The Razors Edge with Barbara Giamanco|Sales|Social Selling|Marketing|Customer Experience|Technology|Business

In this episode, I talked with Mike Kunkle who is the senior director of sales readiness consulting at Brainshark, Inc., which provides sales enablement solutions for faster training, better coaching, and more successful sales conversations. Mike has spent more than two decades helping companies transform their sales results.

Mike and I discussed how to improve field training & sales coaching quality with the ROAM method.

You will learn just what the ROAM method is, how a sales manager can implement the strategy, training, and coaching methods to support the process and what can sales organizations or companies can do to enable their managers to use ROAM effectively.

Mike has made this offer to listeners -If you want to watch a webinar recording about ROAM and especially more detail about the dashboard and the field training and coaching models that we discussed. Visit: bit.ly/traincoach

Learn about Brainshark - www.brainshark.com

Connect with Mike: Website - www.mikekunkle.com LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/mikekunkle Twitter - www.twitter.com/Mike_Kunkle

In this episode of the Razor's Edge, I talk to Mike Saunders at the Marketing Huddle about Authority Selling, which is also the title of his best-selling book. Today, more than ever, you need to be viewed as an expert authority in your field in order to move sales opportunities forward. Mike and I discussed:

• The definition of Authority Positioning and how that is related to Authority Selling.
• Why Mike believes that SEO as we traditionally know is almost "antiquated" and not as relevant as it used to be.
• How to create and leverage to your advantage the Authority Positioning Porfolio.
• The ZMOT (zero moment of truth) and how that relates to building authority.
• How Mike helps entrepreneurs become Best Selling Authors without writing one word with his 3-Hour Authority System.

 

It was a great conversation that I hope you enjoy!

  

About Mike:

He is the author of Amazon Bestselling book Authority Selling™, contributor to The Huffington Post and Adjunct Marketing Professor at several Universities. As an Authority Marketing Strategist, I help business owners build their Authority and Expertise to enhance their Competitive Advantage and crush their competition by helping them become an Amazon bestselling author without writing a word using my proprietary 3 Hour Authority™ System. The result is a spectacular Authority Positioning Portfolio™ which is the solution for opening more doors to closing more business.

Connect with Mike on LinkedIn and Twitter

In this episode, I talk with Stu about his best-selling book - How To Get A Meeting With Anyone - and the creative approach that he uses to break through the competitive noise. We know that it is tougher than ever to get in front of buyers using traditional approaches like email and the telephone. That doesn't mean you throw out those approaches but I talk to Stu about other ways to stand out. 

We talked about:

• How cartooning and marketing led to Stu's breakthrough approach to getting a meeting with anyone.
• What contact marketing is and how it works.
• How contact marketing integrates with today's Account Based Marketing strategies.
• How you can get a meeting with anyone even if you don't have a skill in creating cartoons.

Enjoy the interview! 

About Stu:

Wall Street Journal cartoonist, DMA Hall of Fame-nominated marketer and author of the new #1 best-selling book, How to Get a Meeting with Anyone, Stu Heinecke discovered the magic of "Contact Marketing" early in his career, when he launched a campaign to just two dozen Vice Presidents and Directors of Circulation at the big Manhattan-based magazine publishers.  That tiny $100 investment resulted in a 100% response, launched his enterprise and brought millions of dollars worth of business.

The ability to connect with the people most important to realizing one's goals ultimately became an obsession.  While Heinecke regularly employs his own cartoon-based contact methods, he became intensely interested in how others have solved this age-old challenge.  As a result, he has uncovered a unique form of marketing that until now has had no name, yet it produces response rates as high as 100% and ROI figures in the tens, even hundreds of thousands of percent.  In How To Get A Meeting with Anyone, he not only gives Contact Marketing its name but provides us with a definitive guide to what it is, how it works and has cataloged twenty categories of Contact Campaign types.

Heinecke is also the host of Contact Marketing Radio and President and Founder of "Contact," a first-of-its-kind Contact Marketing agency based on Whidbey Island, Washington.

One thing I love about social media, which naysayers will tell you can't be done, is that I build friendships and relationships with people all over the world but may not have talked to them on the phone or met them in person yet. Such is the case with my guest Viveka Von Rosen. An admirer, I've followed Viveka for several years, we've communicated in social channels and developed a personal relationship. When we got on Skype to record the interview that was the first time we'd actually talked to each other personally. It was great fun!

