This morning I received an email from a long-term sales coaching client. He is in his mid thirties and has built a wonderful financial advisory business. His is client-service and long-term focused. Here is a portion of his message:

“Good morning, just got to work to catch up on some things. I checked the 15th pay run and the office is at $607,000 in gross commissions YTD!!! Last year we hit $505,000. I couldn’t have ever hit those numbers without your mentorship….I’m thankful for you.”

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What follows is my response, which I believe is appropriate for any salesperson, or for that matter, any business.

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Congratulations! You are a star because of your willingness to learn from many people, and there are many who have helped you down the path. But at the end of the day you were the one who had to do the work, so you can take satisfaction in the fact that YOU are the one ultimately responsible. The chef uses ingredients from a variety of sources that were not a result of his or her own work. However, without the chef, it is just stuff. Because you choose humility, it makes your work special, as you have acknowledged others and because your clients come first.

This is the trap. When you look at the commissions it would be easy to become absorbed in “look at what I did.” Take a look at the $600K and then look at the sales blotter for the year. Spend an hour looking at each transaction and ask yourself, ‘How did this benefit this client, their family, and their business?” Spending this hour, or however long it takes, will keep you grounded.

This is the secret. By focusing on what you do for your clients, and the benefits you provide them, it gives you the ability and the privilege to ask yourself important questions, such as:

• If I do $750,000 in commissions in 2008 (or for that matter $1,000,000; the choice on how big to dream is up to you), how many more people will I serve?
• In what ways could I provide better value and better service to my existing clients?
• What can I do to make it easier for my clients to tell my story, and thereby help them grow my business?
• Exactly how will I find more clients, and where will they come from?
• By hitting my sales number what would it mean to my family?
• What kind of opportunities can I provide them?
• How would our free time be better spent?
• What kind of vacations would we take?
• What kind of experiences would I be able to share with my children?
• How would I make certain that my wife still knows she is also my girlfriend?
• What would I do for my parents?
• What would the effect be on the charities and causes I hold close to my heart?
• How can I help my clients enjoy and discover the same types of experiences?

If you live in the questions, then you will find the answers. There is no limit on what you can accomplish, if you do it in the spirit of service above self. So my questions for you are:

• What’s next?
• Where do you go from here?
• How can I help?

Your move.

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As you enter this holiday season and plan for 2008, put together a list of questions for yourself that empower you to take the next steps to exponential growth in your business.

Happy Holidays - and Good Selling!

Technorati Tags: sales coaching

Business strategist and professional speaker Michael Roby addressed a group of leading financial institution sales managers at a management conference in St. Helena, CA on December 3, 2007. Bank Insurance Securities Association (BISA) hosted their “Sales Management Fall Workshop,” which was open to institutions in the United States and Canada. Roby conducted his “Managing Excellence” seminar, which teaches sales management strategies and skills.

BISA, based in Wayne, PA, fosters the full integration of securities and insurance businesses with depository institutions’ traditional banking businesses. BISA reaches out to and offers services to executives throughout its member firms. BISA participants include executives from the securities, insurance, investment advisory, trust, private banking, retail, capital markets, and commercial divisions of depository institutions. The BISA provides a single forum for these executives and their product and service partners to work together to find solutions to help grow their businesses.

Michael Roby is a nationally known speaker that helps his audiences get improved sales results that are quantifiable and lasting. While corporations and audiences know Michael as an authority on sales, marketing, and the distribution of financial services, he is also known as one of America’s best motivational speakers. Roby delivers thought-provoking keynotes that leave a lasting, positive impression on his audience. His website, www.michaelroby.com is also home to a leading sales and marketing blog.

