By Ron S. La Vine
President of Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
Sales professionals depend on knowing how to ask the right questions to discover the real needs of our clients. Often our clients tell us what they would like us to do, such as, "I need a solution on change management," but without telling us the ultimate result they want to achieve.
To be truly effective we must be able to help our clients articulate the cause of the problem and to be able to identify what would be different if the solution is successful. Armed with this additional information we can then design the most effective solution for the problem at hand.
So what are some examples of questions and statements you can use to open up the prospect to discussing their problems.
Help me understand. How do you measure your key performance indicators?
I would like to learn a little more about. What do you do when that happens?
Where do you find are the bottlenecks?
How high is the absentee rate?
What are the biggest challenges you are currently facing?
What are your top priorities over the next three months?
Tell me more about that…
Give me an idea how you currently process that specific type of data?
(Continued Below)
Accelerated Sales Training enables companies such as yours to:
◦Break into new accounts
◦Reach decision-makers
◦Identify and Qualify opportunities
◦Meet and exceed sales quotas
◦Shorten sales cycles
Examples of Key Results Produced
•Tripled call center lead generation performance while the Inside Sales group doubled its results in setting qualified appointments.
•Added 74 new customers in one quarter.
•Increased sales from $695 million to $1.1 billion over a 5 year period.
•Boosted sales by 19.3% quarterly and increased profit before taxes by 24% for the past fiscal year.
•Completed a $2.8 million in new license revenue at a major insurance company.
•Closed a $208,000 deal that paid for the entire prospecting program.
•Identified over $61 million in software revenues from 1989 to 1997.
Ron S. La Vine, MBA is president and founder of Accelerated Sales Training, Inc., a LIVE cold call/new business development sales training firm located in Oak Park, CA. For a complementary sales training needs analysis, call Ron at
1-818-519-3852 or send an email to: analysis@ast-incorp.com.
Over 100 LinkedIn recommendations can be found by clicking here:
http://tinyurl.com/2e7zllh
Hi Ron,
We have been using your cold calling system for over 5 years and it is as relevant today as it was back when my salesforce attended your training. Using your system never fails to get them to the right person in a very short period of time. Thanks for the recent coaching.
Best regards,
Mike Blaszak., VP of Sales
ISYS Search Software, Inc
Ron,
Although we don't correspond much, your training was one of the best because it was hands on, as you advertise.
Steven T, Account Manager
Dear Ron,
I've written this recommendation of your work to share with other LinkedIn users. Details of the Recommendation: "Ron is a tremendously talented, effective, and entertaining sales trainer. His telephone prospecting workshops provide an immediate return on investment."
Larry S. Sales Trainer
Hi Ron,
I hope all is well with you. Your training was the best sales training I ever received.
Michael W. Sales Rep
(Continued from Above)
Please describe how you use spreadsheets?
What do you do when your system goes down?
Please explain your funding process?
Compare for me how your test scores went down last year and up this year?
In what way do you measure your production?
To what extent has this been a problem?
Go through the steps when your production line goes down?
What happens when a system outage occurs?
These questions are designed to root out the problems, needs or challenges your prospect is incurring right now. The next question is one you need to ask yourself. Can you fix the problem with your solution?
If the answer is “yes” or even a partial “yes” then you have the basis for closing for an appointment. If the answer is “no”, you’re better off letting the prospect know up front rather than wasting their valuable time or yours.
REPRINT PERMISSION
Ron La Vine, MBA is president and founder of Accelerated Sales Training, Inc., a sales training firm located in Oak Park, CA. You can get a special report “41 sales Tips You Can Use Right Now” AND the free bimonthly Sales Tips for Selling Success eZine all by signing up at http://www.ast-incorp.com. If you would like information on Live Cold Calling Sales Training please call Ron at 818-991-6487 PST. © 2009 by Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
Make it a great day and a successful week!
