How to Handle the Objection: “call me after the holidays”

Dan Galante's avatarSales, Marketing & Social Media Today

The holiday season is upon us. Everyone is in holiday shopping mode from Black Friday, Cyber Monday and many other things. Also, everyone is thinking about going to parties. So the last thing on your customers and prospects mind is to make a year-end purchase; unless they receive a year-end tax advantage. As a sales rep, you are under pressure to close deals so you can earn that bonus.  Unless your customer is in a buying mood, you are going to hear the objection “call me after the holidays”. If you have done business with this customer, you will have an easier time than if you are making a cold call.

In prior articles, I have written how to get prospects and customers to buy. However, today’s focus is getting around the customers or prospects objection “call me after the holidays”. You have to attempt to get around this objection. If…

View original post 204 more words

How to Overcome Sales Objections & Stalls

Dan Galante's avatarSales, Marketing & Social Media Today

In sales, everyone has to be able to overcome objections in order to be successful. The best way to overcome objections is to prevent them. This can be done by providing a thorough sales presentation that covers all the information about your products and services. Also it is imperative that you address any questions the prospect has immediately. However, objections will come up from time to time. Some of these objections are real buying signals and others are just stalls to put you off. As a Salesperson, you need to be able to tell the difference. This will come with experience and by reading situational cues in each selling situation. Remember the prospect is buying you. In other words, you are part of the offering. Below, I have put together a comprehensive list of objections that I encountered and overcame as an outside sales representative in New York City.

Handling…

View original post 784 more words

Market Your Expertise with Paper.li

Dan Galante's avatarSales, Marketing & Social Media Today

Blogging is a great way to establish and market yourself as an expert. However, there is only so much you can write on a topic in a time period. This is where content curation comes into play. Besides writing, experts share articles and opinion of others in their field. This can come in the form of a retweet on Twitter, like on Facebook, +1 on Google plus and various other forms of re-sharing. However, if you want to curate content from multiple sources, an online newspaper comes in handy. This is where Paper. li comes in.

I use Paper.li to share content on sales, marketing and technology. This is a great way for me to engage my followers with the content and opinions of others in my field.  People who are included in my papers frequently retweet the paper and mention me on Twitter. 

Paper .li is a great site…

View original post 295 more words

Sales Reps: Want to Boost your Sales? Study your Sales Data & Do the Math!

Math and Sales Data are essential to improve the sales efforts of Sales Reps. The use of Math and Sales Data can provide a wealth of insights in terms of how effective a businesses sales campaigns are doing. In my previous post, How to be your own Manager of Sales, I detailed how Sales Reps could track their own sales numbers using a Closing ratio.

“Closing ratio is calculated by taking the number of sales you make per day, dividing them by the number of sales calls you have made and setting it equal to X/100. Next set each of the proportions equal to each other, cross multiply and solve for X. For example, if I made 3 sales per day and made 30 calls per day; my closing ratio would be 10 percent. 3/30 = X/100 = 10%. Try this with your own sales numbers”

Our closing ratio can be further extended to examine the number of exposures it takes to convert a prospect into a customer. I will call this the Prospect to Customer conversion ratio. The prospect conversion ratio is a great way to examine your prior sales calls to determine how hard you will need to work to get the sale. For example, during my time as an Outside Sales Rep in NYC; it would take me as many as 10 exposures before I was able to convert some prospects into customers. Some times the number of exposures were as low as two or three or some were as many as 20. Typically, if I cold called and the customer never heard of my product it usually took about 10 exposures. To calculate this ratio for a particular customer,I would take the number of times I called on the prospect and divide it by 1. For example, if it took me 20 exposures to convert the prospect to a customer, I would divide 20/1 and my prospect to conversion ratio would be 20/1. If it took 10 exposures, the ratio would 10/1 for that particular customer. If you track your prior sales calls and examine the Prospect to Customer conversion ratio; you will notice a pattern in the number of exposures to sales in many cases.

However, this method will work in all cases. Remember, not all prospects are created equal. As a Sales Rep, you need to prove to prospects that you and your product are worth it’s purchase price. There are no free customers unless you are calling on a new start-up. In most cases, Sales Reps will need to take prospects from competitors.

