Quick. Tell the story of your day. Tell it to the person next to you. Or yourself, if you’re alone.
It’s hard to be put on the spot, but that’s the situation salespeople often find themselves in. It’s even harder to be put on the spot and not know what to say. This is why being a conversational storyteller is so important. If you can awaken your prospect’s imagination, you are more likely to engage them and see results.
Our roundup of what’s trending in sales this week explores the value of storytelling as it relates to sales. You’ll also find a new perspective on the importance of customer service, learn about the ROI of call coaching, and more.
What Sales Pros Were Reading and Sharing This Week:
1. Using Conversational Storytelling to Drive the Bottom Line
How do you start your sales presentations? If you are too straightforward, you may be missing out on an opportunity to make a connection. Nadjya Ghausi, VP of marketing at Prezi, examines the importance of conversational storytelling in sales.
Ghausi focuses on a combination of marketing and sales tactics in her post. While it is important for marketers to play a role in the story, she says salespeople can take the lead too. Approaching sales interactions with a conversational tone and offering a compelling story allows you to make a presentation that aligns with a decision maker’s needs.
2. B2B Sales: Why Customer Service is the New Selling
Perry Boeker of Red Rocket Creative Strategies has a pretty simple argument for a shift in the ABCs of selling. He says, “...when it comes to effective sales techniques in today’s business world, the classic phrase ‘Always Be Closing’ should really be replaced with ‘Always Be Helping.’”
While Boeker admits that the idea of helping clients isn’t a new concept, he says it is a new way of introducing entry-level salespeople to the industry. His argument is that if you focus on helping and getting results, the sales will come. Boeker explains how this helpful philosophy affects three key areas:
- Social selling
- Understanding modern buyer behavior
- Gaining prospects trust
For LinkedIn's take on targeting the right buyers, understanding what they want, and reaching out with a personalized approach, check out How To Maximize LinkedIn's Value With Sales Navigator.
3. The ROI of Call Coaching In Sales
How much time and money do you invest into call coaching for your sales staff? More importantly, do you know the ROI for coaching? These are the questions Chris Orlob of Gong.io explores in his post.
Orlob’s key takeaway is that call coaching can be incredibly valuable. He walks through real examples to calculate call coaching ROI, which you can apply to your own organization to determine how valuable it may be for you.
4. 14 Recommendations for B2B Sales Leaders Planning Sales “Effectiveness” Training
Jack Dean of Fastpartners LLC has trained over 15,000 salespeople over his extensive career. He gets asked about sales effectiveness training so often that he wrote a blog post with his 14 key recommendations for B2B sales leaders.
Dean starts out with an overview of what “effectiveness” means, which boils down to determining an objective and measuring results. In order to implement his recommendations, you’ll need to have a goal for your training, plus defined metrics for tracking success. He then sets out with 14 actionable pieces of advice for how to create your own training.
5. Overcoming Digital Isolation to Make Real Connections: SAP Ariba CMO Tifenn Dano Kwan on Marketing Smarts [Podcast]
It’s worth carving out 30 mins of your time to listen to Tifenn Dano Kwan of SAP Ariba on Kerry O’Shea Gorgone’s Marketing Smarts podcast. Their conversation touches on how to avoid isolation in the digital world.
Kwan also notes the importance of aligning sales and marketing throughout the buyer’s journey. By combining forces within your organization, you can better understand and support the customer’s needs. She also says this is a way to co-innovate with the customer, and ensure that everyone is working together to drive results.
Looking for more of the latest sales industry news and highlights? Subscribe to the LinkedIn Sales Solutions blog.
Related articles