Barbara Giamanco

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Leveraging Behavioral Intelligence to Grow Revenue with Mary Grothe, Sales BQ

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

I talked with Mary Grothe, Sales BQ CEO & Founder to better understand how behavioral intelligence plays into the success of salespeople and the sales managers leading their teams. As a top performing individual sales contributor herself before starting her own business, Mary knows a thing or two about over achieving sales quota.

We start by talking about what BQ – Behavioral Intelligence is and how a keen understanding of BQ impacts sales success.

As beneficial as understanding BQ can be, there are circumstances where BQ has a negative effect on sellers. Learn what those things are when you listen to the interview.

Mary talks us through how to identify and remove barriers that lower a sales team’s BQ overall.

Next, we tackled the topic of motivation. Lots of opinions about what that means and whether or not sales leaders can motivate their team members. Mary shares her thoughts on how to motivate a sales team to perform at higher level.

Finally, we closed by talking about how once a once a culture of high BQ is created, the ways in which you maintain it.

Listen and enjoy the interview!

Subscribe on iTunes and never miss a podcast episode! If you are enjoying the podcast, please leave us a review and a 5-star rating. Also listen on Spotify, Stitcher

Or listen to the interview on the podcast page.

About Mary – Connect on LinkedIn, Twitter
Sales BQ Website

Mary Grothe, CEO and Founder of Sales BQ. She is a former #1 rep in the MidMarket B2B SaaS Payroll / HR industry. After 8 years and millions in revenue sold, she founded Sales BQ, and leads a team of fractional VPs of Sales across the country as they rebuild their clients’ sales departments, all while focusing on the behavioral quotient.

Feature header blog post photo by Amy Hirschi on Unsplash

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: b2b, behavior, behavioral intelligence, execution, process, revenue, sales, sales management, success

Starting a Business and Lessons Learned Along the Way with Kate Bradley Chernis, Lately

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

 Kate Bradley Chernis is the Founder & CEO of Lately, which uses Artificial Intelligence to automatically turn blogs, videos and podcasts into dozens of amazing social posts, which is then syndicated across unlimited channels. Lately customers use the platform for personal branding communications, brand marketing management, executive thought leadership, employee advocacy and social selling.

Kate knows a thing or two about marketing and brand building. Prior to founding Lately, Kate served 20 million listeners as Music Director and on-air host at Sirius/XM. She’s also an award-winning radio producer, engineer and voice talent with 25 years of national broadcast communications, brand-building, sales and marketing expertise.

I’m often asked what it is like to be a business owner. Many people tired of corporate life think owning their own business is the key that opens the door to nirvana. The perfect life.

While running your own show has MANY benefits, there are downsides too. Things completely out of your control. Challenges are part of the package, so if you are severely risk averse or afraid of selling, working for yourself is NOT the best choice for you. In no way do I want to discourage you from pursuing a dream to own your business, but I do want you to go into the endeavor with your eyes wide open!

Want to be a biz owner? Go for it. I wouldn’t change my path in any way. Doubtful that Kate would either. Kate shares her rather incredible and serendipitous journey to success with her newest company Lately that is quite inspiring. My biggest takeaway…pay attention. Opportunity for the next big thing in your life could be staring you right in the face!

Here are the topics I covered with Kate in the interview.

How she went from radio to becoming a tech startup CEO.

How Lately came to life.

Kate’s advice for female entrepreneurs.

Why “checkout” is the absolute worst phrase you can possibly use in marketing and sales messaging. Yes. Really!

How radio influences the way that Kate and Lately market their business.

The importance of human touch and connection in sales and marketing and why H2H wins against over reliance on automation every time.

Being a rock and roller myself, I had to know if during her radio years, Kate ever had the opportunity to meet any famous rock stars. Indeed she did. She met Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones along with other band members, including Mick Jagger himself. The story is quite amazing! And funny.

Listen and enjoy the interview!

Subscribe on iTunes and never miss a podcast episode! If you are enjoying the podcast, please leave us a review and a 5-star rating. Also listen on Spotify, Stitcher

Or listen to the interview on the podcast page.

About Kate – Connect with her on Twitter, LinkedIn or via email.

Kate Bradley Chernis is the Founder & CEO of Lately, which uses Artificial Intelligence to automatically turn blogs, videos and podcasts into dozens of amazing social posts. Lately then automatically syndicates that content across unlimited channel, franchisee, location or stakeholder accounts. Customers small, medium and large span a horizontal market across multiple industries, using Lately for personal branding communications, brand marketing management, executive thought leadership, employee advocacy and social selling.

As a former marketing agency owner, Kate initially created the idea for Lately out of spreadsheets for then-client, Walmart, and got them a 130% ROI, year-over-year for three years.

