Anthony Cole Training
MAY 9, 2012
I started playing tennis seriously or semi-seriously about 18 months ago. When I started I took some lessons, played some mixed doubles and would practice against a ball machine. When I would hit against the ball machine back then about 40 or 50 of the 200+ balls would end up on my side of the net. When I practiced my serve about 33% of the balls I served ended up on my side of the net.
A Sales Guy
MAY 21, 2012
Exactly!!!!!! This is without a doubt, the funnies description of sales people I’ve ever seen. Amen! Thanks to the boys over at Salesloft for pointing me to this. Accurate? What do you think?
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ConversionXL
MAY 1, 2012
An average website has a sales conversion of 1% to 2%. So it’d be fair to say that on most sites more than 95% of visitors don’t buy anything (especially on their first visit). So instead of trying to sell them right away, we should capture leads (emails) instead. I firmly believe that the best way to sell something is to avoid it at first.
Understanding the Sales Force
MAY 24, 2012
Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan As evidenced by one of my book titles, Baseline Selling , I have frequently borrowed from Baseball when the analogy is more useful than the sales message. Although the following stories may appear to be about my son and/or his baseball team, they are actually about coaching and adapting. Baseball - I brought my son to the batting cage to work out a swing flaw after his line drives had become weak ground balls.
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Partners in Excellence
MAY 24, 2012
Often, when I get involved with a new client, I seek out their “laziest” sales people. You know the one’s I’m talking about. There’s always someone that hides away. He keeps a low profile, probably stays out of the office, never volunteers to do things, but always seems to make the number. Perhaps he’s just barely making it, but he’s making it (which is significant when data show that fewer than 50% of sales people are making the number).
Score More Sales
MAY 14, 2012
Before I got into professional selling, I was a preschool teacher who worked with two-year olds. We were licensed for 12 two-year olds in our room within a daycare center, and I had two assistants. For anyone who knows me now, it may be hard to believe that I did that for five years, utilizing my degree in education. I actually loved it, but unfortunately, it didn’t pay the bills.
Technology Sales Today brings together the best content for technology sales professionals from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
A Sales Guy
MAY 2, 2012
Top Sales World just released their list of Top 50 Sales and Marketing Influencers for 2012. On that list, stuck between Guy and Jill, was me. It was a surprise and an honor to be on a list with some of sales and marketings most respected and accomplished people. I didn’t expect it at all. How was this list created? Over the past few weeks, a small team of professional researchers rigorously examined the credentials of one hundred and fifty possible “candidates” to arrive at t
Engage Selling
MAY 4, 2012
Chris and I try to stay pretty active – running and hitting the gym regularly. I have to admit I chuckle every time I see one of those infomercials on T.V. You know the ones, promoting an exotic piece of exercise equipment promising to deliver incredible results… Results that most will probably never achieve. I actually don’t have a criticism about these pieces of fitness equipment.
Understanding the Sales Force
MAY 14, 2012
Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan I heard former NBA all-star and current ESPN basketball analyst, Bruce Bowen , talking about Kevin Garnett of the Boston Celtics. He characterized Garnett as one of the toughest competitors on the court, unlike some younger, very talented players who aren't as competitive and don't know how to close out games.
Partners in Excellence
MAY 11, 2012
There are a huge number of tools available to help sales professionals be more effective and efficient. Properly used and implemented they can have a profound impact in improving sales performance. At the same time, used improperly, the provide the potential of causing great problems or creating crap at the speed of light. Every tool has the opportunity, properly used to have great impact or improperly used to have great negative impact.
Speaker: Jay Black, Senior Account Executive
Let's set the record straight: in-store retail isn't dead - it's evolving! Faced with the digital age and the demands of omnichannel shopping, some retailers are thriving while others are struggling to adapt. Join Jay Black in this exclusive session as he explores the strategies that set successful stores apart, including: Crafting unique and unforgettable in-store experiences 🛍️ Mastering the art of retail demands 🛒 Navigating inventory challenges in today's climate 📦 an
Score More Sales
MAY 21, 2012
It’s a simple concept – being strategic in your thinking, planning and acting in sales works. This week is an important week – it precedes the first weekend of Summer here in the U.S. and is a power week to make contact with buyers. Many are focused and intentional about getting work done – so be sure YOU are also intentional.
