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…

Just how much of selling success is luck?  Some will say that selling has absolutely nothing to do with luck; instead it is all a matter of skill.   Others however, will maintain that, of course there is some element of luck involved in selling.  While still some sales professionals (as I have noted on this site) define luck as Labour Under Correct Knowledge.  So, let me first begin by defining exactly what IS luck?

Merriam-Webster defines luck as…

1. a. A force that brings good fortune or adversity
    b. The events or circumstances that operate for or against an individual
    c. Favouring chance

If luck is indeed a type of force, then is it possible to create your own luck?

Yes!  Below is a prescription you can use to create your own luck!

The Ingredients

#1. Definiteness of Purpose
First you add the main ingredient which is “Definiteness of Purpose.”  You must know exactly what you are aiming for and precisely where you are going.  This includes your goals, both personal and professional, your objectives with each prospective client, your objective for each sales call, meeting or sales activity and your motives for everything that you do.  Why do you do what you do?

#2. Expert Knowledge
The second ingredient is “Expert Knowledge.”  Understanding the sales training manual given to you by your management is not enough.   You need to know everything there is to know about your product or service, as well as your entire industry–past, present and future.    

#3. A Consistent Work Ethic
Expert knowledge and definiteness of purpose are useless without consistent action.  You must develop a plan to produce a steady work flow consisting of all of the necessary sales activities; day in and day out, week in and week out, and without fail.  

Illustration By John Landrine

#4. A Passionate Belief in What You Sell and Do
The fourth and final ingredient is the glue that holds it all together.  You must have a deep and heartfelt conviction in your product or service and its value to your customers.  You have to believe that the benefits to your customer far outweigh the benefits to you and your company.  You have to know that the client is the true winner in every sale you close.    

Now, when you go out and perform all of the above ingredients simultaneously, right where they intersect is where you will get extremely lucky!    

Go out there and make your own luck!

Lucky Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
Bestselling Author, Sales Authority & Speaker On Modern Day Selling Methods 

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…

Image by Damian M

You can find Sam-I-Am in the critically acclaimed children’s book, “Green Eggs & Ham,” by the famed Dr. Seuss.  First published in 1960 by Random House, “Green Eggs & Ham,” tells the story of two characters: one named Sam-I-Am and another, an unnamed character I will call “IT.”

Eloquently presented with colourful images and rhymes, the book follows Sam as he tries tirelessly to persuade IT to eat some green eggs and ham. As the IT character continues to resist, showing no interest in the meal, Sam relentlessly perseveres in what has become one of the greatest sales stories of all time.

In case you have forgotten, below is a short excerpt and some paraphrasing from the book.

IT:       I do not like them, Sam-I-am.  I do not like green eggs and ham.

Sam:    Would you like them here or there?

IT:       I would not like them here or there.  I would not like them anywhere.  I do not like green eggs and ham.  I do not like them, Sam-I-am.

Sam:    Would you like them in a house?  Would you like them with a mouse?

IT:       I do not like them in a house.  I do not like them with a mouse.  I do not like them here or there. I do not like them anywhere.  I do not like green eggs and ham…

This goes on throughout the entire book, as Sam proves to be incredibly persistent, suggesting numerous ways that IT may enjoy the product.  Sam suggests IT try green eggs and ham in a car, a tree, in the dark, in a box, with a fox, in the rain, on a train, on a boat and even with a goat.

The IT character continues to object, until finally…

Sam:    You do not like them.  So you say. Try them and you may.  Try them and you may, I say.

IT:       Sam!  If you will let me be, I will try them.  You will see.

(IT tastes the green eggs and ham)

IT:       Say!  I like green eggs and ham!  I do!  I like them, Sam-I-am!  I would eat them (with all of the above) Thank you!  Thank you, Sam-I-am!

The Sales Genius
Sales trainers the world over have used “Green Eggs and Ham,” and Sam’s perseverance as a model of persistence.  However, Sam did much more than take a lot of “NOs.” Below are five successful selling examples Sam-I-Am demonstrates in the book.

1. Maintained his offer: No matter how many times the prospect said “No,” Sam never reduced his offer.  Many sales people are too quick to change their original offer or drop their price after only one or two objections.

2. Did not challenge IT: Sam never directly challenged IT’s objections or thinking.  He never asked, “Why will you not try them in a house?” Sales people often demand the prospect justify their reasoning, which creates an adversarial condition.

