|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
Category: Uncategorized
-
7/3/2025-Didya kill Q2? How’d ya do it?
-
7/2/2025-Feeling the holiday week yet?
Daily Quote “Most of us spend too much time on what is urgent and not enough time on what is important.” Stephen R. Covey
SKILL There’s nothing like the feeling of a holiday week, right? It feels like you got a hall pass and can take your foot off the gas a bit.
But wait…even though more oxygen is getting into your lungs during weeks like these, you may want to rethink how hard your foot is pressing down. It’s still a work week…not all of your buyers are on holiday.
Use the feeling of lightness this week to your advantage…work on your Q3 strategic initiatives and non-rev goals. They don’t age like fine French wines; they need attention.
Read More DO As you know, success in The Sales Life – your Sales Life – is contingent on you being great at a lot of things. Those “things” (skills, actions, behaviors, etc.) can be organized into two buckets: tactical and strategic.
Most weeks, you over-index on the tactical side of the ledger. This “slow” week is an ideal time to focus on the strategic stuff like these items…
1. Revise your Q3 goals; chart your progress and edit your action plan.
2. Start creating your Q4 goals.
3. Work on the strategic initiative that has drifted to the bottom of your list.Read More OOMPH If you prefer to keep it light and Celebrate Good Times this week, at least be productive by learning a few basic dance moves to the classic Kool and the Gang song.
But if you decided to charge hard this week, perhaps this 1-minute escape will bring a smile to your face!
Visit Link -
7/1/2025-Happy Q3! …now go kill it!
Daily Quote “It’s what you do in the present that will redeem the past and thereby change the future.” Paulo Coelho
SKILL The best thing about the sales year is that there’s a new race every 90 days! Even if you slayed it last quarter, well…guess what? You get another shot at it this quarter. (Yay.)
It’s Day Two of a new quarter, and that brings more opportunities and more dreams.
Regardless of what your account planners say about your Q3 strategies, and no matter where you currently are against quota, it’s smart to start the quarter focusing on your number one tactic: GET PITCH MEETINGS on the calendar.
Read More DO Since you’re obviously filled with vim and vigor today, you can handle two DOs:
1. Put on your strategy hat and dust off your Q3 account planners. What have you recently learned about your target accounts that affects your Q3 selling?
2. Change into your tactics hat and update your Top 20 VIP list so your KDM prospecting efforts are aligned with your strategic learnings. Contact all 20 of them this week!
Holiday weeks give you the space to be tactical and strategic.
Read More OOMPH Which dock-diving dogs in this Short represent you for your Q3?
Are you gonna get after it like most of the dogs you see….?
…or are ya gonna meander up to the line, sniff the water a bit, and think about it more?
(It’s obvious which dogs have a higher chance of hitting their Q3 number, eh?)
Visit Link -
6/30/2025-“I thought that buyer LOVED me.”
Daily Quote “Make friends first, make sales second, make love third. In no particular order.” Michael Scott (The Office)
SKILL “I don’t get it…we had a rip-roaring time right before Memorial Day, but the buyer’s been a ghost since then.”
Yeah…it happens.
Sometimes, you catch one at the right time, share a few yucks, and you put it in the “connected” column. Other times, pffft… evaporation.
Here are a few relationship-building truths:
1. Nobody owes you anything in exchange for a few drinks or a game.2. Having the same dog breed as a KDM buys you something, but not a lot.
3. Always bring the value…even when you’re in social selling mode. “Connecting” plus “value” is hard to beat.
Read More DO Think about upcoming customer interactions. Whether you’ll be at a bar, on the course, at a conference, writing an email, at a cafe, pitching for the first time – no matter where or what – focus on bringing the value. (BTV!)
Value = industry insights, competitive info, value prop enhancements, a service story.
Push yourself to figure out what “value” means for your mate, whether you’re in the mosh pit or at a cafe.
It’s not just your charming personality that builds relationships; it’s what you do to make your customers’ lives easier that makes the difference.
