Are common mistakes killing your sales?

We all make mistakes. Nobody does it on purpose. Bad habits creep in, we forget to do things or maybe we've never been told different.

How sales is changing also has its effect.

It can all cost us business so let's have a look how to avoid that

Welcome to the?August Edition?of Sales?Today?newsletter for B2B sales professionals, the tenth edition... especially the 2661 subscribers

As it's monthly I want to share plenty for you to consider and to impact your selling

So what to expect

• Spotlight - ?Let's smash those mistakes!
• News - Selling at C-Level Beta Testers
• Podcasts - some brilliant guests on Sales Today this month
• Collaborations - where I have been sharing my thinking
• Workshop - how you can learn LIVE and FREE
• Scorecard - quick test to see check how you are selling at the moment

The focus is all about enabling more good (sales)people doing good things in a good way

FRED

Are common mistakes killing your sales?

As the business landscape continually evolves, so must the sales approach.

Even seasoned professionals occasionally stumble into common pitfalls that can significantly hinder their sales effectiveness.

Let’s dissect these common mistakes and consider strategies to revamp your sales approach for optimal results.

Mistakes salespeople make

I see five major mistakes that often get in the way of sales success.

1. Inefficiency: Salespeople often waste time and effort on activities that don't yield desired results.

2. Lack of customer understanding: Salespeople sometimes fail to grasp their customers' needs, which hampers their ability to add value.

3. Self-centered selling: A common pitfall is over-emphasizing one's products or services without considering the customer's needs.

4. Outdated methods: Utilizing obsolete sales tactics can push customers away

5. Poor process use: Lack of structured systems and processes can lead to inconsistency and inefficiency.

Modern sales challenges

These mistakes pose several challenges for salespeople.

Busy professionals find themselves caught in a cycle of wasteful activities that neither maximizes opportunities nor reduces workplace stress.

Sometimes salespeople think that the ‘clever’ manipulative tactics trained in the past are a good idea. They aren’t. It’s not clever if it simply doesn’t work and is going to annoy customers

A lack of alignment between an organization's proclaimed sales approach and the actual tactics enforced, particularly at the end of the month or quarter, leads to confusion and frustration among salespeople.

Suggested solutions

Overcoming these pitfalls requires a significant shift in approach. Here are some strategies to revamp your sales process:

1. Customer-Focused Selling: Flipping the attention onto the world of the customer is crucial. The salesperson should focus more on the customer's needs rather than their own products or services.

2. Modernisation: Salespeople need to update their strategies and methods to keep pace with evolving market trends. Old school tricks and techniques need to be replaced with contemporary, effective approaches based on collaborating to understand and deliver value.

3. Aggregated Marginal Gains: Minor modifications in the sales approach can have a significant impact on the results. The concept of aggregated marginal gains suggests that small changes can lead to big improvements over time.

4. Preparation, Planning, and Process: These three P's form the bedrock of effective selling. Preparation involves investing time in understanding the customer and choosing the right prospects. Planning entails effective self-management and intelligent decisions on time investment. Using tried and tested processes and systems can help in driving the right activities consistently.

5. Coaching and Clarity: Sales leaders need to provide clear direction to their team and offer support through coaching. They should ensure that their team is aligned with the organisation's sales approach and is not confused or misdirected.

6. Collaborative Selling Scorecard: This tool can be used to assess the sales approach in the current environment. It offers valuable insights to identify areas of improvement and track progress. (Take it HERE)

?

Reviewing and revamping your sales strategy might not a choice but a necessity in the modern business landscape.

By recognizing common pitfalls and implementing effective strategies, sales professionals can transform their sales approach, driving continued success.

What changes can you make to eliminate mistakes and secure your sales?

(Adapted from then Sales Today podcast episode 'Avoiding mistakes that can kill sales' Listen/watch on your favourite platform HERE)

Say hello to my 'digital twin'

FredAI has been trained using my content including Selling Through Partnering Skills and Hybrid Selling

It provides a 24/7 sales training and coaching resource

Why not have a look and ask it some questions HERE

Things addressed this month

"My sales team don't want to be influencers"

“Can we use AI to research customers quicker?”

