Posted on Tuesday, March 7, 2023

Six Steps For Networking Success

What do you do with all those business cards? These six tips will help you get the most out of your next networking event.

If you have a love-hate relationship with networking events, you’re not alone! You might get nervous or awkward before an event or feel like there’s not really a point.

The truth is, from cocktail parties to huge conventions, networking events are a great way to meet new prospects or referral partners. But they can only help your business if you go in with a plan. By following these six steps, you’ll make more effective (and profitable) connections at your next networking event:

Block your schedule before and after the event.
Meet 3 quality people.
Send an email immediately following the event.
Connect with them on LinkedIn within 24 hours.
Call them within 48 hours.
Do what you say you’ll do!

Let’s dive in.

Posted on Monday, February 20, 2023

Ten Prospecting Myths and Misconceptions

Don’t fall for these common misconceptions about prospecting clients!

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Sales professionals tend to build their careers the old-fashioned way—start at the bottom and work their way up. Besides the occasional book or seminar, most don’t have a formal sales education—we learn as we go.

Unfortunately, the self-taught approach can lead to misunderstandings and misconceptions. And these myths could be holding your business back!

I’ve worked with thousands of salespeople as a sales coach and consultant. Most of the myths and misconceptions I’ve heard from sales professionals seem to be about prospecting. Here are the top ten:

Posted on Monday, January 30, 2023

Closing Deals Fast: The Impending Event Close

Is your prospect indecisive? The “Impending Event” close will motivate your client to act now.

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Most salespeople have a few “tried-and-true” approaches to closing a deal, and there’s nothing wrong with having a go-to that you use all the time. It’s what you’re most comfortable with, and it works—until it doesn’t.

If you really want to be a sales champion, you need to understand and master a wide variety of closes. This way, you’ll always have something in your back pocket when your tried-and-true technique comes up short.

To help build your sales arsenal of closing techniques, I’ve been sharing a few of my favorites. Here are some of the closes we’ve covered:

If you’ve got a client who just won’t make up their mind or finds every excuse to hesitate, The Impending Event Close is a great way to provide some urgency and motivation—and get your prospect’s signature on the dotted line.

Here’s how it works:

Posted on Monday, September 26, 2022

Finding New Prospects—With Old Prospects

Is your sales funnel drying up? Rebuild your prospect list by reworking your past no’s!

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Every salesperson knows the feeling of staring at a big new sales goal and thinking, “This is impossible!” Your sales funnel isn’t full enough, there aren’t enough prospects, and you’ve already exhausted every lead.

How can you get more prospects when you’ve already called everyone you could?

Here’s a clue: When a prospect says no, it doesn’t mean forever. And if you went back through all of your calls and proposals from last year, you’ll notice many rejections aren’t a firm, final “No.” Your client might have said “not now” or “maybe later,” but you chalked it up as a loss and moved on.

Posted on Monday, September 12, 2022

Act Like A CEO!

Even if you’re working for someone else, you own your own business.

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You might dream of being the CEO of your own business someday. Maybe you’re already living that dream! Or maybe, you’re one of the many people with no interest in entrepreneurship?

You might love being a part of a big corporation that provides you stability, support, and an expense account. The truth is, a vast majority of salespeople work for a larger organization, and you only have to worry about closing deals.

The bad news—that perspective is holding you back.

You are employed by a company, but you should be running your business like you’re the owner.

Posted on Monday, August 29, 2022

Let Your Weekend Be A Weekend

Weekends are a key to a successful life. It’s time to stop working through them.

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So many people don’t allow their weekend to be a weekend. Why? I think people—especially salespeople—often feel like the weekend is our only opportunity to “catch up.”

We can’t get enough of our work done during the week—because work gets in the way! The weekend is blissfully free of all the meetings, phone calls, interruptions, and last-minute emergency fire drills that take over our week.

Do you feel like the only way to get any work done is to do it outside of work hours? We’ve all been there!

Posted on Monday, August 15, 2022

Invest In Yourself

Are you spending your time and money wisely, or are you neglecting the most important person in your life?

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If you want to get further in your career, you have to grow. It’s just a fact! As long as you stay the same, you’ll always stay in the same place.

A salesperson who isn’t growing personally will see the same lack of growth in their sales numbers. Every year, the commission checks are stagnant (or less!), and goals seem forever out of reach.

The only way to grow as a person—and grow your sales business—is to invest in yourself. To reach long-term goals, there’s no other way! The money and time you spend on yourself always pay future dividends. Here are some of the best ways sales professionals can invest in themselves: