7 Core Concepts for Sales Success

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Sales is a profession where so many variables come into play. The emotion of buyers and sellers, competing loyalties as to which is the “best” direction to go, and how to close the “big opportunity”. In his thematic song “Many Rivers to Cross”, Jimmy Cliff cites the trials and tribulations in life. How do we help sellers manage through this maze, and be consistent in orchestrating the outcomes?

We stick to The Core Concepts. Over the past 15 years, our customers and prospects have helped to validate the themes that they use to win. And we have consolidated this into the curriculum provided at our sales training sessions.

Have a look at the list we compiled here, and let us know your thoughts. Do you have any to add? Or would you edit what we embrace? Reply here to share.  

  1. Differentiate yourself by the way that you sell
  2. Focus on the customer’s business objective, not on your product/service
  3. Diagnose before you prescribe
  4. You gain credibility from the insights you provide & the questions you ask, not from the information you present
  5. People are best convinced by reasons they themselves discover
  6. Only the customer can validate your progress in the sales cycle
  7. Never make a concession without asking for one in return
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Choosing a Sales Training Service Provider? Use These Criteria to Make the Best Choice

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If you’re investing in sales training, make sure your time and money are well spent. Plenty of service providers promise to take your team to the next level and hey, they’re in sales so they’re convincing. But you don’t have time to waste. So use the criteria below when choosing a service provider, to make sure you’ll get training that’s comprehensive, actionable and long-lasting. 

  1. Instruction: Look for sales training that includes stages, tools, skills, and how the sales process is reflected in the CRM. Try to avoid sales training that relies on an instructor doing all the talking and instead look for training that is interactive. Training that includes role playing and a participative format will help attendees learn, practice and share with one another before deployment in the field.   
  2. Accountability: For success, there needs to be clear direction from the managers to the reps on what’s expected, what’s to be accomplished, and the metrics that will be the window into achievement. If this is lacking in your organization, look for a service provider that can provide training in accountability.  
  3. Measurement/Metrics: What are the reportable pieces of data that will help in the new commercial strategy to get the most qualified customers into the pipeline? Training should also teach that the metrics must be clearly defined and realistic to achieving goals—as well as how to make that happen.  
  4. Reinforce and Reassess Through Coaching: Rather than send your sales team through training and leave it at that, look for a service provider that offers follow-up coaching to make sure lessons stick and to answer any questions that come up later when the sales team is implementing the new process and training. 
  5.  Online Learning Platform (OLP): Repetition is the key to success in learning new skills and modifying sales behavior. An OLP gives your team the opportunity to revisit lessons as needed after the training is over. 
  6. Sales Managers’ Development and Accountability: Sales managers should also receive training to prepare them to act as coaches for the sales team members.  

A lot depends on the effectiveness of your sales team. Make sure the training they get is effective too by using these criteria when choosing a service provider.  

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Top 3 Tips for an Effective Presentation

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how to be an effective presenter

We all have to deliver a presentation at some point in our lives. The kindergartener “presents” in show and tell, the politician presents in hopes to get elected, the PhD candidate presents in pursuit of a title. And, of course, the sales rep presents in order to close a deal. 

Over the course of my career, I have delivered hundreds of presentations and sat through my fair share as well. Some were good and others made me want to jump out the nearest window. So, what was the difference? Here are some best practices I’ve developed over the years: 

1.PREPARE – When you’re creating your presentation, keep things simple.  No fancy power point transition can deliver a message as effectively as you can through your words.  Over the years, I’ve learned that less is more on a slide, which means I need to know my material well to effectively explain what’s not there. 

 

2. PRACTICE – In our workshops, we ask our attendees to role play what is being taught.  I’m consistently amazed at how people struggle with this.  But, the only way to really practice is to make the words come out of your mouth. It’s funny how halted and jerky a presentation sounds during my first practice run, when in my mind I was so witty and articulate. But sure enough, after three, four and five times, the words start to flow, I build my cadence, and I can add some finishing touches like pauses for emphasis, interesting asides, and, of course, a bit of humor, to help my words really stick. 

