The Sales Evangelist

How To Become A Warrior Seller During The Coronavirus Outbreak   The world has been taken aback by the coronavirus pandemic. Businesses, regardless of industry, have been affected. As a salesperson, how do you become a warrior during the coronavirus outbreak? Jason Forrest works for a company called FPG which stands for Forrest Performance Group and one of their programs is Warrior Selling.    There are four different levels of a sales professional. The first level is the follower. They give all the permission to the customer.  The customer dictates what to do, how to act, and tells the salesperson when they’re going to buy. The next level is the helper, who has the sole intention of helping people and serving their customers. Leader is the third level. They are the people you follow to a place you wouldn’t go on your own. The last level is the warrior.   The warriors are advocates for the product and service they sell. This salesperson believes, supports, and advocates for their products and services. In addition to that, the warriors protect their customers’ best interest.    In today’s market, we need more warriors to protect the customers and the organization. People are afraid and the warriors help protect their customers from fear. Without leaders, fear can overcome customers and it can eventually kill the organization. Warriors know their customers so well they know what is needed. A warrior and  con artist may have the same skill set but what sets apart the sales warrior is intention. They protect their customers through their service or product.    Knowing the warrior seller  A warrior has to get their messaging right for their customer and should be able to answer these questions: Why should people buy from you today? What will your products and services immediately do for them? How will your products and services benefit them at this moment? How will your products and services eliminate their present pain points? Once they find the answer to those questions, they need to be able to share the message with the people they serve.    A warrior is defined by me as an advocate for their product and service they sell and at the same time, they're a protector of the customer's best interest. #SalesWarrior   Salespeople procrastinate for several reasons. The first is that they’re not clear about what they’re trying to accomplish.  The second, is that they don’t know why they’re doing what they do.Their why has to be strong enough to get through tough days. The why has to be greater than the sacrifices they have to make to do the job of a salesperson. Third, once the why is discovered, a salesperson has to figure out how. The how includes your cross pattern strategy. What are you going to say to give them certainty and how do you want them to feel once they get off the phone with you?  The last reason why people procrastinate is their “leash mentality,” the restriction in someone’s thoughts that keeps them from doing what needs to be done.                                                                                                                                 Remove your leash A leash is like a dog collar in that it can prevent you from moving forward and can hold you back. The present mind is the best mind because it keeps you focused on the task at hand. In sports, trash talk occurs because it is a means for one player to distract another player.  If done well, it can throw that player off their game. However, as a salesperson, the trash talk doesn’t come from other people but from inside their own head.    Jason came up with the concept of performance formula: P(erformance) = K(nowledge) - L(eash). Performance is what a person does and what we see them do.  Knowledge is what we’ve told them to do. They have a process for making a sale and they have brand knowledge. To get a performance you have to remove the leash from the knowledge. This is the resistance that keeps them from using the knowledge they have, the things that keep them from taking action.    Kinds of Leashes Jason addresses four types of leash mentalities in his book: Self-image An example of the self-image leash is the perception the salesperson has of herself that she doesn’t know the right words to say to convince a prospect to buy. In order to remove this leash, you have to have the confidence that you will be able to convey to others why your product or service is valuable.   Story The story is anything external from us. It’s when you tell yourself that people are still waiting for things to settle down before they start buying and purchasing again. This is just a story, especially when there’s no evidence to support that claim.    Reluctance Reluctance is a situational fear and it may come from not wanting to sound pushy and insensitive. The coronavirus outbreak will impact 2020 projections - it will either lower the sales forecast or be seen as an opportunity to steal market share from the competition. The truth is, if you’re not going to make any changes to get ahead of this, then it could lead to long-term challenges and impede the growth of your company. Taking action now can remove the ambiguous fear you may.  It puts you back in control of your circumstances rather than passively being a victim. As long as you have the right intentions and you believe you’re offering help to your clients, people will know you’re there to help. Rule  Jason defined the rule as anything you need to see, feel, or hear to give yourself permission to engage. However, most of the rules you set for yourself don’t make sense and can serve as roadblocks.    Jason’s program teaches the result matrix. Our results are achieved from what we’ve been taught by our parents, teachers, culture, and media. These elements drive our beliefs and behaviours, and it helps us achieve our results once we understand how these forces drive our actions and decisions.   “How To Become A Warrior Seller During The Coronavirus Outbreak” episode resources Jason’s new book has won as one of the best sales book awards in 40 countries. Know more about this book on his site.  If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part  by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

What Is The Difference Between An SDR and BDR?   The next 20 episodes will focus on the conversations about BDRs and SDRs. We will be talking about tips, strategies, and ideas about how businesses can prospect better and connect with potential clients. Today’s episode will discuss the differences between a BDR and SDR in terms of what they do, how they do it, and how they earn.    In the previous episode, Donald was joined by his sales coaching client, Scott Romney. They talked about how businesses can realign and adjust their message to create offers that are irresistible for the prospects, even in a time of crisis. Our level of empathy must increase as we look for ways to understand where people are coming from. Strategies are needed that will help organizations overcome the crisis that many industries are facing in this season. Scott talked about being mindful and sensitive while thinking of opportunities where salespeople can be leaders to their prospects, especially now.    Set your goal. How many appointments will you make today? #SalesGoals   SDRs and BDRs A BDR is a business development rep and an SDR is a sales development rep. Prior to predictable revenue, their job was to qualify and set appointments for outside sales reps; however, over the past 20 years, the definitions have evolved. Even before these BDRS and SDRs came to exist, there were only sales reps and everyone was responsible for every stage of the selling process.    Being a salesman for an organization meant that you were responsible for finding your own leads and nurturing those leads. Your job included going to trade shows and cultivating accounts. Eventually, sales managers realized that if you break down these processes you get to have more functionality and you can have experts in the different parts of the sales process.    The inside sales team  As a result, the inside sales team was created  to do the research, generate lists, and find the people. Their job is to update the CRM and become an assistant to the account executives.    