Using both the closing ratio and the prospect to customer conversion ratio; will provide Sales Rep with invaluable snapshot insight into how they hard you need to work along with how effective they are in the field. If you are a Sales rep and you are not examining your call patterns, I guarantee that your Sales Manager is!

In fact, most Sales Managers use both the closing ratio and the prospect to customer conversion ratio to set sales goals and daily sales call requirements for Sales Reps. This Math and Data analysis is also used to help Sales Managers mentor their team.

As you can see, studying the data from sales calls and doing the math using ratios are power methods for Sales Reps to use to boost their sales.

 

How to be your Own Manager of Sales

Anyone who is in inside or outside sales has to meet sales quotas/sales goals of a certain type. The role of a Sales Manager is to hire, mentor, train and motivate the Sales Team. A Sales Manager is also accountable for setting the sales goals of their team and making sure that these goals are meet and exceeded. Sales Managers are provided with salary and an override of the teams total sales. Each Sales Reps goals make up a piece of this total sales goal. A Sales Manager’s duties will vary by the size of the organization and it’s structure.

Now you are asking ” How could I be my own Manager of Sales? Why would I want to be? The first step to being your own Sales Manager is to track your own sales numbers. Every Sales Rep worth their salt should know exactly how much product they sold and how close they are to hitting and exceeding their goals. Sales Reps also need to be aware of their own sales process.

Sales process consists of knowing how to prospect, convert leads to sales and know your closing ratio. Closing ratio is calculated by taking the number of sales you make per day, dividing them by the number of sales calls you have made and setting it equal to x/100. Next set each of the proportions equal to each other, cross multiply and solve for X. For example, if I made 3 sales per day and made 30 calls per day; my closing ratio would be 10 percent. 3/30 = X/100 = 10%. Try this with your own sales numbers. Knowing how many exposures it takes before you make a sale is also helpful.

The next step to being your own Sales Manager is to stay on top of your territory. Some Sales reps are called Territory Managers. Territory Management consists of the following:

1 developing and keeping good customer relationships

2 knowing how to meet and exceed customers wants, needs and expectations

3 Using a consultative selling approach to successfully do number two

4 providing great customer service where customers feel taken care of

5 making sure all receivables are paid in a timely manager by doing number four

Next any good Sales rep needs to train and motivate themselves because their Sales Manager has limited time to go out with reps as they have their own selling responsibilities. Sales Reps need to be motivated to stand tall in the face of rejection. Live training is a great way to go, but if you are looking for a more affordable option you can by books, watch videos and role play with other reps. I recommend the following Sales trainers materials and programs Jeffrey Gitomer, Jim Cathcart,Tom Hopkins, Tony Alessandra and Brian Tracy. They have motivated and inspired me to be a better Sales Rep. Earl Nightingale’s program Lead the Field and The Strangest Secret has also helped me develop and cultivate a positive attitude.

It is essential that you own your role as a Sales Rep. As a Sales Rep you are in your own business without all of the expenses. If you treat the territory like you would a small business; you will do very well.

If you master all of the steps I mentioned; you may indeed be promoted to Sales Manager or be able to start and run your own business one day!

Do Sales People Need to Double as Product Marketing Managers for their offerings?

Dan Galante's avatarSales, Marketing & Social Media Today

Do Sales people need to double as Product Marketing Managers for their offerings?

When it comes to knowing who their customers are along with their needs; they do.

Previously, I spoke about prospecting and identifying your target market. I will cover this topic in more detail in this post. I stated that it is important to know who would be a good fit for your offering. For example if you were selling Dental equipment like I was, you would look for Dental professionals in your sales territory, you would not call on other medical professionals and offices that do not have a need. When I was selling Dental equipment, I sold devices that any Dental professional could use. However, I also sold items that only specialized Dentists could use. As a result, I had to do research to distinguish between my offerings. For example, I would not present…

View original post 451 more words

Say Thank You on Thanksgiving!

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s easy to lose sight of the things that are important. We can easily be consumed by the things we want and don’t have. Left unchecked, this could lead to a life of unhappiness.

Thanksgiving is upon us and I want to pause and reflect on the things that I am thankful for. I am thankful for my family and friends. They are very supportive of me. I am also thankful for the good fortune that I have in my life. Sure we have our ups and downs but it’s important to remember the good that we have in our lives. Many people have less than we do!

