Category Archives for The Sales Evangelist

TSE 1142: 5 Reasons Gmail Is The Best Email Tool For Sellers

Many of us start our day with emails, so knowing that The Sales Evangelist team has outlined 5 reasons why Gmail is the best email tool for sellers. 

Multiple functions 

Google’s Gmail Suite is an incredible tool for companies due to its many functions. For The Sales Evangelist, we use domains. I personally have Donald as my domain and this is connected to my Gmail business suite. Every email that I receive goes through my domain and into my Gmail inbox. 

Aside from that, it is also easy to set up. There are plenty of videos on YouTube that you can check for instructions. You can also hit Google and read about how to sign up for the suite. 

Integration 

A lot of platforms have integration but for me, Gmail beats them all. While Outlook has 365, it seems clunky and the apps are difficult to integrate. The same couldn’t be said with the Google-owned Gmail. Google is the top-dog in the industry and has a massive number of users. With that many people using Gmail accounts, it became necessary for developers to find ways to integrate their apps and tools into Gmail. 

I use Calendly, a tool that integrates seamlessly into Gmail. Other apps like Hubspot and LinkedIn Sales Navigator connect to Gmail as well. These tools and plugins make full use of Gmail’s integration capabilities. 

Templates

Google has what they call canned responses and these are found in the settings of Gmail. Look for the settings, and click on advanced. This option explains what canned responses are and provides instructions on how you can create templates for common messages that you send. You then click enable and save the changes. 

For a sales rep who’s always out there sending intro emails, follow-up emails, and other responses, this canned response is a good thing. Although you need to personalize it, you will not need to write the whole thing over and over again when you’re using the template. You can just tweak it. 

You can make templates for commonly asked questions that you get. Even better, you can just type out the common responses to these questions and make it into a canned email. Now, that’s your template. You can learn more about this in Episode 11 of The Sales Evangelist. You can also connect with us on YouTube for more videos.

Mail scheduler

The third reason Gmail is the best for sales reps is its ability to schedule emails. The great thing about this is it’s free. I used Boomerang and Hubspot in the past but now, I just go to my Gmail account and click compose at the bottom. 

You’ll see that arrow next to the send button; you click on that and you can then easily schedule your mail. This feature is helpful for busy people and busy prospects as well. 

Sometimes we are inundated with so much on a day-to-day basis that we take the work home. The same can be said with business owners, VPs, executives, or mid-level managers. They are so busy and they can’t respond to mail throughout the day. This is where scheduled mail comes in.

Email callbacks 

Outlook and other providers offer email callback as well, and it’s very useful in case you make mistakes in sending out your mail. 

Say that when you used your canned response you weren’t able to personalize it enough and ended up putting the wrong person’s name. This isn’t a good thing, so you need to unsend it. You can do so with Gmail. 

Go to the top right corner, click settings, click on general, and look for the undo send. You can send cancellations up to different time periods. You can keep the email longer to give you more time to recognize your mistakes, edit them out, save, and send. 

Shortcuts 

Here’s the fifth reason: shortcuts. It’s also an easy one and you can find it on the cog and click advance. You can create your custom keyboard shortcuts once it’s enabled and saved. Google has default shortcuts you can use or you can utilize the shortcut feature and make your own. 

As a busy sales rep, you can just hit C and you’d be able to compose an email or reply to an email, or hit A and reply to a particular mail. There are several other shortcuts that you can use to save your precious time. You can check out Episode 1137 of The Sales Evangelist for more information about this feature. 

I like Gmail because of its integration, the ability to create templates, the scheduled responses, the email callbacks, and the shortcuts. 

“5 Reasons Gmail Is The Best Email Tool For Sellers” episode resources

Time is money and we want to work as efficiently as possible. We keep including TSE Certified Sales Training Program every chance that we get because we want to help you. So, check the program out and explore the possibilities. 

This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program, designed to help sales reps and sales team on how to improve their skills in finding the right customers, the activities and strategies that work, and how to ask the right questions to build a strong value and close business deals. 

To see how helpful it can be, simply go to thesalesvengelist.com/freecourse to get the first two modules for free. Take a bite and have a feel of the course. 

You’d want to be a savvy salesperson and Audible can help you do that. Enjoy the free 30-day trial and explore the thousands of books they have today. 

I hope this episode has been fun and helpful to you. Please review and leave us a five-star rating on Apple podcast. You can also hit subscribe and share our show to your friends and colleagues. If you can, please provide your review and rating on Google Podcast, Stitcher, Spotify, and in other platforms where you consume this podcast.

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TSE 831: Social Selling Is Not Working For You Because You Don’t Know How It Works

If your company’s marketing strategy hasn’t evolved, you’re likely paying a high price for it. Furthermore, if you don’t understand social selling, it will never generate any positive results for you or your organization.

Social selling mistakes

The biggest mistakes sales professionals make on social media is failing to understand it and take it seriously. Many people assume they understand social media, when in reality it’s much like other aspects of sales: it requires training.

In many cases, sales professionals are treating social selling as another form of marketing when, in fact, it’s actually a new way of selling.

They aren’t creating content that people care about, and they aren’t posting consistently.

