Casey Tee’s Post

I am looking forward to share The Art of Selling Seminar (孙子兵法销售和谈判技巧），Learning the Sun Tzu Art of Selling is crucial for sales teams to thrive in today’s highly competitive market. Sun Tzu’s principles, when applied to sales, provide a strategic approach that enables businesses to stay ahead. Here are the four important selling secrets from The Art of War: 1. Know Your Market and Competitors (Know the Enemy): 知己知彼百战百胜Sun Tzu emphasizes the importance of knowing the terrain and the enemy. In sales, this translates to a deep understanding of the market, competitors, and customer needs. Salespeople must be aware of competitors’ strengths and weaknesses, allowing them to position their products or services more effectively. 2. Adaptability (Strategic Flexibility): 随机应变Sun Tzu teaches the need to be flexible and adaptable in the face of changing conditions. Salespeople must be quick to adapt their strategies based on customer feedback, shifting market trends, or new competitive threats. Staying agile in both strategy and approach allows them to outmaneuver competitors and meet evolving customer expectations. 3. Seize Opportunities (Offensive Strategy): 掌握时机One of Sun Tzu’s key lessons is to be proactive and take the initiative. Salespeople must identify opportunities to approach potential clients before competitors do, and capitalize on the perfect timing to close deals. Those who seize the initiative can dominate the market, leaving little room for competitors. 4. Win Without Fighting (Customer Relationship Building): 不战而胜The ultimate victory, according to Sun Tzu, is to win without direct conflict. In sales, this means building strong, trust-based relationships with customers so that they choose your product or service without having to be hard-sold. Long-term relationships built on trust often lead to repeat business and customer loyalty. By learning and applying these strategies, your sales team can enhance their performance, stay ahead of the competition, and thrive in even the most challenging market environments.

Selling skills aren't reserved solely for those in sales roles. Regardless of your position, the ability to influence and persuade can prove invaluable. For those outside the traditional sales domain, effective selling isn't about aggressive pitches or mastering complex sales techniques; it’s about fostering relationships and building trust. For many, the mere mention of selling conjures images of cold calls and hard sells. Yet, true selling is fundamentally about understanding and addressing needs—areas where many non-sales professionals naturally excel. The shift in perspective from selling to helping can redefine every interaction with potential clients or customers. Each meeting becomes a chance to understand their challenges and to present your services or products as solutions that could simplify their lives or enhance their business success. Building Relationships: The Heart of Non-Sales Selling Effective relationship building is pivotal. As relationships develop, focus on educating your prospects about how your services or products align with their needs. This consultancy approach changes the buyer-seller dynamic to one of trusted advisor and client. Instead of pushing for a sale, help your prospects make informed decisions. This might include offering trial services or detailed demonstrations. Your aim should be to ensure they make the best choice for their needs, which may sometimes mean not making a sale at all. Remember, the conclusion of a sale is just the start of a relationship. Continue to nurture these connections, regardless of the sales outcome. Regular check-ins, additional resources, and availability for queries can solidify your reputation as a trusted advisor. By prioritizing relationships over sales, non-sales professionals can significantly contribute to their organization's sales objectives without leaving their comfort zones. Through this approach, selling becomes not a daunting task but a rewarding part of engaging sincerely and caring about the client's needs.

