by Salezworks | Aug 4, 2011 | Prospecting, Referrals, Selling
Summer is a great time to take stock of referral partner relationships and figure out who will you focus on in 4th quarter. Yes. I know it’s a busy season with family and vacations and life happening. But who continues to make time for you? Who is continuing to prospect? I will give you a few things to think about as you sift through your CRM (customer relationship management system such as ACT!, Outlook, Sales Force, etc). Here are the four main categories you should have in mind as you do that review and think about the level of influence of your natural market – those immediately surrounding you: Center of Influence: Are they lovely people -great to hang out with but don’t have the influence to refer you? Or are they suppliers – their influence is with middle management, not senior level decision makers? Movers & Shakers: This is where the influence begins – these are the people who know who is doing what with whom (as one of my client’s phrases it, they know where the bodies are buried and who placed them there 😉 Contacts with Clout: This people make a recommendation that is acted on by the end of the meeting. Yes, their influence is that great. Networking is moving online, and we are finding more people in the ‘room’ of social media. A fun tool I just found that measures on-line influence is Klout. If you take a moment to go to the SalezWORKS facebook page you can find the link and also I shared my Klout score -apparently I just entered...
by Salezworks | May 25, 2010 | Goal Setting and Achievement, Selling
Disclaimer: Prepare for a 2 x 4 directly between the eyes. I am not responsible if the proverbial 2 x 4 leaves a mark. I work with compensation a lot, especially sales compensation. I have 2 compensation tenants that I know are universally true: I have never met somebody who truly thought they were paid enough.And…Compensation is an emotional topic that people find difficult to have a rational discussion about.If you can keep these in mind for the rest of the entry, it will be appreciated. You see, I have been introduced lately to rational, talented sales people who know all of the things I point out above yet have a very unrealistic expectation of their value, especially in this economy. Look around. Things aren’t what they used to be. Companies still value sales people knowing they are the lifeblood of their company but want to change the deal a bit. Gone are the days of high base salaries for sales people, with very few exceptions. Say hello to the days of 100% commission opportunities or a lower base. Companies are happy to pay their top sales people who produce but that will be in the form of variable compensation that they earn from sales. Sales people who mention they need a higher base to be comfortable with this new opportunity in an interview might as well say they are a blood sucking leech (sorry, forgot to warn you before the 2 x 4 hit) who will take your money and not deliver. I am reminded of a recent discussion with a salesperson that had a salary history of...
by Salezworks | Mar 19, 2010 | Referrals, Selling
Being that we are in the midst of March Madness and Spring Break, we could talk about basketball or beaches but instead I thought we should visit about the current times we are living in. While the year began well for the majority of people I have spoken with, things seem to have slowed down again, with a few exceptions. I am certainly not here to belly ache about it and not sure I can explain it, but I know the economists (who are a heck of a lot smarter than I am) have told us the economy is already on the way back. So why did a group on the internet find it necessary to launch an initiative earlier this month to stimulate referrals to small businesses called “make a referral week?” I think it is because in the new economy we are living in: referrals are the way to find the business that is out there. For those who love to cold call, we have a case in point to share with you that may be familiar. We are in currently following up on a direct mail campaign to our demographic target market that has a high likelihood for need of our services. The two most common responses we have gotten are: “I have not seen your direct mail pieces but even if I had, I would not have read them!” “I could probably use your help but _____________ (insert your favorite excuse here. No money, waiting until the economy gets better, sticking my head in the sand for awhile…)” Yes, we know the rates of success...
by Salezworks | Feb 22, 2010 | Prospecting, Referrals, Selling
Late in 2009 I was sitting in a presentation by a Senior VP of a major Company headquartered in Kansas City. He was speaking about the ways he is engaged by various Business Development Professionals and what his expectations were of them when he did speak with them. I thought reviewing his major points here would be a great refresher for all of us. Initial Contact. E-mails, cold calls, mailings and free stuff don’t work on him. He hits delete and gives the stuff to his staff. If he answered every unsolicited voicemail or correspondence he would get nothing done. He only speaks with individuals who are recommended to him by those he trusts. Modulated Persistence. Once an individual is referred to him, it may take awhile until there is A conversation. Stick with it. However, there is a fine line between persistence in following up and stalking. Choose the right advocate. Your best friend may be the accountant at the organization you are prospecting but they might not be able to get you a meeting with the CEO. Entering the organization at the right level and for the right reason is critical. Top down is always an easier approach than bottom up, that one works best at happy hour;-) Know your audience. Once you have a meeting with the decision maker, do not ask them information that is readily available. Examples of questions are particularly irksome: size of Company, Company culture and diversity. Spend time finding out information from the decision maker that is not readily available and probe at the type of solution slots...
by Salezworks | Feb 1, 2010 | Prospecting, Selling
Isn’t it funny what life has to teach us under our noses? We acquired a new cat that had been dumped out at a friends’ farm.  This same friend already has about 15 felines (last time she counted), so we were recruited into providing a lovely year old kitty with a new home. All in our household were in favor, but no one asked Caesar, our 5 year old feline, whether he supported the new addition. And let me tell you the first day he was not happy at all!  (My mom is still healing from their first face to face meeting….) First day the hostilities were abounding, then Caesar changed tactics. Knowing who the ‘pack leaders’ in the household were, he has abandoned the former post of sleeping with whichever body was the largest and warmest (formerly held by our 17 year old 6’+son) to my husband and myself.  He has become our shadow. We haven’t had a cat sleeping with us since he moved in 4 years ago and now he wants to be right between us at night. So, last night he jumped up and we knocked him down, jumped up again and down again he went. Finally after tossing him out of the room 5 times he snuck up and found his spot at the foot of the bed where he didn’t get booted out. This cat knows to protect his territory… Do you? How hard do we work when we get booted off? Right now our current economy requires we work very smart with each and every opportunity we are presented. So your ‘no’goal that...
