<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=585972928235617&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">

The Center for Sales Strategy Blog

7 Reasons Awkward Silences ... Are Actually Powerful Sales Tactics + More

Big_Idea_Sales.jpg

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.

17 Reasons Awkward Silences ... Are Actually Powerful Sales Tactics  — HubSpot

In sales, awkward silences are actually good — that is, if you know how to use them to your advantage. Consider the following positive outcomes of awkward silences, and the negative ramifications of breaking them.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

5 Lessons I Learned as an Ad Salesperson and as an Ad Buyer

Lessons.jpg

I have had the rare pleasure of being on both sides of the advertising desk, both as an advertising salesperson and sales manager, and as an ad buyer at a marketing agency.

For 15 years, I sold and managed for radio stations in Dallas and Chicago and loved every single minute of it. Radio was my career, my hobby, my passion. I never thought that I would ever leave radio. Then one day, an “advertising guy” called me and wanted to take me to breakfast.

I spent the next 6 years as the Vice President of Business Development for a mid-size full-service advertising agency in the suburbs of Chicagoland. The ad agency side has been an incredible adventure. I had direct access to clients and had become the consultant that I was trained to be in radio. I worked hand-in-hand with the client as we grew their businesses together. No longer was I an adversary, but truly a marketing partner. 

Here are some of the secrets that I've learned from being on the “other-side-of-the desk”: 

Topics: Needs Analysis Sales media

Coaching Salespeople: Handle with Care!

Coaching_SalespeopleHave you noticed that almost everything you interact with throughout the day comes with recommended care instructions? Some are simpler than others, but for the most part, there is a certain way that everything must be treated in order for it to thrive.

I may not always do it, but I know that I am supposed to:

  • Wash wool sweaters on cold and then lie them flat to dry
  • Change my AC air filters every 3-6 months
  • Wash my workout clothes without fabric softener in warm water and then dry on low
  • Run 48 ounces of undiluted white vinegar through my Keurig every 3-6 months
  • Feed my puppy ¼ cup three times a day, and make sure there are no meat by-products in her food
  • Keep my orchids in bright, but indirect, sun although they require some time in the shade

But, I’m the first one to admit that I have ruined more than one delicate garment by accidentally throwing it in on hot and drying it until it shriveled like a raisin. As a matter of fact, an unfortunate number of my possessions have passed through my hands as if disposable because I didn’t read the care instructions—or even more likely—I was just moving too fast to be able to give them the totally customized care they needed.

Of course I’m not writing this article to teach you how to wash your delicates. Let’s agree, a silk top is a silk top. It can be replaced. But what if we’re talking about a person? It’s not so easy, or inexpensive, or even humane to replace a person because you failed to know how to care for him. That’s a whole different league of handling with care!

Topics: developing strengths Sales

23 Follow-Up Sales Email Templates to Send Instead of "Just Checking In" + More

email-sales-enablement.jpg

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.

123 Follow-Up Sales Email Templates to Send Instead of "Just Checking In" — HubSpot

Salespeople shouldn’t send “just checking in” emails for one very simple reason: They don’t work. Buyers feel like the rep is virtually poking them, making them reluctant to answer. Not only do “checking in” messages rarely garner responses, they can even turn prospects against their senders. But reps still need a way to get in touch with buyers who’ve gone dark. Enter these 23 email templates.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

It Pays to be Smart: Finding a Valid Business Reason to Connect

Business people.jpeg

I love when I hear a story and it stops me in my tracks. I love it even more when the story is about a salesperson that did something really smart! 

That happened to me recently. I was facilitating a workshop and one of the managers shared a great story of a salesperson who created a very strong Valid Business Reason to get the attention of an important prospect. 

Topics: Sales

Five Ways to Beat Cold Calling Boredom

Salesperson_Cold_Call

We know continuous and relentless cold calling can wear you down. It’s a numbers exercise at best, and unless you really enjoy leaving voicemail messages and constant rejection, the process can be boring and downright taxing. But, there are ways to spice things up so that you’re not only more engaged, but also way more productive. Here are five recommendations we have to help you:

Topics: Social Media Sales

5 Tactics to Earn Links Without Having to Directly Ask + More

person_at_computer.jpg

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.

15 Tactics to Earn Links Without Having to Directly Ask — Moz

Typical link outreach is a tired sport, and we've all but alienated most content creators with our constant link requests. This video outlines five smart ways to earn links to your site without having to beg.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

9 Post-Pitch Follow Up Mistakes Keeping You From the Close + More

digital-mobile.jpg

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.

19 Post-Pitch Follow Up Mistakes Keeping You From the Close — HubSpot

After a great presentation to a prospect that you feel certain will close, it's frustrating when the prospect just disappears on you. It's tempting to go off the rails at that point, but follow up mistakes can cost you the sale. Here’s a list of nine deadly follow up mistakes to avoid after a pitch.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up

Improve Sales Performance with In-Field Training

Generally when most people think “training” they envision a classroom with an instructor, a workbook, and some Power Point slides. For most jobs, this is not training — it’s classroom education. By the way, there is nothing wrong with classroom education. Just don’t confuse it with actual training.

Training is really a one-on-one activity between a manager and the person he or she is looking to develop, whereas classroom education is a group activity — big difference. Training is best accomplished on the job. In The Knowing-Doing Gap by Jeffrey Pfeifer and Robert Sutton, they point out that the best companies “Embed more of the process of acquiring new knowledge in the actual doing of the task and less in formal training programs.” 

Topics: Sales

18 Places to Research a Prospect Before a Sales Call + More

digital-mobile.jpg

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.

118 Places to Research a Prospect Before a Sales Call — HubSpot

The more you can personalize your conversation to the prospect and their business, the greater the chance that you’ll capture their interest — and hopefully their business. Here are 18 places to do your research.

Topics: Inbound Marketing Sales Wrap-up