sales process
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Why Your Sales Team Needs Veteran Story Hour: Lessons from the Red Sox
- April 4, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
At a recent event, my wife and I heard hilarious and meaningful stories from three members of the 1986 Boston Red Sox — pitchers Bob Stanley and Bruce Hurst, and shortstop Spike Owen. It was nostalgic, fun, and powerful.
Why don’t more sales organizations do the same? Why not ask their best, most successful, veteran, and retired salespeople to spend an hour sharing meaningful, memorable, and even hilarious stories with the current team? It costs nothing, it’s not difficult or scary, and it delivers real results. -
Vultures or the Trusted Name in Sales Training?
- March 2, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Tired of Sandler, Challenger, SPIN, or Value Selling not delivering? Discover why companies turn to Baseline Selling after those methodologies fall short—and why it’s not vulturing, it’s expertise.
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How to Lock Competitors Out of Your Biggest Deals
- February 2, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
In sales, your biggest deals deserve vault-level protection. Using a simple lock-to-vault analogy, learn why closable opportunities are your most valuable assets—and exactly how to lock the competition out for good.
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Why Salespeople Need Music Lessons Before They Start Selling
- January 26, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Just like most kids fail to learn guitar without lessons, most salespeople flop when thrown straight into the field with no real training. In this article, Dave Kurlan draws a fresh parallel from the music world: self-taught “players” rarely succeed without mastering the fundamentals—notes, scales, chords, and theory. The same goes for sales. Sink-or-swim onboarding leads to mistakes, missed quotas, and burnout, while formal sales training (including process, methodology, and role plays) delivers massive wins. Backed by data showing 14% higher quota attainment, faster ramp times, and huge ROI, Dave explains the missing ingredient most programs ignore: a repeatable sales process and methodology. If you want new reps to make real music in sales—not just noise—skip the shortcuts.
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Top Sales Article of 2025
- January 6, 2026
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: News
Dave Kurlan’s article, Deadly Negotiation Strategies – The Bob Chronicles Part 8 – earned the Gold Medal for Top Sales Article of 2025.
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The 42 Best Sales and Sales Leadership Articles, Videos and Innovations of 2025
- December 17, 2025
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Celebrate 20 years of sales wisdom on Understanding the Sales Force with Dave Kurlan’s 2025 roundup! Dive into the Top 10 Video Rants that roast common pitfalls (from demo disasters to quota mysteries), the Top 7 game-changing innovations like the Sales Cholesterol diagnostic and SCAM/SCAR retention radar, and three killer Top 10 lists: Dave’s personal faves (golf analogies to BANT takedowns), Grok’s picks (cringe sales moments to grit audits), and engagement champs (Trump economy tips to duck-vs-owl hacks). Capping it off? The undisputed #1: “The Sales Cholesterol Analogy,” the only article nailing three lists. Merry holidays—here’s to bolder selling in 2026!
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Let the Sales Conversation Wander: Evolving Chats Unlock Powerful Sales Discovery
- November 24, 2025
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
When Monday morning hit and I had zero article ideas queued up—first time in 20 years, post-surgery aside—I panicked a bit. Then, cruising in the car with Beatles tunes blasting, I pinged Grok with a wild card: “How many songs did Lennon and McCartney write?” What unfolded was a total detour: We tallied their 1,200+ jams, stacked ’em against my 2k sales rants, dove into Dolly Parton’s marathon, Nutcracker team-sync lessons, Eagles live magic over studio polish… and boom, this post was born. No script, just flow. And that’s the secret sauce for killer sales discovery too—ditch the grocery-list questions, let the chat evolve, and uncover those hidden “must-haves” that seal deals. Data from OMG? Only 27% of reps nail qualifying, but the pros? They’re 4x more likely to crush quotas. Here’s how to jam like a pro.
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How Salespeople Can Differentiate Themselves with Their Introduction
- November 4, 2025
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Discover how adopting a catchy moniker—like my new “Sales Analogy King”—can set you apart in sales intros. Inspired by Verne Harnish and a “Tree-Stump Guy” hire, this reflective piece explores personal branding, legacy, and uncovering hidden talent with assessments like OMG.
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The Salesperson’s Survival Kit: 236 Sales Attributes, Traits, Competencies, and Behaviors to Crush Quotas
- October 24, 2025
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
I dug through 20 years of blog posts to compile every sales trait, competency, attribute, characteristic, element, component and desirable skill I’ve ever written about. From the 21 Sales Core Competencies to Steve Jobs’ deal-making magic, this cheat sheet is your roadmap to elite selling—packed with data, humor, and no-BS advice to up your sales game.
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How Half-Measures in Your Sales Process Can Kill Your Win Rate
- October 15, 2025
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Dr. Charles Stanley’s take on The Lord’s Prayer sparked a revelation: just like prayer, a sales process needs belief and intent to work. Too many companies compromise, settling for “good enough” results. Learn how a no-compromise approach with Baseline Selling doubled win rates for clients, including a $24M-to-$65M Oracle acquisition, and how it can boost your win rate by 30% or more—guaranteed.