Sales Samurai

In today’s episode of the ‘Sales Samurai’ podcast, host Sam Capra, who helps marketing leaders in the retail space go beyond the sale/transaction, talks with guest Brynne Tillman about 11 Linkedin tips for Sales Professionals. 

Episode Highlights

01:12 – Brynne is in the sales game for a while and he shares what got her into sales.

03:55 – Call centers became solution selling centers, says Brynne.

05:02 – Sam says about Brynne that she found joy, love, and the ability to help people with what she is offering.

08:11 – Brynne says that was the moment where she recognizes she is not an order taker and that's not her job. 

10:56 – We have to slow down the sales process to make sure that everything that we're doing is right for that client.

12:45 – Brynne never has to cold call again because she can search, filter, and identify.

14:16 - What has been the biggest evolution? Sam enquires.

16:35 – There's that stereotype of one shouldn't be sending a calendar link. But it all goes back to the framing, says Sam.

18:05 – Brynne explains to convert your profile from a resume to a resource.  

22:50 - Connect with everyone we meet, speak or engage and that would add value to our network.

24:36 – If it's someone relevant for our network and we're relevant to them then connect. 

26:30 - Use LinkedIn to learn about your buyer’s industry, clients, and their challenges. 

27:13 – Brynne points out, the biggest problem with sales on LinkedIn is that there's this mass, we can call enough people.

31:22 – We have to make sure that we're curating content that our buyers care about.

33:24 – They discuss that polls are a great way to engage and if used well, they are amazing discovery opportunities.

35:05 – Brynne shares, some people are attracting the people she wants to engage with. 

37:02 - One thing she loves about Sales Navigator is, there's a filter called Spotlight and in that spotlight, one can choose active and LinkedIn in the last 30 days. 

38:07 - Take inventory of your existing connections by exploring the list and categorizing them by client prospect and referral partner.

41:25 – If we come across someone that we don't remember, we can go to their profile and click on contact information.

43:03 – When starting conversations, share tailored insights to your targeted connections on an individual basis.

46:50 - As the author of the poll, Brynne says she gets to see who voted. So, she will target specific people who know that voted and she’ll say thank you for voting on the poll. 

Three Key Points

Sales Navigator is the most powerful sales tool available to us today, not just because of the incredible search ability but the ability for them to alert on triggers that can help start conversations and the ability to leverage the existing connections to map out how do we get into certain companies and decision-makers. 

A study said 74% of buyers chose the sales rep that was first to add value and insights.

We need to identify who in our network is connected to our targeted buyers. Ask for referrals or permission to name drops.

Tweetable Quotes

“I was a natural salesperson. My first job was a waitress at friendlies.” – Brynne Tillman

“We were solving problems that our clients didn't even know they had. “- Brynne Tillman

“I was able to take what they taught me and interpret that for a client that saved her business. “- Brynne Tillman

“When

In today’s episode of the ‘Sales Samurai’ podcast, host Sam Capra, who helps marketing leaders in the retail space go beyond the sale/transaction, talks with guest, David Dulany, the Author of the Sales Development Framework and Founder CEO of Ten Bound. He is sharing keys to SDR Hiring Success.

Episode Highlights

01:47 – David shares, he was running the SDR teams for about seven years at a different software company, and then started at Ten bound.

03:00 – The salespeople got a lot of the glory and they were getting all the trophies and hanging out with the CEO, noticed David.

04:38 – David points out, it’s all technology and we got a little bit away from the old-school methods of sales, the way they used to be.

06:46 – Sam states, the SDR is the hardest position to fill to recruit for to hire for.

08:15 – It's not an easy thing to do, it's not plugged and play, and it's different than recruiting sales reps.

12:00 – They want to make sure that they design the interview process correctly.

14:26 – Create candidate's scorecard, and ensure that there are some aspects of candidate’s background that could lead to success in the role, not just the resume.

16:16 – David shares, we can send candidates a quick assessment and make sure that they're okay talking to strangers, handling objections, dealing with continuous failure, that basic blocking and tackling of SDR.

18:22 - if we're hiring slow because we're slow, and the process is a mess on our hiring then we're going to lose those top candidates, says David

20:38 – The fourth key is creating a simple project as a part of the process.

22:02 – Sam enquires if David is looking for how candidates are prepared.

