Only the Qualified Survive

Only the Qualified Survive

Any sales manager worth their salt will only forecast a sale once they are satisfied it’s fully qualified. But what does that mean? Just what is ‘qualified’? At its most basic level we’re taught a few simple acronyms. The first one I was taught was MANT. MANT –...
Masking the Objective – A story of Indirect strategy

Masking the Objective – A story of Indirect strategy

Some 15 years ago I was consulting to a major account sales team who were selling to a large multi-national ($100Bn+). They were a relatively minor supplier to this customer. The incumbent supplier had over 80% of the spend. This comparative split had existed for over...
Aristotle in Sales

Aristotle in Sales

That Aristotle was one smart Greek. He wasn’t even thinking about sales people at the time, but he still laid some of the key foundations for successful selling. When we think about Greeks and geometry we might think first about that other guy, Pythagoras. But it’s...
Are Rock Stars the Answer?

Are Rock Stars the Answer?

As brain surgeons go, I guess I would be far to the left of the 1st quartile of a normal distribution. Translation: You probably shouldn’t ask me to perform surgery. As a professional boxer, not much better. I’d likely need a brain surgeon. As a pilot, I’d hopefully...