🏆 Building a winning sales culture Getting the best out of a sales team as a senior leader is not easy, but in my experience, there are some key areas to focus on that can really drive that high performance culture which will lead to fantastic results. Below are 3 of the most important areas that helped my teams over the years not only be very successful from a results point of view but also contributed to creating an environment where people want to work and do their best. 1) 😊 People first – It’s all well and good having a great product to sell, or brilliant processes, but what all great leaders recognise is that people are the core drivers of success. Let’s face it, sales is not easy, in fact at times it is extremely challenging, often involving high-pressure targets and constant rejection. However, by prioritizing their team members' well-being, Sales Leaders can foster a more engaged, motivated workforce. In my experience, when people feel genuinely valued and supported, they're more likely to give their best effort, stay committed to their goals, and push through challenges. When you truly put your team first, the results will absolutely follow. 2) 📣 Clear Communication –   As a Sales Leader, we are someone who inspires positive, incremental change by empowering those around us to work toward common objectives. The most powerful tool we have as a leader for doing this is communication.   Effective communication is vital if we are to gain trust, align efforts in the pursuit of goals, and inspire positive change. When there is a lack of communication, important information can be misinterpreted, which can cause relationships to suffer and, ultimately, create barriers that hinder progress.   Over the years, I’ve seen communication done badly and the negative impact this can have on a team, but I have also witnessed (and tried to implement myself) great communication and I have seen first-hand the positive impact that getting this right can have on your team.   3) 🤝 Trust and Psychological Safety – In my experience, high performance is only possible when trust and psychological safety are prioritised. Trusting employees to make decisions without interference instils ownership and drives high engagement. When team members feel trusted, safe and at ease, they’re more likely to take initiative, embrace risks, and learn from their mistakes, knowing their input is valued. And when the team feel that their contributions are valued, the team are much more likely to perform at their best, adding to the overall success of the sales team. Those are just 3 of the many areas that I feel are important in driving a winning sales culture. What about you? As a Sales Leader or a Salesperson, what are the most important areas for you?

In sales, you have to understand what’s happening at the other end of the equation. Put yourself in your potential customers shoes. Your buyers have a lot of priorities on their plate; take a number and get in line. The decision making process often comes down to these two things: how important is it to the organization and how much effort is it going to take to implement. An organization is naturally going to gravitate towards solutions that are either quick and easy and/or really important. Where does your sales opportunity fit within the Buyer’s Priority Matrix? High Importance/Easy Fix – congratulations, you’re well on your way to closing a sale High Importance/Hard Fix – the organization has a big problem, but they’re not quite ready to pull the trigger because they’re focused on lower hanging fruit. In this scenario, you should be doing whatever you can to lay the groundwork for the customer. Maybe that’s laying out an execution plan that your buyer can share with an executive team. Maybe that’s understanding the acquisition process and getting prequalified. In government sales, it could be offering a fast and easy contract vehicle. Maybe you bring in your execution team to demonstrate your organizations commitment to solving your customers’ problems. In this scenario, if you’re not putting in the work, you’re likely to lose this opportunity to a competitor. Low Importance/Easy Fix – the organization doesn’t quite see the problem, but your solution would be easy to implement. You better make damn sure you’re selling the value of the solution. Sales is not just about the product, it’s about the problem. Do you fully understand the problem and are you able to tangibly demonstrate the value of solving that problem? In this scenario, if you’re not putting in the work, your customer is likely going to file this away and forget about it forever. Low Importance/Hard Fix – you better get to work, buddy. If you can understand where your buyer is in the quadrant, you can start working to move them towards the top left. As with anything, it’s all about communication. Consider what level of engagement you have with the customer and work towards firming up those relationships so that you can learn more about your customers needs. Most importantly: ACTION, not words 

#consultativeselling Consultative selling is a sales strategy rooted in building a relationship between you and your prospects.,by asking questions, listening to their needs and personalizing your product or service to them. A salesperson who practices consultative selling develops a holistic and nuanced understanding of the buyer's needs, and then they try to fulfill those needs with a customized solution. At its core, the consultative approach focuses on your customer, their needs and their biggest pain points before you even think about offering up a product or service as a solution. This builds a trusting customer relationship that helps you close deals and win repeat customers, even if it might take a little longer than getting right to the point. Consultative selling works because sales is about building relationships. Therefore using a sales process that values a trustworthy relationship with your clients above making quick sales makes logical sense. Customers are becoming disengaged with their companies, customers are increasingly becoming skeptical of the information reps give them. This lack of trust leads to low buying confidence. To combat that, sales reps need to enhance how they are perceived by their customers, which boils down to :"Do they believe I'm trying to sell them something that will actually fix their problems?" Another positive aspect of consultative selling is that it lends itself to "Value added selling." A sales rep that approaches prospects with a consultative selling mindset will naturally know more about what the customer is looking for than a rep who uses the traditional sales method, which is going straight for a hard sale. In short, the time you and your sales team put in to consultative selling will pay off in the long run because this sales methodology values customer relationships.

