do you know the sales secrets used by

The sales secrets are 3 Simple rules that can have a massive impact on your results. Many successful sales people, and managers, use them to guide every action they take. Known as the sales secrets because they are the selling guide that top professionals use with unconscious competence, but they are rarely talked about in open forum.This is how successful sales managers assess the performance of individuals, and forecast where their selling activity should be focused. When looking at the skills training needs of their team they use the sales secrets to plan future training and target coaching so they get the best return on their investments.In an attempt to market their services trainingcompanies are forever bringing out new and more complicated selling techniques. They preach the latest acronyms, that don't work in real practice and are particular pet hate of mine.There is a growing difference between the sales skills and practices of a seasoned professional, and the selling skills training offered to many new people and managers. The great thing about sales is that the results of all actions are there for all to see. In my experience as a working sales manager and trainer I regularly see successful people that stick to sound basics and learn sales skills through trial and error. In every company I have worked with the top performing people fit the above picture. Their success is based on what many of us call the sales secrets.With all the fast changing hype and marketing of new techniques and ideas, it's easy to lose site of the basic fundamentals that successful sales operations should use. There is more money to be made from flashy new ideas, and those terrible acronyms, than there is from presenting training based on solid principles that have stood the test of time.That is how the simple sales truths, that used to be part of the basic skills training for all sales people, became sales secrets.So what are these ancient pearls of wisdom? Read the following statements and take a moment to consider them. There are only 3 actions you can take that will increase your sales results.
Put yourself in front of more potential buyers. Convert more of the buyers you see into customers Sell more to each buyer and increase your average order value.
Take a moment and think if there are any other actions you can take, that don't fit into any of the above statements, that will increase your results.If you are taking any other actions they are not directly impacting your results.When you are planning skills training and activity for yourself, or your team, refer to the above statements and assess where the actions should be targeted. Look at how many prospects you get in front of, use your average sales conversion rate, and calculate if you are making enough appointments to achieve your targets or personal goals.If you are making a high number of appointments then look at your selling and closing skills. How many prospects do you convert to customers? Calculate the percentage increase in closing sales that you need to achieve to hit your sales targets or personal goals. Then look at the actions you could take. Compare your average order value to what others have achieved. If you have a good conversion rate, and you are seeing the right number of prospects, then increased activity, or sales training, to increase order values could be the key to more success.Start by using the sales secrets to assess the areas of your role that you need to focus on. That's just the beginning. The next step is to look for proven ideas and training on how to turn your assessment into actions.

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how to delegate to a sales assistant

The ability to delegate effectively is one of the keys to successful leadership.� Whether you are trying to manage�a multi-million dollar company or a family, the degree to which you can effectively engage others to carry out tasks is a good indicator of how successful you'll be.�One of the biggest obstacles to delegating isn't necessarily motivating others, though, it's communicating accurately what needs to�be done.� Anytime you have a project in your head that needs to be�shared�with someone else, there is�a chance that either you won't explain it well or that they won't understand it.� Fear of this miscommunication, and its attendant headaches, prevents�many of us from�attepting to delegate in the first place.� This is why so many people try to do everything themselves, or simply�don't take action on their ideas which would require outside help.�One simple and powerful tool to prevent miscommunication when delegating is to have�the delegatee�repeat back the task.��After you assign the�work�to someone, ask�the person (or persons) to repeat what they think they are supposed to do - the activity, the result, the deadline,�the reasoning.� It can be as simple as:"I just want to make sure that I did a good job of communicating what the task is.� Could you run through what you think needs to be done - and what results we want to see."That's it.� Very simple, but very powerful.� In the above example, you are not asking them to repeat the information because you don't trust them (which avoids the "I think you are an idiot, so repeat what I want you to do and I'll point out your mistakes" mentality).���You are taking responsibility up front for the integrity of the communication.�Doing this in the beginning of the process takes a little extra time, but it prevents time- and energy-consuming mistakes down the line.� It also heads off the negative feelings that come up when mistakes are made through miscommunication.� It allows everyone to be on�the proverbial "same page".� This way, you can expand your influence without having to do more work yourself - and that's the definition of a great leader.Happy delegating!

