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”Unless you are the lead dog, your view never changes.” On the Sales Lead Dog podcast, CRM technology and sales process expert Christopher Smith talks with exceptional sales leaders that have separated themselves from the rest and achieved a sales leadership role in their organization. Hear what they did to become the alpha, lead their pack, and how they leverage CRM technology to drive sales for their organization. If your goal is to rise higher in your sales career or you currently are the alpha, this podcast gives you useful insight on how the best-of-the-best achieve success with their team and CRM technology.
Episodes
Monday Nov 23, 2020
Monday Nov 23, 2020
“The power of silence is incredible.”
Join your host Chris Smith and guest, John Lund, Founder, and Executive Coach, as they discuss his sales coaching and training journey. Over his career, sales coach John Lund noticed a pattern of frustration between salespeople and business leadership, leading him to start MYB2BCOACH. Through MYB2BCOACH, John and his team offer training and coaching to struggling salespeople, empowering them to work at a “confident and comfortable level.” John has a passion for helping small and mid-size firms grow by providing solutions that make his clients more profitable.
In 1995, John Lund founded OFFWIRE Inc. Twice recognized as one of Omaha’s fastest-growing businesses and three times on the INC 5000 fastest-growing companies list. Recently, OFFWIRE completed a successful sale to a world-renowned distributor. John is also passionate about entrepreneurship and is heavily involved with the Entrepreneurs Organization (EO), supporting over 10,000 members in 138 chapters worldwide.
What does John wish he were taught when he got his first job? Quoting from one of his inspirations, Dr. Bell, John wishes to “to listen from nothing.” Additionally, John talks us through his blog, “Power in Silence” and expounds upon the lost opportunities when we fail to listen, and instead are too busy planning our response.
If you’re considering a transition into a sales leadership role, John warns against simply pursuing a promotion. To establish whether you’d make a better sales leader or salesperson, there are a few key questions to ask yourself, “Do you like coaching? Do you like listening? Do you like holding people accountable for their goals?” These natural leaders may well be better suited to a role as a sales leader.
For those starting out in sales leadership, John recommends two books. The Coaching Habit - Box of Crayons and Kiss Theory Goodbye by Bob Prosen encourage sales coaches to get people to set their own goals and hold them accountable to them. Effective leadership is about understanding the individual and what motivates them, and as John explains, “it’s rarely money”.
Chris and John go on to discuss the AI software John and his team designed for sales training. John likens his AI software to GolfTEC’s golf simulation practice: you watch your swing and the software tells you what corrections you need to make, then with a help of a coach you can learn how to make those adjustments. It’s the most effective way to improve a skill.
So what does the AI software analyze? John lists and explains what is measured and why they’re each important for sales: The speed we talk, talk time vs listening time, quality of open-ended switches, triggering for next steps, stall words, filler words, missed buying signals, and the quality of initial cold call sales pitches.
John then outlines common mistakes that sales leaders make when they first transition into the role. “They want to be the hero for all the salespeople” instead of letting their salesforce develop and learn. It’s a common mistake that John himself admits to having used in his early days as a sales leader.
John shares a funny story - what happened when your luggage with all your clothes and sales training guides don’t get loaded onto your plane? A wardrobe malfunction and a very tired hotel concierge. But John didn’t break a sweat.
Don’t miss John’s answer to Chris’ final question: “CRM, do you love it or hate it?” and remember to check out the MYB2BCOACH YouTube channel, a great resource for anyone in a leadership role. You can find John on LinkedIn and via email: links below.
Quotes:
- “[But if you want to] be the hero that catches the ball and spikes it in the end zone? Then be a salesperson.”
- “If you can define what winning looks like for the team, and what winning looks like for an individual in their own words, they want to win. [...] give them a game plan with metrics and milestones with what winning looks like.”
- “The AI software is a really huge tool as part of the coaching.”
- “Being human is really good for sales.”
- “The goal is not to know everything and show that you’re the smartest cat in the room. The goal is to ask smart questions, listen, and if your solution is a good fit, then move forward with the next steps.”
Links:
The Coaching Habit - Box of Crayons
Kiss Theory Goodbye - Bob Prosen
Podcast production and show notes provided by FIRESIDE Marketing
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