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Technology is transforming businesses and disrupting entire industries, including the world of selling, which has traditionally been categorized as primarily a “people business”. From prospecting to closing, today’s mobile, social, big data, and cloud technologies are revamping the sales process in ways that would have been inconceivable a few decades ago.
Prospecting is a numbers game with a high rejection rate, so it is easy for reps to get discouraged. Just asking your reps to make more calls can produce a vicious cycle of poor results, discouraging reps with less prospecting and obtaining even worse results. Compounding this problem is that sales reps are busy managing existing sales opportunities and customers.
During most of April, I’ve been frequenting a Smoothie Bar near the place we are staying and when I take my first sip each day, one thought occurs to me each time. “Why don’t the smoothies I make at home taste this good and why doesn’t the texture of my made-at-home smoothie compare?” I asked the owner and he said, “I use the same ingredients!
I walked into the house with Dinger and a baby toad hopped in with us, snuck under the closet door and disappeared. When I first spotted the toad, I thought it was a tiny piece of mulch and didn’t give it a second thought. When it disappeared into the closet, I thought about it a lot! Eventually, I found it and reintroduced it to the great outdoors.
Today’s buyers expect more than generic outreach–they want relevant, personalized interactions that address their specific needs. For sales teams managing hundreds or thousands of prospects, however, delivering this level of personalization without automation is nearly impossible. The key is integrating AI in a way that enhances customer engagement rather than making it feel robotic.
You don’t want to look, act, or sound like every other salesperson when asking your prospect questions. There is an art and a science to being masterful at asking your prospect better questions and building a strong, credible relationship with them. Read on to learn 5 tips for asking meaningful, exploratory, and courageous questions.
A good salesperson knows that success starts with making connections, building rapport, and creating a positive space. Short and irritable prospects make it difficult to have any meaningful conversation and make your job much harder than it needs to be. Building rapport and making connections doesn't have to take long, and it's well worth the investment.
A good salesperson knows that success starts with making connections, building rapport, and creating a positive space. Short and irritable prospects make it difficult to have any meaningful conversation and make your job much harder than it needs to be. Building rapport and making connections doesn't have to take long, and it's well worth the investment.
In the world of sales, it’s a common misconception that a great product is enough to guarantee success. As the excerpt from “Open the Mind and Close the Sale: The secret to success in Selling!” reminds us, building a better mousetrap doesn’t necessarily mean the world will beat a path to your door. In reality, many potential customers may never even hear about your product, and others may find alternative solutions or get used to doing without.
Top sales teams differentiate themselves with a proven system for finding and attracting elite talent. But landing strong candidates is only the first step in the journey. The best organizations know how to retain sellers with the most potential and ensure they’re positioned to perform and excel as they advance up the ranks. Making the move from sales rep to manager is a common career pathway.
I think we can all agree that securing appointments is foundational to achieving sales goals. However, findings from the recent Media Sales Report found a persistent gap between the expectations and reality of salespeople and their managers when it comes to the actual number of scheduled appointments.
Thoughtfully calculated, well-executed prospecting is central to virtually every successful sales engagement. It sets a tone — giving you the momentum and perspective you need to lock in on viable sales opportunities and ensure the rest of your sales process goes as smoothly as possible. But as with any other skill, some salespeople have a better grip on prospecting than others — and we, here at the HubSpot Sales Blog, want to do our part to make sure you prospect as effectively as possible.
Are you struggling with slow quoting cycles, complex product configurations, and disconnected data in your manufacturing/distribution business? This article will help. Learn how industrial companies are revolutionizing sales processes with an integrated platform that includes quoting, inventory, and service, providing real-time data and offline access for field teams.
In this episode of the Sales Leadership Awakening podcast, Steven Rosen and Colleen Stanley discuss the high cost of making a bad hire in sales. They emphasize the importance of creating an ideal hiring profile with hard and soft skills and non-negotiables. They also stress the need for a systematic hiring process, including behavioral interviews and assessments.
Chief marketing officers are being asked to show measurable results of their budget. That's a positive thing. The post How to Align with CFOs in a ‘Show Me’ Year for B2B Marketers appeared first on Sales & Marketing Management.
There have always been two certainties in life – death and taxes. But I have now become convinced that there is a third certainty if you are a salesperson and that is the slow and painful death of decision making.
The idea that “salespeople are born, not made” has long been a prevailing notion in the sales industry. However, this outdated belief has been disproven by the authors of “Open the Mind and Close the Sale: The secret to success in selling!” This book sheds light on the misconceptions surrounding sales and highlights the skills and strategies required to succeed in this field.
Modern go-to-market teams know it takes more than one email to break through the noise. Multiple touchpoints means more ways to get your pitch right — and, potentially, more ways to be wrong. The good news? Once you know how to write compelling, one-off emails to entice prospective customers, you can easily do the same across a short sequence of emails.
