Happy Holidays! Just make sure your company party is a success. Thanksgiving is over. What’s next for many salespeople? Holiday parties. You have a sales opportunity whether you attend your company’s party or another hosted holiday event. Think of the event as another sales call and this time, you are the product. Whether you realize it or not, you … [Read more...]
A Sales Manager’s Guide to Hold Productive Sales Meetings
Are your sales meetings productive or a time waster? I’ve been consulting at many sales meetings where sales professionals report the status of their prospects. What I hear too many times is, “This deal is going to close. Soon.” Instead of a discussion of what “soon” means and why, the sales manager accepts this report as an indication of … [Read more...]
Listen With Your Eyes & Ears to Sell More
Do you listen with your eyes and ears? Which of the sales professional’s skills do you think is the most important? I think it’s the skill of listening. This underrated skill often gets overlooked since too many people, salespeople included, think that talking is far more important. What you say is important in sales. You can do a … [Read more...]
How to Raise Prices and Keep Your Customers
You can raise prices and keep your customers. Are you doing what it takes? It will happen at some point in your selling career that you will have to raise prices. Your customers are not looking forward to this conversation. Most likely neither are you. You are vulnerable to competition when you raise your prices. After all, who doesn’t think that when prices go up, and … [Read more...]
Hire A Low Maintenance Salesperson
Hire a low maintenance salesperson so you avoid problems. You are in trouble if you hire a salesperson and his first day is his best day. You have been sold. Don’t be surprised. Selling is what salespeople are supposed to do! Here’s how to avoid being sold a low performing salesperson when what you want to buy is a successful sales … [Read more...]
Red Flags in Selling
Can you spot red flags in selling? You know what red flags do. They give you advance warning of a dangerous situation. It’s at your peril if you ignore the danger. You may be missing a few red flags for customers and other people you work with. Here are some red flags that I advise my clients to pay attention to so they can get better sales results. Too … [Read more...]
Failure Is Not An Option. Until It Is In Sales
Does a sales loss stop you or can you move forward? You’ve probably heard some leaders say, “Failure is not an option” thinking they are motivating others. They’re wrong. Failure is an option and it certainly is a possibility in sales. Sales professionals know that customers sometimes have other purchasing ideas even if failure is not the option sales … [Read more...]
Don’t Miss a Clue When You Sell
Don't miss any clues that will help you sell. Hindsight is 20/20 may be true. It sure won’t help you make the sale you lost because you missed a clue as you were selling. Here are some clues that I’ve pulled in over the years that I don’t want you to miss when you sell. There’s a right way and a wrong way to handle problems. No one likes complainers. I … [Read more...]
There’s Still Time to Increase Your Sales and Make Your Sales goals
It’s summer time and the living is easy. Maybe it is if you are on track to make your sales goals this year. What if you’re not? Here are some actions to take to get more sales and make your sales goals this year. Focus on smaller accounts. I don’t normally recommend focusing on smaller accounts. Why? Because you work … [Read more...]
Don’t Make Yourself Crazy When You Sell
Do your decisions make you crazy when you sell? You may have noticed that sales can be a stressful occupation. You don’t know what mood a customer might be in before you present. You might have to deal with an unfair situation. It’s unfair when the brother-in-law of the buyer sells what you sell. Yet salespeople often make their own stressful situations. Here’s what you … [Read more...]