Thank you.. and goodnight

Almost exactly two years after my first post, I've decided it's time to put SalesItch to bed. Thank you to everyone who frequented my humble blog.

With best wishes,

Ed

Sales bloopers : No 3

As mentioned in my last sales blooper post, I started my sales career in, effectively, telesales. As that company is long-gone I feel I can now share with you some of the funny/cringe-worthy moments of that first job…. this and the following stories are all 100% true, though names and details have been changed to protect the innocent.


Me : “Good morning, this is Ed McLean from Company Z. Is Janet Hawley available please?”
Gatekeeper : “Have you spoken to Janet before?”
Me : “No, I haven’t, but..”
Gatekeeper : “Oh, actually, yes I remember, I think she was expect a call from you. I will give you her direct line. It’s 00 2023…33”
Me : “Errr, thank you”… (that’s strange….)
(Calling new number)
New gatekeeper “Good morning, Samaritans”

More bloopers soon….

Sales bloopers : No 2

Sales bloopers : No 2

As mentioned in my last sales blooper post, I started my sales career in, effectively, telesales. As that company is long-gone I feel I can now share with you some of the funny/cringe-worthy moments of that first job…. this and the following stories are all 100% true, though names and details have been changed to protect the innocent.

Me : “Good morning, may I speak to Mike Wright please?”
Gatekeeper : “No, I am sorry, Mike doesn’t take calls”
Me : “OK, no problem. Perhaps you can help, I saw that Mike recently made an announcement about the Hertford project. I have been working on a similar project and wanted to make contact. Is Mike in the office at the moment?”
Gatekeeper : “Err, he is here, but he doesn’t take calls”
Me : ”Yes, I appreciate that, but this…”
Gatekeeper : “Mike won’t take your call because he is deaf.”
Me : ”Oh……… I’ll send an email”

More bloopers soon….

A Friday treat

It's Friday! Time to watch some funny videos somehow related to sales.

Enjoy!

Sales bloopers : No 1

I started my sales career in, effectively, telesales. As that company is long-gone I feel I can now share with you some of the funny/cringe-worthy moments of that first job…. this and the following stories are all 100% true, though names and details have been changed to protect the innocent.

Me : “Good morning, may I speak to Monsieur Lafarge?”
Gatekeeper : “No, it’s not possible to speak to him. Why do you want to speak to him?”
Me : “It’s regarding your company’s announcement about the DGT launch, we’re involved in a similar project. Could you put me through please?”
Gatekeeper : “No, I cannot put you through...”
Me : ”I appreciate that Monsieur Lafarge is busy, but…”
Gatekeeper : “Monsieur Lafarge is dead”
Me : ”Oh………”

More bloopers soon….

So.. you do... what?

I'm currently researching a new market segment for my employer. Obviously, part of this is understanding what individual companies do and how they fit into the industry. I have only a decade's experience in business, but I think that should be enough to understand what it is companies do. However, decoding what these companies do is incredibly difficult. I am not just talking about jargon, but about clear attempts by companies to avoid saying what they do (usually by listing benefits, "we help companies to maximise workflow efficiencies..").

Are you really that scared to admit what you do? Surely if you what you do isn't different/better than others, then the way you do it is? Otherwise, what is your value proposition in relation to the competition?

If you don't want to tell me what you do and how it will help me, I can click elsewhere in less than a second. And if I do, your sales people miss out.

Rant over.

Sales questions : Confirming understanding

Understanding is one of the least acknowledged fundamentals in selling. If we don’t understand what our prospect means we are likely to shape an inappropriate solution. Try these questions – you might be surprised to discover that your understanding is way-off. These questions also work well when a prospect is very vocal and shooting off in many directions and you need to isolate the core problem and get them to refocus.
• (Repeat your understanding) Does that some up the situation?
• (Repeat your understanding) Have I got that right?
• If I understand correctly, you were saying that…. is that right?
• Would it be accurate to say (phrase problem)?
• So, essentially, the most important point for you is… is that right?
More questions for you to use in your selling coming soon. Bookmark/RSS SalesItch now…. And don’t forget to add a comment to share your favourite questions with the community!