I just finished reading the current issue of Inc. Magazine. I enjoy reading it because it gives me motivation and ideas from other people who are starting businesses.

Sometimes I get frustrated because some of the success stories remind me that i am not a success story as of right now. However, seeing people succeed motivates me to reach that point.

My favorite article in the current issue was an interview with a wine salesman. It reminded me of my days making lots of phone calls in various sales jobs. I got involved with the internet when some of my sales were lost due to my customers ordering from websites. The article reminded me that phone sales are not as scalable as web sales, but phone sales are much more personal with a higher conversion rate. Phone sales also lead to more repeat sales.

I've been working a long time on my websites. My biggest problem is getting traffic to my sites. I rely primarily on advertising revenue right now, but I hope to move more into sales when the websites are ready. When I start to focus on sales, I hope to combine my phone sales skills with my websites.

Reading an article about David Rosen, The Wine Guy motivated me to move beyond my online efforts and back to my roots as a phone sales professional. I like selling on the phone.

The only problem is that it takes time and effort and can't scale beyond the contacts I can make in a day. However, it might be the jump start I need to get some traction with my online efforts. I post ads and links all over the web, so why not make a few phone calls as well?