Prospecting

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A few first steps into Internet marketing
Existing businesses should have a web presence, but in what form? This article examines some of the ways that the Internet may be used to get started, without an elaborate or costly approach.

A New Race Car to Success in 2010 for Christmas This Year
A car lovers point of view on how to grow your sales in 2010. Steps to chose the road, the engine and the fuel you use to get your business to its best year ever!

Power Prospecting Questions for the Network Marketer
As a network marketer two of the most important aspects of interviewing a prospect are the ability to ask a question and listen. If you effectively ask the “right” question(s), your prospect will tell you everything you need to know during the prospecting interview.

The Most Important (Little) Word in Sales
You can get so much mileage from just one little word.

Emotion Generates Momentum
Positive emotion is the basic building block of creating momentum within yourself and your organization. Positive emotion will create positive motion.

Something Old and Something New - Apply Both for Sales Success
The phrase "something old and something new," which is often heard while brides are getting married, can be applied to using social media tools successfully. Many companies jump on the new idea band wagon, often discarding old ideas and methodologies that still produce results. Let's take a look at two ways you should combine new social media with good 'ole fashioned sales principles.

Build your Sales Pipeline and Boost Your Prospect Numbers
Do you get frustrated constantly searching for prospects and contact information? The traditional methods of building a list of people that you can market and sell to such as purchasing databases, driving around business parks and noting the tenants of buildings that you walk past are great, and they do work, however, they are costly and time consuming.

Business Networking Tips
Networking has been good to me over the years. Apart from referrals, it has been the single most successful way of generating new business and building my professional network. It must be the salesperson in me, but there is nothing more rewarding than meeting and connecting with new people who end up as friends, associates or clients.

Consultative Needs Based Selling Approach

Looking at your business from a sales perspective and most importantly understanding your business from a client perspective, is one of the most important first steps in sales. Most people hate being sold to but love the feeling of buying; so the clearer you can explain how your business helps and "what is in it for them" the easier it makes prospective customers to make a buying decision. The consultative/problem solver approach qualifies and listens to the customer and helps them to buy what they need. The consultative approach focuses on the needs of the customer and how you improve or benefit them in some way.

How can I increase the number of Referrals I receive?

I’m sure most of you would agree that selling to someone who has been referred to you is much easier and more enjoyable than those generated through traditional sales efforts such as direct mail and cold calling. The success rate is higher because they are in the market for your services and are also much less price sensitive because the referring party has told them the value and benefits that you can deliver.

How can I make cold calling easier?
Lately I have been working with a number of sales teams to help them increase the success of their cold calling and I thought I would share with you some of my tips for success:

How can you find the best of the best in sales?
Many people believe great sales-people are born, not made but I disagree because sales is a process that can be taught to anyone and it is simply how the process is applied that separates good from great. Success in sales comes from skill development, attitude, confidence and behaviour.

How to avoid being a pest in your sales follow up
Did you know that one of the biggest gripes against salespeople by decision makers is the lack of follow up? Many people resist following up because they find it uncomfortable and don’t want to seem pushy or annoying and many people don’t follow up because they simply forget. This lack of follow-up presents a great opportunity for those who are organized and take the time to do it.

Overcoming Sales Objections
Objections are simply reasons or concerns that a prospective client has as to why they won't make a decision when you want them to. You will hear statements such as:

Quick Prospecting Tools
Do you get frustrated constantly sourcing new sales and contact information?

Sales Tips to give your sales a boost in 2010
customers, the same results can be achieved. Besides, you can find new customers from referrals within your existing client base. Here is a couple of quick tips to help you build your revenue in 2010.

Quick Tips to Presenting Proposals
These quick tips will help to reduce some of the 'discomfort' that can be associated when presenting your pricing options

SALES TIPS AND TRICKS
Want to increase sales but don’t have the sales skills or worried you will come across as an aggressive, pushy sales person? The key to developing confidence in sales is by being flexible and open-minded about trying something new!

Sales Tips for Selling in a challenging economy
It’s difficult to ignore the news of the financial crisis that is occurring around the world and the fear and uncertainty that it is creating. Here in Australia many companies have been tightening their budgets and reducing their spending over recent months and it looks like it’s going to continue. So what does this mean for those of us running businesses or working in sales?

Sales Tips for the First Appointment
“It’s all about planning and preparation” It’s amazing how many sales people and business owners I talk to who under-estimate the value and importance of planning and preparing for a first appointment.

How to Plant the Seeds and Reap the Harvest of Success in Network Marketing

If you’re new to network marketing and prefer to build a business offline, start planting a lot of seeds. Seeds take time to grow, and you reap what you sow. The more seeds you plant, the bigger your harvest. So what exactly are the seeds? The seeds are the prospecting tools provided by your company, and the soil is your prospects. Hand out your prospecting tools, like brochures or videos, to as many people as possible. Now that you planted these seeds, let the prospecting tools do most of the work for you. Before you hand out any of these tools, ask them some pre-qualifying questions. You can simply ask, “If I could show you a way to make extra income part time that won’t interfere with your current job, would you at least take a look at it?” If your prospect says yes to this question, hand them the prospecting tools.

How to Follow Up When Prospecting Into Your Network Marketing Business
Successful network marketers know how to follow up because they understand that it is important to cultivate relationships with prospects before converting them into customers or new distributors. When you learn how to follow up, you will start cultivating relationships.

Increase sales by optimizing your sales funnel
Businesses sell but are rarely as intentional as they should be about it. While a business might do a lot of things to market and sell their products, they might be doing too much! Even more success with less effort is possible by taking a closer look at the sales funnel. Use these strategies to optimize your sales funnel and get more people buying from you faster.

How to Get Referrals from People you Don't Know

It is a small world. Each of us can reach anyone in the world (all six billion souls) through a maximum of six other people. The six degrees of separation has been widely publicised and talked about. A scientific study demonstrated the truth of it. By way of letters, researchers asked people to forward a polite request to whoever amongst their contacts was most likely to know a particular person. They found they were able to get a message through to randomly selected people via only a few links. The calculated maximum distance between any two people in the world is 5.5, in terms of the number of people it will take to pass on a message. Read this article to learn more about ways to leverage this astonishing information to get in touch with hard to reach people.

Hate Something
Perhaps for you, things haven’t gone pear shaped before and you are reading along just for the ride. I hope you never find yourself being forced to make cold calls. No matter how impenetrable your titanium shell, customers can still hear the tremor of desperation in your voice. Then things go from bad to worse.

Cool Sales Tools to Make Prospecting Easier
Prospecting has never been harder – or easier. Yes, it’s hard to get responses, but you have all the tools at your finger tips to increase your odds of grabbing the attention of your top contacts and getting a reply. Gone is the dialing for dollars mentality. You can do better than that.

