Understanding the Sales Force
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How Targeting Improves Win Rates and Shortens Sales Cycles
- January 19, 2016
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
In sales, when we talk about targets, most people immediately think about revenue and profit targets, and sometimes product units and/or shipment targets. However, today we will discuss the importance of having targets around your opportunities. Please take a moment to review the image below:
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Sales Selection Experiment – Part 2 – It’s Back!
- January 13, 2016
- Posted by: Kurlan & Associates, Inc.
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
When our son was just beginning to speak and we did something that he really enjoyed, he would say, “Again! Again!”
Two years ago, I wrote about a sales selection experiment with a group of college kids and the results were so much fun to read that when they repeated the exercise this year, my first reaction was, “Again!” I think you’re going to really enjoy the conclusions from this year’s class!
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Is it OK if You Lose Customers Because of the Evolution of Your Product?
- January 11, 2016
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
One of the inevitable facts of selling is that the Law of Sales is much like the Law of Gravity. “What goes up must come down” loosely translates to “Who you sell will eventually go away.” The only question is whether that will be days, weeks, months, years or decades from now.
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What’s Missing from the Report That Says Sales Training Doesn’t Make Reps Better?
- January 6, 2016
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
I could not believe my eyes when I read this report. It was during the break between Christmas and New Years, so perhaps I wasn’t as sharp as would be during a regular business day. Maybe I missed something. So I reread the report and the words amazed me even further. The report claimed that salespeople don’t improve their skills as a result of sales training. Really? Let’s take a look.
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How Better Accountability Causes Sales Performance to Increase
- January 4, 2016
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
Sure, having goals is important, but having them in writing, with an achieve by date and a plan is exponentially more likely to have an actionable outcome than only having goals. And if you really want results, accountability is to goals as the accelerator is to the automobile. They both cause immediate action. Here’s what I mean.
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Lots of Gold and Bronze for Sales Achievements in 2015
- December 22, 2015
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
My final blog post of 2015 is a brag article. Sorry. Feel free to stop reading now if you don’t care about the outcome of the 2015 Top Sales Awards. Before I list the awards, I want to congratulate all of this year’s nominees and winners. This year’s winners are truly the best of the best and that was further emphasized this year with the elimination of the popular vote.
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Latest Debate Had Some Great Sales Leadership Examples
- December 17, 2015
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
You didn’t need to watch too much of the debate or watch for too long before hearing some bizarre examples of what some of the GOP candidates would do if they were elected as the Chief Leader of the United States.
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How to Get Prospects to Buy from You More Frequently!
- December 1, 2015
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
It’s a simple concept, really, but 74% of all salespeople aren’t very good at getting most people to buy from them. Even though the concept is simple, it seems really complicated to the group that can’t do it. Of course, most salespeople wouldn’t agree that they can’t do it, even when their win rates are below 50%. And in some tech businesses, salespeople seem to be happy with win rates under 20%. It’s incredible that people can become so darn comfortable with mediocrity! Solving the problem is easy when we have willing participants, so let’s discuss how to solve it once and for all.
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10 Great Examples – Customer Service as a Powerful Sales Tool
- November 23, 2015
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
What leaves a stronger and potentially longer lasting impression than your own experience with a brand? Let’s start with two great examples – experiences that make you choose to return for more.
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How to Get Your Sales Message to Resonate Every Time
- November 16, 2015
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
This is an article about getting your sales message to resonate – every time. However, before we can discuss that, I need to share a current, real world example. So bear with me.