At the Fortune Magazine Scaling Up Conference in Atlanta, Verne Harnish, author of Scaling Up, Founder of Gazelles and Entrepreneurs Organization called me to the stage. He asked me to share a sales tip with the audience of 1000 growth-focused business leaders. As I...
I give a lot of seminars on business development; how to get in the door with prospects, how to get better outcomes from prospect meetings, how to overcome objections, how to increase sales with current clients, you get the idea. Whether I have business owners, VP’s...
While most of us need a second chance now and then in life, there are rarely second chances in business development. You can’t call a busy vice president or CEO a second time and say, “Hey, our first conversation really didn’t go the way that I wanted it to. Can we...
Just because you received the news that you didn’t get the sale doesn’t mean there still isn’t an opportunity for you. By taking the right actions, you could change your prospect's mind this time or set yourself up to win the next time. Here’s how to do it:...
What's another word for a decision maker in a sales situation? It is a prospect, a lead or a potential client, etc. These are all names we use to describe those we want to buy from us. However, something is missing from these words. It’s the human element. We need to...
Many Business Owners and Salespeople express frustration, when they reach prospects on the phone only to find the conversation cut short by the decision maker’s request, “send me some information.” I’ve heard stories of sellers who hang up and never send the...
Networking, whether it is in person, via Linked In or in another manner, can have a lasting effect on future referrals. This is your opportunity to deepen the relationship with Centers of Influence. If done properly and with sincerity, you can have a referral source...
Maximizing relationships means you find ways to get new dollars from existing clients. Generally speaking, you want to work to increase your share of sale with your clients that may need more from you. You want to purposefully work toward getting a bigger “piece of...
We can’t control the economic climate we work in, but we can face it and make the most of it. Ten years ago, you could offer to save a company 10 percent on a product or service, and that might have been enough to close the sale. Now, that kind of savings is not worth...
What’s better, consultative or transactional selling? It depends on the situation and the company’s goals. The problem comes when you need one approach and miss sales because you have the other. As an example, a seller can sell one item to one decision maker OR sell...
Executive decision makers have until year end to make things happen before their reviews. Not only do they need to complete initiatives on their list to get their bonuses and great scores, but also, those looking for promotions must showcase themselves to management....
For many, fourth quarter can be a time to reflect on decisions made over the last year. What worked, what didn’t? What to continue doing to meet your goals and what to stop doing? As you may be embarking on this kind of reflection as well, I thought it would be...