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

The sales process seems to be getting more difficult and if you don’t know what you are doing it can be scary. On today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald talks with salespeople Ari and Kristen about how to overcome the fear of cold calling.  What makes cold calling scary? No being prepared to have conversations with high-level executives and to overcome their objections. If you learn what the prospect is selling and who they are selling to you will have a better chance. The fear of sounding stupid. If you haven’t done your research you will sound like you don’t know what you are talking about. The conversation will be more organic and authentic if you have done research beforehand.  The fear of hearing no. Once you accept that a majority of the people you call are going to say no, it is easier to handle it. Reframe your thinking and realize that the prospects who say no aren’t the ones you are looking for.  How do you effectively do research and still maintain volume? As you get better at research,

What are things you can do to improve the handoff to your AE? On today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald talks with high school teacher turned salesperson Taylor Clawson about how to improve the handoff from SDR to AE.  What problem does ineffective communication bring?  Deals collapse because they make the environment seem unprofessional and give the impression that you are not knowledgeable.  Why do SDRs have bad handoffs? Depending on where you work, SDRs can get paid on how many appointments they set up.  If processes aren’t in place for SDRs to hand off qualified prospects, deals fall apart.  Taylor believes it stems from the organization and what process they have in place for SDRs.  What qualifying questions does Taylor have in place?  Truly understanding their needs. That is an ambiguous but important question.  What is their timeline?  Taylor says that the more information the better. What is their personality like, what are they expecting, who is going to be on the call, and what is the

As a BDR, nothing is more frustrating than doing all the work to book a demo and the prospect doesn’t show up. On today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist Donald talks with Nicolas Sosa, an automation specialist at IBM, about how to make sure you book demos that actually show up.  Why don’t people show up?  There are things that you can control, and things that you simply cannot control. You cannot control if someone shows up or not.  Focus on the right authority If you are not speaking to the decision maker, or the champion (a person heavily involved in the decision making process), it is really hard to progress that call.  As a BDR, you need to make sure you are talking to the right people.  Gatekeepers do a very good job at gate keeping, try building a relationship with them. Be transparent with the gatekeepers.  Make sure you understand the reason they are showing up Walk away with very specific challenges and pain points - wanting to make more money isn’t a good enough reason.  Knowing why the prospe

No matter what you’re doing right now, cold outreach should be a part of everyone's game. On today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald talks with Tanner Stewart, an account executive at Home Care Plus, about three tips he has for every BDR doing cold calls.   Biggest challenges sellers face when it comes to cold outreach? Know which people to call in the first place. If you’re calling hundreds of the wrong people every day, you can be a great seller and have little success.  Focus on the right people and the right message. 3 things every BDR must master when doing cold calls   Be a human, treat your prospects like humans   When you ask someone how they are, you have to actually mean it.  Be genuinely interested in them. If a prospect asks you how you are, be genuine and vulnerable. This helps them bring their guard down.  Instead of starting a call by saying “here's what we are doing and here’s how we can help you with” start with, “I've been talking to some folks, and here are trends I am seeing in

Sales and marketing have the same goal: to close more deals to make their organization more revenue. The relationship between sales and marketing professionals can be a powerful tool if connected properly. However, meaningful and practical connections are often lost between the two. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by the CMO at Allego, Wayne St. Amand, to learn deal-closing content strategies to help marketing and sales professionals become more aligned in their goals.  Three things to do less of as sellers and marketers: Don’t allow the relationship between sales and marketing to be treated like a drive-thru window. Salespeople ask for marketing collateral, create it, and the seller moves on.  Stop guessing what sales needs; the departments should co-create materials together. Don’t focus exclusively on top-of-funnel activities because interacting with all sales funnel stages allows the most opportunities to develop and move forward. Creating can be asynchronous; marketing can r

As technology, tools, and culture evolve, sales strategies evolve alongside them. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by the Director of Integrated Marketing at LinkedIn Sales Solutions, Garnor Morantes, to learn about “deep selling” - a powerful new way to connect and build sales-enabling relationships. Being loud and clear about the messaging is the best way to make new sales.  Since the pandemic, email outreach has gone up by 50%. However, responses have declined by 30%.  Buyers are getting more bombarded with messaging from sellers, so what are his insights? It’s a growing problem. Nearly 60% of the buyer journey is sent without the salesperson, meaning the buyer is researching and looking into solutions before contacting a seller.  B2B selling is in a crisis.  Buyers don’t want it because of the increased amount of sales without a seller. They can do information, talk to colleagues, or read online reviews, testimonials, and demos to see if it's right for them. Insights from th

To some people, building outreach sequences for prospects is easy. However, for most people, that isn’t the case. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by the co-creator of the Money Sequence, Miranda Morrison, to explain how she built a sequence that doubled engagement upon implementation. Sequencing, especially in tech sales, is critical. Before the money sequence, Miranda’s company had email segmentation for many audiences depending on their interests, position, and what information would be most pertinent to them. What made it successful was the combination of ‘spray and pray’ with highly personalized and individualized approaches.  Personalizing later in the sequence (by reference to an article or important piece) shows a degree of research that is most effective without spending too much time. Personalization at scale is the best approach. However, there are times a more personalized email is more appropriate, which is often later in the sales cycle. What metrics were they focus

