Research Centre

These pages aim to keep readers informed of recently published research on sales-related topics, by including abstracts of peer-reviewed academic research published in a range of journals. In this edition, we have grouped them into three broad themes: sales performance, behavioural studies, and systems and tools. Sales performance An account manager’s relationship with their customer service team is more effective… 

A new study highlights the power of “you” versus “we” phrasing in your messaging. When sending out prospecting messages or presenting solutions to prospects and customers, most marketing and salespeople tend to “we, we, we” all over themselves. No, this article isn’t about losing control of bodily function. It’s about word choice and whether a single word or pronoun-based reference… 

54% of initial meetings require more than… 

This 2016 research conducted in the context of a programme of study leading to the MSc Professional Practice in Sales Leadership qualification seeks to understand the effects of sales force incentives and how to balance pay plans with company objectives (B2B). Background As a sales director of a successful office equipment business for over 20 years, I could be forgiven… 

In original research for his Doctor of Business Administration qualification Simon Kelly asked: How do sales and marketing produce business-to-business value propositions? Background I became interested in how sales and marketing work together (or not!) to produce value propositions at the turn of the millennium in my role as Marketing Director for BT’s Major Business Division (BTMB). In an increasingly… 

What is the “Fourth Value Conversation”? We asked Tim Riesterer, author of The Three Value Conversations. Q: What is the “Fourth Value Conversation” and why is there a need for it now? We’re calling it “Expand Value”. It’s that part of the customer conversation lifecycle where you’re looking to ensure more renewals, communicate price increases and generate upsells and cross-sells… 

How customer-centric are our salespeople? Numerous authors down the years have drawn attention to the fact that only a small percentage of salespeople exceed customer expectations. Is this because salespeople tend not to have the competencies that customers are looking for or are buyer expectations unreasonably high? Here we look at the actual data: three studies that have charted buyers’… 

These pages aim to keep readers informed of recently published research on sales-related topics, by including abstracts of peer-reviewed academic research published in a range of journals. In this edition, we have grouped them into four broad themes: sales performance, customer management, behavioural studies and systems and tools. Sales performance Top-performing salespeople contribute significantly to the success of their firm… 

New research explores how to dramatically improve your “virtual” sales calls. Editor’s Note: This is the second article in a series about improving the impact of sales calls in phone or web conference environments. This piece covers original research aimed at determining the most effective approach for engaging prospects and customers in these selling environments. In the 60s and 70s,… 

Summary In this research, I conducted an action research project (McNiff & Whitehead, 2006) as a sales manager worker researcher leading six salespeople in the large enterprise business-to-business software market in the United States. I evaluated the applicability of Squire’s Client-Centric Values framework (Squire, 2009) and how its positive behaviours can be driven utilising a balanced approach of transformational and… 

Project summary My research project sought to understand the business impact that distributed leadership practice can bring to a sales-focused environment and how cultural differences can affect the practice within a global organization. Research was conducted with a team of Center of Excellence (COE) professionals focusing on platform solutions sales. Evaluation of impact was measured, based on the COEs’ impact… 

What are the most effective types of… 

Here we preview original research on how best to engage your audience during virtual meetings. The move at many companies is to expand inside sales teams and decrease the number of “feet on the street”. But, for all the potential cost savings and productivity gains, this transition creates some serious engagement questions and challenges resulting from the virtual barrier between… 

Research by IT marketplace Probrand.co.uk indicates that a major gap exists between what buyers expect and what is currently being delivered by IT suppliers. It highlights the trend away from engaging salespeople early in the buying cycle but also highlights significant differences between buying products and services. The survey reveals that more than half of B2B buyers (53%) now like… 

Methodology and scope A wide range of companies offer training and professional development services to the sales profession, making myriad claims about their capability – so determining the right partner for you can be a tricky process. In this study, a strategy grid was used to help position some of the leading UK, European and US vendors on a more… 

When SAP decided it had a need for teams to implement a new sales strategy to better address customer needs, it implemented a Challenger programme (alongside other components). Importantly, the company decided to include robust business impact metrics. At SAP, more than 7,800 sales professionals worldwide completed a Challenger programme over four years (execution and feedback 2013-17). Overall, 7,805 participants… 

How Big Data-Driven Coaching has been boosting win rates. Maintaining a position of pre-eminence in the highly competitive IT industry requires leaders to adapt to changes in the business landscape more rapidly than the competition. Continued success also relies on the development of innovative sales enablement techniques that boost performance, help meet customer needs and achieve bottom-line results. Digital Transformation… 

These pages aim to keep readers informed of recently published research on sales-related topics, by including abstracts of peer-reviewed academic research published in a range of journals. In this edition, we have grouped them into four broad themes: sales performance, customer management, capability development, and behavioural studies. Sales performance Sales organisations need to transform Professional sales and sales management are… 

Coaching in Ireland is in the early stage of its life cycle, mostly used by “early adopters” rather than being in the mainstream of management tools. The use of coaching in companies as a development tool for employees has exploded over the past 15 to 20 years. According to a report by Frank Bresser (2009) there are about 43,000 to… 

Can organisations understand how to recruit salespeople who are adaptable, coachable, and willing to embrace new learning? What makes a good salesperson? Arguably there are many characteristics and behaviours, and whilst some commentators pigeon-hole salespeople with simplistic titles to define their characters (Dixon and Adamson 2011), others take a different view and suggest that great salespeople demonstrate “differentiating mind-sets”, reflected…