The JF Guest Author Spot

Nigel Edelshain

We are keen on data here at Sales 2.0. In our telesales operation we recently reviewed conversion data for some of our projects. From that analysis I can reveal to you today that:
The product you sell influences your prospecting outcomes — a lot!

OK so that’s intuitively extra-obvious. But the way management acts in most companies you would think everything, including a “me-too” product in a very competitive market, could be overcome by the sales force. I’ve heard countless conversations in senior management meetings and with sales people themselves that imply the sales people are at fault in selling such-and-such a product. I don’t think so.

Here’s some real world data (and yes, some of it makes us look good and some of it less so, but this is perception as I hope you will see below) Ratio 1: we looked at the number of dials our inside sales people are making to the number of conversations they are having and, Ratio 2: the number of conversations they are having to the number of appointments we could set for outside reps.

Here’s what we found “Ratio 1″, number of dials to conversations, is remarkably consistent, it ranges from 5-15 but the broad average is 10. So when prospecting to people you don’t know (“cold calling” but I have an issue with that phrase) it takes us an average of 10 dials of the phone to speak to a decision-maker/executive (does not include speaking to assistants or others).

This data in itself can spawn a whole discussion, “cold calling does not work” or “cold calling does work” – sort of depends which “party” you belong to. But my belief is this number is going to come out approximately the same for everyone who uses basically this same approach since it’s a function of the buyer not the seller (it’s about how busy and screened we all are today).

Let’s look at “Ratio 2″, number of conversations to appointments (aka moving the sales process forward). Unlike “Ratio 1″ this number varies widely. For some projects we’ve seen this number as low as three (3) at the other extreme we’ve seen this number as high as forty (40) – big difference. And big (big) difference in the happiness of us and our clients (or if you work in an internal inside sales team, or a team doing your own prospecting, your CEO).

OK, so what was the difference in the projects. Did we do a good job on the projects where “Ratio 2″ was good and a lousy job where “Ratio 2″ was not so attractive? Did we just have “rock stars” on some projects and “losers” on others? No. We had similar people on each team and we constantly try to improve our processes and results.

Taking a more scientific approach (without the usual emotion attached to sales results) I believe the data shows the main variable in all this was the product. In the cases where we were achieving some great results the products are truly interesting to it’s market and at the other extreme the products are in a crowded market and their value propositions are not clearly over-and-above their competition.

Of course, there are ways to improve sales results of even me-too products in crowded markets (we talk about them all the time on this website) through smart sales and marketing strategies but ultimately all firms should realize buyers are smart and sales people are not slackers.

Not every product is created equal. Some products are more equal than others.

Ed: Shades of “Animal Farm” 

Nigel Edelshain is CEO of Sales 2.0

Companies use Sales 2.0’s telesales and consulting services to take their sales to the next level, typically boosting results 3 – 10 times.

The company applies the latest Sales 2.0 tools and techniques in its telesales operation and shares resulting breakthroughs in sales methodology with clients through its consulting practice.

Sales 2.0 operates a website that is dedicated to sharing the latest information on Sales 2.0 thinking with sales professionals everywhere as part of the company’s broader mission is to take the sales profession to the next level.

Prior to starting Sales 2.0, Nigel sold millions of dollars of technology solutions to major Fortune 500 firms for technology services companies in the New York area. He was head of sales for the financial services industry for a 600-person system integrator called Starpoint Solutions and worked as an account executive for Platinum Technology (now CA).

Nigel is the chairman of the Wharton Business School Club of New York – the School’s largest alumni association. Nigel graduated from Wharton’s MBA program in 1993 and has an undergraduate degree in Microelectronics (chip design) from Edinburgh University.

Visit Nigel ’s website: www.sales2.com

Today’s News: Fellow Top Sales Experts, Clayton Shold and Kelley Robertson are in conversation over at Salesopedia and they are discussing “The Fear Factor”- you can catch the short interview by clicking the box below.

OK, yesterday I promised you some really exciting news?

I am one of the exclusive authors/speakers/trainers/coaches for a company called CanDoGo that delivers concise advice for sales, personal development, leadership and motivation over the Web. CanDoGo has just launched a brand-new site with thousands of free pieces of advice.

Now is a really important time to hone your skills and CanDoGo’s advice can help you adapt and succeed. I am proud to be part of CanDoGo’s world-renowned experts and I encourage you to check out www.candogo.com  

I can also tell you that CanDoGo will be one of our strategic partners, when we re-launch TSE 2.0 on December 2nd.

