Time for some Time Out and a Journey!

The last five months have been the worst of my life to date. My whole life came crashing down around me and I did not do a blessed thing to warrant it or deserve it. The one thing for sure and certain is that good will prevail over evil and I will be on the side of good.

Anyway I have decided to take a little bit of time out. I need to clear my head, plan for the future and basically have a bit of  Tony time. I want to stop being hurt and begin to get myself back to where I was before all this happened and I will. I am heading to Orlando, Florida today and will be spending some time with some really great friends of mine. I will also pop up to see my sister who lives in Warren, Ohio who also has my brother and his family visiting. I think a “Frattaroli” family reunion is on the cards. BTW The Sopranos are only trotting behind us.

So thanks for all the well wishes and support over the past five months or so. I aim to write a lot so keep checking into my blog to see how things are coming along. I will also be tweeting away as normal so don’t be strangers.

I have a lot to offer and I aim to come out on top again.

Ciao…..

T.

U2-Live Croke Park-The 360 Tour July ‘09

A good friend of mine Peter Falahee and I made the trip to Dublin to see our favourite band U2. We were to be part of an electrically charged night filled with material from their new album “No Line On The Horizon” plus many classics dating back twenty five years.

Pete and I in front of The Claw

On entering Croke Park ones breath was taken away by the sheer size and scale of the “Claw”, the 360 degree stage set that was to be the centre of almost two and a half hours of raw energy and power.

At 8.39pm Joe O Herlihy, U2’s sound engineer, started the intro. Space Oddity by David Bowie. The place went mad and out from the back of Hill 16 walked Adam, Bono, Larry and the Edge. Larry quickly sat behind his silver Yamaha drums and started pounding the toms of the opening track “Breathe”. Croker was heaving and one thing U2 always seem to get right is their opening number. I have witnessed them many times before and they nail it every time. It sets the tone and mood of the gig. This was no exception. This was followed by “No Line, Get On Your Boots and Magnificent” all three from their new album. This took some balls to open a gig with four new tracks but showed how critically aclaimed “No Line On the Horizon” has become. Both Adam and The Edge made great use of the outer ring of the stage which brought them closer to the punters and which was to be the appeal of the 360 degree tour. Unfortunately because Hill 16 is not a seated area, the stage was not set in the middle of the pitch but what the heck, it was U2 and it was Rock n Roll at its best. One thing that was noticably missing from The Edge’s set up was his rack system with effects that resembled something from inside a Boeing 747. They all went for simplicity on stage and power in the songs.

“Beautiful Day” and “Elevation” had the fans going vertical. This from my seat in the Hogan Stand was an incredible sight and the goose bumps were rising. Bono’s voice is still as good as ever and continuously hits those high notes all the time. The true brilliance of any band is their ability to replicate live what they spend many hours recording in a studio. U2 do this to the letter of the law all the time. I was impressed by Bono’s lack of talking between songs. He did however welcome all out of towners to U2’s home, Dublin and made reference to Hill 16 which had the crowd in raptures.

Bono at his best

The Edge donned an acoustic guitar and started playing the opening chords of “Desire” which ironically was their first British No. 1. Himself and Bono did a beautiful acoustic version of “Stuck In A Moment” which had a personal rememberance for me. Bono then paid tribute to Ronnie Drew and slipped into “The Auld Traingle” which was quite impromtu. “One” and “End of The World” followed quickly.

The sound and lighting set was incredible. It was like something from “Close Encounters”. A 360 degree screen threw images of the band right to the back wall of Croke Park and as the evening fell darker the vibrant colours from The Claw lit up Croke Park like the biggest 4th of July fireworks display one has ever seen. The suspended PA system meant that Larrys drums were pounding into your chest like a steam train coming at you and this coupled with Adams thunderous bass lines. There were a few occasions when the vocal line got a bit lost but one would put this down to the logistics of the stage set.

