Episode #501: Generating Leads When Your Customer Isn’t Online

On this episode of The Advanced Selling Podcast, sales trainers Bill Caskey and Bryan Neale take a letter from listener Greg who’s in the Agricultural industry and is struggling to generate a funnel full of leads.

He’s tried radio and newspaper advertising but nothing seems to be working. So, Bryan and Bill give him a handful of ideas and suggestions on how he can go about changing the way he thinks about lead generation and changing the results as well.

Are you interested in having your question answered on the podcast? Email Bill and Bryan your recorded question to [email protected].

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Episode #500: The Importance of Relationships in Sales

In this episode of The Advanced Selling Podcast, veteran sales trainers Bill Caskey and Bryan Neale address the notion of relationship selling.

The question is not if relationships important in the sales cycle, we can all agree they are. The true question is what does a good relationship really mean with a prospect?

Bill and Bryan give you some filters through which you can look at your current client relationships to determine if they really are sound and what to do about it if they aren’t.

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Interview With Spencer Rule

Spencer Rule is my guest on this week’s episode. This is our third episode in the May 2X Podcast interview series.

Spencer has been involved and behind many successful marketing projects and joins us to talk about the real challenge with social/digital media that most people aren’t talking about.

He gives you some good, tactical advice on how to better communicate using social. Learn more about Spencer at www.spencerrule.com.

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How Jason Doubled His Income

“We can easily forgive a child when they’re afraid of the dark. The real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” -Plato Share on X

I started my sales career in living in constant fear.

Why would anyone buy something from me ?

How was I to communicate properly to get people to buy?

How was I to create personal wealth in a profession I knew little about?

What if I failed? Then what?

Relate?

I find most sales professionals do.

The problem is never “what” we sell. Or, “who our market is.” Or, “What the price is.”

It’s deeper than that.

And in this article, I will share with you how one of my clients doubled his income in a matter of 120 days.

I share this not to exert my will on you. Whether you follow this process is your call, not mine.

I share it because I find that when a framework appears, it’s a helluva lot easier to make changes and get results.

I’ve read blogs like this before where the author never gives up the gold. That will NOT happen here. My aim is to help you see what is possible in your world, even if you might not.

I’ve been training sales teams for over 30 years…7500 training session…over 2000 coaching sessions…900 podcasts…and a book, Same Game New Rules, one that many companies use as their text book for new and counter-intuitive training.

And one thing I always find…we all want more.

It’s just the way we humans are built. If we are fully human, we express it by wanting to realize our potential on this planet.

But while we all want more…often, it feels out of our reach.

We find ourselves saying, “Well yes, Bill can do that, but I can’t.” Or, “Well, easy for Jason…he has a (built in advantage) but I don’t have that.”

Yes you do. And we’ll get to that.

Today, I will share with you the story of Jason and how he used our sales philosophy and methodology to significantly grow his business quickly.

He came to me struggling in his sales territory. No, he wasn’t about to get fired – but he was the classic underachiever. On the surface he looked like he could be a killer. But the results were never there. And he was becoming frustrated.

Sales philosophy jason case studyJason was 35 years old with a new wife and a new house. He’d been in his current position for 5 years. He was a pretty good sales person -always in the middle of the pack. But…he knew he could do better.

His manager was always telling him, “Hey Jason, you can crush this thing. You have tons of opportunity in your territory. What’s going on?”

Ever have someone tell you that?

Or have you ever told yourself that? (That might be more painful).

Those conversations shamed him – they certainly didn’t inspire him. He needed a plan and a way of thinking – a philosophy – which he wasn’t getting. He was not a real ambitious bloak – not a trained killer. He’d always been average – earning about $80,000/year. BUT, he knew there was more.

One thing you should know about Jason: A born sales person he was not. Not sure anyone is – but there is a worldview that there IS such a thing.

There is NOT.

And, worse, he started to question himself if sales was even the right profession. Not a good place to be.

As I said at the top, I questioned myself almost every day when I began in sales.

“Is this what I really want to do?”

“Will this get me to my goals?”

“Am I cut out for this?”

Just like me, Jason began to doubt himself and his skills. He lost confidence in his ability and his natural talent.