Over the years, their job extended to setting the appointment and qualifying the leads. Aaron Ross was working with SalesForce when he realized these functions could be broken down further. There are now inbound people who are responsible for the inbound leads, the leads that are coming in via your websites or those who are calling your business phone number. The outbound team are the people who go after the potential client list and send them emails. They are the ones who are reaching out to clients.    BDR and SDR can be used interchangeably but based on the definition given by Salesforce, the BDRs are focused on prospecting for outbound leads while the SDRs are focused on qualifying inbound marketing leads.    The SDRs The SDR doesn’t have to do the hard work of finding leads. Instead of looking for people, the SDRs job is to qualify the inbound leads, follow up with them, and make sure they’ve been qualified for an appointment. They may get a little less in commission than the BDRs because BDRs are tasked with looking for cold leads and turning them into warm leads.    Some companies start their salespeople as an SDR because it’s easier. This role helps to train sales reps how to ask the right questions and it offers a transition to becoming a BDR and then to an account executive.    The BDRs For Donald, the business development role is one of the hardest of the sales roles. It’s their job to look for people and find new business. While they may meet many people, not all of them will convert. Only a few will decide to make a purchase because not everyone is ready. At any given time, only 3% of people are ready to make a purchasing decision. If you look at it from a business perspective, the BDRs role is to look for that 3% wherever they may be and convince them to purchase.   Part of the BDRs job is to educate prospects and get them interested in wanting to do business. A talented business development rep builds relationships, connects with people, and shares with enough value so when a client is ready, that prospect will come back.    The tenure for a business development rep lasts around 14 months and after that, they usually transition to become an account executive, or take an entirely different route. The same is true for an SDR, who can also get a promotion. Both of these roles have about 14-18 month terms.    The length of time is influenced by the depth of training. This is where The Sales Evangelist comes in.  We help sales reps ramp quicker and perform much faster. If it takes a sales rep to improve his rate in three month, the TSE training will help you do that in two months. The training will help sales reps become more effective at a much faster rate.    The secret to success Like any other sales roles, the secret to success is to think of it like it's your own business. The structure of your day is critical. You need to make sure you understand the purpose of having a plan so you know who you are going after, who your targets are, and your goals are set for the day.   A sales rep needs to stick to one industry in a day or per time period. If you spend your morning prospecting the financial industry, then you should stick with that industry until the afternoon. This will let you focus your messaging and help you deliver the information more consistently. If you are a BDR, this structuring is particularly important.    Here are final tips:  Be respectful. You are the first point of contact for the company so you represent your company to every initial contact. They will rate the whole organization depending on their interaction with you.  Make it a good one.    Have different templates. This ties back to the idea of structure. Have templates that are geared toward specific industries. Set up a follow-up appointment.  Plan your day. Plan your week. Plan your month. It is imperative you know what you need to do. This will keep you in check.  Know your numbers. This includes the number of people you speak to, the number of appointments you have set, the number of calls you need to make, your conversion rate, and so on.  Set your goals.      “What Is The Difference Between An SDR and BDR?” episode resources Our goal is to help you succeed especially in this time of  crisis. Reach out to us regardless of your financial capabilities and we will give you flexible options.  If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

How Do I Sell During The Coronavirus Outbreak?  Many industries are affected by the coronavirus pandemic. With that, there are a lot of questions in the sales community about how to move through this season well.  How can you sell while everyone is quarantined and practicing social distancing?  Scott Romney is a senior account executive at Soci. He loves sales and building relationships. Soci’s goal is to help their clients overcome the challenges that may come from internal alignment or with their local franchise partners. Soci can come in to balance their clients’ social media reviews and  do it using just one platform.    Facing the challenges Businesses that are sole-ownership need to take special care with protecting their brand. The main challenge that salespeople are facing right now is how to keep doing sales without compromising the health of all involved and their businesses. Most salespeople are now hiding by not calling people or having conversations with their prospects and clients. What these same people need to wake up to, however, is the reality that the economy is not dead.  It’s still going and very much alive. We’re not currently in recession and the economy can still pick up once the pandemic is controlled and managed.    The economy is not dead.  People are still working but they are working differently.  #COVID19 Understanding the circumstances is imperative to be able to see the opportunity in times of crisis. We all have defining moments in our careers that can change our mindset. You need to ask yourself what these defining moments mean for you. Looking at the challenge brought about by the coronavirus outbreak, ask yourself how this defining moment can change your outlook as a small business. Look at the efficiency and gaps when implementing new flexible working hours and the critical role that social media plays amid COVID-19. Social media isn’t just all fluff but a real lifeline, especially with staying connected to clients.   In every crisis, there’s an opportunity. As salespeople, it’s part of the job to take advantage of the online resources and get to work digitally. This means of communication can help businesses inform, educate, and connect with their clients.  Keep working Even with the pandemic, 99% of the world’s population are still working. Salespeople can pick up the phone and build relationships with their prospects despite the change in how we do business. You can connect and build value, helping your clients see you as a thought leader by continuing to offer counsel.  There is still an opportunity to help with pain points.    It’s time to have a positive side. The nation has faced far greater challenges in the past but they were overcome. As a sales leader, recognize you can come out of this crisis as a leader and not a lagger. Let your prospects know you are working, even in this dire situation, and keep them informed. Make it your goal to build relationships because only a handful of people are currently moving in that direction.  Take this as an opportunity to grow the business by leaning into your clients. This is a defining moment you can take advantage of. Just keep working.    Change your messaging Before the virus outbreak, Scott called on prospects with the message they were doing a good job but wanted to share information to further improve their standing on social media. The updated message emphasizes that social media is now a lifeline they need to utilize if they aren’t already there.    For example, a local fitness gym, All Time Fitness, has jumped into the social media scene. Despite being closed down due to the virus, they are now utilizing social media by sharing some exercise tips people can do at home. They are also using FaceTime and offering a personal coaching session. They realize this is a great time to broaden their client base and have a great opportunity to serve people while they are in quarantine. Businesses can now change their messaging to provide a solution to current pain points.    Structure  you deal opportunities This is a great time to restructure some of your deals and give clients an enticing deal during this difficult time. Sales leaders may need to look at the red tape and their client’s current pain points to better align with existing needs. Updating agreements may be called for. Some questions you might need to investigate include: Can I offer my clients a different structure? Can I break up payment schedules?  Doing this won’t devalue your product. It simply gives you margin to listen to your customers and make adjustments as you’re able.     The long-term changes This pandemic will change some companies forever. Businesses will have to make necessary adjustments. The important thing is that you can decide to do something and strategize to gain.   “How Do I Sell During The Coronavirus Outbreak? ” episode resources Reach out to Scott Romney via LinkedIn to learn more about Soci, a leading social media management platform to help multi-location businesses.  If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

