Sales Coaching to increase your sales

Memorial Day – Start your Summer (Winter in the Land of OZ!)

by Steve on May 24, 2009

Greeting from the Santa Barbara Wine Country. I had a great time yesterday touring the various winery’s sprinkled around the area with my beautiful and fascinating fiance. I love wine and taking a wine tour is always a very good time for me and a chance to relax.

Sadly there are more wineries than I could ever have time to visit over a single weekend. It would also take quite a physical constitution to participate in the tastings at more than 5 – 6 wineries.

(Of course if anyone wants to visit and give it a try I’d be a willing participant.)

I hope everyone is having a great weekend. Even if you are not in the United States this weekend symbolizes the onset of Summer. Except for you Aussies out there…welcome to Winter.

Most of the readers of this blog are involved in Kevin’s Internet Marketing Course (IMC). Sadly this is coming to an end. But in every ending lies the seeds of a beginning. We have the tools, the knowledge and the support needed to supercharge our results on the Internet. All we need to do is focus and continue taking the actions we have grown used to over the past few weeks.

I wish everyone the best of luck.

Have a great day.

Steve

{ 13 comments }

Memorial Day remembrances

by Steve on May 23, 2009

This Memorial day I packed up the lovely soon-to-be Mrs. Chambers and we heading up to the Santa Barbara wine country for some R&R. Being a veteran myself (although not a combat veteran), the true meaning of Memorial Day has never been far from my mind. Here is a small video tribute to those who fight for our freedom and guard our way of life.

While the art and practice of selling is never far from my mind, even on a holiday weekend, there are more important things in this life.

For The Fallen
With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,
England mourns for her dead across the sea.
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.

Solemn the drums thrill; Death august and royal
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres,
There is music in the midst of desolation
And a glory that shines upon our tears.

They went with songs to the battle, they were young,
Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted;
They fell with their faces to the foe.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years contemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables of home;
They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;
They sleep beyond England’s foam.

But where our desires are and our hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known
As the stars are known to the Night;

As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.

Have a great weekend.

{ 14 comments }

Selling Techniques in a Tough Economy

by Steve on May 22, 2009

While walking a job site yesterday the client asked me how things were going business-wise for me. I gave my usual answer, “Things are pretty busy. I’m working twice as hard for half the money.” She laughed and said that’s what some of the other salespeople calling on her have said. It seems we are all working twice as hard for less money these days.

How can we change this? Are there selling techniques we can use in a tough economy to increase the income side of the equation? How can we set ourselves apart from our competition in such a way that we get to close the sale instead of the other guy.

It turns out there are and I want to go over a few of them with you. In the interest of respecting your time I am going to attempt the keep the content level high and my prose tight.

The easiest way to make selling in your industry easier is to differentiate yourself from your competition. You need to be different from everyone else who sells what you sell or you will become a commodity.

Are you keeping up with the changes in your industry? What are the major trends and happenings? Are any of these changes going to impact your product and service?

Do you know the root causes of what is happening to your industry? What events are causing these changes to happen?

Think ahead. How will your industry look five years from now? You will probably be wrong in your forecast but you need to make one.

Do you have Google Alerts set up for your industry and territory? Do you know how to set one up? If not you can learn how here…Google Alerts.

Are you subscribed to the key publications for your field and industry? Do you read them? This includes both the print and online publications.

Make it a point to read these publications with an eye for trends and upcoming changes. Most sales representatives are not up to date so you need to be. This will set you apart from your competitors.

It’s important the know the direction your industry is taking as well.

What is your competition up to? Do you know who they are and how they are responding to this market?

How do they sell?

What is their pricing?

Are they talking to your clients? You know, the one’s you don’t worry about?

When you know and understand your clients, your competition and your industry you’ll be able to easily set yourself apart from the crowd.

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Handling Customer Objections

by Rob on May 21, 2009

Hi, it’s Rob here. Sorry I missed you on Tuesday. I was stuck in a hotel near Myrtle Beach, SC and it didn’t have a good Internet connection so I tried a few times and had to give up…

Now I’m back in civilization with another Sales Eagles strategy…

Today we’re going to discuss another sales skill that will make or break you—handling customer objections.

