Posted 4 hours ago by Dave Brock

I’m venturing into a little different area than what I normally write about, but I have a real passion for software and technology.  A large number of our clients are technology companies—hardware, software, and services companies.  I’m excited about what they do...

Posted Thu at 10:35 PM by Dave Brock

When I was a young sales manager, my manager had a big candy jar on his desk filled with dollar bills.  In my first meeting, I learned its purpose.  I was presenting where my group was year to date, what our plans were, and the support (read funding) we needed to move forward.  We...

Posted Thu at 10:27 PM by Dave Brock

Often, when I get involved with a new client, I seek out their “laziest” sales people.  You know the one’s I’m talking about.  There’s always someone that hides away.  He keeps a low profile, probably stays out of the office, never volunteers to do th...

Posted Thu at 12:33 AM by Dave Brock

There have been some interesting comments about my post, If You Are Learning Your Customers’ Needs You Are Too Late.  Both Andy Rudin and Tony Zambito had great insights at Sales Edge One.  The discussion made me realize how too many sales people and managers are caught in an old p...

Posted Wed at 12:05 AM by Dave Brock

Those of us who  sell complex B2B solutions to large companies live in a world that is increasingly complex.  Our customers face very challenging problems.  Our solutions are very complex.  Gone are the days when a sales person could handle everything with the customer h...

Posted Mon at 10:41 PM by Dave Brock

Classically, as we qualified and engaged our customers in solving their problems, sales people focused on understanding our customers’ needs.  Our questioning process was focused on identifying pains, needs, and problems so we could present a justified solution addressing those issues...

Posted Mon at 1:54 PM by Sales Guru

Sales Leadership: Increasing Wallet Share with Cross Sell/Up Sell Strategies During a recent meeting with a new clients sales team we began discussing ideas to drive additional revenue, during the meeting I began to poke at what products/services they currently have to offer and then we began a disc...

Posted May 18 by Dave Brock

Let’s face it, customers really hate us.  They will tolerate our marketing content—as long as it isn’t too promotional—just the facts please.  Sales people, well that’s another story, we’re really a total waste of their time, unless the are looking f...

Posted May 14 by Dave Brock

Mid-year is approaching. I’m talking to a lot of people about where they are with quota performance. With too many, their hands start waving around, the stories start, the excuses start. “We’re still seeing the effects of the economy, customers aren’t buying….&rdquo...

Posted May 14 by Helen Bereschinova

ATTENTION! ATTENTION! ATTENTION! New SOLD Issue has just been delivered! What's inside April - May 2012: - Are Salespeople About to Become Extinct? by Lee B. Salz - p. 18 - Master the Ultimate Sales Tool: Perfect Recall by Mike Michalowicz - p. 36 - How to generate that elusive emotional connect...

Posted May 14 by Sales Guru

Are You Facing Sales Fatigue? The past three years have been a challenge for most partner organizations. The economy has caused sales teams to face declining prospect budgets, more competitive bidding, fewer opportunities, lower incomes and general personal stress. As someone that works with partner...

Posted May 13 by Deb Calvert

Last call! Research study on how selling has changed since 2000 and will change in the next decade. Open to all sales professionals. You can remain anonymous or provide your e-mail address to receive a copy of the research report. E-mails will not be used for any other purpose.  This survey i...

Posted May 12 by Deb Calvert

The new Expedition sales blog from People First Productivity Solutions poses the question: What Do You Want in a Sales Trainer? Two blog posts break the topic down to show common mistakes made when hiring an internal trainer and when hiring an external training vendor. http://peoplefirstps.com/what...

Posted May 12 by Deb Calvert

Recent research reveals that sellers are not keeping up with buyers' expectations. Sellers have a blind spot, thinking that they know what customers want but completely missing the mark.  This week's hot topic on CONNECT! Online Radio Show for Selling Professionals addresses this diconnect to ...

Posted May 11 by Dave Brock

There are a huge number of tools available to help sales professionals be more effective and efficient.  Properly used and implemented they can have a profound impact in improving sales performance.  At the same time, used improperly, the provide the potential of causing great problems...

Posted May 10 by Dave Brock

The human brain is an awesome instrument!  One of the things it enables us to do, sometimes almost unconsciously, is to instantly recognize patterns.  We encounter a situation, in nano seconds, our brains compare the situation with others we have encountered through our life.  It ...

Posted May 7 by Dave Brock

I have to admit, I’m writing this out of a little bit of frustration.  I have a prospect, it’s virtually impossible to communicate with them — at least through the normal channels.  Now, you may say, “Dave, don’t you get it–they don’t want to t...

Posted May 7 by Sales Guru

Top Sales Magazine Names Consultant to Cisco and Microsoft Partner Programs a Top 50 Sales/Marketing Influencer **revised Posting KNOXVILLE, Tenn., May 7, 2012Ken Thoreson, author of the award-winning Your Sales Management Guru blog, articles and book series for sales leaders, renowned consultant, c...

Posted May 6 by Dave Brock

The phone rang, I picked it up.  The voice on the other end went into it’s pitch, “Hi, I’m so and so.  Would you be interested if you could invest in a stock that could give you a cud-jillion-billions return in 60 days?” Yes, it was one of those pointless boiler...

Posted May 6 by Dave Brock

These days, so many of the conversations among sales professionals and pundits is about challenging our customers, about getting them to think differently, about creating superior and differentiated value.  I talk and write about it a lot, as do many others.  Sometimes, when I sit bac...