Close Encounters

The classics were coming at us fast and furious. “One”, “End of The World” and “The Unforgettable Fire” a great song IMO took the crowd to a new level. The sky over Dublin had fallen conpletely dark and every now and again white spots would circle the venue and 80,000 heads could be seen for miles. After “City of Blinding Lights” Bono screamed “Uno, Dos, Tres, Catorce” and off we went with “Vertigo”. A remix of “I’ll Go Crazy” had Larry don a conga, come from behind the kit and walk the circumfrence of the B-Stage playing intermitentally. It was like a rave and a great crowd pleaser.

We were now entering the final phase of the gig and when Larry started the military drum roll for “Sunday Bloody Sunday” spellbinding video footage of the Pro-Democracy protestors in Iran hit the giant screens. “Pride” and “MLK” followed before over fifty people wearing Aung San Suu Kyi masks walk on the stage for “Walk On”. Bishop Desmond Tutu makes a welcome appearance on the screen and my two U2 favourite songs of all time are played.

“Where The Streets Have No Name” and “Bad”. I have not heard “Bad” played for many a tour and the four lads leave the stage to the crowd singing part of “40″. “How long to sing this song”? The stage went into darkness before they reappeared for the encore.

The Milky Way

Bono asked Willie Williams to trun off the lights on stage and asked us all to turn on our mobile phones to create what he called “a milky way”.

“Ultraviolet”, “With or Without You” and “Moment of Surrender” were the final three tracks and brought everyone back down to earth after what was a roller coaster of a set.

The four lads applauded the crowd, embraced and congratulated each other before disappearing back into Hill 16 where they had come from some two and half hours previously.

We witnessed an incredible musical event. U2 performing in their home town, sounding better than ever and completely enjoying their music and their performances with each other. I have seen them well over fifteen times and continue to be blown away. They have the ability to re-invent themselves and create that bond with their audience which is quite difficult especially when standing in front of 80,000 people.

Ciao…..

T.

Getting in Front of the Prospect!

There is nothing I enjoy more than standing in front of a prospective client and making that pitch. It is when you really get a feeling for how this deal is going to pan out and it also allows you to steer it back on course if you feel its kind of going south. You have a certain amount of control of the negotiations at this point and this is very important. You should never lose control of it.

I know in today’s economic climate travel has been curtailed but it has always been the main criteria of any salesperson. I often heard my mam refer to them as “travelers” or “traveling salesmen”. They would go from door to door selling their wares and again making it hard for the prospect to ignore them. It is easy to hang up a telephone if someone is annoying you. It is not so easy if they are in front of your face.

However one has to plan carefully when to strike with that face to face meeting. I believe you only get one shot at it and you make it as if it is your last. Remember that there will be others coming in the door behind you looking for the same deal. Obviously the prospect will have been vetted and primed beforehand but there will be times when a hunch will make you jump on an aircraft or into your car to secure the deal. An old boss of mine once said “it is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission”. This is so true. Prospect’s too themselves play their part as most will have appreciated you making such an effort to get to them. You will always have their undivided attention for the meeting. If you have made a great effort to get to them then you HAVE to come away with something concrete. Preferably the deal! You will have wasted time and money if all you get from them is something you would have received on the telephone. This is why you need to have cut through all the small stuff beforehand and have a plan of action in place. You are travelling to close the deal or at least agree in principle a deal. Now there will be times when we go on whats called a “roadshow”. This is where we line up ten or twenty meetings on the road and most of these will be early stage meetings. It is worthwhile as the cost will have been borne across many prospects. One can also get lucky on these types of gigs and something quick could come out of it. Right place, right time!

I remember once being in London trying to get in front of a great prospect. I had actually parked in the car park of his office where I called him. He said that if I was ever in the vicinity to call in. He assumed I was in Ireland and so be it. Within thirty minutes I was standing in front of him and we shook hands on a deal. The company was Ricoh.