Ron S. La Vine, MBA, President and CEO
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
Live Cold Call New Business Development Sales Training™
Helping you Break into and Qualify New Accounts™
http://www.ast-incorp.com
Complementary Sales Tips
http://www.ast-incorp.com/free.htm
Join me at LinkedIn
http://www.linkedin.com/in/ronlavine
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
638 Lindero Canyon Road, Suite 283
Oak Park, CA 91377
818-519-3852 Mobile
818-991-5938 Fax
mailto:rslavine@ast-incorp.com
Friday, September 17, 2010
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Make the Juice Worth the Squeeze!
Make the Juice Worth the Squeeze!
By Dr. Julie Miller
Consider these scenarios: Your Company is considering "streamlining" your department. Translated: Some folks must leave. Management tasks you with presenting ideas on how to address this issue. Or does this one sound familiar? The senior team wants the 30,000' view of your current project (no minutia, please!) along with recommendations and a timeline for the roll out.
What to do? Answer: Persuade, convince, and guide them towards the desired action you want. In other words, sell to them. As you create a sales letter, deliver a PowerPoint deck or send an email, keep these tips in mind as you think through the best approach for your desired results.
1. The Reader Reigns Supreme. If ever there was a time to get into the readers' head, it occurs when you need to convince them of your point of view. Perhaps you are garnering support for your cause and trying to get the gang on board. Or, you are writing an RFP explaining why you deserve the contract. Maybe you need to write sales copy for your product or service. In each of these instances, the reader reigns supreme.
The reader's position in the company will determine your approach and your word choice. For senior management types keep technical language to a minimum and emphasize market potential of the product or service. Include different approaches as well as costs and results. Alternatively, when presenting to those outside your field, simple, short explanations along with concrete examples seem to go over well. Stories and anecdotes also work. Try to avoid too much theory as eyes begin to glaze over.
2. Everyone Wins. Rather than the old win-lose sales paradigm, construct your topic around the idea that both sides win, thus leading to mutually rewarding results. Using the scenario example above, if you can sell to the team that eliminating jobs is not the answer but rather building a plan for increased efficiencies will gain more market share, they will sit up and listen. Both sides win. Your team keeps their jobs; the company makes more money.
3. It's All About Perception. You have heard it before-benefits sell, not features. However, benefits alone remain meaningless unless they appeal to the reader. It is how they perceive the value. Ask yourself: What will my reader/audience gain by approving my idea, buying our product, or signing up for our services? What direct value will they realize? What they gain must outweigh any costs, considerations, "yes, buts" or "howevers."
Your word choice should focus on creating the benefits your reader values. Guide your reader to conclude that what you are presenting or offering is worth the time, the money, and the resources to make it happen. For example, when you write, "I am sending this email because our department needs new computers," you will probably not get the result you want. However, by focusing on the perceived benefits and writing, "If you purchase new computers, our department projects double the productivity," you will see heightened interest and heads nodding in agreement! Of course, supporting data is important to make your case.
More About "Make the Juice Worth the Squeeze!" By Dr. Julie Miller Below
Accelerated Sales Training enables companies such as yours to:
◦Break into new accounts
◦Reach decision-makers
◦Identify and Qualify opportunities
◦Meet and exceed sales quotas
◦Shorten sales cycles
Examples of Key Results Produced
•Tripled call center lead generation performance while the Inside Sales group doubled its results in setting qualified appointments.
•Added 74 new customers in one quarter.
•Increased sales from $695 million to $1.1 billion over a 5 year period.
•Boosted sales by 19.3% quarterly and increased profit before taxes by 24% for the past fiscal year.
•Completed a $2.8 million in new license revenue at a major insurance company.
•Closed a $208,000 deal that paid for the entire prospecting program.
•Identified over $61 million in software revenues from 1989 to 1997.
