Jeffrey Gitomer Answers a Question on Anonymous Testimonials

Great Sales Resource Investments

When I was in the last weeks of employment as a senior wireless technician, and started to really contemplate going into sales, I began to listen to talks and read books on sales. I wanted to really understand the journey I was possibly getting ready to embark on. Having been a communications technician for my whole career, I knew that changing careers was risky. I knew I had to educate myself. As I have progressed in my sales career I have continued to educate myself, and I wanted to share some of the most influential resources I have come across.

1. Brian Tracy- The Psychology of Selling and Advanced Selling Strategies.
Brian Tracy was the first person I listened to to prepare myself for the world of sales. Listening to his CDs in my car prepared me mentally to build up confidence and commitment, to face the first 90 days, which are the most challenging for any new sales position. Whenever I started to even have an inkling of a doubt about my career change, I remembered his message on attitude and commitment. Brian Tracy helped me to overcome the most difficult initial hurdles as a newbie in sales.

2. Keith Rosen- The Complete Idiot's Guide To Cold Calling
Cold calling is always a sales person's worst night mare. I went through this book like a text book and prepared myself to make solid cold calls, introducing myself briefly, and making an attractive value offering. I have no fear whatsoever now in approaching new prospects. I actually enjoy it.  

3. Jeffrey Gitomer- Sales Bible, Boot Camp CD set and Caffeine Jolt newsletter.
Gitomer is one of the best sales trainers on the planet. The Sales Bible is on my desk at work, and I refer to it, and several of his other books, time and time again for sales ideas. I highly recommend his Boot Camp CD set available on his website. It gave me all kinds of creative ideas on how to differentiate myself from the competition and have confidence in myself, my company and my product. Subscribe to his free weekly newsletter for sales articles and tips.

4. Nightingale Conant- Tom Kelly Coaching
Another one of the best choices I made when I first started my new sales career was to contract a 90 day coaching session through Nightingale Conant. I worked with Tom Kelly for a period of 90 days by phone and he was able to help me immensely with many things. He taught me how to approach new prospects, identify personality types, answer objections, and how to increase value to both my customer and my employer. It was money well spent. It also came with a nice Brian Tracy multi-CD set that I still listen to when I drive around.  

IPitomy Puts The Value In VoIP!

My latest sales publication! 

Are You Thinking Mobility?

If we look at technology advancements over the last decade, the majority of development has been aimed at mobility. Laptops have almost made the desktop obsolete, while the tablet is now beginning to overshadow the laptop. Smartphones will soon enough make the old "dumb" phone obsolete very soon, and there are still huge developments on the way where the smartphone and tablet will most likely merge. The desire for media access on the go is the driving factor in all of these types of advanced tech devices.

New companies are figuring out ways to function more efficiently at less cost than their predecessors. Businesses are figuring out ways to maximize the time of their employees, and more employees are filling more than one role in their company. This means they may not be able to spend the entire day in an office. They may need to take calls and send email files while they are moving from one place to another. Whether they are in an airport, going to a client meeting, taking their lunch break or merely driving between locations, people need to stay connected.

The two primary ways of staying connected are by phone and email. Smart phones have changed the way we communicate. We are able to have a phone conversation in most places, and with the integration of data, we can also send and receive emails. Access to the Internet on the smart phone in conjunction with the latest apps has now started a revolution as to how we conduct business. We are no longer limited to a phone call or an email. We can actually access pertinent data we need to engage clients.

With high speed data available and apps which integrate into our databases via the Cloud, technology is on the verge of making large office spaces obsolete. As our databases and applications move into the Cloud, we can now begin to conduct business on a tablet with touch of an app! For example, you can conduct a webinar on your tablet, or have a face to face meeting with a client across the globe with Skype, Facetime, or other apps. You can send texts, emails or important data files easily without setting foot in an office. The latest advancements are aimed at offering even more mobile functionality. The latest smart phone manufacturers are pushing the envelope, and some are working on a fold-able phone as we speak. These will provide the compact usability of a phone, with the larger display of the tablet when opened.