Prior to founding Lately, Kate served 20 million listeners as Music Director and on-air host at Sirius/XM. She’s also an award-winning radio producer, engineer and voice talent with 25 years of national broadcast communications, brand-building, sales and marketing expertise.

Feature header blog post photo by Andrew Neel on Unsplash

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: artificial intelligence, blog, digital marketing, digital selling, employee advocacy, podcast, sales, social media, social media marketing, social selling, video

Authenticity: A Recipe for Success with Marietta Davis, IBM

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

My interview with Marietta focuses on authenticity – being who we really are in all walks of life.

For many women, including me, shedding the mask to be our authentic selves, especially in business, isn’t always easy. Women more than men are taught from an early age to “fit in”. Be nice, include everyone, don’t get too big for your britches.

For those of us who wanted corporate careers for ourselves, we were signaled subliminally or told directly, that to succeed in a man’s world we had to be like the men. That meant dressing like them too! As you’ll hear in Marietta’s interview, in her first stint at IBM early in her career, she wore ladies Brooks Brothers suits, white shirts and wing tips like the guys.

Authenticity is a word thrown around a lot but what does it really mean. There are varying definitions like something proven to be real or legitimate but I like this definition best.

Authenticity is about presence, living in the moment with conviction and confidence and staying true to yourself. An authentic person puts the people around them at ease, like a comforting, old friend who welcomes us in and makes us feel at home.

Being who we are and standing strong in our personal power is tough when faced with pressure to conform. Yet, living and leading authentically, as Marietta does, naturally draws people to you. Authenticity isn’t something you can fake, though many people do try. We can feel it when people are being true to themselves because they exude self-confidence, passion and trustworthiness. As a leader, bringing your whole self to work, inspires your team to follow your lead.

During the interview with Marietta we…

Talked about her passion for non-profits such as the Posse Foundation and why it is important to her to give back to her community.

Her career progression working in high impact roles in major technology companies and what her role at IBM entails.

What Marietta means by authenticity and why it is important, especially as an executive leading teams.

Talked about the “authentic Marietta”. We also talked about whether or not we can learn to “let go” and be our authentic selves if we choose too.

Finally, we wrapped up talking about when Marietta might have tried to lead as someone other than her “real self”, and what happened as a result. Her answer might surprise you!

As we celebrate International Women’s Day and Women’s History month all throughout March, be inspired by women all throughout history who had the courage to live authentically and change our world for the better!

Listen and enjoy the interview!

Subscribe on iTunes and never miss a podcast episode! If you are enjoying the podcast, please leave us a review and a 5-star rating. Also listen on Spotify, Stitcher

Or listen to the interview on the podcast page.

About Marietta

My guest today is Marietta Davis, VP North America Communications and CSI, IBM Global Markets. Marietta is a seasoned sales executive with an extensive career in the technology industry holding high impact positions at IBM, Lotus Development, Ameritech, and Tata Consulting. I first met Marietta in her role as Vice President of U.S. Dynamics at Microsoft Corporation. The highest ranking African American in North America, Canada and Latin America, Davis led an organization of more than 400 sales, marketing and technical experts serving Microsoft’s business customers with Dynamics ERP and CRM Solutions. While at Microsoft, Davis successfully managed and grew multiple businesses to $1B and triple digit growth milestones. Her diverse leadership portfolio extends to mentoring strong leaders into key roles and acting in an advisory capacity to incubation and small startups.

Marietta gives back in a number of ways and currently sits on the National Board of Youth Villages, a private nonprofit organization dedicated to helping emotionally and behaviorally troubled children and their families. Recently inducted into the Spelman College “Game Changer” Hall of Fame for her work in 2015, Marietta is also a sought after speaker on leadership topics and is a published author, writing for the Huffington Post and Thrive Global.

Feature header blog post photo by Chris Murray on Unsplash

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: executive, IBM, international women's day, leadership, sales, women, women in sales

Constructing Sales Success – Tips for Women in Sales

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

The many sales challenges faced by men and women in sales roles are largely the same.

  • Difficulty getting through to buyers.
  • Not enough qualified leads in the pipeline.
  • Too much administrative work and not enough selling time.
  • Trying to keep competitors at bay.
  • Keeping sales skills sharp.
  • The rapid pace of change.
  • And more.

Selling in today’s 21st century environment is more challenging than ever. That means that our ability to transcend obstacles to success is as much about managing our beliefs, mindset and attitude, as it is about being highly skilled at the various aspects of the selling process.

I’ve written about the business case for women in sales many times.

Research supports that a strategic focus on diversity and inclusion positively impacts revenue, the customer experience and fosters cultures that are forward thinking and innovative.