Technorati Tags: Business strategist, professional speaker, Bank Insurance Securities Association, sales management

Businesses invest tremendous amounts of financial and human capital on building brand. How well do you maximize the value of your company’s brand to grow your sales? People are sequential learners, so messages must be repeatable AND repeated in order to make a lasting impression on customers and prospects. In Be Your Own Brand by David McNally and Karl Speake, brand is defined as a relationship. Here are six tips for building your sales relationships by leveraging your company’s brand:

1. Know your companies story (mission, values, tag lines, slogans, etc.)
2. Use the story in your client and prospect communications
3. Weave the story into your sales presentations
4. Make certain your PERSONAL brand is meets and exceeds your company’s brand
5. Create lasting brand awareness with branded sales materials and promotional items
6. Reinforce the brand with exceptional service

Successful salespeople utilize all of the resources at their disposal. Your company spent tons of money with smart people to build a brand. Use these six tips to help YOU get the most out of THEIR investment!

Technorati Tags: building brand, grow your sales, sales relationships

Recently I was in south Florida seeing a one of my mentors. Jack Walsh, founder of Money Concepts International, is a pioneer in the financial planning business. Jack gve me some of my first opportunities as a speaker and he and his colleague Keith Dayley were masters of sales training. He did a lot in the 80’s and 90’s to help me (and many others) grow my business, and I flew down and spent the better part of a wonderful day with him. But a trip to south Florida demands you also head to the beach!

As I enjoyed the late afternoon sea breezes, I watched a seeming endless parade of airplanes towing advertising banners. Most involved local bars and restaurants. All of a sudden, a little girl who could not have been more than SIX YEARS OLD looked up and yelled, “Look Mom…It’s GEICO!” Sure enough, there was the GEICO gecko! What does a little girl know about insurance? Nothing… but she knows GEICO. There may be a slight possibility that she calls GEICO some day. The bigger possibility is that her mom, who has seen the same commercials all over the media, might just remember GEICO the next time she gets a premium increase. This is a company that has mastered marketing.

What do YOU do to make sure your customers never forget you; that they think about you often, especially when making a buying decision? I suggest a system that helps you manage the activity of staying in touch and building relationships. For example, my best customers and prospects usually get one phone call, one email, and one envelope from me every month. The call is usually business AND personal. The email might have a helpful tip or website link, and the envelope will contain articles or resources selected just for them. In addition, many of them bookmark or get an RSS feed for my blog on their web browser dashboard (if you haven’t, please do so!). I reach out with appropriate gifts and expressions of appreciation, usually when least expected.

What do YOU do make certain you have top-of-mind presence with YOUR best customers? Are your competitors one step below or one step above you in the hierarchy of customer buying decisions? Let me know if I can help.

Good selling!

Technorati Tags: financial planning, speaker, sales training

Last night my wife and I went the Chanhassen Dinner Theater in Chanhassen, Minnesota to see a play called “Male Intellect: An Oxymoron.” This one-man comedy starred a friend named Stevie Ray. Stevie is a very successful businessman. Executive Director of “Stevie Ray’s Improv Company,” columnist for the “Minneapolis Business Journal,” author, nationally known speaker and corporate trainer; this is a busy guy! Stevie is also in demand as an MC, having hosted the Miss Minnesota Pageant, and a long list of other civic and charitable events. In addition to being an outrageously funny, talented artist and businessman, Stevie is a wonderfully giving person.

Do NOT miss the fact that he is a businessman. As a sales trainer and speaker, he did something at the close of last night’s show that reminded me why he has been so successful in so many businesses…he asked for referrals!

After he took his bow, they brought the lights back up and Stevie stepped back on the stage. He thanked his audience for coming (another great sales principle; say “thank you” to your customers!) This play is a bit of a departure for “The Chan” and Stevie joked that he loved the great crowds the play has drawn, as it is depressing to do a live show to two or three people! Then he asked us, if we liked the show, to tell a few of our friends about it. “Send them an email” he suggested lightheartedly, all the while doing so with his ever-present wit and energy.

Great salespeople don’t just make sales; they grow their businesses by developing and broadening their “circle of friends” and creatively asking for the customer referral. So, you get your wish, Stevie. I am sending this to some of my closest friends in sales. Whether or not you have the good fortune to see this really fun production, Stevie gives you a gift – a reminder to ask for the referral! (By the way, if you like this Blog, pass the link along to your friends in sales and sales management. I love referrals, too!)

