Proactive Sales Management

As the president of a major sales company and experienced sales management trainer, author William Miller provides sales managers a proven method for successfully managing both sales processes and salespeople. Packed with specific, field-tested techniques, ProActive Sales Management teaches readers how to: motivate a sales team; get their sales team to prospect and qualify; create a proactive sales culture; effectively coach and counsel up and down the sales organization; reduce reports to one sheet of paper and 10 minutes a week; forecast with up to 90 percent accuracy; and take A players to A+ levels. Today’s sales managers have to be quicker than ever, being more proactive about hiring the best performers and retaining them while multitasking with managing complex sales processes in order to close more and more deals. Packed with all new metrics and tactics for making the numbers in today’s sales environment, ProActive Sales Management is an invaluable resource for this brand of highly in-demand leaders.

Building on the concrete advice and practical, powerful strategies revealed in its predecessor, More ProActive Sales Management provides harried sales managers with a proven method for managing the sales process and their people. Packed with specific, field-tested techniques, this helpful guide focuses on the five primary areas in which mistakes occur: internal team decisions, upward decisions, sales decisions, infrastructure decisions, and decisions regarding the manager himself. Readers will learn how to: regain control of their time • create a proactive sales culture • motivate a sales team • use simple yet powerful metrics • weed out failures quickly • coach and counsel up and down the sales organization • reduce reports to one sheet of paper and 10 minutes a week • forecast more confidently. This book shows sales managers at every level how to manage for great results!

Building on the concrete advice and practical, powerful strategies revealed in its predecessor, More ProActive Sales Management provides harried sales managers with a proven method for managing the sales process and their people. Packed with specific, field-tested techniques, this helpful guide focuses on the five primary areas in which mistakes occur: internal team decisions, upward decisions, sales decisions, infrastructure decisions, and decisions regarding the manager himself. Readers will learn how to: regain control of their time • create a proactive sales culture • motivate a sales team • use simple yet powerful metrics • weed out failures quickly • coach and counsel up and down the sales organization • reduce reports to one sheet of paper and 10 minutes a week • forecast more confidently This book shows sales managers at every level how to manage for great results!

True sales pros know they must tailor their methods to the buyer if they want to make their numbers every year. Featuring dozens of enlightening examples, this book gives you the tools to adapt your approach with the buyers in mind and maintain control at every stage of the sale. In ProActive Selling, author William Miller shows salespeople how to: qualify and disqualify prospects sooner, shift their focus to the most promising accounts, examine buyers' motivations from every angle, quantify the value proposition early, double the number of calls returned from prospective customers, appeal to the real decision-makers, use technology (e.g. cloud, video, social media, etc) to generate leads and shorten sales cycles, and increase the effectiveness of every interaction. Most sales professionals make the mistake of using the same sales patterns over and over. With an essential understanding about the different needs of customers, this revised and updated second edition of ProActive Selling equips you to succeed with any company, in any industry.

Most salespeople work hard to become proficient in reaching the frontline managers in their markets. However, a salesperson who wishes to achieve long-lasting success with a client will learn how to also appeal to top-level executives from an “above the line” perspective. Master sales trainer Skip Miller shows how to simultaneously sell to both the frontline manager as well as the executive who is more concerned with profit/loss indicators such as ROI, time saved, risk lowered, and productivity improved – a strategy used by Google, Apple, Cisco WebEx, and other powerhouses. In Selling Above and Below the Line, you will learn how to: Create energy by including executives early in the sales process. Ask the right questions and pinpoint big-picture financial needs. Keep “below the line” managers from feeling bypassed. Uncover value propositions that target each set of decision-makers. Sales that seem locked in will stall or go dark. Customers who have been loyal to you suddenly back out of the relationship due to decisions made above the manager’s head. This often could have been avoided had the salesperson been intentional to sell both the technical and financial fit. In Selling Above and Below the Line, learn to effectively communicate both, leading to more successful and lucrative deals than ever before.

Boost sales results by zeroing in on the metrics that matter most “Sales may be an art, but sales management is a science. Cracking the Sales Management Code reveals that science and gives practical steps to identify the metrics you must measure to manage toward success.” —Arthur Dorfman, National Vice President, SAP “Cracking the Sales Management Code is a must-read for anyone who wants to bring his or her sales management team into the 21st century.” —Mike Nathe, Senior Vice President, Essilor Laboratories of America “The authors correctly assert that the proliferation of management reporting has created a false sense of control for sales executives. Real control is derived from clear direction to the field—and this book tells how do to that in an easy-to-understand, actionable manner.” —Michael R. Jenkins, Signature Client Vice President, AT&T Global Enterprise Solutions “There are things that can be managed in a sales force, and there are things that cannot. Too often sales management doesn’t see the difference. This book is invaluable because it reveals the manageable activities that actually drive sales results.” —John Davis, Vice President, St. Jude Medical “Cracking the Sales Management Code is one of the most important resources available on effective sales management. . . . It should be required reading for every sales leader.” —Bob Kelly, Chairman, The Sales Management Association “A must-read for managers who want to have a greater impact on sales force performance.” —James Lattin, Robert A. Magowan Professor of Marketing, Graduate School of Business, Stanford University “This book offers a solution to close the gap between sales processes and business results. It shows a new way to think critically about the strategies and tactics necessary to move a sales team from good to great!” —Anita Abjornson, Sales Management Effectiveness, Abbott Laboratories About the Book: There are literally thousands of books on selling, coaching, and leadership, but what about the particulars of managing a sales force? Where are the frameworks, metrics, and best practices to help you succeed? Based on extensive research into how world-class companies measure and manage their sales forces, Cracking the Sales Management Code is the first operating manual for sales management. In it you will discover: The five critical processes that drive sales performance How to choose the right processes for your own team The three levels of sales metrics you must collect Which metrics you can “manage” and which ones you can’t How to prioritize conflicting sales objectives How to align seller activities with business results How to use CRM to improve the impact of coaching As Neil Rackham writes in the foreword: “There’s an acute shortage of good books on the specifics of sales management. Cracking the Sales Management Code is about the practical specifics of sales management in the new era, and it fills a void.” Cracking the Sales Management Code fills that void by providing foundational knowledge about how the sales force works. It reveals the gears and levers that actually control sales results. It adds clarity to things that you intuitively know and provides insight into things that you don’t. It will change the way you manage your sellers from day to day, as well as the results you get from year to year.

This is the book every sales manager wishes they had—before they accepted the job. The advice within acts as a 24/7 coach for beleaguered sales leaders dealing with perplexing dilemmas. Sales leaders (managers, directors, and vice presidents) advocate for and often succeed in getting sales training for their reps, but when they request sales management training for themselves, the answer is often no. This lack of formal instruction lowers their chances of success. Drawn from the author’s experiences as a sales manager, sales management consultant, and coach, The Sales Leader’s Problem Solver offers guidance on solving common but difficult issues with the salesperson who: Sells inconsistently. Cheats on sales contests. Doesn’t enter data in the CRM. Calls only on the largest or easiest clients. Won’t prospect for new business. By providing a consistent format to follow, Suzanne Paling will help any sales leader level-headedly deal with any challenge by: Clarifying the issue. Creating a plan. Presenting a solution to executives. Discussing the issue with the rep(s) in question.The Sales Leader’s Problem Solver is a powerful tool that will help new and experienced sales managers lead their teams and develop their reputations as fair, effective, no-nonsense problem solvers.