ManageSmarter.com offers an article I could have penned – The CEO as Salesperson. I can relate to this sales call: After initial introductions, the CEO took over the meeting and, ignoring the agenda, began a detailed demo and discussion of the product. He set about to demonstrate the superiority of the product and his own knowledge of the industry. He argued with the prospect, dismissed their questions and points of view, and then couldn’t understand why they didn’t buy immediately. It took the regional manager nine months to recover and get the sale. My experience with the CEO in a sales call most often followed a similar form with even… Read More
Continue ReadingCold Calls Or Connections
We have been debating the merits of cold calling recently here at Select Metrix. My take is that it is an archaic approach that appears active but produces little. I don’t recall the other argument since mine was so persuasive (that ought to get Lee going). Here is another take on cold calling from one of the Inc.com blogs: First, no more cold calls! They don’t give enough of a return, and we typically have the wrong people doing them (the new hires). Instead, let’s try Six Degrees of Separation for business. If the world is truly “connected,” — and it is — why make cold calls when we can… Read More
Continue ReadingProspecting Perspective
I haven’t seen this quote before, but it comes from the JustSell.com daily newsletter: “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.” Babe Ruth (1895-1948) American baseball player So much of sales success comes down to perspective and attitude. The Babe’s approach would be a good starting point for prospecting, especially if you are facing many “no’s” from prospects.
Continue ReadingSelling-You Can Always Get Better
ManageSmarter.com offers this article – If You Want to Improve, Train Your Brain – regarding the need for salespeople to have a broader skill set in today’s market. That is a trend we have seen over the past few years and one that is sure to expand. Ok, I know sports analogies can get tiresome, but I did appreciate the “subtitle” of this one (emphasis mine): “Selling is like golf: You will never be perfect but you can always get better,” Johnston explains. “Even the pros lose their swing at times, and it is good to get coaching when that happens.” You can always get better at selling – how… Read More
Continue ReadingForwarding Failures
CareerJournal.com offers up this article – Avoid These Email Blunders To Prevent Career Derailment – that speaks to some simple-sounding errors. You know, email has been around for some time now, but I am still impressed by how many blunders are still made today. This particular graph grabbed my attention: Don’t spoil your boss’s image. If your boss asks you in an email to speak to a coworker about a problem he or she has with that individual, forwarding the message blindly (and the incriminating language in it) is like setting it in stone. It will not only offend the recipient of the email but could also get you in… Read More
Continue ReadingBuckling Under A Price Discussion
Money is a difficult topic for many salespeople to handle with a prospect. Some salespeople buckle and collapse with large discounts while others simply avoid the topic as long as possible. As a sales manager, there are few things as uncomfortable as watching one of your salespeople crash and burn when qualifying money. Lee Salz offers a good article on Salesopedia covering this topic. Salz cuts right to the bone on why this topic is so critical: If you don’t believe you are providing a fair, competitive price for the solution, my question is why are you presenting it anyway? One would hope that you have integrity so why present… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Perfect Stall
Our local Pioneer Press offers an article about HD radio which intrigues me. There are some interesting developments in the technology. One of them is this: More important, the radios have an iTunes tagging feature, developed with Apple’s help and being tested in the San Francisco Bay area. This means users can press a button to tag songs they like, save that information to their docked iPods, and later transfer this info to their iTunes software on their computers. They then can buy the songs on Apple’s music store. That is a fantastic idea. However, I truly enjoyed this perfect stall that comes later in the article: “We’re definitely taking… Read More
Continue ReadingSelling Is Not Telling
Conventional Wisdom = The best talkers make the best salespeople. If I could rewrite that to make it accurate, I would state it like this: The best questioners make the best salespeople. Yes, I know that is oversimplifying things, but it is an attempt at rewriting conventional wisdom. The key takeaway is that the person asking the questions is in control of the conversation even though they are not doing the majority of the talking. This is a fundamental principle in sales that often gets ignored, overlooked or worse. In that light comes an excellent article from the weekly Salesopedia newsletter: Initially you need to ask questions to uncover whether… Read More
Continue Reading3 Sales Time Wasters
A good reminder from the JustSell.com newsletter: Top 3 activities that can hobble a sales day… Talking with people who can’t move the sales process along Unnecessary research activities What’s too much? There’s really no definitive answer. It’s particular to your sales world. Many people start to get a gut feel for when they should move on. The key is to act on it and make the call (rather than making sure every little thing is known before the call – fine line, of course). You might be surprised what you can learn by asking a straightforward question of the person who answers the phone or responds to an email.… Read More
Continue ReadingHiring By Gut
Imagine a salesperson who comes to a forecast meeting and puts down a huge forecast. The savvy sales manager naturally starts asking a few questions of the salesperson regarding each forecasted account. What is driving them to look for a new solution? What is their decision process? When do they want to have a solution in place? Who else are they looking at for this project? Now imagine the salesperson’s responses involve statements like this: I know we are the best solution for them. I have a good feeling about this one. They will make a decision shortly, they have to think it over. If you have been in sales… Read More
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