Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read Article“I Need To Get Some Other Quotes”
You’ve just made your million-dollar presentation, and your prospect counters with this one. What do you do now? The traditional salesperson will frantically go back in his...
SalesCoach library
Practical sales training articles from Common Sense Selling.
Short lessons for prospecting, qualifying, asking better questions, handling objections, protecting price, and coaching live opportunities.
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Start with the conversations that change deal quality.
These articles translate the same SalesCoach method into specific sales moments: demos, qualification, trust, follow-up, and decisions.
Monday Morning Sales Coach
The Rules
1. If I act like a salesperson, I’ll be treated like one. 2. Prescription before diagnosis is malpractice. 3. My prospect must convince me he has a problem that needs to be...
Monday Morning Sales CoachIf You Sense It, Say It (Nicely)
If we’re paying attention, prospects will often give us clues to roadblocks we might have to overcome during the sales process. A word here, a facial expression there, and we...
Monday Morning Sales Coach“Send Me Some Information”
This put-off is as old as the hills. It kept many a marketing department busy coming up with new collateral material. And salespeople historically took it as a real sign of...
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Prospecting & PipelineOpen better conversations, work referrals, and keep the pipeline full without pressure.Qualifying OpportunitiesFind pain, money, authority, urgency, and the decision process before chasing a deal.Handling ObjectionsDefuse stalls, "think it over," information requests, and price pushback with less pressure.Closing & DecisionsBuild clear next steps and closing plans that lead to real decisions, not vague follow-up.Negotiating & PriceProtect margin, discuss money openly, and avoid the common negotiating mistakes.Trust & RapportEarn trust early: first impressions, listening, and being a friend before making a sale.Questions & ListeningUse better questions and real listening to control the conversation and uncover the truth.Sales MindsetBeat self-limiting beliefs, reject rejection, and set goals that actually move behavior.Buyer PsychologyRead behavioral styles and emotions so you sell the way each buyer wants to buy.Beating the CompetitionEliminate competitors early, win bids, and stop selling on price alone.The Sales ProcessControl the process end to end: pre-call planning, debriefs, and decision mapping.Keeping CustomersKeep customers satisfied and turn relationships into upgraded referrals.
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The archive.
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleEliminate Your Competition Early
Change is difficult. Don’t let your prospect use it as an excuse not to buy from you. When a company has a long-term relationship with a vendor, often it has developed processes...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read Article“Can We See a Demo?”
Many companies place a great deal of reliance on demos to showcase their products and services. While a demo can be a great way to show off your product, often it is not being...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleBreak the Rules & Win More Bids
Many companies are frustrated by the RFP bidding process. More than in any other type of sale, the buyer is in total control of the process. The opportunity to meet with the...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read Article“Your Price Is Too High”
One of the most common objections salespeople get is about price. Typical comments are: “That’s a bit more than we were thinking about paying.” “Your prices are kind of high.”...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read Article“I’m Happy…Why Should I Change?”
