Creating a Sales Culture in Your Organization
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Many organizations want to create a sales culture but many also fail at doing so. Today’s podcast covers nine lessons around creating sales culture that I have learned while helping non-sales organizations create sales culture:
- You need buy-in
- It’s really about creating an opportunity culture
- You need to reward people, that means everyone
- “What gets inspected gets respected” – Trevor Greene
- Move poor fits out quick, and hire the right people
- Feed the monster – train and develop continually
- Fix operations if they don’t support sales
- Fix products and services that don’t meet needs or fulfill promises
- It takes time, up to 18 months or longer before true leadership evolves
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Prospecting is a Discipline
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Today’s podcast is on developing a prospecting discipline and why you need to plan it out and make it part of your sales and marketing strategy. Bullet points on the podcast:
Four Types of Prospecting:
- Face to Face
- Extended Personal
- Community and Network Prospecting
- Media Marketing/Prospecting
Make a Plan:
- Have the intent to meet people wherever you go, be aware and focus on rapport
- Book time everyday for e-mail and phone calls
- Book time everyday for prospecting on Linkedin and listening/monitoring the web
- Attend two target rich events per month and one major conference per quarter
- Budget a percentage of your projected income or revenues and spend it every month on media and press releases etc.
What’s your prospecting plan look like?
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Free Goal Setting Guide for 2010 by Bill Gibson
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Bill Gibson Chair of Knowledge Brokers International has put together a condensed goal setting guide called “Get a Fast Start for 2010.” You can download the PDF free here or you can view it via Scrib below. Enjoy!
Bill Gibson Free Goal Setting Guide
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28 Ways to Improve Your Sales Results
I had a number of people (close to 300) complete the 28 Days to Better Selling Program I put on in May and June. Many of you were asking when I was going to do it again? My next one will be in the fall but it will be marketing focused. With that said, you can do the 28 Days to Better Selling Program at your own pace by following the links below.
Here’s how 28 Days to Better Selling Works:
1) A daily task that you can easily implement to improve your sales and business
2) A succinct daily lesson to help you make the improvement
By the end of the 28 days you will have looked at 28 ways to fine tune and improve your sales process and business. The daily lessons will be in written, video or audio format and will take less than 10 minutes each to review.
Day 2 Targeting the Right Referral Sources
Day 3 Prospecting in Person
Day 4 Networking Strategy
Day 5 LinkedIn Prospecting
Day 6 Investigative Prospecting
Day 7 Lead Nurturing
Day 8 Don’t Be A Boring Salesperson
Day 9 Listening in Sales
Day 10 Needs Analysis in Sales Part 1
Day 11 Needs Analysis In Sales Part 2
Day 12 Twitter for Sales Part 1
Day 13 Twitter for Sales Part 2
Day 14 Keeping Commitments
Day 15 Selling Benefits and Results
Day 16 Preemptive Objection Handling
Day 17 Sell the Price Different Not The Total Cost
Day 18 Vital Signs
Day 19 Preparing For a Sales Call
Day 20 Team Selling
Day 21 Just Thinking About You
Day 22 Team Players Make Efficient Sellers
Day 23 Day of Rest, Chill Out and Reflect 
Day 24 Influencing Top Level Decision Makers
Day 25 Key Skills and Strengths for Selling Intangibles
Day 26 Reducing Anxiety and Worry
Day 27 15 Ways to Close A Sale
Day 28 Operationalizing Your Sales Process
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The Power of Grattitude
The Manager’s Thought for the Day
It is not uncommon for salespeople and/or sales managers to get caught in the throes of everyday problems and miss seeing the trees because of the forest.
In most cases there is much more support and help around us than we can see. If most of us could really appreciate what we do have, and be grateful, most of the time we would never have a motivation problem.
There is power in gratitude. For example; Have you ever been forced into giving a kiss and a hug to a relative or a friend of a friend you couldn’t stand? It’s not an inspiring experience. As a matter of fact, it can be downright de-motivating. But if you have ever been asked to hug and kiss someone you secretly admired, I bet you found it to be a very pleasant experience. What’s the difference between the two?
Having to embrace someone you can’t stand, can be de-motivating; embracing someone you admire is motivating.
The same rule applies to situations. Most of us spend time living for tomorrow; living for when we will get that raise, that job, that relationship, or that home. In other words, that’s when we will be happy. We don’t like where we are now, so let us dream about tomorrow. What this means is we are not living in the now. It also means we often set our objectives or goals from a time, place, or state of mind that we do not like, which means we don’t embrace it. Therefore it is de-motivating.
What if you could appreciate the moment and embrace it? It would be inspiring, just like embracing that person you admired.