5 Strategies towards Smashing your Sales Targets in 2010
If you are still a salesperson in 2010, firstly congratulations - here are 5 recommended strategies you can employ towards getting on top of your target this year.

Prospecting, the #1 Job for the CEO

Does your company need more sales? I¡¦ll assume that for the majority, the answer is yes. When did you last schedule and then spend an hour prospecting for your business? With the mountain of things to get done each day and the number of people looking for time on your calendar, there is just no way that you can do that too. Maybe you don¡¦t really prospect, but leave that up to your sales manager and sales team. Beware! You must cast the shadow, walk the talk and be the lead prospector so that your team understands that prospecting and bringing in new business is the number one job. Even for you.

Your Pipeline Could Be Fuller
Keeping your pipeline of prospects full is no easy task...but the payoff is worth it.

SMB-Speak: Getting your Foot in the Door
As we all know, small businesses believe that differentiation is a strategic advantage when competing with large corporations for a customer's business. Talking about differentiation is one thing; demonstrating it is another altogether.

Networking For Relationships Or Transactions?
As leaders, we must recognize that we play a vital role in keeping the larger community strong by being generous with our networks, our knowledge, and enthusiasm, not just to close the next transaction. That’s networking at its best.

Three Biggest Sales Challenges

In my work helping corporations improve the effectiveness of their sales forces, I consistently run into three situations that I am beginning to believe challenge most companies. Many sales people are unable to: - Determine if a sale is makeable before investing too many resources. - Stop selling and start helping their prospective customer. - Manage objections without creating a win/lose environment. While every sales situation is somewhat different there are some constants that can help every sales person be more effective dealing with these challenges.

Why You Hate Cold Calling But Shouldn’t: The Common Myths Exposed and Truths Uncovered
Don't buy into the longtime, false beliefs about telephone prospecting. Prospect professionally, the Smart CallingTM way, and you'll make your calling easier, more fun, and successful.

How to Warm Up Prospecting Calls by Using “Social Engineering”
"Social Engineering" is perhaps the most underutilized tool available to salespeople - and the one that has the greatest possible payoff. Learn how to use it to increase your sales success.

How to Warm Up Your Prospecting Calls in Unconventional Ways
Having a difficult time getting through to a buyer-someone you feel you must have as a customer-and have exhausted all of your other avenues? Try using one of these unconventional techniques in order to get your message through.

How to Never Place a “Cold” Call Again or Be Rejected, and Prospect Successfully
Nobody likes cold calling, and for good reason. Most of the time, cold calls don't work and end up wasting everyone's time. Smart Calling gives you a new and better approach to winning the quality sales that drive growth and create opportunities.

“Cold” Calling Might Be Dead, But Not SMART Prospecting
It's a fact, if you want your business to succeed, you must prospect for new business. The difference between placing a "Cold" call versus a "Smart" call, is knowing what to do both before and during the prospecting call.

Baby Boomers Can Make Money Fast!
If you are a Baby Boomer then you know you are coming close to having to face, retirement, even if you are not ready to retire. If you are considering putting something in place to secure your senior years, then now is the time to begin. TO ensure your success to make money fast, go the extra mile and get an experienced MLM Mentor.

Make Money Fast In An Online Or MLM Business!
You have come to a place in your life, when you decide I need to make money fast, and are not sure which is the best way to go, starting an Online business or a MLM business. How much are you willing to learn to become successful in either a Online business or a MLM business? Which business type is better for you, and Online business or a MLM business?

You Can Make Money Fast!
Many people don't believe you can make money fast. But in today’s world of great exciting mlm business models, it is very possible. To make money fast, you need to know your MOJO, what is going to motivate you to success.

Exclusive Short Term Revenue Focus, Long Term Business Issues

Revenue is king. It is the primary focus for most sales leaders, and the measuring stick for sales success. While revenue is an important indicator of sales success, sales leaders also need to broaden their focus to consider the sustainability of revenue over a long period of time. Sales leaders who focus on achieving repeatable results through an effective sales process will consistently realize the revenue they desire.

3 Simple Ways to get RESULTS at your next event

Event marketing is hardly a sure thing for attracting new referrals and new business. You may be able to get the crowds through the door, but what are they there for? Even with its challenges, however, event marketing is still one of the best ways to gather potentially interested individuals for a specific purpose - the scheduled event. But there are three simple things that may significantly improve the results of your next event.

C-Level Relationship Selling - 6 Steps to Avoid Selling Suicide
A great product/service can die on the vine if the sales person assumes s/he has the answers to the prospects problems. Here are some tips to activate prospects’ interests.

What Questions Do New Customers Ask of Entrepreneurs?

Amongst many things, entrepreneurs spot a hole in the market, create something ‘new’ (or different) and move fast. They need to be cash conscious, astute risk takers, careful business planners, passionate and energised. They influence financiers, associates and (most vital of all) ‘new’ customers. Good entrepreneurs sell and sell well. (And in the current economy, many who were once in the order-taking-by-word-of-mouth business need to learn to sell too.) They start by raising customers’ curiosity. And once they have raised curiosity, how can entrepreneurs go about selling, a ‘new’ product or service to a ‘new’ customer, well? Answer: understand the sequence and the nature of the questions all customers ask. What questions?

We want more than a script

Hundreds of thousands, if not millions of sales people around the world use sales scripts. Used properly, sales scripts act as scaffolding or bridgework to earn us the right to have a meaningful discussion with our prospecting customers, members, donors or subscribers. The sales script is a well constructed set of guidelines that support us when we prospect. Good sales scripts: * are purposeful – have a clear reason why you are calling someone; * use language the customer understands; * are designed for the benefit of the listener with it always being “the prospects choice” to accept or reject what they hear; * are brief and allow for questions and conversations; * aim to achieve a result – an appointment, donation, purchase, feedback, etc;

Your pre-call & post-call checklist
How well did your last sales call go? Did you achieve what you set out to achieve? Do you know what your next course of action will be with that customer/prospect? Do you have evidence that a real sales opportunity exists? Using a pre-call and post-call checklist is a very useful process when assessing the effectiveness of your sales calls.

Getting your Foot in the Door - 7 steps to successful cold-calling

The most common concern managers express about their salespeople is that they're not doing enough cold-calling. The reason can often be traced to the fact that salespeople are not properly trained on the how-to's of cold-calling. The result is they use ineffective approaches and frequently get slapped with rejection. So, instead of cold-calling, sales people occupy their time with 'safer' activities like visiting with current customers and order taking. With the huge potential for boosting market share sales through cold-calling, salespeople need these simple step-by-step techniques to dramatically enhance their success ratio.