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asking all the right questions

Have you ever pondered and asked yourself "what is the meaning of life?" How far have you got with that question? I remember as a kid, climbing up on to a grassy hill, lying flat on my back and looking up into the sky, watching the cloud formations drift slowly by... I gave up "pondering" the question a long time ago, becasue I realized the futility of asking such a question. Is there really an answer?Did you ever think that maybe there is no answer?Did you ever think that maybe it's the wrong question?How about if you rephrased your question and asked, "What would give my life meaning"?Ah ha! Puts a different perspective on things doesn't it? Now we've have taken a seemingly unanswerablequestion and given it a multitude of answers! Now instead of being "stuck", searching for an answer that seems to alude us, we now have freedom, the freedom to let our imagination and dreams take us where ever we want to go!So, you are probably asking yourself, "Kevin, how does this apply to me closing more sales and building my business?"Have you ever been "stuck" with a prospect or a customer? Maybe you are asking the wrong kinds of questions...when I sit down with a prospect or a client he or she may not realize the impact his or her problems are having on their business. We want to explore the implications of our prospects or clients in not taking any actions to solve their problems.There is a process for doing this. I call it layering questions.For instance, my main question I always begin my presentation with is: "I'm just curious, Bob--what do you see as being some of the biggest challenges for your sales team right now?"His response might be, "Being proactive in getting new business."What then?With our client we need to explore the implications of his or her sales staff's not being proactive enough in getting new business.In order to create even more value in our client's mind, we need to thoroughly understand the impact this will have on his or her business and build on the original question by layering. The way I do this is to ask further questions about what effect that (not being proactive or cold calling) has on their business right now in terms of sales.* By the way, how fast is your industry growing right now?
* How proactive are your competitors in soliciting new business?
* How is this affecting your market share?This makes the client think. If my people are not being proactive, my competitors' salespeople are. That means my competitor is getting my business!When you ask the right questions and layer them, it gives you an opportunity to really give your clients a different perspective on what the cost of doing nothing to solve their problem really is.Would you like to read more blog articles on improving your sales and marketing techniques?

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how to overcome price objections easily

