Coach The Sale

What do top performing sales professionals and sales leaders do that others miss? My guest in this episode, Dan Lappin, of Lappin180 shares valuable insights in to the approach and mindsets of these people. We discuss the traps that average sales people fall into, and the opportunities that exist with a shift in mindset. In the episode we cover: [+] The traps Dan sees run-of-the-mill or average sales professionals making, and how to correct them. [+] Why BS sales hacks often harm rather than help. [+] Why sales professionals perform better when they let go of the outcome [+] How top performers visualise the right results [+] Learning to bet on yourself and on your process [+] Dan shares the often overlooked discrepancies between the sales person's objectives and the prospects [+] The power of the advisor mindset

Many times on the show we've spoken to external sales coaches and trainers but this episode is a little different, Rob Cucurull joins us to discuss life as an internal sales coach at SAP Concur. It's great to be able to interview Rob, he shares his experiences of what it's like to be a full time coach within an organization, helping staff develop, supporting them, and helping them become better salespeople. In the episode we cover: [+] What the sales function at SAP Concur looks like [+] We dive deep into sales coaching at SAP Concur [+] Rob shares examples the the results coaching has led to, and why. [+] What does a typical one-to-one sales coaching session looks like [+] Rob shares the advice that he would give somebody just starting out delivering coaching as part of a wider sales role Thanks to Rob for sharing his insights.

Is there any place for empathy in Sales? How can we improve our sales process by understanding the buying process? This shift in focus is at the core of my conversation with Josh Braun, someone who, if you work in sales and spend any time on LinkedIn you will have heard of. Josh and I breakdown what it means to truly understand how buyers buy, and what this can do to your sales skills. We dive into understanding why prospects buy, and why they don't buy, and revisit a topic we've touched on in previous episodes - the jobs to be done framework. In the episode we discuss: [+] Why old fashioned approaches to sales persist [+] How sales people can reduce the tendency to use those approaches [+] Practical tips for using LinkedIn to develop your own authentic voice [+] Why Josh agreed to coach an 11 year old to make cold calls [+] We discuss what the real job of a milkshake at breakfast is. and lastly [+] I try to avoid an awkward discussion about firearms...... I want to invite you to a webinar I'm hosting - Recordings Into Revenue, where myself and our head of sales will be sharing our Recordings Into Revenue Framework - and how you can unlock the hidden gold locked away in your sales call recordings. To reserve your spot visit https://www.refract.ai/webinar

If you've ever watched an online video somewhere other than on YouTube, you've probably seen the Wistia video player, the super simple distraction free player that's great to look at and easy to use. My guest today is Peter von Burchard, VP of Sales and Customer Success at Wistia. On the face of it Wistia might look like a traditional software as a service, where customers sign up without much contact from a sales team. But in reality Wistia has a sizeable sales team that is heavily into coaching, and it's for this reason I was so keen to speak with Pete. He shares a lot in this interview that will be of interest to anyone managing a sales team especially one that's forward thinking and recognises the impact coaching can have on performance. In the episode we cover: [+] Wistia's journey of growth to over 20,000 customers [+] Pete breaks down the make up of the sales team at Wistia [+] How Wistia does sales coaching and the development of the 'Wistia Way' [+] The importance of your sales team knowing and using their authentic voice [+] The importance of reps and managers listening and reviewing sales calls [+] How you can develop you authentic voice, even when working in a old fashioned or traditional business [+] How much time sales managers at Wistia spend coaching, and the support they receive to become better coaches. [+] Measuring success of the team For shownotes visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/modern-sales-coaching

How authentic are you in your sales conversations? Do you feel the need to have a polished persona of business professionalism that doesn't reflect who you are in any way? Dale Dupree's on a mission to put a stop to that, and in doing so ignite your sales performance. Dale is Founder of The Sales Rebellion, a sales coaching and training company with a mission to help sales people radically educate prospects and banish mediocre practices. He's prolific on LinkedIn, sharing tips, highs and lows, and authentic sales stories. There's so much to learn from his approach and his mindset, and I'm so pleased Dale was able to share some of these with us. In the episode you'll hear: [+] Why it's important for sales professionals to develop their own authentic voice [+] How being authentic improves the buyer seller relationship [+] The importance of taking risks, being courageous, and building credibility and trust [+] How to begin to manage a high need for approval [+] Two great examples of courageous, authentic, selling involving beers and doughnuts Plus, Dale breaks down his REASON framework to radically educate and share one's narrative. Here's to unlocking our authenticity, with The Copier Warrior, Dale Dupree. In the UK? Want free sales coaching resources? Text COACH followed by your email address to 66777 - we'll do the rest.