3. Did not try to change IT’s mind: Sam accepted all of the NOs. He never tried to make IT change its mind.  Sales people often try to change the NOs into YESs. You cannot get people to change their minds.

4. Continued to build value: After every failed closing attempt, Sam introduced new ideas and new ways the prospect could benefit from the offer.  Sam continued to build the value of the product by offering new information. Instead of building the value of the product, sales people often reduce the price or benefits.

Understand that while you cannot get someone to change their mind, you can help someone make a new decision based on new information.

5. Had the right motive: What would Sam gain or lose if IT did not try the green eggs and ham? There is no mention of a commission.  Sam’s persistence was based solely on the fact the he knew IT would enjoy the meal. Sam wanted to help IT get something IT did not even know IT wanted.  To help the prospect solve a problem he did not even know he had.

When prospects sense that you are pushing them because you truly believe it is in their best interest, rather than your commission, your persistence is acceptable, welcome and even desired.

When you’ve got that big sale you have to land,
And feel you did everything you possibly can,
Remember the story of “Green Eggs and Ham,”
And the powerful sales example in Sam-I-Am!

Happy Selling

Sean

PS Sam-I-Am could have pulled out the needs and wants of IT before presenting the Green Eggs & Ham to him too in a consultative selling manner!

It’s an old one but a good un: Prescription before diagnosis is malpractice! 

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…

Everyone in the business of selling wants to be the best in their field, earn a high-level income and have a rewarding career.  However, most sales people do not take the steps necessary to achieve their career goals.  Here is a tough question to ask yourself to determine if you are a true sales professional capable of making it to the top.

How much time do you invest in education and training in your profession?
A top-level sales person’s income should easily rival that of a world-class brain surgeon’s. However, many sales people are looking for that income without the input.  That brain surgeon spent 8 to 12 years or more of schooling in preparation for the profession.  The doctor then invested 60 to 100 hours a month in continuing education and specialized training, easily totaling 30,000 to 50,000 hours of actual professional training.

How much time have you invested in your professional training?  If it is one-tenth the time of the above professional example, then is it hard to understand why you earn only one-tenth the income of such a professional? 

Many people feel that selling does not require nor demand the same level of training as other fields do such as medicine, engineering or law.  However, professional selling requires as much training and education or more.

Go above and beyond your company provided training
You must seek out knowledge of your industry from every source, not just from your company and management team.  You must take time to study and learn everything there is to know about your competition, your industry and your company.  You need to seek continued knowledge in areas such as:

Sales
Your competition
Technical aspects related to your industry
Modern tools and methods
Internet technology
Human nature and basic psychology
Your industry’s past and future
Your prospective clients
Legal aspects relating to your industry
Time management
Oral and written communications  
Goal setting
And much more

You should invest at least 10 to 15 hours a week increasing your knowledge and improving yourself. 

Selling is the highest paid profession in the world…and it is not by accident.

Happy Selling!

Sean

Sean McPheat
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…

I came across an interesting article the other day proving why the number seven was so important to us humans. No matter what culture or religion you come from, the number seven has a interesting effect at a psychological level.

When you consider all the permutations associated with it, it’s fascinating to see how often this particular number crops up in everyday life.

Is it possible you could use this psychological phenomena to your advantage?

Think about it, If you have subscribed to any newsletters, or downloaded material off the web, or paid for ebooks, chances are that the price you have been offered ended with a seven. Search for any ebooks in your profession or industry and you’ll find, more often than not, that the price will be $17, $37, $57, $97, $197, or something similar in pounds sterling.

Why? It appears that we are drawn to this number in many areas of life. We call it ‘lucky number seven’ (or ‘sleven’ if you’re a film-buff like me!).  According to Stephen Covey, there are Seven habits of highly effective people. The Magnificent Seven. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Seven days a week.  James Bond. There are countless references to the number seven in religious writings. The list goes on.

It depicts a sort of completeness or perfection, a finalising of a circle or loop. It adds something that feels incomplete if we finished at another number.

How does this apply to you?

Well, when you’re putting your figures together for a proposal, remember your customer will look at the final figure as your opening negotiable position. If you quote, say, £5000 for the complete package, they will see that as a figure to be started at.

However, if you quote £5027, this sounds more final, more specific, more believable that it’s been worked out personally for this prospect.

Plus the fact that it ends in a seven has a completeness about it.

Try it. See if you can get your next few proposals to end with the figure seven. Be specific and see what the prospect’s reaction is. Let me know how it goes. Who knows…you may create a new marketing and pricing structure around this magical number! And that can only be good for business!

