Tom’s New Book Released!

Selling Yourself in Today’s Competitive Marketplace is now shipping. From my perspective, this book comprises what I would basically characterize as ‘Advanced QBS,’ especially since it shows you how to be more effective given the recent economic turbulence.

For a short time, this book (286 pages) is being offered at an introductory discount.

Order the Book Online!                       

Unfortunately, we have spent the last 30 years focused on how to sell during strong economic times. While I am not one of those dooms-dayers who’s predicting another Great Depression, I do believe that we have entered a period in history that could one day become known as "The Great Adjustment."

Frankly, it’s easy to sell when everyone has lots of money. It has become a bit tougher now that people are more cautious with their decisions and more judicious with their spending.

Is it still possible to be successful in sales? Absolutely, but it is clear that your success moving forward will depend more on you than ever before.

Here are a few selected excerpts from the book:

"Everything seems eerily different now, as we slowly come to grips with the reality that the field on which we work and play has changed dramatically. Even those of us who were minding our own business when the downturn began breathed a collective gasp as the era of unabated growth and prosperity that our economy has enjoyed over the last thirty years seemed to collapse overnight."

Never before have individual salespeople been so willing to put their egos aside and adjust their approach to make themselves invaluable to their company and customers…which will require a conscious effort on the individual’s part to hunker down and honestly evaluate your current sales process, strategic mindset, and interpersonal skills.

I hope you enjoy it. I know it will make you more effective in terms of Selling yourself. Please also let me know your feedback.

You’re Always Vying for Second Place

In my new book, Selling Yourself in Today’s Competitive Marketplace, I talk extensively about “Your Next Job Interview,” as it serves up the perfect metaphor for selling yourself. During a job interview, you are not only responsible for selling yourself, you are also the product that’s being sold.

That said, here’s a strange tip coming from a sales trainer. If you are pursuing an exciting new opportunity in the job market, then I would advise you to position for second place.

There’s usually no such thing as the perfect candidate. The “perfect” candidate would always have more experience and a better track record. They will have also had more training and better references. Add to that the fact they may have been the valedictorian in college, a former Miss America, or a decorated war veteran, and alas, you have the perfect candidate!

It’s actually fine to have weaknesses. More than likely you’re not competing against perfection, anyway. Rather, you’re competing against other candidates who have a resume full of strengths and weaknesses. You just need to make sure that the combined total of your strengths, minus any perceived weaknesses, is greater than whoever else is applying for the job.

I actually think it puts you in a strong position to verbally acknowledge the fact that you’re not perfect. The goal isn’t to sound negative or pessimistic. But, I can tell you that I would be quick to say to a hiring manager, “There probably is no such thing as the perfect candidate for this position. While my strengths include aaaaa, bbbbb, and ccccc, I would want to focus my energy on developing my skills in the areas of yyyyy and zzzzz in order to become productive as quickly as possible.

Most decision makers are realistic and are comforted by the fact that a candidate (or salesperson) is aware that there are some areas that need more attention than others. In fact, a willingness to acknowledge and focus on one’s weaknesses may just be one of your greatest strengths.

The moral to this story is simple. The perfect candidate for a job will always win hands down. Therefore, you are really vying for second place–which includes those times where there is no such person as ‘the perfect candidate.’ If you can elevate yourself to be perceived as the best out of those who do have strengths and weaknesses, then I can tell you with a high degree of confidence that you will win most of the time.

By the way, in a competitive marketplace, there’s no such thing as a “perfect” solution. Think about it!

Sell Your Intangible Value

What’s the value of working with a knowledgeable, credible, and trustworthy salesperson as opposed to someone whose methods are somewhat questionable? The difference can be huge to customers even if the products being offered are virtually identical. In sales, the customer’s perception of your value is equal to the benefits of your product or service plus the intangible values you bring to the table.

From my perspective, it’s no longer enough to be friendly and polite. There are plenty of salespeople in the world who are nice. The idea behind this concept of selling yourself is to accrue enough value to tip the scales in your favor whether you are up against a competitive proposal, or you are competing against the decision to do nothing. We also want to accumulate enough value to overcome any questions or concerns that may come up when dealing with objections.

Whether a salesperson is born with character traits like credibility, integrity, knowledge, helpfulness, candor, or respect, is debatable. The key is being able to convey your intangible values throughout the sales process, so sellers who think strategically can be perceived as more valuable resources than the competition. That’s where the application of specific techniques becomes very important. As I have said many times, even if you are the most valuable salesperson in your industry, you still must say and do things that cause you to be perceived as such.

Interviewing Advice for Candidates

One piece of advice I would offer with regard to the notion of selling yourself is to be prepared to discuss how you plan to succeed. Success rarely happens by accident, and if you were interviewing for a position within my company, the first thing I would want to know is, “Do you have a plan for being successful in this job?”

Successful people plan their work and they work their plans. They have a vision for what is required to be successful and the ability to communicate that vision to others. Even our best laid plans don’t always pan out as we had originally envisioned them, however, so the ability to make reasonable and intelligent adjustments along the way is critically important. Shooting from the hip is no longer a viable strategy in today’s business environment.