"Your sales methodology is irrelevant" that's the view of Kevin Dorsey, VP of Inside Sales at PatientPop, a rapidly growing platform that helps doctors increase the visibility of their practices with digital marketing. Kevin has put out some thought provoking content on LinkedIn, inspired by his frustrations having been on the receiving end of terrible sales demos and we discuss that and more in this episode. He doesn't hold back on calling out poor practice, sharing experiences leading and managing a sales team in a rapidly growing company. In the episode we cover two main topics: In the first part we discuss selling to VPs of sales and other senior sales leaders, the challenges and opportunities, knowing your numbers, and the importance of understanding the mindset, and often times inexperience, of your buyer. In the second we focus on Kevin's thoughts on what's wrong with blindly following a sales methodology, he outlines what Sales Coaching at PatientPop looks like, the role that the book The Talent Code has had on his approach, and shares both strategy and tactics for improving performance when coaching sales teams. For full show notes and free sales coaching resources visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/sales-methodology

Discovery is one of the most critical components in the sales process. But when it comes to engaging new prospects, so many sales professionals wade into uncharted waters without proper preparation, or fail to do adequate research on their prospective buyers. Today we fix that with Andy Paul CEO and Founder of Zero-Time Selling. Andy is one of the foremost authorities on sales training and sales coaching with well over four decades of proven success closing deals and making sales. He and I discuss how using discovery can better prepare salespeople to get to know their prospects and clients better and lots more besides, with plenty of tactics you can implement personally, and with those you coach. In this episode, we cover: [+] How best to introduce discovery into the sales process [+] Digging deep to find out what drives your buyer's decision making [+] Not hiding your competitors from prospective customers [+] The importance of benefits of building trust, respect, and connections. [+] Genuinely discovering and understanding your client's needs [+] Building lasting relationships with other stakeholders in the sales process [+] Coaching others so that they can use the tools of better discovery too And lots more besides. Connect with me on Linkedin and give feedback on the show: https://www.refract.ai/matt For show notes, sales coaching resources, and more visit: https://www.refract.ai/coach

In today's episode, we're talking all things SDR with the one and only Morgan J. Ingram, host of The SDR Chronicles, a popular YouTube channel where Morgan documents his SDR sales journey. Whether you're currently an SDR, you coach SDRs, or you manage a team of SDRs, this episode is going to be of value. I sat down with Morgan at the SaaS Growth 2019 event organised by Sales Confidence in London earlier this month, and we cover a range of topics including his story to date, going from a new SDR, to two years later, growing a really popular YouTube channel. In this episode, we also cover: [+] The common mistakes and pitfalls an SDR can fall into [+] The case for split testing your messaging as an SDR [+] How to start to structure and implement multi-touch cadences with your prospects [+] The continued relevance of cold calling [+] Building up resilience [+] Holding onto a successful mindset in sales [+] Best practices for making an impact on your audience For full show notes of the episode and free sales resources visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/sdr-success

There are few subjects that generate as much enthusiasm and excitement amongst sales professionals as sales process. Well, maybe not... But that's about to change. In this episode I'm thrilled to have George Brontén CEO of Membrain on the show, and he's here to transform the way you think about sales process. Gone are the days of clunky over engineered processes that nobody follows. Now, with the advent of technology like Membrain, companies are starting to realize just how much of an impact process can have on sales performance across a whole organization. In this episode we cover [+] What makes a high performance sales process [+] How to avoid key pitfalls when creating and iterating on your own process [+] How to get your team bought into your sales process [+] The importance of having different processes for dynamic sales situations [+] How technology can enhance and maximize the likelihood of a sales team following a process And much more besides. Full show notes and resources here: https://www.refract.ai/blog/sales-process-power

