7 Reasons You Upgrade Your Selling Skills

Today's sales climate has ungone major changes which means sales people need to change their approach and methodologies. Here are seven reasons you need to upgrade your sales approach.

By Kelley Robertson

Today’s business world has changed significantly. Buying decisions that used to take a few days can now take weeks, sometimes months. Decision makers and buyers have changed the way they manage their operations. And business has become more complex. This all means that it is critical that you upgrade your selling skills if you want to achieve long-term success in your sales career. Here are seven reasons you need to upgrade your selling skills.

1. The business climate has changed. In the last few years the business world has dramatically changed. Companies are leaner which means employees need to accomplish more with fewer resources. The decision making process often takes much longer than it used to. And, the people you deal with and sell to, are much busier. See point 5 for more detail on this.

2. Selling is becoming more difficult. If you are like many sales people, you have probably discovered that selling is more challenging than ever. It is more difficult to connect with executives and decision makers. It is more challenging to stand out from the competition. Products often change with increasing frequency which makes it more difficult to stay current. The volume of information you have to retain and manage can be overwhelming. And the number of accounts you have to juggle is likely taxing too.

3. Your customers and prospects are more savvy. Buyers are immune to tired, outdated sales tactics that manipulate people into making buying decisions. I’m not suggesting that you use these tactics; however, they have caused corporate decision makers to paint all sales people with the same brush. If your voice mail message sounds anything remotely like the others your contact hears, then you are destined for failure. If your presentation sounds like everything else they have heard, you will not close the sale.

4. What used to work is no longer as effective. A generic presentation that starts with an overview of your company, your position in the market place, the organizations that you have worked with, or the awards that you have won, simply doesn’t cut it anymore. I actually don’t know if this approach was ever very effective but I know for certain that it doesn’t work in today’s new economy.

5. Aversion to risk has increased. Many buyers have been burned over-zealous sales people who made false promises and unrealistic claims. People have purchased products and solutions that failed to achieve the desired results. They have signed agreements only to discover that the system they wanted required an unexpected investment of time and money. And they have made decisions that caused them embarrassment.

6. Key decision makers are busier than ever. Five years ago it used to take 6-8 calls to connect with a senior level decision maker. Now, it can take as many as 15 attempts. A typical executive has more than 40 hours of unfinished work on their desk at any given time. An average of 150 emails clog their in-box and they constantly have to deal with changing priorities. One executive I know said, “I can’t possible talk to a sales person because I already have too many projects on the go.” Another told me, “Just when I think I can’t get any busier, I do.”

7. Competition has increased. Virtually every industry has seen an explosion of competition. Low-cost products manufactured and shipped from overseas to local competitors trying to carve a slice of market share from you. This increase—and change—in competition means you need to improve your sales skills so you can position your product more effectively.

The majority of top performing sales people invest time and money in their personal development. They read books, listen to audio programs and they attend conferences and online events to improve and fine-tune their skills. If their company doesn’t sponsor or fund this development, they use their own money because they know that they will always get a return on this investment.

If you want to succeed in today’s business world and enjoy a long-term career in sales, it is essential that you constantly upgrade your selling skills. I don’t know who originally stated this quote but it is certainly applicable to this topic, “If you always do what you have always done, you will always get what you have gotten.”

Get your FREE copy of 100 Ways to Increase Your Sales by subscribing to Kelley's free newsletter, "59 Seconds to Sales Success" athttp://www.Fearless-Selling.ca. Kelley Robertson conducts sales training programs and speaks on sales at conferences and meetings. Contact him at 905-633-7750 or Kelley@Fearless-Selling.ca.

Is Your Business At The Bottom Of Your To-Do-List?

Solo professionals fail in business because of one of three things. The first is lack of clarity and focus about what they do, how it benefits others, and how much time they must invest to create a business that both serves others and makes a profit. In this article, Sue discusses what happens when your business is at the bottom of your to-do list.

By Sue Painter

If you are a female solo professional, chances are that your business is not making as much money as you’d like it to. Perhaps when you got the thought to go out on your own you held a vision of more flexibility, a freer schedule, and making at least as much money as you were making working for someone else. Perhaps you even secretly thought that you had the chance to make it big, pulling in much more money, paying off your mortgage, easily paying for a child’s college education.

Let me ask you.....where is your business now, compared to that vision? Where is it compared to your secret thought? Have you given up on that dream?

I read a story about makeovers in a recent edition of O magazine that made me think about how women so often put their business at the bottom of their to-do list. We do it to ourselves and our businesses, actually. We think we’re being unselfish and giving, taking care of others before ourselves. But are we, really? Listen to one comment from the O makeover article:

“With the new looks came a new attitude. What a makeover does for all of us is point out that there are BIG possibilities for us all. Maybe we’ll get the idea that from a makeover, we can take another step toward change in other areas of our lives.”

Lack of attention to one’s self is no way to teach our children to stand up and be counted, is it? Making sure that everyone else has new clothes while we schlep around in last year’s sweats only makes us both look and feel at the bottom of the barrel. Paying for private lessons for our children while refusing to spend the money to take a workshop for ourselves sells ourselves and our business short.

Think about it. If you fail to give yourself and your business the nurturing you both deserve, you send a silent message that you are not worth your own time and care, and that your business isn’t important enough to make a difference in anyone’s life. Is that the truth? I doubt it. But you are showing how little you believe you can make it really big when you continue to play safe and small. You are refusing to serve others with your business, in a way that only you can uniquely serve.

When you really tune in to your old business vision what does it look like? Have you lost your early enthusiasm? How can you get it back? And if you did, how much cleaner and better would you see the way to that secret vision you have? How much more freedom would you have to be with your friends and family? How much less worry over financial matters would you have? What kind of example would you set for family and friends and other entrepreneurs if you kick-started your business again and made it provide for you at a high level? It would be a powerful message, wouldn’t it?

That’s just not going to happen if you take care of everyone else’s current needs first. Take care of yourself and your business, so that you have the wealth needed to take care of those you love. You aren’t here to serve your family and friends everything on a platter. In fact, if you do, they will learn directly from you to lean on others rather than themselves. Is that what you want?

I heard a quote last week that really made me stop and think. “A strong focus now creates a different future later.” How do you focus now on your business, so that you can have that different future? Here are three ways:

* Change your lifestyle and your schedule around so that you are spending at least two hours every single day building your business. No excuses. You are in business for yourself, right? Two hours a day is a bare minimum. Otherwise, your business is nothing more than a hobby. You can work part time, but you can’t work no time. Two hours, minimum, every day.

* Create a calendar for the entire year. Plan in your vacation weeks, at least three long weekend retreat times for yourself to focus solely on your business, and time for learning what you don’t know but need to know in order to build your income. If you are running out of hours in the week, get help for the low-level stuff and keep your eye on the stuff that creates future income.

* Get a mentor or a coach. Virtually every single wealthy business owner works with someone who can pull them out of the weeds when they need it, give them perspective, and save them a lot of time in mastering new tasks. No excuses. Don’t tell yourself you can’t afford it, tell yourself the cost of doing without is much higher than what you’ll pay. Think return on investment, not cost. That’s how a business owner thinks, after all. Are you one, or not?

