Hearts in The Sales Cafe are all aflutter today, what with the release of the Bruce Springsteen Asbury Park Boardwalk Private Concert Video. Bruce is in fine form, hanging at the carousel in AP, NJ, playing songs to promote the release of the 2-CD “The Promise” and it’s been on the monitor all day here. It’s 30 minutes of rock ‘n roll and we like it. (Disclaimer: Some of us here at The Sales Cafe are from New Jersey.)
In honor of “The Boss,” an innovator in music and marketing, Today’s Specials take a look at sales innovation. What does it take to be a sales innovator? Who’s innovative and how can we be more creative, unusual and even provocative in our quest for sales?
1. 
Innovation That’s ‘Born to Run.’ Here, Business Week contributors G. Michael Maddock and Raphael Louis Vitón argue “the promise” of innovation using Springsteen lyrics and song title examples. A little fanboy-ish, yes, but we love it anyway. What Would Bruce Do? they ask, and then describe how corporate leaders can emulate his resilience through triumph and failure.
2. Using an Outside-In Approach Transforms Business. We are huge proponents of taking an Outside-In approach to sales. Here’s a small example of how thinking outside(-in) the box can help an organization innovate in ways they never dreamed of.
3. The Technical Innovation Guaranteed to Double Your Sales Results. Sales guru S. Anthony Innarino offers a simple but revolutionary innovation and advice that really can change your life.
4. Have a Very Purple Holiday. Okay, so this last entry is more marketing than sales, but it’s timely and innovative and I’m sure those wise guys at Marketo have set up measures and means to track this campaign–integrated through email, the Web site and Twitter–down to every closed sale.
The Sales Cafe 