The Essential Sales Bookshelf

As a sales process consultant, I'm often asked to recommend books to help clients navigate their way through one issue or another. Over time I've realized that I keep referring people to the same books over and over. I've come to think of them as the Essential Sales Bookshelf. If you're in sales and you don't own them, go shopping!

Insight Selling: Sell Value & Differentiate Your Product With Insight Scenarios by Michael Harris (2014, Hardcover)  The definitive book on building the sales story that will best help your customers understand how your product is uniquely situated to solve their need. Selling on value and history is the name of the game, and selling on price is unnecessary.

The Challenger Sale : Taking Control of the Customer Conversation by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson (2011, Hardcover)  If you’re in sales at all, rep, manager, VP, or Director, this book is vital to selling in the internet age. Because we have access to so much information, most buyers have quite a few pre-conceived notions that will keep them making the same mistakes, and the same purchases, over and over again. This book revolutionized sales by demonstrating that the most successful reps challenge the thinking and habits of their prospects, making room for a new conversation.

The Challenger Customer : Selling to the Hidden Influencer Who Can Multiply Your Results by Matthew Dixon, Pat Spenner, Nick Toman and Brent Adamson (2015, Hardcover)  Taking into account that almost all purchases are made by teams (the team behind the Decision Maker) this book identifies who those other players are, and demonstrates how many other decision makers they influence. Instead of strictly selling to the “DM” The Challenger Customer challenges us to sell to the people with the most influence as well.

Drive : The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink (2009, Hardcover)  Recognizing the core components of what motivates humans to act and feel in particular ways is key in a successful sales process. By understanding the motivational factors in play, a sales pro can much more effectively navigate some of the seemingly unreasonable objections and requests we receive from so many sales prospects.

To Sell Is Human : The Surprising Truth about Moving Others by Daniel H. Pink (2012, Hardcover) Mr. Pink takes us through the psychology of basic social behaviors, and demonstrates that many of our core interactions with others are fundamentally selling them on our idea, desire, or offering. Sales is primarily based in persuasion, and secondarily in filling a need or solving a problem. So, as it turns out, is most human interaction. Recognizing the similarities helps sales pros develop natural, agile relationships with their prospects.

 

Fanatical Prospecting : How to Open Doors, Engage Prospects, and Make One Last Call by Jeb Blount (2015, Hardcover) As I tell my sales reps, “You’ll never close what you didn’t open.” Fanatical Prospecting is a step by step guide about opening a sales relationship with prospects, instead of just “networking.” Activity is not a result in itself, and often too much time is spent collecting business cards and phone numbers. What counts is making the contacts that are the beginning of a sales relationship. With this book, it just became much easier.

The Art of Closing the Sale : The Key to Making More Money Faster in the World of Professional Selling by Brian Tracy (2007, Hardcover)  Of course with all that opening of sales conversations, you’ll want to make sure you’re closing as many deals as possible. From Brian Tracy, we learn that many of the old closing techniques no longer work at all because of the colossal number of ads and transactions people perform every day. We’ve become immune. What works now?  A more natural, transparent approach that challenges expectations.

 

SNAP Selling : Speed up Sales and Win More Business with Today's Frazzled Customers by Jill Konrath (2010, Hardcover) Jill Konrath has been helping sales professionals assess the sales climate for decades, and her work resonates over time.  In this book from 2010, she helps us identify the overwhelmed buyer. With so many options and so much information available for each purchasing decision, sometimes what is needed is to break the sale down into a few simple, but key, steps. A must-read for highly competitive industries.

Agile Selling : Get up to Speed Quickly in Today's Ever-Changing Sales World by Jill Konrath (2014, Hardcover) Finally, a book about onboarding sales pros in a way that they can start selling within the first few weeks! Onboarding as a new sales rep in an unfamiliar industry often takes months to over a year to become fully competent in your role. Agile Selling addresses the issue head on, inviting sales reps to approach learning their new industry and market differently, making consistent, useful progress from Day 1. 

