Accelerate! With Andy Paul

David J.P. Fisher is the President of RockStar Consulting, a Sales Hall of Fame inductee, keynote speaker, author, and coach. Part of our journey as salespeople is the alignment of our individual values with how we sell. Being intentional about this growth not only makes us sell more effectively but also makes us more memorable. David comments further on the role of sales leadership in enabling the success of sellers, as well as win rates being an essential KPI.    HIGHLIGHTS ● Know yourself more to sell better ● Be intentional with authentic vs salesy behavior ● Coaching on self-awareness and incremental changes ● A seller's win rate is a key indicator of performance   QUOTES David: "If you are a young seller who has that first sales job and you just are getting this message from the people on high that, hey, you just got to do this, again, self-awareness is not an easy, not only an easy path, it's not an easy path to choose, I think, and that's why you get stats that half the sellers are unmemorable." David

Jeb Blount is the Founder and CEO of Sales Gravy and bestselling author of 14 books, including his latest one called Selling the Price Increase: The Ultimate B2B Field Guide for Raising Prices Without Losing Customers. The conversation on price increase is one that sellers and buyers simply do not want to have. It is, however, an essential one. Jeb discusses how and why you have to defend your price increase to your customer and drive it all the way to acceptance. He breaks down the differences in dealing with big and small companies and how preventing resentment and contempt should be your primary goal.    HIGHLIGHTS ● Writing Selling the Price Increase ● Your approach prevents resentment and contempt over price increase ● Nonnegotiable and negotiable price increases ● Analyze your customer risk profiles   QUOTES Jeb: "You didn't treat them like you would want to be treated. They're going to get mad whether you go in or not, but they're going to get a lot madder when you give them two days to make a decision

Bryan Smith is the Co-Founder of LEON Health Science. There are many similarities between sales teams and athletes and, as such, managers can learn how to manage their team's stress and burnout the same way. Stress is not always a bad thing but a rate of stress that doesn't allow for recovery is what can cause burnout. Bryan discusses timing and how recovery weeks rejuvenate individuals. He also talks about the need for 1-on-1 coaching because the nature of stress and burnout varies greatly from person to person.    HIGHLIGHTS ● Sales teams as athletes: Timing sales sprints and recovery weeks ● Managers should coach 1-on-1 and tracking the trend of burnout ● Adaptability, resilience, and a having a holistic view of people   QUOTES Bryan: "We need to be more careful about how we organize and structure a period of performance for a group of sales teams. That might be introducing backoff weeks. That might be reducing your sales performance numbers, either if it's calls or meetings set, whatever it is, for a cert

Maura Rivera is the Chief Marketing Officer at Qualified.com. She shares her amazing growth story from starting as an executive assistant to leading marketing at her company today. She also talks about how marketing and sales are changing to address shifts in the landscape and their initiatives to empower their sellers to meet these new challenges. Maura details how they read the digital body language of their buyers and the tools they use to have focused and personalized conversations with them. HIGHLIGHTS ● Growing from EA to CMO and the role of mentorship ● Marketing at Qualified and tweaking the narrative ● Digital body language and the rise of the anonymous buyer   QUOTES Maura: "I think enabling your sales team to shift their pitch a little bit to recognize the world around us is important. For instance, we just rolled out a new first called pitch deck and we are tweaking the narrative slightly to recognize the landscape around us and has your company been affected by any of this stuff? What are your p

Stu Heinecke is an editorial cartoonist for the Wall Street Journal and author of How to Get a Meeting with Anyone and the newly-published How to Grow Your Business Like a Weed: A Complete Strategy for Unstoppable Growth. Stu makes an analogy between sales and weeds (the dandelion, in particular), and shares his insights on how weeds use unfair advantages to grow and their innate aggressiveness to survive. He discusses several strategies like the Seed Strategy which explores every bit of opportunity to grow and the Vine Strategy which leverages a multi-channel approach to growth.    HIGHLIGHTS ● Grow like a dandelion in the middle of a cement divider ● The Vine Strategy and the Weed Mindset ● Cultivate unfair advantages for your business   QUOTES Stu: "What do vines do but climb up on the things that are nearby and, by doing that, they end up reaching and really occupying the crown of the tree that they've climbed or maybe they're up on top of a building or fence or something, but they're always borrowing the

