I’ve recently finished reading Onward by Howard Schultz. The title includes the phrase; “how Starbucks fought for its life without losing its soul“. What’s been fascinating to me as I have been carried along on Howard’s journey following his re-appointment as CEO is that I never knew Starbucks had a soul worth saving in the [...]

Filed under: High value selling, Richard Lane, Sales Leadership | No Comments »

“Can a sales person be 100% honest? That would make for an interesting blog post” a good friend said to me a while ago.  The question has been playing on my mind ever since. I suppose a similar question would be is something Black or White. To me, being a sales professional relies on being able [...]

Filed under: High value selling, Motivation, Richard Lane | 4 Comments »

If you know nothing about the project or the people involved, what makes you think you can win their business? If you have attended one of our workshops or seminars, been coached by me or have read this blog every now and again over the last two and a half years, you will know my [...]

Filed under: High value selling, Miscellaneous, Qualification | No Comments »

I am proud to be a sales professional, and proud to be training and coaching others to become successful sales professionals themselves. However, I find myself spending a lot of time thinking and talking about the tight spot our profession seems to have got itself in. I can understand why. For one there has been, [...]

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A lot of people think you can turn business development on and off like a tap.  Well you can’t, or at least you shouldn’t. Unlike sales, business development is a softer, more tangible process yet one that shares the same objective.  Although the two are both very much integrated – a bit like sales and [...]

Filed under: High value selling, Lee Durham, Prospecting | No Comments »

How do you work out where you spend your sales time? Are you working hard on deals that close, or do you find yourself chasing too many opportunities that never quite cross the finish line? I believe qualification, whilst being one of the core skills needed to really succeed in sales, doesn’t always get the attention it [...]

Filed under: High value selling, planning, Qualification, Richard Lane | No Comments »

Ever noticed what I call ‘Backyard Syndrome‘? Here are a few examples: A company delivers learning services – but its staff never get to go on any training. A builder has a great reputation for the quality of his work – but his own house is a series of unfinished projects A trainer delivers presentation [...]

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I was invited to deliver a presentation to a college group last week who are studying for a business administration qualification.  The purpose of the session was to help them understand the importance and value of Sales.  It also provided a platform for me to promote the benefits created by selling professionally, something we’ve termed [...]

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I wrote recently about the importance of understanding why your potential customer has to purchase – the Compelling Event – either from you or from somebody else.  I finished by reminding how in software, when we are contracted with a customer, we already have a compelling event lined up and have significant power in the [...]

Filed under: High value selling, negotiation | No Comments »

Does this seem familiar?  There are times when you feel you have everything in place for a great sale. Your Prospect has confirmed the value of your solution, is comfortable with the anticipated return on investment predictions and has confirmed how excited they are to be working with you. Why then does the deal never [...]

Filed under: High value selling, negotiation, Qualification | 1 Comment »