24:36 – We can't sit on the offer letter for a couple of days. We have it ready to go and get them in, states David.

29:43 – Managing SDRs is one of the toughest jobs because we have to be able to understand marketing, sales and do training & coaching.

31:41 – Sam enquires that if David educates a sales leader around.

33:47 – Sam asks David that how the SDR will look like in four or five years.

36:20 - Always make sure that the outsourcing agency is sharing their playbook, their research, and the feedback that they're getting from the ideal market.

38:31 – David recommends looking for demonstrable sales experience on the resume even if they've been selling Cutco knives, or Girl Scout cookies, etc. 

Three Key Points

The tech industry has changed the sales profession. All the tools have made the many aspects of sales a lot easier and not as repetitious and time-consuming. But on the flip side of that, we rely too much on technology.

We've got to be able to move fast, and have everything ready to go and lock them in as quickly as possible if we've got that top candidate.

Sales leaders should focus on appointments and pipeline and how it's converted to sales.

Tweetable Quotes

“A lot of the software companies in Silicon Valley, when they came out, they put their sales team into basically three parts right.” – David Dulany

“The technology is not going to make the sale; it's the classic sales training.” - David Dulany

“The reason that the SDR role was created is because businesses need pipeline and b2b businesses need to have 3x or 4x pipeline for their salespeople to be able to reliably hit their number”. – David Dulany

“There's a lot of pressure to perform and if we rush through the timeline, then we just cost ourselves probably six months”. &ndash

In today’s episode of the ‘Sales Samurai’ podcast, host Sam Capra, who helps marketing leaders in the retail space go beyond the sale/transaction, talks with guest Mary Henderson, Founder of Mary Henderson Coaching which specializes in personal branding, and several other things. She discusses why personal brand matters in sales, specifically. She also shares some great tips for defining a personal brand.

Episode Highlights

02:08 – Mary wants to share why personal branding and sales go hand-in-hand.

04:36 – Mary shares that back in the year 2000, she realized that she can build a brand around this, she is going to be known in the tech industry for the person that can fix these types of problems.

05:19 – Mary turned around the business from a declining 8 million to a $22 million business in eighteen-month period.

06:08 – The host explains how she became a specialist in personal branding, and also in commercializing personal brains.

08:08 – A salesperson is not a linear person, a salesperson can't cope being stuck in a structured environment, brilliant salespeople are unstructured people, says Mary.

09:44 – Mary says, her passion is bringing the best out of a human being.

10:04 – Sam enquires, how do you define personal branding?

12:15 – One should not be talking about his personal brand from a vanity metric standpoint; he should be talking about his brand from the fact.

14:38 – We are in a fully digitized economy and every salesperson is judged by their brand currencies or their social currency, Mary explains.

17:34 – We need to be proactive, not reactive, and we also need to think about how do we want to show up in the world in the digital landscape (social media)?

18:22 – Sam asks the guest about the difference is a personal brand and social selling.

20:38 - One can't get his messaging right and accurate until his brand is defined, refined and accurate, says Mary

22:34 – The social selling and the brand strategy need to be congruent, and one has to wrap the messaging around the brand and not the other way around.

24:52 – The guest points out that we should be starting the conversation on social media the way we do in a normal human environment.

26:50 – Mary highlights, if our brand and our messaging are not dialed in, it's going to be very hard to create content.

28:08 – What we need to think about when we're creating content is if we're pushing a paradigm, a belief system because no one's interested in our version, shares Mary.

31:08 – How do you educate someone who wants to have a personal brand, asks Sam.

33:14 – We need to upgrade our LinkedIn profile, design a content strategy that is around, and also bring our personality into it.

35:26 – We should be focusing on building our brand currency because that's where we will be judged upon.

36:14 - When we're proactive, and commenting on other people's posts and we're writing really meaningful comments in their post, all of their customers are going to see what we just wrote, and they most likely will follow us, says Mary.

38:00 – We have to feel comfortable with our subject matter that we understand inside and master it.

41:09 – Mary shares the three bugaboos that we just cannot do.

43:20 – Sam mentions, we got to formulate the content that we want to be known for.

44:23 – If someone is serious about defining their brand, they need to become extremely active on social media, especially LinkedIn, with their clear messaging, states Mary.

