Blog
-
Selling Skills – Only a Small Part of the Equation
- November 7, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
When we evaluate a sales organization we always identify an individual who has the best skills. This often creates controversy because the individual with the best skills is hardly ever the best producer.
-
Making it Easy for Salespeople to Succeed
- November 6, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Our four-year old son asked me to play baseball with him today, a beautiful, calm, but chilly fall day. He couldn’t find the oversized whiffle ball that I used to pitch to him all summer so we used a significantly smaller, regulation size rubber ball. I told him it might take a little while to get used to the smaller ball and he would have to watch it very closely.
-
Overselling – What Salespeople Do
- November 4, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Why aren’t salespeople confident enough that the truth will be enough to make the sale? Why don’t they believe that their prospects will buy the product or service as it is? Why do they feel they must embellish everything to make the sale?
-
The Numbers Don’t Lie – Why Companies Suck at Hiring Salespeople
- November 2, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Companies must reengineer their recruiting process, modify their selection process, overhaul their development programs and set higher expectations. Only then will the wasted time, money and effort from inconsistent and ineffective sales hiring end.
-
Zig Ziglar Meets Dave Kurlan
- November 2, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Jeff invited Zig to say hello to our audience and it must have been a thrill for them. They paid to see me and they got Zig for free! I’ll stop here before I get carried away with the rhyme as I’m at the Dallas Airport and it’s boarding time.
-
Not Enough Hirable Candidates Part 5
- October 28, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Here we go again. Not enough hirable candidates – can you believe it? I’ve posted about this subject four times already, you can find them in the navigation menu if you navigate by Tag.
-
Sales Superstars – An Obsession with Winning
- October 22, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
He suggested that we look beyond sales to all the famous winners in sports, entertainment, business and politics. Those who have achieved the highest level of success possess another trait that goes beyond their desire for success. He said that these special people “are obsessed with winning.”
-
Buying a Laptop – Taking a Think it Over
- October 17, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
This behavior is simply one component of a hidden weakness that I call Non Supportive Buy Cycle. I first discovered this in the 1980’s and it is one of the most common and powerful hidden weaknesses. Even worse, there are dozens of other weaknesses that are hidden from view, causing your salespeople to fail.
-
The Impact of Sales Training
- October 12, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
The impact of sales training can be very significant. However, unless training is done the right way, you may not see any impact at all.
-
The Meaning of Not Trainable
- October 5, 2006
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
When OMG evaluates sales organizations, we usually identify a number of salespeople that aren’t trainable. This finding has nothing to do with intelligence nor does it reflect on their ability to learn. As a matter of fact, these people are as smart as anyone else and learn as well as anyone else. These individuals lack an incentive to change – there isn’t a good enough reason for them to do things any differently than they are doing things now.