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Terry Slattery is the President and CEO of Slattery Sales Group. After serving four years in the Air Force, Terry got his degree in economics, and joined IBM’s sales team. This propelled him into 20+ year career in sales. On this week’s show, Terry discusses what a ‘bankable forecast’ is, where companies lack the most when hiring new sales reps, and why so many companies struggle to get that big deal locked in.
What were the key takeaways?
[2:10] Who is Terry and what does Slattery Sales Group do?
[6:10] A founder was once telling Terry it takes him two years for a sales rep to be properly trained in his industry.
[9:35] Terry has to make sure there’s alignment between the CEO’s priorities and management. When things aren’t clear, that’s when things start to break down on a production level.
[12:10] Before you spend resources training a sales rep, you first have to ask yourself a series of important questions.
[15:00] 6% of your entire workforce will be elite, another 20% will be good, and the rest of the 74% will range from being a 3-year project to a bad hire.
[20:00] Don’t be in a hurry to hire! It’s going to be a mistake!
[22:00] What does ‘bankable forecast’ mean?
[32:50] Focus on organizing management first; that way your team understands the process. The process is easier to train/teach than throwing them in with the sharks.
[41:25] Half of all sales people are uncomfortable to talk about money. This means that they can’t defend premium price.
[43:25] Didn’t get the deal? You will want to listen to what Terry has to say on why!
[53:40] Keep in mind there’s a big difference in the daily operations and behaviors of someone who is closing 90% of their business vs. only closing 10%.
[54:30] How much does it cost the business when there’s a bad sales hire? Over 6 figures!
[1:03:50] Statistically, in a multivendor contest, the last contestant gets the business 9 times out of 10, no matter what the price is.
6 points to cover if you are working toward a “bankable” sales forecast and a 90% close rate:
1. Prospect has a reasons to change a business relationship behavior.
2. Value – Not having the value you provide has to have consequences.
3. They know how much $$$ it will cost to fix the problem.
4. You have a clear understanding on how the decision is made.
5. When will the decision be made?
6. Set clear agreements.
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