VP Of Sales

As a Sales Leader, you are responsible both for the top line and bottom line performance of your sales asset. You’re kind of in the middle—expected to produce great results—and then expected to know how to coach people to get it done. Pressure from both ends…we’ll that’s why you make the big bucks, right?

With blogging and podcasting, we aim to help you navigate those waters.

Click Here for Our Ebook, “The Seven Competencies of a Great Sales Force.”

April 23rd, 2008 Sales Training Tip #1 in a Series Over the next few weeks, we'll be offering up some sales training tips for you trainers/sales managers who take that role in your company. Never start ...READ MORE: Sales Training Tip #1 in a Series
Wednesday, April 23rd, 2008

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be offering up some sales training tips for you trainers/sales managers who take that role in your company.

Never start any sales training unless your team has bought in to it.

I know this sounds like heresy. “Why on earth would we want the inmates running the asylum?” (as one of my friends puts it).

Well, if you don’t engage your people in some kind of a Sales Problem/Pain Assessment (what do they believe they can improve on to get better/different results?) then you already have an asylum — you just don’t know it.

Sales People Are Honest If You Ask Them–And Care
OnestThe first thing that happens when you ask people is that, if they think there is a chance you can help them, they will tell you honestly what’s not working. Secondly, they will be much more engaged in training.

(Those are two words you don’t hear much in the same sentence: engaged and sales training.) And thirdly, you can tell who on your team is really in “growth mode” and who’s just going through the motions.

As a sales manager, you know your people have to change to meet market demands. But most won’t unless threatened (with their job).

We don’t believe it has to be that way.

Assess Your Sales Team
Take a few hours and come up with an assessment of your own. Create space for rigorous honesty. (I know this is tough in the corporate world.) And then purchase sales training to solve sales problems.

I have seen salespeople starved for something new and different that helps them grow professionally. But they never get it because the company nevers sees the connection between the training investment and return on that investment.

And do you know what? It’s not the people who really need training that feel that way. It’s usually the already-high-achievers that want to explore new ways do to old tasks.

So before you buy into the old myth, “seasoned sales people don’t need training” ask them what they want. You’ll be shocked.

Here’s an example of a very short assessment–it’ll at least get you started. Right click to download. My gift to you.

Ebook: Download

Tags: Bill Caskey, sales strategies, sales training, sales training tips, VP of Sales
Posted in Bill Caskey, Sales Management Content, Training and development, VP of Sales | No Comments »
January 23rd, 2008 Wrong Mindset. Poor Results. Is There a Link? Last week I was consulting a client who uses free seminars as a prospecting tool. They really do give a lot of information at the ...READ MORE: Wrong Mindset. Poor Results. Is There a Link?
Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008

Last week I was consulting a client who uses free seminars as a prospecting tool. They really do give a lot of information at the program–so even if no sale is made, goodwill is created. But they were having trouble getting people there. They were cold calling–mailing-emailing. With not much to show for it. So they did what every company does–create a brainstorming session to devise new techniques.

Sales Tactics. The Wrong Discussion.

As I sat in the room listening to their ideas on mailing vs. calling first v. emailing, I thought to myself (and actually said it), “You’re working on the wrong thing!” (Sometimes you just have the be the ‘bringer’ of bad news.)

The right thing to work on is “what is my thinking?” Their thinking was all wrapped around: how do I get someone in to the free seminar?

Their thinking should have been: how can I bring value to this person by him attending?

The Key To Great Sales Results Is Great INTENT.

I see this a lot in sales orgs—their “intent” is out of whack. Think about how their new intent (of helping the prospect get value) will color their words, their tonality, the discussion etc., It will radically change their interaction with their customer. The customer will no longer feel sold to–and their will be less resistance.

As they all realized what they had missed, heads started nodding. They didn’t like my exposing this fallacy in thought–but they can now to their prospecting with their head on straight.

Are Your Filling Your Sales Pipeline With The Right Mindset?

Maybe. Maybe not. But before you make another cold call (or prospecting call), make sure your attitude is in the right place. And the best method for that is checking out “your intent.” Is it about YOU? Or is it about THEM? You know the answer.

