Laying the Foundation for a Great 2020

Believe it or not, it’s already the fourth quarter of 2019. With the end of the year approaching, sales professionals in every industry are eager to lay a solid foundation for success in 2020. One of the most common business-related New Year’s resolutions among managers is this: “I will hold more one-on-one coaching sessions with

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Jim Marshall
Three key ways to prepare for fall selling

It can be tempting for companies, and salespeople, to simply coast through the slow, late weeks of summer. Customers and prospects are trying to squeeze in those last few vacation days and that requires more effort on the part of salespeople to keep the pipeline full, successfully close sales and see profit from those efforts.

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Jim Marshall
Manage Your Time This Summer

Summer can be a challenging time for salespeople and businesses. Yes, it’s a welcome respite from the demands of the job and a chance to recharge with family and friends. But reduced productivity because of individuals going on vacation or taking time off can lead to slow sales and dips in revenue. Here are three

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Jim Marshall
Leveraging Social Selling to Avoid the Summer Slump

According to research, more than 60 percent of business professionals will take a summer vacation. At any given moment this summer, a third of your prospects and customers may be away from work. That can make it difficult to keep sales numbers up—and yourself or your team motivated. Here are some tips for your sales

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Jim Marshall
The Importance of Breaking Down Barriers in Sales

While recently speaking with members of a women’s business association, I was asked about ways to break down the barriers faced by female sales professionals. My answer: Regardless of gender, a critical step is recognizing that how we perceive ourselves before, during and after sales conversations always will have the most dramatic impact on our ability

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Jim Marshall
Four Goal Setting Habits of Effective Leaders

The first few months of the year is a classic time for sales professionals to diligently focus on identifying and fulfilling their most important personal and professional goals. We’ve noticed, though, that the goal setting behavior of an organization’s leaders during that time tends to have the biggest bottom-line impact on the year as a whole. With

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Jim Marshall
Four Simple Forecasting Rules for the New Year

As the New Year begins and the “revenue meter” officially (and regrettably?) resets to zero, most sales and management teams are in the process of fine-tuning their forecasting process. Most cash flow and profit and loss statements are dependent upon accurate sales and revenue projection figures and, in the interest of preventing reoccurrence of the

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Jim Marshall
Closing the year strong with less stress

As the holidays approach and year-end is almost upon us, many companies and individuals are preparing for that “final sales push” to reach their annual sales goals. It can be a time of considerable stress on sales teams and managers who are trying to reach the highest possible numbers and reap the benefits for themselves

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Jim Marshall
Seven Signs It’s Time to Invest In Your Company’s Leadership

Most business owners and executives know that strong leadership is vital to a thriving, progressing company. The obstacle is knowing whether or not your company has strong, motivating leaders. Are your leaders respected? Do they recognize talent? Can they see the big picture? The answers to these questions are key indicators to your company’s long-term

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