"Can you give me some tips to sell at C-level?"

"What should I look for in sales training?"

'Orange Hat Thinking' a mix of the De Bono thinking hats to come up with practical solutions for sales issues

To find out the answers to these and others dilemmas VISIT HERE

Stop selling widgets and start selling wisdom

Are you tired of the same old sales strategies, the endless chase after numbers, the mismatch between what you offer and what your buyers expect? ? ?

Do you want to elevate your connections and accelerate pipeline conversions? Then you're in the right place. ? ?

This episode invites you into the world of 'story selling' with sales leadership expert, Bernadette McClelland

She discusses the essence of story selling and its profound impact on augmenting connections and accelerating conversions. ? ?

Drawing from her vast experience Bernadette lays out this philosophy to deepen customer relationships in today's connection economy. ? ?

Bernadette pushes the boundary and motivates sales professionals to shift their mindset and disrupt their buyers' thinking. ? ?

Reflecting on the evolution of economies and buyer expectations, she discusses how salespeople need to break away from the conditioned way of selling. ? ?

She delves into the pressing need to align with the buyer's story rather than merely selling. ? ?

Additionally, she highlights the benefits of adopting a coach approach to better understand your buyers, equipping you to be better prepared for each conversation.

Why C-Suite execs love salespeople

Are you eager to get inside the minds of C-Suite executives and understand what drives their buying decisions?

This episode we are joined by Jacques Sciammas who has dedicated his career to understanding and conveying the needs of customers to salespeople.

Jacques provides a deep-dive into the world of selling to C-suite level, underlining the importance of understanding the goals, strategies, and KPIs of individual executives.

We explore the art of crafting a proposal that speaks the language of the executive and radiates confidence - a crucial element for earning the respect of C-suite buyers.

Jacques shares his experience on offering new perspectives as a way to prove value, and also delves into the concept of 'compelling events' - external necessities that drive the strategic decisions within a company.

These insights into the buyer's motivations are invaluable for salespeople looking to make an impact.

To top it all off, we delve into the heart of the sales process - the conversation. Jacques shares his tips on identifying the challenges that buyers face and how to use these insights to tailor a personalised approach.

The episode shows the importance of demonstrating the value of your offer and maintaining open communication throughout the sales process.

This is not just about selling - it's about fostering effective and lasting customer relationships

Retrain your Brain & Sell More

Join us for a discussion with Jo Britton, a neurosculpting coach, where we explore how sales professionals can leverage neurosculpting for winning businesses.

We unpack the vital role change plays in sales and how our brains are wired to respond to it.

Jo discusses the brain's hierarchy, its prediction scripts and patterns, and the impact of emotions on decision-making.

We reveal how understanding this brain wiring can help salespeople effectively lead customers and enhance their leadership skills.

Listen in as we examine the significance of emotional intelligence and its influence on sales motivation.

We talk about the SCARF model and how it can be used to minimise a sense of threat and maximise the sense of reward.

You'll learn how basic listening skills, asking questions, and soliciting opinions can enhance a prospect's sense of status.

We caution against the dangers of the 'condescending pitch' and highlight the need for sensitivity when discussing pain points to avoid backfiring.

We also discuss how our brains form patterns and predictions based on our past experiences and shed light on how neurosculpting can rewire and optimise brain performance, how fear can increase our neuroplasticity, and how to create empowering scripts and patterns to replace unhelpful ones.

We close with a reflection on the power of neurosculpting and its potential for sales professionals to achieve better results.

So, tune in and get ready to transform your sales approach

Three stories you need to sell more

Join?Morgan Ratcliffe, co-founder of Ratcliffe Brothers, where we discuss the significance of story-driven marketing.

Listen in as Morgan, with his fascinating journey from football to finance to marketing, shares his expertise on how to tell compelling stories about people, companies, and services that effectively demonstrate why someone should trust and buy from them.

We explore why many companies often struggle with this and how story-driven marketing can be a powerful tool to connect with their audience.

