by Mike Brunel | Jun 8, 2021 | Sales, Strategy
80%……….Of all sales are made after the fifth call
48%……….Of all sales people call once and quit
25%……….Call twice and quit
10%……….Keep on calling
These statistics is pretty close to the mark in all forms of selling be it a service or product sell.
I think that we all know…
SALES DON’T JUST HAPPEN.
I have created a diagram to illustrate the real time that your buyer is actually available to sell to.
Just email me at mikebrunel.com for a copy.
Why do many some sales people thrive when others do not, here are some ongoing practices I observe every day.
1. Always add to your pipeline.
Not continuously adding to your pipeline is often a mistake that salespeople make once they have established a strong ongoing sales funnel. If you continue to add to your sales pipeline then if that long established client decides that this month they will not buy, then it does not matter because you have more potential opportunities in your pipeline.
If you are always taking the position of helping and assisting your client then your pipeline will increase. If you are only filling up your pipeline when you are desperate then many clients will sense that and you will come across as desperate.
2. Never assume they need you.
I have noticed that many salespeople leave a message with a client or a voicemail and they think it ends there. They think that they have done what they had to do and then move on. Depending on the relationship you have with that client they may or may not call you back. If you do want to do business with them then you have to plan that call and decide the ongoing strategy to get the person to respond. Create a proactive message for them to call you back.
3. Sales potty training.
For those that may have had young children there was a time when you had to train them to go to the toilet. In my experience (a while ago) I always used to say “Pee or get off the pot”. In other words, make a decision.
There will be times when you have to make a decision to get off the pot. Some clients need to be let go. You need to figure out if a prospect is serious about working with you or not. A good pipeline is full of qualified prospects and not “tyre kickers”
All pipeline activities have to support your key messages and understanding actually who your client is and where they play is vital to successful sales.
Good selling
Mike
by Mike Brunel | May 25, 2021 | Sales, Uncategorized
All Systems Go- The Journey Begins.
In my last blog, I talked about Selling what you can’t see, and how Doug Gold, my business partner and previous owner of the More FM network came up with an idea to sell media inventory that went on to dominate the direct media sales world for well over 20 years.
After his first launch of the Gold Key Programme in Wellington New Zealand, we knew we were on to something special. The product and the problem had changed, as had our approach. Spots and Dot selling were out, and membership was in.
Looking back, it was revolutionary, no one was selling media this way. Subscription-based selling had been around for 50 years, now everyone thinks its the ‘new new thing”. All we did was apply that model to selling inventory on media companies.
I was initially invited into the company as a consultant, but when I saw what Doug had created, it was as if a light went on, I knew that if I could build a sales system that could duplicate the concept he was presenting in that room in a hotel in Wellington, I could leverage it.
I sat in on all the presentations as an observer for a week, watched how all the salespeople sold. I monitored how the clients bought. I recorded the presenter’s speeches and analyzed all the ways that they presented the product. Then I went away and created the first Image Plus programme. A predictable lead generation product that would pretty much guarantee a result. Then I took it to my partner who had just gone to Australia to set up our consultancy services, the wonderful Mr. Duffy.
I think we are onto something”
Brian Duffy trusted me to package it up and take it to a client of his in Hobart, Tasmania. I went in and said, “If you follow this system, I can write a million dollars in revenue for you guaranteed” We launched the program and generated $1 million in four days. In today’s money that’s around $4.5 million. Our cut was a commission fee on the revenue generated.
Boom! We were smoking! I remember at the time watching Brian writing on a small business card how many we had sold each session, after the third session, he came over to me and said. ” I think we are onto something, I count thirty gone of our allocated 100 memberships and its only day one, I’m excited”!
Success is Natural
People look at that success and assume it takes a team of natural salespeople to develop and execute such an idea; they don’t believe they can do it themselves. Granted, I have a passion for the business, but I came from a very small country where nobody was doing this sort of thing. We had some brave, courageous risk-takers as our first clients.
