by Mike Brunel | Jan 23, 2019 | Sales
In my blog last week, I talked about the first behaviour that I think is the most important when you look to hire good salespeople – Self Management.
In this article I am going to discuss the next characteristic that makes up a good salesperson – Achievement Potential
This measures the salespersons ability to be motivated by challenge as opposed to being safe and secure.
Stress is an important element in anyone’s life, too much, naturally, is bad.
When I recruited salespeople I always wanted to measure if my salespersons could act in their role on their own.
A little stress was applied in our training to test those attributes.
Were they motivated and open to accepting that they have to take on their own challenges, and not always rely on us or their team leaders to forever take care of them.
We looked for salespeople who bought contacts and networks as they had to build a book of business.
We did not want to be hand holding them too much.
If you have a salesperson who forever is asking you for guidance once your induction is complete, that person may need to be coached on setting regular achievable goals.
Coaching him or her to make sure they focus on what they need to accomplish daily.
OT’s might not work
OT’s as we used to say. Order takers.
In an environment of salary/commission these people do not usually survive, they want security and safety.
On the other hand, if you do have a salesperson who is highly motivated by challenge, they often need new challenges to keep them interested.
The trick with these people is for them to set their own goals.
Get out of the way in one sense, with one eye on their planning.
Mistakes do happen, but with any salesperson, acknowledge and reinforce their achievements when it’s appropriate.
We are a funny breed us salespeople.
Mike.
Don’t Ever Hire A Bad Salesperson Ever Again. Check out my FREE report here.
For more content like this, please make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel.
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. He has hired hundreds of salespeople around the world.
He made a lot of mistakes when it came to hiring his superstars. Check out his How to Hire A Super Salesperson Each and Every time – It’s packed with tips and ideas on how to hire great salespeople. Don’t ever Hire Bad Salespeople Ever Again. Promise!
by Mike Brunel | Jan 16, 2019 | Sales
As we dive into 2019, it’s often a time for reflection; a time to review both the good bits, and the not-so-good bits.
I am often asked this question from owners and sales managers.
“Mike what make a good sales person and what should I look for?”
“What are the behaviours you think are the most important for sales people in this new selling environment?”
“What abilities do you believe are going to help salespeople in this new selling environment?”
Here is my take on it, as you start the New Year.
I am going to address one behaviour at a time, in each blog.
I want to do this because it’s not okay to accept just anyone that shows up in an empty suit.
Having hired literally hundreds of sales people, I know what makes the good one’s tick.
1. Self- Management
This first behaviour is one of the most important skills that I look for in a salesperson. It can be a lonely job selling. Often, you are wanting your sales team to be able to take instructions, and make sure they can be confident to be comfortable.
I want my salesperson to be able to focus on their own personal effort to achieve their goals. Why? I do not want them to be forever coming to me for the answer. Good self-managers work it out for themselves. You want to know that your salesperson has the capacity to utilise his/her efforts on their task load and attain their daily objectives.
2. Survival Capabilities
In my business, we had a salary and at-risk structure in place. Survival in that environment requires the salesperson to take control of the sales process.
If you are able to select the person that also has the motivation, then your salesperson ticks off the first important trait you need to look for –Self Management.
For more content like this, please make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel.
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. He has hired hundreds of salespeople around the world.
He made a lot of mistakes when it came to hiring his superstars. Check out his How to Hire A Super Salesperson Each and Every time – It’s packed with tips and ideas on how to hire great salespeople. Don’t ever Hire Bad Salespeople Ever Again. Promise!
by Mike Brunel | Jan 9, 2019 | Sales
Today, as I take the opportunity to spend some time with my family over this summer period in the southern hemisphere (winter in the north), I was thinking of ideas to talk about.
It came to mind because of a conversation I had towards the end of last year (2018).
I get to work with a lot of pretty cool clients, and often as I get to know them, they are enthusiastic about growing their business, but don’t want to be known as a salesperson.
What?
That’s a pretty dumb statement, if you ask me.
I believe that everything is selling your product or service, and making a profit is based on your ability to sell.
Time and time again I hear from clients who don’t know how to sell.
One in particular, a client who had decided to use a new vendor told the current one that they were moving, the vendor accepted that it was probably time for that client to move on. I had a first-hand advisory role with that vendor.
However, six months later, the same client sent emails to my vendor several times.
Guess what? He had $250K to spend and wanted my vendor to do it. The lead was there, but by simply not answering the email, the sale was gone. Dumb? The problem maybe a bit of pride, but they were not willing to accept that they had to swallow their pride and get back in there and sell.
