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Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Going For The Gold
When I saw this article from sales trainer Jim Meisenheimer I just knew it had to follow yesterday's quote - enjoy!
Going for the gold is what Lindsey Vonn was doing in the downhill Alpine skiing event at this year's Winter Olympics in Vancouver. She achieved her goal and had this to say about it. "This is everything I wanted and hoped for. I gave up everything for this."
When you find your passion, it's not work, it's pure love.
Unfortunately winning isn't only about having passion, it usually involves a good deal of sacrifice.
About 30 years ago I saw an interview with a Texas billionaire. He was asked by a CBS reporter, what advice he would give to the graduating college seniors that year.
He didn't blink, he didn't bat an eye, and he didn't hesitate a nanosecond to respond. He said, "You have to do three things. Determine what you want. Determine what you're willing to sacrifice to get it. Then just do it."
Most people have the capacity to dream big, but they lack the will to sacrifice anything to get what they want. That's just too bad and so sad!
Back to Lindsey for a second. She skied showing no signs of any discomfort even though she skied with a bruised shin. Think about these questions as you watch the Winter Olympics.
How successful do you really want to become?
What sacrifices are you ready to make today?
On a daily basis, are you doing what it takes to achieve your ultimate success - regardless what it might be?
Do you have to be twice as good as your best competitor? I don't think so. Here's the proof.
In the women's downhill event these were the times:
Gold: 1:44.19 Silver: 1:44.75 Bronze: 1:45.65
To win you need an edge, advantage, leg up, nose out, slip by, squeeze by - and all by the narrowest of margins. While the margin of difference between gold and silver is slim at best, the difference in effort is probably humongous.
You have one life to live, and it's not a dress rehearsal is it? Why not go for it?
Go for the GOLD!
Jim Meisenheimer publishes The Sales TrailBlazer Newsletter, a fresh and high content newsletter dedicated to helping you grow your business and multiply your income. To learn more, visit http://salestrailblazer.com/
While we're often told we need to sell on value, it can be hard to figure out what that actually means. How do you determine the value of your product, and how do you go about presenting those values in an enticing manner? Today sales trainer Jim Meisenheimer shares a few examples and gives some ideas to get your value pitch flowing.
Imagine what it would be like trying to sell $35,000 luxury watches during this recession. Well for starters, it wouldn't be easy. Old selling skills have to be modified and new skills adopted. For example, you're showing a potential customer an expensive watch. Customer says, "How much?" A typical response might be "$8500." A better response would be "The value is $8500." Instead of saying, "Would you like to try it on?" You want to avoid questions that can be answered with a "Yes" or "No." A better response would be "I invite you to try the watch."
Jean-Marie Brucker, is CEO of a company that specializes in luxury-sales consulting, and these are some of the sales tips he shares with his clients.
Personally I believe all salespeople should avoid using the words "discount" and "price." Use the word "value" instead of price.
Good ole Elmer Wheeler probably said it best in 1938, when he said you have to sell the sizzle not the steak. And the sizzle of course are the benefits. Jean-Marie Brucker refers to the same concept as selling "the romance."
What are you selling?
--Are you selling safety? --Are you selling performance? --Are you selling productivity? --Are you selling quality? --Are you selling luxury? --Are you selling fear? --Are you selling pleasure?
Here are two things to think about if you want to improve your selling results during this recession.
1. Determine what you are selling.
2. Prepare presentation statements that wrap your "Value" with romance and/or some sizzle.
Since selling value doesn't come naturally to most salespeople I encourage you to practice what you prepare.
Your sales prospects and customers won't get emotional about what you're selling until you get emotional and excited about what you're selling. Get excited and show some emotion and enthusiasm for your prospects, your products, and your company. It really makes a difference.
Former U.S. Army Officer Jim Meisenheimer is an author, speaker and sales trainer with years of successful selling experience. He publishes the bi-weekly No-Brainer Selling Tips Newsletter, which is packed full of information to help you win bigger sales and KO the competition. Learn more at www.meisenheimer.com
Yesterday sales trainer Jim Meisenheimer shared with us four ways to start and end presentations to keep prospects interested. Today, he's back with nine ways to jazz up your presentations and keep them interested the entire time!
1. Always prepare and rehearse the first 25 words and the last 25 words of every presentation. Practice until it sounds spontaneous.
2. Start with your expectations. Tell them specifically what the take-aways will be early in your presentation.
3. Never read your presentation. Never. No exceptions. It's the quickest way to put your audience to sleep.
4. Show that you're alive by being animated. Remember it's easier to be yourself than trying to impersonate someone else.
