Blog - Braveheart Sales Performance

Three Reasons Salespeople Can’t Reach Decision Makers

Here’s a duh! Salespeople who are easily able to reach decision-makers are infinitely more effective at closing business.

Here’s the data: According to Objective Management Group they are 337% more effective. That’s the good news. The bad news is that only 28% of salespeople are strong at doing it.

This is a massive problem. If we know that more business will be closed, tons more business, but only slightly more than a quarter of salespeople are skilled at reaching decision-makers, it seems to me that there is a pretty big opportunity for impact. If only salespeople would just call on decision-makers!

But Not […]

Fix the 3 Most Common Revenue Killing Excuses

The title says it all. Here are 3 common revenue-killing excuses, what makes them detrimental, and how to fix each one.

Excuse #1: “I’m too busy taking care of customers. I am going to skip some of my daily prospecting activities and catch up on them tomorrow (or next week, or next month).”

Common variation: “It’s after 5 pm (in some time zone), so I may as well wrap up this calling for today.”

Common variation #2: “Cold calling doesn’t work.”

Why this is flawed thinking: If a salesperson can get away with it one day, chances are one day will grow […]

Three Steps to Improved Negotiation and Sales Success

What happens when a salesperson isn’t an effective negotiator? Often, they simply write a proposal.

I’ve observed it happen many times. Somehow the salesperson thinks that if they put the information in writing the prospect will buy.

The truth is that a proposal should really be a confirmation of what has already been agreed to, or has been determined that the prospect wants, needs, and is interested in buying. These factors must first be understood before creating a proposal.

Effective Negotiations

So how can a salesperson become an effective negotiator and understand these factors? Well, an effective negotiator is really just a skilled communicator. […]

What You Must Know Before Changing the Sales Compensation Plan

2021 (thankfully) is weeks away. The end of the year is when many leaders tend to consider transforming their sales compensation plan since a new year equals making a fresh start. If you are a leader contemplating changes, I would suggest that a real purpose be at the core of any new compensation plan. The plan should be designed to incent individuals to perform the way leadership desires in support of the company’s goals.

But to effectively do that one must understand the concepts of motivation.

From the Merriam Webster dictionary, the word motivate is defined as: to provide with a motive: impel. […]

The “Fact” that Prospects Are Honest Is Hurting Sales Growth

85% of salespeople have self-limiting beliefs that hurt their sales effectiveness. 85%! Huge!

And one of the most common Sales Self-Limiting Beliefs we see in sellers is the belief that Prospects Are Honest. The number actually went up one percentage point since I last reviewed the data in October 2019.

You probably have heard the old adage, “How do you know a prospect is lying? Their lips are moving!” LOL

All Kidding Aside

Most prospects are not deliberately being dishonest with sellers. They are telling little-white-lies such as.

“I need to think it over.”

“Now just isn’t a good time. Can you check back […]

The 5 Requirements to Maximize ROI on Sales Training

It shouldn’t be surprising that we spend a lot of time training sales teams and coaching the sales team leaders. Our experience doing it for clients provides much insight into how to get maximum benefit from this kind of help. Here are five elements that must be considered before any money is spent on sales training.

Can sales training be embedded into a repeatable selling system and process within your CRM? Teaching and training won’t stick for most people unless it is embedded in the system they use on an ongoing basis. Asking the right questions and employing the newly learned […]

Build A Great (Not Just Good) Sales Team

Last article, I mentioned I’ve been re-reading “Good to Great” by Jim Collins. Continuing with the theme of how the book can apply to sales organizations, I am fascinated by the data around the 11 “good to great” companies Collins’ research team studied as they determined what made the great ones so great.

Hire for the Who and the Team

In chapter two (I’m reading the book slowly to really absorb all the detail this time), there is a focus on company leaders and the executive teams they built. The great companies hired the best they could hire and gave them the […]

Eddie Murphy Shows How to Make Coaching Fun

Of all the things that a sales manager needs to do, the most important is clearly coaching. Honestly, it has the biggest impact on sales success. This isn’t just my opinion, we have data that supports it (see below).

Lots of Coaching, Not Necessarily Effective Coaching

What’s most important is the amount of coaching, not how good it is. This is surprising but the data backs me up. However, the combination of coaching frequency and effectiveness is simply amazing.

Sadly, many managers are uncomfortable coaching. Frequently it is because they don’t want to “micro-manage” individuals. Or sometimes it is because they just don’t […]

What Mama Deer Can Teach Sales Managers

My family and I are fortunate to live in a lovely suburb with lots of trees and plenty of greenspace. Not only do we enjoy taking walks in the neighborhood and enjoying the peace and tranquility, the deer do as well. Sometimes the neighborhood feels more like a deer sanctuary.

Lessons from a Mama Deer

As I was walking my puppy dogs the other day, I came across a mama deer and her three fawns. I know mama deer can be somewhat fierce if their babies are threatened so I always keep my distance.

That day, I noticed that the mama deer was […]

Avoid the Pot Bunkers of Selling

The LPGA has a new AIG Women’s Open Champion in Sophia Popov – A first-time winner! I will get to why it matters after I set the stage. As an avid golfer, I am intrigued by the parallels the sport has to sales. Yes, there have likely been hundreds if not thousands of articles written about these parallels. But my twist is a little different.

Superstars at Work

Most golfers love watching Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, and alike, pound the ball. We love seeing someone sink a thirty-foot putt to win a major tournament. Similarly, we are drawn […]