October, 2014

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Sales Managers – Why Isn’t Goal Setting Easy?

Anthony Cole Training

'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. The company subscribed to the “Al Grannum” school of 10-3-1 - see 10 people, 3 will be qualified buyers, 1 will buy. Based on that equation, the established goal was to write 100 lives. You do the math.

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Google Analytics 102: How To Set Up Goals, Segments & Events in Google Analytics

ConversionXL

'Some of you out there may find this Google Analytics feature overview to be mostly review. That’s awesome! That means you’re really taking ownership of your data. However, if you’ve never used any of these features, only experimented with them a little, or aren’t sure you’re using them correctly, you should read on. From the time you set up your account and put your tracking code on your site, Google Analytics, starts to capture and display a lot of data.

Start-ups 134
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What Your Customer’s Don’t Know — That’s Costing You Sales

A Sales Guy

'“No, we’re all set.” “We’re happy with what we have.” “We’re not looking to change at this time.” How often have you heard these words come out of a buyers mouth? Nobody wants to hear these words. They stop sales people in their tracks. Why? Because, for most sales people, if the prospect already has what you’re selling then why “push” them on something.

Education 125
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The Biggest Secret of Salespeople that Rock

Understanding the Sales Force

'In the old days, after speaking at a conference, I would frequently be told that I was the top-rated speaker at the event. More recently, people have told me that I "Rocked!" One time, as I was being introduced, an audience member came up to me and said, "Don''t Suck!" We can''t always be rock stars. I apologize if it sounded like I was bragging. I didn''t mean to.

Quota 115
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AI Strategies for Sales Managers: How to Cut Down on Tedious Admin Work

What if you could help your sellers stop wasting 72% of their day on non-selling activities and focus on bringing in revenue? Incorporating AI in your enablement workflows can help you cut down on busy work, get projects done faster, and let your team (and you!) focus on making a bigger impact. We put together this guide to show you how to use AI to cut time and costs for projects, including collateral creation, development of training videos, and automating tedious processes.

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Sales Managers Only Have One Real Goal!

Partners in Excellence

'There’s a lot of stuff written about what sales managers have to do and their key job responsibilities. Some of the laundry list items include: Make sure the team makes the number, develop the strategy, manage the forecast/pipeline, manage performance, recruit, train, coach, and on and on. 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.

Territory 113
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The Ball and Chain for Salespeople – Email Management

Score More Sales

'If you are in sales, take a look at your email inbox now. How many emails do you have? What is your process for dealing with email? I’ll share some ideas, but first, please take this 3 minute survey on how you deal with email. I will post the results AND will be sharing aggregated responses when I talk about sales productivity at Dreamforce on October 14th (9AM at the Marriott Marquis if you are going to Dreamforce) There are no names attached to this survey – so please be honest.

More Trending

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Stock Photography vs. Real Photos: Can’t We Use Both?

ConversionXL

'When it comes to online imagery, it’s not so much about having images, as it is about making sure those images to give the visitor a sense of texture, size, scale, detail, context & brand. According to MDG Advertising , 67% of online shoppers rated high quality images as being “very important” to their purchase decision, which was slightly more than “product specific information”, “long descriptions”, and “reviews & ratings”: Joann P

Represent 129
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What To Do When A Prospect Goes Dark

A Sales Guy

'There is nothing more frustrating to a sales person than when a client goes dark. Your last conversation was killer, you both agreed that your solution made sense. The prospect said they needed to; share it with their team, run the numbers, look at another solution, run it past IT, work with H.R., make a recommendation or any other “next step.” ( great video on how to sell the “next step” within a sales cycle).

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Top 4 Reasons a Great Salesperson Can Fail at Your Company

Understanding the Sales Force

'Earlier this week, I spoke to a great audience of sales leaders at the EcSell Institute Fall Sales Coaching Summit in Dallas where my topic was, How to Hire a Great Salesperson that Will be Great. I asked the attendees if they had ever hired a great salesperson that still failed and everyone there said, "Yes!" I asked if anyone could explain how or why a great salesperson could fail, and the group offered up many guesses, but weren’t able to come up with my top 4 reasons.