5. Pay attention to your hands. Nothing will make you look more awkward than unnatural hand movements.
6. Keep slides to a minimum. They should emphasize and reinforce your key points - not tell your entire story.
7. Use large type, so everyone in the room can clearly see what's on the screen. Darken the screen as often as you can. You want the audience looking at you - not at the screen. To darken the screen hit the letter "B" on the keyboard. Hit the letter "B" again to turn the screen on.
8. Don't worry about making mistakes. Actually, mistakes make you human. Have fun, sharpen your sense of humor, and be sure to tell stories. Your stories are the quickest way for your audience to connect with you.
9. After every presentation, ask yourself, "How can I do it better next time?" Then next time, be sure you do it better.
Take it from someone who gives a lot of sales presentations, and had to overcome a fear of public speaking, these nine suggestions really work.
Adopt these as your own and I'll bet your next stand-up presentation will stand-out!
Jim Meisenheimer publishes The No-Brainer Selling Tips Newsletter, a fresh and high content newsletter dedicated to helping you grow your business and multiply your income. Use this link to sign-up for Jim's F-R-E-E The Start Selling More Newsletter and to get your copy of his Special Report titled, "The 12 Dumbest Things Salespeople Do."
One of the things sales trainer Jim Meisenheimer talks about the most is being different. Think about how many sales calls your prospect gets each day - who's he going to call back, the person who leaves a message with no value, or the person who devises a creative way to reach out to him? The same thing goes for sales presentations. Prospects see the PowerPoint go on and they immediately tune out. Start them off with a story or provocative question, and you're on the right track. Today, Meisenheimer gives us the four best ways to start and end a sales presentation. Then he'll be back tomorrow with nine ways to jazz up those presentations once you've started.
"Most salespeople are strong conversationalists when sitting down and talking with customers," says Meisenheimer. "When asked to deliver a presentation standing up, the dynamics can change dramatically for you if you're not prepared. You can easily make every stand-up presentation a conversation with your audience, regardless of size. Here's how."
The two most memorable parts of a stand-up presentation are the beginning and the end. The four easiest and most powerful ways to begin and end your presentations include:
1. Start with an exciting quotation that you can link to your presentation.
2. Begin your presentation with a compelling statement. Seven years ago, I gave a sales presentation titled, The 12 Best Ways To Increase Sales, Earn More Money, And Have More Fun. I began my presentation with, "There's not a single thing I can do for you today, to show you how to increase sales, earn more money, and have more fun. Not one thing ladies and gentlemen, I'm going to share 12 creative ideas with you today."
3. Start your sales presentation with a rhetorical question that creates a transition into your presentation.
4. One of the best audience grabbers is to start your sales presentation with a short story. Beginning your presentation with a success story that involves someone in your audience is even more powerful.
The next time you're preparing how to begin and how to end one of your sales presentations consider one of these proven approaches.
Jim Meisenheimer publishes The No-Brainer Selling Tips Newsletter, a fresh and high content newsletter dedicated to helping you grow your business and multiply your income. Use this link to sign-up for Jim's F-R-E-E The Start Selling More Newsletter and to get your copy of his Special Report titled, "The 12 Dumbest Things Salespeople Do."
As I've mentioned before on this blog, I think stories are one of the best ways to really learn something. I've often found that someone else's real-life story makes me think of my own experiences and where I might be making the same sales mistakes. This story from sales trainer Jim Meisenheimer definitely got me thinking - hopefully it does the same for you!
"I started thinking about the golden rule of salesmanship the last time I got my hair cut," says Meisenheimer. Let me explain.
I get my haircut every two weeks - it's been a habit of mine for the last 20 years. The person who cuts my hair now is Amir. I guesstimate he's in his mid-20s. He's personable, enthusiastic and usually gives me a good haircut. His routine is to cut the hair, wash it, dry it and finally style it.
Last week he has my back to the mirror so I couldn't see what he was up to. When he turns me around to face the mirror I almost screamed. The sides of my head are brushed forward and the top spiked - I mean really spiked. He said, That's the way he likes it. Unfortunately he didn't pay for my haircut - I did.
He said it made me look 10 years younger. A couple of shots of Botox would make me look 10 years younger - but not his haircut.
Remember - I get my haircut every 2 weeks. Do you think he has any clue what the lifetime value of my business is? If I were Donald Trump I'd be tempted to say, "Amir - you're fired!" Well, I'm not Donald Trump so I'm going back to see Amir on Friday for another haircut.
