Okay…you desire to elevate your skills to the Leadership level or may be there yourself but need a defined way to teach others how to lead sales professionals.  Where do you start? The first step in effective sales leadership is measuring or benchmarking each individual in the skills necessary to be highly successful.  Makes sense…

How would you broadly define the skill sets essential to being a highly effective sales professional? Think about the best pro you have seen…..think about your own skills and deficiencies.  Jot them down and compare them with the ones we define in our next article on Monday. Please give us some feedback about your views…

IMPERATIVE #1 – KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ADMINISTRATION, MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP Being a “good sales manager” is the goal of most with the sales manager title.  Those who hold this view are selling themselves short and running the risk of failure and extinction.  Harsh words . . . , but I think you will agree…

What do you think are the attributes of a good sales manager and do you think you or your manager qualifies?  List what you think these skills are and look for our article on Monday that defines a level above being a GOOD SALES MANAGER.  I think you will be surprised at our thoughts on…

One of the most often stated questions in the financial services marketplace is: “What do you think about the market?” Certainly, with the dramatic swings seen in the indices during recent weeks and interest rates below historical norms, many fear another recession at best or a 1929 redux at worst. Understanding these concerns, turn them…

Ten Steps to Robust and Productive Sales Leadership Sales Management is anything but a spectator sport!   It requires the consistent application of proven strategies and tactics to develop effective sales professionals and thereby produce stellar sales results.  The questions are: what are these strategies and tactics and how do we develop a mentoring process that…

All too often, selling is an all or nothing proposition, leaving the prospective client with a very simple choice to make – implement the solution that has been discussed or walk away. Psychologically, buyers do not want to give up control and, as such, feel compelled to say “no” simply based of the structure of…

Years ago, I attended a CFP Board Director’s conference in which a panel, consisting of professors and Certified Financial Planner practitioners, led a discussion regarding sales skills and the need for CFP financial planner certification and education programs to begin teaching sales skills.  During the Q&A time, an objection to teaching “sales skills” was made…

The decision making process is difficult for many, if not most, people. The difficulty lies in the buyer’s inability to assimilate both feelings and facts, and then massage them to a logical and emotionally satisfying conclusion. Successful sales professionals are those who are able to help prospects/clients through this process without making them feel like…

Read Part 1 and Part 2 The questions that can bring the success of a sales call into clear focus are: “Who has more doubt about the situation, you or the suspect?” and “Who has more interest in the next meeting, you or them?”  D.U.I. (an acronym for creating Doubt, Urgency and Interest) is alive…