Gratitude is a powerful motivation. To embrace or appreciate the moment you are in, gives you a deep settled strength, and alleviates anxiety. With this strength you are able to tap into your intuition and be directed into paths that are more meaningful and in tune with who you are. This makes it much easier for you to become enthusiastic and move forward and feel good about the present as well as where you want to go. Having gratitude for where you are now can get you started.
Think about the situation you are in right now that frustrates or even immobilizes you. Now come up with a list of some really positive things that you have going for you right at this moment. Think of things you may be grateful for. A few examples could be good health, living in the country you are in, experience in your field, great relationship with your wife, husband or significant other, certain belongings, past experiences, just to name a few.
Once you finish the list, go back through and mentally say “thank you” to all the circumstances and people you could thank for each one of these. For example; in reference to your health, mentally thank someone who showed you how to eat properly, or who got you involved in some form of physical exercise. Maybe a previous employer believed in balanced living and not just work, work, work. Be sure to thank that person mentally. Thank your government for the facilities that are available and your creator for being so kind to you. As Plato once said; “Happiness is not being in a good state, but rather knowing you are in a good state.”
Once you have completed this exercise, you will have experienced the power of appreciation. You will feel much better about the moment. To see the positive in your present circumstances and to feel gratitude about the moment will get you started and keep you going.
Unfortunately, our egos work very hard at stopping us from experiencing gratitude. Very few of us can openly display gratitude on a daily basis to all those people and situations around us. It is much easier to fill our minds and bodies with self-importance, dissatisfaction, criticism, and victim-style thinking, than it is to put these feeling aside and say thank you. Monitor yourself and see how often you resist or justify not having gratitude. Being aware of your anti-gratitude stance alone, can start you on the road to being more grateful and more productive.
As the manager you may want to share this process with your people. Gratitude is one of the greatest internal motivators of all.
(An excerpt from our “Complete Sales Action System”)
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Blogathon 2009 for Vancouver Food Bank
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Twitpics Gone Wrong Part 2
Well the last post went over well, and since this is for charity I thought I’d share a few more pics that I managed to capture and put on Twitter. Nothing out of the ordinary really.
#1) Raul in his happy place (He’s blogging for charity tonight too)
#2) This guy I met in Yaletown, his daughter neglected to brush the cat until it’s hair was in knots, the poodle groomer was cheaper. He should be arrested… and shaved.
#3) Doolins Irish Pub at Lunch time. You should see dinner.
#4) This was a joke gift but he chose to wear it in public.
#5) I can’t really top #4 so this post is done.
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Blogathon 2009 for Vancouver Food Bank
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Guest Blogger Cindy King on International Sales from Social Media
This blog entry was submitted in support of my 24 hour blogathon for the Vancouver Food Bank (donate here to help feed hunger and poverty). Thank-you Cindy King for all of your support. What an eye opening and incredible blog entry and video. Thanks!
Here it is:
Can You Use Social Media To Get International Sales For Your Business?
As a small business owner based in France targeting North American clients, social media makes good sense for me. And it works my business. Why? Because there are no significant barriers created by cultural differences between the social media I use and the people I connect with.
If you want use social media to develop your international business, there are two things you need to remember.
Sales Techniques
You will need to develop strong international sales negotiation techniques.
This comes with practice. But you must be willing to put in the personal effort needed to develop these skills.
Adapt Your Business
Have a look at the 5 different cultural scales outlined by Geert Hofstede:
· High versus Low Power Distance
· Individualism versus Collectivism
· Masculinity versus Femininity
· High versus Low Uncertainty Avoidance
· Long versus Short Term Orientation
What are these scales? They are an attempt to categorize and explain cultural differences.
I will not go into them here, but click through the link above. It is a very interesting table. You will see scores for a long list of countries for all 5 of these scales. And you can choose your country and another one to see how the two sets of cultural differences compare.
Although these 5 scales seem complex and they have their limitations, it is easy to understand why you need to approach people from different cultures differently.
And International Social Media?
Read the news and open your ears. Social media has hit the world everywhere. Here are a few points to remember:
· There are different social medial platforms in different countries
· What is popular in one country may not be popular in another one
· People use social media differently
It is not easy to get international social media statistics. And I am not sure I would even begin trying to get a comprehensive world vision of social media.
I suggest another approach…
Instead of taking on the whole planet, simply because social media is “free’:
· Keep your business in mind.
· Choose one country and jump into their social media environment.
Do not start with social media marketing. Instead:
· Start with social media networking
Get to know how people use social media in their country and then work on finding out how to adapt marketing your business in this new country.
There are some international social media networking scenarios where it is easy to create business relationships from a distance.
If you have any international social media stories to share, I would love to hear them. Please leave a comment below and tell me how you have used social media within part of your sales process.
