11 Mar

I love sports and often use sports analogies. Now is the time of Major League Baseball's Spring training. At every team's camp, at least one or more young men try to earn a place on the team's roster. Here is a hypothetical situation: Your team has two people at camp competing for one position, let's say third baseman.  So far, one young player, Smith, has had a terrific Spring.  His batting average is .453, he has stolen three bases, his fielding has been perfect, and his attitude has been exemplary. Smith was undrafted out of college, where he played for three years and...

04 Mar

My background has primarily been selling enterprise-wide financial, human resource, medical, anti-money laundering, and manufacturing solutions.  In most cases, the prospective buyer has strategically decided to change their infrastructure. The highest-level executives typically make these decisions in an organization.  So, when deciding who to sell to in the organization, it is a mistake to ignore the importance of reaching the "C" Suite executive. They are the ones who approve all decisions and expenditures. The approver is sometimes called the "economic buyer" or the "key decision maker."2 Lower-performing sales pros often make the mistake of focusing solely on their user buyer contacts and...

17 Feb

“Catch-22” was a popular fictional book and later a movie published by Joseph Heller in 1961. In Heller’s book, an Air Force lieutenant desired to be exempted from a bombing mission because he claimed he was insane.  But, claiming he was insane to avoid a dangerous mission demonstrated that he was sane.  Therefore, he could not be exempted from the mission because he was not insane. Merriam-Webster defines “Catch-22” as “a problematic situation for which the only solution is denied by a circumstance inherent in the problem or by a rule.”1  A typical example is a job-seeker not being hired because they...

03 Feb

Some sales pros work for companies that furnish adequate suspects and unqualified leads to keep them busy achieving their sales goals. I was not as fortunate, working for several technology companies and a few start-ups.  If I did not develop leads, I would have starved and been terminated from my sales role by the company.  Fortunately, that never happened.  However, I had to learn to be resourceful and develop leads in various ways, depending on how much assistance I received from the company’s marketing department, which ranged from none to quite a bit. Some authors and sales trainers minimize the value...

03 Jan

This sounds like an obvious statement. Wouldn't Homer Simpson say "duh" if I said this to him? Isn't it a binary condition—either one or the other? And isn't the reverse then true, too? No, not really. It also could be neither. It is not that simple. How do you know whether you are winning or losing the sale you are trying to close? Who should you ask? Your contact at the company you are trying to sell? They're not always truthful. Your competition? They can't be trusted to be honest. Your sales manager? It is probably your best option, but do you...

16 Dec

When I became a sales manager, I believed I had to treat all the salespeople who reported to me equally.  As a first-time sales manager, I thought it was essential that no salesperson should receive any special treatment or more of my time than the others. I was also very personally committed to the concept of equality of opportunity.  I also endeavored to be color-blind and gender-neutral in hiring and treating my team. This goal seemed to be in alignment with social norms. I went on approximately the same quantity of sales calls with each salesperson and tried to divide my time...

25 Nov

Many assume that sales is a serious profession—and it certainly is. There are times when it can be very entertaining. Indeed, interacting with potential customers and learning about their company and its challenges can be enjoyable but sometimes very frustrating. Getting selected and closing a contract always gave me pleasure. Some of my buyer contacts became personal friends, many of whom I am still in contact with years after the sale.  Listed below are some of my favorite sales anecdotes: Where is the most unusual place where you have ever collected a contact from a customer?  Here are three of mine: Once,...

23 Oct

What is the “best” sales presentation? How can it be defined or characterized? Is it a flawless presentation, perhaps utilizing the most up-to-date technology designed to awe the audience? And one with no technological glitches, like a poor internet connection or mysterious pauses? Or one with large, readable graphics? Or the slickest? Or one in which the presenter was the most charismatic and articulate? Maybe it would be like the presentations that Steve Jobs used to give at the annual Apple Worldwide Developers Conference or for new product introductions. Or is it the one that best addresses the buyer’s current, future, or even...

30 Sep

I have read that we must keep lowering standards, such as the educational requirements for elementary and high school kids, where graduation rates and grade point averages have risen. Still, standardized tests show declines in comprehension and academic performance. In addition, the U.S. military and police and fire departments have lowered standards. This was done mainly because not enough people have qualified for the standards in place for ages. It will hurt students later when universities or employers expect them to perform at the levels that they supposedly achieved. There is also strong evidence that there has been inflation in the...

20 Sep

I am often asked this question, and the answer isn't straightforward. Even the most skilled sales managers can attest to the challenge of finding and hiring exceptional salespeople. High-performing salespeople are rare and in great demand. There isn’t a simple answer that applies to every company. My first question in response is, “Are you interested in hiring ‘proven’ salespeople—or in finding and developing salespeople?”  This is a fundamental choice that the company and hiring manager must make. Each has advantages and disadvantages. It also matters whether you intend to utilize a recruiter. Let’s review some of the differences. If you find and hire...