New Year’s Resolutions: Why Most of Them Die Faster Than a Cold Call on Friday at 4:59
By Michael Caron, President, Northbound Sales Training At Northbound Sales Training, we don’t call them resolutions but every year at around this time, I hear salespeople set their sales goals for the year. And every January, I hear sales professionals of my clients make the same bold resolutions.“I’m going to prospect every day.”“I’m going to […]
Questions Are the Answer
By Michael Caron In our business, we are often asked, “What is the biggest mistake salespeople make?” Of course, we tend to term them “opportunity areas” rather than “mistakes” but whatever you want to call them, the most common is the area of questioning. The second area that goes hand-in-hand with number one would be […]
Presenting Like a Pro(ish): Tips for Salespeople Who Want to Actually Keep Their Audience Awake
Let’s be honest: most sales presentations fall somewhere between “mildly forgettable” and “I wish I had faked a dentist appointment.” But in B2B sales, delivering an engaging face-to-face presentation is one of the most powerful ways to build trust, demonstrate value, and prove you’re not just another person with a deck full of stock photos […]
How not to practice!
In B2B sales, there is one universal truth that separates top performers from the people who talk a lot about being top performers on LinkedIn: practice. I’m consistently shocked when I hear from salespeople how much time they spend – or don’t spend – practicing their craft. Can you imagine a sports team without regular […]
6 LinkedIn Profile Tips for Salespeople
1. Craft a Customer-Focused Headline Instead of just listing your job title (e.g., Sales Executive at Northbound Sales Training), use the headline to show who you help and how.Example: “Helping B2B Sales Leaders Build Stronger, More Consistent Sales Teams | Sales Development Specialist at Northbound Sales Training” 2. Write a “Story” Summary That Builds Credibility Your “About” section should […]
The Kids Are Back in School. What You Should Be Doing to Keep Up.
This article discusses how to get better at learning for sales professionals.
Why Winging It is for Birds: The Power of Prepping Your Sales Calls
You wouldn’t walk into a job interview without researching the company, right? And you wouldn’t show up to a blind date without at least a quick social media stalk (don’t lie, we all do it). So why on earth would you dial into a sales call with zero preparation? I’ve been on too many calls […]
The Power of Handwritten Notes
In school, we used to pass handwritten notes. Even today, it makes you stand out from the rest I’m a big advocate of using handwritten notes in your selling process for 2 main reasons #1 Reason: They work #2 Reason: They are a kind gesture which makes me feel good! Why do they work? In […]
How to Turn Problems Into More Sales
Consultative selling, the powerful selling methodology that emerged in the early 90’s, is based on the idea that to sell something, you have to be able to demonstrate how it’s going to solve someone’s problem, challenge or issue.
6 Language Mistakes to Avoid in a Sales Call
Your Words Are Important – Choose Them Carefully! 1. Eliminate the grunts: Um and Ah and Uh! Be comfortable with the silence and resume speaking when the thought is there. People who use “um” to illustrate their thought process may appear less sure and less knowledgeable. 2. Sorta, kinda, shoulda – what? These words make […]