Five ways to use a special offer

Special offers are the only thing left when you run out of time and still have a hill to climb to reach your sales target. It seems a really dumb thing to do because the people whom you send the offers to are likely to become conditioned to the special offer rates. Worse, they get to know when the end of your measurement period is and wait for the offers! The article gives the five best ways of using special offers.

Solve the One Problem the Buyer Has, Not the Nine They Do Not
Executive Summary: The buyer is the focal point of the sales process. Sales reps need to evolve from traditional sales practices and place a greater emphasis on the buyer’s perspective. Having insight into what buyers expect will allow sales reps to customize the features and benefits of their product solution that directly impact a buyer’s situation.

The Value of a Value Propostion
Understand how a value proposition can assist in promoting your business and positioning your company.

Secrets of Selling to the "C" Suite
Learn the secrets of getting in front of decision makers and learning how to close business with those that can.

How to Get Better Results with Cold Calling
Learn the secrets to gain better results from cold calling success.

Negotiation Tactics
Understand the art of negotiation and win any conversation with minimal concession.

Winning Business with Referrals
Use referrals to decrease labor and increase your percentage of closed business and new revenue.

How to Increase the Sales Pipeline
Learn how to produce more leads with less labor

The Importance of Customer Service
Gain insights of how to use customer service as a branding and marketing differentiator.

Seven Irresitable Laws of Customer Service
Create customer service tools that set you apart from competitive forces and make you and your company a client magnet.

Solving the Customer Service Puzzle
Learn the simple rules of customer service to assist your organization create the differentiation required to create allure.

Selling and Attitude
Discover how much you attitude counts in trying to sell your products and services.

How to Survive in Volatile Times
Learn the art of companies that can survive in any economy and why they are built to last.

A Simple Way To Get More New Clients

This is somewhat overwhelming. I Googled “marketing advice” this morning and guess what? There’s a mere 99,300,000 results. Although I’m being slightly facetious, going online to research how to get more new clients, probably causes more harm than good. It’s not that there’s a lack of information (some of it actually quite good). The problem is that there’s (obviously) too much information. So why is this important?

Three Looks at Traffic for Lead Generation
Use direct traffic, organic traffic and social media traffic to increase lead generation and see your sales progress. These are typically overlooked by inside sales people, but they can be used to find prospects that are interested in your product or service.

Give Your Prospecting Legs with Social Media
Social media is all the buzz in prospecting lately. You hear about it everywhere with Facebook Fan pages, tweeting, and LinkedIn profiles. You may even have an account on several different social networks. But have you given thought to how to use it to increase your prospecting results, or do you just see it as something fun to do when you have time?

The Only Qualifying Question You Really Need
Afraid of asking to many questions of your prospects? OK, then ask just this one question and let your prospects tell YOU how to sell them!

How to Handle the Price Objection
You'd be amazed by how many sales reps miss the golden opportunity to find out where their prospect is when they ask about the price. Here's how NOT to make the same mistake!

How to Hire Successful Sales Reps
Many business owners and sales managers ask me if I have a proven system or a way to identify and hire top sales reps. They have tried everything, they tell me. Well, here's what they are missing, and what you need to do to find and hire Good Sales Reps!

How to Listen like a Detective
Listening is the top skill of Top 20% sales producers. Here's how to develop it!

How To Overcome the Smokescreen Objection
Most of the objections you get as sales reps aren't real objections - they're smokescreens. That's why when you answer them, you get another, and another, and another. Want a better way? Read and apply the techniques in this article and you'll stay in control and close more business!

How To Qualify Warm Leads
The internet has changed the way leads come into a sales organization. The problem is that 80% of companies and sales reps still handle them the same old way. Here is the Right Way to qualify incoming leads.

How To Stay Firm On Price
Getting beaten up in today's economy on account of clients and prospects hammering you for a lower price? Here's how to stay firm on your price and still succeed!

Saving Gas and Selling More 5 Secrets of Top 20 Producers
Here are 5 things you can begin doing today to succeed as a sales rep when others are failing!

Should You Train Unmotivated Sales Reps?
I have been consulting with a lot of sales managers and business owners who need and want sales training, but they are concerned that the training might be wasted on some of their sales reps (sometimes as much as one-third of their team) because this portion of the reps are either resistant, or simply unmotivated. What should you do? This article will tell you!

Stop Managing the Pipeline, and Start Managing Your Sales Team.
While the sales pipeline is a vital part of the sales process, it is also where the most fundamental mistake is made, and this mistake costs companies millions (if not billions) of dollars every year. Learn what you can do to change this starting today!

The 3 Secrets of Instantly Establishing Interest
You have all heard that you have about 15 to 30 seconds to establish a connection or generate interest on a cold call, right? While some may say you have even less, the point we can all agreed on is that you don't have much time and whatever you say, it had better be good! This article will provide you with the most effective way of making that connection.

The 5 Elements of a Qualified Lead

People ask me all the time what I think makes up a qualified lead. It's simple, I tell them. There are five things that every Top 20% producer knows when he or she hangs up the phone with a prospect. Know these five things and chances are real good you're going to close this prospect. Leave one out -- or two out -- and chances are even better that you're never going to close this prospect. This article will not only tell you what these are, but they will tell you how to find them out!

The 5 Secrets of Motivating Your Sales Team

Motivation seems to be one of the toughest areas to get a handle on. Many managers tell me that some of their reps are already motivated and don't need their help in that area (usually the Top 20%), but that the majority seem to need constant motivating, mentoring, counseling, or out right babysitting. Sound familiar? This article will provide you with proven, fresh ideas on how to get the most from your sales team.

The Five Secrets To Writing Killer Prospecting Scripts
If you prospect sales by phone, then you know what's it's like to get blown off, screened out, or just flat turned down. It doesn't have to be that way!! Use these Five Proven Secrets to Writing Killer Prospecting Scripts and learn how to succeed like the Top 20%!

The Most Important Word In Sales
What would you say was the most important word in sales? Read on and you'll find out...

The Three ‘Real’ Secrets of Hiring Top Sales Reps
Finding, interviewing, hiring and training sales reps costs hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars. What's worse is that you never know who you're going to get. Assessment tests can be time consuming and expensive. Want an easier way? Use these three secrets and you'll easily increase your chances of finding and succeeding with Top Sales Reps!

Real Estate Marketing Strategies: How to Reframe "Asking for the business"
Do you have trouble keeping it professional and actually asking for the business? This article gives you some great tips on how to re-think how you approach this problem.

How to Sell A Pencil - And Your Product Or Service
This is one of the most basic of interview questions for sales reps, and the answer reveals so much about your previous training, your understanding of the sales process, and ultimately about what kind of sales rep you are.

