by David Cottrell | 27 Oct 2014 | News, Sales Skills
Amongst Salaried Salespeople the bonus or incentive scheme can often be misunderstood. How does your present plan correlate with the Corporate needs? “Top line growth at any cost vs profitable and sustainable growth”. Global selling into matrix-style...
by David Cottrell | 22 Sep 2014 | News, Sales Skills
1. Think In Ink Whatever plans you have to be the best sales person you can be, make sure you write them down! Not just some sketchy overview but detailed plans of what you want to achieve at each customer/target. There’s probably a number of people in each...
by David Cottrell | 12 Aug 2014 | News
The British economy is now 0.2% bigger than it was at its last peak, in the first three months of 2008. Britain’s longest depression since serious record-keeping began is now officially over. The recovery has been driven by our service industries but we should...
by David Cottrell | 24 Jul 2014 | News, Sales Skills
Heading into a sales visit with a new Buyer? Are you prepared properly? Do you have a sales qualification? What % of Procurement professional have a qualification in their functional area? 66%. Yes, you heard correctly. Two-thirds of procurement professionals have...
by David Cottrell | 14 Jul 2014 | News
Defined as: The estimation or name of being, having, having done, etc., something specified: He has the reputation of being a shrewd businessman. With the Football World Cup reaching its conclusion yesterday it’s interesting to review...
by David Cottrell | 2 Jul 2014 | News, Sales Skills
You’re preparing for that big customer presentation. PowerPoint slides everywhere. Time for some editing before the big event. Take each major point in your communication and ask “so what?” three times. If it doesn’t stand up to scrutiny three times DITCH...
by David Cottrell | 3 Jun 2014 | Negotiation, News
What needs of the other party are not being met? If you reach a deadlock the best suggestion is to STOP discussing the CONTENT and review the PROCESS of the negotiation. Perhaps the first thing to do is change the time and place of the negotiation. A fresh start is...
by David Cottrell | 29 May 2014 | Negotiation, News
How much of your day is spent negotiating? Much more than you imagine! “You pick up the kids and I’ll go to the Supermarket” “Empty the dishwasher and I’ll put out the rubbish” ” Boss, about that pay rise” Follow these...
by David Cottrell | 23 Apr 2014 | News, Questioning Skills, Sales Skills
How will you know what your customer is looking for if you don’t ask them questions? Questioning Skills are critical for top-performing salespeople. There are 3 types of question: 1. The Open Question: “How do you feel about…?” “What is...
by David Cottrell | 16 Apr 2014 | News
OK, you’ve been invited to see a new client and you’re heading to their offices. There are just 3 questions you need answered in order for you to know what is needed and valued. You’ll have to ‘dress them up’ a little to avoid appearing...
by David Cottrell | 7 Apr 2014 | Customer Satisfaction, News, Sales Skills
Ever been in a meeting with someone who has droned on about all of their achievements? “I did this and I ran that while I was taking a holiday and solved the problems with nuclear fusion and I was still back for breakfast”. Probably a very able person but...
by David Cottrell | 31 Mar 2014 | Customer Satisfaction, News
We all make mistakes. It’s part of being human. Customers won’t be happy that something has gone wrong with their valued order but the main thing they will remember is how well you rectify the situation. Back in February 2013 I ordered a significant...
