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SALES PERFORMANCE AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT INSIGHTS FROM AMY FRANKO
Are these myths threatening your sales?
The world is changing. As a sales professional, are you adapting?I'm honored that Selling Power has published my new article, Four Selling Myths You Need to Know. In it, I share signs of a modern seller and address four myths that may be plaguing your department and threatening your sales.I invite you to read it on Selling Power now. You'll learn how a modern selling approach will deliver better results to your organizations and your customers.And for more strategies to strengthen your sales, download our ebook.
Four Lessons to Improve Your Sales Prospecting
Prospecting is one of the toughest (if not THE toughest) activity we undertake in selling. Especially when you’re at the beginning – as a new entrepreneur, growing a new market, or taking on a new sales role. In Fanatical Prospecting, author Jeb Blount shares this thought, and it has stuck with me: “In any endeavor, success is paid for in advance with hard work. In sales, success is paid for in advance with prospecting.” Prospecting, or building new relationships and leveraging existing ones to grow your business, must be part of your modern selling toolkit. This post shares four strategies to help you and your sales team enhance your prospecting efforts. Lesson 1. Consider specialization. Unless you’re in a very specific territory or vertical, the choices are pretty limitless when it comes to who we can prospect. When we have too many choices, it’s easy to become paralyzed with where to start. Those who...
How to Look and Sound Like a Modern Seller
What impression are you making with your prospects and clients? A few weeks ago, I explored how our actions can impact sales. Today, let’s consider the importance of visual and verbal presence for the modern seller. Do you dress the part of a leader and professional? What does your physical presence exude? What you say is important, too. Every communication, verbal or written, is an opportunity to showcase how well you organize your thoughts and articulate yourself. How do you sound? Look Ahead You’ve heard it before. The first time people meet us, they form a judgment about us with lightning speed. One research study cited about 250 milliseconds. Those judgments of initial credibility and trust are based on appearance. That’s a...
Our Top Leadership Development Blog Posts
When I think about where I want to make the most impact through my work, it’s hopefully inspiring you to be your best leader, and providing ideas you can put into practice to help you get there. It’s my goal to continually publish fresh and valuable leadership content for you and our community of readers. To that end, I’m always looking at our analytics as one measure of what’s connecting with you. I've been writing about leadership development for nearly a decade, so there's lots of material to consider. Today I’m sharing three of my top-rated leadership development blog posts. Inspiration is the Spark that Elevates You and Your Team Have you ever had someone in your life that makes you feel as if there’s nothing you can’t do? Someone who moved you to be more and do more than you ever thought possible? That’s inspiration... it can be hard to describe, but we know it when we feel it, and we know it when...
Two Hours + Four Conversations = The Power of Connections
Few things in business and life are as powerful as a strategic connection. This week I’ve had the opportunity to create new connections with four interesting, diverse, intelligent, and engaging people – and all from different parts of the world. We talked about topics ranging from board service, to team cultures, to how do we get more women into sales and leadership roles. The paths to these connections were as diverse as the people themselves. Some traditional introductions from colleagues. Some via social media. But the connections had something in common, too. I left each conversation with a renewed sense of energy and fresh ideas – knowing there are so many thought leaders using their creativity to solve challenges and inspire. This set of conversations reminds me of what fuels me – connections with others and sharing ideas. Few things in business and life are...
For Modern Sellers, Actions Speak Louder than Words
Gandhi said, “actions express priorities.” For today’s modern seller, what are your actions communicating to your prospects and customers about you? Are they saying you are strategic and committed to creating long term value? Modern sellers focus on the long view versus a transactional view, knowing that one contract is simply the beginning of the value chain. With that in mind, below are three strategies to help elevate your identity as a modern seller. Ask Thoughtful Questions Modern sellers are continuous learners, and the skill of thoughtful questions is part of the learning process. Before any sales conversation, I have my questions ready, and they’re usually a blend of open-ended and clarifying questions. My goal is to get...
On Board: Lessons for Board Development
As a business owner, I place a high value on commitment to the community. One of the ways I choose to give back is by serving on the Board of Directors for the Girl Scouts of Ohio’s Heartland. Helping to develop women leaders has long been a passion of mine. My work with the Girl Scouts provides a unique opportunity for me to help develop girls into the leaders of tomorrow. When I recently completed my term as chair of the board development committee, I was surprised to receive a special recognition. The President’s Plaque is an award given to a board member who has gone above and beyond the call of duty as a board member to help forward the mission of Girl Scouting. What an honor! I couldn’t be more proud to be associated with this organization. “Under Amy’s leadership as chair of the Board Development Committee, her team consistently exceeds expectations and has always done a great job ensuring Girl...
Vision, Culture, and Googliness
CEO Insights Featuring David Kaufman President & CEO, Motorists Insurance Group Great leaders are always learning and want to pay those lessons forward. The latest Columbus Chamber CEO Insights event had a lot of thoughtful lessons to share, with David Kaufman, president and CEO of Motorists Insurance Group. My first impression of David is that he is a humble, approachable leader, someone you could easily grab a cup of coffee with. A native of Bellefontaine, David said he didn’t envision himself as even going to college, let alone leading a major corporation. However, he sees Motorists as this great combination of being large enough to provide opportunities and growth along an entire career path, and small enough that it still feels like a family. During the hour-long discussion, David explained that Motorists is on a transformational journey as an organization. The team is reimagining the...
2/3 of Executives Say This is Their No. 1 Concern
Billions of dollars are spent on leadership development programs each year. In fact, according to McKinsey, almost two-thirds of the executives they surveyed identified leadership development as their No. 1 concern. Are companies seeing return on their leadership investment? Too often, that answer is no. In my experience, programs that succeed have one thing in common: strong support from the top and at the mid-levels. When that support doesn’t exist, or isn’t at the levels it should be, often a perception gap exists between the C-suite and the organizational development teams responsible for building and executing the programs. Take for example a program I once delivered at the headquarters of a major retail business. The...
Leadership Starts at the Top
To say the start of 2017 has been tumultuous for Uber would be an understatement. The company’s leadership and culture have been in the spotlight. First were sexual harassment allegations, brought forth by a former engineer. Then CEO Travis Kalanick was caught on dashcam chastising a driver—a video that went viral. That’s not to mention another lawsuit by Google. Uber tough times, to be sure. The result: Kalanick admitted he needs leadership help. “I must fundamentally change as a leader and grow up,” he said. Help for Kalanick will come in the form of a new COO. Despite the tremendous popularity of Uber until this time (in fact, I’m a rider), Kalanick has been known for his aggressive leadership style. Clearly, a change is needed to transform the company culture, from the top down. The president resigned in March, as well. When there are challenges and churn at the leadership level, it can create an...
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