This is the next installment from my eavesdropping on a fascinating conversation—in the after-hours of the first evening of a recent entrepreneurship conference—between Dr. Abraham, a world-weary experienced entrepreneur, and a young, energetic hot venture capitalist named Doug. The first part of the conversation covered the fact that 80 to 90 percent of startups fail, despite ... Read Post

Perfecting a traditional sale is an art that mixes emotional intelligence with the ability to paint vivid pictures in the minds of customers. The days of cold calling, direct email, and door-to-door sales are creeping to a close thanks to the technological advances that the Internet provides. I want to welcome you to the world ... Read Post

What are your strengths and weaknesses? Have you gotten asked this question before? Professionally, we all want to utilize our strengths and work on our weaknesses. But that may not always be a good thing juggling both. Use these four tips; so you can learn the best ways to discover your strengths and what you ... Read Post

This was a question that was recently asked by a coaching client who was the senior sales person in his company and stepping into a leadership role as VP of Sales. Should his coaching program focus on his strengths that got him to this point, or should he work on eliminating his weaknesses? Is it ... Read Post

Every commercial business thrives on the collective contributions of its various business units. Guys in sales and marketing work to capture, nurture, and convert leads to customers, and build excellent business relationship with customers. IT folks ensure the business software and networks are stable and functioning optimally. The customer service department is busy with customers ... Read Post

Economist Fredmund Malik said, “Results should give pleasure.” People often get distracted or confused in certain selling activities. Top performers seem to have a sixth sense about when buyers or committees aren’t going to buy and will remove them from their pipelines. B and C Players, on the other hand, get excited just because prospects ... Read Post

I took a trip recently to visit an entrepreneurship conference in another city. On the evening of the first day, while having a nightcap in the hotel bar, I happened to eavesdrop on a fascinating conversation between Dr. Abraham, a world-weary experienced entrepreneur, and a young, energetic hot venture capitalist named Doug. The first part ... Read Post

Adapt. This is nature’s keyword when it comes to evolution and the survival of the fittest. This is also the keyword when it comes to sales strategies. You probably hear it again and again, but it’s worth repeating: the sales process now is a completely different animal than it was before information became so readily ... Read Post