The Sales Evangelist: Sales Training|Speaking|Business Marketing|Donald Kelly

The Psychology of Sales   Behind the sales process there’s a whole psychology of sales that is part of the interaction between sales reps and customers. What does that entail?   As a sales performance consultant and coach, Anita Nielsen answers this question for her clients. She works with sales leaders and salespeople to help them up their game and get them to where they want to go. As a sales coach, Anita does one-on-one training and offers sales enablement services. She is known as a fixer when sales aren’t going smoothly.  Anita is also the author of the newly published book, Beat the Bots.    In recent years, sales reps have been ringing their hands about how robots are going to take away jobs. Anita’s book was the result of hearing these same fears over and over again.  She doesn’t agree. She believes people who are great at customer service and building relationships will always have a job. The AIs won’t be able to learn empathy or trust and they can’t build that  human connection. Buyers crave that co

Best Sellers In History Series 5 - "Mahatma Gandhi"   Depending on who you ask, hearing the name Mahatma Gandhi may bring up the titles of leader, spiritual guide, person of nonviolence, The Father of India, and many more. You may think about the man who defied the British Empire. How did one man make it possible? How was he able to get millions of people to follow his ideals and eventually shape the rest of Western culture?  For this episode, we will look at Mahatma Gandhi and explore the traits that made him an influential person.    Sales Spotlight - Mahatma Gandhi  Mahatma Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869, in Pordabander, India. He studied law in London but moved to South Africa in 1893 where he spent 20 years opposing discriminatory legislation against Indians. Gandhi was from a successful family, his father a successful merchant. Gandhi’s experience in working for a law firm in South Africa led him to focus his efforts on helping those who are disenfranchised by society.   One particular day, Gandhi w

The 3 Foolproof Secrets to Get Rid of Your Head Trash    What does it mean to have head trash and how exactly can you get rid of it? Let’s talk about 3 foolproof secrets to get rid of your head trash.  Noah St. John is known as The Power Habits Mentor because he has helped thousands of people master their inner game and outer game to help them make more and work less.  He works with sales professionals, entrepreneurs, celebrities, CEOs, athletes, and more. Noah helps them get rid of their head trash about money, relationships, and everything else holding them back. He is the author of 15 books and his most recently published book is entitled Power Habits: The New Science for Making Success Automatic. Through his work, Noah and his team have helped entrepreneurs and sales professionals increase their sales to six, seven, and even eight figures by using his methods.    Defining head trash Noah discovered the notion of head trash many years ago. Head trash is the negative voice in your head that constantly tells

What Is The DISC Assessment Profile And How Can It Help My Sales Team?   The DISC Assessment profile is an important training opportunity for any sales team. It is one of the tools many sales reps have started to utilize as its reputation for personality assessment has grown among sales leaders and their companies. So what is the DISC Assessment and how can it help your sales team? Mads Singers is a management coach.  He has been in the management field for 15 years and has worked with industry giants such as Xerox, IBM, and more. For more than seven years, Mads has been running his own business.    What is DISC? DISC is a behavioral framework similar to Myers-Briggs. It’s a framework to help people understand themselves and other people. The acronym DISC stands for: D: Dominance I: Influence S: Steadiness C: Conscientious  Everyone is born unique; however, there are traits that certain groups of people share. If you look at a sales team, for example, you can see that many members have similar personalities

Best Sellers In History Series 4 - "Benjamin Franklin"   This is the fourth episode for the Best Seller in History series. This time around, the sales spotlight is on Benjamin Franklin.  Despite Benjamin Franklin only having two years of formal education, his inventions are used to this day. He was a phenomenal writer when he was a teenager and was an inventor throughout his life. Franklin was a statesman, designed a musical instrument used by Mozart and Beethoven, and was an abolitionist in his later years. It’s worth noting he was also a writer, painter, political philosopher,  politician, Freemason, diplomat, and so much more, including a phenomenal seller. We will explore five reasons why.   Sales Spotlight - Benjamin Franklin   One of the founding fathers of the United States, Benjamin Franklin grew up in Boston, Massachusetts. Due to financial constraints, he wasn’t able to finish his formal education so he worked as an apprentice for his brother who was in the printing industry.  When Benjamin was 15 y

