What to Look for to Avoid Losing Customers You may have heard hindsight is 20/20. In sales you don’t have the luxury of hindsight. Most probably when you look back on your sales history it’s to wonder how you lost a piece of business. Having sales vision helps you avoid losing customers instead of looking back. Here’s what you should look for with your sales … [Read more...]
Prospecting on the Telephone: Reach Prospects!
You may still be limiting your face-to-face calls because of Covid. Prospecting on the telephone is an essential part of selling even without the pandemic. Here are a few strategies to get through and reach your prospect to get the meeting or make the sale. Get to your prospect when prospecting on the telephone. They’re called gatekeepers for a reason. Their job is to … [Read more...]
Sales Manager Problems: Why is this person on my sales team?
What do you do when a member of your sales team misses a sales objective…again? You might scratch your head in disbelief. Perhaps you thought, “Why is this person even on my sales team?” Here are some strategies for you to avoid these sales manager problems. They don’t take risks. Selling is a job that requires risk taking. You call on customers without certainty they … [Read more...]
Sell On The Telephone: 3 Rules to Follow
You probably wish that call screening didn’t exist today. Without screening a prospect would be more likely to pick up the phone. Stop wishing. Instead, practice these 3 rules to sell more on the telephone. 1. Less is more when you sell on the telephone. Each second—yes second—is precious. Don’t waste them! Each word you say should make your prospect to want to hear … [Read more...]
Intangibles: Sell Differently to Sell More
When’s the last time you heard someone say, ““I’m in the mood to go and buy insurance.” Never? You are far more likely to hear “I want a new iPhone” or “I’m tired of this car breaking down. I need a new car.” It is different to sell intangibles. Here are a few points to consider to sell more intangibles. Provide a way to evaluate your sale to sell intangibles. Help … [Read more...]
Luckier Salespeople Understand the Buying Process
The Roman philosopher Seneca said, “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” I say that you make your own luck. That is a very true statement for sales. Luckier salespeople understand the buying process. They are more likely to make more sales, too. Do more qualifying. Before a face-to-face meeting, determine general information about your ideal … [Read more...]
Problem Solving 101: Make Decisions Easier
Problem solving and making good decisions are the foundation of selling. You’ve got to decide who your prospects should be, how to navigate customer politics, deliver price increases and on and on. Deciding isn’t easy. Here are some thoughts to make decisions easier. Ideally, your problem solving decisions will be better ones as well. Make decisions easier by getting past … [Read more...]
How Are Your Customers Judging You?
Bathrooms are often the first stop that passengers make at an airport. Clean, uncrowded bathrooms that are easy to find are a huge factor in how well-liked an airport is. What’s even more important is that the bathroom cleanliness impacts whether travelers will purchase food or shop at airport stores. Travelers’ satisfaction with bathrooms predicts sales … [Read more...]
NO is An Important Word in Selling
No and yes are important words that impact your selling. Prospects say no when they don’t want to buy. That’s a no in selling to avoid. Other times you need to tell yourself no when a prospect is unlikely to buy. Here’s how you can get both the yeses you want, the noes to avoid and the noes you need to sell more. No Budget is often an important no in selling. Too … [Read more...]
Sales Interview: Your Next Sale Is Your Job
At some point in your career I’ll bet you will be interviewing for a sales position. Recently a client asked me to interview candidates for a sales position. Some of the candidates’ performance was surprising. Some made some basic mistakes and others didn’t do all they could for the best consideration. Here are some tactics for your job interview the next time you’re looking … [Read more...]