Salespeople are frequently hit between the eyes with this objection in the very first moments speaking with a new prospect. The pressure on the salesperson immediately rises to...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read Article“Sorry, My Boss Has To Approve This”
At least 50% of the time salespeople are either denied access to the ultimate decision maker or too timid to fight for it. The results are predictably disastrous. When you don’t...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThey Won’t Return Your Calls
“I can’t get him to return my calls.” Sales managers hear this all too frequently from their salespeople. The “hiding” game is played on a daily basis in selling. Prospects...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read Article“I Need To Think It Over”
Salespeople continually hear prospects say, “I need some time to think it over.” Typically this occurs after the salesperson has made a proposal for the business. Unfortunately,...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleKeeping Customers Satisfied
Winning the business is hard work. Keeping it is often taken for granted. Lots of attention is lavished on the prospect during the “courting stages” prior to the sale being...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleWinning Negotiating Tactics
Attitude. You must approach any negotiation with the right mindset. Your objective should be to create a win-win result; both parties need to be satisfied with the result. You...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleCommon Negotiating Mistakes
In a business-to-business environment negotiating can be everything from a simple, one issue “give and take” to a very complex process requiring multiple meetings. Since most...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleDealing with Competition
The sale is made. You won and dislodged your competitor. But sometimes you still have a battle on your hands because the competitor doesn’t always depart gracefully. In fact,...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleHandling Buyer’s Remorse
Occasionally, a sale falls apart after it’s been made. In other words, the parties had agreed to do business, but something happened at the last minute to derail it. Usually...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleTraditional Closes & Trial Closing
Since selling has changed over the years from the simple, transactional sale to the more complex, high dollar relationship sale, salespeople need to be armed with as many...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticlePresenting Your Solutions
While some would put a great deal of emphasis on delivering a great presentation to close the business, what you do before your presentation, especially in the area of gaining a...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleClosing Plans
Traditional selling approaches suggest that the “close” comes after the presentation is made. One-liners are memorized, salespeople are reminded to always ask for the business,...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleMaintaining Your Price
Dealing with price objections is a constant challenge for salespeople. It’s part of the territory, and here’s why. We, as buyers, seem to be culturally conditioned to ask about...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleHandling Objections
Like it or not, you’re going to get objections. While they’re not always “our best friend” as some of the old time trainers say, there are some positives to objections. They...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleClearing the Objection Minefield
The military clears a minefield before they move forward. They know (or suspect) that landmines exist and realize that failing to clear them will spell disaster. Selling is no...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleImproving Your Closing Average
A recent survey by CSO (Chief Sales Officer) Insights revealed the following dismal forecasting facts: 94% of forecasted sales are incorrect (they don’t close when forecasted or...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleEliminating Pressure
In martial arts the defender uses the attacker’s momentum against him. This involves doing the unexpected - beating the adversary at his own game. In selling, this technique,...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleQuestions – The Salesperson’s Best Friend
The first step in becoming a good communicator is being able to control the direction of the sales interview with questions. In selling, the focus needs to be on the prospect,...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleControlling the Sales Interview
During a typical sales call, there is a “tug of war” going on. A tug of war to see who can get the most information. Your job, as a sales professional, is to get as much...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleGetting Access to the Decision Maker
The more complex the sales opportunity the more complex the decision process will be. Salespeople must be very assertive in gaining access to the decision maker or risk losing...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleUnderstanding the Decision Process
Once you’ve qualified the prospect for pain and financial issues, simply ask one of the following questions to lead into the decision process. “What process will you go through...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleDiscussing Money
Understanding the financial details relative to the sale is critical. The following pieces of information are an important part of the qualifying puzzle: The financial impact of...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThe Pain Conversation
The best investigators are the best closers. What you do before you make the presentation, the diagnosis you perform on the prospect, is the most important element in a complex...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticlePain Symptoms
Sometimes it’s easy. Sometimes the prospect simply gives you a description of his problem on a silver platter (at least as he understands it). But sometimes it’s not so easy....
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleWhat Motivates Your Prospect to Buy?
A good prospect will have some unresolved business or personal issues. Trainers commonly call this the prospect’s “pain.” It’s the difference between the prospect’s current...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleSelling Has Changed. Have You?
