Good morning everyone! I just returned from a “Day of Development” seminar in Charlotte with the Jon Gordon company. Several of his books include: “The Power of Positive Leadership,” “The Energy Bus,” etc. Check them out on Amazon if you’re interested in learning more. There was a lot of great stuff in the meeting, and one thing I wanted to share with you all is a way to combat the recurring negativity that silently creeps into our heads every so often. You know how it is: You’ll be minding your own business and then suddenly you’ll hear things like: “These leads suck . . .” “I can’t make any ..read more

What’s the number one blow off prospects use these days? “Can you email that to me?” If you think about it, that’s the perfect stall. They aren’t saying no, and it implies they might be interested . . . but face it—they rarely are. Not only is it hard to get prospects back on the phone, when you do, you usually lead off with the ineffective opening line of: “Did you have a chance to review that email I sent you?” And you know how that goes: “What email? Can you send it again?” The solution? Be prepared with a good script and a good strategy. Try this: Be prepared with an initial email templat ..read more

Have you ever interviewed for a job you really want, thought your interview went well, and then didn’t get called back for it? I’ve helped sales managers and business owners interview hundreds of potential sales reps over the years, and I’ve identified 3 top mistakes that virtually eliminate sales candidates on the spot! Study these 3 interviewing mistakes and make sure YOU don’t make them the next time you’re trying to land your next sales position. Mistake Number One: A poorly written resume that shows either gaps between jobs, or worse, lists many jobs where a candidate worked less than 2 ..read more

Ah, the amorphous, “I want to think about it . . .” At first glance, this seems hard to handle because it’s not really an objection, rather, it seems more like a stall. Because of this, it fools many sales reps who think that perhaps after a week or two the prospect might actually buy. But they rarely do. Make no mistake: this is almost always a “no” disguised as a “maybe.” What you need to do is find out what’s behind this objection and whether or not you can compete with what the real objection is. Here’s what to say: “Just out of curiosity, how many other offers are you going to be compari ..read more

Based on how successful my last blog was on handling the objection: “We’ve Already Got a Vendor for That,” I thought I’d give you another proven response to help you overcome the objections and resistance you get daily. In this case, “Your Price is Too High.” The reason this is such a common objection is because your prospects have figured out it’s the best way to get sales reps to drop their price! And most do! Top performing reps, however, know better . . . They know the “Price is too high” objection is just another smokescreen. And they handle it using any of the following scripted techniq ..read more

I don’t know why sales reps still have trouble handing this typical blow off. They know it’s coming; they get it daily or weekly, yet many still struggle to handle it effectively. . . . The way to not only handle it, but to overcome it is to be prepared in advance with a proven, scripted approach. Like this: “I’m sure you do, and that’s why I’m calling you today. I know it makes sense to have several vendors you can check pricing and availability with, and having another supplier in your back pocket is only going to help you, right?” [Get buy in here before you continue . . .] “So let me emai ..read more

Do you remember Dicken’s book, A Christmas Carol? While reading this this December, it reminded me of an encounter I had that was a chilling reminder of the bad “Ghost of Christmas Future” I narrowly avoided all those years ago. Here’s what happened: I was on my way to consult with a new client one day when I stopped at Starbucks for a cup of coffee. A city bus pulled up outside and a bunch of people got off.  One guy—mid 40’s, tall and lanky—started walking towards the Starbucks, and when he entered the store, I recognized him from many years before when we were both struggling inside s ..read more

A few months ago, both AT&T, and then Google Fiber, dug up our street and lawns and bushes to install fiber Internet cable. AT&T then sent a letter announcing superfast speeds and made an offer for first time subscribers. And then nothing from them. Google Fiber did things differently. They also sent out a letter announcing their superfast service, and then two weeks later, they sent out another. And then another. Three months later, they sent yet out another promotion, this time including coupons for free upgrades and equipment. Then they sent out another one, this time in a neat, gl ..read more

Greetings to you on an early fall morning! I hope the changing of the seasons inspires you as much as it does me. Speaking of inspiration, here are some of my favorite quotes for you to enjoy today: “If one asks for success and prepares for failure, he will get the situation he has prepared for.” –Florence Shinn “Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you’re going to do now and do it.” –William Durant “All the mistakes I ever made were when I wanted to say ‘No’ and said ‘Yes’.” — Moss Hart “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize ..read more

Actual voicemails I’ve been receiving lately: “Hi Mike, this is Megan. Can you call me back at (phone number)? Thanks!” And what do I do with these voicemails? Delete. This is one of the oldest poor sales techniques in the world, and it just SCREAMS: I’m cold calling and trying to trick you into calling me back! Doesn’t work. Here’s what’s better: First, you have to let the caller know what company you’re calling from and the reason for the call. We’re all too busy to call people back for no reason, and too many of us have called back just to be pitched (poorly, too) by an unprepared sales pe ..read more