So here we are my final, final posting of 2007 and it’s time to announce:

The 2007 JF Article Community Awards.

As I suggested last week, whilst last year’s awards were very much “tongue in cheek,” this year, I have invested time in really assessing the sites to which I contribute and others which I have considered doing so.

I have divided the awards into just three categories that are pertinent to me personally i.e.

Miscellaneous Article Communities – sites who do not specialise, but rather accept articles on a wide range of subjects.

The nominees in this category were:

Ezine Articles

Go Articles

Buzzle

Idea Marketers.

This was probably the easiest choice for me: The winner is Ezine Articles

Chris Knight continues to develop a very strong brand and with more than 70.000 contributing authors, Ezine is probably the most successful article community ever. However, despite their size, the quality of their service has not been compromised and they continue to exceed expectation in every department. So congratulations to Chris and his team for winning this category for the second year running.

Business Article Communities – sites who promote business specific articles.

The nominees here were:

The Sideroad

Build Your Own Business

Woopidoo

Best Management Articles

This was a much more difficult decision because all of these communities have their strengths: For example, The Sideroad present very well and Heather and Michael take their work very seriously. David Bain’s BYOB continues to attract some very high quality authors and Woopidoo appear to be very selective.

However, this year I believe Ismael Tabije at Best Management Articles has made a herculean effort to establish his community and he just edges it.

Congratulations to you and your team Ismael.

Sales Article Communities – sites that specialise in promoting sales and marketing articles and services.

The nominees here were:

Rain Today

Sales Gravy

Salesopedia

Eyes On Sales

The most difficult decision for a number of reasons: To begin with, they are all really excellent communities, who promote their contributing authors superbly. Sales Gravy and Salesopedia are the new boys on the block but both have developed an excellent reputation and I know for a fact that Jeb Blount (Sales Gravy) and Clayton Shold (Salesopedia) work tirelessly to continually improve their product

Aaron at Rain Today provides an excellent editing service and they are probably the largest and best known.

Finally, it will be interesting to see how Eyes On Sales develops now that they have been purchased by Landslide Technologies – a very forward thinking organisation. Not sure if Jan Visser is staying around, but I hope he is because he also a smart cookie who I like very much.

In the end it came down to personal experience: I have had a much closer connection with Clayton this year and both he and Jeb have enthusiastically supported Top 10 Sales Articles.

So just edging it is Salesopedia – congratulations to Clayton and his unsung partner Dave. Great job guys. That wraps up the awards for this year and it’s time for me to wind down for a well earned festive break. Once again, my thanks to all of you for your loyal support and I do hope you will come back and join me here on January 7^th – JF

PS: Please don’t forget that the Top Sales Article Of 2007, will be announced on New Years Eve at www.top10salesarticles.com

What a year!

Actually, it is still continuing at a very hectic pace with the Top Sales Article Of The Year poll still running until December 30th with the winner set to be announced on New Year’s Eve and of course, the JF Article Community Awards winners will be posted on Christmas Eve. I will then be officially off-line until January 7th, re-charging the batteries and re-introducing myself to family, neighbours and pets.

We completed our planning for 2008 more than four weeks ago and more of that later, but first I have the opportunity to review 2007 and all that……….

Our first quarter plan involved updating the main JF site, giving the blogit a makeover and preparing to exit from The jfa Group. In practice, we completed all of that, but then we went into overdrive with a number of brand new initiatives, most of which had not been part of our original planning for the year – but that is the immediacy of the internet.

In February, we conceived the concept of delivering a single location, where every week, the very best sales related articles would be selected and showcased – with considerable originality, we called this site, “Top 10 Sales Articles” and having secured the services of some of the top sales experts in the world to act as an adjudication panel, we finally launched in April.

Initial visitor numbers as with any new venture were fairly low, but gradually we have built a huge weekly patronage and of course, the excitement leading up to the grand finale is really quite extraordinary.

So it was that we formed Top Sales Associates, to promote the very best sales related products, solutions and services

It was also in April that I was asked by b5 to take over their leadership focussed blog, Leadership Turn. This was something very new for me as never before had I attempted to post on a blog every single day of the week, but it was an immense challenge and that is what really excited me.

Within a couple of months, I had been nominated as one of the top leadership blogs for 2007 in a poll organised by “Mr Remarkable” himself, Kevin Eikenberry, who has since become a very good friend: I didn’t win and I didn’t deserve to, but I did come second thanks to an extensive address book of friends, who almost to a man and woman answered the call to arms and voted for me – otherwise I would probably have come way down the field after all, I was and still am, a relative novice at this blogging lark!

