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SALES PERFORMANCE AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT INSIGHTS FROM AMY FRANKO
Uncover 5 Hidden Costs in Your Sales Strategy
When sales leaders examine growth opportunities, the conversations typically revolve around sales strategy, customer retention and growth, and sales training for their teams. The other side of the growth coin is subtraction. While counterintuitive, it’s critical to identify the hidden costs sapping sales success and consistently work to remove them from your sales organization and business. These costs don’t have a line item in the balance sheet or a field in the CRM, but they are in fact more expensive than even the largest expense line in your P&L this year. 1. Opportunity Cost. These are the opportunities that simply slip away because of issues like poor sales onboarding, unproductive sales conversations, or lack of sales prospecting. What makes opportunity cost so insidious? It’s not easy to see or measure. This one data point alone will drive home the impact of this cost: Sirius Decisions (now...
For a Healthy Sales Pipeline, Start with Strategic Prospecting
Think about the top sales performers you know. If you spend a day in their life, it’s likely you’ll recognize a common theme: They are constantly tending to the quality and quantity of opportunities in their sales pipeline. When it comes to pipeline management, two habits are central to success: balanced prospecting and daily pipeline management. Let’s first define pipeline management. It is the uncovering of opportunities in either net-new accounts, or existing accounts where you want to continue to create barriers for your competition. Gone are the days of dedicated hunters or farmers; every sales professional must be strong at prospecting across the full field of opportunities. That leaves a lot of ground to cover. How can you strategically narrow your targets? I’m a believer in prospecting on quality first and then quantity. Research shows about half your prospects aren't a good fit for what you sell....
Video: Sales Prospecting Tips for When Communication Stalls
In sales, it’s common to encounter a situation where communication with a prospective client suddenly comes to a standstill. You might have had active sales conversations, perhaps even sent a proposal, but now there’s silence. So, how do you re-engage a prospective client when this happens? Learning this three steps are part of a smart sales strategy. 1. Embrace the Power of Prevention for Better Sales Prospecting One of the most effective strategies to avoid this predicament is prevention. Whenever you’re in a conversation with a client, always schedule the next meeting before ending the current one. By having the next discussion on their calendar, it creates a commitment that they need to respond to, helping you maintain momentum in the relationship. 2. Utilize Their Preferred Communication Channels Understanding and utilizing the client’s preferred communication method can also be crucial. In today's...
Leveraging Sales Training for Successful Referral Strategies
Are you focusing on referral strategies in your sales plan and sales training? According to Think Impact, 78% of B2B sales referrals lead to viable customer leads, and 65% result in new business opportunities. Learn how to nurture loyal clients, handle referral mishaps, and build a strong network ecosystem in this post. ******** When sales referrals go wrong One of my best sources of new business is introductions to decision makers and influential people through my network. That same network is also the source of introductions for a service or product I might need. I'm not alone. According to a report by Think Impact, 78% of B2B sales referrals create viable customer leads for the business, and referrals end up creating 65% of new business opportunities. This is why I teach my clients about nurturing loyal clients and creating a strong network ecosystem But sometimes introductions don’t work out as...
5 Steps to Build High-Impact Relationships as Part of Your Sales Strategy
Building impactful client relationships is a crucial component of sales strategy. Beyond mere connections, it's about understanding and nurturing key alliances across departments and leadership levels. This latest article dives into practical steps to map out, assess gaps, and deepen relationships for sustained growth. Let's rethink how we build connections to unlock new opportunities and enrich client engagements. ***** As a strategic seller, your ability to build relationships is foundational to your success with client growth. According to recent data, the probability of selling to an existing customer is 70 percent and only 20 percent to a new prospect. Another study estimates that companies in the US lose $83 billion because of bad customer retention strategies.(Source: Close) We’re in a world extremely connected through technology. We can find virtually anyone and begin to build a picture of the...