Anthony Cole Training
MAY 16, 2012
I just finished reading an article in Psychology Today that discussed the 'new' interviewing process of simulating the work situations that your prospective new hire will be faced with IF you hire them. When determining if a sales person is going to be a successful as you anticipate this would be a great idea for you to implement NOW. For years as part of our recruiting program - STAR (Sales Talent Acquisition Routine) we have strongly suggested that you create an environment that you sales pers
A Sales Guy
MAY 9, 2012
Selling is hard. The profession has a bad rap. Sales people aren’t always seen in the best light. The truth is however, most sales people are passionate about what they do and are genuinely invested in the well being of their customers and prospects. Knowing how hard it is to sell and the perception challenge sales people face, I thought I’d write a letter to our prospects on behalf of all sales people, in hopes it might change a few minds and soften the stance of our prospects.
The Sales Hunter
MAY 8, 2012
How is your sales pipeline doing? Is it turning out the types of leads you need or is it merely junked up with stuff you don’t realize is junk? Too many salespeople keep leads in their sales pipeline that have zero potential of every resulting in sales, but they do this just to give them a sense of security. If you’re looking for security, go get yourself a blanket.
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Understanding the Sales Force
MAY 29, 2012
Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Mike Myatt wrote an article for Forbes ' online site called, To Increase Revenue Stop Selling. This article has been very heavily viewed and commented. I don't agree with most of Mike's suggestions but in his defense, he is not a sales expert, sales writer, sales manager, sales leader or salesperson. He simply doesn't like being pitched or sold to and urges salespeople (he doesn't want them to sell or be called that) to simply let him buy - when he wa
Partners in Excellence
MAY 6, 2012
I have to admit, I’m writing this out of a little bit of frustration. I have a prospect, it’s virtually impossible to communicate with them — at least through the normal channels. Now, you may say, “Dave, don’t you get it–they don’t want to talk to you!” But they really do want to talk and communicate with me.
Score More Sales
MAY 11, 2012
photo courtesy of Apple(R). Did your team receive iPads or other tablet PCs and you find them under-utilized? As a long time PowerPoint user myself, I have felt guilty about my iPad being my glorified Evernote platform and e-mail source on the road. Ashley Furness, CRM Market Analyst at Software Advice recently wrote about this very issue – teams of salespeople have received or will received tablets but do not have clear deployment plans.
Engage Selling
MAY 16, 2012
Today I stress the best practices for maintaining customer loyalty. Asking for referrals, involving yourself in customer’s personal interests, and business life, and building corporate rapport are all keys to understand. Today I stress the best practices for maintaining customer loyalty. Asking for referrals, involving yourself in customer’s personal interests, and business life, and building corporate rapport are all keys to understand.
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How do 1st, 2nd, and 3rd party intent data compare? 1st, 2nd, and 3rd party data each have specific advantages and disadvantages. It comes down to four factors: accuracy, cost, control and quantity. This infographic explains the pros and cons of each and helps you understand which one is best for meeting your business objectives. Intent data can be a great way to fill your pipeline and close more deals.
A Sales Guy
MAY 1, 2012
A young man went to the doctor the other day and said he wasn’t feeling well. After asking the young man a few questions and looking around, he found his pain. The Dr. replied; ”Yup, you’ve got a tumor in your abdomen and it’s giving you stomach aches. Here is some pain medicine, take 2 every 4 hours and the pain will go away.” Translate this into sales and it’s what we’ve been taught for years.
The Sales Hunter
MAY 29, 2012
I recently exchanged comments with a person who claimed they don’t do “relationship selling.” In fact, they claimed they don’t sell at all. The person’s perspective was he doesn’t need to sell because he works on building a relationship with the prospect and then they wind up buying. My response to the person was that what he was doing was selling by building a relationship with the other person.
