Force Management

Deals are won or lost in discovery.   The more your sales teams can carry out discovery in a way that builds prospect interest and opens doors to high-level business stakeholders, the more they’ll be able to hit their numbers repeatedly.   In this episode, Brian Walsh shares personal experiences and tips on the art of great discovery and how your sales teams can earn the right to ask the hard questions and move opportunities forward. He’ll cover:   - The three things your sales teams should have prepared before every sales discovery conversation   - Why preparing prospects before a call is critical to landing the ask, plus insights on how to do it   - Tips for expanding sales conversations in a way that opens up the opportunity to get in front of other stakeholders in the business    Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources on executing great discovery:    - Play Back What You Heard in Discovery Podcast h

We’re diving into the one area of negotiation that many companies fail to pay attention to — the internal process behind every sales negotiation. In this episode, Force Management Senior Partner, Tim Caito explains how refining the internal process can enable your sales organization to increase deal velocity and achieve better outcomes. He’ll cover:   - Internal bottlenecks that hinder healthy pipelines, and how to course correct    - How to make negotiation and company-wide competency to ensure sales teams can move deals forward efficiently   - The essential questions you can use to evaluate your own, internal negotiation process   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources on the Internal Negotiation Process:    - Sales Negotiation: Navigating departmental impact guide https://bit.ly/2S3oKZP - Building an Elite Sales Negotiation Process [Resource Page] https://bit.ly/3lmNeug - A Sales Leader’s Playbook

Sometimes inspiration can hit you at the most unexpected times. For Senior Director of Consulting and Facilitation Patrick McLoughlin, it was during a Command of the Message training when he noticed the difference between two basketballs in his office.    What are the key differences between mediocrity and greatness?    What separates the best salespeople from the rest?    Patrick shares his thoughts while running through Kobe Bryant’s ten rules for achieving greatness. It’s a great listen especially for sales reps and managers who are struggling in foggy sales environments.    Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources on moving from mediocrity to greatness:    - Motivation Podcast https://apple.co/3iIuJyP - Remembering Jack Welch: Logos, Talent and a Disdain for Mediocrity https://bit.ly/2FFY52y - The Uncommon Story Podcast https://apple.co/3bX7IWo

Are you struggling with motivation?   Especially in our current environment, finding motivation in a foggy sales environment can be a constant battle.   We sat down with John Kaplan to discuss ways to improve productivity and keep yourself and/or your sales teams motivated by being uncommon in what you do.   Here are a few topics we’ll cover:   - What to do when the opportunities in your territory seem limited   - How managers can work with reps to continuously build healthy pipelines   - How to be uncommon and improve your (or your sales team’s) ability to compete    Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources on motivation:    - Plan to Make the Plan Article https://bit.ly/3mlUvv9 - Get Busy: Advice for Salespeople Podcast  https://apple.co/2Rkilck - The Uncommon Story Podcast https://apple.co/3bX7IWo - How to Make Sure a Bad Quarter Doesn’t Repeat Itself Podcast https://apple.co/2Fk1kMM - Approaching

We’re taking a deep dive into the critical roles SDRs play and the value they can bring to your company.   Special guest, Patrick McLoughlin, Senior Director of Consulting and Facilitation at Force Management, covers how sales organizations can benefit from generating alignment between their SDR/BDR organization and their sales organization. He’ll cover:   - The biggest mistakes sales organizations make with SDR organizations   - How to get more value from your SDR organizations by providing training and  content that focuses them on what’s needed to execute   - How to equip SDRs to handle objections in a way that drives opportunities forward   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources on the SDR Process:    - Drive Revenue by Aligning Your SDR Team With Your Broader Sales Organization https://bit.ly/2GaN1Ky   - Why Your SDR Process isn’t Working On-Demand Webinar https://bit.ly/2ERgfxE   - For SDRs/BDRs

There’s no doubt that next year’s SKO will be different from years past. In this episode, we sat down to discuss how some of the sales leaders we work with are approaching their sales kickoffs. Many of them are shifting to sales initiatives. In this episode, we cover:    - 3 key, sales execution areas of focus for sales leaders who are looking to improve their sales team’s ability to compete    - How sales leaders are moving forward with virtual, sales training engagements and the outcomes they’re able to achieve as a result   - How to move forward with a virtual event that’s still just as engaging, relevant and valuable for your sales organization   - The mindset elite sales leaders are using to determine what’s best for their sales organization right now   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on Shifting the SKO Aligning With the Buyer's Changing Needs Podcast https://apple.co/31spJrV Refr

