Sales Game Changers Podcast

🤔 QUICK QUESTION: Do you ever think about how different your job as a sales professional may be in other parts of the world? 🙋🏻♂️ I do, but, then again, I run the Institute for Excellence in Sales and we're always looking for how effective sales professionals are no matter where they are located. I'm also asking because on today's #SalesGameChangersPodcast, we interview two top sales leaders who are located in #SouthAfrica. It was a fascinating podcast. We mainly focused on the current state of sales coaching and what they're doing to make their people more effective. EPISODE 703: Revitalized Sales Coaching for Sustained Growth from Top South African Sales Experts Alan Versteeg and James Hickman 👂🏻📖 Listen to or read the transcript at https://lnkd.in/eYgESHij. Reflect and act on their advice. 🌟 JAMES’ TIP: “Take 5 to 10 minutes, sit down and write down, out of this podcast or any of the other podcasts you’ve listened to on the channel, what is it you are going to go and do? Set yourself timelines to that and book a meeting now for a week or two weeks to sit down and review how you’ve progressed along those actions. None of what’s been said on this podcast or any of the others is any value unless it’s implemented and actioned. That’s the only way to get results.” ⭐ ALAN’S TIP: “If you’re a salesperson, make it a profession. That mindset will change everything. If you’re a sales manager, realize you’re there to grow salespeople that grow sales, not grow sales. That mindset will serve you everywhere. If you’re an organization, realize that nothing happens until you make a sale. As the leader, start aligning the organization behind the sales.” ❓ Ever spend time in South Africa? If you're in sales, what's a tip for success there?

🤔 QUICK QUESTION: Are you curious about what personal, social, or charitable interests your prospects have? 🙋🏻♂️ I'm asking because one of the classic things they taught you in sales training way back when was to survey your prospect's office and find something that might interest them. "Oh, I see a photo of a boat. Do you sail?" Hopefully, that would incline them to engage in a more personal conversation. Prospects are busier than ever so chit-chat about minor hobbies doesn't work anymore, but showing genuine interest in things they are passionate about might, such as charities or community projects might. I discussed this with Anna Frazzetto on today's hashtag #SalesGameChangersPodcast. Thanks 🎉 🎉 Jennifer S. Ives for the intro. She said: ⭐ Find out something that you don’t know about them. Do specific research. 🌟 If you’re selling to a C-level person, maybe they belong to a certain committee that you didn’t know about. 💫 Find out something new. Every bit of information helps out. ⭐ Regardless of what you’re selling, is to have that level of detail and understanding of the client that you are about to go and pitch a solution. 🎤 EPISODE 702: Sales Leadership Insights from Staffing Industry Digital and Revenue Expert Anna Frazzetto 📖👂🏻 Listen to the show or read the transcript at https://lnkd.in/eegspnKq. ❓How curious are you about what your prospects are committed to personally or charitably?

🤔 QUICK QUESTION: Have you ever had the task of educating a large market that your company does a lot more than they might think you do? Or even the same challenge on a smaller scale, such as letting your customers know you can do more for them than what you are currently contracted to do? 🙋🏻♂️ I'm asking because on today's #SalesGameChangersPodcast, Kim Lynch, Executive Vice President, Government Intelligence and Defense at Oracle, talks about how she is leading her organization in educating their customers about the company's #cloud solutions, where they might still be thinking about them for legacy solutions, such as database and applications. Oracle Cloud World is presently happening. More info at https://lnkd.in/ecy3xCzv. She recently came to the company after many years at consulting behemoth Booz Allen Hamilton. Her story about how they're educating the market on their newer solutions is fascinating and has many applications even for small tech firms and solopreneurs who can do more than their customers think. 🎤 EPISODE 696: Kim Lynch’s Mission is Bringing Oracle Cloud Solutions to Federal Agencies 📖🦻 Listen to the show or read the transcript at https://lnkd.in/eVdATdre. 🎙️Subscribe and rate the podcast at http://bit.ly/sgcitunes Kim attributes much of her success to how deeply she embedded herself with her customers: KIM’S ADVICE: “Be in the market, be with your customers. I’m out there all the time. It’s the best way to develop that customer trust, to be able to understand their challenges. Being with them, walking the hallways, it’s so important, for all of us, the engagement with customers. You can’t over engage. That’s critical.” ❓ Have you had success educating your market on other things you can do?

🤔 QUICK QUESTION: Have you ever made a sales presentation or dropped a proposal where you felt great about it, only to learn that you were asked to present mainly to check a box and that the winner was already chosen? There's a classic sales adage that if the first thing you've done in the sales process is reply to an RFP (request for proposal) that you're in way too late and the deal is rigged for someone else. On today's #SalesGameChangersPodcast (Sales Story and a Tip), #salesexpert Dave Kurlan tells a story about how he learned that consulting behemoth Deloitte was his main competitor on a sales consulting project. They showed up in full force and gave an excellent presentation. Dave was flummoxed, having never competed with them before. After doing some research, he realized the gig was rigged and that he was either the dog or the pony. It's a great story about what needs to happen before the #salespresentation takes place. 🎤 EPISODE 697: It’s What Happens Before You Get to Present Your Capabilities that Really Counts with Dave Kurlan 📖🦻 Listen to the short podcast or read the transcription at https://lnkd.in/esDNBUSr. 🎥 Watch on #YouTube at https://lnkd.in/e39Pk-tD. DAVE’S TIP: “People don’t buy presentations. Sales presentations are simply the same as political theater. If the selling was done properly, a person at a time, upfront, ahead of the presentation, the decisions have already been made. It’s just theater, where the people on the buying committee get to ask some great memorable question and impress their boss or their boss’s boss who happens to be in the room. There’s nothing you can do in a presentation that’s going to change that.” ❓ Can you relate to this?