10 High-Performance Habits That Lead To Success    An article entitled 10 High-Performance Habits that Lead to Success by Justin Su’a is noteworthy. This isn’t a normal article.  It talks about 10 specific principles that, if practiced carefully, will help increase one’s performance and mental toughness.  Justin Su’a is a former competitive baseball player and despite not having the physical prowess and physical ability like some other players, he was still able to gain success. His family trained him to face any adversity with a positive mindset. Their team also had a sports psychologist who spoke to the players about tools and strategies that were taught to Olympians.  The principles taught by the sports psychologist resonated with Justin and ignited a desire for him to follow the same career path. These principles not only work for sports but can be applied by people of all walks to every aspect of life.  Here are the 10 high-performance habits that lead to success:    Win the morning Do hard things Embra

The Next Wave: Customer-Facing Solutions   With the new year, we are all looking towards the next wave in customer-facing solutions available for us. This is important as it helps improve our business and sales strategies.  Nicolas Venderberghe is a CEO and entrepreneur. Nicolas is originally from France but has now lived in the U.S. for a good part of his career. He’s been working for tech companies, working at Chilli Piper since 2016. The company’s biggest vision is to improve sales and completely transform the industry by using digital tools.  Big companies like SalesForce specialize in back end algorithms and can miss the opportunities on the front end.  This is where Nicolas’ company helps its clients thrive. Salespeople used to be technophobes and hated the idea of using technology in their sales process. As new technologies have become available, salespeople now adapt to a variety of tools and have become savvier.  Next wave in customer-facing solutions The sales industry tends to move in waves. First,

Disclaimer: This episode is in no way trying to influence listeners on their religious beliefs.    Best Sellers In History Series 3 -"Mother Teresa"   The Best Sellers in History series is focused on people who were influential in helping others recognize what was best for their future and motivated them to take action.The first episode focused on the impact of Jesus Christ and the second episode was about the persuasiveness of Abraham Lincoln. In this episode, the spotlight is on Mother Teresa.  Mother Teresa wasn’t viewed as a sales rep but she shared a vision and a cause with everyone she spoke to.  Her ability to influence and lead others gained such momentum that her impact reaches well beyond her lifetime and the borders of India where she served. The Missionaries of Charity, established by Mother Teresa in 1950 began as a small order of 12 nuns and has now grown to more than 4,500 nuns who are actively working in over 600 missions across 133 countries. Through her efforts, Mother Teresa went on to rece

How To Grow Sales With Local Networking Events All salespeople have tried to grow sales with local networking events. Many organizations utilize these events to bring awareness and drive sales. It’s a strategy that truly works.  Sam Edwards is Chief Marketing Officer of SEO.co. It’s a content marketing and link building agency based in Seattle. He’s been in the digital and marketing space for the past 10 years and now he’s focused on hosting marketing events to get more clients on the sales side. Sam has experience working with TEDx talk and has written for Forbes, Inc, Entrepreneur, and other large publications.  Through this work he’s developed his teaching side and helps local communities build their own stories and plans.  Sam has a meet-up group with approximately 400 members.  Another he’s affiliated with has over 300 and a third has close to a thousand members. Sam’s group has an average attendance of about 50 - 100. They have an upcoming event this February 5th that’s slated for over 120 people. Typic

How To Plan And Set Goals You Can Achieve In 2020 With the new year comes new goals and resolutions. This episode’s guest offers new ways and suggestions to help you plan and set goals you can achieve in 2020. Many salespeople don’t realize that sales is easy if you follow a basic formula. Typically, however, sales reps have a habit of following the bouncing ball their prospects are throwing despite the many times it can lead to a dead end.  Dave Mattson started out as a client at (David) Sandler Training and he’s been with the company for 30 years. He worked his way up the organization and became a partner in 1994. He had an opportunity to work with Dave for six years before David passed away in 1995. Dave purchased the company in 2012 and is currently the Brand Manager and CEO. They have 265 training centers globally and just last year, they trained 31,000 people and streamed their training to 19,000 people.  This streamed training is becoming the way of the world, especially with the technology that is cur

