Understanding the Sales Force

NOVEMBER 3, 2014

Believe it or not, most people still believe that sales success boils down to getting a lot of people to agree to watch a demo. Dave Kurlan Inbound Marketing sales methodology closing sales performance sales selelction' I''m sure I''ve missed a few but you get the gist.

Sales Methodology 212

Sales Methodology Inbound Decision Maker Consultative Selling 212

Understanding the Sales Force

JULY 14, 2014

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan. Having founded Kurlan & Associates in 1985 and Objective Management Group in 1990, the only surprise should be that it took so long to combine the two passions and write Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball , in 2005.

Sales Process 243

Sales Process Sales Up-Sell Follow-up 243

Understanding the Sales Force

SEPTEMBER 9, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan There are more sales experts, self-professed and otherwise, than ever before. There is more free content on sales and selling than anyone could have imagined. There are categories of sales tools and CRM applications where none existed a few years ago. It seems to have worsened!

Sales Management 288

Sales Management Hiring Compensation Trends 288

Understanding the Sales Force

SEPTEMBER 18, 2023

One major key to success in sales is a salesperson’s ability to reach decision makers. In my space, that is our buyer and signer. However, working with them also lengthens the sales process. ” It’s been years since Freddy was in training so why did it take so long for him to change his sales strategy? .'”

Decision Maker 193

Decision Maker Insurance Insurance Call-back 193

Understanding the Sales Force

OCTOBER 28, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan I haven''t been completely transparent in some of my recent articles. I have continued to urge readers how important it is to sell using a consultative, buyer-focused methodology and a formal, structured sales process. What if buyers should dictate the process?

Decision Maker 173

Decision Maker Inbound Buyer Lead Rank 173

Understanding the Sales Force

NOVEMBER 27, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan One of the findings in the most recent Sales Performance Optimization Study , from CSO Insights, revealed that the win rate for deals has reached an all-time low. Does this represent a change in buyer behavior? Is sales process having an impact? Does that surprise you?

Travel 251

Travel Decision Maker Insurance Insurance 251

Understanding the Sales Force

SEPTEMBER 2, 2014

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan. While it does provide a myriad of new ways to connect with potential buyers and customers, most who are providing the tips, steps, methods, tools and opinions are selling those very services that support the existance of a social selling industry.

Social Selling 243

Social Selling Inbound Google Video 243

Understanding the Sales Force

AUGUST 9, 2016

It was just last month that I wrote this hugely popular article about the tech buyer who hated salespeople. Well, in the 31 years I've been in the sales consulting business, I have heard some very crazy sales selection criteria too. In the first paragraph I mentioned that I had a crazy case of poison ivy.

Hiring 120

Hiring Remedy Insurance Insurance 120

Understanding the Sales Force

JULY 30, 2012

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Yesterday, we were in a small seaside village and in a nautical gift shop, I read this sailing quote: "The pessimist complains about the wind. The realist adjusts the sales strategy.". If this is normal buyer behavior, then this calls for a salesperson! c) Copyright 2012 Dave Kurlan

Decision Maker 253

Decision Maker Proposal Sales Cycle Exact 253

Understanding the Sales Force

FEBRUARY 24, 2014

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Do you prefer to see movies when the previews are awesome or dull? If you are using our sales recruiting process (STAR), then your sales candidates receive an email after submitting a resume. I am completing a study of the functionality of today''s sales force.

Company 196

Company Webinar Metrics Compensation Study 196

Understanding the Sales Force

AUGUST 18, 2015

Sales Process isn't even the only thing that inbound marketers say is dead. Let's start with my recent Google search for "Sales Process is Dead." One article was written by a sales expert discussing the concept of following the buyer's purchasing process. Don't get me wrong. Are Top Salespeople Challengers? April 29 2013.

Inbound 120

Inbound Inside Sales Sales Process Top of Funnel 120

Understanding the Sales Force

JULY 30, 2012

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Yesterday, we were in a small seaside village and in a nautical gift shop, I read this sailing quote: "The pessimist complains about the wind. The realist adjusts the sales strategy.". If this is normal buyer behavior, then this calls for a salesperson! How about your sales force? (c)

Decision Maker 245

Decision Maker Proposal Sales Cycle Exact 245

Understanding the Sales Force

SEPTEMBER 23, 2014

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan. Not a day goes by when we aren''t talking with someone about their sales cycle and how long it has become. The quest to shorten the sales cycle is similar to the desire to shorten baseball games. In selling, there are even more options for shortening the sales cycle.

Sales Cycle 199

Sales Cycle Proposal Decision Maker Sports 199

Understanding the Sales Force

JULY 31, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan The Growing Power of Inside Sales appeared on the Harvard Business Review Blog on July 29. The authors listed four scenarios where a move to inside sales could be effective: By market segment, By stage of the buyer engagement process, By geography, and. By product or service.

Inside Sales 211

Inside Sales SAP Sales Talent Lead Rank 211

Understanding the Sales Force

SEPTEMBER 29, 2014

This is when the conversation began to resemble a sales call. He did what a lot of buyers do to salespeople and began to boast about how well-positioned his company is to market OMG in Hong Kong and what a huge opportunity this would be for OMG. He expected me to waive the fees in exchange for the great opportunity he described.

Licensing 229

Licensing Negotiation Exact Objections 229

Understanding the Sales Force

FEBRUARY 17, 2016

I've written more than 1,400 articles for Understanding the Sales Force and every one of them has been my observation of salespeople, sales managers and sales teams. Ken is one of my longtime readers, a former client, and last week he sent this note expressing his frustrations as a buyer of services.

