Hi all,

It’s Louise here again, filling you in on the latest news from the MTD HQ. November has been a very busy month for Sean and the team as we held our first ever Sales Summit recently!

MTD’s MD Sean McPheat has had many successful experiences keynoting at business events and conferences across the country, and he thought it was about time MTD had our very own sales event…and what an event it was!

Our 2011 Sales Summit was held on Thursday 17^th November in Heathrow, and with over 100 UK and international sales professionals in attendance it certainly was a packed day.  

The Summit played host to 3 fantastic speakers who presented four must-see sessions on all manner of topics, from prospecting, networking and building value during a sales interaction, right up to influencing, negotiating and communicating with potential customers.

Sean kicked off the day with his first session on “The Ultimate Sales Audit”, where he helped guests to thoroughly rip their sales approach to pieces and really analyse the way that they currently sell. Sean encouraged his guests to make the most of their sales interactions and gave great direction on how to pre-sell their products.

The second session of the day was taken by international public speaker Simon Hazeldine, who had our guests rolling with laughter during his fantastic session on “Bare Knuckle Negotiating”. As an ex-bouncer from a former life, Simon had plenty of real-life experiences to share with our guests as he took our delegates through the negotiation process – sharing with them the strategies, tricks and tactics they need to survive and thrive when negotiating with a client.

Following a networking lunch in the beautiful atrium of the Radisson Edwardian Hotel, guests took their seats once again as Sean McPheat returned to the stage to present his much sought-after session on eselling®. Sean is the creator of the alternative sales approach known as eselling®, which helps businesses to prospect and sell online through the use of social media and other internet based services. Guests, of course, were very keen to see this session in particular, as this is fast becoming one of the biggest successes of Sean’s recent accomplishments.  

During this session Sean showed his guests how they can use the internet to network with key decision makers, listen for leads, prospect online and position themselves as an industry expert.

One of the main focuses of the eselling® approach is to teach sales professionals how to use social media within their business, and to gain a real and substantial return on their investment – so Sean treated his guests to a 20 minute LinkedIn video tutorial, in which he gave guests a guided tour of the benefits of using LinkedIn as a business tool and showed them how they can create valuable business leads via this medium.  

The day was capped off nicely by a very entertaining session from Sean’s number one Sales Trainer Mark Williams. Mark presented a session on The New ROI, in which he showed guests how to get a return on influence with their clients. Mark taught guests how to better understand and communicate with their clients, how to get clients on their side and how to influence people on a subconscious level.

In a final flurry of magic and mystery Mark even turned four grown men into a human table which went down a storm with the attendees!

Following the event, both Sean and the team have received some brilliant feedback from our guest, with many commenting that they are very much looking forward to next year’s Summit. Here’s what a few of our attendees have said about the Sales Summit:

“Sean delivers an excellent approach to selling that has helped me tremendously with my sales techniques. The conference he set up was great and I would recommend attending it to expand your abilities as a salesman.” – Andy Naisbitt, Business Development Manager at Gen3 Kinematics

“Sean is an inspiring and well prepared presenter. His ideas on today’s buyer are clearly well researched and his modern day sales concepts are backed up with practical examples and his own living proof that they work – Sean “walks his talk”. An expert in his field, Sean is also down to earth, personable and appreciative of his audience.” - Stephanie Keller, Sales Coach and Consultant at S2 Strategic Skills

“A fantastic and informative Sales Summit day, full of brand new content. I have learned more than in any other course I have attended in the past, the event was well organised and the speakers were amazing. I really look forward to attending some other courses with MTD Sales Training and thank you very much for your on-going email support which I highly appreciate and respect.” Kubilay Tunc, The Cumberland Hotel

Both Sean and the team have been thrilled with the feedback we’ve received from the event and we are now looking forward to the 2012 Sales Summit – bring it on!

Happy Selling!

