Whether you’re new to sales or a seasoned veteran, regardless of your “technique”, you’ll still hear “NO” more often than “YES”.
This is a truism of sales. Most salespeople know this, but everyday go on calls always seeking a “YES”. They not only create unbelievable pressure on themselves, but set themselves up for mental failure, as well.
How do we in the training business address this seemingly weighty issue?
Continue readingTime management is an OXYMORON.
You cannot manage time, but you can manage yourself through a disciplined process of maximizing your time by prioritizing activities which will help you achieve your sales goals. This discipline must be ongoing, not something you do once or occasionally.
How do you self-manage activities?
First, identify time wasters, then, identify the source of time wasters and finally, change your behavior pattern.
Remember this? Long days…sore feet…tired back. Sound like your typical trade show?
To make the show worthwhile, you’ve got to put in the effort (And track your results). What better place to talk to and meet scores of current users and potential users of your product or service.
Here are some basics for the booth:
Continue reading“It’s not WHAT you know…It’s what you DO with what you know!”
NEW BUSINESS
It’s either coming from your existing customer base or from new customers. Keeping the “funnel” filled with qualified prospects requires multiple prospecting methods used in a planned, systematic, and measurable method.
Continue readingYou’ve just hired a new salesperson. Now what? How do you get them productive…quickly? It starts with you the sales manager.
New hires look for leadership. Their initial results will be potentially meager, so lead by example. Success is what they’ll attract…by the salesperson they become. Teach them accountability and discipline, because lack of discipline in the first 90 days causes disasters.
Here’s a brief checklist for those first 90 days:
Finally, you need to measure progress every 30 days. Formally review their progress. Discuss learning, improvements, tracking, results, sales pipeline, strategies and next steps.
Now for the difficult part: At each 30 day interval be prepared to make a decision: Go or “No Go” with the new person. Why? You, as a sales manager, are measured for the results of your people. The longer a poor performer is with you…the more difficult it is for most managers to replace them. Expect success…plan for it, hold everyone accountable and the results will come. Start the off correctly: 90 day plans.
“I hold it more important to have the players’ confidence than their affection.” – Vince Lombardi
One of the most common complaints we hear from salespeople is how hard it is to get someone to commit to an appointment.
They find their prospects using the same excuse over and over again: “I’m busy, so call me in a month.” Then, when the salesperson calls back, they are busy again and use the same excuse… “call me next month.” To make things worse, they blame this problem on the prospect. However, it is not the prospect who is to blame, but rather the salesperson. The real issue is that most of the time when your prospect says, “call me in a month”, what they really mean is “don’t call me.” Although we sense this, we are afraid to hear it. So, instead of getting a “no” and discovering there really isn’t an opportunity for us, we would prefer to chase a prospect that is unwilling to see us.
The professional salesperson operates quite differently.
Continue readingEliminate Hiring Mistakes…Immediately and Avoid the High Cost of Hiring Mistakes!
The process of interviewing, hiring, on-boarding and training…and then suddenly losing salespeople is a very costly mistake. How much money and opportunity has your company lost on salespeople who are no longer with you? Keep reading….we’ll show you how to calculate an actual number below!
Continue readingAs managers, we often ask ourselves, “How are the troops doing?” The term “troops” is more than a euphemism, because these are the people we engage in the battle for sales. The battleground today is the “Uncertain” economy which many businesses face. Look at your troops, as a General might and ask some penetrating questions.
As a Sales Manager, your job is to get results through your salespeople. However, in lieu of results, many salespeople explain why they didn’t, couldn’t, or wouldn’t get it done. They have a self-limiting belief that excuses release them from their obligations or duties. Consequently, excuses are offered in defense of their marginal behavioral or performance.
Continue readingOnce the goals are in place, accountability for time is the next critical component.
Where are your salespeople spending their time?
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It is our mission to develop your sales team into a high performing, efficient, and ever improving sales force.
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