Sales 112
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How To Ruin A Great Customer Experience

Partners in Excellence

'I took my car in to be serviced the other day. The dealership has done a fantastic job in designing a great customer experience. I made my appointment online, it was easy to choose a time that was convenient for me. The day before they sent me a reminder and introduced me to “Dale,” my service advisor. I showed up at the appointed time.

Customers 106
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Prepare Now: 2025s Must-Know Trends For Product And Data Leaders

Speaker: Jay Allardyce, Deepak Vittal, and Terrence Sheflin

As we look ahead to 2025, business intelligence and data analytics are set to play pivotal roles in shaping success. Organizations are already starting to face a host of transformative trends as the year comes to a close, including the integration of AI in data analytics, an increased emphasis on real-time data insights, and the growing importance of user experience in BI solutions.

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10 Tips to Close the Sale Now

The Sales Hunter

' 1. Give the customer two options. Doing this allows them to feel in control. Many people don’t want to be sold. Giving them an option allows them to feel they’re in control. 2. State your offer with confidence with a strong voice and strong body language. If you can’t state your price with confidence, […].

Closing 108
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If A Tree Falls in the Woods, Do Your Sales People Hear It?

Anthony Cole Training

'Ever wonder if your sales people are really listening to you? Do they respond and react. or do they sit politely listening and then continue to do what they’ve always done? As a sales manager or sales executive, you have many roles to fill in order to get the most out of your sales team. You must coach them, you must motivate them, you must have some level of performance management and, in some way for some of them, you must mentor them.

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A Quick Guide To Successful User Onboarding for SaaS Products

ConversionXL

'You get people to sign up for your free SaaS trial – great! Trouble is, a significant percentage of users sign up for the trial, log in once, and never come back. You might as well have burned the money it took to acquire them. The reality is, you’ll never retain all of your customers & some of those reasons you can’t control: Not the right fit for their needs features or price wise.

Product 120
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You Can Hide in Video, But You Can’t Get Lost (Why Video Hiring Rocks!)

A Sales Guy

'We’re hiring at A Sales Guy. It’s been a VERY painful process. Finding good people is hard. A Sales Guy has a very unique culture in that we look for and embrace the gritty, cool, nerd who can SELL! And, when I say nerd, I mean nerd, not dork. There are way too many dorks in sales. We’re not interested in the dork or the douchebag.

Sell 118
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Don't Let AI Pass You By: The New Era of Personalized Sales Coaching & Development

Speaker: Brendan Sweeney, VP of Sales & Devyn Blume, Sr. Account Executive

Are you curious about how artificial intelligence is reshaping sales coaching, learning, and development? Join Brendan Sweeney and Devyn Blume of Allego for an engaging new webinar exploring AI's transformative role in sales coaching and performance improvement! Brendan and Devyn will share actionable insights and strategies for integrating AI into coaching and development - ensuring personalized, effective, and scalable training!

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Why My Golfing May be Just Like Your Sales Recruiting

Understanding the Sales Force

'Image Copyright: deklofenak / 123RF Stock Photo. On the rare occasion that I have the opportunity to golf, it doesn''t matter what I choose for clubs, balls, gloves, tees or clothing. At this point in my life and very short golfing career, just being out with a friend is good enough for me and if we count his strokes, and my lost balls, our final scores might even be competitive!

Sales 100
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Why, How, Who, When, And What

Partners in Excellence

'There’s a huge difference between what our customers go through to buy and what most sales people do in trying to sell those customers. It’s this difference that causes much of the disconnect between customers and sales people. It’s recognizing this difference and engaging customers in their entire buying process that separates great sales people from everyone else.

