Share The VP of Sales is the most fired position in corporate America today. The reason is simple. Their forecast number is tattooed on their foreheads for everyone to see. Make it and the Sales VP is a hero for a day. Miss it and well…. But consider this. Before any sale goes up on […]
Read MoreI prefer to hire smart sales people. The smarter the better. Changes in the market over the last ten years require smart people to help prospects solve problems. Not just the problems the prospect knows about, but problems they haven’t thought about yet.
Read MoreIt’s the category of internal candidate criteria we tend to focus on the most when hiring sales people. We tend to hire people we like, and we like people like ourselves. So hiring for internal criteria his is where our gut takes over. However, you can use corporate values and your own list of internal criteria. Here are mine.
Read MoreWhat are your criteria for hiring a great sales person, and what qualifications are you looking for? There seem to be as many processes and sets of qualifications as there are sales managers. This series explores hiring qualified sales people.
Read MoreEvery VP of Sales and Sales Manager will tell you that the most important thing they can do to achieve forecast is to “hire right.” The question is why so many struggle with this process?
Read MoreChallenging your team requires that you do things smarter and not just harder. There are some goals where working smarter is difficult.
One common case of the “false challenge” can occur in sales forecasting. It stems from the belief that sales people are lazy and will sandbag their numbers. So management might add 20% to their numbers regardless of history or latitude.
In Cost, Quality, and Value – The Buyer’s Side, I defined value as quality divided by cost. And quality was loosely defined as the degree to which customer or prospects needs are met. But that’s not the end of the story. The problem with this definition is… what happens when the prospect doesn’t know what they need?
Read MoreThere is a 2007 study by James Oldroyd, PhD Professor Sloan School of Management at MIT and David Elkington of InsideSales.com that I think is worth looking at.
Read MoreI once had a telemarketer keep me on the phone for over a minute. My usual average was less than 15 seconds, depending on how long it took them to take a breath. I’m polite because I like to hear their approaches. He asked me a key question; “Was I earning 20+% on my investments?” I said, no.
Read MoreMarketing Lead Generation Minneapolis St Paul Minnesota AtlantaWould you show up on a first date by bringing an engagement ring and your parents along? While this may be a custom in some countries, it could be interpreted as intrusive or presumptuous in our culture. Courtship takes some finesse, and often requires a number of steps. Often the best approach is the product of each of these steps. So why should it be any different with inbound and outbound marketing, or sales?
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