Sue Painter is a marketing therapist whose expertise is finding the dark and murky under-places that keep your business from succeeding. She develops business plans that work, and strategic marketing plans that take dead aim at your target market. You can subscribe to her Marketing Tips e-zine at http://www.confidentmarketer.com .

10 Fatal Sales Networking Blunders That Cost You Money

Networking is a vital component of a successful career in sales. However, many people make networking mistakes that prevent them from achieving their desired results. Here are 10 sales networking mistakes you need to avoid.

By Kelley Robertson

Networking is a critical skill sales people; after all, the more people you connect with the more you sales opportunities you create. However, many sales people make a variety of mistakes that prevent them from maximizing the power of networking. Here are ten blunders and mistakes you need to avoid.

1. Attending the wrong networking events. When I first started my business I attended as many local networking events as I could fit into my schedule. However, I quickly noticed that I encountered the same people at these events—other small business owners out looking for business. These people were not my target market and very few of them interacted with the type of decision-maker I usually worked with so I realized that I was going to the wrong events. Get the most from your networking opportunities by showing up at events that your prospects attend.

2. Waiting for people to introduce themselves. Let’s face it; the vast majority of people are reluctant or hesitant to approach strangers. However, if you take the initiative to introduce yourself to others you will be perceived as a person of authority and power. Not to mention that the other person will be relieved that they didn’t have to make the first approach.

3. Spending too much time talking. One of the most fatal mistakes is to dominate the conversation. If you truly want to make a great impression, limit the amount you talk to no more than 40 percent of the airtime. Remember, networking events are not the appropriate setting to sell your solution. However, they are perfect situations to uncover potential sales opportunities.

4. Failing to ask other people questions. The most effective way to create a connection with someone is to ask them questions about their business and what they do. Ask them about the challenges they face and what they enjoy most about their work. High-value questions encourage people to share information and help you position yourself as an expert and a great networker.

5. Becoming distracted by other people. Have you ever had a conversation with someone who constantly watched the room instead of paying attention to what you were saying? If so, you likely felt ignored and unimportant. I also suspect that you would not refer business to that person. Don’t make the same mistake. Pay close attention to every person you meet and learn how you might be able to help them.

6. Focusing on your self-interest. This follows the last point. If you make the effort to find out how you can help someone else, the chances are they will reciprocate. In the words of motivational guru, Zig Ziglar, “You can anything you want in life if you just are willing to help enough other people get what they want.”

7. Failing to articulate your value proposition. I once spoke with a small business owner at a networking event and after a 20 minute conversation I still had no idea what she did because she was unable to clearly articulate the purpose of her company and her ideal client.

8. Failing to establish a connection. Effective networking means connecting with people. Although you will not connect with everyone you meet, you can improve your results by making great eye contact, smiling, asking questions, and showing interest in the other person.

9. Executing the “meet & move” strategy. We’ve all encountered the person at a networking event who introduces themselves, gives you their business card, asks for yours in return, and immediately moves on to repeat the process with another victim. You get much better results by connecting with a small number of people rather than trying to meet as many people as you can.

10. Failing to follow-up afterwards. Post-event follow-up is critical. However, don’t make the mistake of calling someone three months after a networking meeting and saying something like, “We met a few months ago and I thought I’d touch base with you.” This approach simply does not add any type of value to the relationship. Here two follow-up strategies to consider:

- When you meet a potential customer, arrange to contact them shortly after the event. Mark it in your calendar and make sure you contact them on the agreed-upon day and time.

- After you meet someone who is NOT a prospect, look for opportunities to refer business to them. You can also help them by sending articles or information related to their business.

Networking effectively can have a dramatic impact on your sales providing it is done correctly. Avoid these fatal networking mistakes and improve your results.

Get your FREE copy of 100 Ways to Increase Your Sales by subscribing to Kelley's free newsletter, "59 Seconds to Sales Success" at http://www.Fearless-Selling.ca. Kelley Robertson conducts sales training programs and speaks on sales at conferences and meetings. Contact him at 905-633-7750 or Kelley@Fearless-Selling.ca.

Pioneer Marketing For Small Business Owners

The hot new thing in big marketing these days is "relationship marketing." The truth is, that's not new at all. In this article, Sue talks about Pioneer Marketing and going back to business that is based on an immutable law of human nature.

By Sue Painter

When I was a kid living (briefly) in Oklahoma, one of my favorite times was the local “Pioneer Days.” Everyone dressed up in pioneer clothing, old Conestoga wagons were brought out of barns, and re-enactments of the early days of the town were carried out in the town square and at the fairgrounds. Everything was “old-timey“—the way it used to be. Some of the men would even grow their hair long and sport the old fashion handlebar mustache and side lamb chops.

I’m convinced that we are now in the pioneer days for marketing. If I’ve read one article about how push marketing doesn’t work anymore and that it is now all about building relationships with the consumer, I’ve read twenty. And every time I read one I shake my head and wonder why no one writes that this is back to marketing’s pioneer days. We now have “Pioneer Marketing.” It’s what our forebears did in every single city and town, and what the best and wisest businesses still do.

Pioneer Marketing (I think I just coined a new term) has one main tenet, and that tenet is infallible. It works every time because it is based on a law of human nature. What’s the law? “People respond positively and in a timely manner when they are treated with respect, courtesy, honesty, and in a way that has their best interests at heart.” That one law, rigidly adhered to, will win out every time. Your attention may be diverted by aggressive and shiny marketing for a while, but in the end you will go where that law of human nature is adhered to.

Simply put, our prospects and existing customers don’t want to be sold into a product or service that serves the seller and doesn’t serve the buyer. They are tired of push marketing coupled with shoddy goods and lacking customer service. And this is one huge reason that you, as an entrepreneur, have it over the big guys. The big guys have used push marketing, shoddy goods, and lacking customer service for so long that they are scrambling right now to turn huge, bloated, bureacratic businesses around to save their sales. Meanwhile, you and I can “float like a butterfly and sting like a bee,” meeting and forming relationships with our prospects, selling our expertise, servicing our customers, and making the transaction into a win-win rather than a win-lose. We have memorable and recognizable faces. Large, bloated businesses give you a new and usually non-caring face every time you walk in their door or buy from them online.

Family-owned businesses, solo professionals, and entrepreneurs can step up and capture market share right now. Most of us have a familiar face to our prospects and customers. Many of the big guys don’t, and now that they realize that, they are all about “relationship marketing,” thinking they have discovered a whole new world. It isn’t a whole new world at all, it’s the world that many small business owners never left, the one that our pioneer forebears lived in. Everyone knew the business owners up and down the street and how they treated customers. Everyone knew who to avoid and who to buy from. Business was good or bad depending on the business owner’s savvy and her ability to form and keep relationships. Reputation was everything, and was based on something real, not something manipulated by copious marketing.

People respond to Pioneer Marketing because it is in our human nature. We are wired for relationships. On the frontier, relationships and trust in others meant survival. In the marketplace, it means survival for you, the business owner. And it is coupled with a sense of trust and satisfaction in our customers, as well.

You don’t have to put on a pioneer costume or grow a mustache to use Pioneer Marketing. Just plaster that one law of human nature up where you can see it, and build your business from that place. Let your marketing, advertising, customer service, and sales be aligned with that law. Couple that with good business skills, and you are good to go. The next time you hear about the new “relationship marketing” just smile. You are already there. So hip, so pioneer. That’s you!

