sales
Can't Find Good Sales Reps to Hire? You're Looking in the Wrong Place
By Barry Deutsch Tuesday Jun 15, 2010A recent post, "How to Hire the Perfect Sales Rep," caught the attention of a lot of executives and managers. Many emailed me, saying they finally understood how to hire the right salesperson. But that didn't solve their problem entirely. To paraphrase, they asked: "How do I even find a decent candidate to put through these great hiring best practices?" You request — I respond. Let's jump right into the subject of finding a great sales rep.
3 Marketing Rules to Live — or Die — by
By Eric Reyes Monday Jun 14, 20103 marketing rules to live — or die — by. You may think your product is so good it will sell itself, but Tim Berry at Online Finance Blog has a reality check for you: great marketing sells even the crummiest products. His second rule: consistency beats brilliance — meaning don't change your marketing strategy every few months. Familiarity breeds trust among customers. Third, writes Berry, people can trump money.
Employee Theft Hits $2.9 Trillion — Are You a Victim?
By Eric Reyes Thursday Jun 10, 2010Can you really trust your workers? Employees are stealing $2.9 trillion a year from companies, according to a report from the Association of Certified Fraud Executives. Believe it or not, some employees are robbing their bosses of $1 million — and getting away with it. They typically do it over longer periods, about 18 months before they stop or are caught. The most vulnerable businesses are banks, financial services and manufacturing.
Reinvent Your Business — Even When It's Working
By Jay Forte Friday Jun 4, 2010For a reminder that, no matter how successful your business is, you need to rethink your services or products constantly, check out Dyson's innovative reinvention of its classic products.
How to Hire the Perfect Sales Rep
By Barry Deutsch Thursday Jun 3, 2010In more than a decade of talking to CEOs and senior executives about their hiring challenges, I've discovered that sales pros are the most difficult hire for many small and midsized companies. About 50% of the executives I meet with struggle with hiring outstanding sales professionals. What makes it so difficult to hire this type of employee?
3 Steps to a Cracker-Jack Sales Team
By Barry Deutsch Tuesday Jun 1, 2010Hiring outstanding sales professionals is one of the most difficult hires that companies attempt. Most sales managers have a batting average far below the 50% level in hiring sales professionals that hit or exceed expectations.
10 Reasons to Be Grateful for the Recession
By Jay Forte Wednesday May 26, 2010Dear Recession, I know many people are upset with you. I am not surprised. You have made things tough for many organizations. But at the same time you have made us better. So here are 10 things I want to thank you for:
How to Sell Your Product on Twitter
By Craig Stoltz Tuesday May 4, 2010So one day I’m Tweeting away and mention that Koko, my African Gray parrot, is sitting on my shoulder. Within minutes a young woman sends me an @reply saying — oddly enough! — that she too has an African Gray, and has this great book I should know about, whose short url she just happened to have at hand. At least I think it was a young woman. Her picture made her look that way — and like an attractive one, if you must know.
7 Strategies to Fire Up Your Sales Team
By Russell Riendeau Wednesday Mar 24, 2010Is your sales strategy no longer producing the revenue results you want? Then it’s time to inspire your sales team to do more. Here are seven ways to secure new orders and get the most out of your team.
Survey: The Best Social Media Sites for Salespeople
By Paul Diamond Tuesday Feb 23, 2010In the first two weeks of February, I polled CEOs and business owners about social media sites their salespeople use. The specific question I asked was, “Which social network sites do your salespeople use most?” (I conducted the poll among members of Vistage, an executive coaching organization.) More than 420 business leaders responded. Here are the results: 47% use Linkedin 20% use Facebook 5% use Twitter 1% use another social media site 27% don't use any social media sites