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PodcastCheck out our podcast | Sales BlasphemyIdeas to set yourself apart from your competition so you win business and sell at your highest potential in a lasting and consistent way. Be You | Be Different!
Blog Feed
Thoughts and Ideas from Sales Concepts
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Compelling Presentations Accelerate the Sales Process.July 28, 2025 at 4:00 AMAs sales professionals, we are under constant pressure to close deals more quickly without compromising quality or credibility. One often-overlooked a...
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The skill that defuses hesitation throughout the sales process.July 21, 2025 at 4:00 AMWhen a prospect says, "I'm not interested," many salespeople immediately shift into convince-and-conquer mode. But emotional resistance... -
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De-Risking the Deal
Identify and Overcome Perceived Risk Across Buying InfluencesJuly 14, 2025 at 4:00 AMIn complex B2B sales, especially those involving large capital equipment or high-stakes services, your prospects do not make decisions in a vacuum. In... -
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The Salesperson's Bill of Rights IIJuly 7, 2025 at 4:00 AMLast week, as a way to celebrate our 249th Independence Day in the United States, we created and shared the first half of what we call The Salesperson... -
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The Salesperson's Bill of Rights IJune 30, 2025 at 4:00 AMThis week, here in the United States, we celebrate our 249th Independence Day! We also celebrate our Constitution, our Bill of Rights, and the free en... -
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AI Tools for Salespeople, Friend or Foe?June 23, 2025 at 4:00 AMAs a sales professional, you have likely noticed the growing buzz around AI tools. From ChatGPT to meeting transcription software, artificial intellig... -
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Stop Pitching, Start Listening: The Secret to Learning What Customers Really WantJune 16, 2025 at 4:00 AMMost salespeople often work on crafting the perfect pitch, overcoming objections, or closing the deal, and I used to be one of them. However, my selli... -
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Questions are the building blocks of success.June 9, 2025 at 4:00 AMIn the world of selling, success does not come from talking. It comes from listening. At the heart of effective listening is the ability to ask the ri... -
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Successful Salespeople Adapt to Different Types of CustomersJune 2, 2025 at 4:00 AMSuccessful salespeople build genuine connections with their customers. But connecting with customers isn’t a one-size-fits-all task. It requires the a... -
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How Much Elevator Do You Need?May 19, 2025 at 4:00 AMMost salespeople can talk forever about their product, service, company, features, etc. I suspect some of us believe that if we talk long enough, the ... -
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What is your selling handicap?May 12, 2025 at 4:00 AMWhen you ask people about their golf handicaps, what they say may depend quite a bit on who's asking and when the next outing is. Sometimes golfe... -
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If you think it is expensive to hire a successful salesperson, try hiring a mediocre one.May 5, 2025 at 4:00 AMHere are some ways successful salespeople are different from mediocre ones. Successful salespeople ask questions.Mediocre salespeople talk too much a... -
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Why would salespeople need leadership training?April 28, 2025 at 4:00 AMOne of my clients shocked me the other day when I mentioned our upcoming Leading A Team course this June. He told me his managers are well-trained reg... -
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Strike 8, You're out!April 21, 2025 at 4:00 AMHow would baseball be different if it took eight strikes to strike out a batter? Would the game ever end? Maybe not. Think about it. It would be almos... -
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Are you missing opportunities?April 14, 2025 at 4:00 AMDo you treat everyone you work with on a sales call the same? When introducing yourself to a prospect or new customer, do you leave the same message f... -
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The Sales Manager's DilemmaApril 7, 2025 at 4:00 AMSalespeople report to you. Some are new. Some are seasoned. Some are struggling, some do well, and some need help. You have a training budget, but it&... -
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6 Key Elements of Closing The Sales - Part 2March 31, 2025 at 4:00 AMIn our previous message, we discussed how closing a deal is the culmination of events over time, not the answer to a magical, well-placed "Are yo... -
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6 Key Elements of Closing The SalesMarch 24, 2025 at 4:00 AMAt Sales Concepts, we deal with hundreds of sales managers throughout the year. So naturally, the topic foremost on their mind is closing the sale. Se... -
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Is forecasting a waste of time?March 17, 2025 at 4:00 AMThe following is a message from the president and founder of Sales Concepts, Don Sharp.After working in sales and sales management for over 45 years, ... -
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Closing is more than just asking for the business.March 3, 2025 at 5:00 AMClosing is one of the most challenging parts of the sales process for many salespeople. Often, salespeople conclude an excellent presentation for a cl... -
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Do you see what your cusotmers see?February 24, 2025 at 5:00 AMHave you ever caught a glimpse of yourself in a mirror and wondered, "Do I really look like that?" Maybe you saw a photo of yourself and tho... -
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How to respond to objectionsFebruary 10, 2025 at 5:00 AMAnyone selling for any length of time knows they will encounter objections. Some are harder to deal with than others. At Sales Concepts, we define an ... -
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"Want to sell more? Be quiet!"February 3, 2025 at 5:00 AMFred Rogers is famous for the children's show Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, which aired on PBS from 1968 to 2001. His objective was to use telev... -
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"Thanks! Great Presentation."January 27, 2025 at 5:00 AM“Great Presentation!” These could be the worst words you can hear after your sales presentation! Another horrible response for a presenter might be, “... -
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Have you ever overreacted to something with a customer?January 13, 2025 at 5:00 AMOne of the most effective ways to deal with customer objections is to listen, empathize, and ask questions. However, we have found that, among the tho... -
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Ready or Not, 2025 is Underway!January 6, 2025 at 5:00 AMWe are already a week into 2025, a new year. For most of us, our numbers revert to zero. Have they come to you with a higher quota this year? Did they... -
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The Secret Effective Leaders KnowDecember 16, 2024 at 5:00 AMMany people desire to be in positions of leadership. However, they may not understand the concept of servant leadership. The most effective leaders do... -
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Can you listen and talk at the same time?December 9, 2024 at 5:00 AMIt isn't easy to do two things simultaneously. Try patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time. It is difficult for most of us to... -
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The best salespeople ask the best questions.December 2, 2024 at 5:00 AMAn idiom is an expression that typically presents a figurative, non-literal meaning attached to the phrase. For example, when you say, I quit cold tur... -
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The Great Salespeople are Grateful.November 25, 2024 at 5:00 AMIt's hard to believe that Thanksgiving is upon us here in the United States, so we are quickly working through November and coming to the end of ... -
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Why don't salespeople prospect?November 18, 2024 at 5:00 AMResearch shows prospecting is the most challenging activity for salespeople. Why? Salespeople shared the following reasons with us:It just doesn’t wor... -
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Selling does not work!November 11, 2024 at 5:00 AMOkay, we wrote that subject line to get you to open this email. Of course, selling works, but only when done correctly! So, how do we do it correctly?... -
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What is more scary than a monster?November 4, 2024 at 5:00 AMThis past week, a large part of the world celebrated Halloween. It is that spooky time of year when we dress up as ghosts, goblins, ghouls, zombies, o... -
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8 Myths of Selling Debunked!October 28, 2024 at 4:00 AMMany salespeople have come to accept certain myths as though they are truths. These salespeople needlessly limit themselves by buying into ideas that ... -
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It's not just about your customer!