Louise Denny

Marketing Manager 

MTD Sales Training

Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why you’re very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

Often, people will prepare their positions effectively before going into a negotiation, but find that they haven’t determined adequately enough what the other party’s perspective will be, and so create problems for themselves in the process.

Here are some strong negotiating skills that will help you progress quickly and effectively through the process:

Make sure you keep the person and the negotiating situation separate in your mind. Remember that everyone will have a different perception of the situation, according to their viewpoint. Discuss these differences in relation to how the negotiation is going.

Understand the reasons why the other party are taking the position that they are. Request reasons why they are taking that position, if you feel it needs explaining. This gives you a clearer picture of their rationale in taking their position.

Listen very carefully to their situation and view them as a partner in problem-solving, rather than an adversary who must be beaten. Recap on their position, and get full clarity by paraphrasing or summarising their ideas in full, so they see you can understand their position.

Point out the concerns, problems or frustrations you see from your perspective. This will allow the other party to recognise why their position has to be negotiable.

Don’t assume there is only one solution to any negotiation. If they are wanting a price reduction, for instance, maybe you can negotiate on payment terms or discount for further agreed orders, rather than just concentrating on price.

Think of your BATNA, or best alternative to a negotiated agreement. Is there something else you might be able to agree to rather than achieving a stalemate in the process?

Again, if they want a change in the parameters of the negotiation, find out the reasons, rather than just going down the line of least resistance.

All movement should be a trade, rather than a concession. If the other party sees you simply giving way on positions, they may try for more movement, and you may end up in a lose-win position. 

Be prepared to walk away from the negotiation if it is clear you cannot match their demands. It is better to stop, re-assess the situation and return later than be drawn into giving away more than you had prepared for.

If a negotiated agreement is reached, ensure you summarise and recap on the positions and interests that have been reached, and put all agreements in writing, so there is no ambiguity in what you have decided.

These strong negotiating skills  should help you to achieve your goals and give you confidence in any situation where needs and wants are seen differently from both sides.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
The UK’s #1 Authority On Modern Day Selling
MTD Sales Training

Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why you’re very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

Of all the skills you probably need to develop most as a successful salesperson, but actually practice least, is the skill and art of negotiating to a collaborative conclusion. This may be because you think it has to be done in front of the client, and any practice would never prepare you for the real situation.

But you can prepare yourself effectively to improve your negotiation skills by concentrating on some salient facts:

Firstly, what are my realistic expectations during the negotiations? Set yourself LIMITS. These are (L) things you’d Like to achieve, (I) things you Intend to achieve and (M) levels you must not go beyond. If you can achieve a result between these three positions, then IT’S a deal! It gives you room to move when you are working with the client on positions, without having to worry about giving things away.

You want to enter the negotiation with equal power. One way you can do this is by knowing what the competition are offering. If your client tells you what offers they’ve had, make sure you have benefits that offer more value than they could get elsewhere.

Ensure you approach the negotiation from a position of collaboration. This means you will both mutually succeed by adopting your solutions.

Make yourself different from the competition by being in a unique position to assist your client. What can you offer in the long-term relationship that no-one else can?

Prepare for your client to try to negotiate from a position of power. It’s known as win-lose, and it often happens when you look desperate for the deal. If you are asked to move positions during the negotiation, make sure it’s a trade rather than a concession. If you give away everything, you won’t be in a strong position to help the client in the future.

Remember, special deals or individual arrangements with clients do have a habit of biting you where it hurts, especially if you are negotiating again in the future.

If they come back with demands at the last minute, look for the real reasons behind it, and make it so that you collaborate with them, rather than give in to these seemingly trivial demands.

If you give in, what does that do to your credibility as a company and as an individual? It means that, at a subliminal level, the client can’t trust you, because you were going to agree terms at one point and then you move easily to another. They are thinking ‘what else could I have got?’