One of the most common topics that people ask me about is, how do I overcome price objections?In fact, do you know that in every single company that I work with most of the sales reps say they have trouble with price objections? I have worked with companies in the same industries, in the same cities and their sales reps are saying the same things - our customers complain that our prices/rates are too high. So how can everyone's prices and/or rates be too high?The fact is it's all a matter of perception and belief. One of my clients who has a very large and successful business with about 50 account managers was having the same problem. About half of his salespeople were having trouble withpricing objections. The reality was that his sales team was forgetting about the 5,000 clients who were using his service right now! During the training, I urged each and every sales rep to pick up their cell phones and call their clients and customers and ask them, do you feel you are paying too much? Puts things into a different perspective doesn't it? My advice to you is, don't ever forget the people who believe in you. If they haven't stopped believing in you and your product or service why have you? For one, we live in a price conscious society. As a consumer it is the easiest way for me to compare products or services. There are also some who live by the creed "you don't get what you don't ask for" so for them it's normal to ask for a better deal. They're fishing, and their hoping you will take the bait.Lastly, every purchase decision we make involves the risk of making a bad decision. I work hard for my money as I am sure you do. So as you can see, someone saying your price is too high doesn't mean your price is too high. What they are really saying is PROVE to me that buying from you is a good decision.So taking things one step further, my belief is for someone to even mention price as an objection, means that you have a an interested buyer!Stated another way - Price objections are in fact buying signals. If someone is so concerned about not being able to afford your product or service, or that your price is not in line with other suppliers - does it not make sense that what they are really saying is - if your price was lower, or "I would expect to pay for something like this" - then indeed you do have someone giving you a "buying signal". Now that you understand that you have a buyer, we need to position our prospect so that he or she "feels" that they are getting a "good deal." I always present my products or services as worth more than they are - it's a mindset that I have before I even enter into the presentation. I look at it as me being solidly planted on "my rock" - you have to have an unshakable belief in the value of the product or the service you are selling.This is where market research will really pay off for you - you need to know what your competitors are offering - what their competitive advantages are and their weaknesses.Other tools to have in your "tool box":1) Be up front, "Yes John, we can be perceived as being high by a person who hasn't experienced the results of our program... (show them results). Could you see yourself benefiting from these kinds of results?2) Show them testimonials from current and past clients who are happy with your service.3) Show them value, take a piece of paper and write down how the results outweigh the costs.4) Reduce price objections to the smallest number ie: If you spend $200.00 more that works out to about $16.00 per month.5) Tell them you don't want to lose a deal over a few dollars. Where else can I move that can help us put this deal together?6) Make it easy for them to buy. Get creative in your billing/financing/terms - We can bill you 25% now and the rest in 30 days. (or you can offer financing).And the best reason of all... "When you purchase this item, you also get me!"And the best reason of all... "When you purchase this item, you also get me!" Can you think of a better reason than that? I honestly don't believe in price objections. Studies show that the vast majority of all purchases are made for other reasons other than price. I know myself I am almost always willing to pay a little bit more if I know that I will get the results that I want. In fact, price rarely stops me from buying something if I think it will do what I need it to do.So you have to ask yourself, maybe I just didn't sell my product or service properly... maybe the price objection is a smoke screen because I didn't sell my prospect on value. And ultimately that's the bottom line, until you can show value, your product or service will always be over priced.

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sales training tip how to respond to im

I'm Happy You're Happy!!WHAT barrier? How do you break that barrier?Here is a question for everyone to think about, and I am not being sarcastic.I want you seriously to think about this: When the prospect says, "I'm happy with my supplier." What barrier, what objection, what problem are we talking about?A few seconds into a cold call the prospect says he or she is happy with their current supplier.OkSo?What's the problem?OF COURSE he or she is happy with their current supplier. What kind of a decent business person would NOT be happy with whom they are doing business with?Think about it: A business manager is doing business with a company that he is unhappy or unsatisfied in doing busineswith. WHY on earth would he continue doing business with that company even for a minute?Is he stupid?If he was unhappy, then why did he or she not rectify the situation before?
Was he waiting for you to call, while in the mean time his company was losing money or service by continuing to work with a substandard vendor?As sales people, we too often fall into the trap of looking for the prospect that is sitting there waiting for us to call. This is a mistake. Frankly, I don't want to do business with the manager or director who has been doing business with a supplier that they do not want to do business with. This person is could be incompetent or at best, a lousy manager.Of course they are happy and I am happy that they are happy!Now, again, what is the barrier that we talking about?Are you asking this person, after only a few seconds on the telephone, to drop their current supplier and do business with you? Of course not.All you are seeking is a meeting, right? Ok. Then what does the fact that they are happy have to do with the price of tea in China?Too often we try to skip over the steps in the sales process. When calling for an appointment-just sell the appointment-just sell the meeting. They are happy, so what? You are not asking them to drop their supplier and give you the business. All you are looking for is a meeting.That's all-just a meeting.Prospect:
"I'm sorry but I am very happy with my current supplier. I have been doing business with them for 14 years now, and I am not thinking about changing."Sales Person:
"Great! I'm glad to hear that Mr. Prospect and if you were NOT happy with your supplier, then I would have to wonder how you were running your business. Please don't misunderstand me. I am not asking you to change suppliers or to even THINK about doing something like that. In fact, I have not yet EARNED the right even to ask you. The purpose of my call is to introduce myself and ABC Company and simply to update you of the options, which I am certain that as a savvy business man, you always want to stay informed of."Mr. Prospect, over a cup of coffee, I'll update you on the options available and provide you with some very valuable information that will be beneficial to you whether we ever do any business or not. If our relationship goes any further than this one meeting, it will only be because YOU want it to. I can see you on Tuesday at 4:15?"Now you know me, and you know that the above example is in no way meant to be a script.That example represents the way of THINKING; the mentality you have to have.Don't skip steps in the sales process. First get the appointment. Then make the presentation, then the proposal. Don't look for the lay downs.Sell ONLY the meeting.Happy Selling!