The Turn was fun and I made lots of new contacts but it was terribly time consuming and in the end I had to walk away, despite a reassuring leap in visitor numbers, because we had so many other pressing initiatives – however I remain eternally grateful for the experience made possible by my editor Douglas Hanna, for his patience and support.

In May, we began considering the viability of an autonomous site for the Top Sales Experts team, where we could all showcase our solutions more effectively than on Top 10 Sales Articles, because space was and still is at a premium.

The first designs looked superb and we drew up a list of the additional experts we wanted to invite onto the team – then wham! Nikki Owen, creator of The Sales Activator® and our sponsor on Top 10, came up with the concept of creating a specialised sales leadership resource – a one stop location, where sales captains could find tools for self-development, sales team sessions, articles, process tool-kits, newsletters, in fact everything they could possibly need to gain an advantage in ever increasing competitive markets.

By September we had launched the Sales Leadership Zone and despite a very slow take-up on subscriptions, which led us to reverse our thinking, this free to subscribe site has now really taken off and is fast becoming THE place to be for anyone charged with managing, training and developing a professional sales team.

At this point, I decided to bring all of our enterprises under one trading umbrella and we formed the Sales Practitioners Group, which is now based in London and Paris, with a further office planned to open in Cape Town at the end of 2008.

Once the Zone was up and running, my team turned their attention once more to the Top Sales Experts initiative and in my opinion, produced their best work to date.

The new additions took the Experts team to twenty six strong, with an excellent balance of established sales gurus and up and coming stars and we really do have some exciting plans to develop this site in 2008 – www.topsalesexperts.com

Which leads me in nicely to sharing with you my overall objectives for the next twelve months.

To begin with, my new consultancy – The Sales Practitioner – launches in January, with a brand new range of leading edge solutions and services. That’s all I can tell you right now, because the elves are busy designing something special ?

Certainly, I intend travelling more and accepting a greater number of invitations to speak, coach and consult because this year I have devoted almost entirely to online development and I have really missed the human interaction with clients.

That is not to say that we will not be forging ahead with further development of all our online initiatives, particularly with the Top Sales Experts team – think sales conventions, webinars, online one-one coaching and more.

It is also my intention to considerably enhance the Sales Leadership Zone, adding even more resources and at some point during Q1, I will launch a new leadership blog – tougheratthetop.com – which is very overdue in terms of my ambitions to give something back to aspiring leaders.

I have two books planned and I anticipate being prompted all the way by my publisher, Jeb Blount. I will also attempt to write more new articles and submit to the six or seven sites that I know will promote my work appropriately – I don’t need to mention them again, just look at my JF Article Community Awards nominees on Monday’s post.

Finally, I will be involving myself in a number of non-JF projects, in an advisory capacity to ensure my grey matter continues to be fully exercised. I will also immerse myself in all things Sales 2.0, but I will certainly not be dictated to by it’s supporters!:-(

I guess that’s about it: I need to thank you for coming back and allowing me to share my thoughts with you on a daily basis, it has been a tremendous challenge but immense fun.

I also want to thank all my friends, acquaintances and colleagues, new friends who were introduced into my life this year plus of course my team of incredibly talented little elves, especially Jacqueline Male, who is “Merlin” in my eyes and the “Top Graphics Guy” Bill Jeckells, for taking concepts from the “Crazy One” and turning them into reality.

To all of you, thank you from the bottom of my heart for making 2007 a very special year for me – words don’t do it somehow.

Have a great Christmas and do take a break from present wrapping/mince pie making/turkey stuffing etc on Monday to find out who has won the JF Article Community Awards – oh, and if you haven’t voted yet for goodness sake get over there – www.top10salesarticles.com

My Very Best

JF

PS: I am very happy to be a member of the Concord Society, because you cannot buy your way into that and neither can you bullshit your way in. Who?

“What we fear is not suffering or even death.

What we fear is that we have wasted life.

In our darkest moments we are afraid that our highest calling will go unanswered.”

Essentially, the task of the Sales Manager is to produce revenue for their company through the operations of the sales staff for whom they are responsible. The size of this revenue, and the profit (however defined) which it should show, are usually predetermined in order to achieve the aims of company policy. The objectives which they set for the various activities which are involved in carrying out this task should therefore be derived from, and be compatible with, company objectives, such as return on capital employed, cash flow, market position, growth.

Since, like other managers, the Sales Manager depends on those who work for them to produce the results by which they are judged, consideration can usefully continue by regularly examining the nature and characteristics of their role.