If you want to dominate your niche you MUST become a MASTER at selling.
In this new year of 2019, study selling and work with your fellow colleagues to do the same.
Remember, everyone is selling, every minute of the day.
This year we are working on a study programme to help you get more sales. We will be launching over the next few months, and we will keep you posted.
For more content like this, please make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel.
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. His products and services are now sold in 23 countries and in 11 languages generating $350 million annually in sales for his clients. Mike sold the company in 2015 and now spends his time following his passions which include rugby, travel. His promise: “I can find thousands of dollars in your business within minutes – GUARANTEED” TRY ME!
by Mike Brunel | Dec 19, 2018 | Sales
As 2018 closes its door, the usual blogs and content want us to think about 2019.
I tend to work my goals in 90-day cycles and each day of that 90 days, I devote time to staying on track to achieve my goals.
Do you know that every day you only need to find an hour to help fulfill your goals and keep you on track?
The answer is “start” each day a little earlier than your fellow workers.
And plan tomorrow today…
One of my early mentors and previous partners at NRS Media, Brian Duffy, taught me this valuable tip.
Plan Tomorrow Today – I first met Brian when he was a consultant to one of the first media companies I worked for.
He would always sit me down on his visits and ask me this simple question:
“Have you set goals for what you are going to achieve tomorrow? More importantly, have you looked at what you have achieved today and congratulated yourself?”
This piece of advice has stayed with me to this day. Most days, I plan what I am going to do the next day using this simple method.
At the end of each day, I review what I have achieved for the day, taking about 30 seconds to mentally pat myself on the back.
Even if I only managed to get a couple of tasks done, this simple exercise gives you a sense of achievement. If you don’t do this, you honestly feel as if you have achieved nothing.
Acknowledge your achievements no matter how small they may seem. Every day is a path to appreciation of self.
I then look at what I have not been able to achieve due to timing and other factors and place them on my plan for the following day. No judgements.
Next, I look at all the meetings and appointments and place them on my plan for the following day as well.
Finally, I take about 10 minutes to study what my priorities are for the month, quarter, and year. I select 3-4 goals I want to achieve as soon as I return to my office, that are in alignment with these goals.
It works for me; it just might be the tonic for you in 2019.
Thanks for your support in 2018 and I look forward to sharing some more exciting news in 2019.
Merry Christmas and a Happy holiday to you and your family.
For more content like this, please make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel.
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. His products and services are now sold in 23 countries and in 11 languages generating $350 million annually in sales for his clients. Mike sold the company in 2015 and now spends his time following his passions which include rugby, travel. His promise: “I can find thousands of dollars in your business within minutes – GUARANTEED” TRY ME!
by Mike Brunel | Dec 12, 2018 | Sales
Showing people how they can personally profit from your product can be one of the more creative parts of the sales process.
Consider the Dream Room at Gardner’s Mattress & More store. The Dream Room is a private mattress-testing room that allows a unique opportunity to try before you buy.
The room is essentially a sleep sanctuary, adjacent to the showroom. The space is totally private and void of salespeople and other customers, so you can snuggle in and get comfortable. Gardner’s is the only mattress store in their area that offers such an experience.
In fact, I have never heard of any other mattress company offering such a service. You make an appointment, pay a $50 deposit, and spend time in the Gardner’s showroom with one of their sleep consultants.
The consultant helps you narrow your mattress options down to the one you feel best suits your sleep needs. Their team encases your mattress in a proper allergy- and bedbug-proof zippered cover and tops it off with extremely high-quality, fresh sheets and pillowcases, all for you.
Once you enter this Dream Room, you quite literally take a nap. This is your opportunity to “try before you buy.” The proprietors encourage you to bring a good book and simply relax. For couples, they encourage cuddling, although they ask that the bedroom activity stop there; out of respect for the room and future sleepers.
You can even bring pyjamas and your own pillow and sheets if you want. This is a very creative example of the lengths that a business can go to in presenting its product.
For them, every sale is well worth it. Gardner’s average mattress costs around $4,000 and prices go up to a staggering $18,000. How do they do that? What they have created in their business is a sleeping experience, not just a price experience.
By now, their system will sound familiar. They know their product, match it up with the client’s needs, offer some advice customised to each client, and make a presentation that clearly shows the customer what’s in it for them.
From here, all they have to do is ask for the business and negotiate a price. If you look at their website, I challenge you to find price anywhere.
The dollar signs are simply not there. Gardner’s whole strategy takes you out of the price war, and into your personal experience.
