Contrary to popular belief, your personality does not determine success in Sales. For instance, there’s a pervasive myth that effective salespeople are extroverted, charming, charismatic, and instantly likable. The only problem is there’s no evidence that it’s actually true; it’s a widely held belief but just that-a myth. While charisma can certainly be an asset
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Should deal makers be debt chasers? Should salespeople do debt collection? At first blush the response, would be, “Duh! Yah. It’s their job. Further, it makes financial (cost) sense as opposed to having others do it and in any case isn’t a sale closed, when payment is received? Why should someone else do it and
Are you engaged in problem identification or problem solving? Are you identifying problems, or solving problems identified? Confused? Well, if you are selling in a hardware shop and a customer comes in stating, “I want a drill,” do you sell him one, or do you find out why (or what for)? If you do the
Dear business owners, why do you do this? Why do you invest heavily in the premises complete with extensive grounds, imported furniture and manicured lawns, then sit back and expect the money will roll in. And it does, momentarily. But then it suddenly stops. And you get surprised when it does. Here’s why your investment
Connect the dots is a form of (children’s) puzzle containing a sequence of numbered dots. When a line is drawn connecting the dots, the outline of an object is revealed. In the sales profession, connecting the dots will determine professional health or morbidity. Connect the dots to sales success Why? Because, the ability to discern
Persistence and the art of connecting the dots pave the path to your success in selling. They are cornerstones of the sales odyssey; the sales journey. Here are two compelling stories that demonstrate this—one of unwavering persistence and another of methodical dot-connecting. The stories illuminate the essence of thriving in the competitive realm of sales.
The sales cycle is a guideline, not a deadline. Being a cycle, technically, it has no end. However, if it did have an end, closing the sale would be it. Ultimately, closing the sale is what counts. Movement along the cycle is selling; that movement is much akin to a dance. The 2002 hit song,
Do you suppose this is a quality customer engagement? “My name is Mtu Mwingine from Kampuni Nyingine Manufacturers. We are the only ones who make low-cost, robust quality refurbished TVs. We at KNM deal in used TVs sourced from all over East Africa, we refurbish them and you wouldn’t tell them from a brand new
Referrals are an effective way of prospecting. They save you time that you would have otherwise spent in search of new prospects. They shorten your sales cycle because you already have a foot in the door. You were most probably referred to the barber or hairdresser you go to; maybe you stopped patronizing a particular
I was once asked to do a rather unusual thing. The request affirmed that technical competency does not mean sales competency. Here’s what happened. A client had a product (a ground-breaking software). He also had a compelling testimonial of it from a wowed customer, and the gravitas to marshal key decision makers (most C-suite) from