This will be at least three parts, first up is preparing to handle objections.

Now many people think that this sounds like negative thinking, and sales is all about positive thinking. Wrong… there is immense Positive Power to be gained from Negative Preparation (planning for things to go wrong).

As a sales pro, you are probably aware of the common objectives that come up in relation to your product or service. Take 10 minutes right now and list the Top 12 objections that you encounter… Take the time to really do this. Here are a few that appear to be universal:

1. Your Price is too high.

2. We are happy with our present supplier

3. We need to discuss it with _________________

4. ___________________________________

5. ___________________________________

6. ___________________________________

You keep going till you reach 10-12… Really think about this and don’t give up.

Next you need to come up with two CRITICAL THINGS for each objection…

CRITICAL THING #1: Innoculation Points…

Brainstorm things you can add to your sales presentation to reduce the impact of each objection and maybe eliminate it entirely.

For example, regarding the price being too high, maybe you need to emphasize more forcefully and with better proof how much the purchase will SAVE the buyer. Maybe you could talk more about how many features have been added which cost a little more up-front but reduce the cost of owning and using the product. Maybe you can break the price into cost per hour, or day rather than the full selling price. Maybe you can compare to the cost of the lower cost item, and work on just discussing the difference in prices….

Do this for each of these objections and really think them through. What could I do to Innoculate myself from that objection as much as possible BEFORE the customer raises the objection. We’ll explore this more and move to the second CRITICAL THING next time…

Seize the Day,

Rob

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12 months to market dominance

by Steve on May 18, 2009

What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. – Ecclesiastes 1:9

Most sales techniques are as old as the dawn of time. Whether you call it the “Ben Franklin Close”, the “Winston Churchill Close” or the “Julius Caesar Close” the technique and methodology is the same. The same techniques work because human nature is the same. Think what you want, but we are driven by the same wants, needs and emotions as Adam & Eve were 6600 years ago.

So where’s the magic pill?

The magic pill of sales is not some technique or method as yet undiscovered that will allow us to sell “Ice to Eskimos.” The magic pill consists of consistently taking action and applying proven techniques.

I am immediately taken back to that great scene in “Conan the Barbarian” where Conan (Action hero turned failed Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger) learns that the real power is not the “Secret of Steel”, it was in the ability to influence and control the minds of others. Now for the requisite picture -

: Influence is more powerful than steel

So how can we dominate our market?

Rob Northrup and I were brainstorming this very idea last week. As you may remember from one of my earlier posts, I estimated that only a small percentage of people who took my sales training (This also applies to any type of training) would take what they learned and run with it.

It’s that old 80/20 rule again. Most people stick with the status quo.

We came up with the “Sales Eagle Solution”, or maybe the “Sales Eagle Formula”, please comment and tell us which title you like better, which is a system that will provide salespeople with the three things they need to succeed and “Blow Away” the competition:

Knowledge

Support

Guidance

We’ll go into more depth over the next couple weeks as we flesh out the concept and develop content, but at this point we are pretty excited. So stick around, sign up for our newsletter here and get ready to have your sales world rocked!

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Sales rules!

by Steve on May 17, 2009

One of the things I liked about the sales meetings when I worked at Tony Robbins was the cheering. At the beginning of every sales meeting, and maybe at the end as well (my mind wanders), we would jump up and down chanting (with crescendo no less!):

“Sales rules! “

“Sales Rules!”

"Sales Rules!"

“Sales Rules!”

Talk about getting in state!

Compared to your typical corporate sales meeting this was quite a change for me. Say what you want but there was true passion in that organization. People really, really believed in what they were selling and in the fact that they were improving people’s lives.

Does your organization have that kind of passion? Didn’t think so.

Most of the sales meeting were more like evangelical events than staid sales meetings. (I can visualize Dave Lakhani cringing.)

(Speaking of Dave Lakhani, he has a new book out, How To Sell When Nobody’s Buying: (And How to Sell Even More When They Are) that I want to encourage you to buy. If you are involved with selling at any level, and who isn’t, the information in this book will help you position yourself for what looks like a long patch of continued tough economic times ahead. Besides, it’s always a good idea to help out a friend.)

Did you like that segue?