 

3. CONNECT – In order to be engaging presenters, we must be entertainers, too. How do we entertain? If size permits, engage the participants by asking them thoughtful questions. Invite discussion. Many presenters are fearful to do this because they are unsure of what the responses will be and how they may derail the presentation. But, I’ve found that the better I know my material, the more effective I am at steering the dialogue. Yes, there has been some unscripted participation that has been shocking, but some that is also memorable, entertaining and engaging. 

 

If asking questions seems too daunting, then share a personal experience and relate it to the concept being presented.  Recently, I shared a story about meeting a 20-year-old who had never flown before, and helping him from the ticket counter, through security and to the gate. I related my story to the sales process steps that I was teaching. When I asked the client how she thought the presentation went, the first thing she mentioned was my story. Real life examples are engaging and memorable. 

 

Need tips on effectively presenting when you and your prospect are not in the same room? Check out our article on being a more effective virtual salesperson. 

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Maintaining Momentum In Quarter Four

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This time of year brings thoughts of Thanksgiving, Christmas and 2024.  For some sales organizations it brings a number of worried thoughts and concerns as well.  Will we hit quota, is the pipeline as strong as it needs to be, and do we have the right players in place?  Are our buyers as committed to us as the information reflected in our recent correspondence? Or have they slowed the communication down?

For some, the pressure is mounting to close the year out in a strong capacity and it seems like requests are coming from every direction – senior management, buyers and the sales team.  Don’t panic.  There is time to assess the situation and make some course corrections.  Here are some solid steps you can take to bring in the 4th Quarter business:

  1. Grade your Pipeline. Do it early in the quarter (aka NOW) and often if the opportunities don’t seem as solid as desired.  Lower probability opportunities should be re-qualified and moved to 2024 if a Q4 close doesn’t seem to be realistic.
  2. Manage your Buyers. Some buyers will let the clock tick to the end of the year for concessions.    If a buyer senses that a seller is too desperate, too needy or tips his hand that he is behind budget, prepare to have your margin eroded.  Seek to establish milestones early in the quarter so buyers don’t feel like they are being pressured at Quarter’s end.  Negotiate from a position of strength.  If a seller reviews milestones with a buyer and offers Quarter 1 target dates, the buyer will believe that you have a full pipeline and may communicate a commitment to close earlier.  The seller must be strategic about allocation of time and resources.  If a buyer is not ready to move, adding them to the 2024 pipeline may be the smartest move.
  3. Maintain Business Development Activities. Start to identify opportunities for 2024.  Too often sales teams have moved from crisis to crisis and fail to understand that insufficient business development activities are the cause of the reoccurring nightmare.  Don’t buy the argument that sales staff can only step up their game under pressure.  Every major league coach knows that games are won on the practice fields and that good behaviors and performance are exhibited on game day only after detailed preparation.  Early business development activities insure that sufficient time is available for the lead to be nurtured.
  4. Assess your bench. Do you have the right people on the team?  What resources do you need to deploy to close the deals you need to hit quota?  Are additional skills and practice needed to increase your close rate?  What approaches are going to be the most effective with your buyers?  Is there an opportunity to improve the skill set of the sales team?  Can you role play the critical opportunities to maximize the potential for a successful outcome?  Is there a development plan for 2024 that you should be budgeting for now based on the assessments and opportunities for improved performance?
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Focus on Coaching: Assessing Selling Skills

 

After workshops many of my clients often come to me with a specific skill that needs to be addressed like:

  • We are working on an enormous opportunity and could use an outside look.
  • Our people seem to be wasting their time with unqualified opportunities.
  • We need a reminder of how and what to prepare for sales calls.
  • My people give away too much in the end.  We should focus on their negotiating skills.

The one day refresher workshop is a great option to sharpen these skills and other skills that you and your sales team identify.  This will be a customized, one day workshop around your needs.  The workshop format will be lecture, group discussion, skill practice and other participatory exercises.

This workshop could easily be added on to an already existing sales meeting.   If you have a small group or large give me a call, let’s get started today.

Contact info:
John E. Flannery
858-518-7039

john@drive-revenue.com

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