Sales leaders celebrate forthcoming book launch
September 5th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationSenior sales leaders from around the globe gathered in London on 7 July to celebrate the forthcoming launch of a unique new book they have created. Leadership Narratives: Reflective Journeys of Sales Professionals is due to be published by leading academic publisher Routledge in December 2023. The sales leaders flew in from as far afield as Nevada and Dubai and…
Salespeople unhappy with their bosses
September 5th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationSurvey analysis from the somewhat unlikely source of casinohawks.com has found that employees in retail, healthcare and sales report being the unhappiest with their managers, most commonly attributing their dissatisfaction to low pay, micromanagement and a lack of communication. By comparison, employees working in the creative arts and design and charity and voluntary sectors were found to have the most…
Sales, media and marketing need three years to prepare for AI
September 4th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationA survey of 600 UK human resources managers and directors working in sales, media and marketing conducted in May 2023 indicates they will need three years to be ready for the impact of AI on the workplace. However, all of them believe it will deliver benefits. Fewer than one in five (18%) said they would be fully prepared for the…
Appointments
September 4th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationINTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS consultancy, Trippant announced on 9 July that Alex Chamberlen has joined as Business Development Director. Chamberlen’s background is leading the new business team at Engage Digital Partners and serving as Managing Director at OMNIGON communications. He brings extensive experience in the tech and sports sectors, having led commercial teams for ESPN and CNN. FYLD, which specialises in AI-powered…
Hybrid sales model can boost SaaS companies
September 4th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationProduct-led growth seeks to place the product at the epicentre of customer acquisition, retention, and expansion to achieve “lower sales costs, greater product virality, and higher net retention”. As such, the product itself plays a critical role in acquiring, growing, and retaining customers. This approach has traditionally been seen as a more effective way to engage SME businesses, while a…
In brief
September 4th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationRAIN Group launches Self- Study+ for sales teams Global sales training company RAIN Group announced the launch of Self- Study+ on 9 August. The new offering combines the “advantages of self-paced learning with the power of practice, feedback, and collaboration”, according to the Boston-headquartered company. The programme features 77 modules across critical skill areas and 11 standard learning journeys. Sellers…
Royal recognition for UK postal service’s sales training programmes
September 4th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationRoyal Mail Group has won two prestigious awards for its sales training programmes delivered in partnership with sales business school Consalia. The UK postal service provider will receive two Princess Royal Training Awards, celebrating its “Inspiring Sales Mindsets for Growth Programme” and “B2B Sales Professional Degree Apprenticeship”. Established in 2016 and delivered by the City & Guilds Foundation, the Princess…
First-time manager
September 1st, 2023 by Bob ApolloNavigating the transition from sales to sales management. For many successful and ambitious salespeople, their first move into sales management is perhaps the defining moment in their career. Some will succeed. Some will fail. Some will make the move and then wish they had never abandoned the simpler life of a salesperson. And some will remain perfectly happy avoiding the…
The top five sales myths
July 6th, 2023 by Bryn ThompsonMaybe it’s time to re-examine what you may have always taken for granted. Salespeople are born not made Whilst having confidence, a positive attitude and being generally likeable are all useful traits, they do not guarantee success in sales. The skills required to be effective take years to learn and hone. Too many sellers are thrown in at the deep…
Sales strategy 101
July 5th, 2023 by Rana SalmanThree ways to analyse sales strategies to determine gaps and identify opportunities for improvement. I’ve been selling and consulting for almost two decades now. During that time, I’ve had the chance to collaborate with sales organizations worldwide, assisting them with their sales strategies and designing sales enablement programmes to bridge gaps. Based on my experience, analyzing sales strategies is crucial…
Students from 11 countries participate in European Sales Competition
July 5th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationCongratulations to all the students who participated in the European Sales Competition (ESC) hosted by Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences in Apeldoorn, Netherlands during May and June. This year’s competition saw twin parallel finals. Students were split into two groups, one selling software from ATOSS, a European company selling workforce management software, while the other main sponsor was TeamViewer, another…
New VP global sales for German media monitoring service
July 5th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationGerman digital media monitoring service PMG Presse-Monitor has expanded its management team with the appointment of Michelle Harold as Vice President Global Sales. She will lead PMG’s international sales team from 5 June. With her extensive experience in the digital transformation of content, Harold will lead PMG’s market expansion based on the company’s ongoing investment and commitment to innovation in…
Close Brothers Asset Finance invites Sales Academy applicants
July 5th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationUK merchant banking group, Close Brothers Asset Finance is inviting applications to join its sales academy, which aims to attract new and diverse talent into the sector from across the UK. Six positions are available in this year’s sales academy, and experience in finance or sales is not a prerequisite. The role is being advertised at £32,500 basic salary plus…
Sales leaders should position technology as “teammate”
July 5th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationAnalysts suggests that sales organizations which actively position technology as a “teammate” for sellers – rather than just another tool – will unlock seller productivity and enable highquality deals. Speakers at the Gartner CSO & Sales Leader Conference 2023, in Las Vegas on 16-17 May, explored how technology – particularly artificial intelligence – is key in augmenting the unique value…
A third of CROs to establish GenAI ops team within two years
July 5th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationSome 35% of chief revenue officers (CROs) will establish a generative AI operations team within their go-to market (GTM) organization by 2025, according to a June statement from Gartner. The focus on generative AI will democratize, accelerate and enable the production of buyer-centric messaging and content, the technology research and consulting firm claims. “There is a great burden on sellers…
Complexity will save salespeople
July 5th, 2023 by Bob ApolloWhat are tomorrow’s most important sales competencies? We’re entering a “brave new world of sales”, fuelled by the convergence of evolving B2B buying behaviours and the availability of AI-based new technologies. Is change the only constant, or do some of the traditional attributes of a successful salesperson remain important? I think it’s clear that many relatively simple pre- and postsales…
Questions, questions, questions!
April 20th, 2023 by Claudia FilsingerHow and why we ask questions is important. The twins of curiosity and ignorance Dr Marlys Witte is “a surgeon without hands”1, a researcher and educator of medical students and the self-proclaimed mother of the “medical ignorance” movement. She has not just adopted the Socratic method of educating through questions; her medical education model also develops the capability to be…
Sales leadership and CRM
April 20th, 2023 by Bob ApolloWhat role should sales leadership play in their organisation’s deployment of CRM? A CRM application lies at the centre of the technology stack of most sales organisations. It often represents one of the most significant investments made to support sales effectiveness. And yet both organisations and users often express frustration with both the user experience and the quality of the…
Are you delusional?
April 20th, 2023 by David KeanDon’t rely on “hopium” – the mindset that blocks agency growth and loses deals. I once had a boss who said, “I think we got away with that one” after just being told by the chairman of a global cereal brand our creative proposals were “the biggest load of crap ever seen”. We were fired the next day. The agency…
Salespeople and leaders differ on key aspects of buyer centricity
April 20th, 2023 by Journal Of Sales TransformationRecent research highlights differences in how sales leaders and sellers view the best ways to engage with prospects, but the majority agree that buyer centricity is the right approach overall – that’s according to a study conducted by sales training specialist ValueSelling Associates and L&D publication Training Industry. A significant majority of sales leaders (61%) believe it makes sense to…