Tomorrow:”Our style of negotiation will be influenced by the style of the other party. If both sides are adversarial; there will be little trust between the two parties, however, if one side decides to be co-operative, there is a danger the other side will use this apparent sign of weakness to their advantage…..”  Be sure to join me as we look to wrap up the week strongly.

Most professionals have to make a presentation at some point during their carrer and some of us have to deliver them almost every week. However, the single most common reason why people present badly has nothing to do with the quality of their material or their knowledge of the subject, but rather, anxiety – fear of failure.

The first thing to remember is that anxiety or nerves means you are alive and without them your resulting presentation would be like you – dead!

What you need to do is learn to control your anxiety and use it to fuel your enthusiasm.

Identifying Fears:

To control your anxiety you must identify what it is that you are afraid of -

Is it forgetting your lines?

Is it the audience size?

Once you have established what exactly you are afraid of then establish whether or not you can control it.

Imagine you are the captain of an airliner; do you fear flying? Of course not, because you are in complete control of not only the aircraft but also, the crew and the passengers.

You have a flight plan and before you take off, you know the payload, weather conditions for the flight, arrival time, departure time etc. However, what is most significant, you are familiar with flying, you are comfortable with all of that responsibility, because you have flown so many times before and you know virtually everything there is to know about that aircraft.

Therein lies the secret; the more presentations we deliver, the more accomplished we become but equally, we must know what we are talking about, we must know our subject matter inside out, otherwise our audience will find us out

Let’s consider the areas that you can control:

Your audience – After all you invited them.

Your material – You designed it.

Your resources – You chose to utilise them.

Yourself – You’re no puppet.

If there are any areas you’ve identified that you can’t control, forget them – it’ll probably never happen.

Controlling nerves and reducing anxiety:

Organise – Give yourself plenty of time to prepare, know what is going to happen and when. Take the time to rehearse your presentation, preferably with someone you know well. Get them to pride you with objective and constructive criticism.

Visualise – Get into the habit of visualising how the presentation will go, that way the environment will feel familiar even if it’s your first time. Imagine the end of your presentation and your audience smiling with appreciation

Drying Up – Make bullet point notes on individual postcards to prompt you (not lengthy scripts) – you may not need them but they will give you that “comfort zone”. Do remember to number them though, just in case you accidentally shuffle them

Relaxation – Before your presentation take some time for yourself to relax, breathe deeply, go out into the fresh air and clear your head. Do not allow your mind to mentally rehearse the entire presentation, because you need simply to concentrate on your opening lines. Once you have successfully navigated your way through the first couple of minutes, you will begin to relax – a strong opening is crucial

Warming Up – Clear your throat, practise your smile, drink some water to ensure you are hydrated etc.

Dress appropriately and check your posture -If you look the part everyone will assume you know what you are talking about anyway!

Become mobile – It will keep your audience awake.

Use eye contact and smile – They can’t fail to pay attention.

And finally – practice, practice, practice!

Today’s News: It’s last chance saloon – you really do not want to miss this event! Just click on the banner below to register – It’s FREE

Tomorrow: Some really important announcements that you will not want to miss!

The JF Guest Author Spot

Mark Tewart

The word sell derives from the meaning “to serve.” Are you concentrating on the sale without serving first? Always think TLC – Think Like A Customer. Concentrate on creating such a selfless experience of giving that most customers will feel compelled to buy from you if your product or service is anywhere close to being a solution for them.

If you have ever traveled in the Caribbean Islands you have undoubtedly encountered the local merchants selling different wares. The local merchants usually approach you and offer something upfront as a gift for you. These merchants are practicing a form of reciprocation or obligation. They hope by providing you with something for free that you will feel obligated and compelled to buy something. The theory behind obligation and reciprocation is strong. However, the principles become much stronger if the giving is selfless and without expectation of return.

As a salesperson, it is sometimes hard to not think of the ultimate goal of the sale. However, I think you can switch your thinking dynamic to one of concentrating solely on the customer and you will see abundant rewards.

There are three stages that a customer goes through during a sale.

1 – Character/Trust
2 – Emotion
3 – Logic

It is true that emotions can be overwhelming for the customer in the sales process. However, if the customer does not approve of your character and trust you then the customer’s normal defense mechanism will not come down. The customer will never reach the emotional stage of the sale.

Your first meeting with a potential customer should start with selfless giving. Don’t just qualify or interview a customer, communicate and bond with him. Try to think and communicate in a way that a neighbor helping another neighbor would think and act. Use the simplest and most effective tool you have and that is humanity. You should as I call it, nice’em to death. All the sales techniques in the world will not be better than selfless giving.