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…

Now, here’s an interesting story this week from one of the UK’s bigger supermarkets:

Supermarket giant Tesco is set to open the UK’s first drive-thru store. The service is aimed at customers who do not want to carry out their weekly shop themselves, but who also do not have time to wait at home for an internet delivery. Instead, for a flat fee of £2, they will be able to drive to a dedicated area in a Tesco store at a set time and pick up their shopping without having to leave their car.

If it is successful, the group plans to roll it out across other areas of the country, although it does not have a timescale for the expansion.

Laura Wade-Gery, chief executive of Tesco dotcom and Tesco Direct, said: ‘This will be especially popular with busy mums who have the school run and children’s activities to manage.

‘It also offers a solution to parents who want to avoid the challenge of shopping in a busy store with children in tow but can’t afford the time to stay in for the shop to arrive to their door.

‘We also expect it to help young professionals who want the convenience of a pre-picked and packed shop but who cannot commit to waiting at home for delivery.’

Have Tesco found a new way to entice customers? Or is it simply a new marketing gimmick?

People like this gentleman from Birmingham, UK, think it’s a great idea.  “I used to enjoy shopping at a variety of outlets not just supermarkets, but having been on crutches for the last 6 months, due to a failed knee replacement that’s got to be taken out and replaced, I’d probably have starved if it weren’t for the big supermarkets’ online ordering and delivery service – its been a godsend! When you’re on crutches its physically impossible to go shopping – you can’t push a trolley, you can’t carry a basket and if, like me, you’ve also got acute arthritis in your other ‘good’ knee, you probably can’t manage more than a few yards anyway”

Others are a little more sceptical. Nick Bubb, retail analyst at Arden Partners, said he could see the appeal of the service to ‘time-starved mums’, but questioned whether it would have any great impact. ‘I am not sure how many Tesco stores will be big enough to offer this,’ he added, ‘and I am not sure if rivals will follow suit as they will not have the store size to undertake it efficiently.’

Mintel analyst Richard Perks also raised doubts over the scalability of the initiative, suggesting it represented little more than a ‘marketing venture’.

‘Online sales at Tesco account for less than 5% of overall sales,’ he said. ‘This is about attracting marginal business.’

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…

It’s good Friday so I thought I’d send you something different!

Many of you may even be picking this up after the Easter Break and if you are then you’ll like this…

Is book publishing doomed or is it just beginning?

Watch this fascinating video and watch what happens half way through the video – you’ll be amazed and it’s very clever.

Happy Selling!

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…

As you probably know I am always looking for tell tale signs of sales scripts being used, blueprints that sales people are working from and basically “how things are put together”

Ok, I’m a nosey bugger!

But it keeps me ahead of the game. I’m a nightmare when I’m sold to too! I’m probably analysing what the sales person is doing rather than listening to them!

Anyhow, it’s Friday and I came across this video on how the news is actually put together.

It’s very funny and you’ll definately relate to it!

Have an awesome weekend. Here’s the video:

Sean

Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Training

Click here for free sales tips

Yes, I’m partial to the odd Big Mac every now and again but more to the point I’ve watched with interest over the years how McDonalds have re-branded themselves.

We went from Ronald McDonald to “I’m lovin it” in a short space of time.

Now, here’s something to check out…

McDonald’s launched a new interactive sign where passers-by can interact with images displayed on McDonald’s giant LED screen, and visitors can take an interactive role at one of London’s most photographed locations.

Watch this:

You might not have the budget to be able to replicate this. But what can you do in your sales and marketing to be fresh and innovative and to capture peoples attention?

Happy Selling

Sean

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

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…

If you’re like me and love great sales movies like Wall Street, Bioler Room and Glengarry Glen Ross then you might want to check out the comedy movie “The Goods”

“The Goods” is based on a car dealership and all of the tricks, the cunning and the daily lives of shady car salesmen!

Example!
Sales Manager to Sales Executive about the state of his desk and in-particular all of his family photos: “Lose those photos of your fat kids. Your prospects are going to see that and think you’ve got loads of money so you can feed them well. By showing skinny photos on your desk they will feel sorry for you and give you their money! But keep the photo of your fat wife, they’ll feel sorry for you too! Infact, can I borrow that photo so I can use it on my desk?”

You get the picture!

It’s not going to be to everyone’s taste but I’ll be checking it out!

Here’s the trailor:

Thanks again

Sean

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

PS Click here for 15 memorable movie salesmen!

For free sales tips click here

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…