The early adopters in Hobart said, “Yeah, we’ll give it a go” and we were grateful. You may not think you are a salesperson, but if you are in any kind of business, you are just as much a salesperson as Doug, Brian, and me, and you can find clients willing to take the leap with you.
Practice Makes Perfect.
Of course, the journey that NRS Media took has not always been easy. I remember one time I was presenting near Lincoln, Nebraska, expecting 300 people to attend our seminar. Five turned up.
When something like that happens, all you want to do is hide. If you could, you would actually crawl in a hole, pull the cover over the top, and not come back out. Sometimes it seemed like I was on my own and the rebuffs were never-ending. I had a bit of natural resilience, but it really is a lonely place, selling in America is a tough gig. Many people avoid sales because they fear rejection.
Sell something you Believe in.
What you have to remember, though, is that if you are doing something you love, selling something you believe in, then you are performing a service. You are not ripping off the customer, or doing the wrong thing by them. Someone is going to buy it from you. As long as you remember that, you can lift your head back up and start again.
Take Flight from Fright
You should realize that most people don’t take naturally to selling. I often see people so frozen they’re afraid to pick up the phone. Folks freeze with fear, unable to make the call. They’re paralyzed with fright. Excuse my language, but they’re sh*$$!ng themselves because they’re so afraid of the reaction. Many people find selling terrifying; it’s a natural human reaction.The thing is, this fear comes through in their work and makes them less effective.
If you own a product, service, or a business, you have to sell. If you’re passionate, believe in that product, and know that your customer should have it, then don’t be afraid to go and present it.
Try not to think of it as asking a yes-or-no question. Instead, picture yourself helping the customer through the decision-making process. Simultaneously, you come to comprehend their needs, wants, and desires. If you can honestly say, “Look, this is my product. I believe in it. I think it’s right for you,” and you come from a position of integrity people will respond. All it takes is a shift in perspective. Stop thinking, “I’m not in sales.” Reframe that thought.
Call it Something Else.
Call it something else. Recognize it for the relationship building process it really is. Changing my mindset has helped me personally banish the fear of rejection. At first, I tried half-heartedly and then gave up, just like anyone else. I realized, though, that if I didn’t change the way I thought about sales, I was going to lose. Today, I help salespeople change their frame of mind so they’re working steadily toward a reward rather than flailing about trying to avoid failure.
I remember working with a new salesperson on this issue. He was seriously afraid of going out and talking to people, so we gave him some new words to practice just before the sales call.
We asked him to say “relationship building” instead of “selling” in his mind and we saw right away the fresh connections he was making. His new vocabulary changed his mindset. He was much more comfortable—and successful—in his calls after he implemented this simple tool.
Successful sales also means maintaining relationships with clients over a long time period without getting the payoff of a “yes.” In the early days of my business, I remember approaching clients who would say no three, four, or five times. I considered that a failure. I thought, “Well, I just can’t do it.”
What did I learn?
Successful sales also mean maintaining relationships with clients over a long time period without getting the payoff of a “yes.” In the early days of my business, I remember approaching clients who would say no three, four, or five times. I considered that a failure. I thought, “Well, I just can’t-do it.”
What I discovered, though, was that I had to see rejection as a temporary setback and make plans to move on. I had to say to myself, “Okay, Mike, what did you learn and what could you do differently? Could you apply a different approach to that problem? Let’s try it and see what happens then.”
If you want to build leverage into your business like we did, then let’s talk.
Selling is easy “it’s just how you think about it”
Mike
PS. Not ready for a catch-up call then dive into my ‘new’ just-released audio programme
by Mike Brunel | May 12, 2021 | Sales
I understand people’s reluctance to think of themselves as salespeople. I had a love/hate relationship with sales myself when I was younger. I grew up on a small farm on the coast of New Zealand, a place I loved.
My father looked after the farm after his four brothers went to World War II. From the age of 15, he worked on that farm, developed it, and expanded it. By the time he was 35, it was clear that some of his brothers would never let him buy it, though; they wanted their share. In the end, sadly, my father had to sell.
Overnight, we moved to a new town and Dad travelled all the time for work. I didn’t know anybody at my new school. The new kid always gets bullied and picked on, and I was no exception.
