Building Your Professional Practice: A Workshop
Our next workshop is scheduled for two consecutive days: Thursday and Friday, December 13 & 14
2:00 - 4:00 pm
This workshop is presented jointly by MCDR and Barry M. Weissman & Associates, illustrating one of the many benefits given your membership in MCDR. As described below, this presentation offers you as a participant the opportunity to self-assess and apply those recognized, tried and tested tools with which to establish and improve your practice. Please continue reading for more information and to register.
Are you just starting out or have you reached a plateau, now wishing to grow or expand your professional practice? Barry, drawing on his over forty years of highly successful business and sales experience, will personally lead this workshop. Barry's C.V. can be found on LinkedIn.
The location of the Workshop is yet to be determined. For now the workshop will be held either at the JCECC in Annapolis or in the main conference room of XML Financial Group, One Preserve Parkway, Suite 120, Rockville. Street parking is free; guest parking for a fee is located adjacent to the building.
Directions to the One preserve Parkway address may be found at www.TheFinancialsofDivorce.com.
Class size is limited to 7 participants on a paid, first come first serve basis. Coffee, hot tea, cold bottled water and soft drinks as well as healthy snacks are made available at no charge. Cost for the two sessions is $100.00 for MCDR members, $150.00 for non-members. The $150.00 charge for non-members can be applied in total to a first year MCDR membership. At the end of the Workshop a certificate for 4 hours of ADR related C.E. will be issued to each participant.
This workshop includes handouts, an interactive presentation, and discussion covering several topics. In preparation for day one, so that a class roster can be developed, please submit your complete contact information. Also at the start of our first session you will be asked to introduce yourself to the group. To that end, please prepare a brief thirty second "Elevator Speech" introducing yourself. This brief presentation should include who you are and what you do. Take this opportunity to role play a first encounter with with a prospect you hope to turn into a client. Ask for an appointment; ask for a referral, "Is there anyone else you know who I should speak with...."
Topics to be covered include, but are not limited to:
Your Personal Inventory: Human Capital
Strengths as you see them
Strengths as others see them in you
Talents and gifts
Education
Formal
Life Experience
Professional Training
4-quadrant personality types from a sales perspective
Sales training
Speaking
Telephone skills
Appearance
Concept sale (Intangible) vs. product (Tangible) sale
Service, service, service
Maintenance sales and referrals
Selling Yourself = Selling Your Professional Practice
On your own
Partnerships
Alliances and networking
Colleague or competitor
Developing a market niche and branding
Marketing your practice
Ethical restrictions and limitations
Print material
Using Social Media
Active or passive website
LinkedIn or Presenting your C.V. to a prospect
How to get hired or “closing the sale”
Reputation building
Just Starting Out? What you need to do before hanging out the shingle.
Been Doing It for a While? Prepping your business for sale.
What you might have missed or what you might want consider changing
Your business plan, if you have one
Liability and E&O Insurance
Home office or office rental options
Business structure
Sole Proprietorship
Sub-S
LLC
IRS Hobby classification
Mission Statement
Banking issues and accounting for a retainer
Monthly Client Statements
Fee structure and disclosure
Forms: Agreements and Documents
Day 1 will focus on Sales and Sales Strategies; Day 2 will focus on Marketing Strategies and Branding. In order to personalize the discussion, making it more relevant, participants are invited to prepare topics, issues and questions for discussion during the workshop.
Please e-mail: Barry@FinancialsofDivorce.com with your contact information and intent to join the workshop. Upon receipt of your e-mail you will be sent a confirming e-mail.
Please make out your check to Barry Weissman and mail to:
The Maryland Council for Dispute Resolution
10319 Westlake Drive, Suite 247
Bethesda, MD 20817
Cancellations: A full refund will be made with one week’s notice of your need to cancel. Please allow two weeks to receive your refund.
Cost for the two-session workshop is $100.00 for MCDR members, $150.00 for non-members. The $150.00 charge for non-members can be applied to a first year MCDR membership. Again, in order to complete your registration you must send in your check made payable to Barry M. Weissman.
Cell Phone: 314-223-2661
E-mail: Barry@FinancialsofDivorce.com