How satisfied are you with your sales incentive plan?

By / / Coaching, Sales Tips, Strategy, Success

A good sales incentive plan rests on a fundamental set of design principles that reward the right behaviours, optimise sales effectiveness, and maximise the return on incentive dollars.

Specifically, a good sales incentive plan design:
• uses performance metrics that are aligned with the company’s overall strategy;
• supports and is consistent with the overall sales force strategy — its job roles, available skills, selling processes, internal culture, etc.;
• is mechanically sound in its design elements; and
• can be administered efficiently

If not well designed however, there may be issues or challenges within each principle which could limit effectiveness, waste …

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Time for reflection and recharging

By / / Brain Science, Emotional Intelligence, Neuroscience, Sales Tips, Wellbeing

With this holiday period upon us, many of us take time to rest from the busyness of our daily work lives and spend time with the people we love the most. Often time this space can allow us to reflect on our lives, review what is important to us and appreciate those close to us. For some they can simply feel exhausted and just which to lie still in time to recover for the next busy schedule.

With a 24/7 life style we can often get caught up in being ‘ON’ all the time however if we do not take time …

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Exceptional Prospecting and Social Media

By / / Call Reluctance, Communication, Prospecting, Sales Tips, Self Promotion, Social Media, Social Sales

With social networking sites and the plethora of online data available, 2011 presents us with better quality prospecting and more qualified prospects. ‘Prospecting and Social Media’ was voted as the Number 4 Sales Trends for 2011. Business networking sites such as LinkedIn and Plaxo, and the emergence of Facebook and Twitter as business destinations, give the discerning business or sales person access to quality data where they can research key contacts with an organisation, as well as business activity. Then, when appropriate, they can use this data to make professional connections.

Smart business leaders and sales people are using social networking …

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A Time for Reflection and Renewal

By / / Attitudes & Behaviours, Sales Tips, Success

As this year comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on the last 16 years in my own business. A lot has changed, yes, but many things have remained the same too. On 9th January 2011 my business will be 16 years old.

While anniversaries and birthdays are celebrated differently all over the world, a common thread is that they are often marked with a celebration or a rite of passage. So, to mark our 16th year in business, we would like to share with you 16 key lessons we have learnt since the business began. While there are many …

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We want more than a script

By / / Attitudes & Behaviours, Communication, Customer Service, Prospecting, Sales Relationships, Sales Skills, Sales Tips, Sales Training

Hundreds of thousands, if not millions of sales people around the world use sales scripts. Used properly, sales scripts act as scaffolding or bridgework to earn us the right to have a meaningful discussion with our prospecting customers, members, donors or subscribers. The sales script is a well constructed set of guidelines that support us when we prospect.

Good sales scripts:

  • are purposeful – have a clear reason why you are calling someone;
  • use language the customer understands;
  • are designed for the benefit of the listener with it always being “the prospects choice” to accept …

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Now for something completely different – a gift for you

By / / Sales Tips, Success

To our dear Barrett Sales Blog Readers

Some of you may not be aware that since February 2007 we have published over 160 articles on the sales profession covering topics on Sales Management and Leadership; Sales Skills and Process; Sales Strategy and Sales Planning; Sales Tips; Mindset and Attitudes; Qualities of Elite Sales Performers; CRM;

Now for something completely different – a gift for you Read Post »

Is Call Reluctance® choking your sales effort?

By / / Attitudes & Behaviours, Brain Science, Call Reluctance, Coaching, Prospecting, Sales Coaching, Sales Psychology, Sales Results, Sales Skills, Sales Tips, Self Promotion

Whether we are working for a private or public company, a “not for profit” or government institution, all of us are in some way competing for access to a revenue source to fund our existence.

How capable people are to take on the responsibility for improving the revenue line of a company is a hot topic in today’s competitive market.

Research shows that no longer can companies and their people rely on their technical competence, passive referrals, reputation, brand or blanket advertising to bring in new business and revenue streams as they may have done in the past. They also need to …

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Help my sales people can’t close sales

By / / Attitudes & Behaviours, Call Reluctance, Complex Selling & Transactional Selling, Negotiation, Sales Skills, Sales Tips, Sales Training

‘My sales people are not closing sales’ is the most common complaint we hear.

The biggest cause for people not being able to close sales it not the close itself. It often starts at the beginning of the sales call.

Sales people need to be able to properly understand client’s needs and discuss possible solutions that meet those needs with the relevant products and services before any close can take place. Once this has happened they can close the sale but not before. If a sales person cannot meet a client’s needs with their products and services then it is a ‘no …

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What do your sales people really need to know and apply?

By / / Business Acumen, Sales Assessments, Sales Pioneer, Sales Planning, Sales Skills, Sales Talent, Sales Tips, Sales Training, Self Development

In today’s market selling skills training does not equal product training or pressure tactics. If product training or pressure selling (the hard sell) are on the top of your sales training agenda or the only training you offer your sales people then you may want to rethink your sales training strategy.

What is expected of sales people today by way of skillful thought and action goes way beyond the product or the hard sell.

Let’s first look at what clients want. This will then help us determine what sales people need to be able to do.

Clients today …

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Who’s delivering your sales training?

By / / Education in Sales, Sales Coaching, Sales Driven Organisations, Sales Excellence Acadamy, Sales Management, Sales Skills, Sales Strategy, Sales Talent, Sales Tips, Sales Training

You cannot fake real sales experience and sales wisdom. It is one of the professions that is the hardest to teach and train because without real life sales experience you are at risk of being seen as inauthentic.

To help you make the best choice when it comes to selecting the right sales trainer let’s consider the following:

  • What capabilities do you need to be a good sales trainer?
  • What attitudes and mindsets can makes sales people and sales results worse?

To sell or not to sell

Without real life sales experience, you will are likely to lack empathy and real insight for the …

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