The Sales Evangelist

Categories

general
Being Authentic
Framing
Relationships
Risk
Business Growth
Customized Solutions
Bryan Hendrick
Objections
Account Executive
B2C
Differentiate
C-Suite
Company Culture
Give Value
Seek to Understand
Email
Conversations
Collaboration
Brian Margolis
Cold Calling
Barbara Giamanco
Account Management
Content Marketing
Jay Gibb
Business Development
Outbound
Empathy
Coaching
Fear
Jimmy Burgess
Education Based Marketing
Keywords
Prospecting
Pipeline
Dennis Brown
LinkedIn
Facebook
Clarence Butts
leads
Dale Dupree
Michael Sardina
Cadence
Jack Kosakowski
Qualifying
Social Selling
Connection
John Antonacci
Branding
Ethics
Bob Burg
John Barrows
Credibility
Audience Engagement
Ericka Eller
Confidence
Jim Jacobus
Building Rapport
Communication
Douglas Vigliotti
Entrepreneur
Humor
Champion
Jared Easley
Commission Sales
Chris Dayley
Building Value
Building Trust
Sales Team
Ask for the sale
Sales Training
Relationship Selling
Ideal Customer
Leadership
Prospecting System
Hiring
Goals
Sales Plan
Referrals
Value
Lead Generation
Asking Thought Provoking Questions
Client Management
sales Management
Success
Asking for Referrals
Sales Strategies
Sales Habits
Sales Culture
Motivation
Door to Door Sales
Sales Coaching
Group Coaching
Selling Success
Accountability
Crowdfunding
Mindset
Sales Enterprise
Sales Process
Closing
Sales Leader
Following Up
Digital Marketing
Sales Opportunities
Sales Mindset
Sales
Email Marketing
Online Marketing
Rejection
Habits
Start with Why
Profitability
Fear of Rejection
Marketing and Sales
Scarcity
Videos
Questions
Business Conversation
Value Conversation
Customer Experience
Negotiation
Demo
Customer Service
Competition
Sales Compensation Plan
Unique Way To Sell
Sales Conversations
Discovery Meeting
Reciprocity
Messaging
Sales and Marketing
Sales Tools
Buyer Persona
Pricing
Joe Carlen
GAP Method
Pre Call Planning
Warm Leads
New Hire
Time Management
Reading Prospects
Numbers Game
Goals Setting
Q and A
Rapport
Customer Evangelist
Humility
Medical Sales
Upselling
Speaking With Executives
Networking
Meeting With Executives
Scaling your sales team
Sales Growth
High Ticket Selling
ROI
Focusing
AI
Bad Customers
Creative Prospecting
Top Performer
Phone Prospecting
Presentation
Affliate Marketing
Research
Delegate
Sales Develop Representative
Theater and Sales
Additive Behaviors
Email Selling
Hard Work and Determination
Hard Work
Common Sales Challenges
First Impression
Meeting with Customers
Interview
Dedication
Administrative Tasks
Sales Enablement
Promotional Materials
Finishing
Story Selling
Revenue
Proposals
Course
Top Performance
Current Customers
Podcast
Planning
Value Driven Conversation
Processes
Twitter
Wealth
Field Sales Rep
Local Advertising
Increase Revenue
Upfront Agreement
Lead Magnet
Message
Experience
Change
Direct Response Marketing
Inbound
Sales Vs. Marketing
Phone Sales
Community
New Sales Professional
PAIN
Influence
Mastermind
Cross Selling
Sales Travel
Team Motivation
Sell Yourself
Image
Values Based Marketing
Promotional Product
Bold
Sales Metric
Sales 2.0
Timing
Sales processes
Value Pricing
Proposal
Copywriting
Network Marketing
Budget
Appointment
Sales Commitment
Building Quick Relationships
Passion
Consultative Selling
Foundation
Everyday Sales
Selling Intangibles
Work-life balance
Inside sales
Mental tougness
Fear of being salesy
Free Trial
Web Leads
Sales Leadership
Vacation
Sales Job Interview
Podcasting
Positive
Live Events
Decision Makers
Sales jobs
Public Relations
Website Sales
Newsletters
entrepreneurs
Commission
Webinar Sales
Sales Experience
Sales Proposals
New Sellers
Daily Planning
Rapid Growth
Lead with Value
Finding Your Voice
New Sales Training
Sales From The Street
The Sales Whisperer
Sales Funnels
Listening
Sales Prospecting
 Guy Kawasaki
Taking action
Positive Thinking
Increasing Sales
Winning Vendor
Being Selfless
Positive Attitude
Selling to women
Sales Stigma
Sales Slump
Persistence
Agenda
Job Interview
Sales Vision
Forecasting
Close Rate
Deeper Discussion
Linked Seller
High Performance Habits
DISCOVER Questions™
Rory Vaden
Donald Kelly
Curtis McHale
Anthony Tran
Case Study
Advanced Sellers
Contract Hell
Bob Rickert
Reluctant Buyers
Inbound Marketing
Google Alerts
Game Changer
Close.io
Honesty
Finding
Calendar Invite
Eveline Pierre
Josh turner
Joanne Black
Matt Hallisy
Mace Horoff
Amy Porterfield