Leave Voicemail Messages That Get Returned!
Here are four sample voice mail messages you can start using today to separate yourself from the other 95% of voice mails that get ignored, deleted and never returned.

Getting Commitment Through Out the Buying Process
During any phase of the process, it's crucial that you continue to ask these kind of specific, direct questions. Here are a few that will always help you know where you stand - and what you need to do next.

Five Secrets to Exercising Authority

The problem is that most managers and other figures of authority - Directors, V.P.'s, and Business Owners -- have never been taught how to properly exercise authority and command respect as leaders. If you find yourself in this position, follow this proven, 5-step method for exercising authority. It will not only get results, but it will establish, or re-establish, your role as leader of your sales team or department.

How to Write Winning Emails
Follow these six email secrets the next time you write and send an email, and you'll be on your way to the kind of response you used to get - and the kind that will lead to more business.

5 Ways to Handle the "No Budget" Objection
Here are five proven ways of dealing with this objection that you can begin using today to break through your prospect's resistance and earn the right to present your product or service.

How to Build Relevant Rapport
If you want to truly connect to your prospect and build the kind of rapport that will actually influence and lead to a closed deal, then you need to learn how build what I call, "Relevant Rapport."

3 Ways to Improve Your Listening Skills
The most important thing you can do to begin making more sales is to start listening to your prospects. Once you do, you'll know exactly what to say - and what not to say - to get the sale. Here are three things you can begin doing today to become a better listener.

How To Successfully Handle Objections
Want an easier way to deal with the objections you get over and over again? Here's how to do it.

How to Use Layering Questions
Only the top sales reps use layering questions, and the reason they are so valuable is because they get your prospect to go a little deeper into an area of interest they have, or in an area of concern.

The Secret of Setting Successful Goals
So many people still ask me what the secret to successful goal setting is, so I thought I'd share with you one of the basic principles of goal setting. The most effective way to set goals is to start by using the SMART principles of goal setting.

Insurance Sales - How to Overcome the Top Three Objections
In this article you'll find three rebuttals to the most common objections you get when closing on your insurance products. Remember, take the time to reword or rework them to fit your specific services or selling style, but after you do the key is to use them.

The One Real Key to Your Success
The exciting thing about this principle is that as soon as you truly understand and begin using it constructively with belief and expectation, you can turn your life, circumstance, your income, health, or anything else completely around. This law can be summed up very simply: "Everything in your life is an exact duplication of your consciousness."

I Hope You Don't Open Your Calls This Way
Because you only have a few precious seconds to make a connection and establish interest, you'd better have a good opening prepared in advance. What can you do to separate yourself from all the other calls they get? Read on.

The 5 Secrets of Great Vacations
What I've also found is that there are guidelines and "best practices" to ensure that you get the most out of vacations and breaks. After years of perfecting vacation, I offer, "The 5 Secrets to Taking Great Vacations -- enjoy!

Your Economic Recovery Script

What's so interesting to me is that many of the sales reps and companies I speak with are still mired in the old, "bad news" and they seem intent on wallowing in it. "Ah, things are still slow out there, and we're just not doing anything until they get better," they tell me. Because attitude is everything in sales (and life!), let me ask you, the reader, this question: "Are you part of the problem or are you part of the solution?"

The Most Important Script You'll Ever Use
Now get ready because it actually doesn't have anything to do with the objections. Nope. Rather, it is the script of what you say to yourself over and over throughout the day.

The Key to Staying Motivated
We all know that getting a lot of no's can be discouraging, and we also know how successful we are when we're highly motivated - nothing can stop us! So what is the key to staying motivated?

The Five Secrets to Effective Time Management
Any one of these Keys will make you more productive, reduce your stress, and help you squeeze more out of your day. Use them and you'll get more done - and you'll feel better!

Four Scripts to Overcome the Price Objection
Once you've identified what is really hiding behind this objection, then you are ready to deal with it. And here is, word for word, what you need to say to overcome it.

3 Ways to Build Rapport In 30 Seconds
Here are three techniques you can begin using today to create ease, build rapport and get the person on the other end of the phone to trust you.

5 Ways to Have a Great 4th Quarter
One of the things you can begin doing right now to prepare to have a great 4th quarter is read and apply the ideas in this article. Use it as a check list to compare what you're doing - and what you're not doing - and then adjust your activities to cover as many of these crucial steps as possible.

A Simple Lesson From the NFL to Close More Business
In sales, too, you can become a better producer if you concentrate on the simple things and doing them better. Here are two things you can do starting today to increase your closing ratio and make more money.

Emails and Voice Mails Guaranteed to Work
The voicemail discussion during the meeting led to what was working for emails as well, and I think we all got some really valuable ideas on what gets the most responses. Here they are.

How To Deal With Red Flags
One of the biggest mistakes 80% of salespeople make when qualifying is to overlook or not react to obvious Red Flags prospects give during the initial call.

5 Things I Learned last year
Here are the 5 things I learned that contributed the most to what turned out to be my most profitable year in consulting yet.

One Sentence to Establish Immediate Rapport
Making that connection is the most important thing you can do to lower or eliminate initial resistance and give yourself a real chance to see if what you're offering is a fit for the person you're speaking with. Here is the one sentence you can use that will give you the best chance to make that connection.

How to Overcome the Fear of Cold Calling
Let's start at the beginning. The fear of cold calling, like all fears, is mostly in our heads. It starts with dread, builds to anxiety, and soon we're frozen with fear. The phone becomes a 200 pound weight, we find a million other things to do, and we pray for 5 o'clock. Sound familiar?

How to Overcome the "I Need to Think about it objection
Unfortunately, what many of you have found out is that your prospect actually is saying no - they're just saying it in a way that makes it difficult for you to handle it. Well that will end for you today. By using the scripts below, you'll see if your prospect really does need to think about it, or if he/she is blowing you off.

How To Overcome the "I'm Not Interested" Objection
Here's what to say to act like a Top 20% sales professional, and how to connect with and earn the right to present your product or service.

Three Things You Must Do To Succeed
Just remember, 80% of your competition won't do these things, but if you will, you will smoke them in sales. In fact, you will become a Top 20% producer, and I'll bet that will make your 2011 successful, won't it?

Four Ways to Handle the "I'm too busy" Brush Off
Now here's the thing: while this may be true, it doesn't necessarily mean they don't need or aren't interested in what you have to offer. Like all initial resistance statements, what you must do with this objection is to quickly control the situation, assess whether or not your prospect is or can be interested, and then find a way to quickly qualify them.