As we near the end of the year, this is an excellent time to take stock and ask yourself some important questions to ensure that you are totally prepared for the fresh set of challenges that lay ahead next year

* What are the objectives of my department, function and company?

* Am I satisfied that I feel these can be achieved – that I have a plan for this?

* In what ways can my department/company be improved?

* Is the work in my area altering in nature, quantity or quality?

* Can the work be done it a better way?

* Have I the right equipment and facilities?

* Have I the right number of staff?

* Am I happy that all my subordinates are correctly placed and loaded?

* Are my staff doing what I want them to do?

* Do any of my staff need further training? Have I a training plan?

* What are the staffing trends?

* Are my staff happy? Do I spend enough time with them?

* Have I a trained deputy?

* Am I satisfied personally?

* Is my authority defined and adequate?

* Is my relationship with senior management satisfactory?

* Where is my next promotion coming from?

* Am I doing too much routine or administrative/clerical work?

* Have I enough time for thinking?

Summary:

For a group of people to remain “consciously competent” at optimum performance levels, they require frequent injections of stimulation, motivational guidance and prompting otherwise they can easily lapse into” unconsciously competent”, or worse, “unconsciously incompetent”

The primary objective of a professional Sales Manager has to be:

“To achieve consistently superior results, through the performance of every key individual.”

However, you can only achieve that objective if you yourself, are fully committed and focussed on what will be required.

Today’s News: OK, no more elves, I promise Actually, with 2008 firmly in mind, you may enjoy an interview I did with Clayton Shold of Salesopedia recently, where I share my thoughts on creating a business development strategy and also reveal an original sales process concept for ensuring all three types of selling work are properly managed. You can catch the ten minute podcast here.

Tomorrow: My last official posting of 2007 and I will be reviewing my year and revealing my plans for 2008 – be sure to join me. – JF

Around this time last year, I received an e-mail from an ex-client asking if I had to suggest just twelve essential principles to someone embarking on a sales career, what would I come up with.

I kicked some ideas around for a couple of days and then reproduced my response here, but that was so long ago that I decided it would be worth another airing.

Obviously all of this should be a matter of fact to a “seasoned” sales professional, however, it does no harm whatsoever to go back to basics once in a while. Here is what I came up with for my “Twelve Golden Principles Of Selling”

Principle 1: – Always Sell To People

• People are different

• No two sales are the same

• Aim at becoming a people expert

• Professional sales people actually like people

People buy from people – they always will – despite what the exponents of Sales 2.0 will try to tell you.

Principle 2: – You Have To Sell Yourself

• Be interesting

• Develop ‘intellect’

• Never be arrogant – never talk ‘up’ or ‘down’

• Respect the buyer and they will respect you

• Develop your empathy levels

• Learn to develop rapport

• Control your ego levels

Principle 3: – You Must Ask Questions

• Develop your questioning techniques to uncover needs painlessly

• Remember What? Where? When? Which? Why? Who? And How?

• Continually ‘test your understanding’

Principle 4: – Listen To Understand

• God has given us two ears and one mouth, we should use them in that order

• Successful sales professionals talk for 20% of the time and listen for 80% of the time

• Develop your active listening skills

Principle 5: – Features Must Be Linked To Benefits To Pass The “So What?” Test

Remember:

• Features are common – benefits are personal and specific

• Use the ‘link phrases’ – ‘which means that……’

• Be specific

Principle 6: – Sell The Results – ‘Paint A Picture’

• Discover ‘prime desires’

• Personalise benefits

• Describe end results

Principle 7: – You Cannot Rely On Logic

• 84% of all buying decisions are based upon emotion – not logic

• What are the chief buying emotions? – Ego – Security – Pride of ownership – Greed – Health – Prestige – Status – Ambition – Fear of loss

Principle 8: –Selective Product Knowledge Is The Key

• Buyers buy solutions and results they do not buy products or services

Principle 9: – Aim To Be Unique – ‘Me First’ Rather Than ‘Me Too’

• Every business, every company, every product has something that is unique

• Look outside the square

• Identify the uniqueness of: – your product – your service – your company – yourself

Principle 10: – Don’t Sell On Price

• It is a ‘cop out’

• Value your expertise – your products – your service and price accordingly

• Always keep the ‘bottom line’ firmly in your mind

• Anyone can give business away – selling on price means we do not need salespeople

Principle 11: – Present Your Solutions – Don’t Tell

• When we present our proposals rather than post/fax/e-mail them we increase the likelihood of a sale by…..a factor of ten

Principle 12: – And Finally: Be Professional At all Times

• The greatest compliment a customer can pay you is to describe you as “professional”

• Don’t worry about being liked –be respected.

