Every SDR gets nervous when picking up the phone to talk to a prospect. We get scared of pushing too hard and getting a rejection, and we worry about offending our prospect or making them uncomfortable. How do you manage your own disruptive emotions so that you have the ability to influence the emotions of other people?

On this episode of Predictable Prospecting we’re joined by Jeb Blount, founder and CEO of Sales Gravy and author of Fanatical Prospecting and a new bestseller: Sales EQ. We’re discussing how to push past the flight or fight response that comes up when talking to clients and how to manage the emotions that make prospecting difficult.

Episode Highlights:

• Jeb Blount’s inspiration for writing Sales EQ
• The fight or flight response in sales
• How to control your own fear and anxiety while on the phone with a prospect
• The Universal Law of Awareness in Sales
• Identifying the different types of intelligence and making them work for you
• Doing qualification the right way
• Walking away from a prospect that doesn’t value your time
• The differences between having discipline and having habits
• Jeb’s steps for continuing your education

Resources:

Books Mentioned:

• Insight Selling by Mike Schultz and John E. Doerr

• Challenger Sale by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson

• Thinking Fast and Thinking Slow by Daniel Kahneman

Jeb Blount: 

• Fanatical Prospecting

• Sales EQ: How Ultra High Performers Leverage Sales-Specific Emotional Intelligence to Close the Complex Deal 

• Visit SalesGravy for resources from top sales professionals
• Check out Jeb’s personal website for blog posts and other content
• Follow him on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin

As sales professionals we’re often told to smile before speaking to a client so they can hear the friendliness in our voice, but how often are we trained on listening to the body language clues coming from the other side of the phone?

In this episode we’re joined by Nigel Green of Evergreen Consulting, a lifelong student of sales and the psychology of buying and selling. Nigel is an expert when it comes to understanding the power of listening in sales, specifically on the types of language we use while listening and communicating with a prospect.

Episode Highlights:

• Knowing when it’s time to “get serious”: How Nigel Green decided to focus on top of funnel
• Creating a framework for language listening
• Is it possible to read body language over the phone?
• Red Flags: 8 signs that you’re not listening to the prospect correctly
• Nigel’s top three techniques for connecting better with a customer
• Implementing a training and roleplaying schedule for your sales team
• More from Nigel Green

Resources:

• Good to Great by Jim Collins
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
• Ask by Ryan Levesque
• Motivational Interviewing by William R. Miller and Stephen Rollnick
• Love Nigel’s philosophy on listening and want to learn more? Check out his 8 Ways To Master Client Resistance free PDF! You can also send him an email at [email protected]

Have you ever taken a personality test to find out more about your strengths and weaknesses? Personality tests like the Myers-Briggs are great for revealing more about our inner selves, but they can also be useful when it comes to connecting with your prospects.

Our guest today is Dr. Diane Hamilton, author, speaker, and Emotional Intelligence expert. We’re talking all about the human side of sales – how to connect with a prospect based on their personality type, doing research before the first conversation, and building up relationships over time.

Episode Highlights:

• How can studying emotional intelligence and the psychology behind communications help us with sales?
• Diane’s method for identifying the personality type of a prospect within seconds
• Using social media research to create a personality profile
• Developing a relationship with a long-term prospect based on common interests
• Preparing for the first call
• Techniques for improving your confidence and tone in conversation
• Diane Hamilton’s radio show

Resources:

• “Your body language shapes who you are” TED Talk by Amy Cuddy
• Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
• It’s Not You, It’s Your Personality by Dr. Diane Hamilton
• Want to hear more from Dr. Diane Hamilton? Visit her website for blog posts, videos, and information about her radio show! You can also connect with her on Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter

We hear it over and over -- consumers today are being bombarded with messaging and content from all sides. It’s an information overload, and many businesses are struggling to cut through the clutter and target prospects in a loud and clear way.

Today’s guest is an expert and consultant that helps companies do just that. Jessica Mehring is the CEO of Horizon Peak Consulting and the creator of a unique service called the Content Lab, which trains marketers and content creators on how to craft the perfect messaging. How does she do it? Jessica’s method dives deep into the internal pain of the prospect, and her research-based content strategy strives to display the personality of your business.

Episode Highlights:

• The inspiration behind creating The Content Lab
• Why results are part of Content Lab’s mantra
• Fighting the content fatigue with targeted messaging
• What’s driving good content?
• Jessica’s pre-planning process for content strategy & utilizing the virtual focus group
• Client stories and experiences
• More than what’s on the surface: Digger deeper into prospect pain
• Identifying the important of open and click-through rates
• Following the customer’s emotional journey
• What’s next for Jessica Mehring

Resources:

• Horizon Peak Consulting
• The Content Lab

Prezi is the revolutionary new presentation software that’ll change the way marketing and sales professionals think about making connections with clients. What makes Prezi unique from a standard PowerPoint presentation? Prezi harnesses the power of visual thinking by creating a visual roadmap of the story you want to convey to a viewer. In this interview, we discuss the how and why behind visual thinking, using Prezi to track consumer engagement, and how to begin using Prezi in your workplace.