What does all of this mean for those in the sales industry? It means that mobility is going to play a key role in the future success of your company and product. This of course does not mean you have to be in the smart phone or tablet business, but you may want to consider how you, your company and product interfaces with these mobile devices. Does your company have a mobile app that can be utilized by your customers? Can you work effectively out of the office when you need to? Do you utilize all of the advantages of mobility solutions to make the most of your time and efforts, like a soft phone on your smart phone so you can take and make calls off of your phone system from anywhere? Are you thinking mobility? You should be!

Why Do I Prefer Apple Products?

I was a Windows PC user up until about 6 years ago when I bought my first Apple computer, an iMac. From that point on I never looked back. About a year after that I purchased a 13" MacBook Pro and soon after, an iPad. This year I treated myself to a 15" MacBook Pro with the retina display, and I am extremely pleased with it. Why have I grown so attached to Apple?

When I first turned on my iMac I loved the screen and the fact that everything fit neatly on my desk in one sleek package. It was easy to use and there was a very minimal learning curve compared to using a PC. In fact, it was easier and more intuitive to use. I also never had any problems with viruses on it like I did with my past PCs. I did have a hard drive fail on it and it was under warranty. I took it to a local Mac store and it was replaced. When I got home I loaded my backup from my Time Machine hard drive and it was like nothing ever happened. I continued to use it regularly until my next upgrade.

My next purchase was a 13" MacBook Pro laptop. I used it everywhere; on my couch, in my bed, out at the coffee shop, on trips at hotels, etc. It did indeed render my iMac almost obsolete. I only use my iMac today to do printing with and a few other tasks that I do at my desk, which is little. I have had my MacBook Pro going on 5 years now and have never had a problem with it. What I like about the Apple laptops is that no matter how light or thin they are, they never feel cheap, like most of the Windows brands out there like Acer, Toshiba, etc. The Windows laptops look cheap and feel cheap.

When it comes to operating systems, the Apple OS is much stabler than Windows, which has always been a buggy OS. The Apple OS is sleeker and more attractive and has a sense of style to it, that Windows has never had. Windows is simply tasteless. Its like eating a bowl of bland thin soup, while Apple is more like eating a hefty bowl of thick tasty stew.

How about the iPad? The only beef I have with the iPad is Apple's refusal to play ball with Adobe, which means Flash does not work when surfing the web. Other than that, my 32G second generation iPad is used almost as much as my MacBooks. Will I be upgrading to the new Air? Probably not any time soon, since there is nothing wrong with my 2nd gen model. But deep down inside, I really want one! Perhaps next year some time.

This year I decided to upgrade to the 15" MacBook Pro with the retina display. Again, I could not be happier with it. The display is incredible and the battery life is amazing. Even at 15 inches I can take it anywhere and use it comfortably. I absolutely cannot go back to another style of touch pad after using Apple's for so long. All of the others on PC laptops feel cheap and do not function the same. I still use my 13" MacBook depending what I am doing and where I am going.

You may be wondering why I do not have an iPhone. It is for pure economic and practical reasons. I used to work for a cellular carrier called Metro PCS, and I have an Android phone that I continue to use on their $50.00 a month no contract service. At some point in the future I will buy an iPhone, but for now there is no reason to trash a perfectly good Droid.

What about price? This where Apple really shines with their product. Most people buy on a perceived value, and Apple delivers on overall value. When it comes to price it does not matter that I can buy two Acer laptops for the price of one Mac. I have an Acer at home that I use for those Windows tasks that I need to do every once in awhile in conjunction with work. Yes, it costs a little less than half of the MacBook Pro, but I hate it! The touch pad sucks and well, its Windows 7. In short, I would rather have one cool MacBook Pro than two or three cheap feeling PC laptops that I hate.

In summary, why am I an Apple fan? Apple products are high quality, stylish products that offer the functionality that I want. They are well built, easy to use, they feel like a quality product, and they seem to last. I rarely have had any functional issues with their products and their OS is very stable. No blue screens of death! At times it is good to have a PC laptop laying around to use for those Windows ready gadgets, or Windows software you may need once in awhile. At work I am provided with a PC. Other than that I have no intentions of ever going back to a Windows PC for my personal use. I am a loyal Apple fan because Apple is able to meet my buying motivations, which are quality, style, functionality and usability.