Best Sellers In History Series 2 - "Abraham Lincoln" This is the second episode from the Best Sellers in History series. This series talks about some of the most successful people and sellers in history. We’ll talk about who they are and what made them so successful.  Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States of America and led the nation during some of the most turbulent times in American history, such as the Civil War. It was the bloodiest war and  the greatest constitutional and political crisis faced by the U.S. at that time. President Lincoln persevered and was able to abolish slavery, strengthen the federal government and modernized the U.S. economy. Despite humble beginnings, Abraham Lincoln became one of the greatest statesmen leaders in our nation’s history. Sales Spotlight - Abraham Lincoln  A half-hour long episode isn’t enough time to discuss what made Abraham Lincoln persuasive and successful in his career. However, we can highlight The Gettysburg Address to illustrate how Presi

How To Generate More Initial Appointments By Utilizing A Co-Content Building Strategy Salespeople are always looking for new ways to generate more initial appointments. How do you do that? There are many strategies. In this episode, Donald and Carman Pirie talk about utilizing strategies that include co-creating and content-building.  Carman Pirie is the co-owner of Kula Partners. It’s a manufacturing marketing agency that helps manufacturers transform their marketing and sales apparatus by making it more digital in nature. He is also a co-host of the podcast called The Kula Ring, a podcast that focuses on manufacturing marketers and telling their stories.  The challenge in sales prospecting  Prospecting is a huge part of the sales process. Carman personally does prospecting every single day and he coaches many salespeople on how to do it right. It can be difficult to pick up the phone and start a conversation with people. Many sales leaders and managers have not explored other options outside of traditional

How To Ensure Your Sales Teams Actually Have Time To Sell   All organizations, no matter what size, need to know how to ensure your sales teams actually have time to sell.  Resa Gooding is a partner in an Hubspot certified agency and they mostly help companies, especially startups, in Israel. As one of the top three agencies in Israel, they primarily work with startups and other traditional companies such as agriculture and manufacturing. They are helping them understand the value of CRM and how to effectively apply it to their companies.  Challenges salespeople face The most common problem in the sales force is the lack of training given to the sales team. This lack of experience causes inefficiency as the companies throw their sales reps in deep waters  and expect them to swim.  Many companies are so focused on the technology or the product they’re producing,  they don’t spend adequate time sharing the value and benefits of their product with the sales force.  An untrained team ends up spending more time on

Best Sellers In History Series 1 - "Jesus Christ"   Disclaimer: This episode isn’t a podcast to convince listeners to become Christians. This episode simply highlights how Jesus Christ persuaded people, an important trait in sales.  There are so many individuals who have been great persuaders throughout history. This new series, The Best Sellers in History, will be a game-changer for salespeople of today.  The best persuaders in history were people who could prompt others to take action and move toward a better way of life. Great salespeople who know they are guides for prospects and clients make great B2B sales reps. With the exception of social media, the way communication works in sales today is historically similar. This eight-episode series will begin with Jesus Christ, whose existence has been proven by history.  In the sales spotlight - Jesus Christ  It’s the perfect time of year to put Jesus Christ in the spotlight. Today is Christmas, a day where people celebrate Jesus’ birth. In his time, he was ref

Why Your Contracts Are Not Working and How To Fix Them!    Ever ask yourself why your contracts are not working and wondered how to fix them? Jason Kren is the man with the answer to that frequently asked question.  Sales people want nothing more than to see their contracts and deals turn into a close. Unfortunately, there are times when the inefficiency of getting contracts signed can delay income or prevent a closing all together.  How can you make this process more streamlined so this doesn’t occur? Jason Kren’s company PactSafe could be the solution you’re looking for. PactSafe is a company that was built from the ground up. They manage clickwrap contract acceptance at scale. This means they have the ability to manage millions of clickwrap contracts at a super high velocity.  An example of this type of contract is illustrated by Disney+.  The company recently launched its video streaming service and opened with 10 million subscribers in the first 24 hours of launch. At the end of the sign-up process is a

