Mark Jewell's Blog: Selling Energy, page 109

Becoming a Better Listener, Part 3

Here are some additional tips for active listening.  Realize that restating what the speaker has said indicates you've heard them.  But what if they say something negative?  Do you want to repeat that verbatim?  I don't think so.  You want to put a positive spin on what they’re saying, so while you let them know that you heard it, you should also let them know it might not be a completely negative thing.

Becoming a Better Listener, Part 2

Today, we’ll continue with active listening tips when you’re speaking with a prospect.

Becoming a Better Listener, Part 1

There is a variety of online content about active listening from experts like Christopher Pappas, Julian Treasure, and many more.  Each of them offers advice on better listening techniques, which can be especially relevant to those of us who live in the city.  We’re used to being assaulted by a cacophony of noise in traffic, our office environments, our neighborhoods, etc.  

5 Tips to Crafting an Effective Marketing Survey

Getting feedback from customers can be a little bit more complicated than just deciding what you want to know. It’s critical to engage your customers with thoughtful questions whether their responses are positive or negative.  

The Essentials of Goal-Making

We very often explore the “why” behind our sales interactions, but what about the “why” behind our goals? Ideally our work shouldn’t be about “doing,” but “growing.” Goals are how we measure that progress, and if they aren’t meaningful, why pursue them at all?

Weekly Recap, April 11, 2021

Here are our favorite sales-enhancing tips from this week's Selling Energy Blogs...

10 Words of Wisdom from Bill Gates

We have all heard the phrase “choice of words,” usually as a compliment or a criticism. The words we use can make or break a conversation with someone, and when it comes to business your livelihood is on the line. You can’t afford to make mistakes!

How to Set Yourself Apart from the Competition

Let’s suppose you are targeting a large building that you know has plans to do an energy efficiency upgrade. Chances are a lot of other salespeople are vying for the same job. So how do you set yourself apart from the competition? I can confidently say that most of your competitors are going to focus on the energy metrics (saved kW, kWh, therms, etc.) and the most obvious financial impacts – the cost of the project, the utility cost savings, and perhaps utility rebates or incentives.

What Financial Statements Are Most Important?

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When it comes to having intelligent financial conversations with your prospects and clients, there are three important financial statements that you should know like the back of your hand. These statements give you the vital signs of the company to which you’re selling.  

Understanding Life-Cycle Cost Analysis

As we discussed in yesterday’s blog, too many of your prospects are fascinated with Simple Payback Period, and it makes NO sense to focus on that metric in situations where you’re comparing mutually exclusive solutions (i.e., situations where your prospect has two or more solutions to pick from, but at the end of the day can pick only one). Keep in mind that when comparing two or more mutually exclusive choices, there are several dimensions you need to consider: