The tyranny that many sales directors face is one they struggle to articulate until you point it out, and then they have a lightbulb moment and say “absolutely!”. They go further and say if I could solve this problem I would transform the potential of this team. What is this debilitating disease that can sap… Read More »
Want to hear about scary sales people? Step this way… The sales guy who was spotted asleep at the wheel of his car outside a major customer (missing his appointment) with a copy of Covey’s 7 Habits shielding his face from the sun. The sales guy who couldn’t be bothered to attend the Power of… Read More »
Knowing more than your customers, before your customers, in a joined up way is now a business given. Below are the primary data sets any self respecting sales organisation should have a handle on: Customer Data The holy grail. A 360° view of what they are bought, buying, and thinking of buying by product/service line,… Read More »
Peer Group Pressure is the glue that binds high performing team together, creating a self sustaining level achievement within a supportive framework. The Benefits Management can spend less time checking and policing, more time developing building and coaching people A greater sense of belonging is achieved, the inclusiveness informing coherent and aligned behaviours The team… Read More »
The concept of solution selling has become devalued to the point where everybody is ‘selling solutions’. See Private Eye (www.private-eye.co.uk) for some of the most extreme and ridiculous examples. In our work we have found bringing clarity to clients’ value propositions in relation to how they view solutions is hugely beneficial in making their sales… Read More »
One of the major success drivers of sales performance can be measured by the amount of ownership salespeople have for their targets. The logic is inescapable; if salespeople really own their numbers then they will work tirelessly to achieve them. The opposite is also true, if they don’t own the numbers they will spend all… Read More »
In tough times buying power moves further up the purchasing organisation. Salespeople need to develop strategies to follow the money. Price is becoming a huge issue. Salespeople need two things in their sales tool box. (1) The ability to sell a value based proposition. (2) The ability to negotiate. Salespeople are emotional people. When times… Read More »
This hardy perennial keeps being coming round, in good times and in bad. The question has gained added urgency because a lot of apparently ‘good’ salespeople have been found to be seriously lacking when business doesn’t come flowing in on a wave of business optimism. Order takers are exposed when the going gets tough. The… Read More »
This year has shown that in interesting times some approaches are more effective than others, some sales leaders really do shown a navigable path through to improved performance, whilst other less able managers add no value at all through their visible anxiety and single dimensional approach. We have captured the main difference in a table… Read More »
After dreaming about winning the lottery the next most popular lifestyle dream is working for yourself. Just last week the Government minister, David Willets, suggested graduates should think about starting up their own business last week as an alternative to struggling in the current job market. Often our work involves working for clients who started their… Read More »
In coaching sales managers a reoccurring development need that comes from their boss is ‘they need to be more strategic’. Below we list the six major issues we’ve found helpful in repositioning sales managers: Many sales managers achieved the position because of their energy and industry. As managers they still run their teams by being… Read More »
Every business would like to improve its sales performance. That being the case, why do most sales organisations struggle to do anything more than just exhort their sales people to do better? The fundamental problem lies with a lack of rigour and understanding around the relationship of cause and effect. What are the inputs that… Read More »
We often visit organisations with clearly articulated values. They’re easy to spot, they have posters with the values on in reception, and often employees each have a handy little credit card sized version of them to carry around. Some even wear their security passes on values embossed lanyards. We occasionally visit organisations with a well… Read More »
Evaluating Your Existing Sales Proposals Read the following statements, circle 1 if it is very true, ½ if it is moderately true, 0 if untrue. We send out sales proposals not quotations 1 ½ 0 Our sales documentation is easy to read 1 ½ 0 The content is free of detailed technical information 1 ½… Read More »
We thought it was time to stop all this political correctness around valuing your people in a downturn and tell it like it really is, with the top ten reasons not to train people – the real deal. 1. It gives people new skills and new ideas which they have to try out back in… Read More »