- 3 Key Benefits of Automated Sales
When someone asks me, "what are the benefits for automating the selling process?" The answer is easy. A business owner will have more profits, enjoy more free time and gain peace of mind. Let me explain the simple concepts we use to deliver outstanding results. We call it, creating T.O.M.A. - Top Of Mind Awareness. The idea is to reach TOMA with your existing customers so they always think of you whenever they need a service you provide. - A Hot Dog Sales Lesson
If You sold Hot Dogs, would people drive 64 miles to do business with you? What can you do to make your business an experience people will talk about? This is my sales lesson from the Worlds Best Chili Hot Dog stand. When you bite into these hot dogs, the mixture of flavors explodes in your mouth. - A Master Salesperson is a Constant Gardener
Selling is just like tending a garden. As I write this, I am looking at my flower garden which is bursting with color and all the plants are healthy. However, it wasn't always this way. - A Recipe For Selling Success and Baja Fish Tacos
My fair skinned wife, a Tacoma, Washington native of German heritage can fix the best tasting Baja fish taco I've ever tasted. It isn't the cook, although I will never tell her this, it is the successful recipe she follows. The same is true with selling. It isn't the salesperson; it is the selling process they follow. - A Salesperson Should Focus On The Happy Ending
The movie, "The Breakup" is a salesman's nightmare. Why, because no one wins! When a salesperson does their job right, everyone wins and business moves forward. It is the chase of a happy ending that drives the way we pursue a client. - Build Business Value – Before Selling A Business
I normally write about selling strategies, today, is no different. I'm sharing insights on how you can improve your success at selling a business. As you read this, try to take the buyers perspective. - Confessions of a Serial Salesperson
When the Judge was presented with the business development evidence, Taylor Success confessed and was clearly identified as the responsible individual for sales growth. Taylor Success was easily tracked down when we followed the trail of consistent sales contacts. It was clear that Taylor Success was following a sales action plan and responsible for the highest serial sales in history. - Dad, I'm a Super Hero - I'm in Sales!
Dad, you raised me to have integrity, be honest and help people. You raised four boys, a Marine, fireman and truck driver. I’m the one you wanted to become a doctor or lawyer. Well, I reached higher to become a salesperson and I know you are proud. - Final Four Winning Sales Strategies - Defense is the Key
Experts agree that the best winning strategy in team sports is a strong defense and I totally agree. The NCAA basketball finals are proving the importance of defense with each game. We write this article, because protecting the basket is as important in basketball as protecting the sale in business. Every business and salesperson must maintain and develop strong business relationships if they want to hold back the competition. - Fire Branding Customers to Your Business
The idea of fire branding customers comes from my grand daughter, Taylor. She applied a tattoo to her shoulder and was pleased as she displayed a small peace symbol about the size of a peanut. Each time I looked at her shoulder, I was reminded of the little symbol and what it meant. It made me think about how great it would be to fire brand customers with my business name. I thought of countless ways of placing my logo around the world to spread the right image. - How to Calculate Lifetime Customer Value
Who would have thought my old comics or baseball cards would be so valuable. It is just like the value of my best customers. The better I take care of them, the greater value they yield. Do you know the lifetime value of a customer? - How to Create A Vision For Sales Success
Imagine you’re on a crowded company bus. It is a dark rainy night so you can’t see outside. The bus is on a winding mountain pass. You notice the bus driver is not sure where they are going and both the headlights and wipers aren’t working. - How to Develop a Master-Planned Sales Plan
Perhaps you have driven past the road signs for new developments proclaiming they are "Master-Planned". Maybe, you live in one. Master-Planned Communities usually incorporate extensive recreational amenities like lakes, golf courses, and expansive parks with bike paths, and jogging trails. - How To Dream BIG In Sales
Have you ever thought about where you want to live if you win the lottery? Creating a strong, vibrant image of our dreams is important and we must have a vision of success. We should be able to see, feel, hear, touch and smell our dreams. They say that stories sell. A story with visions of results sells better. - How To Fix A Defective Sales Funnel
Businesses and marketers use the example of a sales funnel to illustrate how they capture sales opportunities in their marketplace. Sadly, some sales funnels are not only small; they are outdated, have holes in them or are too plugged up to help a business capture all the sales opportunities. - How to Handle Sales Objections as Opportunities
How do you handle objections? Let's say you just talked with your client on a fairly large project and they suggest to you that you are not in the ballpark on the deal. What do - How to Hire a Superstar Salesperson for 2007
If you are hiring a salesperson for 2007, you should have a list of superstar qualities your candidate must match. If we were talking, I might ask you; do you really need to hire a salesperson to get the results you want? This short checklist will take some of the emotion out of your important salesperson decision. - How to Manage Sales By the Numbers
I hated math in high school, which explains why I struggled through Algebra One two times and finally passed it my senior year. I hadn’t expected math to become a major influence in my life. I didn’t care how many apples Johnny had to have if he needed to eat one, three time a day over 14 days. I didn’t like apples that much. I didn’t get it then, but I love numbers today and I like apples too. - How To Sell a Cat – Curiosity Of Course
They say that curiosity killed the cat. Satisfaction brought it back. Another title for this article might be, “how to make more sales creating prospect curiosity.” Now that you have read this, you should read a little further to capture the truth behind the statement. Isn’t curiosity wonderful? - How to Survive a Difficult Challenge in Sales
This is an article about sales as much as it is about challenging the Grand Canyon. I have ventured into the belly of the world wonder seven times. Each time it has been a different experience. - How to Teach a Sales System with Playing Cards
Salespeople need a balanced system of using the basic four communications to be successful in sales. This playing card system makes it easy for anyone to adopt a balanced sales plan. Particularly when the business offers a suite of services or products. - How Would You Design The Perfect Salesperson
If you could design the perfect salesperson, where would you start? Would it be a male or female design? You can probably think of a few quality sales traits beyond these seven. - If You Don't Ask, I Won't Tell and You Lose a Sale
Fuel consumption wasn’t the reason we bought our Volkswagen Jetta five years ago. Although, the investment has paid off handsomely considering the price of gasoline today. - It Pays to Challenge Customers, They Aren't Always Right!
