photo credit: Esparta

When you ask how to get more prospects are you being told you just have to pick up the phone and make more calls?  That old saw seems to be the only mantra some sales managers and industries know.  But are they right?

Are you doomed to a life of picking up the phone bothering complete strangers who have no interest what-so-ever in speaking with you?   Colleen Francis shares an email conversation with just such a person.  Someone who thinks cold calling is just the best way to get business now.

Cold calling can work.  So can a lot of other things.  The problem is you have to look at the bottom line facts and data on the return you get from your investment.  If you know how to effectively market yourself there’s no way cold calling can be your most profitable way of attaining prospects.

Another consideration is how easy it is to maintain and sustain the process used to obtain prospects.  Cold calling is a high maintenance difficult to sustain method for obtaining prospects even if you eventually hire others to make those calls for you.

In contrast, an effective marketing plan can run on autopilot once you get it set-up.  I don’t know about you, but that’s the kind of stuff I love.  Read more sales marketing strategies…

photo credit: SunCat

Clayton Makepeace is not only one of the greatest living copywriters he’s also just a great guy who can use words more effectively than anyone else I know.  Even though he wrote this post for copywriters the point is every bit as valid for independent business owners and sales professionals.

No one owes you success.

There isn’t a business owner or entrepreneur who doesn’t face challenges each and every day.  There’s a big difference between the way successful business owners and entrepreneurs respond to those challenges, and the way the failures respond.  That difference is founded in the actions you take.

No one owes you a successful business.  No one is going to help you succeed for free.  Why should they?  Those who’ve succeeded didn’t get free help and neither will you.

Successful people from all walks understand you get what you pay for.  If you aren’t willing to invest in yourself to get the help you need you can expect a long painful journey that ends in failure.  You’ll continue to do the wrong things, and you’ll have no clue what you’re doing wrong or  why it’s wrong.

The difference between what works and what doesn’t can be a simple as a single word and the way you use it.  But you’ll never know or understand that if you just keep doing what you’ve been doing that doesn’t work.  You’ll never know unless you seek the expertise of someone who understands how to get the success you want.

It takes courage to admit you need help and even more courage to act on it.  It takes courage to invest money you don’t have in yourself when your business isn’t even paying the bills, but if you don’t it will never pay the bills.  It takes courage to look at what you’re doing and identify what isn’t working.

The sad thing is most people fail just short of the WIN line.  They’re just one small improvement away from turning business failure into business success.  However, they don’t realize it because they don’t understand what it takes or how to succeed.

There are three keys to your business success.

1. You have to effectively market yourself
2. You have to effectively sell yourself
3. You have to effectively back-up what you marketed and sold for repeat business and referrals

Read more about how you can accomplish the first step…how you can get all the highly qualified prospects you need to succeed in your business.

photo credit: jseattle

I was reading Patsi Krakoff’s blog and her post reminded me of a free tool that can save you a lot of money. The free tool is a survey tool.   You may be wondering how or why this free tool can save you a lot of money.

Do you know why many businesses fail?  This underlying problem causes cash flow shortages, undue stress and frustration, and it isn’t curable.  Many businesses fail because they try to sell the wrong thing to the wrong people.

Of course, no rational business owner would ever do this intentionally.  It happens because the owner fails to take the necessary steps required to know you’re on the right track before jumping in hook line and sinker, and sinking to the bottom of the abyss.  You think your service and products are exciting and that everyone would want them.

However, what you think isn’t important.  It’s what the people who will buy your product think that’s important.  But how do you find out?

That’s where this free tool comes in to play.  I’ve just created one myself.  Not only is the tool free, but it was easy to use and I think it will be fun for you to give it a try.

Follow this link and take the survey yourself.  Then you can decide if you might benefit from using it in your business.  Take the survey now

photo credit: ilya_ktsn

Elinor shared a story on her blog about a sales presentation ending with a sports car being offered as an incentive to Californians.  Yes, California where they take pride in being first when it comes to improving the environment, and where they’re embracing hybrid cars.

What an embarrassing mistake.  You would think the person giving the presentation would have known better.  But therein lies the reason for the big faux pas.

Far too often salespeople and the companies they represent think sales is all about the sales process.  They think the key to sales is the “perfect pitch”.  With rising gas prices and a slowing economy don’t let this misguided thinking make you yet another sales fatality.

