Traits and Tactics
Look for these traits, tactics, and tips as you train and develop your sales team
Thank You!
This week in the US we’re celebrating Thanksgiving. (I get to say this since this little newsletter spans several continents now and has readers all across the world. How cool is that?)
Thanksgiving is one of (if not my most) favorite holidays of the year for me. I love the pause, the mindfulness and reflection of taking a minute (or a long weekend) to think about the year as it draws to an end and ponder on my experiences. And what a year it has been for everyone.
So…no better time to formally thank YOU for being part of this journey. This week marks the 39th consecutive Stretch VP Weekly Newsletter. Whether this is your 1st or 39th - I appreciate you for being here.
Now - back to this week. In this edition of Stretch Weekly -
Becoming “Flawsome” at Transparency in Sales with Todd Caponi and Rob Jeppsen
Jason Lemkin talks about how we can help our sales team in 2021
11 Traits of High Performing Sales Reps
Plus - a full plate full of snippets and links to help you teach and train as you develop your sales team.
And lastly - as always, if you find this newsletter valuable- consider sharing it with someone who might as well 👊.
THANKS!!
-Grant
STRETCH SHARES
Becoming “Flawsome” with Transparency in Sales
Working my through my podcast queue and really liked this one with Todd Caponi of Sales Melon - and author of The Transparency Sale on the Sales Leadership podcast w/ Rob Jeppsen. Such a great mindset on using transparency to build trust to increase sales velocity.
Humans are wired to put up barriers and resist influence (BS Meter)
Leading with flaws brings barriers down - builds trust & increases sales velocity.
Ikea Principle: win by giving up certain things - to be great at your core competencies
Leading with transparency sells better than perfection - control your message
Building a foundation of trust will pay you back in the sales cycle
Transparency is a magic bullet when it comes to qualifying deals in/out. “If you’re going to lose, lose fast”.
Also - to me - I think the transparency method should actually co-exist with whatever methodology or process you currently use. Challenger, MEDDIC etc. can still benefit by leading with transparency as you present your solution.
How You Can Help Your Sales Team in 2021
Never one to disappoint - Jason Lemkin gets us thinking about things we can do to help the team for next year. Check out the full article below but here's a brief rundown of his thoughts:
Hire Dedicated Sales Ops
Invest more in training and on-boarding
Add in more SDRs, BDRs etc.
Have sane quotas for 2021
Invest in optimizing lead routing, scoring and management
Cut anyone that isn't cutting it
Get out on more prospect and customer Zooms
Upgrade alignment between customer success, account management and sales
Start segmenting sales
Celebrate the wins more.
Bonus: Move to Jan 31 Fiscal. Plan your first Customer Conference. VP of Demand Gen, Hold a Weekly Webinar.
11 Traits of High Performers
Taken from their state of sales report 2019-2020, Pipedrive published a good read on the top traits of high performing sales reps.
While some skills are innate, the best salespeople actually focus on developing skills that will result in more productivity and closed deals. According to the study - here are the top traits:
They’re critical thinkers
They’re empathetic
They’re good listeners
They’re ambitious
They have a hunger to learn
They love what they do
They know when to walk away
They possess problem-solving skills
They’re happy to collaborate
They’re focused
They’re optimistic
As you are hiring, building or coaching your team - look for and train on developing these traits.
STRETCH SNIPPETS
📊 Sales Forecasting: The reps that are best at forecasting are really strong at discovery. It sets up the rest of the process says Margaret Weniger w/ Jim Benton
🗣 5 Things Salespeople Can Say Instead of "I'm just following up..." from Charlene DeCesare
🚫 One of the hardest things to do in sales is “create urgency” when it’s seemingly not there. How do you do it? John Barrows says you can't. But...you can do this...
📲 Mike Brooks gives us 7 Voicemail Scripts That Get Your Prospecting Calls Returned
🎬 Another great one-sheet with 10 Tips for having great video calls - from GONG
🖥 Timely tips with Four Best Practices for a Modern Virtual Sales Call via Jim Blackie
💪 Enrique Ortegon walks us through what it takes to build a strong sales pipeline.
🧠 Mindset
Thanks for reading!
My hope is if you find this valuable, consider sharing it with friends (or signing up if you haven’t already).
— Grant 👋
About stretch vp: confessions, learnings and insights from sales leaders in SaaS
Compiled and aggregated from a network of sales leaders in SaaS, Stretch VP showcases learnings, insights and experiences as well as best practices to overcome common hurdles, obstacles and setbacks in your quest for excellence as a sales leader in SaaS.
Are you a VP, Director, thought leader or content producer in the SaaS space? We’d love to have you contribute. Contact Me HERE.
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