Years ago, the typical sale was transactional in nature. Small dollar deals were consummated in one meeting. Products were seen as commodities and were sold that way. The...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThe Qualified Prospect
Most salespeople can’t tell the difference between a SUSPECT and a PROSPECT! A suspect is a company or person who would seem to have the right demographics and psychographics to...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleCommon Sense Selling® Overview
You’re familiar with the buyer’s process and the traditional seller’s response (see Core Competency # 25). The traditional feature & benefit selling approach has seen its better...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleMaking a Great First Impression
When you meet someone for the first time, subconsciously you form an opinion of that person in the first few seconds. These are called snap judgments, and they’re formed in the...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleControlling the Sales Process
As demonstrated in The Buyer’s Trap (Core Competency # 25), salespeople seem to have lost their ability to take and maintain control of the sales process. The Meeting Agreement...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThe Trust Formula
Selling is a business of trust. The more complex the sale, the greater the investment necessary to resolve the problem, and the greater the need to have absolute trust between...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleMatching & Mirroring
Consciously communicating with someone in a style that is similar to his or hers is called matching and mirroring . It is a subtle communication expressed through body language,...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleSelling To Controllers (C)
Controllers (often called analyticals or cautious thinkers ) live a very disciplined, logical life. They focus on the details, avoid quick (risky) decisions, and hate to make...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleSelling To Steady Relaters (S)
Steady Relaters ( amiables ) are great team players, yet more reserved by nature than influencers. They like stability, and are warm and accommodating to others. They dislike...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleSelling To Influencers (I)
Animated, energetic, and friendly, influencers (also known as extroverts or socializers ) are great talkers, but poor listeners. They are optimistic and trusting, and...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleSelling To Drivers (D)
Drivers like challenges and want to be in control. They are big-picture oriented and hate the details. They like to make important decisions on key issues, and then delegate the...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticlePoor Listening Habits
All of us have some poor listening habits that we may be able to get away with when talking to family or friends. In a business environment, however, one must leave these bad...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleActive Listening
People need to trust you in a selling situation. They need to feel comfortable opening up to you and sharing their concerns, fears, and hopes. You need to be viewed as a trusted...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleCommon Mistakes That Destroy Trust
Selling is often characterized as adversarial; there’s a winner and a loser. No wonder selling has a bad reputation. It’s amazing the number of ways salespeople have found to...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThe Buyer’s Trap
It takes two to tango, and here’s a dance that’s been going on for a long time. The leader is the prospective buyer, and his salesperson “partner” eagerly follows in perfect...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleFeatures & Benefits
“Features & benefits” have been a selling “staple” for many years. Salespeople have been trained on product knowledge and told to educate their customers about “our features and...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleNetworking
Networking can be a great place to develop relationships that can lead to business, if you do it right. But there are some definite rights and wrongs to networking. Definition:...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleUpgrading Your Referrals
When receiving a referral, most salespeople are quite happy to get a name and a number to call. They thank the referring source and then start the process of making a cold call...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleReferral Prospecting
Referrals are the best way to increase your sales. When you begin to build your business through referrals you will lessen your dependence on cold calls and other less...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleMarketing v. Selling
Most salespeople have their “Top 10 Prospect List” - important companies in their territory that have the ability to generate significant sales dollars for the company, and...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleUsing Voice Mail Effectively
Voice mail can be a tremendous asset, if used properly. However, most voice mails are not returned because the salesperson failed to create a compelling reason for the recipient...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleWorking with Gatekeepers
Definition: A gatekeeper is someone in the organization who has the responsibility of deciding who gets to talk to the boss, and who does not. Typically this person has the...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleCold Calls
Telephone cold calls can be very frustrating. Most salespeople find all sorts of excuses not to make them. Yet cold calling can be effective, if you have the right message. Too...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read Article20 Second Commercials / Elevator Speeches
The 20 Second Commercial (Elevator Speech) answers the basic questions that salespeople hear every day – “What do you do?” or “Tell me about your company.” You must be prepared...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleYour Recipe for Prospecting Success
When prospecting, salespeople usually focus on the wrong end of the problem. They focus on results (number of appointments made, number of sales, etc.), which, unfortunately,...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleYour Ideal Prospect
Prospecting is a process of sifting through many leads until you find one that fits your criteria. As such, prospecting is a discarding activity . They’re all suspects until you...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleProspecting Campaigns
Any successful prospecting campaign starts with identifying sources of prospects. What are the best places to look for those folks that are your Ideal Prospect? (See Core...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleDebriefing Your Sales Calls
Professional football teams watch the game films the day after the game. They’re trying to determine what went right, what went wrong, and how they can improve for the next...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticlePre-Call Preparation
The best-prepared salespeople are often the most successful. All of us have experienced that empty feeling of nervousness on a sales call when we’re not prepared. Proper...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleRejecting Rejection
As the story goes, when Colonel Harlan Sanders left Kentucky with his pressure cooker and his recipe for cooking fried chicken, he received over 300 rejections before he found...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleEmotions & Their Role in Selling
In the 1960’s Eric Berne developed the concept of Transactional Analysis. The foundation of this theory was that people have three primary “ego states” (Parent, Adult, & Child)...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleDo Your Beliefs Support Your Sales Mission?