Cindy King is a Cross-Cultural Marketer & International Sales Strategist based in France. She uses her dual background in sales & marketing to help businesses improve their international sales conversion and develop country-specific international sales guides. Connect with her on Twitter @CindyKing
To Donate the the Vancouver Food Bank Click here or the image below. Every bit helps!
Blogathon 2009 for Vancouver Food Bank
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Dave Kahle Sales Blog Guest Entry on Keeping Track of Names
Sales Best Practices: Keeps track of all the names, titles, and positions of all the key contact people within every account.
This is so basic, you would think everyone would be doing it. Not so.
I was sitting across the desk from the operations manager of the company for which I had worked a number of years earlier. We were reminiscing, and he told me this story.
In the time after I had left this company, it had been swallowed up by a large national company. Now, at number two in the nation, it was again being merged with number three. The government got involved, and mandated that every salesperson fill out a form for every account doing over $100,000 in annual business.
The operations manager described how he looked over the forms as he assembled them to send back to the government. As he did so, he got a sick feeling in his stomach. It seems that on many of the forms, the names listed were nicknames, and there was no title indicated.
He told me that he realized that his salespeople didn’t know the full name and correct title of the key contact people in their largest accounts!
While that may sound like an exception to you, I have since discovered that it is the rule, not the exception. The sad truth is that few salespeople have systematically collected and stored the full names and accurate titles of their key contact people. As a result, their proposals and correspondence are amateurish and they look unprofessional to their customers.
Such a simple little thing!
Yet, over and over again, it’s not the big things that separate the Top Gun performers from the pack. It’s the methodical, disciplined adherence to excellence in the little things.
I know there are thousands of salespeople who are reading this right now, thinking “I already know that.” Yet, most of them aren’t methodical and systematic in their execution of this practice. It’s not what you know that makes you into a Top Gun performer, it is what you do.
That’s why the best practices are called “practices.”
About the author: Dave Kahle is one of the world’s leading sales training educators. Since 1988, Dave has worked with over 400 companies, helping them to increase their sales and develop their sales people. He’s been published over 1,000 times, writes a weekly Ezine (subscribe for free at http://www.davekahle.com/mailinglist.htm), and has authored seven books. Dave’s website is available at http://www.davekahle.com, and you can follow his sales blog at http://www.davekahle.com/salesblog.
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Blogathon 2009 for Vancouver Food Bank
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Dave Kahle Guest Blog Entry – Sales Best Practices: Asking questions
Sales Best Practices: Asking questions as a means of facilitating every step in the sales process.
The single most powerful tool that a salesperson has is a well-phrased, appropriately asked question. Nothing else compares to the impact that a good question can have on the customer and the sales process.
That’s because a good question directs and influences the customer’s thinking. When you ask a question, they think of the answer. That simple statement neatly packages the latent power of a good question.
Yet, few salespeople understand that, and fewer still implement it.
A number of years ago, a study was done on this very issue. Here are the results:
“Out of 300 salespeople studied, 87 percent realize the importance of asking questions. However, only 27 percent displayed the ability to ask a well thought out, stimulating series of questions.”
In other words, thirteen percent of the salespeople in the world don’t even recognize the power of asking a good question. And only about 1 out of 4 could actually do it. That means that 3 out of every 4 salespeople, or 75 percent, don’t ask good questions.
There are two issues here: First, realizing the importance of using good questions effectively, and second, actually doing so.
This is such a big issue that my book, Question Your Way to Sales Success, is devoted entirely to this.
Everyone can ask a question. I have a three year old grandson. He can do it. This issue isn’t asking questions; the issue is asking better sales questions. While I can’t condense the book to a few hundred words here, I can point out a couple of things that the best do with this most powerful tool.
1. They prepare their major questions before the sales call. This gives them the time to select the best language and sequence.
2. They are mindful, at every stage of the sales process, of using better sales questions. They understand that there are questions, there are good questions, and there are better sales questions. So, they constantly focus on creating and using better sales questions. Whether it’s a cold call on a prospect, or following up after the sale, at every stage of the sales process, a more effective use of questions will produce dramatically better results. And they know that.
3. They collect good questions over time, and use them over and over again.
A master salesperson is a master at the use of better sales questions. That’s why it is a best practice of the best.
About the author: Dave Kahle is one of the world’s leading sales training educators. Since 1988, Dave has worked with over 400 companies, helping them to increase their sales and develop their sales people. He’s been published over 1,000 times, writes a weekly Ezine (subscribe for free at http://www.davekahle.com/mailinglist.htm), and has authored seven books. Dave’s website is available at http://www.davekahle.com, and you can follow his sales blog at http://www.davekahle.com/salesblog.
To Donate the the Vancouver Food Bank Click here or the image below. Every bit helps!