In this episode, we’re taking a step back to cover the most frequently asked questions we get from our customers, the sellers we train, and our listeners. From warming up cold calls and building pipeline to asking trap setting discovery questions, and getting to the economic buyer, John Kaplan covers it all.   Here are a few key insights you’ll want to tune in to hear:   - How sellers can nail their differentiation in discovery and win against tough competition   - How to prepare for your sales calls to warm up cold opportunities   - How to use empathy in sales conversations when asking challenging (or seemingly negative) discovery questions   - How to leverage your champion to earn the approval of the economic buyer   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on    - Getting into an Opportunity Podcast https://apple.co/34n8Y3o - Approaching Your Sales Conversations with Empathy Podcast https://ap

Proof points should tell a story of how your solutions effectively solved your customer’s problems and achieved measurable results.   Elite sellers know the story behind their proof points so they can better tie them to their live opportunities in a way that’s relevant and meaningful to their prospects. Elite sales organizations have a process for gathering these proof points so their sellers can use them to drive high-value deals forward.    In this podcast, John Kaplan walks us through:   - How to develop a process for gathering impactful proof points and who should own this role in your organization   - When and how to use proof points in the most effective way, including how to enable your champions to articulate the stories behind your proof points   - How to make proof points as relatable as possible to live opportunities and sales conversations   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on p

Many sales leaders want to add MEDDICC into their sales organizations to improve sales qualification, mitigating losses and the number of deals in the pipeline that just aren’t progressing effectively.   Spoiler -  just adding the tool to your sales process won’t drive results. You as a sales leader, and your sales teams have to put in the work to make it work.   In this episode, Managing Director of Facilitation and Delivery, Brian Walsh talks through how to enable your sales teams to drive results using MEDDICC. He’ll cover:   - The three sales qualification questions MEDDICC can help companies solve   - How you can make MEDDICC successful, specifically for your organization   - How leaders, managers, sales reps impact the success of MEDDICC in different ways   - Personal experiences on how managers can help reps move deals forward in a way that drives results   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources f

You know that champions can be a critical component of moving your deals forward.   However, identifying them isn’t always easy.   Do you really have a champion or just a coach? If you’re a manager, how are you helping your reps find, develop, and test their champions?   In this episode, John Kaplan will cover:   - Questions to help you identify a champion or coach   - How to know if your champion is actively selling on your behalf and if they have a vested interest in your success   - If you should move forward without a champion or hold and build a champion   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on coaches and champions:    Testing Your Champions Podcast https://apple.co/2BJNul4 Resources to Help Your Salespeople Enable Champions https://bit.ly/316EZsV Building up Your Champions Podcast https://bit.ly/3k5wSG3

Many sales leaders are moving forward with their sales transformation initiatives, virtually. They’ve come to an understanding that they don’t have time to wait.   We sat down with Force Management's Chief Operating Officer Dave Davies and Brian Walsh, Managing Director of Facilitation and Delivery, to discuss how sales organizations are moving forward right now in a remote environment. They cover:     The benefits of moving forward with your initiative virtually    The process that drives the most impact virtually   The results they’ve seen companies have from moving forward   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on virtual sales initiatives:    Our Virtual Delivery Offering https://bit.ly/2DbTVxC How to achieve results with virtual sales training https://bit.ly/338RNSx How we achieve results for our clients, virtually https://bit.ly/3jHUrEz

Moving opportunities forward and maintaining a healthy pipeline in this environment — are two critical areas sales organizations are struggling with right now.   In this episode John Kaplan talks through the three things you need in every deal, minimizing no decisions, discounts and other risks to their pipelines. He’ll discuss:   - How to determine your PBOS, Required Capabilities and Metrics   - How to change a deal at risk into a high-value opportunity   - What’s needed for salespeople to become more relevant to their buyers right now   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on PBOS, required capabilities and metrics:    - Predicting No Decisions On-Demand Webinar https://bit.ly/2D0dxFa - How to Ask the Right Questions in Your Sales Conversation https://bit.ly/2E8TRiS - 6 Questions That Will Help Your Sales Team Produce More Revenue https://bit.ly/32MuH3I - Why Sales Reps Struggle with Met