Things To Look For When Hiring Successful Sellers   Hiring is part of the sales process but businesses know there are things to look for when hiring successful sellers. Getting the right people to join your sales team is one of the most effective ways to boost your sales revenue.  Brian Keels is a businessman living the life of a busy entrepreneur. In addition to being a happy husband and father, he is also working for a very large enterprise software company. There, he takes on different sales and leadership roles from regional to global levels. He’s done businesses in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Recently, he’s been doing enterprise sales in Barcelona, Spain by day as well as building his own investing business in the U.S.  Things to look for when hiring successful sellers  Sales leaders are always looking to hire successful sellers to help increase their revenue. The model in which a business is working is an important consideration when hiring new people.  Business models vary.  While some are con

The Accidental Seller Recap  - "Three Things I Learned"   For the past 8 weeks, we have been interviewing several successful “accidental sellers” and sharing their stories.  We have come to know how they started in sales when it wasn’t their intention to ever be in sales, and what they did to become successful.  The last episode aired last week when Donald interviewed a very special person in his life, his own mother, who Donald credits in shaping him to be the man he is today.  As he wraps up the series, Donald wanted to share his three main takeaways.  The Accidental Seller Series Recap This series has been well-received by listeners because they’re hearing their own stories in these interviews.  Each story has been relatable and speaks to the struggles and successes that many experiences in the sales industry.  The guests were very open about their challenges and feeling like a failure as being part of their journey. These are stories everyone relates to.  From these struggles, a success story was born, an

Stop Hiring From Your "Gut" - Putting a Formal Hiring Process In Place That Works   The hiring process can be a challenge for many. There’s the temptation of hiring people from the gut when in fact, there needs to be a formal hiring process in place that works for every company regardless of its size.  Kristie Jones works with early-stage startups and helps these companies do three things - process, strategies, and people. She has been in the staff leadership industry for 20 years and as part of her consulting services, she offers companies the strategies for hiring the right people. Kristie now manages her own company, the Sales Acceleration Group, and has helped funded and non-funded startups in the Midwest for the last four years. Her services are focused on the strategies that companies can use to hire the right people.  Hiring from the gut Hiring from the gut is basically hiring based on first impressions. In the sales world, it’s very much like sending a contract to your prospect without doing a discove

How To Craft A Rock Solid Sales Pitch To Potential Investors    A sales pitch is part of the selling process but not all salespeople know how to craft a rock-solid sales pitch to potential investors.  First, everyone is a salesperson. Regardless of what you do, everyone sells to someone. Brian Harrington started in the infomercial business. He worked for his father who was one of the principal pioneers of the infomercial industry. His experience taught him the craft of selling products on TV.  In those early years, Brian saw how easy it was to sell through television advertising but he eventually saw how investments could be lost as fast as money was made.  They made some changes and instead of sticking exclusively with Infomercials, they followed customers to where they were making their purchases. That decision led them to the digital world and social media.  Brian and his team started to sell products through Google and other online opportunities such as Facebook. Since then, they’ve branched out to severa

The Accidental Seller Series 8  - "Norma Bell" This is the last episode for the Accidental Seller Series. Because it’s the last, it needed a very special guest, Norma Davis Bell, Donald, The Sales Evangelist’s mom.  Norma Bell wanted to become a policewoman growing up because of the idea of protecting and helping people. As she grew older, however, her path took her in another direction. After Norma decided she wasn’t going to train to be a policewoman, she discovered she had the skill to make dresses.  Norma’s older sister, Ivy, wanted to support her and connected her with a friend with the idea that Norma could be her apprentice.  As it turned out, however, the friend wanted an assistant more than she wanted to teach so the opportunity was short-lived. Ivy, who owned a small store and bar at the time, new Norma was great with people and invited her to work with her. Ivy had a great head for business, was able to network well, could make things happen and managed the administrative details of their work.  Wh