SBI Growth

OCTOBER 4, 2013

My last blog discussed how to Make it Rain in Q4 and close the year strong. This blog addresses how sales reps can ensure their quota is realistic and attainable. Many sales reps are forced to accept a quota that is neither. Many sales reps are forced to accept a quota that is neither. It’s not always an easy thing to do.

Quota 306

Quota Ideal Customer Profile Territories Demographics 306

Sales and Marketing Management

JUNE 27, 2019

This transformation is permeating all areas of the enterprise – from marketing to sales to product development and even finance and human resources. However, sales is also an area ripe for innovation when it comes to AI-powered solutions. While sales drives the bottom line, marketing helps sales find and qualify leads.

Marketing 274

Marketing Lead Rank Lead Scoring Sales Qualified Lead 274

SBI Growth

NOVEMBER 21, 2013

Sales gets off to a fast start at the beginning of the year. Come Q4, that lead has evaporated and now sales is threatening to miss the number. They struggle to close deals. Your sales leaders will frantically try every trick in the book. Best in Class sales organizations use a different approach. Best Practices.

Decision Maker 320

Decision Maker Buying Cycle Maximizer Top of Funnel 320

The Pipeline

SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

Like retail, B2B sales has some seasonal trends that tend to fool the also-rans while bringing opportunity to those willing to make the effort. Most sellers have no clue how long their sales cycle is. As I have shared before when you ask sellers how long their cycle is, most respond “depends.” Do The Math.

Buying Cycle 203

Buying Cycle Sales Cycle Quota Retail 203

The Sales Hunter

MAY 23, 2013

Every salesperson would like to think they can handle and would relish in a short sales-cycle, but here’s the problem — most salespeople can’t handle it. The sales cycle is shortening because of one thing, and that is the amount of information available on the internet. ” Sales Motivation Blog.

Sales Cycle 199

Sales Cycle Cold Calling Consultative Selling Education 199

Score More Sales

FEBRUARY 22, 2012

Sales Tips and Strategies to Grow Revenues. 5 Tips for Lead Nurturing to Grow Your Sales Funnel. As a seller you are working hard to create a full pipeline (funnel) and now that you have all of these companies and some actual sales opportunities on your radar, how will you bring them to closure? Consulting.

Top of Funnel 284

Top of Funnel Lead Rank Lead Scoring Lead Nurturing 284

Close.io

AUGUST 6, 2018

Enterprises typically have very long buying cycles. Six months or longer from initial contact to closing a deal are the norm. But there are ways to fast-forward this process and close even large enterprise deals in less time. Here are two things you can do to accelerate the sales process. Parallelize processes.

Sales Cycle 115

Sales Cycle Closing Buying Cycle Enterprise 115

Sales and Marketing Management

AUGUST 14, 2017

Long sales cycles. Let’s take a step back and more closely consider the term “gatekeeper.” There are several advantages of making proactive attempts to start buying cycles: You can start at levels that have the authority to create budget. Have not created business cases together to justify purchases. Be Proactive.

Gatekeeper 249

Gatekeeper Buying Cycle Call-back Face-to-face 249

The Pipeline

MARCH 7, 2019

Buying cycles have expanded more than measurably. Other sources confirm this trend in lengthening buy cycles. Many working on old timeframes and presumed related work-flows, get frustrated as the cycles stretch. On the field, that is with a prospect in Discovery, sellers need to be counter-intuitive.

Buying Cycle 244

Buying Cycle Commission Education Buyer 244

SBI Growth

SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

Sales Operations Leaders aren’t making data meaningful today. In fact, when asking Sales Operations Leaders what qualitative data they had gathered, here are their responses: Conducted internal win/loss debrief on large opportunities. The objective of the interview is to map a customer buying process.

Data 267

Data Analysis Sales Operations Buying Cycle 267

Partners in Excellence

APRIL 16, 2025

We started discussing much of what we see about the “secrets to sales success.” For example one sales person at a client happens to be outstanding in prospecting. She has a high win rate, great sales results. ” We both see guru’s posting the determining secret to success.

Objections 121

Objections Face-to-face Maximizer Buying Cycle 121

Partners in Excellence

JUNE 10, 2014

Recently, a number of people have asked me my thoughts on closing skills. I think they are asking me about the 8-12-15… techniques to close. I’ve never been much of a fan of these—do I use the assumptive close, the puppy dog close, …? Yes, we have to Always Be Closing. No related posts.

Closing 121

Closing Face-to-face Buying Cycle Compensation 121

Understanding the Sales Force

APRIL 17, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Last week I posted this article in reference to an Inc. This is known throughout the selling universe but sales people still suck at this. Non-Supportive Buy Cycle (the way that salespeople buy things doesn''t support ideal sales outcomes). How come?".

