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What An MBA Didn’t Teach You About Sales

The sales profession is challenging. You need to work hard at it to succeed. You need to learn from the best. You need to improve your skills continuously. If you think you can sell since you are a hit at parties and have a lot of friends, you may soon find that you are a failure as a salesperson. Blunt truth:

because the sales profession is so hard, you have to focus on doing everything in sales very well, or you will be considered a failure.

I call this blog, Skinned Knees because I try to relate all of the learning that I have done over the past 4+ decades (while skinning my knees in the learning process).

I hope that you learn from my mistakes so that your business will grow!

Two Tall Guys Talking Sales Podcast – Have a Reason To Hold a Sales Meeting- Episode 20

Regular sales team meetings are essential to keep salespeople informed, productive, and on the same page. Before scheduling a sales team meeting, ensure a good reason for doing so. Possible topics for sales team meetings could include reviewing sales goals and strategies, discussing new leads, customer information, and product updates, recognizing salespeople for their accomplishments, pinpointing any areas of improvement, and brainstorming solutions as a team. Finally, make sure to end the meeting on a… Two Tall Guys Talking Sales Podcast – Have a Reason To Hold a Sales Meeting- Episode 20

Two Tall Guys Talking Sales Podcast – The Role of a Salesperson in Their 1:1 Meetings With a Manager – Episode 19

In “The Role of a Salesperson in Their 1:1 Meetings With a Manager” podcast, the hosts, Sean and Kevin, dive into a salesperson’s crucial role in their one-on-one meetings with their manager. They discuss the importance of preparation and setting goals and objectives for the meeting while emphasizing the need to avoid micro-management. The podcast highlights the significance of tracking progress and updating managers on results and offers valuable tips on how to stay motivated… Two Tall Guys Talking Sales Podcast – The Role of a Salesperson in Their 1:1 Meetings With a Manager – Episode 19

Two Tall Guys Talking Sales Podcast – Manage the Expectations of Upper Management for a Sales Turnaround Effort – Episode 18

In this episode, Sean and Kevin discuss the struggle of a sales turnaround.  It is important to define what a turnaround means for your specific sales department, as the definition may vary depending on the nature of the business, the industry, and the competitive landscape. Once you have a clear understanding of what constitutes a successful turnaround for your team, you can start outlining a plan of action that meets or exceeds the expectations of… Two Tall Guys Talking Sales Podcast – Manage the Expectations of Upper Management for a Sales Turnaround Effort – Episode 18

Two Tall Guys Talking Sales Podcast: How Do You Determine Your Company’s Sales Objectives Each Year?

In this episode, Kevin and Sean discussed the importance of setting appropriate sales goals for a company. They suggested starting with the end goal in mind and then working backward to set achievable but challenging targets. They also advise avoiding pitfalls such as not considering attrition or overstating possibilities when setting goals. Finally, they emphasize the importance of dedicating resources to new markets or initiatives to grow the business rather than only replacing lost customers.

You can subscribe to our podcast by searching in your favorite podcast player for “Two Tall Guys Talking Sales,” or you can listen to the embedded version here.

The following is a transcript of the podcast above. It has been sparsely edited to increase its readability, but many of the idioms and poor spoken grammar have been left in place. Fireflies.ai automatically generated the transcription, and, as capable as that product is, there are times when words are missed or the sentence structure is incorrectly interpreted. We have tried to catch all of these software misses, but we are confident that some still remain. The below text is provided for those that would rather read than listen to a podcast.

00:00

Kevin Lawson

Hello, and welcome to episode two, not eight, of “Two Guys Talking Sales.” I’m one of your hosts, Kevin. 

00:10

Sean O’Shaughnessey

And I’m Sean. 

00:11

Kevin Lawson

We’re glad you’re here on this Two Guys Talking Sales episode. 

This podcast tackles real sales issues, big and small, for salespeople selling situations and sales leadership. We’ve individually built successful sales careers around the problems and solutions in B-to-B selling, from software and services to manufacturing distribution. We have sold to and for many of the world’s most recognized brands as well as some you have yet to hear of. We know LinkedIn says this is a 30-minute time slot. Still, we’ll only take 15 minutes—nothing like under-promising and over-delivering. For roughly the next 15 minutes, we invite you into our world of experience. We’ll dig into one issue. You’ll have a solution should you encounter a similar situation in your career. Let’s dive in. 

Sean, let’s set the stage. 

01:07

Sean O’Shaughnessey

This topic should be about setting your sales plan objectives for this year. 

01:15

Kevin Lawson

Setting objectives for the year. Like not being tongue-tied on a public broadcast. How about that? 

01:21

Sean O’Shaughnessey

At least you tried to plan ahead and had it written. Now that’s better than I did. I’m just winging it. 

01:25

Kevin Lawson

Our last episode was all about planning your year. Why not have a plan? Well, so you’ll know how you’re doing? 

01:32

Sean O’Shaughnessey

There you go. 

01:33

Kevin Lawson

Today, we will talk about how to determine company sales objectives. Yes, let’s do that. 

Read the rest of the article…

Two Tall Guys Talking Sales Podcast: Why Should a Company Assess Its Practices in Sales?

In this podcast, Kevin and Sean discuss why it is important for companies to assess their sales plans and processes. They explain that having a sales plan is about more than just setting quotas and involves figuring out how to bring value to the customer. It is also important for smaller businesses that are transitioning from founder-led sales organizations to have an assessment to build the right infrastructure. The conversation also touches on how CEOs should still be involved in customer conversations regardless of company size and that competition, complacency, and consistency should all be considered when assessing one’s own organization. Lastly, they invite listeners to reach out with any questions they may have about creating a great sales organization.

You can subscribe to our podcast by searching in your favorite podcast player for “Two Tall Guys Talking Sales,” or you can listen to the embedded version here.

The following is a transcript of the podcast above. It has been sparsely edited to increase its readability, but many of the idioms and poor spoken grammar have been left in place. Fireflies.ai automatically generated the transcription, and, as capable as that product is, there are times when words are missed or the sentence structure is incorrectly interpreted. We have tried to catch all of these software misses, but we are confident that some still remain. The below text is provided for those that would rather read than listen to a podcast.

 00:00

Kevin Lawson

Hello, and welcome to Two Guys Talking Sales. I’m Kevin. 

 00:06

Sean O’Shaughnessey

And I’m Sean. 

 00:08

Kevin Lawson

We’re glad you’re here. In this podcast, we’ll tackle real sales issues big and small for salespeople selling situations and sales leadership. We’ve collectively built successful careers around the problems and solutions used in B2B selling, from software to services, manufacturing, and distribution. We have sold to and for many of the world’s most recognized brands as well as some you’ve never heard of. For roughly the next 15 minutes, we invite you into our world of experience, where we’ll take one issue and dig into it so you might have a solution for when you encounter a similar situation in your career. Let’s dive in. Sean, what are we talking about tonight? 

 00:48

Sean O’Shaughnessey

Kevin, we should discuss why a company should assess its sales plan, process, and methodologies. How about that? 

 00:57

Kevin Lawson

Sounds Good. Maybe we should start by asking, “What are a sales plan, system, and methodology.”

 01:03

Sean O’Shaughnessey

That makes sense to me. Do you want to start? Go Ahead.

Read the rest of the article…