Podcast: Betting on Yourself is a Winning Sales Strategy
Betting on yourself is a winning sales strategy. In this episode of the Rethinking Revenue Podcast with host Ed Porter and James Rores, I shared my transformative career path, from my early days in technology sales with giants like IBM and Lenovo to founding my own business in the learning and development space. With a focus on rethinking revenue and career pivots, I offer insights on how taking bold risks, investing in personal growth, and embracing change can lead to both personal fulfillment and professional success. Tune in to learn how you can leverage self-confidence and strategic thinking to achieve your sales and business goals. Some highlights: Start your career in a role that offers diverse experiences and responsibilities, as this will help build a solid foundation and versatile skill set. (05:25) Don't be afraid to make a bold career change; it can lead to unexpected opportunities and growth,...
Get and Keep Funding for your Sales Training Programs
How can you get real results from your sales training programs? With accountability, sustainability, and scalability. At the recent Association for Accounting Marketing’s Summit, I shared key strategies on building these elements into your sales training to ensure your sales program delivers results and continues to be funded. Stay tuned for my three-part series starting below with defining and improving accountability. ******** It’s a question I get asked often by firm partners or CEOs. "How do we create sales training programs that deliver real results, and continue to be funded?" The answer is that no amount of great sales training content can overcome a sales training program that lacks accountability, sustainability, and scalability. I recently spoke at the Association for Accounting Marketing’s Summit, on these three elements that every sales training program must have to get and keep support from...
Podcast: Intentional Cold Calling as an Effective Sales Closing Technique
One of the best sales closing techniques is an intentional cold calling strategy. In this episode of the Reinvented Sales Podcast with Paul Watts, Amy Franko delves into the art and science of cold-calling, discussing its relevance and her preparation strategies. She shares effective opening lines and how to keep sales conversations engaging. Essential tools and technology for cold-calling are highlighted, alongside Amy's dos and don’ts for sales success. Amy also addresses handling rejection by resonating with prospects through value-driven education. Her approach focuses on building connections, uncovering opportunities, and nurturing potential future relationships. Some highlights: Is cold-calling still relevant? (0:52) Is cold calling an art and a science? (1:50) How Amy prepares for cold-calling (2:56) Amy’s effective opening lines (4:35) How to keep a cold call engaging Indispensable tools &...
Strategic Selling: How to Make the Most of Buyer Preferences
Adapting to changing buyer preferences is key in strategic selling. Decision makers seek confidence in ambiguous environments, effective situation assessment, and collaboration. Misconceptions about sellerless experiences and non-direct methods need addressing. Prioritize creating value, building rapport, and guiding conversations. ******* Adapt Sales Strategy: Buyer Preferences Change, Approach Must Too. While much is written about the changing of buyer preferences in strategic selling, don’t let that distract you because the foundation of what they are looking for remains the same as it always has. What Does a Decision Maker Require from Today’s Sales Professional? Above all, decision makers want confidence in navigating their way forward in ambiguous environments. They also want confidence in making pivots on the path as needed. There are two questions we can always ask ourselves as we work with our...
Video: Sales Conversations: Pre-brief & Debrief
There are two pieces to a sales conversation that if you put this into your process, you will have much more effective and more momentum gathering conversations in the future. The first is the pre-brief. The pre brief is essentially thinking through the outcomes that you want to accomplish and mentally clearing the deck before you go into a conversation. So many of us are running from meeting to meeting that we don't necessarily have or take the time to simply clear our minds, get clear on the outcome of the conversation that we're about to walk into. If you take just a minute or two to do this, and if you already have an agenda planned, the power of those two elements together will make your conversation so much more effective. The second is the debrief. The debrief is the same activity, but simply on the end of the conversation. It is to take just a few minutes after the conversation, take down the...
Our Strategic Selling signature sales training program is now available online. This online sales learning program is ideal for professional services and B2B sales. Get started with 2 free lessons.