• Being professional is not one thing it is three: It is what you do, what you say and how you present yourself,

“When I see a bird that swims like a duck, sounds like a duck and looks like a duck; then I call that bird, a duck” Rudyard Kipling

Today’s News: Over on Top 10 Sales Articles the votes are coming in and as I write Diane Helbig has a commanding lead but Keith Rosen is beginning to flex his muscles and Mr Remarkable, Kevin Eikenberry, is sure to be amongst the front runners very shortly If you haven’t voted yet, please consider doing so.

If you were here yesterday and enjoyed some of the Article Community CEOs making an exhibition of themselves, you will also be amused at this, from four of the “girls” on the Top Sales Experts team – who said they can’t boogie? You will instantly recognise: Jill Konrath, Wendy Weiss, Leslie Buterin and of course the little diva herself, Kim Duke here but be patient, as it sometimes takes a while to load.

Tomorrow:With 2008 fast approaching, are you ready for a fresh set of challenges – I share some tips.

The JF Guest Author Spot

Are You Sitting in the Coffee Shop Licking Your Wounds? by Cheryl Clausen

After a poor sales conversation do you get off tracking spending time and energy feeling sorry for yourself? You may not be consciously aware that you’re doing it, but what do you do immediately after a sales call that doesn’t work out? In essence, many salespeople call time out.

I’m not discouraging you from taking a time out. In fact, I’m encouraging you to take a time out. But it’s how you use that time out that will provide a real benefit for you.

During prime selling time it’s not uncommon to find salespeople sitting in the local coffee shop reading the paper. A poor sales conversation can be really upsetting even demoralizing. You need time to regroup before you head to the next one, so you don’t have a repeat of the previous experience.

While the experience is fresh in your mind it’s the best time to actually learn from the experience, and make adaptations so you don’t repeat it. In all likelihood you got a stall or objection, or you just didn’t connect from the start and never had a conversation with the other person to begin with. If you’re going to get value from this experience there are a couple things you need to do.

Identify the point where things started to go wrong. If you didn’t connect from the onset, was it because: you didn’t do your homework before making the appointment, you didn’t adapt your communication style to one that was more comfortable to the prospect, or did you try to sell the prospect and manipulate them to do what you wanted them to do not what was best for them? Did you fail to listen to what the prospect was saying causing the prospect to feel disrespected?

If you don’t know it, when you get a stall or objection when your solution is a good match for the prospect it’s because you didn’t help the prospect to discover the value in your solution. That means you either don’t understand the buying process, or you just need more practice. But in the meantime all is not lost.

Make a list of all the stalls and objections you know you’ll get or could get. Here are some common general objections:

I don’t have enough money
It’s too complicated or too simple
It isn’t all that important to me
I’ll just wait and do it later
I want to look into other options.

Start with these and add to your list until you’ve thought of as many as possible. Now start thinking of examples and stories of other people or other situations where people thought these things too. Use stories to make a point that removes the validity of that objection for the prospect.

Stories are a non-threatening way of getting the prospect to look at things from another perspective. They help people to gain a deeper understanding, and they increase your connection with the prospect. As you work through this thought process you’ll start to regain your confidence and get fired up for the next insurance sales conversation, and you’ll be much better prepared when you get there.

From my experience working with clients at certain points in your business you just get really stuck and you don’t know what to do to get you where you want to go. My purpose is helping insurance agents, financial advisors, and other service professionals to get unstuck and get going again.

If you’re hungry for insurance and investment sales success, if you want to master success to get you where you want to be, and if you want to develop the time strategies that allow you to live the life you want to live I can help you get there faster and more easily. Visit my blog to read a daily article to get yourself or your team unstuck and going again and my website here

Helping agents increase their client base, close more business, and grow into transferable multi-agent agencies is Cheryl’s focus. Cheryl works with agents/agencies on their top 5 priorities: maximum time management effectiveness, assistant buyer skills for improved sales skills long-term long-lasting relationships, a unique marketing position that attracts more clients, obtaining results through other people, and planning a successful business that becomes a reality. You can learn more about Cheryl here

Today’s News: The response to the 2007 JF Article Community Awards nominees has been amazing – amongst other things, four of the nominees got together to produce a short musical skit to show their appreciation. It may be a little slow to load but it will be worth it, I promise: You will recognise; Clayton Shold of Salesopedia, Chris Knight of Ezine Articles, David Bain of Build Your Own Business and last but certainly not least, Jeb Blount of Sales Gravy, performing for you here

Tomorrow: More surprises

Well here we are, my final list of nominees for The 2007 JF Article Community Awards.

