B2B Sales Podcast With Michael Boylan on Prospecting...

There’s no doubt in B2B selling that getting the top of your funnel (or front end of your sales pipeline) is incredibly important and in a tough economy, can be difficult on a consistent basis.  Reaching decision makers is always the goal.
Recently I heard more than one speaker at a conference talking about using internal leverage to gain access to decision makers. In the back of my mind, I said, “Michael Boylan”.
Michael talked years ago about a no-fail, sure-fire strategy for B2B sellers to prospect smarter, with a shorter timeframe, and with greater results using his trademarked approach called the Circle of Leverage®. It has been widely implemented around the world. Listen to our interview and the next time you hear a speaker or trainer talking about this… continue reading

Relationship Selling: Don’t Propose Marriage on the...

 
Yesterday, I said “You have to sell first – prove yourself first – before you can hope to develop a relationship. Leading with the notion that you can build any sort of relationship from the outset, is hopelessly out of touch – but that is precisely what around 90% of front-line sales professionals are still trying to do.
But be assured “relationship selling” is alive and well, and reports of its death have been wildly exaggerated”
I think in order to fully comprehend what I mean, you need to imagine a couple on a first date – think of this in sales terms as the “exploratory meeting” The two have never met before, but they have both done their homework: They have asked friend’s opinions; they have checked out… continue reading

People Do Still Buy People First, But ….

There is a saying which has been around for as long as I can remember – and that is a pretty long time – “People buy people first”
What that essentially means of course, is before buyers thought about your solution, they needed to be sold on you personally.
So has that all changed now?
Well, yes and no.
Yesterday, I suggested that “Unless you are selling commodities, when they first encounter you, buyers really don’t care about you, your company or your products. They care even less about your past successes, your awards or your client base. They only care about what you, your company and your products can do for THEM!” (if you missed that post, please simply scroll down)
And I firmly believe this to be the… continue reading

If “Nice” Was a Color, What Color Would it be?

 
A few of this week’s posts have been prompted by a post that Mrs Konrath made last week – “Shocking 2012 Sales Prediction” in which she suggests that “In 2012 we will see the total demise of nice salespeople”
I am going to be chatting with Mrs K today, and I’ll record the conversation so that you can listen in next week.
“Nice” is such a bland adjective, and if it were a color, it would most definitely have to be a lighter shade of grey, don’t you think? It is so insipid, dull and almost lifeless. Or is it?
One dictionary defines the word as meaning “pleasant and agreeable in nature” Another suggests it describes “a helpful, accommodating and thoughtful disposition”
So obviously we have to be very… continue reading

Empathy In Selling Has Nothing to do with Being...

“If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him you are his sincere friend.” Abraham Lincoln
I have a real problem with that quote, when used in a “sales situation” as it often is: It suggests that we need to make friends with the buyer; to become liked; to be “nice” But I am going to write at length about this shortly, as it has become something of a contentious issue.
Today though, I want to focus on “empathy, which is absolutely vital for sustained success within any sales relationship, where you are trying to persuade another – often a stranger – to make a decision they may not even have considered prior to your meeting.
The buyer-seller situation, like any human contact, is an exercise in… continue reading

B2B Sales Audio Interview With Nancy Nardin on Tools...

Smart Selling Tools

2012 is a year of new things, and so we are pleased to launch for sellers and sales leaders a weekly audio (and sometimes video) interview with people who have made, or are making an impact in B2B professional selling.
Today I interview Nancy Nardin, CEO of Smart Selling Tools, a company that focuses on buyer resources for discovering and assessing the best marketing and sales software available. In this short interview, Nancy reminds us that there are only about 215 days of selling per year (yikes – this is a LEAP year… does that mean 214?). Nancy also offers this tip to people who are overwhelmed by all the tools and strategies out there to help you grow revenues:
Nancy says to “keep track of what… continue reading

Building Your Sales Pipeline Is Not a One Step Process

Do You Have a Sales Funnel?

For many years, the “sales explanation industry” has worked with and discussed a Funnel or a Pipeline model to explain how you need many more leads to eventually turn into prospects, and then ultimately a smaller subset who become actual customers. Hence using a picture of a funnel gives a visual on how you need more at the top to end up with some at the bottom. I’ve used a pipeline for years rather than a funnel,  so am used to talking about the front, middle, and end of a pipeline. Whichever works for your visual, use that.
To use a CRM, or Contact Relationship Management system well – you need more than tools – you must have a way – a process and… continue reading

The Pleasure of Walking Tall – A New Year’s

 
Your security, believe it or not, affects the way you stand, the way you walk - in short, your physical wellbeing and self-confidence.
A person without security is always running. They must take the first job offered, or nearly so. They sit nervously on life’s chair because any small emergency throws them into the hands of others.
Without security, a person must be too grateful.
Gratitude is a fine thing in its place but a constant state of gratitude is a horrible place in which to live.
A person with security can walk tall. They may appraise opportunities in a relaxed way; have time for judicious estimates and not be rushed by economic necessity.
A person with security can afford to resign from their job if their principles so… continue reading