Colleen’s Blog

I know these are challenging times for all of us individually and for our businesses. And now, in particular, is the time to absolutely micro-manage your metrics. You need to be on top of your business metrics like never before.

I had numerous conversations with sellers over the past weeks who were worried about being laid off, fired, the business shutting down, or the consolidation of departments. In particular, they asked me what they could do to keep their job.

What are you doing to prepare for reopenings?

Over the next four weeks, we will be sharing special content that’s specific to the COVID-19 crisis. In particular, we will be exploring strategies that you can implement as sellers and sales leaders in order to: 1. Position yourself well for recovery 2. Take advantage of what you can during this crisis. 

During these times, what are you doing to stay visible?

If you have been listening to me or following my work for any length of time, you know that I consistently implore and demand that you start asking for the sale more. In fact, we know that this is why so many deals and opportunities do not get closed. 

A client once reported to me that the work we did with them last year is creating 35% more revenue to the company than it did in previous years. Now that's an exceptional result, but rather than just giving myself a pat on the back, I just hired him to sit down and dissect what we did for them so that I could let you know how to get the same results. I realized it was three basic things.

As you almost certainly, in some format, have adjusted your day-to-day schedules and routines, be sure to keep track of what's working.

I have been coaching salespeople on negotiation strategies for over 20 years. And I’ve found sellers consistently make one mistake: they jump too quickly to lower their price even if they're getting something in return.

Despite everything going on right now with COVID-19, it is possible to find the good in today's climate.