You are busy. Regardless of your profession, on a daily basis you are inundated with a seemingly endless stream of phone calls, emails, text messages and meetings. Because of the rapid pace and high demands of the modern workplace, everyone is in search of ways to increase their productivity. One popular technique that many utilize in an attempt to execute numerous tasks quickly is multitasking. When a person attempts to …
Is selling an art or a science? When this question is posed to sales trainers their responses are usually identical. Most sales trainers state that selling is both an art and a science. Some trainers will even attempt to guess what percentage of selling is an art and what percentage is a science. This question is usually treated as theoretical, having little impact upon how a sales person actually sells. …
There is an unsettling trend occurring in the profession of sales. Surveys indicate that a staggering 38% – 49% of all sales people do not make quota every year. Stop for a moment and ponder the severity of this issue. Roughly 4 – 5 out of every 10 professional sales people fail to meet the standard that their company has placed upon them. This lack of sales is not merely …
It was a breakthrough that made Australian researchers Barry Marshal and Robin Warren famous and earned them the Nobel Prize. Their findings were considered a medical miracle that revolutionized how doctors treated painful stomach ulcers. Prior to Marshal and Warren’s discovery, the medical community believed that stomach ulcers were incurable. Doctors focused only on reducing the pain that the ulcers triggered.
There is no doubt that social media is a powerful force that has changed the way people communicate. Yet, how can you leverage it to effectively promote yourself, your company and your message? As the CEO of a sales training and consulting firm that specializes in applying behavioral science – the scientific study of how the human brain makes choices – to sales and business, I wondered what would happen …
In the late 1700’s, Dr. Franz Anton Mesmer became famous throughout France for his attempts to heal the human body though the use of magnets. Mesmer proclaimed that the human body contained magnetic force fields and if these force fields were not in harmony, illness would result. To cure these ailments, Mesmer devised a magnet therapy that he claimed would realign the magnetic forces in the body. At first …
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics sales is the second largest occupation in the United States.[1] This equates to 1 out of every 9 people being employed in the profession of sales. However, there is also compelling evidence that those who have non-sales jobs are also engaging in selling behaviors that shape their level of professional success. In short, there has been a radical shift in the marketplace …
It was one of the most revealing and amusing psychological experiments in recent years. Behavioral scientists, Daniel Simons and Christopher Chabris, gathered random college students together and had them watch a one minute video.[1] The video consisted of two basketball teams, one wearing black jerseys and the other white jerseys, moving around a small space passing a basketball back and forth to those on their team. Prior to watching the …
“Would you allow us to put a billboard in your front yard?” This was the question that a team of researchers, led by social psychologists Jonathan Freedman and Scott Frasier, asked residents of a California neighborhood. The researchers, who were posing as volunteer workers, would show each homeowner a picture that clearly portrayed how the large sign would obstruct the view of their house. Inscribed on the billboard was the …
Within the last few years there has been an alarming number of business leaders who have made the bold declaration that soon sales people will be no longer needed. They contend that because of the internet, the buying process has been transformed to such an extent that in the coming years sales people will not be required. Now there is no denying that the internet has radically changed the selling …
Choosing a sales training provider is one of the most significant business decisions you will ever make. Sales people generate the revenue that keeps an organization alive. One of the biggest predictors of sales success is the training that sales people receive. Sales training, properly executed, equips sales people with the knowledge and skills to sell successfully in today’s challenging selling climate.
Recently, I was approached by someone in the food service industry and asked if I had any insights from my study of the proven science of influence that could help servers increase their tips. Though there are many strategies that servers could employ to deepen rapport with their guests, the following are five scientifically validated behaviors that will both enhance a server’s tips and also create a more enjoyable dining …