How to build a sales engine that will land massive deals – repeatedly   A sales engine is a great strategy to increase your number of closed deals. As a sales manager, how do you build a sales engine to land massive deals for your team?    Nigel Green works with  executive investors and sales leaders of companies to help them scale up faster and smarter. As a sales advisor, he works behind the scenes to ensure that leaders are hitting their targets at the end of the year. Nigel understands that if you don’t relentlessly pursue your craft and coach your team well, you won’t be in the game very long.    The revenue harvest Nigel coined the  term, Revenue Harvest, in this sales leaders almanac containing the fruits of 15 years of experience. He’s been helping various companies build their sales team faster so investors have a chance to grow their private equity. Sales leaders in this kind of environment need to act fast.   When Nigel moved to a farm, an hour outside of the city, he was able to observe the farming community. He realized that leading a sales team was very similar to tending crops. Both can face circumstances that are outside of our control. The farmer knows he’s got to produce a crop but looking at the year, he wonders when it’s going to be too hot or too cold, when it's going to rain, or not. These are elements a farmer can’t control but he can’t be paralyzed by the uncontrollables. He’s got to get to work.    In Revenue Harvest, Nigel shows sales leaders how to yield results year-in and year-out that are consistent.  Nigel has broken this down into seven principles a sales leader can follow.    Create a plan The first principle in the Revenue Harvest helps sales leaders understand what a plan really is and how to do it well. Most sales people don’t have a plan. They’ve been given a plan by their leader but they haven’t pushed back in areas where it’s not realistic.  Leaders need buy-in from the influencers on their team and it needs to be implemented in a time period that will be effective, before the first quarter. Sales leaders have a responsibility to not only assign the revenue and targets of the plan to the sales rep, but also to the customers.   The plan also has to account for the metrics that are important to the business. Only the sales leader can make sure that everybody on the team is spending their time well and score-carding. The leader needs to incentivize the team in a way that is aligned with the CEO or COO’s goals. Oftentimes, time isn’t a salesperson’s friend but with planning, time can be used more efficiently.    Planning for adversity The truth is, most people don’t plan for adversity.  We plan the year assuming that everything is going to be perfect. We don’t plan for the person who is going to quit or go on maternity leave and we don’t plan for competitors to launch a new product. Most sales leaders don’t expect adversity but the truth is, it can come when we least expect it.    A real plan accounts for adversity. The first step in planning is to ask when the budgest season starts. The budget season is a common language in private equity companies. This season typically falls in September or October. By that time, the heads of the company want to see a completed budget expenses revenue target, if new reps need to be hired, etc.. As a proactive leader, you want to go to the heads of the company to get a sense of what it is they want you to accomplish, what resources they’re going to give you throughout the year, and negotiate if it doesn’t sound feasible. Sales leaders have the responsibility of making sure that adequate resources are in play to hit the numbers.   Positioning  Positioning is two-fold. Before you finalize the sales plan, identify your sales influencers and run the plan by them. No matter how good a plan seems to be, it’s wise to receive feedback from the members of your sales team who know the climate of the sales team and can offer information about whether or not a plan is viable.    No one can predict the future but there are two practices that can help mitigate unforeseen disasters: First, look at what the team has done over the past couple years in detail. If the business is affected by seasonality, it’s important to look at history by weeks, maybe even days. Check the spikes during busy seasons. If you’re in retail, Saturdays and Sundays are huge. Look at what was actually accomplished. You tend to create a better plan when you see the circumstances that have influenced your sales historically.    Second, look at the lost selling days. A sales leader needs to figure out how you want to track lost selling days that don’t include national holidays or PTO.  An example might be one of your sales team members not being able to meet her customers due to unforeseen circumstances like a snowstorm that shut down all the roads. You need to figure out a mechanism to track these days and start reducing the days you implement into your plan because of these historically lost sales days. Preventing a mutiny With every salesperson being different, not all strategies will work for all people.  There is still an opportunity to reach people even if you have to contend with bad attitudes.  Allow them to sit with you and share their thoughts. Listen to what they have to say even if it’s not something you’re able to implement.  Many people just want to be heard and feel they are part of the process.    If you do decide to use their idea, then you have the chance to enlist them in the work and implementation. The team is then positioned well and fortified in areas that you may not have had a lot of influence.   Restore We live in a world of grind and hustle. We all have that influencer we follow for inspiration. This is a world where people are struggling with mental health, addiction, and many other blocks that get in the way of peak performance. This grinding mentality is a slippery slope to some of the real epidemics we’re facing.    A farmer knows he can’t work a piece of land over and over and never let it rest. It needs restoration. It is the same way with people. You can’t work people hard 12 months a year, leave their families, and be on the road without building in time to let them recuperate.  Don’t forget to give yourself restoration as well. When everyone comes back, the team is stronger.    Tend  Planting seeds doesn’t guarantee a harvest. The magic happens between planting, prospecting, and closing. #TheSalesProcess   We all have the prospecting techniques, the SDR teams, the inbound and outbound, and more. We have a team for every phase but may dwell enough on the in-betweens which include the process, the way we segment the customers to support nurturing the leads, and taking care of our customers until they’re ready to buy.     Segmenting the market  Oftentimes, salespeople create these arbitrary lines of segmentation, these boundary lines that don’t make sense. The best way to segment customers how they buy which is not something that we normally do. Salespeople hand off a customer multiple times which slows down deal velocity. You take them away from someone they love and hand them to a new person at a certain stage of the funnel. This is harder and more frustrating for them. When a customer is ready to buy, let them purchase things the way they want.    “How to build a sales engine that will land massive deals – repeatedly” episode resources Read the book the Revenue Harvest to learn more. True leadership is about consistency over time, consistency and action, consistency in values, and consistency and execution over time. This is just not in one year, not in one quarter. You have to recognize that your career is a series of seasons and if you don't treat it that way, you won’t have a very long career.  If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We have a new semester beginning this March and we would love to have you and your team join us. Follow this link to apply to the program.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

