Category Archives: The Art of Selling

Creativity, Irreverence, Loving Life, Performance, The Art of Selling, Winning

Use this word to slay your fiercest competitor – The Status Quo!

This word will leave the Status Quo shaking in it’s boots!

I have been selling for about a million years. Day in and day out. I have read nearly everything I can get my hands on and I have heard many of the super pros speak.

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

And yet, I had never heard this one.

The pure and simple question that unlocks doors and allows you full access.

WHY?

Three little letters.

My good friend, President of Dialogue Consulting, revealed this secret to me and I was amazed! She is notorious for turning unprofitable businesses to profitable! And it’s no wonder. She is phenomenal. And this is one of her most powerful tools in her tool kit. The question…

Continue reading Use this word to slay your fiercest competitor – The Status Quo! →

Creativity, Irreverence, The Art of Selling, Winning

If you’re anything like me…you will LOVE this secret sales weapon!

I have a secret sales weapon.Secret-weapon

It is a sure fire way to get on the same side of the table as your prospect. Especially those who are resisting a sales conversation with you.

The secret weapon? A few simple words.

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

“If you are anything like…”

This is one of the most dis-arming comments you can make in a tense sales conversation. It immediately makes your conversation personable.  Here’s how it works:

Continue reading If you’re anything like me…you will LOVE this secret sales weapon! →

Authenticity, Creativity, Goals, Performance, The Art of Selling, Winning

One More Call

I was reading Jeb Blount’s book last week. Fanatical One More CallProspecting.

And, if you know anything about me, you KNOW that I abhor most business books.

But, this one grabbed me. It made me think…HEY! I had NO idea I could do this stuff. I have never even thought this way. NO WONDER this guy’s a millionaire!

Seriously.

That’s what I thought.

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

Then I got excited. I have always KNOWN I could do better, I just didn’t know where to look to find the flaws in my performance (yes, *sigh*, even The Irreverent Sales Girl has flaws in her performance – until NOW *grin*).

One of the challenges Jeb puts to you is to make just ONE MORE CALL. So, it was Friday afternoon and I was cold calling my list. Yep, successful people still cold call. And I was tired, but I challenged myself to observe Jeb’s rule. Make ONE MORE CALL.

Guess what happened? Continue reading One More Call →

Dignity, Goals, Irreverence, Loving Life, Performance, Self Care, The Art of Selling, Winning

A Sales Gig Primer: Show Me the Money! Part 3 of 5

OK! So, today is about Show Me the Money!

Before we start though – did you register for this yet? It’s going to ROCK! Check out this event: Your Job Search Goes Social with Sima Dahl I am attending and I want you to consider it, too. Sima is even offering the event FREE to people who are unemployed – on the honor system. She is clearly about making a difference!

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

Show Me the MoneyShow-Me-The-Money-538x218
There are really three ways to get paid as a salesperson – all others are variations on one a theme:

Straight Up Salary
This position pays a straight salary and you are evaluated on your performance against specific measures – maybe the number of appointments you set, or your conversion rates, or the deals you bring in.

This set up is ideal for the person who does not like income fluctuation. It is also ideal for the person who feels more comfortable REALLY selling a product when they can honestly say there is “nothing in it for them”.

Base Plus Commission
This sales gig pays you enough of a base to ensure you have some living expenses covered as your income fluctuates, but provides enough incentive to get the job done and perform at the top of your game.

Be sure to know what you need to be OK first, make yourself comfortable enough with the base so that you have the flexibility to go out and sell confidently (people can sniff out desperation from a mile away). But, not SO comfortable that it takes your edge off of the hunger.

This set up is ideal for someone who has a moderate degree of money motivation. Usually this person is also intrinsically wired to simply need to achieve. They also love the “unlimited” income potential that comes along with this situation, without having it all at risk.

Commission Only
(I consider Commission with a Draw to fit into this same category. A draw is NOT a base salary. It is like going into debt against future commissions.)

This sales gig is for people who are highly risk-tolerant. They want to be paid (and paid WELL) for the results they produce. They can command much higher commission rates because they are taking on all of the fluctuation and risk of performance.

These people are self-reliant and REALLY love the “Sky’s The Limit” nature of the work.

If you are entering one of these gigs, be absolutely certain that you can rely on your employer to provide the full training and resources you will need to succeed. Many companies who pay on “Commission Only” are just fine with churn and burn of sales people. Make sure this is an environment where you can THRIVE!

Love yourself UP!

The Irreverent Sales Girl

Dignity, Goals, Loving Life, Performance, The Art of Selling, Wisdom

A Sales Gig Primer: Find the Right Boss – Part 2 of 5

Pick the Right BossSo, my lovelies. We are on day two of Finding the Right Sales Gig for You: Finding the Right Boss.