Before he gets his scissors working I'll ask him to read this newsletter. Better yet, maybe I'll wait until he finishes my haircut.
As a result of thinking about all of this I think it's fair to say, at least in my opinion, the golden rule of salesmanship is "Know thy customer."
When you know your customer it makes it easier for you to give them what he wants. Don't ever make the mistake of giving your customer what you want. It's not about you, it's about your customer. The customer writes the checks and pays your bills.
You can really shake up your thinking about the value of your customers by doing some simple math. Calculate the lifetime value of your customers. Determine what each customer is worth over your lifetime. As soon as you determine the lifetime value of your customers you'll probably start treating them differently - I know I did.
Jim Meisenheimer publishes The Start Selling More Newsletter, a fresh and high content newsletter dedicated to showing salespeople how to start selling more. To subscribe and receive a copy of his special report, The 12 Dumbest Things Salespeople Do, visit www.StartSellingMore.com.
Sometimes you just need a little inspiration to make it through the day, and this amazing true story is just that. I read about it in Jim Meisenheimer's newsletter - take a few minutes to read it and see it inspires you to bring some enthusiasm and creativity to your day!
Ben Feldman started selling life insurance just before World War II. The rest as they say is history. He almost single-handedly changed the insurance industry. And he was just a sales person - but what an incredible and extraordinary sales person he was.
It's been said that he didn't look like a salesman, didn't sound like a salesman, and didn't act like a salesman. Ben was different in every imaginable way. You should be too! If you want to succeed in sales you have to be different.
Here's some background on Ben Feldman. He was born to Russian, Jewish immigrants that settled in eastern Ohio. At his father's insistence he dropped out of school to sell eggs for $10 a week. After selling insurance to all his friends and relatives, he then targeted businesses in eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Without going beyond a sixty-mile radius, he often sold more insurance in a day than most agents would sell in a year.
In the 1970's it was reported that he personally sold more insurance than 1,500 of the largest 1,800 life insurance companies. Imagine that - he single-handedly outsold 1,500 entire companies. During his lifetime, he sold insurance policies with a face value over $1.5 billion. One-third of it was sold after he turned sixty-five.
According to many, Ben wasn't ordinary - he was exceptional. Harry Hohn, Chairman of New York Life at the time said, "Ben really felt everyone in the world was underinsured." He believed passionately in his product and how it could help and benefit his customers.
You see, he was genuinely excited about his products which in turn got his sales prospects and customers fired up about his products too.
Ben knew how to really WOW his customers. His words were his craft. According to Rick Hampson, an AP writer, "He'd sit up late, crafting the pithy sayings that he called power phrases and rehearse them with a tape recorder." He knew perfection came from practice, not improvisation. And boy did he ever practice.
"He sold life insurance by talking about life, not death. People didn't die, they walked out, as in, when you walk out, the money walks in - the insurance money," according to Rick Hampson. Taped inside the front cover of his presentation binder were a $1,000 bill and several pennies. He would tell his customers, "For these," pointing to the pennies, "you can get this" - the bill.
In 1992, New York Life created an insurance selling contest they called "Feldman's February." The program was to commemorate his fifty years of selling life insurance. The national contest was of course in honor of Ben's history with the company.
Obviously no one told that to Ben. He viewed it as a challenge and won the contest himself. He was eighty years old and in a hospital recovering from a cerebral hemorrhage during the month of February. That February, he sold $15,150,000 worth of insurance from his hospital bed.
Ben had an incredible selling attitude. He never gave up.
Listen to some of Ben's phrases and how his words worked magic. Imagine hearing them as you consider making a decision to buy insurance.
"No one ever died with too much money."
"Do you know anyone who has a lease on life? It isn't a question of if; it's a question of when."
"Put me on your payroll. The day you walk out, I'll walk in and pay your bills."
"The key to a sale is an interview, and the key to an interview is a disturbing question."
"Most people buy not because they believe, but because the sales person believes."
For Ben, success wasn't fleeting - it was consistent. He loved his product. He loved his customers. He loved his company. He loved his work. Here's something for you to think about. If Ben Feldman sold for your company, how would he do it? How well would he do it?
Ben's gone now. His legacy, however, should serve as an inspiration to all that call sales a profession.
Jim Meisenheimer publishes The Start Selling More Newsletter, a fresh and high content newsletter dedicated to showing salespeople how to start selling more. To subscribe and receive a copy of his special report, The 12 Dumbest Things Salespeople Do, visit www.StartSellingMore.com.
