Real Secrets of the Top 20%

Real Secrets 037: How to Handle Incoming LeadsBy Mike Brooks, www.MrInsideSales.com I get many requests each week from readers who want to know how they should deal with incoming "warm" leads.  "These leads are more qualified because they are calling in," I hear over and over.  But we all know this isn't necessarily true is it?  In fact this attitude leads to the biggest mistake 80% of your competition is making when they receive warm leads -- "They go into pitch mode rather than qualification mode." 80% of your competition mistake the "implied interest" of a call in to mean they are already qualified, and all they need to do is explain their product or service.  Wrong! The Top 20%, on the other hand, know that warm leads can be some of the biggest time wasters of all, so they do what they always do -- disqualify people who are "just looking" so that they can identify the real buyers, and they do this by asking questions rather than pitching. Here are some great questions to

Real Secrets 036: How To Handle the RFP Process I was having lunch with a client last week and she was telling me about how frustrated she was with a prospect who wasn't calling her back. "But our first meeting went so well," she told me. I asked her what happened, and she told me that she visited with a prospect who currently has four other vendors and was initially resistant to using a fifth. My client persisted, however, developed good rapport, and the prospect said she could submit an RFP on their next job. My client left feeling good about the lead and excited that she had been able to overcome the initial resistance.  She went back to her office, put together her proposal, emailed it to the prospect and began following up. Not surprising to me (and soon to her), she got no response from the prospect. "I can't understand it!" She repeated. I don't know about you, but this whole transaction had Red Flags all over it. To begin with, whenever I hear "RFP Process," a host of questions jump

Real Secrets 035: Change Your Self Talk – Change Your Results First of all, did you know that you are talking to yourself all day long? (You're thinking, "Do I talk to myself? What does he mean, talk to myself? I don't talk to myself!") Psychologists estimate that you are talking to yourself at a rate of 1,200 to 1,500 words a minute (in contrast, when we speak aloud we can only go up to 250 words a minute and that's if we're talking REAL FAST). The problem is that most of our self-talk is negative.  And even worse, we tend to believe our self-talk and that influences our performance – in a big way.  For example, have you ever stopped to listen to your self-talk after you missed a sale?  Mine used to go something like this: "There I go again. I'm an idiot! I'm amazed I've ever made a sale. This product sucks, nobody is ever going to buy and I even knew he wouldn't buy.  I wonder when lunch is – do I have enough money for lunch today? I wonder if I'll make a sale this week – how am I going

Real Secrets 034: How To Successfully Handle Objections If you're like most sales reps, you hate to get objections.  Your stomach aches, your palms start to sweat, and you can literally see your commissions fly out the window.  And, if you're like most sales reps, when you begin dealing with objections one of two things happen: 1)  After you answer them, your prospect gives you another, then another objection and you go on the defensive...or 2)  In answering the objection you tend to talk past the close, and you actually INTRODUCE more questions or objections!  Now that's a sick feeling, isn't it? Want an easier way to deal with the objections you get over and over again?  Here's how to do it: First, learn to listen.  Don't be so quick to interrupt your prospect because often times the way to overcome their objection is actually in the objection itself…  Second, if you don't know how to respond to their objection, or don't even understand what the objection is (whi

Real Secrets 033: How To Hire Top Sales Reps Ask any manager, V.P. or business owner what one of the biggest challenges they face in making their revenue numbers and they'll tell you it's identifying, hiring and retaining good sales reps.  If you are familiar with my management philosophy, then you've heard me talk about the 80/20 rule in sales, and all you have to do is look at your own company or industry to know it's still true – 80% of the sales and revenue is made by the Top 20%.  So how do you identify who the Top 20% are BEFORE you spend all that time and money on hiring, training and then hoping they perform?  There are many ways to try to identify the characteristics in advance, and in fact a whole industry of profiling and assessment testing has sprouted up to help you make the right choice.  I have used some of these tests and have found them to be quite accurate and valuable.  I have also found an easier way to identify who the potential top producers are, and I've boile

