My Perspective this week is very fitting and biased to say the least. But hear me out please.
Professional sales requires a strong ego and an awful lot of self confidence for sure. What I see sometimes in certain individuals is a serious uncomfortability admitting what they don't know. In otherwords, the strong ego and self confidence will not allow them to admit to any shortcomings ( at least not to anyone else and probably deny most of it themselves ).
Professional sales is a huge continuum of knowledge and different insights to what works and what doesn't. And especially now with this economy and the innovative approaches to networking and a myriad of other changes taking place; how can you not be open to learning, change, innovation, and the experience that another sales professional may offer you ?
I know this sounds like a commercial for my services; that's not the case. It doesn't mean I would turn down an opportunity to coach you. It means that I'm speaking in general terms about your willingness to change and admit that you don't know it all ( nor do I ). Coaching is a good thing and being open to being coached is what every TEAM ( professional sports being the best example ) wants their players to relish and enjoy.
Coaching ( and being coached ) is very different from management. Coach's accept responsibility for your growing success. That is their challenge and their responsibility.
Manager's critique, criticize, and mandate policies / paperwork to hold you accountable. Most do not accept responsibility for your growing success ( always anxious to take credit for it ).
Needless to say, there are many experienced sales professionals who have chosen to coach other aspiring sales professionals. There are numerous ones on the internet. Almost always, it doesn't cost anything to discuss what they have to offer. If you consider ( at some point ) a sales coach - make sure you ask a lot of questions and utilize your best judgement before engaging their services. Most want a time commitment and a definite dollar figure. Make sure you know all of those details before signing on the dotted line.
All that aside, spend some time asking and answering my original question at the start.
If you were on my Team ( and I owned or managed the business you sell for ) I would want you to be coachable. I would want you to want to be more successful and contribute to my success. And I would expect you to do whatever it takes to be more successful !
Thanks for taking the time to read this week's Perspective. Good Luck and Good Selling !
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED THIS WEEK ABOUT SALES
Well ! I stirred up a few people last week. A couple of people did not see the value of a personal website in conjunction with their desire for more customers and sales ? And quite a surprising number wanted to know what classes I had taken on internet marketing. And even more wanted to get my opinions of how to better utilize Web 2.0 to benefit their business. That was all good. At least some of us are still trying to gain an advantage on the competition !
My "perspective" this week is simply what it says. What have you learned about professional sales this week that you didn't know last week ? You are your greatest resource and most of you have positions that increase your income related to your increased sales success. Is that not true ?
Let me share one of my war stories for you ( you know us older folks have them there war stories ). While working for a longterm ( six years ) very successful ( 80 million dollar company ) client, I interviewed over 100 people for sales jobs - probably ended up hiring less than 5. And one of my standard questions to sales professionals ( they were prequalified with experience, etc. ) was what they had read, listened to, or studied in the last six months about professional sales and their career development. Less than 5 % had anything specific to share. That's really sad. It doesn't mean you can't be successful; but it sure limits your growth and increased success. And that has never been more true than it is today.
You need to accept responsibility and awareness that professional sales is an immense world of insights and perspectives that no one person can know all of it. You couple that fact with what's happening around us economically and in our marketplace with all the technological advances.
So many people are asleep at the switch !
So, where are you in all this ? Get off your duff and get with the program. Send me an email and tell what you are doing about it !
NOW GO SELL SOMETHING - YOUR BABY NEEDS A NEW PAIR OF SHOES !
REMEMBER every salesperson is a part of the economic recovery we are all looking for ! Don't believe me - go to the Sunday classifieds and see where the most job opportunities are. Yes, it is the sales jobs which far outnumber any other professional group that are looking for producers ( well, maybe the need for nurses outnumber us in certain areas ).
There is only one direction that is going to solve any of our problems - "MORE SALES".
HAVE A GREAT WEEK ! CALL IF I CAN HELP YOU OR YOUR TEAM !!
Always remember - "people still buy people" and that's why we have sales professionals !
"The Biggest Obstacle to Sales Success is the Resistance to Change How You Sold Yesterday in Order to Be More Successful Today "
My "perspective" this week is simply what it says. What have you learned about professional sales this week that you didn't know last week ? You are your greatest resource and most of you have positions that increase your income related to your increased sales success. Is that not true ?
Let me share one of my war stories for you ( you know us older folks have them there war stories ). While working for a longterm ( six years ) very successful ( 80 million dollar company ) client, I interviewed over 100 people for sales jobs - probably ended up hiring less than 5. And one of my standard questions to sales professionals ( they were prequalified with experience, etc. ) was what they had read, listened to, or studied in the last six months about professional sales and their career development. Less than 5 % had anything specific to share. That's really sad. It doesn't mean you can't be successful; but it sure limits your growth and increased success. And that has never been more true than it is today.
