Making A Difference Podcast

Creating Social Business Success, An Interview With Vala Alshar, CMO/CCO for Extreme Networks

Every week, I would venture there are over 100 blog posts or articles talking about Social Business. Too often, the focus seems to be about how business should leverage technology to more effectively reach customers. But, Vala Afshar, CMO and CCO for Enterasys, would point out, Social is a mind set.   I hope you enjoy this podcast as much as I enjoyed the discussion Vala and I had. It's a little long--about 40 minutes, but you will find it well worth your time. If you want to hear a passionate endorsement of the power of Social Business and it's impact on the results we produce with our customers, look no further than Vala. Enjoy the podcast! After you have listened to the podcast, I know you will want more. Make sure order the book Vala and Brad Martin co-authored: The Pursuit Of Social Business Excellence.

If You Don't Value Your Time, You Will Never Value The Customer's

Time is one of the few things we has sales people control.  Yet too few sales people don't use their time well.  If we don't do this well--for ourselves, how will we ever make good use of the customer's time? In this podcast we will talk about several areas that impact our ability to leverage our time to maximum impact:   1.  Being purposeful 2.  Knowing our priorities 3.  Avoiding avoidance 4.  Diversions and excuses 5.  Presenteeism 6.  Planning and thinking time 7.  Valuing our time The podcast is not about techniques but focuses on a foundation for the highest effectiveness in leveraging your time.   Enjoy!

Are You Playing Your Own Game Or Are You Playing Someone Else's?

To succeed in virtually every endeavor, you have to have a game plan.  I encounter too many sales professionals who don't have a game plan or are letting the game be defined and controlled by someone else--usually the competitor. There are six things that throw us off our game.  We'll discuss these in this podcast: We have no game or plan in the first place We're playing in the wrong event We're in the right event, but don't have a game plan We're playing the competitor's game We get pissed off, react, and lose focus We think the customer is the opponent Maximize your ability to win.  Develop and execute your game plan.  Help your customers win in executing their game plan!

Stop Wasting Time In Useless Sales Review Meetings

Whether we are sales people or managers, we spend a lot of time in Sales Review Meetings.  Too much of that time is wasted because we have a disorganized approach to these reviews. This podcast focuses on improving our effectiveness in conducting high impact reviews.  We cover: The different types of Sales Review Meetings:  Opportunity/Deal, Funnel/Pipeline, Sales Call, Territory, and Account Reviews. Separate these meetings, don't co-mingle agendas.  Each has a different objective, stick to that objective. Whats's the right cadence?  The frequency of these reviews depends on your business and your customers.  However, too often, we waste time by conducting meetings too frequently.  Set the right cadence for the meetings.

It's Your Right To 100% Share Of Customer And Territory!

When I first started my career in sales, I learned that "It is my God-given right to 100% share of customer and 100% share of territory." Clearly, it's unachievable, but it created a mindset that has stayed with me through my career. Learn how a small shift in your mental attitude can have a profound impact on your effectiveness as a sales professional.