Real Secrets 032:  The Two Things You Can and Must Control To Succeed So here's the scene: Large corporate sales convention in the company's training center in Washington State; over 250 sales reps flown in from all over the country; Sales directors, V.P.s, sales managers all running around stressing over the schedule, quotas, current sales, etc. I'm speaking to the entire group (owners, board members in the audience, too), and after the training portion of my presentation, I ask the question that gets the managers and directors to shift uneasily in their seats: "What are the two most important determining factors in making sales and exceeding quotas?" The reps raise their hands and start firing away, "Leads," "The economy," "The price of the product," "Territory," they yell out. The managers and directors are now sweating, and the owners and board members look irritated and even a little angry. "While those things all play a part, the problem with

Real Secrets 031:  The Only Qualifying Question You Really Need I always tell sales reps that your client or prospect has all the answers as to why they will or why they won't buy, and that it's your job to find that information out. You do this by asking the right qualifying questions, by layering those questions, by qualifying any red flags you get and by actually listening to the answers you're given. While this may sound basic and simple enough, you'd be amazed by how many sales reps still don't do this correctly. There are a ton of reasons why, but in order to simplify the entire process, I'm going to give you the one question that will get your prospect to tell you exactly what they are looking for (and what they're not looking for as well). And here it is: During the course of your qualifying, simply ask your prospect, "_________, if you could wave a magic wand right now and fix (or get) three things that would help your (sales process, bottom line, productivity - whatever is appropriate fo

Real Secrets 030:  The Most Important Word in Sales I was talking to a real estate agent the other day about the importance of disqualifying leads, and he told me an interesting story about their office's top producer.  He was talking to her one day and asking her what she did that made her so successful.  She said her secret could be summed up with one word.  When he asked what it was she said: NEXT. The moment I heard him tell me that I was in total agreement.  I told him that was what I was trying to teach him with my disqualifying method.  The majority of people you speak with, I told him, are never going to be a deal.  The problem 80% of sales reps make is they spend time with them anyway, sending information, making multiple appointments, and begging and chasing the deal. The Top 20%?  Their attitude is -- NEXT.  And that's when he said something interesting.  He said he was afraid to let go because he didn't want to chance losing a sale.  "I

Real Secrets 029:  How to Save a Sale Last week I was speaking with a new prospect who had called in to inquire about one of my inside sales training programs.  I went over her needs, matched up my training to fit those needs, gave her the price options and then closed on dates. And that's when I got the old stall, "Well, let me run this by my boss, and I still have to hear back from, blah, blah, blah."  Sound familiar?  What was worse was that a few days later she stopped returning my calls and didn't respond to my emails.  Now I can take a hint, and I know that she probably wasn't going to be a deal.  I'm sure you can relate, and so I want to give you a proven technique that will allow you to: 1) Open up the dialogue again.2) Find out why your prospect isn't going with you.3) Get them to tell you what you can do to save the sale. It's called the "I love to learn" technique and here's what you do: First, you're going to have to be persistent and keep calling yo

Real Secrets 028:  Practice Doesn't Make Perfect You know that saying, "practice make perfect?"  Do you think that's true?  IT'S NOT.  Practice only makes permanent.  Only practice of perfection makes perfect. This is why 80% of sales reps struggle so much.  They have never learned the proper sales skills, or, if they have, they aren't using them and so day after a day they practice poor techniques and develop habits of selling that don't work. And after weeks or months or years of selling, they automatically and consistently do and say all the wrong things -- and get poor results because of it. The Top 20%, on the other hand, are in the habit of learning, using and practicing techniques and skills that work.  They're constantly adjusting, adapting and improving on each call, and they practice proven techniques, skills and methods that keep making them better. The bottom line is that practice creates habits.  And first we form habits and then they form us.  M

