There’s a lot of stuff written about what sales managers have to do and their key job responsibilities. There lots of ways we see managers behaving. Some seem to think they have to be super sales people–the person that comes in to close the deal. MORE
No one wants to lose their highest performing sales people. Often, if we think they are in danger of being wooed away to a competitor or another job, we’ll look at adjusting compensation, incentives or other things. We promote them into sales management! MORE
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. MORE
We discussed why only 17% of all sales managers are effective at coaching and the conversation was very enlightening. So why aren’t more sales managers effective at coaching salespeople? DNA – They don’t have the DNA to support effective sales coaching. MORE
The Importance of Sales Management in a Recovering Economy. We have met with Sales Leaders from around the world, lead workshops, presented keynotes and developed new long term relationships with our client base. Based upon my conversations almost every sales leader is optimistic and pipelines are filling. What is the role or action points for sales manager’s in a recovering economy? Acumen Management Group Ltd. MORE
James Obermayer, Executive Director and CEO of the Sales Lead Management Association and President of Sales Leakage Consulting is a regular guest blogger with ViewPoint. We’re in the hurt locker, we’re down, and I have no money to try to boost sales in the last quarter. With a pleading voice and a frown his mother would not be proud of, this was one concerned sales manager. About $16,500 (all in - including set-up, scripting and management). MORE
Last week I was speaking with a VP of Sales of a well-known software company. George was not pleased with the performance of his sales team and was under intense pressure from the senior team to turn things around. A high performance sales team will outsell the competition. MORE
Sales Leaders. Although Ibaraan was writing about business in general, we thought her message held particular insight for the world of sales. If buyers change how they buy, sellers need to change how they sell and sales leaders need to bring the insight to make that happen. MORE
Impossible-to-reach quotas, a high-pressure sales environment, and a lack of transparency throughout Wells Fargo’s sales organization. Last month, Wells Fargo CEO Jon Stumpf faced the House Financial Services Committee on Capitol Hill, where congressmen questioned the sales practices at Wells Fargo. This means that C-level executives may not have adequate visibility into the operations and practices of their sales team other than through basic reporting from sales managers. MORE
The job of the sales leader is to maximize the performance of the organization. The sales leader has to make sure the organization is working as effectively and efficiently as possible, executing the corporate strategy with the customers. MORE
Sales motivation of your team is dependent on many things and it can vary greatly in time. What most sales managers do when they want to increase sales incentives is sending bulk or group emails with no personalization whatsoever. MORE
Mark’s Insights on SALES MOTIVATION. Sales Articles. Sales Motivation. Phone Sales Tips. Sales Development. Sales Call Best Practices. Retail Sales Trends. Sales Managers Have the Hardest Job in Sales. As a sales manager, you owe it to yourself to pay close attention to Jeb’s keen insights on leadership. Sales Managers have the hardest job in sales. No sales. sales. MORE
Likewise, it’s no surprise that more companies are adopting that same mantra with employee self-service in regards to their field sales force. As mentioned in my previous blog , Incentive Compensation Management (ICM) solutions have moved far beyond being an automated calculator for determining commission and bonus incentives. Through the improvement of workflow capabilities within ICM solutions, two major benefits change the game for field sales reps: 1. MORE
There are 1000’s of articles, dozens of books on sales enablement. In the US alone, between training, technology, and tools, over $25Billion is spent each year on enabling sales people. There are dozens of software tools/platforms, with new one’s springing up every week that focus only on sales enablement. What about sales managers? What are we doing in sales manager enablement? Should Sales Managers Coach? MORE
Congratulations you have been promoted and you are now the sales manager! Sales organizations tend to promote their top sales reps into sales manager jobs. We all know that this promotion leads to the sales organization losing on two counts. MORE
Companies spend a tremendous amount of time, money and effort every year to improve the productivity of their sales teams. The intervention strategies range from sales training efforts to coaching initiatives to sales tools to marketing materials. 2016 Sales Momentum® LLC. MORE
In the same way, salesforce effectiveness is made up of different elements – the right go-to-market strategy, salesforce organisation design, role definition and candidate selection, the right incentive design, and the right sales processes. New Concepts Driving Greater Performance . MORE
You’ve just returned from your worldwide sales kick-off and watched your Millennials-gone-wild sales team in full frontal view. If you read our Inside Sales 2013 Trends Report , the Strong and Steady theme applies this year when it comes to managing your team. MORE
