The most daunting part of making a sales call is preparing for the unknown. Will I reach decision-makers? What kind of questions will the decision–maker ask? Am I prepared with the best responses? Enter the sales script! Think a script is only useful for newbie salespeople? Think again! With the new year comes an opportunity to dust off old material and think of our messaging in a new way. Taking the time to craft a script that is timely and relevant can mean the difference between a closed deal (great intro, effective probing questions and a convincingly delivered Value Proposition) and a lost opportunity (due to a poor introduction and lack of engagement questions that lead to a summary dismissal). Consider these benefits of taking the time to craft a new prospecting script: (more…)
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The Benefits of Crafting a Well-Written Prospecting Script
The most daunting part of making a sales call on the topic of commercial insurance is preparing for the unknown. Will I reach the decision-maker – typically a CEO or CFO? What kind of questions will the decision–maker ask? Am I prepared with the best responses? Enter the sales script! Think a script is only useful for a newbie producer? Think again! With the new year comes an opportunity to dust off old material and think about our messaging in a new way. Taking the time to craft a script that is timely and relevant can mean the difference between a closed deal (great intro, effective probing questions and a convincingly delivered Value Proposition) and a lost opportunity (due to a poor introduction and lack of engagement questions that lead to a summary dismissal). Consider these benefits of taking the time to craft a new prospecting script for your producers: (more…)
Incorporate Holiday Cheer into an Online Environment
2020 has been a crazy year. With a global pandemic costing us our normalcy and far more, people are in a collective funk. While it is getting cold outside here in the North, businesses can create a warm company culture for employees. The upcoming holidays are the perfect time to incorporate festivities and fun into your company, even in a remote setting. Although the recent news has broke from Pfizer of a promising vaccine, it seems as though many of us will remain remote till further notice, so make the most of it! (more…)
Creative Ideas for Vending During the Holidays
The holidays will be here before we know it! The ongoing pandemic may put a damper on holiday cheer, but keeping the spirit alive is essential. The Vending Industry can help in that department in some unexpected ways. Creativity and innovation will keep us coming together, even while we may be celebrating apart. Here are some jolly suggestions:
Donations
Believe it or not, vending machines can make donations to charities simple. While it sounds optimistic, innovators have proved it is possible. The Light The World Campaign proved what one vending machine can accomplish. The Holiday Giving Vending Machine is like any other, except instead of buying a box of crackers, you can buy donations. With locations in London, Manila, New York City, Salt Lake City, and Denver, this machine is spreading glee globally. Within the past three years, it has made countless donations and raised 2.3 million dollars last year. (more…)
The Power of Testimonials and Reviews in the Vending Industry
It is safe to say that there are no better marketing tools than testimonials and reviews. People want to hear about the good and the bad and, truthfully, anything you see on a company’s website will always come with some bias. For vending and micro-markets, hearing from past customers is good way to decide whether the product or service will be the right fit. There are many benefits – for both your prospects and your company – that come with sharing testimonials and reviews. Some of these benefits include: (more…)
REDIRECTED – “Call Me After the Holidays”: The 2021 Edition
Winter is certainly coming, but the pandemic is not leaving. COVID-19 is continuing to uproot normalcy and force businesses to change their models. With new daily cases on the rise (as of this writing), the threat of another shutdown seems to linger around every corner. The pandemic coupled with the frenzy of the holiday season is enough to make anyone want to hold off stressful decisions. It hasn’t been easy to be a salesperson in the last few years.
Everyone is hoping that come the new year, the pandemic will slow down and ideally come to a screeching halt. Even so, it is important to take uncertainty into account when prospecting and understanding that, “Call me after the holidays” may also mean, “Call me when COVID is over”. (more…)
The Power of Testimonials and Reviews
—Reprinted with permission from PIA Management Services Inc.—
It is safe to say testimonials and reviews are great marketing tools. They are even more valuable (or sought after) when making a big decision, such as changing your insurance carrier. People want to hear about the good and the bad and, truthfully, anything they see on a company’s website will come with some bias.
Hearing from past clients or customers is a good way for prospects to decide whether your agency would be the right fit for them. Ultimately, there are many benefits—for both your prospects and your agency—that come with sharing testimonials and reviews. Some of these benefits include the following. (more…)
Your Prospect Demographics Have Changed, So Re-Qualify!
Your prospect list should always be a living document, but right now, more than ever, it needs a check-up. The companies that are back at work must be re-qualified before prospecting can be performed successfully; this task can be performed by either your salesman or by MarketReach. There are three prime areas that require a re-qualification in the face of changes that COVID-19 brought on, and they are (1) the decision-maker’s name and title, (2) staff size if that is relevant and (3) how to get in contact with the decision-maker if they are working remote. Salespeople will be frustrated and, may in fact, become demotivated to prospect if their whole world is turned upside down — who they thought their prospects WERE, are NOT targets anymore. A salesperson’s job has become monumentally harder. (more…)
Reallocate Your Trade Show Marketing Dollars
If you haven’t reviewed your company’s cost savings as a result of trade show cancelations, look now! Even though your total investment depends on the size of your booth and frequency of events, it’s safe to say you’ve saved thousands of dollars. If trade shows have traditionally been a positive investment for your organization, your sales pipeline might be missing some new prospects. Here are some budgeting tips for the end of 2020 now that we are knee–deep in budget season.
Are you using this money to grow your pipeline? If so, how?
The unfortunate cancelation of all in-person trade shows and conferences have none-the-less opened countless opportunities for other marketing tactics to be utilized. Now more than ever, marketing and sales are working hard to ramp up business development. How is your company supporting them? Is your company pursuing B2B phone outreach tactics, email marketing, direct mailers or other lead generation techniques? On the digital side, do you allocate funds to paid advertising, for example Google Ads, LinkedIn Sponsored Ads, or Facebook Ads? What accounts for your biggest marketing costs? From a ROI perspective, if you’ve tracked results, which are most successful? (more…)
Motivating Your Sales Team Remotely
There is no doubt that having a motivated staff plays a huge role in the success of a company, however, the work-from-home model forces managers to get more creative in how they motivate their sales team. The managers who have an in-depth understanding of their salespeople and what drives them will see positives results in terms of productivity. There are multiple ways to motivate your employees, but you must determine the best option for your specific company culture. In order to do this, consider asking yourself the following: (more…)