You’re on a sales call and the prospect says take a seat. You thank her and immediately ask how her weekend was. Her response; what can I do for you today? You want small talk and she wants to get right down to business. Typically, not the way you like to start a sales call. […]
Building a Great Sales Culture
Todd Cohen is a prominent thought leader on sales culture and is also my great friend and colleague. He states, “sales culture is one where everyone in the organization is in sales.” As Todd emphasizes, learning is selling, and education is selling. He believes, and I wholeheartedly agree, every conversation is a selling moment. I’d […]
The Power and Influence of Analogies
I’ve seen many a client’s eyes glaze over after the 32nd slide. These information dumps are typically overloaded with features and functions. Your clients want to know about the benefits of your products and services and what they can do for them? Instead of sharing too much data, statistics and information, give your clients an […]
Building Client Trust
Have you ever had an experience with a sales person where you liked the product, wanted to make the commitment, but just didn’t feel right about it? It’s something most of us experience at one time or another. Everything lines up, but you’re just not sure about the sales person, and whether they have your […]
Three Causes of Client Conflict
Do you ever have conflicts with your clients? Unhappy clients can certainly keep you up at night. You replay the scene, over and over. Why did the issue happen? How could I have prevented it? How will I fix it? It’s so easy to stress out over our clients since they are the reason for […]
Sales is Not Linear
Sales training has always emphasized what I would call the typical “Sales Cycle” – discovery, needs, qualification, solution, presentation and commitment. Many follow this methodology, but it’s missing a vital piece – timing! Where is the business in the pipeline and when will we get the commitment – that’s what we want to know. Yet […]
What Clients Expect
What Client’s Expect Today selling is more competitive than ever. Clients are more knowledgeable; your competition is more astute at articulating their advantage; and technology changes occur so quickly that no one holds a long-term advantage. Staying current with your clients is imperative. Imagine visiting a client for your scheduled monthly meeting when they share […]
Features Don’t Sell
Facts tell, stories sell. If you want to influence your clients to act, tell them a story or give them an analogy. It’s a powerful way to paint a picture of what the client can have. It opens them to understanding how your solution can be of benefit. Years ago, one of the most popular […]
What’s Your Sales EQ?
A prospect has heard through the grapevine that your company is known as unethical and for trying to oversell beyond what the client really needs. They assume that as a representative of the company, you too must be unethical and over-zealous. How would you respond? Many of you face similar situations at times. Someone has […]
Clients or Customers?
What do you call the people that do business with you? Are they clients or customers? I believe there’s a significant difference. For example, how would you categorize someone that shops at Wal-Mart. They come to make a purchase – it’s a transaction. Now think about your CPA or lawyer.What do you think they call […]