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training hotel front desk agents to

Hotel Management should always make sure that their staff is properly trained. A properly trained Front Desk Agent is key to the success of the hotel.A customer may deal with a hair in the bathroom or bad food in the restaurant, but if the service is friendly, attentive and courteous, then they will continue to stay at your hotel. Apologize for the hair, do turn down service and leave them a fruit basket or something nice, and comp the food that they didn't like. "Put him/her on your hot sheet and check for upcoming reservations with this guest. If you don't see any return visits, get someone to call to see what's up. Can you imagine the impact of that?I guarantee that they will be back ad with less complaints. Guests hate their complaints being ignored. Sometimes you will have to give money back but in the long run, it will make more profit. Now of course there are abusers out there so use your best judgment. But always remember - Service is very important.Front Desk Agents should be fully trained on how to take a reservation. Just think how much revenue is lost because the Agent did not know how to SELL the reservation. If they are taking the time to call you to inquire, book those babies no matter what. The caller will hang up and book the next hotel who was smarter and got the sale.Take this week and take 5 or 10 minutes with each Agent. Tell them what you do and why you do it. Talk to them about your accounts and upcoming groups that are coming in. Give them a story or two. I know it will help.Ask if they have seen the rooms and banquet space. Take them into the Sales Office and introduce them to everyone and tell them their purpose.Give them the tools and knowledge to do a good job.My recommendation .....take a good look at your Front Desk Agents. Talk to them and find out what they need, and more importantly, what they know about the hotels practices and procedures. Take the time and your hotel will reap the benefits.

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sales mistakes how to avoid them

Business people are among some of the most confident folks in the world. Not only do most business leaders have egos that can be seen from space, they often surround themselves with like minded individuals who refuse to refute anything that comes from their superiors. This, of course, leads to sales mistakes that qualify as epic in scale. While it is always important to take chances where others fear, it is also recommended that you get a second opinion on your choice from someone who isn't afraid of you. Let's take a look at a few common sales mistakes.Misjudging your audienceOften times, when your company offers a product or service that is so good, you tend to forget that without the poper marketing technique, even the best product is doomed to fail. For instance, during the 1980's Coca Cola's market share was slipping significantly against competitor Pepsi. Coke believed that the solution to their problem was to reformulate their product to more closely resemble Pepsi. In doing so, they alienated most of the American population, and "New Coke" has gone down in history as one of the worst marketing decisions ever. What most Americans don't realize is that "New Coke" was a huge hit around the world and is still sold all throughout Europe. The Coke company completely misjudged their audience at home, but they hit a home run abroad. Make sure you understand what your customer base really wants before you radically change your product or offer a new service. Otherwise, you may be left wondering what went wrong.Learn how to niche marketOne of the biggest challenges in today's business world is cracking through the force field that many people have when it comes to advertising. We see so many ads every day in newspapers, magazines, television, outdoor advertising and online that most of them simply bounce off our cerebral cortex and fail to make any impression at all. While the initial investment is likely to be staggering in cost, coming up with several niche sales campaign instead of one blanket campaign is one sure way to break through that force field. If you can market your product or service to several niche areas instead of simply tossing a billboard ad out there, you are significantly increasing your chances of having the demographic you want not just see your ad but understand it and have it motivate them to action. Any other sales strategy is simply screaming at windmills.The Internet isn't just for kids, anymoreAt the dawn of this century, the Internet was still mostly the playground of the young and the middle class and occasionally a middle aged Christmas shopper. Today, grandmothers and inner city school kids use the Internet on a daily basis. If you have been reluctant to jump on the Internet bandwagon with your product or service, now is the time. You'll reach a larger audience than you ever thought possible, and that audience is growing each and every day.

