February 2016 Archives - PleinAire Strategies

Want to Sell More? Become a Subject Matter Expert

In all the years I’ve run companies and managed sales forces, not a single prospect ever asked me to send out my best salesperson. If the prospect had an issue, he/she wanted the most knowledgeable person available to solve their problem—a subject matter expert (SME). When consulting on revenue growth, clients often asked for advice on how to turn their sales teams in more…

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Recognize the 5 Red Flags of When to Lose the Sale Fast

Many salespeople believe the key to winning more sales opportunities requires skillful prospect qualification, early identification of the economic decision maker, and full understanding of the need or the reason to buy. Makes sense? In a salesperson’s world, one reason they find selling so enjoyable is the opportunity to help prospects solve problems or produce better results. As professional salespeople, we strive for that…

5 Tactics to Clear Procurement Obstacles in Sales

At a recent private equity conference, a group of company presidents asked some lively questions after my speech about the challenge of negotiating with procurement. We’ve all witnessed it. Procurement departments are now more powerful and more sophisticated than in the past. Salespeople tell me procurement managers are bent on commoditizing every aspect of a solution. For sales, the procurement process is an ongoing…

Accurate Sales Forecasting—An Oxymoron?

Sixty Percent of Forecasted Deals Do Not Close. Not surprisingly, this CSO Insights data also shows that one in four companies are unhappy with their ability to accurately forecast sales. That means a lot of revenue is left on the table — a huge opportunity I know I’m not prepared to miss. CSO’s 2018 Sales Operations Optimization Study says “forecast accuracy remains an oxymoron,…

Here’s How to Un-Stall a Deal

Stalled opportunities plague salespeople. They clog pipelines, ruin forecasts, and cause untold frustration. From CEO to sales reps, everyone scrambles for ways to close deals at the bottom of the sales funnel and shorten the sales cycle. After all, you have spent months with this prospect and forecasted this revenue to close this quarter. I sit on the board of a certain company where…

Find Your Sales Rockstars Once and For All

Most CEOs and sales leaders ask me how to grow revenues with the right sales training or the right bizdev tools or the right CRM system. Few ask, “How do I know if I even have the right people on the team?” I often ask them, “If you do training, how do you know if it’s successful?” “How do you measure your success?” Silence…

Your Not-So-Secret Sales Weapon — An Advisory Board

What if you could increase revenues by 87 percent, increase EBITDA by 81 percent, triple sales, and double productivity in three years? “Impossible,” you say. Uh, not so fast, my friends. Lodestone Global Private Company Board Survey, along with other reports, claim these outcomes are likely by adding an independent Board of Directors. “Private companies can drive this type of performance through the strategic…

How to Conquer the FUD Factor

Do you believe it’s not what you sell, but how you sell that makes the difference? I do. For years, I’ve operated in a very competitive industry with just a handful of providers servicing a limited number of large buyers. Little differentiation existed between me and my competitors. And what differentiation there was I built around our sales process and how we approached and…

The Sounds of Silence — Where in the World is My Prospect?

You finally reached your ideal prospect. Took a lot of emails and phone calls. But you landed his attention. The call went well. He was engaged, answered questions, and was receptive to a proposal. Then, deafening silence. Ever happen to you? Of course, it has. Anyone in professional sales has experienced the great-prospect-brush-off. What is going on here? Most salespeople conclude their proposal was…

Obvious Need vs. Real Problem: Can You Find the Difference?

How do you fight commoditization? B2B selling is now rife with sameness, despite your belief that your products or services are unique. Practically every company I meet makes this dangerous assumption. From the buyer’s standpoint, one online search can produce the measure of knowledge he or she may need to make a preliminary decision on a product or service. They also require fewer interactions…

Three Ways to Track Buyer Thinking and Close More Sales