Sue Painter coaching mindset and marketing for solopreneurs. Check out her marketing tips at http://www.confidentmarketer.com and on the YouTube channel confidentmarketer. Sue's marketing expertise and strong insight leads her clients to call her a marketing therapist. She can help you build your business from the inside out.

Presentation Success: How You Can Own The Room

A successful presentation starts with the presenter owning the room. When you know and own the room, you will be a more powerful and confident presenter. That leads to more successful presentations for you. What can you do to own the room?

By George Torok

Consider this

While strolling in your neighborhood you will feel more comfortable and confident than in a strange town. A sports team usually feels stronger when playing at home. Delivering a presentation is certainly a competitive sport. Why not do it on your home turf?

As a presenter, how do you own the room? “Owning the room” is a feeling that you can generate within yourself by knowing the room. How do you know the room?

Know the room

Knowing the room for your presentation might mean arriving the day before your presentation. At the very least, arrive one hour before your presentation. Don’t breeze in 10 minutes before you speak and expect to “own the room”.

Get into the room before your presentation - preferably when no one else is there. This will allow you to make the following preparations.

You can see the room and start visualizing how you will present and how your audience will look. Visualizing yourself presenting in the room is an effective way to prepare for your presentation. You will feel more comfortable and more powerful if you’ve been in the room before your presentation.

If the room is not the right size for the audience expected you can plan what to do to alter the room to make it appear to be smaller or arrange for another room.

You can check the setup of the room. Become familiar with the layout of the seating, tables, doors, curtains and other characteristics of the room. Walk around the room and sit in different seats so you understand better how the audience might or might not see you and your visuals during your presentation. Look for blind spots.

Arrange for the seating to be changed to your preferred arrangement. Sometimes this might mean making those changes yourself. (I’ve done this the night before an important presentation.)

Play with the switches. Test all the lights, AV and climate control switches. Tape the ones that should not be changed. Discover the ones that give you the settings you want so you can set it quickly or explain to an assistant how to do it.

Check all the doors to learn which ones are noisy - so you can tape the latches with duct tape. Which are the outer halls that need a “Do Not Enter” sign taped on the outside? Where are the washrooms so you can direct people? hich are the emergency exits in case they are needed?

Rehearse walking on and off the stage so you don’t trip. I’ve done it and seen it happen. It’s surprising how simple things like walking on stage can be nerve wracking when you are giving a presentation.

Stand on the stage and deliver parts of your presentation. Move about the stage to feel comfortable and find the cracks or creaky boards that you will need to avoid. Check the position of the speakers while speaking on the microphone to avoid feedback. Test the microphone when the AV people are there. Often they test the microphone with one of their staff then they disappear.

One More Presentation Tip

Change or move something to make the room yours. Close the curtains, move some chairs, put a small table on stage… It might not be much but any small change that you make can help you feel better when you take the stage.

I’ve delivered over 1,000 presentations and I’ve noticed that a good room setup can influence the energy of the audience and success of your presentation.

Know the room and you will own the room. Your audience will marvel at your confidence and presentation power.

© George Torok helps business leaders, managers & sales professionals deliver million-dollar presentations. He offers presentation skills coaching and presentation skills training. For more free presentation tips visithttp://www.Presentation-Skills-Success.com To arrange a media interviews call 905-335-1997

Obstacles and Keys To Effective Team Coaching

Learn about the common obstacles to effective coaching, and essential skills necessary for managers to build their authority and successfully coach their teams to great results.

By Rick Kirschner

The most common obstacle to building and projecting your authority in coaching others is the idea that coaching is about talking, that somehow talking takes priority over listening to understand.

I understand how this happens. In fast paced environments, it’s a natural tendency to put the pedal to the metal, to try harder, move faster, do more. The problem is that you wind up talking at your people instead of with them and to them. And the obstacle this lack of understanding creates is that without knowing what motivates your people, you can’t engage them where it counts.

When you understand what motivates your people, and it’s different for different people, you can speak with authority that is recognized as authority, because it is relevant and conveys experience and knowledge.

The next most common obstacle is the confidence problem. When managers come off as tentative, hesitant or uncertain, it tends to evoke these responses in the people around them. This problem is the side effect of at least two missing pieces: you first have to know your own motivation, and you must be prepared to speak when it’s time to speak. The fact is, people want to be led, not managed, and they need to get that sense of authority from you, because it gives them confidence to do what needs to be done. They believe it when you believe it.

Now, it’s a legitimate question, confidence in what? After all, in these changing times, nobody really knows what’s coming next. And some degree of introspection is prudent for anyone wanting to thrive instead of merely survive. But you can have confidence in your motivations. You can have confidence in what you do know. And you can have confidence that under the right conditions, people will want to give you their best, to do their best.

So, what are the key listening and communication skills that you can improve upon as you work to develop and strengthen others?

Fundamental to success in coaching are two essential skills. The first is blending, the second is asking questions.

Blending is the foundation of all successful relationships. It happens whenever you reduce the differences between yourself and another person. It happens whenever you send signals of similarity and commonality. And because nobody cooperates with anybody who seems to be against them, a failure to blend is the root cause of most conflict. If perception is everything in relationships, then sending blending signals is how you create the perception of partnering with your people in a process or project.

As for questions, I believe it was the stoic philosopher, Epicetus, who said “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” Maybe this is the apt metaphor for the way we’re built, but I’ve observed that too many people just don’t get it. Although they certainly think they do. Ask just about anyone if they’re a good listener, and they’ll tell you yes. But most people do a meager job of it at best, instead drawing conclusions and then making statements instead of engaging people by asking questions.

Maybe the people who don’t ask very many questions are afraid of looking stupid. Maybe they think it makes them seem weak. Or maybe they think they’re supposed to have all the answers. Maybe it’s just a function of the fact that we can think faster, at 500 words a minute, than most people talk, which is about 130 words a minute. It’s not uncommon for our minds to wander to what we want to say when its our turn to talk, so it’s pretty easy to get ahead of what we’re hearing.

But a great coach understands the limits of his or her knowledge about another person, and explores that boundary to build the connection, rather than building the boundary and weakening the relationship. The key is curiosity. The less you think you know, the more you find out. The more value you place on what you can learn by listening, the less distracted you’ll be with your own thoughts.

Have you ever heard someone say “There is no such thing as a stupid question?’.’ That’s a great guide when it comes to everyone other than you! You can’t afford to ask dumb questions if you want to bring out the best in your people. When someone asks me a question, no matter how trite, simplistic or off the point, I welcome it and find the opportunity in it.

I do think there are dumb questions to avoid, when it’s me asking the questions. They’re dumb if they fail to take into account things people have said. They’re dumb if they’re closed ended instead of open ended, unless I intend to bring something to a close. I want my questions to serve an intelligent purpose. A person’s motivations and positions are in the deep structure, so that’s where I want to go. I want to learn about their goals and aspirations, their desires and fears. Asking questions is a great way of leading people to their own resourcefulness. Just as their answers inform me, I want my questions to inform them.

As a coach, the more you know, the more likely it is that you will know exactly what you need to know in order to elicit comfort confidence and credibility.

©Dr. Rick Kirschner. Dr. Rick is a bestselling author and speaker, coach and trainer, with clients that include Heineken, Providence Healthcare, and Texas Instruments. Author of 'Insider's Guide To The Art Of Persuasion.' Free for a limited time, a $49 value audio on Dealing With Difficult People. Go to http://theartofchange.com/promo for details.

