Lose the Gut Hire Q: We have a long sales cycle – anywhere from six to 18 months. Because of this, it takes time to understand the effectiveness of our new sales team members. We know some sales “professionals” exist who are skilled at getting themselves on a payroll only to under-perform until the guarantee runs out. Any advice on how we break this cycle? A: You are not alone.…
Q: “We sell our services to many companies with multiple decision-makers; co-owners, partners, etc. Sometimes they have differing needs. Should we approach these prospects differently than single decision-makers?” — Paul Weber, President, EAG Advertising Congratulations on selling to larger, more complicated clients – you are working the mature market segment! At Sandler we talk about the “stairway to success.” Step one of the stairway might be an owner who has…
Q: How do you nurture a lead along when the prospect is not ready to buy? What tips do you recommend? — Bill Brelsford, President, Rebar Business Builders Bill, I really appreciate your using the word “nurture” in your question. One of our Sandler Rules is this: The three most important words in professional selling are nurture, nurture, nurture! Most salespeople feel pressure to push, prod, convince and cajole their…
Ultimately, sales is about trying to influence another person. But a lot of us have the wrong idea about what influence really is. (more…)
The four possible outcomes of your sales pitch. (more…)