Chris Rollins
Deb Calvert
Closed File
Dino Dogan
Katherine Kotaw
Bryan Daley
Dave Delany
Linda Yates
Jim Cathcart
Happy Someone
Chirag Gupta
Personalize
Jeffrey Gitomer
Cold Outreach
Growth
Sales Pitch
Carissa Hill
Account-Based Marketing
Preparation
Alice Heiman
Imposter syndrome
Buyer's Journey
Drip campaign
Outreach
Influencers
Prospect.io
Don Barden
Acquisition
Barth Getto
Joe Pardo
Data
Preconceived Notions
Sales Process, Sales Podcast
CRM
Selling Your Company
Gen Z
Mastermind, Group Learning
Chat
Partnering, New Leads
Hiring, New Hire
Instagram, New Leads
Failure
Grit
Emotional Intelligence
Client Success
Client Onboarding
Price
SDR
Small Businesses
Asking Questions
Decision Maker
Poor Sales
Account Mapping
Remote Worker
Stories
Selling
Video
Script
Money
Discovery Questions
Marketing
Solving problems
Staying Top of Mind
References
Content
Scaling
Authenticity
Incentives
Curiosity
Market
Omnichannel outreach
Building Relationship
Scale
Video Conference
Traveling Seller
SEO
Scheduling
Cause Marketing
Overcoming obstacles
personal branding
Sales Leaders
Course correction
Sales Meetings
Activities
Problem Solving
Sales Success
BDR
Inbound Leads
Business Proposals
Selling to Friends
Product Demo
Transformational Selling
Profits
Nurturing
Teamwork
Podcast changes
Sales Strategy
Contact Marketing
Firing
New Products
Social Dynamic Selling
Accidental Seller
Accidental Sellers
Repeat Business
Accidental Series
Closing deals
Increasing Sales, Technology
Sales, Effective Sales
Cold Emails
Closing revenue
LinkedIn sales
The Accidental Seller Series
Sales Hiring
Accidental Seller Series
Hiring, Successful hiring
Sales Contracts
Best Sellers In History Series 1
Best sellers in History
Sales Planning
Sales Events
sales 2020
Best Sellers in History Series
Best Seller in History Series
DISC Assessment Profile
Best Seller in History
Psychology of Sales, Sales Mindset
Sales Effectiveness
women in sales, best sellers in history
Sales Script, Target Customer, Niche
Best seller in history, Salesman
Sales Story
Sales Women, Sales Force
Reginald F Lewis
Sales Wealth, Sales Prosperity
Personal Brand, Stephen Hart
Donald Kelly, The Sales Evangelist
SaaS, Software Sales
Leads, Qualifying Leads
ROI, Leads, Inbound Leads, External and Internal Triggers
Women in Sales, Sales Success Story
Stuck sellers
Sales Value
Building trust, Entrepreneurs
Sales Automation
Government, Sales
Sales Videos, Closing Deals
Sales Process, Sales Planning
Sales restructuring, Sales Messaging
Sales Performance
Sales Performance, Sales Process
Sales Promotion
Sales, Rapport
SDR, Sales Job
SDR, BDR
SDR/BDR
BDR/SDR
Sales Rewards, Sales Incentives
Healing, Grief
Sales Profile, Ideal Sales Profile
Sales Manager, Training, Coaching
Sales approach
Sales Experience, PreSales
Sales Fears
Sales Talk
CRM, Leads, Crmble
Sales Skills
Sales, Career, Leadership
Sales Career, Sales Path
Sales success, mental toughness, sales story
TSE, Sales Podcast, Sales Principles
Sales Coaching, Improving Skills
Sales Journey, Reselling, Sales Culture
Sales Process, Networking
sales prospect, sales opportunity
Sales habits, Sales professionals
BDR, SDR, Personalization
cold-calling, prospecting
Sales Language, Authentic Identity
Demonstration, Negotiations
Lost customers, Perseverance
Social Selling, Omnichannel, Sales Leads
Prospecting, Limiting Beliefs, Fear
Cold Outreach, Sales Mindset
Linkedin, Cold Calling, Automation
LinkedIn, LinkedIn Voice Messaging, Donald Kelly
Testimonials, Referrals
Cold prospects, Reaching out
Prospecting, Mindset, Sales Goals
Lead Generation, Video, Sales Video
Successful Salesman, Great Salesman
Successful Sales, Sales Training
Sales Prospecting, Video Sales
Power Dilaer, Sales Automation
Sales Prospecting, Sales Principles
Sales productivity, Trello
Virtual Sales, Virtual Tools for Sales
Sales Success, Sales Training
Building credibility, Sales credibility
mindset training
outreach message
Productivity
unproductive
sales productivity
Sales Goals
future of selling
Favorite Sales Stack Tools
special edition
Modern Selling Strategies
Modernizing Your Sales
Creating A Great Work Enviroment for Sellers
Using LinkedIn
Personal Image and Selfcare
Better sales emails
BDR & SDR Skills
AE Skills
Preparing For 2023
Kicking Off The Year Right
Sales Success Stories
Women in Sales
Better Selling
building sales pipeline
Closing Sales Pipeline