A sales management team needs to consider what the point of a sales incentive plan actually is prior to constructing one, as many leaders tend to forget why this type of system is implemented in the first place. The idea behind a sales incentive plan is that representatives may need motivation to increase their productivity and raise the number of outgoing calls that they make each day. MORE
“A demonstration is one of your best sales tools if you have a high-quality product. When it comes to demos, having an action plan is crucial in order to manage it successfully. Offer the prospect an incentive for partaking in the demo. Sales Management For Sales Pros MORE
Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Last week I posted an article that linked to two additional articles I wrote for EcSell Institute and Top Sales World. Speaking of Top Sales World, they just published a page showing all of the greats (I'm honored to be included) that have been inducted into their Sales & Marketing Hall of Fame in the past 3 years. Effectively applying a consultative sales process helps to accomplish this. MORE
This is part 1 of a 2 part interview with Frank on the crucial subject of aligning sales efforts with company strategy. Why is it important to connect selling to company strategy, and what are some suggestions for getting a sales organization to do that? Sales Management Leadership MORE
In order to achieve outstanding sales success, your sales team members need incentives, inspiring sales training and the right attitude. Here, we take a more detailed look at how an effective sales manager can radically improve sales within an organisation. MORE
Tweet AA-ISP Inside Sales Summit. Four hundred Inside Sales leaders attended the 2-day American Association of Inside Sales Professionals (AA-ISP) Summit last week in Dallas. The Summit is the only conference dedicated exclusively to Inside Sales Leadership. MORE
This is part 2 of a 2 part interview with Frank on the crucial subject of aligning sales efforts with company strategy. How can sales metrics be better aligned to forward company strategy? Also, remember that markets don’t care about any specific firm’s strategy and sales process. MORE
Each recommendation addresses the biggest obstacles every sales manager faces to making the number: Not enough ‘A’ players on the team. Every sales manager is time starved. Sales Managers should be spending 75% of their time coaching their team. MORE
How likely is your sales incentive plan going to be dead on arrival, riddled with holes caused by requests for changes and exceptions? At least three months prior to the new year, finance teams slave over intricate details and policies for sales incentive plans to make for a smoother payroll cycle next year. Best-in-class companies aim for fewer than 5% of the sales team receiving adjustments each pay period. MORE
More than 1400 sessions, more than 350 exhibitors, 18 keynotes, 20 parties, 2 rock concerts, and 5 opportunities to help charities on site, there is perhaps no bigger event for sales and marketers. Integrate your CRM, webinar management and more, most with one click. Fantasy Sales Team. MORE
I’ve heard it takes at least seven to 10 touches for sales teams who cold call and cold email prospects to connect with decision-makers. They have better things to do, and so does your sales team. Their KPIs are transactional , so their teams’ sales activities are also transactional. MORE
For them, it’s not enough to just have products that span the entire marketing and sales funnel. The survey uses intelligence based on what was included in the sale along with past orders and delivers questions that are specifically unique to that customer. MORE
A post for Sales and HR Leaders to find root causes of Sales Manager (SM) vacancies. The Sales Manager position is the fulcrum between sales leadership strategy and sales force execution. Weak sales strategy. MORE
I was first introduced to goal setting in sales when I was an insurance agent with National Life of Vermont. The General Agent was Dave and his manager was Bob. I never did write 100 lives but, based on the sales activity reporting I did every week, I should have. MORE
The reality is that clients really don’t know who we’re looking for and most of them just don’t have a real incentive to invest the time and energy to come up with a great referral. Most sellers wait until after the sale has been completed before they bring up the idea of referrals. Don’t ask for referrals; just let your client know that your business is built on referrals and then drop referral seeds as the sale progresses. MORE
Are you prepared to succeed today in Sales, Sales Management, Business and Life? Let me take a minute to answer for myself and then I'll get on with the rest of the post: Sales - yes, Sales management - kind of, Business - yes. Did we hit our sales quota? MORE
Most sales teams are composed of three groups: The Superstars – These gifted few need little oversight or incentive. Sales Leader Prospecting Account Segmentation Sales Enablement Sales Manager Sales Manager Resources MORE
Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan The latest interview between Jonathan Farrington, CEO of TopSalesWorld , and me is available here. We discussed why only 17% of all sales managers are effective at coaching and the conversation was very enlightening. MORE
It’s not uncommon for people to ask me what’s the best way to motivate sales people to sell more. If you are using money to incent sales people to sell MORE, you have a big problem. I participated in this sales webinar yesterday; Best Practices in Modern Day Selling. One of the participants asked this question: What incentives have you offered your sales teams to help motivate them to close more deals? Poor sales leadership. MORE