Potential employers are just like prospective customers in the sense that they want to know that you are confident in your abilities, and you have the foresight and fortitude necessary to make things happen in ways that will benefit them and you.

Even with a notable track record, we must recognize that in a competitive environment, you will rarely be the only candidate (or vendor) being considered. Other qualified candidates will also garner a serious look. Hence, the purpose of an employment interview is not just to review one’s honors and accolades from the past. The real purpose of these evaluations (job interviews or sales calls) is to give prospective customers a glimpse into the future so they can evaluate which alternative will provide the best fit in helping them achieve their goals.

In the final analysis, you must make the difference. To the extent you are able to communicate value and demonstrate that your skills are indeed aligned with the customer’s goals, you can expect a great deal of success going forward. On the other hand, if you sound just like everyone else, then you put your destiny in the hands of a coin flip at best. It’s that simple. Selling yourself during an interview or with regard to a product sale has everything to do with the customer’s perception of you.

Anyone Have a Degree in Sales?

Sales continues to be the least taught profession in the world.

After graduating from the University of Florida with a degree in Finance, one of my options was to pursue a career in banking. I never really saw myself working in a bank, so I went into sales.

To get hired, I suppose it was necessary to have a decent personality, but you didn’t need any specific industry certifications. You just had to "want to" sell. By the time the first year passed, I had accumulated some on-the-job trial by fire experience, but the amount of official sales training I received was negligible. There was this unwritten feeling among managers that salespeople should already know how to sell.

I didn’t. I knew how to pick up the telephone and keep dialing until my fingers bled. I also knew that everyone was focused on results, and my manager told me that sales was simply a ‘numbers game.” For a neophyte like myself who was struggling to scratch out a living, selling was hardly a game.

Read more

Your Next Job Interview

Professionals are constantly enhancing their resumes in continuous preparation for their next job opportunity. Even if you stay with the same company, you will likely change positions, either moving into a new role or by being next in line for a big promotion.

In the role of customer, hiring managers evaluate candidates in an attempt to find valuable employees. And, even if you are indeed the most valuable candidate applying for a position, you still have to say and do things during a job interview (or sales call) that enable you to be perceived as such.

(Click here to download the entire document.)

Making Audiences More Receptive to Your Message

I don’t teach presentation skills like voice inflection, gesturing, or how to utilize visual aids in front of an audience. That doesn’t mean presentation skills aren’t important. They are! But so is another aspect of the sales presentation that nobody talks about, which is how to make your presentation audience more receptive to your message.

Too often, we assume that just because someone sits through a sales presentation means they are ready to listen to our ideas. Nothing could be further from the truth.

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Advice for Interview Candidates

Here’s a piece of advice I would offer anyone with regard to the notion of selling yourself. Make sure you have a viable plan for succeeding in whatever you aspire to do. Success rarely happens by accident, and if you were interviewing for a position within my company, the first thing I would want to know is, “Do you have a specific plan for being successful in this job?”

Successful people plan their work and they work their plans. Although our best laid plans don’t always pan out as we had originally envisioned them, having a vision is critical and shooting from the hip is no longer a viable option in today’s business environment.

Especially if you are competing for a sales position, I would want to know your philosophy on selling. More importantly, I would want to know that you had a specific sales philosophy. Which sales courses have you attended and what books have you read? Cite my books if you want. Of all the candidates who might be considered, make it your mission to be one who stands out, even to the point of creating a strategy binder and bringing a specific business plan to the interview. Present it like you were already in charge of the division. It’s perfectly acceptable to make assumptions that allow for flexibility during the implementation phases of your plan. In fact, be sure to let the hiring manager know that ongoing revisions are an integral part of your plan.

Potential employers are the same as prospective customers in the sense that they want to know that you are confident in your own abilities and you have the vision and fortitude necessary to make things happen in ways that will benefit them and you, both.

Even with a notable track record, we must recognize that in a competitive environment, you are rarely the only candidate (or vendor) being considered, as other qualified candidates will also garner serious consideration. Hence, the purpose of an employment interview is not just to review one’s laurels from the past. The real purpose of these evaluations (job interviews and sales calls) is to give prospective customers a glimpse into the future as a way to evaluate which alternative will provide the best fit in helping them achieve their goals. Customers are always forming impressions and how you choose to conduct yourself will ultimately be the single biggest factor that influences their decision.

In the final analysis, you must make the difference. To the extent you are able to communicate value and demonstrate that your skills are indeed aligned with the customer’s goals, you can expect a great deal of success going forward. On the other hand, if you sound just like everyone else, then you put your destiny in the hands of a coin flip at best. It’s that simple. Selling yourself during an interview or with regard to a product sale has everything to do with the customer’s perception of you.

It’s NEVER A Good Time for Training

More than any other time since the industrial revolution, companies and individuals in all industries are feverishly looking for ways to retain customers, boost top line revenue, and maintain overall profit margins. To survive and ultimately flourish in this new environment, we must reexamine the way we deal with customers; and frankly, some of the necessary adjustments are long overdue.

(Click the image to the right to download the entire document.)

(Click here to download the entire document.)