Posted in Bill Caskey, Lead Generation, Speeches/Appearances, Uncategorized, VP of Sales | 1 Comment »
July 12th, 2007 The Ultimate Selling Strategy: Change Your Thinking. I got a call from a client last week. She had just begun our program with her company and had heard us talk about "changing ...READ MORE: The Ultimate Selling Strategy: Change Your Thinking.
Thursday, July 12th, 2007

I got a call from a client last week. She had just begun our program with her company and had heard us talk about “changing how you think” in order to get better results. We hadn’t yet gotten into the details of that, but since she called, I shared with her the five areas of change needed to radically change results.

I hope you can use this information to achiever better sales/business results for yourself. We’ll probably do a podcast (The Advanced Selling Podcast) on it soon.

=1 Change how you think about yourself. Most of us see ourselves as victims in a big economy–held hostage by market forces and company forces. We are quick to blame others for our malaise. That’s what’s so cool about sales–it’s up to you. It’s your accountability that is THE factor in whether you’re a success or not. See yourself as an abundant being on a mission to bring value to your customers. Whether they buy or not–or whether they buy on your time line–is irrelevant. All that matters is that you’re in the present moment with them while in conversation about their pains/issues/matters of the heart. The greatest sales strategies in the world won’t work if you aren’t thinking correctly about your self in the sales process.

=2 Change how you think about your market potential. Most markets are abundant. Yet, when I hear salespeople talk about their sales funnel, it appalls me at how scarcely they see things. Your market is in a lot of pain that they need you to fix for them. Never forget that. And because there is an abundance of pain–and an abundance of money available to fix that pain–then you are in an abundant market. Period. Never let the scarcity of another (even a prospect) effect you.

=3 Change how you think about your roles as a sales professional. This is cool and very simple. Your role in the sales process is to create an environment for the truth to occur. You have to create a safe atmosphere where your prospect is so comfortable telling you the truth, that it’s easier to do that than to lie to you. You’ve heard the expression “buyers are liars.” Well, it’s only because amateur sales people drop into “convince and persuade” mode and make them lie. If you’re creating the right environment, buyers won’t lie.

=4 Change how you think about your value. The value you bring to customers hovers around the intersection of THEIR PAIN and YOUR SOLUTION. Stop thinking your value is all about your benefits and features. Your benefits are only relevant if they have a pain and they believe you have a solution for it. NEVER LEAD WITH YOUR VALUE. Lead with them telling you their problems–and you determining if you can help them. Most corporate selling strategies lead with how great they are for the client. If your a prospect, do you want to hear that?

=5 Change how you think about the sales process. “OK class, who should control the sales process? The one with the money?” NO. THe one wtih the solution. Most sales people get this wrong. But you can only control the sales process to the extent you change your thinking on #1-4. If you merely try to exert control of the sales process without work on #1-4, then you’ll appear crass and amateurish.

So that was my answer to my client. Obviously, in training, I go into much more detail, but thought you’d maybe get a little something from that.

Any comments? I know someone will take me to task for something I said (or didnt’ say), so have at it. And recognize that a change in sales results starts in the mind–not in the market.

Tags: abundant market, sales process, sales strategies, salespeople
Posted in Inner Game, VP of Sales | 1 Comment »
March 7th, 2006 Rule #12 - No Persuasion This is from my very own Trainer Rule Book. Over the next few days, I'll give you some of the rules we teach our clients ...READ MORE: Rule #12 - No Persuasion
Tuesday, March 7th, 2006

This is from my very own Trainer Rule Book. Over the next few days, I’ll give you some of the rules we teach our clients who ask us to help them grow their business.

[NEVER COERCE PEOPLE PSYCHOLOGICALLY.]

Our freedom is most dear to us. When you, as a sales professional, begin to encroach on that freedom, you become the pain and you won’t make a sale. But the problem is that you won’t make it…not based upon the product or pain…but based on your approach.

Tell people upfront, ”It’s ok if you decide not to pursue this….let me know and I’ll be gone.” Give them an out. They’ll find you’re the only safe person they have to talk to. Stop being a master persuader and start being a master communicator and qualifier. That’s what separates the wannabees from the super achievers. No more persuading and defending.

How is this relevant to me and my business? Take a moment and examine your language in the last customer encounter you had. Was it full of platitudes, claims and opinions? Was it self serving? Or, better, was it real communication–not trying to convince or persuade–but trying to have an honest conversation.

Tags: convince or persuade, sales
Posted in VP of Sales | No Comments »