Just read a resume that boldly stated, “Made over 500 cold calls in 1 year.” One year. In my younger days, I was in sales jobs that required at least 50 cold calls a day so cranking out 500 in a year is…underwhelming.
Continue ReadingFailure
Here is a great Nike commercial via the JustSell.com website: http://www.justsell.com/michael-jordan-on-failure/ The point of the commercial walks right over to the sales world. Michael Jordan’s closing statement from the commercial: I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. Here is what sales managers need to understand, some times you need to let a salesperson fail. Now, I’m not talking about a large, important prospect, but rather a prospect that you may know is not going to close or is misaligned in some other way. I’ve come across many sales managers who want to consistently step in and help a struggling salesperson. … Read More
Continue ReadingEmotional Decision Making
This excerpt is from the Herman Trend Alert and it highlights a very important fact for all salespeople (emphasis mine): "Loyalty will focus more on emotions than on rational, incentive-based initiatives." According to behavioral economists, economic decision-making is 70 percent emotional and 30 percent rational. Thus, the loyalty programs that touch us emotionally will work the best; those that focus on the emotional side of the decision making process will create connected, passionate, and engaged customers. Expect to see more emotional appeals that involve our families, relationships, those in need, etc. I’m going to breeze right past the “behavioral economists” title (sounds like a great description for a salesperson) and… Read More
Continue ReadingUncommon Sense
I’ve been swamped of late with sales candidate assessments for different customers and have encountered an important trait – common sense. This is a broad topic, but we use it in a fairly defined manner – using common sense. We actually measure this aptitude in one of our assessments which often leads to rather pointed discussions…especially when a candidate has a low score in this area. But what of it? Our definition utilizes speaks to common sense being more of a natural reflex as opposed to a logical thinking process. I’m not talking about intuition but rather the practical thinking in regards to seeing the world. Does that make sense? … Read More
Continue ReadingSelling Advice From A Badger
No, not a Wisconsin graduate, an actual badger. JustSell.com has the video on their site. The setup is this – the badger is an “old-school” car salesman who badgers his prospects. The 30 second ads are for a car dealership. It is quirky, but I love quirky and got a real kick out of them. Here is a taste: Badger Sales Rep
Continue ReadingROE Over ROI
Here is a somewhat ethereal concept I have been encountering in this present economy. It starts with this – return on investment (ROI). ROI has been the backbone of sales since time immortal. This is the basis of sales in that customers pay the money to receive the solution. As long as the customer views the return on their investment as greater than the investment, they will make the purchase (generally speaking). The top-performing salespeople possess this motivation pattern (called Utilitarian). They view prospects in terms of ROI – how much return ($) will I receive if I invest time to close them. This principle has changed in the present… Read More
Continue ReadingSelling Through Cycles
A thought I had about sales approaches based on economic conditions: Booming Economy – Salespeople should focus their message (value proposition) on efficiency and velocity. Their solution should essentially provide an improvement in productivity. Recessionary Economy – Salespeople should focus their message on reducing waste/improving profits. Their solution should provide a method for getting more out of what the customer has today. Perhaps I am oversimplifying things, but I think this approach has merit.
Continue ReadingProduct vs. Service Sales
I’ve been seeing this distinction first-hand among salespeople I have encountered of late. I’m not sure there is a clear-cut sales ability towards product vs. service sales, but I do know that certain salespeople have skills and aptitudes that support one over the other. In that vein I give you a quick breakdown of sales traits that come from these two forms of selling. Product Sales -Quantity-focused – the approach is to close frequently and success is measured in total numbers -Speed first – fast, frequent closing is their approach, 1-call closes are their ideal -Off-the-shelf – typically they prefer to sell a pre-designed solution -Discount – their drop-close is… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Social Motivation
I have recently come across the Social motivation when assessing some sales candidates for a couple different customers and now I just heard a sales rep on the radio revealing his motivation. Here is what the salesperson said on the radio: I just met with a company yesterday who was paying almost twice as much to our competitor for the same service. They were getting ripped off and it isn’t right. I don’t deny the nobility of his position, but the reality is that very few services are exactly the same (despite prospect’s claims). A strong salesperson will define their value to the prospect who will make a decision about… Read More
Continue ReadingA Bad Place To Be In Sales
I do some IT consulting work on the side as a hobby/pastime. Call me a geek. In that arena, I have a customer who has been battling to get some information from a prospective vendor. He wants to use their services but has had trouble getting a response. Finally, today he got a response. His summation was filled with wisdom: Coming in obnoxiously late and extraordinarily high priced is not a good place to be. I couldn’t agree more. And I’ve been there myself in previous sales roles.
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