There’s a lack of caring and no outbound engagement.

In a phrase, there’s a failure to build relationships.

Becoming a noticer

Jared Easley recently shared the importance of being a noticer on social media. Being a noticer begins with using social media as a tool to capture people’s attention.

It’s about attracting people’s attention before they even realize they have a need that you can satisfy.

Instead of employing the old technique of “cold calling,” you can use social media to connect with people and grab their attention long before you initiate a sales conversation.

Instead of jumping straight to the sale, begin by letting them know that you exist.

Social media can help you have the right conversations with people who want to have them instead of having conversations with people who don’t want to have them.

It’s a matter of getting the right attention from the right people.

Social selling steps

Sales professionals must let go of their lazy tendencies.

1.  Create new content that is hot-off-the-press and industry specific; share it before the CEOs in your industry find it.

2. Use content to create conversations. Use high quality content and include your own insight.

3.  Commit to spend 30 minutes a day reading up on the trends in your industry.

4.  Diversify your attention-seeking methods. Use different methods to attract different people.

5.  Test different kinds of content to see what performs best for you. Different content will attract different people.

6.  Dominate your industry. Share information that people can’t find elsewhere.

Episode resources

Salespeople can be leaders instead of being subservient. Our friends at Wiley  have provided a free excerpt of the book Stop Selling & Start Leading which provides a blueprint to help sales professionals lead in the way that customers prefer. Read an excerpt of the book here.

After you’ve tried some of the ideas here, I’d love to hear how they worked for you. Email me and let me know what your results were.

Tell others you know about our podcast, and subscribe if you haven’t already. Leave us a review wherever you consume this content so it will be easier for others to find us as well.

Audio provided by Free SFX.

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TSE 099: Getting Sales Healthy Part 2: “Focus & Set Incremental Goals!”

This is part two of what I have learned from my crazy running experience, which actually ties into the concept of sales. And I think this would be an opportune time to discuss this matter considering how we all love to make New Year’s resolutions and goals for the coming year. And so you set some resolutions and goals year after year, but the real question is – are you making them happen? Are you accomplishing your goals? Or do you end up pushing yourself too much?

So the second principle that I’ve learned from my little run last week is this:

Focus and setting incremental goals.

When you haven’t run for some time and then you pick up running again, you have to work your way into it. My house is about 2.5 miles away from the ocean. After some time that I’ve put off my running shoes, I decided to get back into running and so I ran.  I hit a mile or so just to get started and then pushed myself to go a mile and a half. Then pushed myself further to go all the way to the ocean. And so I did! I did end up at the ocean. But I didn’t see the exhaustion coming. I was too tired to run back home so I ended up walking.

And so looking back from that experience, here are some things I’ve learned that also ties into setting sales goals.

1. Do small amounts.

Sometimes we bite off much more than we can chew. You’ve got all these goals, but sometimes that’s not the best thing to do. You need to push yourself of course, but don’t go out and try to do more than you can handle. Do it in incremental amounts.

In my running experience, when I “failed”, where I got to the beach and I couldn’t make my way back, I learned I needed to pace myself and set those incremental goals.

If you want to have 5 opportunities that week, what are you going to do to get those? Set those goals and once you can accomplish them, then you can increase in small increments and aim for getting 2 opportunities a day.

2. Set realistic goals.

Set goals that you can accomplish. Push yourself but don’t make them unrealistic.

Don’t put yourself up for a failure with unrealistic goals. Set goals that are going to make sense, meaningful, can be measured, and that can drive results to you and your organization.

3.Make a clear path for your goals.

What are you going to do to accomplish that goal?

• Attending a networking event
• Going to trade shows
• Making calls

Whatever it is, set those incremental goals and work towards it.

The last thing you want to do is push yourself further than you can go, get burnt out and then you feel like you failed.

Put plans behind your goals, be it, numbers, names, etc. or whatever path you can draw behind all of that. With running, I know exactly what path I’m going to take and where I’m going to go, so I know I can have the best results.

Set up your path. Lay out your plan so you know where you’re going and how you can accomplish what you’re going after.

4. Focus and apply the 80/20 principle.

Don’t try to go after every industry. Focus on the industries that are best for your business, ones that will give you greater results. Focus on the things you can do 20% of the time to gain 80% of the return. Don’t do time consuming activities that don’t yield the results you are planning to accomplish. You want to gain greater results not greater failures.

Focus. Focus. FOCUS!

Well, tell me more about your goals. Do you have plans to accomplish BIG THINGS in 2015? Share with me you’re winning strategies. I am excited to hear about them! Remember as always, I want you to go out and DO BIG THINGS!

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TSE 090: Building A Bullet Proof Sales Professional Mindset

In sales, rejection is always part of the game. Whether you like it or not, there will come a point in your sales career where a client will reject you in one way or another. How do you handle that?

Rejection is like a treasure chest wherein lies hidden opportunities just waiting to be unlocked. So don’t easily give up when a client rejects you. In this episode, Kingsley Grant will teach you how you can build a bulletproof mindset to handle rejection so you can achieve success in sales.

Kingsley Grant is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a life coach, author, speaker, and a midlifepreneur (an entrepreneur at midlife). He is passionate about bringing the best out of each and everyone in order for people to have more balanced, happier, and more meaningful lives.

