The Sales Advantage Podcast

Creating an advantage in your business requires you to make some decisions, invest in resources and training, and commit to something new. Can it be scary? Yes! Is it worth it? Yes! So are you ready for Inside Sales Advantage? Yes! In this week's episode, I share with you what Inside Sales Advantage is and all that is included in this comprehensive training program. You don't have to do th...

Did you miss a lot of your retailers at the trade shows? Do you have a lot of customers placing smaller orders, and are your sales reps having a hard time getting appointments with customers right now? Have these questions left you thinking, where in the world are your customers? In this week's episode we talk about where your customers are at right now and how you can be there for them. I am...

Hiring is not easy, and hiring for a position you don't know much about is even more difficult.  What experience and skills should you look for? Inside sales is a position every business needs but who would want to do it. In this week's episode, we are talking about what kind of person you should hire for inside sales and I am sharing an example of why hiring one now is so important for yo...

Does one brick make a solid foundation, does two bricks? Do you agree that 5 bricks would make a foundation more solid that one or two bricks? Then would five sales channels create a strong foundation for your business especially when one or two channels are not performing as expected.  And what is the one channel that can support all other channels?  In this week's episode we are talking abou...

Are you scratching your head as you think about how one territory in the country can be bringing in tons of sales while another area is not getting any action? Does this frustrate you? My first question to you is are you taking a one size fits all approach to your sales model? Do you think every territory in the country should have the exact same sales model applied to without any modifications? W...

Have you ever had a problem that you thought, oh that's not that big of a deal? Until it turns out it is a really big deal. It's kind of like a slow leak that ends up sinking a boat, or a slow leak that floods your basement. It seems like a small problem but can turn really bad, really quick. Open territories with no active sales people is like that slow leak. You may not even realize the...

When things get complicated and you don't know what to do next, what happens to you?  Do you stop taking another step? Do you stop trying to achieve your goals? This is very common and it can happen to all of us. So when I saw this happening to a lot of sales professionals I had to do something about it.  In this week's episode, I share with you how the Sales Focus Calendar helps my sales...

When you have a passion for the Gift & Home Industry + a group of inspiring young professionals that = the creation of a problem solving association. That is exactly what the Specialty Wholesale Talent Association (SWTA) is. They are looking at some of the major issues in the Gift & Home industry and doing something about. In this week's episode you will hear from Delaney and Dillon Wo...

Do you ever wonder what it takes to get to the next level in your job or your business? Do you see people that inspire you and wonder, how they got there? This week's episode features Tara Dikos who is the Executive Vice President of 5 brands in the Gift & Home Industry, including Transpac. Tara shares how learning and gaining experience in every position, being a good leader, and building...

You work so hard on your business! Every little thing you do adds up to creating a business you and your customers love. So when you work so hard especially at a trade show, why wouldn't you follow up with every lead? Not every customer that attends a trade show is ready to place an order at the show, but at some point they will be to order. The vendors that show the customers value and follow...

Being an entrepreneur is a thrilling journey filled with all kinds of highs and lows. When you embark on the journey, you have a dream, and a business plan, but very rarely does it all work out the way you planned or thought. This week's episode features a very candid and encouraging conversation with Monica Freeborn who is a retailer with 2 Midwest brick and mortar locations as well as a thri...

Does an inside sales model really work in the Gift & Home industry when a brand has a wholesale website and sales reps covering the entire country? Top vendors in our industry know that it does work and DM Merchandising is no exception.  This week's episode features Michael Sheck who is the Head of Sales at DM Merchandising.  Michael has several years of experience in and outside the Gift...

Tired of the negativity regarding online platforms like Faire? I hear you! Have you ever thought about how online platforms have created a positive impact for our industry? And how Faire is a positive platform for retailers, vendors, and even sales reps? Well, in this week's episode I share some of the positives things to think about regarding online platforms. Be sure to subscribe to this sho...

Gone are the days of phone books and the yellow pages.  When you want to find out information about a business, you search the internet and look for their website.  So what makes your business website stand out and become a great website? And why is a website necessary for a retailer and a wholesale vendor? In this week's episode I share 3 criteria that make a website great when you work all 3...

Ready for a journaling exercise to really understand how to make the most of social media in your business? Whether you love social media or hate it, understanding what platforms to use, how much time to invest in it, and what you want to share will help guide you in how you use social media in your business. This episode will ask you 3 main questions and supporting questions to get you thinking....

Bored? Tired of the same ol' thing? Ready to jump start your enthusiasm? Well, the best way to do that is to learn something new and then put it into action. Learning something new can change your perspective and help you get out of the slump of the same old thing.  Whether you want to learn something new for your personal or professional life, you will want to tune into this episode for some...

Is the fear of rejection holding you back from asking a question or putting yourself out there in the world to do what you are called to do? Even though rejection can hurt, you can use it to propel you to the next step. But how can you do that? In this week's episode you will learn how even famous and successful people were rejected at one time or another, and how you can deal with rejection a...

Struggling to get motivated? Defeated by comparison?  Wishing you could do better? In this week's episode, I want to share with you a little sales pep talk, and give you some questions to think about.  Here are the questions you want to ask yourself: Are you doing the activities needed to connect with customers and generate sales? Are you focused on your sales number more than the customers? ...

What should you be selling right now?  Should you focus on new, seasonal, or best-selling items? It can feel a little overwhelming and a lot of work to keep coming up with what to sell if you are a retailer, sales rep, and a wholesale vendor. So let's talk about it on this week’s episode, and get your free Sales Focus Calendar mentioned in this episode at www.brokenvesselsales.com . Be sure to...

Managing hundreds or thousands of customers at one time is bound to get overwhelming and leave you with too much to do and not even time to do it. But when you use a CRM, managing your customers' relationships is a lot easier. But where do you start and what do you look for in a CRM? In this week's episode, I am sharing 5 things you should look for when considering a CRM including the key...

When you love what you do, it no longer becomes work! That's how I feel about inside sales. You may be thinking, you really love inside sales? Yes, I do, and in this episode I will tell you why I fell in love with inside sales and why I think it can transform businesses. Plus, I share three ways you can use inside sales in your business to be able to connect with more customers, because that i...

Is your business losing customers like a leaky boat? And customers keep slipping through the cracks, even though you want to take care of every single customer like they were your only customer? I know you do, but it takes time, you probably don't have. It takes extra effort, you may not have the resources for. But what if you did have the time and extra resources, do you know where to start g...

Are you ready to meet someone who is filled with experience, knowledge and value, and pours it out to people around her just so she can watch others grow? This is Valerie Underwood, and she has combined her passion and career in home furnishings to benefit this industry by helping so many people create businesses and lives they love. Valerie invests in people, their stories and their success. In t...

Are you aware you are making an impact on people every single day? But is your impact positive or negative? Have you thought about the work you do and how it impacts the people you serve, your co-workers and everyone around you? A lot of us try to do good deeds and spread kindness, but we are also making an impact when we don't even know it. In this week's episode, I share the impact two sales rep...

What is it like to go from being a successful retailer to a top-notch sales rep? Well, Ruth Grigson has some answers for you! Ruth owned a retail business for 12 years. In Ruth's final year of business she achieved her goal of hitting million dollars in retail sales. Then she sold her business and became a sales rep, where again she has achieved great success because she values her customers, she...