Whilst last year’s awards were very much “tongue in cheek,” this year, I have invested time in really assessing the sites to which I contribute and others which I have considered doing so.

You will note that I have divided the awards into just three categories that are pertinent to me personally i.e.

Miscellaneous Article Communities – sites who do not specialise, but rather accept articles on a wide range of subjects.

Business Article Communities - sites who promote business specific articles.

Sales Article Communities – sites that specialise in promoting sales and marketing articles and services.

I am not going to elaborate on my reasons for my choices yet, I will reserve my commentary for Christmas Eve, when I announce the winners (6pm GMT – 1pm EST) – just to keep you guessing

What I do need to say is that mine, as ever, will be a very personal and subjective view based on my experiences through 2007 – you might just be surprised. Here we go:

Miscellaneous Category:

Business Specific Category:

Sales Specific Category:

Again, the winners will be announced here on Christmas Eve.

Today’s News:

The hugely anticipated Volume 3 of the “Top Sales Experts Share Their Top Articles” e-book, will be launched at 6pm GMT (1pm EST) and you can download this fantastic 86 page collection for FREE here

Tomorrow:My guest on the JF Guest Author Spot is Cheryl Clausen and you can expect something special and original from fellow Top Sales Expert, Coach Cheryl.

The ability to build rapport with customers and prospects is vitally important. Why? Because, if you have rapport with your customers, they are more likely to trust you, listen to you and communicate openly with you. This in turn enables you to interact more comfortably and work more effectively together. Rapport dramatically increases your chances of winning a sale. Having rapport means that when there are tough issues to discuss, for example price increases, you can more easily find agreement and solutions, and move on.

Classic research by Robert Birdwhistle looked at how face-to-face communication was received and responded to. His figures suggest that your impact depends on three factors – how you look, how you sound, and what you say. His research broke it down: 55% body language, 38% quality of the voice and 7% actual words spoken. Rapport involves being able to see eye-to-eye with other people, connecting on their wavelength. So much (93%) of the perception of your sincerity comes not from what you say but how you say it, and how you show an appreciation for the other person’s thoughts and feelings.

When you are in rapport with someone you can disagree with what they say and still relate respectfully with him or her.

The important point to remember is to acknowledge other people for the unique individuals that they are. Rapport can be described as ‘when two people are like each other, they like each other!’ Rapport builds trust and without basic trust communication can become stilted.

When communication between two or more individuals reaches its optimum it’s said that a perfect rapport has been established. On the other hand, when communicating with a customer or prospect is hard the situation becomes rapport-less. Some people we meet may inspire an instant connection and immediate trust, while another person can be very polite and charming, yet we don’t feel any connection with them and our communication feels unnatural.

When two or more people meet they immediately start an automatic process of comparison with the other. If the outcome of this process is judged that the other person is similar in some way then rapport is established. When people are in a state of rapport they tend to respond easier to our instructions, suggestions and influence. Rapport is often seen as the foundation of all good communication.

We have an inbuilt tendency to conform to the other person’s behaviours and if we instinctively feel that conforming is possible, then we will start the process of building rapport. As people, this process happens instinctively and can be evidenced by sharing the same mannerisms, voice qualities and gestures. This means that when two people are in rapport they show a tendency towards a behavioral compromise.

It’s easy to spot two close friends who share similar gestures, facial expressions, verbal expressions and postures, to such a degree that they could be mistaken as being closely related. This is due to the fact that the long-term mutual rapport creates a strong behavioral bond. Even when these two friends disagree on something, they manage to keep rapport alive.

The process we use unconsciously to build rapport can be replicated with conscious awareness, a useful skill for a Sales person to learn. This process can be likened to matching and mirroring a person’s behavior to create a perceived likeness. When we match a person’s mood, their gestures, facial expressions, we are better equipped to start experiencing how they feel at any given moment. Doing so, we obtain that the person observing us will find mirrored in us their emotional state, their way of living at that moment, and all this will increase the chances that they will see in us someone that they can trust.

If we have built sufficient rapport it then becomes possible to lead a person towards where we would like them to go, or what we would like them to do. At an unconscious level they will know that by refusing it (shown by not matching or mirroring you) they will be refusing to build rapport with themselves. Through unconscious identification they are already convinced that you are experiencing what they are experiencing, therefore anything you will manage to do they will feel that it’s something they can do as well.

