Dave Kurlan

  • How Can Strong Salespeople Lack Desire for Success?

    • October 20, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    This question is kind of funny to me.

    Using Objective Management Group’s Sales Candidate Assessment, a company could assess 1,000 salespeople, understand that Lack of Desire for Success in Sales causes an automatic “Not Recommended”, and not be tempted to interview a single candidate who lacks Desire. That is until they introduce a sales candidate that they “know” into the mix.

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  • Do Your Salespeople Really Understand Pipeline Requirements

    • October 19, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    They sent their lessons but didn’t get it right.  Their takeaway was that it requires 20 opportunities to sell 1.  But that’s not correct.  It requires 9 opportunities to sell 1.  Why is that distinction important?

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  • The $9 Million Cold Call – Do Salespeople Still Sell That Way?

    • October 18, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    Finding new opportunities is more important than ever, but there are alternative methods so that calls are more productive, less frustrating and more effective.

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  • The Advantage that Focused Salespeople Have

    • October 17, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    Show me a focused salesperson – one who isn’t aware of what else is taking place in the office this very moment because he is so focused on getting his sales work completed; one who won’t stop to take a break until she makes all of the required calls; one who won’t go to sleep at night until all of the appropriate follow ups, responses,  CRM updates, paperwork and details have been finished – and I’ll show you a good salesperson.

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  • Top 10 Questions for Salespeople to Ask and Stay Away From

    • October 12, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    The theme of my recent posts has centered around links sent by readers, asking me to weigh in with a counterpoint to the conclusions drawn in the  articles.  Today, I address yet another Harvard Business Review Blog article (how many misguided HBR Blog articles are there?), this one about the Single Worst Question a salesperson can ask.

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  • Are Salespeople Born or Made? The Real Story

    • October 11, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    Several readers sent me the link to this article that discusses whether salespeople are born or made.  Prior to that article, many others have attempted to answer the same question in the past few years.  The common theme to each attempt is reliance on personality traits and, in Martin’s case, Language Specialization, Modeling of Experiences, Political Acumen and Greed. Good grief Charlie Brown!

    Before we look at the science – not surveys and personalities – let me explain – me.  I was both born and made to sell.

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  • Steve Jobs Legacy on Selling – 10 Criteria to Sell Itself

    • October 6, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    Steve Jobs left many legacies and I thought it might be useful to discuss the one he left on sales.

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  • Revealing Study of Salespeople Makes News at HBR

    • October 5, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    This article has my first reaction to the Challenger Sale after news of the book first appeared in HBR back in 2011.

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  • Time and Territory Management for Salespeople

    • October 4, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    Aside from requests for Motivational training, Time and Territory management training is one of the most inappropriate requests I receive each week. And I’ve been getting requests like that for more than 25 years!

    Time and Territory management is what sales managers and VP’s ask for when they:

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  • Top 10 Ways to Increase Sales

    • October 3, 2011
    • Posted by: Dave Kurlan
    • Category: Understanding the Sales Force

    I’ll bet that every CEO, President, Director, VP of Sales and Sales Manager asks the “how can we increase sales?” question on a regular basis.  Do you?

    There are as many answers to this question as there are politicians running for US President in 2012.  They include but aren’t limited to:

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