Effective sales onboarding is critical when you’re ready to grow your sales team and set up new hires for success whilst avoiding disrupting the successful team you already have in place. What processes do you need in place to find the best recruits - and onboard them as efficiently as possible? For answers to these questions and more I'm joined by John Lund and Matt Schultz of MyB2Bcoach who share their step by step process for rapid onboarding that you can start to put into practice today. In this episode we cover: [+] Onboarding models and assessment tools [+] Sales onboarding best practices to improve ramp times for new hires [+] Implementing structures that are crucial to hiring [+] The impacts a structural hiring approach has on an established sales team [+] The importance of using LinkedIn as a touch point in the hiring process [+] LinkedIn profile pointers for sales professionals [+] Advice on the steps required for moving new hires toward live calls [+] Building up a resource of tactics that elevate the entire team All this and a lot more on this episode of Coach the Sale. For show notes visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/sales-onboarding

On this episode of Coach the Sale, we speak to Caryn Kopp, author of the incredibly successful book, “Biz Dev Done Right: Demystifying the Sales Process and Achieving the Results You Want”. Caryn provides fantastic advice on managing sales teams, as well as sharing tangible courses of action to help you clear your path to success. In this episode we cover: [+] Identifying blindspots in the sales process [+] Taking your pitch to the next level [+] Hiring the right staff, and the important differences between Openers and Closers [+] How to spot the Characteristics of high functioning performers [+] Finding the optimal outcome for every interaction [+] Teaching current staff new traits and techniques [+] Using the recruitment process to maximize hiring the right candidate [+] What an effective onboarding process looks like [+] Utilizing effective role plays that break from the usual scenario [+] How to best develop your sales messaging for your entire team [+] Listening to sales conversations as part of development [+] Strategies to grow sales through refining your messaging It’s all here and a lot more on this episode of Coach the Sale. For show notes visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/business-development-done-right

We all want our teams to succeed and our businesses to grow, but timing is of paramount importance. It's not always easy knowing when to put a plan into action, or where to allocate resources. On this episode of Coach the Sale, we examine the signs of not only appropriate timing, but also look at determining where and how to move towards strategic growth. My guest is Amir Reiter, the CEO and founder of CloudTask, a managed service provider that helps software companies with B2B sales and sales chat. In the past 2 years, Amir is quickly becoming a trusted authority on strategies for successfully growing sales teams. In this episode we cover: [+] Pitfalls to avoid when trying build out a sales function. [+] How to look out for misleading indicators that you may, or may not be ready to grow your sales team. [+] How to spot suitable times to promote from within. [+] How to be efficient with getting your team up to speed. [+] Finding and sourcing growth-mindset staff, and others who respond well to coaching. [+] Dealing with people resistant to a coaching culture. [+] Sales process design and how to engineer them. [+] Leveraging online offerings to streamline qualifying your leads. [+] Using chatbots to advance the sales process and strategizing chat availability. [+] Knowing where and when to coach for getting the best results. All this and a lot more on this episode of Coach the Sale. For full show notes visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/strategic-sales-growth

Why is it that separate Sales and Marketing divisions from the same company, with the same goals, and the same direction, can spend so much of their valuable energy competing against one another? On this episode of Coach the Sale, we discuss valuable strategies and techniques that can assist once mortal enemies of the business world, and help them to successfully collaborate so that all may benefit. My guest is Darryl Praill, the Chief Marketing Officer at VanillaSoft. Darryl has been widely quoted in the media including television, press, and trade publications. He is a guest lecturer, public speaker, and radio personality and has been featured in numerous podcasts, case studies, and best-selling books. In this episode we cover: [+] How Sales and Marketing departments can leverage one another. [+] What causes the lack of collaboration? [+] How do you define a lead? [+] How the two departments can work together towards the common goal of earning revenue [+] Ways to manage cadences and speed to lead. [+] Embracing the spirit of cooperation. [+] Getting senior leadership to set the tone. [+] How marginal gains can equal overwhelming results. [+] Should you be seeking an alignment between Sales and Marketing, or a collaboration? [+] Is Marketing merely a support vehicle? All this and a lot more on this episode of Coach the Sale. For show notes and more visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/sales-and-marketing

