The trouble with sales training

By / / Sales Management, Sales Results, Sales Skills, Sales Training

What impact does attending a sales training program have on change?

It all depends on what type of training format your sales people attend. Too many companies look for quick fixes and waste heaps of money in the process.

Firstly forget Event Style training – you know those one day RAH RAH sessions that promise the world and deliver nothing in the long run. They DON’T work! They have the effect of a hot bath – nice whilst you are in it but it soon gets cold.

I am not saying all …

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Who is your brochure written for?

By / / Communication, Marketing, Sales Culture, Sales Relationships, Sales Skills, Social Media, Strategy, Value Proposition & Value Add

Have you ever looked at who most company brochures are written for?

Every sales person or manager I have posed this question to looks at me sheepishly. Their gaze is averted and they appear embarrassed. They know exactly what I am talking about.

What they are embarrassed to admit is that most of the brochures or advertising material that we come across is written for the company glorifying the company and its products, its commitment to customers, its founders or CEOs and so on, rather than speaking directly to the customer about the customers’ issues, concerns or aspirations and how the company …

Who is your brochure written for? Read Post »

Marketing, sales and service silos – why?

By / / Sales Relationships, Value Proposition & Value Add

For people in the communications industry it is appalling that there is a lack of real communication occurring between their marketing and sales departments.

All too often I see departments vying for budgets, leadership, ideas, etc. Some people believe marketing drives the engine and sales are irrelevant, or sales are king and what is marketing anyway?

It’s not just the sales people. Some organisations don’t even know the difference between marketing and sales or don’t see the connection between the two in the first place.

This causes all sorts of problems, the likes of which can include:

Marketing initiating a premature campaign and forgetting …

Marketing, sales and service silos – why? Read Post »

Fix the sales force you have

By / / Sales Management, Sales Skills

Would we expect Melbourne Victory or any other elite sporting team to enter a competition without a clear game plan, talent plan, fitness plan, business plan and action plan?

No, of course not. We expect them to be aware, organised, focused and determined to play their best and aim to win.

Well, more than 90% of sales people do not follow any logical process when selling. They are often left to their own devices and simply fly by the seat of their pants, relying on intuition and hoping for the best.

They often cannot articulate their value proposition or know how they compare …

Fix the sales force you have Read Post »

The trick: no tricks

By / / Sales Skills

Yet another brochure has landed on my desk inviting me to learn the tricks on how to sell successfully. I wonder how many people will take the bait this time. The motivation circuit in fact is full of sales people who, for a hefty fee, will explain how they hit the big time and offer to share their tricks.

Well, here is some advice for free: this approach never works. Most people don’t want to be tricked and don’t want to trick others. What they do want is an honest and open relationship because good selling is based on delivering what …

The trick: no tricks Read Post »

Are we limited by our view of success?

By / / Success

A while back I read an article in the BRW called ” Missing In Action – where are all the female entrepreneurs?�? It was about the supposedly low number of female entrepreneurs in Australian business. Now to be considered a successful female entrepreneur, by this article’s standards, you needed to be running a big, competitive, fast growing company. It made me stop and think … How many men, let alone women, were running big, competitive, fast growing companies? Given that over 95% of all businesses in Australia are small to medium in size …

Are we limited by our view of success? Read Post »

Sales Recruitment and the use of online psychometric assessments.

By / / Recruitment & Sales Recruitment, Sales Assessments

Everyone seems to be is using online testing these days. That’s fine, however many people (candidates and companies alike) have fallen foul of testing especially when it comes to sales selection.

  • Online testing is becoming the way of the future
  • However, many online assessments are being marketed as credible with little regard for their limitations
  • Security is still the biggest issue!

Some web-based test publishers have prioritised speed, ease of integration and usability over a rigorous approach to testing itself. Unless security issues are fully addressed, the test content can be duplicated and candidates can ‘practise’. This reduces the …

Sales Recruitment and the use of online psychometric assessments. Read Post »

So where are all the Elite Sales Performers?

By / / Sales Management

I received yet another call today from a sales manager asking me where he could find a really good sales pefomer for his business. He complained that most of the sales people in his industry had been around the block too many times and no new skills, ideas or talent where being brought into his industry. Same old people, same old things, same old results.

Trouble is he is not alone and the Elite Performers you want are most likely working in other industries or markets and are not even thinking about working for you.

Relying on ‘experience’ as a …

So where are all the Elite Sales Performers? Read Post »

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