For some reason, it’s very difficult for sales people to think beyond ‘need’ and ‘solution:’  We tend to think that because the buyer’s need matches our solution, and because we’re professionals who ‘care,’  the only thing buyers need to do is choose our solution.
But if it were that easy, buying decisions would get made more often in our [...]

Mike Schultz has a new book coming out today. Professional Services Marketing. Seems like it would be mainly for professional services folks, but I bet we all could use this book.
First, let me say that Mike’s publication – Rain Today – is chock full of ideas that are solid, interesting, innovative, and important.  He’s also [...]

Since I’m the Queen Contrarian, I’d like to say that the ‘need’ we think that buyers have is not a real need.
First of all, we often meet them at the wrong end of their buying decision – when they are just starting their search for a possible solution. Not only have they not committed to [...]

As per my realization that the Buying Facilitation Method needn’t be juxtaposed with consultative sales, and is indeed an add-on skill, yesterday I introduced you to 3 of my consultative selling friends, Tony Parinello, Jacques Werth, and Jerry Acuff. Today I’m going to introduce you to 3 more folks – very different, and equally wonderful, [...]

In the recent issue of Harvard Business Review, the editor Thomas Stewart, in his editorial, commented that in their article, Barry Trailer and Jim Dickie point out that “…customers’ buying processes have evolved in our world of ubiquitous, instant, global communication, but companies’ selling processes have for the most part stayed the same.’
I’m here to [...]