Are you the undisputed top seller in your field? Have your competitors stopped trying to improve? Is your industry unchanging and your product the same as it ever was?

If the answer to any of these questions is "No," then your job...

The sales profession centers on meeting people, listening to people, understanding people, building trust with people, and sharing prosperity with people.

So when sellers were forced to spend a year and a half separated from people t...

The end of COVID quarantine signals the end of an era for sellers. The days of the road warrior are over. Lockdown proved that sellers can do just fine, if not better, by working remotely. There's no travel expense and zero wasted time in airpo...

My wife and I had spent weeks researching the best contractors in our area. We were ready to build our house, but first we wanted to meet our builder.

We set an appointment to talk with him about our construction hopes and plans. What...

We came to the dealership to buy a car. We left after an awkward lesson in one of the most common mistakes in selling - the failure to keep it simple.

My wife and I were excited to test drive a new family vehicle. On the dealer's...

Every sales team is made up of individuals with different strengths and weaknesses, but too many sales managers try to run their teams as if they're a standardized block.

It's easy to understand why. Sales management is a high-str...

Your sales team has identified and engaged with a promising new overseas distributor. The group is thrilled. They show you how the relationship could improve access to customers and boost company growth. But are you informed as to whether the pot...

The time is right for smart businesses to plan for life after quarantine. COVID-19 vaccination rates are up, infection rates are down, and states are launching more plans to re-open the economy.

While it's liberating to consider the...

I deeply believe in being customer centric when it comes to selling. Really understanding the needs of buyers usually leads to a good outcome for both parties and to the kind of relationship that results in repeat business.

But there...

Almost every company claims to put the customer first, but the reality is that this business promise gets a lot of lip service.

Despite clear evidence showing that customer-centered businesses grow faster and out-perform competitors,...

Salespeople face great pressure to focus more on the competition than the client. It's an unforgiving business world out there, and sales reps have quarterly sales targets to meet and market share to gain. We all want to win, right?

It's surprising how often we see professional services firms get in their own way when it comes to driving new business and deepening partnerships with existing clients.

A primary culprit for this is outdated compensation practices...

Ten months into the pandemic, customers are edgy. Maybe it's cabin fever. Maybe it's the challenging business environment. But make no mistake: Buyers are expecting more and more from sellers - and the pressure is on to deliver.

Now that a COVID-19 vaccine is being distributed, some salespeople may be dreaming about packing their bags, getting back on the road, and resuming the business life they had before the pandemic.

Not so fast, road warrior.

Sales manager is a stressful job at many companies, but it becomes even tougher when the job focuses too much on "sales" and not enough on "manager."

Managers can become obsessed with The Number, as in: Will the sales team mak...