There are, I am sure, plenty of mattress companies all over that town that sell off the floor at cheaper prices. Make no mistake, those stores have a purpose; what they sell and how they sell it is fine.
Wouldn’t you still want to make the experience a little better and have more chance of building a relationship?
Positioning your business this way tips off the consumer that what you sell might be something special.
Would you not want your client to know you offer an exceptional experience? The customer-savvy company has a better chance of selling their mattresses than the person down the road.
They get a commitment from you the moment you make an appointment in the Dream Room, strengthen it with a small deposit, chat about what you want, and then take a nice cosy nap.
That’s a sales commitment. More importantly, that’s the best presentation you can make.
For more content like this, please make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel.
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. His products and services are now sold in 23 countries and in 11 languages generating $350 million annually in sales for his clients. Mike sold the company in 2015 and now spends his time following his passions which include rugby, travel. His promise: “I can find thousands of dollars in your business within minutes – GUARANTEED” TRY ME!
by Mike Brunel | Dec 5, 2018 | Sales
In my blog The right advice at the right time I talked about qualifying a client as part of your sales process, before presenting your product or service.
Sometimes, it’s also important to develop a script for shorter pitches, or ‘elevator pitches’. These too, help you to qualify a client.
The so-called ‘elevator pitch’ came out of Hollywood.
An aspiring actor or actress may have had only one chance to pitch an idea, and that chance may well have come in an elevator ride with a Hollywood executive.
They had the length of the ride to talk up an idea for a film, a role, or a script, so their story had to be quick and clear. These days, you’re unlikely to find yourself making an actual elevator pitch, but you still need to be succinct with any proposal, especially if time (or attention) is short.
If someone asks you what you do, you must engagingly describe your business so that by the time they leave your side, they want to become a customer themselves.
I recall doing an exercise for a senior leadership team that directly illustrates the concept.
We divided a room full of executives into teams of two and gave them questions to ask each other during an actual elevator ride.
They asked each other things like; “What do you do?” and “Can you tell me clearly what you offer in benefits at your business?”
The responder’s job was to get the questioner excited about the company and to show how the company could solve their problems.
The elevator rides were very revealing. When the doors opened and the riders reported on the responses, every single story was different. Every one.
It was pretty eye-opening for me, because it was my company they were talking about!
The executives weren’t getting the right message across, and the message itself was inconsistent. They needed to learn to tell the company’s story, to feel comfortable even bragging a little.
As I say to my kids, if you’re telling the truth, it’s not showing off.
More Secrets
While there is no absolute formula for creating an elevator pitch, I’ve adapted the work of a well-known marketer called Eben Pagan to illustrate the importance of emotion.
Like Pagan, I believe using the right words can help you focus on the emotional needs behind the client’s desires.
The key is to talk about helping, describe who you help, explain what they will achieve, and suggest what they need to do to get started.
Say, for example, you offer a weight loss program; your elevator pitch might sound like this:
“I help overweight women who want to lose more than 20 pounds, get rid of their fat in as little as 90 days without starvation and without torturing themselves with military exercise. Do you know any woman who would want to lose more than 20 pounds quickly?”
Here’s another example, if you offered, say, debt consolidation services. Your pitch is a little different, but the pattern is the same:
“I help people who are in $10,000 or more credit card debt. I cut their monthly payments in half, and then I get them completely out of debt.Do you know anybody who has credit card debt and would like to cut their payments and eliminate their debt in less than three years?”
For NRS Media, I would say:
“I help advertisers who are confused, frustrated, and unsure about what media to invest their advertising dollars in. Do you know anyone who has a problem like that? Anyone who would like a no obligation, free advertising audit?”
Who could say no to offers like these?
Develop your elevator pitch.
Use this template to create your own elevator pitch. The principles behind the elevator pitch work across many formats and situations, but it is important to know what kind of environment you will be presenting in, so you can gear your content to your audience.
Have fun, good selling!
For more content like this, please make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel.
Mike Brunel started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur and founder of NRS Media. He co-founded NRS Media in Wellington, New Zealand, expanded it into a global powerhouse in media sales and training, and was eventually responsible for opening offices in London, Atlanta, Toronto, Sydney, Capetown, and Bogota. His products and services are now sold in 23 countries and in 11 languages generating $350 million annually in sales for his clients. Mike sold the company in 2015 and now spends his time following his passions which include rugby, travel. His promise: “I can find thousands of dollars in your business within minutes – GUARANTEED” TRY ME!
