James Meincke2019 has been a big year for all of us at CloserIQ. As we wrap this year up, we wanted to take a look back at some of the best content we featured in our weekly roundups. Here, we have compiled the top selling strategy articles we featured in 2019.
Our Criteria: These articles received the most clicks from our weekly roundup posts and weekly newsletter throughout 2019. If you have a post you’d like to have considered in future roundups, let us know at content@closeriq.com
1) How a Help-First Mindset Can Deliver Leads, Referrals, and Revenue
By: Sujan Patel | Source: Mailshake
“When is a sale not about a sale?
It’s a trick question: all shouldn’t be ‘about’ the sale. They should be about helping someone solve a problem, fulfill a need, or scratch an itch. When you go into a cold email, a cold call, a meeting, a pitch, a follow-up, or anything else with a help-first mindset, your prospects and customers can sense it. They’ll respond to it. And that results in more , better relationships, and higher retention.”
2) How to develop a winning mindset: Critical self talk vs pep talk
By: Steli Efti | Source: Close
“We’ve all been there: you’re in the middle of a call, and you start rambling. You only realize it after you’ve been going on for a few minutes. You kick yourself, try to focus on the topic at hand, and wonder why you always have trouble sticking to the topic. You worry that the client is bored and question whether you’ve botched the call.
That kind of critical self-talk distracts you from the task at hand, and may lead to a bad call that doesn’t get a deal. Your mindset is directly connected to the effectiveness of your selling.”
3) Why Time Counts in the Process
By: Beth Hurst | Source: Leadfuze
“According to a study by Lead Connect, 78% of customers buy from the company that responds to their inquiry first. Speed is the most important factor when it comes to getting the most out of inbound leads.
In fact, wait any longer than 5 minutes and you will see an average decrease of 80% in lead qualification. When it comes to , time counts.
This is what happens when you wait…
Someone fills their details into an online form, showing a great interest in your service. They’re at the golden consideration stage – ready to invest and purchase while they are thinking about it.
At that moment they are totally invested and willing to be called.”
4) 7 cold email examples & why they worked
By: Vukasin Vukosavljevic | Source: Lemlist
“What is a cold email? Does cold emailing still work? Hold on, isn’t this spam?
We’ve seen people doubting the power of a good cold email and saying it doesn’t work anymore.
I disagree.
Cold emails work just fine. You just have to use them the right way.
Let me throw in a few arguments into the conversation…”
5) Best Email Templates and Why They Work: Cold Outreach and Follow-Up (2019)
By: Jenny Keohane | Source: Yesware
“At Yesware, we’re constantly analyzing what makes the perfect email template. After our recent study that analyzed 250,000 templates, we created Yesware’s new “Template Insights” feature that helps users build the perfect email template based on subject length, word count, question count, and grade level. You can check out this new grader by editing any existing Template.
After receiving lots of feedback from early users, we’ve put together some of our favorite email templates that received top scores and dissected each to provide an explanation of why they work.
Copy and use these templates in your everyday prospecting, or get them in your inbox with Yesware Templates.”
6) The 7 biggest mistakes make when presenting pitch proposals
By: Jamie Davidson | Source: Pandadoc
“It doesn’t matter how good your product or service may be, or what kind of deal you’re offering potential clients. If you can’t clearly communicate your value proposition through a well-written and well-delivered presentation, you’re never going to land the sale.
Savvy know that it isn’t just what you say. It’s how you say it. That’s why they invest in improving their proposal development and presentation skills in order to avoid the common mistakes too many sellers fall victim to.”
7) Social Selling Done Right, From the Start
Source: Salesloft
“The story of inappropriate social contact is as old as social media itself. With the ubiquity of social media-connected smartphones and voice-activated robot assistants, opportunities to fumble a connection are plentiful. This problem is compounded when your day-to-day involves attempting to convince people to give you their time… and hopefully a sale.
True, social media and its bottomless pits of data are a treasure trove for the salesperson. However, there is no quicker way to turn a potential customer off from ever interacting with your business than to show up in their social media feeds uninvited. Especially if you’re adding nothing but noise to the conversation.”
8) Cold Calling Guide: How to Handle Objections
By: Haley Smith | Source: Leveleleven
“Calling all managers and sales reps alike! At this point in your career, you may know how to make a great cold call, but a refresher never hurts. It’s rare to come across a step-by-step cold calling guide on how to open up a call, keep the call alive, and handle prospecting objections as they come.
Prospecting is difficult, and cold calling objections are even harder to handle. You are catching someone “cold”. You are interrupting their day. But don’t forget that the reason for your call is to help a prospect do their job better and improve results for their company or themselves. You are offering them value so be proud of that!”
9) Effective Ways to Sell to C-Suite Buyers
By: James Meincke | Source: CloserIQ
“When you’re selling to a mid- or lower-level buyer, it’s usually a multi-step process to get to the real decision-maker. By the time your careful messaging has run up the ladder, it’s been mutilated. But, if you sell directly to an executive, your sale can get closed faster – and better.
But selling to C-level buyers requires a different approach than with typical buyers. You need to be concise, be respectful of their time, and be aware of what they care about. You also need to highlight your edge against competitors to stand out – and talking about customer service and your low prices isn’t going to cut it at this level. ”
10) 30 Amazing B2B Sales Discovery Questions
Source: ringDNA
“In B2B sales, exceptional verbal communication skills are absolutely imperative. Why? Because phone calls are what move deals forward. As we have all experienced, it can take numerous emails back and forth to qualify a lead, but it’s far easier and more impactful to qualify leads (and move deals forward) on the phone.
In my experience, the worst sales reps are the ones who immediately launch into a standard product pitch and talk a mile a minute. Conversely, the best reps I’ve spoken to are fantastic listeners. They ask highly targeted, open-ended sales discovery questions and get prospects to open up about budget, authority, timeline, needs, and much more.”
11) Four Principles of Providing Value to Prospects
By: Caroline French | Source: Women In Sales Everywhere
“Providing value to prospects during the sales process comes down to a few key qualities: curiosity, preparation, expertise, and transparency. These four principles could be summarized as adopting a client-centric approach to conversations with prospects — Focus less on driving your objective (closing the sale) and more on understanding and advancing your prospect’s objectives. The sales will follow naturally from the partnership you develop with your prospect when you provide value.
Here’s how to cultivate these skills and demonstrate your value so you can close the deal today and build a lasting relationship that benefits both you and your clients.”
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