His recently released book, Midlifepreneur: Making Your Dreams Come True Without Risking Everything, is all about getting out and just turn your dream into a reality without risking the loss of things or people that are most important to you.

Here are the highlights of my conversation with Kingsley:

How sellers can cope with sales rejection

• Mastering core strengths so you can dominate
• Gauging how customers are pre-contemplating what you’re going to sell them
• It may just be a “no” now so listen to the person and recognize the opportunity
• Rejection is an opportunity to reassess

How to prepare before the meeting:

• Know thyself.
• Sell your likeability first before you sell your product.
• Recognize how you can connect with the client.
• Prepare your mind to how you can create a moment of likeability and trustworthiness

Ways to build strong relationship:

• People have certain ways they want to be sold to.
• Know to whom you’re selling.
• Recognize that everyone does not buy the same way.

Building a bulletproof mindset to handle rejection

• Sell according to how a client wants to be sold. How? –  Listen!
• Empathize with them.
• Shift the conversation from the product to the person.
• Make the client feel that you understand them.
• Take time to get to know your client.
• Make it not about you but about the client.

Doing a “fire drill” of your sales presentation

• Have a strategy and be prepared.
• Know what to say, when to say it, how to say it
• Practice so you can put your personality into it, then it will come out naturally

Strategies for handling rejection:

• Think about what value can you bring to the person.
• Pound on the value of what you’re selling – For example, you are not just selling a house but you are comfort, security, protection.
• BELIEVE what you are offering them is something of VALUE

Kingsley’s current projects:

• His book Midlifepreneur: Making Your Dreams Come True Without Risking Everything
• Talk: Mastering Their C.O.R.E. Strengths or Perspectives (Connection, Orientation, Reconciliation, Elimination) to empower the high achieving sales professional

For more information on Kingsley and the amazing things he’s working on, visit www.kingsleygrant.com. Connect with Kingsley on Twitter @kingsleygrant

Kingsley’s Major Takeaway:

Seller, know thyself. Figure out your personality type and understand that your type may not be the same as other person’s personality types. It’s not about you but them.

Eliminate from your mindset all the things you have been hearing about how you should do it because you’re not everybody else. You are YOU. You are uniquely positioned. There is only one you so be you.

Know yourself. Know your style. And deliver through that style and not like how everybody else does it.

Music Provided by Freefx.com 

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TSE 089: The Most Unexpected Thing I am Thankful For!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

During this episode I reveal one of the most unexpected things I am thankful for. Can you guess what it is? Well, obviously I am grateful for the usual things such as health, family, freedom and most importantly my wife. But the most unexpected thing I am grateful for in relations to business is my competition. Here is why:

1. The competition has performed in depth case studies that you can be used to educate your prospects.
2. They validate ideas that you may have about unique challenges facing your ideal customers. They do the research in the form of case studies which you can use to position your product or service in a new and unique way.
3. Competition can help you get into a new market quickly.
4. You can take the companies they highlight in their case studies and search them on LinkedIn and find similar companies. It will become very likely the company your competition does the case study on is facing the same challenges your prospects are facing. They reveal great information you can share with them.
5. Connect with key individuals within the company the case study was done on so that when the honeymoon phase is over, you may be able to come in and position yourself. Executives may change, customer service may go down or any number of things. You need to be there as the BEST alternative. The case study also already revealed that they are willing to pay high dollars to fix challenges. This will be helpful when you get the opportunity to position yourself.

So as you finish up this Thanksgiving holiday and work on plans to start of the new year strong, implement this strategy to help you get an edge. Thank goodness for competition and also turkeys!

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TSE 084: Changing The Sales Conversation with Linda Richardson

During today’s interview I had the pleasure of speaking with Linda Richardson about her new book, “Changing The Sales Conversation”. Linda is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training business. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence for 2006. In 2007 she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.”

Linda is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling, which is the cornerstone of Richardson’s methodology. Linda is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including her most recent work; Perfect Selling, The Sales Success Handbook — 20 Lessons to Open and Close Sales Now, Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach and Stop Telling – Start Selling. She teaches sales and management courses at the Wharton Graduate School at the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center.

Here are some of the major takeaways from our discussion:

Many customers are satisfied with their vendors, however today vendors need to delight or surprise customers. They do this by going above and beyond the call of duty.

The new sales conversation is an extension of consultative selling. Here is a brief history of sales and how Linda feels that sales has evolved:

• 1890: Sales first started.
• 1920: Patterson introduced the concept of featured and benefits and scripts.
• 1970 Consultative selling was introduced by Linda Richardson where customers were the focus. According to Linda, in sales there are two big “C”:
  • Customer
  • Customization
• Present: The buyers have changed because they have access to the internet. By time the buyer is introduced to the sales person, they have gone through a large portion of the sales process. The seller now needs to come prepared to add to what the buyers already know. The key is not abandon customization or consultative selling, the seller just needs to add to what they already know.

The quality of the seller needs to improve because the buyers know more today.

First of 5 Strategies:

1. Future:

The sales person needs to become more educated on the client and industry. They will need to not only know about present needs, but also future needs. The seller will need to be way more prepared.

