Watch Now
Thanks for tuning in each week to the show as we seek to bring you the stories, the communities, the people and the companies driving economic growth in our region! I’m having a blast doing the show and I’m meeting some terrific guests. We’ve got some exciting shows on the schedule coming up and we hope you make it a point to catch us on the air, on-line and you visit my weekly blog post.
This week I had a chance three people I didn’t know very, Jim Wilcox, President and Owner at Wilcox and Associates; Ron Starks, President, Sandler Training, SSS Inc.; and Jeff Curry, Vice President of Sales, Stay Metrics. When it comes to talking about the sales, these guys are the experts. I’m thrilled they were able to join us for a deeper look in to the topic.
Sales are on the minds of every business, everywhere. Those that do it well, will win, those that don’t will struggle. The show gave us an opportunity to diver a little deeper into the tools and techniques necessary for a top performing sales team. And we got to hear insight from and industry leader putting that is putting those practical lessons into practice in his company.
Let me give you a little more background on our guests. Jim is a Sandler trainer from Ft. Wayne, Ron a Sandler trainer from Grand Rapids. Together they cover our region and in particular now are working with a number of entrepreneurs and other sales people from the region at their weekly sessions at the Innovation Park at the University of Notre Dame.
There are over 250 local Sandler training centers in major U.S. cities and more than 27 countries, plus materials translated into 20 languages, allowing them to support their clients almost anywhere in the world, whether you're a small to mid-sized company or a large organization.
Sandler trainers like Jim and Ron have already had highly successful careers as sales and management professionals, and now use the Sandler sales methodology in their mission to train and mentor others to be successful. The Sandler sales methodology fosters an attitude of leadership, rather than just emphasizing technique. Reinforcement training facilitates the development of new and empowering behaviors, attitudes, and sales skills, mapping a unique road map to lasting success.
Stay Metrics is a business consultant in the transportation industry. Given the high employee turnover in the industry and the high demand for quality workers, Stay Metrics leaders teamed up with top researchers in behavioral psychology, management and organizational culture to create a rewards and recognition platform that is easy to implement and promotes a culture where drivers feel valued.
The show gave us an opportunity take a look ahead at 2017 and what companies are focused on. We covered four primary areas related to sales, the strategy for developing your sales team, what that structure would look like, how to attract and retain “A”- players, and what kind of skills we should look for in our sales team.
Companies have become more strategic and more sophisticated in developing their sales teams. Many are now using assessments to better identify those with the necessary skills to fill a spot on the sales team. Ron delivered one of my favorite lines of the show when he was talking about hiring and said “sometimes you think you are getting Tom Cruise but you really end of getting Rodney Dangerfield.” Companies want to make sure they know what they are getting and they want to make sure they understand the employees strengths and potential weaknesses. And they are design the work program based on those things identified in an assessment.
The show went pretty fast, all of us felt like we just began to scratch the surface of this important topic that impacts all businesses. In the end, we also recognized that these sales lessons can apply to everyone, even if their job is not in “sales.” To some extent we all are involved in sales every day, whether it be in our home, in our personal relationships, when we are applying for a job, etc…
I hope you enjoy the show. I’m always interested in your feedback and how we can make the show better. Feel free to share your comments at WNIT or feel free to email me directly at jeff.l.rea@gmail.com. See you next week!