So, if you can prepare yourself effectively before the negotiation, it will give you the confidence and credibility to improve your negotiation skills and approach it from a position of power rather than weakness. Practice with a colleague. Write down objections you might encounter. Be vigilant as to the tactics the client might use on you. And determine that your client will benefit enormously by having you serve them in the future.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
The UK’s #1 Authority On Modern Day Selling
MTD Sales Training

Have you downloaded my latest report “The Sales Person’s Crisis”? Over 10,000 sales pros have.

Click on the image below to find out why you’re very existence as a sales person is in doubt…

Just before Christmas, I received a really good question from Stuart who asked:

“I am a manufacturer sales person and my products are sold through distribution to customers, who then convert them into the finished product for their customer – the eventually end users.

We are going through a process of trying to get our product spec’d by the eventually end user. What is the best way of doing this? We are trying to communicate with the end user themselves, but it is having limited success. How do I get an end user to say that product x must be made from material supplied by manufacturer A or I am not going to buy it?”

Great question Stuart, what you need is to offer an ethical bribe!

If you can get hold of the contact details of the end users direct then you need to give them an ethical bribe to help you! You can do this by offering them something in return for helping you with your market research. It’s got to be something of real value though. You could approach one of your distributors and do a deal with them to offer x% off their next purchase or you could give them something.

You need to work out what this information will be worth to you in the long run. If it’s worth thousands then you can “give away” some real juicy gifts for the help like weekend’s away etc.

I once received 3 months worth of Fosters for helping them with some “market research” once!

But you need to position it as market research and you need to include all different types of questions to really profile their needs.

Now if you have not got any contact details of the end users then you need to do the same process but with your distributors.

Information is a valuable commodity. Work out what the info is worth to you in the long run. It could be worth thousands or tens of thousands if you can receive exactly the answers you need. And then get the good ole ethical bribe out in exchange for “market research”

Happy selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Sales Training

Telephone: 0800 849 6732

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Tips For Negotiating

I get asked a lot for my top tips for negotiating and it all depends on what you are negotiating for.

Sometimes a negotiation can be based on the price that your client wants to pay and what you want them to pay!

Sometimes it’s for the products and services that you both want or don’t want if you get my drift!

It all depends on the circumstances.

So, here are some top tips for negotiating:

1. Aim High

Let me put it this way. Your price will usually only go in one direction and that’s not up! So aim high! At some stage you’ll probably be required to make a concession here or there so you need something to “play with”.

2. Don’t give away too much too early on

Too many sales people sell the family jewels at the first attempt. If your product is £5,000 and you agree to sell it to me for £3,500 then what does it tell me? Well, unless what you got out of the deal was valuable too you’ve just tried to “do me” by trying to get me to pay an extra £1,500 because you dropped your very quickly! Discount in stages.

3. Lose the EGO

You want the best outcome for both parties. Not for YOU! Not so you lose face in front of your
prospects or peers. A lot of “no deals” result because the 2 parties are too focused on winning and looking good rather than having the right outcome.

4. When is it time to walk away

Do you know when it’s the right time to walk away from the deal? You need to have this in mind before you start the negotiation. When is it time to say “No deal”

5. Planning!

Go into the negotiation with some primary and secondary objectives. What’s your ideal scenario? What would you ultimately want from this in the ideal world? What’s the least you would be willing to accept? You need to know these because in the heat of the negotiation you could get swept away if the other party knows what they are doing!

I hope those quick tips for negotiating help?

At the end of the day I always strive for WIN WIN negotiations where each party thinks they got the best end of the deal. If you can do this then you can really build long term profitable relationships with your prospects and clients.

Happy negotiating!

Sean

Sean McPheat
Managing Director
MTD Sales Training

Telephone:
0800 849 6732

Have you downloaded my latest report yet? “The Sales Person’s Crisis” has been downloaded by over 10,000 sales pros and entrepreneurs. Don’t miss this unique report that lifts the lid on modern day selling!

Click on the image below to find out why you’re very existence as a sales person is in doubt…