Just read this title for a sales position: Major Regional Account Sales Representative That almost reads like the author was attempting to stuff keywords into the position’s title. As you know, I am finicky about titles since they are so important for online ads. Here is my first impression of this wordy title: Major = big accounts Regional = I’ll have a geographic territory Account = B2B, no consumer sales Sales = understood Representative = warning – mouse nuts position Now when I reread the title, I suspect that they were using “Sales Representative” which didn’t generate much interest. Their solution was to add title words that carry more clout.… Read More
Continue ReadingSales Traits Series – Concrete Organization
Complex sales require complex skills and traits to be successful. This week we look at a somewhat abstract capacity that pays tremendous dividends in long, complex sales cycles. Concrete Organization This capacity deals primarily with the salesperson€™s ability to properly allocate resources to accomplish a goal or plan. It includes the ability to understand the immediate, concrete needs of a situation and to establish an effective action plan for meeting those needs. These resources are not limited to only physical components. This capacity takes into account a person€™s ability to evaluate and utilize both human and physical resources. A salesperson with strength in this trait will be able to systematically… Read More
Continue ReadingExecutive Salary Caps Continued
I am attempting to stoke this fire some more with Red Bird. One reader posted a comment to yesterday’s post stating this: You guys must be living under a bush somewhere back east. Have you ever heard of the golden parachute? Show up, don€™t do anything, get fired and walk away with millions. It€™s great gig if you can get it. Chew on this http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/03/AR2007010300553.html or this http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2007/04/10/a-53-million-golden-parachute-for-sprints-forsee/ Fair enough – I know this is an emotional topic for many people. However, emotions are not the best option for rational decision-making. I think most people will agree that CEO’s do more than “Show up, don’t do anything, get fired and… Read More
Continue ReadingWhen CEO’s Don’t Communicate
Communication is the balm of corporate success in that it helps maintain cohesiveness. I have worked for companies that had excellent communication throughout the chain-of-command. Although there were problems and disagreements, communication from the leadership team was always thorough and timely. That fact made the culture far more pleasurable a work environment. In many companies, this need for strong communication is devalued. MarketingProfs.com has this article – Wanted: Leadership and People Skills. The gist of the article is the need for finding CEO’s with strong communication abilities. When asked “what do you look for when recruiting talent” at the recent Leaders in London conference, Richard Branson gave this answer: “People… Read More
Continue ReadingWhy Executive Salary Caps Don’t Work
The title of this post is a shot across the bow of Red Bird since he and I go toe-to-toe on this topic. I am a strong proponent of letting the market determine executive pay. I trust the market as the best arbitrator of compensation. The principle works every time it is tried – if the executive is overpaid, he or she will be dismissed. If they are underpaid, he or she will receive an increase. Seems fair to me. I realize I am oversimplifying the issue, but I want to make a point. It does not bother me that the head of Exxon received a $400 million comp package.… Read More
Continue ReadingTop Tactics For Every Sales Call
The stereotypical description of a “good” salesperson is his or her ability to talk. Granted, good communication skills are extremely important in successful selling, but there is far more to it than just that ability. Salesopedia.com posts What to Know Before Every Sales Call which details common sense goals for each sales call. A dramatic shift in selling today involves prospect expectations. A salesperson is expected to understand general market conditions for a prospective company before contacting them. The salesperson also needs to have a general qualifying system to discover the information needed to either move forward or move on. What doesn’t work is the salesperson who believes they can simply… Read More
Continue ReadingTitles Equal Opens
We’ve had a very busy Q1 which has led to many sales positions for which we are actively sourcing right now. Hence, sourcing is foremost on our minds. We are not part of the “anti-online job boards” crowd. We actually find the boards to be quite efficient and effective for finding strong sales candidates. Our approach incorporates other channels simultaneously to broaden our candidate pool, but the boards should not be ignored. That being said, there is a critical piece of information to placing ads that should be maintained. Titles equal opens, plain and simple. I know this fact isn’t a revelation, but many companies still ignore it. We have… Read More
Continue ReadingCoffee On The Brain
Great news from Yahoo! Health – Salmon and Coffee – for Ultimate Brain Power: Listen up! Your morning cup of coffee and dinner delight can help sharpen your memory.…Researchers from the University of Innsbruck in Austria used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine the brain activity of people working on a memory task. The volunteers were tested twice, once after receiving the caffeine equivalent of about two cups of coffee, and once without any caffeine. Caffeine improved the memory skills and reactions times of the volunteers. In addition, caffeine increased brain activity in two locations-the memory-rich frontal lobe and the attention-controlling anterior cingulum. Without caffeine, there was no increase… Read More
Continue ReadingMore Bad Ads
The opening line from a sales employment ad placed by a recruiter (edited to remove industry) : Must come from _____ Sales Related To ____ Products Manufacturing! Please, only do this if your primary goal is to recycle mediocrity from your industry. Remember, this is the opening line with their bolded text -the only bolded text in the ad. There are plenty of recruiters who dabble in sales positions and it shows. This ad is a cut and paste job from a typical internal job description. Unfortunately, someone pasted twice so the description is listed twice in the ad. Nonetheless, it is far more effective to list the intrinsic traits and transferable… Read More
Continue ReadingReally Old-School Motivation
Ok, this may be a bit ethereal, but it is Friday afternoon. From ManageSmarter.com’s Burn Your Boat! The ancient Greek warriors were both feared and respected by their enemies. In battle, the Greeks established a well-deserved reputation for their unsurpassed bravery and unshakable commitment to victory. The key to their overwhelming success on the battlefield had far more to do with how the Greek commanders motivated the warriors than it did with issues of tactics or training. The Greeks were master motivators who understood how to use a “dramatic demonstration” to infuse a spirit of commitment into the heart of every warrior. Once the warriors had been offloaded from their boats… Read More
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