If you’re working hard but aren’t consistently generating enough sales and getting referrals, chances are it’s a matter of trust. One of the most critically important and yet frequently overlooked aspects of selling is creating a solid foundation of trust and rapport.

Suppose you could incorporate a few simple, yet highly effective ideas into your selling process and substantially increase your bottom line?

Successful salespeople have a knack for making people feel important. They understand the value of building trust and rapport early on in the selling process. For you see, it really doesn’t matter how knowledgeable you are about … Read the rest

Are you aware that your body language gestures reveal your deepest feelings and hidden thoughts to total strangers? The very first sale you must make with each new prospect is to “sell yourself.” If your prospect doesn’t like or trust you, he or she will never even remotely consider buying your product or service. Understanding body language gestures will help you build trust and rapport quickly with your prospects and customers — face-to-face or over the phone.

Body language is a mixture of movement, posture, and tone of voice. Top sales reps and the most successful managers recognize the importance … Read the rest

Why is it that some sales reps consistently earn a six-figure annual income while other reps, putting in the same hours, selling the same products, and trained by the same sales manager struggle each month financially to make ends meet? The answer to this question is painfully simple; the six-figure sales reps understand the importance of business development and never forget to ask for referrals.

Top-producing sales reps set high standards for themselves and spend the majority of their time either actively prospecting for new business or closing sales. Successful sales reps set productivity goals, establish priorities, and don’t waste … Read the rest

Have you ever had a sale that didn’t close and you weren’t sure why? Chances are you lost the sale because you didn’t establish sufficient trust and rapport with your prospect. Once you have developed trust and rapport, you’ve actually got the hard part behind you and you’re probably going to make a sale!

For you see, it really doesn’t matter how knowledgeable you are about your product or how professional your PowerPoint slides look, because unless you’ve earned your prospect’s trust and confidence you’re not going to make the sale — period. The bottom line here is that people … Read the rest

Essentially a sales manager’s primary responsibility is to recruit, train and motivate his or her sales force to achieve peak performance. Of these three vitally important management tasks, recruiting is the least understood and by far the most challenging.

If you’re successful during the recruiting interview process and hire a superstar sales rep, you’ll find that he or she is self-motivated, coachable, and eager to train. On the other hand, if you’re recruiting out of desperation because your sales reps are failing left and right and you need another warm body, you’ll experience low morale, continued high turnover, and find … Read the rest

How can you stay self-motivated and productive in the midst of turbulent times and a sluggish economy? How do you persevere as a salesperson when times are tough and customers seem to be holding on to every penny in fear of economic uncertainty?

Every challenge, setback and personal difficulty you encounter in life also brings with it the seed of equivalent or greater benefit! The key to overcoming adversity is to avoid the temptation of panic and instead, focus on finding the greater benefit. Adversity will never leave you where it found you; it will either strengthen your character or … Read the rest

While you may not have recognized it, the last time you ordered from a fast food restaurant or went to the post office, there is a good chance you experienced some type of cross-selling or up selling.

Cross-selling and up selling are well-established and highly effective marketing practices utilized by a wide variety of industries. Shortsighted salespeople are often quick to suggest that customers get irritated by attempts to cross-sell products and perceive cross-selling as an aggressive sales technique. Interestingly enough, consumer research indicates that the reverse is true. The majority of consumers surveyed actually preferred a full range of … Read the rest

The most successful companies and the highest paid salespeople place great value on developing lifetime relationships with their customers and actively look for opportunities to render service above and beyond their customers’ expectations.

In today’s competitive marketplace, your customers are aggressively prospected and their loyalty cannot be taken for granted. Customer-focused companies and individuals recognize that relationship building and follow-up service are critical components for promoting both customer retention and long-term revenue growth.

When it comes to rendering superior customer service, a “one size fits all” approach simply doesn’t cut it. Research in the field of human psychology indicates people … Read the rest

In 1957, Earl Nightingale, speaker, author and co founder of the Nightingale-Conant Corporation, recorded his classic motivational record The Strangest Secret. The Strangest Secret sold more than one million copies and made history in the recording industry by being honored as the first Gold Record for the spoken word. Nightingale, known as the “dean of personal development,” concluded that life’s “strangest secret” is that we become what we think about all day long.