Say it aloud: “Bring the Value”! (BTV!)
Read More OOMPH Quick, what’s the opposite of value selling?
Manipulative hucksterism???
Sure, go with that. And it’s on perfect display in the movie Tin Men, a sleeper comedy featuring the sleazy lives of door-to-door aluminum-siding salesmen. (Yes, aluminum-siding.)
Watch this fun clip to see what it looks like to NOT sell value.
Visit Link -
6/28/2025-Mindfulness/Self Care
Daily Quote “Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability.” Sam Keen
SKILL Honor yourself first during this time of the year.
Don’t let stress dictate the terms. You can control the stress with a bit of extra thought and planning.
Every seller on the planet is exhausted this time of the year…you’re no different. You left it out on the field (as “they” say).
So factor in Me Time and slow it down.
Read More DO Meditate.
Go for a walk.
Nap with your dog or cat (or both).
Or, just sit in your backyard and play chess on your phone.
GET SELFISH!
Read More OOMPH Perhaps this beautiful tale will urge you to “let it go” today and “just be.”
The Sales Life is haaaaard, as you know. You’re red-lining your engines during the week, and then all of a sudden it’s the weekend. Stopping, let alone slowing down, is hard.
But you must slow down. Today… slow down.
Visit Link -
6/27/2025-On this day, Jaws, the movie!
Daily Quote “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.” Roy Scheider as Chief Brody in Jaws
SKILL On this day in 1975, the movie Jaws was released in movie theaters. (Cue the haunting music.) For many, Jaws is still in their minds when they dip into the open waters.
Forget the beach a sec…you ready for some numbers?
1. The original movie won 3 Oscars.2. It took $7 million to make and grossed $478 million (nice!).
3. 695,539 IMDB folks give it an 8.1 rating out of 10 (super solid).
So why is that big, bad, fictional shark important to you, you revenue beast?
Not sure! …it’s Friday in the summer. You deserve a mini break from the skills and habit reminders.
Read More DO To get you ready for an upcoming beach vacation, watch Jaws tonight or over the weekend.
With all the apps and drones patrolling our beaches, there’s no reason to fear the waters this summer. Besides…Jaws died in the movie. (So Did Jaws II.)
Jaws is one of the classic top movies of all time—see it again if it’s been a while (it holds up), or see it for the first time and enjoy the authentic terror.
Read More OOMPH You won’t be getting a video snippet from Jaws to snack on here. The movie works best when you watch it from beginning to end.
Instead, enjoy this Short featuring Director Stephen Spielberg’s reaction to first hearing composer John William’s haunting and recognizable musical refrain that cuts through time.
Visit Link -
6/26/2025-Did your competitor have a good Q2?
Daily Quote “The entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity.” Peter Drucker
SKILL Do you think ALL of the companies that received money from your clients in Q2 nailed it?
Of course not.
Many of them botched something or another with your target accounts. In fact, right this second, one of your buyers is ticked off at one of their vendors…YOUR competitor.
It’d be a shame if you didn’t try to capitalize on that opportunity.
Whether you do formal QBRs with your key clients or not, use the end of Q2 to survey them and uncover the truth about who is performing strongly and who has mud all over their faces.
Read More DO Today, practice how you’ll get your buyers to open up and share insights about your competition.
Write these two questions down:
1. “Hey, who’s nailing it for you these days?”
2. “So, which vendor killed it for you in Q2?”
The next opportunity you get, start with one of those two questions because asking “Who messed up for you this quarter?” won’t get them talking.
Your job isn’t to persecute your competition, it’s to gain insights and get your buyers to crack the door open with intel. The door never opens on its own.
Read More OOMPH There are many paths you can make to ink a deal.
Sometimes, you move them down the funnel perfectly; other times, you close a deal because another vendor screwed up and you’re next in line.
Don’t wait to be next in line…position yourself next in line.
In this TED Talk, “Don’t Believe Everything You Think,” Lauren Weinstein encourages you to keep your mind open to various business moves and approaches.