Process 99
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Selling vs. Negotiating: Do You Know the Difference?

The Sales Hunter

' Below is an excerpt from the book I co-authored with Matthew Hudson titled Advisor Selling: The Art of Becoming a Trusted Advisor. It’s worth reprinting here, as it gives a great perspective on negotiating. You can’t negotiate anything until you’ve first sold. One of the biggest problems salespeople have is thinking the only way […].

Negotiate 107
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PRO, FUN & MON: 3 Really Good Things to Manage To in Selling

Anthony Cole Training

'I just spent the last five days with my client and good friend, Ric Stoakes, from Lincoln, Nebraska. In addition to being a principle at the UNICO Group, he is an avid traveler and “a nutcase of a Nebraska Football Fan”. If you spent enough time in Lincoln, you would soon discover that “a nutcase of a Nebraska Football Fan” is not a group of one. From Tuesday through Friday, I spent time with him, his sales team and other partners in the firm.

Sell 186
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How to Optimize Call Monitoring: Automate QA and Elevate Customer Experience

Speaker: Laura Noonan, Chief Revenue Officer at CallFinder + Angie Kronlage, Director of Program Success at Working Solutions + April Wiita, Vice President of Program Success at Working Solutions

Are you still manually reviewing calls? 🤔 It's time for a change! The traditional method of manual call monitoring is no longer cutting it in today's fast-paced call center environment. Industry experts Angie Kronlage and April Wiita from Working Solutions are here to explore the power of innovative automation to revolutionize outdated call review processes!

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2 Google Analytics Segments & 1 Report To Help You Better Understand Your Visitors

ConversionXL

'Knowing where to segment your Google Analytics data can be daunting. Where do you start? And how the Hell are you supposed to know if what you’re looking at is going to make any difference what-so-ever? Trust me, I hear you. I’ve been learning more about gaining real insights from analytics myself, and my head’s been reeling from staring down the infinite possibilities.

Referrals 119
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Vail Gives Us a Lesson on “Product vs. Sales” With It’s New Epic Mix Feature

A Sales Guy

'I’ve talked frequently on this blog about how product has surpassed sales in driving revenue. As much as sales people don’t want to admit it and as much as many companies don’t want to admit it, the change has occurred and ignoring it won’t change things. There is too much information available to consumers about products and services that deficiencies, lack of features, poor service etc., can not be overcome by even the best sales people in the world.

Product 117
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Top B2B Marketing Blogs: Key Ingredients

Pointclear

'What makes up the perfect B2B marketing blog? First let’s establish that there are marketing blogs—and then there are B2B marketing blogs. Why make the distinction? Consider the all American apple pie. Such an iconic dessert, yet, it’s rare that you’ll ever come across two identical family recipes. Sure, most start off with the same standard ingredients: butter, sugar, flour, apples—just to name a few.

B2B 101
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Marketing And Sales Alignment Or Integration?

Partners in Excellence

'I’m fascinated about a lot of the discussion about marketing and sales alignment. Inevitably, the discussion narrows to MQL’s and SQL’s. The alignment discussion inevitably focuses on gaining agreement on the definition and metrics surrounding these two metrics. Some of the things discussed are, agreement and alignment around the definition of lead quality and lead volume.

SQL 98
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How to Improve Email Deliverability and Optimize Each Send

Learn how to optimize email deliverability and drive greater email ROI. What lands your email in the customer’s inbox? Understanding those factors, otherwise known as email deliverability, is critical to getting the most return on your campaign investments. But the “rules” around which factors land you in the spam folder aren’t always easy to keep up with.

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The One Thing Most Salespeople Are Unable to Do

Understanding the Sales Force

'Can you guess what it is - the one thing most salespeople are unable to do? Based on what I often write most about, you might think it would be to consultative selling, but that''s not it. You might also guess that it''s the sales equivalent of eating right - not doing demos and presentations so early in the sales process. That''s not it either. However, there really is one thing that all but the most elite of salespeople are unable to do.