Archives

2024
March
February
January

2023
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2022
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2021
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2020
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2019
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2018
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2017
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2016
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2015
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2014
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January

2013
December

June 2019
S M T W T F S
     
            1
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
9 10 11 12 13 14 15
16 17 18 19 20 21 22
23 24 25 26 27 28 29
30

Syndication

You’ve likely heard the scenario before where an interviewer asks a seller to “Sell me this pen,” but how much value does this approach offer??

It’s bad enough that you’re already nervous about the interview, but if you’re thrown into a situation where the director of sales asks you to sell him a pen when you really have very little information to start from, you may find yourself fumbling for something to say. 

Features and benefits

Sellers who don’t know much about the product they are selling or the audience they are selling to usually revert to features and benefits. They sell the aspects of the product that they can see. 

“It’s comfortable.” “It has a good grip.” “It has a clicky thing and even a laser pointer. That’s great for folks who do presentations.”

“It writes smoothly and it isn’t too expensive. In fact, it’s cheaper than many of the pens on the market. And if you buy it today, I can throw in a notepad and a pocket protector.” 

Why would people even do this test in the first place?

Quick thinking

People often conduct this test to see how well you think on your feet and how you perform under pressure. And though I can understand those motivations, this test won’t truly work unless you’re selling something that might be a consumer sale. 