Let me share a few recent personal experiences that demonstrate the power of giving. My wife bought a Land Rover automobile. From the beginning, Mike the salesperson made the whole experience about us. First, he communicated with her about all of her desires and made sure she was the focal point of the communications. He made sure to make me feel comfortable and he made friends with and entertained my son. The negotiation process which can be grueling became a friendly and normal exchange by breaking from traditional sales techniques. The process was more of a sharing process than win or lose.

When we went to the dealership for delivery of the vehicle, he had gifts for everyone including a Teddy bear for my son. Two weeks after the sale, he delivered a football to my son personally autographed by Carson Palmer, the quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengal’s and customer of the dealership. One year later, he delivered a book written and autographed by Johnny Bench the retired Hall of Fame Catcher of the Cincinnati Reds. Let me ask you a question. Would you consider buying another vehicle from this salesperson if this was your experience? The experience was unbelievable. The good news is that you don’t have to go to such levels to reach a point of WOW for the customer. Giving comes in many forms beyond presents.

My other recent personal experience of selfless giving came at a book signing I performed at Notre Dame Book Store for my new book. As I entered the book store, the assistant director of the book store greeted me warmly and handed me a bag with several gifts from the store. I felt honored from the beginning. I was given a VIP tour of the University, taken to a football banquet, football pep rally, given press passes for the football game to attend with an ex coach of Notre Dame and taken to dinner. How would you feel if this had been your experience? The kindness and professional attitude displayed was not contrived, it was genuine.

All the people involved in the experiences I have just shared truly understood the power of giving. I invite you to review your last several business experiences and ask yourself the following questions. “Did I give enough?” and “Did I give without expecting in return?”

Mark Tewart, author of “How To Be A Sales Superstar – Break All the Rules and Succeed While Doing It”

Mark Tewart’s websites include: www.marktewartlive.com, www.marktewart.com and www.howtobeasalessuperstar.info

To read the first chapter of How to be a Sales Superstar and to receive several FREE bonuses from Mark Tewart, visit www.marktewartlive.com.

Full tour details are posted at http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2008/10/how-to-be-sales-superstar-by-mark.html

 
Today’s News:

I promised to provide you with details of Top Sales Experts who are presenting over at Business Expert Webinars this week – here you go:

Startup Sales: Educating the Sales Evangelist
Topic: Small Business
11/19/08 1:00pm EASTERN TIME
Presented by Karl Goldfield

Want to translate that passion you have for what you have created? Struggling to find the right way to explain the value, benefits, and desired outcomes of using your creation? Then join this webinar and learn how to educate your startup sales team. With the right language and process the training of new hires can take weeks instead of months. You found the talent, now teach them to evangelize. … read more

Get Motivated!
Topic: Motivation
11/24/08 11:30am EASTERN TIME
Presented by Kelley Robertson

Most people start the year with great plans and ambitious goals. They take action and make some progress toward achieving their goals. However, this momentum quickly fades because it is difficult to maintain the energy you had at the beginning of the year for a full twelve months. One month you’re ahead of schedule but a few short weeks later you find yourself struggling to catch up. A few deals fell … read more

TRANSITION FROM WORK TO RETIREMENT
Topic: Personal Development
11/24/08 5:30pm EASTERN TIME
Presented by Peter Nicholls

The traditional concept of retirement as the time to stop working and start dying has all but disappeared. People are recalibrating their lifestyle almost continuously. Age 60 is no time to be quitting life. But it’s an important time to consider whether or not to continue working and the role of work in life. Far from being old, people in their 60’s are looking forward to living a healthy, active … read more

Tomorrow:

Special Announcement

Selling Through a Slump: Live Q&A on Selling in a Recession
2 p.m. EST November 19, 2008

These are tough times in the selling business. Customers are ordering less, postponing sold business, trimming the number of suppliers, and reducing budgets. It is taking longer to close a sale. Many of your sales staff may never have experienced a downturn like this before. How can sales organizations continue to thrive in an increasingly lean economy?

Tune in to a FREE live interactive discussion with a panel of sales experts, and get your questions answered:

What best practices can you learn from companies that have not only survived but thrived through past downturns?

What specific steps can you take to create a more valuable relationship with your customer?

Which tools should you be using to increase the effectiveness of your selling process?

What role can technology play in making you smarter about your best opportunities?

You’ll have an opportunity to gain valuable strategic knowledge by listening to commentary from proven thought leaders:

Learn what not to do.
Hear about effective methods that you can put in place now.
See the results of our TCC survey of top sales management experts, and learn how the recession is affecting other sales organizations.

