LinkedIn for Sales Leaders:
5 Strategies for Results

My research tells me that leveraging LinkedIn yields significant sales results. I am working with Kristina Jaramillo and her partner Eric Gruber of GetLinkedInHelp.com to help me execute a focused plan for LinkedIn. Their approach is strategic and that’s what resonated with me. This guest post written by Kristina speaks to the importance of having a strategy for social selling.

Guest Post By Kristina Jaramillo

I’m sorry to say – but most sales leaders on LinkedIn do not have a strategy. They have a shopping list of tactics that need … Read More

The #1 Mistake in Handling Sales Objections

Think about a recent sales objection that you’ve encountered, one that typically surfaces in your selling world. What do you do when presented with a tough objection? Do you jump in to answer it with a convincing statement?

If so, how is that working for you? Likely, not very well. Here’s why.

Telling is not selling

We know that questions persuade more powerfully than any other selling skill. We know that ‘pitching’ our ideas, products and solutions without getting grounded in clients’ needs beforehand makes it next to impossible to position … Read More

Preparation Checklist for Intentional Selling Success

Preparation is the first step in the Intentional Selling 6-Step Process, as it is in any sales system process. Yet, when I work with sales professionals and we do a post-mortem sales autopsy, it’s the first place things go wrong – in the preparation, before there’s even any contact with the client!

Don’t let this happen to you. It’s avoidable. You have control over your sales preparation.

Failing to prepare is preparing to fail. But not all preparation is the same. Knowing how … Read More

Intentional Selling : The Power of Intention for Accelerating Sales Results

Anyone who works with me and knows me has heard me rave about the power of intention. It’s no accident that I named my sales process training Intentional Selling. What does the word ‘intention’ mean to you? How would you define it? And what does it have to do with selling anyway?

In my Intentional Selling workshops one of the foundational concepts I establish right at the beginning is the power of intention. When I ask people what the word intention means to … Read More

Referral Tips: How to Ask a Client for a Great Lead

This is the third post in a series on referral marketing. In our first post, 3 Reasons You’re Not Using Referral Marketing for New Leads, we explored how our mindset gets in our own way. We then focused on when to ask a client for a referral and the importance of specificity. In this post we’ll look at how to ask a client for a referral, so that it actually turns into a great sales lead.

Early in my career, I used to marvel at ‘Susie’ who was consistently the top … Read More

3 Reasons You’re Not Using Referral Marketing for New Leads

The most streamlined source of new business is to develop opportunities with existing clients, including asking them for referrals.

Event marketing, email marketing, research marketing, social media marketing are all excellent strategies for getting new leads for sales. But by far, one of the most under-utilized source of new business: referral marketing.

According to a study titled “Referral Programs and Customer Value” (published January 2011 issue of the American Marketing Association’s Journal of Marketing), customer referral programs are indeed a financially attractive way for firms to acquire new … Read More

Top 10 Sales Trends that Dominated 2013

In a recent survey to my newsletter subscribers, The Canadian Professional Sales Association (CPSA) was identified as the overwhelming favourite online resource for staying up to date on sales techniques. Check out my blog for mentions for other ‘go to’ web resources.

A great example of the good work done by the CPSA is their article 10 Sales Trends That Dominated 2013

All of the trends that dominated 2013 will continue to be important in 2014 and I encourage you to read the article if you haven’t already seen it. … Read More

Favourite Websites for Sales Techniques

In a recent survey to my newsletter subscribers, I had a number of interesting discoveries and I’d like to share one of them with you. In the survey I asked “What are your favourite websites for staying up-to-date on sales techniques?”

Favourite Websites for Sales Techniques: Nearly 50% of respondents said none or not applicable, which either means they may be using web resources but none stand out OR they don’t use web resources and aren’t taking … Read More