Do you really have sales discipline in your business? Because sales people without discipline get punished. Successful sales has thankfully evolved from the old-fashioned sharp-shooter stereotypes popularised in the 1980s and personified in the movie "The Wolf of Wall Street" which is set in the final throes of the age of toxic persuasion sales. One behaviour that separates the bad/underperforming from the good/consistent is discipline in following a process. Sure, talent, charisma, and creativity matter, but let's be honest, without a solid, repeatable process and the discipline to follow it, even the most talented sales professionals struggle to deliver sustainable results. Here’s why discipline is essential: 1. It builds consistency: A well-defined process ensures you're always covering the fundamentals, regardless of the deal size. 2. It reduces hesitation: Having a process means fewer moments of "What should I do next?" because you already know. 3. It allows for improvement: When you follow a process, you can measure outcomes, identify gaps, and refine. 4. It gives you space to think and focus: A well-practiced process empowers you to listen intently to your prospects and record what's important to them which will give you the content of your proposals and quotes. But let's be real, it's not always easy to stay disciplined. Distractions, shiny new opportunities and tools, and the pressure to deliver right now can pull us off track. So, let me ask you: - Do you have a clear sales process, and how closely do you follow it? - What do you do when you’re tempted to skip steps or "wing it"? - ⁠How do you balance discipline with adaptability in the ever-changing sales landscape and conversations? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Has discipline made a difference in your sales outcomes? Or do you think too much focus on process can stifle creativity? Comment below so we can discuss!

High-performing sales teams are led by strong sales managers who embody leadership skills that motivate and empower the team. Exceptional sales professionals display certain traits that allow them to stand out from the rest and achieve great sales success. Since 1967, Sandler Training has trained sales professionals to be mindful of their behaviors, attitudes and techniques when prospecting and negotiating. While Sandler witnessed many professionals transform, there were always certain characteristics that “the greats” possessed in addition to the skills learned through continuous training and reinforcement. Ask yourself the following questions to determine whether or not you have what it takes to be great. Do I build good rapport? This might go without saying but the best salespeople are people that can relate to other people. They come across as genuine, they’re natural and they put people at ease. As Sandler teaches, people want to do business with people that are like themselves. Am I goal focused? Long-term goals are important, but what really drives salespeople is the focus on daily activities that are in direct relationship to the results in which they are in pursuit. They understand that it is the daily “behaviors” that are critical to delivering the results. Am I curious? Sandler devotees know – a salesperson’s job is to find the compelling, emotional reason for the problem and match that “pain” to a solution. We discover the pain by asking questions and listening because sometimes the prospect hasn’t accurately identified their pain or are not yet comfortable sharing it. Do I listen? A keystone to the Sandler methodology is listening. The Prospect should be doing 70% of the talking while the salesperson is actively listening and searching for the pain. How motivated am I? Being self motivated is essential to finding success as a sales professional. Since a salesperson’s income is largely based on their ability to find and close new business, success usually comes to those who are diligent and focused. Do I seek out challenges? Sometimes in sales, it’s about being fearless and going after challenges. Whether it’s going after a prospect that’s been on your radar or taking on a vertical that’s completely new to you, having the ability to put yourself in new situations and enter unchartered waters will serve a salesperson well throughout their career. As Sandler teaches, No Guts, No Gain! Can you name more characteristics of successful salespeople that set them apart from mediocre salespeople? What are some traits of top salespeople that you wish you had to complement your sales approach?

5 Lessons to Fast-Start Your 2024 as a Sales Manager