Posts Tagged "sales training"

No I wont recommend your app.

July 12th, 2016 |no comments

When app developers ask if I would recommend their app they are assuming that I want to recommend it.

I’m not sure if anyone sits around thinking, “Now who can I recommend this app to?”

They ask this because they want their app recommended – and that’s fair enough.

But that’s not where the users’ thoughts are. Their thoughts are how easy the app is to use, how functional it is and if they like it.

If that is where their thoughts are, that’s the place to start. Simply ask, “How do you like our app?” If the user likes it then you can suggest they recommend it. If the user doesn’t like it you get valuable feedback.

It’s like asking if you can move in on the first date. Sure you both might want to do that eventually, but the first date is not the time to ask.

What questions is your team asking?

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”. To find out more or to purchase copies of this book click here

 


The Value of Time

June 21st, 2016 |no comments

An in-house engineer is paid around $100,000 a year – give or take. That’s about $50 per hour.

Their employer charges them out at $150 per hour. That’s how they make their money.

If a sales person visits and offers them less than $150 potential value during the call they will not be invited back.

If they offer $150 in potential value the sales person will be seen as doing the bare minimum amount of work to get by. They generally aren’t invited back.

To be taken seriously, the sales person has to offer potential value greater than $150.

How much should be offered? Two times, five times, or ten times?

The answer to that is not as important as the value your sales team heads out with. A new brochure is about $1 in value – even full colour ones.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”. To find out more or to purchase copies of this book click here

 


The Awful Party Guest

June 7th, 2016 |no comments

There is nothing worse than the party guest who spends the whole time talking about themselves. You know the one – they are just itching to tell you about what they do and why they are great. They are boring and to be avoided at all costs.

They’d be more interesting if they knew something about the person they were speaking to and could share what they do in a way that would be interesting to them. Unfortunately they don’t.

Are your sales presentations that awful party guest? The way you tell is to look at the first few slides of your sales presentation. If it’s about your company you could be that guest.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”. To find out more or to purchase copies of this book click here

 


Unique vs. Relevant

May 31st, 2016 |no comments

 

Terminal uniqueness is a curse we suffer. We think we are unique – just like everybody else. We have the best service, a great product at the right price. Do you want to buy one?*

To us these are obvious factors that drive what we do. But to the customer it is just marketing guff. It’s all noise not music.

You’re better off to be relevant. When you’re relevant, service, price and lead times fall to second level importance.

But you can only be relevant when you can diagnose the customers’ problem. If you don’t know their problems you wont be relevant. If you’re not relevant your service, price and product wont mean a thing. If they don’t mean a thing there is no reason to buy.

Be relevant before being unique.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”. To find out more or to purchase copies of this book click here

 


Context vs Content

May 17th, 2016 |no comments

In my psychology degree I was taught that there are three types of information about a situation. They are:

  • Context – Big picture stuff
  • Content – the nuts and bolts of what is going on
  • Meaning – the meaning of what is going on.

In counseling, it doesn’t matter what you do with the content if you don’t understand the context (e.g. If you want to stop someone gambling no intervention will work until you change the context of the patient hanging out with gamblers all day).

It is the same in sales. It doesn’t matter what content you sell if you don’t understand the context that the buyer is in.

Understand the buyer’s context first, then give the content. That will help you understand their meaning.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”, ​Due out May 2016. To find out more and register for pre-release information click here

 


What’s the agenda?

May 3rd, 2016 |no comments

In all the on-the-road sales mentoring I have done for clients, it is amazing to see that very few sales reps set an agenda for a sales call. An agenda that the customer sees before hand.

The result is that the sales person starts speaking about themselves without knowing what the customer wants to buy. This gives control of the sales call to the buyer and they can move you on when they have had enough.

Set an agenda that gives you control of the meeting and you will have more power in the conversation.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”, ​Due out May 2016. To find out more and register for pre-release information click here


Jump with Care

April 26th, 2016 |no comments

There is an old sales maxim that we do business with people we like. It makes sense and is at the heart of the relationship sales movement.

With so much competition in the market, this idea has evolved into doing business with people we deem as worthy of our trade.

If you want a buyer to give you an order number, they have to see that you are worthy of receiving it. They want to know if you’re their equal in the relationship or if they can walk all over you.

To see if you are worthy of the business, buyers will test you. It may be subtle (not returning a call when they said they would) or overt (talking over you or ignoring your comments in a meeting).

Sometimes they do this for fun (not sending that big order through until 6pm on a Friday afternoon) or because they want to see how you react (giving 24 hours to re-work a full tender).

These are hoops they put up for you to jump through. How you jump through them (or don’t) tells them how worthy of their business you are.

If they can walk all over you from day 1, how much power will you have when you need to negotiate further business?

Jumping through hoops shows where you sit in the relationship. Jump with care.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”, ​Due out May 2016. To find out more and register for pre-release information click here

 


The Only Reason Businesses Exist

April 19th, 2016 |no comments

Businesses exist to solve problems – no other reason.

If you sell legal services the problem you fix is ignorance of the law. If you sell lifting equipment the problem you solve is how to move heavy objects.

If you want to sell something to a business you need to help them solve problems. It could be the problems they solve (moving heavy objects) or problems they have in solving problems (they aren’t making their equipment fast enough to keep up with orders).

Whatever the business does, their problem is not that they don’t have your products. That’s your problem – not theirs.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”, ​Due out May 2016. To find out more and register for pre-release information click here.

 


Why are you Making this Sales Call?

April 12th, 2016 |no comments

There are three reasons why a sales person makes a sales call.

  1. Intro – ‘Hi I’m the new guy looking after you.’
  2. Info – ‘Hi, this is the information you asked for.’
  3. Sell – ‘Hi, this is the widget you need. It costs $10.’

 

In reality most calls are a mixture of all three. After all, you’re not going to knock back a sale when just scouting for information.

So why do you need to know this?

So you know when the sales call is over.

People who outstay their welcome are rarely appreciated. If you’re leaving simply because the allotted 30 minutes is up, you wont be welcomed back.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”, ​Due out May 2016. To find out more and register for pre-release information click here

 


The Super Suit

April 5th, 2016 |no comments

In Swimming in the early 2000’s, swimmers were allowed to wear the Super Suit. These Super Suits gave swimmers the edge over their rivals. They were beating records by over a second when they jumped in the water.

After a few meets, FINA decided that the suit needed to be banned. It was the super suit that was winning – not the athlete.

The suits provided a fundamental shift in the thinking of swimming. It was no longer just about the action of the athlete in the water, their nutrition or exercise regime. Every athlete had this down pat and there were only small differences between swimmers.

The change came from different thinking – what the scientists were doing in the lab. This change in thinking provided the next evolution in the sport. Everything evolves and swimming is no different.

The role of the sales rep has evolved too. To stand out in the market place they need to evolve to the next level.

I’ve put a report together that shows you where the next evolution will come from. If you’d like a copy, just hit reply and let me know.

 

This is an edited extract from my new book “Better Positioning Deeper Conversations More Sales”, ​Due out May 2016. To find out more and register for pre-release information click here

 


« Older Entries Newer Entries »

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

0422 670 659

call now!

Make an Enquiry

Please contact me to discus how you can help our team

Get This!