Three Key Points

We can't build our brand but we can define our bran

In today’s episode of the ‘Sales Samurai’ podcast, host Sam Capra, who helps marketing leaders in the retail space go beyond the sale/transaction, talks with guest Nicolas De Swetschin, Head of Sales for noCRM.io, He discusses what are those best practices from a sales coaching standpoint. He also shares tips, and techniques that we all could immediately start to implement.

Episode Highlights

01:53 – Nicolas shares, he has been working in sales for the last 15 years. He did graduation as a Telecommunication Engineer but he started straightaway in sales, b2b sales, complex sales, and international sales.

02:47 – Sam enquires, what got Nicolas started in sales and what was his motivation.

03:32 – Nicolas always has mixed technical stuff and sales but then he switched to a fuller business development position.

04:05 – Salespeople are getting much more technical than they used to be, says Sam.

06:15 – Sam asks the guest about the biggest change they’ve seen in sales in 12 years, both for the best and for the worst.

08:23 – “How do you define sales coaching in your world?” Sam asks Nicolas.

10:34 – Nicolas says that tip one would be setting the context and making sure all the feedback and coaching they were doing is taken and made with positivity.

12:25 – Sam asks Nicolas about other goals that they have set up at that meeting every week.

17:35 – Nicolas shares how they chose deals to talk about.

19:44 – Sam enquires from Nicholas about managing accountability to those in roles.

21:32 – Nicolas explains how he manages to coach.

24:00 – They do a team sharing session to share what they are running up against whatever the topic might be, says Nicholas.

25:16 - Where does personal development fall into your strategy, asks Sam.

28:34 – Nicolas states that it would be better if they select their training session.

32:22 – Sam enquires about the biggest obstacle that Nicholas faces in his day-to-day life in making all that happen.

36:46 – Nicholas suggests to the team to think positively and take your failures as a game.

Three Key Points

Due to COVID, we realized that there were no big needs for traveling around the world and meeting customers each time we wanted to talk to them.

Nicolas highlights they've got one-on-one sessions every week with all the members of his team, and in that session, he got to know their feeling is a bit deeper into the deals where they are struggling so that he can help them remove the obstacles.

Training is very important, at least self-training, constant training and we should apply this more to sales or any skills in companies.

Tweetable Quotes

“I started as a Technical Sales Manager, so, it's a kind of mix between engineering, and sales. I learned a lot about sales during that first row.” - Nicolas De Swetschin

“I still find a lot of value in face-to-face meetings; I do think there's something to be said for meeting someone face-to-face.” – Sam Capra

“I think the training is part of the coaching, it's a very important part”. – Nicolas De Swetschin

“It’s very important to keep these regular meetings to build up the team spirit and make people talk together and just at the end of this meeting, we set up our weekly goals”. – Nicolas De Swetschin

“Let them think about their solution, instead of always giving them the solution” - Nicolas De Swetschin

“We try to build-up the culture of the comp

In today’s episode of the ‘Sales Samurai’ podcast, host Sam Capra, who helps marketing leaders in the retail space go beyond the sale/transaction, talks with guest Marcus A. Chan, Founder of Venli Consulting Group and Forbes Business Council Member, and discuss how to book more meetings. Marcus shares his thoughts on how to get better in sales as a salesperson.

Episode Highlights

01:49 – Marcus shares, how they earn an additional 50 to $100,000 more without making thousands of cold calls.

04:12 – The guest learned how to read some e-books and sell those online.

04:25 – Sam asks about Marcus’s origin story from a sales perspective and how he got into the sales spectrum of things.

06:19 – Marcus says, his first taste into sales was like, pure cold outside sales, outbound cold calling cold email, and door knocking boots on the street.

08:05 - Eventually Marcus figured out how to have success, and by month three, he was one rep in the company.

10:00 – Sam asks what is going in the right or wrong direction from a sales perspective.

12:08 – Automation can help to a certain extent, it can supercharge a talented sales professional, but it can weaken many others due to depending entirely upon it, says Marcus

14:14 – Marcus has an issue with the sales gurus and influencers because they put something on the web, and half the time most of them never actually have done the job.

19:19 – Sam shares, sales mentality has swung the other way. We’d much rather have 50 bright people than 5 million wrong people.

21:33 – If we are scrambling, or thinking what to say next, we're not listening to the clients.