In this interview, Viveka tells us about her latest book, and we talked about: 

• Personal branding and why it is important for anyone in sales but Viveka's advice also applies to anyone in business.
• Common mistakes people make when attempting to brand themselves on LinkedIn.
• Tips from Viveka's book that goes beyond simply personal branding

Another great conversation that I hope you enjoy!  About Viveka

Viveka is the author of best-selling: LinkedIn Marketing: An Hour a Day (http://amazon.com/author/linkedinexpert) & contributing author (expert) to The Sophisticated Marketer's Guide to LinkedIn. I help entrepreneurs, corporations, and small business owners use social media for better business and personal branding & more effective conversations with their prospects.

Connect with Viveka on LinkedIn

In this episode of The Razor's Edge I talked with Anthony about his new book - The Only Sales Guide You'll Ever Need. We had a great conversation about what you need to succeed in sales today and in the future. This book is for you if you are in sales but your performance isn't quite where you want it to be and you don't know why.

In the interview, you'll hear how Anthony got into sales and by his own admission, it was kicking and screaming. Also, learn about core concepts from Anthony's book like the difference between mindset and skill set and why you need both in selling. We also talked about the two mindset and skill set element that salespeople need to work on now.   Enjoy the interview!  About Anthony

Anthony Iannarino is an international speaker, best-selling author, sales leader, and entrepreneur. He's personally built businesses with annual revenue of $50M. He blogs daily at www.thesalesblog.com, a site that generates 130,000 page views monthly, and he hosts a weekly podcast called In The Arena. 

Connect with Anthony onLinkedIn

In my interview with Deb Calvert, we talked about the idea that salespeople need to stop selling and start leading. An extremely interesting concept that is backed by some very solid research. Deb and her research partners did some extensive work to understand what buyers want from the salespeople they choose to work with. We are talking about specific behaviors that lead buyers in the direction of doing business with you or not. 

We talked about: 

The buyer research and how buyers view seller behaviors? 

Several of the behaviors that buyers said were important to them. 

The one change that sellers could make right now that would lead to greater sales success. 

Enjoy the interview!

About Deb 

Deb Calvert, author of "DISCOVER Questions Get You Connected", Top 50 Sales Influencer, President of People First Productivity Solutions, a UC Berkeley instructor (teaching the popular Sales Development Principles course), and a former Sales/Training Director of a Fortune 500 media company.

Connect with Deb on LinkedIn and Twitter

In this episode, I talked with James Muir, author of The Perfect Close: The Secret to Closing Sales. During our conversation, you will learn what promoted James to write the book. And did you know that the more often you try to close during a sales conversation, your chances of success actually decrease by a pretty significant margin? James also debunks some other myths about closing sales that just might surprise you.

We also talked about: 

The traps that salespeople fall into when trying to close the business. 

Why intent is a big deal in selling. 

Why James' makes a bold statement and says that his approach is 95% effective. Listen to learn what makes it work. 

The two questions that lead you in the direction of gaining commitment. 

And more... 

Enjoy the interview!

About James 

James Muir is a professional sales trainer, author, speaker and coach.  James has shattered records as both a field rep and manager.  His guidance comes from experience and the school of hard knocks.  Three decades of experience has given James a fresh and practical perspective on what works in real life and what doesn't. 

He is the best-selling author of The Perfect Close: The Secret to Closing Sales that shows sales and service professionals a clear and simple approach that increases closed opportunities and accelerates sales to the highest levels while remaining genuinely authentic. 

Those interested in learning a method of closing that is zero pressure, involves just two questions and is successful 95% of the time can reach him at PureMuir.com.

Connect with James on LinkedIn and Twitter.

In this episode, I talk with Marietta Davis a seasoned sales professional with an extensive career in the technology industry. Our conversation focused on creating a unified customer communication strategy supported by a Customer Communications Management (CCM) approach and platform. If the goal of your organization is to have deep, meaningful relationships with their customers, relationships are built on communication. If organizations cannot communicate with their customers, then it's difficult to have a long-term relationship. CCM provides the ability to effectively communicate with customers thereby building and deepening the relationships that organizations desire to have.