Yesterday sales trainer and author Jim Meisenheimer gave us some ideas on how to differentiate yourself from other salespeople, and make more sales in the process. He's back again today with more ideas - we hope they inspire you to see how different you can be.
1. Prepare differently. Being prepared doesn't take the fun out of being spontaneous. In fact being prepared makes your spontaneity more appreciated. Prepare written sales call objectives. Prepare and practice the benefits of your products and services. Prepare and practice how you will handle the dreaded price objection. You can also prepare "Knock your socks off" sales proposals.
2. Ask different questions. Try asking questions that don't include "Ahs" and "Ums." This is almost impossible to do when your questions aren't prepared prior to the sales call. When you ask a question and the customer responds with, "What do you mean?" that's a clear indication it wasn't a very good question.
Ask this question and see what kind of response you get: "What would it take to win your supplier of the year award?" And remember the better the question, the better the response will be.
3. A.B.T.D.T. Always be trying different things. Look for the differences in people and things. Note what works and what doesn't work. Try taking small chances on a daily basis. Try doing things a little differently on a daily basis.
Here are a few more ideas from Meisenheimer to get you started - try brainstorming your own list today!
--Send 3-5 handwritten notes to internal and external customers every day. --Thank everyone personally who helps you make a sale. --Send birthday cards with the sound of music. --Do one good deed everyday. --Order personalized M&Ms. --Say yes I can! --Be positive!
Former U.S. Army Officer Jim Meisenheimer is an author, speaker and sales trainer with years of successful selling experience. He publishes the bi-weekly No-Brainer Selling Tips Newsletter, which is packed full of information to help you win bigger sales and KO the competition. Learn more at http://www.meisenheimer.com/
Company CEOs are bombarded every day with phone messages, emails, faxes, letters, and sales pitches from salespeople. And you know what? About 95% of those messages sound exactly the same.
That's why you need to stand out to make sales. If no one notices you, they'll never notice your solution. Read on for some advice from sales trainer Jim Meisenheimer on how to differentiate yourself from your competition.
1. Talk different. I'd give anything, almost anything, to have a genuine/authentic British accent. Nothing makes you sound more different than a good accent. I was born in Brooklyn and so I have a slight accent. Okay - it's not slight, it's Brooklyn. Now get this, for the longest time I tried to hide my Brooklyn accent. When I moved to Chicago not a single day went by without someone pointing out the fact that I had a Brooklyn accent. So instead of accepting my different accent I try to avoid it, until one day I realized my accent made me different.
2. Look different. In one of my sales training classes last week a woman told me her shoes make her different. Apparently she has quite a collection and her customers recognize this as a point of difference. It could be a very unique/handmade briefcase. It could be bow ties for men. It could be a very unique and eye-catching fountain pen. It could be you always favor one color. It could be anything you want it to be.
3. Do different. Do things in a different way. You could develop a signature way to end every sales call. Many years ago NBC had an evening news program starring Chet Huntley and David Brinkley. Every night they ended their program with "Goodnight Chet. Goodnight David. And goodnight for NBC News." It was their signature. It worked for them and it can certainly work for you.
We'll be back tomorrow with some more ideas from Meisenheimer on how you can differentiate yourself from the pack.
Former U.S. Army Officer Jim Meisenheimer is an author, speaker and sales trainer with years of successful selling experience. He publishes the bi-weekly No-Brainer Selling Tips Newsletter, which is packed full of information to help you win bigger sales and KO the competition. Learn more at http://www.meisenheimer.com/
Nine months down, three to go. Are you where you want to be? Have you exceeded your quota, or are you working to close a deal - any deal? Whatever the case, it's important to view the third quarter just like you would any other, and that entails effective sales planning. Sales trainer Jim Meisenheimer says, "At least once a year professional salespeople should dedicate a minimum of one day to strategically think about their business." If you haven't already done so, make a plan for your third quarter and how it will propel you into the New Year. Use these tips from Meisenheimer to begin your planning, and you'll be on the path to success.
"Begin your planning process with these six critical questions," suggests Meisenheimer. "Direct these questions at your business, your territory, your accounts, your customers, and naturally your competitors, and consider this process a success if you end up with more questions than answers." 1. Where are you are now? Where are you now relative to your selling results and sales skills? How's your performance? What's your relative rank within your region and within your company?
What kind of overall growth do you have in your territory and in your top 10 accounts? Where are your competitors making inroads in your accounts? How well are you managing your time in your territory? What are your biggest challenges and best opportunities for growth? Please be specific.