The Anthony Robbins Company lived and breathed sales. You may not like or agree with Tony Robbins but the man is rich and by most measures very successful. His employees are by and large happy. Is it like this in your organization?

Every business needs to be sales focused, that is how they survive and thrive. The better companies also find a way to hire passionate people and to fire them up. Very few companies can do this. So ask yourself, “How can I bring passion to my company?” “How can I bring passion to myself?”

Oh, and that book again…How To Sell When Nobody’s Buying: (And How to Sell Even More When They Are)

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Can a Master Salesperson sell to anybody?

by Steve on May 16, 2009

Commenting on my last post Warrior of Success Lynn Lane asked:

Some people say that sales are sales, that most sales techniques are universal. What is your feeling on that? Do you think a superior sales person can sale almost any product, provided they believe in it and have the training for that product?

This is a question I have often asked myself over the years and, having seen some amazing salespeople in my life I have to admit that I do think there are salespeople who are so good they could sell any product or service to anyone. Oftentimes they don’t even need training or knowledge of the product. I am not one of those people, nor do I necessarily want to be one, although I consider myself to be pretty good.

In an interview after the first Gulf War Gen Norman Schwarzkopf was told by a reporter that it was no surprise that the American’s won. After all, they had better equipment and technology. The General responded that even if both sides switched weapons he would have won anyway because it wasn’t the tools that mattered so much, it was the training, discipline and execution. It’s the same with sales. It’s not the technique or the tools, it’s how they are used.

Passion and conviction will usually win out over indifference and ineptitude.

Most of the people reading this blog post realizes that the human mind works in predictable ways across cultures and realities. Every now and then I like to pass the time entering into other people’s realities and messing around a little bit. It’s fun and keeps the old synapses working. Besides, it keeps me alert and fresh. Can I get into everyone’s head? Given enough time I believe I can with 98% of them. The same techniques seem to work on everyone to a given extent.

When I go out to sell it’s the same thing. I find myself running the same patterns, saying the same things and most of the time getting the same results. When I lose it is usually because I wasn’t fully engaged or wasn’t paying attention. I noticed the same thing when I was dating. I would run the same lines and same techniques and get the same results almost like clockwork. In a way it was scary.

Intent comes into the picture as well. The true sales professional acts in the customer’s best interest, even when the customer doesn’t know it. I have seen salespeople sell just to make the sale, even when it really was detrimental to the customer. Timeshares, investment advice and “Success” programs come immediately to mind.

To conclude my long explanation Let me say yes, the sales person does make a difference and yes with superior skills one can sell to just about anyone. All it takes is training, dedication and paying attention. Just like in the marital arts.

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Sales Planning – Where the rubber meets the road

by Steve on May 15, 2009

I’m back. Hopefully that’s good news and not something ominous…like in the movie Poltergeist. (I’m baaaaaaaaaaaaack!)

Scary stuff

I was away from home conducting two 1-day sales trainings on commercial selling for dealers within my four state region. Obviously I couldn’t be online during the trainings, unless of course I streamed them live…Hmmm, and at night I had to give up my data card to senior management. Hence my online absence.

Yeah, I could have posted on my iPhone but I just didn’t do it.

Now back to sales training. We (myself and two others) conducted what I feel was a very comprehensive, content packed and relevant sales training designed to help you formulate a plan to tackle the commercial and governmental markets. The training was divided into two parts…technical and sales, and included hands on and experiential components. Best of all every technique we taught and demonstrated is proven. We have used them all successfully in the past to secure work, often taking it from the clutches of competition even after they have secured the account.

Yep, if you follow the advice we presented and worked out a plan you would massively increase your sales and success this year. But herein lies the problem.

Who will execute the plan?

I always like to see who will take good information and actually put in the time and effort needed to make it happen. My guess…20%, which in this case would mean four people, or two companies. I will report back on how this goes.

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How to Make The Initial Cold Phone Call…

by Rob on May 14, 2009

Continuing our cold calling theme from Tuesday…

The first time you talk with a propect, you need to get it right or you lose a huge opportunity. And you don’t have a lot of time because everyone is busy.

I think that there are two keys to cold calling success.

Key #1. A Clear & Achievable Objective (or maybe two).