Because I sell for a living, I can’t always follow the customer service philosophy that “the customer is always right”. Challenging customers is part of sales because if we want to prescribe the right solution, we must get to the truth with our customer. Sometimes, customers don’t start out telling us what we need to know. - It's The Sales Process That Sells, Not the Salesperson
If your sales team doesn’t follow a sales process, you’re losing sales. When sales management focuses on the process of sales and monitors the path salespeople take for each sale, they increase the success rate. Salespeople can get lost in the hectic world of sales reports and activities. - Losing Berries Is the Same as Losing Sales; Do We Really Have To Lose Them?
My wife was disappointed when she returned from the side yard. Her face hung low and I knew she was pretty down. You see, I know the look. - My Lucky Sales Calling Formula
When my sales management assistant requested an update on a particular account, I didn’t want to make the call. - Orange You Ready To Buy?
Just like an orange, if you're not around when a prospect is ripe for your services, the opportunity will spoil. Worse yet, your competition will capture the sale. Here are some tips to prevent this. - Prospects, You Can't Make Them Drink if They Aren't Thirsty
Last week I was going over the sales process with a new salesperson. It was an engaging conversation and as we went over each step of the sales process. The analogy of how "we can lead a horse to water, but we can't make it drink" came up. - Real Life Challenges of "Deal or No Deal" in Sales
The popular television program, “Deal or No Deal” probably frustrates you like it does me. What is wrong with those people on the program? Take the DEAL! These are the words I shout from my home. It’s also the words I secretly shout in my head to clients when I’m selling to them. - Sales Leaders Create a Vision That Places Them First
One of my heroes in life is Bill Levine, the founder of PIP Printing. It was almost 40 years ago that he found himself at the front of the line in an industry.... - Sales Management by the Numbers
If you ask me how much Bobby will sell this month, there is only one way to tell. It isn’t by what Bobby wrote on his forecast sheet. However, with the right information, this is an equation I can get into. If we run the sales activity numbers, we can pretty accurately determine where Bobby will end up this month, quarter and year. As the numbers and ratios change so will the final results. This can be exciting, when we are interested in managing sales and our business through sales activities. - Tactics of the Invisible Salesperson
Look around, do you see evidence of a salesperson in your organization? If you are the salesperson, do you leave a trace of what you have done? Some salespeople are excellent at looking busy, doing nothing and hiding like an invisible salesperson. - The Basics of Selling - Hunting and Farming
This week I was involved in a situation where a salesperson that had lots of energy, didn't seem to be reaching the success or goals expected. It was clear that the sales activity was there. - The Forward Thinking Sales Manager Begins with the End in Mind
If an outside sale is truly a sales process, then there are steps involved for each sale. Since we agree on this fact, it makes sense to manage salespeople towards each of the steps in the sales process. - The Game of Sales Has Rules, Follow Them or Your Out!
