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The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

The Center for Sales Strategy

Recent Posts by The Center for Sales Strategy:

Here’s What Effective Sales Coaching Looks Like Today

Here’s What Effective Sales Coaching Looks Like Today

As a sales manager, you understand the benefits of sales coaching. Not only does it help your sales reps close more deals, but it also improves communication, builds confidence, and enhances teamwork.

With so many different coaching styles and techniques, how do you know what's effective in today's fast-paced, ever-evolving sales environment? Here's what effective sales coaching looks like today and how to implement it in your sales organization.

Topics: sales coaching

Track, Measure, and Improve Cold Email Prospecting

Cold Email Prospecting Tracking the Sales ROI

Email is a critical part of a prospecting strategy, as long as it’s used in the ways in which it’s intended for. HubSpot defines a prospecting email as an outreach email a salesperson sends to a potential customer to introduce themselves, their business, and how they can help their prospect.

Email prospecting is not for building relationships, communicating a strategy, sharing an idea, or conversation in general. Create your prospecting email the right way, integrate it into a sound prospecting plan, and then you can dramatically enhance the cold calling process by getting your first closethe appointment.

Topics: sales process prospecting email marketing

Mastering the Art of Sales Management: Balancing the Pending vs Pipeline

Mastering the Art of Sales Management Balancing the Pending vs Pipeline

Sales management is an art that requires a delicate balance between the present and the future.

The key to success lies in mastering the art of balancing the pending vs pipeline. This means managing your current deals while also prospecting for new ones. As a sales manager, you must be able to prioritize your time and resources effectively to ensure that you are not only closing deals today but also building a strong pipeline for tomorrow.

In this highly competitive market, mastering this art is essential for any business that wants to stay ahead of the curve. In this article, we’ll explore the key strategies that will help you strike the perfect balance between the pending and pipeline, and take your sales management skills to the next level.

Whether you are a seasoned sales professional or a newbie in the game, read on to learn how to master the art of sales management.

Topics: sales management sales pipeline

The One Question You Haven’t Asked (But Your Client Wishes You Would)

The One Question You Haven’t Asked

Most salespeople prepare very carefully for every client interaction. Your preparation will dictate whether you are granted face time for that first appointment (and subsequent appointments), and it will dictate how much information you are allowed to gather in a needs analysis meeting.

But the nature of sales often leads us to focus on our own objectives when preparing; we want the appointment, or we want to learn about a specific objective a client might have that we know can translate into a selling opportunity.

If your customer-focused approach is sincere, there is one question—a simple question that can be asked in a multitude of ways—that can help you gain even greater respect and revenue from this customer.

Topics: Needs Analysis sales process

How to Use Employee Training And Development To Improve Sales Motivation

How to Use Employee Training And Development To Improve Sales Motivation

It’s hard to recruit the right employees or find great people willing to invest time in their careers.

We’re facing a talent shortage, but it isn’t like employers are doing themselves any favors. A bad candidate experience mixed with a lack of feedback once hired leaves employees unmotivated and disconnected. Improving sales motivation is hard-earned but definitely worth it in the end.

A 2021 Gallup report found that over half of US employees were actively searching for a new job because they were disengaged. A revolving door of employees severely affects your ROI.

Topics: sales training employee development sales motivation

Making the Most of a First Meeting with a New Business Prospect

 

Making the Most of a First Meeting with a New Business Prospect

Getting that first appointment with a new business prospect is rarely an easy task.

In fact, there is usually a direct correlation between how long it takes to get an appointment and the spending potential of a prospect. Simply put, quality prospects take more time! 

Because so many hours are spent persuading a prospect to meet, it makes sense to get the most out of the meeting. World-class salespeople use the first appointment to uncover business challenges that lead to cash, instead of wasting the opportunity pitching, pitching, pitching. 

After getting comfortable and socializing a bit with the prospect during the opening minutes of the call, try the following steps to get the most out of the opportunity:

Topics: Needs Analysis increasing new business

How to Recruit a Millennial

Millenials

Considering that Millennials make up the largest percentage of the workforce, it's likely you will be hiring one. If not now, in the near future.

Understanding what makes a Millennial happy in the workplace gives you clues about the best way to recruit one.

Topics: hiring salespeople Sales

Three Simple Steps to Start Social Selling

Three Simple Steps to Start Social Selling

Social media gives salespeople opportunities they just didn't have several years ago — even three years ago!

It's much easier to connect with prospects now, and as long as you do it right, you can see significant results (i.e. landing more appointments with target prospects).

Here are three simple steps to get started with social selling.

Topics: Social Media social selling

How to Sustain While Disrupting: Innovation and Agility in Sales

How to Sustain While Disrupting: Innovation and Agility in Sales

Today’s consumers are distracted with numerous options and bombarded with loads of information. As a result, they often struggle to find the products or services that best meet their needs.

In a rapidly changing industry, tools, and tactics that enabled sales and closed deals just a few years ago don’t stand a fighting chance today. Innovation and agility are keys to staying ahead of altering consumer demands.

Topics: consumer needs

No Tricks, JUST Treats Please!

Trick or Treat

Costumes, Ghosts and Goblins, Spooky Spiders, and Candy are fun Halloween traditions. 

Each year, children dress up and go door-to-door, exclaiming “trick or treat” in hopes of getting a handful of candy to add to the stash they’ve already collected. To a child, there is no such thing as too much candy… in fact, the one with the most candy by the end of the night wins.

What’s interesting is while children give the choice… “trick or treat,” we all know that they don’t want to be tricked. All they really want is treats!  They want to be delighted with yummy, fun-to-eat candy.

Topics: Needs Analysis