Tag: sales meeting ideas

Categories
Sales & Marketing

Timely Tips for Unlocking Great Sales

Article Contributed by Sharpenz

Whether it’s the first of the week, the first of the month or the first of the year, it’s a new beginning! And we don’t have to let the economy dictate OUR success. Selling in a tough economy seems more challenging, doesn’t it? And yet many people are not feeling the pinch as much as others. How can you ensure you prosper during these times? With action!

Here are a few key tips for actions that will help you unlock the potential of your sales activities in the next 90 days. The actions you take now are the ones that will set you up for GREAT success.

1.  Set Goals. You can only get where you want to be if you clearly know where you want to go. And you can only get there if you have a clearly outlined route. So put pen to paper and follow a process to write your goals and then outline a plan to achieve them. Think through the next 30-60 days. What do you WANT to happen? Write that down and  then identify the actions you need to take daily and weekly to get there.

2. Overhaul your value proposition. Think beyond the WHAT of your specific product and service to the value you offer to THIS person, company, and situation. Think about the clients you currently serve and the ones you hope to serve. Your value proposition may need to sound a bit different each time. It’s not just about product features and facts – it’s about how your product or service will enhance/benefit/make life easier for the person you are selling to.

3. Prepare strategically. Research industry trends. Use Google alerts to know what is going on with THIS person, company, situation. Use the information to plan great questions, your value proposition, who you should meet with, and the timing of your contact. Being armed with knowledge can pay off exponentially.

4. Maximize every sales contact. Prepare, prepare, prepare. Not only with research on what is going on with them, prepare for communicating value to them. Use a focus on What’s in it for THEM (WiifT) and follow a process within the discussion to connect with the person, ask awesome and thoughtful questions, facilitate their understanding of what you do and what it means to them, work through objections and ASK for a decision.

5. Identify alternative prospect streams. Think creatively about who might use your product or service who currently isn’t. There are some industries that are positively impacted by a slow economy. Look for companies that are performing well in the markets and research their vertical channels. You might have a whole new market to explore.

What have been your successes in selling in today’s tough economy?

About the Author:

Sharpenz is dedicated to providing sales managers the resources and tools they need to motivate and equip their sales team to sell each week. Our 30-minute power sales booster programs help companies increase sales by providing the right tools and training – fast. Designed with the busy manager in mind, Sharpenz’ ready-to-go sales training kits will give your sales team the opportunity to grow and earn more – all in a half hour of power.  To learn more, visit www.Sharpenz.com and sign up for your free sales training kit today!

Categories
Networking

Networking Like It’s Your Party

Article Contributed by Sharpenz

We all do it. We all go to a variety of networking functions: mixers, meetings, seminars, conferences. Just showing up certainly doesn’t guarantee getting connected or meeting people who are your buyers or can get you closer to your decision maker. Just showing up certainly doesn’t guarantee that you will increase your sales. And how often do you end up talking to the first person you encounter and never have a chance meet anyone else? That certainly doesn’t help you achieve filling the pipeline to grow your business.

What if you treated the next networking function like it was your party? You are the host. That means it’s your responsibility to meet and greet everyone in the room.  Introduce people who don’t know each other to each other. Basically, be in charge of everyone else having a good time.

It’s an interesting concept and it does work. I was tired of getting “stuck” talking to the first person I met. And quite often they weren’t anyone who could be a potential client or put me closer to one. I got tired of feeling like I had wasted my evening, because these networking events were not helping me to increase my sales.

Then I began treating each networking function as if it was my own party.  I would meet the first person, talk to them and find out as much as I could in a few minutes.  With the right questions they’ll gladly talk about themselves. I knew I wanted to meet more people, so I’d invite them to go with me to meet others. I’d introduce myself and my new acquaintance, ask a few questions to get them talking and most of the time left them to each other as I went on to meet the next person.

I’d repeat the process throughout the evening. Before we were sitting down to dinner or whatever was next on the agenda, I had met a significant amount of people, given – and taken – business cards, and more importantly made everyone feel good about themselves. That, in turn, made me memorable. There were plenty of people who now wanted to “sit” with me.

The host and party format has worked well for me. My follow-up phone calls are taken and requests for other connections are well received. I’m making the connections to increase my sales and I’m having a ‘ball’ at someone else’s party.

What are some networking tips and tricks you use to make the most of a networking event? Let us know in the Comments section.

