This isn’t a hard concept, its common sense actually. However, it is also paired with hard work and long hours, therefore, many ignore doing this. Instead, they would rather bang out 100 cold calls and get nowhere… or, worse yet, they may spend half the day researching leads only to make a call and get shut down. They do this because it is simply the activity that fits into their scheduled work hours.
Fish Where the Fish Are
Posted by Flavil on April 13, 2013
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2013/04/13/fish-where-the-fish-are/
New Year, New Goals
It’s now the end of January and you should have had time to reflect on your achievements from the past year. If you’re still reflecting, now is the time to stop. The top producers forget about the past and are always moving forward toward the future. They are not content with past success or past earnings, they simply know that the revenue must keep coming in for them to earn commissions and eventually get promoted.
My new year’s advice is: Read the full post »
Posted by Flavil on January 27, 2013
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2013/01/27/new-year-new-goals/
Effort or Experience? If You Must Choose, Which One Do You Pick?
The ultimate question for managers. Most want both, and if you can find a salesperson that does both, do whatever you can to keep that person forever. However, many times it’s a struggle. For one reason or another, experience leads to less effort and sales behaviors that have the potential of harming the department.
So I ask the question – How do you handle the experienced salesperson who can put up some numbers but doesn’t exude the principles and effort that you would like in your department?
Here is the rub. Salespeople believe that as long as they are putting up numbers that everything is okay. They believe that revenue dominates every other action that may be displayed. To a certain point, they are correct, however, we all know that other actions are taken into consideration.
This situation can be defined in that age old saying “Risk vs Reward”. How much do you value this salesperson’s production versus the potential damage that is being done to the department. Read the full post »
Posted by Flavil on January 19, 2013
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2013/01/19/effort-or-experience-if-you-must-choose-which-one-do-you-pick/
Sell to Their Value, Not Yours
Over breakfast the other day, my friend mentioned how he was running in the morning but that the weather was killing him. I then belted out, without thinking, “join the YMCA you can afford it”. The look from my friend said it all. See, he could more than afford the monthly membership to the YMCA, however, he never joined because he wasn’t sure if it was worth it. This is a common mistake that salespeople make. They pitch on what they “think” someone could or should buy, not necessarily what they want to buy.
Now, don’t get me wrong. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t show a prospect premium items. You should, but
only because you believe that the product you’re pitching is the best value for the prospect’s investment.
The secret to doing this correctly is to find the buyers’ value. Below are subjects that can help identify what is valuable to them. Once you find that, take those values and compare to your offering(s). Read the full post »
Posted by Flavil on January 1, 2013
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2013/01/01/sell-to-their-value-not-yours/
How Good Could You Really Be?
Have you ever looked up at the end of the year, see your numbers and thought you could have done better? Even if you have had an outstanding year, if that July slump didn’t happen, or if that one big deal would have closed you would have sold and earned more.
The truth is that it’s not that one sale or that one slump caused you not to maximize. Most likely it was the culmination of several acts that led to your final results.
You most likely hit a period of the year where you changed your behavior for the worse.
Sometimes success is our greatest enemy. When things are going well we tend to think that our fortunes won’t change. This causes us to become complacent with our actions, attitude, and strategy. When this happens, we make ourselves susceptible for a slump, or off sales year. While this happens to the best of us, there are certainly ways to minimize the risks.
Keep Your Focus: When things are going well, we should not only keep doing them, but should maximize our efforts. Ever hear the saying that the best time to make a sale is after a sale? If you’re on a hot streak do everything possible to keep it going. Do not change your behavior. Read the full post »
Posted by Flavil on October 13, 2012
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2012/10/13/how-good-could-you-really-be/
Time to Self Motivate, Double Down Effort, and Work Smart
Ever find yourself in a sales rut? You’ve been cruising along putting up numbers but then suddenly your pipeline is empty.
Often times it is the successful salespeople who get stuck in neutral first. They believe that they can kick it into high gear later on, but a majority of the time this simply backfires and they suddenly find themselves in the middle of the pack. This is how a top salesperson turns into a mediocre one…they put themselves in neutral and they don’t take advantage of every opportunity. Read the full post »
Posted by Flavil on September 19, 2012
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2012/09/19/time-to-self-motivate-double-down-effort-and-work-smart/
Create an All-Star Roster
Every person who works in sports tends to loves sports and most think they can be a general manager. They read the sports pages and talk around the cooler about how lousy of a job the local team’s general manager is doing.
Think further about this. If you are a hiring manager, aren’t you, in essence doing the same job as a sports general manager? You are managing a roster of people who have a common task to achieve, right? Haven’t you made that “can’t miss” hire who interviewed well but didn’t deliver on the (sales) floor? And if you have a stingy HR department that is over processed, you may as well be working with contracted employees since you can’t move on the bad ones. Seems like you might be stuck with the roster that you drafted (hired). You’re doing the same job just in a different function, look at it that way and it’s not so easy to be a general anymore huh?
If you can avoid the Jamarcus Russell picks while assembling a mix of superstars along with some role players, you’ll be set. Just like any GM would. There are some tips to help avoid these pitfalls, read below. Read the full post »
Posted by Flavil on September 10, 2012
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2012/09/10/create-an-all-star-roster/
You are a Brand, Control It
I’m sick of hearing salespeople, or just employees for that matter, play the blame game. They blame their spouse, they blame their leads, they blame their territory, they blame their employer, and so on. In essence, they hold everyone else accountable except for themselves. They blame others for their failure or mediocrity. They let others dictate their brand.
Believe it or not, you are a brand. Sometimes it’s referred to as a reputation when speaking to a person, but I believe that it’s bigger than that. I believe that people are a brand that can add value to themselves regardless of the situation.
You build a solid brand by making yourself better, by accomplishing tasks, and by building a reputation as an expert. You can’t do it by sitting in your cubicle, so get busy with the steps below. Read the full post »
Posted by Flavil on September 1, 2012
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2012/09/01/you-are-a-brand-control-it/
Three Tips for Sales Presentations
Its funny when you are the prospect being pitched by some sales guy, it is also very interesting. You get to critique his technique, you know what he is trying to do, you know when the close is coming, and you can talk circles around his pitch. However, when you run into a really good salesperson, you find yourself enthralled with their talent. I had this experience last week when a salesperson visited me at my home. That salesperson was experienced, in both age and years of selling, and while I thought I knew how I was going to stop his antics, he surprised me by providing credibility, solving objections before they occur, and had the guts to close on the spot. Lets revisit his techniques. Read the full post »
Posted by Flavil on August 26, 2012
http://flavil.wordpress.com/2012/08/26/three-tips-for-sales-presentations/
Better Yourself
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