Blogathon 2009 for Vancouver Food Bank
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Vital Signs Day 18 to The 28 Days to Better Selling
Revenues are not a measurement, neither are deals closed, they are results. They are a result of core habits and behaviors driven into practice over time with discipline. With any sales goal, you first have to start with an annual dollar figure that is broken down quarterly, monthly and even the daily. Achieving that goal of course is dependent upon the activities we put into our plan.
Anthony McAleer top producing financial advisor for London Life says it this way: “If you’re not getting the results you want, you’re probably not doing the core activities.” Jim Janz, multi-million-dollar direct sales magnate calls these activities “vital signs.”
Vital Signs
When paramedics arrive on the scene of an accident they will check the vital signs of those injured. Just because someone is standing upright and talking does not mean they’re healthy. Some vital signs to look for are:
• Balance
• Checking if the pupils in the eyes respond to light
• Blood Pressure
• Heart Rate
• Breathing Rate
• Brain function and nervous system response
• Sensitivity to palpation
• And many other factors
If any of these signs are out of sync, there is a chance that the injured is presently in danger, or could experience difficulties later on.
Your business, because you are a business of one, is responsible for bringing in revenues and turning a profit, has vital signs. Just because you’re making phone calls and networking doesn’t mean you have a healthy business. Revenues alone don’t mean your business is healthy.
Depending on your business some of your sales vital signs could be the number of:
• Calls per day
• In person meetings with clients
• Proposals written
• Networking events attended
• RFPs completed
• Hours per week organizing or planning
• E-mails sent
• Blog entries written
• Presentations made
• Prospects added to your list
• Revenues
• Number of repeat orders from key accounts
You could also produce and monthly, quarterly or even annual vital signs record sheet. This process will give you a clear picture of how close you are to achieving your goals based upon your activity. Over time you will also begin to notice a correlation between specific activities and revenues. These activities could be called “Core Vital Signs.”
In direct sales for instance, Jim Janz could predict the monthly gross revenues of a group of people based upon the number of people who attended training meetings and how many new people were added to the group over the previous 90 days. You may find that there is a direct correlation between the number of proposals you write and the number of new clients you close. The number of cold calls could be irrelevant for instance.
One important fact to note is that once you determine what your core vital signs are, you should book those first in your calendar and make sure that your entire plan is focused on you executing those activities.
In sales often when we are no longer getting the results we want we are no longer doing the key activities that make us successful. Knowing your vital signs and executing them daily is key to your long term success.
Your Assignment Today is:
1) List all of your core activities that you daily and weekly
2) Determine which ones are your vital activities that lead to your desired outcomes
3) Map out and begin to measure these activities daily
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Sell the Price Difference Not the Total Cost Day 17 of The 28 Days To Better Selling
We will often get objections that our product or service costs more money in comparison to a competitor.
There are two main questions you need answered before proceeding:
Question 1: “Mr. Client, when you say the price is too high, how high is it? And compared to what do you feel it is too high?
When the client answers this question, you know what amount you are dealing with. The important thing here is to separate that amount from the total amount. By the client telling you the amount, you know what they are happy to pay, so you do not sell them on that amount, they are already sold on it. Focus on the difference.
Example:
Client: “I am sorry, but the purchase price of that house is too much.”
Salesperson: “When you say too much, how much too much?”
Client: “About $20,000 too much.”
Salesperson: “So what you are saying is that $280 000 is okay with you, but it is the additional $20,000 that is holding you back?”
Client: “Yes.”
Salesperson: “Well, let’s take a look at what you get for that extra $20,000 or $250 per month in payments. For an extra $250 per month:
- You are just across the street from the elementary school, and you said you wanted to be close to the school.
- The area you were looking in is 10 miles further away from your office. You save yourself 20 miles of travel per day, and in gasoline and wear and tear on your car it translates into $5.00 per day, which is over $100 per month. That is almost half of the $250 per month.
- The house has a view and you really feel a view gives you a sense of freedom.
- You have a two car garage that is very secure.
- Your wife is in love with it.
- You reduce your worry about your children walking to school.
- You save time not having to drive or walk the kids to school.
- You are closer to the office and save time again.
- You end up with a view you want.
Salesperson: “For a $150 a month on your mortgage I feel this one is the best option we have looked at today.” (You would not use the entire list but probable focus in on the top ones you would feel the client would relate too)
Note: The salesperson does not say “for an extra $20,000 or for $300,000” which is the total price. The focus is on the difference and the lowest amount and then broken down to a monthly cost
Your Assignment today is:
#1) Look at which services or products you have where you have price objections
#2) Assess how much more they may be perceived to cost in comparison to similar products or services.
#3) Brainstorm all of the additional value financially and otherwise someone would get from paying the extra amount.
#4) Memorize your value added list.
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