I wasn’t happy, but I learned to adapt. I was forced to find a way to meet new people and create new friendships. That was probably the real start of my sales career.
I may have been a hesitant salesperson at age seven, but I was already learning how to open up relationships with others.
Life Lessons Learnt.
As a young man, I left a small town in New Zealand to live in Sydney, Australia. Perhaps 15,000 people lived in my hometown and at 18, I moved to a city that housed four million.
At 18 I was reasonably good at rugby—a national obsession in New Zealand—so I got to play in Sydney, where I also got a job selling stationery to newsagents. Every Sunday evening I would put all the goods that I wanted to sell into a big blue bag. On Monday morning, I’d throw it in the back of the car and drive from the suburbs into the city of Sydney.
I’d park my car and walk around, calling on my clients and also knocking on the odd door. I sold everything—rubber bands, ballpoint pens, books, and stationery—out of that big blue bag. I practiced all the skills needed to be a strong salesperson. I was perfecting my craft.
On the Move
When I later gave up on sports and moved to London, I could not find a sales job, or so I thought. After six months spent cleaning carpets in upscale homes, I was offered an estimator’s position with the cleaning company.
I was a salesperson once again. There I was, in my early 20s, driving all over London, quoting jobs in the most luxurious homes imaginable. I met some amazing people and learned to negotiate and sell on a whole new level.
Sadly, I had to return home and ended up bunking with my brother. After several weeks of moping around his house, I let him convince me to apply for an advertising executive position for a local radio station.
I borrowed his suit and shoes for the interview. The suit was a little tight and the shoes a lot. I remember trying not to let the suit sleeve stay fixed on my elbow when I shook the interviewer’s hand.
Guess what? I got the job.
I had never sold advertising before, but I was willing to learn. I sold ideas to advertisers and small businesses for the next few years. I saw firsthand how small businesses ticked. I brought in entertainers to open stores, launched products, and ran promotions. I did every type of campaign that could be done.
The businesses loved it and I did too. The job taught me that I had to stop selling the air time itself and start selling the result of a promotion or event.
Eventually, I was recruited to manage a sales team for another media company a few hundred miles away.
There I met my first true mentor, Brian Duffy, who taught me to look at sales and management, and myself, differently.
Brian coached me to be a good manager and a good person. Oh, I made mistakes, but his guidance and support helped form beliefs that I carry with me today.
Mentors pave the way.
Mentors pave the way, and Brian mentored me long-term, into my next job and eventually into NRS Media. Brian’s guidance led me to media broking, where I met mountaineer Rob Hall, another great mentor.
As much as I enjoyed media broking, though—the perks were considerable, including good food, lots of socializing, and free stuff on top of excellent money—the seductive sheen soon wore thin for me.
I knew I should be doing something else, but I didn’t know what it was. I was not happy. I thought that maybe it was time to take more risks in my life; I knew something was missing.
I was looking for something to fill that space and then one day I got a phone call that would change my life forever. Opportunities often come to you unexpectedly if you make room for them. It was Brian again. “Mike, let’s meet for coffee,” he said, “I have an idea.”
Even today, I can see both of us sitting there in the café. He says, “Look, I’m moving to Australia, but I have clients here I want you to look after.
Join me and my partner in this future opportunity, but you’ll have to pay to get in.” It cost $5,000 to get into the business. It was a lot of money, but it was taken as a show of commitment.
They wanted me, but they wanted me to pay to get in? Was it worth the risk?
The partner’s name was Doug Gold. He had started a new media company called More FM. He also had a consultancy company with Brian that was called Persuaders Concepts. (Can you believe that name)
His More FM Network quickly became the second biggest media network in the southern hemisphere. It is now known as Mediaworks. Doug’s unique ideas influenced industries across the globe. I didn’t know that then, but I took a leap anyway and said “yes.”
Over the next 20 years, that yes became NRS Media.
A valuable lesson I learned is that opportunities do not come when you want them too…. be scared and afraid is part of the ‘doing’
Next week I will talk about how NRS Media became the powerhouse in media sales globally, with no start up money, no investors, just luck, and timing, and passion and a great team of people.