Some years ago British Airways ran an advert using the “salesman” as their theme. One chap was pitching over the telephone and thought he won the deal, the other had travelled to Sydney to meet the company. The upshot was the guy who travelled won the deal. I loved it as it reinforced what I always believed in.

Finally, you travel to close the deal and you have to prepare before you go. Dont be afraid to ask for the business because that is you job. There is nothing worse than travelling back from a sales meeting with nothing more than the smell of aviation fuel about you.

Ciao…….

T.

Venturing into the World of Business

When I was growing up there was one thing that I always wanted. Money! I was either going to achieve this by (a) becoming a famous rock star or (b) becoming a successful entrepreneur.

In 1989 I, along with three others formed a  rock band. We were going to take on the world and be wealthy and famous. In order to do this we needed to borrow money to buy equiptment and also lease a van to transport us around. I have a philosophy that if you can shoot for the stars and get the best, then do it. Think big!

We borrowed a total of 15,000 punts for the equipment and leased a van valued at 18,000 punts. These were huge amounts of money twenty years ago but the work I had generated for the band would at least cover the repayments. Long story short the band broke up some years later leaving all this money to be repaid. I had to come up with a plan and this was to be my first venture into the world of business.

Some years previously I had met an American businessman by the name of Greg Lynch. Greg was a very successful individual who had to come to Ireland to set up Verbatim BV. I was fascinated by him and also interested in learning how business worked. In 1990 Greg set up Access Europe, a project  that would be a gateway for US and Non European companies who wanted to get a foothold in the new “European Union”. I would love listening to Greg discussing business, doing deals and really enjoyed his company. When the band split up I had to find a way of paying the debts and quickly realised that the “van” could be the answer. I had an Iveco 60-10 truck capable of carrying/delivering anything from furniture to vegetables. I went to speak to Greg to see what he thought and get his advice. He liked the initiative and said why not call it  ”Access Europe Transport”. I jumped at the chance. The board of directors of Access Europe were made up of many influential MD’s from companies in the Mid-West region. I knew I could generate  business from them also and so began my little courier business. The primary aim was to pay back the loans to the bank and then I would see what happened after that. I was touting for business in the industrial estates and slowly started to pick up work. Greg would also make some calls for me and on his recommendations I would get more jobs. I started to like the hustle of this and took an immediate liking to it. I never made huge amounts of money but made enough to survive. The Gulf War in 1991 created a problem for Access Europe and things slowed down for them. At this time I was picking up all sorts of jobs. I was doing house removals, delivering packages around Ireland, I even did rubbish removals to the dump. If you wanted it moved I was the man to do it. I loved the selling of this to people. I had a meeting with TNT in Shannon one day to see if there was any sub contract work going. Nothing came of this but it gave me great experience of dealing with the big boys,something I would need later in life.

It took some years but I finally cleared the debts with the banks. The van was on its last legs but had served a purpose. A purpose thought up by me for me. I had developed a taste for selling and business and wanted more.

I saw an opportunity and took it.

Ciao…..

T.

The day I thought I would never walk again-The Irish Times

Some weeks ago Claire O Connell, a follower on Twitter, contacted me re something she read on my blog. Claire writes for the Health Supplement with The Irish Times and asked me would I like to share my story about the time I thought I would never walk again. I agreed!

Today my story got published and I would like to thank Claire for allowing me the opportunity to share it with you. For me it was a harrowing time but proves that I am not a quitter and I will carry that philosophy with me until the day I die.

Finally I would like dedicate it to my wife Deirdre, my cousin Toni and her family in London who were incredible, my family and my friends who gave us tremendous support during these tough times. Oh yeah, Chloe and Oscar too.

Here is the story. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/health/2009/0714/1224250632603.html

Ciao….

T.

The Sales Pipeline!

The single most important thing that a salesperson should possess is their Sales Pipeline. This is the one document that will guide them to glory in their quest for deals. The pipeline is their Bible!