Ron S. La Vine, MBA is president and founder of Accelerated Sales Training, Inc., a LIVE cold call/new business development sales training firm located in Oak Park, CA. For a complementary sales training needs analysis, call Ron at
1-818-519-3852 or send an email to: analysis@ast-incorp.com.
Over 100 LinkedIn recommendations can be found by clicking here:
http://tinyurl.com/2e7zllh
“Ron, brought new insights, ideas and techniques to my inside sales team. His style and class participation was a breath of fresh air and brought real live results into the training.“
Brian Jonkman
“Ron provided Cold Call Training that brought their expertise to a new level in the area of developing new business. The training made them more effective in identifying key contacts for every account they were pursuing.“
Bryan Jamgochian
“I'm writing to recommend Ron's Cold Calling Technique class. I took it as part of a sales training curriculum while I was Information Builders. In a nutshell, its not theory; it is immediately applicable - netting immediate results, i.e. access to key decision makers. His techniques will be part of my sales toolkit for the rest of my career.“
Glenn Wiebe
"Make the Juice Worth the Squeeze!" By Dr. Julie Miller Continued
4. Don't Dance with Me. Overworking a topic will gain you few friends. Tell your reader quickly what is in it for them. Help them understand why it is fair and equally beneficial. Then, guide them to their own conclusion. As a rule of thumb, if you are pitching your idea/product using a PowerPoint deck, dedicate no more than seven minutes to your topic. In an email, 300 words remains the limit.
5. Sharp and Shiny Sentences Sing. If you think you work at warp speed, remember so do your readers! Wordy, disorganized, vague, or slow-to-the-point documents gain few allies. Writing crisply will make your message stand out. That means no wasted words. Pay attention to overusage of these words: of, which, and that. Too many of these words weakens your writing. If your readers have to wade through worn and weary sentences filled with jargon and acronyms, you ask too much. If they have to reread your writing to make sense of it, you are on thin ice. If they work too hard to read those long, drawn out sentences, they will quit.
6. Style Counts! Here is a simple strategy you can use to immediately create more interest and style in your writing. Vary your sentence structure. With thirty-nine different ways to construct a sentence, you have no excuse for falling into the old subject-verb-object trap. By varying the pattern of your sentences, you keep your readers alert. You don't want your writing sounding like the messages on an ATM. For example, this standard style has a familiar ring: The third quarter profits exceeded expectations. However, if you make the sentence into a question: How much did the third-quarter profits exceed expectations? Or use a quotation: The chairman of the board gleefully announced, "The third-quarter profits exceeded my expectations!" you would move towards more interesting, more robust writing.
By using these tips to sell, you will start noticing some exciting changes in your writing. Just imagine getting that promotion, making that sale, or having your project approved and funded! So, to coin an old phrase, the pen is mightier than the sword-consider yourself armed and dangerous!
About the Author
Dr. Julie Miller, founder of Business Writing That Counts!, is a national consultant and trainer who helps professionals reduce their writing time and produce powerful documents. She and her team of certified trainers work with executives who want to hone their writing skills and professionals who want to advance their careers. Learn more about Dr. Julie Miller. http://www.businesswritingthatcounts.com/article2
REPRINT PERMISSION
Ron La Vine, MBA is president and founder of Accelerated Sales Training, Inc., a LIVE cold call training firm located in Oak Park, CA. You can get a special report “41 Sales Tips You Can Use Right Now” AND the complementary bimonthly Sales Tips and Telesales Tips for Selling Success eZine all by signing up at http://www.ast-incorp.com. If you would like information on Live Cold Calling/New Business Development Sales Training please call Ron at
1-818-519-3852.
Make it a great day and a successful week!
Ron S. La Vine, MBA, President and CEO
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
Live Cold Call New Business Development Sales Training™
Helping you Break into and Qualify New Accounts™
http://www.ast-incorp.com
Complementary Sales Tips
http://www.ast-incorp.com/free.htm
Join me at LinkedIn
http://www.linkedin.com/in/ronlavine
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
638 Lindero Canyon Road, Suite 283
Oak Park, CA 91377
818-519-3852 Mobile
818-991-5938 Fax
mailto:rslavine@ast-incorp.com
(c) 2010 by Accelerated Sales Training, Inc. -
Live Cold Call Sales Training Workshops.
