Take the word, “individual” out of your vocabulary when speaking, emailing or otherwise addressing a prospect, as in, “I know you’re a busy individual… The word individual is an institutional, cold phrase that doesn’t belong in a sales conversation.

Think about it: When was the last time someone you didn’t know called you and referred to you or your wife as “individuals”? How’d that make you feel? Did it give you the warm and fuzziness or did you make you think you were about to be committed?

The language you use must help you create a natural, conversational tone, and words like, “busy individual” or “busy professional”, etc, do just the opposite.

3) “Things of that nature.” I cringe as I even write those words… Whenever I hear a sales rep end a sentence with “Things of that nature,” I’m pretty sure they have no idea of what they’re talking about. That phrase is most often used by mediocre sales reps to hide or cover up the truth that they don’t know all the details of what they’re talking about. Or, it is used to as lazy way to bridge into other qualifying questions.

If you are using it now, please consider using something else, or better, explain a few of those “things” and then use a tie down to see how that landed…

What NOT to say when closing a sale:

1) “Can you transfer me to (the decision maker)?” Most presentations end with the stall: “Well, I need to run this by my boss/partner/manager/corporate, etc.” Unfortunately, this usually comes as a surprise to many sales reps who failed to qualify for this upfront. Some sales reps then think they can just bulldoze through the stall by demanding to talk to the decision maker right then and there.

While I applaud you for your tenacity, asking to blatantly go above the person’s head you’re speaking to or have just pitched, immediately alienates them. Often times this person is some kind of sales influencer and alienating them is NOT what you want to do.

Instead you should use different techniques, one of which being: “So, John, when you consult with your manager, is this something that you’re sold on and will recommend to them?” (If yes, then): “Great, how can I help you sell them on this?” (Only if they can’t think of anything): “Would it help if I spoke to them and went over this just like I did with you?”

That’s the way to get permission and to finally earn the right to speak to the decision maker.

2) “I don’t know about that – let me get back to you.” It’s O.K. that you don’t have an answer for something, but what’s important is that you convey that in a confident manner. Try any of the following:

“That’s a great question and we have several ways of handling that. Let me ask you a couple of questions regarding your particular situation, and then I’ll be able to get the best solution for you… OR

“That’s a good question for my technical support team. Let me see what they would propose and get back with you.” OR

“We have a whole department that deals with that, and I’ll check with them to give you the best solution.” Each of these responses helps you delay answering until you get the right answer, but they paint the picture of a bigger, more competent company structure which helps to give you credibility.

3) “When should I call you back?” Why would you want to put the crucial follow up of your sale in the hands of your customer? Asking this question means handing over control of the sale to the prospect which means you lose control. That’s bad. Here are better ways of keeping control and getting a commitment for a follow up call:

“How long will that take?” Then: “O.K. I’ve got my calendar open and that would put us to Tuesday of next week. Are you looking at your calendar? Great. How does 2:45pm look for you?” OR

“(Prospect Name) you’re probably as busy as I am, so let’s go ahead and schedule a follow up call to access progress. I can do this same time (tomorrow, Friday, next week), does that work for you?” OR

“It’s going to take me (a day, two days, a week, etc.) to get this started on my end, how about I give you a call around Friday at this time to see if there’s anything else you need? Does 2:15pm work for you again?”

The key here is to get a commitment. All top producers remain in control of the selling process and know when the next call in the sales cycle is – and so do their prospects!

So there you have six things to stay away from during your next sales call. As you use these techniques, you’ll find yourself developing better rapport, getting more information and staying in control of your selling situations. Heck, it’s starting to sound like you’re a top producer already!

The past is a powerful place. It is where we spend up to 90% of our time. We have between 40, 000 and 60,000 thoughts per day and around 90% of them are spent thinking about the past. We can fret over tiny little slights, real or imagined; we can go over and over a conversation that we had, trying to pick out the ‘real’ meaning behind the words that the other person used; we can wish that outcomes had been different. We can do all of these things, but the one thing that we absolutely cannot do is change the past.

There are people perhaps known to us personally and several public figures who have overcome some horrendous situations and gone on to become remarkable individuals who have changed the course of the world. Nelson Mandela springs to mind. He had two choices, to hate the regime that had imprisoned him for 27 years of his life and so become bitter and twisted himself, or to forgive them, because in doing so he gave himself inner peace. He chose the latter and went on to become one of the most admired men in the world.

There are also people who have had bad things happen to them (or sometimes, things that other people don’t really consider to be that bad). These people have allowed themselves to be defined by that thing and have become unhappy and depressed. These people have lost their way and allowed their past to create their present, which in turn creates their future.

Which are you? Obviously, we are not all going to become a Nelson Mandela-like icons, but we can all choose to live the lives we want to live. It is a simple thing to stop your past from impacting upon your present and your future. Simple, but not easy.

Leaders, religious, political, educational and spiritual alike have said for centuries that they way you think affects the person that you are. Three examples, from three totally different sources:

Buddha said “The mind is everything. What you think, you become”
Einstein said “Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions”
Stephen Covey said “Live out of your imagination, not your history”
The theory is simple. The execution much more difficult. You simply have to think the life you want to have. You need to imagine it – totally and completely. Not a longing, with no actual effort being made to move towards it.

Top athletes use visualisation to improve their performance. Interestingly, experiments have been done that show that when a runner imagines running a race, really focuses and imagines everything; the starting blocks, the gun, the other runners, the smell of the racetrack, the sound of their breathing – everything – a strange thing happens. The muscles in their bodies respond as if they were really running the race! The mind and body don’t know the difference between real and imagined, if that imagined is detailed enough.

What could this mean for you? What can you imagine now that you are aware that imagining it in enough detail can make it happen?

Of course, the principle method of sharing content online is your website, but what if you share introductory content in articles marketed across the internet directing traffic to your website? Do you think that might work?

Intentional Delivery -

The key component of article marketing is intentional delivery. Offer up information in a programmed method that presents plenty of knowledge and informative content without overloading the reader, then send them to your website for more information. Once there, be certain to provide all the information they might need on the topic, or at the very least, links to where they can find it.

Tell the Story -

Readers relate to memorable story-telling that resonates with their experience of life. When I find myself lingering in the low places of life, I seek out articles and information that will lift my spirits. Something like the Frog in the Butter story, or Zig Ziglar’s Bull Frog story, because they resonate with me. I not only like the story, but the fable entrenched in the words brings me out of my funk and makes me think about my current situation. Is it dire enough to ‘give up’ or should I simply keep working toward my goal.

I’m not an elephant. No matter how many chains try to hold me in the boundaries, I will escape. Determination is my strong point. I am determined to achieve my goal. You should be too. You should seek to escape the boundaries and achieve your goals no matter what the boundaries may be.

If reading someone else’s story inspires you… By all means, read the stories of others. Then be sure to tell your own.

Telling your story is what will bring the reader back to your website, time after time. They will want to know what happens to you.

Carry On -

The strongest emotions come from taking action. When I first started writing, I struggled with the use of passive words. I was a pretty passive person back then and action words just didn’t cut it for me. I ached when I tried to use them. Then I realized that when I targeted specific actions and made the effort to use those actions to not only drive my own efforts but to encourage others, the motivation came back – 10 fold.