Utilizing the Power of "Smart" Call Routing

With all of the cool features available on today’s VoIP phone systems, many people forget the primary reason for having a phone system, which is to route callers efficiently throughout the company. With the increasing use of auto attendant, there is a need to automate the ways calls can be routed.

IPitomy’s “Smart” routing allows you to route calls by including or excluding a number or numbers programmed in the system through expressions. There are many applications for this feature, which can be used in any number of businesses, small and large. The digits can be collected by caller ID or even after the system has answered through the auto attendant.

If a company were to have 3 branch offices for example, perhaps one in New York City, one in Rochester and one in Buffalo, it would be possible to route calls by area code to the appropriate branch office. This ensures that those customers who live nearest to the Buffalo area would rout to the Buffalo office, alleviating the need for an operator to take the time to find out which office they are closest to and then transfer them manually. The phone system can easily be programmed to automatically route calls by the first three numbers of the caller ID.

Many companies have the need to route their customers to an appropriate individual or group based on an ID number, account number, etc. For example, a company may have tiered technical support where a platinum member may route to a different group than a gold member, or can even be queued behind a platinum member. Once the caller rings into the main menu through the auto attendant, the caller would be asked to enter their ID number and they would be instantly routed to the appropriate call group. There are endless scenarios that this function would fit into nicely.

This feature is extremely powerful, and several expressions can built in the system for dynamic call routing, where you can discriminate according to the incoming numbers in great detail depending on your needs. This added feature gives even more depth to an already robust, efficient call routing platform.  Be sure to check out IPitomy’s website for more information on its impressive IP-PBX lineup. 

Politics and Sales?

As we all know, politics and religion are the most controversial and touchy subjects we can discuss. For this reason many people try to avoid such conversations because they fear they may be rejected by people who have a different view than they have. For genuine sales advisers who build genuine relationships with their customers and prospects, there are times when such topics will arise. How should we handle them? Do we avoid the discussion altogether and change the subject? Perhaps we should fire with both barrels telling the other person what are thoughts are on the subject? Do we try and adapt our position to match that of the other person to win them over?

My approach to this realm of conversation is a genuine, yet humble approach. I usually do not instigate political or religious discussions with clients or prospects. There have been situations however, where the news of day will come up in a discussion with a client, and I will engage in the topic based on the other person's interest to do so. I do not attempt to hide my opinions whatsoever, and at the same time I do not insist that the other person adopt my opinions. In other words, I kindly state my thoughts and ideas on the matter, and I listen to the other person's thoughts and ideas on the topic. I have had several of these types of discussions and I have not had one person go away after it angry or upset.

I know many people who will try and play both sides of the fence trying to cater to the person they are speaking with on these sensitive issues. In my opinion this is not being genuine and most people will pick up on this type of chameleon approach, and eventually find you to be untrustworthy. You are better off telling the other person that you will not talk about such topics, rather than playing the chameleon card. In my opinion, you should be honest in your approach.

The first approach is to be genuine, and if the conversation comes up, you engage in it with charity. The second approach is to be genuine, and kindly tell the other party that you do not usually engage in such topics of discussion. Personally I find that the first approach is more open and I think it affords deeper relationships with customers and potential clients. At the same time I do not think that intentionally instigating these types of conversations in most sales settings is wise, only when they come up naturally. What are your thoughts?

Being A Genuine Sales Advisor

How genuine are you, really? How do you feel when you speak to a prospect? Are you fumbling with words, trying to use old "sales techniques" to work them into buying your product? There are so many sales people who try too hard to be "genuine," yet this is precisely why they are not truly genuine.

In order to present yourself in an authentic manner there are three questions you should ask yourself.

1. Do you believe in yourself and your product enough to sell it to your closest friends and relatives and be comfortable with seeing them after they buy it?
2. Are you able to comfortably stand before anyone of any stature and engage in a meaningful conversation  on any number of topics without having to mention what you sell? Can you connect with people on more than a superficial level?
3. When you encounter someone who could benefit from your product, do you comfortably perceive that you are helping that person make an educated, value based decision? Do you have their best interest at heart?

Notice how the word comfortable keeps showing up in these questions? How comfortable are you with yourself and your product or service?