Liz Cope

Are you losing a lot of business because of price? This article might help. Did you know that only 12.5% of lubricant buyers are significantly influenced by competitor offers or actions? This striking data point challenges the common belief that competition is the primary reason for lost sales. However, data from the Plan Grow Do Buyer Revolution research suggests a different story. With only 12.5% of respondents indicating that competitor actions significantly influence their decisions, it becomes clear that our focus should not be on the competition. Instead, we need to enhance our unique value propositions and strengths. Yet, our behaviour often contradicts this insight, leading to missed opportunities and a misguided focus on price negotiations. Take a read of the latest article from Plan.Grow.Do. and explore what you can do to enhance your value propositions and chances of winning. https://lnkd.in/etX6VkeY #lubricants #lubricant #oilandgas #energy

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Indirect Channel Sales are simultaneously a powerful business force multiplier and a frustrating business challenge. It's really hard to align the interests and incentives of two very different companies, but it's not impossible. It's important to understand the tools and techniques that foster channel sales success because it seems to be experiencing a bit of a renaissance after a period of "disintermediation" ten years ago. There's no doubt, though, that indirect sales channel best practices are changing. Simply the term "partner ecosystem" illustrates the new complexity - even as the term itself is opaque and buzzwordish. That's why I knew I had to dig into channel sales in more depth with Vaughn Mordecai, CRO of Mindmatrix. Episode 28 of the Industrial Growth Institute Podcast drops on Wednesday, and includes wide ranging discussion of channel, partnerships, ecosystems, PRM software and more. Hope you'll tune in! #ChannelSales #IndirectSalesChannel #Distribution #SalesChannel #Partnerships #PartnerEcosystems #PRM #PartnerRelationshipManagement

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"That's not the way our industry works." 🤯 I hear this several times/week. Normally it's some version of sales process, marketing or sales technology, content strategy, or messaging. And 80% of it is rubbish - or justification for constrained thinking and self-limiting beliefs. There is amazing opportunity to be found at the intersection of disciplines and industries - as I explore with Cece Kintner in this episode of the Industrial Growth Institute Podcast. Cece's career spans industrial (capital equipment), events and technology - across marketing and sales disciplines and channel models. She has a lot of insight into what industrial manufacturers traditionally do, and what they can learn from technology companies. Tune in to learn about the opportunity with Revenue Operations, how to build an effective tech stack, how vendors and channel can collaborate, and the necessity for great sales enablement. #Packaging #PackagingMachinery #RevOps #IndustrialRevOps #SalesOperations #MarketingOperations #CRM #industrialsales #IndustrialMarketing #ManufacturingMarketing #SalesEnablement

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A Quantified Value Proposition The number one complaint I hear from executives about their sales teams often sounds like this: "Our salespeople aren't selling value." When I dig deeper and ask what they mean, I usually hear about lost deals or heavy price discounting to win business. But when I probe further—asking questions about the value that isn't being sold—responses are often vague. Executives mention quality, performance, or reliability, but rarely can they specify that value in concrete terms. They struggle to describe it in a way that shows an investment with a measurable return. This disconnect is critical because value is not about the products themselves. Value is about the results customers achieve from using those products. These results include increased revenue, higher profitability, time savings, and reduced waste. The real differentiator between us and our competitors isn’t the product features or even price—it's the measurable impact we deliver. Before we can price or sell value, we need to define, specify, and quantify that value in terms of how our products contribute to our customers’ growth and profitability. This means framing our offer not as a set of features but as an investment that delivers tangible business outcomes. Most customers are willing to buy and pay more if they believe they’ll get more value in return. But they’ll only see that value if we, as sellers, make it clear, compelling, and easy to understand. By doing this, we help customers’ executives and procurement teams justify paying a premium price for our products. Every customer wants to grow and become more profitable—our job is to show them exactly how we help them achieve that. A Case in Point A few years ago, I interviewed a former buyer from Applied Materials to get insights into how professional buyers think. When we discussed value, he told me: "We’re willing to pay more for value, but you have to give us hard numbers to back up your claims. Don’t expect us to do the math for you, because we won’t." This insight is crucial. It's not enough to talk about value in abstract terms. We need to provide hard data and quantifiable results. When we can present numbers that demonstrate a clear return on investment—whether it’s improved margins, faster time-to-market, or reduced operational costs—customers feel more confident about buying from us. If you want your salespeople to sell more products and services at higher prices and profit, give them a tool that will help them do it. For $5,000, I’ll work with you to create a Quantified Value Proposition. Together we’ll specify the unique value you provide, quantify what that value is worth relative to your competitors and over time, and write FAQ’s that will help your people prepare for sales conversations and handle the objections they’re likely to encounter. Let me know if you’re interested.

