In our sales training practice, we get asked in to companies to solve sales problems. That’s just what we do.

Every Sales Problem is a Behavioral Problem

But every sales problem (can’t get to the right person; can’t sell a premium price; can’t overcome the objections; can’t close; can’t prospect) all have to do with “behavioral issues.” And for behavior to change, you must understand how adults learn (to change their behavior).

Here are our findings:

1. Relevancy. If you’re teaching someone, it had better be relevant to them. Ever sat in an all day training/presentation and been able to predict at 8:30am that it would be a total waste? Of course. It’s a waste because the teacher/facilitator never helped it be relevant. And it’s so easy for sales curriculum to be relevant. Just ask the learner, “What do you want to work on? What’s important to you?”    Why is that question seldom asked?
2. Problem-Focused. Every new piece of content you give to a sales person (or to yourself) had better solve a problem. And it’s more useful if there is a connection between the problem to be solved and the pain of the learner. How to do that? (OK, Sales Leaders here it goes- ASK! Yep, it’s that simple. Ask your team what they’re struggling with–and PRESTO, they’ll tell you.) Make sure that every core piece of curriculum you teach solves a problem.
3. Technical. What I mean by this is that it has to be very tactical, technical and detailed. If you were teaching me how to post a blog, you wouldn’t just say, “Go get a blog and write.” There’s a lot more to it than that. Yet, when we’re teaching someone, we skip the details. Don’t skip the details. The learning is ALL IN THE DETAILS.  When you’re coaching someone how to overcome prospect objections, don’t give them several one liners to combat it. Go through, in detail, how you would deliver the reaction–try out new words based on their personality.
4. Attack The Real Resistance. This is a well-kept secret. It’s where most real income growth comes. It’s in the attention that should be focused on the thinking behind the actions–not just the actions.  Sales is a thinking game. We call it the Inner Game–the emotional and mental constructs we’ve set up that limit our success. Unless you change an adults thinking behind the behavior, you will get only moderate change. (One example of this is our belief that the prospect should sell you. That’s a VERY different way of thinking. Yet, when you get that right, the words follow very easily.)
5. Reinforcement. This is the #1 law of learning–the mother of all laws. Yes, Tiger Woods probably gets damn sick of practicing 6′ putts. But he knows that he’s made millions on 6′ putts. You probably don’t hear Roger Federer say to his coach “No, don’t need to practice that drop shot anymore. I got that one down.” You don’t hear that because great performers never stop practicing. What about you? How many hours have you practiced your Upfront Agreement in the last month? How many hours have you spent role-playing the handling of objections? How many hours have you spent practicing the asking questions in a way that allows the prospect to actually tell you the truth? (Here’s an idea no one will like: Spend less time making cold calls to people who don’t want to talk to you–and spend more time in the practice facility working on your game).

So now you have some idea of how adults (you) learn. If you’re a sales leader, keep this article next to you as you do your next sales meeting. If you’re spending all of your time on ‘Funnel Activity’ you’re wasting time. Work on these thing above–and you’ll be amazed at the invigoration of your team.

Adults do change behavior.  We do have it in us. But stale PowerPoints don’t do it.

They hired a “Positive Mental Attitude” guy who creates no value other than saying to everyone, “HEY, ISN’T IT A GREAT DAY?!!”

Do you believe there are actually trainers still around like this? Getting big bucks from companies who know no better?

Yep, there are.

Death By Powerpoint!

I heard from another past client who said the PowerPoint number for the day in sales training just eclipsed 150! Awful. Wasteful. Soulless.

Good Sales Training Components

So what should good sales training look like? Here are a few tips:

1. Detailed survey upfront about what all constituents think they need to learn and grow. It can either be positioned as “What problems do you have that we should solve?” or, “What would you like to be profoundly better at in the sales cycle?”
2. Detailed Curriculum Plan laid out so everyone knows what to expect.  It doesn’t have to be ‘down to the minute’ but everyone should know before the event begins.
3. Attention to each participant. How will each participant interact with the trainer? (There should be a chance for that). If you’re not giving your team a chance to ask private questions of the trainer, then they aren’t getting much.
4. Role Playing – and other learning vehicles. Even on phone calls, role playing should be used. It’s the best way for the trainer to know what work needs to be done.
5. Lessons Learned. At the end of EACH section of training, the trainer must leave time to  discover what lessons each person learned. To not do this sucks the life out of the learner.
6. End of Day Lessons. Everyone should leave an event with a to-do list of things to take back to the field and try.
7. Survey. There should be a post-event survey so the trainer can learn what worked and what didn’t. If your trainer doesn’t do this–or doesn’t verbally check back in to see how it went– find another one. He probably doesn’t care–as long as your check cleared.

