
Create a Culture of Courtesy in Your Business
In the best of times, etiquette can give you the edge over your competition. In difficult times, manners will set you apart. There are any number of companies that can offer the same services
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.

In the best of times, etiquette can give you the edge over your competition. In difficult times, manners will set you apart. There are any number of companies that can offer the same services

It only takes a minute to proof read your emails, and I’ll tell you now I’m always glad I did. I almost always make them better, and when I hit the send key I

Every so often, prospects will want to speak with someone who is using your products or services just to make sure they are making the right decision. And every so often prospects will use
Customers buy when they perceive that the value outweighs the cost of the investment. There are three components of value: economic, business and personal that all have an impact on the customer’s view of

Chances are you spend the first five to fifteen minutes of your sales presentation telling people why they should buy from you or giving them background on your company. This approach is one of

The best way to generate a positive ripple effect among your customers is to make a deliberate effort to increase the quality and quantity of the service you render. Unfortunately, shortsighted salespeople view customer

When was the last time you operated on the line, did the work of your assistant, or went back out to make sales? You may be amazed by what you could learn. Following are

The rich, the poor, the successful, the struggling – all manner of men and women the planet over are using this law or principle of being, and it has been this way since the
Granted, many purchasing agents do enjoy the thrill of securing a lower price, but that’s no different than you. As a salesperson, you enjoy the thrill of securing a new sale. Accept the fact

When it comes to your sales cycle the customer controls their sense of urgency of when they decide to purchase your products/services from you or your competitors. Our level of influence on their

Cross-selling begins with uncovering your customer’s needs and laying the groundwork for other specialists to assist you in the selling process. The best place to introduce your customer to the concept of cross-selling is

Today customers are more intelligent about solution offerings than ever before- thanks to the Internet. In today’s economy companies want immediate results and incredible response to their needs. The definition of P &
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
If you don’t like to sell, it means that you are doing it wrong. Stepping in with courage and determination into a sales conversation is the most powerful aspect of your business. The biggest
When their KPIs don’t recognize the importance of consistent prospecting follow-up to reach target contacts, you’re not only setting yourself up to lose a potentially good rep, you are also directly impacting your prospecting
The secret to an organized closet is to never bring in anything new unless you first get rid of something old. I recently sent out a survey to my colleagues, asking them to evaluate

People are Human Sounds pretty silly, right? Sometimes I find myself forgetting that everyone has their own perspective. We can start to assume that others think and feel the way we do, but this
No matter what type of company you have, there is always a need to find new customers. That’s what sales prospecting is all about regardless of the fancy name you give it. Early in

I want to believe that sales professionalism has evolved. I want to believe that at this time, everyone “gets” that the buyer matters most in the sales conversations. Yet, that isn’t what I’ve experienced.

If sales people (especially in a consultative sale environment) don’t learn the fundamentals of a consultative sales process, they will just stay mediocre at best. So, what are some of the basics that are

Prospecting is the price you have to pay in advance for success in sales and the income you want. -Jeb Blount In this episode of Level Up: From Agent to Entrepreneur podcast, featured sales

Prospecting Machine Jeb Blount and Adam H. Michaels talk sales, prospecting & more! The Lighthouse with Adam H. Michaels · Jeb Blount | The Prospecting Machine From dealing with crazy rejections to what makes a

So what’s your team’s Sales EQ? Here are three emotional intelligence skills to look for in your next hire. You’ve met this person. They are brilliant. Their ideas are creative. Yet no one wants

For leaders, nothing is more important or critical than trust. If people do not trust you, they will not follow you.

On this podcast episode learn the keys to leading and coaching ultra-high performance from respected sales thought leaders, Jeb Blount and Alice Heiman.

On this podcast episode, Jeb Blount and sales leadership guru, Ken Thoreson, discuss how and why modern sales management has changed and where sales leaders need to place their focus to be successful.

The glaring gap in your hiring process is that you are hiring salespeople with no prior experience in lead generation. Are You Tired Of Hiring Bad Salespeople? You may have seen this movie before.

How can you enjoy sustainable and predictable revenues? Here are three ways that can make you the right kind of leader of the sales pack. It’s the second quarter of the year and revenues

Our interpersonal skills and our selling styles often influence buying decisions more than our products or services do. Sales training is great, but, we cannot expect sales training to sustain our success. Think about

People do not need to like you in order to follow your lead and work hard for you or with you as part of a team. Often, our best lessons are learned through stumbling

The cost of a bad hire extends beyond the physical hiring, from running the advertisement to interviewing. If this decision is made in error, other areas of the small business are affected as well. Many