Mark Jewell's Blog: Selling Energy, page 27

Coaching Isn't What You Think

Most of our ideas regarding coaching have been lifted from movies, television, sport games and the “life coaching” we may have experienced in person or seen on infomercials.  It’s much more complicated than that.  What makes a coach actually good at his/her job?  What does coaching have to do with being an effective manager, boss or CEO? 

Weekly Recap, July 16, 2023

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

Are You Sending the Wrong Message?

At our trainings, we teach all of our students about the importance of writing well and proofreading carefully. Sloppy emails and mistake-ridden proposals not only reflect badly on you and your business, but also reduce your closing ratio. 

The Importance of Post-Sale Segment Research

Many salespeople think that the sale ends when they collect their commission. Sales professionals are smart enough to know that extending the sales process to include a post-installation follow-up call yields tremendous benefits. Consider the following scenario…

Build Your Competitive Advantage

Knowing your particular niche is essential. In our trainings we often refer to Michael Porter’s arsenal of competitive advantage, which provides a template that helps you determine in what ways you might excel in your field. Where do you excel? What is your specialty? What do you have to offer that your competitors don’t?

Sell with Rapport

Think for a moment about your relationship with your prospects and customers. Do your customers think of you as a friend? Do you try to develop friendships with your new prospects? If so, you actually may not be positioning yourself for success in sales. People don’t buy from friends – they buy from people they trust to deliver. It’s fine to be friends with your customers; however, if you don’t – first and foremost – prove yourself as the most trustworthy and professional product or service provider, the sale will go to someone who does.

Psychological Concepts to Strengthen Social Media Presence

The ubiquity and rate of change in social media have immensely broadened the landscape of marketing possibilities. If you’re a savvy businessperson, you understand the importance of adapting your business model to fit the present needs and desires of your target market. Social media has become one of the most powerful marketing platforms, and a key tool for capturing attention and engaging your target audience. 

Improve Your Public Speaking Abilities

Whether we’re presenting a proposal to a single prospect or giving a keynote speech to a large group of industry leaders, our work as sales professionals requires us to speak in public from time to time. It’s one thing to be persuasive on paper, and it’s another thing to be a persuasive communicator in person. When your prospects are deciding whether or not to make a major purchase, their assessment of you as a sales professional plays a big part in their decision-making process. In other words, if you give a lousy presentation, it doesn’t matter how good your project looks on paper – your prospect will not have the confidence he or she needs to feel comfortable moving forward. 

Weekly Recap, July 9, 2023

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

How to Prevent Employee Burnout

Sales managers deal with employee burnout on a regular basis. Sometimes the burnout comes from too much workload or too much networking. Whatever the source of burnout may be, it’s important for managers to have some coping mechanisms to help employees stay positive and productive.