Michael Webb
Michael Webb
SPIF Tip #3: Sales Manager’s Assumptions That Kill Improvement
Years ago, I sold minicomputers and software to local businesses. My territory was very small, and I had cold called everyone in it several times. It was really hard to find enough sales opportunities. Seeing some post card mailers with clever headlines gave me an idea.
SPIF Tip #4: Why You Need Systems Thinking in Sales
Sales used to function as a kind of independent department. Of course, this has become less and less viable. Sales results are dependent on the company’s website, its engineers, its customer service and shipping departments. Customers are demanding more – and more complex – services. This requires your company’s right hand to know what its left hand […]
SPIF Tip #5: Is Closing the Salesperson’s Primary Job?
Getting customers to buy can buy can be a hard nut to crack. What else would the salesperson’s job be? Without sales revenue, we’re out of business. Don’t we judge salespeople on the money they bring in? This belief is a Myth because so many salespeople, and their managers, honestly believe they exist to separate customers from […]
SPIF Tip #6: Sellingbrew Features Sales Process Excellence
Rafe VanDenBerg, founder of SellingBrew.com interviewed me for his well-known membership site for sales operations leaders.Rafe has a unique perspective on sales operations and sales management, as you’ll see. We cover a wide range of topics about how sales operations managers can be more successful. Ultimately, it is all about systems thinking.
Distribution Channel Case Study
Turning Around a $100 Million Distribution Channel Background The director of distribution accounts for a large company offering water filtration systems had a problem. In the early days of the market, the company had been able to make its revenue targets by signing on additional distribution channels. Now, as a $100 million business, this strategy […]
New Self-Assessment Creates a Sturdy Foundation for Improvement
More often than not, the term “sales process” creates more problems than it solves. Over the years, I’ll bet you’ve heard plenty of people use it to talk past each other. They use the term to means things like:
The Root of Improvement
I recently had the opportunity to talk with Bob Miller, former Executive Director of the Shingo Institute. I asked him how he helps companies change their culture in a manner that enables improvement to really stick. His answer was quite interesting: Most people have a natural instinct to want things. They want better, […]
Sales Problems Are Probably Not Caused By Your Sales VP
Through the grapevine I heard that the CEO at a company I’ll call “Blunder, Inc.,” wanted to fire his Sales VP. Why? He missed his sales forecast. Now this might not be politically correct, yet someone has to say it. Based on that information alone, the CEO should be fired, not the Sales VP. Senior […]
Three Reasons Sales and Marketing Are Allergic to Lean, and Why Cracking the Code Today is So Important
Peter Drucker, the father of business consulting, said, “The purpose of a business is to create and keep a customer.” One can imagine his friend, Edwards Deming, responding with his famous rejoinder, “By what method?” Given the importance of sales and marketing, why isn’t operational excellence more successful there? Their goals are the same – […]
Don’t Bother with Sales Training or CRM Until You Face the Facts
Why traditional fixes work so poorly in sales and marketing, and what you can do to improve results now.
