The world is changing. The craft of selling is changing. I have been spending a lot of time lately working with younger people. Dare I call them “hotshots.” These salespeople are two generations removed from my own demographic and actually most of our industry’s demographic. Yup, they are mostly thirty years old or even younger […]

No matter what you do, understanding your customers is crucial for any business to thrive. You have to have a complete understanding of who they are, what business they are in and what it takes for them to be successful. In short you have to see things from their perspective. Too often we assume to […]

  The fear of “No” When you get right down to it, the reason most salespeople are so scared of getting out there in front of customers and potential customers is the fear of the word “No”. That dreadful tiny little word that has so often ruined sales careers. Think about that for a minute. […]

  In the world of sales, success is not solely determined by hitting quotas or closing deals. A truly exceptional salesperson possesses a unique blend of creativity and innovation that sets her apart from the rest. A great salesperson does not follow the conventional path; he  forges new trails, breaks boundaries, and continuously adapts to […]

  I have to laugh when salespeople try to convince me that selling today is harder than ever. They wax poetic about the good old days when they could visit customers, buy them a beer and a burger and book the order. Listen, I was around in the so-called good old days, and they weren’t […]

We all know how difficult and expensive it is to get a new customer. I have seen some surveys that claim that it can cost over $5,000 to acquire a new customer. This makes sense when you think of the branding, marketing, trade shows, content marketing, newsletters, and advertising, not to mention travel to meet […]

We have spent a great deal of time listing all of the things that great salespeople should be doing. Now it’s time to reverse that and learn from others’ mistakes. I sat down this week and listed some of the more common and dare I say damaging, mistakes that salespeople make. Most of these I […]

We all know it is hard out there right now. I have spent the past few weeks taking calls from salespeople who are more than a little discouraged, wondering what is going on. Everyone seems to be looking for answers as to why they aren’t making their numbers. Some of them blame China, some blame […]