Until then
Good selling
Mike.
P. S Tired of missing out on those sales and not knowing why! Try our FREE CHANGING YOUR SALES MINDSET -7 DAY CHALLENGE
by Mike Brunel | May 4, 2021 | Sales, Strategy, Uncategorized
I am always being asked what makes good sales training and coaching? Here are five tips I hope can help you make the right decision when it comes to hiring any sales trainer or sales coach.
1.The sales team don’t see the sales training as relevant to them.
Usually what happens is that a sales person will be sent on a sales training course and they get there and it’s straight out of a manual. Taught to them by rote and disappointing.
2. The ‘one size fits all’ approach doesn’t suit their business situation.
The trainer has not spent the time to evaluate the sales persons needs. Tailor making specific programmes work better. Before any training ask the sales trainer to work with you on YOUR outcomes for the training programme.
3. Lack of Outcomes once at the course.
This is similar to point two, sales people have different needs, just like their clients, many times sales people arrive at course and at are never asked what their specific outcomes today for this course.
4. Sales trainer, not a sales person.
In this case, it’s more about creditability, if the trainer has no experience selling in any form, it’s difficult to build rapport with the audience you are training. The theory is fine, but not realistic. Sales experience is must for a trainer.
5. Learning as you go.
If the training is not carried out in an environment of learning and facilitation it’s seen as boring and lacking in depth. In the ever increasing world of soft skills training involving your participants in ‘learning by doing’ is a must.
These tips have certainly helped my clients and may help you.
Good selling
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Mike Brunel – Author, Sales Trainer and Coach at Mikebrunel.com. Mike started mikebrunel.com after being a successful entrepreneur. He was a co-founder of NRS Media a global leader in media sales. His products and services generated $350 million a year in revenue for his clients. He sold that business in 2014 and now consults to business owners throughout New Zealand and beyond. He works with any business that wants to increase sales that have a sales turnover of 1/2 million up to $10 million. He works closely with digital and marketing services to help attract sales for his clients.
by Mike Brunel | Apr 27, 2021 | Leadership, Sales
What makes great sales people great? The common misconceptions about salespeople can be tough to get over because they are so ingrained in our culture. It helps to see what successful salespeople actually look like. Most of the great salespeople aren’t all that slick on the surface, but they are great at discovering and solving problems. What makes them different?
I think there are 11 traits that make a successful salesperson here a 7 from my book.
Beliefs, Traits, and Habits of the Best Salespeople:
Desire. The desire to be successful is the number one feature of excellent salespeople. Folks with a strong drive to succeed usually have built upon a history of success.
They may have been good at sports, or bringing up a family.
They know what it means to care deeply about the goal and really go for it.
Desire leads them to find out everything they can about their product and their competitor’s product. In fact, their knowledge is one of their strongest assets.
Motivated salespeople will compete against themselves, not others. They strive to beat their own last target, cultivate additional clients, and achieve business.
2. Self Belief. Effective business people have a very strong self-belief. When they experience rejection, they understand that it is situational. A single loss does little or damage to their core self-esteem.
Instead of getting down on themselves, people with high self-esteem draw on all their knowledge and past mistakes to correct their course and move on.
Anyone in sales can achieve strong self-belief by developing a passion about their product or service. If you can turn your passion for your business into a core belief, you can sell your product to anyone. That is a sales mindset guarantee.
3. Persistence. Persistent folks do not give up easily, if ever. They see problems not as dead ends, but surmountable obstacles. How many rejections can you weather?
Numbers coming out of the Dartnell Corp. in the United States show that a sale in today’s market often goes through only after the tenth “No.” You read that right. The tenth “No.” We are up against a tough economic environment, and unless we are persistent and believe in what we sell, we will give up after about the third time someone tells us “No.”
Learn when to back off and not overplay the persistence card, but do not ever roll over and give up. In this brave new world where the power is increasingly in the hands of the buyer, we have to create marketing and sales strategies to overcome our reluctance to try one more time.
