There is a reason that an outside coach can often be more effective than a sales manager that coaches their sales team. The reason that an external coach can be more effective is that the external coach is a stakeholder in a different set of outcomes. What a Coaching Sales … [Read more...]

I was recently asked what the curriculum for sales coaching might include for a salesperson. It’s a tough question to answer, because good coaching isn’t very much like event training. There are some standard exercises, but it's not curriculum driven like training. You … [Read more...]

A few days ago I wrote a post about how to deal with haters and trolls. I wrote the post for my younger brother, and he found it very helpful for thinking about some issues he has in a new, and highly visible, job. But, I forgot the most important piece of advice for those who … [Read more...]

This post was written as part of the IBM for Midsize Business program, which provides midsize businesses with the tools, expertise and solutions they need to become engines of a smarter planet. Over time, selling to and working with your clients, you gather a lot of … [Read more...]

Most of the time that we spend looking for opportunities is spent in two segments of our competitor’s loyalty continuum. We seek opportunities within their at-risk clients, where we know dissatisfaction lives, and we compete for their inevitable-loss clients. If you hope to … [Read more...]

There are countless ways that you can classify your clients and prospects. While you should never pretend that any client is yours forever, lest you become complacent, there is a loyalty continuum that helps you determine what actions you need to take to create value for—and … [Read more...]

Have you ever had a prospective client who convinced you through their words and their actions that they were ready to move forward with you and your solution, only to later disengage completely from the you and the opportunity? Have you ever struggled to understand why your … [Read more...]

“I hate cold calling.” “Cold calling is dead.” “Cold calling doesn’t work.” It’s interesting the effect a core set of beliefs can have on your sales results. Many of the salespeople I know that struggle to produce results prospecting have a very negative set of … [Read more...]

If you are going to exert the effort to go and win a client, why not put forth a little more effort and win the whole account? Sometimes we can succeed in winning orders and do so in a way that makes it more difficult to get what we were really after. Below are a few reasons … [Read more...]

Your brand new client is upset. Your team is having trouble executing. They aren’t getting the results that they need, and your team is having trouble getting things right. Your client calls you to discuss the issue, but you are on sales calls and available. You call your … [Read more...]