Sales Tips

What would the holiday season be without the “It’s the holidays blog…”? It’s that time of year. Time for a reality check. How many salespeople do you know that go on cruise control between Thanksgiving & New Year’s Day? How many companies do you know that will actually admit to winding things down right about […]

Let’s get this out of the way right now — this will not be the sexiest blog you have ever read. Not at all. The topic is goal-setting. How sexy is that? Not sexy, but necessary. We’re 6 weeks away from 2018. If you haven’t thought about what 2018 will look like, good luck making

Why did you get into sales? A lot of people say it’s because they like helping people. Or, they like people. Or they like the freedom. All valiant reasons. But, from where I sit, if “for the money” or “income potential” isn’t right up there, we should talk. For another conversation, though. Did you ever

Can you remember, back in the early days of your selling career, when you would get excited because you found someone that was interested in talking to you about your product or service? Be honest. Have you ever gotten that feeling in your stomach when someone was curious to learn what you do? OK, have you

Saleswomen out there, when was the last time you watched a Jim Carey or Adam Sandler movie because your husband “convinced” you that it would be good? Guys, when was the last time you watched The Real Housewives of Orange County because your girlfriend said it was quality TV? How about never? When was the

(originally posted September, 2015. Re-posted because it’s good) It’s here! Football season. Finally! Three weeks ago the NCAA opened & two weeks ago, the NFL. A great time of year, for sure. My favorite is the NCAA. ESPN’s College GameDay, Saturday afternoon games, Top 25 showdowns, tailgate parties, the UofM/MSU rivalry & consequential “trash-talking” —

Labor Day has been around since the late 1800’s. It honors the American Labor Movement. It’s a Federal Holiday. It’s a day off work (for many people). Yep, it’s a day off work. That’s great (& well deserved) for some sales professionals. Some. Some sales professionals work their butts off. Some manage their time very well.

Remember when the Blockbuster video stores stood apart from all others because they greeted every single person that entered their stores, every single time? How about Domino’s Pizza? They started the “You’ll have it in 30 minutes or less or it’s free policy”. Who can forget FedEx’s “When it absolutely has to be there overnight”

It’s 8/8 so let’s review 8 ways to improve your time management. It doesn’t matter what company you work for — self-employed, small company or large corporate environment. If you don’t have the soft skills that make you able to handle a very large work load you will be replaced by someone who does.  

If you have been in sales for longer than a week you have been told, ”You have to uncover their budget.” Your director or manager has asked, “How much money are they willing to spend?” “What’s the budget?” “What’s their target price?” “How much money do they have?”  Been there? Of course, you have. The