Over my career as a sales expert, I’ve personally and contractually worked with over 500 sales organizations. I’ve learned some things. Here’s one: Very few chief sales officers have a good handle on the economics of the sales force. And very few entrepreneurs think about the economics of a sales system. Almost everyone can tell you what the amounts of the various categories on a P&L statement indicate. So, sales salaries, expenses, advertising costs, etc. are readily at hand. However, very few decision makers dig deeper. And that means that significant information is never uncovered, and ..read more

The recent proliferation of AI (Artificial Intelligence) has surfaced a lingering issue: If we can create software to increase the capabilities of a computer, can we not create software to increase the capabilities of the greatest computer we know of – our minds? Let’s unpack this idea. First, a definition of software. Here’s what Wikipedia says: “groups of binary values signifying processor instructions ….” If software gives instructions to a processor, can we not build a set of instructions that will enhance our ability to think more effectively? If so, wouldn’t that be mind software? To ma ..read more

lea Navigating your way through complexity in a rapidly changing, information-saturated world. The pace of change has increased, the growth in complexity has multiplied, and information has proliferated at an unprecedented pace. We are in extraordinary times. And unprecedented times call for unique and disciplined approaches if we are to survive and thrive. In this sixth of a series, I unpack a set of recommendations for strategies, processes, attitudes, habits, and disciplines to build into your lives and businesses in order to help us survive and thrive in these unprecedented times. We nee ..read more

I have had a long and successful career in sales, starting as a sales representative 30 years ago and working my way up to Vice President of sales for a Fortune 100 software company. It was a pressure-packed job and my longevity rested solely with my ability to provide senior management with an accurate quarterly sales forecast. This was no easy task 30 years ago and it is no easy task today. My challenge back then was that there was very little automation. I had to rely on regional sales managers and third-party resellers to provide me with a paper copy of their forecast predictions then con ..read more

The CRM Software industry is highly competitive and dominated by several large enterprise companies. Despite this, Commence Corporation, manufacturer of Commence CRM, is making a name for itself with a unique capability that is delivering exceptional value to its customers. Commence CRM enables businesses to segment prospects and customers based on a specific set of like kind criteria such as industry, size, geography, revenue, number of employees, SIC code and more. The system then creates a series of mini databases, each segmented based on the categories above. Commence refers to this as Cus ..read more

Every salesperson talks about “Closing the sale.” The best salespeople understand that before you can close the sale, you must open it. What is opening? “Opening” means using well designed and delivered questions to thoroughly uncover as many aspects of the buying decision as possible. Too many salespeople mistakenly concern themselves with only the technical aspects of the sale, and neglect entirely some of the other issues. Most competitors are able to meet the prospect’s technical needs. The sale often goes to the supplier who takes the time to understand the personal a ..read more

Just about everyone who is living above ground has heard of CRM software and the promises of using CRM to build efficiency into your organization. It is a good story and how can you argue with CRM’s ability to capture, track, manage and share vital customer information within your organization?  You can’t, which is why tens of thousands of businesses are using CRM software for this purpose. Despite this, the CRM software sector does not enjoy the best reputation for providing substantial value to customers, and customizability has a lot to do with this. The industry is chock full of low ..read more

As the CEO of a technology company, I appreciate your frustration. I have engaged several companies over the past decade that promised to build brand recognition, generate more inquiries, and deliver new business opportunities.  Sound familiar?   Unfortunately, they failed to deliver. It was quite frustrating and for good reason. Our industry sector has been growing in leaps and bounds and we have a very good competitive product that is delivering a lot of value to our customers so we could not understand why these companies fell short until we dug deeper into their process. Wh ..read more

Question: I have three new salespeople and a handful of more experienced reps.  I find myself spending a disproportionate amount of time with the new guys, and, therefore, ignoring the others.  Is this OK?  Or should I spread my coaching time around to be equally available to all of them? Answer: Let me give you a short answer as well as a long answer. The short answer is this:  Yes.  It’s OK.  You’re doing fine. Here’s the long answer. As you work intently with the new salespeople, hopefully, you are helping them to understand how to do their jobs well.  Yo ..read more

At its most fundamental level, business is always and only about three things:  Money, people, and systems. There is a huge body of content revolving around money in business.  Lots of books have been written and consultants’ careers advanced in the pursuit of wiser use of money.  A whole population of professionals – bookkeepers, accountants, and CPA’s — have come into practice to deal effectively with money. When it comes to people as an element in business, there is an equally impressive body of knowledge and infrastructure.   Lots of books have been written, YouTu ..read more