Imagine being the coach of a baseball team and your star player hits the ball and runs toward third base. We both know the player would be called out. As odd as this may sound, salespeople are called out everyday in sales because they head for the wrong base in sales. - The Ostrich Sales Reporting Syndrome
Do you act like an Ostrich when it comes to month end sales reports and forecasts? One of the biggest reasons a salesperson or sales manager has a problem with sales reports is usually associated with the lack of a sales process or selling system. Systems and processes are the key to solving many sales management and reporting issues. - The Peanut Butter and Jelly Selling Strategy
Every business should follow a proven selling process, consistently. It could be as simple as following my award winning triple decker peanut butter and jelly sandwich recipe. - The Poker Selling System
Teaching salespeople how to use and balance the four communication methods is important. The Poker Selling System came to mind when I was losing at Poker. This playing card system will work for you and increase your sales team's results! - The Power of the Reminder in Sales
If you are not using a reminder tool in your sales process, your customers will forget you are around. In most cases, probably 90 percent of the time, a buyer is not ready to buy, when you are ready to sell. If you have an automated reminder program in your sales process, you will capture more sales automatically. - The Selling Process is a Sales Map to Success
One of the reasons salespeople get lost in sales is they don’t have a map. Having a map is critical to ending any journey with success. Unfortunately, many business owners and salespeople don’t have a sales or marketing map. - The Sizzle of a Sales Letter
In 2006 the US Post Office will deliver 212 billion pieces of mail to over 144 million homes, businesses and Post Office boxes. The question is, how much of that mail hit its target? How much of that mail was opened by your customers? - The Three Cup System for Selling
Sometimes, the genius of selling anything is breaking it down to the simplest concept. I was having a conversation with a prospect when they asked me how much my automated selling system cost. If you are in sales, you know this is a buying signal. It is also a critical point in the sales process. - The Workflow Selling Solution for Sales Growth
An article by John Giles in Quick Printing caught my attention yesterday - The X Factor in Sales Management
Do you know how to apply the power of the X factor for Sales Management? The X factor is the simple multiplication of events and sales strategies that lead to sales. If business or salespeople apply this equation to sales contacts, they are released from the bonds of time and energy. - The X Factor In Sales Success
Do you know how to apply the power of the X factor? The X factor in sales is simple multiplication of events and sales strategies that lead to sales. If business or salespeople apply this simple equation, they are released from the limits of time and energy. - What Drives a Successful Salesperson
Perspective, Confidence and Attitude Drives sales. Are you driven by success? If you are, you will be challenged with failure everyday. How well you perform with the fear of failure depends on three things. - What Is the Lifetime Value of A Customer
Do you know the lifetime value of a customer? If you knew, you would take better care of your customers. Good customers are like comic books and baseball cards. Who would have thought they would become so valuable over time. - What Sales Steps Of Success Are You Following?
There are libraries full of sales related books that offer and describe the successful steps in a sales process. I located one the other day that suggested the basic three steps of a sale - When Mistakes Happen - Do What You Are Trained To Do
In my story, we admitted our mistake and were able to show the results of my error. We simply performed what we needed to do to resolve the situation. I remember willing to do just about anything we could if the customer would have asked. The customer didn't ask and remained a key customer for years because we were human and continued to perform for them. - When NO, Doesn't Mean NO in Sales!
When a prospect says NO, don't jump to the conclusion it means never. The answer could mean "Not Now"! It does mean that you should back off and evaluate the situation carefully. The prospect could be telling you they are not ready right now. When a salesperson accepts the NO as a permanent decision and never contacts the prospect again, it is a mistake. - Who is in Control of a Sales Call – the Quiet One
Have you ever asked a salesperson a question and instead of getting your answer, you are asked another question? While this may seem frustrating, it is common for an experienced salesperson to use this tactic. Experienced sales people understand the art of questioning and how to take control of a conversation by asking questions. It is the inexperienced salesperson who thinks that by talking or presenting, you'll take control of the conversation. - Why a Good Sales Plan Today - Sells Better Than a Perfect Plan Tomorrow
The wisdom of sales is best summed up by Nike, “Just do it”. Too many salespeople including myself will focus on developing a perfect sales plan before they make the first call. - Why a Salesperson Fails at Selling and How to Prevent It
If you stay in sales long enough, you realize that you can’t fix low sales activity. This is as blunt as I can put it. Sales activities drive opportunities which lead to sales. If salespeople don’t do the sales activities, the opportunities won’t develop and sales won’t appear. This is a predictable, yet simple equation. - Why a TiVo Mind Set Wins More Sales
Last year, the best investment we made was adding TiVo to our entertainment system. The system heightens the time we spend watching our favorite programs. We enjoy the feature of stopping the action, slowing it down and rewinding anything to watch it again. The best part of using TiVo is we no longer miss something important, particularly in a mystery or when someone says something important. - Why an Analog Notebook Improves Sales Success
Do you search through piles and files on your desk looking for prospect and customer information? If you do, you need a simple system to eliminate this wasted time. Some salespeople have tried using digital technology to improve this sales nightmare. I was one of them and finally gave up, reverting back to the tried and true analog method of a pocket spiral notebook. - Why Changing Course is a Matter of Knowing Where We are Going in Sales
I rarely sit in a window seat of an airline. My preference is the aisle seat. However, I caught a standby seat that would get me home earlier. I was issued a window seat. - Why Experience Doesn't Guarantee Success in Sales
There are reasons some sales people with lots of sales experience never make it to the high ranks for sales success? Have you hired someone who seemed like they would be perfect for sales because of an out going personality and good looks?
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