Decision Maker 269

Decision Maker Consultative Selling Buying Cycle Proposal 269

Hubspot Sales

JULY 22, 2020

Sales always has been, and always will be, about closing the deal. But, sales professionals cannot rely on cold calls and haphazard prospect visits if they want to meet their sales goals and make it into the top 10%. Sales Productivity Tools. HubSpot Sales Platform. Gamifier makes sales performance fun.

Tools 131

Tools Closing Territories Hubspot 131

Zoominfo

SEPTEMBER 10, 2020

You might not think that automatic sales dialers have that much to offer you. What Is A Sales Dialer? A sales dialer is pretty much what it sounds like: technology that automatically dials numbers for salespeople. You’re a sales representative. Here’s where the sales dialer comes in. You have hundreds.

Closing 130

Closing Call-back How To Outbound 130

The Pipeline

DECEMBER 18, 2018

When you are in the middle of it, the heat of the experience, be that a sport game or sales or selling, it is easy to assume that the others involved are prepared and as ready as you are, or they should be; especially in a sales, where the buyers seem to be willing participants. I mean look at all the information available.

Buying Cycle 247

Buying Cycle Buyer Face-to-face Objections 247

The Sales Hunter

JULY 23, 2019

Below is a list of 20 things I have found in common with the top 1% of all sales prospectors. To be great at prospecting, you don’t have to be born with the “sales gene.” Check out my video where I talk more about what it takes to be in the top 1% of all sales prospectors: As you go through the list, don’t just read it.

Prospecting 242

Prospecting Buying Cycle Social Media Segment 242

SBI Growth

DECEMBER 29, 2012

If you are a Sales Rep in this reality, ask yourself these two questions: Is my new quota fair? To meet my new quota, how can I find buyers ready to buy? Sales Reps with fair quotas and BANT qualified buyers blow away their numbers. This truth was reaffirmed recently when I interviewed a software sales rep named Geoff.

Quota 287

Quota Sales Qualified Lead Top of Funnel Lead Qualification 287

Pointclear

FEBRUARY 23, 2012

Bob is the founder of Inflexion-Point Strategy Partners, a UK firm that engages with B2B companies to improve their sales and marketing strategy and drive revenue. He does a great job of clearly presenting, assessing and recommending solutions for today’s pressing sales lead management challenges.

Outsourcing Services 170

Outsourcing Services Top of Funnel Strategy Lead Nurturing 170

Pointclear

APRIL 24, 2013

Jim has over 29 years of sales and marketing management experience. Jim is also an author and often-requested keynote speaker at sales management, CRM and E-Business conferences. Analysis of Buying Cycles and Stakeholders. Sales teams say they never have enough leads, but is that really the case. Not Enough Leads.

Customer 240

Customer Sales Qualified Lead Lead Generation Trends 240

Sales and Marketing Management

MARCH 26, 2018

Despite the plethora of martech and sales enablement technologies now on the market, most sales teams are still performing at sub-optimal levels. With all these new tools making a salesperson’s job easier, there’s no excuse for your sales team not to excel. In these three channels is where sales performance can be enhanced.

How To 218

How To Face-to-face Sales Qualified Lead Lead Capture 218

Score More Sales

NOVEMBER 14, 2014

Many sales reps and sales managers commented and shared about the previous post on How Salespeople Goof Up on LinkedIn so we were compelled to share more ideas to help sellers do better. First, I wanted to share that our blog is up for an AWARD – as one of the top Sales Blogs at Top Sales World. Close More Deals.

LinkedIn 247

LinkedIn Referrals Buying Cycle Twitter 247

Score More Sales

MARCH 8, 2012

In order to be most productive with the sales opportunities in your pipeline there are a number of people you need to know well. You’re done in by lost sales, missed opportunities, misaligned goals, and “no’s” toward the end of a prospective customer’s long buying cycle. Some are obvious.

Pipeline 203

Pipeline Referrals Channels Buying Cycle 203

Score More Sales

MAY 16, 2012

Do You Have a Sales Funnel? Are you part of a B2B sales organization proactively looking each week at what deals are in your sales funnel (or sales pipeline)? You have no CRM system and use some combination of e-Mail, Excel, Outlook, and/or sticky notes to “track” your prospective sales opportunities. The result?

Opportunity 206

Opportunity Pipeline Hiring Top of Funnel 206

Score More Sales

NOVEMBER 1, 2013

That’s why there is a buying cycle– why most people don’t buy on the spot. The rule of thumb in sales research varies a bit, but generally has been that it takes 5-12 “touches” to make that impression for the customer to buy. Other posts here on trust: Inside Sales Power Tip – Build Trust.

