The Ultimate Sales Rep + Manager Relationship [“Sales Shot” Workshop]
The Ultimate Sales Rep + Manager Relationship
[“Sales Shot” Workshop]
Sales Reps
How to Fix the Top 5 Mistakes Made During Sales Demos [“Sales Shot” Workshop]
How to Fix the Top 5 Mistakes Made During Sales Demos
[“Sales Shot” Workshop]
Running Successful Sales Demos [Cheat Sheet]
Running Successful Sales Demos
[Cheat Sheet]
Win Sooner. Earn Faster. Stay Longer. [Live Event Recording]
Win Sooner. Earn Faster. Stay Longer.
[Live Event Recording]
Virtual Selling Tips to Help Reps Win More Deals [Cheat Sheet]
Virtual Selling Tips to Help Reps Win More Deals
[Cheat Sheet]
Factor 8 Named a Selling Power 2022 Top Sales Training Company
Factor 8 is pleased to announce it has been included on Selling Power’s Top 25 Sales Training Companies 2022 list https://bit.ly/3KMFPQt.
“Factor 8 is proud to be the only sales training provider included on Selling Power’s ‘Top 25 Sales Training Companies’ list for two years in a row that built their foundation 100% on virtual sales,” said Ted Martin, CRO Factor 8. “In the past, companies have emphasized the value of field sales over their digital or inside sales counterparts. Due to the pandemic, companies began moving to remote environments, which caused them to realize the value of virtual sales. This is a win for all of us who have built our careers in inside and virtual sales.”
Factor 8’s winning application highlighted the incredible success of their virtual sales training programs and their ability to adapt to their customers’ needs in the constantly evolving corporate landscape. With many years of experience in virtual sales, Factor 8 quickly became a strategic partner to various B2B and B2C companies, helping their sales teams adjust to and excel in the virtual and hybrid selling environments.
“It’s feedback like this from our client partners that fuels my team. We’re passionate about changing people’s lives by increasing their confidence and success at work. This recognition shows us that our efforts are working,” says Factor 8 Founder & President Lauren Bailey.
According to Selling Power publisher and founder Gerhard Gschwandtner, sales training is more important than ever. The economy has shifted significantly due to inflation, Covid 19, the war in Ukraine, shortages in supply and the emergence of new learning technologies.
“Sales training companies had to adjust in the last year,” says Gschwandtner. “Each of the sales training companies included on this list was able to pivot quickly to deliver best-in-class, engaging sales training both virtually, and in person. Their efforts and expertise helped their clients reach and exceed sales goals and decrease onboarding time in a highly challenging economy.”
All companies on the list submitted a comprehensive application that included a detailed listing of their offerings for both training and retention, innovative solutions, their company’s unique contributions to the sales training marketplace, and their ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The main criteria used when comparing applicants and selecting the companies to include on this year’s list were:
- Depth and breadth of training offered
- Innovative offerings (specific training courses, methodology, or delivery methods)
- Contributions to the sales training market
- Strength of client satisfaction and overall client feedback
To evaluate applicants for the list, the Selling Power team surveyed and considered feedback from over 340 clients of the applicants. Here is a brief selection of comments from their clients:
- “They have a great methodology that is easy for the field to consume, and they go above and beyond to make sure their clients implement successfully and get a high ROI.”
- “Our sales managers that went through the training said it was the best training they had ever received as part of a sales organization.”
- “The prep work, training, and follow-up after training are all world-class.”
- “Outstanding, key to our sales transformation.”
- “Really great people to work with. Professional and eager to work as real partners.”
- “Not only is the training content excellent, but the delivery and interactivity of the sessions really help participants absorb and apply the techniques.”
Selling Power magazine editors say CROs, sales VPs, and sales enablement leaders can leverage this list to find the right sales training partner to help salespeople succeed during social distancing and remote working. See the Selling Power Top Sales Training Companies 2022 list at https://bit.ly/3KMFPQt.