Sales leaders agree that a highly motivated and engaged sales force drives greater performance. So one would naturally ask the question “how do I motivate and engage my sales force?” Many sales managers ask me how to ensure that they have a highly motivated and engaged team. A sales rep can be motivated to land a big account but not motivated to hand in his paperwork on time. Motivators: Motivators are different for each sales rep. By Steven A. MORE
The New Sales Manager Boot Camp. We have too much to do, we don’t have time to build a sales organization. I am frustrated with my sales team, do I have the right team? I have a problem growing sales profitably. Sales Management Boot Camp maybe for you. MORE
That could crush your sales organization. Let’s face it, being a sales executive has become increasingly more difficult. Chances are next year’s sales objective is going up and your budget is being reduced. MORE
Sales Tips: A Brilliant Sales Management Strategy. By John Holland, Chief Content Officer, CustomerCentric Selling® - The Sales Training Company. A sales manager’s dream is having “A” Players that can carry a branch, district or regional office. MORE
To all those sales executives I work with, here is a topic near and dear to my heart - Managing/Leading/Motivating sales people to success by setting standards and expectations. Normally, this isn’t such a challenge for sales people to understand. MORE
In many ways, managing multiple sales channels is like climbing that mountain—it looks easy until you really get into the process, and then the challenges and difficulties become all too apparent. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard marketing folks declare during a midyear progress meeting that the sales numbers for that year can still be made, we just need to open up an indirect channel. You Need Channel Management. Effective channel management doesn’t just happen. MORE
Your Sales Management Guru
JANUARY 9, 2017
The New Sales Manager Boot Camp. We have too much to do, we don’t have time to build a sales organization. I am frustrated with my sales team, do I have the right team? I have a problem growing sales profitably. Sales Management Boot Camp maybe for you.
Smart Selling Tools
MAY 18, 2015
For them, it’s not enough to just have products that span the entire marketing and sales funnel. The survey uses intelligence based on what was included in the sale along with past orders and delivers questions that are specifically unique to that customer.
Sales Training Connection
APRIL 15, 2015
Sales Leaders. Although Ibaraan was writing about business in general, we thought her message held particular insight for the world of sales. If buyers change how they buy, sellers need to change how they sell and sales leaders need to bring the insight to make that happen.
Partners in Excellence
OCTOBER 8, 2014
There’s a lot of stuff written about what sales managers have to do and their key job responsibilities. There lots of ways we see managers behaving. Some seem to think they have to be super sales people–the person that comes in to close the deal.
Sales Benchmark Index
OCTOBER 24, 2013
A post for Sales and HR Leaders to find root causes of Sales Manager (SM) vacancies. The Sales Manager position is the fulcrum between sales leadership strategy and sales force execution. Weak sales strategy.
Jonathan Farrington
APRIL 6, 2013
We discussed why only 17% of all sales managers are effective at coaching and the conversation was very enlightening. So why aren’t more sales managers effective at coaching salespeople? DNA – They don’t have the DNA to support effective sales coaching.
Igniting Sales Transformation
JULY 21, 2016
In order to achieve outstanding sales success, your sales team members need incentives, inspiring sales training and the right attitude. Here, we take a more detailed look at how an effective sales manager can radically improve sales within an organisation.
Customer Centric Selling
NOVEMBER 21, 2016
Sales Tips: A Brilliant Sales Management Strategy. By John Holland, Chief Content Officer, CustomerCentric Selling® - The Sales Training Company. A sales manager’s dream is having “A” Players that can carry a branch, district or regional office.
Sales Benchmark Index
JANUARY 5, 2014
Each recommendation addresses the biggest obstacles every sales manager faces to making the number: Not enough ‘A’ players on the team. Every sales manager is time starved. Sales Managers should be spending 75% of their time coaching their team.
Anthony Cole Training
OCTOBER 13, 2014
I was first introduced to goal setting in sales when I was an insurance agent with National Life of Vermont. The General Agent was Dave and his manager was Bob. I never did write 100 lives but, based on the sales activity reporting I did every week, I should have.
Anthony Cole Training
DECEMBER 17, 2012
Are you prepared to succeed today in Sales, Sales Management, Business and Life? Let me take a minute to answer for myself and then I'll get on with the rest of the post: Sales - yes, Sales management - kind of, Business - yes. Did we hit our sales quota?
Anthony Cole Training
FEBRUARY 10, 2015
To all those sales executives I work with, here is a topic near and dear to my heart - Managing/Leading/Motivating sales people to success by setting standards and expectations. Normally, this isn’t such a challenge for sales people to understand.