Volumes have been written about bro cultures, women being held back, gaps in pay. All truths that have merit. There is no question that there is work to be done. Progress has been slow to fix many of the pervasive problems that persist.

At the same time, I want women in sales (or in any role), to remember that there are times when we may undermine our success without even realizing it through some of these common behaviors.

Being Seen Not Heard.

I’m not the only woman who has felt seen but not heard in meetings. Many women don’t realize that they are more likely than men to “wait” to be called on to speak.

Women also have a tendency to downplay their certainty about their ideas, business opinions, or even the products they sell. They hedge their assertions making them seem less confident than they are. If you want to be heard, rather than fume at being overlooked or feel your ideas were dismissed, make it your business to assert yourself by speaking up clearly, confidently and concisely.

If you are in a sales role, this behavior is especially problematic. There is a gap in gender diversity in departments other than sales in many companies, which means that the buyers we are approaching are mostly men. If you appear to lack confidence in what you sell, these male buyers won’t feel confident in buying from you.

Leveraging Relationships vs. Building Them

Often, we hear that women possess the innate strength of building relationships. While I believe that to be true, I’ve also noticed that many women shy away from leveraging the power of the relationships they’ve built.

I’m as guilty of this behavior as anyone. As much as I talk with guests on the Conversations with Women in Sales podcast about how important it is for women to stop sitting on the sidelines waiting for others to notice their good work, reward them, promote them or help them when they need a favor, I find myself doing the same thing without realizing it.

For many of us this is a bias hidden away in our DNA that cautions us against asking for specific help from the people in the networks we’ve established. Adding to our concern is the judgment many of us have felt by other women who signal to us that our ask is selfish or overly ambitious. For the record, women who judge other women, and it happens far more often than you might think, are often unaware that they do it.

I have to give a hat tip to men here. They don’t usually fall into this trap. If they need help, they don’t hesitate to ask for it.

The TMI (Too Much Information) Trap

This sabotaging behavior isn’t new news. How you use your words matter and never is that truer than in selling.

It is important to note that the urban myth that women speak 20,000 words in a day while men speak 7,000 was debunked in a 2007 study.

It isn’t the number of words men and women use in a day; they are basically the same number. The core difference is in how words are used. Women are often tuned out because they take too much time to get to the point. And, yes, I’ve been guilty of this behavior too. Women often preface their suggestions with a lot of backstory and unnecessary background. Side observations obscure the main point, while over explaining the rationale behind the point they want to make creates a perception that they lack confidence in their abilities.

Tip: Get to the point and let people ask for more details as they need it!

Minimizing

Stop downplaying your achievements!

There is that old joke about there not being an “I’ in team, which always made me laugh. Look closely at the word, and you’ll see the word “me”. Not we, me.

Our male counterparts use “I” more often when speaking. Women, on the other hand, use “we” more often. On the surface “we” sounds inclusive. When we believe that our accomplishments came together as a result of a team effort, we are reluctant to call specific attention to our part in the process.

Research confirms that using “we”, especially if you are responsible for leading a team, creates confusion about your role in a specific effort. The higher ups wonder… Did you lead it? Were you essential to the outcome? What exactly do you mean when you say “we”?

Women are discouraged from “self-promotion” beginning at an early age. Promoting our own efforts is equated to bragging. Bragging equals bad. How we present our accomplishments may be the difference, but marketing how we contributed to the success of the business or any team project is part of the job.

People Pleasing and the Perfection Trap

Many women, including me, suffer from the disease to please. Voltaire wrote that “Perfect is the enemy of good.” A manager I worked for gave me that feedback once, and at the time, it really annoyed me. When I thought about it later, I understood what Voltaire meant. He meant that perfection is an illusion. Not everyone will like us or agree with us but trying to navigate our careers through the lens of trying to be something we aren’t doesn’t make much sense. It certainly leads to more heartache than needed.

In closing

External factors that can block our path certainly exist.  I began my sales career in the macho, male dominated world of tech, and enjoyed great success all through the years. And like so many women, I’ve dealt with my share of biases that presented obstacles I felt were unwarranted or unfair. At the same time, I recognize that there have been times when I let my own insecurities and behaviors work against me. I know I’m not alone.

I’ve always been inspired by Viktor Frankl and his story. In the most horrific of circumstances, he came to the realization that no matter what the circumstance, WE HAVE A CHOICE! If where you are today is not where you want to be, what choice will YOU make to turn things around?

NOTE: A similar but shorter version of this post was originally published as an article in the Top Sales World Magazine in June 2019 – Women in Sales Edition.

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: behavior, leadership, management, sabotage, sales, women, women in sales

Opening Executive Level Doors with Caryn Kopp

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

In this episode, I talked with Caryn Kopp AKA The Chief Door Opener at Kopp Consulting, an Inc 5000 winner, recognized for the Door Opener® Service where they get their clients meetings with high level decision makers in almost every major company. If you want to know how to open doors at the executive level, this is the interview for you!

