Get Proactive About Sales Referrals
KLA Group
AUGUST 16, 2022
Sales referrals are one of the best – and easiest – ways to find new opportunities, By Kendra Lee This post was originally published in August, 2018 and updated in August, 2022.
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This Is What Your Referral Program Is Missing
No More Cold Calling
MAY 21, 2020
Do you know your referral gap quotient? Steve had a referral program. (Or He proudly told me that 30 percent of his company’s business came from referrals. What about your account executives? Do they know how to get referrals? What he needed was a dedicated and proactive outbound strategy.
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Answering Your Most Burning Referral Selling Questions
No More Cold Calling
JUNE 24, 2021
How to ask for referrals and other FAQs. After more than 25 years as an expert on referral sales, I’m still asked exactly the same referral selling questions today. In no particular order, here are the most common referral selling questions I hear … 1. How do I get over my reluctance to ask for referrals?
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What Saleswomen Do Really, Really Well
No More Cold Calling
MARCH 29, 2019
Women in sales have a natural advantage. When you think about salespeople, you probably picture men. Women in sales understand that relationships are built on trust, and we have the savvy and patience to foster strong personal and business relationships. That’s why we’re great at getting referrals.
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5 Reasons Your Team Doesn’t Know How to Get Referrals
No More Cold Calling
JANUARY 10, 2019
Asking for referrals might be hard, but it pays off big! Ask most anybody for the secret to how to get referrals, and they’ll probably tell you the first step is to simply ask. Whether you’re a sales newbie or a veteran rainmaker, asking is hard. Therefore, it’s even more intimidating for them to ask for referrals.
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Use a Sales Referral Strategy to Close 70% of Your Deals
Alice Heiman
MARCH 7, 2023
If a referral closes up to 70% of the time, why are we spending most of our effort on strategies that close less than 1% of the time?! A typical B2B sales strategy relies on Sales Development Reps (SDRs) making cold calls or cold emails to try to set up an appointment for an Account Executive (AE) to deliver a sales pitch.
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Without Call-Backs, Your Lead Gen Is Dead in the Water
No More Cold Calling
FEBRUARY 14, 2019
Here’s how to generate leads and get call-backs. Social media, marketing automation, AI, predictive analytics, and all kinds of technology have cast doubt on traditional sales techniques and encouraged organizations to rely on digital sales prospecting. In B2B sales, closers aren’t the ones with the best technology.
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Why You Need to Make Time for Asking for Referrals
No More Cold Calling
OCTOBER 18, 2018
Getting referrals business should be top. priority in your sales prospecting techniques. Message to sales leaders: Your job is to get the rocks off the road so your team can close deals, exceed quota, and blow past revenue goals. You know who doesn’t have to worry about reps making quota?
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How to Easily Motivate and Incentivize Sales Pipeline Building
Understanding the Sales Force
JUNE 20, 2023
Last week, I wrote about how the criteria you use to choose your all-time favorite songs is essentially the same as the criteria your prospects use to choose between you and a competitor. Sales Leaders at nearly every company complain about CRM compliance. Sales Leaders at nearly every company complain about CRM compliance.
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Why the Best Lead Generation Techniques Are Proactive
No More Cold Calling
MAY 3, 2018
They know how to prospect for sales, and it’s not sitting back and waiting for marketing to send them leads. They’re proactive, disciplined, insightful, and great at building relationships. They have one job and one job only—to get in early, ideally before prospects even know they have a need. Get Referrals.
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Cold Calling vs. Asking for Referrals: Which Is Scarier? (October Referral Selling Insights)
No More Cold Calling
OCTOBER 28, 2018
Most sales reps dread cold calling, but they don’t exactly fear it. But whether or not they want to admit it, most salespeople do fear asking for referrals. I’ve been asked in the past if women or men are better at referral sales, and I didn’t think it mattered. Why You Need to Make Time for Asking for Referrals.
