Teach Your Children…Business Skills

Look back on your sales career.

Think about those critical business skills that really matter.

Not how to read a P&L or sandbag a budget.

But the real-life interpersonal skills that helped you succeed with customers.

Things like:

  • Introducing yourself to customers at a trade association lunch
  • Proper etiquette at a dinner meeting with customers
  • Working the room at a formal cocktail party
  • Getting customers to like you

These skills aren’t taught. You had to learn them yourself, tossed into the pool without water wings. (more…)

Add comment August 27th, 2010

Incumbent-itis

You may already have it – that is if you’re a contract service supplier.

From the first day you started service you’re a potential victim of incumbent-itis.

As you work diligently towards “wowing” your new client, you’re also on the road towards the first rebid.

And there will be a rebid. (more…)

Add comment August 19th, 2010

4 “BE”s for Selling in the Great Recession

Economic news these days is a jumble of cries about double dip recession and the U.S. succumbing to a Japanese-style “lost decade” with multiple recessions.

From the media’s perspective the economy is a very frightening animal. Fear-inducing articles sell ad space.

So their perspective is often short-term, the immediate take on last month, quarter, or year. Keep the fear factor up and so goes ad revenue.

Until one looks at a more historical view, which is what “The Recession Dating Game” by Michael Boskin does. He presents a longer term perspective on the economic situation and puts it in historical context. (more…)

Add comment August 5th, 2010

Sales Training 101: POV

If there’s one must-have, die-without sales training, it’s understanding Points of View (POV)…that are not one’s own.

POV is the genesis of customers buying, contracting, managing, and changing suppliers. Of contractors selling, serving, retaining, and profiting from customers.

Can’t understand a customers’ POV? No business. Period. End of story.

Understand how customers view the world, and contractors can: (more…)

Add comment July 24th, 2010

6 Golden Keys to C-Speak

6-Keys_C-Speak“You talkin’ to me? You talkin’ to me? You talkin’ to me?” (Travis Bickle, Taxi Driver, 1976)

Many sales people feel calling on prospects’ C-suite is like confronting Travis on a bad day. It makes them anxious, sweaty. They’d rather talk to anyone other than the CEO.

Then there’s the fearless but clueless salesperson. The one who attempts ramming their way into the exec office totally unprepared. (more…)

Add comment July 13th, 2010

Competing with Bigs, Mom-n-Pops & In-Betweens

CompetingFacility service contracts don’t exist in a vacuum.

There’s always competition. Those you know about, and those that come out of the woods at the 11th hour.

Isn’t it tempting to tell customers what you really think about your competition?

While giving vent to your innermost feelings may be therapeutic for the moment, successful business lives another way. (more…)

Add comment June 28th, 2010

Who Cares What Sellers Want?

Who_Cares_What_Sales_WantsObviously we do if we’re selling or managing sales. But buyers (aka prospects or customers) have no reason to care. They receive no benefit by helping sales people.

As dumb and basic as this sounds, most sales people still work as if this wishful thinking were true. They expect buyers to do the sellers’ work, helping sales people sell.

Doubt this? Ask a salesperson to answer the following: (more…)

Add comment June 17th, 2010

Millions Lost: Look at the Dark Side

Millions_lost_Look-at-the-dark-sideService sales are odd, facility service sales even more so.

Sales investments are often made on the beginning stages of the sales cycle, i.e. awareness, lead generation, relationships, etc.

Most contractors budget for entertainment, tradeshows, marketing collateral, some even budget for sales training. All worthy and necessary, but………… (more…)

Add comment June 9th, 2010

Using Personas for Prospect Profiles

Personas_for_perfect_prospectsBetter than shooting in the dark, prospect profiles (aka targets or ideal customers) make sales and marketing more successful.

They screen out the undesirable and demote the mediocre, making efforts more effective, optimizing investments and producing more desired results (leads, meetings, bids, sales, etc.).

Traditional profiles are good for bucketing prospects’ demographic criteria, such as: (more…)

Add comment June 3rd, 2010

The Point of Perfect Prospects

Point_of_perfect_prospectsSome suspects become prospects -and- some prospects become customers. But attaining customerhood isn’t the end.

Not all customers are created equal. Some are toxic, some dribble in revenue or profit, and some are perfect (while “perfect” is impossible, think of it as “the closest thing to perfect”).

The point of perfect prospects is… (more…)

1 comment May 28th, 2010

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