We covered these questions during my conversation with Caryn:

  • Getting in the door with executive level prospects is one of the most difficult part of the sales process, bar none. I asked Caryn how her team, known for getting executive level meetings for your clients, does it. She shared her success secrets for prior open those doors when other companies and salespeople struggle.
  • Caryn will tell you how to figure out what to say to pique the interest of busy, high-level prospects when they get so many calls and emails from competitors.
  • Personalization is a big buzz word now. Caryn shares her opinions on what works and doesn’t work when it comes to crafting messages that open doors to your targeted prospects.
  • You will learn about the two important elements that have to do with sales that most business leaders get wrong.
  • We also discussed tips on how to hire the right Door Openers for your company.
  • Finally, we talked about a question that comes up all the time…at what point do you just give up on a prospect? Listen to the interview to hear what Caryn has to say about that important question.

Listen and enjoy the interview!

https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.179/q7g.56b.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/WIS_CarynKopp_021819FinalEdits.mp3

 

Apple Podcasts  – Please subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Write a review for the podcast if you like the interviews.

Spotify  Stitcher  Google Play   Don’t use any of these platforms to listen? Listen to Episode 43 with Caryn above.

About Caryn:

Caryn Kopp is the Chief Door Opener® at Kopp Consulting, an Inc 5000 winner, recognized for the Door Opener® Service where they get their clients meetings with high level decision makers in almost every major company. A best-selling author, speaker and an expert in Business Development, Caryn can be seen in Inc., Forbes, Newsweek and is a faculty member of Verne Harnish’s Gazelles Growth Institute. Caryn is also the co-author of the best seller Biz Dev Done Right.

LinkedIn
Website

Thanks to our Sponsors!

This podcast is presented by our Elite Sponsor, Microsoft. Corporate Vice President and Channel Chief Gavriella Schuster, along with other female leaders in the company, are driving for change, trying to bring more women into the technology industry. Gavriella and Microsoft are committed to giving “young women better role models and a stronger voice to all women.” You can hear more from Gavriella and other Microsoft leaders, on the Microsoft Partner Network podcast. Or visit partner.microsoft.com 

SalesLoft, the leading sales engagement platform. Join them this March in Atlanta for 3 days of learning, networking, and inspiration at their annual Rainmaker conference! With over 100 speakers and 40 track sessions, their annual Women’s Breakfast and a performance from Grammy winning band Blues Traveler, this conference is not one to miss. Get your tickets today at rainmaker.salesloft.com.

Thanks to our Media Sponsor. Women Sales Pros has a vision for more women in B2B sales and sales leadership roles where there are currently male-majority sales teams. We help educate companies on how to do this, and we champion women on what a professional sales career can be. We also showcase the very top women sales experts who are speakers, authors, consultants, trainers and coaches. People can sign up to get updates HERE and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @WomenSalesPros

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: csuite, door opening, executive, Kopp Consulting, leadership, Prospecting, sales, selling

Hit the Bullseye: Know and Do the Most Meaningful Activities w/Kristina McMillan

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

In this episode, Barb talks to Kristina McMillan, VP of Research at TOPO about why it is so important to FOCUS on the right activities if you want to achieve the right sales results.

Focus – on the right activities that drive revenue goals – is always important no matter the time of year! Everyone knows that sellers need to prospect, qualify leads, demonstrate value and business acumen in their outreach to buyers, I kicked things off by asking Kristina what is happening in the market now that dictates what buyers want, so that sellers can better focus?

Sales activities should be driven by current data, trends and buyer expectations. With that in mind, Kristina shared her perspective and the research on the most meaningful revenue-generating activities & tactics reps need to focus their selling time on each and every day.

I asked Kristina what she thought the missteps were given that roughly 50% of sellers didn’t achieve quota in 2018.

As we think about how business and buyer expectations keep evolving, Kristina told me there certain critical skills that every seller should have and/or be developing to meet these evolving dynamics. Sales leaders should pay particular attention to this portion of the interview!

Kristina is teaming up with Jeremey Donovan, SalesLoft’s SVP of Sales Strategy and GM of the NYC office during a session at SalesLoft’s Rainmaker 2019 conference in Atlanta March 2019. You’ll hear what you can expect to when you attend the session. Kristina shared a couple of key takeaways. Meet Kristina and sit in on her session with Jeremey on Tuesday, March 12 @ 3:30pm for their presentation on Bullseye: Data-Driven Ways to Increase Pipeline. 

We closed the interview with a discussion about what Kristina’s business/sales journey been like for her. She shared her personal learning’s and guidance to other women in business and in sales.

