Online Learning Center

The Online Learning Center contains edited versions of past WWP Webcasts, as well as other audio and video tutorials and supporting information, all geared to helping creative firms Win Without Pitching. Most (but not all) of this content requires an annual membership to access and members must be logged in to proceed.  

This Win Without Pitching Overview is a 50-minute webcast (with Q&A) delivered to Function Fox users in March, 2008. If you're new to the WWP approach or just skeptical that a creative firm can win new business without first pitching free ideas, start here. No membership is required to view this video.

The 1st step to winning without pitching is to change the power structure in the buy-sell relationship through positioning. Power is gained by reducing or eliminating competition. In most firms, this requires a narrowing of focus. This tutorial makes the case for the specialized, expert firm and then maps out seven steps to choosing the right focus for any firm.

47 min. video & pdf

Positioning is strategy articulated. Once the firm's focus has been selected, the next step is to articulate it succinctly, compellingly and consistently. This tutorial aids in the crafting of a two-sentence elevator pitch, made up of a positioning statement and reassurances statement. Together, these two lines form the reply the next time somebody asks, "What do you do?"

36 min. video & pdf

The first question to ask after the firm has been properly positioned is the Product question: What collection of skills, capabilities and processes do we need to add to support our claim of expertise? This tutuorial explains the role of product and then offers a five-step exercise to help inventory the firm's current product and identify future product. It also addresses how to institutionalize product development into the culture of your firm.

28 min. video & pdf

In the WWP Selling System, qualifying is the act of converting a lead and determining the client-to-be's stage in the buying cycle. This tutorial introduces the WWP approach to categorizing and tracking opportunities by explaining the four pieces of information needed to determine how close the client-to-be is to buying.

33 min. video & pdf

In November, 2009, Gemma Went, director of Red Cube Marketing in London, was our outside expert in social media. We've broken her webcast into two parts. In Part 1 Gemma offers an overview of social media, explaining why she thinks you should consider using social media to aid in your business development practices. Part 1 will be of interest to those learn more about social media. Those already employing media or with a working knowledge might proceed to Part 2.
20 min. video

In Part 2 of this two-part tutorial, our outside expert Gemma Went delves into four main social media tools of blogging, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, describing how to employ each in your efforts to build your firm. At the end I facilitate some questions for Gemma that leads us into a discussion of social media strategy.
29 min. video

The term cold call implies the hunter's objective of looking for something to kill. Hunters have a high failure rate and thus need above average sales drive to be able to keep going in the face of hearing no all day long. For the rest of us, we're better off with an approach that's more like that of a farmer than a hunter. In this video I explain and explore the difference, and then lay out the format of the perfect telephone introduction.

37 min. video

A tutorial on improving language and performance in selling situations, this video spends a few minutes on the basics of overcoming objections, then it gets into the WWP approach of creating objections for the client-to-be to overcome, including five that any business development person should be armed with at all times.

31 min. video

RFPs are the bane of the creative firm, but they don't have to be. Win Without Pitching firms routinely circumvent, derail, help write, ignore and otherwise beat the RFP. It all begins with raising a standard objection as soon as one hear those three letters, "We don't typically respond to RFPs." From there, the fun begins in this step-by-step video on responding to RFPs.

37 min. video

Cal Harrison from Beyond Referrals is my outside expert for this tutorial on the differences in nature and use of references, testimonials and referrals. Cal looks at where each is used in the buying cycle, then explains the two main types of referrals and how, and how not, to solicit referrals from clients and friends.

30 min. video

Newfangled Web Factory CEO Mark O'Brien is my outside expert on the agency website in this video on the What, Where, Why, When and How of agency websites. I learned a ton when he first did this webcast for us and I still refer to it and his other guidance on the dos and don'ts of the agency website.

31 min. video

Many firms produce and distribute a newsletter, and most get it wrong. It's not about selling, or promoting; it's about helping. The newsletter is the firm's primary nurturing tool for managing early-stage clients-to-be. In this tutorial I cover the dos and don'ts of newsletter writing and distribution and I share some examples of better agency newsletters.

33 min. video

There are three parts to this tutorial. The first few minutes is devoted how to establish pricing for your firm. The second part covers various techniques for negotiating price, including two methods to help you discuss money early and often. The last section suggests five different closing technicques to help you get the price you want, late in the buying cycle.

48 min. video

In this tutorial I explain the idea of commitment as a tool, and explore how to use it throughout most of the buying cycle to help improve everything from the qualification process, right down to the close and the amount of fees you can command. I also review some of the latest research on the science of commitment and explain how to use the results of these studies to improve your business development performance today.
43 min. video

If you're not pitching free ideas, if you;re not diagnosing or prescribing for free and if you're not writing proposals, what then are you doing in the closing meeting? This tutorial covers the tone, manner and content pf the closing meeting.

52 min. video

The original 90-minute webcast on Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software for creative firms has been split into two parts. Part one offers an overview of CRM applications and explains how information moves through them. This basic primer is recommended viewing for all but the most advanced CRM users.
23 min. video

The second in a two part tutorial on Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software options for agencies, Part 2 reviews four CRM products - Salesforce.com, Workamajig CRM, Highrise and Daylite - and explains how to use the WWP sales system within each.
47 min. video

A tutorial on understanding the year just passed and planning for the year ahead, this video covers the four key lagging indicators of business development performance and the one key leading indicator. By following the simple measurements and steps laid out you'll remain focused on the proper goals and objectives for the year, driving your client quality up and your cost of sale down.
46 min. video

A tutorial on the metrics and tools of tracking business development performance, this video  explains how to use the WWP Business Development Meeting Report to frame your weekly business development meetings. It lays out the agenda and format for the meeting and identifies the key metrics to track.

42 min. video & report (MS Word)

In this opening keynote from the 2008 HOW Mind Your Own Business Conference I discuss the softer side of positioning. After years of telling agency principals to position their firms on expertise and expertise alone, I finally get the question of the role of personality in positioning an agency.

75 min. (approx) audio

Another speech from the the 2008 HOW Mind Your Own Business Conference, this one on the Fourth P of business development success: Personnel. Here I outline the different business development functions in the firm, I discuss the considerations of assigning these functions, and I describe the attributes of the most successful business development personnel

75 min. (approx) audio

While walking to work one morning in December, 2008, I pulled out my digital camera, put it on video and filmed the morning commute. It's bumpy and grainy but it offers one more glimpse into Kaslo life. Originally posted here as a video Christmas card for WWP members, I've set it to free access. Enjoy. :-/

5 min. video