2. Heat Mapping: 

This where all of your futuring comes in play and the seller brings insights that adds to what the buyer knows.  This will also help you bring more information.

3. Value Tracking:

Buyers want to learn how things are going to impact their organization and what the outcomes will be. Sellers must be able to provide this information to their buyers.

4. Phasing:

The organization must have best in class sales practices. They must have phases with best practice activities. For example, these things must take place in order for the deal close.

5. Linking:

The seller must be able to provide an emotional connection with the buyer. Sellers sometime overlook this but you must be transparent and show volubility.

“Clients don’t want research but they want insights” – Jerry Bullmore

Research about the client and their industry, blogs they read and social sites they go to. Learn how your clients thinks and then you can bring more value to them.

Connect with Linda

Tired of your same old sales performance? Well, this episode is just for you. Linda Richard is the queen on consultative selling and in today’s episode we talk about how sales people must change the sales conversation in order to find success. You will love it, listen now!

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TSE 083: How To Avoid Contract Hell!

“Contract hell”…. This is the one place that no seller wants or needs to be. Believe me, I have been through it and it is not a pleasant place to be. During this episode, I will explain what “contract hell” is like and how and why you need to stay away from it.

What is “Contract Hell”: 

“Contract hell” is a horrible limbo land that many sales professionals get trapped in after going through the hard work of bringing a deal through the whole sales process. From finding the new business, identifying the challenges, getting leadership buy-in, doing presentations, working out through negotiation etc. But there is one phase that is generally overlooked, it is the contract (aka the agreement). Since the contract generally comes in at the end of the sales process and statistics show that the majority of sellers spend more time at the other end of the spectrum of “finding”, they don’t know how to chart this part of the process. It may have taken the seller 3 months to bring the deal to this point, but “contract hell” can last longer than that and delay the seller from getting money. Because even after having the contract finally coming in, there is still a at lease 30 days before the client pays your company. If you are waiting for the that money for some reason or another, you may end up waiting for a really long time.

“Contract hell” consists of legal folks going back and forth tweaking things over and over again. It cost both parties, money and energy. However, depending on the complexity of the product or service you are selling, your contract/agreement signing period may be a very small window. I have seen when a delightful prospect becomes bitter and frustrated because of the long, rigorous process. As a result,it puts the deal in jeopardy. Imagine how you would feel as the seller when the deal that you have labored over for so long was being totally unraveled by the company’s executives. Well, it is not pretty. Depending on the size of your organization, it may be totally out of your hand. Speaking from experience, you don’t want to go through contract hell!

But how can a seller avoid it? Well, this is what I have found.

How To Avoid “Contact Hell”:

Well, here is the solution. The key to getting through “contract hell” is to focus on getting the contract/agreement in the hands of the buyer’s legal team earlier. Now, I am not encouraging you to send a contract as soon as you get someone who is interested in your product or service. However, maybe when the buyer understands the value of your product or service and has seen a presentation and you know they are going to buy. Typically, most large deals have to go through some sort of a committee or board approval. This where negation may start and where I recommend getting a copy of the contract to your champion, to pass on to legal.

Tell them, I understand that your legal team will need to review the contract before the purchase is made, so I want to get them a copy of the terms and conditions in advance to comb over it. I typically joke with them saying that we both know how long legal folks take and we want to prepare as much in advance so something small does not hold them back from making the purchase.

This act allows the legal team time to look over and identify any changes that is needed. Although what I am saying  may sound basic, I can tell you many of us don’t do it. We sit back and wait for the buyer to tell us when to send over our agreement, after everything is said and done, you are risking a stay in the torturous “contract hell”.

Take Action:

In conclusion, be proactive and take matters into your own hands. This will help you overcome this silly little mistake. If the product or service you sell doesn’t have a painful closing process, but you face something else that typically causes a longer waiting period, please share with me below in the comments area. I would love to learn more. Overall, I want you to go out and do BIG THINGS!

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TSE 079: Is Opportunity Hoarding Killing Your Closing Rate?

So, several years ago my wife introduced me to a TV show on TLC (Opps, I said HGTV on the episode instead of TLC) called Hoarders. I am sure you have seen it or heard of it before. The people on the show all have mental or emotional challenges that prevent them from letting go of their belongings. Even things that don’t work or they don’t need. Sometimes the hoarding becomes so horrible that these individuals’ health and homes fall into jeopardy.

But because of an emotional connection or fearing if they were to get rid of anything, they think they may need it in a future date. They still can’t let go of their useless belongings. On the show these people sometimes have a family member or friend who comes in and has an intervention with them to overcome this challenge.

Well, the funny thing about this example is the fact that it applies to us as sales professionals. Think about it, we have all been there! We have a pipeline FULL of potential opportunities. People who at one point were interested in our products or services, but for some reason the deal has died and just like someone with hoarding tendencies, we are afraid of closing the opportunity out and focusing our energy on new qualified opportunities. We hold on it forever, hoping that they will come around and you will close this big deal. If you are doing this, news flash – you are an “Opportunity Hoarder”!