Listen and enjoy and insightful, power packed interview!

BTW – Get your tickets for TOPO’s annual Summit happening April 17-18 in San Francisco.  Spend two days learning from the world’s best sales and marketing organizations. With over 60 sessions & workshops organized around six tracks, you’ll learn about the most important topics in revenue.  See the agenda and register before the summit sells out!

https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.179/q7g.56b.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/WIS_KristinaMcMillanFinal_030519.mp3

Apple Podcasts  – Please subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Write a review for the podcast if you like the interviews.

Spotify  Stitcher  Google Play   Don’t use any of these platforms to listen? Listen to Episode 42 with Kristina above.

About Kristina:

Kristina McMillan is the VP of Research at TOPO. She leads the analyst and consulting teams for all of TOPO’s practices. Her organization develops and delivers frameworks and best practices that help clients cultivate world-class marketing, sales development, and sales organizations. She has worked with hundreds of high-growth companies from early-stage start-ups to industry giants, such as Google, Oracle, HP, and more.

LinkedIn
Website

Thanks to our Sponsors!

This podcast is presented by our Elite Sponsor, Microsoft. Corporate Vice President and Channel Chief Gavriella Schuster, along with other female leaders in the company, are driving for change, trying to bring more women into the technology industry. Gavriella and Microsoft are committed to giving “young women better role models and a stronger voice to all women.” You can hear more from Gavriella and other Microsoft leaders, on the Microsoft Partner Network podcast. Or visit partner.microsoft.com 

SalesLoft, the leading sales engagement platform. Join them this March in Atlanta for 3 days of learning, networking, and inspiration at their annual Rainmaker conference! With over 100 speakers and 40 track sessions, their annual Women’s Breakfast and a performance from Grammy winning band Blues Traveler, this conference is not one to miss. Get your tickets today at rainmaker.salesloft.com.

Thanks to our Media Sponsor. Women Sales Pros has a vision for more women in B2B sales and sales leadership roles where there are currently male-majority sales teams. We help educate companies on how to do this, and we champion women on what a professional sales career can be. We also showcase the very top women sales experts who are speakers, authors, consultants, trainers and coaches. People can sign up to get updates HERE and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @WomenSalesPros

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: ABM, account based, b2b, B2B sales, BDR, focus, go to market, inside sales, leadership, product, sales, sales productivity, SDR

Bringing Your Authentic Self to Sales

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

In this interview, I talked with Amanda Georgoff, Enterprise Sales Rep at SalesLoft. She has 15+ years of frontline experience selling software and services to CFOs, CMOs, Heads of Sales and other functional executives at F500 companies across her time at SalesLoft, Xactly and CEB (now Gartner).

Our topic focus was about bringing our personal authenticity to our interactions with future and current customers. Being real and being you opens the door to strong relationships and better sales conversations. Decision makers can feel the insincerity of the reps focused solely on achieving quota.

Here is what I wanted to know when I sat down to talk to Amanda:

How Amanda defines personal authenticity.

The moment that Amanda first realized being more authentic in her conversations with potential customers was important.

She told me about the manager who “coached” her how to relax the scripted version of herself – the person she thought she was supposed to be – in sales calls. Amanda talked about the questions her manager/coach asked her that led to her making the shift to being more authentic.

You’ll find out when you listen to the interview, how Amanda realized that putting herself in the buyer’s shoes and raising questions or possible concerns they might be thinking about became a competitive advantage for her.

More than a few training companies insist that we (sellers) should NEVER bring up a potential problem, issue or objection that the buyer might have before they do. Amanda and I talked about how this assumption is a myth that doesn’t work against you. Amanda shared examples of what really happens when you bring up issues or concerns you think the buyer might be having.

We also talked about helping buyers stay engaged during our sales meetings with them. Let’s face it, we all know that buyers sometimes check out during our sales calls. Amanda discusses her strategy for re-engaging buyers when this happens.

Finally, we closed by talking about the advice Amanda has for women in sales roles who worry about being themselves for fear they’ll be described as “soft”, “weak”, “touchy feely”, and as a result try to act more like the guys.

BTW – Meet up with Amanda, me, 100+ speakers, and over 1,500 sales professionals at the upcoming Rainmaker 2019 Conference in Atlanta in March. REGISTER HERE

As always, another insightful interview! Listen and enjoy!

https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.179/q7g.56b.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/WIS_AmandaGeorgoff_SalesLoft2018-Final021219.mp3

Apple Podcasts  – Please subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Write a review for the podcast if you like the interviews.

Spotify  Stitcher  Google Play   Don’t use any of these platforms to listen? Listen to the recording above.