There are a number of suggestions that can help your rapport-building skills:

- The quickest way to build rapport is to match the other person’s rate of breathing
- By matching a person’s breathing, you’ll find it easier to match their voice qualities
- If you use peripheral vision (expanded awareness, similar to the one used when driving a car) you become more sensory aware of the smallest details about the other person
- You don’t necessarily need to match each gesture exactly, you can match a pen tapping movement with a foot tapping movement at the same pace
- Never match regional accents and if you are female, some male postures may not look appropriate to match
- Paying attention to the other person really helps build rapport because the more you notice, the more you can match
- Take a genuine interest in getting to know what’s important to the other person. Start to understand them rather than expecting them to understand you first
- Pick up on their key words, favourite phrases and way of speaking and build these subtly into your own conversation
- Finally, notice how someone likes to handle information. Do they like lots of detail or just the big picture? As you speak, feed back information in this same portion size.

Today’s News: Nominees for the JF 2008 Article Community Awards, will be announced here on Monday and the winners posted on Christmas Eve. In addition, over at Top 10 Sales Articles we will be launching a poll for the Top Sales Article Of The Year on Sunday.

Finally, the Top Sales Experts Christmas e-book will be available from Monday, packed with original work from the world’s leading sales gurus.

Tomorrow:I have an extremely busy run up to Christmas – nothing changes! But I will be back here for you next week, so have a great w/e – JF

The JF Guest Author Spot

Cold Calling: A Prep Pep Talk By Wendy Weiss, The Queen of Cold Calling

1. Prospects will take calls.
Stop worrying that your prospects do not want to speak with you. If your offer has value and you have done your homework, targeted your market and are able to speak about your product/service intelligently and articulately, most prospects will be more than happy to listen to what you have to say.

2. A lot of times, they say “yes.”
This is true.

3. They are not too busy.
While your prospects will certainly be busy, (everyone is) if your offer has value and you have done your homework, targeted your market and are able to speak about your product/service intelligently and articulately (see #1 above), it is simply a matter of negotiating when that prospect has time to speak with you.

4. They are not avoiding you.
The level of paranoia exhibited by some sales professionals is truly interesting. Why should your prospects be avoiding you? They don’t even know you.

5. If they have a vendor or supplier, bingo! They are qualified prospects.
Yes. If you speak with a prospect who says they are already working with someone, that means that this prospect buys what you are selling. You know, if you did not before, that you are now speaking with a qualified prospect.

6. You will know what to say if you do your homework ahead of time.
The question you want to ask yourself, before you get on the telephone, is: “Why should this prospect be interested in my offering?” Don’t call your prospect until you have the answer. Then, when you get your prospect on the telephone, make sure to lead with that answer. That “why” is the reason that a prospect will want to speak with you.

7. High-level decision-makers are usually very nice and quite willing to speak with you if you have something of value to say.
The rule is to always call the highest-level person that you believe would be the decision-maker. That person either will be the decision-maker or they will know who is. Many sales professionals, however, call lower level managers and/or coordinators, rather than Directors and Vice Presidents, believing that the call will be easier. The reverse is actually true. People with power are generally much nicer than people without power.

8. Cold calling is a communication skill and, like any communication skill, it can be learned and improved upon.
It is up to you to educate yourself. Read books, listen to audio programs, attend teleseminars or live seminars, talk to colleagues, hire a coach… Do whatever it takes to gain the skills that you need to be successful.

   Wendy Weiss, “The Queen of Cold Calling,” is a sales trainer, author and sales coach.

Her recently released program, The Miracle Appointment-Setting Script, can be ordered by visiting http://queenofcoldcalling.com.  Contact her at wendy@wendyweiss.com. Get Wendy’s free Special Report, “How to Write an Effective Cold Calling Script,” at http://www.queenofcoldcalling.com

Personal Note: There are “gurus” mostly self-styled and there are “real gurus” Wendy falls into the latter camp and is someone I admire and like very much indeed: If you are reading this Your Majesty, it’s Thursday, so not too “cranky” I hope? (Personal joke
 

Today’s News: I do not often share the contents of my private e-mails but last night my good buddy Jill Konrath was sharing her frustration at her workload and I replied thus: 

ADVERT: 
Are you slipping behind? Maybe you need to consider a new brand of underwear? OR You could consider taking tips from Jonathan Farrington. Yes, the old grey badger shares his time management skills here: http://www.salesopedia.com/content/view/433/226/
 
“I am nestling in the “Heart of England” at one of my favourite hotels of all time: http://www.horsleylodge.co.uk/
 
After dinner tonight, I went outside to be entertained by the local church choir singing carols and drank mulled wine plus scoffed mince pies. Then I came back to my room, sat in front of my PC and immediately fell asleep
 
Was it the mulled wine? Nooooo Was it the two glasses of a very good Bordeaux? Noooooo Was it old age and my itinery? Probably. But I am back at work now
 
Keep at it, we owe it to ourselves to prove that like good wine, maturity brings excellence.
 
