Qualities a Master Salesman Must Develop – 1930’s Style
Napoleon Hill author of the legendary Think and Grow Rich, has a rare book titled, How to Sell Your Way Through Life (1939). This is the second of a four-part series that will present the 28...
View ArticleThe Difference Between a Salesman and a Master Salesman
Napoleon Hill author of the legendary Think and Grow Rich, has a rare book titled, How to Sell Your Way Through Life (1939). This is the third of a four-part series that will present the 28 Qualities...
View ArticlePredicting the Outcome of a Sales Meeting is Easy. Sort of.
Crystal balls. Don’t you wish you had one when you were preparing for a big sales call? Even more when you were in a big sales presentation? Predicting the future is actually pretty easy if you’re...
View ArticleManagers as Mentors. Building Internal Sales Partnerships.
“I speak to three of four corporations a week on the subjects of customer service, leadership, and management,” said Chip Bell. “I began to see a major shift occurring in the way people were being...
View ArticleDo All Winners Finish First in a Road Race?
No. But they finish. On a hot, sticky Saturday morning in Charlotte, NC, four hundred men and women are about to run the “Dilworth Jubilee” 8k road race. I’m among them. Paid my fee, got my number...
View ArticleThe “Three You’re Crazy” Rule. Who Does it Apply to?
You get a new job, start a new venture, or get involved with network marketing. Someone says, “You’re crazy;” then, someone else says, “You’re crazy;” then someone else says, “You’re crazy,” and then...
View ArticleWhen something goes wrong, what do you say?
How do you apologize to a customer? When your company makes an error, or a customer is in some way offended, and an apology is in order, all kinds of options are available. Most of which only make a...
View ArticleThe Friendly Factor – How Full of it Are You
How important is friendly? To me, if there are 100 qualities of a successful customer service person or salesperson friendly is in the top three, and may be the top one. Friendly makes sales and...
View ArticleI Have No Reservations About Friendly Service
I was calling to check on reservations for my one night (city un-named) stay. Our office was closed for the holidays, and I couldn’t find the information I needed (if you’ve ever seen my office you’d...
View ArticleThe 24-Hour Reality of Time Management – Yes!
“I don’t have enough time.” Ever say that? What does it mean? I want more hours in the day or I’m not using my allotted time (24 hours) to my best advantage. (What we need is a 36-hour day. That way...
View ArticleWhat is the Reality of Selling? The Way You Do the Things You Do.
Jeffrey, what’s the easiest way to make a sale? Jeffrey, what’s the best way to make a sale? Jeffrey, what’s the fastest way to make a sale? Same answer: there is none. There is no easy, best, fast...
View ArticleGood, better, best. Which one are you?
Personal achievement. Success. Fulfillment. Big words that every entrepreneur or salesperson seeks. “Get there by setting goals,” they say. “Wrong,” I say. Now, I’m not saying don’t set goals. I am...
View ArticleThe Secret Formula for Personal Achievement is Yours.
“Going for the gold” is wrong. Being the best you can be in order to earn the gold, or get the gold is a surer path to success. What path are you on? Are you the best at what you do? Everyone wants...
View ArticleDecide to Make Every Day the First of Year.
Well it’s a new year again. More resolutions, more goals, more plans. If the new year only ran until February, we would be fine. Most people can only keep their resolutions and goals going for about a...
View ArticleThis Little Piggy Got in the Door!
I hate cold calls. I think they’re a waste of time (but that’s another issue). For those of you that are still stuck doing them, here’s a refreshing look at the process. There are three steps...
View ArticleEasiest Way to Make a Sale? Top-Down Selling!
Excerpt from The Sales Bible In every company there is one person you are certain that can make a decision…The CEO. Why start anyplace else? The power of being introduced by the CEO down to the...
View ArticleI Found a Sales Answer I’ve Been Looking at for YEARS
“Hi. How are you today?” I hate that line. When salespeople call up and say, How are you today? it’s a warning sign line. They’re saying, “I don’t really care what or how you’re doing today, I need to...