How To Close More Deals Using Videos Throughout The Sales Process   Closing deals using videos is now becoming a very effective tool in the sales process. As a salesperson and an entrepreneur, we’ll talk about how you can incorporate videos into your sales goals.    Doug Davidoff works with companies in the B2B space around customer acquisition and success programs. They examine a company’s sales structure to figure out how to build it in a way that’s scalable, repeatable, a high probability yield, high-margin, and high-growth.  Because of this, a sales team can get more done in less time.    The beginning  Doug started working for the company when he was just 16 years old, around the same time when he got his driver’s license. Back then, they were focused on traditional sales advisory sales training. For the last seven years, they’ve been looking into the holistic process of customer acquisition. Every three years, they reinvent themselves in an effort to make it easier for companies to work with ease and efficiency.    It was difficult when they first started using videos. They were among the first companies who were utilizing this new tech and there were only a handful of examples  they could use as reference. Doug came up with the idea of making videos the same way as he made webinars, breaking them down into 3 sections. Next to blogging, it was by far his greatest accidental discovery.   If you decide to work with videos, know that it may not yield immediate results.  Doug didn’t start with video thinking it would enhance the process. There is a lot of divergence when it comes to what people know about using video, what they are looking for, and what they want to accomplish.  Because of this, initial conversations were hard because it was hard to tell a client the specific impact to their sales. Nowadays, with more history, it is easier to see that video is very effective.    Creating the videos  Doug began creating a 20-minute long video for a presentation and later went to an hour, sometimes longer, as needed. Doug’s colleagues advised that prospects wouldn’t watch videos that were this long but Doug wasn’t to be deterred. As Doug gained a greater skill set and his videos improved, the more the videos were shared among key people within the companies he was targeting. This sharing process enabled Doug’s team to know who the key figures, influencers, and decision makers were within these companies. They began seeing that people were watching their videos even before they got to their kick-off.  These prospects were watching and using their videos to socialize and share various ideas. This was how they decided to use their videos in segments that could be dropped in each part of the sales process, from market development to customer acquisition.    The video sales process How a customer is moved through the video process largely depends on how the customer finds Doug.  The first video is typically post-discovery where they let their prospects watch any number of videos that are connected to solution pages.    They’ve also tried running a couple of campaigns where they connect to prospects who are difficult to reach by giving them shorter versions of their videos. They ask these recipients to share their top three biggest challenges and Doug’s team then sends a 2-4 minute video that addresses these challenges. This strategy is used during the pre-discovery and discovery process, needs assessment diagnosis, and so on.    Using videos in sales Doug has been told that videos won’t work in sales but he’s proven this isn’t true. If you are a salesperson presenting a topic consistently, you can save time by putting that presentation into a video.  If you prefer initial contact to be live, you can still utilize video in the follow-up. Doing a concept video is also encouraged.        With great editing, the best thing about video is that you get to be yourself, without mistakes. You can also send the video before the sales call and then ask them what part of the video had the most impact on them. This will give you an idea of what you can do for next steps and you’ll be able to gauge if the video was watched at all. If they did watch the video, the conversation will show you how to prepare for any follow-up conversations.    When you offer a video, your prospects are able to watch you at their convenience. It gives them time to think and prepare for your call as well.    Prospect conversions using videos  Doug doesn’t claim the videos are the only thing that leads to closing a sale but it is a great indicator.  Video helps to detect how serious someone is about starting a buying journey. Even when people don’t watch the video, you can do more by investigating further: Maybe they don’t believe the video is working. Maybe their  problem isn’t a huge concern. Maybe it’s not a good time/ Maybe they’re in the middle of a crisis that needs to be addressed first.    Videos give you information about the buyer. It allows you to gain greater insight and use your time more effectively. When you free up time, you’re able to close more deals. Doug found out that people loved the video strategy. It is difficult to get people on the phone but Doug’s team saw how these videos could get beyond CFOs. As people got to be a part of how they got information, meeting opportunities grew.    What should be in the videos  There are three videos that everyone must have. The first video is the Problem Video Challenge. When you help a client understand what the problem is, it helps to separate you from your competition. How they define the problem determines how they’re going to behave.  This first video is all about communicating the real problem, why it’s a problem, and why it’s so hard to solve.   The second video is the Story Video. It’s both yours and the clients’ story, with the client being the origin of that story. In the second video you address how you’re going to solve the problem. You can have multiple problems and story videos depending on who you’re talking to and what the context of the situation is.    The third video is the Three-Minute Brief. It’s a video where you need to have multiple versions. This video is where you’re going to lay-out everything including the action points you want to talk about and how they can impact your client’s goals. Video is definitely a medium you can use to become a more flexible salesperson. The more you do the better you will get.    Video is not the cure-all but it is a medium and tactic that gives you the flexibility to do what you’re trying to do. #SalesVideos   “How To Close More Deals Using Videos Throughout The Sales Process” episode resources Get in touch with Doug. Visit his site and his blog. You can also drop him a message on LinkedIn and Twitter.  If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We have a new semester beginning this March and we would love to have you and your team join us. Follow this link to apply to the program.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

