Analogies
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The 10 Keys to Effective Group Sales Presentations
- January 15, 2015
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
When you speak at as many events as I have over the past 3 decades, you come to expect certain things. As you consider each of the following scenarios, try to make a comparison as to how it might compare with the sales calls and presentations you make to groups:
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Rejection: Does Selling Cause More Anxiety Than Dating?
- January 15, 2015
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
Do you remember dating? Back in the day, when you couldn’t hide behind a text or an email, the three most common questions that teenagers would ask their friends were, “What if she says ‘no’?”, “What if he doesn’t call?” and “What if she doesn’t call back?”
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The Sales Manager as Ice Cream Man
- January 15, 2015
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Salespeople Like Children, Understanding the Sales Force
Even in the technology age, one decades-old summer tradition still excites young children. They hear the bells and the music off in the distance and the anticipation builds. As the volume increases you can hear the neighborhood kids yelling, “He’s coming! He’s coming!”
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Selling Value – Everything You Always Wanted to Know
- December 4, 2014
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
So if not those topics, then what should we all be writing about – all the time – that would be a real difference maker for salespeople?
I believe that it’s the importance of and ability to sell value. Why, you ask?
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Top 5 Sales Issues Leaders Should Not Focus On
- November 19, 2014
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Best Top 10 Lists, Understanding the Sales Force
Did you ever watch Peyton Manning, Tom Brady or Aaron Rogers have a bad day at Quarterback? Did you notice that the following day, everyone was saying that he sucked? While it’s possible that these three Quarterbacks could have a bad day, most of their bad days are less about them and more about whether or not their offensive lines gave them the time and protection they needed to find an open man and make a good pass. It could also have something to do with whether or not their receivers were able to quickly get open.
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Why This Salesperson Failed to Close the Deal
- November 17, 2014
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
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Sales Success is Like Making Great Tasting Soup
- November 3, 2014
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
Sales success is no more about any one competency than great-tasting soup is about one ingredient. If you omit one ingredient, like salt, the soup will taste bland. If you omit one competency, like Qualifying, your sales effectiveness will suffer. While you can’t leave one ingredient out of the soup, it’s also not possible to make soup by focusing on and including only one ingredient. Likewise, with sales, you can’t expect to succeed, dominate your market, and celebrate your results if you focus on and include only one of the competencies on my list.
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How Would These Sports Celebrities Perform in Sales?
- October 23, 2014
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
I decided to lighten things up a bit with my analysis of how some famous sports celebrities would perform if they were in sales. You’ll enjoy this one.
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Why My Golfing May be Just Like Your Sales Recruiting
- October 14, 2014
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
On the rare occasion that I have the opportunity to golf, it doesn’t matter what I choose for clubs, balls, gloves, tees or clothing. At this point in my life and very short golfing career, just being out with a friend is good enough for me and if we count his strokes, and my lost balls, our final scores might even be competitive!
That’s how some companies recruit salespeople. It doesn’t matter who they are, where they come from, if they have selling skills, and whether or not they have any experience. These companies treat sales recruiting like the instructions on their shampoo bottle – they rinse and repeat.
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Solitaire and Modern Sales Training – What Should it Cover and Include?
- October 6, 2014
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Categories: Analogies, Understanding the Sales Force
I’ve been playing one of those Solitaire games on my iPad and I can routinely score in the neighborhood of 2 minutes and 30 seconds, with my best time being just under 2 minutes. I thought I was doing pretty well until I realized that my wife routinely scores between 1 minute and 1:20 seconds with her best scores (not score) being under 1 minute. She has scored as low as 48 seconds.
If not for my wife, I would have thought I was a real pro at Solitaire!
This is exactly how many CEO’s, Presidents and Sales VP’s view their sales forces. Without anything or anyone with whom to compare, they form their judgements on sales effectiveness in a vacuum. I routinely hear things like, “We have a custom sales process.”, and “We’ve been working on consultative selling.” Yet, after a sales force evaluation has been completed, those same companies are routinely found to have been lagging, not leading, in those areas.
When it comes to providing sales training for your sales force, what exactly, should modern training include?
