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One of the first things sellers learn is to keep it simple. Yet when it comes to a particularly hot topic in our industry, sales leaders do anything but. Rather than apply the K-I-S-S principle to sales productivity, many leaders instead turn to technology, tracking, and top-down governance.
As the external economic environment continues to shift, many organizations are looking for ways to optimize costs and make their sales force more efficient. One focus area has emerged as a key differentiator for those organizations who have been able to do more with less, accelerate revenue, and exceed their objectives during this economic time: alignment.
So even after doing SaaS all this years, and being perhaps the biggest fan of SaaS sales and sales processes out there … I still struggle with the idea of cold calling. Personally, I never answer a cold call, and want at least my initial discovery to be done over email. But I’m not the average tech buyer, and you probably aren’t either. So I put out the latest survey to see how many folks were successful doing cold phone outbound (not email) in 2023?
You wouldn’t expect an NFL team to head into a game without having their plays ironed out. Similarly, your sales team can’t expect to succeed without robust B2B sales strategies.
Speaker: Matt Sunshine, CEO at The Center for Sales Strategy
AI isn’t replacing salespeople—it’s empowering them. The most forward-thinking sales organizations are using AI to enhance human performance rather than eliminate it. From coaching and messaging to prospecting and pipeline accountability, artificial intelligence is giving managers and SDRs the new tools they need to work smarter, sell better, and close more.
If you’ve been reading my blog for long, you won’t be surprised to hear me say that sales training alone won’t fix your sales problems or transform your sales team. Or that you can’t do it in a single training event–or even several training events.
When it comes to sales closing, sales training, or sales prospecting, have you been taught how to actually close? I meet a lot of salespeople who regularly struggle to meet … The post Sales Closing: How to Ask for the Sale first appeared on Colleen Francis - The Sales Leader.
BOSTON, March 27, 2023 — OpenView an nounced the closing of its seventh fund totaling $570 million, which will continue the firm’s dedication to partnering with high-growth software startups. The latest fund represents a 25% increase over the firm’s sixth fund and is its largest to date, enabling OpenView to support more entrepreneurs through this challenging macroeconomic climate.
BOSTON, March 27, 2023 — OpenView an nounced the closing of its seventh fund totaling $570 million, which will continue the firm’s dedication to partnering with high-growth software startups. The latest fund represents a 25% increase over the firm’s sixth fund and is its largest to date, enabling OpenView to support more entrepreneurs through this challenging macroeconomic climate.
Today's topic: March Madness, the ongoing search for bracket and sales pipeline predictability. The March Madness tournament can be somewhat predictable, but upsets are expected. In the world of sales forecasting, you have the same problem!
Nearly everyone in behavioral marketing and influence marketing was surprised when Dr. Robert Cialdini, the “godfather” of persuasion science and the creator of the celebrated Six Principles of Influence, introduced a seventh principle, Unity. In fact, in 2014 I asked Cialdini if, thirty years after completing his seminal book, Influence, he’d add on another one or [.
There are several ways to improve the effectiveness of a sales force, and B2B sales training is the first way most sales organizations level up their sales teams. Because salespeople have different strengths and weaknesses, sales leaders and managers need to address the gaps in the competencies and the important sales skills of everyone on their team.
Click below to listen to the blog post. Veloxy strives for accessibility. In 2018, Salesforce found that only 57% of salespeople expected to hit their quota. Jump to 2022, and Salesforce found that a staggering 72% of salespeople expected their team to miss annual quota. We’re living in an era where sales has the richest technology stack and set of professional capabilities than ever before.
Speaker: Brendan Sweeney, VP of Global Sales and David Phelan, Account Executive
In a world where buyers are more informed and objections are more nuanced, confidence isn't optional—it’s a competitive advantage. In high-stakes conversations, knowing how to handle pushback can make or break the deal. Join industry experts Brendan Sweeney and David Phelan for a behind-the-scenes look at how teams are transforming sales coaching with real-time feedback, objection-handling role plays, and pre-call preparation that actually sticks.
How do you leverage the gatekeeper (the person who’s holding you back)? Ask these specific questions. The post How to Leverage the Gatekeeper first appeared on Colleen Francis - The Sales Leader.
A few days ago, CX TODAY posted an article entitled “Salesforce Teases ‘The First Generative AI For CRM.’” Salesforce’s promotional video for this new functionality, posted with the article, begins with the line, “What if your CRM could sell for you?” Another CRM giant, Microsoft Dynamics, is also standing behind similar claims—that AI functionality can sell in place of sales reps.
Selling value as a strategy for selling is not effective. So, what should you do instead? Watch part 1 of our my new 3-part series, Selling Value Without Selling to find out.
For the modern sales organization, certain technologies are universal in the age of Sales 2.0. We rely on CRMs and continuous learning platforms to increase the efficiency of our sales force and drive organizational outcomes. The recent economic downturn has most sales organizations looking for ways to achieve even greater cost efficiency and support revenue-driving activities.
Speaker: Jady West, VP of Hospitality & Chris Bennett, Head of Sales & Engineering
The modern hotel room is no longer just a place to stay—it’s an experience to remember. Today’s guests expect seamless 5G connectivity, personalized comfort, and high-tech convenience. From AI-powered smart room controls to in-room entertainment and app-based services, technology is redefining hospitality from the inside out. In this new session featuring industry pros Jady West and Chris Bennett, we’ll explore how high-speed, high-bandwidth connectivity powers the innovations that are enabling
Every sales organization and sales professional must choose between two sales approaches : traditional and modern. The traditional approach positions the company and their product. It doesn't create value for your prospective client. The second approach, the modern approach creates value for decision-makers and their stakeholders.