All rights reserved. www.ast-incorp.com
Forward these Sales Tips to an Associate
Please forward these Sales Tips and Telesales
Tips for Selling Success to an associate who
could benefit from them, or have them send
. They will
appreciate the gesture and thank you for it. They
can also sign up now online at:
http://www.ast-incorp.com/
© 1996-2010
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
All worldwide rights reserved.
By Dr. Julie Miller
Consider these scenarios: Your Company is considering "streamlining" your department. Translated: Some folks must leave. Management tasks you with presenting ideas on how to address this issue. Or does this one sound familiar? The senior team wants the 30,000' view of your current project (no minutia, please!) along with recommendations and a timeline for the roll out.
What to do? Answer: Persuade, convince, and guide them towards the desired action you want. In other words, sell to them. As you create a sales letter, deliver a PowerPoint deck or send an email, keep these tips in mind as you think through the best approach for your desired results.
1. The Reader Reigns Supreme. If ever there was a time to get into the readers' head, it occurs when you need to convince them of your point of view. Perhaps you are garnering support for your cause and trying to get the gang on board. Or, you are writing an RFP explaining why you deserve the contract. Maybe you need to write sales copy for your product or service. In each of these instances, the reader reigns supreme.
The reader's position in the company will determine your approach and your word choice. For senior management types keep technical language to a minimum and emphasize market potential of the product or service. Include different approaches as well as costs and results. Alternatively, when presenting to those outside your field, simple, short explanations along with concrete examples seem to go over well. Stories and anecdotes also work. Try to avoid too much theory as eyes begin to glaze over.
2. Everyone Wins. Rather than the old win-lose sales paradigm, construct your topic around the idea that both sides win, thus leading to mutually rewarding results. Using the scenario example above, if you can sell to the team that eliminating jobs is not the answer but rather building a plan for increased efficiencies will gain more market share, they will sit up and listen. Both sides win. Your team keeps their jobs; the company makes more money.
3. It's All About Perception. You have heard it before-benefits sell, not features. However, benefits alone remain meaningless unless they appeal to the reader. It is how they perceive the value. Ask yourself: What will my reader/audience gain by approving my idea, buying our product, or signing up for our services? What direct value will they realize? What they gain must outweigh any costs, considerations, "yes, buts" or "howevers."
Your word choice should focus on creating the benefits your reader values. Guide your reader to conclude that what you are presenting or offering is worth the time, the money, and the resources to make it happen. For example, when you write, "I am sending this email because our department needs new computers," you will probably not get the result you want. However, by focusing on the perceived benefits and writing, "If you purchase new computers, our department projects double the productivity," you will see heightened interest and heads nodding in agreement! Of course, supporting data is important to make your case.
More About "Make the Juice Worth the Squeeze!" By Dr. Julie Miller Below
Accelerated Sales Training enables companies such as yours to:
◦Break into new accounts
◦Reach decision-makers
◦Identify and Qualify opportunities
◦Meet and exceed sales quotas
◦Shorten sales cycles
Examples of Key Results Produced
•Tripled call center lead generation performance while the Inside Sales group doubled its results in setting qualified appointments.
•Added 74 new customers in one quarter.
•Increased sales from $695 million to $1.1 billion over a 5 year period.
•Boosted sales by 19.3% quarterly and increased profit before taxes by 24% for the past fiscal year.
•Completed a $2.8 million in new license revenue at a major insurance company.
•Closed a $208,000 deal that paid for the entire prospecting program.
•Identified over $61 million in software revenues from 1989 to 1997.