Self-improvement is one of most easily accessible pillars of success for every sales professional who is serious about managing their career growth. On this episode of Coach The Sale, we delve into ways to incorporate the culture of sales coaching into not only your office, but to your mindset as well. My guest is Pete Evans, Managing Director at Ventas. Pete has been responsible for coaching sales professionals from startups to major global players, and is an authority on teaching people best practices for investing time into improving themselves. In this episode we cover: [+] Is “Sales Coaching” more than a buzz word? [+] Distinguishing between Sales Coaching and Sales Management. [+] Why do some have a resistance to coaching, and how to deal with it? [+] How can one manage their own mindset? [+] The importance of identifying different learning styles. [+] Ways to implement constant reflection and self-evaluation. [+] 3 key ways to develop self-awareness. [+] How to avoid the pitfalls of hearing feedback as criticism. [+] Getting the most out of your pipeline. [+] What’s the best way to conduct a coach ability assessment? [+] Are there ways to implement coaching in the recruitment process? [+] You’ll hear all this and a lot more besides. And a whole lot more besides. For show notes and free sales coaching resources visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/sales-coaching-culture

Need for approval in sales can be so detrimental - getting in the way of asking tough questions, limiting where a sales conversation goes, and undermining the progress of a sale. Understanding this, and other aspects of 'Sales DNA', is the focus of the episode. I'm speaking with Chris Mott President of Corporate Training at Kurlan & Associates - sharing what the analysis of over 2 million assessments and evaluations of sales professionals has revealed about the nature and structure of skills needed to excel in sales and sales management. In this episode we cover: [+] What the analysis of over 2 million assessments and evaluations of sales professionals has revealed, characteristics that Chris and his colleagues refer to as 'Sales DNA.' [+] Why a need for approval can be so detrimental in Sales [+] How the need for approval can manifest itself among coaches or leaders promoted into role [+] The practical steps a person can take to begin to work on their need for approval [+] How critical a sales process can measure and elevate sales performance [+] The influence that has on the sales process [+] Why sales leaders don't always seem to improve over time [+] Which strand of Sales DNA would Chris choose to genetically engineer in all Sales professionals And lot's more besides. For full show notes, free resources and more visit our website: https://www.refract.ai/blog/need-for-approval-in-sales

How do you attract and recruit great fit candidates for sales roles? Today I'm speaking with Author, Speaker, Podcast Host, and Sales Trainer Wes Schaeffer, The Sales Whisperer. We dive deep into how to attract, recruit and support the best sales talent for your organisation. In this episode we cover: [+] How Wes' time in the Airforce shaped his transition into working in Sales [+] The importance of practice and mastering the basics to become more adaptable when selling [+] The impact both a good and bad fit hire can make to a sales organisation [+] Early indicators of good fit and bad fit candidates [+] How Wes uses the content of job adverts and the recruitment process to screen out bad fit candidates [+] Strategically using rejection in an interview as a way to gauge resilience [+] The difference between product training and sales training [+] Book recommendation, lots of sports analogies and much more For full show notes visit: https://www.refract.ai/blog/recruiting-a-sales-team

Listening to sales conversations is the vital first step in helping sales teams grow. In this episode I'm speaking with Sam Patel (Inside Sales Director) and Nicola Storer (Inside Sales Manager - Customer Loyalty & Acquisitions) from Neopost a global company offering digital communications, shipping and mail solutions. They share how listening to, and analysing, sales conversations helped them to exceed targets with a reduced headcount. In this episode we cover: [+] Why listening to calls is so important to the success of Neopost [+] The ways in which listening to calls has evolved over the last 12 months, and the impact it's had. [+] The key elements of a call that the team are listening out for. [+] How listening to calls and coaching has contributed to exceeding target with a smaller team. [+] Advice for people cautious about beginning to listen to a team's sales conversations. [+] How the value of listening to calls extends well beyond just the sales team And a lot more besides.

