The Sales Leader Blog

Are you selling the way you were five years ago? Chances are good your results aren’t what they once were. Find out what’s not working for you and kick that sales trash to the curb! Here are five common issues I’m seeing when coaching clients.

Clinging to bad leads who don’t buy. Bad leads will always be bad leads and are sucking time and resources out of your day. You either qualify a lead or you trash it.

Cold calling as top lead generator. Today, only 3% of all sales are closing from cold calls. The other 97% come from other sources (e.g., referrals, web inquiries, white papers).

Same old sales script. If you’re talking more than listening on that first call to a prospect, trash that script. Start over, beginning with good coaching advice.

Dropping price because someone asked. Emphasize value of your product/service and offer more options, not discounts.

Outdated testimonials. Remember three Cs: current compelling and credible! Prospects want to know if your products/services work in today’s marketplace

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Here we uncover the benefits of continual recruiting to assure that you have the best sales team possible while facing issues of:

• employees leaving,
• poor performance,
• or preparing for a growth spurt.

Details are provided in this podcast on how you can start recruiting the best and brightest in your field including tips on hiring the best recruiters.

Shmooze over dinner or a ball game? Thank-you cards? What is the single most important thing you can do to strengthen the relationship with your customer? Take our sales quiz and find out!

And for more strategies based on this quiz question, check out this article. 

On April 9th I posted an observation that about Dell’s over packaging of a lap top sleeve. This should be an easy fix.

Stop putting lap lop sleeves in big boxes with as more bubble wrap than needed to ship fine china by jeep on dirt roads! 4 months later another sleeve arrived for my new lap top, in the same packaging.

I know they see it as a problem and are working on a resolution (from the comments on the last post). But, it does surprise me that they have not solved the problem. 4 months for someone to make a decision that could save them money (on packaging) save the consumer money (on shipping) and save the environment? In today’s business environment that indecision could be fatal.

In today’ business environment you must take action fast. Be agile.

Quick is the new slow.

Rapid change is the new normal.

If you can’t make a decision and implement in 4 months. Your customers will get tired of waiting, and your competition will step in. Make a decision and move.  You can always change you mind, once you have evaluated the results, and move a different direction later.

What decisions have you been delaying? Can you step up and take decisive action this week?

Dedicated to making this your best year yet.

Colleen

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If you want you and your team to be successful, you must have a positive attitude! This podcast shines a light on the relationship between your attitude and your success as well as how others around you can affect you.