It's gonna be a beach day today. So, I'll make this short.

There are hundreds of ways to kill a sale. However, not all salespeople have the same #1 and unfortunately, some salespeople have several #1's. Today, they don't get to the decision-maker, tomorrow they talk too much and don't ask questions and the following day, they can't handle the prospect that wants to shop around or think about it. Sales managers (who may be dealing with their own stuff) often find themselves asking, "Didn't I tell you how to do that last week?" It's a real dilemma for everybody involved, the salesperson, their manager, and the VP or CEO as well as the prospects and customers. How's a buyer to know what's real?

I should warn you that I started this article a month ago, before spring had sprung.  Springtime has always been a time when salespeople wake up and realize that if they don't change something drastically, this year will be just like the others. Been busy with them.

So, we begin by setting the stage...

First day of 2Q19... How are you feeling? Ready for your best quarter ever? Worried that your pipeline is empty?

Sales Managers, do you know why your salespeople are losing control of the process even before they say, "Hello"?

You know what I mean. Salesperson asks, "Do you have a problem with X?" Prospect says, "We sure do. Can you help with that?" Salesperson launches into a demo, get's a "No" when he closes and gets whatever silly objection the prospect decides to give because they didn't drill down before they presented.

The very first book that I ever read on sales was How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling. It was the mid 70's and I had been selling for a decade, but was just starting to think of myself as a salesman. Frank Bettger wasn't a scientist, but he shared stories that made sense and I still use some of the lessons today.

This article was originally published 2 years ago about the #1 killer of salespeople. I'm republishing it in the hope that salespeople and management will get on the same page before I die.

Yesterday, I was debriefing a call with a rep. He told me that he did his rapport thing and proceeded to set his "Up Front Contract". He asked, "Are we still good for 30 minutes?" Then he started, "I'll have a lot of questions and I'm sure that you'll have a lot of questions..." I interrupted him and asked if he thought any of his prospects saw his attempts to use the Sandler System? When he said, "Yes.", I asked do they like it? He said, "Not usually."

As you may know, I've been spending more time with sales managers lately than with reps. Today as I was enjoying MLK Day, I found myself thinking about how stuck many sales managers are and how they got there.