J”

Tomorrow:I finish the week with some thoughts about “Rapport” – yep, getting on the same length of waves as your prospect/client/customer

For many sales people, the telephone is an important resource that they use to develop their business. Yet, according to a study by Behavioural Sciences Research Press:

• 40% of established sales people experienced periods of ‘call reluctance’ severe enough to threaten their livelihood in sales.
• The average ‘call reluctant’ sales person loses more than fifteen new accounts each month to their competitors.

Whether you are telephoning to make an appointment or seeking information about a prospect, there are some essential pointers that can help you to become really effective when communicating on the telephone!
• People can hear when you read from a script, so prepare what you plan to say by writing it down, read aloud what you have written three times, so that it becomes installed within your unconscious mind. Then throw it away! From memory prepare some bullet points that summarise the content of your script and use these to refer to when on the telephone. This simple technique ensures that you can devote more attention to the other person and you’ll sound much more natural.

• Plan how you will respond to the objections you experience most frequently and be experimental with trying out different responses.

• Always dial each call yourself so that you feel in control and prepared. Ask for the contact by name and if speaking their secretary it helps to use the contacts first name as well. If asked who is calling use your full name and if asked the name of your company don’t be afraid to give it.

• Use a spontaneous opening (you’ll be able to do this if you focus your attention on the other person) and get the OK signal that it’s convenient for the prospect to talk with you. (Either verbally or non-verbally). If the prospect conveys that it’s not a convenient time then find out when they are prepared to talk with you. Your call will generally be interrupting them, which is why it’s important to be direct and get to the point quickly.

• Hook the prospect’s attention by using their name and providing a reason why they should talk with you. According to Tony Robbins, if people have good reasons to do something, they’ll do anything. It can be really useful before you make a call to develop two or three reasons why the person you’re calling will be pleased to hear from you because you are unconsciously projecting your positive ‘vibes’ that will be unconsciously received by the other person and you’ll feel more confident. If they have been referred, use that person’s name as early as you can because it will warm up their response and you can maximise the relationship.

• Build rapport by matching the other person’s voice speed and volume. Resistance can be dramatically reduced if you can immediately project that there is a similarity between you both. If your prospect is talking quickly, talk quickly, if they are talking slowly, talk slowly. This can be challenging because a natural reaction from sales people is to blurt out their scripted message as quickly as they can. Instead, using a message that is succinct and to the point, yet matching speed and volume can build a connection very quickly.

• Have clear expectations about what you want the call to accomplish. Is it to inform? To establish a need? To obtain an appointment? Unless you are in a telesales role you should NEVER attempt to sell your product or services over the phone, you are ‘selling’ the appointment.

• Clarify that you have all the correct information. For example, confirm you are talking to the right person and they have the authority and not just the title. Even if your call is not successful on the first attempt, you can ensure that their details are correct for future use.

• Research from The Results Corporation Plc shows that 60% of customers say “yes” after saying “no” 5 times, yet 44% of sales people give up after the first “no“, 22% after the second “no” and 14% after the third “no“. These statistics are important when prospecting on the telephone because a typical prospect will require five contacts from the sales person before agreeing to a meeting. That’s why successful sales people develop a “Prospect Nurturing System” that keeps them in regular contact with their prospects irrespective of how many “no’s” they encounter. As the contact increases many people’s reassurance rises as they become more familiar with a person or their company.

• Ask open questions to encourage the prospect to talk and if appropriate ask a couple of questions that probe for pain (Pain can be a powerful motivator).

• Don’t attempt to establish the decision maker and then talk to them in one phone call, if you don’t know who to speak to then that is a call in its own right. Set yourself a target, say four attempts to get through to the decision maker, if you still are unable to reach them, try a different approach. If you keep a call log of all your calls you’ll soon get to know which are the most productive times to reach the decision maker. For example, traditionally Monday morning is a poor time to cold call.

• The higher up the organisation you go then the higher and wider the barriers seem to become, with receptionists, secretaries and personal assistants all seemingly having no other purpose than to stop you getting through to the decision maker. Try outside the normal office hours that will avoid the receptionist and you may get straight through. Security staff are often a good source for information and they are usually more than willing to show off their knowledge about the company – they also have the time to talk! As a last resort, send a letter first explaining that you will be calling – therefore the receptionist is ‘expecting your call’.