View ArticleTell them what to buy – and make sales shine.
True story: She has about an hour and a half layover in the Pittsburgh airport. As she wondered around, she sees a shoe shine stand. The sign says, “Shine $3 Wax $5” and looking at her beat up $39.00...
View ArticleI’m satisfied with my present source. Well, maybe.
The prospect is not waiting by the phone for your call. Most people have what you’re selling and are doing business with someone else. They have a source for what you do and they think they are...
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What Happy, Successful, Optimistic People Know About Life
“This blog post is written by my lifelong friend Steve Rizzo, The Attitude Adjuster.” The most important lesson I’ve learned from living on this planet is what any happy, successful, optimistic...
View ArticleTrying to Escape Boston with a Smile. No Luck.
I get to the Boston Logan Airport 2 1/2 hours early for my 6:30pm flight. I run to the US Airways skycap and ask if there’s an earlier plane to Charlotte. He says, “Yes 4:30, you’ll have to check in...
View ArticleConrad Hilton creates a powerful “new” service.
Presented here is one of the most powerful lessons of customer loyalty. It’s from a man who was arguably the father of hotel hospitality…Conrad Hilton. The lesson is from the book, The New Art of...
View ArticleSalespeople: “Never Fail Again.” Here’s How!
One of the greatest fears of salespeople is failure. Early in his career, the late David H. Sandler, founder of the Sandler Sales Institute, created a mechanism that prevented him, or any salesperson...
View ArticleLet’s Give Them Something to Talk About.
When Nordstrom came to Charlotte, merchants were shaking in their boots. Big mistake. America’s best “known for service” retailer, Nordstrom started as a shoe store in Seattle and grew into a retail...
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17 Great Answers to “How much do you charge?” by David Newman
David Newman continues to be one of America’s best coaches for marketing, sales, and small business in general. Buy his book, “Do It! Selling: 77 Instant-Action Ideas to Land Better Clients, Bigger...
View ArticleReady…Set…Go!
The keyword? “Ready.” How you get ready, or prepare determines how fast and hard you can go. And ‘go’ determines your ultimate outcome. You know that, but the question is: are you doing that? And if...
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How to Pave the Way for Opportunity by Steve Rizzo
“This blog post is written by my lifelong friend Steve Rizzo, The Attitude Adjuster.” A key to a happy, successful life is making a conscious choice to live in the “the now.” The only time that...
View ArticleThe Secret Formula is React, Respond, Recover, +1
You do something wrong. The customer gets mad. You apologize and try to fix the problem, make nice, and hope they don’t go someplace else next time. Want to buy some “Customer Insurance?” Sure you...
View ArticleThe Impact of Reading. From your Eye, to your Mind, to your Wallet.
“See Spot Run.” That sentence was from one of your first reading lessons. “Look. Look. Look.” That sentence was from one of your first reading lessons. More than 100 years ago, The Scott, Foresman...
View ArticleGetting What You Want. It’s a Matter of Self-truth.
Why aren’t you moving forward? Why do you feel “stuck?” Why is your success track not moving fast enough? Why don’t you have what you want? Why don’t you have what you feel you deserve? Those are not...
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If You Would Do It Later – Why Wouldn’t You Do It Now?
I met a guy on the plane who was an area director for a major shoe store chain. “Suppose I went into your store and the shoe I wanted was out of stock in my size – what would happen,” I queried. “Well,...
View ArticleValue On-Hold. Seize the Silence.
Can you hold for a second? Captive audience. It doesn’t matter if you called them or they called you, your most prized prospect (the one you’ve been courting for months) is now on the other line....
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How to Stop Complaining about Monday by Anthony Iannarino
“This blog post is written by my friend Anthony Iannarino, and is an excerpt from his brilliant new book, The Negativity Fast.” Let’s imagine it is Sunday night, and you really don’t want to go to...