A Sales Guy
MARCH 17, 2012
It’s not uncommon for people to ask me what’s the best way to motivate sales people to sell more. If you are using money to incent sales people to sell MORE, you have a big problem. I participated in this sales webinar yesterday; Best Practices in Modern Day Selling. One of the participants asked this question: What incentives have you offered your sales teams to help motivate them to close more deals? Poor sales leadership.
Partners in Excellence
SEPTEMBER 29, 2013
The job of the sales leader is to maximize the performance of the organization. The sales leader has to make sure the organization is working as effectively and efficiently as possible, executing the corporate strategy with the customers.
Understanding the Sales Force
MARCH 13, 2013
Understanding the Sales Force by Dave Kurlan Last week I posted an article that linked to two additional articles I wrote for EcSell Institute and Top Sales World. Speaking of Top Sales World, they just published a page showing all of the greats (I'm honored to be included) that have been inducted into their Sales & Marketing Hall of Fame in the past 3 years. Effectively applying a consultative sales process helps to accomplish this.
Productivity and Motivational Tips for Inside Sale
FEBRUARY 1, 2013
You’ve just returned from your worldwide sales kick-off and watched your Millennials-gone-wild sales team in full frontal view. If you read our Inside Sales 2013 Trends Report , the Strong and Steady theme applies this year when it comes to managing your team.
Pipeliner
JUNE 4, 2017
This is part 2 of a 2 part interview with Frank on the crucial subject of aligning sales efforts with company strategy. How can sales metrics be better aligned to forward company strategy? Also, remember that markets don’t care about any specific firm’s strategy and sales process.
Sales Tips & Techniques
JULY 10, 2012
A sales management team needs to consider what the point of a sales incentive plan actually is prior to constructing one, as many leaders tend to forget why this type of system is implemented in the first place. The idea behind a sales incentive plan is that representatives may need motivation to increase their productivity and raise the number of outgoing calls that they make each day.
OpenSymmetry
OCTOBER 14, 2016
Impossible-to-reach quotas, a high-pressure sales environment, and a lack of transparency throughout Wells Fargo’s sales organization. Last month, Wells Fargo CEO Jon Stumpf faced the House Financial Services Committee on Capitol Hill, where congressmen questioned the sales practices at Wells Fargo. This means that C-level executives may not have adequate visibility into the operations and practices of their sales team other than through basic reporting from sales managers.
Pipeliner
MAY 28, 2017
This is part 1 of a 2 part interview with Frank on the crucial subject of aligning sales efforts with company strategy. Why is it important to connect selling to company strategy, and what are some suggestions for getting a sales organization to do that? Sales Management Leadership
The Sales Hunter
FEBRUARY 20, 2012
Mark’s Insights on SALES MOTIVATION. Sales Articles. Sales Motivation. Phone Sales Tips. Sales Development. Sales Call Best Practices. Retail Sales Trends. Sales Managers Have the Hardest Job in Sales. As a sales manager, you owe it to yourself to pay close attention to Jeb’s keen insights on leadership. Sales Managers have the hardest job in sales. No sales. sales.
Steven Rosen
MAY 1, 2015
Congratulations you have been promoted and you are now the sales manager! Sales organizations tend to promote their top sales reps into sales manager jobs. We all know that this promotion leads to the sales organization losing on two counts.
Sales Benchmark Index
SEPTEMBER 2, 2014
Most sales teams are composed of three groups: The Superstars – These gifted few need little oversight or incentive. Sales Leader Prospecting Account Segmentation Sales Enablement Sales Manager Sales Manager Resources
Pipeliner
APRIL 17, 2017
“A demonstration is one of your best sales tools if you have a high-quality product. When it comes to demos, having an action plan is crucial in order to manage it successfully. Offer the prospect an incentive for partaking in the demo. Sales Management For Sales Pros
Your Sales Management Guru
JANUARY 24, 2011
The Importance of Sales Management in a Recovering Economy. We have met with Sales Leaders from around the world, lead workshops, presented keynotes and developed new long term relationships with our client base. Based upon my conversations almost every sales leader is optimistic and pipelines are filling. What is the role or action points for sales manager’s in a recovering economy? Acumen Management Group Ltd.
Steven Rosen
MAY 28, 2014
Last week I was speaking with a VP of Sales of a well-known software company. George was not pleased with the performance of his sales team and was under intense pressure from the senior team to turn things around. A high performance sales team will outsell the competition.