This topic is so important we named our podcast after it.    In this episode, John Kaplan explains what it means to have an ‘audible-ready’ sales organization. He covers the five power plays of an audible-ready sales team and how sales leaders can equip their teams tools that enable them to keep the focus on their buyer.   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on being audible ready:    - How to Ensure You're Audible-Ready in Your B2B Sales Conversations; https://bit.ly/3eOOdA1   - What’s the Meaning of Command of the Message; https://bit.ly/31gD5rD

We’re using this episode to run through the most frequently asked questions we hear about sales negotiation.  Listen as Tim Caito discusses best practices managers and sales reps can instill into their negotiation process to ensure their business and procurement buyers view their solutions as valuable.  He’ll cover: How to navigate relationships with both buyer contacts and procurement professionals to improve the buying process and provide value for all stakeholders, including yourself. How sales reps can influence required capabilities early on, to show their solutions are the best fit for the buyer’s requirements, while minimizing discounts. Three things managers can do to continually coach on rep negotiation skills and drive seller behavior away from discounting.   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website. Here are some additional resources on the negotiation and procurement :  Sales Procurement On-demand Webinar with Tim Caito Tools &

Salespeople, even veteran sellers, can struggle with warming up cold sales conversations and turning LinkedIn connections into active opportunities.    An avid listener recently asked that we cover how to get into opportunities and become immediately relevant to a prospect.    In this episode, John Kaplan explains how salespeople can be uncommon in their call preparation and conversations, so they can successfully earn the right to move their prospects into active opportunities.   Please note this episode was recorded prior to Covid-19. Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on getting into an opportunity:    - Purpose Process Payoff Podcast; https://apple.co/3hPFGOV   - Starting Strong With New Prospects Blog; https://bit.ly/2zVG51b   - Internal Negotiation Process Webinar: https://bit.ly/2ZgiEZj

Communication is a critical component to ensuring your teams stay focused.    For sales leaders, it can be the one thing that separates the best from the rest. If your people understand where they’re going and how they’ll get there, you are one step closer to your revenue goals.    In this episode, John Kaplan covers the concept of a leadership footprint to explains how leaders can:   - Outline their organization’s new mission and explain how they’re planning to get there   - Articulate exactly what they need from their sales teams to succeed    Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Here are some additional resources focused on the leadership footprint:    Leadership Footprint Template https://forc.mx/2UAM0Qr   Blog: “What Your Top Performers are Thinking in Your Sales Kickoff Presentation” https://bit.ly/2N9FbB8

Please note this episode was recorded prior to the Covid-19 Pandemic.   Front-line sales managers typically have one of the toughest jobs in the entire sales organization.    Equipping them effectively takes a concerted effort. In this podcast, John Kaplan runs through best practices for helping them be successful, including:    - How to help them develop an operating rhythm   - How to get beyond measuring success at the deal level   - The type of environment you need to foster   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Additional Resources:  Blog: How to give effective feedback

This episode is just for people who are new to a head of sales role or for those people who are looking to jump ship.    John Kaplan outlines the key areas you need to assess for your success plan, including key questions to ask around:    - The sales message   - Sales execution and qualification   - Sales planning processes and management operating rhythm   - Sales talent   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Additional Resources:  Blog: New to the VP of Sales Role A Conversation on your next sales role with John McMahon, pt 1 A Conversation on your next sales role with John McMahon, pt 2

Why do buyers use tricky tactics in negotiations?    Because they work!    In this podcast, Tim Caito shares how to best prepare yourself (and your teams) for those popular buyer tactics.   He’ll cover:   - The 4 main reasons buyer tactics work and when they originate during the process   - The key 5 tips for managing the negotiation process and preparing for success (to the best of your ability!)   - How to expand the conversation and avoid pain points that narrow the negotiation too early   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.   Additional Resources: Sales negotiation training resources Sale negotiation balancing act webinar  

Keeping sales teams focused is an area many sales leaders are trying to excel in right now.   In this episode, John Kaplan walks through simple things you can do as a sales leader or manager to keep your teams motivated and disciplined.    He’ll discuss:   - How sales teams can use the ‘purpose, process, payoff’ call agenda to make sales conversations empathetic and relevant for buyers.   - How leaders and managers can work with their reps to make sure they’re prepared for every valuable sales conversation.   - The most critical fundamentals and tactics leaders must focus reps on right now to build pipeline and make revenue numbers.   Here are some additional resources focused on the importance of empathy right now : Purpose Process Payoff | Podcast Episode Top Resources for Maintaining Rep Productivity   Check out this and other episodes of The Audible-Ready Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or our website.