The pipeline will be made up of all sorts and types of prospects. There will be good ones and bad ones. But if you think they should be in there,  put them in. The bigger the pipe the better the chance you have of closing more deals. I tend to follow the 20-10-2 rule. For every twenty prospects you have, you should get ten qualified leads which needs to yield you two closed deals. This is a 10% hit rate and one that should be aimed for.  So the more you fill up the pipe the better the return you will get. The pipeline needs to be replenshied at all times.

The pipeline will contain details like names, addresses, contacts etc but the two most important thing are as follow. (1) a grading from 1-4 covering where you are at with the prospect. 1, being at “Contract” stage and 4, being at “Intro” stage and (2) a grading from A-D covering what your “gut” feeling is whether it will close or not. A, being a “done deal” and D being a  ”slim”  chance of success. This needs to be as accurate and as honest as possible because it will allow you to plot and plan towards closing. It will also allow you not to waste your time. Dont be afraid to put in “Ds” but make sure you have more coming in at the top. Also as the weeks go by you will take off the  ”done deals” and the “no shows” and your pipe will start to take shape.

When you are starting from scratch with a new product or a new company, focus on sectors that will help you fill the pipe. Have a think tank and put everyone that you think may use your product into the pipe. No matter what you have or where you are at, it should be quite easy to create a pipeline of one hundred prospects to get you started. Now given our 10% success rate this should get you ten closed deals. And on and on we go.

Ciao………

T.

The Smell of the Deal!

For me the actual point of “about” to close the deal is one of the greatest buzzes in selling. You have done the pitch, you have the prospect in your sights and you know its yours. There is no way back for him now. It’s actually quite addictive and once you feel it and touch it, the rush to get more done, becomes great.  Somebody once compared it to a cat burglar.  Having the stolen item in your hands was nothing compared to the buzz of planning, getting in and then out. Now I don’t advocate burglary for one moment, I am just making a comparison.

I like to call it the smell of the deal or the smell of the money. This is the point when your gut tells you its done and dusted and you have achieved what you set out to do. You can now quickly move onto the next prospect and hopefully do the same.

I remember once working a very big deal with a pharmaceutical company in the USA. I had the prospect in my sights but he was flapping around a bit. I simply put it up to him (took a risk) and at  that point he was in the bag. When the Purchase Order rolled off the fax I had no more interest.  My job was done. I was already onto the next deal looking for the buzz.

This is what we live on.

Ciao……

T.

Rod Stewart-Thomond Park-July 4th 2009

Me in front of the stage

I got a call on Saturday morning from a mate who had a spare ticket to see Rod Stewart. I duly obliged to take it off his hands so off I went to see one of the greats of the music business who has stood the test of time for more than four decades. I have liked his music for quite some time but I have never seen him perform live so I was really looking forward to the gig. I also play the drums and  pay special attention to the session drummers that tour with these acts.

It was my first time to visit the newly constructed Thomond Park and my initital reaction was one of “wow”. It was a very impressive place indeed and one fitting to hold the many greats of Rock n Roll that will hopefully come Limerick’s way.