Panelists will include Jill Konrath, author of Selling to Big Companies, Denis Pombriant, founder of the Beagle Research Group, and David Bonnette, Group VP of North America Sales at Oracle. Robin Carey, Co-Founder and CEO of Social Media Today LLC, will moderate.

Brought to you by The Customer Collective and Oracle CRM.

This is an event you should NOT miss if you are serious about surviving and succeeding in the worst economic downturn in history: It is going to get a whole lot worse before it gets better.

You have two choices; fight your way through it and come out at the other end stronger, wiser and intact; or do nothing and risk being taken down with it – for me, it really is a “no-brainer” -JF

Welcome to the conversation.

Now for today’s post:

A company’s performance appraisal process is critically important. It answers the two questions that every member of an organisation wants to know:

• What do you expect of me?

• How am I doing at meeting your expectations?

Regular assessments and appraisals are essential if individuals are to continually expand their “skills set” and should deliver three key benefits for an organisation:

• A clear career path for progression (which typically seems to motivate salespeople who operate in a business-to-business environment)

• Evidence of the return on investment made in developing people so organisations are encouraged to sustain ongoing development

• A clear benchmark for salespeople and sales managers, so that they know what is expected of them

Every manager has to appraise subordinates and the mechanics of it vary from ticking little boxes, through marking on five-point scales, to writing an open ended report. However, in all cases the primary purpose of an appraisal is to help the subordinate.

Why Appraise? – Reasons for an Appraisal:

• To provide feedback of individual performance.

• To plan for future promotions and successions.

• To assess training and development needs.

• To provide information for salary planning and special awards.

• To contribute to corporate career planning.

The five key elements of the performance appraisal are:

• Measurement – assessing performance against agreed targets and objectives.

• Feedback – providing information to the individual on their performance and progress.

• Positive reinforcement – emphasising what has been done well and making only constructive criticism about what might be improved.

• Exchange of views – a frank exchange of views about what has happened, how appraisees can improve their performance, the support they need from their managers to achieve this and their aspirations for their future career.

• Agreement – jointly coming to an understanding by all parties about what needs to be done to improve performance generally and overcome any issues raised in the course of the discussion.

So when considering the design of an appropriate sales team appraisal document, what are the areas you should consider including?

This will be very much a personal decision based on relevancy:

If you have read any of my work before, you will, in all probability, know that I work with a very simple formula when it comes to team development and measurement i.e.

Attitude + Skills + Process + Knowledge = Success

I arrived at this conclusion many years ago and my initial reasoning was this:

Attitude is fundamental to any achievement because individuals with the right Attitude are far more likely to embrace the essential Skills, recognise the control that Process brings and have the desire to continually expand their Knowledge.

Skills are the ‘tools of the trade’ and have to be developed on an ongoing basis. They also need to be specific, because too much time can be wasted over-burdening employees with inappropriate and irrelevant skills without any identifiable plan for their future requirements.

Process brings organisation, efficiency and control, both for the individual and for management. Effective process provides objective analysis and indicators which can be benchmarked and accurately measured.

Then there is of course a need to build in Knowledge and that must include knowledge of products, industry, market sectors, competitors, business, own company and last but not least, self!

Therefore, when measuring my teams, I always ensure that I benchmark against that criteria, plus I, and all of my clients, use ASP Profile

Today’s News: This is going to be a particularly hectic week, so do stay tuned if you can: First up, if you missed the “Ask The Experts” webinar that I co-presented with Jill Konrath and Kendra Lee for Landslide Technologies last week, you can download the entire show here

It was incredibly well attended and as we begin planning for the first Top Sales Experts Roundtable on December 9th, featuring: Leslie Buterin, Colleen Francis, Jill Konrath, Paul McCord, Keith Rosen and me – we just know that this inaugral event is going to be fantastic – more details soon.

Over at Top 10 Sales Articles, we have a very special winner this week – you can check them out for yourself here

And over on my other blog “Sales Manager’s Mentor Blog” – I ask: “Are You A Boss Or A Leader?”

Lots of very good webinars coming up this week on Business Expert Webinars, and I’ll be announcing those tomorrow.

Tomorrow: News of a special book launch.

JF Uncut

My original intention was to post about how it is going to be when we eventually emerge from the worst financial crisis in history. However, I need to digest the information now coming in from yesterday’s summit, and also a colleague sent me a very poignant and wholly relevant link last night, which I wanted to share it with you.

So before I launch into today’s post, I think you will enjoy this: “The Grocery Bagger”

Customer care has become one of the most important issues facing businesses in every market. Customer care programmes come under a number of titles – customer services, customer satisfaction, customer focus, customer orientated etc.