How To Find Government Sales Opportunities Without Selling To The Government   Salespeople are known for their tenacity and passion to sell but one opportunity that can be overlooked is selling to the government.     Jack Siney worked for the Navy on the F18 Fighter Jet Program and after this experience, moved to entrepreneurial companies and tech industries where he worked for public safety agencies. One such agency installed software in laptops that are in police vehicles across the country. Jack may have started in the government but has now been an entrepreneur for the last 25 years helping the government process more efficiently.    Challenges in Selling to the Government   There is a long list of stereotypes on why doing business with the government isn’t a good idea. Many think that the government is hard to deal with because of all the red tape involved, making the process take a long time. It’s true that in every stereotype, there’s a kernel of truth. However, the government has grown and has modernized. There are now many opportunities that salespeople aren’t taking advantage of because of these misconceoptions. Selling to the government has actually become much more streamlined.   Biggest Prospect in the World  Government is a great opportunity for salespeople as it’s one of the biggest prospects in the world. Let’s talk about what makes the government a unique prospect.    Large and long-lasting contracts   Government contracts are typically large and run for multiple years. Putting in the effort in trying to earn a government contract can help stabilize the revenue of your business.    The government always pays  The government always pays. There’s always a risk in doing business with private companies.  There are some who won’t pay for your products or services and will hold up your revenue. However, that’s not true when you sign a contract with the government.  Helps recession-proof your business Even when there is a recession, the government will still spend for the things that benefit its citizens. As a result, even if there is a recession, if you have a product that can be used, your company can be better protected.    Getting the government contract The government is just like any other prospect. You still need to do the standard prospecting, build relationships, and close deals. Another advantage in working with the government is that there are multiple ways the government makes a purchase. It’s no longer just going over the RFP process, in fact, 80% of the $20 million the government spends per day doesn’t go to an RFP process.   Jack helps companies by giving them the data they need to make good decisions about which agencies to pursue and the type of procurement they need to use. As already mentioned, there are nine ways that a government procures things outside the normal bidding process. They are:    Sole source. This means that if a company has a patent and can sole source the patent, the government agency can buy the patent.  Piggyback. When a company has a government contract, another company/agency can purchase off that contract.  Discretionary spending. Every government agency has an amount of money they can spend without having to go through an RFP bidding. It works like a slush fund for an office.  P-Card or a purchase card. A lot of people working for the government have a P card (with a limit) assigned to them. When the product or service falls below the P-card limit, then someone can  purchase whatever you’re selling up to the limit.  Set aside. This is a set aside budget that’s for socio economic classification, regardless of who owns it. It may be a woman-owned, a minority-owned business or an organization for disabled Americans.    GSA schedule. General Services Administration State schedule  Co-ops Simplified quotes. This is when the government needs an item and they award the contract to the lowest bidder.      These are the nine ways a government can make purchases and procurements. The more qualified you are, the more likely you are to avoid the bid via the RFP process. If you qualify on any of the nine ways, the government can just pick your agency and sign the deal with you.    What’s the GSA schedule?  The GSA at the federal level watches all the government agencies’ purchases. Companies can go through the process of being included in the GSA schedule. For example, several government agencies can purchase computers at different price points  despite them being the same model and unit. When this happens, the GSA comes in with a schedule so that new companies with their own pricing can join and offer their products to be put on the schedule. They don’t have to bid an RFP.    Get a flagship agency  The best way for salespeople to flourish when selling to the government is through a flagship agency. Find out how that agency purchases and then try to work your product into their normal process. Instead of shooting for all agencies, focus on that one that will put in a good word for you to other agencies.  In working with the government, it’s still important to build relationships, especially with your flag ship agency. In two to three year’s time, your reach will have grown due to the references given by your flagship. This relationship becomes critical to the growth and reputation of a business.    Get a local press After your flagship agency is launched, you’ll want  to get local press for the agency. These news outlets love stories that talk about how their government is saving money, making things easier for their citizens, and are working more efficiently. Once the story has been published, share that to all the surrounding agencies. New prospects feel safer with companies who have gotten good press and are more likely to work with you.   Sell in circles  Agencies don’t want to take risks and want to know how other agencies have purchased. When you have your flagship agency in place, you can then start selling and marketing to other agencies as well as to smaller towns. Your flagship agency will do the endorsing for you.    Jack Siney’s company has a database of what the government purchases. The government literally buys everything from whiskey, to condoms, to sales training. There’s a lot of opportunity for salespeople who are ready to sell to the government.  Get your organization comfortable with the idea. The government always pays and you just may have the next product it needs.     Selling to the government is still an option. Don’t get caught up in the stereotypes and miss an opportunity. #GovernmentSales   “How To Find Government Sales Opportunities Without Selling To The Government” episode resources Find out more about Jack Siney and his agency by going to govspend.com. If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We have a new semester beginning this March and we would love to have you and your team join us. Follow this link to apply to the program.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

Rethinking The Way You Do Sales Automation   What do you think of sales automation? Is it a go or a no for you? Perhaps it’s time you rethink the way you do sales automation.    Gessie Schechinger works for a company called OnCourse, a brand new sales engagement platform. Most of his life, he’d been a professional peddler, jumping from one sales job to another. He started his career in sales with cold calls, went on to a territory sales job, then became an account manager. From there, he got a taste of CRM. Now with his current team, they’re sharing a tool they’ve created that is helpful for salespeople to automate. Their goal is to use the sales professionals’ skill set and automate those skill sets for a more efficient outreach.    Selling smart using automation  OnCourse is a tool that helps salespeople to automate responsibly. The tool helps to ensure that your emails have accurate presentations, the right address, and all the other information and variables needed for impactful engagement.    In addition to that, this tool also looks at when people are going to engage and when they do engage, how long does it take for them to actually engage with the pitch. TAPO is a company that does outreach reporting. They research 280 - 300 large corporations and look at their sales outreach. Using that outreach study report, they can see what methods are effective.    Included in the study, is information about how long it takes for a person to engage and from there, how long it takes for them to buy. The report is important especially for service-based businesses and software-based businesses where people tend to communicate in different ways. To figure out the communication channel the clients respond to, you need to make contact in various areas. This is how automation works,as it helps you throw out big nets. The automation is used as a warm-up tool to prepare prospects for engagement and purchase.    The automation allows you to create awareness. While your first automated emails are typically deleted, your next emails have a greater chance to get engagement, when they look at your product or services.    