Colleen’s Blog

Years ago, I was at a large gathering of CEOs: all sharp thinkers who want to see their companies grow. While I'd been invited to address their forum to talk about the sales process, what many of them really wanted to ask me about afterwards was where they fit in that process. Specifically: do CEOs need to get involved in selling, and if so, when?

“Follow every step of this bulletproof routine every day and you’re sure to become a high performer in sales.” That, my friend, is terrible advice. And yet that kind of guidance keeps getting spread around as though it’s the plain truth—when, in fact, it’s just…well…bull-sourced fertilizer!

No one in sales has an unobstructed 360-degree view of their relationship with their customers. Nobody. Not even top performers.

The days of the "ideal buyer" have gone the way of the dinosaurs. So has the routine sales pitch.

As the post-pandemic landscape continues to reveal itself in today’s marketplace, price increases are a defining characteristic…and a pain point for many of us. In some markets, these increases are incremental bump-ups. But in others, the spikes are meteoric, due in large part to ongoing complications in the global supply chain.

There isn't a buzzword out there today that's more dated than the notion of you being in "partnership" with your client. The fact that it's still used so irritatingly often in business today should give you serious pause.

There’s a menace in your sales territory today. It’s one that can drain your resources, rob you of your time, lay waste to your sales targets, and sink the morale of your entire sales team…effortlessly.

It’s a fact. Gartner’s recent market research confirms that virtual selling (and buying) are entrenched in how people want to do business now.

“What do I do when my long-time customer calls me and says they want to renegotiate a deal we’ve reached previously?” I get asked that a lot by sellers and business leaders…especially these days.

It can feel like a big, scary problem when your customer starts demanding you renegotiate terms and prices on an existing agreement you have with them. But, it doesn’t have to be that way. As a sales leader, there are steps you must take to ensure you remain in the driver’s seat in challenging situations like this—no matter what.