Sales isn’t about the perfect pitch.  No matter how perfect you think your pitch is it won’t succeed unless you’ve considered two critical elements to your sales success.  Those elements are the prospect and the market.

There’s no doubt you understand your product.  You can talk forever about your product, and why the prospect should buy.  The problem is the prospect won’t listen because you aren’t talking with them you’re talking at them.  That’s a fatal mistake.

Before you make a sales call you need to make sure you understand both the prospect and the market.  Then you adapt what you say and how you say it to grab their attention and interest.  Once you have their attention and interest you have an opportunity to hold a sales conversation.

Ditch the pitch.  Understand the prospect and your market.  And then you’ll increase sales.

Read more and discover how to avoid these fatal sales mistakes and increase your sales

photo credit: ol slambert

Here’s an interview I had with Lee Salz where I share sales success secrets.  Listen in to this interview and be ready to take notes because you’re going to hear immediately actionable ways to increase your sales.

There’s no reason your sales can’t take off like a fourth of July rocket and this no cost nothing to register for audio will provide several tools to make this happen for you.

Sales Success Secrets revealed join now.

photo credit: David the Pimp Daddy

In a recent conversation with Clayton Shold I discuss ways to leverage objections to make more sales.

I talk about what to do and what not to do to turn turn those objections into “yeses” and increase your sales.

To listen in to our conversation on how to leverage objections and increase sales click on this link.

There’s no cost to listen and nothing to register for just grab a cup of coffee, a notepad, and pencil and get ready to take notes that you can put to use today.

How to Leverage Objections and Increase Sales 

photo credit: thegordons

Brian Clark recently wrote about the relevance of how Tiger Woods played through 91 holes to win the U.S. Open in spite of a torn ACL and stress fractures, and how you win online.

I agree with Brian and I also think there are similarities that are pertinent to anyone who wants to succeed at anything including increasing sales.

I don’t care who you are or what you try you will encounter obstacles.  The only way to overcome an obstacle is to make adjustments to your current approach.  Doing more of what you already know doesn’t work hoping for different results is 100% insanity.  Are you a touch insane?

Before Tiger walked out on the course to start his game on hole one he had one very clear objective for the event.  Tiger aimed to win.  In spite of some poor shots, pain from his knee, a crowd that was cheering for the underdog Tiger aimed to win.

A clear objective is the first step.  You have to follow that objective up with commitment.  Your commitment makes opting out not an option.  On Saturday it was plain to see Tiger was in real pain.  He’s already a multi-millionaire.  He’s already considered the number one golfer.  It would have been so easy for him to say, “To heck with this I’m going home to rest up my knee.”  But that wouldn’t be Tiger.  And if you want to be among the best it isn’t you either.

Tiger isn’t the best simply because he’s been playing since he was 3 years old.  Tiger continually invests in himself.  I believe the announcers mentioned three different coaches that Tiger pays to work with him.  Why?

Because Tiger knows those coaches can help him make the small adaptations in how he plays the game that make all the difference.  If you watched the U.S. Open you know he didn’t play every hole perfectly, but he played enough holes just one stroke better than everyone else to be the last man standing.  If you won’t invest in yourself I have to ask, “Is it because you don’t believe you can succeed?”

If that’s the case you may as well either settle for what you’ve got now, or give up because until you believe in yourself you won’t succeed at anything.

That mental toughness that Tiger has comes from his resolve.  Throughout the tournament one of the commercials was of Tiger’s father talking about Tiger’s mental toughness.  Mental toughness shouldn’t be confused with stubbornness.  Rather mental toughness is the resolve that comes from focused determination.  That focused determination is what motivates you to take one more step one more stroke one more chance than anyone else.  And it never allows excuses.

Tiger could have openly talked about his injuries before the tournament ever started.  If he had he would have prepared the announcers, the crowd, and himself for a loss because he certainly had a very real very valid EXCUSE.  But Tiger wouldn’t do that, would you?

photo credit: Adam Tinworth

Are you like many small business owners who are frustrated because your sales people just aren’t increasing sales like you think they should be?  Before you jump to any conclusions perhaps there would be value in exploring what might be causing the poor results you’re getting.