 

As my blog turns two this year, I want to thank my followers on this blog and social media as a whole for all of the support they have given me. Your support has been invaluable to me. You have enriched my life in so many ways. 

 

Remember to say thank you on Thanksgiving and count your blessings. 

 

Remember what matters.

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

What are you thankful for?

 

Dan

 

 Image

5 Things Sales has Taught Me

Sales has taught me many things.

Below is a list of what I learned from selling:

1.To go after what I want in life. Ask for the order if you will.

2. To stand tall in the face of rejection and negativity.

3 To look at rejection as a learning experience instead of a defeat.

4 To persist through obstacles and not to quit!

5 To examine how a business operates.
Every person should try selling products at least once in their lives. It is a valuable learning experience.

I worked in New York City as a Retail Sales Rep during my college recess.

After graduation, I worked as an Outside Sales Rep in the Dental Industry in Manhattan.

Both jobs have taught me so much about myself.

Feel free to share your sales story here!

What did selling teach you?

Increase Credibility: In-Person Customer Testimonials Hit the Spot at 2013 NY Auto Show

Last year, I wrote an article about what the auto show could teach us about trade show marketing. This year I had the honor of covering the show as a member of the press once again. I really enjoyed attending the show. All of the manufacturers had great presentations and unveils of their cars. Each company presented their vehicles with a great presentation.

However, Hyundai made one of the best presentations of the show. They dared to be different. Instead of the traditional press conference, where journalists sit, take in the information and ask questions post conference, Hyundai included a Q & A session right into the presentation. The conference was not a conference at all; it was a town hall. John Krafcik, CEO of Hyundai Motor America, used the opportunity to roll out Connected Care. This is a service that allows drivers to get help in case of emergencies. The service also updates owners on the health of their vehicle.

To back up their claims, they had customers provide in-person testimonials of how their lives were saved. One of their customers survived a head on collision thanks to the service. Unable to contact his family the service notified them of the customer’s condition. Now that’s a testimonial.

If you want to attend the auto show there is a few hours left.  Still not convinced? Check out my mobile uploads on Facebook.

Build your Brand with a Blog

Blogging is a great way to build your brand and market your products to the masses. Writing a blog allows you to demonstrate your expertise through writing. Blogging helps to provide prospects and customers with valuable information. Providing valuable information helps to position you as an expert and a resource.

Popular blog posts formats are: How to’s, book reviews, interviews, analysis of trends in your industry and best of’s. I was approached by many people as a result of my blog. Now you are asking the question, “How did you get the idea to blog?”

I decided to write a blog while working on an assignment in the education field. This assignment required me get other people to work on their writing. One of the prompts I used asked the question, “What do you know a lot about?”

Make a list of topics, choose one and write a research paper on this topic.

This writing prompt made me think about the topics that I knew a lot about. The topics were Sales, Marketing, and Social Media. As a result, I decided to put my thoughts on these topics in writing.  I launched Dan Galante’s Sales and Marketing blog in November 2011.

A blog is very easy to set up. The major blogging platforms are WordPress and tumblr. Both sites allow users to register for free. If you want to choose a custom domain name there is a fee. WordPress directly offers domain names for sale on their site. With tumblr, you will need to go to an outside provider and redirect the site to tumblr.

The WordPress and tumblr platforms have many features of Facebook and Twitter. You can re-blog an article. Re-blogging is sharing someone else’s content on your blog; similar to a retweet. Your fellow bloggers can also like your post and comment on it, similar to Facebook.  These features are great for engagement. Articles can be tagged with relevant terms. You can then search out these terms to see all posts on that topic. This is similar to a hashtag on Twitter or SEO.

WordPress and tumblr allows bloggers to share articles on various social networks such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+ and Pinterest. You can use badges and plugins from your social networks to build a following and community. I have used this method to expand readership.

Guest blogging and syndication is another way to share your content. I am now syndicated on The Strategic HR blog.

Once you decide to start blogging, stick with it and publish quality content. Try to set up a writing schedule to maintain consistency. I shoot for once a week.

Blogging is a great way to get your message out. This is how you can build your brand with a blog.