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High Point Furniture Market

In the spirit of Spring and the transition and blossoming nature of the season, High Point Market was a welcome respite from the isolation of the pandemic.

It ‘felt’ well attended, both in the buildings and on the streets, and had an old and new quality to it.

Old in the sense of seeing lots of people I have missed in the last couple of years, and the chance to sit and talk about how they and their business have changed.

Old and new in revisiting shared experiences (I got a lot of “You once t…

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Process…plus….

Of the three key points, this one is most critical to know in order to direct the interaction to an outcome today – and the only outcomes that count are a sale or an appointment.

Every buyer is somewhere in their buying decision. Where they are and what they have done and what remains to be done will impact what they CAN do today. 

Surprisingly, this is the area least explored by most salespeople or considered critical in what outcome can be achieved today. And I assert that not knowing th…

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Priorities…plus….

As we did in the first blog of this series (Problems….), we will focus on one element. One element that when added to the others creates something magical. 

Priorities are those things that matter most. And there aren’t a lot of them, which is what makes them priorities. 

When working with a designer or with a retail customer, ask what the priorities of the project/product are…and limit them to THREE. 

Ask: “What are the three most important elements to you?” Then listen and take no…

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Problem…plus….

In this series, I am going to share a perspective with you that will have a lasting impact. These three initial points added together create something…something worth sticking around for. 

When people have a home furnishings problem, they seek a solution with a designer or with a retail showroom. They come with a problem to be solved or a vision to be realized – or both. It is up to the professional service provider to find out what that is and to satisfy it. 

To put this into place,…

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Commitment and Communication

The home furnishings and home improvement industries have been drinking from a fire hose for the last year. Lots of showroom traffic consisting of people who have been staying home…and using their tired, broken, uncomfortable furniture much more than they used to. And they have been buying like crazy!

August traffic lessened a bit. Maybe vacations, maybe their houses are getting full, maybe they have COVID. Whatever the reason, less traffic didn’t necessarily equal less written business, as those…

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Connection and Communication

Mask, no mask?

Social distance or get close enough to talk?

As the pandemic rails on and showrooms manage incoming opportunities, the ability to communicate while wearing a mask remains tricky.  It’s hard to read full facial expressions, to hear people who speak softly behind a mask, and to repeat once or twice to be understood. 

It’s helpful to the customer (for their comfort and information) to initiate how the interaction will go…and if someone needs to repeat what they said, it’s understo…

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Part 19 of 20: HubSpot Sales Statistics…With Secret Sauce Added

customer retention19.    Retaining current customers is 6–7 cheaper than acquiring new ones

It’s not a new sales enablement statistic, but it’s just as true today as it was in the past. It’s cheaper to keep your current customers happy than to spend time finding new ones.

Salespeople

Is follow up a scheduled part of your weekly sales actions? Do you ask ‘What’s next?’ with each sales opportunity that closes? Like asking for referrals, staying connected with current clients is low hanging fruit (I dislike that phr…

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Part 16 of 20: HubSpot Sales Statistics…With Secret Sauce Added

16.    Salespeople who seek out and use referrals earn 4–5x more sales

A whopping 91 percent of customers say they would be willing to give referrals for companies and products they are happy with, but only 11 percent of salespeople ask for them!

Word-of-Mouth_Referrals-1280x720

Salespeople Yikes! These are crazy numbers! And yet, as I read them I know that AS a salesperson, this is my weakest area. Maybe it’s habit, maybe it’s discomfort asking for more than the sale that was just closed, maybe it’s a lack of skill or languag…

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Part 14 of 20: HubSpot Sales Statistics…With Secret Sauce Added

Training ongoing#14     Continuous sales training = 50% higher net sales per employee

Salespeople who continuously train bring in 50 percent more sales than those who don’t. It’s a no brainer—keeping sales teams up to date and involved means more sales.

Salespeople Even veterans need to sharpen their skills, techniques, and perspective as the market and the prospect/client changes. Retail and showroom people are experiencing less foot traffic and need to learn the skills of outreach sales actions to stay curren…

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Part 8 of 20: HubSpot Sales Statistics…With Secret Sauce Added

# 8  65% of sales reps can’t find content to send to prospects

Communication between sales and marketing is so important—it’s a main component of sales enablement. Marketing templates and documents need to be easily accessible and customizable.

Salespeople  Effective-Business-Communication-1 I listen to salespeople who regularly show their resistance to ongoing communication with prospects and clients as “What am I going to say or send them? The marketing department manages email blasts….” In a time when retail showrooms need to…

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