Inevitably, at some time or another, you are going to have to say that you are sorry. It doesn't matter what the circumstances are, saying your sorry is simple (which is not the same thing as easy).Start by saying: "I am sorry."Then say:… Continue Reading

I just read David Brock's (Partners in Excellence) response to:  To Sell More, Scare Customer Spitless by Geoffrey James at BNET. I read the original article, In a Downturn, Provoke Your Customers in the Harvard Business Review. I also read the… Continue Reading

Sometimes a prospect buys a massive amount of whatever it is you sell. This makes them look like a great prospect. Unfortunately, this isn't always true; sometimes they may be a terrible prospect and should be avoided completely.The question… Continue Reading

Do you want your prospect's time so that you can tell him about your product or service?Do you want to tell her how you have helped your existing customers with their complex needs and challenges?Do you want to tell the prospect all of the… Continue Reading

Here is a follow up idea from last week's post on Telling Lies vs. Managing Expectations.Now more than ever, those of us in sales are responsible not for the product or service we sell as much as we are responsible for the client's outcome.… Continue Reading

I took this picture as I was getting into my car yesterday. It was in the middle of a massive parking lot where there should be absolutely nothing growing. I have no idea what it is, but I believe it is a weed of some kind.

What makes this… Continue Reading

Rejection is part of sales. Your offer isn't right for every prospect. Some of the prospects your offer is right for don't choose you even when you have done everything right. And then there's prospecting and cold calling.The fear of… Continue Reading

Clif Reichard, who sells for Ball Corporation and writes for the HBR NOW website, has a post with the purposefully inciting title "Can You Sell Without Lying?" As you might expect, Mr. Reichard comes down on the side of ethical norms, believing… Continue Reading

Yesterday, President Clinton met with Kim Jong-il to secure the release of two journalists who the North Koreans convicted of entering the country illegally and who were sentenced to 12 years hard labor (which must be as close to Hell as one can…

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Not everything about the old sales tools, techniques and processes were good and some were dreadful. But they weren't all bad. Some of the reason the old tools sound "sales-y" is because the object was to sell something. That outcome hasn't…

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