Understanding the Sales Force
-
Will This Sales Candidate Really Fail If We Hire Him?
- October 26, 2011
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
When it says Not Recommended, you really need to believe the science behind the recommendation – if you dare to hire one of these candidates 75% of them will fail inside of 6 months.
-
Sales Process is to Religion as Sales Methodology is to Prayer
- October 24, 2011
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Whether you have or are a salesperson yourself, if you don’t have BOTH an effective sales process that you follow – religiously – and a sales methodology that you practice – faithfully – you must – convert!
-
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.
-
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?
-
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.
-
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.
-
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.
-
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.
-
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.
-
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.