  We talk about:   Where CRM leaves off and CCM begins. Benefits of CCM to the organization. The capabilities an organization needs to have to support a unified communications strategy. How your strategy must map to the customer journey to deliver a stellar experienced Trends that are causing digital disruption forcing companies to re-evaluate the customer communications strategies.   Learn more about a Customer Communications Management platform from Data Oceans.   Enjoy the interview!   About Marietta Marietta Davis is a seasoned sales professional with an extensive career in the technology industry. She has held critical positions at IBM, Lotus Development, Ameritech, Tata Consulting and most recently the role of vice president of U.S. Dynamics at Microsoft Corporation. A seasoned professional, she was responsible for leading more than 400 sales, marketing, and technical experts as they serve Microsoft's business customers with Dynamics ERP and CRM Solutions. While at Microsoft, Davis successfully managed and grew multiple businesses at Microsoft to the $1B and triple digit growth milestone. Her diverse portfolio extends to mentoring strong leaders into key roles, acting in an advisory capacity to incubation and small startups. She currently sits on the National Board of Youth Villages; a private nonprofit organization dedicated to helping emotionally and behaviorally troubled children and their families. The organization assists more than 23,000 children and families each year from more than 20 states and Washington, D.C.    A graduate of Bradley University, she also graduated with an MBA from Loyola University, as well as executive advanced leadership classes at Harvard University.  She was inducted into the Spelman College "Game Changer" Hall of Fame for her work in 2015 additionally, she has been a sought after speaker at Morehouse College, Georgia Tech as well as Women In Technology.   Connect with Marietta   LinkedIn Twitter Email: [email protected] 

Prospecting is a critical element in keep that sales pipeline full and revenue flowing, but as Mark Hunter points out far too many salespeople avoid prospecting like the plague. In this episode, I talk to Mark about his new book: High-Profit Prospecting. Excellent book - highly recommend you check it out! 

Mark defines prospecting as "an activity performed by sales and/or marketing departments to identify and qualify potential buyers. 

Mark points out that prospecting is not a complex process. He believes that when you are prospecting you are looking for people who can and will buy from you. It is the quality of your prospecting efforts that lead to the development of sales opportunities. Prospecting is NOT talking to friends or people nice enough to take your call. Your goal is to find qualified buyers and that means it is just as important to get a fast no, as it is to get a win with a yes.

  Mark and I discussed:  

• How High-Profit Prospecting is different from his earlier book: High-Profit Selling (also a great read!)
• Why salespeople look for any excuse to avoid prospecting, because "experts" keep banging the drum that there is an easier way. 
• That not everyone with a pulse is the right prospect for what you have to sell.
• The role social media plays in the prospecting process and why a nice profile, sharing content or some online conversations isn't all you need to have opportunities roll in.
• Tips for breaking through the noise with a 14-second voicemail (or super brief email) to get your point across.
• Attitude and motivation versus skilled and knowledgeable.
• A few strategies Mark's shares in his book that you can start using right now.

Enjoy the interview!     About Mark...   Mark Hunter, CSP, "The Sales Hunter," is recognized as one of the top 50 most influential sales and marketing leaders in the world. He is the author of "High-Profit Prospecting" and "High-Profit Selling: Win the Sale Without Compromising on Price." Mark helps companies identify better prospects, close more sales and profitably build more long-term customer relationships. He is known for his energetic presentation style and ability to engage sales leaders. Not only does Mark have expertise in sales, but also knows how to communicate it to others. This is seen by the 50+ speaking events he does each year throughout the U.S. and Canada and around the world.  To find out more, visit Mark's site at www.TheSalesHunter.com.

In this episode, I talk to Gerald Vanderpuye - CEO of BuyerDeck. It is clear that salespeople need to adapt their selling approach. Buyers are blocking cold outreach, and in fact, Gerald shares a recent story about the number of cold emails he's deleted and why he didn't give them a second look. :)  

  Gerald and I talked about the biggest challenges facing today's sales organizations, how deals are won and lost, how to use content to your advantage, but more importantly, how to know when buyers are interacting with your content - or not.   In this episode you'll hear about:  

• The changes that have disrupted sales and marketing because buyers don't behave the way salespeople want them too.
• The biggest challenge facing today's sales organizations.
• Why it is some important to analyze deals - both won and lost.
• What salespeople can learn from the data and insights that BuyerDeck uncovered about how salespeople sell.
• Whether or not salespeople should be creating their own content.
• The best ways to use content to capture interest and attention and the type of content that does that best.
• How to track the content journey and buyer interaction with content you share with them.

About Gerald Vanderpuye:

As a proud co-founder at BuyerDeck, Gerald has three passions: He loves sales, technology and creating happy customers. He has been in sales, marketing and delivering remarkable customer experiences the last 10 years. His last position was at Rackspace where he was responsible for developing sales strategy and driving business growth through existing customers and new Logo acquisitions in key markets. He led and managed a diverse team to deliver on new growth targets for both Enterprise and SMB's. He now leads the team at BuyerDeck to bootstrap the distribution of their B2B SAAS product beyond the initial traction of 12K buyers and sellers.

Visit BuyerDeck and sign up for a FREE trial IF you tell them that you heard Gerald's interview with me on The Razor's Edge.

Connect with Gerald:

LinkedIn:                         https://uk.linkedin.com/in/geraldvdp  Twitter:                            @Geraldvdp