Why Do Your Customers Buy From You

Entrepreneurs and small business owners need to know why their products attract buyers and why they don't. This article shows a quick way to think about why customers buy and how to design your offers to take advantage of their reasons.

By Sue Painter

Here’s a fun way to figure out why people are willing to get out their credit card to buy from you, a small business owner. Ready? Sit down and think about why YOU bought the last dozen items you spent money on. You might be surprised at the reasons, and you can use the insight to help structure the offers you make to your own customers.

I just spent over $200 on Magellan’s travel supplies website. Why?

1. I got their new spring catalog in the mail (direct mail, timing was right as I have several trips coming up, the catalog renewed my TOMA (top of mind awareness) about Magellan’s.) The key here? Timing! I regularly receive Magellan’s catalog and most usually pitch it without looking. But I’m excited about upcoming travel, and I needed to refresh a few things. LESSON LEARNED: Keeping in touch with your customers over time is critical, even if they haven’t bought from you in a while.

2. A notice on the catalog’s front cover offered free shipping on orders over $100. I figured almost any order would come to that amount, and free shipping saves me money. A deadline on the free shipping (May 9th) spurred me to take action now rather than put it off. LESSON LEARNED: Make your special offers time-limited, with a relatively short time frame.

3. Let’s look at what I ordered and my reason for each purchase.

Spill-proof pouch - because the last time I was on a plane one of my face care products leaked out into my cosmetic bag. This pouch SOLVES A PROBLEM.

Electronics travel case - I didn’t go looking for this item, but I saw it browsing the catalog. I’m thinking “Hmm, I’m sure tired of all my various chargers and USB cables getting into a big knot at the bottom of my briefcase, so maybe I’ll try this. This purchase SOLVES A PROBLEM and was a win for Magellan’s because of 1) A GOOD IDEA and 2) SUGGESTED SELLING.

Personalized Luggage Strap - This is actually a gift for my husband. His luggage looks similar to many, and more than once he’s picked up someone else’s at the airport. The strap WORKS AS A GIFT and helps SOLVE A PROBLEM.

Extra-large mesh pack-it cube - These things are hard to find in large sizes, so Magellan’s gets a star for carrying them. They allow me to pack clothing inside my luggage and quickly pull out what I need without digging around. And if you get stopped for inspection, you can easily pull these out without re-shuffling and wrinkling your clothing. For years now I’ve used 2 gallon kitchen zipper bags, but the zippers don’t hold up to being open and closed over and over again, and for some reason the 2 gallon size is now hard to find. These mesh cubes SOLVE A PROBLEM but also GAVE ME A FEELING OF LUXURY. I get to graduate from packing my clothes in baggies.

Blackberry pouch - When I’m sight-seeing I try hard not to lug around a purse, but I often need my phone and camera with me. This handy little pouch hangs around the neck and will hold both my Blackberry and my small camera. Perfect! Again, solves a problem and makes something easier for me.

Walk stool - One of the downsides of having a new knee is that it’s still hard for me to stand on concrete for very long without pain. This innovative product offers a sturdy, foldable instant stool but weights only a pound and can hang off a belt, a backpack, a purse, or my shoulder. Next time I think I better not go on a walking tour because we’ll stand and listen to a guide for 15 minutes, I’ll be able to go and know I can sit when I need to. HUGE problem solved for me and a solution I can live with (not too heavy or too bulky, small and easy to pack).

Blow-up neck pillow - I use this on planes all the time, and foolishly over inflated mine a few trips ago. POW! It burst at 30,000 feet and that was the end of that! I’ve looked around in airports but balked at paying $30.00 or so. Magellan’s had one on sale for $12.99. What sold me? REASONABLE PRICING and PROBLEM SOLVED.

As you can see, I’m a buyer who will spend for solving problems. I also respond to suggested selling and to the feeling of having something a little fancier for myself. But these are not the only reasons Magellan’s got $200 from me.

1. Their website is easy to maneuver and loads quickly.

2. They offer customer reviews of their products, which talked me into the stool and the Blackberry pouch.

3. Their page for each item tells me immediately that the item is in stock. (One of my pet peeves is ordering online only to find that the item isn’t due in for 30 days or so.)

4. Their page for each item offers more pictures than the catalog, allowing me to “look” at items in detail.

5. Their check-out process is easy. I’ve jumped off of more than one website that was hard to maneuver or had excessive checkout procedures, and I’ll bet you have, too.

Take a look at what you’ve spent money on and list the reasons why you bought. You can then look at what you offer to others and think about whether your offers are attractive for those same reasons. If they don’t, tweak them and your sales copy, and see if your sales improve. Knowing why you buy and turning it around will help you to see why some of your customers buy from you.

Sue Painter is a marketing therapist whose expertise is finding the dark and murky under-places that keep your business from succeeding. She develops business plans that work, and strategic marketing plans that take dead aim at your target market. You can subscribe to her Marketing Tips e-zine at http://www.confidentmarketer.com .

The 5 Secrets Of Motivating Your Sales Team

How do you motivate a sales team? If you're looking for effective and inexpensive ways to get the most production out of your sales team, then you'll love these five proven steps.

By Mike Brooks
Copyright (c) 2010 Mr. Inside Sales

Motivation seems to be one of the toughest areas to get a handle on. Many managers tell me that some of their reps are already motivated and don’t need their help in that area (usually the Top 20%), but that the majority seem to need constant motivating, mentoring, counseling, or out right babysitting. Sound familiar?

When asked what to do, I tell them there is only so much they can do because true motivation comes from within—in other words, each member of their team is already motivated. There are, however, 5 things you can do to get the most out of your sales team and keep motivation and morale high. Here’s what they are --

#1) Make your monthly revenue goal, and each reps part of that goal, crystal clear. I’m sure you have a monthly revenue goal, but does each member of your sales team know what their specific part of that goal is? (Hint—it’s not all equal). Recognize that some reps will produce much more of the overall goal than others, but also make sure each one is clear on what their part of that overall goal is.

#2) Individualize the bonuses or prizes. The problem with most bonus programs is that as soon as they are released, over one-half of the sales team knows they can’t win so they are more discouraged than encouraged to produce. Customize each reps bonus based on their individual production goal. This ensures every body has a chance to win and thus will be motivated.

#3) Get out of your office and close some deals. Most managers are way too busy in meetings, or reporting, or just plain hiding out to be really effective. Remember one thing—as the manager, you are the leader. And leaders lead by example. Want to motivate your team, make your numbers, and create real value for yourself?

Go onto the floor and close business for some of your sales reps and help them make their revenue goals. This is the most important thing you can do not only for your bottom line, but for your team's motivation as well.

#4) Invest $100 in a couple of trophies. The best money you’ll ever spend—make one a “Weekly most improved” or “Best effort” and hand it out each Monday morning. Each winner gets to keep it on their desk that week. The other trophy can be either “Most deals,” or “Most new clients” or whatever other category everyone has a chance to win (as long as it is revenue related).

Again, hand it out in your Monday morning sales meeting, and each week the winner gets to keep it on their desk. Rule #1 in motivating: recognition among peers is almost always more important than money.

