Size Matters
CEO Brodsky explains how mergers and roll-ups can create great opportunities for the smaller companies that remain independent. Read more
Sales
Recent Sales Articles
Striking Gold in Those Sales Leads
Make a plan for dealing with sales leads. Here are some steps to get you started. Read more
Upstarts: New-Biz Watch
A look at start-up Orosi LLC, a manufacturer of helmets for white-water kayakers; advertising campaigns built around kayaking imagery; and why adventure spor... Read more
Psycho Path
Although psychological tests have long been dismissed by skeptics, many companies are using them--with great success--to match employees to jobs that they wo... Read more
What's the Key to Great Forecasting?
It helps to start with good, accurate data. Here are 6 pieces of information to gather. Read more
Is Your Switch On or Off?
COACH: Is your switch on or off? SALESPERSON: What do you mean? What switch? COACH: The one on the right side of your head. In the soft part... Read more
Sell Yourself
Good news for you business owners who refuse to hang up your sales hats: you've been vindicated. A national study of state-of-the-art sales practices has ... Read more
The Art of Salesmanship Is the Absence of Salesmanship
My career in sales has undergone three separate and distinct phases, or levels of growth. It's a track I've seen in others who have hung around long enoug... Read more
Boosting Accuracy at Point of Sale
The problem at Preston Wynne Inc.? Front-line staff at the company's Saratoga, Calif. day spa were making too many mistakes on the point-of-sale system wh... Read more
The Place of Magic in Sales
SALESPERSON: I can't say that in a comfortable way. It's just not me, the way you're asking me to say that. MANAGER/TRAINER/COACH: I'm not asking y... Read more
When Should I Give Up on a Sales Prospect?
Here's how to determine when your wasting you're time on a sales call and some ways to target a specific customer base. Read more
That With Ahead Go to Like You Would
" I beg your pardon. What did you say?" " That with ahead go to like you would." Again? " Would you mind translating that into English." ... Read more
Watch Out for the " Yes That Kills"
You're in sales and you love to hear yes's. During your first sales training class you were taught to be positive and optimistic and always look for yes's... Read more
Where Great Ideas Come From
Innovative ideas are the competitive edge for most entrepreneurial companies. Here are some myths about where good ideas come from and ways to stimulate idea... Read more
How to Get Your First Great Idea
Five rules to follow that will help you recognize valuable business ideas. Includes case studies of entrepreneurs who quickly transformed ideas into start-up... Read more
Turning Leads Into Sales
Say you're about to conduct your spring direct-mail campaign and attend a trade show. What kind of sales payback can you expect from those - or other - ma... Read more
VARs Under the Influence?
Microsoft has a new strategy for capturing the small-business market: capture the hearts and minds of consultants, integrators, and value-added resellers. Read more
I Never Know How to Start a Cold Call. Any Advice?
An art consultant shares her strategy for making cold calls. Read more
DNA-Like Toy Inspires Brand Creation
Start-up toy company Primordial, LLC, created a specific brand image for its Lego-like construction toy by selling only through upscale specialty retailers. Read more
I've Got a Secret...
CEO Brodsky explains that the key to successful business negotiation is to listen carefully to the other party, keep your real priorities a secret, and then ... Read more
Hot Tip: Piggyback on Training
Partnering with other companies results in low-cost employee training. Read more
The Rating Game
How Tom Colby of Campbell Software created a sales-lead rating system for accurately predicting a prospect's viability. Read more
Well-Timed Meetings
Jm Dieroff takes his travel alarm clock with him wherever he goes--even if it's just to a nearby meeting. Dieroff is president of Connais... Read more
Tap into the New Networking, Networking Article
z=100x45;kw=arh1">Tap into the New Networkinglank"> Ifme>' faithfully> ... Read more
Wanted: Paying Customers
Most companies spend a lot of energy tracking down customers. It helps to have creative ways of finding the right people to whom you should be selling you... Read more
Don't Toss the Junk Mail
Looking for a big customer to boost your business? Sometimes you can find sales leads and contact names on product labels or direct mail pieces,Read more
Sales Shine at Show Time
Trade shows aren't simply a place to swap business cards and build relationships anymore," says Sam Ganglani, treasurer of Mannix World, a clothing manufa... Read more
Training for a Chain Reaction
Want to get your product into a big retail chain but having trouble getting an appointment with a buyer and finding out how to handle such a sale? Fear no... Read more
Just Desserts
You're inhaling the last string of fettuccine, mopping the last crust of bread through the marinara sauce. Your potential customer sits across from you, f... Read more
Present Before You Propose, Presentation Skills Article
Present Before You Proposek"> "Don't kick off a meeting with aRead more
High-Caliber Bullets
Design Basics, a home-plan publisher, risks losing sales to its competitors because the home builders who sell its products don't represent Design Basics ... Read more
Ally with Inside Assistants
Having a tough time getting in to see a decision maker? Maybe you aren't talking to the right people. According to Tom Cottingham, founder of NarrowCast C... Read more
Selling the Superstores
Giant retail chains can put even tiny manufacturers in the national limelight overnight. But getting onto the giants' shelves isn't easy, and staying ther... Read more
Good Humor for Cold Calls
Patty Glass, the owner of a $600,000 art consultancy in Cincinnati, finds she gets good results on the phone by coming clean right away. Here's one variat... Read more
Short and Sweet
Got a minute? In Matt Hession's experience, just about everyone does. And besides, once people saw Hession take off his watch, they couldn't wait to take ... Read more
