Recently we released our new white paper, Your Guide to Insight Selling Success. Like anything, insight selling comes with its own potential pitfalls. To help you avoid them, we have outlined the most common insight selling mistakes. Some points are tactical, and others strategic. Each is listed under a general area that is key to… Read More
3 of the Most Powerful Questions in Sales
Asking powerful sales questions is essential for sales success. Buyers want to work with sellers who understand their situation and propose a solution that’s tailored to them. To uncover their needs and help them create better futures, it’s going to take some probing. While there are different categories of questions you can ask, there’s one… Read More
3 Ways to Add Value to Your Sales Meetings (Most Sellers Don’t Do)
One of the most eye-opening stats from our latest research, Top Performance in Sales Prospecting, is the lack of value buyers report receiving in their sales meetings. Many sellers talk about value and say they provide exceptional value to their customers, yet few are actually delivering on this promise. In the study of 488 buyers,… Read More
4 Steps to Fill Your Pipeline with Quality Opportunities
Prospecting is a challenge for even the most experienced sellers, and with the shift to working, buying, and selling virtually, organic opportunities to make new connections and create conversations have disappeared. There aren’t any in-person networking events, tradeshows, travel, or opportunities to grab dinner, a cup of coffee, or attend a sporting event together. Filling… Read More
4 Ways to Improve Productivity
I can hardly read a magazine, pick up a business book, or watch a talk show without hearing someone talking about the latest trick for improving productivity. Being a skeptical person, my first reaction to these claims is “show me the research.” Sure enough, nine times out of 10 these “tips” aren’t backed by any… Read More
4 Ways to Improve Productivity
I can hardly read a magazine, pick up a business book, or watch a talk show without hearing someone talking about the latest trick for improving productivity. Being a skeptical person, my first reaction to these claims is “show me the research.” Sure enough, nine times out of 10 these “tips” aren’t backed by any… Read More
5 Common Sales Negotiation Mistakes
Negotiations are everywhere. From selling big corporate deals and setting salaries to deciding what to watch on TV and getting your kids to eat their vegetables, we’re constantly playing a game of give and take. For every negotiation you encounter, you’ll find at least ten different pieces of advice telling you ten different ways to… Read More
5 Roles of a Sales Coach
Great sales managers need to be great sales coaches, and great sales coaches do five things well. Most leaders agree the opportunity to improve sales performance through coaching is tremendous. Unfortunately, while companies are enjoying success with business coaching in general, sales coaching is often a major disappointment. When done well, sales coaching produces excellent… Read More
5 Steps to Collaborate with Buyers in the Selling Process
When buyers buy something, one of two things must be true: They are required to buy. They want to buy. In the former, they have no choice. Get sued, hire a lawyer. Buying = required. The lawyer doesn’t need to convince the buyer why to buy legal services in general, only why to buy them… Read More
50 Powerful Sales Questions
Asking incisive questions is an essential part of any sales conversation. Great sales questions help you find out what’s going on in your buyer’s world. They help you connect with buyers, understand buyer needs and what’s important to them, and help you drive the sale forward. In this guide, we share 50 of the most… Read More
7 Ideas for Building Trust in Sales
Lots of things have changed in the world of sales, but some things have not. Building trust was important 50 years ago, and it’s just as important today. When buyers trust sellers, they depend on them, listen to them, give them access, and spend time with them. Trust is critical for sales success. But today’s… Read More
7 Price Objections and What’s Behind Them
Money and budget issues are tricky, and they are almost never what they first appear. When buyers say some version of “Money is going to be a problem,” they often mean something else. Below are 7 common price objections we hear and what buyers are really thinking when they say them. Decoding the 7 Types… Read More
7 Qualities of a Great Sales Negotiator
What makes a great negotiator? Negotiation is a craft that can be learned by just about anyone, as I discussed in my recent podcast with RainToday. There are, however, certain characteristics of great negotiators that are difficult to develop through the even the most rigorous of training initiatives. They are qualities you either have or… Read More
7 Ways to Build Rapport in Sales and Connect with People
The following is expanded content from our new book Rainmaking Conversations: Influence, Persuade, and Sell in Any Situation. In this piece, co-authors Mike Schultz and John Doerr explain how to make sincere connections with prospects to help close more deals. Read more about the book here. Consider this: a CBS News / New York Times… Read More
9 Habits of Extreme Productivity
The most successful sellers are motivated, proactive, focused, and goal-oriented. Indeed, they get the most done and achieve the best results in less time. So what makes these sellers significantly more productive? We all have the same number of hours in a day, yet some sellers achieve considerably more than others. The answer: They’re systematic…. Read More
9 Principles of Virtual Learning Success
Since the global pandemic of 2020 began, virtual training has become an imperative. But designing and delivering effective virtual training is more the exception than the norm. Virtual training failure is all too common. That’s because virtual training that works is still in its infancy, and most organizations struggle to convert what works for in-person… Read More
Be Assertive in Sales (Without Getting Fired)
A long time ago, I was fly fishing with a grizzled, old, big company leadership consultant. I asked him what he thought differentiated good consultants from great consultants—those at the pinnacle of the game. He said, “Let me think.” A little while later, we were in the middle of the river when he turned to… Read More
Curious How to Win More Sales?
One of the major findings of our research on What Sales Winners Do Differently is that today’s sales winners don’t just sell the value of their products and services, they are the value. They are knowledgeable experts who bring ideas and new perspectives to the table. Essentially, they harness the power of ideas when selling,… Read More
How to Build Fluent Product Knowledge and Improve Sales Success
Build product knowledge to improve sales success. Salespeople know what they sell, and they sell what they know. When it comes to salesperson knowledge, people know too little about their particular industry, their customers’ needs, and their company’s products and services to be able to sell the full suite of solutions. Without this knowledge they… Read More
How to Lead a Masterful Sales Negotiation
A sales negotiation can be lengthy, nerve-wracking, and complex. For many sellers, every negotiation adds at least one gray hair. The challenge is that too many people find themselves in a sales negotiation, but they don’t understand the underlying dynamics of how sales negotiations work. To help you master the art of sales negotiation, we’ve… Read More
Is Relationship Building in Sales Dead?
There’s been a lot of noise the last couple years declaring relationship selling dead. “The Internet has changed everything.” “Personal connections don’t matter anymore.” “Selling is not about relationships.” “Throw out everything you thought you knew about sales, Armageddon is coming!” Blah, blah, etc. As we’ve discussed before, we strongly disagree with the idea that… Read More
LinkedIn for Sales [Free Guide + Tools]
82% of buyers will look up a seller on LinkedIn before replying to a seller’s prospecting efforts. How are you showing up on LinkedIn? What does your profile look like and say about you? Your profile is a reflection of who you are and the value you can deliver. And when more than 8 in… Read More
Negotiation Tactics: Who Should Go First?
Too many sellers wait for the buyer to drive the sales negotiation. Instead, sellers should go first and take control. Rule No. 3 in the 6 Essential Rules of Sales Negotiation is Lead the Negotiation. When buyers take control, sellers are often left playing catch up, and reacting instead of leading the negotiation to a… Read More
Not Hitting Your Sales Numbers? Do This One Thing Better
“Like a poor marksman you keep…missing…the target. Kaaahhhnnn!!!” – Admiral James T. Kirk There was this one sales person I know that worked very hard, but he always seemed to be middle of the pack when it came to results. He had good skills. He was a good guy. But the results just weren’t there…. Read More