Sales training might be exactly what your team needs right now. But don’t blow it by bringing in a clown.

1. Persuasion is dead. If you’re in it to convince and persuade, you need to call 1986 and ask if you can have your job back.
2. Sales presentations should NEVER be presentations. When one gets out of presentation mode and into conversation mode, the whole game changes.
3. The economy breathes and so do sales results. Those who embrace the ebb and flow of the sales arena and look at breathing times to exploit opportunities, always wind up at the top of the sales results list.
4. For the most part, sales managers suck. Most sales managers don’t add value to their salespeople’s performance. It’s not their fault. They’ve not been taught properly.
5. People pay money for things that make their lives better/easier. They don’t pay money for products, things, features or functions.
6. Personal ACCOUNTABILITY is missing in the DNA of most salespeople. Those who have it are at the top of their game.
7. LEAD GENERATION is still the biggest problem for most sales organizations. A lack of INNOVATION in generating qualified leads is to blame. (Stay with us in 2009 if you want innovation for lead generation.)
8. Most salespeople worry most about what they can’t control and thereby ignore what they can control. (“Danger, Will Robinson!”)
9. Most salespeople are smarter and better than they think they are or allow themselves to be. Are you one?
10. Most SALES TRAINING SUCKS. Product training is WAY overrated. Sales process training is still about getting the deal and persuading someone to buy. Once the majority figure out there is a better way, look out.

That’s the list for 2008. We live in a great time. Relish the fact that selling is a great profession and will continue to be for a very long time.

What we discovered is that my client is clear about what they THINK is going to happen, but they haven’t shared it with their customer!

How do you know if you’re all on the same page? Your customer may have an entirely different plan.

Here are 6 things to do every time you leave a meeting so that you are in control of the process, and your client is never surprised:

1. If your gut is nagging you, something has been left unsaid; never leave with a nagging feeling.
2. Always recap what you’ve heard in the meeting and make a suggestion for what you think the next step should be; remember your prospect is looking for you to lead them.
3. If there is no next step, don’t try to make something up! Be okay with saying, “goodbye, we’re not a good fit.”
4. If you know there is something there, but you’re not sure “what’s next?” it’s okay to say so. Say something like, “I would like to digest what we discussed today. I think there is a reason for us to meet again, but I’m not sure what should happen next. I’ll be in touch in the next day or so with some ideas on how to move forward.” It’s still a clear future. No one is wondering “what’s going to happen after you leave?”
5. Your “clear future” should be how you open the next meeting. “Mr. Smith, we agreed in our last meeting that today we would talk about signing a contract….”
6. Your meetings should be followed up with a recap, either by letter or e-mail. The recap should state what you heard, what you decided to do and when you will do it.

In our training, we work with our clients on always having a “clear future.” How many of you have left a meeting thinking it was a good meeting but also saying to yourself, “I wonder if I should call them? Should I send an e-mail? Maybe I should wait for them to call me”?

A “clear future” is a great tool for keeping the right deals in your funnel and to keep those deals moving forward.

I can’t tell you how many phone calls we get from sales managers/CEOs who complain that their people just can’t communicate the value of their products, and they’ve got to either train them or replace them.

Good news for us—since we’re in the training business.

But with that pain also comes a certain amount of guilt. I had one president tell me last week that he “took it personally that he couldn’t teach his people how to sell.”

There are three things that will be the foundation for whether a person has it in them to be successful in your business:

1. Fit
Does the salesperson’s personality fit the personality required of the position? If they’re very outgoing and enthusiastic and you expect them to call on CFOs who are very reserved and calculating, how do you think that’s going to work?

Or, if your AE is not a detail person and you’re selling engineering services, how do you think that’s going to work? The personality fit has to be there.

2. Competency
It’s amazing to me how few companies take time to say, “What do our salespeople need to be competent at in order for them to achieve at high levels?” What most people ask is, “What do they need to achieve to keep their job?”