How to Avoid Getting Economy Related Objections
If you're still getting the "We're just not going to do anything until the economy (settles down or improves, or whatever...), when you are closing the sale and asking for the order, then I've got some good news and bad news for you.

Change Your Self Talk - Change Your Results
The problem is that most of our self-talk is negative. And even worse, we tend to believe our self-talk and that influences our performance - in a big way. For example, have you ever stopped to listen to your self-talk after you missed a sale?

The 4 Secrets of Leadership
If you are in a position of authority and wish to become an effective leader, then find ways of developing or strengthening these four characteristics in yourself. Remember, everyone is counting on you for guidance, and it is your ability to lead that will determine the ultimate result in your team or company.

5 Ways to Sound More Natural On the Phone
If what you sell for a living means you have to pick up the phone - either to set appointments, call prospects back, return calls to clients, etc., then you have to learn how to sound natural and how to avoid putting your prospects, gatekeepers, assistants, etc., on notice that you're trying to sell something.

Opening Statements: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly
I've worked with, monitored and heard thousands of sales reps over the years, and I've heard it all - the good, the bad, and the ugly. Here, for your reading enjoyment and education, are my all time, Top 5 classic opening statements.

Three Ways To Qualify Interested Prospects

If you're in a selling situation where you get to call back leads that have expressed an interest in your product or service, then consider yourself lucky. Whether they come from traditional advertising sources or from the internet, inbound leads save you the time, effort - and often the terror! - of cold calling. While these leads are great to get they also present some challenges that many sales reps aren't prepared to handle.

Three Ways to Connect With Your Prospects
If you want to successfully connect with your prospect, and earn the precious few seconds it takes to establish rapport and generate some interest, then you must put yourself into the mind of your prospect and enter the conversation that's going on in their minds.

We Already Have More Business Than We Can Handle
Well, let's face it, nobody has TOO much of anything, especially business, and while 80% of your competition get blown off when they get this objection, the top 20% know what to say. After you read and adapt the three closes below, YOU'LL know what to say, too!

The 5 Secrets of Setting Short Term Goals
If you want to see your life change in just 3 to 6 months, then follow these 5 quick rules for setting short term goals. As you'll see, accomplishing just one short term goal can change your life beyond your wildest dreams!

Five Ways to Have Sizzling Summer Sales
The fact is, top 20% producers still find ways to make their quotas in summer, and they also find ways to set up the end of the year so they exceed their revenue goals, earn their bonuses and have a great holiday season. And you can, too.

How To Close A Sale
If you do these things right, it'll be easy and natural for you to ask for the order often. And when you start doing that, you'll finally know how to close a sale.

The Biggest Mistake Sales Managers Make
If I were to ask you what the most important thing a sales manager can do to drive business, what would your answer be? Hire the right reps to begin with? Properly train them? Keep them motivated? Help them close deals? I'm sure you thought of these and many others, but I wonder if you thought about the one activity I'm going to share with you today.

Don't "Follow Up" On Your Leads!
Ask yourself this question - when you call a prospect or client back to close a sale, do you open your call up with, "I'm just calling to follow up..."? If you're like most sales reps (80% or more), then I'll bet you do, and, if so, then you're making a big mistake because you are setting yourself up for rejection and you're allowing your prospect to put you off.

The Problem With Affirmations (And What To Do About It)
If you have given up on affirmations because they never worked for you, then revisit them today and develop ones that you can believe in.

How Find Out What's Stopping Your Prospect From Buying
The problem with 80% of sales reps is that they will chase and chase unqualified leads because it seems easier than cold calling and looking for real buyers. "At least they took the information, or have a need," they say. The solution? Read on.

The One Secret of All Top Sales Performers
If a car salesman like Joe Girard can achieve the kind of results he did by connecting with his clients personally each month, what do you think you could achieve using this same proven system in your own business?

5 Closing Questions You Must Be Asking
All of these questions are crucial to ask during the close, and after you read them I encourage you to put these into your closing scripts and outlines. They will give you the feedback you'll need (and don't get because you're not in front of your prospect) to close the sale. To get the most benefit from them, begin using them today.

Three Interviewing Mistakes - And How To Avoid Them
Over the years, I've looked at thousands of resumes and interviewed thousands of sales reps. In fact, right now, I'm recruiting for several companies, and I'm amazed by how sales reps keep making basic, horrible mistakes that often times immediately disqualify them for any chance at landing a position. Often times, these mistakes even prevent them from getting an interview!

How To Make Your Sales Manager Better
The problem with most sales managers that they don't sell. And the problem with that is how can they teach and manage something they aren't doing themselves (or worse, can't)?

Prospect Not Buying? Here Is What To Do...
I use this question all the time, and I'm never surprised by how a prospect will immediately reveal the truth as to what is holding them up and what is going to stop them from ultimately moving forward.

Straight Selling - The Quickest Path To The Top 20%
What's one of the biggest differences between the Top 20% and the bottom 80%? The bottom 80% are still using stale, phony techniques that don't work, and they are still trying to trick the gatekeepers and assistants as they try to get to the decision maker.

The 5-Step Method of Handling Objections
This is a Top 20% favorite and it works because you are not answering or dealing with objections, rather, you're qualifying and isolating first, then, once you've found out if it's a real objection or a smokescreen, you're dealing with it in the most efficient way possible.

Knowing Your Numbers, Tracking Your Success
Overall, knowing how your numbers equate to your actual results and success is what each Top 20% producer thoroughly understands. You should too. Why not start today?

The Most Important Button on Your Phone

Have you ever needed to ask directions? You know, you're traveling and trying to get to your hotel, or you're in a different part of the city looking for a restaurant and when you don't know the way, you stop and ask somebody, don't you? When you do and they start telling you, what do you do? You listen, don't you? The person who is speaking has the information you need to get where you need to go, and I'll bet you even listen actively.

Gaining Access to Power in a Buyer's Organization
Executive Summary: Sell to people with buying authority. Sales reps must understand the level of buying authority their contacts have within buying organizations. Reps must gain access to true power, and sell to buyers that have the ability to authorize transactions and close deals.

Create a Prospecting Tracking Process
Executive Summary: Adhering to processes creates consistent results. Sales leaders who regularly track the prospecting efforts of their sales reps see better, more consistent results. Making prospecting a company objective, and rewarding the efforts of sales reps who prospect effectively on a consistent basis, will embed prospecting into the culture of the sales organization.

7 Poisonous Sins of Trying to sell
Sales is a precarious profession that requires a process. Many believe that selling is an easy profession but it takes moxie, patience and more importantly strategies that pave the way to success. Discover the seven secrets to selling success.