Their common theme is meeting the customer’s requirements and ensuring that all aspects of the business contribute to customer satisfaction. The intention is to build repeat business if customers are satisfied with the product and the standards of service they receive, they will return again and again.

Inconsistent Customer Care
 
Inconsistent customer care performance can have a negative effect on customer perceptions. Petrol companies for example, know that every time a customer walks into one of their outlets, wherever they are in the country, they should expect to receive the same standards of service. Nation-wide consistency is essential when customers are likely to visit multiple outlets – one poor performance can threaten the customer’s perception of the entire operation.

 What Is Customer Care? 
 
 Customer care is about addressing three sets of requirements:
 
• Customer
 
• Staff
 
• Organisation
 
These requirements are interrelated, i.e. it is more difficult to deliver consistently high standards in customer care if the needs of both the organisation and the staff are not taken into account

Customer Requirements
 
• Excellent personal service – feels valued, listened to, treated as an individual

• Products that meet expectations

• Encouragement to express views and give feedback

• Effective relationship with the organisation

• Problems and complaints are handled effectively

Staff Requirements
 
• Effective management style

• Suitable working environment – pay and conditions / tools for the job

• Relevant training to develop skills

• Career potential

• Clarity of role / job description

• Performance standards and appraisal systems

• Sense of involvement / value

• Open communication

• Teamwork

• Rewards / Recognition

Organisational Requirements
 
• Mission statement
 
• Corporate structure
 
• Feedback and communication systems
 
• Profit
 
• Human and technical resources
 
• Demonstrated commitment

Who Are Your Customers?  
 
If you are not serving the customer, you should be serving someone who is. Harmonious relationships with customers and colleagues are essential to service success, because providing outstanding customer service is primarily a team effort. For excellent customer service to exist it has to be practised on an internal basis

 The What And The How
 
 The “What” is the material and the “How” is the personal element. To be outstanding, organisations must deliver excellence in both material and personal service. Customer service is no longer just a question of interpersonal skills

The difference between you and your competitors is achieved when expectations are exceeded. Doing the unexpected, going the extra mile, moves us from meeting expectations to exceeding expectations

 How To Delight Customers:
 
• Be enthusiastic enthusiasm is the driving force of quality service. Customers do not just want products they want products plus enthusiasm
 
• Be professional the word professional does not go with the job it goes with the person
 
 Be The Best
 
• Someone, somewhere has to be the best at this job – why not me?

• Decide to be outstanding
 
How To Be The Best
 
• Use positive self talk – e.g. tell yourself ‘Everyday in every way, I get better and better’

• Don’t be ordinary

• Develop a ‘How can I do it better?’ mind set

 Today Everyone Sells
 
 In a successful company the number of sales people equals the number of employees

• Everyone sells something  – either products, services or the image of the company
 
 And Finally: How To Help Yourself Sell
 
• Pay attention  – give people the benefit of your attention

• Customers like to give their business to those who show they want it

Today’s News: As you can imagine, with a very wide circle of friends, colleagues and acquaintances, I am continually being asked to promote their webinars, tele-seminars, conferences etc. So, on Friday, I decided to launch a new service, that assists anyone looking to massively increase their event bookings.

 I sent out the first set of notification letters yesterday and someone actually thought I was serious

Tomorrow: It’s business as usual – do be sure to join me for a very exciting week.

The wet and bedraggled scrawny youth, that stood before me on that winter’s night in 1969, gave no hint that I was in the presence of a future rock star: He was dressed from head to toe in black apart from white patent leather boots and his grin, which resembled the keyboard of a piano – except that all the keys were glistening white – represented approximately fifty per cent of his entire face. 

His shoulder length wet hair hung limply, and before uttering his first greeting, he needed to part it, rather like opening curtains: He was instantly engaging. “Hi, I’m cousin George, all the way from America and I’m bad” he announced, as if he were already centre-stage rather than any formal introduction.

I was staying with my girlfriend and her parents for a short while before heading off to university and it transpired that young George represented the American wing of the family. I don’t remember how long he stayed with us,after all, it was nearly forty years ago, but it can only have been a matter of a few days.

He was like a breath of fresh air; full of energy, totally focused, and he didn’t have a negative vibe in his body. I learned so much from him in those all too brief few days and I regret not telling him that.

He talked incessantly about becoming a rock star – that’s when he wasn’t attempting to teach us the history of his beloved baseball. Oh, and I introduced him to my relgion - soccer!

Two box-office blockbusters were released that year and both became cult films: “Midnight Cowboy” and “Easy Rider” – George had already seen both of them about ten times:Despite that fact, he insisted we all went down to London to watch them again, and we of course, duly obliged.