#5) Have some fun! Go to a toy store and buy one of those beanbag tosses, and after lunch on Friday make some teams and have some fun playing as a team. Tack on $50 for good measure and watch the competition and fun build your team and dissolve stress. This works ? try it!

So there you have it. Inexpensive, proven techniques to build morale, motivate and make more money.

Mike Brooks, Mr. Inside Sales, helps sales reps close more business over the phone. Learn how to sell more today by downloading the Special Report, "Ten Techniques to Instantly Become a Better Closer".

The Right "Sales" Attitude

As marketers and sales professionals our attitudes are constantly being tested and it is sometimes difficult to stay positive and focused so I want to dedicate some time to the topic of "attitude."

By Omar Martin

All of these sales secrets that I share with you have made me incredibly successful. But none of them will help you if you have a poor and crappy attitude.
I live by this saying: “Your attitude will determine your altitude.”
I like to believe that attitude is everything. Why is it everything? Well, if your thoughts are not maintaining a positive outlook then there is no way that you can achieve anything you set out to do.

It’s an individual’s mental attitude that helps them overcome their challenges in life. Whether the challenge is making more sales, hitting your goals or overcoming an obstacle, it’s your mentality that will get you through it. Selling is 90% mental and only 10% physical. Simply put, your attitude is the reason why you either make the sale or fail.

Along my journey of sales training, developing and motivating; I’ve learned that there are 6 keys to developing and maintaining a positive mental attitude. They are as follows:

Belief: Believe in what you are selling. For example, is your product something that you’d buy for yourself? Is it something that you honestly believe can help people? Do you believe that they can actually benefit from your product? If you answered yes then you are going in the right direction. If you answered no, then maybe you should consider a different product.

You have to believe in yourself. Believe that you can see it through until you’ve reached your goal. Believe that you CAN and WILL succeed. You must have the belief that you and your family deserve to have the good things life has to offer. None of that is possible if you don’t believe in your product..

Faith: Have blind faith. Even though you can’t see it physically in front of you, you must be able to envision it in your future. You can’t see oxygen right? But you breath it in every day don’t you? You’ve got to have faith that you will achieve your goal because blind faith manifests itself as self confidence.

You should never defeat yourself in your minds eye. Always envision yourself succeeding instead of failing. If you don’t believe in yourself do you think others will? Answer is, probably not. How will you be able to close a sale if your prospects can’t believe in you.

Determination: Do you have determination? If you don’t or if you just aren’t that sure then that’s okay, now is the time to find that determination though. A positive attitude is not something you can flick on and off like a light switch, its a way of life. Having a positive attitude is nothing more than a conscious decision.

Once you choose to have a positive attitude you will begin to see positive results, this will increase your determination to succeed. Look at your setbacks as learning experiences and keep focused, pick yourself up and try harder!

Dedication: You must be dedicated, dedicated to your success and your goals. Set SMART goals. That means: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, & Timely goals. Make a commitment to see it through. The best way to do this without burning yourself out is to keep a daily planner. Set up a weekly schedule for yourself and review your progress daily. This sort of dedication will help you to develop good habits which ultimately result in long term success.

Drive: You have to have that inner drive to help keep you going. Sit down and make a list of things that motivate you. What are the top three things you want to achieve in your life? What will your sales successes enable you to finally do that you have been unable to do before? Is there a loved one in your life that you want to make happy? Is there a specific object that you are trying to buy?

What ever this motivating factor is for you, keep a picture of it on you daily. Look at it often. Whenever your attitude or determination begin to falter, pull it out and look at it. This will serve as a reminder of why you’re doing it all and will help you activate that inner drive.

Desire: You must have the fire in your eyes. You must want it, to achieve it. You must eat, sleep and breathe success in order to become successful. Ever want something so bad it hurt? If you have, then you have to feel that in order to push yourself to reach your goals. If you’ve never felt that way, then it’s about time you do.

You have to want it so bad that it’s all you can think about. For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to be successful. I have always looked to see how I can convert things into money. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t believe that money is the most important thing in life, but on my list of necessities I put it up there with oxygen! You need it to survive. That is reality. Anyone who says money is the root of all evil has never had any. It is money that will put your child through college, or pay for the best doctor if someone in your family becomes ill.

No one is made of steel. Every body has a point when they get discouraged. It happens, it’s happened to me many times. It’s not why you got discouraged that is important; it’s how fast it takes you to get back in the game that counts. There are many ways that you can safeguard your attitude. It’s different for everyone. It all depends on what motivates you.

For example, if you are motivated by family, and you have reached a discouraging point, then maybe you need to take a moment to spend time with your family and remind yourself why you started your journey in the first place. If your motivated by freedom or retirement, maybe you need to take a weekend trip to remind you of what you would like to have the freedom to do when money just isn’t the deciding factor of what you can do in your life.

For a very long time I squirmed whenever I heard someone talk about these types of things. I began to think of it as ... blah ... blah ... blah. I would want the speaker or the author to just cut to the chase and tell me how to make more money. It’s not that I didn’t believe in “being positive” or having determination. It’s just that it never seemed to work for me. I just kept defeating myself. I was only looking for the shortcut to making money without all of the “positivity” mumbo jumbo. LOL

Omar Martin is an internet marketing and sales expert. Omar & his partner Mike Filsaime help internet marketing newbies succeed online through 1 on 1 mentorship and coaching visit http://higherlevelstrategies.com/ . You can get their Cd-Rom delivered right to your doorstep at: http://InternetSellingForNewbies.com

Not Getting The Business

Imagine you have just completed the best sales presentation you could possibly give. Your prospect is very happy with what you've told them and they are happy with the price. It's pretty much a done deal but for some reason you don't ask for the Business.

By Steve King

I don’t really know the reason that would make sales people go through a whole sales presentation, getting to know their prospect, the prospects’ needs, matching the needs of the prospect to the product or service they are selling and then not asking for the business.

I don’t believe it.

Well I am in total agreement with you, it should never happen - but you will be very surprised to hear that this happens all of the time and sometimes from very experienced sales people. To be perfectly honest, I don’t really know the reason that would make sales people go through a whole sales presentation, getting to know their prospect, the prospects’ needs, matching the needs of the prospect to the product or service they are selling and then not asking for the business.

Some Sales People get themselves all worked up when they know they have to try to close a sale. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s the best reason I can offer. Closing is a feared word in sales for some Salespeople but it really doesn’t need to be. If you always follow a proven sales process it’s not a problem because when you get to the end of it, it should be the one thing that you do automatically.

At the end of your presentation, it’s really easy to ask you prospect a straight forward question 'would they like to go ahead?'

If you have followed your sales process properly, you will have already dealt with any objections or reasons not to buy, so there should be no problem in getting a positive response. You’re not going to convert every sales pitch that you make but by asking for the business you will increase your chances.

You may have heard the phrase - by not asking you may not get - this is very true in sales. always make sure you ask for the business, especially if you have taken the time to do a full sales presentation - or you’ll find that you have just wasted your time snd your prospects.

Always ask for the business, even if you think you’re not going to get it -you may well surprise yourself. There have been many occassions that I have got the business by asking for it, even though I had inwardly thought that there was no sale to be made. So always, always ask for the business.