We call this the “doubt spiral.” And it’s ugly.

“Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt.” Share on X

As a coach, if I can’t get the “doubt” turned around, there is almost no hope for high achievement. It will continue to be the same, day after day, year after year.

I want to share how we turned it around. I say “we” because it was both of us.

RESULTS

So in the 6 months I worked with him, here were his results:

  • Tripled his average monthly appointment count.
  • Went from a closing rate of 10% to 65%.
  • Monthly income went up 3x.
  • And the biggest result was his confidence level – hard to measure, but hard to be without.

Finding Help To Tame The Demons

The Process: Sales Philosophy, Methodology, & Process.

As he got down on himself, a friend suggested he find someone to help him…a coach…a peer group…somewhere to acquire the right skills and the right attitudes.

He began to research online. He found a mastermind / learning group I run and set up an appointment with me where he shared his plight.

He was very specific and very open, the first step to getting help and creating change.
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Episode #499: Are You Listening To Your Instincts?

In this episode of The Advanced Selling Podcast, sales experts Bill Caskey and Bryan Neale address a common observation that they have when they’re working with sales teams. There is a general lack of enthusiasm about following and listening to your instincts.

In every sales process there are issues that occur and if you are dialed into your gut reaction you will take a certain course. On the other hand, if you are blind to your instincts or you don’t trust them, you might be in for long selling cycles.

Bill and Bryan give you some tips on how to listen and how to react.

Also mentioned in this podcast:

Three Tips That Will Improve Your Mindset Right Now

I’ve heard many authors say that once they write a book, they never look at it again. That is definitely not me. I wrote Same Game New Rules over 12 years ago, but I still refer to it when I want to create content for a blog or to offer people useful advice.

I often find myself referring back to Chapter 20 in Same Games New Rules. This chapter is one of my favorites because I discuss the laws of money. It is vital that you understand the laws of money if you want to improve your work ethic and your mindset.

Law #1: The less you care about money, the more you’ll make.

When you become needy of money or business, you push away the very people who can help you. If you approach your client with more interest in solving problems than getting money, and the client is someone you can and want to help, you’ll automatically attract more business and money to you than you ever thought possible.

Law # 2: Push your clients too hard and their money will leave with them.

Your goal should be to create an environment in which your client pulls you along. The optimum strategy is to have your prospect selling you on why he needs you. On your first call, simply lay out your intent with a non-threatening, servant-like attitude.

During this time, resist the temptation to close the deal. Even when you know you can help, continue to explore options with your client, allowing him to pull you along. Never get more excited than your prospect.

Law #3 If you trap your clients, they’ll run.

When you pursue a sale in the traditional way, you, in essence, stand over your client, trapping them so that it is nowhere for them to go but out the door. Your goal should always be to leave your client an escape hatch.

If you have found these tips useful, click the button below to check out the full version of Same Games New Rules.

LEARN MORE ABOUT SAME GAME NEW RULES

Interview With Steve Walker

Continuing with our May guest interview series, on this week’s 2X Podcast episode I had the chance to interview good friend of mine, Steve Walker. He’s the President of Walker Information and an icon in ‘customer experience’ research.

Steve shares the importance of your customer’s experience with your company and gives you insight and some tips on how you can begin to improve it.

Steve also has his own podcast you should try out, The CX Leader Podcast, available on iTunes. 

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What Will You Do When You Encounter Resistance?

On this episode of The 2X Podcast, Bill gives you some simple ways to battle any resistance you encounter in the sales process.

You battle resistance by:

a) knowing what it is

b) strategizing on how to minimize it upfront, and c) creating a process that does that.

Know where your customer is on the journey. If you don’t where they are, they might resist than for no other reason than they don’t know “how to buy.”

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Episode #498: How To Prospect When You Are Burned Out

In this episode of The Advanced Selling Podcast, sales trainers Bill Caskey and Bryan Neale take a question from a listener and client, who asks about issues inside her company that aren’t going well.

The listener explains that she constantly has to get involved in operational and account management issues, which gets her away from her true role, business development. She is also experiencing some burn out over this dilemma.

On this episode, Bill and Bryan give her some advice on all three areas and some takeaways you might be able to use in your business.

Also mentioned in this podcast: