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The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

The Leadership Challenge

The Leadership Challenge

One of the main reasons leadership is challenging is because you are managing a fast-moving conveyor belt of decisions. One decision after another is rolling off the conveyor belt: 

  • Should I remove this non-performer even though I have two other open positions? 

  • Do I shift the compensation plan to get the team focused on the right behaviors, knowing it could disrupt the culture and distract top performers? 

  • I just announced our new hybrid work expectations, and now my top performer is asking for more flexibility because of a family situation—do I allow it? 

You can’t obsess over each one and slow everything down, but you don’t want to make knee-jerk decisions, either.

Topics: leadership development

Celebrating Women In Sales Month with Guests Katelin Tinely and Jaleigh Long

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Wrapping up our Women in Sales Month episodes are Katelin Tinley, Vice President and General Manager at Cox Media Group, New York City, and Jaleigh Long, Vice President and market manager at Cox Media Group, Atlanta and Athens.

Together, Katelin and Jaleigh share a ton of essential observations, such as the significance of having an open and transparent relationship with your team, the power of going through the customer journey and knowing potential problems before the meeting, and the importance of being seen as a resource for your team and for your clients to help guide them through disruption.

Tune in now or keep reading for a brief overview.

Topics: women in sales

5 Secrets to Selection

5 Secrets to Selection

Candidates are in and out of the job market quickly, particularly those with superstar talent. If you’ve adopted a “we’re always hiring” mentality to help you build and fill your talent bank, you’re likely conducting interviews more frequently.

According to LinkedIn, 83% of talent say a negative interview experience can change their mind about a role or company they once liked.

Selection is a two-way street. You’re interviewing the candidate, and at the same time, the candidate is interviewing your company. It’s important to maximize your opportunity to interview candidates while giving them a solid understanding of the job role and your company culture.

Topics: hiring salespeople sales talent selection

Celebrating Women In Sales Month with Guest Stacey Kauffman

ISP_Ep.50__ Stacy

October is Women in Sales Month, and to celebrate, we recognize many talented and hardworking women who work in this industry, the valuable contributions they make to it, and their expert insights on the future.

Joining this episode of Improving Sales Performance is guest Stacey Kauffman, Regional Vice President from San Francisco and Sacramento at Audacy.

Stacey has many observations, such as prioritizing your focus amidst the flurry of data that is constantly at our fingertips (Hint, hint, don't beat chain to your desk), how Account Executives can no longer wear all the hats like they used to, and why you can't build a team of unicorns.

Tune in now or keep reading for a brief overview.

Topics: women in sales

7 Sales Strategy Tips from Horror Films

7 Sales Strategy Tips from Horror Films

Horror movies are predictable and filled with clichés. Although we know a monster lurks around every corner, we squirm in anticipation of a sudden sound or blood-curdling scream that will make us fly out of our seats at any moment.

It turns out horror films are filled with sales strategy lessons.

Topics: sales strategy

Celebrating Women In Sales Month with Guest Kim Guthrie

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Women in sales have achieved great things for themselves and their organizations over the last decade. To celebrate Women in Sales Month, we’re talking with some amazing women sales leaders who share their unique insights, from offering advice for sales managers, new or more experience to discussing the anticipated landscape of sales and years ahead when it comes to improving sales performance.

In this episode of Improving Sales Performance, Kim Guthrie, Division President for iHeart Media, Florida, joins host Matt Sunshine and co-host Stephanie Downs to discuss the importance of forming developmental relationships with clients, the importance of building trust, being a sustaining resource for your team, and how it's necessary to always be recruiting new talent.

Tune in now or keep reading for a brief overview.

Topics: women in sales

Email Tone: It Can Be Louder Than Words

Email Tone  It Can Be Louder Than Words

The remote and hybrid workforce offers opportunities and challenges that we may not have considered when working in a common location.

We take for granted the proximity to our coworkers and the ease with which we communicate and convey our emotions and intentions. Communication that we had in person tends to shift to digital and allows us to stay connected no matter where we are co-located.

However, we still need to be aware of the tone we are using, which in writing can be more complicated than spoken words (because our brain fills in the gaps when we lack information).

Topics: email sales process COVID19 Resources

Celebrating Women In Sales Month with Guest Katie Reid

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We’re honored to celebrate Women in Sales Month all October long by talking with some amazing women sales pros. In this episode, Katie Reid, SVP/Market Manager Bonneville, joins host Matt Sunshine and co-host Stephanie Downs to share unique insights and offer advice for both new and veteran sales managers.

Katie makes so many awesome points, such as avoiding surprises by keeping a watchful eye on your entire sales funnel, maintaining and fostering organic growth, communication, and coaching in a hybrid work environment.

Tune in now or keep reading for a brief overview.

Topics: women in sales

DIGITAL SALES STRATEGY: Understanding the Digital Scoreboard

 Digital Scoreboard

This is a great time of year to be a sports fan. 

Baseball playoffs are here, and every weekend brings a full slate of college and pro football games. Every game has its own set of stats to follow, but just looking at the stats the following day doesn’t necessarily tell you who won the game.

In baseball, the team with more hits is not always the winner. In football, the winning team could have fewer total yards or more turnovers. While the stats can provide you with an educated guess of who the winner is, they don’t tell the full story of the game.

Digital advertising is very similar if you think about it.

Topics: Needs Analysis Digital

Celebrating Women In Sales Month with Guests Jenn Scilabro and Traci Wilkinson

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Joining host Matt Sunshine and co-host Stephanie Downs in this episode of Improving Sales Performance are Jenn Scilabro, Senior Vice President of Local Digital Sales for Nexstar Digital, and Traci Wilkinson, Senior Vice President and Regional Manager for Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

As female thought leaders, experts, and industry gurus, Jenn and Traci share their insights, tips, and knowledge on various topics that help companies improve sales performance.

Tune in now or keep reading for a brief overview.

Topics: women in sales