Can you coach a 10yr old kid to cold call? The answer's yes and in Episode #7 of Coach The Sale I talk to Joe Beales - star of a video that, at the time of writing, has been viewed over 100,000 times on LinkedIn. Joe is the son of our CEO Kevin and last week he stopped by the office during one of his school holidays to spend the day at Refract, to discover what cold calling was about, and to get some one to one coaching from Refract Business Development Manager, Mark Ackers. In the episode you'll discover: [+] What Joe enjoys when he's not making dials. [+] Joe's ground breaking pet product he developed with his friends at school. [+] Joe's experiences cold calling for the very first time. [+] How he prepared for calling and managed to stay calm when calls got difficult. [+] Joe's tips for anyone reluctant to make cold calls. A shorter episode than normal, but one I think you'll enjoy.

Carole Mahoney founded a marketing agency, but soon realized that overly relying on inbound opportunities wasn't going to be enough, and that in order to succeed she needed to embrace outbound sales and outbound calling. Carole shares her journey from inbound marketer to one of the best outbound sales coaches, a fantastic journey that reveals important lessons that remain extremely relevant to all sales professionals. In this episode you'll learn: + Carole's journey from inbound marketer to outbound sales coach + How the sales profession can sometimes look like 19th century medicine + How preconceived ideas of what Sales is can affect cold call reluctance + The power of - 'it's not about you' + How Carole works with top sales performers promoted in leadership roles + How time management is critical to sales leadership success + Why recording the sales calls your team makes is vital for improving performance

If you have a fear of cold calling, or you manage people who do, then this is the episode for you. Refract's Co-Founder and Head of Sales Rich Smith and I discuss one of the main factors holding sales people back from being truly successful - cold call reluctance, and how to get over it. In this episode: + How does a fear of cold calling manifest itself, both within us and in the staff that we manage + What are some of the factors that increase and decrease that fear of cold calling + Rich shares how he got over his own cold call reluctance when he was starting out his sales career + We discuss leading from the front, creating a culture that embraces cold calling + Getting great fit hires and managing expectations around cold calling from the start + And much more besides

In today's episode (EP04) I'm speaking with Dan Jourdan, the Sales Energizer, and as you'd expect he's not lacking when it comes to energy or enthusiasm for making sales calls. Dan's focus is on training sales people on how to grow their pipelines through outbound calling. The conversation revolves around all things cold calling, whether that's completely cold, or where the prospect know's a little bit about you already. In the episode: + Dan makes the case that outbound calling is more important than ever in the digital age. + The opportunities that exist as a result of other people's reluctance to embrace calling. + He shares what separates an average call from a great call. + We discuss how Dan prepares himself for each call he makes, and how sales leaders can get the best out of their teams through sales coaching. Plus a whole lot more. Enjoy!

In this episode I'm sitting down with Brian Geery, Managing Partner at CEO of SalesNV.com where he and his colleagues support sales professionals to deliver better sales demos. But if you don't deliver software demos don't fret, the main focus of our conversation is all about delivering great sales coaching. In this episode you'll learn: + Lessons Brian gleaned from his first sales coach and mentor. + What differentiates an average and awesome product demo. + What does really good sales coaching look like. + The importance of coachability and accountability among sales teams. + How do you manage a coachee who doesn't respond to coaching. + The importance of storytelling and catching people doing something right when sales coaching.

Today I'm discussing a hot sales topic - coaching versus managing, with Mary Grothe of Sales BQ. Examining how individual mindset and motivation drives sales performance, and how by understanding your team's range of motivations you can drastically help them become better sales people.

In our first Coach The Sale episode we have Adam Zais with us to discuss modern sales coaching, nurturing and developing a sales coaching mindset, challenging individual and cultural resistance to sales coaching, and the pitfalls of a stereotypical old school sales culture. Enjoy!

If sales coaching matters to you then this might just be your new favourite podcast. Whether you currently coach, or aspire to help your sales teams be the very best - Coach The Sale will help you on your journey.