The Rodminator

So at 8.30pm the strains of “The Bonny Bonny Banks of Loch Lomond” could be heard through the hanging PA and Rod appeared and opened with “Some Guys Have All the Luck”.  His raw, edgy, husky voice was the same as ever. Dressed in a blue satin jacket, white shirt, black drain pipes and gold shoes he began to strut his stuff like only he can. His band were dressed in a similar outfit which was  a throw back to the 50’s. He had three backing singers who were simply amazing. They all took a lead in “Rhythm of my Heart” and boy could they chant. Rod quickly progressed through hit after hit which included Maggie May, Young Turks, What am I Gonna Do and the rest. The band were very tight and polished. The drummer was none other than Dave Palmer. Dave was the drummer with ABC when they released the “Lexicon Of Love” album and he was very steady. Rod’s style of music demands a straight forward, laid down back beat which Dave does exceptionally well. The crowd were loving the show at this point. All the punters around me knew the words of each hit and there was a real concert athmosphere about.  The weather helped also. I did comment to myself that the volume could have been a tad higher to get the full thumping effect and after about 4 tracks up she went.  He quickly went into to “Handbags and Gladrags” where he made reference to a “little” band called the Stereophonics. This passed most of the crowd by.  He spoke very little between songs which I like, but what he said was cool. He did say that he would perform for two hours which amazed me a little but there you go. The highlight of the first set was a tribute to former Celtic player Jimmy Johnstone. Stewart along with some members of the band played an acoustic version of “Dirty Ole Town”. It was a great sing a long moment and one the Irish crowd enjoyed. Oh yeah his drummer had a Celtic Logo on his bass drum and the floor of the stage had it also. As we all know he is a passionate Celtic supporter.

At 9.30pm Rod anounced that he was taking a”ten minute interval”. I was amazed at this and felt I was at a cabaret and was only waiting for the folks to start selling raffle tickets. Also the punters began filing for the bar. I can never get my head around why people go to gigs spend more time at bars, talking and going to the toilet than actually watching the show.

The leathers are out

The second half opened up with a change of costumes and the leathers and denims were out. Now we were “Twisting”. He quickly made his way through more classics and my favourite “Hot Legs” brought out the footballs that he kicked into the 20,000 plus audience. He did make a slight booboo when he started a song with the second verse, stopped the band, apologised and started again. He seemed annoyed at himself which shows that he still sets very high standards for his performances. It was getting darker at this stage and the full effect of the stage set complete with lights could be seen. He had three massive screens that gave everyone in the stadium a great view of the rocker. He went on to do “Baby Jane” complete with sax solo and ended the set with the classic “Sailing”. The lighters were kind of out at this point. The band left the stage, only to return for the encore which was none other than “Do ya think I’m Sexy”. The crowd loved it and Rod seemed to enjoy it also. The only down side at this point was that  the vocal could not be heard clearly. Pity! With that it was over. They left the stage and the screens lit up with “Mr. Stewart has left the building”.

Rod has left the building

So after two hours of classics we were done. The crowd were happy and so was I. I got to see and hear the veteran crooner himself and in my home town, which beats travelling to Dublin any day.

Lets hope Thomond Park becomes a regular stop for the music industries greats as they plan their future tours. Well done to all concerned.

Ciao……

T.

The Dragon’s Den-My Experience

When I first saw that RTE were looking for entrepreneurs for the Irish version of the show I quickly threw my hat into the ring. I knew that if I wanted my business, Sals Pizza, to gain more market share quickly, I needed investment. The Den seemed to be the obvious answer given that our banks were not lending anyone money, let alone me.

Contrary to what people might think the selection process was pretty tough. So after many meetings, business plans looked at and auditors approval I finally got selected. So on the 5th Jan 2009 I headed to Taylors Tree Rock in Dublin for the recording of the show.

Even though it was pre-recorded, its done in one take, barring a catasrophe on the set. On entering the den I noticed that the dragons were smirking at each other. I knew why! The blonde hair and pink shirt was the obvious choice. Anyway there was no time for getting upset, there was a job to be done. Having spent many years in the corporate world pitching and selling I knew how to handle myself once we got going.

You get to give a three minute pitch and after that its game on. I was looking for €30,000 for 15% of my business. I wanted to expand my reach into the already untapped 17,000 potential customer base and once this was nailed I would replicate it nationwide. It was a pizza delivery business serving rural Ireland. There was nobody doing it and my pizzas were simply the best. I use an old family recipe dating back many generations to a little town called Casino in Southern Italy. This is where my dad, Salvatore Frattaroli, comes from.