How to attract more leads in online marketing?
Have you ever had difficulties generating more sponsors for your online business? Here I will teach you how to do it easier and faster than you ever thought. You will be able to simplify your work by understanding a bit more human behavior.

You will have more prospects in your online business with an abundance mentality.
Have you ever chased after that beloved person and the only thing you managed to do is to chase her away? The harder you tried to be with her, as quicker she ran? Calling her four times a day didn't help either. Were you so afraid to lose her because she is the one and only one for you? The emotions that drive you to act this way are the same ones that work with your online business.

Using Social Media to Enhance Email Marketing Campaigns
Social media is continuously expanding its capabilities and adaptability to current sales and marketing tools. Companies are increasingly planning integrated social media and email marketing campaigns that are inexpensive and yield positive results.

C-Level Relationship Selling – Use Your Golden Network for Leverage
There are people you know who can coach you along to win sales, and/or cross-sells, and/or point out high quality leads. This article will show you how to open your mind so you can spot these people.

How to Avoid Becoming a Digital Prospecting Lemming
My article “Prospecting Letters Still Open Doors” sparked quite a response from readers recently and I just have to share their ideas with you! They disclosed their best secrets for using letters to gain access to some of their toughest prospects.

Door Openers to the C Suite
Want to get into the C Suite, here is one tool that is working

What’s Holding Your Prospecting Back?
There aren’t many certainties in selling. What works well for one person can be a dead end for another, and what looks like a sure sale can easily deteriorate into a missed opportunity. One thing you can count on, however, is that a lack of strong, qualified leads will always be a stumbling block on the way to new business.

Do You Dread Cold Calling?
If cold calling is something you must do, here are some thoughts and ideas to help you master your negative emotionals and have greater success!

That’s Gold In Them Thar Vending Machines
First Gold To Go Vending Machine unveiled in U.S. in what might be described as the ultimate entrepreneurial venture.

Take the Second Shot!
I get a lot of inquiries and solicitations asking me what my “#1 tip” for increasing business is. This, of course, is a very complex subject that requires a lot of detail. But there is one quick tip I send along that can help people in any phase of business or even their lives. And that is: Take the second shot.

Death Defying Sales Calls- Don't Get Run off the Road
When you're making sales calls trust in your own ability to handle the situation but don't have too much faith that everyone involved is on your side. A healthy dose of skepticism goes a long way.

Seducing Prospects - 10 Ways to Woo New Clients
How and why do clients choose one agency over another? Wondering why you didn’t land your last new business pitch? Want to know how your agency can become more attractive to prospects? If you’re looking for new clients and feeling a little lonely, read about the Top 10 Ways to Woo New Clients.

Self Management for Success
A crisis is an event that is urgent and important. Crises require immediate response. Events that qualify for crisis management include September 11, 2001, the stock market crashes of 1929 and 1987, a child in the hospital, death and serious illness, the loss of your job. You get the idea.

Prospecting

Every one has to do it, no one likes it. Without new sales businesses fail, it happens every day, in every industry. Why are some companies more successful at doing this then others? Based on my consulting with companies I have found that the ones who take a disciplined approach, follow time management skills, and have the proper tools succeed. Start with how you approach prospecting. How much of your time do you spend, are you seeing the results you expect? My guess is you may not be.

Adapting to Technology and the Internet
You win more customers by adapting to social media and the Internet. LinkedIn is a social media site that is essential for prospecting. LinkedIn enables you to get a personal introduction to prospects through your network of professional contacts.

A Wake Up Call for Marketers

Understanding and embracing digital media is critical for today's ad agencies and marketers. Nike has worked with the brilliant creative agency Wieden + Kennedy since 1982. Their founders have a longstanding close relationship. Yet Nike needs more than terrific traditional campaigns. They need to take full advantage of the internet and build a cohesive online strategy to reach their target audience, build their brand, foster their community and drive sales. Apparently Wieden didn't prioritize online marketing to the degree Nike needed. And so earlier this year, Nike announced that they'll move their interactive assignments elsewhere. This wakeup call about online expertise isn't just for big consumer ad agencies. B2B marketers, consultants and agencies should pay attention as well.

Business Development by the Numbers
Perhaps it seems like you have plenty of "good" leads to follow up. But maybe you are not feeling any heat from any of them. What other suspects and propects do you have in your pipeline? How many active proposals do you have out there?

Define Your Sales Process by Analyzing your Customer’s Buying Process
A good sales process is structured around the way your customers prefer to purchase your product/service. At each step, you should deliver the information that your prospect needs in order to move that prospect at least one step closer to purchase.

Prospect to Prosper

There’s an old joke the rookie sales rep asks her sales manager ”How long do I have to keep prospecting?” Her answer, “Until you want to.” Most of us are like the rookie; we prospect because we have to. In the beginning we have to generate leads to build a good book of business. Then we have to prospect to find replacements for the inevitable 20% of our clients that become inactive each year. Does it ever end?

What Customers Really Want from Sales People
It’s a buyer’s market today because there is enormous amounts of money in corporations and in families, with a proliferation of buying channels. Customers like having a choice, and they also like to shop and buy efficiently. A well-trained, professional sales person can help a customer sort through the choices and streamline their buying process.

Objections are Requests for more Information
Think of objections as simply requests for more information. In other words, when the customer objects, he or she is simply asking: "Tell me how to justify this amount of money?" "How is this a better buy than your competitor´s product?" "Tell us how your other customers have dealt with their price concerns?" "Tell me why I should buy the product from you, and not your competitor?"

Prospecting Call
Calling Customers Who Just Made a Purchase is So Valuable That it Can Literally Double A Small Businesses ROI Overnight. Remember it is ten times less expensive to sell and existing client, than to obtain a new one.

Are you writing sales negotiation emails like prospecting emails?
It’s critical that folks recognize when the switch from prospecting to negotiating is occurring, and subtly change their writing style.

The One Email Guaranteed to Get You a Response!
Use it this week and see for yourself how it works to get your prospects to get back with you and how it gets you deals. And then email me yourself with your results - I'd love to hear them!

Selling to the Old Brain – Three Ways to Increase Sales Results
Many salespeople have heard the phrase that selling is an art and a science. This phrase is moving beyond a cliché with research results from the world of neuroscience. The profession of sales is changing and sales professionals that desire a true competitive advantage know and apply the neuroscience behind how and why prospects make buying decisions. Astute salespeople sell to the old brain...

Time To Swap Rituals
Sales people and their managers spend too much time performing the wrong rituals for the wrong reasons. Instead of focusing on closing the last week of the month or quarter, they just need to switch rituals and focus on adding new opportunities every day. This will allow them to always be closing something based on what they have already started.

Salespeople Failing to Get Prospects to the Phone
Why are your sales people having trouble getting to their prospects live in person to the phone?

