WHAT DO YOU DO BESTAS A SELLER?DAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONAsk Sellers what they do best and guess what the overwhelming majority will tell you? You will be told, “I build rapport.” Or, “I build relationships.” And, sometimes it’s simply “I’m a people person.”How is this possible? How can every Seller have the same strength? And, [...]

HOW IMPORTANT IS CONTROL OF THE SALES PROCESS?DAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONHow important is control in the sales process? Most Sellers will respond “loads.” But if control was not as important as you think, how would that change the way you sell?From our first sales job, we’re told that it’s essential to “control” the Sales process. [...]

NOT ALL CLIENTSARE CREATED EQUALDAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONMany Sellers feel compelled to literally “see” their clients, believing that Sales is best done on a face-to-face basis. They tell me that high-caliber relationships can only be built in this manner. Not only do I strongly disagree with this belief but other problems can arise because of [...]

DON’T BE A“YEAH-BUT”DAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONWhat was the last thing you changed about the way you sell? Most Sellers have to think very hard and long to honestly answer that one. I’ve found that folks change only when forced to – and, that’s a shame.Most Sellers with whom I work don’t want to be in [...]

WHY BE NEGATIVEWHEN WE CAN BE POSITIVE?DAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONIf you’ve ever witnessed Little League Baseball, you’ve seen a perfect example of how subtle, yet powerful, words can be.  As the player steps into the batter’s box, how often do you hear the coach say, “don’t swing at a bad pitch.” The kid actually hears, [...]

THE “THIS-OR-THAT”THE FORCED-CHOICE OPTIONDAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONWe’ve talked about how an open-ended question “invites” an expansive response. Using “WHAT, WHY or HOW questions (Inviters) makes our jobs easier and more successful. At the same time, we know that closed-end questions work in the opposite direction. Using the words – CAN, DID, MAY, DO, etc., (Shutters) [...]

ARE SELLERS BORN OR MADE?DAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONAsk people on the street this question and the majority will say “born.” We’ve all heard that someone is “a born salesperson.” So what justifies this expression? What is it about Sellers that makes people think that they’re born?” After all, how many people contend that lawyers are [...]

ROUND, ROUND, I GET AROUNDDAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONI’ve met Sellers who drive more than 50,000 miles annually within their territories. These folks view this as normal and necessary to run their business. But, goodness, that’s a lot of driving – 17 cross-country trips! Our Managers then pile-on by asking, “what are you doing in the [...]

HOW MANY WAYS ARE THERE TO SELL?DAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONPeople make things too complicated. We frequently figure “it can’t be that easy” and then go and make things so complex that heads start to spin. And, of course Sellers are as guilty – perhaps more so – than most groups. I see it at every [...]

DON’T DO ITPART 2DAVID RUBINSTEINEDITED BYJIM OLSONI’ve been thinking more and more about what happens when Sellers get in front of Buyers. What do we say and what don’t we say? What do we really mean? How many of us have a plan? How often do we actually implement that plan? How often does something [...]