Understanding the Sales Force
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Great Sales Opportunities That Don’t Close
- March 2, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
If getting opportunities into the pipeline is the most universal sales challenge, then getting opportunities closed comes in a close second. I’m talking about prospects who aren’t ready to say, “yes” but are still “very interested”. These calls pose problems for salespeople for several reasons:
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How to Get Salespeople to Stop Resisting Change
- March 1, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Some Professional Sales Development Experts are adept at overcoming resistance. But sales managers not so much. Salespeople may resist:
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The Science of Selling – Rules versus Data
- February 25, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
The true science in selling is the research and data that explain performance. In Baseball, a good or bad year, by a team or player, is not explained so much by whether the rules were followed – they probably were – but by the statistics that explain why a good or bad year occurred. We have the same thing in sales and Objective Management Group may have the mother load of that data.
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Now How Can You Motivate Your Salespeople?
- February 24, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
While reviewing the recent sales assessment data compared with the same data from before the recession, two changes jump out at me.
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What Does it Mean When You Can’t Reach Your Salespeople?
- February 23, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
When you can’t reach anyone on your sales team is that a good thing or a bad thing?
When they are all on sales calls, working the phones, or with customers/clients is that a good thing or a bad thing?
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Kindle – Lessons Applied to the Sales Force
- February 22, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Readers who have purchased the Kindle have totally embraced that device. Some think it’s the Kindle, not online sellers, that is the biggest threat to brick and mortar book stores. Those of us who own a Kindle are reading more books, and reading them more easily and conveniently than before we had the device.
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8 Question Sales Quiz – Malpractice?
- February 19, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
One of the many sales newsletters I get each day had a ridiculous sales test. It asked “Is a Sales Career Right for You?” and had an 8 question test.
First, there aren’t 8 questions in the world where the answers would allow us to make that determination. Even if we tried, we couldn’t identify even 15 of our 100+ questions that would allow us to answer that question accurately! But I was curious and clicked on through. 8 Questions and if you get 3 strikes or wrong answers, you’re out and shouldn’t be in sales. This free test shouldn’t even be available for entertainment purposes!
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Should Special Effects Determine If You Have the Right Salespeople?
- February 18, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
When we evaluate a sales force, one of the answers we usually provide is whether or not a company has the right salespeople. Right for what?
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How Does the Secret of Happiness Affect Sales Motivation?
- February 17, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Salespeople must be happy in order to succeed but we also know that they must want more than what they have in order to be motivated. What is the balance between being happy and being dissatisfied?
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Mastering Sales and Sales Management
- February 16, 2010
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
We’re talking about Mastery of things you have a passion for.
Do you and your salespeople have a passion for sales? What is the thing you do that is equal to repeated listening, watching or practicing? What do you do to know your material cold? Do you attend training as often as you attend concerts, theater or movies? Do you listen to sales training as often as you listen to music? You should be getting exposed to the artist (sales expert) at least twice monthly and listening to their recordings (archives or supplemental material) even more often. In addition, you should be practicing (role playing like our son does) at least 30 minutes per day!