How To Improve The Sales Mind

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In this episode, Brooke Green takes a look at how we can improve the creative juices that make up the sales mind. Yes, sales people MUST be creative, but most are a bit afraid of it (our opinion). So Brooke let’s fly with some ideas.

Also, Bill Caskey rants about a cold call he received from an insurance agent (with a huge national brand).

*Watch other Whiteboard Wednesday Episodes: www.youtube.com/whiteboardwednesday

*Coming June 27, 2011, Bill Caskey and Bryan Neale interview Pat Williams – Senior Vice President of the Orlando Magic. View the episode “What Every Salesperson Can Learn from John Wooden” at http://www.advancedsellingpodcast.com/what-every-salesperson-can-learn-from-john-wooden/.

 

Forward Progress

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We don’t pay enough attention to “forward progress.” Appreciate it. Look back and marvel at your accomplishments. How often do we do that? 

You’ve heard of the gratitude books – where you write down what you’re grateful for – so that more of it comes. Same with this. Each week, write down your list of accomplishments and revel in them for a bit. Don’t let that stop you from growing by reading the next great book – but smell the roses occasionally.

-B. Caskey

Be Careful Before You Pick One

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Role model…be careful before you pick one. We get the request often to ‘create a mentoring program.’ It all sounds good in theory. But there are many things you have to look at before you select one. Unconditional interest’ in your success is one. They can’t care about you more than you care about yourself, but they have to have some kind of interest in your outcomes.

If One More Out-of-Work Sales Person Calls Me…

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OK…so the headline might be a little harsh (and maybe I’m a bit grumpy tonight). But I must tell you — that while I’m happy to help out-of-work sales people network, I’m frustrated with their general lack of creativity when it comes to job hunting.

Let me see if I understand this…you fancy yourself as a great sales person…and you’re looking for a job…and you network with me…and you expect ME to hand over my database and go out of my way to call my contacts to ‘see if they’re hiring’ — and all you can do is hand me a resume?

That’s the extent of your salesmanship?

You Can Do Better Than That

As I’ve said before in this blog, the sales person of the future MUST be a good marketer–not just a good closer. And the best way to demonstrate your marketing prowess is in how you position yourself when hunting for a job. Yet most are clueless.

My Great Idea…Met With Luke Warmness

So, I got called the other day by a friend of a friend who was “networking.” I told her to go to LinkedIn (she was all over LinkedIn) and put up a Google app that allows you to create a PowerPoint presentation to exhibit your know-how.

Read more

How To Get To The Decision Makers – The New Reality of Selling

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It’s not often that we get to have an esteemed guest the level of Kevin Eikenberry (From Bud to Boss) but we have him on The Advanced Selling Podcast.

(Listen to the rest of the podcast “From Sales Person to Sales Leader” : http://www.advancedsellingpodcast.com/from-sales-person-to-sales-leader/)

Also on this week’s episode, Brooke Green talks about how we can cope with the recession by understanding the “new reality” of selling. Also, in our “Mailbag” segment, we address the ever-serious topic of ‘how to get access to decision makers.’ Enjoy!

How To Manage The Sales Process

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One of the most common issues companies have is in managing (controlling) the sales process once it begins.

In this episode, you’ll get advice from all angles!

Enjoy!

Shortening The Sales Cycle and Passing On Price Increases

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These two topics today — how to shorten the sales cycle by changing your perspective — and how to increase prices (if you’re in an industry that is passing on price increases to customers) seem like two distinctly different issues. But once you see these ‘whiteboarded’ you’ll see how they are connected. What connects them is the mindset of the seller.

Raw material and commodity prices are escalating rapidly. Oil, which accounts for a large part in the manufacture of anything is projected to reach $100 by the end of the year. Some project even higher. So, if you haven’t passed on increases yet, you might be soon. This episode will help you with the emotional side of this AND the tactical side.

The High Hazard of High Emotion

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We love emotion don’t we? When we see a coach ranting and raving on the sideline, we say, “Boy, look at that passion!!” Usually, what we mean is “He’s come unhinged-but it’s for a good cause.”

But is out-of-control emotion all it’s cracked up to be in the sales cycle? I say, “No.” Here’s why.

We have a saying in our business when we’re working with clients: “The only emotion that should be seen is the prospect’s demonstration of emotion of why they need to fix their problem.” Not only does your emotion (desire to sell the product, desire for the resulting income, ego satisfaction) not help, it hurts the process.

You want the prospect’s emotion to fill the air and the space between you and him. The more your emotion is on display, the less room there is for theirs to play out.

Catch Yourself

Believe me, this is hard for me to do…and I see it difficult for others. When your points are falling flat and your customer resorts to “Your price is too high,” you WILL get emotional. But it won’t come out as passion…yelling…screaming. It will come out as defensive. And the instant you go defensive, you’ve lost the battle.

Write down the thing that your prospect commonly says that drives you crazy. Then come up with a strategy/device so that when they say it, you stay calm and in the moment. Then you can, logically, walk thru how they got to that decision/conclusion.

And, of course, practice detachment. If it is not meant to be, then you must move on. But don’t use detachment as a way out of the process. Detachment is merely a ‘way of being’ so that you can logically sort out the truth.

How To Sell To Those Who Don’t Know You?

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How exactly do you handle it when you’re calling on someone who doesn’t know much about you? It’s a challenge for virtually every new business developer and in this episode, we devote two segments to it.

In the first segment, Bill Caskey retreats to the whiteboard to give you some ideas on how best to compete with their current vendor. And later, Brooke Green returns to talk about the entire ‘sales cycle’ that will bring about change for your customer (and business for you).