You have to expect that your first few emails will be deleted. Persistence will put you in a better position down the road. #SalesAutomation   LinkedIn outreach  The other type of automation is LinkedIn automation. LinkedIn automation and selling is what Gessie refers to as a delicate dance. There are people on LinkedIn who will just connect automatically and immediately throw up their entire value proposition. That may work on some but it’s not typical.   People want to use LinkedIn as a networking tool where they can build connections but you have to keep in mind the spirit of the platform, especially if you’re going to use LinkedIn in for sales. It’s true you can speak with your prospects directly and there’s an advantage to seeing titles and experience, but there nuance is needed in the approach.    One approach is the 2x2 rule, which means, take two minutes to find two things. Create an interaction and use automation in LinkedIn that will allow you to reach out to 10 - 20 people in a day. Taking the time to learn personal information about your prospects will allow your engagement to have a personal touch.    OnCourse against other automation tools There are a number of automation tools available out there that offer many of similar features to one another.  OnCourse is unique in the way that it’s built around their clients’ existing successes. The tool takes the business process and amplifies that to make it as configurable as possible.    OnCourse is more self-contained than other companies. It has a built-in phone system, a LinkedIn automation, built-in Chrome plugin, built-in texting, and more. The other two reasons that make the tool unique is its ability to niche down and it provides you with outreach education. This tool is especially useful if you have a unique business with solid sales processes.   Gessie’s tool allows you to hold information about a client but is also for pipeline management. It studies and understands where you are winning, why and how you can duplicate these efforts. The process is usually:    Sending general emails about your company Reach out on LinkedIn Sending follow-up messages Setting up a personal task (i.e. sending a personal message in the middle of email automation) Interact via a phone call   “Rethinking The Way You Do Sales Automation” episode resources Learn more about OnCourse or email Gessie Scheginger via his mail Gessie@tryoncourse.com. If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We have a new semester beginning this March and we would love to have you and your team join us. Follow this link to apply to the program.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

Think Like A Large Company CEO   Regardless of the size of your company, thinking like the CEO of a larger company will help you better visualize where you are going and how you’re going to get there.    Vicki Antonio is a business consultant and life coach. She started working for startup companies when she was just 13 years old. Her experience with startups taught her the pattern of growing pains which she then used when she fell into the real estate industry. Vicki’s work helped her gain a deeper knowledge of the entrepreneurial spirit and gain a business acumen. At one point, she went into upper management and real estate but when the industry came back, she ended up being a business developer for a global real estate franchise.    That work allowed her to manage 30 shops where her main role was to develop the shop, make it brand compliant, and develop partnerships with brokers. She was a business coach for these shops and helped these businesses become profitable. All the skills she learned from working came into play. The experience eventually led Vicki to launch her own coaching business.    Top problems faced by small businesses   FEAR  Small businesses must overcome fear. It comes into play when the business has been built to a certain point and then gets stagnant. It can feel like the same fear that parents get when they take their kids to daycare for the first time. There's an apprehension because of the emotional attachment parents have for their child. When a business has to relinquish what it knows, it’s like turning over the reins to someone else. Instead of trusting the people who’ve come to help, these businesses fear them. Even when it’s just a system they need to engage with, fear can be a major hindrance to advancing.   CLARITY  Entrepreneurs are self-employed salespeople. There are a lot of things that are in play in order for goals to be met. Oftentimes, entrepreneurs don’t have the clarity about what these things are. Sometimes they don’t have enough components to reach the end. Other times, they have too many components and can become confused about which ones to use.    Even the best athletes, like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods, had coaches. Their coaches gave them a bird’s eye view of the areas that they couldn’t see themselves. Their coaches critiqued them and analyzed what they were doing.  They could then help these athletes change little things to help them improve.   The same is true in sales. Sales coaches help businesses with the things they need to see. They are the ones who analyze the system they’re currently using, analyze the tools and make sure they are being used correctly. In this stage, it is imperative for the businesses to trust the process.    Overcoming fear F.E.A.R. can be seen as an acronym - false evidence appearing real. Sometimes salespeople can get in their own heads. This is the result of not having clarity about the direction they are going or if they are doing things the right way. A lot of times, salespeople are presented and marketed outside of what they know to be right. They are presented with various services that try to rush the process. Trying to rush through, and not developing any real, advancing skill, can keep them from moving forward.    Most of Vicki’s clients are already leaders in their fields. They've been accepted by their clients. but they know how difficult the climb has been. It’s when they reach a certain pinnacle that they start to fear: do we trust this new product, this new technique, this new person?    Attacking your fear Everyone has a level of fear they aren’t willing to go beyond. There can be a great reward waiting for the risk takers but everyone has to calculate the risk to the place of comfortability and faith.    Build the trust The business is an entrepreneur's baby. They’ve put their hearts into it and invested so much. It’s their responsibility to keep it growing and cared for. It gets difficult when someone comes in claiming that they will take care of their business just as well and ensure its growth. Trusting people isn’t an easy thing to do but if you have people who have your same core values, and people who have a successful track record of being able to do what they promised, there’s a better chance to trust when doing business.    Getting to know these people and engaging with them will help build trust. It’s important to build relationships, vet who they are, and check their track record. If they were able to do it for themselves and other companies, it is more likely they can do it for you too.    Big companies can also prove their credibility to clients with third-party validation in order to encourage use of their services and offerings. Using testimonials and LinkedIn recommendations is another referral opportunity. Social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to market your services has also proven effective.    Clarity  Clarity comes with knowing who you’re working with and what they’ve been able to do and it’s also about knowing who and what you are as a business. This requires knowledge of: Your niche The market The strength of your business What you want to highlight about yourself   Knowing who you are helps you figure out how to work with others. You can’t just hop in a car heading to a destination without mapping out how to get there.  Business is the same way. Startups tend to think they can be all things to all people but this is just not possible.    For someone to advance it may be that they need to let go of an old mindset.  