Stephen M. Haines - Tips for sales professionals

In this installment of  Are YOU On Demand?  we will focus on the promptness.  As you recall, we've been looking at how we have moved into the On Demand era, and how our consumers are demanding it from not just devices, but from everyONE they deal with.  Not only are they looking for someone who makes it simple to do business with, they also want those people to be prompt and engaging. The newest laptops on the market have solid state hard drives, whose main purpose is to create an "Instant On" experience, one touting a 2 second boot up!  Compare that to your laptop!  Why do I bring this up?  well, again, your consumer's iphone, iPad, and now laptop starts as quickly as their cars have for years (although even those now have Push button starts now!)  How does this translate?  If a customer leaves some question in your lap, they kind of expect it answered....quickly.  This is best seen online, where customers who used to survey that they...

Last time we discussed how much more prevalent tablets and smartphones have become, and how your consumer is being quietly reprogrammed to expect those features from everything - and everyone - they come in contact with.  Think about it - when's the last time you rearranged your schedule to make sure you saw the weather report on TV?  It's almost ludicrous to think about.  One 2 second hold on the round button on my phone, then mumbling the word "weather" - I have the whole thing - 5 day forecast, maps, weather alerts - I can even click around and see how other people feel  about the weather.  That is something that was previously missing from the nightly newscast. As I dig into this reality, I am drawn to the amazing thing that Jobs landed on in his pursuit of the perfect device.  It is so.... simple.  In the authorized biography of Steve Jobs, it is discussed how the iPhone came to fruition. Interestingly, he was first motivated to invent a new t...

Why does anyone enter the highly respected profession of sales?  (Yeah, that was totally tongue-in-cheek).  I will tell you why, because we see an opportunity to likely feed our families and achieve our dreams via our natural gift of conversation or relationalism.  The ability to find commonality with just about anyone. I am pretty sure, if you are in sales, you can relate with this notion.  You probably have been told over the years that you have the "gift of gab" or "get along with anyone." So, you gave up your first career of teaching, accounting, pizza delivery, paint stripping, or warehousing to enter the dynamic world of sales. Let me ask you a question - is that enough?  Is the difference maker between highly consistent and successful sales professionals simply that some are more interactive than others?  No!  You have probably felt some measure of success, but you've had setbacks.  Yes, even self doubt at times.  I think I may be...

Thanks for taking the time between your facebook posts to read my blog.  A friend just texted me that he was following a tweet that suggested another blog encouraged emailing your friend list.  In today's e-connected culture, the true art of how to talk to another human being... I mean, really talk, well - that's becoming a lost art. So, let me help you with a few tips on how to make the phone work for you.  First, some philosophy.  When calling prospects to schedule another appointment with them, two things can happen - you talk to them, or go to voicemail.  So, the first philosophy is that when you pick up the phone, you better have 2 plans, based on the two possibilities! So, if it goes to voicemail, your whole mission is to entice the receiver to call you back.  Don't sell, don't give away incentives, don't be desperate.  Get them to call you back.  The best way to do that is to be personal and intriguing.  Try something like "This is...

It never fails - when I go to a conference and we take a break, the networking and collaboration have come to a grinding halt. As if captured by some mind ray, you see a sea of business-dressed junkies face down in their late model smart phones. It could be a business crisis, updating Facebook status (conf is lame, let's do drinks l8r), or trying to figure out what to do with 4 U's in "words with friends". Whatever it is, you'll see tons of people inches from each other NOT TALKING! Here's some advice - be prepared with some networking questions that are irresistible whenever you find yourself or someone you are trying to do business with in a smart phone coma. Here's a few to get you thinkin': At a conference/meeting: "How did you break into this industry?" "If you were in charge, what would you change?" "What is your most memorable business meeting?" When selling to a Smart phone addict: "Tell me abou...