However, don’t you fret. I am here to help you have our very own intervention that will let you get through this process and potentially increase your close rate on more meaningful deals. In a recent HubSopt article written by Emma Sinder, she discusses an Inforgraphic done by Implisit who studied 20,000 sales opportunities and discovered some key indicators that made a deal close more so than others.

The study also shows that 70% of a company’s opportunities are lost, while the other 30% will turn into won deals. But for some reason the sales people are living in denial and don’t seem to want to let go of the 70% of lost deals and focus on getting others who fall into that 30% criteria. So, what are those key indicators or attributes of a deal that is worth pursuing vs one that is not? Let’s take a look below.

1. Email Communication: Opportunities that fall into the “Won Range” had 4.8 times the amount of sent and received email communication between the reps and the champions. If they are not communicating with you, then this is the first indicator that this opportunity is not progressing well.

2. More People Are Involved: Deals that are more likely to fall on the won side have more people involved both on the side of the seller and that of the prospect. Won opportunities have an average of 1.4 individuals working on them compared to 1.1 on lost opportunities. This may mean that you have a project manager, sales engineer etc. On the buyers end, the average opportunity that turns into a “WIN”, will have about 1.2 times more people on the prospect side as involved as well. This may be the decision maker, the champion, influencer or end users or their end.

3. Things Progress Quickly: Deals that will turn into a win generally close quicker. The study show that more than half of all won opportunities closed within 6 months. After 6 months of sitting out there, there is a less than 20% chance that the opportunity will become a win.

From examining this data, we have some great indicators that can help us know what to throw out and what we should hold onto. Now, obviously, some industries just have a longer buying cycle than others, but the principles are still the same. If your opportunities do not have communication, minimal people involvement from both sides of the opportunities or the deal has been sitting for over 6 months, it may be time to take it out of your pipeline and find new ones.

It may be difficult at first as you start getting rid of stuff, but just like those with hoarding challenges and go through the de-cluttering process, you will be happier and your pipeline will be healthier in the long run. You will increase your close/win rate because you will focus on ideal opportunities and the commission will start rolling in. I promise you.

If you have specific practices that you have employed to freshen up your pipeline let me know in the comments below. Or share it with the community at Facebook.com/TheSalesEvangelist.

Remember, DO BIG THINGS!

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TSE #077: How To Handle Pricing Questions Early In The Sales Process

During this episode I answer questions that are often brought up by sellers in regards how to handle the situation when your customer is trying to bring up pricing too soon. I feel that one of the important things to establish with the prospect is that you are not going to enter a price war or bidding match. If they are out kicking the tires or actively looking for a product or service you need to know. If they are just trying to get a price to have you compete with other vendors, it will be a waste of your time because no matter what you do or say they are just going to go with the lowest bidder. These types of opportunities are neither worth my time nor yours. Telling them up front that you may not be a fit if they are just looking to get a low price is the way to go. In my experience those who are just about trying to get the lowest price end up costing you more time than those who have money and are more of a fit.

If the prospect is honestly looking to see if the price fits in their budget, I don’t mind, offering them a ballpark figure of what others have paid. I have seen that a ball park such as $1,000-$5,000 a month tends to be more of a meaningful way to offer a realistic idea. I then follow up with the idea that in order to offer a more accurate pricing, it will require that I understand more of what they are looking for/need. I can also share insights into how others are leveraging what we do specific to their industry. By so doing I can then offer them a finer tune realistic  price. It also helps me to sell based on value and not be seen as a commodity item. This approach has helped me to close many business deals. Some organizations are secretive about pricing. However, I don’t feel that it’s needed. But I do want to be up front with buyers and have them be up front with me.

Check out the episode and feel free to share with me if you have your own strategies that have worked for you. As always, remember to “DO BIG THINGS”!

Check out our recent mention in Entrepreneur Magazine 

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TSE 075: How To Stay Top Of Mind With Prospects Without Being Annoying!

Okay, so tell me if this has ever happened to you before. You are working with a prospect and for some reason they have to put the project on hold for six months. Whether there is some litigation reasoning, lack of sufficient budget or whatever (insert your own reason here). Whatever the reason is they say to contact them later on. However, when you do call they can’t remember who you are or what the project was or just put it on the back burner.

Well, say bye bye to those days. In this episode I share specific things you can do to always stay  top of mind with all of your prospects; even with those projects on hold for an extended period of time without being annoying.

Here are some of the major takeaways from the show:

1. Get Google Alerts and set it up for each prospect, their company and their industry.
2. Follow their company on LinkedIn and Twitter to keep on top of pertinent information.
3. Based on intel you gain from LinkedIn for special occasions such as work anniversary, birthdays etc., send them a personalized hand written card in the mail. This single activity alone will make sure that you are not forgotten.
4. Follow other employees in the company via social media as well.
5. Take advantage of their social media pages, company calendars, press releases etc. Go to their website to take advantage of the information that most don’t pay attention to.
6. Make a calendar reminder to yourself to send them relevant information to them monthly. Do this in a way that it is not spammy, but as a true friend.
7. Use social media avenues and emails to communicate interesting things you find about the prospect or the organization.

