Sales Game Changers | Tips from Successful Sales Leaders

This is episode 237. Read the complete transcript on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. RAKHI'S FINAL TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "Map out your short- and long-term goals and think about what you need to get there. I have acquired experience in sales, business development, financing and sales strategy and now my organization actually technically sits underneath marketing. I'm getting all of these different experiences and I encourage people to think about what you want your long term goal to be and how you want to fill your tool belt." Rakhi Voria is the Director of Global Digital Sales Development at IBM. Prior to coming to IBM, she was at Microsoft. She is Forbes contributor and is passionate about advancing women in sales. Learn more about the IES Women in Sales Leadership Forum.

This is episode 236. Read the complete transcript on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. This is a replay of the Sales Game Changers Panel Webinar hosted by Fred Diamond, Host of the Sales Game Changers Podcast, on May 20, 2020. It featured sales leaders Gary Milwit (JG Wentworth) and Expert Sales Trainer Bob Greene. BOB'S TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "What's my advice for sales professionals today? First thing I would do is pick up the phone. When you're having a conversation with your prospects, just pick up the phone and say, "I'm calling to see how you're doing. I want to understand your business and what challenges you're facing." Once your prospect realizes that it's not a sales call and that it's a caring call that's huge because now you have an opportunity to hone your phone skills and build rapport the same time."

This is episode 235. Read the complete transcript on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. Victor Hoskins is the President CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority. Prior to taking over this role he had a similar position with Arlington County. On today's program, he details the steps he and the team took to win one the biggest economic deals ever seen. VICTOR'S FINAL TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "First, if you listen to the client you can't lose. A lot of people do not hear the pain points, a lot of people do not pay attention to the client, they're so busy selling their product they're not listening to the client. The client has a need, find that need out. The client has pain, find that pain point and cure it. And second, you do nothing alone. Sales is a team sport. "Do not go out alone, do not pitch alone because you need somebody observing while you're working and you need somebody working while you're observing."

This is episode 234. Read the complete transcript on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. This is a replay of the Sales Game Changers Panel Webinar hosted by Fred Diamond, Host of the Sales Game Changers Podcast, on May 13, 2020. It featured sales leaders Dan Cole (The Spy Museum) and Steve Richard (ExecVision).] DAN'S TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "If you feel your empathy to your customers is getting stale I would say take a day or a week off because nothing's changed in sales. Empathy should always be a part of what we do whether we're in a pandemic or not. It is what is going to allow us to move our business forward."

This is episode 233. Read the complete transcript on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. MAJOR TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "The solution is us, sales professionals. We are the remedy and our employers need us to sell their way out of this. That means we don't have the luxury of burying our heads in the sand and waiting for this all to be over, we need to do something now. We really don't have a choice. We need to take key actions now. Some salespeople are afraid to reach out to prospects and clients now but sales is not to be feared but rather revered. If your heart is in the right place, you'll never be wrong which means you should have no fear of making calls to prospects and clients right now."

This is episode 232. Read the complete transcription on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. This is a replay of the Sales Game Changers Panel Webinar hosted by Fred Diamond, Host of the Sales Game Changers Podcast, on May 6, 2020. It featured sales leaders Patrick Devlin (Meridian) and Jennifer Fisher (WorldStrides). PATRICK'S TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "Somebody said we're all on the same boat with this thing but I'm a sailor and I'll say that we're not in the same boat, we're in the same storm. The situation on anybody else's boat might be very different than yours so try to really tune into that. You have some customers that are flourishing and you have some that you think might be but they're not. The economic impact is not equal and you really do need to understand that."

This is episode 231. Read the complete transcript on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. This is a replay of the Sales Game Changers Panel Webinar hosted by Fred Diamond, Host of the Sales Game Changers Podcast, on May 1, 2020. It featured The Honesty Guy, Steven Gaffney. MAJOR TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "In any crisis, there are 8 stages that people, teams and organizations go through but the best ones move from crisis reaction to crisis growth. One way to ensure this is to develop Consistently High Achieving Teams. These teams produce consistently high achieving performers."

This is episode 230. Read the complete transcript on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. Jim Van Stone is the President of Business Operations and the Chief Commercial Officer for Monumental Sports and Entertainment, the company behind the Washington Wizards NBA team, Washington Capitals NHL hockey team, and other teams and enterprises and the arenas where they play. EDITOR'S NOTE: Since we conducted this interview before the Pandemic of 2020 hit, we asked Jim what his advice is for sales professionals during the pandemic. He offered the following: The evolving landscape is an opportunity to provide clarity of your brand: stay true to your foundational principles and let those guide your decision-making. Consistently showcasing your value will help you weather systemic changes. People expend resources - time, money or loyalty - based on its connection to a return on investment. Give them something to value. This is the time to qualify and quantify your stretch goals and look at them with fresh eyes. Don't be burdened by past norms; it's all a clean slate now. Trying to fit within previous models is a waste of effort, so choose to be bold.

This is episode 229. Read the complete transcript on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. This is a replay of the Sales Game Changers Panel Webinar hosted by Fred Diamond, Host of the Sales Game Changers Podcast, on April 28, 2020. It featured sales leaders Jeffrey Wolinsky (WTOP) and Brian Ludwig (Cvent).] MAJOR TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "What are you doing to be a good friend to the people that you have relationships in life that are mutually beneficial? Think about that and apply that to sales. Friendships are built on like experiences – we've had like experiences with our clients that continue to renew from us year after year. How do we continue those like experiences – by having some version of contact, touching, relationship talking, whatever it is, continuing like experiences that take place through situations like this. You get value out of spending time with somebody, you get value out of advice from a friend, you get value out of laughter from a friend, you get value out of something that a friend does. Apply that to business, they get value out of what they buy from you so first, apply the friendship method of like experiences, create lasting friendships"

This is episode 228. Read the complete transcription on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. EDITOR'S NOTE: We conducted this interview before the Pandemic hit, so it's pretty impressive how good the social distancing was below. Since the show was released during the COVID-19 pandemic, we asked Amtower what his advice is for sales professionals during the pandemic. He offered the following: Make certain your profile is totally up-to-date and accurate. You may want to add your contact info if you want people to reach out; Find information worth sharing with those in your 1st network. Post these on you profile. If you go to the Home page (LinkedIn navigation bar top left) you have two options for sharing: as a post or as an article. If you are simply sharing an article, put the link to the article in the "Post" section. You can add a few lines if you want to point out key points in the article. This will be shared with your 1st degree network via their "Home" pages It's a great time for account-based marketing. Reach out to those in your key accounts and personalize the message, which should encourage a response. If possible, then move the conversation to Skype or Zoom. MARK'S FINAL TIP TO EMERGING SALES LEADERS: "The main thing you have is your reputation so maintain that every day. I don't do things I can't tell my wife and children, period. Same thing with my customers, I'm not going to say, "Sure, I can do that." I will say, "No, let me aim you at somebody who can help you who's much better than I am" or, "That's just not what I do at all, let me find somebody." I have a network of experts around me that cover literally every aspect of doing business with the government, I'm comfortable referring them. You should also build that type of network."