🤔 QUICK QUESTION: Do you journal? Do you find it helpful? Did you know it's a good sales coaching tool? 🙋🏻♂️ I'm asking because I asked supercoach Kim Ades how #SalesLeaders can become better coaches to the #salespeople on their teams. One of her methods involves journaling. It's a way to get to the core of the beliefs that might be holding you back in your career and personal life. KIM’S TIP: “Grab a piece of paper and a pen and write down these two questions. Question number one, what do you really, really want right now more than anything? There’s two reallys there for a reason. Think about what you truly, deeply want. Not what is expected of you, not what somebody else wants for you, not what you think you should want, but what do you truly, deeply want? Question number two, what’s stopping you from having it right now? What’s getting in the way? Write down all the reasons, and that’s your first exercise. Start to look at those reasons and understand that they are your beliefs.” 🎤 EPISODE 698: World-Class Sales Leadership Coaching Strategies with Kim Ades 📖🦻 Listen to the show or read the transcript at https://lnkd.in/e9pNXRtC. 🎙️Subscribe and rate the podcast at http://bit.ly/sgcitunes We discuss how sales leaders can better coach their people to perform at a higher level. It's of critical importance now. ❓Do you want to become a better coach?

🤔 QUICK QUESTION: In 8 words or less, what is the state of professional #B2B sales? 🙋🏻♂️ I'm asking because on today's #SalesGameChangersPodcast, 🧭Zachary Gropper from Insight Revenue and I discuss where we are and the major considerations #SalesProfessionals must be taking to be successful today. These are topics that we discuss every day on the podcast, and Zach's team concisely documented them in their "State of Revenue" report which can be found at https://lnkd.in/egFrSpWd. 🎤 EPISODE 699: State of B2B and SaaS Sales Effectiveness with Zach Gropper and Jonathan Tice 👂🏻📖 Listen or read the transcription at https://lnkd.in/ewXmnhvp. 🎙️Subscribe and rate the podcast at http://bit.ly/sgcitunes [Take your career up a notch at the next Institute for Excellence in Sales Big Stage Program on October 10. "How to Get Your Customers to Tell You the Truth" with Steven Gaffney. https://cvent.me/kZdkRo] On the podcast, we discussed: 💫 Awareness building: how to make sure that prospects have high levels of awareness around what the company does and the kinds of customers the company serves ⭐ Unique insights: having messages to communicate unique insights on how the company solves customer problems 🌟 ICP: Having an Ideal Customer Profiles (ICP) to help effectively target prospects who need the service Zach also was involved with the development of the #ChallengerSale. We discussed how that concept has aged and its impact. Matt Dixon Brent Adamson. ZACH’S TIP: “If you’re in a commercial leadership position, sales, marketing, go to the leaders across that team and make sure you have something on your calendar every week where you’re getting together and talking across those functions about your customer. It’s another way you can better align your organization. You’re all playing, it’s teams selling to buying teams, and that’s how you can be a better partner and build better quality business.” ❓What's the state of professional B2B sales?

🤔QUICK QUESTION: What are some lessons do you think I've learned as we celebrate the posting of my 700th #SalesGameChangersPodcast episode? 🙋🏻♂️ Yep, you read that right. Today, the 700th episode of the award-winning podcast went live. I was thrilled to have my friend Katica (Kathy) Obad take the interview reins for the show. She did a great job asking me deep questions about the first 700 shows. I published the first one in August 2017. Before the pand3mic, I did every interview in person. I used the podcast as an opportunity to interview sales leaders in their office. We'd talk about their leadership challenges before and after the interview and would discuss ways the Institute for Excellence in Sales could help them. Shout out to IES #WomenInSales program director Gina Stracuzzi for conducting many of the interviews with top leaders. Some of the most downloaded shows were with Brian Ludwig, Tamara Greenspan, Paul J Smith, Maryam Emdadi, Cortney Steiner, Joe Ayers, Rick Herrmann, and Jim Kelly, all leaders at Dell Technologies, Cvent, Carahsoft, Intel Corporation and other companies. 🎤 EPISODE 700: Unveiling Brilliant Sales and Life Lessons from 700 Game-Changing Conversations with Fred Diamond 📖👂🏻Listen or read the transcription at https://lnkd.in/emnj9Dmt. 🎙️Subscribe and rate the podcast at http://bit.ly/sgcitunes We always ask our guests at the end of the show for an act listeners should do RIGHT NOW, to take their sales careers to the next level. FRED’S TIP: “If one person listens to my podcast, then one person listens to my podcast, and I’m impacting one person. Now, I want thousands, but if you’re making a difference with one person, and I know that the Sales Game Changers Podcast has done that, because people have told me. I know that the book has done that, because people have told me. Some people tell me they read it before they go on a sales call. The Love, Hope, Lyme book, I know that’s impacting lives in a very, very challenging world. Anything we could do to make the world a better place is a good thing, even if it’s one person at a time.” If you've listened to any of the 700 episodes, thanks! Our next goal is to get to 1,000! If you have any sales leaders we should interview, let me know!

