There have been lots of articles and blogs written about the biggest problems faced by sales people. However, each article had a slightly different take on the problems and how to solve them and there is no overall consensus on what was the biggest problem.
So, in 2020, I decided to run a little competition on LinkedIn to see if we could determine the single biggest problem. I used the concept of the World Cup of Biscuits run by Richard Osman a few years ago. The idea is that each day, one problem would be pitted against another and people would vote as to which was the bigger issue. This would continue via a series of knockout rounds until we had a “winner”.
Read moreFor any company to be successful, they need a strategy and specifically a sales strategy. A strategy can be defined as the art of coordinating resources for their most efficient and effective use. An effective sales strategy is an essential part of building a growing business. A well-thought out strategy lets you manage multiple resources across different sectors with the same approach.
Read moreThe internet has revolutionised our world in ways that we never dreamt of when we first came across it. We can have instant communications with people that we have never met; we never have to go into a supermarket again and we can watch world events unfold from wherever we are in the world.
Read moreMost sales people tend to forget that not every customer wants to buy their product all of the time. Indeed, analysis of customer buying patterns suggests that, at any one time, only 5% of potential customers are actively buying and over 50% have no interest in buying at all. Finding the 5% who are actively buying requires skill and dedication and sometimes a bit of luck!
Read moreI am always extremely happy when a client starts to negotiate with me. At that point, I know that I have won. They may not have explicitly said so, but no one negotiates for something that they do not want. So, by starting to negotiate, they are acknowledging that they want your product. From this point on, you are both trying to achieve the same objective - a commercial arrangement that suits you both.
Read moreFor most of my sales life, I’ve been judged almost exclusively by the revenue I have generated for the company where I was working. However, my own philosophy was always somewhat different. I have always believed that if you did the right things for a customer, then business would come your way. As a sales manager, there are other things that you should be looking out for.
Read moreI have worked in companies where it felt like we had meetings just for the sake of having meetings. Meetings can be extremely valuable but, if not planned for, can be a terrible waste of time. As a sales person, the last thing you want to do is to waste the time of your client. There are certain things that you should do in advance of and during any meeting to ensure that they are of high quality, both for you and your client.
Read moreCold callers always tend to call me about the same time, about 6.15pm, just as I am in the middle of making dinner. What is more irritating, is that they just presume that they have the right to talk to me and frequently launch into their script without pausing for breath. There’s a much better way of gaining potential customer’s attention when you cold call them.
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