Once they are clear about where they want to be it will be easier for you to know the best way to support their goals. It is important to know your niche and know your ideal customer.    Salespeople can be a jack of all trades who see the opportunities because they are in sales. In truth, whenever you say yes to something, you’re actually saying no to something else . You are literally impeding your progress. You can only spend money and time once so pick the thing that will maximize your investment. Your time has more value than the actual money you’re trying to make.    Remember, not all money is good money. #SalesTruth   Clarity is knowing where you are heading and that means knowing the season you’re in. When you’re in an elevator and headed to the beach,you don’t get offended when somebody wearing an overcoat steps on the elevator with you. You don’t feel like you’re missing out because you know you’re going in a different direction.    “Think Like A Large Company CEO” episode resources As a salesperson, just trust the process. There will be blindspots in the process but you need to have faith. Know that if you’ve done the preparation, you’re clear about where you’re heading, you’ve done the training, and checked that your system is working then all that’s left to do is  take that leap of faith.    Get in touch with Vicki via her digits: 561-7741-333. Her website is also getting ready for launch at www.victorious.com and Victoria’s Lifestyle Strategies. If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought in part to you by the Sales Success Summit, an event put up by Scott Ingram in Austin, Texas. The Sales Summit will be on October 14-15 this year. Get a chance to meet and interact with successful entrepreneurs and salespeople.  This episode is brought to you in part by the TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We have a new semester beginning this March and we would love to have you and your team join us. Follow this link to apply to the program.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

You Can't Sell Value If You Don't Value Yourself   Salespeople come from a variety of industries but the one thing they have in common: They all sell value. It can be a challenge, however, to sell something you don’t have yourself. Simply speaking, as salespeople, we can only sell value if we value ourselves.    Jenean Merkel Perelstein is a business and sales anthropologist who uses scientific techniques to help salespeople close the cultural gap between them and their prospects, clients, and the organizations they are working with. Her job is to help them understand the cultural approach and take advantage of it.    Defining value  Value often gets mixed up with values which are the standards or qualities we deem as worthwhile. Value is what we put out into the world, what we offer in exchange. It then becomes part of the larger conversation about money, prosperity, and playing in this market economy. Value becomes part of the interwoven concepts that have to be considered together.    When we stand in strength with our values, it means we understand the true qualities and the true standard that we deem worthwhile to offer in the marketplace. If you’re not stepping into that sense of value and you haven’t done the thought process of figuring out what it is in the first place, then you’re basically starting the conversation a little bit behind.    Knowing your worth  You need to know your beliefs and what’s possible and not possible for you. This includes knowing your attitudes, state of mind, and feelings. All of these things build together into a larger concept of knowing your worth and taking ownership of your work. Doing that will enable you to come forth and articulate the worth and value of whatever you are representing.    Regardless of the words you speak, the cultural interactions you have with other people will be part of the underlying conversation. The energy you exchange in your conversation can expose whether or not you are operating from a place of desperation or a lack of confidence. Clients see this right away.  If this is you, there is foundational work that needs to take place.   People that have been unsuccessful for a long time start to wear an air of desperation. It becomes harder for them to meet another client or go to another meeting. If you are managing this type of person, there’s an opportunity to talk to them about standing in their strength, taking ownership, and changing their direction. Salespeople have to look at the value they offer, not just transactional value, but value as human beings as they bring what makes them unique and special into the conversation.    Build your value As an individual, you can start building value by looking at your own personal strength inventory. Look for the red flags that are holding yourself back from being able to understand and articulate your value.    Jenean looks at all this through an anthropological lens, the cultural lens. She sees each individual as a culture of one and looks into the attributes of that culture. Starting there helps her client understand their own personal strengths and enables them to build on how to shore up their foundations.    Doing this on yourself will then help you to start recognizing the cultural attributes of your prospects, future clients, and the organization that you’re hoping to go deeper with. You’ll be able to see the gaps between your cultural attributes and their cultural attributes. The closer you can close the gaps, the easier the sales conversations will be.    Attributes that make up a culture There are four primary attributes that make up a culture: attitudes, behaviors, beliefs, and values. The first,  attitudes, can change quickly. Attitudes affect your state of mind and your feelings. The attitude can change based on your mood and outlook. The second attribute, behaviors, needs to be consistently evaluated for opportunities to change based on the needs of the client.  Beliefs, the third attribute can be conscious or subconscious. The brain operates within our beliefs to protect us and to keep things normal. Evaluate if it’s these beliefs that are creating a ceiling to your success. The fourth attribute, values, is what could bridge the gap between you and your client.    Jenean asks her clients to journal a deep inventory of these attributes around their career, finances, thoughts about their abilities to make money, and how they take care of their relationships. When you have these  attributes in common with another person or group, then add on norms and traditions, you have a culture. Every workplace has its own culture.   Do an inventory  Knowing your value means doing an inventory of what makes you special and unique, and what you may struggle with. Once you do that, you will begin to recognize where you are holding yourself back. You can then identify the work you need to do to get better and articulate your value in future meetings.     There are times when the work culture is dominated by someone who is highly regarded. Sales leaders and people who have stayed in the company for a long time can influence the culture, even when their outcomes aren’t good. A toxic influence can mess up the productivity of the sales team. Start digging and see if the culture enhances the productivity and the positivity of your workplace and team.  If not, it’s worth investigating the origin.    As a salesperson, also start identifying the people of influence in your target organization so  you know the people where you can make the greatest impact.    Keep a success journal Jenean shares that it is important for salespeople to keep an ongoing success journal. Culture teaches us not to be arrogant so we tend to dismiss compliments and praise. The brain, however, remembers and listens. The success journal is an opportunity to recognize when you’ve done a good job.  It offers the brain evidence that you’re capable.     When we don’t validate ourselves internally, we can start telling our brains that we don’t value our successes.  To compensate for that, we can start looking for external validation, which will eventually let us down. Keeping a journal of your successes will help you overcome these inevitable obstacles. It’s imperative to occupy your brian with these successes to help you move forward and push through your boundaries. Reading your success journal right before a sales conversation will compel you to focus on your successes and you’ll find that the conversation will go smoother and yield better results.    “You Can't Sell Value If You Don't Value Yourself” episode resources The more work that an individual of influence can do to challenge their own limiting beliefs, the more adaptable they can become in moments of change. #SalesValues   Create your personal inventory now. Visit the official site of Stand In Your Strength for a free resource on how to start making your own inventory. If you are interested in more sales stories, you can talk to Donald about it. Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We have a new semester beginning this March and we would love to have you and your team join us. Follow this link to apply to the program.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com