About Factor 8
Factor 8 is an award-winning sales rep and management training company focused 100% on helping sales teams sell in a virtual world. They are a team of expert sales leaders who quit the daily grind so they could spend their time developing people. Together, they’ve solved the big problem: Sales Reps and Managers are not gaining the skills they need to quickly feel confident and successful long-term. That means they ramp slowly and leave quickly.
They’ve made the calls, done the demos, managed the teams, and forecasted the deals. They have a better way to ensure teams hit higher revenue goals faster. https://factor8.com/
About Selling Power
In addition to Selling Power, the leading digital magazine for sales managers and sales VPs since 1981, Personal Selling Power, Inc., produces the Sales Management Digest and Daily Boost of Positivity online newsletters (https://bit.ly/3nUpek7), as well as videos featuring interviews with top executives. Selling Power is a regular media sponsor of the Sales 3.0 Conference, which is attended by a total of more than 4,500 sales leaders each year. https://www.sales30conf.com
Looking to partner with a top sales training provider?
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for sales reps and sales managers.
10 Tips for Sales Success from a High-Performer
I’ve been to a lot of places, sold a number of different products, and won quite a few awards. Along the way, I have found a rhythm for my sales success. While everyone’s rhythm is different, there are certain keys to sales success that I have found to ring true for all.
Here are my top 10 tips for becoming a high performer:
- Persistence – On average, it takes 18 calls to get someone on the phone. Don’t give up, and be sure to have a voicemail and email cadence.
- Consistent Prospecting – A salesperson should always be busy. If you’re not closing, you should be opening (aka prospecting).
- Trust, but Verify – The information we receive, whether from online resources or a mutual acquaintance, is not always accurate. Verify your contacts, titles, needs, etc., directly.
- Track Your Cadence – Be sure to switch up the voicemails you are leaving and emails you are sending. Also, be sure to show Salesforce (or your CRM) some love. Tracking which voicemails and emails you use, when you use them, and which ones work can help in fine-tuning your cadence.
- Have a Conversation – Open with your SWIIFT℠ Pitch (So, What’s In It For Them), then ask the prospect a question. Relationships are built on two-way conversations.
- Let Them Tell You What They Want – Yes, you’ve researched a lot. Once you find out what their challenges are, you can show them everything you know.
- Penetrate Your Accounts – The truth is people leave. So, the more people that know you, the more likely you’ll keep the account when turnover happens.
- Objections are Good – You’ve engaged the prospect and they are seriously considering your solution. If they agree with everything you say, ask an unexpected question (called a pattern interrupt). Don’t be scared of objections, it means they are listening.
- Closing With Flexibility – Set upfront contracts and let prospects know it’s okay to say no and choose another solution. While we want to win every deal, that’s not entirely realistic. The easier you make it for the prospect to say no, the less time you’ll spend chasing dead deals. You can use that extra time to prospect new accounts that will cross the finish line.
- Feedback is Gold – Get feedback on every deal, if you can. No matter if you win or lose, the reasons behind the client’s decision are invaluable. It will help you close future deals and it will make you better. I promise.
Finally, winning the deal is only the beginning. Now you need to deliver on the trust they put in you. Exceed expectations and create those win/win situations.
It’s up to each of us to develop mutually beneficial relationships with our customers. To be the people they know, like, and trust.
About the Author:
Victoria Brooks is a Protégé in Generation 4 of #GirlsClub and a Technical Sales Representative at Dell. She moved into sales to better support her daughter as a single parent and found her confidence by creating win/win situations. She’s passionate about diversity, technology, and animal rescue. She’s usually roaming around Austin, Texas taking pictures to post on social and sharing sales “war” stories to anyone who will listen.