24:27 – When we are mentally preparing for objection, and we know they’re going to give us four objections, we're less likely to give up after two objections, states Marcus

26:21 – If one is handling three or four objections, their chances of booking go up drastically.

28:37 – Marcus gives a little insight about role play in sales.

30:25 – The guest literally would role play out loud on his drive to the office. So that way once he picks up the phones, he is ready to go.

32:44 – Sam enquires about the thought process behind standing up.

35:10 - Tonality is so powerful, it changes how the message is being perceived, says Marcus.

39:50 – Marcus shares, one of the key drivers which help recovery is proper sleep. When you get proper sleep, you just feel way better.

41:00 – Role play does the things that we want to do.

43:55 - When we execute our work at a very high quality, we feel better and that's important as sales professionals.

45:45 – Marcus points out, those who are most consistent with these have a compounding habit, and are the ones who have the most success.

46:06 - When you think about any top performer in any field, they typically are not that much better than the second-place person but they do these little things better. 

Three Key Points

If we can combine both sales fundamentals and technology/automation tools, it can explode us in amazing growth and results.

We need to have frameworks and have a pretty clear idea of what we're going to say and should practice inside the script. But the more we internalize it, the more present we can be on the call.

When you emphasize certain words, it drives home different points, and when we understand that, it's able to create a feeling for that prospect. But on top of that, when we're on the phone, prospects can't see us so, the way we hook them in and get their attention is not just the words we say but how we say it.

In today’s episode of the ‘Sales Samurai’ podcast, host Sam Capra, who helps marketing leaders in the retail space go beyond the sale/transaction, talks with guest Tyler Cole, a Sales & Business Development Leader. They discuss driving next steps, deal closure, and deal acceleration along with building trust that gets to the goal line.

Episode Highlights

01:38 – Tyler shares a little bit about his background.

03:06 – Sam enquires from Tyler about his sales background and origin story.

04:58 – Sam says sales wasn’t Tyler’s first call, he fell into it for lack of better terminology.

05:00 - Tyler had people skills and then he realized how does he got paid for those skills.

05:40 – What’s changed for the better and what's changed for the worse in sales from where Tyler started to where he is seeing now, asks Sam.

08:22 - What is the biggest missing component that you see in the process, enquires Sam.

10:40 – How do you think of the next steps? What's your thought process around the next steps? How do you approach those? Questions Sam.

12:49 – Tyler highlights, there's one of 14 combinations of how the sale process can play out.

14:34 – Sam asks, what does Tyler see as the main reasons next steps aren't established.

15:17 – Tyler shares, before every call he does a 20-minute prep with the BDR that sources the meeting, to understand exactly what they discovered and who did they talk to?

17:50 – We as efficient show that we understand our business and we've done our due diligence. It also allows us to be more concise with our time.

20:41 – Tyler shares, he can always move that 30-minute slot but he at least has the structure to not forget any of the details.

24:00 - If one has built the trust, resolved client needs, and given them all the resources, and then they won’t feel the need to go somewhere else, explains Tyler.

27:40 – Tyler points out, we have to go a little rogue and say, “if what other people on my team are doing doesn't work, then I'm going to do things my way.”

31:34 – Tyler mentions that sometimes it is like getting them out of their comfort zone and giving them to trust us.

32:26 – Sam says, his rule of thumb has always been under-promise, and over-deliver.

35:12 – We need to over-communicate, or find a way to get the deliverable there by that time.

37:00 – Tyler says, they need to go talk to 15 people and get to that level where they can find time for us, so, we better do all that stuff that makes it compelling to them to do that.

 

Three Key Points

We can understand what the customer truly needs, and then match our solution. We got to make sure that we're doing the right thing and it's a win for both parties. But understanding what their need is and then crafting the story to coincide with it and draw on those opportunities.

All the studies are saying deals are taking longer to close complex sales deals. For the average deal, the close rates have gone down; all the things that you don't want to go down are not going in the right direction.

We need to reach; we can add that additional personalized touch that even says like a handwritten note or a gift card or something that has value to them. If we don't have a gifting platform, there are ways to do that through our communication.

