In November 2010, Jeff Weiss and Jonathan Hughes, along with Major Aram Donigan published an article in Harvard Business Review called "Extreme Negotiations".  It described the temptations we all face when negotiating under duress - for example, acting too quickly or relying too much on coercion - and suggested that the principles of effective negotiation become even more important when the stakes are high and the pressure is on.  The authors used examples from military negotiations in Iraq and Afghanistan to illustrate those principles. Harvard Business Review followed up with Weiss and Hughes to understand more about how readers could apply these negotiating principles to their own situations.

Sales Enablement: How do we do it? The phrase sales enablement has become a standard term in the language of those who support sales performance. There are currently 37 LinkedIn groups with this phrase in their titles. There are software companies, products, consultancies, and all kinds of online resources that include sales enablement in their names, descriptions, or value propositions. It's a great descriptive phrase for marketing products and services, but, like many such catch phrases, means different things to different people. This free white paper from Dr. Carl Binder, originator of The Six Boxes®, will help your sales leadership team understand and implement these concepts and - yes - enable your sales team to perform at its highest potential.

This webinar will help participants discover the specific activities and day-to-day operations of a truly effective corporate sales coach. Tim will host this session with guest Michael Bigley from Zones, an international technology enterprise provider.

Simple mistakes have significant impact on sales results. Are you catching the blunders your sales team is making in their everyday activities? Whether they are new sales reps or experienced sales people who have gotten lax, as a sales manager you want to catch these mistakes before they impact sales and coach your team to higher performance. But before you can, you have to first recognize the mistakes.

Improving sales performance has never been more important for major global corporations. After years of recession-induced cost cutting, leaders are putting increasing emphasis on implementing go-to-market strategies to boost both top- and bottom-line results, and expecting their sales organizations to execute them.   But times have changed, purchasing organizations have gained more power, and it’s more challenging than ever to close the gap between go-to-market strategy as articulated by senior management and its profitable execution with customers.

A subscription-based training model can help to empower your customers with the knowledge and skills they need to get the most out of your product or service. Selling training to your customers is also a tremendous business opportunity that will help to improve the ROI from your LMS. But where do you start? What’s the best way to package this kind of training? How should you market subscription-based training to your customers?

Transform Your Sales & Marketing Enablement at the Speed of Business: Lessons from Microsoft’s Leading-Edge "Corporate MOOCs"   The challenge facing most organizations: transforming at scale and at speed. The answer for Microsoft was leading-edge "Corporate MOOCs" which they have continually innovated in their quest to transform to a mobile-first cloud-first company at 21st century speed.

If you improve a salesperson, you improve one person. If you improve a sales manager, you improve the entire team. But, for most managers, self-awareness of their skill gaps is not an easy thing.

94% of buying executives expect salespeople to have business impact discussions with them. But only 19% of salespeople are effective at this.

When was the last time you left a webinar with 1-2 points that you can take home to your organization, implement and dramatically increase your output?

Flourish Virtual Conference Sessions

If you’re managing a distributed team, you know getting everyone on the same page to drive productivity is more important than ever. But depending on where you are, this could be difficult. In some states, stay-at-home orders and other restrictions are being lifted, while others are a long way from in-person meetings.

Sales kickoff season is here. Do you know what your meeting will look like this year? Pre-pandemic, you flew your team in to celebrate past successes, train, and motivate everyone for the next twelve months.

Gamification begins with the effect of human psychology on performance and illustrates the many ways to use behavior to build a better workplace culture.

As businesses settle into a completely remote work world, managers are wrestling with how to keep their teams engaged, motivated and productive. Leading with honesty, openness and empathy are more important than ever. "Everyone will remember how their boss responded during this time. Did they focus on you at a human level?" said one workplace consultant. Other topics: Futures, not foosball, get workers excited How top-performing companies use incentives

Many companies profess to make coaching and skills training a priority, but how many actually do? A recent State of Sales Coaching report indicates there is more preaching than teaching occurring in B2B sales environments. That’s a dangerous trend in a time when The Wall Street Journal reports that companies are struggling to fill sales roles. This focus report explores what a coachable culture is and how to get there if you’re not already. Other articles include: How to Scale Your Coaching Capabilities With AI 3 Steps to More Effective Virtual Coaching Coaching for Stronger Teams In a Hybrid Environment

Video can bring people together but it can’t create a meaningful or memorable encounter that drives results. That requires a unique skillset. Luckily, screen actors, television reporters, and other on-camera pros have unlocked the secret to creating personal relationships and memorable experiences with a virtual audience. In this session, actor and sales author Julie Hansen shares the must-know secrets from her new book, "Look Me In The Eye: Using Video to Build Relationships with Customers, Partners and Teams."

It may seem simple—just move your sales meetings online, right? But that isn’t all you need to master virtual sales and keep up with the competition. Being a great virtual salesperson doesn’t just mean long days of videoconference calls. You have other new skills to learn.

Join us for a game-changing webinar that reveals the secret to building a high-performing revenue engine through close collaboration between key business functions. In less than 60 minutes, you'll learn how to create a shared vision, set common goals, and optimize your sales and marketing strategies to maximize revenue growth.  

Your happiness and success depend on your working relationships. The people you manage. How well you work with your boss. The way collaboration happens with colleagues and peers. How you connect with important prospects and key clients.

LinkedIn says that 98-99% of users don’t use it effectively. In this presentation you’ll learn the five fundamentals, long-standing principles, you need to master to move into the 1% of users who use it effectively.  

If you start your Sales pitch with the dreaded words "We were founded in….", I have bad news for you. This is the worst possible way to start a presentation. Why?

"6 Secrets to Selling and Training Online" is a dynamic and practical course designed to empower professionals with the tools and strategies needed to excel in the virtual marketplace. Whether you're a seasoned trainer, marketer, or entrepreneur, this class will reveal the six essential techniques to effectively sell products and deliver impactful training sessions online. With the rise of remote work and virtual engagement, mastering these skills will not only increase your revenue but also enhance your ability to connect with a global audience, build trust, and deliver high-value content that drives action.  

The Sales & Marketing Management team attended the annual Gartner CSO & Sales Leader Conference in Las Vegas in May. The Gartner conference brings B2B sales leaders from a wide range of industries together to take a deeper dive into the trends and practices that are impacting B2B sales. Not surprisingly, artificial intelligence (AI) was the principal focus of the two days of presentations. How are forward-thinking companies implementing AI into their sales process? How are AI investment decisions being made and measured? What common mistakes are companies making in this area? As Gartner put it, AI is transforming sales organizations’ DNA. Of course, AI can’t replace the human element of sales. The report also includes articles on critical human elements of B2B sales and sales leadership, including keynote speaker Keith Ferrazzi’s message that "teamship is the new leadership." Our special report on the Gartner conference includes many of the important insights that Gartner analysts and Gartner exhibiting partners shared during the conference. The collection of stories is available in PDF format, which is easily shareable with colleagues, or you can read the stories separately on our website. If you want to be notified each time Sales & Marketing Management publishes a Focus Report, complete the subscription form on our website.