Consult 95
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The ONE Secret to Selling More

Anthony Cole Training

'I’ve been in the sales and sales management consulting business for 21 years. Prior to that, I was an insurance wholesaler, an insurance agent, a Nautilus Regional Sales Manager, a Nautilus Regional Sales Rep and collegiate athletic coach. During my 30 year professional career, I’ve read a lot of books, met with many keynote speakers and listened to hours of audio recordings.

Sell 163
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How To Optimize Mobile Pages To Drive Phone Leads

ConversionXL

'According to a study of 3,000 mobile searchers by Google & IPOS, nearly half indicated that they are more likely to convert elsewhere if they can’t call a business directly from the search result. That same study shows that phone calls are a powerful measure of purchase intent and are most likely to happen when a prospect is ready to convert (see the full study here ).

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Outlook

A Sales Guy

'Outlook ( n). A View: a pleasant view, a person’s point of view. If you were looking out on the street and saw -20 degree weather, ten feet of snow, and no sun, do you go running out? If a small restaurant is tucked away in a small dark alley in a bad neighborhood, do you go in? If you’re looking out onto a pristine white sandy beach, with beautiful crystal blue water, do you burst out the door in glee?

Sales 115
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Brick & Mortar Retail Relevance: How to Stay Ahead of the Curve

Speaker: Jay Black, Senior Account Executive

Let's set the record straight: in-store retail isn't dead - it's evolving! Faced with the digital age and the demands of omnichannel shopping, some retailers are thriving while others are struggling to adapt. Join Jay Black in this exclusive session as he explores the strategies that set successful stores apart, including: Crafting unique and unforgettable in-store experiences 🛍️ Mastering the art of retail demands 🛒 Navigating inventory challenges in today's climate 📦 an

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Sales Thinks The Leads Are Weak - Well Are They? 12 Power Opinions (Pt 2)

Pointclear

'The leads are weak? You’re weak! If you have never seen the movie/play “Glengarry Glen Ross,” do yourself a favor and watch it. Alec Baldwin rips into the late Jack Lemmon for commenting, “the leads are weak,” with a classic Baldwin-esque tongue-lashing: “The leads are weak? The leads are weak! You’re weak!

Sales 100
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Teaching Our Customers To Buy

Partners in Excellence

'By now, at least if you’ve been reading the literature on selling, we know the importance of Insight, Commercial Teaching/Learning, or whatever you call it. The focus of these are to help the customer realize there are opportunities they may be missing. There are opportunities to grow, to improve their businesses, to reduce costs, to improve their customer experience, to respond more quickly to competition —- to recognize the need to change.

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Negotiating Tips: Are You Dealing with the Decision Maker?

The Sales Hunter

'I’ve covered a 2 of the 12 tips for negotiating successfully, including “Sell first. Negotiate Second” and “Only Negotiate After They’ve Rejected Your Offer Twice.” Here is the 3rd tip: 3. Determine if you’re dealing with the decision maker. Negotiating with someone other than the decision maker never works. A key part of your […].

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Are You That Someone Else for Your Sales Team?

Anthony Cole Training

'Ever wonder if your sales people are really listening to you? Do they respond and react. or do they sit politely listening and then continue to do what they’ve always done? As a sales manager or sales executive, you have many roles to fill in order to get the most out of your sales team. You must coach them, you must motivate them, you must have some level of performance management and, in some ways, you must mentor them.

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How to Prove Marketing Value: Demonstrate Content ROI and Contribution to Sales

Every marketer knows how important it is to prove their efforts drive sales opportunities, but that’s easier said than done. When problems like sales and marketing misalignment, lack of data, and wasted efforts persist, marketers can’t measure, prove, or increase their impact on revenue at a time when demonstrating marketing value is critical. Using analyst and expert data, this guide to marketing impact and content attribution explains: How B2B buyers use content The most common types of conten