For many people, entering the sales profession can seem overwhelming. What are the right strategies, tactics, and mindset to do the best job possible? In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by the Account Executive at Challenger, Brendan Kelly, to learn his takeaways and thoughts after working in sales for six months.  Before starting his job, Brendan assumed he would just make phone calls every day. However, he soon realized high activity isn’t the long-term solution; it’s a burn-out-inducing, needle-in-a-haystack mentality. Instead, who, when, and why he reaches out to prospects is far more important. Intention and consistency are what yield success for new sellers. He learned to keep it simple. The person on the other end appreciates the authenticity. Whether he gets the meeting or not, the person should have a positive experience from the discussion. The intention is to get the win, and a win doesn’t always equal a meeting.  Business acumen Brendan didn’t know: A lot of acronyms a

The best-sellers aren’t always the most charismatic, understanding, or intelligent. Sometimes, all it takes is an organized, structured, and productive day. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by tech sales Account Executive William Padilla to learn how he structures his day to make sales, make connections, and impact his work.  Many old-school sales organizations are built on price.  However, with tech sales, a single deal can require an 8-month process of creating the relationship first. BDRs might only have 6-8 qualified demos each month, but creating that number of opportunities requires much more leg work behind the scenes. Planning and prepping your day: Don’t go into your day winging what you plan to do. For example, Will realized he was too distracted and hit his metrics only by scrambling on a Friday afternoon. He decided to structure his day, achieving all his late-stage interactions in the morning to reserve his afternoons entirely for prospecting. He’s not more talented

For many sellers, there’s too much to do in too little time. So how can we find the extra time in our day to accomplish everything we want? In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by author, speaker, and the founder of The Free Mama, Lauren Golden, to understand how we can implement time management strategies to get more done in less time. Productivity is only so much of time management; busy work is a significant problem. Being “busy” doesn’t always mean you’re “producing.” There are many ways to feel busy without actually doing anything beneficial. Preparing for your next day at the end of the current day is a great way to ensure you stay on track and focused on what moves your bottom line. Never begin work before understanding what needs to be done. Implementing the Daily Five: It’s not about doing everything on your to-do list; it’s about accomplishing the major, most needle-moving activity you can. For sales professionals, the needle-moving business is closing deals, especially if

Cold emails are a hallmark of modern selling, yet many salespeople don’t include the correct information to yield the right results. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by content expert and sales professional Luke Charlton to learn how sellers can write better cold emails to see more success. How can sellers write better emails? When you start sending people new information, many notice the open rate drop markedly after a few weeks. People lose interest. That led Luke to question what media kept people’s attention - streaming, social media, film, and television. He realized that to get people to read his emails, he needed to make them more entertaining. Luke’s three tips for better email writing: When you tell a story, it doesn’t necessarily have to be personal. Instead, it could be something that sparks emotion in you.  What’s the lesson of the story? Whether it’s about sales, dating, or how to pick something for dinner, there should be a derived lesson from the story. Once the l

Stories are a part of the sales process, but there are better strategies and tools to help sellers refine their storytelling abilities. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by sales speaker and managing partner of Amp, Todd Mitchem, to learn how he utilizes storytelling to make more sales.  What’s wrong with storytellers today? Sellers tell stories thinking they should be solely personal anecdotes before the work conversation begins.  In actuality, the most powerful stories are upfront with a purpose that launches into the pitch, intro, or discussion. Second common mistake? Not setting up the story. Sellers either set up too much or don’t set up enough to give the listener the correct amount of information to engage properly. Three elements of a sales story: Set up the customer's struggle, allowing them to see how the story relates to them.  Dictate the solution and derive benefits or successes from implementing the seller’s product or service. Explain what the story means to the pr

Video content is a powerful tool to help any seller accomplish their selling goals. However, it’s only powerful when executed and distributed properly. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by digital marketing professional and owner of KickStart Dental, Chris Pistorius, to learn how any seller can capitalize on video production to garner prospects’ attention. What are things people get wrong with video production? There isn’t a process in place. He uses Lucidchart, a mind-mapping software that helps chart the process and gather steps for a seller to visualize. Map it out and have a plan, but continue with the understanding that it will likely change. Have your Dream 100 - the list of one hundred targets you’d like to acquire as clients. Get a CRM system that fits our needs. Chris uses Pipedrive, but Salesforce and other top CRM systems are viable options depending on your volume and process.  Maintain consistent communication: GoHighLevel is a tool built for marketing agencies that

