Author Archive
The Value of Open Ended Questions in Sales
Open-ended questions are one of the salesperson’s most vital tools (if followed up by listening). They help gather information, qualify sales opportunities and establish rapport, trust and credibility. With such core value to the sales process, the professional leaves little to chance when it comes to owning a repertoire of powerful open-ended questions.
Questions that […]
Put That Phone Down, Quit Cold Calling, and REALLY Start Prospecting
The days of traditional cold calling are going by the wayside. People are too busy to accept cold calls and really listen to a sales person pitch their services or products. Sales people get frustrated by doing cold calls and the time usually associated with any type of success from cold calling. So, what can […]
Becoming a Cold Calling Expert
In today’s competitive sales market, preparation is everything. Often it’ll mean the difference between getting the opportunity to meet with the decision maker and being able to have a productive meeting with a prospect. Pre call preparation can either be an asset or a detriment to your competitors. You need to be […]
The Value of Staying in Touch
All too many of us have dealt with an organization that we were interested in buying a product or service from, only to find out that there was simply little or no follow through after a proposal was generated. You may be asking yourself, “Why?” This is such a simple thing, however few […]
How to Make an Unsuccessful Sale a Good Learning Experience
Everyone has experienced the sales blues, when everything seems perfect and you are confident the sale is going to close until you hear the words, “sorry, we’re going ahead with someone else.” It is important that we take the emotion out of the sales loss and learn something for it, in order to learn […]
Dealing with the RIGHT Decision Maker
If you look at your forecasting for the rest of the year and wonder how many of the deals you’re working on have closed, don’t think you are alone. As frustrating as it may be, a large percentage of your current prospects will more than likely not turn into a sale by the end […]
Overcoming Voicemail ….The Salesperson’s Enemy
You’ve all been in the position where you’ve left multiple voicemails only to have them not be returned. Frequently the prospect can begin to hear the frustration in your voice as they hit the delete bottom. Voicemail does not have to be the salesperson’s enemy, rather if used effectively it can assist in […]
Upselling & Cross Selling the Key Impacting the Bottom Line
Many people assume that customer service professionals have little involvement in the sales process besides dealing with service issues, however their role is very instrumental. The reason they can frequently more easily increase sales is that they aren’t viewed as sales staff. A customer’s “guard is down” when speaking with a customer service […]
Time Management 101 for Managers
Recently, driving down the expressway I peered to my left to see a woman who in the middle of traffic was putting her lipstick on as if there just wasn’t those last couple of minutes before walking out the door to do this. I thought to myself, “how often do you feel this […]
Prospecting Beyond The Cold Call
Few of us enjoy it, some of us hate it, and others look at it as a necessary evil. The cold call has become a staple of today’s salesperson, however the unique part is that many organizations don’t look beyond this approach to find creative ways to prospect without the cold call. Your […]