For More Sales Success, Ask the Right Questions
Asking the right question is always key to getting the right information. According to WIKI HOW, sales people spend too much time "pitching" and not enough time asking questions.

10 Steps to More Sales Opportunities
It takes on average, eight attempts to reach a prospect, most salespeople give up after only four or five! Here are some steps to make sure that your salespeople reach more prospects.

Selling to C-Levels - 8 Interviewing Tips to Easily Close Sales
Interviewing questions open up C-levels and other prospects to reveal the triggers that will cause them to buy from that interviewer. Interrogative questions turn-off people like a light switch. So to win-over prospects and C-levels, follow these 8 suggestions.

Seven Popular Sales Excuses
Now like many of you after 30 years I have pretty much heard almost everything. So when talking about this the other day during a recent sales coaching session I was reminded of the numerous excuses that we all hear from sales representatives. So I sat down with pen to paper and rationalized what I believe of the top seven uses from selling professionals

Prospect With Dignity
Strategies to use in order to improve your confidence and success in prospecting

Approved To Booked
Turning approved transactions into booked deals

Climb That Tree and Increase Your Sales

Most salespeople will tell you today that a lot of the business has gone away. The fruit that was once hanging so low in the tree is gone---picked away by the competition---caused to die away by the economy. In fact, it is these statements that trigger the VICTIM mentality and tend to shut down a good portion of the selling efforts. Listen to me: With very few exceptions, there is still plenty of opportunity (fruit) in the tree. Now is the time, however, that we need to learn (or re-learn) how to climb! Now is the time when the “weeding out” process begins. Now is the time when those who “cannot or will not” are replaced by those who can, will, and DO!

The Importance of Sales Training
Article listing and describing five reasons why sales training is essential to your company

C-Level Relationship Selling - 9 Active Listening Steps to Effortlessly Sell Prospects
Sales calls are the most important step for selling and relationship development. That’s why you have to have a strategy to get people talking while you listen with an ear to understand. Learn the 9 steps strategy to win-over C-Level executive and other prospects in this article

Sharing leads amongst salespeople - does it work?
Giving leads to your sales people

4 Keys to Gett ng Past the Gatekeeper
In today’s fast-paced and virtual work environment, prospecting and getting to the decision maker has become a challenge. With the help of technology, the cold or the warm call has evolved to a strategic process. However, there are still some basic beliefs that you must have as you mentally prepare to make that call; get through the barriers; deal with voicemail; and talk to your prospect.

Cold Calling in Today\'s Marketplace

What is the problem with salespeople these days? The profession of sales begins and grows through learning and mastering how to increase the quality and quantity of new contacts in the marketplace. Here are a few words to help you get back in the game! For many sales people, the number one challenge that they have in their profession is prospecting or cold calling on the phone. There have been literally thousands of excuses developed over the years in order to avoid prospecting on a regular basis. And yet, probably the biggest factor in the growth of a salesperson's book of business and his or her career is prospecting.

Teleservices Business Process Outsourcing: Want to Go North or South?

Business process outsourcing of teleservices-lead generation, lead qualification and lead nurturing-generally goes in one of two directions: north or south. North is good. A best-practice teleservices firm closes the gap between marketing and sales to create sales-ready opportunities needed to drive revenue. South is not so good. Unfortunately, many companies have had negative experiences with teleservices firms that deliver so-called leads when they lack agreed-upon qualifying criteria. I would like to take this opportunity to differentiate between the two and to affirm the value of teleservices outsourcing when executed correctly.

The Ultimate FaceBook Training!
Did you know that there is a way that you can recruit without spending a dime. Have you ever tried to use facebook to recruit others into your business? This will take some time, so you must be patient. But over time you can build yourself a great business using these tactics.

Remind Me...

How often must we remind our customers of the value we bring to the table? Is a once-per-year reminder sufficient? How about twice per year? Three times? Most people agree that, ideally, they'd like to "remind" their customers many more times each year; in fact, they say they'd like to keep a reminder of some sort in front of their customers as frequently as possible. This leads us to a few critical questions...

What Makes You Different?
What is the one thing your business or organization has that none of your competitors have? Over the past five years we have asked a great many people in all types of organizations this simple question; and while the answers initially vary, they all ultimately agree that there is only one true and sustainable differentiator...

Don't Call The 'Underlings'
This article provides some insight on how to get more executive level sales appointments with decision-makers as opposed to getting stuck working with middle managers who can't spend the company's money.

What to do on your first sales call?
First sales call is always a challenge for sales guys... What to ask? How to offer? How to stand different from competition?

Cold Calling Works!

Cold calling is an inexpensive direct approach - cold calling can be an effective and powerful sales tool if it is implemented in the right manner. How well cold calling techniques works depends on how well the salesperson has been trained, and how well the script has been revised. A poorly written sales pitch will drive prospective customers away; however, a well written script will definitely get their attention.

How To Approach Cold Calling
The first and most important step is to realize that you are not bothering your prospective customers/clients. By not calling and introducing your products/services to them, you are really doing them a disservice.

Are You Burying Prospects – and Future Sales – Under a \"Solutions Dump?\"
Selling solutions is far better than selling products and services; but even more important is that you learn to sell solutions to the problems your potential customers actually have… not the ones you imagine they have.

How to Put More Prospects in a Buying Mood
A reader shared with me recently that her email prospecting campaign was attracting attention and responses, but most of her prospects weren’t interested in buying right now. So it’s her job to create immediate interest.

The 20 Worst Prospecting Voicemail Mistakes Salespeople Make
Among salespeople who make sales prospecting calls, there’s a hot debate about whether or not you should leave a voicemail message. For a voicemail to have any impact, however, you have to avoid the common blunders.

Why You Don't Want Sales Prospects to Save Your Emails
It is critical that you write sales prospecting and lead-generation emails that compel your sales prospects take action right away. There are four rules to make that happen.

Order Taker vs Order Maker
The order-taker accepts the advantage of the situation he finds. But the order maker, a professional salesperson creates specialized situations to suit his purpose.

As in the Movies, in Sales, the Closing Isn’t Everything
A good movie has a number of elements similar to good sales. As the director, you have to plan, manage, and execute the sale in a way that builds to a mutually satistfying ending.

How much is too many?
There is a big difference between being persistent and being an unprofessional badger. Make sure you don't fall to either extreme why doing your job.

Rediscover A Proven And Easy Way To Increase Sales And Productivity
There are many great sales people, just as there are some great athletes, but neither can succeed consistently without focusing on the basics. Those fundamentals that allow the great ones to soar - and when overlooked or taken for granted, cause the average to fail.