Whether you’re a sales professional or work in another industry, hearing the word ‘no’ can get anyone in a negative mindset. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by Harry Spaight, a sales coach and consultant who wants to help every salesperson overcome their fears to find sales success. Why does discouragement affect us so badly? As sellers, we frequently take rejections personally.  Even if the sale is rejected for a myriad of reasons, the seller will still assume they are the reason the prospect is not interested in the sale. We make offers through options, just like a fine-dining server. Each time a server makes an option, they expect a rejection. If professional offers can get into the same mindset, we can lead with service in mind. If someone doesn’t want your offer, think about what other options might impact their business or be helpful to their work. Sales is a place of service. There are so many choices with what you’re selling. Make it easy for a buyer to work with you

Anyone in sales sends emails. (If you don’t, we’re a bit concerned.) But how can you go about sending emails effectively that generate results? In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald discusses five things you need to be aware of to send an effective email.   You don’t need to tell them your name.   Your email is full of precious information, and emails already have the ‘from’ section, email domain, and signature. AKA, the prospect already knows who you are!  While you might want to explain on a phone call, it is repeated information in an email.   Explain a relationship or medium the prospect can refer back to.   The point of reference connects you to the prospect. For example, did you meet them through LinkedIn, or did a mutual connection refer you? State this existing relationship to build pre-existing rapport with the prospect. If no relationship exists, tie your outreach to the organization’s goals or content the company posted online.   State the use case.   Give the prospect a reason to

When it comes to improving sales, all it might take to reach your goals is a shift in mindset. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by Justin Cunningham to learn how any sales professional can stand out, transform, and optimize their mindset for better performance.  You won’t be able to sell until you believe you can sell. Adjust your beliefs. Try integrating a value-based reframe - People will form their beliefs after an experience. During your next relationship or interaction, you’ll subconsciously look for those same affirming beliefs to support your existing notion.  Decide that you want something better and find evidence to support that new belief. Set yourself apart to win larger-scale accounts: Learn what they’re passionate about and what drives their bottom line to integrate a plan framed directly to them. A gatekeeper will pass individualized materials and information to a decision-maker rather than a mass-sent supply of information. Don’t act like an employee; act like a

It’s an all-too-common sales tactic to reduce your price to drive more sales. However, it can be easy to reduce our worth far below the time, energy, and thought it takes to provide the service we have. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by professional sales coach Steve Brossman to uncover his secrets to creating sales without lowering your worth. The three levels of influence: Imposed: Present and pitch information to the client to make an informed buying decision Collaborative - When the client is involved, they invest to co-create a solution. Self-influence - With the right connections and collaboration, the buyer knows you’ll deliver more than whatever money you charge. Shift your sales mentality: Instead of portraying selling as taking from buyers; shift your perspective. Instead, think of it as giving greater value than what they’re willing to invest. Create information and relationships through your videos, content, and messages to potential buyers.  Come with high energy.

Working in sales becomes drastically easier when we have a mindset and behavior that encourages our best work. But how can we curb limiting beliefs to develop a consistent and positive change in behavior? In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by speaker, author, and podcast host Heather O’Neill to discuss how sales leaders can inspire change in their mindset for performance growth.  Our existing beliefs can hold us back:  Our perceptions about the profession, money, or industry can all hold us back from our full potential.  More importantly, our beliefs about ourselves can have the same impact - the idea that we don’t have enough experience, work, or ability to get the job done. These limiting beliefs often aren’t true and are inspired by what others tell us, not necessarily what we believe. Your brain doesn’t know what’s true and what isn’t - it’ll believe whatever is easier. If you tell yourself you’re a confident speaker, you’ll be more confident with it. (And yes, the reverse is

Even the best sellers must overcome the feeling of burnout at one point or another. But how can we maintain performance while finding time for our physical and mental health? In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by Chris Prangley to discuss his own experience with burnout and how any seller can maintain success and momentum in their careers. Making good money can also come with stress:  Review your ‘why’ to maintain motivation toward your financial goals or realign with your company mission and personal goals.  If you don’t maintain your health and well-being, you’ll eventually burn out. How do you determine why you do what you do? Making a certain amount of money is a great goal, but it is not a ‘why.’ Instead, it should be more profound and connected to who you are. You'll find the most success at the intersection of your why and the company’s mission. Try journaling about your traits and values to determine what you care about and continue to explore that. Look for the niche that

Sales isn’t rocket science. However, we want to cover our bases just in case. In today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald is joined by former NASA flight control engineer and CEO of ElevenPoint2, Kristin Taraszewski, to learn how sales organizations can adequately train their employees with technical knowledge to close more sales.  Many sellers require technical training to sell their products, and that training has become more scarce. In 2021 alone, 39% of all salespeople switched jobs. Unfortunately, that shift led to a huge need for training that hasn’t been fulfilled. It’s difficult to keep up with the rapid changes of the world as quickly as the solution is needed. Many companies don’t have a definitive onboarding and training program beyond a few online courses. It’s expensive to pull salespeople out of the field to train, and lecture-based training historically has a 10% retention rate, making it challenging to implement successfully. Give sellers a clear map. When training sellers, a clear p