"Sales" Posts
What Did He Say?
By Ken DiPrima
Early in my professional life, while working as a stockbroker, I was approached at my Evanston, Illinois office by two young professors from Northwestern University, which was located just across the street. They asked if there was anyone within my firm who would be interested in teaching a non-credit course on the subject of securities and investing at their newly opened Norris Center.
The idea had instant appeal to me, especially, since I knew that the New York Stock Exchange had a course syllabus on the very subject. I also saw this as an opportunity for me to connect with …
An Oldie, But Goodie
By Ken DiPrima
In William Shakespeare’s ‘The Merchant of Venice,’ Antonio, who is the merchant of Venice, comes to Shylock, a money lender, to borrow 3,000 ducats for three months on behalf of his close friend, Bassanio. This is so that Bassanio may pursue the courtship of the fair Lady Portia of Belmont.
Antonio, although very successful and wealthy, is currently cash poor, having his funds tied up in several ships, filled with goods and merchandise, off sailing to far flung ports. He fully expects the return of these ships back to Venice, with excess funds, well before the due date.
Shylock, being …
Only One Chance To Make A First Impression In Sales
By Ken DiPrima
One of the more fascinating aspects of sales is finding out why a sales call didn’t result in a sale. Why did that prospect ultimately say no? What turned him against you and your services? Was it that the product/service that was being offered had no application to him or his business? Could it have been something that you said, or did, which prohibited you from opening a closed mind, or worse yet, closed an open mind?
Clients make critical decisions and assessments within the very first seconds of a sales call. A salesperson’s positive initial impact can open otherwise …
Lie, Cheat & Steal To Close A Sale?
By Ken DiPrima
Every salesperson, without exception, has been in situations where stretching the truth or omitting a crucial fact about the product or service being offered, seems to be the solution to closing the sale. Sales made under false pretenses, no matter how slight, will only result in a negative reflection on the salesperson and, more importantly, stain the reputation of the company.
It makes little difference how good are the products or services provided, if they differ even in the slightest from what was promised by the salesperson. People expect to receive exactly what they bargained for, not a quasi facsimile, …
Corporate Business Solutions Client Profile: Meet Dave Alwan Of Echo Valley Meats
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Dave likes to share that he’s the third generation in the meat business. His family has been in the food industry since 1947 when his grandfather launched the Alwan and Sons Meat Company, a grocery store and butcher shop in Peoria, IL.
As his father says, being in the food business just made sense—everyone needs to eat. His family also branched out into fast food for a while, opening up one of the first KFC franchises in 1972. By age 11, Dave was learning his knife skills, cutting stew meat and roasts in the butcher shop.
Around age 22, Dave …
The Quest For The Universal Salesperson
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It goes without saying, every professional baseball player knows how to hit, run, throw and catch. However, the skill sets of a Cy Young Award-winning pitcher and a Silver Slugger Award-winning hitter are distinctively different.
This is not all that surprising when you stop to think about it. Yet all too often, members of a profession are viewed as all being the same with no thought given to the unique skills required to perform specific job functions within their profession.
For example, some employers are prone to believing ‘a salesperson is a salesperson’ – they’re all the same. These employers …
Get The Green Light
“Second Place is just the first place loser,” is a quote attributed to Dale Earnhart, the famous NASCAR race driver, and it aptly describes the result of any competition in life, including an unsuccessful meeting between a salesperson and a prospect.
Oftentimes the difference between first and second place is not large at all. In fact, it can be insignificantly small. For instance, the 2006 PGA Tour statistics are indicative of just how small it can be.
Although the difference between first and second place may be small, the rewards are huge. Sales is an all or nothing game with …
How I’d Love To Keep You
Customer defection rates are clearly a leading indicator of a company’s short and long term profit direction.
…Frederick Reichheld and W. Earl Sasser, Jr. published a study in the Harvard Business Business Harvard Review Review which concluded: “Companies can boost profits by almost 100% by retaining just 5% more of their customers.” *
PIMS study concluded: “A dissatisfied customer would tell between 7-10 people while a satisfied customer would recommend a company to 3-4 of their friends.”
According to Bain & Company: “U.S. corporations now lose half of their customers in five years, [and] half of their employees in four