With any of these top of mind activities, make sure you do not pitch your product or service. As mentioned above, these activities are purely to allow your prospect to see you as a human being and to build a relationship. You want them to see you as a trusted resource or a friend. When these practices are successfully implemented, it doesn’t matter how long it has been sine you have spoken with a prospect, they will remember you because you stay on top of their minds in unique ways.

Do BIG Things:

Set up a couple Google Alerts for your company, your name and one of your top prospects.

Start here: Set up Google Alerts for FREE!

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TSE 069: Just Say Noooooo!

As a new seller, one of the biggest challenges that I faced was the fear of saying “no” to prospects or clients. Why? I thought if I said no to any questions that they ask, I would disappoint them and eventually turn them away. Have you ever felt the same way? Well, in this episode I share my experience with this challenge, how I overcame it and why you should say “no” even more.

Here are some of the major take aways from our discussion:

• Saying “no” will make you different from every other seller who are a “yes men/women”.
• It is important to be honest with your prospects. Don’t get in the habit of taking on projects that are not a fit for your business, you will waste time and money.
• Saying “no” to things that are not for your organization allows you to focus more on those that are a fit for your business.
• Being honest is important.
• When you say no to a prospect they will respect you more because you were upfront with them unlike the stigma that they may have had about what a sales person is like.
• Finding out why a prospect asks you certain questions will help you learn if something is critical or not.

After listening to the episode, answer this question below in the comment area. “Do you feel there is ever a time when you should say yes to a prospect no matter what?” (Y or N)

Learn why it’s important to be able to tell your prospects no!

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TSE 053: At Least 1 of 4 Things You Should Get From EACH Prospecting Call!

During this episode I am going to go a little personal and share something that I learned early on in my sales career as a novice seller. You see, when making prospecting calls I use to think that there were only two possible outcomes. Either the prospect was going to reject me with a no, or they were going to show some interested and say yes. However, as I became a mature seller, I realized that there were more than these two options. There are actually one of four outcomes that I look forward to now. Here they are:

1. A Clear No!

A clear no is powerful! Why is it so powerful? It prevents you from living in a false, “hopeless” state, wondering if this deal is going to come true or not. Wishy-washy answers like “maybe” or “send me information” are not clear but leaves to more headaches later on. A clear no allows you to get rid of the junk and focus on the deals that will matter.

2. A Clear Yes!
A clear yes is obviously important because it is someone who is interested. But besides the yes, you need to know specifically what the next step is. Usually I ask the client what would you like to do next and then they basically tell me how to close the deal.

3. A Referral

A referral can come from many possible sources; why not from a prospect? As you listen to the episode you will hear a story how I gained 4 referrals from someone who “was not interested”. All you have to do is just simply ask, no major trick to it.

4. A Lesson

Every prospecting call can teach you a lesson. It maybe the way you said something or the way you did not say something that you should have. Maybe it is something that the prospects said that you can take and apply to your approach next time or your marketing. There are plenty of lessons if we can learn from.

So there you have it. There are more than two outcomes from a prospecting call. Listen to the episode below to hear the stories I shared and more detail. As always, go out and DO BIG THINGS!

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TSE 051: Does Standing Up When Making Phone Calls Make A Difference?

Have you ever wondered if standing up while making phone calls is effective or not? Well, you are not the only one. I find that many people have that similar question. That is why I created this episode. I have tried it and saw that for me standing up was VERY EFFECTIVE.

See some of the major takeaways below.

• Standing up allows you to better improve your posture.
• Standing up allows your lungs to be opened and offer you the ability to breathe better. (slouching over talking on the phone is not good)
• When you are on the phone, both parties have to rely on what they hear (tonality, inflection etc.) to picture what the other party is doing/look like. When you stand up, it enables you to sound better over the phone and therefore seen better to your prospects/clients.
• Clients and prospects want to work with those who are confident and professional. Standing up allows you to have this confidence when speaking on the phone.
• When you stand up you are better able to generate more energy and that is felt over the phone. Standing also allows you to move more freely and add flexibility and dynamic to the way you communicate.

Come and listen to the episode and gain your own takeaways.

Remember, Go out and DO BIG THINGS!

Come listen to this episode NOW!

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TSE 033: How To Maximize Your Time As A Sales Professional

It’s GAME TIME! Using your time wisely is very important. In this episode I talk about the importance of scheduling your time properly with your prospects. As a salesperson, how you schedule your appointments is important. You need to take in consideration when the decision maker is available or when they are ready to go over a proposal. Use your resources wisely and your calendar is powerful.

During this episode I go over:

• Plan out the top things you want to do during the day
• Plan, practice what you have learned and APPLY IT!
• Researching is great, but that is practice time
• Get out of your comfort zone and go the extra mile to accomplish your goals for the day

Use your calendar and schedule time to listen to my podcast and improve your selling skills!

Listen to this episode by clicking below.

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TSE 032: How Value Base Pricing Increased Kirk’s Revenue By 79%!!!

Value base pricing is a revolutionary idea where sellers are able to price their product or service, based on the buyers perceived value. Kirk Bowman is a very successful entrepreneur who has mastered this principle and adopted it in his organization. Over the space of two years; Kirk saw a 79% increase in revenue. This concept will aid any seller and business owners as they grow their business.