Understanding the Sales Force
MAY 16, 2012
Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan When a room full of sales leaders arrive for two days of intensive training, there are many things that can and do happen. Here are ten of them: They can and do resist if they were sent there. If they chose to come, on their own, resistance never occurs! Fortunately, the resistance fades away by the end of the first day.
Partners in Excellence
MAY 2, 2012
We all know the shifts in buying. The web offers a tremendous resource to all of us. There is an overhwelming amount of information available on virtually every topic. There’s a lot of data that says customers don’t want to see sales people until later in their buying cycle–presumably the final phases, as they have developed a short list of alternatives.
Speaker: Chris Paxton McMillin, President of D3 Training Solutions
There are plenty of great authoring tools for developing eLearning, but the one you select could directly impact your course's outcomes. Depending upon your learners’ needs and your organization’s performance goals, you could be overlooking considerations that impact the both effectiveness of your courses and how long it takes to finish them. From general capabilities to specific workflow structures, some aspects are critical when it comes to learning objectives and deadlines.
Score More Sales
MAY 24, 2012
We are assuming you are doing inbound marketing in your b2b business. The question I was asked: “Would you rather make 100 cold calls or 20 well-researched calls to b2b sales prospects?” (A trick question?). Of course we’d all take the 20 higher caliber conversations over a “dialing for dollars” mentality. In fact those days of calling anyone without research are long O-V-E-R.
Engage Selling
MAY 14, 2012
Sometimes there is simply no way of making them happy… My niece Georgia was not a happy camper last week when the weather got warm but she still wanted to wear tights. She was hot but didn’t want to get changed… Turns out, a perfect recipe for a very grumpy girl. Unfortunately, identifying the landmines in advance with a six year old can be a bit tricky.
A Sales Guy
MAY 29, 2012
When’s the last time you changed your sales strategy? Do you even have one? Do you build it once a year or is more dynamic than that? Is your sales strategy even still relevant? Most sales organizations don’t have specific sales strategies. Those that do, they normally aren’t very flexible and that’s a problem. Your sales strategy should be dynamic and keenly tied to capitalizing on market conditions.
The Sales Hunter
MAY 14, 2012
Prospecting for sales is hard enough, but it’s made even harder when the strategy being used is either based on hope — or worse yet something like spraying and praying. I talk a lot about the need to have a very clear sales prospecting process. Just as important the need to be focused in following it. Too many salespeople at the first sign of something not going right get scared and change direction.
Speaker: Susan Spencer, Principal of Spencer Communications
Intent signal data can go a long way toward shortening sales cycles and closing more deals. The challenge is deciding which is the best type of intent data to help your company meet its sales and marketing goals. In this webinar, Susan Spencer, fractional CMO and principal of Spencer Communications, will unpack the differences between contact-level and company-level intent signals.
Understanding the Sales Force
MAY 9, 2012
Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan. Photo Credit - Fever Pitch on PhotoDune. My colleague, Frank Belzer, just posted a terrific, thought-provoking article on Rejection. Please read that first for the rest of my article to have the proper context. Five years ago, Passive Rejection wouldn't have been an article topic because back then, it was rare to not get your repeated calls returned.
Partners in Excellence
MAY 3, 2012
These days, so many of the conversations among sales professionals and pundits is about challenging our customers, about getting them to think differently, about creating superior and differentiated value. I talk and write about it a lot, as do many others. . Sometimes, when I sit back and re-read what I write, or some of what others write, I get the impression that what we challenge ourselves and all sales professionals to do is the functional equivalent of “solving world peace.”
Score More Sales
MAY 16, 2012
Do You Have a Sales Funnel? Are you part of a B2B sales organization proactively looking each week at what deals are in your sales funnel (or sales pipeline)? You probably fall into one of three camps: A. You have a robust, helpful CRM tool that gives you several helpful reports which you can review each week, and lists you can easily pull up on a just-in-time basis.
Engage Selling
MAY 3, 2012
Listen as I share my thoughts on what sales executives can do with their team to implement strategic direction. Listen as I share my thoughts on what sales executives can do with their team to implement strategic direction.
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