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How Sales Specialists Help Reach Your Customers
Sales and Marketing Management
APRIL 26, 2019
I was surprised to hear him talk about the fact that his company was now embracing specialist sales roles. The CMO said this “breakthrough” strategy was the foundation of the company’s sales and marketing plans. The days of the sales generalist are over. The time spent with sales is decreasing.
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They Actually Said My Sales Lead Generation Is Old School
No More Cold Calling
OCTOBER 4, 2018
But here’s what they’re missing on referral B2B lead generation. I’ve had it with the accusations that referrals don’t scale, that referrals are a favor, that referrals can be digital, that all you need to do is ask for referrals, and the other crap that so-called experts tout on social media.
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Unconscious Bias Goes Double for Boomer Saleswomen (March Referral Selling Insights)
No More Cold Calling
MARCH 31, 2019
Does age really matter in sales? That’s exactly what the CMO of a tech company said about how to explain your mission statement. I interviewed eight working grandmothers between the ages of 46 and 68 about themes or trends common to all of us. Why Women in Sales Don’t Want to Work for You. It was 1936.
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3 Ways to Guarantee Referral Prospecting Success
No More Cold Calling
APRIL 6, 2017
Think a referral system is easy? That’s why referral selling is the only prospecting strategy that ensures qualified lead generation. And it only works if you have a referral system in place to ensure sales reps ask for referrals every day. The business case for referral selling is loud and clear.
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Want Loyal Clients? Get Loyal Employees [May Referral Selling Insights]
No More Cold Calling
MAY 30, 2020
Daily communication with your sales team is a must during quarantine. You’ll find lots about customer experience (CX) and tips for your pivot in my blog posts this month: Why Customer Experience Should Be Top of Mind for Sales Leaders. Read “ Why Customer Experience Should Be Top of Mind for Sales Leaders.”).
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Is Your Sales Process Broken?
No More Cold Calling
OCTOBER 24, 2013
You already know that referrals are the most effective and powerful way to attract new customers. But referral selling doesn’t just happen. It’s an intentional, proactive sales strategy. A disciplined, measurable referral system delivers every time. Asking for referrals is proactive.
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Do Account-Based Sales Reps Really Need SDRs?
No More Cold Calling
JUNE 1, 2017
What does this have to do with account-based sales? Well, I’ve been waiting my whole life to say this: Account-based sales reps don’t need SDRs. OK, not my whole life … only about six months. I know what you’re thinking: What’s her beef with sales development reps (SDRs)? There’s No Role for SDRs in Account-Based Sales.
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Word of Mouth and Referral Marketing
Pipeliner
SEPTEMBER 21, 2021
In this Expert Insight Interview, Raúl Galera discusses word of mouth and referral marketing. Raúl Galera is the Chief Advocate at Referral Candy, an app that helps eCommerce brands launch and run customer referral programs. This Expert Insight Interview discusses: The relationship between word of mouth and referral marketing.
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97 What Is the Most Effective of Account-Based Sales Strategies?
No More Cold Calling
FEBRUARY 16, 2017
Believe that, and your account-based sales strategies are doomed from the start. The best account-based sales strategies aren’t reactive. Top salespeople are proactive, disciplined, insightful, and great at building relationships. Of course, the challenge is getting the chance to have that conversation. Big mistake!
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An Inclusive Approach to Prospecting – Sales eXecution 260
The Pipeline
JULY 21, 2014
You know sales is a lot like politics, some are isolationists, others realize we live in a big world with plenty of room for all to thrive, and not always at the expense of others, I guess these would be the inclusionary camp. Sort of like the “Referral Über Alles” approach. I like to leverage cold calls to get referrals.
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What is a Sales Cycle? The 8 Stages of an Effective Sales Cycle
Nutshell
MARCH 11, 2024
The sales cycle can be a mysterious concept for a lot of people. The sales cycle is a universal reference of what happens in a successful sales process for all kinds of industries. Are you considering the sales cycle in your sales strategy? And what is the sales cycle anyway?