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how do i use arts and crafts in training

Have you considered using arts and crafts as a technique to liven up your training sessions? Here as a training resource for you, under the headings of Description, This Activity Can Be Used To, Facilitator's Process, Guidelines for Facilitators, Guidelines for Participants, Pitfalls, Hot Tricks and Variations.Description
Arts and crafts are works produced by participants using imagination and skill.This Activity Can Be Used To:Make a spiritual or emotional connection.
Address a topic from a new perspective.
Stimulate the right brain.
Demonstrate a skill.
Produce solutions to problems.
Relax or reflect.
Communicate feelings.
Visualize an idea or concept.
Explore aubject in a creative or interpretative way.
Produce various outputs: sculpture, music, models, camp crafts, food, dance, etc.
Facilitator's ProcessOrganize the materials the group will need to complete the project.
Pre-assess the group to determine what participants already know about the subject.
Share the purpose and objectives of the activity with the group.
Choose a theme or topic for people to focus on, if desired.
Explain the procedure:
Obtain the supplies.
Work on the project.
Debrief the activity.

Announce the duration of the session, if applicable.
Ask for and answer any questions regarding the procedure.
Distribute the supplies.
Start the activity.
Circulate and monitor.
Tell the participants when there is one or two minutes left in the activity and remind them to choose a presenter, if necessary.
End the activity.
Debrief the session.
Summarize the session by recapping the main points.
Wrap up with a review of the learning objectives, if appropriate.
Conduct a post-assessment to determine what learning occurred.
Guidelines for Facilitators
Ensure there are adequate supplies.
If the medium is messy, advise the participants ahead of time to wear old clothes. * Allow enough time to complete the project.
Invite participants to enjoy themselves.
Set flexible guidelines to encourage participants to be as creative as possible.
Encourage participants who have not completed the project to do so afterwards.
Guidelines for Participants
Have fun!
Let your imagination run wild.
Don't get hung up on technical perfection.
Get messy.
Pitfalls
Some people do not think they are "artistic" and resist getting creative.
Individuals work at different speeds, so timing may become a challenge.
The facilities may not be suitable for the medium you are using.
Hot Tricks
Schedule arts and crafts at the end of the day, so those who finish early may go and those who are more into it may work longer.
Include things such as music, aromas, food, and drinks to stimulate the senses.
Work outdoors or in a different environment than usual.
Use unusual media combinations such as sculpting with food.
Variations
Set up various stations around the room with activities that relate to the learning objectives through different media. Ask participants to select the art form that most appeals to them and move to that station.
When the participants have finished their projects, put them on display and create a gallery for viewing the works. Ask participants to write an artist's statement about what the piece means to them or ask the other participants how they interpret a piece.
Have participants create 3D mock-ups or models of larger projects they are working on to help visualize the end result (i.e., landscape, sweat lodge, fashion design, bridge, architecture, boat, totem poles, camp set-up, machinery, etc).
We hope you find this article useful and we look forward to hearing of your successes as you weave arts and crafts into your training sessions.