Cincom Smart Selling
FEBRUARY 9, 2016
In many ways, managing multiple sales channels is like climbing that mountain—it looks easy until you really get into the process, and then the challenges and difficulties become all too apparent. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard marketing folks declare during a midyear progress meeting that the sales numbers for that year can still be made, we just need to open up an indirect channel. You Need Channel Management. Effective channel management doesn’t just happen.
Sales Training Connection
NOVEMBER 10, 2016
Companies spend a tremendous amount of time, money and effort every year to improve the productivity of their sales teams. The intervention strategies range from sales training efforts to coaching initiatives to sales tools to marketing materials. 2016 Sales Momentum® LLC.
Pipeliner
MARCH 6, 2017
Sales motivation of your team is dependent on many things and it can vary greatly in time. What most sales managers do when they want to increase sales incentives is sending bulk or group emails with no personalization whatsoever.
OpenSymmetry
JANUARY 27, 2016
In the same way, salesforce effectiveness is made up of different elements – the right go-to-market strategy, salesforce organisation design, role definition and candidate selection, the right incentive design, and the right sales processes. New Concepts Driving Greater Performance .
Steven Rosen
SEPTEMBER 21, 2015
That could crush your sales organization. Let’s face it, being a sales executive has become increasingly more difficult. Chances are next year’s sales objective is going up and your budget is being reduced.
Steven Rosen
JANUARY 26, 2014
Sales leaders agree that a highly motivated and engaged sales force drives greater performance. So one would naturally ask the question “how do I motivate and engage my sales force?” Many sales managers ask me how to ensure that they have a highly motivated and engaged team. A sales rep can be motivated to land a big account but not motivated to hand in his paperwork on time. Motivators: Motivators are different for each sales rep. By Steven A.
Pointclear
AUGUST 27, 2013
James Obermayer, Executive Director and CEO of the Sales Lead Management Association and President of Sales Leakage Consulting is a regular guest blogger with ViewPoint. We’re in the hurt locker, we’re down, and I have no money to try to boost sales in the last quarter. With a pleading voice and a frown his mother would not be proud of, this was one concerned sales manager. About $16,500 (all in - including set-up, scripting and management).
OpenSymmetry
NOVEMBER 22, 2016
How likely is your sales incentive plan going to be dead on arrival, riddled with holes caused by requests for changes and exceptions? At least three months prior to the new year, finance teams slave over intricate details and policies for sales incentive plans to make for a smoother payroll cycle next year. Best-in-class companies aim for fewer than 5% of the sales team receiving adjustments each pay period.
No More Cold Calling
OCTOBER 22, 2015
I’ve heard it takes at least seven to 10 touches for sales teams who cold call and cold email prospects to connect with decision-makers. They have better things to do, and so does your sales team. Their KPIs are transactional , so their teams’ sales activities are also transactional.
Partners in Excellence
MAY 6, 2016
No one wants to lose their highest performing sales people. Often, if we think they are in danger of being wooed away to a competitor or another job, we’ll look at adjusting compensation, incentives or other things. We promote them into sales management!
Sales and Management Blog
JANUARY 8, 2015
The reality is that clients really don’t know who we’re looking for and most of them just don’t have a real incentive to invest the time and energy to come up with a great referral. Most sellers wait until after the sale has been completed before they bring up the idea of referrals. Don’t ask for referrals; just let your client know that your business is built on referrals and then drop referral seeds as the sale progresses.
Smart Selling Tools
OCTOBER 1, 2014
More than 1400 sessions, more than 350 exhibitors, 18 keynotes, 20 parties, 2 rock concerts, and 5 opportunities to help charities on site, there is perhaps no bigger event for sales and marketers. Integrate your CRM, webinar management and more, most with one click. Fantasy Sales Team.
Smart Selling Tools
APRIL 24, 2012
Tweet AA-ISP Inside Sales Summit. Four hundred Inside Sales leaders attended the 2-day American Association of Inside Sales Professionals (AA-ISP) Summit last week in Dallas. The Summit is the only conference dedicated exclusively to Inside Sales Leadership.
OpenSymmetry
JANUARY 12, 2017
Likewise, it’s no surprise that more companies are adopting that same mantra with employee self-service in regards to their field sales force. As mentioned in my previous blog , Incentive Compensation Management (ICM) solutions have moved far beyond being an automated calculator for determining commission and bonus incentives. Through the improvement of workflow capabilities within ICM solutions, two major benefits change the game for field sales reps: 1.
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