Garland Vance is the Founder of AdVance Leadership and author of Gettin' (un)Busy: 5 Steps to Kill Busyness and Live with Purpose, Productivity, and Peace. Busyness is not a badge of honor. It is, however, steeped in good intentions as busyness is an overcommitment to good commitments. Garland emphasizes the need to uncommit and get unbusy through his 5 steps. He also shares a few practices of highly productive yet unbusy people in time blocking and working around the whole schedule according to 4 buckets: relationships, rest, reflection, and recreation. HIGHLIGHTS Commitment, not time management, is the solution to busyness Busyness is overcommitment the same way hoarding is over-collecting 5 steps to get unbusy: Decide, Deconstruct, Design, Develop, Draw others in 4 practices of unbusy people: Relationships, Rest, Reflection, and Recreation QUOTES Garland: "As technology progressed, our boundaries in life regressed. And so, it used to be in Herman Kahn's day, you had an office and at the end of the d

Erik Host-Steen is the Founder and CEO of SMP Alignment which stands for Sales, Marketing, and Products. He discusses the Round Canoe Phenomenon where misalignment between SMP causes the boat to go around in circles. One way he addresses this is with an Outcome Hierarchy that is grounded on a purpose, a strategic mission vision, a tactical approach, and metrics. He discusses how structure can give rise to incentives that make people act opposite to the purpose at the top of the hierarchy. Ultimately, misalignment causes missed targets, higher churn, and lower retention of key employees. HIGHLIGHTS The round canoe: Misalignment makes you go in circles Outcome hierarchy and getting clarity on the definition of terms Fix the structure of incentives to hit quota targets  QUOTES Erik: "If we take a sales leader, a marketing leader, and a product leader, put them in this round canoe, and then the CEO hands out paddles and says okay, team. Let's start rowing. We get a circumstance where the boat doesn't really

Tim Hughes is the author of Social Selling: Techniques to Influence Buyers and Changemakers. Even though brands can have truly massive followings, it is the individuals within the companies who draw in clients. Tim discusses how sellers can leverage social media to generate leads and meetings by creating a buyer-centric profile, expanding digital territory, and creating content. He details how to present your LinkedIn profile to achieve this goal and how your digital territory is expanded through conversations. In terms of your content, post who you are and allow buyers to get to know you and what you stand for to create that connection. HIGHLIGHTS Social media should generate leads and meetings Crafting a buyer-centric profile on LinkedIn Create conversations to increase digital territory The content you post is a reflection of your values  QUOTES Tim: "We see social media as being able to give you two things. The first thing it should be giving you leads and meetings. The way that you go about your w

Ralph Barsi is the VP for Global Inside Sales at Tray.io and he joins today's show to discuss Andy's latest book Sell Without Selling Out. The book shows sellers the journey through the buyer's perspective and how to change some salesy behaviors that buyers hate. Andy refers to the value of intentionality in getting buyers closer to a decision and encourages sales leaders to promote creativity and autonomy in their organizations. Andy also discusses the 4 pillars or human skills you need to succeed in sales: connection, curiosity, understanding, and generosity. HIGHLIGHTS Sell Without Selling Out: Be in your buyer's shoes Being intentional increases your odds of success Sales leaders must encourage autonomy and initiative 4 Pillars: Connection, Curiosity, Understanding, and Generosity The difference between good and bad sellers is very small QUOTES Andy: "It requires intentionality to do it well. You have to be intentional about self-assessing. You have to be pragmatic about it. You have to be intent

Jennifer Colosimo is the President of the Enterprise Division at FranklinCovey and Co-Author of Strikingly Different Selling. Also joining is Howard Brown, Founder and CEO at Revenue.io. Jennifer shares how they facilitate behavior change in leadership, individuals, culture, and how they execute sales strategies. She highlights the importance of storytelling for effective selling and the value of coaching to see certain red lights that you shouldn't blow through. They also talk about being relevant, distinct, and memorable and how your differentiator makes you strikingly different. HIGHLIGHTS Simulations improve sales strategies Change the perception: Tell stories and solve legitimate concerns  Coaching teaches how not to blow through red lights Giving sympathy vs providing empathy Find your differentiator that engages clients in your story QUOTES Jennifer: "It falls on us to develop, really when you think about this book, the storytelling skills. I mean, we use storytelling metaphors when you're tryi

