Skills blog

If you want to persuade your customer to buy your solution, you must first convince them that the risk of doing so is low. Buying is a risky business, especially in today’s economy. Salespeople often fear rejection, but the customer also has a fear – the fear of making a mistake, of paying too much, […]

Do you perform better with encouragement? So do your people. Think of encouragement as a gift you give to bring out the best in others. As a manager, think of your last interaction with a member of your team, take a moment to reflect on

      Selling, like sport, has its highs and its lows. When things are going well it’s the greatest job in the world – we love the feel of winning. But what happens when things don’t click for us or the market toughens and we hit a dry spell? It’s easy to lose confidence and begin […]

In today’s changing market the ability to persuade and influence is a key part of everyone’s job. Whether you are selling, negotiating, marketing, advertising, coaching, leading, managing, speaking in public or online, you are persuading others to accept your ideas.

On leadership and management training courses we often ask participants: Would you rather work for someone who uses your talent or grows your talent? Naturally, everyone wants to work for a manager who grows their talent but what’s it like working for you?

The phrase ‘People are our most valuable asset’ is often used in workplaces, but it’s not entirely accurate. The truth is that the ‘right people’ are the most valuable asset. Therefore, excellent recruitment practices are crucial, particularly when hiring managers and salespeople

The biggest complaint customers have about salespeople is that they seem to know very little about their business, and make no attempt to learn more. Conversely the highest compliment a customer can give you is, ‘You understand our business.’

It is flattering to imagine that you can sell in such a way that the customer ends up asking you for the business, rather than you needing to ask them. But people rarely bite immediately on hearing a pitch – you have to ask. With the introduction of all the ‘new’ ways of selling especially […]

As a manager in today’s hybrid and increasingly turbulent economy, it is useful to step back and think about how motivated the individuals in your team are. Without motivation, the product doesn’t matter, and the idea doesn’t matter – because no one will be motivated to take any action. On our management training courses, we […]