View ArticleThe graph of easy sales – ain’t so easy.
Jeffrey, my question is… I am looking for a sales graphic that an associate of mine told me about. It has 4 quadrants: 1. selling current customers current products; 2. selling current customers new...
View ArticleDoes CRM really “help” make the sale? Depends on which one you use.
Are you using some form of database management to “control” your customer data? Customer Relationship Management or CRM has been around in one form or another for nearly 30 years. But in the last five...
View ArticleDon’t apologize. Just fix it…in a memorable way.
SITUATION: A customer calls to complain. Something is wrong, needs fixing, or is late. YOUR INITIAL REACTION: Rats. REALITY: Fix the problem, and build goodwill, or lose the next order to the...
View ArticleWhat does it take to become a (sales) success?
What do great salespeople do that’s different from mediocre ones? Good question. Zillions of answers so I decided to ask a very successful salesperson that very question. Andy Jacobson, regional vice...
View ArticleAre you outstanding in your field or out standing in a field?
You can be “in the field” or you can “lead the field.” Which do you think is better? Lead the field, of course. Which are you? Uh oh. In the field. And some of you are saying, “Oh, Jeffrey I couldn’t...
View ArticleShow me the belief, and I’ll show you the money.
Les Traband is a life insurance agent and a friend of mine. In 1971, Les was chasing me to sell me some life insurance he claimed I needed. I didn’t think I did. So, even though we were friends, I...
View ArticleA success envelope. Mail it, open it, and push it.
When you’re pushing the envelope, you’re looking to maximize your advantage. You’re looking for the edge… the angle…the window. Webster’s? No. More authentic. Mackay. Those are the opening words of...
View ArticleThe fortune being made in service – and the fortune being lost.
This excerpt from my book: Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless. The fortune being made in service and the fortune being lost. We have a 97.5% customer satisfaction...
View ArticleWho’s most important, and how do you treat them?
This is an excerpt from my book: Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless. Who’s most important, and how do you treat them? When you’re speaking with a customer, who’s the...
View ArticleIs that the best way you can say it? Is that the best way you can do it?
This is an excerpt from my book: Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless. “Best Practice” Benchmark: A response, practice or function that, by peer consensus, has been...
View ArticleThe Power of Engagement, and the Reality of Marriage.
“Will you marry me?” is the most powerful engagement question in the world. The answer is a commitment. Engagement with the customer is no different. The purpose of “engagement” in sales is to...
View ArticleWhere did the sale go? I seem to have lost it.
Lost a sale? What did you blame it on? Who did you blame it on? In my 32 years of training salespeople, I’ve never had one person come up to me and say, “Jeffrey, I didn’t make the sale, and it’s all...
View ArticleA Look at Yesterday to See Tomorrow. Past and Future Sales.
Who made the first sale? Eve sold Adam the apple. The first sale. A sale based on ethics, values and morality. Or was it just the opposite? She had no sales tools, no power point presentations, no...
View ArticleAA for the twenty-first century: Achievement Actions
This column marks the start of my eighth year of writing. Every Friday. Seven hundred fifty words, three hundred and sixty four times. New thoughts, ideas, and strategies every week. How do you do...
View ArticleWhere Do All Those Ideas Come From?
Johnny, pay attention!” Probably the most valuable lesson offered to you in school. But at the time you got it, you were either misbehaving, embarrassed, angry, or somewhere else in your mind...
View ArticleNegotiate to Win for the Other Guy.
The object of negotiating is to win, or is it? What about the other guy? If you win, does that mean he loses? No. That’s where the phrase win-win came from. It’s to make the guy who didn’t fare as...
View Article“I’m closed. I’ve worked my eight hours.”
We get to the curb, check our bags, standard GREAT skycap service. It’s Saturday night, and we’re flying to Las Vegas for a weekend of fun. Go inside to the First Class/Dividend Preferred line....
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