New Hire Process: Simulate Sales Environment
Hiring the right people will solve most, if not all, of the new business production problems that you have today. If you have people today that are underperforming, you have to ask yourself this question:
Welcome to the Sales Gravy blog, where salespeople and sales leaders get better every week. We publish new sales training articles and podcast episodes three times a week, covering prospecting, cold calling, objections, negotiation, and leadership, written by Jeb Blount and the Sales Gravy trainer team.
Hiring the right people will solve most, if not all, of the new business production problems that you have today. If you have people today that are underperforming, you have to ask yourself this question:
Right now I’m involved with a company whereby I’m listening to and critiquing cold calls. These are qualifying calls. We’ve written the scripts for these reps, put in all the qualifying questions, and now
Here are four of the most common nervous habits that kill sales and what you can do to avoid them in your next selling situation. Have you ever had that out of body experience
Motivation comes from within. Inspiration can come from anywhere. Why not let the people we serve inspire us to be motivated? The Triggers of Success A friend sent this simple text this week: “Inspire
Pretending is not necessary. Your value is obvious from the first sentence of your email and your prospects will want to respond and talk with you. Use your real value proposition and a genuine
Pre-show marketing is an excellent way to connect with your prospects, clients, and partners before a trade show to remind them of your presence and encourage them to visit with you in the convention
Your job as a sales professional is to help your prospects understand their need and to feel the pain that can result from avoiding a solution. According to life insurance industry studies, 36% of
Business people remember sales people who go out of their way to ensure that they receive the best solution, even if it isn’t the sales person’s product or service. Earning a prospect’s trust is
Finding the best candidates is a process that requires a new twist on the ranking system. The most subtle interactions became the gateway to an inventory of eligible candidates of future employees. A Mead
As a small business owner don’t make the fatal mistake of failing to offer business etiquette courses to your employees or taking one yourself. The best business plan and marketing strategy plus all the
With so many people to see and so little time in the convention city, you will need to narrow your focus to achieve the results you desire. Following these tips will help you to
Keep in mind that pit crews don’t prepare during the race. There is a time for preparing and a time for selling. We don’t start prepping when we’re supposed to be out selling. Before
Can’t stomach cold calling? Steal Jeb Blount’s 13 proven alternatives to picking up the phone that build real pipeline and actually work.
When should you ask questions on a cold call? Questions come after you’ve earned the right, when you’re gathering information and qualifying, and they lead the conversation only when the prospect contacted you first.
To prospect for new clients, stop making random touches and run a consistent five-step system. Work this system every day and you gain control of your pipeline, along with the peace of mind that
Salespeople fail at cold calling for five common reasons. Fix them and the phone starts producing appointments again.
Email response rates are collapsing because decision maker inboxes are stuffed with automated, AI-written slop. This is exactly why the phone is more powerful today than it was ten years ago.
Quick Summary Cold calling anxiety is not a symptom of weakness. It’s human and natural to feel fear when you cold call. You are interrupting a stranger who was not expecting you, and everything
Fear of the phone is quietly draining sales pipelines, and the reps who win are the ones willing to stop hiding behind email and LinkedIn and simply make the call.
Salespeople seek a magic window that makes cold calling easy. When prospects answer happy, say yes without a fight, and book the meeting themselves. So, is there a best time to call?
Short Answer Yes, you can make cold calling fun, and it is worth doing, because the reps who enjoy the phone are the ones who stay on it. Fun is not a personality trait
The time and energy you devote to things that are outside of your control is better spent in areas where you have control. We don’t get to choose what happens in the areas where
Instead of wasting time figuring out an impressive response, spend time understanding what caused the objection in the first place. Identify what you are doing, or not doing that triggered the money objection in
I hear all the time from salespeople saying how their prospecting plan doesn’t seem to be delivering the results they need. Everyone needs to continually fine tune their prospecting process. The biggest problem I
How then do we make coaching conversations productive, efficient, and less stressful for the coach and coachee? With a bit of forward thinking and action and these 3 sales coaching hacks: We all know
This makes the salesperson a shrewd negotiator, choosing to negotiate with the weaker party, making it more likely that a deal is done. One of the things I hear from sales leaders most often
Leverage Friday afternoons for phone calls to people you haven’t been able to connect with or with prospects who are tied tightly to a competitor. It happens every summer. The number of sales appointments
On this episode of Sales Pipeline radio, Matt Heinz and Jeb Blount discuss emotional intelligence, Sales EQ, and Fanatical Prospecting. You’ll be surprised to hear Jeb’s opinion about how sales and marketing should work
It’s evident that time is a critical factor in completing sales, building and keeping the relationship. Given that, what strategy does your dealership have in place to shorten the time it takes to close
The only asset you have that is in limited supply is your own time. When a slow customer takes up too much of it, you lose. The time you’re spending with them is preventing
Having A Common Sales Language Prevents Miscommunication The language we use is key to the success of all sales organizations. Most companies share a common corporate language, and that lingua franca is English. Even
On this episode of the Sales Gravy podcast, Jeb Blount (People Follow You) sits down with Leigh Cantrell and Rob Matura who are Regional Vice Presidents at Cigna to discuss the keys to leading
In today’s world there are few barriers to career change. Top sales talent can walk out of your door to another career opportunity at any time. This puts more pressure on sales leaders than
5 Leadership Skills to Weather Any Economic Storm The storm clouds are brewing once again. We don’t quite know what is in store for us economically, but what we do know is that we
Three Sales Habits That Close More Business Let’s take a look at the top three sales habits of top producers and examine the neuroscience and emotional intelligence skills behind the development of success habits.
Leaders Must Be Authentic Communicators These five tips for authentic communication can help build trust within an organization, especially when it starts with leadership. Whether it’s holding open dialogues, or sharing stories and passing
Are Sales Contests Worth It? Sales contests and promotions should be conducted with one thought in mind: Changing behavior to achieve a desired result or outcome. There are a few things to keep in
Sales Skills: In Class Vs. Out In The Field One of the biggest challenges for most organizations is helping salespeople execute in the field what they’ve learned in theory in the classroom. It is
Leading A Dysfunctional Sales Team? Here’s How To Fix It Maybe you inherited a dysfunctional sales team, or inadvertently created one. Here’s how you can turn it into a high performing sales machine. Ridding