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Sales Training London: You Only Have to Be Brave 5 Seconds at a Time

Sales Training London: You Only Have to Be Brave 5 Seconds at a Time

Are You a Chicken Licken?
Do you remember Chicken Licken? "The is sky falling! The sky is falling!" I was reading my daughters the story of Chicken Licken last night and it struck me that this is reflects the mindset of more than 70% of the population. Those who are wage-slaves and filled with regrets are always afraid of the worst happening and they listen to others who are also paralysed by their fears.

My apologies in advance but I'm going to continue offending you! But you probably need this whack on the side of your head if you're one of those people.

Fear of Failure is the Biggest Cause of Failure
If you're one of those people who fears failure and as a result fails to take risks, chances are you have no assets (a mortgage is not an asset, it means you are working for the bank, paying out every month, therefore it is probably your largest liability) or you have a few investments that fall into the "Safe" bracket. You are stuck in the rat race. How does that make you feel?

"Remember the Alamo!"
The rich hate failure but grow stronger because of it. They don't have to like it, but when they do fail, they're inspired by it, they learn from it; they act. Texans have turned their greatest defeat, the Alamo, into a rallying cry. Texans may be brash, but they don't hide their failures. When they fail, they fail BIG. And yet, that attitude has meant they win big too. Precisely because they take risks.

Be Brave 5-Seconds at a Time
Most of us are paralysed in the sales process by fear, of not being liked, of hearing a "no", of the competition, of the buyer's power over us.

What if you believed you are in sales to go to the bank, not to get your emotional needs met? What if you thought and acted as if you were financially independent and didn't need the business? What if you actively sought the prospect telling you "no"? What if you never begged for an appointment? What if you never gave anything away without asking for something of equal or greater value back in return? What if you got IOUs for every concession you ever made with a prospect? What if you were willing to walk away from a piece of business or a prospect who was screwing you down to the table and not ensuring your commercial interests were satisfied too? What if you didn't agree to a deal where you weren't clear about every aspect? What if both sides were seen as equals - not one the buyer and the other the (subservient) supplier?

How would that make you feel? How would things be different?

How do you do this? Simply, be brave 5-seconds at a time.

What Does That Mean?
It means that you don't have to be brave all the time. But at the important moments in the sale, plant your feet. Stand your ground. Be willing to say "no". Be willing to hear "no". Don't start from the premise that "I've been working on this deal for so long I must get the order" or "They're the customer, the customer is King". Think more like Cromwell! Pick your fights.

High Stakes Game
Whether you like him or not, Cromwell changed the playing field for monarchs across Europe. He had everything to lose including his life. But you can be brave and draw on his example. The customer needs you, your services because if he even knew what his problem was, he'd already have fixed it. Take a leaf out of Cromwell's book and recognise the "King" can only stay in power so long as he has his cronies and courtiers, his armies to support him. Once the will of the people left him, he was human like the rest of us.

A customer does not rule you by Divine Right. You are his equal and he needs you. If you withdraw from a tender or bid because it is bad business or the customer isn't playing the game fairly, he has to go through the hassle of finding another provider in time to make the tender process meaningful. Withdraw your support and isn't he a king without subjects?

But What About The Competition & Customer Choice?
Certainly, customers generally have choices. And certainly they have systems designed to protect their interests …. at the expense of your interests. It doesn't mean you have to accept them a gospel. Did Moses come down from Mount Sinai with the 11th Commandment "Thou shalt be your customers' whipping boy"? Did Confucious say "The Customer is always right and you should do exactly what he wants you to do"? Did Socrates say "Spill your beans, answer all your customer's questions and accept a think it over as possible future business"? Hell's teeth. NO!

You Gain More Credibility From The Questions You Ask Than The Information You Give
Uncover your prospect's real pains and you have already separated yourself from the majority of your competition. Ask those questions that separate you from the pack, that make you stand apart from the rest of your rivals. Wouldn't you agree, that you gain more credibility from the questions you ask than form the information you give?

I have never sold high-end leasing on major capital investments that depend on the value of money over a 5 year period for them to be profitable. Nor have I sold high end investments where you minimum entry requirement is that you can afford to lose £250,000 in one hit. Still less have I sold the fulfilment of women's fantasies (anyone who knows me, knows this is an oxymoron where I'm concerned!). Yet, these are among my broad range of clients.

Pain
What do they have in common? Their pain is that they needed to sell more, they were being frustrated by problems with filling their pipeline, closing business or getting customers to buy more, more often at premium prices.

Was I afraid of failure? Was I afraid they'd say "no"? Well it was always a possibility, as was the chance they'd go to what was familiar, more mainstream. They could have gone to Huwthwaite International and studied SPIN (the best traditional selling system by far in my opinion) or Solution Selling, or a big name like Visual Arts (John Cleese's renowned sales training company) or some other variant of the 4000+ sales training companies in my territory. But I was brave 5-seconds at a time.

"Let's You and Him Fight"
I stood my ground. I even encourage them to speak to the competition….because I know the competition will take the bait; because I know the competition will prove my point; because I know the competition will do what I predict they will do. They will tell my prospects why they're the best. They'll tell my prospects what they should do. They'll tell my prospects why they're wrong to consider my services. And then they'll have to defend and justify their position when my prospects give them objections and put them under pressure over money.

I equip my prospects with the questions that help my competition hand me the business on a plate. Because I'm brave 5-seconds at a time. I'm willing to take risks, I don't "play it safe". This is not a strategy for everyone; in fact you may hate it. But if you risk little, expect scant rewards.

Sandler Rules
• Never beg
• Never justify or defend
• Never close
• Never handle objections
• Always be negative
• Always go for the "No"

Didn't I say you'd probably hate this article? What lesson do you take from Chicken Licken?