You need to accept responsibility and awareness that professional sales is an immense world of insights and perspectives that no one person can know all of it. You couple that fact with what's happening around us economically and in our marketplace with all the technological advances.
So many people are asleep at the switch !
So, where are you in all this ? Get off your duff and get with the program. Send me an email and tell what you are doing about it !
NOW GO SELL SOMETHING - YOUR BABY NEEDS A NEW PAIR OF SHOES !
REMEMBER every salesperson is a part of the economic recovery we are all looking for ! Don't believe me - go to the Sunday classifieds and see where the most job opportunities are. Yes, it is the sales jobs which far outnumber any other professional group that are looking for producers ( well, maybe the need for nurses outnumber us in certain areas ).
There is only one direction that is going to solve any of our problems - "MORE SALES".
HAVE A GREAT WEEK ! CALL IF I CAN HELP YOU OR YOUR TEAM !!
Always remember - "people still buy people" and that's why we have sales professionals !
"The Biggest Obstacle to Sales Success is the Resistance to Change How You Sold Yesterday in Order to Be More Successful Today "
Sunday, July 12, 2009
WEB 2.0
Can you believe it ? We will soon be into the second week of the seventh month of this year ! Where has time gone ? I hope it's not been as bad for you as others but there are so many people suffering from the mistakes of others and / or bad decisions they have made. Everyone has their own story and struggles - including your's truly. But, I don't know anyway out of it but to plod forward and try to make the most of each moment we are given.
INTERNET MARKETING has went way beyond where some of us believed it would ever go. To say the least, it's a force to be reckoned with and you need to get up to speed on all of your options - whether you go there or not is entirely up to you and possibly your organization's policies.
As you have heard me say many times ( it's not original with me ) "it's not who you know but who knows you". This is the underlining premise of self promotion. If you sell a valuable service / product ( especially one that's complicated ) that is best sold via a living, breathing & enthused professional salesperson; then get off your duff and find out the how the Web 2.0 works and how it may benefit you.
Please don't be offended if you think you already know what to do and how it's going to work for you; when I tell you I hear that opinion multiple times everyday and basically every one who says that has a lot they don't know yet.
And even beyond that, it's changing so fast, you can't keep up. Web based marketing and self-promotion are being driven by many forces. Some are driven by the lousy economy and others are driven by the sheer number of people who have become self-employed (for various reasons) and the entrepreneurial spirit is a major force ( plus the need to survive / augment income ).
Challenge yourself to learn more, to read, get on the internet ( I have just taken my second class ). Hire or get access to someone who knows more than you. Don't let the world pass you by. Your competitors are doing it and the competition is motivated to take your business and your opportunities.
Enough said, let's go get them ! Good Luck and Godspeed !
Challenge yourself to grow ! Challenge yourself to more accountable to yourself and the people who rely on you to make it happen. There isn't one of us who could not be more productive, more focused, more goal oriented, and more open to change - doing things different than what we have ever done before.
Look around for success stories - they are all over the place. Get inspired ! Kick yourself in the butt !
NOW GO SELL SOMETHING - YOUR BABY NEEDS A NEW PAIR OF SHOES !
REMEMBER every salesperson is a part of the economic recovery we are all looking for ! Don't believe me - go to the Sunday classifieds and see where the most job opportunities are. Yes, it is the sales jobs which far outnumber any other professional group that are looking for producers ( well, maybe the need for nurses outnumber us in certain areas ).
There is only one direction that is going to solve any of our problems - "MORE SALES".
HAVE A GREAT WEEK ! CALL IF I CAN HELP YOU OR YOUR TEAM !!
Always remember - "people still buy people" and that's why we have sales professionals !
"The Biggest Obstacle to Sales Success is the Resistance to Change How You Sold Yesterday in Order to Be More Successful Today "
INTERNET MARKETING has went way beyond where some of us believed it would ever go. To say the least, it's a force to be reckoned with and you need to get up to speed on all of your options - whether you go there or not is entirely up to you and possibly your organization's policies.
As you have heard me say many times ( it's not original with me ) "it's not who you know but who knows you". This is the underlining premise of self promotion. If you sell a valuable service / product ( especially one that's complicated ) that is best sold via a living, breathing & enthused professional salesperson; then get off your duff and find out the how the Web 2.0 works and how it may benefit you.
Please don't be offended if you think you already know what to do and how it's going to work for you; when I tell you I hear that opinion multiple times everyday and basically every one who says that has a lot they don't know yet.
And even beyond that, it's changing so fast, you can't keep up. Web based marketing and self-promotion are being driven by many forces. Some are driven by the lousy economy and others are driven by the sheer number of people who have become self-employed (for various reasons) and the entrepreneurial spirit is a major force ( plus the need to survive / augment income ).