Looking for a new career? Get into Sales and let Steve King help you become a success. http://www.beginnersguidetosales.com . You can find out more from Steve at his blog http://www.steveking.biz

Five Secrets To Exercising Authority

If you are in a position of leadership at your company, then you need to know how to inspire, train, motivate and lead people - all at the same time! By following these five secrets to exercising authority, you'll learn how to this starting today!

By Mike Brooks
Copyright (c) 2010 Mr. Inside Sales

If you are a sales manager or business owner, then you probably know and understand that fine line between being a leader and exercising authority, and trying to fit in as part of the team and wanting people to like you.

Managers struggle with this all the time, and many would be leaders lose their ability to successfully direct their teams because they are afraid of exercising this authority for fear of alienating other team members.

The problem is that most managers and other figures of authority - Directors, V.P.’s, and Business Owners—have never been taught how to properly exercise authority and command respect as leaders.

If you find yourself in this position, follow this proven, 5-step method for exercising authority. It will not only get results, but it will establish, or re-establish, your role as leader of your sales team or department.

1) Make sure your instructions are clear. Having ambiguous goals, or methods of achieving them, automatically undermines your authority and dooms many projects from the beginning. Rule #1 - be clear on the goal and the instructions on how to accomplish it. After you have delivered them, ask your team if they have any questions about what is required, so problems can be cleared up from the beginning.

2) Encourage people to approach you if they run into problems. Establishing open communication and feedback early on is crucial to avoid big disappointments later. Helping team members resolve problems as they arise ensures quick resolution, continued progress, and good morale.

3) Take action quickly when you learn of any real problems. Failing to act quickly once you learn of a problem, or putting it off for days or weeks, not only undermines your authority, but also kills morale and confidence. Problems tend to get bigger the longer they go unresolved, and your job as a leader is to solve problems not avoid them.

4) Insist your team report all the news—good and bad. So many companies treat bad news like the plague. Sales teams are taught to “always be positive,” but an attitude of “always be accurate and let’s find a way to succeed,” is more productive (and realistic). In meetings and one-on-ones, your goal should be to motivate as well as problem solve. Always encourage your team to report all the news.

5) Use crises as an opportunity to develop people. You are a leader for a reason! Rather than shy away from a crisis (a big deal lost, unexpected bad news, major delay in delivery, etc.), teach your team members how to find opportunity in crises and how to grow as professionals and as people. Focus on the skills or attitudes that are needed to overcome the situation, and work with them to develop and strengthen them.

This 5-step method to exercising authority is powerful and will establish you as a leader and as the “Go To” person in your company. And isn’t that why you are in a position of authority to begin with? Redefine your position of leadership by using and expanding on the 5 secrets above, and involve and build your team while you lead them to greater heights.

Learn how to close more sales by Downloading this Free Report: "Ten Techniques to Instantly Become a Better Closer". You'll find word for word scripts and techniques that you can begin using today to overcome objections and close more sales.

The Most Important Seven Seconds Of Your Sale

Did you know that studies have shown that people who are meeting us for the first time form an opinion about us in the first seven to seventeen seconds after they set eyes on us? I found that awe inspiring. It just goes to show you how vital the first few moments are when you are meeting potential new clients. If you are in marketing you need to use those seconds to your advantage.

By Steve King

Did you know that studies have shown that people who are meeting us for the first time form an opinion about us in the first seven to seventeen seconds after they set eyes on us? I found that awe inspiring. It just goes to show you how vital the first few moments are when you are meeting potential new clients. If you are in marketing you need to use those seconds to your advantage.

So how can you tip the odds of those first seventeen seconds giving out a good impression, in your favour? I reckon I have learnt a bit about that over the years.

First of all most people respond very well to knowing that they are the centre of your undivided attention. Even if they claim not to be the type of person who likes to be the centre of attention they will subconsciously form a more favorable impression of you if you make it clear that you are far more interested in their needs than your own.

Make it all about the client form the start. We all know people who never stop talking about themselves. Think about it, do you ever like them?

The second thing I have realized is that it is not enough to just sit there and appear to be listening you have to actively show that you are engaged in what they are saying. I have a friend (clearly not a close one) who is forever scanning the room with his eyes while you are talking to him, it is very disconcerting and I now find myself trying to avoid social situations with him. I just don’t feel like he is interested in what I am saying. This is the last thing you want your client to think about you. Look at them and give appropriate verbal responses. Let’s face it if you can’t do that much you are probably not going to make the sale.

A lot of people say you should use the name of the new person frequently. While it is undoubtedly a good idea to let the person know that you are interested enough in them to remember their name I have a warning to sound about this one. Whenever I meet someone who throws my name into every second sentence I immediately think they are trying to charm me, I then question why that would be. Use the persons name by all means but not so much that they question your motives or doubt your sincerity. That is clearly not the result you are looking for. In the sales game it is probably a disaster.

It is important to make all these important opening moments in any relationship work for you and convincing someone that you are genuine and sincere person is vital but you probably are anyway, you are just giving them a chance to realise that as quickly as possible.

Lastly, I would say that if this first meeting does not get across the impression you were hoping for don’t despair. Though it is true that we never get another chance at a first impression human relationships are complex and built up over time. A follow up second and third can change the conclusions they came to in those first seventeen seconds. I firmly believe this. Surely we all have friends that for what ever reason we did not like when we first met them?

If you're interested in learning more about the art of selling, be sure to check out http://www.beginnersguidetosales.com/ where Steve will take you on a step-by-step journey through an easy to follow sales process. You can also visit Steve at Marketing Matters by clicking http://www.steveking.biz

Quick Tips To Get High Powered Publicity For Your Business

Find out the insider secrets to using publicity to empower your business and corporate communications strategy. You'll learn how to stay visible to your target audience, build awareness of your brand and encourage interested prospective clients to take action.

By Annie Jennings

What can business learn from successful businesses that use publicity strategies to stay in front of their clients and customers? Plenty! Getting publicity on your business allows you to create a substantial and compelling competitive advantage for your business. Want to be at the top of your industry? Publicity is the key.

One thing many businesses may wonder about is if accessing the media for publicity and brand name awareness costs a ton of money. The answer is no. You can get publicity for your business easily and within your budget.

In addition to staying visible to your target audience using publicity on radio shows, in newspapers and magazines and on TV shows, successful business go the extra mile for their customers and your clients and customers love these businesses for it.

Clients want to make investments in services that provide a return on their investment and they want guarantees so they don’t wind up wasting financial resources.

Be center stage in your industry. Stay competitive in publicity and promotion and make sure it is you or your business commenting on the issues in the news and not your competitors.

Stay consistent in your publicity outreach as this is important to creating your company’s competitive edge as clients want to do business with the vital companies making a difference.

Get quoted expert media placements, publicity on your company, be seen and heard in media including Radio, TV, Magazines, Online and Newspapers.

Be engaged in the success of your target market. When your business becomes part of the success model of other businesses you have achieved a great goal. Ask yourself, what if I were the client, what woudl I want to see available in products and services to bring my company to its next level of success? Once you discover the answer to this question create products and services that your marketplace and your clients can use to add profits to their bottom line.

One of the best business strategies is to understand what your client needs to go to their next level of success and create these resources for them. Stay cutting edge yourself too so you are always one step ahead of the services your client will need.

As your clients integrate your products and services in their business model, be working on the next higher level product as soon these new products will naturally be in demand. Always strive to create the better mousetrap for your clients to ensure your success!