Chicken Licken's Lesson
As Chicken-licken was going one day to the wood, whack! an acorn fell from a tree on to his head. "Gracious goodness me!" said Chicken-licken, "the sky must have fallen; I must go and tell the King."
So Chicken-licken turned back, and met Hen-len. "Well, Hen-len, where are you going?" said he. "I'm going to the wood," said she. "Oh, Hen-len, don't go!" said he, "for as I was going the sky fell on to my head, and I'm going to tell the King." So Hen-len turned back with Chicken-licken, and met Cock-lock. "I'm going to the wood," said he. Then Hen-len said: "Oh, Cock-lock, don't go, for I was going, and I met Chicken-licken, and Chicken-licken had been at the wood, and the sky had fallen on to his head, and we are going to tell the King."

So Cock-lock turned back, and they met Duck-luck. "Well, Duck-luck, where are you going?"
And Duck-luck said: "I'm going to the wood." Then Cock-lock said: "Oh! Duck-luck, don't go, for I was going and I met Hen-len, and Hen-len met Chicken-liken, and Chicken-liken had been at the wood and the sky had fallen on his head, and we are going to tell the King."
So Duck-luck turned back, and met Drake-lake.

"Well, Drake-lake, where are you going?" And Drake-lake said: "I'm going to the wood."
Then Duck-luck said: "Oh! Drake-lake, don't go, for I was going, and I met Cock-lock, and Cock-lock met Hen-len, and Hen-len met Chicken-licken, and Chicken-licken had been at the wood, and the sky had fallen on to his head, and we are going to tell the King."
So Drake-lake turned back, and met Goose-loose.

"Well, Goose-loose, where are you going?" And Goose-loose said: "I'm going to the wood."
Then Drake-lake said: "Oh, Goose-loose, don't go, for I was going, and I met Duck-luck, and Duck-luck met Cock-lock, and Cock-lock met Hen-len, and Hen-len met Chicken-licken, and Chicken-licken had been at the wood, and the sky had fallen on to his head, and we are going to tell the King." So Goose-loose turned back, and met Gander-lander.

"Well, Gander-lander, where are you going?" And Gander-lander said: "I'm going to the wood." Then Goose-loose said: "Oh! Gander-lander, don't go, for I was going, and I met Drake-lake, and Drake-lake met Duck-luck, and Duck-luck met Cock-lock and Cock-lock met Hen-len, and Hen-len met Chicken-licken, and Chicken-licken had been at the wood, and the sky had fallen on his head, and we are going to tell the King." So Gander-lander turned back, and met Turkey-lurkey.

"Well, Turkey-lurkey, where are you going?" And Turkey-lurkey said: "I'm going to the wood."
Then Gander-lander said: "Oh! Turkey-lurkey, don't go, for I was going, and I met Goose-loose, and Goose-loose met Drake-lake, and Drake-lake met Duck-luck, and Duck-luck met Cock-lock, and Cock-lock met Hen-len, and Hen-len met Chicken-licken, and Chicken-licken had been at the wood and the sky had fallen on this head, and we are going to tell the King."
So Turkey-lurkey turned back and walked with Gander-lander, Goose-loose, Drake-lake, Duck-luck, Cock-lock, Hen-len and Chicken-licken. And as they were going along, they met Fox-lox.

And Fox-lox said: "Where are you going?" And they said: "Chicken-licken went to the wood, and the sky fell on to his head, and we are going to tell the King." And Fox-lox said: "Come along with me, and I will show you the way." But Fox-lox took them into the fox's hole and he and his young ones soon ate up poor Chicken-licken, Hen-len, Cock-lock, Duck-luck, Drake-lake, Goose-loose, Gander-lander, and Turkey-lurkey; and they never saw the King to tell him that the sky had fallen.

And realise that the rich get rich because they spot the opportunities others don't. Be a fox not his dinner.

(c)Sandler Systems Inc. 2006

Happy selling!





Sales Training London You Only Have to Be Brave 5 Seconds at a Time - To learn more about this author, visit Marcus Cauchi's Website.

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John Brennan
John Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website

Linda Richardson
Linda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website

David Acheson
David Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns.  David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website

Leanne Hoagland-Smith
Are your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website

Dave Kurlan
Dave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website

John Alexander
John has taught keyword research and SEO skills to small groups of business owners and Webmasters from over 80 different countries world wide since 2002. John is also the Director of Search Engine Academy ; Co-director of Training at Search Engine Workshops offering live, SEO Workshops with his partner SEO educator Robin Nobles, author of the very first comprehensive online search engine marketing courses at SEO Training Online and the SEO Workshop Resource Center.
I look forward to hearing from you! - Visit John Alexander's Website

George Ludwig
George Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website

John Power
John Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website


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Marcus Cauchi
(Visit Marcus's Website) Marcus Cauchi is London's first licensed Sandler sales trainer. 19 years in direct sales, he's sold physical products, services and intangibles with varied success. Over 16 years he left behind over £56 million in deals he could have won, but did because he didn't know any better. He thought you had to qualify for needs, present the benefits of your solution, trial close, follow up with a proposal or further information and the close. He learned the hard way that when you "pitch" a prospect lies to protect himself. When you present and answer his questions, he'll steal your ideas. When you close, he'll mislead you or defer to a higher authority (boss, wife, CFO) and then when he's got you to document in writing (proposals) and give away your confidential pricing, he'll shop that around your competitors to get the best deal. When you follow up for a decision, he'll give you unlimited access to his voicemail and hide. Marcus teaches counter intuitive selling. Average clients increase revenues by 100-1100% in a year. He's probably not for you though as it's difficult and expensive.

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