Secrets of Chinese Traffic and Your Sales Process
In 1992, Leslie and I traveled to China to adopt a baby girl. Among many vivid memories of that trip, one I often think about is the traffic jams. When we completed the adoption paperwork in Suzhou, we trekked to the American Embassy in Guangzhou. Deadlines for health check-ups, visas, and meetings with embassy officials […]
What Is Lean Six Sigma, and Why Should Strategic Account Managers Care? Part 2
By Michael J. Webb Fact-Based Sales Problem SolvingAs much as anything, strategic account managers (SAMs) exist to solve customers’ problems. Of course, that means the problems that, the company’s products and services are designed to solve for customers. Yet, it also means the problems that bedevil customers and salespeople in any business: incorrect deliveries, errors/returns, […]
What Is Lean Six Sigma, and Why Should Strategic Account Managers Care? Part 1
Hello, This week I am running part one of a piece we originally wrote for a selling industry magazine. It is well done and you’ll enjoy it. Part II will be published next week. Michael J. WebbMay 21, 2008 What Is Lean Six Sigma, and Why Should Strategic Account Managers Care? Part 1 By Michael […]
Parameters of Operational Excellence (or How to Manage Sales and Marketing)
A business must be able to measure things before “operational excellence” means anything. Therefore, before we examine what “operational excellence” consists of, let’s spend a few minutes examining what is meant by “being able to measure things.” Measurement is identification of the facts of reality. Since we were little children, we’ve done this at a […]
What Is Operational Excellence in Sales and Marketing?
Hello, A reader from Microsoft recently asked me an interesting question: What are the key parameters which define Operational Excellence in a sales and marketing organization? I like the question, because Operational Excellence isn’t just a slogan or a matter of opinion. It is a fact that businesses that achieve Operational Excellence produce the most […]
How to Avoid the Fatal Sales Process Mistake Most Sales Managers Make
Hello, A few months ago, two sales managers, I’ll call them Frank and Betty, were stymied by a serious problem. They knew how to make their numbers, yet results weren’t happening. Although their company was small, they had created a management system as sophisticated as those of much larger companies. However, they made one fatal […]
How Well Does Your Company Help Salespeople Sell?
Hello, I’m on a quick trip up to New Jersey and back, but wanted to get this story off to you. If you’ve been a salesperson, you’ve felt the pressure of needing to get customers to buy. You’ve also known the frustration of not having the knowledge, resources, time, or the tools to do the […]
Battles, Statistics, and Order Getting All Have Something in Common
Hello, Who is your favorite heroic historical figure? I never thought I would be this way, but in recent years I’ve found biographies of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Isaac Newton, and others to be fascinating. Once you’ve been out of school for a while, I guess you develop more of an appreciation of what it […]
Root Out the Marketing and Selling Disconnect
Hello everyone, Running between some vacation days and client appointments this week, I was interviewed by Forrester Research late last week on the topic of how to get sales and marketing to cooperate better. This week’s article deals with that very issue. Originally published in RainToday a couple of years ago, it’s worth revisiting. Until […]
How Much Sales Process Is Too Little? How Much Is Too Much?
I had lunch last Thursday with a very smart woman who just started a six-figure executive sales position in a health-care company. She seemed a little frazzled as she described the sales process at the new company: “It’s like, ‘Oh Boy. Everyone Go Sell!’” she said. It had taken her a week to figure out […]
