Saleshq.com has an excellent article for any salesperson in any market – Do You Probe For Pain? We use the term “pain” in our discussions though it sounds a bit dramatic. Even so, it is the most descriptive word for qualifying. The article explains why: People are fundamentally motivated in two main ways: 1. What problem or pain they can avoid and move away from 2. What pleasure or benefit they can move towards That is absolutely true. The key here is that people move away from pain faster than they move towards pleasure. As described later in the article: If a prospect feels content with their current supplier or… Read More
Continue ReadingPrice Perception
I have seen the price issue play out among many salespeople and there seems to be one simple, philosophical difference between those who close high margins deals and those who are serial discounters. The key difference is understanding that pricing is based off what the buyer will pay for the product or service, not what the cost is to produce it. I’ve seen this difference first-hand as one salesperson prices his product at a fairly high margin. However, the product is highly engineered and relatively unique in the market. One last helper – the company has a strong reputation in the market which certainly helps…greatly. The other salesperson for the… Read More
Continue ReadingActual Excuses For Missing Work
CareerBuilder.com usually runs some sort of “unusual reasons for missing work” story every year. This year’s offering is refined down to 8 entries, but is still fairly entertaining. Thanksgiving karma | Employee hit a turkey (yes, a turkey) while riding a bike. Author’s Note: Animals – turkeys in particular – seem to be a hot topic this year. See our “Unusual Jobs” survey results for more on this phenomenon. Near-death experiences | Employee said he had a heart attack that morning, but that he was “all better now.” Just can’t find a thing to wear | Employee’s wife burned all his clothes and he had nothing to wear to work.… Read More
Continue ReadingFinding Fibs On A Resume
In reviewing the HRGURU newsletter I ran across a good article on finding fibs in resumes. It gives some sound advice to follow so you are not discovering these lies on the resume after a person starts. The 5 tips: Get an early read about the candidate’s visible profile. Look for a candidate’s public profile by reviewing announcements, articles and other material that often can be found easily online. You do need to gauge how much stock you’ll put into whatever you find—good or bad—because you can’t always believe what you read. Confirm academic credentials early. Gain consensus on the reference checking process. Who is going to perform it and… Read More
Continue ReadingRecession Retention
The economy is foremost on almost every business leader’s mind right now, and rightly so. Many leaders look to entrench their company in a full defensive posture. This approach has to be incorporated, to some extent, during these economies. However, this is an excellent time to be aggressive in the market and to cut against the grain of conventional wisdom. BusinessWeek.com offers up specifics of this approach in their article Managing Employees in a Downturn: For many managers, recessions prompt a near-autonomic reflex: Hunker down, reduce head count, and cut every cost you can. While a certain dose of those bitter pills is unavoidable, smart leaders see downturns as having… Read More
Continue ReadingHiring Obstacles
According to the most recent Workforce Recruiting newsletter (sorry no link available), 1,100 employers were asked what the main reason was for them not being able to hire their top candidates over the past two years. Their responses were as follows: 35.9% – Said they went elsewhere for higher perceived pay. 15.5% – Said they went elsewhere for better perceived career development opportunities. 8.0% – Said they went elsewhere for better perceived work/life advantages. 7.1% – Said they went elsewhere for higher perceived long-term incentive/equity compensation. 1.5% – Said they went elsewhere for better perceived benefits. 31.9% – Said they were able to hire the majority of their top candidates.… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Cell Phone Do-Not-Call Registry
Ok, I suckered on this thing – I registered my cell phone on the do-not-call list due to an email I received. Well, apparently you do not have to do that. From SalesHQ.com: Despite Re-Circulating E-mail, It is Still Not Necessary to Register Cell Phone Numbers. As the number of phone numbers on the National Do Not Call (DNC) Registry surpassed 125 million, the Federal Trade Commission today reiterated that despite the claims made in e-mails circulating on the Internet, consumers should not be concerned that their cell phone numbers will be released to telemarketers at any time in the near future. In addition, according to the agency, it is… Read More
Continue ReadingPrep vs. Admin Time
Oh does this Selling Power article hit close to home – In 2009, Increase Sales Prep Time. I have seen numerous companies place onerous admin tasks on their salespeople to the point where there is a real loss in revenue. Inefficiency is the main culprit, but department structure, sales tools and antiquated technology are typically the pieces of the inefficiency. Here’s the pull quote from the article: Prep Time: The number one complaint among tech buyers is that sales reps are coming in unprepared. They don’t know the account, don’t have an agenda, and do not have good product knowledge. To combat this problem and move more sales beyond that… Read More
Continue ReadingTips For Interviewing Sales Candidates
Too many times the process of hiring a sales person rarely takes priority in a sales manager’s duties – they have enough to do already. Unfortunately, the hiring tasks get pushed to the margins of their day. Any sales manager knows how important it is to hire strong sales people, but it all too often doesn’t get the attention it deserves. Dave Stein has 11 spot-on quick tips that can help you set the right priorities and increase your success rate. His tips are: Make sure you know what you are looking for. Prepare your questions in advance. Remain objective during the interview. Trust but verify. Don’t lead the candidate. Push… Read More
Continue ReadingRecession-Thriving Industries
Ok, that title probably caught your eye. This information is from the JustSell.com daily email: Some of the sales news is good news. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the following industries actually thrive during recessions: rental real estate discount retailers DIY industry for hardware, supplies education and training healthcare energy criminal justice/ police/ security accounting pharmaceuticals debt management consulting Criminal justice, pharmaceuticals, debt management…it is all a bit macabre, don’t you think? I actually chuckled at the list since I think it is quite accurate in a sad way.
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