2. Where are you headed if you don't change anything? What's the implication for you if you don't acquire new skills? What happens to your overall performance next year if you don't make up the loss of your second-largest customer?
How will your customers react to a strategy that is really based on a "More of the same" philosophy, especially when your competitors are becoming more creative in their approach? With more work and less time available, how are you planning to manage next year when your business is expected to grow 7% across the board?
3. Where should you be headed? Do you have specific personal and professional goals? Are these goals specific and clearly defined? Are they in writing? Do you have completion dates established? For each of your top 10 accounts do you have specific objectives for sales, margins, growth rates, product mix, etc?
4. How will you achieve your objectives? You really can't "do" a goal or an objective. What you can and must do is create a written action plan detailing how specifically you plan to achieve the goals you outlined when considering question three.
For example, if your goal is to increase your sales by 6.5% in your largest account, how specifically will you do it? How many "how's" will it take to achieve your goal?
5. What are the specific details involved? The details refer to: who, what, where, why, when, which, and how as they relate to initiating and implementing your strategies. In sales, minor adjustments often create big impacts.
6. What should you measure? Always measure what matters most. One of my favorite old sayings is "What gets measured gets done." To keep you on your stated course (objectives) how will you measure your progress? What key elements of success should your review monthly? Personal growth and development are often the result of careful measurement and evaluation.
"The difference between first-place and second place is often a very narrow margin," says Meisenheimer. "It's time for a tune-up if you're serious about making this year's 4th quarter your best 4th quarter ever."
Former U.S. Army Officer Jim Meisenheimer is an author, speaker and sales trainer with years of successful selling experience. He publishes the bi-weekly No-Brainer Selling Tips Newsletter, which is packed full of information to help you win bigger sales and KO the competition. Learn more at http://www.meisenheimer.com/
Sales trainer Jim Meisenheimer has a new spin on Neil Rackham's SPIN Selling.
Meisenheimer suggests you consider S.P.I.N. as four pieces to the selling puzzle:
S = Shrug it off "Right now most of the world's news is negative," says Meisenheimer. In the USA the real estate market is hurting, financial markets are in chaos, and just when you think gas prices can't go any higher - they go higher. Shrug it off. That's right, dismiss the bad news or it will eventually consume and overwhelm you."
"If the news gets you down, do something that picks you back up. You can't afford to be down and negative when you're working with your sales prospects and customers. Change your routine. Exercise more. Read motivational books. And stay away from negative people because it's amazing how contagious negativity can be."
P = Preparation and practice "Inject a little preparation and practice into every selling day," says Meisenheimer. "For example, when you're planning sales calls for the next day, you can prepare several questions in writing. While you're driving to the account practice them. If you don't practice what you're going to say before you get to the account you end up practicing on your sales prospects and customers. Nothing could be worse!" I = Initiative "The initiative I'm referring to is personal initiative," says Meisenheimer. "This word covers all aspects of professional selling. When times are tough it requires that you become tougher."
"Doing things the way you've always done them will not differentiate you from your competition. Take the initiative to learn more about personal salesmanship and selling skills. Literally - hit the books."
"Take the initiative to pick up the telephone and schedule more appointments. Take the initiative to allocate more face-to-face time calling on sales prospects which represent new business opportunities for you." And take the initiative on every sales call to exceed your sales prospect's and/or customer's expectations."
N = New "Focus on what's new, not what's problematic," says Meisenheimer. "Get excited when you're talking about what's new to your sales prospects and customers. If you're excited, they'll become excited."
"It's not easy being positive when all the news is so negative," he explains. "You have the ultimate control over your thoughts. So choose optimism over pessimism, positive over negative, sunny versus gloomy, and winning over losing."
"You'll be glad you did and so will your customers. Growing your business, increasing your sales, and making more money is easy when you put the right S.P.I.N. on it."
Former U.S. Army Officer Jim Meisenheimer is an author, speaker and sales trainer with years of successful selling experience. He publishes the bi-weekly No-Brainer Selling Tips Newsletter, which is packed full of information to help you win bigger sales and KO the competition. Learn more at www.meisenheimer.com
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Name: Editor: Kelly McLean
Location: Carlsbad, CA, United States
SalesDog.com, the internet's number one sales success destination for more than seven years, works with America's leading sales experts to bring practical selling tips and strategies to salespeople, sales managers, business owners and entrepreneurs. Over 30,000 sales professionals rely on its free weekly newsletter to keep them abreast of cutting-edge developments impacting their profession.
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