I have been troubled recently observing sales reps taking a subservient and overly respectful posture when engaging prospects and customers. A few reps in particular sounded completely overmatched in conversations on the phone. And I have seen the same occur during face to face meetings as well. Three weeks back I tweeted something provocative about it […]
Stop Thanking Prospects for Their Time Read More »
Last week OpenView Labs published their list of the Top 25 Sales Influencers for 2012. I am thrilled, honored and humbled to be included alongside these powerful thought leaders. My sincere thanks to OpenView for the recognition. Let me take this opportunity to publicly thank two people who significantly contributed to my presence on this
Top 25 Sales Influencers for 2012 Read More »
Mindset matters. Golfers visualize the perfect shot before addressing the ball. As my sons leave the on-deck circle headed toward home plate for an at-bat, I always say the same thing, “line drive buddy, line drive.” What we believe makes a difference in how we behave. Recently I’ve found myself tackling “prospecting mindset” with several
Setting a Proper Sales Mindset: Why You Should Want to Call Your Prospect Read More »
One year ago I publicly announced my leap of faith and return to full-time consulting. 2011 turned out to be a fantastic year and surpassed every expectation I had for my practice. For that, and for the family, friends, clients, colleagues, followers and readers who helped make it so, I am grateful beyond description. We
Random Sales Observations, Reflections and Rants as 2011 Rolls into 2012 Read More »
As we wind down 2011, I’ve got a few thoughts about keeping the RPMs (engine speed) up in our sales cars. It takes a lot of energy to establish an effective new business development sales attack. We strategically select target accounts, create sales weapons, and we plan the attack. It takes time to work our way into
The Skinny Pedal on the Right Keeps Your Sales Car in the Power Band Read More »
My clients’ businesses run the gamut from from leading edge technology consulting all the way to simple old-school product distribution. I love helping to drive new sales across this wide spectrum of business types, and more often than you’d think, I end up tackling the very same issues in very different businesses. Earlier this year
Driving Business with a Customer-Focused Sales Story and Fresh Techniques Read More »
Dave Brock is a friend and someone I look up to as one of the true sages in the sales world today. (Find him on twitter @davidabrock and check out his great blog Partners in Excellence). Dave wrote the foreword for Jack Malcolm’s recently revised and enlarged Bottom-Line Selling: The Sales Professional’s Guide to Improving Customer
Bottom-Line Selling by Jack Malcolm – Review Read More »
There are a lot of companies not making their sales numbers. Often, senior executives will suggest a lack of sales talent, specifically sales hunters, as a common reason for the shortfall. I understand that line of thinking and would concur that while we have an abundance of account managers in sales roles today, there is
Why Are the Precious Few Sales Fisherman (Hunters) Cleaning, Cooking & Doing Dishes? Read More »
Too few of us appear to be in control of our calendars. Smart phones and perpetual connectivity have turned many of us into addicts. Solitude is so seldom practiced that the thought of being alone and unreachable, even for an hour or two, makes us twitch. As a coach and consultant, I continually see sales
The Power of Time-Blocking, Solitude & Focus Read More »
This post is as much about business, leadership, legacy and community as it is about baseball. It’s been on my mind for months, and honestly, like every Cardinals’ fan, I expected the season to be over and to be posting this on September 30th. What an amazing and totally unexpected month October has been for