About the Author:

Sharpenz is dedicated to providing sales managers the resources and tools they need to motivate and equip their sales team to sell each week. Our 30-minute power sales booster programs help companies increase sales by providing the right tools and training – fast. Designed with the busy manager in mind, Sharpenz’ ready-to-go sales training kits will give your sales team the opportunity to grow and earn more – all in a half hour of power.  To learn more, visit www.Sharpenz.com and sign up for your free sales training kit today!

Categories
Sales & Marketing

More Timely Tips for Unlocking Great Sales in Today’s Tough Economy

Article Contributed by Sharpenz

We all know selling in a tough economy can be challenging, but there ARE things you can do to ensure you prosper during these trying times. Here are five more tips for actions you can take to help unlock the potential of your sales activities over the next 90 days.

1. Give something of value today. When we talk about value, we don’t necessarily mean you have to give something of huge monetary away. It also doesn’t have to be your product or service given away. Information is free. Find an article, a reprint, a cartoon that you can share so that you can stay in front of a prospect. Give a cup of coffee, a lottery ticket or give them a call to ask about their daughter’s wedding. Just find something positive to contact them about that doesn’t involve selling. Giving away something today can build a relationship and trust level for tomorrow and the future. It’s a worthwhile investment.

2. Use the power of one. One more action each day can make a difference later. One more phone call, one more email, one more note sent, one more plan, one more question…you get the idea. Before lunch, after lunch, and before you leave at the end of the day are all great times to add ONE more action.

3. Reevaluate your prospect list. Categorize and find out where you are spending your time. And then align your energies and actions to the most likely prospects. What can you do to move them to the next step in your sales process? This may mean you need to adjust your energies and spend less time/effort on your unlikely prospects.

4. Reintroduce yourself to customers you’ve “lost” over the years. You might find a hidden treasure in this group. They were customers once, but aren’t now, only maybe they are ready to return if they were asked. Research what is going on with their company and then reconnect. Remember to focus on the value your product and company can bring to them.

5. Ask for referrals. Tap into reciprocity generosity. As you provide something of value to someone, why not ask, “Who do you know who might benefit from what I do?”  Help the referrer identify prospects by being as specific as possible about the value you provide: “Who do you know who might benefit from increasing xyz or decreasing abc?”   It’s amazing what contacts you might make.

Taking action in tough times is key.

“You cannot change anything in your life with intention alone, which can become a watered-down, occasional hope that you’ll get to tomorrow. Intention without action is useless.” Caroline Myss

Winners find a way to succeed in all economies. With some upfront effort to ensure your actions are effective and efficient, the door to success is wide open!

Let us know about your recent successes and tips you can share to succeed in today’s tough economy.

About the Author:

Sharpenz is dedicated to providing sales managers the resources and tools they need to motivate and equip their sales team to sell each week. Our 30-minute power sales booster programs help companies increase sales by providing the right tools and training – fast. Designed with the busy manager in mind, Sharpenz’ ready-to-go sales training kits will give your sales team the opportunity to grow and earn more – all in a half hour of power.  To learn more, visit www.Sharpenz.com and sign up for your free sales training kit today!

Categories
Sales & Marketing

Success in Sales: 5 Success Factors that Matter

Article Contributed by Sharpenz

What does it take to be successful in sales? There’s no easy answer because the list is long. It’s one of the great debates in the sales community – WHAT does it take to be successful in sales?

One indication of the debate is the response to a recent question posted on LinkedIn. The question asked:

What is more important in sales, great selling skills or expertise on the product?

The more than 250 respondents – sales managers and sales professionals – were split with their answers. Many couldn’t choose one over the other.

Why? Because both are equally important. However, to truly be successful more is needed! With our work with thousands of sales professionals over the last 12 years, we have found that the top performing sales professionals we know all have 5 Success Factors in common. They are:

1. Goal Transparency – Goals are written, specific and measurable. They are easily seen and detected by self and others.

2. Focused Energy – Personal energy that is exhibited each day. The energy is focused toward proactive and productive activities and is not diffused or scattered.

3. Human Connection – The understanding of, and ability to connect with, others in communication, actions and ideas – in the way that person prefers or needs.

4. Emotional Intelligence – The awareness of, and ability to manage, one’s emotions in a healthy and productive manner. Being able to roll with the ups and downs of sales.

5. Expertise – Skill and knowledge of industry, product, customer and sales process. This is more than just having the information; it’s knowing the value of what the offer does for your customers and the ability to tie WHAT (the features) into the WiifT (What’s in it for Them – the benefits to that person.)

