Comments for SalesMarks.com» Sales Tips & Motivational Sales Articles

Comment on The Power of Word of Mouth in Sales: Testimonials & Referrals by Wes Schaeffer

Wes Schaeffer — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:19:30 +0000

Like establishing bonding and rapport, creating upfront contracts, setting agendas and closing the sale asking for referrals and testimonials are skills you can and must learn and not be shy to perform. Gracious but thorough self-promotion is something we’re not raised knowing how to do. We’re told it’s impolite to brag. But if someone else is saying it, it ain’t braggin’!

Comment on How Effective is Your Sales Pitch or Elevator Speech? by Mark

Mark — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 22:44:53 +0000

This is such a brilliant website and a great resource to beat the sales blues in these present times. Thanks for all the posts!

Would you be able to post an article on easy and effective ways on researching an account, to get a landscape of an account, how to mine for strategic initiatives for an account, how to get invited to RFPs and the like for accounts. That would be really valuable information.

Thanks again and keep up the good job!

Mark

Comment on How To Ask For A Referral by Azrazrback

Azrazrback — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 01:45:58 +0000

Great article. For people that feel uncomfortable bringing it up in the sales process, send a thank you card after the fact and ask for the referral that way. If you haven’t read “The Referral of a Lifetime”, you should. I have been using it with great success.

Comment on Why C-Level Executives Hate Your Cold Calls by Damian

Damian — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 01:49:16 +0000

Great article! Now how about a solution? I know referrals are great, but what if you are at a start-up or new territory?

Comment on Qualifying Questions for Quality Sales by Luke Petri

Luke Petri — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 17:16:45 +0000

What I like about your article is the examination of language. As people whether we actively choose our words or not they, as well as our body language & expressions, ultimately they all can give us away. Interpretation of language is an art in itself and sometimes, never really carefully considered: language, as in words and body language & expression are what generally contribute to “gut feel”. The problem is with language is that each person is liable to interpret any given word, phrase or sentence differently: language is a qualifier, not always definitive, yet all the same should not be overlooked.

Recently I have spent a lot of time talking about the importance of qualifying a sale (critical in the curremt economic climate) yet no matter I continually come across those that don’t. The company I work for and I place a lot of emphasis on sales qualification (hence the development of SymVolli) so as to help people identify sales that are “qualified lead[s] and [those that are] duds”. Too many people chase sales and waste that precious resource, time, on ones that they really should avoid. People need to be coached to be able to effectively qualify and identify sales that are worth chasing and analyse what is being said and what is not being said. All too often sales people are being sent out into the field and being told “sell, sell, sell” without the necessary training regardless of skills.

Comment on How To Ask For A Referral by How to Ask for a Referral : Media Sales Today

How to Ask for a Referral : Media Sales Today — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 18:12:46 +0000

[...] In fact, the problem isn’t with referrals or their clients. The problem lies with how the salesperson goes about asking for referrals. Paul McCord of salesmarks.com provides you with the top 10 referral mistakes salespeople make. [...]

Comment on Selling In a Weak Economy by Nick Moreno

Nick Moreno — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 22:51:53 +0000

Paul,
I’ve been doing a lot of work on the subject of selling in a weak economy. This appears to be the “buzz” in the sales community and I feel for those struggling to succeed in this poor economy. I enjoyed your article and focused on “Point #5″. Now is the time to get aggressive and play offense. With the right skills, any salesperson can succeed in this or any economy.
Thanks
Nick

Comment on How To Ask For A Referral by Chump

Chump — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 16:19:44 +0000

Great article. #5 stood out to me. Majority of people will want something in return… like a credit, gift card, etc. Some companies set this up to give something back so it’s a little easier.

Comment on A Winning Sales Proposal Outline by Prakher Sharma

Prakher Sharma — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:36:29 +0000

Well Outline seems really impressive,however while responding to RFP’s in case of Software Application devlopment etc..we need to include our Implementation approach,Efforts,Team composition etc
My question is,Where will you include such Implementaion plan in above outline and also How to avoid making it sound too technical
What about Pricing issue..should it be a part of above outline or you suggest seperate proposal for commercial discussions?

Comment on What I Learned Buying a Rug in Turkey by Goktug Okan Oguz

Goktug Okan Oguz — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 22:51:32 +0000

As a Turkish citizen, I really enjoyed and lived what you experienced at my home country. They’re very persuasive and can be this much strategic sometimes, and it’s a painful experience since they make you feel guilty.