James White’s Post

Many companies fail... to achieve what they say they will. Many excuses get made for why Sales Plans and Growth Targets are not achieved. Market conditions are slow or we can't get hold of people. Or we didn't have time to do what we wanted... Stop making excuses. 🤥 Most targets are not achieved because there either isn't a plan or the plan isn't being executed. Don't just rely on business coming to you, go out and find new opportunities. Use these 7 rules if you want to build a fat pipeline and reach out to companies and people who didn't know you existed. #sales #businessdevelopment #pipeline #prospecting

You are better to be last than 2nd in Sales I loved this quote which Glenn Poulos shared with me a few weeks ago when I had the chance to interview Glenn for the latest edition of the podcast. Glenn has been selling for over 35 years and his experience, knowledge and insights were fantastic. Take a listen to this week's episode. Lots of nuggets of gold shared! #sales #prospecting #business PS - If you are a sales leader and would be open to becoming a guest on the podcast like Glenn then please get in touch!

Here are 4 podcasts you may not have on your listening list but you should All share amazing insights and help build your knowledge about sales, buyers, marketing, and business in general. #podcasts #business #buyerbehaviour #sales Matt Sykes Melina Palmer Billy Samoa Saleebey John Warrillow

Buyers don't buy based on their needs...... If you are in any form of sales or business development role then stop talking about what a buyer needs. People buy things based on a Want or a Problem. Ideally, both combined together but they don't buy based on what they need. Problem based selling You have a health issue? You have a problem! Fed up with little communication from a provider? You have a problem! Worried about paying the bills due to limited sales? You have a problem! Lacking people in your company to deliver services? You have a problem! Struggling to convert prospects into sales? You have a problem! Wants based selling No one needs to go on holiday, they want to. No one needs to write a book, they want to. No one needs to hire a Marketing Manager, they want to. No one needs to implement a new strategy, they want to. If you want to win more business then start digging deeper within your calls with potential customers. Probe beneath the surface and focus more on wants and problems rather than needs. Tell me I'm wrong. Happy to discuss it 😀 #sales #businessdevelopment #prospecting #wants #problems

What would you do in this #sales situation? Would love to know how you would respond 😀 #sales #business #proposals #prospecting

Being focused You can't achieve much if you aren't focused. Having the discipline to remove all other distractions and get a key task done is vital if you want to really achieve something important. That might be writing a proposal That could be creating a guide to share a solution to a problem That might be creating a series of emails to send to prospects who have gone cold That might be writing your book! This picture was taken around 8 years ago (when my hair wasn't so grey 😂) and I have my 'leave me alone' head attire on. 😀 I used to tell my team that if these were on, unless the world was ending or there was a MAJOR issue then they should leave me alone whilst I focused on a 1 hour productive hour where I removed all other distractions and got something important done. I still do this now and it's vital for me to get the important but not urgent tasks completed. What methods and techniques do you use to get focused and important work completed? How guilty are you of letting other people, your phone or other systems disturb you from getting QUALITY work done? How do you manage your time to ensure key critical tasks are completed at the high standards you want? #focus #prospecting #sales #business #productivity

Leads don't pay the bills or commission..... Sales and Confirmed Business does. You can generate all of the leads you like but if you don't know HOW to convert them into Sales they are a waste of time. In fact, if they have been generated from Inbound Digital Marketing then there will be a large cost to bear for generating 'leads' that don't lead anywhere. Don't have the wool pulled over your eyes as a senior leader when you hear that 'lots of new leads have been generated'. They won't pay the bills. Converting them into Sales will. And that happens when the team takes the right approach. Asking the right questions, in the right way, at the right time. If you think you and your team are leaving money on the table and not converting as many leads as they could then let's chat and drive the Sales and Revenue growth you want for your company. #sales #salesgrowth #leadconversion #prospecting #businessdevelopment

Once is rarely enough I meet with a lot of people who sell high-value services who quite frankly give up on a potential client too soon. Very often they make one follow-up email (which tends to be 'Are you still interested in the proposal I sent through - which doesn't work as an email 😜) and then they ASSUME that the prospect isn't interested. Don't assume anything. They could have had a busy week and other emails flooded into their inbox. The email could have gone into their SPAM folder. They could still be interested but have other questions which you haven't yet answered. They could be taking some time to think over what you have sent. If it's for a large figure (especially an investment decision) then buyers want to feel sure in what they are doing They could be nervous about making a change and need to see some other examples of people who have done the same thing. They could just have other priorities that are taking precedence right now. So don't give up too early. Ideally, you should have scheduled the next meeting when you spoke with them last but if you didn't then continue to engage. Share some value. Share an insight into a problem they mentioned. Become someone they look forward to receiving a communication from. Just don't give up too soon. You are very likely to be leaving money on the table. #professionalservices #salesgrowth #prospecting #leads #followup

Sponsorship 🙂 Whether it's your local sports team, a micro-influencer, a worldwide brand, or a media celebrity, the whole subject of Sponsorship and the impact it has on business and sales is one which provokes discussion! Many hate it and see it as an emotional and irrational decision that costs a lot and is difficult to measure whilst others see it as a key part of a wider brand-building and customer acquisition strategy. I have brokered, been involved, and spent my own money on Sponsorship deals and I share my thoughts on its value within this week's podcast episode. Link in the comments below. Would love to know your thoughts though? Are you a fan of sponsorship? What makes it work for you? If you think its a waste of money what has given you that view? #sponsorship #businessdevelopment #leadgeneration

I saw a Sales Performance survey the other day that made for interesting reading. Here are some of the headlines. 53% of sellers missed their Q1 number Sales cycles are taking 32% longer Deal sizes are down by 28% Win rates are down by 15% Based on these stats, I would be interested in your answer to the question below. #sales #businessdevelopment #performance #results