Blog #53 Why Finding The Best Better Idea is Rarely The Best IdeaBy First ApproachJanuary 14, 20140 comments#blog Blog #53 Why Finding The Best Better Idea is Rarely The Best Idea Over the past many years I’ve spent as a consultant, let alone the previous decades spent in the world of business to business sales, I have come to one incontrovertible conclusion; that ...Read more...
Blog #52 Investing In Relationship CapitalBy First ApproachNovember 27, 20130 comments#blog Blog #52 Investing In Relationship Capital What is relationship capital? Relationship capital is ground zero; it is both the nucleus and center of the universe as it relates to the life of a business career. Relationship capital will have the single ...Read more...
Blog #51 Top Of Mind AwarenessBy First ApproachNovember 13, 20130 comments#blog Wikipedia defines top of mind awareness as follows; ” Top of mind awareness is a brand or specific product coming first in customers’ minds when thinking of a particular industry.” There are numerous other definitions but the basic concept is simple, being the first ...Read more...
Blog #50 What If It’s Not The Decision Maker?By First ApproachOctober 30, 20130 comments#blog Blog #50 What If It’s Not The Decision Maker? How do I know if it’s the right person? Do they make the decision? Will it be a waste of my time? Sound familiar? If you’re a sales professional, then you’ve probably pondered these questions many times ...Read more...
Blog #49 It’s LinkedIn, Not FacebookBy First ApproachOctober 16, 20130 comments#blog #linkedin #socialmedia #facebook Blog #49 It’s LinkedIn, Not Facebook I am often disheartened these days by what I see as squandered opportunity on LinkedIn. LinkedIn is, and has been a powerful tool for growing my business for some years now. While I confess that I don’t use ...Read more...
Blog #48 Open Ended or Closed Ended?By First ApproachOctober 2, 20130 comments#blog Blog #48 Open Ended or Closed Ended? “Sure Mr. Prospect, and thanks for talking with me today. To be clear, you’re suggesting I follow-up with you in a few months, right?” Sound familiar? It should, it’s the same conversation ...Read more...
Blog #47 Why A First Meeting Should Never Be About SellingBy First ApproachSeptember 18, 20130 comments#blog Blog #47 Why A First Meeting Should Never Be About Selling I’m often challenged by people that have begun the journey of implementing First Approach. Perhaps “challenged” is the wrong descriptor. Doubt and disbelief are probably more accurate. This ...Read more...
Blog #46 Is It Time For A Change?By First ApproachSeptember 4, 20130 comments#blog Blog #46 Is It Time For A Change? Last Friday was a pleasant day for me. I got news of an old First Approach “graduate” that had left his job for a new position. Now, this may sound like no big deal, but having gone through this same ordeal myself, ...Read more...
Blog # 45 How Do You Jump Start a Sales Person? You Can’t.By First ApproachJuly 10, 20130 comments#blog Recently, I was chatting with a good friend of mine who is a partner in a law firm. The topic of discussion was his on-going frustration with a junior associate who just wasn’t measuring up. Specifically, while this individual was competent at doing work given to him, he ...Read more...
Blog #44 The Status Of The PipelineBy First ApproachJune 28, 20130 comments#blog Deals, deals, deals …. the single thing we covet the most. Deals are what we’re omni-focused on. Deals are what managers and management are obsessed with. Because of this, the professional sales person is usually focused on the back two thirds of the pipeline, that is ...Read more...
Blog #43 Falling Off The WagonBy First ApproachJune 12, 20130 comments#blog Yesterday, I read an interesting excerpt from an article in The Globe And Mail, a Canadian newspaper. It was authored by a guy named Wally Bock. His blog is called the Three Star Leadership. The subject was “First on to do list, unpleasant tasks”. This ...Read more...
Blog #42 Ear to Ear Or Eye To Eye?By First ApproachMay 30, 20130 comments#blog Recently, a client asked me why I was “so obsessed with web cams”. To give you context, he was challenging me on why I felt it was important to have a video link for our up-coming conference call. A lot of my work is done via video calls and interestingly, you would ...Read more...
Blog #41 The Gate Keeping ConspiracyBy First ApproachMay 17, 20130 comments#blog Any B2B sales professional that has spent anytime cold calling will have been confronted with the dreaded gate keeper. Usually, it’s the switchboard attendant or the target prospect’s assistant, and inevitably, they pose an impenetrable wall of resistance, curtness, and ...Read more...
Blog #40 Moral Persuasion vs ManipulationBy First ApproachMay 1, 20130 comments#blog Blog #40 Moral Persuasion vs Manipulation Did you ever hear this one? Question, How can you tell when a salesperson is lying? Answer, his lips are moving. All too often sales people are the butt of jokes that diminish the “brand” of the ...Read more...
Blog #39 You Don’t Always Have To Be The Big Rooster On The BlockBy First ApproachApril 25, 20130 comments#blog Cock-a-doodle-dooo. The cry of the rooster. The big guy on the block, all knowing, all powerful. The one with all the answers and best ideas. The rooster wants to dominate a room with their presence and knowledge. The rooster is always ready and eager to let anyone within earshot ...Read more...
Blog #38 The Difference Between Someone Listening And Someone Hearing.By First ApproachApril 18, 20130 comments#blog Blather, blather, blather, bla bla bla. Sound familiar? It’s the sound of a sales person. That’s right, a sales person. As a sales person myself but more importantly, an observer of sales people, this is what I would like to say. We are good at many things. Some ...Read more...