Tweetable Quotes

“I built out at the Westin in downtown Phoenix, an upsell environment that they didn't understand at the time and I'm like, I brought you guys $400,000 in revenue. I think I'm supposed to be selling things.” – Tyler

“I don't have much for the worse,

In today’s episode of ‘Sales Samurai’ podcast, host Sam Capra, talks with guest Torrance Hart (Founder and CEO of Teak & Twine) about how to leverage strategic gifting sales. They also discuss about the best practices and common pitfalls in strategic gifting.

Episode Highlights

02:28 - Torrance knew that she would start a business as she was looking everywhere for kind of niches gaps in the market.

04:13 – Sam says what gifts can we send guests to accomplish their goals.

06:03 – The host says that at some point in time they will have to put on a sale to get their business where they want it to be.

7:15 - Sam enquires, how do you define what is strategic gifting.

09:20 – We can send a gift, host a virtual event, cut our overall event budget in half and accomplish more than what we were accomplishing in person, states Torrance.

11:50 – Torrance highlights how just changing the wording to book a call and getting a free gift made the Calendly Bookings go through the roof.

13:00 – They’re doing their own internal ABM, sending out emails and combining it with a get a free gift, mentions Torrance.

15:00 – Torrance points out that they are booking slightly more meetings that had a lower closed rate but they weren't wasting a ton of money on guests.

18:01- The guest shares, they created a gift around juggling and then the QR code took them to a little class.

19:56 – One of the great things that a lot of their tech partners offer is that they let the recipient choose reveals Torrance.

22:58 – Sam asks Torrance, if gifting works better in the colder stages.

25:35 – They can send something and then basically have their own clients become a warm lead and only pay the money for the ones who booked the meeting.

43 - Branded items are going to go in the trash, they can add that memorable branded experience to the outside.

28: 48 – Torrance states that if they send something in February, it's going to be really hard to be a super memorable December Gift.

30:34 – The more they can do on National Taco Day or National Juggling Day, it automatically puts their gift in the memorable and creative category, says the guest.

31:35 – Torrance points out, those companies care about who is sourcing their gift.

34:51 - Personalized Email or Handwritten Card has really opened doors and done incredible things, mentions Torrance.

36:05 – Sam thinks that sometimes just the smallest little detail which doesn't have to have a gift with it, resonates more with that than the other gift that is probably a lot more expensive.

37:46 – The guest suggests to make a list of your 10 best clients and send them a gift.

39:00 - If we look someone in the eyes and tell them something and use their name and tell them a story, that's an incredible addition that costs very little.

Three Key Points

Torrance says that strategic gifting is gifting, but there's always an action behind their gifts, there's always a goal. There's always something they want the recipient or client to do when they receive that gift.

Sales Hacker did a study and saw that the deal size increased 2.42% in sending a gift. So, they can afford a little bit of waste there with that increase in deal size, for sure.

The best practices in strategic gifting are: first, tie the gift to the action that they want the recipients to take. Second, is to offer choice to the recipients or clients. 

Tweetable Quotes

“I think the revelation for me has been that I'm in sales.” – Torrance Hart

“Chocolate bars are delicious bu

Episode 27: Effective Negotiation Techniques for Sales Professionals with Todd Caponi

Our guest today is a long-time associate of mine, Todd Caponi, author of The Transparency Sale: How Unexpected Honesty and Understanding the Buying Brain Can Transform Your Results. A self-proclaimed sales nerd, Caponi is passionate and deeply knowledgeable about the behavioral science behind the buying brain, and in this episode we delve into the concept of transparent negotiation. We talk about creating a foundational structure for sales leaders to scale revenue capacity while building trust and honestly aligned win-win situations. He is a huge proponent for ditching the complex (and often underhanded) sales techniques that give the industry such a bad rap, and talks us through why transparency is the single best way to speeds sale cycles and improve win rates. This creates a collaborative rather than confrontational situation in your sales pursuit and actually helps you save time by losing the deals you're going to lose anyway. If you have literally any questions about sales, Caponi's is the brain to pick, and today we get some incredible advice and wisdom from, literally, one of the top sales leaders in the industry today. Press play now to listen in on this exceptional conversation! 

 

Key Points From This Episode:

Talking about how Caponi got into sales, and the life-changing data that inspired his book.

Sales evolving into a life passion, and his desire to use it for good, not evil. 

The huge power that comes from embracing transparency to disarm the buying brain.

