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THE WORLD’S BEST SALESPEOPLE excel at asking engaging questions and actively listening to a prospect’s response without interruption. They master the art of posing high-impact questions that generate insightful responses which offer a glimpse into a prospect’s decision-making process, competitors also under consideration, the likelihood of purchase, or even the…

LET’S FACE IT. Many people don’t have a positive reaction to the word “sales.” It’s often associated with old-style, won’t-take-no-for-an-answer tactics that involve selling a product or service even when it’s not right for the customer. Consultative selling is much more effective. Some call it needs-based or strategic selling. This…

IN SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE, Stephen Covey wrote, “Seek first to understand, then to be understood.” This principle alone has the power to solve an industry-wide sales challenge: underdeveloped listening skills. In today’s Information Age, prospective customers often come to the table armed with enough facts to make…

EVEN THOUGH you will need to identify your prospect’s needs before you make a successful sale, your knowledge won’t mean much if your relationship with the prospect isn’t built on trust. Smart buyers are generally willing to consider the guidance of salespeople, but only if trust has been established first….

REGARDLESS OF THE STRENGTH of the sales pitch, or even the quality of the products and services, the reality is that people buy from those they like and trust. The challenge for sales professionals is to master the art of instant rapport with someone you may be meeting for the…

EIGHT SECONDS is not only the length of a successful bull ride, it’s also how long we have to leave a first impression on those we meet. For bull riders, that eight seconds is an eternity — but for the rest of us, it’s gone in the mere blink of…

THOMAS WATSON, President of IBM in the fifties, insightfully declared, “Nothing happens until a sale is made.” A company’s sales effort is the ultimate driver of organizational growth. It is the most critical function within any company and requires advanced training and intestinal fortitude for success. Since the sales profession…

WHEN YOUR BUSINESS is young, you naturally welcome every new customer with open arms so you can find your footing, but too many business owners have trouble breaking that pattern even after their businesses are more established. If the “say yes to everything” mentality trickles down to the front line…

THIRTY YEARS AGO, before caller ID and voicemail, we actually answered our phone to find out who was on the other end. Eek. Gasp. Horror. Since those days are long behind us, savvy sales teams have learned to view caller ID and voicemail as vital selling tools, not agonizingly restrictive…

PLANNING ISN’T the most glamorous part of cold calling, but it’s worth the investment every time. It’s always been interesting to me — from a sales psychology perspective — how sales professionals often spend more time fretting about a potential rejection than actually planning for the cold call. Fear can…

COLD CALLING has a bad reputation, and even the best sales teams dread dialing complete strangers. In reality, the make-or-break moment in most cold calls comes in the first 10-20 seconds of the call, beginning when you say your first word and going until the prospect gives you permission to…

NOTHING SHORTENS the sales cycle more dramatically than talking to the right person, right off the bat; so, why do sales teams pitch to contacts who aren’t the real decision-makers? Usually, sales teams prioritize the wrong person because of a lack of confidence. After all, the likelihood of outright rejection…