Did you ever watch the movie “Planes, Trains and Automobiles” with Steve Martin and John Candy? In the movie, John Candy’s character is named Del Griffith and he is a shower ring salesman. He is also a blabbermouth that tells one boring story after another, oblivious to the fact that he is boring the hell…
According to various reputable sources, there are anywhere from 400K-1M+ consultants in the US (see references attributed at end of blog post). The lower number represents the number of independent consultants whereas the larger number represents a cumulative of independent and consultants working for consulting companies. With so many different consulting options out there, it…
The term NextGen is all too frequently bandied about in technology around NextGen this or NextGen that. Why? Everyone wants an edge and is curious about how things are going to change and become better. There are always huge material benefits and value to being on the leading edge of the next wave of something…
Great musicians and artists are thought to have one piece of work that is their personal opus. It is the ultimate accomplishment that defines their skill and craft at the height of their artistic abilities. It is the culmination of their artistic genius in the form of an artifact that can be appreciated and admired…
No one ever said that you had to be an Einstein to run sales, but his thoughts do apply:“Insanity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results.” Yet many sales leaders seem to accept living with the insanity of sales ineffectiveness, or sales enablement programs that lack focus. These sales leaders…
Whatever Happened to Original Thought? When is the last time you read a blog post or article and genuinely felt like you learned something new? In this increasingly immediate gratification world of 140 character limitation, with insatiable demand for new content, it is a genuinely daunting challenge to invest the necessary time to create content…
All of our sales enablement engagements start with a discovery phase. It is the linchpin of our success and the foundation for all of the quality content, Field Sales Guides and associated sales training that we deliver. We identify a diverse set of subject matter experts (SMEs) that have field sales tribal knowledge on what…
It may not sound intuitive or logical, but I submit to you that developing a great, effective sales enablement program has a distinct sausage making process component to it. And while that sausage making process may be quite raw, dirty and even a tad disgusting at times, it is ultimately imperative to achieving the best…
Let’s start by providing Oxford Dictionary’s definition of context: “The circumstances that form the setting for an event, statement, or idea, and in terms of which it can be fully understood and assessed.” Inherently the definition tells us that context absolutely matters in sales. Sales is all about understanding and assessing the customer’s situation, needs/pain/business…
Have you ever watched the Jeff Foxworthy comedy sketch “You Might Be a Redneck If”? It’s a funny bit with little blurbs that may signal you are a redneck. He’s made a lot of money off that series of jokes, and I believe there is an analog with sales enablement. I promise not to come…