Should sales be taught at universities?

Some fascinating history about the image of sales and the American identity. 

Caponi's super interesting take on what's gotten better, and worse, in the industry. 

Discussing scaling and technology and where it's gotten us.

Is negotiation part of the sales cycle?

The funny, and accidental, genesis of Caponi's transparent negotiation tactic. 

Transparency means building trust at the goal line, rather than eroding it.

Caponi gives a host of personal experiences in creating collaborative win-wins during negotiation.

Discussing the 4 levers, and keeping it simple and mutually aligned. 

Tweetables:

“Transparency sells better than perfection.” —  @tcaponi [0:03:58] 

“I'm reading the subject line plus the first

Episode 26:  Phone Prospecting-What you Should and Should NOT Say with Michael Pedone

Michael Pedone is no stranger to hard work, and in this episode we get a full rundown of his best advice for what you should and should not say on a phone sale. A pro at cold calling and closing in high-pressure situations, Pedone started his sales career at a very young age and pulled himself up by his bootstraps to achieve all that he has done over these past 3 decades – and it's a lot! In this episode, he shares his personal routine for cold calling, steps to address call reluctance, and the importance of planning, formal training, and role-playing the conversation. We then learn how to ask an engagement question to put your prospect's attention where you want it, and then engaging with the opportunity presented. Pedone also imparts some sage advice, gleaned from hard-won experience, around the importance of constantly upskilling yourself to survive the ups and downs of the sector. If you want to hear prime examples of what you should and shouldn't say, including when to bring up price (it's not when you think), press play now and join the conversation.  

Key Points From This Episode:

A brief introduction to Michael and his passion for working hard to achieve his goals.

Describing the numerous and varied sales jobs he's done 

Pedone asserts that salespeople are weaker today, and talks about why.

Discussing the way tools have changed and the double-edged sword of technology. 

Comparing older and newer ways of looking leads

Finding a new angle to constantly outwork the problem.

Does phoning work?

Pedone's personal routine for cold-calling – preparation, planning, set-up and tactics

Talking about the importance of formal training.

Tips for lowering call reluctance.

Breaking down exact scenarios and questions not to ask, and what to say instead.

How to ask engagement questions to put your prospect's attention where you want it.

Keeping your skills and level where they need to be.

What areas salespeople are more hesitant in nowadays. 

Working hard and balancing your private life. 

Knowing what to say before you pick up the phone.

Discussing 4 levels of qualifying, and what precise questions to ask, and in what order.

Ref

Episode 25:  Winning the Complex Sale with Alex Buckles

There are transactional sales, and there are complex sales. Neither is necessarily harder, but there are clear differences between the two. Alex Buckles is the CEO of Forecastable.com a platform that delivers scalable sales certainty by simplifying the complex sale. Along with being at the helm of this ship, Alex is also a sales process connoisseur, and in today’s episode, he shares some of his wisdom with us. We dive right into the complex sale, the importance of identifying stakeholders, and how to form relationships that get the needle moving. Complex sales require multiple people to buy-in, which is why it is so valuable to know who you need approval from. We talk about stakeholder mapping, the stakeholder concentration curve, and how you can overcome organizational opponents. Our wide-ranging conversation also touches on red flags you should look out for in an organization, dealing with naysayers, and actionable steps you can take to improve your complex sales skills today. Tune in to hear it all.

Key Points From This Episode:

Get to know today’s guest, Alex Buckles, and what his company does.

Why Alex was so drawn to working in sales.

What has changed in sales in the 16 years Alex has been working in sales.

How to differentiate between a complex and transactional sale.

Alex’s approach to tackling a complex sale; separating the method from everything else.

The difference between the economic buyer and the decision-maker.

Some of the stakeholders that are important to identify in a complex sale.

What a single thread deal is and why it is so precarious.

How to strategically map and identify stakeholders, according to Alex.

One of the big red flags that Alex believes we should all be looking out for.

What authority means and how it relates to approval.

Insights into the stakeholder concentration curve and how to leverage this.

Everybody in a complex sale is important, so know how to engage all of them.

How to approach combative opponents; it depends on their authority in the organization.

Why bucketing people is so helpful when you work in sales.

Some fundamental steps to take if you are just getting started in complex deals. 

The importance of knowing whether an organization has done a purchase that big.