Before we start though, if you didn’t do it yesterday, do it today! Check out this event: Your Job Search Goes Social with Sima Dahl I am attending and I want you to consider it, too. Sima is even offering the event FREE to people who are unemployed – on the honor system. She is clearly about making a difference!

We’ve talked about this before, and I cannot stress the importance of this enough. If you want to succeed, you are much more likely to do it if you have the RIGHT BOSS. Here is a post I wrote a couple of years ago, it’s one of my favorites! Pick Your Boss, Not Your Job

How do you do that? Here are three ideas:

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

Continue reading A Sales Gig Primer: Find the Right Boss – Part 2 of 5 →

Dignity, Goals, Loving Life, The Art of Selling, Wisdom

Finding the right sales gig for YOU! The Sales Gig Primer

Sales Gig Primer

So, you’re looking for a new sales gig. (Or you’re in a sales job and you’re wondering if it’s right for you).

I have heard so many horror stories this week about people in the wrong sales environment that I just had to put together a bit of a primer for finding the perfect fit for YOU!

Before we start though. Check out this event: Your Job Search Goes Social with Sima Dahl I am attending and I want you to consider it, too. Sima is even offering the event FREE to people who are unemployed – on the honor system. She is clearly about making a difference!

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

So , we’re going to make this the week of finding your dream job. Here’s our five step primer to getting you the right gig for you.

Monday: Doing the Due (Diligence, that is)

Tuesday: Finding the right boss

Wednesday: Show me the money (How do you want to get paid?)

Thursday: Investigate, Investigate, Investigate

Friday: Accelerating Onboarding and Ramp Up

Are you ready to get started?

Continue reading Finding the right sales gig for YOU! The Sales Gig Primer →

Performance, The Art of Selling, Winning

The Price Is Right – STICK TO IT

The Price Is Right – STICK TO IT!

I had a crazy pricing conversation a couple of weeks ago – a real nail-biter!

I have been selling to a Fortune 500 company. On a larger deal than I have closed in quite some time.

We were in legal, negotiating the contract.

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

They had seen our price list. They had picked their products, we had an order form.

Then, came the price conversation. They asked for a separate conversation to “iron out the details of the order form.”

Sure, no problem.

We get on the phone and they start laying out their problem. They think our service is awesome and they cannot wait to get started, but they absolutely MUST start the program as a PILOT and ramp up into an Enterprise solution.

So, the way they had figured it, the first year should cost about 25% of our quoted price. Then, they could ramp up to full capacity.

They complained that if they couldn’t get this 75% discount, the person running point on the project would probably lose his job because the executives were counting on him to get the right deal at the appropriate price.

SEVENTY-FIVE PERCENT DISCOUNT? NOW? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Continue reading The Price Is Right – STICK TO IT →

Creativity, Customer Service, Dignity, Irreverence, Performance, Presentation, The Art of Selling, Winning

Lose the pronouns!

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OMG! I was in a TERRIBLE sales presentation the other day. TERRIBLE.

The presenter was Hooked On Pronouns.

“We, you, they, it, he, she, their” … it went on and on. (Example: So, I said this to him about it, and he said he was interested in their results.) WHAT?

PRONOUNS ARE MEAN

When you use pronouns, you make your audience feel like idiots!

Continue reading Lose the pronouns! →

Creativity, Dignity, Irreverence, Loving Life, Performance, The Art of Selling, Winning

Let’s Go All The Way!

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Take a little ’80’s Break!Lets go all the way

Remember when you really hit your stride as a salesperson?

Maybe you only have one memory of it. Maybe you have had many.

What was it that made that time so magical?

Perhaps you would say that you were lit up by the product you were selling. Or the challenge. Or you had a great team around you. Or that people really wanted to hear about what you were selling.

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

One or all of those things might be true.

I want you to consider something. Look and see if this resonates.

Continue reading Let’s Go All The Way! →

Authenticity, Buyers, Creativity, Customer Service, Dignity, Irreverence, Loving Life, Purpose, The Art of Selling, Winning, Wisdom

Ever just called someone to see how it’s going?

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If you believe that sales are founded on great relationships.

And, most of us still do. Especially in this world of complex sales.

Ever thought of calling your decison-maker up – just to see how their life is going?

It will test your ability to GET OVER IN THEIR WORLD.

Wondering how to go from 5 to 6 figures in sales? Check out this Free eBook: http://ebook.solidsixblueprint.com/solid-six-ebook/

What if your customers viewed you as someone who called them because you were interested in what THEY were dealing with. Not just what you could sell them to help them. You won’t always have the answers.

Can you see how much more FUN you would have calling on people?

You have fun. They have fun.

You will find out things about their children, their marriages, their pressing concerns.

You do it because you “getting the deal” isn’t the most important thing to them. But, their life IS important to them.

Do you know that salespeople don’t do this?

Stand out. Demonstrate that you are truly out for THEM.

Love ’em UP!

The Irreverent Sales Girl