Business publicity secrets can be yours! Annie Jennings PR is an expert public relations firm that works with individuals, businesses and corporations who wish to stay visibile and create their competitive advantage with publicity. Contact Annie Jennings PR and a national publicist can let you know how publicity can help you achieve your highest level of publicity success.

How to Have People Interested in What You Are Saying For Once

A beginners-guide to using story to become more compelling when you speak. Whether you are trying to persuade your daughter to do her homework, or a customer to buy your product.

By Daniel Batten

By using the 3 tips below, you will pick up - a formula to tell people information about your product so they remember it and buy it. - a simple structure to give people facts in a presentation so they stay alert and interested. - a 3-part method you can use to sell ideas without people feeling like you are selling. For example, you can even sell to your teenager the facts about why s/he should do their homework. When applied, these tips will make what you say memorable, even if people currently don’t listen to what you say at all.

We humans have evolved to store information in our heads when its told in a story. Think of story like the supermarket shelf, and the information being the food. Imagine shopping in a supermarket with no shelves. That’s the way people feel listening to you when you give information without a story. No-one can resist a good story well told, The three tools below will show you how to make your stories interesting, so nobody gets bored and thinks they’d rather get shot in the face than listen to you. The first three rules below will get you started!

Tip 1: The “What’s the Point” Phrase.

Have you ever heard a story that went all over the place? - no beginning, middle or end? Perhaps it was you who was giving it? By using this next tool, you can stop this from happening ever again.

The secret is to use a “What’s the point” phrase. This phrase sums up the point in 10 words. If you don’t have a “What’s the point” phrase, you don’t have a story.

For example, if you are telling a story about how you locked yourself out of your apartment half-dressed’ ask yourself “What’s the point?” Is it - “Thinking ahead saves time” or - “We find creative solutions when we have no other choice” or - “Every problem has a solution?” or - “You can trust me. I’m prepared to tell a story that paints me in a less-than-glowing light!

Whatever you choose as your phrase, you then need to cut out anything (no matter how good) that doesn’t relate to that phrase.

Tip 2: Edit yourself.

You don’t have to have a pen and paper to edit. You can practice editing in your own head by asking yourself a couple of simple questions. See, most humans over-explain things. That’s because we care about what we are talking about. But they don’t… yet. Here’s how you make them care.

Every word should be treated as though it has a cost: don’t get charged “extra baggage” for every unnecessary word.

When it comes to people being interested in what you say: Remember: less is more. So rather than thinking “does this add more info” ask yourself “does this improve the power-to-weight ratio of my story”.

Stop worrying “how much information can I say” and start asking yourself “how much information will they remember?” By asking yourself these editing questions, you will start to speak in a way that others can remember, because you removed what wasn’t memorable before you opened your mouth.

Tip 3: Add spice.

What gives a story spice? Cool characters and delicious dialog right? Its very easy to create this yourself. Rather than say “I went to see my My General Manager and asked him to change some things about how he ran the company” say

That Thursday I saw my General Manager Graham Orphin - think Art Garfunkel with a moustache and English Accent. I said “Ummm, I have some ideas on what this company can do better” and then I listed them.“number one ...”.

Why is this so much more effective? Because it lets the person listening to you form a mental picture of the person, and the dialog allows them to relive your moment with you.

Doing this enhances their connection with you because they can connect to your story, and connection is the key for people being interested in what you say.

Everyone loves a good story-teller. Story profoundly improves business-results and definitely increases your market worth, making life more fun for you and those around you. There is more to it - but this is plenty for now: better to pinpoint the “low hanging fruit” than get overwhelmed and end up getting no fruit at all.

Daniel Batten makes products to help you succeed in your business/career by becoming a persuasive speaker, a compelling GenX leader, or an indispensible employee. Find out more about how to increase your market worth today by subscribing to his free newsletter, available at: => http://beyondtheceiling.com/newsletter.html

Repetition is the Key to Sales Success

Don't wait for your boss to put you on a sales training program. Don't wait for your sales results to fall off a cliff. Don't wait until it's nearly too late to start. Start now and make regular sales training practice of your selling skills part of your daily habits. You'll be amazed what you can achieve from a mere 15 minutes a day practicing your basic sales skills.

By Gavin Ingham

Copyright (c) 2009 Gavin Ingham

“Repetition is the mother of all skill.” ~ Tony Robbins, author of Unlimited Power

In sales seminars and sales training programs I often talk about the difference between sales skills and sales techniques…

Sales techniques are something external to you, they are something that you hear or that you know. Sales skills are something that you own, they are yours through hard work and practice. And, what’s more, they won’t abandon you in even the toughest of markets.

When I speak at sales conferences many salespeople sit back, cross their arms and ask for “the advanced stuff”. They tell their boss that they don’t need sales training because they already know it, they’ve heard it all before…

Take open questions as an example. Any salesperson with more than about 5 minutes selling experience knows what an open question is - a question that requires more than a “yes” or “no” answer. We all know that open questions start with the words what, where, when, why, how, who which. But how many salespeople put undue sales pressure onto their clients by asking (self-centred) closed questions when they should be asking (well constructed) open questions?

“Most salespeople” is the correct answer.

The ability to ask great questions is one of the critical skills for being a sales superstar yet most salespeople fair badly at best in this area. Think back to the first time you were taught about open questions. Did you understand it? I’m guessing that you did. Let’s face it, it really isn’t that complicated is it? Most salespeople hear it, think that it makes sense and move on. They hear it, they acknowledge it but they never practice it. They get it intellectually but because they never practiced it, it never becomes a skill for them. It never becomes something that they own.

Put under pressure in a sales meeting or in a cold call, and with the adrenaline flowing, they revert to type asking controlling closed questions and “forgetting” to ask carefully constructed open ones.

As Robbins says, “Repetition is the mother of all skill.”

* If you want to be a great golfer you need to practice your swing, over and over.
* If you want to be a great pianist you need to practice your scales, over and over.
* If you want to be a great at anything you need to practice it, over and over.
* If you want to be a great salesperson you need to practice your sales skills, over and over.

If you are a salesperson and you want to outsell your competition and win more clients fast, you need to create an ongoing sales development program for yourself that includes regular practice of all of the sales training basics.

Don’t wait for your boss to put you on a sales training program. Don’t wait for your sales results to fall off a cliff. Don’t wait until it’s nearly too late to start. Start now and make regular sales training practice of your selling skills part of your daily habits. You’ll be amazed what you can achieve from a mere 15 minutes a day practicing your basic sales skills.

If you’re a sales manager, sales leader or business owner then you need to think about how you can help your sales team to practice their core sales skills regularly. One-off training is not enough by itself. You need to create ongoing sessions and exercises for them to participate in, both individually and as a team.

Not convinced it’s worth the effort? Not convinced you can get the same results? Not convinced that you buy into this whole practice argument? What would Tiger Woods, David Beckham and Johnny Wilkinson tell you to do?

I rest my case.

For more sales training tips, tricks and strategies visit http://www.gaviningham.com now. Blogs, articles, podcasts, videos and a free sales newsletter.

Do a Sales Job on Yourself

Resolve to put your customer's interests first and watch your sales increase.

By Charles H. Green

Let's get real for a minute. If you look up the dictionary definition of the word “sell,” you may not like some of what you find. There are unpleasant synonyms and usages, words like "persuasion," "inducement," "sell out," "hard sell" and "sell down the river.