Statistically 20% of your sales people will be your top producers.  20% of your sales people will essentially be non-producers.  Leaving 80% of your sales force in what I call the squishy middle.  These statistics hold true even when you only have a few sales people.  Where do you think you should make your greatest investment to produce greater results?

The top 20%, of course.  You’ll get a far greater return from your efforts when you focus on investing in the top 20%.  Beyond that there are some basic reasons that even your top producers could be increasing your sales more than they are now.  There is potential to increase sales by:

• improving attitudes and behaviors
• increasing their understanding of the problems or challenges their best prospects will have, and how your service produces the outcomes those prospects want
• establishing mutually agreed upon performance standards and the measurements that indicate performance
• refinement of the sales process
• increasing the number of highly qualified prospects they have an opportunity to hold appointments with

If you want to get what you want you have to work with them helping them get what they want.  They want to sell more too because more sales mean more commissions.  I’ve found many small business owners who were sorely disappointed in sales performance and placed blame on the sales force when the real issue was no one in the company knew how to effectively market your business.

It’s pretty easy to see if your sales people can’t secure appointments they can’t sell.  So if that’s the biggest challenge, you don’t have a sales issue you have a marketing issue.  You may have sales issues too, but until you have people to sell to marketing should be your highest priority.

Attitudes and behaviors are important.  The quickest way to develop negative attitudes and poor behaviors is to dictate performance standards and measures.  You talk in terms of accountability.

While I fully agree every has to be fully accountable for their actions and their results the way you word things makes a big difference in the results you see.  When you communicate to your sales force that they need to be accountable you’ve just created a “we” (the sales people) against “them” (you) attitude.  That doesn’t help anyone.

You can get the desired outcome more effectively if you speak in terms of support and partnership.  When you want to partner with them and support them in a way that makes it easier for them to sell they’re all ears.  In contrast, when you tell them these are your targets hit them or hit the road you may as well fire them on the spot because you’ve just created a non-selling sales person.

Bottom line you just need to be clear where the real problem is.  Is it ineffective marketing?  Is it the way you manage the sales people?  Is it a poor sales process?  Is it poor attitudes and behaviors?  Is is a lack of understanding of your service and what it can do for your clients?

If you suspect it’s the way you manage those sales people view this little video TopGrading for Sales  It’s cute and you may find some information there you can use.

If you suspect the problem is marketing related or sales process related I recommend the “7 Secrets Top Producers Know” report and e-course.

There’s no reason to continue either your frustration or the frustration your sale people are experiencing.  Identify the cause(s) identify the solution(s) and take action to overcome your challenges.

The Top Sales Experts have worked together to write this sales e-book for our readers. I know you’ll get a lot of value from the information shared in this book by the top sales gurus. And best of all it’s our gift to you. You certainly can’t beat that. So click on the image and get your free book now.

If you prefer click on this link Top Sales Experts Summer E-Book

photo credit: twenty_questions

It’s no secret, if you want to succeed you have to WORK at it.  There are no FREE lunches or INSTANT RICHES.  There are lots of marketers who prey on people who want a free lunch and an instant fix.

Unfortunately, the only one getting rich is the unscrupulous marketer.  Frank Rumbausk wrote an interesting post where he points out the missing link in the movie “The Secret” is ACTION.  I couldn’t agree more.

There is a direct correlation between the actions you take and the outcomes you get.

There is value in having a positive attitude and thinking positive thoughts BUT those thoughts are worthless if you don’t back them up with RIGHT ACTION.  While most sales people are all about action they don’t focus enough of there time on RIGHT ACTION.  A costly mistake.

When you combine the failure to take right action with the attitude, “I already know that or I’ve heard that before” it’s like the kiss of death.

If you already know it why aren’t you getting the results you want?

There’s a gap the size of the Grand Canyon between “knowing” something or “having heard” something and implementing what you know or have heard.  Bottom line if you really want to succeed if you really want to make it to the top there are two things you absolutely have to do no matter what.

1. Take right actions and do so immediately
2. Get the help you need to implement what you “know” you should do

Sometimes your pride gets in your way and you think you can figure this out and you can do it by yourself.  Well if you have enough time and enough money and you don’t mind beating your head against a wall you bet you can.  On the other hand, if you’d like to start enjoying the rewards your efforts should produce, if you’d like to reduce your stress, and you’d like to start succeeding before your resources are gone…swallow your pride conquer your fear do whatever it takes to get the help you need.