Mark Jewell's Blog: Selling Energy, page 81

Being A Sensation Seeker

Would you be surprised to discover that your sense of adventure affects the way you work?  According to this write-up at Forbes, psychologist Marvin Zuckerman has studied what he termed “stimulation levels” since the 1960s with a particular interest in subjects drawn to new experiences and risk-taking behaviors.  This may explain why some people are more productive in quiet environments while others thrive in noisy cafes, or how some of us embrace newer technologies while others prefer to stick with what they know.

Sales Tools for Building Satisfied Customers

As a salesperson, you know that closing the deal is only the first step in customer relations. Nurturing your existing clientele is just as important as bringing in new business—perhaps even more important, especially in times like these where cross-selling, up-serving and referrals will likely generate business more easily than starting from scratch with strangers. There are many ways to build your customer relationships, and most of them require customizable sales tools to make your customers feel as if you deserve their business.

Three Documents You Need for a Sales Meeting

When you attend an online or in-person sales meeting you should have three documents prepared and ready to go.  Before presenting any of them you should have asked about your prospect’s decision-making process.  What will it ultimately be based on?  Price?  Value?  Warranty?  Quality of service? 

Benefits of Circling Back

One of the most important parts of the sales cycle remains overlooked.  It’s imperative that you “circle back” to every one of your customers and ask them how it went.

6 Ways to Not Have People Tune You Out

When you’re giving a presentation or pitching a sale online, you’re always at risk of losing the attention and focus of the listeners. So, what can you do to keep people from tuning out? 

Surprisingly Simple Strategies for Today's Crazy-Busy Sellers

I have written about Jill Konrath’s books before, but this one is a timely, deeply researched exploration of sales productivity.  With our rapidly shifting work culture and the current pressures of working from home, staying on top of things seems more intimidating than ever.  For example, did you know that most sales professionals work an average of 72 hours a week if they have a smartphone?  What about the fact that salespeople spend only 22% of their time doing the tasks that matter most?

Weekly Recap, January 16, 2022

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

3 Tips for Staying Productive While Traveling

Working while traveling has its downsides. When you are constantly changing locations, your routines and habits can be affected by external and unpredictable factors (e.g., lack of acoustic privacy, ergonomic constraints, and so forth). The key to success on the road is developing a routine that not only maximizes your productivity but also adapts well to working in a variety of settings. 

Discussing Net vs. Contribution Margin Effectively

The more you understand “net margin” and “contribution margin,” the more confident you will be discussing these topics with a prospect.

Reasons to Get Prospects Interested in You

In yesterday’s blog, we discussed some of the yardsticks that key decision-makers use to measure their success. In that blog, we used the hypothetical example of an HVAC sales professional selling “smart valves.” Using the same scenario (and some fun alliteration), let’s discuss some reasons that a prospect might become interested in installing smart valves in their building.