About Amanda:

Amanda Georgoff is an Enterprise Sales Rep at SalesLoft; she has 15+ years of frontline experience selling software and services to CFOs, CMOs, Heads of Sales and other functional executives at F500 companies across her time at SalesLoft, Xactly and CEB (now Gartner). Amanda is known for taking a consultative, insight-based approach to selling, consistently over-performs quota and has won multiple Presidents/Chairmans Club awards. She loves working directly with customers, adores her team, and was skeptical of using video in meetings before she tried it. Amanda resides in Austin, TX with her husband, Michael, her son Gray (2.5 years) and baby girl Hayes (5 months). Her favorite Queso is from Torchys Tacos.

Connect on LinkedIn
Website

Thanks to our Sponsors!

This podcast is presented by our Elite Sponsor, Microsoft. Corporate Vice President and Channel Chief Gavriella Schuster, along with other female leaders in the company, are driving for change, trying to bring more women into the technology industry. Gavriella and Microsoft are committed to giving “young women better role models and a stronger voice to all women.” You can hear more from Gavriella and other Microsoft leaders, on the Microsoft Partner Network podcast. Or visit partner.microsoft.com 

SalesLoft, the leading sales engagement platform. Join them this March in Atlanta for 3 days of learning, networking, and inspiration at their annual Rainmaker conference! With over 100 speakers and 40 track sessions, their annual Women’s Breakfast and a performance from Grammy winning band Blues Traveler, this conference is not one to miss. Get your tickets today at rainmaker.salesloft.com.

Thanks to our Media Sponsor. Women Sales Pros has a vision for more women in B2B sales and sales leadership roles where there are currently male-majority sales teams. We help educate companies on how to do this, and we champion women on what a professional sales career can be. We also showcase the very top women sales experts who are speakers, authors, consultants, trainers and coaches. People can sign up to get updates HERE and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @WomenSalesPros

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: authenticity, Rainmaker 2019, sales, salesloft, selling, women

Getting to the Top 1%

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

In this interview, I talked with Cynthia Barnes who is recognized as one of the world’s most influential Women in Sales Thought Leaders. The former Top 1% saleswoman founded the National Association of Women Sales Professionals, the world’s only organization dedicated to helping its members reach the Top 1% and Dance on the Glass Ceiling™.

Cynthia is someone that I’ve admired for some time now. I admire her positive, fearless, can do attitude, and I very much appreciate all the work she does to support women in business.

When I talked with Cynthia I wanted to find out:

Why we need women-centric sales training and professional development.

What the biggest mistake Cynthia sees women sales professionals making.

What can managers and leaders can and must do to create a workplace where women in sales thrive.

Why Cynthia started started NAWSP (National Association of Women Sales Professionals.

Finally, we closed by talking about what Cynthia believes the future holds for women in sales and leadership roles.

Cynthia and her organization host #WomenInSales events around the country. To check out upcoming events in your city or one near one, check out the Ascend 2019 schedule HERE.

As always, another insightful interview! Listen and enjoy!

https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.179/q7g.56b.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/WIS_cynthiabarnes_121418_Final021419.mp3

Apple Podcasts  – Please subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Write a review for the podcast if you like the interviews.

Spotify  Stitcher  Google Play   Don’t use any of these platforms to listen? Listen to the recording above.

About Cynthia:

Cynthia Barnes who is recognized as one of the world’s most influential Women in Sales Thought Leaders. The former Top 1% saleswoman founded the National Association of Women Sales Professionals, the world’s only organization dedicated to helping its members reach the Top 1% and Dance on the Glass Ceiling™.

Cynthia’s unique understanding of what it takes for women in sales excel has made her a sought-after influencer on women-centric sales training and coaching, having appeared in over 250 major media outlets around the nation – including appearances in the Wall Street Journal.

Connect on LinkedIn
Website

Thanks to our Sponsors!

This podcast is presented by our Elite Sponsor, Microsoft. Corporate Vice President and Channel Chief Gavriella Schuster, along with other female leaders in the company, are driving for change, trying to bring more women into the technology industry. Gavriella and Microsoft are committed to giving “young women better role models and a stronger voice to all women.” You can hear more from Gavriella and other Microsoft leaders, on the Microsoft Partner Network podcast. Or visit partner.microsoft.com 

SalesLoft, the leading sales engagement platform. Join them this March in Atlanta for 3 days of learning, networking, and inspiration at their annual Rainmaker conference! With over 100 speakers and 40 track sessions, their annual Women’s Breakfast and a performance from Grammy winning band Blues Traveler, this conference is not one to miss. Get your tickets today at rainmaker.salesloft.com.

