Listening

Revealing Results from Revenue Storm’s latest poll
When asked as to which poses the greatest challenge is selling:

· Only 5% selected their Product/Service
· 10% choose their Price
· Another 10% opted for their Company Reputation
· 75% stated that Relationships was their number one challenge.

(It should be noted that the thousands of people in Revenue Storm’s database are all participants in complex B2B selling involving multiple calls, at multiple levels, over multiple weeks and months.)

Given the above results from the last poll, I believe that many in a Senior Management position who do not have a sales background, do not place enough value on the Relationship Management skills of their sales people and account managers. In fact, I believe they see relationship skills as something anybody can do, and fail to treat these skill sets with the dignity and importance they deserve. Nor do I believe that they see Relationship Management as both a science and art. I also think they underestimate the degree of competitive advantage that resides in good relationship Management practices. Read the attached article on why the skill of Listening can help build relationships.

What do you believe?

Please answer our poll questions to the right using these definitions:

Assertiveness: The inclination to strongly promote or defend one’s own point of view or recommendation
Inspiring: The predisposition for motivating others to commit to and follow a vision, direction or strategy
Empathic: The tendency to relate to other people’s issues or environment and react with sensitivity
Intuitive: A heightened sensitivity or awareness toward people or situations that improve the accuracy of predictions of future behaviors or outcomesIntegrity Focused: The predisposition for using words that are clear and accurate and insuring actions consistently match commitments

He Was Outsold!

The results from our polls on the U.S. Presidential election revealed some “telling” conclusions. Did you know:

• 58% of you voted that Barack Obama had a better strategy
• 70% of you voted that Barack Obama was executing his strategy better than John McCain.

And more important, these votes were all cast BEFORE the end of election. As the Revenue Storm philosophy dictates, it is not so much as WHAT you sell that ultimately determines the outcome, but HOW you sell. Your voting was an accurate prediction of the eventual outcome of the election. You correctly observed that Barack Obama was outperforming John McCain.

Why did John McCain lose the election – He was outsold!

Take a moment to answer our 3 new polling questions at the right.

Presidential Campaign Analysis

The general election is now at full throttle with the Democrat and Republican conventions behind us and the Vice Presidential candidates named. With this as the contextual reality, it is a good time to analyze how each candidate has positioned himself from a “strategy” perspective for his campaign. Revenue Storm has a saying, “Most sales campaigns are lost at the beginning of the campaign, not at the end. The salesperson just doesn’t find out until the very end."

If this is true, we do not need to wait until Election Day to know who is doing the best at strategy execution. These types of analyses make this long election sufferable, and who knows, maybe we can pick up a few insights to assist ourselves in our own sales campaigns. Click here to read a summarization of lessons learned when Revenue Storm's competitive selling principles are applied to campaign strategies.

Also, answer our four Presidential Campaign polls to the right after you read the article.

Bad partner decisions are a reflection of faulty decision criteria

As we watch our Presidential contenders select their Vice Presidential candidates, we witness their individual exercise of judgment. This one decision has the potential to reveal character flaws, if we know what to look for. The same is equally true when a Salesperson selects a partner to round out their solution. This one decision holds the potential to “make” or “break” the election or buying decision.

The secret is not to look at the VP candidate, but to look at the decision itself. It is not “who” is picked, but “how” they are picked. This decision will be made from one of only two approaches, and the approach taken can expose the true nature and character of the decision maker. It is one of those rare moments where character meets reality in broad daylight and we get a privileged glimpse into the hidden motives of the decision making candidate. Smart voters, like smart buyers, will take full advantage of moments like this.

Are you ready? Can you “read” the decision? Do you really want to know a person’s true and often hidden character? Click here to download a quick-read article. It might determine for whom you will vote.

Which of these two approaches do you believe were used by Barack Obama and John McCain to select their Vice-Presidential running mates?

Philosophical Extension: The selection was mostly based on the VP sharing the same value system, so in case something awful happens (God forbid), his values will transcend his life through the Vice President who then becomes President.

Voter Magnetism: The selection was mostly based on the VP candidate bringing new voters from geographies and/or demographics needed to win the election.

Submit your choices via the polls at the right --->

Leveraging Power Struggles and Avoiding Power Plays

We all know that political campaigns can turn ugly, just like some sales campaigns. But where do they cross the line from being a healthy Power Struggle into a unhealthy Power Play? What are the rules of engagement in a political contest or in a Sales contest when we are up against some aggressive competitors? Is all fair in love and war? Or, are there some rules for trying to “best” your competitor? My Political Analysis #3 deals with some of these questions in a manner that we sales people can learn from the current Presidential election. If you have not read the two previous analyses, here are links to Analysis #1 and Analysis #2.

Selling politically is a very sensitive subject. Revenue Storm believes it is an essential component to selling. We believe the day you step into your clients environment, you knowingly or unknowingly become part of their ongoing political activities. Plus the more you understand it, the more you can take advantage of it while avoiding being ignorantly “sucked into” it becoming a defenseless political ping-pong ball batted about by a much more savvy competitor.

Give us your thoughts on this subject, or the article as to who is “fighting dirty” in this election. Take the poll and register your opinions.

How Obama has Outsold Clinton

As America’s presidential race continues to take center stage in the media, pundits are having a field day with analysis and predictions. But as is often the case, their focus is on personalities, and events. Rarely do they evaluate the candidates execution of an specific strategy. And as one sales person to another, I find this type of analysis very rewarding. Have you thought about the strategy Obama used to come from nowhere to take the lead? I have, and I came to some surprising conclusions supported by little discussed facts. Click here to read the analysis, and share your comments!