You are calling a prospect for the first time, and instead of the person answering her telephone, you reach her voicemail. “This is Anne xxx, I am not available now. Please leave a message.” What should you do? Should you leave a voice message? What should you say in the...
In years past, there was a mythical sales test where an older, experienced sales professional would test a new, inexperienced pen by handing him his pen and then directing the novice to attempt to sell him his pen. It was expected that the novice would try to explain the pen's...
There are many experts that can coach salespeople on the mechanics of how to speak better at presentations. This is concerned with making your content more memorable to the audience. According to presentation coach Jack Malcom “Researchers once ran a test to measure how much of a presenter’s message sticks in...
I have often been asked to explain the best professional e-mail format to send to a prospect who doesn’t know me, sometimes called a cold-call e-mail. I don’t think there is one format that always works. However, certain guidelines will make your email more attractive to a reader. They are: Address...
I recently watched a movie, “It Ain’t Over,” about the famous major league baseball player Lawrence Berra, known as “Yogi” to everybody who knew of him. His granddaughter, Lindsay Berra, wondered why Yogi was excluded from a collection of baseball’s four greatest living players at the 2015 Major League Baseball...
Ideally, you know exactly where your opportunity is in your sales cycle – the beginning, middle, or end, and where it stands relative to the other choices the buyer can make? But sometimes that is not the case. Or, you think you know the status of your proposal, but you...
I am often asked by salespeople to explain the best method of identifying the highest-potential prospects to target. “How can I find these prime prospects, so that I do not waste my time on companies that are not going to buy from me this year?”...
Often the difference between a salesperson that meets their sales goals, and another that does not, is simply a matter of optimizing one’s time. Many people find this to be difficult and spend valuable time and resources on opportunities that are not likely to close, chasing down “rabbit holes” or...
How many of you have had the experience of a demonstration “blowing up” in front of a prospect? Perhaps there was an internet connection problem, or there was a technical issue or a feature that you wanted to highlight did not work as you expected. Maybe some of the invitees...
The conversation with your contact Ted starts like this: “We appreciate all the time that you spent with us explaining your product and answering questions -- and you did a great job...