🤔 QUICK QUESTION: Are you familiar with the concept of #DigitalSalesRooms? 🙋🏻♂️ I'm asking because according to Allego President Mark Magnacca, Gartner has said that by 2026, 30% of all #B2B sales interactions will flow through digital sales rooms. On today's #SalesGameChangersPodcast, we discuss what they are, why they benefit your customers, and how one sales leader has deployed them at his company. Said Mark Magnacca: "If you think about a classic stereotype of sales pushing, the DSR transforms that whole dynamic so that you are seen as a trusted expert who can curate the right content and help people go through the buyer’s journey at their own pace and be able to interact with them, giving them what they want when they want it, and be able to scale it to a larger number of people rather than just in the one-to-one era. That’s a brief overview of what is it and why should you care." We went deep into why The Hillman Group is deploying them. Whenever you go into a Lowes, Home Depot, or a Walmart, they make the key cutting equipment and other things. Listen to the show to get a deeper understanding about the B2B sales process in the hardware world. Mark Lonzo spoke about how using a DSR deepens the trusted relationship and enhances the consultative abilities of his salespeople, beyond standard product transactions. 🎤 EPISODE 701: Mastering Digital Sales Rooms with Allego President Mark Magnacca & The Hillman Group’s Mark Lonzo 👂🏻📖 Listen to the show or read the transcript at https://lnkd.in/eAx6niQj. 🎙️Subscribe and rate the podcast at http://bit.ly/sgcitunes ❓Are you aware of similar trends in the #RevenueEnablement space?

QUESTION FOR YOU: Has a family member, such as a grandfather, ever shared advice on life or business success that has helped frame your career? 🙋🏻♂️ I'm asking because on today's #SalesGameChangersPodcast, Amazon Web Services (AWS) Sr. Manager for Global ISV Sales John Reilly talks about how his grandfather's advice to "Think Ahead, Reilly" stuck with him throughout his business career at numerous tech companies. I first met John when I was an outsourced Chief Marketing Officer and Connection as a client of mine when he was a sales leader there. He shared how he moved into tech sales after spending the early part of his career as a police officer. His story of how and why he moved into tech was quite dramatic. 🎤 EPISODE 692: His Grandfather’s Advice to Think Ahead Helped AWS Partner Sales Leader John Reilly Build Trust 📖🦻🏻 Listen to the show or read the transcript at https://lnkd.in/gKGSGFEJ. 🎙️Subscribe and rate the podcast at http://bit.ly/sgcitunes JOHN’S ADVICE: 💫 Execution starts with relationship and trust. ✨ You only have one thing in this world, and that’s your word. Once you break it, you’re done. 🌟 Business is built on trust with your customers and with your team. It’s the most foundational element of all business. ⭐ You have to earn the trust. It’s an active thing, not a passive thing. You’re not just granted trust; you have to actually go out and earn it.” ❓Have any words of wisdom a respected and loved family member shared with you that's stuck?

❓ QUESTION FOR YOU: What does it take to be a great partner to one of the top tech firms in the world? 🙋🏻♂️ Amazon Web Services (AWS) public sector systems integrator partner director Rebecca Wetherly shared her thoughts on today's hashtag #SalesGameChangersPodcast. She received the Institute for Excellence in Sales Partner of the Year award in May. Rebecca said the #Amazon Partner Network includes more than 130,000 partners over 200 countries. That includes thousands of systems integrators who specialize in AWS services and tens of thousands of independent software vendors who adapt their technology to work on AWS. 🎤 EPISODE 691: Partnering Excellence with AWS Public Sector Systems Integrator Partner Director Rebecca Wetherly 📖🦻🏻 Listen to the show or read the transcript at https://lnkd.in/e9U-Mzen. 🎙️Subscribe and rate the podcast at http://bit.ly/sgcitunes [NOTE that the IES IES Women in Sales Leadership (WISL) Elevation Conference is on September 13 in Reston. More info is at https://lnkd.in/eGMaNWf5. AWS is a sponsor of the event.] REBECCA OFFERED: ⭐ My philosophy about working with a partner is rooted in our leadership principles from Amazon. One of our, what we call leadership principles at Amazon, is in fact Earn Trust. 🌟We start with a customer and always work backwards from their needs and requirements. ✨By doing that, we remain customer-obsessed and focused on those mission outcomes. 💫 Our partners are also our customers, so I treat them like a customer. I think that bodes well for how we create trusted, transparent partnerships. That’s the approach that I take. If you work with partners, check out this interview. ❓Do you work with partners? Are you satisfied with the results so far?