Capturing 40 Years of Sales Management Tactics

Glenn Poulos, 40-year sales veteran, who sold two companies for eight figures, and author of Never Sit in the Lobby: 57 Winning Sales Factors, has a practical philosophy: people buy from people; learning sticks when greed is involved; empathy wins; and time is a scarce asset all people share. Glenn's insight on prioritizing in-person connections when the opportunities are high, particularly when six or eight-figure numbers are involved, aligns with other insights we discussed in our podcast.

Power Up The Sales Management Plabook With These Insights

• Insight One: On-site visits are necessary to gain commitments, break boundaries, and help people buy.

• Insight Two: Define what a good high-ticket opportunity looks like.
  • For example, eight-figure selling takes more time and personal touch than eight dollars. In reality, eight dollars and the drive do not cover expenses.

• Insight Three: Fewer than three points for a sales meeting, underprepared, more than three, is a risk to overwhelm a potential customer, making the ideal number three.

One-Tactical Week Plan Toward Selling Better

Monday

• Target three potential opportunities to make a sale.
• Book one on-site meeting within five business days.
• Bring something of value to the sales meeting.
  • If the sale is not made, this is a valuable asset for the customer and a reason to follow up.

Tuesday

• Role-play training for 30 minutes, on a common or recent obstacle to practice overcoming.
• Role-play the practice with a pain-centered value proposition that is aligned with the company.
• Solo entrepreneurs, record the role play, listen back to it, and ask yourself, "Would I buy from this person?"

Wednesday

• Update the list or customer relationship manager (CRM) tool to include:
  • Key details in a customer's profile for the Tier-A accounts.
• Ideally, cap this administrative task at one hour.

Thursday

• Evaluate the pipeline health, which means:
  • Contact recent ones that came into the funnel first; typically, these are most valuable.
  • Follow up on non-converted leads that have not been contacted in over 72 hours.
  • Follow up with leads who have said, "Not at this time," who have gone past the 60-day mark, since the word no is not forever in consultative sales.

Friday

• Pull-up appointments for Monday and start stacking the schdule
• Big Mistake: Many professionals use Friday to plan but ambitious teams use this day to plan their next week, since an empty calendar is scary in sales.

Paul's Perspective From The Podcast With Glenn Poulos

Glenn Poulos shares a humanizing story of Romeo, a watchmaker and womanizer who struggled with polio. Romeo gave Glenn foundational principles that carried him toward selling two companies for eight figures, including Gap Wireless Inc.

In the story, Romeo would say, "I am so busy repairing watches, but if I were upfront selling the diamonds, I would make more money!" Seeing this situation through Glenn's eyes made me reflect on the fact that many of us are too focused on repairs in the back instead of the riches in front of us.

Being rich is not just about money, a lesson many of us need to remember, since the most significant regret most people have is not how much money they have, but the courage to live a life true to themselves, not the life others expected of them. Glenn's inspiring story helps define being rich in the following ways:

• Being involved with activities that help others alleviate pain.
• Those who spend time with family or loved ones are rich.
• Those who are true to themselves embark on a journey with a well-defined goal.

Call to Actions: To Gain 40 Years of Selling Skills In The Next 30 days

• Buy Never Sit in the Lobby: 57 Winning Sales Factors by Glenn Poulos and read it.
• Listen to The Manager's Mic Podcast Episode 88 with Glenn Poulos.