Typically, sellers aren’t selling simple products like pens. Rather they are selling something like a software solution that is much more expensive and has a much longer sales cycle. In those cases, it won’t matter as much how good you are with your words. You won’t be able to persuade someone within one minute to buy your expensive product. 

If you’re selling inexpensive trinkets on the side of the road, it might just work. But if you’re selling something with a significant price value, it won’t.  
Reviews 

This idea might have provided a good judge of a seller’s abilities in the 80s and 90s, but today’s buyers rely on reviews. They are researching and asking friends and family for insights and input.  Today’s buyers will prepare before they enter the arena. 

So as a sales leader, what if you stopped using this unrealistic test and offered a better one? What if you gave your sellers a scenario and ask them to prepare for it? 

Test your sellers to see whether they can find true problems or interesting facts, figures, or statistics that will help you win the deal. Determine whether the sellers will try to “wing it” instead of coming prepared. 

Sales scenario

You want a sales rep who is prepared, so use your interview opportunity to determine their ability to prepare. Ask your receptionist to send a scenario to the interviewees. Let them know they will be asked to role play a selling scenario like this. 

Present a scenario in which a particular business owner has a certain set of challenges. He is already working with a particular vendor. The sellers’ job is to show up prepared to understand the product and services and have a meaningful conversation selling this service to the business owner. 

If the sales rep shows up with information about the company in-hand and prepared to have a meaningful discussion, you’ve likely found a good seller. If the seller shows up with the intention to “wing it,” you’ll know what you’re up against. 

Selling pens

The secret to successful selling lies with asking appropriate questions, even in the case of selling a pen. If you do use the pen test, expect your sellers to begin by finding out whether the buyer even needs a pen.It doesn’t matter how much ink it will hold or how great the cap is if the seller doesn’t need it. 

Instead of spending the time pressuring the buyer to spend money on a pen, expect your sellers to begin by asking questions. 

Meaningful questions about the buyer’s situation will either qualify or disqualify the buyer. It will also communicate that the seller understands the buyer’s actual situation. The seller will demonstrate a desire to identify the pain point and solve the problem. 

Maybe the customer needs a computer more than a pen. Don’t waste your time pitching a product the customer doesn’t need. 

Consultants

Seek sellers who will serve as consultants rather than those who will try to trick the customers. Help the buyer feel like he is making a buying decision rather than being sold to. 

Jeffrey Gitomer said that people love to buy but they hate to be sold to. Help your customers understand the true pain that exists and then help them solve it. If you do this, they’ll evangelize about you and ultimately help you get more business. 

Empower your sales reps to sell on their own. Teach them to become consultants who ask meaningful questions to identify challenges that the buyers may not even realize they have. 

He’ll be successful and he’ll have great clients who love him. 

If you create a meaningful scenario for your interviews, you’ll have more meaningful discussions and dialogues and both parties will enjoy the process more. 

Besides, we probably already have enough pens.     

"Sell me this pen" episode resources

If you haven't connected with me on LinkedIn already, do that at Donald C. Kelly and watch the things I'm sharing there.

You've heard us talk about the TSE Certified Sales Training Program, and we're offering the first module free as a gift to you. Preview it. Check it out. If it makes sense for you to join, you can be part of our upcoming semester.

You can take it on your own or as part of the semester group.
If you and your team are interested in learning more, we'd love to have you join us. Call (561)578-1729 to speak directly to me or one of our team members about the program.

This episode is also brought to you in part by mailtag.io, a Chrome browser extension for Gmail that allows you to track and schedule your emails. You'll receive real-time alerts anyone opens an email or clicks a link.

I hope you enjoyed the show today as much as I did. If so, please consider leaving us a rating on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, or wherever you consume this content and share it with someone else who might benefit from our message. It helps others find our message and improves our visibility.

Audio provided by Free SFX and Bensound. 

Direct download: TSE_1112.mp3
Category:Asking Questions -- posted at: 12:47am EDT

1