We then shift our focus to the frameworks and strategies that he uses to extract captivating stories from busy entrepreneurs.

We discuss the role of personal stories in connecting with customers and guiding them from their problem to a relaxed state.

You’ll gain insights on the impact of using the concept of ‘we’ in storytelling and the importance of crafting stories that land effectively.

Morgan shares how to create a single, powerful message that permeates through all platforms like social media, direct outreach, podcasts and more, ensuring effective communication of your story to customers.

This episode is a gold mine for anyone looking to understand and leverage the power of storytelling in marketing and sales.

Morgan’s insights are drawn from a rich tapestry of experiences, from a working-class background in Manchester to a successful marketing agency in the US.

Don't miss this chance to learn from a master storyteller!

Avoiding mistakes that can kill sales

Get ready to transform your sales approach with me, Fred Copestake as I dissect the common pitfalls that even seasoned professionals stumble into and reveal the keys to becoming a more effective and efficient salesperson.

Promise yourself that you'll never waste your time, energy or potential again as we pull back the curtain on the five major mistakes that hinder your sales: inefficiency, lack of customer understanding, self-centered selling, outdated methods and poor process use.

Let's shift gears and embark on a journey to revamp your sales strategies for optimum results.

Discover how to mould your tactics around the customer’s needs, plan better, and harness the power of process to maximise opportunities and curtail workplace stress.

I also delve into the concept of aggregated marginal gains, demonstrating how minor modifications can fuel your sales results.

Take the collaborative selling scorecard for you to assess your approach.

?Tune in for a transformative sales experience and start driving your success!

Selling at C-Level

Become a Beta Tester!

If you’re a salesperson who sells to senior executives, or a sales leader who wants their team to sell better at a higher level, we want YOU?as a beta tester.

?? Steve Hall and I have put hundreds of hours of work, drawing on a combined 70+ years of sales, business and training experience, to make “How to Sell at C-Level” the ultimate guide to succeeding at two very basic but critical steps in the sales process:

1. Getting meetings with senior decision makers in high value target prospects

2. Ensuring those meetings are as effective as possible

It costs from $1,000 to $5,000 to get a meeting with a key decision maker in a target account. But those senior executives say more than 80% of such meetings are a waste of their time, bringing them no value.

We help you get lots of such meetings and make sure the person you’re meeting with sees it as valuable and you as an authority.

We’ve tried to be comprehensive and we’ll regularly add new segments and bonus materials. But we’re human so we’ve probably left gaps.

Gaps you can help us fill.

As a beta tester you’ll get early access to the entire program. You’ll be able to ask questions, attend group meetings online and give us feedback to help us make it even better.

Apply HERE

How to sell more in 2023 and beyond

In this new LIVE and completely FREE to attend event I will share practical insights into an approach for B2B salespeople to ensure they stay relevant and valuable.

This workshop is brand new and addresses the challenges that many salespeople have based on what I have identified from working with clients all over the world.

Many salespeople struggle to adapt their approach to one that is effective today. As a result, they are running a risk of becoming irrelevant to their customers.

I will answer the questions:

- Why are so many salespeople tired and stressed?

- Why are so many sales backwards and boring for customers?

- Why do organisations confuse salespeople badly?

You should attend if:

- You are involved in B2B sales and find your approach isn’t working as well as used to

- You feel like you are wasting opportunities that should be won

- You use a highly technical approach to selling that doesn’t always wow customers

- You are frustrated that you can’t keep customers engaged through the process

- You are fed up with always having to discount to win business

- You want peace of mind that your sales plan will work

- You are frightened that the pace of change in the world of sales is too fast

- You are concerned your competitors are doing something different but don't know what

Every participant will be given access to a tool that provides a report on the state of your sales compared to an effective modern approach?

Places are limited by the platform we use so please make sure you're quick to secure your spot.

Thursday 28th September 2023 (1.00pm GMT)

Register Here

Collaborative Selling Scorecard

Are you ready to increase your sales?

Take the?Scorecard