Here are some of the take aways from our discussion:

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TSE 028: 1 Simple Secret That Will Help You Schedule More Appointments!

Not getting enough appointment with your prospects? Well fear not, I am here to tell you the secrets of getting more appointments and eventually convert those prospects into clients. The secret is not how many times you have called them or even how many times you email them, but the secret is how do you stand out from your competitors.

In this episode I will teach you THE SECRET into getting you in communication with that decision maker. I share with you my experiences when applying this secret and how it can help you.

Here is what you will learn:

• The secret to getting more appointments with your leads, prospects and event clients
• How sending calendar invites will make you stand out
• How to capture the attention your leads, prospects and even clients via emails
• Why giving your prospects options is so important

Life is about thinking outside of the box and how you can make it your own.

Click below to listen to the episode

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TSE 23: What’s The Power Of Klout? with Terry Brock (@TerryBrock & @jaredeasley)

• Higher Klout score will mean that you will get more business
• The power of Klout comes from an individual’s ability to genuinely connect with others
• To succeed on Klout, you must share your own created content as well as others
• When you do create your own content, make sure the information is accurate because it will separate you from many others
•  As a salesperson, with a quality Klout score you will be able to be seen as more valuable in the eyes of your clients and prospects
• Pour more TME (Time Money and Energy) into something that you like and will be relevant to others. If you do so, you will be happy and help others to be happy as well

If you are curious about my Klout score, send me a tweet me at @Donaldckelly and hashtag #KloutScore. I will be more than happy to share it with you. Enjoy the episode.

Check out Terry and Gina’s book (Affiliate link to Amazon):

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TSE 22: The Power Of A Customized Thank You Note!

Thank You! These are two of the most important words in the English language, and so often over used, without true meaning. But, when it is used properly, with true appreciation and meaning its power is transcending. In this episode I speak about an experience I had where a vendor went above and beyond the call of duty to express appreciation and thankfulness for my business.

Several months ago when I launched this podcast, I was referred to VA Game Plan. They are an organization that offers virtual assistance to online businesses and podcasters like me. They are very professional and offered wonderful services. I was more than satisfied with the quality of experience I was receiving. One day they went above and in a gesture to express their appreciation for my business.

I received this thank you card in the mail: Tell me which thank you card you would prefer on our Facebook post below:

The fact they sent a card via postal mail was cool, but the fact that it was a CUSTOMIZED thank you card to me blew me away. To some they may say, it’s just another card, but for me (the customer) it showed that they cared enough to put the time an effort in expressing their gratitude and tailored it JUST FOR ME! It was so memorable and very appealing to look at. I have thrown away many thank you cards after sometime from other vendors, but it has been months since I received this customized thank you and it sits in my office on my desk. Now, let’s think about this. Who do you think I am going to refer folks to when I have others that need virtual assistance? Since they are right on my desk, they are always on my mind. Since than I have referred a number of my friends to VA Game Plan.

So how does this apply to you? Go above and beyond in everything you do, especially in the small things like a thank you note. People will love it. Imagine if your clients all received a unique thank you note from you? How much would that say to them that you appreciate their business? Imagine if someone received a unique hand written thank you note from you after a great visit? How likely are they to remember you over the competition and favor you? Remember that you are dealing with human beings and we like to be treated as such and not another number on your list.

What unique ways can you SHOW that you appreciate your prospects and clients?

Check out the episode and tell me what you think.

This is a thank you card I made for a prospect I had a great visit with. You think they will remember me and keep this card? 

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TSE 016: Never Hit Your Prospects with The Okey-Doke!

So you must be asking yourself, what is the Okey-Doke? Well, in this episode I reveal exact what it its, why you should never do it but if you do, I provide guidance on how you can remedy the situation. So here it is, the Okey-Doke is a set up, a surprise or unexpected event that may negatively affect your prospects. It is a term that I learned from one of my best friends, Reggie Taylor. As you listen to the episode you will here how the term originated. However, the term is very applicable to sales.

So many times I have experienced sellers who willingly seek to “hit their prospect with the Okey-Doke”, basically fib or hide things just so that they can get the deal. When the prospect/new client finds out about this surprise, it will cause ill will towards the prospect/client and the sell. It also brings a negative stigma upon the company. The client will not be happy, new business opportunity with this prospect will cease and you will not get ANY referrals. It is all around bad for everyone and at the very first opportunity, the client will leave to another vendor.

Sellers who purposely “hit their prospect/clients with the Okey-Doke” give sales a bad name and are in my book are a con-artist. However, if a seller accidentally “hit someone with the Okey-Doke”, there are easy ways to fix the situation.

I was someone who accidentally had an Okey-Doke situation and here is how I fixed it:

1. Recognize the error and ADMIT to it aka “Fall on the Sword”, even if it wasn’t you but someone else in your company. The client sees you all as the same anyways.
2. Apologize for the inconvenience you have cause.
3. Have an open conversation about the challenges that you caused and discuss a solution.
4. Make restitution and see that the client situation is fixed.
5. Learn from the situation and NEVER do it again!

Listen to the podcast episode below and experience my story. I know you will enjoy it.

