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You don’t need to be a trained mechanic to know that a rumble or a clunking sound signals a need to look under the bonnet before something goes horribly wrong. Sadly, the warning signs of a broken sales engine are…
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Capitalizing on potential opportunities depends on having the right sales process steps in place. A great sales process is well thought out, thoroughly documented, fully understood, and most importantly, actionable. As a long-term strategy, creating a sales process that’s repeatable—and…
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If a smart business owner considers an investment, whether it is for a new refrigerator in his or her home or for the acquisition of a rival company, a strict ROI calculation precedes the purchase. Is this investment worth the…
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Sales commission planning is as much science as art; it needs to make financial sense and be logistically feasible, but it also needs to be aspirational to drive sales. In the previous article, I outlined the steps companies should take…
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Incentives for strong performance are key motivators for sales teams. In fact, they’re so deeply engrained in sales culture that it’s almost impossible to attract or retain strong salespeople, or to inspire strong performance, without competitive commission as a carrot.…
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If the bad aspect of people management is dismissing employees, the good aspect is promoting them. Great sales teams must be led, guided and inspired by strong, committed managers. A talented, experienced leader who can win the trust and confidence…
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A close look at the way we do business today confirms that in terms of pace, product knowledge and process, retailing in the 21st Century is markedly different from what we’ve been doing up until now. But how? What’s Driving…
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One thing that’s underemphasised in business is the importance of collaboration – not only between staff members, but also between departments within a company. As much as we may like to believe otherwise – after all, we’d all like to…
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25 years ago, a salesperson might have been forced to unplug an entire PC and load it into a car to give a presentation to a client on the road. In today's sales technology landscape, cloud-connected mobile apps let salespeople…
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The right technologies, when implemented the right way, can streamline sales, improve customer service and free up valuable time. Technology, however, can also be expensive, confusing, unnecessary and obstructive. To determine if a new sales technology or software will add…
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When it comes to sales budget planning, every pound spent should bring value in return. Every pound that is not geared to an investment or tasked for a purpose is wasted money. There are five steps to preventing waste and…
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If all goes well, a new salesperson leaves the office after the first day of work as a brand ambassador. When speaking with friends or conversing on social media later that night, the new hire's mates will ask how it…
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Economist John Kenneth Galbraith once said,“Meetings are indispensable when you don’t want to do anything.” Meetings have a reputation (often well-earned) as irrelevant, tedious time-wasters. Some companies have gone so far as to abolish these gatherings. But, because it is…
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Promotions are cause for celebration; they’re transitions, a chance to start a new career chapter. Or, they’re the ideal pressure cookers for bad blood and toxic office politics. Depends on which side of the promotion one finds oneself. Sales and…
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A new title. More prestige, and perhaps a bit more money. What could be better? While highly sought-after, promotions are a great source of stress for the newly minted manager. And there’s plenty of angst to go ‘round. As a…
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Selling retail goods isn’t what it used to be. With online sales giants and direct access for customers to an international market of goods, retailers need to be strategic to stay ahead of the game. That’s why a retail sales…
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For sales divisions in larger companies that have the luxury of working in conjunction with a marketing division, the process of qualifying in sales is a team effort. Standalone sales teams at smaller businesses, however, have to get creative in…
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There are three ingredients in successful sales hiring: knowing what to look for in a candidate, understanding exactly what future roles the new recruit will be required to fulfill, and developing a sales hiring process that identifies the right recruits.…
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Hiring in sales is a group effort. The makeup of the team depends on the size of the business and the position that needs to be filled. Including all the key people, however, is only half the battle. They must…
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All too often, Managing Directors hire new salespeople in response to a change or an issue that has already occurred. This kind of reactive hiring is a recipe for drawing low-quality recruits who don't deliver maximum return on investment. Businesses…
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It is important to remove salespeople whose poor performance or negative attitude is dragging down the team and the company — but not before setting them up for success. Termination is a fast and neat solution for handling salespeople who…
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I’m not sure why, but the term “growth leader” is often considered “just” a media term, and seriously underestimated in the business world, outside of academia. This is unfortunate, because in my opinion all Sales Directors should be Growth Leaders;…
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Firing a salesperson should never be an abrupt decision. Rather, it should come only after an employee has consistently failed to meet the expectations outlined during previous performance discussions and goal setting meetings. By providing employees with clear job descriptions…
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There is an old adage in business that says the customer is always right. In some cases, however, the customer is not right for the business or the business is not right for the customer. It sounds counter-intuitive, but sometimes…
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Sales leaders often spend considerable time and effort crafting methods to better evaluate the performance of their sales teams — but they often overlook the importance of timing those evaluations. The content or methodology of periodic performance reviews can be…
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The right customer relationship management system can drive growth by making a business more efficient, flexible and scalable. CRM technology, however, is not one-size-fits-all. A business has to evaluate its needs, choose the right CRM tools, and then take steps…
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Nobody wants to be the one to announce to the board that the sales team only met 25 percent of the month's revenue forecast — again. In order to close the space between forecast projections and actual revenue, leaders must…
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Without a reliable formula for qualifying leads, businesses waste time and resources chasing prospects that were never in a position to buy in the first place. The cost of poor prospecting can crush a business, so it is critical to…
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It's good to have a maverick — as long as your maverick is a superstar. What no business can tolerate, however, is a sales team with 50 different people who do 50 different things in 50 different ways. The superstars…