Gabrielle Blackwell is the Business Development Manager for Strategic Accounts at Airtable and Co-Host and Co-Founder of Women in Sales Club. She begins by talking about studying in France and hustling as an au pair. Upon arrival back in the US, she shares how she entered sales and quickly moved up the ranks. She imparts some nuggets of wisdom on why a career where you thrive and not just survive should be a priority and how sales leaders can move away from traditional and transactional sales models. In her experience, being cared for as a person and experiencing inclusivity had a direct correlation to her own professional growth.  HIGHLIGHTS Studying at La Sorbonne and working as an au pair Entering sales: Starting as an SDR then AE then BDR Manager Choose a career where you thrive, not just survive Get sales leaders who value their people and embrace inclusivity Women in Sales Club: Starting conversations for better choices QUOTES Gabrielle: "I don't really feel like just being in spreadsheets all d

Ann Latham is the President of Uncommon Clarity and author of The Power of Clarity. The effects of business decisions reverberate through an organization whether or not a process is used to arrive at these decisions. To focus the conversation and align to the true priorities, clarity is needed. Ann talks about bringing in new information and options to conversations so that decision-makers can introduce a new set of potential criteria to create different outcomes. Clarity is knowing exactly what you're trying to accomplish, not what you're going to do. So, as sellers, know the outcome of what you want to achieve today, which in most cases is getting prospects closer to a buying decision.  HIGHLIGHTS The uncommon clarity and disclarity spectrum Alternative-centric vs objective-centric decision making  Process clarity moves things forward Know the outcome of what you want to achieve Operate with intent and treadmill verbs QUOTES Ann: "If you have someone, for instance back to your example of when someon

Bret Kramer is Vice President of Sales and Customer Success at Qstream. Sales enablement covers a variety of topics, but the question of training brings up the question of knowledge retention. Microlearning applies the science of the Testing Effect which says that taking a test on previously studied material and getting it right leads to better retention. It's not that sales training in itself ineffective, it's that how it's done is not yielding enough real-world behavior change. Microlearning acts like a consultant when the consultant isn't there by testing proficiency a couple of times each day, thereby increasing it.  HIGHLIGHTS The Testing Effect and science behind microlearning Correlating proficiency and sales efforts   Branching out from pharma to wherever knowledge matters Reinforce learnings from conventional settings with microlearning QUOTES Bret: "Folks are worried about spending the dollar and it's going to be a little bit tougher so you've got to be ready, you've got to be prepared to ans

Frank Cespedes is a Senior Lecturer at the Harvard Business School and author of several sales books including Sales Management That Works: How to Sell in a World that Never Stops Changing. There is a recession looming right now and Andy and Frank discuss what organizations can realistically do to prepare for it, especially amidst the growth-at-all-costs backdrop. Frank discusses the role of sales leaders in hiring for fit, coaching, and doing performance reviews. He also comments on stagflation and the increasing importance of customer selection, flagging bad customers, and closing deals. HIGHLIGHTS Preparing for recession: Going for volume vs profitable value Customer selection, sales leadership, and performance reviews Search for fit and make your own luck Selling is still about people buying from people C-suite is siloed amongst specialists QUOTES Frank: "Sales is increasingly, for lots of reasons that are not going away, increasingly a cross-functional activity, so selling is more intimately conn

Mark Cox is the founder of In the Funnel Sales Coaching. A repeatable process has undeniable benefits in converting prospects into paying clients — and this process is best applied to discovery. But processes are just guides. They are not rigid. And these processes integrate between the buyer's journey and your own sales process. At the core of it, selling is simply solving the problems of your clients and your goal is to constantly add value to the prospect. Andy and Mark discuss an authentic way to achieve this by training sellers to be better people so they can improve their ability to connect with other people. HIGHLIGHTS The buyer's journey and your sales process are not mutually exclusive Repeatable sales processes convert prospects to paying clients A commonsense principle in sales is to always add value   Train sellers to be better persons to be better sellers  QUOTES Mark: "Do we know who we're speaking to? Do we understand their world? Can we provide insight to them? Can we provide value in e

