Revenue

Developing new business has many avenues, and given that many sales people are reluctant to cold call, getting introductions through referrals from existing customers, friends, and business associates is a far more pleasant way of starting the selling process.

Mike Montague interviews Susan Sykes on How to Succeed at Taking a Day Off.

What kind of revenue growth do you want to see between now and the end of your fiscal year—or whatever date is most relevant in your world? What kind of figure should you be shooting for? And how can you be certain that target is both aggressive and realistic?

Short on time? No problem. Here is our 120-second overview of three critical areas where we are seeing the most productive sales leaders set their teams up for success in 2021.

Bill, a veteran salesperson with a deep hesitation about approaching prospects online, had been trying to gain traction for months at a company called Acme Logistics. A competitor had won all of Acme’s business, but Bill felt certain that if he could secure a meeting with the company’s CEO, Mary Moore, he could make a powerful case for winning Acme as a client.

Many salespeople are uncomfortable talking about money. Surprise! Most prospects are as well. It really doesn’t matter what level of experience each has, both may still struggle with the topic.

When making a personal purchase have you ever thought, “that’s a lot of money?” How about in a selling situation, have you mentally suggested that the prospect is spending way more than you would on a product or service?

It’s happened to every salesperson – the first thing the prospect wants to talk about is price. Before any information can be exchanged on needs, value, and qualifications – their priority is finding out how much it’s going to cost them. 

Salespeople tend to be focused, driven, and almost single-minded when it comes to closing a sale. While this attitude can bring about great results, it can also prevent a salesperson from considering alternative ways to approach the sales relationship. Does the client prefer frequent phone calls to check in, or would your sales process run more smoothly with scheduled email follow ups? Take the time to re-evaluate your sales team's focus. Try these seven tips to drive new revenue and improve your sales game.

Companies have a systematic approach to complete almost every task; from the production line to accounting and payroll. Companies rely on clearly defined ways to get the job done effectively and efficiently. There are some areas of organizations that are commonly left to play by their own rules; like the sales and business development departments. Management exclaims, "go get 'em; bring in some new business! We believe in you!" In the current competitive and entitled market, the fly by the seat of your pants sales team almost never achieve the results they are looking for.

Imagine if there was no order. No procedures, no systems, no processes and no checks and balances. Chaos!? More than likely. People would be playing by their own rules and would be unpredictable at best. Without systems and processes we would be flying by the seat of our pants, with no clue as to what's going to happen next or how to figure out when things go wrong.