It's about your customer's customers...October 21, 2024 at 4:00 AMHere's an easy quiz for you. Do it quickly. It's not complicated. List five of your most significant customers. If you are like most of us, ... -
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LinkedIn is a waste of time.October 14, 2024 at 4:00 AMLinkedIn is a waste of time. It does not work. Even in 2024, we still have people in our programs who believe this. The problem is, they are right. L... -
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Control your destiny with proactive prospecting.October 7, 2024 at 4:00 AMOne of the most intriguing things we do here at Sales Concepts is work with many different sales executives in diverse industries. A trend seems to be... -
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The biggest obstacle to closing business.September 30, 2024 at 4:00 AMIt’s Friday night, and you are finally home after you have worked hard all day. It has been a long week. You decide to cook meatloaf for dinner. You p... -
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People like to buy from people they like.September 23, 2024 at 4:00 AMWe all have had people you click with from the start. We decide immediately whether this is someone we want to get to know. When we sense a connection... -
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Why do business cases fail?September 16, 2024 at 4:00 AMIn selling, business cases don't work! Wait! What? Okay, let's expand on that. In selling, improperly delivered business cases don't wo... -
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What makes a salesperson great?September 9, 2024 at 4:00 AMWe often ask this question when working with sales teams. Salespeople and sales managers typically respond with words like ambition, persistence, driv... -
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When is your next trade show?August 26, 2024 at 4:00 AMTrade show attendance in the United States peaked in 2015 and leveled off until COVID-19. Then it fell by over 92%. However, trade show attendance was... -
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Differentiate yourself. Set winning goals.August 12, 2024 at 4:00 AMOne of the main differences between successful salespeople and those who struggle is how they use their time. According to Inc. Magazine, only 8% of b... -
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Closing does not just happen.August 5, 2024 at 4:00 AMThroughout our programs, we often examine why salespeople fail to close. The reasons are numerous. However, one of the most prevalent reasons is the f... -
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20 Ways to become a better listener.July 29, 2024 at 4:00 AMOne of the most essential skills a successful salesperson can have is the ability to listen. Unfortunately, the average person listens with an effecti... -
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Do your customers know how to sell?July 22, 2024 at 4:00 AMIf you are like me, you may sometimes find yourself working with a customer or prospect who can not approve or decide to buy. We know we need to invol... -
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What does an influential leader look like?July 15, 2024 at 4:00 AMThe other day, I saw four boys riding their bikes. Two looked to be about 14, and two were close to nine. They had just crossed a busy street and stop... -
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Negotiating is about value, not money.July 8, 2024 at 4:00 AMWhen you negotiate solely on price, you have already lost. Price negotiations only end in two undesirable ways: you lose your margin, or the customer ... -
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Can you match their price?July 1, 2024 at 4:00 AMMost salespeople will encounter this objection at least once in their career. Successful salespeople compare this objection to a tell in poker. Accord... -
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Are you losing track of customers?June 17, 2024 at 4:00 AMEven in the middle of 2024, we continue to hear from many of the salespeople in our classes that they do not use LinkedIn for business. We frequently ... -
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How do you react when you encouter resistance?June 17, 2024 at 4:00 AMHow do you feel when you run into resistance? You may experience resistance from a prospect or customer who has objections to your product or service... -
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Do you speak the language of the C-Suite?June 10, 2024 at 4:00 AMIf you lived in the United States or Canada and your company offered you a new, exciting position in Brazil, one of the first things you need to do t... -
What do your customers want?June 3, 2024 at 4:00 AMThe late country singer Toby Keith gives the best sales advice in his hit song, I Wanna Talk About Me. Remember these lyrics as you head into a conver...
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3xy = successMay 20, 2024 at 4:00 AMWhat does 3xy mean in the world? Keep reading, and we will explain. Sales Concepts was founded in 1980, and since then, we have been helping people wh... -
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Are all CEO's the same?May 13, 2024 at 4:00 AMWhat makes them different?In our past Friday morning workshop, we discussed what makes salespeople great. One participant said that a great salesperso...
