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The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

5 Things Every Business Person Needs to Know About Digital Media

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When it comes to digital media expertise, it's easy to feel like an expert and a novice all at once. This is mainly because there are so many advancements in digital that it's hard to know what you should be focused on with respect to digital marketing.

Topics: digital marketing Digital integrated media solution media snacking Inbound Marketing

3 Ways Content Can Build a Bridge Between Marketing and Sales + More

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We hope you've had a great week! It's Friday, so today we're sharing what we've been reading online this week! Here are our "best" from around the web.

1. 3 Ways Content Can Build a Bridge Between Marketing and Sales — Content Marketing Institute

An Aberdeen Group study found that businesses with highly aligned sales and marketing teams earned an average of 32% year-over-year growth, while those who reported less alignment saw a 7% decrease in revenue. Content can be used to get sales and marketing teams working together toward common goals. This article explains how.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

How is Your Website Doing Compared to Your Competitors'?

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Let’s face it. If you are managing a business and you don’t have access to data regarding how your business is doing, you are essentially flying blind. Without benchmarks and numbers to indicate how you are doing, it’s tough to know what the score is and who is winning. That’s why analytics and data have become so important to business owners and marketers over the past few years. Knowledge is power, and the same now can be said for understanding and being able to analyze and interpret data.

HubSpot understands the need that businesses have to analyze large amounts of data for the purpose of making sound business decisions, and they have recently launched a new Research blog. The HubSpot Research blog provides in-depth insight and information for marketers and business owners that are looking to make data-driven decisions.

Topics: digital marketing metrics

20 Seconds of Insane Courage will Transform Your Sales Performance

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Have you seen the movie We Bought a Zoo? It's a good movie and based on a true story. Matt Damon, who stars in the movie and plays Benjamin Mee, is talking to his son about how it only takes 20 seconds of insane courage to make something happen. 

Topics: Sales

Selling to the Modern B2B Buyer + More

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We hope you've had a great week! It's Friday, so today we're sharing what we've been reading online this week! Here are our "best" from around the web.

1. Selling to the Modern B2B Buyer — Salesforce

The ever-evolving B2B selling space and increasingly complex sales process present new challenges for B2B sales teams. In order to remain competitive and hit revenue goals, it is critical that sales reps understand the shifting landscape, why these changes are happening, and how to sell to the modern B2B buyer. Here are five factors that influence B2B buyer behavior and steps you can take to more effectively sell to the 21st-century B2B buyer and drive bottom-line results.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

Clear the Runway, So Your Blog Can Take Off!

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Of course you’re familiar with Microsoft Word. And of course you’ve seen those wavy red and green lines in your drafts—those lines that remind us to check spelling and sentence structure. You, me, and every 4th grader on the planet use Microsoft Word in a thousand different ways every day!
 
But did you know that there are three other interesting little functions, hidden deeper in Microsoft Word, that COULD be the key to your blogging success? They could help you communicate your ideas to a larger group of readers, and make those readers more receptive to your blog posts. 
 
Called “Readability Statistics,” these tools can help you gain insight into your writing on a deeper level. 
Topics: blog strategy

The 7 R's That Turn a Negative Conversation Positive + More

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We hope you've had a great week! It's Friday, so today we're sharing what we've been reading online this week! Here are our "best" from around the web.

1. The 7 R's That Turn a Negative Conversation Positive — HubSpot

When you work in a people-focused profession like sales, you’re bound to encounter conflict once in awhile. Trying to persuade people to part with their money, make a strategic decision for their company, or generally shake things up, dredges up a whole mess of emotion. There’s fear that a bad investment might incur company losses or hurt an employee’s personal reputation. Maybe there’s suspicion that you’re selling snake oil or aren’t being 100% truthful. There might even be anger if your prospect’s expectations aren’t being met fast enough. If you feel a conversation taking a negative turn, here are 7 ways to reframe and keep it positive.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

What Marriage Proposals Teach Us About Business Proposals

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I’ve been divorced and remarried. I’ve also lost and closed sales opportunities. As I think about the courtship of either kind of relationship, I’m reminded of how a marriage proposal simulates both really great and not-so-great business proposals. 

Topics: Proposal Sales

Sales Performance: Winning Teams Have Winning Coaches

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I work with a lot of sales teams and business development teams. Some perform well. Some perform not-so-well.

Topics: Sales

Spring Cleaning: Keeping Your CRM Organized + More

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Happy Friday! Today we're sharing what we've been reading online this week! Here are our "best" from around the web.

1. Spring Cleaning: Keeping Your CRM Organized — Insightly

‘Tis the season for spring cleaning! While that probably makes you think about your overflowing inbox on your desk (or your email), another area that can benefit from a bit of tidying up is your CRM platform. Why not use spring cleaning as your excuse to spend time in your CRM and ensure that everything is in tip-top shape so you can stay organized and efficient? These tips should help.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

To Improve Sales Performance, Remember To Switch Your Hat!

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To improve sales performance, remember to switch your hat... and only wear one at a time! Let's talk about the difference between educating and presenting. There is no doubt you are aware of the products, or capabilities, you have to sell. Most of your clients are aware of your "heritage" products, but when it comes to some of the more complex products you are capable of delivering, your clients and prospects need to be educated about what they are and—more importantly—how they can use the products to achieve their business goals.

Topics: Needs Analysis Sales