Ron S. La Vine, MBA is president and founder of Accelerated Sales Training, Inc., a LIVE cold call/new business development sales training firm located in Oak Park, CA. For a complementary sales training needs analysis, call Ron at
1-818-519-3852 or send an email to: analysis@ast-incorp.com.
Over 100 LinkedIn recommendations can be found by clicking here:
http://tinyurl.com/2e7zllh
“Ron, brought new insights, ideas and techniques to my inside sales team. His style and class participation was a breath of fresh air and brought real live results into the training.“
Brian Jonkman
“Ron provided Cold Call Training that brought their expertise to a new level in the area of developing new business. The training made them more effective in identifying key contacts for every account they were pursuing.“
Bryan Jamgochian
“I'm writing to recommend Ron's Cold Calling Technique class. I took it as part of a sales training curriculum while I was Information Builders. In a nutshell, its not theory; it is immediately applicable - netting immediate results, i.e. access to key decision makers. His techniques will be part of my sales toolkit for the rest of my career.“
Glenn Wiebe
"Make the Juice Worth the Squeeze!" By Dr. Julie Miller Continued
4. Don't Dance with Me. Overworking a topic will gain you few friends. Tell your reader quickly what is in it for them. Help them understand why it is fair and equally beneficial. Then, guide them to their own conclusion. As a rule of thumb, if you are pitching your idea/product using a PowerPoint deck, dedicate no more than seven minutes to your topic. In an email, 300 words remains the limit.
5. Sharp and Shiny Sentences Sing. If you think you work at warp speed, remember so do your readers! Wordy, disorganized, vague, or slow-to-the-point documents gain few allies. Writing crisply will make your message stand out. That means no wasted words. Pay attention to overusage of these words: of, which, and that. Too many of these words weakens your writing. If your readers have to wade through worn and weary sentences filled with jargon and acronyms, you ask too much. If they have to reread your writing to make sense of it, you are on thin ice. If they work too hard to read those long, drawn out sentences, they will quit.
6. Style Counts! Here is a simple strategy you can use to immediately create more interest and style in your writing. Vary your sentence structure. With thirty-nine different ways to construct a sentence, you have no excuse for falling into the old subject-verb-object trap. By varying the pattern of your sentences, you keep your readers alert. You don't want your writing sounding like the messages on an ATM. For example, this standard style has a familiar ring: The third quarter profits exceeded expectations. However, if you make the sentence into a question: How much did the third-quarter profits exceed expectations? Or use a quotation: The chairman of the board gleefully announced, "The third-quarter profits exceeded my expectations!" you would move towards more interesting, more robust writing.
By using these tips to sell, you will start noticing some exciting changes in your writing. Just imagine getting that promotion, making that sale, or having your project approved and funded! So, to coin an old phrase, the pen is mightier than the sword-consider yourself armed and dangerous!
About the Author
Dr. Julie Miller, founder of Business Writing That Counts!, is a national consultant and trainer who helps professionals reduce their writing time and produce powerful documents. She and her team of certified trainers work with executives who want to hone their writing skills and professionals who want to advance their careers. Learn more about Dr. Julie Miller. http://www.businesswritingthatcounts.com/article2
REPRINT PERMISSION
Ron La Vine, MBA is president and founder of Accelerated Sales Training, Inc., a LIVE cold call training firm located in Oak Park, CA. You can get a special report “41 Sales Tips You Can Use Right Now” AND the complementary bimonthly Sales Tips and Telesales Tips for Selling Success eZine all by signing up at http://www.ast-incorp.com. If you would like information on Live Cold Calling/New Business Development Sales Training please call Ron at
1-818-519-3852.
Make it a great day and a successful week!