Real Secrets 027:  5 Ways To Keep Your Prospect Talking I've always said that the number one skill of a Top 20% producer is his or her ability to listen. Your prospect or client has their own reasons for needing or buying your product or service, but unless you ask questions and shut up and listen, you'll never know what they are.  And in today's economy, knowing how to keep your prospect talking is more important than ever. A Top 20% closer is an expert at asking questions, layering those questions, questioning the red flags, etc., and at the end of a prospecting call or presentation, they call can tell you exactly where the prospect stands. The key here is to listen by keeping your prospect talking. Here are five statements you should begin using today to help keep your prospect talking: 1 "Tell me more." Simple, eh? Yes, but hard to do. 80% of your competition would prefer to pitch, but a Top 20% closer would prefer to listen. Use "tell me more" to encourage this. 2 "Go o

Real Secrets 026:  The 5 Best Openings "How are you today?"  Nothing defines you as a telemarketer or salesperson more than that opening delivered in an obligatory, insincere way (the way 80% of your competition delivers it). If you want to separate yourself from your competition and actually connect to your prospect, then please use any of the following after you give your name and company name: 1.  "Can you hear me OK?"  My personal favorite.  This opening does a number of things A -  it elicits a yes response, B - it gets them saying yes, and it gets them to really listen.  Not a bad way to start the call. 2.  "Happy Monday!" (or Wednesday, or Thursday, whatever day it is).  You get a lot of traction with this opening, and it really opens your prospect up. 3.  "Is it raining there, too?"  (or hot or foggy, etc.).  Immediately connecting with your prospect on an issue unrelated to sales really gets them talking and takes the pressure off.

Based on the response I received from last week's Pod Cast, I wanted to stay on the topic of Attitude and Motivation this week.  You know, I get asked all the time what the key to getting or staying motivated is.  While we all know that getting a lot of no's can be discouraging, we also  know how much better things go when we're highly motivated – nothing can stop us!  So what is the key to staying motivated? In my opinion, it all starts with asking yourself one question: "Are you taking action in your life based out of the circumstances of your life, or out of the vision you've created for your life?" That's the one question all top performers live their lives by, and it is the one question that keeps us motivated, some would even say driven, to succeed.  And it's a question YOU need to get in the habit of asking yourself right away. And what do I mean by vision? I don't know if you've ever heard of a guy named Ray Kroc.  But when Ray was 52 years old, he was broke, had diabet

First of all, Happy New Year, and I want to stress the NEW portion of that.  This is a NEW year, and I want to caution you against bringing your OLD attitude into 2009.  Are things tough out there?  Of course they are.  Does that mean that every company and sales person is going to have a bad year?  Of course not!  Some companies and sales reps are going to have the best year they've ever had – and that can be you, too.  And it all starts with your ATTITUDE!! You know, I was speaking with a client the other day about the economy and business, and he said something that surprised me.  We were talking about spending money on advertising, and just as I was waiting for him to tell me he was pulling back, he told me he was charging ahead as aggressively as he could.  When I asked him why, he told me: "Most companies are pulling back right now," he said "And in a few months when things have stabilized, and they begin to move, I'll be way ahead of them. He said, "This is

Let's talk about the importance of enthusiasm. One day I was having my Volvo serviced, and as I waited for it to be brought out, I wandered onto the new car showroom. There on the floor was a Special S60 R – their Rally version and it looked pretty sweet. As I sat in it, someone came up and asked me what I thought and I said, "It's OK." I asked him if he was one of the sales reps, and he said he was new to sales having worked for the Volvo factory for the last 10 years. He then asked me how much I knew about the car. "Not much," was my answer. And that's when it began. Jim seemed to change as he began to tell me what a phenomenal car the R series was. Did I know that the brakes alone were of racing pedigree and the best brakes Volvo ever made? And that they were found only on the Rally model? Did I know about the torque of the engine and that the Rally had the only hand made engine Volvo every produced? One and on he went, covering each part of the car to the racing bucket seats, down to the hand stitched lea