I hope you’re not making this common mistake when following up on an email you sent: “I’m just calling to see if you got the email I sent you?” While this may sound like a reasonable way to follow up after sending an email, do you see how you’re providing your prospect with the perfect stall? How many times you hear: “Ah, when did you send it?” Or “I haven’t had time to look at it yet.
I was asked a great question during a recent conversation with a founder: When should you take a spearfishing approach to finding new customers and when should you use a shotgun? It depends on what you’re hunting. Large vs small How important is a particular company to you? What is the payoff for landing this account? When thinking of this payoff I recommend thinking of lifetime value (in terms of profit ideally not just revenue.
Difficult conversations are as inevitable as they are necessary. These discussions, whether addressing underperformance, behavioural issues, or compensation adjustments, are crucial for maintaining a healthy sales environment and driving performance. However, a surprising number of sales managers avoid these critical conversations, a trend that undermines team potential and poses a significant threat to organizational success.
The Hall of Fame catcher Yogi Berra is known for his many “ Yogisms.” The one we are most familiar with is, “It ain’t over til it’s over.” He is also known for saying, “It’s déjà vu all over again.” Based on the conversations I have been having with sales experts, CEOs and CROs over the past two weeks, the common themes are: The first quarter sucked Way more delayed closings than we’ve ever seen Budgets being slashed It’s harder
This guide is for leaders who recognize the importance of Salesforce but would rather trust a team of external experts to do the heavy lifting. Choosing the right managed services provider is a significant decision that impacts your business's efficiency and success. In this 10-minute read, you'll find 5 essential questions to ask any potential provider.
DNA is a molecule called deoxyribonucleic acid, which contains the biological instructions that make each species unique. So, what makes up the very unique and coveted Sales DNA? Is there a genetic code for successful sales managers and if so, wouldn’t every company like to crack that code?
In today’s fast-paced business world, professional selling plays a vital role in driving economic growth and innovation. As emphasized in the book “Open the Mind and Close the Sale, 2nd edition,” salespeople are the spark that motivates various groups to action, and their efforts are essential for maintaining a high standard of living.
Good morning everyone! I just returned from a “Day of Development” seminar in Charlotte with the Jon Gordon company. Several of his books include: “The Power of Positive Leadership,” “The Energy Bus,” etc. Check them out on Amazon if you’re interested in learning more. There was a lot of great stuff in the meeting, and one thing I wanted to share with you all is a way to combat the recurring negativity that silently creeps into our heads every so often.
Many companies experienced an inconsistent and underwhelming year for business in 2023—and with promising forecasts for demand in 2024, many executive teams are eager to take their companies back on the path to rapid growth. However, the flat to declining commercial productivity among many sales teams today still poses an obstacle to that goal.
Quotas need to be hit. Revenue goals need to be met. This reality makes shortening sales onboarding time a top priority. Organizations with a standard onboarding process boost employee retention by 58% and increase productivity by 50%. Unfortunately, many companies struggle with inefficient processes that lead to high turnover and missed revenue opportunities.
In this Sales Leadership Awakening podcast, Gerilyn Horan , Hilton’s VP of Group Sales, shares strategies to become the best place to work In the world. She shares insights on creating a supportive environment and the importance of feedback, coaching, and company culture for employee engagement and retention. They also touch on Hilton’s top global workplace ranking and successful coaching programs for high employee retention and satisfaction.
Photo by Alexas Photos via Pixabay Attract the Right Job Or Clientele: Business Began, But Now How Do I Scale? ? The effort was highly challenging, but you did it—you started your own business. Clients love you, so they continue to send you referrals. You hoped you would have enough clients to stay afloat a while back, but now you are hoping for only a few more at a time.
When it comes to finding innovative solutions to customers' problems, correctly defining the problem is the necessary first step. The post Creative Problem-Solving Starts with Better Defining the Problem appeared first on Sales & Marketing Management.
It’s OK to double your price for PITA clients Every buyer isn’t your client. If buyers continue to make unreasonable demands and keep changing requests and deadlines—even after you’ve given them exactly what they need—then you’re dealing with PITA clients. These PITA clients drain your energy, demotivate your team, waste your time, and expect you to do more at the same price.
Maximizing sales rep performance is no easy task. 📈 Traditional sales training methods focus heavily on the first few weeks in the sales role. Companies dedicate time, resources, and budget to onboarding new hires, only for them to forget what was learned in those first few weeks, lose motivation, and struggle to come to grips with their role.
Well was the sermon about salespeople? No, of course it wasn’t. But it sure as heck could have been. And although I’m beginning by referencing the sermon, this is not an article about Religion. The Priest was talking about Catholics who attend church only on Christmas and Easter. He was pleased to see a full house at all of the Easter masses and that those of us in attendance should urge our friends and family members to come to church.
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For sales leaders, building a robust sales culture is the bridge between mediocrity and excellence. The journey to a winning sales culture is a nuanced strategy that unfolds over time and demands patience, careful planning, and decisive leadership. 5 Dynamic Strategies to Supercharge Your Sales Team Cultivate Inclusivity Inclusivity is the cornerstone of a thriving sales culture.
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