Intentional Selling: How to Plan for Sales Productivity

November 4, 2015 by

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Intentional Selling: How to Plan for Sales Productivity

This is Episode 54 of This Old New Business weekly business podcast with Jeff Korhan.

In this episode, we chat with international selling expert Mark Hunter to discuss how intentional selling results in greater sales productivity.

Mark Hunter is known as “The Sales Hunter” because of his global reputation for helping sales teams and sales professionals find better prospects and close them at a higher price. He is the author of High-Profit Selling and watch for his next book in 2016, High-Profit Prospecting.

Understand the Balance of Time and Money

Intententional Sellling: How to Plan for Sales Productivity In every selling situation, there is a connection between time and money. For example, a buyer searching the web for the “best” option has an immediate need and is ready to buy. They will very likely pay more to get the product to satisfy their time agenda. Conversely, buyers that are in no hurry will expect a discount.

Intentional selling requires having a predictable plan for discovering the buyer’s:

  1. Critical Need: The buyer needs to articulate it.
  2. Time-Frame: Is the need near-term?
  3. Value of Money: Serious buyers pay for value.
  4. Decision-Making Authority – Always work with decision-makers.

According to Mark Hunter, if all four items score favorably, the seller has a viable prospect and should move quickly to close the sale; that’s the intentional plan for increasing sales productivity. When sales professionals are intentional, they learn to invest their limited time with fewer prospects, the ones with a valid near-term need and realistic value of money.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on intentional selling? Meet me over on Twitter to take the conversation further.

Lighting Round Tips and Advice

Mark’s Top Sales or Marketing Advice – Make sales phone calls at 2 minutes before and after the hour. Mark says his calls are often answered because the busy executive is frequently in the office at this time between scheduled meeting, and they don’t waste time doing the cleaning in the office, that’s why they use a commercial cleaning company in Edmonton a couple days a week.

His Favorite Productivity Tip – Mark advocates breaking the day into, and staying focused on results during 20 minutes time blocks. This is very similar to the popular Pomodoro Technique.

A Quote that has Inspired Mark’s Success – “Help people see and achieve things they didn’t think were possible.” (Mark’s personal mantra).

Key Take-Aways

How to subscribe to This Old New Business podcast

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If you enjoyed this episode, please head over to iTunes or Stitcher to leave a rating, write a review, or subscribe.

About the Author:  Jeff Korhan, MBA, is the author of Built-In Social: Essential Social Marketing Practices for Every Small Business and host of This Old New Business podcast.

He helps organizations use media to create exceptional customer experiences that drive business growth in a digital, social and global world. Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Google+

Nurture Marketing: How to Be Remembered When Buyers are Ready

April 10, 2015 by

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Nurture Marketing: How to Be Remembered When Buyers are Ready

This is Episode 36 of This Old New Business weekly business podcast with Jeff Korhan.

Randall Craig attributes his business success to the implementation of systems that automate strategic touchpoints for adding value and nurturing relationships with prospective buyers and clients. Think of it as content marketing on autopilot.

When you listen to the audio you will probably learn some new terms, such as journey mapping and omni-channel marketing. More important is that you will learn how use them to strategically deliver the right content at the right time so that your company is remembered when buyers in your audience are ready choose a business to work with.

Our Featured Guest: Randall Craig

Nurture Marketing: How to Be Remembered When Buyers are ReadyRandall Craig helps organizations land their digital strategy airplane through a more integrated approach to marketing. Randall has been advising on Web Strategy since 1994, and is the author of 7 books, including The Everything Guide to Starting an Online Business, Social Media for Business, and Online PR and Social Media.

Building an Automated Nurture Marketing System

When your small business responds to an inquiry, the expected response is often “yes” or “no.” Though in reality the prospective buyer may actually be thinking “not yet” when he or she says no. 

This is the nurture marketing oppportunty. When your business has an automated nurture marketing system in place to engage with new connections, it will be remembered when that buyers is ready to make a decision.

Business success is quite often described as a marathon. It’s all about grinding it out. This is why nurture or “drip” marketing works so well. There are hundreds of reasons why buyers are not ready, which is why your business wants to regularly send them useful information to guide them along their buyers journey.

If you consider your nurture marketing sequence to be purposeful touchpoints, then they can be integrated into an overall strategy that includes traditional mail, social media, and face-to-face meetings. It should all be designed to help your buyer so that our business is the remembered and trusted when the time is right to choose.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on nurture marketing? Meet me over on Twitter to take the conversation further.

Lighting Round Tips and Advice

Randall’s Top Sales or Marketing Advice – Remember the other 95%. Most online marketing converts about 5%. Using nurture marketing to capture more of the other 95% and it all drops to the bottom line.

His Favorite Productivity Tip – Use a kitchen timer (referred to as an egg or Pomodoro timer) to limit the you spend surfing the web or returning emails.

A Quote that has Inspired Randall’s Success – “Give to get.” Find ways to help other people get what they want and soon they will remember you and help you get what you want.

Key Take-Aways

  • You can learn more about Randall at RandallCraig.com
  • Sign up for Randall’s FREE monthly webinar on marketing effectiveness

How to subscribe to This Old New Business podcast

Click here to subscribe via iTunes.
You can also subscribe via Stitcher.

Help us Spread the Word

If you enjoyed this episode of This Old New Marketing podcast, please head over to iTunes or Stitcher to leave a rating, write a review, or subscribe.

About the Author:  Jeff Korhan, MBA, is the author of Built-In Social: Essential Social Marketing Practices for Every Small Business and host of This Old New Business podcast.

He helps mainstream businesses adapt their traditional growth practices to a digital world. Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Google+