He couldn’t pass a mirror without uttering Jon Voight’s immortal line: “When I feel cool and good, I spin around and there you are you handsome devil” Or we would be walking along the road and he would take an imaginery kick at a passing car with: “I’m walking here, I’m walking here” – with a superb impersonation of Hoffman’s character, Ricco Rizzo.

When asked how he was doing, George often replied:”I ain’t much of a cowboy, but I am one helluva stud” with another memorable reference to John Voight’s Joe Buck.

However, quotes from Easy Rider were also never very far away, and there was that wonderful scene where Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson shared a cell for the night. When Nicholson sobered up, Hopper intoduced Fonda and himself with: “Do you know who this is? This is Captain America, and I’m Billy!” Was that Nicholson’s first film? 

It all seemed very empty for quite a while after he left. I split up with that girlfriend soon after and didn’t expect to hear from him ever again. But the following Christmas, having rebelled against my parent’s house rules for the umpteenth time, I found myself with a few friends in a cold, damp flat sharing tins of cold baked beans and huddling around a one-bar electric fire: About 11pm on Christmas night, the phone rang; it was George: “This is your very good friend George, and I’m bad” I was so impressed that he had taken the time to find me.

That was the last I heard from him – the rest as they say, is history – he fulfilled his dream: He knew he would become a rock star – fulfilled expectation – and he brought about it’s happening.

So many people are affected by what will undoubtedly turn into the worst recession in history: But we will come through it and when we do, everything will be so much better than it was before. We have to work together, stay focused. By anticipating a better future, we will bring about it’s happening.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Thorogood

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Djj7jW6ny2M&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7VsoxT_FUY

Tomorrow: What will it be like when we come through this? What will have changed? What can we anticipate? Will it be better? – Tomorrow, my analysis and predictions.

“It is not the strongest of the species that survive, not the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change” – Charles Darwin

Whatever got you where you are today will not be sufficient to keep you there. A rapidly changing environment is the regular background against which organisations must develop.

Change is continuous and will become more rapid as we move forward over time. Senior management must be capable of reacting to those changes and be prepared to take advantage of them and yet stay within the overall framework and agreed strategy.

The role of strategy is fundamental if the people within an organisation are to be enabled to make the level of contribution of which they are capable. Strategy, based on a good grasp of the core competencies of a business, is an essential precursor to achieving optimal shareholder value.

Dependence on salespeople is key to delivering the latent capability of a business. Our salespeople are the greatest source of competitive advantage we have and that is precisely why we should continue to invest in them and fully develop them. This is particularly true now that in most market sectors competitive advantage is continually being eroded – i.e. International barriers are coming down, selling time is becoming limited, competitors are getting smarter, fewer and fewer names are appearing on companies’ databases, and product uniqueness is rare. Conversely, undeveloped personnel can bring down a company through inadequate performance, leaving the competition to harvest the marketplace.

If your organisation wants to permanently increase it’s sales results then it needs to approach sales differently to create “the difference that makes the difference” in order to positively impact bottom line performance.

In Summary:
Organisations and salespeople who have 100% commitment to doing whatever it takes to elevate their sales to a whole new level are the ones most likely to succeed. Trying to operate a sales organisation without total commitment is like trying to drive a car without fuel. But every organisation has the potential to harness the power of their salespeople just as surely as oxygen pumps life into the human body.

Today’s News: Is scant, due to the fact that I am with clients, but there will be lots on Monday.

Tomorrow: However, JF Uncut will be here tomorrow – ever heard of George Thorogood? “One Man’s Dream And Another Man’s Dream”

The JF Guest Author Spot

Leslie Buterin

Being mentally prepared for successful cold calling is like being prepared for a verbal game of table tennis.

The truth about whether or not you are ready to win the game becomes evident immediately with the first whack of the paddle. Either you keep that little white ball in play for a nice volley or the ball repeatedly slams toward you, by passes your paddle, and leaves you chasing the bouncing ball as the other player takes a snooze.

Same goes for cold calling.

Your state of mental readiness (or lack there of) becomes evident with the first word you speak. Either you are prepared for the verbal exchange with your prospect, keep the conversation progressing during your 90-seconds of phone time and “score” with an appointment or you hear “thanks but no thanks” and a click on the other end of the phone more often than you care to admit.

The most successful cold callers focus on cultivating thoughts that get them game-ready. These sales professionals fine-tune their abilities to keep prospecting conversations on track.

By way of brief example, one game-ready thought is the sales pro’s mental habit of following each of their prospect’s questions with a question of his own; another is in the sales pro’s ability to relentlessly redirect each of prospecting call toward scheduling an appointment.

