Defining Empathy and Understanding Why Salespeople Fail At It Sales organizations understand the power of empathy and more sales managers are teaching this powerful EQ skill. They are well-intentioned but often miss the mark. In an effort to help salespeople make an emotional connection with prospects, they teach validation/paraphrasing skills, not empathy skills. Note: Validation/paraphrasing isn’t empathy; it’s ... Read Post

Just as the release of Kopernikus’s book was a major shift in the view of the universe, the release of Pipeliner Kopernikus is a similarly groundbreaking shift in the CRM marketplace. Read Post

The Tunnel that Meets in the Middle The Gotthard Base Tunnel in Switzerland is, at 35.5 miles, the longest tunnel in the world, and an incredible feat of engineering. It took over $9.5 billion dollars and 14 years to complete. Tunneling is an exact science. If such a project were begun from two sides, and ... Read Post

How Sales Engagement Insights Can Influence the Buyer A report published by LinkedIn documents the findings from research commissioned with approximately 1,500 buyers and sellers to map Net Promoter Score (NPS) rankings with the level of individual seller engagement on the LinkedIn platform. You can download the full report here to draw your own conclusions ... Read Post

6 Practical Ways to Cut the Crap in Sales As a sales leader does this sound familiar? You have developed a new sales strategy. You have communicated it far and wide to the entire sales team; you have made minor adjustments based on the input you received. You seem to have a consensus and buy-in ... Read Post

While traveling through Europe this summer, and especially spending some time in France, I had the opportunity to explore the story of the great French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and his path of success and leadership. Without a doubt, Napoleon was not only one of the greatest European generals, but also (and most importantly) an excellent ... Read Post

Build a Buyer’s Trust by Sharpening Your Listening and Language Skills Listening and language skills are vital for building a buyer’s trust. As a sales professional, delivering the right messages to buyers is crucial to getting your foot in the door and then building their trust. Many times, successfully approaching and engaging buyers comes down ... Read Post

The Three Sales Questions That Make All The Difference Two differentiators exist between top achieving salespeople and those who are average at best. The ability to ask and answer unusual questions with a smile makes all the difference. Clients immediately recognize a salesperson who is willing to learn by stepping out of the traditional comfort zone of merely ... Read Post