Your belief system, like your computer, doesn’t judge or even question what you input; it merely accepts your thoughts as the truth, the whole truth and … Read the rest

I believe that the earning potential for a salesperson is directly linked to the quality of his or her active listening skills. To listen closely and reply well is the highest perfection we are able to attain in the art of selling. An ancient Chinese proverb reminds us: “To listen well is as powerful a means of influence as to talk well.” While everyone can benefit from this sage advice, these words of wisdom are particularly appropriate for professional salespeople. No independent sales representative has ever listened himself out of a sale.

Would you consider yourself to be a good … Read the rest

It has been said that salespeople who avoid making phone calls have skinny children. Prospecting for new business is critically important and for the majority of salespeople, it is by far the most challenging and stressful aspect of their profession. Successful salespeople are proactive and recognize the importance of prospecting for new business daily. They don’t have to be reminded to ask for referrals or follow up on a sales lead, they do it automatically. This article is full of helpful phone calling tips and techniques which, if put into practice, will fill your appointment calendar with new business opportunities!

Have you ever wondered why you seem to hit it off right away with some people, while with others it’s more like oil and water? A person’s temperament style not only determines his or her energy level, behavioral traits, body language patterns, and buying style, but it also influences compatibility with other people.

The yin and the yang, the ancient Chinese symbol for balance, depicts the strong attraction and complementary nature of opposites. Just as oil and water repel, while magnet and metal attract, we too are attracted or repelled by other people instinctively. For example, each of us have … Read the rest

While you may not have recognized it, the last time you ordered from a fast food restaurant or went to the post office, there is a good chance you experienced some form of cross-selling or up-selling. Cross-selling and up-selling are well-established and highly effective marketing practices used by a wide variety of industries.

What is cross-selling? It is a proactive, ongoing sales process designed to provide your customers with a full spectrum of your company’s products and services. The good news is cross-selling is one of the most profitable and least risky endeavors a sales rep can undertake. My first … Read the rest

Whether you’re conducting a one-on-one interview, motivating your sales team or delivering a keynote address, your success as a leader is defined by your ability to persuade with clarity and passion.

In fact, you might say that leadership is synonymous with effective communication. According to Harvey MacKay, author of the book Swim With the Sharks, the number-one skill most lacking in business today is public speaking — the ability to present oneself. If you want to stand out from the crowd, get promoted or develop an award-winning sales team, you need to polish your communication and persuasion skills.

Throughout … Read the rest

Some people can’t tell a lie, others can’t tell the truth, and unfortunately, most people can’t tell the difference.

Can you tell when someone is pulling the wool over your eyes? Whether you’re an attorney selecting a jury, a manager interviewing a new agent or a salesperson making a presentation, your ability to quickly and accurately discern the truth greatly enhances your effectiveness. Fortunately, having the ability to sort fact from fiction is an important communication skill that can be learned.

Aside from con men, compulsive liars and some politicians, most people become uncomfortable when telling a lie and transmit … Read the rest

The most successful companies place great value on developing lifetime relationships with their customers. In today’s competitive marketplace, they’re aware that their customers are aggressively prospected and their loyalty cannot be taken for granted.

Customer-focused companies recognize that relationship building and follow-on service are critical components for promoting both customer retention and revenue growth.

Build a Relationship

Today we have access to innovative tools such as the Internet, cell phones, faxes and voice mail, all designed to enhance our ability to communicate. Nevertheless, even with all of these technological tools at our disposal, the alarming number of dissatisfied customers, lost … Read the rest

How can you stay self-motivated and productive in the midst of turbulent times and a sluggish economy? How do you persevere as a salesperson when times are tough and customers seem to be holding on to every penny in fear of economic uncertainty?

Every challenge, setback and personal difficulty you encounter in life also brings with it the seed of equivalent or greater benefit! The key to overcoming adversity is to avoid the temptation of panic and instead focus on finding the greater benefit. Adversity will never leave you where it found you; it will either strengthen your character or … Read the rest