Thanks to our Media Sponsor. Women Sales Pros has a vision for more women in B2B sales and sales leadership roles where there are currently male-majority sales teams. We help educate companies on how to do this, and we champion women on what a professional sales career can be. We also showcase the very top women sales experts who are speakers, authors, consultants, trainers and coaches. People can sign up to get updates HERE and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @WomenSalesPros

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: leadership, sales, sales leadership, selling, women

Sales Success Requires Listening

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

In this interview, I talked with Dana Dupuis – the founder of ECHO Listening Intelligence.  Dana is also the co-creator of a proprietary listening assessment called the ECHO Listening Profile (ECHO = Effective Communication for Healthy Organizations), which has been instrumental in reshaping communication with sales teams, executives and across full company cultures.

The old adage about having 2 ears and 1 mouth makes a lot of sense, especially when it comes to selling. Since our job as sellers is to solve problems for our prospects and customers, listening is a key component of being successful in selling. Unfortunately, too often salespeople talk more than listen. That can happen either because salespeople are new, nervous or not properly trained. The great art of listening is not the same as hear and how listening works is largely misunderstood.

Dana will be joining me for a webinar about listening on March 5. Get details and REGISTER HERE for this complimentary session!

Okay, on to the podcast interview. Dana and I talked about:

Why is listening such an important component in sales.

What makes it difficult for salespeople to practice listening.

Dana’s background in building sales teams, why she left sales to study listening, and how that journey led her to bring back what she learned about listening and selling. Listen to the interview the MOST important thing you need to know about listening and sales.

How listening works. It may not be what you think! I know I was surprised.

Dana also talks about how all of us listen “to” and “for” different information, as well as the many different ways we listen.

Finally, I asked Dana why it is that you can been in a meeting with multiple people, yet everyone there may leave having heard something different. Dana told me why what we say is often misunderstood, misinterpreted or changed depending on the listener.

By the way, Dana made this SPECIAL OFFER Until April 2019: Dana offered my podcast listeners the opportunity to take the ECHO Learning assessment with her compliments.
Send her email to: dana@echolistening.com    In the subject line include: Women in Sales Podcast with Barb FREE Assessment Link

As always, another insightful interview! Listen and enjoy!

https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.179/q7g.56b.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/WIS_DanaDupris_110218-Final.mp3

Apple Podcasts  – Please subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Write a review for the podcast if you like the interviews.

Spotify  Stitcher  Google Play   Don’t use any of these platforms to listen? Listen to the recording above.

About Dana

With over 20 years of experience in sales and management consulting, leadership development and building healthy corporate cultures, Dana Dupuis knows the importance of good communication.

Dana is the founder of ECHO Listening Intelligence and the co-creator of a proprietary listening assessment called the ECHO Listening Profile (ECHO = Effective Communication for Healthy Organizations), which has been instrumental in reshaping communication with sales teams, executives and across full company cultures. By understanding that each individual listens “to” and “for” different kinds of information, companies can greatly enhance their ability to communicate and collaborate effectively. It is upon this concept that Dana’s work is based.

Connect on LinkedIn 

Thanks to our Sponsors!

This podcast is presented by our Elite Sponsor, Microsoft. Corporate Vice President and Channel Chief Gavriella Schuster, along with other female leaders in the company, are driving for change, trying to bring more women into the technology industry. Gavriella and Microsoft are committed to giving “young women better role models and a stronger voice to all women.” You can hear more from Gavriella and other Microsoft leaders, on the Microsoft Partner Network podcast. Or visit partner.microsoft.com 

SalesLoft, the leading sales engagement platform. Join them this March in Atlanta for 3 days of learning, networking, and inspiration at their annual Rainmaker conference! With over 100 speakers and 40 track sessions, their annual Women’s Breakfast and a performance from Grammy winning band Blues Traveler, this conference is not one to miss. Get your tickets today at rainmaker.salesloft.com.

Thanks to our Media Sponsor. Women Sales Pros has a vision for more women in B2B sales and sales leadership roles where there are currently male-majority sales teams. We help educate companies on how to do this, and we champion women on what a professional sales career can be. We also showcase the very top women sales experts who are speakers, authors, consultants, trainers and coaches. People can sign up to get updates HERE and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @WomenSalesPros

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: communication, effectiveness, leadership, listening, sales, selling, women

How to be Human in Sales. Bots haven’t taken over yet!

By Barbara Giamanco Leave a Comment

In this interview, I talked with Amy Volas, Founder and CEO of Avenue Talent Partners about why relationships STILL MATTER in selling, and frankly, in life.

I’m known for saying – okay, harping about – that technology only ENABLES process. It doesn’t build people relationships for you. It doesn’t sell for you. Never has. Never will.

Yes, I know. Everyone loves the hacks. Or, the idea of them anyway. People cannot resist the urge to believe in mythical short-cuts, which DO NOT exist in selling. Today, it is even tougher to reach buyers. They are done with the corny pitches, cheesy close lines and lazy messaging that is self-serving adding absolutely no value to their day. And, salespeople wonder why no one wants to talk to them.

