The Mark

The fact is that most salespeople are bad at selling. Only 3% are great, the other 97% are all doing the same thing, the stuff you read about in all the other sales books and training seminars. I wrote this book because I was tired of no one properly explaining what to do to get into, work, and close big accounts. I’ve sat in numerous corporate sales training classes, read all the sales books out there, and realized that most of the people who are teaching or writing about sales haven’t sold in ten to twenty years. I’m amazed they even sold back then.

I am selling now, even as you read this book. I go after the Fortune 500 space with no prior relationship within the companies, and I get in the door at the C-Suite (CEO, CFO, COO, CIO, etc.) or the EVP/SVP level a majority of the time, no matter what I’m “selling.” Why is that? In the coming chapters I will share some tricks of the trade with you on how I penetrate these large global organizations. If you’re already working at that level then I’ll show you ways to possibly improve or add to your approach.

Let me be clear from the start, there is no one paint brush in sales, no magical approach that works every time. Sales is a living, breathing process changing all the time, and we must change our approach to meet the different needs of each prospect. There’s no one book that has the master plan to close every sale. If you could buy one book and use it and be successful every time then everyone would be in sales, and one author would be unbelievably rich. This book does not claim to be a sales bible or a how-to book for all salespeople in all industries. This is a book about real sales to corporate accounts. It is meant to stimulate your thinking about the sales approach you use, particularly when trying to access Fortune 500 companies and global corporations, and give you ideas to improve your technique. The tips in this book are based on what I have personally used to be successful in sales, not ten years ago but today, and I give you real-life examples to demonstrate how the techniques work first-hand.

In Chapter 1 we look at what I mean by “real sales,” and Chapter 2 discusses some of the mistakes salespeople make in their sales approach. Chapter 3 will help you balance your desire for the big corporate sale with the necessity of smaller sales to pay the rent. Chapter 4 takes a look at how to lead the sale by being a thought leader for the prospect. Chapters 5-13 walk you through the actual steps of the sales cycle for corporate accounts, including research, calls, appointments, pricing, and referrals. This is where you’ll find out how to get your foot in the door and keep it there. Chapter 14 takes a look at the different obstacles real salespeople have to watch out for, and Chapter 15 will discuss how to value your time as a salesperson. Chapter 16 offers some final thoughts.

Thank you for buying this book, I am confident that even if you’re already a part of the top 3% of salespeople you’ll find a trick or two in here that makes it worth your while, along with a good chuckle. Enjoy, and tell your friends!