Adapt or die -as my first boss said.
Your world is getting rocked.
Why would anyone want to read another book touting successful selling techniques and how to sell more? Hasn't just about everything that could be written about selling success been written? Or so it would seem, from the volume of available material on bookshelves that suggest how to sell yourself to others, or how to understand a prospect(s)'s reason for buying or determining the decision makers. And it hardly ends here. Every imaginable sales situation has been diagnosed and dissected countless times and numerous approaches to solutions applied. Yet are you any further ahead in your career as a salesperson? How is your close ratio? Are you earning more business or losing more business? Are you and your sales team wasting time trying to follow up on sales that just don't close? How accurate is your sales pipeline?
So, what IS new here? And what would entice someone to purchase another "business success" book?
The world has changed since we published the first edition of this book in 2013. There are several updates and specifically, two new chapters: channel management and technology and the sales professional. McKinsey predicts 45% of all marketing and sales jobs will be replaced by AI. If you are not staying ahead of technology and following a sales process, you will end up like the buggy whip salesperson in the 1950s. Or like Mr. Brown the bookseller... in a bustling city, there was a street lined with small shops selling all kinds of goods. One of these shops was a small bookstore owned by an old man named Mr. Brown. Mr. Brown had been running his bookstore for over 40 years and had seen many changes in the city.
Channel Management: Forrester reports that 75% of all technology sales revenue is through partners. What is prepared is a definitive guide for recruiting and selecting partners, how to onboard the partners, and continual, ongoing optimization of the partners.
Technology, whew! My advisory/consulting clients suggested that a section was necessary on technology and today's business development professionals. I intended to research and provide information on the impact of CRM and other sales technology support.
During the past two years, I have been utilizing marketing intelligence, campaign management, and other sales-tracking CRM software. All these tools have improved sales processes and efficiency. Then, I discovered AI and how it's impacted our work today and likely will impact how you approach business. Hang onto your hats, it's going to be a fun ride. The changes and velocity of change are incredible.