Episode Highlights:

• Tracking engagement
• How a tool like Prezi can shorten the sales cycle: Conversational Presenting
• Identifying how people think
• Retraining your brain to see the Prezi roadmap
• Customer examples
• Getting started with Prezi

Resources:

• Prezi Customer Stories:
• • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ugq__LYjuU
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIqfbd5o3C0
  • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZErz6VRJduU&feature=youtu.be

As technology becomes a bigger and more necessary tool for doing business, Sales Development Reps who are still in the beginning stages of their career can find it difficult to truly connect with a prospect when using any form of communication other than email. The “human touch” component of sales is absolutely crucial to closing the deal with a client, but can it be taught to a new generation of SDRs?

Our guest today is Andy Paul, Founder of Zero Time Selling and host of the sales strategy podcast Accelerate!. We discuss how buyers form perceptions of SDRs, the importance of first impressions, and Andy’s process for engaging clients and connecting on a more human level.

Episode Highlights:

• Blending sales technology with a human touch
• When does a prospect first form an opinion about you?
• Creating a good first impression even with non-verbal communications
• Lock your cell phone in your desk drawer: Why multi-tasking won’t help you get more done
• Doing prep work for your first verbal conversation with a prospect
• Asking the right questions
• Making yourself different from the competition
• Breaking away from talking about the pain points of the client
• Speaking to the CEO like he’s your peer
• More from Andy Paul

Resources:

• Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman

• The Science of Selling by David Hoffeld

• Resonate by Nancy Duarte

• The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier

• Selling Fearlessly by Robert Terson

• Want more from Andy Paul? Give him a call at (619) 980-4002, send him an email at [email protected], or connect with him on Linkedin or Twitter @zerotimeselling
• Check out Andy’s podcast, Accelerate!

In today’s episode we’re chatting with Mark Galloway of Oppsource, a unique sales development software that organizes your sales day, keeps track of your prospects, and outlines a campaign for engaging your top clients in deal-closing conversations. We discuss the inspiration behind Oppsource and how it can help you meaningfully connect with prospects in an increasingly digital world.

Episode Highlights:

• Why sales companies need to put money into mentoring, educating, and supporting their sales reps
• Understanding and implementing discrete account intelligence
• Mark Galloway’s background and Oppsource
• How Oppsource can quadruple your communication with prospects
• SDR touch sequences
• The ideal client
• Personalization versus automating contact with prospects

Resources:

• Oppsource Sales Development Software

Do you clam up when you finally get on the phone with your prospect? Or worse, do you follow a pre-planned script without letting your prospect get a word in edgewise? On this episode of Predictable Prospecting we’re joined by sales expert and host of the iconic Sales Babble Podcast Pat Helmers for a discussion on why listening is the most important part of sales. Pat shares his unique framework for qualifying sales leads, and walks us through his process for having a great conversation with a prospect. This episode is a must-listen!

Episode Highlights:

• Pat Helmer’s biggest qualifying pet peeve
• The SORT questions and the DUM questions: A framework for qualifying
• Why startup companies have a difficult time pitching their product
• How to begin the SORT and DUM process
• Closing the sale
• Letting go of the fear of silence

Resources:

• Pat Helmer’s worksheet for mastering the SORT and DUM framework:
• Sales Babble Podcast

In this episode we’re chatting with William Wickey, an expert in media and content strategy at LeadGenius. LeadGenius recently teamed up with Prezi and Ambition to release their 2017 Trends and Tech Guide for B2B sales and marketing professionals.

William is here to share insider tips and tricks for getting the most out of the information presented in the guide, who it can help, and how to implement these resources throughout your entire organization!

Episode Highlights:

• Introducing William Wickey
• The inspiration behind the ebook and who it can help the most
• How to best use the guide to impact your company positively
• Decoding account-based marketing: More than just a buzzword
• Using the guide to bring every division of an organization together

Resources:

• Download the FREE ebook, The 2017 Trends and Tech Guide for B2B Sales & Marketing
• Check out another free ebook from Lead Genius, Bridging the Gap:The Ultimate Guide To Account Based Marketing & Sales Alignment For Predictable Growth

How many of us actually meet with clients and prospects face-to-face to pitch our products and ideas? In the USA it’s almost unheard of to show up at your client’s door wanting to talk business in person. In Brazil, “neighboorhood selling”, or building relationships with prospects and your network by making in-person connections, is the standard way to do business. In this episode we’re chatting with Victor Bruno, a Brazil-based sales professional and teacher, for a discussion on how to harness the power of social tools and the importance of connecting with your network.

Episode Highlights:Introducing Vitor Bruno

• Using social tools to generate new business
• Selling with pleasure instead of pain
• Adding value and getting referrals
• Why Brazilians prefer face-to-face contact over phone selling
• Victor’s method for mastering social selling
• Advice for sales rookies

Resources:

• First Intent Screencast
• Predictable Prospecting Chapter Three Worksheet
• Want more from Vitor Bruno? Send him an email at [email protected], connect with him on Facebook through the Milestone English Page, or send him a text on WhatsApp: +55 (that’s the Brazilian area code) 48 (Santa Catarina area code) 9080341615