Is your industry becoming more competitive? Are your prospects taking a closer look at what your competitors have to offer? Selling in today’s marketplace reminds me of that old line from ABC’s Wide World of Sports: “The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.” For the salesperson and the sales manager in the arena, … Read full article
I recently reread Jim Collins’ book, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don’t and found that many of his ideas can help you improve performance of your sales team. Collins’ book answers the question: How can good companies, mediocre companies, even bad companies achieve enduring greatness? Using tough standards, Collins … Read full article
For over 200 years the US Constitution has served as the system of fundamental laws and principles of our society. This amazing document has served as the cornerstone of our democracy. A reflection of our Founding Fathers’ core values, the Constitution has kept our society on track since 1787, and has certainly contributed significantly to … Read full article
Hold a contest, for example an afternoon off of work to go golfing as a team. Set a team goal that must be met for anyone to qualify, then set individual goals Create an individual development plan for each employee. Work with team members to create development plans that are customized to each person. The … Read full article
Have an important decision to make? Let the team decide! Or at least invite them to consult with you. They are, after all, the ones who will feel the impact the most. Besides, you’ll probably end up with a better decision – one that team members will support because they helped make it. A Crash … Read full article
Keep a written list of your teammembers’ “bad boss” behaviors. Refer to it often and consider things you may be doing that are similar. Do whatever you can to minimize or eliminate those demotivating behaviors in the future. As Ken Blanchard, author of “The One Minute Manager says, “Catch people doing something right.” Take time … Read full article
Listen to others. Listening shows respect”¦ that people and their ideas are important to you. When people know you’re willing to listen, they will share their ideas as well as their frustrations. Listening enables you to build trust, which is essential for creating an elite, high-performance team. Clarify your expectations. Meet with individual team members … Read full article
Step 1: Is your “Stuck-in-rut” rep also one of your “Bell Cows”? A sales team typically consists of a few leaders and lots of followers. So does a ranch, where the herd follows along behind the one cow with a bell around its neck. Many salespeople, especially those with less experience, emulate the example of … Read full article
I just completed reading an informative article from MIT’s Sloan Management Review titled, “Why Leadership Development Efforts Fail.” The article states that too often companies go out looking for the next leadership fad – for example, the author of the newest book on the business bestseller list – and then they end up with a … Read full article
A friend of mine sells voice recording systems for emergency 911 centers. One “minor” difference between his system and those of competitors is that his system has been approved by Underwriters Laboratories. For years, my friend and his fellow salespeople made nothing of this differentiator. Then one diligent salesperson was carefully studying her prospect’s cost … Read full article