Where Sellers Get Stuck   Sometimes sellers get stuck but where exactly do they get stuck?   Umar Hameed was previously working in Silicon Valley where he worked for high-tech launching companies from Asia, Europe, and the Valley into the U.S. market. He noticed that there were employees in the company who were rockstars in the sales department. Others, however, would invest in training, motivation, coaching, and incentives where they’d only improve a little bit. Still others would improve a lot but for only a short amount of time. Umar saw how the problem wasn’t in the sales training, process, or strategy. The problem was with the people and their mindset.   Umar’s work entails looking for ways to give salespeople an owner’s manual for their mindset in order to change their world.   Getting the team together  This can be applied to the sales team and the whole organization. It’s imperative to change the mindset of individuals because that’s how you shift the entire company and improve its trajectory. Consider: How you can win How you can beat the competition How you can support each other   Changing the mindset of the organization can produce a work environment where everyone is enthusiastic and passionate. This, in turn, will boost the morale of your sales team and increase their speed.    The author of the comic strip called Pogo wrote this quote: We have met the enemy and the enemy is us. Oftentimes you may think that the enemy is the economy or the competition. The truth is, how you feel about yourself at a subconscious level determines how well you do. The only way to truly improve is to change the mindset. Umar’s job is to give people the tools to do just that.    Getting unstuck  Umar had a client, Paul, when he first started his career in the mindset space. Paul was a sales rep from the east coast who had been hitting way above the quota but he still approached Umar for coaching an area he was lacking confidence:  asking for referrals. The sales rep was an excellent closer but always hit a block when it came to asking his client for the referral. Umar asked Paul to tell him about a time when he asked for a referral badly. Umar says when a client goes back to these memories, the body will offer clues to what happened. As Paul went back to that moment, Umar asked him what he felt at that moment.  Paul answered that he felt weird. It was an uncomfortable feeling. Paul then remembered a time when he was a child his father had a friend over. Paul overheard his father tell this friend that real men don’t ask for help. Paul’s hero was his father so little Paul took that statement to heart. As a sales rep, Paul was subconsciously remembering that statement when he thought of asking for a referral.  His mindset considered it asking for help and Paul’s subconscious was reminding him of his father’s words. Once Paul realized that, he was able to change his mindset and has been able to ask for referrals comfortably.    Changing your core belief  You have to let go of the core beliefs instilled in your brain that keep you from becoming more successful.    After training, you may change for a week but you’ll revert to old habits if you don’t address the underlying belief that’s keeping you from changing your mindset. You want to be able to show up to your meetings with the consistent confidence that comes from permanent and sustainable change.     Many people have a variety of skill sets but there tends to be a tendency to focus on their weaker areas. It keeps them from realizing their strengths and stepping out as their best selves. When you can get to the core reasons why these weaknesses turn up, they can be addressed and conquered.    If you don't address the underlying negative belief systems, you'll revert back to those old behaviors and still be stuck. #SalesGoals   Launching the NeuroBoosterz App Umar has been helping people find their true potential by providing them with the necessary tools in his app, NeuroBoosterz. He has created audio tracks that use applied neuroscience to take his clients through a thought process that improves their subconscious outlook. It helps people change their mindset exactly when they need it to help them show up as stronger and more powerful individuals in whatever situation needs a boost of confidence.   The app comes in several categories including:  Sales Mindset Confidence and Motivation Life’s Ups and Downs Health and Wellness Transformation Sleep and Relaxation   A free sample on his app is called Mind Movie. When a person goes to a sales meeting, Umar asks them how confident they are that they’re going to do great in their appointment. The Mind Movie will get you to really think about what you want to accomplish in your next meeting. It will get you to think at a much higher level and see how you can improve what you’re about to do.    NeuroBoosterz is grounded in a science that helps you learn a technique to take charge of your mind.    Sales Success Story with NeuroBoosterz Doug Miller was a successful salesman when he found Umar.. He had a problem waking up consistently for his morning run.  It was a problem because Doug realized his sales day were better on the days he ran. They got together for a 15-minute phone consultation to make a personalized neuro boost. For Doug, Umar framed it around a moral imperative. Umar used a mental pattern and created a six and a half minute track that Doug could listen to. Now Doug wakes up at 4:45 and runs by 5 AM. As a result, Doug’s sales days are better and his stats have improved dramatically.    Another benefit of the NeuroBoosterz app is it can help families connect better at home. There’s a tendency for parents to be so stressed and overwhelmed with their work that even when they’re home, they’re not mentally checked in with the kids. Under the category, Life’s Ups and Downs, Umar has a track that parents can listen to in the driveway to alleviate the stress they’ve brought home from work. Once they’ve decompressed, they’re able to  go join their families with a better attitude and be more available.    Change for the better  We all have the ability to change our mindset. Tools like NeuroBoosterz can empower you to do that.    “Where Sellers Get Stuck” episode resources Visit the site of NeuroBoosterz and sign up. The app is only for $12.99/month and $99.99/year. They also create personalized new boosters for you.    Do you have more interesting sales stories? Let Donald know! Reach him via these channels: LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook about any sales concerns.  This episode is brought to you in part by TSE Certified Sales Training Program. It’s a course designed to help new and struggling sellers to master the fundamentals of sales and close more deals. Sign up now and get the first two modules for free! You can also call us at (561) 570-5077.  We have a new semester beginning this March and we would love to have you and your team join us. Follow this link to apply to the program.  We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes so tune in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can also leave comments, suggestions, and ratings to every episode you listen to.  You can also read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore this huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day free trial.  Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.Mentioned in this episode:HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOSHubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com