Change your beliefs and win more business. Your beliefs (or attitudes) cause you to behave in a certain way. Your behaviors determine your results. (See Core Competency #2.)...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleYou’re a 10! Now Sell Like One!
How we feel about ourselves plays a huge part in how successful we will be. The inner game (how you manage yourself) is as important as the outer game (how you sell). Selling is...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleMaking the Most of Your Time
There are 40 hours in the average workweek; 2000 hours in the year. How many of them do you waste? If you’re like most people, perhaps as much as 25% of your time could be spent...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticlePlanning: Achieving Goals Step-By-Step
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” Lao-Tzu, Chinese philosopher Once you have developed your SMART goals, you need a roadmap to make them happen. This...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleGoal Setting & Achieving
Studies done with the graduating class at Yale University in 1953 showed that 3% had written goals, 13% had goals that were not written, and 84% had no goals at all. Twenty...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleOvercoming Self-Limiting Beliefs
Many of us carry around negative beliefs (head trash) that keep us from being successful. As Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is a preview of life’s coming attractions.” That...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThe Four Principles of Sales Success
Selling is one of the world’s most popular professions. It’s estimated that there are approximately 15 million people in the U.S. alone who are employed in sales. Many enjoy the...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleCreate the Atmosphere
Problem: A year or so ago we recall having a disagreement with a prospective client, Susan, on the subject of “pain.” We agreed that the concept of pain was valid in that it...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleInstant Success?
Problem: Paul was an average performer in his company and marveled at the incomes and status of the top performers. He had been to a few one-day seminars and read a book on...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThe Prospect’s First Test
Problem: “What am I doing here?” Robert said to himself. He was twenty minutes into the initial meeting with this prospect, and he was clearly fighting an uphill battle. All his...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleShow Me the Money
Problem: Why is money so difficult to discuss? Salespeople frequently hear from prospects that budget is “no problem” at the beginning of the sales call. However, once things...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThe Qualification Trifecta
Problem: Gerry was fortunate. His company’s new marketing program resulted in a great deal of incoming calls. He received at least 2-3 leads daily from interested prospects who...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleCome To the Edge… And FLY!
Problem: Salespeople have difficulty “breaking out” of their comfort zones. Despite increased activity (usually in frantic spurts), trying new techniques and approaches, and...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleSinging the Santa Claus Blues
Problem: The holidays are a curious time of year for salespeople. They tell us that after the Thanksgiving holiday something strange starts happening. It seems as though they're...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleThe Babble about “The Best”
Problem: Talk to many salespeople today and you may hear some familiar remarks. "We have the best _____ in the market today." You fill in the blank: best product, service,...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleRather Make a Friend Than Make a Sale?
Problem: Stacy and her boss just couldn’t understand why she continued to struggle to make quota. She was a very outgoing person who was extremely well liked by all her...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleColumn Filler
Problem: Lisa was angry. It had happened too many times. She recalled the old movie, “Network,” where the veteran news anchor said, “I’m mad as hell and I won’t take it any...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleNetworking… An Opportunity or a Waste of Time?
Problem: Have you ever gone to a networking function and spent 60-90 minutes or more and left without one good, qualified lead? If you’re like many salespeople, you can...
Monday Morning Sales Coach
Read ArticleDon't Get Stuck in the Middle
Problem: Meagan came back from a sales call and told me a story that I have heard many times before. She said that the sales interview went well. She had good rapport and the...