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How to Leave a Sales Voicemail That Gets Returned [“Sales Shot” Workshop]
How to Leave a Sales Voicemail That Gets Returned
[“Sales Shot” Workshop]
4 Voicemails That Get Returned [Script Samples]
4 Voicemails That Get Returned
[Script Samples]
Use This Simple Technique To Increase Close Rates
Want to increase close rates? Redefine what “closed” means!
Gone are the days of the one-call-close right? And what customer actually loved the days of ABC – Always Be Closing? What if I could show you a way to bring that back? Would you be interested? (and there I go, trial closing. I promise to stop. Hang tight, it gets better.)
(Psst! While you’re here, watch the recording of our recent session on “Tips to Transition to Close Fast“)
The idea here is that every call CAN be closed – just not for the sale. Indulge me in a sports metaphor (and prepare for me to mix it up halfway through):
Football. When we load up our BDR and outbound acquisition teams with lead lists and then count the appointments booked, we’re essentially only celebrating successful hail-mary passes. Picture your rep near your own end zone and winging it down the field for a one-in-a-million catch in the other end zone.
Maybe not one in a million…more like let’s say .6% or roughly two appointments booked in a week of sixty-dial days? Sound pretty close? Not a whole lotta touchdowns happening in this scenario, and really…how many of us have a team full of Bradys? (and seriously, even HE doesn’t have his contract renewed…but I digress)
Get A Commitment
What if instead, we instituted a first-down system in sales? Something that lets us make a shorter-yard play and then mark our spot on the field so that on the next play we weren’t starting from scratch?
Surely you’ve heard sellers lament the “starting from scratch” with leads right? Sure you called them three months ago and they told you to call back today, but did anyone actually remember you or what you sell? Here’s where commitments come in.
When we can get a potential customer to make a commitment to us on call one, we increase our mindshare with that lead. Sort of like sending an RSVP. Sure you don’t feel like going to the party when the date actually comes, but you DID send your RSVP that you’d be there, right?
I learned of this tactic from a restaurant. They had tons of no-shows for their reservations and were bleeding cash. My consultant friend went and did an analysis and added just two small words to the hostess’ script which made all the difference. Instead of saying, “Call us if you can’t make it,” she added the words, “will you” thereby gaining a customer commitment on the call.
By saying, “Will you call us if you can’t make it?” the customer responds with “Yes.” And again, even if he’s thinking of ditching the linen tablecloth for the couch and popcorn, he remembered that commitment and was TWICE as likely to either call or show. Massive change right? Mindshare.
Assign An Action
Now before you go and alter your scripts and training to reflect getting a “yes” from your customer, let’s make it even stronger. Give your customer an action item.
Let’s go back to the couch and the party. Sure you RSVPed, but you can probably still make excuses come Monday morning when you see your buddy at work right?
But consider: What if you signed up to bring the beer? Think of all your thirsty and angry friends waiting for you. Now THAT might get my behind off the couch and into the shower. You with me?
And if it didn’t work, the guilt certainly tripled. Same as the RSVP to the restaurant. I said I would call and I didn’t. It gives us a moment of pause. And next time we make a reservation, we might even remember our experience shafting that hostess. Mindshare.
OK, let’s translate.
If we’re outbounding to a customer and don’t get the appointment/demo/stage 2 win of the sales process, what CAN we get? We call these short-yard or mid-yard plays. Some examples:
- An appointment for call #2
- A commitment to check our current contract for the expiry date
- An agreement to read the study we send before the next call
- A promise to ask the rest of the team what they think of the current provider
- A commitment to take my next call
You’ll notice some of these wins are bigger than others, but they all include the customer saying yes, and the strongest ones give them an action. During training, we come up with our list of plays and then listen to calls together and vote on what commitment we’d use if our hail-mary falls short. Try it out!
Remember, the worst that can happen is your customer flakes and stays on the couch. But your odds of him remembering who you are and what you do (and feeling JUST a bit guilty about it) on the next call has definitely increased. Follow these tips and you’re sure to increase close rates in no time.