How to apply the Challenger Sale…when you’re not a challenger

“I don’t accept the status quo. I do accept Visa, MasterCard, or American Express.” Stephen Colbert I’m a fan of The Challenger Sale – despite the fact that the book came out the same year as mine (2011) and promptly soared past me. If you’re not familiar with the book

Read More

0

Screenwriting Tips for Sellers: 5 Elements you Must Have to Move a Prospect to Action

Like a well-crafted movie or television show, a successful salesperson must grab a prospect’s attention, pique their interest and establish an emotional connection in order to move them to action.  Screenwriters know that there are 5 dramatic elements that must be present in order to engage and move audiences.  Make

Read More

0

How to Own the Stage with your Presentation or Demo

Shakespeare said, “All the world is a stage,” and no where is this more true in business than when you delivering a sales presentation or a product demo.  Whether your stage is a computer screen or a conference room, you must own the stage –  in other words, earn and

Read More

0

Take me to your leader. Enlisting the help of gatekeepers to get in front of decision-makers

The odds of reaching a decision-maker on your first attempt can be greater than hitting the winning lottery numbers. Chances are you will either 1) end up in voice mail, or 2) speak to someone who will politely inform you that the decision-maker is unavailable but will take a message

Read More

2

How to Break Out of “Presenter Mode”

                                                                                                                  Illustration courtesy of 24Slides.com In business, most people (and salespeople are no exception) don’t speak with as much energy or personality as they do in their personal lives. They tend to flatten or smooth things out and tamp down the good and the bad news alike. Telling

Read More

0

Make Your Sales Script Sound Authentic with These Acting Tips

The most common question I was asked when I was working as a professional actor was this: “How do you memorize all of those lines?” But the tougher question is really, “How do you make a script sound natural and authentic …performance after performance?” Making a script sound like your

Read More

0

“Why are you wasting my life?!” A wake-up call for Salespeople from Amazon’s Jeff Bezos

“Why are you wasting my life?” Can you imagine a client saying that to you after you delivered (what you thought) was a pretty good, on target presentation?? Jeff Bezos did exactly that after one of his engineers delivered a complicated, boring presentation to the outspoken founder of Amazon. I

Read More

0

A Good Sales Tip from Breaking Bad: Let the Prospect Connect the Dots

Even if you didn’t get swept up in the Breaking Bad saga, it would have been difficult to miss the powerful hold it had on its audience, the awards it racked up or the place it earned popular culture. Maybe you had to listen to coworkers endlessly dissect each episode

Read More

0

7 Quick Acting Tips for Sales Pros

Most actors have to audition for every role.  In fact, even Marlon Brando had to audition for his iconic role in The Godfather.  Although he was a very successful actor at that point in his career, there were a lot of qualified actors competing for the part.  He knew he

Read More

3

Gain Instant Credibility in Your Presentation or Demo with the Movie Critic Principle

Thousands of movie-goers rely on reviews from people they’ve never met to guide them before shelling out hard cash for a movie. We are willing to trust the opinion of a disinterested third-party, whether it’s a website like Flixter or Rotten Tomatoes, or a newspaper or magazine, because they, like

Read More

0