As forward-thinking companies transition from traditional sales enablement to revenue enablement, it’s important to understand that 42% of businesses still don’t have a sales enablement program. That’s a HUGE problem. In this article, we’ll explore the importance of revenue enablement, the difference between sales enablement and revenue enablement, revenue enablement best practices, how to build a revenue enablement strategy, and much more.
Sometimes, we have to teach our buyers when to buy. Here’s how (this will dramatically improve your chances of winning). The post Helping Buyers Know When to Buy first appeared on Colleen Francis - The Sales Leader.
Sales enablement is a process that helps businesses equip their sales teams with the resources, tools, and information they need to improve their performance and close more deals. In today’s competitive market, sales enablement has become an essential strategy for any business that wants to stay ahead of the competition. What is Sales Enablement?
Retailers know the clock is ticking–legacy SAP Commerce support ends in 2026. Legacy platforms are becoming a liability burdened by complexity, rigidity, and mounting operational costs. But modernization isn’t just about swapping out systems, it’s about preparing for a future shaped by real-time interactions, AI powered buying assistants, and flexible commerce architecture.
In part 1, I gave you a sample of how the ‘selling value’ discussions sounds. Here it is again. Prospect : W hy should I do business with you or your bank / company?
Today's sales environment is highly competitive. Rising economic headwinds mean that many buyers are adopting more complex purchasing processes, and sales organizations are looking for any way to preserve vital margins. As a sales leader, you don't want your sellers resorting to discounting to close deals in this environment.
The writer Kurt Vonnegut used to tell his students to "pity the reader." Vonnegut wanted his students to slow down and think of the poor soul who would have to endure their writing. The goal was to improve their writing. My first editor once told me that if someone could say something in 500 words, I could say it in 1,500 words. He was asking me to pity my readers.
Conducting proper win-loss analyses is hands down the most cost effective way to generate essential insights required to grow your business. Understanding why one prospect became a customer while another went elsewhere will be key if you expect to make your sales process stronger for future bids. In this guide, you’ll learn: What is Win Loss Analysis?
Documents are the backbone of enterprise operations, but they are also a common source of inefficiency. From buried insights to manual handoffs, document-based workflows can quietly stall decision-making and drain resources. For large, complex organizations, legacy systems and siloed processes create friction that AI is uniquely positioned to resolve.
“I want to think it over.” What do you do when the prospect says that? Here’s the best way to handle this (it involves three simple steps). The post The Dreaded “I Want to Think It Over” first appeared on Colleen Francis - The Sales Leader.
ChatGPT announced the rollout of its API (GPT 3.5 Turbo) on March 1. I’m bullish on ChatGPT’s utility for several different SEO-related functions like keyword research , local SEO , content , and link building. Having spent much time using ChatGPT, I’m also painfully aware of its limitations. While the API won’t be a panacea (and the web interface is actually much better for some tasks), it can help address some of the shortcomings of the web interface.
What your salespeople must ‘have’ to be successful at uncovering value. From a sales strategy and process perspective, positioning value not only requires a great VALUE PROPOSITION but also supporting Will to Sell, Sales DNA, and Sales Competencies. Using data from just one of our dozens of community bank clients, this is what we found out about top 25% of the team vs the bottom 25% of the team.
This month on Revenue Builders, our guests reminded us of the power of the mind. In leadership and life, the power of your mindset is clear - it affects your outlook, motivation and most importantly those around you. We look for a great mindset in those we partner with and who we hire. These are four stories that convey the transformative power of the mindset, from entrepreneurship to service.
B2B marketers face a number of challenges, including: continuously generating great leads converting leads to active sales prospects finding vendors that deliver real results Aggregage has proven content syndication, webinar, online advertising and intent signal marketing programs that deliver higher-quality leads. More than 700 companies have already benefited from our programs.
Recently a student of mine at the University of Oregon introduced me to a digital clothing app that allows users to house a “digital closet.” Curious as to what value it provides, I downloaded the app and began to experiment. At first glance, it looked like a Snapchat lens, where you can overlay virtual clothing, jewelry, hats and other fashion accessories over your image via your mobile phone’s camera.
How do you navigate premature pricing requests? Sometimes, prospects will try to throw you off by asking for the pricing way too early in the sales cycle. Here’s the … The post Fending Off Premature Pricing first appeared on Colleen Francis - The Sales Leader.
The Google March 2023 broad core update is now officially done rolling out. The update, which started rolling out March 15, took 13 days to complete. Why we care. Google algorithm updates are critical for all brands, businesses and organizations to be aware of because they can impact how your site performs in search results. And any change in rankings from a core update – positive or negative – can impact your organic traffic, conversions and revenue.
When culture isn’t consistently lived out across the organization, engagement suffers—and it often starts with a disconnect at the top. In this session, Beth Sunshine, SVP of Up Your Culture at The Center for Sales Strategy, will reveal how HR and executive leaders can close the gap between vision and execution by equipping frontline and mid-level managers to become culture carriers.
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