Lead Rank 236

Lead Rank Lead Scoring How To Buying Cycle 236

Zoominfo

SEPTEMBER 3, 2020

As a B2B marketer or sales professional you have a number of things battling for your attention at any given moment. So how can you scale communications with prospects and leads in the space between nurturing and closing a deal? Automated emails encourage leads to move from the product research phase into the buying cycle.

Prospecting 262

Prospecting Scale Lead Nurturing How To 262

SBI Growth

OCTOBER 23, 2012

This is a post for any Sales Leader considering or using a buyer-driven sales process. During many of our training events for a sales process rollout, we’ll get the question “So I should just identify the buyer’s stage and go from there?”. It’s tempting for the sales rep to give in. Who doesn’t want the quick sale?

Customer 293

Customer Buying Cycle Software Software 293

SBI

APRIL 29, 2014

Every two weeks, I interview an executive from a top sales and marketing solutions company. What problem/s are you solving for sales and/or marketing organizations? Leslie: CallidusCloud provides organizations with the leading sales and marketing effectiveness cloud software. Nancy: What does CallidusCloud do?

Up-Sell 135

Up-Sell Closing Revenue Lead Generation 135

The Pipeline

JUNE 30, 2016

In sales, we must continue to touch-base or follow-up as it’s also known to stay in the game of sales. You sales rep couldn’t touch base either in the right manner or failed to follow-up enough. . An effective follow-up strategy gets a sales deal out of the black hole and back on into the light (the sales process).

Follow-up 189

Follow-up ACT Up-Sell Sales Qualified Lead 189

Score More Sales

AUGUST 26, 2014

Did you know you’re missing out on sales opportunities by having a poor mobile company website? By applying science and metrics to your client and prospect buying cycle, you can impact connection and real support to help them. Lori speaks, writes, trains, and consults with inside sales teams in mid-sized companies.

B2B 232

B2B Revenue B2C Ideal Customer Profile 232

Partners in Excellence

DECEMBER 31, 2024

We have pipeline quality, win rates, sales cycles, average deal sizes dialed in. At one time, we were focused on reducing the buying cycle. We applied design thinking to our meeting management, reducing meetings to close by 50%. We have a single pipeline metric, it’s a variant on pipeline coverage.

Ideal Customer Profile 127

Ideal Customer Profile Top of Funnel Pipeline Lead Rank 127

The Pipeline

JULY 9, 2019

Every journey has a beginning, middle and an end, and this is true for a buying cycle and sales cycle. And while it may work for Zen and motorcycles , in sales, it is not about the journey but the destination, the win. Each day is a building block of the sales cycles you’re currently travelling.

Travel 291

Travel Maximizer Microsoft Face-to-face 291

Allego

JANUARY 9, 2025

Medical device sales reps face greater challenges than ever, making sales certifications an essential tool for success. Further, regulatory pressures, complex buying cycles, and the rise of digital technology have transformed the way sales teams must operate. Thats where sales certifications come in.

Hiring 62

Hiring Marketing Exercises Scale 62

Sales and Marketing Management

DECEMBER 15, 2017

Growth – more opportunities, higher sales velocity and expanding market segments – is the prize of victory and the successful growth hacking tactics of business to consumer (B2C) companies are becoming more popular in B2B. Identify a common set of target accounts for sales and marketing. Allow sales to prospect intelligently.

Demand Generation Targets 222

Demand Generation Targets Ideal Customer Profile Marketo Hiring 222

Zoominfo

DECEMBER 28, 2020

By definition, buying signals are the actions potential customers take that indicate they’re close to making a purchase. They’re customers’ verbal buying signals—the cues your sales agent homes in on when talking to a prospect. Your marketing and sales teams need both. Here’s a snapshot of buying signals.

Lead Rank 100

Lead Rank Intent Data Closing Marketing Qualified Lead 100

DiscoverOrg Sales

DECEMBER 18, 2017

There is much twisting and turning along the way to close-won. This pattern is traditionally understood through the sales funnel. It starts before the customer fully realizes that they need a product—perhaps it’s a pain point, or the perception of an opportunity—and it ends with your sales team closing a new account.

Account Based Marketing 181

Account Based Marketing Data Ideal Customer Profile eBook 181

Pointclear

APRIL 13, 2012

Jeff joined Forrester after spending 20 years in sales and marketing. He is the author of the book, The New Rules of Sales Enablement , the co-author of How to Create Killer Sales Playbooks , and he’s a regular contributor to B2B Magazine. The importance of inbound and content marketing early in the buying cycle.

Marketing 169

Marketing Social Media Scale Trade Show 169