Visit Link -
6/25/2025-“Buyer, I object to your stupid objection.”
Daily Quote “If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t lead anywhere.” Frank A. Clark
SKILL Can you turn a “no” into a “yes”?
Can you dig through a brick wall with a plastic spoon and find an order?
Can you move a buyer’s mind just enough through collaboration on a work-around?
No seller on the planet has mastered objection handling (OH), but the good news is you don’t have to master it. You merely have to understand and use a few basic techniques that shrink the buyer’s objection.
Read More DO Today, write down the top three objections you hear about your offering.
Next, create your script that presents your solution.
Memorize the script.
Here’s the next, most vital step: get a friend and role-play the objection.
DO NOT PRESENT YOUR SOLUTION.
Huh?
While you need to understand what your solutions are, you need to focus on how you get customers to work with you on developing the solutions. You will not win if you simply “press play” and shove your solution down their throats.
Practice questions that get them talking…and thinking with you.
Read More OOMPH Most sellers walk around with a hammer, trying to pound every problem they see, as if it were a nail. That doesn’t work when trying to overcome objections.
Handling objections requires a dexterous touch.
In this amusing video showcasing a challenging obstacle course, copy the cat – not the dog named Atena.
Go slowly…and think.
Visit Link -
6/24/2025-I dread our weekly sales meeting
Daily Quote “If you’re trying to get ahead…appearing smart in meetings should be your top priority. This can be hard if you’re daydreaming about Mexico, margaritas, or queso cheese dip.” Sarah Cooper
SKILL You look forward to your weekly sales meeting because you’re happy to see your peers and learn about anything that might help you sell better. Heck, you might even get inspired along the way.
…and then, the meeting starts, and so does the daydreaming. Pffft….all good intentions are out the window.
The good news is you have successfully diagnosed the problem: you just don’t care to listen to other sellers engage with your manager about their deals.
Read More DO At the end of your next 1:1 with your manager, ask her/him for their opinions on the weekly group sales meeting. Keep it simple…”How satisfied are you with our weekly group sales meetings?”
Hear your manager’s answer before offering, “Personally, the meetings would benefit me a lot if we spent more time on strategic selling issues, common objections, and tricky selling scenarios.”
If there’s an opening, you might want to help your manager by suggesting that the meetings are not the best time and place for individual pipeline reviews.
Read More OOMPH Your manager needs you to speak up.
If you don’t share what you are thinking to make things better for you and those on your team, then you’re cheating yourself.
However, there is such a thing as a dumb idea.
So before you open your mouth, make sure your ideas are not as dumb as what you’ll see in this Short.
Visit Link -
6/23/2025-Q2 account reviews that make your mgr smile.
Daily Quote “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” Will Durant
SKILL YAY, it’s account review season!
If you’re preparing for your upcoming Q2 review with your manager, ensure you’re tight on each account’s Objections and Obstacles. (Moving forward toward Q3 greatness will be harder without that knowledge.)
And if the review has already taken place and you’re executing against your plan, forge your strategic path based on known O&Os.
Keeping the Two Os top of mind as you work your accounts means you’ll qualify business and find buyers more efficiently than sellers who don’t embrace deal-breaker issues.
Read More DO Do you sweat over preparing for your account reviews? That’s not entirely a bad thing, after all. It means you care.
How much do you sweat?
1. Ensuring your “account objectives and KPIs” section is accurate is important…but don’t sweat it too much.
2. Projecting revenue for each target account? Yeah…sweat the details.
3. Understanding the specific Objections and Obstacles that exist on every key account? Sweat like you just ran a marathon.
Read More OOMPH Obstacles are merely opportunities disguised as your worst nightmare.
And in your worst nightmare, you mostly want to run away.”
In The Sales Life, the Two Os should make you run towards.
Thank goodness for Steven Claunch, the one-handed, short-legged basketball star (yup) who effortlessly slaps down obstacles* and assertively moves forward.
You’ll love his story.
Visit Link