Updated Articles and Resources

By Wendy Connick, About.com Guide

Selling When You're Not the Cheapest Created: Sunday, May 19, 2013 Updated: Sunday, May 19, 2013
Whatever you sell, odds are that someone else is selling a product like it but cheaper. How do you show prospects that they're still better off buying from you?
Email Prospecting That Gets Results Created: Sunday, May 12, 2013 Updated: Sunday, May 12, 2013
Some salespeople use email to reach out to prospects simply because they're afraid of the phone. But email prospecting can be a powerful tool for any salesperson.
Kicking the Jargon Habit Created: Thursday, May 09, 2013 Updated: Thursday, May 09, 2013
Don't make the mistake of filling your sales presentation (and your conversations) with jargon and corporate buzzwords. Here's how you can kick the jargon habit.
Developing a Sales Strategy Created: Sunday, May 05, 2013 Updated: Sunday, May 05, 2013
If you've never developed your own sales strategy, now's a good time to start. A good sales strategy allows you to target your selling and waste less time and energy.
Designing an Account Management System Created: Tuesday, April 30, 2013 Updated: Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Do you have a system in place for managing your existing customers? If not, you're letting sales opportunities slip through your fingers.
Writing a Powerful Sales Proposal Created: Sunday, April 28, 2013 Updated: Sunday, April 28, 2013
Writing a sales proposal is not a trivial task, but many large prospects insist on it. If you're going to invest so much time and effort, you might as well write a good one.
When Competitors Cheat Created: Friday, April 26, 2013 Updated: Friday, April 26, 2013
Not all your competitors are as ethical as you are. Here's how to handle the situation when you discover that another salesperson has been spreading lies.
When Prospects Change Their Minds Created: Sunday, April 21, 2013 Updated: Sunday, April 21, 2013
Having a prospect change his mind just when he's about to sign on the dotted line is incredibly frustrating for salespeople.
Build Your Own Network Created: Saturday, April 20, 2013 Updated: Saturday, April 20, 2013
Are you ready to build a business network? The key is to start slow. Don't rush potential contacts or you'll lose them for good.
New Sales Compensation Plans Created: Sunday, April 14, 2013 Updated: Sunday, April 14, 2013
Putting together a new sales compensation plan isn't easy, either for you or for your sales team. After all, your livelihood and theirs is on the line.
5 Ways to Improve Your Sales Skills Created: Saturday, April 13, 2013 Updated: Saturday, April 13, 2013
Like all professionals, salespeople must keep learning and honing their skills. Your company might help, but in the final analysis you and you alone are responsible for your sales training.
7 Negotiation Don'ts Created: Thursday, April 04, 2013 Updated: Thursday, April 04, 2013
Are you familiar with the do's and don't of negotiation? Every salesperson must be an effective negotiator.
Emotional Selling Created: Sunday, March 31, 2013 Updated: Sunday, March 31, 2013
Just about everybody buys based on emotion and then uses reason to justify their decision after the fact. Even hardened professional buyers aren't immune to emotional selling.
Closing Cold Calls Created: Friday, March 29, 2013 Updated: Friday, March 29, 2013
You probably know all about closing sales, but how good are you about closing cold calls? It's just as important to close your cold calls because prospects aren't likely to ask YOU for an appointme...
6 Common Lies Prospects Tell Created: Sunday, March 24, 2013 Updated: Sunday, March 24, 2013
Prospects aren't always honest, especially to salespeople. Know what the most common lies are and you'll be ready to come back with a constructive response.
Reducing Risk Created: Thursday, March 21, 2013 Updated: Thursday, March 21, 2013
If your prospects suddenly start dragging their feet at the end of the sales cycle, they're probably concerned about their level of risk.
What is a Lead? Created: Sunday, March 06, 2011 Updated: Wednesday, March 20, 2013
The precise definition of a 'lead' tends to vary somewhat. In fact, one of the biggest stumbling blocks between sales and marketing can be the definition of what counts as a lead and what doesn't.
Giving Sales Performance Reviews Created: Sunday, March 17, 2013 Updated: Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Performance reviews are always tricky, and sales performance reviews can be some of the most difficult.
Creating Prospect Confidence Created: Saturday, March 16, 2013 Updated: Wednesday, March 20, 2013
If you want to build a positive relationship with prospects and customers, you need to develop a level of trust with them. The best way to do so is to be a trustworthy person.
6 Ways to Protect Your Customers From Competitors Created: Saturday, March 09, 2013 Updated: Saturday, March 09, 2013
How do you handle it when your competitors start raiding your customers? Here are some suggestions to help you keep them at bay.
Making a Virtual Sales Presentation Created: Sunday, March 03, 2013 Updated: Sunday, March 03, 2013
Virtual sales presentations call for different approaches than in-person presentations. You have to compensate for the fact that you can't always see what the prospect is doing.
Basic Business Networking Tips Created: Thursday, August 04, 2011 Updated: Thursday, February 28, 2013
If you build it, they will come. A good business network can get you sales from people you'd never be able to reach on your own.
What is Mirroring? Created: Thursday, February 24, 2011 Updated: Thursday, February 28, 2013
Mirroring is a rapport-building technique in which one person adopts the physical and verbal behaviors of another.
4 Classic Sales Techniques Created: Thursday, February 28, 2013 Updated: Thursday, February 28, 2013
Sales has borrowed heavily from social psychology to develop a few old but useful sales techniques. Do you ever use these approaches in your sales strategy?
6 Plans a Sales Team Needs Created: Sunday, February 24, 2013 Updated: Sunday, February 24, 2013
Planning is an important part of selling well. Here are some plans every sales team needs to have in order to thrive.
How Email Can Expedite the Sales Process Created: Saturday, February 23, 2013 Updated: Saturday, February 23, 2013
Email can be a more powerful mode of communication than a phone call, especially if you run into a hitch during the sales process.
Diagnosing Your Prospects' Needs Created: Sunday, February 17, 2013 Updated: Sunday, February 17, 2013
When you first arrive at a sales appointment, you probably only have a vague understanding of the prospect's needs. Even worse, he may not fully understand his own needs. Until you know what the pr...
8 Questions to Help You Build Business Created: Thursday, February 14, 2013 Updated: Thursday, February 14, 2013
Want to improve your sales, but don't know where to start? Maybe it's time to take a look at your sales process by asking yourself a few simple questions.
Going Beyond Order-Taking Created: Sunday, February 10, 2013 Updated: Sunday, February 10, 2013
If all you do is take orders from customers, you're not a salesperson. A salesperson's job is to create new business. Yes, that's a lot harder than just taking orders, but creating new business is ...
4 Ideas for Sales Management Success Created: Saturday, February 09, 2013 Updated: Saturday, February 09, 2013
Are you having a hard time getting your sales team to perform up to requirements? Salespeople are notoriously hard to manage, so you may need to reach into a different box of tricks in order to mot...
5 Common Sales Campaign Errors Created: Sunday, February 03, 2013 Updated: Sunday, February 03, 2013
A well-designed sales campaign can bring in a ton of sales, resulting in more money for everyone. But if your campaign is flawed by one of these common mistakes, even the best sales skills won't be...
The We-Already-Have-One Objection Created: Tuesday, January 29, 2013 Updated: Wednesday, January 30, 2013
How often do you hear prospects say, "I'm not interested because we already have a supplier?" It's a common objection that you need to be prepared to resolve. Better yet, you can arrange events so ...