Distribute’s Post

Want to know 2 metrics most companies don't have for their sales teams? What reps need to do to get promoted. What reps need to do to keep their job. If you have both of these objectively figured out for your team.  It will take a lot of drama away. Clear, simple, and fair expectations solve a lot of problems.

No one: Sales reps this week: “The quote we gave you is only valid if you sign by EOM” Firstly....not it’s not. Everyone knows you will still accept that deal next week. Secondly....discounts don’t matter if your prospect isn’t confident in their decision. No one wants to buy the wrong thing, even if it is 20% off. The better move? Tie urgency back to what this means for them. This sounds like: “Stella and Carson were hoping to kick off by April 1st, to have the first reports ready before your summer season starts. Typically, implementation takes 6-8 weeks. Drive urgency based on real value, not pricing.

You'll find that most salespeople cruise on some big wins they had a while ago. They've got war stories of one or two big deals, but there's not much since. Contrast that: Some of the best I've seen are 2 years into their sales career and lightyears above someone with 20+ years. They acknowledge their wins and losses, track data and relentlessly learn. They read books, attend workshops, and seek out mentors. They're not afraid to experiment with new techniques and iterate based on feedback. In sales, complacency is the kiss of death. The moment you think you've got it all figured out is the moment you start falling behind.

Have had 2 brutal slumps in my sales career 2 things that made me come out of it stronger: 1) Make 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐬: → Make a list of small things you want to improve on. → Make a list of people that are excellent in those areas → Reach out to them. Find time. Make little changes, but don’t reinvent the wheel. 2) Celebrate 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐬: → Detach yourself from the outcome → Fall in love with the (controllable) inputs that get you back → If you are only fixated on the outcome, you will not be happy until the very end, maybe months down the road. Celebrate each positive email, great call, next day meeting, etc. and stack up wins. Remember that revenue lags hard work. I also keep a "praise folder" of great emails I’ve received, deals that have closed, great calls I have run, etc... Keeping confidence high is critical 😁 Anything that's helped you? P.S. 📸 are the best sellers I've ever met, that I'm always making 'small tweaks' from, who earned Gong Club last year.

The unspoken assumption every salesperson I've ever worked with has had about the role is that there's basically two primary parts to our job, and it wasn't until recently that I came to realize there's actually three. The two everyone agrees on are; 1. Uncover pains/needs/goals 2. Position our solution as a match for the above Every sales training I've ever received, whether internally or from an outside vendor has focused on one of these two areas. but there's actually a third job, which is probably the most important of the three... It's something top performers due instinctually... it's something that I'm now flabbergasted isn't commonly trained on... The third job is Shaping the buyer's perspective. Shaping the way they see the problem, the cause-and-effect relationships they see in their business, the level of priority they put on different factors, the stories they tell themselves about how they got here and what it will take to change. If you can shape all that, then the job is more than half done before you've done your first demo. If you can shape that, then your win probability will soar regardless of how many MEDDPICC fields you do or don't have filled in. Big thanks to 🐒 John Bissett and 🐒 Calum Kilgour for helping me see the significance of shaping! #sales #salestraining

Thank God... It's the end of Q1... The long Easter weekend is here! If you're a sales or business leader, how did it finish up for you? Sales team rushing around trying to close anything with a pulse at the 11th hour? Discounting away most of your profit margin just to get 'something' over the line. 70/80% forecast deals slipping or worse still disappearing? How did it compare with the previous quarter? Or the one before that? Better? Worse? The same? If not better, why not? Why do a lot of salespeople tend to have the same quarter time and time again? If you're a salesperson reading this, why does the quarter always seem to end the same way? Last minute fire fighting... People disappearing, making excuses, delaying, procrastinating & demanding more than you agreed. Sales doesn't have to be this way. If you feel like it has been for way too long, and want to fundamentally shift things... Drop me a line. Maybe I can help unlock another gear in your team/personal growth by showing you a different way. With the right attitude, an open mind, an appetite to learn, and a commitment to change, anything is possible. And it certainly beats falling into the same old routine at the end of each quarter, year after year... #sales #sell #growth

Recently finished reading "The Jolt Effect", here are some key takeaways: 1) Judging indecision: With 80% of buyers having some sort of indecision in the buying process, make sure to address any signs of uncertainty as they come up. Not addressing any indecisions by either asking a challenger question or acknowledging the issue at hand, it will prolong or puzzle the buyer's journey 2) Become consultative from start to finish of the sales cycle: You want to earn the trust and respect of your prospects. Asking strong discovery questions and wearing the shoes of your prospect will help you uncover hidden problems 3) Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt: Personally, I have never been a big fan of using FUD. Leaning into using FUD too early in a sales process will kill the deal and create mistrust. Recommending to start small while the deal is in the middle of the funnel(i.e Start with 1 license than add more) will not only build credibility but will result in faster and more efficient sales cycles. Reflecting on a discovery call recently, the buyer showed high signs of indecision. They have been with a competitor for 5+ years and knew the competitor's platform inside out. My immediate thought process was to use FUD to entice the buyer on giving a verbal but I digressed and started asking more challenging questions. From there I was able to make a recommendation and dismiss any indecisions that can come up later in the sales process.

Realistically Q4 is a historically hard time for sales organizations. To be successful you have to push yourself to do more than you would normally do in many other parts of the year. Even when you reach quota for the month, the next thought should be how close am I to hitting quota for next month? From the great sellers that I have met in my lifetime, they have taught me that consistency is what you need to meet the mark. What are some things you are doing to stay successful when it comes to the end of the year? #sales #consistency #organization #perserverence #push

At some point in their career, every seller should spend at least 6 months selling in a classic boiler room. If you think selling SaaS is “high pressure” you have no idea. Here’s what it looked like it when I was 22: - Daily activity goals - Real-time leaderboards - Fear of losing your job every minute - You against everyone else type environment Sounds awful, right? Well, maybe, but I also learned… -How to survive - How to cold call - How to sell at a high volume - How to prioritize opportunities - How to make 100+ dials every day - Have no choice but to give 100% every day - How to handle the intense pressure of sales I wouldn’t be the seller I was today if I hadn't gone through this. It sucked, but I learned a TON in a very short period of time. Sometimes the suck is worth it.

Happy Friday Sales Pros. I have a cool scenario and I would like our opinions on this. Let's say you’re in the final stages of a long negotiation with a client. They’re interested, they’ve done their research, and they know your solution is a great fit. But suddenly, right before closing, they say: “I like it, but I’m just not feeling the urgency to make a decision right now.” Now it's a tricky spot—you don’t want to push too hard, but you also know this deal might slip away if they stall too long. If you were in this position how would you handle this? What’s your move? Share with me in the comments. #SalesStrategy #ClosingDeals #NegotiationSkills #SalesSuccess