"Selling, in other words, doesn't have an entirely good reputation, but you probably already knew that quite well. You know some people who react negatively to being "sold" and even deplore sales as a career. You've probably spent some energy justifying the role even to yourself.

All this makes it hard to do a great job selling. Unfortunately positive thinking alone won't change people's perceptions. And crossing over to the dark side--accepting the role of con artist and hustler--is ugly, immoral and doesn't work well, anyway.

But there's a way out, a way of acknowledging the tough reputation of sales and overcoming it at the same time. It involves the most important sale you'll make--the sale inside your head.

Pick one of these simple ideas, however you say it:

-You get more sales by getting people what they want than by trying to sell them what you want.
-If you stop trying to control people, they'll cooperate with you.
-If you listen to people first, they will then listen to you.
-If you help people you increase your chances of making sales.
-If you put your customers' interests ahead of your own, you'll end up better off than if you tried to achieve your own ends directly.

There's a good reason most customers are suspicious of salespeople: Most salespeople are, in fact, more motivated by getting the sale than they are by helping their customers. And it's made worse by the sales professionals' relentless pursuit of efficiency, closing and objection handling--all of which are about the salesman, not the customer.

The idea is so plain it can be difficult to believe. It seems paradoxical: Stop trying to control your customers and you'll get better results than if you try every trick in the book.

People want to buy from those they trust. The best way to be trusted by your customers is simply to be worthy of their trust. Be trustworthy. That means truth-telling and transparency. Above all, a relentless focus on the best interests of your customers will earn their trust.

If you constantly serve your customers' ends, you'll gain a reputation for being trustworthy. When people trust you, they hassle you less about price, they refer you to others, you get fewer competitive and more sole-source bids, higher repeat rates and far more cooperation from your customers.

Successfully selling yourself on building a trust-based relationship is a win-win. Customers get their interests served better, and you get your interests served better. But this only happens when you don't lead from your own self-interest.

That simple, internal sales job is not all that easy. But the very best salespeople in nearly all industries have managed to make that sale. They have convinced themselves that everyone, themselves included, is better off if their primary focus is serving their customers.

Put it another way: Make your own sales not a goal, but a byproduct, a byproduct of making customer satisfaction your primary goal.

Harness the Power of Suprise

Don't ask your prospects what they want - tell them what they need.

By Mark Stevens

I am always amazed when mediocre salespeople engage in their miserable excuse for selling. It's like they've slipped their prospects a pill and believe they can close by putting them to sleep.

Think about it: The Willy Lomans of the world walk in to see a prospect, turn down the lights, flip on the slideshow and everyone in attendance knows they are about to be sold.

The problem is that no one wants to be sold. As soon as their sales pitch detectors start to vibrate, they begin to turn off and put up the anti-sales shield. And the Willy Loman clone is a goner--shoeshine, smile and all.

So what to do? Never appear to be selling anything. Refrain from bringing any classic sales crutches with you. No catalogues. No portfolios. No price lists. No memos. These components of the traditional sales process are damaging for several reasons. They reinforce the expectation that you are just another salesperson and activate the sales guard detector. They deflect attention from you--and from the spell you must create to turn the sales visit into an experience. Most important, they deprive you of the element of surprise. And in the vast majority of cases, that's a deal killer. Here's how you can introduce and maintain the element--the power--of surprise.

Don't start by asking prospects what their needs are. That drivel is right out of the standard-issue sales coach playbook, and it's the polar opposite of what you should do.

What you should do is to control the agenda. Once you ask a question at the outset, you actually hand the stage over to the other party. You have lost it. Instead, start by providing a brief but highly compelling overview of what makes you, your product or company different and powerful. Instead of asking questions, do all of the talking right from the outset, telling a story that is engaging enough to captivate the prospect.

Case in point: I run a marketing firm that I believe is dramatically different from the standard aesthetics-focused firm. Instead, we're driven to grow businesses and to generate return on marketing investments.

I use the first 15 minutes of every prospect meeting to clearly and forcefully make this point. I don't "sell" in the classic sense. I educate. I do it with passion and conviction. I don't ask prospects what they need or want at this point. And they like what they hear because they have been frustrated by the standard-issue marketing firm that has failed to grow their businesses.

It's the element of surprise at work.

Once you begin to engage in a two-way conversation, don't automatically agree to meet your prospects' perceived needs. Why? In many cases, what they think they need isn't in their best interests. As the expert in what it is you're offering, you have experience and expertise that you need to share with your prospects.

Although it may seem counterintuitive, prospects respect you more when you say "no" to their requests--and provide them with more creative solutions--than if you simply provide what they ask for at the outset.

Every time you demonstrate that you're a solutions provider--an expert with the strength of your convictions as opposed to being an order taker--you rise in stature. And you reinforce the element of surprise.

Testimonials are the Only Proof You've Got

Who is better at selling your product, you or your customer's testimonial?

Not even close. Your customer can outsell you one hundred to one. And even though you intuitively know this, you still thin you have to "sell" and "educate" the prospect. Nothing could be more powerful than the words of one customer who loves you, telling a customer thinking about doing business with you to DO IT! Are you going to believe your next door neighbor who just bought a car like the one you want, or a car salesman? Neighbor of course. Same with your business.

The most powerful person on your sales team is your customer.

Knowing that, why don't you take your customer with you on sales calls? They're better than you at closing the sale. way better. Your customer, your cat AND your kids sell better than you. You are the WORST salesperson on your team.

Testimonial power secret.

Most salespeople are so hell bent to get a testimonial, that they get the wrong kind, AND they fail to capture the most important element of a sale: Buy motives.

Worth remembering:

Asking a customer to tell you their reasons for purchasing from you will get you hundreds more sales of the same type.

Buying motives are 1,000 times more powerful than selling skills. Make that 10,000.

Ask the Wrong Questions. Get the Wrong Answers.

The most important aspect of making a sale - is also a major weakness of every salesperson. Asking questions.

It's an enigma to me. Questions are so critical, you'd think it would be the topic of training every week. Yet salespeople are odds on favorites to have never taken one training program in the science of asking a question.

How critical? The first personal (rapport) question sets the tone for the meeting, and the first business question sets the tone for the sale. That's critical. Benefits of asking the right question? Good question.

Here are 10 benefits to make sales by:

(1) Quality the buyer.

(2) Establish rapport.

(3) Create prospect disparity.

(4) Eliminate or differentiate from the competition.

(5) Build credibility.

(6) Know the customer and their business.

(7) Identify needs

(8) Find hot buttons.

(9) Get personlal information.

(10) Close the sale.

Here's the challenge:

Get every prospect and customer to say "No one ever asked me that before."

Here are 8 questioning success strategies:

(1) Ask prospect questions that make him evalutate new information.

(2) Ask question that qualify needs.

(3) Ask questions about improved productivity, profits or savings.

(4) Ask questions aout company or personal goals.

(5) Ask questions that separate you from your competition - no compare you to them.

(6) Ask question that make the customer or prospect think before giving a response.

(7) Ask Power Questions to create a BUYING atmosphere - not a selling one.

(8) CRITIAL SUCCESS STRATEGY: To enhance your listening skills, write down answers. it prove you care, preserves your data for follow-up, keeps the record straight, and makes the customer feel important.