For successful cold calls be sure to:

1. Mentally position yourself as equal to the decision makers you are calling.

2. Deliver the precise words that compel each prospect (and each executive assistant) to schedule a meeting with you.

3. Keep your 90-seconds of phone time with gatekeepers focused upon scheduling an appointment.

Like the game of Table Tennis, the cold call conversation has many, many volleys for which you, the successful sales pro, must be mentally prepared.

For your FREE mini-course “Jealously Guarded Secrets to Cold Calling Company Presidents” visit www.ColdCallingExecutives.com  Or call the office of Your Sales Coach for Extreme Profitability, author, speaker, Leslie Buterin (like butterin’ bread) at  (816)554-3674 9-3 CST (that’s Kansas City/Chicago Time).

Today’s News: Over at Salesopedia, two good friends are in conversation:

Keith Rosen addresses when it makes sense to provide marketing collateral to a prospect and when (and why) it can kill your sales opportunity.  He suggests timing is everything and provides three situations where the use of marketing material can hurt the sale. He also tells you when it is ok, in fact desirable to pass along a brochure or additional material. Keith includes a segment on using email to prospect.

Just click on the banner as usual.

Tomorrow: To finish an incredibly hectic week, a timely tip to prompt you to stay focused in these difficult times – “Whatever got you where you are today will not be sufficient to keep you there. A rapidly changing environment is the regular background against which organisations must develop……….”

PS: have you downloaded your copy of the “JF’s Blogging Good Year – Volume 2″ yet? Just click on this banner:

As with all things in life, the quality of the preparation affects the final outcome and this is certainly true when it comes to planning and preparing a presentation.

I have experimented with a number of methods over the years but I do believe that the simplest are usually the best.

The Collection:
Over a period of time think all round the subject and note down on a large sheet of paper or indeed several sheets, everything that comes into your head about the subject of your presentation. This is rather like a personal brain storming session and should be done roughly, in the order in which the thoughts occur; do not attempt to write a speech at this stage

The Central Theme:
This second method requires you to decide on the exact message you want to get across and writing it down in one simple sentence. Then you think all around the sentence, scribbling down the ideas as they come to you – this method is almost identical to ‘mind-mapping

Before selecting or rejecting any idea, it is important to decide:-

• Who are my audience?

• How much do they know already?

• How much time will I be allowed?

Having taken account of the answers to those three key questions, it should be possible to answer one further one -

• What do I want to say?

This is the stage at which you can decide your headings and sub-headings and put them into a logical order. Your structure then begins to take shape. Essentially you go back to the notes you made during the ‘ideas’ stage and select which ones you wish to use – and then put them in the right order.

Remember you probably will not have time to tell your audience all you know about your subject – after all this is not an ‘information dump’ Use only what is relevant and what can be dealt with in the time at your disposal – this may involve a ruthless reduction exercise.

It is suggested that if possible leave the speech, once written, for 24 hours. Then re-read and revise, removing any jargon or unnecessarily flowery phases or faulty reasoning.

The actual notes that you speak from can be the final draft of the speech but this will normally cause you to read most or all of the presentation and the audience will find this dull.

It is much better, therefore, to read the final draft and put it to one side. Then, without referring to it, write short, key-word notes or, if you are very experienced, headings only, on to numbered post-cards.(Numbering your cards will prove to be an invaluable exercise in the unlikely event you drop them half way through your presentation!)

You can now re-look at the final draft to check that you have included all the major ideas on the cards, but be careful, the chances are that if you forgot that idea when making out the cards, you will forget it when you make the presentation.

And Finally -Final Notes:
Unless you are a very good actor with a phenomenal memory, do not dispense with notes by memorising a speech ‘parrot-fashion’. Unless your audience are ornithologists, they do not want to listen to a parrot! Also, it is easy to lose your way when giving a memorised presentation and easier still to lose an audience.

Today’s News: I really hope you are going to join Jill Konrath, Kendra Lee and myself today for an open webinar, that is going to provide you with a wealth of advice and ideas for surviving and succeeding within the current turbulent marketplace. That is 1pm Eastern/6pm GMT – and it is FREE to register here

A couple of excellent blog posts for you, both focusing on a downturn economy:

From fellow Parisien Christian Maurer – “Lifeline For Sales Executives”  and here, Charlie Green is discussing “The Trust Recession”

Tomorrow:I am delighted to welcome back, Leslie Buterin to The JF Guest Author Spot

JF Guest Author Spot

Rochelle Togo-Figa

Even with everything we’ve been hearing about the economy, people are still spending money. I stood in line to buy my chai latte at Starbucks…people were buying expensive coffee! I stood in line at the supermarket waiting to buy my groceries…people’s carriages were filled to the top with food! And, when I went to Mall, the parking lot was full and the stores were packed with people buying clothes, shoes, and accessories… especially iPods at the Apple Computer Store!