And that’s the wrong question. Make a list of all the things that your salesperson needs to be competent at to be in the top 2-5% of producers. Don’t settle for top 50% here, go to the top (while you’re dreaming, you might as well dream big).

3. Resilience
Does your team have a strong, tough mental/inner game when it comes to bouncing back, being tough, talking about difficult issues, preemptively solving problems, etc.?

B2B sales is not a walk in the park. It requires confidence without being cocky, assertiveness without being arrogant and leadership without being controlling.

Some of that is trainable; some comes with the person, already baked in.

So before you blame yourself or feel guilty that your team is not selling at the level it should, take a look at these three things and excuse yourself from taking it personally.

1. Go take an Internet class. It doesn’t have to be at an IVY LEAGUE school. Go down to your local technology school and take one. Understand the Internet. After all, it’s probably the thing that is impacting your company the most, so you’d better understand it.
2. Invest in personal growth. Now, I’m not saying that because that’s the business we’re in. I’m saying it because it works. If you invest in yourself, your personal growth will be remarkable. You should be investing 5-10% of your annual income in you. You are an asset. Look at growing that asset by investing in it. Take a class in sales or time management or marketing.
3. Learn to write. I’m appalled at the percentage of salespeople who can’t write a lick. My friend Chet Burrell, CEO of United Healthcare in Washington, used to say, “if you can’t write it, you can’t say it.” I like that. Take a course in writing. That way, you can write papers, articles, blogs and other communiques. And the outcome is that you’ll become more savvy and effective at verbally communicating your value to another.

One of our favorite sayings these days is “The illiterate of our times is not the person who can’t read and write. It’s the person who refuses to learn, unlearn, and relearn.” Alvin Toffler.Good thinkin’ Alvin.

So Here’s a Creative Idea I’ll Give The Real Estate Community

Even if you aren’t a realtor, bare with me on this. I think you’ll learn something.

I know many realtors–as we all do. At last count in Indianapolis, there were over 5000 realtors. But why is it that most of them are awful marketers? When you think about it, that’s ALL they should be doing is marketing/selling.

An Example:

My neighbor recently listed his house with a Century 21 realtor. He was telling me what a great realtor this guy was. Great guy maybe–effective realtor? Doesn’t appear so.If I were selling homes today, I would do one thing that would make me the top producer in an area. I’ve heard of no other realtors do this. (I have other ideas if you realtors want to call me. But don’t call me if you don’t want to rapidly grow your business.)

My Idea (you get for free): I would let everyone in the neighborhood know in advance of the listing/sign, that the house was going up for sale. Think about how insanely valuable this idea is.

Think about how many people we all know–that we’re only an email away from. Tens? Hundreds?I’d say every one of us knows 100-300 people that we could email. So, if he opened the house up for ONE WEEK to all people who were Friends of Neighbors, he could probably sell the damn thing in a week. Plus, he would get both ends of the deal (not just the 1.5% as the listing agent).He would sell the house quicker AND get double the commish.

He should personally call all 50-100 of the closest neighbors and have a two day open-house (Sat and Sun) prior to the list date. He should have champagne, Starbucks Coffee, spend a few dollars on nuts/chips.

But What Does He Typically Do?

Nothing of the sort. His sales strategy is 100 years old. He spends hundreds of dollars of his own money doing worthless advertising, sending out direct mail that no one reads and spending other company resources without results. So why do realtors refuse to change their thinking? Not sure.But those realtors who get sophisticated about marketing, who understand referral systems, who are creative marketers, will make 5-10x the rest of the pack. But most are afraid of stepping outside the traditional realtor thinking.

What can you, the non-realtor, learn from this?

Think differently. Think marketing. Think how to do things easier. Rather than making cold calls, make warm calls. Rather than doing direct mail to a cold audience, find out who else knows the typical prospect you’re going after. Read Seth Godin’s blog. His creativity will break some of your brain cells free.

It seems we were taught early in life to CONFORM–wear the unifom–don’t step out of line–do what everyone else does.Well, you can do that. But that’s not where the enormous growth is. Get out of line. Read and come up with new ideas and say to yourself, “I’m going to test this and see how it works. And if anyone challenges me on it, I’ll just smile and say ‘I know it’s probably stupid, but I’m going to try it anyway.’”

Good luck.

 Never start any sales training unless your team has bought in to it.

I know this sounds like heresy. “Why on earth would we want the inmates running the asylum?” (as one of my friends puts it).