Discover How To Leverage Voice Mail To Make More Sales
Productivity and cost efficiency are key drivers for corporations adopting new technologies. While it is hardly new and few can dispute its overall benefit, voice mail is one technology that has greatly reduced the productivity of Business-to-Business sales people and increased cost for their employers. This, however can be fixed. Here's how.

Lead Management - A Focus Above the Funnel -- Part I
Most of the time people focus on the funnel and prospecting, and take a less structured approach to managing leads and activities during the lead and lead conversion phase of the sale. A number of things you do at this early stage can dramatically impact the end result before they ever enter the funnel.

Lead Management - A Focus Above the Funnel - Part II
Most of the time people focus on the funnel and prospecting, and take a less structured approach to managing leads and activities during the lead and lead conversion phase of the sale. A number of things you do at this early stage can dramatically impact the end result before they ever enter the funnel.

Start of Year Tune Up!
New year, new beginnings. Give yourself an edge and get ahead of the fray by doing a few simple things at the start that will pay of the entire year and beyond.

Selling in the NOW Economy
There is a lot of chatter out there about the great downturn in the economy and its potential impact on you and me. In the sales world, there are a lot of articles popping up all over advising all on how to sell in economic downturns, recession proof selling, five key things to do in a down market, 3 must haves to protect your sales when the sky is falling and a lot more.

Dialling for Prospects
Despite all the chatter, cold calling is still a part of any B2B sales approach. But as technology and buyer expectations change so must the way sales people cold call.

Grow your business!
Referrals and recommendations are great but most companies find that a more structured approach is needed to plan workloads, cash flow and sustainable growth. Take control and get a plan, a scaleable prospecting routine and an approach that works for you.

Grow your business!
Referrals and recommendations are great but most companies find that a more structured approach is needed to plan workloads, cash flow and sustainable growth. Take control and get a plan, a scaleable prospecting routine and an approach that works for you.

Powerful, Persuasive and Motivating Language
I did a teleconference a few weeks ago with people who were new in sales and new to prospecting. The focus of the call was to help participants get beyond fear and understand their prospecting process.

'The Queen of Cold Calling' and Call Reluctance
I always tell my clients to prospect every day, no matter what. I tell them that no matter what is going on with their business (or their life), they should find the time, even if it's only 15 minutes or half an hour, every single day to make prospecting phone calls.

Prospecting For Business
The need for prospecting: If I had $/£100 for every time I’ve been told..... "We’re pretty good at converting enquiries into business... it’s just getting enough of them". "I’m not bad once I’m in front of a prospect... it’s just getting to that point". .....I’d be laughing all the way to the bank!.

The Happiness of Pursuit
In sales the pursuit is the thing, real sales people enjoy the process as much as the outcome. Of course if you are not getting the results, it is hard to like the process.

Objections – Rejections
The only way to avoid rejection in sales, especially cold calling, is not to do it. If you can't afford not to do it, you need to learn how to manage the rejection and leverage it to move your sale forward.

What IS Social Networking and why is it so beneficial for Marketers?
We now live in an age when everybody talks about Social Media and Social Networks and Social Marketing, but what IS social networking? And what makes it so attractive to home business enthusiasts and Internet Marketers? Here is the simple answer...

Setting Up Facebook's Timeline for Small Business Owners or Consultants

When it comes to generating new business or contacts on Facebook, there are some basic steps independent consultants will want to take when organizing their Timeline. Putting though into your Timeline will help you be more professional and show someone viewing your information that you are capable of being a mentor, consultant or in some businesses a"sponsor". You also want to make sure you are staying within your company’s Internet policies. Remember, you are marketing YOU. So make sure you look like someone worth setting an appointment with.

Relationship - Based Selling and Why It Still Works Best for Your Small Business

Relationship-based marketing still stands as the best way to make sales, and it’s based on the same steps that have worked for decades: Meet, Follow up, Stay in Touch, Repeat. Minus the marketing software and fancy tech jargon that are so often featured as the solution to your marketing woes, you will find that these four steps are what really produce the sales. So let's take a look at how you can put them to use.

Prospecting - Time really is money©
The time we spend in effective Prospecting pays rich rewards. It is the time we don't spend in Prospecting that can end our careers. Here is a quick set of reasons why we all need to Prospect regularly.

Prospecting and Making Cold Calls©
We all hate to Prospect, but know we need to. Here is a simple system that will get you all the Prospects you need for the rest of your career.

Prospecting and Making Cold Calls©
We all hate to Prospect, but know we need to. Here is a simple system that will get you all the Prospects you need for the rest of your career.

Keep Prospecting Simple©
Most sales professionals hate to Prospect, but know that Prospecting is their life line to sales growth. I have found that keeping the Prospecting process as simple as possible makes it more likely that your sales team will Prospect more often. Here are the two simple steps I suggest.

Come on 11 just isnt good enough
The actual time spent selling averages 11 per cent. I was blown away when I read this statistic.

Sales Management, Prospecting, and a Sense of Urgency©
Prospecting is critical for growth and survival of just about every company that sells a product or service. The person most responsible for overall sales team prospecting performance is the Sales Management team. However, in my experience they just don't have a sense of urgency when it comes to performing their role with respect to Prospecting.

Sales Prospecting Is a Dirty Business (or Why a Clean Desk Is Not a Good Sign)
Prospecting is the foundation of sales. Just like digging a foundation when you build is dirty but necessary, so is prospecting. Without a good foundation your house can crumble. Without prospecting your sales business can also come down around you.

Prospecting it is simple only DOING counts
Prospecting may be the most important step in the selling process since it allows all the others. Without Prospecting we can't use our selling skils, order entry skills, or service skills, since we won't have anyone for whom to demonstrate them. However, most sales professionals have weak Prospecting skills. They simply need a Prospecting System. Once they have one, they are set for life.

What is the Most Important Selling Technique?©
Companies spend thousands of dollars on sales skills training and virtually nothing on Prospecting training. Yet what is the only skill that puts a sales person in a position to use all those other selling skils? Prospecting. Most sales professionals will never have a formal Prospecting training in their entire career.

Don't just sit there, phone someone!
Many sales people dislike prospecting. For some that is face to face prospecting and for others it is prospecting on the telephone. I've identified the factors that make the difference between a successful prospector and a sales person who hate prospecting. Prospecting is a skill. Once you develop these skills, prospecting is easy.

Winning in Prospecting to Increase Sales
Prospecting in business is a word that elicits feelings of joy to dread. After all, many small business owners to sales professionals content that prospecting is hard work. For some, they strike more veins of Fool's Gold are hit than the real gold. So if the rewards from your prospecting efforts are not where they want to be, what are you doing to change the results?

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