The 5 "E"s Will Close More Business

Quite often I mention how important it is to have an agenda for every client interaction.  The five "E"s are a great example.  They are the groundwork for every client interaction, and after each meeting, I write down the notes relating to them. There is no script, but there is always a plan.

Energize yourself, your presentation, your materials, and because of that, your meeting.  You don't need cheerleader-level spunk, but it needs to be clear that you're happy to meet with your client, and that you're paying close attention to the conversation.  Don't ask your client to repeat themselves if you can possibly avoid it!

Encourage the client to share long and short term goals for themselves or their company (depending on which is the customer.)  Goals are why people buy. They want a hole, not a drill. Make sure you know what their goals are, because it tells you what to sell them, and how.

Educate the client about how your product will meet their goals.  If your product makes beautiful holes quickly, talk about holes.  Talk about product reliability in terms of "security in hole-making for years to come." Answer questions about the product, but don't drone on
like an infomercial!  The client cares about reaching their goal, and moving on to the next one.

Engage the customer on a human level by dropping the jargon as much as possible.  Say "hassle" instead of "impediment," or any other opportunity to humanize the conversation.  Talk to people like they're people. Jargon is necessary in most businesses some of the time. Humanity is necessary all of the time.

Empower your customer to reach their goals by supplying only the right products, always at the right price.  If you over-sell, you will probably not earn repeat business.  Your client will have an unrealistic impression of the cost and complexity of your solution.  If you under-sell, your customer won't reach their goal.  And if you overcharge, they will find out at some point.  Not only will repeat business be in jeopardy, your reputation may be as well.

Under-Promise, Over-Deliver

It's a great catch phrase, but how do you do it?  This isn't a trick of vocabulary!

When we go out and say, "We'd like to offer you - " it means we don't offer it now. Or, "Let's aim for tomorrow." These qualified terms have nothing to do with what your client hears.  What your client hears are the phrases closest to what they want.  If your client wants the product tomorrow, "Let's aim for tomorrow" means tomorrow to them.  It doesn't mean you're going to "try for tomorrow." To the client, it isn't maybe.  It means you will deliver. If you miss tomorrow, the client's faith in you is shaken. This is the entire problem.

Good sales reps occasionally slip up and say things like, "We can sometimes get this out in 24 hrs." All the client hears is tomorrow.  She doesn't hear the qualifying language at all!  If you want the client to have something tomorrow, unless you're planning to handle all the fulfillment yourself, you need to excuse yourself and make a phone call.  Never commit to anything on a tighter deadline than your company usually can deliver.  Even if your company advertises a 2 day turnaround, if usually it takes them 3 days, say 3.  If you deliver in 2, your client is delighted her order is early.  If you deliver in 3, you keep your promises.

If your client insists on a commitment that is tighter than your usual, you need to tread lightly!  There is little worse in a sales relationship than failing to deliver to your clients.  When the client presses for the impossible you need to avoid committing without your team's support.  "I need to see if we have that in stock," "Let me check in with our scheduler," and "I need to confirm with production" are all graceful ways to excuse yourself for the phone call you need to make.  If it really is impossible, don't waste their time.  "I wish I could, but instead let's aim for  -."

When you come back to your client after the phone call to the office, tell them the truth.  If you can meet the tighter deadline or accommodate the larger order, you don't want to leave the impression that this is normal order scheduling.  If you did it overnight, or a huge order on a dime today, that's what the client will remember. Make sure they understand that you moved heaven and earth to make this work, and you're shocked it turned out so well!  "In the future, we consistently want to meet your schedule without the miracles!  Let's work out a contact system where we can anticipate your needs." It gives you a great foundation for building a solid relationship with open communication.

Only make commitments you can meet.  Make sure you build ample time into your promises to cover reality.  Every time you over-deliver on time, or quality, you build trust in your relationship with your client.  Make it a habit!