What’s the biggest hurdle you face when selling to someone? Well, other than getting their initial attention and time in front of them, your biggest hurdle is building credibility and ultimately trust. Trust isn’t cheap. Credibility can’t be faked. And honestly, many buyers put you at arm’s length at the beginning of your relationship because...Read More

Have you ever heard of Kudzu? If you’ve driven through the Southeastern parts of the US, you’ve probably seen Kudzu. It’s an Asian vine introduced to the US and branded in the 1930s and 40s as a way for farmers to control erosion and introduce nitrogen to their soil. You might recognize it as it...Read More

There is a great commercial out now that reminds about what the true meaning of “Selling” should be. It’s a Capital One pitch for their new “Capital One Cafes” – where they point out that all banks look and feel the same. Their novel idea is to provide a relaxed, easy environment, “A welcoming environment...Read More

A while back, I had the honor of giving the closing keynote session for the AA-ISP Digital Sales World Conference in San Francisco with my Co-Host of The SellOut Show, Dianna Geairn. Closing out the conference gave me the ability to sit through all the previous sessions where inside sales experts talked about best practices...Read More

What’s your focus for improved sales results this year? Cleaning up my office this week and the biggest stack of papers on my desk is my “Session Notes” pile. It’s the colorful printouts of PowerPoint decks and session worksheets that are scribbled on in blue, purple, hot pink, and aqua (I love my colored sharpie...Read More

Every December in Memphis, TN, thousands of people descend upon the city’s Downtown area to participate in the St. Jude Marathon. Runners run or walk a 5k, 10k, half, or full marathon and raise funds to support the mission, research, and children of St. Jude. This year’s marathon weekend raised over 12 MILLION dollars! It’s...Read More

It’s becoming increasingly more difficult to earn a response from a prospect these days. In 2007, it took almost 4 touches on average to get a response. Since then, the average has been more like 8 to 12 but hold on to your lunch . . . According to the Sales Development Technology Report by...Read More

The stats on prospecting that have been quoted (me included!) for the past several years go something like this … 48% of salespeople never follow up with a prospect 25% of salespeople make a second contact and stop 12% of salespeople only make three contacts and stop Only 10% of salespeople make more than three...Read More

What would you expect from Ivy League MBA students when it comes to selling? A while back, I had a really cool privilege to offer a sales coaching session to Harvard MBA students! Harvard’s School of Business created an extensive buyer/seller scenario for their students which culminated in a role play where students each took...Read More

Most of it, anyway, is actually terrible. I write this knowing that it could be confusing since many of you would consider what we do at The Selling Agency as “Sales Training.” Hear me out. When I look back at my years as an Account Executive in multiple organizations, I can recall almost every single...Read More