Well, if you don’t engage your people in some kind of a Sales Problem/Pain Assessment (what do they believe they can improve on to get better/different results?) then you already have an asylum — you just don’t know it.

Sales People Are Honest If You Ask Them–And Care
OnestThe first thing that happens when you ask people is that, if they think there is a chance you can help them, they will tell you honestly what’s not working. Secondly, they will be much more engaged in training.

(Those are two words you don’t hear much in the same sentence: engaged and sales training.) And thirdly, you can tell who on your team is really in “growth mode” and who’s just going through the motions.

As a sales manager, you know your people have to change to meet market demands. But most won’t unless threatened (with their job).

We don’t believe it has to be that way.

Assess Your Sales Team 
Take a few hours and come up with an assessment of your own. Create space for rigorous honesty. (I know this is tough in the corporate world.) And then purchase sales training to solve sales problems.

I have seen salespeople starved for something new and different that helps them grow professionally. But they never get it because the company nevers sees the connection between the training investment and return on that investment.

And do you know what? It’s not the people who really need training that feel that way. It’s usually the already-high-achievers that want to explore new ways do to old tasks.

So before you buy into the old myth, “seasoned sales people don’t need training” ask them what they want. You’ll be shocked.

Here’s an example of a very short assessment–it’ll at least get you started. Right click to download. My gift to you.

How many of you are familiar with Cesar Millan, “The Dog Whisperer” (www.cesarmillaninc.com)? If you are an animal owner and you don’t know who he is, you need to.  I have developed an addiction to his practice of dog psychology and his show on The National Geographic Channel. 

I realized after watching several episodes of the show that Cesar is the “Caskey” of the dog world.  Why do I say that?  Here is an excerpt from his web page:“Cesar counsels people to calmly, assertively, and consistently give their dogs rules, boundaries, and limitations to establish themselves as solid pack leaders and to help correct and control unwanted behavior. He doesn’t believe in ‘quick fixes.’

Though changing some behaviors can appear to happen in a relatively short period of time, none of those changes will ’stick’ unless the human acts consistently with his or her dog every day to keep unwanted behaviors from returning.”

The Caskey Philosophy

So, how does that translate to the Caskey philosophy of revenue generation? 

We teach that you, as a professional salesperson, need to be in control of the sales process – not the outcome, or the other person, but the process. 

In order to do this you need to be confident in your process, even when the prospect pushes back.  You know what works and, as uncomfortable as it gets, if you’re operating from a place of high intent, you need to keep doing what’s in the best interest of your prospect. 

We’re also firm believers in repetition and understand that bad habits aren’t fixed in a 1-day workshop.  It’s consistent practice and work on the mind that “keep unwanted behaviors from returning.” 

When you are calm and assertive about your process and helping your client, they relax and trust you to do the right things. We often hear that our methods are “soft” or “weak” because they aren’t “in your face, high pressure selling.” 

Cesar says that he hears the same thing about his methods. He doesn’t believe that a dog should ever have to be yelled at or hit.  We don’t believe that a prospect ever has to be convinced or persuaded. I don’t know what you think about this,  but I’ve seen Cesar use his methods to walk into a pack of 25 pit bulls and be completely in charge, without saying a word; just with the energy that he exudes. 

Sound like some presentations that you’ve been in?  Use your intention (energy) and control the pack!

I tell about a call I had last year that had about 100 people on it. One guy asked a question about how to handle a certain client situation. I answered it but never heard back from him.

Until three weeks ago.

That’s when he called me to tell me that he used exactly what I coached him to use–and it worked. In fact, it worked better than he thought–it resulted in $250,000 forecasted new revenue this year!

So in essence, one question that he asked–and one answer that I gave–resulted in a quarter of a million dollars in new business. Pretty cool, huh?

That’s why we’re doing another free teleseminar on February 7.

The key is in order to be on the call, you MUST ask me a question–anonymously of course. I’ll tell you upfront I can’t promise that I’ll get to all questions. Chances are, many of the questions will fit into categories. In fact, we’re already seeing that.

Here are some we’ve received so far:

–How do I maintain high enthusiasm at all times?
–How do I get people to return phone calls?
–How do I cold call better?
–People lose interest after the first meeting; what can I do to stop that?
–How do I communicate how I’m different?

Well, you get the hint. So register now at www.askcaskey.com. Talk to you on the 7th.