Michael Webb
Michael Webb
Getting Traction in the Market – How to Use Kaizen to Make Sales Training Stick
In tough times like these, some executives drastically reduce their training budgets.
Yet when it comes to sales training, smart executives may pause to think about it:
Isn’t this a critical time for the sales force to be on its toes? Maybe doing some sales training makes sense?
Why Your Sales Process Cost Matters, and What You Need to Know to Get it Right
By Michael J. Webb (pdf of this article) One of the most important management systems for the senior executive is the one that measures the costs of production. Executives must know not just the total cost of production, but also the cost of the stages of their production. Sales and marketing organizations need this every […]
What Is Operational Excellence in Sales and Marketing?
by Michael J. Webb (with Robert Ferguson) (pdf of this article) 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 […]
OK, Salespeople Can’t Find Enough Prospects. Now What?
The economic sea change we have all been going through makes companies pay attention to their sales process.
One company president I spoke with yesterday said his revenue shrank 25% in December (compared with the same month last year). Companies affected by the financial crisis (like housing, oil, or automotive) are trying to survive. They are worried whether their customers even have enough money to pay for things any longer.
Hopefully, your business can find enough customers to stay alive. Will your marketers find them? Can your salespeople find them? Will they be found fast enough?
OK, Salespeople Can’t Find Enough Prospects. Now What?
The economic sea change we have all been going through makes companies pay attention to their sales process.
One company president I spoke with yesterday said his revenue shrank 25% in December (compared with the same month last year). Companies affected by the financial crisis (like housing, oil, or automotive) are trying to survive. They are worried whether their customers even have enough money to pay for things any longer.
Hopefully, your business can find enough customers to stay alive. Will your marketers find them? Can your salespeople find them? Will they be found fast enough?
What Value Does Your Sales Process Create?
[i4w_actionset tagid=’1517′ autorun=1] By Michael J. Webb (pdf of this article) Most sales executives are challenged to produce better results these days. Jill Stillman, a sales executive I worked with a few months ago, seemed particularly frustrated. “There are only 100 firms in the country large enough to buy our services. I know them all. […]
Can Your Marketing and Selling Process Be Improved?
By Michael J. Webb, Sales Performance Consultants, Inc. Originally published in Marketing Times Spring 2005 (pdf of this article) Process improvement has revolutionized manufacturing over the past two decades, but is only now coming to sales and marketing. Yet it is coming, and it s something every marketing and sales executive should know about and […]
Book Review – "The Leaky Funnel Earn More Customers by Aligning Sales and Marketing to the way Businesses Buy"
by Hugh Macfarlane 2003, Bookman Media Pty Ltd (available on www.amazon.com) Submitted by Michael J Webb: HardBits (a mid-sized company in a maturing industry) is struggling because its products are being commoditized by competitors from around the world. Customers are slow to buy, often delaying decisions until the last minute. Yet they expect miracle delivery […]
What is Six Sigma… and Why Should Marketing and Sales Managers Care?
Michael J. Webb, Sales Performance Consultants, Inc.Originally published in Marketing Times Summer 2005Subsequently published in Marketing Watchdog Journal, August 2005 (pdf of this article) Six Sigma is a funny name for a serious way of boosting marketing and sales performance. It’s already transformed manufacturing in hundreds of companies, and it is now doing the same […]
Book Review – "Escaping the Black Hole"
Escaping the Black Hole: Minimizing the Damage from the Marketing-Sales DisconnectRobert Schmonsees, Thompson Publishing, 2005 How much of your marketing and selling budget is wasted? In “Escaping the Black Hole –Minimizing the Damage from the Marketing and Selling Disconnect” (Thompson Publishing, 2005), author Bob Schmonsees demonstrates that in many companies that waste is as much […]
