Sales Compensation Plans That Drive Q4 Behavior
sales compensation plans that drive q4 behavior 3 By Jennifer Hines, President, Accelerated Sales & Leadership Institute Most sales compensation plans were built for a selling environment that no longer exists, and Q4 is when that shows up in your margin. This article explains why comp plans quietly reward discounting and deal-hoarding right when you […]
B2C Sales Training Skills That Transfer to Service Firms
b2c sales training skills that transfer to service firms 6 B2C sales training is not useless in a service business, and it is not a plug-and-play answer. The skills that transfer are human: fast response, emotional read, genuine rapport, and honest urgency. The ones that do not are the pressure closes built for retail. This […]
Active Listening in Sales: Hear What Buyers Won’t Say
active listening in sales: hear what buyers won’t say 9 By Jennifer Hines, President of ASLI. Most reps hear every word a buyer says and still miss the one that closes the deal, the gap between hearing and listening. Here is a coachable system for active listening in sales you can install this quarter. TLDR: […]
Accelerate Your Sales Cycle Without Discounting
accelerate your sales cycle without discounting 12 You accelerate a sales cycle by removing the friction that stalls deals, not by pressuring buyers or slashing price. That means qualifying harder up front, engaging every decision-maker early, and ending each call with a committed next step. Below is why deals drag, and how to compress cycle […]
From Bloated to Bankable: What Your CFO Needs to See in Your Pipeline
A big pipeline number feels like good news until close rates stay flat and cash flow stays unpredictable. A bloated pipeline lies to everyone in the building. This article reframes pipeline quality as a financial credibility issue, walks through the five metrics a CFO or investor actually trusts, and shows you how to clean up […]
Sales Process Triage: A 30-Day Diagnostic for Struggling Revenue
When revenue is struggling, most executives start spending. They buy a CRM, hire a trainer, or replace a rep, all before knowing what is actually broken. This article gives you a structured 30-day diagnostic that tells you exactly where your sales process is failing, whether the cause is leadership, skill, or system, and what to […]
The Active Listening Playbook for Complex, Multi-Stakeholder Deals
Most active listening training teaches reps to focus on one person. Complex deals do not work that way. This article shows how active listening in sales changes with three to seven decision-makers at the table: the four mistakes that kill committee deals, and a three-phase framework to fix them. TLDR: Selling to a committee is […]
Summer Is Not a Hiring Pause: Prevent the $240K Sales Hire Mistake Before Q3
Every summer, $5M+ service businesses either pause hiring or rush a sales hire before Q3. Both paths lead to a 40% failure rate and up to $240K wasted per bad hire. The problem is not candidates. It is a broken system built on resumes and gut feel instead of assessments and competencies. TLDR: A bad […]
Make Active Listening Your Q2 Superpower: The Summer Coaching Plan for Your Sales Team
Summer conversations get lazy, and deals go quiet. Active listening is not a personality trait. It is the most measurable, coachable competency that separates reps who close summer deals from those who lose them. TLDR: Active listening is the highest-ROI skill you can coach this summer. Training alone improves productivity 23%; training plus coaching improves it […]
Q2 Sales Communication Strategy: How to Keep Deals Moving When Summer Distractions Hit
Summer slows buyer responsiveness, stretches decision timelines, and exposes every gap in your team’s sales communication strategy. A structured approach to effective communication keeps deals advancing even when prospects are distracted or delaying. TLDR: Deals do not stall in summer because buyers lose interest. They stall because reps lack a deliberate sales communication strategy. Companies […]