The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

Developing revenue for nonprofit organizations can be a challenge for many reasons. One of the main reasons is finding potential donors and sponsors who resemble your best partners and meet the following criteria:

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

1. 6 Secrets to Getting People to Say Yes — Inc.

Robert Cialdini, the author of the classic Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, has released a new book with new insights into the art of winning people over. He talks about his insights in this video interview.

Football. It is one of America’s favorite past times. Growing up in the South, football has been a part of my life since I was a small child. College football is literally in my blood, as my grandfather, father and brother all played football where they attended college. 

As an alumnus of Auburn University and a passionate supporter of the Auburn Tigers football team, I clearly remember the amazing turnaround from 2014 to 2015. In 2014, Auburn finished the season with a dismal record of 3-9 overall and 0-8 in the SEC, but those of us who love Auburn stood by our team and believed things would eventually get better. 

Who knew what a difference a year would make?  In one short year, head coach Gus Malzahn led the Auburn Tigers to a 12-1 overall winning record, clinching the SEC Championship title, and earning a trip to Pasadena to play in the BCS National Championship title game against undefeated Florida State University.  

A successful head coach of a winning football team can be likened to a successful manager of a winning sales team. A sales manager after all is “coaching” his or her team to success, wins, and GROWTH. There are three important areas that both a head coach and a sales manager should keep in mind when coaching their teams to success:

If you’re a B2B company, then it’s probably safe to guess that you are looking to generate more leads. Not just more leads of course, but better leads. The type of leads that you are excited to send to your salespeople, that your salespeople are thanking you for, and that are consistently converting into new customers.

However, sometimes your efforts can get a little stale. You're doing everything you're supposed to be doing: blogging two to four times a week, sharing on social media, and nurturing the leads you do have. But it’s not enough. While traffic might seem to increase, your leads aren’t.

Here are five things you can do today that will help you get more leads tomorrow!

Cause Marketing is a buzzword bantered about by many in the nonprofit sector. To some, the concept is a proven method to help organizations solve business problems via an association with a worthwhile cause. To others, it is merely a tactic designed to pitch and sell sponsorships to nonprofit events and initiatives.

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

1. The 5 Worst Social Media Practices Brands Should Avoid— Fast Company

Whether it's to avert a social debacle or maintain a growing following, three social media experts reveal some practices to avoid in this post.

One, one thousand.

Two, one thousand.

Three, one thousand.

Where are you going with this?  

Four, one thousand.

Five, one thousand.

Ahem, I have more important things to do. 

Six, one thousand.

Seven, one thousand.

Get to the point!!! 

Eight, one thousand. Done!

The point is to illustrate—in words only—the interval of eight seconds.

Why? Because eight seconds is the average attention span of a North American, revealed last year in a study by Microsoft Corp.

We all remember the cartoon image of a cat with an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other, getting advice on his (usually) bad decision. Hopefully we get better advice from our Personal Board of Directors. What are we talking about? Simply put, your Personal Board of Directors is the group of people who help you to make important decisions personally or professionally and that hold you accountable for those decisions. We all have one, whether we realize it or not. The question is, have you personally picked your Board?

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

1. Developing Employees’ Strengths Boosts Sales, Profit, and Engagement — Harvard Business Review

Gallup has found that there’s a lot more potential in developing what is innately right with people than there is trying to fix what’s wrong with them. Focusing on employees’ strengths does more than engage workers and enrich their lives: It also makes good business sense. This article reports the business benefits that the study discovered and outlines how to develop your employees' strengths.