Even with all the changes going on, people are still willing to pay for services that help them solve their pain and make them feel good.

No matter what’s going on around you, you still have a say in how your business is going to grow. During this period, more than ever before, you can thrive in your business. You see people need your services and will still pay for a solution.

The choice is yours. You can believe everything you’re hearing on the news, pull in your reins and stop being proactive, or you can find creative ways to grow your business and get out there and meet with new prospects.

I recently spoke to a client. Although her business is growing and she desperately needs to hire someone to install blinds, she was going to pull back. She said with everything she’s been hearing about the economy, she was afraid to spend any money. I could hear in her speaking that she was choosing to survive rather than thrive. And, when you come from a place of survival, you’ve put a lid on growing. How sad that she believed everything she heard.

As the Laws of Attraction states, “Like attracts like, and you attract what you think you deserve.”  This means that what you are focused on and the emotions behind those thoughts, draws more of the same to you. If you focus on “not enough money,” what are you drawing to you?  The answer is simple, “not enough money.”  So if that is true, focus more on attracting “more money, more business, more opportunities, more clients, more sales!”

If you chose to focus on “more of” rather than “lack of,” here’s another way to look at the situation. With the slowing down of home sales, more homeowners are planning to stay put and fix up their homes. Sounds to me like a great opportunity for businesses that provide home services like window design professionals, interior decorators, painters, etc.

Now take a look at your business and ask yourself, “how can I create new opportunities to grow my business?”

Here are some mindset and sales/marketing tips I’ve put together to help you thrive during these times.

Mindset tips:

• Stop listening to the doom and gloom. Remember the media has one intention and that is to grab your attention.
• Limit your time spent with those who feed on the drama, negativity, and fear going on.
• Connect with and support like-minded people with empowering and positive thoughts. Make it a point to reach out to at least one person a day.
• Fill your head up with inspirational and spiritual information. You can read books, listen to tapes, or attend seminars.
• Practice, daily, focusing on attracting more of what you want by saying to yourself and writing statements that includes words such as “more money, more business, more clients, and more sales are coming my
way!”
• Let’s visualize the world transforming. When we come together as a collective force, we can change the world!

Sales and marketing tips:

• Create new low-end products that are affordable to more people.
• Create online information products.
• Offer special themed discounts on your services or products.
• Offer payment plans to make it easier to do business with you.
• Touch base with people who expressed interest in your services.
• Reach out and meet with current clients to see how they’re doing and to let them know you’re there for them.
• Get out of the office and network! Just connecting and being with people will improve your morale and energize you.
• During these times, more than ever, invest in yourself and your business, so when the tide changes, and it will, you’ll be at the top instead of the bottom!

Rochelle Togo-Figa is a Sales Breakthrough Expert with 23 years in the corporate world as a top sales producer, and 12 years as a coach and trainer. She is the creator of the Sales Breakthrough System™, a step-by-step sales process teaching business owners, entrepreneurs and sales professionals exactly what they need to do to close more business, sign on more clients, and make more money with ease and velocity.

Rochelle is also the author of the sales home-study program “Sell Without the Slick” www.SellWithouttheSlick.com and “The Ultimate Sales Breakthrough System” Audio CD Program. 

Today’s News: OK, lots of events coming up, so let me update you with one of them:  Top Sales Experts 2.0, will be ready to launch on December 2nd and will feature ten, yes ten new initiatives. I will introduce these to you a little later in the month, but you need to be aware of one particular new and exciting facility – TSE Roundtable.

Many people feel that the market is now saturated with webinars and teleseminars, so we are going to do something completely different: Imagine six of the world’s top sales gurus, gathered together to present timely, relevant and specific advice, all in one 90 minute show.

The first one is FREE – “Selling In A Downturn Economy“ on December 9th and will involve: Jill Konrath, Keith Rosen, Leslie Buterin, Paul McCord, Colleen Francis and me – yep, that’s a pretty heavyweight crew!

I’ll be posting full details next week on how you can register for this “Online Sales Event Of The Year”

Tomorrow: Every front-line sales professional needs to be very adept at making presentations – it is the stage that really can make or break a sale. As with all things in life, the quality of the preparation affects the final outcome and this is certainly true when it comes to planning and preparing a presentation. So, tomorrow, I will be sharing my tips.