Ron S. La Vine, MBA, President and CEO
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
Live Cold Call New Business Development Sales Training™
Helping you Break into and Qualify New Accounts™
http://www.ast-incorp.com
Complementary Sales Tips
http://www.ast-incorp.com/free.htm
Join me at LinkedIn
http://www.linkedin.com/in/ronlavine
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
638 Lindero Canyon Road, Suite 283
Oak Park, CA 91377
818-519-3852 Mobile
818-991-5938 Fax
mailto:rslavine@ast-incorp.com
(c) 2010 by Accelerated Sales Training, Inc. -
Live Cold Call Sales Training Workshops.
All rights reserved. www.ast-incorp.com
Forward these Sales Tips to an Associate
Please forward these Sales Tips and Telesales
Tips for Selling Success to an associate who
could benefit from them, or have them send
appreciate the gesture and thank you for it. They
can also sign up now online at:
http://www.ast-incorp.com/
© 1996-2010
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
All worldwide rights reserved.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
How to Eliminate Rejection
How to Eliminate Rejection
By Ron S La Vine, President, Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
The way to eliminate rejection is to reframe or redefine it. Think of
cold calling as a puzzle. Challenge yourself to see how many pieces
of information you can get on every call. All of a sudden cold
calling has become a game, which makes it much more enjoyable.
This means if you get more information from your call than you had
before the call you have gotten a result. If you have gotten a result
then you have not been rejected.
Add to that the fact that people are not rejecting you personally.
They are simply not interested in what you have to offer now or you
could be speaking with the wrong person. That decision may
change in the future. Make the focus of your call your solution to a
potential need, challenge or problem. The solution, rather than you,
will become the focal point of the call. If an account declines to take
the time to speak with you, it is the solution or benefit that is
rejected, not you. Keeping this strategy in mind when you call can
take the sting out of rejection.
MAINTAINING AN ACHIEVEMENT ORIENTATION
Action follows thought so think great thoughts and focus on the
positive. What you think and how you feel transmits across the
phone lines. This transmittal can have a positive or negative effect
on the person at the other end of your call. Which effect takes place
is largely a function of the state of mind you are in when you are
making your calls.
Think of yourself as successful and well thought of and doing more
than you are asked to do. Help others as you have been helped and
you will be rewarded with the success you deserve. You are what
you think. Always keep in mind that your attitude determines your
altitude.
CONCLUSION
First is having the right attitude when you are cold calling. You will
hear this throughout most sales workshops because the right attitude
is the difference between those that give up and those who never
quit. There is no silver or magic bullet. Only practice and
persistence pay off. To become a great sales executive, one must
enjoy working with people and have a strong sense of curiosity,
great listening skills and the ability to see the big picture. The best
sales executives are able to produce results. Pay for performance is
the way they prefer to work.
A great sales executive is someone who has a working knowledge of
their organization's operations, solutions, and possesses the ability
to collect useful business sales intelligence about their accounts
and translate the information into additional sales. They are
persistent and keep going until they find the answers to their
questions. They get people to take actions based upon those
answers.
David R. Bender of the Special Libraries Association sums it up
well: "...how many people have the expertise to evaluate, analyze,
organize and package raw data-transforming it into meaningful
information that can be put to work?" As management expert Peter
Drucker wrote in a column for the Wall Street Journal, "There is a
big difference between being computer literate and information
literate."
Bender writes, "Drucker explained that for data to become useful
information, it must be organized for a task or applied to a
decision". He contended, however, "Few people are adept at
determining exactly what information they need to do their jobs,
when they need the information, and where they can get it."
A great sales executive knows what data is needed and how to
provide it in a manner to increase their sales. Top sales executives
focus on creating value for their clients and they do that by asking
well thought out questions and then listening closely to the answers
given.
Write out 10 questions in advance you would like to ask most of
a prospect to determine if they are qualified and keep it by the phone.
You'll be prepared if the call is incoming or outgoing.
--
Make it a great day and a successful week!