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TSE 010: Networking 101 With Donald Kelly

Networking is a very critical role for any sales representative, but many people do not know how to effectively do it. Over the next two weeks I have two amazing guests who will share their expertise on networking and how to do it right. During this episode I kick off our networking crusade with some very fundamental tips about networking. I also share a story how I received an excellent employment opportunity from an unlikely networking source, a competitor!

I feel that there are many different ways you can network, online or off-line. Here is a critical principle to understand when networking, seek to find opportunity to give more than to receive. I promise as you do this you will see a tremendous difference in your capability to effectively network.

Come and check out the episode, I know you will enjoy it.

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Listen to this episode on iTunes or listen on Stitcher Radio.

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TSE 008: Can Anyone Sell?

Can anyone sell? In this episode I address a question I discussed recently with some friends regarding my views on selling. You see, so many people feel that it is difficult to sell. Some say you have to look a certain way, you have to be a slick talker or be able to persuade others into doing something they don’t want to. If you really think about it, that is not being a successful sales person, that is being a con-artist. I personally feel that anyone can sell and you don’t have to persuade someone to do something that they  don’t want to do.

To be successful in sales you have to do 4 main things:

1. Have a DESIRE to for sales. A DESIRE to provide value to others and help them recognize it.
2. You have to have a PASSION for what you are selling (product or service).
3. You have to get some kind of SALES TRAINING or a MENTOR who can guide you regarding the fundamentals of selling (also listening to podcasts, like The Sales Evangelist).
4. You have to PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE and implement your personality with your selling.

That’s it! I feel it is that simple.  Come learn more and check out this episode. I know you will enjoy it.

Listen to this episode on iTunes or listen on Stitcher Radio.

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TSE 006: Quick, Easy Way To Overcome “The Undecided Prospect”

Don’t you just dislike that lukewarm, super nice, undecided prospect who doesn’t know how to tell you no? You know the type, they feel bad “letting you down” so they drag the already endless sales process on and on just because they don’t know how to tell you “THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED”.  Well, if you know what I am talking about, you will enjoy this episode where I answer a question posed to me by one of our loyal listeners, Shem Carlson. Shem is a Client Service Representative for HIBU. Feel free to connect with Shem via LinkedIn  to share more ideas with him. You can also learn about the #BIG-THINGS he’s currently working on.

Outline for setting the “Rules Before You Play”:

• Express gratitude for the time to meet
• Review the time frame of the meeting
• Discuss if there are any possible interference
• Set the agenda for the meeting
• Ask the prospect if they feel comfortable telling you “No, if they recognize you are not a fit for them”
• Ask the prospect if they are okay with you telling them “No, if you recognize they are not a fit for you”
• Ask the prospect if they feel it is a fit, are they willing to tell you so
• Tell them you will want to plan a next step at the end of the meeting

That’s it! It is a very simple process.

Please let me know if there are any questions regarding this idea. Feel free to reach out to me at Donald@thesalesevangelist.com

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TSE 004: Follow Up Lesson I Learned From a 14 Year Old

Hey everyone! Welcome to another great episode of the Sales Evangelist podcast. During this episode I reveal the new format of having two episodes weekly. The first episode will be shorter and devoted to me speaking on a specific sales tip or answer a question submitted from listeners (that means YOU!). In this episode I share a story I learned from my 14  year – old cousin about following up.

I also speak about my experience at New Media Expo. I was able to connect with some podcasters and online business’ biggest names. Some of these individuals included Pat Flynn, Dan Miller, John Dumas and Michael Hyatt. To follow up with them, I share a creative idea how I am planning on following up with these folks using a picture.

Come and check it out and follow up with me on what you learn!

Take Aways:

• Your word is your bond
• When you follow up exactly when you promise you gain the trust of your clients/prospects
• Be professional with your follow ups
• Think of unique ways to follow up with your clients/prospects
• Upcoming guest on the next episode Judy Garmaise!

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TSE 000: Welcome to the Sales Evangelist Podcast!

Welcome to the Sales Evangelist podcast (TSE)! Everyone here at the Sales Evangelist podcast is excited for the launch of the show.

In this episode I will:

• Introduce the show
• Introduce the purpose of the podcast
• Outline the episode and the host, me!

In a previous blog post I gave some background information about how the show actually was conceived and started. For this episode I go a bit more into detail. I also have a little surprise in the introduction of the show. I like to have fun and I love to share value.

If you want to learn a little more about me, you can connect with me on social media. I am on Twitter, Google+, Facebook , LinkedIn, and About.me. You may also learn more in the about me sections.

Once again, welcome to The Sales Evangelist podcast! I hope you find these sales tips valuable as you listen to the show. If you have learned something new from the episodes, feel free to share it and leave me ratings and review on iTunes or Stitcher. But most importantly, DO BIG THINGS!

 Check out the Podcast in iTunes here!

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The Sales Evangelist Podcast!

Just like most of you, I am a real life sales professional hustling in the world of software sales. If you were like me, you had no clue how to really sell when you started. Over the years I’ve received training/coaching from some of the industry’s leading experts. I applied what I was learning and started seeing a significant difference in my performance and income. I started doing “BIG THINGS”!