Good selling!

Technorati Tags: Minneapolis Business Journal, speaker, sales trainer, speaker, customer referral, sales, sales management

My apologies to Simon & Garfunkel; I actually SANG the title of this post. (Be glad this is not a podcast, although they are coming in the near future!) Where DID Dan McBride go? I’ve been looking for him for a couple of years, and he is nowhere to be found. Dan McBride and Ken Lutz (I can’t find him, either) conducted an exceptional sales training program I attended back in the early 1990’s. I really do want to find them, so I can thank them for helping me be a better salesman. If you know where they are…let me know!

Good sales training is an exceptional part of the formula to help salespeople improve. Sales training equals more sales and more money! Most companies provide sales training, but much of this training is product-centric. In addition, we all need training in the basics of sales and relationship development. Successful salespeople don’t just wait for their company or suppliers to provide sales training; they seek it on their own. Seminars, books, videos, podcasts, and blogs all contribute to a salesperson’s success and the opportunities are vast.

Structure your personal training program to be an investment in your future success. Salespeople that schedule regular time for self improvement – maybe three to five hours per week – will see their sales increase greatly when they implement the learning into their business. Focus on the areas in which you need the greatest improvement, whether it is prospecting, presenting, answering objections, closing, or relationship development. If you seek improvement in a specific area, you will find it!

I would love to hear about YOUR best finds in the area of sales training! Please respond to this post with any resource you have found valuable, be it a book, workshop, or any other resource you have found to be helpful. Click “leave a response” at the end of this post and share your recommendation with others. And if you know how to get hold of Dan or Ken…let me know!

Good selling!

Technorati Tags: Dan McBride, Ken Lutz, sales training

What a week! Seven speaking engagements in five cities in Washington, California, and Texas, with five flights provided for an exciting but tiring trip. When my wife picked me up at the airport last night, the last thing I wanted to do was dine out. However, she had had a long week as well. She was prepared to have a quiet dinner at home, but I surprised her by suggesting we go out for dinner.

Jensen’s Café in Burnsville, MN is a wonderful breakfast and lunch restaurant, open from 7 AM to 2:30 PM. The Jensen’s are third generation restaurateurs, with another store called Jensen’s Supper Club in Eagan, MN. On my flight home I read in a magazine that they were diversifying their business by using the Jensen’s Café location to launch Jensen’s Wine & Dine, which uses the same facilities and opens at 4:30 PM. They have an entirely different crew that comes in to provide a warm, upscale, but reasonably priced dining experience with fine wines, an excellent menu, and an entirely different feel than you would find if you showed up earlier in the day for breakfast or lunch.

What does this have to do with sales? Jensen’s is growing their business using four principles of successful diversification. To be successful we must focus on what we do best, but when we become successful, we can diversify our business, and add exponential growth to our bottom line. To diversify your sales business you can use the same strategies, which are:

1. Stay in your area of experience and expertise
2. If possible, use existing business assets and resources
3. Provide better service to and more profitability from existing customer relationships, and/or…
4. Use diversification to expand your customer base

Don’t forget to focus on the profitability of expanding your offerings; it has to make sense from a business perspective. Once you have established yourself and become a solid presence in your marketplace, offering additional products and services allows you to increase your profitability and take advantage of scale. Take a look at what you can offer that will build on and strengthen your existing business. Build a plan to grow…and execute your sales plan!

Bon appetite… and good selling!

Technorati Tags: speaking engagements, sales business, customer relationships, sales plan

Today was busy. I had two meetings, and a luncheon. In addition, I had to prepare a speech for a meeting in California next week. And there was the ever present list of phone calls to make. Two calls were priority. One call was to work out the details of a very large strategic planning contract and the second concerned a speech to a bankers’ association. In addition, I needed to go pick up a new suit from my clothier, Bill’s Toggery in Shakopee, Minnesota.