Ron S. La Vine, MBA, President
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.'s -
Live Cold Call New Business Development Sales Training™
Helping you Break into and Qualify Large Accounts™
638 Lindero Canyon Road, Suite 283
Oak Park, CA 91377
818-991-6487 Office PST
818-519-3852 Mobile
818-991-5938 Fax
mailto:rslavine@ast-incorp.com
http://www.ast-incorp.com
Complimentary Sales Tips -
http://www.ast-incorp.com.com/free.htm
Join me at LinkedIn -
http://www.linkedin.com/in/ronlavine
By Ron S La Vine, President, Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.
The way to eliminate rejection is to reframe or redefine it. Think of
cold calling as a puzzle. Challenge yourself to see how many pieces
of information you can get on every call. All of a sudden cold
calling has become a game, which makes it much more enjoyable.
This means if you get more information from your call than you had
before the call you have gotten a result. If you have gotten a result
then you have not been rejected.
Add to that the fact that people are not rejecting you personally.
They are simply not interested in what you have to offer now or you
could be speaking with the wrong person. That decision may
change in the future. Make the focus of your call your solution to a
potential need, challenge or problem. The solution, rather than you,
will become the focal point of the call. If an account declines to take
the time to speak with you, it is the solution or benefit that is
rejected, not you. Keeping this strategy in mind when you call can
take the sting out of rejection.
MAINTAINING AN ACHIEVEMENT ORIENTATION
Action follows thought so think great thoughts and focus on the
positive. What you think and how you feel transmits across the
phone lines. This transmittal can have a positive or negative effect
on the person at the other end of your call. Which effect takes place
is largely a function of the state of mind you are in when you are
making your calls.
Think of yourself as successful and well thought of and doing more
than you are asked to do. Help others as you have been helped and
you will be rewarded with the success you deserve. You are what
you think. Always keep in mind that your attitude determines your
altitude.
CONCLUSION
First is having the right attitude when you are cold calling. You will
hear this throughout most sales workshops because the right attitude
is the difference between those that give up and those who never
quit. There is no silver or magic bullet. Only practice and
persistence pay off. To become a great sales executive, one must
enjoy working with people and have a strong sense of curiosity,
great listening skills and the ability to see the big picture. The best
sales executives are able to produce results. Pay for performance is
the way they prefer to work.
A great sales executive is someone who has a working knowledge of
their organization's operations, solutions, and possesses the ability
to collect useful business sales intelligence about their accounts
and translate the information into additional sales. They are
persistent and keep going until they find the answers to their
questions. They get people to take actions based upon those
answers.
David R. Bender of the Special Libraries Association sums it up
well: "...how many people have the expertise to evaluate, analyze,
organize and package raw data-transforming it into meaningful
information that can be put to work?" As management expert Peter
Drucker wrote in a column for the Wall Street Journal, "There is a
big difference between being computer literate and information
literate."
Bender writes, "Drucker explained that for data to become useful
information, it must be organized for a task or applied to a
decision". He contended, however, "Few people are adept at
determining exactly what information they need to do their jobs,
when they need the information, and where they can get it."
A great sales executive knows what data is needed and how to
provide it in a manner to increase their sales. Top sales executives
focus on creating value for their clients and they do that by asking
well thought out questions and then listening closely to the answers
given.
Write out 10 questions in advance you would like to ask most of
a prospect to determine if they are qualified and keep it by the phone.
You'll be prepared if the call is incoming or outgoing.
--
Make it a great day and a successful week!
Ron S. La Vine, MBA, President
Accelerated Sales Training, Inc.'s -
Live Cold Call New Business Development Sales Training™
Helping you Break into and Qualify Large Accounts™
638 Lindero Canyon Road, Suite 283
Oak Park, CA 91377
818-991-6487 Office PST
818-519-3852 Mobile
818-991-5938 Fax
mailto:rslavine@ast-incorp.com
http://www.ast-incorp.com
Complimentary Sales Tips -
http://www.ast-incorp.com.com/free.htm
Join me at LinkedIn -
http://www.linkedin.com/in/ronlavine
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