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77 Want to have a great reputation? Earn it!
Jeffrey Gitomer
JANUARY 24, 2013
Your reputation creates or destroys sales. Become known for being proactively remarkable. When you stand out from other vendors, you will be talked about, and earning a reputation (and a testimonial) will be simple. If you get my weekly email magazine, Sales Caffeine, you know it is all about sales help.
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The Importance of Preparation in Selling
Janek Performance Group
FEBRUARY 6, 2024
In sales, preparation is the steps taken to understand prospects and clients at each stage of the sales process. The more we know about our clients, the more we can solve their problems and help them succeed. Yet, research in LinkedIn shows 70 percent of B2B buyers think sales reps are not adequately prepared.
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The SMB Owner’s Guide to Navigating Sales During Economic Uncertainty
Act!
APRIL 22, 2024
Let’s get started. In other words, most businesses will see a drop in sales and revenue during such periods, resulting in cash flow challenges. Given that most small businesses are already cash-strapped, it becomes even more challenging to cater to changing customer needs and drive sales.
Sales Communication Evaluation – Score Your Team
criteria for success
JULY 26, 2022
Sales communication is a vital skill for salespeople. If you are wondering how your team stacks up, use this tool to score your team’s sales communication skills. Sales Communication with… 1. Can your salespeople effectively talk to prospects and answer questions about your offering? Let's Talk Sales!
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Customers, Employees and Influencers as High Performing Sales and Marketing Channels
The Pipeline
FEBRUARY 6, 2014
Brands are now starting to realize that what others say and write about them defines who they are. By encouraging and empowering these customers, employees and influencers, they will drive peer-to-peer referrals, forward content, share information about new products and promotions, and write testimonials.
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How to Focus on Customer Retention to Acquire New Accounts
Alice Heiman
APRIL 14, 2021
More often than not , sales and marketing efforts are centered around customer acquisition. But by focusing only on getting new customers , businesses may not be optimizing the customer experience for their current ones. What happens once your sales team lands a new customer? The sales team closes a deal.
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3 Dangers for Salespeople Who “Assume”
No More Cold Calling
DECEMBER 4, 2014
Assumptions tank deals and ruin sales pipelines. Remember the old saying about what happens when you assume? Assuming is dangerous because it makes us lazy about increasing sales pipelines. Here are three dangers in assuming that could cost you opportunities and minimize your sales effectiveness. But she does.
How Can I Get Testimonials From My Small Business Customers?
BuzzBoard
FEBRUARY 16, 2024
Why Getting Testimonials is Important for a Local Business? Salespeople: Take testimonials and stories as key elements for your sales strategies. Do not underestimate the impact of testimonials in your sales toolkit. Moreover, think about leveraging social media platforms — a superb medium to gather testimonials.
April Referral Selling Insights
No More Cold Calling
APRIL 30, 2017
Think winning is focusing on a prospect’s desired outcome and then demonstrating how your solution gets results they can bank on? Sales teams who adopt referral selling have an advantage: Their referral sources generate enough value for prospects to agree to a meeting. What’s to fear about prospecting? Surprised?
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Optimizing The Sales Process (video)
Pipeliner
JANUARY 22, 2021
Does your company have a sales process in place? In this Expert Insight Interview, Doug Brown discusses the optimization of a sales process. Doug Brown is a sales revenue growth expert, business consultant, author, and speaker. The interview discusses: How to evaluate your sales process. Key benefits of a sales process.
Why Are You Trying To Kill Me?
The Pipeline
NOVEMBER 13, 2014
Recent headlines about AC/DC’s drummer brush with the law, got me thinking why would someone want to kill someone? Then I remembered that in sales we see this all the time, over and over, people are trying to kill cold calling. Step back you don’t wanna get any on your shoes). . Said the Cold Call To The Socialite.