Meeting Objections Head On Now let's talk about meeting objections head on.  I'll tell you something about objections -- most of the time they are smokescreens hiding the real reason your prospect isn't moving forward.  You know this to be true.  Most of the time when your prospect puts off making a decision, they will give you some objection that you can't overcome and when you try you just get a whole new objection and have to start over. Isn't that the way it usually goes? There are a couple ways of dealing with objections, and the most effective is to question and isolate before you answer it.  That was last week's article and if you missed it, Click Here to visit my blog. There is also another way to deal with smokescreens and objections, and that is to meet them head on.  In other words, to call your prospect bluff.  Here's how this works with the objection, "I want to think about it." When you get this objection, say: "You know ________, whenever I say that to a sales

Straight Selling – The Quickest Path To The Top 20% Now let's talk about Straight Selling techniques.  What do you think is one of the biggest differences between the Top 20% and the bottom 80%? The answer is that the bottom 80% are still using stale, phony techniques that don't work, and they are still trying to trick the gatekeepers and assistants as they try to get to the decision maker. All this does is identify them as another pesky sales rep trying to sell something the prospect doesn't want. The Top 20%, on the other hand, have found that by being honest and real – I call it "Straight Selling"- they not only differentiate themselves from their so called competition, but they are also able to make a real connection and so establish the rapport crucial for any sales transaction.  Here are a couple of scripts you can use to begin practicing straight selling: If while cold calling your prospect says they are not interested, use this response: "I don't blame you________, you've never heard of m

How to Avoid the 3 Biggest Cold Calling Mistakes You know, I hear it over and over again – 80% of your competition incest on making their jobs harder because they keep making three major mistakes every time they cold call. The good news is that there are easy ways to avoid the them, and I'm going to share them with the right now: Mistake No. 1: Not Using Instructional Statements. When the Secretary or receptionist asks your name or why you are calling or who you're calling with, you must not only give them the information, but you must and within instructional statements.  Try "Yes, please tell them Mike Brooks is holding please" Use this instructional statement, and you will begin breezing past screeners and gatekeepers, and you'll avoid 80% of the screening you're getting now. Mistake No. 2: Repeating an objection. "Oh, you're not interested?" "You don't have the money?" "He's not available?" Sounds basic, but 80% of your competition unconsciously repeat the objections.  How to

The Benefits of Layering Questions For those of you who have seen me live, you know that I am big on questioning your prospects during the qualification stage.  As I've said -- they have all the answers as to why they'll buy or not buy, and it is your job to get them to tell you. While asking questions is certainly a good start, you'll get the most thorough and complete information if you use layering questions. Layering questions are simply questions that go a little deeper into an area or concern so that you get to the root of what really drives your prospect. An example of a layering question goes like this:  "Who are you going to be talking with about this decision?" (A nice assumptive question).  And when they say their spouse, you then layer the question by asking – "And what do they think you should do about this?" Knowing this kind of information gives you the edge when it's time to close. And layering questions are exactly what you use to get it. Layering questions are effect

The "Instant Close" Technique Now let's talk about the instant close technique.  When I was on vacation in Hawaii, I met a salesperson for Starwood properties.  She was selling ownership units (used to be known as timeshares) for one of the more beautiful properties on Maui -- the Westin, Kaanapali Beach, Maui. She told me a little about the great value of the properties, about what a wonderful company Starwood is, and then she explained how all the prospects went through an outstanding presentation before she, as a salesperson, got to work with them (close the sale). I asked her if she would be interested in learning one powerful technique that could increase her closing percentage and eliminate much of the work she was doing.  She was all ears. I told her that if I was selling this product, the moment I sat with a couple after their presentation I would ask one question: "So, are you ready to make one of the smartest decisions of your lives and become an owner of one of these amazing properti