You say your sales manager makes you do it?

Your message isn’t researched or well thought out because your boss demands X number of calls made and emails sent? Well, you’ll want to get over that right now! Checking the box so you keep your manager happy isn’t how you own responsibility for your own career and selling success.

YOU are responsible for your own sales success.

If your activity isn’t generating enough sales meetings, it is time to look in the mirror. Your message and approach is likely the culprit. No matter how many prospecting touches you are expected to make, it is up to you to take the reins and change how you present yourself.

If your activity levels drop but you book more sales conversations with qualified buyers, you are in a good position to show your manager that quality FIRST (relationships + value message focused on solving buyer’s problems) + quantity wins out every time!

This is WHY relationships matter!

I don’t know when the chatter started but lately I have heard more than a few people insisting that relationships don’t matter in selling. I beg to differ. I don’t know that I ever met a buyer who bought from someone they didn’t know, trust and like. I suppose if you sell a widget that no one else in the world makes AND the company you are selling too cannot live without that product, okay. You can probably get away with not developing the kind of trusting relationship that leads to a prospect becoming a customer who stays with you for life. I have also heard from experts that prospects don’t have to like you to buy from you. With 25+ years of successful B2B Enterprise, SMB and Mid-Market in a variety of industries, plus Retail, Distribution and Channel Partner selling under my belt, I have to say B.S. to that idea. Do you buy from people you don’t like? I’m not talking about buying a book on Amazon. If you sell B2B, the higher the financial investment a buyer (buying team) needs to make, the more likability, along with trust and relationship matter.

Which is why Amy and I talked about how bots are not going to take over, though they are trying. 

In this interview, learn why:

With all the noise becoming louder about AI and bots in selling, the human element and interpersonal relationships matter even more. You’ll hear from Amy why she suggested the topic of our conversation.

Both Amy and I believe that technology simply helps to open the door, if done right. As I already mentioned, in B2B selling, in particular, human beings are a big part of the equation. Amy and I discussed a few of the ways that humans can make an immediate impact on the sales/buying process.

I asked Amy if relationships make a difference depending on the type of account: SMB to enterprise sales. Listen to the interview to find out!

Scale is always a question for sellers managing large geographic patches. Amy shared her perspective on how to scale, build relationships and manage a big territory with high activity numbers.

Given that Amy is in the talent business (people biz for the unenlightened), I asked her about the general thinking with respect to AI and bots in her industry.

Another insightful interview, if I do say so myself. 🙂 Listen and enjoy!

https://secureservercdn.net/198.71.233.179/q7g.56b.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/WIS_amyvolas_121418-Final021119.mp3

Apple Podcasts  – Please subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Write a review for the podcast if you like the interviews.

Spotify  Stitcher  Google Play   Don’t use any of these platforms to listen? Listen to the recording above.

About Amy:

Amy Volas, Founder and CEO of Avenue Talent Partners. She is a sales fanatic turned entrepreneur, bitten by the startup bug many moons ago and couldn’t imagine spending her time anywhere else. She created Avenue Talent Partners to help with the tremendous task of growing startups through one of their most valuable assets—salespeople. When she’s not working, she’s spending time with her cat, dog, and husband—in that order (jokes). Connect on LinkedIn and Twitter.  Website: Talent Avenue Partners

Thanks to our Sponsors!

This podcast is presented by our Elite Sponsor, Microsoft. Corporate Vice President and Channel Chief Gavriella Schuster, along with other female leaders in the company, are driving for change, trying to bring more women into the technology industry. Gavriella and Microsoft are committed to giving “young women better role models and a stronger voice to all women.” You can hear more from Gavriella and other Microsoft leaders, on the Microsoft Partner Network podcast. Or visit partner.microsoft.com 

SalesLoft, the leading sales engagement platform. Join them this March in Atlanta for 3 days of learning, networking, and inspiration at their annual Rainmaker conference! With over 100 speakers and 40 track sessions, their annual Women’s Breakfast and a performance from Grammy winning band Blues Traveler, this conference is not one to miss. Get your tickets today at rainmaker.salesloft.com.

Thanks to our Media Sponsor. Women Sales Pros has a vision for more women in B2B sales and sales leadership roles where there are currently male-majority sales teams. We help educate companies on how to do this, and we champion women on what a professional sales career can be. We also showcase the very top women sales experts who are speakers, authors, consultants, trainers and coaches. People can sign up to get updates HERE and follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @WomenSalesPros

Filed Under: blog, Women In Sales Tagged With: marketing, Prospecting, recruiting, relationships, sales, selling

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