4. Purpose. Many great salespeople find greater purpose in their work than simply completing the job at hand. They might want to help their clients, fellow workers, and teammates build a great business environment to work in, or they may find value in training others by passing on their knowledge to employees.
Motivations can be as basic as feeding the family, affording that extra vacation, or getting the kids through college.
To folks invested in these kinds of outcomes, money and success are by-products of the efforts they make.
This is an important distinction, for finding meaning in your work will keep you balanced in your business. Work cannot be your sole purpose.
We hear too many stories about business people burning out by dedicating themselves solely to their businesses, day in and day out. In the long run, this approach provides diminishing returns. Remember why you are working so hard.
5. Goal Orientation. The best salespeople are people who set real, attainable goals, weekly, monthly, and annually. They measure everything they do, and believe strongly in revisiting and setting new goals all the time, not just once a year
A goal might be as simple as beating the business turnover from last year, or building some training and sales goals in the company for the next six months. Many people I work with struggle with goal setting. I advocate aligning your goals with the problems you are trying to solve.
6. Accountability. Great salespeople do not participate in what we call “the chicken run.” The “chicken run” happens when the salesperson disappears from the buyer’s sight as soon as the deal is sealed.
Successful salespeople never seal the deal and then fail to follow up with service.
If the product does not work, they are not too “chicken” to go back and make it right. If things do not work out well for the client, they know they need to jump back in there and help the client realize his or her expectations.
These folks always work it out and fix the problems that come up.
7. Willingness to Learn. Strong salespeople seek help and guidance from people they admire and trust.
They may work with a coach, confide in a colleague, or consult a manager. They need someone they can feel comfortable with so they can talk through their fears and doubts.
Take The Sales Mindset Challenge here and discover how you rate with your sales mindset you might be surprised. Its a simple list of questions that rate your beliefs and traits. Have fun.
Good Selling.
P. S. Are You Utilizing The Most Profitable, Up-To-Date AND Proven Sales Lessons To Grow Your Business Right Now, In Today’s Market?
Changing your Sales Mindset coming soon.
by Mike Brunel | Apr 20, 2021 | Negotiation, Sales
Negotiation is a form of Selling True or False?
We all know that Negotiation is a form of selling, and our ultimate goal is that everybody wins. Impossible, right? Maybe not. In my book Selling is Not Optional- How to Master the most important skill in business and life I devote a whole chapter to negotiation.
Mutual Success
In the chapter I stress the goal of mutual success for both the buyer and seller. Often, we think negotiations can only succeed one way: we present the product, say all the right things, and get the client really excited about buying. Then we ask for the business and they jump across the desk and hug us, saying, “You saved my life.” Right?
It simply doesn’t happen that way.
What’s your fear?
Often, salespeople don’t even ask for the business for fear of rejection. They are afraid to hear, “No, not at the moment,” or, “I want to negotiate.”
As we have seen from other chapters in the book , mindset makes a difference; you have to be open to the next step. Often, after someone does decide to purchase, they still want to parry a little. People feel it is a bit of a game.
We are all in the game of negotiation. I left the house this morning negotiating with my wife about a couple of things. We negotiate with our partners and our fellow workers, and I can tell you as a parent of teenagers, we negotiate with our children.
Salespeople should avoid cultivating a closed mindset around bargaining. Negotiations are just a form of communication. Consider how negotiations can get you closer to finding a mutually beneficial solution.
A Beautiful Mindset.
Think of the John Nash story, told in the movie A Beautiful Mind. Nash, an American mathematician, proved that when you cooperate, everybody wins, and wins bigger. Game theory demonstrates that cooperation can increase each player’s ultimate reward. Having a collaborative mindset is actually the key to successful negotiation.
Here are some takeaways from my book on the subject of negotiation. (link)
- Plan your negotiation approach. Have a checklist. Don’t forget your agreement.
- There are often only a few standard areas of concerns for your clients.
- Keep your sense of humour.
For additional tips on selling your product or service go to mikebrunel.com. Look forward to seeing you soon.
Good Selling
Mike Brunel