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Did you know that: 👉 78% of salespeople using social selling outsell their peers (SproutSocial) 👉 Increase average deal size by 35% (SalesforLife) 👉 And are 51% more likely to achieve quota (Optinmonster) From Clicks to Clients is my essential guide to helping you conquer social selling in today's dynamic landscape. I will give you step-by-step instructions on how to harness the power of digital channels, build a compelling digital presence, supercharge your prospecting, and nurture meaningful relationships. There's a reason it's been ordered over 75 times and has maintained a 5-star rating. If you're ready to amplify your connections and elevate your sales success, head over to Amazon, click "BUY NOW," apply the concepts, and witness the results for yourself. https://amzn.to/3PEQOQt

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Introducing Channel 2.0 Methodology™ Discover the playbook for success in today’s Channel Ecosystem. Similar to sales methodologies guiding salespeople, our methodology provides channel employees with a step-by-step process to thrive in modern technology distribution and drive more revenue. A webinar detailing this methodology is June 4 at 11am CST. You may be asking yourself WHY Channel Leaders Should Attend: - Rapidly ramp up new salespeople to profitability or identify challenges early. - Precisely calculate ROI on Marketing Development Funds (MDF). - Identify gaps in your process and get clear directions on how to fix them. Join us to transform your channel strategy! Go to The Channel Advisors™ website and get registered today!

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74% of buyers say sellers aren't effective at leading thorough needs discoveries. The sellers who take the time to explore and uncover needs are far more likely to win. In this toolkit from RAIN Group, we share resources for planning productive discovery calls with buyers: https://hubs.li/Q02y99Mh0 #SalesTips #SalesSkills #SalesSuccess

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Indirect sales channel relationships are challenging. Each channel agreement involves two different companies with different owners, philosophies and objectives. The goal is always to align them and to identify areas of overlapping interest. The greater the degree of concentration in a distributor/reseller's business on a single supplier, the greater the risk. Most of a distributor's business may ride on contracts that only provide 90 days to resolve disagreements that arise in years-long relationships. There's typically asymmetric risk. Often asymmetric investment. When honorable people cultivate and merit trust, it's a powerful system. Reseller relationships can flourish for years and create wealth for both parties. But when relationships are run on spreadsheets, it results in resentment at least. In a world where Tesla has challenged the basis of the dealer model - channel partners are feeling pressure from the buyer side. What value are they providing? And Ford is exerting pressure from the other side. And the resellers are stuck. Their business revenue, asset value, and investments make them economic hostages. Ford knows and leverages that. https://lnkd.in/ecnndNQK On the one hand, that's business. Yes, they can contractually walk away subject to certain terms to which they originally agreed (including that those terms can be changed at any time.) On the other hand, good will is destroyed and earnest collaboration becomes unlikely. To be clear, in many industries the majority of channel partners are simply opportunistic order takers. This isn't just a manufacturer problem. There's mutual distrust and resentment. Channel is a long game - on both sides. Making expedient decisions will destroy years of collaborative effort. The Verge article here https://lnkd.in/eBU8CSBY