Sales Leadership 120

Sales Leadership Coaching Buyer Training 120

Understanding the Sales Force

OCTOBER 2, 2017

Why isn't it as friction-free as an abundance of happy buyers would suggest it should be? The excitement from these purchases tends to last much longer than the moments themselves. So if we all love buying stuff, why do salespeople struggle so much when they try to sell stuff?

Sports 149

Sports Customer Buyer B2C 149

Understanding the Sales Force

OCTOBER 25, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan As wonderful as all the hype is about inbound, lead gen, and the new way to sell to these leads, one important fact is being ignored. When we ignore motivation, we turn back the clocks by about 50 years, and return to the purely transactional sale. Closing percentages are DOWN! Anyone else?

Inbound 253

Inbound Lead Gen Motivation Up-Sell 253

Understanding the Sales Force

APRIL 4, 2024

Assessments Compared Data on Sales Excellence Coaching Salespeople MUST READ: Are Assessments as Evil as the Persona Movie Suggests? The Caliper vs OMG Comparison: Which Sales Candidate Assessment is More Predictive? How to Transform Your Sales Pipeline Today Can Malcom Gladwell Explain the Sales Hiring Problem?

Hiring 149

Hiring Sales Leadership Sales Forecasts Forecasting 149

Understanding the Sales Force

APRIL 17, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Last week I posted this article in reference to an Inc. This is known throughout the selling universe but sales people still suck at this. Non-Supportive Buy Cycle (the way that salespeople buy things doesn''t support ideal sales outcomes). Forget what we want to call the approach.

Decision Maker 268

Decision Maker Consultative Selling Buying Cycle Proposal 268

Understanding the Sales Force

APRIL 30, 2015

He says that consultative sellers end up with buyers who can only make small decisions, experts end up in purchasing and only industry authorities can reach executive decision-makers. In this article for Middle Market Executive ,Tom Searcy insists that Consultative Selling is dead. experts say, "Here is your pain.",

Consultative Selling 120

Consultative Selling Decision Maker Industry Up-Sell 120

Understanding the Sales Force

JULY 8, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan I have been teaching and writing for years that buyer-focused selling, a consultative approach to sales, is the best approach for differentiating, adding and being the value, maintaining and increasing margins and winning a larger percentage of opportunities. The question is why?

Consultative Selling 259

Consultative Selling Margin Sports Sales Methodology 259

Understanding the Sales Force

MARCH 14, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan I just read the 13 Traits of An Outstanding Salesperson , an article that appeared on Inc.com. A true sales Hunter's mentality is to actually find as many sweet spot opportunities as possible and not waste time pursuing those with low odds of closing. Intelligent Fighter? The Trifecta?

Hiring 253

Hiring Motivation Webinar Metrics Opportunity 253

Understanding the Sales Force

APRIL 3, 2014

Most of the sales bloggers don''t touch on rejection but when it does comes up, it''s usually in the context of fear, as in fear of rejection. But rejection isn''t that well understood by salespeople, their sales managers or sales even their sales VP''s. The increasing likelihood of a sale.

Face-to-face 215

Face-to-face Decision Maker Call-back Outbound 215

Understanding the Sales Force

FEBRUARY 15, 2024

Before long, nobody will listen and worse, sales management won’t be inclined to provide feedback. That’s what salespeople and their sales managers should be doing – considering every variable. That’s what salespeople and their sales managers should be doing – considering every variable.

Forecasting 203

Forecasting Sales Forecasts Decision Maker Call-back 203

Understanding the Sales Force

JUNE 3, 2019

Most of the CEOs and sales leaders I speak with agree that their sales organizations need to be more effective at taking a consultative approach to selling. OMG's Sales Force Evaluation usually reveals that they aren't doing much more than talking about it, as their scores for the Consultative Seller competency are quite low.

How To 237

How To Consultative Selling Buyer Sales 237

Understanding the Sales Force

MARCH 4, 2013

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Two weeks ago I wrote this article about how demos and presentations are like snack foods. Until salespeople can be shown just how ineffective it is to demo and present early in the sales process, and until they realize that presenting is not selling, they will not demand or even embrace change.

Sales Qualified Lead 188

Sales Qualified Lead Journal Consultative Selling Proposal 188

Understanding the Sales Force

JANUARY 5, 2022

My articles begin with analogies so we'll start by asking, has baseball changed?

B2B 296

B2B Inbound Consultative Selling Outbound 296

Understanding the Sales Force

JUNE 20, 2014

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan I subscribe to several newsletters written by medical doctors who practice natural medicine. I read most of the other sales blogs too. Some of them are from companies within the Inside Sales community which, in an attempt to sell their services, are also publishing misinformation.

Consultative Selling 275

Consultative Selling Inside Sales Lead Nurturing ACT 275

Understanding the Sales Force

APRIL 25, 2012

Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Chris Scirpoli, of Invoke Selling , managed to engage me for nearly 15 minutes in a power-packed, fast-paced, video interview that covered a tremendous amount of ground in a very short period of time. If you liked that, you'll really like the Sales Leadership Symposium in Boston next month.

Company 188

Company Decision Maker Revenue Webinar Metrics 188

Understanding the Sales Force

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

That’s what big, important sales presentations are. Through the sales process (or if you insist, their buyer journey), they may develop a favorite based on their respective roles. Political Theater. Nothing more and nothing less. Nothing will change that on testimony day and, as a result, nothing changes.

Company 193

Company Decision Maker Proposal Up-Sell 193