Salespodder (Page 422)

More issues

What Type of Questions, though?

It is the perennial mystery for sales managers – how come there are so few good reps around? In any profession, there are the top performers, a few percent that stand out. Then at the bottom, are those who you wonder why they ever got into this game, about to be

37927

A number to remember. Andy Dufresne’s prison number. And for those familiar with Shawshank Redemption, you’ll know that’s not pronounced as it looks. It’s not really necessary to ‘review’ this outstanding flick as such – so much exists elsewhere as it’s always in the top 3

Proof for Freakonomics’ Bagel King

I blogged some time ago about the usefulness of Leavitt’s book [http://salespodder.com/?p=46] for the salesman, and raved about it being a sterling read. I was in a meeting (in groovy offices near London’s Butler’s Wharf) pitching to a decent chap called Sanjay that’

Easy 1 in 6ers

In the early 90s I read a fascinating book all about how technology products need to alter their selling mindset when trying to break into the mass-market, once enthusiastic first-adopters had already jumped on board. It’s by Geoffrey A Moore, called Crossing The Chasm. My attention was drawn to

Overcoming Boondocks Mentality

I learnt a new word yesterday; boondocks. A pal of mine’s started selling in America, and when cold-calling (if they ever manage to get past the evil voicemail culture!) the fact that they’ve been successful worldwide appears to cut little sway. Apparently, being big in England means little,

Enter The Dragon

From the start I’ve loved this show. For those not in the know, this isn’t a pop-ideas show like American Inventor, Dragons’ Den [http://www.bbc.co.uk/dragonsden/] uses 5 self-made multi-zillionaires who are pitched business brainwaves with a view to getting them to commit a specific

Forget the lame excuses

Bizarrely I’ve just been reminded of a piece of PR put out by a company selling sales software. It talks about the excuses sales people use for not getting sales. Apparent reasons to explain away failure include hangovers, personal crisis, car problems, reports eaten by the dog, cricket, bad

Anti-Biscuit Dunking Crusade

I’ve for a long time used term that represents the unacceptable face of selling and sums up sales peoples no-nos; Biscuit-Dunking. It was coined by often encountering this kind of situation: A salesrep has a number of visits to make this day, as they do everyday. Trotting along their

Stability Indicators

I sense a current trend emerging for sales teams to pay lots of money to get their sellers to focus on what keeps a customer for as long a time as possible. I’ve come across two recent examples of this, one with a local English, the other a global,

Buy On Price, Pay Twice

This is interesting for you if you ever face pressure from cheaper competition. I saw an interview with the awesome Seb Coe today. He’s the winner who (not only won Olympic Gold in Moscow & LA but also) delivered a stunning presentation that, following his amazing political manoeuvering, sealed