During the drive to Bill’s, a third generation business, I was on my cell phone non-stop. As I pulled into the parking lot, I was in the middle of one call. I sat in front of the store for 15 – 20 minutes in a detailed discussion, scribbling notes as I listened. I saw somebody walk out of the store, and it was Keith Galles. Keith has almost 45 years experience in the men’s clothing business. His service is always first class. Keith knows me; he knows a do a tremendous amount of business on the phone, and looking out the window of the store, he could tell I was engaged!

I was talking away, and he walked up with a suit bag, raised his finger to his lips to signal me that no conversation was necessary. He smiled, hung the bag up in my car, and mouthed the words, “Good luck!” With that he walked back into the store. He KNEW I was busy; I am ALWAYS busy. That small act of knowing his customer and giving that little bit of extra service to help me on my way are the types of things that keep me coming back.

Keith is a pro. He can SELL. And he always takes care of his customers. Do you give your clients that kind of exceptional service? Do you pay attention to the little things, and follow through on your good intentions? Little things make a difference if you are in the service business…and who isn’t?

Good selling!

Technorati Tags: strategic planning, exceptional service

As a professional speaker and sales trainer, it is important to know what I don’t know, and as a result, I focus on very specific topics. I just returned from western Kentucky. While I was there I heard the following on a local radio station, and it is the antithesis of specialization. This may not be an exact quote, but it is VERY close.

The medical staff at [NAME] Hospital specializes in all types of general surgery.

How do you specialize in all types of general surgery? Doesn’t the term “General Surgery” preclude specialization? Is it really possible to specialize in being a generalist?

Organizations and salespeople need to be careful in the way they position their services. I see sales brochures and advertisements that say “We specialize in…” followed by a list of 10 -20 items. Does that send the message that you really specialize, or does it say indirectly that you need some business, and will sell whatever you need to sell that day just to make a commission? If in fact you do specialize, be specific and zero in on your best possible target market. If you truly are a generalist, define yourself by the problems for which you are the solution. Doing this conceptually as opposed to offering a laundry list of products and services communicates a clearer message of what is in it for your prospects.

In positioning your business, the best success comes when you can niche or micro-niche yourself with products or services that truly make you totally unique and valuable to a large potential customer base, or when that expertise is so specific that you are the only solution for a certain problem. Few of us have that high a degree of expertise, so craft your defining statement to appeal to the largest possible prospect audience. No matter how tempting it may be, you will maximize your profitability if you don’t specialize in everything.

Good selling!

Technorati Tags: professional speaker, sales trainer

This week I attended the Hospitality Business Breakfast in Eagan, Minnesota. The HBB is a monthly education session for those in the Hospitality Industry produced by a mentor of mine named Stuart Gray. Stuart brings in professional speakers who are acknowledged experts in various disciplines to speak in a public forum for those in this industry. The audience includes restaurateurs, restaurant managers, sales trainers, food service representatives, and others in this multi-billion dollar industry.

This month’s speaker was Ryan Estis, a nationally known authority on “Employment Branding,” which is how a company positions itself in order to attract and retain A-level talent. Ryan gave a fascinating presentation on what companies must do to become and remain “Employers of Choice.” Ryan skillfully demonstrated the challenges employers will have due to a shrinking US workforce, employment attitudes of younger people in the workplace, and the demands being made on HR Departments of companies of all sizes.

If you work for a company, it has a brand. Americans buy brand. Brand is by far the largest component of the buying decision. At the same time YOU have your own personal brand. You are the “Human Capital” of your sales business. To maximize your sales potential, you need to develop build a unique and distinctive personal brand that identifies you as the “Vendor of Choice” within your market.

David McNally, co-author of Be Your Own Brand with Karl D. Speak, says that brand is a relationship with your customers. So, what is the “experience” that people have when they do business with YOU? Consider the following questions for your business?

1. What makes me different than my competitors?
2. How would my customers describe what it like to do business with me?
3. What do I provide for my customers that they don’t have to pay for?

These and other questions can help you become the “experience within the experience.” They will provide the reasons that when all other things are equal, your customers choose to buy from you.

Good selling!