I had brought some of my pizzas in with me for the dragons to sample. Sarah Newman was first to sample it and she simply said “delicious”. First hurdle over. If they did not like the taste of the pizza this would have been disastrous. The tasting process passed with flying colours. The dragons were Niall O Farrell, Bobby Kerr, Sarah Newman, Sean Gallagher and Gavin Duffy. I had done my research on each of them which gave me something to work with.

The opening questions were based around sales to date, margins, cost of sales, expected forecasts moving forward that type of thing. I had done my homework and had all these ready for them. I knew if I wanted one of these people to invest then I needed to have the answers to the fundamental business questions. Bobby and Niall queried the margins and I quickly realised that they would be the first two to go. Then came the bombshell. Bobby said to me “What you are doing is illegal”. I could see the others look at him and as he was in the food and beverage industry they took his word so to speak. I challenged him and said “No, I am not”. I stood my ground and would not let it go. He maintained I needed a HSE cert to operate and I claimed I did not. So that was Bobby out and I quickly moved to the others. Niall O Farrell loved the pizza and the branding but felt he was buying into a “taxi service”. I pointed out to him that the biggest pizza delivery company on the planet Dominos deliver so would he call them a taxi service. He didnt like that one so off went Niall. I was now down to three.

I was in there for over seventy five minutes. They showed me on the TV for about six. The problem I have with that is that I had a very good discussion with Sarah. We spoke about the plans for the money, the vision for the business and where I wanted to take it. This did not come across at all and I was disappointed with that. Sarah bowed out because she reckoned had I come to the den looking to expand it nationally, it would have been a better proposition for her. Basically had I asked for €150K she would have jumped aboard. I was now down to two and my chances were diminishing. However I was not going to give up and pressed ahead. Sean Gallagher felt it was a cottage industry and would not invest for that reason. I quickly piped up saying that people have ideas of rural Ireland as if we were living in Peig Sayers time. I said it annoys me and that cottage industries will be the driving force of getting us out of this recession. At this point it was all down to Gavin Duffy who in my opinion is a gent and the nicest of the dragons. He went through my current revenues versus my existing client base and complimented me hugely for achieving what I had to date. He liked the brand and the product but just didnt reckon it was scalable and therefore decided to opt out. So there I was, all alone and with no deal. The single thing I came for!  I turned, walked out the door and down the steps gutted and mad. Mad that I couldnt close it out and secure the deal for Sals. I put everything into it but it was all in vain. Richard Curran who was the presenter of the show did an interview with me but it was based around Bobby Kerr and the HSE issue.

I drove home the long road to Limerick playing the whole thing over in my head. Could I have done something else to sway it? I took it really personally as most entrepreneurs should do. But the simple answer was no. I gave it 100%.

The following morning Gavin called and gave me a huge confidence boost. He said I did a great job and made a great case even though I came up short but sod it, keep moving forward with Sals. It certainly meant a lot.

Would I do it again? Yes! Would I change anything? No!

After it aired I got great exposure and a lot of people recognised me. Then again how could you mistake a head like mine.

Ciao……

T.

Selling during the Good and Bad Times. The Final Part

So I said in the beginning of this article that I would look at the major differences between selling in the good times and selling in the bad times. I lied, because in my opinion they simply don’t exist. The fundamentals of selling will remain the same. The desire by the salesperson will remain the same. The anger at losing the deal will remain the same. What changes is the mindset and focus of the salesperson towards their prospects. Instead of having many prospects they will have a few but the few actually want to buy. Also the monetary value of the deal will change but this is acceptable. Fifty per cent of something is better than one hundred percent of nothing. Yes, it might be easier to get deals in the good times but these will be driven mostly by the prospect.

Sales teams need to be motivated at all times and Sales Managers need to assist their teams, support them and lead by example. We also know that selling is a confidence game. Leaders need to lead! Can we show someone how to sell? I am not quite sure. Is selling an art or a science? To me it’s an art and something you possess as opposed to acquire.

This three part article is based on my own personal experiences in Sales/Management and Biz Dev. I have the scars to prove it.

Ciao…..

T.