Jerry Brooner is President of Global Field Operations at Enable. The global supply chain is a trillion-dollar economy and the mind-boggling thing is how little coordination there is between the major players. Jerry serves this massive market by offering a digital solution to manufacturers, distributors, and retailers to keep track of their rebates—which is one of the main ways these entities make 100% (or more!) of their profit. Jerry also talks about sales enablement, weathering recessions, and curiosity as the number one quality for sellers. HIGHLIGHTS Digitizing global supply chains to track rebates Test for curiosity in your sellers Prepare for recession by starting and stopping with the customer  Enablement is the number one support revenue teams need QUOTES Jerry: "When things are going really well in the world, people have a tendency to skip the fundamentals and skip the basics. They're like oh, I don't really need to know about that customer. I don't need to read that annual report. No, everyth

Bobby Dysart is Head of Sales at Compa and host of the Quotaless Podcast. Sales leadership is definitely about driving revenue, but it's also about empowering sales teams with the right tools and the right mindset too. Bobby shares how living with intention brings forth your authentic self and how quota happens simply as a consequence. He also talks about the undeniable role of luck and embracing the unexpected because the reality is that there is very little you can control as a salesperson. Bobby’s goal is to bring this notion of living with intention into sales so more sellers can find both fulfillment and happiness in their sales careers. HIGHLIGHTS Helping sales teams get quick wins Quotaless: Live with intention so that quota happens Luck plays a role in sales so embrace the unexpected Highs and lows: Receiving top training and the used car salesman trope QUOTES Bobby: "I can get some revenue across line in short order. And what I found is entrepreneurs just love that. They're surrounded by a lo

Andreas Jonsson is the co-founder and CEO of SHIELD. As LinkedIn offers the unique opportunity to thrive in sales while leveraging your own personal brand, Andreas shares how individual contributors, entrepreneurs, and companies can achieve this. An individual's personal brand has a direct impact on sales and creates a tribe of like-minded people. When you find your content market fit, double down on it, and post your unique point-of-view around your product or service. When you provide true value, the revenue comes almost as a byproduct of helping others.  HIGHLIGHTS SHIELD: Helping individual content creators on LinkedIn  Build leverage through your personal brand Fear is the root of resistance from leaders  Follower count is a vanity metric for content market fit Create a tribe around your personal brand QUOTES Andreas: "We're actually focusing on creators, individual creators, a whole lot more. And when I say individual creators, it's a catch-all phrase right now. So it's someone creating content

Nate Nasralla is the Founder at Fluint.io. Especially in the realm of online selling, having champions that articulate your value in the language of the buyer can make or break a deal. Fluint takes your buyer's words and highlights key phrases so that you can make a business case based on their specific needs. Nate also categorizes a champion differently from influencers and coaches and breaks down how influence, incentive, and information are necessary components of a champion. He explains how to use languaging to mirror back your buyer’s language and increase the chances of a favorable outcome. HIGHLIGHTS Fluint: Find champions who articulate your value Use the buyer's language to align your product to their needs A champion's profile: Influence, incentive, and information Languaging mirrors your buyer’s words for maximum effectiveness Sales enablement with the Enterprise Sales Playbook QUOTES Nate: "Sales reps don't close deals. Buyers do. You can get a deal done without a sales rep. You cannot eve

Christine Rogers is the President & COO at Aspireship. In today's episode, we discuss the greater role of competency over experience in becoming successful as a SaaS seller. Although there is a traditional preference for salespeople who have experience selling SaaS, Aspireship provides a course that highlights individuals who may not have the experience in SaaS but have proven, through actual work, that they in fact excel at sales. We unravel how their course provides this service free of charge and their 92% rate of success in placing reps in good standing. HIGHLIGHTS Aspireship: Finding competence and character over experience Training on objection handling, Salesforce, and customer experience Roleplaying tests detail-orientedness and its application Teachers and the hospitality industry are good at sales Helping talent acquisition find the best talent QUOTES Christine: "I believe that most sales leaders will tell you that some of their best hires they've ever made didn't look great on paper but t