The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

In this Quick Take episode, Matt wraps up our coverage of The 5th Annual Media Sales Report by spending a few minutes thinking about what this year’s findings can tell us about the future of the media sales industry.

In short, you’ll find that while obstacles are ever-present and, in many cases, more difficult than ever, media sales managers and salespeople alike seem to be up to the challenge.

In this episode, we’re continuing our exploration of the recently published Media Sales Report by looking at what sellers and managers say about their company’s marketing strategy.

Here to help Matt investigate why so many are dissatisfied with their organization’s current marketing plan is Dani Buckley, VP/General Manager at LeadG2.

Dani, as always, offers some amazing points to think about, like:

• Why, when sellers aren’t happy with their company’s marketing efforts, often its a lack of sales and marketing alignment that is really the issue at hand.
  
  
• How conducting a content audit is imperative when considering a sales enablement overhaul.
  
  
• And, finally, how if media companies don’t have a website that’s both educational and easy to navigate, many prospects will simply find their solutions elsewhere.

In this episode, we’re once again consulting the latest Media Sales Report by The Center for Sales Strategy.

Today, we’re asking the question, “Why are so many media sales managers lacking superstar talent?”

Joining Matt to answer that question and more is the amazing Beth Sunshine, SVP/Talent Services here at CSS and the head of Up Your Culture, a division of CSS focusing on company culture and employee engagement.

Beth provides such valuable insights like:

• How, contrary to popular belief, it’s not poor performers but average performers that weigh an organization down.
  
  
• Why managers can’t nurture their superstar talents by “coaching from the locker room.”
  
  
• And, finally, how if a seller has unrealized talent, the right mix of training and feedback can help transform them into a genuine superstar.

In this episode, we’re continuing our season-long deep dive into the latest Media Sales Report from The Center for Sales Strategy. Today, Trey Morris, VP/ Senior Consultant here at CSS, is joining Matt to help answer the question, “Why is it getting harder to convert prospects and renew clients?”

Trey brings so many great points to the table, such as:

• How too many salespeople are pitching products instead of solutions
• Why sellers need to do a better job of helping existing clients figure out what’s working and what’s not working early on in their business relationship
• And, finally, why it’s so important for every seller to give the best reason possible for prospects to want to meet with them

Do you ever feel like you're using your CRM, but not really using it?

Many seem to fall into this trap, believing they've mastered their software when, really, they're only scratching the surface. After all, The 5th Annual Media Sales Report found that 74% of salespeople believe they use their CRM effectively.

This data point may, in fact, reflect reality. Maybe there are scores of salespeople out there who are utilizing the many capabilities that their CRMs have to offer.

The truth is that most CRM software holds a treasure trove of features and functionalities that are left to gather digital dust, waiting to be explored.

So, let’s unlock the full potential of your CRM and transform it from more than a simple contact list to a sales and customer service powerhouse.

In this episode of Improving Sales Performance, we’re once again diving into The 5th Annual Media Sales Report by The Center for Sales Strategy.

Today, we’re exploring why sales managers are experiencing such increased difficulty in achieving organizational goals.

Joining Matt to discuss that and much more is Stephanie Downs, SVP/Senior Consultant here at CSS. Stephanie provides valuable insights, like:

• How a sales manager’s calendar should reflect a strategy of developing and coaching their people
• Why we often make recruitment harder on ourselves by not having a firm plan in place
• And, finally, why adding more people to your sales team is not always the solution

In this Quick Take episode, we’re kicking off our season-long exploration of The Center for Sales Strategy’s 5th Annual Media Sales Report by highlighting some of this year’s most eye-catching findings.

In other words, by the end of this short episode, you’ll have a good idea of how salespeople and sales managers are currently feeling about their own organizations as well as the entire media sales industry.

Did you know that the first email was sent way back in 1971?

That first “message” was a throwaway in terms of actual content. Engineer Ray Tomlinson, at the time, was exploring different ways for humans and computers to interact and sent himself a test email to see if his new idea worked.

Ray had little idea how powerful and enduring the concept of electronic mail would end up becoming.

Think about how much technological innovation has occurred in those 53 years since email’s invention. Despite the rise of social media, instant messaging, and other communication platforms, email continues to be a preferred and effective channel for sales professionals.

We’re so proud to be celebrating Women in Sales Month once again.

For each week in October, we have an amazing slate of women sales leaders who will be sharing their unique insights. Today, our guest is Stephanie Slagle, Vice President and Chief Innovation Officer at Graham Media Group. Stephanie has so many amazing insights to offer, like:

• Why customer results should always be your North star
• How even the Michael Jordan’s (or Lebron’s) on your team crave coaching
• And, finally, why the mark of a great sales leader lies in the ability to articulate the path forward

We’re so proud to be celebrating Women in Sales Month once again.

For each week in October, we have an amazing slate of women sales leaders who will be sharing their unique insights. Today, our guest is Laura Coristine, General Sales Manager at Cox Media

Laura makes so many awesome points. Such as:

• Why, instead of asking for feedback, you should ask for “feedforward."
• How emotional intelligence really can boost the overall morale of your sales teams.
• And, finally, why, if you’ve got a happy, engaged team of people, success is only a matter of time.