Challenge yourself to learn more, to read, get on the internet ( I have just taken my second class ). Hire or get access to someone who knows more than you. Don't let the world pass you by. Your competitors are doing it and the competition is motivated to take your business and your opportunities.
Enough said, let's go get them ! Good Luck and Godspeed !
Challenge yourself to grow ! Challenge yourself to more accountable to yourself and the people who rely on you to make it happen. There isn't one of us who could not be more productive, more focused, more goal oriented, and more open to change - doing things different than what we have ever done before.
Look around for success stories - they are all over the place. Get inspired ! Kick yourself in the butt !
NOW GO SELL SOMETHING - YOUR BABY NEEDS A NEW PAIR OF SHOES !
REMEMBER every salesperson is a part of the economic recovery we are all looking for ! Don't believe me - go to the Sunday classifieds and see where the most job opportunities are. Yes, it is the sales jobs which far outnumber any other professional group that are looking for producers ( well, maybe the need for nurses outnumber us in certain areas ).
There is only one direction that is going to solve any of our problems - "MORE SALES".
HAVE A GREAT WEEK ! CALL IF I CAN HELP YOU OR YOUR TEAM !!
Always remember - "people still buy people" and that's why we have sales professionals !
"The Biggest Obstacle to Sales Success is the Resistance to Change How You Sold Yesterday in Order to Be More Successful Today "
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Where Do You See Yourself A Year From Now ?
Belated Happy Fourth of July to you all ! I sincerely hope you had a GREAT weekend and my greetings find you and your loved ones all well and getting along with this screwed up economy as best you can.
I had some good discussions with several people on the phone and through emails about your productivity and time management as a result of last week's blog. Almost all were good comments - a couple didn't appreciate my implications. You can't win them all !
This week's topic speaks to the whole goal - setting awareness and how easily it is set aside when times are unusually tough. Realistically, many salespeople are not very good at goal orientation. You couple that with the extreme pressures surrounding all of us now - you can be adding to your challenges instead of overcoming them.
Why do I say a year from now ? Because, it's hard to predict what you are going to be dealing with next week - let alone what we will be facing two or three years from now. So start with a strategy / plan that supports you on what you know now about the obstacles to overcome in getting more sales.
You can't just limp along and blame everything on the economy.
Define and describe accurately what you intend achieve by 1/1/10 and / or 7/1/10. That could be new clients, dollar amounts, significant relationships, etc. Whatever you define, then develop your strategy to make it happen. You know, specifically what are you going to do better, differently, and be willing to hold yourself to these specifics. Involve other people and / or your family. Put some real pressure upon yourself to go beyond where you have ever been before. Tie your success to things you want for yourself or others. If you don't succeed then it doesn't happen.
Most of you know how to do this - get with it. We can't blame everything on the economy. It's here. It's lousy. And likely to get worse before it gets better !
Yes, it's tough and it's easy for me to cheer you on as opposed to doing it. For what it's worth Ladies & Gentleman, this is not the best time for being a Sales Coach either. It isn't like individuals and organizations have a lot of money to throw around for training. There isn't a day goes by when I don't get a full set of negatives shoved my way about training and the cost thereof - this is after lowering my rates substantially.
Enough said, let's go get them ! Good Luck and GodSpeed !
I had some good discussions with several people on the phone and through emails about your productivity and time management as a result of last week's blog. Almost all were good comments - a couple didn't appreciate my implications. You can't win them all !
This week's topic speaks to the whole goal - setting awareness and how easily it is set aside when times are unusually tough. Realistically, many salespeople are not very good at goal orientation. You couple that with the extreme pressures surrounding all of us now - you can be adding to your challenges instead of overcoming them.
Why do I say a year from now ? Because, it's hard to predict what you are going to be dealing with next week - let alone what we will be facing two or three years from now. So start with a strategy / plan that supports you on what you know now about the obstacles to overcome in getting more sales.
You can't just limp along and blame everything on the economy.
Define and describe accurately what you intend achieve by 1/1/10 and / or 7/1/10. That could be new clients, dollar amounts, significant relationships, etc. Whatever you define, then develop your strategy to make it happen. You know, specifically what are you going to do better, differently, and be willing to hold yourself to these specifics. Involve other people and / or your family. Put some real pressure upon yourself to go beyond where you have ever been before. Tie your success to things you want for yourself or others. If you don't succeed then it doesn't happen.
Most of you know how to do this - get with it. We can't blame everything on the economy. It's here. It's lousy. And likely to get worse before it gets better !
Yes, it's tough and it's easy for me to cheer you on as opposed to doing it. For what it's worth Ladies & Gentleman, this is not the best time for being a Sales Coach either. It isn't like individuals and organizations have a lot of money to throw around for training. There isn't a day goes by when I don't get a full set of negatives shoved my way about training and the cost thereof - this is after lowering my rates substantially.
Enough said, let's go get them ! Good Luck and GodSpeed !
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