Kurt Sima, on August 12, 2019
Talking about price with a new business prospect can be tricky. Talking about it too soon—when trust is low—can end the conversation, before it has even gained any traction. Talking about it too late could lead to the unfortunate discovery that the prospect is cash poor.
There are a number of ways to prompt the conversation with a prospect. Here’s a list of three that are extremely effective.
Greg Giersch, on July 31, 2019
Sales tend to stall. Every salesperson with a pending list realizes that this week looks too much like last week. As does every sales manager who's listened through the excuses about why this or that prospect is still pending.
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,” ~ Lao Tzu
We know that to accomplish big things, we need to break them down into smaller tasks. But, we’re often too busy to actually slow down and apply what we already know. Many companies have a defined sales process, some more structured than others, and it’s the lack of following that process that is stalling most sales.
Alina McComas, on July 22, 2019
Over the last couple of months, I have had a number of clients share with me that they lost out on a couple of large deals that they had felt pretty strongly about. In each of those scenarios, my first question was, "Do you know why?" More often than not, the answer to my question was, “I’m not sure.”
Anyone who has ever been in a sales position has received a “no” in their career – most likely more than they would like – it comes with the job. But, it is what you do with the “no” that separates the best from the rest. Diagnosing where you may have gone wrong in the sales process can help to minimize making the same mistake in the future.
Kurt Sima, on July 16, 2019
Everyone wants a piece of the "big cheese"… the "head-honcho," the "main man" or "main woman," or otherwise known as the decision maker. Often, the lone source of the YES to the solutions you sell, connecting with the elusive decision maker can be mission impossible and derail a sale before it gets started.
These people are tough to get a meeting with because they are busy and in high demand, and don’t usually trust sellers or value spending time with folks like you. They’ve been burned by sub-par sellers in the past. Ouch!
What makes it even more challenging, is that everyone else is trying to get face time with the same decision maker as you. Plus, these folks are not as active on social media and are surrounded by gatekeepers.
What to do, oh what to do?
Matt Sunshine, on June 27, 2019
Some say that the holy grail of sales is consistent and predictable revenue. Many are on this seemingly never-ending quest, but find it both elusive and always just out of reach. A strategic sales process is the only thing that will help you reach your goals.
Jim Hopes, on June 5, 2019
We all know how difficult it can be to set an appointment with a prospect these days, and the last thing we would want to do is let that appointment slip away after making multiple contacts in order to secure it.
The question always seems to come up about whether a salesperson should confirm that appointment before making the call or not. I have sales professionals who argue on both sides of the question.
So, let’s compare the reasons for confirming or not confirming.
Kurt Sima, on June 3, 2019
In the past media sales organizations employed a tried and true approach to solving dips in revenue. Here’s a summary of the approach:
When revenue is down, develop a product, service, or tactic, and sell more!
Unfortunately, these days this approach is more tired and untrue than tried and true.
Selling more is not the solution to the current challenges faced by media organizations because it’s a new day, and it is not filled with rainbows and unicorns. The declines faced by media sales organizations today are consistent enough to be called the new reality!
Kurt Sima, on May 28, 2019
To sales managers and salespeople, "No" might be the worst word in the dictionary. Not only is it a buzzkill to hear the word, but it represents a terrible return on investment from the seller’s perspective.… just to hear "NO!"
Kurt Sima, on May 21, 2019
Selling a new target account is not an easy task. Many things have to fall in place—here’s a list of some of the obstacles:
Getting a renewal from a new customer starts with getting results on the initial campaign, and using a campaign launch brief will set you up to increase your renewals before your clients’ campaigns even kick off.
Matt Sunshine, on May 16, 2019
Frustration sets in when you look at all the pending business you have sitting in your sales funnel and realize that a good portion of it has been there for weeks! Those prospects you were sure were going to sign off on your proposal right away are instead sharing reasons why they’re not ready or telling you they need more time to think it over. You know that with every week that passes, the chances that any of them will turn into a sale diminishes greatly and you’re kicking yourself because you are now reduced to emailing your prospect with the subject line "Checking in" since you really have no other options left.
Are you experiencing this uncomfortable, bloated feeling right now?
That bloated pipeline isn’t just uncomfortable . . . it’s frustrating and, ultimately, very expensive. Yes, it can sometimes feel rewarding to say you have “a lot out there,” but we all know that pending business is only good if it ends up closing.
Spoiler alert: This is not an article on how to close your pending deals. It’s way more valuable than that.