• If you are using the telephone to qualify prospect information, you should aim to discover:

- Who should be talking to regarding the purchase of your product or service?
- Who else would be involved in such a decision?
- When do you believe a budget will be made available for such a purchase/project this year?
- What do you envisage that budget to be?
- Is the budget dependent upon anything?
- When is this purchase required by?
- Is there a particular reason for this timescale?
- Who else are they talking to? (Identified your competitors)
- What are they hoping to achieve? (Checks whether it is within your capabilities)

• Record what you are doing, how many dials you’ve made, how many prospects you were able to talk with and the times of your calls. Studying this information gives you a good reality check because you’ll know how many calls you need to make to get an appointment

• At then end of a call where you aim is to secure an appointment, seek their commitment. For example, “I feel I understand what is required and that we can help, I’d like to discuss your requirements further in person, would Thursday or Friday next week be suitable?”

• Always confirm your appointment either by email or by letter because this provides you with another opportunity of ‘contact’ that helps the prospect with becoming more familiar with you and your organisation. Give appointments either at a quarter past or a quarter to the hour. This conveys that you are busy and presupposing that there are lots of other companies that want to see you.

• Your attitude and emotional state is a vital part of telephone effectiveness. Clear your desk of everything except your prospect records and diary. If your immediate environment is uncluttered it helps free your mind so that you can focus on each call’s objectives. Visualise your prospect smiling warmly when they receive your call. This will help you access a positive state-of-mind. Your unconscious mind can’t tell the difference between a real and imagined event. This mentally rehearses you in feeling good about picking up the phone.

• Finally, stand up, take five deep breaths and smile! According to Deepak Chopra, our mind and body are totally connected. The way you move your body affects your mental state. After every call, review what went well before making your next call. This process enables you to act as your own motivational mentor!

Tomorrow:On the JF Guest Author Spot is the Queen Of Cold Calling, Wendy Weiss – she is on fine form!

Cold Calling: 7 Principles for Finding Victory over Fear

By Leslie Buterin

Fear is a funny emotion. We all experience it but seldom talk about it. Most in the sales arena find fear to be a scary emotion. In fact fear of cold calling is the ultimate downfall of many a fine sales professional.

Did you know fear is only scary until you learn to master it? With master you will find that when you least expect it fear has morphed into the adrenaline needed to draw prospects to you like moths to bright light. That is the very instant when the emotion that you previously found paralyzing becomes exhilarating.

Let’s take a close look at both sides of fear, the paralyzing side and the side where freedom awaits you.

If you’re stuck in fear odds are your ability to think has ceased and you have stopped learning. Then, a nasty cycle of fear begins.

Instead of telling yourself the truth, that you’re scared, you begin to accept the fear based self-doubt as truth.

You start fear based self talk. You know the words, “I can’t” “I don’t care how much success you’ve had, this won’t work for me” “My situation is different.”

Then, the what-if game of doubt kicks in close on the heels of negative self-talk. And doubt begins to sound like reason.

Puh-leeze! Principles of success are the same across industries. Think about it and you will agree.

Plain and simple, the cause of fear is ignorance. That is right, fear of cold calling is  based in the unknown. The first step to breaking its power over you is to be honest about your emotions. Do this and you will soon see fear as energy in motion. Motion that is extremely effective in keeping you moving.

Successful cold callers are well served by mentors. You can find mentors too, people who have successfully gone where you want to go. Who can
1. Coach you through fear by breaking it down to components you can identify.
2. Help you identify patterns of fear
3. Hold you accountable for surmounting these points of fear
4. Encourage you to the other side of self doubt creeps in
5. Call your bluff when you start to believe your own fears and say “I can not” “this will not work for me” “you do not know my circumstances”
6. Give you empowering words to replace your self talk
7. Identify the flaws in your doubt and let you know why your doubts are not at all reasonable.

As always, the choice is yours. Now, what choice will you make, give in to fear or live in the exhilaration of freedom?

Forward this article to friends—they’ll thank you for it!

For your mini-course “Jealously Guarded Secrets to Cold Calling Company Presidents” visit www.ColdCallingExecutives.com ! Or call Cold Calling Expert, Lead New Business Development Coach, Leslie Buterin (like butterin’ bread) at (816) 554-3674 9-3 CST (that’s Kansas City/Chicago Time) Find much more on our http://www.ColdCallingExecutives.com/blog/index.html

Leslie is also a very welcome recent addition to the Top Sales Experts team and you can read more about her here

Tomorrow: Some useful tips on telemarketing, that can easily be adopted.