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blossoming to maturity

A Poppin' Fresh roll sits in the refrigerated section of the food store, waiting for you. It blossoms to maturity in about 8 minutes once it is in the oven. If you use the same oven temperature, Poppin' Fresh rolls always take about the same amount of time to cook. For those who like consistency, that is a big relief.What does a Poppin' Fresh roll have to do with sales? More than you'd think!We use sales systems to create consistent results. We tend to use the same pain darts with the same decision makers. We use the same sales call note sheets to ensure we gather the information we need. We ask the same qualifying questions to qualify the sale, the process, and the decision maker.Using sstems reduces errors and improves performance. Even ineffective use of a selling system will most likely produce better results than not using a system at all.So, why doesn't it always work? The answer to that question isn't found with the system. The answer is found in the prospect.Prospects are people. People are like paper towels in that they have different "absorption" rates. People absorb and process new ideas at different rates. Some people process quickly. Some take time.Ever have a "no-brainer" sale not come to fruition because the prospect didn't "get it"? Ever sit and scratch your head after a sales call wondering why all of a sudden the prospect is now hot after an idea he shot down twice before? It boils down to processing time. Not your processing time, the prospects processing time. Some people do it faster than others.Size of the idea doesn't matter. Some people will jump on big, expensive ideas quickly and sometimes little ones take a ton of time and thought. So, it isn't idea size that is the culprit.
It is simply how quickly the prospect deals with change.Asking the right questions helps. And it may speed up the process by several weeks. But you may still get frustrated waiting for the light bulb to shine over the prospect's head, especially if the idea is truly a "no brainer."So how do you deal with this issue? Here are 6 things that can help.
1. Use the same pain points (or pain darts) several times over a couple of contacts.
2. Add some different pain points to your mix if the others aren't getting attention.
3. Remain focused on identifying problems, not creating solutions until the prospect states they have a problem worth solving.
4. Quit without quitting. You can appear to the prospect that you've quit, but you can simply take another path to the same place.
5. Change media. If you have been talking, put your pain points in writing and send along an article that illustrates the topic.
6. Don't give up. Keep pinging them with information they can use. If you add value first, and then worry about the sale, the sales process will be shorter for those prospects when it is there time to buy.Remember, a Poppin' Fresh dinner roll blossoms to maturity in 8 minutes in the toaster oven. A nine pound prime rib roast takes longer. Keep your sales cooking. Don't give up too quickly. Just change the recipe.

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cartoon drawing play with your creative

Cartoon drawing is considered to be a great form of art that artists use not only to express their creative ideas, but also to address some serious issues with a lighter outlook. If you become more talented in this art you will be able to find some interesting career openings for yourself and will be able to take up cartoon drawing as your profession. There are some suggestions that eminent cartoon artists try to share with those who are new to cartoon drawing, so that the newer people can develop their skills. I have tried to share some tips that will help you in becoming more knowledgeable about cartoon drawing.1. To become an expert in any art form that you take up, you have to put inlot of dedication. Without proper dedication you would not be able to get the desired level of expertise in any art form of your choice. Thus it is crucial that if you are interested in cartoon drawing, you should try to practice as much as you can. With the right mix of practice and dedication, you will be able to develop your cartoon drawing skills more and more with time.2. You can make your cartoon drawing more attractive by adding a lot of color to your cartoons. While making cartoon sketches you should try to improve by looking around you and gathering inspiration from what you see around you. You should use lighter strokes of a pencil for making your cartoons, and gradually make them deeper with time. Doing this enables you to correct your mistakes up without making the paper on which you are doing the sketches untidy. With practice you will be able to make cartoons even using pens, which allows very little scope for corrections as in comparison to the sketches that are made using pencils. You will be able to make better cartoons by following the video tutorials of famous cartoon artists that are found at the major stores.3. With cartoon drawing, you need to keep your sketches limited to a bare minimum. Adding too many details will spoil the overall feel of the sketches and make them appear tacky. You will be able to create finer art with time. There are a large number of places from which you will be able to draw inspiration while drawing cartoons. Though it is generally thought by people that cartoons are very easy to draw, the truth it is not as easy as it seems to be. For getting the best results people have to practice a lot, and many times it may take hours to create some cartoon sketches. Cartoon drawing for comic strips is much harder, as your sketches have to be such that they will be able to portray stories along with the sketches.You need to have a very good imagination power if you desire to go to places with cartoon drawing. With lots of practice and dedication, you will find that, cartoon drawing is a very profitable profession, and you will face no trouble in making money. The work is also very enjoyable and this definitely adds to its positives. I suggest that you start by studying the works of other artists and with gradual improvement come up with a style of your own.

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