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When your best leads look like the weakest..... That's a common problem for industrial manufacturers when they invest in #DigitalMarketing. They get "leads" that don't look like the leads they're accustomed to. Reps try to run some sort of #BANT qualification, and find that they're not qualified. And so they dismiss them. Except.... First, they're often in the pre-awareness and awareness stage when it's most advantageous to engage - before a prospect has shaped their problem understanding with a competitor and they're most open to legitimate assistance. Second, they may be very qualified in terms of business and problem fit. So it's important that marketing and sales teams are aligned, use common definitions (are those contacts? leads? qualified leads? suspects? prospects?), and have playbooks for gradually nurturing those that might be great customers eventually. The bottom line is that trade show leads aren't trade show leads any more - and digital leads aren't like traditional trade show leads. We have to adapt - and Cece Kintner did a great job of providing a #RevOps perspective built on her years in #IndustrialMarketing #Events #B2BMarketing and sales. Check out our full conversation here. https://lnkd.in/dN7d4_n5 #SalesOps #SalesOperations #MarketingOperations #ManufacturingMarketing #B2BSales #LeadGeneration #LeadManagement

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The best sellers focus on five key areas to affect their cross-selling results. John Doerr explains what they are on the RAIN Group Sales Blog ➡️ https://hubs.li/Q02sqf650 #crossselling #upselling #sales

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A few sales tidbits: Keep stuffing the pipeline, even when you think you’re closing and can coast for a while. Continue to communicate news, intelligence, market information. Somebody is waiting to hear it. Keep up to date on your customers, their news, changes in people, new products and so on. It will always come full circle. Stay positive, even in downturns, rough times and management changes. Your time will come. Keep learning and trying new ways and methods of achieving sales growth. You’ll need it. Pause for a second, take a break but keep moving forward. That’s how you grow. Happy Selling!!

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Master the art of strategic questioning in sales with "100 Great Sandler Questions...And When To Ask Them." 💬 Learn how to effectively guide conversations and outcomes, from initiating engagement to navigating objections. This comprehensive guide covers 100 questions across 20 critical categories, empowering you to close the gap between your buyer's current state and their desired outcome. Get your complimentary copy today: https://lnkd.in/eW-uuyYQ #SalesTraining #SalesSuccess #Sandler

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Companies invest tens of thousands of dollars in B2B lead generation, often seeing the leads dissipate to nothing. Marketing points the finger at sales, and sales points to marketing. The bottom line is that buyers have changed, and salespeople have not! Read More>>>> #salesgrowth #salesmanagement #salesleadership #CEOTips #marketingmanagement #digitalmarketing #Businessgrowth

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Get to the next level of your sales career with insights from Sandler's whitepaper, "Why Salespeople Fail... And What You Can Do About It." This guide offers an empowering, no-nonsense approach to selling that puts you firmly in control. Learn from the experts who revolutionized modern selling. Download now 👉 https://lnkd.in/ehgWxP66 #SalesSuccess #SalesTraining

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💡Master the art of strategic questioning in sales with "100 Great Sandler Questions...And When To Ask Them." 💬  Learn how to effectively guide conversations and outcomes, from initiating engagement to navigating objections.  This comprehensive guide covers 100 questions across 20 critical categories, empowering you to close the gap between your buyer's current state and their desired outcome. Get your complimentary copy today: https://hubs.ly/Q02rcb1-0 #SalesTraining #SalesSuccess #Sandler

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How do we scale aggressive sales growth consistently? The answer lies in Sandler's very own Dave Mattson’s latest article in Top Sales Magazine. Discover the insights in “The Paradox of Sales Leadership: Your Product is Not Your Product” and learn how to drive sustainable growth. Download your free copy here: https://hubs.la/Q02Q9sfF0 #SalesLeadership #SalesGrowth #Sandler #SalesSuccess

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