What do you do with all those business cards? These six tips will help you get the most out of your next networking event. If you have a love-hate relationship with networking events, you’re not alone! You might get nervous or awkward before an event or feel like there’s not really a point. The truth is, from cocktail parties to huge conventions, networking events are a great way to meet new prospects or referral partners. But they can only help your business if you go in with a plan. By following these six steps, you’ll make more effective (and profitable) connections at your next networking ..read more

Don’t fall for these common misconceptions about prospecting clients! Sales professionals tend to build their careers the old-fashioned way—start at the bottom and work their way up. Besides the occasional book or seminar, most don’t have a formal sales education—we learn as we go. Unfortunately, the self-taught approach can lead to misunderstandings and misconceptions. And these myths could be holding your business back! I’ve worked with thousands of salespeople as a sales coach and consultant. Most of the myths and misconceptions I’ve heard from sales professionals seem to be about prospect ..read more

Is your prospect indecisive? The “Impending Event” close will motivate your client to act now. Most salespeople have a few “tried-and-true” approaches to closing a deal, and there’s nothing wrong with having a go-to that you use all the time. It’s what you’re most comfortable with, and it works—until it doesn’t. If you really want to be a sales champion, you need to understand and master a wide variety of closes. This way, you’ll always have something in your back pocket when your tried-and-true technique comes up short. To help build your sales arsenal of closing techniques, I’ve been sharin ..read more

Is your sales funnel drying up? Rebuild your prospect list by reworking your past no’s! Every salesperson knows the feeling of staring at a big new sales goal and thinking, “This is impossible!” Your sales funnel isn’t full enough, there aren’t enough prospects, and you’ve already exhausted every lead. How can you get more prospects when you’ve already called everyone you could? Here’s a clue: When a prospect says no, it doesn’t mean forever. And if you went back through all of your calls and proposals from last year, you’ll notice many rejections aren’t a firm, final “No.” Your client might ..read more

Even if you’re working for someone else, you own your own business. You might dream of being the CEO of your own business someday. Maybe you’re already living that dream! Or maybe, you’re one of the many people with no interest in entrepreneurship? You might love being a part of a big corporation that provides you stability, support, and an expense account. The truth is, a vast majority of salespeople work for a larger organization, and you only have to worry about closing deals. The bad news—that perspective is holding you back. You are employed by a company, but you should be running your b ..read more

Weekends are a key to a successful life. It’s time to stop working through them. So many people don’t allow their weekend to be a weekend. Why? I think people—especially salespeople—often feel like the weekend is our only opportunity to “catch up.” We can’t get enough of our work done during the week—because work gets in the way! The weekend is blissfully free of all the meetings, phone calls, interruptions, and last-minute emergency fire drills that take over our week. Do you feel like the only way to get any work done is to do it outside of work hours? We’ve all been there! You Need R&R ..read more

Are you spending your time and money wisely, or are you neglecting the most important person in your life? If you want to get further in your career, you have to grow. It’s just a fact! As long as you stay the same, you’ll always stay in the same place. A salesperson who isn’t growing personally will see the same lack of growth in their sales numbers. Every year, the commission checks are stagnant (or less!), and goals seem forever out of reach. The only way to grow as a person—and grow your sales business—is to invest in yourself. To reach long-term goals, there’s no other way! The money and ..read more

To overcome client objections, salespeople need to understand what makes us resistant to change. Every sales professional will face a wide variety of objections and obstacles during the sales process. But whether you’re trying to close a deal, or simply set up an initial meeting, there’s one fundamental obstacle that you’ll come up against time and again: The status quo. Never underestimate the power of the status quo. As a salesperson, it will always be your biggest competitor. Humans don’t like to change—even if we’re unhappy!  People will make any excuse to maintain the status quo and ..read more

What’s the most powerful sales skill you can develop? Resilience. Salespeople have to be resilient. We’re responsible for how much income we make. Our job is to go out and ask for the business. And a lot of the time, the answer will be a hard no. Rejection is bad enough. When it’s tied to your paycheck, it takes on a whole new level! The Mighty Oak Tree When coaching my clients, I remind them that sales professionals have to be like a mighty oak tree. I know, the fable we all grew up with had opposite advice! In that classic tale, the grasses bend and sway with the wind. The oak tre ..read more

If you’re only looking one year ahead, you could be setting yourself up for failure. I’m a big believer in goal setting (like an Olympic Gold Medalist believer). Whether it’s in your personal life or your sales career, you need a goal to measure your success against and keep you motivated. Every sales professional needs to set (and revise) business goals. Even if someone else in your organization is setting revenue goals for your team, you need to do your own personal goal setting—to make sure you’re working toward where you want to be. It’s critical to your business success. If you’re a big ..read more