In most cases, your goal is not to make a sale on the spot. Often there is an initial objective to qualify the prospect. Once qualified, the main objective is usually to get a face-to-face appointment so that you can make a more detailed presentation.

Key #2. A Cold-Call “Script”

I know that many people think “scripts” are bad, but just because you use one it doesn’t mean that it has to sound like you are reading robotically from it. Do the actors in your favorite movies or TV shows or musicians for that matter make it up as they go along? Of course not. But they sound sincere and in the moment and so can you.

This script isn’t going to be too long or tough.

Hi, Mr. Jalopy. (Or “Hi J.J.” if you are in an informal industry)

My name is Rob Northrup and I am a Sales Engineer with Advanced Extrusion. I’m calling today to introduce myself to you.

If you were referred to him by someone, now is a good time to add “I was given your name by Kevin Hogan” along with a brief reason for his referral.

Now I am going to qualify this person…

You do plastics manufacturing there, don’t you?

(notice I am NOT asking him about the weather, or attempting to get him to warm up to me as a person yet)

n This is the fist qualifying question, if he says “No”, I can ask him “Would you do me a small favor and tell me where you do your manufacturing?” and ask for a name to contact, then say “Good Bye”.

n If he says “Yes, we do” then I can ask him one more question to make sure he is the right person to talk with—

Are you one of the people responsible for keeping your plant running smoothly?

n If he says “Yes, I am”, then I know this is a person that I should see. He might not be the only person I should see, and he might not even be the best person but I can figure that out in later conversations (even before my visit in some cases).

n If he says “No”, I ask him who I should talk with about production equipment at his plant…

Now I am on the phone with a qualified person that I want to get an appointment with. It has taken about thirty seconds to get to this point. Now I need to get the appointment, but I have one more thing before I ask for it…

“When you guys put new equipment in your plant, is it important that you find the right equipment that matches your needs?”

This should be a question that will get a Yes most of the time. When he says “Yes”, then you say something like…

“That’s great because that is exactly what I do for a living, help people find the right equipment…”

Then you move to the next question.

“I will be at one of my other customers in your area next Tuesday. I would like to meet you in person so I can meet you face to face and give you a few useful items. My other meeting is at 9:30 am, Would 8:30 or 11 be better for you?”

If he says No, then tell him you are up there frequently and will call him before the next visit.

If he says Yes, then proceed to…

That’s great, I look forward to seeing you then. Could you please give me your email address, I want to send you a short email with my contact information on it. Then ask if there is a direct phone number that he would prefer you to use. And make sure that you have a good street address.

That’s it. The script should sound like you and the way you like to talk.

Just try it.

Have a great day.

Rob

{ 16 comments }

Cold Calling Attitude…

by Rob on May 12, 2009

Last week Christian Haller of Good Food Fast & Easy fame asked for some tips on cold calling…

Most of us have heard for years that “cold calling is dead” and there is something in every sales pro that wants that to be true. Because cold calling can be awful.

I personally think that the most important thing about cold calling is to have the right attitude. In most cases you are not going to go from being a pesky cold caller to getting a sale in one call or visit.

So, remove all thoughts that you are trying to get an order from your mind… You are trying to get information at this point.

What kind of information?

Qualification of the prospect—devise a simple question to ask right out of the box to determine if they are a potential customer. This should be a question that can be answered by a receptionist if you are dealing with B2B… Example: “Do you all do manufacturing at this location?” (if they are not a potential customer, you want to cross them off the list and concentrate on others– try to find this out right away)

Find out who the right person to deal with at the company is—“I sure hope you can help me with a small favor, who is the person that is most involved in buying production equipment?”

Then get the contact phone number and if at all possible the email address… (you will use this to add them to your marketing list so that you can send them periodic information about what you are selling in the hope that they will CALL YOU in the future. If the customer calls us, our odds go up 10x in my experience of making a sale).

Ask to be connected if they are in…

We’ll talk more on Thursday about how to handle this initial phone call…

Have a great day!

Rob

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Soar above the competition

Memorial Day – Start your Summer (Winter in the Land of OZ!)

Memorial Day remembrances

Selling Techniques in a Tough Economy

Handling Customer Objections