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The Value of Cross Referrals – Sales eXchange 158
The Pipeline
JULY 16, 2012
Last week I was working with a group, we were looking at more effective prospecting, when we got around to discussing referrals, I got back some familiar comments. The specific comment was that the rep was reluctant to ask prospects/clients for referrals “because what if the person or company they refer are out of my territory?
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Say No to the Sales Mantra, “Always Be Closing”
No More Cold Calling
JULY 12, 2012
Better in sales to “always be asking” (ABA). It’s a part of the American sales DNA, as immortalized by Alec Baldwin in Glengarry Glen Ross. For the referral process to work (and it does: when you work it, it works) we must always ask for referrals in our sales process. If You Don’t Ask, You Don’t Get.
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Out-Of-The Box Strategies For Targeting Your Ideal Qualified Prospects
Sales Gravy
SEPTEMBER 1, 2023
If You Don't Take Action, You Won't Get Results In this episode of the Sales Gravy Podcast, Jeb Blount and David Newman, author of Do It! To Sell, You Have to Take Action As a sales professional, you face a simple choice. Instead, you need to be proactive and actively seek fresh targets on a regular basis.
Top Sales Strategies for Becoming a 1% Earner
Vengreso
JUNE 6, 2023
Top earners in sales use top sales strategies to attain their success. Brown , the CEO of CEO Sales Strategies and a Sales Revenue and Profit Growth Expert. Brown , the CEO of CEO Sales Strategies and a Sales Revenue and Profit Growth Expert. For this week’s episode, I am joined by Doug C.
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90 Are You Social Enough? May Referral Selling Insights
No More Cold Calling
JUNE 1, 2018
Listen in on the conversation between me, Bonnie, Lori Richardson of Score More Sales, and Michael LaBate, head of program development and operations for SAP’s global social selling program. Plus, check out last month’s blog posts from No More Cold Calling: Why the Best Lead Generation Techniques Are Proactive. That’s order-taking.
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Fewer Inbound Leads in 2024? 3 Things Sellers Should Do to Hit their Numbers.
Hubspot Sales
APRIL 1, 2024
Welcome to "The Pipeline" — a weekly column from HubSpot, featuring actionable advice and insight from real sales leaders. Ask any salesperson if they get enough inbound leads. It’s kind of a running joke that no seller will ever get enough leads. 20 different sales orgs. 20 different sales orgs.
50 Ways to Score More Sales
Score More Sales
JANUARY 27, 2014
Need some sales inspiration? A new twist on an old sales idea you’d like to do again? A quick sales jump-start this week? The idea is to get inspired to take action. What are you already doing that IS working for you every day to be excited about contacting potential buyers? attend a sales conference.
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281 Customers for Life: The Art of Keeping Your Best Clients
Alice Heiman
AUGUST 8, 2018
Some sales executives still have account management along with landing new customers. With all these people concerned about the customers, we should be able to retain them. Oversee the implementation or delivery and be proactive and stay in touch through the process. Be proactive in sharing information that will be helpful.
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10 Prospecting Tactics to Boost Your Sales and Close More Deals
Crunchbase
APRIL 11, 2023
It’s a vital part of any sales strategy because it helps develop your sales pipeline and brings you one step closer to securing new customers. Find a balance between inbound and outbound prospecting There are two main prospecting methods used by sales reps to generate leads and prospects: outbound and inbound.
10 Prospecting Tactics to Boost Your Sales and Close More Deals
Crunchbase
APRIL 11, 2023
It’s a vital part of any sales strategy because it helps develop your sales pipeline and brings you one step closer to securing new customers. Find a balance between inbound and outbound prospecting There are two main prospecting methods used by sales reps to generate leads and prospects: outbound and inbound.
The Beginner’s Guide to Referral Marketing
Zoominfo
MARCH 6, 2019
In fact, 84% of B2B decision makers start the buying process with a referral ( source ). We touched on this phenomenon in a recent blog post about word-of-mouth marketing. Today, we’re taking a deeper look at one of the most effective word-of-mouth marketing strategies: referral marketing. What Is Referral Marketing?
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