If you think about the most successful sales professionals, you’ll realize these Factors are part of who they are.

The great debate on WHAT it takes to be successful in sales does not have ONE answer. Five Success Factors do form the foundation of long-term sales success. And the great news is that you don’t have to be born a natural salesperson – these Success Factors can be developed over time.

So, don’t just read the list. Print it out, gauge your strength in each factor then identify how you can strengthen each one. Being successful takes more than just selling skills and ‘who you know’. YOU matter.

About the Author:

Sharpenz is dedicated to providing sales managers the resources and tools they need to motivate and equip their sales team to sell each week. Our 30-minute power sales booster programs help companies increase sales by providing the right tools and training – fast. Designed with the busy manager in mind, Sharpenz’ ready-to-go sales training kits will give your sales team the opportunity to grow and earn more – all in a half hour of power.  To learn more, visit www.Sharpenz.com and sign up for your free sales training kit today!

Categories
Networking

3 Lessons on the Reciprocity of Referrals

Article Contributed by Sharpenz

Want to grow your business in a tough economy? Use the power of reciprocity when asking for referrals from existing customers to grow your sales.

Reciprocity is defined as a “mutual exchange” – the give and take of life. In a slow economy it can be your lifeline. Often, referrals can be one-sided which minimizes the benefits to everyone involved. Instead, when we focus on what we give as well as get, we are more successful.

Here are three lessons I’ve learned on the give, take and give of referrals:

Lesson 1. Give great value and your best referral sources will be loyal customers.

Who are your loyal customers? These are customers who will sing your praises given the opportunity. They know you provide great value to them and trust you. They stick by you in hard times because they know you will do the right thing for them.

To make the most of these relationships, GIVE your loyal customers the opportunity to share referrals. This looks/sounds very different depending on who you are asking.

For example: I did great work for a loyal customer and she valued our results and relationship. But this never led to referrals. In considering this person’s needs, I realized that she might be concerned that by giving me a referral I would be less available to her.

To help ease this concern, I approached it differently. First, I assured her how important our relationship was to me. Second, I identified that I had positioned my company for more growth through additional consultants and was looking to secure work for those consultants. And finally, I asked who she might know who would benefit from the work we do in strengthening customer loyalties.

She had two names for me within a week!

Lesson 2. Help them help YOU!

This is the ‘take’ part of the referral process.  Answering these two questions will help make TAKING referrals easy:
1. What type of person/company makes a good referral for you? Help your contact identify opportunities that will be good business for you. What companies are you best positioned to serve with your product/service?

2. What is the value you provide? Explain the value in a sentence or less so your referrer can articulate it for you.

When the economy slowed after 9/11, I contacted our loyal customers to review updates and talk about how we might serve them in the future. THEN I asked, “As we look to the future of our business, we are positioned to help more people like you. Who else is in a position such as yours that might benefit from increasing sales 5-25% this next year?”

Notice I didn’t give them the, “Who can you introduce me to?” Or, “I’d like the names of everyone in your address book.” I specified the value we could provide to make it easier for them to refer specific people/companies.

Over 80% of these loyal customers provided at least one referral, giving me the opportunity to build more loyal customers.

Lesson 3: Follow-up and reciprocate!

Closing the loop is extremely important in the give, take and give of referrals.

When someone provides you a referral, keep them updated on the status. A quick message telling them you have initiated contact or you have a meeting scheduled is always a welcome surprise and closes that loop. A side benefit is that they might help you even more. For example, I couldn’t get in touch with a referral for months. When I followed up with the person who gave me the referral, he said, “Hang on, I’ll conference us all together and get this done.” Wow, in a minute’s time I was on a call “meeting” with the referral and scheduling an appointment!

It’s also very important to reciprocate generosity and give back value. The value can be a referral, a note, information or a heart felt THANK YOU.

Relationships have always been the foundation to long-term successful business. The value in relationships is even higher during a slow economy. Focusing on the give, take and give of referrals will show how you VALUE your most loyal relationships and give you opportunities to build new ones.

About the Author:

Sharpenz is dedicated to providing sales managers the resources and tools they need to motivate and equip their sales team to sell each week. Our 30-minute power sales booster programs help companies increase sales by providing the right tools and training – fast. Designed with the busy manager in mind, Sharpenz’ ready-to-go sales training kits will give your sales team the opportunity to grow and earn more – all in a half hour of power.  To learn more, visit www.Sharpenz.com and sign up for your free sales training kit today!